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cheap-jack

[ cheep-jak ]
/ ˈtʃipˌdʒæk /

noun

a peddler, especially of inferior articles.

adjective

of or suitable for a cheap-jack; cheap or inferior.
without scruples or principles; underhanded: using cheap-jack methods to evict tenants.

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Also cheapjack, cheap-john [cheep-jon]. /ˈtʃipˌdʒɒn/.

Origin of cheap-jack

First recorded in 1850–55
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

Example sentences from the Web for cheap-jack

  • The rewards of the literary world—that is, the tangible, potable, spendable rewards—go mostly to the cheapjack and the mountebank.

    Pipefuls|Christopher Morley

  • If Llanyglo's cheapjack in one way, perhaps it isn't in another.

    Mushroom Town|Oliver Onions

British Dictionary definitions for cheap-jack

cheap-jack
/ informal /

noun

a person who sells cheap and shoddy goods

adjective

shoddy or inferior

Word Origin for cheap-jack

C19: from cheap + Jack (name used to typify a person)
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012