What is "packing"

Pack \Pack\ (p[a^]k), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Packed (p[a^]kt); p. pr. & vb. n. Packing.] [Akin to D. pakken, G. packen, Dan. pakke, Sw. packa, Icel. pakka. See Pack, n.]

1. To make a pack of; to arrange closely and securely in a pack; hence, to place and arrange compactly as in a pack; to press into close order or narrow compass; as, to pack goods in a box; to pack fish.

   Strange materials packed up with wonderful art.
   --Addison.

   Where . . . the bones Of all my buried ancestors are packed.
   --Shak.

2. To fill in the manner of a pack, that is, compactly and securely, as for transportation; hence, to fill closely or to repletion; to stow away within; to cause to be full; to crowd into; as, to pack a trunk; the play, or the audience, packs the theater.

3. To shuffle, sort and arrange (the cards) in a pack so as to secure the game unfairly; to stack[3] (the deck).

   And mighty dukes pack cards for half a crown.
   --Pope.

4. Hence: To bring together or make up unfairly and fraudulently, in order to secure a certain result; to stack[3]; as, to pack a jury or a caucus.

   The expected council was dwindling into . . . a packed assembly of Italian bishops.
   --Atterbury.

5. To contrive unfairly or fraudulently; to plot. [Obs.]

   He lost life . . . upon a nice point subtilely devised and packed by his enemies.
   --Fuller.

6. To load with a pack; hence, to load; to encumber; as, to pack a horse.

   Our thighs packed with wax, our mouths with honey.
   --Shack.

7. To cause to go; to send away with baggage or belongings; esp., to send away peremptorily or suddenly; to send packing; -- sometimes with off; as, to pack a boy off to school.

   He . . . must not die Till George be packed with post horse up to heaven.
   --Shak.

8. To transport in a pack, or in the manner of a pack (i. e., on the backs of men or beasts). [Western U.S.]

9. (Hydropathy) To envelop in a wet or dry sheet, within numerous coverings. See Pack, n., 5.

10. (Mech.) To render impervious, as by filling or surrounding with suitable material, or to fit or adjust so as to move without giving passage to air, water, or steam; as, to pack a joint; to pack the piston of a steam engine.

11. To cover, envelop, or protect tightly with something; specif. (Hydropathy), to envelop in a wet or dry sheet, within numerous coverings.

Packing \Pack"ing\, n.

1. The act or process of one who packs.

2. Any material used to pack, fill up, or make close. Specifically (Mach.): A substance or piece used to make a joint impervious; as:

   1. A thin layer, or sheet, of yielding or elastic material inserted between the surfaces of a flange joint.

   2. The substance in a stuffing box, through which a piston rod slides.

   3. A yielding ring, as of metal, which surrounds a piston and maintains a tight fit, as inside a cylinder, etc.

3. (Masonry) Same as Filling. [Rare in the U. S.]

4. A trick; collusion. [Obs.] --Bale. Cherd packing (Bridge Building), the arrangement, side by side, of several parts, as bars, diagonals, a post, etc., on a pin at the bottom of a chord. --Waddell. Packing box, a stuffing box. See under Stuffing. Packing press, a powerful press for baling cotton, wool, hay, etc. Packing ring. See Packing, 2 (c), and Illust. of Piston. Packing sheet.

   1. A large cloth for packing goods.

   2. A sheet prepared for packing hydropathic patients.

n. 1 The action of the verb. 2 # The action of putting things together, especially of putting clothes into a suitcase for a journey. 3 # (context sciences mathematics English) The spatial arrangement of objects, items or constituent parts. 4 # The gathering of birds, animals etc. into a pack. 5 # (context rugby English) The forming of players into a scrum. 6 As a concrete noun. 7 # Material used to fill in the space around something, especially to make a piston etc. watertight or airtight. 8 # Material used to wrap a product for sale etc.; packaging. 9 # A fee charged to cover the costs of packaging. 10 # Special material used to fill containers or vessels for certain chemically related applications. vb. (present participle of pack English)

1. n. any material used especially to protect something [syn: packing material, wadding]

2. the enclosure of something in a package or box [syn: boxing]

3. carrying something in a pack on the back; "the backpacking of oxygen is essential for astronauts" [syn: backpacking]

Packing may refer to:

Packing is wearing padding or a phallic object in the front of the pants or underwear to give the appearance of having a penis. Packing is commonly practiced by trans men (i.e. female-to-male transgender or transsexual people). People who cross-dress as male may also "pack".

Packing is the process and/or the materials used in filling both service penetrations and building joints with backer materials as approved components within a firestop.

Image:Ceramic_fibre_nelson_clk_installation.jpg|Ceramic fibre used as packing to support firestop silicone caulking. Image:Pack_seal_1.jpg|"Canned" service penetration about to be firestopped. Image:Pack_seal_2.jpg|Packing being installed. Image:Pack_seal_3.jpg| Firestop caulking being applied. Image:Pack_seal_4.jpg|Firestop has been tagged to identify certification information, thus enabling proper maintenance.