From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Beadle \Bea"dle\, n. [OE. bedel, bidel, budel, OF. bedel, F.
bedeau, fr. OHG. butil, putil, G. b["u]ttel, fr. OHG. biotan,
G. bieten, to bid, confused with AS. bydel, the same word as
OHG. butil. See. {Bid}, v.]
1. A messenger or crier of a court; a servitor; one who cites
or bids persons to appear and answer; -- called also an
{apparitor} or {summoner}.
[1913 Webster]
2. An officer in a university, who precedes public
processions of officers and students. [Eng.]
[1913 Webster]
Note: In this sense the archaic spellings bedel (Oxford) and
bedell (Cambridge) are preserved.
[1913 Webster]
3. An inferior parish officer in England having a variety of
duties, as the preservation of order in church service,
the chastisement of petty offenders, etc.
[1913 Webster]
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
beadle
n 1: a minor parish official who serves a ceremonial function
2: United States biologist who discovered how hereditary
characteristics are transmitted by genes (1903-1989) [syn:
{Beadle}, {George Beadle}, {George Wells Beadle}]
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