Skip to the word

Added 10 October 2026

barmy

/ˈbɑːmi/ adjective

adjective Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about barmy at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

Marked by spirited enjoyment.
Informal or slang terms for mentally irregular.
it used to drive my husband balmy

Origin

From barm (“foam rising upon beer or other malt liquors when fermenting, and used as leaven”) + -y (suffix meaning ‘having the quality of’ forming adjectives). Barm is derived from Middle English berm, berme (“foam rising upon ale or beer fermenting; leaven, yeast; foam or head of beer produced by pouring”) [and other forms], from Old English beorma (“foam or head of beer; leaven, yeast”), from Proto-West Germanic *bermō (“barm; yeast”); further etymology uncertain, perhaps from Proto-Indo-European *bʰrewh₁- (“to boil; to brew”) or *gʷʰer- (“warm; hot”).

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

Back to today's word