bay definition | Dictionary.com

bay

1 [bey]

–noun

1.	a body of water forming an indentation of the shoreline, larger than a cove but smaller than a gulf.

2.	South Atlantic States. an arm of a swamp.

3.	a recess of land, partly surrounded by hills.

4.	an arm of a prairie or swamp, extending into woods and partly surrounded by them.

Origin:
1350–1400; ME baye < MF baie < ML, LL bāia, perh. by back formation from L Bāiae name of a spa on the Bay of Naples

Synonyms:
1. inlet, estuary, sound, firth, bight.

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bay

2 [bey]

–noun

Architecture.

a.	any of a number of similar major vertical divisions of a large interior, wall, etc.: The nave is divided into six bays.

b.	a division of a window between a mullion and an adjoining mullion or jamb.

c.	bay window (def. 1).

Aeronautics.

a.	any portion of an airplane set off by two successive bulkheads or other bracing members.

b.	a compartment in an aircraft: a bomb bay; an engine bay.

3.	a compartment, as in a barn for storing hay.

4.	Also called drive bay. an open compartment in the console housing a computer's CPU in which a disk drive, tape drive, etc., may be installed.

Nautical.

a.	the deck space between the anchor windlass and the stem of a vessel.

sick bay.

Origin:
1275–1325; ME < MF baee an opening in a wall, n. use of fem. ptp. of baer to stand open, gape < VL *batāre

Synonyms:
3. alcove, nook, recess, niche; loft, garret.

bay

3 [bey]

–noun

1.	a deep, prolonged howl, as of a hound on the scent.

2.	the position or stand of an animal or fugitive that is forced to turn and resist pursuers because it is no longer possible to flee (usually prec. by at or to): a stag at bay; to bring an escaped convict to bay.

3.	the situation of a person or thing that is forced actively to oppose or to succumb to some adverse condition (usually prec. by at or to).

4.	the situation of being actively opposed by an animal, person, etc., so as to be powerless to act fully (often prec. by at).

–verb (used without object)

5.	to howl, esp. with a deep, prolonged sound, as a hound on the scent.

–verb (used with object)

6.	to assail with deep, prolonged howling: a troubled hound baying the moon.

7.	to bring to or to hold at bay: A dog bays its quarry.

Origin:
1250–1300; ME, aph. var. of abay < AF, dial. OF abai barking, n. deriv. of abaier to bark, from an imit. base *bay-

Synonyms:
5. roar, bellow, bark, bell, clamor.

bay

4 [bey]

–noun

1.	laurel (def. 1).

2.	Also called bayberry, bay rum tree. a tropical American shrub, Pimenta racemosa, having aromatic leaves that are used in making bay oil and bay rum.

3.	any of various laurellike trees or shrubs.

4.	any of several magnolias.

5.	an honorary garland or crown bestowed for military victory, literary excellence, etc.

6.	bays, fame; renown.

Origin:
1350–1400; ME bai(e), OE beg- (in begbēam lit., berry tree), conflated with MF baie < L bāca, bacca berry

bay

5 [bey]

–noun

1.	reddish brown.

2.	a horse or other animal of reddish-brown color.

–adjective

3.	(of horses or other animals) having a reddish-brown body.

Origin:
1300–50; ME < MF bai < L badius; cf. OIr buide yellow

lau⋅rel

[lawr-uh

l, lor-]

noun, verb, -reled, -rel⋅ing or (especially British

) -relled, -rel⋅ling.

–noun

1.	Also called bay, sweet bay. a small European evergreen tree, Laurus nobilis, of the laurel family, having dark, glossy green leaves. Compare laurel family.

2.	any tree of the genus Laurus.

3.	any of various similar trees or shrubs, as the mountain laurel or the great rhododendron.

4.	the foliage of the laurel as an emblem of victory or distinction.

5.	a branch or wreath of laurel foliage.

6.	Usually, laurels. honor won, as for achievement in a field or activity.

–verb (used with object)

7.	to adorn or wreathe with laurel.

8.	to honor with marks of distinction.

—Idioms

9.	look to one's laurels, to be alert to the possibility of being excelled or surpassed: New developments in the industry are forcing long-established firms to look to their laurels.

10.	rest on one's laurels, to be content with one's past or present honors, achievements, etc.: He retired at the peak of his career and is resting on his laurels.

Origin:
1250–1300; dissimilated var. of ME laurer, earlier lorer < AF; OF lorier bay tree, equiv. to lor bay, laurel (< L laurus) + -ier -ier ² ; see -er ²

Synonyms:
6. glory, fame, renown, praise.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Link To bay

bay¹ (bā)

A body of water partially enclosed by land but with a wide mouth, affording access to the sea: the Bay of Biscay.
An area of land, such as an arm of prairie partially enclosed by woodland, that resembles in shape or formation a partially enclosed body of water.

[Middle English, from Old French baie, perhaps from baer, to open out, gape; see bay².]

bay² (bā)

Architecture A part of a building marked off by vertical elements, such as columns or pilasters: an arcade divided into ten bays.
Architecture
1. A bay window.
2. An opening or recess in a wall.
A section or compartment, as in a service station, barn, or aircraft, that is set off for a specific purpose: a cargo bay; an engine bay.
A sickbay.
Computer Science A drive bay.

[Middle English, from Old French baee, an opening, from baer, to gape, from Vulgar Latin *badāre.]

bay³ (bā)

adj. Reddish-brown: a bay colt.
n.

A reddish brown.
A reddish-brown animal, especially a horse having a black mane and tail.

[Middle English, from Old French bai, from Latin badius.]

bay⁴ (bā)

A deep, prolonged bark, such as the sound made by hounds.
The position of one cornered by pursuers and forced to turn and fight at close quarters: The hunters brought their quarry to bay.
The position of having been checked or held at a distance: "He has seen the nuclear threat held at bay for 40 years" (Earl W. Foell).

v.   bayed, bay·ing, bays

v.   intr.
To utter a deep, prolonged bark.
v.   tr.

To pursue or challenge with barking: "I had rather be a dog, and bay the moon" (Shakespeare).
To express by barking or howling: a mob baying its fury.
To bring to bay: "too big for the dogs which tried to bay it" (William Faulkner).

[Middle English, from abai, cornering a hunted animal, from Old French, from abaiier, to bark, perhaps from Vulgar Latin *abbaiāre : Latin ad-, ad- + Vulgar Latin *badāre, to gape, yawn. V., from Middle English baien, to bark, from abaien, from Old French abaiier.]

bay⁵ (bā)

See laurel.
Any of certain other trees or shrubs with aromatic foliage, such as the California laurel.
A crown or wreath made especially of the leaves and branches of the laurel and given as a sign of honor or victory.
Honor; renown. Often used in the plural.

[Middle English, from Old French baie, berry, from Latin bāca.]

lau·rel (lôr'əl, lŏr'-)

A Mediterranean evergreen tree (Laurus nobilis) having aromatic, simple leaves and small blackish berries. Also called bay⁵, bay laurel, sweet bay.
A shrub or tree, such as the mountain laurel, having a similar aroma or leaf shape.
1. A wreath of laurel conferred as a mark of honor in ancient times upon poets, heroes, and victors in athletic contests. Often used in the plural.
2. Honor and glory won for great achievement. Often used in the plural.

tr.v. lau·reled also lau·relled, lau·rel·ing also lau·rel·ling, lau·rels also lau·rels

To crown with laurel.
To honor, especially with an award or a prize.

[Middle English, from Old French laureole, from Latin laureola, diminutive of laurea, laurel tree; see laureate.]

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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Bay

Bay\, a. [F. bai, fr. L. badius brown, chestnutcolored; -- used only of horses.] Reddish brown; of the color of a chestnut; -- applied to the color of horses.

Bay cat (Zo["o]l.), a wild cat of Africa and the East Indies (Felis aurata).

Bay lynx (Zo["o]l.), the common American lynx (Felis, or Lynx, rufa).

Bay

Bay\, n. [F. baie, fr. LL. baia. Of uncertain origin: cf. Ir. & Gael. badh or bagh bay harbor, creek; Bisc. baia, baiya, harbor, and F. bayer to gape, open the mouth.]

1. (Geol.) An inlet of the sea, usually smaller than a gulf, but of the same general character.

Note: The name is not used with much precision, and is often applied to large tracts of water, around which the land forms a curve; as, Hudson's Bay. The name is not restricted to tracts of water with a narrow entrance, but is used foe any recess or inlet between capes or headlands; as, the Bay of Biscay.

2. A small body of water set off from the main body; as a compartment containing water for a wheel; the portion of a canal just outside of the gates of a lock, etc.

3. A recess or indentation shaped like a bay.

4. A principal compartment of the walls, roof, or other part of a building, or of the whole building, as marked off by the buttresses, vaulting, mullions of a window, etc.; one of the main divisions of any structure, as the part of a bridge between two piers.

5. A compartment in a barn, for depositing hay, or grain in the stalks.

6. A kind of mahogany obtained from Campeachy Bay.

Sick bay, in vessels of war, that part of a deck appropriated to the use of the sick. --Totten.

Bay

Bay\, n. [F. baie a berry, the fruit of the laurel and other trees, fr. L. baca, bacca, a small round fruit, a berry, akin to Lith. bapka laurel berry.]

1. A berry, particularly of the laurel. [Obs.]

2. The laurel tree (Laurus nobilis). Hence, in the plural, an honorary garland or crown bestowed as a prize for victory or excellence, anciently made or consisting of branches of the laurel.

The patriot's honors and the poet's bays. --Trumbull.

3. A tract covered with bay trees. [Local, U. S.]

Bay leaf, the leaf of the bay tree (Laurus nobilis). It has a fragrant odor and an aromatic taste.

Bay

Bay\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Bayed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Baying.] [ OE. bayen, abayen, OF. abaier, F. aboyer, to bark; of uncertain origin.] To bark, as a dog with a deep voice does, at his game.

The hounds at nearer distance hoarsely bayed. --Dryden.

Bay

Bay\, v. t. To bark at; hence, to follow with barking; to bring or drive to bay; as, to bay the bear. --Shak.

Bay

Bay\, n. [See Bay, v. i.]

1. Deep-toned, prolonged barking. "The bay of curs." --Cowper.

2. [OE. bay, abay, OF. abai, F. aboi barking, pl. abois, prop. the extremity to which the stag is reduced when surrounded by the dogs, barking (aboyant); aux abois at bay.] A state of being obliged to face an antagonist or a difficulty, when escape has become impossible.

Embolden'd by despair, he stood at bay. --Dryden.

The most terrible evils are just kept at bay by incessant efforts. --I. Taylor

Bay

Bay\, v. t. [Cf. OE. b[ae]wen to bathe, and G. b["a]hen to foment.] To bathe. [Obs.] --Spenser.

Bay

Bay\, n. A bank or dam to keep back water.

Bay

Bay\, v. t. To dam, as water; -- with up or back.

Language Translation for : bay

Spanish: bahía,

German: die Bucht,

Japanese: 湾

More Translations »

bay (1)

"inlet of the sea," 1385, from O.Fr. baie, L.L. baia (c.640), from Iberian bahia.

bay (2)

"opening in a wall," c.1325 (especially bay window, 1405), from O.Fr. baee, pp. of bayer "to gape, yawn," from M.L. batare "gape," perhaps of imitative origin. Sick-bay "forepart of a ship's main deck used as a hospital" is from 1582, from the notion of a recessed space.

bay (3)

"howl of a hound" (especially when hunting), c.1300, from O.Fr. bayer, from PIE base *bai- echoic of howling (cf. Gk. bauzein, L. baubari "to bark," Eng. bow-wow; cf. also bawl). Noun meaning "cornering of a hunted animal" is also 14c. At bay (1649) is from special sense of "chorus raised by hounds in conflict with quarry."

bay (4)

"reddish-brown," 1341, from Anglo-Fr. bai, from O.Fr. bai, from L. badius "chestnut-brown" (used only of horses), from PIE *badyo- "yellow, brown" (cf. O.Ir. buide "yellow"). Also elliptical for a horse of this color.

bay (5)

"shrub" (Laurus nobilis, source of the bay leaf), 1373, originally only of the berry, from O.Fr. baie "berry, seed," from L. baca "berry." Extension to the shrub itself is from 1530. The leaves or sprigs were woven as wreaths for conquerors or poets. Bayberry first recorded 1578.

bay (bā) Pronunciation Key

A body of water partially enclosed by land but having a wide outlet to the sea. A bay is usually smaller than a gulf.
A space in the cabinet of a personal computer where a storage device, such as a disk drive or CD-ROM drive, can be installed.

bay hardware
(As in an aeroplane "cargo bay") A space in a cabinet into which a device of a certain size can be physically mounted and connected to power and data.
Common examples are a "drive bay" into which a disk drive (usually either 3.5 inch or 5.25 inch) can be inserted or the space in a docking station where you insert a notebook computer or laptop computer to work as a desktop computer or to charge their batteries, print or connect to the office network, etc.
(1999-01-11)

Bay

denotes the estuary of the Dead Sea at the mouth of the Jordan (Josh. 15:5; 18:19), also the southern extremity of the same sea (15:2). The same Hebrew word is rendered "tongue" in Isa. 11:15, where it is used with reference to the forked mouths of the Nile. Bay in Zech. 6:3, 7 denotes the colour of horses, but the original Hebrew means strong, and is here used rather to describe the horses as fleet or spirited.

Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
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bay

see at bay.

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