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battel

[bat-l]British
noun
  1. an account with or terminal bill from a college of Oxford University for board, kitchen, and buttery expenses.
  2. battels, expenses, bills, and accounts of a student at Oxford, including those for clothing, books, and personal expenses as well as for tuition, lodging, and food.
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verb (used without object), bat·teled, bat·tel·ing.
  1. to have an account with or to be supplied with food and drink from a college kitchen or buttery at Oxford University.
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Origin of battel

1700–10; compare New Latin batellae (1636), batillī (1557), probably to be identified with late Middle English batell (in AL), taken to mean “charge for provisions”; of obscure origin; kinship with Scots, N England dialect ba(i)ttle rich, fattening (of pasture) is dubious
Related formsbat·tel·er, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for battels

Historical Examples

  • "There go some windows into their battels," said Mr. Bielby.

    The Mark Of Cain

    Andrew Lang

  • The rest of the day was spent in seeing about battels and getting into the new ways.

  • Will it be believed that the battels (bills) in College are connected with this word?

    My Autobiography

    F. Max Mller

  • The French king also ordered his battels with the aduise of his capteins.

  • This, indeed, is proved sufficiently by the average amount of the battels.

British Dictionary definitions for battels

battels

pl n
  1. (at some universities) the account of a member of a college for board, provisions, and other college expenses
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Word Origin

C16: perhaps from obsolete battle to feed, fatten, of uncertain origin
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012