dongle
noun
a hardware device, paired with a licensed copy of a software program, that must be plugged into a computer to authorize every use of the software.
dongles
-
pluralof dongle.plural
The grammatical form denoting more than one person, place, thing, or idea.
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.
There are many dongles out there; I used the LELink.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 15, 2026
ADAC, Germany’s largest automobile club, warned against using so-called fuel-saving onboard diagnosis dongles, saying it had recently tested one that “blinks and somehow looks like it is doing something. It isn’t.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 20, 2026
Current EV owners will have to get used to a life full of adapter dongles and home chargers that can hop between plug standards.
From Slate ● Sep. 27, 2023
And sorry, I’m just going to say it — dongles are damn hard to keep track of.
From The Verge ● Mar. 10, 2022
The Kickstarter for its new Luna Display for Windows dongles launched on September 30th, 2020 and was successfully funded just an hour later.
From The Verge ● Oct. 13, 2021
