English word origin

Etymology of jibe

Uncertain; possibly from Old French giber (“to engage in horseplay; to play roughly in sport”). Compare English jib (“usually of a horse: to stop and refuse to go forward”), Old Norse geipa (“to talk nonsense”). The noun

3 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗

In this entry · 3 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗

noun

A facetious or insulting remark; a jeer, a taunt.

verb

To reproach with contemptuous words; to deride, to mock, to taunt. · To say in a mocking or taunting manner. · To make a mocking remark or remarks; to jeer.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Derivation mentiongiberfro
Cognate mentionjiben
Cognate mentiongeipanon

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "uncertain",
      "args": {
        "1": "en"
      },
      "expansion": "Uncertain"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "fro",
        "3": "giber",
        "4": "",
        "5": "to engage in horseplay; to play roughly in sport"
      },
      "expansion": "Old French giber (“to engage in horseplay; to play roughly in sport”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "jib",
        "3": "",
        "4": "usually of a horse: to stop and refuse to go forward"
      },
      "expansion": "English jib (“usually of a horse: to stop and refuse to go forward”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "non",
        "2": "geipa",
        "3": "",
        "4": "to talk nonsense"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Norse geipa (“to talk nonsense”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "sup",
      "args": {
        "1": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "¹"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "giber",
      "giber#Old_French"
    ],
    [
      "jib",
      "jib#English"
    ],
    [
      "geipa",
      "geipa#Old_Norse"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A facetious or insulting remark; a jeer, a taunt."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "08991bdeb37e6fdcc4d02ee6ccf02268632b53b86fef10bc88d9ffbdeb09732d",
      "rawRecordSha256": "d971b23c9d9b2c027dd18457d228ad919ecbb8852593a968920faf7621330354",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 149018
    },
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To reproach with contemptuous words; to deride, to mock, to taunt.",
        "To say in a mocking or taunting manner.",
        "To make a mocking remark or remarks; to jeer."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "transitive",
        "intransitive"
      ],
      "recordId": "50a6faa10f4a7f9cbcf314aa9827dc9c61b1d2d07ddf4dfe9e4748811f225e77",
      "rawRecordSha256": "0a0004969ffe4a633568a44645ad11543e9129d438f25df1fbeba180b3f6251c",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 149019
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗

verb

To accord or agree.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Origin unknown; perhaps related to chime (“to cause to sound in harmony”).

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "unknown",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "title": "Origin unknown"
      },
      "expansion": "Origin unknown"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "chime",
      "chime#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To accord or agree."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Canada",
        "US",
        "informal",
        "intransitive"
      ],
      "recordId": "0b61a6258b45a578e0945863ef07d5826e1ff469d8092ef38e08cdb50fa8ae3f",
      "rawRecordSha256": "febfbdcc29c6d4309f3268439ffcd2200a179394d409e43ab5ba6712e9ca094d",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 149020
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Source etymology 3

Original entry ↗

verb

Alternative spelling of gybe.

noun

Alternative spelling of gybe.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

See gybe.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [],
  "links": [
    [
      "gybe",
      "gybe#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "Alternative spelling of gybe."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "US",
        "alt-of",
        "alternative"
      ],
      "recordId": "52e77148ef4cd74468c3e7dfc8e1d1370ef715eb1f6e55c3a4c7bf209ecf7d84",
      "rawRecordSha256": "67aaa74afea4bfa1cb0b1da803259dc51cbdeca10da672b9a05c878b0c71bf58",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 149022
    },
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "Alternative spelling of gybe."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "US",
        "alt-of",
        "alternative"
      ],
      "recordId": "9697bd575925eac7ce3f133ec8aa9678e117f655dbbf519cf13311fb2f2487c4",
      "rawRecordSha256": "9896fce6b918e23cfb334efdc6da6ef2ce5c95d474063097122c6c54808e0265",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 149021
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for jibe →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger

Machine-source provenance

Source SHA-256: 5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run: 73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID: w-amliZQ