hullabaloo
hul·la·ba·loo/ˌhʌləbəˈlu/noun, verb
hullabaloo is spelled H-U-L-L-A-B-A-L-O-O: 10 letters and 4 syllables (hul·la·ba·loo). It appears about once in every 5 million words in written English, the 68,248th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, hullabaloo means “A clamour, a commotion; a fuss or uproar” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of hullabaloo is hullabaloos.
How many letters and syllables are in hullabaloo?
| Letters | 10: H-U-L-L-A-B-A-L-O-O |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4: hul·la·ba·loo |
| In writing | about once in every 5 million words; the 68,248th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is hullabaloo?
Hullabaloo appears about once in every 5 million words in written English, the 68,248th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce hullabaloo?
- UK /ˌhʌləbəˈluː/
- US /ˌhʌləbəˈlu/
- US /ˈhʌləbəˌlu/
Hullabaloo has 4 syllables, split hul·la·ba·loo in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-hullabaloo.ogg, En-au-hullabaloo.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with hullabaloo?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as hullabaloo from its last stressed vowel (/u/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of hullabaloo
- hullabaloos plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- hallaballoo
- hallabaloo
- hulabaloo
- hullaballoo
- hellaballoo
- hellabaloo
- hullabalooing participle, present
- hullabalooed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does hullabaloo mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A clamour, a commotion; a fuss or uproar.
They made such a hullabaloo about the change that the authorities were forced to change it back.
verb
- 1
To make a commotion or uproar.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Hullabaloo in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense clamour, commotion, fuss or uproar:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | branle-bas, branlebas, buzz, émeute, excitation, tintamarre |
| German | Aufheben, Aufregung, Aufruhr, Bohei, Gedöns, Rummel |
| Spanish | aspaviento, barullo, excitación, rebullicio, revuelo, descalzaperros |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does hullabaloo come from?
Possibly a rhyming reduplication of halloo (used as a greeting or to catch attention; used in hunting to urge on pursuers), hilloa, hullo (variants of “hello”), and similar words.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).