n. & v.
--n.
1. an itinerant mender of kettles and pans etc.
2 Sc. & Ir. a gypsy.
3 colloq. a mischievous person or animal.
4 a spell of tinkering.
5 a rough-and-ready worker.
--v.
1. intr. (foll. by at, with) work in an amateurish or desultory way, esp. to adjust or mend machinery etc.
2 a intr. work as a tinker. b tr. repair (pots and pans).
Derivatives:
tinkerer n.
Etymology: ME: orig. unkn.