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What exactly is a contraption?
In the words of one Little Mermaid, “I’ve got gadgets and gizmos a-plenty.” It would have been on-theme (though perhaps a bit clunky) for the aquatic princess to include in her siren song the word contraption. Synonymous with both gadget and gizmo, and widget too, in referring to mechanical and electronic devices, contraption is also one of a raft of terms people reach for when talking about various human-made bits and bobs, whether mechanical or not. (It's thought to have possibly been formed as a blend of contrivance, trap, and invention.) Want more thingamabob words? Try doohickey, thingamajig, dingus, or doodad.
Examples of contraption in a Sentence
Rachel Raposas, People.com, 14 July 2025
Other popular rides included: Finnish Fling, a contraption with a drop floor rotating at high speeds that made riders stick to the wall.
—Abbey Briscoe, Kansas City Star, 4 July 2025
Among the 100 outfits on display are some bombastic, kite-like contraptions, bulbous pileups of fabric donuts, and a Chewbacca-esque cape-cum-sarcophogus.
—Miles Socha, Footwear News, 25 June 2025
His studio on Lispenard Street, in Tribeca, was full of contraptions, and his notebooks boiled over with a mad scientist’s exuberance.
—Julian Lucas, New Yorker, 29 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for contraption
Cite this Entry
“Contraption.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/contraption. Accessed 29 Jul. 2025.
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contraption
noun
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