How to Use mortise in a Sentence

mortise

noun
  • For a long time, there weren't any smart mortise-style locks.
    — Dan Diclerico, Good Housekeeping, 10 May 2022
  • The router is used to create a smooth face inside the mortise where the wafers used to be.
    — Tim Carter, Hartford Courant, 3 Jan. 2026
  • The framing square is used to lay out on the face of the stringers where the mortises will be.
    — Tim Carter, Hartford Courant, 3 Jan. 2026
  • The mortise method preserves all the strength of the 2×12.
    — Tim Carter, Hartford Courant, 3 Jan. 2026
  • The wood chisel is used to square up the two inside corners of the mortise.
    — Tim Carter, Hartford Courant, 3 Jan. 2026
  • For example, the notch for a hinge (called a hinge mortise) may have been cut a little too deeply.
    — Roy Berendsohn, Popular Mechanics, 9 Nov. 2018
  • Barnes attaches the slabs to the ends with a fastener-free mortise and tenon.
    — Popular Mechanics Editors, Popular Mechanics, 24 Apr. 2021
  • Instead, posts and beams were fitted together with mortise and tenon joints.
    — John Kelly, Washington Post, 28 Nov. 2020
  • Drill a relief hole in a corner, then cut out the mortise using a jigsaw [3].
    — Ted Kilcommons, Popular Mechanics, 12 June 2021
  • The thick perimeter pieces and crosspieces were joined with interlocking mortise and tenon joints.
    — Washington Post, 17 June 2019
  • Finish each mortise in three or four light passes to avoid burning the bit or overloading the motor.
    — Darren Orf, Popular Mechanics, 8 Aug. 2020
  • Cut a shallow sloping notch around the perimeter, then finish the hinge mortise by paring as shown [5].
    — Thomas Klenck, Popular Mechanics, 14 Aug. 2021
  • The treads fit into the mortises and are attached to the stringers by driving nails or screws through the outer face of the stringers into the ends of the treads.
    — Tim Carter, Hartford Courant, 3 Jan. 2026
  • Tape around the mortise and tenons, and fill the voids with a sanded grout mixture, adding pigment to match the bench color if desired [10].
    — David Agrell and Eric Weil, Popular Mechanics, 25 July 2020
  • The structure was built using mortise and tenon, with pegs for extra strength-- a technique lost in the following century.
    — Adele Foster, NOLA.com, 16 July 2017
  • Check out those New England-style post caps, the fence salesman thought, that classic mortise-and-tenon construction.
    — Danielle Paquette, Washington Post, 31 May 2026
  • The IglooHome smart mortise lock combines those with a keypad and lever, and comes with hotel-like access fobs for those who don’t want to use the app.
    — Joshua Fruhlinger, WSJ, 11 July 2018
  • The hardwood frame uses traditional mortise-and-tenon joinery, so this isn’t something that's going to wobble or creak on you.
    — Emma Tubbs, Architectural Digest, 28 Apr. 2026
  • Here the standard types of joint, such as mortise and tenon, tongue and groove, and dovetail, are developed with ingenious intricacy.
    — Michael J. Lewis, WSJ, 20 Apr. 2021
  • This bike is a collection of interlocking tubes held together by mortise-and-tenon construction and bolt collars.
    — Kevin Purdy, Ars Technica, 5 Feb. 2023
  • The Egyptian ships were also unique in that they were held together with mortise-and-tenon joints, tab-and-slot fittings that needed no metal fasteners and could be taken apart and put back together again.
    — Andrew Curry, Discover Magazine, 5 Sep. 2011
  • At the heart of it all, a floating staircase—crafted with traditional mortise-and-tenon joinery—suspends between masonry and exposed studs, leading to a bright, airy interior with three wood-burning fireplaces.
    — Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 16 Sep. 2025
  • Design detailing includes mortise-and-tenon joinery, handmade hardware and simple curved arches that soften the severely straight, parallel-sided appearance.
    — Darren Orf, Popular Mechanics, 8 Aug. 2020

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

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