gewgaw

[ gyoo-gaw, goo- ]

noun

1. something gaudy and useless; trinket; bauble.

gewgaw

/ ˈɡuː-; ˈɡjuːɡɔː /

noun

1. a showy but valueless trinket

adjective

1. showy and valueless; gaudy

Other Word Forms

• gewgawed adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of gewgaw¹

First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English giuegaue; gradational compound of uncertain origin; perhaps akin to Middle French, French gogo (see (à) gogo )

Word History and Origins

Origin of gewgaw¹

C15: of unknown origin

Example Sentences

Various other mythological agents, recipes and gewgaws are crafted as desired.

From Los Angeles Times

In 2017, she arranged to have a ceremonial resin “orb,” apparently a gewgaw given to donors and other honorees that she designed, delivered to Epstein.

From Los Angeles Times

It was like a cupboard, crowded with old gewgaws and dust-coated knickknacks — the critic’s mind! — and, fool that I am, I couldn’t squeeze Katz into it.

From Washington Post

Batman and Superman gewgaws are on view to underscore that point.

From Seattle Times

Sotheby’s first positioned itself as a retailer in the late 1990s, when the venerable auction house appointed Dubin, then head of its fashion department, to organize a sale of vintage fashions and gewgaws.

From New York Times

Related Words

• bauble
• trifle
• trinket