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Bullshit (often abbreviated BS or shortened to bull in order to be less vulgar) is a common English expletive meaning "nonsense." It implies that the purveyor of alleged nonsense is willfully lying, or that he/she is speaking boldly from ignorance.
Because it contains shit, the term is considered foul language.
Some claims that its origins come from early Chinese immigrants to the United States, from the statement 不是 (bu1 shi4 in Mandarin, like "sure") meaning "not so," though most early immigrant Chinese spoke the Cantonese mmm hai or in Taishanese mmm si. This theory is dodgy at best since Mandarin-speaking immigrants were rare when this term entered use.
It may be assumed to be a simple English-language invention. The word shit is often used for something unpleasant; bullshit, horseshit (see below), and chickenshit have come informally to mean different unpleasant things.
Bullshit is commonly employed in situations where truth and accuracy are far less important than the ability to achieve a suitable response in the audience. In many cases, such a response is the gaining of popularity or favour (often needed in politics, religion or advertising).
More mundane examples of bullshit often involve the lives of ordinary people. For example, it is not at all uncommon to hear of somebody "bullshitting" a job interview, or attributing their performance in an examination to their ability to bullshit. In this sense, bullshitting walks the line between extemporaneous speaking and lying outright.
The "bullshitter" generally either knows the statements are false or has no interest in their factual accuracy one way or the other. "Talking bullshit" is thus a lesser form of lyingThis article is about the telling of falsehoods. For other meanings of this word see Lie (disambiguation). A lie is a statement that is untrue, when the falsity of the statement is known or suspected by the speaker. Depending on definitions, a lie can be, and is likely to elicit a correspondingly weaker emotionIn psychology, and in ordinary language, emotion is used to describe a state of a person. Examples of emotions are fear, anger, joy, hate; see list of emotions. Emotional state is related to mood, sometimes even identified with it, although emotions are gal response: whereas an obvious liarThis article is about the telling of falsehoods. For other meanings of this word see Lie (disambiguation). A lie is a statement that is untrue, when the falsity of the statement is known or suspected by the speaker. Depending on definitions, a lie can be may be greeted with outrage or angerAnger is an emotion of displeasure, usually regarding an act or idea of another person or organisation. Sometimes a person feels angry at him- or herself for having acted stupidly or badly, etc. Anger involves a sense of wrongedness, outrage, frustration,, an exponent of bullshit tends to be dismissed with an indifferent sneer.
Sometimes called "shooting the shit", bullshit can also be the act of having a very casual conversation with little value.
Bullshit is also used in the popular sayingA proverb (from the Latin proverbium is a pithy saying which had gained credence through widespread or frequent use. Most proverbs express some basic truth or practical precept. A proverb which describes a basic rule of conduct may also be known as a "max "money talks, bullshit walks" meaning that people who "do something" will get more results than people who merely talk.
The word horseshit is often used in vulgar slang as a synonym for bullshit to refer to nonsenseNonsense is an utterance or written text in what appears to be a human language or other symbolic system, that does not in fact carry any identifiable meaning. Distinguishing sense from nonsense While Emily Dickinson wrote that: Much madness is divinest S. The usage of horseshit differs slightly from bullshit. People may refer to their own statements and presentations as bullshit, as in the traditional folk sayingA proverb (from the Latin proverbium is a pithy saying which had gained credence through widespread or frequent use. Most proverbs express some basic truth or practical precept. A proverb which describes a basic rule of conduct may also be known as a "max, "If you can't dazzle them with brilliance, baffle them with bullshit." Horseshit is much less likely in this context. A self-professed "bullshit artist" seeks to gain the favour of his audience by flattery and telling them what they want to hear in highfalutin' tones. "Horseshit!" is the dismissive cry of the unimpressed audience.
For example, "Nobody said that there was anything wrong with you expressing your opinion, but it was pointed out that the opinion you choose to hold on the matter is horseshit."
Arguably the best popular use of horseshit was in the movie Big Trouble in Little ChinaDirected by John Carpenter, Big Trouble in Little China ( 1986) is a comedy action film starring Kurt Russell and Kim Cattrall, set in San Francisco. Kurt Russell plays Jack Burton, a likable truck-driver, who, together with his friend Wang Chi ( Dennis D:
The following paragraph is an example of bullshit. Horseshit is sibilant, euphonious, concentrated, well-formed and pungent, whereas bullshit is flat and featureless (and hackneyed by careless usage). Bullshit is used in a trite and generalized perjorative manner; horseshit is more specific and more insulting. The sibilance connotes action, akin to spitting or pissing.