chav
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chav
- /t͡ʃæv/ US, UK
Rhymes with -æv
Where it comes from
Origin uncertain; probably of Angloromani origin. Compare Romani chavi (“male child”) or ćhavo, shavo (“female child”), chal (“boy”), chavvy (“mate, friend”), compare Swedish tjej; possibly cognate with Portuguese chavalo, Spanish chaval, German Chabo, Russian чувак (čuvak), Hungarian csávó. See also charva.
Derivations from council-housed and violent, Cheltenham average (and similar) are folk-etymological backronyms.
noun chavs
- A working-class youth, especially one associated with aggression, poor education, and a perceived "common" taste in clothing and lifestyle. Lyrical staff / Never could they ever take me for a chav / Scholar in the English, scholar in the Math / Dizzee ain't no riff raff
