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Glite Dictionary
bit of a thembo

bit of a thembo

9.9
An attractive man who is not very smart
  • noun
  • Offensive
translation icon : guapo pero tonto (despectivo, informal)
  • Everyone thinks Jake is a bit of a thembo because of his looks and goofy comments.

Examples

  • She laughed and called him a bit of a thembo after he forgot his keys again.

  • He may look like a bit of a thembo, but he has a kind heart.

  • He's just a bit of a thembo but very charming.

  • She called him a bit of a thembo after their date.

  • Everyone thinks Jake is a bit of a thembo because of his looks and goofy comments.

  • She laughed and called him a bit of a thembo after he forgot his keys again.

  • He may look like a bit of a thembo, but he has a kind heart.

Synonyms

boob
vsbit of a thembo
  • Offensive
92 8.4

A person who behaves in a silly or stupid way

emphasizes being attractive despite low intelligence rather than pure insult
just another pretty face
vsbit of a thembo
  • Offensive
1 7.6

A person who is attractive but thought to have little intelligence or real skill

refers specifically to an attractive man who lacks intelligence
simple
vsbit of a thembo
  • Offensive
1 9.9

A person who is not very intelligent

adds that the person is notably attractive despite lacking intelligence
nice-but-dim
vsbit of a thembo
  • Offensive
9.2

Pleasant and friendly but not very smart

focuses on attractiveness rather than friendliness or temperament

Antonyms

smart
∞ 1.9

Shows quick thinking and good understanding

intelligent
507 3.4

Able to think, understand, and learn new things

How Attractive

heartthrob
  • Informal
16 5.4
bit of a thembo
  • Offensive
9.9
attractive
680 1.0
plain
50 2.5

Surface Forms

bit of a thembo singular
bits of a thembo plural

Morphology

bit + of + a + thembo

The construction 'a bit of a + noun' is a productive, compositional pattern meaning 'somewhat' or 'rather a(n) X', so combining it with 'thembo' yields 'somewhat a thembo' (i.e. somewhat an attractive but not very intelligent man). Although 'thembo' is slang and may be unfamiliar, the overall meaning is directly derivable from the known constituents and the common English quantifying pattern.

Etymology

Bit of a thembo comes from the older word bimbo, which named a pretty but not very smart woman. People made a male form, thembo, and the phrase bit of a means 'a somewhat' or 'a little', so the whole expression means 'an attractive man who is not very intelligent'.