battue
/bəˈt(j)uː
/noun [mass noun]
1The driving of game towards hunters by beaters.Heavy investment was made in the nineteenth century in rearing thousands of pheasants for leisured slaughter in the battue....
- Researching the meaning of the word "battue" gives some indication of such a rifle's intended purpose, which is to rapidly acquire and shoot multiple animals in something approaching a stampede.
- More than a hunt, battue is a social activity where people enjoy the same passion and spend time together.
1.1 [count noun] A shooting party arranged so that beaters can drive the game towards the hunters: they were shot down like pheasants in a battue...
- But any improvement in relations was temporary, for further improvements in guns led to vast battues, in which 1,000 birds might be shot in one day.
- In some clubs or associations it's forbidden to hunt antlered stag in battue.
- A head of the hunt in a battue may be a person who has passed an aptitude test in the State Forest Service and has received a head of the hunts certificate.
Origin
Early 19th century: from French, feminine past participle of battre 'to beat', from Latin battuere.