- board
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I. noun
Etymology: Middle English bord piece of sawed lumber, border, ship's side, from Old English; akin to Old High German bort ship's side
Date: before 12th century
1. obsolete border, edge
2. the side of a ship
3.
a. a piece of sawed lumber of little thickness and a length greatly exceeding its width
b. plural stage 2a(2)
c. plural skis
4.
a. archaic table 3a
b. a table spread with a meal
c. daily meals especially when furnished for pay
d. a table at which a council or magistrates sit
e.
(1) a group of persons having managerial, supervisory, investigatory, or advisory powers <board of directors> <board of examiners> (2) an examination given by an examining board — often used in plural <pass the medical boards> f. league, association g. (1) the exposed hands of all the players in a stud poker game (2) an exposed dummy hand in bridge 5. a. a flat usually rectangular piece of material (as wood) designed for a special purpose: as (1) springboard 1 (2) surfboard b. backboard 1; also a rebound in basketball c. a surface, frame, or device for posting notices d. blackboard e. switchboard 6. a. cardboard b. the stiff foundation piece for the side of a book cover 7. a securities or commodities exchange 8. plural the low wooden wall enclosing a hockey rink 9. a sheet of insulating material carrying circuit elements and terminals so that it can be inserted in an electronic apparatus (as a computer) 10. bulletin board 2 • boardlike adjective II. verb Date: 15th century transitive verb 1. archaic to come up against or alongside (a ship) usually to attack 2. accost, address 3. a. to go aboard (as a ship, train, airplane, or bus) b. to put aboard <an airliner boarding passengers> 4. to cover or seal off with boards <board up a window> <board up a house> 5. to provide with regular meals and often also lodging usually for compensation 6. to check (a player) into the boards in hockey intransitive verb to receive meals or lodging; specifically to live at a boarding school
New Collegiate Dictionary. 2001.