palaver

Definition

a situation that causes you a lot of unnecessary trouble or work

a situation in which a lot of people are angry or worried

View the full definition in the Macmillan Dictionary.

Origin and usage

The noun palaver comes from a Portuguese word, palavra, which means word, speech or talk. It was first used in English in the early 18th century with the meaning of ‘quarrel’ or ‘dispute’.

Examples

A palaver is a situation that causes you a lot of unnecessary work or trouble. ‘What a palaver!‘ you might exclaim, as you fill in a pile of paperwork. A palaver is also a situation in which a lot of people are angry or worried. In this meaning it might be followed by the prepositions ‘about’ or ‘over’. In American English palaver has an additional meaning of ‘a long discussion between two different groups’. This meaning, which is closer to the original one, is marked old-fashioned in Macmillan Dictionary.

Quotations

“Honestly, I’ve never known such a palaver about nothing.”
(enTenTen15 corpus)

“Once we get over the political palaver, the next governor must decide how best to spend whatever money is available.”
(enTenTen15 corpus)

Related words

commotion, fuss, hullabaloo, to-do