[off-topic dude exampes for Carolyn]
"Dude!" (The person so referred to came up with something
really commendable, like a half-case of cold beer after a hot
day pulling weeds all day.)
"So then this dude with a strange haircut and big shades comes
up and says, 'Hey, why don't you try ....', and what do you know,
it worked." ("Dude" here means someone that the people in
conversation don't know, that they never met before, a boy
or man, age unspecified.)
"I don't know, some jive dude from the East Village, ...."
("jive dude" here is someone who talks a good game but is
likely an unreliable source of information and/or advice. This
usage is a few decades antiquated.)
"This dude from OSHA was here, and he said ..." (No
connotations at all, the speaker could easily have used
"fellow" in place of "dude", and it would have meant exactly
the same thing.)
"This guy is a dude." (Means a person who knows his stuff,
who is expert at something, or in some other way worthy
of respect, again male and not female.)
The "dude" meaning "clueless greenhorn with some city
slicker's idea of fashionable country clothing" is truly an
heirloom usage of the term.
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