Webster's English Dictionary

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bead

1. bead \'be-d\ n [ME bede prayer, prayer bead, fr. OE bed, gebed prayer; 
   akin]to OE biddan to entreat, pray obs  1a: PRAYER - usu. used in pl.  pl  
   1b: a series of prayers and meditations made with a rosary  2: a small 
   piece of material pierced for threading on a string or wire (as  in a 
   rosary) 3: a small ball-shaped body; as  3a: a drop of sweat or blood  3b: 
   a bubble formed in or on a beverage  3c: a small metal knob on a firearm 
   used as a front sight  3d: a blob or a line of weld metal  3e: a glassy 
   drop of flux (as borax) used as a solvent and color test for s everal 
   metallic oxides and salts 4: a projecting rim, band, or molding 
2. bead vt 1: to furnish, adorn, or cover with beads or beading  2: to 
   string together like beads  : to form into a bead