1. 1. A heavy block of iron or steel with a smooth, flat top on which metals are shaped by hammering.
   2. Something resembling an anvil, as in shape or function.
2. The fixed jaw in a set of calipers against which an object to be measured is placed.
3. Anatomy. See incus (sense 1).

[Middle English anfilt, from Old English.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.