beam-engine 
beam-engine (bem'en"jm), n. A steam-engine 
in which the motion of the piston is transmit- 
ted to the crank by means of an overhead- or 
working-beam and connecting-rod, as distinct 
from a direct-action engine and a side-lever 
engine, in which the motion is communicated 
by two side-levers or beams below the level of 
the piston cross-head Compound beam-engine, 
a beam-engine having compound cylinders, in which the 
steam is used first at a higher and then at a lower tem- 
perature. 
beamer (be'mer), . 1. In weaving, a person 
whose business it is to put warps on the beam. 
2. Same as teamtng-matMHe. 
beam-feather (bem'feTH"er), n. One of the 
long feathers in a bird's wing, particularly that 
of a hawk ; one of the remiges or flight-feathers. 
beam-filling (bSm'fll'ing), re. 1. Brickwork 
or masonry carried up from the level of the 
under side of a beam to the level of the top. 
2. Naut., that portion of the cargo which is 
stowed between the beams. 
beainful (bem'ful), a. [< beam + -ful.J Emit- 
ting beams; beaming; bright: as. "beamful 
lamps," Drayton, Noah's Flood (Ord MS.). 
beam-gudgeon (bem'gu;j*'on), . One of the 
bearing-studs on the center of a working-beam, 
or the central pivot upon which it oscillates. 
beamily (be'mi-li), adv. In a beamy or beam- 
ing manner ; radiantly. 
Thou thy griefs dost dress 
With a bright halo, shining beamily. 
Keats, To Byron. 
beaming (be'ming), re. [Verbal n. of beam, v.~\ 
1. In cloth-manuf., the operation of winding 
the warp-yarn on the beam of a loom. 2. In 
leather-making, the operation of working hides 
with a slicker over a beam, or with a beam- 
ing-machine. 
beaming (be'ming), p. a. Characterized by ra- 
diance; bright; cheerful. 
beamingly (be'ming-li), adv. In a beaming 
manner ; brightly ; radiantly. 
beaming-machine (be'miug-ma-shen'*), n. 1. 
A machine for winding yam upon the beams 
of looms. 2. An apparatus for working hides 
with a slicking-tool or slicker, it consists of a 
table on which the hide is placed, and an oscillating beam 
for moving the tool over it. 
Also called beamer. 
beam-knife (bem'nif ), n. A double-edged knife 
with a straight handle at one end of the blade, 
and a cross-handle fixed in the plane of the 
blade at the other. It is used in shaving off 
the thick, fleshy parts of a hide and evening its 
thickness. 
beamless (bem'les), a. [< beam + -less.] Emit- 
ting no rays of light ; rayless. 
The beamless eye 
No more with ardour bright. 
Thomson, Summer, 1. 1045. 
beamlett (bem'let), n. [< beam + -let.~\ A lit- 
tle beam, as of light. 
beam-light (bem'lit), . The light formerly 
kept burning in churches in front of the re- 
served sacrament : so called because suspended 
from the rood-beam. [Rare.] 
beam-line (bem'lin), n. In ship-building, a 
line showing where the tops of the beams and 
the frames intersect. 
beamlingt (bem'ling),M. [< beam, + -ling*.'] A 
little beam, as of light. 
beam-platform (bem'plat"form), re. Same as 
beam-board. 
beam-roll (bem'rol), n. In cloth-manuf., the 
spool-shaped roll upon which the warp-threads 
are wound. 
beam-room (bem'rom), n. The room or shed 
in a currier's establishment where the beaming 
or slicking of hides is carried on. 
But for unsavory odors a beam-room might pass for a 
laundry. Harper's May., T.xx, 274. 
beamsomet (bem'sum), a. [< beam + -some.] 
Shedding beams ; radiant. N. E. D. 
beamster (bein'ster), re. [< beam + -ster.] A 
workman engaged in beaming or slicking hides. 
The beamsters bending to their tasks. 
Harpe.r's Mag., LXX. 274. 
beam-trawl (bem'tral), , A trawl-net the 
mouth of which is kept open by a beam. 
beam-tree (bem'tre), re. [Short for wliitebeam- 
tree.] A. tree of the pear kind, Pyrus Aria of 
Europe (also called whitebeum), and closely 
allied species of central Asia, it is of moderate 
size, bearing an abundance of white flowers and showy 
red fruit. The wood is hard and tough, resembling that 
of the apple and pear, and is used for axletrees. 
beam-truss (bem'trus), . A compound beam, 
formed generally by two main parallel mem- 
488 
Branch of Beam-tree (Pyrus Aria}. 
bers which receive the stress of a load and re- 
sist it, the one by compression and the other 
by tension. They are connected by braces and ties, 
which serve to keep them apart, bind the whole firmly 
together, and transmit the stress due to a load upon 
any one part to the points of support. See truss. 
beamy (be'mi), a. [< ME. bemy ; < beam + 
-y 1 .] 1. Resembling a beam in size and 
weight; massy: as, "his . . . beamy spear," 
Dry den, Pal. and Arc., 1. 1756. 2. Having 
horns or antlers: as, "beamy stags," Dryden, 
tr. of Virgil. 3. Naut., having much beam or 
breadth; broad in the beam: said of a ship 
whose beam is more than one tenth of its 
length. 
The speed of beamy vessels has too often been demon- 
strated. The Century, XXIV. 071. 
4. Emitting rays of light ; radiant; shining. 
The sun ... 
Brightening the twilight with its beamy gold. 
Tickett, Koyal Progress. 
He bears 
In a field azure a sun proper, beamy. 
B. Jonson, Staple of News, iv. 1. 
5. Figuratively, radiant ; joyous; gladsome. 
Read my pardon in one beamy smile. J. Baillie. 
G \kn = : ce bau =w. = Dan 
bonne, bean. Cf . W. ffaen, pi. ffa ; L. faba = 
OBulg. Russ. bobu = OPruss. 6060, a bean.] 
1. Originally and properly, a smooth kidney- 
shaped seed, flattened at the sides, borne in 
long pods by a leguminous plant, Vicia Faba; 
now extended to include the seed of the allied 
genus Phaseolus, and, with a specific epithet, 
of other genera. 2. The plant producing 
beans. The bean known to the ancients from prehistoric 
times was the Vicia Faba (or Faba wdgarig), a native of 
western Asia, and the same as the field-, horse-, or tick- 
bean, and the broad or Windsor bean, still largely culti- 
vated in the fields and gardens of the old world. It is 
used when green as a table-vegetable, and when dry as 
feed for horses and sheep. The numerous other kinds of 
cultivated beans are of American origin, and belong chiefly 
to the genus Phaseolus. To P. vulgari* belong the com- 
mon kidney-bean, and the haricot and French beans, the 
string-bean, and the pole-bean ; to P. lunatu*, the Lima 
and Carolina beans, the sugar-bean, and the butter-bean; 
and to P. namu, the dwarf, field-, bush-, navy-, pea-, and 
six-weeks beans. To the same genus belong the wild kid- 
ney-bean, P. perennii ; the scarlet-runner bean, P. multi- 
fonts, cultivated for its scarlet flowers; and the prairie- 
bean of Texas, P. retusus. The asparagus-bean, Dolichos 
segtjuipedali*, with very long cylindrical pods, frequently 
cultivated in Europe, is a native of tropical America. 
Beans as an article of food are very nutritious, contain- 
ing much starch and a large percentage of a nitrogenous 
compound called legumin, analogous to the casein in 
cheese. The name bean is also given to many leguminous 
seeds which are not cultivated or used as food, such as 
the algarroba. Calabar, and coral beam, and to certain 
other plants and their seeds which are not leguminous at 
all, as the coffee-bean. 
3. A small oval or roundish seed, berry, nut, 
or lump : as, a coffee-Scare. 4. pi. In coal-min- 
ing, small coals ; specifically, coals which will 
pass through a screen with half -inch meshes. 
[North. Eng.] 5. pi. Money. [Slang.] Algar- 
roba, carob, or locust bean, the fruit of the carob- 
tree, Ceratonia, Miqm. Buck-, bog-, or brook-beau 
See bog-bean. Brazilian or Pichurim bean, the fruit of 
a lauraceous tree of Brazil, Nectandra Puchury. Cala- 
bar or ordeal bean, the seed of an African leguminous 
climber, Physontiama venenottum, a violent poison, used 
as a remedy in diseases of the eye, tetanus, neuralgia, 
and other nervous affections. In some parts of Africa it 
is administered to persons suspected of witchcraft ; if 
vomiting results and the poison is thrown off, the inno- 
cence of the suspected person is regarded as established. 
Castor-bean, the seed of a euphorbiaceous plant, 
Ricinus cmnmunis, yielding castor-oil. China bean, 
DoKchos sinenris. The black-eyed bean is one of its varie- 
ties. Coffee-bean, a name given in commerce to the 
coffee-berry. Coral bean, of Jamaica, the seed of a 
leguminous shrub, Erythrina glauca ; but the large coral 
bean is obtained from the bead- or necklace-tree, Orino- 
sia dasycarpa. The coral bean of Texas is Sophora secnn- 
diflora. Cujumary beans, the seeds of a lauraceous 
tree of Brazil, Aydendron C-ujumary, an esteemed tonic 
and stimulant. feyptian, hyacinth, or black beans 
the seeds of Dolichoi Lablab, cultivated in India. Goa 
bean-shot 
beans, the seeds of J'eophocarpus tetragonolobug, culti- 
vated for food in India. Horse- or sword-bean, of 
Jamaica, the Cttnavalia f/ladutta, a legume widely dis- 
tributed through the tropics. Indian bean, a name 
given in the United States to Catalpa bignonioides. 
John Crow or Jequirity beans, "f Jamaica, the seeds 
of Abru& precatoriux. Malacca bean, <>r iitui-kin<t-tiitt, 
the nut of an East Indian tree, Seiwcarpux Anacardiutn. 
Mesquite bean, of Texas and southward, the fruit of 
Pmopu juMjtoriL Molucca beans, or ttii-ki'r-nittx, the 
seeds of a tropical leguminous climber, Caaalpiniu Itomlu- 
cella. Not to know beans, a colloquial American as- 
sertion of a person's ignorance, equivalent to "not to 
know B from a bull's foot." Oily bean, or bene-plant, 
the Semiuuni I ndicuin. Ox-eye or horse-eye bean, 
the seed of Mucuna itrenx, a leguminous climber of the 
tropics. Pythagorean or sacred bean, of the Egyptians 
and Hindus, the Trait of the lotus, Xelu ml/him xpeciosum. 
See Nehiuiliiuiii. Sahuca or soy beans, the seeds of 
Glycinc Soja, largely cultivated in India and China, from 
which the sauce known as soy is made. St. Ignatius' 
beans, the seeds of Strychnos Ifjnatii, containing strych- 
nine and highly poisonous. Screw-bean, the twisted 
pod of Prosopis pubescens. Seaside bean, a name given 
to some creeping leguminous plants of the tropics, Cana- 
valia obtttaifolia and Vigna litteola, common on rocky or 
sandy sea-shores. To find the bean in the cake, to 
succeed in defeating one's adversaries: an allusion to the 
old custom of concealing a bean in the Twelfth-night 
cake and naming the person who found it as king of the 
festival. Tonquin or Tonka beans, the fragrant seeds 
of Dipteryx odorata, a leguminous tree of Guiana, used 
in perfumery and for scenting snuff. Vanilla bean, 
the fragrant pod of a climbing orchid of tropical America, 
Vanilla planifolia, used for flavoring confectionery, etc. 
Wild bean, of the United States, the Apios tuberosa. 
Yam-bean, a leguminous twiner, Pachyrrhizus angu- 
latus, with large tuberous roots, cultivated throughout 
the tropics. 
bean 2 (ben), o. See bein. 
bean-belly (ben'bePl), re. A great eater of 
beans : a vulgar nickname for a dweller in Lei- 
cestershire, England. 
bean-brush (ben'brush), re. The stubble of 
beans. 
bean-cake (ben'kak), re. A large cheese-shaped 
compressed cake of beans after the oil has been 
expressed, used largely in northern China as 
food for cattle, and in the sugar-plantations 
of southern China as manure. 
bean-caper (ben'ka"per), n. Zygophyllum Fa- 
bago, a small tree, a native of the Levant. The 
flower-buds are used as capers. 
bean-cod (ben'kod), re. 1. A beau-pod. 2. A 
small fishing-vessel or pilot-boat used in the 
rivers of Portugal. It is sharp forward, and 
has its stem bent above into a great curve and 
plated with iron. Imp. Diet. 
beancrake (ben'krak), re. A bird, Crex pra- 
tensifi; the corn-crake. 
bean-curd (ben'kerd), n. A thick white jelly 
resembling blane-mange, made of beans, much 
eaten by the natives of northern China, Corea, 
and Japan. 
bean-dolphin (ben'dol"fin), re. The aphis or 
plant-louse which infests the bean. 
bean-feast (ben'fest), n. I. A feast given by an 
employer to those whom he employs. Brewer. 
2. A social festival originally observed in 
France, and afterward in Germany and Eng- 
land, on the evening before Twelfth day, or, as 
the Germans call it, Three Kings' day. Although 
confounded with the Christian festival of the Epiphany, 
which occurs ou the same day, it is supposed that this 
custom can be traced back to the Roman Saturnalia. 
See bean-king and twelfth-cake. 
bean-fed (ben'fed), a. Fed on beans. Shak. 
bean-fly (ben'fli), . A beautiful fly of a pale- 
purple color, produced from a maggot called 
mida, and found on beau-flowers. 
bean-goose (ben'gos), n. [So named from the 
likeness of the upper nail of the bill to a horse- 
bean.] A species of wild goose, the Anser 
segetum, which arrives in England in autumn 
and retires to the north in the end of April. 
Some consider it a mere variety of the Euro- 
pean wild goose, A.ferus. 
bean-king (ben'king), n. [So called because 
the honor fell to him who, when the Twelfth- 
night cake was distributed, got the bean buried 
in it.] The person who presided as king over 
the Twelfth-night festivities. 
bean-meal (ben'mel), n. Meal made from 
beans, used in some parts of Europe as feed 
for horses, and for fattening hogs, etc. 
bean-mill (ben'mil), . A mill for splitting 
beans for cattle-feeding. 
bean-sheller (ben'shel'er), n. A machine for 
removing beans from the pods. 
bean-shooter (ben ' sh6 " ter), re. A toy for 
snooting beans, shot, or other small missiles; 
a pea-shooter. 
bean-shot (ben'shot), re. Copper grains formed 
by pouring melted metal through a perforated 
ladle into warm water. If cold water is used, 
flakes are formed, called feather-shot. 
