Gibe, jibe, and jive!!

Happy 2024, everyone! 

Today we look at three similar sounding words: gibe, jibe, and jive.

A gibe is often a taunt or tease, e.g.,

The angry audience hurled gibes at the speaker. 

In that sentence, gibe is a noun; but it can also be a verb, e.g.,

The Ducks and Huskies gibed each other.

And to add to the endless confusion of the English language, the similar word “jibe” means to agree with something, e.g.,

Josi’s job interview jibed with her resumé.

Finally, “jive” is similar to gibe—and generally means either to deceive by fast talking or to tease or taunt.  This example is best illustrated by the Bee Gee magnum opus, Jive Talkin’:

It’s just your jive talkin’, you’re telling me lies

Jive talkin’, you wear a disguise

Jive talkin’, so misunderstood

Jive talkin’, you’re really no good

That is all for now …