simpleminded

Or sim·ple-mind·ed

[sim-puhl-mahyn-did, -mahyn-]

adjective

1. free of deceit or guile; artless or unsophisticated.

2. lacking in mental acuteness or sense.

   Synonyms: half-witted, dull-witted, slow, foolish, stupid

3. mentally deficient.

   Synonyms: half-witted, dull-witted, slow, foolish, stupid

Other Word Forms

• simplemindedly adverb
• simplemindedness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of simpleminded¹

First recorded in 1735–45; simple + minded

Example Sentences

Weizenbaum warned that the “reckless anthropomorphization of the computer” — that is, treating it as some sort of thinking companion — produced a “simpleminded view of intelligence.”

From Los Angeles Times

They use that intelligence — which is part of what corrupted them — to prey on more simpleminded folk who are virtuous.

From Salon

"The classic American conspiracy theory always has an evil leader or group of leaders who are unfathomably powerful. These evildoers are brainiacs, they're incredibly intelligent, but they use that intelligence to prey on more simpleminded folk who are virtuous."

From Salon

Weizenbaum warned that the “reckless anthropomorphization of the computer” — that is, treating it as some sort of thinking companion — had produced a “simpleminded view ... of intelligence.”

From Los Angeles Times

The story of a good-looking blond buck from Texas fired with simpleminded dreams of making it as a stud hustler in Manhattan could easily have become another of the gamy sexual permutations which the screen is so earnestly examining for us these days.

From Los Angeles Times