as in idiot
a stupid person
he's no dum-dum—he made his first million by 25
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Recent Examples of dum-dum
In the movie’s early scenes, while Buckley’s Agnes is busy tossing her hair in witch-of-the-woods fashion, his William is a truly believable lovestruck dum-dum.
—
Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 27 Nov. 2025
Somewhere out there was a family of blond dum-dums who inexplicably ended up with a brunette genius.
—Inga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 May 2025
As such, the political commentary goes too broad, accusing the public of being dum-dums and filing the tired charge that politicians are phony.
—Charles Bramesco, Vulture, 10 Apr. 2025
Put another way, why are there no dum-dums under the Dome?
—Zach Przystup, Baltimore Sun, 10 Dec. 2024
But Williams, often shirtless (and that’s not a bad thing), gets laughs as a dum-dum who speaks in a very high, piping voice.
—Tom Gliatto, Peoplemag, 14 June 2023
Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 27 Nov. 2025
Somewhere out there was a family of blond dum-dums who inexplicably ended up with a brunette genius.
—Inga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 May 2025
As such, the political commentary goes too broad, accusing the public of being dum-dums and filing the tired charge that politicians are phony.
—Charles Bramesco, Vulture, 10 Apr. 2025
Put another way, why are there no dum-dums under the Dome?
—Zach Przystup, Baltimore Sun, 10 Dec. 2024
But Williams, often shirtless (and that’s not a bad thing), gets laughs as a dum-dum who speaks in a very high, piping voice.
—Tom Gliatto, Peoplemag, 14 June 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dum-dum
Noun
-
Overwhelmingly, though, the most common response was to seek confirmation of their suspicions that Daniel Graham and Adam Carruthers were morons.—
Rosa Lyster,
Harpers Magazine,
30 Dec. 2025
-
There are worse things than watching Black, Rudd, and Zahn play three gormless morons on a mid-life misadventure, but almost every scene and setpiece is constructed with a haphazardness that blunders away their charm.—
David Ehrlich,
IndieWire,
23 Dec. 2025
Noun
-
So, the parallel thing that I’ve been frustrated by recently is not just calling Trump stupid, but calling Trump voters stupid.—
Drew Broussard
May 22,
Literary Hub,
22 May 2025
-
Sometimes too stupid is actually smartski but sometimes is just stupid stupid.—
Caroline Downey,
National Review,
27 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
In one drill, several team members stood forty yards upslope, pulling, as others below guided and balanced a silicone dummy in a litter.—
Paige Williams,
New Yorker,
12 Jan. 2026
-
Becker, 31, is one of the few young adults pursuing the fading art, which sees her sharing a stage with two dummies named Jerry and Ronnie.—
Greta Bjornson,
PEOPLE,
23 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Dum-dum.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dum-dum. Accessed 14 Jan. 2026.
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