preggers

[Victor Steinbok]

As you might have noticed, I often try to see how things extend (not
always very well, but I try). In this case, one thing that bothered me
was "nutters". There is a perfectly ordinary use of "nutters"--as in
"nut gatherers" (animal). But, of course, this is not what I was
thinking of.

There are quite a few attestations for "gone nutters"--at least, that
was the search string I used. There both US and UK hits. I've seen
"nutter" also used as a noun with the same sense (same as "wingnut",
actually), but, of course, it might be a bit harder to find with all the
"legitimate" uses of "nutter". OK, I take it back--see the second batch
below (I simply looked for "right-wing-nutters")--it just goes so well
with wingers, birthers, truthers, etc. I did not look too closely, but
the first category seems to have more UK, the second--more US, but both
are represented in each.

Adj:

> > My 401(c)Wife Patty is "exhausted, frightened, and in despair." He
tells us, "I had morphed from a gentle and adoring rescuer to a
short-tempered, self-adsorbed, hypercritical prick." And his take on
her: "I've married a lunatic ... She's gone nutters." is a shambles.
I've gone nutters too.
> > As of this writing, Citibank is 3, GE 14, AIG --- after a
reverse-split (20:1!) --- hovers around 12.
http://www.ralphmag.org/FR/busted.html

> > You heard it, Japan gone nutters and transplanted her heart, this
time, a German heart.
http://www.enginelounge.com/2009/07/30/mitsubishi-with-a-bmw-engine/

> > Have you gone nutters you bloody bloke?
It is no wonder the girls don't like you, you don't sound intelligent,
Desperado.
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20090724230638AAxGPr3&cp=2

N:

> >Right-wing nutters and their obsession with birth certificates
http://frankowenspaintbrush.wordpress.com/2009/07/29/right-wing-nutters-and-their-obsession-with-birth-certificates/

> > Sam Brownback is a walking right-wing nutter stereotype, so I’m glad
he’s making his positions known loudly, early on.
http://simplyliberal.blogspot.com/2006/12/day-in-life-right-wing-nutter.html

> > No mileage in painting SNP as Right-wing nutters
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/columnists/alancochrane/3556766/No-mileage-in-painting-SNP-as-Right-wing-nutters.html

Of course, following the Wiki entry, the former (Adj) would be an
allowable Oxonian -er (like bonkers or crackers), while the latter (N)
would not (like kidder or porker, although, as far as I know, there is
no verb "to nut", except as a pun when dealing with nut-growers or
squirrels). Still, there is this nagging feeling that "nutter" is not
quite the same if it's formed from "nut", unless, of course, it's
"nuts". That, sort of, explains the difference between the two
cases--Adj nutters is derived from nuts, N nutter(s) is derived from nut
(which may well have been backward derived from nuts, as in "gone nuts",
but that's not a part of this story). Or will someone find an instance
of "nutters" in 1748 and ruin my fun?

VS-)



Arnold Zwicky wrote:
> On Aug 11, 2009, at 9:12 AM, Larry Horn wrote:
>
>
>> At 10:55 AM -0400 8/11/09, Ben Zimmer cited:
>>
>>> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxford_%22-er%22
>>>
>>>
>> But these Oxonian -ers, like the names mentioned by others
>> (Craiggers, Meggers, Douggers)*, are nouns.
>>
>>  The real contenders have
>> to work as adjectives, the way "preggers" and "bonkers" do.
>>
>
> the wikipedia entry mentions some adjectives: the well-established
> preggers, bonkers, crackers, and starkers 'stark naked' (which i
> should have recalled), plus the rarer skinters 'low on funds' and
> butters 'ugly'.
>
>>   I think
>> these might work (all googled examples, but not in profusion): ...
>>
> nice finds.
>
> arnold

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