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silly

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silly

  • /ˈsɪl.i/

Sounds like Silly, Scilly · Rhymes with -ɪli

Where it comes from

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”).

adjective sillier · silliest · sely · seely

  1. Laughable or amusing through foolishness or a foolish appearance. They were laughing at a silly joke.
  2. Absurdly large. He cannot achieve celebrity by covering himself with diamonds... or by giving a silly price for a hack.
  3. Scotland, obsolete Good; pious. The sylyman lay and herde, / And hys wyf answerd.
  4. Scotland, obsolete Holy. ... thrie Saturdayes befor Lambas and thrie efter called the six silie Saturdayes.
  5. Northern England, Scotland, rare Pitiful, inspiring compassion, particularly The fire raging upon the silly Carcase.
  6. Northern England, Scotland, literary, rare Innocent; suffering undeservedly, especially as an epithet of lambs and sheep. There is no best in þe word, I wene... / That suffuris halfe so myche tene / As doth þe sylly wat.
  7. Northern England, Scotland, literary, rare Helpless, defenseless. scared silly
  8. Northern England, Scotland, rare Insignificant, worthless, (chiefly Scotland) especially with regard to land quality. Ane sillie scheill vnder ane erdfast stane
  9. Northern England, Scotland, rare Weak, frail; flimsy (use concerning people and animals is now obsolete). Here we see that a smal sillie Bird knoweth how to match with so great a Beast.
  10. Northern England, Scotland, rare Sickly; feeble; infirm. To doe the thing we can / To please... / This silly sickly man.
  11. rare Rustic, homely. Dauid had no more but a sylie slynge, and a few stones.
  12. obsolete, rare Lowly, of humble station. The silly herdman all astonnied standes.
  13. obsolete Rustic, uneducated, unlearned. From Hell (of which the silly people of the Country think the top of this hill to be the mouth).
  14. Thoughtless, lacking judgment. silly mistake
  15. Scotland mentally delayed or feeble. Fow ȝellow ȝellow wes hir heid bot scho of lufe wes sillie.
  16. Stupefied, senseless; stunned or dazed. You say you were knocked silly—was that so?
  17. Very close to the batsman, facing the bowler; closer than short. Carpenter now placed himself at silly-point for Grundy, who was playing very forward.

Similar: charming, Also see Thesaurus:foolish

adverb sillier · silliest

  1. colloquial, regional Sillily: in a silly manner. If you did but see how silly a Man fumbles for an Excuse, when he's a little asham'd of being in Love.

noun sillies

  1. colloquial A silly person. While they, poor sillies, bid good night, O' love an' bogles eerie.
  2. endearing A term of address. ‘Come on, silly,’ said Nannie.
  3. colloquial A mistake.

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