wing nut
1
2.8
- noun
- /wɪŋ nʌt/
- Specialized
:
tuerca de mariposa
- The shop had made the wing nuts exactly to my specifications.
- tighten the wing nut
- bolts and wing nuts
- turn the wing nut
Examples
-
Then, as his father started down again, Mack turned the rusted wing nuts on the screen's latches.
Fiction book (1990) -
To assemble the furniture, you will need to secure the pieces with wing nuts that can be tightened by hand.
-
I tightened the wing nuts.
Fiction book (1990) -
The paper was to be slipped into it and then tightened into position with two small wing nuts.
Fiction book (1990) -
His arms ached from the weight of the storms; his fingers were stiff from turning the rusted wing nuts.
Fiction book (1990) -
He takes two wads of money out, counting them, putting them on the coffee table, then fits the back in place, reattaches the wing nuts, and hangs the picture on the wall.
Fiction book (1990) -
As far as these wing nuts are concerned, you’d better draw up some specifications for new wing nuts and take them over to the shop foreman.
Fiction book (1990) -
As I worked in my cubicle that morning tightening the wing nuts, I saw that they were like two misshapen beings, animals with huge shoulders, too big for their small bodies, clutching at the metallic paper as if it were a matter of life and death.
Fiction book (1990) -
Make sure to tighten the wing nuts properly to ensure the table remains sturdy.
-
Adjust the height of the shelf by loosening the wing nuts and repositioning it as needed.
Synonyms
A metal piece with two flat wings you turn by hand to hold things together
A small nut with ridged wings you can turn by hand
Surface Forms
Morphology
The compound combines a sense of 'wing' (a side or faction) with the colloquial 'nut' (an eccentric or crazy person), so if a learner can access the political sense of 'wing' and the slang sense of 'nut' they can infer it denotes an extreme or irrational person on a political side. However, both senses are metaphorical/colloquial rather than literal (and 'wing' as a political faction may not be known from the basic definition), so the meaning is only partially predictable to a B1 learner.
Etymology
Wing nut is a small metal nut with two flat wings that stick out so you can twist it with your fingers instead of using tools. So it means a nut you can tighten or loosen 'by hand'.