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Meccano set

Meccano set

4.9
A toy with metal strips, plates, and wheels you join with nuts and bolts to build moving models
  • noun
  • /mɪˈkɑːnoʊ sɛt/
  • UK
translation icon : set de Meccano
  • The Meccano set encouraged her interest in engineering and design.

Examples

  • As a child, he loved building cranes and bridges with his Meccano set.

  • I bought a Meccano set for my son.

  • We spent rainy afternoons piecing together elaborate models from the Meccano set.

  • The Meccano set includes various parts.

  • He spent the afternoon building a model airplane with his new Meccano set.

  • The children enjoyed creating different vehicles using the Meccano set they received for their birthday.

  • With her Meccano set, she constructed a working drawbridge that amazed her friends.

Synonyms

Lego
vsMeccano set
27 1.0

A brand of small colorful plastic bricks sold as building sets

is a metal bolted kit focused on mechanical model building
plaything
vsMeccano set
23 1.0

A toy or small object that children play with

is a specific metal construction toy for making mechanical models
Lego set
vsMeccano set
1 1.0

A box of small plastic bricks and parts for building models like cars or houses

is a metal bolted construction system for mechanical models
Meccano
vsMeccano set
6.6

A brand of toy set with metal strips, wheels and small parts for building working models

is the general name for that metal construction toy

How Complex

tool kit
4 1.8
Meccano set
  • UK
4.9
Lego
27 1.0
Play-Doh
2.5

Surface Forms

Meccano set singular
Meccano sets plural

Morphology

Meccano + set

The compound is a direct combination of 'Meccano' (a kit for constructing mechanical models) and 'set' (a group of related items), so a learner who knows both words can infer it means a set of Meccano parts for building models. This follows a common English noun+noun composition and is therefore immediately comprehensible to B1 learners familiar with the constituents.

Etymology

Meccano set may come from the idea of teaching 'mechanics' to children, and the brand name shortened that idea into a simple word. It is a kit of metal strips, plates, wheels and nuts and bolts that you join to build moving models, so the name now means a construction toy for making simple machines.