bull

views updated May 23 2018

bull1 a bull is the emblem of St Luke, St Frideswide, and St Thomas Aquinas; the Bull is the zodiacal sign and constellation Taurus.

On the Stock Exchange, a person who buys shares hoping to sell them at a higher price later is known as a bull; the term is recorded from the early 18th century.



In Egyptian mythology, the god Apis was depicted as a bull, symbolizing fertility and strength in war.



The word dates from late Old English (in form bula, recorded in place names), and comes from Old Norse boli.


bull in a china shop a clumsy person in a situation calling for adroit movement; the phrase is recorded from the mid 19th century.
bull market a market in which share prices are rising, encouraging buying (compare bear market at bear2).
bull-roarer a sacred object of Australian Aboriginal ceremony and ritual, so called because of a fancied resemblance to a child's toy. A bull-roarer consists of a flat oval carved piece of wood, pointed at each end and pierced at one end; a string is threaded through the hole so that the bull-roarer can be swung round, making a booming noise. It is also known as a churinga.
Bull Run a small river in eastern Virginia, scene of two Confederate victories, in 1861 and 1862, during the American Civil War.
like a bull at a gate with the angry vigour of a bull charging a restraining (‘five-barred’) gate; the expression is recorded from the late 19th century.
take the bull by the horns take a firm grasp on a difficult issue; the expression is recorded from the early 18th century.

bull

views updated May 17 2018

bull1 / boŏl/ • n. 1. an uncastrated male bovine animal: [as adj.] bull calves. ∎  a large male animal, esp. a whale or elephant. ∎  (the Bull) the zodiacal sign or constellation Taurus.2. Stock Market a person who buys shares hoping to sell them at a higher price later. Often contrasted with bear2 .• v. [tr.] push or drive powerfully or violently: he bulled the motorcycle clear of the tunnel.PHRASES: take the bull by the horns deal bravely and decisively with a difficult, dangerous, or unpleasant situation.bull2 • n. a papal edict.bull3 • n. inf. stupid or untrue talk or writing; nonsense: much of what he says is sheer bull.

Bull

views updated May 09 2018

88. Bull

  1. Apis bull of Memphis, created in Osiris image. [Egypt. Myth.: Benét, 41]
  2. Buchis black bull worshiped as chief city god. [Egypt. Rel.: Parrinder, 52]
  3. Cretan bull sacred to Poseidon; sent to Minos. [Gk. Myth.: Kravitz, 68]
  4. Ferdinand daydreaming bull who refuses to fight in ring. [Childrens Lit.: The Story of Ferdinand ]
  5. Minotaur fabulous monster of Crete, half-bull, half-man. [Gk. Myth.: EB, VI: 922]
  6. Taurus constellation of the zodiac symbolized by the bull. [Astrology: EB, IX: 844]

bull

views updated May 29 2018

bull1 male of the ox, etc. Late OE. bula (in place-names), ME. bole — ON. boli, corr, to MLG. bulle, MDu. bulle, bolle (Du. bul), f. a base whence the OE. dim. bulluc BULLOCK.

bull

views updated May 18 2018

bull2 papal edict XIII; official seal XIV. — (O)F. bulle — L. bulla bubble, round object, in medL. seal, sealed document; cf. BOIL2.

bull

views updated May 23 2018

bull2 a papal edict. Recorded from Middle English, the word comes via Old French from Latin bulla ‘bubble, rounded object’, in medieval Latin, ‘seal or sealed document’. Also called papal bull.

bull

views updated May 29 2018

bull3 †jest; expression containing contradiction in terms or implying ludicrous inconsistency. XVII. of unkn. orig.

Bull

views updated May 11 2018

Bull (Lat. bulla, ‘seal’). A papal document or mandate, so-called because sealed officially.