1
as in goofy
lacking in seriousness or maturity
the matinee show was filled with a bunch of silly children making noise
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in stupid
showing or marked by a lack of good sense or judgment
those silly movie producers who thought that audiences would fall for that gimmick all over again
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in ridiculous
so foolish or pointless as to be worthy of scornful laughter
had the silly notion that her latest marriage might last longer than her three previous ones
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in bewildered
suffering from mental confusion
stunning news that knocked me silly
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in simpleton
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of silly
Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune, 3 Apr. 2025
The couple went viral in May 2024 after someone from the crew of Bacon's new series, The Bondsman, pulled off a silly prank on the 66-year-old Footloose actor that involved Sedgwick.
—People Staff, People.com, 3 Apr. 2025
Ego Nwodim, TIME, 12 Feb. 2025
Some more sillies from last night’s GRAMMY nominees reception.
—Kimberlee Speakman, People.com, 4 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for silly
Adjective
This silliest of shows, created as a laugh by Marla Mindelle, Constantine Rousouli and Tye Blue, is an insouciant parody not so much of the disaster itself but of the movie about the disaster with those steamy class warriors Rose and Jack, as played on screen by Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio.
—Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune, 3 Apr. 2025
The couple went viral in May 2024 after someone from the crew of Bacon's new series, The Bondsman, pulled off a silly prank on the 66-year-old Footloose actor that involved Sedgwick.
—People Staff, People.com, 3 Apr. 2025
Noun
It was shot in portrait because it was shot in Instagram by and for a woman who was losing her mind in quarantine and had fully let the sillies take the wheel.
—Ego Nwodim, TIME, 12 Feb. 2025
Some more sillies from last night’s GRAMMY nominees reception.
—Kimberlee Speakman, People.com, 4 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for silly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for silly
Adjective
-
Pearl Breed: Pit terrier mix Age: 2 years old Pearl is a cuddly, goofy, playful pup looking for her forever home.—
Trish Stinger,
Kansas City Star,
9 Apr. 2025
-
Luke may seem like the goofy, carefree kid, but don’t be fooled — he’s got a lot of that intense mystery, which is very Scorpio.—
Valerie Mesa,
People.com,
8 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Amelia soon decides that stupid boys (and humans in general) aren't worth keeping around.—
Nick Romano,
EW.com,
3 Apr. 2025
-
And in practice, the experience is delightfully stupid.—
Luke Winkie,
Vulture,
1 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
This hate against transgender people is so ridiculous.—
John Russell,
People.com,
28 Mar. 2025
-
Even in witnessing how ridiculous — and dangerous — the rivalry is, Cherry ultimately isn’t brave enough to make a change.—
Maggie Fremont,
EW.com,
25 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
But the on-again, off-again nature of the process has resulted in a bewildered industry that has adopted a wait and see approach to investment decisions and supply chain alterations.—
Jerrold Lundquist,
Forbes.com,
30 Mar. 2025
-
Old Trafford was where distraught, bewildered fans felt physically compelled to go to express their grief.—
Michael Walker,
The Athletic,
15 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
Gamble, seeing there was no way to get anywhere with the chancellor playing the simpleton, opened the floor to softball questions.—
Thomas Meaney,
Harper's Magazine,
26 Apr. 2024
-
Americans, even or especially historians, tend to treat the early New Englanders as dogmatists: narrow, pious simpletons.—
Marilynne Robinson,
Harper's Magazine,
1 July 2022
Adjective
-
Mountain, his latest venture, is more expansive in all respects—more seats, fancier grills, a bigger playbook of influences and techniques—while retaining the giddy obsession with sourcing that has become Parry’s signature.—
Amiel Stanek,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
4 Apr. 2025
-
When the friends head to the public library to attend their first minicomics convention, their giddy, nervous excitement is palpable.—
James Sturm,
New York Times,
4 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
My big mistake was in not challenging from the stage the foolish few who booed.—
Lea Veloso,
StyleCaster,
31 Mar. 2025
-
While tailback isn’t a need, only foolish franchises pass up the opportunity to add generational talents like Jeanty.—
Omar Kelly,
Miami Herald,
28 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
This whole exercise of proving the absence of antisemitism as a prerequisite to criticizing Israeli government policy is absurd.—
Raja Krishnamoorthi,
MSNBC Newsweek,
9 Apr. 2025
-
Still, the sexist double standards around pockets have continued to be present in absurd ways.—
Jacqui Palumbo,
CNN Money,
9 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Silly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/silly. Accessed 16 Apr. 2025.
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