What does bolster mean?

Definitions for bolster
ˈboʊl stərbol·ster

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word bolster.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. bolster, long pillowverb

    a pillow that is often put across a bed underneath the regular pillows

  2. bolster, bolster upverb

    support and strengthen

    "bolster morale"

  3. bolsterverb

    prop up with a pillow or bolster

  4. pad, bolsterverb

    add padding to

    "pad the seat of the chair"

Wiktionary

  1. bolsternoun

    A large cushion or pillow.

  2. bolsterverb

    To brace, reinforce, secure, or support.

  3. Etymology: Akin to Old Norse bólstr (> Danish bolster), German Polster, polstern.

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

  1. BOLSTERnoun

    Etymology: bolstre, Sax. bolster, Dutch.

    Perhaps some cold bank is her bolster now,
    Or ’gainst the rugged bark of some broad elm,
    Leans her unpillow’d head. John Milton.

    This arm shall be a bolster for thy head;
    I’ll fetch clean straw to make a soldier’s bed. John Gay.

    Up goes her hand, and off she slips
    The bolsters that supply her hips. Jonathan Swift.

    The bandage is the girt, which hath a bolster in the middle, and the ends tacked firmly together. Richard Wiseman, Surgery.

  2. To Bolsterverb

    Etymology: from the noun.

    Mortal eyes do see them bolster,
    More than their own. William Shakespeare, Othello.

    The practice of bolstering the cheeks forward, does little service to the wound, and is very uneasy to the patient. Samuel Sharp.

    We may be made wiser by the publick persuasions grafted in men’s minds, so they be used to further the truth, not to bolster errour. Richard Hooker, b. iii. § 4.

    The lawyer sets his tongue to sale for the bolstering out of unjust causes. George Hakewill, on Providence.

    It was the way of many to bolster up their crazy, doating consciences with confidences. South.

Wikipedia

  1. Bolster

    A bolster is a long narrow pillow or cushion filled with cotton, down or fibre. Bolsters are usually firm for back or arm support or for decorative application. They are not a standard size or shape and commonly have a zipper or hook-and-loop enclosure. A foam insert is sometimes used for additional support. A bolster is also referred to as a cushion, a pillow and a prop. A bolster pillow is a common shape for lace pillows.

ChatGPT

  1. bolster

    A bolster is to support or strengthen something. It can also refer to a long, thick pillow that is placed under other pillows for support. In general, it refers to anything that provides reinforcement or a boost.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Bolsternoun

    a long pillow or cushion, used to support the head of a person lying on a bed; -- generally laid under the pillows

  2. Bolsternoun

    a pad, quilt, or anything used to hinder pressure, support any part of the body, or make a bandage sit easy upon a wounded part; a compress

  3. Bolsternoun

    anything arranged to act as a support, as in various forms of mechanism, etc

  4. Bolsternoun

    a cushioned or a piece part of a saddle

  5. Bolsternoun

    a cushioned or a piece of soft wood covered with tarred canvas, placed on the trestletrees and against the mast, for the collars of the shrouds to rest on, to prevent chafing

  6. Bolsternoun

    anything used to prevent chafing

  7. Bolsternoun

    a plate of iron or a mass of wood under the end of a bridge girder, to keep the girder from resting directly on the abutment

  8. Bolsternoun

    a transverse bar above the axle of a wagon, on which the bed or body rests

  9. Bolsternoun

    the crossbeam forming the bearing piece of the body of a railway car; the central and principal cross beam of a car truck

  10. Bolsternoun

    the perforated plate in a punching machine on which anything rests when being punched

  11. Bolsternoun

    that part of a knife blade which abuts upon the end of the handle

  12. Bolsternoun

    the metallic end of a pocketknife handle

  13. Bolsternoun

    the rolls forming the ends or sides of the Ionic capital

  14. Bolsternoun

    a block of wood on the carriage of a siege gun, upon which the breech of the gun rests when arranged for transportation

  15. Bolsterverb

    to support with a bolster or pillow

  16. Bolsterverb

    to support, hold up, or maintain with difficulty or unusual effort; -- often with up

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. Bolster

    bōl′stėr, n. a long round pillow or cushion: a pad: anything resembling it in form or use, esp. any piece of mechanism affording a support against pressure.—v.t. to support with a bolster: to hold up.—p.adj. Bol′stered, supported: swelled out.—n. Bol′stering, a propping up or supporting. [A.S. bolster; from root of Bowl.]

CrunchBase

  1. Bolster

    Bolster improves the home remodeling experience by providing an insurance product that guarantees the outcome of every remodeling project. Bolster helps clients learn the true cost of their project in advance, vets and underwrites their contractor of choice, and provides expert project-management advice. For the first time, homeowners are protected against common nightmare scenarios such as unjustified price increases, shoddy workmanship, and project delays. Bolster is a software application available on the web and any mobile device.

Military Dictionary and Gazetteer

  1. bolster

    A block of wood on the carriage of a siege-gun, and on the mortar-wagon upon which the gun rests when moving it from place to place. The first is a breach-, the second a muzzle-bolster.

  2. bolster

    A cushioned or padded part of a saddle.

Surnames Frequency by Census Records

  1. BOLSTER

    According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Bolster is ranked #14902 in terms of the most common surnames in America.

    The Bolster surname appeared 1,986 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 would have the surname Bolster.

    94.4% or 1,875 total occurrences were White.
    2.6% or 53 total occurrences were of Hispanic origin.
    1.2% or 24 total occurrences were of two or more races.
    0.8% or 17 total occurrences were Asian.
    0.5% or 10 total occurrences were American Indian or Alaskan Native.
    0.3% or 7 total occurrences were Black.

Matched Categories

Usage in printed sourcesFrom: 

Anagrams for bolster »

  1. bolters

  2. lobster

  3. trobles

How to pronounce bolster?

How to say bolster in sign language?

Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of bolster in Chaldean Numerology is: 8

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of bolster in Pythagorean Numerology is: 1

Examples of bolster in a Sentence

  1. Atheendar Venkataramani:

    The study is important because it shows that when economic opportunities collapse, it not only has consequences for people's economic wellbeing but it might adversely affect their health too, economic opportunity matters for our health, and as the forces that are shifting economic opportunities for people are continuing to evolve, we have to think about how policies can both make people resilient -- from a health sense -- to the negative changes that might happen, and we also have to think about what types of policies on the economic side may actually give people opportunities, which may also bolster their health.

  2. State John Kerry:

    We both believe that we have an understanding of the direction we are going in and what needs to be achieved and our teams will meet shortly and we are going to continue to do that in order to bolster the cessation of hostilities and in order to increase our capacity to fight back against al Qaeda, which is Nusra, as well as fight back against ISIL.

  3. Lockheed Martin Corp:

    We are certainly interested in another potential opportunity to bolster our longstanding partnership with Japan, we look forward to learning more about Japan's F-3 plans as discussions progress.

  4. Somalia Nick Kay:

    But scaling back now will crush the hopes of millions of Somalis, endanger peace and security in the Horn of Africa and East Africa, bolster violent extremism globally and risk a renewed exodus of refugees, reducing effort should not be an option.

  5. Doug Ducey:

    Anything we can do to further bolster these efforts is good news for Arizona and for our national security.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

bolster#10000#25153#100000

Translations for bolster

From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary

Get even more translations for bolster »

Translation

Find a translation for the bolster definition in other languages:

Select another language:

  • - Select -
  • 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
  • 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
  • Español (Spanish)
  • Esperanto (Esperanto)
  • 日本語 (Japanese)
  • Português (Portuguese)
  • Deutsch (German)
  • العربية (Arabic)
  • Français (French)
  • Русский (Russian)
  • ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
  • 한국어 (Korean)
  • עברית (Hebrew)
  • Gaeilge (Irish)
  • Українська (Ukrainian)
  • اردو (Urdu)
  • Magyar (Hungarian)
  • मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
  • Indonesia (Indonesian)
  • Italiano (Italian)
  • தமிழ் (Tamil)
  • Türkçe (Turkish)
  • తెలుగు (Telugu)
  • ภาษาไทย (Thai)
  • Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
  • Čeština (Czech)
  • Polski (Polish)
  • Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
  • Românește (Romanian)
  • Nederlands (Dutch)
  • Ελληνικά (Greek)
  • Latinum (Latin)
  • Svenska (Swedish)
  • Dansk (Danish)
  • Suomi (Finnish)
  • فارسی (Persian)
  • ייִדיש (Yiddish)
  • հայերեն (Armenian)
  • Norsk (Norwegian)
  • English (English)

Word of the Day

Would you like us to send you a FREE new word definition delivered to your inbox daily?

Please enter your email address:


Citation

Use the citation below to add this definition to your bibliography:

Style:MLAChicagoAPA

"bolster." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 21 Nov. 2024. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/bolster>.

Discuss these bolster definitions with the community:

0 Comments

    Are we missing a good definition for bolster? Don't keep it to yourself...

    Image or illustration of

    bolster

    Credit »

    Free, no signup required:

    Add to Chrome

    Get instant definitions for any word that hits you anywhere on the web!

    Free, no signup required:

    Add to Firefox

    Get instant definitions for any word that hits you anywhere on the web!

    Quiz

    Are you a words master?

    »
    a state of irritation or annoyance
    A caddie
    B huff
    C abrade
    D abet

    Nearby & related entries:

    Alternative searches for bolster: