释义 |
haywire
hay·wire H0094600 (hā′wīr′)n. Wire used in baling hay.adj. Informal 1. Not functioning or happening in a proper or orderly fashion: machinery that went haywire; an experiment that went haywire.2. Mentally confused or erratic; crazy: The traveler went haywire over the endless delays. [From the use of baling wire for makeshift repairs .]Word History: Why should wire used in baling hay be a metaphor for something that is not functioning properly or for a person who is crazy? It would seem a story of semantics gone haywire. From the written record, it appears the use originated among North American loggers around 1900, who often used haywire to make repairs. These repairs were often considered shoddy or unreliable, and haywire developed the general sense "makeshift, inefficient," from which come the extended senses "not functioning properly" and "crazy."haywire (ˈheɪˌwaɪə) adj (postpositive) 1. (of things) not functioning properly; disorganized (esp in the phrase go haywire)2. (of people) erratic or crazy[C20: alluding to the disorderly tangle of wire removed from bales of hay]hay•wire (ˈheɪˌwaɪər) n. 1. wire used to bind bales of hay. adj. 2. in disorder. 3. out of control; disordered; crazy. [1900–05] ThesaurusNoun | 1. | haywire - wire for tying up bales of haywire - ligament made of metal and used to fasten things or make cages or fences etc | Adj. | 1. | haywire - informal or slang terms for mentally irregular; "it used to drive my husband balmy"bats, batty, bonkers, buggy, crackers, daft, dotty, kookie, kooky, loco, loony, around the bend, balmy, nuts, round the bend, wacky, whacky, nutty, barmy, loopy, fruity, crackedinsane - afflicted with or characteristic of mental derangement; "was declared insane"; "insane laughter" | | 2. | haywire - not functioning properly; "something is amiss"; "has gone completely haywire"; "something is wrong with the engine"amiss, awry, wrongmalfunctioning, nonfunctional - not performing or able to perform its regular function; "a malfunctioning valve" |
haywireadjective1. chaotic, confused, disordered, tangled, mixed up, shambolic (informal), topsy-turvy, disorganized, disarranged Many Americans think their legal system is haywire.2. out of order, out of commission, on the blink (slang), on the fritz (slang) Her pacemaker went haywire near hand dryers.3. (of people) crazy, wild, mad, potty (Brit. informal), berserk, bonkers (slang, chiefly Brit.), loopy (informal), mad as a hatter I went haywire in our first few weeks on holiday.Translationshay (hei) noun grass, cut and dried, used as food for cattle etc. 乾草 干草ˌhay-ˈfever noun an illness like a bad cold, caused by the pollen of flowers etc. 花粉熱 花粉热ˈhayrick (-rik) , ˈhay-stack nouns hay built up into a large pile. 乾草堆 干草堆ˈhaywire adjective in a state of disorder; crazy. Our computer has gone haywire. 亂七八糟的 乱七八糟的haywire
go haywire1. To start malfunctioning or having problems. Well, the coffee pot has gone haywire yet again. Maybe it's time to get a new one.2. To become irrational or crazy. I'll end up going haywire if I have to work in this cubicle for one more day!See also: go, haywirehaywire1. Malfunctioning or in a state of extreme disorder. Our coffee pot went haywire before I could make a cup this morning—it started spurting everywhere. The campaign has gone haywire now that the manager has resigned.2. Irrational or crazy. Ever since the tragedy, it's like her mind has just gone haywire. I'll end up going haywire if I have to work in this cubicle for one more day!go haywireRur. to go wrong; to malfunction; to break down. I was talking to Mary when suddenly the telephone went haywire. I haven't heard from her since. There we were, driving along, when the engine went haywire. It was two hours before the tow truck came.See also: go, haywirego haywireBecome wildly confused, out of control, or crazy. For example, The plans for the party have gone haywire, or His enemies accused the mayor of going haywire. This term alludes to the wire used for bundling hay, which is hard to handle and readily tangled. [First half of 1900s] See also: go, haywirego ˈhaywire (informal) go out of control; start functioning or behaving in a very strange way: My printer’s gone haywire. It keeps stopping and starting.See also: go, haywirego haywire1. in. [for a person] to go berserk. Sorry, I guess I just went haywire for a minute. 2. in. [for something] to go out of order; to break down. I’m afraid my car’s gone haywire. It won’t start. See also: go, haywirehaywire (ˈhewɑɪr)1. mod. out of order. (Folksy.) This telephone has gone haywire. 2. mod. disoriented. (Often from marijuana.) Willy is sort of haywire from the grass. go haywire, toTo run amok; to become hopelessly entangled or to break down. There are two theories as to the origin of this term, which is originally American. One holds that it came from the practice of using old baling wire to make repairs, a makeshift solution at best. The other, upheld by H. L. Mencken, says it refers to the difficulty of handling coils of wire used for bundling hay, which readily become entangled.See also: goEncyclopediaSeeHayhaywire Related to haywire: go haywireSynonyms for haywireadj chaoticSynonyms- chaotic
- confused
- disordered
- tangled
- mixed up
- shambolic
- topsy-turvy
- disorganized
- disarranged
adj out of orderSynonyms- out of order
- out of commission
- on the blink
- on the fritz
adj crazySynonyms- crazy
- wild
- mad
- potty
- berserk
- bonkers
- loopy
- mad as a hatter
Synonyms for haywirenoun wire for tying up bales of hayRelated Wordsadj informal or slang terms for mentally irregularSynonyms- bats
- batty
- bonkers
- buggy
- crackers
- daft
- dotty
- kookie
- kooky
- loco
- loony
- around the bend
- balmy
- nuts
- round the bend
- wacky
- whacky
- nutty
- barmy
- loopy
- fruity
- cracked
Related Wordsadj not functioning properlySynonymsRelated Words- malfunctioning
- nonfunctional
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