Dunce, n.
Etymology: [From Joannes Duns Scotus, a schoolman called the Subtle Doctor, who died in 1308. Originally in the phrase a Duns man. See Note below.]
One backward in book learning; a child or other person dull or weak in intellect; a dullard; a dolt. I never knew this town without dunces of figure. Swift.
Note: The schoolmen were often called, after their great leader Duns Scotus, Dunsmen or Duncemen. In the revival of learning they were violently opposed to classical studies; hence, the name of Dunce was applied with scorn and contempt to an opposer of learning, or to one slow at learning, a dullard.
Shades of meaning
Fernald lists dunce only as an antonym, under scholar.
He lists it without comment; the entries above explain its neighbors.
Synonyms
none given