Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun A person regarded as mean or disagreeable.
- interjection Used to express annoyance, disgust, disappointment, or amazement.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun pejorative, slang An
objectionable person . - noun pejorative, slang Any objectionable
thing .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun insulting terms of address for people who are stupid or irritating or ridiculous
Etymologies
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Examples
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john commented on the word son of a bitch
An early use is attributed to John Shirley:
"There stands Jack Ketch, that Son of a Bitch" (The Triumph of Wit, 1707, as quoted in TLS)
October 10, 2007
chained_bear commented on the word son of a bitch
Wasn't Jack Ketch a famous executioner in London? I think I remember that name from reading Neal Stephenson's novels...
October 10, 2007
sionnach commented on the word son of a bitch
chained_bear: There is even a word - ketchcraft
October 10, 2007
reesetee commented on the word son of a bitch
Now there's an occupation.
October 10, 2007
chained_bear commented on the word son of a bitch
Sionnach! You rock!
I'm *so glad* that wasn't just some bizarre insanity that sprang fully formed from my overworked brain...
October 10, 2007
reesetee commented on the word son of a bitch
Oh, but those are the best kinds of insanity!
October 10, 2007
chained_bear commented on the word son of a bitch
Look, I love arcane knowledge as much as the next wordie, but some facts, and some days, just make me think, "Why the f$%# do I have room for *that* in my brain, and I can't remember whether I have a dentist appointment today?!" Knowing that Jack Ketch was a famous/infamous eighteenth-century London executioner is just one of those facts. Son of a bitch!
Also, on a lighter note, whenever I see/hear this phrase now, I think of it with exactly the same inflection that Lewis Black uses.
October 10, 2007
reesetee commented on the word son of a bitch
I suspect that many, many Wordies have the same brain space allotment problem.
October 10, 2007
bilby commented on the word son of a bitch
Show me your teeth!
November 18, 2008
yarb commented on the word son of a bitch
"Her husband undertook his godson's defence, representing with great warmth that he knew Keypstick to be a good-for-nothing pimping old rascal, and that Perry showed a great deal of spirit and good sense in desiring to be taken from under his command; he therefore declared that the boy should not live a week longer with such a shambling son of a b--, and sanctioned this declaration with abundance of oaths."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle, 1751
January 14, 2022