Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
- n. Any of various breeds of very small domestic fowl that are often miniatures of members of larger breeds.
- n. A small but aggressive and spirited person.
- adj. Diminutive; miniature.
- adj. Aggressive and spirited.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
- n. any of several small chickens, especially one that is a miniature version of another
- adj. small or miniature
- adj. spirited or aggressive
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English
- n. A variety of small barnyard fowl, with feathered legs, probably brought from Bantam, a district of Java.
from The Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. A general name for a number of varieties of the common hen possessing the characteristic of very diminutive size.
- n. Same as Bantam-work.
- Pertaining to or resembling the bantam; of the breed of the bantam; hence, diminutive; puny; absurdly combative, or fussy and consequential.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- n. any of various small breeds of fowl
- adj. very small
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
Examples
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But about other matters, the bantam is belligerent.
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The word bantam itself is not only of geographical significance but incites one to conjure images of fast-footed boxers and nimble wrestlers.
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The bantam is the proudest cock in my little yard. '
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By the use of new state-of-the-art techniques (most of them developed in the present study) the authors demonstrate that one specific miRNA (called bantam) recognizes and regulates the translation of the gene clock.
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Told you my bantam was the form horse, didn't I? "
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I doubt you could find a GOPer/conservaitve whose opinion on anything right now should be considered worthy of even bearing the classification of "bantam." vette gal
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He pointed to the left breast of his polo shirt, which featured a bantam rooster before a stand of pines.
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A convincing message with a bantam budget will whip a bulky budget with an unconvincing message every time.
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Mr. Neal, who died Thursday at age 81, was described by more than one observer over the years as a "bantam rooster," the kind of chicken used in cockfights, and he was positively allergic to losing.
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Today, Lloyd and his wife Lesley Creed run their own homestead in Bolinas, California where they tend an extensive organic garden and bantam chickens, grind their own wheat, make their own sourdough, spin their own wool, and continue to build their own structures most recently, a chicken coop with a living roof.
Kirsten Dirksen: Steve Jobs' Google of the 60s: Whole Earth Catalog Revisited (VIDEO)
danicaarterburn commented on the word bantam
reminds me of my friend! haha :)
October 5, 2011
msquires2 commented on the word bantam
Visit This Site!
September 28, 2011
Stephy2011 commented on the word bantam
bantam. has a nice ring to it. never would have guessed it meant small but aggressive.
September 28, 2011
tumbel commented on the word bantam
such a good synonym for small!
April 5, 2010
reesetee commented on the word bantam
I rented that film some time ago, elgiad. It's hilarious. Produced by the same people who brought us Cane Toads: An Unnatural History. :-)
November 10, 2008
elgiad007 commented on the word bantam
Wow. You're right, oroboros.
November 9, 2008
oroboros commented on the word bantam
Looking at those pix of silkies put me in mind of Al Capp's Shmoos. I wonder if there's any connection somehow?
November 9, 2008
elgiad007 commented on the word bantam
Here is the first part of an interesting (and some parts hilarious) program on chickens, including silkie banties. The show is divided into six parts, all of which are available on YouTube.
Please note that none of my chickens live in the house or wear diapers, and I have never attempted cardiopulmonary resuscitation on any of my birds that turned up dead.
November 8, 2008
reesetee commented on the word bantam
*ditto on the fowl envy*
November 8, 2008
dontcry commented on the word bantam
*having an extreme case of fowl envy*
November 7, 2008
elgiad007 commented on the word bantam
Dontcry, you'd love my backyard flock. I have four roosters, each of which has their own sound, anywhere from a high-pitched screech (the Porcelain Bantam) to a raspy, boorish sounding crow (the standard red rooster). Combined with duck calls (which are quite loud), hen clucks, and pigeon coos, they certainly make a lively chorus in the morning.
November 7, 2008
dontcry commented on the word bantam
The hen house at the fair each year is my favorite place! I just love watching all those different chickens and roosters. Some of them look like they're dressed to the nines for an evening on the town! The crowing makes me giggle every single time...
November 6, 2008
elgiad007 commented on the word bantam
I was a bit skeptical myself regarding the quality of eggs produced by hand-raised hens until I had them for myself.
The key is to let them eat all the things they would find if they lived in the wild; grass, beetles, worms, etc. My chickens love June bug season. The resulting eggs have a more flavorful and darker colored yolk. Bantam eggs are very good although, as you may have guessed, they can be half the size (or smaller) of a standard chicken egg.
November 6, 2008
reesetee commented on the word bantam
You must have some delicious eggs, elgiad. I had a friend who had a setup similar to yours and she once sent me samples. They were nothing like the store-bought type.
Sounds like quite a menagerie, too. Oh, wouldn't I love to have such an avian wonderland in my backyard--but alas, I'd be tossed out of the neighborhood on my ear.
November 6, 2008
elgiad007 commented on the word bantam
In fact, here is a link to a collection of images of some fine silky specimens.
November 6, 2008
elgiad007 commented on the word bantam
I noticed that. An image search on Google yields results that include chickens.
November 6, 2008
chained_bear commented on the word bantam
The "image search" link on this page brings up something interesting: lots of sports teams, not so many chickens. (But the ones that are there are really pretty.)
November 6, 2008
elgiad007 commented on the word bantam
I raise them for their eggs, and they do make great pets if you have the means to keep them. Mine is a flock of mixed breeds which keeps things interesting since each breed boasts it's own unique characteristics and each bird it's own personality. I also have a couple of albino pigeons and a pair of snowy ducks, but they, while being pleasing to the eye, are not nearly as interesting as the chickens.
I used to have an albino rabbit living in the hen house. However, their cohabitation, as I explained earlier in this comment thread, was not conducive to the well being of the hens (even the ones that weren't white and fluffy).
November 6, 2008
reesetee commented on the word bantam
Elgiad, you raise chickens? Or they're just pets?
November 5, 2008
bilby commented on the word bantam
I have been to Bantam (Banten). It remains passingly pleasant, though the has coastline moved from the heart of the town.
November 5, 2008
Prolagus commented on the word bantam
Ugh! See also tuna of the yard.
November 5, 2008
elgiad007 commented on the word bantam
I have a few breeds of bantam (or banty) chickens in my backyard flock. The most interesting looking ones are the white silkies, which look like the offspring of rabbits and chickens (bright white and fluffy feathers).
In fact, if you happen to have a white rabbit living around the farm, you may soon find it and your silky hen engaged in some rather frantic interspecific relations (an image not easily purged from the mind).
November 5, 2008
bilby commented on the word bantam
Allie, call the birds in,
The birds from the sky!
Allie calls, Allie sings,
Down they all fly:
First there came
Two white doves,
Then a sparrow from his nest,
Then a clucking bantam hen,
Then a robin red-breast.
- Robert Graves, 'Allie'.
November 3, 2008
reesetee commented on the word bantam
The nickname (in the plural) of the South African definitive stamp series of 1942-43. Wartime economy measures required that stamps be made smaller than usual to conserve paper.
August 25, 2008