(Astron.) A row of bright spots observed in connection with total eclipses of the sun. Just before and after a total eclipse, the slender, unobscured crescent of the sun's disk appears momentarily like a row of bright spots resembling a string of beads. The phenomenon (first fully described by Francis Baily, 1774 -- 1844) is thought to be an effect of irradiation, and of inequalities of the moon's edge. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

n. [ OE. bede prayer, prayer bead, AS. bed, gebed, prayer; akin to D. bede, G. bitte, AS. biddan, to ask, bid, G. bitten to ask, and perh. to Gr. pei`qein to persuade, L. fidere to trust. Beads are used by the Roman Catholics to count their prayers, one bead being dropped down a string every time a prayer is said. Cf. Sp. cuenta bead, fr. contar to count. See Bid, in to bid beads, and Bide. ] 1. A prayer. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A little perforated ball, to be strung on a thread, and worn for ornament; or used in a rosary for counting prayers, as by Roman Catholics and Muslims, whence the phrases to tell beads,
to be at one's beads,
to bid beads, etc., meaning, to be at prayer. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Any small globular body; as, (a) A bubble in spirits. (b) A drop of sweat or other liquid. “Cold beads of midnight dew.” Wordsworth. (c) A small knob of metal on a firearm, used for taking aim (whence the expression to draw a bead, for, to take aim). (d) (Arch.) A small molding of rounded surface, the section being usually an arc of a circle. It may be continuous, or broken into short embossments. (e) (Chem.) A glassy drop of molten flux, as borax or microcosmic salt, used as a solvent and color test for several mineral earths and oxides, as of iron, manganese, etc., before the blowpipe; as, the borax bead; the iron bead, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

Bead and butt (Carp.), framing in which the panels are flush, having beads stuck or run upon the two edges. Knight. --
Bead mold, a species of fungus or mold, the stems of which consist of single cells loosely jointed together so as to resemble a string of beads. [ Written also bead mould. ] --
Bead tool, a cutting tool, having an edge curved so as to make beads or beading. --
Bead tree (Bot.), a tree of the genus Melia, the best known species of which (Melia azedarach), has blue flowers which are very fragrant, and berries which are poisonous. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Beaded; p. pr. & vb. n. Beading. ] To ornament with beads or beading. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. To form beadlike bubbles. [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. 1. imp. & p. p. of bead, v. t. & i.. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

2. covered with beads or jewels or sequins.
Syn. -- beady, bejeweled, bejewelled, bespangled, gemmed, jeweled, jewelled, sequined, spangled, spangly. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

3. appearing as if covered with beads; as, Her face was beaded with sweat. [ PJC ]

n. 1. (Arch.) Molding in imitation of beads. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The beads or bead-forming quality of certain liquors; as, the beading of a brand of whisky. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ OE. bedel, bidel, budel, OF. bedel, F. bedeau, fr. OHG. butil, putil, G. büttel, fr. OHG. biotan, G. bieten, to bid, confused with AS. bydel, the same word as OHG. butil. See. Bid, v. ] 1. A messenger or crier of a court; a servitor; one who cites or bids persons to appear and answer; -- called also an apparitor or summoner. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. An officer in a university, who precedes public processions of officers and students. [ Eng. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ In this sense the archaic spellings bedel (Oxford) and bedell (Cambridge) are preserved. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. An inferior parish officer in England having a variety of duties, as the preservation of order in church service, the chastisement of petty offenders, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Office or jurisdiction of a beadle. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The state of being, or the personality of, a beadle. A. Wood. [ 1913 Webster ]

1. Among distillers, a certain degree of strength in alcoholic liquor, as formerly ascertained by the floating or sinking of glass globules of different specific gravities thrown into it; now ascertained by more accurate meters. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A degree of strength in alcoholic liquor as shown by beads or small bubbles remaining on its surface, or at the side of the glass, when shaken. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (R. C. Ch.) A catalogue of persons, for the rest of whose souls a certain number of prayers are to be said or counted off on the beads of a chaplet; hence, a catalogue in general. [ 1913 Webster ]

On Fame's eternal beadroll worthy to be filed. Spenser. [ 1913 Webster ]

It is quite startling, on going over the beadroll of English worthies, to find how few are directly represented in the male line. Quart. Rev. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Zool.) A small poisonous snake of North America (Elaps fulvius), banded with yellow, red, and black. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Ornamental work in beads. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. 1. Resembling beads; small, round, and glistening. “Beady eyes.” Thackeray. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Covered or ornamented with, or as with, beads. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Characterized by beads; as, beady liquor. [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. 1. having eyes that gleam with malice. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

{ } n. [ OE. bede prayer + E. house. See Bead, n. ] An almshouse for poor people who pray daily for their benefactors. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } n.; pl. -men A poor man, supported in a beadhouse, and required to pray for the soul of its founder; an almsman. [ 1913 Webster ]

Whereby ye shall bind me to be your poor beadsman for ever unto Almighty God. Fuller. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } n.; pl. -women Fem. of Beadsman. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. An under beadle. [ 1913 Webster ]