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
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bêtise
Noun
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Matt Chapman hit a two-run triple in the third, one night after his baserunning blunder cost San Francisco, and Heliot Ramos added an RBI single against Painter.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
7 Apr. 2026 -
Long before Bill de Blasio’s culinary blunder, RFK embarrassingly asked for a fork to eat a New York slice.—
Lincoln Anderson,
New York Daily News,
7 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Iran’s nuclear insanity leaves America and allies no room to blink.—
,
FOXNews.com,
8 Apr. 2026
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That still leaves the sanity phase of his trial, which will determine whether Fahim — who previously pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity — faces up to life in prison without parole or being sent to a state hospital for treatment.—
Sean Emery,
Oc Register,
8 Apr. 2026
Noun
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There’s a heartwarming idiocy to their pursuit, yet what festers underneath is their inability to process grief consciously and the fear that those who deem their existence meaningless might be right.—
Carlos Aguilar,
Variety,
14 Mar. 2026
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Gunther and Tig are two billionaire failsons who have wasted countless opportunities and cash chasing the stupidest ideas and who get rewarded over and over again for their idiocy.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
10 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The movie’s antic humor evokes the international Fluxus movement of the nineteen-sixties and seventies, which made political arguments through outrageous absurdity.—
Rebecca Mead,
New Yorker,
13 Apr. 2026
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There might be a small touch of some discomfort or dissonance or awkwardness or absurdity or something.—
Deputy Entertainment,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Apr. 2026
Noun
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But to think that suckers get an even break when insiders have information that assures them of winning is folly.—
William Mersey,
New York Daily News,
8 Apr. 2026
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The structures are called follies and were completely designed and built by students from start to finish.—
Brady Halbleib,
CBS News,
2 Apr. 2026
Noun
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If not for the stupidity of Joe Biden and the Democrats, ICE would have an easier job.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
31 Mar. 2026
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Smart, skilled, hardworking people gracefully put up with all manner of tragedy, stupidity, and institutional rot.—
Josh Tyrangiel,
The Atlantic,
22 Mar. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Bêtise.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/b%C3%AAtise. Accessed 16 Apr. 2026.
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