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• alec
  alec

  noun

  a herring.
• Alec
  Alec

  noun

  a first name, form of Alexander.

alec

¹ American  

[al-ik] / ˈæl ɪk /

noun

Obsolete.

1. a herring.

2. a sauce or relish made from small herring or anchovies.

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alec ² American  

[al-ik] / ˈæl ɪk /

noun

Australian.

1. a simpleton or fool.

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Alec ³ American  

[al-ik] / ˈæl ɪk /

Or Aleck

noun

1. a first name, form of Alexander.

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Etymology

Origin of alec¹

1510–20; < Latin ( h ) al ( l ) ec fish sauce

Origin of alec²

1920–25; cf. smart aleck ( def. ); sense shift perhaps originally from ironic usage

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

alec Alec

Sometimes Alex is a smart alec: the chapter sending up his academy school and peer group reads like the revenge of the nerd.

From The Guardian ● Mar. 15, 2013

Obviously a smart alec statement, insinuating that Mooney talked for publicity's sake alone, instead of for a cause in which he sincerely believes.

From Time Magazine Archive

Seneca reproaches them with this refinement of cruelty—“Oculis quoque gulosi sunt;” and the most renowned of Apicius’s culinary discoveries was the alec, a compound of their livers.

From Curiosities of Medical Experience by J. G. (John Gideon) Millingen

Hootsey could not be sure if Nibbles was being a "smart alec" or was just paying him a complement.

From The Forest Monster of Oz by Bob Evans

She performed in radio productions such as The Archers and an adaptation of John le Carre's Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, opposite Sir Alec Guinness.

From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026

She starred in films alongside Alec Guinness, Fred Astaire and Peter O'Toole and appeared in musicals in New York and London.

From Barron's ● Jul. 17, 2026

Alec Litowitz, the Citadel founder and the founder of hedge fund Magnetar, owns shares through his Chicago-area investment firm Qstar, according to PitchBook.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 14, 2026

Meanwhile, Alec and Hilaria Baldwin’s Amagansett compound has been languishing on the market since 2022, when they listed it for $29 million.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 3, 2026

Alec was already on his feet and heading for the door before anyone else could even process the turn of events.

From "The Kill Order (Maze Runner, Book Four; Origin)" by James Dashner