High-jinks
noun
High festivities or revelry; great sport (Slang.)
It is a dated expression meaning fun and pranks. It was originally the name of an ancient drinking game that was played with dice. It was the behavior of the players that gave it its name.
In the novel Guy Mannering by Sir Walter Scott in about 1815, Scott describes the game:
Most frequently the dice were thrown by the company, and those upon whom the lot fell were obliged to assume and maintain for a time a certain fictitious character or to repeat a certain number of fescennine [obscene] verses in a particular order. If they departed from the character assigned . . . they incurred forfeits, which were compounded for by swallowing an additional bumper, or by paying a small sum toward the reckoning.
NOTE: For the word ‘bumper’ linked above…look at definition 2.
It’s interesting that in all the reference books I have around here…I only found it under any spelling in just one book. 
I’m old enough to remember it being used all the time when I was a kid….eek! so long ago. 
Sorry for the formatting…will have to find out what’s happening with that.
