brouhaha
noun
Did you know?
The English language borrowed brouhaha directly from French in the late 19th century, but its origins beyond that are uncertain—not the subject of a noisy brouhaha but perhaps a little modest debate. What’s less arguable is that brouhaha is fun to say, as are many of its synonyms, including hubbub, williwaw, hullabaloo, bobbery, and kerfuffle. Many of these, like brouhaha, tend to suggest a certain judgment that the reason for all the foofaraw is a bit silly, or at least not worth getting all worked up about. A dad joke, for example, might cause a brouhaha, even though it’s really no reason for an uproar to brew. Haha!
Examples of brouhaha in a Sentence
Harvey Levine, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 Oct. 2025
Once the brouhaha subsided, the players said their final farewell to each other and headed back into the locker room.
—Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 13 Oct. 2025
Following the Chiefs’ 30-17 win over the Lions at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium, Branch snubbed Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes’ handshake attempt, then took a swing at Smith-Schuster, starting a brouhaha on the field.
—Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 13 Oct. 2025
The brouhaha started over when an audio snippet of a verse of an unnamed song began to be recirculated, in both electric and acoustic versions.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 8 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for brouhaha
Cite this Entry
“Brouhaha.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/brouhaha. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.
Copy Citation
Share