wingnut

See also: wing-nut and wing nut

English

Etymology

From wing +‎ nut. The political sense is a shortening of "right-wing nut".

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈwɪŋˌnʌt/
  • Audio (General Australian):(file)

Noun

wingnut (plural wingnuts)

  1. A deciduous tree of the genus Pterocarya native to Asia.
    Synonym: pterocarya
  2. (Discuss(+) this sense) (slang, derogatory, politics) A person who is or seems odd, eccentric, or crazy; especially, someone with bizarre or extreme political views.
    Hyponyms: RWNJ, LWNJ
    Near-synonyms: nut, nut job, nut case, crank, weirdo; see also Thesaurus:strange person, Thesaurus:mad person
    • 2019 November 27, Alex Henderson, AlterNet:
      On November 21, evangelist Franklin Graham (son of the late Rev. Billy Graham and a strident Trump supporter) discussed impeachment when he appeared on fellow wingnut Eric Metaxas’ radio show.
  3. (slang, rural US) A member of the air force (in a town that hosts a USAF installation).
  4. (slang, informal) A person with large ears.
  5. Alternative form of wing nut (“(mechanical) nut with wing-like projections”).
    Hypernyms: nut < fastener

Derived terms

Translations

See also

(odd, eccentric, or extremist person):

Further reading

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