1
a
: glib, deceptive, or foolish talk
tired of listening to his jive
b
: the jargon of hipsters
c
: a special jargon of difficult or slang terms
street jive
2
: swing music or the dancing performed to it
jived; jiving
1
: to say foolish, deceptive, or unserious things to (someone)
He's jiving you.
2
1
: to talk in a foolish, deceptive, or unserious way : to talk jive (see jive entry 1 sense 1)
He's just jiving.
2
: to dance to or play jive (see jive entry 1 sense 2)
slang
: phony
if you are late getting to heaven, you will give Saint Peter some jive excuse—
Langston Hughes
Langston Hughes
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Jive vs. Jibe
People began confusing jive and jibe almost immediately after jive entered our language in the late 1920s. In particular, jive is often used as a variant for the sense of jibe meaning “agree,” as in “that doesn’t jive with my memory of what happened.” This use of jive, although increasingly common, is widely considered to be an error. Jibe, however, is accepted as a variant spelling of an entirely different word, which is gibe (“to utter taunting words”).
Examples of jive in a Sentence
Noun
She grew up talking street jive.
I'm tired of listening to your jive.
Verb
I know he's just jiving me.
Don't take him seriously—he's just jiving.
Everyone was jiving to the beat.
Adjective
don't give me that jive talk about me being your new best friend
Recent Examples on the Web
Guillermo Perez, Miami Herald, 11 Feb. 2025
Simply put, the internal clock no longer jives with its surrounding environment.
—Cathy Habas, SELF, 17 Jan. 2025
Patricia Shannon, Southern Living, 18 Apr. 2025
Even on a team with more veteran leadership this year, Trout seems to have taken on more responsibility — a role that hasn’t always jived with his personality.
—Sam Blum, New York Times, 13 Apr. 2025
Jordan Campbell, New York Times, 4 Apr. 2025
But the results do jive with past trials of antioxidants in cancer patients.
—Amber Dance, Smithsonian Magazine, 4 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for jive
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Noun
This jives with the ballerina’s belief that her art form is about mindset as much as physical exertion.
—Guillermo Perez, Miami Herald, 11 Feb. 2025
Simply put, the internal clock no longer jives with its surrounding environment.
—Cathy Habas, SELF, 17 Jan. 2025
Verb
From electronics to delicate fabrics, natural stone, and more, there are a variety of surfaces and materials that just don’t jive with this household cleaning staple.
—Patricia Shannon, Southern Living, 18 Apr. 2025
Even on a team with more veteran leadership this year, Trout seems to have taken on more responsibility — a role that hasn’t always jived with his personality.
—Sam Blum, New York Times, 13 Apr. 2025
Adjective
So, being able to waltz, tango, quickstep and jive in equal measure?
—Jordan Campbell, New York Times, 4 Apr. 2025
But the results do jive with past trials of antioxidants in cancer patients.
—Amber Dance, Smithsonian Magazine, 4 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for jive
Cite this Entry
“Jive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/jive. Accessed 4 May. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
jive
1 of 2 noun1
: swing music or dancing performed to it
2
a
: glib, deceptive, or foolish talk
b
: a special jargon of difficult or slang terms
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