"codswallop" meaning in English

See codswallop in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Interjection

IPA: /ˈkɒdzˌwɒl.əp/ [Received-Pronunciation] Audio: En-au-codswallop.ogg
Rhymes: -ɒləp Etymology: Unknown. Attested from a 1959 episode of the UK TV series Hancock's Half Hour. The writers (Galton and Simpson) state that the phrase was in general use when the show was broadcast. A national TV appeal in the UK in 2006 failed to find earlier references, though a humorous newspaper column from 1947 does use the fictional name "Sir Aubrey Codswallop". Originally written (1963) codswallop; the spelling cod's wallop is later. Various etymologies are proposed from some sense of cod, such as from cod (“joke, imitation”) + -s- + wallop (“beer”) (slang), hence “imitation beer” (with interconsonantal -s- to ease pronunciation of -dw-), or from cod (“scrotum, as in codpiece”) + -s- + wallop (“to hit”), hence “to hit (with) the testicle bag,” or from cod (“fish”), hence perhaps some part of the fish, as used in the fishing industry. A frequently given etymology, although widely rejected as a folk etymology, derives it from Hiram Codd, British soft drink maker of the 1870s, known for the eponymous Codd-neck bottle, with the suggestion that codswallop is a derisive term for soft drinks by beer drinkers, from Codd’s + wallop (“beer”), thus sarcastically “Codd’s beer”. There is no evidence that early uses had this sense; the slang term wallop (“beer”) appeared after Codd’s lifetime, initial spellings (in print from 1963) do not reflect such a derivation (*Codd’s wallop and *coddswallop with -dd- are not found), and there is an 80-year gap between the proposed coinage and attestation. This is also the name given to the wooden device placed over the neck of a codd bottle and given a push (wallop) to dislodge the marble in the neck of the bottle. The word has also been used to describe the process of opening a codd bottle. Etymology templates: {{unk|en}} Unknown, {{af|en|cod|-s-|wallop|qq3=slang|t1=joke, imitation|t3=beer}} cod (“joke, imitation”) + -s- + wallop (“beer”) (slang), {{af|en|cod|-s-|wallop|t1=scrotum, as in <i class="Latn mention" lang="en">codpiece</i>|t3=to hit}} cod (“scrotum, as in codpiece”) + -s- + wallop (“to hit”), {{glossary|folk etymology}} folk etymology Head templates: {{en-interjection}} codswallop
  1. (UK, Ireland, Commonwealth, slang) Used to express disbelief: nonsense!; rubbish! Tags: Commonwealth, Ireland, UK, slang Synonyms: hogswallop
    Sense id: en-codswallop-en-intj-D8Sszxfo Categories (other): British English, Commonwealth English, Irish English, English entries with incorrect language header, English terms interfixed with -s-, Pages with 1 entry, Pages with entries Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 47 53 Disambiguation of English terms interfixed with -s-: 50 50 Disambiguation of Pages with 1 entry: 48 52 Disambiguation of Pages with entries: 47 53
The following are not (yet) sense-disambiguated
Synonyms: cod's wallop, cods wallop

Noun

IPA: /ˈkɒdzˌwɒl.əp/ [Received-Pronunciation] Audio: En-au-codswallop.ogg
Rhymes: -ɒləp Etymology: Unknown. Attested from a 1959 episode of the UK TV series Hancock's Half Hour. The writers (Galton and Simpson) state that the phrase was in general use when the show was broadcast. A national TV appeal in the UK in 2006 failed to find earlier references, though a humorous newspaper column from 1947 does use the fictional name "Sir Aubrey Codswallop". Originally written (1963) codswallop; the spelling cod's wallop is later. Various etymologies are proposed from some sense of cod, such as from cod (“joke, imitation”) + -s- + wallop (“beer”) (slang), hence “imitation beer” (with interconsonantal -s- to ease pronunciation of -dw-), or from cod (“scrotum, as in codpiece”) + -s- + wallop (“to hit”), hence “to hit (with) the testicle bag,” or from cod (“fish”), hence perhaps some part of the fish, as used in the fishing industry. A frequently given etymology, although widely rejected as a folk etymology, derives it from Hiram Codd, British soft drink maker of the 1870s, known for the eponymous Codd-neck bottle, with the suggestion that codswallop is a derisive term for soft drinks by beer drinkers, from Codd’s + wallop (“beer”), thus sarcastically “Codd’s beer”. There is no evidence that early uses had this sense; the slang term wallop (“beer”) appeared after Codd’s lifetime, initial spellings (in print from 1963) do not reflect such a derivation (*Codd’s wallop and *coddswallop with -dd- are not found), and there is an 80-year gap between the proposed coinage and attestation. This is also the name given to the wooden device placed over the neck of a codd bottle and given a push (wallop) to dislodge the marble in the neck of the bottle. The word has also been used to describe the process of opening a codd bottle. Etymology templates: {{unk|en}} Unknown, {{af|en|cod|-s-|wallop|qq3=slang|t1=joke, imitation|t3=beer}} cod (“joke, imitation”) + -s- + wallop (“beer”) (slang), {{af|en|cod|-s-|wallop|t1=scrotum, as in <i class="Latn mention" lang="en">codpiece</i>|t3=to hit}} cod (“scrotum, as in codpiece”) + -s- + wallop (“to hit”), {{glossary|folk etymology}} folk etymology Head templates: {{en-noun|-}} codswallop (uncountable)
  1. (UK, Ireland, Commonwealth, slang) Senseless talk or writing; nonsense; rubbish. Tags: Commonwealth, Ireland, UK, slang, uncountable Synonyms: hogswallop, nonsense
    Sense id: en-codswallop-en-noun-KKYA5VrF Categories (other): British English, Commonwealth English, Irish English, English entries with incorrect language header, English terms interfixed with -s-, Pages with 1 entry, Pages with entries Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 47 53 Disambiguation of English terms interfixed with -s-: 50 50 Disambiguation of Pages with 1 entry: 48 52 Disambiguation of Pages with entries: 47 53
The following are not (yet) sense-disambiguated
Synonyms: cod's wallop, cods wallop

Alternative forms

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      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/9/95/En-au-codswallop.ogg/En-au-codswallop.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/95/En-au-codswallop.ogg"
    },
    {
      "rhymes": "-ɒləp"
    }
  ],
  "synonyms": [
    {
      "word": "cod's wallop"
    },
    {
      "word": "cods wallop"
    }
  ],
  "wikipedia": [
    "Codd-neck bottle",
    "Galton and Simpson",
    "Hancock's Half Hour",
    "Hiram Codd"
  ],
  "word": "codswallop"
}

{
  "categories": [
    "English compound terms",
    "English entries with incorrect language header",
    "English interjections",
    "English lemmas",
    "English nouns",
    "English terms interfixed with -s-",
    "English terms with unknown etymologies",
    "English uncountable nouns",
    "Pages with 1 entry",
    "Pages with entries",
    "Rhymes:English/ɒləp",
    "Rhymes:English/ɒləp/3 syllables"
  ],
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en"
      },
      "expansion": "Unknown",
      "name": "unk"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "cod",
        "3": "-s-",
        "4": "wallop",
        "qq3": "slang",
        "t1": "joke, imitation",
        "t3": "beer"
      },
      "expansion": "cod (“joke, imitation”) + -s- + wallop (“beer”) (slang)",
      "name": "af"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "cod",
        "3": "-s-",
        "4": "wallop",
        "t1": "scrotum, as in <i class=\"Latn mention\" lang=\"en\">codpiece</i>",
        "t3": "to hit"
      },
      "expansion": "cod (“scrotum, as in codpiece”) + -s- + wallop (“to hit”)",
      "name": "af"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "folk etymology"
      },
      "expansion": "folk etymology",
      "name": "glossary"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "Unknown. Attested from a 1959 episode of the UK TV series Hancock's Half Hour. The writers (Galton and Simpson) state that the phrase was in general use when the show was broadcast. A national TV appeal in the UK in 2006 failed to find earlier references, though a humorous newspaper column from 1947 does use the fictional name \"Sir Aubrey Codswallop\". Originally written (1963) codswallop; the spelling cod's wallop is later.\nVarious etymologies are proposed from some sense of cod, such as from cod (“joke, imitation”) + -s- + wallop (“beer”) (slang), hence “imitation beer” (with interconsonantal -s- to ease pronunciation of -dw-), or from cod (“scrotum, as in codpiece”) + -s- + wallop (“to hit”), hence “to hit (with) the testicle bag,” or from cod (“fish”), hence perhaps some part of the fish, as used in the fishing industry.\nA frequently given etymology, although widely rejected as a folk etymology, derives it from Hiram Codd, British soft drink maker of the 1870s, known for the eponymous Codd-neck bottle, with the suggestion that codswallop is a derisive term for soft drinks by beer drinkers, from Codd’s + wallop (“beer”), thus sarcastically “Codd’s beer”. There is no evidence that early uses had this sense; the slang term wallop (“beer”) appeared after Codd’s lifetime, initial spellings (in print from 1963) do not reflect such a derivation (*Codd’s wallop and *coddswallop with -dd- are not found), and there is an 80-year gap between the proposed coinage and attestation.\nThis is also the name given to the wooden device placed over the neck of a codd bottle and given a push (wallop) to dislodge the marble in the neck of the bottle. The word has also been used to describe the process of opening a codd bottle.",
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "codswallop",
      "name": "en-interjection"
    }
  ],
  "hyphenation": [
    "cods‧wal‧lop"
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "intj",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "British English",
        "Commonwealth English",
        "English slang",
        "Irish English"
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Used to express disbelief: nonsense!; rubbish!"
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "nonsense",
          "nonsense"
        ],
        [
          "rubbish",
          "rubbish"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(UK, Ireland, Commonwealth, slang) Used to express disbelief: nonsense!; rubbish!"
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "hogswallop"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Commonwealth",
        "Ireland",
        "UK",
        "slang"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ˈkɒdzˌwɒl.əp/",
      "tags": [
        "Received-Pronunciation"
      ]
    },
    {
      "audio": "En-au-codswallop.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/9/95/En-au-codswallop.ogg/En-au-codswallop.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/95/En-au-codswallop.ogg"
    },
    {
      "rhymes": "-ɒləp"
    }
  ],
  "synonyms": [
    {
      "word": "cod's wallop"
    },
    {
      "word": "cods wallop"
    }
  ],
  "wikipedia": [
    "Codd-neck bottle",
    "Galton and Simpson",
    "Hancock's Half Hour",
    "Hiram Codd"
  ],
  "word": "codswallop"
}

Download raw JSONL data for codswallop meaning in English (9.2kB)

{
  "called_from": "wiktionary/179/20240425uppercase_tags",
  "msg": "codswallop/English/noun: invalid uppercase tag Received-Pronunciation not in or uppercase_tags: {\"categories\": [\"English compound terms\", \"English entries with incorrect language header\", \"English interjections\", \"English lemmas\", \"English nouns\", \"English terms interfixed with -s-\", \"English terms with unknown etymologies\", \"English uncountable nouns\", \"Pages with 1 entry\", \"Pages with entries\", \"Rhymes:English/ɒləp\", \"Rhymes:English/ɒləp/3 syllables\"], \"etymology_templates\": [{\"args\": {\"1\": \"en\"}, \"expansion\": \"Unknown\", \"name\": \"unk\"}, {\"args\": {\"1\": \"en\", \"2\": \"cod\", \"3\": \"-s-\", \"4\": \"wallop\", \"qq3\": \"slang\", \"t1\": \"joke, imitation\", \"t3\": \"beer\"}, \"expansion\": \"cod (“joke, imitation”) + -s- + wallop (“beer”) (slang)\", \"name\": \"af\"}, {\"args\": {\"1\": \"en\", \"2\": \"cod\", \"3\": \"-s-\", \"4\": \"wallop\", \"t1\": \"scrotum, as in <i class=\\\"Latn mention\\\" lang=\\\"en\\\">codpiece</i>\", \"t3\": \"to hit\"}, \"expansion\": \"cod (“scrotum, as in codpiece”) + -s- + wallop (“to hit”)\", \"name\": \"af\"}, {\"args\": {\"1\": \"folk etymology\"}, \"expansion\": \"folk etymology\", \"name\": \"glossary\"}], \"etymology_text\": \"Unknown. Attested from a 1959 episode of the UK TV series Hancock's Half Hour. The writers (Galton and Simpson) state that the phrase was in general use when the show was broadcast. A national TV appeal in the UK in 2006 failed to find earlier references, though a humorous newspaper column from 1947 does use the fictional name \\\"Sir Aubrey Codswallop\\\". Originally written (1963) codswallop; the spelling cod's wallop is later.\\nVarious etymologies are proposed from some sense of cod, such as from cod (“joke, imitation”) + -s- + wallop (“beer”) (slang), hence “imitation beer” (with interconsonantal -s- to ease pronunciation of -dw-), or from cod (“scrotum, as in codpiece”) + -s- + wallop (“to hit”), hence “to hit (with) the testicle bag,” or from cod (“fish”), hence perhaps some part of the fish, as used in the fishing industry.\\nA frequently given etymology, although widely rejected as a folk etymology, derives it from Hiram Codd, British soft drink maker of the 1870s, known for the eponymous Codd-neck bottle, with the suggestion that codswallop is a derisive term for soft drinks by beer drinkers, from Codd’s + wallop (“beer”), thus sarcastically “Codd’s beer”. There is no evidence that early uses had this sense; the slang term wallop (“beer”) appeared after Codd’s lifetime, initial spellings (in print from 1963) do not reflect such a derivation (*Codd’s wallop and *coddswallop with -dd- are not found), and there is an 80-year gap between the proposed coinage and attestation.\\nThis is also the name given to the wooden device placed over the neck of a codd bottle and given a push (wallop) to dislodge the marble in the neck of the bottle. The word has also been used to describe the process of opening a codd bottle.\", \"head_templates\": [{\"args\": {\"1\": \"-\"}, \"expansion\": \"codswallop (uncountable)\", \"name\": \"en-noun\"}], \"hyphenation\": [\"cods‧wal‧lop\"], \"lang\": \"English\", \"lang_code\": \"en\", \"pos\": \"noun\", \"senses\": [{\"categories\": [\"British English\", \"Commonwealth English\", \"English slang\", \"English terms with quotations\", \"Irish English\", \"Quotation templates to be cleaned\"], \"examples\": [{\"ref\": \"1959, Ray Galton and Alan Simpson, Hancock’s Half Hour:\", \"text\": \"Tony: I was not.\\nSidney: Don’t give me that old codswallop. You were counting your money.\", \"type\": \"quote\"}, {\"ref\": \"1963 October 17, Radio Times, 52/2:\", \"text\": \"Just branding a programme as ‘rubbish’, ‘tripe’, or—there are a lot of these—‘codswallop’, gives little indication of what moved the viewer to write.\", \"type\": \"quote\"}, {\"ref\": \"1981 October 1, John Turner, “Review: Autumn Books: Prometheus bounded?”, in New Scientist, page 41:\", \"text\": \"An interviewer from a Warsaw radio station stopped a citizen in the street. Was the recent demonstration necessary? “History will tell.” But what did he think? “I am not a historian.” Likewise Lumsden′s and Wilson′s book. If it is not a load of codswallop, it will turn out to be very important. If it is not a load of codswallop. Faites vos jeux!\", \"type\": \"quote\"}, {\"text\": \"1993, J. Neville Turner, The One-Day Game – Cricket or Codswallop?, in 2001, David John Headon, The Best Ever Australian Sports Writing: A 200 Year Collection.\"}, {\"ref\": \"2010, Grahame Howard, The Wishing Book 3 – Extermination, page 66:\", \"text\": \"“I′ve told you all I know,” Rosa Armaz told Boarski and Yermin, “I don′t know what my husband has been doing. He′d mentioned going to Mars with the children but I thought it was a load of codswallop.”\", \"type\": \"quote\"}], \"glosses\": [\"Senseless talk or writing; nonsense; rubbish.\"], \"links\": [[\"nonsense\", \"nonsense\"], [\"rubbish\", \"rubbish\"]], \"raw_glosses\": [\"(UK, Ireland, Commonwealth, slang) Senseless talk or writing; nonsense; rubbish.\"], \"synonyms\": [{\"word\": \"hogswallop\"}, {\"word\": \"nonsense\"}], \"tags\": [\"Commonwealth\", \"Ireland\", \"UK\", \"slang\", \"uncountable\"]}], \"sounds\": [{\"ipa\": \"/ˈkɒdzˌwɒl.əp/\", \"tags\": [\"Received-Pronunciation\"]}, {\"audio\": \"En-au-codswallop.ogg\", \"mp3_url\": \"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/9/95/En-au-codswallop.ogg/En-au-codswallop.ogg.mp3\", \"ogg_url\": \"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/95/En-au-codswallop.ogg\"}, {\"rhymes\": \"-ɒləp\"}], \"synonyms\": [{\"word\": \"cod's wallop\"}, {\"word\": \"cods wallop\"}], \"wikipedia\": [\"Codd-neck bottle\", \"Galton and Simpson\", \"Hancock's Half Hour\", \"Hiram Codd\"], \"word\": \"codswallop\"}",
  "path": [],
  "section": "English",
  "subsection": "noun",
  "title": "codswallop",
  "trace": ""
}

{
  "called_from": "wiktionary/179/20240425uppercase_tags",
  "msg": "codswallop/English/intj: invalid uppercase tag Received-Pronunciation not in or uppercase_tags: {\"categories\": [\"English compound terms\", \"English entries with incorrect language header\", \"English interjections\", \"English lemmas\", \"English nouns\", \"English terms interfixed with -s-\", \"English terms with unknown etymologies\", \"English uncountable nouns\", \"Pages with 1 entry\", \"Pages with entries\", \"Rhymes:English/ɒləp\", \"Rhymes:English/ɒləp/3 syllables\"], \"etymology_templates\": [{\"args\": {\"1\": \"en\"}, \"expansion\": \"Unknown\", \"name\": \"unk\"}, {\"args\": {\"1\": \"en\", \"2\": \"cod\", \"3\": \"-s-\", \"4\": \"wallop\", \"qq3\": \"slang\", \"t1\": \"joke, imitation\", \"t3\": \"beer\"}, \"expansion\": \"cod (“joke, imitation”) + -s- + wallop (“beer”) (slang)\", \"name\": \"af\"}, {\"args\": {\"1\": \"en\", \"2\": \"cod\", \"3\": \"-s-\", \"4\": \"wallop\", \"t1\": \"scrotum, as in <i class=\\\"Latn mention\\\" lang=\\\"en\\\">codpiece</i>\", \"t3\": \"to hit\"}, \"expansion\": \"cod (“scrotum, as in codpiece”) + -s- + wallop (“to hit”)\", \"name\": \"af\"}, {\"args\": {\"1\": \"folk etymology\"}, \"expansion\": \"folk etymology\", \"name\": \"glossary\"}], \"etymology_text\": \"Unknown. Attested from a 1959 episode of the UK TV series Hancock's Half Hour. The writers (Galton and Simpson) state that the phrase was in general use when the show was broadcast. A national TV appeal in the UK in 2006 failed to find earlier references, though a humorous newspaper column from 1947 does use the fictional name \\\"Sir Aubrey Codswallop\\\". Originally written (1963) codswallop; the spelling cod's wallop is later.\\nVarious etymologies are proposed from some sense of cod, such as from cod (“joke, imitation”) + -s- + wallop (“beer”) (slang), hence “imitation beer” (with interconsonantal -s- to ease pronunciation of -dw-), or from cod (“scrotum, as in codpiece”) + -s- + wallop (“to hit”), hence “to hit (with) the testicle bag,” or from cod (“fish”), hence perhaps some part of the fish, as used in the fishing industry.\\nA frequently given etymology, although widely rejected as a folk etymology, derives it from Hiram Codd, British soft drink maker of the 1870s, known for the eponymous Codd-neck bottle, with the suggestion that codswallop is a derisive term for soft drinks by beer drinkers, from Codd’s + wallop (“beer”), thus sarcastically “Codd’s beer”. There is no evidence that early uses had this sense; the slang term wallop (“beer”) appeared after Codd’s lifetime, initial spellings (in print from 1963) do not reflect such a derivation (*Codd’s wallop and *coddswallop with -dd- are not found), and there is an 80-year gap between the proposed coinage and attestation.\\nThis is also the name given to the wooden device placed over the neck of a codd bottle and given a push (wallop) to dislodge the marble in the neck of the bottle. The word has also been used to describe the process of opening a codd bottle.\", \"head_templates\": [{\"args\": {}, \"expansion\": \"codswallop\", \"name\": \"en-interjection\"}], \"hyphenation\": [\"cods‧wal‧lop\"], \"lang\": \"English\", \"lang_code\": \"en\", \"pos\": \"intj\", \"senses\": [{\"categories\": [\"British English\", \"Commonwealth English\", \"English slang\", \"Irish English\"], \"glosses\": [\"Used to express disbelief: nonsense!; rubbish!\"], \"links\": [[\"nonsense\", \"nonsense\"], [\"rubbish\", \"rubbish\"]], \"raw_glosses\": [\"(UK, Ireland, Commonwealth, slang) Used to express disbelief: nonsense!; rubbish!\"], \"synonyms\": [{\"word\": \"hogswallop\"}], \"tags\": [\"Commonwealth\", \"Ireland\", \"UK\", \"slang\"]}], \"sounds\": [{\"ipa\": \"/ˈkɒdzˌwɒl.əp/\", \"tags\": [\"Received-Pronunciation\"]}, {\"audio\": \"En-au-codswallop.ogg\", \"mp3_url\": \"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/9/95/En-au-codswallop.ogg/En-au-codswallop.ogg.mp3\", \"ogg_url\": \"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/95/En-au-codswallop.ogg\"}, {\"rhymes\": \"-ɒləp\"}], \"synonyms\": [{\"word\": \"cod's wallop\"}, {\"word\": \"cods wallop\"}], \"wikipedia\": [\"Codd-neck bottle\", \"Galton and Simpson\", \"Hancock's Half Hour\", \"Hiram Codd\"], \"word\": \"codswallop\"}",
  "path": [],
  "section": "English",
  "subsection": "intj",
  "title": "codswallop",
  "trace": ""
}

This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-12-01 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-11-21 using wiktextract (95d2be1 and 64224ec). 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.