half-baked

American  

[haf-beykt, hahf-] / ˈhæfˈbeɪkt, ˈhɑf- /

adjective

1. insufficiently cooked.

2. not completed; insufficiently planned or prepared.

   a half-baked proposal for tax reform.

3. lacking mature judgment or experience; unrealistic.

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half-baked British  

adjective

1. insufficiently baked

2. informal foolish; stupid

3. informal poorly planned or conceived

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Etymology

Origin of half-baked

First recorded in 1615–25

Example Sentences

The German Empire, which had only existed for 17 years when Wilhelm took the throne in 1888, was a half-baked constitutional monarchy.

From Salon • Mar. 15, 2026

The first efforts went into half-baked compliance cars, built in small numbers to satisfy California’s advanced-vehicle technology mandate—a conspiracy of lameness.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 23, 2026

Meta’s Quest headsets were still clunky, and the software looked half-baked.

From Barron's • Jan. 16, 2026

And judging by its half-baked proposals, BP has either forgotten the lessons of what it termed a “catastrophe” or decided that catastrophe is an acceptable risk.

From Slate • Jan. 14, 2026

She thought he had poor code-breaking skills, and he often sent half-baked “flubdedubs and gadgets” to her Coast Guard unit, wasting everyone’s time.

From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield

Related Words

• idiotic
• ill-conceived
• witless