ixnay

English

Alternative forms

• ix-nay

Etymology

Pig Latin version of nix; possibly the only Pig Latin phrase to enter common American English besides amscray. Ixnay and amscray were used widely in The Three Stooges shorts, possibly the main source of popularity for the words.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɪksˌneɪ/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Interjection

ixnay

1. No.

Verb

ixnay (third-person singular simple present ixnays, present participle ixnaying, simple past and past participle ixnayed)

1. (slang, transitive, usually in an imperative) Do not do or talk about (something).

   Ixnay on the “W-A-L-K” while the dogs can hear you.

2. (slang, transitive) To reject something.
   • 2009, Kathleen Kaska, Murder at the Arlington, Salvo Press →ISBN

     If I wasn't so bored out of my mind, I would have ixnayed that idea.

   • 2013, Gervich Chad, How to Manage Your Agent: A Writer’s Guide to Hollywood Representation, CRC Press →ISBN, page 295

     Personally, I'd rather feel momentarily bummed when my agent ixnays a two-paragraph idea than totally crushed when she ixnays a 110-page screenplay it took six months to perfect.

   • 2015, Angelina Mirabella, The Sweetheart: A Novel, Simon and Schuster →ISBN, page 158

     You didn't want to ask for a handout—you have a vague memory of him ixnaying advances when you signed your contract—but you don't have much choice.

Related terms

• nix

See also

• XNAY
• Wikipedia:Pig Latin