as in nonsense
unintelligible or meaningless talk
the soothsayer's predictions were nothing but mumbo jumbo
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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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Checkmate has done lots of covert ops spy nonsense in comics throughout the years, and notable works with Batman on occasion.—
Bethy Squires,
Vulture,
11 Oct. 2025
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The new Tron sequel steps outside of cyberspace but won’t leave the sci-fi nonsense behind.—
David Sims,
The Atlantic,
10 Oct. 2025
Noun
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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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Similar chatter has emerged during past election years since the dawn of the 22nd Amendment, but usually in a more light-hearted nature.—
Meredith Kile,
PEOPLE,
11 Oct. 2025
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The celebratory July 4 meal would certainly have kept the innkeeper, Daniel Smith, busy replenishing the finest bottles of Madeira from behind the locked bar—perhaps overhearing snippets of chatter among the delegates.—
Victoria Flexner,
The Atlantic,
9 Oct. 2025
Noun
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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
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Worse, such jabber crowds out essential coverage of genuine threats to democracy and the visions of the two parties.—
Jennifer Rubin,
Washington Post,
16 July 2024
Noun
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Quietly, 2023 lottery pick Taylor Hendricks is also here somewhere after a blah rookie year and a second season lost to injury.—
John Hollinger,
New York Times,
10 Oct. 2025
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Cabins have very low humidity, causing our skin to lose moisture, look dry, and blah.—
Essence,
Essence,
29 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Mumbo jumbo.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mumbo%20jumbo. Accessed 16 Oct. 2025.
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