# Does anyone actually say "brouhaha" anymore? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 15, 2006, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-actually-say-brouhaha-anymore/360862 "2006-06-15T21:22:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Archergal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c89c15/32.png) [@Archergal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Archergal)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2006, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-actually-say-brouhaha-anymore/360862/21 "2006-06-16T01:57:26Z")
[QUOTE=Biffy the Elephant Shrew] Brouhaha? Ha ha ha ha… [/QUOTE] **BtES** , you beat me to it, drat you! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2006, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-actually-say-brouhaha-anymore/360862/22 "2006-06-16T02:00:13Z")
I use both _Brouhaha_\* and _Flibbertygibbet_ fairly regularly. Also _Pyogenic Granuloma_ and _Dookie_. ---
**Author:** ![Cluricaun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bb73d2/32.png) [@Cluricaun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cluricaun)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2006, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-actually-say-brouhaha-anymore/360862/23 "2006-06-16T02:32:48Z")
[QUOTE=Qadgop the Mercotan] I use both _Brouhaha_\* and _Flibbertygibbet_ fairly regularly. Also _Pyogenic Granuloma_ and _Dookie_. [/QUOTE] Why, oh why do I Google things you say that I don’t know what they mean? I mean really. I should know better. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2006, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-actually-say-brouhaha-anymore/360862/24 "2006-06-16T02:36:10Z")
Rarely; I’m more likely to describe such an event as a to-do. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2006, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-actually-say-brouhaha-anymore/360862/25 "2006-06-16T02:38:43Z")
I have occasionally used Brouhaha, but this might be the first time I ever wrote it in a sentence. I have also used donnybrook, but usually only in talking about the movie “the Quiet Man”. I have heard Brouhaha used to describe a small skirmish on the baseball field. Same with Donnybrook. Billy Martin was famous for his Donnybrooks with both Earl Weaver and most Umpires. Jim ---
**Author:** ![CrashBamSplat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8baadc/32.png) [@CrashBamSplat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrashBamSplat)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2006, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-actually-say-brouhaha-anymore/360862/26 "2006-06-16T02:40:07Z")
I use brouhaha infrequently but I do use it. I use shindig all the time though. ---
**Author:** ![yBeayf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/e274bd/32.png) [@yBeayf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yBeayf)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2006, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-actually-say-brouhaha-anymore/360862/27 "2006-06-16T02:45:02Z")
_Brouhaha_ is a great word, but it cannot compare to the greatest word of all time: _ballyhoo_. ---
**Author:** ![wolf\_meister](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolf_meister/32/15202_2.png) [@wolf\_meister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolf_meister)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2006, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-actually-say-brouhaha-anymore/360862/28 "2006-06-16T04:03:45Z")
I’m a fan of the word “brouhaha”. Just doing a quick search of my postings, it seems I’ve used it several times on the SDMB in the past few years. Anyone can _say_ they use it - but I have proof. > **[Definition of x=y](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=340929)** > > Over in GD, they’re debating, among other things, whether x=x is an axiom, can be derived from other axioms, etc. What I want to know is, what is the definition of the ‘=’ symbol? i.e. what does “x=y” mean? Does it mean: “whatever real number... (See posting 13) Thank you. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Sierra\_Indigo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f0a364/32.png) [@Sierra\_Indigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sierra_Indigo)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2006, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-actually-say-brouhaha-anymore/360862/29 "2006-06-16T04:10:22Z")
Brouhaha, kerfuffle and hooligan are all very much words I use. Donnybrook, I’ve never heard of before. ---
**Author:** ![CynicalGabe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@CynicalGabe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CynicalGabe)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2006, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-actually-say-brouhaha-anymore/360862/30 "2006-06-16T04:39:12Z")
[QUOTE=GorillaMan] I don’t recollect every actually hearing it. “Hoo-ha”, however, is common parlance. [/QUOTE] I don’t consider those two words to even remotely mean the same thing… :dubious: 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![SandyHook](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dec6dc/32.png) [@SandyHook](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SandyHook)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2006, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-actually-say-brouhaha-anymore/360862/31 "2006-06-16T05:03:35Z")
I use it fairly often (as words go that you don’t use all that often). ---
**Author:** ![fishbicycle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aeb1de/32.png) [@fishbicycle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fishbicycle)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2006, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-actually-say-brouhaha-anymore/360862/32 "2006-06-16T06:10:28Z")
Adrian Belew says both “brouhaha” and “ballyhoo” in the King Crimson song, “Elephant Talk.” I don’t use either, though. ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2006, 6:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-actually-say-brouhaha-anymore/360862/33 "2006-06-16T06:43:40Z")
Tom Lehrer used _brouhaha_ in the intro to one of his pieces. I prefer _imbroglio_ or _contretemps_. Pretentious ? _Moi ?_ ---
**Author:** ![Hostile\_Dialect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e495f1/32.png) [@Hostile\_Dialect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hostile_Dialect)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2006, 8:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-actually-say-brouhaha-anymore/360862/34 "2006-06-16T08:51:11Z")
It still finds usage in the hockey world, where it refers exclusively to fisticuffs (another fantastic word that’s used well in hockey). I’ve heard it applied to other sports to mean something similar to “bench-clearing brawl”. **Otto** and **homeskillet** , can you enlighten me on the history of those words? Today I saw the word “hooligan” used three times in one paragraph in the newspaper, to describe the events that unfolded before a Germany/Poland game in the World Cup. I loved it. ---
**Author:** ![Siege](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dbc845/32.png) [@Siege](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siege)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2006, 10:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-actually-say-brouhaha-anymore/360862/35 "2006-06-16T10:24:32Z")
Actually, I’m writing an e-mail to a friend while I’ve got this thread up and I found myself using the word “brouhaha” to describe the current controversy the Episcopal Church is facing about ordaining gays. It’s a perfectly good word, and I see no reason not to use it. After all, why should my vocabulary be circumscribed by others’ limitations? ---
**Author:** ![Ins\_Outs\_What-have-yous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8797f3/32.png) [@Ins\_Outs\_What-have-yous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ins_Outs_What-have-yous)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2006, 10:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-actually-say-brouhaha-anymore/360862/36 "2006-06-16T10:50:10Z")
Occasionally, I hear the term ‘brouhaha’ on ESPN’s Sportscenter usually when opposing teams two teams engage in a scuffle. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slip\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f475e1/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slip\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slip_1)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2006, 10:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-actually-say-brouhaha-anymore/360862/37 "2006-06-16T10:55:35Z")
I use it on occasion. I also use the word “falderal” (for the foolishness/nonsense definition). At my job, there’s plenty of cause to use it. And they can often be use interchangeably 🙂 In writing, I picked up the habit of using “vis-a-vis” from my old boss. ---
**Author:** ![Chez\_Guevara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/aeb1de/32.png) [@Chez\_Guevara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chez_Guevara)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2006, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-actually-say-brouhaha-anymore/360862/38 "2006-06-16T12:34:17Z")
In my Collins French dictionary, _brouhaha_ translates wonderfully as _hubbub._ ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2006, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-actually-say-brouhaha-anymore/360862/39 "2006-06-16T12:44:16Z")
[This](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/search.php?searchid=1717706) search shows that, besides this one, the word brouhaha was used in 399 other threads. Obviously, somebody is using it. ---
**Author:** ![Rasa](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rasa/32/3578_2.png) [@Rasa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rasa)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2006, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-actually-say-brouhaha-anymore/360862/40 "2006-06-16T13:17:53Z")
I prefer “What’s the rumpus?” a la _Miller’s Crossing_ myself, but brouhaha is a great word too! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-actually-say-brouhaha-anymore/360862.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-actually-say-brouhaha-anymore/360862.md?page=3)