Synonyms

for the birds

Cultural

Worthless: “The last scheme you came up with was really for the birds.”

for the birds Idioms

Worthless, not to be taken seriously, no good. For example, This conference is for the birds—let's leave now. This term has been said to allude to horse droppings from which birds would extract seeds. This seemingly fanciful theory is borne out by a more vulgar version of this idiom, shit for the birds. [Slang; first half of 1900s]

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.

Hemsley warned it was not uncommon for the birds not to breed again after losing their nests.

From BBC • Jun. 3, 2026

“H Is for Hawk” is for the birds.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 12, 2025

As for the birds, we have no advice.

From Barron's • Nov. 25, 2025

One major factor in this decline is competition with local fisheries that catch sardines and anchovies, which are essential prey for the birds.

From Science Daily • Nov. 17, 2025

I listen for the birds and feel my fear as a distant thing, a hammering heart and a squeezed chest, but not something that exists in my mind.

From "Divergent" by Veronica Roth

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

for the birds

Example Sentences

Related Words