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to jitterbug

to jitterbug

2 8.7
To dance quickly with jerky movements to swing music
  • verb
  • /ˈdʒɪtərˌbʌɡ/
  • Archaic
translation icon : bailar jitterbug
  • Several couples began to jitterbug on the highly polished floor.

Examples

  • Oh, do you jitterbug?

  • Every Friday night, the band plays, and everyone starts to jitterbug together.

  • - Do you know how to jitterbug?

  • - She taught me how to dance, particularly how to jitterbug.

  • It's not surprising that she quickly stopped trying to teach me to jitterbug.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • How she wrote limericks and how she loved to jitterbug.

    Fiction book (1992)
  • He would listen for a sec, turn the radio up, grab my mom's hand, and the two of them would jitterbug all over that kitchen!

    Blog text (1)
  • But then she remembered that she and her friends used to jitterbug to the happy music of Glenn Miller, their tightly permed hair barely moving.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • Many couples took to the dance floor, eager to jitterbug to the lively swing music.

  • At the community center, they hold dance classes where you can learn to jitterbug with others.

Synonyms

to jive
vsto jitterbug
7 7.6

To dance in a lively, energetic way to jazz or swing music

is a specific 1930s and 1940s fast partner dance to swing music
to get jiggy
vsto jitterbug
  • Slang
3 9.9

To dance in a lively, playful way

is a fast partner dance from the swing era not modern slang dancing
to jig
vsto jitterbug
2 6.4

To dance quickly with short jumps and kicks

focuses on swing era partner steps rather than leaping folk steps
to jigg
vsto jitterbug
  • Informal
1 9.9

To move your body quickly to lively club music

is the classic 1930s and 1940s swing partner dance not a regional club style
to jive to the rhythm
vsto jitterbug
  • Informal
7.5

Dance quickly and happily to the beat of music

is tied to a historical swing style rather than any energetic modern dancing

Antonyms

Stay upright in one place without moving

66 1.0

Stay seated without moving

How Fast

to jitterbug
  • Archaic
2 8.7
to jive
7 7.6
to dance
1.0
to sway
77 2.4

Surface Forms

jitterbug infinitive
jitterbugged past participle
jitterbugging present participle
jitterbugs third person singular

Etymology

Jitterbug as a verb comes from the same idea: jitter ('to shake') plus bug ('insect' or a sudden craze). So, to jitterbug is to move quickly and with lively, jerky steps, just like the swing dance.