skipjack

[ skip-jak ]
/ ˈskɪpˌdʒæk /

noun, plural (especially collectively) skip·jack, (especially referring to two or more kinds or species) skip·jacks for 1; skip·jacks for 2, 3.

any of various fishes that leap above the surface of the water, as a tuna, Euthynnus pelamis, or the bonito.
Entomology. click beetle.
Nautical. an American one-masted sailing vessel.

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Origin of skipjack

First recorded in 1545–55; skip1 + jack1

Words nearby skipjack

skip welding, skip zone, skip-bomb, skip-tooth saw, skipdent, skipjack, skiplane, skippable, skipper, skippering, skippet
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for skipjack

British Dictionary definitions for skipjack

skipjack
/ (ˈskɪpˌdʒæk) /

noun plural -jack or -jacks

Also called: skipjack tuna an important food fish, Katsuwonus pelamis, that has a striped abdomen and occurs in all tropical seas: family Scombridae (mackerels and tunas)
black skipjack a small spotted tuna, Euthynnus yaito, of Indo-Pacific seas
any of several other unrelated fishes, such as the alewife and bonito
nautical an American sloop used for oystering and as a yacht
another name for a click beetle

Word Origin for skipjack

C18: from skip 1 + jack 1
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