ˈ(h)wät-sət
variants
also whatsis
or what-is-it
as in thingamajig
a small article the actual name of which one either does not know or cannot remember
there's always one random whatsit left over every time I put a bookcase together
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Examples of whatsit in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Back then, the song was a fast, visionary whatsit, all pulsing, pipe-like synths and simple, buzzing one-bit melodies.
—
Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 16 Mar. 2024
The villain this time around isn’t a person but an all-powerful artificial-intelligence whatsit known as the Entity, which fools a super-advanced Russian submarine into destroying itself in the film’s clever pre-credits sequence.
—Peter Debruge, Variety, 5 July 2023
Disaster strikes when Loretta is kidnaped by eccentric zillionaire Abigail Fairfax (Daniel Radcliffe) who hopes to use her anthropological knowhow to recover an ancient whatsit from a remote jungle island.
—Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 24 Mar. 2022
That’s nothing if not a unique premise, but writer-director Cesar Cabral’s animated whatsit proves more compelling as a concept than as an actual movie.
—Michael Nordine, Variety, 24 Jan. 2022
Equal parts art-house whatsit and car-fetish classic, the film works so well thanks to director Sarafian’s ability to shoot a chase, as well as his feel for the landscape.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 2 July 2021
The numbers of whosits and the intensity of the whatsits really does depend on who is running.
—Chris Stirewalt, Fox News, 24 Aug. 2018
Thirty-seven percent of whosits voting at a greater intensity than 41 percent of whatsits, etc.
—Chris Stirewalt, Fox News, 24 Aug. 2018
Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 16 Mar. 2024
The villain this time around isn’t a person but an all-powerful artificial-intelligence whatsit known as the Entity, which fools a super-advanced Russian submarine into destroying itself in the film’s clever pre-credits sequence.
—Peter Debruge, Variety, 5 July 2023
Disaster strikes when Loretta is kidnaped by eccentric zillionaire Abigail Fairfax (Daniel Radcliffe) who hopes to use her anthropological knowhow to recover an ancient whatsit from a remote jungle island.
—Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 24 Mar. 2022
That’s nothing if not a unique premise, but writer-director Cesar Cabral’s animated whatsit proves more compelling as a concept than as an actual movie.
—Michael Nordine, Variety, 24 Jan. 2022
Equal parts art-house whatsit and car-fetish classic, the film works so well thanks to director Sarafian’s ability to shoot a chase, as well as his feel for the landscape.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 2 July 2021
The numbers of whosits and the intensity of the whatsits really does depend on who is running.
—Chris Stirewalt, Fox News, 24 Aug. 2018
Thirty-seven percent of whosits voting at a greater intensity than 41 percent of whatsits, etc.
—Chris Stirewalt, Fox News, 24 Aug. 2018
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'whatsit.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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“Whatsit.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/whatsit. Accessed 20 Sep. 2024.
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