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definitions

jerk

1
[jurk]
See more synonyms for jerk on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a quick, sharp pull, thrust, twist, throw, or the like; a sudden movement: The train started with a jerk.
  2. a spasmodic, usually involuntary, muscular movement, as the reflex action of pulling the hand away from a flame.
  3. any sudden, quick movement of the body, as in dodging something.
  4. Slang. a contemptibly naive, fatuous, foolish, or inconsequential person.
  5. (in weightlifting) the raising of a weight from shoulder height to above the head by straightening the arms.
  6. jerks, British Informal. physical jerks.
  7. a dance, deriving from the twist, in which the dancers alternately thrust out their pelvises and their shoulders.
  8. the jerks, paroxysms or violent spasmodic muscular movements, as resulting from excitement evoked by some religious services.
verb (used with object)
  1. to pull, twist, move, thrust, or throw with a quick, suddenly arrested motion: She jerked the child by the hand.
  2. to utter in a broken, spasmodic way.
  3. Informal. to prepare, dispense, and serve (sodas, ice cream, etc.) at a soda fountain.
verb (used without object)
  1. to give a jerk or jerks.
  2. to move with a quick, sharp motion; move spasmodically.
  3. to talk in a broken, spasmodic way.
  4. Informal. to work as a soda jerk.
  5. to dance the jerk.
Verb Phrases
  1. jerk off, Slang: Vulgar. to masturbate.

Origin of jerk

1
1540–50; 1935–40 for def 4; perhaps dialectal variant of yerk to draw stitches tight (shoemaker's term), thus making the shoe ready to wear, Old English gearcian to prepare, make ready
Related formsjerk·er, nounjerk·ing·ly, adverb

jerk

2
[jurk]
verb (used with object)
  1. to preserve (meat, especially beef) by cutting in strips and curing by drying in the sun.
adjective
  1. being or containing a spicy seasoning mixture flavored with allspice, used especially in Jamaican cooking: jerk sauce.
  2. prepared with jerk flavorings, especially by barbecuing or grilling: jerk chicken.
noun
  1. jerky2.

Origin of jerk

2
First recorded in 1700–10; back formation from jerky2
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for jerked

blockhead, dolt, dunce, fool, idiot, imbecile, hurtle, fling, bump, flop, jolt, bounce, snatch, wriggle, wiggle, wrench, lug, thrust, tug, twitch

Examples from the Web for jerked

Contemporary Examples of jerked

Historical Examples of jerked

  • At dinner she shook and jerked and spilt things worse than ever.

  • He jerked sharply up on the reins, and she broke into a staggering trot.

  • The tears ceased, her eyes flashed, she jerked her body upright, listening.

    The Leopard Woman

    Stewart Edward White

  • He opened his eyes at my acquaintance with his name, but jerked his head at me comprehendingly.

    The Fortune Hunter

    Louis Joseph Vance

  • He jerked his head away and swung round in his chair to argue the matter.

    The Fortune Hunter

    Louis Joseph Vance

British Dictionary definitions for jerked

jerk

1
verb
  1. to move or cause to move with an irregular or spasmodic motion
  2. to throw, twist, pull, or push (something) abruptly or spasmodically
  3. (tr often foll by out) to utter (words, sounds, etc) in a spasmodic, abrupt, or breathless manner
noun
  1. an abrupt or spasmodic movement
  2. an irregular jolting motionthe car moved with a jerk
  3. Also called: physical jerks (plural) British informal physical exercises
  4. (plural) US a slang word for chorea
  5. slang, mainly US and Canadian a person regarded with contempt, esp a stupid or ignorant person
Derived Formsjerker, nounjerking, adjective, noun

Word Origin for jerk

C16: probably variant of yerk to pull stitches tight in making a shoe; compare Old English gearcian to make ready

jerk

2
verb (tr)
  1. to preserve (venison, beef, etc) by cutting into thin strips and curing by drying in the sun
noun
  1. Also called: jerky jerked meat, esp beef

Word Origin for jerk

C18: back formation from jerky, from charqui
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for jerked

jerk

v.1

"to pull," 1540s, "to lash, strike as with a whip," of uncertain origin, perhaps echoic. Related: Jerked; jerking.

jerk

n.2

"tedious and ineffectual person," 1935 (the lyric in "Big Rock Candy Mountain" apparently is "Where they hung the Turk [not jerk] that invented work"), American English carnival slang, of uncertain origin. Perhaps from jerkwater town (1878), where a steam locomotive crew had to take on boiler water from a trough or a creek because there was no water tank [Barnhart, OED]. This led 1890s to an adjectival use of jerk as "inferior, insignificant." Alternatively, or influenced by, verbal phrase jerk off "masturbate" [Rawson].

jerk

n.1

1550s, "stroke of a whip," from jerk (v.1). Sense of "sudden sharp pull or twist" first recorded 1570s. Meaning "involuntary spasmodic movement of limbs or features" first recorded 1805. As the name of a popular dance, it is attested from 1966. Sense in soda jerk attested from 1883, from the pulling motion required to work the taps.

jerk

v.2

as a method of preserving meat, 1707, American English, from American Spanish carquear, from charqui (see jerky). Related: Jerked.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
jerked in Medicine

jerk

[jûrk]
v.
  1. To make spasmodic motions.
n.
  1. A sudden reflexive or spasmodic muscular movement.deep reflex
  2. jerks Involuntary convulsive twitching often resulting from excitement. Often used with the.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.