Chinless wonder

Chinless wonder

Chinless wonder is a derogatory term for an upper-class (or sometimes middle-class) person, often a Brit, frequently one who gained his position via nepotism or other social connections, not through his own competence. The term is derived from the characteristic recessive chin of some rich people, which is thought to be caused by inbreeding, traditionally common among the upper-classes, although a person need not be literally 'chinless' to be described as a chinless wonder. The 'wonder' part of the term is often replaced with an offensive word to greaten the insult.

References:

1-Urban Dictionary entry for Chinless wonder.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • chinless wonder — UK US noun [countable] [singular chinless wonder plural chinless wonders] british informal a young man of a high social class who is weak or stupid Thesaurus: people from an upper social class …   Useful english dictionary

  • chinless wonder — noun count BRITISH INFORMAL a young man of a high social class who is weak or stupid …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • chinless wonder — UK / US noun [countable] Word forms chinless wonder : singular chinless wonder plural chinless wonders British informal a young man of a high social class who is weak or stupid …   English dictionary

  • Chinless wonder — feeble, pathetic male …   Dictionary of Australian slang

  • chinless wonder — Australian Slang feeble, pathetic male …   English dialects glossary

  • chinless wonder — Meaning A member of the British upper classes. Origin By repute members of the upper classes often have receding chins …   Meaning and origin of phrases

  • chinless wonder — n British an effete or gormless youth, particularly a vacuous upper class male. The pejora tive expression is applied to those literally weak chinned, but more often to young men, usually in a privileged position, who are irresolute, offensively… …   Contemporary slang

  • chinless wonder — Noun. A person of the wealthy upper classes, who lacks depth of character and/or intelligence. Derog …   English slang and colloquialisms

  • (a) chinless wonder — British & Australian, humorous an English man from a high social class, who thinks he is intelligent and important, but who other people think is weak and stupid. He s just another chinless wonder doing a job that his Daddy got for him …   New idioms dictionary

  • (a) chinless wonder — a chinless ˈwonder idiom (BrE, humorous, disapproving) a young, upper class man who is weak and stupid Main entry: ↑chinlessidiom …   Useful english dictionary

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