Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

jump the shark

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.00 in modern English

Syllables: jump the shark
IPA

33

Scrabble Score

12

Letters

1

Syllables

11

Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

Of television program or other narrative, to undergo a storyline development which heralds a fundamental and generally disappointing change in direction.

verb

To experience a decline in quality, appeal, popularity, etc.

Example Sentences

"Happy Days infamously jumped the shark when Fonzie literally jumped a shark on water skis. I Love Lucy jumped the shark when Lucy and Ricky moved to the suburbs. The Brady Bunch jumped the shark when Cousin Oliver moved in."
"From that point on, Dallas was never the same. It hit its peak. It lost credibility. It jumped the shark."
"Returning show everyone will say has jumped the shark: "House.""
"Pintsize: Wait, don’t you want to know why I’m tied up and hanging from the ceiling? Faye: Not really. Nighty night! Pintsize: Shit! My wacky antics have jumped the shark!"
"The Bangles were a fine all-woman band, starting with a lovely cover of Prince's "Manic Monday." "Walk Like an Egyptian" was cute, and the ladies rocked out an unlikely cover of Simon and Garfunkel's "Hazy Shade of Winter." But they jumped the shark with the treacly "Eternal Flame," and the end of the road was in sight."
"And I knew something was up when I started getting press releases about "tape labels." Maybe vinyl had finally jumped the shark, and magnetic tape was due for a return."

Etymology

From Hollywood (Part 3), an episode in 1977 during the fifth season of the American television series Happy Days, in which the character Fonzie jumped over a shark on waterskis. The expression argues that it was at this point that the show bore no similarity to its original form.

Inflected Forms

jumps the shark (present, singular) jumping the shark (participle, present) jumped the shark (participle, past) jumped the shark (past)

Phrases

shark-jumping nuke the fridge

Frequently Paired Words

Flanderization nuke the fridge

Questions

What does jump the shark mean?: Of television program or other narrative, to undergo a storyline development which heralds a fundamental and generally disappointing change in direction.
Where does jump the shark come from?: From Hollywood (Part 3), an episode in 1977 during the fifth season of the American television series Happy Days, in which the character Fonzie jumped over a shark on waterskis. The expression argues that it was at this point that the show bore no similarity to its original form.

How to pronounce jump the shark

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