calipers
nounUK /ˈkæl.ɪ.pəz/ · US /ˈkæl.ɪ.pɚz/
Etymology A corruption of caliber.
1
A device used to measure dimensions, especially for small or precise measurements.
- "Good, good for there," he mumbled, and then with a certain eagerness asked me whether I would let him measure my head. Rather surprised, I said Yes, when he produced a thing like calipers and got the dimensions back and front and every way, taking notes carefully.1899 February, Joseph Conrad, “The Heart of Darkness”, in Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine, volume CLXV, number M, New York, N.Y.: The Leonard Scott Publishing Company, […], →OCLC, part I:
2
UK A metal (orthopedic) leg support.
- And simultaneously I raise my trouser cuff to reveal the leather straps and wicked steel calipers harnessing my right boot.1988, Bapsi Sidhwa, Ice-Candy Man, Daunt Books (2016), page 4:
- Related terms
- caliber, calibre, vernier caliper, compass