Buttress definition
- The flared base of certain tree trunks.
- A horny growth on the heel of a horse's hoof.
A stone wall built against a wall to support the building is an example of a buttress.
When a wall is providing support for a building, this is an example of a situation where the wall is a buttress for the building.
When a fact supports a position or argument, this is an example of a fact that is a buttress for the argument.
Origin of buttress
- Middle English buteras from Old French bouterez from bouter to strike against of Germanic origin bhau- in Indo-European roots
From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
- From Old French bouterés, nominative singular of bouteret, from Frankish *botan, from Proto-Germanic *bautaną (“to push”). Ultimately cognate with beat.
From Wiktionary