fatuus, a, um, adj. root fa, cf. for; properly, garrulous, foolish, silly, simple (class.; syn.: stultus, stolidus, insipiens, desipiens, stupidus, hebes, ineptus, insulsus, absurdus). Adj.: ego me ipsum stultum existimo, fatuum esse non opinor, Afran. ap. Isid. Orig. 10, 246: stulti, stolidi. fatui, fungi, bardi, blenni, buccones, Plaut. Bacch. 5, 1, 2: fatuus est, insulsus, Ter. Eun. 5, 9, 49: non modo nequam et improbus, sed etiam fatuus et amens es, Cic. Deiot. 7, 21: monitor, id. de Or. 2, 24, 99: homo, Poet. ap. Cic. de Or. 2, 67, 274: puer, Cic. Att. 6, 6, 3: nisi plane fatui sint, id. Fin. 2, 22, 70: mores, Plaut. Trin. 2, 2, 18.

— Poet. transf. Insipid, tasteless, of food: ut sapiant fatuae, fabrorum prandia, betae, Mart. 13, 13.

— Awkward, clumsy, unwieldy: illa bipennem Insulsam et fatuam dextra tenebat, Juv. 6, 658.

— Subst.: fatuus, i, m., and fatua, ae, f., a fool, simpleton, a jester, buffoon. In gen., one who acts foolishly: paene ecfregisti, fatue, foribus cardines, Plaut. Am. 4, 2, 6; Cat. 83, 2; Juv. 9, 8.

— Esp., kept by Romans of rank for their amusement: Harpasten, uxoris meae fatuam, scis hereditarium onus in domo mea remansisse ... si quando fatuo delectari volo, me rideo, Sen. Ep. 50, 2; Lampr. Comm. 4, 3.

—Hence, fatue, adv., foolishly, absurdly: plerumque studio loquendi fatue modo accedendum, Quint. 6, 4, 8 dub. (Spald. and Zumpt, fatui); Tert. adv. Herm. 10; id. de Pat. 6.

—Hence,