contraption

 Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English 5++朗文当代英语 5++LDOCE 5++朗文 5++con·trap·tion /kənˈtræpʃən/ noun [countable]  MACHINEa piece of equipment or machinery that looks funny, strange, and unlikely to work well 奇怪的机械装置，怪模怪样的玩意儿 a bizarre contraption 一种奇怪的装置

Examples from the Corpus

contraption• It's a contraption for washing windows on tall buildings.• The lave net was a simple but very effective contraption for catching salmon.• Early cameras were large and expensive contraptions.• Above all, why were these chaps messing around with helium-filled contraptions, in an age of routine rocketry?• By demonstrating his floating contraption - part surfboard, part kayak and part sailboard - Halfon hopes to create a tide of attention.• Show him you are sensitive to his needs with a gift certificate to that utopia of contraptions, Sharper Image.• He must negotiate puzzles, spring boards, buttons and other contraptions laying in his path.• No one place in the contraption governs walking.• Seven of us squeezed into this contraption, which wheezed along at about ten miles an hour, coughing blue fumes.• The steam engine is an unthinkable contraption without the domesticating loop of the revolving governor.Origin contraption (1800-1900) Perhaps from contrivance + trap + invention

con·trap·tion nounChineseSyllable  

machinery that of funny, strange, looks piece equipment Corpus and a or

contraption
con‧trap‧tion /kənˈtræpʃən/ noun [countable]a piece of equipment or machinery that looks funny, strange, and unlikely to work well:
    a bizarre contraption
     

THESAURUS

   ▪ machine a piece of equipment with moving parts that uses power such as electricity to do a particular job: a washing machine | an X-ray machine | Staff are trained to operate the machine.
   ▪ appliance formal a machine or piece of electrical equipment, usually a large one, that people use in the home: The store sells kitchen appliances such as refrigerators, dishwashers, and toasters. | We carry out repairs on a range of household appliances.
   ▪ device a piece of equipment, usually a small electronic one, that does a special job: electronic listening devices | 50,000 people downloaded the music to computers or portable devices such as iPods. | The device is fitted to the car and can detect stationary objects ahead.
   ▪ gadget a small, useful, and cleverly-designed tool or machine: high-tech gadgets | He buys all the latest gadgets.
   ▪ contraption a machine or piece of equipment that looks strange or complicated: There was a bizarre contraption for polishing the floor.

con·trap·tionBrE /kənˈtræpʃn/ 🔊NAmE /kənˈtræpʃn/ 🔊 nouna machine or piece of equipment that looks strange 奇异的机械；奇特的装置◆She showed us a strange contraption that looked like a satellite dish. 她给我们看了一个奇怪的玩意儿，样子像碟形卫星信号接收器。🔊🔊