From bed and board

From bed and board
Bed Bed, n. [AS. bed, bedd; akin to OS. bed, D. bed, bedde, Icel. be?r, Dan. bed, Sw. b["a]dd, Goth. badi, OHG. betti, G. bett, bette, bed, beet a plat of ground; all of uncertain origin.] 1. An article of furniture to sleep or take rest in or on; a couch. Specifically: A sack or mattress, filled with some soft material, in distinction from the bedstead on which it is placed (as, a feather bed), or this with the bedclothes added. In a general sense, any thing or place used for sleeping or reclining on or in, as a quantity of hay, straw, leaves, or twigs. [1913 Webster]

And made for him [a horse] a leafy bed. --Byron. [1913 Webster]

I wash, wring, brew, bake, . . . make the beds. --Shak. [1913 Webster]

In bed he slept not for my urging it. --Shak. [1913 Webster]

2. (Used as the symbol of matrimony) Marriage. [1913 Webster]

George, the eldest son of his second bed. --Clarendon. [1913 Webster]

3. A plat or level piece of ground in a garden, usually a little raised above the adjoining ground. ``Beds of hyacinth and roses.'' --Milton. [1913 Webster]

4. A mass or heap of anything arranged like a bed; as, a bed of ashes or coals. [1913 Webster]

5. The bottom of a watercourse, or of any body of water; as, the bed of a river. [1913 Webster]

So sinks the daystar in the ocean bed. --Milton. [1913 Webster]

6. (Geol.) A layer or seam, or a horizontal stratum between layers; as, a bed of coal, iron, etc. [1913 Webster]

7. (Gun.) See {Gun carriage}, and {Mortar bed}. [1913 Webster]

8. (Masonry) (a) The horizontal surface of a building stone; as, the upper and lower beds. (b) A course of stone or brick in a wall. (c) The place or material in which a block or brick is laid. (d) The lower surface of a brick, slate, or tile. --Knight. [1913 Webster]

9. (Mech.) The foundation or the more solid and fixed part or framing of a machine; or a part on which something is laid or supported; as, the bed of an engine. [1913 Webster]

10. The superficial earthwork, or ballast, of a railroad. [1913 Webster]

11. (Printing) The flat part of the press, on which the form is laid. [1913 Webster]

Note: Bed is much used adjectively or in combination; as, bed key or bedkey; bed wrench or bedwrench; bedchamber; bedmaker, etc. [1913 Webster]

{Bed of justice} (French Hist.), the throne (F. lit bed) occupied by the king when sitting in one of his parliaments (judicial courts); hence, a session of a refractory parliament, at which the king was present for the purpose of causing his decrees to be registered.

{To be brought to bed}, to be delivered of a child; -- often followed by of; as, to be brought to bed of a son.

{To make a bed}, to prepare a bed; to arrange or put in order a bed and its bedding.

{From bed and board} (Law), a phrase applied to a separation by partial divorce of man and wife, without dissolving the bonds of matrimony. If such a divorce (now commonly called a judicial separation) be granted at the instance of the wife, she may have alimony. [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • separation from bed and board — separation from bed and board: legal separation Merriam Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam Webster. 1996 …   Law dictionary

  • Bed and board — Board Board (b[=o]rd), n. [OE. bord, AS. bord board, shipboard; akin to bred plank, Icel. bor[eth] board, side of a ship, Goth. f[=o]tu baurd footstool, D. bord board, G. brett, bort. See def. 8. [root]92.] 1. A piece of timber sawed thin, and of …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • separation from bed and board — A species of separation not amounting to a dissolution of the marriage. Same as separation a mensa et thoro (q.v.) …   Black's law dictionary

  • divorce from bed and board — Same as divorce a mensa et thoro …   Ballentine's law dictionary

  • Board and board — Board Board (b[=o]rd), n. [OE. bord, AS. bord board, shipboard; akin to bred plank, Icel. bor[eth] board, side of a ship, Goth. f[=o]tu baurd footstool, D. bord board, G. brett, bort. See def. 8. [root]92.] 1. A piece of timber sawed thin, and of …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Bed — Bed, n. [AS. bed, bedd; akin to OS. bed, D. bed, bedde, Icel. be?r, Dan. bed, Sw. b[ a]dd, Goth. badi, OHG. betti, G. bett, bette, bed, beet a plat of ground; all of uncertain origin.] 1. An article of furniture to sleep or take rest in or on; a… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Bed of justice — Bed Bed, n. [AS. bed, bedd; akin to OS. bed, D. bed, bedde, Icel. be?r, Dan. bed, Sw. b[ a]dd, Goth. badi, OHG. betti, G. bett, bette, bed, beet a plat of ground; all of uncertain origin.] 1. An article of furniture to sleep or take rest in or… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • bed — The hollow or channel of a water course; the depression between the banks worn by the regular and usual flow of the water. The land that is covered by the water in its ordinary low stage. Area extending between the opposing banks measured from… …   Black's law dictionary

  • bed — The hollow or channel of a water course; the depression between the banks worn by the regular and usual flow of the water. The land that is covered by the water in its ordinary low stage. Area extending between the opposing banks measured from… …   Black's law dictionary

  • Board — (b[=o]rd), n. [OE. bord, AS. bord board, shipboard; akin to bred plank, Icel. bor[eth] board, side of a ship, Goth. f[=o]tu baurd footstool, D. bord board, G. brett, bort. See def. 8. [root]92.] 1. A piece of timber sawed thin, and of… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

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