rig

American  

[rig] / rɪg /

verb (used with object)

rigs, present (3rd person singular) rigged, past participle, past rigging present participle

1. Chiefly Nautical.

   1. to put in proper order for working or use.

   2. to fit (a ship, mast, etc.) with the necessary shrouds, stays, etc.

   3. to fit (shrouds, stays, sails, etc.) to the mast, yard, or the like.

2. to manipulate fraudulently.

   Two leading companies in the industry were fined for rigging prices.

3. to assemble, install, or prepare (often followed byup ).

4. to furnish or provide with equipment, clothing, etc.; fit (usually followed by out orup ).

   The ground crew rigged us out in leather helmets and bomber jackets.

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noun

rigs plural

1. the arrangement of the masts, spars, sails, etc., on a boat or ship.

2. apparatus for some purpose; equipment; outfit; gear.

   Bring your rod and reel and all the rest of your fishing rig.

   This other PC over here is my main gaming rig.

3. Also called drill rig.  the equipment used in drilling an oil well.

4. any combination trucking unit in which vehicles are hooked together, as a tractor-trailer.

5. any kind of truck.

6. a carriage, buckboard, sulky, or wagon together with the horse or horses that draw it.

7. Informal. costume or dress, especially when odd or conspicuous, or when designated for a particular purpose.

   He looks quite nifty in a butler's rig.

verb phrase

1. rig up to equip or set up for use.

2. rig down to place in an inactive state, stowing all lines, tackles, and other removable parts.

rig ¹ British  

/ rɪɡ /

verb

1. nautical to equip (a vessel, mast, etc) with (sails, rigging, etc)

2. nautical to set up or prepare ready for use

3. to put the components of (an aircraft, etc) into their correct positions

4. to manipulate in a fraudulent manner, esp for profit

   to rig prices

   to rig an election

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noun

1. nautical the distinctive arrangement of the sails, masts, and other spars of a vessel

2. In full: drilling rig.  the installation used in drilling for and exploiting natural oil and gas deposits

   an oil rig

3. apparatus or equipment; gear

4. an amateur radio operator's transmitting and receiving set

5. a carriage together with one or more horses

6. an articulated lorry

rig ² British  

/ rɪɡ /

noun

1. dialect a ridge or raised strip of unploughed land in a ploughed field

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• overrigged
  adjective
• underrigged
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• rigs
  plural

Participles

• rigging
  present
• rigged
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• rig
  simple
• rigs
  simple
• have rigged
  perfect
• has rigged
  perfect
• am rigging
  progressive
• are rigging
  progressive
• is rigging
  progressive
• have been rigging
  perfect progressive
• has been rigging
  perfect progressive

Past

• rigged
  simple
• had rigged
  perfect
• was rigging
  progressive
• were rigging
  progressive
• had been rigging
  perfect progressive

Future

• will rig
  simple
• will have rigged
  perfect
• will be rigging
  progressive
• will have been rigging
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of rig

First recorded in 1480–90; 1930–35 rig for def. 2; probably from Scandinavian; compare Norwegian, Swedish rigg (noun), rigga (verb)

Explanation

When you rig something, you connect parts in a way that's so crazy it just might work. You could rig your jeans by using a paper clip to replace a button that pops. Rig can also describe deceiving people to achieve a certain outcome. Voting multiple times, purposely miscounting the number of votes a person received, even throwing out certain people's votes: these are all ways to rig an election. Outraged people say, "The election was fixed!" This doesn't mean it was repaired; it means it was rigged — fraud played a role in the outcome.

Example Sentences

The rig count has risen in nine of the 10 past weeks as higher crude oil prices encourage drilling.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 3, 2026

The point of plug-in solar isn’t to zero out a home’s energy consumption—that likely requires a big, professionally installed rig costing tens of thousands of dollars.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 5, 2026

She first scatters AA-size batteries, pens and scissors on the table, and walks back to the nearby control rig to make the robot arms place each one inside the tray of a desk organizer.

From Los Angeles Times • May 31, 2026

The jackup rig had been under tow to Dundee.

From BBC • May 18, 2026

His clever hands built a well-boring rig, and he bored wells on the lands of luckier men.

From "East of Eden" by John Steinbeck

Related Words

• falsify
• fix
• manipulate
• tamper with