noun
stiff
A person regarded as unremarkable.
I'm just an ordinary stiff who lives down the street.
Etymology
Stiff developed slang uses for an ordinary or unimportant person, especially a worker. Its precise semantic route is uncertain, so no bodily condition is asserted as the original cause.
More examples
- He's a working stiff trying to pay the bills.
- To the executives, I'm just some stiff behind a desk.
- Regular stiffs like us don't get invited to those parties.
Forms
stiff · stiffs
Similar words
- average Joe
- An ordinary man, usually without the dismissive tone of stiff.
- nobody
- Someone considered unimportant, rather than simply ordinary or unremarkable.