bloat

Perhaps from Middle English blot, blout (“soft; flexible; pliable”), from Old Norse blautr (“soft”)[1], akin to Danish blød, Dutch bloot (“nude”) and German bloß (“nude”)[2].

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /bləʊt/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /bloʊt/
• Rhymes: -əʊt

bloat (third-person singular simple present bloats, present participle bloating, simple past and past participle bloated)

1. to cause to become distended.
2. (intransitive) (veterinary medicine) to get an overdistended rumen, talking of a ruminant.
3. to fill soft substance with gas, water, etc.; to cause to swell
4. (intransitive) to become distended; to swell up

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Arbuthnot to this entry?)

5. to fill with vanity or conceit

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Dryden to this entry?)

6. to preserve by slightly salting and lightly smoking

   bloated herring

bloat (plural bloats)

1. distention of the abdomen from death
2. (veterinary medicine) pathological overdistention of rumen with gas in a ruminant
3. (figuratively) wasteful use of space

   Adding an e-mail feature to this simple text editor would be pointless bloat.

4. (derogatory, slang, dated) A worthless, dissipated fellow.

• (rumen distention) ruminal tympany

bloat (comparative more bloat, superlative most bloat)

1. (obsolete) bloated
   • 1602, William Shakespeare, “Act 3, Scene 4. The Queen's Closet.”, in The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark‎^{Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark/Act 3#Scene 4. The Queen's closet.}:

     Let the bloat king tempt you again to bed

• Balto-, Blato, balot