as in nonsense
language, behavior, or ideas that are absurd and contrary to good sense
the belief that soda is made out of acid is just piffle
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to muddle
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Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of piffle
The Economist, 31 Oct. 2019
Brian Tallerico, Vulture, 17 Mar. 2025
To note that Gloria!, the directing debut of Italian actor-singer-songwriter Margherita Vicario, is vapid, pseudo-feminist, sentimental piffle would be entirely accurate.
—Leslie Felperin, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
The irony of the lightweight piffle being resurrected 26 years later isn’t lost on the group.
—Melissa Ruggieri, USA TODAY, 21 July 2023
People who are too cowardly to put their names behind their allegations are hiding in the shadows, using the anonymity of dark money laws to try to raise doubts in the minds of voters by spreading inflammatory charges that amount to piffle.
—cleveland, 12 Sep. 2021
The whole story now seems like so much piffle, except for the sons who lost their mother and a princess who lost her life.
—John Anderson, WSJ, 7 Oct. 2021
It’s a not-quite-living imitation of a movie, a self-parody that lacks even a touch of humor—because, at the slightest sting of wit, its entire membrane of fakery would burst and leave hardly a piffle of vapor behind.
—Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 18 Mar. 2021
The fact that all those involved in discussing this question have heads full of tosh and piffle does not make for productive debates.
—Salman Rushdie, The New Yorker, 16 Nov. 2020
Though often dismissed as superstitious piffle, ghosts have proved surprisingly durable.
—The Economist, 28 Oct. 2017
Noun
The Ritz, a smart London hotel where Margaret Thatcher spent her last days, is in fine fettle, turning a neat annual profit and valued in the region of £800m—not bad for a property bought for a piffling £75m in 1995.
—The Economist, 31 Oct. 2019
Verb
Too often, the competing streaming algorithms at Netflix, Max, and Amazon Prime Video push a smattering of undifferentiated piffle.
—Brian Tallerico, Vulture, 17 Mar. 2025
To note that Gloria!, the directing debut of Italian actor-singer-songwriter Margherita Vicario, is vapid, pseudo-feminist, sentimental piffle would be entirely accurate.
—Leslie Felperin, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
The irony of the lightweight piffle being resurrected 26 years later isn’t lost on the group.
—Melissa Ruggieri, USA TODAY, 21 July 2023
People who are too cowardly to put their names behind their allegations are hiding in the shadows, using the anonymity of dark money laws to try to raise doubts in the minds of voters by spreading inflammatory charges that amount to piffle.
—cleveland, 12 Sep. 2021
The whole story now seems like so much piffle, except for the sons who lost their mother and a princess who lost her life.
—John Anderson, WSJ, 7 Oct. 2021
It’s a not-quite-living imitation of a movie, a self-parody that lacks even a touch of humor—because, at the slightest sting of wit, its entire membrane of fakery would burst and leave hardly a piffle of vapor behind.
—Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 18 Mar. 2021
The fact that all those involved in discussing this question have heads full of tosh and piffle does not make for productive debates.
—Salman Rushdie, The New Yorker, 16 Nov. 2020
Though often dismissed as superstitious piffle, ghosts have proved surprisingly durable.
—The Economist, 28 Oct. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for piffle
Noun
-
That's nonsense… and anyone who's been a part of these productions knows that IN FACT the opposite is true.—
Shania Russell,
EW.com,
9 July 2025
-
The song was essentially one long joke about animal noises, and once the joke wore off, what remained was an insanely repetitive chorus of nonsense.—
John Werner,
Forbes.com,
7 July 2025
Verb
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The Martin, more often utilized for unamplified concerts, was at times overpoweringly loud, with an acoustic that tended to muddle speech and singing in particular.—
Hannah Edgar,
Chicago Tribune,
10 July 2025
-
Alpine's current driver situation alongside Pierre Gasly remains muddled, leaving the door open for Bottas.—
Nelson Espinal,
MSNBC Newsweek,
2 July 2025
Noun
-
The Bureau of Rodent Control has been increasing collaboration with the Bureau of Sanitation to replace faulty garbage carts, which rats can exploit to obtain more food.—
William Tong,
Chicago Tribune,
12 July 2025
-
Another item that is often forgotten is garbage bags for collecting waste along the way, especially when passing through remote areas without public bins.—
Dianne Plummer,
Forbes.com,
12 July 2025
Verb
-
Once cooked, those miniscule grains fluff up to be the size of small caviar.—
Tara Massouleh McCay,
Southern Living,
12 June 2025
-
Vibrant, easy to clean, and sizable once it’s been fluffed up, the wreath can also take your fireplace mantel from underutilized to stunning in a heartbeat.—
Stacia Datskovska,
Footwear News,
17 June 2025
Noun
-
North Korea has responded to previous balloon campaigns with fiery rhetoric and other shows of anger, and last year the country launched its own balloons across the border, dumping rubbish on various South Korean sites, including the presidential compound.—
Hyung-Jin Kim,
Los Angeles Times,
27 June 2025
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They were were found beneath a pile of rubbish heaped just inside her front door, according to a police report released Wednesday.—
Jessica Schladebeck,
New York Daily News,
19 June 2025
Verb
-
Some reasons why economists blundered on free trade In their new study, the China Shock economists throw a bit of shade on the economics profession for getting the effects of free trade so wrong in the past.—
Greg Rosalsky,
NPR,
11 Feb. 2025
-
Less than two hours after sunrise, with the shadows still blue and slanting hard in a dense growth of balsam firs and spruces, the baby bird blundered into a fine black net strung along the ridgeline of Mount Mansfield, at 4,393 feet Vermont’s tallest mountain.—
Madeline Bodin,
Smithsonian Magazine,
27 June 2025
Noun
-
Use it to find and retrieve stray nuts or bolts in any crevice.—
Nora Colomer,
FOXNews.com,
30 Mar. 2025
-
Vegetables like broccoli, tomatoes, mushrooms, onions, kale and asparagus are also included in most low-carb diets—as are eggs, cheese, Greek yogurt and nuts like walnuts, peanuts, macadamia nuts and pistachios.—
Daryl Austin,
USA Today,
29 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Some older kids might be boggled down with exam preparation during the final days of classes, while younger ones might have movie marathons all week long.—
Annabelle Canela,
Parents,
10 June 2025
-
And like, think about that point of view today is just mind boggling to me.—
Tarun Galagali,
Forbes.com,
2 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Piffle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/piffle. Accessed 21 Jul. 2025.
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