gem clip
- noun
- /dʒɛm klɪp/
- UK
:
clip
- She used a gem clip to keep all the receipts together in her folder.
Examples
-
A single gem clip can fasten up to twenty pieces of paper.
-
Please hand me a gem clip to organize these documents.
-
I need a gem clip!
-
Look at this gem clip!
-
A single gem clip can fasten up to twenty pieces of paper.
-
Please hand me a gem clip to organize these documents.
-
She used a gem clip to keep all the receipts together in her folder.
Synonyms
152
1.3
A small device that holds things together, like papers or hair
18
1.0
A small bent piece of wire or plastic that holds sheets of paper together
6
1.0
A small bent piece of wire or plastic that holds sheets of paper together
1
2.9
A strong metal holder with a spring and flat ends for keeping papers together
How Secure
Surface Forms
Morphology
The modifier 'gem' (precious stone/valuable thing) does not transparently indicate a paper-fastening device, so a B1 learner who knows 'gem' and 'clip' would not reliably infer 'a type of paper clip'. This looks like a lexicalized or possibly brand-specific name (Gem clip) rather than a compositionally predictable compound, making the meaning unpredictable from the parts.
Etymology
Gem clip may come from a company called Gem or from the clip's shiny, double-loop shape that looks a little like a small 'gem'. Because of that company and shape, people used gem clip to mean the small clip used 'to hold papers' together.