yoke

n. [ OE. yok, &yogh_;oc, AS. geoc; akin to D. juk, OHG. joh, G. joch, Icel. & Sw. ok, Dan. aag, Goth. juk, Lith. jungas, Russ. igo, L. jugum, Gr. zy`gon, Skr. yuga, and to L. jungere to join, Gr. &unr_;, Skr. yui. √109, 280. Cf. Join, Jougs, Joust, Jugular, Subjugate, Syzygy, Yuga, Zeugma. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. A bar or frame of wood by which two oxen are joined at the heads or necks for working together. [ 1913 Webster ]

A yearling bullock to thy name shall smoke,
Untamed, unconscious of the galling yoke. Pope. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ The modern yoke for oxen is usually a piece of timber hollowed, or made curving, near each end, and laid on the necks of the oxen, being secured in place by two bows, one inclosing each neck, and fastened through the timber. In some countries the yoke consists of a flat piece of wood fastened to the foreheads of the oxen by thongs about the horns. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A frame or piece resembling a yoke, as in use or shape. Specifically: (a) A frame of wood fitted to a person's shoulders for carrying pails, etc., suspended on each side; as, a milkmaid's yoke. (b) A frame worn on the neck of an animal, as a cow, a pig, a goose, to prevent passage through a fence. (c) A frame or convex piece by which a bell is hung for ringing it. See Illust. of Bell. (d) A crosspiece upon the head of a boat's rudder. To its ends lines are attached which lead forward so that the boat can be steered from amidships. (e) (Mach.) A bent crosspiece connecting two other parts. (f) (Arch.) A tie securing two timbers together, not used for part of a regular truss, but serving a temporary purpose, as to provide against unusual strain. (g) (Dressmaking) A band shaped to fit the shoulders or the hips, and joined to the upper full edge of the waist or the skirt. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Fig.: That which connects or binds; a chain; a link; a bond connection. [ 1913 Webster ]

Boweth your neck under that blissful yoke . . .
Which that men clepeth spousal or wedlock. Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

This yoke of marriage from us both remove. Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. A mark of servitude; hence, servitude; slavery; bondage; service. [ 1913 Webster ]

Our country sinks beneath the yoke. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

My yoke is easy, and my burden is light. Matt. xi. 30. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. Two animals yoked together; a couple; a pair that work together. [ 1913 Webster ]

I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them. Luke xiv. 19. [ 1913 Webster ]

6. The quantity of land plowed in a day by a yoke of oxen. [ Obs. ] Gardner. [ 1913 Webster ]

7. A portion of the working day; as, to work two yokes, that is, to work both portions of the day, or morning and afternoon. [ Prov. Eng. ] Halliwell. [ 1913 Webster ]

8. (Chiefly Mach.) A clamp or similar piece that embraces two other parts to hold or unite them in their respective or relative positions, as a strap connecting a slide valve to the valve stem, or the soft iron block or bar permanently connecting the pole pieces of an electromagnet, as in a dynamo. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

Neck yoke,
Pig yoke. See under Neck, and Pig. --
Yoke elm (Bot.), the European hornbeam (Carpinus Betulus), a small tree with tough white wood, often used for making yokes for cattle. [ 1913 Webster ]