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ligature - 8 dictionary results
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lig⋅a⋅ture

  [lig-uh-cher, -choor] noun, verb, -tured, -tur⋅ing.
Use ligature in a Sentence
–noun
1. the act of binding or tying up: The ligature of the artery was done with skill.
2. anything that serves for binding or tying up, as a band, bandage, or cord.
3. a tie or bond: the ligature of mutual need that bound them together.
4. Printing, Orthography. a stroke or bar connecting two letters.
5. Printing. a character or type combining two or more letters, as fl and ƕ.
6. Music.
a. slur.
b. a group of notes connected by a slur.
c. a metal band for securing the reed of a clarinet or saxophone to the mouthpiece.
7. Surgery. a thread or wire for constriction of blood vessels or for removing tumors by strangulation.
–verb (used with object)
8. to bind with a ligature; tie up; ligate.
Origin:
1350–1400; ME < LL ligātūra. See ligate, -ure
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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lig·a·ture   (lĭg'ə-chŏŏr', -chər)   


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n.  
  1. The act of tying or binding.
    1. A cord, wire, or bandage used for tying or binding.
    2. A thread, wire, or cord used in surgery to close vessels or tie off ducts.
    3. Something that unites; a bond.
    4. A group of notes intended to be played or sung as one phrase.
    5. A curved line indicating such a phrase; a slur.
    6. A passage of notes sung by repeating the same syllable.
    7. A metal band that attaches the reed to the mouthpiece of the clarinet and related instruments.
  3. A character, letter, or type, such as æ, combining two or more letters.
  4. Music
    1. A group of notes intended to be played or sung as one phrase.
    2. A curved line indicating such a phrase; a slur.
    3. A passage of notes sung by repeating the same syllable.
    4. A metal band that attaches the reed to the mouthpiece of the clarinet and related instruments.
tr.v.   lig·a·tured, lig·a·tur·ing, lig·a·tures
To ligate.

[Middle English, from Old French, from Late Latin ligātūra, from Latin ligātus, past participle of ligāre, to bind; see leig- 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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Ligature

Lig"a*ture\ (l[i^]g"[.a]*t[-u]r; 135), n. [L. ligatura, fr. ligare, ligatum, to bind: cf. F. ligature. Cf. Ally, League, Legatura, Liable, Ligament.]

1. The act of binding.

2. Anything that binds; a band or bandage.

3. (Surg.) (a) A thread or string for tying the blood vessels, particularly the arteries, to prevent hemorrhage. (b) A thread or wire used to remove tumors, etc.

4. The state of being bound or stiffened; stiffness; as, the ligature of a joint.

5. Impotence caused by magic or charms. [Obs.]

6. (Mus.) A curve or line connecting notes; a slur.

7. (Print.) A double character, or a type consisting of two or more letters or characters united, as [ae], [filig], [ffllig].

Ligature

Lig"a*ture\ (l[i^]g"[.a]*t[-u]r), v. t. (Surg.) To ligate; to tie.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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ligature 
c.1400, "something used in tying or binding," from O.Fr. ligature, from L.L. ligatura "a band," from L. ligatus, pp. of ligare "to bind" (see ligament).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Main Entry: 1lig·a·ture
Pronunciation: 'lig-&-"chu(&)r, -ch&r, -"t(y)u(&)r
Function: noun
1 : something thatis used to bind; specifically : a filament (as a thread) used in surgery (as for tying blood vessels)
2 : the action or result of binding or tying ligature of an artery>

Main Entry: 2ligature
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Forms: -tured; -tur·ing
: to tie up or bind <ligaturing the bloodvessels —Veterinary Record>
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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ligature lig·a·ture (lĭg'ə-ch&oobreve;r', -chər)
n.

  1. The act of tying or binding.
  2. A cord, wire, or bandage used for tying or binding.
  3. A thread, wire, or cord used in surgery to close vessels or tie off ducts.

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