piffle

¹pif·fle

intransitive verb \ˈpi-fəl\

pif·fledpif·fling \-f(ə-)liŋ\

Definition of PIFFLE

: to talk or act in a trivial, inept, or ineffective way

Origin of PIFFLE

perhaps blend of piddle and trifle

First Known Use: circa 1878

Rhymes with PIFFLE

riffle, skiffle, sniffle, whiffle

²piffle

noun

Definition of PIFFLE

: trivial nonsense <pseudo-scientific piffle>

Examples of PIFFLE

1. His story is complete piffle.
2. <the belief that soda is made out of acid is just piffle>

First Known Use of PIFFLE

1890

Related to PIFFLE

Synonyms

applesauce [slang], balderdash, baloney (also boloney), beans, bilge, blah (also blah-blah), blarney, blather, blatherskite, blither, bosh, bull [slang], bunk, bunkum (or buncombe), claptrap, codswallop [British], crapola [slang], crock, drivel, drool, fiddle, fiddle-faddle, fiddlesticks, flannel [British], flapdoodle, folderol (also falderal), folly, foolishness, fudge, garbage, guff, hogwash, hokeypokey, hokum, hoodoo, hooey, horsefeathers [slang], humbug, humbuggery, jazz, malarkey (also malarky), moonshine, muck, nerts [slang], nuts, nonsense, poppycock, punk, rot, rubbish, senselessness, silliness, slush, stupidity, taradiddle (or tarradiddle), tommyrot, tosh, trash, trumpery, twaddle

Related Words

absurdity, asininity, fatuity, foolery, idiocy, imbecility, inaneness, inanity, insanity, kookiness, lunacy; absurdness, craziness, madness, senselessness, witlessness; hoity-toity, monkey business, monkeyshine(s), shenanigan(s), tomfoolery; gas, hot air, rigmarole (also rigamarole); double-talk, greek, hocus-pocus

Near Antonyms

levelheadedness, rationality, reasonability, reasonableness, sensibleness; common sense, horse sense, sense; discernment, judgment (or judgement), wisdom

Rhymes with PIFFLE

riffle, sniffle