as in idiots
a stupid person
often disparaged her coworkers as a bunch of know-nothings
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Recent Examples of know-nothings
How about the Hollywood know-nothings Susan Sarandon or Mark Ruffalo, who have so much to say about the suffering of Hamas terrorists but not a peep for people being brutalized and murdered by actual terrorists?
—
Bobby Zirkin, Baltimore Sun, 8 Jan. 2026
Bobby Zirkin, Baltimore Sun, 8 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for know-nothings
Noun
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One gets the sense, reading DuBois, that Stanton’s fervor for political action stemmed from a dread of being governed by idiots.—
Moira Donegan,
New Yorker,
13 Mar. 2026
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These people are idiots; who would fall for this?—
Jeff Spry,
Space.com,
13 Mar. 2026
Noun
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There are complicated brain-chemistry factors involved that have to do with testosterone, and dopaminergic systems, and kappa-opioid receptors, all of which seem to add up to a Jim Gaffigan joke about how men are morons compared with their wives.—
McKay Coppins,
The Atlantic,
12 Mar. 2026
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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
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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
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Beating these lunatics was incredible, right?—
Joey Garrison,
USA Today,
5 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Know-nothings.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/know-nothings. Accessed 19 Mar. 2026.
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