yack
Americanverb (used without object)
noun
Usage
What does yack mean? Yack is a slang term that means to talk, especially aimlessly, without stopping, and about unimportant things. It is also spelled yak. Yack is typically used at least somewhat negatively to criticize talking in such a way and imply that it is annoying or excessive, as in Would you two stop yacking and help us? The verbs yap, yammer, and jabber are close synonyms. The related slang term yackety-yak is a noun referring to the kind of continuous and trivial conversation or talk that results from yacking. The word yack is sometimes used as a noun to mean the same thing, as is the word yacking, as in I can’t hear myself think with all that yacking. The word chatter can be used as a synonym of both the noun and verb sense of yack. Unrelatedly, yack is sometimes also used as a slang term meaning to vomit, as in Ugh, I feel like I’m going to yack. Example: My mom yacks on the phone with my aunt for hours about anything and everything.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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yacksimple
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yackssimple
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have yackedperfect
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has yackedperfect
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am yackingprogressive
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are yackingprogressive
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is yackingprogressive
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have been yackingperfect progressive
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has been yackingperfect progressive
Past
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yackedsimple
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had yackedperfect
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was yackingprogressive
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were yackingprogressive
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had been yackingperfect progressive
Future
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.
See Examples For:
We had a great yack, but I figured they were married.
From The Guardian ● Oct. 2, 2010
Putting his hand on his friend’s arm, he said quite solemnly: “Jug i mum, sank a nun tut, yack o u, tut a lul kuk, Tutno.”
From Molly Brown of Kentucky by Speed, Nell
Well I thought I'd get a big yack, because Kennedy had a marvelous sense of humor.
From 100 New Yorkers of the 1970s by Millard, Max
Bill, yu ban qvite gude shot, So ay skol give yu yust von chance To vinning nice yack pot.
From The Norsk Nightingale Being the Lyrics of a "Lumberyack" by Kirk, William F.
In Kentucky, C is sank; Y is yack; J is jug.
From Molly Brown of Kentucky by Speed, Nell
The barks, yacks and wa-hoos of the Guinea baboons reveal distinct human-like vowel sounds, according to the study published Wednesday in the journal Plos One by scientists from six universities in France and Alabama.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 12, 2017
At Manhattan's Metropolitan Opera House, where the loudest laughter is usually confined to Sherry's Bar, the visiting Ballet Theater last week provoked some grandiose yacks.
From Time Magazine Archive
So she yacked away a good while, and finally I asked her why didn’t she come over next Saturday, we could go to a movie or something.”
From It’s like this, cat by Neville, Emily
Too many drivers are clicking, clacking and yacking their way down the highways and byways from what seems to be digital addiction.
From Washington Times ● Dec. 5, 2018
Just yacking with someone isn't going to change many minds.
From New York Times ● Aug. 2, 2016
Then if this woman plops down and starts yacking, all anyone has to do is point to the sign and ask her to please respect your workplace.
From Slate ● Mar. 10, 2015
Some guy in shades who turns out to be Amat Escalante, director of Mexican film Heli, yacking to camera.
From The Guardian ● May 26, 2013
“Celia Foote, on Highway Twenty-Two out Madison County,” I tell her as best I can without yacking on the floor.
From "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett
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.
