tin·ker
(tĭnǵkər)
[Middle English tinkere.]
noun
- A traveling mender of metal household utensils.
- Chiefly British A member of any of various traditionally itinerant groups of people living especially in Scotland and Ireland; a traveler.
- One who enjoys experimenting with and repairing machine parts.
- A clumsy repairer or worker; a meddler.
verb: -kered, -ker·ing, -kers.
intransitive verb
- To work as a tinker.
- To make unskilled or experimental efforts at repair; fiddle: tinkered with the engine, hoping to discover the trouble; tinkering with the economy by trying various fiscal policies.
transitive verb
- To mend as a tinker.
- To manipulate unskillfully or experimentally.
derivatives
- tińker·er
- noun
