silly
silly [silly sillies] adjective, noun BrE [ˈsɪli] NAmE [ˈsɪli]
adjective (sil·lier, sil·li·est)
1. showing a lack of thought, understanding or judgement
Syn: ↑foolish
•a silly idea
• That was a silly thing to do!
• Her work is full of silly mistakes.
•‘I can walk home.’ ‘Don't be silly— it's much too far!’
•You silly boy!
•How silly of me to expect them to help!
2. stupid or embarrassing, especially in a way that is more typical of a child than an adult
Syn: ↑ridiculous
•a silly sense of humour
•a silly game
• I feel silly in these clothes.
• She had a silly grin on her face.
• (especially BrE)I got it for a silly price (= very cheap).
3. not practical or serious
• We had to wear these silly little hats.
• Why worry about a silly thing like that?
more at play (silly) games (with sb) at ↑game n.
Word Origin:
late Middle English (in the sense ‘deserving of pity or sympathy’): alteration of dialect seely ‘happy’, later ‘innocent, feeble’, from a West Germanic base meaning ‘luck, happiness’. The sense ‘foolish’ developed via the stages ‘feeble’ and ‘unsophisticated, ignorant’.
Thesaurus:
silly adj.
1. (especially spoken, usually disapproving)
•That was a silly thing to do!
stupid • • idiotic • • irresponsible • |informal insane • |especially BrE, informal mad • |especially AmE, informal crazy • • dumb • |especially written foolish • • unwise •
Opp: sensible
silly/stupid/idiotic/irresponsible/insane/mad/crazy/dumb/foolish/unwise (of sb) to do sth
a/an silly/stupid/idiotic/insane/mad/crazy/dumb/foolish idea/thing to do
a/an silly/stupid/idiotic/dumb/foolish mistake
Which word? Silly, stupid, dumb and foolish describe people or their actions. Crazy usually describes a person, but it can also be used to describe a deliberate and dangerous action. All these words are usually disapproving and can be offensive.
2. (especially spoken)
•I feel silly in this hat.
ridiculous • • absurd • • ludicrous • |especially written foolish •
silly/ridiculous/absurd/ludicrous that…
It would be silly/ridiculous/absurd/ludicrous to do sth.
a silly/foolish comment/remark/smile/grin
Example Bank:
•a really silly question
•‘I can walk home.’ ‘Don't be silly— it's much too far!’
•Don't be silly! Of course I wasn't there.
•I feel really silly in these clothes.
•No, actually that's a silly idea.
•That was a silly thing to do!
•This is getting silly! I think we had all better calm down.
Idioms: drink/laugh/shout yourself silly ▪ ↑play silly buggers
Derived Word: ↑silliness
noun (BrE also ˌsilly ˈbilly)singular (informal)often used when speaking to children to say that they are not behaving in a sensible way
• No, silly, those aren't your shoes!
Word Origin:
late Middle English (in the sense ‘deserving of pity or sympathy’): alteration of dialect seely ‘happy’, later ‘innocent, feeble’, from a West Germanic base meaning ‘luck, happiness’. The sense ‘foolish’ developed via the stages ‘feeble’ and ‘unsophisticated, ignorant’.
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