daft
Americanadjective
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senseless, stupid, or foolish.
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insane; crazy.
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Scot. merry; playful; frolicsome.
adjective
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informal foolish, simple, or stupid
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a slang word for insane
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informal extremely fond (of)
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slang frivolous; giddy
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of daft
before 1000; Middle English dafte uncouth, awkward; earlier, gentle, meek, Old English dæfte; cf. deft
Explanation
Daft means "foolish, wacky, or nutty." like your daft idea of wearing flip-flops to hike through the snow so that you didn't ruin your boots. When the adjective daft is used, you know something extremely silly or obviously goofy is involved — like setting all your money on fire to keep warm, instead of just using it to buy a coat. Some synonyms for daft are absurd, ridiculous, senseless and idiotic, so if someone calls you "daft," maybe you should rethink what you are trying to accomplish: Is there a better way to do it?
Vocabulary lists containing daft
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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.
See Examples For:
Still, for the most part, the storytelling is daft fun; Holly and Arabella may not really get anywhere, but Ms. Cavalli should certainly keep going.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 16, 2026
Yet, the film pulls off its share of daft, button-pushing jokes, too.
From Salon ● Jun. 11, 2026
Paul: Continuing with a manager who refuses to play players that are playing well over his pals who aren't playing well seems daft to me.
From BBC ● May 28, 2026
Just how daft was made clearer by this week’s response from Mr. Griffin.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 7, 2026
“I’ve never said that. I’m just talking about Chrissie and Rodney. It looks daft, the way you copy everything they do.”
From "Never Let Me Go" by Kazuo Ishiguro
Maybe you think it could be longer, louder, downright dafter?
From New York Times ● Dec. 28, 2022
Daft Punk’s Random Access Memories Totally undanceable, dafter than ever—and a wire-to-wire triumph.
From Slate ● May 21, 2013
The booming sound effect sounds even dafter when it's a clip off Morgan's pads.
From The Guardian ● Apr. 17, 2013
Warren Gatland's taunts are starting to look dafter by the match.
From The Guardian ● Feb. 28, 2011
Now I was fairly daft, and every minute growing dafter.
From Greenmantle by John Buchan
"It was one of the daftest decisions in boxing. I'll be back."
From BBC ● May 18, 2024
It’s just a shame it’s also now one of the daftest.
From The Guardian ● Aug. 21, 2017
"It's one of the daftest mistakes of my life," he says.
From BBC ● Jun. 29, 2012
"Yeah!" he says, as if it's the daftest question he's ever been asked.
From The Guardian ● Jul. 30, 2010
I often tell him he's the daftest in a' the house.—But what are they making sic a skirling for?—Deil ane o' them's get in here—it wadna be mensfu'!
From The Heart of Mid-Lothian, Volume 2 by Sir Walter Scott
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
