Meanings
plural idiot boxes
- CanadaUSidiomaticTelevision.
During the long, dreary, wet winter I amused myself by watching college and Pro basketball on the idiot box.
2003 March 31, Bill Litchfield, “Basketball Fans”, in rec.gardens (Usenet)1 more example
Commentators began to call televisions idiot boxes in the 1950s, soon after television's popularity began to soar.
2022, Jon M. Garon, Parenting for the Digital Generation, page 21Synonyms: boob tube, zombie box
Synonyms & antonyms
nounTelevision.
More synonyms by meaning
nounan electronic device that receives television signals and displays them on a screen
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
From idiot + box, an allusion to the supposed mind-reducing nature of television programming or its lack of educational value.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Dutch treurbuis
- treurbuistelevision (pejorative)
Finnish telkkari, töllö
- telkkaritelevision (pejorative)
- töllötelevision (pejorative)
German Glotze, Idiotenlaterne
- Glotzetelevision (pejorative)
- Idiotenlaternetelevision (pejorative)
Greek χαζοκούτι
- χαζοκούτι (chazokoúti)television (pejorative)
Icelandic imbakassi
- imbakassitelevision (pejorative)
Russian дебили́зор, зомбоя́щик
- дебили́зор (debilízor)television (pejorative)
- зомбоя́щик (zombojáščik)television (pejorative)
- дуроско́п (duroskóp)television (pejorative)
- зомбови́зор (zombovízor)television (pejorative)
Spanish caja boba, caja idiota
- caja bobatelevision (pejorative)
- caja idiotatelevision (pejorative)
- caja tontatelevision (pejorative)
Swedish dumburk
- dumburktelevision (pejorative)
Cite this entry
idiot box. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/idiot%20box
“idiot box.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/idiot%20box. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “idiot box,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/idiot%20box.
Source: idiot box on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.