noun
Meaning 1
A dunce, mentally dull or stupid person.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: derogatory
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Standard Lemma guide
numskull
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.
No pronunciation record was provided for this word.
noun
Meaning 2
A person who refuses to learn or grow mentally.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: derogatory
Examples
- That numskull will never learn how to compose a letter.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 3
a stupid person; these words are used to express a low opinion of someone's intelligence
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: dunce, dunderhead, blockhead, bonehead, lunkhead, hammerhead, knucklehead, loggerhead, muttonhead, shithead, dumbass, fuckhead
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: stupid, stupid person, stupe, dullard, dolt, pudding head, pudden-head, poor fish, pillock
History
Etymology
From numb (“deadened”) + skull.
Across languages
Translations
15 source translations are retained for this English entry.
- Bulgarian: дървеняк (dǎrvenjak) — mentally dull or stupid person
- Danish: tossehoved — mentally dull or stupid person
- Dutch: leeghoofd — mentally dull or stupid person
- Finnish: pölkkypää — mentally dull or stupid person
- German: taube Nuss — mentally dull or stupid person
- Latin: gurdus — mentally dull or stupid person
- Māori: poroheahea — mentally dull or stupid person
- Māori: wawau — mentally dull or stupid person
- Māori: pōrewarewa — mentally dull or stupid person
- Māori: ngoungoua — mentally dull or stupid person
- Portuguese: cabeça oca — mentally dull or stupid person
- Spanish: hueca cabeza — mentally dull or stupid person
- Spanish: cabeza hueca — mentally dull or stupid person
- Swedish: knäppskalle — mentally dull or stupid person
- Ottoman Turkish: طوی (toy) — mentally dull or stupid person