spur: Meaning and Definition of

spur

Pronunciation: (spûr), [key]
— n., v., spurred, spur•ring.
—n.
  1. a-shaped device that slips over and straps to the heel of a boot and has a blunt, pointed, or roweled projection at the back for use by a mounted rider to urge a horse forward.
  2. anything that goads, impels, or urges, as to action, speed, or achievement.
  3. See
  4. a stiff, usually sharp, horny process on the leg of various birds, esp. the domestic rooster, or on the bend of the wing, as in jacanas and screamers.
  5. a bony projection or exostosis.
  6. a sharp piercing or cutting instrument fastened to the leg of a gamecock in cockfighting; gaff.
  7. a ridge or line of elevation projecting from or subordinate to the main body of a mountain or mountain range.
  8. something that projects and resembles or suggests a gaff; sharp projection.
  9. a short or stunted branch or shoot, as of a tree.
  10. a short, seriflike projection from the bottom of the short vertical stroke in the capital G in some fonts.
  11. See
    1. a slender, usually hollow, projection from some part of a flower, as from the calyx of the larkspur or the corolla of the violet.
    2. a short shoot bearing flowers, as in fruit trees.
    1. a short wooden brace, usually temporary, for strengthening a post or some other part.
    2. any offset from a wall, as a buttress.
    3. griffe2.
  12. a triangular support of refractory clay for an object being fired.
  13. See
  14. without deliberation; impulsively; suddenly: We headed for the beach on the spur of the moment.
  15. to achieve distinction or success for the first time; prove one's ability or worth: Our team hasn't won its spurs yet.
—v.t.
  1. to prick with or as if with a spur or spurs; incite or urge on: The rider spurred his mount ruthlessly. Appreciation spurs ambition.
  2. to strike or wound with the spur, as a gamecock.
  3. to furnish with spurs or a spur.
—v.i.
  1. to goad or urge one's horse with spurs or a spur; ride quickly.
  2. to proceed hurriedly; press forward: We spurred onward through the night.

spur

Pronunciation: (spûr), [key]
— n. Papermaking.
  1. a batch of newly made rag-paper sheets.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
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