Mortar
['mɔːtə] or ['mɔrtɚ]
Definition
(noun.) a muzzle-loading high-angle gun with a short barrel that fires shells at high elevations for a short range.
(noun.) a bowl-shaped vessel in which substances can be ground and mixed with a pestle.
(noun.) used as a bond in masonry or for covering a wall.
(verb.) plaster with mortar; 'mortar the wall'.
Typed by Brooke--From WordNet
Definition
(n.) A strong vessel, commonly in form of an inverted bell, in which substances are pounded or rubbed with a pestle.
(n.) A short piece of ordnance, used for throwing bombs, carcasses, shells, etc., at high angles of elevation, as 45¡, and even higher; -- so named from its resemblance in shape to the utensil above described.
(n.) A building material made by mixing lime, cement, or plaster of Paris, with sand, water, and sometimes other materials; -- used in masonry for joining stones, bricks, etc., also for plastering, and in other ways.
(v. t.) To plaster or make fast with mortar.
(n.) A chamber lamp or light.
Checked by Erwin
Synonyms and Synonymous
n. [1]. Piece of ordnance for throwing bombs.[2]. Cement.
Typed by Lena
Examples
- I told his impudence that the gilt pestle and mortar was quite ornament enough; as if I was born, indeed, to be a country surgeon's wife! William Makepeace Thackeray. Vanity Fair.
- A musket is a more expensive machine than a javelin or a bow and arrows; a cannon or a mortar, than a balista or a catapulta. Adam Smith. An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations.
- They would know it soon enough when the mortar came. Hemingway, Ernest. For Whom The Bell Tolls.
- Rub the solids in a mortar until they liquefy, then add the oil of peppermint. William K. David. Secrets of Wise Men, Chemists and Great Physicians.
- It would be easy with a mortar. Hemingway, Ernest. For Whom The Bell Tolls.
- He did not think there was any need to speak about the mortar. Hemingway, Ernest. For Whom The Bell Tolls.
- Being shaped internally and externally like an apothecary's mortar, they were called mortars or bombards. William Henry Doolittle. Inventions in the Century.
- He is in the confidence of the very bricks and mortar. Charles Dickens. Bleak House.
- Pure siliceous sands are very valuable for the manufacture of glass, for making mortar, filters, ameliorating dense clay soils, for making molds in founding and for many other purposes. Various. The Wonder Book of Knowledge.
- On the next day he started with five gunboats and four mortar-boats. Ulysses S. Grant. Personal Memoirs of U. S. Grant.
- He did not know whether they had sent to La Granja for a trench mortar. Hemingway, Ernest. For Whom The Bell Tolls.
- Unless, of course, they have a mortar coming. Hemingway, Ernest. For Whom The Bell Tolls.
- Two mules to carry the shells and a mule with a mortar on each side of the pack saddle. Hemingway, Ernest. For Whom The Bell Tolls.
- It was a big trench mortar shell. Ernest Hemingway. A Farewell To Arms.
- It was one of the parasite streets; long, regular, narrow, dull and gloomy; like a brick and mortar funeral. Charles Dickens. Little Dorrit.
- Smooth-bore cannon and mortars of cast-iron and bronze are still retained in some fortresses, though rifled cannon are the only type now made. Various. The Wonder Book of Knowledge.
- Military cannon are divided into three classes, based upon the length of caliber, and technically known as guns, mortars and howitzers. Various. The Wonder Book of Knowledge.
- These early cannon, bombards, and mortars were mounted on heavy solid wooden frames and moved with great difficulty from place to place. William Henry Doolittle. Inventions in the Century.
- Howitzers form a class between guns and mortars in length. Various. The Wonder Book of Knowledge.
- The coast defense artillery consists of the 8-, 10-, 12- and 16-inch guns and the 12-inch mortars. Various. The Wonder Book of Knowledge.
- Being shaped internally and externally like an apothecary's mortar, they were called mortars or bombards. William Henry Doolittle. Inventions in the Century.
- There were women grinding dried plantain in crude stone mortars, while others were fashioning cakes from the powdered flour. Edgar Rice Burroughs. Tarzan of the Apes.
- In guns the length is relatively great, in mortars relatively small, compared to their calibers. Various. The Wonder Book of Knowledge.
- A regiment of Kentucky volunteers guarded the mortars and howitzers engaged against Black Fort. Ulysses S. Grant. Personal Memoirs of U. S. Grant.
- What about the mortars? Hemingway, Ernest. For Whom The Bell Tolls.
- About the same time Comminges of France invented mortars which threw projectiles weighing 550 pounds. William Henry Doolittle. Inventions in the Century.
- Shells were invented by the Italians and fired from mortars, but their mode of construction was preserved in great secrecy. William Henry Doolittle. Inventions in the Century.
- The fort had an armament of 21 guns and 3 mortars on the land side, and 24 guns on the sea front. Ulysses S. Grant. Personal Memoirs of U. S. Grant.
- They are made up to 27 seconds burning time for guns of 2,600-foot seconds muzzle velocity, and up to 36 seconds for mortars and guns of 1400-foot seconds muzzle velocity. Various. The Wonder Book of Knowledge.
Editor: Pierre