silly 
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silly (sil′ē)
adjective sillier -·lier, silliest -·li·est
- Obsolete
- simple; plain; innocent
- feeble; infirm; helpless
- Now Rare feebleminded; imbecile
- having or showing little sense, judgment, or sobriety; foolish, stupid, absurd, ludicrous, irrational, etc.: often used in a weakened sense to mean “unreasonably concerned” don't be silly, it's no bother
- frivolous or trivial
- Informal dazed or senseless, as from a blow
Etymology: ME seli, sili (with shortened vowel), good, blessed, innocent < OE sælig, happy, prosperous, blessed (akin to Ger selig, blessed) < sæl, happiness < IE base *sel-, favorable, in good spirits (> Gr hilasia, propitiation, hilaros, gay, L solari, to comfort); sense development: happy → blissful → unaware of reality → foolish
noun pl. sillies -·lies
Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
silly
modif.
silly implies ridiculous or irrational behavior that demonstrates a lack of common sense, good judgment, or sobriety it was silly of you to dress so lightly; stupid implies a slow-wittedness or lack of normal intelligence he is stupid to believe that; fatuous suggests stupidity, inanity, or obtuseness coupled with a smug complacency a fatuous smile; asinine implies the extreme stupidity conventionally attributed to an ass an asinine argument See also syn. study at absurd.
Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Converse of object
- seem: Dear your generation, That whole, hope I die before I get old thing seems a little silly now, doesn't it?
Adjective modifier
- plain: Concept cars range from the futuristic to the retro, the wild and whacky to the just plain silly.
Modifies a noun
- bugger: Silly bugger thought it was a qualification, he still puts it on application forms under education.
Modifying Another Word
- downright: In fact it's a downright silly, perhaps even damaging, thing to do.
Noun used with modifier
- bit: No question, holding a meeting with yourself is a bit silly.
Infinitive complement
- pretend: It would be silly to pretend that no-one ever feels bullied but if you tell someone something can be done.
Used with adjective complement
- seem: Seems silly to £ 300+ to get a £ 50 belt fitted.
The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.
You were silly like us: your gift survived it all; 40 The parish of rich women, physical decay, Yourself; mad Ireland hurt you into poetry. Now Ireland has her madness and her weather still, For poetry makes nothing happen.
Idonot know whether itoughttobe so, butcertainlysilly things do cease to be silly if theyare done by sensible people in an impudent way.Wickedness is always wickedness, but folly is not always folly. It depends upon the character of those who handle it.
Daisy and Lily, Lazy and silly, Walk by the shore of the wan grass sea,ö Talking once more 'neath a swan-bosomed tree.
Webster's New World Dictionary of Quotations Copyright © 2005 by Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Published by Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
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MLA Style
"silly." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009
- Your Dictionary. 5 July 2009
- <www.yourdictionary.com/silly>
APA Style
silly. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary
- Retrieved July 5th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/silly
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