1
as in bastard
a person whose behavior is offensive to others
his constant rudeness and insensitivity made everyone think he was a real jerk
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
1
as in to yank
to move or cause to move with a sharp quick motion
I jerked to one side to avoid getting hit jerked the leash to get the dog's attention
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in to twitch
to make jerky or restless movements
you've got to quit jerking, or the barber will nick you by accident
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to shake
to make a series of small irregular or violent movements
the car jerked with every shift of the gear
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of jerk
Bill Goodykoontz, AZCentral.com, 3 Dec. 2025
While Sacramento is home to several Caribbean eateries, most focus on a single island’s cuisine — Jamaican jerk, Puerto Rican pernil or Trinidadian doubles, rather than a cross-regional approach.
—Sean Timberlake, Sacbee.com, 25 Nov. 2025
Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 26 Nov. 2025
Avoid jerking your torso up and down during bent-over rows or swinging your arms during front, lateral, and rear raises.
—Jenessa Connor, Health, 24 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for jerk
Noun
And Seehorn’s performance, basically playing an unlikable jerk, is amazing.
—Bill Goodykoontz, AZCentral.com, 3 Dec. 2025
While Sacramento is home to several Caribbean eateries, most focus on a single island’s cuisine — Jamaican jerk, Puerto Rican pernil or Trinidadian doubles, rather than a cross-regional approach.
—Sean Timberlake, Sacbee.com, 25 Nov. 2025
Verb
Robert paid tribute to his trailblazing dad on multiple occasions throughout season 34, including a tear-jerking rendition of a foxtrot that Bindi danced a decade ago in the same ballroom.
—Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 26 Nov. 2025
Avoid jerking your torso up and down during bent-over rows or swinging your arms during front, lateral, and rear raises.
—Jenessa Connor, Health, 24 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for jerk
Recent Examples of Synonyms for jerk
Noun
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In addition, the city’s Fourth of July fireworks show requires barge and tug services and marine safety coordination, adding to the overall cost.—
Susannah Bryan,
Sun Sentinel,
4 Jan. 2026
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Throughout the night, the two teams continued to play a game of tug of war with neither team giving the other an inch.—
Mukala Kabongo,
Boston Herald,
4 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Therefore Primate and its promising central character turns more into a typical slasher flick, repeatedly knocking off the swimsuit-wearing teens one by one, his specialty being yanking out jaws and other bloody grossouts.—
Pete Hammond,
Deadline,
8 Jan. 2026
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Officer Alex Millan then yanked open the passenger door of the suspects’ car; at the same time, the car drove forward over the curb.—
Bay Area News Group,
Mercury News,
8 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
At 6-foot-4, 255 pounds, Huff at his best has good bend and some twitch to his game.—
Jerry McDonald,
Mercury News,
7 Jan. 2026
-
Their usefulness remains an open question At the back of a conference hall at the Mandalay Bay resort in Las Vegas, a humanoid robot twitched through a preprogrammed wave for a crowd of cell phone cameras—a classic scene of high spectacle and unclear utility at CES.—
Eric Sullivan,
Scientific American,
6 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Light shaking was detected, and people in several cities - including Hercules, San Francisco, Berkeley, Oakland and Fremont - reported feeling the tremor, according to the USGS DYFI report.—
CA Earthquake Bot,
Sacbee.com,
9 Nov. 2025
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Trim the dead parts, shake the soil off, and store them in a cool, dark location where they are protected from the cold.—
Andy Wilcox,
Better Homes & Gardens,
9 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Choose a crate that is a comfortable size for your dog.—
Madeline Gunderson,
USA Today,
9 Nov. 2025
-
The stretchy fabric allows for a full range of motion and remains in place through every downward dog and tree pose.—
Sophie Dodd,
Travel + Leisure,
9 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
But quads alone don’t explain his gravitational pull.—
Marcus Thompson II,
New York Times,
7 Jan. 2026
-
These pull-on style pants can easily be dressed down with a T-shirt to wear casually, or with a nice blouse or dress shirt and be boardroom-ready.—
Caroline Hughes,
Travel + Leisure,
7 Jan. 2026
Verb
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This can result in a kind of emotional whiplash, with the tone of the videos lurching between joy and devastation.—
Lindsay Lowe,
Parents,
8 Nov. 2025
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Perry’s films can lurch from romance to madcap Madea comedy to skeletons-in-the-closet family drama and back…all in the space of 20 minutes.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
7 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Someone off camera then tossed him that actual T-shirt.—
Emily Zemler,
Rolling Stone,
8 Jan. 2026
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Failing to get a criminal conviction tossed and again complaining about the conditions at Rikers Island, Weinstein wants to begin negotiations with Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg‘s office ahead of his upcoming trial, his lawyer said during a hearing Thursday.—
Dominic Patten,
Deadline,
8 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Jerk.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/jerk. Accessed 11 Jan. 2026.
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