baton

[ buh-ton, ba-, bat-n ]

noun

1. Music. a wand used by a conductor.
2. a rod of lightweight metal fitted with a weighted bulb at each end and carried and twirled by a drum major or majorette.
3. Track. a hollow rod of wood, paper, or plastic that is passed during a race from one member of a relay team to the next in a prescribed area.
4. a staff, club, or truncheon, especially one serving as a mark of office or authority.

   Synonyms: caduceus, fasces, wand, rod, crosier, scepter, mace

5. Heraldry.
   1. a diminutive of the bend sinister, couped at the extremities: used in England as a mark of bastardy.
   2. a similar diminutive of the ordinary bend.

baton

/ -tɒn; ˈbætən /

noun

1. a thin stick used by the conductor of an orchestra, choir, etc, to indicate rhythm or expression
2. 1. a short stick carried for use as a weapon, as by a policeman; truncheon
   2. ( as modifier )

      a baton charge

3. athletics a short bar carried by a competitor in a relay race and transferred to the next runner at the end of each stage
4. a long stick with a knob on one end, carried, twirled, and thrown up and down by a drum major or drum majorette, esp at the head of a parade
5. a staff or club carried by an official as a symbol of authority
6. heraldry a single narrow diagonal line superimposed on all other charges, esp one curtailed at each end, signifying a bastard line

baton

1. A stick used by some conductors of choruses or orchestras . The baton is traditionally used to indicate the tempo of the music.

Word History and Origins

Origin of baton¹

1540–50; < Middle French bâton, Old French baston < Vulgar Latin *bastōn- (stem of *bastō ) stick, club; compare Late Latin bastum staff

Word History and Origins

Origin of baton¹

C16: from French bâton , from Late Latin bastum rod, probably ultimately from Greek bastazein to lift up, carry

Example Sentences

We can witness as great a shift in presidents as we have seen since Herbert Hoover passed the baton to Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

From Washington Post

Her letter also referenced Anderson Arboleda, a 24-year-old Afro-Colombian man who died in May after a Colombian police officer allegedly struck him on the head with a baton.

From Washington Post

We first saw that kind of transition back in 2009, when Xerox CEO Anne Mulcahy passed the baton to Ursula Burns.

From Fortune

“It was the eight-year mark and the department is in a good position to pass the baton to the next generation,” Guglielmi said.

From Washington Post

The baton then got passed again to another group, which used hundreds of thousands of medical billing data from people who either tested positive or were presumed positive for Covid-19, to verify those viral protein candidates.

From Singularity Hub 

The Obama administration took up the baton in 2009 and has since become the most evidence-based administration in history.

From The Daily Beast

But the most recent poll of the race, conducted for the Baton Rouge Fox affiliate, has Landrieu ahead of Cassidy 36 to 32 percent.

From The Daily Beast

The trooper reached with her right hand for her expandable baton.

From The Daily Beast

You see, as far as passing the baton down, Michael used to look at Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly, and James Brown.

From The Daily Beast

I glimpse an alarming, finger-length aluminum baton in her bag.

From The Daily Beast

On account of his bravery Fleetfoot was given a baton which showed that he might lead the men.

From Project Gutenberg

But here the Greek, whose face had crimsoned, snatched a tiny baton beside a bronze gong.

From Project Gutenberg

The conductor is energetic and efficient, wields his baton in a lively manner, but hits nobody with it.

From Project Gutenberg

This proof of confidence—the object of much secret envy—is, to women, a field-marshal's baton.

From Project Gutenberg

In his hand he carried a short staff, or baton, with gold knobs, and he wore a thin golden circlet in his hair.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• cudgel
• mace
• nightstick
• rod
• truncheon
• wand