boisterous 
boisterous (bois'trr-ims), '(. [Early mod. E. 
also biiiix/i'iiiif, liiiantrouM, limrslrimx, hoititniiiH ; 
< late ME. boistroux, rough, coarse, a develop- 
ment, through the forms bnixltoiix. iMiyxtminx, 
of the earlier form bnixiiiux, which it has now 
superseded: sec l>ninl<iiix.] If. Rough ; coarse ; 
stout; stiff. 
The l atlltTII itlltsiiir, 'i.././- ,<",* US it Was, 
Gave way, ninl l>c-iit beneath her sirirt embrace. 
/>- IM|:I ninl Oolacardo, 1. 159. 
2f. Rough and massive; bulky; cumbrous; 
clumsy. 
Mis hi/*t,-iix rink s. liinii-il in the grownd, 
llr oiuM nut tv.nrii up a^ailu- sn light. 
* / "-user, r. Q., I. vlll. 10. 
3f. Rough in operation or action; violent; 
vehement. [Rare.] 
The In at iirr-.in, - tin. powerful and boisterous for them. 
u;,,,,i,,;i,;i. Es. towards a Nat. Ili-i. of the Earth. 
4. Rough and stormy: applied to the weather, 
the waves, etc. 5. Exposed to the turbulence 
of the elements: as, a boisterous headland; a 
boisterous passage. 6f. Fierce; savage; truc- 
ulent ; full of violence : as, boisterous war. 
Boist'nus Clifford, thnu hast slain 
The flower of Europe for his chivalry. 
Shak., 8 Hen. VI., ii. 1. 
7. Turbulent; rough and noisy; clamorous: 
applied to persons or their actions: as, a bois- 
terous man; boisterous merriment ; & boisterous 
game. 
They love a captain to ohey, 
Boisterous as March, yet fresh as May. 
Scott, Marmion, ill. 4. 
In the vigour of his physique, and an almost boisterous 
capacity for enjoyment, he was an English counterpart of 
the Scotch Christopher North. Edinburgh Rev. 
boisterously (bois'ter-us-li), adv. [< ME. boys- 
troKsly ; < boisterous + -ty 2 . Ct. boisttmsly.] In 
a boisterous manner; roughly; with noisy 
energy or activity. 
When you come next to woo, pray you, come not boister- 
ously. 
And furnish'd like a bear-ward. 
Fletcher, Wildgoose Chase, iv. 2. 
Halloo'd it as boisterously as the rest. 
Sternt, Tristram Shandy, ill. 20. 
boisterousness (bois'ter-us-nes), . [< bois- 
Icnnis + -nesx.] The state or quality of being 
boisterous; rough, noisy behavior; turbulence. 
Behaved with the bowterousnrss of men elated by recent 
authority. Johnson, Life of Prior. 
boistoust, a. [Early mod. E., also written boyg- 
tous, boisteous, boysteous, boistious, boystuous, 
etc., Sc. bounteous, busteous, etc.; < ME. bois- 
tous, boystous, buystous, etc. ; cf. mod. E. dial. 
(Cornwall) boiistous, boostis, boustis, bustious, 
fat, corpulent, hoist, corpulence (perhaps a 
back-formation, from the adj.); origin un- 
known. The ME. agrees in form with AF. 
boistous, OF. bmstfus, mod. F. boiteujr, lame, 
but no connection of sense is apparent. The 
W. bwystits, wild, ferocious, is perhaps from E.] 
1. Rude; rough; churlish; rustic; coarse: 
applied to persons. [The earliest recorded 
sense.] 
I am a boi/*tnus man, right thus say I. 
Chauctr, Manciple's Tale, 1. 107. 
2. Rough ; fierce ; savage. 
Myghtc nu lilonkes [horses] theme bere, thos biistmts 
churlles, 
Bot covercle camcllz of toures, enclosyde in maylez. 
Mrtf Arthurr (E. E. T. S.), 1. 615. 
3. Rough and massive ; bulky ; clumsy. [Still 
in dial, use.] 4. Coarse in texture; rough; 
stout; thick. 5. Loud; violent; boisterous. 
boistOUSlyt, '"''' [< ME. lioixtniixly, etc. ; < bois- 
tous + -lift.] Roughly; violently; boister- 
ously. 
boistousnesst, [< ME. boistousncsse, etc. ; < 
bnisttiiis + -iit-its.'] Roughness; violence; bois- 
ttTOUSlH'SS. 
bojobi, boiobi (boi-6'bi), n. [Native name.] 
The dog-headed boa, or Xiiilioxmua caninum, a 
South American snake, family BoMte, notable 
for the beautiful green color of its skin. It is 
distinguished by having smooth scales, the marginal scales 
of the mouth pitted, ami regular shi Ids i>n tin- snout. 
\l>ii railed nrin-tl tiilxnift. 
bokark (bo'kiirk), i. [Amer. Ind.] A basket 
of birch-bark, used by Lake Superior Indians 
to hold maple-sugar. 
boke 1 (l>6k), i\; pret. and pp. baked, ppr. bok- 
iiit/. [E. dial., also buck; in part a var. of 
finkc: seefti-A" J aml/iote 1 .] I. tranx. Tothrust; 
push; poke. [Eng.] 
Il.t intrant. To ilinist : push; butt. Solltind. 
boke-, r. A dialectal form of bock, bolk. 
613 
boke ' i link i, . In mining, a small run in pipes, 
found connecting the ore running through the 
vein. 11. Hunt. 
boke't, a. An obsolete spelling of book. 
bokelt, A Middle English form of buckle'*. 
bokelert, . A M ii Idle English form of buckler. 
bolar (bo'lar), a. [< 6ote 2 -I- -ar.] Pertaining 
to or of the nature of bole : as. bolar earths. 
bolaryt (bo'la-ri), a. [< bole% + -ary] Pertain- 
ing to bole or clay, or partaking of its nature 
and qualities. 
Consisting of a botary and clammy substance. 
Sir T. Browne, Vulg. Err., II. 8. 
bolas 1 1, . A Middle English form of bullace. 
bolas 2 (bo'las), H. sing, or /)/. [Sp., pi. of bola, 
a ball, < L. bulla, a bubble, any round object : 
see bulft, WHS.] A weapon of war and the 
chase, consisting of two or three balls of stone 
or metal attached to the ends of strong lines, 
which are knotted together, used by the Gau- 
chos and Indians of western and southern South 
America. It ii uned by throwing it in such a way that 
the line winds around the object aimed at, as the legs of 
an animal. A smaller weapon of the same sort la in use 
among the Eskimos for killing birds. 
The bolas, or balls, are of two kinds : the simplest, 
which is used chiefly for catching ostriches, constate of 
two round stones, covered with leather, and united by a 
thin, plaited thong, about eight feet long. The other kind 
differs only In having three balls united by thongs to a 
common centre. The Gaucho holds the smallest of the 
three In his hand, and whirls the other two around his 
head ; then, taking aim, sends them like chain shot revolv- 
ing through the air. The balls no sooner strike any ob- 
ject, than, winding round it, they cross each other and 
become firmly hitched. Darmn, Voyage of Beagle, 111. 50. 
bolbonact, . The satin-flower, Lunaria biennis. 
bold (bold), a. [< ME. bold, bald, < AS. beald, 
bald = OS. bald = D. boud, bold (= MLG. balde, 
bolde, adv., quickly, at once), = OHQ. bald, 
MHG. bait, bold (G. bald, adv., soon), = Icel. 
ballr = ODan. bold = Goth, "baltlis, bold (in 
deriv. balthaba, boldly, ///////=!;. bield, bold- 
ness, etc.). Hence bold, v., bifid, n. and r., 
and (from OHG.) It. baldo, OF. bald, baud, 
bold, gay : see bawd 1 ."] 1. Daring; courageous; 
brave; intrepid; fearless: applied to men or 
animals : as, bold as a lion. 
He has called him forty Marchmen bauld. 
Kinmont Willie, in Child's Ballads, VI. 61. 
Our speech at best is half alive and cold, 
And save that tenderer momenta make us bold, 
Our whitening lips would close, their truest truth untold. 
0. W. Holmes, To H. W. Longfellow. 
2. Requiring or exhibiting courage; planned 
or executed with courage and spirit : as, a bold 
enterprise. 
The bold design 
Pleased highly those infernal States. 
Milton, P. L., Ii. 386. 
3f. Confident; trusting; assured. 
I am bold her honour 
Will remain hers. Shak., Cymbeline, 11. 4. 
4. Forward ; impudent ; audacious : as, a bold 
huzzy. 
Men can cover crimes with bold, stern looks. 
Shak., Lucrece, 1. 1252. 
6. Overstepping usual bounds ; presuming up- 
on sympathy or forbearance ; showing liberty 
or license, as in style or expression : as, a bold 
metaphor. 
Which no bold tales of gods or monsters swell. 
But human passions, such as with us dwell, nailer. 
It Is hardly too bold to claim the whole Netherlands as 
in the widest sense Old England. 
/:. A. Freeman, Amer. Lects., p. 31. 
6. Standing out to view ; striking to the eye ; 
markedly conspicuous ; prominent : as, a bold 
headland ; a bold handwriting. 
Catachreses and hyperlwles are to be used judiciously, 
and placed in poetry, as heightening^ and shadows in 
painting, to make the figure bolder, and cause it to stand 
off to sight. Dryden. 
7. Steep; abrupt: as, a bold shore (one that 
enters the water almost perpendicularly). 
Her dominions have bold accessible coasts. HmntU. 
The coast [Virginia] is a bold and even coast, with regu- 
lar soundings, and is open all the year round. 
BcKrley, Virginia, II. 1 i 
8. Deep, as water, close to the shore; navi- 
gable very near to the land. 
The line [of soundings) was extended to Jacmel, showing 
bold water to the cape. Seienee, III. 591. 
To be bold > >r BO bold, to venture ; presume so far (as to 
do something). 
sir. let me be no bold as to ask you, 
Did vou yet ever see Baptista's daughter? 
Shot., T. of the S., t i 
I will be bold, since you will have it so, 
To ask a noble favour of vim. 
Bean. ,<,i,l I'l.. king and No King, IT. 1. 
bole 
To make bold, <> take the liberty ; use the freedom : ai, 
I hav> T'I rail on you. =Byn. 1. ittuntleu. 
doughty, valiant, manful, stout-hearted, intrepid, auda- 
cious, ail venturous. - 4. .Saucy, Impertinent, assuming, bra- 
boldt (bold), v. [< MK. l,<,l,lni, 1,1,1,1, H. tr. and 
intr., < AS. bealilinn, intr. be bold (=OHG. 
ltd, Ii n. MIHI. brlili-H, trans, make bold, = Goth. 
baltlijati, intr. be bold, dare), < beald, bold. Cf. 
liifltl. r., a parallel form (< AS. byltlan), and em- 
bolden.] I. trans. To make bold; embolden; 
encourage. 
Km this bull nen. 
It toucheth us. as France invadet our land, 
Not >.M the kiiiK. Shot., Lear, v. 1. 
II. in /rung. To become bold. 
For with that on encresede my fere, 
And with that othlrgan myn hcrle tmlde. 
Chaucer, Parliament of Fowb, 1. 144. 
bold-beatingt (bold'bfi'ting), a. Browbeating: 
as, " bold-heating oaths," Shak., M. W. of W.. 
ii. 2. 
boldent (bol'dn), r. t. [< bold + -<!. Cf. em- 
bolden.] To make bold; give confidence; en- 
courage. 
I am much too venturous 
In tempting of your patience ; hut am bolden'd 
Tinier your promls'd pardon. Shak., Hen. VIII., I. 2. 
bold-face (bold'fas), n. 1. One who has a 
bold face ; an impudent person. 
A sauce-box, and a bold-face, and a pert. 
Richardson, Pamela, xlx. 
2. In printing, same as full-face. 
bold-faced (bold'fast), a. Having a bold face ; 
impudent. 
The bold-faced athelste of this age. 
/;/<. Bramhall, Against Hobbes. 
boldheadt, . [ME. boldhede; < bold + head.] 
Boldness; courage. 
Ifallen is al his boldhedr. Owl and Xiohtingale, I. &14. 
boldine(bol'din),. [< boldo + -tn<>2.] An alka- 
loid extracted from the leaves of I'eumus liol- 
dus. See hoMo. 
boldly (bold'li), adv. [< ME. Mdly, boldliche, 
etc., < AS. bealdlice, baldlice (= OS. baldlieo = 
OHG. baldlieho), < beald, bold.] In a bold man- 
ner, (a) Courageously ; intrepidly ; fearlessly ; bravely. 
(b) With confident assurance ; without hesitation or doubt. 
(<> Vigorously ; strongly ; strikingly. (</) Impudently : 
insolently ; with effrontery or shamelessness. (e) Steeply ; 
abruptly ; conspicuously. 
boldness (bold'nes), 11. [< bold + -ness. For 
the earlier noun, see hield.] The quality of 
being bold, in any of the senses of the word. 
Great is my boldness of speech toward you. 2 Cor. vll. 4. 
Boldness is the power to speak, or do what we intend, 
before others, without fear or disorder. 
Locke, Human Understanding. 
The bitldness of the figures Is to be hidden sometimes by 
the address of the poet, that they may work then- effect 
upon the mind. Dryden. 
I cannot, with Johnson, interpret this word by fortitude 
or magnanimity. Boldness does not, I think, imply the 
nrmness of mind which constitutes fortitude, nor the ele- 
vation and generosity of magnanimity. .V. Webmtrr. 
boldo (bol'dd), n. [Chilian.] An aromatic ever- 
green shrub of Chili, Peumus Boldus (Boldoa 
fragrans), of the natural order Monimiaeeie. 
The fruit of the plant is sweet and edible, and the bark is 
used for tanning. The leaves and bark are also used In 
medicine. See boldine. 
bold-spirited (bold'spir'i-ted), a. Having a 
bold spirit or courage. 
bole 1 (Dol), H. [Early mod. E. also boat, boll; 
< ME. bole, < Icel. bolr, bulr, trunk of a tree, 
= OSw. bol, but, 8w. bAl, a trunk, body, = Dan. 
bul, trunk, stump, log, = MHG. Imle, G. bohle, a 
thick plank ; prob. akin, through the notion of 
roundness, to boll 1 , fcotr/i, ball 1 , etc. Bole is 
the first element of bulwark and of its perver- 
sion boulevard, q. v.] 1. The body or stem of 
a tree. 
Huge trees, a thousand rings of Spring 
In every bole. Tennyson, Princess, r. 
The nerves of hearing clasp the roots of the brain as a 
creeping vine clings to the bole of an elm. 
0. H". Holmes, Old Vol. of Life, p. 271. 
2. Anything of cylindrical shape ; a roll ; a pil- 
lar: as, boles of stone. [Rare.] 
Make It up into little long boles or routes. 
True Gentlemmant Delight (1676). 
3. A small boat suited for a rough sea. Imp. 
Diet. [Eng. ] 
bole- (bol), M. [< ME. bol (in bol armoniak, 
Armenian bole), < OF. bol, F. bol = Pr. Sp. bol 
= Pg. It. bolo, < L. liolus. clay, a lump, choice 
bit, nice morsel, < Gr. ,to/of, a clod or lump of 
earth.] 1. A general term including certain 
compact, amorphous, soft, more or less brittle, 
unctuous clays, having a eonchoidal fracture 
and greasy luster, and varying in color from 
