jig
/d͡ʒɪɡ/
Frequency: 3.10 in modern English
Meaning
noun
A lively dance in 6/8 (double jig), 9/8 (slip jig) or 12/8 (single jig) time; a tune suitable for such a dance. By extension, a lively traditional tune in any of these time signatures. Unqualified, the term is usually taken to refer to a double (6/8) jig.
noun
A dance performed by one or sometimes two individual dancers, as opposed to a dance performed by a set or team.
noun
A type of lure consisting of a hook molded into a weight, usually with a bright or colorful body.
noun
A device in manufacturing, woodworking, or other creative endeavors for controlling the location, path of movement, or both of either a workpiece or the tool that is operating upon it. Subsets of this general class include machining jigs, woodworking jigs, welders' jigs, jewelers' jigs, and many others.
Example Sentences
- "They danced a jig."
- "Soon Marshall is doing an elaborate foot-to-foot jig, and then they're all bounding around. Shoulder dips. Yee-ha faces. It's an impromptu hoedown."
- "They were waked out of their bunks one black night by yells of "Squid O!" from Salters, and for an hour and a half every soul aboard hung over his squid-jig—a piece of lead painted red and armed at the lower end with a circle of pins bent backward like half-opened umbrella ribs."
- "Cutting circles out of pinewood is best done with a compass-style jig."
- "The bodywork employs, where possible, the same constructional methods as for the standard B.R. coaching stock, in order to utilise existing jigs and press tools."
- "The craze for realism now led the toy manufacturers to try to make their models from still secret plans for the new cars. Should a car firm scrap its plans and jigs, the toy firm had to follow suit."
Etymology
Origin
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /d͡ʒɪɡ/
- British English: /d͡ʒɪɡ/