yo
Betekenis (English)
-
- (slang) A greeting similar to hi.
- (slang) An interjection similar to hey.
- (slang) An expression of surprise or excitement.
- (slang) Present! Here!
- Emphatic conclusion to a statement.
Frequentie
Uitgesproken als (IPA)
/jəʊ/
Etymologie (English)
In summary
As a greeting first attested in 1859, attested first as a cry of sailors and huntsmen (first attested in the 1400s; compare e.g. huzzah, giddyup). Originally from Middle English yo, io, ȝo, yeo, yaw, variant forms of ya, ye (“yes, yea”), from Old English ġēa (“yes, yea”), from Proto-Germanic *ja (“yes, thus, so”); or perhaps from Old English ēow (“Wo!, Alas!”, interjection). Compare Danish, Swedish, German, Norwegian jo (“yes (flexible meaning)”), Dutch jow (“hi, hey”) and Dutch jo (“hi, hey”). More at yea, ow, ew. Modern popularity apparently dates from World War II (claimed to be a common response at roll calls; see definition 4), and then most intensely attested in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; it thence spread globally from American dominance of pop culture post-WWII.
Voeg dit toe aan je bladwijzers
Verbeter je uitspraak
Schrijf dit woord
Start learning Engels with learnfeliz.
Practice speaking and memorizing "yo" and many other words and sentences in Engels.
Go to our Engels course page
Notes