kerfuffle

ker·fuf·fle

noun \kər-ˈfə-fəl\

Definition of KERFUFFLE

chiefly British

: disturbance, fuss

Examples of KERFUFFLE

1. <predictably, the royal scandal caused quite a kerfuffle on Fleet Street>

Origin of KERFUFFLE

alteration of carfuffle, from Scots car- (probably from Scottish Gaelic cearr wrong, awkward) + fuffle to become disheveled

First Known Use: 1946

Related to KERFUFFLE

Synonyms

ado, alarums and excursions, ballyhoo, blather, bluster, bobbery, bother, bustle, clatter, clutter [chiefly dialect], coil, corroboree [Australian], disturbance, do [chiefly dialect], foofaraw, fun, furor, furore, fuss, helter-skelter, hoo-ha (also hoo-hah), hoopla, hubble-bubble, hubbub, hullabaloo, hurly, hurly-burly, hurricane, hurry, hurry-scurry (or hurry-skurry), commotion [chiefly British], moil, pandemonium, pother, row, ruckus, ruction, rumpus, shindy, splore [Scottish], squall, stew, stir, storm, to-do, tumult, turmoil, uproar, welter, whirl, williwaw, zoo

Related Words

cacophony, clamor, din, howl, hue and cry, noise, outcry, racket, roar; disorder, unrest, upheaval; eruption, flare-up, flurry, flutter, outbreak, outburst; brawl, fracas, fray, hassle, melee (also mêlée), scuffle; dither, fever, fret, lather, tizzy

Near Antonyms

calm, hush, peace, quiet, quietude, rest, stillness, tranquillity (or tranquility); order, orderliness

Rhymes with KERFUFFLE

reshuffle, unmuffle