noun

• Busy, boisterous activity.

  ‘the hurly-burly of school life’

  More example sentences

  • ‘However, I must confess that with age has come a certain distaste for the noise, the crowds and the whole hurly-burly of mass protest.’
  • ‘Despite all the pomp and circumstance, political hurly-burly raised its head at yesterday's festivities.’
  • ‘Anyway, Gus was so exquisite he used not to take part in the rough hurly-burly of football matches, but would remain aloof in perfectly clean kit.’
  • ‘Busy, busy, busy and I go back to the hurly-burly of the office.’
  • ‘Amid the hurly-burly of a presidential race, it is sometimes difficult to view the candidates as three-dimensional human beings rather than cardboard cutouts on campaign posters.’
  • ‘He said: ‘We need co-ordinators who are used to the hurly-burly of school life.’’
  • ‘The majority of visitors come to the National Park to experience the special qualities of the area and to get away from the hurly-burly of every day life.’
  • ‘Somehow, in all the hurly-burly, I missed this one.’
  • ‘Amid the hurly-burly of network TV, it's almost unheard of for programmers to plan beyond their next season, let alone five years hence.’
  • ‘In the hurly-burly of today's executive life, it is not surprising that few people can take time off ‘to stand and stare’.’
  • ‘Whether in the hurly-burly of real-world politics more information means better decisions is an open question.’
  • ‘One inch shorter and at least a stone lighter, he is a relatively small by modern standards and still looks lost occasionally in the hurly-burly of international rugby.’
  • ‘Despite the hurly-burly involved in running a home, most parents have discussed who should take their children should they have a fatal accident.’
  • ‘One of the things that serves as a brief respite from the hurly-burly is the attempts some people will go to to advertise their product.’
  • ‘Back in the hurly-burly of the main part of old Georgetown, I discovered surprises round every corner.’
  • ‘It's peaceful and pristine up here away from the hurly-burly of the recreation area.’
  • ‘After the hurly-burly of London life, rural coupledom felt unbelievably peaceful.’
  • ‘In the hurly-burly of the festival you meet all sorts of people, old friends and new.’
  • ‘But even in the hurly-burly of a game he can spot things that other players can't.’
  • ‘Love fades and dwindles in the hurly-burly of life.’

  Synonyms

  bustle, hustle, commotion, hubbub, confusion, chaos, disorder, fuss, turmoil, uproar, tumult, turbulence, pandemonium, mayhem, bedlam, furore, brouhaha

  View synonyms