Tude

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An informal shortened form of attitude, often used for a bold, defiant, or sassy manner of behaving
2. Slang for attitude, especially a confident, cheeky, or rebellious way of carrying oneself toward others
3. A casual clipping of attitude, typically describing a sassy, self-assured, or defiant personal demeanor

Etymology: "Tude" is an apheretic form of "attitude," meaning the word has lost its opening syllable, "at-," through clipping. Apheresis, the dropping of an unstressed first sound or syllable, is common in informal speech, where familiar words get trimmed for speed and swagger. The same process gives us "phone" from "telephone" and "fridge" from "refrigerator," though those are shortened by different means. The longer word "attitude" came into English through French and Italian from Latin "aptus," meaning "fitted" or "suitable," and it originally described the posture or position of a body, especially in art and painting. The sense of a mental stance or disposition developed from that physical meaning. "Tude" keeps the core of that word and drops the opening, so its shape is the most stripped-down version of a term that began as a description of how a figure stood.