reggae

reggae — noun

1. a popular music style that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s, built on

1.nounB1
Definition

a popular music style that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s, built on a rhythm that accents beats two and four of each bar, with lyrics that frequently address social or political topics

Example

Rodrigo turned up the reggae on the stereo while he cleaned his apartment.

uncountable noun: 'the reggae' as a genre

The beachside café in Negril plays reggae music every afternoon.

collocation: reggae music

Common collocations
  • reggae music
  • reggae band
  • reggae singer
  • reggae album
  • reggae song
  • reggae rhythm
  • reggae beat
  • reggae festival
  • listen to reggae
  • play reggae
  • reggae artist
  • classic reggae
  • roots reggae
Synonyms
  • ska

    an earlier Jamaican style with a faster tempo and more jazz-influenced horn sections, while reggae is slower and more bass-driven

  • dancehall

    a later Jamaican style with faster digital beats and lyrics focused more on partying and dancing, whereas reggae often addresses social issues

  • rocksteady

    a transitional style between ska and reggae from the mid-1960s, with a slower beat than ska but less emphasis on the offbeat than reggae

Usage Note

Reggae is an uncountable noun — you cannot say 'a reggae' or 'reggaes.' It can be used attributively before nouns: reggae music, reggae band, reggae rhythm.

Common Mistakes

She listens to reggaes from the 1970s.
She listens to reggae from the 1970s.
reggae is uncountable and does not take a plural form.

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

These three styles all come from Jamaica, but they differ in tempo, rhythm, and lyrical focus. Ska, which emerged in the 1950s, is the fastest of the three, with a walking bass line and horn sections that give it a bright, danceable energy. Rocksteady slowed things down in the mid-1960s, focusing more on bass and vocal harmonies, and paved the way for reggae. Reggae itself is the slowest and most bass-heavy, with its signature offbeat rhythm and lyrics that often reflect Rastafarian beliefs and social commentary. Dancehall, which rose in the 1980s, uses digital production and faster tempos for dancing. For example, a song by Toots and the Maytals is reggae, while one by Bob Marley's earlier group The Wailers might be ska; a track by Shabba Ranks is dancehall.

skadancehallrocksteady

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • a reggae band
  • a reggae song
  • reggae music
  • roots reggae
  • classic reggae

Prepositions

  • reggae from [place/time]
  • reggae with [feature]

Etymology

Jamaican EnglishEnglish

The word reggae is believed to come from the Jamaican English term 'rege-rege,' which meant 'rags' or 'quarrel.' The spelling 'reggae' first appeared in the 1968 song 'Do the Reggay' by Toots and the Maytals, and was soon adopted as the name of the genre. The music itself grew out of earlier Jamaican styles — ska and rocksteady — in the late 1960s in Kingston, and became world-famous through artists like Bob Marley.