Nearby Words

Miter

[mahy-ter] Origin

mi·ter

[mahy-ter]
noun
1.
the official headdress of a bishop in the Western Church, in its modern form a tall cap with a top deeply cleft crosswise, the outline of the front and back resembling that of a pointed arch.
2.
the office or rank of a bishop; bishopric.
3.
Judaism. the official headdress of the ancient high priest, bearing on the front a gold plate engraved with the words Holiness to the Lord. Ex. 28:36–38.
4.
a fillet worn by women of ancient Greece.
5.
Carpentry. an oblique surface formed on a piece of wood or the like so as to butt against an oblique surface on another piece to be joined with it.
EXPAND
6.
Nautical. the inclined seam connecting the two cloths of an angulated sail.
COLLAPSE
verb (used with object)
7.
to bestow a miter upon, or raise to a rank entitled to it.
8.
to join with a miter joint.
9.
to cut to a miter.
10.
to join (two edges of fabric) at a corner by various methods of folding, cutting, and stitching.

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Miter is one of our favorite verbs.
So is fletcherise. Does it mean:
to chew (food) slowly and thoroughly.
to swindle, cheat, hoodwink, or hoax.
Also, especially British, mitre.


Origin:
1350–1400; Middle English mitre (noun) < Latin mitra < Greek mítra turban, headdress
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Collins
World English Dictionary
miter (ˈmaɪtə)
 
n, —vb
the usual US spelling of mitre

mitre or (US) miter (ˈmaɪtə)
 
n
1.  Christianity the liturgical headdress of a bishop or abbot, in most western churches consisting of a tall pointed cleft cap with two bands hanging down at the back
2.  short for mitre joint
3.  a bevelled surface of a mitre joint
4.  (in sewing) a diagonal join where the hems along two sides meet at a corner of the fabric
 
vb
5.  to make a mitre joint between (two pieces of material, esp wood)
6.  to make a mitre in (a fabric)
7.  to confer a mitre upon: a mitred abbot
 
[C14: from Old French, from Latin mitra, from Greek mitra turban]
 
miter or (US) miter
 
n
 
vb
 
[C14: from Old French, from Latin mitra, from Greek mitra turban]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

miter
in the carpentry sense of "joint at a 45 degree angle," 1670s, perhaps from mitre, via notion of joining of the two peaks of the folded cap.
EXPAND

miter
alternate spelling of mitre (see -re).
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia

miter

liturgical headdress worn by Roman Catholic bishops and abbots and some Anglican and Lutheran bishops. It has two shield-shaped stiffened halves that face the front and back. Two fringed streamers, known as lappets, hang from the back. It developed from the papal tiara and came into use in the 11th century.

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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