Schrödinger's douchebag

English

Etymology

Blend of Schrödinger's cat +‎ douchebag.

Pronunciation

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Noun

Schrödinger's douchebag (plural Schrödinger's douchebags)

1. (Canada, US, slang, derogatory, vulgar) A person who makes offensive or inflammatory remarks and characterizes these statements as either sincere or joking based on the reactions of others.
   • 2016 August 27, Mark Thompson, “From Trump to Brexit rhetoric: how today's politicians have got away with words”, in The Guardian‎, retrieved 24 September 2023:

     "Schrödinger’s douchebag" [i]s someone who makes an unacceptable remark and then waits to see the reaction before declaring retrospectively whether they meant it for real or were "just joking".

   • 2019 August 14, Gyles Brandreth, Have You Eaten Grandma?: Or, the Life-Saving Importance of Correct Punctuation, Grammar, and Good English‎, →ISBN, retrieved 24 September 2023, page 218:

     Schrodinger's douchebag refers to someone who tests what they say before taking responsibility for what they've said.

   • 2023 September 18, Neil Mahto, “Vivek Ramaswamy has no platform”, in The Johns Hopkins News-Letter‎, retrieved 24 September 2023:

     Vivek Ramaswamy is an American politician capturing conservative and immigrant hearts but stuck in a high school persona: a Schrodinger's douchebag.