Jibbed

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Declined or refused to do what was asked or expected
2. Showed unwillingness or resistance to cooperate or comply
3. Stopped oneself from proceeding by refusing to act or engage

Etymology: The past tense "jibbed" comes from "jib", a verb meaning to refuse to go on, which most often describes a horse that stops dead and will not move. The verb's exact origin is unclear, and two rival stories are worth knowing. One is that it may be a shortening of "gibbet", the word for a gallows, perhaps from the idea of a creature refusing to go forward as a prisoner might. The other is that it may be linked to the older nautical "jib", the triangular sail at the front of a ship, which is in turn tied to a verb meaning to shift or swing around. Neither link can be confirmed, so the verb's history stays uncertain. The sailing word has a firmer story. The jib sail first appears in English in the 1660s, and it is generally thought to be a sail that swings across the vessel as it moves, which may connect it to the sense of turning or shifting. The verb "jibe" or "gybe" is a separate word, with its own uncertain roots in dialect words for sudden turning or jumping.