idiot
Americannoun
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Informal. an utterly foolish or senseless person.
If you think you can wear that outfit to a job interview and get hired, you're an idiot!
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Psychology. (no longer in technical use; considered offensive) a person of the lowest order in a former and discarded classification of intellectual disability, having a mental age of less than three years old and an intelligence quotient under 25.
noun
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a person with severe mental retardation
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a foolish or senseless person
Other Word Forms
- idiotic adjective
Etymology
Origin of idiot
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English, from Latin idiōta, from Greek idiṓtēs “private person, layman, person lacking skill or expertise,” equivalent to idiō- (lengthened variant of idio- idio-, perhaps by analogy with stratiōtēs “professional soldier,” derivative of stratiá “army”) + -tēs agent noun suffix
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 related but perhaps irrelevant question of individual character, the evidence is clear: Wilhelm II was an unstable and vainglorious idiot who wound up in the wrong place at the wrong time.
From Salon • Mar. 15, 2026
Any idiot can wrest the controls of a government agency or, barring that, make a little bit of money trying.
From Slate • Mar. 6, 2026
Turnbull -- who has described Taylor as the "best-qualified idiot" around -- warned the party faced disaster if it continued down that path.
From Barron's • Feb. 26, 2026
“I’ve changed a lot as a filmmaker, but I’m still the same idiot I’ve always been. That’s the bad news,” Iñárritu says laughing.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 23, 2026
“I’m an idiot, Ben. I don’t know why, but I know I am. I’m sorry.”
From "What If It's Us" by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera
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.
