jazz

1 of 2

noun

ˈjaz 

1

a

: American music developed especially from ragtime and blues and characterized by propulsive syncopated rhythms, polyphonic ensemble playing, varying degrees of improvisation, and often deliberate distortions of pitch and timbre

b

: popular dance music influenced by jazz and played in a loud rhythmic manner

2

: jazz dance

takes classes in ballet, tap, and jazz

… No, jazz dance is not dead. Jazz in the twenty-first century is a mix of roots and fruits of the form, traditions, progressions, and transgressions.

—Melanie George

—often used before another noun

a jazz dancer

jazz choreography

3

: similar but unspecified things : stuff

I love the life of the open sea. It's so … free, that wind, and the waves, and all that jazz.

—John Updike

4

: empty talk : nonsense sense 1b(1)

Don't give me that jazz about guys still fighting for jobs. Please. If it's this close to the regular season and you're still fighting for a roster spot … your odds of having a long NFL career are less than slim.

—Tom Jones

jazzlike

ˈjaz-ˌlīk 

adjective

jazz

2 of 2

verb

jazzed; jazzing; jazzes

transitive verb

1

a

: enliven

—usually used with up

b

: accelerate

2

: to play in the manner of jazz

intransitive verb

1

: to go here and there : gad

2

: to dance to or play jazz

Synonyms

Noun

• applesauce [slang]
• balderdash
• baloney
• boloney
• beans
• bilge
• blah
• blah-blah
• blarney
• blather
• blatherskite
• blither
• bosh
• bull [slang]
• bunk
• bunkum
• buncombe
• claptrap
• codswallop [British]
• crapola [slang]
• crock
• drivel
• drool
• fiddle
• fiddle-faddle
• fiddlesticks
• flannel [British]
• flapdoodle
• folderol
• falderal
• folly
• foolishness
• fudge
• garbage
• guff
• hogwash
• hokeypokey
• hokum
• hoodoo
• hooey
• horsefeathers [slang]
• humbug
• humbuggery
• malarkey
• malarky
• moonshine
• muck
• nerts [slang]
• nonsense
• nuts
• piffle
• poppycock
• punk
• rot
• rubbish
• senselessness
• silliness
• slush
• stupidity
• taradiddle
• tarradiddle
• tommyrot
• tosh
• trash
• trumpery
• twaddle

Verb

• amp (up)
• animate
• brace
• energize
• enliven
• fillip
• fire
• ginger (up)
• invigorate
• juice up
• jump-start
• liven (up)
• pep (up)
• quicken
• spike
• stimulate
• vitalize
• vivify
• zip (up)

Examples of jazz in a Sentence

Noun

What's all this jazz about you leaving?

She loves hiking, biking, and all that jazz.

Verb

your assignment is to jazz up the design of that Web page

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

This year's recipients of the lifetime achievement award for artistic accomplishment are director Francis Ford Coppola, the Grateful Dead, jazz trumpeter Arturo Sandoval and singer-songwriter Bonnie Raitt. —Ashraf Khalil The Associated Press, arkansasonline.com, 9 Dec. 2024

The packed house Sunday night danced in the aisles to the bouncy beat after a night of honoring the Dead and other recipients of the lifetime achievement award for artistic accomplishment: director Francis Ford Coppola, jazz trumpeter Arturo Sandoval and singer-songwriter Bonnie Raitt. —CBS News, 9 Dec. 2024

Verb

On my rosemary fry high, I was jazzed about trying their feature cocktail, which was right up my alley. —Lauren Breedlove, Travel + Leisure, 9 Dec. 2024

Throughout her career, the star has toyed with a variety of genres—from dark-pop to country to jazz. —Christian Allaire, Vogue, 20 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun

origin unknown

First Known Use

Noun

1913, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Verb

1914, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Phrases Containing jazz

• free jazz
• jazz dance
• jazz-rock
• jazz up

Kids Definition

jazz

1 of 2 noun

ˈjaz 

1

: American music marked by lively rhythms with unusual accents and often by melodies made up by musicians as they play

2

: empty talk

don't give me any of that jazz

3

: similar but unspecified things : stuff

jazz

2 of 2 verb

1

: enliven

—usually used with up

2

: to play in the manner of jazz