jerky

1 of 2

adjective

jerkier; jerkiest
1
a
: moving along with or marked by fits and starts
b
: characterized by abrupt transitions
2
jerkily adverb
jerkiness noun

jerky

2 of 2

noun

jer·​ky ˈjər-kē How to pronounce jerky (audio)
: jerked meat

Example Sentences

Adjective The movie was jerky and hard to watch. made jerky progress walking with the new crutches
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
What seemed cold and remote and jerky about them back in the day—now, that’s just the way people talk. Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 14 May 2023 Writer-director Véronique Jadin and co-writer Nina Vanspranghe go broad and hard with the comedy, skewering the many varieties of jerky guys who can ruin a workday. Noel Murray, Los Angeles Times, 12 May 2023 Taiping, a former herdsman, now runs his own jerky factory and has more than one million followers. Vivian Wang, New York Times, 28 Apr. 2023 Video shows motorists spinning their vehicles in fast, jerky figure eights, sending up clouds of smoke while bystanders toss fireworks. Rachel Swan, San Francisco Chronicle, 17 Apr. 2023 The cover was pure Jim Joe, showcasing not just his work and his style, but also spotlighting his primary mode of communication: enigmatic, faux-deep phrases clipped of context, done up in his jerky, angular handstyle. Hazlitt, 6 July 2022 Breakfast was jerky, hardtack and coffee. Larry Rohter, Smithsonian Magazine, 3 Apr. 2023 This can sometimes result in a jerky motion. Olivia Lipski, Good Housekeeping, 15 June 2022 Avatars walk with jerky movements. Alison Mccauley, Forbes, 27 Oct. 2021
Noun
The space, tucked into the Shoppes at Ryan Park, is too small and too narrow to accommodate the spread of sticky rice cakes, mangosteens, che, Vietnamese jerky, jelly flower cups and other items that used to grace practically every flat surface at Song Que. Tim Carman, Washington Post, 12 Dec. 2022 A lot of Chinese jerky, both permitted and smuggled, comes through the port. Frank Shyongcolumnist, Los Angeles Times, 28 Mar. 2022 Patrick Labyorteaux as Ram Sweeney The classic jerky jock may have met an unfortunate end in the movie, but Patrick Labyorteaux would go on to reprise his earlier role as Andy Garvey from Little House on the Prairie on The Last Frontier in 1996. Sophie Dodd, Peoplemag, 29 Mar. 2023 Think beef jerky and tasty nuts. Mariah Thomas, Good Housekeeping, 18 July 2022 Make any jerky yet? Jack Hennessy, Outdoor Life, 4 Jan. 2021 This is not the time to take a sip of your latte or snack on your beef jerky. Joy Pieper, Discover Magazine, 30 July 2020 Often the sheep are slaughtered, salted and dried for laandi, a kind of jerky that sustains Afghans through the cold. Hannah Beech, New York Times, 30 Mar. 2023 Or, substitute fruits, vegetables, or jerky for a bag of chips in the afternoon. Melissa Matthews, Men's Health, 28 Feb. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'jerky.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Spanish charqui, from Quechua ch'arki

First Known Use

Adjective

1670, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun

1850, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of jerky was in 1670

Dictionary Entries Near jerky

Cite this Entry

“Jerky.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/jerky. Accessed 3 Jun. 2023.

Kids Definition

jerky

1 of 2 noun
jer·​ky
ˈjər-kē
: jerked meat

jerky

2 of 2 adjective
ˈjər-kē
jerkier; jerkiest
1
: marked by jerks
a jerky ride on a dirt road
2
jerkily
-kə-lē
adverb
jerkiness
-kē-nəs
noun
Etymology

Noun

from Spanish charqui "jerky," from Quechua ch'arki

Adjective

jerk (noun) and -y (adjective suffix)

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