Gadget May Have Been a Sailor's Word for Anything
A gadget is a small useful device. The word appeared as sailors' slang for an object whose name had been forgotten.
A gadget is a small mechanical or electronic device. It first appears in the 1880s as nautical slang: a word for any small item whose proper name escaped you, like *thingummy* or *whatsit*. A popular story about the Gaget firm and the Statue of Liberty is almost certainly invented after the fact.
- A small useful device. *A kitchen gadget.*
- Gadgetry — devices collectively. *Expensive gadgetry.*
- Gizmo — an informal synonym. *Some kind of gizmo.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | gadget | A clever gadget. |
| Plural | gadgets | Too many gadgets. |
| Noun | gadgetry | Modern gadgetry. |
| Related | gizmo | A useful gizmo. |
| Related | widget | A software widget. |
How it is used in a sentence
- The kitchen is full of gadgets.Small devices.
- A widget is a placeholder name.Used in economics and software.
- Thingummy serves the same purpose.A word for a forgotten name.
Placeholder words in English
- thingummy — for a forgotten object
- whatsit — the same job
- doodah — British, an unnamed item
- widget — a generic manufactured product
- gizmo — an unfamiliar device
First recorded in the 1880s as nautical slang, of unknown origin. The Statue of Liberty story has no contemporary evidence.
Where does the word come from?
Nobody knows. It appears as sailors' slang in the 1880s, and the popular Statue of Liberty explanation is unsupported.
Gadget or gizmo?
They overlap. Gizmo tends to suggest something more unfamiliar or whimsical, gadget something more purposeful.