badgir 
badgir (bad'ger), n. [Pers. badgir, < bad, wind, 
+ yir, seizing, catching.] A wind-catcher or 
wind-tower projecting above the roof of a 
dwelling, used in Persia and northwestern In- 
dia. The baclgirs are built like large chimneys, of wicker- 
work and plaster, with openings toward the quarter of the 
prevailing wind ; they are sometimes also made movable 
or adjustable. See wind-sail. Also written badgeer. 
badiaga (bad-i-a'gii), . [Buss. badyaga, also 
bodyaga.j A small sponge (Sponffltta) com- 
mon in the north of Europe, the powder of 
which is used in removing the livid marks of 
bruises. 
badian, badiane (ba'di-an, -an), n. [< P. ba- 
ftiane, said to be so named from the color of the 
capsules, < L. badius, bay: 
seebayO.] The fruit of Itli- 
cium anisatum, the Chinese 
anise-tree. It abounds in a vol- 
atile oil which gives it an aro- 
matic flavor and odor. On this 
account it is much used in China 
and India as a condiment, and is 
imported into France for flavor- Badian 
ing. 
badigeon (ba-dij'ou),. [F.: origin unknown.] 
1. A mixture of plaster and freestone, ground 
together and sifted, used by sculptors to fill the 
small holes and repair the defects of the stones 
used by them. 2. A mixture of sawdust and 
glue, or of whiting and glue, used by joiners to 
fill up defects in their work. 3. A prepara- 
tion or wash for coloring houses, or for giving 
plaster the appearance of stone, consisting of 
powdered stone, sawdust, slaked lime, alum, 
and other ingredients. 4. A preparation of 
tallow and chalk used by coopers. 
badinage (bad-i-nazh' or bad'i-naj), n. [P., 
< badiner, jest, make merry, < badin, jesting, 
frivolous, < Pr. Tutelar (= F. layer), gape, < ML. 
badare, gape : see 6ay*.] Light playful banter 
or raillery. 
He seems most to have indulged himself only in an ele- 
gant badinage. Warburton. 
= Syn. Raillery, banter. 
badinerie (ba-de'ne-re), n. [F., < badiner, jest: 
see badinage.'] Light or playful discourse; 
nonsense ; badinage. [Bare.] 
The fund of sensible discourse is limited ; that of jest 
and badinerie is infinite. Shenstone, Works, II. 240. 
badineurt (bad-i-ner'), n. [P., < badiner, jest : 
see badinage.] One who indulges in badinage ; 
a trifler. 
Rebuke him for it, as a divine, if you like it, or as a 
badineur, if you think that more effectual. 
Pope, To Swift (Ord MS.). 
badious (ba'di-us), a. [< L. badius, bay : see 
bay .] Of a bay color; reddish-brown; chest- 
nut. [Kare.] 
badling (bad'ling), n. [E. dial., appar. < bad* 
+ -lingl, and not connected directly with AS. 
btedling : see ftrtd 1 .] If. An effeminate or wo- 
manish man. N.E.I). 2. A worthless per- 
son. Halliwell. [North. Eng.] 
badly (bad'li), adv. [ME. badly, baddeliche ; 
< bad 1 + -ly 2 .] In a bad manner, (a) Wickedly; 
wrongly; in an evil or an improper manner; as, the boys 
behaved badly, (b) Grievously; dangerously; severely: 
as, badly wounded, (c) In a manner which falls below a 
recognized standard or fair average of excellence ; unskil- 
fully ; imperfectly ; defectively ; poorly ; not well : as, the 
work was badly done, (d) Incorrectly ; faultily : as, to 
speak French badly, (e) Unfortunately ; unsuccessfully : 
as, the army fared badly. Badly off. See of. 
badmash, n. Same as budmash. 
badminton (bad'min-ton), n. [< Badminton, 
in Gloucestershire, England, a seat of the duke 
of Beaufort.] 1. An English outdoor game, 
similar to lawn-tennis, but played with shuttle- 
cocks. 2. A summer beverage, properly a 
claret-cup made with soda-water instead of 
plain water and flavored with cucumber. 
[Eng.] 
Soothed or stimulated by fragrant cheroots or beakers 
of Badminton. Disraeli, Lothair, xxx. (N. E. D.) 
[With or without a capital in either sense.] 
badness (bad'nes), n. [< bad 1 + -ness.'] The 
state of being bad, evil, vicious, depraved, 
wrong, improper, erroneous, etc. ; want or de- 
ficiency of good qualities, physical or moral: 
as, the badness of the heart, of the season, of 
the roads, etc. See bad*. 
" The badness of men," a Jewish writer emphatically de- 
clared, "is better than the goodness of women." 
Lecky, Europ. Morals, II. 357. 
badoch (bad'och), n. [So. Of. baddock.] A 
Scotch and local English name of one of the 
jaegers or skua gulls, Stercorarius parasiticus, a 
predatory marine bird of the family Laridce. 
418 
bads (badz), n. pi. [E. dial.] The husks of 
walnuts. Halliwell. [Prov. Eng.] 
bael, . See bel 3 . 
baeta (ba-a'tii), n. [Pg. baeta, baieta = Sp. ba- 
yeta, baize : see baize.} A plain woolen stuff 
manufactured in Spain and Portugal. Sim- 
monda. 
Bsetis (be'tis), n. [NL., < L. Baitis, Gr. Bom?, 
a river in Spain, now called Guadalquivir.] A 
genus of agnathous neuropterous insects, of the 
family Jipliemeridm, or giving name to a group 
Btetida, containing numerous species with 4 
wings and 2 setse. 
bsetyl (be'til), n. Same as bcetylus. 
bsetylus (be'ti-lus), n. [L., also btetulus, betu- 
Itis, < Gr. ftairvfats, also fiatTv'/uov, a meteoric 
stone.] In classical antiq., a stone, whether 
meteoric or artificially shaped, which was 
venerated as of divine origin, or honored as a 
symbol of divinity. Such stones were preferably of 
conical form, and sometimes bore certain natunil symbols, 
as at Emesa ; but, especially when meteoric, the form was 
not considered material. Thus, the stone preserved on the 
omphalos at Delphi, reputed to be the one swallowed by 
Kronos (Saturn) through Rhea's stratagem in place of the 
infant Zeus (Jove), was of spherical shape. Among the 
most celebrated of these sacred stones were those of Pa- 
phos in Cyprus, of Zeus Kasios at Seleucia, and of Zeus 
Teleios at Tegea in Arcadia. See abadir. Also written 
betyluts, bcutyl, and baitylos. 
baff J t, v. i. [< ME. baffen = D. and LG. baffen = 
MHG. baffen, beffen, G. baffen, bafzen = Dan. 
bja'ffe = Sw. bjebba, bark ; appar. imitative. Of. 
dial, buff, bark, and yaff.~\ To bark; yelp. 
To say neither baff nor buffi, to say nothing. 
baff 2 (baf), v. i. [Sc., also beff. Cf. OF. baffe, 
a blow with the back of the hand : see baffle.} 
To beat; strike; specifically, in the game of 
golf, to hit the ground with the club when strik- 
ing at the ball. [Scotch.] 
ban 2 (baf), n. [Sc.: see the verb.] A blow; 
a heavy thump. 
baff-ends (baf 'endz), n. pi. [< baff (dial.), per- 
haps for baft, behind (see baft 1 ), + end.] In 
coal-mining, long wooden wedges for adjusting 
tubbing-plates, or cribs, in sinking shafts dur- 
ing the operation of fixing the tubbing. Ores- 
ley. [Eng.] 
baffert, n. [< 6o/l + -er 1 .] A barker. 
Houndes for the hauk beth filters and grete buffers. 
Bodl. MS., 546. (Halliwell.) 
baffeta (baf'e-ta), n. Same as bafft. 
baffle (baf'l), v. ; pret. and pp. baffled, ppr. 
baffling, [First in the 16th century, also written 
bafful, baffol; origin uncertain. The senses 
point to two or more independent sources : ef . 
(1) Sc. bauchle, bachle, disgrace, treat with con- 
tempt (see bauchle 2 ) ; (2) F. bafouer, earlier baf- 
fouer, disgrace, revile, scoff at, deceive, befler, 
also beffer, deceive, mock, = Pr. bafar = Sp. be- 
far = It. before, mock, deride ; cf. OF. befe, 
beffe = Pr. bafa = OSp. bafa, Sp. befa = It. 
be~ffa, beffe, mockery; cf. Pr. baf, an inter j. of 
disdain ; cf. Sc. baffle, a trifle, nonsense, appar. 
< OF. beffe, trifling, mockery (see above). Cf. 
MHG. beffen, bark: see baff 1 .'] I. tram. If. 
To disgrace ; treat with mockery or contumely ; 
hold up as an object of scorn or contempt; 
insult; specifically, to subject to indignities, 
as a recreant knight or traitor. 
The whole kingdom took notice of me for a baffled, 
whipped fellow. Beau, and Ft., King and No King, iii. 2. 
You on your knees have curs'd that virtuous maiden, 
And me for loving her ; yet do you now 
Thus baffle me to my face. 
Middleton and Dekker, Roaring Girl, i. 1. 
Justice [in " Measure for Measure"] is not merely evad- 
ed or ignored or even defied : she is both in the older and 
the newer sense of the word directly and deliberately 
baffled ; buffeted, outraged, insulted, struck in the face. 
Swinburne, Shakespeare, p. 203. 
2f. To hoodwink ; cheat. 
Alas, poor fool ! how have they baffled thee ! 
Shah., T. N., v. 1. 
3. To circumvent by interposing obstacles or 
difficulties ; defeat the efforts, purpose, or suc- 
cess of; frustrate; check; foil; thwart; dis- 
concert; confound: as, the fox baffled his pur- 
suers ; to baffle curiosity or endeavor. 
To paint lightning, and to give it no motion, is the 
doom of the baffled artist. 
/. D' Israeli, Amen, of Lit., II. 239. 
Calculations so difficult as to have baffled . . . the most 
enlightened nations. Prescott. 
I never watched Robert in my life but my scrutiny was 
presently baffled by finding he was watching me. 
Charlotte Bronte, Shirley, xv. 
4. To beat about, as the wind or stray cattle 
do standing grain or grass; twist irregularly 
together. = Syn. 3. foil, Thwart, etc. 8ee/nwtroe. 
bag 
II. intrans. If. To practise deceit; shuffle; 
quibble. 
Do we not palpably baffle when, in respect to God, we 
pretend to deny ourselves, yet, upon urgent occasion, al- 
low him nothing'; Harrow, Works, I. 437. 
2. To struggle ineffectually; strive in vain: 
as, the ship baffled with the gale. 3. In coal- 
mining, to brush out or mix fire-damp with air, 
to such an extent as to render it non-explosive. 
baffle (baf'l), . [< baffle, .] If. Disgrace; 
affront. 2f. Defeat; discomfiture. 
It is the skill of the disputant that keeps off a baffle. 
South. 
3. Same as baffler, 2. 
bafflement (baf'1-ment), n. [< baffle + -ment.~] 
The state of being baffled, frustrated, or 
thwarted in one's endeavors ; want of success 
after repeated attempts. [Rare.] 
Associated in his mind with bafflement and defeat. 
J. S. Blackie, Self-Culture, p. 99. 
baffle-plate (baf '1-plat), n. A metal plate used 
to direct the flames and gas of a furnace to dif- 
ferent parts of a steam-boiler, so that all por- 
tions of it will be evenly heated ; a deflector. 
baffler (baf'ler), n. 1. One who or that which 
baffles. 
Experience, that great baffler of speculation. 
Government of Tongue. 
2. A partition in a furnace so placed as to aid 
the convection of heat; a baffle-plate. San- 
kine, Steam Engine, 304. Also baffle. 3. In 
coal-mining, the lever with which the throttle- 
valve of a winding-engine is worked. [North 
Staffordshire, Eng.] 
baffling (baf 'ling), p. a. Frustrating ; discon- 
certing; confusing; perplexing: as, a baffling 
wind, that is, one which frequently shifts from 
one point to another. 
Those are the true baffling prejudices for man, which he 
never suspects for prejudices. De Quincey, Herodotus. 
bafflingly (baf 'ling-li), adv. In a baffling 
manner. 
bafflingness (baf 'ling-nes), n. The quality of 
baffling. 
baff-week (baf'wek), n. [E. dial., < baff, per- 
haps for baft, behind (se.e bafft), + week.] In 
coal-mining, the week next after pay-week, 
when wages are paid once a fortnight. [Eng.] 
baft 1 (baft), adv. and prep. [< ME. baft, bafte, 
baften, biaften, < AS. bceftan, beceftan, be ceftan, 
< be, by, + aiftan, aft : see 6e- 2 and aft, and cf . 
abaft.] I. adv. Behind; in the rear; naut., 
abaft. [Archaic.] 
Il.t prep. Behind. 
baft 2 , bafta (baft, baf'ta), n. [Formerly also 
baf tali, baffeta, boffeta; < Hind, bdfta, a kind of 
cotton cloth, baft, weaving, a web, < Pers. baft, 
wrought, woven.] A fine cotton fabric of Ori- 
ental manufacture ; especially, a plain muslin, 
of which the Surat manufacture is said to be 
the best. The bafts of Dacca in British India are an 
inferior quality of the muslins made in that district, and 
are said to be manufactured from European thread. The 
name is also given to similar fabrics made in Great Britain. 
Also baffeta. 
bag 1 (bag), n. [< ME. bag, bagge, of uncertain 
origin, perhaps < Icel. baggi, a bag, pack, bun- 
dle (cf. the older boggr, a bag), appar., with 
assimilation, < *balgr, belgr, skin, bellows, = 
Goth, balgs, a wine-skin, = OHG. balg, MHG. 
bale, Gr. balg, a skin, = D. balg, skin, belly, = 
AS. b&lg, belg, balig, belig, a bag, > mod. E. belly 
and bellows : see belly, where other forms are 
given, and bellows. Cf. OF. bague = Pr. bagua 
= It. dial, baga, a bundle, baggage, ML. baga, 
a bag, chest, baggage, belongings, appar. from 
the Teut. or the similar Celtic forms.] 1. A 
small sack; a portable receptacle or reposi- 
tory of leather, cloth, paper, or other flexible 
material, capable of being closed at the mouth ; 
a wallet ; a pouch : as, a flour-ftajr ; a carpet-ftogr 
or traveling-&a<7/ a mail-6ap. Specifically 2. 
A purse or money-bag. 
He was a thief, and had the bay. John xii. 6. 
3f. A small silken pouch in which the back hair 
of the, wig was curled away. 
A bob wig and a black silken bag tied to it. Addismi. 
4. What is contained in a bag; in hunting, the 
animals bagged or obtained in an expedition 
or a day's sport. 
The bag is not the sole aim of a day afield. 
Forest and Stream, XXI. 2. 
5. A sac or receptacle in animal bodies con- 
taining some fluid or other substance : as, the 
honey-Jap of a bee. 6. An udder. 
The cow is sacrificed to her bag, the ox to his sirloin. 
Emerson, Eng. Traits, p. 99. 
