jitter

[ jit-er ]

/ ˈdʒɪt ər /

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See synonyms for: jitter / jittered / jittering / jitters on Thesaurus.com

noun

(the) jitters, nervousness; a feeling of fright or uneasiness: Every time I have to make a speech, I get the jitters.

fluctuations in the image on a television screen or in copy received by facsimile transmission, caused by interference or by momentary failures of synchronization.

verb (used without object)

to behave nervously.

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Origin of jitter

First recorded 1920–25; variant of chitter “to shiver” (Middle English chiteren ), modification or variant of chatter

Words nearby jitter

jipijapa, jird, jism, JIT, jitney, jitter, jitterbug, jittery, jiujitsu, jiva, Jívaro

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use jitter in a sentence

Subatomic jitters continuously introduced tiny flaws into the inflating universe, tweaking the density of substances that would eventually become light, matter, dark matter, and more.
A key part of the Big Bang remains troublingly elusive|Charlie Wood|October 7, 2021|Popular-Science
Hassleman showed how short-term jitters could be added to strengthen models of long-term climate change.
Research on climate and more brings trio the 2021 physics Nobel Prize|Emily Conover|October 6, 2021|Science News For Students
Hassleman’s work helped to show how the short-term jitter could be incorporated into models to understand the long-term change in climate.
Work on complex systems, including Earth’s climate, wins the physics Nobel Prize|Emily Conover|October 5, 2021|Science News
All that action is a good reflection of the jitters traders are feeling.
China Evergrande’s debt crisis is rattling global markets. Here’s why.|Jacob Bogage|September 21, 2021|Washington Post

The number of new cases increased more than 40 percent in the past week, sending jitters through the stock market, and is raising questions about whether state and local health authorities will reinstitute restrictions to slow the virus’s spread.
Unemployment claims jumped to 419,000 last week, a sudden increase reflecting an unsettled labor market|Eli Rosenberg|July 22, 2021|Washington Post
From mochaccino to Mary Jane, from jitter juice to joint, from java to ganja, say bye-bye barista, hello pot-ista.
Criminalize Coffee, Not Cannabis|Robert Rosenthal|December 16, 2010|DAILY BEAST

British Dictionary definitions for jitter

jitter

/ (ˈdʒɪtə) informal /

verb

(intr) to be anxious or nervous

noun

the jitters nervousness and anxiety

electronics small rapid variations in the amplitude or timing of a waveform arising from fluctuations in the voltage supply, mechanical vibrations, etc

Word Origin for jitter

C20: 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

jitter

Origin of jitter

Words nearby jitter

Words related to jitter

How to use jitter in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for jitter

Word Origin for jitter