My last blogpost - "Fable" seems to have engendered collateral interest with regard to the business of insulting. The English language has a wealth of insult words. We really don't need to resort to swearing when we are peeved with someone or overcome with angry bloodlust.
Instead, just dip into the lexicon of insults to find words that will undoubtedly cause your target human to rock back on his or her heels. Here are ten of my favourites with definitions or notes
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nincompoop - dating back to at least the 17th century - a foolish or stupid person.lickspittle - an obsequious licker of boots who sucks up to others
pillock Once one of the hundreds of euphemisms for the male sexual organ in the English language. For several hundred years this was apparently the main sense of the word. However, beginning in the late 20th century pillock took on another meaning, which is that of an idiot or fool of some sort. Both of these uses are almost entirely confined to British English
dipstick Someone who's being particularly dim or slow. Like the dipstick in a motor vehicle that has no other use but to measure the oil level in an engine.
wazzock - a stupid or annoying person. This only dates back to the 1970s. Favoured insult in the north of England - often applied to Londoners.
numpty - An incompetent or unwise person ("Don't be such a numpty, you can't charge your phone in the microwave!")
moldwarp - a stupid or shiftless person. I think this insult may be Shakespearean.
rapscallion - mischievous person - variation on "rascal"
numbskull - a stupid or shiftless person
scallywag - yet another word for an untrustworthy rascal
We use some of these, numbskull, dipstick, and nincompoop, along with a large number of others. My favorite words though are always swear words. I have a face like a nun (a patient told me that), so I think I just like the juxtaposition of swearing with a face like a nun. It rattles people:)
ReplyDeleteDipstick was often used when my kids were growing up, though with time it morphed into dipshit. We also called folks maroons (morons) and turkeys, though the latter was usually with fondness.
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