jalopy

[juh-lop-ee]

noun

Informal.

plural

jalopies 

1. an old, decrepit, or unpretentious automobile.

jalopy

/ dʒəˈlɒpɪ /

noun

1. informal,  a dilapidated old car

Word History and Origins

Origin of jalopy¹

An Americanism dating back to 1925–30; origin uncertain

Word History and Origins

Origin of jalopy¹

C20: of unknown origin

Example Sentences

No one today any longer wishes to hear jokes about nagging mothers-in-law, spendthrift wives or old jalopies, and the men and women who once told them to hardy plaudits are now forgotten.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

But just because this old jalopy still runs doesn’t mean it’s worth taking for a spin.

Read more on Salon

Kelce has gone the extra mile, buying a onetime muffler shop to expand Operation Breakthrough’s campus and create the Ignition Lab, in which students convert dilapidated jalopies into lacquered, showroom-ready electric vehicles.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

If this were a 1940s noir, Lou would be fixing jalopies in a dingy garage while waiting for a dame to stroll in to change his fate.

Read more on New York Times

Part of the carnival circuit, the family travels a snowy landscape in their jalopy, killing people along the way seemingly for sport, but also, perhaps, as part of a morbid quest for immortality.

Read more on New York Times