Wordsmith.org: the magic of words


A.Word.A.Day

About | Media | Search | Contact  


Home

Today's Word

Yesterday's Word

Archives

FAQ


This week's theme
Miscellaneous words

This week's words
otiose
mendicant
peremptory
encomium
gimcrack

This week's comments
AWADmail 382

Next week's theme
Eponyms

Make a gift that ...
keeps on giving, all year long
A gift subscription of AWAD
It takes less than a minute.
Discuss
Feedback
RSS/XML

Bookmark and Share Facebook Twitter Digg MySpace Bookmark and Share
A.Word.A.Day
with Anu Garg

gimcrack

PRONUNCIATION:
(JIM-krak)

MEANING:
noun: Something cheap and showy, of little use.
adjective: Showy, but worthless.

ETYMOLOGY:
Of uncertain origin, perhaps an alteration of Middle English gibecrake (small ornament), possibly from Old French giber (to shake).

USAGE:
"Uncle Rabid Prophet TechEye has worshiped more gimcrack bits of junk and practiced more half-baked religions than all of Hollywood combined."
Bow Down And Open Your Wallet; Warsaw Business Journal (Poland); Aug 21, 2006.

See more usage examples of gimcrack in Vocabulary.com's dictionary.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
It is impossible to defeat an ignorant man in argument. -William G. McAdoo, lawyer and politician (1863-1941)

We need your help

Help us continue to spread the magic of words to readers everywhere

Donate

Subscriber Services
Awards | Stats | Links | Privacy Policy
Contribute | Advertise

© 1994-2024 Wordsmith