A small slit in a garment or piece of fabric for fastening a button.
Chiefly British A boutonniere.
To make a buttonhole in.
To sew with a buttonhole stitch.
To accost and detain (a person) in conversation by or as if by grasping the person's outer garments: "He was also frequently buttonholed by White House lobbyists . . . who seemed to be permanently assigned to shadow the burly Democrat” ( Terence Moran).