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bate

 - 7 dictionary results

bate

1  [beyt] verb, bat⋅ed, bat⋅ing.
Use bate in a Sentence
–verb (used with object)
1. to moderate or restrain: unable to bate our enthusiasm.
2. to lessen or diminish; abate: setbacks that bated his hopes.
–verb (used without object)
3. to diminish or subside; abate.
—Idiom
4. with bated breath, with breath drawn in or held because of anticipation or suspense: We watched with bated breath as the runners approached the finish line.
Origin:
1250–1300; ME, aph. var. of abate

bate

2  [beyt] verb, bat⋅ed, bat⋅ing, noun
–verb (used without object)
1. (of a hawk) to flutter its wings and attempt to escape in a fit of anger or fear.
–noun
2. a state of violent anger or fear.
Origin:
1250–1300; ME baten to beat, flap (wings, etc.) < MF (se) batre ≪ L battuere to beat; cf. abate

bate

3  [beyt] verb, bat⋅ed, bat⋅ing, noun
–verb (used with object), verb (used without object)
1. Tanning. to soak (leather) after liming in an alkaline solution to soften it and remove the lime.
–noun
2. the solution used.
Origin:
1870–75; var. of beat to pare off turf, OE bǣtan to bait; c. Sw beta to tan, G beissen to macerate
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To bate
bate 1   (bāt)   
tr.v.   bat·ed, bat·ing, bates

  1. To lessen the force or intensity of; moderate: "To his dying day he bated his breath a little when he told the story" (George Eliot). See Usage Note at bait1.

  2. To take away; subtract.


[Middle English baten, short for abaten; see abate.]
bate 2 also bait   (bāt)   
intr.v.   bat·ed also bait·ed, bat·ing also bait·ing, bates also baits
To flap the wings wildly or frantically. Used of a falcon.

[Middle English baten, from Old French batre, to beat; see batter1.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

bate  (1)
"to reduce, to lessen in intensity," c.1300, aphetic of abate (q.v.). Now only in phrase bated breath, which was first used by Shakespeare in "The Merchant of Venice" (1596).

bate  (2)
c.1300, "to contend with blows or arguments," from O.Fr. batre, from L.L. battere, from L. batuere (see batter (v.)). In falconry, "to beat the wings impatiently and flutter away from the perch." Figurative sense of "to flutter downward" attested from 1590.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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