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screwball

noun, adj — 4 senses

screwball

noun

/ˈskɹuːbɔːl/

Etymology From screw + ball. Compare typologically German Spinner (akin to spin). Also compare weirdo and weird, from Old English wyrd (“fate”), ultimately derived from Proto-Indo-European *wert- (“to turn, to spin”).

1

Ball games, Baseball, Games, Hobbies, Lifestyle, Sports A pitch thrown with added pressure by the index finger and a twisting wrist motion resulting in a motion to the right when thrown by a right-handed pitcher.

  • The screwball is not thrown much because it tends to damage pitcher's arms.
2

US, Derogatory, Informal One who behaves in a crazy manner.

  • I will not listen to this screwball any longer.
3

A screwball comedy.

screwball

adj

Etymology From screw + ball. Compare typologically German Spinner (akin to spin). Also compare weirdo and weird, from Old English wyrd (“fate”), ultimately derived from Proto-Indo-European *wert- (“to turn, to spin”).

1

Derogatory, Informal Crazy, offbeat, bizarre, zany, or weird.

  • Also a big hand for Silver Linings Playbook, an exuberant modern screwball comedy we had, in an unseemly fit of cynicism, deemed "too entertaining" for Academy voters.2013 January 11, Tom Shone, The Guardian:
  • Unleashed as part of the second wave of Nicktoons, Rocko's Modern Life introduced young viewers to the sort of existential crises that adults face daily, all while delighting both kids and grownups with witty observational humor, screwball characters, and subversive gags.2020, Christopher J. Olson, CarrieLynn D. Reinhard, The Greatest Cult Television Shows of All Time, page 170:
Derived terms
screwball comedy
Related terms
goofball, oddball

Entry derived from the Wiktionary, under licence CC BY-SA 4.0 — list of authors.