high jinks

plural noun

ˈhī-ˌjiŋks 

variants or less commonly hijinks

: boisterous or rambunctious carryings-on : carefree antics or horseplay

Synonyms of high jinks

• joking
• shenanigan(s)
• funning
• horsing around
• monkey business
• clowning
• tomfoolery
• buffoonery
• monkeyshine(s)
• monkeying
• skylarking
• roughhousing
• roughhouse
• horseplay

Examples of high jinks in a Sentence

despite the team's dismal record, the players have won over many fans with their exuberant high jinks

Recent Examples on the Web

Bellow felt an affinity with Kennedy’s combination of low-life high jinks, human frailty, and virtuoso style. — Cynthia Zarin, Harpers Magazine, 1 Sep. 2026

University email reply-all hell is one of many high jinks that form this bubbly little British rom-com. — Savannah Salazar, Vulture, 28 Aug. 2026

Amid pratfalls and slapstick high jinks, Curry conducts his costars in a symphony of chaos, and rattles off zinger after zinger while also conveying the plot and ultimately the denouement in his machine-gun line readings. — Brian Truitt, USA Today, 26 Aug. 2026

Forget the silly animal high jinks, the humble slapstick of peekaboo and patty-cake, and the earnest overviews of shapes, colors, and numbers; some of today’s baby books have far loftier ambitions. — Elise Broach, New Yorker, 21 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1825, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for high jinks

• methinks
• syrinx
• binks
• blinks
• chinks
• drinks
• hinks
• inks
• jinx
• kinks
• links
• lynx

Kids Definition

high jinks

plural noun

ˈhī-ˈjiŋks

: wild or rowdy behavior