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definitions

jig

1
[jig]
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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR jig ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

verb (used with object), jigged, jig·ging.

to treat, cut, produce, etc., with a jig.

verb (used without object), jigged, jig·ging.

to use a jig.
to fish with a jig.

RELATED WORDS

stratagem, sleight, catch, jest, artifice, gimmick, sport, feat, caper, deception, jape, ploy, device, lark, shenanigan, frolic, imposture, dodge, maneuver, feint

Origin of jig

1
1855–60; probably akin to jig2, in sense “jerk to and fro”; orig. and interrelationship of this group of words uncertain

jig

2
[jig]

noun

a rapid, lively, springy, irregular dance for one or more persons, usually in triple meter.
a piece of music for or in the rhythm of such a dance.
Obsolete. prank; trick.

verb (used with object), jigged, jig·ging.

to dance (a jig or any lively dance).
to sing or play in the time or rhythm of a jig: to jig a tune.
to move with a jerky or bobbing motion; jerk up and down or to and fro.

verb (used without object), jigged, jig·ging.

to dance or play a jig.
to move with a quick, jerky motion; hop; bob.

Origin of jig

2
1550–60; in earliest sense “kind of dance” perhaps < Middle French giguer to frolic, gambol, probably < an unattested WGmc verb (cf. gig1); semantic development of other senses unclear
Related formsjig·like, jig·gish, adjective

jig

3
[jig]

noun

(formerly used in communications to represent the letter J.)

jig

4
[jig]

noun Slang: Extremely Disparaging and Offensive.

a contemptuous term used to refer to a black person.

Origin of jig

4
1920–25, Americanism; of uncertain origin; cf. jigaboo
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for jig

Contemporary Examples of jig

Historical Examples of jig

  • She pushed Rgina gently aside, and the child went on with her jig.

    My Double Life

    Sarah Bernhardt

  • Then he succinctly completed his diagnosis: "His jig is up!"

    The Downfall

    Emile Zola

  • "If he's telling the truth, the jig's about up," said Dr. Bird when the Russian had left.

    The Solar Magnet

    Sterner St. Paul Meek

  • Why, big Peter will dance a jig on the kitchen table for joy.

  • There'll be a snatch or so of fiddlin' that he'll like, to cheer him up, and a jig and a song or so.

British Dictionary definitions for jig

jig

noun

any of several old rustic kicking and leaping dances
a piece of music composed for or in the rhythm of this dance, usually in six-eight time
a mechanical device designed to hold and locate a component during machining and to guide the cutting tool
angling any of various spinning lures that wobble when drawn through the water
Also called: jigger mining a device for separating ore or coal from waste material by agitation in water
obsolete a joke or prank

verb jigs, jigging or jigged

to dance (a jig)
to jerk or cause to jerk up and down rapidly
(often foll by up) to fit or be fitted in a jig
(tr) to drill or cut (a workpiece) in a jig
mining to separate ore or coal from waste material using a jig
(intr) to produce or manufacture a jig
Australian slang to play truant from school

Word Origin for jig

C16 (originally: a dance or the music for it; applied to various modern devices because of the verbal sense: to jerk up and down rapidly): of unknown origin
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 jig
n.

"lively dance," 1560s, perhaps related to Middle French giguer "to dance," or to the source of German Geige "violin." Meaning "piece of sport, trick" is 1590s, now mainly in phrase the jig is up (first attested 1777 as the jig is over). As a verb from 1580s.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper