jump-start
Americannoun
-
jump-starts
plural
verb (used with object)
-
jump-starts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
jump-started,
past participle, past
-
jump-starting
present participle
-
to give a jump-start to.
to jump-start an engine.
-
to enliven or revive.
to jump-start a sluggish economy.
verb
noun
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
jump-startsimple
-
jump-startssimple
-
have jump-startedperfect
-
has jump-startedperfect
-
am jump-startingprogressive
-
are jump-startingprogressive
-
is jump-startingprogressive
-
have been jump-startingperfect progressive
-
has been jump-startingperfect progressive
Past
-
jump-startedsimple
-
had jump-startedperfect
-
was jump-startingprogressive
-
were jump-startingprogressive
-
had been jump-startingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of jump-start
First recorded in 1975–80
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.
See Examples For:
If you’ve ever been running errands, gone to start your car, and nothing happens because the battery is dead, you know how important it is to have a set of cables to jump-start your vehicle.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 20, 2026
The ceasefire was supposed to jump-start negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program, right?
From Slate ● Jul. 9, 2026
The Dodgers took full advantage of the Padres’ defensive mistakes to jump-start their offense.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 28, 2026
If Dai is correct, BioNTech’s cancer pipeline could be exactly what the drugmaker needs to turn the page and finally jump-start its stock.
From Barron's ● May 27, 2026
All of those doctors and nurses were charging down the hall to try and jump-start a child’s heart.
From "Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie" by Jordan Sonnenblick
First is forewarning, which jump-starts the psychological immune system because it’s sleeping most of the time.
From Scientific American ● Mar. 13, 2023
“It jump-starts you. It gives you the confidence to keep going.”
From Washington Post ● Oct. 3, 2022
The cartoonish face on a classicized statue jump-starts the statue with an incongruity that magnetizes passers-by.
From New York Times ● Apr. 14, 2022
Perhaps Brown will try to bring in someone from a winning organization, as he did with Lewis, hoping that jump-starts ticket sales.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 1, 2019
Practically everywhere he goes, he jump-starts music programs for children.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 1, 2016
In happier news, rising case counts have jump-started research into drugs that could treat people who do get sick, including antibody and antiviral therapies.
From Slate ● Jul. 24, 2026
Then came a shift in 2016, when the Academy gave an honorary Oscar to Lynn Stalmaster, who cast hundreds of films and jump-started the careers of Dustin Hoffman, Jeff Bridges, John Travolta and Christopher Reeve.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 13, 2026
Luka Doncic jump-started his most valuable player campaign and rose to the top of the NBA scoring leaderboard.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 19, 2025
But a stronger effort among policymakers to steady the economy, followed by innovation wins like DeepSeek, jump-started a powerful rebound last fall.
From Barron's ● Nov. 7, 2025
The idea of moving into the city had also been jump-started.
From "Geeks: How Two Lost Boys Rode the Internet Out of Idaho" by Jon Katz
Since the war, the government has announced a flood of new projects and assistance programs aimed at jump-starting the economy and easing the impact of the slowdown.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 2, 2026
The Defense Department is pouring money into jump-starting projects.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 8, 2025
“If there is any money left over in the plan, the student can roll the money over to a Roth IRA, jump-starting their retirement planning.”
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 21, 2025
All of this raises the stakes for the chancellor's challenge of delivering both credible tax and spend plans, as well as jump-starting growth at her upcoming Budget.
From BBC ● Sep. 2, 2025
Like hooking up the wires for the TV or the stereo, or jump-starting a car.
From "Free Lunch" by Rex Ogle
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.
