zappyadjective
Factsheet
What does the adjective zappy mean?
There is one meaning in OED's entry for the adjective zappy. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definition, usage, and quotation evidence.
Entry status
OED is undergoing a continuous programme of revision to modernize and improve definitions. This entry has not yet been fully revised.
How common is the adjective zappy?
| 1960 | 0.0018 |
| 1970 | 0.0018 |
| 1980 | 0.0019 |
| 1990 | 0.0019 |
| 2000 | 0.0022 |
| 2010 | 0.0023 |
How is the adjective zappy pronounced?
British English
U.S. English
Where does the adjective zappy come from?
Earliest known use
1960s
The earliest known use of the adjective zappy is in the 1960s.
OED's earliest evidence for zappy is from 1969, in the Guardian.
zappy is formed within English, by derivation.
Etymons: zap n., ‑y suffix1.
Nearby entries
- Zapatism, n.1911–
- Zapatismo, n.1913–
- Zapatist, n. & adj.1911–
- Zapatista, n. & adj.1911–
- zapote, n.1842–
- Zapotec, n. & adj.1797–
- zappe, v.c1600
- zapped, adj.1962–
- zapper, n.1969–
- zapping, n.1972–
- zappy, adj.1969–
- zaptieh, n.1869–
- ZAPU, n.1961–
- Zar, n.1868–
- Zarathustrian, adj. & n.1859–
- Zarathustrianism, n.1864–
- Zarathustric, adj.1848–
- Zarathustrism, n.1871–
- zaratite, n.1858–
- zarcole, n.1585–
- zarda, n.1899–
Etymology
Summary
Meaning & use
- 1969–Lively, amusing, energetic; striking.
- 1969
The Minister wore in his lapel..a zappy coloured badge of the ‘Cocoa makes you sterile’ type.
Guardian 1 March 5/2 - 1971
They were both giving each other big zappy grins.
‘J. Mayo’, Asking for It xxiv. 155 - 1972
We badly need some zappy young editor who will start making his more garrulous authors prune their books.
Observer 16 July 30/2 - 1983
The best of contemporary American prose sometimes has a zappy elegance.
Times Literary Supplement 30 December 1448/3 - 1984
The company felt the need for a zappier profile.
Listener 3 May 30/4
the world action or operation manner of action vigour or energy [adjectives] lively, vivacious, or animated- jollyc1325–1586In more physical sense: Having the freshness and lively spirits of youth or good health; fresh, lively, sprightly, spirited. Obsolete.
- lightsomea1382–Radiant or luminous in a spiritual, intellectual, aesthetic, etc., sense; brilliant, bright, splendid; animated, vivacious. Now rare.
- kedgec1440–Brisk, lively; in good spirits.
- fledge?1461–1642figurative. All in a flutter, high-spirited.
- crank1499–Lively, brisk, in high spirits; lusty, sprightly, merry; aggressively high-spirited, disposed to exult or triumph, ‘cocky’. Now dialect and in U.S.
- frisky?a1500–Given to frisking; lively; playful.
- sprightya1522–1919Vigorous or lively; spirited. Cf. spirity, adj. A.1, sprightly, adj.
- frisk1528–1611Full of life and spirit; brisk, lively, frisky.
- sprightful1550–Full of spirit. Of a person: full of energy or animation; active, vigorous; lively, energetic (cf. sprightly, adj. B.I.2a). Also: assertive…
- quick-spirited1552–
- cranking1567Apparently = crank, adj.¹ A.2.
- lively1567–Animated, vivacious; jolly, cheerful.
- quick-sprighted1579–1614
- aleger1590–1626Lively; cheerful.
- bright-eyed1590–That has bright or clear eyes; (figurative) glad, hopeful; alert, eager, animated.
- firking1594–
- sprightly1594–Of a person: full of spirit, energy, or vitality; mettlesome; active, dynamic; vivacious. Now esp. (of an older person): physically vigorous; spry.
- spirituous1601–Spirited; animated, lively, vivacious. Now rare.
- great-stomached1607–†a. High-spirited (see stomach, n. 6) (obsolete); b. having a large stomach.
- spirity1615–Esp. of a person or animal: full of spirit; characterized by animation, energy, vivacity, or boldness; spirited; mettlesome. Now rare.
- spiritous1628–Spirited; animated, lively, vivacious. rare after 18th cent. Cf. spirituous, adj. 2.
- lifesomec1635–Full of life or animation, lively.
- vivacious1645–Full of, characterized by, or exhibiting vivacity or liveliness; animated, brisk, lively, sprightly. Of persons, the mind, disposition, etc.
- rattlingc1650–Of a person: extremely lively, animated; talkative. Now rare.
- quick-set1653–Lively, animated; (of the senses or intellect) keen, attentive, aware.
- airy1654–Like air in its lightness and buoyancy. Lively, sprightly; cheerful, vivacious. Now chiefly Irish English.
- animated1660–Full of the activity and movement of life, enlivened; spirited, lively, vivacious.
- sparklinga1704–Of persons: brilliant, animated, sprightly.
- bob1721–slang. ? Lively, ‘nice’. Cf. bobbish, adj.
- vivace1721Vivacious, lively.
- animate1801–Lively; with the full activity of life; = animated, adj.
- high-lifed1859–U.S. Full of life or spirit; (of an animal, esp. a horse) frisky, skittish, high-spirited.
- sassy1859–In a neutral or positive sense: self-assured, bold, or spirited; cheeky; vigorous, lively. Frequently with reference to speech: confidently sharp…
- chippy1865–Cheerful and lively; = chipper, adj.
- sparky1883–Emitting sparks; also, lively, vivacious.
- high-keyed1893–Originally and chiefly U.S. Full of or characterized by strong emotion, great tension, or excitement; (of a person) highly strung; on edge.
- high life1903–U.S. = high-lifed, adj. 2 Now rare.
- peppy1914–Full of energy or vigour; spirited, lively.
- pepful1915–Full of life or energy; vigorous.
- jazzy1917–Lively, exciting, spirited; bright, vivid, gaudy; showy, flashy, ostentatious.
- smoking hot1947–colloquial. Frequently in form smokin' hot. Originally Jazz. Very lively, energetic, or exciting; performing or performed at a very high level…
- upbeat1947–colloquial (originally and chiefly U.S.). Cheerful, happy; hopeful, optimistic, positive; lively, vigorous.
- funky-ass1967–a. (derogatory) deserving of contempt; worthless, low-down; b. lively; bold; sassy; c. (of music) in a funk style; having a strong dance rhythm.
- zappy1969–Lively, amusing, energetic; striking.
- sparkly1979–Sparkling; that sparkles. Also figurative, lively.
- piquant1645–Stimulating or agreeable to the mind or senses; fascinating; charming.
- poignanta1657–Stimulating to the mind, feelings, or passions; pleasantly or delightfully piquant. Now rare except as merged in later use of 2a.
- French1682–With the implication of sexual adventurousness or explicitness. See also French letter, n., French tickler, n.
- flavorous1697–Full of flavour; pleasing to the taste and smell, savoury; ‘fragrant, odorous’ (Johnson).
- zested1769–
- zestful1797–figurative. Full of zest; invigorating, stimulating, enjoyable; lively, spirited; = zesty, adj. 2. Cf. zest, n.¹ 3, 4.
- pungent1850–Mentally stimulating or exciting; fascinating. Now rare.
- spicy1853–Exciting, exhilarating.
- zesty1853–figurative. Characterized by energy or vigour; lively, spirited; invigorating, stimulating. Cf. zest, n.¹ 3.
- juicy1883–figurative. Suggestive, esp. in a sexual way; piquant, racy, sensational. colloquial.
- nutty1894figurative. Pleasant, rich, full of zest; spicy or piquant in interest. Obsolete.
- sauced1894–With up. Of food: embellished or made more flavoursome by the addition of a sauce; (figurative) that has been embellished or made fancy or showy in…
- colourful1905–Full of or characterized by colour; esp. brightly coloured.
- zappy1969–Lively, amusing, energetic; striking.
Pronunciation
British English
U.S. English
Consonants
- ppea
- ttea
- kkey
- bbuy
- ddye
- ɡguy
- tʃchore
- dʒjay
- ffore
- θthaw
- ssore
- ʃshore
- vvee
- ðthee
- zzee
- ʒbeige
- xloch
- hhay
- llay
- ɬrhingyll
- rray
- wway
- jyore
- mmay
- nnay
- ŋsing
Some consonants can take the function of the vowel in unstressed syllables. Where necessary, a syllabic marker diacritic is used, hence
Vowels
- iːfleece
- ihappy
- ɪkit
- ɛdress
- atrap, bath
- ɑːstart, palm, bath
- ɒlot
- ɔːthought, force
- ʌstrut
- ʊfoot
- uːgoose
- əletter
- əːnurse
- ɪənear
- ɛːsquare
- ʊəcure
- eɪface
- ʌɪpride
- aʊmouth
- əʊgoat
- ɔɪvoice
- ãgratin
- ɒ̃salon
- ᵻ(/ɪ/-/ə/)
- ᵿ(/ʊ/-/ə/)
Other symbols
- The symbol ˈ at the beginning of a syllable indicates that that syllable is pronounced with primary stress.
- The symbol ˌ at the beginning of a syllable indicates that that syllable is pronounced with secondary stress.
- Round brackets ( ) in a transcription indicate that the symbol within the brackets is optional.
View the pronunciation model here.
Consonants
- ppea
- ttea
- kkey
- bbuy
- ddye*
- ɡguy
- tʃchore
- dʒjay
- ffore
- θthaw
- ssore
- ʃshore
- vvee
- ðthee
- zzee
- ʒbeige
- xloch
- hhay
- llay
- rray
- wway
- jyore
- mmay
- nnay
- ŋsing
* /d/ also represents a 'tapped' /t/ as in
Some consonants can take the function of the vowel in unstressed syllables. Where necessary, a syllabic marker diacritic is used, hence
Vowels
- ifleece, happy
- ɪkit
- ɛdress
- ætrap, bath
- ɑlot, palm, cloth, thought
- ɑrstart
- ɔcloth, thought
- ɔrnorth, force
- ʊfoot
- ugoose
- əstrut, comma
- ərnurse, letter
- ɪ(ə)rnear
- ɛ(ə)rsquare
- ʊ(ə)rcure
- eɪface
- aɪpride
- aʊmouth
- oʊgoat
- ɔɪvoice
- ɑ̃gratin
- æ̃salon
- ᵻ(/ɪ/-/ə/)
- ᵿ(/ʊ/-/ə/)
Other symbols
- The symbol ˈ at the beginning of a syllable indicates that that syllable is pronounced with primary stress.
- The symbol ˌ at the beginning of a syllable indicates that that syllable is pronounced with secondary stress.
- Round brackets ( ) in a transcription indicate that the symbol within the brackets is optional.
View the pronunciation model here.
Simple text respell breaks words into syllables, separated by a hyphen. The syllable which carries the primary stress is written in capital letters. This key covers both British and U.S. English Simple Text Respell.
Consonants
b, d, f, h, k, l, m, n, p, r, s, t, v, w and z have their standard English values
- gguy
- jjay
- yyore
- chchore
- khloch
- shshore
- ththaw
- dhthee
- zhbeige
Vowels
- atrap
- ahpalm
- airsquare
- arstart
- arrcarry (British only)
- awthought
- ayface
- a(ng)gratin
- edress
- eefleece
- eerdeer
- errmerry
- ikit
- ighpride
- irrmirror
- olot (British only)
- ohgoat
- oogoose
- oorcure
- orforce
- orrsorry (British only)
- owmouth
- oyvoice
- o(ng)salon
- ustrut
- uhletter
- urnurse
- urrhurry
- uufoot
Frequency
zappy typically occurs fewer than 0.01 times per million words in modern written English.
zappy is in frequency band 2, which contains words occurring between 0.001 and 0.01 times per million words in modern written English. More about OED's frequency bands
Frequency of zappy, adj., 1960–2010
* Occurrences per million words in written English
Historical frequency series are derived from Google Books Ngrams (version 2), a data set based on the Google Books corpus of several million books printed in English between 1500 and 2010.
The overall frequency for a given word is calculated by summing frequencies for the main form of the word, any plural or inflected forms, and any major spelling variations.
For sets of homographs (distinct entries that share the same word-form, e.g. mole, n.¹, mole, n.², mole, n.³, etc.), we have estimated the frequency of each homograph entry as a fraction of the total Ngrams frequency for the word-form. This may result in inaccuracies.
Smoothing has been applied to series for lower-frequency words, using a moving-average algorithm. This reduces short-term fluctuations, which may be produced by variability in the content of the Google Books corpus.
| Decade | Frequency per million words |
|---|---|
| 1960 | 0.0018 |
| 1970 | 0.0018 |
| 1980 | 0.0019 |
| 1990 | 0.0019 |
| 2000 | 0.0022 |
| 2010 | 0.0023 |