Shoelace Aglet
Aglets
Aglet is an unusual word that most people have not heard of, but an item almost everyone uses. An aglet is the small plastic or metal tip at both ends of a shoelace. This important feature performs two functions:
Their first function is to prevent the shoelace from fraying on the ends, something we have probably all experienced with our own shoelaces when the aglets are accidentally removed or broken.
An aglet's second function is to allow the shoelace to pass through the eyelets of the shoe. This is accomplished by compressing each end of the shoe lace into a small stiff end that can easily be inserted into the shoelace holes. The word aglet is derived all the way back from "acus," the Latin word needle.