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
Thinus Ferreira, Variety, 4 Mar. 2026
Six other South Alabama players were ejected for leaving the bench during the brouhaha.
—Zoe Collins Rath, Austin American Statesman, 4 Mar. 2026
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries has urged his caucus to either silently protest the speech or to take part in off-site counterprogramming to avoid a repeat of last year’s sign-hoisting brouhaha.
—Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 24 Feb. 2026
To date, the biggest brouhaha over Unlimited-only content might have come during the Australian Open, when top courts could only be viewed by Unlimited subscribers outside of linear coverage, while ESPN+ retained coverage of lesser matches, in a change from previous years.
—Jacob Feldman, Sportico.com, 24 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for brouhaha
Cite this Entry
“Brouhaha.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/brouhaha. Accessed 15 Mar. 2026.
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brouhaha
noun
