In the battle of the nicknames, it is now “Rocket Man” vs. the “Dotard.”
Although President Donald Trump’s label for North Korean leader Kim Jong Un sent millions humming the melody of the Elton John song, “Rocket Man,” Kim’s use of the word “dotard” was more of a head-scratcher.
Kim’s writers pulled out the word when crafting the fiery response Kim delivered to Trump U.N. speech.
“I will surely and definitely tame the mentally deranged U.S. dotard with fire,” Kim said in the translated version of a speech in which he accused Trump of “mentally deranged behavior” responding to a speech he dismissed as “unprecedented rude nonsense.”
Meanings can get lost in translation, but when U.S. News & World report looked into what Kim said in Korean, it came out as “old beast lunatic” before it was translated as “dotard.” Others found similar versions.
Merriam-Webster ✔ @MerriamWebster
📈 Kim Jong Un calls Trump a mentally deranged U.S. dotard. Searches for 'dotard' are high as a kite. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dotard …
Definition of DOTARD
a person in his or her dotage… See the full definition
merriam-webster.com
Merriam-Webster gleefully noted the spike in searches for the arcane word, and provided an explanation of what it meant.
“The word as used today commonly means ‘a person in his or her dotage,'” it wrote, noting that dotage is “a state or period of senile decay marked by decline of mental poise and alertness.”
Merriam-Webster noted that when the insult began back in the 14th century it more or less meant “imbecile.”
The insult sparked a Twitter row.
do·tard (dōdərd) noun
A word you didn't previously know existed, but googled today and said, "Damn, that's pretty accurate."
The liberals are so hateful towards Trump, they are defending a vicious dictator in North Korea. Let that sink in. #dotard
A former Associated Press writer suggested a prosaic explanation for the strange word choice.
Both need to stop exchanging taunts & threats. Lives & futures of 75 million people living on Korean Peninsula should not be trifled with
“They’re using very old Korean-English dictionaries,” wrote Jean H. Lee on Twitter.