joe

See also: Joe and Joe.

English

Pronunciation

• enPR: jō
  • (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /dʒəʊ/
  • (General American) IPA^(key): /dʒoʊ/
• Homophones: Jo, Joe
• Rhymes: -əʊ

Etymology 1

From the proper name Joe.

Noun

joe (plural joes)

1. (informal) A male; a guy; a fellow.

   I'm just an ordinary joe.

2. (historical) Synonym of johannes (“An old Portuguese gold coin bearing a figure of John V of Portugal.”)
   • 1851 November 14, Herman Melville, “Chapter XCIX. The Doubloon”, in Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers; London: Richard Bentley, OCLC 57395299, page 481:

     I have seen doubloons before now in my voyagings; your doubloons of old Spain, your doubloons of Peru, your doubloons of Chili, your doubloons of Bolivia, your doubloons of Popayan; with plenty of gold moidores and pistoles, and joes, and half joes, and quarter joes.

   • 1861, “United States Mint”, “Chapter I. Establishment of Mint—Standard of Coins—Laws Regulating Coinage—Progress of Coinage—Precious Metals in the Country”, in Eighty Years’ Progress of the United States: […], volume I, New York: […]. Worcester, Mass.: L. Stebbins, page 213, column 1:

     Guineas, joes, half joes, doubloons, and pistoles of various origin constituted the gold currency, while the silver was mostly the Spanish American dollar and its fractions: the half, quarter, eighth, and sixteenth, with the pistareen and half pistareen.

   • 1863 August, The Historical Magazine, and Notes and Queries Concerning the Antiquities, History and Biography of America, volume VII, number 8, New York: Charles B. Richardson, […]. London: Trübner & Co., page 245, column 2:

     In the olden time the currency, you know, was a l^[sic] in gold and silver, joes, half-joes (Johannes), pistoles, moidores, doubloons, pistareens, ninepences (12+¹⁄₂ cents), and fourpence-half-pennies (6+¹⁄₄ cents) or “fippenny-bits.”

Alternative forms

• Joe

Derived terms

• half joe
• joe job

Translations

stereotypical male given name — see Joe

Etymology 2

Of uncertain origin. See cup of joe for more.

Noun

joe (countable and uncountable, plural joes)

1. (chiefly US, informal) Coffee.
   • 2008 January–February, “70 Ways to Improve Every Day of the Week”, in Men's Health, volume 23, number 1, ISSN 1054-4836, page 135:

     45 have some joe Week's almost over—now bring it home. Austrian researchers found that a cup of java resulted in a 45-minute boost of brain activity in the regions responsible for attention, concentration, and short-term memory.

   • 2010, Melody Carlson, A Mile in My Flip-Flops (page 221)

     Some people say I make the best joe in town. But you know there's a kiosk over on Eighteenth Avenue, not that far from here.

Related terms

• cup of joe

Etymology 3

Noun

joe (plural joes)

1. (Scotland) Alternative form of jo (“a darling or sweetheart”)
   • 1836 Joanna Baillie The Phantom, Act 2. Provost, to a maidservant.

     I fear, my joe, the good that I can do him,
     Or ev'n the minister, if he were here,
     Would be but little.

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Dalmatian

Pronoun

joe f (plural jai)

1. (third-person feminine singular pronoun, oblique case) her

Related terms

• jala
• joi (masculine)
• jai

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Dutch

Interjection

joe

1. (colloquial) bye

   Joe! - Bye!

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Old French

Noun

joe f (oblique plural joes, nominative singular joe, nominative plural joes)

1. cheek

Descendants

• French: joue

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Sranan Tongo

Pronoun

joe

1. Superseded spelling of yu.