Synonyms for simple
- adjective
Synonyms by meaning
Adjective
1. Easy — easy; not difficult
straight-forward, easy, uncomplicated, easy as pie informal, neat, facile, soft informal, clear, convenient, painless, effortless, smooth, prosaic, light, natural dated
2. Unsophisticated — free from duplicity; guileless, innocent, straightforward
unsophisticated, simple-minded, child-like, humble, sincere, frank, unpretentious, true, honest, unaffected, straight, ingenuous, downright, direct, guileless, rustic, open, legitimate, genuine, green, single-minded, innocent dated
3. Silly — feeble-minded; foolish
silly, stupid, naive, foolish, obtuse, dumb, slow, childish, dim-witted, dull, dull-witted, idiotic, brainless, mindless, weak, ignorant, inane, thick, retarded vulgar
4. Bare — without ornamentation; plain
bare, unadorned, modest, chaste, unvarnished, severe, quiet, stark, spartan, austere, undecorated
Other
plain, mere, pure, pyore US, basic, very, elementary, common, ordinary, rudimentary, trivial, fundamental, low
Definitions
- adj. 1
Easy; not difficult.
- adj. 2
Without ornamentation; plain.
- adj. 3
Free from duplicity; guileless, innocent, straightforward.
- adj. 4
Feeble-minded; foolish.
Related words
- Word family
- simple-hearted simple-minded simpleness simpleton simplex simplicity simplism simply
- Phrases
- simple majority simple past simple microscope simple present simple squamous epithelium simple sugar past simple present simple
- Other spellings
- semple
From weakest to strongest
From the opposite of simple, on the left, to its strongest synonyms, on the right.
Choose the right word
On the other hand, artless, guileless, naive, simple, and unsophisticated express the goodness which comes from want of the knowledge or thought of evil.
J. C. Fernald, English Synonyms and Antonyms (1914)
Example sentences
- neat No one is so poor that he cannot afford to be neat.
- uncomplicated The relationship between the two is not entirely uncomplicated.
- facile The hunger for facile wisdom is the root of all false philosophy.
- unsophisticated Do you think Tom is unsophisticated?
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| simple | steady | |
| neat | rising | |
| uncomplicated | steady | |
| facile | steady |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 3 letters
- low1
- 4 letters
- very2, open2, true1, easy2, slow1, soft1, weak1, pure1, dumb1, bare1, mere1, neat1, dull1
- 5 letters
- light1, clear1, green1, basic2, frank1, quiet2, thick1, silly2, plain1, stark1, naive2, inane2, pyore
- 6 letters
- common2, direct2, stupid2, honest2, severe2, smooth1, humble2, modest2, rustic2, obtuse2, chaste1, facile2
- 7 letters
- natural3, genuine3, foolish2, sincere2, trivial3, idiotic4, spartan2, austere2, prosaic3
- 8 letters
- straight1, innocent3, ordinary4, ignorant3, childish2, retarded3, painless2, mindless2
- 9 letters
- downright2, brainless2, unadorned3, ingenuous4, guileless2
- 10 letters
- elementary4, convenient3, legitimate4, unaffected4, effortless3
- 11 letters
- fundamental4, rudimentary5, unvarnished3, undecorated
- 13 letters
- uncomplicated5, unpretentious4
- 15 letters
- unsophisticated6
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (very2 = 2 syllables).