"bells and whistles" meaning in English

See bells and whistles in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Noun

Audio: en-au-bells and whistles.ogg
Head templates: {{en-noun|p|head=bells and whistles}} bells and whistles pl (plural only)
  1. (idiomatic) Extra features added for show rather than function; fancy additions or features. Tags: idiomatic, plural, plural-only Synonyms: gadgetry, trivialities, frills and furbelows Related terms: all singing, all dancing, form over function, nice-to-have, everything Translations (extra features added for show rather than function): финтифлюшки (fintifljuški) [plural] (Bulgarian), 花哨的附加功能 (huāshao de fùjiā gōngnéng) (Chinese Mandarin), toeters en bellen [plural] (Dutch), hienoudet [plural] (Finnish), fioritures [feminine, plural] (French), futilités [feminine, plural] (French), frivolités [feminine, plural] (French), tralala [masculine] (French), fanfreluche [feminine] (French), Schnickschnack [masculine] (German), Klimbim [masculine] (German), Zierrat (english: exalted) [masculine] (German), רַעַשׁ וְצִלְצוּלִים (rá'ash vtziltzulím) (Hebrew), facezia riempitiva (Italian), wodotryski [plural] (Polish), прибамбасы (pribambasy) (Russian), навороты (navoroty) (Russian), свистелки и перделки (svistelki i perdelki) [vulgar] (Russian), ringorrangos (Spanish), ful extras [Latin-America] (Spanish), ful equipo [Ecuador] (Spanish)
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          "type": "example"
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          "type": "example"
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          "type": "example"
        },
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          "ref": "2023 May 6, James Poniewozik, “Charles III Was Crowned King. But Can He Ever Be the Star?”, in The New York Times:",
          "text": "Charles’s coronation was a full-color spectacle, showing off the peacocked glory of British tradition and the bells and whistles of 21st-century TV. Britain brought out its finest garments, its finest relics, its finest rain.",
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        "Extra features added for show rather than function; fancy additions or features."
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        "(idiomatic) Extra features added for show rather than function; fancy additions or features."
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      "related": [
        {
          "word": "all singing, all dancing"
        },
        {
          "word": "form over function"
        },
        {
          "word": "nice-to-have"
        },
        {
          "word": "everything"
        }
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "gadgetry"
        },
        {
          "word": "trivialities"
        },
        {
          "word": "frills and furbelows"
        }
      ],
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          "code": "bg",
          "lang": "Bulgarian",
          "roman": "fintifljuški",
          "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
          "tags": [
            "plural"
          ],
          "word": "финтифлюшки"
        },
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          "code": "cmn",
          "lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
          "roman": "huāshao de fùjiā gōngnéng",
          "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
          "word": "花哨的附加功能"
        },
        {
          "code": "nl",
          "lang": "Dutch",
          "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
          "tags": [
            "plural"
          ],
          "word": "toeters en bellen"
        },
        {
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
          "tags": [
            "plural"
          ],
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          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
          "tags": [
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            "plural"
          ],
          "word": "fioritures"
        },
        {
          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
          "tags": [
            "feminine",
            "plural"
          ],
          "word": "futilités"
        },
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          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
          "tags": [
            "feminine",
            "plural"
          ],
          "word": "frivolités"
        },
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          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
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        {
          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "fanfreluche"
        },
        {
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "Schnickschnack"
        },
        {
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "Klimbim"
        },
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          "code": "de",
          "english": "exalted",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "Zierrat"
        },
        {
          "code": "he",
          "lang": "Hebrew",
          "roman": "rá'ash vtziltzulím",
          "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
          "word": "רַעַשׁ וְצִלְצוּלִים"
        },
        {
          "code": "it",
          "lang": "Italian",
          "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
          "word": "facezia riempitiva"
        },
        {
          "code": "pl",
          "lang": "Polish",
          "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
          "tags": [
            "plural"
          ],
          "word": "wodotryski"
        },
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          "code": "ru",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "roman": "pribambasy",
          "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
          "word": "прибамбасы"
        },
        {
          "code": "ru",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "roman": "navoroty",
          "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
          "word": "навороты"
        },
        {
          "code": "ru",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "roman": "svistelki i perdelki",
          "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
          "tags": [
            "vulgar"
          ],
          "word": "свистелки и перделки"
        },
        {
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
          "word": "ringorrangos"
        },
        {
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
          "tags": [
            "Latin-America"
          ],
          "word": "ful extras"
        },
        {
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
          "tags": [
            "Ecuador"
          ],
          "word": "ful equipo"
        }
      ]
    }
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        "(idiomatic) Extra features added for show rather than function; fancy additions or features."
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          "word": "gadgetry"
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          "word": "trivialities"
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      "code": "bg",
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      "roman": "fintifljuški",
      "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
      "tags": [
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      "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
      "word": "花哨的附加功能"
    },
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      "code": "nl",
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      "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
      "tags": [
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      "word": "toeters en bellen"
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      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
      "tags": [
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    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
      "tags": [
        "feminine",
        "plural"
      ],
      "word": "fioritures"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
      "tags": [
        "feminine",
        "plural"
      ],
      "word": "futilités"
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      "code": "fr",
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      "word": "tralala"
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      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
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      "word": "fanfreluche"
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      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "Schnickschnack"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "Klimbim"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "english": "exalted",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "Zierrat"
    },
    {
      "code": "he",
      "lang": "Hebrew",
      "roman": "rá'ash vtziltzulím",
      "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
      "word": "רַעַשׁ וְצִלְצוּלִים"
    },
    {
      "code": "it",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
      "word": "facezia riempitiva"
    },
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ],
      "word": "wodotryski"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "roman": "pribambasy",
      "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
      "word": "прибамбасы"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "roman": "navoroty",
      "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
      "word": "навороты"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "roman": "svistelki i perdelki",
      "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
      "tags": [
        "vulgar"
      ],
      "word": "свистелки и перделки"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
      "word": "ringorrangos"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
      "tags": [
        "Latin-America"
      ],
      "word": "ful extras"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "sense": "extra features added for show rather than function",
      "tags": [
        "Ecuador"
      ],
      "word": "ful equipo"
    }
  ],
  "word": "bells and whistles"
}

Download raw JSONL data for bells and whistles meaning in English (5.7kB)


This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-11-06 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-10-02 using wiktextract (fbeafe8 and 7f03c9b). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.