hack job

Poorly executed task

A hack job is work done poorly, carelessly, or without proper skill—the kind of result you'd expect from a hack rather than a professional.

The term often describes botched repairs, shoddy construction, or incompetent editing: The electrician did a real hack job on the wiring.

It can also describe a hatchet job—a maliciously unfair piece of writing: The biography was a hack job designed to destroy his reputation.

botched

bungled

Performed ineptly, failed

sloppyCareless and untidy
messyLacking order or neatness
clumsyLacking physical coordination

haphazard · slipshod · careless · rushed · slapdash · half-baked · rough · crude · unfinished · patchy

amateurish

inept

Lacking skill or competence

unskilledLacking acquired competence
incompetentLacking necessary skill
unprofessionalNot meeting workplace standards

untrained · unqualified · novice · inexperienced · unpolished · unpracticed · mediocre · subpar · second-rate · inferior

makeshift

jury-rigged

Temporarily fixed with scraps

jerry-builtPoorly and hastily constructed
improvisedCreated without prior planning
kludgeAwkward but functional solution

stopgap · band-aid · duct-tape · temporary · expedient · ad-hoc · provisional · rough-and-ready · cobbled-together · lash-up

Categories

shoddy work
shoddinessslipshod, slapdash, botch, poor quality, substandard
makeshift fixesquick fix, stopgap, duct tape, band-aid, bandaid
blundersblunder, blunders, blundered, mistakes, botch
defectsdefect, flaw, crack, cracks, defective
failuresfailure, failures, flop, flops, bust

Opposites

quality of workmanship

hack jobmasterpiece

Supreme artistic achievement

craftsmanship · masterwork · work of art · tour de force · fine craftsmanship

intentionality and care

hack joblabor of love

Work done for fulfillment, not payment

Family

hack, job, hacks, hacked, hacking, hacker, hackers, jobs, jobless

Familiarity: Top 100,000
Profile: Used worldwide · Timeless · Negative · Everyday, not technical · Rated PG