- batter (v.)
- "strike repeatedly, beat violently and rapidly," early 14c., from O.Fr. batre "to beat, strike" (11c., Mod.Fr. battre "to beat, to strike"), from L. battuere "to beat, strike," an old word in Latin, but almost certainly borrowed from Gaulish, from PIE base *bhau- "to strike" (cf. Welsh bathu "beat;" O.E. beadu "battle," beatan "to beat," bytl "hammer, mallet"). Began to be widely used 1962 in reference to domestic abuse. Battering-ram is an ancient weapon (L. aries), but the word attested only from 1610s.
- batter (n.)
- "flour, eggs, and milk beaten together," late 14c., from O.Fr. batteure "a beating," from L. battuere (see batter (v.)).