English

A badge.

Noun

badge ‎(plural badges)

1. A distinctive mark, token, sign, emblem or cognizance, worn on one's clothing, as an insignia of some rank, or of the membership of an organization.

   the badge of a society; the badge of a policeman

   • Prescott

     Tax gatherers, recognized by their official badges.

2. A small nameplate, identifying the wearer, and often giving additional information.
3. A card, sometimes with a barcode or magnetic strip, granting access to a certain area.
4. Something characteristic; a mark; a token.
   • 158? or 159?, Shakespeare, Titus Andronicus, Act I, Scene 2:

     Sweet mercy is nobility's true badge.

5. (archaic, slang, obsolete, cant) A brand on the hand of a thief, etc.

   He has got his badge, and piked: He was burned in the hand, and is at liberty.

6. (nautical) A carved ornament on the stern of a vessel, containing a window or the representation of one.
7. (heraldry) A distinctive mark worn by servants, retainers, and followers of royalty or nobility, who, being beneath the rank of gentlemen, have no right to armorial bearings.

Derived terms

• badge bunny
• badger

Translations

Verb

badge ‎(third-person singular simple present badges, present participle badging, simple past and past participle badged)

1. (transitive) To mark or distinguish with a badge.

   The television was badged as 'GE', but wasn't made by them.

2. (transitive) To show a badge to.

   He calmed down a lot when the policeman badged him.

3. (transitive) To enter a restricted area by showing one's badge.
   • (Can we date this quote?)
     unknown, David Simon, Homicide, ISBN 0-8050-8075-9, page 118:

     Worden and James walk [...] to the [...] Courthouse [...], where they badge their way past sheriff's deputies and take the elevator to the third floor.

   • 2003, Joseph Wambaugh, Fire Lover, page 146:

     And Patterson didn't hear that Jack Egger, the studio's director of security, said he'd seen John Orr badge his way through the pedestrian gate sometime before 4:00 pm, when the fire was still raging, [...]

   • 2004, Sergei Hoteko, On The Fringe Of History, page 135:

     Our regional commissioner, his assistant commissioner and our district director, along with their wives, were hoofing it to the rotunda. Apparently they didn't try and badge their way through.

   • 2006, David Pollino, Bill Pennington, Tony Bradley, Himanshu Dwivedi, Hacker's challenge 3 (page 338)

     Aaron badged into the data center and escorted Geoff inside the large room with its many blinking green lights.

Translations

References

• badge in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
• The Manual of Heraldry, Fifth Edition, by Anonymous, London, 1862, online at

Anagrams

• begad, debag

French

Etymology

Borrowing from English badge

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /badʒ/
• Homophones: badgent, badges

Noun

badge m ‎(plural badges)

1. identity badge

Verb

badge

1. first-person singular present indicative of badger
2. third-person singular present indicative of badger
3. first-person singular present subjunctive of badger
4. first-person singular present subjunctive of badger
5. second-person singular imperative of badger