jitterbug
[jit-er-buhg]
- a strenuously acrobatic dance consisting of a few standardized steps augmented by twirls, splits, somersaults, etc., popular especially in the early 1940s and performed chiefly to boogie-woogie and swing.
- a person who dances the jitterbug.
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- to dance the jitterbug.
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Origin of jitterbug
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for jitterbug
Contemporary Examples
Instead of our sixth iPhone we suddenly start thinking about our first Jitterbug.
He was a seemingly stoned zombie and she did the jitterbug the entire show (no, not really).
The family had not been allowed to take their dog, but Patsy had been able to bring her jitterbug trophy.
The ranger took her to the curator, who searched the archives for anything regarding the jitterbug contest.
Somewhere in that expanse of California sky, I know Edith Jefferson will be doing the jitterbug.
David Jefferson on His Four Gay Marriages and a Legal Victory Against Prop 8David Jefferson
February 7, 2012
jitterbug
- a fast jerky American dance, usually to a jazz accompaniment, that was popular in the 1940s
- a person who dances the jitterbug
- a highly nervous or excitable person
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- (intr) to perform such a dance
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for jitterbug
n.
popular type of fast swing dance, 1938, American English, from "Jitter Bug," title of a song recorded by Cab Calloway in 1934. Probably the literal sense is "one who has the jitters" (see jitters; also cf. bug (n.)). Another sense current about this time was "swing music enthusiast." As a verb from 1938.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper