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doltishness

doltishness

1 9.2
Being slow to understand things and often acting in a silly way
  • noun
  • /ˈdoʊltɪʃnəs/
  • Offensive
translation icon : estupidez
  • Many in the group admired his honesty about his doltishness during the discussion.

Examples

  • His doltishness was evident when he failed to grasp the basic concepts in class.

  • No, that was my doltishness: too many cakes and the chance to see a warship, but at least it was only a day.

    Fiction book (1996)
  • Rob liked that kind of female courtesy which allows dolts to reveal their doltishness.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • She apologized for her doltishness when she misunderstood the simple instructions.

Synonyms

stupidity
vsdoltishness
115 2.5

Not being smart or having good judgment

is more specific about slowness to understand than broad poor judgment
dumbness
vsdoltishness
  • Offensive
1 6.2

A state of not understanding things quickly

is the same lack of intelligence but with a slightly harsher tone
denseness
vsdoltishness
  • Offensive
1 7.7

Not able to understand things quickly

highlights the same trait but more directly as simple stupidity
dimwittedness
vsdoltishness
  • Offensive
7.7

A quality of being slow to understand and making simple mistakes

covers the same slowness but with a stronger sense of stupidity
slow-wittedness
vsdoltishness
  • Offensive
8.1

A state when someone is slow to understand things

expresses the same slowness but more negatively as foolishness
dopiness
vsdoltishness
  • Informal
6.6

Being slow and silly in a way that looks confused

means slow understanding too but without the dazed or silly aspect
unintelligence
vsdoltishness
8.2

Low mental ability to think clearly or learn

is narrower, stressing slowness to understand rather than broad lack
witlessness
vsdoltishness
  • Offensive
7.9

A lack of cleverness or quick thinking

focuses on slow understanding rather than absence of cleverness
asininity
vsdoltishness
  • Offensive
9.9

The state of being very foolish in a stubborn way

expresses simple slowness or lack of intelligence without the stubborn extremity

Antonyms

418 3.0

Ability to learn, understand, and use knowledge to solve problems

16 2.8

Quick thinking that finds smart new ideas and solutions

How Stupid

idiocy
  • Offensive
40 8.0
stupidity
115 2.5
doltishness
  • Offensive
1 9.2
foolishness
61 2.7
silliness
29 2.6

Surface Forms

doltishness singular
doltishnesses plural

Morphology

doltishness = doltish + dolt (transparent) = dolt + ish + ness

Formed from the adjective 'doltish' with the standard nominalizing suffix '-ness', yielding the quality of being doltish.

Etymology

Doltishness starts with dolt, a simple word for a slow or foolish person, and adds -ish ('like') and -ness ('the state of'). So, Doltishness is the 'state of being like a dolt', which means being slow to understand or showing foolish actions.