Pell-mell PEL-MEL , adverb;
1. In a confused or jumbled mass, crowd, manner, etc.: The crowd rushed pell-mell into the store when the doors opened
2. In disorderly, headlong haste; in a recklessly hurried manner
Adjective:
1. Indiscriminate; disorderly; confused: a pell-mell dash after someone
2. Overhasty or precipitate; rash: pell-mell spending
Noun:
1. A confused or jumbled mass, crowd, etc.
2. Disorderly, headlong haste
Origin:
Pell-mell is a variation on the French term pesle mesle, which is derived from the French verb mesler, "to mix." It entered English in the late 1500s.
Quotes:
But they erode already thin profit margins in developing-world factories and foster a pell-mell work environment in which getting the order out the door is the only thing that matters.
?James Surowiecki, "After Rana Plaza," The New Yorker, May 20, 2013
Synonyms: chaotic, confused, disarrayed, disorganized, haphazard, muddled, tumultuous
Antonyms: ordered, organized