biggin

¹ American  

[big-in] / ˈbɪg ɪn /

noun

Archaic.

1. a close-fitting cap worn especially by children in the 16th and 17th centuries.

2. a soft cap worn while sleeping; nightcap.

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biggin ² American  

[big-in] / ˈbɪg ɪn /

noun

1. a coffeepot, usually silver, having a separate container in which the coffee is immersed while being boiled.

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biggin ¹ British  

/ ˈbɪɡɪn /

noun

1. a plain close-fitting cap, often tying under the chin, worn in the Middle Ages and by children in the 17th century

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biggin ² British  

/ ˈbɪɡən /

noun

1. a construction, esp a house or cottage

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Etymology

Origin of biggin¹

1520–30; < Middle French beguin kind of hood or cap, originally one worn by a Beguine

Origin of biggin²

After Biggin, the name of its early 19th-century inventor

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

biggin

Oswald’s wife then put before him a large pie, and some wheaten bread, with a biggin of good beer.

From The Children of the New Forest by Frederick Marryat

In summer and winter the baby's head was always closely covered with a cap, or "biggin" often warmly wadded, which was more comforting in winter than comfortable in summer.

From Customs and Fashions in Old New England by Alice Morse Earle

They're biggin a boat, sir; and they like to hae me by them, as they big, to say sangs to them.

From Alec Forbes of Howglen by George MacDonald

Your news has put me in a fever,” continued Edward, taking up the biggin and drinking a large draught of beer.

From The Children of the New Forest by Frederick Marryat

The coffee biggin still retains its popularity in England.

From All About Coffee by William H. (William Harrison) Ukers

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