cheap jack
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
A travelling vendor of small wares, who is usually ready to "cheapen" his goods, Le. take less for them than the price he first named.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “cheap jack” mean?
A travelling vendor of small wares, who is usually ready to "cheapen" his goods, Le. take less for them than the price he first named.
Is “cheap jack” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.