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Added 9 October 2026

jazz

/d͡ʒæz/ noun

First recorded: 1912 Wiktionary

noun Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about jazz at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

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.
Energy, excitement, excitability.
The substance or makeup of a thing; unspecified thing(s).
and all that jazz

verb

To destroy; to ruin.
You’ve gone and jazzed it now!
To play (jazz music).
To dance to the tunes of jazz music.

Origin

Unknown. First attested around 1912 in a discussion of baseball; attested in reference to music around 1915. Numerous references suggest that the term may be connected to jasm and jism.

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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