Jacob

American  

[jey-kuhb, zha-kawb] / ˈdʒeɪ kəb, ʒaˈkɔb /

noun

1. (in the Bible) the second son of Isaac, the twin brother of Esau, and father of the 12 patriarchs.

2. François 1920–2013, French geneticist: Nobel Prize in Medicine 1965.

3. a male given name: from a Hebrew word meaning “supplanter.”

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Jacob British  

/ ˈdʒeɪkəb /

noun

1. Old Testament the son of Isaac, twin brother of Esau, and father of the twelve patriarchs of Israel

2. Also called: Jacob sheep.  any of an ancient breed of sheep having a fleece with dark brown patches and two or four horns

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Jacob Scientific  

/ zhä-kôb′ /

1. French geneticist who studied how genes control cellular activity by directing the synthesis of proteins. With Jacques Monod, he theorized that there are genes that regulate the activity of other, neighboring genes. They also proposed the existence of messenger RNA.

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Etymology

Origin of Jacob

sense 2 in allusion to Genesis 30:40

Example Sentences

Apple delivered a "standout quarter" even though iPhone revenue came in just shy of expectations, according to Emarketer senior tech analyst Jacob Bourne.

From Barron's • Apr. 30, 2026

Even more astonishing in London was that debutant Yomif Kejelcha also went sub-two, and half marathon world record holder Jacob Kiplimo also beat Kiptum's former record.

From BBC • Apr. 27, 2026

Franklin and other early American contributors like John Jacob Astor and Cornelius Vanderbilt should probably rank higher than they do.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 25, 2026

“Miran was an ideological ally,” says Jacob Bastian, a senior economist at CEA during the Biden administration and an assistant professor of economics at Rutgers University.

From Barron's • Apr. 24, 2026

“I was asking Jacob, darling. But thank you.”

From "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen