Dictionary

jump the shark en · VERB

Pronunciation

• (Australia) audio

Etymology

From Hollywood (Part 3), an episode in 1977 during the fifth season of the American television series Happy Days, in which the character Fonzie jumped over a shark on waterskis. The expression argues that it was at this point that the show bore no similarity to its original form.

Meanings

1. (idiomatic) Of television program or other narrative, to undergo a storyline development which heralds a fundamental and generally disappointing change in direction.
   • From that point on, Dallas was never the same. It hit its peak. It lost credibility. It jumped the shark. 2004, Ronn Owens, Voice of Reason: Why the Left and Right Are Wrong, John Wiley & Sons, published 2004, →ISBN, page 212:
   • Returning show everyone will say has jumped the shark: "House." 2010 September 16, Michael Hewitt, “The Watcher: Which new TV shows will take off?”, in Orange County Register:
   • Happy Days infamously jumped the shark when Fonzie literally jumped a shark on water skis. I Love Lucy jumped the shark when Lucy and Ricky moved to the suburbs. The Brady Bunch jumped the shark when Cousin Oliver moved in. 2003, Jon Hein, Jump the Shark, book overview (revised edition; Plume; →ISBN, 9780452284104)
2. (broadly, idiomatic) To experience a decline in quality, appeal, popularity, etc.
   • Pintsize: Wait, don’t you want to know why I’m tied up and hanging from the ceiling? Faye: Not really. Nighty night! Pintsize: Shit! My wacky antics have jumped the shark! 2007, Jeph Jacques, “Time To Add A Cute Kid To The Cast”, in Questionable Content, number 951:
   • And I knew something was up when I started getting press releases about "tape labels." Maybe vinyl had finally jumped the shark, and magnetic tape was due for a return. 2008 October 11, Cortney Harding, “Tape echo”, in Billboard:
   • The Bangles were a fine all-woman band, starting with a lovely cover of Prince's "Manic Monday." "Walk Like an Egyptian" was cute, and the ladies rocked out an unlikely cover of Simon and Garfunkel's "Hazy Shade of Winter." But they jumped the shark with the treacly "Eternal Flame," and the end of the road was in sight. 2008, Mark Fogarty, Went to See the Gypsy, Lulu.com, published 2008, →ISBN, page 150:

Forms

Deriveds

shark-jumping

Relateds

nuke the fridge · Flanderization

Translations (6)

de auf dem absteigenden Ast sein (To experience a decline in quality, appeal, popularity, etc.) · pl schodzić na psy (To experience a decline in quality, appeal, popularity, etc.) · pl schodzić na psy z fabułą (To undergo a storyline development which heralds a fundamental and generally disappointing change in direction.) · pl zejść na psy (To experience a decline in quality, appeal, popularity, etc.) · pl zejść na psy z fabułą (To undergo a storyline development which heralds a fundamental and generally disappointing change in direction.) · fr sauter le requin (To undergo a storyline development which heralds a fundamental and generally disappointing change in direction.)