ninny
Americannoun
-
ninnies
plural
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of ninny
1585–95; perhaps generic use of pet form of Innocent proper name; see -y 2
Explanation
Use the word ninny for someone who's incredibly foolish — in other words, a dope or a nitwit. You might warn your brother not to be a ninny when he's just about to pop an entire hot chile in his mouth. Ninny is apt for someone who's silly and stupid, but it's also insulting and should be used with care. There's a certain gentle, teasing quality to ninny (as opposed to a word like idiot), but you're still going to get in trouble if you call your math teacher a ninny for giving the class a pop quiz. The word's origin is a bit of a mystery, though it may come from an innocent or the Italian word for "child," ninno.
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:
He did not call Utah Sen. Mitt Romney, who was in attendance at the Senate meeting, a ninny.
From Slate ● Jun. 15, 2024
Jane Austen wrote takedowns of this kind of ninny two centuries ago — how fun to see Pike update her twit to the post-Y2K era.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 7, 2024
Before the sixth season, Mr. Metcalfe’s first as showrunner, he faced the task of replacing Larry Linville, who was leaving the show after his run as the officious, rules-obsessed ninny Major Frank Burns.
From New York Times ● Aug. 2, 2022
You know that feeling of dread you get during musicals, where the plot screeches to a halt so that some ninny can sing about their feelings?
From The Guardian ● Jun. 23, 2020
And would he just stand here like a jittery ninny or would he pull himself together and be reasonable?
From "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter" by Carson McCullers
So, although the fact that there are a significant number of ninnies among the 329 million people in this country is embarrassing, it is not surprising.
From Washington Post ● Jun. 3, 2020
For having a connection to the internet, yet knowing you don’t have to engage the haters, idiots and/or spiteful ninnies on social media.
From Washington Times ● Nov. 22, 2018
Nothing will stop ninnies from their ninnying, but we can recognize that it is, for the most part, a ridiculous endeavor.
From New York Times ● Mar. 3, 2018
People want to feel safe and have precdictability, yet we are right now a nation of scared ninnies, that cable, talk radio, and the 10 o'clock news only exacerabates.
From Time ● Jun. 6, 2013
“Other than the fact that they’re not wooden-headed ninnies who can only open their mouths to give orders and gossip?”
From "Throne of Glass" by Sarah J. Maas
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.
