Etymology

jakes

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Today it means: A place to urinate and defecate: an outhouse or lavatory. Full definition →

Middle English Jake
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jakes · noun, noun, verb1

  1. Middle English · derived fromJake
  2. English todayjakes

From Middle English Jake (variant of “Jack”) or Jakke (variant of “Jacques” and “Jack”). Use as a place to urinate and defecate first attested in the form jacques. Compare terms such as US slang Cousin John and Quincy, used as euphemistic personifications the speaker was "visiting".

Jakes · proper noun2

From Jake + -s (patronymic suffix).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.