silly

1 of 3

adjective

sil·ly ˈsi-lē

sillier; silliest

Synonyms of silly next

: exhibiting or indicative of a lack of common sense or sound judgment

a very silly mistake

: weak in intellect

acting like a silly fool

: playfully lighthearted and amusing

a silly sense of humor

: trifling, frivolous

a silly waste of time

: being stunned or dazed

scared silly

knocked me silly

archaic : rustic, plain

The silly buckets on the deck,/That had so long remained,/I dreamt that they were filled with dew;/And when I awoke, it rained.—

Samuel Taylor Coleridge

obsolete : lowly in station : humble

archaic : helpless, weak

sillily

ˈsi-lə-lē

adverb

silliness

ˈsi-lē-nəs

noun

silly

2 of 3

adverb

informal : to an extreme degree

was scared silly

bored silly

: in a silly manner : in an absurd or ridiculous way

talking/behaving silly

Benny Hill just walked silly, period, usually at high speed, to the accompaniment of cheesy pop music …—

Charles Isherwood

silly

3 of 3

noun

plural sillies

: one who is silly : a foolish person

"But there," she told herself, "I am very likely a silly—meeting trouble half-way."—

D. H. Lawrence

"Well then, silly, why not stay!"—

Edna Ferber

"And who, then? Oh, the long line of sillies, light-weights, rakes, ne'er-do-wells, who … constituted society."—

Theodore Dreiser

When the narrator describes women directly they seem … innately either sentimental sillies … or … pious hypocrites.—

Myra Jehlen

Choose the Right Synonym for silly

simple, foolish, silly, fatuous, asinine mean actually or apparently deficient in intelligence.

simple implies a degree of intelligence inadequate to cope with anything complex or involving mental effort.

considered people simple who had trouble with computers

foolish implies the character of being or seeming unable to use judgment, discretion, or good sense.

foolish stunts

silly suggests failure to act as a rational being especially by ridiculous behavior.

the silly antics of revelers

fatuous implies foolishness, inanity, and disregard of reality.

fatuous conspiracy theories

asinine suggests utter and contemptible failure to use normal rationality or perception.

an asinine plot

Examples of silly in a Sentence

Adjective I hope I didn't make any silly mistakes. The idea does seem a bit silly. That's the silliest thing I've ever heard. You drove in this weather? What a silly thing to do! Silly me. I locked myself out of the car again. Ask a silly question, and you get a silly answer. “I can't ask you to do that.” “Don't be silly. It is my pleasure.” What a silly little purse. It looks too small to hold everything that I'd need to carry. I'm tired of watching silly movies. The book was a silly waste of time. See More

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

There will also be trash bins on hand for people unaware of the new rule and who need to get rid of their silly string cans. —

Nathan Solis, Los Angeles Times, 22 Sep. 2023 Photo: Diego Araya Corvalán/Netflix So, the Pinochet family would make the silly mistake of hiring an accountant who was really a nun, who was going there to perform an exorcism in order to try to save the vampire’s life. —

Vulture, 21 Sep. 2023 In a hilarious new social media video posted Tuesday, the iconic boy band recreated a memorable 2001 photo of Justin Timberlake, JC Chasez, Lance Bass, Chris Kirkpatrick and Joey Fatone making silly faces to each other. —

Jack Irvin, Peoplemag, 20 Sep. 2023 His is a curious case: his work has grown sillier, not wiser, in his maturity. —

Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 15 Sep. 2023 Yet those scenes draw on decades of vintage horror in a way that feels simultaneously silly and chilling, and set the tone for everything. —

David Fear, Rolling Stone, 15 Sep. 2023 And so Republicans will embark on a silly, self-defeating impeachment that is certain to fail. —

Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 14 Sep. 2023 At least on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from Sept. 15 to Oct. 22, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Enjoy a family-friendly fall display of silly ghosts, scarecrows, fairy houses, pumpkins and more! —

Jeff Lowenfels, Anchorage Daily News, 14 Sep. 2023 Reading board books, singing silly songs and engaging in imaginative play can help build a strong foundation for reading as little ones learn sound and develop language. —

Jenny Gold, Los Angeles Times, 14 Sep. 2023

Adverb

The Tumbler, like everything else Ember makes, is a silly guilty pleasure of a device. —

David Pierce, The Verge, 14 Sep. 2023 Rocky also shared multiple other photos of the three posing for the cameras and acting silly in the mirror. —

Hannah Sacks, Peoplemag, 1 June 2023 Any worker that’s going to throw a selfish, silly fit over something that keeps their bosses — that’s us — safe deserves the dismissal that’s coming their way. —

Los Angeles Times, 14 Nov. 2021 Caring about something so silly felt good. —

Kate Knibbs, Wired, 22 Dec. 2020 On the other hand, silly dare ideas are bound to provide endless laughter while tightening your bond. —

Leah Campano, Seventeen, 23 Mar. 2023 The Everything Everywhere All at Once co-stars won their Supporting Actor awards at the top of the show, so the two reliably high-energy awards-season presences were able to go full silly Billy for the rest of the night. —

Vulture, 13 Mar. 2023 To be fair, the story is largely about the insular and silly-sounding vocabulary of designers. —

Chris Klimek, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 Dec. 2022 The film is a sensory smorgasbord, the scuba diving adventure of your dreams, especially when seen on a massive screen in 3D with huge speakers, and would be downright silly viewed on a smartphone. —

Marco Della Cava, USA TODAY, 16 Dec. 2022 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'silly.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.