pabulum

[ pab-yuh-luhm ]

noun

1. something that nourishes an animal or vegetable organism; food; nutriment.
2. material for intellectual nourishment.
3. pablum ( def 2 ).

pabulum

/ ˈpæbjʊləm /

noun

1. food
2. food for thought, esp when bland or dull

Word History and Origins

Origin of pabulum¹

1670–80; < Latin pābulum food, nourishment, equivalent to pā ( scere ) to feed (akin to food ) + -bulum noun suffix of instrument

Word History and Origins

Origin of pabulum¹

C17: from Latin, from pascere to feed

Example Sentences

We need to be wary and watchful, and we should refuse to accept political pabulum.

From Seattle Times

Hidden Valley Renaissance is the ranch dressing of Italian Revival architecture — mostly pabulum, sort of has taste, taken for granted and consumed accordingly.

From Los Angeles Times

But their observations about love are such pabulum that a passer-by might mistake what their glimpsing for the opener of a "Saturday Night Live" short film parody.

From Salon

The Peabody Awards praised it for “offering the perfect counter to the enduring prevalence of toxic masculinity,” and the show’s Twitter account, which spouted pabulum about the decency of the human spirit, became extremely popular.

From New York Times

Also, four featurettes, under 10 minutes in total, quickly deliver promotional pabulum and are only distinguished when learning about how a shop teacher was split in half with a table saw.

From Washington Times