adj
Meaning 1
Lacking wit or understanding; foolish.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Standard Lemma guide
witless
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
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CMU ARPABET: W IH1 T L AH0 S Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
adj
Meaning 2
Indiscreet; not using clear and sound judgment.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
adj
Meaning 3
Mindless, lacking conscious thought or the capacity for it.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
adjective satellite
Meaning 4
(of especially persons) lacking sense or understanding or judgment
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: nitwitted, senseless, soft-witted
Antonyms: none provided
History
Etymology
From Middle English witles, from Old English witlēas (“senseless; witless”), from Proto-Germanic *witjalausaz (“witless”), equivalent to wit + -less. Cognate with Swedish vettlös (“senseless; witless; wild”), Icelandic vitlaus (“senseless; witless; foolish; mad”).
Across languages
Translations
16 source translations are retained for this English entry.
- Bulgarian: глупав (glupav) — Without wit or understanding
- Bulgarian: тъп (tǎp) — Without wit or understanding
- Catalan: desentenimentat — Without wit or understanding
- Finnish: järjetön — Without wit or understanding
- Finnish: älytön — Without wit or understanding
- French: stupide — Without wit or understanding
- Georgian: უჭკუო (uč̣ḳuo) — Without wit or understanding
- Georgian: უგუნური (ugunuri) — Without wit or understanding
- Georgian: სულელური (suleluri) — Without wit or understanding
- German: geistfrei — Without wit or understanding
- German: sinnfrei — Without wit or understanding
- German: hirnlos — Without wit or understanding
- German: dumm — Without wit or understanding
- German: blöde — Without wit or understanding
- Persian: بیخرد (bi-xerad) — Without wit or understanding
- Russian: безмозглый (bezmozglyj) — Without wit or understanding