Monday, November 15, 2010

Unusual Words Defined: A - Z (Part K)

A continuation of the series.

katz·en·jam·mer

n.
1. A loud, discordant noise.
2. A hangover.
3. A state of depression or bewilderment.













Definition from thefreedictionary.com

4 comments:

Rimpy Rimpington said...

Good word. If I remember my German correctly, I think the word literally means, "cat's sorrow". Maybe because a person suffering from a hangover is more likely to abuse a cat for "stomping around" (a la The Three Stooges)?

Laura Payne said...

Rimpy - You are very close. The Online Etymology Dictionary lists it as Ger. katzen, comb. form of katze "cat" + jammer "distress, wailing."

JCR said...

The Katzenjammer Kids comic strip embodies all of those definitions --

http://www.kingfeatures.com/features/comics/katzkids/about.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Katzenjammer_Kids

Laura Payne said...

Right you are JCR, thank you for mentioning it.

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