batten

[ bat-n ]

/ ˈbæt n /

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verb (used without object)

to thrive by feeding; grow fat.

to feed gluttonously or greedily; glut oneself.

to thrive, prosper, or live in luxury, especially at the expense of others: robber barons who battened on poor workers.

verb (used with object)

to cause to thrive by or as if by feeding; fatten.

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Origin of batten

First recorded in 1585–95; apparently from Old Norse batna “to improve”; cognate with Gothic gabatnan “to benefit, profit”; compare Old English bet, Gothic batis, Old High German baz “better”; see better¹

Other definitions for batten (2 of 4)

batten²

[ bat-n ]

/ ˈbæt n /

noun

a small board or strip of wood used for various building purposes, as to cover joints between boards, reinforce certain doors, or supply a foundation for lathing.

a transverse iron or steel strip supporting the flooring strips of a metal fire escape.

Nautical.

a thin strip of wood inserted in a sail to keep it flat.
a thin, flat length of wood or metal used for various purposes, as to hold the tarpaulin covering a hatch in place.

Shipbuilding. a flexible strip of wood used for fairing the lines of a hull on the floor of a mold loft.

Theater.

Also called pipe batten. a length of metal pipe hung from the gridiron, for suspending scenery or equipment, as drops, flats, or lighting units.
a narrow strip of lumber for constructing, reinforcing, or joining flats.
a similar strip attached to a drop to keep it flat or taut.

verb (used with object)

to furnish or bolster with battens.

Nautical. to cover (a hatch) so as to make watertight (usually followed by down).

Machinery. to secure (work) to a table or bed for a machining operation.

Building Trades. to join or assemble (a steel column or the like) with batten plates.

Theater.

to suspend (scenery, stage lights, etc.) from a batten.
to fasten a batten to (a flat or drop).

Origin of batten

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English bataunt, batent “finished board,” from Old French batant, noun use of past participle of batre “to beat”; see bate², -ant

OTHER WORDS FROM batten

bat·ten·er, noun

Other definitions for batten (3 of 4)

batten³

[ bat-n ]

/ ˈbæt n /

Textiles.

noun

(in a loom) the swinging frame for holding and positioning the reed.

a part of the lay of a loom.

verb (used with object)

to beat (filling yarn) into place with the batten.

Origin of batten

First recorded in 1825–35; alteration of French battant; see batten²

Other definitions for batten (4 of 4)

Batten

[ bat-n ]

/ ˈbæt n /

noun

Jean "The Garbo of the Skies", 1909–82, New Zealand aviator: first woman to make solo round-trip flight between England and Australia, 1934–35.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use batten in a sentence

Extreme cold sucks no matter what, and even us northerners tend to batten down the hatches once it dips below -30 or -40 degrees Fahrenheit.
Dress like an Alaskan to weather the winter cold|By Tyler Freel/Outdoor Life|January 20, 2021|Popular-Science
With profits down over 90 percent and a spate of corporate in-fighting, Best Buy is battening down the hatches.
Why Best Buy Is Tanking|Alex Klein|August 21, 2012|DAILY BEAST
But since April, Bakkus had been battening on the good Archdeacon, his brother's substantial allowance.
The Mountebank|William J. Locke
The battening of this horde soon reduced Southern finances and credit to a grewsome skeleton.
A Speckled Bird|Augusta J. Evans Wilson

Herein was a new opportunity for battening on the treasury which was exercised to its utmost.
Montreal 1535-1914 under the French Rgime|William Henry Atherton
Milton uses it transitively in Lycidas, 29: "Battening our flocks with the fresh dews of night."
The Lady of the Lake|Sir Walter Scott
Sanitary revolutionists and incendiaries accuse us of gorging rottenness, and battening on corruption.
International Weekly Miscellany Vol. I. No. 3, July 15, 1850|Various

British Dictionary definitions for batten (1 of 3)

batten¹

/ (ˈbætən) /

noun

a sawn strip of wood used in building to cover joints, provide a fixing for tiles or slates, support lathing, etc

a long narrow board used for flooring

a narrow flat length of wood or plastic inserted in pockets of a sail to give it proper shape

a lath used for holding a tarpaulin along the side of a raised hatch on a ship

theatre

a row of lights
the strip or bar supporting them

Also called: dropper NZ an upright part of a fence made of wood or other material, designed to keep wires at equal distances apart

verb

(tr) to furnish or strengthen with battens

batten down the hatches

to use battens in nailing a tarpaulin over a hatch on a ship to make it secure
to prepare for action, a crisis, etc

Derived forms of batten

battening, noun

Word Origin for batten

C15: from French bâton stick; see baton

British Dictionary definitions for batten (2 of 3)

batten²

/ (ˈbætən) /

verb

(intr usually foll by on) to thrive, esp at the expense of someone elseto batten on the needy

Word Origin for batten

C16: probably from Old Norse batna to improve; related to Old Norse betr better 1, Old High German bazzen to get better

British Dictionary definitions for batten (3 of 3)

Batten

/ (ˈbætən) /

noun

Jean . 1909–82, New Zealand aviator: the first woman to fly single-handed from Australia to Britain (1935)

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

batten

Origin of batten

Other definitions for batten (2 of 4)

Origin of batten

OTHER WORDS FROM batten

Other definitions for batten (3 of 4)

Origin of batten

Other definitions for batten (4 of 4)

Words related to batten

How to use batten in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for batten (1 of 3)

Derived forms of batten

Word Origin for batten

British Dictionary definitions for batten (2 of 3)

Word Origin for batten

British Dictionary definitions for batten (3 of 3)