Colloquial Variant guide

birdbrain

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • UK: /ˈbɜː(ɹ)d.bɹeɪn/
  • US: /ˈbɚd.bɹeɪn/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: B ER1 D B R EY2 N Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

Someone who is not intelligent.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: colloquial

Examples

  • That birdbrain just drove right through three rows of traffic cones and into the bushes.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

a person with confused ideas; incapable of serious thought

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: addle-head, addlehead, loon

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: misfit

History

Etymology

From bird + brain, implying that birds, having small brains, are unintelligent (although this is untrue for many birds).

Across languages

Translations

15 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Catalan: cap de pardals — someone who is not intelligent
  • Catalan: capsigrany — someone who is not intelligent
  • Finnish: kananaivo — someone who is not intelligent
  • French: étourneau — someone who is not intelligent
  • French: cervelle d’oiseau — someone who is not intelligent
  • German: Spatzenhirn — someone who is not intelligent
  • Korean: 닭대가리 (dakdaegari) — someone who is not intelligent
  • Korean: 새대가리 (saedaegari) — someone who is not intelligent
  • Polish: kurzy móżdżek — someone who is not intelligent
  • Polish: ptasi móżdżek — someone who is not intelligent
  • Portuguese: cérebro de passarinho — someone who is not intelligent
  • Russian: кури́ные мозги́ (kurínyje mozgí) — someone who is not intelligent
  • Spanish: casquivano — someone who is not intelligent
  • Spanish: mente de pollo — someone who is not intelligent
  • Swedish: hönshjärna — someone who is not intelligent