What does "harumph" mean?

An expression of disdain, disbelief, protest, or dismissal; a huff, grunt, or snort.

What is a synonym for "harumph"?

Common synonyms include: applesauce, bah, bender, blech, bleck, bollocks.

//həˈɹʌm(p)f// intj, noun, verb

intj, noun, verb ·Moderate ·College level

Noun

1
An expression of disdain, disbelief, protest, or dismissal; a huff, grunt, or snort.
"I didn't get a harumph out of that guy."

Verb

1
To make a huffing or snorting sound of disdain or dismissal; (figurative, by extension) to show one's disdain.
"Is it wrong to harumph when the scent of spitting fat drifts towards your washing line?"

Intj

1
An expression of disdain, disbelief, protest, refusal or dismissal.
"Harumph! She is welcome to try, but I'm not going to bother helping."

"Harumph! She is welcome to try, but I'm not going to bother helping."

Onomatopoeic.

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.