The sense of forgetting is a natural or progressive process in which old memories cannot be retrieved from memory storage.
This could occur due to a bunch of reasons. It could be stress, it could be the brain’s defense mechanism against trauma.
It could be a psychological ailment or simply not minding the subject matter as much as would be required and it is then filtered out as irrelevant information to declutter the memory storage compartment.
But in certain cases, the forgetful mistakes are much more pronounced, either due to the magnitude of what was forgotten or due to the very high frequency at which it occurs mostly due to carelessness.
In cases like this, it can become quite a bit vexing when it happens, and one would feel a need to speak out on it. But what can you call these careless folk? Let’s find out!
Key points
- Someone who forgets things easily due to a lack of attention to detail or concentration can be called absentminded.
- A person who forgets things because he or she has other things on their mind is called flighty.
- A person who forgets things due to a lack of organization is called a scatterbrain.
15 Words For Someone Who Forgets Easily
One of your pet peeves could be having someone forget things you deem important to commit to memory. In the case where someone does this often, it gets to you and you want to tell them.
Here are 10 words for someone who may forget things too easily:
- Scatterbrained
- Absent-minded
- Spacey
- Unfocused
- Ditzy
- Amnesiac
- Dreamer
- Ghajini
- Goldfish
- Flighty
- Airhead
- Sieve
- Eidetic
- Wool gatherer
- Inattentive
1. Scatterbrained
A person who is scatterbrained is disorganized and always distracted. This makes them forget easily as they can hardly keep their head in one place for a long period of time.
They are always multitasking and in a bad way too. They might try working on two different projects at the same time and mess it up or forget an important detail that will make everything flop.
A scatterbrained is more likely to lose things like keys or pens. They also start a lot of tasks at once but hardly ever complete any. It is because of this that they have a hard time keeping track of everything they do hence their forgetfulness.
2. Absent-minded
To put it simply, an absent-minded person is a person who is paying attention. He might be in a place but his mind is the other way, probably worrying about his bills and debts or fantasizing about the many dreams or things that they wish would come to try to enjoy.
Absent-minded people can be difficult to work with because they are not concentrating and it leads to a lapse in their memory.
While they repeat what they have said or done before, they also make you repeat yourself because they are not aware of what is going on while performing tasks.
Absent-minded people are also disorganized because they are constantly shuffling between two worlds.
3. Spacey
A person who is described as spacey is one who lives in his own world so much that they are most times not aware of their surroundings.
They might be at a meeting for example, but have their minds in a completely different place. They are oblivious to the other happenings in their surroundings.
A spacey person will not be able to carry a conversation or see a task to its completion. They have a distracted expression and they would not be able to read the room or pick up on the mood of a place.
If you have a spacey waiter, be sure that he will ask you to repeat your order many times and maybe take your food to the wrong table.
4. Unfocused
We all know what it means to be unfocused. When you are unfocused on what’s going on, you can easily miss out on a bunch of details. You might even hear them be unable to remember them because what you have heard has no time to sink into your short-term memory enough to be stored.
A person who is unfocused will most times not listen the first time before asking you to repeat while missing out on some things. Their attention span is very short and they will likely zone out if they feel what is going on does not interest them.
5. Ditzy
Ditsy,is a term for a woman who is very distracted and forgetful. It can be used on a person who is somewhat eccentric and makes careless mistakes.
While this term can be used to joke around with someone or as an affectionate and endearing term, it can be derogatory in any other context. It is best to use caution, ensuring that no one feels hurt when said.
6. Amnesiac
This term is a serious word used to describe a person who suffers from amnesia. Amnesiac is a condition where a person has partial or complete memory loss.
They do not remember things that have happened easily. They might not have even the slightest recollection whatsoever.
This term is best used in a formal or serious situation as it can be seen as insulting to a memory loss sufferer or others around.
This condition can be temporary or permanent and it is caused by many factors. It’s best to use this word when you really need to because it is not something you should throw around.
7. Dreamer
Calling someone who forgets easily a dreamer is not so bad. It’s a euphemistic way of saying that they are not all there all the time.
They are good people in general but it is hard to keep their attention on what they should be doing if whatever they are working on is not as interesting as the dream they have in mind.
Calling someone a dreamer doesn’t directly allude to their forgetfulness hence it is perfect if you don’t want to hurt anybody’s feelings.
8. Ghajini
Before you raise your eyebrows, this is not an English word. This is an Indian movie title of a business mogul who after being hit by a rod, suffers from memory loss, prevents him from remembering anything more than 15 minutes.
Interesting yet sad. I can only think of the many things that would go wrong.
Anyway, you can use this on someone who forgets easily. You can also get them to watch the movie. Maybe you both can find out how it ends. Who knows, becoming more aware of their forgetfulness can spur them to work on it and be better at remembering things.
9. Goldfish
Do you know that one saying that speaks of goldfish and their forgetfulness? Well, it’s not a big deal. You might have heard it before and forgotten it (smile).
Goldfishes are commonly portrayed as being forgetful although, according to science their memory spans out for months.
Goldfishes have been used to represent forgetfulness and the saying is used to playfully comment on how quickly a person can forget something. It is simple and has no negative connotation to it.
10. Flighty
Flighty is a word that is used to describe someone who is impulsive and can easily change their mind. It is because of this that they are very distracted, moved by any little things, and can forget easily.
They can make a decision today and not follow through with it, changing it suddenly and forgetting about their former choice.
A person who is called flighty is very careless and is usually not taken seriously by people around them. Flighty people also have short attention spans and are very unpredictable because of how they change their minds.
All of this leads to their forgetfulness which makes them altogether unreliable.
11. Airhead
Airheaded is mostly used to describe a person who is stupid or is seen as empty upstairs. It can also be used to describe a person who is silly or engages in silly things.
All of this aside, airhead is a term used to describe a person who forgets easily. If you take it literally, then you can think of it as their head being empty and being filled with air.
Since their head has nothing in it but air there is nothing to remember. Whatever way you choose to understand it, an airhead can be insulting and can be too much for someone who forgets things easily especially if it isn’t as frequent as you make it to be.
12. Sieve
There is a saying: his/her brain is like a sieve. It is said to mean that the brain of such a person doesn’t retain or at least does not retain much. It can mean that whoever hears does not retain or remember what he or she has heard.
It can be used for those who choose to hear selectively. You know, those types of people that don’t listen unless what you are saying benefits them or concerns them.
They also only listen when they want to no matter what it is you are saying to them. It might be derogatory when you say brain sieve but not when you say sieve. Smart, right?
13. Eidetic
If you know this word, you must be surprised but irony is nice so let’s try it. An eidetic or a person with an eidetic memory is a person who remembers everything be it what they saw, heard, touched, or smelt. They never forget things.
Sometimes these types of people are said to have a photographic memory because of how impeccably well they retain and remember things.
For someone who forgets things easily, you call them eidetics as a sarcastic way of telling them about their forgetfulness.
Don’t worry too much about how they will feel. If you don’t go overboard, it will be fine. Besides, they will most likely forget about it.
14. Wool gatherer
Sometimes a person may forget easily what you have told him or her or what they have seen because of what they set their mind on.
A person who sets his mind on aimless things, or spends his time just moping can be called a wool gatherer.
A wool gatherer is also a person who engages in daydreaming. They just sit and wish for things that they do not plan to work for. In such a situation, a wool gatherer will most likely forget all you have said the moment you leave.
They are the kind that when someone speaks, the words go into one ear and fly out the other.
15. Inattentive
You already know what it means when someone is inattentive to something or someone.
They do not take note of what is happening around them. They might see or hear but it does not register in their minds. It is because it doesn’t register that they forget it and very easily too.
An inattentive person is also lacking concentration on matters that concern them. They are buried in whatever their minds find appealing.
It is not a bad term for a forgetful person, hence will not be upsetting when said however be sure to use it as politely as possible.
In the end, forgetting a few things is not necessarily bad and there isn’t an issue. But forgetfulness is when it gets annoying and too much. Forgetting things all the time is not natural. That happens due to carelessness and a nonchalant attitude to whatever is being forgotten.
And with this set of names now, you can tell such lackadaisical people how you feel about their behavior. Being mindful is a great way to keep forgetfulness at bay.
Other than that, these can also be used playfully among folks who know each other well. As long as it is used politely and not in a demeaning manner.
