Badge
noun, verb, slang ·Common ·Middle school level
Definitions
- 1 A distinctive mark, token, sign, emblem or cognizance, worn on one’s clothing, as an insignia of some rank, or of the membership of an organization.
"the badge of a society; the badge of a policeman"
- 2 any feature that is regarded as a sign of status (a particular power or quality or rank) wordnet
- 3 A small nameplate, identifying the wearer, and often giving additional information.
- 4 an emblem (a small piece of plastic or cloth or metal) that signifies your status (rank or membership or affiliation etc.) wordnet
- 5 A card, sometimes with a barcode or magnetic strip, granting access to a certain area.
Show 7 more definitions
- 6 Something characteristic; a mark; a token.
"Sweet mercy is nobility’s true badge."
- 7 A brand on the hand of a thief, etc. obsolete
"He has got his badge, and piked."
- 8 A carved ornament on the stern of a vessel, containing a window or the representation of one.
- 9 A distinctive mark worn by servants, retainers, and followers of royalty or nobility, who, being beneath the rank of gentlemen, have no right to armorial bearings.
- 10 A small overlay on an icon that shows additional information about that item, such as the number of new alerts or messages.
- 11 An icon or emblem awarded to a user for some achievement. Internet
"When you have checked in to the site from ten different cities, you unlock the Traveller badge."
- 12 A police officer. slang
"That's why every badge back home wanted to nail him."
- 1 To mark or distinguish with a badge. transitive
"The television was badged as ‘GE’, but wasn’t made by them."
- 2 put a badge on wordnet
- 3 To show a badge to. transitive
"He calmed down a lot when the policeman badged him."
- 4 To enter a restricted area by showing one’s badge. ambitransitive
"Worden and James walk […] to the […] Courthouse […], where they badge their way past sheriff’s deputies and take the elevator to the third floor."
Example
More examples"Each boy student has a school badge on his cap."
Etymology
From Middle English badge, bagge, bage, bagy, from Anglo-Norman bage or Medieval Latin bagea, bagia (“sign, emblem”), of uncertain origin. Possibly derived from Medieval Latin baga (“ring”), from Old Saxon bāg, bōg (“ring, ornament”), from Proto-Germanic *baugaz (“ring, bracelet, armband”); or possibly the Anglo-Norman word is derived from an earlier, unattested English word (compare Old English bēag (“ring, bracelet, collar, crown”). Cognate with Scots bagie, badgie, bawgy (“badge”).