different between cretin vs nitwit

English

Etymology

From French crétin (“cretin, idiot”), from crestin, an Alpine dialectal form of chrétien, from Vulgar Latin christi?nus in the lost sense of “anyone in Christendom”, often with a sense of “poor fellow”. Doublet of Christian.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /?k??t?n/
• (US) IPA^(key): /?k?i?t?n/, /?k??t?n/
• Homophone: Cretan (one pronunciation)

Noun

cretin (plural cretins)

1. (pathology) A person who fails to develop mentally and physically due to a congenital hypothyroidism. [from 1779]
2. (by extension, derogatory) An idiot.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:idiot

Derived terms

Translations

Further reading

• Cretinism on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• Category:Cretinism on Wikimedia Commons.Wikimedia Commons

Anagrams

• centri-, cinter, citren, crinet

Romanian

Etymology

From French crétin

Noun

cretin m (plural cretini)

1. idiot

Declension

English

Etymology

First attested in the 1910s in the US Northeast. Likely from German nit, dialectal form of nichts (“nothing”), or Yiddish ???? (nit), dialectal form of ????? (nisht, “no”), although some dictionaries give the alternative etymology nit (“louse egg; something very small”) +? wit.

Pronunciation

• (US) IPA^(key): /?n?tw?t/

Noun

nitwit (plural nitwits)

1. (informal) A scatterbrained or stupid person.
   • 1918, State Bar Association of Connecticut, Annual Report, page 82

     If you don't remember you are a nitwit. If you do answer, well, you know what the penalty is for perjury.

   • 1921, Emmett Campbell Hall, "Need a Hero be a Nitwit?", The Editor, page 58

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:fool

Translations