- Today's Word
Codswallop
[KODZ-wol-uhp]
Definition
- (noun) Nonsense or foolish talk. It’s often used to dismiss an idea, statement, or belief as ridiculous, insincere, or untrue.
Example
When the politician claimed that his new tax plan would benefit everyone, his opponents quickly dismissed it as pure codswallop, pointing out the numerous flaws and inconsistencies in his proposal.
Fun Fact
The origin of “codswallop” is uncertain, but there are several interesting theories about its etymology. One popular theory suggests that it might be derived from the words “cod,” meaning a joke or a hoax, and “wallop,” meaning to beat or thrash. According to this theory, “codswallop” could have originally referred to a tall tale or a story that was meant to deceive or “wallop” the listener. Another theory proposes that “codswallop” could be related to a 19th-century English soft drink called “Codd’s wallop,” which was named after its inventor, Hiram Codd. The drink was known for its unusual bottle design, which included a marble that would seal the bottle when pressed against a rubber gasket. Some believe that the phrase “a load of Codd’s wallop” might have been used to describe something as nonsense or foolishness, eventually being shortened to just “codswallop.”
(adjective) Deliberately untrustworthy and deceitful; guilty of betraying trust or breaking faith.
The perfidious advisor had been leaking confidential strategy to competitors for years, all while accepting promotions and praise from the company he was quietly destroying.
Perfidious derives from the Latin perfidiosus, meaning “treacherous,” rooted in perfidia — “faithlessness” — built from per- (“through” or “away”) and fides (“faith” or “trust”). The same root fides gives us fidelity, confide, and fiduciary — making perfidious the dark twin of an entire family of words built on trust and loyalty. It entered English in the 16th century and has carried its sense of calculated, deliberate betrayal ever since.