Meaning
A common silvery sea fish (of the jack family), often small, sold cheaply and cooked fried, escoveitched, or in soup. 'Jack' turns up in the well-known saying 'every jack-fish get him piece a bread' — meaning everyone gets their share in the end — and in market talk for the everyday small fish.
Examples
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Fry up a dozen jack-fish fi dinner.
Fry up a dozen jackfish for dinner.
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Jack-fish cheap an tasty.
Jackfish is cheap and tasty.
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Every jack-fish get him piece a bread.
Everyone gets their share eventually.
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Di fisherman catch a big jackfish today.
The fisherman caught a big jack today.
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Fry di jackfish crisp wid bammy.
Fry the jack crisp with bammy.
Origin
From 'jack' (the jack/trevally fish family) + 'fish'; a common cheap sea fish. See Sprat, Parrot-fish.
How it’s used
A common small silvery sea fish; proverbial 'every jack-fish get him bread'. See Parrot-fish, Doctor-fish.