furphy
noun
a false report or improbable story; rumor.
furphy
American
[fur-fee]
/ ˈfɜr fi /
noun
Australian.
-
furphies
plural
Furphy
1
British
/ ˈfɜːfɪ /
noun
furphy
2
British
/ ˈfɜːfɪ /
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of furphy
First recorded in 1910–15; after Furphy carts, water and rubbish carts manufactured by the Furphy family of Shepparton, Victoria, and used during World War I; compare parallel semantic development of scuttlebutt
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.
See Examples For:
"This argument that homeschooled children suffer socially is the biggest furphy," says the H.E.A.'s Strange.
From Time Magazine Archive
Detective Superintendent Andy Furphy of the Metropolitan Police continued to appeal for further witnesses, and said: "It takes courage to come forward and report allegations of this nature."
From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2025
Det Supt Andy Furphy, whose team is leading the investigation, said officers are continuing their enquiries and continue to provide specialist support to those who have come forward.
From BBC ● Nov. 6, 2024
The need he fits: The Cavaliers have needs on the wings, and Furphy has a lot of potential as a shooter and scorer.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 20, 2024
Freshman Johnny Furphy hit three 3-pointers and grabbed three rebounds in the first four minutes but went 22 minutes before scoring again and finished with 13 points and a team-high seven rebounds.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 20, 2024
By Tom Collins, pseud. of Joseph Furphy, & C. Hartley Grattan. © on 19 p. about the book & author & bibliography; 20Sep48; A25508.
From U.S. Copyright Renewals, 1976 January - June by Library of Congress. Copyright Office
About this time arose the first crop of rumours, or "furphies," which ever afterwards seemed to be an inseparable feature of military life.
From The 28th: A Record of War Service in the Australian Imperial Force, 1915-19, Vol. I Egypt, Gallipoli, Lemnos Island, Sinai Peninsula by Herbert Brayley Collett
From the Beach, where men of all units met, came the daily crop of "furphies" or rumours.
From The 28th: A Record of War Service in the Australian Imperial Force, 1915-19, Vol. I Egypt, Gallipoli, Lemnos Island, Sinai Peninsula by Herbert Brayley Collett
One morning the camp was all agog and the air thick with "furphies."
From "Over There" with the Australians by R. Hugh (Reginald Hugh) Knyvett
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.
