jerky
1 Americanadjective
-
characterized by jerks or sudden starts; spasmodic.
-
Slang. silly; foolish; stupid; ridiculous.
noun
adjective
noun
Usage
What does jerky mean? Jerky describes something that involves a lot of jerks, meaning sudden movements. Jerky also means meat that has been cut into strips and then dried or smoked. As an adjective, jerky describes something as having irregular, jarring movement, as in It was a long, jerky ride on the carriage thanks to the uncooperative horses. In this sense, the adverb jerkily means in a jerky movement, as in The wagon bounced jerkily over the rocky path. The noun form of this sense is jerkiness, as in The jerkiness of the airplane flight quickly made me feel sick. Jerky is also meat that has been sliced into strips that are then smoked or dried. The term jerked meat is also used to refer to this food. In this sense, jerky is used as both a singular and plural, as in I ate a piece of jerky from the bag of jerky Tom brought on the hike. Example: The jerky movements of the bull threw the cowboy to the ground.
Other Word Forms
- jerkily adverb
- jerkiness noun
Etymology
Origin of jerky1
First recorded in 1855–60; jerk 1 + -y 1
Origin of jerky2
1840–50, alteration of charqui
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The aim is to be bustlingly kinetic, but the feel is pure kindergarten: no logic, just jerky leaps from one gaming situation to the next, with characters and objects taking on whatever powers are needed.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 31, 2026
Dried mango that tears like jerky between your teeth.
From Salon • Mar. 9, 2026
When I first came to Park City, Utah, in 2010, I barely left the Holiday other than to sprint to the grocery store next door for beef jerky and sushi.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 31, 2026
Now, Tesla’s system is smoother and less jerky.
From Barron's • Dec. 14, 2025
He bought candy bars and beef jerky sticks and more chemical hand- and feetwarmers.
From "American Gods" by Neil Gaiman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
