beestings en · NOUN · etymology 1
Pronunciation
- /ˈbiː.stɪŋz/
- (US) audio
Etymology
From Old English bȳsting, derived from bēost, from Proto-West Germanic *beust.
Meanings
-
(plural, plural-only) The first milk drawn from an animal (especially a cow) after it has given birth.
He took a jug of ‘beestings’ milk from the press, the milk of a cow that has recently calved, and drank it down in six big gulps.
2002, Joseph O'Connor, Star of the Sea, Vintage, published 2003, page 54:[W]ith thy Sickle reap the rankeſt land: / And miniſter the Blade, vvith bounteous hand. / Nor be vvith harmful parſimony vvon / To follovv vvhat our homely Sires have done; / VVho fill'd the Pail vvith Beeſtings of the Covv: / But all her Udder to the Calf allovv.
1697, Virgil, “The Third Book of the Georgics”, in John Dryden, transl., The Works of Virgil: Containing His Pastorals, Georgics, and Æneis. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC, page 104, lines 279–284:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| bislings | alternative | lexicographic | |
| biestings | alternative | lexicographic | |
| bisnings | alternative | lexicographic | |
| beistyn | alternative | lexicographic | |
| beistings | alternative | lexicographic | |
| beastings | alternative | lexicographic |