Basket case
Meaning
A person or thing that is utterly incapacitated, ineffective, or overwhelmed, often due to emotional distress or complete physical breakdown.
Origin
The term "basket case" emerged during World War I, chillingly referring to soldiers who had suffered the catastrophic loss of all four limbs in battle. These terribly wounded individuals were so incapacitated they were literally said to be carried in a basket or on a specialized stretcher resembling one. The phrase painted a stark and grim picture of complete helplessness and profound physical wreckage. Though military officials often denied such extreme cases, the horrifying image stuck, quickly evolving to describe anyone or anything completely overwhelmed, broken, or utterly useless, often in a mental or emotional sense.
Examples
- After working 80-hour weeks for months, she felt like a complete basket case, barely able to make simple decisions.
- The old computer network became a basket case after the server crashed, rendering all departments unable to access their files.