Word.ws English Dictionary

machine that goes "ping"

machine that goes "ping" noun: a piece of medical equipment, especially a bedside monitor; particularly one perceived as superfluous.

Noun

machine that goes "ping" (plural machines that go "ping")

  1. (humorous, informal) A piece of medical equipment, especially a bedside monitor; particularly one perceived as superfluous.
    • see title2015, Amy M Dennett et al., “Machines that go "ping" may improve balance but may not improve mobility or reduce risk of falls: a systematic review”, in Journal of Rehabilitative Medicine, volume 47...
    • The inside of the vehicle is pretty sparse and there are no oxygen tanks, intravenous drips or machines that go "ping."2024 January 9, Scott Snowden, “Santa Monica rolls out mobile mental health unit”, in Santa Monica Daily Press

Forms of machine that goes "ping"

pluralmachines that go "ping"

Origin of machine that goes "ping"

Coined in the movie Monty Python's The Meaning of Life (1983), in a sketch depicting a group of doctors at a birth more interested in the technological equipment than the mother and baby. The eponymous machine serves no apparent purpose except making an occasional ping sound.

Questions about machine that goes "ping"

What does machine that goes "ping" mean?
Machine that goes "ping" means a piece of medical equipment, especially a bedside monitor; particularly one perceived as superfluous.
What part of speech is machine that goes "ping"?
Machine that goes "ping" is a noun.
What is the plural of machine that goes "ping"?
The plural of machine that goes "ping" is machines that go "ping".

Words near machine that goes "ping" in the dictionary

  1. machine screws
  2. machine shop
  3. machine shops
  4. machine taper
  5. machine tapers
  6. machine that goes "ping"
  7. machine tool
  8. machine tools
  9. machine translation
  10. machine translations
  11. machine wash

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: machine that goes "ping" (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Naomi Persephone Amethyst (NaomiAmethyst)-machine that goes "ping".wav.

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