header

[hed-er] /ˈhɛd ər/
noun
1.
a person or thing that removes or puts a head on something.
2.
a reaping machine that cuts off and gathers only the heads of the grain.
3.
a chamber to which the ends of a number of tubes are connected so that water or steam may pass freely from one tube to the other.
4.
Automotive. an exhaust manifold.
5.
Building Trades.
  1. a brick or stone laid in a wall or the like so that its shorter ends are exposed or parallel to the surface.
    Compare stretcher (def 5).
  2. a framing member crossing and supporting the ends of joists, studs, or rafters so as to transfer their weight to parallel joists, studs, or rafters.
6.
Informal. a plunge or dive headfirst, as into water:
He stumbled and took a header into the ditch.
7.
Soccer. a pass or shot made by heading the ball.
8.
a sign that is part of or attached to the top of a rack displaying merchandise.
9.
Computers. a line of information placed at the top of a page for purposes of identification.
Origin
1400-50; late Middle English heder. See head, -er1
Examples from the web for headers
  • Wheat headers are similar except that the reel is not equipped with teeth.
British Dictionary definitions for headers

header

/ˈhɛdə/
noun
1.
Also called header tank. a reservoir, tank, or hopper that maintains a gravity feed or a static fluid pressure in an apparatus
2.
a manifold for distributing a fluid supply amongst a number of passages
3.
a machine that trims the heads from castings, forgings, etc, or one that forms heads, as in wire, to make nails
4.
a person who operates such a machine
5.
a brick or stone laid across a wall so that its end is flush with the outer surface Compare stretcher (sense 5)
6.
the action of striking a ball with the head
7.
(informal) a headlong fall or dive
8.
(computing)
  1. a block of data on a tape or disk providing information about the size, location, etc, of a file
  2. (as modifier): header card, header label
9.
(dialect) a mentally unbalanced person
Word Origin and History for headers

header

n.

"head-first dive or plunge," 1849, from head (n.); as a type of pass or shot with the head in soccer, by 1906.

Slang definitions & phrases for headers

header

noun
  1. A head-first dive, fall, or plunge (1849+)
  2. A pass, shot at the goal, etc, made by batting the ball with one's head (1906+ Soccer)
Related Terms

doubleheader


Encyclopedia Article for headers

header

machine for harvesting grain, developed in the United States, Canada, and Australia; along with the binder, it was standard equipment for harvesting wheat in the United States and Canada until early in the 20th century, when the grain combine was widely adopted. The header clipped the heads of grain from the stalks and elevated them into a header barge, a wagon with one low side over which the cut material could be pitched out with forks onto a stack. Later in the autumn, the grain was threshed by a threshing machine.

Learn more about header with a free trial on Britannica.com