1
as in dumb
not having or showing an ability to absorb ideas readily
a dog so witless that it is barely trainable
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in stupid
showing or marked by a lack of good sense or judgment
a witless decision to relocate to the other side of the country without even the prospect of a job
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of witless
The federal government, in all its wisdom, is once again gearing up to save the witless American people from themselves.
—
Noah Rothman, National Review, 3 Jan. 2025
By most accounts, Trump’s ground game—powered by the witless Musk—was a bit of a mess, but Harris’s professional field operation seems to have been helpless to stem the tide of Trump’s support.
—The New Yorker, 5 Nov. 2024
How to Lose Friends & Alienate People (2008) To borrow Jeff Bridges’s description of the magazine that Simon Pegg’s character once ran, How to Lose Friends & Alienate People is witless.
—Matthew Jacobs, Vulture, 12 Apr. 2024
But this latest effort, premiering on Prime Video, proves a relentlessly vulgar and witless affair that not even the talents of stars Will Ferrell and Reese Witherspoon and a comedically gifted supporting cast can rescue.
—Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
See All Example Sentences for witless
Noah Rothman, National Review, 3 Jan. 2025
By most accounts, Trump’s ground game—powered by the witless Musk—was a bit of a mess, but Harris’s professional field operation seems to have been helpless to stem the tide of Trump’s support.
—The New Yorker, 5 Nov. 2024
How to Lose Friends & Alienate People (2008) To borrow Jeff Bridges’s description of the magazine that Simon Pegg’s character once ran, How to Lose Friends & Alienate People is witless.
—Matthew Jacobs, Vulture, 12 Apr. 2024
But this latest effort, premiering on Prime Video, proves a relentlessly vulgar and witless affair that not even the talents of stars Will Ferrell and Reese Witherspoon and a comedically gifted supporting cast can rescue.
—Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
See All Example Sentences for witless
Recent Examples of Synonyms for witless
Adjective
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The reigning Super Bowl champs better hope that’s the dumbest thing that one of their players does this season.—
Parker Gabriel,
Denver Post,
6 Sep. 2025
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Sometimes, actors play a slightly dumber iteration of themselves; think James Van Der Beek in Don’t Trust the B in Apartment 23 and Liam Neeson in Life’s Too Short (a performance that got Neeson cast in this year’s The Naked Gun).—
Fran Hoepfner,
Vulture,
5 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The recent rash of CEOs Gone Wild is arguably even stupider than commonplace fraud, and a troubling sign that there continues to be a slippery slope of accountability for C-Suite leadership.—
Ian Chaffee,
Fortune,
5 Sep. 2025
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The accounts team logs in right on time, and the stupid dance of platitudes that precedes every meeting at every company around the world begins.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
5 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Biden, who ended his bid for a second White House term 107 days before last year's election, has been relatively slow to move on presidential library planning compared with most of his recent predecessors.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
7 Sep. 2025
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With Parkinson’s, doctors implant electrodes in the brain that produce electrical impulses to disrupt the abnormal signals that cause tremors, stiffness and slow movement.—
Jen Christensen,
CNN Money,
7 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Grace can be a frustrating protagonist, making foolish, self-sabotaging decisions in pursuit of fleeting pleasure and conditional approval from guys who, frankly, aren’t worth her time.—
Katie Rife,
IndieWire,
4 Sep. 2025
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Placing stock in anything but winning might be foolish, especially given the nature of how the Steelers quarterback operates.—
James Brizuela,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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With just a few chairs, a handful of tables and a simple tent, the setting was intimate but filled with love and intention.—
Tereza Shkurtaj,
PEOPLE,
7 Sep. 2025
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And one of these, for those of us accustomed to British conventions but who follow the game in continental Europe, is the simple passage of time.—
Michael Cox,
New York Times,
6 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Alex is much more bookish, for example, although Cole is clever and can be academic and is in no way some silly, stupid jock or anything— but, in the obvious ways — and Cole is more sporty in the obvious ways.—
Dessi Gomez,
Deadline,
29 Aug. 2025
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This is not simply some silly bathroom joke.—
Pat Graham,
Chicago Tribune,
29 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Any suggestion that this is some kind of victory for Combs is ignorant.—
KiMi Robinson,
USA Today,
27 Aug. 2025
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In this case, the problem is ethics in the medical profession, as young doctor Andrew Manson (Robert Donat) moves from idealism to disillusionment and back again when faced with ignorant patients who are skeptical of his conclusions, economic hardship, and crooked colleagues.—
Jim Hemphill,
IndieWire,
25 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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These charges are absurd and unjust.—
David Goodhue,
Miami Herald,
3 Sep. 2025
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The content is absurd, borderline uncomfortable and consistently viral.—
Leeron Walter,
Forbes.com,
3 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Witless.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/witless. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
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