different between pincer vs tongs

English

Alternative forms

• pincher (dated)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?p?ns??/
• Rhymes: -?ns?(r)

Noun

pincer (plural pincers)

1. Any object that resembles one half of a pair of pincers.

Derived terms

• pincer attack

Verb

pincer (third-person singular simple present pincers, present participle pincering, simple past and past participle pincered)

1. (transitive, sometimes figuratively) To surround with a pincer attack.
   • 1984, Robert Lamb, Competitive Strategic Management (page 115)

     After considering all frontal counteroffensive alternatives, Heublein rejected them as detrimental to its profits and came up with a brilliant pincering maneuver. It raised the price of Smirnoff by one dollar, effectively preventing segment diffusion, […]

Anagrams

• Prince, prince

French

Etymology

From Old French pincier, pincer (“to pinch”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /p??.se/

Verb

pincer

1. to pinch (skin)
2. (informal) to pinch (to arrest)
3. (music) To pluck (a stringed instrument)

Conjugation

This verb is part of a group of -er verbs for which ‘c’ is softened to a ‘ç’ before the vowels ‘a’ and ‘o’.

Further reading

• “pincer” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Anagrams

• prince

Old French

Etymology

From Vulgar Latin *pinci?re (“to puncture, pinch”).

Verb

pincer

1. to pinch

Conjugation

This verb conjugates as a first-group verb ending in -er. The forms that would normally end in *-c, *-cs, *-ct are modified to z, z, zt. In addition, c becomes ç before an a, o or u to keep the /ts/ sound intact. Old French conjugation varies significantly by date and by region. The following conjugation should be treated as a guide.

Descendants

• Middle French: pincier, pincer
  • French: pincer
    • ? Bavarian: pfitzen
    • ? Dutch: pinsen, pitsen
• Norman: pînchi
• ? Middle English: pinchen
  • English: pinch

Further reading

• “pincer” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

English

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /t??z/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /t??z/
• (cot–caught merger, Canada) IPA^(key): /t??z/

Etymology 1

tong ("tool for manipulating things in a fire") + -s

Noun

tongs pl (plural only)

1. An instrument or tool used for picking things up without touching them with the hands or fingers, consisting of two slats or grips hinged at the end or in the middle, and sometimes including a spring to open the grips.

   • There was also hairdressing: hairdressing, too, really was hairdressing in those times — no running a comb through it and that was that. It was curled, frizzed, waved, put in curlers overnight, waved with hot tongs; […].

2. (by extension) A large scissors-like two-piece center-hinged forged-iron implement with oval-loop handles and with pointed tips turned inward (in the same plane as and perpendicular to the handles) to facilitate lifting and carrying a block of ice. Often called ice tongs.

Derived terms

• ice tongs
• pipe tongs
• port tongs

Translations

See also

• forceps
• pair of tongs
• pincers
• pliers
• scissors
• shears
• tong
• tweezers

Etymology 2

Noun

tongs

1. plural of tong (“instrument”)

Etymology 3

Verb

tongs

1. Third-person singular simple present indicative form of tong

Etymology 4

Noun

tongs

1. plural of tong (“Chinese secret society”)

Anagrams

• stong