Spiel
Pronunciation
- IPA: /ˈspiËl/, /ˈʃpiËl/
- Rhymes: -iËl
Origin
The word has two possible etymologies:
- from the Scots word for game, competition, or (sporting) match http://www.dsl.ac.uk/dsl/getent4.php?query=spiel&sset=1&fset=20&printset=20&searchtype= from Middle Dutch or Middle Low German spel; or from the German Spiel. Cognate with Old English spilian ("to revel, play"). See speel.
- from שפּיל, a Yiddish word used in prison culture (cognate to German Spiel), an evolutionary stage between rap and hip hop and the earlier chain gang songs influenced by gospel and Afro-Caribbean music.
Full definition of spiel
Noun
spiel
(plural spiels)- A lengthy and extravagant speech or argument usually intended to persuade.
- 1910, Irving Berlin, I'd love to be there with a real pretty spielBut three little words can explain how I feel
- 20th century, Theodore Roethke, The AuctionThe spiel ran on; the sale was brief and brisk;The bargains fell to bidders, one by one.Hope flushed my cheekbones with a scarlet disk.Old neighbors nudged each other at the fun.
- A fast excuse or sales pitch.
Verb
- To talk at length.
Usage notes
In the United States spiel is used to describe the protean rap music vocalizations in the 1960s, for example as used by The Last Poets. It is also used by Lenny Bruce to describe his beat era comedy routines.
In Scotland it is used in Scots or Scottish English linguistic contexts, for example in the expression "wheesht yer spiel", meaning "shut up". It is also used to refer to a curling match held between members of the same club or community, as opposed to a bonspiel which refers to a curling match between teams, clubs or communities.