hurly-burly
The children's birthday party was a cheerful hurly-burly of games and laughter.
Definition
- Noun:
- Noisy confusion: "hurly-burly" refers to a state of noisy, chaotic, and busy activity or commotion, often associated with crowds, disorder, or intense commotion.
Usage Examples
- (The noisy confusion and chaos of urban activity.)
- (The busy and disorderly period.)
Advanced Usage
- "the hurly-burly of life": a poetic or literary phrase meaning the chaotic and noisy demands of everyday existence.
- He retreated to the countryside to escape the hurly-burly of modern life. (He sought peace away from daily commotion.)
Variants and Related Words
- Hurly (n): archaic term for noise or uproar (rarely used alone).
- Burly (adj): large and strong (not directly related in meaning, but shares sound similarity).
Synonyms
- Commotion: a state of confused and noisy disturbance.
- Turmoil: a state of great disturbance, confusion, or uncertainty.
- Uproar: a loud and impassioned noise or disturbance.
- Hubbub: a chaotic din caused by a crowd of people.
- Pandemonium: wild and noisy disorder or confusion; uproar.
Related Idioms
- "Hurly-burly" is itself an idiomatic expression, often used in literary or formal contexts to describe a scene of chaos.
- The marketplace was a scene of hurly-burly, with vendors shouting and customers jostling. (The market was full of noisy confusion.)