as in clumsy
hastily or roughly constructed
a jerry-rigged switch to keep the machine in operation until it can be repaired
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Recent Examples of jerry-rigged
That modernity means Halo: Campaign Evolved occasionally feels a bit weird, like Halo Studios jerry-rigged a jet engine to a Subaru Outback.
—
Alyssa Mercante, Rolling Stone, 24 Oct. 2025
Lenovo's software has also matured, so switching between games feels more like playing a game console and less like a laptop jerry-rigged into a handheld.
—Zackery Cuevas, PC Magazine, 5 Sep. 2025
This repurposing reflects how biological evolution is jerry-rigged, making use of what’s available.
—Philip Ball, Wired News, 8 June 2025
Amanda, introduced only briefly in the first movie, takes center stage as she and a group of troubled (and particularly shouty) people try to fight their way out of a house jerry-rigged with all manner of nasty devices.
—Declan Gallagher, EW.com, 10 May 2025
Ali Al-Ahmed, a dissident Saudi scholar who kept in touch with Sahar, sent me a photograph of an apparatus that the sisters had jerry-rigged to distill fresh water from the sea, and one of a copper hook for catching fish and crabs.
—Heidi Blake, The New Yorker, 10 Oct. 2024
Content by this author: Doomed From the Start Obamacare is a typically American concoction: a complicated program jerry-rigged to appeal to people with little faith in government.
—Kimberly J. Morgan, Foreign Affairs, 10 June 2024
Alyssa Mercante, Rolling Stone, 24 Oct. 2025
Lenovo's software has also matured, so switching between games feels more like playing a game console and less like a laptop jerry-rigged into a handheld.
—Zackery Cuevas, PC Magazine, 5 Sep. 2025
This repurposing reflects how biological evolution is jerry-rigged, making use of what’s available.
—Philip Ball, Wired News, 8 June 2025
Amanda, introduced only briefly in the first movie, takes center stage as she and a group of troubled (and particularly shouty) people try to fight their way out of a house jerry-rigged with all manner of nasty devices.
—Declan Gallagher, EW.com, 10 May 2025
Ali Al-Ahmed, a dissident Saudi scholar who kept in touch with Sahar, sent me a photograph of an apparatus that the sisters had jerry-rigged to distill fresh water from the sea, and one of a copper hook for catching fish and crabs.
—Heidi Blake, The New Yorker, 10 Oct. 2024
Content by this author: Doomed From the Start Obamacare is a typically American concoction: a complicated program jerry-rigged to appeal to people with little faith in government.
—Kimberly J. Morgan, Foreign Affairs, 10 June 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for jerry-rigged
Adjective
-
Rosenberg is careful to note that this doesn’t require abandoning values or discernment, but recognizing that beneath every expression — skillful, clumsy, or even hurtful — is an unmet need.—
Jasna Hodžić,
Big Think,
29 Jan. 2026
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The clumsy, confusing rollout of the fees certainly didn’t help — as many residents who were promised a locals discount couldn’t figure out how to tap that benefit.—
Michael Smolens,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
23 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
The lynchpin to it all is recognizing that 69% of gross domestic product, a rough though imperfect measure of the economy, is consumer spending.—
Erik Sherman,
Forbes.com,
29 Jan. 2026
-
The hilarious ensemble comedy plays out during a dinner party between a couple who are going through a rough patch and their upstairs neighbors, who turn out to be swingers.—
Rebecca Rubin,
Variety,
28 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
So, a thinking, opinionated, rude wind is just another amalgamation of human and other.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
28 Jan. 2026
-
Things may be a bit fractious in NATO these days, but at Paris’ SS/2026 Haute Couture week, the civic side of the WWII Allies’ exchange looks in rude good health.—
Guy Martin,
Forbes.com,
28 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
For many viewers, the plot lines feel human, flawed and real.—
Rachel Hale,
USA Today,
31 Jan. 2026
-
While much has been made about the Heat potentially being positioned to make a better offer to the Bucks for Giannis Antetokounmpo if Milwaukee were to wait for the offseason for such a move, that reasoning is somewhat flawed.—
Ira Winderman,
Sun Sentinel,
31 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Jerry-rigged.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/jerry-rigged. Accessed 2 Feb. 2026.
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