macgyver means Someone capable of improvising an ingenious solution from everyday objects or unsuitable resources. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 87 out of 100.
Why this word is great
MACGYVER — [Noun, Verb] A person who ingeniously improvises solutions using everyday objects, or the act of assembling or repairing something resourcefully with unconventional materials. From the name of Angus MacGyver, the resourceful protagonist of the 1985–1992 television series 'MacGyver', known for his ability to improvise tools from ordinary items. Unlike "jury-rig" (which implies a crude, temporary patch) or "engineer" (which suggests methodical precision with proper tools), to MacGyver is to spin necessity into invention with the grace of a street-corner alchemist. It is the shoelace tourniquet, the soda-can antenna, the Swiss Army knife unfolded into a master key—proof that genius thrives in constraint, and that the world is less a collection of objects than a catalogue of possibilities.
noun
- Someone capable of improvising an ingenious solution from everyday objects or unsuitable resources.
verb
- To assemble or repair something by ingenious improvisation, using everyday items that would not usually be used for the purpose.“Our car broke down and we didn't have any tools but Jim MacGyvered it with some toenail clippers and we were able to limp to the service station.”