widgetn.

Brit.

/ˈwɪdʒɪt/, U.S.

/ˈwɪdʒᵻt/

Origin: Of uncertain origin. Perhaps a variant or alteration of another lexical item. Etymon: gadget n.

Etymology: Origin uncertain. Perhaps an arbitrary alteration of gadget n.G. S. Kaufman and M. Connelly are often credited with having invented the word for their play Beggar on Horseback (compare quot. 1924 at sense 1a), which was adapted as a (silent) film in 1925. It has been suggested that the word shows a regional pronunciation of whatsit n., in which case the phonology would imply an origin in Scots or Irish English; however, there is no corroborating evidence to support such an origin. In sense 2b often explained (since at least as early as 1991) as a contraction of window gadget, perhaps as a deliberate reinterpretation.

Originally U.S.

a. Used as an indefinite term for a small gadget or mechanical contrivance.

ΘΚΠ

the world > action or operation > advantage > usefulness > use (made of things) > instrumentality > [noun] > (a) means > equipment for any action or undertaking > a device or contrivance > gadget

jigger1874

gadget1885

timenoguy1886

toy1895

widget1924

gimmick1926

boondoggle1935

gizmo1943

1924 G. S. Kaufman & M. Connelly Beggar on Horseback ii. 132 ‘What business are we in?’ ‘Widgets. We're in the widget business.’

1937 E. Lyons Assignment in Utopia (1938) iii. iii. 299 Every time the percentage of widgets turned out by her factory rose her features shone.

1973 S. Alsop Stay of Execution (1974) ii. 193 I asked Joe if the widget could be protected by patent.

2004 Independent (Compact ed.) 20 Jan. 49/4 There is still good money in widget-making (just as long as the widgets are assembled by 13-year-old sweatshop workers in China).

b. A small floating capsule in a can or bottle of beer which discharges pressurized nitrogen when the can or bottle is opened, producing a creamy head in imitation of draught beer.

ΚΠ

1991 Financial Times 4 Apr. 10/8 Its in-can ‘widget’ releases a squirt of nitrogen into the beer when the can is opened.

1995 New Scientist 9 Sept. 89/1 This widget is a hollow plastic insert which is squeezed in through the neck of the bottle and floats on the beer surface.

2000 M. Hughes World Food: Ireland 228 Cans of Guinness have a widget which, when the can is opened, releases gas into the drink which allows you to pour it as if it were coming from a keg.

2. Computing.

a. A component of a graphical user interface which acts as a control, such as a scroll bar, dialogue box, etc.

ΚΠ

1987 Nifty Little X Hacks Wanted in comp.windows.x (Usenet newsgroup) 31 July The sort of things I want are akin to desk accessories on the Macintosh, little useful programs that can be called from the menu or (ideally) from a widget or icon.

1990 DEC Professional Feb. 38/1 A sophisticated widget set consisting of high-level user interface abstractions such as push buttons, labels, sliders and text field entry fields.

2002 Network Computing (Nexis) 15 Sept. 20 A navigational widget on the top of every Web page lets you return to the IVE home or log out.

b. An application designed to perform a relatively simple task, esp. one which displays a simple piece of information (such as a weather report or the date and time) on the screen of a computer, smartphone, etc.

ΚΠ

1991 Clock Widget for different Timezones in comp.windows.x (Usenet newsgroup) 19 June A customer wants to have a row of clocks showing different timezones. Unfortunately the clock widget doesn't handle that case very well.

1997 Sci. Amer. May 31/1 Each participant downloaded a widget, or small program, that checks a chain of keys when the computer is otherwise unoccupied.

2006 Computer Weekly 16 May 16/1 Google Desktop 4 allows users to access small interactive applications, known as ‘widgets’.

2009 N.Y. Times (National ed.) 16 Feb. b8/5 Sharp's Aquos TVs already have widgets that provide traffic, weather..and some Web-based..programming from NBC.

This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2017; most recently modified version published online March 2022).

单词	widget
释义	widgetn. Brit. /ˈwɪdʒɪt/, U.S. /ˈwɪdʒᵻt/ Origin: Of uncertain origin. Perhaps a variant or alteration of another lexical item. Etymon: gadget n. Etymology: Origin uncertain. Perhaps an arbitrary alteration of gadget n.G. S. Kaufman and M. Connelly are often credited with having invented the word for their play Beggar on Horseback (compare quot. 1924 at sense 1a), which was adapted as a (silent) film in 1925. It has been suggested that the word shows a regional pronunciation of whatsit n., in which case the phonology would imply an origin in Scots or Irish English; however, there is no corroborating evidence to support such an origin. In sense 2b often explained (since at least as early as 1991) as a contraction of window gadget, perhaps as a deliberate reinterpretation. Originally U.S. 1. a. Used as an indefinite term for a small gadget or mechanical contrivance. ΘΚΠ the world > action or operation > advantage > usefulness > use (made of things) > instrumentality > [noun] > (a) means > equipment for any action or undertaking > a device or contrivance > gadget jigger1874 gadget1885 timenoguy1886 toy1895 widget1924 gimmick1926 boondoggle1935 gizmo1943 1924 G. S. Kaufman & M. Connelly Beggar on Horseback ii. 132 ‘What business are we in?’ ‘Widgets. We're in the widget business.’ 1937 E. Lyons Assignment in Utopia (1938) iii. iii. 299 Every time the percentage of widgets turned out by her factory rose her features shone. 1973 S. Alsop Stay of Execution (1974) ii. 193 I asked Joe if the widget could be protected by patent. 2004 Independent (Compact ed.) 20 Jan. 49/4 There is still good money in widget-making (just as long as the widgets are assembled by 13-year-old sweatshop workers in China). b. A small floating capsule in a can or bottle of beer which discharges pressurized nitrogen when the can or bottle is opened, producing a creamy head in imitation of draught beer. ΚΠ 1991 Financial Times 4 Apr. 10/8 Its in-can ‘widget’ releases a squirt of nitrogen into the beer when the can is opened. 1995 New Scientist 9 Sept. 89/1 This widget is a hollow plastic insert which is squeezed in through the neck of the bottle and floats on the beer surface. 2000 M. Hughes World Food: Ireland 228 Cans of Guinness have a widget which, when the can is opened, releases gas into the drink which allows you to pour it as if it were coming from a keg. 2. Computing. a. A component of a graphical user interface which acts as a control, such as a scroll bar, dialogue box, etc. ΚΠ 1987 Nifty Little X Hacks Wanted in comp.windows.x (Usenet newsgroup) 31 July The sort of things I want are akin to desk accessories on the Macintosh, little useful programs that can be called from the menu or (ideally) from a widget or icon. 1990 DEC Professional Feb. 38/1 A sophisticated widget set consisting of high-level user interface abstractions such as push buttons, labels, sliders and text field entry fields. 2002 Network Computing (Nexis) 15 Sept. 20 A navigational widget on the top of every Web page lets you return to the IVE home or log out. b. An application designed to perform a relatively simple task, esp. one which displays a simple piece of information (such as a weather report or the date and time) on the screen of a computer, smartphone, etc. ΚΠ 1991 Clock Widget for different Timezones in comp.windows.x (Usenet newsgroup) 19 June A customer wants to have a row of clocks showing different timezones. Unfortunately the clock widget doesn't handle that case very well. 1997 Sci. Amer. May 31/1 Each participant downloaded a widget, or small program, that checks a chain of keys when the computer is otherwise unoccupied. 2006 Computer Weekly 16 May 16/1 Google Desktop 4 allows users to access small interactive applications, known as ‘widgets’. 2009 N.Y. Times (National ed.) 16 Feb. b8/5 Sharp's Aquos TVs already have widgets that provide traffic, weather..and some Web-based..programming from NBC. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2017; most recently modified version published online March 2022). < n.1924
随便看	great focile great foot great forty days great friend great furze great game great garden bean great general great generals great george great go great god! great going! great good game great grey owl great grey shrike great grief! great gross great gun great guns! great hallel great hand great hartwort great head, little wit great heavens