Battening \Bat"ten*ing\, n. (Arch.) Furring done with small pieces nailed directly upon the wall.
Batten \Bat"ten\ (b[a^]t"t'n), v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Battened} (b[a^]t"t'nd); p. pr. & vb. n. {Battening}.] [See {Batful}.] 1. To make fat by plenteous feeding; to fatten. ``Battening our flocks.'' --Milton.
2. To fertilize or enrich, as land.
"Everyone is battening down the hatches waiting," Lawrence L. Kreicher, vice president and economist at Irving Trust Co., New York, said.