Skip to main content
duffer

duffer

3 7.9
A person who is not good at a sport or other activity
  • noun
  • /ˈdʌfər/
  • Offensive
translation icon : inepto
  • No one watches TV anymore except old duffers like us.
  • an old duffer
  • a weekend duffer
  • golf for duffers

Examples

  • But it was some old duffer named W.C.

    Fiction book (2000)
  • You old duffer!

  • Why should you remember an old duffer like me?

  • What a duffer he seemed to be!

    Fiction book (1994)
  • Buck, are you a duffer?

  • You're a real duffer, you know?

  • I knew you weren't a duffer.

  • Burnside's turning into a duffer...

    Fiction book (1996)
  • You're still very youthful; how can this old duffer hope to keep up with you?

    Fiction book (1994)
  • Despite his best efforts, he was just a duffer on the soccer field, often tripping over the ball.

Synonyms

lump
vsduffer
  • Offensive
35 7.7

A person who is awkward or slow to do things

is mainly used for poor performance in sports or physical tasks
hoser
vsduffer
  • Offensive
4 9.9

A person who behaves foolishly and cannot be trusted

is more neutral and used for clumsy incompetence in activities
lamebrain
vsduffer
  • Offensive
3 9.3

A person who is not very smart

focuses on lack of physical skill in activities rather than low intelligence
bumbler
vsduffer
  • Offensive
2 8.3

A person who often makes mistakes and seems clumsy

is used especially to describe poor skill in sports or activities
stumblebum
vsduffer
  • Offensive
1 9.9

A person who is clumsy and acts in a silly, awkward way

is commonly used to describe poor performance in sports or outdoor activities
gomer
vsduffer
  • Offensive
1 9.9

A person who acts silly or clumsy and makes others laugh

is more often used for poor sport skill than general silliness
botcher
vsduffer
  • Offensive
1 9.2

A person who does a job badly because they are not skilled

is used especially for lack of ability in sports or active pastimes
fumbler
vsduffer
1 6.5

A person who often makes mistakes because they lack skill

is mainly applied to poor physical performance in games or sports
blunderer
vsduffer
1 7.8

A person who often makes serious mistakes because they are careless

is mainly used for someone unskilled in sports or physical tasks
muddler
vsduffer
  • Offensive
1 8.2

A person who causes confusion by making things more complicated

is focused on physical clumsiness in activities rather than confusion
bodger
vsduffer
  • Offensive
9.7

A person who does work in a careless or clumsy way

is often used for poor ability in games or athletic activities
goobers
vsduffer
  • Slang
9.4

A person who acts in a silly or clumsy way

is a more neutral term for incompetence often in sports
total nozzer
vsduffer
  • Offensive
9.9

A person who acts very foolishly and cannot do simple tasks

is often used specifically for poor skill in sport rather than general foolishness
dumb fucker
vsduffer
  • Offensive
9.9

A very rude name used to insult someone who does something very stupid

is less vulgar and often used for poor sporting or activity skill

Antonyms

32 6.0

Able to do a job or activity well because of practice

3 3.5

Very skilled and knowing a lot about a particular area

How Skilled

expert
3 3.5
competent
114 3.6
novice
46 3.4
duffer
  • Offensive
3 7.9

Surface Forms

duffer singular
duffers plural

Morphology

duffer = duff (semi-transparent) = duff + er

The word is formed regularly from slang duff plus the agentive suffix -er, yielding the sense of a person who is bad or inept.

Etymology

The word duffer probably comes from an older word duff or the verb to duff, which once meant 'to hit badly' or 'worthless stuff'. A helpful way to remember it is to picture someone who 'duffs' a shot and keeps missing, so a duffer today means a clumsy or incompetent person, often in sport.