maniacal
adjective
ma·ni·a·cal
mə-ˈnī-ə-kəl 
variants
or less commonly maniac
1
: affected with or suggestive of madness
maniacal laughter
maniacal energy
a maniacal killer
2
: characterized by ungovernable excitement or frenzy : frantic
a maniacal mob
maniacal fans
Synonyms
- balmy
- barmy [chiefly British]
- bats
- batty
- bedlam
- bonkers
- brainsick
- bughouse [slang]
- certifiable
- crackbrained
- cracked
- crackers
- crackpot
- cranky [dialect]
- crazed
- crazy
- cuckoo
- daffy
- daft
- demented
- deranged
- fruity [slang]
- gaga
- haywire
- insane
- kooky
- kookie
- loco [slang]
- loony
- looney
- loony tunes
- looney tunes
- lunatic
- mad
- mental
- meshuga
- meshugge
- meshugah
- meshuggah
- moonstruck
- non compos mentis
- nuts
- nutty
- psycho
- psychotic
- scatty [chiefly British]
- screwy
- unbalanced
- unhinged
- unsound
- wacko
- whacko
- wacky
- whacky
- wud [chiefly Scottish]
Examples of maniacal in a Sentence
the movie's villain was a just a clichéd axe-wielding nutcase with a maniacal laugh
Recent Examples on the Web
MacFarlane, who performed many of the characters (including the hapless Peter, the maniacal baby Stewie and the erudite dog Brian), was joined by Alex Borstein (as faithful wife Lois), Seth Green (socially maladroit son Chris) and Mila Kunis (perpetually scapegoated daughter Meg).
—
Dave Itzkoff, Los Angeles Times, 16 Apr. 2024
In Wes Anderson's adaptation of Roald Dahl's beloved book, the actor voices the central critter, whose selfish behavior brings his entire community into conflict with three maniacal farmers.
—Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 23 Aug. 2023
See all Example Sentences for maniacal 
Dave Itzkoff, Los Angeles Times, 16 Apr. 2024
In Wes Anderson's adaptation of Roald Dahl's beloved book, the actor voices the central critter, whose selfish behavior brings his entire community into conflict with three maniacal farmers.
—Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 23 Aug. 2023
See all Example Sentences for maniacal
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'maniacal.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Maniacal.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/maniacal. Accessed 29 May. 2024.
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maniacal
adjective
ma·ni·a·cal
mə-ˈnī-ə-kəl
variants
also maniac
: affected with or suggestive of madness
Medical Definition
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