piffle

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English

WOTD – 4 December 2009

Etymology

Unknown, 1847. Perhaps blend of piddle +‎ trifle, perhaps puff (“(onomatopoeia, puff of air)”) +‎ -le (“diminutive”).

Pronunciation

  • (UK, US) IPA(key): /ˈpɪf.əl/
  • Audio (AU)(file)
  • Rhymes: -ɪfəl

Noun

piffle (uncountable)

  1. Nonsense, foolish talk.
    Synonyms: see Thesaurus:nonsense
    • 2008 November 27, “Walking: More than gadding about”, in The Economist‎:
      The wafflier the piffle, the more sharply Mr Nicholson wields his skewer.
    • 2022 May 31, James Vincent, “Boris Johnson’s move to bring back imperial units is pure piffle – and simply unfathomable”, in The Guardian‎:
      The move is obviously pure piffle: a dumbshow designed to placate (or at least entertain) the conservative base while distracting and antagonising rivals.

Translations

Verb

piffle (third-person singular simple present piffles, present participle piffling, simple past and past participle piffled)

  1. To act or speak in a futile, ineffective, or nonsensical manner.
  2. To waste, to fritter away.
  3. (dated) To be squeamish or delicate.

Synonyms

Translations

References

  1. ^ Douglas Harper (2001–2024) “piffle”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.
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