Here's a poll let's answer this with science
-
-
-
Based on the way the percentages are changing when different parts of the country are awake, I suspect this is a regional dialect difference. If I knew any linguists on Twitter to tag and confirm I would.
-
So, the first thing I would do is try to confirm if one is "original" / older and one is "incorrect" / newer. It's pretty common for an idiom that uses archaic or unusual vocabulary to be reanalyzed as a similar-sounding phrase that seems more logical.
-
E.g., "pique one's interest" becomes "peak one's interest" or "for all intents and purposes" becomes "for all intensive purposes." "Butt naked" sounds more logical to me (i.e. "your butt is naked") than "buck naked" does. (Why wouldn't your buck be naked? Aren't does naked too?)
-
For that reason, my starting hypothesis would be that "buck naked" is actually the original form, because I can see how you would logically get from "buck naked" to "butt naked," but not in the other direction.
-
Wiktionary lists both forms and says that nobody knows which form is older. (Wiktionary is great for many things, but original etymological research is not necessarily one of them.)
-
Merriam-Webster lists only the form "buck naked," which would imply that it's the more common / older form (although they do acknowledge that its use is "informal").
- 41 more replies
New conversation -
-
-
Mindy out here asking the real questions!!pic.twitter.com/35FrQhZ209
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
-
-
-
But the Barenaked Ladies would probably disagree with both. In one week.
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
-
-
-
Black ppl say buck, white ppl say butt...
- End of conversation
New conversation -
-
-
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
-
-
-
It was originally buck. Like going buck wild. But then people who didn’t know the phrase started saying butt and they taught a whole generation incorrectly until everyone just accepted it. It’s the same reason why people say sherbert.
- 1 more reply
New conversation -
-
-
This question has made me doubt everything I ever thought I knew...
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
-
-
-
Buck nekkid.
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
-
-
-
Per Google:They're both "correct", and they both mean "totally naked" (although "butt naked" can mean "bare buttocks"). From the phrase "as naked as a buck deer" (which apparently is similar to the phrase "naked as a jay-bird"). I swore it was butt!
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
-
-
-
It’s Buck - like George Costanza’s stage name - “Buck Naked”
- 1 more reply
New conversation -
Loading seems to be taking a while.
Twitter may be over capacity or experiencing a momentary hiccup. Try again or visit Twitter Status for more information.