katzenjammer

noun

kat·zen·jam·mer ˈkat-sən-ˌja-mər

Synonyms of katzenjammer next

: hangover

: distress sense 2

: a discordant clamor

Did you know?

Have you ever heard a cat wailing and felt that you could relate? Apparently some hungover German speakers once did. Katzenjammer comes from German Katze (meaning "cat") and Jammer (meaning "distress" or "misery"). English speakers borrowed the word for their hangovers (and other distressful inner states) in the first half of the 19th century and eventually applied it to outer commotion as well. The word isn't as popular in English today as it was around the mid-20th century, but it's well-known to many because of The Katzenjammer Kids, a long-running comic strip featuring the incorrigibly mischievous twins Hans and Fritz.

Examples of katzenjammer in a Sentence

traffic was all tied up, the kids were fighting, and in the midst of all this katzenjammer, the phone rang

Recent Examples on the Web Of course, not everyone in town is joining in on the Katzenberg katzenjammer. —

Lachlan Cartwright, The Hollywood Reporter, 15 July 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'katzenjammer.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.