Etymology

gadget

gad·get
G2A1D2G2E1T1

Today it means: A thing whose name cannot be remembered; thingamajig, doohickey. Full definition →

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The story

Unknown. First used in print by Robert Brown in 1886 (see quote in definition section). Might come from French gâchette or gagée, or from the French family name Gaget, an industrialist who produced promotional gadgets in collaboration with the project to build the statue of Liberty.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.