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
One could be forgiven to pooh-pooh yet another play that lays out William Shakespeare’s bona fides as a hip-hop icon, the original bar spitter who beefed with plenty of his contemporaries while dropping sick flows all over Elizabethan England.
—
David John Chávez,
Mercury News,
4 Feb. 2026
In Cleveland, see Jimmy Haslam scare off quality candidates and then pooh-pooh fresh faces brave enough to want to work for him.
—
Jerry Brewer,
New York Times,
2 Feb. 2026
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
David John Chávez,
Mercury News,
4 Feb. 2026
In Cleveland, see Jimmy Haslam scare off quality candidates and then pooh-pooh fresh faces brave enough to want to work for him.
—
Jerry Brewer,
New York Times,
2 Feb. 2026
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pooh-pooh
Verb
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In April, the Superior Court dismissed the three citations Hubbard received in May 2025 when no park ranger or city attorney appeared for the prosecution, his lawsuit states.
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Freeney did not dismiss the business side of the arrangement.
Verb
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Those seeking to stop the roundup reject almost all of the federal agencies’ claims, from the size of the herd to the notion that the horses cause ecological damage.
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While state studies have criticized the state’s education governance model, voters have rejected at least four attempts dating back to 1928 to reform the position.
Verb
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Swift will either ignore the noise as usual, or smile at the absurdity as a secure, proud childless cat lady.
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Not only were the rules misapplied, according to an expert referee with years of elite experience, but similar plays during this tournament have been ignored.
Cite this Entry
“Pooh-pooh.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pooh-pooh. Accessed 4 Jul. 2026.
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