Nearby Words

kit

[kit] Origin

kit

1[kit] noun, verb, kit·ted, kit·ting.
noun
1.
a set or collection of tools, supplies, instructional matter, etc., for a specific purpose: a first-aid kit; a sales kit.
2.
the case for containing these.
3.
such a case and its contents.
4.
a set of materials or parts from which something can be assembled: a model car made from a kit.
5.
Informal. a set, lot, or collection of things or persons.
EXPAND
6.
a wooden tub, pail, etc., usually circular.
7.
Chiefly British. a costume or outfit of clothing, especially for a specific purpose: ski kit; dancing kit; battle kit.
COLLAPSE
verb (used with object)
8.
to package or make available in a kit: a new model airplane that has just been kitted for the hobbyist.
9.
Chiefly British. to outfit or equip (often followed by out or up).

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Kit is one of our favorite verbs.
So is fletcherise. Does it mean:
to chew (food) slowly and thoroughly.
to swindle, cheat, hoodwink, or hoax.
10.
kit and caboodle/boodle, Informal. the whole lot of persons or things; all of something (often preceded by whole): We took along the whole kit and caboodle in the station wagon.

Origin:
1325–75; Middle English kyt, kitt < Middle Dutch kitte jug, tankard
Dictionary.com Unabridged

kit

2[kit]
noun
a violin or rebec small enough to be carried in the pocket, used by dancing masters in the 17th and 18th centuries.
Also called pochette, sourdine.


Origin:
1510–20; origin uncertain

kit

3[kit]
noun
2.
a young fox, beaver, or other small furbearing animal.

Origin:
1555–65; shortened form

Kit

[kit]
noun
1.
a male given name, form of Christopher.
2.
a female given name, form of Catherine or Katherine.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source Link To kit
Collins
World English Dictionary
kit1 (kɪt)
 
n
1.  a set of tools, supplies, construction materials, etc, for use together or for a purpose: a first-aid kit; a model aircraft kit
2.  the case or container for such a set
3.  a.  a set of pieces of equipment ready to be assembled
 b.  (as modifier): kit furniture
4.  a.  clothing and other personal effects, esp those of a traveller or soldier: safari kit; battle kit
 b.  informal clothing in general (esp in the phrase get one's kit off)
5.  (NZ) a flax basket
6.  informal the whole kit, the whole kit and caboodle everything or everybody
 
[C14: from Middle Dutch kitte tankard]

kit2 (kɪt)
 
n
a kind of small violin, now obsolete, used esp by dancing masters in the 17th--18th centuries
 
[C16: of unknown origin]

kit3 (kɪt)
 
n
1.  an informal or diminutive name for kitten
2.  a cub of various small mammals, such as the ferret or fox
 
[C16: by shortening]

kit4 (kɪt)
 
n
(NZ) a plaited flax basket
 
[from Māori kete]

KIT
 
abbreviation for
keep in touch

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

kit
"round wooden tub," 1275, probably from M.Du. kitte "jug, tankard, wooden container," of unknown origin. Meaning "collection of personal effects," especially for traveling (originally in ref. to a soldier), is from 1785; that of "outfit of tools for a workman" is from 1851. Kit and caboodle is 1861,
EXPAND
from boodle "lot, collection," perhaps from Du. boedel "property."

kit
"small fiddle used by dancing teachers," 1519, probably a shortening of O.E. cythere, from L. cithara, from Gk. kithara (see guitar).
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
FOLDOC
Computing Dictionary

kit definition

jargon
(Usenet, possibly from DEC) Slang for a full software distribution, as opposed to a patch or upgrade. A source software distribution that has been packaged in such a way that it can (theoretically) be unpacked and installed according to a series of steps using only standard Unix tools, and entirely documented by some reasonable chain of references from the top-level README file. The more general term distribution may imply that special tools or more stringent conditions on the host environment are required.
[Jargon File]
(1994-11-18)

The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © Denis Howe 2010 http://foldoc.org
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American Heritage
Abbreviations & Acronyms
kit
kitchen
The American Heritage® Abbreviations Dictionary, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia

kit

small fiddle with a muted tone, carried by dancing masters in their pockets in the 16th-18th century. A last descendant of the medieval rebec, the kit evolved as a narrow, boat-shaped instrument with usually three or four strings. Later, narrow, violin-shaped kits were also built. Dancing masters used it to play the dance melody and rhythm while teaching the steps.

Learn more about kit with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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Images for kit
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