Whatsitsname

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A thing whose proper name you cannot remember or do not know
2. An object or gadget whose actual name escapes you or remains unknown
3. Something you cannot think of the correct name for at the moment

Etymology: "Whatsitsname" is a plain colloquial contraction, built from the three words "what's", "its" and "name". Its meaning is simply "what is its name", used when someone cannot recall or does not know the name of a thing or person, much like "thingamajig" or "whatchamacallit". The construction does most of the work. The contraction joins a question word, a possessive pronoun and a noun, so the phrase asks for a name in a single breath. Spoken English often compresses such strings, which is why the form sounds so casual on the page.

Synonyms: thingamajig, whatchamacallit, gadget