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Rib   /rɪb/   Listen
noun
Rib  n.  
1.
(Anat.) One of the curved bones attached to the vertebral column and supporting the lateral walls of the thorax. Note: In man there are twelve ribs on each side, of which the upper seven are directly connected with the sternum by cartilages, and are called sternal, or true, ribs. The remaining five pairs are called asternal, or false, ribs, and of these each of the three upper pairs is attached to the cartilage of the rib above, while the two lower pairs are free at the ventral ends, and are called floating ribs. See Thorax.
2.
That which resembles a rib in form or use. Specifically:
(a)
(Shipbuilding) One of the timbers, or bars of iron or steel, that branch outward and upward from the keel, to support the skin or planking, and give shape and strength to the vessel.
(b)
(Mach. & Structures) A ridge, fin, or wing, as on a plate, cylinder, beam, etc., to strengthen or stiffen it.
(c)
One of the rods on which the cover of an umbrella is extended.
(d)
A prominent line or ridge, as in cloth.
(e)
A longitudinal strip of metal uniting the barrels of a double-barreled gun.
3.
(Bot.)
(a)
The chief nerve, or one of the chief nerves, of a leaf.
(b)
Any longitudinal ridge in a plant.
4.
(Arch.)
(a)
In Gothic vaulting, one of the primary members of the vault. These are strong arches, meeting and crossing one another, dividing the whole space into triangles, which are then filled by vaulted construction of lighter material. Hence, an imitation of one of these in wood, plaster, or the like.
(b)
A projecting mold, or group of moldings, forming with others a pattern, as on a ceiling, ornamental door, or the like.
5.
(Mining)
(a)
Solid coal on the side of a gallery; solid ore in a vein.
(b)
An elongated pillar of ore or coal left as a support.
6.
A wife; in allusion to Eve, as made out of Adam's rib. (Familiar & Sportive) "How many have we known whose heads have been broken with their own rib."
Chuck rib, a cut of beef immediately in front of the middle rib. See Chuck.
Fore ribs, a cut of beef immediately in front of the sirloin.
Middle rib, a cut of beef between the chuck rib and the fore ribs.
Rib grass. (Bot.) Same as Ribwort.


verb
Rib  v. t.  (past & past part. ribbed; pres. part. ribbing)  
1.
To furnish with ribs; to form with rising lines and channels; as, to rib cloth.
2.
To inclose, as with ribs, and protect; to shut in. "It (lead) were too gross To rib her cerecloth in the obscure grave."
To rib land, to leave strips of undisturbed ground between the furrows in plowing.





Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48


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"Rib" Quotes from Famous Books



... a song the keel he fashioned, With another, sides he fashioned, And he sang again a third time. And the rudder he constructed, 110 Bound the rib-ends firm together, And the joints ...
— Kalevala, Volume I (of 2) - The Land of the Heroes • Anonymous
... completion of the X-ray pictures disclosed the fact that the bullet laid between the fourth and fifth ribs, three and one-half inches from the surface of the chest, on the right side, and later examinations disclosed that it had shattered the fourth rib somewhat, and was separated by only a delicate ...
— The Attempted Assassination of ex-President Theodore Roosevelt • Oliver Remey
... has ever maintained in her contests with foreign nations. The boatswain's mates, and the quartermasters, are really handsome men, weatherbeaten and bold. Williams, one of the latter, seems a most eccentric character. He is married, and constantly receives letters from his absent rib: these, however, he never takes the trouble to open, but keeps them all neatly tied up. On his return, he says, she can read them to him, all ...
— Journal of a Visit to Constantinople and Some of the Greek Islands in the Spring and Summer of 1833 • John Auldjo
... Raffaelle. There is a beautiful instance by the former in the frescoes of the Ricardi palace, where behind the adoring angel groups the landscape is governed by the most absolute symmetry; roses and pomegranates, their leaves drawn to the last rib and vein, twine themselves in fair and perfect order about delicate trellises; broad stone pines and tall cypresses overshadow them, bright birds hover here and there in the serene sky, and groups of angels, hand joined with hand, and wing with wing, ...
— Modern Painters Volume II (of V) • John Ruskin
... It was curved, and a shred of green metal still clung to the rusty remains of an ancient hand-fashioned nail. He looked up with sudden excitement. "It's a section of a ship rib. And a pretty old one, too." His finger indicated the shred of metal. "Copper. Or used to be." He broke it off. "Completely oxidized. It's been in the water a long time, ...
— The Wailing Octopus • Harold Leland Goodwin


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