Dictionary![]() ![]() tin•kerPronunciation: (ting'kur), [key] —n. 1. a mender of pots, kettles, pans, etc., usually an itinerant. 2. an unskillful or clumsy worker; bungler. 3. a person skilled in various minor kinds of mechanical work; jack-of-all-trades. 4. an act or instance of tinkering: Let me have a tinker at that motor. 5. Scot., Irish Eng. a. a gypsy. b. any itinerant worker. c. a wanderer. d. a beggar. 6. See chub mackerel. —v.i. 1. to busy oneself with a thing without useful results: Stop tinkering with that clock and take it to the repair shop. 2. to work unskillfully or clumsily at anything. 3. to do the work of a tinker. —v.t. 1. to mend as a tinker. 2. to repair in an unskillful, clumsy, or makeshift way. Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
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