dopey

adjective

dop·​ey ˈdō-pē 

variants or less commonly dopy

dopier; dopiest

1

a

: dulled by alcohol or a narcotic

b

: sluggish, stupefied

2

: stupid, fatuous

dopey sitcoms

dopily

ˈdō-pə-lē 

adverb

dopiness noun

Synonyms

• airheaded
• birdbrained
• bonehead
• boneheaded
• brain-dead
• brainless
• bubbleheaded
• chuckleheaded
• dense
• dim
• dim-witted
• doltish
• dorky [slang]
• dull
• dumb
• dunderheaded
• empty-headed
• fatuous
• gormless [chiefly British]
• half-witted
• knuckleheaded
• lamebrain
• lamebrained
• lunkheaded
• mindless
• oafish
• obtuse
• opaque
• pinheaded
• senseless
• simple
• slow
• slow-witted
• soft
• softheaded
• stupid
• thick
• thick-witted
• thickheaded
• unintelligent
• unsmart
• vacuous
• weak-minded
• witless

Examples of dopey in a Sentence

I'm still a little dopey from the painkillers.

After being up all night I was pretty dopey at work.

Recent Examples on the Web

Such warrior-poet anti-charisma feels out of place in a dopey movie that proves more interested in CGI monsters than its hero’s mottled humanity (Levi’s constant allusions to T.S. —David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 13 Feb. 2025

But dopey dialogue and frat-boy humor deflate the pure thrill of its excellent gore. —Madison Bloom, Pitchfork, 7 Feb. 2025

As Malcolm in the Middle’s hilariously dopey, clueless dad Hal, Cranston was a household name long before donning Heisenberg’s pork pie hat. —Matt Cabral, EW.com, 20 Jan. 2025

The trailer also gave glimpses of the other superheroes in that world, including Nathan Fillion’s Guy Gardner/Green Lantern (dopey haircut and all), Isabela Merced’s Hawkgirl and Edi Gathegi’s Mr. Terrific. —Aaron Couch, The Hollywood Reporter, 19 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1896, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for dopey

• hopi
• soapy

Kids Definition

dopey

adjective

dop·​ey ˈdō-pē 

dopier; dopiest

1

: dulled by or as if by alcohol or a narcotic

2

: mentally slow or silly : stupid

your dopey friends

a dopey TV show

dopiness noun