dud
noun · adjective
Simple meaning
A device or machine that is useless because it does not work properly or has failed to work, such as a bomb, or explosive projectile.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
duhdIPA pronunciation (US)
ˈdʌd
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
informal
A device or machine that is useless because it does not work properly or has failed to work, such as a bomb, or explosive projectile.
informal
A failure of any kind.
informal
A loser; an unlucky person.
A lottery ticket that does not give a payout.
adjective
Useless; failing; ineffective.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- C2 · Proficient (estimated)
- Frequency
- Rare
- Typical Use
- Primarily written
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: A device or machine that is useless because it does not work properly or has failed to work, such as a bomb, or explosive projectile.
Used this way, dud is a reasonably familiar word with a faintly unfavourable edge. It turns up most in everyday conversation and social media or informal writing contexts.
- Emotional tone
- Slightly negative
- Formality
- Casual
- Intensity
- Moderate
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Critical or judgemental
- Usage feel
- Casual and conversational
Where it naturally appears
- Everyday conversation
- Social media/informal writing
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
Synonyms
Sense: device
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What Does It Mean Here?
Words can change meaning depending on context.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.