brickbat
brick·bat (br
k
b
t
)
n.
1. A piece, especially of brick, used as a weapon or missile.
2. An unfavorable remark; a criticism.
[brick + bat1, piece of brick.]
Word History: The earliest sense of brickbat, first recorded in 1563, was “a piece of brick.” Such pieces of brick have not infrequently been thrown at others in the hope of injuring them; hence, the figurative brickbats (first recorded in 1929) that critics hurl at performances they dislike. The appearance of bat as the second part of this compound is explained by the fact that the word bat, “war club, cudgel,” developed in Middle English the sense “chunk, clod, wad,” and in the 16th century came to be used specifically for a piece of brick that was unbroken on one end.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition copyright ©2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2003. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
| Noun | 1. | brickbat – a fragment of brick used as a weapon
fragment – a piece broken off or cut off of something else; “a fragment of rock”
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| 2. | brickbat – blunt criticism
criticism, unfavorable judgment – disapproval expressed by pointing out faults or shortcomings; “the senator received severe criticism from his opponent”
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Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2008 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
