Insult
Words whose primary function is to demean or degrade. Many originated as neutral descriptors before acquiring pejorative force through centuries of social usage. The trajectory from descriptor to weapon is one of the most common patterns in the history of taboo language.
23 entries
Asshole
/ˈæshoʊl/
A compound of 'arse,' from Old English 'ærs' (buttocks), cognate with Old High German 'ars' and Old Norse 'ars,' ultimat...
Bastard
/ˈbæs.təɹd/
From Old French bastard (11th century), likely from fils de bast ('son of the packsaddle'), a reference to conception on...
Bellend
/ˈbɛl.ɛnd/
A compound of 'bell' (from Old English belle) and 'end,' originating as anatomical slang for the glans penis, whose shap...
Bitch
/bɪtʃ/
From Old English bicce ('female dog'), of uncertain further origin. Possibly from Old Norse bikkja ('female dog') or fro...
Chickenshit
/ˈtʃɪk.ɪn.ʃɪt/
A compound of 'chicken' (long established as a metaphor for cowardice, attested in this figurative sense since at least ...
Dickhead
/ˈdɪkˌhɛd/
A compound of 'dick,' a slang term for the penis attested since the late 18th century (itself possibly derived from the ...
Dipshit
/ˈdɪp.ʃɪt/
A compound of 'dip' and 'shit,' originating in mid-20th-century American English. The 'dip' element has been the subject...
Douche
/duːʃ/
From French douche ('shower, jet of water'), itself from Italian doccia ('conduit pipe, shower'), derived from Latin duc...
Douchebag
/ˈduːʃ.bæɡ/
A compound of 'douche' (from French douche, 'shower,' itself from Italian doccia, from Latin ductio, 'a leading or conve...
Dumb
/dʌm/
From Old English dumb ('silent, mute, unable to speak'), from Proto-Germanic *dumbaz ('silent, dull'), cognate with Old ...
Git
/ɡɪt/
A dialectal variant of 'get,' from Old Norse geta ('to obtain, beget'), which in Middle English developed the sense of '...
Jackass
/ˈdʒæk.æs/
A compound of 'jack' (a generic name for a male animal, particularly a donkey, attested from the sixteenth century) and ...
Jerkoff
/ˈdʒɜːrk.ɒf/
Formed as a compound nominalization of the phrasal verb 'jerk off,' meaning to masturbate. The verb 'jerk' has been atte...
Lame
/leɪm/
From Old English lama ('weak-limbed, crippled, paralyzed'), from Proto-Germanic *lamaz ('lame'), cognate with Old Norse ...
Minger
/ˈmɪŋ.ər/
Derived from the Scots dialect verb 'ming,' meaning 'to smell badly, to stink,' itself possibly related to Old English g...
Nonce
/nɒns/
The precise etymology is disputed. Several competing derivations have been proposed: (1) from 'nonsense,' shortened in p...
Pillock
/ˈpɪl.ək/
Derived from the Middle English pillicock, a term for the penis, itself from Scandinavian sources (compare Norwegian dia...
Schmuck
/ʃmʌk/
From Yiddish שמאָק (shmok), meaning 'penis,' itself derived from an older Germanic root possibly related to Old High Ger...
Scumbag
/ˈskʌm.bæɡ/
A compound of 'scum' and 'bag,' originating as slang for a used condom. 'Scum' in this context referred to semen (a usag...
Son of a Bitch
/ˌsʌn əv ə ˈbɪtʃ/
A compound insult formed from 'son' and 'bitch,' where 'bitch' retains its original sense of a female dog, and the phras...
Tosser
/ˈtɒsə/
Derived from the verb 'toss' with the agentive suffix '-er.' The insult sense is traced to the phrase 'toss off,' which ...
Wanker
/ˈwæŋ.kər/
Derived from the verb 'wank,' meaning 'to masturbate,' with the agentive suffix '-er.' The verb 'wank' is of uncertain o...
Whoreson
/ˈhɔːr.sʌn/
A compound of 'whore' (from Old English hōre, from Proto-Germanic *hōrōn, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *keh₂- mea...