word salad
3
9.9
- noun
- /wɜrd ˈsæləd/
- Specialized
:
ensalada de palabras
- After hearing his word salad, the doctors concluded he needed further evaluation for his mental health.
A grandiose or arrogant word salad will sound like a flight of fancy.
- A grandiose or arrogant word salad will sound like a flight of fancy.
- But how would you respond to that word salad that I just threw at you?
- She speaks in fucking voodoo word salad.
- It's like this really smarty smart word salad.
- And he is sitting there doing some word salad about contracts, you know, old satellite, ground satellite.
- But you continue to get on Fox News and feed the rubes this bullshit, watered down authoritarian word salad.
- Another one, hope John, another one, all that word salad when you could have just started with I don't actually know what I'm talking about.
- And also one little word salad hack I'd give you.
Examples
-
"Oh wait, you used a Conservapedia entry to back up a totally incoherent bit of word salad."
Blog text (18) -
The sales rep creates word salad to suggest that the product somehow connects to Second Life.
Academic text (2016) -
If it's too long, it gets lost in the word salad.
Blog text (21) -
But how would you respond to that word salad that I just threw at you?
-
Haven't heard a word salad like that in quite some time.
Blog text (22) -
The executive's real message will likely be lost in the word salad they produce from just winging it if they get quoted at all.
Blog text (30) -
Because trust me, no amount of dressing is going to salvage the word salad you just forced me to digest.
-
I wonder what Romney's point was for blathering on with that Palin-esque word salad for about 30 seconds past his time?
Blog text (33) -
His speech was filled with word salad, making it difficult for anyone to follow his thoughts.
-
During the meeting, she went off on a tangent, resulting in a confusing word salad that left everyone puzzled.
Synonyms
578
2.5
Words or ideas that do not make sense
45
7.2
Speech or writing that does not make sense
Speech that is hard to follow because the ideas do not connect
Antonyms
How Coherent
Surface Forms
Morphology
word + salad
The noun 'salad' is readily understood as a mixture, so a B1 learner who knows 'word' + 'salad' can infer a 'mixture of words'—i.e., a jumble or incoherent speech. This metaphorical but directly motivated composition is common and predictable, so learners are likely to grasp the intended meaning without prior exposure.
Etymology
Word salad comes from a simple picture: the items word and salad mixed together, like many words tossed in a bowl. That's why it means 'speech' or 'writing' that is mixed up and hard to understand.