How to use jerk in a sentence

40 example sentences · noun, verb

Jerk means a sudden, often uncontrolled movement, especially of the human body. Example: “When I yell "OK," give the mooring line a good jerk!”

Examples of jerk by meaning

nounA sudden, often uncontrolled movement, especially of the human body.

A barrel-organ in the street suddenly sprang with a jerk into a jovial tune.1908, G[ilbert] K[eith] Chesterton, The Man Who Was Thursday: A Nightmare, Bristol: J[ames] W[illiams] Arrowsmith, […]; London: Simpkin...

nounA quick pull on something.

When I yell "OK," give the mooring line a good jerk!

nounAn act of satirizing behavior that is, to an extent, common in a community, especially in circlejerk subreddits.

Jerk of the Year contender

verbTo throw with a quick and suddenly arrested motion of the hand.

to jerk a stone

nounA rich, spicy Jamaican marinade.

Sunshine ranks high in the island's greates burger debate, while the chicken egg rolls with mango chutney and jerk mayo and fabulous fish tacos elevate pub grub to an art.2016, Fodor's Essential Caribbean, Fodor's Travel, →ISBN

nounMeat (or sometimes vegetables) cured by jerking, in which it is coated in spices and slow-cooked over a fire or grill...

Jerk chicken is a local favorite.

verbTo cure (meat) by cutting it into strips and drying it, originally in the sun.

Snow stalled him in the timber; his food was all but gone when he managed to kill an antelope and jerk a supply of venison.1954, Wallace Stegner, Beyond the Hundredth Meridian: John Wesley Powell and the Second Opening of the West, Houghton Mifflin, →LCCN...
If they defeated potential invaders the New Irish hanged the vanquished from banyan trees, flensed their windpipes, removed their heads, left their intestines to jerk in the sun.2011, Dominic Smith, Bright and Distant Shores, page 106
This longtime West End eatery prepares chicken the way locals like it: curried, fried, jerked, and baked.2016, Fodor's Travel Guides, Fodor's Essential Caribbean, Fodor's Travel, →ISBN

More sentences with jerk

He is such a jerk; he gave me a sloppy wet willy.From the entry wet willy
Nathan ordered an orange fizz from the soda jerk at the counter.From the entry fizz
Someone should carjack that pompous jerk and teach him a lesson!From the entry carjack
I jerked the little girl back from in front of a speeding car just in time.From the entry in front of
That jerk did such a bad job parking his landwhale that it's taking up four parking spaces!From the entry landwhale
I can't leave: I've been parked in by some inconsiderate jerk.From the entry park in
She showed herself to be a jerk.From the entry show
Frick you, James! You are such a jerk!From the entry frick
The car lurched wildly all over the narrow bitumen road, violently jerking around corners.2020, Leon Silver, The Miracle Typist. From the entry fershnickered
Of course, he is right, but that doesn't make him any less of a jerk.2017 February 10, Tim DeForest, Radio by the Book: Adaptations of Literature and Fiction on the Airwaves, McFarland, →ISBN, page 63. From the entry asinine
It is the expressive that jerk that implies the negative attitude.2017, Tammi Leann Stout, An investigation of projection and temporal reference in Kaqchikel (dissertation for the University of Texas at…. From the entry expressive
“Oh here.” He jerks for his phone not trying to test her patience or invitation.2017, Coulter, A Night’s Tale, BookVenture Publishing LLC, →ISBN. From the entry snap
If the guy wanted to be a jerk, he could be too.2016 April 22, Christina Tetreault, Protecting The Billionaire: The Sherbrookes of Newport, book 7, Christina Tetreault, →ISBN. From the entry ride one's bumper
I didn’t forget you’re a jerk because you’ve been one ever since I arrived.2013, Kathy Altman, Staying at Joe's, Don Mills, ON: Harlequin Enterprises, →ISBN, pages 98–99. From the entry outjerk
It is velocity dependent, and there is a hyperreflexive tendon jerk.2012, Robert J. Person, Roger Thies, Physiology, →ISBN, page 49. From the entry hyperreflexive
And if many of the lawyers I work for are jerks, well, a buck's a buck.2012, David Housewright, chapter 2, in The Holland Taylor Mysteries: Penance, →ISBN. From the entry a buck's a buck
Poquita whuffled and jerked at her lead, trying to swing right around.2010, Peggy Nicholson, Serpent in Turquoise, page 72. From the entry whuffle
Shoot, Sniffer jerked away and took off like a scalded dog.2010, R. Harper Mason, Lyin' Like a Dog. From the entry like a scalded dog
At the word "treats," Jelly Bean jerked up her head and a sub-woofer wuffle fluttered her nostrils.2009, Anne Louise MacDonald, Seeing Red, Kids Can Press, →ISBN, page 181. From the entry wuffle
AT 10:12, the bus crossed the Yangtze River, and Min jerked awake.2008, Leslie T. Chang, Factory Girls: From Village to City in a Changing China, New York: Spiegel & Grau, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, →OL, page 277. From the entry Meichuan
Is the person merely a sloppy drunk or a consciously, deliberately aggressive jerk?2006, Master J.G. Townsend, chapter 1, in Self-defense for Peaceable People, Blue Snake Books, page 23. From the entry sloppy drunk
"Let's go to the pier in case that jerk comes back with a gun."2005, Joe Taylor, The World’s Thinnest Fat Man: Stories, →ISBN, page 82. From the entry fug
"Lippy," the gunslinger said, and jerked a thumb back over his shoulder.2004, Stephen King, The Dark Tower, page 694. From the entry colloped
I didn't even see his response, 'cause like I do all jerks in Usenetdom, I killfiled him.2003 July 20, Carleen, “Is Kobe Bryant's wife white?”, in nyc.general (Usenet). From the entry Usenetdom
She was jerked back and the crispinette nearly slid from her head.2003, Karen Stokes, chapter 15, in Talion: A Medieval Mystery, Mystery and Suspense Press, page 90. From the entry crispinette
His accomplice rushed in behind Angelo, jerked his head back and slashed his neck.2002, Betty Bradford Byers, The Big Payback, iUniverse, →ISBN, page 109. From the entry Colombian necktie
The early, crude "jerk water" device applied by the New York Central is shown in figure 8.24.2001, Anthony J. Bianculli, Trains and Technology: Track and structures, page 19610. From the entry jerk water
Her nose rubbed up against the tailhole of the mouse, who jerked in response.2000 March 20, Chris Deneen, “Rescue Rangers:Forget Chip (M/M F/f incest toon anal toy)”, in alt.sex.stories (Usenet). From the entry tailhole
I think all of you are right, this rookie guy's a jerk.1999 July 22, jason beveridge, “Too all morans out there (Purple jeuses)”, in alt.alcohol (Usenet). From the entry rufie
Since these installations invariably were in tiny communities, and since they permitted locomotives literally to “jerk water”1979, The Train Dispatcher - Volumes 61-62, page 49. From the entry jerk water
He remained where he was, and jerked a fat thumb up the woodland footpath.1952, Charles Hamilton, Billy Bunter and the Blue Mauritius. From the entry step out

Meaning of jerk

noun A sudden, often uncontrolled movement, especially of the human body.
noun A quick pull on something.
noun A person with unlikable or obnoxious qualities and behavior, typically mean, immoral, self-centered, or disagreeable.

Full definition of jerk

Questions about jerk in a sentence

How do you use jerk in a sentence?: Jerk is used as a noun and verb. For example: “When I yell "OK," give the mooring line a good jerk!”
What is a short sentence with jerk?: “to jerk a stone”
What does jerk mean?: Jerk means a sudden, often uncontrolled movement, especially of the human body.

Adapted from Wiktionary: jerk (page history and authors) and the entries each sentence comes from. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws chose the sentences, left out offensive ones and quotations older than 1900, and marked the word in each. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Cite this page: “How to use jerk in a sentence.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/sentences/jerk. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.