stupidity

noun

stu̇-ˈpi-də-tē How to pronounce stupidity (audio)
Definition of stupiditynext
1
as in stupidness
the quality or state of lacking intelligence or quickness of mind the stupidity of the dialogue between the two romantic leads had movie audiences giggling uncontrollably

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in insanity
a foolish act or idea the succession of stupidities by the company's owners was bound to result in bankruptcy

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in nonsense
language, behavior, or ideas that are absurd and contrary to good sense leaving her bags unguarded inside the airport terminal was nothing but stupidity on her part

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of stupidity That’s only made worse by the fact that it’s treated as some kind of grand betrayal rather than an impulsive act of youthful stupidity that will make for a good story one day. — David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 29 July 2026 Condor, Newton and Hiraga do their best to make Max’s actions believable, but her stubborn stupidity eventually requires more suspension of belief than a highly vindictive shark prowling a freshwater cave right next to the ocean. — Culture Critic, Los Angeles Times, 29 July 2026 The stupidity and greed of the status quo threatens to drive her insane. — Literary Hub, 21 July 2026 His eventual dismissal in second-half stoppage time was an exercise in rash stupidity, crashing through Spain’s teenage center back Pau Cubarsi. — Adam Crafton, New York Times, 20 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for stupidity
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stupidity
  1. stupidness
  2. insanity
  3. nonsense
  4. dumbness
  5. idiocy
  6. silliness
  7. thickness
  8. absurdity
Noun
  • In an email to Krebs, Valadon claimed that the repo’s commit logs show that GitHub’s default protections against committing secrets—protections designed to protect unwitting or unskilled developers against exactly this kind of stupidness—had been disabled by the repo’s administrator.
    — Lee Hutchinson, ArsTechnica, 19 May 2026
Definition of stupidness
Noun
  • That sentence would have sounded like insanity a few decades ago, but in the strange world of Hollywood in the 2020s, weirder might really be better.
    — Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 16 Oct. 2026
  • So this is just a build-up, and there is such insanity coming.
    — Derek Lawrence, Entertainment Weekly, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of insanity
Noun
  • In the eyes of the conferences, and CFP committee, the allure of a postseason bid is the carrot that would dangle in front of them so that fans would look the other way at the nonsense this creates for the football played in September or October.
    — Trey Wallace OutKick, FOXNews.com, 16 Oct. 2026
  • My fellow relishers of Trowbridge nonsense, today is our day of jubilee.
    — Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of nonsense
Noun
  • The first 10 minutes are an incredible swirl of paranoia, alcoholism, and sluggish dumbness when Gould just needs to feed his cat.
    — Eric Farwell, Entertainment Weekly, 12 June 2026
  • Unlike its sibling concepts of dumbness and idiocy, stupidity isn’t really a personality trait.
    — Jonny Thomson, Big Think, 11 Feb. 2026
Definition of dumbness
Noun
  • There's always been an element of complete idiocy in the culture.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 6 Oct. 2026
  • Forty years on, Spy magazine is best remembered, not unjustly, as the first entity to call out Trump for his tackiness, villainy, and arrant idiocy.
    — David Kamp, Air Mail, 3 Oct. 2026
Definition of idiocy
Noun
  • Mandell never let his artistic seriousness stand in the way of his silliness.
    — Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 15 Oct. 2026
  • Moments of mutual support and understanding, of belly-aching laughter and silliness, of care and deep love.
    — Kevin Dolak, HollywoodReporter, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of silliness
Noun
  • Rocket Lab also deleted joints in the first stage tank structure and increased the thickness of some sections of the carbon composite.
    — Stephen Clark, ArsTechnica, 15 Oct. 2026
  • There are more than 650 regulatory elements associated with beak size and nearly 1,700 with beak thickness and breadth.
    — Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of thickness
Noun
  • Early on, Sakurai exploits the inherent absurdity of telling a story populated by so many ludicrous characters.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Unlike Gregor Samsa who is confined to his room after transforming into a huge insect, the protagonist still has to go to work, a dark and bleak absurdity that lays bare the alienation, isolation, and hypocrisy of modern life.
    — Deadline, Deadline, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of absurdity

Browse Nearby Words

stupidities
stupidity
stupidness
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Stupidity.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stupidity. Accessed 21 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of jilt

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Can' vs. 'May'

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Did 'orange' the fruit or the color come first?

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
artwork of illustrated limes with the text limes and smile with an arrow connecting the two words
Quiz: Spot the Anagram! Scramble these words to find new words with the e...
See All