Comments on: Doofus vs. idiot

By: Connie

Connie — Sat, 08 Sep 2007 12:56:36 +0000

Doofus - when my husband does something that only slightly irritates me and is somewhat funny. Idiot - My husband's behavior most of the time

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By: porsche

porsche — Sat, 25 Aug 2007 15:44:09 +0000

While there may be some overlap, doofus usually describes someone socially inept, while, a true idiot, non-metaphorically, is profoundly mentally retarded.

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By: Vince Brewster

Vince Brewster — Sat, 25 Aug 2007 13:13:51 +0000

This could help provide some clarification of the distinction between a doofus and an idiot: While some doofuses (doofi?) may have posted comments to this post, no idiots have. Not until now, anyway.

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By: too late

too late — Thu, 25 Aug 2005 11:04:39 +0000

in german: doof = stupidly

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By: Jerry

Jerry — Thu, 29 Apr 2004 08:45:34 +0000

Yes idiot, you are defective.

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By: idiot

idiot — Thu, 29 Apr 2004 08:44:24 +0000

hey! i'm an idiot, are you saying i'm defective?

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By: M Stevenson

M Stevenson — Sun, 11 Apr 2004 02:45:44 +0000

'a doofus is always male, white, fat, AND stupid' ROFL. And quite true. Perhaps because fat stupid white men have always pushed themselves to the fore :)

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By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 25 Nov 2003 13:49:42 +0000

I wouldn't have associated "fat" with doofusness. Male...well, most pejoratives describe males. If you asked a herd of students/subjects to draw "an idiot" and "a fool" and "an asshole" they probably draw men. Additionally, I cannot think of a charming way to call someone an idiot (except, perhaps, by aping Dexter of the Laboratory) while one can playfully call someone "a doof" or "you doofus."

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By: Sarah

Sarah — Sun, 23 Nov 2003 03:37:58 +0000

I've always pegged a doofus to be more of a playful term yet still one that implies a condition that one chooses-- not necessarily a description of their primal existence. More simply, one can be a doofus because they're choosing to act that way. A doofus is still a good person who just did something in lapse of normality. In contrast, an idiot may have had a choice at some point along the line, but their behaviors (or may refer to speech) give them little room to be something otherwise. Unless phrased as "I/you/he/she/we/they was/were being (an) idiot(s)" that restricts the offensive to a temporary condition, similar yet slightly more severe than that of a "doofus", an "idiot" is not something your husband should want to be. Everyone, however, should maintain a balance of their "doofus" moments.

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By: nando

nando — Fri, 21 Nov 2003 20:46:06 +0000

until recently, *DOOFUS* was not a word in the english language, while *IDIOT* can trace its roots pretty far back. so doofus is: An incompetent, foolish, or stupid person. while idiot means something similar, depending upon context: 1. A foolish or stupid person. 2. A person of profound mental retardation having a mental age below three years and generally being unable to learn connected speech or guard against common dangers. The term belongs to a classification system no longer in use and is now considered offensive. as a localism / colloquially? doofus and idiot are used interchangeably, not just for fat stupid white people, but also for fat stupid chinks, japs, kykes, and wetbacks.

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