fastener

American  

[fas-uh-ner, fah-suh-] / ˈfæs ə nər, ˈfɑ sə- /

noun

1. any of various devices for fastening.

2. any of various devices, as a snap or hook and eye, for holding together two objects or parts sometimes required to be separate, as two edges or flaps of a piece of clothing.

3. a worker who fastens things together.

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Other Word Forms

• unfastener noun

Etymology

Origin of fastener

First recorded in 1620–30; fasten + -er ¹

Explanation

A fastener is a device that attaches one thing to another or holds something in place, whether it's the fastener that secures a baby in her car seat or the fasteners you use to snap your jacket shut. If you go into a hardware store to buy fasteners, you'll come out with some kind of hardware you can use to fasten things together. Screws, bolts, and nails are all fasteners. Unlike welding and soldering, they're a non-permanent way to connect things. If you do a lot of sewing, you also use a variety of fasteners, from snaps and buttons to Velcro and hooks. A fastener makes things fast, or secure.

Example Sentences

Fastenal declines after the fastener maker reports quarterly results in line with analysts’ estimates.

From Barron's • Apr. 13, 2026

The fastener and tool distributor posted net income of $335.5 million, or 29 cents a share, up from $298.1 million, or 26 cents a share, the year prior.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 13, 2025

Jonathan Needham, from Hucknall in Nottinghamshire, found the 3,000-year-old gold dress or cloak fastener at Ellastone, near Ashbourne.

From BBC • Jan. 31, 2024

I rarely had to stop work to go get the perfect part or fastener.

From Seattle Times • Jan. 29, 2024

Then Dad twizzled the gold paper round the kite string like a sandwich-bag fastener.

From "Black Swan Green" by David Mitchell

Related Words

• latch
• screw