jack around
phrasal verb.phrasal verb. to waste time doing things that are not important, or to treat someone unfairly by changing your mind or being dishonest.
phrasal verb. to engage in idle or frivolous activity; alternatively, to treat a person in a deceptive, inconsistent, or manipulative manner.
Stop jacking around and finish your homework.
The company kept jacking him around about the start date, so he eventually looked for another job.
While the interns were jacking around in the breakroom, the senior partners were finalizing the merger that would determine the firm's future.
- mess around
- fool around
- jerk someone around
- waste time
- get down to business
- be straight with
- Particles
- around
- Separability
- optional
- Pattern
- jack + (object) + around
often used in the progressive tense to describe ongoing annoyance or wasted effort.
this is a more casual and slightly more aggressive alternative to 'mess around' or 'fool around'; it is common in North American speech.
He jacked around me for weeks.He jacked me around for weeks.when used to mean 'treating someone unfairly', the object usually goes between the verb and the particle.
Last updated April 24, 2026