rivet

1 of 2

noun

riv·​et ˈri-vət How to pronounce rivet (audio)
: a headed pin or bolt of metal used for uniting two or more pieces by passing the shank through a hole in each piece and then beating or pressing down the plain end so as to make a second head

rivet

2 of 2

verb

riveted; riveting; rivets

transitive verb

1
: to fasten with or as if with rivets
2
: to upset the end or point of (something, such as a metallic pin, rod, or bolt) by beating or pressing so as to form a head
3
: to fasten or fix firmly
stood riveted by fright
4
: to attract and hold (something, such as a person's attention) completely
riveter noun

Examples of rivet in a Sentence

Verb The iron plates are riveted rather than welded. everyone riveted their eyes on the trick that the magician was performing on stage
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Typically, engineers programmed robots to perform the same precise motion again and again — like pick up a box of a certain size or attach a rivet in a particular spot on the rear bumper of a car. Cade Metz Balazs Gardi, New York Times, 11 Mar. 2024 But the reason that the door plug, and the missing bolts, were removed by Boeing was that the fuselage arrived at Boeing’s factory with problems with five rivets that had been done by Spirit AeroSystems. Chris Isidore, CNN, 1 Mar. 2024 To remedy the issue, dealers will drill through the spot welds and secure the bracket with rivets, free of charge. Mike Snider, USA TODAY, 26 Feb. 2024 The pieces of iron are secured by small clasps resembling the rivets that hold the structure together, and the medals’ ribbons are adorned with patterns of the tower’s latticework structure. Sonja Anderson, Smithsonian Magazine, 12 Feb. 2024 The room is a paradise for young, inquisitive minds, featuring life-size gadgets, metallic hatches, rivets, and many dials and test tubes. Jordi Lippe-McGraw, Forbes, 11 Feb. 2024 Cracks could typically form in the second row of rivets, which was the row responsible for shouldering much of the load. Andrew Zaleski, Popular Mechanics, 22 June 2023 Once the plug was removed for access to the rivets, Spirit AeroSystems employees in Renton completed the repairs. Mark Walker, New York Times, 6 Feb. 2024 This story has been corrected to note that a Spirit AeroSystems crew, not a Boeing crew, repaired the rivets. David Koenig, Quartz, 7 Feb. 2024
Verb
The inner workings of municipal entities may not sound like riveting comedic fodder, but Abbott wrings constant humor from the true-to-life hurdles that educators face (without turning their students into avatars of dysfunction). Hannah Giorgis, The Atlantic, 11 Mar. 2024 So with decent but not riveting characters, and a dry main plot, that leaves spectacle as the last thing 3 Body Problem can potentially hang its hat on. Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 9 Mar. 2024 So when a death penalty trial does happen, riveting legal arguments arise. The Enquirer, 27 Feb. 2024 The improbable survival of nearly half the flight's passengers despite brutal conditions and months without traditional food – survivors sustained themselves by eating the bodies of the dead – has riveted readers and movie fans for decades. USA TODAY, 9 Jan. 2024 One such case, which riveted the country for weeks, was a gruesome mutiny that took place aboard the Lu Rong Yu 2682 in 2011. Los Angeles Times, 7 Nov. 2023 This riveting two-part docuseries preceeded the fictional take seen in The Girl From Plainville, taking an unprejudiced and empathetic approach when exploring the complex case, presenting all the facts without vilifying one individual. James Mercadante and Lindsay Martell, EW.com, 21 Sep. 2023 The show riveted audiences both for its performances by Cherry Jones, Brían F. O’Byrne, Heather Goldenhersh, and Adriane Lenox and for Shanley’s refusal to definitively answer the question of whether Father Flynn had abused that child. Jim McDermott, Vulture, 2 Feb. 2024 Students on school trips to a Holocaust museum outside Detroit would stand riveted at one stark display: a Nazi officer’s black uniform with a red swastika armband, guns and a whip. Ralph Blumenthal, New York Times, 26 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'rivet.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, clinch on a nail, rivet, from Old French, from river to attach, rivet, probably from rive border, edge, bank, from Latin ripa

First Known Use

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of rivet was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near rivet

Cite this Entry

“Rivet.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rivet. Accessed 29 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

rivet

1 of 2 noun
riv·​et ˈriv-ət How to pronounce rivet (audio)
: a metal bolt with a head at one end used for uniting two or more pieces by passing the shank through a hole in each piece and then beating or pressing down the plain end so as to make a second head

rivet

2 of 2 verb
1
: to fasten with or as if with rivets
2
: to attract and hold (as one's attention) completely
riveter noun

More from Merriam-Webster on rivet

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