Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. wit.

1812

G. Colman Yngr ‘Two Parsons’ in Poetical Vagaries 136: These wooden Wits, these Quizzers, Queerers, Smokers. These practical, nothing-so-easy Jokers; [...] Who talk with fluency mere pun, and jingle.

2. (US) spirit, energy.

1852		in J. Levy They Saw the Elephant 50: Jennie complaining of her husband that the trip ‘has taken the jingle out of him’.
1869		J.R. Browne Adventures in Apache Country 182: These Mexicans were dead-alive sort of cusses. The men had no grit and the women no jingle.

3. (US) an alcoholic drink [? the rattle of ice-cubes in one’s glass].

1878		P.S. Warne Hard Crowd 5: Let’s have a jingle all round [HDAS].
1920		Ade Hand-made Fables 12: The parched Pilgrims rounded up for the twilight Jingle.

4. (orig. Aus.) money [its noise in one’s pocket].

1906		E. Dyson Fact’ry ’Ands 99: Ther Elder dug in ’n’ brought up er ’andful iv jingle.
c.1910		H.E. Lee ‘Tough Luck’ Variety Stage Eng. Plays 🌐 You evaporate the yellow jingles on expensive souse.
1914		Day Book (Chicago) 12 Feb. 32/2: This is Saturday, the day Bill cops the weekly jingle, the clam shells.
1934		G. & S. Lorimer Stag Line 142: Look at all the jingle passing over the table.
1941		Baker Popular Dict. Aus. Sl. 39: Jingle, money.
1966		M. Braly It’s Cold Out There (2005) 192: Every time I rack up a little jingle, I race myself to the store.
1972		B. Rodgers Queens’ Vernacular 137: jingle (spare change scored by panhandlers).
1988		McGill Dict. of Kiwi Sl. 63/1: jingle money; probably from sound coins make in pocket; c.1925.
2001		M. Kram Ghosts of Manila 18: Getting past his kids and to him without jingle ain’t gonna happen. They look for a dollar in the fog.
2014		D.B. Flowers Bangs 162: Bangs and Barrett became emboldened enough to retrieve bits of the loot to sell for a little extra jingle in their pocket.

5. a light, pleasant state of intoxication.

1913

J. London John Barleycorn (1989) 73: Two or three more saloons, and I accumulate a warm jingle.

6. (US) a telephone call.

1949		Any Number Can Play [film script] We never hear from you, not even a jingle.
1987		N.Y. Times 7 July A12: He is always ‘giving people a jingle’ and ‘scooting right over’ [HDAS].
1999		Rick Paul & Kathy Schaeffer ‘When I Don’t Answer Your Call’ 🎵 Just give me a jingle ’fore you come back home / And if the phone rings and rings off the wall / You’ll know I’m gone when I don’t answer your call.
2013		T. Black Ringer [ebook] n.p.: If you need someone to go for a coffee or a wee trip to the pictures or that, just you give me a jingle, eh?