foofaraw

English

WOTD – 15 December 2013

Alternative forms

• foofarah, foofooraw, fooforaw

Etymology

First attested in the 1930s, of uncertain origin. Perhaps related to French fanfaron (“boasting”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈfu.fəˌɹɔ/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Noun

foofaraw (plural foofaraws) (informal)

1. Overly excessive or flashy ornamentation or decoration.
   • 1944, Time, volume 44, page 15:

     The thumping bands, the badges, the pretty girls and all the time-honored foofaraw failed to charge up the Republican batteries to the sparking point. The great engine just would not turn over — at the start.

   • 2013 October 13, Erik Adams, “TV: Review: THE SIMPSONS (CLASSIC): “Lisa’s Wedding” (season six, episode 19; originally aired 3/19/1995)”, in The Onion AV Club‎^[1]:

     Yes, there’s a romance at the center of the episode, though it’s just as much of a red herring as the layers of futuristic foofaraw.

2. Fuss over something of little importance.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:commotion

   • 2001 February 23, Paulina Borsook, “Art's Cold Welcome on the Web”, in The New York Times‎^[2], →ISSN:

     In the whole foofaraw around Napster, what mostly got lost was the artists. They are the Belgians of this controversy, trampled by armies heading someplace else.

   • 2022 September 22, HarryBlank, “Mind Over Matter”, in SCP Foundation‎^[3], archived from the original on 23 May 2024:

     Lillian was therefore determined to keep dancing for as long as humanly possible. When Ngo fell into step beside her, she turned a corner hard enough to cut the lockstep short. When Ngo re-emerged to the fore, Lillian swung back aft. Once, she opened a door in the psychiatrist's face. Twice she walked directly into a crowd — into them, not among them, momentarily losing her pursuer in the resultant foofarah.

Further reading

• “foofaraw”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.