Main Entry:

jok·er

Pronunciation:

\ˈjō-kər\

Function:

noun

Date:

circa 1726

1 a: a person given to joking : wag b: fellow, guy ; especially : an insignificant, obnoxious, or incompetent person <a shame to let a joker like this win — Harold Robbins>2: a playing card added to a pack as a wild card or as the highest-ranking card3 a (1): an ambiguous or apparently immaterial clause inserted in a legislative bill to make it inoperative or uncertain in some respect (2): an unsuspected, misleading, or misunderstood clause, phrase, or word in a document that nullifies or greatly alters it b: something (as an expedient or stratagem) held in reserve to gain an end or escape from a predicament c: an unsuspected or not readily apparent fact, factor, or condition that thwarts or nullifies a seeming advantage