tinker around

tinker around with (something)

1. To make unprofessional or experimental attempts at repairing or improving something. I've been tinkering around with the washing machine all afternoon, but nothing I do seems to fix it. Bud likes to tinker around with old car engines and see if he can make them run better than they used to.
2. To test or use something in order to learn more about it. I'm tinkering around with a different platform for my blog, and I can't decide if I like it or not.
See also: around, tinker
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

tinker around

v.
To make unskilled or experimental efforts at repair or improvement: I tinkered around with the toaster to see if I could fix it. On the weekends, they like to tinker around in the garage.
See also: around, tinker
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Phrasal Verbs.
See also:
  • tinker around with (something)
  • tinker with
  • tinker with (something)
  • if that's not (something), (then) I don't know what is
  • have no use for
  • have no use for (someone or something)
  • have no use for somebody/something
  • How much is (something)?
  • if it kills (one)
  • if it kills you
References in periodicals archive
'The companies reaping the biggest rewards show a 'go big or go home' mentality by investing in truly disruptive innovation projects,' said Ademosun, adding that, 'They don't just tinker around the edges.'
"It's not good enough to tinker around the edges with as many as 260,000 children living in poverty.
There will be two types of actions to tinker around with including Direct Actions and Conversation Actions.
Alone, the gardai can only tinker around the edges in Ireland while gangsters run their drug businesses outside the jurisdiction.
Both the teams won't have much to tinker around with where their playing eleven is concerned.
I'm not trying to tinker around the rulesit's best I retire.
I think for that reason, we should follow the rules and stress to everybody else that I'm not trying to tweak or tinker around rules in order to perpetuate myself longer," said Pangilinan.
retirees Assoc., loved to tinker around the house, he enjoyed cooking, going to the ocean, especially Point Judith, clamming, catching lobster, he was always seen around on his tractor.Ed also loved to be outside or just sitting on his front porch, but most of all, he enjoyed being with his family.Ed lived a Good Life!
EMMERDALE (7pm ITV) CAIN DINGLE is still the main order of business tonight as his family hope he will change his mind and agree to let the finest surgeons Hotten has to offer tinker around with his brain aneurysm.
In the late 1960s, Bill Bowerman, longtime University of Oregon track and field coach, liked to tinker around with his athletes' shoes.
They don't even have to own a Lumia phone or Refocus app to tinker around and change focus themselves.
The back four is expected to be the same which leaves just the midfield four (or five) to tinker around with in the absence of Morrison.
They are content to tinker around the edges rather than grasp the nettle and really get to grips with the problems.
How many other car companies would have the genius to let their designers tinker around with jet engines at the weekend?