Small devices with a rubber bulb and thin tube used to dispense liquid drops, especially for putting medicine in eyes.
From 'eye' (Old English eage) + 'dropper' (one who drops, from drop + -er agent suffix). Compound formed in the 19th century as medical instruments became common.
Before eyedroppers were invented, people had to literally tilt their heads back and pour medicine into their eyes—these simple tubes revolutionized medicine by letting doctors control exactly how much liquid reached the eye.
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