deejay
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of deejay
First recorded in 1940–45; pronunciation of initials D.J.
Explanation
If you love deciding which song to play next at a party, you should be a deejay, a person whose job is to choose the music for a radio station, a party, or a club. Deejay or DJ is shorthand for disc jockey, originally spelled disk jockey in the 1940s. Today's deejays don't play shellac discs like the first ones did, but many of them do use vinyl records. Club deejays incorporate audio equipment to seamlessly merge one track into another, and radio deejays may play songs recorded digitally or on records, CDs, and cassette tapes. It's also a verb, so you can offer to deejay your friend's birthday party.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
While the moms roast the nuts with chaat masala and the dads gather ’round the wine, my job is to sync my phone to a bluetooth speaker and play deejay.
From New York Times • Dec. 22, 2022
Ironically, the series does open with a radio broadcast: a Muscogee deejay introducing The Stooges' "I Wanna Be Your Dog," which soundtracks the gang's theft of a chip-delivery truck.
From Salon • Aug. 3, 2022
Miller, who moonlights as a fledgling deejay, had grandiose plans for his alter-ego, “D.J. Sauce the Von,” that included club concerts at events such as the Kentucky Derby.
From Seattle Times • Aug. 4, 2020
In 2016, she revealed that, while she was dating deejay Calvin Harris, she secretly co-wrote one of his biggest hits under the name Nils Sjöberg.
From Slate • Jul. 31, 2020
Behind the deejay is a ministage where the talent show contestants will perform—right in front of the Darcy house.
From "Pride" by Ibi Zoboi
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
