Jazz
WordNet

noun


(1)   A style of dance music popular in the 1920s; similar to New Orleans jazz but played by large bands
(2)   A genre of popular music that originated in New Orleans around 1900 and developed through increasingly complex styles
(3)   Empty rhetoric or insincere or exaggerated talk
"That's a lot of wind"
"Don't give me any of that jazz"

verb


(4)   Have sexual intercourse with
"This student sleeps with everyone in her dorm"
"Adam knew Eve"
"Were you ever intimate with this man?"
(5)   Play something in the style of jazz
WiktionaryText

Etymology


From Louisiana Creole jass 'Congo dances of New Orleans', from jasm 'energy, drive', from African (cf. Mandingo jasi, Temne yas).

Noun



  1. A musical art form rooted in West African cultural and musical expression and in the African American blues tradition, with diverse influences over time, commonly characterized by blue notes, syncopation, swing, call and response, polyrhythms and improvisation.
  2. Energy, excitement, excitability. Very lively.
  3. The (in)tangible substance that goes into the makeup of a thing.
    What jazz were you referring to earlier?
    What is all this jazz lying around?
  4. Unspecified thing(s).
    I'm just going down to the shops and jazz = I am off to purchase items and etcetera.
  5. (with positive terms) Of excellent quality, the genuine article.
    That show was the jazz! = That musical concert/television program was most enjoyable.
    This risotto is simply the jazz. = This risotto was cooked in the classic manner.
  6. Nonsense.
    Stop talking jazz.

Verb



  1. To play jazz music.
  2. To dance to the tunes of jazz music.
  3. To enliven, brighten up, make more colourful or exciting; excite
  4. To complicate.
    Don’t jazz it too much! = Be careful, it was good to start with!
  5. To destroy.
    You’ve gone and jazzed it now! = It is ruined.
  6. To distract/pester.
    Stop jazzing me! = Leave me alone.
 
x
OK