# Is the word imbeciles prohibited?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-word-imbeciles-prohibited/991961>\
**Category:** About This Message Board\
**Created:** [October 23, 2023, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-word-imbeciles-prohibited/991961 "2023-10-23T16:07:16Z")\
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**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\
**Post date:** [October 23, 2023, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-word-imbeciles-prohibited/991961/7 "2023-10-23T16:36:04Z")

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> [@Mama\_Zappa](#):
>
> Agreed, though in the context of the referenced poll, it looks like more along the offensive-slur line, vs targeted at politicians. Had some of the answers been “their party line” or some such, I might feel differently.

100%–I was very closely paraphrasing the referenced poll with my “obnoxious” example. Here’s the offending post:

> [@Polls only: No discussion](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polls-only-no-discussion/953642/4067):
>
> Can imbeciles dribble? [poll](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polls-only-no-discussion/953642/4067)

> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#):
>
> Were Men Without Hats being offensive when they sang “I can act like an imbecile” (in “The Safety Dance”)?

I don’t think so: there, “imbecile” is used to reference the singer, who clearly isn’t someone with a mental impairment, and it’s used in the sense of “fool.” If you say someone’s acting like a fool, you’re not referencing someone with a developmental disability.

That lyric is much closer to “That politician’s an imbecile,” only it’s even less cutting.

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