Etymology Started as carnival slang, likely from the British dialectal term geck (“a fool, dupe, simpleton”) (1510s), apparently from Dutch gek or Low German geck, from an imitative verb found in North Sea Germanic and Scandinavian meaning "to croak, cackle," and also "to mock, cheat" (Dutch gekken, German gecken, Danish gække, Norwegian gakke, Swedish gäcka). The root still survives in the Dutch adjective noun gek (“crazy" or "crazy person”). Compare gink and also Old Norse gikkr (“a pert, rude person; jester; fool”).
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Dated A carnival performer specializing in bizarre and unappetizing behavior.
I once saw a geek bite the head off a live chicken.
You hand in your ticket / And you go watch the geek / Who immediately walks up to you / When he hears you speak / And says, “How does it feel to / be such a freak?”1965, Bob Dylan, “Ballad of a Thin Man”, in Highway 61 Revisited:
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Colloquial A person who is intensely interested in a particular field or hobby and often having limited or nonstandard social skills. Often used with an attributive noun.
I was a complete computer geek in high school, but I get out a lot more now.
Most famous actors are really theater geeks at heart.
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Broadly, Colloquial An expert in a technical field, particularly one having to do with computers.
My laptop’s locked up again. I need a geek.
I challenge these geeks to show a little spirit and produce an 81 tier bonfire by Friday night. It would also be nice to see a few kegs and some spirit around their awaited creation each night. Until then I rest my case.1978 November 14, Jeff Boylan, “Excerpts”, in Bob Wasserman, editor, The Tech, volume 98, Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT, archived from the original on 10 Aug 2014, page 1:
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i eschew the use of "foo" "bar" and other dill-beak geek dull unimaginative temporary filenames! i find it much better to use names like: ingracl-bbp.goo or dog or ignatz1983 February 16, dd, “Re: Temporary file names”, in net.misc (Usenet), retrieved 21 Sep 2016, message-ID <bnews.yale-com.883>:
The community of radio amateurs—trespassing fiddlers on the cutting edge of technological possibilities—prefigured the geek community that was to inhabit Silicon Valley 50 years later.2012, Fiorenza Belussi, Udo Hermann Staber, Managing Networks of Creativity, page 92:
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Colloquial The subculture of geeks; an esoteric subject of interest that is marginal to the social mainstream; the philosophy, events, and physical artifacts of geeks; geekness.
It is totally counter-intuitive. How do these ubernerds get the cute girls? Is it the ultimate triumph of the Bill Gates era, in which geek is the new cool?2005, Sean Dooley, The Big Twitch, Sydney: Allen and Unwin, page 265:
"Basically," says [Harry J.] Knowles [founder, 'Ain't It Cool News' website], "it's my job to stay on top of the latest and coolest in geek that's out there, specifically as it relates to the world of film."2007, Kelly Boler, inmag.com:
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Colloquial An unfashionable or socially undesirable person.
Why do you hang around with them? They’re just geeks.
But you can't be any geek off the street, gotta be handy with the steel, if you know what I mean, earn your keep.1988, Young Guns (film)
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Yeah, well, listen. You ought to ditch the two geeks you're in the car with now and get in with us. But that's all right, we'll worry about that later.1993, Richard Linklater, Dazed and Confused (motion picture), spoken by Wooderson (Matthew McConaughey):
Etymology Started as carnival slang, likely from the British dialectal term geck (“a fool, dupe, simpleton”) (1510s), apparently from Dutch gek or Low German geck, from an imitative verb found in North Sea Germanic and Scandinavian meaning "to croak, cackle," and also "to mock, cheat" (Dutch gekken, German gecken, Danish gække, Norwegian gakke, Swedish gäcka). The root still survives in the Dutch adjective noun gek (“crazy" or "crazy person”). Compare gink and also Old Norse gikkr (“a pert, rude person; jester; fool”).
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To perform bizarre and unpleasant feats as part of a carnival.
Geeking, unsurprisingly, was among the first carnival acts to be outlawed as the 20th century unfurled.1995, Jack Hunter, Inside Teradome, page 23:
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Colloquial To enthusiastically engage in geek-like or nerdy interests.
It was our first time at a Star Trek convention and we had an amazing time wandering around and geeking.
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Slang To be nervous or hyperactive due to using crack cocaine.
African-American Vernacular
I ain't nothin' but a clucker, your typical glass dick suckin' basehead, geekin' motherfucker1994 August 30, “Stoned Junkee”, in Super Tight, performed by UGK:
They know I geek a lot / They don't know I keep a Glock2017 January 27, “Slippery”, in Culture, performed by Migos:
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I'm tweakin', I'm geekin', I'm tweakin', I'm geekin'2022 December 2, “I Can't Save You”performed by Metro Boomin and Future:
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Broadly, Slang To be under the influence of a mood-altering drug.
Etymology Probably related to keek. Compare German gucken (“look”), kieken (“look”) and the dialectal corruption of Dutch keek (“keek”) (from kijk (“look”)), kijken (“to look”). Australian use from Cornish dialect.
Etymology Probably related to keek. Compare German gucken (“look”), kieken (“look”) and the dialectal corruption of Dutch keek (“keek”) (from kijk (“look”)), kijken (“to look”). Australian use from Cornish dialect.
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Cornwall To look; to peep; to stare about intently.
This gayte bucca-davy, all'ys geekin' round arter a gook.1891, Joseph Henry Pearce, Esther Pentreath:
I will geek, I will geek I tell ee; while I have the spirit of a man in me I'll geek.1895, Joseph Thomas, Randigal Rhymes: