jackleg

adjective

jack·​leg ˈjak-ˌleg How to pronounce jackleg (audio)
-ˌlāg
1
a
: characterized by unscrupulousness, dishonesty, or lack of professional standards
a jackleg lawyer
b
: lacking skill or training : amateur
a jackleg carpenter
2
: designed as a temporary expedient : makeshift
jackleg noun

Did you know?

Don't call someone jackleg unless you're prepared for that person to get angry with you. Throughout its more than 150-year-old history in English, jackleg has most often been used as a term of contempt and deprecation, particularly in reference to lawyers and preachers. Its form echoes that of the similar blackleg, an older term for a cheating gambler or a worker opposed to union policies. Etymologists know that blackleg appeared over a hundred years before jackleg, but they don't have any verifiable theories about the origin of either term.

Examples of jackleg in a Sentence

a toolshed that can be built by any jackleg carpenter who's capable of hitting a nail without smashing his thumb he did such a jackleg installation of that door frame that now the door won't shut

Word History

Etymology

jack entry 1 + -leg (as in blackleg)

First Known Use

1833, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of jackleg was in 1833

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Dictionary Entries Near jackleg

Cite this Entry

“Jackleg.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/jackleg. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

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