# daft

Pronunciation: US say "DAFT" /dæft/; UK/AUS say "DAHFT" /dɑːft/

## Adjective

1. Silly or foolish; lacking good sense or intelligence, whether in a person or in an idea. *(colloquial, Australia, British, Ireland, New Zealand)*
   - Simple: Silly or stupid, and not showing good sense.
   - _It was a daft plan to drive to Cornwall on a bank holiday weekend, and we sat in traffic for six hours._
   - _Don't be daft. You can't carry all that shopping home on your own._
2. Not in one's right mind; crazy or mad, even to the point of insanity. *(colloquial, Australia, British, Ireland, New Zealand)*
   - Simple: Crazy or mad, like someone who has lost their mind.
   - _Alone in the lighthouse all winter, the old keeper went daft and began writing letters to the gulls._
   - _The family next door are sure he's daft, since he stands in the garden every night arguing with the hedge._

## Other meanings

- (adjective) Gentle and mild in nature or manner, meek rather than forceful or harsh.

## Origin

The word may go back ultimately to Proto-Indo-European *dʰh₂ebʰ- ("to fit together, fitting"), through Proto-West Germanic *daftī ("fitting, suitable") and Old English dæfte ("gentle, meek, mild, accommodating"). Middle English dafte or defte meant "humble, modest, gentle, having good manners" and also "awkward, dull, boorish." Old English dafnian ("to be fitting or becoming") and Russian dóbryj ("good") are related. Compare silly, which moved from "blessed, good, innocent" to "foolish." Daft was perhaps influenced by daff ("fool, to be foolish"), but the two words are not related.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/daft (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).