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Synonyms

nonsense

American  
[non-sens, -suhns] / ˈnɒn sɛns, -səns /

noun

  1. words or language having little or no sense or meaning.

    Synonyms:
    twaddle, trumpery, trash, tommyrot, rubbish, rot, poppycock, piffle, moonshine, humbug, hooey, hokum, guff, gibberish, foolishness, folderol, flapdoodle, fiddle-faddle, drivel, bunk, bull, bosh, blether, blatherskite, blather, blarney, bilge water, bilge, baloney, balderdash

  2. conduct, action, etc., that is senseless, foolish, or absurd.

    to have tolerated enough nonsense.

  3. impudent, insubordinate, or otherwise objectionable behavior.

    He doesn't have to take that nonsense from you.

  4. something absurd or fatuous.

    the utter nonsense of such a suggestion.

  5. anything of trifling importance or of little or no use.

  6. Genetics. a DNA sequence that does not code for an amino acid and is not transcribed (sense ).

nonsense British  
/ nɒnˈsɛnsɪkəl, ˈnɒnsəns /

noun

  1. something that has or makes no sense; unintelligible language; drivel

  2. conduct or action that is absurd

  3. foolish or evasive behaviour or manners

    she'll stand no nonsense

  4. See no-nonsense

  5. things of little or no value or importance; trash

"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

interjection

  1. an exclamation of disagreement

"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
nonsense Scientific  
/ nŏn′sĕns′ /

  1. Relating to a mutation in a structural gene that changes a nucleotide triplet into a stop codon, thus prematurely terminating the polypeptide chain during protein synthesis.

  2. See more at point mutation

nonsense Idioms  

  1. see stuff and nonsense.

Other Word Forms

  • nonsensical adjective
  • nonsensically adverb
  • nonsensicalness noun

Etymology

Origin of nonsense

First recorded in 1605–15; non- + sense

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.

It’s possible to argue that this makes the speech a logical nonsense.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 2, 2026

There’s a lot less backstabbing and reality nonsense that you saw in the earlier seasons.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 30, 2026

Russia on Monday kicked out a British diplomat over allegations he was working as a spy -- charges rejected by London as "complete nonsense".

From Barron's • Mar. 30, 2026

This is not on DeRosa, but that is nonsense.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 18, 2026

Her sister was in trouble, and this was the kind of box office nonsense that could wait.

From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny

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.