hullabaloo

noun

hul·​la·​ba·​loo ˈhə-lə-bə-ˌlü How to pronounce hullabaloo (audio)
plural hullabaloos
1
informal : a loud, continued noise or mixture of noises : din
Why do roosters crow? If they're like insects and frogs, that hullabaloo is an ad for a mate …Discover
Somebody heard the splash and they raised an awful hullabaloo. 'He's gone! Lower the boats! …'Joseph Conrad
… Hunt and her pack of highly trained dogs set off a hellacious hullabaloo, yelling and barking, discharging firecrackers …Christine Paige
2
informal : a state of commotion, excitement, or violent disturbance : uproar, fuss
Would there be such a hullabaloo about the violence in her books if they had been written by a man?Laura Z. Hobson
Sunday was a big day for the Philadelphia Phillies mascot … . It was his 40th birthday, and there was a big hullabaloo.Liz Roscher
There's been a lot of hullabaloo recently about the effects that grapefruit can have on certain meds.Chanie Kirschner
When I heard the series would finally be available to stream on Hulu, I decided to finally see what all the hullabaloo was about.Josh Sorokach

Examples of hullabaloo in a Sentence

The announcement caused quite a hullabaloo. The announcement caused a lot of hullabaloo. There was a hullabaloo over his controversial statements. There was a lot of hullabaloo over his controversial statements.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
But several weeks in, with the 49ers getting ready for their exhibition opener on Saturday in Nashville, Tenn., Kittle said everybody is just doing the work and doing their best to ignore the headlines and hullabaloo generated by the Aiyuk situation. Tim Kawakami, The Athletic, 9 Aug. 2024 Colin O’Sullivan’s 2018 book, The Dark Manual, is a one-off, but then so is Blake Crouch’s 2016 novel, Dark Matter, and Apple TV+ just announced a second season of its namesake adaption of that dimension-hopscotching hullabaloo. Chris Klimek, Vulture, 4 Sep. 2024 Two seasons ago, Brock Purdy got introduced to this 49ers-Cowboys hullabaloo when coach Kyle Shanahan showed highlights of their 1990s duels, before Purdy’s rookie season peaked with a divisional-round victory over Dallas. Cam Inman, The Mercury News, 26 Oct. 2024 But, no, the decision by the Swatch Group was that the pieces, although not limited, would be sold through a select number of Swatch outlets only—seemingly unaware of the hullabaloo this would generate. Jeremy White, WIRED, 5 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for hullabaloo 

Word History

Etymology

perhaps from hallo + Scots balloo, interjection used to hush children

First Known Use

1762, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of hullabaloo was in 1762

Dictionary Entries Near hullabaloo

Cite this Entry

“Hullabaloo.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hullabaloo. Accessed 28 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

hullabaloo

noun
hul·​la·​ba·​loo ˈhəl-ə-bə-ˌlü How to pronounce hullabaloo (audio)
plural hullabaloos
informal : uproar, din

More from Merriam-Webster on hullabaloo

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