i Register
In some senses, haywire is marked as rare. Watch for register when choosing this word.
haywire
UK /ˈheɪ.waɪ.ə(ɹ)/ US /ˈheɪ.waɪɚ/
adj 2noun 1verb 1
Collocations
2VERB + HAYWIRE
avoid, go, going, gone, kids, made, went
PREP.
after, until
Definitions
noun
1
Wire used to bind bales of hay.
MOWERS AND HAY RAKES, HAY PRESSES, HAY TIES AND HAY WIRE.
adj
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.
It was working fine until it went haywire and wouldn't stop printing blank sheets.
Those kids go haywire when they don't get what they want.
verb
1
To attach or fix with haywire.
Thesaurus
Idioms & Phrases
Example Bank
601
MOWERS AND HAY RAKES, HAY PRESSES, HAY TIES AND HAY WIRE.
Wiktionary02
It was working fine until it went haywire and wouldn't stop printing blank sheets.
Wiktionary03
Those kids go haywire when they don't get what they want.
Wiktionary04
The engineer who makes of his calling a burden, who sees nothing but the wrong, or imposition as he may term it, who fancies perhaps that the whole world has conspired against him, who commences to da
Wiktionary05
It is essential to keep calm in a time of crisis and avoid going haywire.
Tatoeba · #2071106
The drunkard had too much to drink; he has gone haywire.
Tatoeba · #45979Usage Notes
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