Wazzocks

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A certain term identifies an individual characterized by foolishness or idiocy, often implying annoying or ridiculous behavior
2. This expression signifies a person viewed as foolish or silly, sometimes humorously targeting a group
3. A specific slang term refers to a person regarded as foolish or irritating, often used in a light-hearted or teasing manner

Etymology: "Wazzocks" is the plural of "wazzock", a British insult for a foolish or irritating person. The word's exact origin is unclear, which is part of its appeal to etymologists. One theory links it to "wiseacre", a know-it-all, with the sound perhaps shaped by "pillock", another northern English insult. A second theory breaks it into "wazz", a slang word for urine, plus the diminutive-style ending "-ock", as in "hillock" or "bullock". The earliest documented appearance is in a 1976 recording of Mike Harding's stage show, One Man Show, where the folk singer, author and broadcaster used it to mean a stupid or annoying person. It was later printed in his 1984 novel When the Martians Land in Huddersfield. Harding has said he grew up hearing it, calling it fairly common in Lancashire and Yorkshire, and he jokingly proposed a far more colourful origin: the implement once used to fling a monarch's excrement out of a window.

Synonyms: fools, idiots, dullards, dimwits, numbskulls