Weir Word

The “Weir Word” is a term of art meant to indicate that erroneous and misleading information has been passed from one individual to another when one party is either unsuspecting, naïve, or gullible. When one has been told that a certain piece of information is correct when it is in fact not, the “Weir Word” has thus been “passed.” The term originated with the often-befuddling information given by a United States Marine Corps 2nd Lieutenant named Larry Weir at The Basic School in Quantico, Virginia. 2nd Lt. Weir’s continuous inability to “pass” the correct information along to his fellow lieutenants led to his name becoming synonymous with misinformation and “bad gouge". For example, in casual conversation a fellow classmate might have asked Lt. Weir, "What time is this exercise over?" Lt. Weir might respond "1700" when in fact he did not know what time the exercise would end. It was generally thought among his platoon that when Lt. Weir passed information along, he genuinely believed what he was passing. However, when presented with a question, he would simply make a guess at the answer and then pass that answer along as though it were fact without preceding his answer with "I believe," "probably," "I'll bet," or some other phrase to indicate that his answer was conjecture and not fact. His name has since become a part of Marine Corps lingo such as “Lance Corporal Grabasandwich”, “FUBAR”, "bag nasty", and the “OODA loop.”

ources

“Origins of Marine Corps Jargon” Leatherneck Magazine July 2002.

“The ‘Weir Word’ Spreads” LCpl Phil Muenster, Quantico Sentry, August 12, 2002.