What's a tosser and why do brits and griks always use the term and yanks don't?

[bosod...@gmail.com]

What's a tosser and why do they sprinkle it about on the show Doc Martin?

[Ross]

On Sunday, November 20, 2016 at 3:10:45 PM UTC+13, bosod...@gmail.com wrote:
> What's a tosser and why do they sprinkle it about on the show Doc Martin?

A wanker. You know -- somebody who sprinkles it about...

[Tony Cooper]

On Sat, 19 Nov 2016 20:26:04 -0800 (PST), Ross <benl...@ihug.co.nz>
wrote:

>On Sunday, November 20, 2016 at 3:10:45 PM UTC+13, bosod...@gmail.com wrote:
>> What's a tosser and why do they sprinkle it about on the show Doc Martin?
>
>A wanker. You know -- somebody who sprinkles it about...

It's a slang term for someone who masturbates a lot, but it's also a
term that means the person is obnoxious. We don't have an equivalent
AmE slang term combining the masturbation and obnoxious aspects.

In the US, we'd use "asshole" to describe the person, but "asshole"
doesn't have a less vulgar version unless someone skates by with
"a-hole".

A broadcast television program can contain "tosser", but not
"asshole". "Tosser" is enough of a euphemism to get by on broadcast
TV.

"Doc Martin" is carried here on PBS. "Tosser" is acceptable, but
"asshole" isn't on PBS. I haven't noticed if "wanker" has been used
on "Doc Martin". It would be acceptable on cable, but probably not on
PBS.


--
Tony Cooper - Orlando, Florida

[Reinhold {Rey} Aman]

T*ny C**per wrote:
>
> Ross wrote:
>>
[tosser]

>>
>> A wanker. You know -- somebody who sprinkles it about...
>>
> It's a slang term for someone who masturbates a lot, but it's also a
> term that means the person is obnoxious. We don't have an equivalent
> AmE slang term combining the masturbation and obnoxious aspects.
>

"Jerk-off" (noun) comes fairly close.

--
~~~ Reinhold {Rey} Aman ~~~

[Lewis]

In message <j5a23c5h243vfpre7...@4ax.com>

Is there a difference between wanker and tosser? They seem exactly
equivalent to me, but maybe wanker is a little more obnoxious and tosser
is a little more asshole-ish?


--
To read makes our speaking English good.

[Peter Moylan]

To me they are synonyms, and perhaps regional variants. In Australia
wanker is more common. I think of tosser as English and jerk as
American, but I could have those wrong.

--
Peter Moylan http://www.pmoylan.org
Newcastle, NSW, Australia

[Peter Duncanson [BrE]]

The OED defines this sense of tosser:

1.b. [Probably < sense to toss off 4 at Phrasal verbs of the verb.]
A term of contempt or abuse for a person; a ‘jerk’. Cf. bugger n.1
3a.slang.

1977 Zigzag Apr. 40/3 She came on in a big mac and flashed her
legs like an old tosser before throwing it off.
1983 P. Inchbald Short Break in Venice xviii. 172 It's a right
pig's job... Poor little tosser. As if he wasn't suffering enough
already.

and:
jerk, n.1

5. slang (orig. U.S.). Someone of little or no account; a fool, a
stupid person. Cf. jerkwater n. b.

1935 A. J. Pollock Underworld Speaks 63/2 Jerk, a boob; chump; a
sucker.
1938 New Republic 7 Sept. 129/1 A jerk not only bores you but
pats you on the shoulder as he does so.
1945 Daily Express 11 Sept. 2/4 See this lighter? A dying Jerry
gave it to me. I gave the jerk a smoke from my last cigarette.
1950 E. Hemingway Across River xxxiii. 208 The brown-nosers..and
all the jerks.
1956 L. McIntosh Oxf. Folly 85 Julian sounds a dismal little
jerk when you sum him up like that.
1958 Listener 15 May 802/1 If..the sponsors get eight letters
saying that their comedian is an idiot, or a foul-mouthed jerk,
they're terrified.

At least 3 of those "jerk" quotations are from BrE sources.

This dictionary of "English slang and colloquialisms used in the United
Kingdom" says:

http://www.peevish.co.uk/slang/t.htm

tosser Noun. An idiot, a contemptible person. Also,
occasionally spelt tossa.

http://www.peevish.co.uk/slang/j.htm

jerk Noun. Idiot. [Orig U.S.]


--
Peter Duncanson, UK
(in alt.usage.english)

[Janet]

In article <9d3c566c-f7af-46fa...@googlegroups.com>,
bosod...@gmail.com says...

>
> What's a tosser and why do they sprinkle it about on the show Doc Martin?

Br E slang equivalent of US jerk (noun).

Janet.

[CDB]

On 11/19/2016 9:10 PM, bosod...@gmail.com wrote:

> What's a tosser

Tossers are like bozos, but without the inflatable shoes.

> and why do they sprinkle it about on the show Doc Martin?

The Caligula connection? Their name is legion.

[CDB]

On 11/19/2016 11:26 PM, Ross wrote:
> bosod...@gmail.com wrote:

>> What's a tosser and why do they sprinkle it about on the show Doc
>> Martin?

> A wanker. You know -- somebody who sprinkles it about...

OTOH, some Quebec Englishpersons have borrowed the French "tasser"
(spoken with a long [A] in Canada), "to pack down, to compress", as
"toss". If you want a seat at a crowded table, you can ask someone to
"toss over".

[GordonD]

Though 'Wanker' was Peg Bundy's maiden name.
--
Gordon Davie
Edinburgh, Scotland

[Tony Cooper]

Agreed. The surest way to learn that some thing or word exists is to
state here that no such thing or word exists.

[Peter T. Daniels]

On Sunday, November 20, 2016 at 2:13:23 AM UTC-5, Peter Moylan wrote:

> To me they are synonyms, and perhaps regional variants. In Australia
> wanker is more common. I think of tosser as English and jerk as
> American, but I could have those wrong.

"Jerk" doesn't have the masturbation sense of "jerk(-)off." Cf. the
Steve Martin movie *The Jerk*, which conceivably might be rendered
in BrE as "the spaz[z]," mentioned in another thread but not
explicated there.

[occam]

Or just plain "jerk". "He's a jerk" is just as good as "He's a tosser ".
I've never heard it used to insult a female, despite the fact that the
act is as prevalent in females as it is in males.

[Tony Cooper]

I don't know how common it is, but "jag-off" is known to me.
Obviously, a variety of "jack-off".

[Robert Bannister]

But plain "jerk", which presumably originally meant the same thing, is
barely noticed if it's still used today.

--
Robert B. born England a long time ago;
Western Australia since 1972

[bill van]

In article <e9enu6...@mid.individual.net>,

Robert Bannister <rob...@clubtelco.com> wrote:

> On 20/11/16 1:15 pm, Reinhold {Rey} Aman wrote:
> > T*ny C**per wrote:
> >>
> >> Ross wrote:
> >>>
> > [tosser]
> >>>
> >>> A wanker. You know -- somebody who sprinkles it about...
> >>>
> >> It's a slang term for someone who masturbates a lot, but it's also a
> >> term that means the person is obnoxious. We don't have an equivalent
> >> AmE slang term combining the masturbation and obnoxious aspects.
> >>
> > "Jerk-off" (noun) comes fairly close.
>
> But plain "jerk", which presumably originally meant the same thing, is
> barely noticed if it's still used today.

In CanE, the masturbation connotation has worn off. "Jerk" is just a
mild term for "asshole". Calling somebody a jerk-off, however, brings it
back in line with tosser and wanker.
--
bill

[Lewis]

In message <billvan-8DE957...@88-209-239-213.giganet.hu>

That's the same in my AmE.

--
One of the most basic rules of survival on any planet is never to upset
someone wearing black leather. --The Last Continent

[Steve Hayes]

If by griks you mean Greeks, then the term is "malaka".





--
Steve Hayes http://khanya.wordpress.com

[Steve Hayes]

On Sun, 20 Nov 2016 00:00:02 -0500, Tony Cooper wrote:

> On Sat, 19 Nov 2016 20:26:04 -0800 (PST), Ross <benl...@ihug.co.nz>
> wrote:
>
>>On Sunday, November 20, 2016 at 3:10:45 PM UTC+13, bosod...@gmail.com
>>wrote:
>>> What's a tosser and why do they sprinkle it about on the show Doc
>>> Martin?
>>
>>A wanker. You know -- somebody who sprinkles it about...
>
> It's a slang term for someone who masturbates a lot, but it's also a
> term that means the person is obnoxious. We don't have an equivalent
> AmE slang term combining the masturbation and obnoxious aspects.

What about "jerk"?

[danei...@gmail.com]

First of all, I plead guilty to first degree necroposting.

I've heard several British colloquialisms on American broadcast television, such as "Wanker" and "Tosser". Fortunately, American censors don't know most non-American slang, so network television has even got away with "Plonker", which can be pretty nasty depending on how it's used.

[Madrigal Gurneyhalt]

Take it from a Brit; plonker is by far the least offensive of the three terms
you've chosen!

[soup]

On 18/09/2018 21:55, danei...@gmail.com wrote:

> I've heard several British colloquialisms on American broadcast television,
> such as "Wanker" and "Tosser". Fortunately, American censors don't know most

> non-American slang, so network television has even got away with
"Plonker",

> which can be pretty nasty depending on how it's used.

The term "plonker" is pretty much a 'joke' swearword it is VERY mild.
C.F. David Jason in 'only fools and horses' where he calls his brother
indeed anyone it all the time
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahcuPHVz6aM

[Peter Duncanson [BrE]]

The terms "wanker" and "tosser" derive from masturbation but now have
meanings of their own.

OED:
wanker, n.

2. An objectionable or contemptible person. Cf. wank n. 2.

1972...
1978 K. Amis Jake's Thing xii. 123 ‘Damon, what's a wanker?’..
‘These days a waster, a shirker, someone who's fixed himself a
soft job or an exalted position by means of an undeserved
reputation on which he now coasts.’ ‘Oh. Nothing to do with
tossing off then?’ ‘Well, connected with it, yes, but more
metaphorical than literal.’
1981 P. Niesewand Word of Gentleman xxxii. 222 They're such a
bunch of wankers... You can't trust them to do anything properly.

tosser,n.

1.b. [Probably < sense to toss off 4 at Phrasal verbs of the verb.]
A term of contempt or abuse for a person; a ‘jerk’.

[occam]

Peter, any idea what a 'grik' is (in the subject field)?

[danei...@gmail.com]

I think I may have confused "Plonker" with "Plunker". I heard Tim Roth use the term a few times, but must have misheard it and looked up the meaning for the wrong word.

[Peter T. Daniels]

On Wednesday, September 19, 2018 at 6:00:54 AM UTC-4, occam wrote:

> Peter, any idea what a 'grik' is (in the subject field)?

Greeks, obviously.

[occam]

Obviously? Neither 'tosser' nor 'wanker' are Greek words. And in the UK,
the Greeks are referred to as 'bubbles' (Bubble and Squeak, ...) not
griks. Unless the effing tosser who wrote the original post was an
ignorant yank, in which case all is clear.

[Peter T. Daniels]

Have you actually never seen a message from Bozo before?

[Tony Cooper]

Not to me. It is "girls" in this case. The poster has obviously been
watching "Doc Martin". It's a recurring scene in Doc Martin that a
group of local girls walk past Doc Martin and say "Tosser".

[Peter Duncanson [BrE]]

I've not met "grik" before. The only online definition that might fit is
in the Urban Dictionary:
https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Grik

Grik
A lazy layabout who has no job, car and lives at his parents house.

When asked about job prospectives, a grik will claim that
"scheduling problems" prevent them from having availablity of a real
job. Also a grik claims that working fast food or anyjob with
flexible availability is "beneath them."
"Dude you lazy grik! Get out of bed its 5 o'clock at night! And
what did your mom make for dinner?"

That appears to be an American definition.

[Peter Moylan]

On 19/09/18 06:55, danei...@gmail.com wrote:
> On Saturday, November 19, 2016 at 9:00:05 PM UTC-8, Tony Cooper wrote:
>> On Sat, 19 Nov 2016 20:26:04 -0800 (PST), Ross <benl...@ihug.co.nz>
>> wrote:
>>
>>> On Sunday, November 20, 2016 at 3:10:45 PM UTC+13, bosod...@gmail.com wrote:
>>>> What's a tosser and why do they sprinkle it about on the show Doc Martin?
>>>
>>> A wanker. You know -- somebody who sprinkles it about...
>>
>> It's a slang term for someone who masturbates a lot, but it's also a
>> term that means the person is obnoxious. We don't have an equivalent
>> AmE slang term combining the masturbation and obnoxious aspects.

It's always difficult to contribute to a zombie thread without knowing
what has already been written. (Yes, I know it's available on Google
Gropes, but it's a lot of work looking that up.) I know, though, that UK
"tosser" is much the same as AusE "wanker".

This is a difficult word to explain because of the multiple levels of
meaning. Yes, "wanker" means "masturbator", but it means so much more.

In the Public Service, it means someone who is so focused on his dick
that he never gets around to doing his real job. It has connotations of
not just sexuality, but of laziness and self-indulgence.

In politics, it means ... well, again, someone with a cock focus, but
someone who will support someone with a sufficiently short skirt.

--
Peter Moylan http://www.pmoylan.org
Newcastle, NSW, Australia

[Madhu]

* "Peter Duncanson [BrE]" <8l64qdhfd7c7rpdh2...@4ax.com> :
Wrote on Wed, 19 Sep 2018 10:51:54 +0100:

> On Tue, 18 Sep 2018 13:55:02 -0700 (PDT), danei...@gmail.com wrote:
>>On Saturday, November 19, 2016 at 9:00:05 PM UTC-8, Tony Cooper wrote:
>>> On Sat, 19 Nov 2016 20:26:04 -0800 (PST), Ross <benl...@ihug.co.nz>
>>> wrote:
>>> >On Sunday, November 20, 2016 at 3:10:45 PM UTC+13, bosod...@gmail.com wrote:
>>> >> What's a tosser and why do they sprinkle it about on the show Doc
>>> >> Martin?
>>> >A wanker. You know -- somebody who sprinkles it about...
>>> It's a slang term for someone who masturbates a lot, but it's also a
>>> term that means the person is obnoxious. We don't have an equivalent
>>> AmE slang term combining the masturbation and obnoxious aspects.

[snip]

>>I've heard several British colloquialisms on American broadcast
>> television, such as "Wanker" and "Tosser". Fortunately, American
>> censors don't know most non-American slang, so network television
>> has even got away with "Plonker", which can be pretty nasty
>> depending on how it's used.
[]
> The terms "wanker" and "tosser" derive from masturbation but now have
> meanings of their own.

[]

> tosser,n.
>
> 1.b. [Probably < sense to toss off 4 at Phrasal verbs of the verb.]
> A term of contempt or abuse for a person; a ‘jerk’.

[I didn't know that. I had assumed it was a homosexual reference
because of another phrase - "tossed salad" which seemed to come up in
those contexts.
]

[Peter Duncanson [BrE]]

"Tossed salad" has a food meaning which I assume was the original:
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/tossed_salad

1. A salad made by tossing greens in a dressing, often including
other vegetables like tomato and cucumber.
2. (slang, vulgar) An act of anilingus.

[Tony Cooper]

Oh, thanks a lot. Now I will never feel comfortable ordering a side
salad in a restaurant where the waiter is a bit iffy looking.

[Peter Young]

Particularly if the stories you hear are true about what disgruntled chefs
do to the food of people who they dislike. The late husband of my
sister-in-law (she of the "should of") was a chef, and his advice was
never send back a meal. Its replacement may well have had some tossing
done to it.

Peter.

--
Peter Young, (BrE, RP), Consultant Anaesthetist, 1975-2004.
(US equivalent: Certified Anesthesiologist) (AUE Au)
Cheltenham and Gloucester, UK. Now happily retired.
http://pnyoung.orpheusweb.co.uk

[hros...@gmail.com]

On Saturday, November 19, 2016 at 6:10:45 PM UTC-8, bosod...@gmail.com wrote:
> What's a tosser and why do they sprinkle it about on the show Doc Martin?

I've always wondered about it. In Denmark where I'm from it straightforwardly means Idiot(Tosse singular) or Idiots(Tosser plural) If it emerged in the English language around the 70-80's I'm wondering if it was borrowed from Danish. It's like in Denmark the word F**k has been incorporated in the danish language for the last 45-50 years but was never a word back then. Just a thought.

[bebe...@aol.com]

Le vendredi 6 mars 2020 19:50:44 UTC+1, hros...@gmail.com a écrit :
> On Saturday, November 19, 2016 at 6:10:45 PM UTC-8, bosod...@gmail.com wrote:
> > What's a tosser and why do they sprinkle it about on the show Doc Martin?
>
> I've always wondered about it. In Denmark where I'm from it
> straightforwardly means Idiot(Tosse singular) or Idiots(Tosser plural)
> If it emerged in the English language around the 70-80's I'm wondering if
> it was borrowed from Danish.

That seems highly improbable, as English "tosser" is obviously an instance
of the agentive suffix -er being added to the verb "toss (off)"
(= "masturbate" in BrE).

[Sam Plusnet]

On 06-Mar-20 20:28, bebe...@aol.com wrote:
> Le vendredi 6 mars 2020 19:50:44 UTC+1, hros...@gmail.com a écrit :
>> On Saturday, November 19, 2016 at 6:10:45 PM UTC-8, bosod...@gmail.com wrote:
>>> What's a tosser and why do they sprinkle it about on the show Doc Martin?
>>
>> I've always wondered about it. In Denmark where I'm from it
>> straightforwardly means Idiot(Tosse singular) or Idiots(Tosser plural)
>> If it emerged in the English language around the 70-80's I'm wondering if
>> it was borrowed from Danish.
>
> That seems highly improbable, as English "tosser" is obviously an instance
> of the agentive suffix -er being added to the verb "toss (off)"
> (= "masturbate" in BrE).
>

An earlier insult was to call someone a "tosspot".
{a habitual drinker (also used as a general term of abuse)}

Tosser may be just a simplification of tosspot.

--
Sam Plusnet

[Lewis]

In BrE is means someone who masturbates, but is used to describe a
worthless idiot or person not worth the effort. It might stand in for
idiot, jackass, asshole, cunt, or other derogatory words, but it is also
dismissive. I seriously doubt it was borrowed from Dutch.

I don't know that it is ever used jokingly among friends, but might be
used in the sense of "don't be a tosser" when someone is doing something
where an American might say "Don't be a jerk/asshole" to a friend who's
stepping over the line.

But my exposure to it is a few British friends and a pissload of British
TV, which is really not the same as if I lived there.

--
"Are you pondering what I'm pondering?"
"I think so, Brain, but do those roost in this neighborhood?"

[Lewis]

The use of tosspot has changed little over the last 200 years according
to the google ngram, while tosser had a small peak in the 50s followed
by a drop and then a rapid rise in the 90s.

<https://bit.ly/2IsFQeM>

--
Didn't pay my exorcism bill, got repossessed.

[Peter Moylan]

AusE uses "wanker" in pretty much the same situations as where BrE uses
"tosser". Wanker is of course unrelated to tosspot.

[Tony Cooper]

There's not really an AmE slang (single) word that has the same
meaning as wanker or tosser. That omission from our vocabulary is
surprising.

[Peter T. Daniels]

"jagoff"

[Jerry Friedman]

On 3/15/20 10:57 PM, Tony Cooper wrote:
> On Mon, 16 Mar 2020 12:56:16 +1100, Peter Moylan
> <pe...@pmoylan.org.invalid> wrote:
>
>> On 07/03/20 12:19, Sam Plusnet wrote:
>>> On 06-Mar-20 20:28, bebe...@aol.com wrote:

[Danish?]

>>>> That seems highly improbable, as English "tosser" is obviously an
>>>> instance of the agentive suffix -er being added to the verb "toss
>>>> (off)" (= "masturbate" in BrE).
>>>>
>>> An earlier insult was to call someone a "tosspot". {a habitual
>>> drinker (also used as a general term of abuse)}
>>>
>>> Tosser may be just a simplification of tosspot.
>>
>> AusE uses "wanker" in pretty much the same situations as where BrE uses
>> "tosser". Wanker is of course unrelated to tosspot.
>
> There's not really an AmE slang (single) word that has the same
> meaning as wanker or tosser. That omission from our vocabulary is
> surprising.

"Jerk"?

--
Jerry Friedman

[Athel Cornish-Bowden]

Maybe well brought-up American boys don't do it, so no word is needed.


--
athel

[John Varela]

I'm not so sure about that. Have you ever tried telling a
14-year-old boy that doing that will make hair grow on his palm?

--
John Varela

[Lewis]

I think BrE speakers (at leas the few I know) use wanker as a near
perfect substitute for tosser, but tosser is meaner.


--
SUSURRATION: It's a hushed noise. But it hints of plots and secrets
and people turning to one another in surprise. It's the noise, in
fact, made just after the sword is withdrawn from the stone and
just before the cheering starts.

[Lewis]

Dipshit is pretty close.


--
Women and cats will do as they please, and men and dogs should relax
an get used to the idea.

[Peter Young]

And go blind.

Peter.

--
Peter Young, (BrE, RP), Consultant Anaesthetist, 1975-2004.

(US equivalent: Certified Anesthesiologist) (AUE Hg)

[bil...@shaw.ca]

"Wanker" is occasionally heard here in Canada. I don't think I've
ever heard "tosser", however. "Jerk" seems to be free of that
connotation, but "jerk-off" isn't.

bill

[Peter Moylan]

On 17/03/20 03:33, Peter Young wrote:
> On 16 Mar 2020 "John Varela" <jv919a...@gmail.com> wrote:
>> On Mon, 16 Mar 2020 14:19:14 UTC, Athel Cornish-Bowden
>> <acor...@imm.cnrs.fr> wrote:
>>> On 2020-03-16 04:57:54 +0000, Tony Cooper said:

>>>> There's not really an AmE slang (single) word that has the
>>>> same meaning as wanker or tosser. That omission from our
>>>> vocabulary is surprising.
>>>
>>> Maybe well brought-up American boys don't do it, so no word is
>>> needed.
>
>> I'm not so sure about that. Have you ever tried telling a
>> 14-year-old boy that doing that will make hair grow on his palm?
>
> And go blind.

There used to be an Australian comedian who did very good impersonations
of several prominent people. In his "Pope" persona, he would say "Stop
it, or you will go blind" ... and then trip over the microphone stand.

[John Varela]

On Mon, 16 Mar 2020 16:33:28 UTC, Peter Young <pny...@ormail.co.uk>
wrote:

The point of telling a boy that hair will grow in their palm is that
(usually) the kid will immediately look at his palm.

Similar is telling some children in a swimming pool that a chemical
has been added to the water so that if anyone pees in the pool, it
will stain eir bathing suit green (or purple or whatever color is
not represented in the group). They will all look down to see if
that's true.

--
John Varela

[John Varela]

My sons called one another jerk-offs, but I had never heard that
when I was a lad. When they used that they were too young to have
actually experienced it so I figured they had learned it from other
boys and didn't know what it meant.

WIWAL I certainly knew "jerk", but I have never known its origin.
There were "soda jerks" but that wasn't an insult.

--
John Varela

[Mack A. Damia]

On 17 Mar 2020 21:41:27 GMT, "John Varela" <jv919a...@gmail.com>

Exactly the reason I avoid swimming pools.

[Madhu]

* "John Varela" <51W5y0sPNk52-pn2-c5DuZqqR7q9e@localhost> :
Wrote on 17 Mar 2020 21:48:44 GMT:

> On Mon, 16 Mar 2020 19:47:21 UTC, bil...@shaw.ca wrote:
>> On Monday, March 16, 2020 at 4:47:38 AM UTC-7, Peter T. Daniels wrote:
>> > On Monday, March 16, 2020 at 12:57:58 AM UTC-4, Tony Cooper wrote:
>> > > meaning as wanker or tosser. That omission from our vocabulary is
>> > > surprising.
>> >
>> > "jagoff"

(maybe in Pittsburgh)

>> "Wanker" is occasionally heard here in Canada. I don't think I've
>> ever heard "tosser", however. "Jerk" seems to be free of that
>> connotation, but "jerk-off" isn't.
>
> My sons called one another jerk-offs, but I had never heard that when
> I was a lad. When they used that they were too young to have actually
> experienced it so I figured they had learned it from other boys and
> didn't know what it meant.
>
> WIWAL I certainly knew "jerk", but I have never known its origin.
> There were "soda jerks" but that wasn't an insult.

"You don't know jack!"

my impression from ame was that jack was widely used to refer to
masturbation (but i may be wrong. i associated "jack shit" with that
sense but the meaning is "nothing")

[RH Draney]

On 3/17/2020 2:48 PM, John Varela wrote:
>
> My sons called one another jerk-offs, but I had never heard that
> when I was a lad. When they used that they were too young to have
> actually experienced it so I figured they had learned it from other
> boys and didn't know what it meant.
>
> WIWAL I certainly knew "jerk", but I have never known its origin.
> There were "soda jerks" but that wasn't an insult.

In season three of "Xena: Warrior Princess", there's an episode in which
the goddess Aphrodite enchants a scroll, causing anything written on it
to come true...Joxer asks how he got into the ongoing adventure, and
reads what Gabrielle has written:

"Xena had gone fishing. The lone warrior, Gabrielle, awoke with a jerk
as five barbarians rode out of the woods. Twirling her trusty staff she
delivered kicks of such fury."

That explains Joxer's presence: "Gabrielle awoke with a jerk"....r

[bil...@shaw.ca]

"Jack" has different meanings in different contexts, dozens of them.

"Jack off" is definitely and exclusively about masturbation. "Jack-shit" means
"nothing", of course. There are dozens of other uses of "jack". The target
ball in lawn-bowling is a jack. The playing card between a 10 and
a queen is the jack. In Alberta a few decades ago, a member of the
Church of Latter Day Saints who broke with the church was "jack Mormon".
And so on.

The masturbation meaning of "jack" is a very small percentage of the
uses of "jack" I have seen or heard in the last 60 years or so.

bill

[John Varela]

There are also jackasses, jackrabbits and jackelopes.

--
John Varela

[RH Draney]

And for the non-binary, jackfruit....r

[bil...@shaw.ca]

We have plenty of jackalopes (slightly different spelling) here in
Western Canada. Nearly every highway-side bar and restaurant has one
mounted on the wall. I think they're probably not good with traffic.

bill

[Peter Moylan]

You have reminded me of the joke where the boss says to Jill "I'll have
to lay you or Jack off".

[Bob Martin]

Jackhammer, car jack.

[Janet]

In article <51W5y0sPNk52-pn2-HC0XMgdXXdst@localhost>,
jv919a...@gmail.com says...

I'm not anti-jackelopes

Janet

[Jerry Friedman]

Which is better the one from my youth that referred to a movie of the
time, but I'll share it with you anyway.

If you saw Billy Jack riding an elephant and he couldn't dismount, would
you help Billy Jack off the elephant?

--
Jerry Friedman

--
Jerry Friedman

[Jerry Friedman]

On 3/17/20 11:36 PM, Madhu wrote:
> * "John Varela" <51W5y0sPNk52-pn2-c5DuZqqR7q9e@localhost> :
> Wrote on 17 Mar 2020 21:48:44 GMT:
>> On Mon, 16 Mar 2020 19:47:21 UTC, bil...@shaw.ca wrote:
>>> On Monday, March 16, 2020 at 4:47:38 AM UTC-7, Peter T. Daniels wrote:
>>>> On Monday, March 16, 2020 at 12:57:58 AM UTC-4, Tony Cooper wrote:
>>>>> meaning as wanker or tosser. That omission from our vocabulary is
>>>>> surprising.
>>>>
>>>> "jagoff"
>
> (maybe in Pittsburgh)

...
Pittsburgh?

I particularly associate "jagoff" with the fellow campers at a summer
camp I went to, who were mostly from the Cleveland, Detroit, and Chicago
areas.

--
Jerry Friedman