tizzy

noun

Etymology: Unknown. American, 1935. Possibly related to tizzy (“sixpence coin”, slang), from tester (“sixpence coin”, slang). Compare also dizzy.

1. A state of nervous excitement, confusion, or distress; a dither.

   “to be in a tizzy”

   “That Todd Evergreen. The reclusive, twenty-two-year-old, overnight billionaire whose very existence has put us all in a tizzy.”

2. A sixpence; a tester.

   “Down with the stumpy; a tizzy for a pot of half-and-half.”

   “Tadpole holds out, but between threats and cajoleries at length sells half for one shilling and sixpence — about a fifth of its fair market value; however, he is glad to realize anything, and, as he wisely remarks, "Wanderer mayn't win, and the tizzy is safe anyhow."”