jury-rig
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jury-rig¹
- /ˈdʒʊə.ɹi ɹɪɡ/ UK
- /ˈdʒʊɹ.i ɹɪɡ/ US
- /ˈdʒɛɹ.i ɹɪɡ/ US
Where it comes from
From jury (“for temporary use, makeshift”, adjective) + rig. Likely modelled after jurymast.
The phrase jury-rigged has been in use since at least 1788. The adjectival use of jury (“makeshift or temporary”), has been said to date from at least 1616, when according to the 1933 edition of the Oxford English Dictionary, it appeared in John Smith's A Description of New England. It appeared in Smith's more extensive The General History of Virginia, New-England, and the Summer Isles published in 1624.
verb jury-rigs · jury-rigging · jury-rigged · jury rig · jerry-rig
- To build an improvised rigging or assembly from whichever materials are available. The next day it moderated, and the day after the weather was quite fine, and the sea had gone down. We recovered our spirits, the more so as we heard no more of the cat; and having jury-rigged her aft, we steered our course with a light breeze.
-
To create a makeshift, ad hoc solution from resources at hand.
In fact, he and his friends had kicked the idea around on the "Black Ice" board, much as they had discussed many other nifty notions, such as building personal flame-throwers and jury-rigging fistfulls of blasting-caps.
Similar: jerrybuild, kludge out, MacGyver
noun jury-rigs · jury rig · jerry-rig
- An improvised rigging. […] the sickly, disheartening feeling which the men of some “overdue” ships that come into harbour at last under a jury-rig must have felt, combated, and overcome in the faithful discharge of their duty.
jury-rig²
- /ˈdʒʊə.ɹi ɹɪɡ/ UK
- /ˈdʒʊɹ.i ɹɪɡ/ US
- /ˈdʒɛɹ.i ɹɪɡ/ US
Where it comes from
See jury, rig.
verb jury-rigs · jury-rigging · jury-rigged · jury rig · jerry-rig
- To rig a jury; to engage in jury tampering, to improperly influence jurors, or the selection of jurors, such that they deliver a certain verdict.
Translations
Every language
verb to create a makeshift solution
| Français | avec sa bite et son couteau |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | zusammenstoppeln, zusammenflicken, improvisieren, zusammenbasteln |
| Русский | сде́лать на скорую ру́ку sdélatʹ |
noun improvised rigging
| Français | gréement de fortune |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | Notlösung, Flickwerk, Bastelwerk |
Talk about this word "jury-rig." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/jury-rig. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. jury-rig. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/jury-rig "jury-rig." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/jury-rig.Cite this
@misc{jury_rig_2026,
title = {jury-rig},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/jury-rig},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
