device

English

Etymology

From Middle English devis, devise, devyce, devys, devyse, from Old French devis and devise, from Latin dīvīsus, past participle of dīvidō (“to divide”). Doublet of devise (noun).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /dɪˈvaɪs/, /dəˈvaɪs/
Audio (US): (file)
Rhymes: -aɪs

Noun

device (plural devices)

Any piece of equipment made for a particular purpose, especially a mechanical or electrical one.
- 1949. Geneva Convention on Road Traffic Chapter VI. Provisions Applicable to Cycles in International Traffic
  Every cycle shall be equipped with: (b) an audible warning device consisting of a bell
- 2013 June 1, “A better waterworks”, in The Economist‎, volume 407, number 8838, page 5 (Technology Quarterly):
  An artificial kidney these days still means a refrigerator-sized dialysis machine. Such devices mimic the way real kidneys cleanse blood and eject impurities and surplus water as urine.
(computer hardware) A peripheral device; an item of hardware.
A project or scheme, often designed to deceive; a stratagem; an artifice.
- 1611, The Holy Bible, (King James Version), London: Robert Barker, , →OCLC, Jeremiah 51:11:
  His device is against Babylon, to destroy it.
- 1611, The Holy Bible, (King James Version), London: Robert Barker, , →OCLC, Job 5:12:
  He disappointeth the devices of the crafty, so that their hands cannot perform their enterprise.
- 1827, Henry Hallam, The English Constitution, Harper:
  Their recent device of demanding benevolences.
- 1913, Edgar Rice Burroughs, The Return of Tarzan, New York: Ballantyne Books, published 1963, page 40:
  For a month Tarzan was a regular and very welcome devotee at the shrine of the beautiful Countess de Coude. More often Olga found devices that would give her an hour of Tarzan alone.
- 2012 March, Brian Hayes, “Pixels or Perish”, in American Scientist‎, volume 100, number 2, archived from the original on 19 February 2013, page 106:
  Drawings and pictures are more than mere ornaments in scientific discourse. Blackboard sketches, geological maps, diagrams of molecular structure, astronomical photographs, MRI images, the many varieties of statistical charts and graphs: These pictorial devices are indispensable tools for presenting evidence, for explaining a theory, for telling a story.
(Ireland) An improvised explosive device, home-made bomb
- 1979, Stiff Little Fingers, Suspect Device:
  Inflammable material is planted in my head / It's a suspect device that's left 2000 dead
- 2014 September 3, Cliodhna Russell, “A viable device was found in Cavan today, it has now been made safe”, in The Journal:
  THE ARMY BOMB Disposal Team rendered safe a viable device in Cavan this afternoon.
- 2014 August 3, Louise Kelly, Conor Feehan, “Suspect device found at shopping centre revealed as hoax”, in Irish Independent:
  The army bomb squad carried out two controlled explosions on the device. It was later found that the suspect device was a hoax and not a viable explosive.
(rhetoric) A technique that an author or speaker uses to evoke an emotional response in the audience; a rhetorical device.
(heraldry) A motto, emblem, or other mark used to distinguish the bearer from others. A device differs from a badge or cognizance primarily as it is a personal distinction, and not a badge borne by members of the same house successively.
- 1736. O'Callaghan, Edmund Bailey. The Documentary History of the State of New York Chapter I, Article III: Enumeration of the Indian Tribes.
  The devices of these savages are the serpent, the Deer, and the Small Acorn.
(archaic) Power of devising; invention; contrivance.
- 1824, Walter Savage Landor, “King Henry IV and Sir Arnold Savage”, in Imaginary Conversations of Literary Men and Statesmen, page 44:
  Moreover I must have instruments of mine own device, weighty, and exceeding costly
- 1976, The Eagles, Hotel California:
  And she said,
  "We are all prisoners here,
  Of our own device"
- 1986 February 1, James E. Lewis, “Love In The Worst Of Times”, in Gay Community News, volume 13, number 28, page 5:
  I want to (I must) tell a story of a revelation in my life. His name is Vernon. We have known each other for 17 years, yet we are presently separated through no device of our own making.
(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.
- 1943 United States Post Office Department. A Description of United States Postage Stamps / Issued by the Post Office Department from July 1, 1847, to April 1, 1945 , USGPO, Washington, p1:
  Prior to the issuance of the first stamps, letters accepted by postmasters for dispatch were marked "Paid" by means of pen and ink or hand stamps of various designs. To facilitate the handling of mail matter, some postmasters provided special stamps or devices for use on letters as evidence of the prepayment of postage.
(crosswording) Any specific class of wordplay element in a cryptic crossword.
- 2001 06, Fraser Simpson, 101 Cryptic Crosswords: From the New Yorker, Sterling Publishing Company, Inc., →ISBN, page 6:
  These eight devices, and combinations thereof, account for nearly every kind of wordplay you will encounter in cryptic crosswords.
- 2013 November 7, Alan Connor, Two Girls, One on Each Knee: The Puzzling, Playful World of the Crossword, Penguin UK, →ISBN:
  Discovering these variants is much of the fun. All the devices can be combined and twisted to produce surface readings in each clue which point you in the wrong direction.
- 2020 March 30, Denise Sutherland, Solving Cryptic Crosswords For Dummies, John Wiley & Sons, →ISBN, page 48:
  As with all varieties of cryptic clues, the container device can be used in conjunction with other devices, especially in more complex cryptic crosswords.
(obsolete) A spectacle or show.
- c. 1634, James Shirley (falsely attributed to John Fletcher), The Coronation:
  It will be out of faſhion to weare ſwords, / Maſques, and devices welcome, I ſalute you
(obsolete) Opinion; decision.