Definitions
adj. Spacey, absentminded, eccentric, or not quite all there; describes someone who seems mentally scattered, vague, or unaware of what is happening around them.
- adj. Worked up, keyed up, overexcited, or wound up; describes someone who becomes excessively animated or agitated, often over something relatively insignificant.
Example Sentences
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"Ike's very gazzy. He never knows what's going on."
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"I'm gazzed. I lost my bag again."
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"Why is she so gazzed? It's just a sale."
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"Look how gazzed he gets over nothing."
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Languages of Origin
- Arabic / Judeo-Arabic
Etymology
likely a derivation from Arabic غَاز ġāz 'gas,' rendered גָּאז in Judeo-Arabic; the Arabic word begins with ġayn (غ), pronounced /ɣ/, and ends with zāy (ز), pronounced /z/; by contrast, English gas begins with /ɡ/ and ends with /s/; the preservation of the final /z/ in Syrian Jewish speech, reflected in the spellings gaz and gazz, is therefore consistent with an Arabic rather than an English pronunciation.
- Syrian: Jews with recent ancestry in Syria
- North America
- None
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Regions
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Alternative Spellings
gazzy, gazzed, gaz, gazy, gazed
Notes
Although the word and underlying concept of "gas" also exist in English, the particular figurative meaning appears to be characteristic of Syrian Jewish speech.
The imagery is that of someone affected by inhaling gas, becoming light-headed, disoriented, euphoric, or "high." This helps explain the two seemingly distinct meanings. In one sense, the person is mentally scattered, absentminded, or "not all there." In the other, the person is excessively animated, excited, or worked up, almost as though intoxicated by a situation.
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