whoreson

English

Etymology

From Middle English horesone, hureson (also horessone, hores sone), equivalent to whore +‎ son. Compare Dutch hoerenzoon, German Hurensohn (“whoreson”).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈhɔːsən/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈhɔɹ.sən/
• Rhymes: -ɔː(ɹ)sən

Noun

whoreson (plural whoresons)

1. (obsolete, archaic) Often used as a term of abuse: an illegitimate or misbegotten child born of unwed parents.
   • c. 1595–1596 (date written), W. Shakespere [i.e., William Shakespeare], A Pleasant Conceited Comedie Called, Loues Labors Lost. […] (First Quarto), London: […] W[illiam] W[hite] for Cut[h]bert Burby, published 1598, →OCLC; republished as Shakspere’s Loves Labours Lost (Shakspere-Quarto Facsimiles; no. 5), London: W[illiam] Griggs, […], [1880], →OCLC, [Act IV, scene iii]:

     Ah, you whoreſon loggerhead, you were borne to do me ſhame.

   • c. 1603–1606, William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of King Lear”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene i]:

     Though this knave came something saucily to the world before he was sent for, yet was his mother fair, there was good sport at his making, and the whoreson must be acknowledged.

2. (literally) The son of a whore.

   Ploughing whoreson!

Synonyms

• bastard; see also Thesaurus:bastard

Descendants

• → Welsh: hwrswn

Translations

illegitimate child — see also bastard

• Arabic: ابن زنا (ibn zina), ابن شرموطة (ibn sharmoota), ابن عاهرة (ibn 3aahirah)

  Egyptian Arabic: ابن الشرموطة (ibn iš-šarmuuTa), ابن القحبة (ibn el-'aHba), ابن المتناكة (ibn el-mitnaka)

• Bulgarian: копеле (bg) n (kopele)
• Finnish: huoranpenikka (fi)
• German: Hurensohn (de)
• Hungarian: kurafi (hu) (archaic)
• Russian: су́кин сын (ru) m (súkin syn)
• Swedish: horunge (sv)
• Vietnamese: con đẻ hoang
• Welsh: hwrswn

Adjective

whoreson (not comparable)

1. (obsolete) mean; base; worthless