noun
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informal foolish talk; nonsense
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another name for bologna sausage
Etymology
Origin of baloney
1915–20, 1925–30 baloney for def. 2; alteration of bologna, with substitution of -ey 2 for final schwa
Explanation
Baloney is nonsense. When someone says something completely ridiculous, call it a bunch of baloney. If your friend tells you a unicorn on roller skates ate the last cookie, tell her she’s full of baloney! The word baloney comes from the sandwich meat called bologna, which is typically made of leftover scraps of meat. Around 1920, baloney came to mean "nonsense," and it was also used to describe an unskilled boxer. Use it to describe utter nonsense, not necessarily evil lies, but just words that mean nothing. A politician who spouts clichés but really says nothing is full of baloney, and so is a pretentious artist or a pompous showoff.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"Baloney, I got a daughter, she's got to deal with that crap on TV every day. It's tough.' "
From Salon • Oct. 19, 2018
Baloney, I got a daughter, she’s got to deal with that crap on TV every day.
From Washington Post • Oct. 18, 2018
One is Bernardo Kastrup, a computer engineer and author of several books, including Why Materialism Is Baloney.
From Scientific American • May 6, 2018
Bellotti was nicknamed David Baloney by fans after a series of public relations gaffes and was ousted from the job in September 1997, wrote The Argus.
From BBC • Dec. 26, 2015
“That’s just one step past the Baloney Party.”
From "Slam!" by Walter Dean Myers
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
