Dictionary

jig en · NOUN · etymology 1

Pronunciation

• (Australia) audio
• jĭg (General-American, Received-Pronunciation)
• /d͡ʒɪɡ/ (General-American, Received-Pronunciation)

Etymology

Unknown. Derivation from Middle English gyge (“fiddle”), from Old French gigue (“a fiddle”) has been proposed, but the connection and sense development are obscure. The sense “a type of dance” of modern French gigue is borrowed from English.

Meanings

1. A light, brisk musical movement; a gigue.
2. (Irish, traditional) 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.
   • 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. 2012 November 15, Tom Lamont, “How Mumford & Sons became the biggest band in the world”, in The Daily Telegraph:
3. (qualifier:traditional English Morris dance) A dance performed by one or sometimes two individual dancers, as opposed to a dance performed by a set or team.
4. A type of lure consisting of a hook molded into a weight, usually with a bright or colorful body.
   • 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. 1897, Rudyard Kipling, Captains Courageous:
5. 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.
   • 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. 1971, Gwen White, Antique Toys And Their Background, page 90:
   • Cutting circles out of pinewood is best done with a compass-style jig.
   • I used a doweling jig to drill the holes in the legs before assembly. 2026 August 14, Collin Knoff, “Mid-Century Modern Table”, in Popular Woodworking, volume 290, number 4, page 50:
   • 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. 1959 March, “The 2,500 h.p. electric locomotives for the Kent Coast electrification”, in Trains Illustrated, page 125:
6. An apparatus or machine for jigging ore.
7. (obsolete) A light, humorous piece of writing, especially in rhyme; a farce in verse; a ballad.
   • A jig shall be clapped at, and every rhyme / Praised and applauded by a clamorous chime. 1647, John Fletcher, Beaumont and Fletcher, The Fair Maid of the Inn:
8. (obsolete) A trick; a prank.
   • This Innovation? Is't not a fine Jigg? / A precious cunning in the late Protector / To shuffle a new Prince into the State. 1635, James Shirley, The Coronation:

Forms

Deriveds

jiggle · jiggity · hangman's jig · jigsaw · pocket-hole jig · thingamajig · dance the Tyburn jig · jig saw · jiggish · jig borer · dance the hempen jig · jiggy · one's jig is up · jiglike · jighead · in jig time · drill jig · jig show · the jig is up · jig-jig · outjig · jigger · jig-jog

Translations (55)

ko 지그 (mechanical device) · fi jigi (mechanical device) · cmn （帶墜子的）釣鉤 /（带坠子的）钓钩 (type of fishing lure) · de Vorrichtung (mechanical device) · hu szerelőállvány (mechanical device) · fr modèle (mechanical device) · ka ჯიგა (lively Irish dance) · hu szerszámbefogó (mechanical device) · ja ジグ (lively Irish dance) · eo ŝablono (mechanical device) · es jiga (lively Irish dance) · ga port (lively Irish dance) · hu tokmány (mechanical device) · io jigo (lively Irish dance) · es plantilla (mechanical device) · hu dzsigg (lively Irish dance) · fi jigi (type of fishing lure) · hu szita (mining: apparatus or machine for jigging ore) · es jiga (Morris dancing: solo dance) · hu gyors/vidám tánc (lively Irish dance) · hu derítőgép (mining: apparatus or machine for jigging ore) · fi penkki (mechanical device) · bg блесна (type of fishing lure) · es guía (mechanical device) · mi rauhanga (mechanical device) · hu rázórosta (mining: apparatus or machine for jigging ore) · es calibre (mechanical device) · ja ジグ (mechanical device) · lt džiga (lively Irish dance) · fi kiinnitin (mechanical device) · gd port-cruinn (lively Irish dance) · de Lehre (mechanical device) · bg жига (lively Irish dance) · hu rosta (mining: apparatus or machine for jigging ore) · hu befogó (mechanical device) · es horma (mechanical device) · hu rázórostás ércdúsító (mining: apparatus or machine for jigging ore) · ka შაბლონი (mechanical device) · ru шабло́н (mechanical device) · ru блесна́ (type of fishing lure) · sv jigg (type of fishing lure) · ja 治具 (mechanical device) · fi pidin (mechanical device) · ru джи́га (lively Irish dance) · ru конду́ктор (mechanical device) · cmn 吉格 (lively Irish dance) · sv jig (lively Irish dance) · pt escantilhão (mechanical device) · hu rázógép (mining: apparatus or machine for jigging ore) · ja ジッグ (lively Irish dance) · de Schablone (mechanical device) · ka მოდელი (mechanical device) · fr patron (mechanical device) · eo ĵigo (lively Irish dance) · es plantilla de guía (mechanical device)

jig en · VERB · etymology 1

Pronunciation

• (Australia) audio
• jĭg (General-American, Received-Pronunciation)
• /d͡ʒɪɡ/ (General-American, Received-Pronunciation)

Etymology

Unknown. Derivation from Middle English gyge (“fiddle”), from Old French gigue (“a fiddle”) has been proposed, but the connection and sense development are obscure. The sense “a type of dance” of modern French gigue is borrowed from English.

Meanings

1. To move briskly, especially as a dance.
   • The guests were jigging around on the dance floor.
2. To move with a skip or rhythm; to move with vibrations or jerks.
   • […]and the fin would jig off slowly, as if it were looking for nothing at all. 1893, Rudyard Kipling, The White Seal:
   • the candle-flame stretched itself tall, and began jigging up and down. 1891, Thomas Hardy, Tess of the d'Urbervilles:
3. To fish with a jig.
4. To sing to the tune of a jig.
   • No, my complete master, but to jig off a tune at the tongue’s end, canary to it with your feet, humor it with turning up your eyelids, c. 1595–1596 (date written), William Shakespeare, “Loues Labour’s Lost”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene i]:
5. To trick or cheat; to cajole; to delude.
   • Make thy moan to ballad singers and rhymers ; they'll jig out thy wretchedness and abominations to new tunes 1633, Iohn Ford [i.e., John Ford], Loues Sacrifice. A Tragedie […], London: […] I[ohn] B[eale] for Hugh Beeston, […], →OCLC, (please specify the page):
6. To sort or separate, as ore in a jigger or sieve.
7. To cut or form, as a piece of metal, in a jigging machine.
8. To skip school or be truant.

Forms

Deriveds

rejig · jig up

jig en · NOUN · etymology 2

Pronunciation

• (Australia) audio
• jĭg (General-American, Received-Pronunciation)
• /d͡ʒɪɡ/ (General-American, Received-Pronunciation)

Etymology

Probably a clipping of jigaboo, of uncertain origin, perhaps an African/Bantu word. Alternatively, jigaboo may be derived from jig (“dance”).

Meanings

1. (US, dated, ethnic, offensive, slang, slur) A black person.
   • This type of pickpocket, it should be noted, is passing from the scene; most class cannons now operating are old-timers. “The only youngsters I see breaking in on the whiz are jigs, and they are coining a bebop lingo that is something. […] 2003, David W. Maurer, Whiz Mob, page 40:
   • “You got a new jig, huh?” The boy looked out at Jones through his swirls of oiled hair. “What happened to the last one? He die or something?” 1963 (date written), John Kennedy Toole, A Confederacy of Dunces, London: Penguin Books, published 1980 (1981 printing), →ISBN:
   • “…Lucky for me he wasn’t a jig, otherwise I couldn’t have done it.” “Jig?” “Nigger. Afro American.” His voice was heavy with sarcasm. 2011, Andrew Lithgow, Retribution, →ISBN, page 228:

Forms