jack
A mechanical device or utensil used for lifting.
Entries starting with J
73 entries.
jack in
To insert an electronic coupling into a receptacle; to connect to something, whether involving a physical medium or not.
jack nut
A type of nut with a sheet metal body that mushrooms outward, on the far side of the hole through the substrate, when the screw is screwed in, thus providing anchoring with only one-sided access to the hole. It is nearly equivalent to the female portion of a molly bolt.
jack post
nounConstruction
A telescoping steel post used for the temporary support of ceilings, walls, and trenches.
jack-knife
A semi-trailer truck accident in which the vehicle mimics the closing of a jack-knife.
jackanapes
A small pulley which keeps a rope in line when lifting ore, water, etc., from a mine.
jacked up
Describes a 4x4 automobile that has a "lift kit", raising the body and/or frame higher than stock.
jackpot
A concentration of surface wood or fuel.
Jacob's staff
nounSurveying
A single straight rod or staff, pointed and iron-shod at the bottom, for penetrating the ground, and having a socket joint at the top, used, instead of a tripod, for supporting a compass.
Jacobs bogie
nounRail equipment
A design of bogie used for articulated passenger trains and trams, where the ends of two cars are mounted on the same bogie.
jadding
Holing or undercutting (something, such as a bed of coal, or stone).
jam
To bring (a vessel) so close to the wind that half her upper sails are laid aback.
jamb
nounCarpentry
Either of the vertical components that form the side of an opening in a wall, such as that of a door frame, window frame, or fireplace.
japanning
nounCarpentry
A European technique of creating lacquerware in imitation of the traditional Japanese style.
jasperware
A form of pottery that has a stoneware body which is either white or colored, which is noted for its matte finish. It is a popular blue-and-white ware, but it comes in many other colors.
jaunty
A master-at-arms onboard a Royal Navy ship.
jaw
The inner end of a boom or gaff, hollowed in a half circle so as to move freely on a mast.
jaws of life
Emergency rescue equipment used to open a severely damaged passenger vehicle with a strong mechanical jaw function that forcibly pushes or pulls metal components apart, to quickly and somewhat safely extricate the trapped occupants.
jaywalk
verbAutomotive
To behave as a jaywalker; to violate pedestrian traffic regulations by crossing a street away from a designated crossing or to walk in the part of the street intended for vehicles rather than on the sidewalk.
JCA
Initialism of Joint Combat Aircraft.
JCSS
Initialism of Joint Functional Component Command, an organisation that controls space debris.
JDM
adjectiveAutomotive
Initialism of Japanese domestic market (referring to parts available only in Japan).
jeans
nounManufacturing
A pair of trousers made from denim cotton.
jeer
An assemblage or combination of tackles, for hoisting or lowering the yards of a ship.
jeff
To play or gamble with em quads, throwing them as dice.
jeffing
A dice game played with em quads.
jellybean
of an electronic component, or software algorithm: generic, standard, vanilla, easy to find
jellybean part
A commonly available electronic component that may be readily replaced with similar ones, often made by different manufacturers.
jenkin
A narrow excavation driven through a pillar of coal.
jet
The sprue of a type, which is broken from it when the type is cold.
jet lag
A physical condition caused by crossing time zones during flight; often the result of disruption to the circadian rhythms of the body.
jet siphon
A venturi tube appliance for moving large amounts of water from one reservoir tank to another by pumping a small amount of pressurized water into the jet to create a vacuum.
jeweller's shop
An exceptionally rich pocket or seam of gold-bearing ore, or, of high-quality opal; a find so rich, dazzling, and valuable that it resembles the stock of a jewellery store.
JFET
Initialism of junction field effect transistor.
jhum
A tribal form of cultivation in India, where a chosen piece of land is cleared and used to grow crops until its fertility is depleted.
jib
A triangular staysail set forward of the foremast. In a sloop (see image) the basic jib reaches back roughly to the level of the mast.
jibhead
The head of a jib (arm of a crane).
jiffy
The length of an alternating current power cycle (1/60 or 1/50 of a second).
jig
An apparatus or machine for jigging ore.
jigger
A total station or its predecessor, a theodolite.
jigging
The act of using a jig; the act of separating ore with a jigger, or wire-bottomed sieve, which is moved up and down in water.
jigman
nounManufacturing
One who dyes cloth with a jigger.
Jim Crow
A tool for bending railway rails, by holding the rail with two arms and pushing a screw into the other side.
jinny road
An inclined road in a coal mine, on which loaded cars descend by gravity, drawing up empty ones.
JIS
nameManufacturing
Initialism of just in sequence.
JIT
nounManufacturing
Abbreviation of just-in-time manufacturing.
jitter
An abrupt and unwanted variation of one or more signal characteristics.
jobber
A job press or platen press.
Johnson thermoelectric energy converter
An electrochemical heat engine, with no moving parts, which can take a heat source and convert it to electric power, or take electric power to cool the thermal interface. A device which pushes hydrogen gas through a proton-exchange membrane (PEM), using either heat-induced pressure or electricity to drive the process.
JOI
Initialism of Jupiter orbital insertion.
joint line
nounRail equipment
A railway that is or was owned and operated by more than one company.
jointer
nounWoodworking
Any of various tools used to construct or finish joints, especially:
joisting
nounManufacturing
An arrangement of joists; joistwork.
joistwork
nounManufacturing
An arrangement of joists.
journal
the part of a rotating shaft or axle that rests on the bearing
journal box
A box or housing enclosing or supporting a journal, often used in order to retain the lubricant.
journey
The total time spent melting and working one piece.
JPL
Initialism of Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
JS
Initialism of Japanese ship (a ship of Japan from the Maritime Self Defense Force (JMSDF), since 2008) (a ship prefix).
Jubilee
nameRail equipment
A London Underground line which runs between Stratford in East London and Stanmore in northwest London, via the London Docklands, South Bank, and West End.