# Dumber than a ... **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 3, 2009, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumber-than-a/484278 "2009-02-03T17:36:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumber-than-a/484278/1 "2009-02-03T17:36:07Z")
Box of hair? Sack of hammers? Pail of kittens? (no, that’s cute … sorry) What do folks where you are compare a dumb person to? (Thread started to end the hijack in [the Ron thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=495672).) ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumber-than-a/484278/2 "2009-02-03T17:44:05Z")
Box of rocks, I guess, because it sort of rhymes. ---
**Author:** ![OtakuLoki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ac8455/32.png) [@OtakuLoki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OtakuLoki)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumber-than-a/484278/3 "2009-02-03T17:49:54Z")
I’m still going with ‘less brians than a scrambled turnip,’ because it implies not only a lack of intelligence, but a stunning lack of common sense, too. But there are a number of other good phrases and comparisons brought up both here and in the Ron thread. I’d like to add, for a description of an otherwise competent and intelligent person, who has a massive brain fart: “So-and-so suffered a critical clue failure.” ---
**Author:** ![neutron\_star](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/51bf81/32.png) [@neutron\_star](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neutron_star)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumber-than-a/484278/4 "2009-02-03T17:51:56Z")
GameFAQs forums poster? ---
**Author:** ![OtakuLoki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ac8455/32.png) [@OtakuLoki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OtakuLoki)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumber-than-a/484278/5 "2009-02-03T17:53:08Z")
Hey! We’re in a family friendly forum! You can’t use that sort of language, here, **neutron star**! ---
**Author:** ![phouka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c5a1d2/32.png) [@phouka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phouka)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumber-than-a/484278/6 "2009-02-03T18:00:19Z")
My favorite has always been “dumber than a sack of wet mice.” ---
**Author:** ![Litoris](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9f8e36/32.png) [@Litoris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Litoris)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumber-than-a/484278/7 "2009-02-03T18:00:44Z")
There was a thread about this recently. I say “dumber’n a bag of retarded hammers” can’t help myself, makes me giggle. ---
**Author:** ![Redfrost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9fc29f/32.png) [@Redfrost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Redfrost)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumber-than-a/484278/8 "2009-02-03T18:08:25Z")
Me, I like dumb as a chunk. ---
**Author:** ![BubbaDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bubbadog/32/333_2.png) [@BubbaDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BubbaDog)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumber-than-a/484278/9 "2009-02-03T18:12:14Z")
I once heard “dumber than a stunted swamp chigger” on TV or a movie. I found that one quite impressive. ---
**Author:** ![Prelude\_to\_Fascination](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a183cd/32.png) [@Prelude\_to\_Fascination](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Prelude_to_Fascination)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumber-than-a/484278/10 "2009-02-03T18:14:18Z")
I don’t usually use the “dumber than…” phrasing, and say what you will about the show Charles in Charge, but I remember a line from that I still use: “You have the intelligence of cloth.” ---
**Author:** ![VunderBob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/839c29/32.png) [@VunderBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VunderBob)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumber-than-a/484278/11 "2009-02-03T18:14:26Z")
I used “dumber than a pallet of bricks” in a post last week… ---
**Author:** ![kurilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ea5d25/32.png) [@kurilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kurilla)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumber-than-a/484278/12 "2009-02-03T18:16:17Z")
My dad used to say, “Dumber than whale s\*\*t in the bottom of the ocean.” No idea where he got that one. ---
**Author:** ![Skara\_Brae](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f0a364/32.png) [@Skara\_Brae](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skara_Brae)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumber-than-a/484278/13 "2009-02-03T18:22:03Z")
> [@phouka](#): > > My favorite has always been “dumber than a sack of wet mice.” I always heard this as “About as sharp as a sack of wet mice…” ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumber-than-a/484278/14 "2009-02-03T18:22:40Z")
I sometimes quote Foghorne Leghorne: “That boy’s about as sharp as a pound of wet liver.” ---
**Author:** ![Wargamer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/df705f/32.png) [@Wargamer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wargamer)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumber-than-a/484278/15 "2009-02-03T18:26:27Z")
He has a room temperature IQ. ---
**Author:** ![Count\_No\_Account](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/13edae/32.png) [@Count\_No\_Account](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_No_Account)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumber-than-a/484278/16 "2009-02-03T18:27:54Z")
> [@phouka](#): > > My favorite has always been “dumber than a sack of wet mice.” Mine too. Foghorn Leghorn is quite the quote smith. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumber-than-a/484278/17 "2009-02-03T18:33:57Z")
I always thought “bag of hammers” was a way of describing an ugly person’s face. ---
**Author:** ![apollonia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/2bfe46/32.png) [@apollonia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/apollonia)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumber-than-a/484278/18 "2009-02-03T18:36:14Z")
“Dumber than a box of hair.” Although usually I prefer to say “his brain must rattle around in his skull like a pea in a tuna can,” myself. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/74df32/32.png) [@The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Devil_s_Grandmother)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumber-than-a/484278/19 "2009-02-03T19:00:46Z")
“Dummer 'n sled tracks” has been a favorite of mine since I heard a neighbor use it about one of his kids. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumber-than-a/484278/20 "2009-02-03T19:03:57Z")
> [@phouka](#): > > My favorite has always been “dumber than a sack of wet mice.” Interesting. I sometimes say “dumber than a _bowl_ of mice.” More frequently, though, I will say that somebody “has the IQ of a bagel.” [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumber-than-a/484278.md?page=2)