Meaning & use
idiocy
Last updated
Meanings
noununcountable
Extremely foolish behavior or a decision that shows very poor judgment.
Grammar: Uncountable when it means foolishness in general: it was pure idiocy.
Patterns
- sheer/pure idiocy
- the idiocy of something
- an act of idiocy
Driving home after drinking was sheer idiocy.
He later admitted that quitting his job without another offer was an act of idiocy.
The whole plan was idiocy from start to finish.
nouncountable
A single extremely foolish act or remark.
Grammar: Countable when you mean one particular foolish act: that was an idiocy.
Patterns
- an idiocy
- another idiocy
- commit an idiocy
Insulting the interviewer was an idiocy he regretted for years.
The report lists a series of idiocies that cost the company millions.
She called the decision 'one more idiocy in a long list'.
Word forms
| plural | idiocies |
|---|
Common combinations
- sheer idiocy
- The stunt was sheer idiocy, and someone could have been hurt.
- an act of idiocy
- Leaving the door unlocked in that neighborhood was an act of idiocy.
- the idiocy of something
- The book explains the idiocy of the original policy.
- pure idiocy
- Calling it pure idiocy, the coach benched him for the next game.
- descend into idiocy
- The debate descended into idiocy within minutes.
Synonyms and how they differ
- stupidity
- More general and slightly less harsh; it can describe a lack of intelligence as well as a foolish act, while idiocy stresses extreme foolishness.
- folly
- More formal and often used of grand or historical mistakes; it sounds literary where idiocy sounds blunt and critical.
- nonsense
- Focuses on something being untrue or meaningless rather than on the poor judgment behind it.
- absurdity
- Emphasizes that something is ridiculous or illogical, not necessarily that it was a bad decision.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: idiocy or idioticy? idiocy or idiosyncrasy?
idiocy vs idioticy
A nonstandard spelling that some people build from 'idiotic'. The correct noun is idiocy.
idiocy vs idiosyncrasy
Sounds similar but means a strange personal habit or feature, not foolishness.
Practice
Which sentence uses idiocy correctly?
Choose one answer.
Idiocy is a noun for foolish behavior, so 'behaved with complete idiocy' fits. Option 2 wrongly uses it for a person (use 'idiot'), option 3 wrongly uses it as an adjective before a noun (use 'idiotic'), and option 4 wrongly uses it as a verb or adverb.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “idiocy”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.