claptrap
English · Thesaurus
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claptrap
- /ˈklæpˌtɹæp/ UK, US
Where it comes from
Theater slang, c. 1730, from clap + trap, referring to theatrical techniques or gags used to incite applause.
noun claptraps · clap trap · clap-trap
-
Empty verbiage or nonsense.
Klein diagnoses impressively what hasn’t worked. No more claptrap about fracked gas as a bridge to renewables. Enough already of the international summit meetings that produce sirocco-quality hot air, and nonbinding agreements that bind us all to more emissions.
Similar: hot air, palaver, waffle, absurdity, all my eye, all my eye and Betty Martin, apple grease, applesauce, bafflegab, balderdash, balls, baloney
- A device for producing a clapping sound in theaters.
- A device or trick to gain applause; a humbug. There had been a suggestion that the child should be with her [while she answers the door], but the mother herself had rejected this. "It would be stagey," she had said, "and clap-trap. There is nothing I hate so much as that."
Translations
Every language
noun empty verbiage or nonsense
| Español | algarabía, verborrea, galimatías, palabrería |
|---|---|
| Français | verbiage, charabia, galimatias |
| Deutsch | Gerede, Geschwätz, Gequatsche |
| Italiano | sproloquio |
| Русский | чепуха́ čepuxá |
Talk about this word "claptrap." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/claptrap. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. claptrap. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/claptrap "claptrap." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/claptrap.Cite this
@misc{claptrap_2026,
title = {claptrap},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/claptrap},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
