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bunt
1[ buhnt ]
/ bʌnt /
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verb (used with object)
Baseball. to bat (a pitched ball) very gently so that it rolls into the infield close to home plate, usually by holding the bat loosely in hands spread apart and allowing the ball to bounce off it.
(of a goat or calf) to push with the horns or head; butt.
verb (used without object)
Baseball. to bunt a ball.
to push (something) with the horns or head.
noun
Baseball.
- the act of bunting.
- a bunted ball.
a push with the head or horns; butt.
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Origin of bunt
1First recorded in 1760–70; originally British dialect (central and south England): “to push, strike”; origin uncertain
OTHER WORDS FROM bunt
bunter, nounWords nearby bunt
Other definitions for bunt (2 of 3)
bunt2
[ buhnt ]
/ bʌnt /
noun
Nautical. the middle part of a square sail.
the bagging part of a fishing net or bagging middle area of various cloth objects.
Origin of bunt
2First recorded in 1575–85; origin uncertain
Other definitions for bunt (3 of 3)
bunt3
[ buhnt ]
/ bʌnt /
noun Plant Pathology.
a smut disease of wheat in which the kernels are replaced by the black, foul-smelling spores of fungi of the genus Tilletia.
Also called stinking smut.
Origin of bunt
3First recorded in 1595–1605; origin uncertain
OTHER WORDS FROM bunt
bunted, adjectiveDictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022
How to use bunt in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for bunt (1 of 3)
bunt1
/ (bʌnt) /
verb
(of an animal) to butt (something) with the head or horns
to cause (an aircraft) to fly in part of an inverted loop or (of an aircraft) to fly in such a loop
US and Canadian (in baseball) to hit (a pitched ball) very gently
noun
the act or an instance of bunting
Word Origin for bunt
C19: perhaps nasalized variant of butt ³
British Dictionary definitions for bunt (2 of 3)
bunt2
/ (bʌnt) /
noun
nautical the baggy centre of a fishing net or other piece of fabric, such as a square sail
Word Origin for bunt
C16: perhaps from Middle Low German bunt bundle
British Dictionary definitions for bunt (3 of 3)
bunt3
/ (bʌnt) /
noun
a disease of cereal plants caused by smut fungi (genus Tilletia)
Word Origin for bunt
C17: of unknown origin
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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