WordWeight : Weighing the Words

Pronunciation : Sock"et
Part of Speech : n.
Etymology : [OE. soket, a dim. through OF. fr. L. soccus. See Sock a covering for the foot.]
Definition : 1. An opening into which anything is fitted; any hollow thing or place which receives and holds something else; as, the sockets of the teeth. His eyeballs in their hollow sockets sink. Dryden.

2. Especially, the hollow tube or place in which a candle is fixed in the candlestick. And in the sockets oily bubbles dance. Dryden. Socket bolt (Mach.), a bolt that passes through a thimble that is placed between the parts connected by the bolt. -- Socket chisel. Same as Framing chisel. See under Framing. -- Socket pipe, a pipe with an expansion at one end to receive the end of a connecting pipe. -- Socket pole, a pole armed with iron fixed on by means of a socket, and used to propel boats, etc. [U.S.] -- Socket wrench, a wrench consisting of a socket at the end of a shank or rod, for turning a nut, bolthead, etc., in a narrow or deep recess.
Source : Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913