spanner

Etymology

Definitions

1. 1

   A hand tool for adjusting nuts and bolts.

   • Pass me that spanner, Jake; there's just one more bolt to screw in.
   • Tools don’t have judgment or ethics, and they might fail to push back on bad ideas or dangerous requests. “Your spanner’s never like, ‘This shouldn’t be built,’” she said, using a British term for wrench.
2. 2

   One who, or that which, spans.

   • The scheme of the spanner of continents and the desire of the little husbandman hoarding for his loved ones...
3. 3

   A (usually sparse) graph whose shortest path distances approximate those in a dense graph…

   A (usually sparse) graph whose shortest path distances approximate those in a dense graph or other metric space.

4. ›+ 5 more definitionsshow fewer

   1. 4

      A hand tool shaped like a small crank handle, for winding the spring of a wheel lock on a…

      A hand tool shaped like a small crank handle, for winding the spring of a wheel lock on a musket.

      • The spanner for spanning or winding up the spring of the wheel lock.
   2. 5

      A device in early steam engines for moving the valves for the alternate admission and…

      A device in early steam engines for moving the valves for the alternate admission and shutting off of the steam.

   3. 6

      A problem, dilemma or obstacle

      A problem, dilemma or obstacle; something unexpected or troublesome (in the phrase spanner in the works)

      • Halfway through the production of Macbeth, the director found that the stage was smaller than he expected. This really threw a spanner in the works.
   4. 7

      A stupid or unintelligent person

      A stupid or unintelligent person; one prone to making mistakes, especially in language.

      • You spanner, Rodney! I wanted some time, not a bunch of thyme!
   5. 8

      To use a spanner

      To use a spanner; to fix with a spanner

The neighborhood

• synonymwrenchhand tool for nuts and bolts