babbitt
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Bab·bitt
(băb′ĭt)n.
A narrow-minded, self-satisfied person with an unthinking attachment to middle-class values and materialism.
[After George F. Babbitt, , the main character in the novel Babbitt by Sinclair Lewis.]
Bab′bitt·ry n.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Babbitt
(ˈbæbɪt)n
derogatory US a narrow-minded and complacent member of the middle class
[C20: after George Babbitt, central character in the novel Babbitt (1922) by Sinclair Lewis]
ˈBabbittry, ˈbabbitry n
babbitt
(ˈbæbɪt)vb
(Mechanical Engineering) (tr) to line (a bearing) or face (a surface) with Babbitt metal or a similar soft alloy
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
bab•bitt
(ˈbæb ɪt)n.
1. a bearing or lining of Babbitt metal.
v.t. 2. to line, face, or furnish with Babbitt metal.
[1900–05]
Bab•bitt
(ˈbæb ɪt)n.
1. Irving, 1865–1933, U.S. educator and critic.
2. Milton Byron, born 1916, U.S. composer.
3. (often l.c.) a self-satisfied person who conforms to conventional middle-class ideals, esp. of material success: from the title character of a novel (1922) by Sinclair Lewis.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
babbitt
Past participle: babbitted
Gerund: babbitting
| Imperative |
|---|
| babbitt |
| babbitt |
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
Babbitt
A soft metal used as a bearing lining. It was usually a mixture of tin (fifty parts), antimony (five parts), and copper (one part).
1001 Words and Phrases You Never Knew You Didn’t Know by W.R. Runyan Copyright © 2011 by W.R. Runyan
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| Noun | 1. |  babbitt - an alloy of tin with some copper and antimony; a lining for bearings that reduces friction |
| Verb | 1. | babbitt - line with a Babbitt metal line - cover the interior of; "line the gloves"; "line a chimney" |
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