Glossary entry (derived from question below)
Sep 6, 2012 20:17
11 yrs ago
7 viewers *
English term
clumsy
English
Other
General / Conversation / Greetings / Letters
I need an adjective to describe a 12 year-old girl who gets easily distracted. For example, she makes a cake and instead of milk, she uses some medicine. This is her reaction, " Oh! I didn't know! It was white and in a bottle, I thought it was milk!"
I don´t think clumsy is the best word to describe her.
I don´t think clumsy is the best word to describe her.
Responses
| 3 +2 | absentminded |
lorenab23
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| 4 +6 | scatterbrained |
Jack Doughty
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| 4 | inattentive |
Lara Barnett
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| 3 | scatty |
Sheila Wilson
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| 3 | to have one's head in the clouds |
Suzan Hamer
|
Change log
Jul 25, 2013 21:56: lorenab23 Created KOG entry
Responses
+2
5 mins
Selected
absentminded
one possibility
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
Charles Davis
: Very suitable
34 mins
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| agree |
Lara Barnett
1 hr
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| neutral |
Yvonne Gallagher
: for a 12 year old?
3 hrs
|
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "Í think this answer is the most suitable one in this case. Thanks."
+6
3 mins
Jack Doughty
United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Native in English
&
English
United Kingdom
Translator since 1953
Native in: English
Works in: Russian to English, German to English, English
Related KudoZ points
:
370
scatterbrained
I think this is a more suitable adjective for a child than calling her stupid.
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
Arabic & More
: I was just about to suggest this!
2 mins
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Thank you. I've often found myself in that position!
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| agree |
Mark Nathan
: she also sounds quite dangerous
6 mins
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Thank you.
|
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| agree |
Martin Riordan
7 mins
|
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Thank you.
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| agree |
Charles Davis
: Just right
36 mins
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Thank you.
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| agree |
AllegroTrans
44 mins
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Thank you.
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| disagree |
Lara Barnett
: I don't think this is a good term for a 12 year old.
1 hr
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| agree |
Doroteja
1 day 2 hrs
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Thank you.
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| agree |
Phong Le
3 days 6 hrs
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Thank you.
|
1 hr
Sheila Wilson
Spain
Spain
Native in English
&
English
Works in field
Spain
20 years producing 100% natural English
Native in: English (Variant: British) 
Works in: English, French to English
Related KudoZ points
:
28
scatty
Once again, context is everything. We have the situation here, but we don't have the register.
I think this is what her friends would probably call her.
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Note added at 1 hr (2012-09-06 21:37:16 GMT)
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There are so many adjectives and nouns that could fit, although clumsy certainly doesn't!
A wool-gatherer could be the term her parents might use, or they might call her woolly-headed or, of course, Jack's choice of the longer version of scatty, scatterbrained.
Actually, another one that just occurred to me is "feather-brained". That has more of a "stupid idiot!" ring to it, which is certainly applicable here.
I think this is what her friends would probably call her.
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Note added at 1 hr (2012-09-06 21:37:16 GMT)
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There are so many adjectives and nouns that could fit, although clumsy certainly doesn't!
A wool-gatherer could be the term her parents might use, or they might call her woolly-headed or, of course, Jack's choice of the longer version of scatty, scatterbrained.
Actually, another one that just occurred to me is "feather-brained". That has more of a "stupid idiot!" ring to it, which is certainly applicable here.
2 hrs
Lara Barnett
United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Native in English
&
English
Specializes in field
United Kingdom
www.lingocraft.co.uk
Native in: English (Variants: British, Scottish, Irish, Singaporean, UK, South African)
Works in: French to English, Italian to English, Romanian to English, and 2 more.
Related KudoZ points
:
16
inattentive
Following discussion entry, I would say this word could be used to describe a girl who is easily distracted. It suggests negligence, and perhaps somebody who daydreams, which is possibly the reason why a 12 year old would get distracted. Maybe she has not a very good attention span (attention deficiency of some sort.)
"inattentive
adjective
not attentive; negligent."
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/inattentive?qsrc=2446
http://life.familyeducation.com/behavioral-problems/organiza...
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Note added at 2 hrs (2012-09-06 22:42:33 GMT)
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"Inattention
n.
Lack of attention, notice, or regard."
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/inattention
"inattentive
adjective
not attentive; negligent."
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/inattentive?qsrc=2446
http://life.familyeducation.com/behavioral-problems/organiza...
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Note added at 2 hrs (2012-09-06 22:42:33 GMT)
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"Inattention
n.
Lack of attention, notice, or regard."
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/inattention
Example sentence:
"Parenting Patterns to Avoid with an Inattentive Child"
Reference:
http://life.familyeducation.com/behavioral-problems/organization/40426.html#ixzz25jRD8esu
2 hrs
Suzan Hamer
Netherlands
Netherlands
Native in English
&
English
Specializes in field
Netherlands
Fussy editing for fussy people.
Native in: English (Variant: US)
Works in: English, Dutch to English
Related KudoZ points
:
27
to have one's head in the clouds
Just a suggestion.
Dictionary.com:
"Be absentminded or impractical, as in She must have had her head in the clouds when she made the reservations, because they never heard of us , or He'll never be able to run the business he's always got his head in the clouds . This idiom uses in the clouds in the sense of "fanciful" or "unreal," a usage dating from the mid-1600s."
To me, a person who has her head in the clouds is thinking about one thing while doing something else, perhaps off in a daydream, obviously does not have her mind on the task at hand.
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Note added at 17 hrs (2012-09-07 13:35:16 GMT)
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Not an adjective, I know, but you could recast the sentence.
Dictionary.com:
"Be absentminded or impractical, as in She must have had her head in the clouds when she made the reservations, because they never heard of us , or He'll never be able to run the business he's always got his head in the clouds . This idiom uses in the clouds in the sense of "fanciful" or "unreal," a usage dating from the mid-1600s."
To me, a person who has her head in the clouds is thinking about one thing while doing something else, perhaps off in a daydream, obviously does not have her mind on the task at hand.
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Note added at 17 hrs (2012-09-07 13:35:16 GMT)
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Not an adjective, I know, but you could recast the sentence.
Discussion
Does scatty come from scatterbrained?