What does "stupid" mean?
A stupid person; a fool.
Stupid
/ˈstjuː.pɪd/ adj, adv, noun, slang
adj, adv, noun, slang ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A stupid person; a fool.
- Grammar: stupid is listed as adj, adv, noun, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: unintelligent, absurd, absurd, addlebrained.
- Useful contrasts: intelligent, stupendous, witty.
- Usage evidence: My parents keep arguing about stupid things. It's so annoying!
How to use "stupid"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "stupid" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "stupid" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "stupid" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "stupid" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "stupid" is acting as adj, adv, noun, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "unintelligent" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "stupid", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A stupid person; a fool. countable, uncountable
""You stupid!" screamed the girls, "we've got to guess the word. Now you'll have to go back and think of another.""
- 2 a person who is not very bright wordnet
- 3 The condition or state of being stupid; stupidity, stupidness. colloquial, uncountable
"His stupid knows no bounds."
Adjective
- 1 Without intelligence.; Lacking in intelligence.
"It got trapped in the fishing net because it's a big stupid jellyfish!"
- 2 Without intelligence.; Exhibiting the quality of having been done by someone lacking in intelligence.
"So I have to pay first, and then wait in line? That's a stupid rule!"
- 3 Without intelligence.; Unpleasant; annoying to the speaker. This sense can be used alongside obscene words.
"The stupid rusty wire cut my thumb when I grabbed it."
- 4 Without intelligence.; Usually replaces an obscene or profane word, and thus is audibly stressed as such. euphemistic
"I fall for every stupid trick every stupid day in this whole stupid world!"
- 5 To the point of stupor.
"Neurobiology bores me stupid."
Show 4 more definitions
- 6 To the point of stupor.; Characterized by or in a state of stupor; paralysed. archaic
"No sigh to rise, no tear had pow'r to flow, Fix'd in a stupid lethargy of woe."
- 7 To the point of stupor.; Lacking sensation; inanimate; destitute of consciousness; insensate. archaic
"Were it not for [fire], the whole wou'd be one great stupid inanimate mass."
- 8 To the point of stupor.; Dulled in feeling or sensation; torpid.
"She had never seen Frank Churchill so silent and stupid. He said nothing worth hearing—looked without seeing—admired without intelligence—listened without knowing what she said."
- 9 Amazing. slang
"That dunk was stupid! His head was above the rim!"
Adjective
- 1 in a state of mental numbness especially as resulting from shock wordnet
- 2 lacking or marked by lack of intellectual acuity wordnet
- 3 lacking intelligence wordnet
Adverb
- 1 Extremely. slang
"My gear is stupid fly."
Antonyms
Example
"My parents keep arguing about stupid things. It's so annoying!"
Common questions
What is a synonym for "stupid"?
Common synonyms include: unintelligent, absurd, absurd, addlebrained, addled, addlepated.
How do you use "stupid" in a sentence?
My parents keep arguing about stupid things. It's so annoying!
How do you pronounce "stupid"?
Pronounced /ˈstjuː.pɪd/.
Etymology
From Middle French stupide, from Latin stupidus (“struck senseless, amazed”), from stupeō (“be amazed or confounded, be struck senseless”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)tup-, *(s)tewp- (“to push, stick”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)tew- (“to push, hit”). Cognate with Old High German stubarōn (“to be astonished, be stunned, be blocked”). Related also to Old English stoppian (“to block, stop”). More at stop.