What does "silly" mean?

Q: What does "silly" mean?

1. (foolish or funny) showing a lack of thought or being funny in a way that is not serious. 2. (cricket position) in the game of cricket, a position for a player who stands very close to the person hitting the ball. 3. (a foolish person) a person who is acting in a foolish or funny way. 4. (weak or pitiful) describing someone who deserves pity or is very weak.

silly — meaning, definition & examples

Word

01foolish or funny

A2 · Elementary

adj. showing a lack of thought or being funny in a way that is not serious.

adj. exhibiting a lack of common sense or judgement; often used to describe behaviour that is playfully or harmlessly foolish.

“The children were making silly faces at each other during the long car ride.”

“It was a silly mistake to leave the windows open while the sprinklers were running, but fortunately no permanent damage was done.”

Synonyms

foolish ridiculous daft

Antonyms

serious sensible

02cricket position

C2 · Proficiency Sports Technical

adj. in the game of cricket, a position for a player who stands very close to the person hitting the ball.

adj. denoting a fielding position located extremely close to the batsman, such as 'silly mid-on' or 'silly mid-off'.

“The captain moved a fielder into a silly position to put pressure on the batsman.”

“Fielding in a silly position requires immense courage and sharp reflexes, as the player stands only a few feet from the striker's blade.”

03a foolish person

B1 · Intermediate Countable noun Informal

n. a person who is acting in a foolish or funny way.

n. a person who behaves in a foolish or lighthearted manner; frequently used as a mild, affectionate term of address.

“Don't be such a silly; you know I was only joking about the spiders.”

“The teacher gently chided the young student, calling him a 'silly' for trying to wear his sweater as a pair of trousers.”

Synonyms

goofnitwit

04weak or pitiful

C2 · Proficiency Literary · Dialect · Archaic

adj. describing someone who deserves pity or is very weak.

adj. evoking compassion or pity; historically related to being helpless or simple-minded.

“The old man looked like a silly creature, lost in the cold wind.”

“In the older verses, the poet refers to the 'silly sheep' not to mock them, but to highlight their innocent and defenceless nature.”

Teaching tip

This sense is rare in modern English and mostly found in older literature or specific regional dialects; learners should use 'foolish' for modern contexts.

Synonyms

pitiful feeble

Common phrases and expressions where native English speakers use the word “silly” in context.

Verb

01. feel silly

“I felt silly when I realized I was wearing my sweater inside out.”

verb + adj

02. look silly

“Do you think I look silly in this giant hat?”

verb + adj

03. make a silly mistake

“I lost five points on the math test because I made a silly mistake.”

verb + adj + noun

Adjective

04. silly behavior

“The teacher told the students to stop their silly behavior and focus on the lesson.”

adj + noun

05. silly joke

“He told a silly joke that made all the children laugh.”

adj + noun

06. silly to worry

“It is silly to worry about things you cannot change.”

adj + infinitive

Adverb

07. bit silly

“The movie was a bit silly, but we enjoyed it anyway.”

adv + adj

08. really silly

“It was really silly of me to forget my keys in the car.”

adv + adj

From Middle English seely, sēlī, from Old English sǣliġ, ġesǣliġ (“lucky, fortunate”), from Proto-West Germanic sālīg, from sāli; equivalent to seel (“happiness, bliss”) + -y. Doublet of Seelie. The semantic evolution is “lucky” to “innocent” to “naive” to “foolish”. Compare the similar evolution of daft (originally meaning “accommodating”), and almost the reverse with nice (originally meaning “ignorant”).

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

NOUN

silliness(B2)

ADJECTIVE

silly(B1)

argument rule