Synonyms of dumb

dumb 1 of 3

adjective

ˈdəm 

1

as in silent

deliberately refraining from speech

the mayor has chosen to remain dumb about her activities that night

Synonyms & Similar Words

• silent
• speechless
• mute
• mum
• inarticulate
• muted
• wordless
• uncommunicative
• voiceless
• dumbstruck
• sulky
• tongue-tied
• nonvocal
• sullen
• sulking

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• speaking
• communicative
• talking
• eloquent
• articulate
• fluent
• well-spoken
• talkative
• voluble
• vocal
• outspoken
• loquacious
• talky
• garrulous
• glib
• gabby
• facile
• unreserved
• smooth-tongued
• silver-tongued

2

as in stupid

not having or showing an ability to absorb ideas readily

don't call him dumb just because he makes the occasional mistake like the rest of us

Synonyms & Similar Words

• stupid
• slow
• simple
• thick
• foolish
• ignorant
• idiotic
• dull
• dense
• unintelligent
• silly
• dopey
• obtuse
• doltish
• brain-dead
• thickheaded
• fatuous
• vacuous
• boneheaded
• brainless
• mindless
• soft
• witless
• bonehead
• mad
• unreasonable
• dunderheaded
• insane
• dim
• lamebrain
• irrational
• dorky
• pinheaded
• opaque
• senseless
• oafish
• weak-minded
• dopy
• crazy
• softheaded
• dim-witted
• lamebrained
• idiotical
• empty-headed
• moronic
• gormless
• slow-witted
• airheaded
• unsmart
• knuckleheaded
• chuckleheaded
• half-witted
• lunkheaded
• bubbleheaded
• thick-witted
• looney
• absurd
• fool
• imbecile
• simpleminded
• birdbrained
• feebleminded
• lunatic
• uneducated
• imbecilic
• uninformed
• cretinous
• illiterate
• unthinking
• unintellectual
• asinine
• untaught
• illogical
• unwise
• whacky
• daft
• nonsensical
• lowbrow
• dippy
• cuckoo
• zany
• nutty
• wacky
• invalid
• sappy
• loony
• preposterous
• fallacious
• daffy
• kooky
• harebrained
• screwball
• dotty
• crackpot
• boobish
• cockeyed
• half-baked
• tomfool
• balmy
• kookie
• featherheaded

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• smart
• intelligent
• brilliant
• clever
• quick
• bright
• apt
• sharp
• fast
• wise
• ingenious
• keen
• nimble
• resourceful
• thinking
• acute
• savvy
• astute
• knowing
• intellectual
• insightful
• perceptive
• sagacious
• brainy
• cerebral
• keen
• knowledgeable
• learned
• literate
• discerning
• supersmart
• quick-witted
• skilled
• erudite
• sage
• informed
• educated
• sharp-witted
• ultrasmart
• scholarly
• shrewd
• trained
• cunning
• hyperintelligent
• reasonable
• perspicacious
• sound
• wily
• sensible
• crafty
• sapient
• logical
• prudent
• valid
• sane
• highbrow
• rational
• percipient
• judicious
• well-read
• foxy
• schooled

3

as in reserved

tending not to speak frequently (as by habit or inclination)

he prefers to remain dumb, and replies in monosyllables if really pressed

Synonyms & Similar Words

• silent
• reserved
• restrained
• laconic
• taciturn
• uncommunicative
• reticent
• tight-lipped
• aloof
• closemouthed
• introverted
• inhibited
• backward
• sheepish
• bashful
• coy
• diffident
• staid
• sedate
• retiring
• modest
• sober
• indrawn
• demure
• self-effacing
• self-contained

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• talkative
• communicative
• conversational
• loquacious
• outspoken
• chatty
• vocal
• mouthy
• talky
• garrulous
• unreserved
• gabby
• blabby
• gossipy
• motormouthed
• wordy
• rambling
• verbose
• prolix
• windy
• diffuse
• outgoing
• gregarious
• free-spoken
• sociable
• extroverted
• extraverted
• long-winded
• talebearing

dumb

2 of 3

verb

as in to mute

to stop the noise or speech of

the terrible news dumbed her for a long moment, and then she burst into tears

Synonyms & Similar Words

• mute
• shush
• quiet
• silence
• hush
• still
• settle
• shut up
• extinguish
• quell
• quieten
• squelch

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• stir
• agitate

dumbness

3 of 3

noun

1

as in silence

incapacity for or restraint from speaking

the determined dumbness of the accountants who tally the votes for the Academy Awards

Synonyms & Similar Words

• silence
• speechlessness
• muteness
• inarticulateness
• stillness
• voicelessness
• taciturnity
• reticence
• inarticulacy
• reticency
• reserve

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• communication
• speaking
• eloquence
• talking
• fluency
• volubility
• talkativeness
• loquacity
• loquaciousness
• garrulousness
• verbosity
• wordiness
• chattiness
• talkiness
• verboseness
• windiness

2

as in stupidness

the quality or state of lacking intelligence or quickness of mind

couldn't believe the dumbness of the people who fell for that scam

Synonyms & Similar Words

• stupidness
• thickness
• stupidity
• dullness
• obtuseness
• slowness
• dulness
• boneheadedness
• foolishness
• dopiness
• denseness
• dorkiness
• density
• oafishness
• insanity
• mindlessness
• witlessness
• brainlessness
• simpleness
• doltishness
• fatuity
• simplicity
• weak-mindedness
• gormlessness
• senselessness
• vacuity
• idiocy
• madness
• feeblemindedness
• dim-wittedness
• absurdity
• simplemindedness
• craziness
• fatuousness
• daftness
• wackiness
• irrationality
• inanity
• unreasonableness
• preposterousness
• zaniness
• silliness
• dottiness
• inaneness
• nuttiness
• nincompoopery
• lunacy
• fallacy
• folly
• balminess
• nonsensicalness
• asininity
• mental retardation
• dippiness
• mental deficiency

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• intelligence
• brilliance
• brightness
• cleverness
• smartness
• quickness
• perception
• judgment
• insight
• judgement
• perspicacity
• keenness
• sharpness
• acumen
• astuteness
• alertness
• discernment
• braininess
• quick-wittedness
• wisdom
• wit
• sagacity
• validity
• rationality
• percipience
• soundness
• reasonableness
• sapience
• sageness
• logicality
• logicalness
• rationalness

Examples of dumb in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Pete Townshend wrote the music and the lyrics for the inspiring story of the deaf, dumb and blind kid who sure plays a mean pinball. —Dan Kelly, kansascity.com, 6 June 2017

Some Dumb American, for giving me the opportunity — and for demonstrating what doing it badly looks like. —Lily Meade, Teen Vogue, 6 July 2017

Verb

Remember: when in doubt, dumb it down. —Yec, Forbes, 24 June 2021

M3GAN kills people, but our gal is not about to dumb herself down for Ken. —Mattie Kahn, Town & Country, 14 Jan. 2023