Webster's Unabridged Dictionary - Letter B - Page 73
Box (n.) (Bot.) A tree or shrub, flourishing in different parts of the world. The common box (Buxus sempervirens) has two varieties, one of which, the dwarf box (B. suffruticosa), is much used for borders in gardens. The wood of the tree varieties, being very hard and smooth, is extensively used in the arts, as by turners, engravers, mathematical instrument makers, etc.
Box elder, The ash-Leaved maple ({Negundo+aceroides"> Box elder, the ash-Leaved maple ({Negundo aceroides), of North America.
Box holly, The butcher's broom ({Russus aculeatus"> Box holly, the butcher's broom ({Russus aculeatus).
Box+thorn, A shrub ({Lycium barbarum"> Box thorn, a shrub ({Lycium barbarum).
Box tree, The tree variety of the common box.
Boxes (n. pl. ) of Box.
Box (n.) A receptacle or case of any firm material and of various shapes.
Box (n.) The quantity that a box contain.
Box (n.) A space with a few seats partitioned off in a theater, or other place of public amusement.
Laughed at by the pit, box, galleries, nay, stage. -- Dorset.
The boxes and the pit are sovereign judges. -- Dryden.
Box (n.) A chest or any receptacle for the deposit of money; as, a poor box; a contribution box.
Yet since his neighbors give, the churl unlocks, Damning the poor, his tripple-bolted box. -- J. Warton.
Box (n.) A small country house. "A shooting box." -- Wilson.
Tight boxes neatly sashed. -- Cowper.
Box (n.) A boxlike shed for shelter; as, a sentry box.
Box (n.) (Mach.) An axle box, journal box, journal bearing, or bushing.
Box (n.) (Mach.) A chamber or section of tube in which a valve works; the bucket of a lifting pump.
Box (n.) The driver's seat on a carriage or coach.
Box (n.) A present in a box; a present; esp. a Christmas box or gift.
Box (n.) (Baseball) The square in which the pitcher stands.
Box (n.) (Zool.) A Mediterranean food fish; the bogue.
Note: Box is much used adjectively or in composition; as box lid, box maker, box circle, etc.; also with modifying substantives; as money box, letter box, bandbox, hatbox or hat box, snuff box or snuffbox.
Box beam (Arch.), A beam made of metal plates so as to have the form of a long box.
Box car (Railroads), A freight car covered with a roof and inclosed on the sides to protect its contents.
Box chronometer, A ship's chronometer, mounted in gimbals, to preserve its proper position.
Box coat, A thick overcoat for driving; sometimes with a heavy cape to carry off the rain.
Box coupling, A metal collar uniting the ends of shafts or other parts in machinery.
Box crab (Zool.), A crab of the genus Calappa, which, when at rest with the legs retracted, resembles a box.
Box drain (Arch.), A drain constructed with upright sides, and with flat top and bottom.
Box girder (Arch.), A box beam.
Box groove (Metal Working), A closed groove between two rolls, formed by a collar on one roll fitting between collars on another. -- R. W. Raymond.
Box metal, An alloy of copper and tin, or of zinc, lead, and antimony, for the bearings of journals, etc.
Box plait, A plait that doubles both to the right and the left.
Box turtle or Box tortoise (Zool.), A land tortoise or turtle of the genera Cistudo and Emys; -- so named because it can withdraw entirely within its shell, which can be closed by hinged joints in the lower shell. Also, humorously, an exceedingly reticent person. -- Emerson.
In a box, In a perplexity or an embarrassing position; in difficulty. (Colloq.)
In the wrong box, Out of one's place; out of one's element; awkwardly situated. (Colloq.) -- Ridley (1554)
Boxed (imp. & p. p.) of Box.
Boxing (p. pr. & vb. n.) of Box.
Box (v. t.) To inclose in a box.
Box (v. t.) To furnish with boxes, as a wheel.
Box (v. t.) (Arch.) To inclose with boarding, lathing, etc., so as to bring to a required form.
To box a tree, To make an incision or hole in a tree for the purpose of procuring the sap.
To box off, To divide into tight compartments.
To box up. (a) To put into a box in order to save; as, he had boxed up twelve score pounds.
To box up. (b) To confine; as, to be boxed up in narrow quarters.
Box (n.) A blow on the head or ear with the hand.
A good-humored box on the ear. -- W. Irving.
Box (v. i.) To fight with the fist; to combat with, or as with, the hand or fist; to spar.
Box (v. t.) To strike with the hand or fist, especially to strike on the ear, or on the side of the head.
Box (v. t.) To boxhaul.
To box off (Naut.), To turn the head of a vessel either way by bracing the headyards aback.
To box the compass (Naut.), to name the thirty-two points of the compass in their order.
Box (n.) A (usually rectangular) container; may have a lid; "he rummaged through a box of spare parts."
Box (n.) Private area in a theater or grandstand where a small group can watch the performance; "the royal box was empty" [syn: box, loge].
Box (n.) The quantity contained in a box; "he gave her a box of chocolates" [syn: box, boxful].
Box (n.) A predicament from which a skillful or graceful escape is impossible; "his lying got him into a tight corner" [syn: corner, box].
Box (n.) A rectangular drawing; "the flowchart contained many boxes."
Box (n.) Evergreen shrubs or small trees [syn: box, boxwood].
Box (n.) Any one of several designated areas on a ball field where the batter or catcher or coaches are positioned; "the umpire warned the batter to stay in the batter's box."
Box (n.) The driver's seat on a coach; "an armed guard sat in the box with the driver" [syn: box, box seat].
Box (n.) Separate partitioned area in a public place for a few people; "the sentry stayed in his box to avoid the cold."
Box (n.) A blow with the hand (usually on the ear); "I gave him a good box on the ear."
Box (v.) Put into a box; "box the gift, please" [syn: box, package] [ant: unbox].
Box (v.) Hit with the fist; "I'll box your ears!"
Box (v.) Engage in a boxing match.
Box (n.) A computer; esp. in the construction foo box where foo is some functional qualifier, like graphics, or the name of an OS (thus, Unix box, Windows box , etc.) ? We preprocess the data on Unix boxes before handing it up to the mainframe.?
Box
Unix box, () A computer; especially in the construction "foo box" where foo is some functional qualifier, like "graphics", operating+system+(thus,+"{Unix">or the name of an operating system (thus, "{Unix box", "{MS-DOS box", etc.) "We preprocess the data on Unix boxes before handing it up to the mainframe." The plural "{boxen" is sometimes seen.
Unix box, () Without qualification in an IBM SNA site, "box" refers specifically to an IBM front-end processor. [{Jargon File] (1994-11-29)
Box, () For holding oil or perfumery (Mark 14:3). It was of the form of a flask or bottle. The Hebrew word (pak) used for it is mo appropriately rendered "vial" in 1 Sam. 10:1, and should also b so rendered in 2 Kings 9:1, where alone else it occurs.
Boxberry (n.) (Bot.) The wintergreen. ({Gaultheria procumbens). [Local, U.S.]
Boxberry (n.) Creeping woody plant of eastern North America with shiny evergreen leaves and scarlet berries [syn: partridgeberry, boxberry, twinberry, Mitchella repens].
Boxberry (n.) Spicy red berrylike fruit; source of wintergreen oil [syn: wintergreen, boxberry, checkerberry, teaberry, spiceberry].
Boxen (a.) Made of boxwood; pertaining to, or resembling, the box ({Buxus). [R.]
The faded hue of sapless boxen leaves. -- Dryden.
Boxen (pl. n.) [very common; by analogy with VAXen] Fanciful plural of box often encountered in the phrase ?Unix boxen?, used to describe commodity Unix hardware. The connotation is that any two Unix boxen are interchangeable.
Boxen, () (By analogy with VAXen) A fanciful plural of box often encountered in the phrase "Unix boxen", used to describe commodity Unix hardware. The connotation is that any two Unix boxen are interchangeable. [{Jargon File] (1994-11-29)
Boxer (n.) One who packs boxes.
Boxer (n.) One who boxes; a pugilist.
Boxer (n.) A breed of dog.
Boxer (n.) Someone who fights with his fists for sport [syn: boxer, pugilist].
Boxer (n.) A workman employed to pack things into containers [syn: packer, bagger, boxer].
Boxer (n.) A member of a nationalistic Chinese secret society that led an unsuccessful rebellion in 1900 against foreign interests in China.
Boxer (n.) A breed of stocky medium-sized short-haired dog with a brindled coat and square-jawed muzzle developed in Germany.
Boxer, () A visual language by Hal Abelson and Andy diSessa of Berkeley which claims to be the successor to Logo. Boxes are used to represent scope.
Boxer, () A text editor for MS-DOS and Microsoft Windows. (2001-04-30)
Trunkfish (n.) (Zool.) Any one of several species of plectognath fishes, belonging to the genus Ostracion, or the family Ostraciontidae, having an angular body covered with a rigid integument consisting of bony scales. Some of the species are called also coffer fish, and boxfish.
Boxfish (n.) (Zool.) The trunkfish.
Boxfish (n.) Any of numerous small tropical fishes having body and head encased in bony plates [syn: boxfish, trunkfish].
Boxhauled (imp. & p. p.) of Boxhaul.
Boxhaul (v. t.) (Naut.) 【海】使船隨風微轉 To put (a vessel) on the other tack by veering her short round on her heel; -- so called from the circumstance of bracing the head yards abox (i. e., sharp aback, on the wind). -- Totten.
Boxhauling (n.) (Naut.) A method of going from one tack to another. See Boxhaul.
Boxing (n.) The act of inclosing (anything) in a box, as for storage or transportation.
Boxing (n.) Material used in making boxes or casings.
Boxing (n.) Any boxlike inclosure or recess; a casing.
Boxing (n.) (Arch.) The external case of thin material used to bring any member to a required form.
Boxing (n.) The act of fighting with the fist; a combat with the fist; sparring ; pugilism. -- Blackstone.
Boxing glove, A large padded mitten or glove used in sparring for exercise or amusement.
Boxing (n.) Fighting with the fists [syn: boxing, pugilism, fisticuffs].
Boxing (n.) The enclosure of something in a package or box [syn: packing, boxing].
Box-iron (n.) A hollow smoothing iron containing a heater within.
Boxkeeper (n.) An attendant at a theater who has charge of the boxes.
Boxthorn (n.) (Bot.) A plant of the genus Lycium, esp. Lycium barbarum.
Boxthorn (n.) Any of various shrubs or vines of the genus Lycium with showy flowers and bright berries [syn: matrimony vine, boxthorn].
Boxwood (n.) The wood of the box ({Buxus).
Boxwood (n.) Very hard tough close-grained light yellow wood of the box (particularly the common box); used in delicate woodwork: musical instruments and inlays and engraving blocks [syn: boxwood, Turkish boxwood].
Boxwood (n.) Evergreen shrubs or small trees [syn: box, boxwood].
Boy (n.) A male child, from birth to the age of puberty; a lad; hence, a son.
My only boy fell by the side of great Dundee. -- Sir W. Scott.
Note: Boy is often used as a term of comradeship, as in college, or in the army or navy. In the plural used colloquially of members of an associaton, fraternity, or party.
Boy (n.) In various countries, a male servant, laborer, or slave of a native or inferior race; also, any man of such a race; -- considered derogatory by those so called, and now seldom used. [derog.]
He reverted again and again to the labor difficulty, and spoke of importing boys from Capetown. -- Frances Macnab.
Boy bishop, A boy (usually a chorister) elected bishop, in old Christian sports, and invested with robes and other insignia. He practiced a kind of mimicry of the ceremonies in which the bishop usually officiated.
The Old Boy, the Devil. [Slang]
Yellow boys, guineas. [Slang, Eng.]
Boy's love, A popular English name of Southernwood ({Artemisia abrotonum); -- called also lad's love.
Boy's play, Childish amusements; anything trifling.
Boy (v. t.) To act as a boy; -- in allusion to the former practice of boys acting women's parts on the stage.
I shall see Some squeaking Cleopatra boy my greatness. -- Shak. Boyar
Boy (n.) A youthful male person; "the baby was a boy"; "she made the boy brush his teeth every night"; "most soldiers are only
boys in uniform" [syn: male child, boy] [ant: female child, girl, little girl].
Boy (n.) A friendly informal reference to a grown man; "he likes to play golf with the boys".
Boy (n.) A male human offspring; "their son became a famous judge"; "his boy is taller than he is" [syn: son, boy] [ant: daughter, girl].
Boy (n.) (Ethnic slur) Offensive and disparaging term for Black man; "get out of my way, boy."
Boyar (n.) Alt. of Boyard.
Boyard (n.) A member of a Russian aristocratic order abolished by Peter the Great. Also, one of a privileged class in Roumania.
Note: English writers sometimes call Russian landed proprietors boyars.
Boyaux (n. pl. ) of Boyau.
Boyaus (n. pl. ) of Boyau.
Boyau (n.) (Fort.) A winding or zigzag trench forming a path or communication from one siegework to another, to a magazine, etc.
Boycotted (imp. & p. p.) of Boycott.
Boycotting (p. pr. & vb. n.) of Boycott.
Boycott (v. t.) 杯葛；聯合抵制；拒絕參加（或購買等）；一致與……絕交 To combine against (a landlord, tradesman, employer, or other person), to withhold social or business relations from him, and to deter others from holding such relations; to subject to a boycott.
Boycott (n.) 杯葛；聯合抵制；拒絕參加 [C] The process, fact, or pressure of boycotting; a combining to withhold or prevent dealing or social intercourse with a tradesman, employer, etc.; social and business interdiction for the purpose of coercion.
Boycott (n.) A group's refusal to have commercial dealings with some organization in protest against its policies.
Boycott (v.) Refuse to sponsor; refuse to do business with [ant: buy at, frequent, patronise, patronize, shop, shop at, sponsor].
Boycotter (n.) A participant in boycotting.
Boycottism (n.) Methods of boycotters.
Boydekin (n.) A dagger; a bodkin. [Obs.]
Boyer (n.) (Naut.) A Flemish sloop with a castle at each end. -- Sir W. Raleigh.
Boyhood (n.) The state of being a boy; the time during which one is a boy. -- Hood.
Boyhood (n.) The childhood of a boy.
Boyish (a.) Resembling a boy in a manners or opinions; belonging to a boy; childish; trifling; puerile.
A boyish, odd conceit. -- Baillie.
Boyish (a.) Befitting or characteristic of a young boy; "a boyish grin"; "schoolboyish pranks" [syn: boyish, boylike, schoolboyish].
Boyishly (adv.) In a boyish manner; like a boy.
Boyishly (adv.) Like a boy; "he smiled boyishly at his fiancee" [syn: boyishly, boylike].
Boyishness (n.) The manners or behavior of a boy.
Boyishness (n.) Being characteristic of a boy.
Boyism (n.) Boyhood. [Obs.] -- T. Warton.
Boyism (n.) The nature of a boy; childishness. -- Dryden.
Boyle's law () See under Law.
Boza (n.) An acidulated fermented drink of the Arabs and Egyptians, made from millet seed and various astringent substances; also, an intoxicating beverage made from hemp seed, darnel meal, and water. [Written also bosa, bozah, bouza.]
Brabantine (a.) Pertaining to Brabant, an ancient province of the Netherlands.
Brabble (v. i.) To clamor; to contest noisily. [R.]
Brabble (n.) A broil; a noisy contest; a wrangle.
This petty brabble will undo us all. -- Shak.
Brabble (v.) Argue over petty things; "Let's not quibble over pennies" [syn: quibble, niggle, pettifog, bicker, squabble, brabble].
Brabblement (n.) A brabble. [R.] -- Holland.
Brabbler (n.) A clamorous, quarrelsome, noisy fellow; a wrangler. [R] -- Shak.
Braccate (a.) (Zool.) Furnished with feathers which conceal the feet.
Brace (n.) That which holds anything tightly or supports it firmly; a bandage or a prop.
Brace (n.) A cord, ligament, or rod, for producing or maintaining tension, as a cord on the side of a drum.
The little bones of the ear drum do in straining and relaxing it as the braces of the war drum do in that. -- Derham.
Brace (n.) The state of being braced or tight; tension.
The laxness of the tympanum, when it has lost its brace or tension. -- Holder.
Brace (n.) (Arch. & Engin.) A piece of material used to transmit, or change the direction of, weight or pressure; any one of the pieces, in a frame or truss, which divide the structure into triangular parts. It may act as a tie, or as a strut, and serves to prevent distortion of the structure, and transverse strains in its members. A boiler brace is a diagonal stay, connecting the head with the shell.
Brace (n.) (Print.) A vertical curved line connecting two or more words or lines, which are to be taken together; thus, boll, bowl; or, in music, used to connect staves.
Brace (n.) (Naut.) A rope reeved through a block at the end of a yard, by which the yard is moved horizontally; also, a rudder gudgeon.
Brace (n.) (Mech.) A curved instrument or handle of iron or wood, for holding and turning bits, etc.; a bitstock.
Brace (n.) A pair; a couple; as, a brace of ducks; now rarely applied to persons, except familiarly or with some contempt. "A brace of greyhounds." -- Shak.
He is said to have shot . . . fifty brace of pheasants. -- Addison.
A brace of brethren, both bishops, both eminent for learning and religion, now appeared in the church. -- Fuller.
But you, my brace of lords. -- Shak.
Brace (n.) pl. Straps or bands to sustain trousers; suspenders.
I embroidered for you a beautiful pair of braces. -- Thackeray.
Brace (n.) Harness; warlike preparation. [Obs.]
For that it stands not in such warlike brace. -- Shak.
Brace (n.) Armor for the arm; vantbrace.
Brace (n.) (Mining) The mouth of a shaft. [Cornwall]
Angle brace. See under Angle.
Braced (imp. & p. p.) of Brace.
Bracing (p. pr. & vb. n.) of Brace.
Brace (v. t.) To furnish with braces; to support; to prop; as, to brace a beam in a building.
Brace (v. t.) To draw tight; to tighten; to put in a state of tension; to strain; to strengthen; as, to brace the nerves.
And welcome war to brace her drums. -- Campbell.
Brace (v. t.) To bind or tie closely; to fasten tightly.
The women of China, by bracing and binding them from their infancy, have very little feet. -- Locke.
Some who spurs had first braced on. -- Sir W. Scott.
Brace (v. t.) To place in a position for resisting pressure; to hold firmly; as, he braced himself against the crowd.
A sturdy lance in his right hand he braced. -- Fairfax.
Brace (v. t.) (Naut.) To move around by means of braces; as, to brace the yards.
To brace about (Naut.), To turn (a yard) round for the contrary tack.
To brace a yard (Naut.), To move it horizontally by means of a brace.
To brace in (Naut.), To turn (a yard) by hauling in the weather brace.
To brace one's self, To call up one's energies. "He braced himself for an effort which he was little able to make." -- J. D. Forbes.
To brace to (Naut.), To turn (a yard) by checking or easing off the lee brace, and hauling in the weather one, to assist in tacking.
To brace up (Naut.), To bring (a yard) nearer the direction of the keel by hauling in the lee brace.
To brace up sharp (Naut.), To turn (a yard) as far forward as the rigging will permit.
Brace (v. i.) To get tone or vigor; to rouse one's energies; -- with up.
Brace (n.) A support that steadies or strengthens something else; "he wore a brace on his knee."
Brace (n.) Two items of the same kind [syn: couple, pair, twosome, twain, brace, span, yoke, couplet, distich, duo, duet, dyad, duad].
Brace (n.) A set of two similar things considered as a unit [syn: pair, brace].
Brace (n.) Either of two punctuation marks ({ or ) used to enclose textual material.
Brace (n.) A rope on a square-rigged ship that is used to swing a yard about and secure it.
Brace (n.) Elastic straps that hold trousers up (usually used in the plural) [syn: brace, suspender, gallus].
Brace (n.) An appliance that corrects dental irregularities [syn: brace, braces, orthodontic braces].
Brace (n.) A carpenter's tool having a crank handle for turning and a socket to hold a bit for boring [syn: brace, bitstock].
Brace (n.) A structural member used to stiffen a framework [syn: brace, bracing].
Brace (v.) Prepare (oneself) for something unpleasant or difficult [syn: brace, poise].
Brace (v.) Support or hold steady and make steadfast, with or as if with a brace; "brace your elbows while working on the potter's wheel" [syn: brace, steady, stabilize, stabilise].
Brace (v.) Support by bracing.
Brace (v.) Cause to be alert and energetic; "Coffee and tea stimulate me"; "This herbal infusion doesn't stimulate" [syn: stimulate, arouse, brace, energize, energise, perk up] [ant: calm, de-energise, de-energize, sedate, tranquilize, tranquillise, tranquillize].
Brace left brace or right brace.
Bracelet (n.) An ornamental band or ring, for the wrist or the arm; in modern times, an ornament encircling the wrist, worn by women or girls.
Bracelet (n.) A piece of defensive armor for the arm. -- Johnson.
Bracelet (n.) A band of cloth or leather or metal links attached to a wristwatch and wrapped around the wrist [syn: watchband, watchstrap, wristband, watch bracelet, bracelet].
Bracelet (n.) Jewelry worn around the wrist for decoration [syn: bracelet, bangle].
Bracelet, () Anklets (Num. 31:50; 2 Sam. 1:10), and with reference to men.
Bracelet, () The rendering of a Hebrew word meaning fasteners, found in Gen. 24:22, 30, 47.
Bracelet, () In Isa. 3:19, the rendering of a Hebrew word meaning chains, i.e., twisted or chain-like bracelets.
Bracelet, () In Ex. 35:22 it designates properly a clasp for fastening the dress of females. Some interpret it as a nose-ring.
Bracelet , () In Gen. 38:18, 25, the rendering of a Hebrew word meaning "thread," and may denote the ornamental cord with which the signet was suspended from the neck of the wearer.
Bracelets were worn by men as well as by women (Cant. 5:14, R.V.). They were of many various forms. The weight of those presented by Eliezer to Rebekah was ten shekels (Gen. 24:22).
Bracer (n.) That which braces, binds, or makes firm; a band or bandage.
Bracer (n.) A covering to protect the arm of the bowman from the vibration of the string; also, a brassart. -- Chaucer.
Bracer (n.) A medicine, as an astringent or a tonic, which gives tension or tone to any part of the body. -- Johnson.
Bracer (n.) A protective covering for the wrist or arm that is used in archery and fencing and other sports [syn: bracer, armguard].
Bracer (n.) A tonic or restorative (especially a drink of liquor) [syn: bracer, pick-me-up].
Brach (n.) A bitch of the hound kind. See also bratchet. -- Shak. [Also spelled bratch when pronounced (br[a^]ch).]
A sow pig by chance sucked a brach, And when she was grown would miraculously hunt all manner of deer. -- Burton (Anatomy of Melancholy). [Century Dict. 1906]
Brach (n.) A bitch of the hound kind. -- Shak.
Brachelytra (n. pl.) (Zool.) A group of beetles having short elytra, as the rove beetles. Brach
Brachia (n. pl.) See Brachium.
Brachial (a.) (Anat.) Pertaining or belonging to the arm; as, the brachial artery; the brachial nerve.
Brachial (a.) Of the nature of an arm; resembling an arm.
Brachial (a.) Of or relating to an arm; "brachial artery."
Brachiata (n. pl.) (Zool.) A division of the Crinoidea, including those furnished with long jointed arms. See Crinoidea.
Encrinoidea (n. pl.) [NL. See Encrinus and -oid.] (Zool.) That order of the Crinoidea which includes most of the living and many fossil forms, having jointed arms around the margin of the oral disk; -- also called Brachiata and Articulata. See Illusts. under Comatula and Crinoidea.