widget

widget wid‧get [ˈwɪdʒt] noun [countable] informal

1. any small piece of equipment, used especially to talk about something that you do not know the name of:

• Rear-view mirrors are just the kind of widget that car makers could easily buy from cheap-labor plants in Asia.

2. an imaginary product that a company might produce:

• If a retailer marks down a shelf of widgets to $ I.99 apiece from $4.99, it may sell more of them.

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widget UK US /ˈwɪdʒɪt/ noun [C] INFORMAL

► INTERNET, IT a small computer program, usually connected with an image, that can be added to a website to allow the user to do something. For example, you might click on a widget to find out weather or stock market information: »

The survey showed that more than 300 million widgets were used on the web last month.

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Widgets let you display Twitter updates on your website or social network page.

► IT one of many small computer programs that make up what you see on a computer screen, and that allow you to take particular actions. A widget might be a button that you click on, or a scroll bar (= strip at the side of the screen used for moving its contents up, down, or sideways), etc.: »

This short video shows someone trying every widget on the application's interface.

► PRODUCTION an imaginary product, used in explanations, school books, etc. as an example of a company's typical product: »

What if a hypothetical company, Futuristic, Inc. has a 250% increase in demand for Widget A that it is not prepared to handle.

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One area of e-commerce that is expected to grow rapidly is online business-to-business auctions which allow, say, widget producers and widget users to make direct deals.

► UK INFORMAL a small tool or other useful object that you do not know the name of: »

The company offers a huge range of widgets for customers who need to mend their gadgets and small appliances.

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The helmet has a clever widget attached that will record your experience as you cycle down the mountain.