tinker: Meaning and Definition of

tin•ker

Pronunciation: (ting'kur), [key]
— n.
  1. a mender of pots, kettles, pans, etc., usually an itinerant.
  2. an unskillful or clumsy worker; bungler.
  3. a person skilled in various minor kinds of mechanical work; jack-of-all-trades.
  4. an act or instance of tinkering: Let me have a tinker at that motor.
    1. a gypsy.
    2. any itinerant worker.
    3. a wanderer.
    4. a beggar.
  5. See
—v.i.
  1. to busy oneself with a thing without useful results: Stop tinkering with that clock and take it to the repair shop.
  2. to work unskillfully or clumsily at anything.
  3. to do the work of a tinker.
—v.t.
  1. to mend as a tinker.
  2. to repair in an unskillful, clumsy, or makeshift way.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
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