Middle English Dictionary Entry

bōt n.(1)
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Entry Info

Definitions (Senses and Subsenses)

1.
(a) A boat; (b) a small vessel carried by (or accompanying) a ship, a ship's boat; (c) a ship; (d) fig. the body of man, man's life or personality (tossed on the sea of the world, etc.); Christ's body, the incarnation; soule ~, the ship of souls, the Church; etc.; Wades ~, the boat of the hero Wade, ?trickery.
2.
In phrases: (a) bote(s) and barge(s), boat(s) and barge(s), small vessels; ~ or barge, small craft of any kind; (b) brigge ne ~, neither bridge nor vessel; buten brigge and ~, without any means of crossing; (c) ship and ~, ship and boat, any kind of vessel; bi (in) shipes and botes, by (in) ships and boats, by sea; in ship or in ~, in any kind of vessel; (d) taken ~, to go aboard a boat or ship; (e) to ~, aboard.
3.
In cpds. and combs.: (a) ~ ful, a boatload; (b) ~ hire, charge for use of a boat and services of boatmen, boat hire; (c) ~ man, one who owns or manages a boat or ship; also, a sailor; (d) ~ maister, one who manages a boat or ship; (e) ~ rop, rope for the rigging of a ship; (f) ~ smith, ?shipbuilder; (g) ~ spiking, spikes or nails for a ship; (h) ~ swein, a minor officer on a ship, a boatswain; prob. also (in early quots.), a sailor; (i) ~ ward, boat guard; (j) ~ wright, a builder of boats or ships.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

  • (1356-57) Freeman R.in KRec.18 ()208 : Willelmus Botstalle.
  • Note: New cpd. for 3.