1
as in hurried
acting or done with excessive or careless speed
when the theater doors opened, there was a pell-mell rush for the best seats
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in chaotic
lacking in order, neatness, and often cleanliness
pell-mell piles of books everywhere in the professor's library
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in frantically
in a confused and reckless manner
tossed stuff pell-mell into the dorm room
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2
as in hastily
with excessive or careless speed
ran pell-mell down the road to get help
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of pell-mell
Nicolas Rapold, airmail.news, 23 Nov. 2024
Abe and Mary are part Rhett Butler and Scarlett O’Hara, part George and Martha, part the old vaudevillians George Burns and Gracie Allen, all running together pell-mell toward the Copacabana.
—Chris Jones, New York Daily News, 12 July 2024
Administration officials don’t see this situation as similar to October 2022, when the intelligence community saw a significant possibility Putin might use tactical nuclear weapons to avert a collapse of Russia’s front lines in Ukraine and prevent a pell-mell retreat.
—David Ignatius, Washington Post, 21 June 2024
Ultimately, the more naturalistic second half — which has a realistic set with chairs and tables, delivered in a clunky black-out transition by intrusive stagehands — gets as sharp and loud as the pell-mell sounds-and-lights first half.
—Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 12 Apr. 2024
Only a few of them stopped with remainder racing pell-mell through the intersection as approaching cars on Charles braked abruptly.
—Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 25 Apr. 2024
Ministry is not nearly as proficient as Chad Stahelski’s John Wick 4 or Matthias Schweighöfer’s Army of Thieves, but the pell-mell combat scenes are consistently cartoonish.
—Armond White, National Review, 19 Apr. 2024
America saw a pell-mell downsizing of gas-guzzling vehicles and a simultaneous ramping up of imports of fuel-efficient Japanese cars.
—Jim Krane, Fortune, 12 Oct. 2023
The brokers surged out of the exchange, stumbling pell-mell over each other in the general confusion, and reached their respective offices in racehorse time.
—Mickey Butts, Smithsonian Magazine, 18 Sep. 2023
Adverb
People ran pell-mell outside, sped away in cars with no clear destination, went to church, or just phoned the police or radio station to hyperventilate.
—Nicolas Rapold, airmail.news, 23 Nov. 2024
Abe and Mary are part Rhett Butler and Scarlett O’Hara, part George and Martha, part the old vaudevillians George Burns and Gracie Allen, all running together pell-mell toward the Copacabana.
—Chris Jones, New York Daily News, 12 July 2024
Administration officials don’t see this situation as similar to October 2022, when the intelligence community saw a significant possibility Putin might use tactical nuclear weapons to avert a collapse of Russia’s front lines in Ukraine and prevent a pell-mell retreat.
—David Ignatius, Washington Post, 21 June 2024
Ultimately, the more naturalistic second half — which has a realistic set with chairs and tables, delivered in a clunky black-out transition by intrusive stagehands — gets as sharp and loud as the pell-mell sounds-and-lights first half.
—Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 12 Apr. 2024
Only a few of them stopped with remainder racing pell-mell through the intersection as approaching cars on Charles braked abruptly.
—Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 25 Apr. 2024
Ministry is not nearly as proficient as Chad Stahelski’s John Wick 4 or Matthias Schweighöfer’s Army of Thieves, but the pell-mell combat scenes are consistently cartoonish.
—Armond White, National Review, 19 Apr. 2024
America saw a pell-mell downsizing of gas-guzzling vehicles and a simultaneous ramping up of imports of fuel-efficient Japanese cars.
—Jim Krane, Fortune, 12 Oct. 2023
The brokers surged out of the exchange, stumbling pell-mell over each other in the general confusion, and reached their respective offices in racehorse time.
—Mickey Butts, Smithsonian Magazine, 18 Sep. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pell-mell
Adjective
-
The German foreign minister flew to the United States on February 2 and returned to Europe the same night in a hurried effort to convince Baker of the need for a nonexpansion pledge to secure German unification.—
Foreign Affairs,
Foreign Affairs,
9 Apr. 2025
-
Ryan Kalkbrenner blocked Troy D’Amico’s attempt at a winning 3-pointer in the final seconds, Isaiah Rivera missed a hurried 3 just before the buzzer and the Bluejays had forced overtime with an improbable comeback.—
Mike Fitzpatrick,
Chicago Tribune,
14 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
But one wild, dare-we-say chaotic month can change things, and the Pirates wouldn’t mind following Detroit’s blueprint.—
Tim Britton,
The Athletic,
25 Mar. 2025
-
The latter are chaotic galaxies that lack a distinct shape, and are low in elements heavier than hydrogen and helium — akin to galaxies from the early universe.—
Robert Lea,
Space.com,
24 Mar. 2025
Adverb
-
Workers at the plant tried frantically to contain the damage, by, for example, spraying seawater from fire hoses and rigging up car batteries to supply power.—
Elizabeth Kolbert,
New Yorker,
7 Apr. 2025
-
His hands, ordinarily trapped in the pockets of his tracksuit when not frantically presenting tactical instructions or wagging a finger at opposition benches, escaped midway through the second half of his side’s 2-1 win over Brighton & Hove Albion to savour the moment with the Palace supporters.—
Matt Woosnam,
New York Times,
7 Apr. 2025
Adverb
-
This approach aims to instill doubt and urgency, increasing the chances that the victim will act hastily.—
Kurt Knutsson, CyberGuy Report,
Fox News,
9 Mar. 2025
-
The comedian said that he was hastily escorted to the restroom.—
Wesley Stenzel,
EW.com,
6 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
The answer turned out to be an inversion of sorts — Kate ended up with a lot of comics Clint’s beats, including Lucky, the Pizza Dog, the messy apartment, and the fun trick arrows.—
Nola Pfau,
Vulture,
17 Apr. 2025
-
Plus, Sherman-Palladino and Palladino were amenable to her perspective on Geneviève, an overburdened, passionate woman with a messy personal life.—
Emily Zemler,
Los Angeles Times,
17 Apr. 2025
Adverb
-
As the game devolved into something rare and magical, Dallas’ inability to get out of their zone cleanly and wrest some manner of control of the proceedings was wildly apparent.—
Thomas Drance,
New York Times,
9 Apr. 2025
-
For example, two people in the same role might take home wildly different paychecks.—
Jack Kelly,
Forbes.com,
9 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
While no supporter — surely — would swap any of that frenetic, headlong decade for Tottenham’s inert version of stability, glory becomes addictive.—
George Caulkin,
New York Times,
8 Apr. 2025
-
This endless, headlong energy can produce a caffeinated buzz that rises to the brain on little prickling bubbles of enjoyment.—
Tom Gliatto,
People.com,
26 Mar. 2025
Adverb
-
All of it wild-caught.—
Amy Drew Thompson,
orlandosentinel.com,
14 Aug. 2020
-
Our first stop is in a wild-looking stretch 200 yards south of the railroad tracks and State Street.—
Paul A. Smith,
Journal Sentinel,
2 Jan. 2023
Cite this Entry
“Pell-mell.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pell-mell. Accessed 22 Apr. 2025.
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