battledore

American  

[bat-l-dawr] / ˈbæt lˌdɔr /

noun

1. Also called battledore and shuttlecock.  a game from which badminton was developed, played since ancient times in India and other Asian countries.

2. a light racket for striking the shuttlecock in this game.

3. a 17th- and 18th-century hornbook of wood or cardboard, used as a child's primer.

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verb (used with or without object)

battledored, battledoring

1. to toss or fly back and forth.

   to battledore the plan among one's colleagues.

battledore British  

/ ˈbætəlˌdɔː /

noun

1. Also called: battledore and shuttlecock.  an ancient racket game

2. a light racket, smaller than a tennis racket, used for striking the shuttlecock in this game

3. (formerly) a wooden utensil used for beating clothes, in baking, etc

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Etymology

Origin of battledore

1400–50; late Middle English batyldo ( u ) re washing beetle, equivalent to batyl to beat (clothes) in washing (frequentative of bat ¹ ) + -dore dung beetle ( beetle ¹ for beetle ² by way of pun, with allusion to filth on clothes). See dor ¹

Example Sentences

They had a campaign to censor and suppress it,” said Justin Schiller, founder and president of Kingston, New York-based Battledore Ltd., a dealer in antiquarian books who is selling the card.

From Seattle Times • Dec. 3, 2020

Battledore and shuttlecock with the daughter of divorcees.

From Time Magazine Archive

He "scratched ice" as he negotiated the wicked 90� turns called Battledore and Shuttlecock, but only enough to slow his sled by a fraction.

From Time Magazine Archive

Battledore and shuttlecock, that gloomy day in 1873, became badminton.

From Time Magazine Archive

Battledore and shuttlecock were favourite games for the girls, which they played singing quaint rhymes— "Great A, little A; This is pancake day!" and the men also indulged in tip-cat, or billet.

From Old English Sports, Pastimes and Customs by Ditchfield, P. H. (Peter Hampson)