This shows grade level based on the word's complexity.
mortar
1[ mawr-ter ]
/ ˈmɔr tər /
Save This Word!
This shows grade level based on the word's complexity.
noun
a receptacle of hard material, having a bowl-shaped cavity in which substances are reduced to powder with a pestle.
any of various mechanical appliances in which substances are pounded or ground.
a cannon very short in proportion to its bore, for throwing shells at high angles.
some similar contrivance, as for throwing pyrotechnic bombs or a lifeline.
verb (used with or without object)
to attack with mortar fire or shells.
QUIZ
ARE YOU A TRUE BLUE CHAMPION OF THESE "BLUE" SYNONYMS?
We could talk until we're blue in the face about this quiz on words for the color "blue," but we think you should take the quiz and find out if you're a whiz at these colorful terms.
Question 1 of 8
Which of the following words describes “sky blue”?
Meet Grammar CoachImprove Your Writing
Origin of mortar
1before 1000; Middle English, Old English mortere and Old French mortier<Latin mortārium;(defs. 3, 4) translation of French mortier<Latin, as above; see -ar2
Words nearby mortar
Other definitions for mortar (2 of 2)
mortar2
[ mawr-ter ]
/ ˈmɔr tər /
noun
a mixture of lime or cement or a combination of both with sand and water, used as a bonding agent between bricks, stones, etc.
any of various materials or compounds for bonding together bricks, stones, etc.: Bitumen was used as a mortar.
verb (used with object)
to plaster or fix with mortar.
Origin of mortar
21250–1300; Middle English morter<Anglo-French; Old French mortiermortar1, hence the mixture produced in it
OTHER WORDS FROM mortar
mor·tar·less, adjectivemor·tar·y, adjectiveDictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
How to use mortar in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for mortar
mortar
/ (ˈmɔːtə) /
noun
verb (tr)
Word Origin for mortar
C13: from Latin mortārium basin in which mortar is mixed; in some senses, via Old French mortier substance mixed inside such a vessel
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
Medical definitions for mortar
mortar
[ môr′tər ]
n.
A vessel in which drugs or other substances are crushed or ground with a pestle.
A machine in which materials are ground and blended or crushed.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Other Idioms and Phrases with mortar
mortar
see bricks and mortar.
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.