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5 December 2005 - 01:48 UTC

The Male of Certain Animals

by vw bug

This is my last guest post for a while. It was a hard decision. Should I leave you with Rebus Puzzles to do? Or perhaps another little story? Or better yet… something to boggle the mind.

Did you realize how many ways the word “Jack” can be used?

   1. often Jack Informal. A man; a fellow.
   2. a. One who does odd or heavy jobs; a laborer.
        b. One who works in a specified manual trade. Often used in combination: a lumberjack; a steeplejack.
        c. Jack A sailor; a tar.
   3. (Abbr. J) Games. A playing card showing the figure of a servant or soldier and ranking below a queen. Also called knave.
   4. Games.
        a. jacks (used with a sing. or pl. verb) A game played with a set of small six-pointed metal pieces and a small ball, the object being to pick up the pieces in various combinations.
        b. One of the metal pieces so used.
   5. Sports. A pin used in some games of bowling.
   6. a. A usually portable device for raising heavy objects by means of force applied with a lever, screw, or hydraulic press.
        b. A wooden wedge for cleaving rock.
   7. A device used for turning a spit.
   8. Nautical.
        a. A support or brace, especially the iron crosstree on a topgallant masthead.
        b. A small flag flown at the bow of a ship, usually to indicate nationality.
   9. The male of certain animals, especially the ass.
  10. Any of several food and game fishes of the family Carangidae, found in tropical and temperate seas.
  11. A jackrabbit.
  12. A socket that accepts a plug at one end and attaches to electric circuitry at the other.
  13. Slang. Money.
  14. Applejack.
  15. Slang. A small or worthless amount: You don’t know jack about that.

Psst, Jack… I hope you had a safe and uneventful trip back to the states.



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16. jackanape: s \Jack”a*napes\, n. [For Jack o' (= of) apes; prop., a man who exhibits apes.]

a. A monkey; an ape. –Shak.

b. A coxcomb; an impertinent or conceited fellow.

A young upstart jackanapes. –Arbuthnot.

Alas, doesn’t fit our Jack…

; )

Let’s not even bring up the activity that some say results in blindness and hairy palms…

You have NO idea how much I heard about THAT particular usage of the word “Jack” when I was in high school.