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alligator clip

American  

noun

Electricity.

  1. a type of terminal for making temporary electrical connections, consisting of a cliplike device with long, narrow jaws that resemble those of an alligator.

Etymology

Origin of alligator clip

First recorded in 1940–45

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.

He couldn't control his fingers accurately yet, and he made several attempts to pull the alligator clip off the terminal post.

From The Scarlet Lake Mystery by Goodwin, Harold L. (Harold Leland)

Someone had put an alligator clip in the box.

From The Scarlet Lake Mystery by Goodwin, Harold L. (Harold Leland)

When he had pulled the alligator clip, the board had showed red.

From The Scarlet Lake Mystery by Goodwin, Harold L. (Harold Leland)

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.