batman

plural batmen

1. governmentA servant or valet to a military officer.

   Having left that soldier who was evidently drunk, Rostóv stopped the horse of a batman or groom of some important personage and began to question him.

   1922, chapter XVIII, in Aylmer and Louise Maude, transl., War and Peace, translation of original by Leo Tolstoy, book 3

   2 more examples

   “Private McLean,” he called to his batman who, for one-and-six a week, cared for his belongings, “tak' chairge o' the dog, wull ye, an' fetch 'im to the non-com mess when ye come to put ma kit i' gude order.”

   1912, Eleanor Atkinson, Greyfriars Bobby

   [A]s a rule the chambers were occupied only by Stack, who had been Wilfrid's batman in the war, and had for him one of those sphinx-like habits which wear better than expressed devotions.

   1932, John Galsworthy, chapter III, in Flowering Wilderness […], London: William Heinemann, →OCLC, page 19

   Synonyms: orderly

2. broadlyinformalA personal assistant or supporter.

   He became my retainer, my batman, the solution to my ever-growing need for an extra pair of hands.

   2008, Darren Smith, Fade, →ISBN, page 278

   2 more examples

   Thank you to a special Carer, Thank you for being my nurse, My housemaid, and my cook, My batman and my chauffeur, And my eyes when I forget to look!

   2012, Jeffery Hayton, Just One More Time, →ISBN, page 78

   The Quease, as you will have read, thought this a huge cheek and, as is ever the case with her, was not slow to point it out. She further accused me of treating him as my batman.

   2014, Andrew S Cowan, Estate Life, →ISBN, page 186

present singular third person batmans · participle present batmanning · participle past batmanned · past batmanned

1. To act as a batman, wait on an officer.

   OK, I batmanned. Give me an Xterm.

   2000, Baylor Wetzel, Winter Project, →ISBN, page 96

   3 more examples

   Batmanning was voluntary. McPherson was a bit incensed about the loss of his batman, but he made do with somebody else.

   1985, Chris Vokes, John Philip Maclean, Vokes, my story, page 98

   Yes, well, had I known you were having a row with the loo, I would have batmanned the other direction.

   2014, Andris Bear, Lust

   The preservation of the batmanning system in captivity was established through an Anglo-German agreement of 1918, which had allowed one orderly to be allocated to a group of seven imprisoned captains, one to a group of four field officers and one to each general.

   2017, Clare Makepeace, Captives of War, →ISBN

plural batmans

1. Turkish units of measureA unit of weight established in 1931 equal to 10 kg.
2. historicalunits of measureA Turkish unit of weight varying by location, time, and item from 2–8 okas (about 2.5–10 kg).

   A Batman is fiue and fiftie pound weight English.

   1614, Samuel Purchas, Purchas His Pilgrimage, page 544

   4 more examples

   Euery bateman [in Bagdad] maketh 7. pound and 5. ounces English waight.

   1583 July 20, J. Newbery, letter in Richard Hakluyt's The Principall Navigations, Voiages, and Discoveries of the English Nation, p. 209

   Their weights [in Khiva] are the great batman equal to 18 lb. russian, and the lesser batman 9¼.

   1753, G. Thompson & al. in Jonas Hanway's Historical Account of the British Trade over the Caspian Sea, Vol. I, p. 351

   At Smyrna, the cantaro, or kintal, contains 45 okes, or 100 rottoli. The batman is 6 okes, or 2400 drachms; and the oke is 400 drachms, and the rottolo = 180 drachms. The cantaro of 45 okes weighs 123 lbs. 4 oz. avoirdupois; and, therefore, the oke is = 2 lbs. 11 oz. 13 drs. avoirdupois.

   1819, Abraham Rees, The Cyclopaedia, Vol. XXX, s.v. "Rottolo"

   6107. Turkish Weights. The Turkish Chequi is 11⅓ ounces avoirdupois... 1 Batman = 6 Okas 1 Oka = 4 Chequi

   1900, William B. Dick, Encyclopedia of Practical Receipts and Processes, page 530

1. Coelostathma discopunctana, a moth of Eastern North America.

present singular third person batmans · participle present batmanning · participle past batmanned · past batmanned

1. slangclimbingTo climb up or down a rope free hand (i.e. as Batman does).

   So without hesitation I “batmanned” the rope, freed it, and we continued.

   2011, Kerry Burns, Cameron Burns, Climb: Tales of Man Versus Boulder, Crag, Wall, and Peak, →ISBN, page 96

   4 more examples

   At 16,200 feet I batmanned madly down the fixed ropes, stopping constantly to catch my breath, not sure how much longer I could continue.

   1993, Steve Roper, Allen Steck, The Best of Ascent: Twenty-Five Years of the Mountaineering Experience

   Instead, they batmanned effortlessly hand-over-hand up the rope like kids pulling in perch.

   2005, Alan Hobson, Jamie Clarke, Above All Else: The Everest Dream, →ISBN, page 53

   The Germans had left fixed ropes in place, which the Brits unashamedly batmanned up to reach the summit ridge.

   2006, Alpinist - Issue 18; Issue 20, page 36

   When climbers fall they will usually want to return to their high point to resume climbing, and that will either involve batmanning or boinking.

   2018, Nate Fitch, Ron Funderburke, Climbing: From First-Timer to Gym Climber, →ISBN

1. A province in the Black Sea region, in northern Turkey.
2. A district of Batman Province, Turkey.
3. A municipality, the capital city of Batman district and Batman Province, Turkey.

1. A surname.

plural Batmans · plural Batmen

1. A fictional hero and the main protagonist of DC Comics, noted for his intellect and stealth, who uses a bat-themed costume and equipment (including a belt with an array of utilities) and is assisted by his sidekick Robin.

   For quotations using this term, see Citations:Batman.

   3 more examples

   You’re afraid of being ashes. You’re afraid of being forgotten. And you will be forgotten, Joker. Because of me. I am vengeance! I am the night! I am Batman!

   2015, Batman: Arkham Knight, spoken by Batman (Kevin Conroy), Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, via Rocksteady Studios

   “But next time—” Night vanished before the guard could finish—just kind of disappeared like Batman—which Viv found almost as annoying as the fact that he'd dragged her down a well. He didn't think he had to explain himself?

   2015, Sarah Cross, Tear You Apart, Carolrhoda Lab, →ISBN, page 68

   I watched through squinted eyes as the driver-side door opened and a man stepped out wielding a Maglite, his other hand placed on his Batman-like utility belt. What all did they keep in those things? Surely the pistol, a few clips, handcuffs […]

   2019, Sean Johnson, Strange Like Me, page 212

1. An intensifier for interjections created with the adjective holy, in imitation of dialogue between Batman and his sidekick Robin.

   Holy guacamole, Batman!

   1 more example

   Holy nostalgic flashback, Batman! Aly and AJ Michalka, the actor-musician sister duo known for dominating Radio Disney in the late aughts (they’ve also released some very good music since then), just sent us straight back to our tweens by wearing none other than iconic mall brand Limited Too.

   2024 July 1, Elizabeth Logan, “Aly & AJ in the New Limited Too Collection Has Me Checking What Year It Is”, in Glamour

present singular third person Batmans · participle present Batmanning · participle past Batmanned · past Batmanned

1. slangclimbingAlternative letter-case form of batman.

   He laughed, Batmanned back up to his last piece of gear and hammered a 5/8-inch angle piton into the crack with an ascending ring like any nail met with a hammer.

   2014, Ken Wylie, Buried, →ISBN, page 140