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
Witherspoon’s timing is whip-crack good, and Ferrell’s is, too, on a different wavelength, even when the material’s settling for surprisingly witless profanity punchlines that don’t quiiiiite qualify as actual jokes.
—
Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune, 30 Jan. 2025
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
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
Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune, 30 Jan. 2025
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
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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These apps often default to a faster, dumber model.—
Matt Shumer,
Fortune,
11 Feb. 2026
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Who, other than dumb people like me, are gonna recruit high school kids?—
Scott Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
10 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
But maybe Johnson isn’t stupid.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
11 Feb. 2026
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Such as the one where the candidate remarked that some white rural Americans were stupid and racist.—
Mark Leibovich,
The Atlantic,
11 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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That builds on similar trends throughout 2025, when the industry buoyed an otherwise slow labor market, as the nation’s hospitals, clinics and nursing homes kept hiring even as many employers pulled back.—
Abha Bhattarai,
Washington Post,
14 Feb. 2026
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Any type of realism was [limited to] very short clips, everything was very slow, bad textures, no skin textures, lacking detail.—
Arjun Kharpal,
CNBC,
14 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Counting on one of the league’s most expensive talents to play meaningful minutes from here on out at his age with a track record like that is nearly as foolish as Nico trading a perennial MVP candidate at 26.—
Kevin Sherrington
Feb. 4,
Dallas Morning News,
4 Feb. 2026
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The lesson isn’t that NBA teams are reckless or foolish.—
Spencer Harrison,
New York Times,
1 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Feltner’s routine was pretty simple.—
Patrick Saunders,
Denver Post,
12 Feb. 2026
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Crime 101 takes the same view of quid pro quo as the most basic form of American commerce and makes simple but brutal points about value and self-worth, where your car, its year, make and model, matters more than your resumé.—
Damon Wise,
Deadline,
11 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Don’t feel silly asking at the ski shop.—
Moira McCarthy,
Boston Herald,
11 Feb. 2026
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Walker offers this diagnosis himself, leeringly dismissing Pearl as a silly mommy, awash with hormones, mildly and minorly hysterical.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
10 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Walz said children fear aggressive agents; critics called the comparison ignorant and offensive.—
Staff,
FOXNews.com,
29 Jan. 2026
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One of Johnson’s former Cowboys superstars, Colorado head coach Deion Sanders, called voters who ignored Belichick ignorant.—
Lawrence Dow,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
28 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Straight men, in particular, are only talked about, kept in the background, or appearing as authority figures trying to uphold absurd laws and traditions.—
Murtada Elfadl,
Variety,
13 Feb. 2026
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Pepsi’s chart is absurd and someone’s going to look stupid when the momentum fades.—
Josh Brown,Sean Russo,
CNBC,
9 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Witless.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/witless. Accessed 16 Feb. 2026.
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