Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. Foolish, deceitful, or boastful language.
- n. Something worthless, deceptive, or insincere.
- n. Insolent talk or behavior.
- v. To speak foolishly or insolently.
- v. To engage in idle conversation.
- v. To attempt to mislead or deceive by talking nonsense.
- adj. Very angry; incensed.
- interj. Used to express extreme displeasure or exasperation.
Wiktionary
- n. vulgar, slang False or exaggerated statements made to impress and deceive the listener rather than inform; nonsense.
- n. vulgar, slang A card game in which the object is to bluff about cards laid down and to determine when one's opponents are bluffing; also known as "BS" or "I Doubt It".
- n. vulgar, slang An object of frustration and/or disgust, often caused by a perceived deception.
- n. literally The faeces of a bull.
- adj. vulgar, slang Absurd, irrational, or nonsensical. Most often said of speech, information, or content.
- v. vulgar, slang To tell lies, exaggerate; to mislead; to deceive.
- v. vulgar, slang To have casual conversation with no real point.
- v. vulgar, slang To come up with on the spot, to improvise poorly.
- interj. vulgar, slang An expression of disbelief or doubt at what one has just heard.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. vulgar a ludicrously false statement.
- v. vulgar to talk through one's hat.
WordNet 3.0
- n. obscene words for unacceptable behavior
- v. speak insincerely or without regard for facts or truths
Etymologies
- From bull + shit. In use since the 1920s. (Wiktionary)
Examples
“It gets worse, but you knew that already: ideology wrapped in bullshit is not evidence.”
“The latest line in bullshit is to identify those that hate/dislike the police and having identified them attempt to win them over.”
“Ruralshire Constabulary to get TASER on the front line” « POLICE INSPECTOR BLOG
“I can honestly say I've never gotten more mileage out of the word bullshit than I did last week at the when I called bullshit, I wasn't responding to Karen Page personally -- she was simply voicing what everyone seems to believe and propagate: that we all lead such busy lives that we have no time to cook.”
“Also, if anyone can explain to me what this bullshit is all about, I'd appreciate it.”
“Treehugger points us to an interesting interview with fashion designer Lika Volkova, in which she calls bullshit on a mushrooming business trend: Green clothing.”
“What I'm trying to say is: Just because someone tells you that are are talking bullshit, and that this kind of bullshit is best charaqcterised by calling it racist, sexist or anti-Semitic, that doesn't mean that they are "branding" you.”
“The word bullshit occurred to him, and he knew that was exactly what he was hearing, but he was so far gone now that he didn’t even feel like arguing about it.”
“Two thousand pages of bullshit is going to require more than one shovel.”
“Yet, you completely dismiss the problem by claiming that we are just "bitching" and engaging in "bullshit discussion.”
“Not being able to find a buyer for Nazi kiddy porn bullshit is not a free speech issue.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘bullshit’.
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This is not a list
you know that thing where the Eskimos have 50 words for snow?
little white lie, big lie, the Big Lie, economical with t..., muddy the waters, fabrication, deception, lies, damned lies..., façade, slander, omission, web of lies and 159 more...
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UK Usage - Find US Equivalent
All these terms have a (different) American English equivalent. Wonder if you can identify them?
abridgement (abri..., accoutrement, accoutre, acknowledgement (..., opposite, advert, adaptor, adapter, sticking plaster, advertise, adviser (advisor ..., adze, aesthete and 1196 more...
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WF - nominal compounds (figurative)
An extensive list I have been working on for quite some time. Feel free to add more of the kind if you miss any.
brainstorming, upside, downside, goldplating, bikeshedding, mudslinging, downgrading, headhunter, streamlining, mainstreaming, gerrymandering, frontloading and 503 more...
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disinformation
words meaning bad or not real data
foo, gobbledygook, spin, blacklist, corrupt, fraudulent, debauched, nefarious, untrustworthy, spam, deranged, mental and 22 more...
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Trash Talk
Words that indicate meaningless, confusing or deceptive talk.
white noise, blarney, pidgin, jabber, bullshit, yadda yadda yadda, mishmash, farrago, gobbledygook, yammer, drivel, jargon and 18 more...
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Expressions of disbelief or disagreement
bollocks, come off it, rubbish, as if, bullshit, guff, i don't believe it, are you mad, tosh, nonsense, garbage, bunkum and 58 more...
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Twitter favorites
The new favourite words of people on Twitter.
A script searches Twitter for "X is my new favorite word" and adds it to this list.
See also:
unfathomably, glice, cuh, fab, ciggaty, doll, thuggin, oxymoronic, pineapple, succubutt, griming, cheeky and 2369 more... -
Twitter favourites
The new favourite words of people on Twitter.
A script searches Twitter for "X is my new favourite word" and adds it to this list.
See also:
bumwank, calamity, recalcitrant, gayenese, jeeze, nonsense, flabbergasted, juxtapose, procrastinating, ossanity, biffing, loser and 1972 more... -
The Sog Collection
My big word list.
chaos, flaccid, empirical, flotsam, cacophony, grumble, assuage, awe, romance, mortality, coalesce, fortuitous and 3282 more...
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spicolli's Words
terrapin, ravenous, fuck, sepulchral, garlic, suss, queer, curmudgeon, foodie, intricate, omphalos, subversion and 534 more...
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harrisj's Words
skeumorph, liminal, enervated, essential, moiety, motley, haphazard, bone-picker, resolute, petard, jigsaw, schism and 117 more...
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MIX DES CULTURES
french words & english ones
des mots français & d'autres anglaisà gogo, tchétchène, faciès, déviant, gamin, superette, grigri, diantre, in jeopardy, syncope, primrose, menthe and 92 more...
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My word list
Don't bullshit. I don't really understand.
I want to know if it is polite expression. -
Humbug and bafflegab
oil, rot, gas, gup, pop, jive, bull, jazz, guff, pish, tosh, flam and 83 more...
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Hogwash!
nonsense, tripe, twaddle, bullshit, poppycock, palaver, balderdash, baloney, gobbledygook, bunk, claptrap, hooey and 88 more...
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american english
jesus handle, newscaster, motherfucker, rad, def, gerrymander, michigander, governator, jock, bullshit, badass, trash and 10 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for bullshit.
gulyasrobi A posh and very British way of saying "bullshit" is "poppywash". Oh, how much more decent, isn't it? Jan 15, 2013
whichbe "Bullshit is the glue that binds us as a nation." - George Carlin on America
Oct 4, 2008
jtfmulder my favorite use of this is "total bullshit" Feb 25, 2008