nerd

[ nurd ]

noun

1. a single-minded person obsessed with a hobby or pursuit or with a particular topic:

   My 13-year-old son is a computer nerd.

   I joined a book club and discovered another Jane Austen nerd.

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

verb (used without object)

1. to spend inordinate amounts of time, attention, energy, enthusiasm, etc., on an activity or topic of special interest to oneself; geek:

   I enjoy samurai movies, nerding about samurai movies, and the occasional slice of cake.

   Don't cross the street while you're nerding on your phone—you're likely to get hit!

verb phrase

1. to engage with excessive enthusiasm in a hobby or in discussion about a topic of special interest to oneself:

   Back in the day, I nerded out hardcore over baseball cards.

   We sat there for half an hour while she nerded out on the metaphysical poets.

2. to alter or be altered in a way that shows excessive enthusiasm for a special interest:

   He appears in that film nerded up as a philosophy genius.

   I'm going to nerd up my office with these five Charlie Chaplin posters.

   Wow, this simple conversation about cheese sure nerded up fast!

nerd

/ nɜːd /

noun

1. a boring or unpopular person, esp one obsessed with something specified

   a computer nerd

2. a stupid and feeble person

Derived Forms

• ˈnerdy, adjective
• ˈnerdish, adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of nerd¹

An Americanism first recorded in 1950–55; obscurely derived expressive formation

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. nerd it up, to indulge oneself without restraint in a hobby, game, etc., in which one has an obsessive interest:

   Looking forward to nerding it up with everybody on Comic Trading Day at the store!

Example Sentences

I thought only Hollywood actors or meteorology nerds were allowed to chase tornadoes.

From Outside Online

This one’s a real language nerd book, and it’s going to be incredibly fun to talk about.

From Vox

As digital marketing nerds, we love data and analyzing trends.

From Search Engine Watch

There was an old nerd from the ’Tute Who outgrew his snazzy red suit.

From MIT Technology Review

This time, apparently with some time on his hands, he set about building a pretty great new website for local politics nerds.

From Voice of San Diego

Nerd Cruise By Adam Rogers, Wired What 800 Nerds on a Cruise Ship Taught Me About Life, the Universe, and Snorkeling.

From The Daily Beast

In one of the most distressing events of the year, nerd entitlement hit 100.

From The Daily Beast

Being mad about growing up an embittered, socially isolated nerd.

From The Daily Beast

And this big box that encloses him is only an exaggeration of his regular nerd-dandy clothes.

From The Daily Beast

For some nerd-industry journalists, this is more than they can bear.

From The Daily Beast

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

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• geek