buttons

[ buht-nz ]

/ ˈbʌt nz /

noun (used with a singular verb) Chiefly British.

a bellboy or page in a hotel.

Nearby words

buttonhole stitch, buttonhook, buttonless, buttonmold, buttonmould, buttons, buttonwood, buttony, buttress, buttress plate, buttress root

Origin of buttons

First recorded in 1840–50; so called from the many buttons of his uniform

Definition for buttons (2 of 2)

button

[ buht-n ]

/ ˈbʌt n /

noun

a small disk, knob, or the like for sewing or otherwise attaching to an article, as of clothing, serving as a fastening when passed through a buttonhole or loop.

anything resembling a button, especially in being small and round, as any of various candies, ornaments, tags, identification badges, reflectors, markers, etc.

a badge or emblem bearing a name, slogan, identifying figure, etc., for wear on the lapel, dress, etc.: campaign buttons.

any small knob or disk pressed to activate an electric circuit, release a spring, or otherwise operate or open a machine, small door, toy, etc.

Botany. a bud or other protuberant part of a plant.

Mycology.

a young or undeveloped mushroom.
any protuberant part of a fungus.

Zoology. any of various small parts or structures resembling a button, as the rattle at the tip of the tail in a very young rattlesnake.

Boxing Informal. the point of the chin.

Also called turn button. a fastener for a door, window, etc., having two arms and rotating on a pivot that is attached to the frame.

Metallurgy. (in assaying) a small globule or lump of metal at the bottom of a crucible after fusion.

Fencing. the protective, blunting knob fixed to the point of a foil.

Horology. crown(def 19).

Computers. (in a graphical user interface) a small, button-shaped or clearly defined area that the user can click on or touch to choose an option.

verb (used with object)

to fasten with a button or buttons: She quickly buttoned her coat.

to insert (a button) in a buttonhole or loop: He buttoned the top button of his shirt.

to provide (something) with a button or buttons.

verb (used without object)

to be capable of being buttoned: This coat buttons, but that one zips.

Origin of button

1275–1325; Middle English boto(u)n < Anglo-French: rosehip, button, stud; Middle French boton, equivalent to boter to butt³ + -on noun suffix

Related forms

but·ton·er, nounbut·ton·like, adjectivemis·but·ton, verb (used with object)mis·but·toned, adjective

re·but·ton, verb (used with object)well-but·toned, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for buttons

She checks the buttons to make sure that they are all tightly fastened.
Acid Attacks on Women Spread Terror in Iran|IranWire|October 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
“I had just wiped the buttons down with some alcohol swipes,” the employee said.
Dallas: A Journal of the Plague City|Pete Freedman|October 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Just the other day, the employee watched another mother freak out after her daughter licked some of the buttons in an elevator.
Dallas: A Journal of the Plague City|Pete Freedman|October 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And she wore the buttons we finally found in the fabric store.
Best Career Arc Ever: From Burlesque To Bartending|Anne Berry|September 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST

I get to push the buttons and see how they respond, and then try to inform their responses in a positive way.
Porn's Behind-the-Camera Feminists|Emily Shire|February 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Her skirt was without a braid and frayed, and two buttons were gone from the front of her waist.
Selina|George Madden Martin
While the stems may be retained with the buttons, they should always be removed from the full-grown mushrooms.
Mushrooms: how to grow them|William Falconer
Taking his penknife from his pocket he tried again, and cut off the buttons one by one.
The Well-Beloved|Thomas Hardy
It is a great place for jewelry and the champion emporium for buttons.
England, Picturesque and Descriptive|Joel Cook
Stockings failed to match, and buttons would be sewed on the wrong side of a man's shirt or breeches.
Campfire and Battlefield|Rossiter Johnson

British Dictionary definitions for buttons (1 of 2)

buttons

/ (ˈbʌtənz) /

noun

(functioning as singular) British informal a page boy

British Dictionary definitions for buttons (2 of 2)

button

/ (ˈbʌtən) /

noun

a disc or knob of plastic, wood, etc, attached to a garment, etc, usually for fastening two surfaces together by passing it through a buttonhole or loop

a small round object, such as any of various sweets, decorations, or badges

a small disc that completes an electric circuit when pushed, as one that operates a doorbell or machine

a symbolic representation of a button on the screen of a computer that is notionally depressed by manipulating the mouse to initiate an action

biology any rounded knoblike part or organ, such as an unripe mushroom

fencing the protective knob fixed to the point of a foil

a small amount of metal, usually lead, with which gold or silver is fused, thus concentrating it during assaying

the piece of a weld that pulls out during the destructive testing of spot welds

rowing a projection around the loom of an oar that prevents it slipping through the rowlock

British an object of no value (esp in the phrase not worth a button)

slang intellect; mental capacity (in such phrases as a button short, to have all one's buttons, etc)

on the button informal exactly; precisely

verb

to fasten with a button or buttons

(tr) to provide with buttons

(tr) fencing to hit (an opponent) with the button of one's foil

button one's lip, button up one's lip, button one's mouth or button up one's mouth to stop talking: often imperative

Word Origin for button

C14: from Old French boton, from boter to thrust, butt, of Germanic origin; see butt ³

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

Medicine definitions for buttons

button

[ bŭt′n ]

n.

A knoblike structure, device, or lesion.

Idioms and Phrases with buttons

button

In addition to the idioms beginning with button

button one's lip
button up

also see:

cute as a button
have all one's buttons
on the button
push (press) someone's buttons
push the panic button

buttons

noun (used with a singular verb) Chiefly British.

RELATED CONTENT

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of buttons

Definition for buttons (2 of 2)

button

noun

verb (used with object)

verb (used without object)

Origin of button

Examples from the Web for buttons

British Dictionary definitions for buttons (1 of 2)

buttons

noun

British Dictionary definitions for buttons (2 of 2)

button

noun

verb

Word Origin for button

Medicine definitions for buttons

button

n.

Idioms and Phrases with buttons

button