AEE 2527: You’ll Be Crazy About This Vocabulary

Summary

All Ears English Podcast – Episode 2527: “You’ll Be Crazy About This Vocabulary”

Date: December 9, 2025
Hosts: Lindsay McMahon & Aubrey Carter

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Episode Overview

This episode is the second of a two-part series exploring the many uses of the word “crazy” in American English. Hosts Lindsay and Aubrey break down idioms and expressions beyond the typical adjective meaning, offering engaging examples, cultural notes, and role plays. The goal is to help intermediate and advanced learners sound more natural, expressive, and connected when speaking English, all while highlighting the American tendency toward exaggeration in conversation.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Recap and Episode Focus

• The hosts mention that Part 1 covered six meanings of “crazy” as an adjective and as an intensifier.
• In Part 2 (this episode), they dive into idioms and expressions featuring “crazy.”
• Aubrey: “Today we’re covering expressions and idioms that we use with the word crazy.” (03:33)

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2. Featured “Crazy” Expressions

A. Crazy About (Someone/Something)

• Meaning: To be very enthusiastic about or deeply in love with someone or something.
• Examples:
  • “He’s crazy about her.”
  • “She’s crazy about basketball. She plays every day.” (05:09)
• Aubrey shares a personal example: Her daughter Georgia switched from soccer to basketball and is now “crazy about it.” (05:17)

B. Like Crazy

• Meaning: Very much, intensely, or to a great extent.
• Examples:
  • “She studied like crazy for the exam.” (06:00)
  • “I miss him like crazy.”
• Lindsay notes: “It’s kind of a way of intensifying what you’re saying.” (06:11)

C. Drive Someone Crazy

• Meaning 1: To annoy or irritate someone.
• Example: “That noise is driving me crazy.” (06:32)
• Meaning 2: To be very attractive to someone.
• Example: “His smile drives me crazy.” (06:45)
• Aubrey highlights: “It can mean annoying or that you really like it. Either way, you can say it drives you crazy.” (06:53)
• Lindsay emphasizes the need for context: “Pay close attention. Listen really closely when this word comes out.” (07:05)

D. Go Crazy

• Meaning: To become very excited, often in a group or at an event.
• Example: “The fans went crazy when the Dodgers won the World Series.” (07:13)
• Aubrey notes alternate use: If someone’s too excited, you might say, “Okay, let’s not go crazy.” (07:33)

E. Taking Crazy Pills

• Meaning: To feel confused or surprised, often when others’ behavior seems inexplicable.
• Example: “I feel like I’m taking crazy pills!” (07:49)
• Aubrey refers back to a previous episode for a deeper dive on this idiom (08:01).

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3. American Exaggeration & Cultural Note

• Lindsay discusses how Americans exaggerate for connection:
  • “With the ramen, maybe it’s in my top 20 favorite foods, but… I’m still going to say I’m crazy about ramen.” (14:54)
• Aubrey confirms: “No one’s going to think that means it’s your number one favorite food. Because we love to exaggerate.” (15:17)

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4. Role Play – Bringing the Idioms to Life

Segment Start: 10:18

• Scenario: Lindsay and Aubrey pretend to be friends chatting before a trip.
• Expressions Used:
  • “You’ve been planning like crazy all month.” (10:20)
  • “That is going to drive you crazy.”
  • “Everyone’s gonna go crazy and rush the gate.”
  • “I am crazy about ramen.” (10:47)
• Aubrey explains each idiom’s use in the conversation, reinforcing meaning, context, and the American preference for vivid, energetic language.

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5. Difference in “Crazy” Usage: US vs UK

• Lindsay: “It might not work as much in the UK because I don’t think they exaggerate as much, but here in the US it would work, right?” (15:12)
• Aubrey agrees, encouraging learners in the US to use these expressions freely.

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Notable Quotes & Moments (with Timestamps)

• Lindsay, on American exaggeration:
  “In American culture, we have a tradition of exaggeration… To be able to have words to do that, to be able to exaggerate culturally, helps you fit in.” (14:54)

• Aubrey, on context:
  “It can mean annoying or that you really like it. Either way, you can say it drives you crazy.” (06:53)

• On how “crazy” adds color:
  Aubrey: “It was how crazy adds color to your English. Oh, that was a better title because it really does add color to what you’re saying.” (14:28)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Introduction & Episode Setup: 00:59–03:46
• “Crazy About”: 04:49–05:35
• “Like Crazy”: 05:48–06:19
• “Drive Someone Crazy”: 06:27–07:13
• “Go Crazy”: 07:13–07:49
• “Taking Crazy Pills”: 07:49–08:17
• Role Play & Breakdown: 10:18–13:48
• Cultural Note on Exaggeration: 14:54–15:26
• Closing Thoughts: 15:26–15:38

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Conclusion

This episode provides practical, high-frequency American English idioms using “crazy,” equipping listeners with tools for more expressive speech. Through lively discussion, personal anecdotes, and tailored role play, Lindsay and Aubrey emphasize the importance of context, exaggeration, and connection—not perfection—in mastering these expressions.

For learners aiming to sound natural and make meaningful connections in American English, these expressions are invaluable—and as Lindsay puts it, “you’ll be crazy about this vocabulary!”

Transcript

[Lindsey McMahon]

This is an All Ears English podcast. Episode 2527. You'll be crazy about this vocabulary.

Welcome to the All Ears English Podcast downloaded more than 200 million times. Are you feeling stuck with your English? We'll show you how to become fearless and fluent by focusing on connection, not perfection with your American host, Aubrey Carter, the IELTS whiz and Lindsey McMahon, the English adventurer coming to you from Arizona and Colorado, usa. To get real time transcripts right on your phone and create your personalized vocabulary list, try the Allears English app for iOS and Android. Start your 7 day free trial at allearsenglish.com forward slapp.

[Aubrey Carter]

In this part two of a two part series, we come back to the word crazy. But this time we see how it can be used in idioms and expressions. Want to exaggerate or share your truth? Listen. Today.

[Lindsey McMahon]

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[Aubrey Carter]

I'm great Lindsay. How are you?

[Lindsey McMahon]

Good. Aubrey, do you have any new TV shows that you're just crazy about?

[Aubrey Carter]

Yeah, I started watching. Now I can't think what it's called. Kristen Bell where she's like dating a rabbi. Have you heard about that? Oh, nobody wants this. Have you heard of Nobody wants this?

[Lindsey McMahon]

I've heard of the name of this I like it.

[Aubrey Carter]

It's on Netflix. I think it's funny. I think she's funny. It's a comedy. But it's also a really interesting idea. Right. About inter faith relationships and trying to make that work and when families aren't always supportive and.

[Lindsey McMahon]

Right.

[Aubrey Carter]

Yeah. So I recommend it. You might like it.

[Lindsey McMahon]

Okay. Good to know. It's always good to get new Netflix recommendations. Good stuff.

[Aubrey Carter]

And I noticed you used crazy about.

[Lindsey McMahon]

Right.

[Aubrey Carter]

We had part one of the series was six. Six different meanings for the adjective crazy and how we use it as an intensifier. Today we're covering expressions and idioms that we use with the word crazy.

[Lindsey McMahon]

Yeah, we'd be missing half of this word if we just talked about it as an intensifier. So we are back today for our part two. Really excited Aubry. And what else should our listeners know?

[Aubrey Carter]

We'll stay to the end because we'll share details about part one. If you missed it, you can definitely listen to these out of order. And we also want to make sure that you have the Allers English app. A vocabulary episode like this one is really best listened to with the Allers English app because you can add interesting vocabulary to your personal power vocabulary list. It's the best way to track new vocabulary you're learning.

[Lindsey McMahon]

Yep, you can have that list. And then the next time you come back next week to listen to Allers English, you know what words you wanted to save the week before so we have a chance to recall them and review them. So, guys, go over to all dollarsenglish.comapp. there's a seven day free trial on the premium membership and of course you can also listen for free over there too. All right, good stuff, Aubrey. Let's dive into it. Where do we start today?

[Aubrey Carter]

All right. Our first expression is the one you used asking me if there are any TV shows I'm crazy about. So crazy about someone or something just means you are very enthusiastic about it. Maybe deeply in love. We also talk about this with people. Right? So for example, just he's crazy about her.

[Lindsey McMahon]

Yep, he's crazy about her. Or again, you can be crazy about a sport, right? So for example, she's crazy about basketball. She plays every day.

[Aubrey Carter]

Yeah. This is my daughter Georgia. We signed her up for basketball. She had always played soccer, but she wanted to try something new and she's crazy about it. She goes to the park and shoots hoops almost every day. I love it.

[Lindsey McMahon]

Oh, yeah. Very cool. Very cool. Yeah, it's fun. When you're a kid, you discover a support you love. And then you just want to do it repetitively, you know? Yes.

[Aubrey Carter]

It's the best. And it's nice because it is easy to. It is easy for her to do it by herself or with. With one or two other kids. Which. Volleyball is hard for that. Soccer. Some sports, you need more people. So that's kind of one real benefit.

[Lindsey McMahon]

That's so true. All right, so to be crazy about something or someone is our first one that our listeners should be writing down. Or if they're in the app, they can, of course, save it. Next one is, like, crazy. Now, how does this work?

[Aubrey Carter]

Yeah, so it means very much or intensely. For example, she studied like crazy for the exam.

[Lindsey McMahon]

For.

[Aubrey Carter]

So it's just an interesting way to say she studied a lot.

[Lindsey McMahon]

Yeah. Or I miss him like crazy. When you really miss someone, it's just a way of. Again, it's. It's kind of a way of intensifying what you're saying.

[Aubrey Carter]

Right? That's true. Because it is more intense than just saying, I really miss him. I miss him like crazy is definitely more intense.

[Lindsey McMahon]

Yeah, for sure. And then drive someone crazy. Does anyone drive you crazy? Aubrey? Anyone?

[Aubrey Carter]

Absolutely annoying. But what's interesting, this has two meanings. It first means to make someone very annoyed. Right. That noise is driving me crazy. Or a person might be driving you crazy, but it also has another meaning. Right, Lindsay?

[Lindsey McMahon]

Yeah. So to be attractive. So for example, his smile drives me crazy. Like, it just attracts you, right?

[Aubrey Carter]

Yeah. So it's really weird that these two very opposite meanings. Or for the exact same expression. Right. That something can really be annoying or that you really like it. Either way, you can say it drives you crazy.

[Lindsey McMahon]

We gotta really check the context there, guys. Pay close attention. Listen really closely when this word comes out. Right.

[Aubrey Carter]

All right. And our next one here is go crazy, which means to become excited. We often hear this for sports. Right. The fans went crazy when the Dodgers won the World Series, for example.

[Lindsey McMahon]

Yes. Yep. Just to. Maybe you stand up and you scream and you're so happy and you celebrate. It's that kind of thing.

[Aubrey Carter]

Yes. And, you know, the other way I hear this a lot is if someone is maybe being a little too excited about something. Like, maybe someone beats you at a game and they're celebrating. You'd be like, okay, let's not go go crazy. It's kind of a way of saying, like, you don't need to be so excited.

[Lindsey McMahon]

Yeah, I love that. And then taking crazy pills. This is to be confused or to be surprised. I feel like I'm taking Crazy pills, right? Maybe you're misunderstanding something or right.

[Aubrey Carter]

Something just doesn't make sense. Someone's behavior is odd. You'd be like, am I taking crazy pills? We actually covered this recent in ALLERS English Episode 2396 so you could go for a deeper dive into that and some.

Expressions. It was called what gives English Vocabulary for expressing Surprise. Speaking of the app, that's the best way to look up old episodes. If you put if you type 23.96 into the search bar, then it'll pull that right up for you.

[Lindsey McMahon]

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[Aubrey Carter]

All right. Okay. I'll start us.

[Lindsey McMahon]

Okay.

[Aubrey Carter]

Have fun on your trip. I'm sure it will go well. You've been planning like crazy all month.

[Lindsey McMahon]

It's true. I just want everything to be perfect.

[Aubrey Carter]

Did you hear about the new boarding policy? I bet that is going to drive you crazy.

[Lindsey McMahon]

Probably. It's just a free for all now, right?

[Aubrey Carter]

Yeah. So as soon as they announce boarding, everyone's gonna go crazy and rush the gate.

[Lindsey McMahon]

I just can't wait to get there. I'm gonna try every ramen place I see.

[Aubrey Carter]

I'm so jealous. I am crazy about ramen. Nice. Are you amazed I love ramen? Yes. Yeah, it's delicious. There are a lot of new ramen places popping up around here, and it's delicious every time.

[Lindsey McMahon]

Do you go for the miso ramen or what is it? Show Shoju ramen, the soy sauce.

[Aubrey Carter]

So it always. I needed to have, like, pork and eggs when it has both of those. But I'm not. I'm, like, trying to remember now.

[Lindsey McMahon]

Yeah, there's a couple different styles, but. Yeah, I like ramen too.

[Aubrey Carter]

I like.

[Lindsey McMahon]

I love it. But then I get. I get kind of sick because it's kind of greasy, you know, like, it's greasy. So my body's like, oh, too much grease.

[Aubrey Carter]

I probably eat greasier food. So my body's like, yep, this is what we're used to. Bring it on normal.

[Lindsey McMahon]

This is normal.

[Aubrey Carter]

It's probably not a good thing.

[Lindsey McMahon]

That's right. Yeah. Yeah.

[Aubrey Carter]

But anyway, so we used all four here. The first one, I said, you've been planning like crazy. So that just means very intensely, you've been planning a lot. This is not one of those trips where you're super spontaneous the whole time you've been putting in. In the planning.

[Lindsey McMahon]

Exactly. And then you're asking me, you hear about the new boarding p. And what do you mean by boarding policy?

[Aubrey Carter]

Okay, so this is interesting because we fly most often with Southwest Airlines, and they recently changed their boarding policy. So this is when you board a plane, when you first get on a plane. For the longest time, it was a free for all like this. And they've now just changed it to where they call, like, group one, group two, group three, whatever. So that's like the boarding policy, however that works. And every airline is different, right? How you line up and if it's assigned or not.

[Lindsey McMahon]

Yeah, yeah. Southwest used to be the one where you could choose your seats, but they changed that now.

[Aubrey Carter]

Yeah, right, exactly. Everyone was talking about it when that happened because a lot of people we know who travel a lot for work fly Southwest.

[Lindsey McMahon]

Yeah, that's true. That's true. But I don't mind that they're going back because that's kind of the traditional way to do it. It's the way most airlines do it, Right. They just. They have a boarding group, like you're in group four, and then you have a seat. Yeah, right.

[Aubrey Carter]

It makes the most sense, really.

[Lindsey McMahon]

Yeah, it makes the most sense. Yeah. Totally. And then. And then you said, I bet that's gonna drive you crazy, the fact that they've changed the policy. Right?

[Aubrey Carter]

Yeah. Meaning, like, annoy. This is going to irritate you just because when it's different than what you're used to, then it would be annoying, maybe. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, for sure.

[Lindsey McMahon]

Like, did you make the right choice of the seed and could I get something better? And then everyone's in the aisles, and it's like, oh, no.

[Aubrey Carter]

Right, exactly.

[Lindsey McMahon]

Just sit down.

[Aubrey Carter]

Or when they're all, like, hovering right by the gate, you're like, can we sit until it's our time?

[Lindsey McMahon]

Like, I'm not a big southwest person, so, yeah, I'm not used to that so much. Anyways. All right, coming back to the role play. Go ahead. Okay.

[Aubrey Carter]

So then I said, as soon as they announce boarding, everyone's going to go crazy and rush the gate. So that would be similar to at a sporting event. Right. A lot of energy and excitement. People like hurrying to get to the gate first.

[Lindsey McMahon]

Perfect. And then I said, I'm gonna have ramen. And then you said, I'm so jealous. I'm crazy about ramen. Meaning you love or enthusiastic about ramen, right? Yes.

[Aubrey Carter]

And we use this to exaggerate. Right. Even if we just really like something, we'll say crazy about it. Right. Food, a movie, a book. Oh, I'm crazy about it.

[Lindsey McMahon]

Yeah. Really good stuff. So, Aubrey, is there another. What is the part one of this series? Then where should we go?

[Aubrey Carter]

Yes, scroll up. It was called Crazy good or Crazy Bad. You can definitely listen to these out of order. But this was more about crazy as an intensifier. Oh, it was 2524. We changed the title. It was how crazy adds color to your English. Oh, that was a better title because it really does add color to what you're saying.

[Lindsey McMahon]

Yeah, I like that title. It's a good one. Yeah, go check that one out, guys. And then, you know, come back here. Review this episode again. Maybe check out the app [e-mail] app. Because remember, you can save your keywords there. Okay.

[Aubrey Carter]

Yes. And this is such a great vocabulary for connecting, to share what drives you crazy, maybe that find really irritating or what? You're crazy about what you really love. That's the best way to connect with people.

[Lindsey McMahon]

And I think in American culture, we have a tradition of exaggeration. Right. So, like, with the ramen, maybe ramen's in my top 20 favorite foods, but might not be number one. But I'm still going to say I'm crazy about ramen. So to be able to have words to do that, to be able to exaggerate culturally helps you fit in. It might not work as much in the UK because I don't think they exaggerate as much, but here in the US it would work. Work, Right.

[Aubrey Carter]

That's true. Really good point. Yes. Use it. If you're in the States, you know, no one's going to think that means it's your number one favorite food. Because we love to exaggerate.

[Lindsey McMahon]

We love to exaggerate. Yeah. Good stuff. Okay, Aubry, thanks for being on the show today. We'll see you very soon.

[Aubrey Carter]

Awesome. See you next time. Bye guys.

[Lindsey McMahon]

Bye.

Thanks for listening. To all ears. English Would you like to know your English level? Take our two minute quiz. Go to allearsenglish.com forward/fluency score. And if you believe in connection, not perfection, then hit subscribe now to make sure you don't miss anything. See you next time.

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