I. ˈbüt, usu -üd.+V noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English boote, bote, from Old English bōt remedy, compensation; akin to Old High German buoza change for the better, Old Norse bōt remedy, compensation, Gothic bōta advantage, gain, Old English bet era better — more at better
1. archaic
a. : help or relief especially in time of peril or great want : deliverance
b. : a person or thing that brings such help
2. now chiefly dialect : something to equalize an exchange
give me your sow and a $10 boot or the trade is off for the heifer — Frank Neefe
3. obsolete : profit or advantage towards the accomplishment of an end : avail , use
then talk no more of flight, it is no boot — Shakespeare
•
- to boot
II. verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English booten, boten, from boote, bote
intransitive verb
archaic : to be of help, profit, or advantage : avail
it boots not to look backwards — Thomas Arnold
transitive verb
obsolete : benefit , enrich
III. noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English, from Middle French bote
1.
a. : a covering for the foot and leg that is usually made of leather or rubber and is of varying height between the ankle and hip
b. Britain : a shoe reaching to the ankle
c. : a rubber overshoe
2. : an instrument of torture applied to the leg and tightened so as to crush the leg and foot
3. : a sheath or casing resembling a boot that provides a protective covering for the leg: as
a. obsolete : a piece of leg armor
b. : a partial covering for the hoof and leg of a horse designed to prevent injury from interference
c. : the feathers on the shank and toes of certain domestic fowls
d. : the part of a stocking between the top and the foot
e. : a canvas or skin mitten used to protect the feet of working dogs from snow or ice
4. : a protective sheath or casing typically of an object or part resembling a leg: as
a. : the sheath near the uppermost leaves on the stems of grains and many palms that encloses the inflorescence which swells within it
b. : the metal casing and flange fitted about a pipe where it passes through a roof
c. : the box or compartment that contains the reed of a reed pipe of an organ
d. : a large thick patch for the inside of a tire casing
5.
a. obsolete : a built-in compartment on a horse-drawn coach used originally as a seat for the coachman and later for storage
b. Britain : the storage compartment at the rear of an automobile : trunk
6. : a usually leather article that resembles a boot: as
a. : a leather drinking vessel
b. : a leather carrying case for a rifle
with the adoption of the bolt-action Krag … a long boot came into use, covering the entire carbine, up to the stock — W.F.Harris
c. aeronautics : a pneumatic rubber cell or tube used for deicing a wing or tail surface
7.
a. : the box in which the lower pulley of a grain elevator runs
b. : the chamber and housing at the base of a bucket elevator
8.
a. : a blow delivered by or as if by a booted foot : kick
b. : a usually unexpected and often rude discharge or dismissal — often used with the
she gave him the boot and married another man
he got the boot after 14 years and had to find a new job
c. : pleasure or enjoyment especially of a momentary sort : bang , kick
I get a big boot out of his jokes
9. : a fumble in baseball
10.
a. : a recruit undergoing basic training in the United States Navy or Marines
b. : novice , trainee , apprentice
11. in glass manuf : a clay receptacle suspended in the nose of a tank furnace to exclude scum and to allow working of the glass without direct contact with heat and gases
12. : a drain cock in the bottom of a tank car or oil tank
IV. verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English booten, from boot — more at boot III
transitive verb
1.
a. : to put boots on (oneself or another)
b. : to supply with boots
this firm … has booted and spurred every British monarch from George II on — New Yorker
2.
a. : to send off or propel with force : kick
b. : to eject or discharge summarily — used often with out
he has been quietly booted out as chief — Newsweek
3. : to make an error on (a baseball batted on the ground) : fumble
he booted an easy grounder and another run scored
4. slang : to ride (a horse) in a race
after a 24-year career in which he booted home nearly 150 stakes winners
intransitive verb
: to put on one's boots
V. noun
( -s )
Etymology: boot (I) (influenced in meaning by booty )
archaic : booty , plunder
VI. ˈbüt verb
( boot·ed ; boot·ing )
Etymology: short for bootstrap (herein)
transitive verb
1. : to load (a program) into a computer from a disk
2. : to start or ready for use especially by booting a program — often used with up
boot up a computer
intransitive verb
1. : to become loaded into a computer's memory from a disk
the program boots automatically
2. : to become ready for use especially by booting a program
the computer boots quickly
— often used with up
• boot·a·ble adjective