I. ˈbädē, -di noun
( -es )
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English bodig; akin to Old High German botah body
1.
a. : the total organized physical substance of an animal or plant : the aggregate of tissues : the physical organism: as
(1) : the material part or nature of man
(2) : the dead organism : corpse
(3) : the person of a human being
b. : person : human being
a feckless body who hasn't the faintest idea how to run a house — C.F.Brockington
2. religion
a. : the bread in the sacrament of the Lord's Supper held by some to be and by others to represent Christ's body
b. : the Christian church conceived as a mystical living being of which Christ is the head
c. : the form assumed by man after the resurrection of the dead
3. : the trunk (as of a person, animal, plant) without appendages : the main, central, or principal part of something: as
a. : the nave of a church
b.
(1) : the bed or box of a vehicle on or in which the load is placed
(2) : the enclosed or partly enclosed part of an automobile usually not including the hood and fenders
c. : the part of a garment covering the body or trunk
d.
(1) : the main part of a document, speech, or literary composition as distinguished from the title, preamble, preface, conclusion, or appendixes
(2) : the text of a book as distinguished from the front matter, footnotes, and back matter
(3) : the main part of a social or business letter as distinguished from the heading, salutation, and close
e. : the hull of a ship
f. : the sound box or pipe of a musical instrument
g. : the dominant part of a fortification
h. : tube 3a
i. : the statement of a plaintiff's case in a legal action
j. : the main or the larger part of a tool
the body of a square is its larger arm
k. : the fuselage of an aircraft
1. in printing
(1) : text or ordinary reading matter especially as distinguished from headlines, display lines, footnotes, or tables
a good body type
body matter
(2) : the main matter of a table exclusive of the headings
m. : the largest part of a container ; especially : the part forming the side walls in a metal can body
n. : the main casing of a projectile ; specifically : the part of a projectile between the bourrelet and the rotating band
4.
a. : a mass or portion of matter especially distinct in its totality from other masses
a body of cold air
a body of water
no definite proof that the bodies found were nitrogen bubbles — H.G.Armstrong
b. obsolete : the real as opposed to the symbolical : the substance as opposed to the shadow
c. : one of the seven planets of the old astronomy — called also celestial body, heavenly body
d. : one of the seven metals corresponding to the seven planets of the old astronomy — called also terrestrial body
e. : a solid figure in geometry
f. : a kind or form of matter : a material substance
combining chemical elements to form compound bodies
g. : amount , quantity : bulk , extent
h. : something that embodies, realizes, or gives concrete reality to a thing
see how his theory works in the solid body of a novel — C.C.Walcutt
his intuitions of the future may still give body to a better world — New York Times
specifically : something that is perceptible or realizable as exhibited in space, that has sensible qualities, or that is the cause of sensation
i. obsolete : entity , subject
j. : ore body
5. archaic : a vessel for distilling : cucurbit
6. : a group or number of persons or things: as
a. : a fighting unit : force
a body of cavalry
b. : a group of individuals united by a common tie or organized for some purpose : a collective whole or totality : corporation
a legislative body
a clerical body
the student body of the university
a solid body of educated readers — V.S.Pritchett
c. : a number of particulars regarded as forming a system or embodied in a comprehensive and systematic presentation
a body of facts
a body of law
a body of learning
a body of precedents
7.
a. : viscosity , consistency — used especially of oils and grease
a paint with considerable body is needed to hide the light undercoating
oil used in machinery that heats up must have a good deal of body
b. : compactness or firmness of texture in cloth
c. : fullness or resonance of a musical tone
his baritone has body and richness
d. : fullness or richness of flavor — used of a beverage
e. : import , significance , meaningfulness — usually used of a literary or dramatic work
a play with very little body but quite amusing
f. : strength in intermediate cards (as tens, nines, and eights) in a bridge hand additional to strength in higher cards
8.
a. : a clay or a mixture (as of clay and frit or ground rock) from which clayware is made
b. : a piece of ceramic ware distinct from its glaze
9.
a. : the part of an attachment plug that screws into a lamp holder
b.
(1) : the part of a lamp holder or receptacle that contains the contacts
(2) : a lamp holder and its outer shell
c. : the part of a flexible cord connector that receives the attachment plug cap
10. of printer's type
a. : the part extending from foot to shoulder : all that underlies the bevel
a kerned letter extends beyond the edge of the body
— called also shank ; see type illustration
b. : the distance from belly to back — used as a dimension
a 10-point face on a 12-point body
II. transitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-es )
Etymology: Middle English bodien, from body (I)
1. : to furnish with a body : give material form or shape to : embody
believed the sovereign state bodied a divine idea
2. : to give form or shape to in imagination or art : represent , symbolize , indicate — often used with forth
never been a poet who enjoyed the sensuous world with more gusto … or who more solidly bodied it forth — Edmund Wilson
an allegorical figure bodying forth the plight of modern man
3. : to give strength, substance, or body to ; specifically : to increase the viscosity of (an oil) usually by heating with resulting polymerization — see bodied oil