bolster

CEFRC1

/ˈbɒlstə/

verb · noun

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    verb

    To support or strengthen something.

  2. 02

    verb

    Extra detail

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

Examples

  • Anti-foreign sentiment is often stoked by the Chinese government in order to bolster cheap nationalism.

  • It's amazing how a single compliment can bolster one's confidence for so long.

At a glance

Sits at C1 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
2
Citations
5
Synonyms
4

Also pronounced

  • /ˈboʊlstɚ/

Deep Dive

verb

Extra meaning

  1. A small spacer located on top of the axle of horse-drawn wagons that gives the front wheels enough clearance to turn.

noun

Extra meanings

  1. A large cushion or pillow, usually cylindrical in shape.

  2. A short, horizontal structural timber between a post and a beam for enlarging the bearing area of the post and/or reducing the span of the beam.

More examples

In context

  • You need some evidence to bolster your claim.

  • And here I'll fling the pillow, there the bolster, / This way the coverlet, another way the sheets.

  • My health too has been better since you took away that Montero cap. I have left off cayenned eggs and such bolsters to discomfort.

Synonyms

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

To support the weakening bridge, engineers decided to blank its main beams.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

verb

From Middle English bolster, bolstre, from Old English bolster (“pillow”), from Proto-West Germanic *bolstr, from Proto-Germanic *bulstraz (“pillow, cushion”). Cognate with Scots bowster (“bolster”), West Frisian bulster (“mattress”), Dutch bolster (“husk, shell”), German Polster (“bolster, pillow, pad”), Swedish bolster (“soft mattress, bolster”), Icelandic bólstur (“pillow”).