yé-yé

noun

A genre of pop music of the early 1960s in Europe.

OriginFrench yéyé ← English yeah-yeah →
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Meanings

nounyé-yé (countable and uncountable, plural yé-yés)

plural yé-yés

  1. uncountableentertainmentA genre of pop music of the early 1960s in Europe.

    […] she (Françoise Hardy) is so today, so white boots and yé-yé, that she can make anyone over 25 (me) feel prehistoric, raccoon coat and rah-rah.

    1966 December 18, Joan Barthel, “Francoise from France: White Boots and Ye-Ye”, in The New York Times, →ISSN
  2. countableA fan or artist of this genre.

    The Mods and the Yé Yés are growing up.

    1965 March 8, “Older Women In Their 20's Can Be Yé Yé”, in The New York Times, →ISSN

Origin

  1. Englishyeah-yeah
  2. Frenchyéyé
  3. Englishyé-yé

From French yéyé, from English yeah-yeah.

More words from French, English

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

yé-yé. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/y%C3%A9-y%C3%A9

MLA

“yé-yé.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/y%C3%A9-y%C3%A9. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “yé-yé,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/y%C3%A9-y%C3%A9.

Source: yé-yé on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.