noun
baton
BA-ton
noun
1
A short stick used by a police officer as a weapon or by a conductor to lead an orchestra.
"The conductor raised his baton and the orchestra fell silent."
"Officers carried batons for crowd control."
2
A short rod passed from runner to runner in a relay race.
"She dropped the baton just metres from the handoff."
How to Use Baton
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishA stick used for conducting music, for relay races, or as a police weapon.
Common pairings
pass the baton
conductor's baton
police baton
Word Forms
batoned past tense, batons plural, batons singular
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The conductor raised his _____ and the orchestra fell silent.
Etymology
From French bâton, "stick."