lunatic

[loo-nuh-tik] /ˈlu nə tɪk/
noun
1.
an insane person.
2.
a person whose actions and manner are marked by extreme eccentricity or recklessness.
3.
Law. a person legally declared to be of unsound mind and who therefore is not held capable or responsible before the law.
adjective, Also, lunatical
[loo-nat-i-kuh l] /luˈnæt ɪ kəl/ (Show IPA), (for defs 4, 5, 7).
4.
insane; demented; crazy.
5.
characteristic or suggestive of lunacy; wildly or recklessly foolish.
6.
designated for or used by the insane:
a lunatic asylum.
7.
gaily or lightheartedly mad, frivolous, eccentric, etc.:
She has a lunatic charm that is quite engaging.
Origin
1250-1300; Middle English lunatik < Old French lunatique < Late Latin lūnāticus moonstruck. See Luna, -atic
Related forms
lunatically, adverb
half-lunatic, adjective
Examples from the web for lunatic
  • Fortunately, the power of the lunatic fringe remained considerably smaller than its grandstanding.
  • Pity the lunatic fringe, poring over the lexicon to find an ersatz euphemism for suicide.
  • And you talk with him for a while and feel safe because he's not a lunatic.
  • The lunatic fringe group throws their weight around quite a bit, and desperately wants to portray themselves as the majority.
  • At the time, proponents of global warming were generally considered the lunatic fringe.
  • In other words their support for terrorism stemmed in a lunatic way from a smothered understanding that terrorism might be wrong.
  • Imagine you are going to a summer school run by a certified lunatic.
  • Keeping an open mind does not mean accepting as truth the ravings of a lunatic.
  • Eng is a strange mixture of lunatic charisma and a complete lack of mental agility.
  • It seems lunatic to think the outside world can do serious business with such a regime.
British Dictionary definitions for lunatic

lunatic

/ˈluːnətɪk/
adjective
1.
an archaic word for insane
2.
foolish; eccentric; crazy
noun
3.
a person who is insane
Derived Forms
lunatically, adverb
Word Origin
C13 (adj) via Old French from Late Latin lūnāticus crazy, moonstruck, from Latin lūna moon
Word Origin and History for lunatic
adj.

late 13c., "affected with periodic insanity, dependent on the changes of the moon," from Old French lunatique, lunage "insane," or directly from Late Latin lunaticus "moon-struck," from Latin luna "moon" (see Luna). Cf. Old English monseoc "lunatic," literally "moon-sick;" Middle High German lune "humor, temper, mood, whim, fancy" (German Laune), from Latin luna. Cf. also New Testament Greek seleniazomai "be epileptic," from selene "moon." Lunatic fringe (1913) apparently was coined by U.S. politician Theodore Roosevelt.

Then, among the wise and high-minded people who in self-respecting and genuine fashion strive earnestly for peace, there are foolish fanatics always to be found in such a movement and always discrediting it -- the men who form the lunatic fringe in all reform movements. [Theodore Roosevelt, autobiography, 1913].
Earlier it was a term for a type of hairstyle worn over the forehead (1877). Lunatic soup (1933) was Australian slang for "alcoholic drink."

n.

"lunatic person," late 14c., from lunatic (adj.).

lunatic in the Bible

probably the same as epileptic, the symptoms of which disease were supposed to be more aggravated as the moon increased. In Matt. 4:24 "lunatics" are distinguished from demoniacs. In 17:15 the name "lunatic" is applied to one who is declared to have been possessed. (See DAEMONIAC.)