kerfuffle

(kuhr-FUHF-uhl)

noun
A commotion.

Etymology
Of uncertain origin, perhaps from Scots curfuffle, from fuffle (to disorder)

Usage
"After a kerfuffle over the arrest of an 87-year-old man in Oak Bay, Victoria police devised a cloth handcuff designed to protect the fragile skin of the elderly." — Jack Knox; And on the Lighter Side; Times Colonist (Victoria, Canada); Dec 30, 2007.

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Way to go, Dubya! President Bush delighted word-lovers, if not political opponents, with the use of a charmingly obscure yet descriptive term for commotion or disturbance:

"President Bush is known as a plainspoken man, a straight-talker. So how did a word like 'kerfuffle' come out of his mouth? It's not an everyday word; it means a commotion or fuss... Someone had asked about his administration's warrantless surveillance program, which has stirred concern about whether it exceeds the bounds of his authority and violates the law.
Saying the program had 'created quite a kerfuffle in the press,' Bush gave his rationale for authorizing it. No question, the program has riled some Republicans and Democrats. But Bush may be the only politician who says it has caused a kerfuffle."

Link: President Bush talks 'kerfuffle'

Posted March 23, 2006.

See our Word Overheard blog to see interesting uses of strange words.

Brit.  disturbance

IN BRIEF: n. - A disorderly outburst or tumult.

Dansk (Danish)
n. - uro, postyr, vrøvl, ballade

Deutsch (German)
n. - Aufregung

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - φασαρία, πατιρντί
v. - κάνω φασαρία, σαματά

Italiano (Italian)
agitazione, chiasso

Português (Portuguese)
n. - bafafá (f) (coloq.)
v. - fazer barulho desnecessário

Русский (Russian)
ласкать, заниматься любовью

Español (Spanish)
n. - lío, follón

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - ståhej
v. - stoja

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
骚乱, 混乱

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 騷亂, 混亂

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 대법석

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - ばか騒ぎ, 騒動, 大騒ぎ

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮מהומה‬

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