Definition of "pabulum" [pab•u•lum]

• A substance that gives nourishment; food. (noun)
• Insipid intellectual nourishment: "TV . . . gobbled up comedy material and spat it out as pabulum” ( Richard Corliss). (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "They supposed that the air contained a principle proper for the support and nourishment of life, which they called pabulum vitae."
• "The "pabulum" to which Christie was referring: O'Malley's comments on a recent radio show in which he said Christie's brand of pension reform showed that the New Jersey Republican "delights in being abusive towards public employees.""
• "An architect of the White House's earlier policies dismissed Mr. Bellinger's remarks as "pabulum" from a State Department that is too solicitous of international institutions."