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Gook vs Zipperhead - What's the difference?

gook | zipperhead | Synonyms |

Zipperhead is a synonym of gook.



As nouns the difference between gook and zipperhead

is that gook is a person from the Far East, Oceania or Southeast Asia, in particular a Vietnamese, Filipino, Chinese, Korean person while zipperhead is a soldier in the Royal Canadian Armoured Corps or in the Armoured Crewman military trade.

gook

English

Etymology 1

Use traced to U.S. Marines in Philippines in early 20th century. Dictionary.com]Pearson, Kim, "[http://kpearson.faculty.tcnj.edu/Dictionary/gook.htm Gook". Earliest recorded example is dated 1920.Seligman, Herbert J., " The Conquest of Haiti", The Nation, July 10, 1920. * Folk etymology suggests that during the Korean War, young Korean children would point at U.S. soldiers and shout ", guk) itself simply means "country". This explanation ignores the fact that there are many examples of the word's use that pre-date the Korean War.

Noun

(en noun)
  • (slang, vulgar, pejorative, offensive, ethnic slur) A person from the Far East, Oceania or Southeast Asia, in particular a Vietnamese, Filipino, Chinese, Korean person.
    • Usage notes
    * In the US, gook refers particularly to a Vietnamese person in the context of the Vietnam War, and particularly to the Viet Cong. It is generally considered highly offensive, on a par with nigger.

    Etymology 2

    Possible blend of goop and gunk.

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • (informal) Grime or mud.
  • * {{quote-book, 1983, Len O'Connor, A Reporter in Sweet Chicago, isbn=0809276488 citation
    • , passage="Roost No More" was a yellow gook that Joe's people would spread around, for a fee, on the ledges of houses and commercial buildings plagued by pigeons.}}
    Derived terms
    * gooky * gook up

    See also

    * gook wagon

    References

    English ethnic slurs English terms with unknown etymologies

    zipperhead

    English

    Etymology 1

    . From the leather helmets formerly used by early Canadian armoured crewmen, with a pattern of stitching resembling a zipper. There is also a folk etymology referring to the zippers on armoured-vehicle crew suits (re-purposed flight suits).

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • (Canada, military slang) A soldier in the or in the Armoured Crewman military trade.
    • Synonyms
    * trooper * crewman, tanker, armoured crewman, armoured soldier * tread-head, treadhead
    References
    * Edward C. Russell (1980), Customs and Traditions of the Canadian Armed Forces, Deneau and Greenberg, Department of National Defence, ISBN 0888790279, p 65.

    Etymology 2

    1960s–1970s, . Used by soldiers during the Korean and Vietnam Wars; multiple theories exist as to the specific origin. One is that if an Asian person was shot in the middle of the forehead with a machine gun, the head would split as if being unzipped; another, that the appearance of tire tracks on a body having been run over by a military Jeep resembled a zipper. English words suffixed with -head

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • (US, military slang, derogatory, offensive, ethnic slur) A person of Asian descent.
    • Synonyms
    * zipperlid * gook, slopehead