groin
Noun · VerbOpen English WordNet
Noun (3)
- the crease at the junction of the inner part of the thigh with the trunk together with the adjacent region and often including the external genitalsSynonyms: inguenType of area, regionPart of loins
- a curved edge formed by two intersecting vaultsType of edge
- a protective structure of stone or concrete; extends from shore into the water to prevent a beach from washing awaySynonyms: breakwatergroynemolebulwarkseawalljettyType of barrier
What does it mean? Question 1 of today’s quiz
Webster's Dictionary (1913)
Origin: F. groin, fr. grogner to grunt, L. grunnire.
The snout of a swine. obsolete Geoffrey Chaucer
Origin: F. grogner to grunt, grumble.
To grunt to growl; to snarl; to murmur. obsolete Geoffrey Chaucer
Bears that groined coatinually.— Edmund Spenser
Origin: Icel. grein distinction, division, branch; akin to Sw. gren, branch, space between the legs, Icel. greina to distinguish, divide, Sw. grena to branch, straddle. Cf. Grain a branch.
1. Anatomy The line between the lower part of the abdomen and the thigh, or the region of this line; the inguen.
2. Architecture The projecting solid angle formed by the meeting of two vaults, growing more obtuse as it approaches the summit.
3. Mathematics The surface formed by two such vaults.
4. A frame of woodwork across a beach to accumulate and retain shingle. British John Weale
Architecture To fashion into groins; to build with groins.
The hand that rounded Peter's dome, And groined the aisles of Christian Rome, Wrought in a sad sincerity.— Ralph Waldo Emerson
Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), from GCIDE 0.54