Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
jury-rigged

jury-rigged

2 7.6
Made quickly from things on hand to work for a short time
  • adjective
  • /ˈdʒʊəriˌrɪɡd/
  • Informal
translation icon : provisional
  • Due to the lack of proper equipment, the mechanics created a jury-rigged assembly line to keep the factory running.
  • jury-rigged system

Examples

  • After the storm damaged the roof, they used a jury-rigged tarp to protect the furniture until they could get a professional repair.

  • Home to a place that had no street address, a jury-rigged electrical system, and plumbing that turned off every once in a while, sometimes for weeks.

    Fiction book (2000)

  • The batteries of all three buses were now kept charged using jury-rigged cables to the main power plant outside.

    Fiction book (1998)

  • With the power off, people had jury-rigged refrigerators, hanging what fresh food they could find in bags from their windows.

    Blog text (19)

  • Their jury-rigged electrical system made the French's place one big fire hazard.

    Fiction book (1993)

  • This place had one of those jury-rigged, handheld contraptions that sprayed water all over the bathroom if you weren't careful.

    Fiction book (1999)

  • They just plodded along, building their jury-rigged starships, serving anyone who stumbled on them.

    Fiction book (1998)

  • Cubans have in fact been forced to dust off archaic technologies, substitute jury-rigged devices for imported goods, and engage in imaginative recycling in order to survive.

    Academic text (1998)

  • If the parts prove incompatible, perhaps he can use a screw from his own eyeglasses to repair his wife's and then jury-rig his with a paper clip scrounged from the establishment's business office.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • The team managed to complete the project on time with a jury-rigged solution using spare parts they found in the workshop.

Synonyms

makeshift
vsjury-rigged
56 4.8

Used for a short time when you have no better choice

is mainly used for repairs or building with temporary nonprofessional materials
hacky
vsjury-rigged
  • Informal
3 8.5

Made quickly in a rough way that may not last

is a temporary repair done with whatever materials and not by a professional
improvised
vsjury-rigged
1 4.6

Made quickly using what is available

is usually a temporary repair using poor materials and lacking professional skill

Antonyms

purpose-built
3 5.6

Built for a specific use, like a factory or school

How Makeshift

ramshackle
10 7.5
jury-rigged
  • Informal
2 7.6
improvised
1 4.6

Surface Forms

jury-rigged positive

Morphology

jury-rigged = jury-rig (opaque) = jury + rig + ed

The term 'jury-rigged' is derived from nautical jargon, where 'jury' referred to temporary makeshift repairs. The meaning is not transparent from the components 'jury' and 'rig'.

Etymology

Jury-rigged comes from old sailing days, when a ship that lost its mast had a quick, temporary replacement called a 'jury mast' made from spare wood and rope and sailors would rig it into place. So, jury-rigged now means a makeshift or 'temporary' repair made from what you have to keep something working.