1
as in preoccupied
lost in thought and unaware of one's surroundings or actions
the grieving woman was so absentminded that she left her key in the lock after opening the door
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in forgetful
inclined to forget what one has learned or to do what one should
an absentminded aunt who some years sends me two birthday checks
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of absentminded
Police always investigate a drowning to rule out cases of abuse or extreme neglect, but an absent-minded parent accidentally forgetting to lock the pool gate or door to the backyard was unlikely to land them behind bars, Hoskin said.
—
Perry Vandell, AZCentral.com, 16 July 2025
For absent-minded individuals who are constantly losing their phone or wallet, the Apple AirTag will save the day.
—Bestreviews, Mercury News, 8 July 2025
O'Brien returns to lend his voice to Lawrence Fletcher, Ferb's sweet but absent-minded dad.
—EW.com, 7 June 2025
Ludwig Von Drake Ludwig Von Drake is the wise and eccentric professor who is known to be brilliant, but sometimes an absent-minded scientist and inventor.
—Lauryn Higgins, Parents, 12 Mar. 2025
Your nails go through a lot: handwashing, polishing, maybe some absent-minded picking (guilty).
—Jessica Kasparian, SELF, 25 Feb. 2025
For Walton, Candide represents an innocent, sometimes absent-minded, young individual who doesn’t know anything about the world—or really that much about himself.
—Miguel Sirgado, Miami Herald, 6 Jan. 2025
That rule is forgiving to absent-minded voters, but slows tallying because those ballots still need to go through signature checks and other processes.
—Sasha Hupka, The Arizona Republic, 2 Dec. 2024
The French might be sad if Emily leaves, but Americans in Paris wouldn’t shed any tears; many of them have had enough of the Chicago native’s absent-minded cultural blunders.
—Colette Davidson, The Christian Science Monitor, 28 Oct. 2024
Perry Vandell, AZCentral.com, 16 July 2025
For absent-minded individuals who are constantly losing their phone or wallet, the Apple AirTag will save the day.
—Bestreviews, Mercury News, 8 July 2025
O'Brien returns to lend his voice to Lawrence Fletcher, Ferb's sweet but absent-minded dad.
—EW.com, 7 June 2025
Ludwig Von Drake Ludwig Von Drake is the wise and eccentric professor who is known to be brilliant, but sometimes an absent-minded scientist and inventor.
—Lauryn Higgins, Parents, 12 Mar. 2025
Your nails go through a lot: handwashing, polishing, maybe some absent-minded picking (guilty).
—Jessica Kasparian, SELF, 25 Feb. 2025
For Walton, Candide represents an innocent, sometimes absent-minded, young individual who doesn’t know anything about the world—or really that much about himself.
—Miguel Sirgado, Miami Herald, 6 Jan. 2025
That rule is forgiving to absent-minded voters, but slows tallying because those ballots still need to go through signature checks and other processes.
—Sasha Hupka, The Arizona Republic, 2 Dec. 2024
The French might be sad if Emily leaves, but Americans in Paris wouldn’t shed any tears; many of them have had enough of the Chicago native’s absent-minded cultural blunders.
—Colette Davidson, The Christian Science Monitor, 28 Oct. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for absentminded
Adjective
-
Science fiction is still preoccupied with real world fears about the pitfalls and potential dangers of AI.—
Bruce Dorminey,
Forbes.com,
10 Sep. 2025
-
What's popular is appearing preoccupied, too busy scrolling on one's phone to look around—and too caught up with one's many friends to make any new ones at a mall.—
Annabelle Canela,
Parents,
4 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
This feature is especially helpful for more forgetful users.—
BestReviews,
Mercury News,
16 Sep. 2025
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From casual travelers to forgetful commuters, anyone looking for a smarter way to track everyday essentials should seriously consider this card.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
12 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
If the behavior stops when distracted, boredom is likely the cause.—
Lucy Notarantonio,
MSNBC Newsweek,
18 Sep. 2025
-
The high-profile nature of Stone’s case raises awareness of the dangers of distracted driving and reliance on surveillance technology, pressuring the manufacturers to assess the accuracy of their products to prevent this tragedy from occurring again.—
John Perlstein,
Forbes.com,
15 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
When my first biopsy came back as noncancerous, everyone was confused.—
Lucy Notarantonio,
MSNBC Newsweek,
20 Sep. 2025
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One of the abstentions on the VFC coverage vote was Meissner, who didn't want to strip the recommendation or the VFC coverage but was entirely confused by how this would work in practice.—
Beth Mole,
ArsTechnica,
18 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Absentminded.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/absentminded. Accessed 22 Sep. 2025.
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