jaywalk

WOTD – 27 May 2007

Alternative forms

J walk, J-walk (nonstandard)

Etymology

Back-formation from jaywalker. Analyzable as jay (“a stupid person”) +‎ walk.

Pronunciation

(UK) enPR: jāʹwôk, IPA^(key): /ˈd͡ʒeɪ.wɔːk/
(US):
- enPR: jāʹwôk, IPA^(key): /ˈd͡ʒeɪ.wɔːk/ or
- (cot–caught merger) enPR: jāʹwäk, IPA^(key): /ˈd͡ʒeɪ.wɑːk/
Audio (US): (file)
Audio (General Australian): (file)

Verb

jaywalk (third-person singular simple present jaywalks, present participle jaywalking, simple past and past participle jaywalked)

(chiefly US, law, automotive, transitive, intransitive) To behave as a jaywalker; to violate pedestrian traffic regulations by crossing a street away from a designated crossing or to walk in the part of the street intended for vehicles rather than on the sidewalk.

Derived terms

Translations

violate pedestrian traffic regulations

Chinese:
Mandarin: please add this translation if you can
French: traverser en dehors des clous
Georgian: ქვეითად გაუფრთხილებლად სიარული (kveitad gauprtxileblad siaruli)
German: eine Straße an verbotener Stelle überqueren
Hungarian: szabálytalanul kel át
Italian: attraversare fuori dalle strisce (to cross outside of the lines)
Japanese: 信号無視する (ja) (しんごうむしする, shingōmushi suru)
Portuguese: atravessar no meio da rua (literally “to cross in the middle of the street”)
Russian: неосторо́жно переходи́ть у́лицу impf (neostoróžno perexodítʹ úlicu), зева́ть по сторона́м impf (zevátʹ po storonám), переходи́ть доро́гу в неполо́женном ме́сте impf (perexodítʹ dorógu v nepolóžennom méste)
Spanish: cruzar la calle sin prudencia, cruzar la rúa impudentemente
Swedish: no equivalent term in Swedish, but see oförsiktig fotgängare and vårdslös fotgängare.