abutment : Dictionary / Wörterbuch (BEOLINGUS, TU Chemnitz)

English Dictionary: abutment	by the DICT Development Group
2 results for abutment
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
abutment n point of contact between two objects or parts a masonry support that touches and directly receives thrust or pressure of an arch or bridge
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Abutment \Abut"ment\ ([adot]b[ucr]t"m[eit]nt), 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.