Merriam-Webster's Collegiate® Dictionary, 11th Edition
BATTEN
I. verb (battened; battening)
Etymology: probably from Old Norse batna to improve; akin to Old English betera better
Date: circa 1540
intransitive verb
1. to grow fat, to feed gluttonously, to grow prosperous especially at the expense of another, transitive verb fatten ,
II. noun
Etymology: alteration of Middle English batent, bataunt finished board, from Anglo-French *bataunt, from present participle of batre to beat, from Latin battuere
Date: 1658
1. a piece of lumber used especially for flooring, a thin narrow strip of lumber used especially to seal or reinforce a joint, a strip, bar, or support resembling or used similarly to a batten (as in a sail),
III. verb (battened; battening)
Date: 1663
transitive verb to furnish with battens, to fasten with or as if with battens, intransitive verb to make one secure by or as if by battens