asshole
Americannoun
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anus.
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Slang.
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a stupid, mean, or contemptible person.
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the worst part of a place or thing.
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adjective
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of asshole
Explanation
Asshole is a vulgar (dirty) slang word. Besides the literal meaning, it’s a common word for a jerk or idiot. If you call someone an asshole, they're probably doing something not just stupid and annoying, but mean. Like all slang words and obscenities, this is a word you need to be careful about using. Saying asshole in class, in a paper, at a job interview, or even on television could get you in serious trouble. If you’re not alone with your buddies, stick to a safer word like jerk or doofus.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
This gets to what is probably the best lesson I’ve gleaned from r/AmITheDevil: If you’re ever completely certain you aren’t the asshole, you probably are.
From Slate ● Apr. 26, 2024
"Cobra Kai" revisits the same characters over 30 years later and we're forced to reconsider that Daniel was a bit of an asshole and that Johnny was going through some shit.
From Salon ● May 27, 2022
And yeah, it makes Boogie look like an asshole, but that’s part of this character.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 23, 2021
“I framed the story with me as the asshole dad because that’s my comedic persona and my fans and friends know it’s ‘a bit,'” Roderick wrote on his website.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 5, 2021
The plotlines are always the same, too—a poor woman overcomes adversity and marries a rich asshole and they live happily ever after.
From "I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter" by Erika L. Sánchez
Despite having two lovable leads, Afterparty never fails to remind you that Lola and Milo are still kind of assholes whose actions on Earth earned them a spot in Hell.
From The Verge ● Oct. 29, 2019
As one white childhood friend said to me that day, “I have never attended any protest, but I figure it’s on us to show that these racist assholes don’t speak for all white folks.”
From Slate ● Aug. 10, 2018
And in the great tradition of fictional medical-genius assholes, noble friends like Rachel McAdams’ Christine Palmer stick with him in spite of his egotistic antics.
From The Verge ● Oct. 28, 2016
BOB: So, to paraphrase Sissy Farenthold, we will know when women have achieved some measure of gender equity when asshole women can be called assholes right alongside asshole men.
From Slate ● Sep. 18, 2012
“I mean it’s not like in the movies where girls like assholes or anything like that. It’s not that easy. They just like somebody that can give them a purpose.”
From "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" by Stephen Chbosky
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
