brouhaha

brouhaha
 
noun|BROO-hah-hah
 
What It Means
 
Brouhaha is a synonym of both uproar and hubbub that refers to great excitement or concern about something.
 
// A brouhaha erupted over the bill, even though the opposing party stood to gain just as much from its passage.

brouhaha
noun
Synonyms of brouhaha
: hubbub, uproar
A brouhaha erupted over her statements.


Did you know?
The English language borrowed brouhaha directly from French in the late 18th century, but its origins beyond that are uncertain—not quite the subject of noisy brouhaha but perhaps more modest debate. What’s less arguable is that brouhaha is fun to say, as are many of its synonyms, including hubbub, williwaw, hullabaloo, bobbery, and kerfuffle. And many of these, also like brouhaha, tend to suggest a certain judgment that the reason for all the foofaraw is a bit silly, or at least not worth getting all worked up about. A dad joke, for example, might raise some brouhaha, even though it’s really no reason for an uproar to brew. Haha!

Examples of brouhaha in a Sentence
A brouhaha erupted over her statements about the president.
There's been a lot of brouhaha about her statements.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
In fact, despite the brouhaha over the issue, there are in fact, few transgender women playing in major sports leagues.
—Nina Totenberg, NPR, 3 July 2025
So with all of the brouhaha around Thinking Machine Labs, who is its fearless leader?
—John Werner, Forbes.com, 26 June 2025
The brief brouhaha was the end to a night that saw the Giants go 2-for-10 with runners in scoring position, Hayden Birdsong allow five runs (four earned) over 4 1/3 innings and Christian Koss ground into two double plays with the bases loaded.
—Justice Delos Santos, Mercury News, 21 June 2025
This season, Clark was already knocked down in brouhahas with opponents.
—Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 30 June 2025

Word History
Etymology
French

First Known Use
1890, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of brouhaha was in 1890
See more words from the same year
Browse Nearby Words
broughten
brouhaha
brouillon
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MLA
“Brouhaha.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/brouhaha. Accessed 27 Jul. 2025.

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Kids Definition
brouhaha

noun
brou·;ha·;ha ;br;-;h;-;h;
: uproar, hubbub

More from Merriam-Webster on brouhaha
Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for brouhaha

Last Updated: 15 Jul 2025 - Updated example sentences