1
a
: an annoyingly stupid or foolish person
was acting like a jerk
b
: an unlikable person
especially
: one who is cruel, rude, or small-minded
a selfish jerk
2
: a single quick motion of short duration
a sudden jerk
gave the handle a jerk
3
a
: jolting, bouncing, or thrusting motions
b
: a tendency to produce spasmodic motions
4
a
: an involuntary spasmodic muscular movement due to reflex action
b
jerks plural
: involuntary twitchings due to nervous excitement
5
: the pushing of a weight from shoulder height to a position overhead : the second phase of the clean and jerk in weight lifting
jerked; jerking; jerks
1
: to give a quick suddenly arrested push, pull, or twist to
jerk a rope
2
: to propel or move with or as if with a quick suddenly arrested motion
jerked the door open
3
: to mix and serve (drinks, such as sodas) behind a soda fountain
1
: to make a sudden spasmodic motion
Her hand jerked up suddenly.
2
: to move in short abrupt motions or with frequent jolts
jerker
noun
jerked; jerking; jerks
: to preserve (meat) in long sun-dried slices
Synonyms
Noun
- bastard
- beast
- bleeder [British]
- blighter [chiefly British]
- boor
- bounder
- bugger
- buzzard
- cad
- chuff
- churl
- clown
- creep
- cretin
- crud [slang]
- crumb [slang]
- cur
- dirtbag [slang]
- dog
- fink
- heel
- hound
- joker
- louse
- lout
- pill
- rat
- rat fink
- reptile
- rotter
- schmuck [slang]
- scum
- scumbag [slang]
- scuzzball [slang]
- skunk
- sleaze
- sleazebag [slang]
- sleazeball [slang]
- slime
- slimeball [slang]
- slob
- snake
- so-and-so
- sod [chiefly British]
- stinkard
- stinker
- swine
- toad
- varmint
- vermin
Verb (1)
Examples of jerk in a Sentence
Noun
That jerk can't do anything right.
Most of the kids are nice, but some are jerks.
The dead branch came loose after a few jerks.
He felt the jerk of the line as a fish took the bait.
The car started with a jerk.
Recent Examples on the Web
Carolyn Hax, Washington Post, 22 Nov. 2023
The weight of the shelf caused the bracket to settle into place with a visible jerk.
—Barry Markovsky, Discover Magazine, 29 Oct. 2023
But peacocks are not the brightest and can be kind of jerks.
—Sandra Gutierrez, Popular Science, 25 Oct. 2023
LeBron can post shady stuff on Instagram about Brooks and seem like a normal man subject to the slings and arrows of a jerk by comparison.
—Corbin Smith, Rolling Stone, 24 Oct. 2023
For the first time in recent memory, New Orleans’s Caribbean restaurant scene is dynamic enough to justify debates over who is serving the most flavorful jerk or callaloo.
—Brett Anderson, New York Times, 16 Oct. 2023
Creator Jeff Franklin was fired for accusations of being a jerk, and, after 75 episodes, not a single Olsen twin came back to an otherwise complete reunion.
—Mikey O'Connell, The Hollywood Reporter, 21 Oct. 2023
The title refers to the fact that Jackson and Sharp, who are gay, play hyper-macho, heterosexual jerks.
—Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post, 18 Oct. 2023
Gluten is an inflammatory jerk that was never meant for human consumption.
—Alison Myers, The New Yorker, 13 Oct. 2023
Nancy Kruh, Peoplemag, 28 Nov. 2023
According to court documents, the car suddenly jerked off the road, crashed into a palm tree and burst into flames.
—Trisha Thadani, Washington Post, 31 Oct. 2023
Yonatan jerked away from his phone, then looked at the names again.
—Kevin Sieff, Washington Post, 7 Nov. 2023
Another fighter, wearing a camouflage uniform, bandages the foot of an Israeli boy of toddler age, then puts the boy on his lap while jerking the crying baby back and forth in a stroller.
—David D. Kirkpatrick, The New Yorker, 30 Oct. 2023
Every night a family member had to remain awake to monitor David, who would jerk into 30-minute frenzies of rapid sit-ups.
—Nicole Acosta, Peoplemag, 18 Oct. 2023
The brakes squeaked, and the train jerked, making any untethered china and crystal chatter like winter teeth.
—Adam Erace, Travel + Leisure, 26 Oct. 2023
The same mimetic codes are constantly used: the argumentative jerking of the hands, the singing tone of voice . . .
—Sam Kriss, Harper's Magazine, 16 Oct. 2023
The force of my back hitting the wall had given me whiplash, my neck jerking forward and back after the collision.
—Tove Danovich, The Atlantic, 6 Oct. 2023
See More
Noun
Your experience and your feelings are her chance to open her mind and be, frankly, less of a jerk.
—Carolyn Hax, Washington Post, 22 Nov. 2023
The weight of the shelf caused the bracket to settle into place with a visible jerk.
—Barry Markovsky, Discover Magazine, 29 Oct. 2023
But peacocks are not the brightest and can be kind of jerks.
—Sandra Gutierrez, Popular Science, 25 Oct. 2023
LeBron can post shady stuff on Instagram about Brooks and seem like a normal man subject to the slings and arrows of a jerk by comparison.
—Corbin Smith, Rolling Stone, 24 Oct. 2023
For the first time in recent memory, New Orleans’s Caribbean restaurant scene is dynamic enough to justify debates over who is serving the most flavorful jerk or callaloo.
—Brett Anderson, New York Times, 16 Oct. 2023
Creator Jeff Franklin was fired for accusations of being a jerk, and, after 75 episodes, not a single Olsen twin came back to an otherwise complete reunion.
—Mikey O'Connell, The Hollywood Reporter, 21 Oct. 2023
The title refers to the fact that Jackson and Sharp, who are gay, play hyper-macho, heterosexual jerks.
—Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post, 18 Oct. 2023
Gluten is an inflammatory jerk that was never meant for human consumption.
—Alison Myers, The New Yorker, 13 Oct. 2023
Verb
But just as the evening seemed headed toward a greatest-hits showcase, Church jerked the wheel toward his real-life trials in recent years.
—Nancy Kruh, Peoplemag, 28 Nov. 2023
According to court documents, the car suddenly jerked off the road, crashed into a palm tree and burst into flames.
—Trisha Thadani, Washington Post, 31 Oct. 2023
Yonatan jerked away from his phone, then looked at the names again.
—Kevin Sieff, Washington Post, 7 Nov. 2023
Another fighter, wearing a camouflage uniform, bandages the foot of an Israeli boy of toddler age, then puts the boy on his lap while jerking the crying baby back and forth in a stroller.
—David D. Kirkpatrick, The New Yorker, 30 Oct. 2023
Every night a family member had to remain awake to monitor David, who would jerk into 30-minute frenzies of rapid sit-ups.
—Nicole Acosta, Peoplemag, 18 Oct. 2023
The brakes squeaked, and the train jerked, making any untethered china and crystal chatter like winter teeth.
—Adam Erace, Travel + Leisure, 26 Oct. 2023
The same mimetic codes are constantly used: the argumentative jerking of the hands, the singing tone of voice . . .
—Sam Kriss, Harper's Magazine, 16 Oct. 2023
The force of my back hitting the wall had given me whiplash, my neck jerking forward and back after the collision.
—Tove Danovich, The Atlantic, 6 Oct. 2023
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'jerk.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
Noun
1575, in the meaning defined at sense 2
Verb (1)
1589, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1
Verb (2)
1707, in the meaning defined above
Phrases Containing jerk
Dictionary Entries Near jerk
Cite this Entry
“Jerk.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/jerk. Accessed 5 Dec. 2023.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
jerk
2 of 3 verb1
: to give a short quick push, pull, or twist to
2
: to move in jerks or with a jerk
jerk
3 of 3 verb
: to preserve (meat) in long strips dried in the sun
Etymology
Verb
probably an altered form of earlier yerk "to beat or thrash"
Verb
from 1jerky
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