ENGLISH DICTIONARY

Haywire

Definition, Meaning & Examples

Pronunciation /ˈheɪ.waɪ.ə(ɹ)/ · Part of speech noun

Quick meaning: Haywire is a noun meaning Wire used to bind bales of hay.

Meaning

Wire used to bind bales of hay.

More Meanings

  1. Roughly-made, unsophisticated, decrepit (from the use of haywire for temporary repairs).
  2. Behaviorally erratic or uncontrollable, especially of a machine or mechanical process.
  3. (transitive, rare) To attach or fix with haywire.

Example Sentences

MOWERS AND HAY RAKES, HAY PRESSES, HAY TIES AND HAY WIRE.
Those kids go haywire when they don't get what they want.
It was working fine until it went haywire and wouldn't stop printing blank sheets.
Temperatures soared—the seas warmed by as much as eighteen degrees—and the chemistry of the oceans went haywire, as if in an out-of-control aquarium.

Word Forms

Synonyms for haywire

Depending on context, synonyms include balmy, awry, loony, insane, wacky, dotty.

Related Words

Related dictionary entries include balmy, crackers, buggy, cracked, fruity, nutty.

Related Dictionary Tools

Sources & Attribution

FreeDictionaryAPI.com / Wiktionary · Original source · CC BY-SA 4.0

Dictionary data is provided by FreeDictionaryAPI.com and sourced from Wiktionary under its stated license.