https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hokum

Hokum – noun

Definition: pretentious nonsense

“History books and public television documentaries are always trying to tell you all sorts of facts about new york. That Canal Street used to be a canal. That Bryant Park used to be a reservoir. Its all hokum.”

I came across this complex word while reading City Limits. This is basically one of those words that the average person has never heard of. I had no idea what it was or meant. The context clues helped out a lot because after that quote he then said “I’ve been to canal street and the only time I ever saw a river flow through it was during the last water main explosion. I thought of something that was untrue. One example of this would be buying clothes from canal street would be complete hokum.