tool or tools

A helpful program that generally is used to make something else. You'll usually hear it mentioned in the plural form, as in, "Here is a set of development tools" or "When are you going to build me those tools?" A tool can be any of the following (or in some cases, more than one): a small, text-based application; an HTML-editing application; a huge graphics program; a custom-built application that helps a Webmaster or sysadmin maintain his or her content; and/or a little mini-action or function performed within a larger application (for example, "cut-and-paste" or "launch application").