Mortar

//ˈmɔːtə(ɹ)// noun, verb

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A mixture of lime or cement, sand and water used for bonding building blocks. uncountable

    "The holy hearth! If any earthly and material thing, or rather a divine idea embodied in brick and mortar, might be supposed to possess the permanence of moral truth, it was this."

  2. 2
    a muzzle-loading high-angle gun with a short barrel that fires shells at high elevations for a short range wordnet
  3. 3
    A hollow vessel used to pound, crush, rub, grind or mix ingredients with a pestle. countable
  4. 4
    a bowl-shaped vessel in which substances can be ground and mixed with a pestle wordnet
  5. 5
    A short, heavy, large-bore cannon designed for indirect fire at very steep trajectories. countable, historical
Show 3 more definitions
  1. 6
    used as a bond in masonry or for covering a wall wordnet
  2. 7
    A relatively lightweight, often portable indirect fire weapon which transmits recoil to a base plate and is designed to lob explosive shells at very steep trajectories. countable
  3. 8
    In paper milling, a trough in which material is hammered. countable
Verb
  1. 1
    To use mortar or plaster to join two things together. transitive
  2. 2
    plaster with mortar wordnet
  3. 3
    To pound in a mortar. transitive
  4. 4
    To fire a mortar (weapon).
  5. 5
    To attack (someone or something) using a mortar (weapon).

    "The insurgents snuck up close and mortared the base last night."

Etymology

Etymology 1

From Middle English morter, from Old French mortier, from Latin mortārium. Doublet of mortarium.

Etymology 2

From Middle English morter, from Old French mortier, from Latin mortārium. Doublet of mortarium.

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