queer

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queer

 (kwîr)

adj. queer·er, queer·est

1.

a. Deviating from what is expected or normal; strange: "The light above his head made a queer reflection of himself in the glowing wineglass" (Carson McCullers).

b. Odd or unconventional, as in behavior; eccentric: "His mother is very queer, with witchy hair and mismatched shoes" (Caroline Preston).

c. Of a questionable nature or character; suspicious: thought there was something queer about his explanation.

2.

a. Offensive Slang Gay or lesbian.

b. Usage Problem Of or relating to lesbians, gay men, bisexuals, or transgender people.

3. Feeling slightly ill, as in being dizzy or queasy.

n.

1. Offensive Slang Used as a disparaging term for a gay man or a lesbian.

2. Usage Problem A lesbian, gay male, bisexual, or transgender person.

tr.v. queered, queer·ing, queers Slang

To ruin or thwart: "might try to queer the Games with anything from troop movements ... to a bomb attack" (Newsweek).

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[Perhaps from Low German, oblique, off-center, from Middle Low German dwer; see terk^w- in Indo-European roots.]

---

queer′ish adj.

queer′ly adv.

queer′ness n.

Usage Note: A reclaimed word is a word that was formerly used solely as a slur but that has been semantically overturned by members of the maligned group, who use it as a term of defiant pride. Queer is an example of a word undergoing this process. For decades queer was used as a derogatory adjective for gays and lesbians, but in the 1980s the term began to be used by gay and lesbian activists as a term of self-identification. Eventually, it came to be used as an umbrella term that included gay men, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgender people. Nevertheless, a sizable percentage of people to whom this term might apply still hold queer to be a hateful insult, and its use by heterosexuals is often considered offensive. Similarly, other reclaimed words are usually offensive to the in-group when used by outsiders, so caution must be taken with their use when one is not a member of the group.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

queer

(kwɪə)

adj

1. differing from the normal or usual in a way regarded as odd or strange

2. suspicious, dubious, or shady

3. faint, giddy, or queasy

4. informal offensive homosexual

5. informal odd or unbalanced mentally; eccentric or slightly mad

6. slang worthless or counterfeit

n

informal offensive a homosexual, usually a male

vb (tr)

7. to spoil or thwart (esp in the phrase queer someone's pitch)

8. to put in a difficult or dangerous position

[C16: perhaps from German quer oblique, ultimately from Old High German twērh]

ˈqueerish adj

ˈqueerly adv

ˈqueerness n

Usage: Although the term queer meaning homosexual is still considered highly offensive when used by non-homosexuals, it is often used by homosexuals themselves as a positive term, as in queer politics, queer cinema

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

queer

(kwɪər)

adj. queer•er, queer•est,
v.
n. adj.

1. strange or odd from a conventional viewpoint; unusually different; eccentric.

2. of a questionable nature or character; suspicious; shady: something queer in the wording of the document.

3. not physically right or well; giddy, faint, or qualmish.

4. mentally unbalanced or deranged.

5. Slang: Usu. Disparaging and Offensive.

a. homosexual.

b. effeminate.

6. Slang. bad, worthless, or counterfeit.

v.t.

7. to spoil; ruin.

8. to put (a person) in a disadvantageous situation as to success, favor, etc.

n.

9. Slang: Usually Disparaging and Offensive. (a term used to refer to a homosexual, esp. a male.)

[1500–10; perhaps < German quer oblique, cross, adverse]

queer′ly, adv.

queer′ness, n.

usage: queer has been used as an adjective and noun meaning respectively “homosexual” and “a homosexual” since the 1920s, and for much of the time has been used in a disparaging manner. Since about 1990 the word has increasingly been adopted as a preferred term by young or radical homosexuals and in the academic community. In the mainstream homosexual community, however, gay and lesbian remain the terms of choice.

Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.

queer

- Comes from the German root quer, "across, oblique, perverse."

See also related terms for perverse.

Farlex Trivia Dictionary. © 2012 Farlex, Inc. All rights reserved.

queer

Past participle: queered
Gerund: queering

Imperative

queer

queer

Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	queer - offensive term for an openly homosexual man fag, faggot, fagot, poof, poove, pouf, nance, fairy, pansy, queen derogation, disparagement, depreciation - a communication that belittles somebody or something gay man, shirtlifter - a homosexual man
Verb	1.	queer - hinder or prevent (the efforts, plans, or desires) of; "What ultimately frustrated every challenger was Ruth's amazing September surge"; "foil your opponent" frustrate, scotch, thwart, foil, baffle, bilk, cross, spoil disappoint, let down - fail to meet the hopes or expectations of; "Her boyfriend let her down when he did not propose marriage" foreclose, forestall, preclude, prevent, forbid - keep from happening or arising; make impossible; "My sense of tact forbids an honest answer"; "Your role in the projects precludes your involvement in the competitive project" dash - destroy or break; "dashed ambitions and hopes" short-circuit - hamper the progress of; impede; "short-circuit warm feelings" ruin - destroy or cause to fail; "This behavior will ruin your chances of winning the election"
	2.	queer - put in a dangerous, disadvantageous, or difficult position endanger, peril, scupper, expose affect, bear upon, impact, bear on, touch on, touch - have an effect upon; "Will the new rules affect me?" compromise - expose or make liable to danger, suspicion, or disrepute; "The nuclear secrets of the state were compromised by the spy"
Adj.	1.	queer - beyond or deviating from the usual or expected; "a curious hybrid accent"; "her speech has a funny twang"; "they have some funny ideas about war"; "had an odd name"; "the peculiar aromatic odor of cloves"; "something definitely queer about this town"; "what a rum fellow"; "singular behavior" peculiar, rum, rummy, curious, funny, singular, odd strange, unusual - being definitely out of the ordinary and unexpected; slightly odd or even a bit weird; "a strange exaltation that was indefinable"; "a strange fantastical mind"; "what a strange sense of humor she has"
	2.	queer - homosexual or arousing homosexual desires homophile, gay homosexual - sexually attracted to members of your own sex

Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.

queer

adjective

1. strange, odd, funny, unusual, extraordinary, remarkable, curious, weird, peculiar, abnormal, rum (Brit. slang), uncommon, erratic, singular, eerie, unnatural, unconventional, uncanny, disquieting, unorthodox, outlandish, left-field (informal), anomalous, droll, atypical, outré If you ask me, there's something queer going on.
strange normal, regular, ordinary, common, natural, straight, conventional, orthodox, rational, customary, believable, unexceptional, unoriginal

2. (Informal, derogatory) gay, camp, homosexual, pink (informal) contemporary queer culture

3. faint, dizzy, giddy, queasy, light-headed, reeling Wine before beer and you'll feel queer.

noun

1. (Informal, derogatory) homosexual, queen (informal), gay, lesbian, homo (informal, derogatory), pansy (informal, derogatory), poof (Brit. & Austral. derogatory slang), batty boy (slang), shirt-lifter (derogatory slang), woofter (derogatory slang) She knows more queers than I do.

verb spoil help, aid, boost, enhance

Usage: Although the term queer meaning `gay' is still considered derogatory when used by non-gays, it is now being used by gay people themselves as a positive term in certain contexts, such as queer politics, queer cinema. Nevertheless, many gay people would not wish to have the term applied to them, nor would they use it of themselves.

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

queer

adjective

1. Deviating from the customary:

bizarre, cranky, curious, eccentric, erratic, freakish, idiosyncratic, odd, outlandish, peculiar, quaint, quirky, singular, strange, unnatural, unusual, weird.

Slang: kooky, screwball.

British Slang: rum, rummy.

2. Causing puzzlement; perplexing:

curious, funny, odd, peculiar, strange, weird.

The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Translations

شَخْص لواطيغَريب، غَريبلوطي، مُصاب بِشُذوذ جِنْسيمُتَوَعِّك المَزاج

особенстраненхомосексуаленчудат

buzikhomoušpodivnýpřihřátýšpatně

bøssehomoseksuelsygunderligutilpas

schwulSchwulerseltsamsonderbarTunte

κολομπαράς

extrañorarotrucha

hinttiomituinenoutopervo

bizarredrôleétrangelopettepédé

buzifurcsa

lasinn, slappurundarlegur

stranobizzarrofinocchioguastareindisposto

lytiškai iškrypęs

dīvainshomoseksuālistshomoseksuālsneparastsnevesels

afwijkendbizarhomohomoseksueel

lesbe

bizarroestranho

гейгомосекгомосексуалистпедерастпедик

buzerantpociťujúci nevoľnosť

nenavaden

acayiphastaibneibne kişituhaf

不舒服的同性恋的同性恋者奇怪的

queer

[kwɪəʳ]

A. ADJ (queerer (compar) (queerest (superl)))

1. (= odd) → raro, extraño
there's something queer going on → pasa algo raro or extraño
there was a queer noise coming from the kitchen → había un ruido raro en la cocina
to be queer in the head → andar mal de la cabeza
to be in Queer Street (Brit) → estar en apuros

2. (Brit) (o.f.) (= ill) to feel queer → no sentirse bien, encontrarse mal
to come over queer → ponerse malo

3. (o.f., pej) (= homosexual) → maricón, marica

B. N (= homosexual) → maricón m, marica m

C. VT to queer sb's pitch → fastidiar a algn

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

queer

[ˈkwɪə^r]

adj

(old-fashioned) (= odd) → étrange, curieux/euse

(offensive) (= homosexual) [man] → pédé

(= gay) [culture, activism, politics] → homo

(British) (= sick) I feel queer → je ne me sens pas bien

n

(offensive) → pédé m

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

queer

adj (+er)

(= strange) → eigenartig, seltsam, komisch; (= eccentric) → komisch, kauzig; (inf: = mentally unbalanced) → nicht ganz richtig (im Kopf) (inf); a queer-sounding name → ein komischer Name; he’s a bit queer in the head (inf) → er ist nicht ganz richtig im Kopf (inf); doesn’t it feel queer being the only woman? → kommst du dir nicht komisch vor als einzige Frau?

(= causing suspicion) → verdächtig, nicht ganz hasenrein (inf); there’s something queer about it → da ist etwas faul dran (inf)

(inf) (= unwell) → unwohl; (= peculiar) feeling → komisch; I feel queer (= unwell) → mir ist nicht gut; (= peculiar) → mir ist ganz komisch (inf); I came over all queer → mir wurde ganz anders (inf) → or komisch (inf)

(pej inf: = homosexual) → schwul (inf)

n (pej inf: = homosexual) → Schwule(r) mf (inf)

vt (inf: = spoil) → versauen (inf), → vermasseln (inf); to queer somebody’s pitch (inf) → jdm einen Strich durch die Rechnung machen

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

queer

[kwɪəʳ]

1. adj (-er (comp) (-est (superl)))

a. (odd) → strano/a, curioso/a, singolare
he's a queer customer → è un tipo strano
there's something queer going on here → qui c'è qualcosa che non va
queer in the head (fam) → tocco/a, picchiato/a

b. (ill) → strano/a, non giusto/a
to feel queer → sentirsi poco bene

c. (fam, offensive) (homosexual) → omosessuale

d. (suspicious) → dubbio/a, sospetto/a

2. n (old) (fam, offensive, YYY) (male homosexual) → finocchio

3. vt to queer sb's pitch (fam) → rovinare tutto a qn, rompere le uova nel paniere a qn

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

queer

(kwiə) adjective

1. odd, strange or unusual. queer behaviour; queer noises in the middle of the night. vreemd, eienaardig غَريب، غَريب странен estranho podivný sonderbar underlig ιδιόρρυθμος, παράξενος, αλλόκοτοςextraño; excéntrico; raro pentsik عجیب غریب outo bizarreמוזר अजीब čudan, nastran furcsa aneh undarlegur bizzarro, strano 妙な 기묘한 keistas, neįprastas savāds; dīvains; neparasts aneh, pelik zonderlingrar, merkelig, pussigdziwny عجيب، نادر، نااشنا estranho ciudat странный zvláštny čuden čudan konstig, underlig แปลกประหลาด tuhaf, acayip 奇怪的 дивакуватий, дивний عجیب kỳ quặc 奇怪的

2. sick; unwell. I do feel a bit queer – perhaps I ate too many oysters. olik مُتَوَعِّك المَزاج неразоложен esquisito špatně unwohl syg; utilpas άρρωστος, αδιάθετοςmal, pachucho haiglane ناخوش pahoinvoiva mal חוֹלֶה מְעָט बीमार bolestan rosszul érzi magát tidak sehat lasinn, slappur indisposto, male 気分が悪い 기분이 개운치 않은 nelabai sveikas nevesels rasa hendak pitam onweldårligniezdrów نادر esquisito homosexual испытывающий недомогание pociťujúci nevoľnosť slab bolestan konstig, illamående ป่วย; ไม่สบาย hasta 不舒服的 той, що нездужає بیمار khó chịu; chóng mặt 不舒服的

3. (slang) homosexual. moffieagtig لوطي، مُصاب بِشُذوذ جِنْسي педераст bicha teplý, přihřátý schwul, lesbisch bøsse ομοφυλοφιλικόςmaricón homo همجنس باز homoseksuaalinen הוֹמוֹסֶקסוּאָל समलिंगकामी homoseksualan homokos, meleg homoseks omosessuale 男の同性愛者の 동성애의 lytiškai iškrypęs homoseksuāls homoseksual homoseksueelhomofilhomoseksualny همجنس باز гомосексуальный teplý homoseksualen, pedrski homoseksualan homofil, bög ชายรักร่วมเพศ. ibne (俚)同性戀的 гомосексуальний ہم جنس پرست đồng tính luyến ái （俚）同性恋的

noun

a homosexual. moffie شَخْص لواطي педераст bicha teplouš, homouš, buzik der Schwule, die Lesbe homoseksuel ομοφυλόφιλοςmaricón homo آدم همجنس باز homo הוֹמוֹסֶקסוּאָל समलिंगकामी homoseksualac homokos, meleg seorang homoseks omosessuale 男の同性愛者 동성애 pederastas homoseksuālists homo homoseksueelhomofil, homse/lesbe pedał همجنس بازه سړی педик teploš, buzerant, homoš peder homoseksualac homofil, bög กระเทย ibne kişi 同性戀者 гомосексуаліст ہم جنس پرست شخص kẻ đồng tính luyến ái 同性恋者

ˈqueerly adverb

vreemd بِغَرابَه странно estranhamente divně sonderbar underligt παράξενα, αλλόκοταextrañamente; excéntricamente kentsakalt بطور عجیب و غریب oudosti bizarrement בְּאוֹפֶן מוּזָר अजीब तरह से čudno furcsán pusing undarlega bizzarramente, stranamente 妙に 기묘하게 keistai savādi; dīvaini dengan cara yang pelik vreemdunderlig, rart dziwnie په عجيبه ډول estranhamente (în mod) ciudat странно zvláštne čudno čudno konstigt, underligt อย่างประหลาด tuhafça, acayip bir şekilde 奇怪地 дивно عجیب طریقے سے kỳ quặc; đồng tính luyến ái 奇怪地

ˈqueerness noun

vreemdheid غَرابَه странност estranheza zvláštnost die Sonderbarkeit løjerlighed παραξενιά, ιδιορρυθμίαrareza; excentricidad veidrus عجیب و غریب بودن؛ ناخوشی outous bizarrerieמוזרות अजीबपन čudaštvo furcsaság rasa pusing undarlegheit stramberia 奇妙さ 기묘함 keistumas savādība; dīvainums kepelikan vreemdheidunderlighet; homofil legning dziwność عجیب estranheza ciudăţenie странность zvláštnosť nenavadnost čudnost konstighet, underlighet ความประหลาด tuhaflık, acayiplik 奇怪 щось дивне نرالاپن tính kỳ quặc 奇怪

Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.

queer

a. raro-a, excéntrico-a; [slang] homosexual, invertido, maricón.

English-Spanish Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012