Peabrained

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Describing a person who exhibits a notable deficiency in intelligence or common sense
2. Indicating someone who shows a marked lack of mental sharpness or reasoning ability
3. Used to describe a person who demonstrates poor thinking skills or inability to understand easily

Etymology: "Peabrained" is a compound of "pea" and "brained," and the pairing is more literal than it first appears. "Pea" here is the familiar legume, and "brained" is the adjective formed from "brain," so the word describes someone whose brain is figuratively the size or quality of a pea. The image is of a tiny, insignificant organ inside the skull. The construction follows a long English habit of forming compounds from a body part plus "-brained," as in "scatterbrained" and "hare-brained." Within this group, the vegetable is the odd one out: it shrinks the mind rather than describing a mental quirk, so the insult lands on size rather than on wildness or distraction.

Synonyms: dim-witted, simple-minded, foolish, stupid, slow-witted

Antonyms: intelligent, smart, clever, bright, wise