cretin
noun
[ ˈkrɛtɪn ]
• a stupid person (used as a general term of abuse).
• a person who is physically deformed and has learning difficulties because of congenital thyroid deficiency.
Origin:
late 18th century: from French crétin, from Swiss French crestin ‘Christian’ (from Latin Christianus ), here used to mean ‘human being’, apparently as a reminder that, though deformed, cretins were human and not beasts.
