Buckra Buck"ra adjective White; white man's; strong; good; as, buckra yam, a white yam.

Buckram Buck"ram noun [ Middle English bokeram , bougeren , Old French boqueran , French bougran , Middle High German buckeram , Late Latin buchiranus , boquerannus , from Middle High German boc , German bock , goat (as being made of goat's hair), or from French bouracan , by transposing the letter r . See Buck , Barracan .] 1. A coarse cloth of linen or hemp, stiffened with size or glue, used in garments to keep them in the form intended, and for wrappers to cover merchandise.

» Buckram was formerly a very different material from that now known by the name. It was used for wearing apparel, etc. Beck (Draper's Dict. ).

2. (Botany) A plant. See Ramson . Dr. Prior.

Buckram Buck"ram adjective 1. Made of buckram; as, a buckram suit.

2. Stiff; precise. " Buckram dames." Brooke.

Buckram Buck"ram transitive verb To strengthen with buckram; to make stiff. Cowper.

Buckshot Buck"shot` noun A coarse leaden shot, larger than swan shot, used in hunting deer and large game.

Buckskin Buck"skin` noun 1. The skin of a buck.

2. A soft strong leather, usually yellowish or grayish in color, made of deerskin.

3. A person clothed in buckskin, particularly an American soldier of the Revolutionary war.

Cornwallis fought as lang's he dought,
An' did the buckskins claw, man.
Burns.

4. plural Breeches made of buckskin.

I have alluded to his buckskin .
Thackeray.

Buckstall Buck"stall` noun A toil or net to take deer.

Buckthorn Buck"thorn` noun (Botany) A genus ( Rhamnus ) of shrubs or trees. The shorter branches of some species terminate in long spines or thorns. See Rhamnus .

Sea buckthorn , a plant of the genus Hippophaë .

Bucktooth Buck"tooth` noun Any tooth that juts out.

When he laughed, two white buckteeth protruded.
Thackeray.

Buckwheat Buck"wheat` noun [ Buck a beech tree + wheat ; akin to Dutch boekweit , German buchweizen .] 1. (Botany) A plant ( Fagopyrum esculentum ) of the Polygonum family, the seed of which is used for food.

2. The triangular seed used, when ground, for griddle cakes, etc.

Bucolic Bu·col"ic adjective [ Latin bucolicus , Greek ..., from ... cowherd, herdsman; ... ox + (perh.) ... race horse; confer Sanskrit kal to drive: confer French bucolique . See Cow the animal.] Of or pertaining to the life and occupation of a shepherd; pastoral; rustic.

Bucolic Bu·col"ic noun [ Latin Bucolicôn poëma.] A pastoral poem, representing rural affairs, and the life, manners, and occupation of shepherds; as, the Bucolics of Theocritus and Virgil. Dryden.

Bucolical Bu·col"ic·al adjective Bucolic.

Bucranium Bu·cra"ni·um noun ; plural Latin Bucrania [ Latin , from Greek ... ox head.] A sculptured ornament, representing an ox skull adorned with wreaths, etc.

Bud Bud noun [ Middle English budde ; confer Dutch bot , German butze , butz , the core of a fruit, bud, LG. butte in hage butte , hain butte , a hip of the dog-rose, or Old French boton , French bouton , bud, button, Old French boter to bud, push; all akin to English beat . See Button .] 1. (Botany) A small protuberance on the stem or branches of a plant, containing the rudiments of future leaves, flowers, or stems; an undeveloped branch or flower.

2. (Biol.) A small protuberance on certain low forms of animals and vegetables which develops into a new organism, either free or attached. See Hydra .

Bud moth (Zoology) , a lepidopterous insect of several species, which destroys the buds of fruit trees; esp. Tmetocera ocellana and Eccopsis malana on the apple tree.

Bud Bud intransitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Budded ; present participle & verbal noun Budding .] 1. To put forth or produce buds, as a plant; to grow, as a bud does, into a flower or shoot.

2. To begin to grow, or to issue from a stock in the manner of a bud, as a horn.

3. To be like a bud in respect to youth and freshness, or growth and promise; as, a budding virgin. Shak.

Syn. -- To sprout; germinate; blossom.

Bud Bud transitive verb To graft, as a plant with another or into another, by inserting a bud from the one into an opening in the bark of the other, in order to raise, upon the budded stock, fruit different from that which it would naturally bear.

The apricot and the nectarine may be, and usually are, budded upon the peach; the plum and the peach are budded on each other.
Farm. Dict.

Buddha Bud"dha noun [ Sanskrit buddha wise, sage, from budh to know.] The title of an incarnation of self- abnegation, virtue, and wisdom, or a deified religious teacher of the Buddhists, esp. Gautama Siddartha or Sakya Sinha (or Muni), the founder of Buddhism.

Buddhism Bud"dhism noun The religion based upon the doctrine originally taught by the Hindoo sage Gautama Siddartha, surnamed Buddha, "the awakened or enlightened," in the sixth century b. c. , and adopted as a religion by the greater part of the inhabitants of Central and Eastern Asia and the Indian Islands. Buddha's teaching is believed to have been atheistic; yet it was characterized by elevated humanity and morality. It presents release from existence (a beatific enfranchisement, Nirvâna ) as the greatest good. Buddhists believe in transmigration of souls through all phases and forms of life. Their number was estimated in 1881 at 470,000,000.

Buddhist Bud"dhist noun One who accepts the teachings of Buddhism.

Buddhist Bud"dhist adjective Of or pertaining to Buddha, Buddhism, or the Buddhists.

Buddhistic Bud·dhis"tic adjective Same as Buddhist , adjective

Budding Bud"ding noun 1. The act or process of producing buds.

2. (Biol.) A process of asexual reproduction, in which a new organism or cell is formed by a protrusion of a portion of the animal or vegetable organism, the bud thus formed sometimes remaining attached to the parent stalk or cell, at other times becoming free; gemmation. See Hydroidea .

3. The act or process of ingrafting one kind of plant upon another stock by inserting a bud under the bark.

Buddle Bud"dle noun [ Prov. E., to cleanse ore, also a vessel for this purpose; confer German butteln to shake.] (Mining) An apparatus, especially an inclined trough or vat, in which stamped ore is concentrated by subjecting it to the action of running water so as to wash out the lighter and less valuable portions.

Buddle Bud"dle intransitive verb (Mining) To wash ore in a buddle.

Bude burner Bude" burn`er [ See Bude light .] A burner consisting of two or more concentric Argand burners (the inner rising above the outer) and a central tube by which oxygen gas or common air is supplied.

Bude light Bude" light` [ From Bude , in Cornwall, the residence of Sir G.Gurney, the inventor.] A light in which high illuminating power is obtained by introducing a jet of oxygen gas or of common air into the center of a flame fed with coal gas or with oil.

Budge Budge intransitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Budged ; present participle & verbal noun Budging .] [ French bouger to stir, move (akin to Pr. bojar , bolegar , to stir, move, Italian bulicare to boil, bubble), from Latin bullire . See Boil , intransitive verb ] To move off; to stir; to walk away.

I'll not budge an inch, boy.
Shak.

The mouse ne'er shunned the cat as they did budge
From rascals worse than they.
Shak.

Budge Budge adjective [ See Budge , v. ] Brisk; stirring; jocund. [ Obsolete] South.

Budge Budge noun [ Middle English bouge bag, Old French boge , bouge , from Latin bulga a leathern bag or knapsack; a Gallic word; confer OIr. bolc , Gael. bolg . Confer Budge , noun ] A kind of fur prepared from lambskin dressed with the wool on; -- used formerly as an edging and ornament, esp. of scholastic habits.

Budge Budge adjective 1. Lined with budge; hence, scholastic. " Budge gowns." Milton.

2. Austere or stiff, like scholastics.

Those budge doctors of the stoic fur.
Milton.

Budge bachelor , one of a company of men clothed in long gowns lined with budge, who formerly accompanied the lord mayor of London in his inaugural procession. -- Budge barrel (Mil.) , a small copper-hooped barrel with only one head, the other end being closed by a piece of leather, which is drawn together with strings like a purse. It is used for carrying powder from the magazine to the battery, in siege or seacoast service.

Budgeness Budge"ness noun Sternness; severity. [ Obsolete]

A Sara for goodness, a great Bellona for budgeness .
Stanyhurst.

Budger Budg"er noun One who budges. Shak.

budgerow budg"e·row noun [ Hindi bajrā .] A large and commodious, but generally cumbrous and sluggish boat, used for journeys on the Ganges.

Budget Budg"et noun [ Middle English bogett , bouget , French bougette bag, wallet, dim. of Old French boge , bouge , leather bag. See Budge , noun , and confer Bouget .] 1. A bag or sack with its contents; hence, a stock or store; an accumulation; as, a budget of inventions.

2. The annual financial statement which the British chancellor of the exchequer makes in the House of Commons. It comprehends a general view of the finances of the country, with the proposed plan of taxation for the ensuing year. The term is sometimes applied to a similar statement in other countries.

To open the budget , to lay before a legislative body the financial estimates and plans of the executive government.

Budgy Budg"y adjective [ From Budge , noun ] Consisting of fur. [ Obsolete]

Budlet Bud"let noun [ Bud + -let .] A little bud springing from a parent bud.

We have a criterion to distinguish one bud from another, or the parent bud from the numerous budlets which are its offspring.
E. Darwin.

Buff Buff (bŭf) noun [ Middle English buff , buffe , buff, buffalo, French buffle buffalo. See Buffalo .] 1. A sort of leather, prepared from the skin of the buffalo, dressed with oil, like chamois; also, the skins of oxen, elks, and other animals, dressed in like manner. "A suit of buff ." Shak.

2. The color of buff; a light yellow, shading toward pink, gray, or brown.

A visage rough,
Deformed, unfeatured, and a skin of buff .
Dryden.

3. A military coat, made of buff leather. Shak.

4. (Medicine) The grayish viscid substance constituting the buffy coat. See Buffy coat , under Buffy , adjective

5. (Mech.) A wheel covered with buff leather, and used in polishing cutlery, spoons, etc.

6. The bare skin; as, to strip to the buff . [ Colloq.]

To be in buff is equivalent to being naked.
Wright.

Buff Buff adjective 1. Made of buff leather. Goldsmith.

2. Of the color of buff.

Buff coat , a close, military outer garment, with short sleeves, and laced tightly over the chest, made of buffalo skin, or other thick and elastic material, worn by soldiers in the 17th century as a defensive covering. -- Buff jerkin , originally, a leather waistcoat; afterward, one of cloth of a buff color. [ Obsolete] Nares. -- Buff stick (Mech.) , a strip of wood covered with buff leather, used in polishing.

Buff Buff transitive verb To polish with a buff. See Buff , noun , 5.

Buff Buff transitive verb [ Old French bufer to cuff, buffet. See Buffet a blow.] To strike. [ Obsolete] B. Jonson.

Buff Buff noun [ See Buffet .] A buffet; a blow; -- obsolete except in the phrase "Blindman's buff ."

Nathless so sore a buff to him it lent
That made him reel.
Spenser.

Buff Buff adjective [ Of uncertain etymol.] Firm; sturdy.

And for the good old cause stood buff ,
'Gainst many a bitter kick and cuff.
Hudibras.

Buffa Buf"fa noun fem. (Mus.) [ Italian See Buffoon .] The comic actress in an opera. -- adjective Comic, farcical.

Aria buffa , a droll or comic air. -- Opera buffa , a comic opera. See Opera bouffe .

Buffalo Buf"fa·lo noun ; plural Buffaloes [ Spanish bufalo (cf. Italian bufalo , French buffle ), from Latin bubalus , bufalus , a kind of African stag or gazelle; also, the buffalo or wild ox, from Greek ... buffalo, probably from ... ox. See Cow the animal, and confer Buff the color, and Bubale .] 1. (Zoology) A species of the genus Bos or Bubalus ( B. bubalus ), originally from India, but now found in most of the warmer countries of the eastern continent. It is larger and less docile than the common ox, and is fond of marshy places and rivers.

2. (Zoology) A very large and savage species of the same genus ( B. Caffer ) found in South Africa; -- called also Cape buffalo .

3. (Zoology) Any species of wild ox.

4. (Zoology) The bison of North America.

5. A buffalo robe. See Buffalo robe , below.

6. (Zoology) The buffalo fish. See Buffalo fish , below.

Buffalo berry (Botany) , a shrub of the Upper Missouri ( Sherherdia argentea ) with acid edible red berries. -- Buffalo bird (Zoology) , an African bird of the genus Buphaga , of two species. These birds perch upon buffaloes and cattle, in search of parasites. -- Buffalo bug , the carpet beetle. See under Carpet . -- Buffalo chips , dry dung of the buffalo, or bison, used for fuel . [ U.S.] -- Buffalo clover (Botany) , a kind of clover ( Trifolium reflexum and T.soloniferum ) found in the ancient grazing grounds of the American bison. -- Buffalo cod (Zoology) , a large, edible, marine fish ( Ophiodon elongatus ) of the northern Pacific coast; -- called also blue cod , and cultus cod . -- Buffalo fish (Zoology) , one of several large fresh-water fishes of the family Catostomidæ , of the Mississippi valley. The red-mouthed or brown ( Ictiobus bubalus ), the big-mouthed or black ( Bubalichthys urus ), and the small-mouthed ( B. altus ), are among the more important species used as food. -- Buffalo fly , or Buffalo gnat (Zoology) , a small dipterous insect of the genus Simulium , allied to the black fly of the North. It is often extremely abundant in the lower part of the Mississippi valley and does great injury to domestic animals, often killing large numbers of cattle and horses. In Europe the Columbatz fly is a species with similar habits. -- Buffalo grass (Botany) , a species of short, sweet grass ( Buchloë dactyloides ), from two to four inches high, covering the prairies on which the buffaloes, or bisons, feed . [ U.S.] -- Buffalo nut (Botany) , the oily and drupelike fruit of an American shrub ( Pyrularia oleifera ); also, the shrub itself; oilnut. -- Buffalo robe , the skin of the bison of North America, prepared with the hair on; -- much used as a lap robe in sleighs.

Buffel duck Buf"fel duck (bŭf"fĕl dŭk`). [ See Buffalo .] (Zoology) A small duck ( Charitonetta albeola ); the spirit duck, or butterball. The head of the male is covered with numerous elongated feathers, and thus appears large. Called also bufflehead .

Buffer Buff"er (bŭf"ẽr) noun [ Prop a striker . See Buffet a blow.] 1. (Mech.) (a) An elastic apparatus or fender, for deadening the jar caused by the collision of bodies; as, a buffer at the end of a railroad car. (b) A pad or cushion forming the end of a fender, which receives the blow; -- sometimes called buffing apparatus .

2. One who polishes with a buff.

3. A wheel for buffing; a buff.

4. A good-humored, slow-witted fellow; -- usually said of an elderly man. [ Colloq.] Dickens.

Bufferhead Buff"er·head` noun The head of a buffer, which recieves the concussion, in railroad carriages.

Buffet Buf·fet" (bof*fā") noun [ French buffet , Late Latin bufetum ; of uncertain origin; perhaps from the same source as English buffet a blow, the root meaning to puff , hence (cf. puffed up ) the idea of ostentation or display.] 1. A cupboard or set of shelves, either movable or fixed at one side of a room, for the display of plate, china, etc., a sideboard.

Not when a gilt buffet's reflected pride
Turns you from sound philosophy aside.
Pope.

2. A counter for refreshments; a restaurant at a railroad station, or place of public gathering.

Buffet Buf"fet (bŭf"fĕt) noun [ Middle English buffet , boffet , Old French buffet a slap in the face, a pair of bellows, from buffe blow, confer French bouffer to blow, puff; probably akin to English puff . For the meaning slap , blow , confer French soufflet a slap, souffler to blow. See Puff , intransitive verb , and confer Buffet sidebroad, Buffoon ] 1. A blow with the hand; a slap on the face; a cuff.

When on his cheek a buffet fell.
Sir W. Scott.

2. A blow from any source, or that which affects like a blow, as the violence of winds or waves; a stroke; an adverse action; an affliction; a trial; adversity.

Those planks of tough and hardy oak that used for yeas to brave the buffets of the Bay of Biscay.
Burke.

Fortune's buffets and rewards.
Shak.

3. A small stool; a stool for a buffet or counter.

Go fetch us a light buffet .
Townely Myst.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
You are here: Webster > Letter B > Page 108 of 120.
« Previous ¦100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 ¦ Next »