Daft means silly or foolish in a way that shows poor judgment or a lack of common sense. When someone does something daft, they're not thinking clearly about the consequences. If you went outside in a snowstorm wearing shorts and sandals, your friends might say “That's daft!” because it's obviously a bad idea.

The word carries a lighter, more playful feeling than harsh words like “stupid” or “idiotic.” Calling an idea daft suggests it's ridiculous or poorly thought out, but not necessarily mean-spirited. When a character in a British novel calls another character daft, they might be genuinely annoyed or just teasing affectionately.

You'll often hear daft in British English, where it's quite common. Someone might say “Don't be daft!” when a friend suggests something unreasonable, like staying up all night before a big test. A teacher might call a plan to finish a month-long project in one evening “utterly daft.” The word can describe both ideas and people, though calling a person daft is usually less serious than it sounds, more like saying they're being thick-headed in that particular moment rather than actually unintelligent.