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.
She clarifies, “you know that saying, ‘No man is an island,’ well, Reg thought that was baloney.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 1, 2026
Graham Barrows, a financial crime expert and presenter of The Dark Money Files podcast, told the BBC the adverts themselves, and the social media accounts sharing the content, were all "baloney".
From BBC • Jan. 15, 2026
Now the principal proponent of that theory may also testify that it was baloney.
From Salon • Oct. 21, 2023
If anyone would have put a stop to such baloney, it would surely be Samantha Jones.
From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 25, 2023
The baloney sandwich his aunt packed him went uneaten.
From "Not Nothing" by Gayle Forman
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.
