juggle

verb jug·gle \ ˈjə-gəl \

Definition of juggle

juggled; juggling play \ˈjə-g(ə-)liŋ\

intransitive verb

1 :to perform the tricks of a juggler

2 :to engage in manipulation especially in order to achieve a desired end

transitive verb

1 :to handle or deal with usually several things (such as obligations) at one time so as to satisfy often competing requirements

juggle the responsibilities of family life and full-time job
—Jane S. Gould

2 a :to practice deceit or trickery on :beguile

b :to manipulate or rearrange especially in order to achieve a desired end

juggle an account to hide a loss

3 a :to toss in the manner of a juggler

b :to hold or balance precariously

See juggle defined for English-language learners

See juggle defined for kids

Examples of juggle in a Sentence

He is learning to juggle.
He juggled four balls at once.
She somehow manages to juggle a dozen tasks at once.
It can be hard to juggle family responsibilities and the demands of a full-time job.
I'll have to juggle my schedule a bit to get this all to work out.

Recent Examples of juggle from the Web

An additional 5 percent are juggling a child's loans along with their own or a spouse's.

— gail marksjarvis, chicagotribune.com, "The fastest-growing category of student debtors may surprise you: Senior citizens," 24 Aug. 2017
Interim head coach Julian de Guzman is juggling general manager responsibilities along with his new head coaching post.

— patrick brennan, Cincinnati.com, "FC Cincinnati seeks to right ship in 1st match vs. Ottawa," 22 Aug. 2017
Scot Nery’s Boobie Trap, a sideshow smorgasbord staged on Wednesdays at King King in Hollywood, presents 15 performers who aim to impress with magic, music, juggling, or perhaps even a portrayal of a lactating cow.

— Los Angeles Magazine, "If You Only See One Variety Show in LA, Make It This One," 7 Aug. 2017
NAPA, Calif. (AP) — Marshawn Lynch plowed through the line, dreadlocks swaying on a rare cool summer morning in Napa then juggled the football to the delight of hundreds cheering from nearby bleachers.

— janie mccauley, The Seattle Times, "Marshawn Mania in wine country: Lynch big hit with Raiders," 4 Aug. 2017
Adam Sandler gets in touch with his inner art house to lead a dark comedy about a troubled businessman juggling sisters, romance, and crooks.

— deanna janes, Harper's BAZAAR, "17 Rom-Coms to Stream on Netflix this Weekend," 3 Aug. 2017
For 15 years, Angelina Jolie has juggled her life as an actress and activist with raising her children.

— erika harwood, vanityfair.com, "Angelina Jolie and Her Children over the Years," 26 July 2017
But after being selected with the fifth overall pick in the 1989 NFL draft by the Falcons, and the 781st pick in the MLB draft by the Yankees, Sanders decided to try juggling both sports.

— ben baskin, The MMQB, "Deion Sanders: Professional Baseball Player," 14 July 2017
The red ants open the show with a precise, jaw-dropping, foot-juggling act; then a dragonfly performs an amazing hand-balancing act that had my kids both oooh-ing and ew-ing at his strength and flexibility.

— jennifer jhon, South Florida Parenting, "Jumping, juggling bugs captivate children at 'Ovo'," 14 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'juggle.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of juggle

Middle English jogelen, from Anglo-French jugler, from Latin joculari to jest, joke, from joculus, diminutive of jocus joke

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 15th century

See Words from the same year

juggle Synonyms

Synonyms

bamboozle, beguile, bluff, buffalo, burn, catch, con, cozen, delude, dupe, fake out, fool, gaff, gammon, gull, have, have on [chiefly British], hoax, hoodwink, hornswoggle, humbug, deceive, misguide, misinform, mislead, snooker, snow, spoof, string along, sucker, suck in, take in, trick

Antonyms

undeceive

Related Words

kid, put on, tease; bleed, cheat, chisel, defraud, diddle, euchre, flam, fleece, gyp, hustle, mulct, rook, shortchange, skin, squeeze, stick, sting, swindle

Near Antonyms

debunk, expose, reveal, show up, uncloak, uncover, unmask; disclose, divulge, tell, unveil; disabuse, disenchant, disillusion

juggle

noun

Definition of juggle

:an act or instance of juggling:

a :a trick of magic

b :a show of manual dexterity

c :an act of manipulation especially to achieve a desired end

Examples of juggle in a Sentence

a temporary suspension of the gas tax was just a crowd-pleasing juggle that was not a long-term solution to the energy problem

Recent Examples of juggle from the Web

Sowers is busy with a constant juggle of performing, touring and songwriting.

— chrissie dickinson, chicagotribune.com, "Davina Sowers kicked heroin, and now she's kicking — jams," 4 May 2017
Performers may sing or play songs, dance, juggle or clown, perform magic, tell jokes, lip sync, act out a skit or perform more obscure acts like air guitar or a unicycle bit.

— oc disney staff, Orange County Register, "15 things to do this weekend in Orange County (March 31-April 2)," 1 Apr. 2017
I was inspired to see someone who had done the juggle and had done it so successfully.

— daily news staff, The Mercury News, "Daily News HomePage for Friday, Jan. 27," 27 Jan. 2017
The juggle of work, school and myriad extracurricular activities is all too familiar to parents like Kelly Aluise of Los Angeles.

— eilene zimmerman, New York Times, "New Ride Services Forge Own Specialized Paths JUNE 10, 2015," 13 Apr. 2016

First Known Use of juggle

1664

juggle Synonyms

Synonyms

artifice, device, dodge, fetch, flimflam, gambit, gimmick, jig, trick, knack, play, ploy, scheme, shenanigan, sleight, stratagem, wile

Related Words

bluff, end run, feint; cheating, chicanery, cozenage, craft, crookery, cunning, deception, dupery, duplicity, fakery, jugglery, legerdemain, skulduggery (or skullduggery), subterfuge, swindling, trickery; fraud, gaff, hoax, sham, swindle; blind, front, smoke screen

JUGGLE Defined for English Language Learners

juggle

verb

Definition of juggle for English Language Learners

: to keep several objects in motion in the air at the same time by repeatedly throwing and catching them
: to do (several things) at the same time
: to make changes to (something) in order to achieve a desired result