| Dictionary, Encyclopedia and Thesaurus - The Free Dictionary 1,725,194,745 visitors served. |
|
Dictionary/ thesaurus | Medical dictionary | Legal dictionary | Financial dictionary | Acronyms | Idioms | Encyclopedia | Wikipedia encyclopedia | ? |
battery |
Also found in: Dictionary/thesaurus, Medical, Legal, Acronyms, Idioms, Wikipedia, Hutchinson | 0.01 sec. |
|
battery, in criminal and tort law, the unpermitted touching of any part of the person of another, or of anything worn, carried by, or intimately associated at that moment (as a chair being sat on) with another. Contact must be intended by the aggressor, must be reasonably considered offensive, and must be without consent by the one affected. (Consent is assumed for the ordinary and customary contacts of everyday life.) Gross negligence may provide the intent necessary to constitute a battery. Actual physical injuries need not be sustained by the victim; thus a doctor who performs an operation without consent can be sued for battery, even though the patient is benefited by the operation. The term "assault and battery" refers to a crime, the unlawful touching of another as the consummation of an assault assault, in law, an attempt or threat, going beyond mere words, to use violence, with the intent and the apparent ability to do harm to another. If violent contact actually occurs, the offense of battery has been committed; modern criminal statutes often combine ..... Click the link for more information. . batteryAny of a class of devices, consisting of a group of electrochemical cells (see electrochemistry), that convert chemical energy into electrical energy; the term is also commonly applied to a single cell of this kind. A wet cell (e.g., a car battery) contains free liquid electrolyte; in a dry cell (e.g., a flashlight battery) the electrolyte is held in an absorbent material. Chemicals are arranged so that electrons released from the battery's negative electrode flow (see electric current) through a circuit outside the battery (in the device powered by it) to the battery's positive electrode. The battery's voltage depends on the chemicals used and the number of cells (in series); the current depends on the resistance in the total circuit (including the battery—and thus on electrode size). Multiple batteries may be connected in series (the positive electrode of one to the negative electrode of the next), which increases total voltage, or in parallel (positive to positive and negative to negative), which increases total current. Batteries that are not rechargeable include standard dry cells used in flashlights and certain wet cells for marine, mine, highway, and military use. Car batteries, many kinds of dry cells used in cordless appliances, and batteries for certain military and aerospace uses may be recharged repeatedly. batterySee batteries. battery 1. a. two or more primary cells connected together, usually in series, to provide a source of electric current b. short for dry battery 2. another name for accumulator 3. Criminal law unlawful beating or wounding of a person or mere touching in a hostile or offensive manner 4. Chiefly Brit a. a large group of cages for intensive rearing of poultry b. (as modifier): battery hens 5. Psychol a series of tests 6. Chess two men of the same colour placed so that one can unmask an attack by the other by moving 7. the percussion section in an orchestra 8. Baseball the pitcher and the catcher considered together battery [′bad·ə·rē] (chemical engineering) A series of distillation columns or other processing equipment operated as a single unit. (electricity) A direct-current voltage source made up of one or more units that convert chemical, thermal, nuclear, or solar energy into electrical energy. (ordnance) A group of guns or other weapons, such as mortars, machine guns, artillery pieces, or of searchlights, set up under one tactical commander in a certain area. How to thank TFD for its existence? Tell a friend about us, add a link to this page, add the site to iGoogle, or visit webmaster's page for free fun content. |
|
| ? Mentioned in | ? References in classic literature | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| "Another time," he said, "you'll know better than to run through a mule battery at night, shouting `Thieves and fire shouted Deighton of the Horse Battery through the mists. You bring the lot to me, at that old Battery over yonder. |
| Encyclopedia |
| Free Tools: |
For surfers:
Free toolbar & extensions |
Word of the Day |
Help
For webmasters: Free content | Linking | Lookup box | Double-click lookup | Partner with us |
|---|