bullshit
[boo l-shit]Slang: Vulgar.
- nonsense, lies, or exaggeration.
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- to lie or exaggerate to.
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- to speak lies or nonsense.
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- (used especially to express disagreement.)
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Origin of bullshit
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words
bull, crap, rubbish, gibberish, hogwash, nonsense, drivel, bunk, guff, moonshine, flim-flam, bosh, poppycock, hokum, posh, hooey, malarkey, baloney, phooey, bunkumbullshit
- exaggerated or foolish talk; nonsense
- deceitful or pretentious talk
- (in the British Army) exaggerated zeal, esp for ceremonial drill, cleaning, polishing, etcUsually shortened to: bull
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- (intr) to talk in an exaggerated or foolish manner
- to talk bullshit to
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usage
This word was formerly considered to be taboo, and it was labelled as such in previous editions of Collins English Dictionary . However, it has now become acceptable in speech, although some older or more conservative people may object to its use
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for bullshit
n.
"eloquent and insincere rhetoric," 1915, American English slang; see bull (n.1) + shit (n.), probably because it smells. But bull in the sense of "trivial or false statements" (1914), which usually is associated with this, might be a continuation of Middle English bull "false talk, fraud" (see bull (n.3)).
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v.
by 1942, from bullshit (n.). Related: Bullshitted; bullshitting.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper