Library / English Dictionary

BUTTON

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

A round fastener sewn to shirts and coats etc to fit through buttonholes

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("button" is a kind of...):

fastener; fastening; fixing; holdfast (restraint that attaches to something or holds something in place)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "button"):

coat button (a button on a coat)

shirt button (a button on a shirt)

Derivation:

button (fasten with buttons)

button (provide with buttons)

buttony (ornamented with many buttons)

buttony (small and round and shiny like a shiny bead or button)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Any artifact that resembles a button

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("button" is a kind of...):

artefact; artifact (a man-made object taken as a whole)

Sense 3

Meaning:

An electrical switch operated by pressing

Example:

the push beside the bed operated a buzzer at the desk

Synonyms:

button; push; push button

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("button" is a kind of...):

electric switch; electrical switch; switch (control consisting of a mechanical or electrical or electronic device for making or breaking or changing the connections in a circuit)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "button"):

bell push (a button that is pushed to ring a bell)

bell; buzzer; doorbell (a push button at an outer door that gives a ringing or buzzing signal when pushed)

horn button (a button that you press to activate the horn of an automobile)

mouse button (a push button on the mouse)

panic button (a button to push in order to summon help in case of an emergency)

reset button (a push button that you press to activate the reset mechanism)

Holonyms ("button" is a part of...):

push-button radio (a radio receiver that can be tuned by pressing buttons)

Sense 4

Meaning:

A device that when pressed will release part of a mechanism

Synonyms:

button; release

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("button" is a kind of...):

device (an instrumentality invented for a particular purpose)

Sense 5

Meaning:

A female sexual organ homologous to the penis

Synonyms:

button; clit; clitoris

Classified under:

Nouns denoting body parts

Hypernyms ("button" is a kind of...):

erectile organ (an organ containing erectile tissue)

Meronyms (parts of "button"):

foreskin; prepuce (a fold of skin covering the tip of the clitoris)

glans clitoridis (small mass of erectile tissue at the end of the body of the clitoris)

Holonyms ("button" is a part of...):

vulva (external parts of the female genitalia)

Sense 6

Meaning:

A round flat badge displaying information and suitable for pinning onto a garment

Example:

they passed out campaign buttons for their candidate

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Hypernyms ("button" is a kind of...):

badge (an emblem (a small piece of plastic or cloth or metal) that signifies your status (rank or membership or affiliation etc.))

Sense 7

Meaning:

Any of various plant parts that resemble buttons

Classified under:

Nouns denoting plants

Hypernyms ("button" is a kind of...):

plant part; plant structure (any part of a plant or fungus)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Fasten with buttons

Example:

button the dress

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "button" is one way to...):

fasten; fix; secure (cause to be firmly attached)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Antonym:

unbutton (undo the buttons of)

Derivation:

button (a round fastener sewn to shirts and coats etc to fit through buttonholes)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Provide with buttons

Example:

button a shirt

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "button" is one way to...):

add (make an addition (to); join or combine or unite with others; increase the quality, quantity, size or scope of)

"Button" entails doing...:

run up; sew; sew together; stitch (fasten by sewing; do needlework)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

button (a round fastener sewn to shirts and coats etc to fit through buttonholes)

Credits

 Context examples: 

The closure can also be produced with vacuum buttons that can clearly indicate to the packer if a vacuum has been effectively drawn following the closure application.

(Lug Metal Container Closure, Food and Drug Administration)

Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI) Does the patient engage in repetitive activities such as handling buttons, picking, wrapping string, etc.?

(NPI - Engage in Repetitive Activities, NCI Thesaurus)

Metallic mercury is used in glass thermometers, silver dental fillings, and button batteries.

(Mercury, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry)

Health Assessment Questionnaire Disability Index - Dressing & Grooming: Are you able to dress yourself, including tying shoelaces and doing buttons?

(HAQ-DI - Able to Dress Yourself, NCI Thesaurus/CDISC)

Health Assessment Questionnaire Disability Index (HAQ-DI) Dressing and grooming: are you able to dress yourself, including tying shoelaces and doing buttons?

(HAQ-DI - Able to Dress Yourself, NCI Thesaurus)

A button and circuits designed to force the shutdown of a machine or device.

(Emergency Stop Button Device Component, NCI Thesaurus)

You haven't half buttoned one cuff, do it at once.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

Weedon Scott pressed a button, and the staircase and downstairs hall were flooded with light.

(White Fang, by Jack London)

Yes, I was right: it was Mr. Brocklehurst, buttoned up in a surtout, and looking longer, narrower, and more rigid than ever.

(Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë)

He was dressed in a single-breasted black coat buttoned up, a pair of leather pantaloons stretched tightly across his broad thighs, polished Hessian boots, and a huge white neckcloth.

(Rodney Stone, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)