grabs the dentist by the nuts

[GoodTaste]

Failed to get "by the nuts". What does it mean?

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The deal with China, he says, the United States should act like an aggressive patient at a dentist's office:"Here's how the patient deals with the dentist: sits down in the chair, grabs the dentist by the nuts, and says, 'You don't hurt me, I won't hurt you'"

-The New Yorker

 

[Raymott]

"by the testicles". That is, he grabbed the dentist's testicles.

 

[TheParser]

NOT A TEACHER

Just a gentle reminder to my fellow learners that they should NOT use the word "nuts" when it refers to that part of a man's body.

Although it is NOT obscene, it is still considered vulgar. That is to say, if you were to say or write it at school or at work, your teacher or manager would ask you to stop, for the word is not considered to be polite, and some people would find it very offensive.

 

[Matthew Wai]

Unfortunately, the word in that meaning is not shown as 'not polite' at http://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/nuts

 

[Barb_D]

I can't believe anyone will find it "very offensive."
There are (like anything even sightly related to sex) many slang terms for them, but "nuts" is among the most mild of them.

 

[emsr2d2]

I think it's unlikely that anyone would be talking about testicles, using either formal or slang terminology, at school or work! Of course, if you're a medical student, you might talk about various parts of the anatomy but you would always use the anatomical term anyway.

In the UK, "nuts" is not offensive in any way. Nor is "balls". The same can't be said for "boll*cks".

 

[Skrej]

Potentially offensive imagery.

 

[ChinaDan]

It's an old joke.

A woman goes to the dentist. The dentist puts her in the chair and gets ready to drill. He feels a contact down below and looks to see she has grabbed him by the nuts.

"Madam, do you realize where your hand is", he exclaims!

"Yes I do", she replies, "Now, we aren't going to hurt each other, are we?"

 

[Tdol]

In the UK, "nuts" is not offensive in any way. Nor is "balls". The same can't be said for "boll*cks".

Which is almost certainly why the last term is far more common. :crazyeye:

 

[Tdol]

Perhaps not very offensive, but these are words that some people would not use in polite conversation, and would not like to hear used. My sister (68), for example, would never use them. She would say something like '... grabs the dentist between the legs'.

The poor dentist would probably regard the word as the least troubling thing in this situation, though.