Curb (k?rb), v. t. [imp. &
p. p. Curbed (k?rbd); p. pr. & vb.
n. Curbing.] [F. courber to bend, curve,
L. curvare, fr. curvus bent, curved; cf. Gr.
?????? curved. Cf. Curve.] 1.
To bend or curve [Obs.]
Crooked and curbed lines.
Holland.
2. To guide and manage, or restrain, as
with a curb; to bend to one's will; to subject; to subdue; to
restrain; to confine; to keep in check.
Part wield their arms, part curb the
foaming steed.
Milton.
Where pinching want must curbthy warm
desires.
Prior.
3. To furnish wich a curb, as a well;
also, to restrain by a curb, as a bank of earth.
Curb, v. i. To bend; to
crouch; to cringe. [Obs.]
Virtue itself of vice must pardon beg,
Yea, curb and woo for leave to do him good.
Shak.
Curb, n. 1.
That which curbs, restrains, or subdues; a check or
hindrance; esp., a chain or strap attached to the upper part of
the branches of a bit, and capable of being drawn tightly against
the lower jaw of the horse.
He that before ran in the pastures wild
Felt the stiff curb control his angry jaws.
Drayton.
By these men, religion,that
should be
The curb, is made the spur of tyranny.
Denham.
2. (Arch.) An assemblage of three
or more pieces of timber, or a metal member, forming a frame
around an opening, and serving to maintain the integrity of that
opening; also, a ring of stone serving a similar purpose, as at
the eye of a dome.
3. A frame or wall round the mouth of a
well; also, a frame within a well to prevent the earth caving
in.
4. A curbstone.
5. (Far.) A swelling on the back
part of the hind leg of a horse, just behind the lowest part of
the hock joint, generally causing lameness. James
Law.
Curb bit, a stiff bit having branches by
which a leverage is obtained upon the jaws of horse.
Knight. -- Curb pins (Horology),
the pins on the regulator which restrain the hairspring.
-- Curb plate (Arch.), a plate
serving the purpose of a curb. -- Deck
curb. See under Deck.