If you call someone an imbecile, you are showing that you think they are stupid or have done something stupid.
[disapproval]
I don't want to deal with these imbeciles any longer.
Synonyms: idiot, fool, jerk [slang, mainly US, Canadian], tosser [British, slang] More Synonyms of imbecile
2. adjective [ADJECTIVE noun]
Imbecile means stupid.
It was an imbecile thing to do.
Synonyms: stupid, foolish, idiotic, simple More Synonyms of imbecile
3. countable noun
In the past, people who had something wrong with their brains that made them seem less intelligent, or different from other people, were sometimes called imbeciles.
[old-fashioned]
imbecile in British English
noun (ˈɪmbɪˌsiːl, -ˌsaɪl)
1. psychology obsolete
a person of very low intelligence (IQ of 25 to 50), usually capable only of guarding himself or herself against danger and of performing simple mechanical tasks under supervision
2. informal
an extremely stupid person
adjective also: imbecilic (ˌɪmbɪˈsɪlɪk)
3.
stupid or senseless
an imbecile thing to do
Derived forms
imbecilely (ˈimbeˌcilely) or imbecilically (ˌimbeˈcilically)
adverb
imbecility (ˌimbeˈcility)
noun
Word origin
C16: from Latin imbēcillus feeble (physically or mentally)
imbecile in American English
(ˈimbəsɪl, -səl, esp Brit -ˌsil)
noun
1.
a foolish or weak-minded person
2. Psychology obsolete
a person of the second lowest order in a former classification of mental ability, having a mental age of seven or eight years and an intelligence quotient of 25 to 50
adjective
3.
showing a lack of mental capacity
4.
stupid; silly; absurd
5. archaic
weak or feeble
Derived forms
imbecilely
adverb
Word origin
[1540–50; earlier imbecill ‹ L imbēcillus weak; -ile r. -ill by confusion with suffix -ile]
Synonyms of 'imbecile'
idiot, fool, jerk, tosser
stupid, foolish, idiotic, simple
More Synonyms of imbecile
(noun)
Definition
an extremely stupid person
I don't want to deal with these imbeciles any more.
Synonyms
idiot
I knew I'd been an idiot to stay there.
fool
She'd been a fool to accept the offer.
jerk (slang, mainly US, Canadian)
He'd tricked her into walking into the garbage, to make her look like a total jerk!
tosser (British, slang)
plank (British, slang)
berk (British, slang)
prick (taboo, slang)
wally (slang)
charlie (British, informal)
prat (slang)
plonker (slang)
coot
moron (slang)
I used to think that he was a moron.
twit (informal, mainly British)
a pompous twit who loved the sound of his own voice
chump
cretin
bungler
dipstick (British, slang)
dickhead (taboo, slang)
gonzo (slang)
schmuck (US, slang)
dork (slang)
dolt
He's a first class dolt.
divvy (British, slang)
pillock (British, slang)
halfwit
I'm a mindless optimist, a cheery halfwit.
dweeb (US, slang)
putz (US, slang)
eejit (Scottish, Irish)
thicko (British, slang)
dumb-ass (slang)
gobshite (Irish, taboo, slang)
numpty (Scottish, informal)
doofus (slang, mainly US)
dotard
fuckwit (taboo, slang)
thickhead
dickwit (taboo, slang)
numbskull or numskull
dorba or dorb (Australian, slang)
bogan (Australian, slang)
(adjective)
Definition
stupid or senseless
It was an imbecile thing to do.
Synonyms
stupid
I'm not stupid, you know.
foolish
How foolish I was not to have seen my doctor earlier.
idiotic
What an idiotic thing to say!
simple
He's no fool, though perhaps a bit simple in some ways.
thick
He speaks to me as if I'm thick.
ludicrous
simple-minded
inane
He always had this inane grin.
fatuous
That is not a fatuous argument, it has to be taken seriously.
witless
a witless piece of planning
moronic
It was wanton, moronic vandalism.
asinine
I have never heard such an asinine discussion.
feeble-minded
imbecilic
braindead (informal)
dumb-ass (slang)
dead from the neck up
Additional synonyms
in the sense of asinine
Definition
obstinate or stupid
I have never heard such an asinine discussion.
Synonyms
stupid,
silly,
foolish,
daft (informal),
senseless,
goofy (informal),
idiotic,
inane,
fatuous,
moronic,
imbecile,
gormless (British, informal),
brainless,
imbecilic,
braindead (informal),
dumb-ass (slang),
dead from the neck up (informal),
thickheaded,
dunderheaded,
halfwitted,
thick-witted
in the sense of dolt
Definition
a stupid person
He's a first class dolt.
Synonyms
idiot,
fool,
dope (informal),
jerk (slang, US, Canadian),
ass,
clot (British, informal),
plank (British, slang),
charlie (British, informal),
berk (British, slang),
prick (taboo, slang),
wally (slang),
booby,
prat (slang),
plonker (slang),
coot,
geek (slang),
twit (informal, British),
chump (informal),
dunce,
oaf,
simpleton,
dullard (old-fashioned),
dimwit (informal),
ignoramus,
dipstick (British, slang),
gonzo (slang),
schmuck (US, slang),
dork (slang),
nitwit (informal),
blockhead,
dweeb (US, slang),
putz (US, slang),
fathead (informal),
eejit (Scottish, Irish),
thicko (British, slang),
dumb-ass (slang),
gobshite (Irish, taboo, slang),
numpty (Scottish, informal),
doofus (slang, US),
lamebrain (informal),
fuckwit (taboo, slang),
thickhead,
dickwit (taboo, slang),
numbskull or numskull,
dorba or dorb (Australian, slang),
bogan (Australian, slang)
in the sense of fatuous
Definition
foolish, inappropriate, and showing no thought
That is not a fatuous argument, it has to be taken seriously.