noun

hijinks

HY-jinks

Hijinks (noun) means Lively, mischievous fun and boisterous goings-on — the kind of harmless misbehaviour that makes a good story afterwards. Example: “The film follows four students and their hijinks during a chaotic summer.”

noun

informal Lively, mischievous fun and boisterous goings-on — the kind of harmless misbehaviour that makes a good story afterwards.

"The film follows four students and their hijinks during a chaotic summer."

"There were the usual hijinks at the office party, most of them involving the photocopier."

How to Use Hijinks

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishPlayful, mischievous fun and messing about.

When to use it

Informal and light-hearted. Always plural in form and takes a plural verb: the hijinks were harmless.

Memory tip

It is spelled hijinks or high jinks; hijinks is now the commoner form. There is no singular 'hijink'.

Trace the full origin ↓

Easily confused with

shenanigans → high jinks hijack →

Common pairings

comic hijinks drunken hijinks hijinks ensue get up to hijinks

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Fill the Gap

Can you complete this real example?

The film follows four students and their _____ during a chaotic summer.

Etymology

From the earlier phrase high jinks, originally the name of a boisterous parlour drinking game.

Origin: English

Synonyms

View more →

shenanigans antics capers escapades monkey business tomfoolery

Related Words

folly mischief commotion indulgence monkey business shenanigans tomfoolery antic

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between hijinks and shenanigans?

Hijinks are almost always innocent — noisy, playful and harmless. Shenanigans carries a stronger suggestion of trickery or rule-bending, which is why you hear about financial shenanigans but never financial hijinks.

Is it hijinks or high jinks?

Both are correct. High jinks is the original two-word spelling and hijinks is the modern closed form, now the more common of the two, especially in American writing.

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