gimlet
noun
- tool
Wiktionary
Pronunciation: /ˈɡɪm.lət/
noun
Etymology: From Middle English gimlet etc., from Old French guinbelet, guimbelet, guibelet, probably a diminutive of the Anglo-Norman wimble, a variation of guimble (“drill”), from the Middle Low German wiemel; continued in Modern French as gibelet. Cocktail either named after the tool, in reference to its penetrating effects, or British Navy surgeon Thomas Gimlette (1857–1943).
- A small screw-tipped tool for boring holes.
“The box was close on every side, with a little door for me to go in and out, and a few gimlet holes to let in air.”
“I would find by the edge of that water / The collar-bone of a hare / Worn thin by the lapping of water, / And pierce it through with a gimlet and stare [...]”
- A cocktail, usually made with gin and lime juice.
“We sat in a corner of the bar at Victor's and drank gimlets. “They don't know how to make them here,” he said. “What they call a gimlet is just some lime or lemon juice and gin with a dash of sugar and bitters. A real gimlet is half gin and half Rose's Lime Juice and nothing else. It beats martinis hollow.””
“Yeah, a piece of advice — once you’re back in circulation, don’t keep topping off a lady’s vodka gimlet when she’s not looking.”
verb
Etymology: From Middle English gimlet etc., from Old French guinbelet, guimbelet, guibelet, probably a diminutive of the Anglo-Norman wimble, a variation of guimble (“drill”), from the Middle Low German wiemel; continued in Modern French as gibelet. Cocktail either named after the tool, in reference to its penetrating effects, or British Navy surgeon Thomas Gimlette (1857–1943).
- To pierce or bore holes (as if using a gimlet).
“Then there was an awful silence. The lady gimleted us again one by one with her blue eyes.”
- To turn round (an anchor) as if turning a gimlet.