Word Confusion: Poo versus Pooh

Posted March 30, 2015 by Kathy Davie in Author Resources, Self-Editing, Word Confusions, Writing

Oh, sigh . . . Another word confusion that shows me up as wrong. I do hate that. To be fair [to me, of course], I suspect most well-read people would assume, upon seeing the word poo used in a sentence, that excrement was being mentioned.

In context, though, I guess I would define pooh as poo, but I would also think the writer was misspelling it. I know. It’s a prejudice on my part. I think it’s all those historical novels I read at an impressionable age. I grew up thinking that pooh! was an exclamation of disdain. Now I can’t help but think poo and pooh are two separate words.

It’s up to you which word you choose to use. Consider your target reading audience; which word are they most likely to associate with the impression you want them to have? And when you choose, remember the cardinal rule of writing — be CONSISTENT!

Word Confusions . . .

. . . started as my way of dealing with a professional frustration with properly spelled words that were out of context in manuscripts I was editing as well as books I was reviewing. It evolved into a sharing of information with y’all. I’m hoping you’ll share with us words that have been a bête noire for you from either end.

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Poo Pooh

Deer poop
Deer Poop by Rosendahl is in the public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

The hunters will recognize the deer poo.

Winnie the Pooh
Winnie the Pooh in Celebrate! A Street Party by Loren Javier is under the CC BY-ND 2.0 license, via Flickr.

Winnie the Pooh at the Disney Street parade.
Part of Grammar:
Noun; Suffix; Verb, intransitive & transitive

Alternate informal spelling: pooh

Plural for the noun: poo

Third person present verb: poos
Past tense or past participle: pooed
Present participle: pooing

Exclamation; Noun; Verb, intransitive & transitive

Alternate informal spelling: poo

Plural for the noun: pooh

Third person present verb: poohs
Past tense or past participle: poohed
Present participle: poohing

Exclamation:
Expression of displeasure or failure

Noun:
[Informal; baby-talk] Excrement

[British] Faecal matter

[Singular noun] An act of defecating

Suffix:
Diminutive, often derogatory (frequently added to adjectives and nouns, especially those ending in -y or -ie)

Dog + poodle mix

Verb, intransitive:
To defecate

Verb, transitive:
To defecate in (one’s pants or bed)

Exclamation:
Used to express disgust at an unpleasant smell

  • Used to express impatience or contempt

Noun:
An exclamation of “pooh”

[Slang; uncountable] Champagne

Verb, intransitive:
To defecate

To say pooh

Verb, transitive:
[Slang] Poop

Examples:
Exclamation:
Ooh, that’s icky poo!

Noun:
Ick! It’s poo!

C’mon, honey, do a poo for mommy.

Have another glass of ‘poo, darling.

Suffix:
Who’s a little cutesy-poo!

Oh, that’s just icky-poo.

I love Yorkie-poos.

Verb, intransitive:
Who pooed on the carpet!?

Verb, transitive:
She has to be changed. She pooed in her diaper.

Exclamation:
Oh pooh! Don’t be such a spoilsport.

“‘Pooh! pooh!’ said Mr Folair, unwinding his comforter, and gradually getting himself out of it” (Dickens, chapt 29).

Pooh! Sir, they know the world.

Noun:
Oh, mama, look! It’s Winnie the Pooh!

“Take our fun quiz to find out, and check out some of the Winnie the Pooh’s most memorable nuggets of wisdom below” (Gregory).

“Pooh and friends have entertained generations of children” (Gregory).

“Pooh has always been a source of simple wisdom.” (Gregory).

Verb, intransitive:
Who poohed?

“The Doctor . . . pshaw’d and pooh’d for some time” (Smith, 44).

She pooh-poohed my suggestion.

Verb, transitive:
The dog poohed in the living room again.

Maggie is poohing in her potty chair!

History of the Word:
This was first used in the 1950s. A natural exclamation that was first recorded in English in the late 16th century.

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C’mon, get it out of your system, bitch, whine, moan . . . which words are your pet peeves? Also, please note that I try to be as accurate as I can, but mistakes happen or I miss something. Email me if you find errors, so I can fix them . . . and we’ll all benefit!

Satisfy your curiosity about other Word Confusions on its homepage or more generally explore the index of self-editing posts. You may also want to explore Book Layout & Formatting Ideas, Formatting Tips, Grammar Explanations, Linguistics, Publishing Tips, the Properly Punctuated, Writing Ideas and Resources, and Working Your Website.

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Resources for Poo versus Pooh

Some of these links may be affiliate links, and I will earn a small percentage, if you should buy it. It does not affect the price you pay.

Apple Dictionary.com

Dickens, Charles. The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby. London: Chapman and Hall, 1839. Xist Classics, 2016. <https://amzn.to/3YxVRFR>. Ebook.

Gregory, Aodhan. “Winnie the Pooh Quiz: Test Your ex-Pooh-tise on the Beloved Bear.” The Daily Mirror. 19 Jan 2019. Web. 17 Dec 2022. <https://www.mirror.co.uk/film/winnie-pooh-quiz-test-your-13878021>.

Smith, Charlotte. The Young Philosopher, vol 1. Originally published 1798. Gale ECCO, 2018. <https://amzn.to/3hFU8hb>. Hardcover.

Your Dictionary.com: poo

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Pinterest Photo Credits

Nuggets, <https://visualhunt.com/f2/photo/9179687531/4fb4e95ccc/>, by cogdogblog is via VisualHunt and Winnie the Pooh Costume, <https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3AWinnie_the_Pooh_Costume.jpg>, by Jameziecakes is via Wikimedia Commons. Both are under the CC BY 2.0 license.

Revised as of 17 Apr 2024
By: Kathy Davie