silliness
Americannoun
-
the quality of lacking good sense; foolishness.
The author pokes fun at herself and the general silliness of celebrity culture.
Her blog cuts through the contradictions, misinformation, and downright silliness out there about naturopathy.
-
absurdity, ridiculousness, or irrationality.
This “no-touch” policy occasionally devolves into silliness, as when a teacher hesitates to help a five-year-old zip up a jacket.
-
clownish, whimsical, or exaggerated humor and playfulness; unrestrained high spirits.
Our sessions included a lot of chatter, laughter, and silliness—exactly what sitting around a table playing games with friends is all about.
Etymology
Origin of silliness
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
On the literal opposite end of the spectrum is “Nirvanna the Band the Show,” which ran on Viceland back in 2017 and just dropped two seasons’ worth of silliness.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 31, 2026
Ann Widdecombe was pugnacious, charismatic, barbed and yes, had a sense of silliness too.
From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026
It seemed likely that the prosecution would ease up in person, recognizing the silliness of it all.
From Slate ● May 4, 2026
Random observations on the silliness of all the action—“That monkey just used his cuteness for crime!”—are about as close as we get to humor.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 31, 2026
Sherrie wanted to talk about the disposition of certain funds, but John kept joking with her, stalling her with odd cracks and silliness.
From "Native Speaker" by Chang-rae Lee
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
