haywire
Completely out of control
Haywire means erratic, out of control, or malfunctioning.
The word comes from the thin wire used to bale hay, which tangles easily when cut.
Something that goes haywire stops working properly: The computer went haywire and deleted everything.
A person who goes haywire becomes irrational or crazy.
Haywire can also describe something improvised or shoddy—held together with the proverbial baling wire.
Minor system fault
- bugCrawling creature or defect
- fritzState of disrepair
- misfireFailure to discharge
- snafuConfused, botched situation
short-circuit · breakdown · failure · defect · fault · error · hiccup · disruption
Flourishing beyond control
- uncheckedNot controlled or limited
- unrestrainedNot held back
- wildNot domesticated or controlled
- unmanageableImpossible to control
berserk · amok · out of control · runaway · rogue · off the rails · untamed · unbridled
Seeds in shells
- madUnhinged or enraged
- bonkersWildly irrational, unhinged
- loopyMildly crazy, informal
- battyMildly eccentric or daft
wacky · bananas · crackers · cuckoo · screwy · unhinged · off the wall · out of whack
Cannot be anticipated
- sporadicOccurring irregularly, infrequently
- inconsistentLacking steady uniformity
- irregularDeviating from normal patterns
- spasmodicOccurring in irregular bursts
fluctuating · unreliable · fitful · unstable · volatile · wayward · haphazard · jumpy
Growled or knotted
- knottedTied with loops
- twistedWound around itself
- jumbledDisordered, lacking arrangement
- fouledMade dirty or entangled
scrambled · messed up · disheveled · disarrayed · muddled · crisscrossed · kinked · raveled
glitch
Minor system fault
snafu · short-circuit · breakdown · failure · defect · fault · error · hiccup · disruption · corruption
rampant
Flourishing beyond control
- uncheckedNot controlled or limited
- unrestrainedNot held back
- wildNot domesticated or controlled
unmanageable · berserk · amok · out of control · runaway · rogue · off the rails · untamed · unbridled · frenzied
nuts
Seeds in shells
batty · wacky · bananas · crackers · cuckoo · screwy · unhinged · off the wall · out of whack · cockamamie
unpredictable
Cannot be anticipated
- sporadicOccurring irregularly, infrequently
- inconsistentLacking steady uniformity
- irregularDeviating from normal patterns
spasmodic · fluctuating · unreliable · fitful · unstable · volatile · wayward · haphazard · jumpy · twitchy
snarled
Growled or knotted
fouled · scrambled · messed up · disheveled · disarrayed · muddled · crisscrossed · kinked · raveled
- chaosmayhem, chaotic, pandemonium, bedlam, turmoil
- disorderchaos, chaotic, disarray, mess, disordered
- lost controllost control, lost it, snapped, went crazy, went nuts
- malfunctionsbroken, defective, glitch, faulty, error
- lumberjackinglumberjack, logger, chainsaw, axe, felling
- brokenbroken, busted, broken down, out of order, not working
haywirefunctional
Able to operate correctly
functioning · working · operational · orderly · in order
- go haywireMalfunction chaotically
- gone haywire
- going haywire
- goes haywire