What is a 'git'?

Question

I've come across this word quite a few times lately, especially in the Harry Potter books (yes, I read them), and I haven't been able to figure out what one is.

Answer 1

According to Webster, a "git" is a "a foolish or worthless person", British usage.

Answer 2

From before 1300 a 'get' was what had been begotten, a child or offspring. By about 1500 it had started to be used in Scotland and northern England in the sense of misbegotten, a b@stard; from there it became a general term of abuse for a fool or idiot. By about 1700 'get' seems to have lapsed into slang or dialect, only to reappear in the wider language in the 1940's with a different spelling and lacking the associations with illegitimacy. James Joyce uses the older spelling (and meaning) in Ulysses in 1922: 'The bloody thicklugged sons of whores' gets!' These days, it's a widely known and used term of abuse in Britain for somebody regarded as totally worthless or useless, most commonly appearing in cries of frustration such as 'that stupid git, now look what he's done!'.

When I was a youth in the 1960's we used the word 'get' rather than 'git' and, at that time, it was a relatively newly resurrected term, of abuse. Unfortunately due to the strange accents to be found in London (The cockney accent is particularly bad) the word 'get' became corrupted so that it sounded like 'git' and became universally adopted. Nowadays you hardly hear someone called a 'Stupid get' although I have heard it in the North of England.

The word 'get' is short for 'beget' or to be born, often used for illegitimate children hence the slight insult in using it.

Answer 3

Git may have several meanings:

Git, a mild slang insult of British origin.
Git (software), a file system aimed at revision control systems started by Linus Torvalds.

Answer 4

GIT means:

"1. A completely ignorant, childish person with no manners.
2. A person who feels justified in his callow behaviour.
3. A pubescent kid who thinks it's totally cool to act like a moron on the internet, only because no one can actually reach through the screen and punch their lights out."

Other meanings: Idiot, Jerk

Source:

Urban Dictionary

Answer 5

Two definitions from the Collins English Dictionary.
1) (Brit. slang) a contemptible person, often a fool.
2) a *******.

Answer 6

It's a derogatory term to call someone a 'git' - I was told as a kid that its real meaning was 'a pregnant camel' !!

Answer 7

A completely ignorant

Answer 8

git
Anoun
1 rotter, dirty dog, rat, skunk, stinker, stinkpot, bum, puke, crumb, lowlife, scum bag, so-and-so, git
a person who is deemed to be despicable or contemptible; "only a rotter would do that"; "kill the rat"; "throw the bum out"; "you cowardly little pukes!"; "the British call a contemptible person a `git'"

Answer 9

Cowboy slang for leave?

Answer 10

It's British slang for jerk.