gimmick

noun gim·mick \ ˈgi-mik \

Updated on: 10 May 2018

Definition of gimmick

1 a : a mechanical device for secretly and dishonestly controlling gambling apparatus

b : an ingenious or novel mechanical device : gadget

2 a : an important feature that is not immediately apparent : catch

… few readers would look for a gimmick in an advertisement featuring airline schedules, but few would fail to look for the fine print in an ad announcing New Low-Price Fares.
—Robert L. Heilbroner

b : an ingenious and usually new scheme or angle

Even in professional careers, mere competence and craftsmanship is no substitute for a gimmick.
—James Poniewozik

c : a trick or device used to attract business or attention

a marketing gimmick

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gimmicky

play \ˈgi-mi-kē\ adjective

See gimmick defined for English-language learners

See gimmick defined for kids

Examples of gimmick in a Sentence

The proposal to cut taxes was just an election gimmick to win votes.
that free magazine subscription they offer is just a sales gimmick to get you to buy their product

Recent Examples of gimmick from the Web

Out of nowhere, the movie lands in the zone of gimmick, by carting out a story trick that’s clever and yet hard to believe in terms of the characters.

— mick lasalle, Houston Chronicle, "Review: ‘Tully’ is mixed results for Jason Reitman, Diablo Cody and Charlize Theron reunion," 4 May 2018
The country’s massive Singles Day promotion in November, which started as an anti-Valentine’s Day gimmick, is now the world’s largest e-commerce event.

— erika kinetz, The Seattle Times, "At war with Alibaba: Top brands fight China e-commerce giant," 22 Apr. 2018
Besides, the logic went, this whole animation thing was just a gimmick anyway.

— eric limer, Popular Mechanics, "The GIF Is Dead. Long Live the GIF.," 18 Aug. 2016
The gambit was precisely the kind of light-hearted silliness longtime Conan fans crave—and unlike many of these gimmicks, which can feel staged, Daniels seemed genuinely surprised.

— laura bradley, HWD, "Jim Carrey Crashes Jeff Daniels on Conan for Impromptu Dumb and Dumber Reunion," 18 Apr. 2018
Lesnar was new and other WWE officials were trying to saddle him with losing gimmicks, including one where Lesnar would have been a Russian character.

— gene guillot, NOLA.com, "The best 34 parts of an awesome WrestleMania week," 12 Apr. 2018
Instead, last year's bill managed to cut tax rates by adding $1.4 trillion to the deficit and through gimmicks like making many of the tax cuts expire in just a few years.

— chicagotribune.com, "Ryan's departure: leaving behind new tax code, wife happy he's quitting," 11 Apr. 2018
And this is not a TV gimmick: this is life or death.

— kate hogan, PEOPLE.com, "5 Crazy New Things to Watch for During This Year's Puppy Bowl," 4 Feb. 2018
Airline loyalty programs, which began nearly 40 years ago as a promotional gimmick, are becoming increasingly lucrative for carriers.

— hugo martin, Philly.com, "Frequent flier programs generate profits for airlines and frustration for travelers," 26 Jan. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'gimmick.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.