Origin of jazz
1905–10,
Americanism; 1915–20
for def 5; origin uncertain
OTHER WORDS FROM jazz
jazz·er, nounWords nearby jazz
jayhawker,
jayhawker state,
jayne,
jayvee,
jaywalk,
jazz,
jazz age,
jazz band,
jazz dance,
jazz mag,
jazz shoe
Example sentences from the Web for jazz
British Dictionary definitions for jazz
jazz
/ (dʒæz) /
noun
verb
(intr)
to play or dance to jazz music
African-American slang, obsolete
to have sexual intercourse with (a person)
Derived forms of jazz
jazzer, nounWord Origin for jazz
C20: of unknown origin
Cultural definitions for jazz
jazz
A form of American music that grew out of African-Americans' musical traditions at the beginning of the twentieth century. Jazz is generally considered a major contribution of the United States to the world of music. It quickly became a form of dance music, incorporating a “big beat” and solos by individual musicians. For many years, all jazz was improvised and taught orally, and even today jazz solos are often improvised. Over the years, the small groups of the original jazz players evolved into the “Big Bands” (led, for example, by Duke Ellington, Count Basie, and Glenn Miller), and finally into concert ensembles. Other famous jazz musicians include Louis Armstrong, Benny Goodman, and Ella Fitzgerald.