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Anonymous Posted 11 years ago
Grammar

Stupid

How did this word get to be a noun? And when?
  

Top answer

I wasn't aware that it had become a noun, except as a form of address.

— Fivejedjon

  • I wasn't aware that it had become a noun, except as a form of address.
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10 Answers
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I wasn't aware that it had become a noun, except as a form of address.
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Anonymous How did this word get to be a noun? And when?
It's hard to know exactly how it happened because it was so long ago. You'd have to research it further. The first known use of 'stupid' as a noun was in 1712.

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stu
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Anonymous How did this word get to be a noun? And when?
It has been more popular since President Clinton used it as his political credo: "The economy, stupid."
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Around maybe the 1980's, people in the US started using constructions like the following:

Oh no, I answered that wrong on the exam. I've really got the stupids.

Oh no, I completely missed that. I must have the stupids today.
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AnonymousAround maybe the 1980's, people in the US started using constructions like the following: Oh no, I answered that wrong on the exam. I've really got the stupids.Oh no, I completely missed that. I must have the stupids today.
Also: You got that wrong? What happened? Did you take a stupid pill?

(Admittedly, this isn't 'stupid' as a noun, howe
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CalifJimAlso: You got that wrong? What happened? Did you take a stupid pill?(Admittedly, this isn't 'stupid' as a noun, however.)
Did you take a stupid pill?
Did you take a stupid pill?

These strike me as interesting. The meanings are obviously different; is "stupid" an adjective in both?
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GPYThese strike me as interesting. The meanings are obviously different; is "stupid" an adjective in both?
Yes, yes, and yes. The oddity did not escape me. That's why I posted it.
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GPYDid you take a stupid pill?
Did you take a stupid pill?

Is "stupid" an attributive noun in the noun phrase "a stupid pill"?
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Anonymous GPYDid you take a stupid pill?Did you take a stupid pill?Is "stupid" an attributive noun in the noun phrase "a stupid pill"?
It's a puzzle to me. I feel uneasy about its being an adjective, yet I can't quite see it as an attributive noun either.
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GPYIt's a puzzle to me. I feel uneasy about its being an adjective, yet I can't quite see it as an attributive noun either.
I see.
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