My father used to call me a complete idiot every time I did something wrong. I got so fed up of hearing it, that I decided to look up the origin of Idiot, and what I found out was that my father was a Moron.

There were 3 words in Medieval England used to describe an apprentices' competence, or rather incompetence. It was widely used by the various Guilds, particularly stonemasons and carpenters:

1. Idiot
2. Moron
3. Imbecile

Idiot: A person who has to be told how to do absolutely everything and cannot figure out, from what he's been shown, how to finish a basic procedure. These people were considered trainable, and could reach Journeyman status.

Moron: A person who makes the same mistake the same way every time. These people were considered problematic but under supervision were managable but would unlikely reach journeyman status.

Imbecile: A person who who finds a completely new way to make the same mistake every time. These people were considered dangerous and were only ever given menial tasks.

Complete Moron: A person who is both an Idiot and a Moron. A lost cause and only remained in the trade if they were a relative to a powerful guild member.

Complete Imbecile: A person who is an Idiot, a Moron and an Imbecile. These people were gotten rid of immediately!

There is no such thing as a complete Idiot, and since my father kept making the same mistake the same way every time, that made him a Moron.

When I showed him my findings, I told him that I would rather be an Idiot than a complete Moron like him. He never called me that again. :D

What's important to note here is that Idiot, Moron, and Imbecile were originally not used to disparage a person's intelligence but rather to give a label to their level of competence.

Message edited on: 03/24/2006 15:09

MWHAHAHAAA

I'm not a complete idiot.....i have parts missing. :-o ;-P

I'm an INcomplete idiot XD

Now I find myself wondering what an f***'ing moron is... but maybe we'd better not go there.

Now I find myself wondering what an f**'ing moron is... but maybe we'd better not go there.* Rocco Sifreddi? XD

I always heard that idiot was the Greek word for someone who doesn't take an interest in politics. The root comes from the Greek idios meaning of one's self or private. Presumably, the term was used disparagingly about someone who was so concerned with their own affairs that they failed to pay attention to, or participate in, the larger and more important affairs of the community. By that definition the U.S. is an "idiot nation." :-P Hmmm, almost sounds like the title of a book! ;-) - Jimdoria ~@>@

The accuracy of my anecdote is only as reliable as my source, which I humbly cannot vouch for. Many of you will most likely find a more accurate etymology that dates further back than what I found. :

Bobasaur, my favourite term of address for myself when I do something stupid is "Fucking idiot".

@SamTherapy, I've heard both. Wait, that didn't come out right. I don't mean I've heard both terms used in reference to you.

"@SamTherapy, I've heard both. Wait, that didn't come out right. I don't mean I've heard both terms used in reference to you." ROFLMAO!

Attached Link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IQ

At one time, the terms "moron", "imbecile" and "idiot" were actually used as legitimate scientific terminology in the field of psychology.

They don't do it that way anymore. It's another one of those set of terms which are W-A-Y-Y-Y-Y-Y too politically incorrect to be used in the current era.

Excepting when they are used as terms of endearment in online forums, of course.

In psychology, those terms were used to approximate a person's mental age. From Answers.com: Moron- A person of mild mental retardation having a mental age of from 7 to 12 years and generally having communication and social skills enabling some degree of academic or vocational education. Imbecile- A person of moderate to severe mental retardation having a mental age of from three to seven years and generally being capable of some degree of communication and performance of simple tasks under supervision. Idiot- A person of profound mental retardation having a mental age below three years and generally being unable to learn connected speech or guard against common dangers. What's interesting are the ads on the side of the page when I searched for these terms. When I got the result for "idiot", the side ads showed me movies from Amazon.com... including a Pauly Shore movie and some Ernest movies. --John

And what is this: - You must join A to B and then join to C, do you understand? - Yes. - Any question or doubt? - No, it's clear and very easy. - Ok, do it. - He joins A to C and throws B in the trash.

The root comes from the Greek idios meaning of one's self or private. Presumably, the term was used disparagingly about someone who was so concerned with their own affairs that they failed to pay attention to, or participate in, the larger and more important affairs of the community.

The root also gives us the word "idiom" and "idiosyncratic". It frequently refers to someone who is in their "own world" so to speak, or who does things in a way peculiar unto themselves. The term "idiot" was used to refer to someone who was significantly mentally impaired, and therefore in "their own" world.

I've never heard the terms used for apprentices, but until very recently in history, they were used to describe people with IQ deficiencies:

IQ Range Classification
70-80 Borderline deficiency
50-69 Moron
20-49 Imbecile
below 20 Idiot

Thus the term "drooling idiot". I'm not sure how someone could be a "complete" idiot. As opposed to what, a partial one?

By the way, my mother used to call me stuff like that, too. It's emotional/mental abuse.

Whoops, didn't see that someone already posted this basic info on the IQ stuff. I'll leave it just for interest's sake.

bonni Message edited on: 03/25/2006 01:18

IQ Range Classification
70-80 Borderline deficiency
50-69 Moron
20-49 Imbecile
00-20 Idiot
0-(-80) National leader/president (borrows, subtracts, removes, eliminates, IQ from the population)

Message edited on: 03/25/2006 04:25

What's the classification for Mindless Cretin, Insufferable Dolt, and Unmitigated Clod? I heard these a lot in college (not that these were, y'know, aimed at ME or something, no sir, nope, uh-uh, no way, nada, nein, nyet. Now the guy sitting NEXT to me - oh, he was a lost cause. Dude was so stupid, when he lost his driver's license, he got into a crash by walking into a tree. Said it wasn't his faule, he went "BEEP, BEEP". My story. Sticking to it. ;)

So, what's the correct insult to hurl at yourself when you've pulverised your little toe on the corner of the bed for the umpteeth time? I'll just go with "Numbnuts" until I hear back. Cheers

lol@kawecki