There's a certain age in childhood when boys and girls separate themselves from one another. It's not cool for a boy to play with girls in the midst of this stage of development.. except when no one is around and you have a twin sister. Whether its the clapping songs on a car trip or a few rounds of Atari in the privacy of ones own home, a young boy caught in such activities would definitely feel awkward amongst his male peers if they EVER found out he might actually love his sister and (Heaven forbid) enjoy her company. When it became too obvious to deny, he may or may not have been called a Dork..

In slang terms a dork probably began as another word for dick and basically meant a penis. Over time that has changed and now Dorks are typically more noted for their quirky personality and behavior rather than their interests or IQ which may or may not be on level with traditional geeks or nerds. Generally, they tend to be more humorous and extroverted and don't mind laughing at themselves or with others at themselves, as the case may be.

After the 1990s, the term dork tended to specifically refer to a person who often shared the characteristics of geeks or nerds but were not ostracized as a result. Also, while old school geeks and nerds tend to continue to accept an "outsider" status and maintain an elite club mentality amongst themselves, dorks generally tend to do the opposite, hence a current preference with the mainstream for dorks over geeks or nerds.

He may a dork but he is fun to be around.

According to a brief Internet search, a dork fits on the social scale somewhere in the geek range. One can act 'dorky' sometimes and otherwise be considered totally 'normal'. Dorks are usually intelligent, respectful and courteous.

dope---dweeb---dude---average/normal---dork---geek---nerd

The last 40 years of teen movies seem to validate this idea of a social spectrum: no hard and fast rules seem to exist, but each point on the spectrum is a real and distinct personality type with generally understood definitions and universal expression only slightly influenced by regional idiosyncrasies. While the spectrum's influence on one's social strata waves in intensity throughout a person's life, it is felt most acutely during puberty when the search for self is at its highest peak. The effects seem to taper off through the college years and into young adult hood. After one has established his or her place in the world, this social spectrum is usually relegated to stereotypes in teen comedies or any of the John Hughes films.