beaver

Meaning

Noun

1. (countable) A semiaquatic rodent of the genus Castor, having a wide, flat tail and webbed feet, native to the Northern Hemisphere.
2. (countable, uncountable) The fur of the beaver.
3. (countable) A hat, of various shapes, made from a felted beaver fur (or later of silk), fashionable in Europe between 1550 and 1850.
4. (Canada, US, countable, uncountable) Beaver pelts as an article of exchange or as a standard of value.
5. (countable, uncountable) Beaver cloth, a heavy felted woollen cloth, used chiefly for making overcoats.
6. (countable, uncountable) A brown colour, like that of a beaver.
7. (countable) A move in response to being doubled, in which one immediately doubles the stakes again, keeping the doubling cube on one’s own side of the board.
8. (alt-of, countable, uncountable) Alternative letter-case form of Beaver (“member of the youngest wing of the Scout movement”).
9. (countable, slang) A beard or a bearded person.
10. (historical, slang, uncountable) A game, in which points are scored by spotting beards.
11. (Canada, US, countable, slang) The pubic hair near a vulva or a vulva itself; (attributively) denoting films or literature featuring nude women.
12. (US, countable, offensive, slang, uncountable) A woman, especially one who is sexually attractive.

Verb

1. To form a felt-like texture, similar to the way beaver fur is used for felt-making.
2. To work hard.
3. (slang) To cut a continuous ring around a tree that one is felling.
4. After being doubled, to immediately double the stakes again, a move that keeps the doubling cube on one’s own side of the board.
5. (slang) To spot a beard in a game of beaver.

Synonyms

castor

beaver away

North American beaver

beaver fur

high hat

baize

silk hat

stovepipe

dress hat

frieze

opera hat

otter

🦦

top hat

topper

vizier

American beaver

deer skin

sea otter

admiralty beaver

peg away

Castor canadensis

new world beaver

Canadian beaver

neden

gut locker

bitch wrinkle

squished mitten

ham wallet

Beaver

🦫

bukyak

buckle down

cunt

doeskin

labor

labour

moil

plug away

pudendum

pussy

😺

suede

tooth

🦷

twat

visor

Translations

castor

🦫

Biber

🦫

castor

🦫

castoro

🦫

bever

🦫

castor

🦫

κάστορας

castor

🦫

bièvre

🦫

castor

🦫

kastor

🦫

kunduz

🦫

vibre

قندس

🦫

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ˈbiːvə/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: bever

Inherited from Old English: befer

Cognate with Western Frisian: bever

Cognate with Dutch: bever

Cognate with French: bièvre

Cognate with German: Biber

Cognate with Swedish: bjur

Cognate with Welsh: befer

Cognate with Latin: fiber

Cognate with Lithuanian: bẽbras

Cognate with Russian: бобр

Cognate with Avestan: 𐬠𐬀𐬎𐬎𐬭𐬀

Cognate with Sanskrit: बभ्रु

In summary

From Middle English bever, from Old English befer, from Proto-West Germanic *bebru, from Proto-Germanic *bebruz, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰébʰrus (“beaver”).
Cognate with West Frisian bever, Dutch bever, French bièvre, German Biber, dialectal Swedish bjur. Non-Germanic cognates include Welsh befer, Latin fiber, Lithuanian bẽbras, Russian бобр (bobr), Avestan 𐬠𐬀𐬎𐬎𐬭𐬀 (bauura), and Sanskrit बभ्रु (bábhru, “mongoose; ichneumon”).
Slang use to refer to a woman evolved from use to refer to pubic hair, which evolved from use to refer to beards, which evolved from use to refer to the furry animal or its fur.