1
as in bastard
a person whose behavior is offensive to others
the captain finally had to deal with the cretin in the back of the plane
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in moron
a stupid person
in discussions anyone who disagrees with her is inevitably called a cretin
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of cretin
But the good things Huff did 10 years ago don’t give him a lifetime pass to be a cretin.
—
Nancy Armour, USA TODAY, 18 Feb. 2020
There are the buck-passers, cretins who are content to simply stand up, find another table, and pass their misfortune on to some other unsuspecting soul.
—Amiel Stanek, Bon Appétit, 26 Aug. 2019
Law's take on the royal cretin Vortigern ranges from very evil to very, very evil.
—John Serba | Jserba@mlive.com, NOLA.com, 12 May 2017
The problem, of course, is a small minority of cretins who are destructive just for the sake of being destructive, without any regard for the environment or any consideration for others who deserve to see our natural areas without blemish.
—Steve Lipsher, The Denver Post, 22 Apr. 2017
See All Example Sentences for cretin
Nancy Armour, USA TODAY, 18 Feb. 2020
There are the buck-passers, cretins who are content to simply stand up, find another table, and pass their misfortune on to some other unsuspecting soul.
—Amiel Stanek, Bon Appétit, 26 Aug. 2019
Law's take on the royal cretin Vortigern ranges from very evil to very, very evil.
—John Serba | Jserba@mlive.com, NOLA.com, 12 May 2017
The problem, of course, is a small minority of cretins who are destructive just for the sake of being destructive, without any regard for the environment or any consideration for others who deserve to see our natural areas without blemish.
—Steve Lipsher, The Denver Post, 22 Apr. 2017
See All Example Sentences for cretin
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cretin
Noun
-
Lluís then calls Puig Antich a moron.—
Colm Tóibín,
The Atlantic,
14 Mar. 2026
-
This drunk moron — quite different from his character in the novel — bears a ton of blame.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
13 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Here, witches are real — and so are jerks.—
Amy Nicholson,
Los Angeles Times,
30 Apr. 2026
-
The passengers include the requisite obnoxious jerk, Dan (Angus Sampson), already throwing his weight around and breaking no-smoking rules at LAX.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
28 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Even a rival gave kudos — kind of — to the clown.—
Anna Lazarus Caplan,
PEOPLE,
8 May 2026
-
Thor is now a circus clown — not even a funny one at that — relegated to being the butt of Star-Lord's unfunny jokes and the least-serious Avenger.—
Sergio Pereira,
Space.com,
6 May 2026
Noun
-
My dad has always said the lottery is a tax on the stupid.—
Alex Crippen,
CNBC,
4 Apr. 2026
-
The scale of the headloss was best summed up by Luis Suarez attempting to reason with Messi, before the Argentine did anything on the Suarez scale of stupid.—
Phil Hay,
New York Times,
23 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
The book's main character — Cheese — was inspired by her real-life rescue dog, who was known for chasing squirrels and bringing energy into her life.—
Wakisha Bailey,
CBS News,
4 May 2026
-
By targeting a gene central to the molecular dysfunction and creating a novel system to deliver functional genetic instructions, High, Bennett and Maguire were able to move their therapy from the lab to experiments in dogs and finally to clinical trials in humans.—
Lauren J. Young,
Scientific American,
4 May 2026
Noun
-
The 69-year-old joker plans to make his comeback at California’s Ice House Comedy Club in Pasadena Wednesday night.—
Brian Niemietz,
New York Daily News,
29 Apr. 2026
-
After months bandying about the term joker to describe his team’s need for a matchup-threat pass-catcher, Sean Payton sat with the media at the NFL owners’ meetings in Palm Beach, Florida, last year and confirmed Denver had gotten its guy.—
Luca Evans,
Denver Post,
28 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Only about 30 percent of all nests evade their many predators, including skunks, opossums, raccoons, coyotes, snakes, and even domestic dogs and cats.—
Laura Baisas,
Popular Science,
29 Apr. 2026
-
That means don’t send your dog out to charge a skunk, and don’t go outside banging on pots and pans or yelling, which is only going to make the skunk feel threatened.—
Arricca Elin SanSone,
Southern Living,
24 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Cretin.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cretin. Accessed 11 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
