Dictionary

go berserk en · VERB

Meanings

1. (idiomatic, informal) To enter a wild and uncontrollable state.
   • I watched the game in New York City's unofficial Redskins bar. When the game ended, we went berserk, performing a celebratory Fun Bunch and singing "Hail to the Redskins!" 2006 January 13, Felix Gillette, “The Gloater”, in Slate, New York, N.Y.: The Slate Group, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 22 Nov 2023:
   • The fans immediately went berserk as the singer walked onstage.
   • As we exited the observatory's parking lot, the truck's computer monitor started bleeping angrily. Before we reached the main road, we picked up 13 wireless signals. Within a half mile, we found 66 signals. Niday's gadgetry was going berserk. 2021 August 3, Stephen Kurczy, “The Truth About the Quietest Town in America”, in Wired, San Francisco, Calif.: Condé Nast Publications, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 02 Jun 2023:
   • Let's say I touch my own hand with my finger. My brain can perceive that signal and then cancel it out. But Novichok makes it not get cancelled out, so it feels like I'm touching my own hand a million times a second, and every cell in my body goes berserk, and the brain understands that this is the end. 2020 October 18, Masha Gessen, “Alexey Navalny Has the Proof of His Poisoning”, in The New Yorker, New York, N.Y.: Condé Nast Publications, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 28 Feb 2024:
   • If someone sneaks my lunch again, I'm actually going to go berserk.

Forms

Synonyms

lose it · go mad · go crazy · take leave of one's senses · go H.A.M. · berserk · lose one's mind · go bonkers · go ballistic · go bananas · flip out · get one's freak on · lose one's marbles · go HAM · freak out · go potty · go nuts · run amok · go berserk · flip one's wig · go ham