jacks

British  

/ dʒæks /

noun

1. Sometimes called: knucklebones. (functioning as singular) a game in which bone, metal, or plastic pieces ( jackstones ) are thrown and then picked up in various groups between bounces or throws of a small ball

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Etymology

Origin of jacks

C19: shortened from jackstones , variant of checkstones pebbles

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Explanation

Jacks is a children's game in which you bounce a small ball and quickly scoop up game pieces. There's evidence that some form of jacks was even played in ancient Greece. Jacks goes by many names, including "knucklebones" and "fivestones." The original version was played with small stones, which were closely related to dice, and invented around the same time. In modern jacks, a player drops ten metal star-shaped pieces and then tries to scoop them up — first one at a time, then two at a time, and so on — after bouncing a ball, which is then caught before it hits the ground.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

jacks

Around the lake, the remnants of Venezuela’s oil boom are woven into everyday life, with homes surrounded by rusting pump jacks and pipelines.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026

But some opt for less physically demanding escapism in the form of "congklak" -- a counting game using seeds or stones -- or "bola bekel", similar to jacks.

From Barron's ● Jun. 15, 2026

That includes Iran, which is straining under a historic drought made worse by years of mismanagement, while climate change jacks up temperatures and reduces rainfall.

From Salon ● Mar. 17, 2026

A large British contingent descended on Livigno Snow Park on Sunday to watch Bankes and Nightingale, with huge union jacks plastered with their images pinned to the front of the fan zone.

From BBC ● Feb. 15, 2026

Cecile knew she had us baffled and took control of the talk like she had grabbed both the ball and the jacks.

From "One Crazy Summer" by Rita Williams-Garcia

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