noun
- the diagonal face at the end of the blade of a chisel, or the like, leading to the edge.
- Jewelry.
- that part of a ring, bracelet, etc., to which gems are attached.
- crown(def 27).
- a grooved ring or rim holding a gem, watch crystal, etc., in its setting.
- Automotive. the part of a vehicle’s bodywork that surrounds a light.
noun
- the sloping face adjacent to the working edge of a cutting tool
- the upper oblique faces of a cut gem
- a grooved ring or part holding a gem, watch crystal, etc
- a retaining outer rim used in vehicle instruments, e.g. in tachometers and speedometers
- a small indicator light used in vehicle instrument panels
1610s, “sloping edge,” also “groove in which a stone is set,” from Old French *besel (13c.; Modern French biseau), cognate with Spanish bisel; of uncertain origin, perhaps literally “a stone with two angles,” from Vulgar Latin *bis-alus, from bis- “twice” (see bis-) + ala “wing, side” (see alar). Meaning “oblique face of a gem” is from c.1840. The verb meaning “grind (a tool) down to an edge” is from 1670s.