. (Law) A system of balloting or voting in public elections, originally used in South Australia, in which there is such an arrangement for polling votes that secrecy is compulsorily maintained, and the ballot used is an official ballot printed and distributed by the government. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

n. [ F. ballon, aug. of balle ball: cf. It. ballone. See 1st Ball, n., and cf. Pallone. ] 1. A bag made of silk or other light material, and filled with hydrogen gas or heated air, so as to rise and float in the atmosphere; especially, one with a car attached for aërial navigation. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Arch.) A ball or globe on the top of a pillar, church, etc., as at St. Paul's, in London. [ R. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Chem.) A round vessel, usually with a short neck, to hold or receive whatever is distilled; a glass vessel of a spherical form. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. (Pyrotechnics) A bomb or shell. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

5. A game played with a large inflated ball. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

6. (Engraving) The outline inclosing words represented as coming from the mouth of a pictured figure. [ 1913 Webster ]

Air balloon, a balloon for aërial navigation. --
Balloon frame (Carp.), a house frame constructed altogether of small timber. --
Balloon net, a variety of woven lace in which the weft threads are twisted in a peculiar manner around the warp. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To take up in, or as if in, a balloon. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. 1. To go up or voyage in a balloon. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To expand, or puff out, like a balloon. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Swelled out like a balloon. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. One who goes up in a balloon; an aëronaut. [ 1913 Webster ]

(Zool.) A fish of the genus Diodon (such as Diodon holocanthus) or the genus Tetraodon, having the power of distending its body by taking air or water into its dilatable esophagus. It is similar to but smaller than the porcupinefish. See Globefish, and Bur fish. [ 1913 Webster + WordNet 1.5 ]

n. 1. The art or practice of managing balloons or voyaging in them; the sport of riding in balloons.
balloonry (archaic) [ 1913 Webster +PJC ]

2. (Stock Exchange) The process of temporarily raising the value of a stock, as by fictitious sales. [ U.S. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

(Zool.) A spider which has the habit of rising into the air. Many kinds (esp. species of Lycosa) do this while young by ejecting threads of silk until the force of the wind upon them carries the spider aloft. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. An aëronaut. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The art or practice of ascending in a balloon; an older term for ballooning. [ Archaic ] [ 1913 Webster +PJC ]

n. [ F. ballotte, fr. It. ballotta. See Ball round body. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. Originally, a ball used for secret voting. Hence: Any printed or written ticket used in voting. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The act of secret voting, whether by balls, written or printed ballots or tickets, or by use of a voting machine; the system of voting secretly. [ 1913 Webster +PJC ]

The insufficiency of the ballot. Dickens. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. The whole number of votes cast at an election, or in a given territory or electoral district. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. the official list of candidates competing in an election. There are no women on the ballot. [ 1913 Webster ]

Ballot box, (a) a box for receiving ballots. (b) the act, process or system of voting secretly; same as ballot{ 2 }. “The question will be resolved by the ballot box.” [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Balloted; p. pr. & vb. n. Balloting. ] [ F. ballotter to toss, to ballot, or It. ballottare. See Ballot, n. ] To vote or decide by ballot; as, to ballot for a candidate. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To vote for or in opposition to. [ 1913 Webster ]

None of the competitors arriving to a sufficient number of balls, they fell to ballot some others. Sir H. Wotton. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. ballottade, fr. ballotter to toss. See Ballot, v. i. ] (Man.) A leap of a horse, as between two pillars, or upon a straight line, so that when his four feet are in the air, he shows only the shoes of his hind feet, without jerking out. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. ballottage. ] In France, a second ballot taken after an indecisive first ballot to decide between two or several candidates; a runoff election. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. +PJC ]

n. Voting by ballot. [ Obs. ] Sir H. Wotton. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. One who votes by ballot. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ F. ] An officer who has charge of a ballot box. [ Obs. ] Harrington. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A cudgel. [ Obs. ] Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

‖n. [ Written also cavallo. ] [ Sp., fr. L. caballus a nag. See Cavalcade. ] A horse. [ Sp. Amer. ] [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

{ or }. One unprovided with motive power. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

. A small, unmanned balloon sent up to indicate the direction of air currents. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

. An unmanned balloon sent aloft for meteorological or aeronautic purposes. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]