buckle

[ buhk-uhl ]

/ ˈbʌk əl /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR buckle ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a clasp consisting of a rectangular or curved rim with one or more movable tongues, fixed to one end of a belt or strap, used for fastening to the other end of the same strap or to another strap.

any similar contrivance used for such purposes.

an ornament of metal, beads, etc., of similar appearance.

a bend, bulge, or kink, as in a board or saw blade.

verb (used with object), buck·led, buck·ling.

to fasten with a buckle or buckles: Buckle your seat belt.

to shrivel, by applying heat or pressure; bend; curl.

to prepare (oneself) for action; apply (oneself) vigorously to something.

to bend, warp, or cause to give way suddenly, as with heat or pressure.

verb (used without object), buck·led, buck·ling.

to close or fasten with a buckle: Grandmother always wore shoes that buckled.

to prepare oneself or apply oneself: The student buckled to the lesson.

to bend, warp, bulge, or collapse: The bridge buckled in the storm.

to yield, surrender, or give way to another (often followed by under): She refused to take the medicine, but buckled under when the doctor told her to.

Verb Phrases

buckle down, to set to work with vigor; concentrate on one's work: He was by nature a daydreamer and found it hard to buckle down.

buckle up, to fasten one's belt, seat belt, or buckles: She won't start the car until we've all buckled up.

Origin of buckle

1300–50; Middle English bocle < Anglo-French bo(u)cle, bucle < Latin buc(c)ula cheekpiece (of a helmet), strip of wood, etc., resembling a cheekpiece, equivalent to bucc(a) cheek + -ula -ule

SYNONYMS FOR buckle

8 sag, bulge, twist; crumple, collapse.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR buckle ON THESAURUS.COM

OTHER WORDS FROM buckle

buck·le·less, adjective re·buck·le, verb, re·buck·led, re·buck·ling.

Words nearby buckle

buckish, buckjump, buckjumper, buckjumping, buckland, buckle, buckle down, buckle under, buckle up, buckler, buckler fern

Example sentences from the Web for buckle

In March 2014, he decided to buckle down, eat better and exercise regularly.

College Football Fattens Players Up and Then Abandons Them |Evin Demirel |October 4, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
He said he will sometimes "buckle" when he thinks of her out of the blue.

Peaches Geldof Was A Former Heroin Addict Who Was On Methadone When She Overdosed |Tom Sykes |July 23, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
"I'm walking down the road and suddenly out of the blue there's an awareness of her – and you know, I buckle," he said.

Peaches Geldof Was A Former Heroin Addict Who Was On Methadone When She Overdosed |Tom Sykes |July 23, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
Yet in Paris she failed to buckle her seat belt in a fleeing car.

The Day the Fairytale Died |Marilyn Johnson |July 12, 2014 |DAILY BEAST

In the press they were “furious lesbians” who targeted Buckle “because he was a straight man.”

‘Out in the Night’ and the Redemption of the ‘Killer Lesbian Gang' |Nina Strochlic |June 21, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
It was buckle to it, and work furiously, and clean up the mess, and then on to the next.

Young Hilda at the Wars |Arthur Gleason
“I am afraid not,” she answered, looking down for a moment at the buckle in her waistband.

The Missioner |E. Phillips Oppenheim
The Collector, old as he is, will buckle on his toledo in that quarrel.

Rob of the Bowl, Vol. I (of 2) |John P. Kennedy
Ay, Maurice, buckle on the sword—the battle-field is before thee.

Harper's New Monthly Magazine, Volume 1, No. 2, July, 1850. |Various
Dudgeon let go the buckle and took two slow, deliberate steps nearer Durham.

The Rider of Waroona |Firth Scott

British Dictionary definitions for buckle

buckle

/ (ˈbʌkəl) /

noun

a clasp for fastening together two loose ends, esp of a belt or strap, usually consisting of a frame with an attached movable prong

an ornamental representation of a buckle, as on a shoe

a kink, bulge, or other distortion a buckle in a railway track

verb

to fasten or be fastened with a buckle

to bend or cause to bend out of shape, esp as a result of pressure or heat

Word Origin for buckle

C14: from Old French bocle, from Latin buccula a little cheek, hence, cheek strap of a helmet, from bucca cheek

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

buckle

noun

verb (used with object), buck·led, buck·ling.

verb (used without object), buck·led, buck·ling.

Verb Phrases

Origin of buckle

SYNONYMS FOR buckle

OTHER WORDS FROM buckle

Words nearby buckle

Example sentences from the Web for buckle

British Dictionary definitions for buckle

noun

verb

Word Origin for buckle

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

buckle

noun

verb (used with object), buck·led, buck·ling.

verb (used without object), buck·led, buck·ling.

Verb Phrases

Origin of buckle

SYNONYMS FOR buckle

OTHER WORDS FROM buckle

Words nearby buckle

Words related to buckle

Example sentences from the Web for buckle

(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []) .push({}); British Dictionary definitions for buckle

noun

verb

Word Origin for buckle

British Dictionary definitions for buckle