Biggin
name, noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 A child's cap; (figuratively) childhood. archaic
"[…] my brain has been topsy-turvy, they say, ever since the biggin was bound first round my head; so turning me upside down may peradventure restore it again."
- 2 A coffee pot with a strainer or perforated metallic vessel for holding the ground coffee, through which boiling water is poured.
"As he became more popular, household objects were brought into requisition for his instruction in a copious vocabulary; and whenever he appeared in the Yard ladies would fly out at their doors crying ‘Mr Baptist—tea-pot!’ ‘Mr Baptist—dust-pan!’ ‘Mr Baptist—flour-dredger!’ ‘Mr Baptist—coffee-biggin!’ At the same time exhibiting those articles, and penetrating him with a sense of the appalling difficulties of the Anglo-Saxon tongue."
- 3 A drinking vessel for ale or beer; possibly a tankard.
"Oswald's wife then put before him a large pie, and some wheaten bread, with a biggin of good beer."
- 4 a child's tight-fitting cap; often ties under the chin wordnet
- 5 An official's hood or coif. historical
- 1 A place in England:; A small village and civil parish by Hulland, Derbyshire Dales district, Derbyshire (OS grid ref SK2648).
- 2 A place in England:; A village in Hartington Nether Quarter parish, Derbyshire Dales district, Derbyshire (OS grid ref SK1559).
- 3 A place in England:; A hamlet north of Tilbury, Thurrock borough, Essex (OS grid ref TQ6577).
- 4 A place in England:; A village and civil parish in North Yorkshire, previously in Selby district (OS grid ref SE5434).
Example
More examples"[…] my brain has been topsy-turvy, they say, ever since the biggin was bound first round my head; so turning me upside down may peradventure restore it again."
Etymology
From French béguin. Compare beguine.
Said to have been from the inventor's surname.
Unknown
Related phrases
More for "biggin"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.