know B from a battledore en · VERB
Meanings
-
(archaic, qualifier:often in the negative) To know anything at all; to have the most basic common sense or intelligence.
Euery man can ſay Bee to a Battledore, and vvrite in prayſe of Vertue, and the ſeuen Liberall Sciences, threſh corne out of the full ſheaues, and fetch vvater out of the Thames; but out of drie ſtubble to make an after harueſt, and a plentifull croppe vvithout ſovving, and vvring iuice out of a flint, thats Pierce a Gods name, and the right tricke of a workman.
[1599, [Thomas] Nashe, “To His Readers, Hee Cares Not What They Be”, in Nashes Lenten Stuffe, […], London: […] [Thomas Judson and Valentine Simmes] for N[icholas] L[ing] and C[uthbert] B[urby] […], →OCLC:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| knows B from a battledore | Number=Sing, Person=3, Tense=Pres | lexicographic | |
| known B from a battledore | Tense=Past, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic | |
| knew B from a battledore | Tense=Past | lexicographic | |
| knowing B from a battledore | Tense=Pres, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic | |
| know a B from a battledore | alternative | lexicographic |
Synonyms
know one's ass from a hole in the ground · know A from B · know one's arse from one's elbow