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A shimbob is a journeyman construction worker or handyman who knows a trick or two, but rarely the best way to finish a project. It is a sarcastic portmanteau of the words shim and plumb bob, implying the person shims something to be functional instead of making it plumb. Although it sounds like a Britishism, it is chiefly American, originating in the 1970s. The word is a double entendre that humorously alludes to common redneck American names such as Jim Bob and Billy Bob. A group of shimbobs is referred to as a patch.
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