a German, especially a German soldier.
Germans collectively.
a German, esp a German soldier
the Germans collectively
Jerry didn't send his bombers out last night
an informal word for chamber pot
short for jeroboam
Jerry was a nickname used by Allied soldiers for a German soldier during World War I, but it was more commonly used in World War II.
First recorded in 1875–80; short for jerry-built
1820–30; short for Jeroboam (because if one drank such a large amount of liquid, one would have to void urine during the night)
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
People bought five-gallon jerry cans, filled them, and bought more.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 18, 2026
Left behind on the street outside the Louvre was the truck, a jerry can, a blowtorch, angle grinders, a walkie-talkie and yellow vests.
From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 31, 2025
As she filled up plastic jerry cans with water from a standpipe in the street, the 39-year-old admitted she was struggling to provide the food and water her young children needed.
From BBC • Mar. 18, 2024
A child lugs a jerry can half his size full of water.
From Seattle Times • Feb. 23, 2024
Hundreds of gallons of water in ten gallon plastic jerry jugs.
From "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy
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.
