Jack of cards
Preserved but no longer current.
The knave or servant of the king and queen of the same suit. Jack o* the bowl. The brownie or house spirit of Switzerland; so called from the custom of placing for him every night on the roof of the cowhouse a bowl of fresh sweet cream. The contents are sure to disappear before morning.
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 “Jack of cards” mean?
The knave or servant of the king and queen of the same suit. Jack o* the bowl. The brownie or house spirit of Switzerland; so called from the custom of placing for him every night on the roof of the cowhouse a bowl of fresh sweet cream. The contents are sure to disappear before morning.
Is “Jack of cards” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.