belch

belch
\ \ [OE] Belch first appears in recognizable form in the 15th century, but it can scarcely not be related to belkeructate’, which goes back to Old English bealcan and survived dialectally into the modern English period. Belch itself may derive either from an unrecorded variant of bealcan, *belcan (with the c here representing a /ch/ sound), or from a related Old English verb belcettaneructate’. But whichever route it took, its ultimate source was probably a Germanic base *balk-or *belk-, from which German got bölkenbleat, low, belch’. Belch was originally a perfectly inoffensive word; it does not seem to have been until the 17th century that its associations began to drag it down towards vulgarity.

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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  • belch — vb Belch, burp, vomit, disgorge, regurgitate, spew, throw up are comparable when they mean to eject matter (as food or gas) from the stomach by way of the mouth or, in extended use, from a containing cavity by way of an opening. Belch denotes the …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • belch — vi to expel gas suddenly from the stomach through the mouth vt to expel (gas) from the stomach suddenly: ERUCT belch n an act or instance of belching: ERUCTATION …   Medical dictionary

  • belch — [beltʃ] v [: Old English; Origin: bealcian] 1.) to let air from your stomach come out loudly through your mouth = ↑burp 2.) [i]also belch out [I and T] to send out a large amount of smoke, flames etc, or to come out of something in large amounts… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • Belch — (b[e^]lch; 224), v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Belched} (b[e^]lch); p. pr. & vb. n. {Belching}.] [OE. belken, AS. bealcan, akin to E. bellow. See {Bellow}, v. i.] 1. To eject or throw up from the stomach with violence; to eruct. [1913 Webster] I belched a …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Belch — Belch, v. i. 1. To eject wind from the stomach through the mouth; to eructate. [1913 Webster] 2. To issue with spasmodic force or noise. Dryden. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Belch — Belch, n. 1. The act of belching; also, that which is belched; an eructation. [1913 Webster] 2. Malt liquor; vulgarly so called as causing eructation. [Obs.] Dennis. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • belch — [belch] vi., vt. [ME belchen < OE bealcian, to bring up, emit, splutter out] 1. to expel (gas) through the mouth from the stomach; eruct 2. to utter (curses, orders, etc.) violently 3. to throw forth (its contents) violently, often in spasms… …   English World dictionary

  • belch´er — belch «behlch», verb, noun. –v.i. 1. to throw out gas from the stomach through the mouth; eructate. 2. to throw out or shoot forth contents violently: »cannon belching at the enemy. –v.t. to throw out with force: »The volcano belched fire and… …   Useful english dictionary

  • Belch [1] — Belch, bei den Celten ein dem Dienst der Götter geweihter Berg …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Belch [2] — Belch, so v.w. Schwarzes Wasserhuhn …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • belch — (v.) O.E. bealcan bring up wind from the stomach, also swell, heave, of echoic origin (Cf. Du. balken to bray, shout ). Extended to volcanoes, cannons, etc. 1570s. Related: Belched; belching. As a noun, recorded from 1510s. It is recorded in 1706 …   Etymology dictionary

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