as in blunder
a foolish act or idea
writing a sequel to a Jane Austen novel must be regarded as a literary bêtise of the highest order
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bêtise
Noun
-
But the internal investigation promised by department leaders — a probe of what accounted for the delays and blunders — seemed to go nowhere.—
Christopher Goffard,
Los Angeles Times,
15 May 2025 -
The show’s main blunder is that instead of unpacking the various angles of the mob bosses’ corruption, random side stories start popping up.—
Aramide Tinubu,
Variety,
15 May 2025
Noun
-
Dominguez has pleaded not guilty and not guilty by reason of insanity in the stabbing deaths of David Breaux, 50, and Karim Abou Najm, 20, at Davis’ Central and Sycamore parks; and the wounding of Kimberlee Guillory, then 64, in her tent in the city’s downtown.—
Darrell Smith,
Sacbee.com,
24 May 2025
-
And in the insanity of general religion, why not a dolphin Jesus?—
Jeff Spry,
Space.com,
15 May 2025
Noun
-
CHiPs was real, Kid Cop Nights is fake, and neither the two-dimensional storytelling of the former nor the hacky absurdity of the latter seem to have much in common with either of the shows referencing them.—
Alan Sepinwall,
Rolling Stone,
17 May 2025
-
Like sister-in-law Debra, Amy couldn't win with her future in-laws, sparking a bond between the two over the sheer absurdity of the Barones.—
Kate Hogan,
People.com,
16 May 2025
Noun
-
Warping science to conform to one’s politics will not change reality and will only ruin the nation that embarks on this folly.—
Alexander Soifer,
Scientific American,
2 May 2025
-
The current drift toward authoritarian leaders in this fractured world will leave international relations at the mercy of their whims, dreams, and follies.—
Margaret MacMillan,
The Atlantic,
30 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
This time, the technique is turned upon classic alien invasion movies of the Golden Age with liberal helpings of pure human stupidity as a seemingly peaceful first contact moment goes awry and gets bloody, leading to a solar system-ending flatulent finish.—
Jeff Spry,
Space.com,
17 May 2025
-
Tiny terror is unleashed in this mini alien apocalypse as directors Robert Bisi and Andy Lyon pay loving tribute to classic sci-fi stories of alien invasion and human stupidity using tilt-shift techniques that make the end of the world look almost cute.—
Ethan Shanfeld,
Variety,
24 Apr. 2025
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.
Cite this Entry
“Bêtise.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/b%C3%AAtise. Accessed 27 May. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share