any of several noisy, vivacious birds of the crow family, subfamily Garrulinae, as the crested Garrulus glandarius, of the Old World, having brownish plumage with blue, black, and white barring on the wings.
Informal. a simpleminded or gullible person.
John, 1745–1829, U.S. statesman and jurist: first chief justice of the U.S. 1789–95.
a male given name.
any of various passerine birds of the family Corvidae (crows), esp the Eurasian Garrulus glandarius, with a pinkish-brown body, blue-and-black wings, and a black-and-white crest See also blue jay
a foolish or gullible person
1275–35; Middle English jai < Middle French < Late Latin gāius, gāia, perhaps after Latin Gāius man's name
First recorded in 1965–70; probably spelling of initial consonant of joint, perhaps suggested by pig Latin version ointjay
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“This is Florida’s oldest fake news,” said Kris Cole, a retired high-school teacher who helped his students in Seminole County promote the scrub jay for decades.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 23, 2026
"There's a jay ... That's a bluethroat ... Do you see the hen harrier? We're lucky," the 37-year-old photographer told AFP.
From Barron's ● May 20, 2026
"Even in permanently protected areas like Archbold, jay populations face ever-worsening odds of persistence," Barve said.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 25, 2024
In downtown Perry, Iowa, on Friday, residents wore blue to support each other, reflecting the school district’s mascot, the blue jay.
From New York Times ● Jan. 5, 2024
The jay gave a squawk and flew away.
From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver
It was Haughey who ultimately struck the winning penalty to send the hosts through, yet it was goalkeeper Jay Lynch who tipped the shootout in their favour.
From BBC ● Oct. 28, 2026
It’s also a media hub with offices and studios for businesses including Sirius XM, Spotify, Sony Music Publishing and Jay Z’s Roc Nation.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 27, 2026
Schwartz has only been CDC director since August, replacing acting director Jay Bhattacharya.
From Salon ● Oct. 24, 2026
Jay Ritter, who leads the University of Florida’s IPO Initiative, told MarketWatch that Anthropic has some time if it still wants to go public before Thanksgiving.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 23, 2026
Jay said, waving his hands in front of Barry’s face.
From "I Survived Hurricane Katrina, 2005" by Lauren Tarshis
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
