The misconception stereotype of a nerd:
Someone who is smart, unpopular, quiet, wears glasses, plays video games, and knows a lot about comps or spends a lot of time on comps.

1. All glasses mean is the person has bad eye sight. If the person chooses not to wear contacts, all that means is they're not afraid of being called a nerd. Wearing glasses does not MAKE a person a nerd.
2. Gothics/punks, druggies, retards, and gamers are unpopular (and some are quiet). Does that make them nerds? No.
3. Pretty much every boy plays video games at some point in their life too. Does that make all those boys nerds? No.
4. These days, everyone uses comps and knows a good amount about them. Does that make everyone a nerd? No.

The real definition of a nerd:
Someone who is unpopular and is obsessed with learning/reading/studying. THAT'S ALL.

1. Just because someone studies a lot doesn't mean they're a nerd. Someone has to LIKE studying to be a nerd. Most people only study because they NEED to.
2. Notice that you don't need to be smart to be quiet, wear glasses, play video games, or use the comp a lot!

How I spot a real nerd:
The kid who is unpopular, thinks s/he is so smart, and loves to show off about it by raising their hand and answering questions. They use big words and often argue with the teacher about some trivial matter. (Example: Napolean's middle name. No one cares!) There is usually one of these type of kids in just about every class. The other students are annoyed every time this kid speaks. Despite the true nerd's high level of intelligence, they are usually "too good" for homework, and they don't do it, which results in them getting bad grades. Bill Gates is a perfect example. I think he dropped out of high school so he could build his comps.

BTW, ALL YOU ANIME FANS OUT THERE WHO GO AROUND PROUDLY PROCLAIMING YOURSELF AN OTAKU: FYI, "otaku" means "nerd" in Japanese! If you are so proud to be a nerd, you don't need to use the Japanese form of it. If you are proud to be an anime fan, just say you're an anime fan. There is no need for the word "otaku." Just because you like anime doesn't make you a nerd. Stop calling yourself a nerd by calling yourself an otaku; you're giving anime fans a bad name.

And please, PLEASE use the real definition of nerd when using it to judge yourself and others!

Like everything - things change.

words are always changing definition.

Just like fag can used to mean a pile of sticks, it's a cigarette in england, and now it's a slang term for a gay person.

gay used to be used for "happy"

Nerd used to be used for what you said. But in a modern society - the word has adapted to include another definition.

I am a proud nerd, thank you. I just so happen to do/have all the things you said are not nerd qualitys.

I'm smart, unpopular, quiet, have glasses, play video games, and know a hell of a lot about computers. I'm also "obsessed" with learning, reading, and studying.

Two Yu Yu Hakusho fans replied to this o.o And I'm the third! ^_^
Otaku doesn't mean nerd in japanese. It means "obssesed" and before anime, it was used for photographers obssesed with their job x] Still, I think that anime fans should refer to themselves as anime fans rather than with otaku.
If nerd means that, and people here knew that... I wouldn't be a gothic/satanist/rocker/weirdo/gifted girl anymore!

PS: @hiei14: It seems I am too... except I'm not obsessed with studying, even though I love learning ;)

I don't think it is a love of learning that makes a person a nerd. I believe that deep down, everyone loves to learn. It is a part of human nature. Don't you like it when an idea finally clicks, and you have that fulfilling sense of completion? Someone who love to learn is not a nerd. Someone who loves to study is not a nerd. A nerd is someone who walks into a classroom assuming he knows more than everyone else, including the teacher. He does not hesitate to point out every stupid little inconsistency or anything that contradicts his immense prior knowledge. There are very few of these people now, (I only know two in my school) but the word has changed. Most people think of a nerd as someone who gets things quicker than everyone else, usually due to more studying, but also because they pay attention and can make connections. There are many of this type of person.

Word History: The word nerd, undefined but illustrated, first appeared in 1950 in Dr. Seuss's If I Ran the Zoo: "And then, just to show them, I'll sail to Ka-Troo And Bring Back an It-Kutch a Preep and a Proo A Nerkle a Nerd and a Seersucker, too!" (The nerd is a small humanoid creature looking comically angry, like a thin, cross Chester A. Arthur.) Nerd next appears, with a gloss, in the February 10, 1957, issue of the Glasgow, Scotland, Sunday Mail in a regular column entitled "ABC for SQUARES": "Nerd—a square, any explanation needed?" Many of the terms defined in this "ABC" are unmistakable Americanisms, such as hep, ick, and jazzy, as is the gloss "square," the current meaning of nerd. The third appearance of nerd in print is back in the United States in 1970 in Current Slang: "Nurd [sic], someone with objectionable habits or traits.... An uninteresting person, a 'dud.'" Authorities disagree on whether the two nerds—Dr. Seuss's small creature and the teenage slang term in the Glasgow Sunday Mail—are the same word. Some experts claim there is no semantic connection and the identity of the words is fortuitous. Others maintain that Dr. Seuss is the true originator of nerd and that the word nerd ("comically unpleasant creature") was picked up by the five- and six-year-olds of 1950 and passed on to their older siblings, who by 1957, as teenagers, had restricted and specified the meaning to the most comically obnoxious creature of their own class, a "square."

1. a stupid, irritating, ineffectual, or unattractive person.
2. an intelligent but single-minded person obsessed with a nonsocial hobby or pursuit: a computer nerd.

I got this from Dictionary.com

Nerd has no actual meaning. It is a slang term, for someone "abnormal" or someone "square".But then againit says it's someone smart and someone stupid... So really, does it matter if someone likes to study or not? Or plays games or not? or likes anime or not? What is normal? When society figures that out, then we'll know what not norml is, and then we'll have a true meaning to nerd lol.

actually, otaku means a freak, not a nerd, and a lot of anime fans know that.

what's so bad about being a nerd?
why are you the only one who gets to decide what a nerd is? :/
I think there are many types of nerds.

I personally love learning, but I wouldn't call myself a nerd. I may be unpopular at school, but no one is unpopular everywhere. What's the big deal about being popular anyway?

Honestly I much rather prefer people to leave me alone rather than follow me everywhere. I like the ability to have peace from people.

Part of learning to me is curiousness. i love learning about all the different cultures and people. sometimes I wish that I wasn't american. American culture is so boring to me. I dont know...I guess I'm kind of a dreamer.

I would like to correct you on your use of the word 'Otaku'.

To the un/Japanese (to include the unJapanese and the Japanese who might not know) Japanophiles who like to pepper their speech with the said language's words, mannerisms, etc; more often than not, they do not really know the real context of the word is.

Some due to not being Japanese.

Or if they are, they do not anymore understand or feel the original meaning of it. Like how the term 'Japs' used to be demeaning along with the 'If anything's badly made then it must come from Japan' sentiment post WWII.

So end up using it.

Same case with the word of Otaku.

To my knowledge, Otaku connoted not being a nerd. Rather it dealt with obsession. If anything it is being used to describe individuals who have gone past like and moved a step up to mania.

Beyond normal that is.

It's anything but good back in it's homeland but like what I said and has been mentioned earlier, when things get used and gets around it loses it's original context.

The last time I heard Otaku being used as a term to describe a real person was during an incident where a fan of dolls purposedly bought them and then used them to lure young girls into his home to execute his desires on them. I need not expound.

And honestly? That is and will always be a scary incident, freaky even for me.

Hence when people call themselves otaku and proudly proclaim it, I cringe and feel...scared. @_@;

Good day.

Remember to research first before you post something! ^^

Nerds are freakin' awesome..
But, uh.
I wouldn't say there's any true definition out there.
'Cause that's really freaking stereotypical.
*shrug*
I'm dating the biggest nerd in the world, and no, he doesn't have glasses, but he doesn't argue with teachers about stupid things either, he does his homework, and he's pretty popular in our class.
..Well, actually, we're in a class full of nerds.
None of them obsessed with studying or whatever, but they're certainly compassionate about computers.
They're all nerds for different reasons and aspects.
So, yeah.
I guess what I'm trying to say is don't set a definition.
All nerds are not created equal! :3

To me, a "nerd" is a person who is unpopular, has poor social skills, and is very interested / totally obsessed with something unpopular, something the majority doesn't like. Often, this something is a solitary activity (not a team sport or community activity, for example).

So, the main thing about nerds is:
1) Nerd are unpopular and know a lot about something.
2) Because nerds have poor social skills, they end up flaunting their knowledge (debating with teachers in class, etc)

In my opinion, that's why the stereotypical nerd is interested in computers and video games. Back in the 80's and early 90's, people in general weren't interested in computers, and the internet as we know didn't exist. So, if you liked computers, you were into something people generally didn't like, and you were doing it in your room, all alone. Combine that with poor social skills and bad looks (bad style, glasses...) and you have a nerd there!

These days, it's different. Internet is a major social medium, so if you spend a lot of time on your computer, you may still have a lot of social contact. Also, these days, a computer nerd can be rich: Bill Gates, anyone? Being rich means better social status -> not a nerd!

The same goes to glasses: the styles are better now, and cool looking glasses can be a fashionable accessory that makes you look good. Good looks means better social status -> not a nerd!

To sum it up, being a nerd means you have poor social skills and special interests, which makes you unpopular. This makes nerds different from geeks. A geek has special interests too, just like nerds, but a geek doesn't flaunt their knowledge as much because a geek has better social skills and is more popular.

YOUR ALL WRONG! A NERD IS THE LITTLE CANDY THAT I LOVE SO MUCH! :evil:


But seriously, the definition of a term changes all the time. You cant just state "this is how it is" and not expect it to change.

The term "Groovy" use to mean cool. Now it just means old or the person using it is living in the past.


You cant dictate what a SLANG word means.

I consider myself a nerd.
I think the definition changed to fit present day.

And the funny thing is that so-called 'nerds' tend to become wealthy and powerful...

Oh, a funny thing. This quote is taken from the website which I have provided the link for below...

"The first documented use of the word Nerd is in the 1950 Dr. Seuss story, If I Ran the Zoo1, in which a boy named Gerald McGrew made a large number of delightfully extravagant claims as to what he would do, if he were in charge at the zoo. Among these was that he would bring a creature known as a Nerd from the land of Ka-Troo."

http://home.comcast.net/~brons/NerdCorner/nerd.html

I just consider a 'nerd' someone who is interested in learning something new. When I call people nerds, such as myself or my boyfriend,or even some of my friends, I don't say it in a harsh way or mean way for it to be offense.I do not say it to people who I think could hurt their feelings. But I think nerds are quite cool actually. I don't really fit in with the popular people, and nor do I have excellent social skills. But nerds are fine. And I also believe that even the so called "cool" people have their nerdy moments as well. Plus, some people who are considered "nerds" usually end up becoming the people who are wealthy or at least do something good with their lives. However, I'm not saying people who aren't 'nerds' won't do anything with their lives.

I'm still a nerd, however you define it, and I know I am. I'm proud of my grade obsession and love of learning. And I don't mind my lack of social skills.

D:
That makes me a nerd then, I guess~

Haha.
I have friends IRL,
but people say I'm smart
and I'm always way too lazy to do homework ^^

But I agree with Whitebeast...
I'm half Japanese,
and so I notice Japanophiles [though I call them weeaboos?]
pretty easily~

Most of them
really don't care ^^

Yay! Hale to the nerds.
But I think geeks are better.

Are you seriously telling me nerds aren't the those semi-sour candies that are small and crunchy?

Otaku is actually one of many japanese words for 'Home'.

Like Nerd, Geek, and Freak, it has been used to apply to a group of people who are so obsessed with something that they become homebodies. They stay at 'home'.

For a REAL education on Otakus, watch the anime called 'Otaku No Video'. Interspersed amongst the actual Anime are scenes featuring real live Otaku from Japan, ranging from a guy who made his furniture out of Pirated VHS anime tapes, to another who made special goggles to reduce the distortion on his pirated porn channel.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otaku_no_video

Here's the Wiki on it, with more examples of Otaku Depravity.

What one on these boards might call 'Otaku', are more accurately described as 'Bleach Fans, Narutards, Anime Freaks, Fangirls, Yaoi Fangirls, Bishie Lovers, and Inuyasha Girls'. None of this is meant in a derogatory fashion. I myself lay claim to being both a Bleach Fan and a Gamer Chick.

So no...Until you sink to the very deep levels of the Japanese Otaku...you are NOT Otaku, people. You're just fans.

I just wanted to say my little ditty about the subject of Otaku- it has come to be equal to anime nerd in america. Just like Gothic has become a sub culture. (5 points to whomever knows how it got from where it started to where it is now!)

On the topic of nerds. Nerd is a slang term, which somehow came to become a actual clique in high school. A nerd is a nerd. Get over it.

I consider nerds to be uber-geeks; geeks may have some semblance of good social skills, but nerds...not so much. They're more fixated on a thing or on some things, far more so than a geek would be.

I'd like to add that you, wing_goddess, are NOT the sole authority on what 'nerd' really means.

Ahaha, I wear glasses but not really unpopular.
And I do not enjoy studying. -.-

So that doesn't make me a nerd, right? xD
When I take off my glasses they say I look like a whole new person. -.-

honestly with the defination of nerd every single person meets its, know ones sure of themselves all the time, everyone has moments of brillance, nobody can talk all the time, most people have had glasses or contacts, and now adays everyone is hooked on technology.

You just took several misconceptions about nerds, and turned what could have been a good argument into something dumb by merely posting more misconceptions, nerd expert.

A nerd is someone socially awkward and unaware of it.