buttonhook

American  

[buht-n-hook] / ˈbʌt nˌhʊk /

noun

1. a small, usually metal hook for pulling buttons through buttonholes, as on gloves, dresses, breeches, etc.

---

buttonhook British  

/ ˈbʌtənˌhʊk /

noun

1. a thin tapering hooked instrument formerly used for pulling buttons through the buttonholes of gloves, shoes, etc

---

Etymology

Origin of buttonhook

First recorded in 1865–70; button + hook ¹

---

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

buttonhook

That’s because the bigger interchanges are expected to entice drivers to use the tunnel, then buttonhook toward downtown destinations, said toll spokeswoman Emily Glad.

From Seattle Times ● Feb. 3, 2019

He failed, but finally did manage to swerve the spacecraft into a nearly normal "buttonhook" rendezvous.

From Time Magazine Archive

He dresses himself with a buttonhook -- painstaking exercise for a man without the use of one arm, struggling through the top button of his shirt and the knot on his tie by himself.

From Time Magazine Archive

Then a doctor dipped a buttonhook into an antiseptic solution and used it to flip back the eyelid.

From Time Magazine Archive

Setting down my buttonhook, I rose to my feet.

From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

---