# Jerry

/ˈdʒɛɹi/ (US) · /dʒˈɛɹi/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/jerry
Updated: 2026-08-08

## Senses

### 1. a person's name

noun · CEFR A1

a short name for men named Gerald, Gerard, or Jeremy, and sometimes for women named Geraldine.

For teachers: a common diminutive of various masculine given names such as Gerald, Gerard, or Jeremy, and occasionally feminine names like Geraldine.

- My uncle Gerald usually goes by the name Jerry at home.
- The document was signed simply as Jerry, leaving the lawyers uncertain whether it referred to the father, Gerald, or the son, Jeremy.

### 3. chamber pot

noun · CEFR C2 · British English · Informal · Archaic

an old-fashioned word for a pot used as a toilet in a bedroom.

For teachers: a colloquial term for a chamber pot. The term is largely obsolete in modern domestic contexts.

- Before indoor bathrooms were common, every bedroom had a jerry under the bed.
- The museum display included a Victorian-era ceramic jerry, illustrating the sanitary conditions of the nineteenth century.

### 4. to build poorly

verb · CEFR C1 · Informal

to build something quickly and badly using cheap materials.

For teachers: to construct something in a hasty, flimsy, or low-quality manner. Often appears as the first element in the compound 'jerry-build'.

- The shed was jerry-built and fell down during the first big storm.
- The developer was accused of trying to jerry-build the entire housing estate to maximise profits at the expense of safety.

Usage: Usually used as part of the compound adjective 'jerry-built' or the verb 'jerry-build'.

## Examples

- He forgot his keys again, the absolute Jerry.
- I felt like a total Jerry when I realized I had been wearing my shirt inside out all morning.
- While the term is often used affectionately among friends to mock a minor lapse in judgment, calling a stranger a Jerry can carry a sharper edge of social dismissal.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.