as in gadget
an interesting and often novel device with a practical use
built a contraption for automatically buttering toast
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Recent Examples of contraption
These machines are typically massive, tentacled contraptions that require billions of dollars and decades to construct.
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IEEE Spectrum, 24 Dec. 2024
The company’s Ping-Pong robots take up an entire room, and there are only three; the researchers had to invent a Rube Goldberg contraption using fans, funnels, and hoppers to feed loose balls back into robot-vs.-robot games.
—James Somers, The New Yorker, 25 Nov. 2024
There’s also one of those 360-degree spinning video contraptions, so there’s no shortage of Instagram- and TikTok-worthy moments.
—Rob Reed, Forbes, 21 Jan. 2025
Typically referred to as light therapy or LED face masks, these contraptions use light-emitting diodes to shine light at specific wavelengths onto the skin for various purposes like reducing wrinkles, firming the skin and controlling acne.
—Melinda Wenner Moyer, New York Times, 20 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for contraption 
IEEE Spectrum, 24 Dec. 2024
The company’s Ping-Pong robots take up an entire room, and there are only three; the researchers had to invent a Rube Goldberg contraption using fans, funnels, and hoppers to feed loose balls back into robot-vs.-robot games.
—James Somers, The New Yorker, 25 Nov. 2024
There’s also one of those 360-degree spinning video contraptions, so there’s no shortage of Instagram- and TikTok-worthy moments.
—Rob Reed, Forbes, 21 Jan. 2025
Typically referred to as light therapy or LED face masks, these contraptions use light-emitting diodes to shine light at specific wavelengths onto the skin for various purposes like reducing wrinkles, firming the skin and controlling acne.
—Melinda Wenner Moyer, New York Times, 20 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for contraption
Thesaurus Entries Near contraption
Cite this Entry
“Contraption.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/contraption. Accessed 21 Feb. 2025.
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