device

noun

Any piece of equipment made for a particular purpose, especially a mechanical or electrical one.

(computer hardware) A peripheral device; an item of hardware.

(rhetoric) A technique that an author or speaker uses to evoke an emotional response in the audience; a rhetorical device.

A project or scheme, often designed to deceive; a stratagem; an artifice. 1602, Shakespeare, The Merry Wives of Windsor. "This is our device,/ That Falstaff at that oak shall meet with us."

(Ireland) An improvised explosive device, home-made bomb

(law) An image used in whole or in part as a trademark or service mark.

(printing) An image or logo denoting official or proprietary authority or provenience.

(crosswording) Any specific class of wordplay element in a cryptic crossword.

(archaic) Power of devising; invention; contrivance.

(obsolete) A spectacle or show.

(obsolete) Opinion; decision.

Roots

dividovic- · Latin · divide, separate

Synonyms for device

gadgetn apparatusn contraptionn galvanoscope gimmickn gizmon appliancen transceiver isotron dynamotor

Synonyms & related words for device

Find synonyms, related words, and the definition of device — including gadget, apparatus, contraption, galvanoscope, gimmick, gizmo. Dendril is a free visual thesaurus that shows them on an interactive map where stronger matches sit closer to the center — no signup, no ads.

Words related to device

Explore words related to device — words associated with it, words that go with it, and its nearest matches in meaning. Related words include diestock, synchroflash, smartwatch, demineralizer, handheld, kicksorter, recharger, compander. Click any word to make it the center of the map and keep exploring the web of connections.

Synonyms for device

Common synonyms for device include gadget, apparatus, contraption, galvanoscope, gimmick, gizmo, appliance, transceiver — words that share a close meaning. Hover or tap any word on the map for its definition and part of speech.

Where does device come from?

The word device breaks down into one root of Latin origin: the root vic-, from Latin divido (“divide, separate”). Explore each root to see other English words built from the same source.