() imp. of Break.
() of Break
(n.) A fern of the genus Pteris, esp. the P. aquilina, common in almost all countries. It has solitary stems dividing into three principal branches. Less properly: Any fern.
(n.) A thicket; a place overgrown with shrubs and brambles, with undergrowth and ferns, or with canes.
(v. t.) A baker's kneading though.
(v. t.) A cart or carriage without a body, used in breaking in horses.
(v. t.) A frame for confining a refractory horse while the smith is shoeing him; also, an inclosure to restrain cattle, horses, etc.
(v. t.) A large, heavy harrow for breaking clods after plowing; a drag.
(v. t.) A piece of mechanism for retarding or stopping motion by friction, as of a carriage or railway car, by the pressure of rubbers against the wheels, or of clogs or ratchets against the track or roadway, or of a pivoted lever against a wheel or drum in a machine.
(v. t.) A sharp bit or snaffle.
(v. t.) An ancient engine of war analogous to the crossbow and ballista.
(v. t.) An ancient instrument of torture.
(v. t.) An apparatus for testing the power of a steam engine, or other motor, by weighing the amount of friction that the motor will overcome; a friction brake.
(v. t.) An extended handle by means of which a number of men can unite in working a pump, as in a fire engine.
(v. t.) An instrument or machine to break or bruise the woody part of flax or hemp so that it may be separated from the fiber.
(v. t.) That part of a carriage, as of a movable battery, or engine, which enables it to turn.