Home › Glossary › Letter F

For the birds

Idiomatic Phrase
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

An idiom dismissing something as trivial, worthless, or nonsensical; in poetry, it injects colloquial cynicism, often to deflate pretension or to contrast high-minded themes with mundane irrelevance.

Detailed Definition
This dismissive idiom, possibly from military slang, devalues perceived irrelevance. In poetry, it often appears in satirical or cynical verse to reject sentimentality, bureaucracy, or false profundity. Poets may use it to voice disillusionment or to reclaim authenticity by discarding pretense. Its avian reference adds ironic distance—birds as symbols of freedom versus triviality—making it a sharp tool for cutting through noise to what matters, or conversely, for exposing the speaker’s own limitations in perception.
Example
Example in poetry:
Dismissal: “His conspiracy theories? For the birds—noise distracting from real crises”; Elder wisdom: “Grandpa calls social media drama ‘for the birds,’ reads library books instead”; Art critique: “Gallerist said my abstract piece was ‘for the birds’—sold it to MoMA next week”; Self-doubt: “Maybe my fears are for the birds—real threats need real action, not panic.”
Additional Notes
This dismissive idiom, possibly from military slang, devalues perceived irrelevance. In poetry, it appears in satirical or cynical verse to reject sentimentality or false profundity. Its avian reference adds ironic distance—birds as symbols of freedom versus triviality. Students should note its subjectivity: “for the birds” reflects speaker’s judgment, not objective worth. Related phrases include “hogwash” and “nonsense.” In modernist poetry, it cuts through pretension; in eco-verse, it might ironically reclaim bird symbolism. Caution: avoid using to dismiss others’ valid experiences.
Also Known As
Nonsense Rubbish
Skip to main content