trumpery
Showy but valueless
Trumpery is showy but worthless stuff—flashy ornaments, cheap finery, or ostentatious nonsense that impresses only the gullible.
The word extends to ideas and speech as well: trumpery arguments are superficially attractive but ultimately hollow.
The shop was full of trumpery that tourists mistook for antiques.
As an adjective, it describes things that are rubbishy or trashy: trumpery decorations that fell apart within days.
Worthless discarded items
- trashDiscarded worthless material
- rubbishWaste or nonsense
- triflingOf no real importance
- paltryContemptibly meager
valueless · trivial · petty · inconsequential · negligible · trashy · cheap · tawdry
Senseless talk or writing
- poppycockFoolish or meaningless talk
- twaddleTrivial, foolish talk
- hogwashFoolish or untrue talk
- malarkeyInsincere foolish talk
claptrap · drivel · bunkum · flapdoodle · tommyrot · codswallop · piffle · rubbish
Showy, worthless ornament
- gewgawCheap showy ornament
- knickknackSmall decorative object
- tchotchkeSmall decorative trifle
- bric-a-bracMiscellaneous small ornaments
gimcrack · trifle · ornament · bijou · curio · doodad · thingamabob · frippery
Involving intentional dishonesty
- deceitfulInclined to mislead others
- misleadingCausing false beliefs
- dishonestInclined to deceive
- duplicitousDeliberately deceptive in nature
insincere · guileful · artifice · subterfuge · chicanery · sophistry · sham · pretense
junk
Worthless discarded items
paltry · valueless · trivial · petty · inconsequential · negligible · trashy · cheap · tawdry · meretricious
balderdash
Senseless talk or writing
malarkey · claptrap · drivel · bunkum · flapdoodle · tommyrot · codswallop · piffle · rubbish · folderol
bauble
Showy, worthless ornament
- gewgawCheap showy ornament
- knickknackSmall decorative object
- tchotchkeSmall decorative trifle
bric-a-brac · gimcrack · trifle · ornament · bijou · curio · doodad · thingamabob · frippery · tinsel
fraudulent
Involving intentional dishonesty
- deceitfulInclined to mislead others
- misleadingCausing false beliefs
- dishonestInclined to deceive
duplicitous · insincere · guileful · artifice · subterfuge · chicanery · sophistry · sham · pretense · imposture
gaudy
Tastelessly ornate
- ostentatiousShowily excessive
- flashyShowy, often tastelessly so
- garishTastelessly showy
tawdry · meretricious · tinsel · glittery · brassy · loud · vulgar · kitschy · cheap · tacky
- trinketstrinket, trinket box, knickknack, bauble, gewgaw
- nonsensenonsense, absurd, gibberish, gobbledegook, gobbledygook
- flashy fakesfake, sham, counterfeit, imitation, phony
trumperytreasure
Valued wealth or keepsake
valuables · heirloom · masterpiece · genuine article · first-rate
trumperyelegance
Refined, graceful quality
refinement · tasteful · refined · elegant · polished
trumperytruth
Accordance with reality
wisdom · sense · substance · rationality · reasonableness