Fatuitous
/fəˈtuː.ɪ.təs/noun
Foolish, silly, or vacuously stupid; lacking sense.
Did you know?Fatuitous comes from Latin *fatuus*, meaning “foolish” or “silly,” a root that also gave us *fatuous*—a reminder that English has long treated stupidity like a kind of spiritual vacancy.
Etymological Timeline
Latin
Latin
fatuus
“foolish, silly, dull-witted”
Late Latin
Latin
fatuitas
“foolishness, silliness”
16th-17th Century
English
fatuitous
“foolish; absurd; stupid”
Modern English
English
fatuitous
“foolish or absurd in a pompous, empty way”