Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun An imaginary gnomelike creature to whom mechanical problems, especially in aircraft, are attributed.
- noun A maker of mischief.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun A
mythical creature reputed to be mechanically inclined andmischievously inclined to damage or dismantlemachinery . - noun by extension Any mysterious, unknown source of
trouble ormischief .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun (folklore) fairies that are somewhat mischievous
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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When the gremlin is kneeling on the wing prying up the panel you can see the actor's shoes under his gremlin costume.
The Twilight Zone: Nightmare At 20,000 Feet 2 The Nag 2009
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Her gremlin is her twin self, who talks to her in the second person, tells her to play it safe and not stick out from the crowd.
Writing Maxine 2009
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[Just a side note: Mohawk was only created because Stripe was so popular and there needed to be a Mohawk-stylin 'gremlin in the second one.] i actually liked the smart one in part 2 cause he was kinda funny. or the one that dressed as a female
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During WWII, EMI was commonly known as a gremlin who would take over the electrical system of a fighter plane wrecking havoc on the control systems, especially during thunderstorms or highly charged atmosphere.
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I just wanna say. .quick, because the gremlin is starting to wake up … oops, she’s grumbling.
10 Things To Do Before You Become A Parent | Her Bad Mother 2009
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He is Gremlin Gus— almost as if the gremlin is an imaginary dark alter ego of the pilot who has first seen him.
Storyteller Donald Sturrock 2010
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When Anthony Overfield rides his motorcycle, he carries two passengers on board: so-called gremlin bells.
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When Anthony Overfield rides his motorcycle, he carries two passengers on board: so-called gremlin bells.
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May 20, 2008 at 10:50 am i tawht a gremlin was a car?
Hmmm…the zebra looks good, - Lolcats 'n' Funny Pictures of Cats - I Can Has Cheezburger? 2008
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The emotional, irrational part is the chimp while the gremlin is the negative belief or behaviour which has the potential to inhibit performance.
Evening Standard - Home Matt Majendie 2011
vanishedone commented on the word gremlin
Looking at the WordNet definition, I wonder what the accepted scale of fairy mischievousness might be...
March 10, 2008
yarb commented on the word gremlin
Do you think a gremlin is more or less michievious than a sprite? What about a pooka? I would have thought pookas were pretty darned michievious.
March 10, 2008
vanishedone commented on the word gremlin
Boggarts, poltergeists... It's a tough one. I'll bet they have bragging competitions about this. 'Well, I'm Changeling Orchestration Co-ordinator for Upper Taunton...'
March 10, 2008
treeseed commented on the word gremlin
Some lady who is into Matrix Energetics told me she saw a gremlin sitting with a needle and thread, sewing and repairing my morphic field and then painting it over with a big brush and applying some clear sealant. Well, that is a nice helpful gremlin apparently. ;)
September 8, 2008
bilby commented on the word gremlin
Was AHD written by pilots or is it suggesting the origin of that usage (definition 1) was in aviation?
September 20, 2011
ruzuzu commented on the word gremlin
Wasn't it? I thought it was some pilot joke from WWII or something.
September 20, 2011
ruzuzu commented on the word gremlin
Oh--wait. Do you object to the form of the definition?
September 20, 2011
bilby commented on the word gremlin
It just seems to me that if I asked a layman, in a quiet moment when he wasn't busy laying, for a definition I probably wouldn't get the 'especially in aircraft' bit.
September 20, 2011
ruzuzu commented on the word gremlin
Well, for myself, I'd prefer a definition that very clearly states when it is appropriate to allow them access to to food, water, and sunlight.
September 20, 2011