blarney

American  

[blahr-nee] / ˈblɑr ni /

noun

1. flattering or wheedling talk; cajolery.

2. deceptive or misleading talk; nonsense; hooey.

   a lot of blarney about why he was broke.

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verb (used with or without object)

blarneyed, blarneying

1. to flatter or wheedle; use blarney.

   He blarneys his boss with the most shameless compliments.

blarney British  

/ ˈblɑːnɪ /

noun

1. flattering talk

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verb

1. to cajole with flattery; wheedle

blarney Cultural  

1. Smooth, flattering talk, often nonsensical or deceptive. Based on an Irish legend that those who kiss the Blarney Stone will become skilled in flattery.

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Etymology

Origin of blarney

First recorded in 1760–70; after the hamlet Blarney, in Ireland; see Blarney stone

Example Sentences

The man known for his charm and Irish blarney — a gift for the gab — was an ardent advocate of stronger U.S.-Canadian relations.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 29, 2024

To many would-be publishers, the title sounded like a bunch of blarney — even in the early 1990s, many people still considered Ireland a conservative backwater and a cultural appendage to Britain.

From New York Times • Oct. 30, 2022

That’s Digger Phelps, Irish basketball coach with similar blarney skills to Lasorda’s.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 10, 2021

With his Gaelic good looks, charisma and Irish blarney, he set up a music club, the Scene, in London’s Soho district.

From Washington Post • Apr. 24, 2020

“You are right to laugh, Captain Short. For a while there, I did believe in all that under-the-rainbow crock-of-gold blarney, but now I know better. Now I know about the hostage fund.”

From "Artemis Fowl" by Eoin Colfer