Tongs are a  tool used to and objects, of which there are many forms adapted to their specific use. Some are merely large pincers or nippers, but most fall into three classes:

1. Tongs which have long arms terminating in small flat circular ends of tongs and are pivoted close to the handle, as in the common fire-tongs, used for picking up pieces of coal and placing them on a fire.
2. Tongs consisting of a single band of metal bent round one or two bands joined at the head by a spring, as in sugar-tongs (a pair of usually silver tongs with claw-shaped or spoon-shaped ends for serving lump sugar), asparagus-tongs and the like.
3. Tongs in which the pivot or joint is placed close to the gripping ends, such as a driller's round tongs, blacksmith's tongs or crucible-tongs.