"jerk-water" meaning in English

See jerk-water in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Adjective

Forms: more jerk-water [comparative], most jerk-water [superlative]
Head templates: {{en-adj}} jerk-water (comparative more jerk-water, superlative most jerk-water)
  1. (US, colloquial, derogatory) Of an inhabited place, small, isolated, backward. Tags: US, colloquial, derogatory
    Sense id: en-jerk-water-en-adj-MhLbW9ir Categories (other): American English
  2. (US, colloquial, derogatory, rail transport) Railroads with low traffic. Tags: US, colloquial, derogatory Categories (topical): Rail transportation
    Sense id: en-jerk-water-en-adj-Hbf~y4KG Categories (other): American English, English entries with incorrect language header, Pages with 1 entry, Pages with entries Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 29 43 27 Disambiguation of Pages with 1 entry: 19 51 30 Disambiguation of Pages with entries: 12 59 30 Topics: rail-transport, railways, transport
The following are not (yet) sense-disambiguated
Synonyms: See: Thesaurus:remote place Related terms: jerk water, jerkwater

Noun

Forms: jerk-waters [plural]
Head templates: {{en-noun}} jerk-water (plural jerk-waters)
  1. (rail transport, derogatory) A branch line train, using light equipment Tags: derogatory Categories (topical): Rail transportation
    Sense id: en-jerk-water-en-noun-vCn5GLX5 Topics: rail-transport, railways, transport

Inflected forms

{
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "jerk-waters",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "jerk-water (plural jerk-waters)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "topical",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "Rail transportation",
          "orig": "en:Rail transportation",
          "parents": [
            "Transport",
            "All topics",
            "Fundamental"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1918, Charmian London, Jack London and Hawaii, page 19:",
          "text": "The mail was brought by a tiny \"jerk-water\" bobtail dummy and coach run by one, Tony, from Pearl City, a mile away, to a station near the end of the peninsula.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A branch line train, using light equipment"
      ],
      "id": "en-jerk-water-en-noun-vCn5GLX5",
      "links": [
        [
          "rail transport",
          "rail transport"
        ],
        [
          "derogatory",
          "derogatory"
        ],
        [
          "branch line",
          "branch line"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(rail transport, derogatory) A branch line train, using light equipment"
      ],
      "tags": [
        "derogatory"
      ],
      "topics": [
        "rail-transport",
        "railways",
        "transport"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "word": "jerk-water"
}

{
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "more jerk-water",
      "tags": [
        "comparative"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "most jerk-water",
      "tags": [
        "superlative"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "jerk-water (comparative more jerk-water, superlative most jerk-water)",
      "name": "en-adj"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "adj",
  "related": [
    {
      "_dis1": "0 0",
      "word": "jerk water"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "0 0",
      "word": "jerkwater"
    }
  ],
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "American English",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1907, Charles Stelzle, Christianity's Storm Centre: A Study of the Modern City, page 103:",
          "text": "That seems to disappoint them, for every sociologist likes to go back to some jerk-water college and tell those who are in the sociological class how they had to get their information by pantomime.\"",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Of an inhabited place, small, isolated, backward."
      ],
      "id": "en-jerk-water-en-adj-MhLbW9ir",
      "links": [
        [
          "derogatory",
          "derogatory"
        ],
        [
          "backward",
          "backward"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(US, colloquial, derogatory) Of an inhabited place, small, isolated, backward."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "US",
        "colloquial",
        "derogatory"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "American English",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "topical",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "Rail transportation",
          "orig": "en:Rail transportation",
          "parents": [
            "Transport",
            "All topics",
            "Fundamental"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "29 43 27",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "19 51 30",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with 1 entry",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "12 59 30",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with entries",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1915, Daniel Jacob Hauer, The Economics of Contracting: A Treatise for Contractors, Engineers […], volume II, page 212:",
          "text": "He had risen to the head of the greatest street car system in the world from the position of brakeman on a jerk-water railroad.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1922, Edward Hungerford, Our Railroads To-morrow, page 297:",
          "text": "Can the keen-minded Mr. Willard at Baltimore be more anxious than the keen-minded Mr. Rea at Philadelphia to undertake the management of jerk-water branches in Connecticut or in Rhode Island or down on Cape Cod ?",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Railroads with low traffic."
      ],
      "id": "en-jerk-water-en-adj-Hbf~y4KG",
      "links": [
        [
          "derogatory",
          "derogatory"
        ],
        [
          "rail transport",
          "rail transport"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(US, colloquial, derogatory, rail transport) Railroads with low traffic."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "US",
        "colloquial",
        "derogatory"
      ],
      "topics": [
        "rail-transport",
        "railways",
        "transport"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "synonyms": [
    {
      "_dis1": "0 0",
      "word": "See: Thesaurus:remote place"
    }
  ],
  "word": "jerk-water"
}
{
  "categories": [
    "English adjectives",
    "English countable nouns",
    "English entries with incorrect language header",
    "English lemmas",
    "English multiword terms",
    "English nouns",
    "Pages with 1 entry",
    "Pages with entries"
  ],
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "jerk-waters",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "jerk-water (plural jerk-waters)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English derogatory terms",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "Quotation templates to be cleaned",
        "en:Rail transportation"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1918, Charmian London, Jack London and Hawaii, page 19:",
          "text": "The mail was brought by a tiny \"jerk-water\" bobtail dummy and coach run by one, Tony, from Pearl City, a mile away, to a station near the end of the peninsula.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A branch line train, using light equipment"
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "rail transport",
          "rail transport"
        ],
        [
          "derogatory",
          "derogatory"
        ],
        [
          "branch line",
          "branch line"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(rail transport, derogatory) A branch line train, using light equipment"
      ],
      "tags": [
        "derogatory"
      ],
      "topics": [
        "rail-transport",
        "railways",
        "transport"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "word": "jerk-water"
}

{
  "categories": [
    "English adjectives",
    "English countable nouns",
    "English entries with incorrect language header",
    "English lemmas",
    "English multiword terms",
    "English nouns",
    "Pages with 1 entry",
    "Pages with entries"
  ],
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "more jerk-water",
      "tags": [
        "comparative"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "most jerk-water",
      "tags": [
        "superlative"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "jerk-water (comparative more jerk-water, superlative most jerk-water)",
      "name": "en-adj"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "adj",
  "related": [
    {
      "word": "jerk water"
    },
    {
      "word": "jerkwater"
    }
  ],
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "American English",
        "English colloquialisms",
        "English derogatory terms",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "Quotation templates to be cleaned"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1907, Charles Stelzle, Christianity's Storm Centre: A Study of the Modern City, page 103:",
          "text": "That seems to disappoint them, for every sociologist likes to go back to some jerk-water college and tell those who are in the sociological class how they had to get their information by pantomime.\"",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Of an inhabited place, small, isolated, backward."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "derogatory",
          "derogatory"
        ],
        [
          "backward",
          "backward"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(US, colloquial, derogatory) Of an inhabited place, small, isolated, backward."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "US",
        "colloquial",
        "derogatory"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "American English",
        "English colloquialisms",
        "English derogatory terms",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "Quotation templates to be cleaned",
        "en:Rail transportation"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1915, Daniel Jacob Hauer, The Economics of Contracting: A Treatise for Contractors, Engineers […], volume II, page 212:",
          "text": "He had risen to the head of the greatest street car system in the world from the position of brakeman on a jerk-water railroad.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1922, Edward Hungerford, Our Railroads To-morrow, page 297:",
          "text": "Can the keen-minded Mr. Willard at Baltimore be more anxious than the keen-minded Mr. Rea at Philadelphia to undertake the management of jerk-water branches in Connecticut or in Rhode Island or down on Cape Cod ?",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Railroads with low traffic."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "derogatory",
          "derogatory"
        ],
        [
          "rail transport",
          "rail transport"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(US, colloquial, derogatory, rail transport) Railroads with low traffic."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "US",
        "colloquial",
        "derogatory"
      ],
      "topics": [
        "rail-transport",
        "railways",
        "transport"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "synonyms": [
    {
      "word": "See: Thesaurus:remote place"
    }
  ],
  "word": "jerk-water"
}

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This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-11-06 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-10-02 using wiktextract (fbeafe8 and 7f03c9b). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.