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.
Rep. Monique Miller, a Republican representing the Space Coast district, took issue with the scrub jay, not the flamingo.
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
At this moment, up in the wood, there broke out an excited yelping and a jay began to scold.
From "Watership Down: A Novel" by Richard Adams
Comedy duo Matt Johnson and Jay McCarrol used guerrilla filmmaking and footage they shot in the mid-aughts to create a time-travel caper about their characters’ quest to play the ultimate gig.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 26, 2026
She loved the fusion artists like Jay Sean blending R&B, Punjabi, Hindi and English into something that felt exactly like her life.
From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026
Seaport Research’s Jay Goldberg wrote that the “standout feature,” in his view, was Intel’s profitability.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 24, 2026
"Our view is that we'll be kind of in this $80 to $90 range, depending on the news flow," said Jay Hatfield at Infrastructure Capital Management said of the oil price.
From Barron's ● Jul. 22, 2026
“Surely, Jay Berry,” Daisy said, “you’ve heard of Thor, the thunder god. Everybody knows about him.”
From "Summer of the Monkeys" by Wilson Rawls
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
