You’ve probably heard it a thousand times. Maybe it was in a middle school hallway or a crowded office breakroom. Someone looks you dead in the eye and says, with total confidence, that the word "gullible" has been removed from the Merriam-Webster Dictionary.
You blink. Your brain pauses. For a split second, you actually consider checking.
That’s the trap. It’s the ultimate linguistic "gotcha." The irony, of course, is that if you believe is gullible in the dictionary (or rather, that it isn't), you’ve just proven the definition of the word itself. You’ve been had.
Honestly, this joke is the cockroach of the internet—it simply will not die. It predates TikTok, it predates Facebook, and it might even predate the commercial internet as we know it. But why do we keep falling for it? And more importantly, what does the actual history of the word tell us about our own brains?
The Anatomy of the World's Most Persistent Word Game
The joke works because it exploits a very specific type of social trust. When someone tells you a fact about a reference book, you assume they have no reason to lie about something so mundane. Why would someone make up a fact about a dictionary? It’s boring. It’s dry. And that's exactly why it's the perfect cover for a prank.
The "gullible isn't in the dictionary" trope is what folklorists call a "catch." It’s a verbal trap.
Most people don't realize that dictionaries are actually quite dynamic. They add words like "rizz" and "sus" every year. Because the English language is constantly evolving, the idea that a word might be dropped doesn't sound entirely impossible to the casual observer. But lexicographers—the folks who actually write dictionaries—rarely remove words unless they have fallen into such complete disuse that they no longer serve a purpose. "Gullible" is nowhere near that graveyard.
The Real Definition (Yes, It's Definitely There)
If you open up the Oxford English Dictionary or head over to Merriam-Webster, you’ll find it right where it belongs, tucked between gullery and gullish.
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The definition is straightforward: "easily duped or cheated."
But the etymology is actually way more interesting than the prank. The word likely stems from the verb "gull," which dates back to the 16th century. To "gull" someone was to swallow them whole, metaphorically speaking. It's related to the word "gully" (a throat) and the idea of a young bird—a "gull"—that opens its mouth wide to swallow whatever is dropped in.
So, when you ask is gullible in the dictionary, you're looking for a word that literally describes a person who will swallow any story you feed them.
Why Our Brains Short-Circuit on This Specific Joke
Psychologically, the joke plays on our desire to be "in the know."
When someone tells you a word is missing, your first instinct isn't usually "they are lying." Instead, your brain goes into "fact-checking mode." We have a natural inclination toward "truth bias." This is a concept explored heavily by researchers like Timothy R. Levine, who suggests that humans are hardwired to assume others are telling the truth by default. Without this bias, society would basically collapse because we'd be too busy questioning if the barista actually gave us decaf to ever get anything done.
The prank hits that sweet spot of being low-stakes but high-embarrassment.
- It creates a brief moment of intellectual insecurity.
- It uses a "negative claim" (something isn't there), which is harder for the brain to process instantly than a positive claim.
- It relies on the victim's own curiosity to lead them into the trap.
I’ve seen people pull this on literal geniuses. It doesn't matter how high your IQ is; if you’re tired, distracted, or just a generally trusting person, you’re going to look at the bookshelf. You're going to Google it.
The History of the "Dictionary Removal" Myth
Where did this even start? It’s hard to pin down a single "Patient Zero" for the gullible joke.
In the pre-internet era, this was a staple of summer camps and playground teasing. However, it reached a fever pitch in the early 2000s with the rise of email chain letters and early social media. There was even a popular "fact" circulating that the 12th edition of a specific dictionary had omitted the word due to a printing error.
None of it was true.
There has never been a major English dictionary that accidentally or purposefully left out "gullible." In 2011, Merriam-Webster actually got so tired of the joke that they started leaning into it on social media. They’ve posted multiple times confirming—with a hint of snark—that the word is, in fact, still there.
Does Google Make Us More or Less Gullible?
You’d think that having a supercomputer in our pockets would end this joke forever. It hasn't. If anything, the sheer volume of information online has made us more susceptible to "micro-misinformation."
We are used to seeing weird headlines. "Pluto is no longer a planet." "The Brontosaurus never existed." (Both of those were real scientific shifts, by the way). Because the "truth" about our world changes so fast, the claim that a word was removed from a book feels like just another Tuesday in the 21st century.
When you search is gullible in the dictionary, you are participating in a long-standing digital ritual. You are the seeker of truth in an era of trolls.
Spotting the Signs: How to Not Get "Gulled"
Becoming "un-gullible" isn't about being cynical. It’s about pausing.
Social psychologists often point to "analytical thinking" as the antidote to being easily fooled. When you hear a claim that sounds slightly off, don't react immediately. Most people who fall for the dictionary prank react within two seconds. If you wait five seconds, your logical brain (the prefrontal cortex) usually catches up to your reactive brain.
Think about the source. Is the person telling you this known for being a bit of a jokester? Are they looking at you with that "I'm about to win" sparkle in their eye?
Also, look for the logical flaw. If "gullible" were removed from the dictionary, how would we define the person who believed it was removed? The language needs the word to describe the very situation taking place. It's a linguistic paradox.
The Cultural Weight of Being "Easy to Fool"
Culturally, we have a weird relationship with gullibility. We mock it, but we also rely on it. Every stage magician, every fiction novelist, and every movie director relies on your willingness to be "fooled" for the sake of entertainment. We call it "suspension of disbelief."
But in the real world, the stakes are higher.
The dictionary prank is harmless, but the mechanics are the same as those used in "phishing" emails or "fake news" stories. It starts with a plausible-sounding premise and ends with you taking an action that benefits the sender (or the joker).
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Actionable Steps for the Skeptical Mind
If you want to sharpen your "BS detector" so you never have to wonder is gullible in the dictionary again, try these quick mental habits:
1. The "Reverse Search" Habit
Don't just search for the claim. Search for the claim plus the word "hoax." If you search "gullible removed from dictionary," you'll find the joke. If you search "gullible dictionary hoax," you'll find the history of why people lie about it.
2. Verify the Edition
If someone says a word was removed, ask them which dictionary and which edition. People who make things up usually crumble when you ask for specific, boring details. They won't have an answer because there isn't one.
3. Embrace the "I Don't Know"
It's okay to not know if a word is in the dictionary. The mistake isn't the lack of knowledge; it's the speed of belief. Train yourself to say, "That sounds unlikely, I'll check that later," rather than "Wait, really?"
4. Check the "Why"
Ask yourself: Why is this person telling me this? If the answer is "to make me look silly," then the information is probably a tool, not a fact.
At the end of the day, the word "gullible" is definitely in the dictionary. It’s on page 550 of my old collegiate edition, and it’s a few clicks away on your phone. The joke persists because it’s a mirror. It shows us that no matter how smart we think we are, we are all just a little bit prone to believing what we’re told, especially when the lie is wrapped in something as innocent as a vocabulary word.
Next time someone tries it on you, just smile. Tell them you checked, and interestingly, the word "mulligan" was removed instead. See if they believe you. After all, turnabout is fair play in the world of linguistic pranks.
The most important takeaway here isn't just about one word. It's about the value of the dictionary itself as a stable ground for truth. In a world where "alternative facts" can spread in seconds, having a physical or digital record of our shared language is actually a pretty big deal. It’s the fence that keeps our communication from wandering off into total chaos.
Stay curious, stay skeptical, and keep your dictionary handy. You’re going to need it.
Immediate Next Steps:
- Audit your trust: Next time you see a "weird fact" on social media, apply the five-second rule before sharing or reacting.
- Bookmark a primary source: Keep a link to the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary on your bookmarks bar. It’s the fastest way to shut down a "dictionary prankster" in real-time.
- Check the etymology: If you're bored, look up the origins of "bamboozle" or "shenanigans." Language history is often more entertaining than the pranks people play with it.