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
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to muddle
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of 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
The Economist, 31 Oct. 2019
Noun
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
Verb
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for piffle
Noun
-
Faced with a phrase that has no inherent meaning, the AI Overview still makes a good-faith effort to answer the user's request and draw some plausible explanation out of troll-worthy nonsense.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
29 Apr. 2025
-
None of this ‘support the teams from your country in Europe’ nonsense.—
Andy Mitten,
New York Times,
28 Apr. 2025
Verb
-
As the film progresses, this wide-eyed curiosity shifts to righteous indignation, but these reactions are muddled by her feelings for Basem.—
Hannah Giorgis,
The Atlantic,
11 Apr. 2025
-
Trump and other White House officials send conflicting messages about the reciprocal tariff endgame — all of which muddle whether this posture is the new normal. 1.—
Courtenay Brown,
Axios,
2 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Unlike a regular old garbage bag, these are leakproof and durable (and thus much harder for a squirrel to rip into, if given the chance).—
Sara Coughlin,
SELF,
22 Apr. 2025
-
Four 20-pound bags of hamburger buns and sandwich breads got hit with Stop Sales, sending 80 pounds of bread into the garbage.—
David J. Neal,
Miami Herald,
15 Apr. 2025
Verb
-
In the living room, Mock recommends folding blankets, fluffing pillows, and returning any items that have accrued in the space to their rightful homes.—
Patricia Shannon,
Southern Living,
27 Apr. 2025
-
The back cushions have a slightly higher tendency to get a bit misshapen, but are easy to fluff up.—
Lauren Arzbaecher,
Architectural Digest,
25 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
Among the debris were bricks, tins of paint, stones, and other assorted rubbish.—
Arick Wierson,
MSNBC Newsweek,
15 Apr. 2025
-
The effort has so far transformed more than 10 tons of flowers from would-be rubbish into fragrant souvenirs.—
Travel + Leisure Editors,
Travel + Leisure,
18 Mar. 2025
Verb
-
Your opponent is probably going to blunder one, too.—
Mary Divine,
Twin Cities,
18 Apr. 2025
-
Lawmakers blunder in another way regarding VAT rate preferences.—
Robert Goulder,
Forbes.com,
14 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
Use it to find and retrieve stray nuts or bolts in any crevice.—
Nora Colomer,
FOXNews.com,
30 Mar. 2025
-
Without that pollination, almond trees produce only 200 pounds of nuts per acre.—
Kerry Breen,
CBS News,
29 Mar. 2025
Verb
-
Being in Paris and feeling that energy of the world was kind of mind boggling.—
DeMarco Williams,
Forbes.com,
8 Apr. 2025
-
The singer-songwriter added that most of her romantic relationships blossomed from close friendships, and that the concept of a romance that doesn’t come from a friendship or creative partnership boggles her mind.—
Stephen Daw,
Billboard,
18 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Piffle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/piffle. Accessed 4 May. 2025.
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