THE FIRST WORD

kabuki

PRONUNCIATION:

(kah-BOO-kee, KAH-boo-kee) 

MEANING:

1. A form of Japanese drama that includes highly stylized movements, dances, singing, and miming, and all parts are played by males.
2. Done for the show only; make-believe.

ETYMOLOGY:

From Japanese kabuki, from ka (song) + bu (dance) + ki (skill). Apparently this is a reinterpreted form of the verb kabuku (to lean, deviate, or act dissolutely). Kabuki is the popular form of the older Noh, the classical drama of Japan. Earliest documented use: 1899.

USAGE:

"I think a first date should go like this: The man reaches for the check, the woman offers to split it, the man declines, saying 'No, I've got it.' It's a bit of Kabuki theater."
Andrea Pyros; You're Paying, Right?; Denver Post (Colorado); Nov 12, 2012.

"In the kabuki theatre of British parliamentary politics, great crimes do not happen and criminals go free."
John Pilger; Let's Learn from Blair's Mistakes; New Statesman (London, UK); Feb 20, 2012.