as in dumb
not having or showing an ability to absorb ideas readily
you're not unintelligent, so you must just be stubbornly resisting all attempts to teach you something
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of unintelligent
The life of an unattractive and unintelligent young woman living in a dreary backwater in the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
—
New York Times, 16 Oct. 2025
The 32-year-old says she’s always been naturally curious, but as a child, school often left her feeling anxious and unintelligent.
—Harmeet Kaur, CNN Money, 13 Sep. 2025
Even today, there are many settings in which the Christian faith is considered absurd, meant for the weak and unintelligent.
—Daniel Burke, NPR, 9 May 2025
The show and its participants were even parodied on Saturday Night Live in January, with comedian Ego Nwodim playing Amuli, and other cast members mocking people’s poor conversation skills and unintelligent dating decisions.
—Ct Jones, Rolling Stone, 10 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for unintelligent
New York Times, 16 Oct. 2025
The 32-year-old says she’s always been naturally curious, but as a child, school often left her feeling anxious and unintelligent.
—Harmeet Kaur, CNN Money, 13 Sep. 2025
Even today, there are many settings in which the Christian faith is considered absurd, meant for the weak and unintelligent.
—Daniel Burke, NPR, 9 May 2025
The show and its participants were even parodied on Saturday Night Live in January, with comedian Ego Nwodim playing Amuli, and other cast members mocking people’s poor conversation skills and unintelligent dating decisions.
—Ct Jones, Rolling Stone, 10 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for unintelligent
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unintelligent
Adjective
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Paige is little more than a dumb blonde stereotype, another underwritten female character in Sheridan’s growing oeuvre, but Chapman laces her babyish whining with surprising bite, while showing a knack for physical comedy.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
13 Mar. 2026
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How did an Ivy League grad from Penn get so dumb?—
Paul Sullivan,
Chicago Tribune,
13 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Of all the live-action shows made by Adult Swim, Three Busy Debras is the most cartoonish; its world is as elastic and stupid as any Chuck Jones Looney Tunes joint.—
Eric Vilas-Boas,
Vulture,
18 Mar. 2026
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Anyone who says anything else is stupid or lying.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
18 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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This chaged profile results in improved satiety and a slower blood sugar spike.—
Jahnavi Rapaka,
Vogue,
21 Mar. 2026
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That alone would create a challenging year for water managers, who rely on slow and steady snowmelt to feed streams, rivers and reservoirs and meet spring and summer demand for irrigation and drinking water.—
Mira Rojanasakul,
New York Times,
21 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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The rooms Hotel Thaynes has 128 guest rooms, including six king suites, each designed for simple mountain stays with subtle pops of colors.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
19 Mar. 2026
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Such a vote — which is bound to fail but would put senators on the record — differs from using a simple majority to change the Senate rules, a vote a senator could force after an unsuccessful vote to break a filibuster.—
Burgess Everett,
semafor.com,
19 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Having access to knowledge and being able to collectively reflect are rights too precious to surrender to those who prefer us ignorant.—
Megan Thiele Strong,
Chicago Tribune,
16 Mar. 2026
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What’s going on is that the bank and its customer service reps are ignorant of the law.—
Liz Weston,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
15 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Videos and photos from the scene showed thick gray smoke billowing from the complex and some workers jumping from a building belonging to Anjun Industrial.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
22 Mar. 2026
-
In the hands of a sandwich master, these things can come from elsewhere—in the Vegitalian, thin slabs of fresh mozzarella and, of all things, a thick layer of roasted sweet-potato slices.—
Helen Rosner,
New Yorker,
22 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Unintelligent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unintelligent. Accessed 22 Mar. 2026.
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