Hypertext Webster Gateway: "abutment"

From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)

Abutment \A*but"ment\ ([.a]*b[u^]t"ment), n.
1. State of abutting.

2. That on or against which a body abuts or presses; as
(a) (Arch.) The solid part of a pier or wall, etc., which
receives the thrust or lateral pressure of an arch,
vault, or strut. --Gwilt.
(b) (Mech.) A fixed point or surface from which resistance
or reaction is obtained, as the cylinder head of a
steam engine, the fulcrum of a lever, etc.
(c) In breech-loading firearms, the block behind the
barrel which receives the pressure due to recoil.

From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)

abutment
n 1: point of contact between two objects or parts
2: a masonry support that touches and directly receives thrust
or pressure of an arch or bridge


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