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Irish bull

American  

noun

  1. a paradoxical statement that appears at first to make sense. Example: He's the kind of guy who looks you right in the eye as he stabs you in the back.

Irish bull British  

noun

  1. a ludicrously illogical statement See also bull 2

"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

Etymology

Origin of Irish bull

First recorded in 1795–1805

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.

Last week a Catholic philosopher was hooked by an Irish bull.

From Time Magazine Archive

To employ an Irish bull, the chief event of last week was one that didn't happen.

From Time Magazine Archive

They had taken us at unawares, and as Creagh would have put it in an Irish bull the only retreat possible for us was an advance through the enemy.

From A Daughter of Raasay A Tale of the '45 by Travis, Stuart

“Dead men don’t move,” replied the captain sharply, the hands round grinning at the boatswain’s Irish bull.

From Afloat at Last A Sailor Boy's Log of his Life at Sea by Overend, William Heysham

One legend expressly states that he pretended to be an Irish bull.

From Punchinello, Volume 1, No. 10, June 4, 1870 by Various

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.