Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

ninnyhammer

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 0.00 in modern English

Syllables: nin-ny-ham-mer
IPA

21

Scrabble Score

11

Letters

4

Syllables

8

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A foolish person; a simpleton.

Example Sentences

"1608, A Yorkshire Tragedy, dubiously claimed to be by William Shakespeare Why, the more fool she; aye, the more ninny hammer she."
""You silly, awkward, ill-bred country sow," quoth one, "have you no more manners than to rail at Hocus that has saved that clod-pated numskulled ninny-hammer of yours from ruin, and all his family?"
"'Silly noodle!—foolish simpleton!—bewildered ninnyhammer! He had brains in his head once.'"
"'Well, if I don't deserve to be hung on the end of one as a warning to numbskulls! You're nowt but a ninnyhammer, Sam Gamgee: that's what the Gaffer said to me often enough, it being a word of his. Rope!'"

Etymology

Apparently from ninny (although attested slightly later) + -hammer, of unknown origin; perhaps compare earlier hammer-headed.

Inflected Forms

ninnyhammers (plural)

Synonyms

ninny nincompoop boob

Questions

What does ninnyhammer mean?: A foolish person; a simpleton.
Where does ninnyhammer come from?: Apparently from ninny (although attested slightly later) + -hammer, of unknown origin; perhaps compare earlier hammer-headed.

How to pronounce ninnyhammer

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “ninnyhammer”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling () so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “ninnyhammer”.
Repeat and practice — Say “ninnyhammer” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.