numbskull

noun

numb·​skull ˈnəm-ˌskəl How to pronounce numbskull (audio)
variants or less commonly numskull
1
: a dull or stupid person : dunce
2
: a thick or muddled head

Examples of numbskull in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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.
That’s all fine and dandy, but watching these two numbskulls, like Pinky and the Brain with lobotomies, try to take down Tamra is not fun. Brian Moylan, Vulture, 26 Sep. 2025 Churchill’s numbskull move immediately made all the exports of his highly export-dependent nation more expensive to buyers in other countries. Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, 10 Aug. 2025 And the Fed Board has done nothing to stop this 'numbskull' from hurting so many people. Anna Commander gabe Whisnant, MSNBC Newsweek, 25 July 2025 The worker who gets on the AI train learns to ask the right questions, and the numbskull of a skilled worker does not. Tressie McMillan Cottom, Mercury News, 3 Apr. 2025 Contra-stereotype, Finkel estimates that only ten per cent of meatheads are numbskulls. Ben McGrath, The New Yorker, 18 Dec. 2023

Word History

First Known Use

1697, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of numbskull was in 1697

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Numbskull.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/numbskull. Accessed 6 Oct. 2025.

Kids Definition

numbskull

variant of numskull

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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