bedight 
Many :i rare and sumptuous tome 
In vellum bound, with gold bedi'ilit. 
Long/Mow, Wayside Inn, Prelude. 
bedim (be-dim'), v. t. ; pret. and pp. bcdimmed, 
ppr. bedimmitig. [< fee- 1 + dim.'] To make dim ; 
obscure or darken ; becloud. 
I have lirtliiH m'd the noontide sun. Shot., Tempest, v. 1. 
Phoobe, coming so suddenly from the sunny daylight, 
was altogether beilimmed in such density of shadow as 
lurked iii most of the passages of the old house. 
Hawthorne, Seven (tables, \\. 
bedimple (be-dim'pl), r. t. [< be- 1 + dimple. 1 
To cover over or mark with dimples. 
bedirtt (be-derf), >. t. [< be- 1 + dirt.'} To defile 
with dirt; figuratively, throw dirt at; vilify. 
bedismal (be-diz'mal), r. t. ; pret. and pp. be- 
OedismaUea. ppr. bedlsmaling or be- 
' 
iliHiiinlling. [< fee- 1 + dismal.'] To make dismal. 
bedizen (be-diz'n or -di'zn), r. t. [Also some- 
times bedia&en; < be- 1 + dizen.~] To deck or 
dress out, especially in a tawdry manner or with 
vulgar finery. 
Remnants of tapestried hangings, window curtains, and 
shreds of pictures, with which he had bedizened his tatters. 
Scott, Waverley, II. xxvii. 
A colossal image of the Virgin, . . . bedizened and efful- 
gent, was borne aloft upon the shoulders of her adorers. 
Motley, Dutch Republic, I. 556. 
Like clouds which bedizen 
At sunset the western horizon. 
Broivning, The Glove. 
bedizenment (be-diz'n- or -di'zn-ment), n. [< 
bedizen + -ment."} The act of bedizening; the 
state of being bedizened ; that which bedizens. 
The bedizenment of the great spirit's sanctuary with 
. . . skulls. Kingsley, Westward Ho ! p. 451. 
Strong Dames of the Market, . . . with oak-branches, 
tricolor bedizenment. Carlyle, French Rev., III. iv. 4. 
bed-key (bed'ke), n. Same as bed-wrench. 
bedlam (bed'lam), n. and a. [Early mod. E. 
also bedlem, bcthkm, < ME. bedlem, bedleem, 
bethlem, a corruption of Bethlehem (ME. Beth- 
lecm, Bedlem) : see Bethlehem. See def . 1.] I. 
n. 1. [cap.} The hospital of St. Mary of Beth- 
lehem in London, originally a priory, founded 
about 1247, but afterward used as an asylum 
for lunatics. 
At my returne I stept into Bedlam?, where I saw several 
poore miserable creatures in chaines. 
Evelyn, Diary, April 21, 1657. 
Hence 2. A madhouse; a lunatic asylum. 
He's past 
Recovery ; a Bedlam cannot cure him. 
Ford, Perkin Warbeck, v. 3. 
3. A scene of wild uproar and confusion. 
A general division of possessions would make the coun- 
try a scene of profligate extravagance for one year and of 
universal desolation the next a bedlam for one short 
season and a charnel-house ever after. Brougham. 
4f. An inmate or a patient of Bethlehem Hos- 
pital, or Bedlam; specifically, one discharged 
as cured (though often only partially cured) and 
licensed to beg. Such persons wore a tin plate as a 
badge on their left arm, and were known as bedlam beggars, 
bedlamites, or bedlamers. 
Let's follow the old earl, and get the Bedlam 
To lead him where he would ; his roguish madness 
Allows itself to anything. Shak., Lear, Iii. 7. 
Hence 5f. In general, a madman ; a lunatic. 
Jack or Tom 0' Bedlam, a madman. 
II. a. Belonging to or fit for a bedlam or 
madhouse ; mad ; mentally deranged. 
The bedlam, brain-sick duchess. Shak., 2 Hen. VI., iii. 1. 
This which followes is plaine bedlam stuffe, this is the 
Demouiack legion indeed. 
Milton, Apology for Smectymnuus. 
Bedlam beggar. See I., 4. 
bedlamer (bed'lam-er), n. [< bedlam + -er 1 .} 
If. A bedlam beggar. See bedlam, n., 4. 
This country [the Border] was then much troubled with 
Bedlamers. Roger North, Lord Guilford, I. 271. 
2. The name given by seal-hunters to the 
hooded seal, Cystophora cristata, when a year 
old, from its frantic cries and actions when it 
cannot escape its pursuers. 
bedlamism (bed'lam-izm), m. [< bedlam + 
-ism.} A word or act which is characteristic 
of madness or of mad people ; a trait of mad- 
ness. Carlyle. 
bedlamite (bed'lam-It), n. [< bedlam + -ite?.} 
A madman. See bedlam, n., 4. 
What means the Bedlamite by this freak ? 
Hawthorne, Twice-Told Tales, II. 
bedlamitish (bed'lam-It-ish), a. [< bedlamite 
+ -ish.} Resembling or characteristic of a 
bedlamite or madman. 
Their Bedlamitish creation of needless noises. 
Carlyle, in Froude, II. 236. 
500 
The Hermans, on their part, calmly conscious of their 
irresistible strength, proceeded to fasten ever more com- 
pulsive bonds and sobering straps on the Bfdla mixed 
country. Lowe, Bismarck, I. 509. 
bedlart, bedlawert, . [< ME. lediaverc (= G. 
bettlager), < bed + "Itneer, appar. < Icel. Jag, a 
lying; cf. lair.} A bedridden person. [Old 
English and Scotch.] 
bedless (bed'les), a. [< bed 1 + -less.} Without 
a bed. 
bed-linen (bed'lin'en), . Sheets, pillow-cases, 
etc., originally always of linen, now sometimes 
of cotton. 
bed-lounge (bed'lounj), . A combined bed 
and lounge ; a lounge or plain sofa made so as 
to open and f orm a bed. 
bedmaker (bed'ma"ker), n. [< ME. bedmaker.} 
1. One who manufactures beds or bedsteads. 
2. One who prepares beds for use ; espe- 
cially, in English universities, a man or woman 
whose duty it is to take care of the rooms and 
make the beds in college. Female bedmakers 
were forbidden in Cambridge in 1625, but are 
now usual. 
The bed-makers are the women who take care of the 
rooms ; there is about one to each staircase, that is to 
say, to every eight rooms. 
C. A. Briated, English University, p. 30. 
bedmate (bed'mat), . A bedfellow. SliaJc. 
bed-molding (bed'moFding), n. In arch., a 
molding of the cornice of an entablature, situ- 
ated beneath the corona and immediately above 
the frieze. Also called bediling-nuildiiig. 
bedotet (be-dof), ' t. [ME., < be- 1 + dote.} 
To make to dote; befool; deceive. 
For to bedote this queene was her entent. 
Chaucer, Good Women, 1. 1547. 
Bedouin (bed'6-in), n. and a. [Early mod. E. 
Bedwin, or as ML. Baduini, Beduini, pi. (ME. 
rarely Bedoynes); mod. E. also freq. Bedovieen, 
and more exactly Bedawi, sing., Bedawin, pi., 
after Ar., the form Bedouin being < F. Bidouin 
(OF. Beduin = It. Beduino, ML. Beduinm, etc. ), 
< Ar. badawin, pi. of badaiviy, a dweller in the 
desert (cf. baddwL rural, rustic), < badw, desert, 
open country.] I. n. 1. An Arab of the desert ; 
one of the nomadic Arabs, divided into many 
tribes, who live in tents, rear flocks and herds, 
especially of camels, and are scattered over 
Arabia, parts of Syria, and Egypt and other 
parts of Africa. Also Bedawi, plural Bedawin. 
Professionally, and in the ordinary course of their lives, 
Bedouins are only shepherds and herdsmen : their raids 
on each other, or their exploits in despoiling travellers 
and caravans, are but occasional, though welcome and 
even exciting, exceptions to the common routine. 
Kncyc. Brit., II. 246. 
2. A vagabond boy ; a street Arab. 
II. a. Relating to the Bedouins. 
bed-pan (bed'pan), n. 1. A pan for warming 
beds; a warming-pan. 2. A necessary utensil 
for the use of persons confined to bed. 
bedpheert, bedpheret, Erroneous spellings 
of bed/ere. 
bed-plate, bed-piece (bed'plat, -pes), . In 
mcclt., the sole-plate or foundation-plate of an 
engine, etc. 
bedpost (bed'p6st),.n. If. Same as bedstaff. 
2. A post forming an angle of a bedstead, in 
old bedsteads often rising high enough to sup- 
port the canopy and rods for the curtain. in 
the twinkling of a bedpost, with the utmost rapidity. 
See bedstaf. 
bed-presser (bed'pres"er), n. A lazy fellow ; 
one who loves his bed. 
This sanguine coward, this bed-irres*er, this horse-back 
breaker, this huge hill of flesh. Shak., 1 Hen. IV., ii. 4. 
bedquilt (bed'kwilt), n. A wadded and quilted 
covering for a bed. Also used for bedspread 
and comforter. 
The king [in a Sicilian fairy-story] issues a proclamation 
promising a large reward to whoever shall steal the bed- 
ijitUt of a certain ogre. N. A. Rev., CXXIII. 34. 
bedrabble (be-drab'l), r. t. [< be- 1 + drabble.} 
To make wet and dirty with rain and mud. 
Kingsley. 
bedraggle (be-drag'l), v. t. [< be- 1 + draggle.} 
To soil or wet by dragging in dirt, mud, moist 
places, etc., as the bottom of a garment in 
walking ; cause to appear wet and limp, as a 
flag when rained upon. 
bedral 1 (bed'ral), .. [Also bethral, betherel ; 
appar. a corruption of beadle, var. beddel, Sc. 
beddal, etc.] A beadle. [Scotch.] 
I'll hae her before presbytery and synod ; I'm half a 
minister mysel', now that I'm brdral in an inhabited par- 
ish- Scott, Bride of Lammermoor. \xxiv. 
bedlamize (bed'lam-Iz), v. t.: pret. and pp. bed- bedra! 2 t (bed'ral), n. [Also bedrel, a corrup- 
MMWM, ppr. bedlamizing. To make mad. tion of bedred, lor bedrid: see bedrid.} A per- 
bed-sore 
son who is bedridden. Knox. Also bcd-tlirall. 
[Scotch.] 
His father who as Bedrel lay 
Before his gate. Domjlfix, tr. of Virgil. 
bedreintt. Obsolete past participle of bcdrencli. 
bedrench (bo-drench ), v. t. [< ME. bedrcnchen 
(pp. bedrein't); < be- 1 + drench.} To drench 
thoroughly ; soak ; saturate with moisture. 
Receyve our billes with teres al betlreimi. 
Court of Love, 1. 577. 
Such crimson tempest should bedrench 
The fresh green lap of fair King Richard's land. 
Shalt., Rich. II., iii. 3. 
bedress (be-dres'), v. t. [< be- 1 + dress.} To 
dress up. 
The Bride whose tonish inclination 
Attended to the ruling fashion, 
To make her entry had bedresx'd 
Her upright form in all her best. 
11". Combe, Dr. Syntax in Search of a Wife, v. 
bedridden, bedrid (bed'rid"n, -rid), a. [< ME. 
bedred, bedrede, bedreden, bedredden, adj. and 
n., < AS. bcdreda, bedrida, bedryda, beddreddti, 
n., one bedridden, lit. a bed-rider (< bed, bed, 
+ rida, ridda, a rider, a knight, < riditn, ride). 
Cf . LG. beddcrede, bedderedig, bedridden ; OHG. 
pettiriso, G. bettrise, of same sense. The second 
element came to be regarded as the pp. of ridi- : 
hence the now usual form bedridden, ME. bed- 
reden.'} Confined to bed by age, infirmity, or 
sickness. 
Is not your father grown incapable 
Of reasonable affairs? . . . 
Lies he not bed-rid > Shak., W. T., Iv. 3. 
What an over-worne and bedrid Argument is this ! 
Milton, Def. of Humb. Remoust. 
Old bctln'dilt'n palsy. Tennyson, Aylmer's Field. 
bed-rightt, bed-ritet (bed'rit), . [< bed 1 + 
right, rite.} The privilege of the marriage-bed. 
No bed-riyht [in some eds. bed-rite] shall be paid 
Till Hymen's torch be lighted. Shak., Tempest, iv. 1. 
bedript, . [ME., also bcdripe, bedrepe, etc., 
< AS. bedrip. < bedu, prayer, + rip, a reaping : 
see bead and reap. Also called in AS. benrip, 
< ben, prayer, + rip.} Boon-work at harvest- 
time : a service which some tenants had to per- 
form at the bidding or request of their lord. 
bed-ritet, See bed-right. 
bed-rock (bed'rok),. [< bed 1 + rod:} 1. In 
mining, the older crystalline and slaty rocks 
which underlie the unconsolidated gravelly and 
volcanic beds of Tertiary and Post-tertiary 
ages, along the flanks of the Sierra Nevada. 
The term is Beginning to be used elsewhere to designate 
solid rock lying under loose detrital masses, such as sand 
and gravel. 
Hence 2. That which underlies anything else, 
as a foundation ; bottom layer; lowest stratum. 
Everywhere life and energy, working on a gigantic scale, 
have plowed furrows into the institutional bed rock of 
Western Society. 
C. H. Shinn, Land Laws of Mining Districts, p. 44. 
bedroom (bed'rom), n. 1. Room in a bed; 
sleeping-room in bed. [In this sense properly 
with a hyphen.] 
Then by your side no bed-room me deny. 
Shak., M. N. D., ii. 3. 
2. A room or apartment containing or intended 
to contain a bed ; a sleeping-apartment. 
bedrop (be-drop'), r. t. ; pret. and pp. bedropjicd 
(sometimes bedropt), ppr. bedropping. [< ME. 
bedroppen; < be- 1 + drop.} 1. To drop upon; 
fall upon in drops. 
As men sene the dew bedroppe 
The leves and the flowers eke. 
Gmrer, Conf. Amant., iii. 254. 
2. To cover, strew, or sprinkle with drops, or 
as if with drops; bespatter; bespangle. 
The yellow carp, in scales bedropp'd with gold. 
Pope, Windsor Forest, 1. 144. 
Eueful cheek, 
Pale and bedropped with ever-flowing tears. 
Wordsworth, Prelude, ix. 
bed-sacking (bed'sak'ing), n. Canvas designed 
to be stretched on the framework of a bed- 
stead to support the mattresses and bedclothes, 
bed-screw (bed'skro), n. 1. A bed-key or bed- 
wrench. 2. Same as barrel-screw. 
bedside (bed'sid), n. [< ME. bednyde, orig. 
beddes side, i. e., bed's side.] The side of a 
bed; position by a bed : usually with reference 
to attendance on one confined to bed : as, she 
watched by his bedside till dawn, 
bedsistert (bed'sis' / ter), n. [< ME. bedsustcr 
(Robert of Gloucester), < bed 1 + suster, sister.] 
A concubine. 
It is not much to be wondered at that we lost bed-winter 
for concubine. F. Hall, Mod. Eng., p. 165, note. 
bed-sore (bed'sor), . A very troublesome kind 
of ulcer, liable to appear on patients long con- 
fined in bed and either unable or not allowed 
