Meanings
nounIrish bull (plural Irish bulls)
plural Irish bulls
- A ludicrous, incongruent or logically absurd statement.
Like the argot once confined to a class, some of his phrases have become part of the general idiom. A Dundrearyism can be recognized as soon as uttered, like an Irish bull.
1878 October 1, John Oxenford, “Lord Dundreary”, in The Theater: A Monthly Review and Magazine, volume 1, London: Wyman & Sons, pages 198–199
Synonyms & antonyms
nounObscene word for unacceptable behavior
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Cite this entry
APA
Irish bull. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Irish%20bull
MLA
“Irish bull.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Irish%20bull. Accessed November 5, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Irish bull,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Irish%20bull.
Source: Irish bull on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.