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go haywire
Slang Dictionary

go haywire definition


  1. in.
    [for a person] to go berserk. : Sorry, I guess I just went haywire for a minute.
  2. in.
    [for something] to go out of order; to break down. : I'm afraid my car's gone haywire. It won't start.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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American Heritage
Idioms & Phrases

go haywire

Become wildly confused, out of control, or crazy. For example, The plans for the party have gone haywire, or His enemies accused the mayor of going haywire. This term alludes to the wire used for bundling hay, which is hard to handle and readily tangled. [First half of 1900s]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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