Marfil

[laepelba]

I'm glad my sentences started such great conversation.

Originally Posted by AngelicaDeAlquezar

We also use it to describe a hard-working person in school. Like "swot", I think.

Juan no va a ir a la fiesta. Es un matado y va a estudiar toda la noche.
Juan isn't going to the party. He's a swot and will be studying the whole night.

I have NEVER heard the word "swot". Never. And I was one! I just looked it up and it truly is a word, and it truly does mean what you say, Malila. But it is definitely NOT commonly used. There are definitely more general terms that are mildly derogatory (like "nerd") and can be used in that context. I guess that if I were trying to say the same thing in English I would say something like: "He is extremely studious ..." or "He is boring and plans to study all night..." or something along those lines.

Interesting.....

[AngelicaDeAlquezar]

Thanks for the note, Lou Ann. I have been called that once by a native speaker, but I never asked about the usage of the word.

I think I'll keep "nerd" for future times. "Matado" has that pejorative meaning.

[laepelba]

Interesting that a native speaker used that word. I'm an educator, and when I was a student I could EASILY have been called that (absolutely and totally boring-ly studious!!) But maybe it's a regional thing, too. Hmm...

Yeah, "nerd" ... don't say "nerd" unless you know the person well and you intend it to be tongue-in-cheek or lovingly teasing. It's really not a nice thing to say. Imagine a playground bully picking on someone who wears old-fashioned clothes and has straight A's. Sometimes we call ourselves "nerd". For example, I'm a photography nerd. I could sit around and read articles about the science of cameras. I'm also a cooking nerd. I love to look online for explanations about WHY yeast works, or how BEST to make pesto. You get the point. I'm poking fun of myself.

[AngelicaDeAlquezar]

"Nerd" is definitely my word there. To call someone "matado" has that offensive content.

No quiero sentarme junto a los matados.
I don't want to seat sit beside the nerds.

Ella siempre llega a tiempo. Es la matadita de la clase.
She's always on time. She's the little nerd of the class. (Here the diminutive is even more insidious).

[laepelba]

Originally Posted by AngelicaDeAlquezar

"Nerd" is definitely my word there. To call someone "matado" has that offensive content.

No quiero sentarme junto a los matados.
I don't want to sit beside the nerds.

Ella siempre llega a tiempo. Es la matadita de la clase.
She's always on time. She's the little nerd of the class. (Here the diminutive is even more insidious).

Note one correction in red....

I'm not sure, but I'm thinking that "nerd" is probably a bit less intense than "matado". Yeah, it's not nice to call someone a "nerd", but it's definitely something that many "nerds" would actually understand/accept about themselves. (I do!)

[poli]

Nerd, as you now know, has a negative and positive connotation. A nerd may lack social skills because they are focused on other things. Sometimes class nerds become top lawyers, or physicists or educators, and the people who poke fun at them end up repairing tires as a career.

[laepelba]

Originally Posted by poli

Nerd, as you now know, has a negative and positive connotation. A nerd may lack social skills because they are focused on other things. Sometimes class nerds become top lawyers, or physicists or educators, and the people who poke fun at them end up repairing tires as a career.

Yes - that is definitely the "joke". Nerds like Bill Gates are the ones who often end up being successful and being the bosses of those who were once the playground bullies.

[AngelicaDeAlquezar]

It's true one can also say "Soy un matado y me gusta serlo" (I'm a nerd and I like to be one), but most of the times the social stigma is present.

@Lou Ann: Indeed.