abut

American  

[uh-buht] / əˈbʌt /

verb (used without object)

abutted, abutting

1. to be adjacent; touch or join at the edge or border (often followed by on, upon, oragainst ).

   This piece of land abuts on a street.

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verb (used with object)

abutted, abutting

1. to be adjacent to; border on; end at.

2. to support by an abutment.

abut British  

/ əˈbʌt /

verb

1. to adjoin, touch, or border on (something) at one end

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Other Word Forms

• unabutting adjective

Etymology

Origin of abut

1425–75; late Middle English < Middle French, Old French abuter touch at one end, verbal derivative of a but to (the) end; a- ⁵, butt ²

Example Sentences

“Remember the Times” stretches back to Riley’s childhood in Harlem, where the playground of his elementary school abutted the parking lot behind New York’s venerable Apollo Theater.

From Los Angeles Times

Hargeisa, capital of the breakaway Republic of Somaliland, abuts hot spots like Somalia and Yemen but lacks the constant coups, wars, riots, terrorist attacks, ideological reckonings and other usual attractions for roving correspondents.

From The Wall Street Journal

In a much lower-stakes action last weekend, the mayor of a city abutting the waterway ordered the demolition of a Chinese-built friendship park, angering Beijing’s embassy in nearby Panama City.

From The Wall Street Journal

Her family's home is part of a suburban development that abuts a massive construction site.

From Barron's

Air samples in 2023 detected benzene concentrations more than eight times higher than the state’s short-term health limit at Hasley Canyon Park, which abuts Live Oak Elementary School, alarming local parents.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• adjoin
• border on