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buncombe

 - 6 dictionary results

bun⋅combe

  [buhng-kuhm]
Use buncombe in a Sentence
–noun
bunkum.

bun⋅kum

  [buhng-kuhm]
–noun
1. insincere speechmaking by a politician intended merely to please local constituents.
2. insincere talk; claptrap; humbug.
Also, buncombe.

Origin:
Americanism; after speech in 16th Congress, 1819–21, by F. Walker, who said he was bound to speak for Buncombe (N.C. county in district he represented)
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To buncombe
bun·combe   (bŭng'kəm)   
n.  Variant of bunkum.
bun·kum also bun·combe   (bŭng'kəm)   
n.  Empty or insincere talk; claptrap.

[After Buncombe, a county of western North Carolina, from a remark made around 1820 by its congressman, who felt obligated to give a dull speech "for Buncombe".]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Slang Dictionary
bunkum [ˈbəŋkəm]

and buncombe
  1. n.
    nonsense. : That's just plain bunkum! , Your Honor, counselor's airbrained buncombe is an insult to the court. I object!
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Word Origin & History

buncombe 
see bunk (2).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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