means A small loop of bent wire used to hold sheets of paper together without piercing them.

from A transparent compound of "paper" and "clip," the latter from Old English "clyppan," to embrace or grip — so the word literally means "paper-hugger." "Paper" itself travels back through Latin "papyrus" to the Greek name for the Nile reed once beaten into writing sheets. The double-looped wire form we picture today emerged in the late 19th century alongside cheap springy steel wire; the famous "Gem" pattern was sold by a British company, though no single inventor's name reliably attaches to it despite many later claims.