What is a 'jobation'?
A 'jobation' is a long, tedious scolding — named after the patriarch Job and the tedious rebukes inflicted on him by his friends. Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898), human-proofread transcription on English Wikisource records: “Joba′tion. A scolding; so called from the patriarch Job. Jobation . . . means a long, dreary homily, and has reference to the tedious rebukes inflicted on the patriarch Job by his too obliging friends."— G. A. Sala: ( Echoes ), Sept. 6, 1884.”
Origin
- Verbatim from Brewer's (1898): Joba′tion. A scolding; so called from the patriarch Job. Jobation . . . means a long, dreary homily, and has reference to the tedious rebukes inflicted on the patriarch Job by his too obliging friends."— G. A. Sala: ( Echoes ), Sept. 6, 1884.
How to use it
- Modern usage: A 'jobation' is a long, tedious scolding — named after the patriarch Job and the tedious rebukes inflicted on him by his friends.
- When quoting the origin, cite Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898) — this is a 19th-century record, not a modern etymology.
Source:
Last verified: 2026-07-18
- Definitions and origins are drawn from public-domain reference works, primarily Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898), with modern usage notes clearly marked.