whomperjawed

English

Alternative forms

Etymology

Ealiest known use is from 1942 (see quotations), and it was first mentioned in 1931.[1] Possibly from an alteration of earlier whopperjawed, wopperjawed, wapper-jawed, ultimately related to wapper jaw (“a projecting underjaw”) (1825).

Pronunciation

  • (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /wɒm.pə(ɹ).d͡ʒɔːd/
  • (US) IPA(key): /wɑm.pɚ.d͡ʒɔd/
  • (Southern US) IPA(key): [wɑ̃m.pɚ.d͡ʒɑɒ̯d]
  • Audio (Southern England):(file)
  • Audio (US):(file)

Adjective

whomperjawed

  1. (dialectal, Southern US, especially Texas) Askew, amiss; not fitting, moving or working properly.
    • 1942 September 30, U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Library, Legislative History, Public Law 729 - 77th Congress, Chapter 578 - 2d Session, H.R. 7565, page 7893, column 3:
      The pending bill as it stands presents another whomper-jawed, lopsided, cross-eyed picture.
    • 1942, Salomon Alexander Wright, My Rambles as East Texas Cowboy, Hunter, Fisherman, Tie-Cutter, Austin, Texas: Texas Folklore Society, page 92:
      Honestly, I felt pretty wolfish that time. I didn’t have a thing to defend myself with but my fist. But I was much of a man, and he was a little gangling, bandy-legged, whomper-jawed, worthless specimen of humanity.

References

  1. ^ “Language of the Southern Highlanders”, in Publications of the Modern Language Association of America, volume XLVI, number 4, December 1931, page 1308
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