contraption
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of contraption
First recorded in 1815–25; perhaps contr(ivance) + (ad)aption, variant of adaptation
Explanation
A contraption is a device that has a specific purpose and is often overly complicated. If your dad yells, “Get that contraption out of here!” He doesn’t appreciate the Rube Goldberg machine you made out of his golf clubs. The word is English, all right, but how it got here is a mystery. It may be from a combination of contrive and adaptation. Contraptions — also called gadgets or gizmos — are devices people make for various purposes. Often, this word is used when someone isn't quite sure what something is, as in "What's that contraption?" Oh that’s just a dog-walking machine made of a roller skate, bacon, and four paper clips.
Vocabulary lists containing contraption
Chains
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"The Veldt" by Ray Bradbury
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Fast Food Nation
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Crellin, the founder and “ringmaster” of performance art group Circus Contraption, said the trio plan to hold “a circus and cabaret on the high seas” with “cutting-edge performance and live music.”
From Seattle Times • Feb. 8, 2017
Both worked with Circus Contraption, a kind of "grass-roots Cirque de Soleil," says Erin Brindley, who was the troupe's managing director.
From Seattle Times • Jun. 4, 2012
However, Team 2 has had their hands on ramps at Woodward West, the famous Terrible One Bowl Contraption, and even a ramp for the David Letterman Show.
From Time Magazine Archive
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
