contraption
Pronunciation: /kənˈtɹæp.ʃən/
The English word “contraption” has 2 meanings listed here.
noun
- A machine that is complicated and precarious.
- Any object.
Etymology
Possibly a Western US English dialectal word of unknown origin. First attested in the early 19th century. Perhaps from contrive + trap + -tion, while also possibly approximating construction. Chambers suggests contrivance + adaption. Neither Chambers nor Concise Oxford suggests a US origin. Compare cantrip, cantrap (Scots dialect), a wilful piece of trickery.
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More English words
- contrapposto
- contraproductive
- contraproposal
- contrapsin
- contraptious
- contrapunctus
- contrapuntal
- contrapuntalism
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Definitions are from Wiktionary, extracted by Kaikki.org, and are available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.