SG Heritage Dictionary

Simple [Adjective] Webster's Dictionary 1828

1. Single; consisting of one thing; uncompounded; unmingled; uncombined with any thing else; as a simple substance; a simple idea; a simple sound.

2. Plain; artless; not given to design, stratagem or duplicity; undesigning; sincere; harmless. A simple husbandman in garments gray.

3. Artless; unaffected; unconstrained; inartificial; plain. In simple manners all the secret lies.

4. Unadorned; plain; as a simple style or narration; a simple dress.

5. Not complex or complicated; as a machine of simple construction.

6. Weak in intellect; not wise or sagacious; silly. The simple believeth every word; but the prudent looketh well to his going. Proverbs 14:15 .

7. In botany, undivided, as a root, stem or spike; only one on a petiole, as a simple leaf; only one on a peduncle, as a simple flower; having only one set of rays, as an umbel; having only one row of leaflets, as a simple calyx; not plumose or fathered, as a pappus. A simple body, in chemisty, is one that has not been decomposed, or separated into two or more bodies.

Simple [Noun] Webster's Dictionary 1828

Something not mixed or compounded. in the materia medica, the genral denomination of an herb or plant. as each vegetable is supposed to possess its particular virtue, and therefore to constitute a simple remedy.

Simple [Verb intransitive] Webster's Dictionary 1828

To gather simples or plants. As simpling on the flowery hills he stray'd.

Simple [Adjective] Webster's Dictionary 1913

1. Single; not complex; not infolded or entangled; uncombined; not compounded; not blended with something else; not complicated; as, a simple substance; a simple idea; a simple sound; a simple machine; a simple problem; simple tasks.

2. Plain; unadorned; as, simple dress.

3. Mere; not other than; being only.

4. Not given to artifice, stratagem, or duplicity; undesigning; sincere; true.

5. Artless in manner; unaffected; unconstrained; natural; inartificial;; straightforward.

6. Direct; clear; intelligible; not abstruse or enigmatical; as, a simple statement; simple language.

7. Weak in intellect; not wise or sagacious; of but moderate understanding or attainments; hence, foolish; silly.

8. Not luxurious; without much variety; plain; as, a simple diet; a simple way of living.

9. Humble; lowly; undistinguished.

10. Without subdivisions; entire; as, a simple stem; a simple leaf.

11. Not capable of being decomposed into anything more simple or ultimate by any means at present known; elementary; thus, atoms are regarded as simple bodies. Cf. Ultimate, a.

12. Homogenous.

13. Consisting of a single individual or zooid; as, a simple ascidian; -- opposed to compound.

14. Something not mixed or compounded.

15. A medicinal plant; -- so called because each vegetable was supposed to possess its particular virtue, and therefore to constitute a simple remedy.

16. A drawloom.

17. A part of the apparatus for raising the heddles of a drawloom.

18. A feast which is not a double or a semidouble.

Simple [Verb intransitive] Webster's Dictionary 1913

To gather simples, or medicinal plants.

Simple-hearted [Adjective] Webster's Dictionary 1913

Sincere; inguenuous; guileless.

Simple-minded [Adjective] Webster's Dictionary 1828

Artless; undesigning; unsuspecting.

Simple-minded [Adjective] Webster's Dictionary 1913

Artless; guileless; simple-hearted; undesigning; unsuspecting; devoid of duplicity.

Simpleness [Noun] Webster's Dictionary 1828

1. The state or quality of being simple, single or uncompounded; as the simpleness of the elements.

2. Artlessness; simplicity;

3. Weakness of intellect.

Simpleness [Noun] Webster's Dictionary 1913

The quality or state of being simple; simplicity.

Simpler [Noun] Webster's Dictionary 1828

One that collects simples; as herbalist; asimplist.

Simpler [Noun] Webster's Dictionary 1913

One who collects simples, or medicinal plants; a herbalist; a simplist.

Simpless [\N] Webster's Dictionary 1828

SIMPLESS , for simplicity or silliness, is not in use.

Simpless [Noun] Webster's Dictionary 1913

Simplicity; silliness.

Simpleton [Noun] Webster's Dictionary 1828

1. A silly person; a person of weak intellect; a trifler; a foolish person.

2. An artless, unskilled or undesigning person. [Not in use.]

Simpleton [Noun] Webster's Dictionary 1913

A person of weak intellect; a silly person.

Smallness Roget’s Thesaurus §32

N. smallness, littleness, tenuity, paucity, fewness, meanness, insignificance (unimportance) 643, mediocrity, moderation, small quantity, modicum, trace, hint, minimum, vanishing point, material point, atom, particle, molecule, corpuscle, point, speck, dot, mote, jot, iota, ace, minutiae, details, look, thought, idea, soupcon, dab, dight, whit, tittle, shade, shadow, spark, scintilla, gleam, touch, cast, grain, scruple, granule, globule, minim, sup, sip, sop, spice, drop, droplet, sprinkling, dash, morceau, screed, smack, tinge, tincture, inch, patch, scantling, tatter, cantlet, flitter, gobbet, mite, bit, morsel, crumb, seed, fritter, shive, snip, snippet, snick, snack, snatch, slip, scrag, chip, chipping, shiver, sliver, driblet, clipping, paring, shaving, hair, nutshell, thimbleful, spoonful, handful, capful, mouthful, fragment, fraction, drop in the ocean, animalcule, trifle, mere nothing, next to nothing, hardly anything, just enough to swear by, the shadow of a shade, finiteness, finite quantity

V. be small, lie in a nutshell, diminish, (contract) 195

Adj. small, little, diminutive, minute, fine, inconsiderable, paltry, faint, slender, light, slight, scanty, scant, limited, meager, sparing, few, low, so-so, middling, tolerable, no great shakes, below par, under par, below the mark, at a low ebb, halfway, moderate, modest, tender, subtle, inappreciable, evanescent, infinitesimal, homeopathic, very small, atomic, corpuscular, microscopic, molecular, subatomic, mere, simple, sheer, stark, bare, near run, dull, petty, shallow, stolid, ungifted, unintelligent

Adv. to a small extent, on a small scale, a little bit, a wee bit, slightly, imperceptibly, miserably, wretchedly, insufficiently, imperfectly, faintly, passably, pretty well, well enough, partially, in part, in a certain degree, to a certain degree, to a certain extent, comparatively, some, rather in some degree, in some measure, something, somewhat, simply, only, purely, merely, at least, at the least, at most, at the most, ever so little, as little as may be, tant soit peu, in ever so small a degree, thus far, pro tanto, within bounds, in a manner, after a fashion, so to speak, almost, nearly, well-nigh, short of, not quite, all but, near upon, close upon, peu s'en faut, near the mark, within an ace of, within an inch of, on the brink of, scarcely, hardly, barely, only just, no more than, about, thereabouts, somewhere about, nearly, say, be the same, be little more or less, no ways, no way, no wise, not at all, not in the least, not a bit, not a bit of it, not a whit, not a jot, not a shadow, in no wise, in no respect, by no means, by no manner of means, on no account, at no hand

Phr. dare pondus idonea fumo, magno conatu magnas nugas, "small sands the mountain, moments make the year", quantity by comparison with a similar object

Simpleness Roget’s Thesaurus §42

N. simpleness, # purity, homogeneity, elimination, sifting, purification

V. render simple, simplify, sift, winnow, bolt, eliminate, exclude, get rid of, clear, purify, disentangle

Adj. simple, uniform, of a piece, homogeneous, single, pure, sheer, neat, unmixed, unmingled, unblended, uncombined, uncompounded, elementary, undecomposed, unadulterated, unsophisticated, unalloyed, untinged, unfortified, pur et simple, incomplex, free from, exempt from, exclusive

Adv. simple, only

Credulity Roget’s Thesaurus §486

N. credulity, credulousness, cullibility|, gullibility, gross credulity, infatuation, self delusion, self deception, superstition, one's blind side, bigotry, hyperorthodoxy, misjudgment, credulous person

V. be credulous, jurare in verba magistri, follow implicitly, swallow, gulp down, take on trust, take for granted, take for gospel, run away with a notion, run away with an idea, jump to a conclusion, rush to a conclusion, think the moon is made of green cheese, take for granted, grasp the shadow for the substance, catch at straws, grasp at straws, impose upon

Adj. credulous, gullible, easily deceived, simple, green, soft, childish, silly, stupid, easily convinced, over-credulous, over confident, over trustful, infatuated, superstitious, confiding

Phr. the wish the father to the thought, credo quia impossibile, all is not gold that glitters, no es oro todo lo que reluce, omne ignotum pro magnifico

Imbecility. Folly Roget’s Thesaurus §499

N. want of -intelligence, want of - intellect, shadowness, silliness, foolishness, imbecility, incapacity, vacancy of mind, poverty of intellect, weakness of intellect, clouded perception, poor head, apartments to let, stupidity, stolidity, hebetude, dull understanding, meanest capacity, shortsightedness, incompetence, one's weak side, not one's strong point, bias, infatuation, simplicity, puerility, babyhood, dotage, anility, second childishness, fatuity, idiocy, idiotism, driveling, folly, frivolity, irrationality, trifling, ineptitude, nugacity, inconsistency, lip wisdom, conceit, sophistry, giddiness, eccentricity, extravagance, rashness, act of folly, b, be - imbecile, have no -brains, have no sense, trifle, drivel, radoter, dote, ramble, play the fool, play the monkey, monkey around, fool around, take leave of one's senses (insanity) 503, not see an inch beyond one's nose, stultify oneself, talk nonsense

Adj. unintelligent, unintellectual, unreasoning, mindless, witless, reasoningless, brainless, halfbaked, having no head, not -bright, inapprehensible, weak headed, addle headed, puzzle headed, blunder headed, muddle headed, muddy headed, pig headed, beetle headed, buffle headed, chuckle headed, mutton headed, maggoty headed, grossheaded, beef headed, fat witted, fat-headed, weak-minded, feeble-minded, dull minded, shallow minded, lack-brained, rattle-brained, rattle headed, half witted, lean witted, short witted, dull witted, blunt-witted, shallow-pated, clod-pated, addle- pated, dim-sighted, short-sighted, thick-skulled, weak in the upper story, shallow, borne, weak, wanting, soft, sappy, spoony, dull, dull as a beetle, stupid, heavy, insulse, obtuse, blunt, stolid, doltish, asinine, inapt, prosaic, hebetudinous, childish, child-like, infantine, infantile, babyish, babish, puerile, anile, simple, old-womanish, fatuous, idiotic, imbecile, driveling, blatant, babbling, vacant, sottish, bewildered, blockish, unteachable boeotian, boeotic, bovine, ungifted, undiscerning, unenlightened, unwise, unphilosophical, apish, simious, foolish, silly, senseless, irrational, insensate, nonsensical, inept, maudlin, narrow-minded, bigoted, giddy, rash, eccentric, foolish, unwise, injudicious, improper, unreasonable, without reason, ridiculous, absurd, idiotic, silly, stupid, asinine, ill-imagined, ill-advised, ill-judged, ill-devised, mal entendu, inconsistent, irrational, unphilosophical, extravagant, sleeveless, idle, pointless, useless, inexpedient, frivolous

Phr. davus sum non, "a fool's bolt is soon shot" clitellae bovi sunt impositae, "fools rush in where angels fear to tread", il n' a ni bouche ni eperon, "the bookful blockhead, ignorantly read", "to varnish nonsense with the charms of sound"

Plainness Roget’s Thesaurus §576

N. plainness, simplicity, severity, plain # terms, plain english, saxon english, household words

V. call a spade "a spade", plunge in medias res, come to the point

Adj. plain, simple, unornamented, unadorned, unvarnished, homely, homespun, neat, severe, chaste, pure, saxon, commonplace, matter-of-fact, natural, prosaic, dry, unvaried, monotonous

Adv. in plain terms, in plain words, in plain english, in plain common parlance, point-blank

Artlessness Roget’s Thesaurus §703

N. artlessness, nature, simplicity, innocence, bonhomie, naivete, abandon, candor, sincerity, singleness of purpose, singleness of heart, honesty, plain speaking, epanchement, rough diamond, matter of fact man, le palais de verite, enfant terrible

V. be artless, look one in the face, wear one's heart upon his sleeves for daws to peck at, think aloud, speak out, speak one's mind, be free with one, call a spade a spade

Adj. artless, natural, pure, native, confiding, simple, lain, inartificial, untutored, unsophisticated, ingenu, unaffected, naive, sincere, frank, open, open as day, candid, ingenuous, guileless, unsuspicious, honest, innocent, arcadian, undesigning, straightforward, unreserved, aboveboard, simple-minded, single-minded, frank-hearted, open-hearted, single-hearted, simple-hearted, free-spoken, plain-spoken, outspoken, blunt, downright, direct, matter of fact, unpoetical, unflattering

Adv. in plain words, in plain english, without mincing the matter, not to mince the matter

Phr. davus sum non oedipus, liberavi animam meam, "as frank as rain on cherry blossoms", 1, conditional antagonism

Simplicity Roget’s Thesaurus §849

N. simplicity, plainness, homeliness, undress, # chastity

V. be simple, render simple, simplify, uncomplicate

Adj. simple, plain, homely, homespun, ordinary, household, unaffected, ingenuous, sincere (artless) 703, free from affectation, free from ornament, simplex munditiis, sans facon, en deshabille, chaste, inornate, severe, unadorned, bare, unornamented, undecked, ungarnished, unarranged, untrimmed, unvarnished, bald, flat, dull

Phr. veritatis simplex oratio est

King James Bible KJV Bible

Berean Standard Bible BSB Bible

21 KJV and 19 BSB verses contain “Simple” — showing the first 20. Show all 24 verses (searchable)

2 Kings 3:18

And this is but a light thing in the sight of the LORD: he will deliver the Moabites also into your hand.

This is a simple matter in the sight of the LORD, and He will also deliver the Moabites into your hand.

Job 5:2

For wrath killeth the foolish man, and envy slayeth the silly one.

For resentment kills a fool, and envy slays the simple.

Psalms 19:7

The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple.

The Law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the LORD is trustworthy, making wise the simple.

Psalms 116:6

The LORD preserveth the simple: I was brought low, and he helped me.

The LORD preserves the simplehearted; I was helpless, and He saved me.

Psalms 119:130

The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple.

The unfolding of Your words gives light; it informs the simple.

Proverbs 1:4

To give subtilty to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion.

To impart prudence to the simple and knowledge and discretion to the young,

Proverbs 1:22

How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? and the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge?

“How long, O simple ones, will you love your simple ways? How long will scoffers delight in their scorn and fools hate knowledge?

Proverbs 1:32

For the turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy them.

For the waywardness of the simple will slay them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them.

Proverbs 7:7

And beheld among the simple ones, I discerned among the youths, a young man void of understanding,

I saw among the simple, I noticed among the youths, a young man lacking judgment,

Proverbs 8:5

O ye simple, understand wisdom: and, ye fools, be ye of an understanding heart.

O simple ones, learn to be shrewd; O fools, gain understanding.

Proverbs 9:4

Whoso is simple, let him turn in hither: as for him that wanteth understanding, she saith to him,

“Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!” she says to him who lacks judgment.

Proverbs 9:13

A foolish woman is clamorous: she is simple, and knoweth nothing.

The woman named Folly is loud; she is naive and knows nothing.

Proverbs 9:16

Whoso is simple, let him turn in hither: and as for him that wanteth understanding, she saith to him,

“Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!” she says to him who lacks judgment.

Proverbs 14:15

The simple believeth every word: but the prudent man looketh well to his going.

The simple man believes every word, but the prudent man watches his steps.

Proverbs 14:18

The simple inherit folly: but the prudent are crowned with knowledge.

The simple inherit folly, but the prudent are crowned with knowledge.

Proverbs 19:25

Smite a scorner, and the simple will beware: and reprove one that hath understanding, and he will understand knowledge.

Strike a mocker, and the simple will beware; rebuke the discerning man, and he will gain knowledge.

Proverbs 21:11

When the scorner is punished, the simple is made wise: and when the wise is instructed, he receiveth knowledge.

When a mocker is punished, the simple gain wisdom; and when a wise man is instructed, he acquires knowledge.

Proverbs 22:3

A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself: but the simple pass on, and are punished.

The prudent see danger and take cover, but the simple keep going and suffer the consequences.

Proverbs 27:12

A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself; but the simple pass on, and are punished.

The prudent see danger and take cover; but the simple keep going and pay the penalty.

Ezekiel 45:20

And so thou shalt do the seventh day of the month for every one that erreth, and for him that is simple: so shall ye reconcile the house.

You must do the same thing on the seventh day of the month for anyone who strays unintentionally or in ignorance. In this way you will make atonement for the temple.