chiefly British
as in stupid
not having or showing an ability to absorb ideas readily a comedy show that invariably portrays the British aristocracy as a bunch of gormless twits

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Examples Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of gormless Much of the movie unfolds inside the suburban Connecticut mansion where Lily lives with her gormless mother (Francie Swift) and her loathsome stepdad. Justin Chang, latimes.com, 8 Mar. 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gormless
Adjective
  • Wild Card with Rachel Martin Issa Rae on the belief that gets her through 'stupid mistakes and bad decisions' Lithgow: More.
    Rachel Martin, NPR, 8 Dec. 2024
  • For the people stupid enough to have trusted a midwit career bureaucrat as unscrupulous as President Joe Biden, there’s a sixth stage just before acceptance: delusion.
    Becket Adams, National Review, 8 Dec. 2024
Adjective
  • Ratajkowski has been fighting the stereotype of the dumb model from the beginning of her career.
    Daniel Jackson, Allure, 18 July 2017
  • Ninety nine percent of all NFL players are explicitly not dumb.
    Andy Benoit, The MMQB, 10 July 2017
Adjective
  • Despite these efforts, progress has been slow, and concerns about systemic challenges persist.
    Hannah Parry, Newsweek, 19 Dec. 2024
  • Snow has been slow to arrive in Big Bear this year, but the long-term forecast calls for big changes.
    Christopher Reynolds, Los Angeles Times, 19 Dec. 2024
Adjective
  • Maybe the key to a truly satisfying vacation in 2025 is simple: more of it.
    Christopher Elliott, USA TODAY, 13 Dec. 2024
  • The equation is simple: The more authoritarianism in the world, the more dissidents.
    Gal Beckerman, The Atlantic, 13 Dec. 2024
Adjective
  • Choosing heels with a thicker heel or platform can also provide more support and stability.
    Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 17 Dec. 2024
  • My companion ordered a ramen dish of beef, thick noodles and a soy broth (niku udon, $16).
    Worth Sparkman, Axios, 16 Dec. 2024
Adjective
  • While congressional hearings are often dull set pieces, this one offered a remarkably lively and informative discussion of the practicalities and opportunities facing America regarding space resources.
    Greg Autry, Forbes, 9 Dec. 2024
  • For her, the glory of the honeymoon had been in the planning, the dreaming, the building up in her mind; what a letdown to find that Paris was just a place, that some days were full of chill gray drizzle, that the dull, thick bodies of other tourists blocked her from full joy.
    Lauren Groff, The New Yorker, 8 Dec. 2024

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Cite this Entry

“Gormless.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gormless. Accessed 22 Dec. 2024.

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