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definitions

bight

[ bahyt ]
/ baɪt /
|
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR bight ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

the middle part of a rope, as distinguished from the ends.
the loop or bent part of a rope, as distinguished from the ends.
a bend or curve in the shore of a sea or river.
a body of water bounded by such a bend.
a bay or gulf.

verb (used with object)

to fasten with a bight of rope.

RELATED WORDS

angle, inlet, gulf, bayou, road, noose, loop

Nearby words

  1. biggs, e. power,
  2. biggy,
  3. bighead,
  4. bighorn,
  5. bighorn mountains,
  6. bigleaf maple,
  7. bigly,
  8. bigmouth,
  9. bigmouth buffalofish,
  10. bigmouthed

Origin of bight

before 1000; Middle English byght, Old English byht bend, bay; cognate with Dutch bocht, German Bucht; akin to bow1
Can be confusedbight bite byte
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for bight

British Dictionary definitions for bight (1 of 2)

bight

/ (baɪt) /

noun

a wide indentation of a shoreline, or the body of water bounded by such a curve
the slack middle part of an extended rope
a curve or loop in a rope

verb

(tr) to fasten or bind with a bight

Word Origin for bight

Old English byht; see bow ²

British Dictionary definitions for bight (2 of 2)

Bight

noun

the Bight Australian informal the major indentation of the S coast of Australia, from Cape Pasley in W Australia to the Eyre Peninsula in S AustraliaIn full: the Great Australian Bight
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for bight

bight

n.

Old English byht "bend, angle, corner" (related to bow), from Proto-Germanic *buhtiz (cf. Middle Low German bucht, German Bucht, Dutch bocht, Danish bught "bight, bay"), from PIE root *bheug- (3) "to bend," with derivatives referring to bent, pliable, or curved objects (cf. Old English beag, Old High German boug "ring;" see bow (v.)). Sense of "indentation on a coastline" is from late 15c.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper

Science definitions for bight

bight

[ bīt ]

A long, gradual bend or curve in a shoreline. A bight can be larger than a bay, or it can be a segment of a bay.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.