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, taboo homosexual
5.
informal odd or unbalanced mentally; eccentric or slightly mad
6.
slang worthless or counterfeit
—n
7.
informal, taboo a homosexual, usually a male
—vb
8.
to spoil or thwart (esp in the phrase queer someone's pitch)
9.
to put in a difficult or dangerous position
[C16: perhaps from German quer oblique, ultimately from Old High German twērh]
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
1508, "strange, peculiar, eccentric," from Scottish, perhaps from Low Ger. (Brunswick dialect) queer "oblique, off-center," related to Ger. quer "oblique, perverse, odd," from O.H.G. twerh "oblique," from PIE base *twerk- "to turn, twist, wind" (related to thwart). The verb
"to spoil, ruin" is first recorded 1812. Sense of "homosexual" first recorded 1922; the noun in this sense is 1935, from the adj.
n. illicit liquor, especially whiskey. (Prohibition era.) : This isn't queer; it's left over from before prohibition.
mod. alcohol intoxicated. :
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition. Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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