phooey
Americaninterjection
interjection
Etymology
Origin of phooey
An Americanism first recorded in 1925–30; perhaps from German pfui! expression of disgust, conflated with English phoo! with similar force
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.
"I think, academically, I would describe it as a load of old phooey," says Grosvenor, who believes a lot of art historical colleagues are too nervous to speak out.
From BBC ● May 1, 2026
The “can’t win the big one” thing is phooey.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 7, 2022
Pardon our French, but phooey to all of that.
From Washington Times ● Nov. 26, 2019
“I felt from the start this was an inside job. They have cameras everywhere, but when we asked the police to open an investigation they found nothing. I say phooey to that.”
From The Guardian ● Mar. 13, 2019
They could phooey all night long for all I cared.
From "One Crazy Summer" by Rita Williams-Garcia
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
