moronic adj : having a mental age of between eight and twelve years

English

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -ɒnɪk

Adjective

moronic

1. having a mental age of between seven and twelve years
2. behaving in the manner of a moron; idiotic; stupid

Related terms

• moron

Origin and uses

Moron was originally an English scientific term, coined in 1910 by psychologist Henry H. Goddard from the Greek word moros, which meant "dull" (as opposed to "sharp"), and used to describe a person with a mental age located between 8 and 12 on the Binet scale. It was once applied to people with an IQ of 51-70, being superior in one degree to "imbecile" (IQ of 26-50) and superior in two degrees to "idiot" (IQ of 0-25). The word moron, along with others including "retarded", "idiotic", "imbecilic", "stupid", and "feeble-minded", was formerly considered a valid descriptor in the psychological community, though these words have all now passed into common slang use, exclusively in a derogatory context.

In his later years, starting from the 1920s, Goddard recanted his previous theories.

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