FORGETFUL Synonyms: 54 Similar and Opposite Words

forgetful

adjective

fər-ˈget-fəl

Definition of forgetful

as in preoccupied

inclined to forget what one has learned or to do what one should we become more forgetful as we get older

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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 forgetful What are the most forgetful cities? — Irene Wright, USA Today, 3 June 2026 Ranking above Chicago as most forgetful cities are Miami and New York. — Sara Tenenbaum, CBS News, 2 June 2026 What also follows is a useless debate over the cultural impact of the movie amid concerns that the film is a little loose with the truth or outright forgetful about key moments of Jackson’s complex and complicated life. — Leonard Greene, New York Daily News, 25 Apr. 2026 Meanwhile, Wilson’s wife shared a meme appearing to compare MacInnes to Dory, the forgetful fish in the Pixar movies, and this was submitted to the court. — Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 24 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for forgetful

Recent Examples of Synonyms for forgetful

Adjective

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth seems more preoccupied with posting juvenile memes about the Canadian military than with the conflict.

— Daniel DePetris, Chicago Tribune, 15 Sep. 2026
Many 9/11 first responders alive today feel as Sanchez does, more preoccupied with their survivor’s guilt than their own ailments.

— Lila Dominus, CNN Money, 10 Sep. 2026

Definition of preoccupied

Adjective

In Digger, Cruise — nearly unrecognizable in makeup and prosthetics — plays an oblivious oil tycoon whose drilling in Greenland dislodges an ice shelf from a glacier that’s going to cause a global disaster.

— James Hibberd, HollywoodReporter, 23 Sep. 2026
Her face crumples amid strained phone calls with A’s oblivious mother, while her eyes blaze like a four-alarm fire during a crushing panic attack brought on by a pushy date.

— Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 16 Sep. 2026

Definition of oblivious

Adjective

Five o’clock Saturday, the Riverside Stadium and Middlesbrough head coach Kim Hellberg is fist-pumping a half-bewildered but fully enthused home crowd.

— Michael Walker, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2026
When kids first got online, parents were bewildered and alarmed, but kids, who tend to gravitate to new technology, found freedom in a space that was basically ungoverned.

— Joshua Rothman, New Yorker, 4 Sep. 2026

Definition of bewildered

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forget

forgetful

forgetfulness

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“Forgetful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/forgetful. Accessed 26 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of forgetful

adjective

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