"dickhead" in the news

[Laurence Horn]

On Jun 15, 2014, at 7:36 PM, Jonathan Lighter wrote:

>> ..."prick" is vulgar whereas "dick" and "dickhead" are colloquial and not
> to be used in polite company but are no longer vulgar.
>
> A distinction without a difference? Or is "prick" just more vulgar? If so,
> why?
>
>
> JL

We've never had a presidency of Tricky Prick (yet).

LH
>
>
> On Sun, Jun 15, 2014 at 6:57 PM, Benjamin Barrett <gogaku at ix.netcom.com>
> wrote:
>
>> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
>> -----------------------
>> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>> Poster:       Benjamin Barrett <gogaku at IX.NETCOM.COM>
>> Subject:      Re: "dickhead" in the news
>>
>> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>> I would say that "prick" is vulgar whereas "dick" and "dickhead" are
>> colloquial and not to be used in polite company but are no longer vulgar.
>>
>> Both Wiktionary and the Mac American English dictionaries, however,
>> classify dick and dickhead as vulgar slang.
>>
>> As to the meanings, the Mac dictionary gives dick as short for dickhead.
>>
>> Wiktionary has:
>>
>> dickhead: A jerk; a mean or rude person.
>> dick: A highly contemptible person.
>>
>> A very good friend of mine, however, takes pride in the fact that he's a
>> dick, by which he means he messes with people. I would say Wiktionary's
>> dickhead definition is closer to that meaning.
>>
>> As to dorkiness, Wiktionary also has this:
>>
>> dickhead: A stupid or useless person.
>> Example sentence: 2 + 2 is 4, dickhead.
>>
>> The dorky meaning works better for me when dickhead is in the vocative
>> case.
>>
>> Benjamin Barrett
>> Formerly of Seattle, WA
>>
>> Learn Ainu! https://sites.google.com/site/aynuitak1/videos
>>
>> On Jun 15, 2014, at 3:37 PM, Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at GMAIL.COM>
>> wrote:
>>
>>> The usual distinction is that a "dick" is often a dork, but a "prick" is
>>> always dispicable.
>>>
>>> A "dickhead," however, is generally an idiot.
>>>
>>> JL
>>>
>>>
>>> On Sun, Jun 15, 2014 at 4:59 PM, Ben Zimmer <bgzimmer at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>
>>>> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
>>>> -----------------------
>>>> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>>>> Poster:       Ben Zimmer <bgzimmer at GMAIL.COM>
>>>> Subject:      Re: "dickhead" in the news
>>>>
>>>>
>> -------------------------------------------------------------------------=
>>> ------
>>>>
>>>> On Sun, Jun 15, 2014 at 4:40 PM, Wilson Gray wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>> On Sun, Jun 15, 2014 at 3:54 PM, Laurence Horn wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> how can we tell it was 'dickhead' and not 'asshole'?
>>>>>
>>>>> How can we tell that it was "dickhead" and not "dick"? Does "dickhead"
>>>>> provide the words or the music or both?
>>>>>
>>>>> _Khui_ is the word for "dick" in the relevant sense. But my very
>> limite=
>>> d
>>>>> experience is that Russiam GI-equivalents say things like "ia ne khuia
>> =
>>> ne
>>>>> slyshu" =3D "I don't hear dick," "khui tebe v zhopu!" =3D "a dick for
>> t=
>>> hee
>>>> into
>>>>> thine arse!" (=3D "fuck you!"?) and others equally irrelevant.
>>>>
>>>> Looks like it's =D1=85=D1=83=D0=B9=D0=BB=D0=BE (khuilo/huylo). So just
>> "d=
>>> ick," I guess.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>> http://www.buzzfeed.com/maxseddon/top-ukrainian-diplomat-calls-putin-a-di=
>>> ckhead
>>>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Putin_huylo!
>>>> https://ru.wiktionary.org/wiki/%D1%85%D1%83%D0%B9%D0%BB%D0%BE
>>>>
>>>> --bgz
>>>>
>>
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>>
>
>
>
> --
> "If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the truth."
>
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