as in goofy
lacking in seriousness or maturity
a scatterbrained child who couldn't seem to pay attention or stop fooling around
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Recent Examples of scatterbrained
Susan Blanchard co-starred as Tina Kelly, his scatterbrained housekeeper.
—
Marc Berman,
Forbes.com,
9 Sep. 2025
The novel begins on a Monday afternoon like any other at its three adolescent central characters’ loving but scatterbrained aunt Xía’s house in Miami.
—
Juan Vidal,
New York Times,
24 Jan. 2025
Meanwhile, Hudson turns up her ditz-o-meter to 11, twirling and screaming her way through a performance that should remind Hollywood of her singular scatterbrained talents.
—
Ann Hornaday,
Washington Post,
22 Nov. 2022
Trying to stay organized can be a real pain, especially for those of us who may be a bit scatterbrained.
—
Chris Hachey,
BGR,
22 June 2021
President Biden had another dismal week thanks to the accelerating border crisis, the beginnings of his assault on the Second Amendment, Vice President Kamala Harris’s behavior and his scatterbrained performance at a Thursday news conference.
—
Paul Bedard,
Washington Examiner,
27 Mar. 2021
Sadat cast Afghan nonactors to paint a scatterbrained picture of parentless adolescence, and outstanding production design immerses us in this historical remembrance.
—
Carlos Aguilar,
Los Angeles Times,
5 Mar. 2021
Donald Moffat is superb as a president who masks his ferocity with scatterbrained folksiness.
—
Duane Byrge,
The Hollywood Reporter,
3 Aug. 2020
Marc Berman,
Forbes.com,
9 Sep. 2025
The novel begins on a Monday afternoon like any other at its three adolescent central characters’ loving but scatterbrained aunt Xía’s house in Miami.
—
Juan Vidal,
New York Times,
24 Jan. 2025
Meanwhile, Hudson turns up her ditz-o-meter to 11, twirling and screaming her way through a performance that should remind Hollywood of her singular scatterbrained talents.
—
Ann Hornaday,
Washington Post,
22 Nov. 2022
Trying to stay organized can be a real pain, especially for those of us who may be a bit scatterbrained.
—
Chris Hachey,
BGR,
22 June 2021
President Biden had another dismal week thanks to the accelerating border crisis, the beginnings of his assault on the Second Amendment, Vice President Kamala Harris’s behavior and his scatterbrained performance at a Thursday news conference.
—
Paul Bedard,
Washington Examiner,
27 Mar. 2021
Sadat cast Afghan nonactors to paint a scatterbrained picture of parentless adolescence, and outstanding production design immerses us in this historical remembrance.
—
Carlos Aguilar,
Los Angeles Times,
5 Mar. 2021
Donald Moffat is superb as a president who masks his ferocity with scatterbrained folksiness.
—
Duane Byrge,
The Hollywood Reporter,
3 Aug. 2020
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scatterbrained
Adjective
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Margaret, what the president said is just goofy word salad.
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As Buffy’s bafoonish brother, Dave Sheridan played an unlikely killer (though Doofy GIlmore ends up being far less goofy than originally expected).
Adjective
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Every player with a pulse had six suitors throwing silly money around.
-
Some scenes in the movie are light and silly, including those pairing Maddie with a lesbian friend, played by Kate Berlant, who clearly loves her.
Adjective
-
Ureña, a 22-year-old right-hander who has emerged as another potential ace, speaks of Soriano with a giddy amusement mixed with a solemn respect for how the starter has survived in the big leagues.
-
For now, the stock market and the credit market are telling slightly different stories about the same companies, one giddy and one wary.
Adjective
-
Exciting and futile The Humans to Titan Summit was both exciting and futile, said Pascal Lee, chairman of the Mars Institute and a planetary scientist at the SETI Institute.
-
All these plans acknowledge the experience gap, namely that training without arranging relevant work experience is often futile.
Cite this Entry
“Scatterbrained.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scatterbrained. Accessed 6 Jul. 2026.
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