From Anglo-Norman 'guimbelet' (little borer)—a diminutive form naming the small boring tool.
A small hand tool with a screw tip and a cross handle, used for boring holes in wood.
From Anglo-Norman 'guimbelet,' diminutive of 'guimble' (a boring tool), from Old French 'guimbelet,' possibly from a Germanic source related to 'wimble' (an auger). A gimlet is literally a 'little borer.' Key roots: guimble (Old French: "boring tool, auger").