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Word: beam (lookup usage) (lookup stats)


Meaning:

Noun:

  • A cylinder of wood, making part of a loom, on which weavers wind the warp before weaving; also, the cylinder on which the cloth is rolled, as it is woven; one being called the fore beam, the other the back beam.
  • A heavy iron lever having an oscillating motion on a central axis, one end of which is connected with the piston rod from which it receives motion, and the other with the crank of the wheel shaft; -- called also working beam or walking beam.
  • Any large piece of timber or iron long in proportion to its thickness, and prepared for use.
  • A ray or collection of parallel rays emitted from the sun or other luminous body; as, a beam of light, or of heat.
  • figurative A ray; a gleam; as, a beam of comfort.
  • music A horizontal bar which connects the stems of two or more notes to group them and to indicate metric value.
  • nautical The maximum width of a vessel; as, one vessel is said to have more beam than another; also called '''breadth'''. (FM 55-501).
  • One of the long feathers in the wing of a hawk; -- called also beam feather.
  • One of the principal horizontal timbers of a building; one of the transverse members of a ship's frame on which the decks are laid - supported at the sides by knees in wooden ships and by stringers in steel ones.
  • The central bar of a plow, to which the handles and colter are secured, and to the end of which are attached the oxen or horses that draw it.
  • The crossbar of a mechanical balance, from the ends of which the scales are suspended.
  • The pole of a carriage.
  • The principal stem of the antler of a deer.
  • The straight part or shank of an anchor.

Source: Wiktionary | Src Info »

Verb:

  • science fiction To transmit matter or information via a high-tech wireless mechanism.
  • To smile broadly or especially cheerfully.

Source: Wiktionary | Src Info »