battue

American  

[ba-too, -tyoo, ba-ty] / bæˈtu, -ˈtju, baˈtü /

noun

Chiefly British.

battues plural

1. Hunting.

   1. the beating or driving of game from cover toward a stationary hunter.

   2. a hunt or hunting party using this method of securing game.

2. undiscriminating slaughter of defenseless or unresisting crowds.

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battue British  

/ baty, -ˈtjuː, bæˈtuː /

noun

1. the beating of woodland or cover to force game to flee in the direction of hunters

2. 1. an organized shooting party using this method

   2. the game disturbed or shot by this method

3. indiscriminate slaughter, as of a defenceless crowd

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• battues
  plural

Etymology

Origin of battue

1810–20; < French, noun use of feminine of battu, past participle of battre < Latin battuere to beat. See battuta, battle ¹

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

battue battues

As the only Grand Slam contested on clay — in this case, the so-called terre battue, which is essentially crushed brick — the French Open stands apart from Wimbledon and the Australian and U.S.

From Washington Post ● May 15, 2020

In winning the French Open 11 of the last 14 years, Rafael Nadal of Spain has all but cemented his tennis shoes into the terre battue, or red clay, of Roland Garros.

From New York Times ● May 24, 2019

We outline whom they face first, how far they might go, and what would be a good French Open result for players from a nation that has traditionally struggled on the terre battue.

From The Guardian ● May 23, 2015

Having beaten none other than Federer on clay earlier this year, Isner could very well go deep in the draw at the French—and restore some much-needed American pride on the dreaded terre battue.

From Time ● May 23, 2012

There were five men upon a side, all carrying guns; as we passed, they were shaking hands, preparatory to separating for the battue.

From Afloat on the Ohio An Historical Pilgrimage of a Thousand Miles in a Skiff, from Redstone to Cairo by Thwaites, Reuben Gold

The ladies walked about a little and followed some battues, and everyone assembled in the drawing-room for tea.

From Letters of a Diplomat's Wife 1883-1900 by Waddington, Mary King

I'm perfectly sick of reading that everlasting rubbish about "pampered minions of the aristocracy slaughtering the unresisting pheasant in his thousands at battues."

From Punch, or the London Charivari, Volume 103, December 10, 1892 by Burnand, F. C. (Francis Cowley), Sir

Stalking sambar is by far the most enjoyable and sportsmanlike way of killing them, but more are shot in battues, or over water when they come down to drink.

From Natural History of the Mammalia of India and Ceylon by Sterndale, Robert Armitage

Two or three battues of this kind take place every year, chiefly for the purpose of destroying the wolves that come in flocks and carry dismay into the sheep-folds.

From Travels in the Steppes of the Caspian Sea, the Crimea, the Caucasus, &c. by Hell, Xavier Hommaire de

These great public hunts or battues are conducted under certain rules.

From Journals of Two Expeditions of Discovery in North-West and Western Australia, Volume 2 by Grey, George