baitn.¹

Brit.

/beɪt/, U.S.

/beɪt/

Forms: Middle English–1500s bayte, Middle English beyt, Middle English–1500s bayt, 1500s beyte, 1500s–1600s baight, 1500s–1700s baite, 1600s bate, Middle English– bait.

Origin: Of multiple origins. Partly a borrowing from early Scandinavian. Partly formed within English, by conversion. Etymons: Norse beit ; bait v.

Etymology: Partly < Old Norse beit (neuter) pasture, beita (feminine) food, especially as used to entice a prey, cognate with Old English bát < food, Middle High German beiz n., beize < hunting; in part directly < bait v.

I. Food used to entice a prey.

a. An attractive morsel of food placed on a hook or in a trap, in order to allure fish or other animals to seize it and be thereby captured.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > hunting > equipment > trap or snare > [noun] > bait

eesOE

baita1325

trap-bait1856

tie-up1895

the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fishing-tackle > means of attracting fish > [noun] > bait

eesOE

baita1325

a1325 Metr. Hom. 12 Als fisce es tan wit bait and hoc.

a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 16931 Þe bait apon þe hok.

1444 J. Lydgate in T. Wright Polit. Poems & Songs (1859) II. 219 Bosard with botirflyes makith beytis for a crane.

a1639 Breton in E. Farr Sel. Poetry Reign Elizabeth (1845) I. 182 Wherein as hook within the Baight..Some hidden poyson lurking lyes.

1653 I. Walton Compl. Angler 53 Let your bait fall gently upon the water.

1836 H. Smith Tin Trumpet I. x 66 Bait—One animal impaled upon a hook, in order to torture a second, for the amusement of a third.

b. Worms, fish, etc., to be used for this purpose.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fishing-tackle > means of attracting fish > [noun] > bait > materials for

bait1496

paste1653

greaves1740

mackerel bait1866

1496 Treat. Fysshynge wyth Angle in Bk. St. Albans (rev. ed.) sig. hj How ye shall make your baytes brede where ye shall fynde theym: and how ye shall kepe theym.

1653 I. Walton Compl. Angler To Rdr. 7 With advise how to make the Fly, and keep the live baits .

1799 tr. Laboratory (ed. 6) II. x. 267 Some trouble..to keep the bait alive.

2. figurative. An enticement, allurement, temptation.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > will > motivation > attraction, allurement, or enticement > [noun] > one who or that which > that which

lurec1385

baitc1400

traina1425

allective1445

allurement1548

lodestone?1577

attractive1581

invites1615

magnetic1645

magnet1655

invitatory1666

track1672

glittering prize1713

catch1781

the rainbow's end1846

carrot1895

come-on1902

society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > fighting or baiting animals > animal baiting > [noun]

baitingc1300

baitc1400

beast-baiting1606

lugging1614

hank1785

c1400 MS. Cantab. Ff. ii. 38. [46/2] 54/2 Thys worlde ys but the fendys beyte.

1460 Pol. Rel. & L. Poems (1866) 155 My body I made hyr hertys baite.

1573 T. Tusser Points Huswifrie (new ed.) f. 12, in Fiue Hundreth Points Good Husbandry (new ed.) A dore without lock, is a baight [1577 baite] for a knaue.

1725 D. Defoe Compl. Eng. Tradesman I. vi. 71 The profits of trade are baits to the avaritious shop-keeper.

1849 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. I. 246 He considered titles and great offices as baits which could allure none but fools.

II. Food generally.

†3. Food, refreshment; esp. a feed for horses, or slight repast for travellers, upon a journey. Still dialect light refreshment taken between meals.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > food > animal food > [noun] > fodder > fodder for horses

horsemeat1404

horse-bread1467

horse-loafc1468

bayard's bunc1520

garbage1526

bait1570

rack-meat1607

greaves1614

ray1656

gram1702

oat hay1843

oaten hay1891

the world > food and drink > food > meal > [noun] > light meal or snacks > for travellers

bait1570

scroggin1949

1570 P. Levens Manipulus Vocabulorum sig. Qivv/2 Bayt, refrigerium, refectio.

1573 T. Tusser tr. St. Bernard in Fiue Hundreth Points Good Husbandry (new ed.) f. 24^v O thou fit bait for wormes.

1661 R. Lovell Πανζωορυκτολογια, sive Panzoologicomineralogia Isagoge sig. B8^v When they [sc. serpents] devoure any great baite, they contract themselves.

1706 E. Ward Hudibras Redivivus I. xii. 24 Could (if she 'ad had her Will) have eat The Saddle Stuffing for a Bait.

1740 S. Richardson Pamela I. xxxi. 128 Stopping for a little Bait to the Horses.

1851 G. C. Greenwell Gloss. Terms Coal Trade (ed. 2) Bait, provision taken by a pitman to his work.

1883 Harper's Mag. Apr. 655/1 Afternoon ‘bait,’ or lunch [in Sussex].

4. A halt for refreshment in the course of a journey; a stoppage for rest.Scotch, Welsh bait: see the first element.

ΘΚΠ

the world > action or operation > ceasing > temporary cessation of activity or operation > [noun] > (a) respite

spalea1250

lithec1300

respitec1330

sabbath1398

vacationc1425

respetta1450

respectc1450

repose?1549

intermission1576

bait1580

sob1593

respiration1611

vacation1614

suspension1645

relaxation1728

relax1733

society > travel > aspects of travel > a journey > [noun] > break in a journey

resting?a1425

arresta1500

bait1580

alto1591

halt1598

station1604

stop1650

stoppage1840

noon halt1843

stop-off1869

lay-over1873

stop-over1881

water stop1896

overnight1936

1580 J. Lyly Euphues & his Eng. (new ed.) f. 14 This merry winde will immediatly bring vs to an easy bayte.

1594 T. Nashe Vnfortunate Traveller sig. C2^v To haue gone to heauen without a baite.

1633 P. Fletcher Elisa 115 in Purple Island Heav'nly fires..Whose motion is their bait; whose rest is restlesse giring.

1809 N. Pinkney Trav. South of France 80 They make a stage of thirty miles without a bait.

†5. figurative.

a. Refreshment; a lawyer's ‘refresher’.

ΘΚΠ

society > trade and finance > fees and taxes > payment for labour or service > fee for services rendered > [noun] > fee of professional person > barrister's fee

bait1578

retaining fee1659

refreshing fee1697

retainer1770

refresher1796

refresher fee1818

1578 J. Lyly Euphues f. 87^v A pleasant companion is a bayte in a iourney.

1603 J. Florio tr. M. de Montaigne Ess. ii. xii. 329 Have you paid him [sc. the Lawyer] well, have you given him a good baite or fee..?

b. A hasty meal like a traveller's, a snack. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > food > meal > [noun] > light meal or snacks

nuncheonc1260

morsela1382

refection?a1439

mixtumc1490

bever1500

banquet1509

collation1525

snatch1570

beverage1577

a little something1577

anders-meat1598

four-hours1637

watering1637

refreshment1639

snap1642

luncheona1652

crib1652

prandicle1656

munchin1657

baita1661

unch1663

afternooning1678

whet1688

nacket1694

merenda1740

rinfresco1745

bagging?1746

snack1757

coffee1774

second breakfast1775

nummit1777

stay-stomach1800

damper1804

eleven o'clock1805

noonshine1808

by-bit1819

morning1819

four1823

four o'clock1825

lunch1829

stay-bit1833

picnic meal1839

elevens1849

Tommy1864

picnic tea1869

dinnerette1872

merienda1880

elevenses1887

light bite1887

soldier's supper1893

mug-up1902

tray1914

café complet1933

nosha1941

namkeen1942

snax1947

snackette1952

chaat1954

ploughman's lunch1957

munchie1959

playlunch1960

short-eat1962

lite bite1965

munchie1971

ploughman1975

aperitivo2002

a1661 T. Fuller Worthies (1662) Northampt. 285 He rather took a bate, than made a meal at the Inns of Court, whilst he studied the Laws therein.

?1666 J. Evelyn Let. in Diary & Corr. (1859) III. 193 I now and then get a bait at philosophy.

III. Senses relating to baiting or worrying other animals by dogs.

6. The act of setting dogs to worry other animals; baiting; also (obsolete) chasing with dogs.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > hunting > hunting with hounds > [noun]

baitingc1300

bait?a1500

hounding1854

c1400 (?c1390) Sir Gawain & Green Knight (1940) l. 1461 Þen, brayn-wod for bate, on burneȝ he [the boar] raseȝ.]

a1500 R. Henryson tr. Æsop Fables: Fox, Wolf, & Cadger l. 2058 in Poems (1981) 79 At the nixt bait, in faith, ȝe sall be flane.

1570 P. Levens Manipulus Vocabulorum sig. Qivv/2 Bayt of a beare, vrsiprelium... Bayt of a bul, tauri venatio.

Compounds

C1. attributive and in other combinations, as bait-can, bait-fish, bait-fisher, bait-fishing, bait-gatherer, bait-kettle, bait-tackle.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fishing-tackle > means of attracting fish > [noun] > bait > container for holding bait

bait-kettle1799

the world > animals > fish > class Osteichthyes or Teleostomi > order Salmoniformes (salmon or trout) > superorder Ostariophysi or order Cypriniformes > [noun] > suborder Cyprinoidei > family Cyprinidae (minnows and carps) > genus Leuciscus > leuciscus rutilus (roach)

roacha1425

red fish1763

bait-fish1799

skelly1846

pearlfish1905

the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > type or method of fishing > [noun] > using bait

bait-fishing1832

the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fisher > [noun] > using bait

bait-fisher1835

wormer1891

dapper1920

the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fishing-tackle > [noun] > kind of

prick-tackle1463

ledger-tackle1653

fly-tackle1834

otter1834

bait-tackle1835

paternoster tackle1852

spinning-tackle1856

otter-line1862

traveller1864

skate1882

sea-ledger1887

otter1898

otter-board1901

ripper1925

salmon tackle-

the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fisher > [noun] > in charge of bait > collecting bait

bait-gatherer1842

trotter1864

wormer1880

1799 tr. Laboratory (ed. 6) II. x. 267 By frequently dipping your bait-kettle in the water.

1820 Western Rev. (Kentucky) II. 241 Rutilus compressus, a small fish..called Fall-fish, Bait-fish, Minny, etc.

1832 Chambers' Edinb. Jrnl. 14 Apr. 87/2 The same observations apply..to bait fishing.

1835 Chambers's Edinb. Jrnl. 3 Jan. 390/3 Some bait-fishers..use the smaller sorts [of hooks];..The bait-tackle ought to be loaded..with a pellet or two of lead.

1842 Johnston in Hist. Berwickshire Naturalists' Club 2 x. 36 The bait-gatherer, for picking them from the rocks..has 8d. per day.

1952 E. Hemingway Old Man & Sea 35 No flying fish broke the surface and there was no scattering of bait fish.

C2.

bait-land n. (see quot.).

ΘΚΠ

the world > physical sensation > sleeping and waking > refreshment or invigoration > [noun] > place where one is refreshed

recreation1440

breathing place1591

bait-land1725

1725 D. Defoe New Voy. round World i. 134 A Bait Land, or Port of Refreshment.

bait-poke n. a bag for holding a miner's ‘bait’.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > food > container for food > [noun] > container for provisions

provision basket1770

sandwich case1815

tommy bag1843

lunchbox1862

bait-poke1863

teabag1898

brown bag1947

tiffin-carrier1960

tea-box1972

1863 J. P. Robson Songs Bards of Tyne 271 And queer things behint them like pitmen's bait pokes.

Draft additions September 2013

bait layer n. (a) a person who lays bait (now rare); (b) Australian slang (humorous and depreciative) a cook, esp. a camp or station cook (now chiefly historical).

ΚΠ

1913 Times of India 8 Nov. The prepared bait, when ready for use, was..handed out in suitable quantities to a small army of bait-layers.

1943 S. J. Baker Pop. Dict. Austral. Slang (ed. 2) 7 Baitlayer, a station cook.

1975 B. Foley Shearers' Poems 11 The ‘Babbling Brook’ [sc. cook] was dead. He'd not been much of a ‘bait layer’. But not a bad sort of a bloke.

1993 Austral. Post 23 Jan. 37/4 Bush cooks have a terrible reputation... The worst of the cooks were also called ‘baitlayers’.

2004 M. E. Snodgrass Encycl. Kitchen Hist. (2005) 138 Among European settlers of Australia, bush cooks were sometimes jokingly referred to as ‘bait layers’, named after the poisoners of the rabbits that overran the wild.

This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1885; most recently modified version published online June 2022).

baitbaten.²

Brit.

/beɪt/, U.S.

/beɪt/

Etymology: < bait v.

slang.

A fit of bad temper; a rage.‘“He was in an awful bait” was common in the Clapham Grammar School, 1857.’—A. L. Mayhew in Eng. Dial. Dict. at Bate n.³

ΘΚΠ

the mind > emotion > anger > manifestation of anger > [noun] > fit(s) or outburst(s) of anger

wratha1200

wrethea1400

hatelc1400

angerc1425

braida1450

fumea1529

passion1530

fustian fume1553

ruff1567

pelt1573

spleen1590

blaze1597

huff1599

blustera1616

dog-flawa1625

overboiling1767

explosion1769

squall1807

blowout1825

flare-up1837

fit1841

bust-up1842

wax1854

Scot1859

pelter1861

ructions1862

performance1864

outfling1865

rise1877

detonation1878

flare-out1879

bait1882

paddy1894

paddywhack1899

wingding1927

wing-dinger1933

eppie1987

1882 ‘F. Anstey’ Vice Versâ (ed. 4) iii. 48 It would put him in no end of a bait.

1899 E. Phillpotts Human Boy 95 I've just left Milly, and she's in a frightful bate.

1899 R. Kipling Stalky & Co. 152 ‘What a bait you're in!’ said Stalky.

1899 R. Kipling Stalky & Co. 205 I got in no end of a bait.

1950 A. Buckeridge Jennings goes to School ii. 28 ‘Old Wilkie's pretty ozard,’ said Temple, twirling a sock round his head autogyrically..‘and when he's in a rare bate, he's been known to touch ozard cubed.’

1953 E. Taylor Sleeping Beauty vii. 134 Flying into a bate, as we used to say at school.

Derivatives

ˈbaity adj. (also batey)

ΘΚΠ

the mind > emotion > anger > irascibility > ill humour > [adjective] > in an ill humour

maltalenta1578

in a jeer1579

in suds1611

sullen-sick1614

in the pouts1615

out of sorts1621

cross1639

off the hooks1662

huff1714

sulkinga1777

as cross as a bear1838

sore-headed1844

sore-head1862

baity1921

1921 S. Thompson Rough Crossing ii. 86 Jolly lucky the C.O. didn't notice it yesterday—he gets ‘baity’ on these occasions.

1925 Chambers's Jrnl. 838/1 Now I must be going, or else dad'll be baity with me.

1946 B. Marshall George Brown's Schooldays 66 You'll make me batey if you say rotten caddish things like that.

1954 P. H. Johnson Impossible Marriage 11 I'd better roll the damned thing in or Mater will be batey.

This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1933; most recently modified version published online December 2021).

baitv.

Brit.

/beɪt/, U.S.

/beɪt/

Forms: Middle English beȝȝt-en, beyte-n, Middle English–1500s bayt, Middle English–1600s baite, bayte, Middle English–1500s beyt, 1500s baight, 1500s–1600s bate, Middle English– bait.

Origin: A borrowing from early Scandinavian. Etymon: Norse beita.

Etymology: Middle English beȝȝten , beyten , < Old Norse beita to cause to bite (= Old English bǽtan , Old High German, Middle High German beiȥen , Gothic *baitjan ), causative of bíta to bite v.; but in branch III probably directly < bait n.¹: compare Old English bátian, < bát bait. With branch I compare Old French beter, also from Old Norse.

I. To cause to bite other creatures.

†1.

a. transitive. To set on (a dog) to bite or worry.(Cf. the similar construction in bate v.¹).

ΘΚΠ

the world > action or operation > harm or detriment > hostile action or attack > make an attack upon [verb (transitive)] > cause or incite to attack > spec an animal (usually dog)

sleata1225

baita1375

slatea1400

shout1888

a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 11 Þe herd had wiþ him an hound..forto bayte on his bestes wanne þai to brode went.

†b. figurative. To set on, incite, exasperate. Cf. abait v.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > will > motivation > motivate [verb (transitive)] > incite or instigate

stirc897

putOE

sputc1175

prokec1225

prickc1230

commovec1374

baitc1378

stingc1386

movea1398

eager?a1400

pokec1400

provokea1425

tollc1440

cheera1450

irritec1450

encourage1483

incite1483

harden1487

attice1490

pricklea1522

to set on1523

incense1531

irritate1531

animate1532

tickle1532

stomach1541

instigate1542

concitea1555

upsteer1558

urge1565

instimulate1570

whip1573

goad1579

raise1581

to set upa1586

to call ona1592

incitate1597

indarec1599

alarm1602

exstimulate1603

to put on1604

feeze1610

impulse1611

fomentate1613

emovec1614

animalize1617

stimulate1619

spura1644

trinkle1685

cite1718

to put up1812

prod1832

to jack up1914

goose1934

c1378 J. Wyclif De Off. Past. in Wks. (1880) 437 Prelatis..baytiþ a pariȝshen aȝenus þe persoun.

a. To set on dogs to bite and worry (an animal, such as the bear, boar, bull, badger, etc., usually chained or confined for this purpose), to attack with dogs for sport; formerly, also, to hunt or chase with dogs.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > hunting > hunting with hounds > hunt with hounds [verb (transitive)]

baita1300

hound1528

dog1591

society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > fighting or baiting animals > animal baiting > bait [verb (transitive)]

sleatc1000

baita1300

luga1627

society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > fighting or baiting animals > animal baiting > bait [verb (transitive)] > with dogs

sleatc1000

baita1300

slate1684

a1300 Havelok 1840 And shoten on him, so don on bere Dogges..Thanne men doth the bere beyte.

c1400 (?c1380) Cleanness (1920) l. 55 My boles & my borez arn bayted & slayne.

c1440 Promptorium Parvulorum 29 Beyton wyth howndys, berys, bolys, or other lyke, canibus agitare.

1594 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 2 v. i. 146 Are these thy beares? weele bayte them soone.

1606 P. Holland tr. Suetonius Hist. Twelve Caesars 120 There was a wild bore put foorth into the open shew-place for to be baited.

1801 J. Strutt Glig-gamena Angel-ðeod iii. vi. 217 The cruel diversion of baiting a horse with dogs.

b. figurative. To cause (a person) to be molested, harassed, or persecuted (with).

ΚΠ

1642 T. Fuller Holy State i. iii. 9 Such husbands as bait the mistris with her maids.

1655 Triall I. Penruddock 4 Sir, You have put me in a bears skin, and now you will bait me with a witnesse.

c. (in sense of 4, but retaining some idea of intermediate agency, as in 2b.)

ΚΠ

1555 W. Waterman tr. J. Boemus Fardle of Facions ii. xi. 250 Thei reuile him, and baite him with shames and reproche.

1659 Godfrey in T. Burton Diary (1828) IV. 347 It was a breach of privilege to bait you with those interrogations.

1778 S. Johnson in J. Boswell Life Johnson (1831) IV. 124 I will not be baited with what and why.

a. To attack with endeavour to bite and tear, as dogs attack a chained or confined animal (cf. 2).

ΘΚΠ

the world > action or operation > harm or detriment > hostile action or attack > make an attack upon [verb (transitive)] > attack (of animal)

to venture on (also uponc1528

bait1570

to go at ——1675

tack1720

to go for ——1838

sick1845

aggress1882

1570 J. Foxe Actes & Monumentes (rev. ed.) I. 72/1 Attalus..was baited again of the beastes.

1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene i. xii. sig. M4 As chained beare, whom cruell dogs doe bait.

1885 N.E.D. at Bait Mod. They set on several dogs to bait the badger.

b. absol.

ΘΚΠ

the world > action or operation > harm or detriment > hostile action or attack > make attack [verb (intransitive)] > specifically of animals

baitc1430

c1430 Hymns to Virg. (1867) 77 Helle houndis berken and baite.

a1549 A. Borde Fyrst Bk. Introd. Knowl. (1870) 187 Kur dogges, For men shyns they wyl ly in wayte; It is a good sport to se them so to bayte.

1735 W. Somervile Chace iv. 332 Raving he foams, and howls, and barks, and bates.

a. figurative. To persecute or harass with persistent attacks (a person more or less unable to escape); to worry or torment in an exasperating manner, esp. from a wanton or malicious desire to inflict pain.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > emotion > suffering > state of being harassed > harass [verb (transitive)]

tawc893

ermec897

swencheOE

besetOE

bestandc1000

teenOE

baitc1175

grieve?c1225

war?c1225

noyc1300

pursuec1300

travailc1300

to work (also do) annoyc1300

tribula1325

worka1325

to hold wakenc1330

chase1340

twistc1374

wrap1380

cumbera1400

harrya1400

vexc1410

encumber1413

inquiet1413

molest?a1425

course1466

persecutec1475

trouble1489

sturt1513

hare1523

hag1525

hale1530

exercise1531

to grate on or upon1532

to hold or keep waking1533

infest1533

scourge1540

molestate1543

pinch1548

trounce1551

to shake upa1556

tire1558

moila1560

pester1566

importune1578

hunt1583

moider1587

bebait1589

commacerate1596

bepester1600

ferret1600

harsell1603

hurry1611

gall1614

betoil1622

weary1633

tribulatea1637

harass1656

dun1659

overharry1665

worry1671

haul1678

to plague the life out of1746

badger1782

hatchel1800

worry1811

bedevil1823

devil1823

victimize1830

frab1848

mither1848

to pester the life out of1848

haik1855

beplague1870

chevy1872

obsede1876

to get on ——1880

to load up with1880

tail-twist1898

hassle1901

heckle1920

snooter1923

hassle1945

to breathe down (the back of) (someone's) neck1946

to bust (a person's) chops1953

noodge1960

monster1967

the world > action or operation > harm or detriment > hostile action or attack > make an attack upon [verb (transitive)] > persecute

seekc825

baitc1175

war?c1225

pursuec1300

chase1340

course1466

persecutea1475

suea1500

pickc1550

pursuit1563

prosecute1588

exagitate1602

dragoon1689

harass1788

martyr1851

dragonnade1881

witch-hunt1919

vamp1970

c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 10171 Þise puplicaness..durrstenn beȝȝtenn menn Forr æþelike gillte.

c1400 Rom. Rose 1612 Folk of grettist wit Ben soone caught heere & awayted; Withouten respite ben they baited.

1631 R. Bolton Instr. Right Comf. Affl. Consciences 168 God must let loose his Law, Sinne, Conscience, and Satan to baite us.

1751 S. Johnson Rambler No. 176. ⁋4 The diversion of baiting an author has the sanction of all ages.

1834 T. B. Macaulay William Pitt in Ess. (1854) I. 301 The new Secretary of State had been so unmercifully baited by the Paymaster of the Forces.

†b. intransitive with at (in same sense). Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > action or operation > harm or detriment > hostile action or attack > make attack [verb (intransitive)] > persecute

bait1579

witch-hunt1919

witch-hunt1935

1579 L. Tomson tr. J. Calvin Serm. Epist. S. Paule to Timothie & Titus 956/2 Why are they so alwayes bayting at me?

1606 T. Dekker Newes from Hell sig. D4^v Bayted by whole kennels of yelping watermen.

1679 tr. Trag. Hist. Jetzer 9 The Fathers all this while were baiting at him.

II. To cause a creature to bite for its own refreshment; to feed.

5. transitive. To give food and drink to (a horse or other beast), esp. when upon a journey; to feed.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > food > providing or receiving food > feeding animals > [verb (transitive)]

baitc1400

servea1475

foddera1500

refetea1500

maintain1576

provend1581

provender1584

put1620

meal1630

stall-feed1763

feed1818

board1875

c1400 Mandeville's Trav. xxii. 243 While that [he] reste him, And bayte his Dromedarie or his hors.

1487 (a1380) J. Barbour Bruce (St. John's Cambr.) xiii. 589 Than lichtit thai..Till bayt thar horss.

1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene i. i. sig. A7^v The Sunne..At night doth baite his steedes the Ocean waues emong.

1697 Countess D'Aunoy's Trav. (1706) 47 And stop at the Bank of some River, where the Mule-Drivers bate their Mules.

1799 J. Robertson Gen. View Agric. Perth 200 You have this second crop of clover..to bait your cows.

1858 W. M. Thackeray Virginians x. 79 Whilst their horses were baited, they entered the public room.

6. reflexive and intransitive. Said of horses or other beasts: To take food, to feed, esp. at a stage of a journey.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > food > consumption of food or drink > eating > eating by animals > feed (of animals) [verb (intransitive)]

baitc1386

feeda1387

relievec1475

victual1577

(to be) on the feed1867

the world > food and drink > food > consumption of food or drink > eating > eating by animals > feed (of animals) [verb (reflexive)]

baita1500

c1386 G. Chaucer Sir Thopas 202 By him baytith his destrer Of herbes fyne and goode.

1394 P. Pl. Crede 375 Þey ben digne as dich water þat dogges in bayteþ.

a1500 (?a1400) Sir Torrent of Portyngale (1887) l. 1553 Vnbrydelid his stede And let hym bayte hym on the ground.

?1523 J. Fitzherbert Bk. Husbandry f. xiiii In lodinge of hay or corne the catell is alway etinge or betyng.

1832 Baroness Bunsen in A. J. C. Hare Life & Lett. Baroness Bunsen (1879) I. ix. 384 An osteria..at which our horses were to bait.

a. intransitive. Of travellers: To stop at an inn, originally to feed the horses, but later also to rest and refresh themselves; hence, to make a brief stay or sojourn.

ΘΚΠ

society > inhabiting and dwelling > inhabiting temporarily > [verb (intransitive)] > at the house of another, an inn, etc.

gesten?c1225

innc1390

host?c1450

bait1477

to be (or lie) at hosta1500

hostela1500

sojourn1573

to take up1607

guest?1615

to set upa1689

to keep up1704

to put up1706

lodge1749

room1809

hotel1889

dig1914

motel1961

1477 W. Caxton tr. R. Le Fèvre Hist. Jason (1913) 49 They cam for to bayte in the logging wher her frende Iason had logged.

1487 (a1380) J. Barbour Bruce (St. John's Cambr.) xiii. 599 A litill quhile thai baitit [1489 Adv. Baytyt] thar.

1577 R. Stanyhurst Treat. Descr. Irelande ii. f. 5^v/1, in R. Holinshed Chron. I The caue or denne, wherin S. Paul is sayd to haue bayted or soiorned.

1660 S. Pepys Diary 24 Feb. (1970) I. 66 At Puckrige we baited. Where we had a loin of mutton fried.

1781 R. B. Sheridan Trip to Scarborough i. ii To bait here a few days longer, to recover the fatigue of his journey.

1874 J. L. Motley Life John of Barneveld I. iv. 179 They set forth on their journey—stopping in the middle of the day to bait.

b. figurative.

ΚΠ

1639 T. Fuller Hist. Holy Warre iii. xxix. 161 A Prince..onely baiteth at learning, and maketh not his profession to lodge in.

1671 J. Milton Samson Agonistes 1538 For evil news rides post, while good news baits .

1822 C. Lamb in London Mag. Mar. 283/2 Trace it [sc. the sentiment]..—baiting at this town—stopping to refresh at t'other village.

†8.

a. intransitive (and reflexive). To feed, take nourishment.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > food > consumption of food or drink > eating > eat [verb (intransitive)]

eatc825

to break breadeOE

baitc1386

feeda1387

to take one's repast?1490

to take repast1517

repast1520

peck?1536

diet1566

meat1573

victual1577

graze1579

manger1609

to craw it1708

grub1725

scoff1798

browse1818

provender1819

muckamuck1853

to put on the nosebag1874

refect1882

restaurate1882

nosh1892

tucker1903

to muck in1919

scarf1960

snack1972

the world > food and drink > food > consumption of food or drink > eating > eat [verb (reflexive)]

repasta1470

bait1633

fat1679

c1386 G. Chaucer Man of Law's Tale 368 On many a sory meel now may she bayte.

a1400 Sir Perc. 187 A tryppe of gayte [= goats], With mylke of thame for to bayte To hir lyves fode.

1633 P. Fletcher Purple Island viii. xlv. 118 So fisher waits To bait himself with fish, his hook And fish with baits.

†b. figurative of the eyes: To feast.

ΘΚΠ

the world > physical sensation > sight and vision > seeing or looking > see [verb (intransitive)] > stare or gaze > of eyes

baitc1374

stellc1817

c1374 G. Chaucer Troilus & Criseyde i. 193 If knyght or squyer..lete his eyen bayte On eny woman.

1632 G. Fletcher Christs Victorie (ed. 2) ii. v If he stood still, their eyes upon him baited.

III. To provide with a bait, offer a bait to. [Probably a later independent formation on the noun.]

a. transitive. To furnish (a hook, trap) with a bait.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > type or method of fishing > [verb (transitive)] > bait a hook

baita1400

busk1685

rebait1686

the world > food and drink > hunting > hunt [verb (transitive)] > trap > bait a trap

bait1556

a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Gött.) l. 13285 Quiles þai þair lines war baitand.

1495 Trevisa's Bartholomeus De Proprietatibus Rerum (de Worde) xviii. cxv. sig. hhi^v/1 Fysshe hokys ben bayted [a1398 BL Add. y-ased] wyth suche wormes in stede of bayte.

1556 J. Heywood Spider & Flie lxix. 43 This trap..for spiders is baighted.

1663 S. Butler Hudibras: First Pt. i. i. 29 Cheese or Bacon..To bait a Mouse-trap.

1725 E. Fenton in A. Pope et al. tr. Homer Odyssey I. iv. 499 My absent mates..Bait the barb'd steel.

figurative.1548 N. Udall et al. tr. Erasmus Paraphr. Newe Test. I. Matt. iv. 8 (R.) His hooke bayted with y^e enticement of vayne glory.1726 D. Defoe Polit. Hist. Devil ii. vi. 275 He baited his Hook with the City of Milan.1820 W. Scott Monastery II. viii. 255 Baited thy tongue with falsehood.

b. absol. (literal and figurative)

ΚΠ

1753 Chambers's Cycl. Suppl. (at cited word) For cod they bait with herring.

1863 C. C. Clarke Shakespeare-characters ix. 218 She therefore baited for, and caught her prey.

10. To lay (a place) with bait, so as to attract the prey.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > hunting > hunt [verb (transitive)] > bait a place

bait1623

1623 Althorp MS. in J. N. Simpkinson Washingtons Introd. 44 The ratcatcher for a coter's wages for bating the house.

1665 R. Boyle Occas. Refl. iv. xiv. sig. Ff6^v He had liberally Baited the place over-night with Corn, as well as Worms.

1880 F. Francis Bk. Angling (ed. 5) i. 33 When once the place has been baited.

11. To offer bait to; to allure, entice, tempt.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > conformity with what is known, truth > deceit, deception, trickery > snare, trap, entanglement > entrap, ensnare [verb (transitive)]

shrenchc897

beswike971

betrapa1000

bewindOE

undernimc1175

undertakec1175

bisayc1200

beguile?c1225

catchc1225

beginc1250

biwilea1275

tele?a1300

enginec1300

lime13..

umwrithea1340

engrin1340

oblige1340

belimec1350

enlacec1374

girnc1375

encumber138.

gnarec1380

enwrap1382

briguea1387

snarl1387

upbroid1387

trap1390

entrikea1393

englue1393

gildera1400

aguilec1400

betraisec1400

embrygec1400

snare1401

lacea1425

maska1425

begluec1430

marl1440

supprise?c1450

to prey ona1500

attrap1524

circumvene1526

entangle1526

tangle1526

entrap1531

mesh1532

embrake1542

crawl1548

illaqueate1548

intricate1548

inveigle1551

circumvent1553

felter1567

besnare1571

in trick1572

ensnare1576

overcatch1577

underfong1579

salt1580

entoil1581

comprehend1584

windlassa1586

folda1592

solicit1592

toil1592

bait1600

beset1600

engage1603

benet1604

imbrier1605

ambush1611

inknot1611

enmesha1616

trammela1616

fool1620

pinion1621

aucupate1630

fang1637

surprise1642

underreacha1652

trepan1656

ensnarl1658

stalk1659

irretiate1660

coil1748

nail1766

net1803

to rope in1840

mousetrap1870

spider1891

1600 W. Shakespeare Merchant of Venice iii. i. 49 His flesh, what's that good for? Shyl. To baite fish with all.

a1616 W. Shakespeare Comedy of Errors (1623) ii. i. 93 Doe their gay vestments his affections baite ?

1865 Dixon Holy Land I. 173 Just as the harvests of Kent and Mercia used to bait the Saxon vikings.

This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1885; most recently modified version published online December 2021).

n.¹a1325

n.²1882

v.c1175

单词	bait
释义	baitn.¹ Brit. /beɪt/, U.S. /beɪt/ Forms: Middle English–1500s bayte, Middle English beyt, Middle English–1500s bayt, 1500s beyte, 1500s–1600s baight, 1500s–1700s baite, 1600s bate, Middle English– bait. Origin: Of multiple origins. Partly a borrowing from early Scandinavian. Partly formed within English, by conversion. Etymons: Norse beit ; bait v. Etymology: Partly < Old Norse beit (neuter) pasture, beita (feminine) food, especially as used to entice a prey, cognate with Old English bát < food, Middle High German beiz n., beize < hunting; in part directly < bait v. I. Food used to entice a prey. 1. a. An attractive morsel of food placed on a hook or in a trap, in order to allure fish or other animals to seize it and be thereby captured. ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > hunting > equipment > trap or snare > [noun] > bait eesOE baita1325 trap-bait1856 tie-up1895 the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fishing-tackle > means of attracting fish > [noun] > bait eesOE baita1325 a1325 Metr. Hom. 12 Als fisce es tan wit bait and hoc. a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 16931 Þe bait apon þe hok. 1444 J. Lydgate in T. Wright Polit. Poems & Songs (1859) II. 219 Bosard with botirflyes makith beytis for a crane. a1639 Breton in E. Farr Sel. Poetry Reign Elizabeth (1845) I. 182 Wherein as hook within the Baight..Some hidden poyson lurking lyes. 1653 I. Walton Compl. Angler 53 Let your bait fall gently upon the water. View more context for this quotation 1836 H. Smith Tin Trumpet I. x 66 Bait—One animal impaled upon a hook, in order to torture a second, for the amusement of a third. b. Worms, fish, etc., to be used for this purpose. ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fishing-tackle > means of attracting fish > [noun] > bait > materials for bait1496 paste1653 greaves1740 mackerel bait1866 1496 Treat. Fysshynge wyth Angle in Bk. St. Albans (rev. ed.) sig. hj How ye shall make your baytes brede where ye shall fynde theym: and how ye shall kepe theym. 1653 I. Walton Compl. Angler To Rdr. 7 With advise how to make the Fly, and keep the live baits . View more context for this quotation 1799 tr. Laboratory (ed. 6) II. x. 267 Some trouble..to keep the bait alive. 2. figurative. An enticement, allurement, temptation. ΘΚΠ the mind > will > motivation > attraction, allurement, or enticement > [noun] > one who or that which > that which lurec1385 baitc1400 traina1425 allective1445 allurement1548 lodestone?1577 attractive1581 invites1615 magnetic1645 magnet1655 invitatory1666 track1672 glittering prize1713 catch1781 the rainbow's end1846 carrot1895 come-on1902 society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > fighting or baiting animals > animal baiting > [noun] baitingc1300 baitc1400 beast-baiting1606 lugging1614 hank1785 c1400 MS. Cantab. Ff. ii. 38. [46/2] 54/2 Thys worlde ys but the fendys beyte. 1460 Pol. Rel. & L. Poems (1866) 155 My body I made hyr hertys baite. 1573 T. Tusser Points Huswifrie (new ed.) f. 12, in Fiue Hundreth Points Good Husbandry (new ed.) A dore without lock, is a baight [1577 baite] for a knaue. 1725 D. Defoe Compl. Eng. Tradesman I. vi. 71 The profits of trade are baits to the avaritious shop-keeper. 1849 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. I. 246 He considered titles and great offices as baits which could allure none but fools. II. Food generally. †3. Food, refreshment; esp. a feed for horses, or slight repast for travellers, upon a journey. Still dialect light refreshment taken between meals. ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > food > animal food > [noun] > fodder > fodder for horses horsemeat1404 horse-bread1467 horse-loafc1468 bayard's bunc1520 garbage1526 bait1570 rack-meat1607 greaves1614 ray1656 gram1702 oat hay1843 oaten hay1891 the world > food and drink > food > meal > [noun] > light meal or snacks > for travellers bait1570 scroggin1949 1570 P. Levens Manipulus Vocabulorum sig. Qivv/2 Bayt, refrigerium, refectio. 1573 T. Tusser tr. St. Bernard in Fiue Hundreth Points Good Husbandry (new ed.) f. 24^v O thou fit bait for wormes. 1661 R. Lovell Πανζωορυκτολογια, sive Panzoologicomineralogia Isagoge sig. B8^v When they [sc. serpents] devoure any great baite, they contract themselves. 1706 E. Ward Hudibras Redivivus I. xii. 24 Could (if she 'ad had her Will) have eat The Saddle Stuffing for a Bait. 1740 S. Richardson Pamela I. xxxi. 128 Stopping for a little Bait to the Horses. 1851 G. C. Greenwell Gloss. Terms Coal Trade (ed. 2) Bait, provision taken by a pitman to his work. 1883 Harper's Mag. Apr. 655/1 Afternoon ‘bait,’ or lunch [in Sussex]. 4. A halt for refreshment in the course of a journey; a stoppage for rest.Scotch, Welsh bait: see the first element. ΘΚΠ the world > action or operation > ceasing > temporary cessation of activity or operation > [noun] > (a) respite spalea1250 lithec1300 respitec1330 sabbath1398 vacationc1425 respetta1450 respectc1450 repose?1549 intermission1576 bait1580 sob1593 respiration1611 vacation1614 suspension1645 relaxation1728 relax1733 society > travel > aspects of travel > a journey > [noun] > break in a journey resting?a1425 arresta1500 bait1580 alto1591 halt1598 station1604 stop1650 stoppage1840 noon halt1843 stop-off1869 lay-over1873 stop-over1881 water stop1896 overnight1936 1580 J. Lyly Euphues & his Eng. (new ed.) f. 14 This merry winde will immediatly bring vs to an easy bayte. 1594 T. Nashe Vnfortunate Traveller sig. C2^v To haue gone to heauen without a baite. 1633 P. Fletcher Elisa 115 in Purple Island Heav'nly fires..Whose motion is their bait; whose rest is restlesse giring. 1809 N. Pinkney Trav. South of France 80 They make a stage of thirty miles without a bait. †5. figurative. a. Refreshment; a lawyer's ‘refresher’. ΘΚΠ society > trade and finance > fees and taxes > payment for labour or service > fee for services rendered > [noun] > fee of professional person > barrister's fee bait1578 retaining fee1659 refreshing fee1697 retainer1770 refresher1796 refresher fee1818 1578 J. Lyly Euphues f. 87^v A pleasant companion is a bayte in a iourney. 1603 J. Florio tr. M. de Montaigne Ess. ii. xii. 329 Have you paid him [sc. the Lawyer] well, have you given him a good baite or fee..? b. A hasty meal like a traveller's, a snack. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > food > meal > [noun] > light meal or snacks nuncheonc1260 morsela1382 refection?a1439 mixtumc1490 bever1500 banquet1509 collation1525 snatch1570 beverage1577 a little something1577 anders-meat1598 four-hours1637 watering1637 refreshment1639 snap1642 luncheona1652 crib1652 prandicle1656 munchin1657 baita1661 unch1663 afternooning1678 whet1688 nacket1694 merenda1740 rinfresco1745 bagging?1746 snack1757 coffee1774 second breakfast1775 nummit1777 stay-stomach1800 damper1804 eleven o'clock1805 noonshine1808 by-bit1819 morning1819 four1823 four o'clock1825 lunch1829 stay-bit1833 picnic meal1839 elevens1849 Tommy1864 picnic tea1869 dinnerette1872 merienda1880 elevenses1887 light bite1887 soldier's supper1893 mug-up1902 tray1914 café complet1933 nosha1941 namkeen1942 snax1947 snackette1952 chaat1954 ploughman's lunch1957 munchie1959 playlunch1960 short-eat1962 lite bite1965 munchie1971 ploughman1975 aperitivo2002 a1661 T. Fuller Worthies (1662) Northampt. 285 He rather took a bate, than made a meal at the Inns of Court, whilst he studied the Laws therein. ?1666 J. Evelyn Let. in Diary & Corr. (1859) III. 193 I now and then get a bait at philosophy. III. Senses relating to baiting or worrying other animals by dogs. 6. The act of setting dogs to worry other animals; baiting; also (obsolete) chasing with dogs. ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > hunting > hunting with hounds > [noun] baitingc1300 bait?a1500 hounding1854 c1400 (?c1390) Sir Gawain & Green Knight (1940) l. 1461 Þen, brayn-wod for bate, on burneȝ he [the boar] raseȝ.] a1500 R. Henryson tr. Æsop Fables: Fox, Wolf, & Cadger l. 2058 in Poems (1981) 79 At the nixt bait, in faith, ȝe sall be flane. 1570 P. Levens Manipulus Vocabulorum sig. Qivv/2 Bayt of a beare, vrsiprelium... Bayt of a bul, tauri venatio. Compounds C1. attributive and in other combinations, as bait-can, bait-fish, bait-fisher, bait-fishing, bait-gatherer, bait-kettle, bait-tackle. ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fishing-tackle > means of attracting fish > [noun] > bait > container for holding bait bait-kettle1799 the world > animals > fish > class Osteichthyes or Teleostomi > order Salmoniformes (salmon or trout) > superorder Ostariophysi or order Cypriniformes > [noun] > suborder Cyprinoidei > family Cyprinidae (minnows and carps) > genus Leuciscus > leuciscus rutilus (roach) roacha1425 red fish1763 bait-fish1799 skelly1846 pearlfish1905 the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > type or method of fishing > [noun] > using bait bait-fishing1832 the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fisher > [noun] > using bait bait-fisher1835 wormer1891 dapper1920 the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fishing-tackle > [noun] > kind of prick-tackle1463 ledger-tackle1653 fly-tackle1834 otter1834 bait-tackle1835 paternoster tackle1852 spinning-tackle1856 otter-line1862 traveller1864 skate1882 sea-ledger1887 otter1898 otter-board1901 ripper1925 salmon tackle- the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > fisher > [noun] > in charge of bait > collecting bait bait-gatherer1842 trotter1864 wormer1880 1799 tr. Laboratory (ed. 6) II. x. 267 By frequently dipping your bait-kettle in the water. 1820 Western Rev. (Kentucky) II. 241 Rutilus compressus, a small fish..called Fall-fish, Bait-fish, Minny, etc. 1832 Chambers' Edinb. Jrnl. 14 Apr. 87/2 The same observations apply..to bait fishing. 1835 Chambers's Edinb. Jrnl. 3 Jan. 390/3 Some bait-fishers..use the smaller sorts [of hooks];..The bait-tackle ought to be loaded..with a pellet or two of lead. 1842 Johnston in Hist. Berwickshire Naturalists' Club 2 x. 36 The bait-gatherer, for picking them from the rocks..has 8d. per day. 1952 E. Hemingway Old Man & Sea 35 No flying fish broke the surface and there was no scattering of bait fish. C2. bait-land n. (see quot.). ΘΚΠ the world > physical sensation > sleeping and waking > refreshment or invigoration > [noun] > place where one is refreshed recreation1440 breathing place1591 bait-land1725 1725 D. Defoe New Voy. round World i. 134 A Bait Land, or Port of Refreshment. bait-poke n. a bag for holding a miner's ‘bait’. ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > food > container for food > [noun] > container for provisions provision basket1770 sandwich case1815 tommy bag1843 lunchbox1862 bait-poke1863 teabag1898 brown bag1947 tiffin-carrier1960 tea-box1972 1863 J. P. Robson Songs Bards of Tyne 271 And queer things behint them like pitmen's bait pokes. Draft additions September 2013 bait layer n. (a) a person who lays bait (now rare); (b) Australian slang (humorous and depreciative) a cook, esp. a camp or station cook (now chiefly historical). ΚΠ 1913 Times of India 8 Nov. The prepared bait, when ready for use, was..handed out in suitable quantities to a small army of bait-layers. 1943 S. J. Baker Pop. Dict. Austral. Slang (ed. 2) 7 Baitlayer, a station cook. 1975 B. Foley Shearers' Poems 11 The ‘Babbling Brook’ [sc. cook] was dead. He'd not been much of a ‘bait layer’. But not a bad sort of a bloke. 1993 Austral. Post 23 Jan. 37/4 Bush cooks have a terrible reputation... The worst of the cooks were also called ‘baitlayers’. 2004 M. E. Snodgrass Encycl. Kitchen Hist. (2005) 138 Among European settlers of Australia, bush cooks were sometimes jokingly referred to as ‘bait layers’, named after the poisoners of the rabbits that overran the wild. This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1885; most recently modified version published online June 2022). baitbaten.² Brit. /beɪt/, U.S. /beɪt/ Etymology: < bait v. slang. A fit of bad temper; a rage.‘“He was in an awful bait” was common in the Clapham Grammar School, 1857.’—A. L. Mayhew in Eng. Dial. Dict. at Bate n.³ ΘΚΠ the mind > emotion > anger > manifestation of anger > [noun] > fit(s) or outburst(s) of anger wratha1200 wrethea1400 hatelc1400 angerc1425 braida1450 fumea1529 passion1530 fustian fume1553 ruff1567 pelt1573 spleen1590 blaze1597 huff1599 blustera1616 dog-flawa1625 overboiling1767 explosion1769 squall1807 blowout1825 flare-up1837 fit1841 bust-up1842 wax1854 Scot1859 pelter1861 ructions1862 performance1864 outfling1865 rise1877 detonation1878 flare-out1879 bait1882 paddy1894 paddywhack1899 wingding1927 wing-dinger1933 eppie1987 1882 ‘F. Anstey’ Vice Versâ (ed. 4) iii. 48 It would put him in no end of a bait. 1899 E. Phillpotts Human Boy 95 I've just left Milly, and she's in a frightful bate. 1899 R. Kipling Stalky & Co. 152 ‘What a bait you're in!’ said Stalky. 1899 R. Kipling Stalky & Co. 205 I got in no end of a bait. 1950 A. Buckeridge Jennings goes to School ii. 28 ‘Old Wilkie's pretty ozard,’ said Temple, twirling a sock round his head autogyrically..‘and when he's in a rare bate, he's been known to touch ozard cubed.’ 1953 E. Taylor Sleeping Beauty vii. 134 Flying into a bate, as we used to say at school. Derivatives ˈbaity adj. (also batey) ΘΚΠ the mind > emotion > anger > irascibility > ill humour > [adjective] > in an ill humour maltalenta1578 in a jeer1579 in suds1611 sullen-sick1614 in the pouts1615 out of sorts1621 cross1639 off the hooks1662 huff1714 sulkinga1777 as cross as a bear1838 sore-headed1844 sore-head1862 baity1921 1921 S. Thompson Rough Crossing ii. 86 Jolly lucky the C.O. didn't notice it yesterday—he gets ‘baity’ on these occasions. 1925 Chambers's Jrnl. 838/1 Now I must be going, or else dad'll be baity with me. 1946 B. Marshall George Brown's Schooldays 66 You'll make me batey if you say rotten caddish things like that. 1954 P. H. Johnson Impossible Marriage 11 I'd better roll the damned thing in or Mater will be batey. This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1933; most recently modified version published online December 2021). baitv. Brit. /beɪt/, U.S. /beɪt/ Forms: Middle English beȝȝt-en, beyte-n, Middle English–1500s bayt, Middle English–1600s baite, bayte, Middle English–1500s beyt, 1500s baight, 1500s–1600s bate, Middle English– bait. Origin: A borrowing from early Scandinavian. Etymon: Norse beita. Etymology: Middle English beȝȝten , beyten , < Old Norse beita to cause to bite (= Old English bǽtan , Old High German, Middle High German beiȥen , Gothic baitjan ), causative of bíta* to bite v.; but in branch III probably directly < bait n.¹: compare Old English bátian, < bát bait. With branch I compare Old French beter, also from Old Norse. I. To cause to bite other creatures. †1. a. transitive. To set on (a dog) to bite or worry.(Cf. the similar construction in bate v.¹). ΘΚΠ the world > action or operation > harm or detriment > hostile action or attack > make an attack upon [verb (transitive)] > cause or incite to attack > spec an animal (usually dog) sleata1225 baita1375 slatea1400 shout1888 a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 11 Þe herd had wiþ him an hound..forto bayte on his bestes wanne þai to brode went. †b. figurative. To set on, incite, exasperate. Cf. abait v. ΘΚΠ the mind > will > motivation > motivate [verb (transitive)] > incite or instigate stirc897 putOE sputc1175 prokec1225 prickc1230 commovec1374 baitc1378 stingc1386 movea1398 eager?a1400 pokec1400 provokea1425 tollc1440 cheera1450 irritec1450 encourage1483 incite1483 harden1487 attice1490 pricklea1522 to set on1523 incense1531 irritate1531 animate1532 tickle1532 stomach1541 instigate1542 concitea1555 upsteer1558 urge1565 instimulate1570 whip1573 goad1579 raise1581 to set upa1586 to call ona1592 incitate1597 indarec1599 alarm1602 exstimulate1603 to put on1604 feeze1610 impulse1611 fomentate1613 emovec1614 animalize1617 stimulate1619 spura1644 trinkle1685 cite1718 to put up1812 prod1832 to jack up1914 goose1934 c1378 J. Wyclif De Off. Past. in Wks. (1880) 437 Prelatis..baytiþ a pariȝshen aȝenus þe persoun. 2. a. To set on dogs to bite and worry (an animal, such as the bear, boar, bull, badger, etc., usually chained or confined for this purpose), to attack with dogs for sport; formerly, also, to hunt or chase with dogs. ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > hunting > hunting with hounds > hunt with hounds [verb (transitive)] baita1300 hound1528 dog1591 society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > fighting or baiting animals > animal baiting > bait [verb (transitive)] sleatc1000 baita1300 luga1627 society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > fighting or baiting animals > animal baiting > bait [verb (transitive)] > with dogs sleatc1000 baita1300 slate1684 a1300 Havelok 1840 And shoten on him, so don on bere Dogges..Thanne men doth the bere beyte. c1400 (?c1380) Cleanness (1920) l. 55 My boles & my borez arn bayted & slayne. c1440 Promptorium Parvulorum 29 Beyton wyth howndys, berys, bolys, or other lyke, canibus agitare. 1594 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 2 v. i. 146 Are these thy beares? weele bayte them soone. 1606 P. Holland tr. Suetonius Hist. Twelve Caesars 120 There was a wild bore put foorth into the open shew-place for to be baited. 1801 J. Strutt Glig-gamena Angel-ðeod iii. vi. 217 The cruel diversion of baiting a horse with dogs. b. figurative. To cause (a person) to be molested, harassed, or persecuted (with). ΚΠ 1642 T. Fuller Holy State i. iii. 9 Such husbands as bait the mistris with her maids. 1655 Triall I. Penruddock 4 Sir, You have put me in a bears skin, and now you will bait me with a witnesse. c. (in sense of 4, but retaining some idea of intermediate agency, as in 2b.) ΚΠ 1555 W. Waterman tr. J. Boemus Fardle of Facions ii. xi. 250 Thei reuile him, and baite him with shames and reproche. 1659 Godfrey in T. Burton Diary (1828) IV. 347 It was a breach of privilege to bait you with those interrogations. 1778 S. Johnson in J. Boswell Life Johnson (1831) IV. 124 I will not be baited with what and why. 3. a. To attack with endeavour to bite and tear, as dogs attack a chained or confined animal (cf. 2). ΘΚΠ the world > action or operation > harm or detriment > hostile action or attack > make an attack upon [verb (transitive)] > attack (of animal) to venture on (also uponc1528 bait1570 to go at ——1675 tack1720 to go for ——1838 sick1845 aggress1882 1570 J. Foxe Actes & Monumentes (rev. ed.) I. 72/1 Attalus..was baited again of the beastes. 1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene i. xii. sig. M4 As chained beare, whom cruell dogs doe bait. 1885 N.E.D. at Bait Mod. They set on several dogs to bait the badger. b. absol. ΘΚΠ the world > action or operation > harm or detriment > hostile action or attack > make attack [verb (intransitive)] > specifically of animals baitc1430 c1430 Hymns to Virg. (1867) 77 Helle houndis berken and baite. a1549 A. Borde Fyrst Bk. Introd. Knowl. (1870) 187 Kur dogges, For men shyns they wyl ly in wayte; It is a good sport to se them so to bayte. 1735 W. Somervile Chace iv. 332 Raving he foams, and howls, and barks, and bates. 4. a. figurative. To persecute or harass with persistent attacks (a person more or less unable to escape); to worry or torment in an exasperating manner, esp. from a wanton or malicious desire to inflict pain. ΘΚΠ the mind > emotion > suffering > state of being harassed > harass [verb (transitive)] tawc893 ermec897 swencheOE besetOE bestandc1000 teenOE baitc1175 grieve?c1225 war?c1225 noyc1300 pursuec1300 travailc1300 to work (also do) annoyc1300 tribula1325 worka1325 to hold wakenc1330 chase1340 twistc1374 wrap1380 cumbera1400 harrya1400 vexc1410 encumber1413 inquiet1413 molest?a1425 course1466 persecutec1475 trouble1489 sturt1513 hare1523 hag1525 hale1530 exercise1531 to grate on or upon1532 to hold or keep waking1533 infest1533 scourge1540 molestate1543 pinch1548 trounce1551 to shake upa1556 tire1558 moila1560 pester1566 importune1578 hunt1583 moider1587 bebait1589 commacerate1596 bepester1600 ferret1600 harsell1603 hurry1611 gall1614 betoil1622 weary1633 tribulatea1637 harass1656 dun1659 overharry1665 worry1671 haul1678 to plague the life out of1746 badger1782 hatchel1800 worry1811 bedevil1823 devil1823 victimize1830 frab1848 mither1848 to pester the life out of1848 haik1855 beplague1870 chevy1872 obsede1876 to get on ——1880 to load up with1880 tail-twist1898 hassle1901 heckle1920 snooter1923 hassle1945 to breathe down (the back of) (someone's) neck1946 to bust (a person's) chops1953 noodge1960 monster1967 the world > action or operation > harm or detriment > hostile action or attack > make an attack upon [verb (transitive)] > persecute seekc825 baitc1175 war?c1225 pursuec1300 chase1340 course1466 persecutea1475 suea1500 pickc1550 pursuit1563 prosecute1588 exagitate1602 dragoon1689 harass1788 martyr1851 dragonnade1881 witch-hunt1919 vamp1970 c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 10171 Þise puplicaness..durrstenn beȝȝtenn menn Forr æþelike gillte. c1400 Rom. Rose 1612 Folk of grettist wit Ben soone caught heere & awayted; Withouten respite ben they baited. 1631 R. Bolton Instr. Right Comf. Affl. Consciences 168 God must let loose his Law, Sinne, Conscience, and Satan to baite us. 1751 S. Johnson Rambler No. 176. ⁋4 The diversion of baiting an author has the sanction of all ages. 1834 T. B. Macaulay William Pitt in Ess. (1854) I. 301 The new Secretary of State had been so unmercifully baited by the Paymaster of the Forces. †b. intransitive with at (in same sense). Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > action or operation > harm or detriment > hostile action or attack > make attack [verb (intransitive)] > persecute bait1579 witch-hunt1919 witch-hunt1935 1579 L. Tomson tr. J. Calvin Serm. Epist. S. Paule to Timothie & Titus 956/2 Why are they so alwayes bayting at me? 1606 T. Dekker Newes from Hell sig. D4^v Bayted by whole kennels of yelping watermen. 1679 tr. Trag. Hist. Jetzer 9 The Fathers all this while were baiting at him. II. To cause a creature to bite for its own refreshment; to feed. 5. transitive. To give food and drink to (a horse or other beast), esp. when upon a journey; to feed. ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > food > providing or receiving food > feeding animals > [verb (transitive)] baitc1400 servea1475 foddera1500 refetea1500 maintain1576 provend1581 provender1584 put1620 meal1630 stall-feed1763 feed1818 board1875 c1400 Mandeville's Trav. xxii. 243 While that [he] reste him, And bayte his Dromedarie or his hors. 1487 (a1380) J. Barbour Bruce (St. John's Cambr.) xiii. 589 Than lichtit thai..Till bayt thar horss. 1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene i. i. sig. A7^v The Sunne..At night doth baite his steedes the Ocean waues emong. 1697 Countess D'Aunoy's Trav. (1706) 47 And stop at the Bank of some River, where the Mule-Drivers bate their Mules. 1799 J. Robertson Gen. View Agric. Perth 200 You have this second crop of clover..to bait your cows. 1858 W. M. Thackeray Virginians x. 79 Whilst their horses were baited, they entered the public room. 6. reflexive and intransitive. Said of horses or other beasts: To take food, to feed, esp. at a stage of a journey. ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > food > consumption of food or drink > eating > eating by animals > feed (of animals) [verb (intransitive)] baitc1386 feeda1387 relievec1475 victual1577 (to be) on the feed1867 the world > food and drink > food > consumption of food or drink > eating > eating by animals > feed (of animals) [verb (reflexive)] baita1500 c1386 G. Chaucer Sir Thopas 202 By him baytith his destrer Of herbes fyne and goode. 1394 P. Pl. Crede 375 Þey ben digne as dich water þat dogges in bayteþ. a1500 (?a1400) Sir Torrent of Portyngale (1887) l. 1553 Vnbrydelid his stede And let hym bayte hym on the ground. ?1523 J. Fitzherbert Bk. Husbandry f. xiiii In lodinge of hay or corne the catell is alway etinge or betyng. 1832 Baroness Bunsen in A. J. C. Hare Life & Lett. Baroness Bunsen (1879) I. ix. 384 An osteria..at which our horses were to bait. 7. a. intransitive. Of travellers: To stop at an inn, originally to feed the horses, but later also to rest and refresh themselves; hence, to make a brief stay or sojourn. ΘΚΠ society > inhabiting and dwelling > inhabiting temporarily > [verb (intransitive)] > at the house of another, an inn, etc. gesten?c1225 innc1390 host?c1450 bait1477 to be (or lie) at hosta1500 hostela1500 sojourn1573 to take up1607 guest?1615 to set upa1689 to keep up1704 to put up1706 lodge1749 room1809 hotel1889 dig1914 motel1961 1477 W. Caxton tr. R. Le Fèvre Hist. Jason (1913) 49 They cam for to bayte in the logging wher her frende Iason had logged. 1487 (a1380) J. Barbour Bruce (St. John's Cambr.) xiii. 599 A litill quhile thai baitit [1489 Adv. Baytyt] thar. 1577 R. Stanyhurst Treat. Descr. Irelande ii. f. 5^v/1, in R. Holinshed Chron. I The caue or denne, wherin S. Paul is sayd to haue bayted or soiorned. 1660 S. Pepys Diary 24 Feb. (1970) I. 66 At Puckrige we baited. Where we had a loin of mutton fried. 1781 R. B. Sheridan Trip to Scarborough i. ii To bait here a few days longer, to recover the fatigue of his journey. 1874 J. L. Motley Life John of Barneveld I. iv. 179 They set forth on their journey—stopping in the middle of the day to bait. b. figurative. ΚΠ 1639 T. Fuller Hist. Holy Warre iii. xxix. 161 A Prince..onely baiteth at learning, and maketh not his profession to lodge in. 1671 J. Milton Samson Agonistes 1538 For evil news rides post, while good news baits . View more context for this quotation 1822 C. Lamb in London Mag. Mar. 283/2 Trace it [sc. the sentiment]..—baiting at this town—stopping to refresh at t'other village. †8. a. intransitive (and reflexive). To feed, take nourishment. ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > food > consumption of food or drink > eating > eat [verb (intransitive)] eatc825 to break breadeOE baitc1386 feeda1387 to take one's repast?1490 to take repast1517 repast1520 peck?1536 diet1566 meat1573 victual1577 graze1579 manger1609 to craw it1708 grub1725 scoff1798 browse1818 provender1819 muckamuck1853 to put on the nosebag1874 refect1882 restaurate1882 nosh1892 tucker1903 to muck in1919 scarf1960 snack1972 the world > food and drink > food > consumption of food or drink > eating > eat [verb (reflexive)] repasta1470 bait1633 fat1679 c1386 G. Chaucer Man of Law's Tale 368 On many a sory meel now may she bayte. a1400 Sir Perc. 187 A tryppe of gayte [= goats], With mylke of thame for to bayte To hir lyves fode. 1633 P. Fletcher Purple Island viii. xlv. 118 So fisher waits To bait himself with fish, his hook And fish with baits. †b. figurative of the eyes: To feast. ΘΚΠ the world > physical sensation > sight and vision > seeing or looking > see [verb (intransitive)] > stare or gaze > of eyes baitc1374 stellc1817 c1374 G. Chaucer Troilus & Criseyde i. 193 If knyght or squyer..lete his eyen bayte On eny woman. 1632 G. Fletcher Christs Victorie (ed. 2) ii. v If he stood still, their eyes upon him baited. III. To provide with a bait, offer a bait to. [Probably a later independent formation on the noun.] 9. a. transitive. To furnish (a hook, trap) with a bait. ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > hunting > fishing > type or method of fishing > [verb (transitive)] > bait a hook baita1400 busk1685 rebait1686 the world > food and drink > hunting > hunt [verb (transitive)] > trap > bait a trap bait1556 a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Gött.) l. 13285 Quiles þai þair lines war baitand. 1495 Trevisa's Bartholomeus De Proprietatibus Rerum (de Worde) xviii. cxv. sig. hhi^v/1 Fysshe hokys ben bayted [a1398 BL Add. y-ased] wyth suche wormes in stede of bayte. 1556 J. Heywood Spider & Flie lxix. 43 This trap..for spiders is baighted. 1663 S. Butler Hudibras: First Pt. i. i. 29 Cheese or Bacon..To bait a Mouse-trap. 1725 E. Fenton in A. Pope et al. tr. Homer Odyssey I. iv. 499 My absent mates..Bait the barb'd steel. figurative.1548 N. Udall et al. tr. Erasmus Paraphr. Newe Test. I. Matt. iv. 8 (R.) His hooke bayted with y^e enticement of vayne glory.1726 D. Defoe Polit. Hist. Devil ii. vi. 275 He baited his Hook with the City of Milan.1820 W. Scott Monastery II. viii. 255 Baited thy tongue with falsehood. b. absol. (literal and figurative) ΚΠ 1753 Chambers's Cycl. Suppl. (at cited word) For cod they bait with herring. 1863 C. C. Clarke Shakespeare-characters ix. 218 She therefore baited for, and caught her prey. 10. To lay (a place) with bait, so as to attract the prey. ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > hunting > hunt [verb (transitive)] > bait a place bait1623 1623 Althorp MS. in J. N. Simpkinson Washingtons Introd. 44 The ratcatcher for a coter's wages for bating the house. 1665 R. Boyle Occas. Refl. iv. xiv. sig. Ff6^v He had liberally Baited the place over-night with Corn, as well as Worms. 1880 F. Francis Bk. Angling (ed. 5) i. 33 When once the place has been baited. 11. To offer bait to; to allure, entice, tempt. ΘΚΠ the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > conformity with what is known, truth > deceit, deception, trickery > snare, trap, entanglement > entrap, ensnare [verb (transitive)] shrenchc897 beswike971 betrapa1000 bewindOE undernimc1175 undertakec1175 bisayc1200 beguile?c1225 catchc1225 beginc1250 biwilea1275 tele?a1300 enginec1300 lime13.. umwrithea1340 engrin1340 oblige1340 belimec1350 enlacec1374 girnc1375 encumber138. gnarec1380 enwrap1382 briguea1387 snarl1387 upbroid1387 trap1390 entrikea1393 englue1393 gildera1400 aguilec1400 betraisec1400 embrygec1400 snare1401 lacea1425 maska1425 begluec1430 marl1440 supprise?c1450 to prey ona1500 attrap1524 circumvene1526 entangle1526 tangle1526 entrap1531 mesh1532 embrake1542 crawl1548 illaqueate1548 intricate1548 inveigle1551 circumvent1553 felter1567 besnare1571 in trick1572 ensnare1576 overcatch1577 underfong1579 salt1580 entoil1581 comprehend1584 windlassa1586 folda1592 solicit1592 toil1592 bait1600 beset1600 engage1603 benet1604 imbrier1605 ambush1611 inknot1611 enmesha1616 trammela1616 fool1620 pinion1621 aucupate1630 fang1637 surprise1642 underreacha1652 trepan1656 ensnarl1658 stalk1659 irretiate1660 coil1748 nail1766 net1803 to rope in1840 mousetrap1870 spider1891 1600 W. Shakespeare Merchant of Venice iii. i. 49 His flesh, what's that good for? Shyl. To baite fish with all. View more context for this quotation a1616 W. Shakespeare Comedy of Errors (1623) ii. i. 93 Doe their gay vestments his affections baite ? View more context for this quotation 1865 Dixon Holy Land I. 173 Just as the harvests of Kent and Mercia used to bait the Saxon vikings. This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1885; most recently modified version published online December 2021). < n.¹a1325n.²1882v.c1175
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baitn.1

Compounds

Draft additions September 2013

baitbaten.2

Derivatives

baitv.

baitn.¹

baitbaten.²