batty

adjective

bat·​ty ˈba-tē How to pronounce batty (audio)
battier; battiest
1
: of, relating to, or resembling a bat
… the monster envelopes her in its batty wings and zips off to another world …Sara Boboltz
2
a
: lacking reason or mental soundness : foolish, irrational
batty ideas
I'm doing the battiest things: leaving my phone in the fridge and forgetting my keys.Kate Spicer
… all work and no play will drive you batty.Adam Pockross
… Old Man Winter refuses to take his snowball and go home. So we're stuck inside a little bit longer, maybe going a little batty after six months of winter.Joel Schlesinger
b
: extremely irritated, angry, or aggressive
… the relatively minor annoyances that for some reason get your goat and drive you batty.JR Raphael
Nothing drives me battier than overpaying for something I don't even enjoy.Cherie Low
… it's anyone's guess precisely why the Canadiens veteran forward went batty on New York Islanders rookie Nino Niederreiter …Dave Stubbs
battiness noun
Balancing a hat on top of a hat, David Dobkin's ''Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga'' tries to add even more humor to an event already legendary for its excesses and battiness. Jeannette Catsoulis
She is believable as the often-confused but resourceful Alice, giving her a little touch of battiness. Kathy Lauer-Williams

Examples of batty in a Sentence

a batty old lady who lives with 100 cats
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Terry Jones is Bedevere: a bit batty, with odd theories. Michael Schulman, The New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2024 The delightfully batty Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency is loosely based on a book by Douglas Adams, author of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Danny Horn, EW.com, 24 July 2024 Were the nation’s focus not on what is going on between Biden’s ears, voters would be hearing more about the truly batty things coming out of Trump’s mouth, and those of his top allies. Dana Milbank, Washington Post, 12 July 2024 As if the start of spring couldn’t get any more batty. Amaris Encinas, USA TODAY, 3 May 2024 See all Example Sentences for batty 

Word History

First Known Use

1600, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of batty was in 1600

Dictionary Entries Near batty

Cite this Entry

“Batty.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/batty. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

batty

adjective
bat·​ty ˈbat-ē How to pronounce batty (audio)
battier; battiest
informal
: lacking reason or mental soundness : foolish

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