A sudden, sharp movement. The car came to a stop with a jerk.
A contemptibly obnoxious person. He was acting like a jerk at the party last night.
A style of cooking in which meat is marinated in a spicy mixture and then grilled, associated with Jamaican cuisine. We had delicious jerk chicken for dinner.
(Physics) The rate of change of acceleration; the third derivative of position with respect to time. Designers try to minimise jerk in roller-coaster tracks to improve rider comfort.
(Weightlifting) The second part of the clean and jerk in which the lifter thrusts the barbell overhead from shoulder height in one motion. Her jerk at 105 kg broke the national record.