jamb

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“
He leaned against the door-jamb, and gazed into her eyes.

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Definitions (11)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (2)

  1. noun One of a pair of vertical posts or pieces that together form the sides of a door, window frame, or fireplace, for example.
  2. noun A projecting mass or columnar part.

Toggle Century definitions Century Dictionary (5)

Toggle GNU Webster definitions GNU Webster's 1913 (3)

Toggle WordNet definitions WordNet (1)

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Examples (50)

  • Her pale hand appeared on the door jamb, and the door swung open. —  Asimov's Science Fiction, Jan. 2002
  • He slammed the thick door and secured it by imbedding his dagger in the jamb, then tied the latch down with his belt. —  Witch Star.htm
  • Denise stood leaning against the bathroom door's jamb, her arms folded, her eyes fixed on nothing in particular as she took in what her husband had been telling her. —  AHMM,January-February2008
  • Her head slammed against the jamb, and in the split second granted her for reflection she saw little bluebirds flying around in a circle. —  A Taint in the Blood
  • The hand she rested on the door jamb was a waxy-white claw, a blue vein standing up prominently under the skin tight-drawn over gnarly finger joints. —  AUGUST, 1953 VOL
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This word has been looked up 98 times.

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Etymologies (2)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (1)

  1. Middle English jambe, from Old French, leg, jamb, from Late Latin gamba, horse's hock, leg; see gambol.

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (1)

  1. Formerly also jaumb, jaumbe, jaum; from Middle English jambe, jaumbe, jamne, from Old French jambe, leg, shank, ham, corbel, pier, side post of a door (in the last sense also, in modern F. exclusively, jambage); = Spanish gamba, Old Spanish camba = Portuguese gambia = Italian gamba, the leg, from Late Latin gamba, ahoof (Middle Latin in deriv. the leg, camba, leg-armor, jambe), orig. *camba, perhaps of Celtic origin (cf. Welsh cam, crooked, later English cam, q. v.), but in any case connected with L. camur, crooked, camera, camara, Greek καμάρα, a vault, chamber (later English camera, camber, chamber, etc., q. v.), and ult. with English ham, q. v. From Late Latin gamba are also ult. gamb, gamba, gambade, gambit, gambol, gammon, etc., and words following.
 

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/dʒæm/
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