auger

[aw-ger] /ˈɔ gər/
noun
1.
Carpentry.
  1. a bit, as for a brace.
  2. a boring tool, similar to but larger than a gimlet, consisting of a bit rotated by a transverse handle.
2.
earth auger.
3.
a device consisting of a shaft with a broad helical flange rotating within a cylindrical casing to force bulk materials from one end to the other.
4.
snake (def 3a).
Origin
before 900; Middle English nauger (a nauger misdivided as an auger; cf. adder, apron), Old English nafogār nave-piercer (cognate with Old Norse nafarr, Old Saxon nabugēr, Middle Dutch navegeer, Old High German nabagēr), equivalent to nafa nave2 + gār spear; cf. gore3, garlic
Can be confused
auger, augur.
Examples from the web for auger
  • When the drill rod is threaded, extensions can be added or auger bits interchanged.
  • But if you want a seasonal delicacy here now, you will need a sharp auger.
  • For this you'll need a few basic tools: a plunger, an auger and a few.
  • It does not auger-in the running-out of oil, per se.
British Dictionary definitions for auger

auger

/ˈɔːɡə/
noun
1.
a hand tool with a bit shaped like a corkscrew, for boring holes in wood
2.
a larger tool of the same kind for boring holes in the ground
Word Origin
C15 an augur, resulting from mistaken division of earlier a nauger, from Old English nafugār nave (of a wheel) spear (that is, tool for boring hubs of wheels), from nafunave² + gār spear; see gore²
Word Origin and History for auger
n.

c.1500, faulty separation of Middle English a nauger, from Old English nafogar "nave drill," from Proto-Germanic *nabogaizaz (cf. Old Norse nafarr, Old Saxon nabuger, Old High German nabuger), a compound whose first element is related to nave (n.2) and whose second is identical to Old English gar "a spear, borer" (see gar). For similar misdivisions, see adder. The same change took place in Dutch (avegaar).