bater

Bater is a verb in Portuguese and Galician with core meanings connected to striking or beating. It can denote physical impact (to hit or knock) as well as actions such as beating eggs or whipping cream, and it can extend to metaphorical uses like beating a score or breaking a record, and to marking time or rhythm in music.

In everyday usage, bater appears in numerous expressions. Bater na porta means to knock on a door; bater palmas means to clap; bater papo means to chat. In Brazilian Portuguese, the verb is highly productive for forming idioms and phrasal verbs, including bater o ponto (to clock in at work) and phrases referring to surpassing limits or achieving success (bater recordes, to beat records).

Bateria is a related noun with two main senses. In music, it refers to the percussion section or the set of drums. In everyday language, it also means a battery for electrical devices. The term is widely used in musical contexts (for example, a samba school's bateria) and in general to denote a power source or energy supply in technology.

Etymology and cognates: The word bater is of Romance origin, with cognates in related Iberian languages. It is generally traced to Latin-influenced roots that gave rise to the modern senses of beating, striking, and producing rhythm, and to derived forms such as bateria in both musical and technical contexts.