Meaning

noun an emblem (a small piece of plastic or cloth or metal) that signifies your status (rank or membership or affiliation etc.)

noun any feature that is regarded as a sign of status (a particular power or quality or rank)

verb put a badge on

originFrom Middle English badge, bagge, bage, bagy, from Anglo-Norman bage or Medieval Latin bagea, bagia (“sign, emblem”), of uncertain origin. Possibly derived from Medieval Latin baga (“ring”), from Old Saxon bāg, bōg (“ring, ornament”), from Proto-Germanic *baugaz (“ring, bracelet, armband”); or possibly the Anglo-Norman word is derived from an earlier, unattested English word (compare Old English…

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0