as in rough
marked by a series of sharp quick motions
filmed in a herky-jerky style that will give many moviegoers a headache
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Recent Examples of herky-jerky
Judging by what Trump has said so far, and the herky-jerky way peace talks in Saudi Arabia have been rolled out, the president would be satisfied with a ceasefire that contained no guarantees of Ukrainian security should Putin later renege on the deal.
—
Trudy Rubin, The Mercury News, 28 Feb. 2025
What better for the crafty, herky-jerky guard than a big man who can roll, pop and allow Brunson to play off the ball more because of his passing?
—James L. Edwards Iii, The Athletic, 14 Feb. 2025
Late in a herky-jerky first half, the backup guard’s emphatic drive and dunk helped cut into Penn State’s lead.
—Andy Greder, Twin Cities, 5 Feb. 2025
Just in time for a herky-jerky square between your celestial ruler, Mercury, and rebellious Uranus on Feb. 10, expect unexpected tensions to rise in your personal and professional relationships as you are being called to create a healthy balance between both.
—Valerie Mesa, People.com, 5 Feb. 2025
Watching Eddie Redmayne do his herky-jerky dance, reaching out to the camera like a William Castle 3-D movie.
—Vulture Editors, Vulture, 17 June 2024
Hong Kong martial arts cinema legend Sammo Hung brought jiangshi to the screen with 1980’s Encounters of the Spooky Kind, a silly kung fu horror-comedy that features a hilarious set piece as Hung comically evades a hopping corpse’s herky-jerky attacks.
—James Grebey, TIME, 18 Oct. 2024
There’s a lot of herky-jerky stopping and starting, but when Jenn gets behind the wheel, things are relatively smooth.
—Kristen Baldwin, EW.com, 23 July 2024
The herky-jerky, on-and-off annual decision-making stops us from spending money efficiently in the way that the taxpayer expects.
—Foreign Affairs, 1 Sep. 2015
Trudy Rubin, The Mercury News, 28 Feb. 2025
What better for the crafty, herky-jerky guard than a big man who can roll, pop and allow Brunson to play off the ball more because of his passing?
—James L. Edwards Iii, The Athletic, 14 Feb. 2025
Late in a herky-jerky first half, the backup guard’s emphatic drive and dunk helped cut into Penn State’s lead.
—Andy Greder, Twin Cities, 5 Feb. 2025
Just in time for a herky-jerky square between your celestial ruler, Mercury, and rebellious Uranus on Feb. 10, expect unexpected tensions to rise in your personal and professional relationships as you are being called to create a healthy balance between both.
—Valerie Mesa, People.com, 5 Feb. 2025
Watching Eddie Redmayne do his herky-jerky dance, reaching out to the camera like a William Castle 3-D movie.
—Vulture Editors, Vulture, 17 June 2024
Hong Kong martial arts cinema legend Sammo Hung brought jiangshi to the screen with 1980’s Encounters of the Spooky Kind, a silly kung fu horror-comedy that features a hilarious set piece as Hung comically evades a hopping corpse’s herky-jerky attacks.
—James Grebey, TIME, 18 Oct. 2024
There’s a lot of herky-jerky stopping and starting, but when Jenn gets behind the wheel, things are relatively smooth.
—Kristen Baldwin, EW.com, 23 July 2024
The herky-jerky, on-and-off annual decision-making stops us from spending money efficiently in the way that the taxpayer expects.
—Foreign Affairs, 1 Sep. 2015
Recent Examples of Synonyms for herky-jerky
Adjective
-
The Trump administration has expressed interest in other minerals like lithium, graphite, and titanium, but these are based on rough mineral estimates.—
Energy Innovation: Policy and Technology,
Forbes,
27 Feb. 2025
-
While New York City as a whole is safer than most other metropolises, pockets of especially rough neighborhoods are unsafe, particularly for young men.—
New York Daily News Editorial Board,
New York Daily News,
27 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Connecticut transit riders urged lawmakers to bolster funding and services for the state’s local commuter railroads on Wednesday, as ridership continues to experience an uneven rebound from the pandemic.—
John Moritz,
Hartford Courant,
28 Feb. 2025
-
Two different curling irons — a 1-inch and a 1.5-inch — gave the pro uneven waves for a more natural feel.—
Jackie Fields,
People.com,
27 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Pair with a smorgasbord that includes sharp cheeses, jerky and fresh vegetables—cauliflower and broccoli.—
Tom Mullen,
Forbes,
23 Feb. 2025
-
Since many thefts can be violent or involve sudden, jerky movements, Guo sought ad vice from Google’s Activity Recognition team, which worked on a somewhat similar feature available on Pixel smartphones for car crash detection.—
Reece Rogers,
WIRED,
25 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Chamberlain’s daring hairstyle, which also featured choppy baby bangs, required a team of hair pros including stylist Sami Knight, cutter Frank (who goes by @fabulousfrank on Instagram) and colorist Anthony Vincent Ronquillo.—
Michelle Lee,
People.com,
4 Mar. 2025
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The stock market has had a choppy first two months of 2025, but history suggests Wall Street could get a seasonal reprieve as the calendar turns to March.—
Jesse Pound,
CNBC,
28 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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That bumpy track record has not gone unnoticed in Seoul.—
Max Kim,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Mar. 2025
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Involving them as early as possible in the exploration and procurement of new solutions can smooth even the bumpiest of implementation roads.—
Ogie Sheehy,
Forbes,
5 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Herky-jerky.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/herky-jerky. Accessed 13 Mar. 2025.
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