# Geek, nerd, dork, or "normal"?



## superhappyfunchica (Sep 26, 2009)

How would you define these labels? 
And what do you consider yourself to be?

To me a geek is someone who is obsessed with technology, mostly computers. They have to own or at least know about all the latest gadgets. They're smart, but not necessarily in an academic sense. They're very passionate about their interests and career, and don't care at all about mainstream trends. They are also very creative and imaginative, but don't channel it in the "typical" artistic or musical way. (Doing Photoshop rather than painting something, or making techno music instead of playing an instrument, for example.) Also they are very straight-forward, almost to a fault. They can often seem very robotic. 

A nerd is more socially awkward and more of a loner than a geek. Also very intelligent, but more book smart than they are well versed in technology. I think a lot of "nerd" tendencies can be found in geeks as well, mainly a love of gaming and fantasy. They are into Star Trek, LOTR, Harry Potter, superhero movies, zombies, kung fu, and more obscure things. They might still live at home, have never really dated, avoid going to parties, and would rather be alone. They tend to not be athletic, and not care about what they eat. (Pizza & mountain dew, FTW.)

A dork is of much lesser intelligence than a geek or nerd, but is about as awkward as a nerd, so they can pose as one. They're really just oddballs&#8230;someone who can give you weird vibes and you don't always know why. They don't pick up on social cues at all. They don't act appropriate for the situation. They may have some strange interests, but are not very creative. Rather, they are stunted, adolescent, and confused. They have a hard time speaking in front of a group, and tend to say stupid things. They can be funny, and will sometimes seem cool, but it's hard to take them seriously. They might, with much effort, make themselves into an actual nerd. (Or a norm, but probably not.)

A so-called normal person is just an average Joe or Jane, a regular and uncritical consumer of pop-culture. Someone who follows the trends to a varying degree and cares about being "in." For my age group (early twenties), the normal people are all about parties, bars, getting wasted, hooking up, and occasional drug use. The girls love to shop, collect shoes and purses, the guys play simplistic video games, and watch sports. They follow the script of getting married and having kids, whether they want to or not. They probably stick with the religion they were raised in. They watch reality TV and sitcoms, and enjoy top 40 music or mainstream country/hip hop. They don't care about knowledge, much less wisdom. They care about the status quo. 

Me, I'm kinda a norm, mixed with dork, aspiring to be a full-on nerd, and maybe someday, a semi-geek.


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## AlwaysOnTheOutside (Jan 11, 2010)

Hmm, briefly:

Geek: really into technology usually, but could be a "math geek", "science geek", etc. obsessed with 1 particular subject of a left brain variety

Nerd: very smart person, academic in nature, actually somewhat en vogue in the past decade or so

Dork: someone who says weird or trite things, occasionally of an intellectual variety, but more often out of place and they don't realize it

I have heard nerd and dork used in a positive expression on numerous occasions, but can't say the same for geek.


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## bezoomny (Feb 10, 2007)

The distinctions as I knew them in the good ol' days of high school:

Geek - computery/MMORPG/Trekkie/etc.

Nerd - bookish/stupidly intellectual, almost always a loner

Dork - really socially awkward, more an insult than an actual class of people


I was constantly called a nerd all throughout high school (I still am called that, but it's more of a general descriptor now than an insult). I suppose I am one, my only major interest all throughout life has been the study of Latin.


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## erasercrumbs (Dec 17, 2009)

Using the criteria of the original post, I'm a dork.


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## Tristram (Feb 9, 2008)

I suppose I'm a mix of geek and nerd.


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## superhappyfunchica (Sep 26, 2009)

"Nerds are smart, Geeks know a lot, and Dorks argue the difference







"


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## neurotic1 (May 17, 2009)

It's kind of insulting to be called any of those, including normal. I'd like to think of myself as a human being.


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## Tristram (Feb 9, 2008)

^^ Oh absolutely, if a random douche calls me a geek, I might get offended, but just like "n*gger", it's a word that may as well have a neutral or positive meaning depending on context.


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## matty (Nov 2, 2009)

I am all of the above on any day. But I dont mind, it is who I am


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## Hank Scorpio (Oct 28, 2008)

I'm mostly a dork.


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## superhappyfunchica (Sep 26, 2009)

I'd rather be some kinda freak than no freak at all.


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## coldmorning (Jul 4, 2007)

I'm a gnerd.


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## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

My boyfriend calls me a dork all the time. Sweet, right? :b


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## papaSmurf (Jun 16, 2008)

I maintain that I am mostly a goof.


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## rdrr (Dec 31, 2008)

im all of those things rolled into one awesome dude.


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## superhappyfunchica (Sep 26, 2009)

rdrr said:


> im all of those things rolled into one awesome dude.


I think that's the best way to be.


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## blahgman (Jan 27, 2010)

haha I believe I'm in between a nerd and a dork


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## huh (Mar 19, 2007)

I'd mostly define them the same as the OP. The only thing I would add is that I typically think of a geek as someone who seems to be obsessed with a certain topic (normally technology related) and a nerd as someone who enjoys intellectual activities in general.

Anyways, I fall somewhere between a geek and a nerd. I'm probably more of a nerd than I am a geek though.


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## steelmyhead (May 31, 2009)

I think I'm a little bit of all three.


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## tlgibson97 (Sep 24, 2009)

According to a stupid online quiz I took a while back, I'm a dork.


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## JimmyDeansRetartedCousin (Nov 28, 2009)

I don't think you can put anybody into a category, It just doesn't work. Unless they have SA and they are nerdy dorkface, like me=) ^seriously though.


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## Steelfox (Nov 10, 2003)

I don't think they have come up with a category to put me in yet. As soon as someone comes up with one I will change by behavior to no longer meet the requirements. i like being unclassifiable.


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## Roberto (Aug 16, 2004)

Dork is another word for penis. I have one of those. :blank


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## Roberto (Aug 16, 2004)

:bat


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## Dane (Jul 27, 2009)

I would more or less agree with your defenitions of geek and nerd. 

As I think someone else said, dork is more of a general insult as I understand it, or maybe meaning simply an awkward and un-perceptive person.

I have some nerdish qualities - not smart or obsessed enough to be a geek.


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## userabuser (Jan 21, 2010)

a normal.


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## Akane (Jan 2, 2008)

http://www.okcupid.com/tests/the-nerd-geek-or-dork-test

I think I actually scored normal. How boring.


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## bezoomny (Feb 10, 2007)

Akane said:


> http://www.okcupid.com/tests/the-nerd-geek-or-dork-test
> 
> I think I actually scored normal. How boring.


I got 96% Nerd. :blank


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## papaSmurf (Jun 16, 2008)

Akane said:


> http://www.okcupid.com/tests/the-nerd-geek-or-dork-test
> 
> I think I actually scored normal. How boring.


According to that test I am 78% nerd. Who knew?

I still maintain that I'm more of a goof than anything else, however.


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## PlayerOffGames (Mar 19, 2007)

all four


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## unnameable (Feb 5, 2010)

I've always had a sneaking suspicion that alot of anxiety (both mine and others, social and otherwise) derives from the characteristically western desire to put (force) things/people into stupid, one-dimensional, arbitrarily defined boxes such as these.

For what it's worth I tend to think of geeks as being as slightly more technology obsessed than nerds, and perhaps slightly less intelligent. I tend to think of dorks as people who achieve nothing, and come off as complete goofballs (regardless of whether or not they are in fact socially awkward or not, popular or unpopular)

I avoided socializing throughout the greater part of high school, primarily because I could see through these stupid, superficial labels that people felt compelled to attach to one and other.And also because I had absolutely no respect for anyone who chose to believe that they have any significance. Whether that makes me socially awkward or just a ******* I'm not sure. Either way I don't really care. 

I suspect that people's perception of me as a "weird" outsider is a much bigger problem for me than the anxiety itself. In some cases it seems to stem from the fact that I refuse to share their one-dimensional social values, or acknowledge their importance by making a point of conversing with them. It seems to me that people these days are so narcissistic that they think they "deserve" to be talked to/acknowledged. I would beg to differ in most cases.


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## person987 (Jan 22, 2010)

> Originally Posted by Akane
> http://www.okcupid.com/tests/the-nerd-geek-or-dork-test
> 
> I think I actually scored normal. How boring.


57 % Nerd/22% Geek/39% Dork. Heh...


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## Dane (Jul 27, 2009)

52% nerd 26% geek 17% dork

humm....


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## mechuga (Dec 2, 2009)

Akane said:


> http://www.okcupid.com/tests/the-nerd-geek-or-dork-test
> 
> I think I actually scored normal. How boring.


Pure nerd


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## erasercrumbs (Dec 17, 2009)

Akane said:


> http://www.okcupid.com/tests/the-nerd-geek-or-dork-test
> 
> I think I actually scored normal. How boring.


Pure bunk! It said that I'm a "Computer Savant." Hokum!

Although, it did correctly label me a massive dork. Ball's in your court, internet.


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## secretlyshecries (Sep 10, 2009)

Hahaha, wow. I fit into the geek one so well.


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## Mr. Frostie (Nov 2, 2008)

Probably geek because I have a few narrow areas of interest that I obsessively pursue. I'm not really big into stereotypical geek things like computers, video games, and sci fi/fantasy things, though. I'm more into film and art.


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## Man Is An Island (Oct 12, 2009)

Good test. 61% dork. Makes sense. Surprised it wasn't higher.


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## millenniumman75 (Feb 4, 2005)

nerdy and normal.....with a little jock thrown in - I have been a runner for nearly 10 years.


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## Fuzzy Logic (Sep 16, 2009)

> Do you have?
> 
> A large circle of friends and acquaintences. A small group of friends.


Um, there isn't an option for none. What do I do?


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## gg87 (Sep 26, 2006)

^ That question threw me off too. I wasn't so sure how to answer. It used to be A for me, but it hasn't been that way for a long time, so I went with the second option.

I got dork, but nerd was a close second. I can't say that I'm too surprised by the results haha.


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## NerdyGirl (Jul 29, 2010)

*I am totally a Nerd!*



Hank Scorpio said:


>


Then i am most definately a Nerd!


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## jane (Jan 30, 2006)

Mostly I'm a spaz.


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## rawrguy (Mar 29, 2008)

neurotic1 said:


> It's kind of insulting to be called any of those, including normal. I'd like to think of myself as a human being.


^This. Personally I'm not too big a fan of labels. I do think can really be a "dork" sometimes. A fun-loving person of lower intelligence


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## Georgina 22 (Jan 4, 2009)

I'm probably a dork lol


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## tutliputli (Feb 22, 2009)

I'm a big fat dork :cry


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## silentcliche (Jun 30, 2010)

I am a proud geek. *pushes up glasses*


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## Cerberus (Feb 13, 2005)

Pure Nerd


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## Paul (Sep 26, 2005)

Akane said:


> http://www.okcupid.com/tests/the-nerd-geek-or-dork-test


Pure Dork: 30 % Nerd, 39% Geek, 61% Dork

Bah. I wanna be a geek.


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## Belshazzar (Apr 12, 2010)

I wouldn't call myself a dork -- that would be like calling myself a putz or a Richard Noggin (i.e., dickhead).

The nerd/geek debate amongst the nerd/geek community amuses me. A geek was a guy who bit off the heads of live animals at the circus. Nerd is a word from a Dr. Seuss book. The new definitions seem rather arbitrary and specific to the person who uses them. I just use nerd because Dr. Seuss is awesome and it's way more fun to shout "NEEEEEEEEEEEEERDS!"


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## Misanthropic (Jun 25, 2010)

I guess I`m a `nerd`although I do care about my health and I`m not interested in some of the things on your list.


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## SilentOrchestra (Jul 26, 2010)

I'm defiantly a Nerd. *Goes back to playing videos games interspersed with flipping through several comic books.*


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## rawrguy (Mar 29, 2008)

SilentOrchestra567 said:


> I'm defiantly a Nerd. *Goes back to playing videos games interspersed with flipping through several comic books.*


That is really really awesome


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## Freiheit (Dec 8, 2008)

To me, a geek is basically someone that is really into some sort of subject or area and is pretty much an expert at it, not only limited to technology. 

A nerd is someone who does really well academically, but isn't necessarily socially awkward. ( I've know really "book smart" nerdy people that are very social, and also geeky at the same time.)

A dork, is well, someone that's not really considered "cool."

Normal is typically the average follower of trends and mainstream stuff.

I think I'm a mixture of all 4.


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## millenniumman75 (Feb 4, 2005)

I already answered this! :lol


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## Magical Delusional (Apr 28, 2010)

74% nerd, 26% geek, 39% dork

Yup, I'm a nerd.


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## Mae West (Sep 15, 2005)

This is a funny thread! I've been called all of these things at some point in my life. I've also been called cool, sexy, funny, shy, quiet, smart, sensitive. I don't think labels mean a thing.


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## SOME (Jul 13, 2009)

Hmm. I don't think I fall into any of those. I fall into the creep category.:bat


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## Lasair (Jan 25, 2010)

My brother calls me a nerd and then one day I told my best friend this and she said "well you kinda are" So I guess nerd I am

Although 

I do not like gaming and fantasy on a crazy level, I also do not like Star Trek, LOTR, Harry Potter, superhero movies, zombies, kung fu  And I do care about what I eat


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## Dub16 (Feb 28, 2010)

jhanniffy said:


> My brother calls me a nerd and then one day I told my best friend this and she said "well you kinda are" So I guess nerd I am
> 
> Although
> 
> I do not like gaming and fantasy on a crazy level, I also do not like Star Trek, LOTR, Harry Potter, superhero movies, zombies, kung fu  And I do care about what I eat


The least nerdy nerd in history so


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## EmptyRoom (Jul 28, 2010)

I always I thought geek, nerd, and dork fell into the same category
In any case I'm all 3


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## Lasair (Jan 25, 2010)

Dub16 said:


> The least nerdy nerd in history so


Well someone has to break the stereotype


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## CabecitaSilenciosa (Jun 8, 2010)

I got "Joe Normal", 43% Nerd, 30% Geek, 48% Dork. That's about right. I've never really been any of those things, but I do have my geeky and dorky moments.


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## feelgoodlost (Jul 14, 2010)

Another geek-nerd-dork combo person here. I think I have a bit of normal in me too but i'm still not sure what that is.


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## VivaEmptinessRoses (Mar 31, 2010)

I guess I would consider myself a geek.


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## Monroee (Aug 26, 2009)

A snob.


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## feels (Jun 18, 2010)

Although I get called all three by my family, I'd definitely say I'm just a big dork.
I also scored 70% dork on that OKCupid test.


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## RJF (Mar 29, 2010)

For the most part, I agree with the first post. 

I'm not really sure what I'd classify myself as. Like so many other people, I believe that I defy categorization, that I possess aspects of too many different groups to belong to a single one. To properly align myself with the purposes of this thread, I'll adopt the perspective of one looking into the pond, rather than out of it. 

If you had stepped into my life at any point from late elementary school to early middle school and taken a poll of my peers, they would have unanimously declared me a nerd. I read fantasy books in math class, argued with my social studies teachers, had poor social skills and even worse self-esteem. 

I have no idea what people would classify me as any more. Different people tend to view me as a different thing, depending on their own status within the social hierarchy.


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## estse (Nov 18, 2003)

I'm just a hypocrite and a liar. And a dragon slayer.


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## Cest La Vie (Feb 17, 2010)

Pure Dork: 39 % Nerd, 13% Geek, 70% Dork

Very befitting, although I wish I was more of a nerd.


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## xxkaijuxx (Oct 6, 2010)

I'd say I am a nerd. I watch anime, read graphic novels and manga, have read and watched all the Harry Potter movies and books and plan on dressing as a Death Eater for the last movies... I have Resident Evil and Gir from Invader Zim tattoos... If I get to go to ComiCon ever, I plan on cosplaying as Jill Valentine.. Pretty book smart. I own the Zombie Survival Guide and have a Zombie Squad card in my wallet where my license should be... Yea, definitely a nerd=^_^=


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## Brightpaperwarewolf (Oct 16, 2008)

I'm a mix of all 4, in a jack of all trades, master of none kind of way.


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## Gorillaz (Jul 13, 2010)

48 % Nerd, 13% Geek, 35% Dork


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## DeeperUnderstanding (May 19, 2007)

I definitely am a nerd.


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## anomalous (Jun 12, 2004)

Somewhere between geek and nerd.


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## centrino (Sep 27, 2010)

74 % Nerd, 4% Geek, 39% Dork

Pure Nerd

I agree.


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## Eugenie (Feb 17, 2009)

I scored Pure Nerd on the test. I'm fine with that.:b


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## OrbitalResonance (Sep 21, 2010)

I am a Normal +1 Space Geek +2 with nerdy tendencies when it comes to infomation.


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## NaturalLogOfZero (Sep 29, 2010)

That quiz was hilarious

60% Nerd, 49% Geek, 55% Dork.

I lol'd at the question "have you been trying to figure out which question relates to which adjective?" hells yes I have!!!

my distinction was Tri-lamb material, which is hilarious!!! Revenge of the Nerds was one of my favorite movies growing up until I developed a movie taste...


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## NaturalLogOfZero (Sep 29, 2010)

I should get extra nerd points for my nickname....


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## sash (Nov 16, 2009)

I'm into Sci-fi movies and tv shows...I LOVE superhero movies. I've always had a 4.0 GPA. I've always been a loner, but have been called friendly and like-able once you get to know me. I've worn glasses most of my life.

Sash=nerd


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## Arkturus (Dec 10, 2006)

I some kind of nerd/geek combintion.


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## orchdorch925 (Aug 26, 2010)

nerd all the way


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## ItemEleven (Apr 1, 2009)

It's all about how you look.

Guy Geek/Nerd = usually has sloping shoulders, is pale, bad teeth, strange head shape, some ugly feature like a mole, looks weak, bad posture... Just one or two of these is enough.

When you google geeks you get this

glasses, shoulders, skinny, pale









Pale, scrawny, bad posture, teeth










Scrawny, Glasses, No jawline










Weak/Scrawny










When you google jocks you get...... Notice that they aren't just muscly and tanned. They also have different facial features (a different head shape)... different skin... etc. A jock would still be a jock even if he stopped working out and stayed indoors for 8 weeks.


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## Manic Monkey (Sep 6, 2010)

I was under the impression "geek", "nerd" and "dork" had the same definitions, to be honest, while no one is normal, meaning it has no definition. Not wanting to insult myself, I'll say I am "unique".


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## ItemEleven (Apr 1, 2009)

To be fair I googled geek girl too


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## kc1895 (Sep 4, 2009)

*Teased at work*



Hank Scorpio said:


> I'm mostly a dork.


So I printed out this venn diagram at work for the amusement of my coworkers. We laughed about it at first and I even wrote my boss's name inside the "nerd" section. I gave it to him, and he started putting names of everybody on the circles. There was one name in every section, and so mine landed on "social ineptitude". :roll


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## TheTruthIsOutThere (Apr 10, 2012)

I'm your normal average guy who enjoys guy things for the most part. Except sports. I'm really boring actually. I mean, this post only has 4 sentences in it.


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## Ape in space (May 31, 2010)

I'm definitely a nerd. I'm in a nerdy field, I'm socially awkward, and I get obsessed with weird stuff. That Venn diagram I think needs a little bit of modification by adding a fourth circle, but it's mostly correct.


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## GuyMontag (Dec 12, 2010)

Probably a geek or a dork.


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## Ramon (May 24, 2011)

****'in damn I'm a Dork


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## Selbbin (Aug 10, 2010)

I considered the definitions of dork, nerd, normal, dweeb and geek, and realized that out of all of them, I'm an idiot.


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## coeur_brise (Oct 7, 2004)

I'm a dweeb, very socially handicapped yet not enough nerdy interests to be a nerd. Not smart enough to be on the math team either... gaaahhh *nerd grunt*


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## River In The Mountain (Jun 6, 2011)

Probably a mixture of all, though I live in denial and purposefully avoid the things that might further cement my status. 25%Nerd, 15%Geek ,20% Dork, 5% Normal and the rest is just empty space.


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## RawrJessiRawr (Nov 3, 2010)

Wow, in my town when someone says dork, they are calling you cute, silly and funny  im a dork but it has nothing to do with my intelligence. Just like weird can have different types, either your just weird and out there, creepy weird or cute weird, ect.


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## JustThisGuy (Mar 24, 2012)

I guess I'll go with nerd.


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## chantellabella (May 5, 2012)

superhappyfunchica said:


> How would you define these labels?
> And what do you consider yourself to be?
> 
> A nerd is more socially awkward and more of a loner than a geek. Also very intelligent, but more book smart than they are well versed in technology. I think a lot of "nerd" tendencies can be found in geeks as well, mainly a love of gaming and fantasy. They are into *Star Trek,* They tend to not be athletic, and not care about what they eat. (Pizza & *mountain dew*, FTW.)


I'm definitely a Nerd


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## cybernaut (Jul 30, 2010)

A good mix of geek and nerd. I love technology& video games, and I always study my *** off when it comes to education,have an interest in keeping up-to-date with the news, and enjoy researching.

I'm no where close to normal,I will say.


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## Farideh (Nov 13, 2011)

I definitely consider myself to be normal. I am none of those categories at all except for normal.


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