How do you describe a nut which does not tighten

Question

Suppose that you want to use a pair of bolt and nut to connect two things. However, the nut is like you can screw it forever and does not tighten!

What do you call this kind of nuts? Is there an adjective for them?

I would say the nut is broken, but I am not sure if that's the most common way of saying that.

The nut is not "broken" - it could simply be a mismatch with the bolt where the thread pitch is the same but the diameter is subtly different. — Criggie, Dec 05 '18 at 23:35

score 57 · Accepted Answer · answered Dec 03 '18 at 17:49

57

I would say:

The thread has been stripped.

That is to say, the thread on either the nut or bolt has become damaged and can no longer support the load applied by the opposite thread:

answered Dec 03 '18 at 17:49

Lee Mac

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Right, screws of any kind are said to be stripped. Or alternatively, you can say threads are worn. – Lambie Dec 03 '18 at 19:17
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@Lambie Though "worn" is much less specific. – David Richerby Dec 03 '18 at 21:30
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Stripped is completely useless; worn is on the verge of being so. – Lambie Dec 03 '18 at 21:54
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This is correct. You can also be more specific about the damage to the thread (the spiral ridges in your picture). Stripped means the spirals are gone or worn so low they no longer grip. On the bolt, they can occasionally get bent so you might say the thread is damaged or bent or whatever. Very rarely a nut may get partly crushed so the inner part is no longer circular in which case you might say it is "out of true". – Hugh Meyers Dec 04 '18 at 09:56
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Generally when I hear "Stripped" in the context of a screw I would assume that it means the slot for the screwdriver has been damaged and the tool can't get the grip to turn the screw. Not that the screw's thread is damaged. But a Stripped bolt does make sense in this context. – Ruadhan2300 Dec 04 '18 at 12:33
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Worth adding that, in the same context and to the opposite, a nut and bolt that won't turn at all can be called 'seized'. – J... Dec 04 '18 at 13:26
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@Ruadhan2300 while wood screws generally don't get stripped in this manner (losing their thread), it's not that uncommon with machine screws, where the mating metal piece is also metal – Doktor J Dec 04 '18 at 16:33
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@Ruadhan2300 that's the head being stripped, while Lee Mac says the thread is stripped (as I would). The equivalent to a stripped head on a nut on hex-head bolt would be something like rounded off, by the way – Chris H Dec 04 '18 at 16:37
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@Lambie 'Stripped' is the correct adjective. Go to any construction site or machine / mechanical shop and this is the most common way to describe this in the parlance of our time, no contest. – Ray Koren Dec 05 '18 at 17:45

score 8 · Answer 2 · answered Dec 03 '18 at 21:04

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In New Zealand and Australia we use the adjective munted to describe something (or someone) no longer capable of functioning, particularly screws, nuts and bolts that have been damaged by someone forcefully trying to turn them with the wrong tool. It is now more often used to describe people who are too intoxicated to function properly.

answered Dec 03 '18 at 21:04

Malcolm

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I am a 67yo Australian and I have never heard the word 'munted' in my life. – user207421 Dec 04 '18 at 05:38
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Something about 'munted' makes me immediately understand what it means! – chasly - supports Monica Dec 04 '18 at 10:37
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Whereas in England "munted" means "off your face" or "very drunk" / incapacitated, as used in Shaun Of The Dead. – John U Dec 04 '18 at 12:53
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*not to be confused with a munter. – Dec 04 '18 at 13:59
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@JohnU I can think of plenty of words meaning both "broken" and "incapacitated" a few of them may even be usable in poltie company. Slightly differently there's knackered (UK) =worn out/fatigued/(of a horse etc.) ready to be slaughtered – Chris H Dec 04 '18 at 16:40
@ChrisH - so can I, but referring to a mechanical fastener as drunk doesn't quite fit, hence I would say munted is not a good fit here. – John U Dec 04 '18 at 16:53
Never heard it in the UK either. – Lightness Races in Orbit Dec 04 '18 at 17:22
@LightnessRacesinOrbit That just means you don't know enough chavs. Heard it plenty in London, though it seems it may be something brought to the UK from NZ/Aus. It's definitely a newer word - didn't really feature prior to the '90s. – J... Dec 04 '18 at 17:41
@J... Maybe it's a London thing. Only been two or three times. – Lightness Races in Orbit Dec 04 '18 at 18:40
@J...possibly how it got to UK? – mcalex Dec 05 '18 at 04:44
It's worth noting that this is slang. It also doesn't apply specifically to a stripped thread - a nut or a bolt can be munted in so many other ways. – Dawood ibn Kareem Dec 05 '18 at 19:04

score 3 · Answer 3 · answered Dec 03 '18 at 17:41

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In this case I would say

dodgy, broken, loose

I think outside of engineering most people would be grasping for some kind of synonym of broken

answered Dec 03 '18 at 17:41

Jonathan Race

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The problem with "broken" is that people are more likely to assume that it's cracked or broken into multiple pieces. – David Richerby Dec 03 '18 at 21:29
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To me, saying it's "loose" implies that it can be tightened, which isn't the case here. – Kevin Dec 03 '18 at 21:52
Good points guys, cheers! – Jonathan Race Dec 05 '18 at 18:23

Hanky Panky · Answer 4 · 2018-12-05T08:14:44.413

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The nut is worn out. Or you can say This nut's threads are worn out.

Something that is worn out can no longer be used because it is so old or because it has been damaged by continued use:

Cambridge Dictionary

Damaged or shabby to the point of being no longer usable.

Oxford Dictionary

edited Dec 05 '18 at 08:14

answered Dec 05 '18 at 08:09

Hanky Panky

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score 0 · Answer 5 · answered Dec 05 '18 at 17:49

There is also crossthreaded. This probably isn't quite what you're going for, but it's related. In this case it feels tight and will not turn easily, but because the nut's threads and the bolt's threads are not properly aligned, it's not holding on with the desired strength.

How do you describe a nut which does not tighten

5 Answers5