gimlet

noun

1. A small screw-tipped tool for boring holes.

   “The box was close on every side, with a little door for me to go in and out, and a few gimlet holes to let in air.”

   “I would find by the edge of that water / The collar-bone of a hare / Worn thin by the lapping of water, / And pierce it through with a gimlet and stare [...]”

2. A cocktail, usually made with gin and lime juice.

   “We sat in a corner of the bar at Victor's and drank gimlets. “They don't know how to make them here,” he said. “What they call a gimlet is just some lime or lemon juice and gin with a dash of sugar and bitters. A real gimlet is half gin and half Rose's Lime Juice and nothing else. It beats martinis hollow.””

   “Yeah, a piece of advice — once you’re back in circulation, don’t keep topping off a lady’s vodka gimlet when she’s not looking.”

   “By seven, dinner was under way, and a bottle of vodka gimlets and one of martinis were in the freezer, chilling.”

verb

1. To pierce or bore holes (as if using a gimlet).

   “Then there was an awful silence. The lady gimleted us again one by one with her blue eyes.”

2. (transitive)To turn round (an anchor) as if turning a gimlet.