Jack

Jack is a familiar form of John, the most widely spread of Christian names, and said to be derived from the French Jacques or, as others maintain, from Jankin, a distinctive form of Johan or John. Johnkin gives us Jock and Jockey. From its extreme commonness it has acquired that slightly contemptuous signification observable in such compounds as "every man Jack," "Jack-of-all-trades," "Jack-an-apes," and the name as applied to the knaves in playing-cards, and to the small white ball used as a mark in the game of bowls is an example of its transferred sense.

Nearby pages
Jack Benny, Jack Brag, Jack Bunsby, Jack Cade, Jack Sheppard, Jackaroo