gibberish

play

noun gib·ber·ish \ ˈji-b(ə-)rish , ˈgi- \

Definition of gibberish

:unintelligible or meaningless language:

a :a technical or esoteric (see esoteric 1) language

The doctors spoke to one another in their medical gibberish that I was unable to follow.

b :pretentious or needlessly obscure language

The substance of the philosopher'swork is buried in polysyllabic gibberish.

See gibberish defined for English-language learners

See gibberish defined for kids

Examples of gibberish in a Sentence

She was talking gibberish in her sleep.
was so excited he could only talk gibberish

Recent Examples of gibberish from the Web

High on cocaine, Howard started the standoff by dancing barefoot on an SUV roof, barking and muttering gibberish in a quiet Gaithersburg cul-de-sac.

— doug donovan, baltimoresun.com, "Montgomery County settles with family of man who died after being shot by Taser," 10 Aug. 2017
For some, that might mean memories of summer vacations or seaside boardwalks—or, for fans of Häagen-Dazs, images of Scandinavian luxury, even though the name and umlaut are gibberish.

— matt siegel, The Atlantic, "How Ice Cream Helped America at War," 6 Aug. 2017
The song cemented Gaga's place as a pop powerhouse and caused millions of youths around the world to chant nonsensical gibberish in broad daylight.

— christopher rosa, Glamour, "Lady Gaga Messed Up the Lyrics to 'Bad Romance' in Concert and Recovered Like a Pro," 3 Aug. 2017
Foxx seemed frustrated at one point and jokingly pointed his bat in a quasi threatening way at the peanut gallery and yelled gibberish.

— madeleine marr, miamiherald, "Jamie Foxx yuks it up with fans at MLB celebrity softball game," 10 July 2017
While much of it is borderline gibberish (Genius took a stab at the lyrics), there are a few bars in there, including an epic boom shakalaka, that have caused the Internet to go wild for this potential future music star.

— Vogue, "Blue Ivy Freestyles and the Internet Goes Wild," 7 July 2017
Within the first few minutes of Despicable Me 3, a few of the ubiquitous yellow, gibberish-spouting Minions maneuver an underwater vehicle past a host of sea creatures to catch up with their boss, Steve Carell’s Gru.

— josh spiegel, The Hollywood Reporter, "'Despicable Me 3' Isn't Great, But Does It Matter?," 1 July 2017
Most of Trump’s claims were gibberish, but his actions—propping up fossil fuel development with little regard for the climate or environment, or facts in general—are very real.

— emily atkin, New Republic, "Trump’s energy speech was powered by B.S.," 29 June 2017
The Minions — the yellow, goggled, gibberish-spouting underlings who were popular enough to earn their own film in 2015 — take up a lot of screen time here without adding to the actual plot.

— jon niccum, kansascity.com, "Minion overload? ‘3’ isn’t always a charm for third ‘Despicable Me’," 28 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'gibberish.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of gibberish

probably from gibber

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: circa 1554

See Words from the same year

gibberish Synonyms

Synonyms

abracadabra, babble, blabber, burble, double Dutch, double-talk, drivel, gabble, gibber, jabber, jabberwocky, mumbo jumbo, nonsense, prattle, slobber

Related Words

blah (also blah-blah), hocus-pocus, hokeypokey, twaddle; chatter, gab, patter, prate, tattle, twitter; cackle, clack, clatter

GIBBERISH Defined for English Language Learners

gibberish

play

noun

Definition of gibberish for English Language Learners

: foolish, confused, or meaningless words

GIBBERISH Defined for Kids

gibberish

play

noun gib·ber·ish \ ˈji-bə-rish \

Definition of gibberish for Students

:confused meaningless talk

Learn More about gibberish

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for gibberish Spanish Central: Translation of gibberish Nglish: Translation of gibberish for Spanish speakers

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up gibberish? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show

gibberish

Definition of gibberish

Examples of gibberish in a Sentence

Recent Examples of gibberish from the Web

Origin and Etymology of gibberish

gibberish Synonyms

Synonyms

Related Words

GIBBERISH Defined for English Language Learners

gibberish

Definition of gibberish for English Language Learners

GIBBERISH Defined for Kids

gibberish

Definition of gibberish for Students

Learn More about gibberish

Seen and Heard

WORD OF THE DAY

glabrous

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Test Your Vocabulary

Words at Play

"Immune to" or "Immune from"?

What's Going On With 'Nonplussed'?

Welcome to the New Words

9 Slang Words With Academic Origins

Ask the Editors

Words of the Year: 1066

How Often Is 'Biweekly'?

Irregardless

Weird Plurals

Word Games

Challenging Vocabulary Quiz Returns!

Name that Color!

Name That Thing

Syn City

"Immune to" or "Immune from"?

9 Slang Words With Academic Origins

Trending: 'Bodega' Startup Draws Criticism, Mockery

Challenging Vocabulary Quiz Returns!

Words of the Year: 1066

gibberish

Definition of gibberish

People Are Reading

Examples of gibberish in a Sentence

Recent Examples of gibberish from the Web

Origin and Etymology of gibberish

gibberish Synonyms

Synonyms

Related Words

GIBBERISH Defined for English Language Learners

gibberish

Definition of gibberish for English Language Learners

GIBBERISH Defined for Kids

gibberish

Definition of gibberish for Students

Learn More about gibberish

Seen and Heard

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Words at Play

Ask the Editors

Word Games

"Immune to" or "Immune from"?

9 Slang Words With Academic Origins

Trending: 'Bodega' Startup Draws Criticism, Mockery

Challenging Vocabulary Quiz Returns!

Words of the Year: 1066