different between pissant vs dickwad

English

Alternative forms

• piss-ant

Etymology

From piss +? ant, because of the urine-like smell of anthills. Compare pismire.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?p?sænt/

Noun

pissant (plural pissants)

1. (dated outside dialects) An ant.
2. (derogatory) An insignificant person.

   Synonym: nobody
3. (derogatory) A person who adheres strictly to a rule or policy despite current circumstances.

4. (derogatory) A person seemingly incapable of focusing on anything but the trivial, especially in the sense of trivial or irrelevant criticism.

Adjective

pissant (comparative more pissant, superlative most pissant)

1. (sometimes vulgar) Insignificant or unimportant.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:insignificant

Further reading

• “pissant”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–present.
• “pissant”, in Merriam–Webster Online Dictionary, (Please provide a date or year).

Anagrams

• ptisans, spastin

French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pi.s??/

Adjective

pissant (feminine singular pissante, masculine plural pissants, feminine plural pissantes)

1. (Quebec, colloquial) funny

Verb

pissant

1. present participle of pisser

Further reading

• “pissant” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

English

Etymology

dick +? -wad

Pronunciation

Noun

dickwad (plural dickwads)

1. (vulgar, slang) A contemptible person; a fool.
   • 1991, Point Break [Movie]:

     I get dickwad in there wantin' to play wheel of fortune so I can find out their supplier!

   • 2001, Stephen J. Cannell, The Tin Collectors, St. Martin's Paperbacks:

     "Yeah? Who's gonna stop me, dickwad?"

   You treat your girlfriend so bad, you damn dickwad!

Translations