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bushel

 [boosh-uhl]   Example Sentences Origin

bush·el

1   [boosh-uhl]
noun
1.
a unit of dry measure containing 4 pecks, equivalent in the U.S. (and formerly in England) to 2150.42 cubic inches or 35.24 liters (Winchester bushel), and in Great Britain to 2219.36 cubic inches or 36.38 liters (Imperial bushel). Abbreviation: bu., bush.
2.
a container of this capacity.
3.
a unit of weight equal to the weight of a bushel of a given commodity.
4.
a large, unspecified amount or number: a bushel of kisses.
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Origin:
1250–1300; Middle English bu(i)sshel < Middle French boissel, equivalent to boisse unit of measure (< Gaulish *bostia; compare MIr bas, bos palm of the hand, handbreadth) + -el noun suffix

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Bushel is always a great word to know.
So is flibbertigibbet. Does it mean:
a chattering or flighty, light-headed person.
an extraordinary or unusual thing, person, or event; an exceptional example or instance.
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Example Sentences
  • We also made our way to a local apple orchard and picked a bushel of apples.
  • Anyone who takes a bushel of drugs based on our say-so must be high.
  • The farmers want more worthless dollars to for a bushel of corn or wheat.
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Dictionary.com Unabridged

bush·el

2   [boosh-uhl]
verb (used with object), bush·eled, bush·el·ing or (especially British) bush·elled, bush·el·ling.
to alter or repair (a garment).
Origin:
1875–80, Americanism; < German bosseln to patch < French bosseler to emboss; see boss2

Related forms
bush·el·er; especially British, bush·el·ler, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source Link To BUSHEL
Collins
World English Dictionary
bushel1 (ˈbʊʃəl)
 
—n
1.  a Brit unit of dry or liquid measure equal to 8 Imperial gallons. 1 Imperial bushel is equivalent to 0.036 37 cubic metres
2.  a US unit of dry measure equal to 64 US pints. 1 US bushel is equivalent to 0.035 24 cubic metres
3.  a container with a capacity equal to either of these quantities
4.  informal (US) a large amount; great deal
5.  hide one's light under a bushel to conceal one's abilities or good qualities
 
[C14: from Old French boissel, from boisse one sixth of a bushel, of Gaulish origin]

bushel2 (ˈbʊʃəl)
 
—vb , -els, -elling, -elled, -els, -eling, -eled
(US) (tr) to alter or mend (a garment)
 
[C19: probably from German bosseln to do inferior work, patch, from Middle High German bōzeln to beat, from Old High German bōzan]
 
'busheller2
 
—n
 
'busheler2
 
—n
 
'bushelman2
 
—n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

bushel
early 14c., measure of capacity containing four pecks or eight gallons, from O.Fr. boissel (13c., Mod.Fr. boisseau), probably from boisse, a grain measure based on Gallo-Romance *bostia "handful," from Gaulish *bosta "palm of the hand" (cf. Ir. bass, Bret. boz "the hollow of the hand"). The exact measure
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varied from place to place and according to commodity, and since late 14c. it has been used loosely to mean "a large quantity or number."
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Idioms & Phrases

bushel

see hide one's light under a bushel.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
Cite This Source
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia

bushel

unit of capacity in the British Imperial and the United States Customary systems of measurement. In the British system the units of liquid and dry capacity are the same, and since 1824 a bushel has been defined as 8 imperial gallons, or 2,219.36 cubic inches (36,375.31 cubic cm). In the United States the bushel is used only for dry measure. The U.S. level bushel (or struck bushel) is equal to 2,150.42 cubic inches (35,245.38 cubic cm) and is considered the equivalent of the Winchester bushel, a measure used in England from the 15th century until 1824. A U.S. level bushel is made up of 4 pecks, or 32 dry quarts. Two bushels make up a unit called a strike. In 1912 the U.S. Court of Customs defined a "heaped bushel" for measuring quantities of apples as 2,747.715 cubic inches (45,035.04 cubic cm). In the British Isles various cubic capacities and weights for the bushel have existed since the 13th century depending on the product to be sold or transported. It derived ultimately from the Old French boissel, from boisse, a measure of grain

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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