• IPA: /biːd/

bead (plural beads)

1. (archaic) Prayer, later especially with a rosary. [from 9^thc.]
   • 1760, Laurence Sterne, The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman, Penguin 2003, p.115:

     That he must believe in the Pope;—go to Mass;—cross himself;—tell his beads;—be a good Catholick, and that this, in all conscience, was enough to carry him to heaven.

2. Each in a string of small balls making up the rosary or paternoster. [from 14^thc.]
3. A small round object.
   1. A small round object with a hole to allow it to be threaded on a cord or wire. [from 15^thc.]
   2. A small round solid object.
   3. A small drop of water or other liquid. [from 16^thc.]

      beads of sweat

   4. A bubble, in spirits.
   5. A small round ball at the end of a barrel of a gun used for aiming.

      She drew a bead on the target and fired.

      • 1879, R[ichard] J[efferies], chapter 1, in The Amateur Poacher, London: Smith, Elder, & Co., […], OCLC 752825175 ↗:

        But then I had the [massive] flintlock by me for protection. ¶ […] The linen-press and a chest on the top of it formed, however, a very good gun-carriage; and, thus mounted, aim could be taken out of the window […], and a 'bead' could be drawn upon Molly, the dairymaid, kissing the fogger behind the hedge, little dreaming that the deadly tube was levelled at them.

4. (heading) A ridge, band, or molding.
   1. A rigid edge of a tire that mounts it on a wheel; tire bead. [from 20^thc.]
   2. (architecture) A narrow molding with semicircular section.
5. Knowledge sufficient to direct one's activities to a purpose.

   We now have a bead on the main technical issues for the project

6. (chemistry, dated) A glassy drop of molten flux, as borax or microcosmic salt, used as a solvent and color test for several mineral earths and oxides, as of iron, manganese, etc., before the blowpipe.

   the borax bead;  the iron bead, etc.

7. Front sight of a gun.

• French: grain
• Italian: grano
• Portuguese: conta
• Russian: би́сер
• Spanish: cuenta

• French: perle
• German: Perle
• Italian: grano, perlina
• Portuguese: conta, miçanga
• Russian: бу́сина
• Spanish: cuenta

• French: gouttelette
• German: Tropfen
• Italian: goccia, gocciolina
• Portuguese: gota
• Russian: ка́пля
• Spanish: gota

bead (beads, present participle beading; past and past participle beaded)

1. (intransitive) To form into a bead.

   The raindrops beaded on the car's waxed finish.

2. (transitive) To apply beads to.

   She spent the morning beading the gown.

3. (transitive) To form into a bead.

   He beaded some solder for the ends of the wire.

4. (transitive) To cause beads to form on (something).
   • 1941, Emily Carr, Klee Wyck, "Greenville,"

     Only the hum of the miserable creatures stirred the heavy murk that beaded our foreheads with sweat as we pushed our way through it.