as in dumb
not having or showing an ability to absorb ideas readily
a product with a warning label that even the most boneheaded consumer should be able to understand
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Recent Examples of boneheaded
Defensively, he has been known for making exceptional plays but also making boneheaded mistakes.
—
Drew Vonscio, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Oct. 2025
Why sane people don’t run for office, a boneheaded move from an Arizona lawmaker and fallout from a Minnesota shooting.
—Joanna Allhands, AZCentral.com, 29 Aug. 2025
But despite the intelligence upgrade, some have spotted the AI model still making boneheaded mistakes.
—PC Magazine, 8 Aug. 2025
Unfortunately for Leslie, Gary is terrible at poker, and his boneheaded bet during the relationship test leaves them in the bottom three.
—Kristen Baldwin, EW.com, 5 Aug. 2025
Drew Vonscio, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Oct. 2025
Why sane people don’t run for office, a boneheaded move from an Arizona lawmaker and fallout from a Minnesota shooting.
—Joanna Allhands, AZCentral.com, 29 Aug. 2025
But despite the intelligence upgrade, some have spotted the AI model still making boneheaded mistakes.
—PC Magazine, 8 Aug. 2025
Unfortunately for Leslie, Gary is terrible at poker, and his boneheaded bet during the relationship test leaves them in the bottom three.
—Kristen Baldwin, EW.com, 5 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for boneheaded
Adjective
-
Okay, there's trying something new and then there's just being dumb.—
Samantha Highfill,
Entertainment Weekly,
12 Jan. 2026
-
Why portray Dorothy as a doe-eyed ding-a-ling; as not just naive but dumb?—
Lili Anolik,
Vanity Fair,
12 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
What happens, though, when those excesses transcend the merely stupid, the merely unjust, to become existential?—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
29 Jan. 2026
-
People who approve of ICE’s actions aren’t necessarily stupid or evil.—
Dev Patnaik,
Forbes.com,
27 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Some folks who were moving a little slow, some folks wanted to dilute the Canadiana or the Big C Canadian of it.—
Ben Smith,
semafor.com,
31 Jan. 2026
-
In practice, the process is slow, burdensome, and uncertain.—
James Broughel,
Forbes.com,
30 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
In such a world, simple answers won’t do; only the courage to ask the hardest questions will push us forward.—
Daphne Koller,
Big Think,
29 Jan. 2026
-
Knox, who committed to wrestle at Rutgers University, and his dad were initially charged with simple assault for purposely/knowingly causing bodily injury after a brawl broke out at Collingswood High School on February.—
Scott Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
29 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
The Ukrainian military is especially keen on more supplies of thicker fishing nets.—
Tim Lister,
CNN Money,
1 Feb. 2026
-
To Dallas’ astoundingly great luck, the arrival and rise of Cooper Flagg has been a bright ray of hope and excitement, but with Doncic back in the building the air was thick with gloom, regret and, yes, ongoing anger.—
Brad Townsend,
Dallas Morning News,
31 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
The idea of giving that over to a robot seems foolish [and] boring.—
Melinda Newman,
Billboard,
26 Jan. 2026
-
Black people cast and produced to look stupid and foolish as standard operating procedure.—
Chadd Scott,
Forbes.com,
24 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Boneheaded.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/boneheaded. Accessed 2 Feb. 2026.
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