Horse malarkey is a variation of the slang term malarkey, meaning nonsense, but with extra emphasis, often used to dismiss something as complete foolishness or lies. The phrase combines horse, which in slang is often used as an intensifier for nonsense as in horseshit or horsefeathers meaning nonsense, with malarkey meaning bunk or foolish talk. So horse malarkey means utter nonsense, total baloney, or ridiculous lies. For example, someone might say that's a bunch of horse malarkey meaning that's complete nonsense. The word malarkey itself first appeared in American English around 1922, popularized by cartoonist Tad Dorgan, believed to come from Irish surname Mullarkey associated with tall tales. Adding horse intensifies it, similar to saying horsefeathers or horse hockey, which were early 20th century euphemisms for horseshit. Horse malarkey is not a highly offensive phrase, it is considered mild and humorous, suitable for polite conversation, though horse can imply stronger dismissal. It is used in American English, particularly in rural and political speech, to call out exaggeration. You might hear it in phrases like don't give me that horse malarkey, meaning don't try to fool me with nonsense. It is less common than just malarkey but carries same meaning with extra emphasis that the nonsense is big, obvious, or insulting to intelligence, essentially saying that's a load of nonsense.
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