Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Beetle \Bee"tle\ (b[=e]"t'l), n. [OE. betel, AS. b[=i]tl, b?tl,
   mallet, hammer, fr. be['a]tan to beat. See {Beat}, v. t.]
   1. A heavy mallet, used to drive wedges, beat pavements, etc.

   2. A machine in which fabrics are subjected to a hammering
      process while passing over rollers, as in cotton mills; --
      called also {beetling machine}. --Knight.