total psycho
2
9.1
- noun
- /ˈtoʊtəl ˈsaɪkoʊ/
- Offensive
:
psicópata
- act like a total psycho
Examples
-
Because you'll freak out and act like a total psycho about it.
Fiction book (2001) -
When she eventually meets the right guy, he (hopefully) won't be a total psycho with a rage problem.
Blog text (3) -
When he shouted at the meeting for no reason, everyone thought he was a total psycho.
-
She often acts like a total psycho, making strange decisions that confuse her friends.
-
After watching his erratic behavior, I realized he might be a total psycho.
Synonyms
149
8.1
A person who behaves wildly and dangerously and may hurt others
95
6.4
A man who acts very strangely or dangerously and may be mentally ill
52
8.6
A person who behaves very strangely and may be dangerous
51
6.2
A person who acts in a wild or reckless way
49
9.8
A person who behaves in a strange or wild way
40
8.2
A person who has strange or unrealistic ideas
35
8.8
A person who behaves in a very strange or wild way
4
9.9
A person who behaves in a very strange or wild way
3
7.9
A person who acts violently and without control
1
8.8
A person who acts in a way that seems crazy
1
8.9
A person who loses touch with reality and may see or hear things that are not real
A person who behaves in a very strange and unreasonable way that worries others
Very silly or clearly crazy
A person who behaves in a wild or strange way
Antonyms
How Crazy
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly compositional: 'total' functions as an intensifier meaning 'completely/utterly' and 'psycho' denotes a (slang) person who is dangerously unstable, so a learner who knows both constituents can infer 'a completely crazy/irrational person.' The adjective+noun intensifier pattern is regular and cross-linguistically common, making the expression immediately comprehensible to B1 learners familiar with the words.
Etymology
Total psycho comes from the short word psycho, a blunt way people have used for someone acting wild, and total adds the idea of 'completely'. Imagine a person who seems like a movie villain or is clearly out of control; that's why the phrase means 'someone who acts very crazy'.