nonsense

noun

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non·sense | \ ˌnän-ˌsen(t)s

, ˈnän(t)-sən(t)s \

Definition of nonsense

(Entry 1 of 2)

1a : words or language having no meaning or conveying no intelligible ideas "And the mome raths outgrabe" is pure nonsense.

b(1) : language, conduct, or an idea that is absurd or contrary to good sense To regard the struggle for existence as tragic, however, is logical nonsense.— O. B. Hardison Jr.

(2) : an instance of absurd action Today's teenagers are … sharp observers of the nonsenses of adult life and society …— Bernard Trafford

2a : things of no importance or value : trifles the raincoats are classic, without any nonsense — New Yorker

b : affected or impudent conduct took no nonsense from subordinates The teacher tolerated no nonsense in her classroom.

3 : genetic information consisting of one or more codons that do not code for any amino acid and usually cause termination of the molecular chain in protein synthesis (see synthesis sense 1)

nonsense

adjective

Definition of nonsense (Entry 2 of 2)

1 : consisting of an arbitrary grouping of speech sounds or symbols \ˈshrȯg-ˌthī-əmpth\ is a nonsense word a nonsense syllable

2 : consisting of one or more codons that are genetic nonsense — compare antisense, missense

Other Words from nonsense Synonyms More Example Sentences Phrases Containing nonsense Learn More About nonsense

Other Words from nonsense

Noun

nonsensical \ ˌnän-ˈsen(t)-si-kəl

\ adjective

nonsensically \ ˌnän-ˈsen(t)-si-k(ə-)lē

\ adverb

nonsensicalness \ ˌnän-ˈsen(t)-si-kəl-nəs

\ noun

Examples of nonsense in a Sentence

Noun I don't know why you believe that nonsense about certain numbers being unlucky. She thinks that astrology is nonsense. Don't listen to him. He's talking nonsense. He was not in the mood to put up with any nonsense from his little brother. If they start pushing each other or some such nonsense, send them to their rooms. She doesn't take any nonsense from anyone. Many of the words in the poem are nonsense. I understood so few of the words they were using that the conversation sounded like nonsense to me. See More

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun But Porter's sharpness, competence, and allergy to nonsense are assets in Congress. — Jenny Singer, Glamour, 12 May 2022 That may sound like extravagant nonsense, but Milton was deadly serious. — John J. Miller, WSJ, 6 May 2022 Phan has a history of promoting woo-woo nonsense and misinformation. — Ej Dickson, Rolling Stone, 5 May 2022 Brewer dismisses the claim as superstitious nonsense. — Joe Leydon, Variety, 19 Jan. 2022 That point strikes me as nonsense, because most Bordeaux chateaus don’t use ridiculously heavy bottles for their age-worthy wines. — Washington Post, 15 Oct. 2021 Rengarten, red in the face, reported this to Nepenin as utter nonsense. — Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, National Review, 12 Oct. 2021 More notably, this theory is exposed as nonsense by other videos that show the aircraft in the air with people falling from it. — Chiara Vercellone, USA TODAY, 21 Aug. 2021 While the weather had been challenging on my first two visits, this qualified as hellish nonsense. — Heidi Julavit, The New Yorker, 16 Aug. 2021 Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective Much of what is said about critical race theory is nonsense; much of it is not. — Kevin D. Williamson, National Review, 17 Mar. 2022 While pro-Russians have since then constructed a myth of Ukrainian Nazis incinerating them in a modern-day pogrom, that is clearly nonsense, like Putin recently babbling about an imaginary Ukrainian genocide against Russian-speakers. — Tim Judah, The New York Review of Books, 19 Feb. 2022 Sharon Stone also gets mileage out of playing the wry, no nonsense counterpoint to Arnett’s wild card, and even gets in a few solid jokes of her own. — Caroline Framke, Variety, 3 Feb. 2022 Defense attorneys said that was nonsense, that McIver loved his wife dearly and her death was a terrible accident. — Kate Brumback, ajc, 18 Jan. 2022 Then, the words are repeated in an unfamiliar language, followed by nonsense words. — Ashley Strickland, CNN, 8 Jan. 2022 That legal clarity is why those fussy arguments against the coin are nonsense. — Ryan Cooper, The Week, 6 Oct. 2021 Blaming venture capitalists for enslaving Web3 to its incentives or for the systemic violation of human rights or even for causing a single fintech startup to mislead investors is nonsense. — Ron Shevlin, Forbes, 27 Dec. 2021 By definition, a limerick is a nonsense poem of five anapestic lines, of which lines one, two and five are of three feet and rhyme and lines three and four are of two feet and rhyme. — Richard Lederer, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Dec. 2021 See More

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

Learn More About nonsense

Dictionary Entries Near nonsense

nonsensational

nonsense

nonsense verse

Statistics for nonsense

Last Updated

15 May 2022

Cite this Entry

“Nonsense.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nonsense. Accessed 22 May. 2022.

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More Definitions for nonsense

nonsense

noun

non·sense | \ ˈnän-ˌsens

, -səns \

Kids Definition of nonsense

: foolish or meaningless words, ideas, or actions Don't believe such nonsense.

nonsense

noun

non·sense | \ ˈnän-ˌsen(t)s, ˈnän(t)-sən(t)s

Medical Definition of nonsense

(Entry 1 of 2)

: genetic information consisting of one or more codons that do not code for any amino acid and usually cause termination of the molecular chain in protein synthesis — compare antisense, missense

nonsense

adjective

Medical Definition of nonsense (Entry 2 of 2)

: consisting of one or more codons that are genetic nonsense nonsense mutations