Kludge
Spaghetti Code · Jugaad
A workaround or quick-and-dirty solution that is clumsy, inelegant, inefficient, difficult to extend and hard to maintain, yet nonetheless is operational.
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Origin
In February 1962, American computer engineer Jackson W. Granholm published "How to Design a Kludge" in Datamation magazine, defining the term as "an ill-assorted collection of poorly-matching parts, forming a distressing whole." Granholm playfully attributed the word to German klug ("clever"), but the connection is dubious. Earlier use among engineers at Sperry Rand dates to at least 1959.
Updated February 22, 2026