Lewis romped into a three-set lead and lost just two legs in the process before Jenkins fought back to win three of his own to leave the match finely balanced.
However, Lewis managed to win six of the next eight legs to end Jenkins hopes of claiming a first major title and progress to a semi-final with number three seed James Wade.
"I had to dig really deep to pull that off," admitted Lewis. "I lost my way during the middle of the match, but I pulled myself together and got the job done, which I'm delighted with.
"Terry came back brilliantly and every dart I threw for a while in those three sets was on the wire. Terry put me under pressure but, as soon as I'm under pressure, I fire."
Lewis, who enjoyed a straight-sets victory against Wayne Jones in the last 16, started the match in excellent fashion by taking first two legs with finishes of 89 and 101.
Jenkins managed to win the third leg on double top, after Lewis missed the bullseye for the set, but the Stoke star made no mistake in the next leg as he recorded a 71 finish to take first blood.
The second set began with Jenkins hitting double top, before Lewis left a chance of hitting a nine-dart finish after kicking-off the second with back-to-back 180s.
His hopes of achieving that feat for the second time in as many years at Alexandra Palace where ended when his seventh attempt at the treble 20 was off-target, but he posted double four to win the leg and then broke throw for a 2-1 lead.
Lewis added another maximum in the fourth leg, and secured the set by landing double ten to move 2-0 up.
The defending champion's high standard continued into the third set as he hit a 13-dart finish to take the first leg, followed a clinical 76 checkout in the second.
Lewis then hit double 18 to win the third set without reply, and took out an 87 finish for a 12-darter to claim his sixth leg in a row at the start of the fourth.
Jenkins stopped the rot with a 117 finish to win just his third leg of the match, and the Ledbury man then recorded a 14-darter in the next.
Lewis was off-target with a dart at bullseye to take the fourth leg and Jenkins managed to hit double five to reduce the match score to 3-1.
Lewis won the opening two legs of set five, which included a 136 in the second to break his opponent's throw with another 12-darter.
Lewis also hit a 180 in the third leg, but a missed dart at double top for the set, allowing Jenkins to step in on double 12.
Jenkins then hit double 15 to win the fourth leg against the darts, and he took the decider by hitting double ten to edge closer to Lewis at 3-2.
He then made a positive start to set six by taking the first leg, after Lewis was off-target with two darts at doubles.
The tenth seed hit double top at the first time of asking to take his fifth leg in a row, and then won the set in style with a two-dart 100 checkout to level the match.
The seventh set started in sensational fashion, as players kicked-off with 180s, and Lewis managed to take the opening leg on double five to end Jenkins' run of six winning legs.
Jenkins won the second in 13 darts, but missed a chance to break throw in the third as he missed a dart at tops for 104 checkout.
Lewis hit double ten to win the leg and then took out double eight at the first time of asking to take the set and lead 4-3, after Jenkins crucially missed three darts at double top to force a deciding leg.
Jenkins won the first leg of the eighth set, courtesy of accurate dart at double ten after Lewis missed two chances for a break of throw on tops.
Lewis regained his range on tops to win the next two leg, and when Jenkins missed four chances to force a deciding leg, the reigning champion made him pay by finishing 90 with a bullseye-double top combination to seal victory in style.
Lewis, who now faces James Wade for a place in the final, added: "James has a very good record against me, but he has never won a World Championship and I have, so that gives me the advantage."
Jenkins said: "Adrian started off like a train and there wasn't much I could do.
"I wasn't playing that badly and when I got back to three-each he was gone, but then I couldn't find that treble 20. He started to crumble but I couldn't make it count and if I'd have played a steady game he might not have come back.
"I'm a bit disappointed about losing it now and I feel I had my chances. I've had a good tournament, my form's come back and I feel confident that I can be dangerous next year."
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