joss
UK /dʒɒs/ · US /dʒɔs/ noun, proper noun, verb
Forms josses Jossing Jossed ghos
- noun (countable) A Chinese household divinity; a Chinese idol.
- noun (countable) A heathen divinity.
- noun (uncountable, informal) Luck.
- proper noun A diminutive of the female given name Jocelyn.
- proper noun A diminutive of the male given name Joseph.
- proper noun A surname.
- verb (fandom slang, transitive) To invalidate a fan theory or original element of a fanwork through the introduction of new canon or retconning.
Synonyms
Etymology
From Chinese Pidgin English joss, from Macau Pidgin Portuguese, from Portuguese deus (“god”), from Latin deus (“god”), from Proto-Indo-European *deywós (“god/that which belongs to heaven”). Doublet of Tiw and Tyr.
Verb usage evolved from the name of Joss Whedon, creator of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, and Firefly.
Webster’s 1913
- noun A Chinese household divinity; a Chinese idol. "Critic in jars and josses." Colman (1761). Joss house, a Chinese temple or house for the Chinese mode of worship.
Etymology [Chinese, corrupt. fr. Pg. deos God, L. deus.]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “joss”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details