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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of nincompoop Paired alongside Williams and Dunst’s airheads, Ferrell plays a nincompoop Bob Woodward, but the role doesn’t give him much of a chance to cut loose. Tim Grierson, Vulture, 4 Feb. 2025 Being a nature nincompoop may have saved him from a grisly fate. Kevin Spear, Orlando Sentinel, 19 Jan. 2025 With all due respect, those people are nincompoops. Scott Maxwell, Orlando Sentinel, 2 July 2024 As Jimmy, the chief pushover, Jimmy, Norman makes for a sympathetic enough nincompoop. Chris Willman, Variety, 16 June 2024 Only one police officer pops up there, a smiley nincompoop who sucks down children’s birthday cake from behind a desk and shrugs his way through conversation. Hillary Kelly, The Atlantic, 11 Mar. 2024 Somebody else could have gotten away with doing half as much, but Ruffalo proves a compound nincompoop. Wesley Morris, New York Times, 18 Feb. 2024 Tom was of course not a nincompoop, but a serious, thoughtful person who hungered to add substance to sketch comedy. Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times, 29 Dec. 2023 One wonders what those worthless nincompoops would have done during the Nazi holocaust that murdered upward of seven million Jews, and over seven million more victims besides. Noah Rothman, National Review, 26 Oct. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nincompoop
Noun
  • There’s a holy fool quality to the boy, who is the subject of teasing.
    Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 9 May 2025
  • Hardly anyone would prefer to be made the fool — healthy skepticism can prevent you from clicking on a phishing link in an email or joining a multilevel marketing scheme — but a life of cynicism isn’t preferable either.
    Allie Volpe, Vox, 7 May 2025
Noun
  • To survive the harsh environment, Roz bonds with the island’s animals and cares for an orphaned baby goose.
    Samantha Bergeson, IndieWire, 12 May 2025
  • And here a duck has made her nest Six brown eggs in a bed of twigs, More artful than any window display, More precious than a golden egg Laid by a golden goose.
    contributing Monitor poets, Christian Science Monitor, 23 Apr. 2025
Noun
  • Sometimes too stupid is actually smartski but sometimes is just stupid stupid.
    Caroline Downey, National Review, 27 Mar. 2025
  • An underrated gem — not enough people have seen this top-tier season — Squirrels Trip has some fabulous vocals, very funny lyrics, a heavy dose of stupid, and an engaging story.
    Barry Levitt, Vulture, 21 Feb. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Nincompoop.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nincompoop. Accessed 24 May. 2025.

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