Etymologically
Log in

poppycock

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 15 October 2026 at 00:23. This address is a permanent link to this version.
Changes in this edit History

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈpɒpikɒk/ (UK); /ˈpɑpiˌkɑk/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is probably borrowed from Dutch pappekak (“soft dung”) in dialect,[2][3][4][5][6] from Middle Dutch pappe “soft food, pap”[2][3][4] and kak “dung”,[2][3][4][5] from kakken “to defecate”,[2][3] from Latin cacare (“to defecate”).[2][3][4] It is related to pap.[2][3][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Nonsense, rubbish, humbug (1865, American English).[7][3][4][5]

Semantic evolution

The word entered American English from Dutch dialect[4][6] and has always meant empty or foolish talk.[7][2][5] Random House dates it earlier, to 1840–50.[6]

Timeline

  • 1840–50 – first recorded (Random House).[6]
  • 1865 – nonsense.[7][3][4][5]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. Senseless or empty talk or writing; nonsense.

Word family

  • poppycockish

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ a b c d e Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b c d Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
  7. ^ a b c Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press