Crap
From Free net encyclopedia
Crap is either a slang or vulgar term meaning "poor quality" or faeces respectively. In its former meaning is also connotes inaccurate, of little factual substance, lies, hype, or quackery. It can be partnered with "bull" to enhance the power of the word. It is commonly used to express wonder or surprise where other words are too strong, as in "Holy crap!" instead of "Holy shit!"
The word is considered by some people to be a less offensive than shit which holds similar meanings. Some people find the word crap offensive, and will use the minced oath "crud" instead, as in "Oh, crud!" Alternatively, for some people, crap retains its association with faeces to a greater extent than shit, and is therefore more offensive than the latter.
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Etymology
Contrary to popular belief, crap is not derived from Thomas Crapper's name. While Crapper lived from 1836 to 1910, the word is, in fact, much older. It is one of a group of nouns applied to discarded cast offs, like "residue from renderings" (1490s) or in Shropshire, "dregs of beer or ale", meanings probably extended from Middle English crappe "chaff, or grain that has been trodden underfoot in a barn" (c. 1440), deriving ultimately from Late Latin crappa, "chaff."
The word fell out of use in Britain by the 1600s, but remained prevalent in the North American colonies which would eventually become the United States. The meaning "to defecate" was recorded in the US since 1846 (according to Oxford and Merriam-Webster), but the word did not hold this meaning at all in Victorian England.
For a more detailed discussion of the myths, see the article on Thomas Crapper.
Derivative words
Crap's popularity as an all-purpose word has given rise to a number of derived words, including but not limited to:
- crapola — noun, same meaning as crap.
- crappy — adjective, meaning poor quality.
- crappo — same meaning, in Spanglish.
- craptacular — a portmanteau of crappy and spectacular
- craptastic — a portmanteau of crappy and fantastic
Despite the word usually taking the form of either a noun or verb, some people use crap interchangably with its adjective form crappy. ex: My computer has a really crap video card.
Expressions
Most expressions involving the word "shit" have equivalent expressions which substitute the word "crap". Other expression involving "crap" are:
- cut the crap — meaning to stop lying or beating around the bush.
- crap face — An insult.
- crap out — meaning to break down or stop working.
- crapster — a person who is crap.
- holy crap — a expletive.
- craputated — Bad or not right, mutated.
"Crap" can be substituted for any kind of word, with the exception of words such as articles and pronouns, to form a reasonably coherent sentence. (Example: "Crap! Those crapping crappers just crappily crapped on my crappy crap, and now it's craputated!")
Other meanings
Crap may also refer to:
- A first throw totaling two, three, or twelve, in the dice game called Craps.
- The Canadian Conservative Reform Alliance Party (CCRAP), sarcastically referred to as "CRAP"; the party has since been renamed the Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance Party (CRCAP). It should be noted that this party no longer exists, having been recreated under the banner of the Conservative Party of Canada.
- The Columbia River Avian Predation Project (CRAPP), a federally-funded project studying the effect of piscivorous birds like Caspian terns and Double-crested cormorants no salmon recovery on the Columbia River.
- Cut Rate Auto Parts, a chain of auto parts stores in southern Puget Sound, Washington. As an advertising campaign, the company sells Mugs and bumper stickers with CRAP in large letters, with the other letters considerably smaller.
- Content, Restriction, Annulment, and Protection, term suggested by ZDNet Executive Editor David Berlind in a humorous article and video.