English Dictionary |
CUSHION
Pronunciation (US): | (GB): |
IPA (US): |
Dictionary entry overview: What does cushion mean?
• CUSHION (noun)
The noun CUSHION has 3 senses:
1. a mechanical damper; absorbs energy of sudden impulses
2. the layer of air that supports a hovercraft or similar vehicle
3. a soft bag filled with air or a mass of padding such as feathers or foam rubber etc.
Familiarity information: CUSHION used as a noun is uncommon.
• CUSHION (verb)
The verb CUSHION has 1 sense:
Familiarity information: CUSHION used as a verb is very rare.
Dictionary entry details
Sense 1
Meaning:
A mechanical damper; absorbs energy of sudden impulses
Classified under:
Nouns denoting man-made objects
Synonyms:
cushion; shock; shock absorber
Context example:
the old car needed a new set of shocks
Hypernyms ("cushion" is a kind of...):
damper; muffler (a device that decreases the amplitude of electronic, mechanical, acoustical, or aerodynamic oscillations)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "cushion"):
air cushion; air spring (a mechanical device using confined air to absorb the shock of motion)
Holonyms ("cushion" is a part of...):
suspension; suspension system (a mechanical system of springs or shock absorbers connecting the wheels and axles to the chassis of a wheeled vehicle)
Derivation:
cushion (protect from impact)
Sense 2
Meaning:
The layer of air that supports a hovercraft or similar vehicle
Classified under:
Nouns denoting man-made objects
Hypernyms ("cushion" is a kind of...):
bed; layer (single thickness of usually some homogeneous substance)
Sense 3
Meaning:
A soft bag filled with air or a mass of padding such as feathers or foam rubber etc.
Classified under:
Nouns denoting man-made objects
Hypernyms ("cushion" is a kind of...):
cushioning; padding (artifact consisting of soft or resilient material used to fill or give shape or protect or add comfort)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "cushion"):
air cushion; inflatable cushion (a cushion usually made of rubber or plastic that can be inflated)
gaddi (a cushion on a throne for a prince in India)
hassock (a cushion for kneeling on (as when praying in church))
head restraint; headrest (a cushion attached to the top of the back of an automobile's seat to prevent whiplash)
pillow (a cushion to support the head of a sleeping person)
pincushion (a small stiff cushion into which pins are stuck ready for use)
seat cushion (a cushion that makes a seat more comfortable)
throw pillow (a small cushion that is used for decorative purposes)
Derivation:
cushiony (softened by the addition of cushions or padding)
Conjugation: |
Past simple: cushioned
Past participle: cushioned
-ing form: cushioning
Sense 1
Meaning:
Protect from impact
Classified under:
Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging
Synonyms:
Context example:
cushion the blow
Hypernyms (to "cushion" is one way to...):
modify (make less severe or harsh or extreme)
Sentence frame:
Something ----s something
Derivation:
cushion (a mechanical damper; absorbs energy of sudden impulses)
cushioning (artifact consisting of soft or resilient material used to fill or give shape or protect or add comfort)
Context examples
Cardiac muscle lacking ALK3 is specifically deficient in expressing TGFb2, an established paracrine mediator of cushion morphogenesis.
(ALK Pathway, NCI Thesaurus/BIOCARTA)
You can also injure other parts of the ankle such as tendons, which join muscles to bone, and cartilage, which cushions your joints.
(Ankle Injuries and Disorders, NIH)
They might also hide in the seams of chairs and couches, between cushions, and in the folds of curtains.
(Bedbugs, Environmental Protection Agency)
It forms a cushion to help the tendon or muscle slide smoothly over the bone.
(Bursitis, NCI Dictionary)
It's similar to how a sofa cushion decompresses when you remove your weight from it.
(Antarctica's Effect on Sea Level Rise in Coming Centuries, NASA)
Wife, go home, and give him a good dinner, and let him have my old cushion to sleep on as long as he lives.
(Fairy Tales, by The Brothers Grimm)
I replied, “I, Miss Mills! I have done it! Behold the destroyer!”—or words to that effect—and hid my face from the light, in the sofa cushion.
(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)
Holmes laughed softly to himself and stretched himself out upon the cushioned seat.
(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
These disks cushion the vertebrae and keep them in place.
(Herniated Disk, NIH: National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases)
He carried a cushion, upon which lay a small and fluffy lapdog.
(Rodney Stone, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
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