nerd

[nurd]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR nerd ON THESAURUS.COM

noun Slang.

a person considered to be socially awkward, boring, unstylish, etc.

an intelligent but single-minded person obsessed with a nonsocial hobby or pursuit: a computer nerd.

Sometimes nurd.

Origin of nerd

An Americanism dating back to 1950–55; obscurely derived expressive formation

Word story

See geek.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for nerd

fool, weirdo, jerk, techie, oaf, dolt, goober, dweeb, goofball, dork, trekkie

Examples from the Web for nerd

Contemporary Examples of nerd

Nerd Cruise By Adam Rogers, Wired What 800 Nerds on a Cruise Ship Taught Me About Life, the Universe, and Snorkeling.
The Daily Beast’s Best Longreads, Dec 22-28, 2014
William Boot
December 28, 2014
In one of the most distressing events of the year, nerd entitlement hit 100.
10 Things That Made Us Want to Turn Off the Internet Forever in 2014
The Daily Beast
December 15, 2014
She was one of the only female characters I could think of that was different and weird without being the nerd.
'Boy Meets World' Star Danielle Fishel Is OK with Being Topanga Forever
Kevin Fallon
September 11, 2014
Like so many others in the nerd world, I fell in love with Cards Against Humanity through its Kickstarter preview in 2011.
The Case Against Cards Against Humanity: Is Max Temkin a Horrible Person? (Does It Matter?)
Arthur Chu
July 29, 2014
One of the hottest tickets at the 2014 edition of Comic-Con, the annual nerd mecca in San Diego, was the Marvel presentation.
‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’ Unmasked: Robert Downey Jr. and Co. Speak at Comic-Con
Annaliza Savage
July 27, 2014

Historical Examples of nerd

She was gaunt and tall and geeky and talked like an engineer, with the nerd accent.
Makers
Cory Doctorow

British Dictionary definitions for nerd

nerd

nurd

noun slang

a boring or unpopular person, esp one obsessed with something specifieda computer nerd

a stupid and feeble person

Derived Formsnerdish or nurdish, adjectivenerdy or nurdy, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for nerd

1951, U.S. student slang, probably an alteration of 1940s slang nert "stupid or crazy person," itself an alteration of nut. The word turns up in a Dr. Seuss book from 1950 ("If I Ran the Zoo"), which may have contributed to its rise.