tool

[ tool ]
See synonyms for: tooltooledtoolingtools on Thesaurus.com

noun
  1. an implement, especially one held in the hand, as a hammer, saw, or file, for performing or facilitating mechanical operations.

  2. any instrument of manual operation.

  1. the cutting or machining part of a lathe, planer, drill, or similar machine.

  2. the machine itself; a machine tool.

  3. anything used as a means of accomplishing a task or purpose: Education is a tool for success.

  4. a person manipulated by another for the latter's own ends; cat's-paw.

  5. the design or ornament impressed upon the cover of a book.

  6. Underworld Slang.

    • a pistol or gun.

    • a pickpocket.

  7. Slang: Vulgar. penis.

verb (used with object)
  1. to work or shape with a tool.

  2. to work decoratively with a hand tool.

  1. to ornament (the cover of a book) with a bookbinder's tool.

  2. to drive (a vehicle): He tooled the car along the treacherous path.

  3. to equip with tools or machinery.

verb (used without object)
  1. to work with a tool.

  2. to drive or ride in a vehicle: tooling along the freeway.

Verb Phrases
  1. tool up, to install machinery designed for performing a particular job: manufacturers tooling up for production.

Origin of tool

1
First recorded before 900; Middle English (noun); Old English tōl; cognate with Old Norse tōl “tools”; akin to taw2

Other words from tool

  • tooler, noun
  • toolless, adjective
  • mul·ti·tool, noun
  • un·tooled, adjective

Words Nearby tool

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use tool in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for tool

tool

/ (tuːl) /


noun
    • an implement, such as a hammer, saw, or spade, that is used by hand

    • a power-driven instrument; machine tool

    • (in combination): a toolkit

  1. the cutting part of such an instrument

    • any of the instruments used by a bookbinder to impress a design on a book cover

    • a design so impressed

  1. anything used as a means of performing an operation or achieving an end: he used his boss's absence as a tool for gaining influence

  2. a person used to perform dishonourable or unpleasant tasks for another

  3. a necessary medium for or adjunct to one's profession: numbers are the tools of the mathematician's trade

  4. slang another word for penis

  5. British an underworld slang word for gun

verb
  1. to work, cut, shape, or form (something) with a tool or tools

  2. (tr) to decorate (a book cover) with a bookbinder's tool

  1. (tr often foll by up) to furnish with tools

  2. (when intr, often foll by along) to drive (a vehicle) or (of a vehicle) to be driven, esp in a leisurely or casual style

Origin of tool

1
Old English tōl; related to Old Norse tōl weapon, Old English tawian to prepare; see taw ²

Derived forms of tool

  • tooler, noun
  • tool-less, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012