I. ˈjaz noun
Usage: often attributive
Etymology: origin unknown
Date: 1913
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. : empty talk : humbug
spouted all the scientific jazz — Pete Martin
3. : similar but unspecified things : stuff
that wind, and the waves, and all that jazz — John Updike
• jazz·like -ˌlīk adjective
II. verb
Date: 1917
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