yo

[yoh]

interjection

(used as an exclamation to get someone's attention, express excitement, greet someone, etc.)

here; present: used especially in answer to a roll call.

Origin of yo

late Middle English word dating back to 1375–1425

y.o.

year old; years old.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for yo

Contemporary Examples of yo

The Yo app might have brought “one-bit” communication to the public attention, but the Apple Watch thrives on it.
Bigger, Bolder, and Better Than Ever: Steve Jobs Would Be Proud of Today's Apple
Kyle Chayka
September 9, 2014
It is “yo,” the absence of reason, the sound of a simply occupying and desperate stimulus.
The Zen of Yo
Dale Eisinger
August 2, 2014
I yo AIRGORDON and the rest of my Yo friends when I wake up for no discernible reason, other than to assert my existence.
The Zen of Yo
Dale Eisinger
August 2, 2014
And I can tap and tap and tap and yo and yo and yo, contemplating or not contemplating the inanity that is this life.
The Zen of Yo
Dale Eisinger
August 2, 2014
I yo my friend BOIBLOG about 15 times on the way to the train station.
The Zen of Yo
Dale Eisinger
August 2, 2014

Historical Examples of yo

Then she added, in a lower tone, "'Kuse me fo' throwin' mud on yo' coat."
The Little Colonel
Annie Fellows Johnston
Just then Maria put her head in at the door to say, "May Lilly, yo' mammy's callin' you."
The Little Colonel
Annie Fellows Johnston
Yo' mamma's a-grievin' 'cause yo' papa has to be away all the time.
The Little Colonel
Annie Fellows Johnston
Yo' all time eatum my grub, yo' no givum me money, no givum hoss, no givum notting.
Good Indian
B. M. Bower
Fire smoke look up for say, 'What yo' do all time, mebbyso?'
Good Indian
B. M. Bower

British Dictionary definitions for yo

yo

sentence substitute

an expression used as a greeting, to attract someone's attention, etc

Word Origin for yo

C20: of unknown origin

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 yo

as a greeting, 1859, but the word is attested as a sailor's or huntsman's utterance since early 15c. Modern popularity dates from World War II (when, it is said, it was a common response at roll calls) and seems to have been most intense in Philadelphia.