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daft

[ ˈdaft]

daft

adjective

Definition of daft

1 chiefly British, informal : silly, foolish
//Don't do anything daft.

2 chiefly British, informal : mad, insane … he looks at me as if I were daft.— Johanna McGeary

3 Scotland : frivolously merry

Other Words from daft

daftly adverb

daftness \ ˈdaf(t)-nəs \ noun

Synonyms & Antonyms for dainty

Synonyms: Synonyms

balmy,
barmy
[chiefly British],
bats,
batty,
bedlam,
bonkers,
brainsick,
bughouse
[slang],
certifiable,
crackbrained,
cracked,
crackers,
crackpot,
cranky
[dialect],
crazed,
crazy,
cuckoo,
daffy,
demented,
deranged,
fruity
[slang],
gaga,
haywire,
insane,
kooky
(also kookie),
loco
[slang],
loony
(also looney),
loony tunes
(or looney tunes),
lunatic,
mad,
maniacal
(also maniac),
mental,
meshuga
(or meshugge also meshugah or meshuggah),
moonstruck,
non compos mentis,
nuts,
nutty,
psycho,
psychotic,
scatty
[chiefly British],
screwy,
unbalanced,
unhinged,
unsound,
wacko
(also whacko),
wacky
(also whacky),
wud
[chiefly Scottish]

Synonyms: Antonyms

Recent Examples on the Web

//Matthew finds this all exciting and dangerous and daft.
— BostonGlobe.com, "Caleb Crain’s ‘Overthrow’ a political thriller with a radical spirit," 22 Aug. 2019
//Those daft suggestions got the cogs turning at 90min towers, wondering what else could, and perhaps should, be trademarked.
— SI.com, "10 Iconic Football Catchphrases That Could Be Trademarked," 31 July 2019
//That the Catholic Church should have acted as one of the brakes on that daft mysticism will perhaps perplex the Bill Mahers of the world, who understand so little about it.
— Kevin D. Williamson, National Review, "A Kind of Experiment, Separating Gender and Sex: Why the Church Says No," 11 June 2019
//Bye-ku to Another Trump Incompetence What could be dafterThan to dream that Don’d draft a Deal after NAFTA?
— James Freeman, WSJ, "Look Who’s Supporting the NRA against Cuomo," 27 Aug. 2018
//The cracking of the mystery, at the conclusion of Gemini, is daft and unsatisfying, but no matter.
— Mike Miller, PEOPLE.com, "Lola Kirke Blasts Critic Who Said She Had 'Haircut from Hell' for 'Outdated' Views on Women," 18 Apr. 2018
//Williams isn’t spacey or unfocused, daft or delusional.
— Bryce Miller, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Ricky Williams defies 'pothead' label to reinvent his cannabis-selling himself," 20 Mar. 2018
//That effort may seem daft, as such vibrations constitute heat, which obliterates delicate quantum states.
— Adrian Cho, Science | AAAS, "Weird vibrations poised to control quantum computers," 14 Mar. 2018
//In most administrations, such daft behaviour would be a sacking offence.
— The Economist, "V strangeWhat is going on at the VA?," 1 Mar. 2018

First Known Use of daft

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

History and Etymology for daft

Middle English daffte, daft, defte "well-mannered, gentle, dull, foolish," going back to Old English gedæfte "gentle, mild, meek," adjective derivative of a Germanic base *daƀ- "becoming, fit" (whence also Old English gedafen "appropriate, fitting," Gothic gadaban "to happen, be suitable," with lengthened grade Old English gedēfe "fitting, worthy, quiet, tranquil," Middle Dutch onghedoef "wild, rough," Gothic gadob ist "it is fitting"), going back to dialectal Indo-European *dhabh- or *dhobh-, whence also Old Church Slavic podobati "to become, be fitting," dobrŭ "good, pleasant," Serbian/Croatian/Bosnian dôba, dȍba "time, season," Lithuanian dabà "nature, character," dabnùs "well-dressed, elegant"

Note: The sense progression from Germanic to Modern English is apparently "fit, becoming" to "well-mannered, modest" to "dull, stupid" to "foolish, irrational." See also deft.

Dictionary Entries near daft

Phrases Related to daft

(as) daft as a brush

More Synonyms and Antonyms ofdaft