Adjacent Words

Belt definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

BELT, n. [L.balteus.]
1. A girdle; a band,usually of leather, in which a sword or other weapon is hung.
2. A narrow passage, or strait between the isle of Zealand and that of Funen at the entrance of the Baltic,usually called the Great Belt. The Lesser Belt is the passage between the isle of Funen, and the coast of Jutland.
3. A bandage or band used by surgeons for various purposes.
4. In astronomy, certain girdles or rings, which surround the planet Jupiter, are called belts.
5. A disease among sheep,cured by cutting off the tail, laying the sore bare, then casting mold on it, and applying tar and goose grease.
BELT, v.t. To encircle.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: endless loop of flexible material between two rotating shafts or pulleys
2: a band to tie or buckle around the body (usually at the waist)
3: an elongated region where a specific condition or characteristic is found; "a belt of high pressure"
4: a vigorous blow; "the sudden knock floored him"; "he took a bash right in his face"; "he got a bang on the head" [syn: knock, bash, bang, smash, belt]
5: a path or strip (as cut by one course of mowing) [syn: swath, belt]
6: ammunition (usually of small caliber) loaded in flexible linked strips for use in a machine gun [syn: belt, belt ammunition, belted ammunition]
7: the act of hitting vigorously; "he gave the table a whack" [syn: knock, belt, rap, whack, whang] v
1: sing loudly and forcefully [syn: belt out, belt]
2: deliver a blow to; "He belted his opponent"
3: fasten with a belt; "belt your trousers" [ant: unbelt]

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Etymology: Middle English, from Old English; akin to Old High German balz belt; both from Latin balteus belt Date: before 12th century 1. a. a strip of flexible material worn especially around the waist as an item of clothing or a means of carrying something (as tools) b. a similar article worn as a corset or for protection or safety or as a symbol of distinction 2. a continuous band of tough flexible material for transmitting motion and power or conveying materials 3. a. an area characterized by some distinctive feature (as of culture, habitation, geology, or life forms); especially one suited to a particular crop <the corn belt> b. asteroid belt 4. beltway 1 • belted adjective • beltless adjective II. verb Date: 14th century transitive verb 1. a. to encircle or fasten with a belt b. to strap on 2. a. to beat with or as if with a belt ; thrash b. strike, hit 3. to mark with a band 4. to sing in a forceful manner or style <belting out popular songs> 5. to drink quickly <belted down a shot of whisky> intransitive verb 1. to move or act in a speedy, vigorous, or violent manner 2. to sing loudly III. noun Date: 1899 1. a jarring blow ; whack 2. drink <a belt of gin>

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. & v. --n. 1 a strip of leather or other material worn round the waist or across the chest, esp. to retain or support clothes or to carry weapons or as a safety-belt. 2 a belt worn as a sign of rank or achievement. 3 a a circular band of material used as a driving medium in machinery. b a conveyor belt. c a flexible strip carrying machine-gun cartridges. 4 a strip of colour or texture etc. differing from that on each side. 5 a distinct region or extent (cotton belt; commuter belt; a belt of rain). 6 sl. a heavy blow. --v. 1 tr. put a belt round. 2 tr. (often foll. by on) fasten with a belt. 3 tr. a beat with a belt. b sl. hit hard. 4 intr. sl. rush, hurry (usu. with compl. : belted along; belted home). Phrases and idioms: below the belt unfair or unfairly; disregarding the rules. belt and braces (of a policy etc.) of twofold security. belt out sl. sing or utter loudly and forcibly. belt up Brit. 1 sl. be quiet. 2 colloq. put on a seat belt. tighten one's belt live more frugally. under one's belt 1 (of food) eaten. 2 securely acquired (has a degree under her belt). Derivatives: belter n. (esp. in sense of belt out). Etymology: OE f. Gmc f. L balteus

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Belt Belt, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Belted; p. pr. & vb. n. Belting.] To encircle with, or as with, a belt; to encompass; to surround. A coarse black robe belted round the waist. --C. Reade. They belt him round with hearts undaunted. --Wordsworth. 2. To shear, as the buttocks and tails of sheep. [Prov. Eng.] --Halliwell.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Belt Belt (b[e^]lt), n. [AS. belt; akin to Icel. belti, Sw. b["a]lte, Dan. b[ae]lte, OHG. balz, L. balteus, Ir. & Gael. balt border, belt.] 1. That which engirdles a person or thing; a band or girdle; as, a lady's belt; a sword belt. The shining belt with gold inlaid. --Dryden. 2. That which restrains or confines as a girdle. He cannot buckle his distempered cause Within the belt of rule. --Shak. 3. Anything that resembles a belt, or that encircles or crosses like a belt; a strip or stripe; as, a belt of trees; a belt of sand. 4. (Arch.) Same as Band, n., 2. A very broad band is more properly termed a belt. 5. (Astron.) One of certain girdles or zones on the surface of the planets Jupiter and Saturn, supposed to be of the nature of clouds. 6. (Geog.) A narrow passage or strait; as, the Great Belt and the Lesser Belt, leading to the Baltic Sea. 7. (Her.) A token or badge of knightly rank. 8. (Mech.) A band of leather, or other flexible substance, passing around two wheels, and communicating motion from one to the other. Note: [See Illust. of Pulley.] 9. (Nat. Hist.) A band or stripe, as of color, round any organ; or any circular ridge or series of ridges. Belt lacing, thongs used for lacing together the ends of machine belting.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(belts, belting, belted) Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English. 1. A belt is a strip of leather or cloth that you fasten round your waist. He wore a belt with a large brass buckle. N-COUNT see also safety belt, seat belt 2. A belt in a machine is a circular strip of rubber that is used to drive moving parts or to move objects along. The turning disc is connected by a drive belt to an electric motor. N-COUNT see also conveyor belt, fan belt 3. A belt of land or sea is a long, narrow area of it that has some special feature. Miners in Zambia's northern copper belt have gone on strike... = strip N-COUNT: with supp see also Bible Belt, commuter belt, green belt 4. If someone belts you, they hit you very hard. (INFORMAL) 'Is it right she belted old George in the gut?' she asked. = thump VERB: V n • Belt is also a noun. Father would give you a belt over the head with the scrubbing brush. N-COUNT 5. If you belt somewhere, you move or travel there very fast. (INFORMAL) We belted down Iveagh Parade to where the motor was. = dash VERB: V prep/adv 6. see also belted 7. Something that is below the belt is cruel and unfair. Do you think it's a bit below the belt what they're doing? ...this kind of below-the-belt discrimination. PHRASE 8. If you have to tighten your belt, you have to spend less money and manage without things because you have less money than you used to have. Clearly, if you are spending more than your income, you'll need to tighten your belt. PHRASE: V inflects 9. If you have something under your belt, you have already achieved it or done it. Clare is now a full-time author with six books, including four novels, under her belt. PHRASE: have/with n PHR

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

See ARMOR; DRESS.

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. 1. Girdle, cincture, cestus, band, zone, girth. 2. Strip, zone, stretch, long and narrow piece or region. 3. Constraint, restraint, check.

Moby Thesaurus

Appleton layer, F layer, Heaviside-Kennelly layer, Mystik tape, Scotch tape, Van Allen belt, adhesive tape, airspace, anklet, area, arm, armlet, baldric, band, bandage, bandolier, bang, bar, bash, baste, bastinado, bat, batten, bay, bayou, beat, beating, bed, bedding, begird, belabor, bellyband, belt, belt in, bend, biff, bight, bind, bind up, birch, blacksnake, blast, blow, boca, bonk, bop, brace, bracelet, breechclout, buffet, bullwhack, bullwhip, bundle, cane, cat, cellophane tape, cestus, chain, chemosphere, chop, cinch, cincture, cingulum, circle, circuit, clap, clip, clobber, cloth tape, clout, club, clump, coldcock, collar, collarband, confines, continental shelf, corridor, couche, country, course, cove, cowhide, crack, craze, creek, crop, cudgel, cummerbund, cut, dash, deal, deal a blow, deck, department, dhoti, diaper, dig, dint, district, division, do up, drub, drubbing, drumming, earring, ecliptic, encincture, encircle, engird, ensphere, environs, equator, estuary, euripus, fascia, fetch, fetch a blow, fillet, finger ring, fjord, flagellate, flagellum, flail, flog, floor, friction tape, frith, fusillade, fustigate, gallery, gird, girdle, girt, girth, give a whipping, give the stick, great circle, ground, gulf, gut, harbor, heartland, hit, hit a clip, hoop, horsewhip, inlet, ionosphere, isothermal region, jab, knock, knock cold, knock down, knock out, knout, kurbash, kyle, lace, land, lash, lath, lay on, layer, leash, ledge, let have it, level, lick, ligula, ligule, list, loch, loincloth, loinguard, loop, lower atmosphere, masking tape, measures, milieu, moocha, mouth, napkins, narrow, narrow seas, narrows, natural harbor, neckband, necklace, neighborhood, nose ring, offshore rights, outer atmosphere, overlayer, overstory, part, parts, paste, pelt, perimeter, photosphere, pistol-whip, place, plank, plastic tape, plunk, poke, pommel, pound, precincts, premises, pummel, punch, purlieus, put across, put over, quarter, quirt, quoit, rap, rawhide, razor strap, reach, region, ribband, ribbon, ring, road, roads, roadstead, rope, salient, sash, scourge, seam, section, shelf, shred, sjambok, slam, slat, slip, slog, slug, smack, smash, smite, snap, soak, sock, soil, sound, space, spank, spill, splice, spline, stage, step, story, strait, straits, strake, strap, stratosphere, stratum, streak, streaking, stretch, stria, striation, striature, striga, strike, strike at, striola, strip, stripe, striping, stroke, strop, substratosphere, substratum, superstratum, swaddle, swat, swath, swathe, swing, swinge, swipe, switch, taenia, tape, tape measure, tapeline, tattoo, terrain, territory, thickness, thong, thrash, three-mile limit, thump, thwack, ticker tape, tie, tie up, tier, topsoil, tract, tropopause, troposphere, trounce, truncheon, truss, twelve-mile limit, twine around, underlayer, understory, understratum, upper atmosphere, vicinage, vicinity, waist belt, waistband, waistcloth, wallop, whack, whale, wham, whip, whiplash, whop, wire, wrap, wrap up, wreathe, wreathe around, wristband, wristlet, yerk, zodiac, zone