This is page 64 of An Icelandic-English Dictionary by Cleasby/Vigfusson (1874)

This online edition was created by the Germanic Lexicon Project. Click here to go to the main page about Cleasby/Vigfusson. (You can download the entire dictionary from that page.) Click here to volunteer to correct a page of this dictionary. Click here to search the dictionary. This page was generated on 30 Mar 2019. The individual pages are regenerated once a week to reflect the previous week's worth of corrections, which are performed and uploaded by volunteers. The copyright on this dictionary is expired. You are welcome to copy the data below, post it on other web sites, create derived works, or use the data in any other way you please. As a courtesy, please credit the Germanic Lexicon Project.

64 BITILL -- BJARGA.

bitum, to go begging, Grág. i. 278. 2. an eye-tooth = jaxl, q.v., [Swed. betar]; eru vér ok svá gamlir, ok svá bitar upp komnir, i.e. we are no longer babies, have got our eye-teeth, Fms. viii. 325. 3. a crossbeam, girder in a house, Ld. 316, Gþl. 346: in a ship, Lat. transtrum, Fms. ix. 44, Sturl. iii. 61.

bitill and bitull, m., dat. bitli, the bit of a bridle, Stj. 84, 397, Hkr. i. 27, Hkv. 2. 34, Akv. 30, Fms. iv. 75, Hkr. ii. 31.

bitlingr, m. a bit, morsel; the proverb, víða koma Hallgerði bitlingar, cp. Nj. ch. 48; stela bitlingum, to steal trifles, Sturl. i. 61, v.l.; bera bitlinga frá borði, as a beggar, Fas. ii. (in a verse).

bitr, rs, adj. biting, sharp, Korm. 80, Eg. 465, Fms. ii. 255.

bitra, u, f. bitterness, a cognom., Landn.

bitrligr, adj. sharp, Korm. 80, Fbr. 58: metaph., Ísl. ii. (in a verse).

bit-sótt, f. contagious disease, poët., Ýt. 17.

bit-yrði and bitryrði, n. pl. taunts, N. G. L. i. 223.

bí, bí, and bíum, bíum, interj. lullaby!

BÍÐA, beið, biðu, beðit; pres. bíð; imperat. bíð, 2nd pers. bíðþú, bíddu, [Ulf. beidan; A. S. bidan; Engl. bide; O. H. G. bitan] :-- to bide. I. to bide, wait for: with gen., b. e-s, to wait for one, Eg. 274; skal slíkra manna at vísu vel b., such men are worth waiting for, i.e. they are not to be had at once, Fms. ii. 34; the phrase, bíða sinnar stundar, to bide one's time: with héðan, þaðan, to wait, stand waiting, bíð þú héðan, unz ek kem, 656 C. 35; þaðan beið þengill, Hkv. 1. 22: also, b. e-s ór stað, Lex. Poët. The old writers constantly use a notion 'a loco,' þaðan, héðan, or stað, where the mod. usage is hér, þar, 'in loco:' absol., Fms. x. 37, Nj. 3. II. to abide, suffer, undergo, Lat. pati; with acc., b. harm, Nj. 250; skaða, Grág. i. 459, 656 C; ámæli, to be blamed, Nj. 133; bana, dauða, hel, to abide death ..., to die, Hm. 19, Fms. vi. 114; ósigr, to abide defeat, be defeated; svá skal böl bæta at bíða annat meira (a proverb), Fb. ii. 336, Al. 57: sometimes in a good sense, bíða elli, to last to a great age, 656 A; b. enga ró, to feel no peace, be uneasy, Eg. 403; b. ekki (seint) bætr e-s, of an irreparable loss, Ísl. ii. 172. III. impers., e-t (acc.) bíðr, there abides, i.e. exists, is to be had, with a preceding negative; hvárki bíðr þar báru né vindsblæ, there is felt neither wave nor blast, Stj. 78; beið engan þann er ráða kynni, there was none that could make it out, 22; varla beið brauð eðr fæðu, was not to be had, 212; slægastr af öllum þeím kvikendum er til bíðr á jarðríki, 34. Gen. iii. 1. IV. part. pl. bíðendr, v. andróði.

bíðandi, f. a biding, waiting, delay, Fms. ii. 216.

bí-fala, að, [Germ. befehlen], to recommend, command, Bs. i. 145 note 7, from paper MS., v. Introd. p. 48.

bíldr, m., and bílda, u, f. an axe, Edda (Gl.); an instrument for bleeding: bíld-spor, n. a scar as from a b., Bs. i. 367. 2. a sheep witb spotted cheeks: bíld-óttr, adj. (sheep) spotted on the cheeks, Rd. 240.

bíld-ör, f. a blunt arrow, a bolt, Fms. ii. 320, x. 362.

bí-lífl, n. [A. S. biliofa], luxury, Al. 17, 34, 45.

bí-standa, stóð, [Goth. bistandan; Germ. beistehen], (for. word), to assist, Stj. MS. 227, col. 102.

bísundr, m. (for. word), a besant (Byzantius), a coin, El. 2.

BÍTA, beit, bitu, bitið; pres. bít; imperat. bít, 2nd pers. bittú; poët. forms with the negative, beitat, Eg. (in a verse); subj. bítia, Hkv. 2. 31, [Ulf. beitan; Engl. bite; Germ. beizen] :-- to bite, Lat. mordere: I. properly, 1. with the teeth, Eg. 508, N. G. L. i. 351; b. menn (of a dog), Grág. ii. 119; b. skarð ór, Eg. 605: of a horse, N. G. L. i. 392: foxes killing sheep, Bs. ii. 138, N. G. L. ii. 34 (wolf) :-- to sting, of wasps, gnats, Landn. 146. 2. of grazing animals; b. gras, lauf, skóg, Grág. ii. 229, (hence beit, pasture); hvar hestar þínir bitu gras, Fs. 57: absol. to graze, Karl. 71. 3. of sharp instruments, weapons (vápnbitinn); engir vóru ósárir nema þeir er eigi bitu járn, except those whom iron could not bite, Eg. 33; sverðit beit ekki, did not cut, Nj. 45, Edda 7; ljárnir bíta, 48; fótrinn brotnaði en eigi beit, the sword did not cut but broke the leg, Bjarn. 66. β. e-m bítr, one's weapon (scythe) cuts well, bites; allt bitu honum annan veg vápnin, Eg. 93. 4. of a ship, to cruise; hér er skip ... er vér köllum bíta (bite the wind) allra skipa bezt, the best sail, Fs. 27: impers., beit þeim eigi fyrir Reykjanes, they could not clear cape R., Landn. 30. 5. in fishing, to bite, take the bait; bítr vel á um daginn, the fisbes did bite, Ld. 40; bíta mætti beitfiskr, q.v. 6. bíta á vörrinni, to bite the lip as a token of pain or emotion, Nj. 68; hann hafði bitið á kampinum, had bitten the beard, 209. II. metaph.: α. of frost, cold, sickness, and the like. β. to bite, sting, hurt; hvat mun oss heldr b. orð hans, why should his speech sting us any more? Grett. 95 A; eigi veit ek prestr, nema orðin þín hafi bitið, thy words have bit, Fms. vii. 39. γ. as a law term; sekt, sök bítr, the guilt strikes the convict, when brought home to him, hence sakbitinn, guilty; pá menn er hvártveggja hafa bitið, lög, réttindi ok svá dómar, convicted in the face of law and justice, Sks. 655 B; um þau mál sem sekt bítr, i.e. unlawful cases, liable to punishment, K. Á. 148; um þat er sekt bítr, Grett. 133 A (new Ed. 1853), Sks. 655. δ. b. á e-n, to cut deep, affect, make an impression upon; the phrase, láta ekki á sig b., to stand proof against all; þetta lét Kjartan á sik b., K. felt pain from it, Ld. 204; láttu þetta ekki á þik b., do not mind it, id.; rennr þat öðrum opt mjök í brjóst, er á suma bítr ekki (of the conscience), 655 xi. ε. e-t bítr fyrir, something 'bites off,' i.e. is decisive, makes a thing impossible or out of question; þat annat (the other reason) er þó bítr skjótara, which is still more decided against it, Fms. ii. 266; þeir kváðust þenna kost eigi vilja, ok kváðu þat tvennt til vera er fyrir beit, two decided obstacles, reasons against it, Sturl. iii. 47; þú ert miklu œri maðr at aldri, en svá at vér hafim her lögtekna í Jómsborg, ok bítr þat fyrir, that puts it out of question, makes it impossible, Fms. x. 93; Þorgilsi þykir nú þetta ráð mega fyrir bíta, Th. thought this would be quite sufficient, -- fyrir hlíta would here be better, -- Ld. 264; þeir höfðu jafnan minna hlut ór málum, þó þetta bití nú fyrir, they always got the worst of it, though this was a thorough beating, Fas. i. 144; (þat er) lögmanni ok lögréttumönnum þykir fyrir b., seems a decisive proof, cuts the case off at once, N. G. L. ii. 21; b. e-m at fullu, to prove fatal to, tell fully upon; hafa mik nú at fullu bitið hans ráð, Fs. 8; Njáls bíta ráðin, a proverb quoted by Arngrim in Brevis Comment., written A.D. 1593, denoting the sagacity of Njal's schemes; beit þetta ráð, it was effective, Fs. 153; e-m bítr við at horfa, Band. 7 C, is no doubt a false reading, = býðr, which is the reading l.c. of the vellum MS. 2845, vide bjóða. III. recipr. of horse fight, Rd. 298.

bí-tala, be-tala, að, to pay, (mod.); cp. Germ. bezahlen.

bja, interj. fie! bía, to defile.

bjagaðr, part. wry, deformed, cp. bagr. bjag-leitr, adj. ugly, deformed, Fas. ii. 149.

bjalla, u, f. a bell, certainly an Engl. word imported into Icel. along with Christianity; bjöllu gætir, the keeper of the bell, is a nickname given by the heathen Icel. to a missionary, A.D. 998, Kristni S. (in a verse): hann vígði klukkur ok bjöllur, Bs. i. 65, Fms. i. 233: bjalla is now esp. used of small bells, e.g. on the horns of sheep, but klukka of a church bell; cp. dynbjalla, Grett.

bjannak, n. an GREEK; þat var háttr hans ef hann (viz. Odin) sendi menn sína til orrostu eðr aðrar sendifarar, at hann lagði áðr hendr í höfuð þeim ok gaf þeim bjannak, trúðu þeir at þá mundi vel farast, Ýngl. S. ch. 11; it is commonly interpreted as benedictio, but it is no doubt the Scot. bannock, from Gael, banagh, an oat-cake; cp. Lat. panis. The whole passage in the Hkr. points to Christian rites and ideas brought into the pagan North, but which are here attributed to Odin, (cp. the breaking of bread and the Eucharist.)

BJARG, n. [Ulf. bairgahei = GREEK; A. S. beorg; Germ. berg; lost in Engl.], rocks, precipices: 1. neut. pl. björg, precipices (in a collect. sense), esp. on the sea-side, cp. flugabjörg, sjófarbjörg, hamrabjörg; precipices covered with gulls and sea fowls are called bjarg, e.g. Látrabjarg, Þórisbjörg, mostly in pl., Bs. ii. 111, Fms. 275, Orkn. 312. 2. sing. rock; bjargit hafði nýliga sprungit frá einum hellismunna, Fms. i. 230; vatn ór bjargi, water out of a rock, 655 xii, Nj. 264, Fas. ii. 29. β. in sing. it chiefly means an immense stone (cp. heljarbjarg), a boulder; hann hefir fært þat bjarg í hellisdyrnar, at ekki má í hellinn komast, Fms. iii. 223; einn stein svá mikinn sem bjarg væri, Gísl. 31; hve stór björg (pl.) at sá hestr dró, Edda 26; at svá ungr maðr skyldi hefja svá stórt bjarg, Grett. 93.

BJARGA, barg, burgu, borgit; pres. bergr, pl. björgum; imperat. bjarg; pret. subj. byrga: in mod. use after the Reformation this verb is constantly used weak, bjarga, að, pres. bjargar, pret. bjargat; the only remnant of the old is the sup. borgit, etc. In Norway this weak form occurs very early, e.g. bjargar, servat, Hom. 17; in Icel. the weak seldom occurs before the 15th century; bjargaðist, Fs. 143, and bjargat (sup.) = borgit, Lv. 11, are probably due to these passages being left in paper MSS.; the weak bjargaði, however, occurs in a vellum MS. of the 15th century, Þorf. Karl. 388; 1st pers. pres. bjarga, Fms. xi. 150 (MS. 13th century) seems to be a Norse idiom, [Goth. bairgan; Hel. bergan; A. S. beargan; cp. birgr] :-- to save, help; with dat., bergr hverjum sem eigi er feigr (a proverb), Sturl. iii. 220; sá er öldum bergr, who saves mankind, viz. against the giants, i.e. Thor, Hým. 22; nema Þorgeirr byrgi honum, Rd. 295: absol., Guð barg (by God's grace) er konungrinn varð eigi sárr, Fms. v. 268: in theol. sense, vildu þeir eigi snúast til mín at ek byrga þeim, 656 C. 23, Hom. l.c.: impers., e-m er borgit, is saved, comes safe and sound out of danger, Fær. 178, Hkv. Hjörv. 29. 2. a law term; b. sök, máli, to find a point of defence; hann bergr þeim kosti sökinni, at ..., Grág. i. 40; bergsk hann við bjargkviðinn, he is free by virtue of the verdict, 36; borgit mun nú verða at lögum, i.e. there will be some means of putting it right, Lv. 11, Nj. 36. 3. special phrases; b. skipshöfn, to pick up the shipwrecked, Þorf. Karl. l.c., Fms. xi. 412; skipi, to haul a ship out of the reach of tides and waves, Grág. ii. 385; hval, to drag a dead whale ashore, Gþl. 461: to help labouring women (v. bjargrúnar), Sdm. 9; b. nám (v. nábjargir), to render the last service to a dead body, 33; b. kúm, to attend cows casting calf, Bjarn. 32; b. búfé, to milk ewes, N. G. L. i. 10; b. brókum, cacare, Fms. xi. 150. II. recipr. of mutual help; bjargast at allir saman, to be saved all in common, Hkr. ii. 347. III. reflex., bjargask vel, to behave well, keep the heart up, esp. in cold or hunger; Oddr bargst vel á fjallinu (in snow storm), Sturl. iii.