mitre

 
Pronunciation: /ˈmʌɪtə/
(US miter)

noun

  • 1a tall headdress worn by bishops and senior abbots as a symbol of office, tapering to a point at front and back with a deep cleft between.
  • 2 (also mitre joint) a joint made between two pieces of wood or other material at an angle of 90°, such that the line of junction bisects this angle: [as modifier]: a mitre saw
  • a diagonal seam between two pieces of fabric that are sewn together at a corner.
  • 3 (also mitre shell) a mollusc of warm seas which has a sharply pointed shell with a narrow aperture, supposedly resembling a bishop’s mitre.
    • Family Mitridae, class Gastropoda: Mitra and other genera

verb

[with object]
  • join by means of a mitre joint or seam: turn up a double hem, mitring the corners

Origin:

late Middle English: from Old French, via Latin from Greek mitra 'belt or turban'

Spelling help

Spell mitre with -re at the end (the spelling miter is American).