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Humbug vs Earworm - What's the difference?

humbug | earworm |

As nouns the difference between humbug and earworm

is that humbug is a hoax, prank or jest while earworm is a tune that is stuck in one's head, especially as unwanted or repetitive.

As an interjection humbug

is nonsense!.

As a verb humbug

is to play a trick on.

humbug

English

Noun

(wikipedia humbug) (en noun)
  • A hoax, prank or jest
  • A fraud or sham
  • A fraudster or cheat
  • * 1903 , , Act III:
  • *:He means that he has sold out to the parliamentary humbugs and the bourgeoisie. Compromise! that is his faith.
  • (British) A type of chewy sweet (candy)

    • Interjection

    (en interjection)
  • nonsense!
  • * 1843 , ,
    • ‘A Merry Christmas, uncle! God save you!’ cried a cheerful voice. It was the voice of Scrooge’s nephew, who came upon him so quickly that this was the first intimation he had of his approach.
    ‘Bah!’ said Scrooge, ‘Humbug !’

    Verb

  • To play a trick on.
  • To cheat, swindle.

    • Derived terms

    * humbugger * humbuggery

    Usage notes

    * The spellings (humbuging) and (humbuged) exist, but are not nearly so common as (humbugging) and (humbugged).

    References

    * OED 2nd edition 1989 * * ----

    earworm

    English

    (wikipedia earworm)

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • A tune that is stuck in one's head, especially as unwanted or repetitive.
  • *{{quote-book
    • , year=2005 , year_published= , publisher=Routledge , editor=Kim Cooper, David Smay , title=Lost in the Grooves: Scram's Capricious Guide to the Music You Missed , section=Klymaxx - Meeting in the Ladies Room citation , pageurl=http://books.google.com/books?id=o4wRvuoA0QYC&pg=PA132&dq=earworm+music&hl=en&ei=_ytbTIWrGI2WON6wjaEP&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=7&ved=0CE8Q6AEwBjgU
  • v=onepage&q=earworm%20music&f=false
    • , isbn=9780415969987 , page=132 , passage=The chorus spawned an earworm so potent that women still mutter it as they exit for a bathroom break twenty years later.}}
  • *{{quote-book
    • , year=2005 , publisher=Wildside Press , author=Brain Stableford , title=Kiss the Goat , section=Chapter Two citation , pageurl=http://books.google.com/books?id=rPoLZB_XcAsC&pg=PA16&dq=earworm+music&hl=en&ei=WCxbTKb5JsOjOLSNmJYP&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=8&ved=0CFIQ6AEwBzge
  • v=onepage&q=earworm%20music&f=false
    • , isbn=9780809544851 , pages=15-16 , passage=“Yeah, well,” he said, weakly. “Sometimes tunes do that.”
  • *{{quote-book
    • , year=2009 , publisher=MIT Press , author=Steve Goodman , title=Sonic Warfare: Sound, Affect, and the Ecology of Fear , chapter=1971: The Earworm citation , pageurl=http://books.google.com/books?id=qdafQQ8fb8gC&pg=PA147&dq=earworm+music&hl=en&ei=gytbTNrjO5OnOODegNUN&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=3&ved=0CDwQ6AEwAg
  • v=onepage&q=earworm%20music&f=false
    • , isbn=9780262013475 , page=147 , passage=A commonly cited species within memetics, the earworm is the catchy tube that you cannot get out of your head, the vocal refrain, the infectious rhythm or the addictive riff}}