makeshift

English

Etymology

From make +‎ shift.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA: /ˈmeɪkˌʃɪft/, SAMPA: /"meIk%SIft/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Noun

makeshift (plural makeshifts)

1. A temporary, usually insubstantial, substitution for something else.
   • 1872, Middlemarch, George Eliot

     I am not a model clergyman, only a decent makeshift.

Translations

A temporary, usually insubstantial, substitution for something else

Finnish: hätävara German: Provisorium n., Notlösung f., Notbehelf m.

Russian: временная замена f. Spanish: apaño (es) m., improvisación (es) f.

Adjective

makeshift (comparative more makeshift, superlative most makeshift)

1. Made to work or suffice; improvised; substituted.

   They used the ledge and a few branches for a makeshift shelter.

Translations

Made to work or suffice; improvised; substituted

Catalan: provisional (ca) Finnish: hätävara-, tilapäis- German: behelfsmäßig, provisorisch

Norwegian: nødløsning (no), improvisert (no) Scottish Gaelic: sealach (gd) Spanish: provisional (es)