I. ˈ ̷ ̷ ̷ ̷ˌ ̷ ̷ noun
1. : a bound or stitched slit or a loop through which a button is passed
2. chiefly Britain : boutonniere
3. : hart's-tongue 1
II. transitive verb
: to furnish with buttonholes or to work with buttonhole stitch
III. transitive verb
Etymology: alteration of buttonhold
: to hold by or as if by the buttonhole in order to detain in conversation
be buttonholed by a bore — Virginia Woolf
peddlers of gossip who buttonhole each other — Carl Sandburg
ready to buttonhole members as they leave an executive session and to find out what has just happened — F.L.Mott
: catch the attention of
a voice from our radio buttonholed us — E.B.White