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high jinks

/ˌhaɪ ˌdʒɪŋks/
IPA guide

The noun high jinks is good for describing rowdy fun and games. Most elementary school teachers won't leave a class unattended for long, suspecting that high jinks would begin immediately.

Many moviegoers like to watch funny films full of high jinks — ridiculous, clowning pratfalls and capers. Kids at birthday parties, adults at bachelor parties, and practical jokers are all likely to get involved in high jinks. You can also spell it hijinks — in either case, it's a nineteenth century word meaning "drinking games." The verb jink is probably a root of high jinks, and it's a Scottish word that means "to wheel or spin about in dancing."

Definitions of high jinks
  1. noun
    noisy and mischievous merrymaking
    synonyms: high jinx, hijinks, jinks
    see moresee less
    type of:
    conviviality, jollification, merrymaking
    a boisterous celebration; a merry festivity
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