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jig 1 (jĭg)
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n.
1.
a. Any of various lively dances in triple time.
b. The music for such a dance. Also called gigue.
2. A joke or trick. Used chiefly in the phrase The jig is up.
3. A typically metal fishing lure with one or more hooks, usually deployed with a jiggling motion on or near the bottom.
4. An apparatus for cleaning or separating crushed ore by agitation in water.
5. A device for guiding a tool or for holding machine work in place.
v. jigged, jig·ging, jigs
v.intr.
1. To dance or play a jig.
2. To move or bob up and down jerkily and rapidly.
3. To operate a jig.
v.tr.
1. To bob or jerk (something) up and down or to and fro.
2. To machine (an object) with the aid of a jig.
3. To separate or clean (ore) by shaking a jig.
Idiom:
in jig time Informal
Very quickly; rapidly.
[Origin unknown.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 
jig 2 (jĭg)
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n.
Offensive Slang
Used as a disparaging term for a black person.
[Probably shortening of JIGABOO.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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