Since 1897, when Karl Elsener, a Swiss manufacturer of surgical equipment, took out a patent for his officer's and sports knife, the Swiss Army knife has been around in recognisable form. After World War II, American soldiers came up with the term "Swiss Army knife" because they couldn't pronounce the German word "Offiziersmesser". The usage of "Swiss Army knife" as a figure of speech indicates extreme utility applicable to more or less any scenario at hand.