English Explanatory Dictionary

babbitt

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. Ellipsis of babbitt metal or Babbitt metal (“a soft white alloy of variable composition used in bearings to diminish friction”).
verb
  1. To line (something) with babbitt metal to reduce friction.
noun
  1. Alternative letter-case form of Babbitt (“a person who subscribes complacently to materialistic middle-class ideals”).
name
  1. A surname.
  2. A city in Saint Louis County, Minnesota, United States.
noun
  1. A person who subscribes complacently to materialistic middle-class ideals.
noun
  1. Alternative letter-case form of babbitt (“a soft white alloy of variable composition (for example, nine parts of tin to one of copper, or fifty parts of tin to five of antimony and one of copper) used in bearings to diminish friction”).

Pronunciation

/ˈbæbɪt/ LL-Q1860 (eng)-I learned some phrases-babbitt.wav /ˈbæbət/

Word forms

babbitt babbitts babbit babbitting babbitted

Etymology

The noun is derived from Babbitt, the surname of the American inventor Isaac Babbitt (1799–1862) who invented the alloy. The verb is derived from the noun.

Synonyms

Babbitt's metal

Derived words

babbittry Babbittian Babbittism Babbitty
This entry uses open data from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA/GFDL). Word forms are used for search and are not indexed as separate pages.
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