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batter1

[bat-er]
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verb (used with object)
  1. to beat persistently or hard; pound repeatedly.
  2. to damage by beating or hard usage: Rough roads had battered the car. High winds were battering the coast.
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verb (used without object)
  1. to deal heavy, repeated blows; pound steadily: continuing to batter at the front door.
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noun
  1. Printing.
    1. a damaged area on the face of type or plate.
    2. the resulting defect in print.
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Origin of batter1

1300–50; Middle English bateren, probably < Middle French, Old French batre to beat (see bate2), with the infinitive ending identified with -er6; compare Anglo-French baterer

Synonyms

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1. belabor, smite, pelt. 2. bruise, wound; smash, shatter, shiver; destroy, ruin.

batter2

[bat-er]
noun
  1. a mixture of flour, milk or water, eggs, etc., beaten together for use in cookery.
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verb (used with object)
  1. to coat with batter.
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Origin of batter2

1350–1400; Middle English bat(o)ur, bat(e)re, perhaps < Anglo-French bature, Old French bat(e)ure act of beating (bat(re) to beat (see bate2) + -eure < *-ātūra; see -ate2, -ure), reinforced by batter1

batter3

[bat-er]
noun
  1. a player who swings a bat or whose turn it is to bat, as in baseball or cricket.
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Origin of batter3

First recorded in 1765–75; bat1 + -er1

batter4

[bat-er]Architecture
verb (used without object)
  1. (of the face of a wall or the like) to slope backward and upward.
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noun
  1. a backward and upward slope of the face of a wall or the like.
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Origin of batter4

First recorded in 1540–50; of obscure origin
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

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British Dictionary definitions for batter

batter1

verb
  1. to hit (someone or something) repeatedly using heavy blows, as with a club or other heavy instrument; beat heavily
  2. (tr; often passive) to damage or injure, as by blows, heavy wear, etc
  3. (tr) social welfare to subject (a person, esp a close relative living in the same house) to repeated physical violence
  4. (tr) to subject (a person, opinion, or theory) to harsh criticism; attack
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Word Origin

C14 bateren, probably from batten to bat 1

batter2

noun
  1. a mixture of flour, eggs, and milk, used to make cakes, pancakes, etc, and to coat certain foods before frying
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Word Origin

C15 bater, probably from bateren to batter 1

batter3

noun
  1. sport a player who bats
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batter4

noun
  1. the slope of the face of a wall that recedes gradually backwards and upwards
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verb
  1. (intr) to have such a slope
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Word Origin

C16 (vb: to incline): of uncertain origin

batter5

noun
  1. a spree or debauch
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Word Origin

C19: of unknown 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

Word Origin and History for batter

v.

"strike repeatedly, beat violently and rapidly," early 14c., from Old French batre "to beat, strike" (11c., Modern French battre "to beat, to strike"), from Latin battuere "to beat, strike," an old word in Latin, but almost certainly borrowed from Gaulish, from PIE root *bhau- "to strike" (cf. Welsh bathu "beat;" Old English beadu "battle," beatan "to beat," bytl "hammer, mallet"). Began to be widely used 1962 in reference to domestic abuse. Related: Battered; battering. Battering-ram is an ancient weapon (Latin aries), but the word attested only from 1610s.

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n.

"flour, eggs, and milk beaten together," late 14c., from Old French batteure "a beating," from Latin battuere "to beat, knock" (see batter (v.)).

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper