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beetle

noun

  1. heraldic figure
  2. an insect of order Coleoptera
L269695 on Wikidata ↗

verb

  1. to pound with a beetle -- no, really!
L330897 on Wikidata ↗

adjective

No English definition recorded for this entry.

L334786 on Wikidata ↗

Wiktionary

Pronunciation: /ˈbiːtəl/ / [ˈbɪi̯tʰəl] ~ [ˈbɪi̯tʰl̩] / /ˈbiɾəl/

adj

Etymology: From Middle English bitel-brouwed (“beetle-browed”). Possibly after beetle, from the fact that some beetles have bushy antennae.

  1. Protruding, jutting, overhanging.

    beetle brows

noun

Etymology: Borrowed from Portuguese bétele, from Malayalam വെറ്റില (veṟṟila) or Tamil வெற்றிலை (veṟṟilai).

  1. Archaic spelling of betel.

    Scatter black sand, and offer camphor, sandal, flowers, beetle-leaves, and all sorts of fragrance.

    Beetle-leaf is absolutely a primary necessary article of life; every person consumes it daily, especially when travelling; the hindoo of caste has great difficulties in the way of cooking food, which are augmented whenever from home, and the beetle alleviates his hunger.

verb

Etymology: From Middle English betel, from Old English bȳtel, bīetel (“hammer”), from Proto-West Germanic *bautil (“hammer, mallet”), equivalent to beat + -le. Cognate with Low German Bötel (“mallet”).

  1. To beat with a heavy mallet.
  2. To finish by subjecting to a hammering process in a beetle or beetling machine.

    to beetle cotton goods