Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- adjective Spasmodic, irregular, and unpredictable, as in movement or manner.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- adjective Having an
irregular spasmodic movement.
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
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Examples
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At one critical moment, with the Thunder within seven and the Smurf-shirted OKC crowd on its feet, Nowitzki took a pass at the top of the circle, spun to his right around defender Nick Collison, halted at the free-throw line and lofted a herky-jerky pull-up in for key basket.
An NBA Voyage to the Heart of Dirk-Ness Jason Gay 2011
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Even Roddick's blazing serve, the most formidable in the game, has a herky-jerky, he's-going-to-hurt-himself quality.
A Feisty, Outspoken Andy Roddick Is Starting to Look Like The Sport's New Ugly American: But Is That a Good Thing? Tom Perrotta 2011
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Even drugs and alcohol only softened the edges, blurred the center, slowed the herky-jerky slides of her living a life she no longer had.
Wife Lou Freshwater 2011
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So the region is likely to have a herky-jerky second half, with sentiment dominated by Greece, Portugal and Ireland.
A Midyear Guide to Going Global Dave Kansas 2011
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Without her band in tow, expect stripped-down versions of her herky-jerky hoedowns: the best way to enjoy Thao's enchanting hiccup of a voice.
Nightlife Agenda: Chromeo, Monotonix and parties for charity Fritz Hahn 2011
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The flat language, unimpressive diction, predictable rhythms, and barely passable metaphors, lumped together in herky-jerky fashion across intentionally unclean line breaks, are meant to place the anti-heroic female at the center of her own attentions; who cares how the world reacts to her persistent complaints?
Anis Shivani: Philip Levine and Other Mediocrities: What it Takes to Ascend to the Poet Laureateship Anis Shivani 2011
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But the herky-jerky style he stumbled onto is still present in compositions like "Uffe's Woodshop" and "The Duck and the Butcher."
In concert: Tyondai Braxton and Wordless Music Orchestra at Library of Congress 2011
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Too many offroaders employ a herky-jerky on - and off-throttle type of driving.
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The flat language, unimpressive diction, predictable rhythms, and barely passable metaphors, lumped together in herky-jerky fashion across intentionally unclean line breaks, are meant to place the anti-heroic female at the center of her own attentions; who cares how the world reacts to her persistent complaints?
Anis Shivani: Philip Levine and Other Mediocrities: What it Takes to Ascend to the Poet Laureateship Anis Shivani 2011
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So the region is likely to have a herky-jerky second half, with sentiment dominated by Greece, Portugal and Ireland.
A Midyear Guide to Going Global Dave Kansas 2011
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