This week’s theme
Words for people

This week’s words
quidam
rudesby
galoot

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A.Word.A.Day

PRONUNCIATION:

(guh-LOOT)

MEANING:

noun: A clumsy, eccentric, or foolish person.

ETYMOLOGY:

Of unknown origin. Earliest documented use: 1808.

NOTES:

The term is often used affectionately. Unlike the rudesby (who is intentionally rude), the galoot is physically or socially awkward. It’s often used as a term of exasperated affection: “Aw, you big galoot!” It’s the sort who knocks over a vase, apologizes to the vase, then trips on the apology. See also, schlemiel.

USAGE:

“Sometimes lumbering though always well-intentioned, [the film Day of the Fight is] an ode to tales of lovable, scrappy galoots who keep a glint in their pummeled eyes.”
Robert Abele; Movie Review; Los Angeles Times; Dec 12, 2024.

See more usage examples of galoot in Vocabulary.com’s dictionary.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY: