arching

[ahr-ching] Origin

arch·ing

[ahr-ching]
noun
arched work or formation.

Origin:
1670–80; arch1 + -ing1

un·arch·ing, adjective

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Arching is always a great word to know.
So is flibbertigibbet. Does it mean:
a chattering or flighty, light-headed person.
a scrap or morsel of food left at a meal.
Dictionary.com Unabridged

arch

1[ahrch]
noun
1.
Architecture.
a.
a curved masonry construction for spanning an opening, consisting of a number of wedgelike stones, bricks, or the like, set with the narrower side toward the opening in such a way that forces on the arch are transmitted as vertical or oblique stresses on either side of the opening.
b.
an upwardly curved construction, as of steel or timber functioning in the manner of a masonry arch.
c.
a doorway, gateway, etc., having a curved head; an archway.
d.
the curved head of an opening, as a doorway.
2.
any overhead curvature resembling an arch.
3.
something bowed or curved; any bowlike part: the arch of the foot.
4.
a device inserted in or built into shoes for supporting the arch of the foot.
5.
a dam construction having the form of a barrel vault running vertically with its convex face toward the impounded water.
EXPAND
6.
Glassmaking.
a.
a chamber or opening in a glassmaking furnace.
COLLAPSE
verb (used with object)
7.
to cover with a vault, or span with an arch: the rude bridge that arched the flood.
8.
to throw or make into the shape of an arch or vault; curve: The horse arched its neck.
verb (used without object)
9.
to form an arch: elms arching over the road.
10.
Nautical. hog (def. 14).

Origin:
1250–1300; Middle English arch(e) < Old French arche < Vulgar Latin *arca, feminine variant of Latin arcus arc
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source Link To arching
Etymonline
Word Origin & History

arch
1540s, "chief, principal," from prefix arch- (from Gk. arkhos "chief;" see archon); used in 12c. archangel, etc., but extended to so many derogatory uses (arch-rogue, arch-knave, etc.) that it acquired a meaning of "roguish, mischievous," since softened to "saucy" (1660s).
EXPAND
Also found in archwife (late 14c.) "A wife of a superior order."
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Medical Dictionary

arch (ärch)
n.
An organ or structure having a curved or bowlike appearance, especially either of two arched sections of the bony structure of the foot.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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American Heritage
Cultural Dictionary

arch definition


In architecture, a curved or pointed opening that spans a doorway, window, or other space.

Note: The form of arch used in building often serves to distinguish styles of architecture from one another. For example, Romanesque architecture usually employs a round arch, and Gothic architecture, a pointed arch.
The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
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