Category:Abutment

Abut"ment, n. Etym: [Abbreviation of Abutment.]

1. (Arch.)

Defn: A buttress of an arch; the supporter, or that part which joins it to the upright pier.

2. (Masonry)

Defn: The mass of stone or solid work at the end of a bridge, by which the extreme arches are sustained, or by which the end of a bridge without arches is supported. Butment cheek (Carp.), the part of a mortised timber surrounding the mortise, and against which the shoulders of the tenon bear. Knight.