Did you know?
Can inane Be Used As a Noun?
Inane suggests emptiness in thought or meaning, and as a noun it has similar use, as in "thoughts making excursions into the incomprehensible inane" (the example is attributed to the 17th-century philosopher John Locke). The noun is not often used nowadays, but the adjective fills the void.
Examples of inane in a Sentence
Adjective
All around us swirls the battering of gargantuan films, Styrofoam epics with megatons of special effects, gleefully inane adolescent films, horror films that really are horrible.
—
Stanley Kauffmann, New Republic, 15 Mar. 2004
The surfeit of home runs is a sop to all the Philistines who require inane diversions like programmed races between electronic dots on the scoreboard to make it through a two-hit shutout.
—Nicholas Dawidoff, New York Times Magazine, 4 Apr. 1999
Though feminist leaders are mostly aligned with those sentiments, they can't separate their quest for economic equity from the inane political correctness of their extremist sisters.
—Mary Matalin, Newsweek, 25 Oct. 1993
I quickly tired of their inane comments.
The film's plot is inane and full of clichés.
Noun
And thus likewise we sometimes speak of place, distance, or bulk in the great inane beyond the confines of the world.
—John Locke, An Essay Concerning Human Understanding, 1689
Stanley Kauffmann, New Republic, 15 Mar. 2004
The surfeit of home runs is a sop to all the Philistines who require inane diversions like programmed races between electronic dots on the scoreboard to make it through a two-hit shutout.
—Nicholas Dawidoff, New York Times Magazine, 4 Apr. 1999
Though feminist leaders are mostly aligned with those sentiments, they can't separate their quest for economic equity from the inane political correctness of their extremist sisters.
—Mary Matalin, Newsweek, 25 Oct. 1993
I quickly tired of their inane comments.
The film's plot is inane and full of clichés.
Noun
And thus likewise we sometimes speak of place, distance, or bulk in the great inane beyond the confines of the world.
—John Locke, An Essay Concerning Human Understanding, 1689
Recent Examples on the Web
David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 25 Nov. 2024
Every single one of these inane points is something federal judges might have gotten an opportunity to weigh in on had the president publicly announced an invocation of the act, as Sotomayor notes Congress requires.
—New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 9 Apr. 2025
Thomas Mallon, The New Yorker, 5 Dec. 2022
My guess is that the patriotic disguise is hollow and that the inane, formulaic Maverick is a test.
—Armond White, National Review, 27 May 2022
See All Example Sentences for inane
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.
Adjective
Vintage footage shows the guys hanging out in their suite at the Plaza, joking around with the film crew, doing phone interviews, responding with insouciant humor to inane questions in press encounters or cutting loose at the Peppermint Lounge.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 25 Nov. 2024
Every single one of these inane points is something federal judges might have gotten an opportunity to weigh in on had the president publicly announced an invocation of the act, as Sotomayor notes Congress requires.
—New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 9 Apr. 2025
Noun
June 19: [At the disco Private Eyes, with Greg and friends]: spent a couple of hours amidst the inane thumping music.
—Thomas Mallon, The New Yorker, 5 Dec. 2022
My guess is that the patriotic disguise is hollow and that the inane, formulaic Maverick is a test.
—Armond White, National Review, 27 May 2022
See All Example Sentences for inane
Cite this Entry
“Inane.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/inane. Accessed 5 May. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share