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jive turkey

(US, idiomatic, dated, _, slang) Someone who performs the jive dance, especially in an amusing or showy manner.

ˈd͡ʒaɪv ˈtɝkiDocumented since 1970s1970sGen Xhistorical99 viewsLast reviewed Jun 29, 2026+ Add a definition
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3 definitions
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Born ~1970 · no dated citations yet
1970BornToday, 2026
Boomer / counterculture eraSee decade cohort →

Definitions

#1·Apr 27, 2026

(US, idiomatic, dated, _, slang) Someone who performs the jive dance, especially in an amusing or showy manner.

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#2·Apr 27, 2026

(US, idiomatic, dated, _, slang) Someone who behaves in a glib and disingenuous fashion, a jiver.

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#3·Apr 27, 2026

(US, idiomatic, derogatory, dated, _, slang) A fool, a chump, a target for jiving.

Origin: Coined in the 1970s, originally African-American. Origin information sourced from Wiktionary contributors (CC BY-SA 4.0).
For parents

"jive turkey" means: A fool, a chump, a target for jiving.. This is informal slang, common in casual speech, texting and social media, but not appropriate for school work, applications or professional settings. There is no real cause for concern in itself; it is everyday peer vocabulary. If your child uses it, a light comment about audience and register is usually enough — no need to escalate. Context, more than the word, tells you whether to follow up.

For ESL learners

"jive turkey" means: A fool, a chump, a target for jiving.. Register: informal slang, fine in casual conversation, texting and social media but not in academic essays, business writing or formal speech. Note the regional or dialect label (US) — usage may sound odd outside that variety. A common non-native mistake is to use the word in the wrong register, or to assume one fixed meaning when it is actually polysemous; always check the surrounding register and the audience before producing it yourself. In formal writing, prefer a neutral synonym or a short descriptive phrase, and use this word only when you have heard or read it being used naturally in a comparable context.

Cluster: fool
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