tenon Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun a projection at the end of a piece of wood that is shaped to fit into a mortise and form a mortise joint

WordNet

Ten"on noun
Etymology
F., fr. tenir to hold. See Tenable.
Definitions
  1. (Carp. & Join.) A projecting member left by cutting away the wood around it, and made to insert into a mortise, and in this way secure together the parts of a frame; especially, such a member when it passes entirely through the thickness of the piece in which the mortise is cut, and shows on the other side. Cf. Tooth, Tusk.
Ten"on transitive verb
Definitions
  1. To cut or fit for insertion into a mortise, as the end of a piece of timber.

Webster 1913