Bait
Bait (bāt) , noun
[Icelandic beita food, beit pasture, akin to Anglo-Saxon bāt food, Swedish bete. See Bait, transitive verb]
1.
Any substance, esp. food, used in catching fish, or other animals, by alluring them to a hook, snare, inclosure, or net.
2.
Anything which allures; a lure; enticement; temptation. — Fairfax
3.
A portion of food or drink, as a refreshment taken on a journey; also, a stop for rest and refreshment.
4.
A light or hasty luncheon.
Collocations (1)
Bait (bāt) , transitive verb
[Old English baiten, beitēn, to feed, harass, from Icelandic beita, orig., to cause to bite, from bīta. r87. See Bite.]
1.
To provoke and harass; esp., to harass or torment for sport; as, to bait a bear with dogs; to bait a bull.
2.
To give a portion of food and drink to, upon the road; as, to bait horses. — Holland
3.
To furnish or cover with bait, as a trap or hook.
A crooked pin... baited with a vile earthworm.
Bait (bāt) , intransitive verb
To stop to take a portion of food and drink for refreshment of one's self or one's beasts, on a journey.
Evil news rides post, while good news baits.
My lord's coach conveyed me to Bury, and thence baiting at Newmarket.
Bait (bāt) , intransitive verb
[French battre de l'aile (or des ailes), to flap or flutter. See Batter, transitive verb]
To flap the wings; to flutter as if to fly; or to hover, as a hawk when she stoops to her prey.
Kites that bait and beat.