bushel

¹

[ boosh-uhl ]

noun

1. a unit of dry measure containing 4 pecks, equivalent in the U.S. (and formerly in England) to 2,150.42 cubic inches or 35.24 liters Win·ches·ter bushel, and in Great Britain to 2,219.36 cubic inches or 36.38 liters Im·pe·ri·al bushel. : bu., bush.
2. a container of this capacity.
3. a unit of weight equal to the weight of a bushel of a given commodity.
4. a large, unspecified amount or number:

   a bushel of kisses.

bushel

²

[ boosh-uhl ]

verb (used with object)

, bush·eled, bush·el·ing or (especially British) bush·elled, bush·el·ling.

1. to alter or repair (a garment).

bushel

¹

/ ˈbʊʃəl /

noun

1. a Brit unit of dry or liquid measure equal to 8 Imperial gallons. 1 Imperial bushel is equivalent to 0.036 37 cubic metres
2. a US unit of dry measure equal to 64 US pints. 1 US bushel is equivalent to 0.035 24 cubic metres
3. a container with a capacity equal to either of these quantities
4. informal.
   a large amount; great deal
5. hide one's light under a bushel
   hide one's light under a bushel to conceal one's abilities or good qualities

bushel

²

/ ˈbʊʃəl /

verb

1. tr to alter or mend (a garment)

Derived Forms

• ˈbusheller, noun

Other Words From

• bushel·er especially British, bushel·ler noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of bushel¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English bu(i)sshel, bus(s)chel, from Old French boissel, boistiel, equivalent to boisse unit of measure for grain (from assumed Gaulish bostia; compare Middle Irish bas, bos “palm of the hand, handbreadth,” Breton boz “palm of the hand”) + -el noun suffix

Origin of bushel²

1875–80, Americanism; < German bosseln to patch < French bosseler to emboss; boss ²

Word History and Origins

Origin of bushel¹

C14: from Old French boissel , from boisse one sixth of a bushel, of Gaulish origin

Origin of bushel²

C19: probably from German bosseln to do inferior work, patch, from Middle High German bōzeln to beat, from Old High German bōzan

Idioms and Phrases

see hide one's light under a bushel .

Example Sentences

Not always the easiest to find, but when you do, these beauties will have you wanting to grab a bushel or two.

From Washington Post

The bowl packs in seafood and country ham along with seemingly a bushel of vegetables, in a broth made rich with a quartet of stocks.

From Washington Post

The changes wrought by a global shift to remote work and schooling are myriad, but in the business realm they have yielded a change in corporate behavior and consumer expectation — changes that showed up in a bushel of earnings reports this week.

From TechCrunch

Deion Sanders brings buzz and a bushel of questions to Jackson StateThe coaching job will be the first for George, with Tennessee State following Jackson State, which hired Hall of Famer Deion Sanders as head coach in September.

From Washington Post

Pull over outside the small town of Mendez, and walk a path to the bank of the muddy Santiago River, where you’ll see locals hauling 150-pound bushels of bananas on their shoulders.

From Outside Online

Duarte asks, referring to a bushel of fruits just brought in from the backyard orchard.

From The Daily Beast

Sorghum requires less water than corn but yields about the same amount of ethanol per bushel.

From The Daily Beast

The report projected soybean prices to be between $15 and $17 a bushel, up $2.

From The Daily Beast

Pulling back his cloak, he shows off his giant phallus bearing forth a bushel of fruit.

From The Daily Beast

He had five-year plans and seven-year plans by the bushel-full, and he never lost faith in the dialectic.

From The Daily Beast

In 1205 wheat was worth 12 pence per bushel, which was cheap, as there had been some years of famine previous thereto.

From Project Gutenberg

The reported duty of Watt's Herland engine was twenty-seven millions; and if the trial was with his ordinary bushel of 112 lbs.

From Project Gutenberg

The Greenwich high-pressure puffer-engine did fourteen millions of duty with a bushel of coals, 84 lbs.

From Project Gutenberg

The duty was seventeen millions and a half pounds raised one foot high for each bushel of coals.

From Project Gutenberg

A grain—requiring to be picked out with a pin and microscope—of truth, with a bushel of bunkum or cant.

From Project Gutenberg