fatuous

[ fach-oo-uhs ]

/ ˈfætʃ u əs /

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See synonyms for: fatuous / fatuousness on Thesaurus.com

adjective

foolish or inane, especially in an unconscious, complacent manner; silly; witless.

Archaic. unreal; illusory.

OTHER WORDS FOR fatuous

1 brainless, dim, dense, dull, dull-witted, dim-witted.

See synonyms for fatuous on Thesaurus.com

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CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

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Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of fatuous

First recorded in 1625–35; from Latin fatuus “silly, foolish, idiotic”; see -ous

OTHER WORDS FROM fatuous

fat·u·ous·ly, adverbfat·u·ous·ness, noun

Words nearby fatuous

fatty degeneration, fatty oil, fatty tumor, fatuitous, fatuity, fatuous, fatwa, fat-witted, fatwood, faubourg, faucal

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

WHEN TO USE

What are other ways to say fatuous?

The adjective fatuous describes people or things that are foolish or inane, especially in an unconscious, complacent manner. Do you know when to use fatuous, foolish, silly, inane, stupid, and asinine? Find out on Thesaurus.com.

How to use fatuous in a sentence

Surely Americans, who are by our own fatuous self-definition fundamentally decent, would never attempt the unthinkable, no matter how angry.
The Capitol mob images shouldn’t surprise you. Open insurrection was always where we were headed.|Philip Kennicott|January 6, 2021|Washington Post
On the face of it moving the talent to Soho can seem fatuous.
Nationalism on Four Wheels|Clive Irving|October 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
During one break in the filming, he was a fatuous British director, “exploring the essence of what we call cinema!”
The Stacks: Robin Williams, More Than A Shtick Figure|Joe Morgenstern|August 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And “alkalinizing” someone in an attempt to improve their health is simple-minded, fatuous, and dangerous.
Alkalinizing Someone to Improve His or Her Health Is Simple-Minded, Fatuous, and Dangerous|Kent Sepkowitz|January 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST

I also won't repeat, or defend him against, all the fatuous charges leveled against him.
Hagel And The Neo-McCarthyites|Bernard Avishai|December 26, 2012|DAILY BEAST
"They obliterated it with some fatuous piece of commentary about something else," Gough told the Guardian.
Escalating Row Over BBC Coverage of Jubilee|Tom Sykes|June 7, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Each day he was sending serenely confident telegrams to Calcutta and receiving equally reassuring ones from a fatuous Viceroy.
The Red Year|Louis Tracy
If he be a little less than perfectly sincere he runs risk of being pretentious, fatuous even.
Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 147, November 4, 1914|Various
It was his great merit that at these moments, and in the presence of other people, he betrayed no fatuous emotion.
The Creators|May Sinclair
From its fatuous dream the nation was awakened by the noise of arms, the shrieks of women and the red glare of burning cities.
The Collected Works of Ambrose Bierce|Ambrose Bierce
Mrs. Makely was one of those fatuous women whose eagerness to make a point excludes the consideration even of their own advantage.
A Traveler from Altruria: Romance|William Dean Howells

British Dictionary definitions for fatuous

fatuous

/ (ˈfætjʊəs) /

adjective

complacently or inanely foolish

Derived forms of fatuous

fatuously, adverbfatuousness, noun

Word Origin for fatuous

C17: from Latin fatuus; related to fatiscere to gape

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

fatuous

OTHER WORDS FOR fatuous

Origin of fatuous

OTHER WORDS FROM fatuous

Words nearby fatuous

WHEN TO USE

What are other ways to say fatuous?

Words related to fatuous

How to use fatuous in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for fatuous

Derived forms of fatuous

Word Origin for fatuous