This is the product that I am referring to:
https://www.ji-horng.com/show/plastic-buckle-what-is-side-release-buckle.htm
What do you call the head/male/protruding piece. What do you call the tail/female/inverted piece?
asked Aug 23, 2022 at 16:27
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1I can't follow your link, but this site just says Side release buckle essentially consists of two parts, one is male buckle, and the other one is female buckle.– FumbleFingersCommented Aug 23, 2022 at 17:30
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1I changed my link to the one provided by @FumbleFingers. Is there no other word than male, female?– Bear Bile Farming is TortureCommented Aug 23, 2022 at 17:59
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3 Answers
The main part, the female one often with the release button, is called the 'buckle'. This is a common word and what people usually will call this thing.
The smaller flat part that sticks in is called the 'tongue' or 'latch plate'. These are somewhat technical terms and native speakers will understand them but most likely won't produce these terms easily.
It usually comes out as 'stick it into the buckle' (where 'it' is understood by pragmatics to be the male part). Or simply 'buckle your seatbelt' with no mention of the parts. If a non-technical native speaker needs to refer to the male part, it would most likely come out as 'the flat part' (and the female part very naturally as 'buckle').
The Wikipedia article on seat belts mentions this terminology but, as is usual with encyclopedia articles, doesn't use language the way non-technical people do.
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@Lambie I don't think I said that ' latch plate' is right for 'buckle'. And I also don't believe it. 'Latch plate' (and 'tongue') is for the male part, and 'buckle' for the female part. But to repeat what I said, buckle is a natural non-technical term for the female part and 'latch plate is very technical for the male part (ie not something a native speaker would naturally use.– MitchCommented Aug 24, 2022 at 19:21
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You misread me: The side release buc;kle (which is the item's name) has two sides: a female one and a male one. End of story. The link given by the OP is in poor English.– LambieCommented Aug 24, 2022 at 23:27
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@Lambie I think I've misread (or rather -not- read) many things. I didn't click on the link (Hey everybody when you write a question make sure it is self-contained with the links!) I am describing a normal seat belt buckle, not that plastic buckle in those pictures. I mean hey the answers are right in the link already, right?– MitchCommented Aug 25, 2022 at 12:48
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The OP's thing is called a side release buckle. Don't shoot the messenger please.– LambieCommented Aug 25, 2022 at 14:12
You could call them plug and socket if you want to avoid gender-based terms.
Merriam-Webster has
plug
any of various devices resembling or functioning like a plug: such as
a : a male fitting for making an electrical connection to a live circuit by insertion in a receptacle (such as an outlet)
b : a device for connecting electric wires to a jack
and
socket
: an opening or hollow that forms a holder for something
answered Aug 23, 2022 at 18:28
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Is this an established usage for the device mentioned? Commented Aug 23, 2022 at 18:39
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1'plug' and 'socket' are common with electrical devices, but I don't think I've ever heard them for mechanical parts. That is, "You could call them" those and you would be understood, but they aren't what is normally used.– MitchCommented Aug 23, 2022 at 18:39
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2The ends of things like computer USB and audio extension cables are almost always referred to as "male" and "female". I don't think non-Anglophones should be encouraged to think it's a good idea to avoid those terms. Commented Aug 23, 2022 at 18:42
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1Socket is in common use as a general receptacle for something. Some people want to avoid the use of gender stereotypes, as has been successfully achieved by the gender neutral pronoun 'they'. Perhaps @FumbleFingers thinks that should not have happened. But in their example of electrical connections 'plug' and 'socket' are very well established. Commented Aug 23, 2022 at 18:45
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According to Wikipedia, the names are male buckle member and female buckle member, so pretty close to what you called them:
Side release buckle
A conventional snap-fit buckle that is formed by a "male" buckle member—the hook end—and a "female" buckle member—the insertion end. The male buckle member consists of a center rod and two spring prongs equally spaced from the center rod. The two spring arms each have a retaining block that terminates at the front end. The female buckle member has a front open side and two side holes which hold and secure the two spring arms of the male buckle member.[21] This sort of buckle may be found connecting many strapped items such as pet harnesses, safety harnesses, personal flotation jackets, fanny packs and other bags, belts, gun slings, and boots. It is also known as the "parachute buckle". They are often used in conjunction with tri-glide slides.
UPDATE 8/26/22:
If you are unsatisfied with the above, since what you describe is very much like what fastens a seatbelt, which has a male side that is called a "latch" and a female side that is called a "buckle" (i.e., the latch slides into the buckle until it latches), I'd imagine you could get away with using those terms instead.
answered Aug 24, 2022 at 0:02
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1What @Henry said. Absent this full context, I'd probably understand "the insertion end" as meaning "the end with a part that gets inserted into something", rather than "the end into which something is inserted". And "the hook end" has no intuitive meaning for me in the context of side release buckles, even though I know perfectly well which side is which in a hook and eye fastener. Commented Aug 24, 2022 at 10:14
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If I had my druthers, I'd call them the "tab end" and the "slot end," borrowing on the common instruction, "Insert Tab A into Slot B." But I don't have my druthers. It's not up to me. These are the terms, so if they look ambiguous to some folks, that's unfortunate, but it's also neither here nor there. The dictionary is chock-full of terms that on their face are ambiguous or even indecipherable, like how idioms are indecipherable on their face since their meaning is different than the literal meaning their words convey. As they say, that's the way the cookie crumbles. Commented Aug 24, 2022 at 16:24