shindig
noun
Did you know?
At a glance, shindig appears to combine shin and dig, and thus might seem to suggest a painful kick to the leg—especially when you know that one of the first senses of shindig in English refers to a gathering at which people dance. It is more likely, however, that shindig is an alteration of shindy, which is itself the alteration of another word, shinny, used of a variation of hockey that is played with a curved stick and a ball or block of wood. It's not entirely clear how the game of shinny gave shindy its first meaning (the "social gathering with dancing" meaning that is also the original meaning of shindig) but shinny remains the most likely origin.
Examples of shindig in a Sentence
Brian Moylan, Vulture, 26 Feb. 2025
In past years, Oscar winners like Emma Stone and Michelle Yeoh, as well as sports and cultural luminaries like Serena Williams and Justin Bieber, have made it to the legendary shindig in Beverly Hills.
—Vogue, 24 Feb. 2025
Hosting a Super Bowl watch party can be as simple as having a few friends over with bowls of chips and dips to watch the game together or planning an even more elaborate shindig.
—Nora Colomer, Fox News, 29 Jan. 2025
This comes after a week of awards season events where the likes of Hacks co-creator Paul W. Downs and DGA President Lesli Linka Glatter stumped for the campaign at high-profile shindigs.
—Peter White, Deadline, 10 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for shindig
Cite this Entry
“Shindig.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shindig. Accessed 3 Mar. 2025.
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shindig
noun
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