tinker

[ ting-ker ]
/ ˈtɪŋ kər /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR tinker ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

verb (used without object)

verb (used with object)

to mend as a tinker.
to repair in an unskillful, clumsy, or makeshift way.

Origin of tinker

1225–75; Middle English tinkere (noun), syncopated variant of tinekere worker in tin

OTHER WORDS FROM tinker

tin·ker·er, noun un·tin·kered, adjective

Words nearby tinker

tingley, tingly, tinhorn, tinia, tinian, tinker, tinker with, tinker's cuss, tinker's dam, tinker's damn, tinker's weed

Words related to tinkerer

dilettante, beginner, novice, abecedarian, loafer, pretender, tyro, trifler, nonprofessional

Example sentences from the Web for tinkerer

  • The fundamental difference between the two is that Keynes is something of a tinkerer.

    War of the Economists |Michael Maiello |October 29, 2011 |DAILY BEAST

  • He was a natural mechanic, a maker and tinkerer of machines; he lisped in blueprints for the blueprints came.

    Babbitt |Sinclair Lewis

  • It was standard for the tinkerer, for the would-be designer of robot bodies.

    Tangle Hold |F. L. Wallace

  • He was something of a tinkerer, and he enjoyed adapting his environment to himself.

    Beside Still Waters |Robert Sheckley

British Dictionary definitions for tinkerer

tinker
/ (ˈtɪŋkə) /

noun

verb

(intr foll by with) to play, fiddle, or meddle (with machinery, etc), esp while undertaking repairs
to mend (pots and pans) as a tinker

Derived forms of tinker

tinkerer, noun

Word Origin for tinker

C13 tinkere, perhaps from tink tinkle, of imitative origin

Idioms and Phrases with tinkerer

tinker