Word.ws English Dictionary

babbitt

Syllables: bab·bitt/ˈbæbət//ˈbæbɪt/

babbitt is the ellipsis of babbitt metal or Babbitt metal.

babbitt is the alternative letter-case form of Babbitt.

Verb

babbitt (third-person singular simple present babbitts, present participle babbitting, simple past and past participle babbitted)

  1. (transitive) To line (something) with babbitt metal to reduce friction.
    • The main bearings were babbitted and line-bored.
    • The caps for these journal-boxes or bearings may be Babbited by this same jig, and they would, of course, exactly conform to the other portions of the bearings in the frame. […] This drilling jig is a negative of the interior of the frame. It has two sets of bearings, c d and e f, which are at...1867 October 29, John Underwood, Improved Babbitting and Drilling Jig, US Patent 0070294 (PDF version), page 1

Proper noun capitalized: Babbitt

Babbitt (countable and uncountable, plural Babbitts)

  1. A surname.
  2. A city in Saint Louis County, Minnesota, United States.

Noun (1) capitalized: Babbitt

Babbitt (plural Babbitts)

  1. (US, dated) A person who subscribes complacently to materialistic middle-class ideals.
    • A Babbitt met a Bromide on the avenue one day. They held a conversation in their own peculiar way.1927 Ira Gershwin, "The Babbit and the Bromide," from the stage musical "Funny Face" (1927). Lyrics collected in: Louis Kronenberger (2008) An Anthology of Light Verse, p.234
    • One speaks of a babbitt habit, a babbitt era. Nothing is more true. America recognized itself in Babbitt, it demurred, but it also admired.1930, The Literary digest, volume 105, Funk and Wagnalls, page 21

Noun (2) capitalized: Babbitt

Babbitt (countable and uncountable, plural Babbitts)

  1. (dated) Alternative letter-case form of babbitt (“a soft white alloy of variable composition (for example, nine parts of tin to one of copper, or fifty parts of tin to five of antimony and one of copper) used in bearings to diminish friction”).
    • Figure 2 represents a top plan of the "Babbitting" jig, placed in or upon a cast-iron frame, preparatory to the pouring or casting of the "Babbitt" or other soft metal on to or around its journals, to form journal bearings in said cast-iron frame.1867 October 29, John Underwood, Improved Babbitting and Drilling Jig, US Patent 0070294 (PDF version), page 1
    • The cross-head is cast of crucible steel and faced with Babbitt. […] The rod is secured to the crank pin by body bound bolts, this bearing being provided with Babbitt shells which are prevented from turning by paper liners extending to the pin.1895 June, “The Fisher Self-oiling Engine”, in Power, volume XV, number 6, New York, N.Y.; Chicago, Ill.: McGraw-Hill Publishing Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 10, column 2

Synonyms of babbitt

Forms of babbitt

Noun
pluralbabbitts
alternative formbabbit
alternative formBabbitt
pluralBabbitts
alternative formBabbit
alternative formbabbitt
Verb
third-person singular presentbabbitts
present participlebabbitting
past participlebabbitted
pastbabbitted
Proper noun
pluralBabbitts

Origin of babbitt

The noun is derived from Babbitt, the surname of the American inventor Isaac Babbitt (1799–1862) who invented the alloy. The verb is derived from the noun.

From Babbitt, the surname of George Babbitt, the title character of the novel Babbitt (1922) by the American author Sinclair Lewis (1885–1951). The word was also popularized by the George (1898–1937) and Ira Gershwin (1896–1983) song “The Babbitt and the Bromide”, first featured in the 1927 musical Funny Face and later in the film Ziegfeld Follies (1945).

From the surname of George Babbitt, the title character of the novel Babbitt (1922) by the American author Sinclair Lewis (1885–1951). The word was also popularized by the George (1898–1937) and Ira Gershwin (1896–1983) song “The Babbitt and the Bromide”, first featured in the 1927 musical Funny Face and later in the film Ziegfeld Follies (1945).

Words formed from babbitt

Phrases with babbitt

Words that rhyme with babbitt

Questions about babbitt

What does babbitt mean?
Babbitt means to line (something) with babbitt metal to reduce friction.
What is babbitt the ellipsis of?
Babbitt is the ellipsis of babbitt metal or Babbitt metal.
What part of speech is babbitt?
Babbitt can be a verb, a proper noun or a noun.
How do you pronounce babbitt?
Babbitt is pronounced /ˈbæbɪt/ (UK).
What is the past tense of babbitt?
The past tense of babbitt is babbitted.

Words near babbitt in the dictionary

  1. babbit
  2. babbited
  3. babbiting
  4. babbitry
  5. babbits
  6. babbitt
  7. babbitt metal
  8. babbitt metals
  9. Babbitt's metal
  10. Babbitt's metals
  11. babbitted

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: babbitt (page history and authors); Babbitt (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-I learned some phrases-babbitt.wav.

Cite this entry: “babbitt.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/babbitt. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.