shitless
shitless Lexical Profile
shitless Game Scores & Validity
• adverb
To an extreme or overwhelming degree; utterly (vulgar slang, used after adjectives or past participles such as 'scared' or 'bored').
"Waiting in the windowless terminal for six hours had everyone bored shitless."
• adjective
Overcome with extreme fear, panic, or terror (vulgar slang, used predicatively).
"The sudden drop in altitude during the flight left several passengers completely shitless."
Word Nuance & Usage
Strictly vulgar slang; syntactically restricted to postpositive and adverbial intensifier positions following adjectives or participles such as 'scared', 'frightened', or 'bored', and never used attributively before a noun.
• Rhymes for shitless
Word Origin & Etymology
Coined in the early 20th century from 'shit' + '-less', originally as a literal hyperbolic expression implying that someone was so terrified they had emptied their bowels completely.