BEAM

I. noun Etymology: Middle English beem, from Old English bēam tree, ~; akin to Old High German boum tree Date: before 12th century 1. a long piece of heavy often squared timber suitable for use in construction, a wood or metal cylinder in a loom on which the warp is wound, the part of a plow to which handles, standard, and coulter are attached, the bar of a balance from which scales hang, one of the principal horizontal supporting members (as of a building or ship) , the extreme width of a ship at the widest part, an oscillating lever on a central axis receiving motion at one end from an engine connecting rod and transmitting it at the other, 2. a ray or shaft of light, a collection of nearly parallel rays (as X rays) or a stream of particles (as electrons), a constant directional radio signal transmitted for the guidance of pilots, the main stem of a deer's antler, the width of the buttocks, II. verb Date: 15th century transitive verb to emit in ~s or as a ~, to support with ~s, 3. to transmit especially by satellite ; broadcast , to transmit (data) electronically, to direct to a particular audience, intransitive verb to send out ~s of light, to smile with joy