jalopy
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of jalopy
An Americanism dating back to 1925–30; origin uncertain
Explanation
A jalopy is an old car that isn't working very well. You'd never call a new, smooth-running car a jalopy. There are a lot of insulting words in English, mostly for people. This insult is for a car: a jalopy is a rundown, beat-up, falling apart car that needs to be replaced. You'll never see a car salesman say "Check out our selection of jalopies!" A jalopy might have been a great car at one point, but it has seen better days.
Vocabulary lists containing jalopy
Automobiles
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The Circuit
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Swing
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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.
This festival celebrates a free, weekly concert of the same name that’s been a fixture of Red Hook’s Jalopy Theatre since 2008.
From New York Times • Nov. 29, 2018
At the four day festival, which includes the neighboring Jalopy Pub, audiences can sample everything from Indian classical music via Brooklyn Raga Massive to old-time folk from 13-year-old banjo prodigy Nora Brown.
From New York Times • Nov. 29, 2018
You can hear rock ‘n’ roll at Beast of Bourbon in Bedford-Stuyvesant, American folk at Jalopy in Carroll Gardens, Django-esque jazz at Barbès on Ninth Street in Park Slope.
From New York Times • Jul. 11, 2014
Sponsored by the “Down Home Radio Show” and the Jalopy Theater, the festival features 30 bands playing country, old time, blues, folk and international music.
From New York Times • Apr. 17, 2014
The house was full at Jalopy, where prewar music has a local home.
From New York Times • Jul. 21, 2010
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.
