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crackpot

crackpot

40 8.2
A person who has strange or unrealistic ideas
  • noun
  • /ˈkrækˌpɑt/
  • Offensive
translation icon : chiflado
  • Or you could just let him be a crackpot the rest of his life.

And so journalists have talked to him before and he's always this sort of the crackpot Nessie hunter.

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Examples

  • Scientists and science educators have tended to ignore conspiracy theories, dismissing believers as crackpots.

    Academic text (1995)
  • He'd met his fair share of crackpots over the years.

    Fiction book (1995)
  • I think this is a crackpot idea.

  • I will not pay to have a crackpot old fool teach him magic tricks.

  • I'm not gonna go along with this crackpot scheme, especially since Gary thought it up.

  • The upper brass were trying to make Sam out to be a crackpot.

    Fiction book (1995)
  • So how could he back down now, just because he feared being labeled a crackpot?

    Fiction book (1995)
  • Seems she's a bit of a crackpot.

  • He's no minister, he's a crackpot.

  • Many people dismissed his suggestions as those of a crackpot rather than taking them seriously.

Synonyms

nut
vscrackpot
  • Informal
309 7.5

A person who behaves in a silly or strange way

is harsher and more directly critical of odd ideas
weirdo
vscrackpot
  • Offensive
119 7.0

A person who acts in a strange or unusual way

is more likely to judge the person as eccentric or crazy
loco
vscrackpot
  • Offensive
49 9.8

A person who behaves in a strange or wild way

is the more standard informal negative label for that behaviour
kook
vscrackpot
  • Offensive
35 8.8

A person who behaves in a very strange or wild way

is similar but can be less extreme and more criticising in tone
crank
vscrackpot
  • Offensive
29 7.7

A person who is often angry and has strange ideas

is more about odd ideas and eccentric behaviour than irritability
fruitcake
vscrackpot
  • Offensive
24 8.4

A person who behaves in an odd or funny way

is more likely to be used as a sharp personal criticism
oddball
vscrackpot
  • Offensive
21 7.2

A person who acts in a strange way

is used more to criticise unusual ideas rather than neutral oddity
wacko
vscrackpot
  • Offensive
7 8.5

Something, like a person or an idea, that is very strange

is more specific about unusual ideas and eccentric behaviour
nutball
vscrackpot
  • Offensive
5 8.5

A person who acts silly or strange to make others laugh

is similar but can be more negative and mocking
screwball
vscrackpot
  • Offensive
5 8.3

A person who behaves in a strange, silly way

is similar but often carries a stronger sense of odd ideas or craziness
nutbag
vscrackpot
  • Offensive
4 8.6

A person who acts in a silly or strange way

is more insulting and less playful than that usage
bizarro
vscrackpot
  • Slang
4 9.9

A person who behaves very strangely

is the more common informal insult for such behaviour
freakazoid
vscrackpot
  • Offensive
4 9.9

A person who behaves in a very strange or wild way

is similar but usually used more directly as an insult
eccentric
vscrackpot
1 7.0

A person who behaves in an unusual way that others find odd

is an informal, critical term for that same kind of person
eccentric person
vscrackpot
1 6.0

A person with unusual habits or behavior

is used more as an informal, critical label rather than neutral description
madcap
vscrackpot
  • Informal
1 7.9

A person who does risky things without thinking

focuses more on odd ideas and eccentric behaviour than recklessness
nutcake
vscrackpot
  • Offensive
1 9.1

An insulting word for a person who acts very silly or strange

is a more general informal criticism of unusual ideas and behaviour
total nutcase
vscrackpot
  • Offensive
1 8.8

A person who acts in a way that seems crazy

is similar but often used to stress eccentric ideas rather than total insanity
crackbrain
vscrackpot
  • Offensive
9.9

A person with very foolish or wild ideas

is milder, focusing on odd ideas rather than outright foolishness
total whackjob
vscrackpot
  • Offensive
9.9

A person who behaves in a very strange and unreasonable way that worries others

is milder, indicating odd or unconventional ideas rather than total insanity
ouf
vscrackpot
  • Offensive
9.9

A person who behaves in a wild or strange way

is a more common informal criticism focusing on eccentric ideas
knuckleballer
vscrackpot
  • Informal
9.3

A person who often does things that surprise other people

focuses more on odd ideas and eccentric character rather than unpredictability

How Eccentric

lunatic
  • Slur
153 9.8
crackpot
  • Offensive
40 8.2
eccentric
1 7.0
odd man out
  • Informal
8 6.1
conformist
2 5.7

Surface Forms

crackpot singular
crackpots plural

Morphology

crackpot = crack + pot (semi-transparent) = crack + pot

The compound is formally crack + pot (both real English words), but the specific meaning 'eccentric person' is idiomatic and 'pot' does not transparently contribute a literal sense 'person' for most learners.

Etymology

Crackpot comes from the image of a crack ('a break') in a pot ('a container'), like a pot that is not whole. A helpful way to remember it is to think of 'cracked' as 'crazy', so a crackpot is someone with odd or wild ideas.