breech

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

• noun The lower rear portion of the human trunk; the buttocks.
• noun A breech presentation or delivery.
• noun A fetus in breech presentation.
• noun Knee breeches.
• noun Informal Trousers.
• noun The part of a firearm behind the barrel.
• noun The lower part of a pulley block.

from The Century Dictionary.

• noun Breeches.
• noun The lower part of the body behind.
• noun The hinder part of anything; specifically, the mass of metal behind the bore of a cannon, or the part of a small arm back of the barrel, including the rear of the latter in breech-loaders.
• noun Nautical, the angle of a knee-timber, the inside of which is called the throat.
• To put into or clothe with breeches.
• To cover to the breech or hilt.
• [Various other readings and interpretations, such as reeched (soiled with a dark yellow), drenched, sheathed, etc., have been proposed by Shaksperian commentators.]
• To whip on the breech.
• To fit or furnish with a breech: as, to breech a gun.
• To fasten by a breeching.
• To suffer whipping on the breech.
• noun The lowest quality or sort of wool from the fleece of the sheep: it is taken from the hinder part.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

• noun The lower part of the body behind; the buttocks.
• noun obsolete Breeches.
• noun The hinder part of anything; esp., the part of a cannon, or other firearm, behind the chamber.
• noun (Naut.) The external angle of knee timber, the inside of which is called the throat.
• transitive verb To put into, or clothe with, breeches.
• transitive verb Poetic To cover as with breeches.
• transitive verb To fit or furnish with a breech.
• transitive verb obsolete To whip on the breech.
• transitive verb To fasten with breeching.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

• noun nautical The external angle of knee timber, the inside of which is called the throat.
• noun A breech birth.
• adverb With the hips coming out before the head.
• adjective Born, or having been born, breech.
• verb dated, transitive To dress in breeches. (especially) To dress a boy in breeches or trousers for the first time.
• verb dated, transitive To beat or spank on the buttocks.
• verb transitive To fit or furnish with a breech.
• verb transitive To fasten with breeching.
• verb poetic, transitive, obsolete To cover as if with breeches.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

• noun opening in the rear of the barrel of a gun where bullets can be loaded