Meaning & use
imbecile
Last updated
A term for a person regarded as very stupid or foolish; historically an outdated clinical classification, now used only as an insult.
See it in a sentence
He called himself an imbecile for forgetting his own anniversary.
Only an imbecile would leave the car running in a locked garage.
A note on using this word
Once a formal medical term for intellectual disability, it is now considered offensive in that sense and is used informally as an insult instead.
Words with a similar meaning
foolidiot
Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.
Words with an opposite meaning
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