witlessness

noun

Definition of witlessnessnext
1
as in insanity
lack of good sense or judgment his astounding feats of witlessness are the stuff of family legend

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in thickness
the quality or state of lacking intelligence or quickness of mind for sheer witlessness the movie's dialogue deserves some sort of award

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 witlessness No, but the line captures the aristocracy’s witlessness. — Daniel Immerwahr, New Yorker, 18 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for witlessness
  1. insanity
  2. thickness
  3. madness
  4. stupidness
  5. simplicity
  6. stupidity
  7. absurdity
  8. dumbness
Noun
  • Iraq, Canada, United Kingdom, Luxembourg, Qatar, Saudi Arabia After accidentally cursing President Saddam Hussein on stage, theater actor Salem convinces a military court of his insanity to escape a death sentence.
    — Leo Barraclough, Variety, 6 July 2026
  • San Francisco trailed 6-1 at the time of Webb’s departure, and given Coors Field’s penchant for insanity, a comeback wasn’t out of the question.
    — Justice delos Santos, Mercury News, 4 July 2026
Definition of insanity
Noun
  • While some hair products can be used across different textures, lengths, curl patterns, thicknesses, and colors (natural and unnatural), they are often created with specific consumers in mind.
    — Sara Coughlin, Allure, 9 July 2026
  • Schippers did not specify the size, shape, thickness, or type of peanut butter the work needs.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 9 July 2026
Definition of thickness
Noun
  • This party track introduced audiences to a version of Tito Double P that radiated a lighthearted madness — fueled by Skyy vodka and Old Parr whiskey, as per the song’s lyrics.
    — Andrea Flores, Los Angeles Times, 7 July 2026
  • This episode does a really great job at portraying Rhaenyra’s slip toward madness or, if not madness per se, then a much more unhinged version of her former self.
    — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 6 July 2026
Definition of madness
Noun
  • In an email to Krebs, Valadon claimed that the repo’s commit logs show that GitHub’s default protections against committing secrets—protections designed to protect unwitting or unskilled developers against exactly this kind of stupidness—had been disabled by the repo’s administrator.
    — Lee Hutchinson, ArsTechnica, 19 May 2026
Definition of stupidness
Noun
  • Mixing knits with leather creates texture and contrast in the outfit, while the height and simplicity of these solid-color boots helps ground the overall look.
    — Abby Morgan Lebet, Glamour, 6 July 2026
  • Professionals must actively map where their risk truly lies, assessing counterparty exposure, income correlation, and cost repricing, rather than mistaking simplicity for safety.
    — Henrik Totterman, Forbes.com, 5 July 2026
Definition of simplicity
Noun
  • Is there a level of insanity, vitriol and stupidity that is infiltrating almost every aspect of our modern society, regardless of your political or religious views?
    — Joe Kinsey OutKick, FOXNews.com, 4 July 2026
  • Warm, fuzzy feelings for noble stupidity are an American thing, especially in politics.
    — The New Yorker, New Yorker, 4 July 2026
Definition of stupidity
Noun
  • The only thing this movie takes seriously is its wholehearted commitment to absurdity.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 8 July 2026
  • Mason has a field day riffing on the absurdities of contemporary academic culture and flagging the divides that separate what are often called coastal elites at the western and eastern edges of the country.
    — Heller McAlpin, Christian Science Monitor, 7 July 2026
Definition of absurdity
Noun
  • The first 10 minutes are an incredible swirl of paranoia, alcoholism, and sluggish dumbness when Gould just needs to feed his cat.
    — Eric Farwell, Entertainment Weekly, 12 June 2026
  • Unlike its sibling concepts of dumbness and idiocy, stupidity isn’t really a personality trait.
    — Jonny Thomson, Big Think, 11 Feb. 2026
Definition of dumbness

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Cite this Entry

“Witlessness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/witlessness. Accessed 12 Jul. 2026.

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