Learn Romanian › imbecil

imbecil

stupid, idiotic (also used as a noun: an imbecile) /imbeˈtʃil/

adjective#5522 most common

Also: idiot, moron, fool

Example sentences

El este imbecil.
He is stupid.
Nu fi imbecil!
Don't be an idiot!
Vecinul meu e un imbecil care face zgomot noaptea.
My neighbor is an idiot who makes noise at night.
Nu pot să cred cât de imbecilă a fost decizia lui.
I can't believe how idiotic his decision was.
Politicianul a fost numit imbecil de către presă după declarația sa absurdă.
The politician was called an imbecile by the press after his absurd statement.
Deși părea un gest imbecil la prima vedere, strategia lui s-a dovedit ulterior genială.
Although it seemed like an idiotic move at first, his strategy later turned out to be brilliant.

Declension

CaseSingularPlural
Nominativeimbecil (m) / imbecilă (f)imbecili (m) / imbecile (f)
Genitiveimbecil (m) / imbecile (f)imbecili (m) / imbecile (f)
Accusativeimbecil (m) / imbecilă (f)imbecili (m) / imbecile (f)
Vocativeimbecilule (m) / imbecilo (f)imbecililor

Word family

imbecilitateimbecility, stupidity
imbecilăfeminine form: stupid, idiotic
imbecilimasculine plural: idiots, stupid ones
imbecilefeminine plural: idiots, stupid ones

Etymology

Romanian borrowed "imbecil" from French "imbécile" in the nineteenth century, as part of a wave of French vocabulary that entered Romanian during its modernization. The French word traces to Latin "imbecillus" or "imbecillis", meaning weak or feeble, both in body and in mind. Over time the sense narrowed from general physical weakness to mental weakness, and eventually to a plain insult for foolish behavior.

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