Have you ever heard someone describe something as daft? This article will teach you the meaning of daft and how to use the word daft in a sentence.
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Kevin
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April 24, 2022
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Have you ever heard the idiom “daft as a brush” and wondered what it means? This article will define the word daft and provide a plethora of additional information, including example sentences, related terms, and translations of this word of the day!
What Does Daft Mean?
According to Dictionary, the slang word daft is a British English adjective that means crazy, idiotic, or foolish. While people can use this word in American English, it is less common. The pronunciation of daft is dæft, and the superlative forms of daft are dafter and daftest. The adverb form of daft is daftly.
How Can You Use Daft in a Sentence?
Most likely, you will hear the word daft in a British English sentence to refer to something crazy or foolish. However, the word daft has a negative connotation — so, use this word with caution, as it could offend others. Read the example sentences below to learn how to use the word daft, then try incorporating daft into your vocabulary!
Example #1: A Daft Idea
We all laughed at Dan’s daft idea to do donuts in the empty parking lot. Unfortunately, the police station was right across the street, and we knew that the screech of our tires would alert the cops to our rowdy teenage behavior.
Question: Who or what in the above sentence is described as daft?
Answer: Dan’s idea in the above sentence is daft.
Example #2: A Daft Man
The daft frat boy decided to jump off the roof into the pool. He missed the pool wall by centimeters. He certainly would have severely injured himself if he had hit his head. In his drunken stupor, he did not even notice.
Question: Who or what in the above sentence is described as daft?
Answer: The frat boy in the above sentence is daft.
Example #3: A Daft Little Dog
We met a daft little dog on our trip to the animal shelter. Life seemed to confuse this silly character easily, but we thought he was so cute tgat we could not resist taking him home. He may not have been the smartest dog, but he always kept us wildly entertained.
Question: Who or what in the above sentence is described as daft?
Answer: The little dog in the above sentence is daft.
What Is the Etymology of Daft?
According to Dictionary, daft has been in the English language for over a millennia and has been around since before the year 1000! This word origin comes from the Middle English dafte, Old English dæfte, and Old English gedæfte, likely from the Proto-West Germanic daftī.
What Are Translations of Daft?
People and things all over the world can be foolish. However, other languages don’t use the slang term daft and have their own translations of this word. Take a look at these translations from Nice Translator if you are trying to call something foolish in another language.
- Romanian: prostesc
- Latvian: dumjš
- Serbian: глуп
- Estonian: rumal
- Hungarian: bolond
- Basque: erorkeria
- Catalan: neci
- German: töricht
- Vietnamese: khờ dại
- Dutch: dom
- Tamil: முட்டாள்
- Kannada: ಮೂರ್ಖ
- Polish: niemądry
- Turkish: aptalca
- Hebrew: טִפּשִׁי
- Czech: bláhový
- Icelandic: heimskulegt
- Portuguese (Brazil): Insensato
- Greek: ανόητος
- Indonesian: konyol
- Chinese (PRC): fool
- Slovenian: neumno
- Croatian: budalast
- Thai: โง่
- Ukrainian: нерозумний
- Amharic: ሞኝነት
- French: idiot
- Malayalam: വിഡ് isk ിത്തം
- Bulgarian: глупав
- Japanese: 馬鹿げた
- Bengali: নির্বোধ
- Finnish: typerys
- Portuguese (Portugal): Insensato
- Malay: bodoh
- Hindi: मूर्ख
- Urdu: بیوقوف
- Slovak: hlúpy
- Swahili: kijinga
- Chinese (Taiwan): fool
- Korean: 바보 같은
- Filipino: tanga
- Spanish: tonto
- Marathi: मूर्ख
- Gujarati: મૂર્ખ
- Swedish: dåraktig
- Norwegian: tullete
- Russian: глупый
- Lithuanian: kvaila
- Welsh: ffôl
- Arabic: غبي
- Italian: folle
- Danish: tåbelig
- Telugu: మూర్ఖుడు
What Are Synonyms of Daft?
Power Thesaurus provides many words that you can use in place of the word daft. However, many of these words have a negative connotation and imply that someone is foolish or stupid, so make sure to use these words with caution. Make sure that you don’t offend others with the words you use!
- absurd
- asinine
- balmy
- barmy
- bats
- batty
- birdbrained
- boneheaded
- bonkers
- brainless
- buggy
- cracked
- crackers
- crazed
- crazy
- cuckoo
- daffy
- demented
- dense
- deranged
- dippy
- dopey
- dotty
- dumb
- empty-headed
- farcical
- fatuous
- foolish
- frolicsome
- goofy
- half-baked
- harebrained
- haywire
- idiotic
- imbecile
- imbecilic
- inane
- insane
- kookie
- kooky
- laughable
- loco
- loony
- loopy
- ludicrous
- lunatic
- mad
- mental
- mindless
- moronic
- non compos mentis
- nonsensical
- nuts
- nutty
- pea-brained
- preposterous
- ridiculous
- round the bend
- screwy
- senseless
- silly
- slow
- stupid
- thick
- thickheaded
- touched
- unbalanced
- unhinged
- unintelligent
- vacuous
- vapid
- wacky
- whacky
- witless
What Are Antonyms of Daft?
If you are trying to describe someone intelligent and quick-witted, you can use an antonym of daft from Power Thesaurus! Unlike daft, people would take it as a compliment if you described them using any of these words.
- able to think quickly
- able to understand quickly
- accomplished
- acute
- alert
- as sharp as a needle
- astute
- brainy
- bright
- brilliant
- canny
- clever
- deft
- educated
- extremely clever
- genius
- gifted
- ingenious
- intellectual
- intelligent
- intuitive
- inventive
- keen
- knowing
- knowledgeable
- mentally acute
- perceptive
- piquant
- proficient
- quick
- quick-thinking
- quick-witted
- rational
- resourceful
- sagacious
- savvy
- scholared
- sensible
- sharp
- smart
- sound
- talented
- whip-smart
- wise
Conclusion
The adjective daft means stupid, senseless, or foolish. You will often see this word pop up in British English, but it is not unheard of to hear it in American English.
Be careful when using the word daft. It is not kind to call a person or thing stupid or silly, so make sure that you use this word with caution. Also, think carefully about if your usage of the word daft will offend someone before putting this word in a sentence.
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