1 bonkers | Definition of bonkers

bonkers

adjective
bon·​kers | \ ˈbäŋ-kÉ™rz How to pronounce bonkers (audio) , ˈbȯŋ-\

Definition of bonkers

informal
: crazy, mad: such as
a : very fond, enthusiastic, or excited She's bonkers for/about opera. He's bonkers for/about her. The fans went bonkers when their team won.
b : very angry, annoyed, or bothered Faced with the choice of being driven bonkers by their colicky newborn or inviting an outsider into their lives, Phil and Julie sanely decide to find a nanny.Booklist And the internet went completely and utterly bonkers about it, with critics climbing over one another to criticize Cyrus …— Tom Hawking
c sometimes offensive : having or showing severe mental illness Meanwhile, the greedy trustees of her fortune are trying to confuse her enough to have her declared bonkers so they can make their jobs permanent.— Ray Olson

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Synonyms & Antonyms for bonkers

Synonyms

balmy, barmy [chiefly British], bats, batty, bedlam, brainsick, bughouse [slang], certifiable, crackbrained, cracked, crackers, crackpot, cranky [dialect], crazed, crazy, cuckoo, daffy, daft, demented, deranged, fruity [slang], gaga, haywire, insane, kooky (also kookie), loco [slang], loony (also looney), loony tunes (or looney tunes), lunatic, mad, maniacal (also maniac), mental, meshuga (or meshugge), moonstruck, non compos mentis, nuts, nutty, psycho, psychotic, scatty [chiefly British], screwy, unbalanced, unhinged, unsound, wacko (also whacko), wacky (also whacky), wud [chiefly Scottish]

Antonyms

balanced, compos mentis, sane, sound, uncrazy

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Examples of bonkers in a Sentence

You have to be bonkers to gamble that much. I was driven bonkers by the noise.

Recent Examples on the Web

Graffiti historian Roger Gastman—who helped orchestrate MOCA’s record-setting Art in the Streets show in 2011—takes over a 40,000-square-foot warehouse on the edge of Chinatown for a totally bonkers street art experience. Marielle Wakim, Los Angeles Magazine, "The 8 Best Things Going On In L.A. This Weekend," 21 June 2018 Hulu’s new show from the creator of Luther is a totally bonkers melange of sci-fi scenarios, global doom, and stabbiness. Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, "Hard Sun Is Almost Impressively Demented," 7 Mar. 2018 Graffiti historian Roger Gastman—who helped orchestrate MOCA’s record-setting Art in the Streets show in 2011—takes over a 40,000-square-foot warehouse on the edge of Chinatown for a totally bonkers street art experience. Marielle Wakim, Los Angeles Magazine, "The 8 Best Things Going On In L.A. This Weekend," 21 June 2018 Graffiti historian Roger Gastman—who helped orchestrate MOCA’s record-setting Art in the Streets show in 2011—takes over a 40,000-square-foot warehouse on the edge of Chinatown for a totally bonkers street art experience. Marielle Wakim, Los Angeles Magazine, "The 8 Best Things Going On In L.A. This Weekend," 21 June 2018 Graffiti historian Roger Gastman—who helped orchestrate MOCA’s record-setting Art in the Streets show in 2011—takes over a 40,000-square-foot warehouse on the edge of Chinatown for a totally bonkers street art experience. Marielle Wakim, Los Angeles Magazine, "The 8 Best Things Going On In L.A. This Weekend," 21 June 2018 Graffiti historian Roger Gastman—who helped orchestrate MOCA’s record-setting Art in the Streets show in 2011—takes over a 40,000-square-foot warehouse on the edge of Chinatown for a totally bonkers street art experience. Marielle Wakim, Los Angeles Magazine, "The 8 Best Things Going On In L.A. This Weekend," 21 June 2018 Graffiti historian Roger Gastman—who helped orchestrate MOCA’s record-setting Art in the Streets show in 2011—takes over a 40,000-square-foot warehouse on the edge of Chinatown for a totally bonkers street art experience. Marielle Wakim, Los Angeles Magazine, "The 8 Best Things Going On In L.A. This Weekend," 21 June 2018 Graffiti historian Roger Gastman—who helped orchestrate MOCA’s record-setting Art in the Streets show in 2011—takes over a 40,000-square-foot warehouse on the edge of Chinatown for a totally bonkers street art experience. Marielle Wakim, Los Angeles Magazine, "The 8 Best Things Going On In L.A. This Weekend," 21 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'bonkers.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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First Known Use of bonkers

1945, in the meaning defined above

History and Etymology for bonkers

perhaps from bonk + -ers (as in crackers)

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More from Merriam-Webster on bonkers

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for bonkers