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
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Below are the stocks that came up in our search: While shares of Tesla , which has an RSI of around 22, advanced more than 5% midday Tuesday, on track to snap a three-day losing streak, the stock has had a rough time in recent weeks.—
Sean Conlon,
CNBC,
11 Mar. 2025
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Sony has also had a bit of a rough time with the PS5 Pro, a device which has had at least some measure of technical problems where at times, its upgrades are failing to impress or even on occasion, making some games look worse.—
Paul Tassi,
Forbes,
11 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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The main story is very strangely uneven, the routes and caves are often straight pathways with little in them, and none of it is really difficult at all.—
Faisal Kutty,
Newsweek,
12 Mar. 2025
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The evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic – from devastation, to optimism for eradication, to persistent, uneven spread of disease – may seem unprecedented.—
Powel H. Kazanjian,
The Conversation,
5 Mar. 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
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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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Every good ship’s captain knows how to ride out choppy waters.—
Chris Carosa,
Forbes,
17 Mar. 2025
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The field conditions were choppy and poor on Thursday, but Mascherano said before the game that would not be an excuse as both teams play of the same pitch.—
Michelle Kaufman,
Miami Herald,
14 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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And yes, inflation is continuing its bumpy descent, according to February’s Consumer Price Index report.—
Allison Morrow,
CNN,
17 Mar. 2025
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Like other airship projects, though, progress has been slow, bumpy and always uncertain.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
13 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Herky-jerky.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/herky-jerky. Accessed 26 Mar. 2025.
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