/ ˈmɔːtə(r); NAmE ˈmɔːrt-/ noun , verb
■ noun
1.
[ U ] a mixture of sand, water, lime and cement used in building for holding bricks and stones together
2.
[ C ] a heavy gun that fires bombs and shells high into the air; the bombs that are fired by this gun :
to come under mortar fire / attack
3.
[ C ] a small hard bowl in which you can crush substances such as seeds and grains into powder with a special object (called a pestle )
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IDIOMS
see brick noun
■ verb
[ v , vn ] to attack sb/sth using a mortar
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WORD ORIGIN
noun senses 2 to 3 and verb late Old English (in sense 3), from Old French mortier , from Latin mortarium (to which the English spelling was later assimilated).
noun sense 1 Middle English : from Old French mortier , from Latin mortarium , probably a transferred sense of the word denoting a container.