boar-fish 
boar-fish (boVlish I, . A name npgiliril to vari- 
ous dissimilar lislics which have a projcrtinu' 
SIHillt. (a) In Kli-laml, tlir l'n/,na n/ifr, a flsll c.f till' 
flllllily l':l/:r:u:/,l'. ll h;l, Illr power lif I'M I'Tlcl i UK tlll<l 
roritrartiiu its [jiniilli at ill. \\ lieu t<\t<'ii<li->l the mouth 
takes the form of a lion's snout, uliclinr the name. It ia 
V 
Boar.fish (Cafms afrr). 
6 inches long, ami inhabits the Mediterranean and At- 
lantic northward to the British coasts. (6) In New Zea- 
land, tile Ctittii.-, un.'l ,-nliit, a species of the family '/.< unlit 1 . 
It Is related to the John-dory, lint has a rough skin and i 
destitute of hirer platen and the black lateral spots, (c) 
lu southern Australia ( Melbourne, etc.), the 1'entace.ropsis 
refurvirostrijt, a species of the family P&Uaccrotidec. It is 
esteemed as a food-fish. 
bearish (bor'ish), a. [< boar + -ishi.] Of or 
pertaining to a boar ; resembling a boar ; swin- 
ish; sensual; cruel. 
In his anointed llcgh stick !it-i ./> fangs. 
NA.iA-., Lear, III. 7. 
boar-spear (bor'sper), n. [< ME. boresper, < 
AS. barspere, < bar, boar, + sperc, spear.] A 
spear used in hunting boars, 
boar-stag (bor'stag), n. A gelded boar, 
boar's-tusk (borz'tusk), n. A common name 
given to shells of the genus Dentalium. J. B. 
Sowerby, Jr. 
boart (bort), . Same as bort. 
boast 1 (bost), t'. [< ME. bosten, boosten, < bost, 
boast: origin unknown. The W. bostio, bos- 
tian = Corn, bostyc = Gael, bostl, boast, are 
from the E.] I. intrans. If. To threaten; ut- 
ter a threat. 2. To brag; vaunt; speak vain- 
gloriously or exaggeratedly, as of one's own 
worth, property, deeds, etc. 
Boottte not myche, it is but waast ; 
Bl boostynge, men mowe foolls knowe. 
Batiees Book (E. E. T. S.), p. 54 
By grace are ye saved through faith ; . . . not of works, 
lest any man should boast. Eph. ii. 8, 9. 
3. To glory or exult on account (of); speak 
with laudable pride. 
I boat of yon to them of Macedonia. 2 Cor. ix. 2. 
4. To be possessed, as of something remarka- 
ble or admirable : often used jocosely. 
It (the cathedral] does not appear so rich as the small- 
est church, but boasts of a little organ, which sent forth 
singularly inharmonious cries. 
Daririn, Voyage of Beagle, I. 4. 
= SyiL To bluster (about), vapor, crow (about a thing, or 
over a person), swell, talk big, put on airs. 
II. trans. 1. To brag of; speak of with 
pride, vanity, or exultation : as, to boast what 
anns can do. 
But let him boast 
His knowledge of good lost, and evil got. 
Milton, P. L., xi. 86. 
He boasts his life as purer than thine own. 
Tennyson, Balin and Balan. 
2. To glory or exult in possessing ; have as a 
source of pride : often in a jocose sense : as, the 
village boasts a public pump. 
God be thanked, the meanest of His creatures 
Boast* two soul-sides, one to face the world with, 
One to show a woman when he loves her. 
l!i-"irtiinff, One Word More. 
3. To magnify or exalt ; make over-confident ; 
vaunt : with a reflexive pronoun. 
They that trust in their wealth, and boast themselves In 
tlie multitude of their riches. Ps. xlix. 0. 
Boast not thyself of to-morrow. Pror. xxvii. 1. 
Many there be that ttoast themselves that they have 
faith. Lutlmrr, 4th Serm. bef. Edw. VI. (1548). 
boast 1 (bost). . [< ME. boost, bost: see the 
vi't-b. The \V. bost (= Corn, bost = Ir. and 
(iat'l. boml), a boast, is from the E.] If. 
Clamor; outcry. 
He erakkede fm^t and svvor it was nat so. 
I'luiiiivr, Iteeve's Tale, 1. 81. 
2f. Threatening; menace. 3. Brag; vaunt- 
ing; language expressive of ostentation, pride, 
or vanity. 
Reason ami morals ? and where live they most, 
In Christian comfort or in Stole boast f 
/''/''"". Kuthusiasm. 
4. A cause of boasting: occasion of pride, 
vanity, or laudable exultation : as, Shakspere, 
the Imaxt of English literature. 
His Candle is ahvayi s a lonurr sitter vp then billiselfr. 
and thr Mx/ of his Window at Midnight. 
/'/'. /''! >'t' : , Miero-cosmographir. A Cirteiiilerto Learning. 
= Syn. Vaunt, brag. See boastinyl. 
Boasting-chisels. 
605 
boast 2 (host), r. t. [Origin unknown; perhaps 
a 'omiption of bosh*, q. v.] 1. In masonry, 
to dress off t In- surface of a stone with a broad 
chisel and mallet. 2. In .//<., to reduce or- 
naments or other work to their general contour 
or form, preparatory to working out the details. 
boast 2 (bost), n. [Appar. in allusion to the 
ball's nibbing or scraping the wall; < boastf, 
p.] In tennis, a stroke by which the ball is 
drivi'ii against the wall of a court at an acute 
angle. The nibbing against the wall makes 
thr ball spilt. 
boastancet, . [< boast 1 + -ance.'] Boasting. 
f 'lutucer. 
boaster 1 (bos'ter), . [< ME. hosier, bostour, 
< bosten, boast.] One who boasts, glories, or 
vaunts with exaggeration, or ostentatiously ; a 
bragger. 
boaster 2 (bos'ter), w. [< boast* + -eri.] A 
broad chisel used in rough-hewing and dressing 
off the surface of a stone ; a boasting-chisel, 
boastful (bost'ful), a. [< ME. bostful, < host, 
boast, + -fvl.} Given to boasting ; vaunting; 
bragging. 
Boatl/vl and rough, your first son is a squire. 
Pope, Moral Essays, 1. 151. 
Let boastful eloquence declaim 
Of honor, liberty, and fame. 
Whitticr, Prisoner for Debt. 
boastfully (bost'ful-i), adv. In a boastful 
manner. 
boastfulness (bost'ful-nes), . [< boastful + 
-ness."\ The state or quality of being boastful. 
boasting 1 (bos'ting), n. [< ME. hosting; verbal 
n. of boasft, .] A glorying or vaunting; boast- 
ful or ostentatious words ; bragging language. 
When boasting ends, then dignity begins. Young. 
= Syn. Brag, bravado, bluster, swagger, swaggering, rain- 
glory, rodomontade, parade, vaporing, rant. 
boasting 2 (bos'ting), . [Verbal n. of boas ft, 
t.] jLIn masonry, the process of dressing the 
surface of a stone with a broad 
chisel and mallet. 2. In sculp. 
and carving, the act of cutting 
a stone roughly with a boasting- 
chisel, so as to give it the general 
contour of a statue or an orna- 
ment. Also called scabbling. 
boastingly (bos'ting-li), adv. In an ostenta- 
tious manner ; with boasting, 
boastive (bos'tiv), a. [< boast* + -ive.] Pre- 
sumptuous; boastful. SJtenstone. [Rare.] 
boastless (bost'les), a. [< boasfl + -fcss.] 
Without boasting or ostentation. [Rare.] 
Diffusing kind beneficence around, 
Boastless, as now descends the silent dew. 
Thomson, Summer, 1. 1644. 
boat (bot), . [< ME. boot, bate, bot, < AS. bat = 
Icel. beit (rare), a boat; appar. not found as an 
orig. word elsewhere, being in the later lan- 
guages appar. borrowed from ME. or AS. ; 
namely (from ME.), MD. and 0. 600* = MLG. 
hot, LG. boot (> G. boot), and (from AS.) Icel. 
batr = Sw. bat = Dan. baad, also W. bad = Ir. 
Imil = Gael. Im/ii, and ML. batus, battue, It. 
batto = OF. bat; with dim. It. battello = Sp. 
batel = Pr. batelh = OP. hotel, F. bateau : see 
bateau.'] 1. A small vessel orwater-craft ; espe- 
cially, a small open vessel moved by oars. The 
forms, dimensions, and uses of boats arc very various. The 
In at - in use In the United Statw naval service are steam- 
launches, launches, steam-cutters, cutters, barges, gigs, 
whale-boats, and dinghies. 
2. Any vessel for navigation : usually described 
by another word or by a prefix denoting its use 
or mode of propulsion : as, a packet-feoat, pas- 
sage-front, steamftoflt, etc. The term is frequent- 
ly applied colloquially to vessels even of the 
largest size. 3. Any open dish or vessel re- 
sembling a boat: as, a gravy-ftoaf; a butter- 
boat. 
The crude red [In the decomposition of aniline] has left 
a violet deposit in the bottom of the boat* in which it was 
<-"<>led. Pop. Set. Mo., XXV. 207. 
4. In the Bom. Cath. Ch., the vessel contain- 
ing the incense to be placed in the thurible 
when needed. Ail In the same boat, all engaged 
in the same enterprise ; all in the same condition, espe- 
cially unfortunate condition ; all to have the same fate 
or fortune. Boat-compass, see compats. High boat. 
See hinh. Paper boat, a light boat, used especially for 
racing and sporting purposes, made of sheets of manila 
paper, or of paper made from superior unbleached linen 
stock. The first sheet is fastened to a model which cor- 
responds to the interior of the boat, and coated with ad- 
hesive varnish : another sheet is thru put over the first ; 
and so on until a sntticient thii kni'ss is obtained. 
boat (bot ), r. [<lu><,t, .] I. tniii*. 1. To trans- 
port in a boat: as, to 6o( goods across a lake. 
2. To provide with boats. [Rare.] 
boat's-gripes 
Our little ArnoU not boat"' likr tin- Thames. 
II" 1. 8. 
To boat the can, t< take them out of tin- rowlocks 
MdnaM them fore ami aft on the thwarts. 
II. intrans. To go in a boat ; row. 
I boated over, ran 
My < raft aijroiiN.I. 
inn, Edwin Morris. 
beatable (bo'ta-bl), n. [< bo<it + -able.1 Navi- 
gable by boats or small river-craft, 
boatage (bo'taj), . [< boat + -Of/e.] 1. Car- 
riage by boat, or the charge for carrying by 
boat. 2t. Boats collectively . 3. The aggre- 
gate carrying capacity of the boats belonging 
to a ship. 
It Is generally assumed that sufficient bnataye Is invari- 
ably provided. AV/;,,/,/,,-.,/, /;. .. cxv. 108. 
boatbill (bot'bil), n. A South American bird, 
Coehlearia (or (,'aneroma) cochlearia, related to 
tho true herons: so named from the shape and 
Boatbill (Cancroma cochlearia . 
size of the bill, which is very broad and much 
vaulted. The boathill is about the size of and somewhat 
resembles a night-heron (apart from the bill), but is the 
type of a distinct subfamily, Cancromina (which see). 
Also called Ixtat-billrd heron and sapactHt. 
boat-builder (bot'bil'der), n. One who makes 
boats ; a boatwright. 
boat-fly (bot'fli), . An aquatic heteropterous 
hemipterous insect of the family Xotonertida-, 
which swims upon its back. See Xotonecta. 
Also called back-swimmer and boat-insect. 
boat-hook (bot'huk), n. A brass or iron hook 
and spike fixed to a staff or pole, used for pull- 
ing or pushing a boat. Also called gaff-setter, 
setting-pole, pole-hook, and hitcher. 
boat-house (bot'hous), n. A house or shed for 
storing boats and protecting them from the 
weather. 
boating (bo'ting), n. [Verbal n. of boat, r.] 
1. The act or practice of rowing or sailing a 
boat, especially as a means of exercise or 
amusement. 2. Transportation by boats. 3. 
A punishment in ancient Persia, consisting in 
fastening an offender on his back in a boat and 
leaving him to perish or be eaten by vermin. 
boat-insect (bot'in'sekt), n. Same as boat-flu. 
boationt (bo-a'shon), n. [< L. as if 'boatio(n-), 
equiv. to boatus, a crying out, < boare, earlier 
bovare, = Or. jioav, cry out, roar, bellow.] A 
reverberation; a roar; loud noise. [Rare.] 
The guns were heard . . . aliont a hundred Italian 
miles, in loud boationt. Drrham, Physico-Theology. 
boat-keeper (bot'ke'per), . 1. One of the 
crew of a ship's boat left in charge of it during 
the absence of the others. 2. One who keeps 
boats for hire. 
boatman (bot'man), i.; pi. boatmen (-men). 1. 
A man who manages or is employed on a boat; 
a rower of a boat. 
The iKKituiaii piled the oar, the bo*t 
Went light along the stream. Sotitkey. 
2. A hemipterous insect of the family CoritUm 
and genus A'otaneeta. 
boat-racing (bot'ra'sing)j . A trial of speed 
between boats ; racing with boats, 
boat-rope (bot'rop), n. A rope to fasten a 
boat, usually called a painter. 
Bors-gripe. 
boats-gripes (bots'grips), n.pl. Lashings used 
to secure boats hoisted at the davits. 
