mad

[[t]mæ̱d[/t]]

♦♦♦

madder, maddest

1) ADJ Someone who is mad has a mind that does not work in a normal way, with the result that their behaviour is very strange.

She was afraid of going mad.

...the mad old lady from down the street.

Syn:

insane

Derived words:

madness N-UNCOUNT

He was driven to the brink of madness.

2) ADJ-GRADED (disapproval) You use mad to describe people or things that you think are very foolish.

You'd be mad to work with him again...

Isn't that a rather mad idea?

Syn:

crazy

Derived words:

madness N-UNCOUNT

It is political madness.

3) ADJ-GRADED: usu v-link ADJ, oft ADJ at/about n If you say that someone is mad, you mean that they are very angry. [INFORMAL]

You're just mad at me because I don't want to go...

I'm pretty mad about it, I can tell you.

4) ADJ-GRADED: v-link ADJ about/on n If you are mad about or mad on something or someone, you like them very much indeed. [INFORMAL]

She's not as mad about sport as I am...

He's mad about you...

He's mad on trains.

COMB in ADJ-GRADED

Mad is also a combining form.

...his football-mad son... He's not power-mad.

5) ADJ Mad behaviour is wild and uncontrolled.

You only have an hour to complete the game so it's a mad dash against the clock...

The audience went mad.

Syn:

frantic

Derived words:

madly ADV ADV with v

Down in the streets people were waving madly.

6) PHRASE: V inflects If you say that someone or something drives you mad, you mean that you find them extremely annoying. [INFORMAL]

There are certain things he does that drive me mad...

This itching is driving me mad.

7) PHRASE: PHR after v If you do something like mad, you do it very energetically or enthusiastically. [INFORMAL]

He was weight training like mad.

8) → See also madly

mad keen → see keen