Jay

proper noun

1. 1

   An English surname transferred from the nickname from Old French jai (“jay (bird)”), a nickname for a chatty or showy person.

2. 2

   A male given name transferred from the surname.

3. 3

   A placename. A hamlet in Leintwardine parish, Herefordshire, England; named in the c. 13th century for the Jay family, prominent in that area (OS grid ref SO3974).

4. 4

   A placename. A locale in the United States. A town in Santa Rosa County, Florida; named for postmaster J. T. Nowling.

5. 5

   A placename. A locale in the United States. A town in Franklin County, Maine; named for American statesman and Founding Father John Jay.

6. 6

   A placename. A locale in the United States. A town in Essex County, New York; named for John Jay.

7. 7

   A placename. A locale in the United States. A city, the county seat of Delaware County, Oklahoma; named for Jay Washburn, nephew of Cherokee leader Stand Watie.

8. 8

   A placename. A locale in the United States. A town on the Canadian border in Orleans County, Vermont; named for John Jay.

9. 9

   A placename. A locale in the United States. A township in Martin County, Minnesota.

10. 10

    A placename. A locale in the United States. A township in Elk County, Pennsylvania.

11. 11

    A placename. A locale in the United States. A former settlement in California.

proper noun

1. 1

   A diminutive of the male given names James, Jacob, Jack, John, or Jason, or for any other name beginning with ⟨J⟩; also used as a formal given name.

   “I started to think about it. He’s coming in on a two-seater experimental plane to pitch me to go on a five-seater experimental sub that he has built down to the ocean floor to see the Titanic,” Jay said.

   When Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft jumped into the state’s gubernatorial race last year, the Republican vowed to tackle a slew of culture war issues, promising to fight the “woke politics” of “left-wing” banks and touting how he used his position to enact a regulation targeting those financial firms.

2. 2

   A female given name.

   To Lt. and Mrs. John Ellingston (Beth Vollstedt), a daughter, Jay Karen, on September 17, 1945.

   In 1993, my daughter Jay returned home aged 21 after a disastrous marriage.

   Within a few weeks, having endured a number of lengthy interviews, Jay found herself working in the Beijing office of the bureau of information.

proper noun

1. 1

   A male given name from Hindi.

noun

1. 1

   Variant of jayAlternative letter-case form of jay.

Forms

plural

Jays