Added 9 October 2026
nitwit
/ˈnɪtwɪt/ noun
First recorded: 1910 Wiktionary
noun Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about nitwit at Wordnik → Where our words come from →
- A scatterbrained or stupid person.
Origin
First attested in the 1910s in the US Northeast. Likely from German nit, dialect form of nichts (“nothing”), or Yiddish ניט (nit), dialect form of נישט (nisht, “no”), although some dictionaries give the alternative etymology nit (“louse egg; something very small”) + wit.
From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)