variants
also poo-bah
as in heavyweight
one of high position or importance within a group
an annual clambake that attracts political pooh-bahs from around the state
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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Recent Examples of pooh-bah
Through his vital performance, and no doubt, director Peter Ellenstein’s shaping and sculpting the portrayal, what could be at worst a pooh-bah’s laundry list makes for a consuming evening.
—
Christopher Smith, Oc Register, 20 Jan. 2026
Instead of improving classroom instruction, education pooh-bahs try to hide their failures by dumbing down standards.
—Steve Forbes, Forbes.com, 16 Sep. 2025
This kind of surgical enhancement can still be frowned upon in the restoration world, decried as fakery by the pooh-bahs of all-original-everything.
—Lawrence Ulrich, Robb Report, 13 July 2024
To Richardson-Merrell’s pooh-bahs, her scrutiny seemed like the dilatory work of someone who didn’t know how the game was played.
—Dan Piepenbring, Harper's Magazine, 30 Mar. 2024
Like Joe Rogan, the carnivorous pooh-bah of this intellectual space, Brand appeared interested in teaching a certain kind of man how to be a certain kind of man, mining the tension between think-for-yourself riffs and listen-to-me conclusions.
—Matt Flegenheimer, New York Times, 13 Nov. 2023
But the pooh-bahs in Brussels didn’t exactly rush to say yes.
—Tunku Varadarajan, WSJ, 25 Oct. 2023
Christopher Smith, Oc Register, 20 Jan. 2026
Instead of improving classroom instruction, education pooh-bahs try to hide their failures by dumbing down standards.
—Steve Forbes, Forbes.com, 16 Sep. 2025
This kind of surgical enhancement can still be frowned upon in the restoration world, decried as fakery by the pooh-bahs of all-original-everything.
—Lawrence Ulrich, Robb Report, 13 July 2024
To Richardson-Merrell’s pooh-bahs, her scrutiny seemed like the dilatory work of someone who didn’t know how the game was played.
—Dan Piepenbring, Harper's Magazine, 30 Mar. 2024
Like Joe Rogan, the carnivorous pooh-bah of this intellectual space, Brand appeared interested in teaching a certain kind of man how to be a certain kind of man, mining the tension between think-for-yourself riffs and listen-to-me conclusions.
—Matt Flegenheimer, New York Times, 13 Nov. 2023
But the pooh-bahs in Brussels didn’t exactly rush to say yes.
—Tunku Varadarajan, WSJ, 25 Oct. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pooh-bah
Noun
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Like a bear hide, these heavyweight AS Colour hoodies are oversized for a relaxed fit.—
The Editors,
Outdoor Life,
30 Jan. 2026
-
On Wednesday evening, The Information reported that OpenAI is seeking a fresh $60 billion in funding from heavyweights like Nvidia and Amazon.—
Eva Roytburg,
Fortune,
29 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Minott healthy, two bigs sit An illness hit the Celtics’ locker room during the lead-up to Monday’s game.—
Zack Cox,
Boston Herald,
27 Jan. 2026
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Simmons had a heroic night with eight points and eight rebounds, playing much of it as an undersized 5-man with Magoon Gwath injured and the other bigs in foul trouble.—
Mark Zeigler,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
22 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The Paramount executive also became president of the American Motion Picture Association (precursor to the MPA) in 1925, beating out the likes of Marcus Loew, Lasky, William Fox, Hays, Sam Rothafel, Sam Katz, Carl Laemmle, Joseph Schenck, and other Hollywood heavies.—
Chris Yogerst,
HollywoodReporter,
16 Jan. 2026
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The Dark Ages gave us an extremely metal prequel that — while a bit too lore and cutscene-heavy — presented more surprising tricks and gameplay refreshes to keep the long-running FPS series alive and kicking butt.—
Fran Ruiz,
Space.com,
26 Dec. 2025
Noun
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Singer island is so named after Paris Singer, a descendant of the Singer Sewing Machine magnate, who began developing the Palm Beach coastline into a national luxury destination in the 1920s.—
Kelsey Glennon,
Southern Living,
7 Jan. 2026
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O’Leary isn’t the only nonprofessional in Marty Supreme’s sprawling cast, which includes rapper Tyler the Creator, real-life table-tennis champion Koto Kawaguchi, filmmaker Abel Ferrara, and supermarket magnate John Catsimatidis.—
Alison Willmore,
Vulture,
2 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The race for artificial intelligence supremacy has pitted Silicon Valley bigwigs against Washington policymakers and Chinese competitors.—
Tristan Bove,
Fortune,
22 Jan. 2026
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The business of sports is on full display in Davos, Switzerland, where the World Economic Forum’s annual shindig for bigwigs kicked off earlier this week.—
Scott Soshnick,
Sportico.com,
20 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Others in the field include unsuccessful 2022 GOP nominee Darren Bailey, DuPage County Sheriff James Mendrick and real estate and gambling tycoon Rick Heidner.—
Rick Pearson,
Chicago Tribune,
20 Jan. 2026
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Forsythe, who played oil tycoon Blake Carrington, was in high demand during his time on Dynasty.—
Nicole Briese,
PEOPLE,
13 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Pooh-bah.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pooh-bah. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026.
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