OK, I'm feelin' new here again; "snarky" is DU speak for...?

[Seabiscuit]

Or is it the lastest teeny-booper code-word?

Where does this kind of language come from and why does it keep popping up in DU threads?

Does anyone know (1) what it means, and (2) its origin?

[LynzM]

1. Snarky is pretty much

Like sassy, or a little bit standoffish, as far as I know...

dictionary.com thinks of it in a less positive light:

snark·y P Pronunciation Key (snärk)
adj. Slang snark·i·er, snark·i·est
Irritable or short-tempered; irascible

[Luminous Animal]

2. I find that a lot of people misuse it.

1. snarky

(adjective) describes a witty mannerism, personality, or behavior that is a combination of sarcasm and cynicism. Usually accepted as a complimentary term. Snark is sometimes mistaken for a snotty or arrogant attitude.


"Her snarky remarks had half the room on the floor laughing and the other half ready to walk out."

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=snarky

[Seabiscuit]

3. Amazing. I didn't know it was in any dictionary. Never heard of it.

Then again, I didn't bother to look.

But I just noticed that the link provided is for an online slang dictionary - where people can make up their own words and create their own meanings.

So although (1) is now answered, I still wonder about the origin of "snarky" slang.

[GreenPartyVoter]

4. I associate it most with Brits.

[Seabiscuit]

5. Why?

[GreenPartyVoter]

10. Because I think I first heard it on a BritCom show.:^)

[Luminous Animal]

7. According to word detective...

It's from Britain.

http://www.word-detective.com/112304.html

""Snarky" is an adjective meaning "critical in a sly, sarcastic, cynical but humorous way." Much of modern humor, especially political humor, is snarky. David Letterman and Jon Stewart are routinely "snarky," for instance. "Snarky" humor is often said to be a recent development, but I remember Johnny Carson and even Bob Hope being fairly "snarky" in their days.

The other sort of "snark" is a British dialect word meaning "to criticize or nag," related to "snore" and "snort," the most likely connection between "snark" and "snort" being the derisive snort of contempt that accompanies many "snarky" comments. "

[Sparkly]

9. I guess I never thought of it as referring to wit or humor

I think of it as caustic, mean or vicious, but in an abrupt, cutting way. Like a sneaky shark -- snarky.

[jonnyblitz]

6. it is universal, not just DUspeak. dictionary.com says:

"Irritable or short-tempered; irascible."

I heard it used elsewhere before I saw it on DU.

[fob]

8. Whoa! First tell us what a teeny-booper is. We had teeny-boppers

growing up, I think I may have been one for a few years, but never a teeny-booper, that's just...wrong!

:evilgrin:

[ET Awful]

11. Teeny boopers are teeny boppers that like Betty Boop :)

[Seabiscuit]

20. There ya go! Now THAT's making the best out of a typo.

:P

[Withywindle]

12. I've been hearing it for years

...all over the place. Sarcasm, cutting wit. Usually not perjorative, more like, "Ha, that was some damn good snark!" or "She's a snarky bitch and I love it."

[LittleClarkie]

13. bitchiness covers it, but a sort of humorous bitchiness

like Bette Davis.

But how humorous someone finds a snarky comment can depend on how fair one thinks that comment is. Sometimes I think that Time or Newsweek or the cable news shows are being snarky, and perhaps some find them humorous, but if their being snarky about us and ours, we're not going to find that amusing, if you know what I mean.

[bunny planet]

14. Snarky is an attitude. Its a witty, sarcastic attitude, a little pissed

off, but funny. Perfect example, Keith Olberman on Countdown (check out the Countdown group on DU, you will find lots of discussions on the finer points of snark!)

[DemBones DemBones]

15. I've been using the word "snarky" since circa 1964. nt

[DemBones DemBones]

16. I think "snidely sarcastic" is a good definition. nt

[Catherine Vincent]

17. It's one of those words that you use and don't realize it.

I used it a while back when talking about Gannon and didn't notice the word until after I read my post.

Weird, I know.

[El Fuego]

18. "The Hunting of the Snark" by Lewis Carroll (1891)

Fit the Eighth:
The Vanishing

They sought it with thimbles, they sought it with care;
They pursued it with forks and hope;
They threatened its life with a railway-share;
They charmed it with smiles and soap.
They shuddered to think that the chase might fail,
And the Beaver, excited at last,
Went bounding along on the tip of its tail,
For the daylight was nearly past.

"There is Thingumbob shouting!" the Bellman said.
"He is shouting like mad, only hark!
He is waving his hands, he is wagging his head,
He has certainly found a Snark!"

They gazed in delight, while the Butcher exclaimed
"He was always a desperate wag!"
They beheld him--their Baker--their hero unnamed--
On the top of a neighbouring crag,

Erect and sublime, for one moment of time,
In the next, that wild figure they saw
(As if stung by a spasm) plunge into a chasm,
While they waited and listened in awe.

"It's a Snark!" was the sound that first came to their ears,
And seemed almost too good to be true.
Then followed a torrent of laughter and cheers:
Then the ominous words "It's a Boo--"

Then, silence. Some fancied they heard in the air
A weary and wandering sigh
That sounded like "--jum!" but the others declare
It was only a breeze that went by.

They hunted till darkness came on, but they found
Not a button, or feather, or mark,
By which they could tell that they stood on the ground
Where the Baker had met with the Snark.

In the midst of the word he was trying to say
In the midst of his laughter and glee,
He had softly and suddenly vanished away--
For the Snark was a Boojum, you see.

[Seabiscuit]

21. Ah... yes... the mythical creature in Lewis Carroll...

that might explain its British roots.

I don't watch British comedy shows, and none of the people I've known personally ever used the expression, so when I started noticing it being used here on DU I really had no idea what people were talking about when they said "snarky".

Thanks everyone.

[sueh]

19. Hmm, snarky. Makes me think of Mike Malloy:)) n/t