Word page
Jackanapes is an archaic noun for a cheeky, impertinent, or conceited person. It is one of those old insults that sounds almost playful until you realize it was meant to sting.
In plain English, jackanapes means an impudent, conceited, or mischievous person.
Jackanapes feels absurd because it sounds half like a proper name and half like a monkey in a velvet jacket.
Historically, the word was associated with impudence and sometimes with monkey-like showiness. It became a memorable label for vain or badly behaved people.
Jackanapes still appears in modern English, especially when writers want a word with more color or specificity than a basic everyday equivalent.
Use Jackanapes when you want something more vivid, distinctive, or precise than a flatter everyday alternative. It works best in writing that welcomes color and voice.
Anon, Apple-John, Jabber, Jabbernowl, Jaunty
clarity, simplicity, plainness
