Pronounced "wih-jit," for decades, the term has been a popular word for a generic "thing" when there is no real name for it. It is often used to describe examples of made-up products along with other fictitious names; for example, "10 widgets, 5 frabbits and 2 dingits."

Components, Plug-Ins and Mini Apps
In addition to make believe things, the term describes software components for Web services and plug-ins for the Opera Web browser. Widgets are also mini applications for Yahoo's personal home page and the Macintosh desktop (see Mac Dashboard). See gadget and widget set.