boondoggle
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English[edit]
Etymology[edit]
Coined by Robert H. Link, American scout, 1929; alternatively “boon doggle”.[1] Compare woggle of similar sense, attested in same period.
In sense of “wasteful government program”, popularized in 1935 by The New York Times, in reference to New Deal programs which were claimed to feature people making such braids.[2]
Pronunciation[edit]
Noun[edit]
boondoggle (plural boondoggles)
- A braided ring to hold a neckerchief, particularly in scouting; a woggle.
- (US) A waste of time and/or money; a pointless activity.
- Opponents consider this another billion-dollar government boondoggle.
Synonyms[edit]
- (ring): woggle
Translations[edit]
woggle — see woggle
pointless activity
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See also[edit]
- (government program): white elephant
Verb[edit]
boondoggle (third-person singular simple present boondoggles, present participle boondoggling, simple past and past participle boondoggled)
- (intransitive) To waste time on a pointless activity.
References[edit]
- ^ Boondoggle, World Wide Words, Michael Quinion
- ^ $3,187,000 relief is spent to teach jobless to play; $19,658,512 voted for April; 'Boon Doggles' Made, New York Times, April 4, 1935
