Bubbleheaded

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Lacking intellectual depth or seriousness, this term denotes a person who appears whimsical or naive while being easily distracted by trivial matters
2. Describes someone who shows a lack of depth or seriousness in thinking ; characterizes a person who tends to be frivolous and easily diverted by minor details
3. Refers to a mindset that is light and not thoughtful ; indicates a tendency to be scatterbrained and prone to distraction

Etymology: "Bubble" in this sense has nothing to do with soap or effervescence. It comes from the notion of something light and empty, like a hollow sphere of air, and by the time "bubble-headed" was formed, it was a compound of "bubble" and "headed," with "headed" meaning having a head of a particular kind, as in "hot-headed" or "level-headed." The combination describes a head full of nothing but air. The meaning rests on that image of hollowness. A bubble looks substantial but holds only air and bursts at the slightest touch, and so a bubble-headed person seems to have a mind that is similarly thin, easily drifting from one shiny distraction to the next without anything solid inside. The word is a straightforward compound, and its force comes from the picture it paints rather than from any unusual twist in its history.

Synonyms: scatterbrained, airheaded, ditsy

Antonyms: intelligent, sharp