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- Dictionaryscuttlebutt/ˈskʌtlbʌt/
noun
- 1. rumour; gossip: informal North American "the scuttlebutt has it that he was a spy"
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noun
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Scuttlebutt in slang usage means rumor or gossip, deriving from the nautical term for the cask used to serve water (or, later, a water fountain). The term corresponds to the colloquial concept of a water cooler in an office setting, which at times becomes the focus of congregation and casual discussion. Water for immediate consumption on a sailing ship was conventionally stored in a scuttled butt:... Wikipedia