HAYWIRE Definition & Meaning

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haywire

[hey-wahy^uhr]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

Informal.

in disorder.
The town is haywire because of the bus strike.
out of control; disordered; crazy.
The car went haywire. He's been haywire since he got the bad news.

haywire

/ ˈ��ɪˌ�ɲ�ɪə /

(of things) not functioning properly; disorganized (esp in the phrase go haywire )
(of people) erratic or crazy

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Origin of haywire¹

First recorded in 1900–05; hay + wire

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Origin of haywire¹

C20: alluding to the disorderly tangle of wire removed from bales of hay

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Examples have not been reviewed.

Things go haywire from here, and DeYoung has the rare opportunity to punch as hard as he possibly can.

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Expected to be a steadying force, Garbers was one of the reasons things went haywire in the first half.

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It makes it much easier for some immune cells to go haywire and drive excessive inflammation in the bowels.

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Because of the totally haywire way we tax people, which depends on heavy gas taxes, among other things.

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If the markets went totally haywire, someone would catch on and shut the party down.

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