A multi-tool (or multitool) is a hand tool that combines several individual functions in a single unit. The smallest are credit-card or key sized units designed for carrying in a wallet or on a keyring, but others are designed to be carried in a trouser pocket or belt-mounted pouch.
In 1983 Tim Leatherman sold his first "Pocket Survival Tool", larger and more robust than a pocket-knife-based tool, and incorporating a set of needle-nosed pliers in a butterfly knife-style mechanism. Too large for most pockets, it came with a belt pouch.