souped-up
Definition from Wiktionary, the free dictionary
Contents |
[edit] English
[edit] Alternative forms
[edit] Etymology
Etymology is unclear, although it is a past participle form from the verb soup. Automotive and aviation usage is attested at least since 1925 (Popular Mechincs)--possibly from 1921--with even early citations linking it to supercharged. Therefore, it is often alleged that soup is just aClipping of super
However, this is antedated by usage in horse racing cant that applies the term to horses and by US Navy euphemism for drunkenness. The former is attested in Webster New International Dictionary (1909) and the latter in Our Navy (May 1915). Both may be figurative interpretations of soup as a liquid food item, although other origin cannot be discounted.
[edit] Adjective
souped-up (comparative more souped-up, superlative most souped-up)
- (horse racing, cant) of horses injected with something to make them run faster or change their temperament (19th-early 20th century)
- (US Navy, slang) drunk
- (of an engine, a motor vehicle or another device) modified for higher performance (likely derived from the horse-racing term)
- (Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Connecticut, slang) excited
