Mortar

mor′tar, n. a ve el in which substances are pounded with a pestle: a short and very thick piece of artillery of large calibre, firing a heavy shell at a fixed angle of 45° or thereabouts, so as to strike vertically: a cement of lime, sand, and water, used to bind together stones or bricks in building.— v.t. to close up or in as with mortar: to pound in a mortar.— n. Mor′tar-board , a square board with a handle beneath for holding mortar which the workman is using: a square-crowned academic cap. [A.S. mortere —L. mortarium , a mortar.]