daft S3 /dɑːft $ dæft/ BrE AmE adjective especially British English
[ Language: Old English ; Origin: gedæfte 'gentle' ]
1 . silly:
a daft idea
Me, jealous? Don’t be daft (=that is a silly idea) .
She’s as daft as a brush (=extremely silly) .
2 . be daft about something to be extremely interested in something:
Tony’s still daft about cars!
—daftness noun [uncountable]
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THESAURUS
▪ stupid showing a total lack of good sense or good judgment. Stupid sounds very strong and is often used when you are annoyed or strongly criticizing someone’s behaviour:
I wish you’d stop asking stupid questions.
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It was stupid of me to leave the door unlocked.
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Well, if you’re stupid enough to skate on the lake, you deserve to fall in.
▪ silly doing or saying things that are not sensible or serious, and that may make you feel embarrassed later. Silly sounds much gentler than stupid :
a silly mistake
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Don’t be so silly! There’s nothing wrong with you.
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I think you’re silly to worry so much about your hair.
▪ daft informal not sensible, often in a way that is also amusing:
Is this another of your daft ideas?
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Don’t be daft! Of course you’re not too old to go clubbing.
▪ dumb informal especially American English stupid:
a dumb question
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He was dumb enough to believe her.
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Oh, I just did the dumbest thing back there, I forgot my purse.
▪ foolish stupid. Foolish sounds rather formal and is used mainly in written English. The usual words to use in everyday English are silly or stupid :
It was a foolish thing to say.
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They did not want to look foolish.
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It was all a foolish dream.
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I think the board of directors made a foolish choice that it will later regret.
▪ unwise formal done without thinking carefully enough about the possible disadvantages that may result:
She knew the marriage was unwise.
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an unwise choice of words
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It would be very unwise to speculate.
▪ brave British English often humorous used when you think that what someone is planning or suggesting is certain to fail, but you do not want to say directly that they are behaving in a stupid way:
The leader of the opposition described it as ‘a brave decision.’
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I think he’s being very brave.