Jill of all trades, mistress of none

plural Jills of all trades, mistresses of none · alternative Jill of all trades and mistress of none · alternative Jill-of-all-trades and mistress of none · alternative Jill of all trades but mistress of none

1. A woman who has a competent grasp of many skills but who is not outstanding in any one.

   If you tell him airily you can do a whole lot of things, he thinks immediately, “Jill of all trades, mistress of none.”

   1941, Margaretta Byers, “To You Job Hunters, Good Hunting!”, in Help Wanted—Female, New York, N.Y.: Julian Messner, Inc., part 4 (Parting Shots), page 325

   5 more examples

   JILLS of all trades, mistresses of none, to be fully trained to promote sales of Gay Charm Jewellery in all City, Suburban and Country Areas.

   1978 February 1, “Positions Vacant: Women and Girls”, in The Sydney Morning Herald, number 43,721, page 33, column 5

   We generalist judges touch down daily on every subject from criminal law, to contracts, to labor law, to antitrust, to securities. In a nutshell, we are perceived as Jacks and Jills of all trades, masters or mistresses of none.

   1982 July, Patricia M[cGowan] Wald, “Judicial Review of Complex Administrative Agency Decisions”, in The Annals of The American Academy of Political and Social Science; The American Judiciary: Critical Issues, volume 462, Beverly Hills, Calif.; London; New Delhi: SAGE Publications, →ISBN, page 74, column 2

   WENDY WHITFIELD lives in Nottingham and is unemployed. “A mother at last, with sometimes fond memories of being an individual. Jill-of-all-trades, Mistress of None—but then, aren’t most women?”

   1984 August, “Biographical Notes”, in Different Drums: A Second Trade Union Annual, Lancashire Association of Trades Councils, →ISBN, page 95

   “All you have to do is make a cone that widens as it goes up Dom’s arm. It will look medieval enough, and we’ll just glue some hair on the backs of his hands until he turns into the prince. What do you think?” Angie gave her an admiring look. “I think it’ll work. Are you sure you’ve never been a costume designer?” “Jill of all trades, mistress of none.[…]”

   1993, Janis Flores, chapter 32, in Siren Song, New York, N.Y.: Fawcett Gold Medal, →ISBN, page 483

   Students may of necessity be scheduled on their own before they have mastered the range of essential procedures. We risk the syndrome of a Jill of all trades, mistress of none.

   1990, Ruth Ann Edwards, “Student Staff Training in the Smaller Library”, in Paul M. Gherman, Frances O. Painter, editors, Training Issues and Strategies in Libraries, New York, N.Y.; London: The Haworth Press, →ISBN, page 94

   Synonyms: Jill of all trades, master of none