Phrase guide

shoot the bull

verb · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Australia: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

verb

Meaning 1

To chinwag; to talk idly.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: idiomatic

Examples

  • 1976-1977, Lou Sullivan, personal diary, quoted in 2019, Ellis Martin, Zach Ozma (editors), We Both Laughed In Pleasure I didn't get what this group therapy was all about, it seemed to me it was just a bunch of people shooting the bull.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: shoot the breeze, shoot the shit, throw the bull, throw the bull around

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.