hogwash

American  

[hawg-wosh, -wawsh, hog-] / ˈhɔgˌwɒʃ, -ˌwɔʃ, ˈhɒg- /

noun

1. refuse given to hogs; swill.

2. any worthless stuff.

3. meaningless or insincere talk, writing, etc.; nonsense; bunk.

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hogwash British  

/ ˈhɒɡˌwɒʃ /

noun

1. informal nonsense

2. pigswill

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Etymology

Origin of hogwash

1400–50; 1900–05 hogwash for def. 2; late Middle English. See hog, wash

Explanation

Hogwash is complete nonsense, lies, or ridiculous actions. If an advertisement claims that taking one vitamin pill a day will make you ten times stronger, that's hogwash. The informal hogwash is perfect for talking about falsehoods and foolishness. Your little brother may insist that his lemonade stand will make him a millionaire this summer, but you know that's hogwash. And many politicians give long speeches that seem, in retrospect, to be nothing but hogwash. The word has seen a dramatic evolution, from the fifteenth century "slops fed to pigs," to "cheap liquor" in the 1700s, to "inferior writing" towards the end of the eighteenth century.

Example Sentences

His wife Amanda was less discreet about it - she went on social media to describe the claims as "a load of hogwash".

From BBC • Sep. 7, 2024

On July 27, for example, Steve Inskeep, the host of NPR’s Morning Edition, conducted a servile interview in which he sat meekly by as Allen spewed unalloyed hogwash.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 1, 2023

“Quite frankly, I think this is hogwash, and I think the way this has been spun is disingenuous and upsetting,” he said.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 28, 2023

“Robert Baer’s book is hogwash, filled with mistakes and misinformation. I have never ever been a Russian spy,” Redmond told the Law & Crime Network’s Brian Ross.

From Washington Post • Feb. 16, 2023

I didn’t know why I was holding my breath because I knew that the old saying of how you could hold your breath and nothing would sting you was pure hogwash.

From "Summer of the Monkeys" by Wilson Rawls