Advertisement

skipjack (n.)

1550s, "a pert shallow-brained fellow; a puppy, a whipper-snapper; a conceited fop or dandy" [OED], from skip (v.) + generic name jack (n.). Applied 1703 to tropical fishes with leaping tendencies. In reference to a kind of sailing boat used on Chesapeake Bay, attested from 1887.

Others are reading

Advertisement
Definitions of skipjack from WordNet

skipjack (n.)
oceanic schooling tuna of considerable value in Pacific but less in Atlantic; reaches 75 pounds; very similar to if not the same as oceanic bonito;
Synonyms: skipjack tuna / Euthynnus pelamis
skipjack (n.)
medium-sized tuna-like food fish of warm Atlantic and Pacific waters; less valued than tuna;
Synonyms: Atlantic bonito / Sarda sarda
skipjack (n.)
able to right itself when on its back by flipping into the air with a clicking sound;
Synonyms: click beetle / snapping beetle
From wordnet.princeton.edu