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definitions

contraption

[kuh n-trap-shuh n]
See more synonyms for contraption on Thesaurus.com
noun Informal.
  1. a mechanical contrivance; gadget; device.

Origin of contraption

1815–25; perhaps contr(ivance) + (ad)aption, variant of adaptation
Related formscon·trap·tious, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for contraption

rig, gadget, appliance, contrivance, gizmo, widget, apparatus, doohickey, mechanism, machine, thingamajig

Examples from the Web for contraption

Contemporary Examples of contraption

Historical Examples of contraption

  • But it took ten days to get the contraption ready for the next fizzle.

    The Depot Master

    Joseph C. Lincoln

  • My children's teeth never had to have all this contraption on them.

    Gigolo

    Edna Ferber

  • When we find Craven, we'll find the contraption that's blanketing Jupiter and its moons.

    Empire

    Clifford Donald Simak

  • Go upstairs again, Amy, and haul up this end of the contraption.

  • Wall, stranger, what kind of a contraption do you-all reckon to have thar?

British Dictionary definitions for contraption

contraption

noun
  1. informal, often facetious, or derogatory a device or contrivance, esp one considered strange, unnecessarily intricate, or improvised

Word Origin for contraption

C19: perhaps from con (trivance) + trap 1 + (inven) tion
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
Word Origin and History for contraption
n.

1825, western England dialect, origin obscure, perhaps from con(trive) + trap, or deception.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper