Added 10 October 2026
witless
adjective
adjective Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. More about witless at Wordnik → Where our words come from →
-
(used as complement) to the utmost degree.
he was scared witless
- (of especially persons) lacking sense or understanding or judgment.
Origin
From Middle English witles, from Old English witlēas (“senseless; witless”), from Proto-Germanic *witjalausaz (“witless”), equivalent to wit + -less. Cognate with Swedish vettlös (“senseless; witless; wild”), Icelandic vitlaus (“senseless; witless; foolish; mad”).
From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)