different between nerd vs joke

English

Alternative forms

• knurd (folk etymology, very rare)
• nurd (very rare)

Etymology

Unknown. Attested since 1951 as US student slang.

• Perhaps an alteration of nerts (“nuts", "crazy”); see references below.
• The word, capitalized, appeared in 1950 in Dr. Seuss’s If I Ran the Zoo as the name of an imaginary animal:

  And then, just to show them, I’ll sail to Katroo / And bring back an It-Kutch, a Preep and a Proo, / A Nerkle, a Nerd and a Seersucker too!

• Various unlikely folk etymologies and less likely backronymic speculations also exist.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) enPR: nûd, IPA^(key): /n??d/
• (US) enPR: nûrd, IPA^(key): /n??d/
• Rhymes: -??(r)d

Noun

nerd (plural nerds)

1. (slang, sometimes derogatory) A person who is intellectual but generally introverted.
   • 1953 Advertisement for "Businessman's Lunch", a play by Micheal Quinn, in Patricia Brown, Gloria Mundi
2. (informal, sometimes derogatory) One who has an intense, obsessive interest in something.

   Synonyms: geek, otaku

3. (slang, always derogatory) An unattractive, socially awkward, annoying, undesirable, and/or boring, person; a dork.

   Synonyms: dag (Australian), doofus, dork, dweeb, geek, goober, loser, propeller head, twerp

4. A member of a subculture revolving around video games, fantasy and science fiction, comic books and assorted media. [from 1980s]

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:dork

Derived terms

Translations

References

• Douglas Harper (2001–2021) , “nerd”, in Online Etymology Dictionary

Further reading

• nerd on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• Nerds on Wikimedia Commons.Wikimedia Commons

Anagrams

• dern, rend

Dutch

Etymology

Borrowed from English nerd.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /nø?rt/
• Hyphenation: nerd

Noun

nerd m (plural nerds, diminutive nerdje n)

1. nerd

Derived terms

• computernerd
• gamenerd
• internetnerd
• nerderig
• nerdo

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology

Borrowed from English nerd.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /nærd/, /nø??/
• Rhymes: -ærd, -ø??

Noun

nerd m (definite singular nerden, indefinite plural nerder, definite plural nerdene)

1. a nerd

References

• “nerd” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology

Borrowed from English nerd.

Noun

nerd m (definite singular nerden, indefinite plural nerdar, definite plural nerdane)

1. a nerd

References

• “nerd” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Polish

Etymology

From English nerd.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /n?rt/

Noun

nerd m pers

1. (derogatory) nerd (intellectual, skillful person, generally introverted)

Declension

Further reading

• nerd in Wielki s?ownik j?zyka polskiego, Instytut J?zyka Polskiego PAN
• nerd in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Portuguese

Etymology

Borrowed from English nerd.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?n??d??/, /?n??.d??i/

Noun

nerd m, f (plural nerds)

1. nerd (intellectual, introverted and quirky person)

   Synonyms: CDF, totó

Adjective

nerd (invariable, comparable)

1. nerdy (who is a nerd)

Usage notes

Until recently, this word was somewhat pejorative. Nowadays it is used both negatively and positively.

Spanish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?ne?d/, [?ne?ð?]

Noun

nerd m or f (plural nerds)

1. nerd

English

Etymology

From Latin iocus (“joke, jest, pastime”), from Proto-Italic *jokos (“word, (playful?) saying”), from Proto-Indo-European *yokos (“word, utterance”), from ultimate root Proto-Indo-European *yek- (“to speak, utter”) (of which distant cognates include Proto-Celtic *yextis (“language”) (Breton yezh (“language”) and Welsh iaith (“language”)) and German Beichte (“confession”)). Cognate with French jouer, Italian giocare, Portuguese jogar, Spanish juego and jugar, and Romanian juca.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /d???k/
• (US) IPA^(key): /d?o?k/
• Rhymes: -??k

Noun

joke (plural jokes)

1. An amusing story.
   • 1708, John Gay, Wine

     Or witty joke our airy senses moves / To pleasant laughter.

2. Something said or done for amusement, not in seriousness.

   It was a joke!
3. (figuratively) The root cause or main issue, especially an unexpected one
4. (figuratively) A laughably worthless thing or person; a sham.

   Your effort at cleaning your room is a joke.

   The president was a joke.

Usage notes

• Adjectives often applied to "joke": old, bad, inside, poor, silly, funny, lame, hilarious, stupid, offensive.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:joke

Coordinate terms

• comedy
• limerick
• parody
• pun

Derived terms

Related terms

• jocular

Descendants

• ? Danish: joke
• ? French: joke
• ? Persian: ????
• ? Japanese: ????, ? Japanese: ??
• ? Welsh: jôc

Translations

Verb

joke (third-person singular simple present jokes, present participle joking, simple past and past participle joked)

1. (intransitive) To do or say something for amusement rather than seriously.

   I didn’t mean what I said — I was only joking.

2. (intransitive, followed by with) To dupe in a friendly manner for amusement; to mess with, play with.

   Relax, man, I'm just joking with you.

3. (transitive, dated) To make merry with; to make jokes upon; to rally.

   to joke a comrade

Related terms

• joker

Translations

See also

• jeer
• mock

Anagrams

• ojek

Danish

Etymology 1

Borrowed from English joke.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [?d?j?w??]

Noun

joke c (singular definite joken, plural indefinite jokes)

1. joke

Inflection

Synonyms

• spøg
• vits
• vittighed

Etymology 2

Borrowed from English joke.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [?d?j?w???], (imperative) IPA^(key): [?d?j?w???]

Verb

joke (past tense jokede, past participle joket)

1. joke

Inflection

Synonyms

• spøge

French

Etymology

From English joke.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /d?ok/
• (Quebec) IPA^(key): /d?o?k/

Noun

joke f (plural jokes)

1. (Louisiana, Quebec) joke

Derived terms

• faire une joke