as·i·nine
ˈa-sə-ˌnīn 
1
: extremely or utterly foolish or silly
an asinine excuse
2
: of, relating to, or resembling an ass
asininely
adverb
as·i·nin·i·ty
ˌa-sə-ˈni-nə-tē sometimes -zə-
plural -es
1
: the quality or state of being asinine
capable of an asininity that can snatch defeat from the very jaws of victory—
G. W. Johnson
G. W. Johnson2
: something that is asinine
that sickening list of asininities—Max Ascoli
Max AscoliSynonyms of asinine
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Adjective
Examples of asinine in a Sentence
Adjective
… geniuses like Brando strike self and material together in a way that sets off some incomparable spark, radiating so much charisma that they get away with choices that would seem asinine from anyone else.
—Jeremy McCarter, New York Times Book Review, 4 Jan. 2009
The boss of Wells Fargo has called the solvency tests "asinine". The aim of such behaviour is presumably to convince regulators to focus the coming clampdown on the weakest banks.
—The Economist, 13-19 June 2009
First the good news: There's one palatable piece of ear candy here, "Rocket O' Love." While the words are asinine ("Shotgun, shing-a-ling/One, two, one two three, hey!!"), it's a hearty … rocker Billy Squier might like to call his own.
—David Hiltbrand, People Weekly, 11 Mar. 1991
it was asinine to run into the street like that
Jeremy McCarter, New York Times Book Review, 4 Jan. 2009
The boss of Wells Fargo has called the solvency tests "asinine". The aim of such behaviour is presumably to convince regulators to focus the coming clampdown on the weakest banks.
—The Economist, 13-19 June 2009
First the good news: There's one palatable piece of ear candy here, "Rocket O' Love." While the words are asinine ("Shotgun, shing-a-ling/One, two, one two three, hey!!"), it's a hearty … rocker Billy Squier might like to call his own.
—David Hiltbrand, People Weekly, 11 Mar. 1991
it was asinine to run into the street like that
Recent Examples on the Web
Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 15 Feb. 2026
All of that would have seemed asinine mere weeks ago.
—Chad Graff, New York Times, 10 Oct. 2025
Speaking of people getting into hot water for saying asinine things, don’t miss Sabrina Impacciatore’s brilliantly inappropriate portrayal of Esmeralda Grande in The Office spin-off/continuation The Paper, which premieres on Peacock on Thursday, September 4.
—Jessica Radloff, Glamour, 1 Sep. 2025
What's worse than luring Robert De Niro to Netflix for a boring, soulless and asinine political thriller?
—Kelly Lawler, USA TODAY, 20 Feb. 2025
Alonso may not be the priority at first base for the Bronx Bombers, but to say there is zero interest is asinine.
—Gord Magill, Newsweek, 20 Dec. 2024
Altman’s is a plainly asinine claim; a bunch of code running in a data center is not the same as a brain.
—Matteo Wong, The Atlantic, 6 Dec. 2024
Comedy videos about customer service and asinine Atlanta eatery rules were already popular on TikTok but have seen major pickup since Lee’s viral videos.
—Ct Jones, Rolling Stone, 1 Nov. 2023
Rogozin's claim that the only evidence Roscosmos could offer of the Moon landings was a book by Leonov is asinine.
—Eric Berger, Ars Technica, 8 May 2023
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Adjective
That these sayings are meant to reflect something both deep and asinine about the film itself is self-evident.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 15 Feb. 2026
All of that would have seemed asinine mere weeks ago.
—Chad Graff, New York Times, 10 Oct. 2025
Speaking of people getting into hot water for saying asinine things, don’t miss Sabrina Impacciatore’s brilliantly inappropriate portrayal of Esmeralda Grande in The Office spin-off/continuation The Paper, which premieres on Peacock on Thursday, September 4.
—Jessica Radloff, Glamour, 1 Sep. 2025
What's worse than luring Robert De Niro to Netflix for a boring, soulless and asinine political thriller?
—Kelly Lawler, USA TODAY, 20 Feb. 2025
Alonso may not be the priority at first base for the Bronx Bombers, but to say there is zero interest is asinine.
—Gord Magill, Newsweek, 20 Dec. 2024
Altman’s is a plainly asinine claim; a bunch of code running in a data center is not the same as a brain.
—Matteo Wong, The Atlantic, 6 Dec. 2024
Comedy videos about customer service and asinine Atlanta eatery rules were already popular on TikTok but have seen major pickup since Lee’s viral videos.
—Ct Jones, Rolling Stone, 1 Nov. 2023
Rogozin's claim that the only evidence Roscosmos could offer of the Moon landings was a book by Leonov is asinine.
—Eric Berger, Ars Technica, 8 May 2023
Cite this Entry
“Asinine.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/asinine. Accessed 25 Jun. 2026.
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