Jacked

/dʒækt/ adjective

Definition

Having large, muscular muscles, usually from exercising a lot, or cheated and mistreated by someone.

Etymology

The muscular sense likely comes from the verb 'jack' meaning to lift or raise with a mechanical jack, imagining muscles being 'jacked up.' The betrayal sense evolved in slang through African American Vernacular English meaning to be stolen from or deceived.

Kelly Says

The same word means almost opposite things in different contexts—'jacked and ripped' praises muscles, but 'I got jacked by that car dealer' means you were tricked, showing how slang transforms words based on how people use them together.

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