2007-07-09 02:25:25 · 8 answers · asked by Eoin Everything 3 in Education & Reference ➔ Words & Wordplay
1) it's "Jerry", not "Gerry"
2) this expression is NOT related to the nickname for "German", since it was around at least 30 years before that British slang term was coined (published in a list in 1869, the slang for German comes ca. 1898)
3) "Jerry" here is probably from the common English nickname for "Jeremy" (a name from the biblical Hebrew name "Jeremiah" [name of an Old Testament prophet), and seems to be related to other earlier expressions that use the name Jerry negatively
"jerrymumble", to knock about (1721)
"Jerry Sneak", a henpecked husband (1764)
"jerry", a cheap beer house (1861)
4) it is NOT derived from "jury rigged" (an expression going back to the nautical term "jury mast" -- a quickly constructed EMERGENCY substitute for a broken mast), but it may well be that this similar sounding and much older phrase, which likewise referred to hasty building, had some affect on the MEANING of the term (do not that "jury rigged" does NOT imply poor quality, can't even suggest an ingenious solution in an emergency, whereas "jerry-built" refers to POOR quality)
The best summary of what we know is found in the alt.usage.english FAQ
http://www.yaelf.com/aueFAQ/mifjrrybltjryrggd.shtml
similar explanation in
http://www.wordorigins.org/index.php/jerry_built_jury_rig/
compare the online etymology dictionary -
http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=jury
http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=jerry-built
2007-07-09 03:20:05 · answer #1 · answered by bruhaha 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The term "Jerry/Gerry built does nothing to do with Germans or the war. The expression has been around since the 1860s.
It could be connected to a Liverpool firm of builders named Jerry Brothers, who's reputation was for poor workmanship, or the Gypsy name for sh+t, ie. jerry.
2007-07-09 10:12:13 · answer #2 · answered by PATRICK C 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It refers to a racist comment during the second world war when the Germans (Gerrys) where hated by most Brits and the rushed building work that followed the end of the war...funny really that the Germans are now renowned for thier build quality...
2007-07-09 09:30:32 · answer #3 · answered by Doodie 6 · 3⤊ 1⤋
Clive is a professional in everything he does, and he uses superior materials. When he builds something it is great (CliveBuilt). The opposite is true of Gerry/Jerry. His work is careless and slapdash, and he uses inferior materials (Gerrybuilt/JerryBuilt). That's why we prefer Clivebuilt (in Australia).
[Origin: 1820–30; short for jeroboam]
[Origin: 1880–85; back formation from jerry-builder (to build cheaply and flimsily), build]
This is not meant to be offensive. It's just an explanation.
2007-07-09 10:54:31 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
gerry built refers to war time when a lot of german prisoner of war were used to build houses we used to call them gerries
2007-07-09 17:45:22 · answer #5 · answered by capcave2002 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I thought the saying was Jack not Gerry!
2007-07-09 09:30:01 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think it derives from ww2 a Gerry is a German.
2007-07-09 09:33:03 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
think you will find it is 'Jerry' as in German
but their stuff is good quality!
probably came about during the war as properganda
2007-07-09 09:30:05 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋