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Webster 1913 Edition

Button

But′ton

,
Noun.
[OE.
boton
,
botoun
, F.
bouton
button, bud, prop. something pushing out, fr.
bouter
to push. See
Butt
an end.]
1.
A knob; a small ball; a small, roundish mass.
2.
A catch, of various forms and materials, used to fasten together the different parts of dress, by being attached to one part, and passing through a slit, called a buttonhole, in the other; – used also for ornament.
3.
A bud; a germ of a plant.
Shak.
4.
A piece of wood or metal, usually flat and elongated, turning on a nail or screw, to fasten something, as a door.
5.
A globule of metal remaining on an assay cupel or in a crucible, after fusion.
Button hook
,
a hook for catching a button and drawing it through a buttonhole, as in buttoning boots and gloves.
–
Button shell
(Zool.)
,
a small, univalve marine shell of the genus
Rotella
.
–
Button snakeroot
.
(Bot.)
(a)
The American composite genus
Liatris
, having rounded buttonlike heads of flowers.
(b)
An American umbelliferous plant with rigid, narrow leaves, and flowers in dense heads.
–
Button tree
(Bot.)
,
a genus of trees (
Conocarpus
), furnishing durable timber, mostly natives of the West Indies.
–
To hold by the button
,
to detain in conversation to weariness; to bore; to buttonhole.

But′ton

,
Verb.
T.
[
imp. & p. p.
Buttoned
;
p. pr. & vb. n.
Buttoning
.]
[OE.
botonen
, OF.
botoner
, F.
boutonner
. See
Button
,
Noun.
]
1.
To fasten with a button or buttons; to inclose or make secure with buttons; – often followed by up.
He was a tall, fat, long-bodied man,
buttoned
up to the throat in a tight green coat.
Dickens.
2.
To dress or clothe.
[Obs.]
Shak.

But′ton

,
Verb.
I.
To be fastened by a button or buttons;
as, the coat will not
button
.

Webster 1828 Edition

Button

BUT'TON

,
Noun.
but'n.
1.
A knob; a small ball; a catch, used to fasten together the different parts of dress, made of metal, silk, mohair, wood, &c.
2.
Any knob or ball fastened to another body; a small protuberant body.
3.
A bud; a gem of a plant.
4.
The button of the reins of a bridle, is a ring of leather, with the reins passed through, which runs along the length of the reins.
5.
A flat piece of wood, turning on a nail or screw, to fasten doors.
6.
A small round mass of metal, found at the bottom of a crucible, in chimical experiments.
7.
The sea-urchin, an animal which has prickles instead of feet.

BUT'TON

,
Verb.
T.
but'n. To fasten with a button, or buttons; to inclose, or make secure with buttons; often followed with up, as to button up a waistcoat.
1.
To dress or clothe. [Not used.]

Definition 2024

Button

Button

See also: button

English

Proper noun

Button

  1. A surname​.

button

button

See also: Button

English

Noun

button ‎(plural buttons)

  1. A knob or disc that is passed through a loop or (buttonhole), serving as a fastener. [from the mid-13th c.]
    • 1898, Winston Churchill, chapter 1, in The Celebrity:
      I liked the man for his own sake, and even had he promised to turn out a celebrity it would have had no weight with me. I look upon notoriety with the same indifference as on the buttons on a man's shirt-front, or the crest on his note-paper.
    April fastened the buttons of her overcoat to keep out the wind.‎
  2. A mechanical device meant to be pressed with a finger in order to open or close an electric circuit or to activate a mechanism.
    Pat pushed the button marked "shred" on the blender.‎
  3. (graphical user interface) An on-screen control that can be selected as an activator of an attached function.
    Click the button that looks like a house to return to your browser's home page.‎
  4. (US) A badge worn on clothes, fixed with a pin through the fabric.
    The politician wore a bright yellow button with the slogan "Vote Smart" emblazoned on it.‎
  5. (botany) A bud.
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Shakespeare to this entry?)
  6. (slang) The clitoris.
  7. (curling) The center (bullseye) of the house.
  8. (fencing) The soft circular tip at the end of a foil.
  9. (poker) A plastic disk used to represent the person in last position in a poker game; also dealer's button.
  10. (poker) The player who is last to act after the flop, turn and river, who possesses the button.
  11. A raised pavement marker to further indicate the presence of a pavement marking painted stripe.
  12. (South Africa, slang) A methaqualone tablet (used as a recreational drug).
  13. A piece of wood or metal, usually flat and elongated, turning on a nail or ****, to fasten something, such as a door.
  14. A globule of metal remaining on an assay cupel or in a crucible, after fusion.
  15. A knob; a small ball; a small, roundish mass.
  16. A small white blotch on a cat's coat.
  17. (Britain, archaic) A unit of length equal to 1/12 of an inch.

Usage notes

For the senses 2 and 3, a button is often marked by a verb rather than a noun, and the button itself is called with the verb and button. For example, a button to start something is generally called start button.

Derived terms

Translations

See also

Verb

button ‎(third-person singular simple present buttons, present participle buttoning, simple past and past participle buttoned)

  1. (transitive) To fasten with a button. [from the late 14th c.]
    • Charles Dickens
      He was a tall, fat, long-bodied man, buttoned up to the throat in a tight green coat.‎
  2. (intransitive) To be fastened by a button or buttons.
    The coat will not button.‎

Derived terms

Translations

Etymology

From Middle English boton, botoun, from Old French boton (Modern French bouton), from Old French bouter, boter ‎(“to push; thrust”), ultimately from a Germanic language. More at butt.

Shirt button (sense 1)
Push button (sense 2)

Pronunciation

  • (UK, US) IPA(key): /ˈbʌtn̩/, /ˈbʌtən/, [ˈbʌʔn̩]
  • Rhymes: -ʌtən

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