sockets
ɪt noun
1.
a hollow part or piece for receiving and holding some part or thing.
2.
Electricity.
a.
a device intended to hold an electric light bulb mechanically and connect it electrically to circuit wires.
b.
Also called wall socket. a socket placed in a wall to receive a plug that makes an electrical connection with supply wiring.
3.
Anatomy.
a.
a hollow in one part that receives another part: the socket of the eye.
b.
the concavity of a joint: the socket of the hip.
verb (used with object)
4.
to place in or fit with a socket.
Origin:
1300–50; Middle English soket < Anglo-French, equivalent to Old French soc plowshare (< Gaulish *soccos; compare Welsh swch, Old Irish socc) + -et -et
1300–50; Middle English soket < Anglo-French, equivalent to Old French soc plowshare (< Gaulish *soccos; compare Welsh swch, Old Irish socc) + -et -et
Related forms
sock·et·less, adjective
un·sock·et·ed, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source
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Link To Sockets
00:10
Sockets
is always a great word to know.
So is doohickey. Does it mean:
| a chattering or flighty, light-headed person. |
| a gadget; dingus; thingumbob. |
Collins
World English Dictionary
socket (ˈsɒkɪt) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n | |
| 1. | a device into which an electric plug can be inserted in order to make a connection in a circuit |
| 2. | chiefly (Brit) point, Informal Brit names: plug, US and Canadian name: outlet such a device mounted on a wall and connected to the electricity supply |
| 3. | a part with an opening or hollow into which some other part, such as a pipe, probe, etc, can be fitted |
| 4. | a spanner head having a recess suitable to be fitted over the head of a bolt and a keyway into which a wrench can be fitted |
| 5. | anatomy |
| a. a bony hollow into which a part or structure fits: a tooth socket; an eye socket | |
| b. the receptacle of a ball-and-socket joint | |
| —vb | |
| 6. | (tr) to furnish with or place into a socket |
| [C13: from Anglo-Norman soket a little ploughshare, from soc, of Celtic origin; compare Cornish soch ploughshare] | |
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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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
socket
c.1300, "spearhead" (originally one shaped like a plowshare), from Anglo-Fr. soket "spearhead" (c.1260), dim. of O.Fr. soc "plowshare," from V.L. *soccus, probably from a Gaulish source, cf. Welsh swch "plowshare," Middle Irish soc "plowshare," prop. "hog's snout," cognate with L. sus "swine;" see
sow (n.) "female pig." Meaning "hollow part or piece for receiving and holding something" first recorded 1448; anatomical sense is from 1601; domestic electrical sense first recorded 1885. Socket wrench is attested from 1905.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Medical Dictionary
socket sock·et (sŏk'ĭt)
n.
The concave part of a joint that receives the articular end of a bone.
A hollow or concavity into which a part, such as an eye fits.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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