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sucks

English translation: various derriv:'sucks my blood/bloodsucker',exhausting,'sucks eggs','suck a lemon',fellatio,succubus,Canadian/NZfor useless

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)
English term or phrase:sucks
Selected answer:various derriv:'sucks my blood/bloodsucker',exhausting,'sucks eggs','suck a lemon',fellatio,succubus,Canadian/NZfor useless
Entered by: DGK T-I

12:30 Sep 1, 2003
English language (monolingual) [Non-PRO]
General / Conversation / Greetings / Letters
English term or phrase: sucks
Americans use this word a lot when they don't like something. Can you tell me why this word?
Ramu
Dr. Giuli Kvrivishvili could be right
Explanation:
I heard expressions 'You suck my blood', 'You bloodsucker' - perhaps he answered your question, Ramu, 'why this word'. Good luck, Ramu!
Selected response from:

Сергей Лузан
Russian Federation
Local time: 22:39
Grading comment
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



SUMMARY OF ALL EXPLANATIONS PROVIDED
3 +8more than you ever wanted to know
RHELLER
3 +7"suck"="be very unsatisfying"
ayang
4 +3Probably short for "sucks eggs"
Rowan Morrell
5 +2Well, as an American,
yolanda Speece
3 +3sound / action
jerrie
4 +1No one certain origin of the word
DGK T-I
4 +1Dr. Giuli Kvrivishvili could be right
Сергей Лузан
4It could be through this etymology of Suck & Sucks
DGK T-I


  

Answers


5 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +3
sound / action


Explanation:
Maybe it stems from the sound (of sucking), or from the 'vulgar' definition in (1) from the link!

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Note added at 2003-09-01 12:37:29 (GMT)
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v. sucked, suck·ing, sucks
v. tr.
To draw (liquid) into the mouth by movements of the tongue and lips that create suction.

To draw in by establishing a partial vacuum: a cleaning device that sucks up dirt.
To draw in by or as if by a current in a fluid.
To draw or pull as if by suction: teenagers who are sucked into a life of crime.
To draw nourishment through or from: suck a baby bottle.
To hold, moisten, or maneuver (a sweet, for example) in the mouth.
Vulgar Slang. To perform fellatio on.

v. intr.
To draw something in by or as if by suction: felt the drain starting to suck.
To draw nourishment; suckle.
To make a sound caused by suction.
Vulgar Slang. To be disgustingly disagreeable or offensive.

n.
The act or sound of sucking.
Suction.
Something drawn in by sucking.

Phrasal Verbs:
suck in
To take advantage of; cheat; swindle.
suck up Slang
To behave obsequiously; fawn.




    Reference: http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=sucks
jerrie
United Kingdom
Local time: 20:39
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 19

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Marian Greenfield
2 mins
agree  Marcus Malabad: yes, but the etymology would still be interesting to know...
4 mins
  -> Agreed! I'm not American...and this is all I could find!
agree  Zuhair Mustafa: I do not think that we should bother ourselves with such matter. We should concentrate on the serious matters of translation. The Americans may use any language or word they may wish to use!
1 day 15 hrs
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23 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +3
Probably short for "sucks eggs"


Explanation:
I don't have any definite proof for this, but my theory on the use of the word "sucks" is that it's simply a shortened form of the phrase "sucks eggs". To suck eggs means the same as suck, i.e. be disgusting or highly disagreeable. Another phrase I came across in my American Thesaurus of Slang is "suck rope". However, "suck eggs" is more familiar to me.

So I reckon that, over time, people simply shortened "This sucks eggs" to "This sucks", although the longer version is still relatively common.

Rowan Morrell
New Zealand
Local time: 07:39
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 16

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Catherine Norton: The "sucking eggs" version is popular in country villages in the U.
3 hrs
  -> Thanks Catherine.
neutral  airmailrpl: in the south in the USA there is an expression of displeasure to call someone an "egg sucking dog"
4 hrs
  -> Thanks for that info, airmailrpl.
agree  DGK T-I: possible it started with this meaning in US (even though grandmas might have liked it,perhaps because,at one time,they lacked teeth for more solid fare) LATER: certainly :-) It still has it as Rowan says :-)
5 hrs
  -> Well, if you do a search for "sucks eggs", you'll see it generally has the same meaning as "sucks".
agree  sarahl (X): I still think it might have something to do with grandmas but then again I'm not a native speaker!
6 hrs
  -> Maybe originally - I don't know. But definitely not now.
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1 hr   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +7
"suck"="be very unsatisfying"


Explanation:
"It is pretty clear that "suck" started out as a sexual insult, e.g., "Charlie sucks", what he sucks being unnecessary to spell out.
As a term of general disapproval it did not take long to be applied to all sorts of things, animate and inanimate, to the point where it is now used by all manner of people, small children included, without any consciousness whatsoever of the sexual origin of the
term. Some of them seem to find it very hard to accept that it ever had a sexual connotation. It has crossed the Atlantic, but would be regarded both by those who use it and those accustomed to hearing it as a conscious Americanism.

The curious thing is that "sucks!" as a taunt or term of derision seems to be even older in U.K. english, but it has never to my knowledge had any hint of a sexual meaning attached to it, though that doesn't mean it never did have. The construction is not at all
the same as the contemporary US phrase. To quote Eric Partridge's
_Dictionary of slang and Unconventional English_: "Sucks! An expression of derision: schools (?mostly boys') since late C19. Often sucks to you. E. F. Benson, _David of Kings_ (1924) has
Sucks for----! (That's a disappointment for so-and-so). 'Sucks to' may also be directed at others, e.g. 'Well, sucks to them! they can
jolly well go without'."

But for people of a certain age, "Yah boo, sucks to you" is
indelibly associated with Billy Bunter, a fat schoolboy created by Frank Richards (1875-1961), and immortalized in children's books and comics of the period. Even when I was a small boy in the 1940s, "sucks" in that context sounded old-fashioned and upper-class, and personally I've never heard or seen it except as a conscious parody
of Bunter." by John Davies


Source: [Mark Israel, 'Word Origins: "suck"="be very unsatisfying" by John Davies', The alt.usage.english FAQ file,(line 4191), (29 Sept 1997)]



    Reference: http://www.yaelf.com/aueFAQ/mifsckbvrynstsfyng.shtml
ayang
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish, Native in FrenchFrench

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Marie Scarano: fascinating!
10 mins
  -> thanks
agree  Daniel Mencher: Just learned a great deal from this!!
38 mins
  -> thanks!
agree  Nancy Arrowsmith: good explanation. In the US, the meaning is now 1. sexual. 2. it's just terrible.
46 mins
  -> thanks!
agree  DGK T-I: it's true that in the US context I've always wondered whether it was"that"obscene image,to mean"really bad"- I wonder if it grew/degenerated into that from earlier meanings -perhaps meaning is in the ear of the beholder(hearer & speaker :-)
47 mins
agree  Marion Burns: Yes! The origin is definitely sexual; the expression used to be considered more vulgar than it is nowadays when it's become so mainstream and prevalent.
1 hr
agree  J. Leo (X): that the meaning is more than sexual explains to me why it's not censured on US tv.
2 hrs
  -> hadn't occurred to me but good point
agree  airmailrpl: "It is pretty clear that "suck" started out as a sexual insult
4 hrs
  -> you think? after reading all proposed answers, am not so sure anymore! but thanks anyway.
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1 hr   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5 peer agreement (net): +2
Well, as an American,


Explanation:
It comes from "sucks raw eggs" which are not very appetizing. Eventually it got cut down to sucks. Sometimes you will hear variations where people will say, "this sucks ass".
It's something that isn't that high on one's list of priorities.

yolanda Speece
Local time: 14:39
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Daniel Mencher
6 mins
agree  DGK T-I: it sounds plausibly horrible, if it comes from that in the US - I hope it does(or the "innocent" medieval English origins).In"don't teach your grandma to suck eggs"a clever thing to do,there's no hint it isn't desirable too-LATER:I think was&is one origin
11 mins
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1 hr   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
It could be through this etymology of Suck & Sucks


Explanation:
Oxford English Dictionary

c. to suck the blood of (figurative): to exhaust the resources of, drain the life out of. (Cf. BLOOD-SUCK v.)

1583 STUBBES Anat. Abus. II. (1882) 7 He meaneth to sucke thy bloud. 1584 GREENE Mirr. Modestie Wks. (Grosart) III. 17 These two cursed caitifes..concluded when they might finde hir alone, to sucke the bloude of this innocent lambe. 1610 HOLLAND Camden's Brit. (1637) 49 The Lieutenant, cruelly to suck their bloud, and the Procuratour as greedy to preie upon that substance. 1819 SCOTT Ivanhoe vii, The wealth he had acquired by sucking the blood of his miserable victims, had but swelled him like a bloated spider.

b. Of flies, etc. drawing blood,
1422 YONGE tr. Secr. Secr. 180 The flyes thyke lay on hym that his blode soke[modern:suck/sucked] 1474 CAXTON Chesse II. v. (1883) 66 Many flyes satte vpon the soores and souked [modern:sucked]his blood. 1593 SHAKES. 2 Hen. VI, IV. i. 109 Drones sucke not Eagles blood, but rob Bee-hiues.

Some of the older generation in the UK sometimes use the expression, about a person who is a seriously harmful parasite, "he's a bloodsucker", which might be a clue to the expression originally coming from the same root.




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Note added at 3 hrs 32 mins (2003-09-01 16:03:40 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

I wonder if it is even possible that the expression could be connected with visitation by \'incubus\' and \'succubus\', the spirits and demons that were believed to visit men and women by night, and seduce them to their ruin, apparently in their dreams - this was thought to have a bad effect on the sleeper when they woke up, and was connected with the idea of being \'hag-rid\' or having nightmares....if US sucks really did always have an obscene origin - I\'m not sure that it necessarily did - that might be some explaination...

succubus
OED
\"A demon in female form supposed to have carnal intercourse with men in their sleep....1797 Encycl. Brit. (ed. 3) XVIII. 52/2 The truth is, the succubus is only a species of the nightmare.\"
\"A demon, evil spirit\"

but also, rather interestingly perhaps,
\"A strumpet, whore; a term of abuse for a low woman, occasionally applied to a man....Here is an old succubus, madam, that has stole two silver spoons, and says she\'s your nurse.\"

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Note added at 3 hrs 41 mins (2003-09-01 16:12:33 GMT)
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this last could follow on from the idea that \"fortune (the fate governing the life of human beings) is a strumpet/harlot\" ie: that fate is not faithful to a person but fickle, favouring them at one moment and destroying them the next - not very different from an American saying \"life sucks\"....

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 5 hrs 49 mins (2003-09-01 18:20:42 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Unless it is just that something or someone is as useless (from the point of view of being of practical use, of course :-) as a baby, that is still sucking milk / suckling:

Webster
suck (verb)
Etymology: Middle English suken, from Old English sucan; akin to Old High German sugan to suck, Latin sugere
Date: before 12th century


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Note added at 5 hrs 57 mins (2003-09-01 18:28:50 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

slang : to be objectionable or inadequate <our lifestyle sucks -- Playboy> <people who went said it sucked -- H. S. Thompson>


--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 5 hrs 59 mins (2003-09-01 18:30:10 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

<our lifestyle sucks -- Playboy> <people who went said it sucked -- H. S. Thompson>

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 6 hrs 0 min (2003-09-01 18:31:21 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

pasted quotes from Playboy & HS Thompson, but they didn\'t display

DGK T-I
United Kingdom
Local time: 20:39
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34 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +8
more than you ever wanted to know


Explanation:
This term is so well known, it's not even in most of the slang dicos.

to say something "sucks" means it is bad, terrible,


suckadelic: Something that sucks.
Example: Yet another Britney Spears CD that's totally suckadelic.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

suckage: To express extreme displeasure at the situation at hand.
Example: You didn't get your results? Suckage!

----------------------------------------------------------------------

suckalicious: It really**3 sucks.
Example: I can't believe the policeman gave me a ticket. That's suckalicious.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

sucker hole: Term used by astronomers to describe a small, fleeting patch of clear sky in an otherwise cloudy night.
Example: Steven Hawking: Quick Carl, grab the scope, I think it's clearing up!
Carl Sagan: Cool your chair Stevo, it's just a sucker hole.



----------------------------------------------------------------------

suckfarm: To suck in a major way.
Example: Suckfarm, I forgot to pay the electric bill.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

suckfest: Something that really**2 bites, and sucks beyond the mere word suck. If something is a suckfest, it sucks deliberately and for an extended period of time.
Example: I cleaned toilets all day at work.
It was a suckfest.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

suckitude: A measurement of how much something sucks.
Example: The suckitude of this music is off the charts!

----------------------------------------------------------------------

sucktacular: A word used to describe something that sucks beyond belief.
Example: Jamie: I got whacked in the nose with a frisbee today.
Heather: Sucktacular.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

sucktastic: Sucking beyond belief.
Example: That new tie you bought me was sucktastic.

----------------------------------------------------------------------



suctions: Variant of sucks. Used when you are sick of saying that sucks when someone else is going on and on about how much her life...well...sucks.
Example: A. You know what happened to me? My boyfriend dumped me--
B. That sucks.
A. Then, I lost my job--
B. Awww man, that sucks.
A. Then, I wrecked my father's cherry 1963 Corvette!
B. That really suctions!

I recommend this website to anyone with slang questions!


--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 9 hrs 4 mins (2003-09-01 21:35:27 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

MY ANSWER: to say something \"sucks\" means it is bad, terrible,

SEE ABOVE
THE REST WAS FOR FUN BUT I SEE THAT MANY PEOPLE DO NOT HAVE A SENSE OF HUMOR


--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 10 hrs 19 mins (2003-09-01 22:50:54 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Suck\" is one of these words. It has devolved from its oral/sexual meaning — with possible homophobic undercurrents — where it picked up its negative connotations, and has been applied as a harsh predicate to any subject the speaker or writer detests.

Dr. Ink Googled \"suck\" and came up with only one porn site in the top 10. Among the other sites, he discovered that some people think that homework, milk, AOL, fencing, school, and many other such things \"suck.\"

\"Suck\" was a bad word 30 years ago. It is not so bad now, but those of a certain age who use it in the attack mode remember the old meaning and feel a little twinge of rebellion when we can use it in public with impunity.

http://www.poynter.org/dg.lts/id.1/aid.43826/column.htm



    Reference: http://www.slangsite.com/slang/S.html
RHELLER
United States
Local time: 13:39
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 92

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  verbis
1 min
  -> thank you!
agree  JoeYeckley (X): a most nonsucky answer!
26 mins
  -> thanks Joseph :-) you have a way with words!
agree  Marie Scarano: you've really taught me something today!!!! Thanks!
37 mins
  -> thanks Marie - glad you liked the variety :-)
neutral  Daniel Mencher: I'm a college student in the US, and yet I've never heard of any of those terms (aside from "suck" itself, naturally). But they seem natural enough and others seem to like the answer, so I'm keeping my opinion "neutral". Luck! -Dan
1 hr
  -> what exactly are you grading, Dan?
agree  Dan Dascalescu: Cool ;-)
4 hrs
  -> thanks Dan!
neutral  sarahl (X): where did you hear all those variations? we don't have them in CA!
7 hrs
  -> why am I getting neutrals on these amusing points - these are not my answer!
agree  DGK T-I: why not be a sucker for a little light entertainment
9 hrs
  -> thanks Giuli - you know how to have a little fun :-)
agree  awilliams: have a sense of humour, people!
12 hrs
  -> thanks Amy! at least a few people here are enjoying this sucky question ;-)
agree  i8a4re: Here's another funny: In New Zealand, particuarly Polynesian members of lower socioeconomic backgrounds use "sucks" as a noun, e.g. "It's sucks!" I love that.
1 day 35 mins
agree  Mumtaz
1 day 44 mins
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11 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +1
No one certain origin of the word


Explanation:
"From time to time I will throw in the occassional, "Oh, THAT sucks!" In response people may say or infer with bristly body language, "How can you say THAT?" Translation: "There's a disgusting sexual reference to that phrase!"

"After researching several etymology (word origins) sites, it seems there is NO ONE CERTAIN origin of the word."

"Suck, by which I presume we are talking of Beavis & Butthead's favourite monosyllable, seems to have come on stream in the late 1960s/early 1970s. The OED suggests that it is linked to the Canadian slang 'suck': a worthless or contemptible person, but in my own opinion it seems more likely that 'suck' abbreviates a coarser phrase, e.g. 'suck fecis' (morgan's paraphrase). It may also have vague connections with the much early UK schoolyard taunt, 'Sucks to you!' or indeed to the mid-19th century 'suck': a deception; a disappointing event or result."

"I also found several references that it comes from usages such as, "Go suck an egg!" or "Oh go suck a lemon!" neither of which is sexual in nature."

"After researching several etymology (word origins) sites, it seems there is NO ONE CERTAIN origin of the word."

"Bottom line of my investigation:
Even with unclear origins, it seems "sucks" clearly is a homonym (word spelled the same with different meanings).


I understand that "sucks" clearly can have sexual meaning when used in THAT context. However, the info I've found seems that the context in which we most often hear it, is NOT in a sexual context.


That said, in my humble opinion (pardon me, but the next part could be a little course) if we label "sucks" as BAD, then why not consider "ball" "hard" and a host of other truly likewise
harmless words that bring on snickers from the most sophomoric among us (mysel included depending on the day), bad as well."


"Personally, I think that would suck..."

("The Suck Files")







    Reference: http://www.homestead.com/morgancafe/suck_files.html
DGK T-I
United Kingdom
Local time: 20:39

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  jccantrell: I would agree that it it probably lost in history, and, as Bart Simpson says, "I never thought it possible, but this both sucks AND blows!"
15 hrs
  -> Thank you JC ~ I agree with JCCantrell & Bart Simpson :-)
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1 day 7 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +1
Dr. Giuli Kvrivishvili could be right


Explanation:
I heard expressions 'You suck my blood', 'You bloodsucker' - perhaps he answered your question, Ramu, 'why this word'. Good luck, Ramu!

Сергей Лузан
Russian Federation
Local time: 22:39
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in RussianRussian
PRO pts in category: 4

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  DGK T-I: I wasn't going to agree with Ñåðãåé Ëóçàí's kind contribution:-) (out of modesty),but I think I must now the Asker has chosen ~ if only because one has to have a sense of humour at the logic of the Asker's choice.I think JCCantrel's comment best of all:-)
19 hrs
  -> Agree with that JCCantrel's comment is witty (I appreciate it as a humorist writer), but both your answers seem to me best of all here in the context that doesn't suck :)
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