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ENGLISH · A WORD WITH POSSIBILITIES

jigger.

A double-ended vessel, generally of stainless steel or other metal, one end of which typically measures 1½ fluid ounces (approx. 44 ml), the other typically 1 fluid ounce (approx. 30 ml).

6 characters2 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

noun/ˈd͡ʒɪɡɚ/US/ˈd͡ʒɪɡə/Received-Pronunciation
  1. A double-ended vessel, generally of stainless steel or other metal, one end of which typically measures 1½ fluid ounces (approx. 44 ml), the other typically 1 fluid ounce (approx. 30 ml).

    US
  2. A measure of 1½ fluid ounces (approx. 44 ml) of liquor.

    US
  3. A drink of whiskey.

    US · slang
  4. The sieve used in sorting or separating ore.

  5. One who jigs; a miner who sorts or cleans ore by the process of jigging.

  6. A horizontal lathe used in producing flatware.

  7. A device used in the dyeing of cloth.

  8. A pendulum rolling machine for slicking or graining leather.

  9. A bicycle.

    UK · dated · slang
  10. An automobile.

    dated · slang
  11. A golf club used to play low flying shots to the putting green from short distances.

    dated
  12. A warehouse crane.

  13. A light tackle, consisting of a double and single block and the fall, used for various purposes, as to increase the purchase on a topsail sheet in hauling it home; the watch tackle.

  14. A jiggermast.

  15. A small fishing vessel, rigged like a yawl.

    New-England
  16. A device used by fishermen to set their nets under the ice of frozen lakes.

  17. One who dances jigs; an odd-looking person.

    archaic
  18. A short board or plank inserted into a tree for a person to stand on while cutting off higher branches.

    New-Zealand
  19. A placeholder name for any small mechanical device.

    US
  20. A railway jigger, a small motorized or human powered vehicle used by railway workers to traverse railway tracks.

    New-Zealand
  21. The bridge or rest for the cue in billiards.

  22. An illicit electric shock device used to urge on a horse during a race.

  23. A streetcar drawn by a single horse.

    archaic
  24. A kind of early electric cash register.

    archaic
  25. A total station or its predecessor, a theodolite.

    Australia · slang
Where this word comes from

From jig + -er (agent suffix). Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary suggests a possible link to Old High German gīga (“fiddle”), for which see modern German Geige.

verb/ˈd͡ʒɪɡɚ/US/ˈd͡ʒɪɡə/Received-Pronunciation
  1. To alter or adjust, particularly in ways not originally intended.

    transitive
    You'll have to jigger it from the original specifications to get it to work.
  2. To use a jigger.

    transitive
  3. To move, send, or drive with a jerk; to jerk; also, to drive or send over with a jerk, as a golf ball.

    transitive
Where this word comes from

From jig + -er (agent suffix). Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary suggests a possible link to Old High German gīga (“fiddle”), for which see modern German Geige.

noun/ˈd͡ʒɪɡɚ/US/ˈd͡ʒɪɡə/Received-Pronunciation
  1. A sandflea, Tunga penetrans, of the order Siphonaptera; chigoe.

  2. A larva of any of several mites in the family Trombiculidae; chigger, harvest mite.

Where this word comes from

Likely a corruption of chigoe. Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary suggests a possible derivation from Wolof jiga (“insect”).

noun/ˈd͡ʒɪɡɚ/US/ˈd͡ʒɪɡə/Received-Pronunciation
  1. A prison; a jail cell.

    archaic · slang
  2. An alleyway separating the backs of two rows of houses.

    dated · dialectal
  3. The penis.

    dated · euphemistic · slang
  4. A vagina.

    euphemistic · slang
  5. A door.

    UK · obsolete
  6. An illegal distillery.

    slang
  7. Ellipsis of jigger gun (“lock pick”).

    UK · abbreviation · alt-of · ellipsis · slang
Where this word comes from

A slang term of unknown origin, originally meaning prison. Oxford English Dictionary suggests that its origin might be the same as Etymology 1, above.

verb/ˈd͡ʒɪɡɚ/US/ˈd͡ʒɪɡə/Received-Pronunciation
  1. To imprison.

    obsolete · slang
  2. To confound; to damn.

    archaic · slang
Where this word comes from

A slang term of unknown origin, originally meaning prison. Oxford English Dictionary suggests that its origin might be the same as Etymology 1, above.

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Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.