(n.) That with which one makes shift; a temporary expedient.

action ad hoc ad hoc measure ad lib ad libitum ad-lib ad-libbing adulterated agent alternate alternative analogy answer arrangement artifice backup band-aid blemished caught napping caught off balance caught short change changeling comparison contrivance copy counterfeit countermove coup course of action damaged defective deficient demarche deputy dernier ressort device dodge double dummy effort emergency equal equivalent erroneous ersatz exchange expediency expedient extemporaneous extemporaneousness extemporariness extemporary extempore extemporization extemporized fake fallible faulty fill-in found wanting ghost ghostwriter gimmick haphazard hasty imitation immature impaired imperfect imprecise impromptu improvisation improvisational improvisatorial improvise improvised improvision improviso impure inaccurate inadequate incomplete inexact jury-rig jury-rigged jury-rigged expedient lacking last expedient last resort last shift locum tenens makeshifty maneuver means measure mediocre metaphor metonymy mixed mock move next best thing not perfect off off-the-cuff offhand partial patchy personnel phony pinch pinch hitter pis aller playing by ear precipitate pro tempore provisional proxy recourse refuge relief replacement representative reserve reserves resort resource ringer rough-and-ready second string secondary shake-up shift short sign sketchy slapdash snap solution spare spares stand-in step stopgap stratagem stroke stroke of policy sub substituent substitute substitution succedaneum superseder supplanter surprised surrogate symbol synecdoche tactic taken aback taken by surprise taken unawares temporary temporary arrangement temporary expedient temporary measure tentative third string token trick tripped up trump unarranged unbegun unconcocted uncontrived undeliberated understudy undeveloped undevised uneven unfinished unhatched unmade unmanufactured unorganized unperfected unplanned unpremeditated unprepared unprimed unready unrehearsed unsound unstudied unthorough utility utility player vicar vicarious vice-president vice-regent wanting working hypothesis working proposition