PINCER

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does pincer mean? 

• PINCER (noun)
  The noun PINCER has 2 senses:

1. a hand tool for holding consisting of a compound lever for grasping

2. a grasping structure on the limb of a crustacean or other arthropods

  Familiarity information: PINCER used as a noun is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• PINCER (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A hand tool for holding consisting of a compound lever for grasping

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Synonyms:

pair of pincers; pair of tweezers; pincer; tweezer

Hypernyms ("pincer" is a kind of...):

hand tool (a tool used with workers' hands)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "pincer"):

roach clip; roach holder (metal tweezers used by marijuana smokers to hold a roach)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A grasping structure on the limb of a crustacean or other arthropods

Classified under:

Nouns denoting animals

Synonyms:

chela; claw; nipper; pincer

Hypernyms ("pincer" is a kind of...):

appendage; extremity; member (an external body part that projects from the body)

Holonyms ("pincer" is a part of...):

crustacean (any mainly aquatic arthropod usually having a segmented body and chitinous exoskeleton)

 Context examples 

But he ran on into the middle of the street, with a slipper on one foot and a sock on the other; he still had on his apron, and still held the gold chain and the pincers in his hands, and so he stood gazing up at the bird, while the sun came shining brightly down on the street.

(Fairy Tales, by The Brothers Grimm)