silly
English
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Etymology
From Middle English seely, sēlī (“blessed; good; innocent; weak; guileless; pitiful; lowly; punctual”),[1] from Old English sǣliġ, ġesǣliġ (“blessed; fortunate”), from Proto-Germanic *sēlīgaz (“blissful, happy”), from *sēliz (“happy, fortunate”), equivalent to seel (“happiness, bliss”) + -y. Ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *sōlh₂- (“mercy, comfort”). *Cognate with German selig, Old Norse sáligr.
Pronunciation
Adjective
silly (comparative sillier, superlative silliest)
- Laughable or amusing through foolishness or a foolish appearance.
- 1600, William Shakespeare, Midsummer Night's Dream, Act V, Scene i, line 209:
- 1970, Graham Chapman & al., Monty Python's Flying Circus, I, 183:
- Well sir, I have a silly walk and I'd like to obtain a Government grant to help me develop it.
- (chiefly Scotland, obsolete) Blessed, particularly:
- (now chiefly Scotland and Northern England, rare) Pitiful, inspiring compassion, particularly:
- 1556 in 1880, William Henry Turner, Selections from the Records of the City of Oxford... 1509–83, 246:
- The fire raging upon the silly Carcase.
- 1808, John Jamieson, An Etymological Dictionary of the Scottish Language:
- (now literary) Innocent; suffering undeservedly, especially as an epithet of lambs and sheep.
- (now literary) Helpless, defenseless.
- 1539, Richard Morison translating Juan Luis Vives, Introduction to Wysedome:
- 1665, Thomas Manley translating Hugo Grotius, De Rebus Belgicis, 938:
- There remained fresh Examples of their Barbarism against weak Sea-men, and silly Fisher-men.
- Insignificant, worthless, (chiefly Scotland) especially with regard to land quality.
- a. 1500 Robert Henryson translating Aesop, "Two Mice":
- 1595, William Shakespeare, The third Part of King Henry the Sixt, vvith the death of the Duke of Yorke, Act III, Scene iii, line 93:
- 1907, Transactions of the Highland & Agricultural Society, 19, 172:
- It is naturally very poor, ‘silly’ land.
- Weak, frail; flimsy (use concerning people and animals is now obsolete).
- 1567, John Maplet, A Greene Forest:
- 1587, Philip Sidney & al. translating Philippe de Mornay, A Woorke Concerning the Trewnesse of the Christian Religion, xxxii, 596:
- 1946 in 1971, Scottish National Dictionary, Vol. VIII, 234/3:
- That'll never grow. It's ower silly.
- Sickly; feeble; infirm.
- 1636, Alexander Montgomerie, The Cherrie & the Slae, line 1512:
- To doe the thing we can
To please...
This silly sickly man.
- To doe the thing we can
- 1818, Walter Scott, "Heart of Mid-Lothian", v:
- Is there ony thing you would particularly fancy, as your health seems but silly?
- 1636, Alexander Montgomerie, The Cherrie & the Slae, line 1512:
- 1556 in 1880, William Henry Turner, Selections from the Records of the City of Oxford... 1509–83, 246:
- (now rustic UK, rare) Simple, plain, particularly:
- Mentally simple, foolish, particularly:
- (obsolete) Rustic, uneducated, unlearned.
- 1687, Archibald Lovell translating Jean de Thévenot, The Travels of Monsieur de Thevenot into the Levant, i, 2:
- From Hell (of which the silly people of the Country think the top of this hill to be the mouth).
- 1687, Archibald Lovell translating Jean de Thévenot, The Travels of Monsieur de Thevenot into the Levant, i, 2:
- Thoughtless, lacking judgment.
- 1576, Abraham Fleming translating Sulpicius, A Panoplie of Epistles, 24:
- 1841, Charles Dickens, Barnaby Rudge, iii, 252:
- ‘Heaven help this silly fellow,’ murmured the perplexed locksmith.
- 1972, George Lucas & al., American Graffiti, 8:
- Steve, don't be silly. I mean social intercourse.
- 1990, House of Cards, Season 1, Episode 3:
- (Scotland) Mentally retarded.
- Stupefied, senseless; stunned or dazed.
- 1829 January 17, Lancaster Gazette:
- You say you were knocked silly—was that so?
- 1907, John Millington Synge, Playboy of the Western World, iii, 64:
- Drinking myself silly...
- 1942, J. Chodorov & al., Junior Miss, ii, i, 113:
- Well, Judy, now that you've scared me silly, what's so important?
- 1990, House of Cards, Season 1, Episode 2:
- 1829 January 17, Lancaster Gazette:
- (obsolete) Rustic, uneducated, unlearned.
- (cricket, of a fielding position) Very close to the batsman, facing the bowler; closer than short.
- 1862 July 4, Notts. Guardian:
- Carpenter now placed himself at silly-point for Grundy, who was playing very forward.
- 1862 July 4, Notts. Guardian:
Usage notes
Silly is usually taken to imply a less serious degree of foolishness, mental impairment, or hilarity than its synonyms.
The sense meaning stupefied is usually restricted to times when silly is used as a verb complement, denoting that the action is done so severely or repetitively that it leaves one senseless.
Synonyms
- (playful): charming
Antonyms
- (playful): pious
Derived terms
- (adverb): sillily, silly
- silliness
- silly season
Translations
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Adverb
silly (comparative sillier, superlative silliest)
- (now regional or colloquial) Sillily: in a silly manner.
- 1731, Colley Cibber, Careless Husband, 7th ed., i, i, 21:
- If you did but see how silly a Man fumbles for an Excuse, when he's a little asham'd of being in Love.
- 1731, Colley Cibber, Careless Husband, 7th ed., i, i, 21:
Noun
silly (plural sillies)
- (colloquial) A silly person.
- 1807 May, Scots Magazine, 366/1:
- While they, poor sillies, bid good night,
O' love an' bogles eerie.
- While they, poor sillies, bid good night,
- 1807 May, Scots Magazine, 366/1:
- (endearing, gently derogatory) A term of address.
- 1918 September, St. Nicholas, 972/2:
- ‘Come on, silly,’ said Nannie.
- 1918 September, St. Nicholas, 972/2:
- (colloquial) A mistake.
Translations
References
- ^ Middle English Dictionary, "sēlī (adj.)".
- Oxford English Dictionary, ""silly, adj., n., and adv.", 2013.
Anagrams
- English terms inherited from Middle English
- English terms derived from Middle English
- English terms inherited from Old English
- English terms derived from Old English
- English terms inherited from Proto-Germanic
- English terms derived from Proto-Germanic
- English terms suffixed with -y (adjectival)
- English terms derived from Proto-Indo-European
- English 2-syllable words
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- Rhymes:English/ɪli
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