1A physical tool, implement, or utensil used to perform a task (e.g., kitchen utensils, hand tools, instruments).
台所の道具は使ったらすぐに片付けてください。
Please put away the kitchen utensils right after you use them.
木工の仕事には良い道具が必要だ。
Good tools are necessary for woodworking.
医師は手術用の道具を慎重に消毒した。
The doctor carefully sterilized the surgical instruments.
掃除道具は物置にまとめて置いてある。
The cleaning tools are all kept together in the storeroom.
2A means or method used to achieve an end; an abstract 'tool' rather than a physical object (e.g., language as a tool for communication).
彼は言葉を道具としてうまく使う人だ。
He uses words skillfully as a tool.
統計は問題解決のための有力な道具になる。
Statistics can be a powerful tool for solving problems.
彼にとって人脈は出世のための道具に過ぎなかった。
To him, connections were nothing more than a tool for advancing his career.
3An older usage referring broadly to household belongings or furnishings, as in "嫁入り道具" (a bride's trousseau of furniture and household items).
彼女は嫁入り道具として立派なたんすを持たせてもらった。
She was given a fine chest of drawers as part of her wedding trousseau.
祖父母の家には古い道具がそのまま残っている。
The old household furnishings are still there just as they were, in my grandparents' house.