Mortar

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈmɔːtə(ɹ)/

Definitions

1. A paste made by mixing sand, water, and a binding material for holding building blocks together ; a bowl, often with a pestle, used to crush and grind ingredients into a powder or paste ; a short, portable cannon that fires shells at high angles
2. A blend of sand, water, and cement that binds bricks or stones in masonry ; a heavy bowl for grinding substances in cooking or pharmacy ; a weapon that launches explosive shells in an arc for use in warfare
3. A sticky cement-like substance that secures bricks or stones when building ; a vessel used with a pestle to pulverize herbs or chemicals ; a small artillery piece designed to lob projectiles over obstacles

Etymology: The mixture of lime, sand and water that binds bricks together shares its name with a kitchen tool, and the two are the same word split in two. Latin "mortārium" meant a bowl in which things were pounded or ground, and it passed into Old French as "mortier," which could mean either a vessel for crushing or the paste made in it. English borrowed the word through Middle English "morter," and the two senses stayed linked: a mortar was first the hollow where ingredients were pounded, and only later the stuff spread between stones. English kept the bowl sense as well, so a mortar still names the short, wide cannon that lobs shells in a high arc and the pestle-and-bowl pair used in pharmacies. The English words "mortar" and "mortarium" are doublets, both descended from the same Latin source but reaching English by different routes, one through French and one directly from Latin.

Synonyms: cement, adhesive, binder