Lewis & Short

nūgae, ārum, f. [etym. dub.; old form naugae; cf.: naucum, nux], jokes, jests, idle speeches, trifles, trumpery, nonsense (syn. ineptiae).

  1. I. Lit.: aufer nugas, away with your jesting, Plaut. Truc. 4, 4, 7: nugas postulare, id. Trin. 2, 4, 40; id. Truc. 2, 1, 20; id. Merc. 2, 4, 1: huncine hominem tantis delectatum esse nugis? Cic. Div. 2, 13, 30.
    Hence, nugas agere, to play the fool: nisi argentum dederit, nugas egerit, Plaut. Men. prol. 54; so, maximas nugas agis, id. As. 1, 1, 78; and ellipt. without ago: quo illum sequar? in Persas? nugas, nonsense! id. Pers. 4, 7, 7; id. Most. 5, 1, 38.
    Of verses, trifles: nescio quid meditans nugarum, Hor. S. 1, 9, 2; cf. Cat. 1, 4; Mart. 9, 1, 5 (cf. also: versūs et cetera ludicra, Hor. Ep. 1, 1, 10).
    Of the songs of hired female mourners at a funeral: haec sunt non nugae: non enim mortualia, Plaut. As. 4, 1, 63.
    Acc. to Nonius, Plautus called women’s finery nugae, Non. 144, 30; v. nugivendus.
  2. II. Transf. (abstr. pro concreto), jesters, jokers, droll fellows: amicos habet meras nugas, Cic. Att. 6, 3, 5: ego Hephaestum … Niciam, ego nugas maximas omni meā comitate sum complexus, id. Q. Fr. 1, 2, 2 comites Graeculi, quocumque ibat: tum in comitatu nugarum nihil, id. Mil. 21, 55.