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madcap

mad·cap

UK/ˈmædkæp/ US/ˈmædˌkæp/ rare obsolete rare

noun

adjective

1.

characterized by undue haste and lack of thought or deliberation

  • “a hotheaded decision”
  • “liable to such impulsive acts as hugging strangers”
  • “an impetuous display of spending and gambling”
  • “madcap escapades”
  • “brainish”

Origin

The noun is derived from mad + cap (“(informal) head”). The adjective is from an attributive use of the noun.

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WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.