Yahoos

1. The crude, dirty “brutes” of the land of the Houyhnhnms in Gulliver's Travels, by Jonathan Swift . The Yahoos are irrational people and represent the worst side of humanity. By contrast, the wise and gentle Houyhnhnms, their masters, are rational horses and represent humanity at its best.

Notes

A “yahoo” is an uncouth or uncivilized person.

Example Sentences

They see their voters as a bunch of yahoos who are stupid enough to believe their lies.

From Salon

It's not clear even to the yahoos who worship Trump how rioting at a courthouse would do much to derail the march of justice.

From Salon

Regular soldiers looked down on General Hamdan and his paramilitaries as a motley crew — “a bunch of jumped-up yahoos from the sticks, not proper military men,” as one Western ambassador put it.

From New York Times

Mr. Carafano added that the United States “looks like yahoos in front of our friends and allies” because of the breadth of information that has come into public view as a result of the leak.

From Washington Times

The FBI and utility companies are unsure about who might be engaging in this sabotage, but the culprits may well be more than random yahoos on a spree of destruction.

From Seattle Times