as in nonsense
unintelligible or meaningless talk
the soothsayer's predictions were nothing but mumbo jumbo
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of mumbo jumbo
This is the familiar mumbo jumbo that Hollywood loves to attach to surfing, to highlight the metaphysical connection that surfers have to the waves, the ocean, and maybe even the cosmos.
—
Frederick Dreier, Outside Online, 4 Mar. 2025
Trying to decode that spirit's mystical mumbo jumbo into actionable intelligence is a key part of your effort against the Dreamscourge.
—Ars Technica, 13 Feb. 2025
After being attacked by a lion on safari in Ghana, he’s given a mystical botanical serum mixed with lion’s blood and some mumbo jumbo about a tarot card.
—Mark Kennedy, Boston Herald, 13 Dec. 2024
Strong actors also can’t prop up a script built out of barely penetrable mumbo jumbo.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
See All Example Sentences for mumbo jumbo
Frederick Dreier, Outside Online, 4 Mar. 2025
Trying to decode that spirit's mystical mumbo jumbo into actionable intelligence is a key part of your effort against the Dreamscourge.
—Ars Technica, 13 Feb. 2025
After being attacked by a lion on safari in Ghana, he’s given a mystical botanical serum mixed with lion’s blood and some mumbo jumbo about a tarot card.
—Mark Kennedy, Boston Herald, 13 Dec. 2024
Strong actors also can’t prop up a script built out of barely penetrable mumbo jumbo.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
See All Example Sentences for mumbo jumbo
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mumbo jumbo
Noun
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The other side in a debate with common sense is nonsense.—
Danielle Kurtzleben,
NPR,
22 Oct. 2025
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That kind of no-nonsense mentality cuts right through all the nonsense and puts the focus on the work.—
Tony Maglio,
HollywoodReporter,
21 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Now the babble about them is back.—
DP Opinion,
Denver Post,
19 Oct. 2025
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Mesopotamian corpses, stirred by the babble of trade, wander the halls wrapped in shrouds of extravagant malice.—
David Velasco,
Harpers Magazine,
18 Dec. 2023
Noun
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But the games must go on, and in the third installment, he’s forced to play even more torturous rounds that divide the players further, including a terrifying game of hide-and-seek and a deadly round of double Dutch.—
Monica Mercuri,
Forbes.com,
29 June 2025
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Girls playing double Dutch In this picture by Wayne F. Miller, young girls play double Dutch in the snow in 1940s Chicago.—
Kayla Randall,
Smithsonian Magazine,
11 Oct. 2024
Noun
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Trump prattles on about the economy while the actors freeze behind him in their ancient Galilee garb.—
Rosa Escandon,
Forbes.com,
13 Apr. 2025
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She was getting winded on our walk, and her prattle was broken up by heavy breaths.—
Joshua Cohen,
The New Yorker,
13 Oct. 2024
Noun
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There was a distinct set of tales dealing with demons who collected idle chatter in churches, and, over time, these stories were folded into the expanding legend of Tutivillus.—
JSTOR Daily,
JSTOR Daily,
31 Oct. 2025
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This year, all eyes are on just three contests nationwide—and most of the chatter has centered on Zohran Mamdani’s meteoric mayoral run across the Hudson as a democratic socialist.—
Nik Popli,
Time,
30 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Some children clustered there to jabber and run madly about, while others just wanted attention and knew how to get it.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
20 Oct. 2025
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And given that these are not professional actors, or even (in most cases) people who aspire to be, LaBeouf’s words to them, full of deadly serious jabber about empathy and ego, are pumped up with an intensity that feels overdone and inappropriate.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
19 May 2025
Noun
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Here’s my house, blah, blah, blah.—
Benjamin VanHoose,
PEOPLE,
28 Oct. 2025
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If your manicure has been feeling a little blah recently, one of the best ways to elevate your look is with the best accent nail ideas.—
Ariana Yaptangco,
Glamour,
14 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Mumbo jumbo.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mumbo%20jumbo. Accessed 6 Nov. 2025.
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