mumbo jumbo

noun
UK: /ˌmʌm.bəʊ ˈdʒʌm.bəʊ/
US: /ˌmʌm.boʊ ˈdʒʌm.boʊ/

  1. Nonsense or meaningless speech, often used to confuse or deceive.

    1. He spoke some mumbo jumbo about the economy.
    2. The report was full of technical mumbo jumbo that no one understood.

  2. A ritual or incantation that seems meaningless or superstitious.

    1. They performed some strange mumbo jumbo to ward off evil.
    2. The ceremony involved a lot of mumbo jumbo that felt outdated and unnecessary.

Synonyms

gibberish nonsense balderdash rubbish hokum double-talk
mumbo jumbo verb

  1. To speak or write in a way that is difficult to understand, often intentionally.

    1. Stop mumbo jumboing and get to the point.
    2. The politician continued to mumbo jumbo about the budget instead of answering the direct question.
mumbo jumbo adjective

  1. Describing something as being nonsensical or incomprehensible.

    1. That's just a lot of mumbo jumbo logic to me.
    2. I don't believe his mumbo jumbo explanations about the project's failure.

Frequently Asked Questions

The word "mumbo jumbo" in English means: Nonsense or meaningless speech, often used to confuse or deceive., A ritual or incantation that seems meaningless or superstitious..

The phonetic transcription of "mumbo jumbo" is /ˌmʌm.bəʊ ˈdʒʌm.bəʊ/ in British English and /ˌmʌm.boʊ ˈdʒʌm.boʊ/ in American English. Click the 🔊 button to hear both pronunciations.

Synonyms for "mumbo jumbo": gibberish, nonsense, balderdash, rubbish, hokum, double-talk.

Example usage of "mumbo jumbo": "He spoke some mumbo jumbo about the economy.". More examples on the page.