harness

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

• noun The gear or tackle, other than a yoke, with which a draft animal pulls a vehicle or implement.
• noun Something resembling such gear or tackle, as the arrangement of straps used to hold a parachute to the body.
• noun A device that raises and lowers the warp threads on a loom.
• noun Archaic Armor for a man or horse.
• transitive verb To put a harness on (a draft animal).
• transitive verb To fasten by the use of a harness.
• transitive verb To bring under control and direct the force of.
• idiom (in harness) On duty or at work.

from The Century Dictionary.

• noun Nautical, an obsolete term for the furniture of a ship.
• To dress in armor; equip with armor for war, as a man or horse.
• To fit out; equip; dress.
• To equip or furnish for defense.
• To put harness or working-tackle on, as a horse.
• To fit up or put together with metal mountings.
• To fasten to a boat by the toggle-iron and tow-line, as a whale.
• noun The defensive armor and weapons of a soldier, especially of a knight; in general, and especially in modern poetical use, a suit of armor.
• noun Clothing; dress; garments.
• noun The working-gear or tackle of a horse, mule, ass, goat, dog, or other animal (except the ox) used for draft; the straps, collar, bridle, lines, traces, etc., put upon a draft-animal to enable it to work and to guide its actions. See cut in next column.
• noun Hence Figuratively, working-tackle of any kind; an equipment for any kind of labor; also, that which fits or makes ready for labor: as, his duties keep him constantly in the harness.
• noun The apparatus in a loom by which the sets of warp-threads are shifted alternately to form the shed. It consists of the heddles and their means of support and motion. Also called mounting.
• noun The mechanism by which a large bell is suspended and tolled.
• noun Temper; humor: alluding to the behavior of a horse in harness.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

• noun Originally, the complete dress, especially in a military sense, of a man or a horse; hence, in general, armor.
• noun The equipment of a draught or carriage horse, for drawing a wagon, coach, chaise, etc.; gear; tackling.
• noun The part of a loom comprising the heddles, with their means of support and motion, by which the threads of the warp are alternately raised and depressed for the passage of the shuttle.
• noun to die with armor on; hence, colloquially, to die while actively engaged in work or duty.
• transitive verb To dress in armor; to equip with armor for war, as a horseman; to array.
• transitive verb Fig.: To equip or furnish for defense.
• transitive verb To make ready for draught; to equip with harness, as a horse. Also used figuratively.
• transitive verb (Zoöl.) See Guib.
• transitive verb (Zoöl.) an American bombycid moth (Arctia phalerata of Harris), having, on the fore wings, stripes and bands of buff on a black ground.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

• noun countable A restraint or support, especially one consisting of a loop or network of rope or straps.
• noun countable A collection of wires or cables bundled and routed according to their function.
• verb transitive to place a harness on something; to tie up or restrain
• verb transitive to capture, control or put to use

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

• verb exploit the power of
• verb put a harness
• noun stable gear consisting of an arrangement of leather straps fitted to a draft animal so that it can be attached to and pull a cart
• verb control and direct with or as if by reins
• noun a support consisting of an arrangement of straps for holding something to the body (especially one supporting a person suspended from a parachute)
• verb keep in check