crackers
English
Etymology
See cracker + -ers. The South African sense derive their name from their sound and their status as a plurale tantum by association with "trousers". The adjectival sense derives from British naval expressions referring to firecrackers in one's head, originally as "he's got the crackers" and then "he's gone crackers" before the present "he is crackers".
Noun
crackers
- plural of cracker
- (South Africa, only plural) A kind of noisy leather pants or trousers.
- 1849, E.E. Napier, Excursions in Southern Africa, Vol. II, p. 13:
- Sheepskin trousers—which, from the sound they make at every movement of the wearer, are called ‘crackers’.
- 1849, E.E. Napier, Excursions in Southern Africa, Vol. II, p. 13:
Adjective
crackers (comparative more crackers, superlative most crackers)
- (UK colloquial) Crazy, insane.
Synonyms
- See also Thesaurus:insane
Verb
crackers
- third-person singular simple present indicative of cracker