balderdash

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈbɔːldə.dæʃ/ (UK)^[1]

Etymology

Of obscure origin.^[2][3][4] Etymonline suggests that the second element is dash and that the first may be akin to Danish balder “noise, clatter”, while noting that it may be an Elizabethan formation of no definite elements.^[2] The American Heritage Dictionary suggests an alteration of Medieval Latin balductum (“posset”).^[5]

Earliest recorded meaning

Perhaps froth or a frothy liquid (1596), a sense the OED marks as doubtful;^[6] then a jumbled mixture of liquors such as milk and beer or beer and wine (1611).^[6][2]

Semantic evolution

From a muddled mix of drinks, the word passed in 1674 to a senseless jumble of words, “nonsense”,^[6][2][4] which is its only common modern sense.^[5][4] A verb meaning “to adulterate liquor” is recorded in the same year.^[6] In dialect it was also used of obscene talk or writing.^[6][1]

Timeline

• 1596 – froth, frothy liquid (doubtful).^[6]
• 1611 – a jumbled mixture of liquors.^[6]
• 1674 – senseless talk or writing; nonsense.^[6][4]
• 1674 – verb, to mix or adulterate liquors.^[6]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. Senseless, stupid or exaggerated talk or writing; nonsense.
2. (obsolete) A muddled mixture of liquors.
3. (dialect) Obscene language or writing.

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
3. ^ Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
4. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
5. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
6. ^ a b c d e f g h i Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press