Teut.baggegemma; Isl.baug-r; Alem.boug, A. S.beag, Fr.bague, Ital.bagun, annulus.
BAUK, BAWK,s.1. One of the cross-beams in the roof of a house, which support and unite the rafters, S.2. The beam by which scales are suspended in a balance, S.
Teut.balck waeghe, a balance. We invert the term, making itweigh-bauks.
Germ.balk, Belg.balck, Dan.bielke, a beam.
BAUK, BAWK,s.A strip of land left unploughed, two or three feet in breadth, S.Statist. Acc.
A. S. and C. B.balc, Su. G.balk, porca, a ridge of land between two furrows; Isl.baulkur, lira in agro, vel alia soli eminentia minor.
BAUKIE,s.The razorbill, Alca torda, Orkn.Barry.
BAUSY,adj.Big, strong.Dunbar.
Su. G.basse, vir potens.
ToBAW,v. a.To hush, to lull.Watson.
Fr.bas, low.
V.Balow.
BAW,s.1. A ball, used in play, S.Ramsay.2. Money given to school-boys by a marriage company, to prevent their being maltreated; as otherwise they claim a right to cut the bride's gown, S. This is the same withBall money, E.V.Coles.
Corr. from E.ball.
BAWAW,s.An oblique look, implying contempt or scorn, S. B.Ross.
BAWBIE,s.A half-penny.V.Babie.
BAWBURD,s.The larboard, or the left side of a ship.Douglas.
Fr.bas-bord; Isl.batforda, id.
BAWD,s. A hare, Aberd.Poems Buchan Dial.
A. S. Ir. and Gael,mioldenotes a beast of whatever kind,miol bhuide, orboide, is a hare; alsopatas.
BAWD-BREE,s.Hare-soup, Aberd.
BAWDEKYN,s.Cloth of gold.
Fr.baldachin,baldaquin,baudequin, L. B.baldachinum, tissue de fil d'or.
ToBAWME,v. a.1. To embalm.
Fr.em-baum-er.
Wyntown.2. To cherish, to warm.Douglas.
BAWSAND, BASSAND, BAWSINT,adj.1. Having a white spot on the forehead or face; a term applied to a horse, cow, &c., S.Douglas.2. It seems to be used as equivalent to brindled or streaked, S. A.Minstrelsy Bord.
Hence, it would seem,bassie, an old horse, S.
Fr.balzan,balsan, a horse that has a white mark on the feet; deduced from Ital.balzano, and this from Lat.bal-ius, a horse that has a white mark either on the forehead or feet. Germ.blaesse, Su. G.blaes, a white mark on the forehead of a horse. Hence perhaps E.blazon, andblaze.
BAWSY-BROWN,s.A hobgoblin; viewed as the same with Robin Goodfellow of England, andBrownieof S.Bannatyne Poems.
Perhaps from Su. G.basse, vir potens, V.Bausy, orbase, spectrum, andbrun, fuscus, q. the strong goblin of a brown appearance.
BAXTER,s.A baker, S.V.Bakster.Ramsay.
BAZED, BASED, BASIT,part. pa.Watson's Coll.Maitland Poems.
Teut.baes-en, delirare; Belg.byse,bysen, turbatus; Su. G.bes-adenotes the state of animals so stung by insects, that they are driven hither and thither; Fr.bez-er, id.
BE,prep.1. By, as denoting the cause, agent, or instrument, S.Barbour.2. Towards, in composition; as,be-east, towards the east;be-west, towards the west, S.Wyntown.3. Of, concerning; as,be the, concerning thee.Wallace.4. By the time that.Diallog.5. During, expressive of the lapse of time.Keith.
A. S.be, per; de; circa.
Be than, by that time.
BE,part. pa.Been.Douglas.
ToBEAL.V.Beil.
BEANSHAW.V.Benshaw.
ToBEAR, BER, BERE,v. a.To bear on hand, to affirm, to relate.Wyntown.
To bear upon, to restrain one's self, S. B.Ross.
BEAR, BERE,s.Barley, having four rows of grains, S. Hordeum vulgare, Linn.Wyntown.
A. S.bere, Moes. G.bar, hordeum.
BEAR LAND, land appropriated for a crop of barley, S.To go through the bear land withone, to tell him all the grounds of umbrage at his conduct, to pluck a crow with him, S.
BEARIS BEFOR, Ancestors.Wallace.
A translation of Lat.antecessores.
BEARANCE,s.Toleration, S.J. Nicol.
BEAT,s.A stroke, a blow, a contusion, S. B. apparently the same withBytused in this sense by Douglas.
ToBEBBLE,v. a.1. To swallow any liquid in small, but frequent draughts; whether the liquor be intoxicating or not, S.2. To tipple,v. n."He's aybebblingand drinking;" he is much given to tippling, S.
It seems to be formed from Lat.bibereto drink, in the same manner asbibulus, soaking, drinking, or taking it wet.
BECHT,part. pa.Tied; Gl. Rudd.
Germ.bieg-en, flectere, is probably the origin.
ToBECK, BEK,v. s.1. To make obeisance, to cringe, S.Bannatyne Poems.2. To curtsy; as restricted to the obeisance made by a woman, and contra-distinguished from bowing.
Isl.beig-a, Germ.bieg-en, to bow.
BECK, BEK,s.A curtsy, S.Maitland Poems.
BEDDY,adj.Expressive of a quality in grey-hounds; the sense uncertain.Watson's Coll.
It may signify, attentive to the cry of the huntsman. Fr.baudé, "a cry as of hounds, Breton;" Cotgr. It may, however, be the same word which occurs in the S. Prov.; "Breeding wives are aybeddie;" Kelly, p. 75. "Covetous of some silly things," N. In this sense it is probably allied to Isl.beid-a, A. S.bidd-an, Moes. G.bid-jan, Belg.bidd-en, to ask, to supplicate, to solicit.
BEDE,pret.Offered; from the v.Bid.Sir Gawan and Sir Gal.
Chaucer uses the v.Bedeas signifying to offer.
A. S.baed, obtulit, frombeodan.
BEDELUIN,part. pa.Buried, hid under ground.Douglas.
A. S.bedelfen, sepultus, infossus;be-delf-an, circumfodere.
BEDENE, BY DENE,adv.1. Quickly, forthwith.Barbour.2. It seems also to signify, besides, moreover; in addition, as respecting persons.Gawan and Gol.3. It undoubtedly signifies, in succession, or "one after another."Gawan and Gol.
Asbelyve, very similar in sense, is undoubtedly the imperat. ofbelif-an, q.wait,stay;bedenemay have been formed in the same manner, from Germ.bedien-en, to serve, to obey.
BEDIS,s. pl.Prayers.King's Quair.
Germ.bed-en; Germ.ge-bet, prayer. Hence O. E.bidde, and the phrase,to bidde prayers, to ask, to solicit them.
BEDE-HOUSE,s.A term used for an alms-house, S. B.Statist. Acc.
BEDE-MAN, BEIDMAN,s.1. A person who resides in a bede-house, or is supported from the funds appropriated for this purpose, S.Statist. Acc.2. In the Court of Exchequer, this term is used to denote one of that class of paupers who enjoy the royal bounty. The designation has originated from some religious foundation, in times of popery.Bedmanoccurs in O. E.V.Assoilyie, sense 3.
The origin is A. S.bead, a prayer. Hence, says Verstegan, the name ofBeads, "they being made to pray on, andBeadsman."
BEDYIT,part. pa.Dipped.Douglas.
A. S.deag-an, tingere.
BEDOYF,part. pa.Besmeared, fouled.Douglas.
Su. G.doft,dupt, pulvis; or A. S.bedof-en, submersus, dipped.
BEDOWIN,part. pa.Douglas.
Rudd. expl.bedowyne, besmeared, deriving it from Belg.bedauwen, to bedew, or sprinkle.
BEDRAL,s.A person who is bedrid.V.Orphelin.
BEDREL,adj.Bedrid, Galloway.Douglas.
Corr. perhaps from A. S.bedrida, id.; Teut.bedder, clinicus, Germ.bed-reise.
BEDUNDER'D,part. pa.Stupified, confounded, S. q. having the ear deafened by noise.
Su. G.dundr-a, Belg.dender-en, tonare, to thunder.
BEE,s.The hollow between the ribs and hip-bone of a horse, S. B.
Perhaps from A. S.bige,byge, flexus, angulus, sinus;big-an,byg-ean, flectere, curvare.
BEE-ALE,s.A species of beer, or rather mead, made from the refuse of honey; S. B. This in Clydes. is calledswats.
BEE-BREAD,s.The substance that goes to the formation of bees, S.
A. S.beo-breadsignifies honeycomb.
BE-EAST, Towards the East.V.Be,prep.
BEELDE, BELD,s."Properly an image.—Model of perfection or imitation." Gl. Wynt.Wyntown.
A. S.bilith,bild, Belg.beeld,beld, Sw.bild, imago.
ToBEENGE, BYNGE,v. a.To cringe, in the way of making much obeisance, S.V.Beck.Ferguson.
This is undoubtedly from A. S.bens-ian, also writtenboens-ian, to ask as a suppliant; supplicitor petere, orare;bensiende, supplicans.
BEENJIN, improperly written, is expl. "fawning."J. Nicol.
BEEVIT,part. pa.Perhaps, installed as a knight.Gawan and Gol.
A. S.befeht, cinctus, girded, Somn.
V.Falow.
ToBEFF, BAFF,v. a.To beat, to strike, S.Beft, beaten,pret.andpart. pa.Douglas.
It is used more simply, as referring to the act of beating with strokes; applied to metal.Douglas.
Doun Beftsignifies, beat down, overthrown.
BEFF, BAFF,s.A stroke.V.Baff.
BEFORN,prep.Before.Wallace.It occurs also in O. E.R. Brunne.
A. S.beforan, ante; coram.
BEFOROUTH,adv.Before, formerly.V.Forowth.Barbour.
BEFT,part. pa.Beaten.V.Beff.
ToBEGARIE,v. a.1. To variegate, to deck with various colours.Lyndsay.2. To stripe, to variegate with lines of various colours, to streak.Begaryit, striped,part. pa.Douglas.3. To besmear; to bedaub, to bespatter. "S.begaried, bedirted;" Rudd. vo.Laggerit.Lyndsay.
Thisv.has an evident affinity to ourGair,gare, a stripe of cloth, andGaired,gairy, q. v. The word is immediately allied to Fr.begarr-er, to diversify;begarré, of sundry colours, mingled.
BEGAIRIES,s. pl.Stripes or slips of cloth sewed on garments, by way of ornament, such as are now worn in liveries;pessments, S. synon.Acts Ja. VI.
BEGANE,part. pa.Covered;Gold begane, overlaid with gold.Douglas.
Aurea tecta, Virg. According to Rudd. q.gone over. Chaucer uses the phrase,With gold begon, Rom. Rose, 943., "painted over with gold," Tyrwh.
ToBEGECK, BEGAIK, BEGEIK,v. a.To deceive; particularly by playing the jilt, S.B.Dunbar.
Teut.gheck-en, deridere, ludibrio habere.
V.Geck.
BEGEIK, BEGINK, BEGUNK,s.1. A trick, or illusion, which exposes one to ridicule, S.Ramsay.2. It often denotes the act of jilting one in love; applied either to a male, or to a female, S.Begeikis the more common term, S. B.Morison.
BEGES, BEGESS,adv.By chance, at random.Evergreen.
Frombe, by, andgess, guess, Belg.ghisse.
BEGGER-BOLTS,s. pl."A sort of darts or missile weapons. The word is used by James VI. in his Battle of Lepanto, to denote the weapons of theforceats, or galley-slaves." Gl. Sibb. Hudson writesbeggers' bolts.
The word may have originated from contempt of the persons, who used these arms, q.boltsofbeggars.
BEGOUTH, BEGOUDE,pret.Began.Wyntown.Begoudis now commonly used, S.
A. S.gynn-an,beginn-an, seem to have had their pret. formed likeeode, fromgan, ire:Beginnan,begeode.
BEGRAUIN,part. pa.Buried, interred.Douglas.
A. S.graf-an, fodere; Teut.be-gra-ven, sepelire.
BEGRETTE,pret.Saluted.Douglas.
A. S.gret-an, Belg.be-groet-en, salutare.
BEGRUTTEN,part. pa.Having the face disfigured with weeping, S.
Sw.begratande, bewailing.
V.Greit.
BEGUILE,s.A deception, trick, the slip; sometimes a disappointment, S.Ross.
BEGUNKIT,part. adj.Cheated, Clydes.V.Begeck.
ToBEHALD,v. a.1. To behold, S.behaud.Wyntown.2. To have respect to, to view with favour or partiality.Douglas.
Spectat, Virg. A. S.beheald-an.
3. To wait, to delay; q. to look on for a while, S. used both as an active, and as a neuter verb.Ross.Beholdoccurs in the same sense.Baillie.
BEHAUYNGIS,s. pl.Manners, deportment.Bellenden.
Mores, Boeth.
V.Havings.
ToBEHECHT,v. n.To promise.Douglas.
Chaucer,behete, A. S.behaet-an, id. R. Glouc.behet; R. Brunne,be-hette, promised.
BEHECHT, BEHEST, BEHETE,s.1. Promise.Bellenden.2. Engagement, covenant.Douglas.3. Command.Douglas.
Chaucer,beheste, id.
BEHO, BOHO,s.A laughing-stock. "To mak aboho" of any thing, to hold it up to ridicule, S. B.
Alem.huohe, ludibrium.
ToBEHUFE,v. n.To be dependent on.Douglas.
A. S.behof-ian, Belg.behoev-en, to stand in need of, egere, opus habere.
BEJAN CLASS, a designation given to the Greek class in the Universities of St Andrew's and Aberdeen; as, till of late, in that of Edinburgh. Hence, the students in this class are denominatedBejans.
Fr.bejaune, a novice, an apprentice, a young beginner in any science, art, or trade. Cotgr. derivesbejaunefrombec jaulne, literally a yellow beak or bill. Du Cange observes that L. B.bejaunussignifies a young scholar of any university, andbejauniumthe festivity that is held on his arrival. The term is thus very emphatic, being primarily used in relation to a bird newly hatched, whose beak is of a deep yellow.
ToBEJAN,v. a.When a new shearer comes to a harvest-field, he is initiated by being lifted by the arms and legs, and struck down on a stone on his buttocks; Fife. This custom has probably had its origin in some of our universities. It is sometimes calledhorsing.
BEIK,s.A hive of bees.V.Byke.
ToBEIK, BEKE, BEEK,v. a.1. To bask, S.Barbour.2. To warm, to communicate heat to.Ramsay.3. It is often used in a neuter sense, S.Ywaine.
Belg.baeker-enis used in the same sense;baeker-en een kindt, to warm a child. We say, Tobeikin the sun; so, Belg.baekeren in de sonne. But our word is more immediately allied to the Scandinavian dialects; Su. G.bak-a, to warm.
BEIK,adj.Warm.Bannatyne Poems.
BEIK,s.1. This word primarily signifying the beak or bill of a fowl, is "sometimes used for a man's mouth, by way of contempt;" Rudd.Douglas.2. It is used, as a cant word, for a person; "an auldbeik," "a queerbeik," &c. S.
Belg.biek, Fr.bec, rostrum. It may be observed that the latter is metaph. applied to a person.
V.Bejan.
ToBEIL, BEAL,v. n.1. To suppurate, S.Maitland Poems.2. To swell or rankle with pain, or remorse; metaph. applied to the mind, S. B.Ross.Wodrow.
Belg.buyl-en, protuberare? Ihre derives Su. G.bold, a boil, from Isl.bolg-a, intumescere.
BEILIN,s.A suppuration, S.
BEILD, BIELD,s.1. Shelter, refuge, protection, S.Gawan and Gol.
"Every man bows to the bush he getsbieldfrae;" S. Prov. Every man pays court to him who gives him protection.
2. Support, stay, means of sustenance, S.Douglas.3. A place of shelter; hence, applied to a house, a habitation; S.Morison.
A. Bor.beild, id.
Beildingalso occurs, where it seems doubtful whether buildings or shelter be meant.Gawan and Gol.
Isl.baeledenotes both a bed or couch, and a cave, a lurking place; cubile, spelunca. It is highly probable, thatbaeleis radically the same with Isl.boele, domicilium, habitatio; frombo, to build, to inhabit.
ToBEILD,v. a.1. To supply, to support.Wallace.2. In one passage it seems to signify, to take refuge; in a neuter sense.Gawan and Gol.
This verb, it would seem, has been formed fromthe noun, q. v., or has a common origin with Isl.bael-a, used to denote the act of causing cattle to lie down.
BEILDY,adj.Affording shelter.Ramsay.
BEILD,adj.Bold.Houlate.
A. S.beald, id. A. S. Alem.belde, audacia.
BEILL,s.Perhaps, sorrow, care, q.baill.Bannatyne Poems.
BEIN,s.Bone, Ang.
One is said to beaw frae the bein, all from the bone, when proud, elevated, or highly pleased; in allusion, as would seem, to the fleshy parts rising from the bone, when the body is swollen.
BEIN, BEYNE,adj.Beinlier.V.Bene.
BEIR, BERE, BIR, BIRR,s.1. Noise, cry, roar.Douglas.The word is used in this sense by R. Glouc.2. Force, impetuosity; often as denoting the violence of the wind, S.Vir,virr, Aberd.Douglas.
O. E.bire,byre,birre. The term, especially as used in the second sense, seems nearly allied to Isl.byre(tempestas), Su. G.boer, the wind; which seem to acknowledgebyr-ia,boer-ia, surgere, as their root.
ToBEIR, BERE,v. s.To roar, to make a noise.Wallace.
Teut.baeren,beren, is expl. by Kilian; Fremere, sublatè et ferociter clamare more ursorum. The learned writer seems thus to view it as a derivative frombaere,bere, a bear.
BEIRD,s.A bard, a minstrel.V.Baird.Douglas.
BEYRD,pret.Laid on a bere.Maitland Poems.
From A. S.baer,baere, feretrum.
BEIRTH, BYRTHE,s.Burden, incumbrance, charge; Gl. Sibb.
Dan.byrde,byrth; Isl.byrd; Su. G.boerd-a; Belg.borde, A. S.byrth-in; from Moes. G.bair-an, Su. G.baer-a, to bear.
BEIS,v. s.Be, is; third p. sing. subj. S.Douglas.
Here the second pers. is improperly used for the third. A. S.byst, sis; Alem. Franc.bist, es, frombin, sum; Wachter, vo.Bin.
BEIS, BEES, One's head is said to bein the bees, when one is confused or stupified with drink or otherwise, S.Shirrefs.
Teut.bies-en, aestuari, furente impetu agitari; or from the same origin withBazed, q. v.
BEIST, BEISTYN,s.The first milk of a cow after she has calved, S.biestings, E.
A. S.beost,byst; Teut.biest,biest melck, id. (colostrum).
ToBEIT, BETE, BEET,v. a.1. To help, to supply; to mend, by making addition.Henrysone.To beit the fire, orbeit the ingle. To add fuel to the fire, S. "To beet, to make or feed a fire." Gl. Grose.To beit a mister, to supply a want, Loth.2. To blow up, to inkindle, applied to the fire.Douglas.3. To bring into a better state, by removing calamity or cause of sorrow.Wallace.
A. S.bet-an,ge-bet-an, to mend, to restore to the original state; Belg.boet-en; Isl.bet-a, Su. G.boet-a, id.boet-a klaeder, to repair or mend clothes. A. S.bet-an fyr, corresponds to the S. phrase mentioned above, struere ignem.
Bett,part. pa.Supplied.Wallace.
BEIT,s.An addition, a supply, S. B.V.thev.
BEITMISTER,s.That which is used in a strait, for supplying any deficiency; applied either to a person or to a thing; Loth.V.Beit,v.andMister.
ToBEKE,v. a.To bask.V.Beik.
BEKEND,part.Known; S. B.bekent.Douglas.
Germ.bekaunt, id. Teut.be-kennen, to know; A. S.be-cunnan, experiri.
BELCH, BAILCH, BILCH,s.(gutt.)1. A monster.Douglas.2. A term applied to a very lusty person, S. B."A bursen belch, orbilch, one who is breathless from corpulence, q. burst, like a horse that is broken-winded.Ross.
Teut.balgh, the belly; or as it is pron.bailg, Moray, from Su. G.bolg-ia,bulg-ia, to swell.
BELD,adj.Bald, without hair on the head, S.V.Bellit.Burns.
Seren. derives it from Isl.bala, planities. With fully as much probability might it be traced to Isl.bael-a, vastare, prosternere, to lay flat.
BELD,s.Pattern, model of perfection.V.Beelde.
BELD,imperf. v.Perhaps, took the charge of, or protected.Houlate.
Fr.bail, a guardian. In this sense it is nearly allied to E.bailed, Fr.bailler, to present, to deliver up. As, however, we have the wordbeild, shelter, protection,beldmay possibly belong to a verb corresponding in sense.
BELD CYTTES,s. pl.Bald coots.Houlate.
Thebald cootreceives its name from abaldspot on its head. It is vulgarly calledbell-kite, S.
BELDIT,part. pa.Imaged, formed.V.Beelde.Houlate.
Belg.beeld-en, Germ.bild-en, Sw.bild-a, formare, imaginari. A. S.bild,bilith, Germ. Sw.bild,belaete, an image.
ToBELE,v. s."To burn, to blaze."Wyntown.
This, however, may mean, bellowed, roared, from A. S.bell-an, Su. G.bal-a, id. Chaucer usesbellein the same sense.
BELE,s.A fire, a blaze.V.Bail.
ToBELEIF,v. a.To leave; pret.beleft.
A. S.beandleof-an, linquere.
Douglas.
ToBELEIF, BELEWE,v. a.To deliver up.Douglas.It is also used as av. n.with the prep.of.Barbour.
A. S.belaew-an, tradere;belaewed, traditus.
BELEFE,s.Hope.Douglas.
ToBELENE,v. n.To tarry; or perhaps, to recline, to rest.Sir Gawan.
A. S.bilen-ed, inhabited.
V.Leind.
Or allied to Germ.len-en, recumbere.
BELEWYT,imperf. v.Delivered up.V.Beleif,v.2.
BELGHE,s.Eructation, E.belch.Z. Boyd.
BELYVE, BELIFF, BELIUE, BELIFE,adv.1. Immediately, quickly.Douglas.2. By and by, S.Barbour.This seems to be the only modern sense of the term in S.3. At length.Douglas.4. It is used in a singular sense, S. B.Litle belive, orbilive, a small remainder.Popular Ball.
Chaucerbelive,blive, quickly; Gower,blyve, id. Hickes mentions Franc.belibe, as signifying protinus, confestim; and Junius refers to Norm. Sax.bilive. This is certainly the same word; from Alem. and Franc.belib-an, manere; A. S.belif-an, id.
ToBELY,v. a.To besiege.Spotswood.
TO BELL THE CAT, to contend, with one, especially, of superior rank or power; to withstand him, either by words or actions; to use strong measures, without regard to consequences, S.Godscroft.
Fr.Mettre la campane au chat, "to begin a quarrel, to raise a brabble; we say also, in the same sense, to hang the bell about the cat's neck." Cotgr.
ToBELLER,v. n.To bubble up.Bp. Galloway.
Isl.belg-ia, inflare buccas.
BELL-PENNY,s.Money laid up, for paying the expence of one's funeral; from the ancient use of the passing-bell. This word is still used in Aberbrothick.
BELL-KITE,s.The bald Coot.V.Beld Cyttes.
BELLAN,s.Fight, combat.Douglas.
Lat.bellum.
BELLE,s.Bonfire.V.Bail.
BELLING,s.The state of desiring the female; a term properly applied to harts.Douglas.
Rudd. derives the phrase from Fr.belier, a ram; but perhaps it is rather from Isl.bael-a,bel-ia,baul-a, Germ.bell-en, mugire, boare.
BELLIS,s. pl.Wallace.
BELLIT,adj.Bald.Fordun.Scotichron.
BELLY-BLIND,s.The play called Blind-man's buff, S. A.:Blind Harie, synon. S.Anciently this term denoted the person who was blindfolded in the game.Lyndsay.
In Su. G. this game is calledblind-bock, i. e. blind goat; and in Germ.blinde kuhe, q. blind cow. It is probable, that the term is the same withBilly Blynde, mentioned in the Tales of Wonder, and said to be the name of "a familiar spirit, or good genius."
BELLY-FLAUGHT.1. Toslay, orflay,belly-flaught, to bring the skin overhead, as in flaying a hare, S. B.Monroe's Iles.2. It is used in Loth. and other provinces, in a sense considerably different; as denoting great eagerness or violence in approaching an object.Ramsay.3. It is also rendered, "flat forward."J. Nicol.
BELLY-HUDDROUN.V.Huddroun.
BELLY-THRA,s.The colic.Gl. Complaynt.
A. S.belg, belly, andthra, affliction. This term, I am informed, is still used on the Border.
ToBELLWAVER,v. n.1. To straggle, to stroll, S.2. To fluctuate, to be inconstant; applied to the mind, S.
I am informed, however, that the pronunciation of the term in some places in the west of S. isbullwaver; and that it is primarily applied to abullwhen going after the cow, and hence transferred to man, when supposed to be engaged in some amorous pursuit.
The origin of the latter part of the v. is obvious; either from E.waveror L. B.wayviare, to stray. Perhaps the allusion may be to a ram or other animal, roaming with abellhung round its neck.
ToBELT,v. a.1. To gird, S.Hence, in our old balladsbelted knightsare often introduced.2. To gird, metaph. used in relation to the mind.Bellenden.3. To surround, to environ in a hostile manner.Bellenden.
Isl.belt-a, cingere zona.
ToBELT,v. a.To flog, to scourge, S.
ToBELT,v. n.To come forward with a sudden spring, S.
Isl.bilt-a,bilt-ast, signifies, to tumble headlong.
BELT,part. pa.Built.Douglas.
BELTANE, BELTEIN,s.The name of a sort of festival observed on the first day of May, O. S.; hence used to denote the term of Whitsunday.Peblis to the Play.
This festival is chiefly celebrated by the cow-herds, who assemble by scores in the fields, to dress a dinner for themselves, of boiled milk and eggs. These dishes they eat with a sort of cakes baked for the occasion, and having small lumps in the form ofnipples, raised all over the surface. The cake seems to have been an offering to some Deity in the days of Druidism.—In Ireland, Beltein is celebrated on the 21st June, at the time of the solstice. There, as they make fires on the tops of hills, every member of the family is made to pass through the fire; as they reckon this ceremony necessary to ensure good fortune through the succeeding year.—The Gael. and Ir. wordBeal-tineorBeil-tinesignifiesBel's Fire; as composed ofBaalorBelis, one of the names of the sun in Gaul, andteinsignifying fire. Even in Angus a spark of fire is called ateinorteind.
BELTH,s.Douglas.
This word may denote a whirlpool or rushing of waters. I am inclined, however, to view it, either as equivalent tobelch, only with a change in the termination,metri causa; or as signifying, figure, image, from A. S.bilith, Alem.bilid,bileth, id.
ToBEMANG,v. a.To hurl, to injure; to overpower, S. B.Minstrelsy Border.
ToBEME,v. n.1. To resound, to make a noise.Douglas.2. To call forth by sound of trumpet.Gawan and Gol.
Germ.bomm-en, resonare; or A. S.beam,bema, tuba. It is evident that beme is radically the same withbommen, because Germ.bomme, as well as A. S.beam, signifies a trumpet.
BEME,s.A trumpet;Bemys, pl.Gawan and Gol.
O. E.beem, id.
V.thev.
BEMYNG,s.Bumming, buzzing.Douglas.
BEN,adv.1. Towards the inner apartment of a house; corresponding toBut, S.Wyntown.It is also used as a preposition,Gae ben the house, Go into the inner apartment.
AButand aBen, S.; i. e. a house containing two rooms.Statist. Acc.
2. It is used metaph. to denote intimacy, favour, or honour. Thus it is said of one, who is admitted to great familiarity with another, who either is, or wishes to be thought his superior;He is far ben. "O'er far ben, too intimate or familiar," Gl. Shirr.Lyndsay.3. Leg. as in edit. 1670,far ben.
A. S.binnan, Belg.binnen, intus, (within);binnen-kamer, locus secretior in penetralibus domus; Kilian. Belg.binnen gaan, to go within, S.to gae ben;binnen brengen, to carry within, S.to bring ben.
BEN-END,s.1.The ben-end of a house, the inner part of it, S.2. Metaph., the best part of any thing; as,the ben-end of one's dinner, the principal part of it, S. B.
BEN-HOUSE,s.The inner or principal apartment, S.
BENNER,adj.A comparative formed fromben. Inner, S. B.Poems Buchan Dial.
BENMOST is used as a superlative, signifying innermost.Ferguson.
Teut.binnensteis synon.
BEN-INNO,prep.Within, beyond, S. B.Journal Lond.
Fromben, q. v. and A. S.inne, orinnon, within; Alem.inna; Isl.inne, id.
There-ben,adv.Within, in the inner apartment, S.V.Thairben.
BEND,s.1. Band, ribbon, or fillet; pl.bendis.Douglas."Bend, a border of a woman's cap, North.; perhaps fromband," Gl. Grose.2. It is used improperly for a fleece.Douglas.
A. S.bend,baende, Moes. G.bandi, Germ.band, Pers.bend, vinculum.
ToBEND,v. n.To drink hard; a cant term, S.Ramsay.
BEND,s.A pull of liquor, S.Ramsay.
BENDER,s.A hard drinker, S.Ramsay.
BENE,v. subst.Are.Bellenden.
Chaucer,ben, id. frombeon, third p. pl. subj. of the A. S. substantive verb.
BENE is also used forbe.King's Quair.
BENE, BEIN, BEYNE, BIEN,adj.1. Wealthy, well-provided, possessing abundance, S.Henrysone.
This is perhaps the most common sense of the term, S. Thus we say,A beneorbein farmer, a wealthy farmer, one who is in easy, or even in affluent circumstances;a bein laird, &c.
2. Warm, genial. In this sense it is applied to a fire, S.Douglas.3. Pleasant.Douglas.4. Happy, blissful, S.Ferguson.5. Splendid, showy.Wallace.6. Good, excellent in its kind.Dunbar.7. Eager, new-fangled. People are said to bebeinupon any thing that they are very fond of, Loth. In this sensebayneoccurs in O. E.
Isl.bein-asignifies to prosper, to give success to any undertaking.Bein, as allied to this, signifies hospitable;beine, hospitality, hospitis advenae exhibita beneficentia. G. Andr. mentions the v.beina, as signifying, hospitii beneficia praestare.Beini, hospitality, liberality.
BENELY, BEINLY,adv.In the possession of fulness, S.L. Scotland's Lament.
BENE,adv.Well;full bene, full well.Douglas.
This word is most probably from Lat.benè, well.
BENJEL,s.A heap, a considerable quantity; as "abenjelof coals," when many are laid at once on the fire, S. B.Bensil, however, is used in the same sense in the South and West of S.V.Bensell.
BENK, BINK,s.A bench, a seat. It seems sometimes to have denoted a seat of honour.Kelly.
Dan.benk, Germ.bank, scamnum; Wachter.
BENN,s.A sash.V.Bend.Statist. Acc.
BENORTH,prep.To the northward of;besouth, to the southward of, S.Wyntown.
BENSELL, BENSAIL, BENT-SAIL,s.1. Force, violence of whatever kind, S.Douglas.2. A severe stroke; properly that which one receives from a push or shove, S.3. "A severe rebuke," Gl. Shirr. "I got a terriblebensell;" I was severely scolded, S.4.Bensil of a fire, a strong fire, South and West of S.
It is not unlikely that the word was originallybent-sail, as alluding to a vessel driven by the force of the winds.
ToBENSEL,v. a.To bang, or beat, Gl. Sibb. "Bensel, to beat or bang. Vox rustica, Yorksh." Gl. Grose.
BENSHAW, BEANSHAW,s.A disease, apparently of horses.Polwart.
Formed perhaps from A. S.ban, Teut.been, os, andhef, elevatio; q. the swelling of the bone.
BENSHIE, BENSHI,s.Expl. "Fairy's wife."Pennant.
It has been observed, that this being, who is still reverenced as the tutelar daemon of ancient Irish families, is of pure Celtic origin, and owes her title to two Gaelic words,Benandsighean, signifying the head or chief of the fairies. But it seems rather derived from Ir. Gael.ben,beana woman, said by Obrien to be the root of the Lat.Venus, andsighe, a fairy or hobgoblin.
BENT,s.1. A coarse kind of grass, growing on hilly ground, S. Agrostis vulgaris, Linn. Common hair-grass.2. The coarse grass growing on the sea-shore, S. denoting the Triticum juncium, and also the Arundo arenaria.Lightfoot.3. The open field, the plain, S.Douglas.4. Togae to the bent, to provide for one's safety, to flee from danger, by leaving the haunts of men; as it is also vulgarly said,to tak the cuntrie on his back.Henrysone.
Teut.biendse; Germ.bintz,bins, a rush, juncus, scirpus; abinden, vincire, quia sportas, sellas, fiscellas, et similia ex juncis conteximus; Wachter.
BENTY, BENTEY,adj.Covered with bent-grass, S.Monroe's Iles.
ToBERon hand.V.Bear.
BERBER,s.Barberry, a shrub.Sir Gawan and Sir Gol.
L. B.berberis, Sw. id.
BERE,s.Noise; also, ToBere.V.Beir.
BERE,s.Boar.V.Bair.Douglas.
BERE,s.Barley.Wyntown.
BERGLE, BERGELL,s.The wrasse, a fish, Orkn.Barry.
The first syllable of its name is undoubtedly from Isl.berg, a rock. Had it any resemblance to the eel, we might suppose the last fromaal, q. therock eel.
BERHEDIS,s. pl.Heads of boars.V.Bere.Gawan and Gal.
BERIT,imperf.V.Beir,v.
ToBERY, BERYSS, BERISCH,v. a.To inter, to bury.Douglas.
A. S.byrig-an, id. Junius says that A. S.byrig-anis literally, tumulare. It may, however, be supposed that the primitive idea is found in Isl.birg-ia, Franc.berg-an, to cover, to hide, to defend.
BERIIS,s.Sepulture.
A. S.byrigels, sepultura.Birielisis accordingly used by Wiclif for tombs.
BERYNES, BERYNISS,s.Burial, interment.Barbour.
A. S.byrignesse, sepultura.
BERY BROUNE, a shade of brown approaching to red.Gawan. and Gol.
We still say, "as brown as aberry," S. A. S.beria, bacca.
BERLE,s.Beryl, a precious stone.Houlate.
From thiss.Doug. forms the adj.beriall, shining like beryl.
BERLY,adj.Apparently, strong, mighty.Henrysone.
This word is the same, I suspect, with E.burly, strong. Ifberlybe the ancient word, either from Germ.bar, vir illustris; or frombaer, ursus; especially as Su. G.biorn, id. was metaph. used to denote an illustrious personage.
BERN, BERNE,s.1. A baron.Wallace.2. It is often used in a general sense, as denoting a man of rank or authority; or one who has the appearance of rank, although the degree of it be unknown.Gawan and Gol.3. A man in general.Douglas.
A. S.beorne, princeps, homo, Benson; "a prince, a nobleman, a man of honour and dignity," Somner.Bern, as denoting a man, in an honourable sense, may be from A. S.bar, free, or Lat.baro, used by Cicero, as equivalent to a lord or peer of the realm.
BERN,s.A barn, a place for laying up and threshing grain.Gawan and Gol.
A. S.bern, id. Junius supposes that this is comp. ofbere, barley, andern, place, q. "the place where barley is deposited," Gl. Goth.
BERSIS,s."A species of cannon formerly much used at sea. It resembled the faucon, but was shorter, and of a larger calibre," Gl. Compl.Complaynt S.
Fr.barce,berche, "the piece of ordnance called a base;" Cotgr. pl.barces,berches.
BERTH,s.Apparently, rage.Wyntown.
Isl. and Sw.braede, id.
BERTHINSEK, BIRDINSEK, BURDINSECK.The law of Berthinsek, a law, according to which no man was to be punished capitally for stealing a calf, sheep, or so much meat as he could carry on his back in a sack.Skene.
A. S.ge-burthyn in saeca, a burden in a sack; or fromge-beor-a, portare.
BERTYNIT, BERTNYT,pret.andpart. pa.Struck, battered.Wallace.
This is evidently the same withBrittyn, q. v.
BESAND, BEISAND,s.An ancient piece of cold coin, offered by the French kings at the mass of their consecration at Rheims, and called aBysantine, as the coin of this description was first struck atByzantiumor Constantinople. It is said to have been worth, in French money, fifty poundsTournois.Kennedy.
ToBESEIK,v. a.To beseech, to entreat.Douglas.
A. S.beandsec-an, to seek; Belg.ver-soek-en, to solicit, to entreat; Moes. G.sok-jan, to ask, used with respect to prayer.
BESY,adj.Busy.Wyntown.
A. S.bysi, Belg.besigh, id.; allied perhaps to Teut.byseturbatus,bijs-en, violento impetu agitari.
BESYNES,s.Business.Wyntown.
BESYNE, BYSENE, BYSIM,s.Expl. "whore, bawd," Gl. Sibb.V.Bisym.
BESCHACHT,part. pa.1. Not straight, distorted, Ang.2. Torn, tattered; often including the idea of dirtiness, Perths. The latter seems to be an oblique use.V.Shacht.
ToBESLE, or BEZLE,v. n.To talk much at random, to talk inconsiderately and boldly on a subject that one is ignorant of, Ang.
Belg.beuzel-en, to trifle, to fable; Teut.beusel-en, nugari.
BESLE, BEZLE,s.Idle talking, Ang.
Belg.beusel, id.
BESMOTTRIT,part. pa.Bespattered, fouled.Douglas.
A. S.besmyt-an, maculare, inquinare; Belg.besmodder-en, Germ.schmader-n,schmatter-n, to stain, S. tosmadd, Su. G.smitt-a.
BESOUTH,prep.To the southward of.V.Benorth.
BEST,part. pa.Struck, beaten.V.Baist.Barbour.
BEST,part. pa.Perhaps, fluttering, or shaken.Barbour.
Isl.beyst-i, concutio.
BEST,s."Beast, any animal not human," Gl. Wynt.Wyntown.
The term is still used in this general sense, S. pronounced q.baist. S. B.
BEST-MAN,s.Brideman; asbest-maidis bride-maid; from having theprincipaloffices in waiting on the bride, S.
BESTIAL, (off Tre)s.An engine for a siege.Wallace.
It seems uncertain, whether this word be formed from Lat.bestialis, as at first applied to the engines calledrams,sows, &c., or from Fr.bastille, a tower; L. B.bastillae.
BESTIALITÉ,s.Cattle.Complaynt S.
L. B.bestialia, pecudes; Fr.bestail.