as in goofy
lacking in seriousness or maturity
a scatterbrained child who couldn't seem to pay attention or stop fooling around
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Recent Examples of scatterbrained
The company enlisted Donald Duck’s scatterbrained cartoon uncle, Prof. Ludwig Von Drake, in a video on votedisney.com to make its case that Disney’s current board members are up to the job.
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Meg James, Los Angeles Times, 13 Feb. 2024
Meanwhile, Hudson turns up her ditz-o-meter to 11, twirling and screaming her way through a performance that should remind Hollywood of her singular scatterbrained talents.
—Ann Hornaday, Washington Post, 22 Nov. 2022
Trying to stay organized can be a real pain, especially for those of us who may be a bit scatterbrained.
—Chris Hachey, BGR, 22 June 2021
President Biden had another dismal week thanks to the accelerating border crisis, the beginnings of his assault on the Second Amendment, Vice President Kamala Harris’s behavior and his scatterbrained performance at a Thursday news conference.
—Paul Bedard, Washington Examiner, 27 Mar. 2021
Sadat cast Afghan nonactors to paint a scatterbrained picture of parentless adolescence, and outstanding production design immerses us in this historical remembrance.
—Carlos Aguilar, Los Angeles Times, 5 Mar. 2021
Donald Moffat is superb as a president who masks his ferocity with scatterbrained folksiness.
—Duane Byrge, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Aug. 2020
As her frustration mounted and her school progress stalled, Kristine indulged in a series of minor rebellions — ignoring assignments, disrupting class, and affecting a scatterbrained personality in a bid for popularity.
—Jason Deparle, New York Times, 9 Aug. 2019
He was noticed in what Itzkoff depicts with relish as a scatterbrained television business.
—David Thomson, San Francisco Chronicle, 10 May 2018
Meg James, Los Angeles Times, 13 Feb. 2024
Meanwhile, Hudson turns up her ditz-o-meter to 11, twirling and screaming her way through a performance that should remind Hollywood of her singular scatterbrained talents.
—Ann Hornaday, Washington Post, 22 Nov. 2022
Trying to stay organized can be a real pain, especially for those of us who may be a bit scatterbrained.
—Chris Hachey, BGR, 22 June 2021
President Biden had another dismal week thanks to the accelerating border crisis, the beginnings of his assault on the Second Amendment, Vice President Kamala Harris’s behavior and his scatterbrained performance at a Thursday news conference.
—Paul Bedard, Washington Examiner, 27 Mar. 2021
Sadat cast Afghan nonactors to paint a scatterbrained picture of parentless adolescence, and outstanding production design immerses us in this historical remembrance.
—Carlos Aguilar, Los Angeles Times, 5 Mar. 2021
Donald Moffat is superb as a president who masks his ferocity with scatterbrained folksiness.
—Duane Byrge, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Aug. 2020
As her frustration mounted and her school progress stalled, Kristine indulged in a series of minor rebellions — ignoring assignments, disrupting class, and affecting a scatterbrained personality in a bid for popularity.
—Jason Deparle, New York Times, 9 Aug. 2019
He was noticed in what Itzkoff depicts with relish as a scatterbrained television business.
—David Thomson, San Francisco Chronicle, 10 May 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scatterbrained
Adjective
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Beetlejuice dabbles in other goofy alternatives such as a matador outfit and an afterlife customs-officer uniform.Emma Fraser, Los Angeles Times, 24 Dec. 2024
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Put a game with a goofy feel, a corporate dystopia, and complex systems into early access.Ars Technica, Ars Technica, 22 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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The Couple Next Door The Bottom Line PG-13 partner-swapping upstaged by silly thriller subplots.Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 17 Jan. 2025
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In the unreliable reality the older Owen inhabits, his favorite childhood show was in fact silly, sloppy, and decidedly low-stakes.Samantha Allen, Them, 14 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Other tribes of music-heads danced through dawn on muddy hillsides, barely sleeping or eating through the driving rain, dazed but giddy to take part in a massive, improbable event.Phillip Valys, Sun Sentinel, 9 Jan. 2025
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Our mammoth game is the last one, which just has to make the NFL schedule-makers giddy.Chris Branch, The Athletic, 5 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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In my experience, even attempting to get a price estimate beforehand is often futile.Michael Gfoeller And David H. Rundell, Newsweek, 15 Jan. 2025
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Unnecessary pesticides are costly and often futile, and hey may kill beneficial insects and plants.Beth Botts, Chicago Tribune, 5 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near scatterbrained
Cite this Entry
“Scatterbrained.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scatterbrained. Accessed 20 Jan. 2025.
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