needle pointern.1
/ˈniːdlpɔɪntə/, U.S. /ˈnid(ə)lˌpɔɪn(t)ər/ 1. A person who sharpens the points of needles. Now historical.
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society > occupation and work > worker > workers according to type of work > manual or industrial worker > producer > needle- or pin-maker > [noun] > involved in specific process
needle pointer1821
needle-grinder1823
paperer1853
needle-polisher1898
1821 J. H. Abraham Let. 6 Oct. in Trans. Soc. Arts (1823) 40 136 My newly-invented safety-guard or life-preserver for ‘dry-grinders’ and ‘needle-pointers’.
1835 A. Ure Philos. Manuf. 402 The Sheffield dry-grinders and needle-pointers.
1852 C. Dickens in Househ. Words 28 Feb. 542/2 The number of needle-pointers in Redditch, now, is about one hundred and ten; a large company to be saved from an early and painful death!
1898 T. C. Allbutt et al. Syst. Med. V. 24 Knife-grinders, metal-turners, and needle-pointers.
1921 Dict. Occup. Terms (1927) §237 Card clothing grinder; card needle pointer, needle pointer; adjusts and operates grinding machine fitted with..rotating emery discs which grind a point on wire needles.
2001 Birmingham Post (Electronic ed.) 24 Mar. The man wears a handkerchief over his mouth and is crouched over the grinding stone... This harrowingly realistic figure of a 19th century needle pointer is one of some half-a-dozen impressive tableaux on display.
2. A narrow pointer acting as an indicator on a dial or graduated scale. rare.
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1889 Manufacturer & Builder Mar. 56/1 As the specimen deflects from the strain brought upon it, the needle pointer passes over the face of the quadrant and points to the figure which shows the deflection to one-hundredths of an inch.
1958 Jrnl. Animal Ecol. 27 203 The disc..bears a needle pointer..which is used to read penetration of the probe against the scale..attached to the cylinder.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2003; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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