Scad
/skæd/noun
A large number or a fish of the jack family, especially a small mackerel-like fish.
Did you know?The “a scad of” sense is an old colloquial intensifier, while the fish name comes from a separate Scandinavian source, so one spelling hides two different linguistic lives.
Etymological Timeline
Old Norse
ON
skata
“a skate or ray-like fish”
Middle English
English
scad
“a fish name, later applied to several species”
19th Century
English
scad
“a large quantity; a lot (colloquial)”
Modern English
English
scad
“either a fish of the jack family or an informal word for a large amount”