batter

1 of 6

verb (1)

bat·​ter ˈba-tər How to pronounce batter (audio)
battered; battering; batters

transitive verb

1
a
: to beat with successive blows so as to bruise, shatter, or demolish
battered down the door
women who have been battered by their husbands
b
: bombard
battering targets with artillery fire
battering the lawyer with questions
c
law : to commit battery against (someone) : to offensively touch or use force on (a person) without the person's consent
… was battered and cut badly enough to be hospitalized overnight.N. R. Kleinfield
… studies showing that a woman is at greatest risk of being battered, and even murdered, by her partner when he suspects her of sexual infidelity.Sharon Begley
2
: to subject to strong, overwhelming, or repeated attack
battered by forces of change
Their confidence was battered by a series of losses.
3
: to wear or damage by hard usage or blows
a battered old hat

intransitive verb

1
: to strike something heavily and repeatedly : beat, pound
flies battered against … the electric-light bulbsD. B. Chidsey
2
law : to commit battery against another : to offensively touch or use force on a person without the person's consent
… the personality characteristics and life histories that lead men to batter and kill.Erica Goode
batterer noun

batter

2 of 6

noun (1)

1
a
: a mixture consisting chiefly of flour, egg, and milk or water and being thin enough to pour or drop from a spoon
thin pancake batter
b
: a mixture (as of flour and egg) used as a coating for food that is to be fried
dip the chicken in the batter
beer batter
2
: an instance of battering (see batter entry 1)

batter

3 of 6

verb (2)

battered; battering; batters

transitive verb

food : to coat with a mixture (as of flour and egg) for frying : to coat (food) with batter (see batter entry 2 sense 1b)
fish that has been battered and fried

batter

4 of 6

noun (2)

: a receding upward slope of the outer face of a wall or other structure

batter

5 of 6

verb (3)

battered; battering; batters

transitive verb

: to give a receding upward slope to (something, such as a wall)

batter

6 of 6

noun (3)

: one that strikes or hits a ball with a bat
especially : the player whose turn it is to bat
The pitcher walked the first batter.

Examples of batter in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Criswell struck out two batters while Molina and Pint each K’d one. Patrick Saunders, The Denver Post, 3 Mar. 2024 That's when Fenway Park's inviting left-field wall began beckoning batters, particularly righties, to swing for glory. Chuck Murr, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2024 Zach Neto blasted a home run off the batters’ eye, his first homer of the spring. Jeff Fletcher, Orange County Register, 29 Feb. 2024 The heat of the fish against the cool creaminess of the tartar; the black-pepper bite of the batter against the sweetness of the sauce; the softness of the bun against the crackle of the fillet. Tim Carman, Washington Post, 28 Feb. 2024 Has a plus arm and great batter’s eye at the plate.#BeforeTheCrown pic.twitter.com/yHthq3C4Dy — Jaylon T. Thompson (@jaylonthompson) February 22, 2024 Royals general manager J.J. Picollo was impressed with Tolbert’s 2023 campaign. Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 28 Feb. 2024 Gently cut through batter to remove any large air pockets. Andrea Beck, Better Homes & Gardens, 27 Feb. 2024 Throwing pitches to a batter in a live game setting. Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 25 Feb. 2024 Polk made the Tigers pay with a 421-foot blast that hit the batter's eye beyond the center field wall to make it 6-0. Arkansas scored in all but one inning, the second. Tom Murphy, arkansasonline.com, 28 Feb. 2024
Verb
Still, her attorneys wrote, officers used a battering ram to open the back garage door. Ben Brasch, Washington Post, 12 Mar. 2024 Westlake continues to batter any and all opponents with a 9-0 start that features strong pitching and power hitting. Eric Sondheimer, Los Angeles Times, 11 Mar. 2024 Police ordered the protest to disperse and waited on Sunset Boulevard with battering rams. Jaden Thompson, Variety, 10 Mar. 2024 Shares of New York Community Bancorp — battered by real estate losses — are down 66% so far this year. Nicole Goodkind, CNN, 4 Mar. 2024 The reason this week: The biggest winter storm in the past 12 months continued to batter the Sierra Nevada, crashing in from Alaska and dumping 1 to 2 feet of snow on Thursday night, with heavier amounts forecast for Friday night and Saturday morning. Jane Tyska, The Mercury News, 1 Mar. 2024 While the case was dismissed, he was being accused of physically battering and threatening to kill family members for almost a decade. Devoun Cetoute, Miami Herald, 1 Mar. 2024 The storms that continue to batter California are almost certainly strengthened by El Niño, but does climate change contribute to the severity of them as well? Caralin Nunes, The Arizona Republic, 21 Feb. 2024 The result has been a series of battered, broke and bad candidates who have underscored a yearslong power struggle between the party’s right-wing base and old-guard establishment. Shane Goldmacher, New York Times, 28 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'batter.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Verb (1)

Middle English bateren, probably frequentative of batten to bat, from bat

Noun (1)

Middle English bater, probably from bateren

Verb (2)

verbal derivative of batter entry 2

Noun (2)

origin unknown

Verb (3)

verbal derivative of batter entry 4

Noun (3)

bat entry 2 + -er entry 2

First Known Use

Verb (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Noun (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb (2)

1971, in the meaning defined above

Noun (2)

1743, in the meaning defined above

Verb (3)

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun (3)

1773, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of batter was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near batter

Cite this Entry

“Batter.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/batter. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

batter

1 of 3 verb
bat·​ter ˈbat-ər How to pronounce batter (audio)
1
: to beat with repeated violent blows
batter down the door
2
: to wear down or injure by hard use
wore a battered old hat
batterer noun

batter

2 of 3 noun
: a thin mixture chiefly of flour and liquid beaten together
cake batter

batter

3 of 3 noun
: one that bats
especially : the baseball player at bat
Etymology

Verb

Middle English bateren "to beat"

Noun

Middle English bater "thin mixture," probably derived from batteren "to beat"

Noun

bat and -er (noun suffix)

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