bilge

Like its cousins "balderdash," "poppycock," and "hogwash," this word is certainly past its heyday. It is perhaps because of this that I find it a charming alternative to its more vulgar (if only by convention) modern-day counterparts, but there is more to it than age. "Bilge" has a certain something that its aforementioned relations lack, part of which is an appropriate literal meaning. "Hogwash," admittedly, has a barnyard connotation that befits abuse, but so does our contemporary acquaintance "bullshit." "Bilge" is more sophisticated, with a subtle significance that borders on the arcane. It identifies, for those of you who like me did not know, "the rounded portion of a ship's hull, forming a transition between the bottom and the sides," as well as the accumulated water therein, also known as "bilge water." (Definition courtesy of dictionary.com) This water, as one might imagine, has a tendency to be filthy from stagnation, making "bilge" most appropriate in the face of similarly suffering opinions and ideas. With a single abruptly monosyllabic utterance, you can articulate quite effectively something like the following: "You have clearly not taken the time to consider, let alone reconsider, that antiquated notion! Since it managed, against all odds, to penetrate your thick metallic skull, you have jealously guarded it from the outside world, not allowing it to be changed by contact with the ocean of fresh perspective that surrounds you!"