gormless
Americanadjective
adjective
Usage
What does gormless mean? Gormless is a slang word meaning stupid, dull, or clumsy. Gormless is typically applied to people (and sometimes their actions). It is chiefly used in the U. K. Example: I feel totally gormless whenever I make a silly mistake like that.
Etymology
Origin of gormless
First recorded in 1740–50; respelling of earlier gaumless, from Northern English and Scots dialect gaum “heed, attention” (from Old Norse gaumr ) + -less
Vocabulary lists containing gormless
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.
This is the least intentional of this trio of gormless, spray-and-pray LPs but perhaps the most layered and ambitious.
From Los Angeles Times • May 15, 2026
The Guardian described it as a "gormless lifestyle filler" while The Telegraph gave it two stars and branded it "insane" and an "exercise in narcissism".
From BBC • Aug. 26, 2025
Now, there are enough thoughtful screen examinations of racial politics along with normalized visions of inclusive casting to make "You People" stand out as a gormless throwback.
From Salon • Feb. 2, 2023
Even gormless corporations try to get in on the act, like when Disney attempted a Mickey Mouse/“Unknown Pleasures” mash-up in 2012, causing people to ask — Is this real?
From Washington Post • Jun. 14, 2019
“We can do Diss-lusion Charms now! And then,” his face split into a gormless grin, “you turned up right in front of us and said you was looking for a die-dum! What’s a die-dum?”
From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling
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.
