1
as in lunatic
a person who lacks good sense or judgment
don't be a nitwit—wear a seat belt!
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in idiot
a stupid person
an absolute nitwit as far as geography is concerned
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in fool
a silly flighty person
a nitwit who never should have been given a position of responsibility in the company
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of nitwit
The plot involves risqué photos of someone in the royal family being used as collateral, and poor Terry and his nitwit crew were tricked into trying to steal these from the bank instead of money.
—
Mike Ryan, Vulture, 31 Mar. 2025
At one point, in the role of a former C.I.A. agent, Walter Lloyd, Hackman stubs a gun under the nose of a hapless nitwit from the agency who has been sent to protect Walter and his family.
—Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 3 Mar. 2025
The nitwits were chased off by a woman from the local library board.
—Neal Rubin, Detroit Free Press, 25 July 2024
This childish nitwit called the judge deciding his case a Nazi, which earned him an extra five months in the J6 choir.
—Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 11 June 2024
Or is the old guy in the golf cart supposed to be a square, privileged nitwit parroting MAGA nonsense?
—Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 2 May 2024
Mike Ryan, Vulture, 31 Mar. 2025
At one point, in the role of a former C.I.A. agent, Walter Lloyd, Hackman stubs a gun under the nose of a hapless nitwit from the agency who has been sent to protect Walter and his family.
—Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 3 Mar. 2025
The nitwits were chased off by a woman from the local library board.
—Neal Rubin, Detroit Free Press, 25 July 2024
This childish nitwit called the judge deciding his case a Nazi, which earned him an extra five months in the J6 choir.
—Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 11 June 2024
Or is the old guy in the golf cart supposed to be a square, privileged nitwit parroting MAGA nonsense?
—Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 2 May 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nitwit
Noun
-
Even then, though, the popular take — the story of the lunatics taking over asylum — didn’t sit right with me.—
Paul Fischer,
HollywoodReporter,
13 Feb. 2026
-
Beating these lunatics was incredible, right?—
Joey Garrison,
USA Today,
5 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Sadly, OpenAI plays us for fools.—
Jim Cramer,
CNBC,
8 Feb. 2026
-
For years, defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo has been a wizard at designing blitzes that fool quarterbacks.—
Sam McDowell
February 5,
Kansas City Star,
5 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
This drunk moron — quite different from his character in the novel — bears a ton of blame.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
13 Feb. 2026
-
The Dilbert principle — traced back to a quote in a 1995 strip — posited that managers and higher-ups are actually successful morons whose stubbornness is confused for real leadership qualities.—
Jon Blistein,
Rolling Stone,
13 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
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
-
Besides offering a cash prize of up to $250,000, the show can help change perception of a villain or a ditz and be a springboard for their next casting.—
Shivani Gonzalez,
New York Times,
23 Jan. 2025
Noun
-
In one painfully funny sequence, a visiting gallerist (and gasbag) barely seems to care about her art, showing more interest in a goose’s nest that has materialized in an enclosure.—
Robert Abele,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Feb. 2026
-
And the plot is a high-drama, goose-bumpy ride that sits somewhere between Shakespearean and soap opera.—
David Lyman,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
5 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
There is nothing in the past year that suggests that the portion of this global event that will take place in the U.S. will proceed with anything less than exhausting chaos, a spoonful of stupid, and a dash of tragedy.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
16 Jan. 2026
-
And then, the rest of her life, filled with big stupids and everything else, will begin.—
Matthew Futterman,
New York Times,
19 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
But no, sillies: Bradley is white, famous and pretty — no jail time for her!—
Kimberly Roots,
TVLine,
17 Sep. 2025
-
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
Noun
-
However, unexpected and decidedly unwelcome guests keep turning up, including Beau’s brother, and a man who might be a homicidal maniac.—
Matthew J. Palm,
The Orlando Sentinel,
18 Jan. 2026
-
Not the fear of an actor out of her element, or the more mundane fear of a victim being chased around by an ax-wielding maniac.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
31 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Nitwit.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nitwit. Accessed 17 Feb. 2026.
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