pfui
English
Alternative forms
- phooey
Etymology
From German pfui, also the source of phooey.
Interjection
pfui
- an exclamation indicating disagreement or rejection of an argument; contempt
- Synonyms: feh, pfaugh; see also Thesaurus:bah
- 1981, Charles H. Kahn, The Art and Thought of Heraclitus, →ISBN:
- 'Pfui!' The captain spat. 'I've never met such a dumb sailor as you. So where do you think the old moon goes?'
- 1993, Samuel Beckett, Eoin O'Brien, & Edith Fournier, Dream of Fair to Middling Women, →ISBN, page 14:
- She liked Arschlochweh and adored Improvisation; but the Anatomiestunde and the bending and stretching she did not like. "Pfui!" she was disgusted, lifting her shoulders and spreading her hands like the Mandarin, "pfui! the old body!'
- 2008, Christopher Isherwood, The Berlin Stories, →ISBN, page 175:
- He comes barging in here as if the place belonged to him. And intoxicated . . . pfui! . . . the disgusting pig!
Usage notes
Signature declamation of Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe detective character.
German
Alternative forms
- pfuj, pfuy (obsolete)
Etymology
From Middle High German pfui, phiu, probably imitative of spitting out.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /pfʊɪ̯/, /fʊɪ̯/
Audio (file)
Interjection
pfui
- an exclamation of disgust, aversion, dislike, contempt, or annoyance
Derived terms
- pfui Teufel
Further reading
- “pfui” in Duden online
- “pfui” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
- J. C. Adelung (1798), “Pfuj!”, in Grammatisch-kritisches Wörterbuch der Hochdeutschen Mundart (in German), volume 3, 2nd edition, page 758
- J. C. Adelung (1801), “Y”, in Grammatisch-kritisches Wörterbuch der Hochdeutschen Mundart (in German), volume 4, 2nd edition