nut
nut — verb
1. to deliberately hit someone with the front or top of your head, especially as a
to deliberately hit someone with the front or top of your head, especially as a violent attack during a fight or argument
Owen nutted the man who had insulted his girlfriend at the pub.
informal: nut + person for headbutting in a fight
During the fight outside the nightclub, Hyun was nutted by one of the bouncers.
passive: be nutted by [someone]
Sirin threatened to nut anyone who tried to steal her phone on the train.
threaten + to nut + person
The referee sent Tunde off the pitch after he nutted another player.
- nut someone
- get nutted
- threaten to nut someone
- headbutt
the more standard term in neutral and formal contexts; 'nut' is slangier and more informal
Grammar Patterns
nut + noun/pronoun (person)
Usage Note
This meaning is informal and mainly used in British English. It describes a violent action in fights or aggressive confrontations between two people.
Common Mistakes
2. to search for and collect nuts from trees or the ground, especially as an outdoo
to search for and collect nuts from trees or the ground, especially as an outdoor activity in autumn
In the past, village children would go nutting in the woods every autumn.
go + nutting (gerund form of the verb)
Kabir and his grandfather went nutting for hazelnuts along the riverbank.
go + nutting + for [type of nut]
The old autumn tradition of nutting in the forest has almost completely died out.
Minho remembered going nutting with his grandmother when he was six years old.
- go nutting
- nut for hazelnuts
- nutting season
Grammar Patterns
go + nutting
nut + for + type of nut
Usage Note
This meaning is old-fashioned and rarely used in modern English. The phrase 'go nutting' may still appear in historical writing, folk songs, or rural dialects.
nut — noun
1. Small dry fruits with a hard outer shell that grow on trees and can be eaten. Co
Small dry fruits with a hard outer shell that grow on trees and can be eaten. Common examples include walnuts, almonds, cashews, and chestnuts.
Linh added some crushed walnuts and almonds to the salad for extra crunch.
countable noun: a crushed / sliced / whole nut
The children collected fallen chestnuts from under the big tree in the park.
Caio is allergic to peanuts, so he always reads the ingredients carefully before buying snacks.
Salma roasted a mix of cashews and pecans for the holiday party.
common collocations: roast nuts / a mix of nuts
This granola bar contains hazelnuts, dried fruit, and a small amount of honey.
- crushed nuts
- roasted nuts
- a handful of nuts
- nut allergy
- tree nuts
- shelled nuts
Grammar Patterns
a + nut
the + nut(s)
nut(s) + of + tree/plant
Common Mistakes
2. A compact ring-like item with a threaded centre, designed to twist onto a bolt s
A compact ring-like item with a threaded centre, designed to twist onto a bolt so that parts stay connected.
Christopher tightened the nut onto the bolt with a wrench from his toolbox.
collocation: tighten a nut
The mechanic replaced the rusted nuts and bolts under the car's engine cover.
fixed phrase: nuts and bolts
Luca held the metal nut steady while his father turned the screw from above.
You need a socket set to loosen the nut holding the bicycle wheel in place.
- tighten a nut
- loosen a nut
- nuts and bolts
- a lock nut
- a wing nut
- a socket for the nut
- fastener
broader category that includes nuts, bolts, screws, and clips
- threaded ring
technical term for a round nut; less common in everyday speech
Grammar Patterns
a + nut
nut(s) + and + bolt(s)
Usage Note
Often appears in the fixed expression 'nuts and bolts,' which is also used metaphorically to mean the basic practical details of a system or task.
Common Mistakes
3. A deeply insulting term directed at a person living with a psychiatric condition
A deeply insulting term directed at a person living with a psychiatric condition, suggesting they are dangerous or incapable of rational thought.
'Don't call him a nut — that is cruel and disrespectful,' the teacher told her class.
DO NOT USE — shown so learners can recognise this offensive term
The campaign aims to stop people from using words like 'nut' to describe mental illness.
That old television show uses 'nut' as a cheap joke about someone who behaves unusually.
Calling a person with depression 'a nut' shows a complete lack of understanding and respect.
Grammar Patterns
call + someone + a nut
Usage Note
STRONG WARNING — This sense is a slur against people with mental health conditions and causes real harm. It should never be used, even in jokes among friends. Use 'person with a mental health condition' or 'someone living with depression / anxiety / etc.' instead. This entry is included only so that learners can recognise the word and avoid using it.
Common Mistakes
4. A mildly teasing label for someone doing foolish or amusingly peculiar things, w
A mildly teasing label for someone doing foolish or amusingly peculiar things, without causing real harm.
Saira's brother is such a nut — he put his shoes on the wrong feet again.
informal: 'such a nut'
Some nut tried to pay for a bus ticket with a handful of foreign coins.
Talia laughed and called herself a nut after walking into the wrong classroom by mistake.
A complete nut in the stands kept shouting funny comments during the whole match.
collocation: complete nut
- such a nut
- complete nut
- a bit of a nut
Grammar Patterns
be + a + nut
a + nut + relative clause
Usage Note
Unlike sense 3, this sense is NOT directed at mental health. It is a lighthearted, mildly teasing term for someone doing something silly. However, tone and context matter — some people may still find it unkind if used too harshly.
5. A person with an exceptionally strong passion for a specific hobby, pastime, or
A person with an exceptionally strong passion for a specific hobby, pastime, or area of knowledge.
Hannah is a real history nut who visits old museums and castles every weekend.
pattern: a [interest] nut
Hugo's father is a gardening nut — he grows forty types of tomatoes in his yard.
My uncle is a car nut — his garage has vintage sports cars he restored himself.
Christopher is a fitness nut who goes to the gym every morning before sunrise.
Saira is a total photography nut and takes her camera on every trip.
collocation: total nut
- a film nut
- a fitness nut
- a car nut
- a sports nut
- a music nut
- a real nut
- a total nut
- enthusiast
neutral and more formal; lacks the playful tone of 'nut'
- fanatic
stronger and can sound negative; implies excessive devotion
- buff
similar register; common in American English ('history buff')
Grammar Patterns
a + noun + nut
be + a + nut + for/about + noun/-ing
Usage Note
Used before a noun describing the interest — e.g., 'a chess nut,' 'a film nut,' 'a music nut.' The tone is admiring or mildly teasing, never insulting. Similar to 'fanatic' but less intense and more friendly.
Common Mistakes
6. A person's head, especially when used in informal expressions about being hit or
A person's head, especially when used in informal expressions about being hit or acting strangely.
Yasmin slipped on the wet floor and hit her nut against the table edge.
slang: hit one's nut
Caio got a sharp knock on the nut from a low-hanging tree branch while hiking.
Linh's friends said she was off her nut for running a marathon in the rain.
fixed phrase: off one's nut
The comedian removed his hat and pointed at a bald spot on his nut.
- off one's nut
- a knock on the nut
- a hit on the nut
Grammar Patterns
possessive + nut
off + possessive + nut
Usage Note
This sense is British slang. It appears most often in set expressions such as 'off one's nut' (acting crazy) and 'a knock on the nut' (a blow to the head). It is NOT used in formal or medical contexts — use 'head' instead.
Common Mistakes
7. the total amount of money a business, theatre, or similar operation must earn in
the total amount of money a business, theatre, or similar operation must earn in a given period just to pay all its expenses — the minimum needed to avoid losing money.
Arjun calculated the monthly nut for his new café and realised he needed more funding.
collocation: monthly nut
The theatre company must earn enough each week to meet the nut before anyone gets paid.
collocation: meet the nut
When the rent went up, the little shop's nut increased by fifteen percent overnight.
Hui asked the accountant whether the business had covered its nut for the quarter.
collocation: cover the nut
- cover the nut
- meet the nut
- monthly nut
- increase the nut
- the nut rises
- overhead
broader term covering all ongoing business expenses, often used in the plural
- running costs
everyday operational expenses rather than the break-even target
- profit
the money left after the nut has been covered
Grammar Patterns
cover the nut
meet the nut
Usage Note
This sense is informal and used mainly in business contexts, especially when talking about break-even costs for a small business, theatre production, or creative project. The noun is usually singular.
Common Mistakes
8. a small component made of bone, plastic, or ebony that sits where the neck meets
a small component made of bone, plastic, or ebony that sits where the neck meets the head of a guitar, violin, or similar string instrument, with grooves cut into it that guide the strings and keep them at the right height.
The luthier carved a new bone nut for Aoi's guitar after the old one split.
material: bone nut
Mert replaced the plastic nut on his violin with an ebony one to improve the tone.
A poorly cut nut makes the strings difficult to press near the first fret.
consequence: poor nut affects playability
If the nut is too low, the strings may buzz against the guitar's fretboard when played.
- bone nut
- ebony nut
- replace the nut
- carve a nut
- nut slot
- cut the nut
Usage Note
This is a specialist term used by musicians, luthiers, and instrument repair technicians. Common materials for the nut include bone, plastic, ebony, and brass.
Common Mistakes
9. the section at the handle end of a bow used for violin, viola, or cello — the ar
the section at the handle end of a bow used for violin, viola, or cello — the area opposite the tip, where a screw mechanism lets the player adjust the tightness of the horsehair.
The nut on Ife's cello bow came loose just before the orchestra rehearsal started.
To tighten the bow hair, turn the nut at the lower end clockwise until it feels firm.
instruction: tightening the bow nut
The violin bow's nut was made of ebony with a small mother-of-pearl inlay.
material: ebony nut with inlay
Constanza applied a drop of oil to the bow's nut to keep the screw moving smoothly.
- bow nut
- tighten the nut
- loosen the nut
- ebony nut
- nut screw
- frog
the standard term for the entire bottom part of the bow; 'nut' refers specifically to the adjustable piece within the frog
Usage Note
Only applies to bows used with instruments of the violin family. The nut contains a screw mechanism that controls the tension of the bow hair. Do not confuse this with the nut at the top of the instrument's neck (sense 8).
Common Mistakes
10. (extremely offensive in polite contexts) a man's testicle — almost always used i
(extremely offensive in polite contexts) a man's testicle — almost always used in the plural form 'nuts' in everyday speech.
The referee sent off the player who deliberately kicked his opponent in the nuts.
vulgar slang: kick in the nuts
Teenagers in the locker room sometimes use crude words like 'nuts' to sound funny.
Reema's younger brother got a detention for saying the word 'nuts' to the substitute teacher during science class.
gets in trouble: saying 'nuts' in a school setting
Zuri's older brother winced and grabbed his nuts after the football hit him in the wrong place.
vulgar slang: grab one's nuts (accident context)
- kick in the nuts
- hit in the nuts
- nuts
Usage Note
⚠️ This sense is vulgar slang and highly offensive in nearly all social contexts. Never use it in polite, professional, academic, or formal situations. The plural form 'nuts' is the most common in actual speech. The singular 'nut' is far less frequent but carries the same offensiveness.
Common Mistakes
11. a problem, task, or situation that is very difficult to solve, understand, or de
a problem, task, or situation that is very difficult to solve, understand, or deal with.
Learning to play the piano was a tough nut for Tomás, but he practised every day.
idiom: a tough nut (to crack)
The detective knew the case would be a hard nut to crack without more evidence.
full idiom: a hard nut to crack
Getting both sides to agree on the contract terms proved to be a real nut.
This maths problem is a tough nut — even the teacher struggled to solve it.
- tough nut
- hard nut
- nut to crack
- crack the nut
- a real nut
Grammar Patterns
a [adjective] nut to crack
Usage Note
Often appears in the fixed expression 'a hard / tough nut to crack', meaning a problem that is stubbornly difficult to solve. The phrase can also refer to a person who is difficult to understand or persuade, though that usage is now more commonly covered by the 'strange person' senses of 'nut'.
Common Mistakes
do your nut
idiomTo become extremely angry or upset about something.
Dad will do his nut if he sees this mess.
Maya did her nut when she lost her phone.
a hard/tough nut
idiomA person who is very difficult to deal with or persuade.
The new manager is a tough nut to negotiate with.
Sara is a hard nut, but she respects honesty.
A problem or situation that is very difficult to solve or understand.
This math problem is a tough nut to crack.
Finding a cure for that disease is a hard nut.
The basic practical details or essential parts of something.
The course teaches the nuts and bolts of programming.
We need to learn the nuts and bolts of the new system.
off your nut
idiomCrazy or mentally unstable.
He must be off his nut to try that stunt.
Are you off your nut? That's dangerous!
To use much more force or effort than is needed to achieve something.
Sending the army was using a sledgehammer to crack a nut.
Don't use a sledgehammer to crack a nut; just apologize.
Word family
Synonym discussion
Sense: noun/1
In cooking and everyday language, "nut" refers to small dry fruits with a hard outer shell (walnuts, almonds, cashews). The "kernel" is only the edible inner part, not the whole fruit you crack the nut to reach the kernel. "Seed" is a much broader category: all nuts are seeds, but most seeds are not nuts (sesame, sunflower, poppy). "Legume" describes a different type of fruit that splits along a seam (peas, beans, lentils) peanuts are legumes botanically, not true nuts. "Grain" refers to cereal crops (wheat, rice, oats) and never overlaps with nuts. The other senses of "nut" branch off metaphorically: the metal fastener resembles a nut in shape; the "enthusiast" sense (a film nut, a fitness nut) treats intense passion as a hard, compact quality; the "crazy person" and "silly person" senses derive from slang for head, not directly from the food meaning.
Common collocations
Etymology
From Old English "hnutu," with Germanic roots shared by German "Nuss" and Dutch "noot." The original meaning (an edible seed with a hard shell) has been the core sense for over a thousand years. The mechanical sense (a threaded metal ring, 17th century) came from the visual resemblance to the shape of a nut. The slang sense for "head" (19th century) gave rise to "crazy person" (mid-1800s) and later "enthusiast" (early 1900s). The vulgar slang for testicles dates from the early 20th century.