A small crampon or metal spiked plate attached to a shoe for gripping ice or snow.
From Middle French crampe (cramp, constraint) + diminutive suffix -et. Related to cramp, meaning to constrict or grip tightly. The metal devices were named for their gripping action.
Medieval mountaineers invented crampets because human feet alone couldn't grip icy cliffs—these spikes literally changed where humans could go, opening up entire mountain ranges for exploration and trade routes through the Alps.
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