1. Word finder
  2. Word definitions
  3. abutment pier

Find the word definition

What is "abutment pier"

The Collaborative International Dictionary
Abutment pier

Pier \Pier\, n. [OE. pere, OF. piere a stone, F. pierre, fr. L. petra, Gr. ?. Cf. Petrify.]

  1. (Arch.)

    1. Any detached mass of masonry, whether insulated or supporting one side of an arch or lintel, as of a bridge; the piece of wall between two openings.

    2. Any additional or auxiliary mass of masonry used to stiffen a wall. See Buttress.

  2. A projecting wharf or landing place.

    Abutment pier, the pier of a bridge next the shore; a pier which by its strength and stability resists the thrust of an arch.

    Pier glass, a mirror, of high and narrow shape, to be put up between windows.

    Pier table, a table made to stand between windows.

Usage examples of "abutment pier".

But the tiny dock at the foot of the bridge's rightbank abutment pier was deserted except for a laden decamole canoe that strained at its painter and two people standing in the afternoon shadows beside it, their minds linked by the fellowship of the golden torc.