variants
also pooh
as in to dismiss
informal
to think or say that (something) is not very good or not true
They pooh-poohed my suggestion. He pooh-poohed the idea that the house was haunted.
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Recent Examples of pooh-pooh
LaRoche tried to pooh-pooh the notion, and certainly did not wish Agent McGee to alarm his wife.
—
Matt Webb Mitovich, TVLine, 14 Apr. 2025
But weather forecasters typically pooh-pooh their predictions.
—Mike Snider, USA TODAY, 31 Jan. 2025
National Weather Service debunks woolly bear forecasting abilities Of course, the National Weather Service has come along to pooh-pooh the woolly bear's winter foresight, with its science and facts.
—Chad Murphy, The Enquirer, 31 Oct. 2024
No wonder his officers pooh-pooh Haiti’s gangs as amateurs compared to their previous foes, like Al Shabaab – though the al Qaeda affiliate hasn’t been entirely vanquished back home in Kenya.
—Caitlin Stephen Hu, CNN, 10 Aug. 2024
Still others pooh-pooh the suggestion that British voters would make decisions at the ballot box based on the political direction of another country, even one as close and influential as the United States.
—Mark Landler, New York Times, 5 Jan. 2024
Experts in the wind-power industry pooh-pooh such warnings.
—Peter Fairley, IEEE Spectrum, 28 Dec. 2010
Matt Webb Mitovich, TVLine, 14 Apr. 2025
But weather forecasters typically pooh-pooh their predictions.
—Mike Snider, USA TODAY, 31 Jan. 2025
National Weather Service debunks woolly bear forecasting abilities Of course, the National Weather Service has come along to pooh-pooh the woolly bear's winter foresight, with its science and facts.
—Chad Murphy, The Enquirer, 31 Oct. 2024
No wonder his officers pooh-pooh Haiti’s gangs as amateurs compared to their previous foes, like Al Shabaab – though the al Qaeda affiliate hasn’t been entirely vanquished back home in Kenya.
—Caitlin Stephen Hu, CNN, 10 Aug. 2024
Still others pooh-pooh the suggestion that British voters would make decisions at the ballot box based on the political direction of another country, even one as close and influential as the United States.
—Mark Landler, New York Times, 5 Jan. 2024
Experts in the wind-power industry pooh-pooh such warnings.
—Peter Fairley, IEEE Spectrum, 28 Dec. 2010
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pooh-pooh
Verb
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On Wednesday, in documents obtained by Rolling Stone, a California superior court judge overseeing the lawsuit ruled in favor of Kardashian and the anti-SLAPP motion, effectively dismissing the other Cantu’s lawsuit, though the judge left open the possibility of an appeal.—
Daniel Kreps,
Rolling Stone,
6 Nov. 2025
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This company’s approach to pest control begins with a philosophy that dismisses the business-as-usual assumptions.—
Malana VanTyler,
USA Today,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
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And the British nations, as ever, remained aloof, England rejecting a late offer to step in for Austria.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Nov. 2025
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Democrats are pushing to extend soon-to-expire health care tax credits and reverse earlier Medicaid cuts, but Republicans have rejected those proposals.—
Aliss Higham,
MSNBC Newsweek,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
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The same is true of Guiteau’s eventual imprisonment and trial, which aren’t ignored but barely touch on the wackiness that actually ensued.—
Daniel Fienberg,
HollywoodReporter,
6 Nov. 2025
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There were extremely rich philosophical traditions in the non-Western world that your great books classes completely ignore.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
6 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Pooh-pooh.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pooh-pooh. Accessed 8 Nov. 2025.
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