Lallapalooza

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Something or someone exceptionally impressive, remarkable, or outstanding of its kind
2. An extraordinary example of its type, often used informally to praise a striking person or thing
3. A thing or person that stands out as exceptional, especially in an enthusiastic or colloquial way

Etymology: "Lollapalooza" is a word whose origin is unknown, and the best-documented clue is that it appears in several near-identical forms. "Lallapalooza" is an alternative spelling, and it sits alongside "lollypaloozer" and "lallapalootza," which were attested earlier and carried much the same sense. Writers of American slang seem to have been reaching for one flexible, bouncy string of syllables to name something outstanding. That bounciness points toward a family of nineteenth-century expressions. Slang of that period used "la-la" constructions to mean something unusually good, and the word may have grown out of that pattern. The connection is suggestive rather than proven, so it is best read as a plausible neighbour than as a settled ancestor.

Synonyms: lollapalooza, humdinger, corker