dud
nounadjectiveattested in dialogue
- //dʌd//
A device or machine that is useless because it does not work properly or has failed to work, such as a bomb, or explosive projectile.
noun
- 1
informalA device or machine that is useless because it does not work properly or has failed to work, such as a bomb, or explosive projectile.
Alzheimer's Drug Aduhelm Went From Being Hailed A 'Game Changer' To A Dud
- 2
informalA failure of any kind.
At the end of the day, the vast majority of primary schools are vibrant, friendly places and you may struggle to choose one because they all seem so great. Primary schools tend to have the feelgood factor. If you just aren't feeling it, this one's probably a dud.
- 3
informalA failure of any kind. A loser; an unlucky person.
"Now you can't fool me. Tom, I'm not one o' those duds that pay you a thick 'un for an hour in the dark."
- 4
informalA failure of any kind. A lottery ticket that does not give a payout.
- 5
informalClothes, now always used in plural form duds.
Etymology
From Middle English dudde (“cloak, mantle, kind of cloth; ragged clothing or cloth”), from Old English *dudda (attested only as personal name Dudda, part of modern English Dudley), akin to Old Norse dúði (“swaddling clothes”), Low German dudel. Possibly borrowed from the Old Norse word and related to dýja (“to shake, tremble”).
adjective
- 1
Useless; failing; ineffective.
[…] they're flying in the duddest of dud weather to hold the Germans back.
Forms
- plural
- duds
- superlative
- duddest
dud · A device or machine that is useless because it does not work properly or has failed to work, such as a bomb, or explosive projectile.
dude · A man, generally a younger man.dudes · Any group of people, regardless of gender.Dudley · A habitational surname from Old English, notably of Robert…