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elbow - 11 dictionary results
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el⋅bow

  [el-boh]
Use elbow in a Sentence
–noun
1. the bend or joint of the human arm between upper arm and forearm.
2. the corresponding joint in the forelimb of a quadruped.
3. something bent like an elbow, as a sharp turn in a road or river, or a piece of pipe bent at an angle.
4. Architecture. crossette.
5. Also called ell, el. a plumbing pipe or pipe connection having a right-angled bend.
–verb (used with object)
6. to push with or as if with the elbow; jostle.
7. to make (one's way) by so pushing.
–verb (used without object)
8. to elbow one's way: He elbowed through the crowd.
—Idioms
9. at one's elbow, within easy reach; nearby: A virtue of the cottage is that the ocean is at your elbow.
10. bend, lift, or crook an elbow, Informal. to drink alcoholic beverages.
11. give the elbow, shove aside, get rid of, or reject.
12. out at the elbows,
a. poorly dressed; shabby.
b. impoverished.
Also, out at elbows.
13. rub elbows with, to mingle socially with; associate with: a resort where royalty rubs elbows with the merely rich.
14. up to one's elbows, very busy; engrossed: I am up to my elbows in answering mail. Also, up to the elbows.
Origin:
bef. 1000; ME elbowe, OE el(n)boga; c. MD elle(n)bōghe, OHG el(l)inbogo (G Ellenbogen), ON ǫl(n)bogi; lit., “forearm-bend.” See ell 2 , bow 1

cross⋅ette

  [kraw-set, kro-]
–noun Architecture.
a projection at a corner of a door or window architrave.
Also, croisette, crosette.
Also called dog-ear, dog's-ear, elbow.

Origin:
1720–30; < F, dim. of crosse. See crosse, -ette
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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el·bow   (ěl'bō')   


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n.  
    1. The joint or bend of the arm between the forearm and the upper arm.
    2. The bony outer projection of this joint.
    3. A length of pipe with a sharp bend in it.
    4. A sharp bend in a river or road.
  2. A joint, as of a bird or quadruped, corresponding to the human elbow.
  3. Something having a bend or angle similar to an elbow, especially:
    1. A length of pipe with a sharp bend in it.
    2. A sharp bend in a river or road.
v.   el·bowed, el·bow·ing, el·bows

v.   tr.
  1. To push, jostle, or shove with the elbow: elbowed me in the ribs to get me to stop laughing.
  2. To open up (a means of passage, for example) by or as if by use of the elbow: elbowed her way through the crowd.
v.   intr.
  1. To make one's way by pushing with the elbow.
  2. To turn at an angle; bend: The lane elbows to the left.

[Middle English elbowe, from Old English elnboga; see el- in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Elbow

El"bow\, n. [AS. elboga, elnboga (akin to D. elleboga, OHG. elinbogo, G. ellbogen, ellenbogen, Icel. ?lnbogi; prop.; arm-bend); eln ell (orig., forearm) + boga a bending. See 1st Ell, and 4th Bow.]

1. The joint or bend of the arm; the outer curve in the middle of the arm when bent.

Her arms to the elbows naked. --R. of Gloucester.

2. Any turn or bend like that of the elbow, in a wall, building, and the like; a sudden turn in a line of coast or course of a river; also, an angular or jointed part of any structure, as the raised arm of a chair or sofa, or a short pipe fitting, turning at an angle or bent.

3. (Arch.) A sharp angle in any surface of wainscoting or other woodwork; the upright sides which flank any paneled work, as the sides of windows, where the jamb makes an elbow with the window back. --Gwilt.

Note: Elbow is used adjectively or as part of a compound, to denote something shaped like, or acting like, an elbow; as, elbow joint; elbow tongs or elbow-tongs; elbowroom, elbow-room, or elbow room.

At the elbow, very near; at hand.

Elbow grease, energetic application of force in manual labor. [Low]

Elbow in the hawse (Naut.), the twisting together of two cables by which a vessel rides at anchor, caused by swinging completely round once. --Totten.

Elbow scissors (Surg.), scissors bent in the blade or shank for convenience in cutting. --Knight.

Out at elbow, with coat worn through at the elbows; shabby; in needy circumstances.

Elbow

El"bow\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Elbowed; p. pr. & vb. n. Elbowing.] To push or hit with the elbow, as when one pushes by another.

They [the Dutch] would elbow our own aldermen off the Royal Exchange. --Macaulay.

To elbow one's way, to force one's way by pushing with the elbows; as, to elbow one's way through a crowd.

Elbow

El"bow\, v. i. 1. To jut into an angle; to project or to bend after the manner of an elbow.

2. To push rudely along; to elbow one's way. "Purseproud, elbowing Insolence." --Grainger.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : elbow
Spanish: codo,
German: der Ellbogen,
Japanese: ひじ
More Translations »

elbow 
O.E. elnboga, from ell "length of the forearm" + boga "bow, arch," from W.Gmc. *alinobogan, from P.Gmc. *elino-bugon, lit. "bend of the forearm." Second element related to O.E. bugan "to bend;" first element from *alina "arm," from PIE *el- "elbow, forearm" (see ell). The verb meaning "thrust with the elbow" is from 1605; fig. sense is from 1863. Phrase elbow grease "hard rubbing" is attested from 1672, from jocular sense of "the best substance for polishing furniture."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Main Entry: el·bow
Pronunciation: 'el-"bO
Function: noun
1 : the joint between the human forearm and the upper arm that supports the outercurve of the arm when bent called also elbow joint
2 : a joint in the anterior limb of a lower vertebrate corresponding to the elbow
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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elbow el·bow (ěl'bō')
n.

  1. The joint or bend of the arm between the forearm and the upper arm. Also called cubitus.
  2. The bony outer projection of this joint.
  3. Something having a bend or an angle similar to an elbow.

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

In addition to the idioms beginning with elbow, also see at someone's elbow; crook one's elbow; out at the elbows; rub elbows with.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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elbow

in human anatomy, hinge joint formed by the meeting of the humerus (bone of the upper arm) and the radius and ulna (bones of the forearm). The elbow allows the bending and extension of the forearm, and it also allows the rotational movements of the radius and ulna that enable the palm of the hand to be turned upward or downward

Learn more about elbow with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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