Is it an insult or a compliment if someone calls you gullible? Today, we will explore the word gullible. In this article, you will learn all about the word gullible and its connotation.
Then, we will provide examples, translations, synonyms, and antonyms of gullible. As you grow your knowledge by reading this article, you will become less gullible!
What Does Gullible Mean?
Dictionary states that the word gullible is an adjective that means easily cheated, tricked, or deceived. If someone is gullible, they are very trusting, and they believe what people tell them. The word gullible has a negative connotation and often implies that a person is simple-minded and will believe anything.
The pronunciation of gullible is ˈgʌl ə bəl, and the word gullible is three syllables: gul-li-ble. The adverb form of the word gullible is gullibly. If you do something in a gullible way, that action can be described using the word “gullibly.”
How Can We Use Gullible in a Sentence?
Below, you will find numerous example sentences containing the word gullible. Notice how in all of the below sentences, the term gullible has negative implications, suggesting that the gullible person is somehow unintelligent. In each sentence, try and identify who is gullible.
Example #1
The gullible people at the casino kept feeding more and more money into the slot machines, hoping for a win while they lined the owner’s pockets.
Question: In the above sentence, who is gullible?
Answer: In the above sentence, the people at the casino are gullible.
Example #2
The shell game on the boardwalk tricked the gullible tourists. Everyone who participated thought the game would be an easy win, but everyone walked away empty-handed.
Question: In the above sentence, who is gullible?
Answer: In the above sentence, the tourists are gullible.
Example #3
The politician sought to dupe the gullible public into believing he would keep his word regarding policy.
Question: In the above sentence, who is gullible?
Answer: In the above sentence, the public is gullible.
Example #4
The older brother tricked his gullible little sister into thinking she was adopted, and it took their parents a lot of time to convince her she was not adopted.
Question: In the above sentence, who is gullible?
Answer: In the above sentence, the little sister is gullible.
Example #5
I used to get teased for being so gullible, but I was a very trusting young child who viewed the world as a good place. Now, I know better.
Question: In the above sentence, who is gullible?
Answer: In the above sentence, the speaker is gullible.
What Is the Etymology of Gullible?
The word gullible entered the English language between 1815 and 1825. This word originated from the term gull, which is an obsolete word meaning to swallow or guzzle.
It is thought that perhaps if someone is gullible, it means they easily swallow, guzzle, or believe things. This figurative use of the word gull is no longer in use.
What Are Translations of Gullible?
People can be gullible all over the world. Below, you will find numerous ways to say gullible in languages other than the American English language. You never want to come across as a gullible tourist while traveling, so make sure you know how to say this word in your destination country’s native languages!
- Latvian: viegli noturīgs
- Italian: credulone
- Indonesian: mudah dibodohi
- Romanian: credul
- Urdu: چالاک
- Lithuanian: klastingas
- Russian: доверчивый
- Norwegian: godtroende
- Serbian: лаковерски
- Icelandic: Trúlegt
- Swedish: godtrogen
- Basque: sinesbera
- French: crédule
- Gujarati: ખરબચડું
- Hebrew: פֶּתִי
- Amharic: በቀላሉ ሊታይ የሚችል
- Malay: mudah tertipu
- Arabic: ساذج
- Korean: 속기 쉬운
- Welsh: hygoelus
- Thai: ใจง่าย
- Estonian: kergeusklik
- Ukrainian: довірливий
- German: leichtgläubig
- Polish: łatwowierny
- Finnish: herkkä
- Bulgarian: лековерно
- Kannada: ಕುಶಲ
- Czech: naivní
- Tamil: குடிக்கக்கூடியது
- Dutch: goedgelovig
- Chinese (Taiwan): 容易受騙
- Turkish: saf
- Swahili: wepesi
- Danish: godtroende
- Greek: εύπιστος
- Portuguese (Brazil): crédulo
- Spanish: crédulo
- Japanese: だまされやすい
- Portuguese (Portugal): crédulo
- Slovak: podivný
- Vietnamese: cả tin
- Slovenian: lahkoverni
- Chinese (PRC): 容易受骗
- Hindi: भोला
- Bengali: দোষী
- Hungarian: hiszékeny
- Catalan: crèdul
- Marathi: gullible
- Malayalam: എളുപ്പം പറ്റിക്കാവുന്ന
- Croatian: lakovjeran
What Are Synonyms of Gullible?
Power Thesaurus provides lists of several related words to gullible, like the below synonyms! The word gullible has a negative connotation.
If you are trying to describe someone as trusting or believing without the negative implications of the word gullible, try using one of the below words instead!
- artless
- born yesterday
- brainless
- callow
- childlike
- confiding
- credulous
- deceivable
- deludable
- dewy-eyed
- dumb
- dupable
- easily deceived
- easily taken in
- easy
- exploitable
- fleeceable
- fool
- foolish
- green
- guileless
- ignorant
- immature
- impressionable
- inexperienced
- ingenuous
- innocent
- naive
- natural
- offenseless
- overtrusting
- persuadable
- raw
- silly
- simple
- simple-minded
- soft
- starry-eyed
- stupid
- suggestible
- superstitious
- susceptible
- trustful
- trusting
- unaffected
- uncritical
- unmalicious
- unpolished
- unpretentious
- unsophisticated
- unsuspecting
- unsuspicious
- unwary
- unworldly
- vulnerable
- well-meant
- wet behind the ears
- wide-eyed
What Are Antonyms of Gullible?
If someone is the opposite of gullible, you can describe them with one of the below antonyms of gullible from Power Thesaurus.
- agnostic
- ambivalent
- apprehensive
- been hit before
- cautious
- chary
- conflicted
- cynical
- disbelieving
- disenchanted
- disillusioned
- dissenting
- distrustful
- doubtful
- doubting
- dubious
- faithless
- faltering
- freethinking
- godless
- halting
- heretical
- hesitant
- hesitating
- heterodox
- iffy
- in clouds
- in dilemma
- in doubt
- incredulous
- indecisive
- irresolute
- jaundiced
- jealous
- leery
- mistrustful
- negative
- pessimistic
- possessory
- questioning
- quizzical
- reluctant
- sardonic
- scoffing
- skeptic
- skeptical
- suspicious
- tentative
- unbelieving
- uncertain
- unconverted
- unconvinced
- undecided
- unsure
- untrusting
- vacillating
- wary
- without belief
- world-weary
Conclusion
The word gullible (ˈɡʌləb ləbəl) means easily convinced or deceived. The word gullible has a negative connotation and implies a lack of intelligence or wit. Be careful when using the word gullible because many people might take offense to this term.
Sources:
Gullible synonyms – 631 Words and Phrases for Gullible | Power Thesaurus
Gullible antonyms – 179 Opposites of Gullible | Power Thesaurus
Kevin Miller is a growth marketer with an extensive background in Search Engine Optimization, paid acquisition and email marketing. He is also an online editor and writer based out of Los Angeles, CA. He studied at Georgetown University, worked at Google and became infatuated with English Grammar and for years has been diving into the language, demystifying the do's and don'ts for all who share the same passion! He can be found online here.
