high jinks
playful, noisy, mischievous activity
TRANSLATION
high jinks = Albereien, Übermut --- GOOGLE INDEX high jinks: approximately 600,000 Google hits
STATISTICS
IN THE PRESS
This year's awards may have been denied the magic of live television, but retained all the hallmarks of a show which has become notorious for its controversy, HIGH JINKS and comic talent.
(BBC News)
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Enjoy Halloween HIGH JINKS in New York
(www.opodo.com)
(BBC News)
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Enjoy Halloween HIGH JINKS in New York
(www.opodo.com)
Did you
know?
high jinks
noun phrase
- playful, often noisy and rowdy activity, usually involving mischievous pranks
(American Heritage Dictionary)
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It sometimes happens that two words with different spellings are pronounced virtually the same. Take "jinks" and "jinx" for instance. A jinx is a person or thing that brings bad luck and supposedly stems from "iynx," the Greek/Latin name for the wryneck bird, which the Greeks considered superstitious because of its odd, but rather clever behavior.
Jinks, on the other hand, is always in the plural and refers to playful but mischievous activity. It is typically used in the expression "high jinks", rather than by itself. The origin of the word jinks is unknown, but there is clear evidence of the context it was used in. In his 1815 novel Guy Mannering, Sir Walter Scott writes.
"The frolicsome company had begun to practice the ancient and now forgotten pastime of high jinks. This game was played in several different ways. Most frequently the dice were thrown by the guests, and those upon whom the lot fell (those who lost) were obliged to assume and maintain a certain fictitious character or repeat a certain number of vulgar verses in a particular order. If they departed from the assigned characters…they incurred forfeits, which were compounded for by swallowing an additional bumper (a drinking vessel filled to the top)."
In other words, high jinks were nothing more than drinking games. The modern usage refers to playful behavior in general, with or without alcohol.
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SYNONYMS
fun and games, horseplay, mischief, monkey business, shenanigans, tomfoolery,
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SMUGGLE OWAD into today's conversation
"You can expect lots of high jinks during the Oktoberfest."
noun phrase
- playful, often noisy and rowdy activity, usually involving mischievous pranks
(American Heritage Dictionary)
---
It sometimes happens that two words with different spellings are pronounced virtually the same. Take "jinks" and "jinx" for instance. A jinx is a person or thing that brings bad luck and supposedly stems from "iynx," the Greek/Latin name for the wryneck bird, which the Greeks considered superstitious because of its odd, but rather clever behavior.
Jinks, on the other hand, is always in the plural and refers to playful but mischievous activity. It is typically used in the expression "high jinks", rather than by itself. The origin of the word jinks is unknown, but there is clear evidence of the context it was used in. In his 1815 novel Guy Mannering, Sir Walter Scott writes.
"The frolicsome company had begun to practice the ancient and now forgotten pastime of high jinks. This game was played in several different ways. Most frequently the dice were thrown by the guests, and those upon whom the lot fell (those who lost) were obliged to assume and maintain a certain fictitious character or repeat a certain number of vulgar verses in a particular order. If they departed from the assigned characters…they incurred forfeits, which were compounded for by swallowing an additional bumper (a drinking vessel filled to the top)."
In other words, high jinks were nothing more than drinking games. The modern usage refers to playful behavior in general, with or without alcohol.
---
SYNONYMS
fun and games, horseplay, mischief, monkey business, shenanigans, tomfoolery,
---
SMUGGLE OWAD into today's conversation
"You can expect lots of high jinks during the Oktoberfest."
