Morón

¹

[maw-rohn, maw-rawn]

noun

1. a city in E Argentina, SW of Buenos Aires.

moron

²

[mawr-on]

noun

1. Informal.,  a person who is notably stupid or lacking in good judgment.

   I wonder why they elected that narrow-minded moron to Congress.

2. Psychology.,  (no longer in technical use; now considered offensive) a person of borderline intelligence in a former and discarded classification of intellectual disability, having an intelligence quotient of 50 to 69.

moron

/ mɒˈrɒnɪk, ˈmɔːrɒn /

noun

1. a foolish or stupid person

2. a person having an intelligence quotient of between 50 and 70, able to work under supervision

Other Word Forms

• moronic adjective
• moronism noun
• moronity noun
• moronically adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of Morón¹

An Americanism first recorded in 1905–10; from Greek mōrón, neuter of mōrós “foolish, dull”

Word History and Origins

Origin of Morón¹

C20: from Greek mōros foolish

Related Words

• boob 
• idiot 

When To Use

More context on moron

Calling someone a moron is all in good fun, right? Not so much. While moron can sound like a simple schoolyard taunt, the term was originally used by psychologists to classify someone as having mild intellectual disabilities. What’s more, prominent psychologists, notably Henry H. Goddard, who used the label moron promoted eugenics.Moron is no longer in use as a medical term, and it’s offensive and ableist to equate someone you think is acting foolish to a person with a disability.If knowing the history of moron has got you reflecting on your word choices, this slideshow, "These Common Words Have Offensive Histories," discusses many other words whose place in your vocab you may want to reconsider.