1,400 new words in our dictionary! — Parasocial, glow-up, promposal & more
1,400 new words in our dictionary! — More

flibbertigibbet

noun

ˌfli-bər-tē-ˈji-bət How to pronounce flibbertigibbet (audio)
Definition of flibbertigibbetnext
as in scatterbrain
a silly flighty person forced to endure a long flight with a flibbertigibbet as a seat companion

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

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 flibbertigibbet Winnie, on the other hand, is a flibbertigibbet of stream-of-consciousness. — Han Ong, New Yorker, 22 June 2025 Projects about Monroe have handled her personal life to varying degrees of success, often leaning into her flibbertigibbet persona, her struggles with addiction, and the paradox of her oozing sexuality and her little girl brokenness. — Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 24 Jan. 2023 Miranda Hart is touching as the flibbertigibbet Miss Bates, whom Emma thoughtlessly mocks. — Caryn James, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Feb. 2020 Instead of acting cool and sophisticated our narrator prattled like a flibbertigibbet. — Sam Sacks, WSJ, 6 Apr. 2018 And never mind that its mother is a flibbertigibbet who has no business having a baby. — Matt Giles, Longreads, 29 Sep. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for flibbertigibbet
  1. ditz
  2. silly
  3. fool
  4. cuckoo
  5. goose
Noun
  • There’s a tramp, a ditz, a bad boss, a hippie, a by-the-book good girl.
    — Emily Nussbaum, New Yorker, 2 Apr. 2026
  • Rather than stay pigeonholed as a ditz, Simpson (who just released new music for the first time in 15 years) went on to launch her own fashion brand, which hit $1 billion in sales in 2015 and is still going strong today.
    — EW Staff, EW.com, 20 Mar. 2025
Definition of ditz
Noun
  • The glamorous Emmy winner known for Loewe red-carpet looks and starring on prestige dramedy The Bear is returning to full-bore silly in order to play America’s favorite beagle.
    — Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 6 Aug. 2026
  • It was shot in portrait because it was shot in Instagram by and for a woman who was losing her mind in quarantine and had fully let the sillies take the wheel.
    — Ego Nwodim, TIME, 12 Feb. 2025
Definition of silly
Noun
  • Miami’s pass rushing was nonexistent against Las Vegas Was all the talk about the improvement Chop Robinson (one tackle) made to his game fool’s gold?
    — Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 15 Sep. 2026
  • Deepfake candidates already clear live interviews, using voice cloning and real-time face swaps that fool experienced recruiters.
    — Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 14 Sep. 2026
Definition of fool
Noun
  • This was not the case for one—an egregious offering that dwarfed all the others, like a cuckoo in a wren’s nest.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 15 Sep. 2026
  • But a cuckoo premise isn’t enough to hang a film on, apparently.
    — Bethy Squires, Vulture, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of cuckoo
Noun
  • Don’t throttle the goose who lays the golden eggs, don’t blast from the skies the albatross who guarantees fair winds.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 22 Sep. 2026
  • Still, the administrators, the commissioners and league presidents must recognize that if trade wars devolve into something more hateful and restrictive, team owners may find their golden goose has fallen into the crockpot.
    — Rick Burton, Sportico.com, 18 Sep. 2026
Definition of goose

Browse Nearby Words

flexures
flibbertigibbet
flibbertigibbets
See all Nearby Words

Podcast

Theme music by Joshua Stamper ©2006 New Jerusalem Music/ASCAP

Cite this Entry

“Flibbertigibbet.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/flibbertigibbet. Accessed 25 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of tactile

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 25
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
crayons-in-a-circle
Guess the Color Quiz Questions that use the whole box of crayons.
See All