gadget English · revision 2447

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈɡædʒɪt/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is of uncertain or unknown origin.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU) It is perhaps [[bor|fr|gâchette|t=catch-piece of a mechanism]],^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(RHWU) a diminutive of ''gâche'' “staple of a lock”.^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline) The OED considers a derivation from ''gauge'' improbable.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ Sailors' slang for any small fitting or piece of mechanism whose name they lacked or had forgotten; spelled ''gadjet'' in 1886.^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ Correspondents of the OED said the word was used as early as the 1850s,^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1995) and Random House dates it from that decade.^(RHWU) By 1915 it was used of any accessory or knick-knack,^(OED 1989) and the derivatives ''gadgeteer'' and ''gadgetry'' appear around 1920.^(OED 1989) Today it usually means a small mechanical or electronic device, often valued as a novelty.^(MW Collegiate)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1850s – said to be in use among sailors.^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1995)^(RHWU)

+ * 1886 – ''gadjet'', a small fitting or contrivance.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)

+ * 1899 – a winch for unloading vessels (local use).^(OED 1989)

+ * 1915 – an accessory or knick-knack.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1920 – ''gadgeteer'', ''gadgetry''.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A small mechanical or electronic device with a practical use, often thought of as a novelty.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+ # A thing whose name one cannot remember or does not know.^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[gadgety]]

+ * [[gadgeteer]]

+ * [[gadgetry]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[gizmo]]

+ * [[widget]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}