jigger

¹

[ jig-er ]

noun

1. a person or thing that jigs.
2. Nautical.
   1. the lowermost sail set on a jiggermast.
   2. jiggermast.
   3. a light tackle, as a gun tackle.
3. any of various mechanical devices, many of which have a jerky or jolting motion.
4. Informal. some contrivance, article, or part that one cannot or does not name more precisely:

   What is that little jigger on the pistol?

5. Ceramics. a machine for forming plates or the like in a plaster mold rotating beneath a template.
6. Mining. a jig for separating ore.
7. a jig for fishing.
8. Golf. a club with an iron head intermediate between a mashie and a midiron, now rarely used.
9. Billiards, Pool. a bridge.
10. 1. a 1½-oz. (45-milliliter) measure used in cocktail recipes.
    2. a small whiskey glass holding 1½ ounces (45 milliliters).

jigger

²

[ jig-er ]

noun

1. Also called jigger flea. chigoe.
2. Chiefly South Midland and Southern U.S. chigger.

jigger

³

[ jig-er ]

verb (used with object)

1. to interfere with.
2. to manipulate or alter, especially in order to get something done illegally or unethically:

   to jigger company records to conceal a loss.

jigger

¹

/ ˈdʒɪɡə /

noun

1. a person or thing that jigs
2. golf an iron, now obsolete, with a thin blade, used for hitting long shots from a bare lie
3. any of a number of mechanical devices having a vibratory or jerking motion
4. a light lifting tackle used on ships
5. a small glass, esp for whisky, with a capacity of about one and a half ounces
6. a light hand- or power-propelled vehicle used on railway lines
7. engineering a type of hydraulic lift in which a hydraulic ram operates the lift through a block and tackle which increases the length of the stroke
8. a device used when setting a gill net beneath ice
9. mining another word for jig
10. nautical short for jiggermast
11. billiards another word for bridge 1
12. informal.
    a device or thing the name of which is unknown or temporarily forgotten
13. dialect.
    an alleyway

jigger

²

/ ˈdʒɪɡə /

noun

1. other names for the chigoe

Word History and Origins

Origin of jigger¹

First recorded in 1665–75; of unknown origin; perhaps from jig ¹ or jig ²( def ) + -er ¹

Origin of jigger²

First recorded in 1750–60; variant of chigger

Origin of jigger³

First recorded in 1865–70; jig ² + -er ⁶

Example Sentences

All 29 of the men on the Chinese jigger were rescued from the water that day.

From Los Angeles Times

At the very least, a cocktail shaker or mixing glass with a bar spoon, an ice bucket filled with ice, a jigger and a corkscrew.

From Seattle Times

De Jaen jiggers a handle on top of the gray box, which tilts the glass to and fro.

From Seattle Times

In October 2015, for example, the Chinese crew on a squid jigger called the Ningtai 89 went on strike after the ship owner tried to pay lower wages than he originally promised.

From Los Angeles Times

I think her team wouldn’t let her shoot unless they had a key light on her, so they had to jigger this key light.

From Los Angeles Times