But"ton, v. t. [imp. & p.
p. Buttoned (?); p. pr. & vb. n.
Buttoning (?).] [OE. botonen, OF. botoner, F.
boutonner. See Button, n.]
1. To fasten with a button or buttons; to inclose or
make secure with buttons; -- often followed by up.
He was a tall, fat, long-bodied man, buttoned up to
the throat in a tight green coat.
Dickens.
2. To dress or clothe. [Obs.]
Shak.
But"ton (?), n. [OE. boton,
botoun, F. bouton button, bud, prop. something pushing out,
fr. bouter to push. See Butt an end.] 1.
A knob; a small ball; a small, roundish mass.
2. A catch, of various forms and materials, used to
fasten together the different parts of dress, by being attached to one
part, and passing through a slit, called a buttonhole, in the other;
-- used also for ornament.
3. A bud; a germ of a plant.
Shak.
4. A piece of wood or metal, usually flat and
elongated, turning on a nail or screw, to fasten something, as a
door.
5. A globule of metal remaining on an assay cupel
or in a crucible, after fusion.
Button hook, a hook for catching a button and
drawing it through a buttonhole, as in buttoning boots and gloves. --
Button shell (Zoöl.), a small, univalve
marine shell of the genus Rotella. -- Button
snakeroot. (Bot.) (a) The American
composite genus Liatris, having rounded buttonlike heads of
flowers. (b) An American umbelliferous plant with
rigid, narrow leaves, and flowers in dense heads. -- Button
tree (Bot.), a genus of trees (Conocarpus),
furnishing durable timber, mostly natives of the West Indies. --
To hold by the button, to detain in conversation to
weariness; to bore; to buttonhole.
But"ton, v. i. To be fastened by a
button or buttons; as, the coat will not button.