Standard Lemma guide

jack-in-office

noun · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

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1

noun

Meaning 1

A self-important but minor official.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: derogatory

Examples

  • 1967, C. P. Snow, foreword to A Mathematician's Apology, G. H. Hardy, 1948. Chapel at Trinity was compulsory. Hardy told the Dean, ..., that he could not conscientiously attend. The Dean, who must have been a jack-in-office, insisted that Hardy should write to his parents and tell them so.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.