BEETLE (O. Eng. bityl; connected with " bite ")  , a name commonly applied to those insects which possess horny wing-cases; it is used to denote the cockroaches (q.v.) (black beetles), as well as the true beetles or Coleoptera (q.v.), the two belonging to different orders of Insecta . The adjective " beetle-browed," and similarly " beetling " (of a cliff), are derived from the name of the insect . From another word (O . Eng. betel, connected with " beat ") comes " beetle " in the sense of a mallet, and the " beetling-machine," which subjects fabrics to a hammering process .