Jack

Jack, jak, n. used as a familiar name or diminutive of John: a saucy or paltry fellow: a sailor: any instrument serving to supply the place of a boy or helper, as a bootjack for taking off boots, a contrivance for turning a spit (smoke-jack, roasting-jack), a screw for raising heavy weights, a figure which strikes the bell in clocks: the male of some animals: a young pike: a support to saw wood on: a miner's wedge: a flag displayed from the bowsprit of a ship: a leather pitcher or bottle: a coat of mail: (coll.) a knave in cards: the small white ball that forms the aim in bowls.—ns. Jack′-a-dan′dy, a dandy or fop, esp. if diminutive; Jack′-a-Lan′tern, the ignis fatuus or Will-o'-the-Wisp; Jack′-a-Lent′ (Shak.), a boy (for Jack of Lent, a kind of puppet formerly thrown at in sport at Lent); Jack′-block, a block of pulleys used for raising and lowering topgallant-masts.—n.pl. Jack′boots, large boots reaching above the knee, to protect the leg, formerly worn by cavalry, and covered with plates of iron.—ns. Jack′-cross′-tree, the cross-tree at the head of a topgallant-mast; Jack′-flag, a flag which is hoisted at the spritsail topmast-head; Jack′-fool, an absolute ass; Jack′-in-off′ice, a conceited and impertinent official; Jack′-in-the-box′, a box with a figure in it that springs up when the lid is lifted; Jack′-in-the-green′, a May-day chimney-sweep almost covered up with green shrubs; Jack′-knife, a large clasp-knife; Jack′-man, a soldier armed with a jack or coat of mail: a retainer; Jack′-nas′ty, a sneak, a sloven; Jack′-of-all′-trades, one who can turn his hand to anything; Jack′-plane, a large, strong plane used by joiners; Jack′-pudd′ing, a merry-andrew, buffoon; Jack′-rabb′it, one of several species of prairie-hares, with very long ears and legs; Jack′-raft′er, a rafter, shorter than the rest, used in hip-roofs; Jack′-sauce (Shak.), a saucy fellow; Jack′-screw, a screw for raising heavy weights; Jack′-slave (Shak.), a low servant, a vulgar fellow; Jack′-smith, a smith who makes jacks for the kitchen; Jack′-snipe, a small species of snipe; Jack′-staff, the staff on which the jack is hoisted.—n.pl. Jack′-stays, ropes or strips of wood or iron stretched along the yards of a ship to bind the sails to.—ns. Jack′-straw, a straw effigy, a low servile fellow; Jack′-tar, a sailor; Jack′-towel, a long endless towel passing over a roller.—Jack Frost, frost personified as a mischievous fellow; Jack Ketch, a public hangman—from one so named under James II.; Jack Sprat, a diminutive fellow.—Cheap Jack (see Cheap); Every man Jack, one and all; Yellow Jack (slang), yellow fever. [Fr. Jacques, the most common name in France, hence used as a substitute for John, the most common name in England; but it is really=James or Jacob—L. Jacobus.]