# jury-rig

> English word · Verb · IPA /ˈdʒʊə.ɹi ɹɪɡ/

## Definitions
1. To build an improvised rigging or assembly from whichever materials are available.
2. To create a makeshift, ad hoc solution from resources at hand.

## Etymology
From jury (“for temporary use, makeshift”, adjective) + rig. Likely modelled after jury-mast.
The phrase 'jury-rigged' has been in use since at least 1788. The adjectival use of 'jury', in the sense of makeshift or temporary, has been said to date from at least 1616, when according to the 1933 edition of the Oxford English Dictionary|Oxford Dictionary of the English Language, it appeared in John Smith's A Description of New England. It appeared in Smith's more extensive The General History of Virginia, New-England, and the Summer Isles published in 1624.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/jury-rig