nincompoop

[ nin-kuhm-poop, ning- ]
See synonyms for nincompoop on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a fool or simpleton.

Origin of nincompoop

1
First recorded in 1670–80; origin uncertain

Other words from nincompoop

  • nin·com·poop·er·y, noun
  • nin·com·poop·ish, adjective

Words Nearby nincompoop

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use nincompoop in a sentence

  • He might read a lesson to many a two-legged prig, were the bipedal nincompoop capable of learning it.

  • That young Welsh nincompoop imp has his eyes everywhere; his ears are always open.

    The Cambrian Sketch-Book | R. Rice Davies
  • And now because a monstrous piece of good luck has made a Crichton of him, you begin to regret the nincompoop!

    Archibald Malmaison | Julian Hawthorne
  • If he hinted that a certain new comer impressed him unfavorably, the nincompoop was summarily kicked out of society.

    Hoosier Mosaics | Maurice Thompson
  • The heavily-loaded wagon of the nincompoop and the virago was almost constantly mired.

    Memoirs of Orange Jacobs | Orange Jacobs

British Dictionary definitions for nincompoop

nincompoop

/ (ˈnɪnkəmˌpuːp, ˈnɪŋ-) /


noun
  1. a stupid person; fool; idiot

Origin of nincompoop

1
C17: of unknown origin

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012