makeshift

noun

1. a temporary expedient or substitute: We used boxes as a makeshift while the kitchen chairs were being painted.

adjective

2. Also make·shift·y. serving as, or of the nature of, a makeshift.

adjective

1. serving as a temporary or expedient means, esp during an emergency

noun

2. something serving in this capacity

also make-shift, 1560s, as a noun, “shifty person, rogue,” from make (v.) + shift (v.). Adjectival sense of “substitute” is first recorded 1680s. Cf. make-sport “a laughing stock” (1610s).