JIVE

swing, swing music, jive

(noun) a style of jazz played by big bands popular in the 1930s; flowing rhythms but less complex than later styles of jazz

jive

(verb) dance to jive music; dance the jive

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology 1

Verb

jive (third-person singular simple present jives, present participle jiving, simple past and past participle jived)

(transitive, intransitive, US, colloquial) To deceive; to be deceptive.

(intransitive, colloquial) To dance.

Noun

jive (plural jives)

A dance style popular in the 1940–50s.

Swing, a style of jazz music.

A slang associated with jazz musicians; hepcat patois or hipster jargon.

(US, colloquial) Nonsense; transparently deceptive talk.

(US, colloquial, often pejorative) African-American Vernacular English.

Etymology 2

Verb

jive (third-person singular simple present jives, present participle jiving, simple past and past participle jived)

(US) Alternative spelling of jibe

Usage notes

• "Jive" and "jibe" have been used interchangeably in the US to indicate the concept "to agree or accord." While one recent dictionary accepts this usage of "jive," most sources consider it to be in error.

• See also "jive turkey" for a related expression.

Source: Wiktionary



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Word of the Day

29 May 2025

CRITICAL

(adjective) characterized by careful evaluation and judgment; “a critical reading”; “a critical dissertation”; “a critical analysis of Melville’s writings”


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Coffee Trivia

Some 16th-century Italian clergymen tried to ban coffee because they believed it to be “satanic.” However, Pope Clement VII loved coffee so much that he lifted the ban and had coffee baptized in 1600.

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