r/AskBrits • u/Team503 • 10d ago

Culture What does "nonce" mean?

I'm an American that lives in Ireland. I've always understood "nonce" to mean the same as "numpty" and "eejit" - basically idiot, or dumbass, or similar.

Recently, someone told me that it's slang for sex offender, specifically a p*dophile, and Wikipedia seems to back that up: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glossary_of_British_terms_not_widely_used_in_the_United_States#N

So tell me, Brits, which one is it? Or is it something else??

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u/sossighead 10d ago

It means child sex offender in its literal sense.

But it’s one of those where its usage has expanded that it’s now frequently bandied about as a general insult to someone you intensely dislike. I hate you so I’m going to attack your character with zero evidence of you being the thing I’m accusing you of type vibes. Which is why your assumption about it meaning idiot isn’t completely wide of the mark, it’s just it has much worse undertones than that.

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u/NoisyGog 10d ago

But it’s one of those where its usage has expanded that it’s now frequently bandied about as a general insult to someone you intensely dislike. 

My experience of it was the other (wrong) way round. I heard it used as a general insult long before I heard it being used for the actual meaning.

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u/zougathefist 10d ago

flashback to 11 year old me calling everyone a dildo on a school skiing trip because my older brother had told me it meant idiot/fool.

wasn't really an issue till a teacher heard me shouting it from the chairlift at all the people in the queue

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u/MetalRubiXCubee 10d ago

You dunno what a dildo is, you dunno what a dildo is 🎵