Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (based on the 1913 Merriam-Webster edition) pgw050mo
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Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary Version published 1913 by the C. & G. Merriam Co. Springfield, Mass. Under the direction of Noah Porter, D.D., LL.D.

This electronic version was prepared by MICRA, Inc. of Plainfield, NJ. Last edit February 11, 1999.

MICRA, Inc. makes no proprietary claims on this version of the 1913 Webster dictionary. If the original printed edition of the 1913 Webster is in the public domain, this version may also be considered as public domain.

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M.

M (&ebreve;m). 1. M, the thirteenth letter of the English alphabet, is a vocal consonant, and from the manner of its formation, is called the labio-nasal consonant. See Guide to Pronunciation, §§ 178-180, 242.

The letter M came into English from the Greek, through the Latin, the form of the Greek letter being further derived from the Phœnician, and ultimately, it is believed, from the Egyptian. Etymologically M is related to n, in lime, linden; emmet, ant; also to b.

M is readily followed by b and p. the position of the lips in the formation of both letters being the same. The relation of b and m is the same as that of d and t to n. and that of g and k to ng.

2. As a numeral, M stands for one thousand, both in English and Latin.

M, n. 1. (Print.) A quadrat, the face or top of which is a perfect square; also, the size of such a square in any given size of type, used as the unit of measurement for that type: 500 m’s of pica would be a piece of matter whose length and breadth in pica m’s multiplied together produce that number. [Written also em.]

2. (law) A brand or stigma, having the shape of an M, formerly impressed on one convicted of manslaughter and admitted to the benefit of clergy.

M roof (Arch.), a kind of roof formed by the junction of two common roofs with a valley between them, so that the section resembles the letter M.

Ma (mä), n. [Cf. Mamma.] 1. A child’s word for mother.

2. [Hind.] In Oriental countries, a respectful form of address given to a woman; mother. Balfour (Cyc. of India).

||Ma, conj. [It.] (Mus.) But; — used in cautionary phrases; as, “Vivace, ma non troppo presto” (i. e., lively, but not too quick). Moore (Encyc. of Music).

Maa (?), n. [See New a gull.] (Zoöl.) The common European gull (Larus canus); — called also mar. See New, a gull.

Maad (?), obs. p. p. of Make. Made. Chaucer.

Maa”lin (?), n. (Zoöl.) (a) The sparrow hawk. (b) The kestrel.

Ma’am (?), n. Madam; my lady; — a colloquial contraction of madam often used in direct address, and sometimes as an appellation.

Ma”a*ra shell` (?). (Zoöl.) A large, pearly, spiral, marine shell (Turbo margaritaceus), from the Pacific Islands. It is used as an ornament.

||Ma*ash”a (?), n. An East Indian coin, of about one tenth of the weight of a rupee.

Maat (?), a. [See Mate, a.] Dejected; sorrowful; downcast. [Obs.] “So piteous and so maat.” Chaucer.

Mab (măb), n. [Cf. W. mad a male child, a boy.]

1. A slattern. [Prov. Eng.]

2. The name of a female fairy, esp. the queen of the fairies; and hence, sometimes, any fairy. Shak.

Mab”ble (?), v. t. To wrap up. [Obs.]

Mab”by (?), n. A spirituous liquor or drink distilled from potatoes; — used in the Barbadoes.

||Ma*bo”lo (?), n. (Bot.) A kind of persimmon tree (Diospyros discolor) from the Philippine Islands, now introduced into the East and West Indies. It bears an edible fruit as large as a quince.

Mac (?). [Gael., son.] A prefix, in names of Scotch origin, signifying son.

||Ma*ca”co (?), n. [Cf. Pg. macaco.] (Zoöl.) Any one of several species of lemurs, as the ruffed lemur (Lemur macaco), and the ring- tailed lemur (L. catta).

||Ma*ca”cus (?), n. [NL., a word of African origin. Cf. Macaco, Macaque.] (Zoöl.) A genus of monkeys, found in Asia and the East Indies. They have short tails and prominent eyebrows.

Mac*ad`am*i*za”tion (?), n. The process or act of macadamizing.

Mac*ad”am*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Macadamized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Macadamizing.] [From John Loudon McAdam, who introduced the process into Great Britain in 1816.] To cover, as a road, or street, with small, broken stones, so as to form a smooth, hard, convex surface.

Mac*ad”am road` (?). [See Macadamize.] A macadamized road.

Ma*ca”o (?), n. (Zoöl.) A macaw.

||Ma`caque” (?), n. [F. See Macacus.] (Zoöl.) Any one of several species of short-tailed monkeys of the genus Macacus; as, M. maurus, the moor macaque of the East Indies.

Mac`a*ran”ga gum` (?). A gum of a crimson color, obtained from a tree (Macaranga Indica) that grows in the East Indies. It is used in taking impressions of coins, medallions, etc., and sometimes as a medicine. Balfour (Cyc. of India).

Mac”a*rize, v. t. [Gr. &?; to bless.] To congratulate. [Oxford Univ. Cant] Whately.

Mac`a*ro”ni (?), n.; pl. Macaronis (#), or Macaronies. [Prov. It. macaroni, It. maccheroni, fr. Gr. &?; happiness, later, a funeral feast, fr. &?; blessed, happy. Prob. so called because eaten at such feasts in honor of the dead; cf. Gr. &?; blessed, i. e., dead. Cf. Macaroon.] 1. Long slender tubes made of a paste chiefly of wheat flour, and used as an article of food; Italian or Genoese paste.

&fist; A paste similarly prepared is largely used as food in Persia, India, and China, but is not commonly made tubular like the Italian macaroni. Balfour (Cyc. of India).

2. A medley; something droll or extravagant.

3. A sort of droll or fool. [Obs.] Addison.

4. A finical person; a fop; — applied especially to English fops of about 1775. Goldsmith.

5. pl. (U. S. Hist.) The designation of a body of Maryland soldiers in the Revolutionary War, distinguished by a rich uniform. W. Irving.

{ Mac`a*ro”ni*an (?), Mac`a*ron”ic (?), } a. [Cf. It. maccheronico, F. macaronique.] 1. Pertaining to, or like, macaroni (originally a dish of mixed food); hence, mixed; confused; jumbled.

2. Of or pertaining to the burlesque composition called macaronic; as, macaronic poetry.

Mac`a*ron”ic (?), n. 1. A heap of thing confusedly mixed together; a jumble.

2. A kind of burlesque composition, in which the vernacular words of one or more modern languages are intermixed with genuine Latin words, and with hybrid formed by adding Latin terminations to other roots.

Mac`a*roon” (?), n. [F. macaron, It. maccherone. See Macaroni.] 1. A small cake, composed chiefly of the white of eggs, almonds, and sugar.

2. A finical fellow, or macaroni. [Obs.]

Ma*cart”ney (?), n. [From Lord Macartney.] (Zoöl.) A fire-backed pheasant. See Fireback.

Ma*cas`sar oil” (?). A kind of oil formerly used in dressing the hair; — so called because originally obtained from Macassar, a district of the Island of Celebes. Also, an imitation of the same, of perfumed castor oil and olive oil.

||Ma*cau”co (?), n. (Zoöl.) Any one of several species of small lemurs, as Lemur murinus, which resembles a rat in size.

||Ma`ca*va”hu (?), n. (Zoöl.) A small Brazilian monkey (Callithrix torquatus), — called also collared teetee.

Ma*caw” (?), n. [From the native name in the Antilles.] (Zoöl.) Any parrot of the genus Sittace, or Macrocercus. About eighteen species are known, all of them American. They are large and have a very long tail, a strong hooked bill, and a naked space around the eyes. The voice is harsh, and the colors are brilliant and strongly contrasted.

Macaw bush (Bot.), a West Indian name for a prickly kind of nightshade (Solanum mammosum). — Macaw palm, Macaw tree (Bot.), a tropical American palm (Acrocomia fusiformis and other species) having a prickly stem and pinnately divided leaves. Its nut yields a yellow butter, with the perfume of violets, which is used in making violet soap. Called also grugru palm.

Mac`ca*be”an (?), a. Of or pertaining to Judas Maccabeus or to the Maccabees; as, the Maccabean princes; Maccabean times.

Mac”ca*bees (?), n. pl. 1. The name given in later times to the Asmonæans, a family of Jewish patriots, who headed a religious revolt in the reign of Antiochus IV., 168-161 B. C., which led to a period of freedom for Israel. Schaff-Herzog.

2. The name of two ancient historical books, which give accounts of Jewish affairs in or about the time of the Maccabean princes, and which are received as canonical books in the Roman Catholic Church, but are included in the Apocrypha by Protestants. Also applied to three books, two of which are found in some MSS. of the Septuagint.

{ Mac”ca*boy (?), Mac”co*boy (?), } n. [From a district in the Island of Martinique where it is made: cf. F. macouba.] A kind of snuff.

Mac”co (?), n. A gambling game in vogue in the eighteenth century. Thackeray.

Mace (?), n. [Jav. & Malay. mās, fr. Skr. māsha a bean.] A money of account in China equal to one tenth of a tael; also, a weight of 57.98 grains. S. W. Williams.

Mace (?), n. [F. macis, L. macis, macir, Gr. &?;; cf. Skr. makaranda the nectar or honey of a flower, a fragrant mango.] (Bot.) A kind of spice; the aril which partly covers nutmegs. See Nutmeg.

&fist; Red mace is the aril of Myristica tingens, and white mace that of M. Otoba, — East Indian trees of the same genus with the nutmeg tree.

Mace, n. [OF. mace, F. masse, from (assumed) L. matea, of which the dim. mateola a kind of mallet or beetle, is found.] 1. A heavy staff or club of metal; a spiked club; — used as weapon in war before the general use of firearms, especially in the Middle Ages, for breaking metal armor. Chaucer.

Death with his mace petrific . . . smote.

Milton.

2. Hence: A staff borne by, or carried before, a magistrate as an ensign of his authority. “Swayed the royal mace.” Wordsworth.

3. An officer who carries a mace as an emblem of authority. Macaulay.

4. A knobbed mallet used by curriers in dressing leather to make it supple.

5. (Billiards) A rod for playing billiards, having one end suited to resting on the table and pushed with one hand.

Mace bearer, an officer who carries a mace before persons in authority.

Mac`e*do”ni*an (?), a. [L. Macedonius, Gr. &?;.] (Geog.) Belonging, or relating, to Macedonia. — n. A native or inhabitant of Macedonia.

Mac`e*do”ni*an, n. (Eccl. Hist.) One of a certain religious sect, followers of Macedonius, Bishop of Constantinople, in the fourth century, who held that the Holy Ghost was a creature, like the angels, and a servant of the Father and the Son.

Mac`e*do”ni*an*ism (?), n. The doctrines of Macedonius.

Ma”cer (?), n. [F. massier. See Mace staff.] A mace bearer; an officer of a court. P. Plowman.

Mac”er*ate (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Macerated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Macerating.] [L. maceratus, p. p. of macerare to make soft, weaken, enervate; cf. Gr. &?; to knead.] 1. To make lean; to cause to waste away. [Obs. or R.] Harvey.

2. To subdue the appetites of by poor and scanty diet; to mortify. Baker.

3. To soften by steeping in a liquid, with or without heat; to wear away or separate the parts of by steeping; as, to macerate animal or vegetable fiber.

Mac”er*a`ter (?), n. One who, or that which, macerates; an apparatus for converting paper or fibrous matter into pulp.

Mac`er*a”tion (?), n. [L. maceratio: cf. F. macération.] The act or process of macerating.

{ ||Ma*chæ“ro*dus (m&adot;*kē“r&osl;*dŭs), ||Ma*chai”ro*dus (m&adot;*kī“r&osl;*dŭs), } n. [NL., fr. Gr. ma`chaira dagger + ‘odoy`s tooth.] (Paleon.) A genus of extinct mammals allied to the cats, and having in the upper jaw canine teeth of remarkable size and strength; — hence called saber-toothed tigers.

||Ma*che”te (m&adot;*chā“t&asl;), n. [Sp.] A large heavy knife resembling a broadsword, often two or three feet in length, — used by the inhabitants of Spanish America as a hatchet to cut their way through thickets, and for various other purposes. J. Stevens.

Mach`i*a*vel”ian (?), a. [From Machiavel, an Italian writer, secretary and historiographer to the republic of Florence.] Of or pertaining to Machiavel, or to his supposed principles; politically cunning; characterized by duplicity or bad faith; crafty.

Mach`i*a*vel”ian, n. One who adopts the principles of Machiavel; a cunning and unprincipled politician.

{ Mach”i*a*vel*ism (?), Mach`i*a*vel”ian*ism (?), } n. [Cf. F. machiavélisme; It. machiavellismo.] The supposed principles of Machiavel, or practice in conformity to them; political artifice, intended to favor arbitrary power.

Ma*chic”o*la`ted (?), a. [LL. machicolatus, p. p. of machicolare, machicollare. See Machicolation.] Having machicolations. “Machicolated turrets.” C. Kingsley.

Mach`i*co*la”tion (?), n. [Cf. LL. machicolamentum, machacolladura, F. mâchicolis, mâchecoulis; perh. fr. F. mèche match, combustible matter + OF. coulis, couleis, flowing, fr. OF. & F. couler to flow. Cf. Match for making fire, and Cullis.]

1. (Mil. Arch.) An opening between the corbels which support a projecting parapet, or in the floor of a gallery or the roof of a portal, for shooting or dropping missiles upon assailants attacking the base of the walls. Also, the construction of such defenses, in general, when of this character. See Illusts. of Battlement and Castle.

2. The act of discharging missiles or pouring burning or melted substances upon assailants through such apertures.

||Ma`chi`cou`lis” (?), n. [F. mâchicoulis.] (Mil. Arch.) Same as Machicolation.

Ma*chin”al (?), a. [L. machinalis: cf. F. machinal.] Of or pertaining to machines.

Mach”i*nate (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Machinated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Machinating (?).] [L. machinatus, p. p. of machinari to devise, plot. See Machine.] To plan; to contrive; esp., to form a scheme with the purpose of doing harm; to contrive artfully; to plot. “How long will you machinate!” Sandys.

Mach”i*nate (?), v. t. To contrive, as a plot; to plot; as, to machinate evil.

Mach`i*na”tion (?), n. [L. machinatio: cf. F. machination.] 1. The act of machinating. Shak.

2. That which is devised; a device; a hostile or treacherous scheme; an artful design or plot.

Devilish machinations come to naught.

Milton.

His ingenious machinations had failed.

Macaulay.

Mach”i*na`tor (?), n. [L.] One who machinates, or forms a scheme with evil designs; a plotter or artful schemer. Glanvill. Sir W. Scott.

Ma*chine” (m&adot;*shēn”), n. [F., fr. L. machina machine, engine, device, trick, Gr. &?;, from &?; means, expedient. Cf. Mechanic.] 1. In general, any combination of bodies so connected that their relative motions are constrained, and by means of which force and motion may be transmitted and modified, as a screw and its nut, or a lever arranged to turn about a fulcrum or a pulley about its pivot, etc.; especially, a construction, more or less complex, consisting of a combination of moving parts, or simple mechanical elements, as wheels, levers, cams, etc., with their supports and connecting framework, calculated to constitute a prime mover, or to receive force and motion from a prime mover or from another machine, and transmit, modify, and apply them to the production of some desired mechanical effect or work, as weaving by a loom, or the excitation of electricity by an electrical machine.

&fist; The term machine is most commonly applied to such pieces of mechanism as are used in the industrial arts, for mechanically shaping, dressing, and combining materials for various purposes, as in the manufacture of cloth, etc. Where the effect is chemical, or other than mechanical, the contrivance is usually denominated an apparatus, not a machine; as, a bleaching apparatus. Many large, powerful, or specially important pieces of mechanism are called engines; as, a steam engine, fire engine, graduating engine, etc. Although there is no well-settled distinction between the terms engine and machine among practical men, there is a tendency to restrict the application of the former to contrivances in which the operating part is not distinct from the motor.

2. Any mechanical contrivance, as the wooden horse with which the Greeks entered Troy; a coach; a bicycle. Dryden. Southey. Thackeray.

3. A person who acts mechanically or at the will of another.

4. A combination of persons acting together for a common purpose, with the agencies which they use; as, the social machine.

The whole machine of government ought not to bear upon the people with a weight so heavy and oppressive.

Landor.

5. A political organization arranged and controlled by one or more leaders for selfish, private or partisan ends. [Political Cant]

6. Supernatural agency in a poem, or a superhuman being introduced to perform some exploit. Addison.

Elementary machine, a name sometimes given to one of the simple mechanical powers. See under Mechanical. — Infernal machine. See under Infernal. — Machine gun.See under Gun. — Machine screw, a screw or bolt adapted for screwing into metal, in distinction from one which is designed especially to be screwed into wood. — Machine shop, a workshop where machines are made, or where metal is shaped by cutting, filing, turning, etc. — Machine tool, a machine for cutting or shaping wood, metal, etc., by means of a tool; especially, a machine, as a lathe, planer, drilling machine, etc., designed for a more or less general use in a machine shop, in distinction from a machine for producing a special article as in manufacturing. — Machine twist, silken thread especially adapted for use in a sewing machine. — Machine work, work done by a machine, in contradistinction to that done by hand labor.

Ma*chine”, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Machined (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Machining.] To subject to the action of machinery; to effect by aid of machinery; to print with a printing machine.

Ma*chin”er (?), n. One who or operates a machine; a machinist. [R.]

Ma*chin”er*y (?), n. [From Machine: cf. F. machinerie.] 1. Machines, in general, or collectively.

2. The working parts of a machine, engine, or instrument; as, the machinery of a watch.

3. The supernatural means by which the action of a poetic or fictitious work is carried on and brought to a catastrophe; in an extended sense, the contrivances by which the crises and conclusion of a fictitious narrative, in prose or verse, are effected.

The machinery, madam, is a term invented by the critics, to signify that part which the deities, angels, or demons, are made to act in a poem.

Pope.

4. The means and appliances by which anything is kept in action or a desired result is obtained; a complex system of parts adapted to a purpose.

An indispensable part of the machinery of state.

Macaulay.

The delicate inflexional machinery of the Aryan languages.

I. Taylor (The Alphabet).

Ma*chin”ing, a. Of or pertaining to the machinery of a poem; acting or used as a machine. [Obs.] Dryden.

Ma*chin”ist, n. [Cf. F. machiniste.] 1. A constrictor of machines and engines; one versed in the principles of machines.

2. One skilled in the use of machine tools.

3. A person employed to shift scenery in a theater.

Ma”cho (?), n. [Sp.] (Zoöl.) The striped mullet of California (Mugil cephalus, or Mexicanus).

Mac”i*len*cy (?), n. [See Macilent.] Leanness. [Obs.] Sandys.

Mac”i*lent (?), a. [L. macilentus, fr. macies leanness, macere to be lean.] Lean; thin. [Obs.] Bailey.

Mac”in*tosh (?), n. Same as Mackintosh.

Mack”er*el (?), n. [OF. maquerel, F. maquereau, fr. D. makelaar mediator, agent, fr. makelen to act as agent.] A pimp; also, a bawd. [Obs.] Halliwell.

Mack`er*el (?), n. [OF. maquerel, F. maquereau (LL. macarellus), prob. for maclereau, fr. L. macula a spot, in allusion to the markings on the fish. See Mail armor.] (Zoöl.) Any species of the genus Scomber, and of several related genera. They are finely formed and very active oceanic fishes. Most of them are highly prized for food.

&fist; The common mackerel (Scomber scombrus), which inhabits both sides of the North Atlantic, is one of the most important food fishes. It is mottled with green and blue. The Spanish mackerel (Scomberomorus maculatus), of the American coast, is covered with bright yellow circular spots.

Bull mackerel, Chub mackerel. (Zoöl.) See under Chub. — Frigate mackerel. See under Frigate. — Horse mackerel . See under Horse. — Mackerel bird (Zoöl.), the wryneck; — so called because it arrives in England at the time when mackerel are in season. — Mackerel cock (Zoöl.), the Manx shearwater; — so called because it precedes the appearance of the mackerel on the east coast of Ireland. — Mackerel guide. (Zoöl.) See Garfish (a). — Mackerel gull (Zoöl.) any one of several species of gull which feed upon or follow mackerel, as the kittiwake. — Mackerel midge (Zoöl.), a very small oceanic gadoid fish of the North Atlantic. It is about an inch and a half long and has four barbels on the upper jaw. It is now considered the young of the genus Onos, or Motella. — Mackerel plow, an instrument for creasing the sides of lean mackerel to improve their appearance. Knight. — Mackerel shark (Zoöl.), the porbeagle. — Mackerel sky, or Mackerel-back sky, a sky flecked with small white clouds; a cirro-cumulus. See Cloud.

Mackerel sky and mare’s-tails
Make tall ships carry low sails.

Old Rhyme.

{ Mack”i*naw blan”ket (?), Mack”i*naw. }[From Mackinac, the State of Michigan, where blankets and other stores were distributed to the Indians.] A thick blanket formerly in common use in the western part of the United States.

Mack”in*tosh (?), n. A waterproof outer garment; — so called from the name of the inventor.

Mac”kle (?), n. [See Macle.] Same as Macule.

Mac”kle, v. t. & i. To blur, or be blurred, in printing, as if there were a double impression.

Ma”cle (?), n. [L. macula a spot: cf. F. macle. Cf. Mackle, Mascle.] (Min.) (a) Chiastolite; — so called from the tessellated appearance of a cross section. See Chiastolite. (b) A crystal having a similar tessellated appearance. (c) A twin crystal.

Ma”cled (?), a. 1. (Min.) (a) Marked like macle (chiastolite). (b) Having a twin structure. See Twin, a.

2. See Mascled.

||Ma*clu”re*a (?), n. [NL. Named from William Maclure, the geologist.] (Paleon.) A genus of spiral gastropod shells, often of large size, characteristic of the lower Silurian rocks.

Ma*clu”rin (?), n. (Chem.) See Morintannic.

Mac”ra*me lace” (?). A coarse lace made of twine, used especially in decorating furniture.

{ Mac`ren*ce*phal”ic (?), Mac`ren*ceph”a*lous (?), } a. [Macro + encephalic, encephalous.] Having a large brain.

Mac”ro- (?). [Gr. makro`s, adj.] A combining form signifying long, large, great; as macrodiagonal, macrospore.

Mac`ro*bi*ot”ic (?), a. [Gr. &?; long- lived; makro`s long + &?; life: cf. F. macrobiotique.] Long-lived. Dunglison.

Mac`ro*bi*ot”ics (?), n. (Physiol.) The art of prolonging life.

Mac`ro*ceph”a*lous (?), a. [Macro + Gr. kefalh` the head.] 1. Having a large head.

2. (Bot.) Having the cotyledons of a dicotyledonous embryo confluent, and forming a large mass compared with the rest of the body. Henslow.

Mac`ro-chem”is*try (?), n. [Macro- + chemistry.] (Chem.) The science which treats of the chemical properties, actions or relations of substances in quantity; — distinguished from micro-chemistry.

||Mac`ro*chi”res (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. makro`s long + &?; hand.] (Zoöl.) A division of birds including the swifts and humming birds. So called from the length of the distal part of the wing.

Mac”ro*cosm (?), n. [Macro- + Gr. &?; the world: cf. F. macrocosme.] The great world; that part of the universe which is exterior to man; — contrasted with microcosm, or man. See Microcosm.

Mac`ro*cos”mic (?), a. Of or pertaining to the macrocosm. Tylor.

||Mac`ro*cys”tis (?), n. [NL. See Macro-, and Cyst.] (Bot.) An immensely long blackish seaweed of the Pacific (Macrocystis pyrifera), having numerous almond-shaped air vessels.

Mac`ro*dac”tyl (măk`r&osl;*dăk”t&ibreve;l), n. [Gr. makroda`ktylos long-fingered; makro`s long + da`ktylos finger: cf. F. macrodactyle.] (Zoöl.) One of a group of wading birds (Macrodactyli) having very long toes. [Written also macrodactyle.]

{ Mac`ro*dac*tyl”ic (?), Mac`ro*dac”tyl*ous (?), } a. (Zoöl.) Having long toes.

Mac`ro*di*ag”o*nal (?), n. [Macro- + diagonal.] (Crystallog.) The longer of two diagonals, as of a rhombic prism. See Crystallization.

Mac”ro*dome (?), n. [Macro- + dome.] (Crystallog.) A dome parallel to the longer lateral axis of an orthorhombic crystal. See Dome, n., 4.

Mac”ro*dont, a. [Macro- + Gr. ‘odoy`s, ‘odo`ntos, a tooth.] (Zoöl.) Having large teeth. — n. A macrodont animal.

Mac”ro*far`ad (?), n. [Macro- + farad.] (Elec.) See Megafarad. [R.]

||Mac`ro*glos”si*a (?), n. [NL. See Macro-, and Glossa.] (Med.) Enlargement or hypertrophy of the tongue.

Mac`rog*nath”ic (?), a. [Macro- + gnathic.] (Anthropol.) Long-jawed. Huxley.

Ma*crol”o*gy (?), n. [L. macrologia, Gr. &?;; &?; long + lo`gos discourse: cf. F. macrologie.] Long and tedious talk without much substance; superfluity of words.

Ma*crom”e*ter (?), n. [Macro- + -meter.] An instrument for determining the size or distance of inaccessible objects by means of two reflectors on a common sextant.

Ma”cron (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; long.] (Pron.) A short, straight, horizontal mark [-], placed over vowels to denote that they are to be pronounced with a long sound; as, ā, in dāme; ē, in sēam, etc.

Mac`ro*pet”al*ous (?), a. [Macro- + petal.] (Bot.) Having long or large petals.

Ma*croph”yl*lous (?), a. [Macro- + Gr. &?; a leaf.] (Bot.) Having long or large leaves.

Mac`ro*pin”a*coid (?), n. [Macro- + pinacoid.] (Crystallog.) One of the two planes of an orthorhombic crystal which are parallel to the vertical and longer lateral (macrodiagonal) axes.

Mac”ro*pod (?), n. [Macro- + -pod.] (Zoöl.) Any one of a group of maioid crabs remarkable for the length of their legs; — called also spider crab.

Ma*crop”o*dal (?), a. Having long or large feet, or a long stem.

Mac`ro*po”di*an (?), n. A macropod.

Ma*crop”o*dous (?), a. (Zoöl.) Having long legs or feet.

Mac”ro*prism (?), n. [Macro- + prism.] (Crystallog.) A prism of an orthorhombic crystal between the macropinacoid and the unit prism; the corresponding pyramids are called macropyramids.

||Ma*crop”te*res (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; long + &?; feather, wing.] (Zoöl.) A division of birds; the Longipennes.

Ma*crop”ter*ous (?), a. [See Macropteres.] (Zoöl.) Having long wings.

||Mac”ro*pus (?), n. [NL. See Macropod.] (Zoöl.) A genus of marsupials including the common kangaroo.

Mac`ro*pyr”a*mid (?), n. [Macro- + pyramid.] (Crystallog.) See Macroprism.

{ Mac`ro*scop”ic (?), Mac`ro*scop”ic*al (?), } a. [Macro- + Gr. &?; to view.] Visible to the unassisted eye; — as opposed to microscopic. — Mac`ro*scop”ic*al*ly, adv.

||Mac`ro*spo*ran”gi*um (?), n. [NL. See Macro-, and Sporangium.] (Bot.) A sporangium or conceptacle containing only large spores; — opposed to microsporangium. Both are found in the genera Selaginella, Isoctes, and Marsilia, plants remotely allied to ferns.

Mac”ro*spore (?), n. [Macro- + spore.] (Bot.) One of the specially large spores of certain flowerless plants, as Selaginella, etc.

Mac`ro*spor”ic (?), a. (Bot.) Of or pertaining to macrospores.

Mac”ro*tone (?), n. [Gr. &?; stretched out. See Macro-, and Tone.] (Pron.) Same as Macron.

Ma*cro”tous (?), a. [Macro- + Gr. o”y^s, gen. ‘wto`s, the ear.] (Zoöl.) Large-eared.

||Ma*crou”ra (?), n. pl., Ma*crou”ral (&?;), a., etc. (Zoöl.) Same as Macrura, Macrural, etc.

Mac`ro*zo”ö*spore (?), n. [Macro- + zoöspore.] (Bot.) A large motile spore having four vibratile cilia; — found in certain green algæ.

||Ma*cru”ra (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; long + &?; tail.] (Zoöl.) A subdivision of decapod Crustacea, having the abdomen largely developed. It includes the lobster, prawn, shrimp, and many similar forms. Cf. Decapoda.

Ma*cru”ral (?), a. (Zoöl.) Same as Macrurous.

Ma*cru”ran (?), n. (Zoöl.) One of the Macrura.

Ma*cru”roid (?), a. [Macrura + -oid.] (Zoöl.) Like or pertaining to the Macrura.

Ma*cru”rous (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Macrura; having a long tail.

Mac*ta”tion (?), n. [L. mactatio, fr. macture to slay, sacrifice.] The act of killing a victim for sacrifice. [Obs.]

||Mac”tra (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; kneading trough, fr. &?; to knead.] (Zoöl.) Any marine bivalve shell of the genus Mactra, and allied genera. Many species are known. Some of them are used as food, as Mactra stultorum, of Europe. See Surf clam, under Surf.

||Mac”u*la (?), n.; pl. Maculæ (#). [L., spot, stain, blot. See Mail armor, and cf. Mackle, Macule.] 1. A spot, as on the skin, or on the surface of the sun or of some other luminous orb.

2. (Zoöl.) A rather large spot or blotch of color.

Mac”u*late (?), v. t. [L. maculatus, p. p. of maculare to spot. See Macula, and cf. Macule, v.] To spot; to stain; to blur.

Maculate the honor of their people.

Sir T. Elyot.

Mac”u*late (?), a. [L. maculatus, p. p.] Marked with spots or maculæ; blotched; hence, defiled; impure; as, most maculate thoughts. Shak.

Mac”u*la`ted (?), a. Having spots or blotches; maculate.

Mac”u*la”tion (?), n. [L. maculatio.] The act of spotting; a spot; a blemish. Shak.

Mac”u*la*to*ry (?), a. Causing a spot or stain. T. Adams.

Mac”u*la*ture (?), n. Blotting paper. [Obs.]

Mac”ule (?), n. [F. macule. See Macula.] 1. A spot. [Obs.]

2. (Print.) A blur, or an appearance of a double impression, as when the paper slips a little; a mackle.

Mac”ule, v. t. [Cf. F. maculer. See Maculate, v.] To blur; especially (Print.), to blur or double an impression from type. See Mackle.

Mac”u*lose` (?), a. [L. maculosus.] Of or pertaining to spots upon a surface; spotted; maculate.

Mad (?), obs. p. p. of Made. Chaucer.

Mad (?), a. [Compar. Madder (?); superl. Maddest (?).] [AS. gem&?;d, gemād, mad; akin to OS. gem&?;d foolish, OHG. gameit, Icel. mei&?;a to hurt, Goth. gamáids weak, broken. &?;.] 1. Disordered in intellect; crazy; insane.

I have heard my grandsire say full oft,
Extremity of griefs would make men mad.

Shak.

2. Excited beyond self-control or the restraint of reason; inflamed by violent or uncontrollable desire, passion, or appetite; as, to be mad with terror, lust, or hatred; mad against political reform.

It is the land of graven images, and they are mad upon their idols.

Jer. 1. 88.

And being exceedingly mad against them, I persecuted them even unto strange cities.

Acts xxvi. 11.

3. Proceeding from, or indicating, madness; expressing distraction; prompted by infatuation, fury, or extreme rashness. “Mad demeanor.” Milton.

Mad wars destroy in one year the works of many years of peace.

Franklin.

The mad promise of Cleon was fulfilled.

Jowett (Thucyd.).

4. Extravagant; immoderate. “Be mad and merry.” Shak. “Fetching mad bounds.” Shak.

5. Furious with rage, terror, or disease; — said of the lower animals; as, a mad bull; esp., having hydrophobia; rabid; as, a mad dog.

6. Angry; out of patience; vexed; as, to get mad at a person. [Colloq.]

7. Having impaired polarity; — applied to a compass needle. [Colloq.]

Like mad, like a mad person; in a furious manner; as, to run like mad. L’Estrange. — To run mad. (a) To become wild with excitement. (b) To run wildly about under the influence of hydrophobia; to become affected with hydrophobia. — To run mad after, to pursue under the influence of infatuation or immoderate desire. “The world is running mad after farce.” Dryden.

Mad, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Madded; p. pr. & vb. n. Madding.] To make mad or furious; to madden.

Had I but seen thy picture in this plight,
It would have madded me.

Shak.

Mad, v. i. To be mad; to go mad; to rave. See Madding. [Archaic] Chaucer.

Festus said with great voice, Paul thou maddest.

Wyclif (Acts).

Mad, n. [AS. ma&?;a; akin to D. & G. made, Goth. mapa, and prob. to E. moth.] (Zoöl.) An earthworm. [Written also made.]

Mad”am (?), n.; pl. Madams, or Mesdames (#). [See Madame.] A gentlewoman; — an appellation or courteous form of address given to a lady, especially an elderly or a married lady; — much used in the address, at the beginning of a letter, to a woman. The corresponding word in addressing a man is Sir.

||Ma`dame” (?), n.; pl. Mesdames (#). [F., fr. ma my (L. mea) + dame dame. See Dame, and cf. Madonna.] My lady; — a French title formerly given to ladies of quality; now, in France, given to all married women. Chaucer.

Mad”-ap`ple (?), n. (Bot.) See Eggplant.

Mad”brain` (?), a. Hot-headed; rash. Shak. — n. A rash or hot- headed person.

Mad”brained` (?), a. Disordered in mind; hot-headed. Shak.

Mad”cap` (?), a. 1. Inclined to wild sports; delighting in rash, absurd, or dangerous amusements. “The merry madcap lord.” Shak.

2. Wild; reckless. “Madcap follies” Beau. & Fl.

Mad”cap`, n. A person of wild behavior; an excitable, rash, violent person. Shak.

Mad”den (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Maddened (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Maddening.] To make mad; to drive to madness; to craze; to excite violently with passion; to make very angry; to enrage.

Mad”den, v. i. To become mad; to act as if mad.

They rave, recite, and madden round the land.

Pope.

Mad”der (măd”d&etilde;r), n. [OE. mader, AS. mædere; akin to Icel. maðra.] (Bot.) A plant of the genus Rubia (R. tinctorum). The root is much used in dyeing red, and formerly was used in medicine. It is cultivated in France and Holland. See Rubiaceous.

&fist; Madder is sometimes used in forming pigments, as lakes, etc., which receive their names from their colors; as. madder yellow.

Field madder, an annual European weed (Sherardia arvensis) resembling madder. — Indian madder , the East Indian Rubia cordifolia, used in the East for dyeing; — called also munjeet. — Wild madder, Rubia peregrina of Europe; also the Galium Mollugo, a kind of bedstraw.

Mad”der*wort` (?), n. (Bot.) A name proposed for any plant of the same natural order (Rubiaceæ) as the madder.

Mad”ding (?), a. Affected with madness; raging; furious. — Mad”ding*ly, adv. [Archaic]

Far from the madding crowd’s ignoble strife.

Gray.

The madding wheels
Of brazen chariots raged.

Milton.

Mad”dish (?), a. Somewhat mad. Beau. & Fl.

Made (?), n. (Zoöl.) See Mad, n.

Made (?), imp. & p. p. of Make.

Made, a. Artificially produced; pieced together; formed by filling in; as, made ground; a made mast, in distinction from one consisting of a single spar.

Made up. (a) Complete; perfect. “A made up villain.” Shak. (b) Falsely devised; fabricated; as, a made up story. (c) Artificial; as, a made up figure or complexion.

{ Mad”e*cass (?), Mad`e*cas”see (?), } n. A native or inhabitant of Madagascar, or Madecassee; the language of the natives of Madagascar. See Malagasy.

Mad`e*cas”see, a. Of or pertaining to Madagascar or its inhabitants.

{ Mad`e*fac”tion (?), Mad`e*fi*ca”tion (?), } n. [L. madefacere to make wet; madere to be wet + facere to make: cf. F. madéfaction.] The act of madefying, or making wet; the state of that which is made wet. [R.] Bacon.

Mad”e*fy (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Madefied (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Madefying (?).] [Cf. F. madéfier, L. madefacere. See Madefaction.] To make wet or moist. [R.]

Mad`e*gas”sy (?), n. & a. See Madecassee.

Ma*dei”ra (?), n. [Pg., the Island Madeira, properly, wood, fr. L. materia stuff, wood. The island was so called because well wooded. See Matter.] A rich wine made on the Island of Madeira.

A cup of Madeira, and a cold capon’s leg.

Shak.

Madeira nut (Bot.), the European walnut; the nut of the Juglans regia.

||Ma`de*moi`selle” (?), n.; pl. Mesdemoiselles (#). [F., fr. ma my, f. of mon + demoiselle young lady. See Damsel.] 1. A French title of courtesy given to a girl or an unmarried lady, equivalent to the English Miss. Goldsmith.

2. (Zoöl.) A marine food fish (Sciæna chrysura), of the Southern United States; — called also yellowtail, and silver perch.

Madge, n. [Cf. OF. & Prov. F. machette.] (Zoöl.) (a) The barn owl. (b) The magpie.

Mad”head`ed (?), a. Wild; crack brained.

Mad”house` (?), n. A house where insane persons are confined; an insane asylum; a bedlam.

||Ma”di*a (?), n. [NL., fr. Sp. madi, fr. Chilian madi, the native name.] (Bot.) A genus of composite plants, of which one species (Madia sativa) is cultivated for the oil yielded from its seeds by pressure. This oil is sometimes used instead of olive oil for the table.

Mad”id (?), a. [L. madidus, fr. madere to be wet.] Wet; moist; as, a madid eye. [R.] Beaconsfield.

||Mad`is*te”ri*um (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;.] (Surg.) An instrument to extract hairs.

||Mad”joun (?), n. [Hind., fr. Ar. ma’j&?;n.] An intoxicating confection from the hemp plant; — used by the Turks and Hindoos. [Written also majoun.]

Mad”ly (?), adv. [From Mad, a.] In a mad manner; without reason or understanding; wildly.

Mad”man (?), n.; pl. Madmen (&?;). A man who is mad; lunatic; a crazy person.

When a man mistakes his thoughts for person and things, he is mad. A madman is properly so defined.

Coleridge.

Mad”nep (?), n. (Bot.) The masterwort (Peucedanum Ostruthium).

Mad”ness, n. [From Mad, a.] 1. The condition of being mad; insanity; lunacy.

2. Frenzy; ungovernable rage; extreme folly.

Syn. — Insanity; distraction; derangement; craziness; lunacy; mania; frenzy; franticness; rage; aberration; alienation; monomania. See Insanity.

Ma*don”na (?), n. [It. madonna my lady. See Dame, Donna, and cf. Madame, Monkey.] 1. My lady; — a term of address in Italian formerly used as the equivalent of Madame, but for which Signora is now substituted. Sometimes introduced into English. Shak.

2. [pl. Madonnas (n&adot;z).] A picture of the Virgin Mary (usually with the babe).

The Italian painters are noted for drawing the Madonnas by their own wives or mistresses.

Rymer.

||Ma”do*qua (?), n. (Zoöl.) A small Abyssinian antelope (Neotragus Saltiana), about the size of a hare.

||Ma`drague” (?), n. [R.] A large fish pound used for the capture of the tunny in the Mediterranean; also applied to the seines used for the same purpose.

Ma”dre*perl (?), n. [It. madreperla.] Mother-of-pearl.

||Mad`re*po”ra (măd`r&esl;*pō“r&adot;), n. [NL. See Madrepore.] (Zoöl.) A genus of reef corals abundant in tropical seas. It includes than one hundred and fifty species, most of which are elegantly branched. — Mad`re*po”ral (#), a.

||Mad`re*po*ra”ri*a (?), n. pl. [NL. See Madrepore.] (Zoöl.) An extensive division of Anthozoa, including most of the species that produce stony corals. See Illust. of Anthozoa. — Mad`re*po*ra”ri*an (#), a. & n.

Mad”re*pore (?), n. [F. madrepore, perh. fr. madré spotted, fr. OF. madre, mazre, a kind of knotty wood with brown spots, fr. OHG. masar a knot, grain, or vein in wood, a speck, G. maser + pore (see Pore); or perh. F. madrépore is rather from It. madrepora, and this perh. fr. It. madre mother (see Mother) + Gr. &?; a soft stone.] (Zoöl.) Any coral of the genus Madrepora; formerly, often applied to any stony coral.

{ Mad`re*po”ri*an (?), Mad`re*po”ric (?), } a. (Zoöl.) Resembling, or pertaining to, the genus Madrepora.

Madreporic plate (Zoöl.), a perforated plate in echinoderms, through which water is admitted to the ambulacral tubes; — called also madreporic tubercule.

Mad`re*po”ri*form (?), a. [Madrepore + -form.] (Zoöl.) Resembling a madreporian coral in form or structure.

Mad”re*po*rite (?), n. [Cf. F. madréporite] 1. (Paleon.) A fossil coral.

2. (Zoöl.) The madreporic plate of echinoderms.

Ma*drier” (?), n. [F., from Sp. madero, or Pg. madeiro, fr. Sp. madera wood for building, timber, Pg. madeira, L. materia stuff, materials, lumber. See Matter.] A thick plank, used for several mechanical purposes; especially: (a) A plank to receive the mouth of a petard, with which it is applied to anything intended to be broken down. (b) A plank or beam used for supporting the earth in mines or fortifications.

Mad”ri*gal (măd”r&ibreve;*gal), n. [It. madrigale, OIt. madriale, mandriale (cf. LL. matriale); of uncertain origin, possibly fr. It mandra flock, L. mandra stall, herd of cattle, Gr. ma`ndra fold, stable; hence, madrigal, originally, a pastoral song.] 1. A little amorous poem, sometimes called a pastoral poem, containing some tender and delicate, though simple, thought.

Whose artful strains have oft delayed
The huddling brook to hear his madrigal.

Milton.

2. (Mus.) An unaccompanied polyphonic song, in four, five, or more parts, set to secular words, but full of counterpoint and imitation, and adhering to the old church modes. Unlike the freer glee, it is best sung with several voices on a part. See Glee.

Mad”ri*gal*er (?), n. A madrigalist.

Mad”ri*gal*ist, n. A composer of madrigals.

Mad`ri*le”ni*an (?), a. [Sp. Madrileño.] Of or pertaining to Madrid in Spain, or to its inhabitants. — n. A native or inhabitant of Madrid.

||Ma*dri”na (?), n. [Sp., prop., a godmother.] An animal (usually an old mare), wearing a bell and acting as the leader of a troop of pack mules. [S. America]

Ma*dro”ña (?), n. [Sp. madroño.] (Bot.) A small evergreen tree or shrub (Arbutus Menziesii), of California, having a smooth bark, thick shining leaves, and edible red berries, which are often called madroña apples. [Written also madroño.]

Mad”wort` (?), n. (Bot.) A genus of cruciferous plants (Alyssum) with white or yellow flowers and rounded pods. A. maritimum is the commonly cultivated sweet alyssum, a fragrant white-flowered annual.

{ Mæg”bote`, Mag”bote` } (?), n. [AS. m&aemacr;g kinsman + bōt compensation.] (Anglo-Saxon Law) Compensation for the injury done by slaying a kinsman. Spelman.

Mael”strom (?), n. [Norw., a whirlpool.] 1. A celebrated whirlpool on the coast of Norway.

2. Also Fig. ; as, a maelstrom of vice.

||Mæ“nad (?), n. [L. Maenas, -adis, Gr. &?;, &?;, fr. &?; to rave.] 1. A Bacchante; a priestess or votary of Bacchus.

2. A frantic or frenzied woman.

||Ma`es*to”so (?), a. & adv. [It.] (Mus.) Majestic or majestically; — a direction to perform a passage or piece of music in a dignified manner.

Maes”tricht mon”i*tor (?). [So called from Maestricht, a town in Holland.] (Paleon.) The Mosasaurus Hofmanni. See Mosasaurus.

||Ma*es”tro (?), n. [It., fr. L. magister. See Master.] A master in any art, especially in music; a composer.

Maf”fle (?), v. i. [Akin to OD. maffelen to stammer. Cf. Muffle to mumble.] To stammer. [Obs.]

Maf”fler (?), n. A stammerer. [Obs.]

Mag`a*zine” (?), n. [F. magasin, It. magazzino, or Sp. magacen, almagacen; all fr. Ar. makhzan, almakhzan, a storehouse, granary, or cellar.]

1. A receptacle in which anything is stored, especially military stores, as ammunition, arms, provisions, etc. “Armories and magazines.” Milton.

2. The building or room in which the supply of powder is kept in a fortification or a ship.

3. A chamber in a gun for holding a number of cartridges to be fed automatically to the piece.

4. A pamphlet published periodically containing miscellaneous papers or compositions.

Magazine dress, clothing made chiefly of woolen, without anything metallic about it, to be worn in a powder magazine. — Magazine gun, a portable firearm, as a rifle, with a chamber carrying cartridges which are brought automatically into position for firing. — Magazine stove, a stove having a chamber for holding fuel which is supplied to the fire by some self-feeding process, as in the common base-burner.

Mag`a*zine” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Magazined (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Magazining.] To store in, or as in, a magazine; to store up for use.

Mag`a*zin”er (?), n. One who edits or writes for a magazine. [R.] Goldsmith.

Mag`a*zin”ing, n. The act of editing, or writing for, a magazine. [Colloq.] Byron.

Mag`a*zin”ist, n. One who edits or writes for a magazine. [R.]

Mag”bote` (?), n. See Mægbote.

Mag”da*la (?), a. Designating an orange-red dyestuff obtained from naphthylamine, and called magdala red, naphthalene red, etc.

Mag”da*len (?), n. [From Mary Magdalene, traditionally reported to have been the repentant sinner forgiven by Christ. See Luke vii. 36.] A reformed prostitute.

Mag*da”le*on (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; crumb of bread, fr. &?; to knead.] (Med.) A medicine in the form of a roll, a esp. a roll of plaster.

Mag”de*burg (?), n. A city of Saxony.

Magdeburg centuries, Magdeburg hemispheres. See under Century, and Hemisphere.

Mage (?), n. [F. mage. See Magi.] A magician. [Archaic] Spenser. Tennyson.

Mag`el*lan”ic (?), a. Of or pertaining to, or named from, Magellan, the navigator.

Magellenic clouds (Astron.), three conspicuous nebulæ near the south pole, resembling thin white clouds.

Ma*gen”ta (?), n. (Chem.) An aniline dye obtained as an amorphous substance having a green bronze surface color, which dissolves to a shade of red; also, the color; — so called from Magenta, in Italy, in allusion to the battle fought there about the time the dye was discovered. Called also fuchsine, roseïne, etc.

Magged (?), a. (Naut.) Worn; fretted; as, a magged brace. Ham. Nav. Encyc.

||Mag`gio”re (?), a. [It., from L. major, compar. of magnus great. See Major.] (Mus.) Greater, in respect to scales, intervals, etc., when used in opposition to minor; major. Moore (Encyc. of Music).

Mag”got (?), n. [W. macai, pl. maceiod, magiod, a worn or grub; cf. magu to bread.] 1. (Zoöl.) The footless larva of any fly. See Larval.

2. A whim; an odd fancy. Hudibras. Tennyson.

Mag”got*i*ness (?), n. State of being maggoty.

Mag”got*ish, a. Full of whims or fancies; maggoty.

Mag”got-pie` (?), n. A magpie. [Obs.] Shak.

Mag”got*y (?), a. 1. Infested with maggots.

2. Full of whims; capricious. Norris.

Ma”ghet (?), n. [Cf. Fl. maghet maid.] (Bot.) A name for daisies and camomiles of several kinds.

||Ma”gi (?), n. pl. [L., pl. of Magus, Gr. &?;; of Per. origin. Cf. Mage, Magic.] A caste of priests, philosophers, and magicians, among the ancient Persians; hence, any holy men or sages of the East.

The inspired Magi from the Orient came.

Sandys.

Ma”gi*an (?), a. Of or pertaining to the Magi.

Ma”gi*an, n. One of the Magi, or priests of the Zoroastrian religion in Persia; an adherent of the Zoroastrian religion. — Ma”gi*an*ism (#), n.

Mag”ic (?), n. [OE. magique, L. magice, Gr. &?; (sc. &?;), fr. &?;. See Magic, a., and Magi.] A comprehensive name for all of the pretended arts which claim to produce effects by the assistance of supernatural beings, or departed spirits, or by a mastery of secret forces in nature attained by a study of occult science, including enchantment, conjuration, witchcraft, sorcery, necromancy, incantation, etc.

An appearance made by some magic.

Chaucer.

Celestial magic, a supposed supernatural power which gave to spirits a kind of dominion over the planets, and to the planets an influence over men. — Natural magic, the art of employing the powers of nature to produce effects apparently supernatural. — Superstitious, or Geotic, magic, the invocation of devils or demons, involving the supposition of some tacit or express agreement between them and human beings.

Syn. — Sorcery; witchcraft; necromancy; conjuration; enchantment.

{ Mag”ic (?), Mag”ic*al (?), } a. [L. magicus, Gr. &?;, fr. &?;: cf. F. magique. See Magi.] 1. Pertaining to the hidden wisdom supposed to be possessed by the Magi; relating to the occult powers of nature, and the producing of effects by their agency.

2. Performed by, or proceeding from, occult and superhuman agencies; done by, or seemingly done by, enchantment or sorcery. Hence: Seemingly requiring more than human power; imposing or startling in performance; producing effects which seem supernatural or very extraordinary; having extraordinary properties; as, a magic lantern; a magic square or circle.

The painter’s magic skill.

Cowper.

&fist; Although with certain words magic is used more than magical, — as, magic circle, magic square, magic wand, — we may in general say magic or magical; as, a magic or magical effect; a magic or magical influence, etc. But when the adjective is predicative, magical, and not magic, is used; as, the effect was magical.

Magic circle, a series of concentric circles containing the numbers 12 to 75 in eight radii, and having somewhat similar properties to the magic square. — Magic humming bird (Zoöl.), a Mexican humming bird (Iache magica) , having white downy thing tufts. — Magic lantern. See Lantern. — Magic square, numbers so disposed in parallel and equal rows in the form of a square, that each row, taken vertically, horizontally, or diagonally, shall give the same sum, the same product, or an harmonical series, according as the numbers taken are in arithmetical, geometrical, or harmonical progression. — Magic wand, a wand used by a magician in performing feats of magic.

Mag”ic*al*ly (?), adv. In a magical manner; by magic, or as if by magic.

Ma*gi”cian (?), n. [F. magicien. See Magic, n.] One skilled in magic; one who practices the black art; an enchanter; a necromancer; a sorcerer or sorceress; a conjurer.

{ Ma*gilp” (?), Ma*gilph” (?), } n. (Paint.) See Megilp.

||Ma*gis”ter (?), n. [L. See Master.] Master; sir; — a title of the Middle Ages, given to a person in authority, or to one having a license from a university to teach philosophy and the liberal arts.

Mag`is*te”ri*al (?), a. [L. magisterius magisterial. See Master.] 1. Of or pertaining to a master or magistrate, or one in authority; having the manner of a magister; official; commanding; authoritative. Hence: Overbearing; dictatorial; dogmatic.

When magisterial duties from his home
Her father called.

Glover.

We are not magisterial in opinions, nor, dictator-like, obtrude our notions on any man.

Sir T. Browne.

Pretenses go a great way with men that take fair words and magisterial looks for current payment.

L’Estrange.

2. (Alchem. & Old Chem.) Pertaining to, produced by, or of the nature of, magistery. See Magistery, 2.

Syn. — Authoritative; stately; august; pompous; dignified; lofty; commanding; imperious; lordly; proud; haughty; domineering; despotic; dogmatical; arrogant. — Magisterial, Dogmatical, Arrogant. One who is magisterial assumes the air of a master toward his pupils; one who is dogmatical lays down his positions in a tone of authority or dictation; one who is arrogant in sults others by an undue assumption of superiority. Those who have long been teachers sometimes acquire, unconsciously, a manner which borders too much on the magisterial, and may be unjustly construed as dogmatical, or even arrogant.

Mag`is*te`ri*al”i*ty (?), n. Magisterialness; authoritativeness. [R.] Fuller.

Mag`is*te”ri*al*ly (?), adv. In a magisterial manner.

Mag`is*te”ri*al*ness, n. The quality or state of being magisterial.

Mag”is*ter*y (?), n. [L. magisterium the office of a chief, president, director, tutor. See Magistrate.] 1. Mastery; powerful medical influence; renowned efficacy; a sovereign remedy. [Obs.] Holland.

2. A magisterial injunction. [R.] Brougham.

3. (Chem.) A precipitate; a fine substance deposited by precipitation; — applied in old chemistry to certain white precipitates from metallic solutions; as, magistery of bismuth. Ure.

Mag”is*tra*cy (?), n.; pl. Magistracies (#). [From Magistrate.] 1. The office or dignity of a magistrate. Blackstone.

2. The collective body of magistrates.

Mag”is*tral (?), a. [L. magistralis: cf. F. magistral. See Magistrate.] 1. Pertaining to a master; magisterial; authoritative; dogmatic.

2. Commanded or prescribed by a magister, esp. by a doctor; hence, effectual; sovereign; as, a magistral sirup. “Some magistral opiate.” Bacon.

3. (Pharmacy) Formulated extemporaneously, or for a special case; — opposed to officinal, and said of prescriptions and medicines. Dunglison.

Magistral line (Fort.), the guiding line, or outline, by which the form of the work is determined. It is usually the crest line of the parapet in fieldworks, or the top line of the escarp in permanent fortifications.

Mag”is*tral, n. 1. (Med.) A sovereign medicine or remedy. [Obs.] Burton.

2. (Fort.) A magistral line.

3. (Metal.) Powdered copper pyrites used in the amalgamation of ores of silver, as at the Spanish mines of Mexico and South America.

Mag`is*tral”i*ty (?), n.; pl. -ties (&?;). Magisterialness; arbitrary dogmatism. Bacon.

Mag”is*tral*ly (?), adv. In a magistral manner. Abp. Bramhall.

Mag”is*trate (?), n. [L. magistratus, fr. magister master: cf. F. magistrat. See Master.] A person clothed with power as a public civil officer; a public civil officer invested with the executive government, or some branch of it. “All Christian rulers and magistrates.” Book of Com. Prayer.

Of magistrates some also are supreme, in whom the sovereign power of the state resides; others are subordinate.

Blackstone.

{ Mag`is*trat”ic (?), Mag`is*trat”ic*al (?), } a. Of, pertaining to, or proceeding from, a magistrate; having the authority of a magistrate. Jer. Taylor.

Mag”is*tra`ture (?), n. [Cf. F. magistrature.] Magistracy. [Obs.]

||Mag”ma (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?;, fr. &?; to squeeze, knead.] 1. Any crude mixture of mineral or organic matters in the state of a thin paste. Ure.

2. (Med.) (a) A thick residuum obtained from certain substances after the fluid parts are expressed from them; the grounds which remain after treating a substance with any menstruum, as water or alcohol. (b) A salve or confection of thick consistency. Dunglison.

3. (Geol.) (a) The molten matter within the earth, the source of the material of lava flows, dikes of eruptive rocks, etc. (b) The glassy base of an eruptive rock.

4. (Chem.) The amorphous or homogenous matrix or ground mass, as distinguished from well-defined crystals; as, the magma of porphyry.

||Mag”na Char”ta (?). [L., great charter.] 1. The great Charter, so called, obtained by the English barons from King John, A. D. 1215. This name is also given to the charter granted to the people of England in the ninth year of Henry III., and confirmed by Edward I.

2. Hence, a fundamental constitution which guaranties rights and privileges.

Mag*nal”i*ty (?), n. [L. magnalis mighty, fr. magnus great.] A great act or event; a great attainment. [Obs.] Sir T. Browne.

Mag`na*nim”i*ty (?), n. [F. magnanimité, L. magnanimitas.] The quality of being magnanimous; greatness of mind; elevation or dignity of soul; that quality or combination of qualities, in character, which enables one to encounter danger and trouble with tranquility and firmness, to disdain injustice, meanness and revenge, and to act and sacrifice for noble objects.

Mag*nan”i*mous (?), a.[L. magnanimus; magnus great + animus mind. See Magnate, and Animus.] 1. Great of mind; elevated in soul or in sentiment; raised above what is low, mean, or ungenerous; of lofty and courageous spirit; as, a magnanimous character; a magnanimous conqueror.

Be magnanimous in the enterprise.

Shak.

To give a kingdom hath been thought
Greater and nobler done, and to lay down
Far more magnanimous than to assume.

Milton.

2. Dictated by or exhibiting nobleness of soul; honorable; noble; not selfish.

Both strived for death; magnanimous debate.

Stirling.

There is an indissoluble union between a magnanimous policy and the solid rewards of public prosperity and felicity.

Washington.

Mag*nan”i*mous*ly, adv. In a magnanimous manner; with greatness of mind.

Mag”nase black` (?). (Paint.) A black pigment which dries rapidly when mixed with oil, and is of intense body. Fairholt.

Mag”nate (?), [F. magnat, L. (pl.) magnates, magnati, fr. magnus great. See Master.] 1. A person of rank; a noble or grandee; a person of influence or distinction in any sphere. Macaulay.

2. One of the nobility, or certain high officers of state belonging to the noble estate in the national representation of Hungary, and formerly of Poland.

Mag”nes (?), n. [L.] Magnet. [Obs.] Spenser.

Mag*ne”si*a (?; 277), n. [L. Magnesia, fem. of Magnesius of the country Magnesia, Gr. h` Magnhsi`a li`qos a magnet. Cf. Magnet.] (Chem.) A light earthy white substance, consisting of magnesium oxide, and obtained by heating magnesium hydrate or carbonate, or by burning magnesium. It has a slightly alkaline reaction, and is used in medicine as a mild antacid laxative. See Magnesium.

Magnesia alba [L.] (Med. Chem.), a bulky white amorphous substance, consisting of a hydrous basic carbonate of magnesium, and used as a mild cathartic.

Mag*ne”sian (?), a. Pertaining to, characterized by, or containing, magnesia or magnesium.

Magnesian limestone. (Min.) See Dolomite.

Mag*ne”sic (?), a. (Chem.) Pertaining to, or containing, magnesium; as, magnesic oxide.

Mag”ne*site (?), n. [Cf. F. magnésite.] (Min.) Native magnesium carbonate occurring in white compact or granular masses, and also in rhombohedral crystals.

Mag*ne”si*um (?), n. [NL. & F. See Magnesia.] (Chem.) A light silver-white metallic element, malleable and ductile, quite permanent in dry air but tarnishing in moist air. It burns, forming (the oxide) magnesia, with the production of a blinding light (the so-called magnesium light) which is used in signaling, in pyrotechny, or in photography where a strong actinic illuminant is required. Its compounds occur abundantly, as in dolomite, talc, meerschaum, etc. Symbol Mg. Atomic weight, 24.4. Specific gravity, 1.75.

Magnesium sulphate. (Chem.) Same as Epsom salts.

Mag”net (măg”n&ebreve;t), n. [OE. magnete, OF. magnete, L. magnes, - etis, Gr. Magnh^tis li`qos a magnet, metal that looked like silver, prop., Magnesian stone, fr. Gr. Magnhsi`a, a country in Thessaly. Cf. Magnesia, Manganese.] 1. The loadstone; a species of iron ore (the ferrosoferric or magnetic ore, Fe_3O_4) which has the property of attracting iron and some of its ores, and, when freely suspended, of pointing to the poles; — called also natural magnet.

Dinocrates began to make the arched roof of the temple of Arsinoë all of magnet, or this loadstone.

Holland.

Two magnets, heaven and earth, allure to bliss,
The larger loadstone that, the nearer this.

Dryden.

2. (Physics) A bar or mass of steel or iron to which the peculiar properties of the loadstone have been imparted; — called, in distinction from the loadstone, an artificial magnet.

&fist; An artificial magnet, produced by the action of a voltaic or electrical battery, is called an electro-magnet.

Field magnet (Physics & Elec.), a magnet used for producing and maintaining a magnetic field; — used especially of the stationary or exciting magnet of a dynamo or electromotor in distinction from that of the moving portion or armature.

{ Mag*net”ic (?), Mag*net”ic*al (?), } a. [L. magneticus: cf. F. magnétique.] 1. Pertaining to the magnet; possessing the properties of the magnet, or corresponding properties; as, a magnetic bar of iron; a magnetic needle.

2. Of or pertaining to, or characterized by, the earth’s magnetism; as, the magnetic north; the magnetic meridian.

3. Capable of becoming a magnet; susceptible to magnetism; as, the magnetic metals.

4. Endowed with extraordinary personal power to excite the feelings and to win the affections; attractive; inducing attachment.

She that had all magnetic force alone.

Donne.

5. Having, susceptible to, or induced by, animal magnetism, so called; as, a magnetic sleep. See Magnetism.

Magnetic amplitude, attraction, dip, induction, etc. See under Amplitude, Attraction, etc. — Magnetic battery, a combination of bar or horseshoe magnets with the like poles adjacent, so as to act together with great power. — Magnetic compensator, a contrivance connected with a ship’s compass for compensating or neutralizing the effect of the iron of the ship upon the needle. — Magnetic curves, curves indicating lines of magnetic force, as in the arrangement of iron filings between the poles of a powerful magnet. — Magnetic elements. (a) (Chem. Physics) Those elements, as iron, nickel, cobalt, chromium, manganese, etc., which are capable or becoming magnetic. (b) (Physics) In respect to terrestrial magnetism, the declination, inclination, and intensity. (c) See under Element. — Magnetic equator, the line around the equatorial parts of the earth at which there is no dip, the dipping needle being horizontal. — Magnetic field, or Field of magnetic force, any space through which a magnet exerts its influence. — Magnetic fluid, the hypothetical fluid whose existence was formerly assumed in the explanations of the phenomena of magnetism. — Magnetic iron, or Magnetic iron ore. (Min.) Same as Magnetite. — Magnetic needle, a slender bar of steel, magnetized and suspended at its center on a sharp-pointed pivot, or by a delicate fiber, so that it may take freely the direction of the magnetic meridian. It constitutes the essential part of a compass, such as the mariner’s and the surveyor’s. — Magnetic poles, the two points in the opposite polar regions of the earth at which the direction of the dipping needle is vertical. — Magnetic pyrites. See Pyrrhotite. — Magnetic storm (Terrestrial Physics), a disturbance of the earth’s magnetic force characterized by great and sudden changes. — Magnetic telegraph, a telegraph acting by means of a magnet. See Telegraph.

Mag*net”ic (?), n. 1. A magnet. [Obs.]

As the magnetic hardest iron draws.

Milton.

2. Any metal, as iron, nickel, cobalt, etc., which may receive, by any means, the properties of the loadstone, and which then, when suspended, fixes itself in the direction of a magnetic meridian.

Mag*net”ic*al*ly, adv. By or as by, magnetism.

Mag*net”ic*al*ness, n. Quality of being magnetic.

Mag`ne*ti”cian (?), n. One versed in the science of magnetism; a magnetist.

Mag*net”ic*ness, n. Magneticalness. [Obs.]

Mag*net”ics (?), n. The science of magnetism.

Mag`net*if”er*ous (?), a. [L. magnes, -etis + -ferous.] Producing or conducting magnetism.

Mag”net*ism (?), n. [Cf. F. magnétisme.] The property, quality, or state, of being magnetic; the manifestation of the force in nature which is seen in a magnet.

2. The science which treats of magnetic phenomena.

3. Power of attraction; power to excite the feelings and to gain the affections. “By the magnetism of interest our affections are irresistibly attracted.” Glanvill.

Animal magnetism, a force, more or less analogous to magnetism, which, it has been alleged, is produced in animal tissues, and passes from one body to another with or without actual contact. The existence of such a force, and its potentiality for the cure of disease, were asserted by Mesmer in 1775. His theories and methods were afterwards called mesmerism, a name which has been popularly applied to theories and claims not put forward by Mesmer himself. See Mesmerism, Biology, Od, Hypnotism. — Terrestrial magnetism, the magnetic force exerted by the earth, and recognized by its effect upon magnetized needles and bars.

Mag”net*ist, n. One versed in magnetism.

Mag”net*ite (?), n. (Min.) An oxide of iron (Fe_3O_4) occurring in isometric crystals, also massive, of a black color and metallic luster. It is readily attracted by a magnet and sometimes possesses polarity, being then called loadstone. It is an important iron ore. Called also magnetic iron.

Mag”net*i`za*ble (?), a. Capable of being magnetized.

Mag`net*i*za”tion (?), n. The act of magnetizing, or the state of being magnetized.

Mag”net*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Magnetized (?); prep. & adv. Magnetizing (?).] [Cf. F. magnétiser.] 1. To communicate magnetic properties to; as, to magnetize a needle.

2. To attract as a magnet attracts, or like a magnet; to move; to influence.

Fascinated, magnetized, as it were, by his character.

Motley.

3. To bring under the influence of animal magnetism.

Mag`net*i*zee” (?), n. A person subjected to the influence of animal magnetism. [R.]

Mag”net*i`zer (?), n. One who, or that which, imparts magnetism.

Mag”net*o- (?). [See Magnet.] A prefix meaning pertaining to, produced by, or in some way connected with, magnetism.

{ Mag`net*o-e*lec”tric (?), Mag`net*o- e*lec”tric*al (?), } a. (Physics) Pertaining to, or characterized by, electricity by the action of magnets; as, magneto-electric induction.

Magneto-electric machine, a form of dynamo- electric machine in which the field is maintained by permanent steel magnets instead of electro-magnets.

Mag`net*o-e`lec*tric”i*ty (?), n. 1. Electricity evolved by the action of magnets.

2. (Physics) That branch of science which treats of the development of electricity by the action of magnets; — the counterpart of electro-magnetism.

Mag*net”o*graph (?), n. [Magneto- + -graph.] (Physics) An automatic instrument for registering, by photography or otherwise, the states and variations of any of the terrestrial magnetic elements.

Mag`net*om”e*ter (?), n. [Magneto- + -meter: cf. F. magnétomètre.] (Physics) An instrument for measuring the intensity of magnetic forces; also, less frequently, an instrument for determining any of the terrestrial magnetic elements, as the dip and declination.

Mag`net*o*met”ric (?), a. Pertaining to, or employed in, the measurement of magnetic forces; obtained by means of a magnetometer; as, magnetometric instruments; magnetometric measurements.

Mag`net*o*mo”tor (?), n. A voltaic series of two or more large plates, producing a great quantity of electricity of low tension, and hence adapted to the exhibition of electro-magnetic phenomena. [R.]

Mag`net*o*ther”a*py (?), n. (Med.) The treatment of disease by the application of magnets to the surface of the body.

Mag”ni*fi`a*ble, a. [From Magnify.] Such as can be magnified, or extolled.

{ Mag*nif”ic (?), Mag*nif”ic*al (?), } a. [L. magnificus; magnus great + facere to make: cf. F. magnifique. See Magnitude, Fact. and cf. Magnificent.] Grand; splendid; illustrious; magnificent. [Obs.] 1 Chron. xxii. 5. “Thy magnific deeds.” Milton. — Mag*nif”ic*al*ly, adv. [Obs.]

||Mag*nif”i*cat (?), n. [L., it magnifies.] The song of the Virgin Mary, Luke i. 46; — so called because it commences with this word in the Vulgate.

Mag*nif”i*cate (?), v. t. [L. magnificatus, p. p. of magnificare.] To magnify or extol. [Obs.] Marston.

Mag`ni*fi*ca”tion (?), n. The act of magnifying; enlargement; exaggeration. [R.]

Mag*nif”i*cence (?), n. [F. magnificence, L. magnificentia. See Magnific.] The act of doing what is magnificent; the state or quality of being magnificent. Acts xix. 27. “Then cometh magnificence.” Chaucer.

And, for the heaven’s wide circuit, let it speak
The Maker’s high magnificence, who built
so spacious.

Milton.

The noblest monuments of Roman magnificence.

Eustace.

Mag*nif”i*cent (?), a. [See Magnificence.] 1. Doing grand things; admirable in action; displaying great power or opulence, especially in building, way of living, and munificence.

A prince is never so magnificent
As when he’s sparing to enrich a few
With the injuries of many.

Massinger.

2. Grand in appearance; exhibiting grandeur or splendor; splendid; pompous.

When Rome’s exalted beauties I descry
Magnificent in piles of ruin lie.

Addison.

Syn. — Glorious; majestic; sublime. See Grand.

Mag*nif”i*cent*ly, adv. In a Magnificent manner.

Mag*nif”i*co (?), n.; pl. Magnificoes (#). [It. See Magnific.] 1. A grandee or nobleman of Venice; — so called in courtesy. Shak.

2. A rector of a German university.

Mag”ni*fi`er (?), n. One who, or that which, magnifies.

Mag”ni*fy (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Magnified (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Magnifying (?).] [OE. magnifien, F. magnifier, L. magnificare. See Magnific.] 1. To make great, or greater; to increase the dimensions of; to amplify; to enlarge, either in fact or in appearance; as, the microscope magnifies the object by a thousand diameters.

The least error in a small quantity . . . will in a great one . . . be proportionately magnified.

Grew.

2. To increase the importance of; to augment the esteem or respect in which one is held.

On that day the Lord magnified Joshua in the sight of all Israel.

Joshua iv. 14.

3. To praise highly; to laud; to extol. [Archaic]

O, magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together.

Ps. xxxiv. 3.

4. To exaggerate; as, to magnify a loss or a difficulty.

To magnify one’s self (Script.), to exhibit pride and haughtiness; to boast. — To magnify one’s self against (Script.), to oppose with pride.

Mag”ni*fy, v. i. 1. To have the power of causing objects to appear larger than they really are; to increase the apparent dimensions of objects; as, some lenses magnify but little.

2. To have effect; to be of importance or significance. [Cant & Obs.] Spectator.

Magnifying glass, a lens which magnifies the apparent dimensions of objects seen through it.

Mag*nil”o*quence (?), n. [L. magniloquentia.] The quality of being magniloquent; pompous discourse; grandiloquence.

Mag*nil”o*quent (?), a. [L. magnus great + loquens, -entis, p. pr. of loqui to speak. See Magnitude, Loquacious.] Speaking pompously; using swelling discourse; bombastic; tumid in style; grandiloquent. — Mag*nil”o*quent*ly, adv.

Mag*nil”o*quous (?), a. [L. magniloquus.] Magniloquent. [Obs.]

Mag”ni*tude (?), n. [L. magnitudo, from magnus great. See Master, and cf. Maxim.] 1. Extent of dimensions; size; — applied to things that have length, breadth, and thickness.

Conceive those particles of bodies to be so disposed amongst themselves, that the intervals of empty spaces between them may be equal in magnitude to them all.

Sir I. Newton.

2. (Geom.) That which has one or more of the three dimensions, length, breadth, and thickness.

3. Anything of which greater or less can be predicated, as time, weight, force, and the like.

4. Greatness; grandeur. “With plain, heroic magnitude of mind.” Milton.

5. Greatness, in reference to influence or effect; importance; as, an affair of magnitude.

The magnitude of his designs.

Bp. Horsley.

Apparent magnitude (Opt.), the angular breadth of an object viewed as measured by the angle which it subtends at the eye of the observer; — called also apparent diameter. — Magnitude of a star (Astron.), the rank of a star with respect to brightness. About twenty very bright stars are said to be of first magnitude, the stars of the sixth magnitude being just visible to the naked eye. Telescopic stars are classified down to the twelfth magnitude or lower. The scale of the magnitudes is quite arbitrary, but by means of photometers, the classification has been made to tenths of a magnitude.

Mag*no”li*a (?), n. [NL. Named after Pierre Magnol, professor of botany at Montpellier, France, in the 17th century.] (Bot.) A genus of American and Asiatic trees, with aromatic bark and large sweet-scented whitish or reddish flowers.

&fist; Magnolia grandiflora has coriaceous shining leaves and very fragrant blossoms. It is common from North Carolina to Florida and Texas, and is one of the most magnificent trees of the American forest. The sweet bay (M. glauca)is a small tree found sparingly as far north as Cape Ann. Other American species are M. Umbrella, M. macrophylla, M. Fraseri, M. acuminata, and M. cordata. M. conspicua and M. purpurea are cultivated shrubs or trees from Eastern Asia. M. Campbellii, of India, has rose-colored or crimson flowers.

Magnolia warbler (Zoöl.), a beautiful North American wood warbler (Dendroica maculosa). The rump and under parts are bright yellow; the breast and belly are spotted with black; the under tail coverts are white; the crown is ash.

Mag*no`li*a”ceous (?), a. (Bot.) Pertaining to a natural order (Magnoliaceæ) of trees of which the magnolia, the tulip tree, and the star anise are examples.

||Mag”num (?), n. [Neut. sing. of L. magnus great.] 1. A large wine bottle.

They passed the magnum to one another freely.

Sir W. Scott.

2. (Anat.) A bone of the carpus at the base of the third metacarpal bone.

Mag”ot (?), n. [F.] (Zoöl.) The Barbary ape.

Mag”ot-pie` (?), n. A magpie. [Obs.] Shak.

Mag”pie (?), n. [OE. & Prov. E. magot pie, maggoty pie, fr. Mag, Maggot, equiv. to Margaret, and fr. F. Marquerite, and common name of the magpie. Marguerite is fr. L. margarita pearl, Gr. &?;, prob. of Eastern origin. See Pie magpie, and cf. the analogous names Tomtit, and Jackdaw.] (Zoöl.) Any one of numerous species of the genus Pica and related genera, allied to the jays, but having a long graduated tail.

&fist; The common European magpie (Pica pica, or P. caudata) is a black and white noisy and mischievous bird. It can be taught to speak. The American magpie (P. Hudsonica) is very similar. The yellow-belled magpie (P. Nuttalli) inhabits California. The blue magpie (Cyanopolius Cooki) inhabits Spain. Other allied species are found in Asia. The Tasmanian and Australian magpies are crow shrikes, as the white magpie (Gymnorhina organicum), the black magpie (Strepera fuliginosa), and the Australian magpie (Cracticus picatus).

Magpie lark (Zoöl.), a common Australian bird (Grallina picata), conspicuously marked with black and white; — called also little magpie. — Magpie moth (Zoöl.), a black and white European geometrid moth (Abraxas grossulariata); the harlequin moth. Its larva feeds on currant and gooseberry bushes.

||Ma`gua*ri” (?), n. [From native name: cf. Pg. magoari.] (Zoöl.) A South American stork (Euxenara maguari), having a forked tail.

Mag”uey (?), n. [Sp. maguey, Mexican maguei and metl.] (Bot.) The century plant, a species of Agave (A. Americana). See Agave.

Mag”yar (măg”yär; Hung. m&obreve;d”y&obreve;r), n. [Hung.] 1. (Ethnol.) One of the dominant people of Hungary, allied to the Finns; a Hungarian.

2. The language of the Magyars.

||Ma”ha (?), n. (Zoöl.) A kind of baboon; the wanderoo.

{ ||Ma*ha*ba”ra*ta (?), ||Ma*ha*bha”ra*tam (?), } n. [Skr. mahābhārata.] A celebrated epic poem of the Hindus. It is of great length, and is chiefly devoted to the history of a civil war between two dynasties of ancient India.

||Ma*ha”led (?), n.[Ar. mahled.] (Bot.) A cherry tree (Prunus Mahaleb) of Southern Europe. The wood is prized by cabinetmakers, the twigs are used for pipe stems, the flowers and leaves yield a perfume, and from the fruit a violet dye and a fermented liquor (like kirschwasser) are prepared.

||Ma*ha*ra”jah (?), n. [Skr. mahārāja; mahat great + rāja king.] A sovereign prince in India; — a title given also to other persons of high rank.

||Ma`ha*rif” (?), n. (Zoöl.) An African antelope (Hippotragus Bakeri). Its face is striped with black and white.

||Ma*har”mah (?), n. A muslin wrapper for the head and the lower part of the face, worn by Turkish and Armenian women when they go abroad.

Mah”di (?), n. [Ar., guide, leader.] Among Mohammedans, the last imam or leader of the faithful. The Sunni, the largest sect of the Mohammedans, believe that he is yet to appear.

&fist; The title has been taken by several persons in countries where Mohammedanism prevails, — notably by Mohammad Ahmed, who overran the Egyptian Sudan, and in 1885 captured Khartum, his soldiers killing General Gordon, an Englishman, who was then the Egyptian governor of the region.

Mahl”stick` (?), n. See Maul stick.

Ma”hoe (?), n. (Bot.) A name given to several malvaceous trees (species of Hibiscus, Ochroma, etc.), and to their strong fibrous inner bark, which is used for strings and cordage.

Ma*hog”a*ny (?), n. [From the South American name.] 1. (Bot.) A large tree of the genus Swietenia (S. Mahogoni), found in tropical America.

&fist; Several other trees, with wood more or less like mahogany, are called by this name; as, African mahogany (Khaya Senegalensis), Australian mahogany (Eucalyptus marginatus), Bastard mahogany (Batonia apetala of the West Indies), Indian mahogany (Cedrela Toona of Bengal, and trees of the genera Soymida and Chukrassia), Madeira mahogany (Persea Indica), Mountain mahogany, the black or cherry birch (Betula lenta), also the several species of Cercocarpus of California and the Rocky Mountains.

2. The wood of the Swietenia Mahogoni. It is of a reddish brown color, beautifully veined, very hard, and susceptible of a fine polish. It is used in the manufacture of furniture.

3. A table made of mahogany wood. [Colloq.]

To be under the mahogany, to be so drunk as to have fallen under the table. [Eng.] — To put one’s legs under some one’s mahogany, to dine with him. [Slang]

||Ma*ho”li (?), n. (Zoöl.) A South African lemur (Galago maholi), having very large ears. [Written also moholi.]

{ Ma*hom”ed*an (?), Ma*hom”et*an (?), } n. See Mohammedan.

Ma*hom”et*an*ism (?), n. See Mohammedanism.

Ma*hom”et*an*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mahometanized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mahometanizing (?).] To convert to the religion of Mohammed; to Mohammedanize.

Ma*hom”et*ism (?), n. See Mohammedanism.

Ma*hom”et*ist, n. A Mohammedan. [R.]

Ma*hom”et*ry (?), n. Mohammedanism. [Obs.]

Ma*hone” (?), n. A large Turkish ship. Crabb.

Ma*ho”ni*a (?), n. [Named after Bernard McMahon.] (Bot.) The Oregon grape, a species of barberry (Berberis Aquifolium), often cultivated for its hollylike foliage.

Ma*hon” stock` (?). (Bot.) An annual cruciferous plant with reddish purple or white flowers (Malcolmia maritima). It is called in England Virginia stock, but the plant comes from the Mediterranean.

||Ma*hoo”hoo (?), n. (Zoöl.) The African white two-horned rhinoceros (Atelodus simus).

Ma”ho*ri (?), n. [Native name. Cf. Maori.] (Ethnol.) One of the dark race inhabiting principally the islands of Eastern Polynesia. Also used adjectively.

Ma`hound (?), n. A contemptuous name for Mohammed; hence, an evil spirit; a devil. [Obs.]

Who’s this, my mahound cousin ?

Beau. & Fl.

||Ma*hout” (?), n. [Hind. mahāwat, Skr. mahāmātra; mahat great + mātrā measure.] The keeper and driver of an elephant. [East Indies]

Ma*ho”vo (?), n. (Mach.) A device for saving power in stopping and starting a railroad car, by means of a heavy fly wheel.

Mah*rat”i (?), n. The language of the Mahrattas; the language spoken in the Deccan and Concan. [Written also Marathi.]

Mah*rat”ta (?), n. [Hind. Marhatā, Marhāttā, the name of a famous Hindoo race, from the old Skr. name Mahā- rāshtra.] One of a numerous people inhabiting the southwestern part of India. Also, the language of the Mahrattas; Mahrati. It is closely allied to Sanskrit. — a. Of or pertaining to the Mahrattas. [Written also Maratha.]

{ Ma*hu”met*an (?), Ma*hu”met*an*ism (?), n. } See Mohammedan, Mohammedanism.

Mah”wa tree` (?). (Bot.) An East Indian sapotaceous tree (Bassia latifolia, and also B. butyracea), whose timber is used for wagon wheels, and the flowers for food and in preparing an intoxicating drink. It is one of the butter trees. The oil, known as mahwa and yallah, is obtained from the kernels of the fruit.

||Ma”i*a (?), n. [From L. Maia, a goddess.] (Zoöl.) (a) A genus of spider crabs, including the common European species (Maia squinado). (b) A beautiful American bombycid moth (Eucronia maia).

Ma”ian (?), n. (Zoöl.) Any spider crab of the genus Maia, or family Maiadæ.

Maid (?), n. [Shortened from maiden. &?;. See Maiden.] 1. An unmarried woman; usually, a young unmarried woman; esp., a girl; a virgin; a maiden.

Would I had died a maid,
And never seen thee, never borne thee son.

Shak.

Can a maid forget her ornaments, or a bride her attire? Yet my people have forgotten me.

Jer. ii. 32.

2. A man who has not had sexual intercourse. [Obs.]

Christ was a maid and shapen as a man.

Chaucer.

3. A female servant.

Spinning amongst her maids.

Shak.

&fist; Maid is used either adjectively or in composition, signifying female, as in maid child, maidservant.

4. (Zoöl.) The female of a ray or skate, esp. of the gray skate (Raia batis), and of the thornback (R. clavata). [Prov. Eng.]

Fair maid. (Zoöl.) See under Fair, a. — Maid of honor, a female attendant of a queen or royal princess; — usually of noble family, and having to perform only nominal or honorary duties. — Old maid. See under Old.

Maid”en (?), n. [OE. maiden, meiden, AS. mægden, dim. of AS. mæg&?;, fr. mago son, servant; akin to G. magd, mädchen, maid, OHG. magad, Icel. mögr son, Goth. magus boy, child, magaps virgin, and perh. to Zend. magu youth. Cf. Maid a virgin.] 1. An unmarried woman; a girl or woman who has not experienced sexual intercourse; a virgin; a maid.

She employed the residue of her life to repairing of highways, building of bridges, and endowing of maidens.

Carew.

A maiden of our century, yet most meek.

Tennyson.

2. A female servant. [Obs.]

3. An instrument resembling the guillotine, formerly used in Scotland for beheading criminals. Wharton.

4. A machine for washing linen.

Maid”en, a. 1. Of or pertaining to a maiden, or to maidens; suitable to, or characteristic of, a virgin; as, maiden innocence. “Amid the maiden throng.” Addison.

Have you no modesty, no maiden shame ?

Shak.

2. Never having been married; not having had sexual intercourse; virgin; — said usually of the woman, but sometimes of the man; as, a maiden aunt. “A surprising old maiden lady.” Thackeray.

3. Fresh; innocent; unpolluted; pure; hitherto unused. “Maiden flowers.” Shak.

Full bravely hast thou fleshed
Thy maiden sword.

Shak.

4. Used of a fortress, signifying that it has never been captured, or violated. T. Warton. Macaulay.

Maiden assize (Eng. Law), an assize which there is no criminal prosecution; an assize which is unpolluted with blood. It was usual, at such an assize, for the sheriff to present the judge with a pair of white gloves. Smart. — Maiden name, the surname of a woman before her marriage. — Maiden pink. (Bot.) See under Pink. — Maiden plum (Bot.), a West Indian tree (Comocladia integrifolia) with purplish drupes. The sap of the tree is glutinous, and gives a persistent black stain. — Maiden speech, the first speech made by a person, esp. by a new member in a public body. — Maiden tower, the tower most capable of resisting an enemy.

Maid”en, v. t. To act coyly like a maiden; — with it as an indefinite object.

For had I maiden’d it, as many use.
Loath for to grant, but loather to refuse.

Bp. Hall.

Maid”en*hair` (?), n. (Bot.) A fern of the genus Adiantum (A. pedatum), having very slender graceful stalks. It is common in the United States, and is sometimes used in medicine. The name is also applied to other species of the same genus, as to the Venus-hair.

Maiden grass, the smaller quaking grass. — Maiden tree. See Ginkgo.

Maid”en*head (?), n. [See Maidenhood.] 1. The state of being a maiden; maidenhood; virginity. Shak.

2. The state of being unused or uncontaminated; freshness; purity. [Obs.]

The maidenhead of their credit.

Sir H. Wotton.

3. The hymen, or virginal membrane.

Maid”en*hood (?), n. [AS. mægdenhād. See Maid, and -hood.] 1. The state of being a maid or a virgin; virginity. Shak.

2. Newness; freshness; uncontaminated state.

The maidenhood
Of thy fight.

Shak.

Maid”en*like` (?), a. Like a maiden; modest; coy.

Maid”en*li*ness (?), n. The quality of being maidenly; the behavior that becomes a maid; modesty; gentleness.

Maid”en*ly, a. Like a maid; suiting a maid; maiden-like; gentle, modest, reserved.

Must you be blushing ? . . .
What a maidenly man-at-arms are you become !

Shak.

Maid”en*ly, adv. In a maidenlike manner. “Maidenly demure.” Skelton.

Maid”en*ship, n. Maidenhood. [Obs.] Fuller.

Maid”hood (?), n. [AS. mægðhād. See Maid, and -hood.] Maidenhood. Shak.

Maid`ma”ri*an (?), n. [Maid + Marian, relating to Mary, or the Virgin Mary.] 1. The lady of the May games; one of the characters in a morris dance; a May queen. Afterward, a grotesque character personated in sports and buffoonery by a man in woman’s clothes.

2. A kind of dance. Sir W. Temple.

Maid”pale` (?), a. Pale, like a sick girl. Shak.

Maid”serv`ant (?), n. A female servant.

Maid’s” hair` (?). (Bot.) The yellow bedstraw (Galium verum).

{ Ma*ieu”tic (m&asl;*ū“t&ibreve;k), Ma*ieu”tic*al (-t&ibreve;*kal), } a. [Gr. maieytiko`s, fr. mai^a midwife.] 1. Serving to assist childbirth. Cudworth.

2. Fig. : Aiding, or tending to, the definition and interpretation of thoughts or language. Payne.

Ma*ieu”tics (?), n. The art of giving birth (i. e., clearness and conviction) to ideas, which are conceived as struggling for birth. Payne.

Mai”ger (?), n. (Zoöl.) The meagre.

Mai”gre (?), a. [F. See Meager.] Belonging to a fast day or fast; as, a maigre day. Walpole.

Maigre food (R. C. Ch.), food allowed to be eaten on fast days.

Mai”hem (mā“h&ebreve;m), n. See Maim, and Mayhem.

||Mai*kel” (mä&ibreve;*k&asl;l”), n. (Zoöl.) A South American carnivore of the genus Conepatus, allied to the skunk, but larger, and having a longer snout. The tail is not bushy.

||Mai*kong” (?), n. (Zoöl.) A South American wild dog (Canis cancrivorus); the crab- eating dog.

Mail (māl), n. A spot. [Obs.]

Mail, n. [F. maille, OF. also maaille, LL. medalia. See Medal.] 1. A small piece of money; especially, an English silver half-penny of the time of Henry V. [Obs.] [Written also maile, and maille.]

2. Rent; tribute. [Obs., except in certain compounds and phrases, as blackmail, mails and duties, etc.]

Mail and duties (Scots Law), the rents of an estate, in whatever form paid.

Mail, n. [OE. maile, maille, F. maille a ring of mail, mesh, network, a coat of mail, fr. L. macula spot, a mesh of a net. Cf. Macle, Macula, Mascle.] 1. A flexible fabric made of metal rings interlinked. It was used especially for defensive armor. Chaucer.

Chain mail, Coat of mail. See under Chain, and Coat.

2. Hence generally, armor, or any defensive covering.

3. (Naut.) A contrivance of interlinked rings, for rubbing off the loose hemp on lines and white cordage.

4. (Zoöl.) Any hard protective covering of an animal, as the scales and plates of reptiles, shell of a lobster, etc.

We . . . strip the lobster of his scarlet mail.

Gay.

Mail, v. t. 1. To arm with mail.

2. To pinion. [Obs.]

Mail, n. [OE. male bag, OF. male, F. malle bag, trunk, mail, OHG. malaha, malha, wallet; akin to D. maal, male; cf. Gael. & Ir. mala, Gr. molgo`s hide, skin.] 1. A bag; a wallet. [Obs.] Chaucer.

2. The bag or bags with the letters, papers, or other matter contained therein, conveyed under public authority from one post office to another; the whole system of appliances used by government in the conveyance and delivery of mail matter.

There is a mail come in to-day, with letters dated Hague.

Tatler.

3. That which comes in the mail; letters, etc., received through the post office.

4. A trunk, box, or bag, in which clothing, etc., may be carried. [Obs.] Sir W. Scott.

Mail bag, a bag in which mailed matter is conveyed under public authority. — Mail boat, a boat that carries the mail. — Mail catcher, an iron rod, or other contrivance, attached to a railroad car for catching a mail bag while the train is in motion. — Mail guard, an officer whose duty it is to guard the public mails. [Eng.] — Mail train, a railroad train carrying the mail.

Mail, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mailed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mailing.] To deliver into the custody of the postoffice officials, or place in a government letter box, for transmission by mail; to post; as, to mail a letter. [U. S.]

&fist; In the United States to mail and to post are both in common use; as, to mail or post a letter. In England post is the commoner usage.

Mail”a*ble (?), a. Admissible lawfully into the mail. [U.S.]

Mail”clad` (?), a. Protected by a coat of mail; clad in armor. Sir W. Scott.

Mailed (?), a. (Zoöl.) Protected by an external coat, or covering, of scales or plates.

Mailed, a. [See 1st Mail.] Spotted; speckled.

Mail”ing (?), n. [Scot., fr. mail tribute, rent. See 2d Mail.] A farm. [Scot.] Sir W. Scott.

Mail”-shell` (?), n. (Zoöl.) A chiton.

Maim (mām), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Maimed (māmd);p. pr. & vb. n. Maiming.] [OE. maimen, OF. mahaignier, mehaignier, meshaignier, cf. It. magagnare, LL. mahemiare, mahennare; perh. of Celtic origin; cf. Armor. mac’haña to mutilate, māc’ha to crowd, press; or cf. OHG. mangōn to lack, perh. akin to E. mangle to lacerate. Cf. Mayhem.] 1. To deprive of the use of a limb, so as to render a person in fighting less able either to defend himself or to annoy his adversary.

By the ancient law of England he that maimed any man whereby he lost any part of his body, was sentenced to lose the like part.

Blackstone.

2. To mutilate; to cripple; to injure; to disable; to impair.

My late maimed limbs lack wonted might.

Spenser.

You maimed the jurisdiction of all bishops.

Shak.

Syn. — To mutilate; mangle; cripple.

Maim, n. [Written in law language maihem, and mayhem.] [OF. mehaing. See Maim, v.] 1. The privation of the use of a limb or member of the body, by which one is rendered less able to defend himself or to annoy his adversary.

2. The privation of any necessary part; a crippling; mutilation; injury; deprivation of something essential. See Mayhem.

Surely there is more cause to fear lest the want there of be a maim than the use of it a blemish.

Hooker.

A noble author esteems it to be a maim in history that the acts of Parliament should not be recited.

Hayward.

Maim”ed*ly (?), adv. In a maimed manner.

Maim”ed*ness, n. State of being maimed. Bolton.

Main (?), n. [F. main hand, L. manus. See Manual.] 1. A hand or match at dice. Prior. Thackeray.

2. A stake played for at dice. [Obs.] Shak.

3. The largest throw in a match at dice; a throw at dice within given limits, as in the game of hazard.

4. A match at cockfighting. “My lord would ride twenty miles . . . to see a main fought.” Thackeray.

5. A main-hamper. [Obs.] Ainsworth.

Main, n. [AS. mægen strength, power, force; akin to OHG. magan, Icel. megin, and to E. may, v. &?;. See May, v.] 1. Strength; force; might; violent effort. [Obs., except in certain phrases.]

There were in this battle of most might and main.

R. of Gl.

He ‘gan advance,
With huge force, and with importable main.

Spenser.

2. The chief or principal part; the main or most important thing. [Obs., except in special uses.]

Resolved to rest upon the title of Lancaster as the main, and to use the other two . . . but as supporters.

Bacon.

3. Specifically: (a) The great sea, as distinguished from an arm, bay, etc. ; the high sea; the ocean. “Struggling in the main.” Dryden. (b) The continent, as distinguished from an island; the mainland. “Invaded the main of Spain.” Bacon. (c) principal duct or pipe, as distinguished from lesser ones; esp. (Engin.), a principal pipe leading to or from a reservoir; as, a fire main.

Forcing main, the delivery pipe of a pump. — For the main, or In the main, for the most part; in the greatest part. — With might and main, or With all one’s might and main, with all one’s strength; with violent effort.

With might and main they chased the murderous fox.

Dryden.

Main (?), a. [From Main strength, possibly influenced by OF. maine, magne, great, L. magnus. Cf. Magnate.] 1. Very or extremely strong. [Obs.]

That current with main fury ran.

Daniel.

2. Vast; huge. [Obs.] “The main abyss.” Milton.

3. Unqualified; absolute; entire; sheer. [Obs.] “It’s a man untruth.” Sir W. Scott.

4. Principal; chief; first in size, rank, importance, etc.

Our main interest is to be happy as we can.

Tillotson.

5. Important; necessary. [Obs.]

That which thou aright
Believest so main to our success, I bring.

Milton.

By main force, by mere force or sheer force; by violent effort; as, to subdue insurrection by main force.

That Maine which by main force Warwick did win.

Shak.

— By main strength, by sheer strength; as, to lift a heavy weight by main strength. — Main beam (Steam Engine), working beam. — Main boom (Naut.), the boom which extends the foot of the mainsail in a fore and aft vessel. — Main brace. (a) (Mech.) The brace which resists the chief strain. Cf. Counter brace. (b) (Naut.) The brace attached to the main yard. — Main center (Steam Engine), a shaft upon which a working beam or side lever swings. — Main chance. See under Chance. — Main couple (Arch.), the principal truss in a roof. — Main deck (Naut.), the deck next below the spar deck; the principal deck. — Main keel (Naut.), the principal or true keel of a vessel, as distinguished from the false keel.

Syn. — Principal; chief; leading; cardinal; capital.

Main, adv. [See Main, a.] Very; extremely; as, main heavy. “I’m main dry.” Foote. [Obs. or Low]

Maine (?), n. One of the New England States.

Maine law, any law prohibiting the manufacture and sale of intoxicating beverages, esp. one resembling that enacted in the State of Maine.

Main`-gauche” (măN`gōsh”), n. [F., the left hand.] (Ancient Armor) The dagger held in the left hand, while the rapier is held in the right; — used to parry thrusts of the adversary’s rapier.

Main”-ham`per (?), n. [F. main hand (see Main a hand at dice) + E. hamper.] A hamper to be carried in the hand; a hand basket used in carrying grapes to the press.

Main”land` (?), n. The continent; the principal land; — opposed to island, or peninsula. Dryden.

After the two wayfarers had crossed from the peninsula to the mainland.

Hawthorne.

Main”ly (?), adv. [From main strong. See Main strength.] Very strongly; mightily; to a great degree. [Obs.] Bacon. Shak.

Main”ly, adv. [From main principal, chief.] Principally; chiefly.

Main”mast` (?), n. (Naut.) The principal mast in a ship or other vessel.

Main”or (?), n. [Anglo-Norm. meinoure, OF. manuevre. See Maneuver.] (O. Eng. Law) A thing stolen found on the person of the thief.

&fist; A thief was said to be “taken with the mainor,” when he was taken with the thing stolen upon him, that is, in his hands. Wharton. Bouvier.

Main”per*na*ble (?), a. [OF. main hand + pernable, for prenable, that may be taken, pregnable. See Mainpernor.] (Law) Capable of being admitted to give surety by mainpernors; able to be mainprised.

Main”per*nor (?), n. [OF. main hand + pernor, for preneor, a taker, F. preneur, fr. prendre to take.] (Law) A surety, under the old writ of mainprise, for a prisoner’s appearance in court at a day.

&fist; Mainpernors differ from bail in that a man’s bail may imprison or surrender him before the stipulated day of appearance; mainpernors can do neither; they are bound to produce him to answer all charges whatsoever. Blackstone.

Main”pin (?), n. (Vehicles) A kingbolt.

Main”prise (?), n. [F. main hand + prise a taking, fr. prendre, p. p. pris to take, fr. L. prehendere, prehensum.] (Law) (a) A writ directed to the sheriff, commanding him to take sureties, called mainpernors, for the prisoner’s appearance, and to let him go at large. This writ is now obsolete. Wharton. (b) Deliverance of a prisoner on security for his appearance at a day.

Main”prise, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mainprised (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mainprising.] (Law) To suffer to go at large, on his finding sureties, or mainpernors, for his appearance at a day; — said of a prisoner.

Mains (mānz), n. [Scot. See Manse.] The farm attached to a mansion house. [Scot.]

Main”sail` (mān”sāl`), n. (Naut.) The principal sail in a ship or other vessel.

[They] hoised up the mainsail to the wind.

Acts xxvii. 40.

&fist; The mainsail of a ship is extended upon a yard attached to the mainmast, and that of a sloop or schooner upon the boom.

Main”sheet` (?), n. (Naut.) One of the ropes by which the mainsail is hauled aft and trimmed.

Main”spring` (?), n. The principal or most important spring in a piece of mechanism, especially the moving spring of a watch or clock or the spring in a gunlock which impels the hammer. Hence: The chief or most powerful motive; the efficient cause of action.

Main”stay` (?), n. 1. (Naut.) The stay extending from the foot of the foremast to the maintop.

2. Main support; principal dependence.

The great mainstay of the Church.

Buckle.

Main”swear` (?), v. i. [AS. mānswerian to forswear; mān sin, crime + swerian to swear.] To swear falsely. [Obs.] Blount.

Main*tain (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Maintained (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Maintaining.] [OE. maintenen, F. maintenir, properly, to hold by the hand; main hand (L. manus) + F. tenir to hold (L. tenere). See Manual, and Tenable.] 1. To hold or keep in any particular state or condition; to support; to sustain; to uphold; to keep up; not to suffer to fail or decline; as, to maintain a certain degree of heat in a furnace; to maintain a fence or a railroad; to maintain the digestive process or powers of the stomach; to maintain the fertility of soil; to maintain present reputation.

2. To keep possession of; to hold and defend; not to surrender or relinquish.

God values . . . every one as he maintains his post.

Grew.

3. To continue; not to suffer to cease or fail.

Maintain talk with the duke.

Shak.

4. To bear the expense of; to support; to keep up; to supply with what is needed.

Glad, by his labor, to maintain his life.

Stirling.

What maintains one vice would bring up two children.

Franklin.

5. To affirm; to support or defend by argument.

It is hard to maintain the truth, but much harder to be maintained by it.

South.

Syn. — To assert; vindicate; allege. See Assert.

Main*tain”a*ble (?), a. That may be maintained.

Main*tain”er (?), n. One who maintains.

Main*tain”or (?), n. [OF. mainteneor, F. mainteneur.] (Crim. Law) One who, not being interested, maintains a cause depending between others, by furnishing money, etc., to either party. Bouvier. Wharton.

Main”te*nance (?), n. [OF. maintenance. See Maintain.] 1. The act of maintaining; sustenance; support; defense; vindication.

Whatsoever is granted to the church for God’s honor and the maintenance of his service, is granted to God.

South.

2. That which maintains or supports; means of sustenance; supply of necessaries and conveniences.

Those of better fortune not making learning their maintenance.

Swift.

3. (Crim. Law) An officious or unlawful intermeddling in a cause depending between others, by assisting either party with money or means to carry it on. See Champerty. Wharton.

Cap of maintenance. See under Cap.

Main”top` (?), n. (Naut.) The platform about the head of the mainmast in square-rigged vessels.

Main” yard` (?). (Naut.) The yard on which the mainsail is extended, supported by the mainmast.

Mai”oid (?), a. [Maia + - oid.] (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the genus Maia, or family Maiadeæ.

Mais”ter (?), n. Master. [Obs.] Chaucer. Spenser.

Mais”ter, a. Principal; chief. [Obs.] Chaucer.

{ Mais”tre (?), Mais”trie, Mais”try (?) }, n. Mastery; superiority; art. See Mastery. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mais”tress (?), n. Mistress. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mai”thes (?), n. (Bot.) Same as Maghet.

Maize (?), n. [Sp. maiz. fr. mahiz or mahis, is the language of the Island of Hayti.] (Bot.) A large species of American grass of the genus Zea (Z. Mays), widely cultivated as a forage and food plant; Indian corn. Also, its seed, growing on cobs, and used as food for men and animals.

Maize eater (Zoöl.), a South American bird of the genus Pseudoleistes, allied to the troupials. — Maize yellow, a delicate pale yellow.

{ Maj`es*tat”ic (?), Maj`es*tat”*al (?), } a. Majestic. [Obs.] E. Pocock. Dr. J. Scott.

Ma*jes”tic (?), a. [From Majesty.] Possessing or exhibiting majesty; of august dignity, stateliness, or imposing grandeur; lofty; noble; grand. “The majestic world.” Shak. “Tethys’ grave majestic pace.” Milton.

The least portions must be of the epic kind; all must be grave, majestic, and sublime.

Dryden.

Syn. — August; splendid; grand; sublime; magnificent; imperial; regal; pompous; stately; lofty; dignified; elevated.

Ma*jes”tic*al (?), a. Majestic. Cowley.

An older architecture, greater, cunninger, more majestical.

M. Arnold.

— Ma*jes”tic*al*ly, adv. — Ma*jes”tic*al*ness, n.

Ma*jes”tic*ness (?), n. The quality or state of being majestic. Oldenburg.

Maj”es*ty (?), n.; pl. Majesties (#). [OE. magestee, F. majesté, L. majestas, fr. an old compar. of magnus great. See Major, Master.] The dignity and authority of sovereign power; quality or state which inspires awe or reverence; grandeur; exalted dignity, whether proceeding from rank, character, or bearing; imposing loftiness; stateliness; — usually applied to the rank and dignity of sovereigns.

The Lord reigneth; he is clothed with majesty.

Ps. xciii. 1.

No sovereign has ever represented the majesty of a great state with more dignity and grace.

Macaulay.

2. Hence, used with the possessive pronoun, the title of an emperor, king or queen; — in this sense taking a plural; as, their majesties attended the concert.

In all the public writs which he [Emperor Charles V.] now issued as King of Spain, he assumed the title of Majesty, and required it from his subjects as a mark of respect. Before that time all the monarchs of Europe were satisfied with the appellation of Highness or Grace.

Robertson.

3. Dignity; elevation of manner or style. Dryden.

Ma*jol”i*ca (?), n. [It.] A kind of pottery, with opaque glazing and showy decoration, which reached its greatest perfection in Italy in the 16th century.

&fist; The term is said to be derived from Majorca, which was an early seat of this manufacture. Heyse.

Ma”jor (?), [L. major, compar. of magnus great: cf. F. majeur. Cf. Master, Mayor, Magnitude, More, a.] 1. Greater in number, quantity, or extent; as, the major part of the assembly; the major part of the revenue; the major part of the territory.

2. Of greater dignity; more important. Shak.

3. Of full legal age. [Obs.]

4. (Mus.) Greater by a semitone, either in interval or in difference of pitch from another tone.

Major axis (Geom.), the greater axis. See Focus, n., 2. — Major key (Mus.), a key in which one and two, two and three, four and five, five and six and seven, make major seconds, and three and four, and seven and eight, make minor seconds. — Major offense (Law), an offense of a greater degree which contains a lesser offense, as murder and robbery include assault. — Major premise (Logic), that premise of a syllogism which contains the major term. — Major scale (Mus.), the natural diatonic scale, which has semitones between the third and fourth, and seventh and fourth, and seventh and eighth degrees; the scale of the major mode, of which the third is major. See Scale, and Diatonic. — Major second (Mus.), a second between whose tones is a difference in pitch of a step. — Major sixth (Mus.), a sixth of four steps and a half step. In major keys the third and sixth from the key tone are major. Major keys and intervals, as distinguished from minors, are more cheerful. — Major term (Logic), that term of a syllogism which forms the predicate of the conclusion. — Major third (Mus.), a third of two steps.

Ma”jor, n. [F. major. See Major, a.] 1. (Mil.) An officer next in rank above a captain and next below a lieutenant colonel; the lowest field officer.

2. (Law) A person of full age.

3. (Logic) That premise which contains the major term. It its the first proposition of a regular syllogism; as: No unholy person is qualified for happiness in heaven [the major]. Every man in his natural state is unholy [minor]. Therefore, no man in his natural state is qualified for happiness in heaven [conclusion or inference].

&fist; In hypothetical syllogisms, the hypothetical premise is called the major.

4. [LL. See Major.] A mayor. [Obs.] Bacon.

||Ma`jo`rat” (?), n. [F. majorat, LL. majoratus. See Major, a., and cf. Majorate.] 1. The right of succession to property according to age; — so termed in some of the countries of continental Europe.

2. (French Law) Property, landed or funded, so attached to a title of honor as to descend with it.

Ma”jor*ate (?), n. The office or rank of a major.

Ma”jor*ate (?), v. t. [LL. majorare to augment. See Major, a.] To augment; to increase. [Obs.] Howell.

Ma`jor*a”tion (?), n. Increase; enlargement. [Obs.] Bacon.

Ma*jor”can (?), a. Of or pertaining to Majorca. — n. A native or inhabitant of Majorca.

Ma`jor-do”mo (?), n. [Sp. mayordomo, or It. maggiordomo; both fr. LL. majordomus; L. major greater + domus house.] A man who has authority to act, within certain limits, as master of the house; a steward; also, a chief minister or officer.

Ma”jor gen”er*al (?). An officer of the army holding a rank next above that of brigadier general and next below that of lieutenant general, and who usually commands a division or a corps.

Ma*jor”i*ty (?), n.; pl. Majorities (#). [F. majorité. See Major.] 1. The quality or condition of being major or greater; superiority. Specifically: (a) The military rank of a major. (b) The condition of being of full age, or authorized by law to manage one’s own affairs.

2. The greater number; more than half; as, a majority of mankind; a majority of the votes cast.

3. [Cf. L. majores.] Ancestors; ancestry. [Obs.]

4. The amount or number by which one aggregate exceeds all other aggregates with which it is contrasted; especially, the number by which the votes for a successful candidate exceed those for all other candidates; as, he is elected by a majority of five hundred votes. See Plurality.

To go over to, or To join, the majority, to die.

Ma”jor*ship (?), n. The office of major.

Maj”oun (?), n. See Madjoun.

||Ma*jus”cu*læ (?), n. pl. [L., fem. pl. fr. majusculus somewhat greater or great, dim. of major, majus. See Major.] (Palæography) Capital letters, as found in manuscripts of the sixth century and earlier.

Ma*jus”cule (?), n. [Cf. F. majuscule. See Majusculæ.] A capital letter; especially, one used in ancient manuscripts. See Majusculæ.

Majuscule writing, writing composed wholly of capital letters, especially the style which prevailed in Europe from the third to the sixth century.

Mak”a*ble (?), a. Capable of being made.

Mak”a*ron (?), n. See Macaroon, 2. [Obs.]

Make (?), n. [AS. maca, gemaca. See Match.] A companion; a mate; often, a husband or a wife. [Obs.]

For in this world no woman is
Worthy to be my make.

Chaucer.

Make, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Made (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Making.] [OE. maken, makien, AS. macian; akin to OS. mak&?;n, OFries. makia, D. maken, G. machen, OHG. mahh&?;n to join, fit, prepare, make, Dan. mage. Cf. Match an equal.] 1. To cause to exist; to bring into being; to form; to produce; to frame; to fashion; to create. Hence, in various specific uses or applications: (a) To form of materials; to cause to exist in a certain form; to construct; to fabricate.

He . . . fashioned it with a graving tool, after he had made it a molten calf.

Ex. xxxii. 4.

(b) To produce, as something artificial, unnatural, or false; — often with up; as, to make up a story.

And Art, with her contending, doth aspire
To excel the natural with made delights.

Spenser.

(c) To bring about; to bring forward; to be the cause or agent of; to effect, do, perform, or execute; — often used with a noun to form a phrase equivalent to the simple verb that corresponds to such noun; as, to make complaint, for to complain; to make record of, for to record; to make abode, for to abide, etc.

Call for Samson, that he may make us sport.

Judg. xvi. 25.

Wealth maketh many friends.

Prov. xix. 4.

I will neither plead my age nor sickness in excuse of the faults which I have made.

Dryden.

(d) To execute with the requisite formalities; as, to make a bill, note, will, deed, etc. (e) To gain, as the result of one’s efforts; to get, as profit; to make acquisition of; to have accrue or happen to one; as, to make a large profit; to make an error; to make a loss; to make money.

He accuseth Neptune unjustly who makes shipwreck a second time.

Bacon.

(f) To find, as the result of calculation or computation; to ascertain by enumeration; to find the number or amount of, by reckoning, weighing, measurement, and the like; as, he made the distance of; to travel over; as, the ship makes ten knots an hour; he made the distance in one day. (h) To put in a desired or desirable condition; to cause to thrive.

Who makes or ruins with a smile or frown.

Dryden.

2. To cause to be or become; to put into a given state verb, or adjective; to constitute; as, to make known; to make public; to make fast.

Who made thee a prince and a judge over us?

Ex. ii. 14.

See, I have made thee a god to Pharaoh.

Ex. vii. 1.

&fist; When used reflexively with an adjective, the reflexive pronoun is often omitted; as, to make merry; to make bold; to make free, etc.

3. To cause to appear to be; to constitute subjectively; to esteem, suppose, or represent.

He is not that goose and ass that Valla would make him.

Baker.

4. To require; to constrain; to compel; to force; to cause; to occasion; — followed by a noun or pronoun and infinitive.

&fist; In the active voice the to of the infinitive is usually omitted.

I will make them hear my words.

Deut. iv. 10.

They should be made to rise at their early hour.

Locke.

5. To become; to be, or to be capable of being, changed or fashioned into; to do the part or office of; to furnish the material for; as, he will make a good musician; sweet cider makes sour vinegar; wool makes warm clothing.

And old cloak makes a new jerkin.

Shak.

6. To compose, as parts, ingredients, or materials; to constitute; to form; to amount to.

The heaven, the air, the earth, and boundless sea,
Make but one temple for the Deity.

Waller.

7. To be engaged or concerned in. [Obs.]

Gomez, what makest thou here, with a whole brotherhood of city bailiffs?

Dryden.

8. To reach; to attain; to arrive at or in sight of. “And make the Libyan shores.” Dryden.

They that sail in the middle can make no land of either side.

Sir T. Browne.

To make a bed, to prepare a bed for being slept on, or to put it in order. — To make a card (Card Playing), to take a trick with it. — To make account. See under Account, n. — To make account of, to esteem; to regard. — To make away. (a) To put out of the way; to kill; to destroy. [Obs.]

If a child were crooked or deformed in body or mind, they made him away.

Burton.

(b) To alienate; to transfer; to make over. [Obs.] Waller. — To make believe, to pretend; to feign; to simulate. — To make bold, to take the liberty; to venture. — To make the cards (Card Playing), to shuffle the pack. — To make choice of, to take by way of preference; to choose. — To make danger, to make experiment. [Obs.] Beau. & Fl. — To make default (Law), to fail to appear or answer. — To make the doors, to shut the door. [Obs.]

Make the doors upon a woman’s wit, and it will out at the casement.

Shak.

- To make free with. See under Free, a. — To make good. See under Good. — To make head, to make headway. — To make light of. See under Light, a. — To make little of. (a) To belittle. (b) To accomplish easily. — To make love to. See under Love, n. — To make meat, to cure meat in the open air. [Colloq. Western U. S.] — To make merry, to feast; to be joyful or jovial. — To make much of, to treat with much consideration,, attention, or fondness; to value highly. — To make no bones. See under Bone, n. — To make no difference, to have no weight or influence; to be a matter of indifference. — To make no doubt, to have no doubt. — To make no matter, to have no weight or importance; to make no difference. — To make oath (Law), to swear, as to the truth of something, in a prescribed form of law. — To make of. (a) To understand or think concerning; as, not to know what to make of the news. (b) To pay attention to; to cherish; to esteem; to account. “Makes she no more of me than of a slave.” Dryden. — To make one’s law (Old Law), to adduce proof to clear one’s self of a charge. — To make out. (a) To find out; to discover; to decipher; as, to make out the meaning of a letter. (b) To prove; to establish; as, the plaintiff was unable to make out his case. (c) To make complete or exact; as, he was not able to make out the money. — To make over, to transfer the title of; to convey; to alienate; as, he made over his estate in trust or in fee. — To make sail. (Naut.) (a) To increase the quantity of sail already extended. (b) To set sail. — To make shift, to manage by expedients; as, they made shift to do without it. [Colloq.]. — To make sternway, to move with the stern foremost; to go or drift backward. — To make strange, to act in an unfriendly manner or as if surprised; to treat as strange; as, to make strange of a request or suggestion. — To make suit to, to endeavor to gain the favor of; to court. — To make sure. See under Sure. — To make up. (a) To collect into a sum or mass; as, to make up the amount of rent; to make up a bundle or package. (b) To reconcile; to compose; as, to make up a difference or quarrel. (c) To supply what is wanting in; to complete; as, a dollar is wanted to make up the stipulated sum. (d) To compose, as from ingredients or parts; to shape, prepare, or fabricate; as, to make up a mass into pills; to make up a story.

He was all made up of love and charms!

Addison.

(e) To compensate; to make good; as, to make up a loss. (f) To adjust, or to arrange for settlement; as, to make up accounts. (g) To dress and paint for a part, as an actor; as, he was well made up. — To make up a face, to distort the face as an expression of pain or derision. — To make up one’s mind, to reach a mental determination; to resolve. — To make water. (a) (Naut.) To leak. (b) To urinate. — To make way, or To make one’s way. (a) To make progress; to advance. (b) To open a passage; to clear the way. — To make words, to multiply words.

Make (?), v. i. 1. To act in a certain manner; to have to do; to manage; to interfere; to be active; — often in the phrase to meddle or make. [Obs.]

A scurvy, jack-a-nape priest to meddle or make.

Shak.

2. To proceed; to tend; to move; to go; as, he made toward home; the tiger made at the sportsmen.

&fist; Formerly, authors used to make on, to make forth, to make about; but these phrases are obsolete. We now say, to make at, to make away, to make for, to make off, to make toward, etc.

3. To tend; to contribute; to have effect; — with for or against; as, it makes for his advantage. M. Arnold.

Follow after the things which make for peace.

Rom. xiv. 19.

Considerations infinite
Do make against it.

Shak.

4. To increase; to augment; to accrue.

5. To compose verses; to write poetry; to versify. [Archaic] Chaucer. Tennyson.

To solace him some time, as I do when I make.

P. Plowman.

To make as if, or To make as though, to pretend that; to make show that; to make believe (see under Make, v. t.).

Joshua and all Israel made as if they were beaten before them, and fled.

Josh. viii. 15.

My lord of London maketh as though he were greatly displeased with me.

Latimer.

— To make at, to go toward hastily, or in a hostile manner; to attack. — To make away with. (a) To carry off. (b) To transfer or alienate; hence, to spend; to dissipate. (c) To kill; to destroy. — To make off, to go away suddenly. — To make out, to succeed; to be able at last; to make shift; as, he made out to reconcile the contending parties. — To make up, to become reconciled or friendly. — To make up for, to compensate for; to supply an equivalent for. — To make up to. (a) To approach; as, a suspicious boat made up to us. (b) To pay addresses to; to make love to. — To make up with, to become reconciled to. [Colloq.] — To make with, to concur or agree with. Hooker.

Make, n. Structure, texture, constitution of parts; construction; shape; form.

It our perfection of so frail a make
As every plot can undermine and shake?

Dryden.

On the make,bent upon making great profits; greedy of gain. [Low, U. S.]

Make”bate` (?), n. [Make, v. + bate a quarrel.] One who excites contentions and quarrels. [Obs.]

Make”-be*lief` (?), n. A feigning to believe; make believe. J. H. Newman.

Make”-be*lieve` (?), n. A feigning to believe, as in the play of children; a mere pretense; a fiction; an invention. “Childlike make-believe.” Tylor.

To forswear self-delusion and make- believe.

M. Arnold.

Make”-be*lieve`, a. Feigned; insincere. “Make-believe reverence.” G. Eliot.

Mak”ed (?), obs. p. p. of Make. Made. Chaucer.

Make”-game` (?), n. An object of ridicule; a butt. Godwin.

Make”less, a. [See 1st Make, and cf. Matchless, Mateless.] 1. Matchless. [Obs.] Chaucer.

2. Without a mate. Shak.

Make”-peace` (-pēs`), n. A peacemaker. [R.] Shak.

Mak”er (māk”&etilde;r), n. 1. One who makes, forms, or molds; a manufacturer; specifically, the Creator.

The universal Maker we may praise.

Milton.

2. (Law) The person who makes a promissory note.

3. One who writes verses; a poet. [Obs.]

&fist; “The Greeks named the poet poihth`s, which name, as the most excellent, hath gone through other languages. It cometh of this word poiei^n, make; wherein, I know not whether by luck or wisdom, we Englishmen have met well the Greeks in calling him a maker.” Sir P. Sidney.

Make”shift` (māk”sh&ibreve;ft`), n. That with which one makes shift; a temporary expedient. James Mill.

I am not a model clergyman, only a decent makeshift.

G. Eliot.

Make”-up` (?), n. The way in which the parts of anything are put together; often, the way in which an actor is dressed, painted, etc., in personating a character.

The unthinking masses are necessarily teleological in their mental make-up.

L. F. Ward.

Make”weight` (&?;), n. That which is thrown into a scale to make weight; something of little account added to supply a deficiency or fill a gap.

||Ma”ki (?), n. [F., from native name.] (Zoöl.) A lemur. See Lemur.

Mak”ing (?), n. 1. The act of one who makes; workmanship; fabrication; construction; as, this is cloth of your own making; the making of peace or war was in his power.

2. Composition, or structure.

3. a poem. [Obs.] Sir J. Davies.

4. That which establishes or places in a desirable state or condition; the material of which something may be made; as, early misfortune was the making of him.

5. External appearance; from. [Obs.] Shak.

Mak”ing-i`ron (?), n. A tool somewhat like a chisel with a groove in it, used by calkers of ships to finish the seams after the oakum has been driven in.

Mak”ing-up` (?), n. 1. The act of bringing spirits to a certain degree of strength, called proof.

2. The act of becoming reconciled or friendly.

Mal- (măl-). A prefix in composition denoting ill, or evil, F. male, adv., fr. malus, bad, ill. In some words it has the form male-, as in malediction, malevolent. See Malice.

&fist; The form male- is chiefly used in cases where the e, either alone or with other letters, is pronounced as a separate syllable, as in malediction, malefactor, maleficent, etc. Where this is not the case, as in malfeasance or male-feasance, malformation or male-formation, etc., as also where the word to which it is prefixed commences with a vowel, as in maladministration, etc., the form mal is to be preferred, and is the one commonly employed.

||Ma”la (?), n.; pl. of Malum. [L.] Evils; wrongs; offenses against right and law.

Mala in se [L.] (Law), offenses which are such from their own nature, at common law, irrespective of statute. — Mala prohibita [L.] (Law), offenses prohibited by statute, as distinguished from mala in se, which are offenses at common law.

Mal”a*bar` (?), n. A region in the western part of the Peninsula of India, between the mountains and the sea.

Malabar nut (Bot.), the seed of an East Indian acanthaceous shrub, the Adhatoda Vasica, sometimes used medicinally.

Mal`a*ca*tune” (?), n. See Melocoton.

Ma*lac”ca (?), n. A town and district upon the seacoast of the Malay Peninsula.

Malacca cane (Bot.), a cane obtained from a species of palm of the genus Calamus (C. Scipionum), and of a brown color, often mottled. The plant is a native of Cochin China, Sumatra, and Malays.

Mal”a*chite (?), n. [Fr. Gr. &?; a mallow, from its resembling the green color of the leaf of mallows: cf. F. malachite. Cf. Mallow.] (Min.) Native hydrous carbonate of copper, usually occurring in green mammillary masses with concentric fibrous structure.

&fist; Green malachite, or malachite proper, admits of a high polish, and is sometimes used for ornamental work. Blue malachite, or azurite, is a related species of a deep blue color.

Malachite green. See Emerald green, under Green, n.

Mal`a*cis”sant (?), a. [See Malacissation.] Softening; relaxing. [Obs.]

Mal`a*cis*sa”tion (?), n. [L. malacissare to make soft, Gr. &?;.] The act of making soft or supple. [Obs.] Bacon.

||Mal`a*cob*del”la (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; soft + &?; a leech.] (Zoöl.) A genus of nemertean worms, parasitic in the gill cavity of clams and other bivalves. They have a large posterior sucker, like that of a leech. See Illust. of Bdellomorpha.

Mal”a*co*derm (?), n. [Gr. &?; soft + &?; skin.] (Zoöl.) One of a tribe of beetles (Malacodermata), with a soft and flexible body, as the fireflies.

Mal”a*co*lite (?), n. [Gr. &?; soft + -lite.] (Min.) A variety of pyroxene.

Mal`a*col”o*gist (?), n. One versed in the science of malacology.

Mal`a*col”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. &?; soft + -logy: cf. F. malacologie.] The science which relates to the structure and habits of mollusks.

||Mal`a*cop”o*da (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; soft + -poda.] (Zoöl.) A class of air-breathing Arthropoda; — called also Protracheata, and Onychophora.

&fist; They somewhat resemble myriapods, and have from seventeen to thirty-three pairs of short, imperfectly jointed legs, two pairs of simple jaws, and a pair of antennæ. The trancheæ are connected with numerous spiracles scattered over the surface of the body. Peripatus is the only known genus. See Peripatus.

Mal`a*cop`ter*yg”i*an (?), n. [Cf. F. malacoptérygien.] (Zoöl.) One of the Malacopterygii.

||Mal`a*cop`te*ryg”i*i (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; soft + &?; wing, fin, fr. &?; feather.] (Zoöl.) An order of fishes in which the fin rays, except the anterior ray of the pectoral and dorsal fins, are closely jointed, and not spiny. It includes the carp, pike, salmon, shad, etc. Called also Malacopteri.

Mal`a*cop`ter*yg”i*ous (?), a. (Zoöl.) Belonging to the Malacopterygii.

Mal`a*cos”te*on (?), n. [NL., Gr. fr. &?; soft + &?; bone.] (Med.) A peculiar disease of the bones, in consequence of which they become softened and capable of being bent without breaking.

Mal`a*cos”to*mous (?), a. [Gr. &?; soft + &?; mouth.] (Zoöl.) Having soft jaws without teeth, as certain fishes.

||Mal`a*cos”tra*ca (?), n. pl. [NL., from Gr. &?; soft + &?; shell of a testacean.] (Zoöl.) A subclass of Crustacea, including Arthrostraca and Thoracostraca, or all those higher than the Entomostraca.

Mal`a*cos”tra*can (?), n. (Zoöl.) One of the Malacostraca.

Mal`a*cos`tra*col”o*gy (?), n. [Malacostracan + -logy.] That branch of zoölogical science which relates to the crustaceans; — called also carcinology.

Mal`a*cos”tra*cous (?), a. (Zoöl.) Belonging to the Malacostraca.

Mal`a*co*toon” (?), n. (Bot.) See Melocoton.

||Mal`a*co*zo”a (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; soft + zo^,on an animal.] (Zoöl.) An extensive group of Invertebrata, including the Mollusca, Brachiopoda, and Bryozoa. Called also Malacozoaria.

Mal`a*co*zo”ic (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Malacozoa.

Mal`ad*dress” (?), n. [Mal- + address.] Bad address; an awkward, tactless, or offensive way of accosting one or talking with one. W. D. Howells.

Mal`ad*just”ment (?), n. [Mal- + adjustment.] A bad adjustment.

Mal`ad*min`is*tra”tion (?), n. [Mal- + administration.] Bad administration; bad management of any business, especially of public affairs. [Written also maleadministration.]

Mal`a*droit” (?), a. [F. See Malice, and Adroit.] Of a quality opposed to adroitness; clumsy; awkward; unskillful. — Mal”a*droit`ly, adv. — Mal`a*droit”ness, n.

Mal”a*dy (?), n.; pl. Maladies (#). [F. maladie, fr. malade ill, sick, OF. also, malabde, fr. L. male habitus, i. e., ill-kept, not in good condition. See Malice, and Habit.] 1. Any disease of the human body; a distemper, disorder, or indisposition, proceeding from impaired, defective, or morbid organic functions; especially, a lingering or deep-seated disorder.

The maladies of the body may prove medicines to the mind.

Buckminster.

2. A moral or mental defect or disorder.

Love’s a malady without a cure.

Dryden.

Syn. — Disorder; distemper; sickness; ailment; disease; illness. See Disease.

Mal”a*ga (?), n. A city and a province of Spain, on the Mediterranean. Hence, Malaga grapes, Malaga raisins, Malaga wines.

||Mal`a*gash” (?), n. Same as Malagasy.

Mal`a*gas”y (?), n. sing. & pl. A native or natives of Madagascar; also (sing.), the language.

||Ma`laise” (?), n. [F., fr. mal ill + aise ease.] (Med.) An indefinite feeling of uneasiness, or of being sick or ill at ease.

Ma*lam”ate (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of malamic acid.

||Ma*lam”bo (?), n. [Pg.] A yellowish aromatic bark, used in medicine and perfumery, said to be from the South American shrub Croton Malambo.

Mal`am*eth”ane (?), n. [Malamic + ethane.] (Chem.) A white crystalline substance forming the ethyl salt of malamic acid.

Ma*lam”ic (?), a. [Malic + amic.] (Chem.) Of or designating an acid intermediate between malic acid and malamide, and known only by its salts.

Ma*lam”ide (?), n. [Malic + amide.] (Chem.) The acid amide derived from malic acid, as a white crystalline substance metameric with asparagine.

Mal”an*ders (?), n. pl. [F. malandres, fr. L. malandria blisters or pustules on the neck, especially in horses.] (Far.) A scurfy eruption in the bend of the knee of the fore leg of a horse. See Sallenders. [Written also mallenders.]

Mal”a*pert (?), a. [OF. malapert unskillful, ill-taught, ill-bred; mal ill + apert open, adroit, intelligent, L. apertus, p. p. of aperire to open. See Malice, and Aperient.] Bold; forward; impudent; saucy; pert. Shak. — n. A malapert person.

Are you growing malapert! Will you force me to make use of my authority ?

Dryden.

— Mal”a*pert`ly, adv. — Mal”a*pert`ness, n.

Mal”a*prop*ism (?), n. [From Mrs. Malaprop, a character in Sheridan’s drama, ” The Rivals,” who makes amusing blunders in her use of words. See Malapropos.] A grotesque misuse of a word; a word so used.

Mal*ap”ro*pos` (?), a. & adv. [F. mal à propos; mal evil + à propos to the purpose.] Unseasonable or unseasonably; unsuitable or unsuitably.

||Mal*ap`te*ru”rus (măl*ăp`t&esl;*r&udd;“rŭs), n. [NL., from Gr. malako`s soft + ptero`n wing + o’yra` tail.] (Zoöl.) A genus of African siluroid fishes, including the electric catfishes. See Electric cat, under Electric.

Ma”lar (?), a. [L. mala the cheek: cf. F. malaire.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the region of the cheek bone, or to the malar bone; jugal.

Ma”lar (?), n. (Anat.) The cheek bone, which forms a part of the lower edge of the orbit.

Ma*la”ri*a (?), n. [It., contr. fr. malaaria bad air. See Malice, and Air.] 1. Air infected with some noxious substance capable of engendering disease; esp., an unhealthy exhalation from certain soils, as marshy or wet lands, producing fevers; miasma.

&fist; The morbific agent in malaria is supposed by some to be a vegetable microbe or its spores, and by others to be a very minute animal blood parasite (an infusorian).

2. (Med.) A morbid condition produced by exhalations from decaying vegetable matter in contact with moisture, giving rise to fever and ague and many other symptoms characterized by their tendency to recur at definite and usually uniform intervals.

{ Ma*la”ri*al (?), Ma*la”ri*an (?), Ma*la”ri*ous (?) }, a. Of or pertaining, to or infected by, malaria.

Malarial fever (Med.), a fever produced by malaria, and characterized by the occurrence of chills, fever, and sweating in distinct paroxysms, At intervals of definite and often uniform duration, in which these symptoms are wholly absent (intermittent fever), or only partially so (remittent fever); fever and ague; chills and fever.

Ma`la*sha”ga*nay (?), n. [Indian name.] (Zoöl.) The fresh-water drumfish (Haploidonotus grunniens).

Mal`as*sim`i*la”tion (?), n. [Mal- + assimilation.] (Physiol.) (a) Imperfect digestion of the several leading constituents of the food. (b) An imperfect elaboration by the tissues of the materials brought to them by the blood.

Ma”late (?), n. [L. malum apple: cf. F. malate. See Malic.] (Chem.) A salt of malic acid.

{ Ma”lax (?), Ma*lax”ate (?), } v. t. [L. malaxare, malaxatum, cf. Gr. &?;, fr. &?; soft: cf. F. malaxer.] To soften by kneading or stirring with some thinner substance. [R.]

Mal`ax*a”tion (?), n. [L. malaxatio: cf. F. malaxation.] The act of softening by mixing with a thinner substance; the formation of ingredients into a mass for pills or plasters. [R.]

Mal”ax*a`tor (?), n. One who, or that which, malaxates; esp., a machine for grinding, kneading, or stirring into a pasty or doughy mass. [R.]

Ma*lay” (?), n. One of a race of a brown or copper complexion in the Malay Peninsula and the western islands of the Indian Archipelago.

{ Ma*lay” (?), Ma*lay”an (?), } a. Of or pertaining to the Malays or their country. — n. The Malay language.

Malay apple (Bot.), a myrtaceous tree (Eugenia Malaccensis) common in India; also, its applelike fruit.

Ma”la*ya”lam (?), n. The name given to one the cultivated Dravidian languages, closely related to the Tamil. Yule.

||Mal”brouck (?), n. [F.] (Zoöl.) A West African arboreal monkey (Cercopithecus cynosurus).

Mal*con`for*ma”tion (?), n. [Mal- + conformation.] Imperfect, disproportionate, or abnormal formation; ill form; disproportion of parts.

Mal”con*tent` (?), a. [F., fr. mal ill + content. See Malice, Content.] discontented; uneasy; dissatisfied; especially, dissatisfied with the government. [Written also malecontent.]

The famous malcontent earl of Leicester.

Milner.

Mal”con*tent`, n. [F. malcontent.] One who discontented; especially, a discontented subject of a government; one who expresses his discontent by words or overt acts. Spenser. Berkeley.

Mal`con*tent”ed (?), a. Malcontent. — Mal`con*tent”ed*ly, adv. — Mal`con*tent”ed*ness, n.

Mal*da”ni*an (?), n. (Zoöl.) Any species of marine annelids of the genus Maldane, or family Maldanidæ. They have a slender, round body, and make tubes in the sand or mud.

Male- (măl- or măl&esl;). See Mal.

Male (māl), a. [L. malus. See Malice.] Evil; wicked; bad. [Obs.] Marston.

Male, n. Same as Mail, a bag. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Male, a. [F. mâle, OF. masle, mascle, fr. L. masculus male, masculine, dim. of mas a male; possibly akin to E. man. Cf. Masculine, Marry, v. t.] 1. Of or pertaining to the sex that begets or procreates young, or (in a wider sense) to the sex that produces spermatozoa, by which the ova are fertilized; not female; as, male organs.

2. (Bot.) Capable of producing fertilization, but not of bearing fruit; — said of stamens and antheridia, and of the plants, or parts of plants, which bear them.

3. Suitable to the male sex; characteristic or suggestive of a male; masculine; as, male courage.

4. Consisting of males; as, a male choir.

5. (Mech.) Adapted for entering another corresponding piece (the female piece) which is hollow and which it fits; as, a male gauge, for gauging the size or shape of a hole; a male screw, etc.

Male berry (Bot.), a kind of coffee. See Pea berry. — Male fern (Bot.), a fern of the genus Aspidium (A. Filixmas), used in medicine as an anthelmintic, esp. against the tapeworm. Aspidium marginale in America, and A. athamanticum in South Africa, are used as good substitutes for the male fern in medical practice. See Female fern, under Female. — Male rhyme, a rhyme in which only the last syllables agree, as laid, afraid, dismayed. See Female rhyme, under Female. – - Male screw (Mech.), a screw having threads upon its exterior which enter the grooves upon the inside of a corresponding nut or female screw. — Male thread, the thread of a male screw.

Male, n. 1. An animal of the male sex.

2. (Bot.) A plant bearing only staminate flowers.

Male`ad*min`is*tra”tion (măl`ăd*m&ibreve;n`&ibreve;s*trā“shŭn), n. Maladministration.

Ma*le”ate (?), n. A salt of maleic acid.

Male*branch”ism (?), n. The philosophical system of Malebranche, an eminent French metaphysician. The fundamental doctrine of his system is that the mind can not have knowledge of anything external to itself except in its relation to God.

Male*con`for*ma”tion (?), n. Malconformation.

Male”con*tent` (?), a. Malcontent.

Mal`e*di”cen*cy (?), n. [L. maledicentia. See Maledicent.] Evil speaking. [Obs.] Atterbury.

Mal`e*di”cent (?), a. [L. maledicens, p. pr. of maledicere to speak ill; male ill + dicere to say, speak. See Malice, and Diction.] Speaking reproachfully; slanderous. [Obs.] Sir E. Sandys.

Mal”e*dict (?), a. [L. maledictus, p. p. of maledicere.] Accursed; abominable. [R.]

Mal`e*dic”tion, n. [L. maledictio: cf. F. malédiction. See Maledicent.] A proclaiming of evil against some one; a cursing; imprecation; a curse or execration; — opposed to benediction.

No malediction falls from his tongue.

Longfellow.

Syn. — Cursing; curse; execration; imprecation; denunciation; anathema. — Malediction, Curse, Imprecation, Execration. Malediction is the most general term, denoting bitter reproach, or wishes and predictions of evil. Curse implies the desire or threat of evil, declared upon oath or in the most solemn manner. Imprecation is literally the praying down of evil upon a person. Execration is literally a putting under the ban of excommunication, a curse which excludes from the kingdom of God. In ordinary usage, the last three words describe profane swearing, execration being the strongest.

Mal`e*fac”tion (?), n. [See Malefactor.] A crime; an offense; an evil deed. [R.] Shak.

Mal`e*fac”tor (?), n. [L., fr. malefacere to do evil; male ill, evil + facere to do. See Malice, and Fact.] 1. An evil doer; one who commits a crime; one subject to public prosecution and punishment; a criminal.

2. One who does wrong by injuring another, although not a criminal. [Obs.] H. Brooke. Fuller.

Syn. — Evil doer; criminal; culprit; felon; convict.

Mal`e*fac”tress (?), n. A female malefactor. Hawthorne.

Male*fea”sance (?), n. See Malfeasance.

Ma*lef”ic (?), a. [L. maleficus: cf. F. maléfique. See Malefaction.] Doing mischief; causing harm or evil; nefarious; hurtful. [R.] Chaucer.

Mal”e*fice (?), n. [L. maleficium: cf. F. maléfice. See Malefactor.] An evil deed; artifice; enchantment. [Obs.]

Ma*lef”i*cence (?), n. [L. maleficentia. Cf. Malfeasance.] Evil doing, esp. to others.

Ma*lef”i*cent (?), a. [See Malefic.] Doing evil to others; harmful; mischievous.

Mal`e*fi”cial (?), a. Injurious. Fuller.

Mal`e*fi”ci*ate (?), v. t. [LL. maleficiatus, p. p. of maleficiare to bewitch, fr. L. maleficium. See Malefice.] To bewitch; to harm. [Obs.] Burton.

Mal`e*fi`ci*a”tion (?), n. A bewitching. [Obs.]

Mal`e*fi”cience (?), n. [See Maleficence.] The doing of evil, harm, or mischief.

Mal`e*fi”cient (?), a. [See Maleficent.] Doing evil, harm, or mischief.

Male`for*ma”tion (?), n. See Malformation.

Ma*le”ic (?), a. [Cf. F. maléique. See Malic.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, an acid of the ethylene series, metameric with fumaric acid and obtained by heating malic acid.

Ma*len”gine (?), n. [OF. malengin; L. malus bad, evil + ingenium natural capacity. See Engine.] Evil machination; guile; deceit. [Obs.] Gower.

Ma”le*o (?), n. [From its native name.] (Zoöl.) A bird of Celebes (megacephalon maleo), allied to the brush turkey. It makes mounds in which to lay its eggs.

Male-o”dor (?), n. See Malodor.

Male*prac”tice (?), n. See Malpractice.

Male”-spir`it*ed (?), a. Having the spirit of a male; vigorous; courageous. [R.] B. Jonson.

Mal”et (?), n. [F. mallette, dim. of malle. See Mail a bag.] A little bag or budget. [Obs.] Shelton.

Male*treat” (?), v. t. See Maltreat.

Ma*lev”o*lence (?), n. [L. malevolentia. See Malevolent.] The quality or state of being malevolent; evil disposition toward another; inclination to injure others; ill will. See Synonym of Malice.

Ma*lev”o*lent (?), a. [L. malevolens, -entis; male ill + volens, p. pr. of velle to be willing or disposed, to wish. See Malice, and Voluntary.] Wishing evil; disposed to injure others; rejoicing in another’s misfortune.

Syn. — Ill-disposed; envious; mischievous; evil-minded; spiteful; malicious; malignant; rancorous.

Ma*lev”o*lent*ly, adv. In a malevolent manner.

Ma*lev”o*lous (?), a. [L. malevolus; fr. male ill + velle to be disposed.] Malevolent. [Obs.] Bp. Warburton.

Mal*ex`e*cu”tion (?), n. [Mal- + execution.] Bad execution. D. Webster.

Ma*le”yl (?), n. [Maleic + - yl.] (Chem.) A hypothetical radical derived from maleic acid.

Mal*fea”sance (?), n. [F. malfaisance, fr. malfaisant injurious, doing ill; mal ill, evil + faisant doing, p. pr. of faire to do. See Malice, Feasible, and cf. Maleficence.] (Law) The doing of an act which a person ought not to do; evil conduct; an illegal deed. [Written also malefeasance.]

Mal`for*ma”tion (?), n. [Mal- + formation.] Ill formation; irregular or anomalous formation; abnormal or wrong conformation or structure.

Mal*gra”cious (?), a. [F. malgracieux.] Not graceful; displeasing. [Obs.] Gower.

Mal”gre (?), prep. See Mauger.

Ma”lic (?), a. [L. malum an apple: cf. F. malique.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or obtained from, apples; as, malic acid.

Malic acid, a hydroxy acid obtained as a substance which is sirupy or crystallized with difficulty, and has a strong but pleasant sour taste. It occurs in many fruits, as in green apples, currants, etc. It is levorotatory or dextrorotatory according to the temperature and concentration. An artificial variety is a derivative of succinic acid, but has no action on polarized light, and thus malic acid is a remarkable case of physical isomerism.

Mal”ice (măl”&ibreve;s), n. [F. malice, fr. L. malitia, from malus bad, ill, evil, prob. orig., dirty, black; cf. Gr. me`las black, Skr. mala dirt. Cf. Mauger.] 1. Enmity of heart; malevolence; ill will; a spirit delighting in harm or misfortune to another; a disposition to injure another; a malignant design of evil. “Nor set down aught in malice.” Shak.

Envy, hatred, and malice are three distinct passions of the mind.

Ld. Holt.

2. (Law) Any wicked or mischievous intention of the mind; a depraved inclination to mischief; an intention to vex, annoy, or injure another person, or to do a wrongful act without just cause or cause or excuse; a wanton disregard of the rights or safety of others; willfulness.

Malice aforethought or prepense, malice previously and deliberately entertained.

Syn. — Spite; ill will; malevolence; grudge; pique; bitterness; animosity; malignity; maliciousness; rancor; virulence. See Spite. — Malevolence, Malignity, Malignancy. Malice is a stronger word than malevolence, which may imply only a desire that evil may befall another, while malice desires, and perhaps intends, to bring it about. Malignity is intense and deepseated malice. It implies a natural delight in hating and wronging others. One who is malignant must be both malevolent and malicious; but a man may be malicious without being malignant.

Proud tyrants who maliciously destroy
And ride o’er ruins with malignant joy.

Somerville.

in some connections, malignity seems rather more pertinently applied to a radical depravity of nature, and malignancy to indications of this depravity, in temper and conduct in particular instances.

Cogan.

Mal”ice, v. t. To regard with extreme ill will. [Obs.]

Mal”i*cho (?), n. [Sp. malhecho; mal bad + hecho deed, L. factum. See Fact.] Mischief. [Obs.] Shak.

Ma*li”cious (?), a. [Of. malicius, F. malicieux, fr. L. malitiosus. See Malice.] 1. Indulging or exercising malice; harboring ill will or enmity.

I grant him bloody, . . .
Sudden, malicious, smacking of every sin
That has a name.

Shak.

2. Proceeding from hatred or ill will; dictated by malice; as, a malicious report; malicious mischief.

3. (Law) With wicked or mischievous intentions or motives; wrongful and done intentionally without just cause or excuse; as, a malicious act.

Malicious abandonment, the desertion of a wife or husband without just cause. Burrill. — Malicious mischief (Law), malicious injury to the property of another; — an offense at common law. Wharton. — Malicious prosecution or arrest (Law), a wanton prosecution or arrest, by regular process in a civil or criminal proceeding, without probable cause. Bouvier.

Syn. — Ill-disposed; evil-minded; mischievous; envious; malevolent; invidious; spiteful; bitter; malignant; rancorous; malign.

— Ma*li”cious*ly, adv. — Ma*li”cious*ness, n.

Ma*lign” (?), a. [L. malignus, for maligenus, i. e., of a bad kind or nature; malus bad + the root of genus birth, race, kind: cf. F. malin, masc., maligne, fem. See Malice, Gender, and cf. Benign, Malignant.] 1. Having an evil disposition toward others; harboring violent enmity; malevolent; malicious; spiteful; — opposed to benign.

Witchcraft may be by operation of malign spirits.

Bacon.

2. Unfavorable; unpropitious; pernicious; tending to injure; as, a malign aspect of planets.

3. Malignant; as, a malign ulcer. [R.] Bacon.

Ma*lign”, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Maligned (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Maligning.] [Cf. L. malignare. See Malign, a.] To treat with malice; to show hatred toward; to abuse; to wrong; to injure. [Obs.]

The people practice what mischiefs and villainies they will against private men, whom they malign by stealing their goods, or murdering them.

Spenser.

2. To speak great evil of; to traduce; to defame; to slander; to vilify; to asperse.

To be envied and shot at; to be maligned standing, and to be despised falling.

South.

Ma*lign”, v. i. To entertain malice. [Obs.]

{ Ma*lig”nance (?), Ma*lig”nan*cy , } n. [See Malignant.] 1. The state or quality of being malignant; extreme malevolence; bitter enmity; malice; as, malignancy of heart.

2. Unfavorableness; evil nature.

The malignancy of my fate might perhaps distemner yours.

Shak.

3. (Med.) Virulence; tendency to a fatal issue; as, the malignancy of an ulcer or of a fever.

4. The state of being a malignant.

Syn. — Malice; malevolence; malignity. See Malice.

Ma*lig”nant (?), a. [L. malignans, -antis, p. pr. of malignare, malignari, to do or make maliciously. See Malign, and cf. Benignant.] 1. Disposed to do harm, inflict suffering, or cause distress; actuated by extreme malevolence or enmity; virulently inimical; bent on evil; malicious.

A malignant and a turbaned Turk.

Shak.

2. Characterized or caused by evil intentions; pernicious. “Malignant care.” Macaulay.

Some malignant power upon my life.

Shak.

Something deleterious and malignant as his touch.

Hawthorne.

3. (Med.) Tending to produce death; threatening a fatal issue; virulent; as, malignant diphtheria.

Malignant pustule (Med.), a very contagious disease, transmitted to man from animals, characterized by the formation, at the point of reception of the virus, of a vesicle or pustule which first enlarges and then breaks down into an unhealthy ulcer. It is marked by profound exhaustion and usually fatal. Called also charbon, and sometimes, improperly, anthrax.

Ma*lig”nant (?), n. 1. A man of extreme enmity or evil intentions. Hooker.

2. (Eng. Hist.) One of the adherents of Charles I. or Charles II.; — so called by the opposite party.

Ma*lig”nant*ly, adv. In a malignant manner.

Ma*lign”er (?), n. One who maligns.

Ma*lig”ni*fy (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Malignified (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Malignifying (?).] [L. malignus malign + -fy.] To make malign or malignant. [R.] “A strong faith malignified.” Southey.

Ma*lig”ni*ty (?), n. [F. malignité, L. malignitas.] 1. The state or quality of being malignant; disposition to do evil; virulent enmity; malignancy; malice; spite.

2. Virulence; deadly quality.

His physicians discerned an invincible malignity in his disease.

Hayward.

3. Extreme evilness of nature or influence; perniciousness; heinousness; as, the malignity of fraud. [R.]

Syn. — See Malice.

Ma*lign”ly (?), adv. In a malign manner; with malignity.

Ma*lin”ger (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. MAlingered (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Malingering.] To act the part of a malingerer; to feign illness or inability.

Ma*lin”ger*er (?), n. [F. malingre sickly, weakly, prob. from mal ill + OF. heingre, haingre, thin, lean, infirm, fr. L. aeger.] In the army, a soldier who feigns himself sick, or who induces or protracts an illness, in order to avoid doing his duty; hence, in general, one who shirks his duty by pretending illness or inability.

Ma*lin”ger*y (?), n. The spirit or practices of a malingerer; malingering.

Mal”i*son (?), n. [OF. maleicon, L. maledictio. See Malediction, and cf. Benison.] Malediction; curse; execration. [Poetic]

God’s malison on his head who this gainsays.

Sir W. Scott.

Mal”kin (?), n. [Dim. of Maud, the proper name. Cf. Grimalkin.] [Written also maukin.] 1. Originally, a kitchenmaid; a slattern. Chaucer.

2. A mop made of clouts, used by the kitchen servant.

3. A scarecrow. [Prov. Eng.]

4. (Mil.) A mop or sponge attached to a jointed staff for swabbing out a cannon.

Mall (m&add;l; 277), n. [Written also maul.] [OE. malle, F. mail, L. malleus. Cf. Malleus.] 1. A large heavy wooden beetle; a mallet for driving anything with force; a maul. Addison.

2. A heavy blow. [Obs.] Spenser.

3. An old game played with malls or mallets and balls. See Pall-mall. Cotton.

4. A place where the game of mall was played. Hence: A public walk; a level shaded walk.

Part of the area was laid out in gravel walks, and planted with elms; and these convenient and frequented walks obtained the name of the City Mall.

Southey.

Mall (m&add;l), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Malled (m&add;ld); p. pr. & vb. n. Malling.] [Cf. OF. mailler. See Mall beetle, and cf. Malleate.] To beat with a mall; to beat with something heavy; to bruise; to maul.

Mall (măl), n. [LL. mallum a public assembly; cf. OHG. mahal assembly, transaction; akin to AS. mæðel, meðel, assembly, m&aemacr;lan to speak, Goth. maþl market place.] Formerly, among Teutonic nations, a meeting of the notables of a state for the transaction of public business, such meeting being a modification of the ancient popular assembly. Hence: (a) A court of justice. (b) A place where justice is administered. (c) A place where public meetings are held.

Councils, which had been as frequent as diets or malls, ceased.

Milman.

Mal”lard (?), n. [F. malari,fr. mâle male + -art =-ard. See Male, a., and -ard.] 1. (Zoöl.) A drake; the male of Anas boschas.

2. (Zoöl.) A large wild duck (Anas boschas) inhabiting both America and Europe. The domestic duck has descended from this species. Called also greenhead.

Mal”le*a*bil”i*ty (?), n. [CF. F. malléabilité.] The quality or state of being malleable; — opposed to friability and brittleness. Locke.

Mal”le*a*ble (?), a. [F. malléable, fr. LL. malleare to hammer. See Malleate.] Capable of being extended or shaped by beating with a hammer, or by the pressure of rollers; — applied to metals.

Malleable iron, iron that is capable of extension or of being shaped under the hammer; decarbonized cast iron. See under Iron. — Malleable iron castings, articles cast from pig iron and made malleable by heating then for several days in the presence of some substance, as hematite, which deprives the cast iron of some of its carbon.

Mal”le*a*ble*ize (?), v. t. To make malleable.

Mal”le*a*ble*ness, n. Quality of being malleable.

Mal”le*al (?), a. (Anat.) Pertaining to the malleus.

Mal”le*ate (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Malleated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Malleating (?).] [L. malleatus hammered, fr. malleus a hammer. See Mall, v. t.] To hammer; to beat into a plate or leaf.

Mal`le*a”tion (?), n. [LL. malleatio: cf. OF. malléation.] The act or process of beating into a plate, sheet, or leaf, as a metal; extension by beating.

Mal”le*cho (?), n. Same as Malicho.

Mal*lee” bird` (?). (Zoöl.) [From native name.] The leipoa. See Leipoa.

{ Mal”le*mock (?), Mal”le*moke (?), } n. (Zoöl.) See Mollemoke.

Mal”len*ders (?), n. pl. (Far.) Same as Malanders.

Mal*le”o*lar (?), a. [See Malleolus.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the malleolus; in the region of the malleoli of the ankle joint.

||Mal*le”*o*lus (?), n.; pl. Malleoli (#). [L., dim. of malleus hammer.] 1. (Anat.) A projection at the distal end of each bone of the leg at the ankle joint. The malleolus of the tibia is the internal projection, that of the fibula the external.

2. ” A layer, ” a shoot partly buried in the ground, and there cut halfway through.

Mal”let (?), n. [F. maillet, dim. of mail. See Mall a beetle.] A small maul with a short handle, — used esp. for driving a tool, as a chisel or the like; also, a light beetle with a long handle, — used in playing croquet.

||Mal”le*us (?), n.; pl. Mallei (#). [L., hammer. See Mall a beetle.] 1. (Anat.) The outermost of the three small auditory bones, ossicles; the hammer. It is attached to the tympanic membrane by a long process, the handle or manubrium. See Illust. of Far.

2. (Zoöl.) One of the hard lateral pieces of the mastax of Rotifera. See Mastax.

3. (Zoöl.) A genus of bivalve shells; the hammer shell.

||Mal*loph”a*ga (măl*l&obreve;f”&adot;*g&adot;), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. mallo`s a lock of wool + fagei^n to eat.] (Zoöl.) An extensive group of insects which are parasitic on birds and mammals, and feed on the feathers and hair; — called also bird lice. See Bird louse, under Bird.

||Mal*lo”tus (?), n. [NL., fr Gr. &?; fleecy.] (Zoöl.) A genus of small Arctic fishes. One American species, the capelin (Mallotus villosus), is extensively used as bait for cod.

{ Mal”low (?), Mal”lows (?), } n. [OE. malwe, AS. mealwe, fr. L. malva, akin to Gr. mala`chh; cf. mala`ssein to soften, malako`s soft. Named either from its softening or relaxing properties, or from its soft downy leaves. Cf. Mauve, Malachite.] (Bot.) A genus of plants (Malva) having mucilaginous qualities. See Malvaceous.

&fist; The flowers of the common mallow (M. sylvestris) are used in medicine. The dwarf mallow (M. rotundifolia) is a common weed, and its flattened, dick-shaped fruits are called cheeses by children. Tree mallow (M. Mauritiana and Lavatera arborea), musk mallow (M. moschata), rose mallow or hollyhock, and curled mallow (M. crispa), are less commonly seen.

Indian mallow. See Abutilon. — Jew’s mallow, a plant (Corchorus olitorius) used as a pot herb by the Jews of Egypt and Syria. — Marsh mallow. See under Marsh.

Mal”low*wort` (măl”l&osl;*wûrt), n. (Bot.) Any plant of the order Malvaceæ.

{ Malm (?), Malm”brick` (?), } n. [Cf. AS. mealm sand.] A kind of brick of a light brown or yellowish color, made of sand, clay, and chalk.

Mal”ma (?), n. (Zoöl.) A spotted trout (Salvelinus malma), inhabiting Northern America, west of the Rocky Mountains; — called also Dolly Varden trout, bull trout, red-spotted trout, and golet.

||Mal”mag (?), n. [F., from native name in Madagascar.] (Zoöl.) The tarsius, or spectral lemur.

Malm”sey (?), n. [OE. malvesie, F. malvoisie, It. malvasia, malavagia, fr. Malvasia, or Napoli di Malvasia, in the Morea.] A kind of sweet wine from Crete, the Canary Islands, etc. Shak.

Mal`nu*tri”tion (?), n. [Mal- + nutrition.] (Physiol.) Faulty or imperfect nutrition.

Mal*ob`ser*va”tion (?), n. [Mal- + observation.] Erroneous observation. J. S Mill.

Mal*o”dor (?), n. An offensive odor.
[1913 Webster]

Mal*o”dor*ous (?), a. Offensive to the sense of smell; ill-smelling. — Mal*o”dor*ous*ness. n. Carlyle.
[1913 Webster]

Mal”o*nate (?), a. (Chem.) A salt of malonic acid.

Ma*lon”ic (?), a. (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, an acid produced artifically as a white crystalline substance, CH_2.(CO_2H)2, and so called because obtained by the oxidation of malic acid.

Mal”o*nyl (?), n. [Malonic + -yl.] (Chem.) A hydrocarbon radical, CH_2.(CO)2, from malonic acid.

||Mal*pi”ghi*a (?), n. [NL. See Malpighian.] (Bot.) A genus of tropical American shrubs with opposite leaves and small white or reddish flowers. The drupes of Malpighia urens are eaten under the name of Barbadoes cherries.

Mal*pi`ghi*a”ceous (?), a. (Bot.) Of, pertaining to, or resembling, a natural order of tropical trees and shrubs (Malpighiaceæ), some of them climbing plants, and their stems forming many of the curious lianes of South American forests.

Mal*pi”ghi*an (?), a. (Anat.) Of, pertaining to, or discovered by, Marcello Malpighi, an Italian anatomist of the 17th century.

Malpighian capsules or corpuscles, the globular dilatations, containing the glomeruli or Malpighian tufts, at the extremities of the urinary tubules of the kidney. — Malpighian corpuscles of the spleen, masses of adenoid tissue connected with branches of the splenic artery.

Mal`po*si”tion (?), n. [Mal- + position.] A wrong position.

Mal*prac”tice (?), n. [Mal- + practice.] Evil practice; illegal or immoral conduct; practice contrary to established rules; specifically, the treatment of a case by a surgeon or physician in a manner which is contrary to accepted rules and productive of unfavorable results. [Written also malepractice.]

Malt (?), n. [AS. mealt; akin to D. mout, G. malz, Icel., Sw., & Dan. malt, and E. melt. √108. See Melt.] Barley or other grain, steeped in water and dried in a kiln, thus forcing germination until the saccharine principle has been evolved. It is used in brewing and in the distillation of whisky.

Malt, a. Relating to, containing, or made with, malt.

Malt liquor, an alcoholic liquor, as beer, ale, porter, etc., prepared by fermenting an infusion of malt. – - Malt dust, fine particles of malt, or of the grain used in making malt; — used as a fertilizer. ” Malt dust consists chiefly of the infant radicle separated from the grain.” Sir H. Davy. — Malt floor, a floor for drying malt. — Malt house, or Malthouse, a house in which malt is made. — Malt kiln, a heated chamber for drying malt.

Malt, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Malted: p. pr. & vb. n. Malting.] To make into malt; as, to malt barley.

Malt, v. i. To become malt; also, to make grain into malt. Mortimer.

Mal”ta*lent (?), n. [F. See Malice, and Talent.] Ill will; malice. [Obs.] Rom. of R. Spenser.

Mal*tese” (?), a. Of or pertaining to Malta or to its inhabitants. — n. sing. & pl. A native or inhabitant of Malta; the people of Malta.

Maltese cat (Zoöl.), a mouse- colored variety of the domestic cat. — Maltese cross. See Illust. 5, of Cross. — Maltese dog (Zoöl.), a breed of small terriers, having long silky white hair. The breed originated in Malta.

||Mal”tha (măl”th&adot;), n. [L., fr. Gr. ma`lqa.] 1. A variety of bitumen, viscid and tenacious, like pitch, unctuous to the touch, and exhaling a bituminous odor.

2. Mortar. [Obs.] Holland.

Mal*thu”sian (?), a. Of or pertaining to the political economist, the Rev. T. R. Malthus, or conforming to his views; as, Malthusian theories.

&fist; Malthus held that population tends to increase faster than its means of subsistence can be made to do, and hence that the lower classes must necessarily suffer more or less from lack of food, unless an increase of population be checked by prudential restraint or otherwise.

Mal*thu”sian, n. A follower of Malthus.

Mal*thu”sian*ism (?), n. The system of Malthusian doctrines relating to population.

{ Malt”in (?), Malt”ine (?), } n. (Physiol. Chem.) The fermentative principle of malt; malt diastase; also, a name given to various medicinal preparations made from or containing malt.

Malt”ing (?), n. The process of making, or of becoming malt.

Malt”man (?), n.; pl. Maltmen (&?;). A man whose occupation is to make malt.

Mal*ton”ic (?), a. (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or derived from, maltose; specif., designating an acid called also gluconic or dextronic acid. See Gluconic.

Malt”ose` (m&add;lt”ōs`), n. [From Malt.] (Physiol. Chem.) A crystalline sugar formed from starch by the action of diastase of malt, and the amylolytic ferment of saliva and pancreatic juice. It resembles dextrose, but rotates the plane of polarized light further to the right and possesses a lower cupric oxide reducing power.

Mal*treat” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Maltreated; p. pr. & vb. n. Maltreating.] [Mal- + treat: cf. F. maltraiter.] To treat ill; to abuse; to treat roughly.

Mal*treat”ment (?), n.; [Cf. F. maltraitement.] Ill treatment; ill usage; abuse.

Malt”ster (?), n. A maltman. Swift.

Malt”worm` (?), n. A tippler. [R.] Shak.

Malt”y (?), a. Containing, or like, malt. Dickens.

||Ma”lum (?), n.; pl. Mala (#). [L.] An evil. See Mala.

Mal*va”ceous (?), a. [L. malvaceus, from malva mallows. See Mallow.] (Bot.) Pertaining to, or resembling, a natural order of plants (Malvaceæ), of which the mallow is the type. The cotton plant, hollyhock, and abutilon are of this order, and the baobab and the silk-cotton trees are now referred to it.

Mal`ver*sa”tion (?), n. [F., fr. malverser to be corrupt in office, fr. L. male ill + versari to move about, to occupy one’s self, vertere to turn. See Malice, and Verse.] Evil conduct; fraudulent practices; misbehavior, corruption, or extortion in office.

Mal”ve*sie (?), n. Malmsey wine. See Malmsey. ” A jub of malvesye.” Chaucer.

Mam (măm), n. [Abbrev. fr. mamma.] Mamma.

Ma*ma” (?), n. See Mamma.

Mam”a*luke (?), n. Same as Mameluke.

||Mam”e*lon (?), n. [F.] A rounded hillock; a rounded elevation or protuberance. Westmin. Rev.

||Mam`e*lu”co (?), n. [Pg.] A child born of a white father and Indian mother. [S. Amer.]

Mam”e*luke (?), n. [F. mamelouk, cf. Sp. mameluco, It. mammalucco; all fr. Ar. maml&?;k a purchased slave or captive; lit., possessed or in one’s power, p. p. of malaka to possesses.] One of a body of mounted soldiers recruited from slaves converted to Mohammedanism, who, during several centuries, had more or less control of the government of Egypt, until exterminated or dispersed by Mehemet Ali in 1811.

Mam”il*la`ted (?), a. See Mammillated.

Mam*ma” (?), n. [Reduplicated from the infantine word ma, influenced in spelling by L. mamma.] Mother; — word of tenderness and familiarity. [Written also mama.]

Tell tales papa and mamma.

Swift.

Mam”ma (?), n.; pl. Mammæ (#). [L. mamma breast.] (Anat.) A glandular organ for secreting milk, characteristic of all mammals, but usually rudimentary in the male; a mammary gland; a breast; udder; bag.

Mam”mal (?), n.; pl. Mammals (#). [L. mammalis belonging to the breast, fr. mamma the breast or pap: cf. F. mammal.] (Zoöl.) One of the Mammalia.

Age of mammals. See under Age, n., 8.

||Mam*ma”li*a (?), n. pl. [NL., from L. mammalis. See Mammal.] (Zoöl.) The highest class of Vertebrata. The young are nourished for a time by milk, or an analogous fluid, secreted by the mammary glands of the mother.

&fist; Mammalia are divided into three subclasses; —

I. Placentalia. This subclass embraces all the higher orders, including man. In these the fetus is attached to the uterus by a placenta.

II. Marsupialia. In these no placenta is formed, and the young, which are born at an early state of development, are carried for a time attached to the teats, and usually protected by a marsupial pouch. The opossum, kangaroo, wombat, and koala are examples.

III. Monotremata. In this group, which includes the genera Echidna and Ornithorhynchus, the female lays large eggs resembling those of a bird or lizard, and the young, which are hatched like those of birds, are nourished by a watery secretion from the imperfectly developed mammæ.

Mam*ma”li*an (?), a. Of or pertaining to the Mammalia or mammals.

Mam`ma*lif”er*ous (?), a. [Mammal + -ferous.] (Geol.) Containing mammalian remains; — said of certain strata.

Mam`ma*log”ic*al (?), a. Of or pertaining to mammalogy.

Mam*mal”o*gist (?), n. [Cf. F. mammalogiste.] One versed in mammalogy.

Mam*mal”o*gy (?), n. [Mamma breast + -logy: cf. f. mammalogie.] The science which relates to mammals or the Mammalia. See Mammalia.

Mam”ma*ry (?), a. [Cf. F. mammaire.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the mammæ or breasts; as, the mammary arteries and veins.

Mam*mee” (?), n. [Haytian mamey.] (Bot.) A fruit tree of tropical America, belonging to the genus Mammea (M. Americana); also, its fruit. The latter is large, covered with a thick, tough ring, and contains a bright yellow pulp of a pleasant taste and fragrant scent. It is often called mammee apple.

Mam”mer (?), v. i. [Cf. G. memme coward, poltroon.] To hesitate; to mutter doubtfully. [Obs.]

Mam”met (?), n. [See Mawmet.] An idol; a puppet; a doll. [Obs.] Selden. Shak.

Mam”met*ry (?), n. See Mawmetry. [Obs.]

Mam”mi*fer (?), n. [NL. See Mammiferous.] (Zoöl.) A mammal. See Mammalia.

Mam*mif”er*ous (?), a. [Mamma breast + -ferous: cf. F. mammifère.] Having breasts; of, pertaining to, or derived from, the Mammalia.

Mam”mi*form (?), a. [Mamma breast + -form: cf. F. mammiforme.] Having the form of a mamma (breast) or mammæ.

||Mam*mil”la (?), n.; pl. Mammilæ (#). [L., dim. of mamma a breast.] (Anat.) The nipple.

Mam”mil*la*ry (?), a. [Cf. F. mammilaire. See Mammilla.] 1. Of or pertaining to the mammilla, or nipple, or to the breast; resembling a mammilla; mammilloid.

2. (Min.) Composed of convex convex concretions, somewhat resembling the breasts in form; studded with small mammiform protuberances.

{ Mam”mil*late (?), Mam”mil*la`ted (?), } a. [See Mammilla.] 1. Having small nipples, or small protuberances like nipples or mammæ.

2. (Zoöl.) Bounded like a nipple; — said of the apex of some shells.

Mam*mil”li*form (?), a. [Mammilla + -form.] Having the form of a mammilla.

Mam”mil*loid (?), a. [Mammilla + -oid.] Like a mammilla or nipple; mammilliform.

Mam”mock (?), n. [Ir. & Gael. mam a round hill + -ock.] A shapeless piece; a fragment. [Obs.]

Mam”mock, v. t. To tear to pieces. [Obs.] Milton.

Mam”mo*dis (?), n. [F. mamoudis, fr. Hind. mahmūdī a muslin.] Coarse plain India muslins.

Mam*mol”o*gy (?), n. [Mamma + -logy.] Mastology. See Mammalogy.

Mam”mon (?), n. [L. mammona, Gr. &?; riches, Syr. mam&?;nā; cf. Heb. matm&?;n a hiding place, subterranean storehouse, treasury, fr. tāman to hide.] Riches; wealth; the god of riches; riches, personified.

Ye can not serve God and Mammon.

Matt. vi. 24.

Mam”mon*ish, a. Actuated or prompted by a devotion to money getting or the service of Mammon. Carlyle.

Mam”mon*ism (?), n. Devotion to the pursuit of wealth; worldliness. Carlyle.

Mam”mon*ist, n. A mammonite.

Mam”mon*ite (?), n. One devoted to the acquisition of wealth or the service of Mammon. C. Kingsley.

Mam`mon*i*za”tion (?), n. The process of making mammonish; the state of being under the influence of mammonism.

Mam”mon*ize (?), v. t. To make mammonish.

Mam*mose” (?), a. [L. mammosus having large breasts, mamma breast.] (Bot.) Having the form of the breast; breast-shaped.

Mam”moth (?), n. [Russ. mâmont, mámant, fr. Tartar mamma the earth. Certain Tartar races, the Tungooses and Yakoots, believed that the mammoth worked its way in the earth like a mole.] (Zoöl.) An extinct, hairy, maned elephant (Elephas primigenius), of enormous size, remains of which are found in the northern parts of both continents. The last of the race, in Europe, were coeval with prehistoric man.

&fist; Several specimens have been found in Siberia preserved entire, with the flesh and hair remaining. They were imbedded in the ice cliffs at a remote period, and became exposed by the melting of the ice.

Mam”moth (?), a. Resembling the mammoth in size; very large; gigantic; as, a mammoth ox.

Mam”mo*thrept (?), n. [Gr. &?;; &?; grandmother + &?; to nourish.] A child brought up by its grandmother; a spoiled child. [R.]

O, you are a more mammothrept in judgment.

B. Jonson.

Mam”my (?), n.; pl. Mammies (&?;). A child’s name for mamma, mother.

||Mam”zer (?), n. [Heb. mámz&?;r.] A person born of relations between whom marriage was forbidden by the Mosaic law; a bastard. Deut. xxiii. 2 (Douay version).

Man (măn), n.; pl. Men (m&ebreve;n). [AS. mann, man, monn, mon; akin to OS., D., & OHG. man, G. mann, Icel. maðr, for mannr, Dan. Mand, Sw. man, Goth. manna, Skr. manu, manus, and perh. to Skr. man to think, and E. mind. √104. Cf. Minx a pert girl.] 1. A human being; — opposed to beast.

These men went about wide, and man found they none,
But fair country, and wild beast many [a] one.

R. of Glouc.

The king is but a man, as I am; the violet smells to him as it doth to me.

Shak.

2. Especially: An adult male person; a grown- up male person, as distinguished from a woman or a child.

When I became a man, I put away childish things.

I Cor. xiii. 11.

Ceneus, a woman once, and once a man.

Dryden.

3. The human race; mankind.

And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness, and let them have dominion.

Gen. i. 26.

The proper study of mankind is man.

Pope.

4. The male portion of the human race.

Woman has, in general, much stronger propensity than man to the discharge of parental duties.

Cowper.

5. One possessing in a high degree the distinctive qualities of manhood; one having manly excellence of any kind. Shak.

This was the noblest Roman of them all . . . the elements
So mixed in him that Nature might stand up
And say to all the world “This was a man!”

Shak.

6. An adult male servant; also, a vassal; a subject.

Like master, like man.

Old Proverb.

The vassal, or tenant, kneeling, ungirt, uncovered, and holding up his hands between those of his lord, professed that he did become his man from that day forth, of life, limb, and earthly honor.

Blackstone.

7. A term of familiar address often implying on the part of the speaker some degree of authority, impatience, or haste; as, Come, man, we ‘ve no time to lose!

8. A married man; a husband; — correlative to wife.

I pronounce that they are man and wife.

Book of Com. Prayer.

every wife ought to answer for her man.

Addison.

9. One, or any one, indefinitely; — a modified survival of the Saxon use of man, or mon, as an indefinite pronoun.

A man can not make him laugh.

Shak.

A man would expect to find some antiquities; but all they have to show of this nature is an old rostrum of a Roman ship.

Addison.

10. One of the piece with which certain games, as chess or draughts, are played.

&fist; Man is often used as a prefix in composition, or as a separate adjective, its sense being usually self-explaining; as, man child, man eater or maneater, man- eating, man hater or manhater, man-hating, manhunter, man-hunting, mankiller, man- killing, man midwife, man pleaser, man servant, man-shaped, manslayer, manstealer, man-stealing, manthief, man worship, etc.

Man is also used as a suffix to denote a person of the male sex having a business which pertains to the thing spoken of in the qualifying part of the compound; ashman, butterman, laundryman, lumberman, milkman, fireman, showman, waterman, woodman. Where the combination is not familiar, or where some specific meaning of the compound is to be avoided, man is used as a separate substantive in the foregoing sense; as, apple man, cloth man, coal man, hardware man, wood man (as distinguished from woodman).

Man ape (Zoöl.), a anthropoid ape, as the gorilla. — Man at arms, a designation of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries for a soldier fully armed. — Man engine, a mechanical lift for raising or lowering people through considerable distances; specifically (Mining), a contrivance by which miners ascend or descend in a shaft. It consists of a series of landings in the shaft and an equal number of shelves on a vertical rod which has an up and down motion equal to the distance between the successive landings. A man steps from a landing to a shelf and is lifted or lowered to the next landing, upon which he them steps, and so on, traveling by successive stages. — Man Friday, a person wholly subservient to the will of another, like Robinson Crusoe’s servant Friday. — Man of straw, a puppet; one who is controlled by others; also, one who is not responsible pecuniarily. — Man-of-the earth (Bot.), a twining plant (Ipomœa pandurata) with leaves and flowers much like those of the morning-glory, but having an immense tuberous farinaceous root. — Man of war. (a) A warrior; a soldier. Shak. (b) (Naut.) See in the Vocabulary. — To be one’s own man, to have command of one’s self; not to be subject to another.

Man (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Manned (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Manning.] 1. To supply with men; to furnish with a sufficient force or complement of men, as for management, service, defense, or the like; to guard; as, to man a ship, boat, or fort.

See how the surly Warwick mans the wall !

Shak.

They man their boats, and all their young men arm.

Waller.

2. To furnish with strength for action; to prepare for efficiency; to fortify. “Theodosius having manned his soul with proper reflections.” Addison.

3. To tame, as a hawk. [R.] Shak.

4. To furnish with a servant or servants. [Obs.] Shak.

5. To wait on as a manservant. [Obs.] Shak.

&fist; In “Othello,” V. ii. 270, the meaning is uncertain, being, perhaps: To point, to aim, or to manage.

To man a yard (Naut.), to send men upon a yard, as for furling or reefing a sail. — To man the yards (Naut.), to station men on the yards as a salute or mark of respect.

Man”a*ble (?), a. Marriageable. [Obs.]

Man”ace (?), n. & v. Same as Menace. [Obs.]

Man”a*cle (?), n. [OE. manicle, OF. manicle, F. manicle sort glove, manacle, L. manicula a little hand, dim. of manus hand; cf. L. manica sleeve, manacle, fr. manus. See Manual.] A handcuff; a shackle for the hand or wrist; — usually in the plural.

Doctrine unto fools is as fetters on the feet, and like manacles on the right hand.

Ecclus. xxi. 19.

Man”a*cle, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Manacled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Manacling (?).] To put handcuffs or other fastening upon, for confining the hands; to shackle; to confine; to restrain from the use of the limbs or natural powers.

Is it thus you use this monarch, to manacle and shackle him hand and foot ?

Arbuthnot.

Man”age (?), n. [F. manège, It. maneggio, fr. maneggiare to manage, fr. L. manushand. Perhaps somewhat influenced by F. ménage housekeeping, OF. mesnage, akin to E. mansion. See Manual, and cf. Manege.] The handling or government of anything, but esp. of a horse; management; administration. See Manege. [Obs.]

Young men, in the conduct and manage of actions, embrace more than they can hold.

Bacon.

Down, down I come; like glistering Phaëthon
Wanting the manage of unruly jades.

Shak.

The unlucky manage of this fatal brawl.

Shak.

&fist; This word, in its limited sense of management of a horse, has been displaced by manege; in its more general meaning, by management.

Man”age (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Managed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Managing (?).] [From Manage, n.] 1. To have under control and direction; to conduct; to guide; to administer; to treat; to handle.

Long tubes are cumbersome, and scarce to be easily managed.

Sir I. Newton.

What wars Imanage, and what wreaths I gain.

Prior.

2. Hence: Esp., to guide by careful or delicate treatment; to wield with address; to make subservient by artful conduct; to bring around cunningly to one’s plans.

It was so much his interest to manage his Protestant subjects.

Addison.

It was not her humor to manage those over whom she had gained an ascendant.

Bp. Hurd.

3. To train in the manege, as a horse; to exercise in graceful or artful action.

4. To treat with care; to husband. Dryden.

5. To bring about; to contrive. Shak.

Syn. — To direct; govern; control; wield; order; contrive; concert; conduct; transact.

Man”age, v. i. To direct affairs; to carry on business or affairs; to administer.

Leave them to manage for thee.

Dryden.

Man`age*a*bil”i*ty (?), n. The state or quality of being manageable; manageableness.

Man”age*a*ble (?), a. Such as can be managed or used; suffering control; governable; tractable; subservient; as, a manageable horse.

Syn. — Governable; tractable; controllable; docile.

— Man”age*a*ble*ness, n. — Man”age*a*bly, adv.

Man”age*less, a. Unmanageable. [R.]

Man”age*ment (?), n. [From Manage, v.] 1. The act or art of managing; the manner of treating, directing, carrying on, or using, for a purpose; conduct; administration; guidance; control; as, the management of a family or of a farm; the management of state affairs. “The management of the voice.” E. Porter.

2. Business dealing; negotiation; arrangement.

He had great managements with ecclesiastics.

Addison.

3. Judicious use of means to accomplish an end; conduct directed by art or address; skillful treatment; cunning practice; — often in a bad sense.

Mark with what management their tribes divide
Some stick to you, and some to t’other side.

Dryden.

4. The collective body of those who manage or direct any enterprise or interest; the board of managers.

Syn. — Conduct; administration; government; direction; guidance; care; charge; contrivance; intrigue.

Man”a*ger (?), n. 1. One who manages; a conductor or director; as, the manager of a theater.

A skillful manager of the rabble.

South.

2. A person who conducts business or household affairs with economy and frugality; a good economist.

A prince of great aspiring thoughts; in the main, a manager of his treasure.

Sir W. Temple.

3. A contriver; an intriguer. Shak.

Man`a*ge”ri*al (?), a. Of or pertaining to management or a manager; as, managerial qualities. “Managerial responsibility.” C. Bronté.

Man”a*ger*ship (?), n. The office or position of a manager.

Man”age*ry (?), n. [Cf. OF. menagerie, mesnagerie. See Manage, n., and cf. Menagerie.] 1. Management; manner of using; conduct; direction.

2. Husbandry; economy; frugality. Bp. Burnet.

Man”a*kin (?), n. [Cf. F. & G. manakin; prob. the native name.] (Zoöl.) Any one of numerous small birds belonging to Pipra, Manacus, and other genera of the family Pipridæ. They are mostly natives of Central and South America. Some are bright-colored, and others have the wings and tail curiously ornamented. The name is sometimes applied to related birds of other families.

Man”a*kin, n. A dwarf. See Manikin. Shak.

Man`a*tee” (?), n. [Sp. manatí, from the native name in Hayti. Cf. Lamantin.] (Zoöl.) Any species of Trichechus, a genus of sirenians; — called also sea cow. [Written also manaty, manati.]

&fist; One species (Trichechus Senegalensis) inhabits the west coast of Africa; another (T. Americanus) inhabits the east coast of South America, and the West-Indies. The Florida manatee (T. latirostris) is by some considered a distinct species, by others it is thought to be a variety of T. Americanus. It sometimes becomes fifteen feet or more in length, and lives both in fresh and salt water. It is hunted for its oil and flesh.

Ma*na”tion (?), n.[L. manatio, fr. manare to flow.] The act of issuing or flowing out. [Obs.]

Man”bote` (?), n. [AS. man man, vassal + bōt recompense.] (Anglo-Saxon Law) A sum paid to a lord as a pecuniary compensation for killing his man (that is, his vassal, servant, or tenant). Spelman.

Man”ca (?), n. [LL.] See Mancus.

Manche (?), n. [Also maunch.] [F. manche, fr. L. manica. See Manacle.] A sleeve. [Obs.]

Man”chet (?), n. Fine white bread; a loaf of fine bread. [Archaic] Bacon. Tennyson.

Man`chi*neel” (?), n. [Sp. manzanillo, fr. manzana an apple, fr. L. malum Matianum a kind of apple. So called from its apple-like fruit.] (Bot.) A euphorbiaceous tree (Hippomane Mancinella) of tropical America, having a poisonous and blistering milky juice, and poisonous acrid fruit somewhat resembling an apple.

Bastard manchineel, a tree (Cameraria latifolia) of the East Indies, having similar poisonous properties. Lindley.

Man*chu” (?), a. [Written also Manchoo, Mantchoo, etc.] Of or pertaining to Manchuria or its inhabitants. — n. A native or inhabitant of Manchuria; also, the language spoken by the Manchus.

Man”ci*pate (?), v. t. [L. mancipatus, p. p. of mancipare to sell. Cf. Emancipate.] To enslave; to bind; to restrict. [Obs.] Sir M. Hale.

Man`ci*pa”tion (?), n. [L. mancipatio a transfer.] Slavery; involuntary servitude. [Obs.] Johnson.

Man”ci*ple (?), n. [From OF. mancipe slave, servant (with l inserted, as in participle), fr. L. mancipium. See Mancipate.] A steward; a purveyor, particularly of a college or Inn of Court. Chaucer.

Man*co”na bark` (?). See Sassy bark.

Man”cus (?), n. [AS.] An old Anglo Saxon coin both of gold and silver, and of variously estimated values. The silver mancus was equal to about one shilling of modern English money.

-man`cy (?). [Gr. &?; divination: cf. F. -mancie.] A combining form denoting divination; as, aleuromancy, chiromancy, necromancy, etc.

Mand (?), n. A demand. [Obs.] See Demand.

||Man*da”mus (?), n. [L., we command, fr. mandare to command.] (Law) A writ issued by a superior court and directed to some inferior tribunal, or to some corporation or person exercising authority, commanding the performance of some specified duty.

Man`da*rin” (?), n. [Pg. mandarim, from Malay mantrī minister of state, prop. a Hind. word, fr. Skr. mantrin a counselor, manira a counsel, man to think.] 1. A Chinese public officer or nobleman; a civil or military official in China and Annam.

2. (Bot.) A small orange, with easily separable rind. It is thought to be of Chinese origin, and is counted a distinct species (Citrus nobilis).

Mandarin duck (Zoöl.), a beautiful Asiatic duck (Dendronessa galericulata), often domesticated, and regarded by the Chinese as an emblem of conjugal affection. — Mandarin language, the spoken or colloquial language of educated people in China. — Mandarin yellow (Chem.), an artificial aniline dyestuff used for coloring silk and wool, and regarded as a complex derivative of quinoline.

Man`da*rin”ate (?), n. The collective body of officials or persons of rank in China. S. W. Williams.

Man`da*rin”ic (?), a. Appropriate or peculiar to a mandarin.

Man`da*rin”ing, n. (Dyeing) The process of giving an orange color to goods formed of animal tissue, as silk or wool, not by coloring matter, but by producing a certain change in the fiber by the action of dilute nitric acid. Tomlinson.

Man`da*rin”ism (?), n. A government mandarins; character or spirit of the mandarins. F. Lieder.

Man”da*ta*ry (?), n. [L. mandatarius, fr. mandatum a charge, commission, order: cf. F. mandataire. See Mandate.] 1. One to whom a command or charge is given; hence, specifically, a person to whom the pope has, by his prerogative, given a mandate or order for his benefice. Ayliffe.

2. (Law) One who undertakes to discharge a specific business commission; a mandatory. Wharton.

Man”date (?), n. [L. mandatum, fr. mandare to commit to one’s charge, order, orig., to put into one’s hand; manus hand + dare to give: cf. F. mandat. See Manual, Date a time, and cf. Commend, Maundy Thursday.] 1. An official or authoritative command; an order or injunction; a commission; a judicial precept.

This dream all-powerful Juno; I bear
Her mighty mandates, and her words you hear.

Dryden.

2. (Canon Law) A rescript of the pope, commanding an ordinary collator to put the person therein named in possession of the first vacant benefice in his collation.

3. (Scots Law) A contract by which one employs another to manage any business for him. By the Roman law, it must have been gratuitous. Erskine.

||Man*da”tor (?), n. [L.] 1. A director; one who gives a mandate or order. Ayliffe.

2. (Rom. Law) The person who employs another to perform a mandate. Bouvier.

Man”da*to*ry (?), a. [L. mandatorius.] Containing a command; preceptive; directory.

Man”da*to*ry, n. Same as Mandatary.

Man”del*ate (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of mandelic acid.

Man*del”ic (?), a. [G. mandel almond.] (Chem.) Pertaining to an acid first obtained from benzoic aldehyde (oil of better almonds), as a white crystalline substance; — called also phenyl glycolic acid.

Man”der (?), v. t. & i. See Maunder.

Man”der*il (?), n. A mandrel.

Man”di*ble (?), n. [L. mandibula, mandibulum, fr. mandere to chew. Cf. Manger.] 1. (Anat.) The bone, or principal bone, of the lower jaw; the inferior maxilla; — also applied to either the upper or the lower jaw in the beak of birds.

2. (Zoöl.) The anterior pair of mouth organs of insects, crustaceaus, and related animals, whether adapted for biting or not. See Illust. of Diptera.

Man*dib”u*lar (?), a. [Cf. F. mandibulaire.] Of or pertaining to a mandible; like a mandible. — n. The principal mandibular bone; the mandible.

Mandibular arch (Anat.), the most anterior visceral arch, — that in which the mandible is developed.

{ Man*dib”u*late (?), Man*dib”u*la`ted (?), } a. (Zoöl.) Provided with mandibles adapted for biting, as many insects.

Man*dib”u*late (?), n. (Zoöl.) An insect having mandibles.

Man`di*bu”li*form (?), a. (Zoöl.) Having the form of a mandible; — said especially of the maxillæ of an insect when hard and adapted for biting.

Man*dib`u*lo*hy”oid (?), a. (Anat.) Pertaining both to the mandibular and the hyoid arch, or situated between them.

Man”dil (măn”d&ibreve;l), n. [OF. mandil; cf. Sp. & Pg. mandil a coarse apron, a haircloth; all from Ar. mandil tablecloth, handkerchief, mantle, fr. LGr. mandh`lion, fr. L. mantile, mantele. See Mantle.] A loose outer garment worn the 16th and 17th centuries.

Man*dil”ion (?), n. See Mandil. Chapman.

Man*din”gos (?), n. pl. sing. Mandingo. (Ethnol.) An extensive and powerful tribe of West African negroes.

{ Man”di*oc (?), ||Man`di*o”ca (?), } n. (Bot.) See Manioc.

Man”dle*stone` (?), n. [G. mandelstein almond stone.] (Min.) Amygdaloid.

Mand”ment (?), n. Commandment. [Obs.]

{ Man”do*lin, Man”do*line } (?), n. [F. mandoline, It. mandolino, dim. of mandola, fr. L. pandura. See Bandore.] (Mus.) A small and beautifully shaped instrument resembling the lute.

Man”dore (?), n. [See Mandolin, and Bandore.] (Mus.) A kind of four-stringed lute.

Man*drag”o*ra (?), n. [L., mandragoras the mandrake.] (Bot.) A genus of plants; the mandrake. See Mandrake, 1.

Man*drag”o*rite (?), n. One who habitually intoxicates himself with a narcotic obtained from mandrake.

Man”drake (măn”drāk), n. [AS. mandragora, L. mandragoras, fr. Gr. mandrago`ras: cf. F. mandragore.] 1. (Bot.) A low plant (Mandragora officinarum) of the Nightshade family, having a fleshy root, often forked, and supposed to resemble a man. It was therefore supposed to have animal life, and to cry out when pulled up. All parts of the plant are strongly narcotic. It is found in the Mediterranean region.

And shrieks like mandrakes, torn out of the earth,
That living mortals, hearing them, run mad.

Shak.

&fist; The mandrake of Scripture was perhaps the same plant, but proof is wanting.

2. (Bot.) The May apple (Podophyllum peltatum). See May apple under May, and Podophyllum. [U.S.]

Man”drel (?), n. [F. mandrin, prob. through (assumed) LL. mamphurinum, fr. L. mamphur a bow drill.] (Mach.) (a) A bar of metal inserted in the work to shape it, or to hold it, as in a lathe, during the process of manufacture; an arbor. (b) The live spindle of a turning lathe; the revolving arbor of a circular saw. It is usually driven by a pulley. [Written also manderil.]

Mandrel lathe, a lathe with a stout spindle, adapted esp. for chucking, as for forming hollow articles by turning or spinning.

Man”drill (-dr&ibreve;l), n. [Cf. F. mandrille, Sp. mandril, It. mandrillo; prob. the native name in Africa. Cf. Drill an ape.] (Zoöl.) A large West African baboon (Cynocephalus, or Papio, mormon). The adult male has, on the sides of the nose, large, naked, grooved swellings, conspicuously striped with blue and red.

Man”du*ca*ble (?), a. [Cf. F. manducable. See Manducate.] Such as can be chewed; fit to be eaten. [R.]

Any manducable creature.

Sir T. Herbert.

Man”du*cate (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Manducated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Manducating (?).] [L. manducatus, p. p. of manducare to chew. See Manger.] To masticate; to chew; to eat. [R.] Jer. Taylor.

Man`du*ca”tion (?), n. [L. manducatio: cf. F. manducation.] The act of chewing. [R.] Jer. Taylor.

Man”du*ca*to*ry (?), a. Pertaining to, or employed in, chewing.

||Man*du”cus (?), n. [L., fr. manducare to chew.] (Gr. & Rom. Antiq.) A grotesque mask, representing a person chewing or grimacing, worn in processions and by comic actors on the stage.

Mane (mān), n. [AS. manu; akin to OD. mane, D. maan, G. mähne, OHG. mana, Icel. mön, Dan. & Sw. man, AS. mene necklace, Icel. men, L. monile, Gr. &?;, &?;, Skr. manyā neck muscles. √275.] 1. The long and heavy hair growing on the upper side of, or about, the neck of some quadrupedal animals, as the horse, the lion, etc. See Illust. of Horse.

2. The hair growing on a person’s head, especially hair that is long and thick; — usually used humorously. [jocose]
[PJC]

Man”-eat`er (?), n. (Zoöl.) One who, or that which, has an appetite for human flesh; specifically, one of certain large sharks (esp. Carcharodon Rondeleti); also, a lion or a tiger which has acquired the habit of feeding upon human flesh.

Maned (?), a. Having a mane.

Maned seal (Zoöl.), the sea lion. — Maned sheep (Zoöl.), the aoudad.

Ma*nege” (?; 277), n. [F. manège. See Manage, n.] 1. Art of horsemanship, or of training horses.

2. A school for teaching horsemanship, and for training horses. Chesterfield.

||Ma”neh (?), n. [Heb. māneh.] A Hebrew weight for gold or silver, being one hundred shekels of gold and sixty shekels of silver. Ezek. xlv. 12.

Mane”less (?), a. Having no mane.

Maneless lion (Zoöl.), a variety of the lion having a short, inconspicuous mane. It inhabits Arabia and adjacent countries.

Man”e*quin (?), n. [See Manikin.] An artist’s model of wood or other material.

Ma*ne”ri*al (?), a. See Manorial.

||Ma”nes (?), n. pl. [L.] (Rom. Antiq.) The benevolent spirits of the dead, especially of dead ancestors, regarded as family deities and protectors.

Hail, O ye holy manes!

Dryden.

Mane”sheet` (?), n. A covering placed over the upper part of a horse’s head.

{ Ma*neu”ver, Ma*nœu”vre } (?), n. [F. manœuvre, OF. manuevre, LL. manopera, lit., hand work, manual labor; L. manus hand + opera, fr. opus work. See Manual, Operate, and cf. Mainor, Manure.]

1. Management; dexterous movement; specif., a military or naval evolution, movement, or change of position.

2. Management with address or artful design; adroit proceeding; stratagem.

{ Ma*neu”ver, Ma*nœu”vre, } v. i. [imp. & p. p. Maneuvered (#) or Manœuvred; p. pr. & vb. n. Maneuvering (&?;), or Manœuvring (&?;).] [Cf. F. manœuvrer. See Maneuver, n.] 1. To perform a movement or movements in military or naval tactics; to make changes in position with reference to getting advantage in attack or defense.

2. To manage with address or art; to scheme.

{ Ma*neu”ver, Ma*nœu”vre, } v. t. To change the positions of, as of troops of ships.

{ Ma*neu”ver*er (?), Ma*nœu”vrer (?), } n. One who maneuvers.

This charming widow Beaumont is a nanœuvrer. We can’t well make an English word of it.

Miss Edgeworth.

Man”ful (?), a. Showing manliness, or manly spirit; hence, brave, courageous, resolute, noble. ” Manful hardiness.” Chaucer. — Man”ful*ly, adv. — Man”ful*ness, n.

Man”ga*bey (?), n. [So called by Buffon from Mangaby, in Madagascar, where he erroneously supposed them be native.] (Zoöl.) Any one of several African monkeys of the genus Cercocebus, as the sooty mangabey (C. fuliginosus), which is sooty black. [Also written mangaby.]

Man”gan (?), n. See Mangonel.

Man”ga*nate (?), n. [Cf. F. manganate.] (Chem.) A salt of manganic acid.

&fist; The manganates are usually green, and are well-known compounds, though derived from a hypothetical acid.

Man`ga*ne”sate (?), n. (Chem.) A manganate. [Obs.]

Man`ga*nese” (?), n. [F. manganèse, It. manganese, sasso magnesio; prob. corrupted from L. magnes, because of its resemblance to the magnet. See Magnet, and cf. Magnesia.] (Chem.) An element obtained by reduction of its oxide, as a hard, grayish white metal, fusible with difficulty, but easily oxidized. Its ores occur abundantly in nature as the minerals pyrolusite, manganite, etc. Symbol Mn. Atomic weight 54.8.

&fist; An alloy of manganese with iron (called ferromanganese) is used to increase the density and hardness of steel.

Black oxide of manganese, Manganese dioxide or peroxide, or Black manganese (Chem.), a heavy black powder MnO_2, occurring native as the mineral pyrolusite, and valuable as a strong oxidizer; — called also familiarly manganese. It colors glass violet, and is used as a decolorizer to remove the green tint of impure glass. — Manganese bronze, an alloy made by adding from one to two per cent of manganese to the copper and zinc used in brass.

Man`ga*ne”sian (?), a. [Cf. F. manganésien.] (Chem.) Manganic. [R.]

Man`ga*ne”sic (?), a. [Cf. F. manganésique.] (Chem.) Manganic. [Obs.]

Man`ga*ne”sious (?), a. (Chem.) Manganous.

Man`ga*ne”si*um (?), n. [NL.] Manganese.

Man`ga*ne”sous (?), a. (Chem.) Manganous.

Man`gan”ic (?), a. [Cf. F. manganique.] (Chem.) Of, pertaining to resembling, or containing, manganese; specif., designating compounds in which manganese has a higher valence as contrasted with manganous compounds. Cf. Manganous.

Manganic acid, an acid, H_2MnO_4, formed from manganese, analogous to sulphuric acid.

Man`ga*nif”er*ous (?), a. [Manganese + -ferous.] Containing manganese.

Man”ga*nite (?), n. 1. (Min.) One of the oxides of manganese; — called also gray manganese ore. It occurs in brilliant steel-gray or iron- black crystals, also massive.

2. (Chem.) A compound of manganese dioxide with a metallic oxide; so called as though derived from the hypothetical manganous acid.

Man*ga”ni*um (?), n. [NL.] Manganese.

Man”ga*nous (?), a. (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, designating, those compounds of manganese in which the element has a lower valence as contrasted with manganic compounds; as, manganous oxide.

Manganous acid, a hypothetical compound analogous to sulphurous acid, and forming the so-called manganites.

Mang”corn` (?), n. [OE. mengen to mix. See Mingle, and Corn.] A mixture of wheat and rye, or other species of grain. [Prov Eng.]

Mange (?), n. [See Mangy.] (Vet.) The scab or itch in cattle, dogs, and other beasts.

Mange insect (Zoöl.), any one of several species of small parasitic mites, which burrow in the skin of cattle. horses, dogs, and other animals, causing the mange. The mange insect of the horse (Psoroptes, or Dermatodectes, equi), and that of cattle (Symbiotes, or Dermatophagys, bovis) are the most important species. See Acarina.

Man”gel-wur`zel (?), n. [G., corrupted fr. mangoldwurzel; mangold beet + wurzel root.] (Bot.) A kind of large field beet (B. macrorhiza), used as food for cattle, — by some considered a mere variety of the ordinary beet. See Beet. [Written also mangold- wurzel.]

Man”ger (?), n. [F. mangeoire, fr. manger to eat, fr. L. manducare, fr. mandere to chew. Cf. Mandible, Manducate.] 1. A trough or open box in which fodder is placed for horses or cattle to eat.

2. (Naut.) The fore part of the deck, having a bulkhead athwart ships high enough to prevent water which enters the hawse holes from running over it.

Man”gi*ly (?), adv. In a mangy manner; scabbily.

Man”gi*ness, n. [From Mangy.] The condition or quality of being mangy.

Man”gle (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mangled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mangling (?).] [A frequentative fr. OE. manken to main, AS. mancian, in bemancian to mutilate, fr. L. mancus maimed; perh. akin to G. mangeln to be wanting.] 1. To cut or bruise with repeated blows or strokes, making a ragged or torn wound, or covering with wounds; to tear in cutting; to cut in a bungling manner; to lacerate; to mutilate.

Mangled with ghastly wounds through plate and mail.

Milton.

2. To mutilate or injure, in making, doing, or performing; as, to mangle a piece of music or a recitation.

To mangle a play or a novel.

Swift.

Man”gle, n. [D. mangel, fr. OE. mangonel a machine for throwing stones, LL. manganum, Gr. &?; a machine for defending fortifications, axis of a pulley. Cf. Mangonel.] A machine for smoothing linen or cotton cloth, as sheets, tablecloths, napkins, and clothing, by roller pressure.

Mangle rack (Mach.), a contrivance for converting continuous circular motion into reciprocating rectilinear motion, by means of a rack and pinion, as in the mangle. The pinion is held to the rack by a groove in such a manner that it passes alternately from one side of the rack to the other, and thus gives motion to it in opposite directions, according to the side in which its teeth are engaged. — Mangle wheel, a wheel in which the teeth, or pins, on its face, are interrupted on one side, and the pinion, working in them, passes from inside to outside of the teeth alternately, thus converting the continuous circular motion of the pinion into a reciprocating circular motion of the wheel.

Man”gle (?), v. t. [Cf. D. mangelen. See Mangle, n.] To smooth with a mangle, as damp linen or cloth.

Man”gler (?), n. [See 1st Mangle.] One who mangles or tears in cutting; one who mutilates any work in doing it.

Man”gler, n. [See 3d Mangle.] One who smooths with a mangle.

Man”go (?), n.; pl. Mangoes (#). [Pg. manga, fr. Tamil mānkāy.] 1. The fruit of the mango tree. It is rather larger than an apple, and of an ovoid shape. Some varieties are fleshy and luscious, and others tough and tasting of turpentine. The green fruit is pickled for market.

2. A green muskmelon stuffed and pickled.

Mango bird (Zoöl.), an oriole (Oriolus kundoo), native of India. — Mango fish (Zoöl.), a fish of the Ganges (Polynemus risua), highly esteemed for food. It has several long, slender filaments below the pectoral fins. It appears about the same time with the mango fruit, in April and May, whence the name. — Mango tree (Bot.), an East Indian tree of the genus Mangifera (M. Indica), related to the cashew and the sumac. It grows to a large size, and produces the mango of commerce. It is now cultivated in tropical America.

Man”gold*wur`zel (?), n. [G.] (Bot.) See Mangel-wurzel.

Man”go*nel (?), n. [OF. mangonel, LL. manganellus, manganum, fr. Gr. &?; See Mangle, n.] A military engine formerly used for throwing stones and javelins.

Man”go*nism (?), n. The art of mangonizing, or setting off to advantage. [Obs.]

Man”go*nist (?), n. 1. One who mangonizes. [Obs.]

2. A slave dealer; also, a strumpet. [Obs.]

Man”go*nize (?), v. t. [L. mangonizare, fr. mango a dealer in slaves or wares, to which he tries to give an appearance of greater value by decking them out or furbishing them up.] To furbish up for sale; to set off to advantage. [Obs. or R.] B. Jonson.

{ Man”go*steen (?), Man”go*stan (?), } n. [Malay mangusta, mangis.] (Bot.) A tree of the East Indies of the genus Garcinia (G. Mangostana). The tree grows to the height of eighteen feet, and bears fruit also called mangosteen, of the size of a small apple, the pulp of which is very delicious food.

Man”grove (?), n. [Malay manggi- manggi.] 1. (Bot.) The name of one or two trees of the genus Rhizophora (R. Mangle, and R. mucronata, the last doubtfully distinct) inhabiting muddy shores of tropical regions, where they spread by emitting aërial roots, which fasten in the saline mire and eventually become new stems. The seeds also send down a strong root while yet attached to the parent plant.

&fist; The fruit has a ruddy brown shell, and a delicate white pulp which is sweet and eatable. The bark is astringent, and is used for tanning leather. The black and the white mangrove (Avicennia nitida and A. tomentosa) have much the same habit.

2. (Zoöl.) The mango fish.

||Mangue (?), n. [F.] (Zoöl.) The kusimanse.

Man”gy (?), a. [Compar. Mangier (?); superl. Mangiest.] [F. mangé, p. p. of manger to eat. See Manger.] Infected with the mange; scabby.

Man*ha”den (?), n. See Menhaden.

Man”head (?), n. Manhood. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Man”hole` (?), n. A hole through which a man may descend or creep into a drain, sewer, steam boiler, parts of machinery, etc., for cleaning or repairing.

Man”hood, n. [Man- + - hood.] 1. The state of being man as a human being, or man as distinguished from a child or a woman.

2. Manly quality; courage; bravery; resolution.

I am ashamed
That thou hast power to shake my manhood thus.

Shak.

Ma”ni*a (?), n. [L. mania, Gr. &?;, fr. &?; to rage; cf. OE. manie, F. manie. Cf. Mind, n., Necromancy.] 1. Violent derangement of mind; madness; insanity. Cf. Delirium.

2. Excessive or unreasonable desire; insane passion affecting one or many people; as, the tulip mania.

Mania a potu [L.], madness from drinking; delirium tremens.

Syn. — Insanity; derangement; madness; lunacy; alienation; aberration; delirium; frenzy. See Insanity.

Man”i*a*ble (?), a. [F., fr. manier to manage, fr. L. manus hand.] Manageable. [Obs.] Bacon.

Ma”ni*ac (?), a. [F. maniaque. See Mania.] Raving with madness; raging with disordered intellect; affected with mania; mad.

Ma”ni*ac (?), n. A raving lunatic; a madman.

Ma*ni”a*cal (?), a. Affected with, or characterized by, madness; maniac. — Ma*ni”a*cal*ly, adv.

Man”i*cate (?), a. [L. manicatus sleeved, fr. manica a sleeve.] (Bot.) Covered with hairs or pubescence so platted together and interwoven as to form a mass easily removed.

{ Man`i*chæ“an (?), Man`i*che”an, Man”i*chee (?) }, n. [LL. Manichaeus: cf. F. manichéen.] A believer in the doctrines of Manes, a Persian of the third century A. D., who taught a dualism in which Light is regarded as the source of Good, and Darkness as the source of Evil.

The Manichæans stand as representatives of dualism pushed to its utmost development.

Tylor.

{ Man`i*chæ“an, Man`i*che”an (?) }, a. Of or pertaining to the Manichæans.

{ Man”i*chæ*ism, Man”i*che*ism (?) }, n. [Cf. F. manichéisme.] The doctrines taught, or system of principles maintained, by the Manichæans.

Man”i*che*ist, n. [Cf. F. manichéiste.] Manichæan.

{ Man”i*chord (?), Man`i*chor”don (?), } [L. monochordon, Gr. &?;; — so called because it orig. had only one string. See Monochord.] (Mus.) The clavichord or clarichord; — called also dumb spinet.

Man”i*cure (?), n. [F., fr. L. manus hand + curare to cure.] A person who makes a business of taking care of people’s hands, especially their nails.

[Men] who had taken good care of their hands by wearing gloves and availing themselves of the services of a manicure.

Pop. Sci. Monthly.

Ma”nid (?), n. (Zoöl.) Any species of the genus Manis, or family Manidæ.

Ma`nie” (?), n. [F. See Mania.] Mania; insanity. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Man”i*fest (?), a. [F. manifeste, L. manifestus, lit., struck by the hand, hence, palpable; manus hand + fendere (in comp.) to strike. See Manual, and Defend.] 1. Evident to the senses, esp. to the sight; apparent; distinctly perceived; hence, obvious to the understanding; apparent to the mind; easily apprehensible; plain; not obscure or hidden.

Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight.

Heb. iv. 13.

That which may be known of God is manifest in them.

Rom. i. 19.

Thus manifest to sight the god appeared.

Dryden.

2. Detected; convicted; — with of. [R.]

Calistho there stood manifest of shame.

Dryden.

Syn. — Open; clear; apparent; evident; visible; conspicuous; plain; obvious. — Manifest, Clear, Plain, Obvious, Evident. What is clear can be seen readily; what is obvious lies directly in our way, and necessarily arrests our attention; what is evident is seen so clearly as to remove doubt; what is manifest is very distinctly evident.

So clear, so shining, and so evident,
That it will glimmer through a blind man’s eye.

Shak.

Entertained with solitude,
Where obvious duty erewhile appeared unsought.

Milton.

I saw, I saw him manifest in view,
His voice, his figure, and his gesture knew.

Dryden.

Man”i*fest, n.; pl. Manifests (#). [Cf. F. manifeste. See Manifest, a., and cf. Manifesto.] 1. A public declaration; an open statement; a manifesto. See Manifesto. [Obs.]

2. A list or invoice of a ship’s cargo, containing a description by marks, numbers, etc., of each package of goods, to be exhibited at the customhouse. Bouvier.

Man”i*fest, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Manifested (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Manifesting.] 1. To show plainly; to make to appear distinctly, — usually to the mind; to put beyond question or doubt; to display; to exhibit.

There is nothing hid which shall not be manifested.

Mark iv. 22.

Thy life did manifest thou lovedst me not.

Shak.

2. To exhibit the manifests or prepared invoices of; to declare at the customhouse.

Syn. — To reveal; declare; evince; make known; disclose; discover; display.

Man”i*fest`a*ble (?), a. Such as can be manifested.

Man`i*fes*ta”tion (?), n. [L. manifestatio: cf. F. manifestation.] The act of manifesting or disclosing, or the state of being manifested; discovery to the eye or to the understanding; also, that which manifests; exhibition; display; revelation; as, the manifestation of God’s power in creation.

The secret manner in which acts of mercy ought to be performed, requires this public manifestation of them at the great day.

Atterbury.

Man”i*fest`i*ble (?), a. Manifestable.

Man”i*fest*ly (?), adv. In a manifest manner.

Man”i*fest*ness, n. The quality or state of being manifest; obviousness.

Man`i*fes”to (?), n.; pl. Manifestoes (#). [It. manifesto. See Manifest, n. & a.] A public declaration, usually of a prince, sovereign, or other person claiming large powers, showing his intentions, or proclaiming his opinions and motives in reference to some act done or contemplated by him; as, a manifesto declaring the purpose of a prince to begin war, and explaining his motives. Bouvier.

it was proposed to draw up a manifesto, setting forth the grounds and motives of our taking arms.

Addison.

Frederick, in a public manifesto, appealed to the Empire against the insolent pretensions of the pope.

Milman.

Man”i*fold (?), a. [AS. manigfeald. See Many, and Fold.] 1. Various in kind or quality; many in number; numerous; multiplied; complicated.

O Lord, how manifold are thy works!

Ps. civ. 24.

I know your manifold transgressions.

Amos v. 12.

2. Exhibited at divers times or in various ways; — used to qualify nouns in the singular number. “The manifold wisdom of God.” Eph. iii. 10. “The manifold grace of God.” 1 Pet. iv. 10.

Manifold writing, a process or method by which several copies, as of a letter, are simultaneously made, sheets of coloring paper being infolded with thin sheets of plain paper upon which the marks made by a stylus or a type-writer are transferred.

Man”i*fold (?), n. 1. A copy of a writing made by the manifold process.

2. (Mech.) A cylindrical pipe fitting, having a number of lateral outlets, for connecting one pipe with several others.

3. pl. The third stomach of a ruminant animal. [Local, U.S.]

Man”i*fold, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Manifolded (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Manifolding.] To take copies of by the process of manifold writing; as, to manifold a letter.

Man”i*fold`ed, a. Having many folds, layers, or plates; as, a manifolded shield. [Obs.]

Man”i*fold`ly, adv. In a manifold manner.

Man”i*fold`ness, n. 1. Multiplicity. Sherwood.

2. (Math.) A generalized concept of magnitude.

Man”i*form (?), a. [L. manus hand + -form.] Shaped like the hand.

Ma*ni”glion (m&adot;*n&ibreve;l”yŭn), n. [It. maniglio, maniglia, bracelet, handle. Cf. Manilio.] (Gun.) Either one of two handles on the back of a piece of ordnance.

{ Man”i*hoc (?), Man”i*hot (?), } n. See Manioc.

Man”i*kin (?), n. [OD. manneken, dim. of man man. See Man, and -kin.] 1. A little man; a dwarf; a pygmy; a manakin.

2. A model of the human body, made of papier- mache or other material, commonly in detachable pieces, for exhibiting the different parts and organs, their relative position, etc.

{ Ma*nil”a (?), Ma*nil”la }, a. Of or pertaining to Manila or Manilla, the capital of the Philippine Islands; made in, or exported from, that city.

Manila cheroot or cigar, a cheroot or cigar made of tobacco grown in the Philippine Islands. — Manila hemp, a fibrous material obtained from the Musa textilis, a plant allied to the banana, growing in the Philippine and other East India islands; – - called also by the native name abaca. From it matting, canvas, ropes, and cables are made. — Manila paper, a durable brown or buff paper made of Manila hemp, used as a wrapping paper, and as a cheap printing and writing paper. The name is also given to inferior papers, made of other fiber.

Ma*nil”io (?), n. See Manilla, 1. Sir T. Herbert.

Ma*nil”la (?), n. [Sp. manilla; cf. It. maniglio, maniglia; F. manille; Pg. manilha; all fr. L. manus hand, and formed after the analogy of L. monile, pl. monilia, necklace: cf. F. manille.] 1. A ring worn upon the arm or leg as an ornament, especially among the tribes of Africa.

2. A piece of copper of the shape of a horseshoe, used as money by certain tribes of the west coast of Africa. Simmonds.

Ma*nil”la, a. Same as Manila.

||Ma*nille” (?), n. [F.] See 1st Manilla, 1.

Ma”ni*oc (?), n. [Pg. mandioca, fr. Braz.] (Bot.) The tropical plants (Manihot utilissima, and M. Aipi), from which cassava and tapioca are prepared; also, cassava. [Written also mandioc, manihoc, manihot.]

Man”i*ple (?), n. [L. manipulus, maniplus, a handful, a certain number of soldiers; manus hand + root of plere to fill, plenus full: cf. F. maniple. See Manual, and Full, a.] 1. A handful. [R.] B. Jonson.

2. A division of the Roman army numbering sixty men exclusive of officers; any small body of soldiers; a company. Milton.

3. Originally, a napkin; later, an ornamental band or scarf worn upon the left arm as a part of the vestments of a priest in the Roman Catholic Church. It is sometimes worn in the English Church service.

Ma*nip”u*lar (?), a. [L. manipularis: cf. F. manipulaire.] 1. Of or pertaining to the maniple, or company.

2. Manipulatory; as, manipular operations.

Ma*nip”u*late (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Manipulated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Manipulating (?).] [LL. manipulatus, p. p. of manipulare to lead by the hand, fr. L. manipulus. See Maniple.] 1. To treat, work, or operate with the hands, especially when knowledge and dexterity are required; to manage in hand work; to handle; as, to manipulate scientific apparatus.

2. To control the action of, by management; as, to manipulate a convention of delegates; to manipulate the stock market; also, to manage artfully or fraudulently; as, to manipulate accounts, or election returns.

Ma*nip”u*late, v. i. To use the hands in dexterous operations; to do hand work; specifically, to manage the apparatus or instruments used in scientific work, or in artistic or mechanical processes; also, specifically, to use the hand in mesmeric operations.

Ma*nip`u*la”tion (?), n. [Cf. F. manipulation.] 1. The act or process of manipulating, or the state of being manipulated; the act of handling work by hand; use of the hands, in an artistic or skillful manner, in science or art.

Manipulation is to the chemist like the external senses to the mind.

Whewell.

2. The use of the hands in mesmeric operations.

3. Artful management; as, the manipulation of political bodies; sometimes, a management or treatment for purposes of deception or fraud.

Ma*nip”u*la*tive (?), a. Of or pertaining to manipulation; performed by manipulation.

Ma*nip”u*la`tor (?), n. One who manipulates.

Ma*nip”u*la*to*ry (m&adot;*n&ibreve;p”&usl;*l&adot;*t&osl;*r&ybreve;), a. Of or pertaining to manipulation.

||Ma”nis (mā“n&ibreve;s), n. [NL., fr. L. manes the ghosts or shades of the dead. So called from its dismal appearance, and because it seeks for its food by night.] (Zoöl.) A genus of edentates, covered with large, hard, triangular scales, with sharp edges that overlap each other like tiles on a roof. They inhabit the warmest parts of Asia and Africa, and feed on ants. Called also Scaly anteater. See Pangolin.

{ Man”i*to (?), Man”i*tou (?), Man”i*tu (?) }, n. A name given by tribes of American Indians to a great spirit, whether good or evil, or to any object of worship. Tylor.

Gitche Manito the mighty,
The Great Spirit, the creator,
Smiled upon his helpless children!

Longfellow.

Mitche Manito the mighty,
He the dreadful Spirit of Evil,
As a serpent was depicted.

Longfellow.

Man”i*trunk (?), n. [L. manus hand + E. trunk.] (Zoöl.) The anterior segment of the thorax in insects. See Insect.

Man`kind” (?), n. [AS. mancynn. See Kin kindred, Kind, n.] 1. The human race; man, taken collectively.

The proper study of mankind is man.

Pore.

2. Men, as distinguished from women; the male portion of human race. Lev. xviii. 22.

3. Human feelings; humanity. [Obs] B. Jonson.

Man”kind` (?), a. Manlike; not womanly; masculine; bold; cruel. [Obs]

Are women grown so mankind? Must they be wooing?

Beau. & Fl.

Be not too mankind against your wife.

Chapman.

Manks (mă&nsm;ks), prop. a. Of or pertaining to the language or people of the Isle of Man. — n. The language spoken in the Isle of Man. See Manx.

Man”less (?), a. 1. Destitute of men. Bakon.

2. Unmanly; inhuman. [Obs.] Chapman.

Man”less*ly, adv. Inhumanly. [Obs.]

Man”like` (?), a. [Man + like. Cf. Manly.] Like man, or like a man, in form or nature; having the qualities of a man, esp. the nobler qualities; manly. ” Gentle, manlike speech.” Testament of Love. ” A right manlike man.” Sir P. Sidney.

In glaring Chloe’s manlike taste and mien.

Shenstone.

Man”li*ness (?), n. The quality or state of being manly.

Man”ling (?), n. A little man. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

Man”ly, a. [Compar. Manlier (?); superl. Manliest.] [Man + -ly. Cf. Manlike.] Having qualities becoming to a man; not childish or womanish; manlike, esp. brave, courageous, resolute, noble.

Let’s briefly put on manly readiness.

Shak.

Serene and manly, hardened to sustain
The load of life.

Dryden.

Syn. — Bold; daring; brave; courageous; firm; undaunted; hardy; dignified; stately.

Man”ly, adv. In a manly manner; with the courage and fortitude of a manly man; as, to act manly.

Man”na (măn”n&adot;), n. [L., fr. Gr. ma`nna, Heb. mān; cf. Ar. mann, properly, gift (of heaven).] 1. (Script.) The food supplied to the Israelites in their journey through the wilderness of Arabia; hence, divinely supplied food. Ex. xvi. 15.

2. (Bot.) A name given to lichens of the genus Lecanora, sometimes blown into heaps in the deserts of Arabia and Africa, and gathered and used as food.

3. (Bot. & Med.) A sweetish exudation in the form of pale yellow friable flakes, coming from several trees and shrubs and used in medicine as a gentle laxative, as the secretion of Fraxinus Ornus, and F. rotundifolia, the manna ashes of Southern Europe.

&fist; Persian manna is the secretion of the camel’s thorn (see Camel’s thorn, under Camel); Tamarisk manna, that of the Tamarisk mannifera, a shrub of Western Asia; Australian, manna, that of certain species of eucalyptus; Briançon manna, that of the European larch.

Manna grass (Bot.), a name of several tall slender grasses of the genus Glyceria. they have long loose panicles, and grow in moist places. Nerved manna grass is Glyceria nervata, and Floating manna grass is G. fluitans. — Manna insect (Zoöl), a scale insect (Gossyparia mannipara), which causes the exudation of manna from the Tamarix tree in Arabia.

Man”na croup` (kr&oomac;p`). [Manna + Russ. & Pol. krupa groats, grits.] 1. The portions of hard wheat kernels not ground into flour by the millstones: a kind of semolina prepared in Russia and used for puddings, soups, etc. — called also manna groats.

2. The husked grains of manna grass.

Man”ner (?), n. [OE. manere, F. manière, from OF. manier, adj., manual, skillful, handy, fr. (assumed) LL. manarius, for L. manuarius belonging to the hand, fr. manus the hand. See Manual.] 1. Mode of action; way of performing or effecting anything; method; style; form; fashion.

The nations which thou hast removed, and placed in the cities of Samaria, know not the manner of the God of the land.

2 Kings xvii. 26.

The temptations of prosperity insinuate themselves after a gentle, but very powerful, manner.

Atterbury.

2. Characteristic mode of acting, conducting, carrying one’s self, or the like; bearing; habitual style.

Specifically: (a) Customary method of acting; habit.

Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them.

Acts xvii. 2.

Air and manner are more expressive than words.

Richardson.

(b) pl. Carriage; behavior; deportment; also, becoming behavior; well-bred carriage and address.

Good manners are made up of petty sacrifices.

Emerson.

(c) The style of writing or thought of an author; characteristic peculiarity of an artist.

3. Certain degree or measure; as, it is in a manner done already.

The bread is in a manner common.

1 Sam. xxi.5.

4. Sort; kind; style; — in this application sometimes having the sense of a plural, sorts or kinds.

Ye tithe mint, and rue, and all manner of herbs.

Luke xi. 42.

I bid thee say,
What manner of man art thou?

Coleridge.

&fist; In old usage, of was often omitted after manner, when employed in this sense. “A manner Latin corrupt was her speech.” Chaucer.

By any manner of means, in any way possible; by any sort of means. — To be taken in, or with the manner. [A corruption of to be taken in the mainor. See Mainor.] To be taken in the very act. [Obs.] See Mainor. — To make one’s manners, to make a bow or courtesy; to offer salutation. — Manners bit, a portion left in a dish for the sake of good manners. Hallwell.

Syn. — Method; mode; custom; habit; fashion; air; look; mien; aspect; appearance. See Method.

Man”nered (?), a. 1. Having a certain way, esp. a polite way, of carrying and conducting one’s self.

Give her princely training, that she may be
Mannered as she is born.

Shak.

2. Affected with mannerism; marked by excess of some characteristic peculiarity.

His style is in some degree mannered and confined.

Hazlitt.

Man”ner*ism (?), n. [Cf. F. maniérisme.] Adherence to a peculiar style or manner; a characteristic mode of action, bearing, or treatment, carried to excess, especially in literature or art.

Mannerism is pardonable,and is sometimes even agreeable, when the manner, though vicious, is natural . . . . But a mannerism which does not sit easy on the mannerist, which has been adopted on principle, and which can be sustained only by constant effort, is always offensive.

Macaulay.

Man”ner*ist, n. [Cf. F. maniériste.] One addicted to mannerism; a person who, in action, bearing, or treatment, carries characteristic peculiarities to excess. See citation under Mannerism.

Man”ner*li*ness (?), n. The quality or state of being mannerly; civility; complaisance. Sir M. Hale.

Man”ner*ly, a. Showing good manners; civil; respectful; complaisant.

What thou thinkest meet, and is most mannerly.

Shak.

Man”ner*ly, adv. With good manners. Shak.

Mann”heim gold” (?). [From Mannheim in Germany, where much of it was made.] A kind of brass made in imitation of gold. It contains eighty per cent of copper and twenty of zinc. Ure.

Man”nide (?), n. [Mannite + anhydride.] (Chem.) A white amorphous or crystalline substance, obtained by dehydration of mannite, and distinct from, but convertible into, mannitan.

Man”nish (?), a. [Man + - ish: cf. AS. mennisc, menisc.] 1. Resembling a human being in form or nature; human. Chaucer.

But yet it was a figure
Most like to mannish creature.

Gower.

2. Resembling, suitable to, or characteristic of, a man, manlike, masculine. Chaucer.

A woman impudent and mannish grown.

Shak.

3. Fond of men; — said of a woman. [Obs.] Chaucer.

— Man”nish*ly (#),adv. — Man”nish*ness, n.

Man”ni*tan (?), n. [Mannite + anhydrite.] (Chem.) A white amorphous or crystalline substance obtained by the partial dehydration of mannite.

Man”ni*tate (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of mannitic acid.

Man”nite (?), n. [Cf. F. mannite.] 1. (Chem.) A white crystalline substance of a sweet taste obtained from a so-called manna, the dried sap of the flowering ash (Fraxinus ornus); — called also mannitol, and hydroxy hexane. Cf. Dulcite.

2. (Bot.) A sweet white efflorescence from dried fronds of kelp, especially from those of the Laminaria saccharina, or devil’s apron.

Man*nit”ic (?), a. (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, resembling, or derived from, mannite.

Mannitic acid (Chem.), a white amorphous substance, intermediate between saccharic acid and mannite, and obtained by the partial oxidation of the latter.

Man”ni*tol (?), n. [Mannite + -ol.] (Chem.) The technical name of mannite. See Mannite.

Man”ni*tose` (?), n. (Chem.) A variety of sugar obtained by the partial oxidation of mannite, and closely resembling levulose.

Ma*nœu”vre (?), n. & v. See Maneuver.

Man`-of-war” (?), n; pl. Men-of-war. A government vessel employed for the purposes of war, esp. one of large size; a ship of war.

Man-of-war bird (Zoöl.), The frigate bird; also applied to the skua gulls, and to the wandering albatross. — Man-of-war hawk (Zoöl.), the frigate bird. — Man-of- war’s man, a sailor serving in a ship of war. — Portuguese man-of-war (Zoöl.), any species of the genus Physalia. See Physalia.

Ma*nom”e*ter (?), n. [Gr. &?; thin, rare + -meter: cf. F. manomètre.] An instrument for measuring the tension or elastic force of gases, steam, etc., constructed usually on the principle of allowing the gas to exert its elastic force in raising a column of mercury in an open tube, or in compressing a portion of air or other gas in a closed tube with mercury or other liquid intervening, or in bending a metallic or other spring so as to set in motion an index; a pressure gauge. See Pressure, and Illust. of Air pump.

{ Man`o*met”ric (?), Man`o*met”ric*al (?), } a. [Cf. F. manométrique.] Of or pertaining to the manometer; made by the manometer.

Man”or (?), n. [OE. maner, OF. maneir habitation, village, F. manoir manor, prop. the OF. inf. maneir to stay, remain, dwell, L. manere, and so called because it was the permanent residence of the lord and of his tenants. See Mansion, and cf. Remain.] 1. (Eng. Law) The land belonging to a lord or nobleman, or so much land as a lord or great personage kept in his own hands, for the use and subsistence of his family.

My manors, rents, revenues, l forego.

Shak.

&fist; In these days, a manor rather signifies the jurisdiction and royalty incorporeal, than the land or site, for a man may have a manor in gross, as the law terms it, that is, the right and interest of a court-baron, with the perquisites thereto belonging.

2. (American Law) A tract of land occupied by tenants who pay a free-farm rent to the proprietor, sometimes in kind, and sometimes by performing certain stipulated services. Burrill.

Manor house, or Manor seat, the house belonging to a manor.

Ma*no”ri*al (?), a. Of or pertaining to a manor. ” Manorial claims.” Paley.

Man”o*scope (?), n. [Gr. &?; thin, rare + -scope.] Same as Manometer.

Ma*nos”co*py (?), n. The science of the determination of the density of vapors and gases.

Ma*no”ver*y (?), n. [See Maneuver.] (Eng. Law) A contrivance or maneuvering to catch game illegally.

Man”quell`er (?), n. A killer of men; a manslayer. [Obs.] Carew.

{ Man”red (?), Man”rent` (?), } n. Homage or service rendered to a superior, as to a lord; vassalage. [Obs. or Scots Law] Jamieson.

Man”rope` (?), n. (Naut.) One of the side ropes to the gangway of a ship. Totten.

Man”sard roof” (?). [So called from its inventor, François Mansard, or Mansart, a distinguished French architect, who died in 1666.] (Arch.) A hipped curb roof; that is, a roof having on all sides two slopes, the lower one being steeper than the upper one.

Manse (?), n. [LL. mansa, mansus, mansum, a farm, fr. L. manere, mansum, to stay, dwell. See Mansion, Manor.] 1. A dwelling house, generally with land attached.

2. The parsonage; a clergyman’s house. [Scot.]

Capital manse, the manor house, or lord’s court.

Man”serv`ant (?), n. A male servant.

Man”sion (?), n. [OF. mansion, F. maison, fr. L. mansio a staying, remaining, a dwelling, habitation, fr. manere, mansum, to stay, dwell; akin to Gr. &?;. Cf. Manse, Manor, Menagerie, Menial, Permanent.] 1. A dwelling place, — whether a part or whole of a house or other shelter. [Obs.]

In my Father’s house are many mansions.

John xiv. 2.

These poets near our princes sleep,
And in one grave their mansions keep.

Den&?;am.

2. The house of the lord of a manor; a manor house; hence: Any house of considerable size or pretension.

3. (Astrol.) A twelfth part of the heavens; a house. See 1st House, 8. Chaucer.

4. The place in the heavens occupied each day by the moon in its monthly revolution. [Obs.]

The eight and twenty mansions
That longen to the moon.

Chaucer.

Mansion house, the house in which one resides; specifically, in London and some other cities, the official residence of the Lord Mayor. Blackstone.

Man”sion, v. i. To dwell; to reside. [Obs.] Mede.

Man”sion*a*ry (?), a. Resident; residentiary; as, mansionary canons.

Man”sion*ry (?), n. The state of dwelling or residing; occupancy as a dwelling place. [Obs.] Shak.

Man”slaugh`ter (?), n. 1. The slaying of a human being; destruction of men. Milton.

2. (Law) The unlawful killing of a man, either in negligence or incidentally to the commission of some unlawful act, but without specific malice, or upon a sudden excitement of anger.

Man”slay`er (?), n. One who kills a human being; one who commits manslaughter.

Man”steal`er (?), n. A person who steals or kidnaps a human being or beings.

Man”steal`ing, n. The act or business of stealing or kidnaping human beings, especially with a view to e&?;slave them.

Man”suete (?), a. [L. mansuetus, p. p. of mansuescere to tame; manus hand + suescere to accustom: cf. F. mansuet.] Tame; gentle; kind. [Obs.] Ray.

Man”sue*tude (?), n. [L. mansuetudo: cf. F. mansuétude.] Tameness; gentleness; mildness. [Archaic]

Man”swear` (?), v. i. To swear falsely. Same as Mainswear.

||Man”ta (?), n. [From the native name.] (Zoöl.) See Cephaloptera and Sea devil.

Mant*choo” (?), a. & n. Same as Manchu.

||Man`teau” (?), n.; pl. F. Manteaux (#), E. Manteaus (#). [F. See Mantle, n.] 1. A woman’s cloak or mantle.

2. A gown worn by women. [Obs.]

Man”tel (?), n. [The same word as mantle a garment; cf. F. manteau de cheminée. See Mantle.] (Arch.) The finish around a fireplace, covering the chimney-breast in front and sometimes on both sides; especially, a shelf above the fireplace, and its supports. [Written also mantle.]

Man”tel*et (?), n. [F., dim. of manteau, OF. mantel. See Mantle.] 1. (a) A short cloak formerly worn by knights. (b) A short cloak or mantle worn by women.

A mantelet upon his shoulders hanging.

Chaucer.

2. (Fort.) A musket-proof shield of rope, wood, or metal, which is sometimes used for the protection of sappers or riflemen while attacking a fortress, or of gunners at embrasures; — now commonly written mantlet.

Man”tel*piece` (?), n. Same as Mantel.

Man”tel*shelf` (?), n. The shelf of a mantel.

Man”tel*tree` (?), n. (Arch.) The lintel of a fireplace when of wood, as frequently in early houses.

Man”tic (?), a. [Gr. &?; prophetic.] Of or pertaining to divination, or to the condition of one inspired, or supposed to be inspired, by a deity; prophetic. [R.] “Mantic fury.” Trench.

Man*til”la (?), n. [Sp. See Mantle.] 1. A lady’s light cloak of cape of silk, velvet, lace, or the like.

2. A kind of veil, covering the head and falling down upon the shoulders; — worn in Spain, Mexico, etc.

||Man”tis (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; a prophet.] (Zoöl.) Any one of numerous species of voracious orthopterous insects of the genus Mantis, and allied genera. They are remarkable for their slender grotesque forms, and for holding their stout anterior legs in a manner suggesting hands folded in prayer. The common American species is M. Carolina.

Mantis shrimp. (Zoöl.) See Sguilla.

Man*tis”pid (?), n. (Zoöl.) Any neuropterous insect of the genus Mantispa, and allied genera. The larvæ feed on plant lice. Also used adjectively. See Illust. under Neuroptera.

Man*tis*sa (?), n. [L., an addition, makeweight; of Tuscan origin.] (Math.) The decimal part of a logarithm, as distinguished from the integral part, or characteristic.

Man”tle (?), n. [OE. mantel, OF. mantel, F. manteau, fr. L. mantellum, mantelum, a cloth, napkin, cloak, mantle (cf. mantele, mantile, towel, napkin); prob. from manus hand + the root of tela cloth. See Manual, Textile, and cf. Mandil, Mantel, Mantilla.]

1. A loose garment to be worn over other garments; an enveloping robe; a cloak. Hence, figuratively, a covering or concealing envelope.

[The] children are clothed with mantles of satin.

Bacon.

The green mantle of the standing pool.

Shak.

Now Nature hangs her mantle green
On every blooming tree.

Burns.

2. (Her.) Same as Mantling.

3. (Zoöl.) (a) The external fold, or folds, of the soft, exterior membrane of the body of a mollusk. It usually forms a cavity inclosing the gills. See Illusts. of Buccinum, and Byssus. (b) Any free, outer membrane. (c) The back of a bird together with the folded wings.

4. (Arch.) A mantel. See Mantel.

5. The outer wall and casing of a blast furnace, above the hearth. Raymond.

6. (Hydraulic Engin.) A penstock for a water wheel.

Man”tle, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mantled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mantling (?).] To cover or envelop, as with a mantle; to cloak; to hide; to disguise. Shak.

Man”tle, v. i. 1. To unfold and spread out the wings, like a mantle; — said of hawks. Also used figuratively.

Ne is there hawk which mantleth on her perch.

Spenser.

Or tend his sparhawk mantling in her mew.

Bp. Hall.

My frail fancy fed with full delight.
Doth bathe in bliss, and mantleth most at ease.

Spenser.

2. To spread out; — said of wings.

The swan, with arched neck
Between her white wings mantling proudly, rows.

Milton.

3. To spread over the surface as a covering; to overspread; as, the scum mantled on the pool.

Though mantled in her cheek the blood.

Sir W. Scott.

4. To gather, assume, or take on, a covering, as froth, scum, etc.

There is a sort of men whose visages
Do cream and mantle like a standing pond.

Shak.

Nor bowl of wassail mantle warm.

Tennyson.

Man”tlet (?), n. See Mantelet.

Man”tling (?), n. (Her.) The representation of a mantle, or the drapery behind and around a coat of arms: — called also lambrequin.

Man”to (?), n. [It. or Sp. manto, abbrev., from L. mantelum. See Mantle.] See Manteau. [Obs.] Bailey.

Man*tol”o*gist (?), n. One who is skilled in mantology; a diviner. [R.]

Man*tol”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. &?; prophet + -logy.] The act or art of divination. [R.]

||Man”tra (?), n. [Skr.] A prayer; an invocation; a religious formula; a charm. [India]

&fist; Among the Hindoos each caste and tribe has a mantra peculiar to itself; as, the mantra of the Brahmans. Balfour (Cyc. of India).

Man”trap` (?), n. 1. A trap for catching trespassers. [Eng.]

2. A dangerous place, as an open hatch, into which one may fall.

Man”tu*a (?), n. 1. A superior kind of rich silk formerly exported from Mantua in Italy. [Obs.] Beck (Draper’s Dict.).

2. A woman’s cloak or mantle; also, a woman’s gown. [Obs.]

Man”tu*a*mak`er (?), n. One who makes dresses, cloaks, etc., for women; a dressmaker.

Man”tu*an (?), a. Of or pertaining to Mantua. — n. A native or inhabitant of Mantua.

||Ma”nu (?), n. [Skr.] (Hind. Myth.) One of a series of progenitors of human beings, and authors of human wisdom.

Man”u*al (măn”&usl;*al), a. [OE. manuel, F. manuel, L. manualis, fr. manus hand; prob. akin to AS. mund hand, protection, OHG. munt, G. mündel a ward, vormund guardian, Icel. mund hand. Cf. Emancipate, Legerdemain, Maintain, Manage, Manner, Manure, Mound a hill.] Of or pertaining to the hand; done or made by the hand; as, manual labor; the king’s sign manual. “Manual and ocular examination.” Tatham.

Manual alphabet. See Dactylology. — Manual exercise (Mil.) the exercise by which soldiers are taught the use of their muskets and other arms. — Seal manual, the impression of a seal worn on the hand as a ring. — Sign manual. See under Sign.

Man”u*al (?), n. [Cf. F. manuel, LL. manuale. See Manual, a.] 1. A small book, such as may be carried in the hand, or conveniently handled; a handbook; specifically, the service book of the Roman Catholic Church.

This manual of laws, styled the Confessor’s Laws.

Sir M. Hale.

2. (Mus.) A keyboard of an organ or harmonium for the fingers, as distinguished from the pedals; a clavier, or set of keys. Moore (Encyc. of Music).

3. (Mil.) A prescribed exercise in the systematic handing of a weapon; as, the manual of arms; the manual of the sword; the manual of the piece (cannon, mortar, etc.).

Man”u*al*ist, n. One who works with the hands; an artificer.

Man”u*al*ly, adv. By hand.

Man”u*a*ry (?), a. [L. manuarius, fr. manus hand.] Manual. — n. An artificer. [Obs.] Bp. Hall.

Ma*nu”bi*al (?), a. [L. manubialis, fr. manubiae money obtained from the sale of booty, booty.] Belonging to spoils; taken in war. [Obs.] Bailey.

Ma*nu”bri*al (?), a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to a manubrium; shaped like a manubrium; handlelike.

||Ma*nu”bri*um (?), n.; pl. L. Manubria (#), E. Manubriums (#). [L., handle, fr. manus hand.]

1. (Anat.) A handlelike process or part; esp., the anterior segment of the sternum, or presternum, and the handlelike process of the malleus.

2. (Zoöl.) The proboscis of a jellyfish; — called also hypostoma. See Illust. of Hydromedusa.

Man”u*code (?), n. [Javanese manukdewata the bird of the gods: cf. F. manucode.] (Zoöl.) Any bird of the genus Manucodia, of Australia and New Guinea. They are related to the bird of paradise.

Man`u*du”cent (?), n. One who leads by the hand; a manuductor. [Obs.]

Man`u*duc”tion (?), n. [L. manus hand + ductio a leading, ducere to lead: cf. F. manuduction.] Guidance by the hand. [Obs.] Glanvill. South.

Man`u*duc”tor (?), n. [L. manus the hand + ductor a leader, ducere to lead: cf. F. manuducteur.] (Mus.) A conductor; an officer in the ancient church who gave the signal for the choir to sing, and who beat time with the hand, and regulated the music. Moore (Encyc. of Music.)

Man`u*fac”to*ry (?), n.; pl. -ries (#). [Cf. L. factorium an oil press, prop., place where something is made. See Manufacture.] 1. Manufacture. [Obs.]

2. A building or place where anything is manufactured; a factory.

Man`u*fac”to*ry, a. Pertaining to manufacturing.

Man`u*fac”tur*al (?), a. Of or pertaining to manufactures. [R.]

Man`u*fac”ture (?), n. [L. manus the hand + factura a making, fr. facere to make: cf. F. manufacture. See Manual, and Fact.] 1. The operation of making wares or any products by hand, by machinery, or by other agency.

2. Anything made from raw materials by the hand, by machinery, or by art, as cloths, iron utensils, shoes, machinery, saddlery, etc.

Man`u*fac”ture, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Manufactured (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Manufacturing.] [Cf. F. manufacturer.] 1. To make (wares or other products) by hand, by machinery, or by other agency; as, to manufacture cloth, nails, glass, etc.

2. To work, as raw or partly wrought materials, into suitable forms for use; as, to manufacture wool, cotton, silk, or iron.

Man`u*fac”ture, v. i. To be employed in manufacturing something.

Man`u*fac”tur*er (?), n. One who manufactures.

Man`u*fac”tur*ing, a. 1. Employed, or chiefly employed, in manufacture; as, a manufacturing community; a manufacturing town.

2. Pertaining to manufacture; as, manufacturing projects.

||Ma”nul (?), n. (Zoöl.) A wild cat (Felis manul), having long, soft, light- colored fur. It is found in the mountains of Central Asia, and dwells among rocks.

Man”u*mise` (?), v. t. [See Manumit.] To manumit. [Obs.] Dryden.

Man`u*mis”sion (?), n. [L. manumissio: cf. F. manumission. See Manumit.] The act of manumitting, or of liberating a slave from bondage. “Given to slaves at their manumission.” Arbuthnot.

Man`u*mit” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Manumitted; p. pr. & vb. n. Manumitting.] [L. manumittere, manumissum; manus the hand + mittere to send, to send off. See Manual, and Missile.] To release from slavery; to liberate from personal bondage or servitude; to free, as a slave. “Manumitted slaves.” Hume.

Man”u*mo`tive (?), a. [L. manus the hand + E. motive.] Movable by hand. [R.]

Man”u*mo`tor (?), n. [L. manus the hand + E. motor.] A small wheel carriage, so constructed that a person sitting in it may move it.

Ma*nur”a*ble (&?;), a. 1. Capable of cultivation. [Obs.] Sir M. Hale.

2. Capable of receiving a fertilizing substance.

Ma*nur”age (?), n. Cultivation. [Obs.] Warner.

Ma*nur”ance (?), n. Cultivation. [Obs.] Spenser.

Ma*nure” (m&adot;*nūr”), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Manured (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Manuring.] [Contr, from OF. manuvrer, manovrer, to work with the hand, to cultivate by manual labor, F. manœuvrer. See Manual, Ure, Opera, and cf. Inure.] 1. To cultivate by manual labor; to till; hence, to develop by culture. [Obs.]

To whom we gave the strand for to manure.

Surrey.

Manure thyself then; to thyself be improved;
And with vain, outward things be no more moved.

Donne.

2. To apply manure to; to enrich, as land, by the application of a fertilizing substance.

The blood of English shall manure the ground.

Shak.

Ma*nure” (m&adot;*nūr”), n. Any matter which makes land productive; a fertilizing substance, as the contents of stables and barnyards, dung, decaying animal or vegetable substances, etc. Dryden.

Ma*nure”ment, n. [Cf. OF. manouvrement.] Cultivation. [Obs.] W. Wotton.

Ma*nur”er (?), n. One who manures land.

Ma*nu”ri*al (?), a. Relating to manures.

Ma*nur”ing (?), n. The act of process of applying manure; also, the manure applied.

||Ma”nus (?), n.; pl. Manus. [L., the hand.] (Anat.) The distal segment of the fore limb, including the carpus and fore foot or hand.

Man”u*script (?), a. [L. manu scriptus. See Manual, and Scribe.] Written with or by the hand; not printed; as, a manuscript volume.

Man”u*script, n. [LL. manuscriptum, lit., something written with the hand. See Manuscript, a.] 1. A literary or musical composition written with the hand, as distinguished from a printed copy.

2. Writing, as opposed to print; as, the book exists only in manuscript. Craik.

&fist; The word is often abbreviated to MS., plural MSS.

Man”u*script`al (?), a. Manuscript. [Obs.]

Man`u*ten”en*cy (?), n. [L. manus hand + tenere to hold.] Maintenance. [Obs.] Abp. Sancroft.

Man”way` (?), n. A small passageway, as in a mine, that a man may pass through. Raymond.

Manx (?), a. Of or pertaining to the Isle of Man, or its inhabitants; as, the Manx language.

Manx cat (Zoöl.), a breed of domestic cats having a rudimentary tail, containing only about three vertebrae. — Manx shearwater (Zoöl.), an oceanic bird (Puffinus anglorum, or P. puffinus), called also Manx petrel, Manx puffin. It was formerly abundant in the Isle of Man.

Manx, n. The language of the inhabitants of the Isle of Man, a dialect of the Celtic.

Ma”ny (?), n. [See Meine, Mansion.] A retinue of servants; a household. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Ma”ny, a. or pron. [It has no variation to express degrees of comparison; more and most, which are used for the comparative and superlative degrees, are from a different root.] [OE. mani, moni, AS. manig, mænig, monig; akin to D. menig, OS. & OHG. manag, G. manch, Dan. mange, Sw. månge, Goth. manags, OSlav. mnog’, Russ. mnogii; cf. Icel. margr, Prov. E. mort. √103.] Consisting of a great number; numerous; not few.

Thou shalt be a father of many nations.

Gen. xvii. 4.

Not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called.

1 Cor. i. 26.

&fist; Many is freely prefixed to participles, forming compounds which need no special explanation; as, many-angled, many-celled, many-eyed, many-footed, many- handed, many-leaved, many-lettered, many- named, many-peopled, many-petaled, many- seeded, many-syllabled (polysyllabic), many- tongued, many-voiced, many-wived, and the like. Comparison is often expressed by many with as or so. “As many as were willing hearted . . . brought bracelets.” Exod. xxxv. 22. “So many laws argue so many sins.” Milton. Many stands with a singular substantive with a or an.

Many a, a large number taken distributively; each one of many. “For thy sake have I shed many a tear.” Shak. “Full many a gem of purest ray serene.” Gray. — Many one, many a one; many persons. Bk. of Com. Prayer. — The many, the majority; — opposed to the few. See Many, n. — Too many, too numerous; hence, too powerful; as, they are too many for us. L’Estrange.

Syn. — Numerous; multiplied; frequent; manifold; various; divers; sundry.

Ma”ny, n. [AS. menigeo, menigo, menio, multitude; akin to G. menge, OHG. managī, menigī, Goth. managei. See Many, a.] 1. The populace; the common people; the majority of people, or of a community.

After him the rascal many ran.

Spenser.

2. A large or considerable number.

A many of our bodies shall no doubt
Find native graves.

Shak.

Seeing a great many in rich gowns.

Addison.

It will be concluded by manythat he lived like an honest man.

Fielding.

&fist; In this sense, many is connected immediately with another substantive (without of) to show of what the many consists; as, a good many [of] people think so.

He is liable to a great many inconveniences.

Tillotson.

Ma”ny-mind`ed (?), a. Having many faculties; versatile; many-sided.

Ma”ny*plies (?), n. [Many, adj. + plies, pl. of ply a fold.] (Anat.) The third division, or that between the reticulum, or honeycomb stomach, and the abomasum, or rennet stomach, in the stomach of ruminants; the omasum; the psalterium. So called from the numerous folds in its mucous membrane. See Illust of Ruminant.

Ma”ny-sid`ed (?), a. 1. Having many sides; — said of figures. Hence, presenting many questions or subjects for consideration; as, a many-sided topic.

2. Interested in, and having an aptitude for, many unlike pursuits or objects of attention; versatile.

— Ma”ny-sid`ed*ness, n.

{ Ma”ny*ways` (?), Ma”ny*wise` (?), } adv. In many different ways; variously.

Man`za*ni”ta (?), n. [Sp., dim. of munzana an apple.] (Bot.) A name given to several species of Arctostaphylos, but mostly to A. glauca and A. pungens, shrubs of California, Oregon, etc., with reddish smooth bark, ovate or oval coriaceous evergreen leaves, and bearing clusters of red berries, which are said to be a favorite food of the grizzly bear.

Ma”o*ri (?), n.; pl. Maoris (&?;). (Ethnol.) One of the aboriginal inhabitants of New Zealand; also, the original language of New Zealand. — a. Of or pertaining to the Maoris or to their language.

Map (?), n. [From F. mappe, in mappemonde map of the world, fr. L. mappa napkin, signal cloth; — a Punic word. Cf. Apron, Napkin, Nappe.] 1. A representation of the surface of the earth, or of some portion of it, showing the relative position of the parts represented; — usually on a flat surface. Also, such a representation of the celestial sphere, or of some part of it.

&fist; There are five principal kinds of projection used in making maps: the orthographic, the stereographic, the globuar, the conical, and the cylindrical, or Mercator’s projection. See Projection.

2. Anything which represents graphically a succession of events, states, or acts; as, an historical map.

Thus is his cheek the map of days outworn.

Shak.

Map lichen (Bot.), a lichen (Lecidea geographica.) growing on stones in curious maplike figures. Dr. Prior.

Map, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mapped (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mapping (?).] To represent by a map; — often with out; as, to survey and map, or map out, a county. Hence, figuratively: To represent or indicate systematically and clearly; to sketch; to plan; as, to map, or map out, a journey; to map out business.

I am near to the place where they should meet, if Pisanio have mapped it truly.

Shak.

||Ma*pach” (?), n. [Mexican.] The raccoon.

Ma”ple (?), n. [AS. mapolder, mapulder, mapol; akin to Icel. möpurr; cf. OHG. mazzaltra, mazzoltra, G. massholder.] (Bot.) A tree of the genus Acer, including about fifty species. A. saccharinum is the rock maple, or sugar maple, from the sap of which sugar is made, in the United States, in great quantities, by evaporation; the red or swamp maple is A. rubrum; the silver maple, A. dasycarpum, having fruit wooly when young; the striped maple, A. Pennsylvanium, called also moosewood. The common maple of Europe is A. campestre, the sycamore maple is A. Pseudo-platanus, and the Norway maple is A. platanoides.

&fist; Maple is much used adjectively, or as the first part of a compound; as, maple tree, maple leaf, etc.

Bird’s-eye maple, Curled maple, varieties of the wood of the rock maple, in which a beautiful lustrous grain is produced by the sinuous course of the fibers. — Maple honey, Maple molasses, or Maple sirup, maple sap boiled to the consistency of molasses. — Maple sugar, sugar obtained from the sap of the sugar maple by evaporation.

Map”like` (?), a. Having or consisting of lines resembling a map; as, the maplike figures in which certain lichens grow.

Map”per*y (?), n. [From Map.] The making, or study, of maps. [Obs.] Shak.

Ma”qui (?), n. (Bot.) A Chilian shrub (Aristotelia Maqui). Its bark furnishes strings for musical instruments, and a medicinal wine is made from its berries.

Mar (?), n. A small lake. See Mere. [Prov. Eng.]

Mar, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Marred (märd); p. pr. & vb. n. Marring.] [OE. marren, merren, AS. merran, myrran (in comp.), to obstruct, impede, dissipate; akin to OS. merrian, OHG. marrjan, merran; cf. D. marren, meeren, to moor a ship, Icel. merja to bruise, crush, and Goth. marzjan to offend. Cf. Moor, v.] 1. To make defective; to do injury to, esp. by cutting off or defacing a part; to impair; to disfigure; to deface.

I pray you mar no more trees with wiring love songs in their barks.

Shak.

But mirth is marred, and the good cheer is lost.

Dryden.

Ire, envy, and despair
Which marred all his borrowed visage.

Milton.

2. To spoil; to ruin. “It makes us, or it mars us.” “Striving to mend, to mar the subject.” Shak.

Mar, n. A mark or blemish made by bruising, scratching, or the like; a disfigurement.

||Ma”ra (?), n. [Skr. māra.] (Hind. Myth.) The principal or ruling evil spirit. E. Arnold.

||Ma”ra, n. [Icel. mara nightmare, an ogress. See Nightmare.] (Norse Myth.) A female demon who torments people in sleep by crouching on their chests or stomachs, or by causing terrifying visions.

||Ma”ra, n. (Zoöl.) The Patagonian cavy (Dolichotis Patagonicus).

Mar`a*bou” (?), n. [F.] 1. (Zoöl.) A large stork of the genus Leptoptilos (formerly Ciconia), esp. the African species (L. crumenifer), which furnishes plumes worn as ornaments. The Asiatic species (L. dubius, or L. argala) is the adjutant. See Adjutant. [Written also marabu.]

2. One having five eighths negro blood; the offspring of a mulatto and a griffe. [Louisiana] Bartlett.

Marabout” (?), n. [F., from Pg. marabuto, Ar. morābit. Cf. Maravedi.] A Mohammedan saint; especially, one who claims to work cures supernaturally.

Mar”a*can (?), n. [Braz. maracaná.] (Zoöl.) A macaw.

||Ma*rai” (?), n. A sacred inclosure or temple; — so called by the islanders of the Pacific Ocean.

Mar`a*nath”a (?), n. [Aramaic māran athā.] “Our Lord cometh;” — an expression used by St. Paul at the conclusion of his first Epistle to the Corinthians (xvi. 22). This word has been used in anathematizing persons for great crimes; as much as to say, “May the Lord come quickly to take vengeance of thy crimes.” See Anathema maranatha, under Anathema.

Ma*ran”ta (?), n. [NL.] (Bot.) A genus of endogenous plants found in tropical America, and some species also in India. They have tuberous roots containing a large amount of starch, and from one species (Maranta arundinacea) arrowroot is obtained. Many kinds are cultivated for ornament.

||Ma`ra*schi”no (?), n. [It., fr. marasca, amarasca, a sour cherry, L. amarus bitter.] A liqueur distilled from fermented cherry juice, and flavored with the pit of a variety of cherry which grows in Dalmatia.

Ma*ras”mus (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; , fr. &?;, to quench, as fire; pass., to die away.] (Med.) A wasting of flesh without fever or apparent disease; a kind of consumption; atrophy; phthisis.

Pining atrophy,
Marasmus, and wide-wasting pestilence.

Milton.

Marasmus senilis [L.], progressive atrophy of the aged.

Ma*raud” (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Marauded; p. pr. & vb. n. Marauding.] [F. marauder, fr. maraud vagabond, OF. marault; of uncertain origin, perh. for malault, fr. (assumed) LL. malaldus; fr. L. malus bad, ill + a suffix of German origin (cf. Herald). Cf. Malice.] To rove in quest of plunder; to make an excursion for booty; to plunder. “Marauding hosts.” Milman.

Ma*raud”, n. An excursion for plundering.

Ma*raud`er (?), n. [From Maraud, v.: cf. F. maraudeur.] A rover in quest of booty or plunder; a plunderer; one who pillages. De Quincey.

Mar`a*ve”di (?), n. [Sp. maravedí; — so called from the Morābitīn (lit., the steadfast), an Arabian dynasty which reigned in Africa and Spain. Cf. Marabout.] (Numis.) A small copper coin of Spain, equal to three mils American money, less than a farthing sterling. Also, an ancient Spanish gold coin.

Mar”ble (mär”b’l), n. [OE. marbel, marbre, F. marbre, L. marmor, fr. Gr. ma`rmaros, fr. marmai`rein to sparkle, flash. Cf. Marmoreal.] 1. A massive, compact limestone; a variety of calcite, capable of being polished and used for architectural and ornamental purposes. The color varies from white to black, being sometimes yellow, red, and green, and frequently beautifully veined or clouded. The name is also given to other rocks of like use and appearance, as serpentine or verd antique marble, and less properly to polished porphyry, granite, etc.

&fist; Breccia marble consists of limestone fragments cemented together. — Ruin marble, when polished, shows forms resembling ruins, due to disseminated iron oxide. — Shell marble contains fossil shells. — Statuary marble is a pure, white, fine-grained kind, including Parian (from Paros) and Carrara marble. If coarsely granular it is called saccharoidal.

2. A thing made of, or resembling, marble, as a work of art, or record, in marble; or, in the plural, a collection of such works; as, the Arundel or Arundelian marbles; the Elgin marbles.

3. A little ball of marble, or of some other hard substance, used as a plaything by children; or, in the plural, a child’s game played with marbles.

&fist; Marble is also much used in self-explaining compounds; when used figuratively in compounds it commonly means, hard, cold, destitute of compassion or feeling; as, marble- breasted, marble-faced, marble-hearted.

Mar”ble, a. 1. Made of, or resembling, marble; as, a marble mantel; marble paper.

2. Cold; hard; unfeeling; as, a marble breast or heart.

Mar”ble, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Marbled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Marbling (?).] [Cf. F. marbrer. See Marble, n.] To stain or vein like marble; to variegate in color; as, to marble the edges of a book, or the surface of paper.

Mar”bled (?), a. 1. Made of, or faced with, marble. [Obs.] “The marbled mansion.” Shak.

2. Made to resemble marble; veined or spotted like marble. “Marbled paper.” Boyle.

3. (zoöl.) Varied with irregular markings, or witch a confused blending of irregular spots and streaks.

Mar”ble-edged` (?), a. Having the edge veined or spotted with different colors like marble, as a book.

Mar”ble*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Marbleized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Marbleizing (?).] To stain or grain in imitation of marble; to cover with a surface resembling marble; as, to marbleize slate, wood, or iron.

Mar”bler (&?;), n. 1. One who works upon marble or other stone. [R.] Fuller.

2. One who colors or stains in imitation of marble.

Mar”bling (?), n. 1. The art or practice of variegating in color, in imitation of marble.

2. An intermixture of fat and lean in meat, giving it a marbled appearance.

3. pl. (Zoöl.) Distinct markings resembling the variegations of marble, as on birds and insects.

Mar”bly, a. Containing, or resembling, marble.

||Mar*bri”nus (?), n. [LL., fr. OF. & F. marble marble. See Marble.] A cloth woven so as to imitate the appearance of marble; — much used in the 15th and 16th centuries. Beck (Draper’s Dict.).

Marc (?), n. [F.] The refuse matter which remains after the pressure of fruit, particularly of grapes.

Marc, n. [AS. marc; akin to G. mark, Icel. mörk, perh. akin to E. mark a sign. √106, 273.] [Written also mark.] 1. A weight of various commodities, esp. of gold and silver, used in different European countries. In France and Holland it was equal to eight ounces.

2. A coin formerly current in England and Scotland, equal to thirteen shillings and four pence.

3. A German coin and money of account. See Mark.

Mar”can*tant (?), n. [It. mercatante. See Merchant.] A merchant. [Obs.] Shak.

Mar”ca*site (?), n. [F. marcassite; cf. It. marcassita, Sp. marquesita, Pg. marquezita; all fr. Ar. marqashītha.] (Min.) A sulphide of iron resembling pyrite or common iron pyrites in composition, but differing in form; white iron pyrites.

Golden marcasite, tin. [Obs.]

{ Mar`ca*sit”ic (?), Mar`ca*sit”ic*al (?), } a. Containing, or having the nature of, marcasite.

Mar*cas”sin (?), n. [F.] (Her.) A young wild boar.

||Mar*ca”to (?), a. [It.] (Mus.) In a marked emphatic manner; — used adverbially as a direction.

Mar”cel*ine (?), n. [F., fr. L. marcidus withered, fr. marcere to wither, shrivel.] A thin silk fabric used for linings, etc., in ladies’ dresses.

Mar*ces”cent (?), a. [L. marcescens, p. pr. of marcescere to wither, decay, fr. marcere to wither, droop: cf. F. marcescent.] (Bot.) Withering without falling off; fading; decaying.

Mar*ces”ci*ble (?), a. [Cf. F. marcescible.] Liable to wither or decay.

March (?), n. [L. Martius mensis Mars’month fr. Martius belonging to Mars, the god of war: cf. F. mars. Cf. Martial.] The third month of the year, containing thirty-one days.

The stormy March is come at last,
With wind, and cloud, and changing skies.

Bryant.

As mad as a March Hare, an old English Saying derived from the fact that March is the rutting time of hares, when they are excitable and violent. Wright.

March, n. [OE. marche, F. marche; of German origin; cf. OHG. marcha, G. mark, akin to OS. marka, AS. mearc, Goth. marka, L. margo edge, border, margin, and possibly to E. mark a sign. √106. Cf. Margin, Margrave, Marque, Marquis.] A territorial border or frontier; a region adjacent to a boundary line; a confine; — used chiefly in the plural, and in English history applied especially to the border land on the frontiers between England and Scotland, and England and Wales.

Geneva is situated in the marches of several dominions — France, Savoy, and Switzerland.

Fuller.

Lords of waste marches, kings of desolate isles.

Tennyson.

March, v. i. [Cf. OF. marchir. See 2d March.] To border; to be contiguous; to lie side by side. [Obs.]

That was in a strange land
Which marcheth upon Chimerie.

Gower.

To march with, to have the same boundary for a greater or less distance; — said of an estate.

March, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Marched (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Marching.] [F. marcher, in OF. also, to tread, prob. fr. L. marcus hammer. Cf. Mortar.] 1. To move with regular steps, as a soldier; to walk in a grave, deliberate, or stately manner; to advance steadily. Shak.

2. To proceed by walking in a body or in military order; as, the German army marched into France.

March, v. t. To cause to move with regular steps in the manner of a soldier; to cause to move in military array, or in a body, as troops; to cause to advance in a steady, regular, or stately manner; to cause to go by peremptory command, or by force.

March them again in fair array.

Prior.

March, n. [F. marche.] 1. The act of marching; a movement of soldiers from one stopping place to another; military progress; advance of troops.

These troops came to the army harassed with a long and wearisome march.

Bacon.

2. Hence: Measured and regular advance or movement, like that of soldiers moving in order; stately or deliberate walk; steady onward movement.

With solemn march
Goes slow and stately by them.

Shak.

This happens merely because men will not bide their time, but will insist on precipitating the march of affairs.

Buckle.

3. The distance passed over in marching; as, an hour’s march; a march of twenty miles.

4. A piece of music designed or fitted to accompany and guide the movement of troops; a piece of music in the march form.

The drums presently striking up a march.

Knolles.

To make a march, (Card Playing), to take all the tricks of a hand, in the game of euchre.

March”er (?), n. One who marches.

March”er, n. [See 2d March.] The lord or officer who defended the marches or borders of a territory.

{ Mar”chet (?), Mer”chet (?) }, n. [LL. marcheta; of uncertain origin.] In old English and in Scots law, a fine paid to the lord of the soil by a tenant upon the marriage of one the tenant’s daughters.

March”ing (?), a. & n., fr. March, v.

Marching money (Mil.), the additional pay of officer or soldier when his regiment is marching. — In marching order (Mil.), equipped for a march. — Marching regiment. (Mil.) (a) A regiment in active service. (b) In England, a regiment liable to be ordered into other quarters, at home or abroad; a regiment of the line.

Mar”chion*ess (?), n. [LL. marchionissa, fr. marchio a marquis. See Marquis.] The wife or the widow of a marquis; a woman who has the rank and dignity of a marquis. Spelman.

March”-mad` (?), a. Extremely rash; foolhardy. See under March, the month. Sir W. Scott.

March”man (?), n. A person living in the marches between England and Scotland or Wales.

March”pane` (?), n. [Cf. It. marzapane,Sp. pan,. massepain, prob. fr. L. maza frumenty (Gr. ma^za) + L. panis bread; but perh. the first part of the word is from the name of the inventor.] A kind of sweet bread or biscuit; a cake of pounded almonds and sugar. [Obs.] Shak.

March”-ward` (?), n. A warden of the marches; a marcher.

Mar”cian (?), a. Under the influence of Mars; courageous; bold. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mar”cid (?), a. [L. marcidus, fr. marcere to wither, pine.] 1. Pining; lean; withered. Dryden.

2. Characterized by emaciation, as a fever. Harvey.

Mar*cid”i*ty (?), n. [LL. marciditas.] The state or quality of being withered or lean. [R.]

Mar”cion*ite (?), n. (Eccl. Hist) A follower of Marcion, a Gnostic of the second century, who adopted the Oriental notion of the two conflicting principles, and imagined that between them there existed a third power, neither wholly good nor evil, the Creator of the world and of man, and the God of the Jewish dispensation. Brande & C.

||Mar`co*brun”ner (?), n. [G. Marcobrunner.] A celebrated Rhine wine.

||Mar”cor (?), n. [L., fr. marcere to wither.] A wasting away of flesh; decay. [Obs.] Sir T. Browne.

Mar*co”sian (?), n. (Eccl. Hist.) One of a Gnostic sect of the second century, so called from Marcus, an Egyptian, who was reputed to be a margician.

||Mar”di` gras” (?), n. [F., literally, fat Tuesday.] The last day of Carnival; Shrove Tuesday; — in some cities a great day of carnival and merrymaking.

Mare (mâr), n. [OE. mere, AS. mere, myre, fem of AS. mearh horse, akin to D. merrie mare, G. mähre, OHG. marah horse, meriha mare, Icel. marr horse, OCelt. marka (Pausan. 19, 19,4), Ir. marc, W. march. Cf. Marshal.] The female of the horse and other equine quadrupeds.

Mare, n. [AS. mara incubus; akin to OHG. & Icel. mara; cf. Pol. mora, Bohem. můra.] (Med.) Sighing, suffocative panting, intercepted utterance, with a sense of pressure across the chest, occurring during sleep; the incubus; — obsolete, except in the compound nightmare.

I will ride thee o’ nights like the mare.

Shak.

Mare”chal Niel” (?). [F.] A kind of large yellow rose. [Written also Marshal Niel.]

Mar”eis (?), n. A Marsh. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Ma*re”na (?), n. [NL. Salmo maraena, G. maräne, moräne; — so called from Lake Morin, in the March of Brandenburg, in Prussia.] (Zoöl.) A European whitefish of the genus Coregonus.

Mare”schal (?), n. [OF. mareschal, F. maréchal. See Marshal.] A military officer of high rank; a marshal. [Obs.]

Mare’s”-nest` (?), n. A supposed discovery which turns out to be a hoax; something grossly absurd.

Mare’s”-tail` (?), n. 1. A long streaky cloud, spreading out like a horse’s tail, and believed to indicate rain; a cirrus cloud. See Cloud.

Mackerel sky and mare’s-tails
Make tall ships carry low sails.

Old Rhyme.

2. (Bot.) An aquatic plant of the genus Hippuris (H. vulgaris), having narrow leaves in whorls.

Mar”ga*rate (?), n. [Cf. F. margarate.] (Physiol. Chem.) A compound of the so- called margaric acid with a base.

Mar*gar”ic (?), a. [Cf. F. margarique. See Margarite.] Pertaining to, or resembling, pearl; pearly.

Margaric acid. (a) (Physiol. Chem.) A fatty body, crystallizing in pearly scales, and obtained by digesting saponified fats (soaps) with an acid. It was formerly supposed to be an individual fatty acid, but is now known to be simply an intimate mixture of stearic and palmitic acids. (b) (Chem.) A white, crystalline substance, C_17H_34O_2 of the fatty acid series, intermediate between palmitic and stearic acids, and obtained from the wax of certain lichens, from cetyl cyanide, and other sources.

Mar”ga*rin (?), n. [Cf. F. margarine. See Margarite.] (Physiol. Chem.) A fatty substance, extracted from animal fats and certain vegetable oils, formerly supposed to be a definite compound of glycerin and margaric acid, but now known to be simply a mixture or combination of tristearin and tripalmitin.

Mar`ga*ri*ta”ceous (?), a. Pertaining to, or resembling, pearl; pearly.

Mar”ga*rite (?), n. [L. margarita, Gr. &?; a pearl; cf. F. marguerite.] 1. A pearl. [Obs.] Peacham.

2. (Min.) A mineral related to the micas, but low in silica and yielding brittle folia with pearly luster.

Mar`ga*rit”ic (?), a. [Cf. F. margaritique.] (Physiol. Chem.) Margaric.

Mar`ga*ri*tif”er*ous (?), a. [L. margaritifer; margarita pearl + ferre to bear: cf. F. margaritifère.] Producing pearls.

Mar*gar”o*dite (?), n. [Gr. &?; pearl- like.] (Min.) A hidrous potash mica related to muscovite.

Mar”ga*rone (?), n. [Margaric + -one.] (Chem.) The ketone of margaric acid.

Mar”ga*rous (?), a. (Chem.) Margaric; — formerly designating a supposed acid. [Obs.]

Mar”gate fish” (?). (Zoöl.) A sparoid fish (Diabasis aurolineatus) of the Gulf of Mexico, esteemed as a food fish; — called also red-mouth grunt.

Mar”gay (?), n. (Zoöl.) An American wild cat (Felis tigrina), ranging from Mexico to Brazil. It is spotted with black. Called also long-tailed cat.

Marge (?), n. [F. marge. See Margin.] Border; margin; edge; verge. [Poetic] Tennyson.

Along the river’s stony marge.

Wordsworth.

Mar”gent (?), n. [OE. See Margin.] A margin; border; brink; edge. [Obs.]

The beached margent of the sea.

Shak.

Mar”gent, v. t. To enter or note down upon the margin of a page; to margin. [Obs.] Mir. for Mag.

Mar”gin (?), n. [OE. margine, margent, L. margo, ginis. Cf. March a border, Marge.] 1. A border; edge; brink; verge; as, the margin of a river or lake.

2. Specifically: The part of a page at the edge left uncovered in writing or printing.

3. (Com.) The difference between the cost and the selling price of an article.

4. Something allowed, or reserved, for that which can not be foreseen or known with certainty.

5. (Brokerage) Collateral security deposited with a broker to secure him from loss on contracts entered into by him on behalf of his principial, as in the speculative buying and selling of stocks, wheat, etc. N. Biddle.

Margin draft (Masonry), a smooth cut margin on the face of hammer-dressed ashlar, adjacent to the joints. — Margin of a course (Arch.), that part of a course, as of slates or shingles, which is not covered by the course immediately above it. See 2d Gauge.

Syn. — Border; brink; verge; brim; rim.

Mar”gin (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Margined (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Marginging.] 1. To furnish with a margin.

2. To enter in the margin of a page.

Mar”gin*al (?), a. [Cf. F. marginal.] 1. Of or pertaining to a margin.

2. Written or printed in the margin; as, a marginal note or gloss.

||Mar`gi*na”li*a (?), n. pl. [NL.] Marginal notes.

Mar”gin*al*ly, adv. In the margin of a book.

Mar”gin*ate (?), a. [L. marginatus, p. p. of marginare to margin. See Margin, n.] Having a margin distinct in appearance or structure.

Mar”gin*ate (?), v. t. To furnish with a distinct margin; to margin. [R.] Cockeram.

Mar”gin*a`ted (?), a. Same as Marginate, a.

Mar”gined (?), a. 1. Having a margin. Hawthorne.

2. (Zoöl.) Bordered with a distinct line of color.

||Mar`gi*nel”la (?), n. [NL., dim. of L. margo, marginis, a margin.] (Zoöl.) A genus of small, polished, marine univalve shells, native of all warm seas.

Mar”gin*i*ci`dal (?), a. [L. margo, -ginis, margin + caedere to cut.] (Bot.) Dehiscent by the separation of united carpels; — said of fruits.

Mar*go”sa (?), n. [Pg. amargoso bitter.] (Bot.) A large tree of the genus Melia (M. Azadirachta) found in India. Its bark is bitter, and used as a tonic. A valuable oil is expressed from its seeds, and a tenacious gum exudes from its trunk. The M. Azedarach is a much more showy tree, and is cultivated in the Southern United States, where it is known as Pride of India, Pride of China, or bead tree. Various parts of the tree are considered anthelmintic.

The margosa oil . . . is a most valuable balsam for wounds, having a peculiar smell which prevents the attacks of flies.

Sir S. Baker.

{ Mar”gra*vate (?), Mar*gra”vi*ate (?), } n. [Cf. F. margraviat.] The territory or jurisdiction of a margrave.

Mar”grave (?), n. [G. markgraf, prop., lord chief justice of the march; mark bound, border, march + graf earl, count, lord chief justice; cf. Goth. gagrëfts decree: cf. D. markgraaf, F. margrave. See March border, and cf. Landgrave, Graff.] 1. Originally, a lord or keeper of the borders or marches in Germany.

2. The English equivalent of the German title of nobility, markgraf; a marquis.

Mar”gra*vine (?), n. [G. markgräfin: cf. F. margrafine.] The wife of a margrave.

Mar”gue*rite (?), n. [F., a pearl, a daisy. See Margarite.] (Bot.) The daisy (Bellis perennis). The name is often applied also to the ox-eye daisy and to the China aster. Longfellow.

Ma”ri*an (?), a. Pertaining to the Virgin Mary, or sometimes to Mary, Queen of England, daughter of Henry VIII.

Of all the Marian martyrs, Mr. Philpot was the best-born gentleman.

Fuller.

Maid Marian. See Maidmarian in the Vocabulary.

Mar”ie (?), interj. Marry. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mar”i*et (?), n. [F. mariette, prop. dim. of Marie Mary.] (Bot.) A kind of bellflower, Companula Trachelium, once called Viola Mariana; but it is not a violet.

Ma*rig”e*nous (?), a. [L. mare the sea + -genous.] Produced in or by the sea.

Mar”i*gold (?), n. [Mary + gold.] (Bot.) A name for several plants with golden yellow blossoms, especially the Calendula officinalis (see Calendula), and the cultivated species of Tagetes.

&fist; There are several yellow-flowered plants of different genera bearing this name; as, the African or French marigold of the genus Tagetes, of which several species and many varieties are found in gardens. They are mostly strong-smelling herbs from South America and Mexico: bur marigold, of the genus Bidens; corn marigold, of the genus Chrysanthemum (C. segetum, a pest in the cornfields of Italy); fig marigold, of the genus Mesembryanthemum; marsh marigold, of the genus Caltha (C. palustris), commonly known in America as the cowslip. See Marsh Marigold.

Marigold window. (Arch.) See Rose window, under Rose.

Mar`i*ki”na (?), n. [From the native name: cf. Pg. mariquinha.] (Zoöl) A small marmoset (Midas rosalia); the silky tamarin.

||Ma*rim”ba (?), n. [Pg.] A musical istrument of percussion, consisting of bars yielding musical tones when struck. Knight.

||Mar`i*mon”da (?), n. [Sp.] (Zoöl.) A spider monkey (Ateles belzebuth) of Central and South America.

Mar`i*nade” (?), n. [F.: cf. It. marinato marinade, F. mariner to preserve food for use at sea. See Marinate.] (Cookery) A brine or pickle containing wine and spices, for enriching the flavor of meat and fish.

Mar”i*nate (?), v. t. [See Marine, and cf. Marinade.] To salt or pickle, as fish, and then preserve in oil or vinegar; to prepare by the use of marinade.

Ma*rine” (?), a. [L. marinus, fr. mare the sea: cf. F. marin. See Mere a pool.] 1. Of or pertaining to the sea; having to do with the ocean, or with navigation or naval affairs; nautical; as, marine productions or bodies; marine shells; a marine engine.

2. (Geol.) Formed by the action of the currents or waves of the sea; as, marine deposits.

Marine acid (Chem.), hydrochloric acid. [Obs.] — Marine barometer. See under Barometer. — Marine corps, a corps formed of the officers, noncommissioned officers, privates, and musicants of marines. — Marine engine (Mech.), a steam engine for propelling a vessel. — Marine glue. See under Glue. — Marine insurance, insurance against the perils of the sea, including also risks of fire, piracy, and barratry. — Marine interest, interest at any rate agreed on for money lent upon respondentia and bottomry bonds. — Marine law. See under Law. — Marine league, three geographical miles. – - Marine metal, an alloy of lead, antimony, and mercury, made for sheathing ships. Mc Elrath. — Marine soap, cocoanut oil soap; — so called because, being quite soluble in salt water, it is much used on shipboard. — Marine store, a store where old canvas, ropes, etc., are bought and sold; a junk shop. [Eng.]

Ma*rine”, n. [F. marin a sea solider, marine naval economy, a marine picture, fr. L. marinus. See Marine, a.] 1. A solider serving on shipboard; a sea soldier; one of a body of troops trained to do duty in the navy.

2. The sum of naval affairs; naval economy; the department of navigation and sea forces; the collective shipping of a country; as, the mercantile marine.

3. A picture representing some marine subject.

Tell that to the marines, an expression of disbelief, the marines being regarded by sailors as credulous. [Colloq.]

Ma*rined” (?), a. [Cf. F. mariné.] (Her.) Having the lower part of the body like a fish. Crabb.

Mar”i*ner (?), n. [F. marinier, LL. marinarius. See Marine.] One whose occupation is to assist in navigating ships; a seaman or sailor. Chaucer.

Mariner’s compass. See under Compass.

Mar”i*ner*ship, n. Seamanship. [Obs.] Udalt.

Mar`i*no*ra”ma (?), n. [NL., from L. marinus marine + Gr. &?; view.] A representation of a sea view.

Ma`ri*ol”a*ter (?), n. [See Mariolatry.] One who worships the Virgin Mary.

Ma`ri*ol”a*try (?), n. [Gr. &?; Mary + &?; worship.] The worship of the Virgin Mary.

Mar`i*o*nette” (?), n. [F. marionette, prop. a dim. of Marie Mary.] 1. A puppet moved by strings, as in a puppet show.

2. (Zoöl.) The buffel duck.

Ma`ri*otte’s law` (?). (Physics.) See Boyle’s law, under Law.

Ma`ri*po”sa lil`y (?). [Sp. mariposa a butterfly + E. lily. So called from the gay appearance of the blossoms.] (Bot.) One of a genus (Calochortus) of tuliplike bulbous herbs with large, and often gaycolored, blossoms. Called also butterfly lily. Most of them are natives of California.

Mar”i*put (măr”&ibreve;*pŭt), n. (Zoöl.) A species of civet; the zoril.

Mar”ish (măr”&ibreve;sh), n. [Cf. F. marais, LL. marascus. See Marsh.] Low, wet ground; a marsh; a fen; a bog; a moor. [Archaic] Milton. Tennyson.

Mar”ish, a. 1. Moory; fenny; boggy. [Archaic]

2. Growing in marshes. “Marish flowers.” Tennyson.

Mar”i*tal (măr”&ibreve;*tal), a. [F., fr. L. maritalis, fr. maritus belonging to marriage, n., a husband. See Marry, v.] Of or pertaining to a husband; as, marital rights, duties, authority. “Marital affection.” Ayliffe.

Mar”i*ta`ted (măr”&ibreve;*tā`t&ebreve;d), a. [L. maritatus married.] Having a husband; married. [Obs.]

{ Ma*rit”i*mal, Ma*rit”i*male } (m&adot;*r&ibreve;t”&ibreve;*mal), a. See Maritime. [Obs.]

Mar”i*time (măr”&ibreve;*t&ibreve;m; 277), a. [L. maritimus, fr. mare the sea: cf. F. maritime. See Mere a pool.] 1. Bordering on, or situated near, the ocean; connected with the sea by site, interest, or power; having shipping and commerce or a navy; as, maritime states. “A maritime town.” Addison.

2. Of or pertaining to the ocean; marine; pertaining to navigation and naval affairs, or to shipping and commerce by sea. “Maritime service.” Sir H. Wotton.

Maritime law. See Law. — Maritime loan, a loan secured by bottomry or respodentia bonds. — Martime nations, nations having seaports, and using the sea more or less for war or commerce.

Mar”jo*ram (mär”j&osl;*ram), n. [OE. majoran, F. marjolaine, LL. marjoraca, fr. L. amaracus, amaracum, Gr. ‘ama`rakos, ‘ama`rakon.] (Bot.) A genus of mintlike plants (Origanum) comprising about twenty- five species. The sweet marjoram (O. Majorana) is pecularly aromatic and fragrant, and much used in cookery. The wild marjoram of Europe and America is O. vulgare, far less fragrant than the other.

Mark (märk), n. A license of reprisals. See Marque.

Mark, n. [See 2d Marc.] 1. An old weight and coin. See Marc. “Lend me a mark.” Chaucer.

2. The unit of monetary account of the German Empire, equal to 23.8 cents of United States money; the equivalent of one hundred pfennigs. Also, a silver coin of this value.

Mark, n. [OE. marke, merke, AS. mearc; akin to D. merk, MHG. marc, G. marke, Icel. mark, Dan. mærke; cf. Lith. margas party-colored. √106, 273. Cf. Remark.] 1. A visible sign or impression made or left upon anything; esp., a line, point, stamp, figure, or the like, drawn or impressed, so as to attract the attention and convey some information or intimation; a token; a trace.

The Lord set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him.

Gen. iv. 15.

2. Specifically: (a) A character or device put on an article of merchandise by the maker to show by whom it was made; a trade-mark. (b) A character (usually a cross) made as a substitute for a signature by one who can not write.

The mark of the artisan is found upon the most ancient fabrics that have come to light.

Knight.

3. A fixed object serving for guidance, as of a ship, a traveler, a surveyor, etc.; as, a seamark, a landmark.

4. A trace, dot, line, imprint, or discoloration, although not regarded as a token or sign; a scratch, scar, stain, etc.; as, this pencil makes a fine mark.

I have some marks of yours upon my pate.

Shak.

5. An evidence of presence, agency, or influence; a significative token; a symptom; a trace; specifically, a permanent impression of one’s activity or character.

The confusion of tongues was a mark of separation.

Bacon.

6. That toward which a missile is directed; a thing aimed at; what one seeks to hit or reach.

France was a fairer mark to shoot at than Ireland.

Davies.

Whate’er the motive, pleasure is the mark.

Young.

7. Attention, regard, or respect.

As much in mock as mark.

Shak.

8. Limit or standard of action or fact; as, to be within the mark; to come up to the mark.

9. Badge or sign of honor, rank, or official station.

In the official marks invested, you
Anon do meet the Senate.

Shak.

10. Preëminence; high position; as, patricians of mark; a fellow of no mark.

11. (Logic) A characteristic or essential attribute; a differential.

12. A number or other character used in registering; as, examination marks; a mark for tardiness.

13. Image; likeness; hence, those formed in one’s image; children; descendants. [Obs.] “All the mark of Adam.” Chaucer.

14. (Naut.) One of the bits of leather or colored bunting which are placed upon a sounding line at intervals of from two to five fathoms. The unmarked fathoms are called “deeps.”

A man of mark, a conspicuous or eminent man. — To make one’s mark. (a) To sign, as a letter or other writing, by making a cross or other mark. (b) To make a distinct or lasting impression on the public mind, or on affairs; to gain distinction.

Syn. — Impress; impression; stamp; print; trace; vestige; track; characteristic; evidence; proof; token; badge; indication; symptom.

Mark (märk), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Marked (märkt); p. pr. & vb. n. Marking.] [OE. marken, merken, AS. mearcian, from mearc. See Mark the sign.] 1. To put a mark upon; to affix a significant mark to; to make recognizable by a mark; as, to mark a box or bale of merchandise; to mark clothing.

2. To be a mark upon; to designate; to indicate; — used literally and figuratively; as, this monument marks the spot where Wolfe died; his courage and energy marked him for a leader.

3. To leave a trace, scratch, scar, or other mark, upon, or any evidence of action; as, a pencil marks paper; his hobnails marked the floor.

4. To keep account of; to enumerate and register; as, to mark the points in a game of billiards or cards.

5. To notice or observe; to give attention to; to take note of; to remark; to heed; to regard. “Mark the perfect man.” Ps. xxxvii. 37.

To mark out. (a) To designate, as by a mark; to select; as, the ringleaders were marked out for punishment. (b) To obliterate or cancel with a mark; as, to mark out an item in an account. — To mark time (Mil.), to keep the time of a marching step by moving the legs alternately without advancing.

Syn. — To note; remark; notice; observe; regard; heed; show; evince; indicate; point out; betoken; denote; characterize; stamp; imprint; impress; brand.

Mark, v. i. To take particular notice; to observe critically; to note; to remark.

Mark, I pray you, and see how this man seeketh mischief.

1 Kings xx. 7.

Mark”a*ble (?), a. Remarkable. [Obs.] Sandys.

Marked (märkt), a. Designated or distinguished by, or as by, a mark; hence; noticeable; conspicuous; as, a marked card; a marked coin; a marked instance. — Mark”ed*ly (#), adv. J. S. Mill.

A marked man, a man who is noted by a community, or by a part of it, as, for excellence or depravity; — usually with an unfavorable suggestion.

Mar*kee” (mär*kē”), n. See Marquee.

Mark”er (?), n. One who or that which marks. Specifically: (a) One who keeps account of a game played, as of billiards. (b) A counter used in card playing and other games. (c) (Mil.) The soldier who forms the pilot of a wheeling column, or marks the direction of an alignment. (d) An attachment to a sewing machine for marking a line on the fabric by creasing it.

Mar”ket (?), n. [Akin to D. markt, OHG. markāt, merkāt, G. markt; all fr.L. mercatus trade, market place, fr. mercari, p. p. mercatus, to trade, traffic, merx, mercis, ware, merchandise, prob. akin to merere to deserve, gain, acquire: cf. F. marché. See Merit, and cf. Merchant, Mart.] 1. A meeting together of people, at a stated time and place, for the purpose of traffic (as in cattle, provisions, wares, etc.) by private purchase and sale, and not by auction; as, a market is held in the town every week.

He is wit’s peddler; and retails his wares
At wakes, and wassails, meetings, markets, fairs.

Shak.

Three women and a goose make a market.

Old Saying.

2. A public place (as an open space in a town) or a large building, where a market is held; a market place or market house; esp., a place where provisions are sold.

There is at Jerusalem by the sheep market a pool.

John v. 2.

3. An opportunity for selling anything; demand, as shown by price offered or obtainable; a town, region, or country, where the demand exists; as, to find a market for one’s wares; there is no market for woolen cloths in that region; India is a market for English goods.

There is a third thing to be considered: how a market can be created for produce, or how production can be limited to the capacities of the market.

J. S. Mill.

4. Exchange, or purchase and sale; traffic; as, a dull market; a slow market.

5. The price for which a thing is sold in a market; market price. Hence: Value; worth.

What is a man
If his chief good and market of his time
Be but to sleep and feed ?

Shak.

6. (Eng. Law) The privelege granted to a town of having a public market.

&fist; Market is often used adjectively, or in forming compounds of obvious meaning; as, market basket, market day, market folk, market house, marketman, market place, market price, market rate, market wagon, market woman, and the like.

Market beater, a swaggering bully; a noisy braggart. [Obs.] Chaucer. — Market bell, a bell rung to give notice that buying and selling in a market may begin. [Eng.] Shak. — Market cross, a cross set up where a market is held. Shak. — Market garden, a garden in which vegetables are raised for market. — Market gardening, the raising of vegetables for market. — Market place, an open square or place in a town where markets or public sales are held. — Market town, a town that has the privilege of a stated public market.

Mar”ket (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Marketed; p. pr. & vb. n. Marketing.] To deal in a market; to buy or sell; to make bargains for provisions or goods.

Mar”ket, v. t. To expose for sale in a market; to traffic in; to sell in a market, and in an extended sense, to sell in any manner; as, most of the farmes have marketed their crops.

Industrious merchants meet, and market there
The world’s collected wealth.

Southey.

Mar”ket*a*ble (?), a. 1. Fit to be offered for sale in a market; such as may be justly and lawfully sold; as, dacayed provisions are not marketable.

2. Current in market; as, marketable value.

3. Wanted by purchasers; salable; as, furs are not marketable in that country.

Mar”ket*a*ble*ness, n. Quality of being marketable.

Mar”ket*er (?), n. One who attends a market to buy or sell; one who carries goods to market.

Mar”ket*ing, n. 1. The act of selling or of purchasing in, or as in, a market.

2. Articles in, or from, a market; supplies.

Mar”ket*stead (?), n. [Market + stead a place.] A market place. [Obs.] Drayton.

||Mark”hoor` (?), n. [Per. mār-kh&?;r snake eater.] (Zoöl.) A large wild goat (Capra megaceros), having huge flattened spiral horns. It inhabits the mountains of Northern India and Cashmere.

Mark”ing (?), n. The act of one who, or that which, marks; the mark or marks made; arrangement or disposition of marks or coloring; as, the marking of a bird’s plumage.

Marking ink, indelible ink, because used in marking linen. — Marking nut (Bot.), the nut of the Semecarpus Anacardium, an East Indian tree. The shell of the nut yields a blackish resinous juice used for marking cotton cloth, and an oil prepared from it is used for rheumatism.

Mar”kis (?), n. A marquis. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mar”kis*esse (?), n. A marchioness. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mark”man (?), n. A marksman. [Obs.] Shak.

Marks”man (?), n.; pl. Marksmen (#). [Earlier markman; mark + man.] 1. One skillful to hit a mark with a missile; one who shoots well.

2. (Law) One who makes his mark, instead of writing his name, in signing documents. Burrill.

Marks”man*ship, n. Skill of a marksman.

Marl (?), v. t. [See Marline.] (Naut.) To cover, as part of a rope, with marline, marking a pecular hitch at each turn to prevent unwinding.

Marling spike. (Naut.) See under Marline.

Marl, n. [OF. marle, F. marne, LL. margila, dim. of L. marga marl. Originally a Celtic word, according to Pliny, xvii. 7: “Quod genus terræ Galli et Britanni margam vocant.” √274.] A mixed earthy substance, consisting of carbonate of lime, clay, and sand, in very variable proportions, and accordingly designated as calcareous, clayey, or sandy. See Greensand.

Marl, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Marled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Marling.] [Cf. F. marner. See Marl, n.] To overspread or manure with marl; as, to marl a field.

Mar*la”ceous (?), a. Resembling marl; partaking of the qualities of marl.

Mar”lin (?), n. (Zoöl.) The American great marbled godwit (Limosa fedoa). Applied also to the red-breasted godwit (Limosa hæmatica).

Hook-billed marlin, a curlew.

Mar”line (?), n. [LG. marlien, marling, or D. marling, marlijn, fr. D. marren to tie, prob. akin to E. moor, v., and lijn line: cf.F. merlin. See Moor, v., Line.] (Naut.) A small line composed of two strands a little twisted, used for winding around ropes and cables, to prevent their being weakened by fretting.

Marline spike, Marling spike (Naut.), an iron tool tapering to a point, used to separate the strands of a rope in splicing and in marling. It has an eye in the thick end to which a lanyard is attached. See Fid. [Written also marlin spike] — Marline-spike bird. [The name alludes to the long middle tail feathers.] (Zoöl.) (a) A tropic bird. (b) A jager, or skua gull.

Mar”line (?), v. t. [F. merliner.] (Naut.) To wind marline around; as, to marline a rope.

Marl”ite (?), n. [Cf. F. marlite. See Marl, n.] (Min.) A variety of marl.

Mar*lit”ic (?), a. Partaking of the qualites of marlite.

Marl”pit` (?), n. Apit where marl is dug.

Marl”stone` (?), n. (Geol.) A sandy calcareous straum, containing, or impregnated with, iron, and lying between the upper and lower Lias of England.

Marl”y (?), a. [Compar. Marlier (?); superl. Marliest.] Consisting or partaking of marl; resembling marl; abounding with marl.

Mar”ma*lade (?), n. [F. marmelade, Pg. marmelada, fr. marmélo a quince, fr. L. melimelum honey apple, Gr. &?; a sweet apple, an apple grafted on a quince; &?; honey + &?; apple. Cf. Mellifluous, Melon.] A preserve or confection made of the pulp of fruit, as the quince, pear, apple, orange, etc., boiled with sugar, and brought to a jamlike consistence.

Marmalade tree (Bot.), a sapotaceous tree (Lucuma mammosa) of the West Indies and Tropical America. It has large obovate leaves and an egg-shaped fruit from three to five inches long, containing a pleasant-flavored pulp and a single large seed. The fruit is called marmalade, or natural marmalade, from its consistency and flavor.

Mar”ma*let` (?), n. See Marmalade. [Obs.]

Mar”ma*tite (?), n. [Cf. F. marmatite.] (Min.) A ferruginous variety of shalerite or zinc blende, nearly black in color.

Mar”mo*lite (-m&osl;*līt), n. [Gr. maramai`rein to sparkle + -lite.] (Min.) A thin, laminated variety of serpentine, usually of a pale green color.

Mar`mo*ra”ceous (?), a. [L. marmor marble. See Marble.] Pertaining to, or like, marble.

{ Mar”mo*rate (?), Mar”mo*ra`ted (?), } a. [L. marmoratus, p. p. of marmorate to overlay with marble, fr. marmor marble.] Variegated like marble; covered or overlaid with marble. [R.]

Mar`mo*ra”tion (?), n. [L. marmoratio.] A covering or incrusting with marble; a casing of marble; a variegating so as to resemble marble. [R.]

||Mar`mo*ra`tum o”pus (?). [L. See Marmorate, and Opus.] (Arch.) A kind of hard finish for plasterwork, made of plaster of Paris and marble dust, and capable of taking a high polish.

{ Mar*mo”re*al (?), Mar*mo”re*an (?), } a. [L. marmoreus, fr. marmor marble: cf. F. marmoréen. See Marble.] Pertaining to, or resembling, marble; made of marble.

||Mar`mo*ro”sis (?), n. [NL.] (Geol.) The metamorphism of limestone, that is, its conversion into marble. Geikie.

Mar”mose` (?), n. [F.] (Zoöl.) A species of small opossum (Didelphus murina) ranging from Mexico to Brazil.

Mar”mo*set` (?), n. [F. marmouset a grotesque figure, an ugly little boy, prob. fr. LL. marmoretum, fr. L. marmor marble. Perhaps confused with marmot. See Marble.] (Zoöl.) Any one of numerous species of small South American monkeys of the genera Hapale and Midas, family Hapalidæ. They have long soft fur, and a hairy, nonprehensile tail. They are often kept as pets. Called also squirrel monkey.

Mar”mot (?), n. [It. marmotta, marmotto, prob. fr. L. mus montanus, or mus montis, lit., mountain mouse or rat. See Mountain, and Mouse.] 1. (Zoöl.) Any rodent of the genus Arctomys. The common European marmot (A. marmotta) is about the size of a rabbit, and inhabits the higher regions of the Alps and Pyrenees. The bobac is another European species. The common American species (A. monax) is the woodchuck.

2. Any one of several species of ground squirrels or gophers of the genus Spermophilus; also, the prairie dog.

Marmot squirrel (Zoöl.), a ground squirrel or spermophile. — Prairie marmot. See Prairie dog.

Mar”mottes oil` (?). A fine oil obtained from the kernel of Prunus brigantiaca. It is used instead of olive or almond oil. De Colange.

Mar”mo*zet` (?), n. See Marmoset.

Ma*rone” (?), n. See Maroon, the color.

Mar”o*nite (?), n.; pl. Maronites (&?;). (Eccl. Hist.) One of a body of nominal Christians, who speak the Arabic language, and reside on Mount Lebanon and in different parts of Syria. They take their name from one Maron of the 6th century.

Ma*roon” (?), n. [Written also marroon.] [F. marron, abbrev. fr. Sp. cimarron wild, unruly, from cima the summit of a mountain; hence, negro cimarron a runaway negro that lives in the mountains.] In the West Indies and Guiana, a fugitive slave, or a free negro, living in the mountains.

Ma*roon”, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Marooned (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Marooning.] [See Maroon a fugitive slave.] To put (a person) ashore on a desolate island or coast and leave him to his fate.

Marooning party, a social excursion party that sojourns several days on the shore or in some retired place; a prolonged picnic. [Southern U. S.] Bartlett.

Ma*roon” (m&adot;*r&oomac;n”), a. [F. marron chestnut-colored, fr. marron a large French chestnut, It. marrone; cf. LGr. ma`raon. Cf. Marron.] Having the color called maroon. See 4th Maroon.

Maroon lake, lake prepared from madder, and distinguished for its transparency and the depth and durability of its color.

Ma*roon”, n. 1. A brownish or dull red of any description, esp. of a scarlet cast rather than approaching crimson or purple.

2. An explosive shell. See Marron, 3.

Mar”plot` (?), n. One who, by his officious interference, mars or frustrates a design or plot.

Marque (?), n. [F. marque, in lettre de marque letter of marque, a commission with which the commandant of every armed vessel was obliged to be provided, under penalty of being considered a pirate or corsair; marque here prob. meaning, border, boundary (the letter of marque being a permission to go beyond the border), and of German origin. See March border.] (Law) A license to pass the limits of a jurisdiction, or boundary of a country, for the purpose of making reprisals.

Letters of marque, Letters of marque and reprisal, a license or extraordinary commission granted by a government to a private person to fit out a privateer or armed ship to cruise at sea and make prize of the enemy’s ships and merchandise. The ship so commissioned is sometimes called a letter of marque.

Mar*quee” (?), n. [F. marquise, misunderstood as a plural; prob. orig., tent of the marchioness. See Marquis.] A large field tent; esp., one adapted to the use of an officer of high rank. [Written also markee.]

Mar”quess (?), n. [Cf. Sp. marques. See Marquis.] A marquis.

Lady marquess, a marchioness. [Obs.] Shak.

Mar”quet*ry (?), n. [F. marqueterie, from marqueter to checker, inlay, fr. marque mark, sign; of German origin. See Mark a sign.] Inlaid work; work inlaid with pieces of wood, shells, ivory, and the like, of several colors.

Mar”quis (?), n. [F. marquis, OF. markis, marchis, LL. marchensis; of German origin; cf. G. mark bound, border, march, OHG. marcha. See March border, and cf. Marchioness, Marquee, Marquess.] A nobleman in England, France, and Germany, of a rank next below that of duke. Originally, the marquis was an officer whose duty was to guard the marches or frontiers of the kingdom. The office has ceased, and the name is now a mere title conferred by patent.

Mar”quis*ate (?), n. [Cf. F. marquisat.] The seigniory, dignity, or lordship of a marquis; the territory governed by a marquis.

Mar”quis*dom (?), n. A marquisate. [Obs.] “Nobles of the marquisdom of Saluce.” Holinshed.

||Mar`quise” (?), n. [F. See Marquis, and cf. Marquee.] The wife of a marquis; a marchioness.

Mar”quis*ship (?), n. A marquisate.

Mar”ram (?), n. (Bot.) A coarse grass found on sandy beaches (Ammophila arundinacea). See Beach grass, under Beach.

Mar”rer (?), n. One who mars or injures.

Mar”ri*a*ble (?), a. [Cf. F. mariable.] Marriageable. [R.] Coleridge.

Mar”riage (?), n. [OE. mariage, F. mariage. See Marry, v. t.] 1. The act of marrying, or the state of being married; legal union of a man and a woman for life, as husband and wife; wedlock; matrimony.

Marriage is honorable in all.

Heb. xiii. 4.

2. The marriage vow or contract. [Obs.] Chaucer.

3. A feast made on the occasion of a marriage.

The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king which made a marriage for his son.

Matt. xxii. 2.

4. Any intimate or close union.

Marriage brokage. (a) The business of bringing about marriages. (b) The payment made or demanded for the procurement of a marriage. — Marriage favors, knots of white ribbons, or bunches of white flowers, worn at weddings. — Marriage settlement (Law), a settlement of property in view, and in consideration, of marriage.

Syn. — Matrimony; wedlock; wedding; nuptials. — Marriage, Matrimony, Wedlock. Marriage is properly the act which unites the two parties, and matrimony the state into which they enter. Marriage is, however, often used for the state as well as the act. Wedlock is the old Anglo-Saxon term for matrimony.

Mar`riage*a*bil”i*ty (?), n. The quality or state of being marriageable.

Mar”riage*a*ble (?), a. Fit for, or capable of, marriage; of an age at which marriage is allowable. — Mar”riage*a*ble*ness, n.

Mar”ried (?), a. 1. Being in the state of matrimony; wedded; as, a married man or woman.

2. Of or pertaining to marriage; connubial; as, the married state.

Mar”ri*er (?), n. One who marries.

Mar*ron” (?), n. [See Maroon, a.]

1. A large chestnut. [Obs.] Holland.

2. A chestnut color; maroon.

3. (Pyrotechny & Mil.) A paper or pasteboard box or shell, wound about with strong twine, filled with an explosive, and ignited with a fuse, — used to make a noise like a cannon. [Written also maroon.]

Mar*roon” (?), n. & a. Same as 1st Maroon.

Mar”rot (?), n. (Zoöl.) (a) The razor-billed auk. See Auk. (b) The common guillemot. (c) The puffin. [Prov. Eng.] [Written also marrott, and morrot.]

Mar”row (?), n. [OE. marou, mary, maruh, AS. mearg, mearh; akin to OS. marg, D. merg, G. Mark, OHG. marg, marag, Icel. mergr, Sw. merg, Dan. marv, Skr. majjan; cf. Skr. majj to sink, L. mergere. √274 Cf. Merge.]

1. (Anat.) The tissue which fills the cavities of most bones; the medulla. In the larger cavities it is commonly very fatty, but in the smaller cavities it is much less fatty, and red or reddish in color.

2. The essence; the best part.

It takes from our achievements . . .
The pith and marrow of our attribute.

Shak.

3. [OE. maru, maro; — perh. a different word; cf. Gael. maraon together.] One of a pair; a match; a companion; an intimate associate. [Scot.]

Chopping and changing I can not commend,
With thief or his marrow, for fear of ill end.

Tusser.

Marrow squash (Bot.), a name given to several varieties of squash, esp. to the Boston marrow, an ovoid fruit, pointed at both ends, and with reddish yellow flesh, and to the vegetable marrow, a variety of an ovoid form, and having a soft texture and fine grain resembling marrow. — Spinal marrow. (Anat.) See Spinal cord, under Spinal.

Mar”row (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Marrowed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Marrowing.] To fill with, or as with, marrow or fat; to glut.

Mar”row*bone` (?), n. A bone containing marrow; pl. ludicrously, knee bones or knees; as, to get down on one’s marrowbones, i. e., to kneel.

Mar”row*fat (?), n. A rich but late variety of pea.

Mar”row*ish, a. Of the nature of, or like, marrow.

Mar”row*less, a. Destitute of marrow.

Mar”row*y (?), a. Full of marrow; pithy.

||Mar*ru”bi*um (?), n. [L.] (Bot.) A genus of bitter aromatic plants, sometimes used in medicine; hoarhound.

Mar”ry (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Married (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Marrying.] [OE. marien, F. marier, L. maritare, fr. maritus husband, fr. mas, maris, a male. See Male, and cf. Maritral.] 1. To unite in wedlock or matrimony; to perform the ceremony of joining, as a man and a woman, for life; to constitute (a man and a woman) husband and wife according to the laws or customs of the place.

Tell him that he shall marry the couple himself.

Gay.

2. To join according to law, (a man) to a woman as his wife, or (a woman) to a man as her husband. See the Note to def. 4.

A woman who had been married to her twenty- fifth husband, and being now a widow, was prohibited to marry.

Evelyn.

3. To dispose of in wedlock; to give away as wife.

Mæcenas took the liberty to tell him [Augustus] that he must either marry his daughter [Julia] to Agrippa, or take away his life.

Bacon.

4. To take for husband or wife. See the Note below.

&fist; We say, a man is married to or marries a woman; or, a woman is married to or marries a man. Both of these uses are equally well authorized; but given in marriage is said only of the woman.

They got him [the Duke of Monmouth] . . . to declare in writing, that the last king [Charles II.] told him he was never married to his mother.

Bp. Lloyd.

5. Figuratively, to unite in the closest and most endearing relation.

Turn, O backsliding children, saith the Lord; for I am married unto you.

Jer. iii. 14.

To marry ropes. (Naut.) (a) To place two ropes along side of each other so that they may be grasped and hauled on at the same time. (b) To join two ropes end to end so that both will pass through a block. Ham. Nav. Encyc.

Mar”ry, v. i. To enter into the conjugal or connubial state; to take a husband or a wife.

I will, therefore, that the younger women marry.

1 Tim. v. 14.

Marrying man, a man disposed to marry. [Colloq.]

Mar”ry, interj. Indeed ! in truth ! — a term of asseveration said to have been derived from the practice of swearing by the Virgin Mary. [Obs.] Shak.

Mars (?), n. [L. Mars, gen. Martis, archaic Mavors, gen. Mavortis.] 1. (Rom. Myth.) The god of war and husbandry.

2. (Astron.) One of the planets of the solar system, the fourth in order from the sun, or the next beyond the earth, having a diameter of about 4,200 miles, a period of 687 days, and a mean distance of 141,000,000 miles. It is conspicuous for the redness of its light.

3. (Alchemy) The metallic element iron, the symbol of which ♂ was the same as that of the planet Mars. [Archaic] Chaucer.

Mars brown, a bright, somewhat yellowish, brown.

Mar*sa”la (?), n. [It., fr. Marsala, in Sicyly.] A kind of wine exported from Marsala in Sicily.

||Mars*de”ni*a (?), n. [NL. From W. Marsden, an English author.] (Bot.) A genus of plants of the Milkweed family, mostly woody climbers with fragrant flowers, several species of which furnish valuable fiber, and one species (Marsdenia tinctoria) affords indigo.

{ ||Mar`sei`llais” (?), a. m. ||Mar`sei`llaise” (?), a. f. }[F.] Of or pertaining to Marseilles, in France, or to its inhabitants.

Marseillaise hymn, or The Marseillaise, the national anthem of France, popularly so called. It was composed in 1792, by Rouget de l’Isle, an officer then stationed at Strasburg. In Paris it was sung for the first time by the band of men who came from Marseilles to aid in the revolution of August 10, 1792; whence the name.

{ ||Mar`sei`llais”, n. m. ||Mar`sei`llaise”, n. f. }[F.] A native or inhabitant of Marseilles.

Mar*seilles” (?), n. A general term for certain kinds of fabrics, which are formed of two series of threads interlacing each other, thus forming double cloth, quilted in the loom; — so named because first made in Marseilles, France.

Marsh (?), n. [OE. mersch, AS. mersc, fr. mere lake. See Mere pool, and cf. Marish, Morass.] A tract of soft wet land, commonly covered partially or wholly with water; a fen; a swamp; a morass. [Written also marish.]

Marsh asphodel (Bot.), a plant (Nartheeium ossifragum) with linear equitant leaves, and a raceme of small white flowers; — called also bog asphodel. — Marsh cinquefoil (Bot.), a plant (Potentilla palustris) having purple flowers, and found growing in marshy places; marsh five- finger. — Marsh elder. (Bot.) (a) The guelder-rose or cranberry tree (Viburnum Opulus). (b) In the United States, a composite shrub growing in salt marshes (Iva frutescens). — Marsh five-finger. (Bot.) See Marsh cinquefoil (above). — Marsh gas. (Chem.) See under Gas. — Marsh grass (Bot.), a genus (Spartina) of coarse grasses growing in marshes; – - called also cord grass. The tall S. cynosuroides is not good for hay unless cut very young. The low S. juncea is a common component of salt hay. — Marsh harrier (Zoöl.), a European hawk or harrier (Circus æruginosus); — called also marsh hawk, moor hawk, moor buzzard, puttock. — Marsh hawk. (Zoöl.) (a) A hawk or harrier (Circus cyaneus), native of both America and Europe. The adults are bluish slate above, with a white rump. Called also hen harrier, and mouse hawk. (b) The marsh harrier. — Marsh hen (Zoöl.), a rail; esp., Rallus elegans of fresh-water marshes, and R. longirostris of salt-water marshes. — Marsh mallow (Bot.), a plant of the genus Althæa ( A. officinalis) common in marshes near the seashore, and whose root is much used in medicine as a demulcent. — Marsh marigold. (Bot.) See in the Vocabulary. — Marsh pennywort (Bot.), any plant of the umbelliferous genus Hydrocotyle; low herbs with roundish leaves, growing in wet places; — called also water pennywort. — Marsh quail (Zoöl.), the meadow lark. — Marsh rosemary (Bot.), a plant of the genus Statice (S. Limonium), common in salt marshes. Its root is powerfully astringent, and is sometimes used in medicine. Called also sea lavender. — Marsh samphire (Bot.), a plant (Salicornia herbacea) found along seacoasts. See Glasswort. — Marsh St. John’s-wort (Bot.), an American herb (Elodes Virginica) with small opposite leaves and flesh-colored flowers. — Marsh tea. (Bot.). Same as Labrador tea. — Marsh trefoil. (Bot.) Same as Buckbean. — Marsh wren (Zoöl.), any species of small American wrens of the genus Cistothorus, and allied genera. They chiefly inhabit salt marshes.

Mar”shal (?), n. [OE. mareschal, OF. mareschal, F. maréchal, LL. mariscalcus, from OHG. marah-scalc (G. marschall); marah horse + scalc servant (akin to AS. scealc, Goth. skalks). F. maréchal signifies, a marshal, and a farrier. See Mare horse, and cf. Seneschal.]

1. Originally, an officer who had the care of horses; a groom. [Obs.]

2. An officer of high rank, charged with the arrangement of ceremonies, the conduct of operations, or the like; as, specifically: (a) One who goes before a prince to declare his coming and provide entertainment; a harbinger; a pursuivant. (b) One who regulates rank and order at a feast or any other assembly, directs the order of procession, and the like. (c) The chief officer of arms, whose duty it was, in ancient times, to regulate combats in the lists. Johnson. (d) (France) The highest military officer. In other countries of Europe a marshal is a military officer of high rank, and called field marshal. (e) (Am. Law) A ministerial officer, appointed for each judicial district of the United States, to execute the process of the courts of the United States, and perform various duties, similar to those of a sheriff. The name is also sometimes applied to certain police officers of a city.

Earl marshal of England, the eighth officer of state; an honorary title, and personal, until made hereditary in the family of the Duke of Norfolk. During a vacancy in the office of high constable, the earl marshal has jurisdiction in the court of chivalry. Brande & C. — Earl marshal of Scotland, an officer who had command of the cavalry under the constable. This office was held by the family of Keith, but forfeited by rebellion in 1715. — Knight marshal, or Marshal of the King’s house, formerly, in England, the marshal of the king’s house, who was authorized to hear and determine all pleas of the Crown, to punish faults committed within the verge, etc. His court was called the Court of Marshalsea. — Marshal of the Queen’s Bench, formerly the title of the officer who had the custody of the Queen’s bench prison in Southwark. Mozley & W.

Mar”shal, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Marshaled (?) or Marshalled; p. pr. & vb. n. Marshaling or Marshalling.]

1. To dispose in order; to arrange in a suitable manner; as, to marshal troops or an army.

And marshaling the heroes of his name
As, in their order, next to light they came.

Dryden.

2. To direct, guide, or lead.

Thou marshalest me the way that I was going.

Shak.

3. (Her.) To dispose in due order, as the different quarterings on an escutcheon, or the different crests when several belong to an achievement.

Mar”shal*er (?), n. [Written also marshaller.] One who marshals.

Mar”shal*ing, n. [Written also marshalling.]

1. The act of arranging in due order.

2. (Her.) The arrangement of an escutcheon to exhibit the alliances of the owner.

Marshaling of assets (Law), the arranging or ranking of assets in due order of administration.

Mar”shal*sea (?), n. [Marshal + OE. se a seat. See See a seat.] The court or seat of a marshal; hence, the prison in Southwark, belonging to the marshal of the king’s household. [Eng.]

Court of Marshalsea, a court formerly held before the steward and marshal of the king’s house to administer justice between the king’s domestic servants. Blackstone.

Mar”shal*ship, n. The office of a marshal.

{ Marsh”bank`er (?), Marse”bank`er (?), } n. (Zoöl.) The menhaden.

Marsh”i*ness (märsh”&ibreve;*n&ebreve;s), n. The state or condition of being marshy.

Marsh mar”i*gold (măr”&ibreve;*g&osl;ld). (Bot.) A perennial plant of the genus Caltha (C. palustris), growing in wet places and bearing bright yellow flowers. In the United States it is used as a pot herb under the name of cowslip. See Cowslip.

Marsh”y (-&ybreve;), a. [E. Marsh.]

1. Resembling a marsh; wet; boggy; fenny.

2. Pertaining to, or produced in, marshes; as, a marshy weed. Dryden.

Mar”si*po*branch` (?), n. (Zoöl.) One of the Marsipobranchia.

||Mar”si*po*bran”chi*a (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; a pouch + &?; a gill.] (Zoöl.) A class of Vertebrata, lower than fishes, characterized by their purselike gill cavities, cartilaginous skeletons, absence of limbs, and a suckerlike mouth destitute of jaws. It includes the lampreys and hagfishes. See Cyclostoma, and Lamprey. Called also Marsipobranchiata, and Marsipobranchii.

Mar*su”pi*al (mär*sū“p&ibreve;*al), a. [Cf. F. marsupial.]

1. (Zoöl.) Having a pouch for carrying the immature young; of or pertaining to the Marsupialia.

2. (Anat. & Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to a marsupium; as, the marsupial bones.

Marsupial frog. (Zoöl.) See Nototrema.

Mar*su”pi*al, n. (Zoöl.) One of the Marsupialia.

||Mar*su`pi*a”li*a (-ā“l&ibreve;*&adot;), n. pl. [NL., fr. L. marsupium a pouch, bag, purse, Gr. marsy`pion, dim. of ma`rsypos, ma`rsipos.] (Zoöl.) A subclass of Mammalia, including nearly all the mammals of Australia and the adjacent islands, together with the opossums of America. They differ from ordinary mammals in having the corpus callosum very small, in being implacental, and in having their young born while very immature. The female generally carries the young for some time after birth in an external pouch, or marsupium. Called also Marsupiata.

{ Mar*su`pi*a”li*an (?), Mar*su”pi*an (?), } n. (Zoöl.) One of the Marsupialia.

Mar*su”pi*ate (?), a. (Zoöl.) Related to or resembling the marsupials; furnished with a pouch for the young, as the marsupials, and also some fishes and Crustacea.

||Mar*su”pi*on (?), n. [NL.] Same as Marsupium.

Mar”su*pite (?), n. [See Marsupial.] (Paleon.) A fossil crinoid of the genus Marsupites, resembling a purse in form.

||Mar*su”pi*um (?), n.; pl. Marsupia (#). [L., a pouch], (Anat. & Zoöl.) (a) The pouch, formed by a fold of the skin of the abdomen, in which marsupials carry their young; also, a pouch for similar use in other animals, as certain Crustacea. (b) The pecten in the eye of birds and reptiles. See Pecten.

Mart (märt), n. [Contr. fr. market.]

1. A market.

Where has commerce such a mart . . . as London ?

Cowper.

2. A bargain. [Obs.] Shak.

Mart, v. t. To buy or sell in, or as in, a mart. [Obs.]

To sell and mart your officer for gold
To undeservers.

Shak.

Mart, v. t. To traffic. [Obs.] Shak.

Mart, n. [See Mars.] 1. The god Mars. [Obs.]

2. Battle; contest. [Obs.] Fairfax.

Mar”ta*gon (?), n. [Cf. F. & Sp. martagon, It. martagone.] (Bot.) A lily (Lilium Martagon) with purplish red flowers, found in Europe and Asia.

Mar”tel (?), v. i. [F. marteler, fr. martel, marteau, hammer, a dim. fr. L. martulus, marculus, dim. of marcus hammer. Cf. March to step.] To make a blow with, or as with, a hammer. [Obs.] Spenser.

||Mar`tel` de fer” (?). [OF., hammer of iron.] A weapon resembling a hammer, often having one side of the head pointed; — used by horsemen in the Middle Ages to break armor. Fairholt.

Mar”te*line (?), n. [F.] A small hammer used by marble workers and sculptors.

Mar*tel”lo tow`er (?). [It. martello hammer. The name was orig. given to towers erected on the coasts of Sicily and Sardinia for protection against the pirates in the time of Charles the Fifth, which prob. orig. contained an alarm bell to be struck with a hammer. See Martel.] (Fort.) A building of masonry, generally circular, usually erected on the seacoast, with a gun on the summit mounted on a traversing platform, so as to be fired in any direction.

&fist; The English borrowed the name of the tower from Corsica in 1794.

Mar”ten (mär”t&ebreve;n), n. (Zoöl.) A bird. See Martin.

Mar”ten, n. [From older martern, marter, martre, F. martre, marte, LL. martures (pl.), fr. L. martes; akin to AS. mearð, meard, G. marder, OHG. mardar, Icel. mörðr. Cf. Foumart.] 1. (Zoöl.) Any one of several fur-bearing carnivores of the genus Mustela, closely allied to the sable. Among the more important species are the European beech, or stone, marten (Mustela foina); the pine marten (M. martes); and the American marten, or sable (M. Americana), which some zoölogists consider only a variety of the Russian sable.

2. The fur of the marten, used for hats, muffs, etc.

Mar”tern (?), n. (Zoöl.) Same as Marten. [Obs.]

Mar”-text` (?), n. A blundering preacher.

Mar”tial (?), a. [F., fr. L. martialis of or belonging to Mars, the god of war. Cf. March the month.]

1. Of, pertaining to, or suited for, war; military; as, martial music; a martial appearance. “Martial equipage.” Milton.

2. Practiced in, or inclined to, war; warlike; brave.

But peaceful kings, o’er martial people set,
Each other’s poise and counterbalance are.

Dryden.

3. Belonging to war, or to an army and navy; — opposed to civil; as, martial law; a court- martial.

4. Pertaining to, or resembling, the god, or the planet, Mars. Sir T. Browne.

5. (Old Chem. & Old Med.) Pertaining to, or containing, iron; chalybeate; as, martial preparations. [Archaic]

Martial flowers (Med.), a reddish crystalline salt of iron; the ammonio-chloride of iron. [Obs.] – - Martial law, the law administered by the military power of a government when it has superseded the civil authority in time of war, or when the civil authorities are unable to enforce the laws. It is distinguished from military law, the latter being the code of rules for the regulation of the army and navy alone, either in peace or in war.

Syn. — Martial, Warlike. Martial refers more to war in action, its array, its attendants, etc.; as, martial music, a martial appearance, a martial array, courts-martial, etc. Warlike describes the feeling or temper which leads to war, and the adjuncts of war; as, a warlike nation, warlike indication, etc. The two words are often used without discrimination.

Mar”tial*ism (?), n. The quality of being warlike; exercises suitable for war. [Obs.]

Mar”tial*ist, n. A warrior. [Obs.] Fuller.

Mar”tial*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Martialized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Martializing (?).] To render warlike; as, to martialize a people.

Mar”tial*ly, adv. In a martial manner.

Mar”tial*ness, n. The quality of being martial.

Mar”tin (?), n. (Stone Working) [Etymol. uncertain.] A perforated stone-faced runner for grinding.

Mar”tin, n. [F. martin, from the proper name Martin. Cf. Martlet.] (Zoöl.) One of several species of swallows, usually having the tail less deeply forked than the tail of the common swallows. [Written also marten.]

&fist; The American purple martin, or bee martin (Progne subis, or purpurea), and the European house, or window, martin (Hirundo, or Chelidon, urbica), are the best known species.

Bank martin. (a) The bank swallow. See under Bank. (b) The fairy martin. See under Fairy. — Bee martin. (a) The purple martin. (b) The kingbird. — Sand martin, the bank swallow.

Mar”ti*net` (?), n. [So called from an officer of that name in the French army under Louis XIV. Cf. Martin the bird, Martlet.] In military language, a strict disciplinarian; in general, one who lays stress on a rigid adherence to the details of discipline, or to forms and fixed methods. [Hence, the word is commonly employed in a depreciatory sense.]

Mar”ti*net`, n. [F.] (Zoöl.) The martin.

Mar`ti*ne”ta (?), n. [Cf. Sp. martinete.] (Zoöl.) A species of tinamou (Calopezus elegans), having a long slender crest.

Mar”ti*net`ism (?), n. The principles or practices of a martinet; rigid adherence to discipline, etc.

{ Mar”tin*gale (?), Mar”tin*gal (?), } n. [F. martingale; cf. It. martingala a sort of hose, martingale, Sp. martingala a greave, cuish, martingale, Sp. almártaga a kind of bridle.] 1. A strap fastened to a horse’s girth, passing between his fore legs, and fastened to the bit, or now more commonly ending in two rings, through which the reins pass. It is intended to hold down the head of the horse, and prevent him from rearing.

2. (Naut.) A lower stay of rope or chain for the jib boom or flying jib boom, fastened to, or reeved through, the dolphin striker. Also, the dolphin striker itself.

3. (Gambling) The act of doubling, at each stake, that which has been lost on the preceding stake; also, the sum so risked; — metaphorically derived from the bifurcation of the martingale of a harness. [Cant] Thackeray.

Mar”tin*mas (?), n. [St. Martin + mass religious service.] (Eccl.) The feast of St. Martin, the eleventh of November; — often called martlemans.

Martinmas summer, a period of calm, warm weather often experienced about the time of Martinmas; Indian summer. Percy Smith.

Mar”tite (?), n. [L. Mars, Martis, the god Mars, the alchemical name of iron.] (Min.) Iron sesquioxide in isometric form, probably a pseudomorph after magnetite.

Mar”tle*mas (?), n. See Martinmas. [Obs.]

Mart”let (?), n. [F. martinet. See Martin the bird, and cf. Martinet a disciplinarian.]

1. (Zoöl.) The European house martin.

2. [Cf. F. merlette.] (Her.) A bird without beak or feet; — generally assumed to represent a martin. As a mark of cadency it denotes the fourth son.

Mar”tyr (?), n. [AS., from L. martyr, Gr. ma`rtyr, ma`rtys, prop., a witness; cf. Skr. sm&rsdot; to remember, E. memory.]

1. One who, by his death, bears witness to the truth of the gospel; one who is put to death for his religion; as, Stephen was the first Christian martyr. Chaucer.

To be a martyr, signifies only to witness the truth of Christ; but the witnessing of the truth was then so generally attended with persecution, that martyrdom now signifies not only to witness, but to witness by death.

South.

2. Hence, one who sacrifices his life, his station, or what is of great value to him, for the sake of principle, or to sustain a cause.

Then if thou fall’st, O Cromwell,
Thou fall’st a blessed martyr !

Shak.

Mar”tyr (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Martyred (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Martyring.] 1. To put to death for adhering to some belief, esp. Christianity; to sacrifice on account of faith or profession. Bp. Pearson.

2. To persecute; to torment; to torture. Chaucer.

The lovely Amoret, whose gentle heart
Thou martyrest with sorrow and with smart.

Spenser.

Racked with sciatics, martyred with the stone.

Pope.

Mar”tyr*dom (?), n. [Martyr + -dom.]

1. The condition of a martyr; the death of a martyr; the suffering of death on account of adherence to the Christian faith, or to any cause. Bacon.

I came from martyrdom unto this peace.

Longfellow.

2. Affliction; torment; torture. Chaucer.

Mar`tyr*i*za”tion (?), n. Act of martyrizing, or state of being martyrized; torture. B. Jonson.

Mar”tyr*ize (?), v. t. [Cf. F. martyriser, LL. martyrizare.] To make a martyr of. Spenser.

Mar”tyr*ly, adv. In the manner of a martyr.

Mar”tyr*o*loge (?), n. [LL. martyrologium: cf. F. martyrologe.] A martyrology. [Obs.] Bp. Hall.

{ Mar`tyr*o*log”ic (?), Mar`tyr*o*log”ic*al (?), } a. Pertaining to martyrology or martyrs; registering, or registered in, a catalogue of martyrs.

Mar`tyr*ol”o*gist (?), n. [Cf. F. martyrologiste.] A writer of martyrology; an historian of martyrs. T. Warton.

Mar`tyr*ol”o*gy (?), n.; pl. -gies (#). [Martyr + -logy.] A history or account of martyrs; a register of martyrs. Bp. Stillingfleet.

Mar”tyr*ship, n. Martyrdom. [R.] Fuller.

Mar”vel (?), n. [OE. mervaile, F. merveille, fr. L. mirabilia wonderful things, pl., fr. mirabilis wonderful, fr. mirari to wonder or marvel at. See Admire, Smile, and cf. Miracle.] 1. That which causes wonder; a prodigy; a miracle.

I will do marvels such as have not been done.

Ex. xxxiv. 10.

Nature’s sweet marvel undefiled.

Emerson.

2. Wonder. [R.] “Use lessens marvel.” Sir W. Scott.

Marvel of Peru. (Bot.) See Four- o’clock.

Mar”vel, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Marveled (?) or Marvelled; p. pr. & vb. n. Marveling or Marvelling.] [OE. merveilen, OF. merveillier.] To be struck with surprise, astonishment, or wonder; to wonder.

Marvel not, my brethren, if the world hate you.

1 john iii. 13.

Mar”vel, v. t. 1. To marvel at. [Obs.] Wyclif.

2. To cause to marvel, or be surprised; — used impersonally. [Obs.]

But much now me marveleth.

Rich. the Redeless.

Mar”vel*ous (?), a. [OE. merveillous, OF. merveillos, F. Merveilleux. See Marvel, n.] [Written also marvellous.] 1. Exciting wonder or surprise; astonishing; wonderful.

This is the Lord’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes.

Ps. cxiii. 23.

2. Partaking of the character of miracle, or supernatural power; incredible.

The marvelous fable includes whatever is supernatural, and especially the machines of the gods.

Pope.

The marvelous, that which exceeds natural power, or is preternatural; that which is wonderful; — opposed to the probable.

Syn. — Wonderful; astonishing; surprising; strange; improbable; incredible. — Marvelous, Wonderful. We speak of a thing as wonderful when it awakens our surprise and admiration; as marvelous when it is so much out of the ordinary course of things as to seem nearly or quite incredible.

Mar”vel*ous*ly, adv. In a marvelous manner; wonderfully; strangely.

Mar”vel*ous*ness, n. The quality or state of being marvelous; wonderfulness; strangeness.

Mar”ver (?), n. [Prob. corrupt. fr. OE. or F. marbre marble.] (Glass Marking) A stone, or cast-iron plate, or former, on which hot glass is rolled to give it shape.

Mar”y (?), n. Marrow. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Ma”ry (?), interj. See Marry. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Ma”ry-bud` (?), n. (Bot.) The marigold; a blossom of the marigold. Shak.

Ma`ry*ol”a*try (?), n. Mariolatry.

Ma”ry*sole (?), n. [Mary, the proper name + sole the fish.] (Zoöl.) A large British fluke, or flounder (Rhombus megastoma); — called also carter, and whiff.

{ Mas*ca”gnin (?), Mas*ca”gnite (?), } n. [Cf. F. mascagnin.] (Min.) Native sulphate of ammonia, found in volcanic districts; — so named from Mascagni, who discovered it.

Mas”cle (măs”k’l), n. [OF. mascle, F. macle, L. macula spot, mesh of a net, LL. macula, macla, mascla a scale of a coat of mail. See Mail armor.] (Her.) A lozenge voided.

Mas”cled (-k’ld), a. Composed of, or covered with, lozenge-shaped scales; having lozenge-shaped divisions.

Mascled armor, armor composed of small lozenge-shaped scales of metal fastened on a foundation of leather or quilted cloth.

{ Mas”cot, Mas”cotte } (?), n. [Through French fr. Pr. mascot a little sorcerer or magician, mascotto witchcraft, sorcery.] A person who is supposed to bring good luck to the household to which he or she belongs; anything that brings good luck.

Mas”cu*late (?), v. t. [L. masculus male, masculine.] To make strong. [Obs.] Cockeram.

Mas”cu*line (măs”k&usl;*l&ibreve;n), a. [L. masculinus, fr. masculus male, manly, dim. of mas a male: cf. F. masculin. See Male masculine.] 1. Of the male sex; not female.

Thy masculine children, that is to say, thy sons.

Chaucer.

2. Having the qualities of a man; suitable to, or characteristic of, a man; virile; not feminine or effeminate; strong; robust.

That lady, after her husband’s death, held the reins with a masculine energy.

Hallam.

3. Belonging to males; appropriated to, or used by, males. [R.] “A masculine church.” Fuller.

4. (Gram.) Having the inflections of, or construed with, words pertaining especially to male beings, as distinguished from feminine and neuter. See Gender. — Mas”cu*line*ly, adv. — Mas”cu*line*ness, n.

Mas`cu*lin”i*ty (?), n. The state or quality of being masculine; masculineness.

Mase (?), n. & v. See Maze. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mas”e*lyn (?), n. A drinking cup. See 1st Maslin, 2. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Ma”ser (?), n. Same as Mazer.

Mash (?), n. A mesh. [Obs.]

Mash, n. [Akin to G. meisch, maisch, meische, maische, mash, wash, and prob. to AS. miscian to mix. See Mix.]

1. A mass of mixed ingredients reduced to a soft pulpy state by beating or pressure; a mass of anything in a soft pulpy state. Specifically (Brewing), ground or bruised malt, or meal of rye, wheat, corn, or other grain (or a mixture of malt and meal) steeped and stirred in hot water for making the wort.

2. A mixture of meal or bran and water fed to animals.

3. A mess; trouble. [Obs.] Beau. & Fl.

Mash tun, a large tub used in making mash and wort.

Mash, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mashed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mashing.] [Akin to G. meischen, maischen, to mash, mix, and prob. to mischen, E. mix. See 2d Mash.] To convert into a mash; to reduce to a soft pulpy state by beating or pressure; to bruise; to crush; as, to mash apples in a mill, or potatoes with a pestle. Specifically (Brewing), to convert, as malt, or malt and meal, into the mash which makes wort.

Mashing tub, a tub for making the mash in breweries and distilleries; — called also mash tun, and mash vat.

Mash”er (?), n. 1. One who, or that which, mashes; also (Brewing), a machine for making mash.

2. A charmer of women. [Slang] London Punch.

Mash”lin (?), n. See Maslin.

Mash”y (?), a. Produced by crushing or bruising; resembling, or consisting of, a mash.

Mask (?), n. [F. masque, LL. masca, mascha, mascus; cf. Sp. & Pg. máscara, It. maschera; all fr. Ar. maskharat buffoon, fool, pleasantry, anything ridiculous or mirthful, fr. sakhira to ridicule, to laugh at. Cf. Masque, Masquerade.] 1. A cover, or partial cover, for the face, used for disguise or protection; as, a dancer’s mask; a fencer’s mask; a ball player’s mask.

2. That which disguises; a pretext or subterfuge.

3. A festive entertainment of dancing or other diversions, where all wear masks; a masquerade; hence, a revel; a frolic; a delusive show. Bacon.

This thought might lead me through the world’s vain mask.

Milton.

4. A dramatic performance, formerly in vogue, in which the actors wore masks and represented mythical or allegorical characters.

5. (Arch.) A grotesque head or face, used to adorn keystones and other prominent parts, to spout water in fountains, and the like; — called also mascaron.

6. (Fort.) (a) In a permanent fortification, a redoubt which protects the caponiere. (b) A screen for a battery.

7. (Zoöl.) The lower lip of the larva of a dragon fly, modified so as to form a prehensile organ.

Mask house, a house for masquerades. [Obs.]

Mask, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Masked (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Masking.] 1. To cover, as the face, by way of concealment or defense against injury; to conceal with a mask or visor.

They must all be masked and vizarded.

Shak.

2. To disguise; to cover; to hide.

Masking the business from the common eye.

Shak.

3. (Mil.) (a) To conceal; also, to intervene in the line of. (b) To cover or keep in check; as, to mask a body of troops or a fortress by a superior force, while some hostile evolution is being carried out.

Mask, v. i. 1. To take part as a masker in a masquerade. Cavendish.

2. To wear a mask; to be disguised in any way. Shak.

Masked (?), a. 1. Wearing a mask or masks; characterized by masks; concealed; hidden.

2. (Bot.) Same as Personate.

3. (Zoöl.) Having the anterior part of the head differing decidedly in color from the rest of the plumage; — said of birds.

Masked ball, a ball in which the dancers wear masks. — Masked battery (Mil.), a battery so placed as not to be seen by an enemy until it opens fire. H. L. Scott. — Masked crab (Zoöl.), a European crab (Corystes cassivelaunus) with markings on the carapace somewhat resembling a human face. — Masked pig (Zoöl.), a Japanese domestic hog (Sus pliciceps). Its face is deeply furrowed.

Mask”er (?), n. One who wears a mask; one who appears in disguise at a masquerade.

Mask”er, v. t. To confuse; to stupefy. [Obs.] Holland.

Mask”er*y (?), n. The dress or disguise of a masker; masquerade. [Obs.] Marston.

Mas”ki*nonge (?), n. The muskellunge.

Mask” shell` (?). (Zoöl.) Any spiral marine shell of the genus Persona, having a curiously twisted aperture.

Mas”lach (?), n. [Ar. maslaq: cf. F. masloc.] (Med.) An excitant containing opium, much used by the Turks. Dunglison.

Mas”lin (?), n. [OE. missellane, misceline, miscelin, meslin, fr. miscellane. See Miscellane.] 1. A mixture composed of different materials; especially: (a) A mixture of metals resembling brass. (b) A mixture of different sorts of grain, as wheat and rye. [Written also meslin, mislin, maselyn, mastlin.]

2. A vessel made of maslin, 1 (a). [Obs.]

Mead eke in a maselyn.

Chaucer.

Mas”lin, a. Composed of different sorts; as, maslin bread, which is made of rye mixed with a little wheat. [Written also meslin, mislin, etc.]

Ma”son (?), n. [F. maçon, LL. macio, machio, mattio, mactio, marcio, macerio; of uncertain origin.]

1. One whose occupation is to build with stone or brick; also, one who prepares stone for building purposes.

2. A member of the fraternity of Freemasons. See Freemason.

Mason bee (Zoöl.), any one of numerous species of solitary bees of the genus Osmia. They construct curious nests of hardened mud and sand. — Mason moth (Zoöl.), any moth whose larva constructs an earthen cocoon under the soil. — Mason shell (Zoöl.), a marine univalve shell of the genus Phorus; — so called because it cements other shells and pebbles upon its own shell; a carrier shell. — Mason wasp (Zoöl.), any wasp that constructs its nest, or brood cells, of hardened mud. The female fills the cells with insects or spiders, paralyzed by a sting, and thus provides food for its larvæ

Ma”son, v. t. To build stonework or brickwork about, under, in, over, etc.; to construct by masons; — with a prepositional suffix; as, to mason up a well or terrace; to mason in a kettle or boiler.

Ma*son”ic (m&adot;*s&obreve;n”&ibreve;k), a. Of or pertaining to Freemasons or to their craft or mysteries.

Ma”son*ry (?), n. [F. maçonnerie.]

1. The art or occupation of a mason.

2. The work or performance of a mason; as, good or bad masonry; skillful masonry.

3. That which is built by a mason; anything constructed of the materials used by masons, such as stone, brick, tiles, or the like. Dry masonry is applied to structures made without mortar.

4. The craft, institution, or mysteries of Freemasons; freemasonry.

Ma*soo”la boat` (?). A kind of boat used on the coast of Madras, India. The planks are sewed together with strands of coir which cross over a wadding of the same material, so that the shock on taking the beach through surf is much reduced. [Written also masula, masulah, etc.]

||Ma*so”ra (?), n. [NHeb. māsōrāh tradition.] A Jewish critical work on the text of the Hebrew Scriptures, composed by several learned rabbis of the school of Tiberias, in the eighth and ninth centuries. [Written also Masorah, Massora, and Massorah.]

Mas”o*ret (?), n. A Masorite. [Written also Masorete, and Massorete.]

{ Mas`o*ret”ic (?), Mas`o*ret”ic*al (?), } a. [Cf. F. massorétique.] Of or relating to the Masora, or to its authors.

Masoretic points and accents, the vowel points and accents of the Hebrew text of the Bible, of which the first mention is in the Masora.

Mas”o*rite (?), n. One of the writers of the Masora.

Masque (?), n. A mask; a masquerade.

Mas`quer*ade” (?), n. [F. mascarade, fr. Sp. mascarada, or It. mascherata. See Mask.]

1. An assembly of persons wearing masks, and amusing themselves with dancing, conversation, or other diversions.

In courtly balls and midnight masquerades.

Pope.

2. A dramatic performance by actors in masks; a mask. See 1st Mask, 4. [Obs.]

3. Acting or living under false pretenses; concealment of something by a false or unreal show; pretentious show; disguise.

That masquerade of misrepresentation which invariably accompanied the political eloquence of Rome.

De Quincey.

4. A Spanish diversion on horseback.

Mas`quer*ade”, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Masqueraded; p. pr. & vb. n. Masquerading.]

1. To assemble in masks; to take part in a masquerade.

2. To frolic or disport in disquise; to make a pretentious show of being what one is not.

A freak took an ass in the head, and he goes into the woods, masquerading up and down in a lion’s skin.

L’Estrange.

Mas`quer*ade”, v. t. To conceal with masks; to disguise. “To masquerade vice.” Killingbeck.

Mas`quer*ad”er (?), n. One who masquerades; a person wearing a mask; one disguised.

Mass (?), n. [OE. masse, messe, AS. mæsse. LL. missa, from L. mittere, missum, to send, dismiss: cf. F. messe. In the ancient churches, the public services at which the catechumens were permitted to be present were called missa catechumenorum, ending with the reading of the Gospel. Then they were dismissed with these words : “Ite, missa est” [sc. ecclesia], the congregation is dismissed. After that the sacrifice proper began. At its close the same words were said to those who remained. So the word gave the name of Mass to the sacrifice in the Catholic Church. See Missile, and cf. Christmas, Lammas, Mess a dish, Missal.]

1. (R. C. Ch.) The sacrifice in the sacrament of the Eucharist, or the consecration and oblation of the host.

2. (Mus.) The portions of the Mass usually set to music, considered as a musical composition; — namely, the Kyrie, the Gloria, the Credo, the Sanctus, and the Agnus Dei, besides sometimes an Offertory and the Benedictus.

Canon of the Mass. See Canon. — High Mass, Mass with incense, music, the assistance of a deacon, subdeacon, etc. — Low Mass, Mass which is said by the priest throughout, without music. — Mass bell, the sanctus bell. See Sanctus. — Mass book, the missal or Roman Catholic service book.

Mass (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Massed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Massing.] To celebrate Mass. [Obs.] Hooker.

Mass, n. [OE. masse, F. masse, L. massa; akin to Gr. &?; a barley cake, fr. &?; to knead. Cf. Macerate.]

1. A quantity of matter cohering together so as to make one body, or an aggregation of particles or things which collectively make one body or quantity, usually of considerable size; as, a mass of ore, metal, sand, or water.

If it were not for these principles, the bodies of the earth, planets, comets, sun, and all things in them, would grow cold and freeze, and become inactive masses.

Sir I. Newton.

A deep mass of continual sea is slower stirred
To rage.

Savile.

2. (Phar.) A medicinal substance made into a cohesive, homogeneous lump, of consistency suitable for making pills; as, blue mass.

3. A large quantity; a sum.

All the mass of gold that comes into Spain.

Sir W. Raleigh.

He had spent a huge mass of treasure.

Sir J. Davies.

4. Bulk; magnitude; body; size.

This army of such mass and charge.

Shak.

5. The principal part; the main body.

Night closed upon the pursuit, and aided the mass of the fugitives in their escape.

Jowett (Thucyd.).

6. (Physics) The quantity of matter which a body contains, irrespective of its bulk or volume.

&fist; Mass and weight are often used, in a general way, as interchangeable terms, since the weight of a body is proportional to its mass (under the same or equal gravitative forces), and the mass is usually ascertained from the weight. Yet the two ideas, mass and weight, are quite distinct. Mass is the quantity of matter in a body; weight is the comparative force with which it tends towards the center of the earth. A mass of sugar and a mass of lead are assumed to be equal when they show an equal weight by balancing each other in the scales.

Blue mass. See under Blue. — Mass center (Geom.), the center of gravity of a triangle. — Mass copper, native copper in a large mass. — Mass meeting, a large or general assembly of people, usually a meeting having some relation to politics. — The masses, the great body of the people, as contrasted with the higher classes; the populace.

Mass, v. t. To form or collect into a mass; to form into a collective body; to bring together into masses; to assemble.

But mass them together and they are terrible indeed.

Coleridge.

Mas”sa*cre (?), n. [F., fr. LL. mazacrium; cf. Prov. G. metzgern, metzgen, to kill cattle, G. metzger a butcher, and LG. matsken to cut, hew, OHG. meizan to cut, Goth. máitan.] 1. The killing of a considerable number of human beings under circumstances of atrocity or cruelty, or contrary to the usages of civilized people; as, the massacre on St. Bartholomew’s Day.

2. Murder. [Obs.] Shak.

Syn. — Massacre, Butchery, Carnage. Massacre denotes the promiscuous slaughter of many who can not make resistance, or much resistance. Butchery refers to cold-blooded cruelty in the killing of men as if they were brute beasts. Carnage points to slaughter as producing the heaped-up bodies of the slain.

I’ll find a day to massacre them all,
And raze their faction and their family.

Shak.

If thou delight to view thy heinous deeds,
Brhold this pattern of thy butcheries.

Shak.

Such a scent I draw
Of carnage, prey innumerable !

Milton.

Mas”sa*cre, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Massacred (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Massacring (?).] [Cf. F. massacrer. See Massacre, n.] To kill in considerable numbers where much resistance can not be made; to kill with indiscriminate violence, without necessity, and contrary to the usages of nations; to butcher; to slaughter; — limited to the killing of human beings.

If James should be pleased to massacre them all, as Maximian had massacred the Theban legion.

Macaulay.

Mas”sa*crer (?), n. One who massacres. [R.]

Mas”sage (?), n. [F.] A rubbing or kneading of the body, especially when performed as a hygienic or remedial measure.

Mas`sa*sau”ga (?), n. (Zoöl.) The black rattlesnake (Crotalus, or Caudisona, tergemina), found in the Mississippi Valley.

{ Massé, or Massé shot (?) }, n. (Billiards) A stroke made with the cue held vertically.

Mass”er, n. A priest who celebrates Mass. [R.] Bale.

Mas”se*ter (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; a chewer, &?; a muscle of the lower jaw used in chewing, from &?; to chew: cf. F. masséter.] (Anat.) The large muscle which raises the under jaw, and assists in mastication.

Mas`se*ter”ic (?), a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the masseter.

Mas”se*ter`ine (?), a. (Anat.) Masseteric.

{ ||Mas`seur” (?), n. m., ||Mas`seuse” (?), n. f.,} [F., or formed in imitation of French. See Massage.] (Med.) One who performs massage.

Mas”si*cot (?), n. [F. massicot; E. masticot is a corruption.] (Chem.) Lead protoxide, PbO, obtained as a yellow amorphous powder, the fused and crystalline form of which is called litharge; lead ocher. It is used as a pigment.

&fist; Massicot is sometimes used by painters, and also as a drier in the composition of ointments and plasters.

Mass”i*ness (?), n. [From Massy.] The state or quality of being massy; ponderousness.

Mass”ive (?), a. [F. massif.] 1. Forming, or consisting of, a large mass; compacted; weighty; heavy; massy. “Massive armor.” Dr. H. More.

2. (Min.) In mass; not necessarily without a crystalline structure, but having no regular form; as, a mineral occurs massive.

Massive rock (Geol.), a compact crystalline rock not distinctly schistose, as granite; also, with some authors, an eruptive rock.

Mass”ive*ly, adv. In a heavy mass.

Mass”ive*ness, n. The state or quality of being massive; massiness.

Mas*soo”la boat`. See Masoola boat.

Mas*so”ra (?), n. Same as Masora.

Mas”so*ret (?), n. Same as Masorite.

Mass”y (?), a. [Compar. Massier (?); superl. Massiest.] Compacted into, or consisting of, a mass; having bulk and weight or substance; ponderous; bulky and heavy; weighty; heavy; as, a massy shield; a massy rock.

Your swords are now too massy for your strengths,
And will not be uplifted.

Shak.

Yawning rocks in massy fragments fly.

Pope.

Mast (m&adot;st), n. [AS. mæst, fem.; akin to G. mast, and E. meat. See Meat.] The fruit of the oak and beech, or other forest trees; nuts; acorns.

Oak mast, and beech, . . . they eat.

Chapman.

Swine under an oak filling themselves with the mast.

South.

Mast, n. [AS. mæst, masc.; akin to D., G., Dan., & Sw. mast, Icel. mastr, and perh. to L. malus.]

1. (Naut.) A pole, or long, strong, round piece of timber, or spar, set upright in a boat or vessel, to sustain the sails, yards, rigging, etc. A mast may also consist of several pieces of timber united by iron bands, or of a hollow pillar of iron or steel.

The tallest pine
Hewn on Norwegian hills, to be the mast
Of some great ammiral.

Milton.

&fist; The most common general names of masts are foremast, mainmast, and mizzenmast, each of which may be made of separate spars.

2. (Mach.) The vertical post of a derrick or crane.

Afore the mast, Before the mast. See under Afore, and Before. – - Mast coat. See under Coat. — Mast hoop, one of a number of hoops attached to the fore edge of a boom sail, which slip on the mast as the sail is raised or lowered; also, one of the iron hoops used in making a made mast. See Made.

Mast, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Masted; p. pr. & vb. n. Masting.] To furnish with a mast or masts; to put the masts of in position; as, to mast a ship.

||Mas”tax (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; mouth, jaws.] (Zoöl.) (a) The pharynx of a rotifer. It usually contains four horny pieces. The two central ones form the incus, against which the mallei, or lateral ones, work so as to crush the food. (b) The lore of a bird.

Mast”ed (?), a. Furnished with a mast or masts; — chiefly in composition; as, a three-masted schooner.

Mast”er (-&etilde;r), n. (Naut.) A vessel having (so many) masts; — used only in compounds; as, a two-master.

Mas”ter (m&adot;s”t&etilde;r), n. [OE. maistre, maister, OF. maistre, mestre, F. maître, fr. L. magister, orig. a double comparative from the root of magnus great, akin to Gr. me`gas. Cf. Maestro, Magister, Magistrate, Magnitude, Major, Mister, Mistress, Mickle.] 1. A male person having another living being so far subject to his will, that he can, in the main, control his or its actions; — formerly used with much more extensive application than now. (a) The employer of a servant. (b) The owner of a slave. (c) The person to whom an apprentice is articled. (d) A sovereign, prince, or feudal noble; a chief, or one exercising similar authority. (e) The head of a household. (f) The male head of a school or college. (g) A male teacher. (h) The director of a number of persons performing a ceremony or sharing a feast. (i) The owner of a docile brute, — especially a dog or horse. (j) The controller of a familiar spirit or other supernatural being.

2. One who uses, or controls at will, anything inanimate; as, to be master of one’s time. Shak.

Master of a hundred thousand drachms.

Addison.

We are masters of the sea.

Jowett (Thucyd. ).

3. One who has attained great skill in the use or application of anything; as, a master of oratorical art.

Great masters of ridicule.

Macaulay.

No care is taken to improve young men in their own language, that they may thoroughly understand and be masters of it.

Locke.

4. A title given by courtesy, now commonly pronounced m&ibreve;ster, except when given to boys; — sometimes written Mister, but usually abbreviated to Mr.

5. A young gentleman; a lad, or small boy.

Where there are little masters and misses in a house, they are impediments to the diversions of the servants.

Swift.

6. (Naut.) The commander of a merchant vessel; — usually called captain. Also, a commissioned officer in the navy ranking next above ensign and below lieutenant; formerly, an officer on a man-of-war who had immediate charge, under the commander, of sailing the vessel.

7. A person holding an office of authority among the Freemasons, esp. the presiding officer; also, a person holding a similar office in other civic societies.

Little masters, certain German engravers of the 16th century, so called from the extreme smallness of their prints. — Master in chancery, an officer of courts of equity, who acts as an assistant to the chancellor or judge, by inquiring into various matters referred to him, and reporting thereon to the court. — Master of arts, one who takes the second degree at a university; also, the degree or title itself, indicated by the abbreviation M. A., or A. M. — Master of the horse, the third great officer in the British court, having the management of the royal stables, etc. In ceremonial cavalcades he rides next to the sovereign. — Master of the rolls, in England, an officer who has charge of the rolls and patents that pass the great seal, and of the records of the chancery, and acts as assistant judge of the court. Bouvier. Wharton. — Past master, one who has held the office of master in a lodge of Freemasons or in a society similarly organized. — The old masters, distinguished painters who preceded modern painters; especially, the celebrated painters of the 16th and 17th centuries. — To be master of one’s self, to have entire self-control; not to be governed by passion. — To be one’s own master, to be at liberty to act as one chooses without dictation from anybody.

&fist; Master, signifying chief, principal, masterly, superior, thoroughly skilled, etc., is often used adjectively or in compounds; as, master builder or master-builder, master chord or master-chord, master mason or master-mason, master workman or master-workman, master mechanic, master mind, master spirit, master passion, etc.

Throughout the city by the master gate.

Chaucer.

Master joint (Geol.), a quarryman’s term for the more prominent and extended joints traversing a rock mass. — Master key, a key adapted to open several locks differing somewhat from each other; figuratively, a rule or principle of general application in solving difficulties. — Master lode (Mining), the principal vein of ore. — Master mariner, an experienced and skilled seaman who is certified to be competent to command a merchant vessel. — Master sinew (Far.), a large sinew that surrounds the hough of a horse, and divides it from the bone by a hollow place, where the windgalls are usually seated. — Master singer. See Mastersinger. — Master stroke, a capital performance; a masterly achievement; a consummate action; as, a master stroke of policy. — Master tap (Mech.), a tap for forming the thread in a screw cutting die. — Master touch. (a) The touch or skill of a master. Pope. (b) Some part of a performance which exhibits very skillful work or treatment. “Some master touches of this admirable piece.” Tatler. — Master work, the most important work accomplished by a skilled person, as in architecture, literature, etc.; also, a work which shows the skill of a master; a masterpiece. — Master workman, a man specially skilled in any art, handicraft, or trade, or who is an overseer, foreman, or employer.

Mas”ter (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mastered (?); p. pr. vb. n. Mastering.] 1. To become the master of; to subject to one’s will, control, or authority; to conquer; to overpower; to subdue.

Obstinacy and willful neglects must be mastered, even though it cost blows.

Locke.

2. To gain the command of, so as to understand or apply; to become an adept in; as, to master a science.

3. To own; to posses. [Obs.]

The wealth
That the world masters.

Shak.

Mas”ter, v. i. To be skillful; to excel. [Obs.]

Mas”ter*dom (?), n. [Master + -dom.] Dominion; rule; command. [R.] Shak.

Mas”ter*ful (?), a. 1. Inclined to play the master; domineering; imperious; arbitrary. Dryden.

2. Having the skill or power of a master; indicating or expressing power or mastery.

His masterful, pale face.

Mrs. Browning.

Mas”ter*ful*ly, adv. In a masterful manner; imperiously.

A lawless and rebellious man who held lands masterfully and in high contempt of the royal authority.

Macaulay.

Mas”ter*hood (?), n. The state of being a master; hence, disposition to command or hector. C. Bronté.

Mas”ter*less, a. Destitute of a master or owner; ungoverned or ungovernable. — Mas”ter*less*ness, n.

Mas”ter*li*ness (?), n. The quality or state of being masterly; ability to control wisely or skillfully.

Mas”ter*ly, a. 1. Suitable to, or characteristic of, a master; indicating thorough knowledge or superior skill and power; showing a master’s hand; as, a masterly design; a masterly performance; a masterly policy. “A wise and masterly inactivity.” Sir J. Mackintosh.

2. Imperious; domineering; arbitrary.

Mas”ter*ly, adv. With the skill of a master.

Thou dost speak masterly.

Shak.

Mas”ter*ous (?), a. Masterly. [Obs.] Milton.

Mas”ter*piece` (?), n. Anything done or made with extraordinary skill; a capital performance; a chef- d’œuvre; a supreme achievement.

The top and masterpiece of art.

South.

Dissimulation was his masterpiece.

Claredon.

Mas”ter*ship, n. 1. The state or office of a master.

2. Mastery; dominion; superior skill; superiority.

Where noble youths for mastership should strive.

Driden.

3. Chief work; masterpiece. [Obs.] Dryden.

4. An ironical title of respect.

How now, seignior Launce ! what news with your mastership ?

Shak.

Mas”ter*sing`er (?), n. [A translation of G. meistersänger.] One of a class of poets which flourished in Nuremberg and some other cities of Germany in the 15th and 16th centuries. They bound themselves to observe certain arbitrary laws of rhythm.

Mas”ter*wort` (?), n. (Bot.) (a) A tall and coarse European umbelliferous plant (Peucedanum Ostruthium, formerly Imperatoria). (b) The Astrantia major, a European umbelliferous plant with a showy colored involucre. (c) Improperly, the cow parsnip (Heracleum lanatum).

Mas”ter*y (?), n.; pl. Masteries (#). [OF. maistrie.]

1. The position or authority of a master; dominion; command; supremacy; superiority.

If divided by mountains, they will fight for the mastery of the passages of the tops.

Sir W. Raleigh.

2. Superiority in war or competition; victory; triumph; preëminence.

The voice of them that shout for mastery.

Ex. xxxii. 18.

Every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things.

1 Cor. ix. 25.

O, but to have gulled him
Had been a mastery.

B. Jonson.

3. Contest for superiority. [Obs.] Holland.

4. A masterly operation; a feat. [Obs.]

I will do a maistrie ere I go.

Chaucer.

5. Specifically, the philosopher’s stone. [Obs.]

6. The act process of mastering; the state of having mastered.

He could attain to a mastery in all languages.

Tillotson.

The learning and mastery of a tongue, being unpleasant in itself, should not be cumbered with other difficulties.

Locke.

Mast”ful (?), a. [See lst Mast.] Abounding in mast; producing mast in abundance; as, the mastful forest; a mastful chestnut. Dryden.

Mast”head` (?), n. (Naut.) The top or head of a mast; the part of a mast above the hounds.

Mast”head”, v. t. (Naut.) To cause to go to the masthead as a punishment. Marryat.

Mast”house` (?), n. A building in which vessels’ masts are shaped, fitted, etc.

Mas”tic (?), n. [F., fr. L. mastiche, mastichum, Gr. &?;, fr. &?; to chew, because of its being used in the East for chewing.] [Written also mastich.]

1. (Bot.) A low shrubby tree of the genus Pistacia (P. Lentiscus), growing upon the islands and coasts of the Mediterranean, and producing a valuable resin; — called also, mastic tree.

2. A resin exuding from the mastic tree, and obtained by incision. The best is in yellowish white, semitransparent tears, of a faint smell, and is used as an astringent and an aromatic, also as an ingredient in varnishes.

3. A kind of cement composed of burnt clay, litharge, and linseed oil, used for plastering walls, etc.

Barbary mastic (Bot.), the Pistachia Atlantica. — Peruvian mastic tree (Bot.), a small tree (Schinus Molle) with peppery red berries; — called also pepper tree. — West Indian mastic (Bot.), a lofty tree (Bursera gummifera) full of gum resin in every part.

Mas”ti*ca*ble (?), a. Capable of being masticated.

Mas`ti*ca”dor (?), n. [Cf. Sp. mastigador. See Masticate.] (Man.) A part of a bridle, the slavering bit. [Written also mastigador.]

Mas”ti*cate (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Masticated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Masticating (?).] [L. masticatus, p. p. of masticare to chew, prob. fr. mastiche mastic. See Mastic.] To grind or crush with, or as with, the teeth and prepare for swallowing and digestion; to chew; as, to masticate food.

Mas”ti*ca`ter (?), n. One who masticates.

Mas`ti*ca”tion (?), n. [L. masticatio: cf. F. mastication.] The act or operation of masticating; chewing, as of food.

Mastication is a necessary preparation of solid aliment, without which there can be no good digestion.

Arbuthnot.

Mas”ti*ca`tor (?), n. 1. One who masticates.

2. A machine for cutting meat into fine pieces for toothless people; also, a machine for cutting leather, India rubber, or similar tough substances, into fine pieces, in some processes of manufacture.

Mas”ti*ca*to*ry (?), a. [Cf. F. masticatoire.] Chewing; adapted to perform the office of chewing food.

Mas”ti*ca*to*ry, n.; pl. -ries (&?;). (Med.) A substance to be chewed to increase the saliva. Bacon.

Mas”tich (?), n. See Mastic.

Mas”ti*cin (?), n. (Chem.) A white, amorphous, tenacious substance resembling caoutchouc, and obtained as an insoluble residue of mastic.

Mas”ti*cot (?), n. (Chem.) Massicot. [Obs.]

Mas”tiff (?), n.; pl. Mastiffs (&?;). [Mastives is irregular and unusual.] [Prob. fr. Prov. E. masty, adj., large, n., a great dog, prob. fr. mast fruit, and hence, lit., fattened with mast. There is perh. confusion with OF. mestif mongrel; cf. also F. mâtin mastiff, OF. mastin.] (Zoöl.) A breed of large dogs noted for strength and courage. There are various strains, differing in form and color, and characteristic of different countries.

Mastiff bat (Zoöl.) , any bat of the genus Molossus; so called because the face somewhat resembles that of a mastiff.

Mas”ti*go*pod (?), n. (Zoöl.) One of the Mastigopoda.

||Mas`ti*gop”o*da (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. ma`stix, -igos, a whip + poy`s, podo`s, foot.] (Zoöl.) The Infusoria.

Mas”ti*gure (?), n. [Gr. ma`stix, -igos, a scourge + &?; tail.] (Zoöl.) Any one of several large spiny-tailed lizards of the genus Uromastix. They inhabit Southern Asia and North Africa.

Mast”ing (?), n. (Naut.) The act or process of putting a mast or masts into a vessel; also, the scientific principles which determine the position of masts, and the mechanical methods of placing them.

Masting house (Naut.), a large building, with suitable mechanism overhanging the water, used for stepping and unstepping the masts of vessels.

||Mas*ti”tis (?), n. [Gr. masto`s breast + -itis.] (Med.) Inflammation of the breast.

Mast”less (?), a. [See lst Mast.] Bearing no mast; as, a mastless oak or beech. Dryden.

Mast”less, a. [See 2d Mast.] Having no mast; as, a mastless vessel.

Mast”lin (măst”l&ibreve;n), n. See Maslin.

Mas”to*don (?), n. [Gr. masto`s the breast + ‘odoy`s, ‘odo`ntos, a tooth. So called from the conical projections upon its molar teeth.] (Paleon.) An extinct genus of mammals closely allied to the elephant, but having less complex molar teeth, and often a pair of lower, as well as upper, tusks, which are incisor teeth. The species were mostly larger than elephants, and their remains occur in nearly all parts of the world in deposits ranging from Miocene to late Quaternary time.

||Mas`to*don*sau”rus (?), n. [NL., fr. E. Mastodon + Gr. say^ros a lizard.] (Paleon.) A large extinct genus of labyrinthodonts, found in the European Triassic rocks.

Mas`to*don”tic (?), a. Pertaining to, or resembling, a mastodon; as, mastodontic dimensions. Everett.

||Mas`to*dyn”i*a (?), Mas*tod”y*ny (&?;), n. [NL. mastodynia, fr. Gr. masto`s the breast + &?; pain.] (Med.) Pain occuring in the mamma or female breast, — a form of neuralgia.

Mas”toid (?), a. [Gr. &?;; masto`s the breast + &?; form: cf. F. mastoïde.] (Anat.) (a) Resembling the nipple or the breast; — applied specifically to a process of the temporal bone behind the ear. (b) Pertaining to, or in the region of, the mastoid process; mastoidal.

Mas*toid”al (?), a. Same as Mastoid.

Mas*tol”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. masto`s the breast + -logy: cf. F. mastologie.] The natural history of Mammalia.

Mas”tress (?), n. Mistress. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mas`tur*ba”tion (?), n. [L. masturbatus, p. p. of masturbari to practice onanism: cf. F. masturbation.] Onanism; self-pollution.

Mast”y (?), a. [See lst Mast.] Full of mast; abounding in acorns, etc.

Ma*su”la boat` (?). Same as Masoola boat.

Mat (?), n. [Cf. Matte.] A name given by coppersmiths to an alloy of copper, tin, iron, etc., usually called white metal. [Written also matt.]

Mat, a. [OF. See 4th Mate.] Cast down; dejected; overthrown; slain. [Obs.]

When he saw them so piteous and so maat.

Chaucer.

Mat, n. [AS. matt, meatt, fr. L. matta a mat made of rushes.] 1. A fabric of sedge, rushes, flags, husks, straw, hemp, or similar material, used for wiping and cleaning shoes at the door, for covering the floor of a hall or room, and for other purposes.

2. Any similar fabric for various uses, as for covering plant houses, putting beneath dishes or lamps on a table, securing rigging from friction, and the like.

3. Anything growing thickly, or closely interwoven, so as to resemble a mat in form or texture; as, a mat of weeds; a mat of hair.

4. An ornamental border made of paper, pasterboard, metal, etc., put under the glass which covers a framed picture; as, the mat of a daguerreotype.

Mat grass. (Bot.) (a) A low, tufted, European grass (Nardus stricta). (b) Same as Matweed. — Mat rush (Bot.), a kind of rush (Scirpus lacustris) used in England for making mats.

Mat, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Matted (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Matting.] 1. To cover or lay with mats. Evelyn.

2. To twist, twine, or felt together; to interweave into, or like, a mat; to entangle.

And o’er his eyebrows hung his matted hair.

Dryden.

Mat, v. i. To grow thick together; to become interwoven or felted together like a mat.

||Ma`ta*chin” (?), n. [Sp.] An old dance with swords and bucklers; a sword dance.

Mat”a*co (?), n. (Zoöl.) The three-banded armadillo (Tolypeutis tricinctus). See Illust. under Loricata.

{ Mat”a*dore, Mat”a*dor} (?), n. [Sp. matador, prop., a killer, fr. matar to kill, L. mactare to sacrifice, kill.] 1. The killer; the man appointed to kill the bull in bullfights.

2. (Card Playing) In the game of quadrille or omber, the three principal trumps, the ace of spades being the first, the ace of clubs the third, and the second being the deuce of a black trump or the seven of a red one.

When Lady Tricksey played a four,
You took it with a matadore.

Swift.

Mat`a*gasse” (?), n. (Zoöl.) A shrike or butcher bird; — called also mattages. [Prov. Eng.]

||Ma`ta*ma”ta (?), n. [Pg.] (Zoöl.) The bearded tortoise (Chelys fimbriata) of South American rivers.

Ma*tan”za (?), n. [Sp., slaughter, fr. matar to kill.] A place where animals are slaughtered for their hides and tallow. [Western U. S.]

Match (măch), n. [OE. macche, F. mèche, F. mèche, fr. L. myxa a lamp nozzle, Gr. my`xa mucus, nostril, a lamp nozzle. Cf. Mucus.] Anything used for catching and retaining or communicating fire, made of some substance which takes fire readily, or remains burning some time; esp., a small strip or splint of wood dipped at one end in a substance which can be easily ignited by friction, as a preparation of phosphorus or chlorate of potassium.

Match box, a box for holding matches. – - Match tub, a tub with a perforated cover for holding slow matches for firing cannon, esp. on board ship. The tub contains a little water in the bottom, for extinguishing sparks from the lighted matches. — Quick match, threads of cotton or cotton wick soaked in a solution of gunpowder mixed with gum arabic and boiling water and afterwards strewed over with mealed powder. It burns at the rate of one yard in thirteen seconds, and is used as priming for heavy mortars, fireworks, etc. — Slow match, slightly twisted hempen rope soaked in a solution of limewater and saltpeter or washed in a lye of water and wood ashes. It burns at the rate of four or five inches an hour, and is used for firing cannon, fireworks, etc.

Match, n. [OE. macche, AS. gemæcca; akin to gemaca, and to OS. gimako, OHG. gimah fitting, suitable, convenient, Icel. mark suitable, maki mate, Sw. make, Dan. mage; all from the root of E. make, v. See Make mate, and Make, v., and cf. Mate an associate.]

1. A person or thing equal or similar to another; one able to mate or cope with another; an equal; a mate.

Government . . . makes an innocent man, though of the lowest rank, a match for the mightiest of his fellow subjects.

Addison.

2. A bringing together of two parties suited to one another, as for a union, a trial of skill or force, a contest, or the like; as, specifically: (a) A contest to try strength or skill, or to determine superiority; an emulous struggle. “Many a warlike match.” Drayton.

A solemn match was made; he lost the prize.

Dryden.

(b) A matrimonial union; a marriage.

3. An agreement, compact, etc. “Thy hand upon that match.” Shak.

Love doth seldom suffer itself to be confined by other matches than those of its own making.

Boyle.

4. A candidate for matrimony; one to be gained in marriage. “She . . . was looked upon as the richest match of the West.” Clarendon.

5. Equality of conditions in contest or competition.

It were no match, your nail against his horn.

Shak.

6. Suitable combination or bringing together; that which corresponds or harmonizes with something else; as, the carpet and curtains are a match.

7. (Founding) A perforated board, block of plaster, hardened sand, etc., in which a pattern is partly imbedded when a mold is made, for giving shape to the surfaces of separation between the parts of the mold.

Match boarding (Carp.), boards fitted together with tongue and groove, or prepared to be so fitted. — Match game, a game arranged as a test of superiority. — Match plane (Carp.), either of the two planes used to shape the edges of boards which are joined by grooving and tonguing. — Match plate (Founding), a board or plate on the opposite sides of which the halves of a pattern are fastened, to facilitate molding. Knight. — Match wheel (Mach.), a cogwheel of suitable pitch to work with another wheel; specifically, one of a pair of cogwheels of equal size.

Match, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Matched (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Matching.] 1. To be a mate or match for; to be able to complete with; to rival successfully; to equal.

No settled senses of the world can match
The pleasure of that madness.

Shak.

2. To furnish with its match; to bring a match, or equal, against; to show an equal competitor to; to set something in competition with, or in opposition to, as equal.

No history or antiquity can matchis policies and his conduct.

South.

3. To oppose as equal; to contend successfully against.

Eternal might
To match with their inventions they presumed
So easy, and of his thunder made a scorn.

Milton.

4. To make or procure the equal of, or that which is exactly similar to, or corresponds with; as, to match a vase or a horse; to match cloth. “Matching of patterns and colors.” Swift.

5. To make equal, proportionate, or suitable; to adapt, fit, or suit (one thing to another).

Let poets match their subject to their strength.

Roscommon.

6. To marry; to give in marriage.

A senator of Rome survived,
Would not have matched his daughter with a king.

Addison.

7. To fit together, or make suitable for fitting together; specifically, to furnish with a tongue and a groove, at the edges; as, to match boards.

Matching machine, a planing machine for forming a tongue or a groove on the edge of a board.

Match, v. i. 1. To be united in marriage; to mate.

I hold it a sin to match in my kindred.

Shak.

Let tigers match with hinds, and wolves with sheep.

Dryden.

2. To be of equal, or similar, size, figure, color, or quality; to tally; to suit; to correspond; as, these vases match.

Match”a*ble (?), a. Capable of being matched; comparable on equal conditions; adapted to being joined together; correspondent. — Match”a*ble*ness, n.

Sir Walter Raleigh . . . is matchable with the best of the ancients.

Hakewill.

Match”-cloth` (?), n. A coarse cloth.

Match”-coat` (?), n. A coat made of match-cloth.

Match”er (?), n. One who, or that which, matches; a matching machine. See under 3d Match.

Match”less, a. [Cf. Mateless.]

1. Having no equal; unequaled. “A matchless queen.” Waller.

2. Unlike each other; unequal; unsuited. [Obs.] “Matchless ears.” Spenser.

— Match”less*ly, adv. — Match”less*ness, n.

Match”lock` (?), n. An old form of gunlock containing a match for firing the priming; hence, a musket fired by means of a match.

Match”mak`er (?), n. 1. One who makes matches for burning or kinding.

2. One who tries to bring about marriages.

Match”mak`ing, n. 1. The act or process of making matches for kindling or burning.

2. The act or process of trying to bring about a marriage for others.

Match”mak`ing, a. Busy in making or contriving marriages; as, a matchmaking woman.

||Ma”te (?), n. [Sp.] The Paraguay tea, being the dried leaf of the Brazilian holly (Ilex Paraguensis). The infusion has a pleasant odor, with an agreeable bitter taste, and is much used for tea in South America.

Mate (?), n. [F. mat, abbrev. fr. échec et mat. See Checkmate.] (Chess) Same as Checkmate.

Mate, a. See 2d Mat. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mate, v. t. [F. mater to fatigue, enfeeble, humiliate, checkmate. See Mate checkmate.]

1. To confuse; to confound. [Obs.] Shak.

2. To checkmate.

Mate, n. [Perhaps for older make a companion; cf. also OD. maet companion, mate, D. maat. Cf. Make a companion, Match a mate.] 1. One who customarily associates with another; a companion; an associate; any object which is associated or combined with a similar object.

2. Hence, specifically, a husband or wife; and among the lower animals, one of a pair associated for propagation and the care of their young.

3. A suitable companion; a match; an equal.

Ye knew me once no mate
For you; there sitting where you durst not soar.

Milton.

4. (Naut.) An officer in a merchant vessel ranking next below the captain. If there are more than one bearing the title, they are called, respectively, first mate, second mate, third mate, etc. In the navy, a subordinate officer or assistant; as, master’s mate; surgeon’s mate.

Mate, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mated; p. pr. & vb. n. Mating.] 1. To match; to marry.

If she be mated with an equal husband.

Shak.

2. To match one’s self against; to oppose as equal; to compete with.

There is no passion in the mind of man so weak but it mates and masters the fear of death.

Bacon.

I, . . . in the way of loyalty and truth, . . .
Dare mate a sounder man than Surrey can be.

Shak.

Mate, v. i. To be or become a mate or mates, especially in sexual companionship; as, some birds mate for life; this bird will not mate with that one.

Mate”less, a. [Cf. Matchless.] Having no mate.

Mat”e*lote (măt”&esl;*lōt), n. [F., fr. matelot a sailor; properly, a dish such as sailors prepare.] A dish of food composed of many kinds of fish.

Ma`te*ol”o*gy (mā`t&esl;*&obreve;l”&osl;*j&ybreve;), n. [Gr. mataiologi`a; ma`taios useless, vain + lo`gos discourse: cf. F. matéologie.] A vain, unprofitable discourse or inquiry. [R.]

Ma`te*o*tech”ny (mā`t&esl;*&osl;*t&ebreve;k”n&ybreve;), n. [Gr. mataiotechni`a; ma`taios vain + te`chnh art, science.] Any unprofitable science. [Obs.]

||Ma”ter (?), n. [L., mother. See Mother.] See Alma mater, Dura mater, and Pia mater.

Ma*te”ri*al (?), a. [L. materialis, fr. materia stuff, matter: cf. F. matériel. See Matter, and cf. MatÉriel.]

1. Consisting of matter; not spiritual; corporeal; physical; as, material substance or bodies.

The material elements of the universe.

Whewell.

2. Hence: Pertaining to, or affecting, the physical nature of man, as distinguished from the mental or moral nature; relating to the bodily wants, interests, and comforts.

3. Of solid or weighty character; not insubstantial; of consequence; not be dispensed with; important.

Discourse, which was always material, never trifling.

Evelyn.

I shall, in the account of simple ideas, set down only such as are most material to our present purpose.

Locke.

4. (Logic.) Pertaining to the matter, as opposed to the form, of a thing. See Matter.

Material cause. See under Cause. — Material evidence (Law), evidence which conduces to the proof or disproof of a relevant hypothesis. Wharton.

Syn. — Corporeal; bodily; important; weighty; momentous; essential.

Ma*te”ri*al, n. The substance or matter of which anything is made or may be made.

Raw material, any crude, unfinished, or elementary materials that are adapted to use only by processes of skilled labor. Cotton, wool, ore, logs, etc., are raw material.

Ma*te”ri*al, v. t. To form from matter; to materialize. [Obs.] Sir T. Browne.

Ma*te”ri*al*ism (?), n. [Cf. F. matérialisme.]

1. The doctrine of materialists; materialistic views and tenets.

The irregular fears of a future state had been supplanted by the materialism of Epicurus.

Buckminster.

2. The tendency to give undue importance to material interests; devotion to the material nature and its wants.

3. Material substances in the aggregate; matter. [R. & Obs.] A. Chalmers.

Ma*te”ri*al*ist (m&adot;tē“r&ibreve;al*&ibreve;st), n. [Cf. F. matérialiste.] 1. One who denies the existence of spiritual substances or agents, and maintains that spiritual phenomena, so called, are the result of some peculiar organization of matter.

2. One who holds to the existence of matter, as distinguished from the idealist, who denies it. Berkeley.

{ Ma*te`ri*al*is”tic (?), Ma*te`ri*al*is”tic*al (?), } a. Of or pertaining to materialism or materialists; of the nature of materialism.

But to me his very spiritualism seemed more materialistic than his physics.

C. Kingsley.

Ma*te`ri*al”i*ty (?), n. [Cf. F. matérialité.]

1. The quality or state of being material; material existence; corporeity.

2. Importance; as, the materiality of facts.

Ma*te`ri*al*i*za”tion (?), n. The act of materializing, or the state of being materialized.

Ma*te”ri*al*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Materialized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Materializing (?).] [Cf. F. matérialiser.] 1. To invest with material characteristics; to make perceptible to the senses; hence, to present to the mind through the medium of material objects.

Having with wonderful art and beauty materialized, if I may so call it, a scheme of abstracted notions, and clothed the most nice, refined conceptions of philosophy in sensible images.

Tatler.

2. To regard as matter; to consider or explain by the laws or principles which are appropriate to matter.

3. To cause to assume a character appropriate to material things; to occupy with material interests; as, to materialize thought.

4. (Spiritualism) To make visable in, or as in, a material form; — said of spirits.

A female spirit form temporarily materialized, and not distinguishable from a human being.

Epes Sargent.

Ma*te”ri*al*ize, v. i. To appear as a material form; to take substantial shape. [Colloq.]

Ma*te”ri*al*ly, adv. 1. In the state of matter.

I do not mean that anything is separable from a body by fire that was not materially preëxistent in it.

Boyle.

2. In its essence; substantially.

An ill intention is certainly sufficient to spoil . . . an act in itself materially good.

South.

3. In an important manner or degree; essentially; as, it materially concerns us to know the real motives of our actions.

Ma*te”ri*al*ness, n. The state of being material.

||Ma*te”ri*a med”i*ca (?). [L. See Matter, and Medical.] 1. Material or substance used in the composition of remedies; — a general term for all substances used as curative agents in medicine.

2. That branch of medical science which treats of the nature and properties of all the substances that are employed for the cure of diseases.

Ma*te`ri*a”ri*an (?), n. [L. materiarius.] See Materialist. [Obs.]

{ Ma*te”ri*ate (?), Ma*te”ri*a`ted (?), } a. [L. materiatus, p. p. of materiare to build of wood.] Consisting of matter. [Obs.] Bacon.

Ma*te`ri*a”tion (?), n. [L. materiatio woodwork.] Act of forming matter. [Obs.] Sir T. Browne.

||Ma`té`ri`el” (?), n. [F. See Material.] That in a complex system which constitutes the materials, or instruments employed, in distinction from the personnel, or men; as, the baggage, munitions, provisions, etc., of an army; or the buildings, libraries, and apparatus of a college, in distinction from its officers.

Ma*te”ri*ous (?), a. See Material. [Obs.]

Ma*ter”nal (?), a. [F. maternel, L. maternus, fr. mater mother. See Mother.] Of or pertaining to a mother; becoming to a mother; motherly; as, maternal love; maternal tenderness.

Syn. — See Motherly.

Ma*ter”nal*ly, adv. In a motherly manner.

Ma*ter”ni*ty (?), n. [F. maternité, LL. maternitas.] The state of being a mother; the character or relation of a mother.

Mat”fel*on (?), n. [W. madfelen.] (Bot.) The knapweed (Centaurea nigra).

Math (?), n. [AS. m&aemacr;ð; akin to māwan to mow, G. mahd math. See Mow to cut (grass).] A mowing, or that which is gathered by mowing; — chiefly used in composition; as, an aftermath. [Obs.]

The first mowing thereof, for the king’s use, is wont to be sooner than the common math.

Bp. Hall.

Math`e*mat”ic (?), a. [F. mathématique, L. mathematicus, Gr. &?; disposed to learn, belonging to learning or the sciences, especially to mathematics, fr. &?; that which is learned, learning, pl. &?; things learned, learning, science, especially mathematical science, fr. &?;, &?;, to learn; akin to E. mind. See Mind.] See Mathematical.

Math`e*mat”ic*al (?), a. [See Mathematic.] Of or pertaining to mathematics; according to mathematics; hence, theoretically precise; accurate; as, mathematical geography; mathematical instruments; mathematical exactness. — Math`e*mat”ic*al*ly, adv.

Math`e*ma*ti”cian (?), n. [Cf. F. mathématicien.] One versed in mathematics.

Math`e*mat”ics (?), n. [F. mathématiques, pl., L. mathematica, sing., Gr. &?; (sc. &?;) science. See Mathematic, and -ics.] That science, or class of sciences, which treats of the exact relations existing between quantities or magnitudes, and of the methods by which, in accordance with these relations, quantities sought are deducible from other quantities known or supposed; the science of spatial and quantitative relations.

&fist; Mathematics embraces three departments, namely: 1. Arithmetic. 2. Geometry, including Trigonometry and Conic Sections. 3. Analysis, in which letters are used, including Algebra, Analytical Geometry, and Calculus. Each of these divisions is divided into pure or abstract, which considers magnitude or quantity abstractly, without relation to matter; and mixed or applied, which treats of magnitude as subsisting in material bodies, and is consequently interwoven with physical considerations.

Math”er (?), n. See Madder.

Math”es (?), n. [Perh. corrupted fr. L. anthemis camomile, Gr. &?; .] (Bot.) The mayweed. Cf. Maghet.

||Ma*the”sis (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?;, from &?;, &?;, to learn.] Learning; especially, mathematics. [R.] Pope.

Math”u*rin (?), n. (R. C. Ch.) See Trinitarian.

Ma*ti”co (?), n. (Bot.) A Peruvian plant (Piper, or Artanthe, elongatum), allied to the pepper, the leaves of which are used as a styptic and astringent.

Mat”ie (?), n. (Zoöl.) A fat herring with undeveloped roe. [Written also matty.] [Eng. & Scot.]

||Mâ`tin” (?), n. [F. mâtin.] (Zoöl.) A French mastiff.

Mat”in (?), n. [F. fr. L. matutinum the morning, matutinus of the morning, Matuta the goddess of the morning. See Matutinal.] 1. Morning. [Obs.] Shak.

2. pl. [F. matines. See Etymol. above.] Morning worship or service; morning prayers or songs.

The winged choristers began
To chirp their matins.

Cleveland.

3. Time of morning service; the first canonical hour in the Roman Catholic Church.

Mat”in, a. Of or pertaining to the morning, or to matins; used in the morning; matutinal.

Mat”in*al (?), a. Relating to the morning, or to matins; matutinal.

Mat`i*née” (?), n. [F., from matin. See Matin.] A reception, or a musical or dramatic entertainment, held in the daytime. See SoirÉe.

Ma*trass” (?), n. [F. matras; perh. so called from its long narrow neck; cf. OF. matras large arrow, L. materis, mataris, matara, a Celtic javelin, pike; of Celtic origin.] (Chem.) A round- bottomed glass flask having a long neck; a bolthead.

Mat”ress (?), n. See Matress.

Ma”tri*arch (?), n. [L. mater mother + -arch.] The mother and ruler of a family or of her descendants; a ruler by maternal right.

Ma`tri*ar”chal (?), a. Of or pertaining to a matriarch; governed by a matriarch.

Ma”tri*ar”chate (?), n. The office or jurisdiction of a matriarch; a matriarchal form of government.

Ma”trice (?), n. [Cf. F. matrice. See Matrix.] See Matrix.

Mat”ri*ci`dal (?), a. Of or pertaining to matricide.

Mat”ri*cide (?), n. [L. matricidium; mater mother + coedere to kill, slay: cf. F. matricide. See Mother, and cf. Homicide.] 1. The murder of a mother by her son or daughter.

2. [L. matricida: cf. F. matricide.] One who murders one’s own mother.

Ma*tric”u*late (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Matriculated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Matriculating.] [L. matricula a public roll or register, dim. of matrix a mother, in respect to propagation, also, a public register. See Matrix.] To enroll; to enter in a register; specifically, to enter or admit to membership in a body or society, particularly in a college or university, by enrolling the name in a register.

In discovering and matriculating the arms of commissaries from North America.

Sir W. Scott.

Ma*tric”u*late, v. i. To go though the process of admission to membership, as by examination and enrollment, in a society or college.

Ma*tric”u*late (?), a. Matriculated. Skelton. — n. One who is matriculated. Arbuthnot.

Ma*tric`u*la”tion (?), n. The act or process of matriculating; the state of being matriculated.

Mat”ri*moine (?), n. Matrimony. [Obs.]

Mat`ri*mo”ni*al (?), a. [L. matrimonialis: cf. F. matrimonial. See Matrimony.] Of or pertaining to marriage; derived from marriage; connubial; nuptial; hymeneal; as, matrimonial rights or duties.

If he relied upon that title, he could be but a king at courtesy, and have rather a matrimonial than a regal power.

Bacon.

Syn. — Connubial; conjugal; sponsal; spousal; nuptial; hymeneal.

Mat`ri*mo”ni*al*ly, adv. In a matrimonial manner.

Mat`ri*mo”ni*ous (?), a. Matrimonial. [R.] Milton.

Mat”ri*mo*ny (?), n. [OE. matrimoine, through Old French, fr. L. matrimonium, fr. mater mother. See Mother.]

1. The union of man and woman as husband and wife; the nuptial state; marriage; wedlock.

If either of you know any impediment, why ye may not be lawfully joined together in matrimony, ye do now confess it.

Book of Com. Prayer (Eng. Ed. )

2. A kind of game at cards played by several persons.

Matrimony vine (Bot.), a climbing thorny vine (Lycium barbarum) of the Potato family. Gray.

Syn. — Marriage; wedlock. See Marriage.

Ma”trix (mā“tr&ibreve;ks), n.; pl. Matrices (măt”r&ibreve;*sēz). [L., fr. mater mother. See Mother, and cf. Matrice.]

1. (Anat.) The womb.

All that openeth the matrix is mine.

Ex. xxxiv. 19.

2. Hence, that which gives form or origin to anything; as: (a) (Mech.) The cavity in which anything is formed, and which gives it shape; a die; a mold, as for the face of a type. (b) (Min.) The earthy or stony substance in which metallic ores or crystallized minerals are found; the gangue. (c) pl. (Dyeing) The five simple colors, black, white, blue, red, and yellow, of which all the rest are composed.

3. (Biol.) The lifeless portion of tissue, either animal or vegetable, situated between the cells; the intercellular substance.

4. (Math.) A rectangular arrangement of symbols in rows and columns. The symbols may express quantities or operations.

Ma”tron (?), n. [F. matrone, L. matrona, fr. mater mother. See Mother.] 1. A wife or a widow, especially, one who has borne children; a woman of staid or motherly manners.

Your wives, your daughters,
Your matrons, and your maids.

Shak.

Grave from her cradle, insomuch that she was a matron before she was a mother.

Fuller.

2. A housekeeper; esp., a woman who manages the domestic economy of a public instution; a head nurse in a hospital; as, the matron of a school or hospital.

Jury of matrons (Law), a jury of experienced women called to determine the question of pregnancy when set up in bar of execution, and for other cognate purposes.

Mat”ron*age (?), n. 1. The state of a matron.

2. The collective body of matrons. Burke.

Can a politician slight the feelings and convictions of the whole matronage of his country ?

Hare.

Mat”ron*al (?), a. [L. matronalis.] Of or pertaining to a matron; suitable to an elderly lady or to a married woman; grave; motherly.

Ma”tron*hood (?), n. The state of being a matron.

Mat”ron*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Matronized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Matronizing (?).] 1. To make a matron of; to make matronlike.

Childbed matronizes the giddiest spirits.

Richardson.

2. To act the part of a matron toward; to superintend; to chaperone; as, to matronize an assembly.

Ma”tron*like` (?), a. Like a matron; sedate; grave; matronly.

Ma”tron*ly, a. 1. Advanced in years; elderly.

2. Like, or befitting, a matron; grave; sedate.

Mat`ro*nym”ic (?), n. [L. mater mother + -nymic, as in patronimic.] See Metronymic.

Ma*tross” (?), n. [D. matroos, fr. F. matelot.] (Mil.) Formerly, in the British service, a gunner or a gunner’s mate; one of the soldiers in a train of artillery, who assisted the gunners in loading, firing, and sponging the guns. [Obs.]

Matt (?), n. See Matte. Knight.

Mat`ta*ges” (?), n. (Zoöl.) A shrike or butcher bird; — written also matagasse. [Prov. Eng.]

Mat”ta*more` (?), n. [F. matamore, from Ar. ma&tsdot;mōra.] A subterranean repository for wheat.

Matte (măt), n. [F. matte; cf. F. mat, masc., matte, fem., faint, dull, dim; — said of metals. See Mate checkmate.] 1. (Metallurgy) A partly reduced copper sulphide, obtained by alternately roasting and melting copper ore in separating the metal from associated iron ores, and called coarse metal, fine metal, etc., according to the grade of fineness. On the exterior it is dark brown or black, but on a fresh surface is yellow or bronzy in color.

2. A dead or dull finish, as in gilding where the gold leaf is not burnished, or in painting where the surface is purposely deprived of gloss.

Mat”ted (?), a. [See Matte.] Having a dull surface; unburnished; as, matted gold leaf or gilding.

Matted glass, glass ornamented with figures on a dull ground.

Mat”ted, a. [See 3d Mat.] 1. Covered with a mat or mats; as, a matted floor.

2. Tangled closely together; having its parts adhering closely together; as, matted hair.

Mat”ter (?), n. [OE. matere, F. matière, fr. L. materia; perh. akin to L. mater mother. Cf. Mother, Madeira, Material.] 1. That of which anything is composed; constituent substance; material; the material or substantial part of anything; the constituent elements of conception; that into which a notion may be analyzed; the essence; the pith; the embodiment.

He is the matter of virtue.

B. Jonson.

2. That of which the sensible universe and all existent bodies are composed; anything which has extension, occupies space, or is perceptible by the senses; body; substance.

&fist; Matter is usually divided by philosophical writers into three kinds or classes: solid, liquid, and aëriform. Solid substances are those whose parts firmly cohere and resist impression, as wood or stone. Liquids have free motion among their parts, and easily yield to impression, as water and wine. Aëriform substances are elastic fluids, called vapors and gases, as air and oxygen gas.

3. That with regard to, or about which, anything takes place or is done; the thing aimed at, treated of, or treated; subject of action, discussion, consideration, feeling, complaint, legal action, or the like; theme. “If the matter should be tried by duel.” Bacon.

Son of God, Savior of men ! Thy name
Shall be the copious matter of my song.

Milton.

Every great matter they shall bring unto thee, but every small matter they shall judge.

Ex. xviii. 22.

4. That which one has to treat, or with which one has to do; concern; affair; business.

To help the matter, the alchemists call in many vanities out of astrology.

Bacon.

Some young female seems to have carried matters so far, that she is ripe for asking advice.

Spectator.

5. Affair worthy of account; thing of consequence; importance; significance; moment; — chiefly in the phrases what matter ? no matter, and the like.

A prophet some, and some a poet, cry;
No matter which, so neither of them lie.

Dryden.

6. Inducing cause or occasion, especially of anything disagreeable or distressing; difficulty; trouble.

And this is the matter why interpreters upon that passage in Hosea will not consent it to be a true story, that the prophet took a harlot to wife.

Milton.

7. Amount; quantity; portion; space; — often indefinite.

Away he goes, . . . a matter of seven miles.

L’ Estrange.

I have thoughts to tarry a small matter.

Congreve.

No small matter of British forces were commanded over sea the year before.

Milton.

8. Substance excreted from living animal bodies; that which is thrown out or discharged in a tumor, boil, or abscess; pus; purulent substance.

9. (Metaph.) That which is permanent, or is supposed to be given, and in or upon which changes are effected by psychological or physical processes and relations; — opposed to form. Mansel.

10. (Print.) Written manuscript, or anything to be set in type; copy; also, type set up and ready to be used, or which has been used, in printing.

Dead matter (Print.), type which has been used, or which is not to be used, in printing, and is ready for distribution. — Live matter (Print.), type set up, but not yet printed from. — Matter in bar, Matter of fact. See under Bar, and Fact. — Matter of record, anything recorded. — Upon the matter, or Upon the whole matter, considering the whole; taking all things into view.

Waller, with Sir William Balfour, exceeded in horse, but were, upon the whole matter, equal in foot.

Clarendon.

Mat”ter (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Mattered (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mattering.] 1. To be of importance; to import; to signify.

It matters not how they were called.

Locke.

2. To form pus or matter, as an abscess; to maturate. [R.] “Each slight sore mattereth.” Sir P. Sidney.

Mat”ter, v. t. To regard as important; to take account of; to care for. [Obs.]

He did not matter cold nor hunger.

H. Brooke.

Mat”ter*less, a. 1. Not being, or having, matter; as, matterless spirits. Davies (Wit’s Pilgr. ).

2. Unimportant; immaterial. [Obs.]

Mat”ter-of-fact” (?), a. Adhering to facts; not turning aside from absolute realities; not fanciful or imaginative; commonplace; dry.

Mat”ter*y (?), a. 1. Generating or containing pus; purulent.

2. Full of substance or matter; important. B. Jonson.

Mat”ting (?), n. [From Mat, v. t. & i.] 1. The act of interweaving or tangling together so as to make a mat; the process of becoming matted.

2. Mats, in general, or collectively; mat work; a matlike fabric, for use in covering floors, packing articles, and the like; a kind of carpeting made of straw, etc.

3. Materials for mats.

4. An ornamental border. See 3d Mat, 4.

Mat”ting, n. [See Matte.] A dull, lusterless surface in certain of the arts, as gilding, metal work, glassmaking, etc.

Mat”tock (?), n. [AS. mattuc; cf. W. matog.] An implement for digging and grubbing. The head has two long steel blades, one like an adz and the other like a narrow ax or the point of a pickax.

‘T is you must dig with mattock and with spade.

Shak.

Mat`to*wac”ca (?), n. [Indian name.] (Zoöl.) An American clupeoid fish (Clupea mediocris), similar to the shad in habits and appearance, but smaller and less esteemed for food; — called also hickory shad, tailor shad, fall herring, and shad herring.

Mat”tress (?), n. [OF. materas, F. matelas, LL. matratium; cf. Sp. & Pg. almadraque, Pr. almatrac; all from Ar. ma&tsdot;rah a place where anything is thrown, what is thrown under something, fr. &tsdot;araha to throw.]

1. A quilted bed; a bed stuffed with hair, moss, or other suitable material, and quilted or otherwise fastened. [Written also matress.]

2. (Hydraulic Engin.) A mass of interwoven brush, poles, etc., to protect a bank from being worn away by currents or waves.

Mat”u*rant (?), n. [L. maturans, p. pr. See Maturate.] (Med.) A medicine, or application, which promotes suppuration.

Mat”u*rate (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Maturated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Maturating (?).] [L. maturatus, p. p. of maturare to make ripe, fr. maturus ripe, mature. See Mature, v. & a.] 1. To bring to ripeness or maturity; to ripen.

A tree may be maturated artificially.

Fuller.

2. To promote the perfect suppuration of (an abscess).

Mat”u*rate, v. i. To ripen; to become mature; specifically, to suppurate.

Mat`u*ra”tion (?), n. [L. maturatio a hastening: cf. F. maturation.] The process of bringing, or of coming, to maturity; hence, specifically, the process of suppurating perfectly; the formation of pus or matter.

Mat”u*ra*tive (?), a. [Cf. F. maturatif.] Conducing to ripeness or maturity; hence, conducing to suppuration.

Mat”u*ra*tive, n. (Med.) A remedy promoting maturation; a maturant.

Ma*ture” (?), a. [Compar. Maturer (?); superl. Maturest.] [L. maturus; prob. akin to E. matin.]

1. Brought by natural process to completeness of growth and development; fitted by growth and development for any function, action, or state, appropriate to its kind; full-grown; ripe.

Now is love mature in ear.

Tennison.

How shall I meet, or how accost, the sage,
Unskilled in speech, nor yet mature of age ?

Pope.

2. Completely worked out; fully digested or prepared; ready for action; made ready for destined application or use; perfected; as, a mature plan.

This lies glowing, . . . and is almost mature for the violent breaking out.

Shak.

3. Of or pertaining to a condition of full development; as, a man of mature years.

4. Come to, or in a state of, completed suppuration.

Syn. — Ripe; perfect; completed; prepared; digested; ready. — Mature, Ripe. Both words describe fullness of growth. Mature brings to view the progressiveness of the process; ripe indicates the result. We speak of a thing as mature when thinking of the successive stayes through which it has passed; as ripe, when our attention is directed merely to its state. A mature judgment; mature consideration; ripe fruit; a ripe scholar.

Ma*ture” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Matured (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Maturing.] [See Maturate, Mature.] To bring or hasten to maturity; to promote ripeness in; to ripen; to complete; as, to mature one’s plans. Bacon.

Ma*ture”, v. i. 1. To advance toward maturity; to become ripe; as, wine matures by age; the judgment matures by age and experience.

2. Hence, to become due, as a note.

Ma*ture”ly, adv. 1. In a mature manner; with ripeness; completely.

2. With caution; deliberately. Dryden.

3. Early; soon. [A Latinism, little used] Bentley.

Ma*ture”ness, n. The state or quality of being mature; maturity.

Ma*tur”er (?), n. One who brings to maturity.

Mat`u*res”cent (?), a. [L. maturescens, p. pr. of maturescere to become ripe, v. incho. from maturus. See Mature, a.] Approaching maturity.

Ma*tur”ing (?), a. Approaching maturity; as, maturing fruits; maturing notes of hand.

Ma*tu”ri*ty (?), n. [L. maturitas: cf. F. maturité.]

1. The state or quality of being mature; ripeness; full development; as, the maturity of corn or of grass; maturity of judgment; the maturity of a plan.

2. Arrival of the time fixed for payment; a becoming due; termination of the period a note, etc., has to run.

Mat`u*ti”nal (?), a. [L. matutinalis, matutinus: cf. F. matutinal. See Matin.] Of or pertaining to the morning; early.

Ma*tu”ti*na*ry (?), a. Matutinal. [R.]

Mat”u*tine (?), a. Matutinal. [R.]

Mat”weed` (?), n. (Bot.) A name of several maritime grasses, as the sea sand-reed (Ammophila arundinacea) which is used in Holland to bind the sand of the seacoast dikes (see Beach grass, under Beach); also, the Lygeum Spartum, a Mediterranean grass of similar habit.

Mat”y (?), n. [Etymology uncertain.] A native house servant in India. Balfour (Cyc. of India).

||Matz”oth (?), n. [Heb. matstsōth, pl. of matstsāh unleavened.] A cake of unleavened bread eaten by the Jews at the feast of the Passover.

||Mau*ca”co (?), n. [From the native name.] (Zoöl.) A lemur; — applied to several species, as the White-fronted, the ruffed, and the ring-tailed lemurs.

Maud (?), n. A gray plaid; — used by shepherds in Scotland.

Mau”dle (?), v. t. To throw onto confusion or disorder; to render maudlin. [Obs.]

Maud”lin (?), a. [From Maudlin, a contr. of Magdalen, OE. Maudeleyne, who is drawn by painters with eyes swelled and red with weeping.] 1. Tearful; easily moved to tears; exciting to tears; excessively sentimental; weak and silly. “Maudlin eyes.” Dryden. “Maudlin eloquence.” Roscommon. “A maudlin poetess.” Pope. “Maudlin crowd.” Southey.

2. Drunk, or somewhat drunk; fuddled; given to drunkenness.

Maudlin Clarence in his malmsey butt.

Byron.

{ Maud”lin, Maude”line (?), } n. (Bot.) An aromatic composite herb, the costmary; also, the South European Achillea Ageratum, a kind of yarrow.

Maud”lin*ism (?), n. A maudlin state. Dickens.

Maud”lin*wort` (?), n. (Bot.) The oxeye daisy.

{ Mau”ger, Mau”gre } (m&add;“g&etilde;r), prep. [OF. maugré, malgré, F. malgré. See Mal-, Malice, and Agree.] In spite of; in opposition to; notwithstanding.

A man must needs love maugre his heed.

Chaucer.

This mauger all the world will I keep safe.

Shak.

Mau”gre, v. t. To defy. [Obs.] J. Webster.

Mau”kin (?), n. 1. See Malkin.

2. (Zoöl.) A hare. [Scot.]

Maul (?), n. [See Mall a hammer.] A heavy wooden hammer or beetle. [Written also mall.]

Maul, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mauled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mauling.] 1. To beat and bruise with a heavy stick or cudgel; to wound in a coarse manner.

Meek modern faith to murder, hack, and maul.

Pope.

2. To injure greatly; to do much harm to.

It mauls not only the person misrepreseted, but him also to whom he is misrepresented.

South.

Maule (?), n. (Bot.) The common mallow.

Maul”ing (?), n. A severe beating with a stick, cudgel, or the fist.

Maul”-stick` (?), n. [G. malerstock; maler a painter + stock stick.] A stick used by painters as a rest for the hand while working. [Written also mahl-stick.]

Mau”met (?), n. See Mawmet. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Maunch (?), v. t. To munch. [Obs.]

Maunch (?), n. See Manche.

Maund (?), n. [AS. mand, mond.] A hand basket. [Obs.] Herrick.

Maund, n. [Hind, & Per. man.] An East Indian weight, varying in different localities from 25 to about 82 pounds avoirdupois.

{ Maund (?), Maund”er (?), } v. i. [Cf. F. mendier to beg, E. mendicant.] 1. To beg. [Obs.] B. Jonson. Beau. & Fl.

2. To mutter; to mumble; to grumble; to speak indistinctly or disconnectedly; to talk incoherently.

He was ever maundering by the how that he met a party of scarlet devils.

Sir W. Scott.

Maund”er, v. t. To utter in a grumbling manner; to mutter.

Maund”er, n. A beggar. [Obs.]

Maund”er*er (?), n. One who maunders.

Maun”dril (?), n. [Cf. Mandrel.] (Coal Mining) A pick with two prongs, to pry with.

Maun”dy Thurs”day (?). [OE. maunde a command, OF. mandé, L. mandatum, from mandare to command. See called from the ancient custom of washing the feet of the poor on this day, which was taken to be the fulfillment of the “new commandment,” John xiii. 5, 34.] (Eccl.) The Thursday in Passion week, or next before Good Friday.

Maun”gy (?), a. Mangy. [Obs.] Skelton.

Mau*resque” (?), a. & n. See Moresque.

Maur”ist (?), n. [From Maurus, the favorite disciple of St. Benedict.] A member of the Congregation of Saint Maur, an offshoot of the Benedictines, originating in France in the early part of the seventeenth century. The Maurists have been distinguished for their interest in literature.

Mau`so*le”an (?), a. [L. Mausoleus. See Mausoleum.] Pertaining to a mausoleum; monumental.

Mau`so*le”um (?), n.; pl. E. Mausoleums (#), L. -lea (#). [L. mausoleum, Gr. &?;, fr. &?; Mausolus, king of Caria, to whom Artemisia, his widow, erected a stately monument.] A magnificent tomb, or stately sepulchral monument.

Mau”ther (?), n. [Cf. AS. mægþ a maid.] [Also spelled mawther, mother.] A girl; esp., a great, awkward girl; a wench. [Prov. Eng.]

Mauv`an”i*line (?), n. (Chem.) See Mauve aniline, under Mauve.

Mauve (mōv), n. [F., mallow, L. malva. So named from the similarity of the color to that of the petals of common mallow, Malva sylvestris. See Mallow.] A color of a delicate purple, violet, or lilac.

Mauve aniline (Chem.), a dyestuff produced artificially by the oxidation of commercial aniline, and the first discovered of the so-called coal-tar, or aniline, dyes. It consists of the sulphate of mauveïne, and is a dark brown or bronze amorphous powder, which dissolves to a beatiful purple color. Called also aniline purple, violine, etc.

Mauve”ïne (?), n. (Chem.) An artificial organic base, obtained by oxidizing a mixture of aniline and toluidine, and valuable for the dyestuffs it forms. [Written also mauvine.]

Mauv”ine (?), a. Mauve- colored.

Mav”er*ick (?), n. In the southwestern part of the united States, a bullock or heifer that has not been branded, and is unclaimed or wild; — said to be from Maverick, the name of a cattle owner in Texas who neglected to brand his cattle.

Ma”vis (mā“v&ibreve;s), n. [F. mauvis, Arm. milvid, milfid, milc’hhouid, Corn. melhuez.] (Zoöl.) The European throstle or song thrush (Turdus musicus).

Maw (m&add;), n. [See Mew a gull.] (Zoöl.) A gull.

Maw, n. [OE. mawe, AS. maga stomach; akin to D. maag, OHG. mago, G. magen, Icel. magi, Sw. mage, Dan. mave. √103.] 1. A stomach; the receptacle into which food is taken by swallowing; in birds, the craw; — now used only of the lower animals, exept humorously or in contempt. Chaucer.

Bellies and maws of living creatures.

Bacon.

2. Appetite; inclination. [Obs.]

Unless you had more maw to do me good.

Beau. & Fl.

Fish maw. (Zoöl.) See under Fish.

Maw, n. An old game at cards. Sir A. Weldon.

Mawk (m&add;k), n. [OE. mauk, maðek, Icel. maðkr; akin to Dan. maddik, and E. mad an earthworm. See Mad, n.]

1. A maggot. [Scot.]

2. A slattern; a mawks. [Prov. Eng.]

Maw”kin (?), n. See Malkin, and Maukin.

Mawk”ing*ly (?), adv. Slatternly. [Obs.]

Mawk”ish, a. [Orig., maggoty. See Mawk.] 1. Apt to cause satiety or loathing; nauseous; disgusting.

So sweetly mawkish’, and so smoothly dull.

Pope.

2. Easily disgusted; squeamish; sentimentally fastidious. J. H. Newman.

Mawk”ish*ly, adv. In a mawkish way.

Mawk”ish*ness, n. The quality or state of being mawkish. J. H. Newman.

Mawks (?), n. A slattern; a mawk. [Prov. Eng.]

Mawk”y (?), a. Maggoty. [Prov. Eng.]

Maw”met (?), n. [Contr. fr. Mahomet.] A puppet; a doll; originally, an idol, because in the Middle Ages it was generally believed that the Mohammedans worshiped images representing Mohammed. [Obs.] Wyclif. Beau. & Fl.

Maw”met*ry (?), n. The religion of Mohammed; also, idolatry. See Mawmet. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Maw”mish (?), a. [Prov. E. maum soft, mellow, rotten; cf. OD. molm rotten wood, G. mulm.] Nauseous. [Obs.] L’ Estrange.

Maw”seed` (?), n. [Cf. G. magsamen.] (Bot.) The seed of the opium poppy.

Maw”worm` (?), n. [Maw the belly + worm.] (Zoöl.) (a) Any intestinal worm found in the stomach, esp. the common round worm (Ascaris lumbricoides), and allied species. (b) One of the larvæ of botflies of horses; a bot.

||Max*il”la (?), n.; pl. Maxillæ (#). [L., dim. of mala jaw, jawbone.] 1. (Anat.) (a) The bone of either the upper or the under jaw. (b) The bone, or principal bone, of the upper jaw, the bone of the lower jaw being the mandible. [Now commonly used in this restricted sense.]

2. (Zoöl.) One of the lower or outer jaws of arthropods.

&fist; There are usually two pairs in Crustacea and one pair in insects. In certain insects they are not used as jaws, but may form suctorial organs. See Illust. under Lepidoptera, and Diptera.

{ Max”il*lar (?), Max”il*la*ry (?), } a. [L. maxillaris, fr. maxilla jawbone, jaw: cf. F. maxillaire.] 1. (Anat.) Pertaining to either the upper or the lower jaw, but now usually applied to the upper jaw only. — n. The principal maxillary bone; the maxilla.

2. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to a maxilla.

Max*il”li*form (?), a. [Maxilla + -form: cf. F. maxilliforme.] Having the form, or structure, of a maxilla.

Max*il”li*ped (?), n. [Maxilla + L. pes, pedis, foot.] (Zoöl.) One of the mouth appendages of Crustacea, situated next behind the maxillæ. Crabs have three pairs, but many of the lower Crustacea have but one pair of them. Called also jawfoot, and foot jaw.

Max*il`lo-man*dib”u*lar (?), a. [Maxilla + mandibular.] (Anat.) Pertaining to the maxilla and mandible; as, the maxillo-mandibular nerve.

Max*il`lo-pal”a*tine (?), a. [Maxilla + palatine.] (Anat.) Pertaining to the maxillary and palatine regions of the skull; as, the maxillo- palatine process of the maxilla. Also used as n.

Max*il`lo*tur`bi*nal (?), a. [Maxilla + turbinal.] (Anat.) Pertaining to the maxillary and turbinal regions of the skull. — n. The maxillo-turbinal, or inferior turbinate, bone.

Max”im (?), n. [F. maxime, L. maxima (sc. sententia), the greatest sentence, proposition, or axiom, i. e., of the greatest weight or authority, fem. fr. maximus greatest, superl. of magnus great. See Magnitude, and cf. Maximum.]

1. An established principle or proposition; a condensed proposition of important practical truth; an axiom of practical wisdom; an adage; a proverb; an aphorism.

‘T is their maxim, Love is love’s reward.

Dryden.

2. (Mus.) The longest note formerly used, equal to two longs, or four breves; a large.

Syn. — Axiom; aphorism; apothegm; adage; proverb; saying. See Axiom.

Max`i*mil”ian (?), n. [From the proper name.] A gold coin of Bavaria, of the value of about 13s. 6d. sterling, or about three dollars and a quarter.

Max`i*mi*za”tion (?), n. The act or process of increasing to the highest degree. Bentham.

Max”i*mize (?), v. t. [L. maximus greatest.] To increase to the highest degree. Bentham.

Max”i*mum (?), n.; pl. Maxima (#). [L., neut. from maximus the greatest. See Maxim.] The greatest quantity or value attainable in a given case; or, the greatest value attained by a quantity which first increases and then begins to decrease; the highest point or degree; — opposed to minimum.

Good legislation is the art of conducting a nation to the maximum of happiness, and the minimum of misery.

P. Colquhoun.

Maximum thermometer, a thermometer that registers the highest degree of temperature attained in a given time, or since its last adjustment.

Max”i*mum, a. Greatest in quantity or highest in degree attainable or attained; as, a maximum consumption of fuel; maximum pressure; maximum heat.

May (mā), v. [imp. Might (mīt)] [AS. pres. mæg I am able, pret. meahte, mihte; akin to D. mogen, G. mögen, OHG. mugan, magan, Icel. mega, Goth. magan, Russ. moche. √103. Cf. Dismay, Main strength, Might. The old imp. mought is obsolete, except as a provincial word.] An auxiliary verb qualifying the meaning of another verb, by expressing: (a) Ability, competency, or possibility; — now oftener expressed by can.

How may a man, said he, with idle speech,
Be won to spoil the castle of his health !

Spenser.

For what he [the king] may do is of two kinds; what he may do as just, and what he may do as possible.

Bacon.

For of all sad words of tongue or pen
The saddest are these: “It might have been.”

Whittier.

(b) Liberty; permission; allowance.

Thou mayst be no longer steward.

Luke xvi. 2.

(c) Contingency or liability; possibility or probability.

Though what he learns he speaks, and may advance
Some general maxims, or be right by chance.

Pope.

(d) Modesty, courtesy, or concession, or a desire to soften a question or remark.

How old may Phillis be, you ask.

Prior.

(e) Desire or wish, as in prayer, imprecation, benediction, and the like. “May you live happily.” Dryden.

May be, ∧ It may be, are used as equivalent to possibly, perhaps, by chance, peradventure. See 1st Maybe.

May, n. [Cf. Icel. mær, Goth. mawi; akin to E. maiden. √103.] A maiden. [Obs.] Chaucer.

May, n. [F. Mai, L. Maius; so named in honor of the goddess Maia (Gr. &?;), daughter of Atlas and mother of Mercury by Jupiter.] 1. The fifth month of the year, containing thirty-one days. Chaucer.

2. The early part or springtime of life.

His May of youth, and bloom of lustihood.

Shak.

3. (Bot.) The flowers of the hawthorn; — so called from their time of blossoming; also, the hawthorn.

The palm and may make country houses gay.

Nash.

Plumes that mocked the may.

Tennyson.

4. The merrymaking of May Day. Tennyson.

Italian may (Bot.), a shrubby species of Spiræa (S. hypericifolia) with many clusters of small white flowers along the slender branches. — May apple (Bot.), the fruit of an American plant (Podophyllum peltatum). Also, the plant itself (popularly called mandrake), which has two lobed leaves, and bears a single egg-shaped fruit at the forking. The root and leaves, used in medicine, are powerfully drastic. — May beetle, May bug (Zoöl.), any one of numerous species of large lamellicorn beetles that appear in the winged state in May. They belong to Melolontha, and allied genera. Called also June beetle. — May Day, the first day of May; — celebrated in the rustic parts of England by the crowning of a May queen with a garland, and by dancing about a May pole. — May dew, the morning dew of the first day of May, to which magical properties were attributed. — May flower (Bot.), a plant that flowers in May; also, its blossom. See Mayflower, in the vocabulary. — May fly (Zoöl.), any species of Ephemera, and allied genera; — so called because the mature flies of many species appear in May. See Ephemeral fly, under Ephemeral. — May game, any May-day sport. — May lady, the queen or lady of May, in old May games. — May lily (Bot.), the lily of the valley (Convallaria majalis). — May pole. See Maypole in the Vocabulary. — May queen, a girl or young woman crowned queen in the sports of May Day. — May thorn, the hawthorn.

||Ma”ya (mä“yä), n. (Hindoo Philos.) The name for the doctrine of the unreality of matter, called, in English, idealism; hence, nothingness; vanity; illusion.

May”be (?), adv. [For it may be.] Perhaps; possibly; peradventure.

Maybe the amorous count solicits her.

Shak.

In a liberal and, maybe, somewhat reckless way.

Tylor.

May”be, a. Possible; probable, but not sure. [R.]

Then add those maybe years thou hast to live.

Driden.

May”be, n. Possibility; uncertainty. [R.]

What they offer is mere maybe and shift.

Creech.

May”bird` (?), n. (Zoöl.) (a) The whimbrel; — called also May fowl, May curlew, and May whaap. (b) The knot. [Southern U. S.] (c) The bobolink.

May”bloom` (?), n. (Bot.) The hawthorn.

May”bush` (?), n. (Bot.) The hawthorn.

May”duke` (?), n. [Corrupt. of Médoc, a province in France, where it is supposed to have originated.] A large dark-red cherry of excellent quality.

May”fish` (?), n. (Zoöl.) A common American minnow (Fundulus majalis). See Minnow.

May”flow`er (?), n. (Bot.) In England, the hawthorn; in New England, the trailing arbutus (see Arbutus); also, the blossom of these plants.

May”hap (?), adv. Perhaps; peradventure. [Prov. or Dialectic]

May”hem (?), n. [The same as maim. See Maim.] (Law) The maiming of a person by depriving him of the use of any of his members which are necessary for defense or protection. See Maim.

May”ing (?), n. The celebrating of May Day. “He met her once a-Maying.” Milton.

Ma`yon`naise” (?), n. [F.] A sauce compounded of raw yolks of eggs beaten up with olive oil to the consistency of a sirup, and seasoned with vinegar, pepper, salt, etc.; — used in dressing salads, fish, etc. Also, a dish dressed with this sauce.

May”or (?), n. [OE. maire, F. maire, fr. L. major greater, higher, nobler, compar. of magnus great; cf. Sp. mayor. See Major, and cf. Merino.] The chief magistrate of a city or borough; the chief officer of a municipal corporation. In some American cities there is a city court of which the major is chief judge.

||May”or*al (?), n. [Sp., fr. mayor greater, L. major.] The conductor of a mule team; also, a head shepherd.

May”or*al*ty (?), n. The office, or the term of office, of a mayor.

May”or*ess (?), n. The wife of a mayor.

May”or*ship, n. The office of a mayor.

May”pole` (?), n. A tall pole erected in an open place and wreathed with flowers, about which the rustic May-day sports were had.

May”pop (?), n. [Perh. corrupt. fr. maracock.] (Bot.) The edible fruit of a passion flower, especially that of the North American Passiflora incarnata, an oval yellowish berry as large as a small apple.

May”weed` (?), n. (Bot.) (a) A composite plant (Anthemis Cotula), having a strong odor; dog’s fennel. It is a native of Europe, now common by the roadsides in the United States. (b) The feverfew.

{ Ma*za”ma (?), Ma*za”me (?), } n. (Zoöl.) A goatlike antelope (Haplocerus montanus) which inhabits the Rocky Mountains, frequenting the highest parts; — called also mountain goat.

Maz”ard (?), n. [Cf. F. merise a wild cherry.] (Bot.) A kind of small black cherry.

Maz”ard, n. [Prob. fr. mazer, the head being compared to a large goblet.] The jaw; the head or skull. [Obs.] Shak.

Maz”ard, v. t., To knock on the head. [Obs.]

Maz`a*rine” (?), a. Of or pertaining to Cardinal Mazarin, prime minister of France, 1643-1661.

Mazarine Bible, the first Bible, and perhaps the first complete book, printed with movable metal types; — printed by Gutenberg at Mentz, 1450-55; — so called because a copy was found in the Mazarine Library, at Paris, about 1760. — Mazarine blue, a deep blue color, named in honor of Cardinal Mazarin.

Maz`a*rine”, n. Mazarine blue.

Maz”de*an (?), a. Of or pertaining to Ahura-Mazda, or Ormuzd, the beneficent deity in the Zoroastrian dualistic system; hence, Zoroastrian.

Maz”de*ism (?), n. The Zoroastrian religion.

Maze (?), n. [OE. mase; cf. OE. masen to confuse, puzzle, Norweg. masast to fall into a slumber, masa to be continually busy, prate, chatter, Icel. masa to chatter, dial. Sw. masa to bask, be slow, work slowly and lazily, mas slow, lazy.] 1. A wild fancy; a confused notion. [Obs.] Chaucer.

2. Confusion of thought; perplexity; uncertainty; state of bewilderment.

3. A confusing and baffling network, as of paths or passages; an intricacy; a labyrinth. “Quaint mazes on the wanton green.” Shak.

Or down the tempting maze of Shawford brook.

Wordaworth.

The ways of Heaven are dark and intricate,
Puzzled with mazes, and perplexed with error.

Addison.

Syn. — Labyrinth; intricacy. See Labyrinth.

Maze (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mazed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mazing.] To perplex greatly; to bewilder; to astonish and confuse; to amaze. South.

Maze, v. i. To be bewildered. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Maz”ed*ness (?), n. The condition of being mazed; confusion; astonishment. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Maze”ful (?), a. Mazy. [Obs.] Sir P. Sidney.

Maz”er (?), n. [OE. maser, akin to OD. maser an excrescence on a maple tree, OHG. masar, G. maser spot, Icel. mösurr maple.] A large drinking bowl; — originally made of maple. [Obs.]

Their brimful mazers to the feasting bring.

Drayton.

Ma”zi*ly (?), adv. In a mazy manner.

Ma”zi*ness, n. The state or quality of being mazy.

Maz`o*log”ic*al (?), a. Of or pertaining to mazology.

Ma*zol”o*gist (?), n. One versed in mazology or mastology.

Ma*zol”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. &?; the breast + -logy.] Same as Mastology.

{ Ma*zour”ka (?), Ma*zur”ka (?), } n. A Polish dance, or the music which accompanies it, usually in 3-4 or 3-8 measure, with a strong accent on the second beat.

Ma”zy (?), a. [From Maze.] Perplexed with turns and windings; winding; intricate; confusing; perplexing; embarrassing; as, mazy error. Milton.

To range amid the mazy thicket.

Spenser.

To run the ring, and trace the mazy round.

Dryden.

Me (?), pron. One. See Men, pron. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Me (mē), pers. pron. [AS. mē, dat. & acc., mec, acc. only ; akin to D. mij, G. mich, Icel. & Goth. mik, L. me, Gr. me`, ‘eme`, Skr. mā, mām. √187. Cf. 2d Mine.] The person speaking, regarded as an object; myself; a pronoun of the first person used as the objective and dative case of the pronoum I; as, he struck me; he gave me the money, or he gave the money to me; he got me a hat, or he got a hat for me.

&fist; In methinks, me is properly in the dative case, and the verb is impersonal, the construction being, it appears to me. In early use me was often placed before forms of the verb to be with an adjective; as, me were lief.

Me rather had my heart might frrl your love
Than my unpleased eye see your courtesy.

Shak.

Meach (?), v. i. To skulk; to cower. See Mich.

Mea”cock (?), n. [Prob. fr. meek + cock.] An uxorious, effeminate, or spiritless man. [Obs.] Johnson.

Mead (mēd), n. [OE. mede, AS. meodo; akin to D. mede, G. met, meth, OHG. metu, mitu, Icel. mjöðr, Dan. miöd, Sw. mjöd, Russ. med’, Lith. midus, W. medd, Gr. me`qy wine, Skr. madhu honey, a sweet drink, as adj., sweet. √270. Cf. Metheglin.] 1. A fermented drink made of water and honey with malt, yeast, etc.; metheglin; hydromel. Chaucer.

2. A drink composed of sirup of sarsaparilla or other flavoring extract, and water. It is sometimes charged with carbonic acid gas. [U. S.]

Mead, n. [AS. m&aemacr;d. See Meadow.] A meadow.

A mede
All full of freshe flowers, white and reede.

Chaucer.

To fertile vales and dewy meads
My weary, wandering steps he leads.

Addison.

Mead”ow (?), n. [AS. meady; akin to m&aemacr;d, and to G. matte; prob. also to E. mow. See Mow to cut (grass), and cf. 2d Mead.] 1. A tract of low or level land producing grass which is mown for hay; any field on which grass is grown for hay.

2. Low land covered with coarse grass or rank herbage near rives and in marshy places by the sea; as, the salt meadows near Newark Bay.

Mead”ow, a. Of or pertaining to a meadow; of the nature of a meadow; produced, growing, or living in, a meadow. “Fat meadow ground.” Milton.

&fist; For many names of plants compounded with meadow, see the particular word in the Vocabulary.

Meadow beauty. (Bot.) Same as Deergrass. — Meadow foxtail (Bot.), a valuable pasture grass (Alopecurus pratensis) resembling timothy, but with softer spikes. — Meadow grass (Bot.), a name given to several grasses of the genus Poa, common in meadows, and of great value for nay and for pasture. See Grass. — Meadow hay, a coarse grass, or true sedge, growing in uncultivated swamp or river meadow; — used as fodder or bedding for cattle, packing for ice, etc. [Local, U. S.] — Meadow hen. (Zoöl.) (a) The American bittern. See Stake-driver. (b) The American coot (Fulica). (c) The clapper rail. — Meadow lark (Zoöl.), any species of Sturnella, a genus of American birds allied to the starlings. The common species (S. magna) has a yellow breast with a black crescent. — Meadow mouse (Zoöl.), any mouse of the genus Arvicola, as the common American species A. riparia; — called also field mouse, and field vole. — Meadow mussel (Zoöl.), an American ribbed mussel (Modiola plicatula), very abundant in salt marshes. — Meadow ore (Min.), bog-iron ore , a kind of limonite. — Meadow parsnip. (Bot.) See under Parsnip. — Meadow pink. (Bot.) See under Pink. — Meadow pipit (Zoöl.), a small singing bird of the genus Anthus, as A. pratensis, of Europe. — Meadow rue (Bot.), a delicate early plant, of the genus Thalictrum, having compound leaves and numerous white flowers. There are many species. — Meadow saffron. (Bot.) See under Saffron. — Meadow sage. (Bot.) See under Sage. — Meadow saxifrage (Bot.), an umbelliferous plant of Europe (Silaus pratensis), somewhat resembling fennel. — Meadow snipe (Zoöl.), the common or jack snipe.

{ Mead”ow*sweet` (?), Mead”ow*wort` (?), } n. (Bot.) The name of several plants of the genus Spiræa, especially the white- or pink-flowered S. salicifolia, a low European and American shrub, and the herbaceous S. Ulmaria, which has fragrant white flowers in compound cymes.

Mead”ow*y (?), a. Of or pertaining to meadows; resembling, or consisting of, meadow.

{ Mea”ger, Mea”gre } (?), a. [OE. merge, F. maigre, L. macer; akin to D. & G. mager, Icel. magr, and prob. to Gr. makro`s long. Cf. Emaciate, Maigre.]

1. Destitue of, or having little, flesh; lean.

Meager were his looks;
Sharp misery had worn him to the bones.

Shak.

2. Destitute of richness, fertility, strength, or the like; defective in quantity, or poor in quality; poor; barren; scanty in ideas; wanting strength of diction or affluence of imagery. “Meager soil.” Dryden.

Of secular habits and meager religious belief.

I. Taylor.

His education had been but meager.

Motley.

3. (Min.) Dry and harsh to the touch, as chalk.

Syn. — Thin; lean; lank; gaunt; starved; hungry; poor; emaciated; scanty; barren.

{ Mea”ger, Mea”gre }, v. t. To make lean. [Obs.]

{ Mea”ger*ly, Mea”gre*ly }, adv. Poorly; thinly.

{ Mea”ger*ness, Mea”gre*ness }, n. The state or quality of being meager; leanness; scantiness; barrenness.

Mea”gre (?), n. [F. maigre.] (Zoöl.) A large European sciænoid fish (Sciæna umbra or S. aquila), having white bloodless flesh. It is valued as a food fish. [Written also maigre.]

Meak (?), n. [Cf. AS. mēce sword, OS. māki, Icel. mækir.] A hook with a long handle. [Obs.] Tusser.

Meak”ing, n. [See Meak.] (Naut.) The process of picking out the oakum from the seams of a vessel which is to be recalked.

Meaking iron (Naut.), the tool with which old oakum is picked out of a vessel’s seams.

Meal (mēl), n. [OE. mele, AS. m&aemacr;l part, portion, portion of time; akin to E. meal a repast. Cf. Piecemeal.] A part; a fragment; a portion. [Obs.]

Meal, n. [OE. mel; akin to E. meal a part, and to D. maal time, meal, G. mal time, mahl meal, Icel. māl measure, time, meal, Goth. mēl time, and to E. measure. See Measure.] The portion of food taken at a particular time for the satisfaction of appetite; the quantity usually taken at one time with the purpose of satisfying hunger; a repast; the act or time of eating a meal; as, the traveler has not eaten a good meal for a week; there was silence during the meal.

What strange fish
Hath made his meal on thee ?

Shak.

Meal, n. [OE. mele, AS. melu, melo; akin to D. meel, G. mehl, OHG. melo, Icel. mjöl, SW. mjöl, Dan. meel, also to D. malen to grind, G. mahlen, OHG., OS., & Goth. malan, Icel. mala, W. malu, L. molere, Gr. my`lh mill, and E. mill. √108. Cf. Mill, Mold soil, Mole an animal, Immolate, Molar.]

1. Grain (esp. maize, rye, or oats) that is coarsely ground and unbolted; also, a kind of flour made from beans, pease, etc.; sometimes, any flour, esp. if coarse.

2. Any substance that is coarsely pulverized like meal, but not granulated.

Meal beetle (Zoöl.), the adult of the meal worm. See Meal worm, below. — Meal moth (Zoöl.), a lepidopterous insect (Asopia farinalis), the larvæ of which feed upon meal, flour, etc. — Meal worm (Zoöl.), the larva of a beetle (Tenebrio molitor) which infests granaries, bakehouses, etc., and is very injurious to flour and meal.

Meal, v. t. 1. To sprinkle with, or as with, meal. Shak.

2. To pulverize; as, mealed powder.

Meal”ies (?), n. pl. [From Mealy.] (Bot.) Maize or Indian corn; — the common name in South Africa.

Meal”i*ness (?), n. The quality or state of being mealy.

Meal”-mouthed` (?), a. See Mealy-mouthed.

Meal”time` (?), n. The usual time of eating a meal.

Meal”y (?), a. [Compar. Mealier (?); superl. Mealiest.]

1. Having the qualities of meal; resembling meal; soft, dry, and friable; easily reduced to a condition resembling meal; as, a mealy potato.

2. Overspread with something that resembles meal; as, the mealy wings of an insect. Shak.

Mealy bug (Zoöl.), a scale insect (Coccus adonidum, and related species), covered with a white powderlike substance. It is a common pest in hothouses.

Meal”y-mouthed` (?), a. Using soft words; plausible; affectedly or timidly delicate of speech; unwilling to tell the truth in plain language. “Mealy-mouthed philanthropies.” Tennyson.

She was a fool to be mealy-mouthed where nature speaks so plain.

L’Estrange.

— Meal”y-mouth`ness (#), n.

Mean (mēn), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Meant (m&ebreve;nt); p. pr. & vb. n. Meaning.] [OE. menen, AS. m&aemacr;nan to recite, tell, intend, wish; akin to OS. mēnian to have in mind, mean, D. meenen, G. meinen, OHG. meinan, Icel. meina, Sw. mena, Dan. mene, and to E. mind. √104. See Mind, and cf. Moan.] 1. To have in the mind, as a purpose, intention, etc.; to intend; to purpose; to design; as, what do you mean to do ?

What mean ye by this service ?

Ex. xii. 26.

Ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good.

Gen. 1. 20.

I am not a Spaniard
To say that it is yours and not to mean it.

Longfellow.

2. To signify; to indicate; to import; to denote.

What mean these seven ewe lambs ?

Gen. xxi. 29.

Go ye, and learn what that meaneth.

Matt. ix. 13.

Mean, v. i. To have a purpose or intention. [Rare, except in the phrase to mean well, or ill.] Shak.

Mean (mēn), a. [Compar. Meaner (mēn”&etilde;r); superl. Meanest.] [OE. mene, AS. m&aemacr;ne wicked; akin to mān, a., wicked, n., wickedness, OS. mēn wickedness, OHG. mein, G. meineid perjury, Icel. mein harm, hurt, and perh. to AS. gem&aemacr;ne common, general, D. gemeen, G. gemein, Goth. gamáins, and L. communis. The AS. gem&aemacr;ne prob. influenced the meaning.]

1. Destitute of distinction or eminence; common; low; vulgar; humble. “Of mean parentage.” Sir P. Sidney.

The mean man boweth down, and the great man humbleth himself.

Is. ii. 9.

2. Wanting dignity of mind; low-minded; base; destitute of honor; spiritless; as, a mean motive.

Can you imagine I so mean could prove,
To save my life by changing of my love ?

Dryden.

3. Of little value or account; worthy of little or no regard; contemptible; despicable.

The Roman legions and great Cæsar found
Our fathers no mean foes.

J. Philips.

4. Of poor quality; as, mean fare.

5. Penurious; stingy; close-fisted; illiberal; as, mean hospitality.

&fist; Mean is sometimes used in the formation of compounds, the sense of which is obvious without explanation; as, meanborn, mean-looking, etc.

Syn. — Base; ignoble; abject; beggarly; wretched; degraded; degenerate; vulgar; vile; servile; menial; spiritless; groveling; slavish; dishonorable; disgraceful; shameful; despicable; contemptible; paltry; sordid. See Base.

Mean, a. [OE. mene, OF. meiien, F. moyen, fr. L. medianus that is in the middle, fr. medius; akin to E. mid. See Mid.] 1. Occupying a middle position; middle; being about midway between extremes.

Being of middle age and a mean stature.

Sir. P. Sidney.

2. Intermediate in excellence of any kind.

According to the fittest style of lofty, mean, or lowly.

Milton.

3. (Math.) Average; having an intermediate value between two extremes, or between the several successive values of a variable quantity during one cycle of variation; as, mean distance; mean motion; mean solar day.

Mean distance (of a planet from the sun) (Astron.), the average of the distances throughout one revolution of the planet, equivalent to the semi-major axis of the orbit. — Mean error (Math. Phys.), the average error of a number of observations found by taking the mean value of the positive and negative errors without regard to sign. — Mean-square error, or Error of the mean square (Math. Phys.), the error the square of which is the mean of the squares of all the errors; — called also, especially by European writers, mean error. — Mean line. (Crystallog.) Same as Bisectrix. — Mean noon, noon as determined by mean time. — Mean proportional (between two numbers) (Math.), the square root of their product. — Mean sun, a fictitious sun supposed to move uniformly in the equator so as to be on the meridian each day at mean noon. — Mean time, time as measured by an equable motion, as of a perfect clock, or as reckoned on the supposition that all the days of the year are of a mean or uniform length, in contradistinction from apparent time, or that actually indicated by the sun, and from sidereal time, or that measured by the stars.

Mean, n. 1. That which is mean, or intermediate, between two extremes of place, time, or number; the middle point or place; middle rate or degree; mediocrity; medium; absence of extremes or excess; moderation; measure.

But to speak in a mean, the virtue of prosperity is temperance; the virtue of adversity is fortitude.

Bacon.

There is a mean in all things.

Dryden.

The extremes we have mentioned, between which the wellinstracted Christian holds the mean, are correlatives.

I. Taylor.

2. (Math.) A quantity having an intermediate value between several others, from which it is derived, and of which it expresses the resultant value; usually, unless otherwise specified, it is the simple average, formed by adding the quantities together and dividing by their number, which is called an arithmetical mean. A geometrical mean is the square root of the product of the quantities.

3. That through which, or by the help of which, an end is attained; something tending to an object desired; intermediate agency or measure; necessary condition or coagent; instrument.

Their virtuous conversation was a mean to work the conversion of the heathen to Christ.

Hooker.

You may be able, by this mean, to review your own scientific acquirements.

Coleridge.

Philosophical doubt is not an end, but a mean.

Sir W. Hamilton.

&fist; In this sense the word is usually employed in the plural form means, and often with a singular attribute or predicate, as if a singular noun.

By this means he had them more at vantage.

Bacon.

What other means is left unto us.

Shak.

4. pl. Hence: Resources; property, revenue, or the like, considered as the condition of easy livelihood, or an instrumentality at command for effecting any purpose; disposable force or substance.

Your means are very slender, and your waste is great.

Shak.

5. (Mus.) A part, whether alto or tenor, intermediate between the soprano and base; a middle part. [Obs.]

The mean is drowned with your unruly base.

Shak.

6. Meantime; meanwhile. [Obs.] Spenser.

7. A mediator; a go-between. [Obs.] Piers Plowman.

He wooeth her by means and by brokage.

Chaucer.

By all means, certainly; without fail; as, go, by all means. — By any means, in any way; possibly; at all.

If by any means I might attain to the resurrection of the dead.

Phil. iii. ll.

— By no means, or By no manner of means, not at all; certainly not; not in any degree.

The wine on this side of the lake is by no means so good as that on the other.

Addison.

Me*an”der (?), n. [L. Maeander, orig., a river in Phrygia, proverbial for its many windings, Gr. &?;: cf. F. méandre.] 1. A winding, crooked, or involved course; as, the meanders of the veins and arteries. Sir M. Hale.

While lingering rivers in meanders glide.

Sir R. Blackmore.

2. A tortuous or intricate movement.

3. (Arch.) Fretwork. See Fret.

Me*an”der, v. t. To wind, turn, or twist; to make flexuous. Dryton.

Me*an”der, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Meandered (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Meandering.] To wind or turn in a course or passage; to be intricate.

Five miles meandering with a mazy motion
Through wood and dale the sacred river ran.

Coleridge.

Me*an”dri*an (?), a. [L. Maeandrius: cf. F. méandrien.] Winding; having many turns.

||Me`an*dri”na (?), n. [NL.: cf. F. méandrine.] (Zoöl.) A genus of corals with meandering grooves and ridges, including the brain corals.

{ Me*an”drous (?), Me*an”dry (?), } a. Winding; flexuous.

Mean”ing (?), n. 1. That which is meant or intended; intent; purpose; aim; object; as, a mischievous meaning was apparent.

If there be any good meaning towards you.

Shak.

2. That which is signified, whether by act lanquage; signification; sense; import; as, the meaning of a hint.

3. Sense; power of thinking. [R.]

— Mean”ing*less, a. — Mean”ing*ly, adv.

Mean”ly, adv. [Mean middle.] Moderately. [Obs.]

A man meanly learned himself, but not meanly affectioned to set forward learning in others.

Ascham.

Mean”ly, adv. [From Mean low.] In a mean manner; unworthily; basely; poorly; ungenerously.

While the heaven-born child
All meanly wrapt in the rude manger lies.

Milton.

Would you meanly thus rely
On power you know I must obey ?

Prior.

We can not bear to have others think meanly of them [our kindred].

I. Watts.

Mean”ness, n. 1. The condition, or quality, of being mean; want of excellence; poorness; lowness; baseness; sordidness; stinginess.

This figure is of a later date, by the meanness of the workmanship.

Addison.

2. A mean act; as, to be guilty of meanness. Goldsmith.

Mean”-spir`it*ed (?), a. Of a mean spirit; base; groveling. — Mean”-spir`it*ed*ness, n.

Meant (?), imp. & p. p. of Mean.

{ Mean”time` (?), Mean”while` (?), } n. The intervening time; as, in the meantime (or mean time).

{ Mean”time`, Mean”while`, } adv. In the intervening time; during the interval.

Mear (?), n. A boundary. See Mere. [Obs.]

Mease (?), n. [Cf. G. mass measure.] Five hundred; as, a mease of herrings. [Prov. Eng.]

Mea”sel*ry (?), n. [OE. meselrie, OF. mesellerie. See lst Measle.] Leprosy. [Obs.] R. of Brunne.

Mea”sle (?), n. [OE. mesel, OF. mesel, LL. misellus, L. misellus unfortunate, dim. of miser. See Miser.] A leper. [Obs.] [Written also meazel, and mesel.] Wyclif (Matt. x. 8. ).

Mea”sle, n. (Zoöl.) A tapeworm larva. See 2d Measles, 4.

Mea”sled (?), a. [See 2d Measles.] Infected or spotted with measles, as pork. — Mea”sled*ness, n.

Mea”sles (?), n. [From lst Measle.] Leprosy; also, a leper. [Obs.]

Mea”sles, n.; pl. in form, but used as singular in senses 1, 2, & 3. [D. mazelen; akin to G. masern, pl., and E. mazer, and orig. meaning, little spots. See Mazer.]

1. (Med.) A contagious febrile disorder commencing with catarrhal symptoms, and marked by the appearance on the third day of an eruption of distinct red circular spots, which coalesce in a crescentic form, are slightly raised above the surface, and after the fourth day of the eruption gradually decline; rubeola.

Measles commences with the ordinary symptoms of fever.

Am. Cyc.

2. (Veter. Med.) A disease of cattle and swine in which the flesh is filled with the embryos of different varieties of the tapeworm.

3. A disease of trees. [Obs.]

4. pl. (Zoöl.) The larvæ of any tapeworm (Tænia) in the cysticerus stage, when contained in meat. Called also bladder worms.

Mea”sly (?), a. 1. Infected with measles.

2. (Zoöl.) Containing larval tapeworms; — said of pork and beef.

Meas”ur*a*ble (?), a. [F. mesurable, L. mensurabilis. See Measure, and cf. Mensurable.]

1. Capable of being measured; susceptible of mensuration or computation.

2. Moderate; temperate; not excessive.

Of his diet measurable was he.

Chaucer.

— Meas”ur*a*ble*ness, n. — Meas”ur*a*bly, adv.

Yet do it measurably, as it becometh Christians.

Latimer.

Meas”ure (m&ebreve;zh”&usl;r; 135), n. [OE. mesure, F. mesure, L. mensura, fr. metiri, mensus, to measure; akin to metrum poetical measure, Gr. me`tron, E. meter. Cf. Immense, Mensuration, Mete to measure.] 1. A standard of dimension; a fixed unit of quantity or extent; an extent or quantity in the fractions or multiples of which anything is estimated and stated; hence, a rule by which anything is adjusted or judged.

2. An instrument by means of which size or quantity is measured, as a graduated line, rod, vessel, or the like.

False ells and measures be brought all clean adown.

R. of Gloucester.

3. The dimensions or capacity of anything, reckoned according to some standard; size or extent, determined and stated; estimated extent; as, to take one’s measure for a coat.

The measure thereof is longer than the earth, and broader than the sea.

Job xi. 9.

4. The contents of a vessel by which quantity is measured; a quantity determined by a standard; a stated or limited quantity or amount.

It is like leaven which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal.

Luke xiii. 21.

5. Extent or degree not excessive or beyong bounds; moderation; due restraint; esp. in the phrases, in measure; with measure; without or beyond measure.

Hell hath enlarged herself, and opened her mouth without measure.

Is. v. 14.

6. Determined extent, not to be exceeded; limit; allotted share, as of action, influence, ability, or the like; due proportion.

Lord, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days.

Ps. xxxix. 4.

7. The quantity determined by measuring, especially in buying and selling; as, to give good or full measure.

8. Undefined quantity; extent; degree.

There is a great measure of discretion to be used in the performance of confession.

Jer. Taylor.

9. Regulated division of movement: (a) (Dancing) A regulated movement corresponding to the time in which the accompanying music is performed; but, especially, a slow and stately dance, like the minuet. (b) (Mus.) (1) The group or grouping of beats, caused by the regular recurrence of accented beats. (2) The space between two bars. See Beat, Triple, Quadruple, Sextuple, Compound time, under Compound, a., and Figure. (c) (Poetry) The manner of ordering and combining the quantities, or long and short syllables; meter; rhythm; hence, a foot; as, a poem in iambic measure.

10. (Arith.) A number which is contained in a given number a number of times without a remainder; as in the phrases, the common measure, the greatest common measure, etc., of two or more numbers.

11. A step or definite part of a progressive course or policy; a means to an end; an act designed for the accomplishment of an object; as, political measures; prudent measures; an inefficient measure.

His majesty found what wrong measures he had taken in the conferring that trust, and lamented his error.

Clarendon.

12. The act of measuring; measurement. Shak.

13. pl. (Geol.) Beds or strata; as, coal measures; lead measures.

Lineal, or Long, measure, measure of length; the measure of lines or distances. — Liquid measure, the measure of liquids. — Square measure, the measure of superficial area of surfaces in square units, as inches, feet, miles, etc. — To have hard measure, to have harsh treatment meted out to one; to be harshly or oppressively dealt with. — To take measures, to make preparations; to provide means. — To take one’s measure, to measure one, as for a garment; hence, to form an opinion of one’s disposition, character, ability, etc. — To tread a measure, to dance in the style so called. See 9 (a).

Say to her, we have measured many miles
To tread a measure with her on this grass.

Shak.

Meas”ure, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Measured (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Measuring.] [F. mesurer, L. mensurare. See Measure, n.] 1. To ascertain by use of a measuring instrument; to compute or ascertain the extent, quantity, dimensions, or capacity of, by a certain rule or standard; to take the dimensions of; hence, to estimate; to judge of; to value; to appraise.

Great are thy works, Jehovah, infinite
Thy power! what thought can measure thee?

Milton.

2. To serve as the measure of; as, the thermometer measures changes of temperature.

3. To pass throught or over in journeying, as if laying off and determining the distance.

A true devoted pilgrim is not weary
To measure kingdoms with his feeble steps.

Shak.

4. To adjust by a rule or standard.

To secure a contented spirit, measure your desires by your fortunes, not your fortunes by your desires.

Jer. Taylor.

5. To allot or distribute by measure; to set off or apart by measure; — often with out or off.

With what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.

Matt. vii. 2.

That portion of eternity which is called time, measured out by the sun.

Addison.

To measure swords with one, to try another’s skill in the use of the sword; hence, figuratively, to match one’s abilities against an antagonist’s.

Meas”ure (?), v. i. 1. To make a measurement or measurements.

2. To result, or turn out, on measuring; as, the grain measures well; the pieces measure unequally.

3. To be of a certain size or quantity, or to have a certain length, breadth, or thickness, or a certain capacity according to a standard measure; as, cloth measures three fourths of a yard; a tree measures three feet in diameter.

Meas”ured (?), a. Regulated or determined by a standard; hence, equal; uniform; graduated; limited; moderated; as, he walked with measured steps; he expressed himself in no measured terms. — Meas”ured*ly, adv.

Meas”ure*less (?), a. Without measure; unlimited; immeasurable. — Meas”ure*less*ness, n.

Syn. — Boundless; limitless; endless; unbounded; unlimited; vast; immense; infinite; immeasurable.

Meas”ure*ment (?), n. 1. The act or result of measuring; mensuration; as, measurement is required.

2. The extent, size, capacity, amount. or quantity ascertained by measuring; as, its measurement is five acres.

Meas”ur*er (?), n. One who measures; one whose occupation or duty is to measure commondities in market.

Meas”ur*ing, a. Used in, or adapted for, ascertaining measurements, or dividing by measure.

Measuring faucet, a faucet which permits only a given quantity of liquid to pass each time it is opened, or one by means of which the liquid which passes can be measured. – - Measuring worm (Zoöl.), the larva of any geometrid moth. See Geometrid.

Meat (?), n. [OE. mete, AS. mete; akin to OS. mat, meti, D. met hashed meat, G. mettwurst sausage, OHG. maz food, Icel. matr, Sw. mat, Dan. mad, Goth. mats. Cf. Mast fruit, Mush.] 1. Food, in general; anything eaten for nourishment, either by man or beast. Hence, the edible part of anything; as, the meat of a lobster, a nut, or an egg. Chaucer.

And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, . . . to you it shall be for meat.

Gen. i. 29.

Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you.

Gen. ix. 3.

2. The flesh of animals used as food; esp., animal muscle; as, a breakfast of bread and fruit without meat.

3. Specifically, dinner; the chief meal. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Meat biscuit. See under Biscuit. — Meat earth (Mining), vegetable mold. Raymond. — Meat fly. (Zoöl.) See Flesh fly, under Flesh. — Meat offering (Script.), an offering of food, esp. of a cake made of flour with salt and oil. — To go to meat, to go to a meal. [Obs.] — To sit at meat, to sit at the table in taking food.

Meat, v. t. To supply with food. [Obs.] Tusser.

His shield well lined, his horses meated well.

Chapman.

Me*a”tal (?), a. Of or pertaining to a meatus; resembling a meatus. Owen.

Meat”ed (?), a. 1. Fed; fattened. [Obs.] Tusser.

2. Having (such) meat; — used chiefly in composition; as, thick-meated.

{ Meath, Meathe (?) }, n. [See Mead.] A sweet liquor; mead. [Obs.] Chaucer. Milton.

Meat”i*ness (?), n. Quality of being meaty.

Meat”less, a. Having no meat; without food.

“Leave these beggars meatless.”

Sir T. More.

Me*at”o*scope (?), n. [Meatus + -scope.] (Med.) A speculum for examining a natural passage, as the urethra.

Me*at”o*tome (?), n. [Meatus + Gr. &?; to cut.] (Surg.) An instrument for cutting into the urethra so as to enlarge its orifice.

||Me*a”tus (?), n. sing. & pl.; E. pl. Meatuses (&?;). [L., a going, passage, fr. meare to go.] (Anat.) A natural passage or canal; as, the external auditory meatus. See Illust. of Ear.

Meat”y (?), a. Abounding in meat.

Meaw (?), n. The sea mew. [Obs.] Spenser.

Meaw, v. i. See Mew, to cry as a cat.

Meawl (?), v. i. See Mewl, and Miaul.

Mea”zel (?), n. See 1st Measle. [Obs.]

Meaz”ling (?), a. Falling in small drops; mistling; mizzing. [Obs.] Arbuthnot.

Me”bles (?), n. pl. See Moebles. [Obs.]

||Me*ca”te (?), n. [Sp.] A rope of hair or of maguey fiber, for tying horses, etc. [Southwestern U. S.]

Mec`ca*wee” (?), a. Of or pertaining to Mecca, in Arabia. — n. A native or inhabitant of Mecca.

Me*chan”ic (?), n. [F. mécanique mechanics. See Mechanic, a.] 1. The art of the application of the laws of motion or force to construction. [Obs.]

2. A mechanician; an artisan; an artificer; one who practices any mechanic art; one skilled or employed in shaping and uniting materials, as wood, metal, etc., into any kind of structure, machine, or other object, requiring the use of tools, or instruments.

An art quite lost with our mechanics.

Sir T. Browne.

Me*chan”ic (m&esl;*kăn”&ibreve;k), a. [F. mécanique, L. mechanicus, Gr. mhchaniko`s, fr. mhchanh` a machine. See Machine.] 1. Having to do with the application of the laws of motion in the art of constructing or making things; of or pertaining to mechanics; mechanical; as, the mechanic arts. “These mechanic philosophers.” Ray.

Mechanic slaves,
With greasy aprons, rules, and hammers.

Shak.

2. Of or pertaining to a mechanic or artificer, or to the class of artisans; hence, rude; common; vulgar.

To make a god, a hero, or a king
Descend to a mechanic dialect.

Roscommon.

Sometimes he ply’d the strong, mechanic tool.

Thomson.

3. Base. [Obs.] Whitlock.

Me*chan”ic*al (?), a. [From Mechanic, a.]

1. Pertaining to, governed by, or in accordance with, mechanics, or the laws of motion; pertaining to the quantitative relations of force and matter, as distinguished from mental, vital, chemical, etc.; as, mechanical principles; a mechanical theory; mechanical deposits.

2. Of or pertaining to a machine or to machinery or tools; made or formed by a machine or with tools; as, mechanical precision; mechanical products.

We have also divers mechanical arts.

Bacon.

3. Done as if by a machine; uninfluenced by will or emotion; proceeding automatically, or by habit, without special intention or reflection; as, mechanical singing; mechanical verses; mechanical service.

4. Made and operated by interaction of forces without a directing intelligence; as, a mechanical universe.

5. Obtained by trial, by measurements, etc.; approximate; empirical. See the 2d Note under Geometric.

Mechanical effect, effective power; useful work exerted, as by a machine, in a definite time. — Mechanical engineering. See the Note under Engineering. — Mechanical maneuvers (Mil.), the application of mechanical appliances to the mounting, dismounting, and moving of artillery. Farrow. – - Mechanical philosophy, the principles of mechanics applied to the investigation of physical phenomena. — Mechanical powers, certain simple instruments, such as the lever and its modifications (the wheel and axle and the pulley), the inclined plane with its modifications (the screw and the wedge), which convert a small force acting through a great space into a great force acting through a small space, or vice versa, and are used separately or in combination. — Mechanical solution (Math.), a solution of a problem by any art or contrivance not strictly geometrical, as by means of the ruler and compasses, or other instruments.

Me*chan”ic*al, n. A mechanic. [Obs.] Shak.

Me*chan”ic*al*ize (?), v. t. To cause to become mechanical.

Me*chan”ic*al*ly, adv. In a mechanical manner.

Me*chan”ic*al*ness, n. The state or quality of being mechanical.

Mech`a*ni”cian (?), n. [Cf. F. mécanicien. See Mechanic.] One skilled in the theory or construction of machines; a machinist. Boyle.

Me*chan`i*co-chem”ic*al (?), a. Pertaining to, connected with, or dependent upon, both mechanics and chemistry; — said especially of those sciences which treat of such phenomena as seem to depend on the laws both of mechanics and chemistry, as electricity and magnetism.

Me*chan”ics (?), n. [Cf. F. mécanique.] That science, or branch of applied mathematics, which treats of the action of forces on bodies.

&fist; That part of mechanics which considers the action of forces in producing rest or equilibrium is called statics; that which relates to such action in producing motion is called dynamics. The term mechanics includes the action of forces on all bodies, whether solid, liquid, or gaseous. It is sometimes, however, and formerly was often, used distinctively of solid bodies only: The mechanics of liquid bodies is called also hydrostatics, or hydrodynamics, according as the laws of rest or of motion are considered. The mechanics of gaseous bodies is called also pneumatics. The mechanics of fluids in motion, with special reference to the methods of obtaining from them useful results, constitutes hydraulics.

Animal mechanics (Physiol.), that portion of physiology which has for its object the investigation of the laws of equilibrium and motion in the animal body. The most important mechanical principle is that of the lever, the bones forming the arms of the levers, the contractile muscles the power, the joints the fulcra or points of support, while the weight of the body or of the individual limbs constitutes the weight or resistance. — Applied mechanics, the principles of abstract mechanics applied to human art; also, the practical application of the laws of matter and motion to the construction of machines and structures of all kinds.

Mech”an*ism (?), n. [Cf. F. mécanisme, L. mechanisma. See Mechanic.] 1. The arrangement or relation of the parts of a machine; the parts of a machine, taken collectively; the arrangement or relation of the parts of anything as adapted to produce an effect; as, the mechanism of a watch; the mechanism of a sewing machine; the mechanism of a seed pod.

2. Mechanical operation or action.

He acknowledges nothing besides matter and motion; so that all must be performed either by mechanism or accident.

Bentley.

3. (Kinematics) An ideal machine; a combination of movable bodies constituting a machine, but considered only with regard to relative movements.

Mech”an*ist, n. 1. A maker of machines; one skilled in mechanics.

2. One who regards the phenomena of nature as the effects of forces merely mechanical.

Mech”an*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mechanized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mechanizing (?).] [Cf. F. méchaniser.] To cause to be mechanical. Shelley.

Mech”an*o*graph (?), n. [Gr. mhchanh` machine + -graph.] One of a number of copies of anything multiplied mechanically.

Mech`an*o*graph`ic (m&ebreve;k`an*&osl;*grăf”&ibreve;k), a. 1. Treating of mechanics. [R.]

2. Written, copied, or recorded by machinery; produced by mechanography; as, a mechanographic record of changes of temperature; mechanographic prints.

Mech`an*og”ra*phist (-&obreve;g”r&adot;*f&ibreve;st), n. An artist who, by mechanical means, multiplies copies of works of art.

Mech`an*og”ra*phy (?), n. The art of mechanically multiplying copies of a writing, or any work of art.

Mech”an*ur`gy (?), n. [Gr. mhchanh` machine + the root of &?; work.] That branch of science which treats of moving machines.

Mech”i*tar*ist (?), n. [From Mechitar, an Armenian., who founded the congregation in the early part of the eighteenth century.] (Eccl. Hist.) One of a religious congregation of the Roman Catholic Church devoted to the improvement of Armenians.

Mech”lin (?), n. A kind of lace made at, or originating in, Mechlin, in Belgium.

Me*cho”a*can (?), n. A species of jalap, of very feeble properties, said to be obtained from the root of a species of Convolvulus (C. Mechoacan); — so called from Michoacan, in Mexico, whence it is obtained.

Meck*e”li*an (?), a. (Anat.) Pertaining to, or discovered by, J. F. Meckel, a German anatomist.

Meckelian cartilage, the cartilaginous rod which forms the axis of the mandible; — called also Meckel’s cartilage.

Mec”o*nate (?), n. [Cf. F. méconate.] (Chem.) A salt of meconic acid.

Me*con”ic (?), a. [Gr. &?; belonging to the poppy, fr. &?; the poppy: cf. F. méconique.] Pertaining to, or obtained from, the poppy or opium; specif. (Chem.), designating an acid related to aconitic acid, found in opium and extracted as a white crystalline substance.

Me*con”i*dine (?), n. (Chem) An alkaloid found in opium, and extracted as a yellow amorphous substance which is easily decomposed.

||Mec`o*nid”i*um (?), n. [NL., dim. of Gr. &?; a poppy. So called in allusion to the shape of the seed capsules of the poppy.] (Zoöl.) A kind of gonophore produced by hydroids of the genus Gonothyræa. It has tentacles, and otherwise resembles a free medusa, but remains attached by a pedicel.

Mec”o*nin (?), n. [Cf. F. méconine.] (Chem.) A substance regarded as an anhydride of meconinic acid, existing in opium and extracted as a white crystalline substance. Also erroneously called meconina, meconia, etc., as though it were an alkaloid.

Mec`o*nin”ic (?), a. (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, an acid which occurs in opium, and which may be obtained by oxidizing narcotine.

||Me*co”ni*um (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?;, fr. &?; poppy.] (Med.) (a) Opium. [Obs.] (b) The contents of the fetal intestine; hence, first excrement.

Med”al (?), n. [F. médaille, It. medaglia, fr. L. metallum metal, through (assumed) LL. metalleus made of metal. See Metal, and cf. Mail a piece of money.] A piece of metal in the form of a coin, struck with a device, and intended to preserve the remembrance of a notable event or an illustrious person, or to serve as a reward.

Med”al, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Medaled (?), or Medalled; p. pr. & vb. n. Medaling or Medalling.] To honor or reward with a medal. “Medaled by the king.” Thackeray.

Med”al*et (?), n. A small medal.

Med”al*ist, n. [Cf. F. médailliste, It. medaglista.] [Written also medallist.]

1. A person that is skilled or curious in medals; a collector of medals. Addison.

2. A designer of medals. Macaulay.

3. One who has gained a medal as the reward of merit.

Me*dal”lic (?), a. Of or pertaining to a medal, or to medals. “Our medallic history.” Walpole.

Me*dal”lion (?), n. [F. médaillion, It. medaglione, augm. of medaglia. See Medal.]

1. A large medal or memorial coin.

2. A circular or oval (or, sometimes, square) tablet bearing a figure or figures represented in relief.

Med”al*ur`gy (?), n. [Medal + the root of Gr. &?; work.] The art of making and striking medals and coins. [Written also medallurgy.]

Med”dle` (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Meddled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Meddling (?).] [OE. medlen to mix, OF. medler, mesler, F. mêler, LL. misculare, a dim. fr. L. miscere to mix. √271. See Mix, and cf. Medley, Mellay.]

1. To mix; to mingle. [Obs.]

More to know
Did never meddle with my thoughts.

Shak.

2. To interest or engage one’s self; to have to do; — in a good sense. [Obs.] Barrow.

Study to be quiet, and to meddle with your own business.

Tyndale.

3. To interest or engage one’s self unnecessarily or impertinently, to interfere or busy one’s self improperly with another’s affairs; specifically, to handle or distrub another’s property without permission; — often followed by with or in.

Why shouldst thou meddle to thy hurt?

2 Kings xiv. 10.

The civil lawyers . . . have meddled in a matter that belongs not to them.

Locke.

To meddle and make, to intrude one’s self into another person’s concerns. [Archaic] Shak.

Syn. — To interpose; interfere; intermeddle.

Med”dle, v. t. To mix; to mingle. [Obs.] Chaucer.

“Wine meddled with gall.”

Wyclif (Matt. xxvii. 34).

Med”dler (?), n. One who meddles; one who interferes or busies himself with things in which he has no concern; an officious person; a busybody.

Med”dle*some (?), a. Given to meddling; apt to interpose in the affairs of others; officiously intrusive. — Med”dle*some*ness, n.

Med”dling (?), a. Meddlesome. Macaulay.

Med”dling*ly, adv. In a meddling manner.

Mede (?), n. A native or inhabitant of Media in Asia.

Mede, n. See lst & 2d Mead, and Meed. [Obs.]

||Me”di*a (?), n., pl. of Medium.

||Me”di*a, n.; pl. Mediæ (-ē). [NL., fr. L. medius middle.] (Phonetics) One of the sonant mutes β, δ, γ (b, d, g), in Greek, or of their equivalents in other languages, so named as intermediate between the tenues, π, τ, κ (p, t, k), and the aspiratæ (aspirates) φ, θ, χ (ph or f, th, ch). Also called middle mute, or medial, and sometimes soft mute.

Me”di*a*cy (?), n. The state or quality of being mediate. Sir W. Hamilton.

Me`di*æ“val (?), a. [L. medius middle + aevum age. See Middle, and Age.] Of or relating to the Middle Ages; as, mediæval architecture. [Written also medieval.]

Me`di*æ“val*ism (?), n. The method or spirit of the Middle Ages; devotion to the institutions and practices of the Middle Ages; a survival from the Middle Ages. [Written also medievalism.]

Me`di*æ“val*ist, n. One who has a taste for, or is versed in, the history of the Middle Ages; one in sympathy with the spirit or forms of the Middle Ages. [Written also medievalist.]

Me`di*æ“val*ly, adv. In the manner of the Middle Ages; in accordance with mediævalism.

Me`di*æ“vals (?), n. pl. The people who lived in the Middle Ages. Ruskin.

Me”di*al (?), a. [L. medialis, fr. medius middle: cf. F. médial. See Middle.] Of or pertaining to a mean or average; mean; as, medial alligation.

Me”di*al, n. (Phonetics) See 2d Media.

||Me”di*a*lu”na (?), n. [Sp. media luna half-moon.] (Zoöl.) See Half- moon.

Me”di*an (?), a. [L. medianus, fr. medius middle. See Medial.] 1. Being in the middle; running through the middle; as, a median groove.

2. (Zoöl.) Situated in the middle; lying in a plane dividing a bilateral animal into right and left halves; — said of unpaired organs and parts; as, median coverts.

Median line. (a) (Anat.) Any line in the mesial plane; specif., either of the lines in which the mesial plane meets the surface of the body. (b) (Geom.) The line drawn from an angle of a triangle to the middle of the opposite side; any line having the nature of a diameter. — Median plane (Anat.), the mesial plane. — Median point (Geom.), the point where the three median lines of a triangle mutually intersect.

Me”di*an, n. (Geom.) A median line or point.

Me”di*ant (?), n. [L. medians, p. p. of mediare to halve: cf. It. mediante, F. médiante.] (Mus.) The third above the keynote; — so called because it divides the interval between the tonic and dominant into two thirds.

Me`di*as*ti”nal (?), a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to a mediastinum.

{ Me`di*as”tine (?), ||Me`di*as*ti”num (?), } n. [NL. mediastinum, fr. L. medius middle; cf. mediastinus helper, a menial servant, LL. mediastinus equiv. to medius: cf F. médiastin.] (Anat.) A partition; a septum; specifically, the folds of the pleura (and the space included between them) which divide the thorax into a right and left cavity. The space included between these folds of the pleura, called the mediastinal space, contains the heart and gives passage to the esophagus and great blood vessels.

Me”di*ate (?), a. [L. mediatus, p. p. of mediare, v. t., to halve, v. i., to be in the middle. See Mid, and cf. Moiety.] 1. Being between the two extremes; middle; interposed; intervening; intermediate. Prior.

2. Acting by means, or by an intervening cause or instrument; not direct or immediate; acting or suffering through an intervening agent or condition.

3. Gained or effected by a medium or condition. Bacon.

An act of mediate knowledge is complex.

Sir W. Hamilton.

Me”di*ate (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Mediated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mediating.] [LL. mediatus, p. p. of mediare to mediate. See Mediate, a.]

1. To be in the middle, or between two; to intervene. [R.]

2. To interpose between parties, as the equal friend of each, esp. for the purpose of effecting a reconciliation or agreement; as, to mediate between nations.

Me”di*ate, v. t. 1. To effect by mediation or interposition; to bring about as a mediator, instrument, or means; as, to mediate a peace.

2. To divide into two equal parts. [R.] Holder.

Me”di*ate*ly (?), adv. In a mediate manner; by a secondary cause or agent; not directly or primarily; by means; — opposed to immediately.

God worketh all things amongst us mediately.

Sir W. Raleigh.

The king grants a manor to A, and A grants a portion of it to B. In this case. B holds his lands immediately of A, but mediately of the king.

Blakstone.

Me”di*ate*ness, n. The state of being mediate.

Me`di*a”tion (?), n. [OE. mediacioun, F. médiation. See Mediate, a.] 1. The act of mediating; action or relation of anything interposed; action as a necessary condition, means, or instrument; interposition; intervention.

The soul [acts] by the mediation of these passions.

South.

2. Hence, specifically, agency between parties at variance, with a view to reconcile them; entreaty for another; intercession. Bacon.

Me”di*a*tive (?), a. Pertaining to mediation; used in mediation; as, mediative efforts. Beaconsfield.

Me`di*at`i*za”tion (?), n. [Cf. F. médiatisation.] The act of mediatizing.

Me”di*a*tize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mediatized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mediatizing.] [Cf. F. médiatiser.] To cause to act through an agent or to hold a subordinate position; to annex; — specifically applied to the annexation during the former German empire of a smaller German state to a larger, while allowing it a nominal sovereignty, and its prince his rank.

The misfortune of being a mediatized prince.

Beaconsfield.

Me”di*a`tor (?), n. [L. mediator: cf. E. médiateur.] One who mediates; especially, one who interposes between parties at variance for the purpose of reconciling them; hence, an intercessor.

For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.

1 Tim. ii. 5.

Me`di*a*to”ri*al (?), a. Of or pertaining to a mediator, or to mediation; mediatory; as, a mediatorial office. — Me`di*a*to”ri*al*ly, adv.

My measures were . . . healing and mediatorial.

Burke.

Me”di*a`tor*ship (?), n. The office or character of a mediator.

Me”di*a*to*ry (?), a. Mediatorial.

{ Me`di*a”tress (?), Me`di*a*“trix (?), } n. [L. mediatrix, f. of mediator: cf. F. médiatrice.] A female mediator.

Med”ic (?), n. [L. medica, Gr. &?; (sc. &?;) a kind of clover introduced from Media, from &?; Median.] (Bot.) A leguminous plant of the genus Medicago. The black medic is the Medicago lupulina; the purple medic, or lucern, is M. sativa.

Med”ic, a. [L. medicus.] Medical. [R.]

Med”i*ca*ble (?), a. [L. medicabilis, from medicare, medicari, to heal, fr. medicus physician. See Medical.] Capable of being medicated; admitting of being cured or healed.

Med”ic*al (?), a. [LL. medicalis, L. medicus belonging to healing, fr. mederi to heal; cf. Zend madha medical science, wisdom, Gr. &?; to learn, E. mind: cf. F. médical.]

1. Of, pertaining to, or having to do with, the art of healing disease, or the science of medicine; as, the medical profession; medical services; a medical dictionary; medical jurisprudence.

2. Containing medicine; used in medicine; medicinal; as, the medical properties of a plant.

Med”ic*al*ly, adv. In a medical manner; with reference to healing, or to the principles of the healing art.

Med”i*ca*ment (?), n. [L. medicamentum, fr. medicare, medicari, to heal: cf. F. médicament. See Medicable.] Anything used for healing diseases or wounds; a medicine; a healing application.

Med`ica*men”tal (?), a. Of or pertaining to medicaments or healing applications; having the qualities of medicaments. — Med`ica*men”tal*ly, adv.

Med”i*cas`ter (?), n. [Cf. F. médicastre. See Medical.] A quack. [R.] Whitlock.

Med”i*cate (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Medicated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Medicating (?).] [L. medicatus, p. p. of medicare, medicari. See Medicable.]

1. To tincture or impregnate with anything medicinal; to drug. “Medicated waters.” Arbuthnot.

2. To treat with medicine.

Med`i*ca”tion (?), [L. medicatio: cf. F. médication.] The act or process of medicating.

Med”i*ca*tive (?), a. Medicinal; acting like a medicine.

Med`i*ce”an (?), a. Of or relating to the Medici, a noted Italian family; as, the Medicean Venus.

Medicean planets (Astron.), a name given by Galileo to the satellites of Jupiter.

Me*dic”i*na*ble (?), a. Medicinal; having the power of healing. [Obs.] Shak.

Me*dic”i*nal (?), a. [L. medicinalis: cf. F. médicinal. See Medicine.] 1. Having curative or palliative properties; used for the cure or alleviation of bodily disorders; as, medicinal tinctures, plants, or springs.

Drop tears as fast as the Arabian trees
Their medicinal gum.

Shak.

2. Of or pertaining to medicine; medical.

Me*dic”i*nal*ly, adv. In a medicinal manner.

Med”i*cine (?), n. [L. medicina (sc. ars), fr. medicinus medical, fr. medicus: cf. F. médecine. See Medical.] 1. The science which relates to the prevention, cure, or alleviation of disease.

2. Any substance administered in the treatment of disease; a remedial agent; a remedy; physic.

By medicine, life may be prolonged.

Shak.

3. A philter or love potion. [Obs.] Shak.

4. [F. médecin.] A physician. [Obs.] Shak.

Medicine bag, a charm; — so called among the North American Indians, or in works relating to them. — Medicine man (among the North American Indians), a person who professes to cure sickness, drive away evil spirits, and regulate the weather by the arts of magic. — Medicine seal, a small gem or paste engraved with reversed characters, to serve as a seal. Such seals were used by Roman physicians to stamp the names of their medicines.

Med”i*cine, v. t. To give medicine to; to affect as a medicine does; to remedy; to cure. “Medicine thee to that sweet sleep.” Shak.

Med`i*co-le”gal (?), a. Of or pertaining to law as affected by medical facts.

Med`i*com”mis*sure (?), n. [L. medius middle + E. commissure.] (Anat.) A large transverse commissure in the third ventricle of the brain; the middle or soft commissure. B. G. Wildex.

||Med`i*cor”nu (?), n.; pl. Medicornua (#). [NL., fr. L. medius middle + cornu horn.] (Anat.) The middle or inferior horn of each lateral ventricle of the brain. B. G. Wilder.

Med”ics (?), n. Science of medicine. [Obs.]

Me*di”e*ty (?), n. [L. medietas.] The middle part; half; moiety. [Obs.] Sir T. Browne.

{ Me`di*e”val, Me`di*e”val*ism, Me`di*e”val*ist }. Same as Medi&?;val, Medi&?;valism, etc.

Me*di”na ep”och (?). [From Medina in New York.] (Geol.) A subdivision of the Niagara period in the American upper Silurian, characterized by the formations known as the Oneida conglomerate, and the Medina sandstone. See the Chart of Geology.

Me*di”no (m&esl;*dē“n&osl;), n. Same as Para.

Me”di*o`cral (?), a. Mediocre. [R.]

Me”di*o`cre (mē“d&ibreve;*ō`k&etilde;r), a. [F. médiocre, L. mediocris, fr. medius middle. See Mid.] Of a middle quality; of but a moderate or low degree of excellence; indifferent; ordinary. ” A very mediocre poet.” Pope.

Me”di*o`cre, n. 1. A mediocre person. [R.]

2. A young monk who was excused from performing a portion of a monk’s duties. Shipley.

Me”di*o`crist (?), n. A mediocre person. [R.]

Me`di*oc”ri*ty (?), n. [F. médiocrité, L. mediocritas.]

1. The quality of being mediocre; a middle state or degree; a moderate degree or rate. “A mediocrity of success.” Bacon.

2. Moderation; temperance. [Obs.] Hooker.

Me`di*o*sta*pe”di*al (?), a. [L. medius middle + E. stapedial.] (Anat.) Pertaining to that part of the columella of the ear which, in some animals, connects the stapes with the other parts of the columella. — n. The mediostapedial part of the columella.

Me`di*ox”u*mous (?), a. [L. medioxumus middlemost.] Intermediate. [Obs.] Dr. H. More.

Med”i*tance (?), n. Meditation. [Obs.]

Med”i*tate (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Meditated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Meditating.] [L. meditatus, p. p. of meditari to meditate; cf. Gr. &?; to learn, E. mind.] To keep the mind in a state of contemplation; to dwell on anything in thought; to think seriously; to muse; to cogitate; to reflect. Jer. Taylor.

In his law doth he meditate day and night.

Ps. i. 2.

Med”i*tate, v. t. 1. To contemplate; to keep the mind fixed upon; to study. “Blessed is the man that doth meditate good things.” Ecclus. xiv. 20.

2. To purpose; to intend; to design; to plan by revolving in the mind; as, to meditate a war.

I meditate to pass the remainder of life in a state of undisturbed repose.

Washington.

Syn. — To consider; ponder; weigh; revolve; study. — To Meditate, Contemplate, Intend. We meditate a design when we are looking out or waiting for the means of its accomplishment; we contemplate it when the means are at hand, and our decision is nearly or quite made. To intend is stronger, implying that we have decided to act when an opportunity may offer. A general meditates an attack upon the enemy; he contemplates or intends undertaking it at the earliest convenient season.

Med`i*ta”tion (?), n. [OE. meditacioun, F. méditation, fr. L. meditatio.] 1. The act of meditating; close or continued thought; the turning or revolving of a subject in the mind; serious contemplation; reflection; musing.

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in thy sight.

Ps. xix. 14.

2. Thought; — without regard to kind. [Obs.]

With wings as swift
As meditation or the thoughts of love.

Shak.

Med”i*ta`tist, n. One who is given to meditation.

Med”i*ta*tive (?), a. [L. meditativus: cf. F. méditatif.] Disposed to meditate, or to meditation; as, a meditative man; a meditative mood. — Med”i*ta*tive*ly, adv. — Med”i*ta*tive*ness, n.

Med`i*ter*ra”ne*an (?), a. [L. mediterraneus; medius middle + terra land. See Mid, and Terrace.]

1. Inclosed, or nearly inclosed, with land; as, the Mediterranean Sea, between Europe and Africa.

2. Inland; remote from the ocean. [Obs.]

Cities, as well mediterranean as maritime.

Holland.

3. Of or pertaining to the Mediterranean Sea; as, Mediterranean trade; a Mediterranean voyage.

Med`i*ter*ra”ne*ous (?), a. Inland. Sir T. Browne.

Me”di*um (?), n.; pl. L. Media (#), E. Mediums (#). [L. medium the middle, fr. medius middle. See Mid, and cf. Medius.] 1. That which lies in the middle, or between other things; intervening body or quantity. Hence, specifically: (a) Middle place or degree; mean.

The just medium . . . lies between pride and abjection.

L’Estrange.

(b) (Math.) See Mean. (c) (Logic) The mean or middle term of a syllogism; that by which the extremes are brought into connection.

2. A substance through which an effect is transmitted from one thing to another; as, air is the common medium of sound. Hence: The condition upon which any event or action occurs; necessary means of motion or action; that through or by which anything is accomplished, conveyed, or carried on; specifically, in animal magnetism, spiritualism, etc., a person through whom the action of another being is said to be manifested and transmitted.

Whether any other liquors, being made mediums, cause a diversity of sound from water, it may be tried.

Bacon.

I must bring together
All these extremes; and must remove all mediums.

Denham.

3. An average. [R.]

A medium of six years of war, and six years of peace.

Burke.

4. A trade name for printing and writing paper of certain sizes. See Paper.

5. (Paint.) The liquid vehicle with which dry colors are ground and prepared for application.

Circulating medium, a current medium of exchange, whether coin, bank notes, or government notes. — Ethereal medium (Physics), the ether. — Medium of exchange, that which is used for effecting an exchange of commodities — money or current representatives of money.

Me”di*um, a. Having a middle position or degree; mean; intermediate; medial; as, a horse of medium size; a decoction of medium strength.

Me”di*um-sized` (?), a. Having a medium size; as, a medium-sized man.

||Me”di*us (?), n.; pl. Medii (#). [NL., fr. L. medius middle. See Medium.] (Anat.) The third or middle finger; the third digit, or that which corresponds to it.

Med”lar (?), n. [OE. medler medlar tree, OF. meslier, F. néflier, L. mespilum, mespilus, Gr. &?;, &?;. Cf. Naseberry.] A tree of the genus Mespilus (M. Germanica); also, the fruit of the tree. The fruit is something like a small apple, but has a bony endocarp. When first gathered the flesh is hard and austere, and it is not eaten until it has begun to decay.

Japan medlar (Bot.), the loquat. See Loquat. — Neapolitan medlar (Bot.), a kind of thorn tree (Cratægus Azarolus); also, its fruit.

Med”le (?), v. t. [See Meddle.] To mix; to mingle; to meddle. [Written also medly.] [Obs.] Chaucer.

Med”ley (?), n.; pl. Medleys (#). [OE. medlee, OF. meslée, medlée, mellée, F. mêlée. See Meddle, and cf. MelÉe, Mellay.] 1. A mixture; a mingled and confused mass of ingredients, usually inharmonious; a jumble; a hodgepodge; — often used contemptuously.

This medley of philosophy and war.

Addison.

Love is a medley of endearments, jars,
Suspicions, reconcilements, wars.

W. Walsh.

2. The confusion of a hand to hand battle; a brisk, hand to hand engagement; a mêlée. [Obs.] Holland.

3. (Mus.) A composition of passages detached from several different compositions; a potpourri.

&fist; Medley is usually applied to vocal, potpourri to instrumental, compositions.

4. A cloth of mixed colors. Fuller.

Med”ley, a. 1. Mixed; of mixed material or color. [Obs.] “A medlé coat.” Chaucer.

2. Mingled; confused. Dryden.

Med”ly (?), v. t. See Medle. Johnson.

||Mé`doc” (?), n. [Cf. Mayduke.] A class of claret wines, including several varieties, from the district of Médoc in the department of Gironde.

Med”re*gal (?), n. (Zoöl.) See Bonito, 3.

Med”rick (?), n. [Etymol. uncertain.] (Zoöl.) A species of gull or tern. [Prov.] Lowell.

Me*dul”la (?), n. [L.] 1. Marrow; pith; hence, essence. [Obs.] Milton.

2. (Anat.) The marrow of bones; the deep or inner portion of an organ or part; as, the medulla, or medullary substance, of the kidney; specifically, the medula oblongata.

3. (Bot.) A soft tissue, occupying the center of the stem or branch of a plant; pith.

||Medulla oblongata. [L., oblong medulla] (Anat.), the posterior part of the brain connected with the spinal cord. It includes all the hindbrain except the cerebellum and pons, and from it a large part of the cranial nerves arise. It controls very largely respiration, circulation, swallowing, and other functions, and is the most vital part of the brain; — called also bulb of the spinal cord. See Brain.

Me*dul”lar (?), a. See Medullary.

Med”ul*la*ry (?), a. [L. medullaris, fr. medulla marrow: cf. F. médullaire.] 1. (Anat.) (a) Pertaining to, consisting of, or resembling, marrow or medulla. (b) Pertaining to the medula oblongata.

2. (Bot.) Filled with spongy pith; pithy.

Medullary groove (Anat.), a groove, in the epiblast of the vertebrate blastoderm, the edges of which unite, making a tube (the medullary canal) from which the brain and spinal cord are developed. — Medullary rays (Bot.), the rays of cellular tissue seen in a transverse section of exogenous wood, which pass from the pith to the bark. — Medullary sheath (Anat.), the layer of white semifluid substance (myelin), between the primitive sheath and axis cylinder of a medullated nerve fiber.

Me*dul”la*ted (?), a. (Anat.) Furnished with a medulla or marrow, or with a medullary sheath; as, a medullated nerve fiber.

Me*dul”lin (?), n. [Cf. F. médulline.] (Bot. Chem.) A variety of lignin or cellulose found in the medulla, or pith, of certain plants. Cf. Lignin, and Cellulose.

||Me*du”sa (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?;.] 1. (Class. Myth.) The Gorgon; or one of the Gorgons whose hair was changed into serpents, after which all who looked upon her were turned into stone.

2. [pl. Medusae (&?;).] (Zoöl.) Any free swimming acaleph; a jellyfish.

&fist; The larger medusæ belong to the Discophora, and are sometimes called covered-eyed medusæ; others, known as naked-eyed medusæ, belong to the Hydroidea, and are usually developed by budding from hydroids. See Discophora, Hydroidea, and Hydromedusa.

Medusa bud (Zoöl.), one of the buds of a hydroid, destined to develop into a gonophore or medusa. See Athecata, and Gonotheca. — Medusa’s head. (a) (Zoöl.) An astrophyton. (b) (Astron.) A cluster of stars in the constellation Perseus. It contains the bright star Algol.

Me*du”si*an (?), n. (Zoöl.) A medusa.

Me*du”si*form (?), a. [Medusa + -form.] (Zoöl.) Resembling a medusa in shape or structure.

Me*du”soid (?), a. [Medusa + -oid.] (Zoöl.) Like a medusa; having the fundamental structure of a medusa, but without a locomotive disk; — said of the sessile gonophores of hydroids. — n. A sessile gonophore. See Illust. under Gonosome.

Meech (mēch), v. i. See Mich. [Obs. or Colloq.]

Meed (mēd), n. [OE. mede, AS. mēd, meord; akin to OS. mēda, OHG. miata, mieta, G. miethe hire, Goth. mizdō reward, Bohem. & Russ. mzda, Gr. mistho`s, Skr. mīdha. √276.] 1. That which is bestowed or rendered in consideration of merit; reward; recompense.

A rosy garland was the victor’s meed.

Spenser.

2. Merit or desert; worth.

My meed hath got me fame.

Shak.

3. A gift; also, a bride. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Meed, v. t. 1. To reward; to repay. [Obs.] Waytt.

2. To deserve; to merit. [Obs.] Heywood.

Meed”ful (?), a. Worthy of meed, reward, or recompense; meritorious. “Meedful works.” Wiclif.

Meed”ful*ly, adv. According to merit; suitably.

Meek (mēk), a. [Compar. Meeker (-&etilde;r); superl. Meekest.] [OE. mek, meoc; akin to Icel. mj&?;kr mild, soft, Sw. mjuk, Dan. myg, D. muik, Goth. mukamōdei gentleness.] 1. Mild of temper; not easily provoked or orritated; patient under injuries; not vain, or haughty, or resentful; forbearing; submissive.

Now the man Moses was very meek.

Num. xii. 3.

2. Evincing mildness of temper, or patience; characterized by mildness or patience; as, a meek answer; a meek face. “Her meek prayer.” Chaucer.

Syn. — Gentle; mild; soft; yielding; pacific; unassuming; humble. See Gentle.

{ Meek, Meek”en (-‘n) }, v. t. To make meek; to nurture in gentleness and humility. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Meek”ly, adv. In a meek manner. Spenser.

Meek”ness, n. The quality or state of being meek.

Meer (mēr), a. Simple; unmixed. See Mere, a. [Obs.]

Meer, n. See Mere, a lake.

Meer, n. A boundary. See Mere.

||Meer”kat (mēr”kăt), n. [D.] (Zoöl.) A South African carnivore (Cynictis penicillata), allied to the ichneumons.

Meer”schaum (mēr”sh&add;m; 277), n. [G., lit., sea foam; meer sea + schaum foam; but it perh. is a corruption of the Tartaric name myrsen. Cf. Mere a lake, and Scum.] 1. (Min.) A fine white claylike mineral, soft, and light enough when in dry masses to float in water. It is a hydrous silicate of magnesia, and is obtained chiefly in Asia Minor. It is manufacturd into tobacco pipes, cigar holders, etc. Also called sepiolite.

2. A tobacco pipe made of this mineral.

Meet (mēt), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Met (m&ebreve;t); p. pr. & vb. n. Meeting.] [OE. meten, AS. mētan, fr. mōt, gemōt, a meeting; akin to OS. mōtian to meet, Icel. mæta, Goth. gamōtjan. See Moot, v. t.] 1. To join, or come in contact with; esp., to come in contact with by approach from an opposite direction; to come upon or against, front to front, as distinguished from contact by following and overtaking.

2. To come in collision with; to confront in conflict; to encounter hostilely; as, they met the enemy and defeated them; the ship met opposing winds and currents.

3. To come into the presence of without contact; to come close to; to intercept; to come within the perception, influence, or recognition of; as, to meet a train at a junction; to meet carriages or persons in the street; to meet friends at a party; sweet sounds met the ear.

His daughter came out to meet him.

Judg. xi. 34.

4. To perceive; to come to a knowledge of; to have personal acquaintance with; to experience; to suffer; as, the eye met a horrid sight; he met his fate.

Of vice or virtue, whether blest or curst,
Which meets contempt, or which compassion first.

Pope.

5. To come up to; to be even with; to equal; to match; to satisfy; to ansver; as, to meet one’s expectations; the supply meets the demand.

To meet half way, literally, to go half the distance between in order to meet (one); hence, figuratively, to yield or concede half of the difference in order to effect a compromise or reconciliation with.

Meet, v. t. 1. To come together by mutual approach; esp., to come in contact, or into proximity, by approach from opposite directions; to join; to come face to face; to come in close relationship; as, we met in the street; two lines meet so as to form an angle.

O, when meet now
Such pairs in love and mutual honor joined !

Milton.

2. To come together with hostile purpose; to have an encounter or conflict.

Weapons more violent, when next we meet,
May serve to better us and worse our foes.

Milton.

3. To assemble together; to congregate; as, Congress meets on the first Monday of December.

They . . . appointed a day to meet together.

2. Macc. xiv. 21.

4. To come together by mutual concessions; hence, to agree; to harmonize; to unite.

To meet with. (a) To light upon; to find; to come to; — often with the sense of unexpectedness.

We met with many things worthy of observation.

Bacon.

(b) To join; to unite in company. Shak. (c) To suffer unexpectedly; as, to meet with a fall; to meet with a loss. (d) To encounter; to be subjected to.

Prepare to meet with more than brutal fury
From the fierce prince.

Rowe.

(e) To obviate. [Obs.] Bacon.

Meet, n. An assembling together; esp., the assembling of huntsmen for the hunt; also, the persons who so assemble, and the place of meeting.

Meet, a. [OE. mete fitting, moderate, scanty, AS. m&aemacr;te moderate; akin to gemet fit, meet, metan to mete, and G. mässig moderate, gemäss fitting. See Mete.] Suitable; fit; proper; appropriate; qualified; convenient.

It was meet that we should make merry.

Luke xv. 32.

To be meet with, to be even with; to be equal to. [Obs.]

Meet (mēt), adv. Meetly. [Obs.] Shak.

Meet”en (mēt“‘n), v. t. To render fit. [R.]

Meet”er (mēt”&etilde;r), n. One who meets.

Meeth (mēth), n. Mead. See Meathe. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Meet”ing, n. 1. A coming together; an assembling; as, the meeting of Congress.

2. A junction, crossing, or union; as, the meeting of the roads or of two rivers.

3. A congregation; a collection of people; a convention; as, a large meeting; an harmonious meeting.

4. An assembly for worship; as, to attend meeting on Sunday; — in England, applied distinctively and disparagingly to the worshiping assemblies of Dissenters.

Syn. — Conference; assembly; company; convention; congregation; junction; confluence; union.

Meet”ing*house` (?), n. A house used as a place of worship; a church; — in England, applied only to a house so used by Dissenters.

Meet”ly, adv. Fitly; suitably; properly.

Meet”ness, n. Fitness; suitableness; propriety.

{ Meg- (m&ebreve;g-), Meg”a (m&ebreve;g”&adot;- ), Meg”a*lo- (l&osl;) }. [Gr. me`gas, gen. mega`loy, great.] Combining forms signifying: (a) Great, extended, powerful; as, megascope, megacosm. (b) (Metric System, Elec., Mech., etc.) A million times, a million of; as, megameter, a million meters; megafarad, a million farads; megohm, a million ohms.

{ Meg`a*ce*phal”ic (m&ebreve;g`&adot;*s&esl;*făl”&ibreve;k), Meg`a*ceph”a*lous (s&ebreve;f”&adot;*lŭs) }, a. [Mega + Gr. kefalh` head.] (Biol.) Large headed; — applied to animals, and to plants when they have large flower heads.

||Me*gac”e*ros (m&esl;*găs”&esl;*r&obreve;s), n. [NL., fr. Gr. me`gas great + ke`ras horn.] (Paleon.) The Irish elk.

Meg”a*chile (?), n. [Mega- + Gr. &?; lip.] (Zoöl.) A leaf-cutting bee of the genus Megachilus. See Leaf cutter, under Leaf.

Meg”a*cosm (?), n. [Mega- + Gr. &?; world.] See Macrocosm. Croft.

Meg`a*cou`lomb” (?), n. [Mega- + coulomb.] (Elec.) A million coulombs.

Meg”a*derm (?), n. [Mega- + Gr. &?; skin.] (Zoöl.) Any one of several species of Old World blood-sucking bats of the genus Megaderma.

Meg”a*dyne (?), n. [Mega- + dyne.] (Physics) One of the larger measures of force, amounting to one million dynes.

Meg”a*far`ad (?), n. [Mega- + farad.] (Elec.) One of the larger measures of electrical capacity, amounting to one million farads; a macrofarad.

Meg”a*lerg (?), n. [Megalo- + erg.] (Physics) A million ergs; a megerg.

Meg`a*le”sian (?), a. [L. Megalesius, fr. Gr. Mega`lh the Great, a surname of Cybele, the Magna Mater.] Pertaining to, or in honor of, Cybele; as, the Megalesian games at Rome.

Meg`a*leth”o*scope (?), n. [Mega- + alethoscope.] An optical apparatus in which pictures are viewed through a large lens with stereoptical effects. It is often combined with the stereoscope.

Meg”a*lith (?), n. [Mega- + - lith; cf. F. mégalithe.] A large stone; especially, a large stone used in ancient building. — Meg`a*lith”ic (#), a.

Meg”a*lo- (?). See Meg-.

Meg”a*lo*cyte (?), n. [Megalo- + Gr. &?; a hollow vessel.] (Physiol.) A large, flattened corpuscle, twice the diameter of the ordinary red corpuscle, found in considerable numbers in the blood in profound anæmia.

Meg`a*lo*ma”ni*a (?), n. [NL., fr. megalo- + mania.] (Pathol.) A form of mental alienation in which the patient has grandiose delusions.

||Meg`a*lon”yx (?), n. [NL., from Gr. me`gas, mega`lh, great + ‘o`nyx claw.] (Paleon.) An extinct quaternary mammal, of great size, allied to the sloth.

Meg`a*loph”o*nous (m&ebreve;g`&adot;*l&obreve;f”&osl;*nŭs), a. [Megalo- + Gr. fwnh` voice.] Having a loud voice.

Meg`a*lop”o*lis (-l&obreve;p”&osl;*l&ibreve;s), n. [NL., fr. Gr. megalo`polis; me`gas, mega`lh, great + po`lis city.] A chief city; a metropolis. [R.]

Meg”a*lops (m&ebreve;g”&adot;*l&obreve;ps), n. [NL., fr. Gr. me`gas, - a`loy, large + ‘w`ps eye.] (Zoöl.) 1. A larva, in a stage following the zoëa, in the development of most crabs. In this stage the legs and abdominal appendages have appeared, the abdomen is relatively long, and the eyes are large. Also used adjectively.

2. A large fish; the tarpum.

Meg`a*lop”sy*chy (?), n. [Megalo- + Gr. &?; soul, mind.] Greatness of soul. [Obs. & R.]

{ Meg”a*lo*saur` (?), ||Meg`a*lo*sau”rus (?), } n. [NL. megalosaurus, fr. Gr. me`gas, mega`lh, great + say^ros lizard: cf. F. mégalosaure.] (Paleon.) A gigantic carnivorous dinosaur, whose fossil remains have been found in England and elsewhere.

Me*gam”e*ter (?), n. [Mega- + -meter: cf. F. mégamètre.] (Physics) 1. An instrument for determining longitude by observation of the stars.

2. A micrometer. [R.] Knight.

{ Meg”a*me`ter, Meg”a*me`tre } (?), n. [Mega- + meter, metre, n., 2.] In the metric system, one million meters, or one thousand kilometers.

Meg`am`père” (?), n. [Mega- + ampère.] (Elec.) A million ampères.

Meg”a*phone (?), n. [Mega- + Gr. fwnh` voice.] A device to magnify sound, or direct it in a given direction in a greater volume, such as a very large funnel used as an ear trumpet or as a speaking trumpet.

||Me*gaph”y*ton (?), n. [NL., from Gr. me`gas great + fyto`n plant.] (Paleon.) An extinct genus of tree ferns with large, two-ranked leaves, or fronds.

Meg”a*pode (?), n. [Mega- + Gr. poy`s, podo`s, foot.] (Zoöl.) Any one of several species of large-footed, gallinaceous birds of the genera Megapodius and Leipoa, inhabiting Australia and other Pacific islands. See Jungle fowl (b) under Jungle, and Leipoa.

Me*gap”o*lis (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. me`gas great + po`lis city.] A metropolis. [Obs.] Sir T. Herbert.

{ Me*ga”ri*an (?), Me*gar”ic (?), } a. Belonging, or pertaining, to Megara, a city of ancient Greece.

Megarian, or Megaric, school, a school of philosophy established at Megara, after the death of Socrates, by his disciples, and remarkable for its logical subtlety.

Meg”a*scope (?), n. [Mega- + -scope: cf. F. mégascope.] A modification of the magic lantern, used esp. for throwing a magnified image of an opaque object on a screen, solar or artificial light being used. [archaic]

Meg”a*seme (?), a. [Mega- + Gr. &?; sing, mark: cf. F. mégasème.] (Anat.) Having the orbital index relatively large; having the orbits narrow transversely; — opposed to microseme.

{ Me”gass” (?), Me*gasse” }, n. See Bagasse.

Meg”as*thene (?), n. [Gr. me`gas great + sthe`nos strength.] (Zoöl.) One of a group which includes the higher orders of mammals, having a large size as a typical characteristic.

Meg`as*then”ic (?), a. (Zoöl.) Having a typically large size; belonging to the megasthenes.

Meg”a*stome (?), n. [Gr. me`gas great + sto`ma mouth.] (Zoöl.) One of a group of univalve shells, having a large aperture or mouth.

{ Meg”a*there (?), ||Meg`a*the”ri*um (?), } n. [NL. megatherium, fr. Gr. me`gas great + thyri`on beast.] (Paleon.) An extinct gigantic quaternary mammal, allied to the ant-eaters and sloths. Its remains are found in South America.

Meg`a*the”roid (?), n. [Megatherium + -oid.] (Paleon.) One of a family of extinct edentates found in America. The family includes the megatherium, the megalonyx, etc.

Meg`a*volt” (?), n. [Mega- + volt.] (Elec.) One of the larger measures of electro-motive force, amounting to one million volts.

Meg`a*we”ber (?), n. [Mega- + weber.] (Elec.) A million webers.

Meg”erg` (?), n. [Mega- + erg.] (Physics) One of the larger measures of work, amounting to one million ergs; — called also megalerg.

{ Me*gilp” (?), Me*gilph” (?) }, n. (Paint.) A gelatinous compound of linseed oil and mastic varnish, used by artists as a vehicle for colors. [Written also magilp, and magilph.]

Meg”ohm” (?), n. [Mega- + ohm.] (Elec.) One of the larger measures of electrical resistance, amounting to one million ohms.

Me”grim (?), n. [OE. migrim, migrene, F. migraine, LL. hemigrania, L. hemicrania, hemicranium, Gr. “hmikrani`a; “hmi- half + krani`on skull. See Hemi- and Cranium, and cf. Hemicrania, Migraine.] 1. A kind of sick or nervous headache, usually periodical and confined to one side of the head.

2. A fancy; a whim; a freak; a humor; esp., in the plural, lowness of spirits.

These are his megrims, firks, and melancholies.

Ford.

3. pl. (Far.) A sudden vertigo in a horse, succeeded sometimes by unconsciousness, produced by an excess of blood in the brain; a mild form of apoplexy. Youatt.

Me”grim, n. [Etymol. uncertain.] (Zoöl.) The British smooth sole, or scaldfish (Psetta arnoglossa).

Mei*bo”mi*an (?), a. (Anat.) Of, pertaining to, or discovered by, Meibomius.

Meibomian glands, the slender sebaceous glands of the eyelids, which discharge, through minute orifices in the edges of the lids, a fatty secretion serving to lubricate the adjacent parts.

Meine (?), v. t. See Menge.

{ Mein”e, Mein”y, (&?;), } n. [OF. maisniée, maisnie. See Menial.] 1. A family, including servants, etc.; household; retinue; train. [Obs.] Chaucer. Shak.

2. Company; band; army. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mei”o*cene (?), a. (Geol.) See Miocene.

Mei”o*nite (?), n. [Gr. mei`wn smaller. So called in a allusion to the low pyramids of the crystals.] (Min.) A member of the scapolite group, occuring in glassy crystals on Monte Somma, near Naples.

||Mei*o”sis (m&isl;*ō“s&ibreve;s), n. [NL., fr. Gr. mei`wsis, fr. meioy^n to make smaller, from mei`wn. See Meionite.] (Rhet.) Diminution; a species of hyperbole, representing a thing as being less than it really is.

Mei`o*stem”o*nous (?), a. [Gr. mei`wn smaller + &?; warp, thread.] (Bot.) Having fever stamens than the parts of the corolla.

||Meis”ter*sing`er (?), n. [G.] See Mastersinger.

Mekh”i*tar*ist (?), n. (Eccl. Hist.) See Mechitarist.

Me*lac”o*nite (?), n. [Gr. me`las black + &?; dust.] (Min.) An earthy black oxide of copper, arising from the decomposition of other ores.

{ ||Me*la”da (?), ||Me*la”do (?), } n. [Sp., prop. p. p. of melar to sugar, candy, fr. L. mel honey. See Molasses.] A mixture of sugar and molasses; crude sugar as it comes from the pans without being drained.

||Me*læ“na (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. me`las, m., me`laina, f., black.] (Med.) A discharge from the bowels of black matter, consisting of altered blood.

Mel”ain (?), n. [See Melæna.] The dark coloring matter of the liquid of the cuttlefish.

Me*lai”no*type (?), n. See Melanotype.

Me”lam (mē“lăm), n. [Cf. F. mélam.] (Chem.) A white or buff-colored granular powder, C_6H_9N_11, obtained by heating ammonium sulphocyanate.

Me*lam”ine (?), n. (Chem.) A strong nitrogenous base, C_3H_6N_6, produced from several cyanogen compounds, and obtained as a white crystalline substance, — formerly supposed to be produced by the decomposition of melam. Called also cyanuramide.

Mel”am*pode (?), n. [Gr. melampo`dion; of uncertain origin.] The black hellebore. [Obs.] Spenser.

{ Mel`am*py”rin (?), Mel`am*py”rite (?), } n. [NL. Melampyrum cowwheat; Gr. me`las black + pyro`s wheat.] (Chem.) The saccharine substance dulcite; — so called because found in the leaves of cowwheat (Melampyrum). See Dulcite.

||Mel`a*næ“mi*a (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. me`las, -anos, black + a”i^ma blood.] (Med.) A morbid condition in which the blood contains black pigment either floating freely or imbedded in the white blood corpuscles.

Me*lan”a*gogue (?), n. [Gr. me`las, -anos, black + &?; leading, driving, &?; to lead.] (Med.) A medicine supposed to expel black bile or choler. [Obs.]

||Mel`an*cho”li*a (?), n. [L. See Melancholy.] (Med.) A kind of mental unsoundness characterized by extreme depression of spirits, ill-grounded fears, delusions, and brooding over one particular subject or train of ideas.

Mel`an*cho”li*an (?), n. A person affected with melancholy; a melancholic. [Obs.] Dr. J. Scott.

Mel”an*chol`ic (?), a. [L. melancholicus, Gr. &?;: cf. F. mélancholique.] Given to melancholy; depressed; melancholy; dejected; unhappy.

Just as the melancholic eye
Sees fleets and armies in the sky.

Prior.

Mel”an*chol`ic, n. [Obs.] 1. One affected with a gloomy state of mind. J. Spenser.

2. A gloomy state of mind; melancholy. Clarendon.

Mel”an*chol`i*ly (?), adv. In a melancholy manner.

Mel”an*chol`i*ness, n. The state or quality of being melancholy. Hallywell.

Mel`an*cho”li*ous (?), a. [Cf. OF. melancholieux.] Melancholy. [R.] Milton.

Mel”an*chol*ist (?), n. One affected with melancholy or dejection. [Obs.] Glanvill.

Mel”an*cho*lize (?), v. i. To become gloomy or dejected in mind. Barrow.

Mel”an*cho*lize, v. t. To make melancholy.

Mel”an*chol*y (?), n. [OE. melancolie, F. mélancolie, L. melancholia, fr. Gr. &?;; me`las, -anos, black + &?; gall, bile. See Malice, and 1st Gall.]

1. Depression of spirits; a gloomy state continuing a considerable time; deep dejection; gloominess. Shak.

2. Great and continued depression of spirits, amounting to mental unsoundness; melancholia.

3. Pensive maditation; serious thoughtfulness. [Obs.] “Hail, divinest Melancholy !” Milton.

4. Ill nature. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mel”an*chol*y, a. 1. Depressed in spirits; dejected; gloomy dismal. Shak.

2. Producing great evil and grief; causing dejection; calamitous; afflictive; as, a melancholy event.

3. Somewhat deranged in mind; having the jugment impaired. [Obs.] Bp. Reynolds.

4. Favorable to meditation; somber.

A pretty, melancholy seat, well wooded and watered.

Evelin.

Syn. — Gloomy; sad; dispirited; low-spirited; downhearted; unhappy; hypochondriac; disconsolate; heavy, doleful; dismal; calamitous; afflictive.

Mel`a*ne”sian (?), a. [Gr. me`las, -anos, black + &?; island. Melanesia was so called from the dark complexion of the natives.] Of or pertaining to Melanesia.

||Mé`lange” (?), n. [F. See Mell, Meddle.] A mixture; a medley.

Me*la”ni*an (?), n. (Zoöl.) One of a family of fresh-water pectinibranchiate mollusks, having a turret-shaped shell.

Me*lan”ic (?), a. [Gr. me`las, -anos, black.] 1. Melanotic.

2. (Ethnol.) Of or pertaining to the black-haired races. Prichard.

Me*lan”i*line (?), n. (Chem.) A complex nitrogenous hydrocarbon obtained artificially (as by the action of cyanogen chloride on aniline) as a white, crystalline substance; — called also diphenyl guanidin.

Mel”a*nin (?), n. [Gr. me`las, -anos, black.] (Physiol.) A black pigment found in the pigment-bearing cells of the skin (particularly in the skin of the negro), in the epithelial cells of the external layer of the retina (then called fuscin), in the outer layer of the choroid, and elsewhere. It is supposed to be derived from the decomposition of hemoglobin.

Mel”a*nism (m&ebreve;l”&adot;*n&ibreve;z’m), n. [Gr. me`las, -anos, black.]

1. An undue development of dark-colored pigment in the skin or its appendages; — the opposite of albinism.

2. (Med.) A disease; black jaundice. See Melæna.

Mel`a*nis”tic (?), a. Affected with melanism; of the nature of melanism.

Mel”a*nite (?), n. [Gr. me`las, -anos, black: cf. F. mélanite.] (Min.) A black variety of garnet.

||Mel`a*noch”ro*i (?), n. pl. [NL. See Melanochroic.] (Ethnol.) A group of the human race, including the dark whites.

Mel`a*no*chro”ic (?), a. [Gr. melana`chroos; me`las, -anos, black + chroa` color.] Having a dark complexion; of or pertaining to the Melanochroi.

Mel`a*no*chro”ite (?), n. [See Melanochroic.] (Min.) A mineral of a red, or brownish or yellowish red color. It is a chromate of lead; — called also phœnicocroite.

Mel`a*noc”o*mous (?), a. [Gr. me`las, -anos, black + &?; hair.] Having very dark or black hair; black-haired. Prichard.

||Mel`a*nor*rhœ“a (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. me`las, -anos, black + &?; to flow.] (Bot.) An East Indian genus of large trees. Melanorrhœa usitatissima is the lignum-vitæ of Pegu, and yields a valuable black varnish.

Me*lan”o*scope (?), n. [Gr. me`las, -anos, black + -scope.] (Opt.) An instrument containing a combination of colored glasses such that they transmit only red light, so that objects of other colors, as green leaves, appear black when seen through it. It is used for viewing colored flames, to detect the presence of potassium, lithium, etc., by the red light which they emit.

||Mel`a*no”sis (?), [NL., fr. Gr. &?; a growing black, fr. me`las, -anos, black.] (Med.) The morbid deposition of black matter, often of a malignant character, causing pigmented tumors.

Me*lan”o*sperm (?), n. [Gr. me`las, -anos, black + spe`rma seed.] (Bot.) An alga of any kind that produces blackish spores, or seed dust. The melanosperms include the rockweeds and all kinds of kelp. — Mel`a*no*sper”mous (#), a.

Mel`a*not”ic (?), a. Melanistic.

Me*lan”o*type (?), n. [Gr. me`las, -anos, black + -type.] (Photog.) A positive picture produced with sensitized collodion on a smooth surface of black varnish, coating a thin plate of iron; also, the process of making such a picture. [Written also melainotype.]

Me*lan”ter*ite (?), n. (Min.) A hydrous sulphate of iron of a green color and vitreous luster; iron vitriol.

Mel”a*nure (?), n. [NL. melanurus, fr. Gr. me`las, -anos, black + o’ura` tail.] (Zoöl.) A small fish of the Mediterranean; a gilthead. See Gilthead (a).

Mel`a*nu”ric (?), a. [Melam + urea.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, a complex nitrogenous acid obtained by decomposition of melam, or of urea, as a white crystalline powder; — called also melanurenic acid.

Mel”a*phyre (?), n. [F., fr. Gr. me`las, -anos, black + porphyre porphyry.] (Min.) Any one of several dark-colored augitic, eruptive rocks allied to basalt.

||Me*las”ma (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; black spot.] (Med.) A dark discoloration of the skin, usually local; as, Addison’s melasma, or Addison’s disease. — Me*las”mic (#), a.

Me*las”ses (?), n. See Molasses.

Me*las”sic (?), a. [See Molasses.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, an acid obtained from molasses or glucose, and probably identical with saccharic acid. See Saccharic.

||Me*las”to*ma (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. me`las black + sto`ma mouth.] (Bot.) A genus of evergreen tropical shrubs; — so called from the black berries of some species, which stain the mouth.

Mel`a*sto*ma”ceous (?), a. (Bot.) Belonging to the order of which Melastoma is the type.

Mel”chite (?), n. [Heb. melek king.] (Eccl. Hist.) One of a sect, chiefly in Syria and Egypt, which acknowledges the authority of the pope, but adheres to the liturgy and ceremonies of the Eastern Church.

Mel`e*a”grine (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the genus Meleagris.

||Mel`e*a”gris (?), n. [L., the Guinea fowl.] (Zoöl.) A genus of American gallinaceous birds, including the common and the wild turkeys.

||Mê`lée” (m&asl;`l&asl;”), n. [F., fr. mêler to mix. See Meddle, Mell, and cf. Mellay.] A fight in which the combatants are mingled in one confused mass; a hand to hand conflict; an affray.

||Me*le”na (?), n. (Med.) See Melæna.

Mel”ene (?), n. [Melissic + ethylene.] (Chem.) An unsaturated hydrocarbon, C_30H_60, of the ethylene series, obtained from beeswax as a white, scaly, crystalline wax; — called also melissene, and melissylene.

Mel”e*nite (?), n. [Gr. me`li honey.] An explosive of great destructive power; — so called from its color, which resembles honey.

Mel”e*tin (?), n. (Chem.) See Quercitin.

Me*lez”i*tose` (?), n. [F. mélèze the larch + melitose.] (Chem.) A variety of sugar, isomeric with sucrose, extracted from the manna of the larch (Larix). [Written also melicitose.]

Me`li*a”ceous (?), a. (Bot.) Pertaining to a natural order (Meliacæ) of plants of which the genus Melia is the type. It includes the mahogany and the Spanish cedar.

{ Mel`i*be”an (?), Mel`i*b&?;“an }, a. [From L. Meliboeus, one of the interlocutors in Virgil’s first Eclogue.] (Rhet.) Alternately responsive, as verses.

Mel”ic (?), [Gr. &?;, fr. &?; song.] Of or pertaining to song; lyric; tuneful.

Me*lic”er*ous (?), a. [L. meliceris a kind of tumor, fr. Gr. &?;; me`li honey + &?; wax.] (Med.) Consisting of or containing matter like honey; — said of certain encysted tumors.

Mel”ic grass` (?). (Bot.) A genus of grasses (Melica) of little agricultural importance.

Mel`i*co*toon” (?), n. (Bot.) See Melocoton.

Me*lic”ra*to*ry (?), n. [Gr. meli`kraton.] A meadlike drink. [Obs.]

Mel”i*lite (m&ebreve;l”&ibreve;*līt), n. [Gr. me`li honey + -lite; cf. F. mélilithe.] (Min.) A mineral occurring in small yellow crystals, found in the lavas (melilite basalt) of Vesuvius, and elsewhere. [Written also mellilite.]

Mel”i*lot (-l&obreve;t), n. [F. mélilot, L. melilotus, fr. Gr. &?;, &?;, a kind of clover containing honey; me`li honey + &?; lotus.] (Bot.) Any species of Melilotus, a genus of leguminous herbs having a vanillalike odor; sweet clover; hart’s clover. The blue melilot (Melilotus cærulea) is used in Switzerland to give color and flavor to sapsago cheese.

Mel`i*lot”ic (?), a. (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or obtained from, sweet clover or melilot; specifically, designating an acid of the aromatic series, obtained from melilot as a white crystalline substance.

Mel”io*rate (mēl”y&osl;*rāt), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Meliorated (- rā`t&ebreve;d); p. pr. & vb. n. Meliorating.] [L. melioratus, p. p. of meliorare to meliorate, fr. melior better; akin to Gr. ma^llon rather, ma`la very. Cf. Ameliorate.] To make better; to improve; to ameliorate; to soften; to make more tolerable.

Nature by art we nobly meliorate.

Denham.

The pure and benign light of revelation has had a meliorating influence on mankind.

Washington.

Mel”io*rate, v. i. To grow better.

Mel”io*ra`ter (?), n. Same as Meliorator.

Mel`io*ra”tion (?), n. [L. melioratio.] The act or operation of meliorating, or the state of being meliorated; improvement. Bacon.

Mel”io*ra`tor (?), n. One who meliorates.

Mel”io*rism (?), n. [From L. melior better.] The doctrine that there is a tendency throughout nature toward improvement. J. Sully.

Mel*ior”i*ty (?), n. [LL. melioritas, fr. L. melior. See Meliorate.] The state or quality of being better; melioration. [Obs.] Bacon.

Me*liph”a*gan (?), a. [Gr. me`li honey + &?; to eat.] (Zoöl.) Belonging to the genus Meliphaga.

Me*liph”a*gan, n. (Zoöl.) Any bird of the genus Meliphaga and allied genera; a honey eater; — called also meliphagidan.

Me*liph”a*gous (?), a. [See Meliphagan.] (Zool.) Eating, or feeding upon, honey.

||Me*lis”ma (?), n.; pl. Melismata (#). [NL., fr. Gr. me`lisma a song.] (Mus.) (a) A piece of melody; a song or tune, — as opposed to recitative or musical declamation. (b) A grace or embellishment.

||Me*lis”sa (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. me`lissa a bee, honey.] (Bot.) A genus of labiate herbs, including the balm, or bee balm (Melissa officinalis).

Me*lis”sic (?), a. [Gr. me`lissa a bee, honey.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or derived from, beeswax; specif., denoting an acid obtained by oxidation of myricin.

Me*lis”syl (?), n. [Melissic +yl.] (Chem.) See Myricyl.

Me*lis”sy*lene (?), n. [Melissic + -yl + -ene.] (Chem.) See Melene.

Mel”i*tose` (?), n. [Gr. me`li honey.] (Chem.) A variety of sugar isomeric with sucrose, extracted from cotton seeds and from the so- called Australian manna (a secretion of certain species of Eucalyptus).

Mell (?), v. i. & t. [F. mêler, OF. meller, mester. See Meddle.] To mix; to meddle. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mell, n. [See Mellifluous.] Honey. [Obs.] Warner.

Mell, n. A mill. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mel”late (?), n. [L. mel, mellis, honey. Cf. Mellitate.] (Chem.) A mellitate. [R.]

Mel”lay (?), n. A mêlée; a conflict. Tennyson.

Mel”lic (?), a. (Chem.) See Mellitic. [R.]

Mel*lif”er*ous (?), a. [L. mellifer; mel, mellis, honey + ferre to bear.] Producing honey.

Mel*lif”ic (?), a. [L. mel, mellis, honey + ficare (in comp.) to make. See fy.] Producing honey.

Mel`li*fi*ca”tion (?), n. [L. mellificare to make honey: cf. F. mellification. See Mellific.] The making or production of honey.

Mel*lif”lu*ence (?), n. A flow of sweetness, or a sweet, smooth flow.

Mel*lif”lu*ent (?), a. [L. mellifluens. See Mellifluous.] Flowing as with honey; smooth; mellifluous.

Mel*lif”lu*ent*ly, adv. In a mellifluent manner.

Mel*lif”lu*ous (?), a. [L. mellifluus; mel, mellis, honey (akin to Gr. &?;, Goth. milip) + fluere to flow. See Mildew, Fluent, and cf. Marmalade.] Flowing as with honey; smooth; flowing sweetly or smoothly; as, a mellifluous voice. — Mel*lif”lu*ous*ly, adv.

Mel*lig”e*nous (?), a. [L. mel, mellis + -genous.] Having the qualities of honey. [R.]

||Mel*li”go (?), n. [L.] Honeydew.

Mel*lil”o*quent (?), a. [L. mel, mellis honey + loquens speaking, p. pr. of loqui to speak.] Speaking sweetly or harmoniously.

Mel*liph”a*gan (?), n. See Meliphagan.

Mel*liph”a*gous (?), a. See Meliphagous.

Mel”li*tate (?), n. [Cf. F. mellitate. See Mellitic.] (Chem.) A salt of mellitic acid.

Mel”lite (?), n. [L. mel, mellis, honey: cf. F. mellite.] (Min.) A mineral of a honey color, found in brown coal, and partly the result of vegetable decomposition; honeystone. It is a mellitate of alumina.

Mel*lit”ic (?), a. [Cf. F. mellitique. See Mellite.] (Chem.) (a) Containing saccharine matter; marked by saccharine secretions; as, mellitic diabetes. (b) Pertaining to, or derived from, the mineral mellite.

Mellitic acid (Chem.), a white, crystalline, organic substance, C_6(CO_2H)6, occurring naturally in combination with aluminium in the mineral mellite, and produced artificially by the oxidation of coal, graphite, etc., and hence called also graphitic acid.

Mel”lone (?), n. (Chem.) A yellow powder, C_6H_3N_9, obtained from certain sulphocyanates. It has acid properties and forms compounds called mellonides.

Mel”lon*ide (?), n. See Mellone.

Mel”low (?), a. [Compar. Mellower (?); superl. Mellowest.] [OE. melwe; cf. AS. mearu soft, D. murw, Prov. G. mollig soft, D. malsch, and E. meal flour.]

1. Soft or tender by reason of ripeness; having a tender pulp; as, a mellow apple.

2. Hence: (a) Easily worked or penetrated; not hard or rigid; as, a mellow soil. “Mellow glebe.” Drayton (b) Not coarse, rough, or harsh; subdued; soft; rich; delicate; — said of sound, color, flavor, style, etc. “The mellow horn.” Wordsworth. “The mellow-tasted Burgundy.” Thomson.

The tender flush whose mellow stain imbues
Heaven with all freaks of light.

Percival.

3. Well matured; softened by years; genial; jovial.

May health return to mellow age.

Wordsworth.

As merry and mellow an old bachelor as ever followed a hound.

W. Irving.

4. Warmed by liquor; slightly intoxicated. Addison.

Mel”low, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mellowed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mellowing.] To make mellow. Shak.

If the Weather prove frosty to mellow it [the ground], they do not plow it again till April.

Mortimer.

The fervor of early feeling is tempered and mellowed by the ripeness of age.

J. C. Shairp.

Mel”low, v. i. To become mellow; as, ripe fruit soon mellows. “Prosperity begins to mellow.” Shak.

Mel”low*ly, adv. In a mellow manner.

Mel”low*ness, n. Quality or state of being mellow.

Mel”low*y (?), a. Soft; unctuous. Drayton.

||Mel*lu”co (?), n. (Bot.) A climbing plant (Ullucus officinalis) of the Andes, having tuberous roots which are used as a substitute for potatoes.

Mel”ne (?), n. A mill. [Obs.] Chaucer.

{ Mel`o*co*ton”, Mel`o*co*toon” } (?), n. [Sp. melocoton a kind of peach tree and its fruit, L. malum cotonium, or cotonea, or Cydonia, a quince, or quince tree, lit., apple of Cydonia, Gr. &?; &?;. See Quince.] (Bot.) (a) A quince. (b) A kind of peach having one side deep red, and the flesh yellow. [Written also malacatoon, malacotune.]

Me*lo”de*on (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; musical. See Melody, and cf. Odeon.]

1. (Mus.) A kind of small reed organ; — a portable form of the seraphine.

2. A music hall.

Me*lod”ic (?), a. [L. melodicus, Gr. &?;: cf. F. mélodique.] Of the nature of melody; relating to, containing, or made up of, melody; melodious.

Me*lod”ics (?), n. The department of musical science which treats of the pitch of tones, and of the laws of melody.

Me*lo”di*o*graph (?), n. [Melody + -graph.] A contrivance for preserving a record of music, by recording the action of the keys of a musical instrument when played upon.

Me*lo”di*ous (?), a. [Cf. F. mélodieux. See Melody.] Containing, or producing, melody; musical; agreeable to the ear by a sweet succession of sounds; as, a melodious voice. “A melodious voice.” “A melodious undertone.” Longfellow. — Me*lo”di*ous*ly, adv. — Me*lo”di*ous*ness, n.

Mel”o*dist (?), n. [Cf. F. mélodiste.] A composer or singer of melodies.

Mel”o*dize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Melodized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Melodizing (?).] To make melodious; to form into, or set to, melody.

Mel”o*dize, v. i. To make melody; to compose melodies; to harmonize.

Mel`o*dra”ma (?), n. [F. mélodrame, fr. Gr. me`los song + dra^ma drama.] Formerly, a kind of drama having a musical accompaniment to intensify the effect of certain scenes. Now, a drama abounding in romantic sentiment and agonizing situations, with a musical accompaniment only in parts which are especially thrilling or pathetic. In opera, a passage in which the orchestra plays a somewhat descriptive accompaniment, while the actor speaks; as, the melodrama in the gravedigging scene of Beethoven’s “Fidelio”.

Mel`o*dra*mat”ic (?), a. [Cf. F. mélodramatique.] Of or pertaining to melodrama; like or suitable to a melodrama; unnatural in situation or action. — Mel`o*dra*mat”ic*al*ly (#), adv.

Mel`o*dram”a*tist (?), n. One who acts in, or writes, melodramas.

Mel”o*drame (?), n. [F.] Melodrama.

Mel”o*dy (?), n.; pl. Melodies (#). [OE. melodie, F. mélodie, L. melodia, fr. Gr. &?; a singing, choral song, fr. &?; musical, melodious; me`los song, tune + &?; song. See Ode.]

1. A sweet or agreeable succession of sounds.

Lulled with sound of sweetest melody.

Shak.

2. (Mus.) A rhythmical succession of single tones, ranging for the most part within a given key, and so related together as to form a musical whole, having the unity of what is technically called a musical thought, at once pleasing to the ear and characteristic in expression.

&fist; Melody consists in a succession of single tones; harmony is a consonance or agreement of tones, also a succession of consonant musical combinations or chords.

3. The air or tune of a musical piece.

Syn. — See Harmony.

||Mel”o*e (?), [ NL., fr. Gr. &?; to probe a wound.] (Zoöl.) A genus of beetles without wings, but having short oval elytra; the oil beetles. These beetles are sometimes used instead of cantharides for raising blisters. See Oil beetle, under Oil.

Mel”o*graph (m&ebreve;l”&osl;*gr&adot;f), n. [Gr. me`los a song + -graph : cf. F. mélographe.] Same as Melodiograph.

Mel`o*lon*thid”i*an (?), n. [Gr. &?; the cockchafer.] (Zoöl.) A beetle of the genus Melolontha, and allied genera. See May beetle, under May.

Mel”on (m&ebreve;l”ŭn), n. [F., fr. L. melo, for melopepo an apple-shaped melon, Gr. &?; ; mh^lon apple + &?; a species of large melon; cf. L. malum apple. Cf. Marmalade.]

1. (Bot.) The juicy fruit of certain cucurbitaceous plants, as the muskmelon, watermelon, and citron melon; also, the plant that produces the fruit.

2. (Zoöl.) A large, ornamental, marine, univalve shell of the genus Melo.

Melon beetle (Zoöl.), a small leaf beetle (Diabrotiea vittata), which damages the leaves of melon vines. — Melon cactus, Melon thistle. (a) (Bot.) A genus of cactaceous plants (Melocactus) having a fleshy and usually globose stem with the surface divided into spiny longitudinal ridges, and bearing at the top a prickly and woolly crown in which the small pink flowers are half concealed. M. communis, from the West Indies, is often cultivated, and sometimes called Turk’s cap. (b) The related genus Mamillaria, in which the stem is tubercled rather than ribbed, and the flowers sometimes large. See Illust. under Cactus.

Mel`o*pi*a”no (?), n. [Gr. me`los song + E. piano.] A piano having a mechanical attachment which enables the player to prolong the notes at will.

Mel`o*plas”tic (?), a. Of or pertaining to meloplasty, or the artificial formation of a new cheek.

Mel”o*plas`ty (m&ebreve;l”&osl;*plăs`t&ybreve;), n. [Gr. mh^lon an apple, a cheek + - plasty: cf. F. méloplastie.] (Surg.) The process of restoring a cheek which has been destroyed wholly or in part.

||Mel`o*pœ“ia (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;; me`los song + poiei^n to make.] (Mus.) The art of forming melody; melody; — now often used for a melodic passage, rather than a complete melody.

Mel”o*type (?), n. (Photog.) A picture produced by a process in which development after exposure may be deferred indefinitely, so as to permit transportation of exposed plates; also, the process itself.

Mel*pom”e*ne (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?;, lit., the songstress, fr. &?;, &?;, to sing.]

1. (Class. Myth.) The Muse of tragedy.

2. (Astron.) The eighteenth asteroid.

Mel”rose (?), n. Honey of roses.

Melt (m&ebreve;lt), n. (Zoöl.) See 2d Milt.

Melt, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Melted (obs.) p. p. Molten (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Melting.] [AS. meltan; akin to Gr. me`ldein, E. malt, and prob. to E. smelt, v. √108. Cf. Smelt, v., Malt, Milt the spleen.] 1. To reduce from a solid to a liquid state, as by heat; to liquefy; as, to melt wax, tallow, or lead; to melt ice or snow.

2. Hence: To soften, as by a warming or kindly influence; to relax; to render gentle or susceptible to mild influences; sometimes, in a bad sense, to take away the firmness of; to weaken.

Thou would’st have . . . melted down thy youth.

Shak.

For pity melts the mind to love.

Dryden.

Syn. — To liquefy; fuse; thaw; mollify; soften.

Melt, v. i. 1. To be changed from a solid to a liquid state under the influence of heat; as, butter and wax melt at moderate temperatures.

2. To dissolve; as, sugar melts in the mouth.

3. Hence: To be softened; to become tender, mild, or gentle; also, to be weakened or subdued, as by fear.

My soul melteth for heaviness.

Ps. cxix. 28.

Melting with tenderness and kind compassion.

Shak.

4. To lose distinct form or outline; to blend.

The soft, green, rounded hills, with their flowing outlines, overlapping and melting into each other.

J. C. Shairp.

5. To disappear by being dispersed or dissipated; as, the fog melts away. Shak.

Melt”a*ble (?), a. Capable of being melted.

Melt”er (-&etilde;r), n. One who, or that which, melts.

Melt”ing, n. Liquefaction; the act of causing (something) to melt, or the process of becoming melted.

Melting point (Chem.), the degree of temperature at which a solid substance melts or fuses; as, the melting point of ice is 0° Centigrade or 32° Fahr., that of urea is 132° Centigrade. — Melting pot, a vessel in which anything is melted; a crucible.

Melt”ing a. Causing to melt; becoming melted; — used literally or figuratively; as, a melting heat; a melting appeal; a melting mood. — Melt”ing*ly, adv.

Mel”ton (?), n. [Etymol. uncertain.] A kind of stout woolen cloth with unfinished face and without raised nap. A commoner variety has a cotton warp.

Mem”ber (?), v. t. [See Remember.] To remember; to cause to remember; to mention. [Obs.]

Mem”ber, n. [OE. membre, F. membre, fr. L. membrum; cf. Goth. mimz flesh, Skr. mamsa.]

1. (Anat.) A part of an animal capable of performing a distinct office; an organ; a limb.

We have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office.

Rom. xii. 4.

2. Hence, a part of a whole; an independent constituent of a body; as: (a) A part of a discourse or of a period or sentence; a clause; a part of a verse. (b) (Math.) Either of the two parts of an algebraic equation, connected by the sign of equality. (c) (Engin.) Any essential part, as a post, tie rod, strut, etc., of a framed structure, as a bridge truss. (d) (Arch.) Any part of a building, whether constructional, as a pier, column, lintel, or the like, or decorative, as a molding, or group of moldings. (e) One of the persons composing a society, community, or the like; an individual forming part of an association; as, a member of the society of Friends.

Compression member, Tension member (Engin.), a member, as a rod, brace, etc., which is subjected to compression or tension, respectively.

Mem”bered (?), a. 1. Having limbs; — chiefly used in composition.

2. (Her.) Having legs of a different tincture from that of the body; — said of a bird in heraldic representations.

Mem”ber*ship, n. 1. The state of being a member.

2. The collective body of members, as of a society.

Mem”bral (?), a. (Anat.) Relating to a member.

Mem`bra*na”ceous (?), a. [L. membranaceus.]

1. Same as Membranous. Arbuthnot.

2. (Bot.) Thin and rather soft or pliable, as the leaves of the rose, peach tree, and aspen poplar.

Mem”brane (?), n. [F., fr. L. membrana the skin that covers the separate members of the body, fr. L. membrum. See Member.] (Anat.) A thin layer or fold of tissue, usually supported by a fibrous network, serving to cover or line some part or organ, and often secreting or absorbing certain fluids.

&fist; The term is also often applied to the thin, expanded parts, of various texture, both in animals and vegetables.

Adventitious membrane, a membrane connecting parts not usually connected, or of a different texture from the ordinary connection; as, the membrane of a cicatrix. — Jacob’s membrane. See under Retina. — Mucous membranes (Anat.), the membranes lining passages and cavities which communicate with the exterior, as well as ducts and receptacles of secretion, and habitually secreting mucus. — Schneiderian membrane. (Anat.) See Schneiderian. — Serous membranes (Anat.) , the membranes, like the peritoneum and pleura, which line, or lie in, cavities having no obvious outlet, and secrete a serous fluid.

Mem*bra”ne*ous (?), a. [L. membraneus of parchment.] See Membranous.

Mem`bra*nif”er*ous (?), a. [Membrane + -ferous.] Having or producing membranes.

Mem*bra”ni*form (?), a. [Membrane + -form: cf. F. membraniforme.] Having the form of a membrane or of parchment.

Mem`bra*nol”o*gy (?), n. [Membrane + -logy.] The science which treats of membranes.

Mem”bra*nous (?), a. [Cf. F. membraneux.]

1. Pertaining to, consisting of, or resembling, membrane; as, a membranous covering or lining.

2. (Bot.) Membranaceous.

Membranous croup (Med.), true croup. See Croup.

Me*men”to (?), n.; pl. Mementos (#). [L., remember, be mindful, imper. of meminisse to remember. See Mention.] A hint, suggestion, token, or memorial, to awaken memory; that which reminds or recalls to memory; a souvenir.

Seasonable mementos may be useful.

Bacon.

||Me*min”na (?), n. (Zoöl.) A small deerlet, or chevrotain, of India.

Mem”non (?), n. [L., from Gr. &?;, lit., the Steadfast, Resolute, the son of Tithonus and Aurora, and king of the Ethiopians, killed by Achilles.] (Antiq.) A celebrated Egyptian statue near Thebes, said to have the property of emitting a harplike sound at sunrise.

{ Mem”oir (?), or pl. Mem”oirs (?) }, n. [F. mémoire, m., memorandum, fr. mémoire, f., memory, L. memoria. See Memory.] 1. A memorial account; a history composed from personal experience and memory; an account of transactions or events (usually written in familiar style) as they are remembered by the writer. See History, 2.

2. A memorial of any individual; a biography; often, a biography written without special regard to method and completeness.

3. An account of something deemed noteworthy; an essay; a record of investigations of any subject; the journals and proceedings of a society.

Mem”oir*ist, n. A writer of memoirs.

||Mem`o*ra*bil”i*a (?), n. pl. [L., fr. memorabilis memorable. See Memorable.] Things remarkable and worthy of remembrance or record; also, the record of them.

Mem`o*ra*bil”i*ty (?), n. The quality or state of being memorable.

Mem”o*ra*ble (?), a. [L. memorabilis, fr. memorare to bring to remembrance, fr. memor mindful, remembering. See Memory, and cf. Memorabilia.] Worthy to be remembered; very important or remarkable. — Mem”o*ra*ble*ness, n. — Mem”o*ra*bly, adv.

Surviving fame to gain,
Buy tombs, by books, by memorable deeds.

Sir J. Davies.

Mem`o*ran”dum (?), n.; pl. E. Memorandums, L. Memoranda (#). [L., something to be remembered, neut. of memorandus, fut. pass. p. of memorare. See Memorable.]

1. A record of something which it is desired to remember; a note to help the memory.

I . . . entered a memorandum in my pocketbook.

Guardian.

I wish you would, as opportunity offers, make memorandums of the regulations of the academies.

Sir J. Reynolds.

2. (Law) A brief or informal note in writing of some transaction, or an outline of an intended instrument; an instrument drawn up in a brief and compendious form.

Memorandum check, a check given as an acknowledgment of indebtedness, but with the understanding that it will not be presented at bank unless the maker fails to take it up on the day the debt becomes due. It usually has Mem. written on its face.

Mem”o*rate (?), v. t. [L. memoratus, p. p. of memorare. See Memorable.] To commemorate. [Obs.]

Mem”o*ra*tive (?), a. [Cf. F. mémoratif.] Commemorative. [Obs.] Hammond.

||Me*mo”ri*a (?), n. [L.] Memory.

Memoria technica, technical memory; a contrivance for aiding the memory.

Me*mo”ri*al (?), a. [F. mémorial, L. memorialis, fr. memoria. See Memory.]

1. Serving to preserve remembrance; commemorative; as, a memorial building.

There high in air, memorial of my name,
Fix the smooth oar, and bid me live to fame.

Pope.

2. Contained in memory; as, a memorial possession.

3. Mnemonic; assisting the memory.

This succession of Aspirate, Soft, and Hard, may be expressed by the memorial word ASH.

Skeat.

Memorial Day. Same as Decoration Day. [U.S.]

Me*mo”ri*al, n. [Cf. F. mémorial.]

1. Anything intended to preserve the memory of a person or event; something which serves to keep something else in remembrance; a monument. Macaulay.

Churches have names; some as memorials of peace, some of wisdom, some in memory of the Trinity itself.

Hooker.

2. A memorandum; a record. [Obs. or R.] Hayward.

3. A written representation of facts, addressed to the government, or to some branch of it, or to a society, etc., — often accompanied with a petition.

4. Memory; remembrance. [Obs.]

Precious is the memorial of the just.

Evelyn.

5. (Diplomacy) A species of informal state paper, much used in negotiation.

Me*mo”ri*al*ist, n. [Cf. F. mémorialiste.] One who writes or signs a memorial.

Me*mo”ri*al*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Memorialized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Memorializing (?).] To address or petition by a memorial; to present a memorial to; as, to memorialize the legislature. T. Hook.

Me*mo”ri*al*i`zer (?), n. One who petitions by a memorial. T. Hook.

Mem”o*rist (?), n. [See Memorize.] One who, or that which, causes to be remembered. [Obs.]

||Me*mor”i*ter (?), adv. [L., fr. memor mindful. See Memorable.] By, or from, memory.

Mem”o*rize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Memorized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Memorizing (?).] [See Memory.]

1. To cause to be remembered ; hence, to record. [Obs.]

They neglect to memorize their conquest.

Spenser.

They meant to . . . memorize another Golgotha.

Shak.

2. To commit to memory; to learn by heart.

Mem”o*ry (?), n.; pl. Memories (#). [OE. memorie, OF. memoire, memorie, F. mémoire, L. memoria, fr. memor mindful; cf. mora delay. Cf. Demur, Martyr, Memoir, Remember.]

1. The faculty of the mind by which it retains the knowledge of previous thoughts, impressions, or events.

Memory is the purveyor of reason.

Rambler.

2. The reach and positiveness with which a person can remember; the strength and trustworthiness of one’s power to reach and represent or to recall the past; as, his memory was never wrong.

3. The actual and distinct retention and recognition of past ideas in the mind; remembrance; as, in memory of youth; memories of foreign lands.

4. The time within which past events can be or are remembered; as, within the memory of man.

And what, before thy memory, was done
From the begining.

Milton.

5. Something, or an aggregate of things, remembered; hence, character, conduct, etc., as preserved in remembrance, history, or tradition; posthumous fame; as, the war became only a memory.

The memory of the just is blessed.

Prov. x. 7.

That ever-living man of memory, Henry the Fifth.

Shak.

The Nonconformists . . . have, as a body, always venerated her [Elizabeth’s] memory.

Macaulay.

6. A memorial. [Obs.]

These weeds are memories of those worser hours.

Shak.

Syn. — Memory, Remembrance, Recollection, Reminiscence. Memory is the generic term, denoting the power by which we reproduce past impressions. Remembrance is an exercise of that power when things occur spontaneously to our thoughts. In recollection we make a distinct effort to collect again, or call back, what we know has been formerly in the mind. Reminiscence is intermediate between remembrance and recollection, being a conscious process of recalling past occurrences, but without that full and varied reference to particular things which characterizes recollection. “When an idea again recurs without the operation of the like object on the external sensory, it is remembrance; if it be sought after by the mind, and with pain and endeavor found, and brought again into view, it is recollection.” Locke.

To draw to memory, to put on record; to record. [Obs.] Chaucer. Gower.

Mem”phi*an (?), a. Of or pertaining to the ancient city of Memphis in Egypt; hence, Egyptian; as, Memphian darkness.

Men (?), n., pl. of Man.

Men, pron. [OE. me, men. “Not the plural of man, but a weakened form of the word man itself.” Skeat.] A man; one; — used with a verb in the singular, and corresponding to the present indefinite one or they. [Obs.] Piers Plowman.

Men moot give silver to the poure friars.

Chaucer.

A privy thief, men clepeth death.

Chaucer.

Me*nac”can*ite (?), n. [From Menaccan, in Cornwall, where it was first found.] (Min.) An iron-black or steel-gray mineral, consisting chiefly of the oxides of iron and titanium. It is commonly massive, but occurs also in rhombohedral crystals. Called also titanic iron ore, and ilmenite.

Men”ace (m&ebreve;n”&asl;s; 48), n. [F., fr. L. minaciae threats, menaces, fr. minax, - acis, projecting, threatening, minae projecting points or pinnacles, threats. Cf. Amenable, Demean, Imminent, Minatory.] The show of an intention to inflict evil; a threat or threatening; indication of a probable evil or catastrophe to come.

His (the pope’s) commands, his rebukes, his menaces.

Milman.

The dark menace of the distant war.

Dryden.

Men”ace (m&ebreve;n”&asl;s; 48), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Menaced (āst); p. pr. & vb. n. Menacing (?).] [OF. menacier, F. menacer. See Menace, n.] 1. To express or show an intention to inflict, or to hold out a prospect of inflicting, evil or injury upon; to threaten; — usually followed by with before the harm threatened; as, to menace a country with war.

My master . . . did menace me with death.

Shak.

2. To threaten, as an evil to be inflicted.

By oath he menaced
Revenge upon the cardinal.

Shak.

Men”ace, v. i. To act in threatening manner; to wear a threatening aspect.

Who ever knew the heavens menace so?

Shak.

Men”a*cer (?), n. One who menaces.

Men”a*cing*ly, adv. In a threatening manner.

||Mé`nage” (?), n. See Manage.

||Mé`nage” (?), n. [See Menagerie.] A collection of animals; a menagerie. [Obs.] Addison.

Men*ag”er*ie (?), n. [F. ménagerie, fr. ménager to keep house, ménage household. See Menial, Mansion.] 1. A piace where animals are kept and trained.

2. A collection of wild or exotic animals, kept for exhibition.

Men”a*gogue (?), n. [F. ménagogue, fr. Gr. mh`n month + &?; leading.] (Med.) Emmenagogue.

||Me*na”ion (?), n.; pl. Menaia (-yå). [NL., from Gr. &?; monthly.] (Eccl.) A work of twelve volumes, each containing the offices in the Greek Church for a month; also, each volume of the same. Shipley.

{ Men”ald (?), Men”ild (?), } a. Covered with spots; speckled; variegated. [Obs.]

Mend (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mended; p. pr. & vb. n. Mending.] [Abbrev. fr. amend. See Amend.]

1. To repair, as anything that is torn, broken, defaced, decayed, or the like; to restore from partial decay, injury, or defacement; to patch up; to put in shape or order again; to re-create; as, to mend a garment or a machine.

2. To alter for the better; to set right; to reform; hence, to quicken; as, to mend one’s manners or pace.

The best service they could do the state was to mend the lives of the persons who composed it.

Sir W. Temple.

3. To help, to advance, to further; to add to.

Though in some lands the grass is but short, yet it mends garden herbs and fruit.

Mortimer.

You mend the jewel by the wearing it.

Shak.

Syn. — To improve; help; better; emend; amend; correct; rectify; reform.

Mend, v. i. To grow better; to advance to a better state; to become improved. Shak.

Mend”a*ble (?), a. Capable of being mended.

Men*da”cious (?), a. [L. mendax, -acis, lying, cf. mentiri to lie.] 1. Given to deception or falsehood; lying; as, a mendacious person.

2. False; counterfeit; containing falsehood; as, a mendacious statement.

— Men*da”cious*ly, adv. — Men*da”cious*ness, n.

Men*dac”i*ty (?), n.; pl. Mendacities (#). [L. mendacitas.] 1. The quality or state of being mendacious; a habit of lying. Macaulay.

2. A falsehood; a lie. Sir T. Browne.

Syn. — Lying; deceit; untruth; falsehood.

Mend”er (?), n. One who mends or repairs.

Men”di*ant (?), n. See Mendinant. [Obs.]

Men”di*can*cy (?), n. The condition of being mendicant; beggary; begging. Burke.

Men”di*cant (?), a. [L. mendicans, -antis, p. pr. of mendicare to beg, fr. mendicus beggar, indigent.] Practicing beggary; begging; living on alms; as, mendicant friars.

Mendicant orders (R. C. Ch.), certain monastic orders which are forbidden to acquire landed property and are required to be supported by alms, esp. the Franciscans, the Dominicans, the Carmelites, and the Augustinians.

Men”di*cant, n. A beggar; esp., one who makes a business of begging; specifically, a begging friar.

Men”di*cate (?), v. t.& i. [L. mendicatus, p. p. of mendicare to beg.] To beg. [R.] Johnson.

Men`di*ca”tion (?), n. The act or practice of begging; beggary; mendicancy. Sir T. Browne.

Men*dic”i*ty (?), n. [L. mendicitas: cf. F. mendicité. See Mendicant.] The practice of begging; the life of a beggar; mendicancy. Rom. of R.

Men”di*nant (?), n. A mendicant or begging friar. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mend”ment (?), n. Amendment. [Obs.]

Men”dole (m&ebreve;n”dōl), n. [Cf. F. mendol, mendole.] (Zoöl.) The cackerel.

Men”dre*gal (?), n. (Zoöl.) Medregal.

Mends (m&ebreve;ndz), n. See Amends. [Obs.] Shak.

Menge (m&ebreve;nj), v. i. [imp. Mente, Meinte; p. p. Ment, Meint.] [See Mingle.] To mix. [Obs.] Spenser.

Men*ha”den (?), n. (Zoöl.) An American marine fish of the Herring family (Brevoortia tyrannus), chiefly valuable for its oil and as a component of fertilizers; — called also mossbunker, bony fish, chebog, pogy, hardhead, whitefish, etc.

Men”hir (?), n. [F. Armor. men stone + hir high.] A large stone set upright in olden times as a memorial or monument. Many, of unknown date, are found in Brittany and throughout Northern Europe.

Men”ial (?), a. [OE. meneal, fr. meine, maine, household, OF. maisniée, maisnie, LL. mansionaticum. See Mansion, and cf. Meine, n., Meiny.]

1. Belonging to a retinue or train of servants; performing servile office; serving.

Two menial dogs before their master pressed.

Dryden.

2. Pertaining to servants, esp. domestic servants; servile; low; mean. ” Menial offices.” Swift.

Men”ial, n. 1. A domestic servant or retainer, esp. one of humble rank; one employed in low or servile offices.

2. A person of a servile character or disposition.

Mé`nière’s” dis*ease” (?). (Med.) A disease characterized by deafness and vertigo, resulting in incoördination of movement. It is supposed to depend upon a morbid condition of the semicircular canals of the internal ear. Named after Ménière, a French physician.

Men”i*lite (?), n. [F. ménilite; — so called because it is found at Ménilmontant, near Paris.] (Min.) See Opal.

Me*nin”ge*al (m&esl;n&ibreve;n”j&esl;al), a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the meninges.

Me*nin”ges (-jēz), n. pl.; sing. Meninx (&?;). [NL., fr. Gr. mh^nigx, -iggos, a membrane.] (Anat.) The three membranes that envelop the brain and spinal cord; the pia mater, dura mater, and arachnoid membrane.

Men`in*gi”tis (?), n. [NL. See Meninges, and -itis.] (Med.) Inflammation of the membranes of the brain or spinal cord.

Cerebro-spinal meningitis. See under Cerebro-spinal.

Me*nis”cal (?), a. Pertaining to, or having the form of, a meniscus.

Me*nis”coid (?), a. [Meniscus + -oid.] Concavo-convex, like a meniscus.

me*nis”cus (?), n.; pl. L. menisci (-sī), E. Meniscuses (#). [NL., from Gr. mhni`skos, dim. of mh`nh the moon.] 1. A crescent.

2. (Opt.) A lens convex on one side and concave on the other.

3. (Anat.) An interarticular synovial cartilage or membrane; esp., one of the intervertebral synovial disks in some parts of the vertebral column of birds.

Converging meniscus, Diverging meniscus. See Lens.

Men`i*sper*ma”ceous (?), a. [Gr. mh`nh the moon + spe`rma seed.] (Bot.) Pertaining to a natural order (Menispermaceæ) of climbing plants of which moonseed (Menispermum) is the type.

Men`i*sper”mic (&?;), a. Pertaining to, or obtained from, moonseed (Menispermum), or other plants of the same family, as the Anamirta Cocculus.

Men`i*sper”mine (?), n. [Cf. F. ménispermine.] (Chem.) An alkaloid distinct from picrotoxin and obtained from the cocculus indicus (the fruit of Anamirta Cocculus, formerly Menispermum Cocculus) as a white, crystalline, tasteless powder; — called also menispermina.

Men”i*ver (?), n. [OF. menuver, menuveir, menuvair, a grayish fur; menu small + vair a kind of fur. See Minute, a., and Vair.] Same as Miniver.

{ Men”non*ist (?), Men”non*ite (?), } n. (Eccl. Hist.) One of a small denomination of Christians, so called from Menno Simons of Friesland, their founder. They believe that the New Testament is the only rule of faith, that there is no original sin, that infants should not be baptized, and that Christians ought not to take oath, hold office, or render military service.

{ Men”o*branch (?), ||Men`o*bran”chus (?), } n. [NL. menobranchus, fr. Gr. &?; to remain + &?; a gill.] (Zoöl.) A large aquatic American salamander of the genus Necturus, having permanent external gills.

{ ||Men`o*lo”gi*um (?), Me*nol”o*gy (?), } n.; pl. L. Menologia (#), E. Menologies (#). [NL. menologium, fr. Gr. mh`n month + lo`gos discourse : cf. F. ménologe.] 1. A register of months. Bp. Stillingfleet.

2. (Gr. Church) A brief calendar of the lives of the saints for each day in the year, or a simple remembrance of those whose lives are not written.

Men”o*pause (?), n. [Gr. mh`n month + &?; to cause to cease. See Menses.] (Med.) The period of natural cessation of menstruation. See Change of life, under Change.

{ ||Men`o*po”ma (?), Men”o*pome (?), } n. [NL. menopoma, fr. Gr. &?; to remain + &?; lid.] (Zoöl.) The hellbender.

||Men`or*rha”gi*a (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. mh`n month + &?; to break.] (Med.) (a) Profuse menstruation. (b) Any profuse bleeding from the uterus; Metrorrhagia.

||Me*nos”ta*sis (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. mh`n month + ‘istan`nai to stop.] (Med.) Stoppage of the menses.

Men`os*ta”tion (?), n. (Med.) Same as Menostasis.

Men”ow (?), n. (Zoöl.) A minnow.

Men”-pleas`er (?), n. One whose motive is to please men or the world, rather than God. Eph. vi. 6.

Men”sal (?), a. [L. mensalis, fr. mensa table.] Belonging to the table; transacted at table; as, mensal conversation.

Men”sal (?), a. [L. mensis month.] Occurring once in a month; monthly.

Mense (?), n. [OE. menske, AS. mennisc human, man. See Man.] Manliness; dignity; comeliness; civility. [Prov. Eng. & Scot.] — Mense”ful (#), a. — Mense”less, a.

Mense, v. t. To grace. [Prov. Eng. & Scot.]

||Men”ses (?), n. pl. [L. mensis month, pl. menses months, and the monthly courses of women. Cf. Month.] (Med.) The catamenial or menstrual discharge, a periodic flow of blood or bloody fluid from the uterus or female generative organs.

Men”stru*al (?), a. [L. menstrualis: cf. F. menstruel. See Menstruous.] 1. Recurring once a month; monthly; gone through in a month; as, the menstrual revolution of the moon; pertaining to monthly changes; as, the menstrual equation of the sun’s place.

2. Of or pertaining to the menses; as, menstrual discharges; the menstrual period.

3. Of or pertaining to a menstruum. Bacon.

Men”stru*ant (?), a. [L. menstruans, p. pr. of menstruare to have a monthly term, fr. menstruus. See Menstruous.] Subject to monthly flowing or menses.

Men”stru*ate (?), a. Menstruous. [Obs.]

Men”stru*ate (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Menstruated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Menstruating (?).] To discharge the menses; to have the catamenial flow.

Men`stru*a”tion (?), n. The discharge of the menses; also, the state or the period of menstruating.

Men”strue (?), n. [Cf. F. menstrues. See Menstruous.] The menstrual flux; menses. [Obs.]

Men”stru*ous (?), a. [L. menstruus, fr. mensis month. Cf. Menstruum.] 1. Having the monthly flow or discharge; menstruating.

2. Of or pertaining to the monthly flow; catamenial.

Men”stru*um (?), n.; pl. E. Menstruums (#), L. Menstrua (#). [L. menstruus. See Menstruous.] Any substance which dissolves a solid body; a solvent.

The proper menstruum to dissolve metal.

Bacon.

All liquors are called menstruums which are used as dissolvents, or to extract the virtues of ingredients by infusion or decoction.

Quincy.

&fist; The use is supposed to have originated in some notion of the old chemists about the influence of the moon in the preparation of dissolvents. Johnson.

Men`su*ra*bil”i*ty (?), n. [Cf. F. mensurabilité.] The quality of being mensurable.

Men”su*ra*ble (?), a. [L. mensurabilis, fr. mensurare to measure, fr. mensura measure: cf. F. mensurable. See Measurable, Measure.] Capable of being measured; measurable.

Men”su*ra*ble*ness, n. The quality or state of being mensurable; measurableness.

Men”su*ral (?), a. [L. mensuralis.] Of or pertaining to measure.

Men”su*rate (?), v. t. [L. mensuratus, p. p. of mensurare. See Measure, v.] To measure. [Obs.]

Men`su*ra”tion (?), n. [L. mensuratio : cf. F. mensuration.] 1. The act, process, or art, of measuring.

2. That branch of applied geometry which gives rules for finding the length of lines, the areas of surfaces, or the volumes of solids, from certain simple data of lines and angles.

-ment (?), [F. -ment, L. -mentum.] A suffix denoting that which does a thing; an act or process; the result of an act or process; state or condition; as, aliment, that which nourishes, ornament, increment; fragment, piece broken, segment; abridgment, act of abridging, imprisonment, movement, adjournment; amazement, state of being amazed, astonishment.

Ment (?), p. p. of Menge.

||Men”ta*gra (?), n. [NL., fr. L. mentum chin + Gr. &?; a catching.] (Med.) Sycosis.

Men”tal (?), a. [L. mentum the chin.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the chin; genian; as, the mental nerve; the mental region.

Men”tal, n. (Zoöl.) A plate or scale covering the mentum or chin of a fish or reptile.

Men”tal, a. [F., fr. L. mentalis, fr. mens, mentis, the mind; akin to E. mind. See Mind.] Of or pertaining to the mind; intellectual; as, mental faculties; mental operations, conditions, or exercise.

What a mental power
This eye shoots forth!

Shak.

Mental alienation, insanity. — Mental arithmetic, the art or practice of solving arithmetical problems by mental processes, unassisted by written figures.

Men*tal”i*ty (?), n. Quality or state of mind. “The same hard mentality.” Emerson.

Men”tal*ly (?), adv. In the mind; in thought or meditation; intellectually; in idea.

||Men”tha (?), n. [L. See Mint the plant.] (Bot.) A widely distributed genus of fragrant herbs, including the peppermint, spearmint, etc. The plants have small flowers, usually arranged in dense axillary clusters.

Men”thene (?), n. [Menthol + terpene.] (Chem.) A colorless liquid hydrocarbon resembling oil of turpentine, obtained by dehydrating menthol. It has an agreeable odor and a cooling taste.

Men”thol (?), n. [Mentha + - ol.] (Chem.) A white, crystalline, aromatic substance resembling camphor, extracted from oil of peppermint (Mentha); — called also mint camphor or peppermint camphor.

Men”thyl (?), n. [Mentha + - yl.] (Chem.) A compound radical forming the base of menthol.

Men`ti*cul”tur*al (?), a. Of or pertaining to mental culture; serving to improve or strengthen the mind. [R.]

Men”tion (?), n. [OE. mencioun, F. mention, L. mentio, from the root of meminisse to remember. See Mind.] A speaking or notice of anything, — usually in a brief or cursory manner. Used especially in the phrase to make mention of.

I will make mention of thy righteousness.

Ps. lxxi. 16.

And sleep in dull, cold marble, where no mention
Of me more must be heard of.

Shak.

Men”tion (m&ebreve;n”shŭn), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mentioned (- shŭnd); p. pr. & vb. n. Mentioning.] [Cf. F. mentionner.] To make mention of; to speak briefly of; to name.

I will mention the loving-kindnesses of the Lord.

Is. lxiii. 7.

Men”tion*a*ble (?), a. Fit to be mentioned.

Men`to*meck*e”li*an (?), a. [1st mental + Meckelian.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the chin and lower jaw. — n. The bone or cartilage forming the anterior extremity of the lower jaw in some adult animals and the young of others.

Men”tor (?), n. [From Mentor, the counselor of Telemachus, Gr. Me`ntwr, prop., counselor. Cf. Monitor.] A wise and faithful counselor or monitor.

Men*to”ri*al (?), a. [From Mentor.] Containing advice or admonition.

||Men”tum (?), n. [L., chin.] (Zoöl.) The front median plate of the labium in insects. See Labium.

||Me*nu” (?), n. [F., slender, thin, minute. See 4th Minute.] The details of a banquet; a bill of fare.

Me”nuse (?), v. i. See Amenuse. [Obs.]

Me*ow” (?), v. i. & n. See 6th and 7th Mew.

Meph`is*to*phe”li*an (? or ?), a. Pertaining to, or resembling, the devil Mephistopheles, “a crafty, scoffing, relentless fiend;” devilish; crafty.

{ Me*phit”ic (?), Me*phit”ic*al (?), } a. [L. mephiticus, fr. mephitis mephitis: cf. F. méphitique.] 1. Tending to destroy life; poisonous; noxious; as, mephitic exhalations; mephitic regions.

2. Offensive to the smell; as, mephitic odors.

Mephitic air (Chem.), carbon dioxide; — so called because of its deadly suffocating power. See Carbonic acid, under Carbonic.

||Me*phi”tis (?), n. [L. mephitis : cf. F. méphitis.] 1. Noxious, pestilential, or foul exhalations from decomposing substances, filth, or other source.

2. (Zoöl.) A genus of mammals, including the skunks.

Meph”i*tism (?), n. Same as Mephitis, 1.

Me*ra”cious (?), a. [L. meracus, fr. merus pure, inmixed.] Being without mixture or adulteration; hence, strong; racy. [Obs.]

Mer”ca*ble (?), a. [L. mercabilis, fr. mercari to trade, traffic, buy. See Merchant.] Capable of being bought or sold. [Obs.]

Mer”can*tile (?; 277), a. [F. mercantile, It. mercantile, fr. L. mercans, - antis, p. pr. of mercari to traffic. See Merchant.] Of or pertaining to merchants, or the business of merchants; having to do with trade, or the buying and selling of commodities; commercial.

The expedition of the Argonauts was partly mercantile, partly military.

Arbuthnot.

Mercantile agency, an agency for procuring information of the standing and credit of merchants in different parts of the country, for the use of dealers who sell to them. – - Mercantile marine, the persons and vessels employed in commerce, taken collectively. — Mercantile paper, the notes or acceptances given by merchants for goods bought, or received on consignment; drafts on merchants for goods sold or consigned. McElrath.

Syn. — Mercantile, Commercial. Commercial is the wider term, being sometimes used to embrace mercantile. In their stricter use, commercial relates to the shipping, freighting, forwarding, and other business connected with the commerce of a country (whether external or internal), that is, the exchange of commodities; while mercantile applies to the sale of merchandise and goods when brought to market. As the two employments are to some extent intermingled, the two words are often interchanged.

Mer*cap”tal (?), n. [Mercaptan + aldehyde.] (Chem.) Any one of a series of compounds of mercaptans with aldehydes.

Mer*cap”tan (?), n. [F., fr. NL. mercurius mercury + L. captans, p. pr. of captare to seize, v. intens. fr. capere.] (Chem.) Any one of series of compounds, hydrosulphides of alcohol radicals, in composition resembling the alcohols, but containing sulphur in place of oxygen, and hence called also the sulphur alcohols. In general, they are colorless liquids having a strong, repulsive, garlic odor. The name is specifically applied to ethyl mercaptan, C_2H_5SH. So called from its avidity for mercury, and other metals.

Mer*cap”tide (? or ?), n. (Chem.) A compound of mercaptan formed by replacing its sulphur hydrogen by a metal; as, potassium mercaptide, C_2H_5SK.

Mer”cat (?), n. [L. mercatus : cf. It. mercato. See Market.] Market; trade. [Obs.] Bp. Sprat.

Mer`ca*tan”te (?; It. ?), n. [It. See Merchant.] A foreign trader. [Obs.] Shak.

Mer*ca”tor’s chart” (?). See under Chart, and see Mercator’s projection, under Projection.

Mer”ca*ture (?; 135), n. [L. mercatura commerce.] Commerce; traffic; trade. [Obs.]

Merce (?), v. t. [See Amerce.] To subject to fine or amercement; to mulct; to amerce. [Obs.]

||Mer`ce*na”ri*a (?), n. [NL. See Mercenary.] (Zoöl.) The quahog.

Mer`ce*na”ri*an (-an), n. A mercenary. [Obs.]

Mer”ce*na`ri*ly (?), adv. In a mercenary manner.

Mer”ce*na*ri*ness, n. The quality or state of being mercenary; venality. Boyle.

Mer”ce*na*ry (?), a. [OE. mercenarie, F. mercenaire, fr. L. mercenarius, fr. merces wages, reward. See Mercy.] 1. Acting for reward; serving for pay; paid; hired; hireling; venal; as, mercenary soldiers.

2. Hence: Moved by considerations of pay or profit; greedy of gain; sordid; selfish. Shak.

For God forbid I should my papers blot
With mercenary lines, with servile pen.

Daniel.

Syn. — See Venal.

Mer”ce*na*ry (?), n.; pl. Mercenaries (&?;). One who is hired; a hireling; especially, a soldier hired into foreign service. Milman.

Mer”cer (?), n. [F. mercier, fr. L. merx, mercis, wares, merchandise. See Merchant.] Originally, a dealer in any kind of goods or wares; now restricted to a dealer in textile fabrics, as silks or woolens. [Eng.]

Mer”cer*ship, n. The business of a mercer.

Mer”cer*y (?), n. [F. mercerie.] The trade of mercers; the goods in which a mercer deals.

Mer”chand (?), v. i. [F. marchander. See Merchant.] To traffic. [Obs.] Bacon.

Mer”chan*di`sa*ble (?), a. Such as can be used or transferred as merchandise.

Mer”chan*dise (?), n. [F. marchandise, OF. marcheandise.] 1. The objects of commerce; whatever is usually bought or sold in trade, or market, or by merchants; wares; goods; commodities. Spenser.

2. The act or business of trading; trade; traffic.

Mer”chan*dise, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Merchandised (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Merchandising (?).] To trade; to carry on commerce. Bacon.

Mer”chan*dise, v. t. To make merchandise of; to buy and sell. “Love is merchandised.” Shak.

Mer”chan*di`ser (?), n. A trader. Bunyan.

Mer”chand*ry (?), n. [See Merchant.] Trade; commerce. [Obs.] Bp. Sanderson.

Mer”chant (?), n. [OE. marchant, OF. marcheant, F. marchand, fr. LL. mercatans, -antis, p. pr. of mercatare to negotiate, L. mercari to traffic, fr. merx, mercis, wares. See Market, Merit, and cf. Commerce.] 1. One who traffics on a large scale, especially with foreign countries; a trafficker; a trader.

Others, like merchants, venture trade abroad.

Shak.

2. A trading vessel; a merchantman. [Obs.] Shak.

3. One who keeps a store or shop for the sale of goods; a shopkeeper. [U. S. & Scot.]

Mer”chant, a. Of, pertaining to, or employed in, trade or merchandise; as, the merchant service.

Merchant bar, Merchant iron or steel, certain common sizes of wrought iron and steel bars. — Merchant service, the mercantile marine of a country. Am. Cyc. — Merchant ship, a ship employed in commerce. — Merchant tailor, a tailor who keeps and sells materials for the garments which he makes.

Mer”chant, v. i. To be a merchant; to trade. [Obs.]

Mer”chant*a*ble (?), a. Fit for market; such as is usually sold in market, or such as will bring the ordinary price; as, merchantable wheat; sometimes, a technical designation for a particular kind or class.

Mer”chant*ly, a. Merchantlike; suitable to the character or business of a merchant. [Obs.] Gauden.

Mer”chant*man (?), n.; pl. Merchantmen (&?;).

1. A merchant. [Obs.] Matt. xiii. 45.

2. A trading vessel; a ship employed in the transportation of goods, as, distinguished from a man-of- war.

Mer”chant*ry (?), n. 1. The body of merchants taken collectively; as, the merchantry of a country.

2. The business of a merchant; merchandise. Walpole.

Mer”ci*a*ble (?), a. [OF.] Merciful. [Obs.]

Mer”ci*ful (?), a. [Mercy + - ful.] 1. Full of mercy; having or exercising mercy; disposed to pity and spare offenders; unwilling to punish.

The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious.

Ex. xxxiv. 6.

Be merciful, great duke, to men of mold.

Shak.

2. Unwilling to give pain; compassionate.

A merciful man will be merciful to his beast.

Old Proverb.

Syn. — Compassionate; tender; humane; gracious; kind; mild; clement; benignant.

— Mer”ci*ful*ly, adv. — Mer”ci*ful*ness, n.

Mer”ci*fy (?), v. t. To pity. [Obs.] Spenser.

Mer”ci*less, a. Destitute of mercy; cruel; unsparing; — said of animate beings, and also, figuratively, of things; as, a merciless tyrant; merciless waves.

The foe is merciless, and will not pity.

Shak.

Syn. — Cruel; unmerciful; remorseless; ruthless; pitiless; barbarous; savage.

— Mer”ci*less*ly, adv. — Mer”ci*less*ness, n.

Mer`cur*am*mo”ni*um (?), n. [Mercuric + ammonium.] (Chem.) A radical regarded as derived from ammonium by the substitution of mercury for a portion of the hydrogen.

Mer*cu”ri*al (?), a. [L. mercurialis, fr. Mercurius Mercury: cf. F. mercuriel.] 1. Having the qualities fabled to belong to the god Mercury; swift; active; sprightly; fickle; volatile; changeable; as, a mercurial youth; a mercurial temperament.

A mercurial man
Who fluttered over all things like a fan.

Byron.

2. Having the form or image of Mercury; — applied to ancient guideposts. [Obs.] Chillingworth.

3. Of or pertaining to Mercury as the god of trade; hence, money-making; crafty.

The mercurial wand of commerce.

J. Q. Adams.

4. Of or pertaining to, or containing, mercury; as, mercurial preparations, barometer. See Mercury, 2.

5. (Med.) Caused by the use of mercury; as, mercurial sore mouth.

Mer*cu”ri*al, n. 1. A person having mercurial qualities. Bacon.

2. (Med.) A preparation containing mercury.

Mer*cu”ri*al*ist, n. 1. One under the influence of Mercury; one resembling Mercury in character.

2. (Med.) A physician who uses much mercury, in any of its forms, in his practice.

Mer*cu”ri*al*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mercurialized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mercurializing (?).] 1. (Med.) To affect with mercury.

2. (Photography) To treat with mercury; to expose to the vapor of mercury.

Mer*cu”ri*al*ize, v. i. To be sprightly, fantastic, or capricious. [Obs.]

Mer*cu”ri*al*ly, adv. In a mercurial manner.

Mer*cu”ric (?), a. (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or derived from, mercury; containing mercury; — said of those compounds of mercury into which this element enters in its lowest proportion.

Mercuric chloride, corrosive sublimate. See Corrosive.

Mer*cu`ri*fi*ca”tion (?), n. [Cf. F. mercurification. See Mercurify.] 1. (Metal.) The process or operation of obtaining the mercury, in its fluid form, from mercuric minerals.

2. (Chem.) The act or process of compounding, or the state of being compounded, with mercury. [R.]

Mer*cu”ri*fy (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mercurified (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mercurifying (?).] [Mercury + -fy.] 1. To obtain mercury from, as mercuric minerals, which may be done by any application of intense heat that expels the mercury in fumes, which are afterward condensed. [R.]

2. To combine or mingle mercury with; to impregnate with mercury; to mercurialize. [R.]

Mer”cu*rism (?), n. A communication of news; an announcement. [Obs.] Sir T. Browne.

Mer*cu”rous (?), a. (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or derived from, mercury; containing mercury; — said of those compounds of mercury in which it is present in its highest proportion.

Mercurous chloride. (Chem.) See Calomel.

Mer”cu*ry (?), n. [L. Mercurius; akin to merx wares.] 1. (Rom. Myth.) A Latin god of commerce and gain; — treated by the poets as identical with the Greek Hermes, messenger of the gods, conductor of souls to the lower world, and god of eloquence.

2. (Chem.) A metallic element mostly obtained by reduction from cinnabar, one of its ores. It is a heavy, opaque, glistening liquid (commonly called quicksilver), and is used in barometers, thermometers, etc. Specific gravity 13.6. Symbol Hg (Hydrargyrum). Atomic weight 199.8. Mercury has a molecule which consists of only one atom. It was named by the alchemists after the god Mercury, and designated by his symbol, &mercury;.

&fist; Mercury forms alloys, called amalgams, with many metals, and is thus used in applying tin foil to the backs of mirrors, and in extracting gold and silver from their ores. It is poisonous, and is used in medicine in the free state as in blue pill, and in its compounds as calomel, corrosive sublimate, etc. It is the only metal which is liquid at ordinary temperatures, and it solidifies at about -39° Centigrade to a soft, malleable, ductile metal.

3. (Astron.) One of the planets of the solar system, being the one nearest the sun, from which its mean distance is about 36,000,000 miles. Its period is 88 days, and its diameter 3,000 miles.

4. A carrier of tidings; a newsboy; a messenger; hence, also, a newspaper. Sir J. Stephen. “The monthly Mercuries.” Macaulay.

5. Sprightly or mercurial quality; spirit; mutability; fickleness. [Obs.]

He was so full of mercury that he could not fix long in any friendship, or to any design.

Bp. Burnet.

6. (Bot.) A plant (Mercurialis annua), of the Spurge family, the leaves of which are sometimes used for spinach, in Europe.

&fist; The name is also applied, in the United States, to certain climbing plants, some of which are poisonous to the skin, esp. to the Rhus Toxicodendron, or poison ivy.

Dog’s mercury (Bot.), Mercurialis perennis, a perennial plant differing from M. annua by having the leaves sessile. — English mercury (Bot.), a kind of goosefoot formerly used as a pot herb; – - called Good King Henry. — Horn mercury (Min.), a mineral chloride of mercury, having a semitranslucent, hornlike appearance.

Mer”cu*ry, v. t. To wash with a preparation of mercury. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

Mer”cy (?), n.; pl. Mercies (#). [OE. merci, F. merci, L. merces, mercedis, hire, pay, reward, LL., equiv. to misericordia pity, mercy. L. merces is prob. akin to merere to deserve, acquire. See Merit, and cf. Amerce.] 1. Forbearance to inflict harm under circumstances of provocation, when one has the power to inflict it; compassionate treatment of an offender or adversary; clemency.

Examples of justice must be made for terror to some; examples of mercy for comfort to others.

Bacon.

2. Compassionate treatment of the unfortunate and helpless; sometimes, favor, beneficence. Luke x. 37.

3. Disposition to exercise compassion or favor; pity; compassion; willingness to spare or to help.

In whom mercy lacketh and is not founden.

Sir T. Elyot.

4. A blessing regarded as a manifestation of compassion or favor.

The Father of mercies and the God of all comfort.

2 Cor. i. 3.

Mercy seat (Bib.), the golden cover or lid of the Ark of the Covenant. See Ark, 2. — Sisters of Mercy (R. C. Ch.),a religious order founded in Dublin in the year 1827. Communities of the same name have since been established in various American cities. The duties of those belonging to the order are, to attend lying-in hospitals, to superintend the education of girls, and protect decent women out of employment, to visit prisoners and the sick, and to attend persons condemned to death. — To be at the mercy of, to be wholly in the power of.

Syn. — See Grace.

Merd (?), n. [F. merde, L. merda.] Ordure; dung. [Obs.] Burton.

-mere (?). [Gr. &?; part.] A combining form meaning part, portion; as, blastomere, epimere.

Mere (mēr), n. [Written also mar.] [OE. mere, AS. mere mere, sea; akin to D. meer lake, OS. meri sea, OHG. meri, mari, G. meer, Icel. marr, Goth. marei, Russ. more, W. mor, Ir. & Gael. muir, L. mare, and perh. to L. mori to die, and meaning originally, that which is dead, a waste. Cf. Mortal, Marine, Marsh, Mermaid, Moor.] A pool or lake. Drayton. Tennyson.

Mere, n. [Written also meer and mear.] [AS. gem&aemacr;re. √269.] A boundary. Bacon.

Mere (?), v. t. To divide, limit, or bound. [Obs.]

Which meared her rule with Africa.

Spenser.

Mere, n. A mare. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mere (?), a. [Superl. Merest. The comparative is rarely or never used.] [L. merus.] 1. Unmixed; pure; entire; absolute; unqualified.

Then entered they the mere, main sea.

Chapman.

The sorrows of this world would be mere and unmixed.

Jer. Taylor.

2. Only this, and nothing else; such, and no more; simple; bare; as, a mere boy; a mere form.

From mere success nothing can be concluded in favor of any nation.

Atterbury.

Mere”ly, adv. 1. Purely; unmixedly; absolutely.

Ulysses was to force forth his access,
Though merely naked.

Chapman.

2. Not otherwise than; simply; barely; only.

Prize not your life for other ends
Than merely to oblige your friends.

Swift.

Syn. — Solely; simply; purely; barely; scarcely.

||Me*ren”chy*ma (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; a part + -enchyma, as in parenchyma.] (Bot.) Tissue composed of spheroidal cells.

Meres”man (?), n. An officer who ascertains meres or boundaries. [Eng.]

Mere”stead (?), n. [Mere boundary + stead place.] The land within the boundaries of a farm; a farmstead or farm. [Archaic.] Longfellow.

Mere”stone` (?), n. A stone designating a limit or boundary; a landmark. Bacon.

Mer`e*tri”cious (?), a. [L. meretricius, from meretrix, -icis, a prostitute, lit., one who earns money, i. e., by prostitution, fr. merere to earn, gain. See Merit.] 1. Of or pertaining to prostitutes; having to do with harlots; lustful; as, meretricious traffic.

2. Resembling the arts of a harlot; alluring by false show; gaudily and deceitfully ornamental; tawdry; as, meretricious dress or ornaments.

— Mer`e*tri”cious*ly, adv. — Mer`e*tri”cious*ness, n.

Mer*gan”ser (?), n. [Sp. mergánsar, fr. mergo a diver (L. mergus, fr. mergere to dip, dive) + ánsar goose, L. anser.] (Zoöl.) Any bird of the genus Merganser, and allied genera. They are allied to the ducks, but have a sharply serrated bill.

&fist; The red-breasted merganser (Merganser serrator) inhabits both hemispheres. It is called also sawbill, harle, and sheldrake. The American merganser (M. Americanus.) and the hooded merganser (Lophodytes cucullatus) are well-known species. — White merganser, the smew or white nun.

Merge (m&etilde;rj), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Merged (m&etilde;rjd); p. pr. & vb. n. Merging (m&etilde;r”j&ibreve;ng).] [L. mergere, mersum. Cf. Emerge, Immerse, Marrow.] To cause to be swallowed up; to immerse; to sink; to absorb.

To merge all natural . . . sentiment in inordinate vanity.

Burke.

Whig and Tory were merged and swallowed up in the transcendent duties of patriots.

De Quincey.

Merge, v. i. To be sunk, swallowed up, or lost.

Native irresolution had merged in stronger motives.

I. Taylor.

Mer”ger (?), n. 1. One who, or that which, merges.

2. (Law) An absorption of one estate, or one contract, in another, or of a minor offense in a greater.

Mer”i*carp (?), n. [Gr. me`ros a part + karpo`s fruit.] (Bot.) One carpel of an umbelliferous fruit. See Cremocarp.

Mer”ide (? or ?), n. [Gr. &?; a part.] (Biol.) A permanent colony of cells or plastids which may remain isolated, like Rotifer, or may multiply by gemmation to form higher aggregates, termed zoides. Perrier.

Me*rid”i*an (?), a. [F. méridien, L. meridianus pertaining to noon, fr. meridies noon, midday, for older medidies; medius mid, middle + dies day. See Mid, and Diurnal.] 1. Being at, or pertaining to, midday; belonging to, or passing through, the highest point attained by the sun in his diurnal course. “Meridian hour.” Milton.

Tables . . . to find the altitude meridian.

Chaucer.

2. Pertaining to the highest point or culmination; as, meridian splendor.

Me*rid”i*an, n. [F. méridien. See Meridian, a.]

1. Midday; noon.

2. Hence: The highest point, as of success, prosperity, or the like; culmination.

I have touched the highest point of all my greatness,
And from that full meridian of my glory
I haste now to my setting.

Shak.

3. (Astron.) A great circle of the sphere passing through the poles of the heavens and the zenith of a given place. It is crossed by the sun at midday.

4. (Geog.) A great circle on the surface of the earth, passing through the poles and any given place; also, the half of such a circle included between the poles.

&fist; The planes of the geographical and astronomical meridians coincide. Meridians, on a map or globe, are lines drawn at certain intervals due north and south, or in the direction of the poles.

Calculated for, or fitted to, or adapted to, the meridian of, suited to the local circumstances, capabilities, or special requirements of.

All other knowledge merely serves the concerns of this life, and is fitted to the meridian thereof.

Sir M. Hale.

— First meridian, the meridian from which longitudes are reckoned. The meridian of Greenwich is the one commonly employed in calculations of longitude by geographers, and in actual practice, although in various countries other and different meridians, chiefly those which pass through the capitals of the countries, are occasionally used; as, in France, the meridian of Paris; in the United States, the meridian of Washington, etc. — Guide meridian (Public Land Survey), a line, marked by monuments, running North and South through a section of country between other more carefully established meridians called principal meridians, used for reference in surveying. [U.S.] — Magnetic meridian, a great circle, passing through the zenith and coinciding in direction with the magnetic needle, or a line on the earth’s surface having the same direction. — Meridian circle (Astron.), an instrument consisting of a telescope attached to a large graduated circle and so mounted that the telescope revolves like the transit instrument in a meridian plane. By it the right ascension and the declination of a star may be measured in a single observation. — Meridian instrument (Astron.), any astronomical instrument having a telescope that rotates in a meridian plane. — Meridian of a globe, or Brass meridian, a graduated circular ring of brass, in which the artificial globe is suspended and revolves.

Me*rid”i*o*nal (?), a. [F. méridional, L. meridionalis, fr. meridies midday. See Meridian.]

1. Of or pertaining to the meridian.

2. Having a southern aspect; southern; southerly.

Offices that require heat . . . should be meridional.

Sir H. Wotton.

Meridional distance, the distance or departure from the meridian; the easting or westing. — Meridional parts, parts of the meridian in Mercator’s projection, corresponding to each minute of latitude from the equator up to 70 or 80 degrees; tabulated numbers representing these parts used in projecting charts, and in solving cases in Mercator’s sailing.

Me*rid`i*o*nal”i*ty (?), n. 1. The state of being in the meridian.

2. Position in the south; aspect toward the south.

Me*rid”i*o*nal*ly (?), adv. In the direction of the meridian.

Mer”ils (?), n. [F. mérelle, marelle, marelles, LL. marella, marrella. Cf. Morris the game.] A boy’s play, called also fivepenny morris. See Morris.

||Me`ringue” (F. m&etilde;`răN”g’; E. m&ebreve;*răng”), n. [F.] A delicate pastry made of powdered sugar and the whites of eggs whipped up, — with jam or cream added.

Me*ri”no (?), a. [Sp. merino moving from pasture to pasture, fr. merino a royal judge and superintendent or inspector of sheep walks, LL. merinus, fr. majorinus, i. e., major vill&?;, fr. L. major greater. See Major. Merino sheep are driven at certain seasons from one part of Spain to another, in large flocks, for pasturage.] 1. Of or pertaining to a variety of sheep with very fine wool, originally bred in Spain.

2. Made of the wool of the merino sheep.

Me*ri”no, n.; pl. Merinos (#). [Sp.] 1. (Zoöl.) A breed of sheep originally from Spain, noted for the fineness of its wool.

2. A fine fabric of merino wool.

Mer`is*mat”ic (?), a. [Gr. &?; division, fr. &?; part.] (Biol.) Dividing into cells or segments; characterized by separation into two or more parts or sections by the formation of internal partitions; as, merismatic growth, where one cell divides into many.

Mer”i*stem (?), n. [Gr. &?; divisible.] (Bot.) A tissue of growing cells, or cells capable of further division.

Mer”it (?), n. [F. mérite, L. meritum, fr. merere, mereri, to deserve, merit; prob. originally, to get a share; akin to Gr. &?; part, &?; fate, doom, &?; to receive as one’s portion. Cf. Market, Merchant, Mercer, Mercy.] 1. The quality or state of deserving well or ill; desert.

Here may men see how sin hath his merit.

Chaucer.

Be it known, that we, the greatest, are misthought
For things that others do; and when we fall,
We answer other’s merits in our name.

Shak.

2. Esp. in a good sense: The quality or state of deserving well; worth; excellence.

Reputation is . . . oft got without merit, and lost without deserving.

Shak.

To him the wit of Greece and Rome was known,
And every author’s merit, but his own.

Pope.

3. Reward deserved; any mark or token of excellence or approbation; as, his teacher gave him ten merits.

Those laurel groves, the merits of thy youth.

Prior.

Mer”it, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Merited; p. pr. & vb. n. Meriting.] [F. mériter, L. meritare, v. intens. fr. merere. See Merit, n.] 1. To earn by service or performance; to have a right to claim as reward; to deserve; sometimes, to deserve in a bad sense; as, to merit punishment. “This kindness merits thanks.” Shak.

2. To reward. [R. & Obs.] Chapman.

Mer”it, v. i. To acquire desert; to gain value; to receive benefit; to profit. [Obs.] Beau. & Fl.

Mer”it*a*ble (?), a. Deserving of reward. [R.]

Mer”it*ed*ly, adv. By merit; deservedly.

{ Mer”i*thal (?), ||Mer`i*thal”lus (?), } n. [NL. merithallus, fr. Gr. &?;, or &?;, a part + &?; a young shoot.] (Bot.) Same as Internode.

Mer”it*mon`ger (?), n. One who depends on merit for salvation. [Obs.] Milner.

Mer`i*to”ri*ous (?), a. [L. meritorius that brings in money.] Possessing merit; deserving of reward or honor; worthy of recompense; valuable.

And meritorious shall that hand be called,
Canonized, and worshiped as a saint.

Shak.

— Mer`i*to”ri*ous*ly, adv. — Mer`i*to”ri*ous*ness, n.

Mer”i*to*ry (?), a. Meritorious. [Obs.]

Mer”i*tot (?), n. A play of children, in swinging on ropes, or the like, till they are dizzy.

Merk (?), n. [See Marc.] An old Scotch silver coin; a mark or marc. [Scot.]

Merk, n. A mark; a sign. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Merke (?), a. Murky. [Obs.] Piers Plowman.

Mer”kin (?), n. Originally, a wig; afterwards, a mop for cleaning cannon.

{ Merl (?), Merle, } n. [F. merle, L. merula, merulus. Cf. Ousel.] (Zoöl.) The European blackbird. See Blackbird. Drayton.

Mer”lin (?), n. [OE. merlion, F. émerillon ; cf. OHG. smirl, G. schmerl ; prob. fr. L. merula blackbird. Cf. Merle.] (Zoöl.) A small European falcon (Falco lithofalco, or F. æsalon).

Mer”ling (?), n. (Zoöl.) The European whiting.

Mer”lon (?), n. [F., perh. fr. L. moerus, for murus a wall, through (assumed) dim. moerulus.] (Fort.) One of the solid parts of a battlemented parapet; a battlement. See Illust. of Battlement.

Mer”luce (?), n. [F. merluche, merlus.] (Zoöl.) The European hake; — called also herring hake and sea pike.

Mer”maid (?), n. [AS. mere lake, sea. See Mere lake, and maid.] A fabled marine creature, typically represented as having the upper part like that of a woman, and the lower like a fish; a sea nymph, sea woman, or woman fish.

&fist; Chaucer uses this word as equivalent to the siren of the ancients.

Mermaid fish (Zoöl.) the angel fish (Squatina). — Mermaid’s glove (Zoöl.), a British branched sponge somewhat resembling a glove. — Mermaid’s head (Zoöl.), a European spatangoid sea urchin (Echinocardium cordatum) having some resemblance to a skull. — Mermaid weed (Bot.), an aquatic herb with dentate or pectinate leaves (Proserpinaca palustris and P. pectinacea).

Mer”man (?), n.; pl. Mermen (&?;). The male corresponding to mermaid; a sea man, or man fish.

Mer”o*blast (?), n. [Gr. &?; part + -blast.] (Biol.) An ovum, as that of a mammal, only partially composed of germinal matter, that is, consisting of both a germinal portion and an albuminous or nutritive one; — opposed to holoblast.

Mer`o*blas”tic (?), a. (Biol.) Consisting only in part of germinal matter; characterized by partial segmentation only; as, meroblastic ova, in which a portion of the yolk only undergoes fission; meroblastic segmentation; — opposed to holoblastic.

Me”ro*cele (?), n. [Gr. &?; thigh + &?; tumor.] (Med.) Hernia in the thigh; femoral hernia .

Mer`o*is”tic (?), a. [Gr. &?; part + &?; an egg.] (Zoöl.) Applied to the ovaries of insects when they secrete vitelligenous cells, as well as ova.

Me*rop”i*dan (?), n. [L. merops a bee-eating bird, Gr. me`rops.] (Zoöl.) One of a family of birds (Meropidæ), including the bee-eaters.

Me*rop”o*dite (?), n. [Gr. &?; thigh + poy`s, podo`s, foot.] (Zoöl.) The fourth joint of a typical appendage of Crustacea.

Mer*or`gan*i*za”tion (?), n. [Gr. &?; part + E. organization.] Organization in part. [R.]

||Me”ros (?), n. [NL., from Gr. &?; part.] (Arch.) The plain surface between the channels of a triglyph. [Written also merus.] Weale.

||Me”ros, n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; the thigh.] (Anat.) The proximal segment of the hind limb; the thigh.

Mer”o*some (?), n. [Gr. &?; part + - some body.] (Zoöl.) One of the serial segments, or metameres, of which the bodies of vertebrate and articulate animals are composed.

||Mer`o*stom”a*ta (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; thigh + &?;, -&?;, mouth.] (Zoöl.) A class of Arthropoda, allied to the Crustacea. It includes the trilobites, Eurypteroidea, and Limuloidea. All are extinct except the horseshoe crabs of the last group. See Limulus.

||Mé`rou” (?), n. [F.] (Zoöl.) See Jack, 8 (c).

Mer`o*vin”gi*an (?), a. [From Merovaeus, the Latin name of a king of the Franks.] Of or pertaining to the first Frankish dynasty in Gaul or France. — n. One of the kings of this dynasty.

Mer”ri*ly (?), adv. [From Merry.] In a merry manner; with mirth; with gayety and laughter; jovially. See Mirth, and Merry.

Merrily sing, and sport, and play.

Granville.

Mer”ri*make` (?), n. See Merrymake, n.

Mer”ri*make`, v. i. See Merrymake, v. Gay.

Mer”ri*ment (?), n. Gayety, with laughter; mirth; frolic. “Follies and light merriment.” Spenser.

Methought it was the sound
Of riot and ill-managed merriment.

Milton.

Mer”ri*ness, n. The quality or state of being merry; merriment; mirth; gayety, with laughter.

Mer”ry (?), a. [Compar. Merrier (?); superl. Merriest.] [OE. merie, mirie, murie, merry, pleasant, AS. merge, myrige, pleasant; cf. murge, adv.; prob. akin to OHG. murg, short, Goth. gamaúrgjan to shorten; cf. L. murcus a coward, who cuts off his thumb to escape military service; the Anglo-Saxon and English meanings coming from the idea of making the time seem short. Cf. Mirth.] 1. Laughingly gay; overflowing with good humor and good spirits; jovial; inclined to laughter or play ; sportive.

They drank, and were merry with him.

Gen. xliii. 34.

I am never merry when I hear sweet music.

Shak.

2. Cheerful; joyous; not sad; happy.

Is any merry? let him sing psalms.

Jas. v. 13.

3. Causing laughter, mirth, gladness, or delight; as, a merry jest. “Merry wind and weather.” Spenser.

Merry dancers. See under Dancer. — Merry men, followers; retainers. [Obs.]

His merie men commanded he
To make him bothe game and glee.

Chaucer.

— To make merry, to be jovial; to indulge in hilarity; to feast with mirth. Judg. ix. 27.

Syn. — Cheerful; blithe; lively; sprightly; vivacious; gleeful; joyous; mirthful; jocund; sportive; hilarious.

Mer”ry (m&ebreve;r”r&ybreve;), n. (Bot.) A kind of wild red cherry.

Mer”ry-an”drew (-ăn”dr&udd;), n. One whose business is to make sport for others; a buffoon; a zany; especially, one who attends a mountebank or quack doctor.

&fist; This term is said to have originated from one Andrew Borde, an English physician of the 16th century, who gained patients by facetious speeches to the multitude.

Mer”ry-go`-round” (?), n. Any revolving contrivance for affording amusement; esp., a ring of flying hobbyhorses.

Mer”ry*make` (?), n. Mirth; frolic; a meeting for mirth; a festival. [Written also merrimake.]

Mer”ry*make`, v. i. To make merry; to be jolly; to feast. [Written also merrimake.]

Mer”ry*mak`er (?), n. One who makes merriment or indulges in conviviality; a jovial comrade.

Mer”ry*mak`ing (?), a. Making or producing mirth; convivial; jolly.

Mer”ry*mak`ing, n. The act of making merry; conviviality; merriment; jollity. Wordsworth.

Mer”ry*meet`ing (?), n. A meeting for mirth.

Mer”ry*thought` (?), n. The forked bone of a fowl’s breast; — called also wishbone. See Furculum.

&fist; It is a sportive custom for two persons to break this bone by pulling the ends apart to see who will get the longer piece, the securing of which is regarded as a lucky omen, signifying that the person holding it will obtain the gratification of some secret wish.

Mer”sion (?), n. [L. mersio. See Merge.] Immersion. [R.] Barrow.

Me*ru”li*dan (?), n. [L. merula, merulus, blackbird. See Merle.] (Zoöl.) A bird of the Thrush family.

||Me”rus (?), n. [NL.] (Arch.) See Meros.

Mer”vaille` (?), n. Marvel. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mes- (?). See Meso-.

||Me”sa (?), &?;. [Sp.] A high tableland; a plateau on a hill. [Southwestern U.S.] Bartlett.

Mes*ac”o*nate (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of mesaconic acid.

Mes`a*con”ic (?), a. [Mes- + -aconic, as in citraconic.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, one of several isomeric acids obtained from citric acid.

Mes”ad (?), adv. Same as Mesiad.

Mes”al (?), a. Same as Mesial.

||Mé`sal`li`ance” (?), n. [F.] A marriage with a person of inferior social position; a misalliance.

Mes”al*ly (m&ebreve;s”al*l&ybreve;), adv. Same as Mesially.

Mes`a*mœ“boid (m&ebreve;s`&ador;*mē“boid), n. [Mes- + amœboid.] (Biol.) One of a class of independent, isolated cells found in the mesoderm, while the germ layers are undergoing differentiation.

Mes`a*ra”ic (?), a. [Gr. mesa`raion mesentery; me`sos middle + ‘araia` flank.] (Anat.) Mesenteric.

Mes`a*ti*ce*phal”ic (?), a. [Gr. &?; midmost + E. cephalic.] (Anat.) Having the ratio of the length to the breadth of the cranium a medium one; neither brachycephalic nor dolichocephalic.

Mes`a*ti*ceph”a*lous (?), a. (Anat.) Mesaticephalic.

||Mes*cal” (?), n. [Sp.] A distilled liquor prepared in Mexico from a species of agave. See Agave.

||Mes`dames” (F. ?, E. ?), n., pl. of Madame and Madam.

Me*seems” (?), v. impers. [imp. Meseemed (?).] It seems to me. [Poetic]

Me”sel (?), n. [See Measle.] A leper. [Obs.]

Me”sel*ry (?), n. Leprosy. [Obs.] Chaucer.

||Me*sem`bry*an”the*mum (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. meshmbri`a midday + ‘a`nqos flower.] (Bot.) A genus of herbaceous or suffruticose plants, chiefly natives of South Africa. The leaves are opposite, thick, and f&?;eshy. The flowers usually open about midday, whence the name.

Mes`en*ce*phal”ic (?), a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the mesencephalon or midbrain.

||Mes`en*ceph”a*lon (?), n. [NL. See Meso- and Encephalon.] (Anat.) The middle segment of the brain; the midbrain. Sometimes abbreviated to mesen. See Brain.

||Mes*en”chy*ma (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. me`sos middle + -enchyma, as in E. parenchyma.] (Biol.) The part of the mesoblast which gives rise to the connective tissues and blood.

Mes`en*ter”ic (?), a. [Cf. F. mésentérique.] (Anat.) Pertaining to a mesentery; mesaraic.

||Mes*en”te*ron (?), n. [NL. See Meso-, and Enteron.] (Anat.) All that part of the alimentary canal which is developed from the primitive enteron and is lined with hypoblast. It is distinguished from the stomodæum, a part at the anterior end of the canal, including the cavity of the mouth, and the proctodæum, a part at the posterior end, which are formed by invagination and are lined with epiblast.

Mes”en*ter*y (?; 277), n. [Gr. mesente`rion, me`sos + ‘e`nteron intestine: cf. F. mésentère.]

1. (Anat.) The membranes, or one of the membranes (consisting of a fold of the peritoneum and inclosed tissues), which connect the intestines and their appendages with the dorsal wall of the abdominal cavity. The mesentery proper is connected with the jejunum and ilium, the other mesenteries being called mesocæcum, mesocolon, mesorectum, etc.

2. (Zoöl.) One of the vertical muscular radiating partitions which divide the body cavity of Anthozoa into chambers.

Mes`e*ra”ic (?), a. (Anat.) Mesaraic.

Mes*eth”moid (?), a. [Mes- + ethmoid.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the middle of the ethmoid region or ethmoid bone. — n. (Anat.) The median vertical plate, or median element, of the ethmoid bone.

Mesh (m&ebreve;sh), n. [AS. masc, max, mæscre; akin to D. maas, masche, OHG. masca, Icel. möskvi; cf. Lith. mazgas a knot, megsti to weave nets, to knot.] 1. The opening or space inclosed by the threads of a net between knot and knot, or the threads inclosing such a space; network; a net.

A golden mesh to entrap the hearts of men.

Shak.

2. (Gearing) The engagement of the teeth of wheels, or of a wheel and rack.

Mesh stick, a stick on which the mesh is formed in netting.

Mesh, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Meshed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Meshing.] To catch in a mesh. Surrey.

Mesh, v. i. (Gearing) To engage with each other, as the teeth of wheels.

Meshed (?), a. Mashed; brewed. [Obs.] Shak.

Mesh”y (?), a. Formed with meshes; netted.

Mes”i*ad (?), adv. [Gr. me`sos middle + L. ad to.] (Anat.) Toward, or on the side toward, the mesial plane; mesially; — opposed to laterad.

Me”sial (?; 277), a. [Gr. me`sos middle.] (Anat.) Middle; median; in, or in the region of, the mesial plane; internal; — opposed to lateral.

Mesial plane. (Anat.) See Meson.

Me”sial*ly, adv. (Anat.) In, near, or toward, the mesial plane; mesiad.

Mes”i*tyl (?), n. (Chem.) A hypothetical radical formerly supposed to exist in mesityl oxide.

Mesityl oxide (Chem.), a volatile liquid having the odor of peppermint, obtained by certain dehydrating agents from acetone; — formerly called also dumasin.

Me*sit”y*le*nate (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of mesitylenic acid.

Me*sit”y*lene (?), n. (Chem.) A colorless, fragrant liquid, C_6H_3(CH_3)3, of the benzene series of hydrocarbons, obtained by distilling acetone with sulphuric acid. — Me*sit`y*len”ic (#), a.

Me*sit”y*lol (?), n. [Mesitylene + -ol.] (Chem.) A crystalline substance obtained from mesitylene.

Mes”lin (? or ?), n. See Maslin.

Mes`mer*ee” (?), n. A person subjected to mesmeric influence; one who is mesmerized. [R.]

{ Mes*mer”ic (?), Mes*mer”ic*al (?), } a. [Cf. F. mesmérique.] Of, pertaining to, or induced by, mesmerism; as, mesmeric sleep.

Mes”mer*ism (?), n. [From Mesmer, who first brought it into notice at Vienna, about 1775: cf. F. mesmérisme.] The art of inducing an extraordinary or abnormal state of the nervous system, in which the actor claims to control the actions, and communicate directly with the mind, of the recipient. See Animal magnetism, under Magnetism.

Mes”mer*ist, n. One who practices, or believes in, mesmerism.

Mes`mer*i*za”tion (?), n. The act of mesmerizing; the state of being mesmerized.

Mes”mer*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mesmerized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mesmerizing (?).] To bring into a state of mesmeric sleep.

Mes”mer*i`zer (?), n. One who mesmerizes.

Mesne (?), a. [Cf. Mean intermediate.] (Law) Middle; intervening; as, a mesne lord, that is, a lord who holds land of a superior, but grants a part of it to another person, in which case he is a tenant to the superior, but lord or superior to the second grantee, and hence is called the mesne lord.

Mesne process, intermediate process; process intervening between the beginning and end of a suit, sometimes understood to be the whole process preceding the execution. Blackstone. Burrill. — Mesne profits, profits of premises during the time the owner has been wrongfully kept out of the possession of his estate. Burrill.

{ Mes”o- (?), Mes- (?) }. [Gr. me`sos in the middle.] A combining form denoting in the middle, intermediate; specif. (Chem.), denoting a type of hydrocarbons which are regarded as methenyl derivatives. Also used adjectively.

||Mes`o*a”ri*um (?), n. [NL., from Gr. me`sos middle + ‘w,a`rion, dim. of ‘w,o`n an egg.] (Anat.) The fold of peritoneum which suspends the ovary from the dorsal wall of the body cavity.

Mes”o*blast (?), n. [Meso- + -blast.] (Biol.) (a) The mesoderm. (b) The cell nucleus; mesoplast.

Mes`o*blas”tic (?), a. (Biol.) Relating to the mesoblast; as, the mesoblastic layer.

Mes`o*bran”chi*al (?), a. [Meso- + branchial.] (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to a region of the carapace of a crab covering the middle branchial region.

||Mes`o*bron”chi*um (?), n.; pl. Mesobronchia (#). [NL. See Meso-, and Bronchia.] (Anat.) The main bronchus of each lung.

||Mes`o*cæ“cum (?), n. (Anat.) [NL. See Meso-, and Cæcum.] The fold of peritoneum attached to the cæcum. — Mes`o*cæ“cal (#), a.

Mes”o*carp (?), n. [Meso- + Gr. karpo`s fruit.] (Bot.) The middle layer of a pericarp which consists of three distinct or dissimilar layers. Gray.

Mes`o*ce*phal”ic (?), a. [Meso- + cephalic.] (Anat.) (a) Of or pertaining to, or in the region of, the middle of the head; as, the mesocephalic flexure. (b) Having the cranial cavity of medium capacity; neither megacephalic nor microcephalic. (c) Having the ratio of the length to the breadth of the cranium a medium one; mesaticephalic.

||Mes`o*ceph”a*lon (?), n. [NL. See Meso-, and Cephalon.] (Anat.) The pons Varolii.

Mes`o*ceph”a*lous (?), a. (Anat.) Mesocephalic.

{ Mes`o*cœ“le (?), ||Mes`o*cœ“li*a (?), } n. [NL. mesocoelia. See Meso-, and Cœlia.] (Anat.) The cavity of the mesencephalon; the iter.

Mes`o*co”lon (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;; me`sos middle + &?; the colon : cf. F. mésocôlon.] (Anat.) The fold of peritoneum, or mesentery, attached to the colon. — Mes`o*col”ic (#), a.

Mes`o*cor”a*coid (?), n. [Meso- + coracoid.] (Anat.) A process from the middle of the coracoid in some animals.

{ Mes`o*cu*ne”i*form (?), Mes`o*cu”ni*form (?), } n. [Meso- + cuneiform, cuniform.] (Anat.) One of the bones of the tarsus. See 2d Cuneiform.

Mes”o*derm (?), n. [Meso- + Gr. de`rma skin.] (Biol.) (a) The layer of the blastoderm, between the ectoderm and endoderm; mesoblast. See Illust. of Blastoderm and Ectoderm. (b) The middle body layer in some invertebrates. (c) The middle layer of tissue in some vegetable structures.

Mes`o*der”mal (?), a. (Biol.) Pertaining to, or derived from, the mesoderm; as, mesodermal tissues.

Mes`o*der”mic (?), a. Same as Mesodermal.

Mes”o*dont (?), a. [Meso- + Gr. ‘odoy`s, ‘odo`ntos, a tooth.] (Anat.) Having teeth of moderate size.

||Mes`o*gas”ter (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. me`sos middle + &?; belly.] (Anat.) The fold of peritoneum connecting the stomach with the dorsal wall of the abdominal cavity; the mesogastrium.

Mes`o*gas”tric (?), a. [Meso- + gastric.]

1. (Anat.) (a) Of or pertaining to the middle region of the abdomen, or of the stomach. (b) Of or pertaining to the mesogaster.

2. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the middle gastric lobe of the carapace of a crab.

||Mes`o*gas”tri*um (?), n. [NL. See Mesogaster.] (Anat.) (a) The umbilical region. (b) The mesogaster.

||Mes`o*glœ“a (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. me`sos middle + &?; a glutinous substance.] (Zoöl.) A thin gelatinous tissue separating the ectoderm and endoderm in certain cœlenterates. — Mes`o*glœ“al (#), a.

Me*sog”na*thous (?), a. [Meso- + Gr. gna`qos jaw.] (Anat.) Having the jaws slightly projecting; between prognathous and orthognathous. See Gnathic index, under Gnathic.

||Mes`o*he”par (?), n. [NL. See Meso-, and Hepar.] (Anat.) A fold of the peritoneum connecting the liver with the dorsal wall of the abdominal cavity.

||Mes`o*hip”pus (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. me`sos middle + &?; a horse.] (Paleon.) An extinct mammal of the Horse family, but not larger than a sheep, and having three toes on each foot.

Mes”o*labe (?), n. [L. mesolabium, Gr. &?;; me`sos middle + &?; to take.] An instrument of the ancients for finding two mean proportionals between two given lines, required in solving the problem of the duplication of the cube. Brande & C.

Mes”ole (?), n. [Gr. me`sos middle.] (Min.) Same as Thomsonite.

Mes”o*lite (?; 277), n. [Meso- + -lite.] (Min.) A zeolitic mineral, grayish white or yellowish, occuring in delicate groups of crystals, also fibrous massive. It is a hydrous silicate of alumina, lime, and soda.

Mes`o*log”a*rithm (?), n. [Meso- + logarithm : cf. F. mésologarithme.] (Math.) A logarithm of the cosine or cotangent. [Obs.] Kepler. Hutton.

||Mes`o*me”tri*um (?), n. [NL. See Meso-, and Metrium.] (Anat.) The fold of the peritoneum supporting the oviduct.

Mes`o*my*o”di*an (?), n. (Zoöl.) A bird having a mesomyodous larynx.

Mes`o*my”o*dous (?), a. [Meso- + Gr. &?;, &?;, a muscle.] (Zoöl.) Having the intrinsic muscles of the larynx attached to the middle of the semirings.

||Mes”on (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. me`son middle, neut. of me`sos, a., middle.] (Anat.) The mesial plane dividing the body of an animal into similar right and left halves. The line in which it meets the dorsal surface has been called the dorsimeson, and the corresponding ventral edge the ventrimeson. B. G. Wilder.

Mes`o*na”sal (?), a. [Meso- + nasal.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the middle portion of the nasal region.

Mes`o*neph”ric (?), a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the mesonephros; as, the mesonephric, or Wolffian, duct.

||Mes`o*neph”ros (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. me`sos middle + nefro`s kidney.] (Anat.) The middle one of the three pairs of embryonic renal organs developed in most vertebrates; the Wolffian body.

||Mes`o*no”tum (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. me`sos middle + nw^ton the back.] (Zoöl.) The dorsal portion of the mesothorax of insects.

||Mes`o*phlœ“um (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. me`sos middle + floio`s bark.] (Bot.) The middle bark of a tree; the green layer of bark, usually soon covered by the outer or corky layer, and obliterated.

||Me*soph”ry*on (?), n. [NL., from Gr. meso`fryon.] (Anat.) See Glabella.

||Mes`o*phyl”lum (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. me`sos middle + fy`llon leaf.] (Bot.) The parenchyma of a leaf between the skin of the two surfaces. Gray.

Mes”o*plast (?), n. [Meso- + -plast.] (Biol.) The nucleus of a cell; mesoblast. Agassiz.

Mes`o*po”di*al (m&ebreve;s`&osl;pō“d&ibreve;al), a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the mesopodialia or to the parts of the limbs to which they belong.

||Mes`o*po`di*a”le (?), n.; pl. Mesopodialia (#). [NL., fr. Gr. me`sos middle + &?;, dim. of poy`s, podo`s, foot.] (Anat.) One of the bones of either the carpus or tarsus.

||Mes`o*po”di*um (?), n. [NL. See Mesopodiale.] (Zoöl.) The middle portion of the foot in the Gastropoda and Pteropoda.

||Me*sop`te*ryg”i*um (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. me`sos middle + &?; a fin.] (Anat.) The middle one of the three principal basal cartilages in the fins of fishes. — ||Me*sop`ter*yg”i*al (#), a.

||Me*sor”chi*um (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. me`sos middle + &?; a testicle.] (Anat.) The fold of peritoneum which attaches the testis to the dorsal wall of the body cavity or scrotal sac.

||Mes`o*rec”tum (?), n. [Meso- + rectum.] (Anat.) The fold of peritoneum, or mesentery, attached to the rectum. — Mes`o*rec”tal (#), a.

Mes”o*rhine (?), a. [Meso- + Gr. &?;, &?;, the nose.] (Anat.) Having the nose of medium width; between leptorhine and platyrhine.

||Mes`o*sau”ri*a (?), n. Same as Mosasauria.

||Mes`o*scap”u*la (?), n. [Meso- + scapula.] (Anat.) A process from the middle of the scapula in some animals; the spine of the scapula.

Mes`o*scap”u*lar (?), a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the mesoscapula.

||Mes`o*scu”tum (?), n. [Meso- + scutum.] (Zoöl.) The scutum or dorsal plate of the middle thoracic segment of an insect. See Illust. of Butterfly.

Mes”o*seme (?), a. [Meso- + Gr. &?; sign, mark; cf. F. mésosème.] (Anat.) Having a medium orbital index; having orbits neither broad nor narrow; between megaseme and microseme.

Mes`o*sid”er*ite (?), n. [Meso- + siderite.] (Min.) See the Note under Meteorite.

Mes”o*sperm (?), n. [Meso- + Gr. &?; seed: cf. F. mésosperme.] (Bot.) A membrane of a seed. See Secundine.

Mes”o*state (?), n. [Meso- + Gr. &?; to make to stand.] (Physiol.) A product of metabolic action.

&fist; Every mesostate is either an anastate or katastate, according as it is formed by an anabolic or katabolic process. See Metabolism.

Mes`o*ster”nal (?), a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the mesosternum.

||Mes`o*ster”num (?), n. [Meso- + sternum.]

1. (Anat.) The middle portion, or body, of the sternum.

2. (Zoöl.) The ventral piece of the middle segment of the thorax in insects.

Mes`o*tar*tar”ic (?), a. [Meso- + tartaric.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, an acid called also inactive tartaric acid.

||Mes`o*the”ca (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. me`sos middle + &?; box.] (Zoöl.) The middle layer of the gonophore in the Hydrozoa.

||Mes`o*the”li*um (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. me`sos middle + E. epithelium.] (Biol.) Epithelial mesoderm; a layer of cuboidal epithelium cells, formed from a portion of the mesoderm during the differetiation of the germ layers. It constitutes the boundary of the cœlum.

Mes`o*tho*rac”ic (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the mesothorax.

Mes`o*tho”rax (?), n. [Meso- + thorax: cf. F. mésothorax.] (Zoöl.) The middle segment of the thorax in insects. See Illust. of Coleoptera.

Mes”o*tro`chal (?), a. [Meso- + Gr. &?; anything round, a hoop.] (Zoöl.) Having the middle of the body surrounded by bands of cilia; — said of the larvæ of certain marine annelids.

Mes”o*type (?), n. [Meso- + - type: cf. F. mésotype.] (Min.) An old term covering natrolite or soda mesolite, scolecite or lime mesotype, and mesolite or lime-soda mesotype.

||Mes`o*va”ri*um (?), n. [NL. See Meso-, and Ovary.] (Anat.) The fold of peritoneum connecting the ovary with the wall of the abdominal cavity.

Mes*ox”a*late (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of mesoxalic acid.

Mes`ox*al”ic (?), a. [Mes- + oxalic.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, an acid, CH_2O_2(CO_2H)2, obtained from amido malonic acid.

||Mes`o*zo”a (?), n. pl. [NL. See Mesozoic.] (Zoöl.) A group of very lowly organized, wormlike parasites, including the Dicyemata. They are found in cephalopods. See Dicyemata.

Mes`o*zo”ic (?), a. [Meso- + Gr. &?; life, fr. &?; to live.] (Geol.) Belonging, or relating, to the secondary or reptilian age, or the era between the Paleozoic and Cenozoic. See Chart of Geology.

Mes`o*zo”ic, n. The Mesozoic age or formation.

Mes*prise” (?), n. [OF. mespris, F. mépris. See Misprize.] 1. Contempt; scorn. [Obs.]

2. [Perh. for F. méprise mistake. Cf. Misprision.] Misadventure; ill-success. [Obs.] Spenser.

{ Mes*qui”te (m&ebreve;s*kē“t&asl;), Mes*quit” (m&ebreve;s*kēt”) }, n. [Sp. mezquite; said to be a Mexican Indian word.] (Bot.) A name for two trees of the southwestern part of North America, the honey mesquite, and screw-pod mesquite.

Honey mesquite. See Algaroba (b). — Screw-pod mesquite, a smaller tree (Prosopis pubescens), having spiral pods used as fodder and sometimes as food by the Indians. — Mesquite grass, a rich native grass in Western Texas (Bouteloua oligostachya, and other species); — so called from its growing in company with the mesquite tree; — called also muskit grass, grama grass.

Mess (?), n. Mass; church service. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mess (?), n. [OE. mes, OF. mets, LL. missum, p. p. of mittere to put, place (e. g., on the table), L. mittere to send. See Mission, and cf. Mass religious service.] 1. A quantity of food set on a table at one time; provision of food for a person or party for one meal; as, a mess of pottage; also, the food given to a beast at one time.

At their savory dinner set
Of herbs and other country messes.

Milton.

2. A number of persons who eat together, and for whom food is prepared in common; especially, persons in the military or naval service who eat at the same table; as, the wardroom mess. Shak.

3. A set of four; — from the old practice of dividing companies into sets of four at dinner. [Obs.] Latimer.

4. The milk given by a cow at one milking. [U.S.]

5. [Perh. corrupt. fr. OE. mesh for mash: cf. muss.] A disagreeable mixture or confusion of things; hence, a situation resulting from blundering or from misunderstanding; as, he made a mess of it. [Colloq.]

Mess (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Messed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Messing.] To take meals with a mess; to belong to a mess; to eat (with others); as, I mess with the wardroom officers. Marryat.

Mess, v. t. To supply with a mess.

Mes”sage (?; 48), n. [F., fr. LL. missaticum, fr. L. mittere, missum, to send. See Mission, and cf. Messenger.] 1. Any notice, word, or communication, written or verbal, sent from one person to another.

Ehud said, I have a message from God unto thee.

Judg. iii. 20.

2. Hence, specifically, an official communication, not made in person, but delivered by a messenger; as, the President’s message.

Message shell. See Shell.

Mes”sage, v. t. To bear as a message. [Obs.]

Mes”sage, n. [OE., fr. OF. message, fr. LL. missaticus. See 1st Message.] A messenger. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mes”sa*ger (?), n. [OE.] A messenger. [Obs.]

Mes”sen*ger (?), n. [OE. messager, OF. messagier, F. messager. See Message.] 1. One who bears a message; the bearer of a verbal or written communication, notice, or invitation, from one person to another, or to a public body; specifically, an office servant who bears messages.

2. One who, or that which, foreshows, or foretells.

Yon gray lines
That fret the clouds are messengers of day.

Shak.

3. (Naut.) A hawser passed round the capstan, and having its two ends lashed together to form an endless rope or chain; — formerly used for heaving in the cable.

4. (Law) A person appointed to perform certain ministerial duties under bankrupt and insolvent laws, such as to take charge of the estate of the bankrupt or insolvent. Bouvier. Tomlins.

Syn. — Carrier; intelligencer; courier; harbinger; forerunner; precursor; herald.

Messenger bird, the secretary bird, from its swiftness.

Mes”set (?), n. A dog. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.]

Mes*si”ad (?), n. A German epic poem on the Messiah, by Klopstock.

Mes*si”ah (?), n. [Heb. māshīakh anointed, fr. māshakh to anoint. Cf. Messias.] The expected king and deliverer of the Hebrews; the Savior; Christ.

And told them the Messiah now was born.

Milton.

Mes*si”ah*ship, n. The state or office of the Messiah.

Mes`si*an”ic (?), a. Of or relating to the Messiah; as, the Messianic office or character.

Mes*si”as (?), n. [LL., fr. Gr. &?;. See Messiah.] The Messiah.

I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ.

John iv. 25.

||Mes`si`dor” (F. ?; E. ?), n. [F., fr. L. messis harvest.] The tenth month of the French republican calendar dating from September 22, 1792. It began June 19, and ended July 18. See VendÉmiaire.

Mes”sieurs (?; F. ?; 277), n. pl. [F.; pl. of monsieur.] Sirs; gentlemen; — abbreviated to Messrs., which is used as the plural of Mr.

Mes`si*nese” (? or ?), a. Of or pertaining to Messina, or its inhabitans.

Mess”mate` (?), n. An associate in a mess.

Mes”suage (?; 48), n. [Cf. OF. mesuage, masnage, LL. messuagium, mansionaticum, fr. L. mansio, -onis, a staying, remaining, dwelling, fr. manere, mansum, to stay, remain, E. mansion, manse.] (Law) A dwelling house, with the adjacent buildings and curtilage, and the adjoining lands appropriated to the use of the household. Cowell. Bouvier.

They wedded her to sixty thousand pounds,
To lands in Kent, and messuages in York.

Tennyson.

Mest (?), a. Most. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mes*tee” (?), n. [See Mestizo.] The offspring of a white person and a quadroon; — so called in the West Indies. [Written also mustee.]

Mes”ter (?), n. [Obs.] See Mister, a trade.

Mes*ti”no (?), n.; pl. Mestinos (&?;). See Mestizo.

Mes*ti”zo (?), n.; pl. Mestizos (#). [Sp. mestizo; akin to OF. mestis, F. métis; all fr. (assumed) LL. mixtitius, fr. L. mixtus mixed, p. p. of miscere to mix. See Mix, and cf. Mestee, MÉtif, MÉtis, Mustee.] The offspring of an Indian or a negro and a European or person of European stock. [Spanish America]

Mestizo wool, wool imported from South America, and produced by mixed breeds of sheep.

Mest”ling (?), n. A kind of brass. See Maslin. [Obs.]

||Me*sym”ni*cum (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. me`sos middle + &?; a festive song. See Hymn.] (Anc. Poetry) A repetition at the end of a stanza.

Met (?), imp. & p. p. of Meet.

Met, obs. imp. & p. p. of Mete, to measure. Chapman.

Met, obs. p. p. of Mete, to dream. Chaucer.

{ Met”a- (?), Met- (?) }. [Gr. meta` between, with, after; akin to AS. mid with, G. mit, Goth. miþ, E. mid, in midwife.] 1. A prefix meaning between, with, after, behind, over, about, reversely; as, metachronism, the error of placing after the correct time; metaphor, lit., a carrying over; metathesis, a placing reversely.

2. (Chem.) A prefix denoting: (a) Other; duplicate, corresponding to; resembling; hence, metameric; as, metaarabinic, metaldehyde. (b) (Organic Chem.) That two replacing radicals, in the benzene nucleus, occupy the relative positions of 1 and 3, 2 and 4, 3 and 5, 4 and 6, 5 and 1, or 6 and 2; as, metacresol, etc. See Ortho, and Para-. (c) (Inorganic Chem.) Having less than the highest number of hydroxyl groups; – - said of acids; as, metaphosphoric acid. Also used adjectively.

Me*tab”a*sis (?), n.; pl. Metabases (#). [NL., fr. Gr. &?;, fr. &?; to pass over; &?; beyond, over + &?; to go.] 1. (Rhet.) A transition from one subject to another.

2. (Med.) Same as Metabola.

{ ||Me*tab”o*la (?), ||Me*tab”o*le (?), } n. [NL., from Gr. &?; change; &?; beyond + &?; to throw.] (Med.) A change or mutation; a change of disease, symptoms, or treatment.

{ ||Me*tab”o*la (?), ||Met`a*bo”li*a (?), } n. pl. [NL. See 1st Metabola.] (Zoöl.) A comprehensive group of insects, including those that undegro a metamorphosis.

Met`a*bo”li*an (?), n. [See Metabola.] (Zoöl.) An insect which undergoes a metamorphosis.

Met`a*bol”ic (?), a. [Gr. &?;. See Metabola.] 1. (Biol.) Of or pertaining to metamorphosis; pertaining to, or involving, change.

2. (Physiol.) Of or pertaining to metabolism; as, metabolic activity; metabolic force.

||Met`a*bol”i*sis (?), n. [NL.] Metabolism. [R.]

Me*tab”o*lism (?), n. (Physiol.) The act or process, by which living tissues or cells take up and convert into their own proper substance the nutritive material brought to them by the blood, or by which they transform their cell protoplasm into simpler substances, which are fitted either for excretion or for some special purpose, as in the manufacture of the digestive ferments. Hence, metabolism may be either constructive (anabolism), or destructive (katabolism).

Me*tab”o*lite (?), n. (Physiol Chem.) A product of metabolism; a substance produced by metabolic action, as urea.

Me*tab”o*lize (?), v. t. & i. (Physiol.) To change by a metabolic process. See Metabolism.

Met`a*bran”chi*al (?), a. [Meta- + branchial.] (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the lobe of the carapace of crabs covering the posterior branchiæ.

Met`a*car”pal (?), a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the metacarpus. — n. A metacarpal bone.

Met`a*car”pus (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;; &?; beyond, between + &?; the wrist.] (Anat.) That part of the skeleton of the hand or forefoot between the carpus and phalanges. In man it consists of five bones. See Illust. of Artiodactyla.

{ Met`a*cen”ter (?) or tre }, n. [Pref. meta + center.] (Hydrostatics) The point of intersection of a vertical line through the center of gravity of the fluid displaced by a floating body which is tipped through a small angle from its position of equilibrium, and the inclined line which was vertical through the center of gravity of the body when in equilibrium.

&fist; When the metacenter is above the center of gravity, the position of the body is stable; when below it, unstable.

Me*tac”e*tone (?), n. [Pref. met- + acetone.] (Chem.) A colorless liquid of an agreeable odor, C_6H_10O, obtained by distilling a mixture of sugar and lime; — so called because formerly regarded as a polymeric modification of acetone.

Met`a*chlo”ral (?), n. [Pref. meta- + chloral.] (Chem.) A white, amorphous, insoluble substance regarded as a polymeric variety of chloral.

Me*tach”ro*nism (?), n. [Gr. &?;, &?;, after the time, happening afterward; &?; beyond + &?; time: cf. F. métachronisme.] An error committed in chronology by placing an event after its real time.

||Met`a*chro”sis (?), n. [NL., from Gr. &?; beyond + &?; a coloring.] (Biol.) The power of changing color at will by the expansion of special pigment cells, under nerve influence, as seen in many reptiles, fishes, etc. Cope.

Met`a*cin”na*bar*ite (?), n. [Pref. meta- + cinnabar.] (Min.) Sulphide of mercury in isometric form and black in color.

Met”a*cism (?), n. [L. metacismus, Gr. &?; fondness for the letter &?;.] A defect in pronouncing the letter m, or a too frequent use of it.

Met`a*cro”le*in (?), n. [Pref. met- + acrolein.] (Chem.) A polymeric modification of acrolein obtained by heating it with caustic potash. It is a crystalline substance having an aromatic odor.

||Met`a*cro”mi*on (?), n. [NL.] (Anat.) A process projecting backward and downward from the acromion of the scapula of some mammals.

Met`a*dis*coid”al (?), a. [Meta- + discoidal.] (Anat.) Discoidal by derivation; — applied especially to the placenta of man and apes, because it is supposed to have been derived from a diffused placenta.

Met`a*gas”tric (?), a. [Pref. meta- + gastric.] (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the two posterior gastric lobes of the carapace of crabs.

Met”age (?; 48), n. [From Mete, v.] 1. Measurement, especially of coal. De Foe.

2. Charge for, or price of, measuring. Simmonds.

Met`a*gen”e*sis (?), n. [Pref. meta- + genesis.] 1. (Biol.) The change of form which one animal species undergoes in a series of successively produced individuals, extending from the one developed from the ovum to the final perfected individual. Hence, metagenesis involves the production of sexual individuals by nonsexual means, either directly or through intervening sexless generations. Opposed to monogenesis. See Alternate generation, under Generation.

2. (Biol.) Alternation of sexual and asexual or gemmiparous generations; — in distinction from heterogamy.

Met`a*ge*net”ic (m&ebreve;t`&adot;*j&esl;*n&ebreve;t”&ibreve;k), a. (Biol.) Of or pertaining to metagenesis.

Met`a*gen”ic (-j&esl;n”&ibreve;k), a. (Biol.) Metagenetic.

Me*tag”na*thous (?), a. [Pref. meta- + Gr. gna`qos the jaw.] (Zoöl.) Cross-billed; — said of certain birds, as the crossbill.

Met`a*gram”ma*tism (?), n. Anagrammatism.

Met`a*graph”ic (?), a. By or pertaining to metagraphy.

Me*tag”ra*phy (?), n. [Pref. meta- + -graphy.] The art or act of rendering the letters of the alphabet of one language into the possible equivalents of another; transliteration. Stormonth.

Met”al (? or ?; 277), n. [F. métal, L. metallum metal, mine, Gr. &?; mine; cf. Gr. &?; to search after. Cf. Mettle, Medal.] 1. (Chem.) An elementary substance, as sodium, calcium, or copper, whose oxide or hydroxide has basic rather than acid properties, as contrasted with the nonmetals, or metalloids. No sharp line can be drawn between the metals and nonmetals, and certain elements partake of both acid and basic qualities, as chromium, manganese, bismuth, etc.

&fist; Popularly, the name is applied to certain hard, fusible metals, as gold, silver, copper, iron, tin, lead, zinc, nickel, etc., and also to the mixed metals, or metallic alloys, as brass, bronze, steel, bell metal, etc.

2. Ore from which a metal is derived; — so called by miners. Raymond.

3. A mine from which ores are taken. [Obs.]

Slaves . . . and persons condemned to metals.

Jer. Taylor.

4. The substance of which anything is made; material; hence, constitutional disposition; character; temper.

Not till God make men of some other metal than earth.

Shak.

5. Courage; spirit; mettle. See Mettle. Shak.

&fist; The allusion is to the temper of the metal of a sword blade. Skeat.

6. The broken stone used in macadamizing roads and ballasting railroads.

7. The effective power or caliber of guns carried by a vessel of war.

8. Glass in a state of fusion. Knight.

9. pl. The rails of a railroad. [Eng.]

Base metal (Chem.), any one of the metals, as iron, lead, etc., which are readily tarnished or oxidized, in contrast with the noble metals. In general, a metal of small value, as compared with gold or silver. — Fusible metal (Metal.), a very fusible alloy, usually consisting of bismuth with lead, tin, or cadmium. — Heavy metals (Chem.), the metallic elements not included in the groups of the alkalies, alkaline earths, or the earths; specifically, the heavy metals, as gold, mercury, platinum, lead, silver, etc. — Light metals (Chem.), the metallic elements of the alkali and alkaline earth groups, as sodium, lithium, calcium, magnesium, etc.; also, sometimes, the metals of the earths, as aluminium. — Muntz metal, an alloy for sheathing and other purposes, consisting of about sixty per cent of copper, and forty of zinc. Sometimes a little lead is added. It is named from the inventor. — Prince’s metal (Old Chem.), an alloy resembling brass, consisting of three parts of copper to one of zinc; — also called Prince Rupert’s metal.

Met”al, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Metaled (? or ?) or Metalled; p. pr. & vb. n. Metaling or Metalling.] To cover with metal; as, to metal a ship’s bottom; to metal a road.

Met`al*am*mo”ni*um (?), n. [Metal + ammonium.] (Chem.) A hypothetical radical derived from ammonium by the substitution of metallic atoms in place of hydrogen.

Met`al*bu”min (?), n. [Pref. met- + albumin.] (Physiol. Chem.) A form of albumin found in ascitic and certain serous fluids. It is sometimes regarded as a mixture of albumin and mucin.

Me*tal”de*hyde (?), n. [Pref. met- + aldehyde.] (Chem.) A white crystalline substance isomeric with, and obtained from, acetic aldehyde by polymerization, and reconvertible into the same.

||Met`a*lep”sis (?), n.; pl. Metalepses (#). [L., fr. Gr. &?; participation, alteration, fr. &?; to partake, to take in exchange; &?; beyond + &?; to take.] (Rhet.) The continuation of a trope in one word through a succession of significations, or the union of two or more tropes of a different kind in one word.

Met”a*lep`sy (?), n. (Chem.) Exchange; replacement; substitution; metathesis. [R.]

Met`a*lep”tic (?), a. [Gr. &?;] 1. Of or pertaining to a metalepsis.

2. Transverse; as, the metaleptic motion of a muscle.

3. (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, concerned in, or occurring by, metalepsy.

Met`a*lep”tic*al (?), a. Metaleptic. — Met`a*lep”tic*al*ly, adv.

Me*tal”lic (?), a. [L. metallicus, fr. metallum: cf. F. métallique. See Metal.] 1. Of or pertaining to a metal; of the nature of metal; resembling metal; as, a metallic appearance; a metallic alloy.

2. (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or characterized by, the essential and implied properties of a metal, as contrasted with a nonmetal or metalloid; basic; antacid; positive.

Metallic iron, iron in the state of the metal, as distinquished from its ores, as magnetic iron. — Metallic paper, paper covered with a thin solution of lime, whiting, and size. When written upon with a pewter or brass pencil, the lines can hardly be effaced. — Metallic tinking (Med.), a sound heard in the chest, when a cavity communicating with the air passages contains both air and liquid.

Me*tal”lic*al (?), a. See Metallic. [Obs.]

Me*tal”lic*ly (?), adv. In a metallic manner; by metallic means.

Me*tal`li*fac”ture (?; 135), n. [L. metallum metal + facere, factum, to make.] The production and working or manufacture of metals. [R.] R. Park.

Met`al*lif”er*ous (?), a. [L. metallifer; metallum metal + ferre to bear: cf. F. métallifère.] Producing metals; yielding metals.

Me*tal”li*form (?), a. [L. metallum metal + -form: cf. F. métalliforme.] Having the form or structure of a metal.

Met”al*line (?), a. [Cf. F. métallin.] (Chem.) (a) Pertaining to, or resembling, a metal; metallic; as, metalline properties. (b) Impregnated with metallic salts; chalybeate; as, metalline water. [R.]

Met”al*line (? or ?), n. (Chem.) A substance of variable composition, but resembling a soft, dark-colored metal, used in the bearings of machines for obviating friction, and as a substitute for lubricants.

Met”al*list (?), n. A worker in metals, or one skilled in metals.

Met`al*li*za”tion (?), n. [Cf. F. métallisation.] The act or process of metallizing. [R.]

Met”al*lize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Metallized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Metallizing (?).] [Cf. F. métalliser.] To impart metallic properties to; to impregnate with a metal. [R.]

Me*tal”lo*chrome (?), n. [See Metallochromy.] A coloring produced by the deposition of some metallic compound; specifically, the prismatic tints produced by depositing a film of peroxide of lead on polished steel by electricity.

Me*tal”lo*chro`my (?), n. [L. metallum metal + Gr. &?; color.] The art or process of coloring metals.

Me*tal”lo*graph (?), n. [L. metallum metal + -graph.] A print made by metallography.

Me*tal`lo*graph”ic (?), a. Pertaining to, or by means of, metallography.

Met`al*log”ra*phist (?), n. One who writes on the subject of metals.

Met`al*log”ra*phy (?), n. [L. metallum metal + -graphy: cf. F. métallographie.] 1. The science or art of metals and metal working; also, a treatise on metals.

2. A method of transferring impressions of the grain of wood to metallic surfaces by chemical action. Knight.

3. A substitute for lithography, in which metallic plates are used instead of stone. Knight.

Met”al*loid (?), n. [L. metallum metal + -oid: cf. F. métalloïde.] (a) Formerly, the metallic base of a fixed alkali, or alkaline earth; — applied by Sir H. Davy to sodium, potassium, and some other metallic substances whose metallic character was supposed to be not well defined. (b) Now, one of several elementary substances which in the free state are unlike metals, and whose compounds possess or produce acid, rather than basic, properties; a nonmetal; as, boron, carbon, phosphorus, nitrogen, oxygen, sulphur, chlorine, bromine, etc., are metalloids.

Met”al*loid, a. 1. Having the appearance of a metal.

2. (Chem.) Having the properties of a nonmetal; nonmetallic; acid; negative.

Met`al*loid”al (?), a. Metalloid.

Met`al*lor*gan”ic (?), a. Metalorganic.

Me*tal`lo*ther”a*py (?), n. [L. metallum metal + E. therapy.] (Med.) Treatment of disease by applying metallic plates to the surface of the body.

{ Met`al*lur”gic (?), Met`al*lur”gic*al (?), } a. [Cf. F. métallurgique.] Of or pertaining to metallurgy.

Met”al*lur`gist (?), n. [Cf. F. métallurgiste.] One who works in metals, or prepares them for use; one who is skilled in metallurgy.

Met”al*lur`gy (?), n. [F. métallurgie, fr. L. metallum metal, Gr. &?; a mine + the root of &?; work. See Metal, and Work.] The art of working metals, comprehending the whole process of separating them from other matters in the ore, smelting, refining, and parting them; sometimes, in a narrower sense, only the process of extracting metals from their ores.

Met”al*man (?), n.; pl. Metalmen (&?;). A worker in metals.

Met`a*log”ic*al (?), a. Beyond the scope or province of logic.

Met`al*or*gan”ic (?), a. [Metal, L. metallum + E. organic.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or denoting, any one of a series of compounds of certain metallic elements with organic radicals; as, zinc methyl, sodium ethyl, etc. [Written also metallorganic.]

Met”a*mer (?), n. [See Metamere.] (Chem.) Any one of several metameric forms of the same substance, or of different substances having the same composition; as, xylene has three metamers, viz., orthoxylene, metaxylene, and paraxylene.

Met”a*mere (?), n. [Pref. meta- + -mere.] (Biol.) One of successive or homodynamous parts in animals and plants; one of a series of similar parts that follow one another in a vertebrate or articulate animal, as in an earthworm; a segment; a somite. See Illust. of Loeven’s larva.

Met`a*mer”ic (?), a. [Pref. meta- + Gr. &?; part.] 1. (Chem.) Having the same elements united in the same proportion by weight, and with the same molecular weight, but possessing a different structure and different properties; as, methyl ether and ethyl alcohol are metameric compounds. See Isomeric.

&fist; The existence of metameric compounds is due to the different arrangement of the same constituents in the molecule.

2. (Biol.) Of or pertaining to a metamere or its formation; as, metameric segmentation.

Met`a*mer”ic*al*ly, adv. In a metameric manner.

Me*tam”er*ism (?), n. 1. (Biol.) The symmetry of a metameric structure; serial symmetry; the state of being made up of metameres.

2. (Chem.) The state or quality of being metameric; also, the relation or condition of metameric compounds.

Met`a*mor”phic (?), a. [See Metamorphosis.] 1. Subject to change; changeable; variable.

2. Causing a change of structure.

3. (Geol.) Pertaining to, produced by, or exhibiting, certain changes which minerals or rocks may have undergone since their original deposition; — especially applied to the recrystallization which sedimentary rocks have undergone through the influence of heat and pressure, after which they are called metamorphic rocks.

Met`a*mor”phism (?), n. (Geol.) The state or quality of being metamorphic; the process by which the material of rock masses has been more or less recrystallized by heat, pressure, etc., as in the change of sedimentary limestone to marble. Murchison.

Met`a*mor”phist (?), n. (Eccl.) One who believes that the body of Christ was merged into the Deity when he ascended.

Met`a*mor”phize (?), v. t. To metamorphose.

Met`a*mor”phose (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Metamorphosed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Metamorphosing.] [Cf. F. métamorphoser.] To change into a different form; to transform; to transmute.

And earth was metamorphosed into man.

Dryden.

Met`a*mor”phose (?), n. [Cf. F. métamorphose. See Metamorphosis.] Same as Metamorphosis.

Met`a*mor”pho*ser (?), n. One who metamorphoses. [R.] Gascoigne.

Met`a*mor”pho*sic (?), a. Changing the form; transforming. [R.] Pownall.

Met`a*mor”pho*sis (?), n.; pl. Metamorphoses (#). [L., fr. Gr. &?;, fr. &?; to be transformed; meta` beyond, over + morfh` form.]

1. Change of form, or structure; transformation.

2. (Biol.) A change in the form or function of a living organism, by a natural process of growth or development; as, the metamorphosis of the yolk into the embryo, of a tadpole into a frog, or of a bud into a blossom. Especially, that form of sexual reproduction in which an embryo undergoes a series of marked changes of external form, as the chrysalis stage, pupa stage, etc., in insects. In these intermediate stages sexual reproduction is usually impossible, but they ultimately pass into final and sexually developed forms, from the union of which organisms are produced which pass through the same cycle of changes. See Transformation.

3. (Physiol.) The change of material of one kind into another through the agency of the living organism; metabolism.

Vegetable metamorphosis (Bot.), the doctrine that flowers are homologous with leaf buds, and that the floral organs are transformed leaves.

||Met`a*nau”pli*us (?), n. [NL. See Meta-, and Nauplius.] (Zoöl.) A larval crustacean in a stage following the nauplius, and having about seven pairs of appendages.

Met`a*ne*phrit”ic (?), a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the metanephros.

||Met`a*neph”ros (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; behind + &?; kidney.] (Anat.) The most posterior of the three pairs of embryonic renal organs developed in many vertebrates.

||Met`a*no”tum (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; behind + &?; back.] (Zoöl.) The dorsal portion of the metaphorax of insects.

Met`an*ti*mo”nate (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of metantimonic acid.

Met`an*ti*mon”ic (?), a. [Pref. met- + antimonic.] (Chem.) (a) Pertaining to, or designating, an acid (formerly called antimonic acid) analogous to metaphosphoric acid, and obtained as a white amorphous insoluble substance, (HSbO_3). (b) Formerly, designating an acid, which is now properly called pyroantimonic acid, and analogous to pyrophosphoric acid.

Met`a*pec”tic (?), a. [Pref. meta- + pectic.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, a supposed acid obtained from pectin.

Met`a*pec”tin (?), n. (Chem.) A substance obtained from, and resembling, pectin, and occurring in overripe fruits.

Met`a*pep”tone (?), n. [Pref. meta- + peptone.] (Physiol. Chem.) An intermediate product formed in the gastric digestion of albuminous matter.

Met”a*phor (m&ebreve;t”&adot;*f&etilde;r), n. [F. métaphore, L. metaphora, fr. Gr. metafora`, fr. metafe`rein to carry over, transfer; meta` beyond, over + fe`rein to bring, bear.] (Rhet.) The transference of the relation between one set of objects to another set for the purpose of brief explanation; a compressed simile; e. g., the ship plows the sea. Abbott & Seeley. “All the world’s a stage.” Shak.

&fist; The statement, “that man is a fox,” is a metaphor; but “that man is like a fox,” is a simile, similitude, or comparison.

{ Met`a*phor”ic (?), Met`a*phor”ic*al (?), } a. [Gr. &?;: cf. F. métaphorique.] Of or pertaining to metaphor; comprising a metaphor; not literal; figurative; tropical; as, a metaphorical expression; a metaphorical sense. — Met`a*phor”ic*al*ly, adv. — Met`a*phor”ic*al*ness, n.

Met”a*phor*ist (?), n. One who makes metaphors.

Met`a*phos”phate (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of metaphosphoric acid.

Met`a*phos*phor”ic (?), a. [Pref. meta- + phosphoric.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, a monobasic acid, HPO_3, analogous to nitric acid, and, by heating phosphoric acid, obtained as a crystalline substance, commonly called glacial phosphoric acid.

Met”a*phrase (m&ebreve;t”&adot;*frāz), n. [Gr. meta`frasis, from metafra`zein to paraphrase; meta` beyond, over + fra`zein to speak: cf. F. métaphrase.] 1. A verbal translation; a version or translation from one language into another, word for word; — opposed to paraphrase. Dryden.

2. An answering phrase; repartee. Mrs. Browning.

Met”a*phrased (m&ebreve;t”&adot;*frāzd), a. Translated literally.

Me*taph”ra*sis (m&esl;*tăf”r&adot;*s&ibreve;s), n. [NL. See Metaphrase.] Metaphrase.

Met”a*phrast (?), n. [Gr. &?;: cf. F. métaphraste.] A literal translator.

{ Met`a*phras”tic (?), Met`a*phras”tic*al (?), } a. [Gr. &?;.] Close, or literal.

Met`a*phys”ic (?), n. [Cf. F. métaphysique.] See Metaphysics.

Met`a*phys”ic, a. Metaphysical.

Met`a*phys”ic*al (?), a. [Cf. F. métaphysique. See Metaphysics.] 1. Of or pertaining to metaphysics.

2. According to rules or principles of metaphysics; as, metaphysical reasoning.

3. Preternatural or supernatural. [Obs.]

The golden round
Which fate and metaphysical aid doth seem
To have thee crowned withal.

Shak.

Met`a*phys”ic*al*ly, adv. In the manner of metaphysical science, or of a metaphysician. South.

Met`a*phy*si”cian (?), n. [Cf. F. métaphysicien.] One who is versed in metaphysics.

Met`a*phys”ics (?), n. [Gr. &?; &?; &?; after those things which relate to external nature, after physics, fr. &?; beyond, after + &?; relating to external nature, natural, physical, fr. &?; nature: cf. F. métaphysique. See Physics. The term was first used by the followers of Aristotle as a name for that part of his writings which came after, or followed, the part which treated of physics.] 1. The science of real as distinguished from phenomenal being; ontology; also, the science of being, with reference to its abstract and universal conditions, as distinguished from the science of determined or concrete being; the science of the conceptions and relations which are necessarily implied as true of every kind of being; philosophy in general; first principles, or the science of first principles.

&fist; Metaphysics is distinguished as general and special. General metaphysics is the science of all being as being. Special metaphysics is the science of one kind of being; as, the metaphysics of chemistry, of morals, or of politics. According to Kant, a systematic exposition of those notions and truths, the knowledge of which is altogether independent of experience, would constitute the science of metaphysics.

Commonly, in the schools, called metaphysics, as being part of the philosophy of Aristotle, which hath that for title; but it is in another sense: for there it signifieth as much as “books written or placed after his natural philosophy.” But the schools take them for “books of supernatural philosophy;” for the word metaphysic will bear both these senses.

Hobbes.

Now the science conversant about all such inferences of unknown being from its known manifestations, is called ontology, or metaphysics proper.

Sir W. Hamilton.

Metaphysics are [is] the science which determines what can and what can not be known of being, and the laws of being, a priori.

Coleridge.

2. Hence: The scientific knowledge of mental phenomena; mental philosophy; psychology.

Metaphysics, in whatever latitude the term be taken, is a science or complement of sciences exclusively occupied with mind.

Sir W. Hamilton.

Whether, after all,
A larger metaphysics might not help
Our physics.

Mrs. Browning.

||Me*taph”y*sis (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; after + &?; nature.] Change of form; transformation.

Met”a*plasm (?), n. [L. metaplasmus, Gr. &?;; &?; beyond, over + &?; to mold: cf. F. métaplasme.] (Gram.) A change in the letters or syllables of a word.

Met”a*plast (?), n. [See Metaplasm.] (Gram.) A word having more than one form of the root.

Met”a*pode (?), n. [NL. metapodium, from Gr. &?; behind + &?;, dim. of poy`s, podo`s, foot.] (Zoöl.) The posterior division of the foot in the Gastropoda and Pteropoda.

Met`a*po”di*al (?), a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the metapodialia, or to the parts of the limbs to which they belong.

||Met`a*po`di*a”le (?), n.; pl. Metapodialia (#). [NL. See Metapode.] (Anat.) One of the bones of either the metacarpus or metatarsus.

||Met`a*po”di*um (?), n.; pl. Metapodia (#). [NL.] (Zoöl.) Same as Metapode.

||Met`a*poph”y*sis (?), n.; pl. Metapophyses (#). [NL. See Meta-, and Apophysis.] (Anat.) A tubercle projecting from the anterior articular processes of some vertebræ; a mammillary process.

||Me*tap`te*ryg”i*um (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; after + &?; fin.] (Anat.) The posterior of the three principal basal cartilages in the fins of fishes. — Me*tap`ter*yg”i*al (#), a.

Met`a*sil”i*cate (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of metasilicic acid.

Met`a*si*lic”ic (?), a. [Pref. meta- + silicic.] (Chem.) Designating an acid derived from silicic acid by the removal of water; of or pertaining to such an acid.

&fist; The salts of metasilicic acid are often called bisilicates, in mineralogy, as Wollastonite (CaSiO_3).

Metasilicic acid (Chem.), a gelatinous substance, or white amorphous powder, analogous to carbonic acid, and forming many stable salts.

Met`a*so”ma*tism (?), n. [Pref. meta- + Gr. &?;, &?;, body.] (Geol.) An alteration in a mineral or rock mass when involving a chemical change of the substance, as of chrysolite to serpentine; — opposed to ordinary metamorphism, as implying simply a recrystallization. — Met`a*so*mat”ic (#), a.

Met”a*some (?), n. [Pref. meta- + -some body.] (Zoöl.) One of the component segments of the body of an animal.

Met`a*stan”nate (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of metastannic acid.

Met`a*stan”nic (?), a. (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, a compound of tin (metastannic acid), obtained, as an isomeric modification of stannic acid, in the form of a white amorphous substance.

Me*tas”ta*sis (?), n.; pl. Metastases (#). [L., transition, fr. Gr. &?;, fr. &?; to place in another way; &?; after + &?; to place.]

1. (Theol.) A spiritual change, as during baptism.

2. (Med.) A change in the location of a disease, as from one part to another. Dunglison.

3. (Physiol.) The act or process by which matter is taken up by cells or tissues and is transformed into other matter; in plants, the act or process by which are produced all of those chemical changes in the constituents of the plant which are not accompanied by a production of organic matter; metabolism.

Met`a*stat”ic (?), a. Of, pertaining to, or caused by, metastasis; as, a metastatic abscess; the metastatic processes of growth.

Met`a*ster”nal (?), a. Of or pertaining to the metasternum.

||Met`a*ster”num (?), n. [Pref. meta- + sternum.] 1. (Anat.) The most posterior element of the sternum; the ensiform process; xiphisternum.

2. (Zoöl.) The ventral plate of the third or last segment of the thorax of insects.

{ ||Me*tas”to*ma (?), Met”a*stome (?), } n. [NL. metastoma, from Gr. meta` behind + sto`ma mouth.] (Zoöl.) A median elevation behind the mouth in the arthropods.

Met`a*tar”sal (?), a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the metatarsus. — n. A metatarsal bone.

Met”a*tarse (?), n. (Anat.) Metatarsus.

Met`a*tar”sus (?), n.; pl. Metatarsi (#). [NL. See Meta-, and Tarsus.] (Anat.) That part of the skeleton of the hind or lower limb between the tarsus and phalanges; metatarse. It consists, in the human foot, of five bones. See Illustration in Appendix.

Me*tath”e*sis (?), n.; pl. Metatheses (&?;). [L., fr. Gr. meta`thesis, fr. metatithe`nai to place differently, to transpose; meta` beyond, over + tithe`nai to place, set. See Thesis.] 1. (Gram.) Transposition, as of the letters or syllables of a word; as, pistris for pristis; meagre for meager.

2. (Med.) A mere change in place of a morbid substance, without removal from the body.

3. (Chem.) The act, process, or result of exchange, substitution, or replacement of atoms and radicals; thus, by metathesis an acid gives up all or part of its hydrogen, takes on an equivalent amount of a metal or base, and forms a salt.

{ Met`a*thet”ic (?), Met`a*thet”ic*al (?), } a. Of or pertaining to metathesis.

Met`a*tho*rac”ic (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the metathorax.

Met`a*tho”rax (?), n. [NL.: cf. F. métathorax. See Meta-, and Thorax.] (Zoöl.) The last or posterior segment of the thorax in insects. See Illust. of Coleoptera.

Met`a*ti*tan”ic (?), a. [Pref. meta- + titanic.] (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or designating, an acid of titanium analogous to metasilicic acid.

Met`a*tung”state (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of metatungstic acid.

Met`a*tung”stic (?), a. [Pref. meta- + tungstic.] (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or designating, an acid known only in its salts (the metatungstates) and properly called polytungstic, or pyrotungstic, acid.

Met`a*van”a*date (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of metavanadic acid.

Met`a*va*nad”ic (?), a. [Pref. meta- + vanadic.] (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or designating, a vanadic acid analogous to metaphosphoric acid.

Met`a*xy”lene (?), n. [Pref. meta- + xylene.] (Chem.) That variety of xylene, or dimethyl benzene, in which the two methyl groups occupy the meta position with reference to each other. It is a colorless inflammable liquid.

||Mé`ta`yage” (?), n. [F. See Métayer.] A system of farming on halves. [France & Italy]

||Mé`ta`yer” (F. ?; E. ?), n. [F., fr. LL. medietarius, fr. L. medius middle, half. See Mid, a.] One who cultivates land for a share (usually one half) of its yield, receiving stock, tools, and seed from the landlord. [France & Italy] Milman.

||Met`a*zo”a (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; after + zo^,on an animal.] (Zoöl.) Those animals in which the protoplasmic mass, constituting the egg, is converted into a multitude of cells, which are metamorphosed into the tissues of the body. A central cavity is commonly developed, and the cells around it are at first arranged in two layers, — the ectoderm and endoderm. The group comprises nearly all animals except the Protozoa.

Met`a*zo”an (?), n.; pl. Metazoans (&?;). (Zoöl.) One of the Metazoa.

Met`a*zo”ic (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Metazoa.

||Met`a*zo”ön (?), n. [NL.] (Zoöl.) One of the Metazoa.

Mete (?), n. Meat. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mete, v. t. & i. To meet. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mete, v. i. & t. [imp. Mette (?); p. p. Met.] [AS. m&?;tan.] To dream; also impersonally; as, me mette, I dreamed. [Obs.] “I mette of him all night.” Chaucer.

Mete (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Meted; p. pr. & vb. n. Meting.] [AS. metan; akin to D. meten, G. messen, OHG. mezzan, Icel. meta, Sw. mäta, Goth. mitan, L. modus measure, moderation, modius a corn measure, Gr. &?; to rule, &?; a corn measure, and ultimately from the same root as E. measure, L. metiri to measure; cf. Skr. mā to measure. √99. Cf. Measure, Meet, a., Mode.] To find the quantity, dimensions, or capacity of, by any rule or standard; to measure.

Mete (?), v. i. To measure. [Obs.] Mark iv. 24.

Mete, n. [AS. met. See Mete to measure.] Measure; limit; boundary; — used chiefly in the plural, and in the phrase metes and bounds.

Mete”corn` (?), n. A quantity of corn formerly given by the lord to his customary tenants, as an encouragement to, or reward for, labor and faithful service.

Mete”ly, a. According to measure or proportion; proportionable; proportionate. [Obs.]

{ Met`em*pir”ic (?), Met`em*pir”ic*al (?), } a. [Pref. met- + empiric, - ical.] (Metaph.) Related, or belonging, to the objects of knowledge within the province of metempirics.

If then the empirical designates the province we include within the range of science, the province we exclude may be fitly styled the metempirical.

G. H. Lewes.

Met*em*pir”i*cism (?), n. The science that is concerned with metempirics.

Met`em*pir”ics (?), n. The concepts and relations which are conceived as beyond, and yet as related to, the knowledge gained by experience.

Me*temp”sy*chose (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Metempsychosed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Metempsychosing (?).] [See Metempsychosis.] To translate or transfer, as the soul, from one body to another. [R.] Peacham.

Me*temp`sy*cho”sis (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;; &?; beyond, over + &?; to animate; &?; in + &?; soul. See Psychology.] The passage of the soul, as an immortal essence, at the death of the animal body it had inhabited, into another living body, whether of a brute or a human being; transmigration of souls. Sir T. Browne.

Met`emp*to”sis (?), n. [NL., from Gr. &?; beyond, after + &?; a falling upon, fr. &?; to fall in or upon; &?; in + &?; to fall.] (Chron.) The suppression of a day in the calendar to prevent the date of the new moon being set a day too late, or the suppression of the bissextile day once in 134 years. The opposite to this is the proemptosis, or the addition of a day every 330 years, and another every 2,400 years.

Met`en*ceph”a*lon (?), n. [Met- + encephalon.] (Anat.) The posterior part of the brain, including the medulla; the afterbrain. Sometimes abbreviated to meten.

||Met`en*so`ma*to”sis (?), n. [L., a change of body (by the soul), fr. Gr. &?;.] (Biol.) The assimilation by one body or organism of the elements of another.

Me”te*or (?), n. [F. météore, Gr. &?;, pl. &?; things in the air, fr. &?; high in air, raised off the ground; &?; beyond + &?;, &?;, a suspension or hovering in the air, fr. &?; to lift, raise up.]

1. Any phenomenon or appearance in the atmosphere, as clouds, rain, hail, snow, etc.

Hail, an ordinary meteor.

Bp. Hall.

2. Specif.: A transient luminous body or appearance seen in the atmosphere, or in a more elevated region.

The vaulty top of heaven
Figured quite o’er with burning meteors.

Shak.

&fist; The term is especially applied to fireballs, and the masses of stone or other substances which sometimes fall to the earth; also to shooting stars and to ignes fatui. Meteors are often classed as: aerial meteors, winds, tornadoes, etc.; aqueous meteors, rain, hail, snow, dew, etc.; luminous meteors, rainbows, halos, etc.; and igneous meteors, lightning, shooting stars, and the like.

Me`te*or”ic (?), a. [Cf. F. météorique.] 1. Of or pertaining to a meteor, or to meteors; atmospheric, as, meteoric phenomena; meteoric stones.

2. Influenced by the weather; as, meteoric conditions.

3. Flashing; brilliant; transient; like a meteor; as, meteoric fame. “Meteoric politician.” Craik.

Meteoric iron, Meteoric stone. (Min.) See Meteorite. — Meteoric paper, a substance of confervoid origin found floating in the air, and resembling bits of coarse paper; — so called because formerly supposed to fall from meteors. — Meteoric showers, periodical exhibitions of shooting stars, occuring about the 9th or 10th of August and 13th of November, more rarely in April and December, and also at some other periods.

Me`te*or”ic*al (?), a. Meteoric.

Me”te*or*ism (?), n. (Med.) Flatulent distention of the abdomen; tympanites.

Me”te*or*ite (?), n. [Cf. F. météorite.] (Min.) A mass of stone or iron which has fallen to the earth from space; an aërolite.

&fist; Meteorites usually show a pitted surface with a fused crust, caused by the heat developed in their rapid passage through the earth’s atmosphere. A meteorite may consist: 1. Of metallic iron, alloyed with a small percentage of nickel (meteoric iron, holosiderite). When etched this usually exhibits peculiar crystalline figures, called Widmanstätten figures. 2. Of a cellular mass of iron with imbedded silicates (mesosiderite or siderolite). 3. Of a stony mass of silicates with little iron (meteoric stone, sporadosiderite). 4. Of a mass without iron (asiderite).

Me”te*or*ize (?), v. i. [Gr. &?; to raise to a height.] To ascend in vapors; to take the form of a meteor. Evelyn.

Me`te*or”o*graph (?), n. [Meteor + -graph.] An instrument which registers meteorologic phases or conditions.

Me`te*or`o*graph”ic (?), a. Of or pertaining to meteorography.

Me`te*or*og”ra*phy (?), n. [Meteor + -graphy.] The registration of meteorological phenomena.

Me”te*or*oid (mē“t&esl;*&etilde;r*oid), n. [Meteor + -oid.] (Astron.) A small body moving through space, or revolving about the sun, which on entering the earth’s atmosphere would be deflagrated and appear as a meteor.

These bodies [small, solid bodies] before they come into the air, I call meteoroids.

H. A. Newton.

Me`te*or*oid”al (?), a. Of or pertaining to a meteoroid or to meteoroids.

Me`te*or”o*lite (?; 277), n. [Meteor + -lite : cf. F. météorolithe.] A meteoric stone; an aërolite; a meteorite.

{ Me`te*or`o*log”ic (?), Me`te*or`o*log”ic*al (?), } a. [Gr. &?;: cf. F. météorologique.] Of or pertaining to the atmosphere and its phenomena, or to meteorology.

Meteorological table, Meteorological register, a table or register exhibiting the state of the air and its temperature, weight, dryness, moisture, motion, etc.

Me`te*or*ol”o*gist (?), n. [Cf. F. météorologiste.] A person skilled in meteorology.

Me`te*or*ol”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. &?;; &?; + lo`gos discourse: cf. F. météorologie. See Meteor.] The science which treats of the atmosphere and its phenomena, particularly of its variations of heat and moisture, of its winds, storms, etc.

Me`te*or”o*man`cy (?), n. [Meteor + -mancy : cf. F. météoromancie.] A species of divination by meteors, chiefly by thunder and lightning, which was held in high estimation by the Romans.

Me`te*or*om”e*ter (?), n. [Meteor + -meter.] An apparatus which transmits automatically to a central station atmospheric changes as marked by the anemometer, barometer, thermometer, etc.

Me`te*or”o*scope (?; 277), n. [Gr. &?;, fr. &?; observing the heavenly bodies; &?; + &?; to view: cf. F. météoroscope. See Meteor.] (Astron.) (a) An astrolabe; a planisphere. [Obs.] (b) An instrument for measuring the position, length, and direction, of the apparent path of a shooting star.

Me*te”o*rous (? or ?), a. [See Meteor.] Of the nature or appearance of a meteor.

-me”ter (?). [L. metrum measure, or the allied Gr. &?;. See Meter rhythm.] A suffix denoting that by which anything is measured; as, barometer, chronometer, dynamometer.

Me”ter (?), n. [From Mete to measure.] 1. One who, or that which, metes or measures. See Coal-meter.

2. An instrument for measuring, and usually for recording automatically, the quantity measured.

Dry meter, a gas meter having measuring chambers, with flexible walls, which expand and contract like bellows and measure the gas by filling and emptying. — Wet meter, a gas meter in which the revolution of a chambered drum in water measures the gas passing through it.

Me”ter, n. A line above or below a hanging net, to which the net is attached in order to strengthen it.

{ Me”ter, Me”tre } (?), n. [OE. metre, F. mètre, L. metrum, fr. Gr. &?;; akin to Skr. mā to measure. See Mete to measure.] 1. Rhythmical arrangement of syllables or words into verses, stanzas, strophes, etc.; poetical measure, depending on number, quantity, and accent of syllables; rhythm; measure; verse; also, any specific rhythmical arrangements; as, the Horatian meters; a dactylic meter.

The only strict antithesis to prose is meter.

Wordsworth.

2. A poem. [Obs.] Robynson (More’s Utopia).

3. A measure of length, equal to 39.37 English inches, the standard of linear measure in the metric system of weights and measures. It was intended to be, and is very nearly, the ten millionth part of the distance from the equator to the north pole, as ascertained by actual measurement of an arc of a meridian. See Metric system, under Metric.

Common meter (Hymnol.), four iambic verses, or lines, making a stanza, the first and third having each four feet, and the second and fourth each three feet; — usually indicated by the initials C.M. — Long meter (Hymnol.), iambic verses or lines of four feet each, four verses usually making a stanza; — commonly indicated by the initials L. M. — Short meter (Hymnol.), iambic verses or lines, the first, second, and fourth having each three feet, and the third four feet. The stanza usually consists of four lines, but is sometimes doubled. Short meter is indicated by the initials S. M.

Me”ter*age (?), n. [See 1st Meter.] The act of measuring, or the cost of measuring.

Me”ter*gram` (?), n. (Mech.) A measure of energy or work done; the power exerted in raising one gram through the distance of one meter against gravitation.

Mete”wand` (?), n. [Mete to measure + wand.] A measuring rod. Ascham.

Mete”yard` (?), n. [AS. metgeard. See Mete to measure, and Yard stick.] A yard, staff, or rod, used as a measure. [Obs.] Shak.

Meth (?), n. See Meathe. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Met`hæm*o*glo”bin (? or ?), n. [Pref. met- + hæmoglobin.] (Physiol. Chem.) A stable crystalline compound obtained by the decomposition of hemoglobin. It is found in old blood stains.

Meth”al (?), n. [Myristic + ether + alcohol.] (Chem.) A white waxy substance, found in small quantities in spermaceti as an ethereal salt of several fatty acids, and regarded as an alcohol of the methane series.

Meth”ane (?), n. [See Methal.] (Chem.) A light, colorless, gaseous, inflammable hydrocarbon, CH_4; marsh gas. See Marsh gas, under Gas.

Methane series (Chem.), a series of saturated hydrocarbons, of which methane is the first member and type, and (because of their general chemical inertness and indifference) called also the paraffin (little affinity) series. The lightest members are gases, as methane, ethane; intermediate members are liquids, as hexane, heptane, etc. (found in benzine, kerosene, etc.); while the highest members are white, waxy, or fatty solids, as paraffin proper.

Me*theg”lin (?), n. [W. meddyglyn; medd mead + llyn liquor, juice. See Mead a drink.] A fermented beverage made of honey and water; mead. Gay.

Meth”ene (?), n. [Methyl + ethylene.] (Chem.) See Methylene.

Meth”e*nyl (?), n. [Methene + -yl.] (Chem.) The hypothetical hydrocarbon radical CH, regarded as an essential residue of certain organic compounds.

Meth”ide (? or ?), n. [See Methyl.] (Chem.) A binary compound of methyl with some element; as, aluminium methide, Al_2(CH_3)6.

Me*thinks” (?), v. impers. [imp. Methought (?).] [AS. þyncan to seem, mē þynceð, mē þūhte, OE. me thinketh, me thoughte; akin to G. dünken to seem, denken to think, and E. think. See Me, and Think.] It seems to me; I think. See Me. [R., except in poetry.]

In all ages poets have been had in special reputation, and, methinks, not without great cause.

Spenser.

Me*thi”on*ate (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of methionic acid.

Meth`i*on”ic (?), a. [Methyl + thionic.] (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or designating, a sulphonic (thionic) acid derivative of methane, obtained as a stable white crystalline substance, CH_2.(SO_3H)2, which forms well defined salts.

Meth”od (?), n. [F. méthode, L. methodus, fr. Gr. meqodos method, investigation following after; meta` after + “odo`s way.] 1. An orderly procedure or process; regular manner of doing anything; hence, manner; way; mode; as, a method of teaching languages; a method of improving the mind. Addison.

2. Orderly arrangement, elucidation, development, or classification; clear and lucid exhibition; systematic arrangement peculiar to an individual.

Though this be madness, yet there’s method in it.

Shak.

All method is a rational progress, a progress toward an end.

Sir W. Hamilton.

3. (Nat. Hist.) Classification; a mode or system of classifying natural objects according to certain common characteristics; as, the method of Theophrastus; the method of Ray; the Linnæan method.

Syn. — Order; system; rule; regularity; way; manner; mode; course; process; means. — Method, Mode, Manner. Method implies arrangement; mode, mere action or existence. Method is a way of reaching a given end by a series of acts which tend to secure it; mode relates to a single action, or to the form which a series of acts, viewed as a whole, exhibits. Manner is literally the handling of a thing, and has a wider sense, embracing both method and mode. An instructor may adopt a good method of teaching to write; the scholar may acquire a bad mode of holding his pen; the manner in which he is corrected will greatly affect his success or failure.

{ Me*thod”ic (?), Me*thod”ic*al (?), } a. [L. methodicus, Gr. &?;: cf. F. méthodique.] 1. Arranged with regard to method; disposed in a suitable manner, or in a manner to illustrate a subject, or to facilitate practical observation; as, the methodical arrangement of arguments; a methodical treatise. “Methodical regularity.” Addison.

2. Proceeding with regard to method; systematic. “Aristotle, strict, methodic, and orderly.” Harris.

3. Of or pertaining to the ancient school of physicians called methodists. Johnson.

— Me*thod”ic*al*ly, adv. — Me*thod”ic*al*ness, n.

Me*thod”ios (?), n. The art and principles of method.

Meth”o*dism (?), n. (Eccl.) The system of doctrines, polity, and worship, of the sect called Methodists. Bp. Warburton.

Meth”o*dist (?), n. [Cf. F. méthodiste. See Method.] 1. One who observes method. [Obs.]

2. One of an ancient school of physicians who rejected observation and founded their practice on reasoning and theory. Sir W. Hamilton.

3. (Theol.) One of a sect of Christians, the outgrowth of a small association called the “Holy Club,” formed at Oxford University, A.D. 1729, of which the most conspicuous members were John Wesley and his brother Charles; — originally so called from the methodical strictness of members of the club in all religious duties.

4. A person of strict piety; one who lives in the exact observance of religious duties; — sometimes so called in contempt or ridicule.

Meth”o*dist, a. Of or pertaining to the sect of Methodists; as, Methodist hymns; a Methodist elder.

{ Meth`o*dis”tic (?), Meth`o*dis”tic*al (?), } a. Of or pertaining to methodists, or to the Methodists. — Meth`o*dis”tic*al*ly, adv.

Meth`od*i*za”tion (?), n. The act or process of methodizing, or the state of being methodized.

Meth”od*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Methodized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Methodizing (?).] To reduce to method; to dispose in due order; to arrange in a convenient manner; as, to methodize one’s work or thoughts. Spectator.

Meth”od*i`zer (?), n. One who methodizes.

Meth`od*o*log”ic*al (?), a. Of or pertaining to methodology.

Meth`od*ol”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. &?; method + -logy.] The science of method or arrangement; a treatise on method. Coleridge.

Meth”ol (?), n. [Gr. &?; wine + - ol.] (Chem.) The technical name of methyl alcohol or wood spirit; also, by extension, the class name of any of the series of alcohols of the methane series of which methol proper is the type. See Methyl alcohol, under Methyl.

Me*thought” (?), imp. of Methinks.

Meth*ox”yl (?), n. [Methyl + hydroxyl.] (Chem.) A hypothetical radical, CH_3O, analogous to hydroxyl.

Meth”yl (?), n. [See Methylene.] (Chem.) A hydrocarbon radical, CH_3, not existing alone but regarded as an essential residue of methane, and appearing as a component part of many derivatives; as, methyl alcohol, methyl ether, methyl amine, etc. [Formerly written also methule, methyle, etc.]

Methyl alcohol (Chem.), a light, volatile, inflammable liquid, CH_3.OH, obtained by the distillation of wood, and hence called wood spirit; — called also methol, carbinol, etc. — Methyl amine (Chem.), a colorless, inflammable, alkaline gas, CH_3.NH_2, having an ammoniacal, fishy odor. It is produced artificially, and also occurs naturally in herring brine and other fishy products. It is regarded as ammonia in which a third of its hydrogen is replaced by methyl, and is a type of the class of substituted ammonias. — Methyl ether (Chem.), a light, volatile ether CH_3.O.CH_3, obtained by the etherification of methyl alcohol; — called also methyl oxide. — Methyl green. (Chem.) See under Green, n. — Methyl orange. (Chem.) See Helianthin. — Methyl violet (Chem.), an artificial dye, consisting of certain methyl halogen derivatives of rosaniline.

Meth”yl*al (?), n. [Methylene + alcohol.] (Chem.) A light, volatile liquid, H_2C(OCH_3)2, regarded as a complex ether, and having a pleasant ethereal odor. It is obtained by the partial oxidation of methyl alcohol. Called also formal.

Meth`yl*am”ine (? or ?), n. (Chem.) See Methyl amine, under Methyl.

Meth”yl*ate (?), n. [Methyl + alcoholate.] (Chem.) An alcoholate of methyl alcohol in which the hydroxyl hydrogen is replaced by a metal, after the analogy of a hydrate; as, sodium methylate, CH_3ONa.

Meth”yl*ate (?), v. t. To impregnate or mix with methyl or methyl alcohol.

Meth”yl*a`ted (?), a. (Chem.) Impregnated with, or containing, methyl alcohol or wood spirit; as, methylated spirits.

Meth”yl*ene (?), n. [F. méthylène, from Gr. &?; wine + &?; wood; — a word coined to correspond to the name wood spirit.] (Chem.) A hydrocarbon radical, CH_2, not known in the free state, but regarded as an essential residue and component of certain derivatives of methane; as, methylene bromide, CH_2Br_2; — formerly called also methene.

Methylene blue (Chem.), an artificial dyestuff consisting of a complex sulphur derivative of diphenyl amine; — called also pure blue.

Me*thyl”ic (?), a. (Chem.) Pertaining to, derived from, or containing, methyl; specifically, designating methyl alcohol. See under Methyl.

Me*thys”ti*cin (?), n. (Chem.) A white, silky, crystalline substance extracted from the thick rootstock of a species of pepper (Piper methysticum) of the South Sea Islands; — called also kanakin.

Met”ic (? or ?; 277), n. [Gr. &?;, prop., changing one’s abode; &?;, indicating change + &?; house, abode: cf. L. metoecus, F. métèque.] (Gr. Antiq.) A sojourner; an immigrant; an alien resident in a Grecian city, but not a citizen. Mitford.

The whole force of Athens, metics as well as citizens, and all the strangers who were then in the city.

Jowett (Thucyd. ).

Me*tic”u*lous (?), a. [L. meticulosus, fr. metus fear: cf. F. méticuleux.] Timid; fearful.

— Me*tic”u*lous*ly, adv.

{ ||Mé`tif” (?), n. m. ||Mé`tive” (?), n. f. }[F.] See Métis.

{ ||Mé`tis” (?), n. m. ||Mé`tisse” (?), n. f. }[F.; akin to Sp. mestizo. See Mestizo.] 1. The offspring of a white person and an American Indian.

2. The offspring of a white person and a quadroon; an octoroon. [Local, U. S.] Bartlett.

Met”o*che (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; a sharing, fr. &?; to share in; &?; with + &?; to have.] (Arch.) (a) The space between two dentils. (b) The space between two triglyphs.

Me*ton”ic (?), a. [Cf. F. métonique.] Pertaining to, or discovered by, Meton, the Athenian.

Metonic cycle or year. (Astron.) See under Cycle.

{ Met`o*nym”ic (?), Met`o*nym”ic*al (?), } a. [See Metonymy.] Used by way of metonymy. — Met`o*nym”ic*al*ly, adv.

Me*ton”y*my (m&esl;*t&obreve;n”&ibreve;*m&ybreve;; 277), n. [L. metonymia, Gr. metwnymi`a; meta`, indicating change + ‘o`nyma , for ‘o`noma a name: cf. F. métonymie. See Name.] (Rhet.) A trope in which one word is put for another that suggests it; as, we say, a man keeps a good table instead of good provisions; we read Virgil, that is, his poems; a man has a warm heart, that is, warm affections.

Met”o*pe (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;; meta` with, between + &?; opening, hole, the hole in the frieze between the beam ends.] 1. (Arch.) The space between two triglyphs of the Doric frieze, which, among the ancients, was often adorned with carved work. See Illust. of Entablature.

2. (Zoöl.) The face of a crab.

&fist; In the Parthenon, groups of centaurs and heroes in high relief occupy the metopes.

Me*top”ic (?), a. [Gr. &?; the forehead.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the forehead or frontal bones; frontal; as, the metopic suture.

Met”o*po*man`cy (?), n. [Gr. &?; the forehead + -mancy.] Fortune telling by physiognomy. [R.] Urquhart.

{ Met`o*po*scop”ic (?), Met`o*po*scop”ic*al (?), } a. Of or relating to metoposcopy.

Met`o*pos”co*pist (?), n. One versed in metoposcopy.

Met`o*pos”co*py (?), n. [Gr. &?; observing the forehead; &?; the forehead + &?; to view: cf. F. métoposcopie.] The study of physiognomy; the art of discovering the character of persons by their features, or the lines of the face.

||Me*tos”te*on (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; after + &?; bone.] (Anat.) The postero-lateral ossification in the sternum of birds; also, the part resulting from such ossification.

Me”tre (mē“t&etilde;r), n. See Meter.

Met”ric (m&ebreve;t”r&ibreve;k), a. [L. metricus, Gr. &?;: cf. F. métrique. See Meter rhythm.] 1. Relating to measurement; involving, or proceeding by, measurement.

2. Of or pertaining to the meter as a standard of measurement; of or pertaining to the decimal system of measurement of which a meter is the unit; as, the metric system; a metric measurement.

Metric analysis (Chem.), analysis by volume; volumetric analysis. — Metric system, a system of weights and measures originating in France, the use of which is required by law in many countries, and permitted in many others, including the United States and England. The principal unit is the meter (see Meter). From this are formed the are, the liter, the stere, the gram, etc. These units, and others derived from them, are divided decimally, and larger units are formed from multiples by 10, 100, 1,000, and 10,000. The successive multiplies are designated by the prefixes, deca- , hecto-, kilo-, and myria-; successive parts by deci-, centi-, and milli-. The prefixes mega- and micro- are sometimes used to denote a multiple by one million, and the millionth part, respectively. See the words formed with these prefixes in the Vocabulary. For metric tables, see p. 1682.

Met”ric*al (?), a. 1. Of or pertaining to the meter; arranged in meter; consisting of verses; as, metrical compositions.

2. Of or pertaining to measurement; as, the inch, foot, yard, etc., are metrical terms; esp., of or pertaining to the metric system.

Met”ric*al*ly, adv. In a metrical manner.

Me*tri”cian (?), n. [Cf. F. métricien. See Meter rhythm.] A composer of verses. [Obs.]

Met”ric sys”tem (?). See Metric, a.

Met`ri*fi*ca”tion (?), n. Composition in metrical form; versification. [R.] Tennyson.

Met”ri*fy (?), v. i. [L. metrum meter + -fy: cf. F. métrifier.] To make verse. [R.] Skelton.

Me”trist (?), n. A maker of verses. Bale.

Spenser was no mere metrist, but a great composer.

Lowell.

||Me*tri”tis (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; womb + -tis.] (Med.) Inflammation of the womb.

Met”ro*chrome (?), n. [Gr. &?; + &?; color.] An instrument for measuring colors.

Met”ro*graph (?), n. [Gr. &?; measure + -graph.] An instrument attached to a locomotive for recording its speed and the number and duration of its stops.

Met`ro*log”ic*al (?), a. [Cf. F. métrologique.] Of or pertaining to metrology.

Me*trol”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. &?; measure + -métrologie.] The science of, or a system of, weights and measures; also, a treatise on the subject.

Met`ro*ma”ni*a (?), n. [Gr. &?; measure + E. mania.] A mania for writing verses.

Met`ro*ma”ni*ac (?), n. One who has metromania.

Me*trom”e*ter (?), n. [Gr. &?; womb + -meter.] (Med.) An instrument for measuring the size of the womb. Knight.

Met”ro*nome (?), n. [Gr. &?; measure + &?; distribute, assign: cf. F. métronome, It. metronomo.] An instrument consisting of a short pendulum with a sliding weight. It is set in motion by clockwork, and serves to measure time in music.

Me*tron”o*my (?), n. [See Metronome.] Measurement of time by an instrument.

Met`ro*nym”ic (?), a. [Gr. &?;; &?; mother + &?;, for &?; name.] Derived from the name of one’s mother, or other female ancestor; as, a metronymic name or appellation. — n. A metronymic appellation.

Met”ro*pole (?), n. [Cf. F. métropole. See Metropolis.] A metropolis. [Obs.] Holinshed.

Me*trop”o*lis (?), n. [L. metropolis, Gr. &?;, prop., the mother city (in relation to colonies); &?; mother + &?; city. See Mother, and Police.]

1. The mother city; the chief city of a kingdom, state, or country.

[Edinburgh] gray metropolis of the North.

Tennyson.

2. (Eccl.) The seat, or see, of the metropolitan, or highest church dignitary.

The great metropolis and see of Rome.

Shak.

Met`ro*pol”i*tan (?; 277), a. [L. metropolitanus: cf. F. métropolitain.]

1. Of or pertaining to the capital or principal city of a country; as, metropolitan luxury.

2. (Eccl.) Of, pertaining to, or designating, a metropolitan or the presiding bishop of a country or province, his office, or his dignity; as, metropolitan authority. “Bishops metropolitan.” Sir T. More.

Met`ro*pol”i*tan, n. [LL. metropolitanus.] 1. The superior or presiding bishop of a country or province.

2. (Lat. Church.) An archbishop.

3. (Gr. Church) A bishop whose see is a civil metropolis. His rank is intermediate between that of an archbishop and a patriarch. Hook.

Met`ro*pol”i*tan*ate (?), n. The see of a metropolitan bishop. Milman.

Me*trop”o*lite (?), n. [L. metropolita, Gr. &?;.] A metropolitan. Barrow.

Met`ro*po*lit”ic*al (?), a. Of or pertaining to a metropolis; being a metropolis; metropolitan; as, the metropolitical chair. Bp. Hall.

||Met`ror*rha”gi*a (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; womb + &?; to break.] (Med.) Profuse bleeding from the womb, esp. such as does not occur at the menstrual period.

Met”ro*scope (?), n. [Gr. &?; womb + -scope.] A modification of the stethoscope, for directly auscultating the uterus from the vagina.

||Met`ro*si*de”ros (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; heart of a tree + &?; iron.] (Bot.) A myrtaceous genus of trees or shrubs, found in Australia and the South Sea Islands, and having very hard wood. Metrosideros vera is the true ironwood.

Met”ro*tome (?), n. [See Metrotomy.] (Surg.) An instrument for cutting or scarifying the uterus or the neck of the uterus.

Me*trot”o*my (?), n. [Gr. &?; womb + &?; to cut: cf. F. métrotomie.] (Surg.) The operation of cutting into the uterus; hysterotomy; the Cæsarean section.

-me*try (?). [See -meter.] A suffix denoting the art, process, or science, of measuring; as, acidimetry, chlorometry, chronometry.

Mette (?), obs. imp. of Mete, to dream. Chaucer.

Met”tle (?), n. [E. metal, used in a tropical sense in allusion to the temper of the metal of a sword blade. See Metal.] Substance or quality of temperament; spirit, esp. as regards honor, courage, fortitude, ardor, etc.; disposition; — usually in a good sense.

A certain critical hour which shall . . . try what mettle his heart is made of.

South.

Gentlemen of brave mettle.

Shak.

The winged courser, like a generous horse,
Shows most true mettle when you check his course.

Pope.

To put one one’s mettle, to cause or incite one to use one’s best efforts.

Met”tled (?), a. Having mettle; high-spirited; ardent; full of fire. Addison.

Met”tle*some (?), a. Full of spirit; possessing constitutional ardor; fiery; as, a mettlesome horse.

— Met”tle*some*ly, adv. — Met”tle*some*ness, n.

Meute (?), n. A cage for hawks; a mew. See 4th Mew, 1. Milman.

Meve (?), v. t. & i. To move. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mew (?), n. [AS. m&?;w, akin to D. meeuw, G. möwe, OHG. m&?;h, Icel. mār.] (Zoöl.) A gull, esp. the common British species (Larus canus); called also sea mew, maa, mar, mow, and cobb.

Mew, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mewed; p. pr. & vb. n. Mewing.] [OE. muen, F. muer, fr. L. mutare to change, fr. movere to move. See Move, and cf. Mew a cage, Molt.] To shed or cast; to change; to molt; as, the hawk mewed his feathers.

Nine times the moon had mewed her horns.

Dryden.

Mew, v. i. To cast the feathers; to molt; hence, to change; to put on a new appearance.

Now everything doth mew,
And shifts his rustic winter robe.

Turbervile.

Mew, n. [OE. mue, F. mue change of feathers, scales, skin, the time or place when the change occurs, fr. muer to molt, mew, L. mutare to change. See 2d Mew.]

1. A cage for hawks while mewing; a coop for fattening fowls; hence, any inclosure; a place of confinement or shelter; — in the latter sense usually in the plural.

Full many a fat partrich had he in mewe.

Chaucer.

Forthcoming from her darksome mew.

Spenser.

Violets in their secret mews.

Wordsworth.

2. A stable or range of stables for horses; – - compound used in the plural, and so called from the royal stables in London, built on the site of the king’s mews for hawks.

Mew, v. t. [From Mew a cage.] To shut up; to inclose; to confine, as in a cage or other inclosure.

More pity that the eagle should be mewed.

Shak.

Close mewed in their sedans, for fear of air.

Dryden.

Mew, v. i. [Of imitative origin; cf. G. miauen.] To cry as a cat. [Written also meaw, meow.] Shak.

Mew, n. The common cry of a cat. Shak.

Mewl (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Mewled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mewling.] [Cf. F. miauler to mew, E. mew to cry as a cat. Cf. Miaul.] To cry, as a young child; to squall. [Written also meawl.] Shak.

Mewl”er (?), n. One that mewls.

Mews (?), n. sing. & pl. [Prop. pl. of mew. See Mew a cage.] An alley where there are stables; a narrow passage; a confined place. [Eng.]

Mr. Turveydrop’s great room . . . was built out into a mews at the back.

Dickens.

||Mex*al” (?), Mex”i*cal (#), n. [Sp. mexcal.] See Mescal.

Mex”i*can (?), a. Of or pertaining to Mexico or its people. — n. A native or inhabitant of Mexico.

Mexican poppy (Bot.), a tropical American herb of the Poppy family (Argemone Mexicana) with much the look of a thistle, but having large yellow or white blossoms. — Mexican tea (Bot.), an aromatic kind of pigweed from tropical America (Chenopodium ambrosioides).

Mex”i*can*ize (?), v. t. To cause to be like the Mexicans, or their country, esp. in respect of frequent revolutions of government.

Mex”i*can*ize, v. i. To become like the Mexicans, or their country or government.

Meyn”e (m&ebreve;n”&esl;), n. [Obs.] Same as Meine.

Mez*cal” (?), n. Same as Mescal.

Me*ze”re*on (?), n. [F. mézéréon, Per. māzriyūn.] (Bot.) A small European shrub (Daphne Mezereum), whose acrid bark is used in medicine.

||Mez*qui”ta (?), n. [Sp.] A mosque.

Mez”u*zoth (?), n. [Heb. m&ebreve;zūzōth, pl. of m&ebreve;zūzāh doorpost.] A piece of parchment bearing the Decalogue and attached to the doorpost; — in use among orthodox Hebrews.

Mez”za*nine (?), n. [F. mezzanine, It. mezzanino, fr. mezzano middle, fr. mezzo middle, half. See Mezzo.] (Arch.) (a) Same as Entresol. (b) A partial story which is not on the same level with the story of the main part of the edifice, as of a back building, where the floors are on a level with landings of the staircase of the main house.

||Mez”za vo”ce (?). [It., fr. mezzo, fem. mezza middle, half + voce voice, L. vox.] (Mus.) With a medium fullness of sound.

||Mez”zo (?), a. [It., from L. medius middle, half. See Mid, a.] (Mus.) Mean; not extreme.

Mez”zo-re*lie”vo (?), n. Mezzo- rilievo.

||Mez”zo-ri*lie”vo (?), n. [It.] (a) A middle degree of relief in figures, between high and low relief. (b) Sculpture in this kind of relief. See under Alto-rilievo.

Mez”zo-so*pra”no (?), a. (Mus.) Having a medium compass between the soprano and contralto; — said of the voice of a female singer. — n. (a) A mezzo-soprano voice. (b) A person having such a voice.

Mez”zo*tint (?), n. [Cf. F. mezzo- tinto.] A manner of engraving on copper or steel by drawing upon a surface previously roughened, and then removing the roughness in places by scraping, burnishing, etc., so as to produce the requisite light and shade. Also, an engraving so produced.

Mez”zo*tint, v. t. To engrave in mezzotint.

Mez”zo*tint`er (?), n. One who engraves in mezzotint.

Mez`zo*tin”to (?), n. [It. mezzo half + tinto tinted, p. p. of tingere to dye, color, tinge, L. tingere. See Mezzo.] Mezzotint.

Mez`zo*tin”to, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mezzotintoed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mezzotintoing (?).] To engrave in mezzotint; to represent by mezzotint.

Mhorr (?), n. (Zoöl.) See Mohr.

Mi (?), n. [It.] (Mus.) A syllable applied to the third tone of the scale of C, i. e., to E, in European solmization, but to the third tone of any scale in the American system.

Mi*a”mis (?), n. pl.; sing. Miami (&?;). (Ethnol.) A tribe of Indians that formerly occupied the country between the Wabash and Maumee rivers.

Mi*ar”gy*rite (?), n. [Gr. &?; less + &?; silver. So called because it contains less silver than some kindred ore.] (Min.) A mineral of an iron-black color, and very sectile, consisting principally of sulphur, antimony, and silver.

Mi”as (?), n. [Malayan.] The orang-outang.

Mi*asc”ite (?), n. [Named from Miask, in the Ural Mountains.] (Min.) A granitoid rock containing feldspar, biotite, elæolite, and sodalite.

Mi”asm (?), n. [Cf. F. miasme.] Miasma.

Mi*as”ma (?), n.; pl. Miasmata (#). [NL., fr. Gr. &?; defilement, fr. &?; to pollute.] Infectious particles or germs floating in the air; air made noxious by the presence of such particles or germs; noxious effluvia; malaria.

Mi*as”mal (?), a. Containing miasma; miasmatic.

{ Mi`as*mat”ic (?), Mi`as*mat”ic*al (?), } a. [Cf. F. miasmatique.] Containing, or relating to, miasma; caused by miasma; as, miasmatic diseases.

Mi*as”ma*tist (?), n. One who has made a special study of miasma.

Mi`as*mol”o*gy (?), n. [Miasma + -logy.] That department of medical science which treats of miasma.

Mi*aul” (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Miauled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Miauling.] [Cf. F. miauler, of imitative origin, and E. mew. Cf. Mewl.] To cry as a cat; to mew; to caterwaul. Sir W. Scott.

Mi*aul”, n. The crying of a cat.

Mi”ca (?), n. [L. mica crumb, grain, particle; cf. F. mica.] (Min.) The name of a group of minerals characterized by highly perfect cleavage, so that they readily separate into very thin leaves, more or less elastic. They differ widely in composition, and vary in color from pale brown or yellow to green or black. The transparent forms are used in lanterns, the doors of stoves, etc., being popularly called isinglass. Formerly called also cat-silver, and glimmer.

&fist; The important species of the mica group are: muscovite, common or potash mica, pale brown or green, often silvery, including damourite (also called hydromica); biotite, iron-magnesia mica, dark brown, green, or black; lepidomelane, iron, mica, black; phlogopite, magnesia mica, colorless, yellow, brown; lepidolite, lithia mica, rose- red, lilac.

Mica (usually muscovite, also biotite) is an essential constituent of granite, gneiss, and mica slate; biotite is common in many eruptive rocks; phlogopite in crystalline limestone and serpentine.

Mica diorite (Min.), an eruptive rock allied to diorite but containing mica (biotite) instead of hornblende. — Mica powder, a kind of dynamite containing fine scales of mica. — Mica schist, Mica slate (Geol.), a schistose rock, consisting of mica and quartz with, usually, some feldspar.

Mi*ca`ce*o-cal*ca”re*ous (?), a. (Geol.) Partaking of the nature of, or consisting of, mica and lime; — applied to a mica schist containing carbonate of lime.

Mi*ca”ceous (?), a. [Cf. F. micacé.] Pertaining to, or containing, mica; splitting into laminæ or leaves like mica.

Mice (?), n., pl of Mouse.

||Mi*cel”la (?), n.; pl. Micellæ (#). [NL., dim. of L. mica a morsel, grain.] (Biol.) A theoretical aggregation of molecules constituting a structural particle of protoplasm, capable of increase or diminution without change in chemical nature.

{ Mich, Miche } (?), v. i. [OE. michen; cf. OE. muchier, mucier, to conceal, F. musser, and OHG. mūhhen to waylay. Cf. Micher, Curmudgeon, Muset.] To lie hid; to skulk; to act, or carry one’s self, sneakingly. [Obs. or Colloq.] [Written also meach and meech.] Spenser.

Mich”ael*mas (?), n. [Michael + mass religious service; OE. Mighelmesse.] The feast of the archangel Michael, a church festival, celebrated on the 29th of September. Hence, colloquially, autumn.

Michaelmas daisy. (Bot.) See under Daisy.

Mich”er (?), n. [OE. michare, muchare. See Mich.] One who skulks, or keeps out of sight; hence, a truant; an idler; a thief, etc. [Obs.] Shak.

Mich”er*y (?), n. Theft; cheating. [Obs.] Gower.

Mich”ing, a. Hiding; skulking; cowardly. [Colloq.] [Written also meaching and meeching.]

Mic”kle (m&ibreve;k”k’l), a. [OE. mikel, muchel, mochel, mukel, AS. micel, mycel; akin to OS. mikil, OHG. mihil, mihhil, Icel. mikill, mykill, Goth. mikils, L. magnus, Gr. me`gas, gen. mega`loy; cf. Skr. mahat. √103. Cf. Much, Muckle, Magnitude.] Much; great. [Written also muckle and mockle.] [Old Eng. & Scot.] “A man of mickle might.” Spenser.

Mic”macs (?), n. pl.; sing. Micmac (&?;). (Ethnol.) A tribe of Indians inhabiting Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. [Written also Mikmaks.]

Mi”co (?), n. [Sp. or Pg. mico.] (Zoöl.) A small South American monkey (Mico melanurus), allied to the marmoset. The name was originally applied to an albino variety.

Mi`cra*cous”tic (?), a. Same as Microustic.

||Mi*cras”ter (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. mikro`s small + &?; star.] (Paleon.) A genus of sea urchins, similar to Spatangus, abounding in the chalk formation; — from the starlike disposal of the ambulacral furrows.

Mi`cren*ceph”a*lous (?), [Micr- + Gr. &?; brain.] Having a small brain.

{ Mi”cro- (?), Mi”cr- }. [Gr. mikro`s small.] A combining form signifying: (a) Small, little, trivial, slight; as, microcosm, microscope. (b) (Metric System, Elec., Mech., etc.) A millionth part of; as, microfarad, microohm, micrometer.

Mi`cro*am`père” (?), n. [Micr- + ampère.] (Elec.) One of the smaller measures of electrical currents; the millionth part of one ampère.

||Mi`cro*bac*te”ri*a (?), n. pl. [NL. See Micro-, and Bacterium.] (Biol.) In the classification of Cohn, one of the four tribes of Bacteria.

&fist; In this classification bacteria are divided into four tribes: 1. Spherobacteria, or spherical bacteria, as the genus Micrococcus. 2. Microbacteria, or bacteria in the form of short rods, including the genus Bacterium. 3. Desmobacteria, or bacteria in straight filaments, of which the genus Bacillus is a type. 4. Spirobacteria, or bacteria in spiral filaments, as the genus Vibrio.

{ Mi”crobe (?), ||Mi*cro”bi*on (?), } n. [NL. microbion, fr. Gr. &?; little + &?; life.] (Biol.) A microscopic organism; — particularly applied to bacteria and especially to pathogenic forms; as, the microbe of fowl cholera.

Mi*cro”bi*an (?), a. (Biol.) Of, pertaining to, or caused by, microbes; as, the microbian theory; a microbian disease.

Mi*crob”ic (?), a. (Biol.) Of or pertaining to a microbe.

Mi*crob”i*cide (?), n. [Microbe + L. caedere to kill.] (Biol.) Any agent detrimental to, or destructive of, the life of microbes or bacterial organisms.

{ Mi`cro*ce*phal”ic (?), Mi`cro*ceph”a*lous (?), } a. [Micro- + cephalic, cephalous.] (Anat.) Having a small head; having the cranial cavity small; — opposed to megacephalic.

Mi`cro-chem”ic*al (?), a. Of or pertaining to micro-chemistry; as, a micro-chemical test.

Mi`cro-chem”is*try (?), n. [Micro- + chemistry.] The application of chemical tests to minute objects or portions of matter, magnified by the use of the microscopy; — distinguished from macro-chemistry.

Mi`cro*chro*nom”e*ter (?), n. A chronoscope.

Mi”cro*cline (?), n. [Micro- + Gr. &?; to incline.] (Min.) A mineral of the feldspar group, like orthoclase or common feldspar in composition, but triclinic in form.

Mi`cro*coc”cal (?), a. Of or pertaining to micrococci; caused by micrococci. Nature.

||Mi`cro*coc”cus (?), n.; pl. Micrococci (#). [NL. See Micro-, and Coccus.] (Biol.) A genus of Spherobacteria, in the form of very small globular or oval cells, forming, by transverse division, filaments, or chains of cells, or in some cases single organisms shaped like dumb-bells (Diplococcus), all without the power of motion. See Illust. of Ascoccus.

&fist; Physiologically, micrococci are divided into three groups; chromogenic, characterized by their power of forming pigment; zymogenic, including those associated with definite chemical processes; and pathogenic, those connected with disease.

Mi”cro*cosm (?), n. [F. microcosme, L. microcosmus, fr. Gr. mikro`s small + ko`smos the world.] A little world; a miniature universe. Hence (so called by Paracelsus), a man, as a supposed epitome of the exterior universe or great world. Opposed to macrocosm. Shak.

{ Mi`cro*cos”mic (?), Mi`cro*cos”mic*al (?), } a. [Cf. F. microcosmique.] Of or pertaining to the microcosm.

Microcosmic salt (Chem.), a white crystalline substance obtained by mixing solutions of sodium phosphate and ammonium phosphate, and also called hydric-sodic- ammonic-phosphate. It is a powerful flux, and is used as a substitute for borax as a blowpipe reagent in testing for the metallic oxides. Originally obtained by the alchemists from human urine, and called sal microcosmicum.

Mi`cro*cos*mog”ra*phy (?), n. [Microcosm + -graphy.] Description of man as a microcosm.

Mi`cro*cou`lomb” (?), n. [Micro- + coulomb.] (Elec.) A measure of electrical quantity; the millionth part of one coulomb.

Mi`cro*cous”tic (?), a. [Micro- + acoustic: cf. F. microcoustique, micracoustique.] Pertaining, or suited, to the audition of small sounds; fitted to assist hearing.

Mi`cro*cous”tic, n. An instrument for making faint sounds audible, as to a partially deaf person.

Mi`cro*crith” (?), n. [Micro- + crith.] (Chem.) The weight of the half hydrogen molecule, or of the hydrogen atom, taken as the standard in comparing the atomic weights of the elements; thus, an atom of oxygen weighs sixteen microcriths. See Crith. J. P. Cooke.

Mi`cro*crys”tal*line (?), a. [Micro- + crystalline.] (Crystallog.) Crystalline on a fine, or microscopic, scale; consisting of fine crystals; as, the ground mass of certain porphyrics is microcrystalline.

Mi”cro*cyte (?), n. [Micro- + Gr. &?; a hollow vessel.] (Physiol.) One of the elementary granules found in blood. They are much smaller than an ordinary corpuscle, and are particularly noticeable in disease, as in anæmia.

Mic”ro*dont (?), a. [Micr- + Gr. ‘odoy`s, ‘odo`ntos, a tooth.] (Anat.) Having small teeth.

Mi`cro*far”ad (?), n. [Micro- + farad.] (Elec.) The millionth part of a farad.

Mi”cro*form (?), n. [Micro- + form, n.] (Biol.) A microscopic form of life; an animal or vegetable organism of microscopic size.

Mi`cro-ge`o*log”ic*al (?), a. Of or pertaining to micro-geology.

Mi`cro-ge*ol”o*gy (?), n. [Micro- + geology.] The part of geology relating to structure and organisms which require to be studied with a microscope.

Mi”cro*graph (?), n. [See Micrography.] An instrument for executing minute writing or engraving.

Mi`cro*graph”ic (?), a. Of or pertaining to micrography.

Mi*crog”ra*phy (?), n. [Micro- + -graphy: cf. F. micrographie.] The description of microscopic objects.

Mi*crohm” (?), n. [Micr- + ohm.] (Elec.) The millionth part of an ohm.

||Mi`cro*lep`i*dop”te*ra (?), n. pl. [NL. See Micro-, and Lepidoptera.] (Zoöl.) A tribe of Lepidoptera, including a vast number of minute species, as the plume moth, clothes moth, etc.

||Mi`cro*les”tes (?), n. [NL., from Gr. mikro`s small + &?; a robber.] (Paleon.) An extinct genus of small Triassic mammals, the oldest yet found in European strata.

Mi”cro*lite (?), n. [Micro- + -lite.] (Min.)

1. A rare mineral of resinous luster and high specific gravity. It is a tantalate of calcium, and occurs in octahedral crystals usually very minute.

2. (Min.) A minute inclosed crystal, often observed when minerals or rocks are examined in thin sections under the microscope.

Mi”cro*lith (?), n. [Micro- + lith.] (Min.) Same as Microlite, 2.

Mi`cro*lith”ic (?), a. Formed of small stones.

{ Mi`cro*log”ic (?), Mi`cro*log”ic*al (?), } a. Of or pertaining to micrology; very minute; as, micrologic examination. — Mi`cro*log”ic*al*ly, adv.

Mi*crol”o*gy (?), n. [Micro- + -logy.]

1. That part of science which treats of microscopic objects, or depends on microscopic observation.

2. Attention to petty items or differences. W. Taylor.

Mi”cro*mere (?), n. [Micro- + -mere.] (Biol.) One of the smaller cells, or blastomeres, resulting from the complete segmentation of a telolecithal ovum.

Mi*crom”e*ter (?), n. [Micro- + -meter: cf. F. micromètre.] An instrument, used with a telescope or microscope, for measuring minute distances, or the apparent diameters of objects which subtend minute angles. The measurement given directly is that of the image of the object formed at the focus of the object glass.

Circular, or Ring, micrometer, a metallic ring fixed in the focus of the object glass of a telescope, and used to determine differences of right ascension and declination between stars by observations of the times at which the stars cross the inner or outer periphery of the ring. — Double image micrometer, a micrometer in which two images of an object are formed in the field, usually by the two halves of a bisected lens which are movable along their line of section by a screw, and distances are determined by the number of screw revolutions necessary to bring the points to be measured into optical coincidence. When the two images are formed by a bisected object glass, it is called a divided-object-glass micrometer, and when the instrument is large and equatorially mounted, it is known as a heliometer. — Double refraction micrometer, a species of double image micrometer, in which the two images are formed by the double refraction of rock crystal. — Filar, or Bifilar, micrometer. See under Bifilar. — Micrometer caliper or gauge (Mech.), a caliper or gauge with a micrometer screw, for measuring dimensions with great accuracy. — Micrometer head, the head of a micrometer screw. — Micrometer microscope, a compound microscope combined with a filar micrometer, used chiefly for reading and subdividing the divisions of large astronomical and geodetical instruments. — Micrometer screw, a screw with a graduated head used in some forms of micrometers. — Position micrometer. See under Position. — Scale, or Linear, micrometer, a minute and very delicately graduated scale of equal parts used in the field of a telescope or microscope, for measuring distances by direct comparison.

{ Mi`cro*met”ric (?), Mi`cro*met”ric*al (?), } a. [Cf. F. micrométrique.] Belonging to micrometry; made by the micrometer. — Mi`cro*met”ric*al*ly, adv.

Mi*crom”e*try (?), n. The art of measuring with a micrometer.

Mi`cro*mil”li*me`ter (?), n. [Micro- + millimeter.] The millionth part of a meter.

Mic”ron (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. mikro`s small.] (Physics) A measure of length; the thousandth part of one millimeter; the millionth part of a meter.

Mi”cro*ne”sian (?), a. [From Micronesia, fr. Gr. mikro`s small + nh^sos an island.] Of or pertaining to Micronesia, a collective designation of the islands in the western part of the Pacific Ocean, embracing the Marshall and Gilbert groups, the Ladrones, the Carolines, etc.

Mi`cro*ne”sians (?), n. pl.; sing. Micronesian. (Ethnol.) A dark race inhabiting the Micronesian Islands. They are supposed to be a mixed race, derived from Polynesians and Papuans.

Mi`cro*nom”e*ter (?), n. [Micro- + chronometer.] An instrument for noting minute portions of time.

Mi`cro*ör”gan*ism (?), n. [Micro- + organism.] (Biol.) Any microscopic form of life; — particularly applied to bacteria and similar organisms, esp. such are supposed to cause infectious diseases.

Mi`cro*pan”to*graph (?), n. [Micro- + pantograph.] A kind of pantograph which produces copies microscopically minute.

Mi`cro*peg”ma*tite (?), n. [Micro- + pegmatite.] (Min.) A rock showing under the microscope the structure of a graphic granite (pegmatite). — Mi`cro*peg`ma*tit”ic (#), a.

Mi”cro*phone (?), n. [Micro- + Gr. &?; sound, voice: cf. F. microphone.] (Physics) An instrument for intensifying and making audible very feeble sounds. It produces its effects by the changes of intensity in an electric current, occasioned by the variations in the contact resistance of conducting bodies, especially of imperfect conductors, under the action of acoustic vibrations.

Mi`cro*phon”ics (?), n. [See Microphone.] The science which treats of the means of increasing the intensity of low or weak sounds, or of the microphone.

Mi*croph”o*nous (?), a. Serving to augment the intensity of weak sounds; microcoustic.

Mi`cro*pho”to*graph (?), n. [Micro- + photograph.]

1. A microscopically small photograph of a picture, writing, printed page, etc.

2. An enlarged representation of a microscopic object, produced by throwing upon a sensitive plate the magnified image of an object formed by a microscope or other suitable combination of lenses.

&fist; A picture of this kind is preferably called a photomicrograph.

Mi`cro*pho*tog”ra*phy (?), n. The art of making microphotographs.

{ Mi`croph*thal”mi*a (?), Mi`croph*thal”my (?), } n. [Micro- + Gr. ‘ofqalmo`s eye.] An unnatural smallness of the eyes, occurring as the result of disease or of imperfect development.

Mi*croph”yl*lous (?), a. [Micro- + Gr. fy`llon leaf.] (Bot.) Small- leaved.

Mi*croph”y*tal (?), a. (Bot.) Pertaining to, or of the nature of, microphytes.

Mi”cro*phyte (?), n. [Micro- + Gr. &?; a plant: cf. F. microphyte.] (Bot.) A very minute plant, one of certain unicellular algæ, such as the germs of various infectious diseases are believed to be.

Mi”cro*pyle (?), n. [Micro- + Gr. &?; gate, orifice: cf. F. micropyle.] (Biol.) (a) An opening in the membranes surrounding the ovum, by which nutrition is assisted and the entrance of the spermatozoa permitted. (b) An opening in the outer coat of a seed, through which the fecundating pollen enters the ovule. — Mi*crop”y*lar (#), a.

Mi*cros”co*pal (?), a. Pertaining to microscopy, or to the use of the microscope. Huxley.

Mi”cro*scope (?), n. [Micro- + -scope.] An optical instrument, consisting of a lens, or combination of lenses, for making an enlarged image of an object which is too minute to be viewed by the naked eye.

Compound microscope, an instrument consisting of a combination of lenses such that the image formed by the lens or set of lenses nearest the object (called the objective) is magnified by another lens called the ocular or eyepiece. — Oxyhydrogen microscope, and Solar microscope. See under Oxyhydrogen, and Solar. — Simple, or Single, microscope, a single convex lens used to magnify objects placed in its focus.

Mi`cro*sco”pi*al (?), a. Microscopic. [R.] Berkeley.

{ Mi`cro*scop”ic (?), Mi`cro*scop”ic*al (?), } a. [Cf. F. microscopique.]

1. Of or pertaining to the microscope or to microscopy; made with a microscope; as, microscopic observation.

2. Able to see extremely minute objects.

Why has not man a microscopic eye?

Pope.

3. Very small; visible only by the aid of a microscope; as, a microscopic insect.

Mi`cro*scop”ic*al*ly, adv. By the microscope; with minute inspection; in a microscopic manner.

Mi*cros”co*pist (?; 277), n. One skilled in, or given to, microscopy.

Mi*cros”co*py (?), n. The use of the microscope; investigation with the microscope.

Mi”cro*seme (?), a. [Micro- + Gr. &?; sign, mark: cf. F. microsème.] (Anat.) Having the orbital index relatively small; having the orbits broad transversely; — opposed to megaseme.

Mi`cro*spec”tro*scope (mī`kr&osl;*sp&ebreve;k”tr&osl;*skōp or m&ibreve;`kr&osl;), n. [Micro + spectroscope.] (Physics) A spectroscope arranged for attachment to a microscope, for observation of the spectrum of light from minute portions of any substance.

||Mi`cro*spo*ran”gi*um (?), n. [NL. See Micro-, and Sporangium.] (Bot.) A sporangium or conceptacle containing only very minute spores. Cf. Macrosporangium.

Mi”cro*spore (?), n. [Micro- + spore.] (Bot.) One of the exceedingly minute spores found in certain flowerless plants, as Selaginella and Isoetes, which bear two kinds of spores, one very much smaller than the other. Cf. Macrospore.

Mi`cro*spor”ic (?), a. (Bot.) Of or pertaining to microspores.

Mi”cro*sthene (?), n. [Micro- + Gr. sqe`nos might, strength.] (Zoöl.) One of a group of mammals having a small size as a typical characteristic. It includes the lower orders, as the Insectivora, Cheiroptera, Rodentia, and Edentata.

Mi`cro*sthen”ic (?), a. (Zoöl.) Having a typically small size; of or pertaining to the microsthenes.

Mi`cro*ta*sim”e*ter (?), n. [Micro- + tasimeter.] (Physics) A tasimeter, especially when arranged for measuring very small extensions. See Tasimeter.

Mi”cro*tome (?), n. [Micro- + Gr. te`mnein to cut.] An instrument for making very thin sections for microscopical examination.

Mi*crot”o*mist (?), n. One who is skilled in or practices microtomy.

Mi*crot”o*my (?), n. The art of using the microtome; investigation carried on with the microtome.

Mi`cro*volt” (?), n. [Micro- + volt.] (Elec.) A measure of electro-motive force; the millionth part of one volt.

Mi`cro*we”ber (?), n. [Micro- + weber.] (Elec.) The millionth part of one weber.

||Mi`cro*zo”a (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. mikro`s small + zw^,on an animal.] (Zoöl.) The Infusoria.

Mi`cro*zo”ö*spore (?), n. [Micro- + zoöspore.] (Bot.) A small motile spore furnished with two vibratile cilia, found in certain green algæ.

Mi”cro*zyme (?), n. [Micro- + Gr. zy`mh leaven.] (Biol.) A microörganism which is supposed to act like a ferment in causing or propagating certain infectious or contagious diseases; a pathogenic bacterial organism.

Mic`tu*ri”tion (?), n. [L. micturire to desire to make water, v. desid. fr. mingere, mictum, to make water.] The act of voiding urine; also, a morbidly frequent passing of the urine, in consequence of disease.

Mid (m&ibreve;d), a. [Compar. wanting; superl. Midmost.] [AS. midd; akin to OS. middi, D. mid (in comp.), OHG. mitti, Icel. miðr, Goth. midjis, L. medius, Gr. me`sos, Skr. madhya. √271. Cf. Amid, Middle, Midst, Mean, Mediate, Meridian, Mizzen, Moiety.]

1. Denoting the middle part; as, in mid ocean.

No more the mounting larks, while Daphne sings,
Shall list’ning in mid air suspend their wings.

Pope.

2. Occupying a middle position; middle; as, the mid finger; the mid hour of night.

3. (Phon.) Made with a somewhat elevated position of some certain part of the tongue, in relation to the palate; midway between the high and the low; — said of certain vowel sounds; as, ā (āle), &ebreve; (&ebreve;ll), ō (ōld). See Guide to Pronunciation, §§ 10, 11.

&fist; Mid is much used as a prefix, or combining form, denoting the middle or middle part of a thing; as, mid-air, mid-channel, mid-age, midday, midland, etc. Also, specifically, in geometry, to denote a circle inscribed in a triangle (a midcircle), or relation to such a circle; as, mid-center, midradius.

Mid, n. Middle. [Obs.]

About the mid of night come to my tent.

Shak.

Mid, prep. See Amid.

Mi”da (?), n. [Gr. &?; a destructive insect in pulse.] (Zoöl.) The larva of the bean fly.

Mi”das (?), n. [So called from L. Midas, a man fabled to have had ass’s ears.] (Zoöl.) A genus of longeared South American monkeys, including numerous species of marmosets. See Marmoset.

Mi”das’s ear” (?). [See Midas.] (Zoöl.) A pulmonate mollusk (Auricula, or Ellobium, aurismidæ); — so called from resemblance to a human ear.

Mid”brain` (?), n. [Mid, a. + brain.] (Anat.) The middle segment of the brain; the mesencephalon. See Brain.

Mid”day` (?), n. [AS. middæg. See Mid, a., and Day.] The middle part of the day; noon.

Mid”day`, a. Of or pertaining to noon; meridional; as, the midday sun.

Mid”den (?), n. [Also midding.] [Cf. Dan. mögdynge, E. muck, and dung.]

1. A dunghill. [Prov. Eng.]

2. An accumulation of refuse about a dwelling place; especially, an accumulation of shells or of cinders, bones, and other refuse on the supposed site of the dwelling places of prehistoric tribes, — as on the shores of the Baltic Sea and in many other places. See Kitchen middens.

Mid”den crow” (?). (Zoöl.) The common European crow. [Prov. Eng.]

Mid”dest (?), a.; superl. of Mid. [See Midst.] Situated most nearly in the middle; middlemost; midmost. [Obs.] ” ‘Mongst the middest crowd.” Spenser.

Mid”dest, n. Midst; middle. [Obs.] Fuller.

Mid”ding (?), n. Same as Midden.

Mid”dle (-d’l), a. [OE. middel, AS. middel; akin to D. middel, OHG. muttil, G. mittel. √271. See Mid, a.]

1. Equally distant from the extreme either of a number of things or of one thing; mean; medial; as, the middle house in a row; a middle rank or station in life; flowers of middle summer; men of middle age.

2. Intermediate; intervening.

Will, seeking good, finds many middle ends.

Sir J. Davies.

&fist; Middle is sometimes used in the formation of self- explaining compounds; as, middlesized, middle witted.

Middle Ages, the period of time intervening between the decline of the Roman Empire and the revival of letters. Hallam regards it as beginning with the sixth and ending with the fifteenth century. — Middle class, in England, people who have an intermediate position between the aristocracy and the artisan class. It includes professional men, bankers, merchants, and small landed proprietors

The middle-class electorate of Great Britain.

M. Arnold.

— Middle distance. (Paint.) See Middle-ground. — Middle English. See English, n., 2. — Middle Kingdom, China. — Middle oil (Chem.), that part of the distillate obtained from coal tar which passes over between 170° and 230° Centigrade; — distinguished from the light, and the heavy or dead, oil. — Middle passage, in the slave trade, that part of the Atlantic Ocean between Africa and the West Indies. — Middle post. (Arch.) Same as King-post. — Middle States, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware; which, at the time of the formation of the Union, occupied a middle position between the Eastern States (or New England) and the Southern States. [U.S.] — Middle term (Logic), that term of a syllogism with which the two extremes are separately compared, and by means of which they are brought together in the conclusion. Brande. — Middle tint (Paint.), a subdued or neutral tint. Fairholt. — Middle voice. (Gram.) See under Voice. — Middle watch, the period from midnight to four A. M.; also, the men on watch during that time. Ham. Nav. Encyc. — Middle weight, a pugilist, boxer, or wrestler classed as of medium weight, i. e., over 140 and not over 160 lbs., in distinction from those classed as light weights, heavy weights, etc.

Mid”dle (?), n. [AS. middel. See Middle, a.] The point or part equally distant from the extremities or exterior limits, as of a line, a surface, or a solid; an intervening point or part in space, time, or order of series; the midst; central portion; specif., the waist. Chaucer. “The middle of the land.” Judg. ix. 37.

In this, as in most questions of state, there is a middle.

Burke.

Syn. — See Midst.

Mid”dle-age` (?), [Middle + age. Cf. Mediæval.] Of or pertaining to the Middle Ages; mediæval.

Mid”dle-aged` (?), a. Being about the middle of the ordinary age of man; between 30 and 50 years old.

Mid”dle-earth` (?), n. The world, considered as lying between heaven and hell. [Obs.] Shak.

Mid”dle-ground` (?), n. (Paint.) That part of a picture between the foreground and the background.

Mid”dle*man (?), n.; pl. Middlemen (&?;).

1. An agent between two parties; a broker; a go-between; any dealer between the producer and the consumer; in Ireland, one who takes land of the proprietors in large tracts, and then rents it out in small portions to the peasantry.

2. A person of intermediate rank; a commoner.

3. (Mil.) The man who occupies a central position in a file of soldiers.

Mid”dle*most` (?), a. [Cf. Midmost.] Being in the middle, or nearest the middle; midmost.

Mid”dler (?), n. One of a middle or intermediate class in some schools and seminaries.

Mid”dling (?), a. Of middle rank, state, size, or quality; about equally distant from the extremes; medium; moderate; mediocre; ordinary. “A town of but middling size.” Hallam.

Plainly furnished, as beseemed the middling circumstances of its inhabitants.

Hawthorne.

— Mid”dling*ly, adv. — Mid”dling*ness, n.

Mid”dlings (?), n. pl. 1. A combination of the coarser parts of ground wheat the finest bran, separated from the fine flour and coarse bran in bolting; — formerly regarded as valuable only for feed; but now, after separation of the bran, used for making the best quality of flour. Middlings contain a large proportion of gluten.

2. In the southern and western parts of the United States, the portion of the hog between the ham and the shoulder; bacon; — called also middles. Bartlett.

Mid”dy (?), n.; pl. Middies (&?;). A colloquial abbreviation of midshipman.

Mid”feath`er (?), n. 1. (Steam Boilers) A vertical water space in a fire box or combustion chamber.

2. (Mining) A support for the center of a tunnel.

Mid”gard` (?), n. [Icel. miðgarðr.] (Scand. Myth.) The middle space or region between heaven and hell; the abode of human beings; the earth.

Midge (?), n. [OE. migge, AS. mycge; akin to OS. muggia, D. mug, G. mücke, OHG. mucca, Icel. m&?;, Sw. mygga, mygg, Dan. myg; perh. named from its buzzing; cf. Gr. &?; to low, bellow.] (Zoöl.)

1. Any one of many small, delicate, long- legged flies of the Chironomus, and allied genera, which do not bite. Their larvæ are usually aquatic.

2. A very small fly, abundant in many parts of the United States and Canada, noted for the irritating quality of its bite.

&fist; The name is also applied to various other small flies. See Wheat midge, under Wheat.

Midg”et (?), n. [Dim. of midge.]

1. (Zoöl.) A minute bloodsucking fly. [Local, U. S.]

2. A very diminutive person.

Mid”gut` (?), n. [Mid, a. + gut.] (Anat.) The middle part of the alimentary canal from the stomach, or entrance of the bile duct, to, or including, the large intestine.

Mid”heav`en (?), n. 1. The midst or middle of heaven or the sky.

2. (Astron.) The meridian, or middle line of the heavens; the point of the ecliptic on the meridian.

Mid”land (?), a. 1. Being in the interior country; distant from the coast or seashore; as, midland towns or inhabitants. Howell.

2. Surrounded by the land; mediterranean.

And on the midland sea the French had awed.

Dryden.

Mid”land (?), n. The interior or central region of a country; — usually in the plural. Drayton.

Mid”main` (?), n. The middle part of the main or sea. [Poetic] Chapman.

Mid”most` (?), a. [OE. middemiste. Cf. Foremost.] Middle; middlemost.

Ere night’s midmost, stillest hour was past.

Byron.

Mid”night` (?), n. [AS. midniht.] The middle of the night; twelve o’clock at night.

The iron tongue of midnight hath told twelve.

Shak.

Mid”night`, a. Being in, or characteristic of, the middle of the night; as, midnight studies; midnight gloom. “Midnight shout and revelry.” Milton.

||Mid*rash” (?), n.; pl. Midrashim (#), Midrashoth (#). [Heb., explanation.] A talmudic exposition of the Hebrew law, or of some part of it.

Mid”rib` (?), n. (Bot.) A continuation of the petiole, extending from the base to the apex of the lamina of a leaf.

Mid”riff (m&ibreve;d”r&ibreve;f), n. [AS. midhrif; midd mid, middle + hrif bowels, womb; akin to OFries. midref midriff, rif, ref, belly, OHG. href body, and to L. corpus body. See Corpse.] (Anat.) See Diaphragm, n., 2.

Smote him into the midriff with a stone.

Milton.

{ Mid” sea”, or Mid”-sea” (?) }. The middle part of the sea or ocean. Milton.

The Mid-sea, the Mediterranean Sea. [Obs.]

Mid”ship`, a. Of or pertaining to, or being in, the middle of a ship.

Midship beam (Naut.), the beam or timber upon which the broadest part of a vessel is formed. — Midship bend, the broadest frame in a vessel. Weale.

Mid”ship`man (?), n.; pl. Midshipmen (&?;).

1. (a) Formerly, a kind of naval cadet, in a ship of war, whose business was to carry orders, messages, reports, etc., between the officers of the quarter-deck and those of the forecastle, and render other services as required. (b) In the English naval service, the second rank attained by a combatant officer after a term of service as naval cadet. Having served three and a half years in this rank, and passed an examination, he is eligible to promotion to the rank of lieutenant. (c) In the United States navy, the lowest grade of officers in line of promotion, being graduates of the Naval Academy awaiting promotion to the rank of ensign.

2. (Zoöl.) An American marine fish of the genus Porichthys, allied to the toadfish.

Cadet midshipman, formerly a title distinguishing a cadet line officer from a cadet engineer at the U. S. Naval Academy. See under Cadet. — Cadet midshipman, formerly, a naval cadet who had served his time, passed his examinations, and was awaiting promotion; — now called, in the United States, midshipman; in England, sublieutenant.

Mid”ships`, adv. [For amidships.] (Naut.) In the middle of a ship; — properly amidships.

Mid”ships`, n. pl. (Naut.) The timbers at the broadest part of the vessel. R. H. Dana, Jr.

Midst (?), n. [From middest, in the middest, for older in middes, where -s is adverbial (orig. forming a genitive), or still older a midde, a midden, on midden. See Mid, and cf. Amidst.]

1. The interior or central part or place; the middle; — used chiefly in the objective case after in; as, in the midst of the forest.

And when the devil had thrown him in the midst, he came out of him.

Luke iv. 35.

There is nothing . . . in the midst [of the play] which might not have been placed in the beginning.

Dryden.

2. Hence, figuratively, the condition of being surrounded or beset; the press; the burden; as, in the midst of official duties; in the midst of secular affairs.

&fist; The expressions in our midst, in their midst, etc., are avoided by some good writers, the forms in the midst of us, in the midst of them, etc., being preferred.

Syn. — Midst, Middle. Midst in present usage commonly denotes a part or place surrounded on enveloped by or among other parts or objects (see Amidst); while middle is used of the center of length, or surface, or of a solid, etc. We say in the midst of a thicket; in the middle of a line, or the middle of a room; in the midst of darkness; in the middle of the night.

Midst, prep. In the midst of; amidst. Shak.

Midst, adv. In the middle. [R.] Milton.

Mid”sum`mer (?), n. [AS. midsumor.] The middle of summer. Shak.

Midsummer daisy (Bot.), the oxeye daisy.

Mid”ward (?), a. Situated in the middle.

Mid”ward, adv. In or toward the midst.

Mid”way` (?), n. The middle of the way or distance; a middle way or course. Shak.

Paths indirect, or in the midway faint.

Milton.

Mid”way`, a. Being in the middle of the way or distance; as, the midway air. Shak.

Mid”way`, adv. In the middle of the way or distance; half way. “She met his glance midway.” Dryden.

Mid”week` (?), n. The middle of the week. Also used adjectively.

Mid”wife` (?), n.; pl. Midwives (#). [OE. midwif, fr. AS. mid with (akin to Gr. &?;) + &?; woman, wife. Properly, the woman or wife who is attendant upon a woman in childbirth. See Meta-, and Wife.] A woman who assists other women in childbirth; a female practitioner of the obstetric art.

Mid”wife`, v. t. To assist in childbirth.

Mid”wife`, v. i. To perform the office of midwife.

Mid”wife`ry (?; 277), n. 1. The art or practice of assisting women in childbirth; obstetrics.

2. Assistance at childbirth; help or coöperation in production.

Mid”win`ter (?), n. [AS. midwinter.] The middle of winter. Dryden.

Mid”wive` (m&ibreve;d”w&ima;cv`), v. t. To midwife. [Obs.]

Mien (mēn), n. [F. mine; perh. from sane source as mener to lead; cf. E. demean, menace, mine, n.] Aspect; air; manner; demeanor; carriage; bearing.

Vice is a monster of so frightful mien,
As, to be hated, needs but to be seen.

Pope.

Miff (?), n. [Cf. Prov. G. muff sullenness, sulkiness, muffen to be silky, muffïg sullen, pouting.] A petty falling out; a tiff; a quarrel; offense. Fielding.

Miff, v. t. To offend slightly. [Colloq.]

Might (mīt), imp. of May. [AS. meahte, mihte.]

Might, n. [AS. meaht, miht, from the root of magan to be able, E. may; akin to D. magt, OS. maht, G. macht, Icel. māttr, Goth. mahts. √103. See May, v.] Force or power of any kind, whether of body or mind; energy or intensity of purpose, feeling, or action; means or resources to effect an object; strength; force; power; ability; capacity.

What so strong,
But wanting rest, will also want of might?

Spenser.

Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.

Deut. vi. 5.

With might and main. See under 2d Main.

Might”ful (?), a. Mighty. [Obs.] Shak.

Might”i*ly (?), adv. [From Mighty.]

1. In a mighty manner; with might; with great earnestness; vigorously; powerfully.

Whereunto I also labor, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily.

Col. i. 29.

2. To a great degree; very much.

Practical jokes amused us mightily.

Hawthorne.

Might”i*ness, n. 1. The quality of being mighty; possession of might; power; greatness; high dignity.

How soon this mightiness meets misery.

Shak.

2. Highness; excellency; — with a possessive pronoun, a title of dignity; as, their high mightinesses.

Might”less, a. Without; weak. [Obs.]

Might”y (?), a. [Compar. Mightier (?); superl. Mightiest.] [AS. meahtig, mihtig; akin to G. mächtig, Goth. mahteigs. See Might, n.]

1. Possessing might; having great power or authority.

Wise in heart, and mighty in strength.

Job ix. 4.

2. Accomplished by might; hence, extraordinary; wonderful. “His mighty works.” Matt. xi. 20.

3. Denoting an extraordinary degree or quality in respect of size, character, importance, consequences, etc. “A mighty famine.” Luke xv. 14. “Giants of mighty bone.” Milton.

Mighty was their fuss about little matters.

Hawthorne.

Might”y, n.; pl. Mighties (#). A warrior of great force and courage. [R. & Obs.] 1 Chron. xi. 12.

Might”y, adv. In a great degree; very. [Colloq.] “He was mighty methodical.” Jeffrey.

We have a mighty pleasant garden.

Doddridge.

Mign”iard (?), a. [F. mignard, akin to mignon. See Minion.] Soft; dainty. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

Mign”iard*ise (?), n. [F. mignardise.] Delicate fondling. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

Mi”gnon (?), a. [F.] See 3d Minion.

Mi”gnon, v. t. To flatter. [R. & Obs.] Danie&?;.

Mi`gnon*ette” (?), n. [F. mignonnette, dim. of mignon darling. See 2d Minion.] (Bot.) A plant (Reseda odorata) having greenish flowers with orange-colored stamens, and exhaling a delicious fragrance. In Africa it is a low shrub, but further north it is usually an annual herb.

Mignonette pepper, coarse pepper.

Mi*graine” (?), n. [F.] Same as Megrim. — Mi*grain”ous, a.

Mi”grant (?), a. [L. migrans, p. pr. of migrare. See Migrate.] Migratory. Sir T. Browne. — n. A migratory bird or other animal.

Mi”grate (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Migrated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Migrating (?).] [L. migratus, p. p. of migrare to migrate, transfer.]

1. To remove from one country or region to another, with a view to residence; to change one’s place of residence; to remove; as, the Moors who migrated from Africa into Spain; to migrate to the West.

2. To pass periodically from one region or climate to another for feeding or breeding; — said of certain birds, fishes, and quadrupeds.

Mi*gra”tion (?), n. [L. migratio: cf. F. migration.] The act of migrating.

Mi”gra*to*ry (?), a. [Cf. F. migratoire.]

1. Removing regularly or occasionally from one region or climate to another; as, migratory birds.

2. Hence, roving; wandering; nomad; as, migratory habits; a migratory life.

Migratory locust (Zoöl.) See Locust. — Migratory thrush (Zoöl.), the American robin. See Robin.

Mi*ka”do (?), n. [Jap.] The popular designation of the hereditary sovereign of Japan.

Mik”maks (?), n. Same as Micmacs.

Mil”age (?; 48), n. Same as Mileage.

Mil`an*ese” (?), a. Of or pertaining to Milan in Italy, or to its inhabitants. — n. sing. & pl. A native or inhabitant of Milan; people of Milan.

Milch (?), a. [OE. milche; akin to G. melk, Icel. milkr, mjōlkr, and to E. milk. See Milk.]

1. Giving milk; — now applied only to beasts. “Milch camels.” Gen. xxxii. “Milch kine.” Shak.

2. Tender; pitiful; weeping. [Obs.] Shak.

Mild (?), a. [Compar. Milder (?); superl. Mildest.] [AS. milde; akin to OS. mildi, D. & G. mild, OHG. milti, Icel. mildr, Sw. & Dan. mild, Goth. milds; cf. Lith. melas dear, Gr. &?; gladdening gifts.] Gentle; pleasant; kind; soft; bland; clement; hence, moderate in degree or quality; — the opposite of harsh, severe, irritating, violent, disagreeable, etc.; — applied to persons and things; as, a mild disposition; a mild eye; a mild air; a mild medicine; a mild insanity.

The rosy morn resigns her light
And milder glory to the noon.

Waller.

Adore him as a mild and merciful Being.

Rogers.

Mild, or Low, steel, steel that has but little carbon in it and is not readily hardened.

Syn. — Soft; gentle; bland; calm; tranquil; soothing; pleasant; placid; meek; kind; tender; indulgent; clement; mollifying; lenitive; assuasive. See Gentle.

Mild”en (?), v. t. To make mild, or milder. Lowell.

Mil”dew (?), n. [AS. meledeáw; akin to OHG. militou, G. mehlthau, mehltau; prob. orig. meaning, honeydew; cf. Goth. milip honey. See Mellifluous, and Dew.] (Bot.) A growth of minute powdery or webby fungi, whitish or of different colors, found on various diseased or decaying substances.

Mil”dew, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mildewed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mildewing.] To taint with mildew.

He . . . mildews the white wheat.

Shak.

Mil”dew, v. i. To become tainted with mildew.

Mild”ly (?), adv. In a mild manner.

Mild”ness, n. The quality or state of being mild; as, mildness of temper; the mildness of the winter.

Mile (?), n. [AS. mīl, fr. L. millia, milia; pl. of mille a thousand, i. e., milia passuum a thousand paces. Cf. Mill the tenth of a cent, Million.] A certain measure of distance, being equivalent in England and the United States to 320 poles or rods, or 5,280 feet.

&fist; The distance called a mile varies greatly in different countries. Its length in yards is, in Norway, 12,182; in Brunswick, 11,816; in Sweden, 11,660; in Hungary, 9,139; in Switzerland, 8,548; in Austria, 8,297; in Prussia, 8,238; in Poland, 8,100; in Italy, 2,025; in England and the United States, 1,760; in Spain, 1,552; in the Netherlands, 1,094.

Geographical, or Nautical mile, one sixtieth of a degree of a great circle of the earth, or 6080.27 feet. — Mile run. Same as Train mile. See under Train. — Roman mile, a thousand paces, equal to 1,614 yards English measure. — Statute mile, a mile conforming to statute, that is, in England and the United States, a mile of 5,280 feet, as distinguished from any other mile.

Mile”age (?; 48), n. 1. An allowance for traveling expenses at a certain rate per mile.

2. Aggregate length or distance in miles; esp., the sum of lengths of tracks or wires of a railroad company, telegraph company, etc. [Written also milage.]

Constructive mileage, a mileage allowed for journeys supposed to be made, but not actually made. Bartlett.

Mile”post` (?), n. A post, or one of a series of posts, set up to indicate spaces of a mile each or the distance in miles from a given place.

Mi*le”sian (?), a. [L. Milesius, Gr. &?;.]

1. (Anc. Geog.) Of or pertaining to Miletus, a city of Asia Minor, or to its inhabitants.

2. (Irish Legendary Hist.) Descended from King Milesius of Spain, whose two sons are said to have conquered Ireland about 1300 b. c.; or pertaining to the descendants of King Milesius; hence, Irish.

Mi*le”sian, n. 1. A native or inhabitant of Miletus.

2. A native or inhabitant of Ireland.

Mile”stone` (?), n. A stone serving the same purpose as a milepost.

Mil”foil (?), n. [F. mille- feuille, L. millefolium; mille thousand + folium leaf. See Foil a leaf.] (Bot.) A common composite herb (Achillea Millefolium) with white flowers and finely dissected leaves; yarrow.

Water milfoil (Bot.), an aquatic herb with dissected leaves (Myriophyllum).

||Mil`i*a”ri*a (?), n. [NL. See Miliary.] (Med.) A fever accompanied by an eruption of small, isolated, red pimples, resembling a millet seed in form or size; miliary fever.

Mil”ia*ry (?; 277), a. [L. miliarius, fr. milium millet: cf. F. miliaire.]

1. Like millet seeds; as, a miliary eruption.

2. (Med.) Accompanied with an eruption like millet seeds; as, a miliary fever.

3. (Zoöl.) Small and numerous; as, the miliary tubercles of Echini.

Mil”ia*ry, n. (Zoöl.) One of the small tubercles of Echini.

||Mi`lice” (?), n. [F.] Militia. [Obs.]

||Mil”i*o`la (?), n. [NL., dim. of L. milium millet. So named from its resemblance to millet seed.] (Zoöl.) A genus of Foraminifera, having a porcelanous shell with several longitudinal chambers.

Mil”i*o*lite (?), n. (Paleon.) A fossil shell of, or similar to, the genus Miliola.

Mil”i*o*lite, a. The same Miliolitic.

Miliolite limestone (Geol.), a building stone, one of the group of the Paris basin, almost entirely made up of many-chambered microscopic shells.

Mil`i*o*lit”ic (?), a. Of or pertaining to the genus Miliola; containing miliolites.

Mil”i*tan*cy (?), n. [See Militant.]

1. The state of being militant; warfare.

2. A military spirit or system; militarism. H. Spencer.

Mil”i*tant (?), a. [L. militans, -antis, p. pr. of militare to be soldier: cf. F. militant. See Militate.] Engaged in warfare; fighting; combating; serving as a soldier. — Mil”i*tant*ly, adv.

At which command the powers militant . . .
Moved on in silence.

Milton.

Church militant, the Christian church on earth, which is supposed to be engaged in a constant warfare against its enemies, and is thus distinguished from the church triumphant, in heaven.

Mil”i*tar (?), a. Military. [Obs.] Bacon.

Mil”i*ta*ri*ly (?), adv. In a military manner.

Mil”i*ta*rism (?), n. [Cf. F. militarisme.]

1. A military state or condition; reliance on military force in administering government; a military system.

2. The spirit and traditions of military life. H. Spencer.

Mil”i*ta*rist (?), n. A military man. [Obs.] Shak.

Mil”i*ta*ry (?), a. [L. militaris, militarius, from miles, militis, soldier: cf. F. militaire.]

1. Of or pertaining to soldiers, to arms, or to war; belonging to, engaged in, or appropriate to, the affairs of war; as, a military parade; military discipline; military bravery; military conduct; military renown.

Nor do I, as an enemy to peace,
Troop in the throngs of military men.

Shak.

2. Performed or made by soldiers; as, a military election; a military expedition. Bacon.

Military law. See Martial law, under Martial. — Military order. (a) A command proceeding from a military superior. (b) An association of military persons under a bond of certain peculiar rules; especially, such an association of knights in the Middle Ages, or a body in modern times taking a similar form, membership of which confers some distinction. — Military tenure, tenure of land, on condition of performing military service.

Mil”i*ta*ry, n. [Cf. F. militaire.] The whole body of soldiers; soldiery; militia; troops; the army.

Mil”i*tate (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Militated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Militating (?).] [L. militare, militatum, to be a soldier, fr. miles, militis, soldier.] To make war; to fight; to contend; — usually followed by against and with.

These are great questions, where great names militate against each other.

Burke.

The invisible powers of heaven seemed to militate on the side of the pious emperor.

Gibbon.

Mi*li”tia (?), n. [L., military service, soldiery, fr. miles, militis, soldier: cf. F. milice.]

1. In the widest sense, the whole military force of a nation, including both those engaged in military service as a business, and those competent and available for such service; specifically, the body of citizens enrolled for military instruction and discipline, but not subject to be called into actual service except in emergencies.

The king’s captains and soldiers fight his battles, and yet . . . the power of the militia is he.

Jer. Taylor.

2. Military service; warfare. [Obs.] Baxter.

Mi*li”tia*man (?), n.; pl. Militiamen (&?;). One who belongs to the militia.

Mi*li”ti*ate (?), v. i. To carry on, or prepare for, war. [Obs.] Walpole.

Milk (m&ibreve;lk), n. [AS. meoluc, meoloc, meolc, milc; akin to OFries. meloc, D. melk, G. milch, OHG. miluh, Icel. mjōlk, Sw. mjölk, Dan. melk, Goth. miluks, G. melken to milk, OHG. melchan, Lith. milszti, L. mulgere, Gr. ‘ame`lgein. √107. Cf. Milch, Emulsion, Milt soft roe of fishes.]

1. (Physiol.) A white fluid secreted by the mammary glands of female mammals for the nourishment of their young, consisting of minute globules of fat suspended in a solution of casein, albumin, milk sugar, and inorganic salts. “White as morne milk.” Chaucer.

2. (Bot.) A kind of juice or sap, usually white in color, found in certain plants; latex. See Latex.

3. An emulsion made by bruising seeds; as, the milk of almonds, produced by pounding almonds with sugar and water.

4. (Zoöl.) The ripe, undischarged spat of an oyster.

Condensed milk. See under Condense, v. t. — Milk crust (Med.), vesicular eczema occurring on the face and scalp of nursing infants. See Eczema. — Milk fever. (a) (Med.) A fever which accompanies or precedes the first lactation. It is usually transitory. (b) (Vet. Surg.) A form puerperal peritonitis in cattle; also, a variety of meningitis occurring in cows after calving. — Milk glass, glass having a milky appearance. — Milk knot (Med.), a hard lump forming in the breast of a nursing woman, due to obstruction to the flow of milk and congestion of the mammary glands. — Milk leg (Med.), a swollen condition of the leg, usually in puerperal women, caused by an inflammation of veins, and characterized by a white appearance occasioned by an accumulation of serum and sometimes of pus in the cellular tissue. — Milk meats, food made from milk, as butter and cheese. [Obs.] Bailey. — Milk mirror. Same as Escutcheon, 2. — Milk molar (Anat.), one of the deciduous molar teeth which are shed and replaced by the premolars. — Milk of lime (Chem.), a watery emulsion of calcium hydrate, produced by macerating quicklime in water. — Milk parsley (Bot.), an umbelliferous plant (Peucedanum palustre) of Europe and Asia, having a milky juice. — Milk pea (Bot.), a genus (Galactia) of leguminous and, usually, twining plants. — Milk sickness (Med.), a peculiar malignant disease, occurring in some parts of the Western United States, and affecting certain kinds of farm stock (esp. cows), and persons who make use of the meat or dairy products of infected cattle. Its chief symptoms in man are uncontrollable vomiting, obstinate constipation, pain, and muscular tremors. Its origin in cattle has been variously ascribed to the presence of certain plants in their food, and to polluted drinking water. — Milk snake (Zoöl.), a harmless American snake (Ophibolus triangulus, or O. eximius). It is variously marked with white, gray, and red. Called also milk adder, chicken snake, house snake, etc. — Milk sugar. (Physiol. Chem.) See Lactose, and Sugar of milk (below). — Milk thistle (Bot.), an esculent European thistle (Silybum marianum), having the veins of its leaves of a milky whiteness. — Milk thrush. (Med.) See Thrush. — Milk tooth (Anat.), one of the temporary first set of teeth in young mammals; in man there are twenty. — Milk tree (Bot.), a tree yielding a milky juice, as the cow tree of South America (Brosimum Galactodendron), and the Euphorbia balsamifera of the Canaries, the milk of both of which is wholesome food. — Milk vessel (Bot.), a special cell in the inner bark of a plant, or a series of cells, in which the milky juice is contained. See Latex. — Rock milk. See Agaric mineral, under Agaric. — Sugar of milk. The sugar characteristic of milk; a hard white crystalline slightly sweet substance obtained by evaporation of the whey of milk. It is used in pellets and powder as a vehicle for homeopathic medicines, and as an article of diet. See Lactose.

Milk (m&ibreve;lk), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Milked (m&ibreve;lkt); p. pr. & vb. n. Milking.]

1. To draw or press milk from the breasts or udder of, by the hand or mouth; to withdraw the milk of. “Milking the kine.” Gay.

I have given suck, and know
How tender ‘t is to love the babe that milks me.

Shak.

2. To draw from the breasts or udder; to extract, as milk; as, to milk wholesome milk from healthy cows.

3. To draw anything from, as if by milking; to compel to yield profit or advantage; to plunder. Tyndale.

They [the lawyers] milk an unfortunate estate as regularly as a dairyman does his stock.

London Spectator.

To milk the street, to squeeze the smaller operators in stocks and extract a profit from them, by alternately raising and depressing prices within a short range; — said of the large dealers. [Cant] — To milk a telegram, to use for one’s own advantage the contents of a telegram belonging to another person. [Cant]

Milk, v. i. To draw or to yield milk.

Milk”en (?), a. Consisting of milk. [Obs.]

Milk”er (?), n. 1. One who milks; also, a mechanical apparatus for milking cows.

2. A cow or other animal that gives milk.

Milk”ful (?), a. Full of milk; abounding with food. [R.] “Milkful vales.” Sylvester.

Milk”i*ly (?), adv. In a milky manner.

Milk”i*ness, n. State or quality of being milky.

Milk”liv`ered (?), a. White livered; cowardly; timorous.

Milk”maid` (?), n. A woman who milks cows or is employed in the dairy.

Milk”man (?), n.; pl. Milkmen (&?;). A man who sells milk or delivers it to customers.

Milk”sop` (?), n. A piece of bread sopped in milk; figuratively, an effeminate or weak-minded person. Shak.

To wed a milksop or a coward ape.

Chaucer.

Milk” vetch` (?). (Bot.) A leguminous herb (Astragalus glycyphyllos) of Europe and Asia, supposed to increase the secretion of milk in goats.

&fist; The name is sometimes taken for the whole genus Astragalus, of which there are about two hundred species in North America, and even more elsewhere.

Milk”weed` (?), n. (Bot.) Any plant of the genera Asclepias and Acerates, abounding in a milky juice, and having its seed attached to a long silky down; silkweed. The name is also applied to several other plants with a milky juice, as to several kinds of spurge.

Milk”wort` (?), n. (Bot.) A genus of plants (Polygala) of many species. The common European P. vulgaris was supposed to have the power of producing a flow of milk in nurses.

&fist; The species of Campanula, or bellflower, are sometimes called milkwort, from their juice.

Milk”y (?), a. 1. Consisting of, or containing, milk.

Pails high foaming with a milky flood.

Pope.

2. Like, or somewhat like, milk; whitish and turbid; as, the water is milky. “Milky juice.” Arbuthnot.

3. Yielding milk. “Milky mothers.” Roscommon.

4. Mild; tame; spiritless.

Has friendship such a faint and milky heart?

Shak.

Milky Way. (Astron.) See Galaxy, 1.

Mill (m&ibreve;l), n. [L. mille a thousand. Cf. Mile.] A money of account of the United States, having the value of the tenth of a cent, or the thousandth of a dollar.

Mill, n. [OE. mille, melle, mulle, milne, AS. myln, mylen; akin to D. molen, G. mühle, OHG. mulī, mulīn, Icel. mylna; all prob. from L. molina, fr. mola millstone; prop., that which grinds, akin to molere to grind, Goth. malan, G. mahlen, and to E. meal. √108. See Meal flour, and cf. Moline.]

1. A machine for grinding or comminuting any substance, as grain, by rubbing and crushing it between two hard, rough, or indented surfaces; as, a gristmill, a coffee mill; a bone mill.

2. A machine used for expelling the juice, sap, etc., from vegetable tissues by pressure, or by pressure in combination with a grinding, or cutting process; as, a cider mill; a cane mill.

3. A machine for grinding and polishing; as, a lapidary mill.

4. A common name for various machines which produce a manufactured product, or change the form of a raw material by the continuous repetition of some simple action; as, a sawmill; a stamping mill, etc.

5. A building or collection of buildings with machinery by which the processes of manufacturing are carried on; as, a cotton mill; a powder mill; a rolling mill.

6. (Die Sinking) A hardened steel roller having a design in relief, used for imprinting a reversed copy of the design in a softer metal, as copper.

7. (Mining) (a) An excavation in rock, transverse to the workings, from which material for filling is obtained. (b) A passage underground through which ore is shot.

8. A milling cutter. See Illust. under Milling.

9. A pugilistic encounter. [Cant] R. D. Blackmore.

Edge mill, Flint mill, etc. See under Edge, Flint, etc. — Mill bar (Iron Works), a rough bar rolled or drawn directly from a bloom or puddle bar for conversion into merchant iron in the mill. — Mill cinder, slag from a puddling furnace. — Mill head, the head of water employed to turn the wheel of a mill. — Mill pick, a pick for dressing millstones. — Mill pond, a pond that supplies the water for a mill. — Mill race, the canal in which water is conveyed to a mill wheel, or the current of water which drives the wheel. — Mill tail, the water which flows from a mill wheel after turning it, or the channel in which the water flows. — Mill tooth, a grinder or molar tooth. – - Mill wheel, the water wheel that drives the machinery of a mill. — Roller mill, a mill in which flour or meal is made by crushing grain between rollers. — Stamp mill (Mining), a mill in which ore is crushed by stamps. — To go through the mill, to experience the suffering or discipline necessary to bring one to a certain degree of knowledge or skill, or to a certain mental state.

Mill (m&ibreve;l), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Milled (m&ibreve;ld); p. pr. & vb. n. Milling.] [See Mill, n., and cf. Muller.]

1. To reduce to fine particles, or to small pieces, in a mill; to grind; to comminute.

2. To shape, finish, or transform by passing through a machine; specifically, to shape or dress, as metal, by means of a rotary cutter.

3. To make a raised border around the edges of, or to cut fine grooves or indentations across the edges of, as of a coin, or a screw head; also, to stamp in a coining press; to coin.

4. To pass through a fulling mill; to full, as cloth.

5. To beat with the fists. [Cant] Thackeray.

6. To roll into bars, as steel.

To mill chocolate, to make it frothy, as by churning.

Mill, v. i. (Zoöl.) To swim under water; — said of air-breathing creatures.

Mill”board` (?), n. A kind of stout pasteboard.

Mill”-cake` (?), n. The incorporated materials for gunpowder, in the form of a dense mass or cake, ready to be subjected to the process of granulation.

Mill”dam` (?), n. A dam or mound to obstruct a water course, and raise the water to a height sufficient to turn a mill wheel.

Milled (?), a. Having been subjected to some process of milling.

Milled cloth, cloth that has been beaten in a fulling mill. — Milled lead, lead rolled into sheets.

Mil`le*fi*o”re glass` (?). [It. mille thousand + fiore flower.] Slender rods or tubes of colored glass fused together and embedded in clear glass; — used for paperweights and other small articles.

Mil`le*na”ri*an (?), a. [See Millenary.] Consisting of a thousand years; of or pertaining to the millennium, or to the Millenarians.

Mil`le*na”ri*an, n. One who believes that Christ will personally reign on earth a thousand years; a Chiliast.

{ Mil`le*na”ri*an*ism (?), Mil”le*na*rism (?), } n. The doctrine of Millenarians.

Mil”le*na*ry (?), a. [L. millenarius, fr. milleni a thousand each, fr. mille a thousand: cf. F. millénaire. See Mile.] Consisting of a thousand; millennial.

Mil”le*na*ry, n. The space of a thousand years; a millennium; also, a Millenarian.“During that millenary.” Hare.

Mil*len”ni*al (?), a. Of or pertaining to the millennium, or to a thousand years; as, a millennial period; millennial happiness.

Mil*len”ni*al*ist, n. One who believes that Christ will reign personally on earth a thousand years; a Chiliast; also, a believer in the universal prevalence of Christianity for a long period.

{ Mil*len”ni*an*ism (?), Mil*len”ni*a*rism (?), } n. Belief in, or expectation of, the millennium; millenarianism.

Mil”len*nist (m&ibreve;l”l&ebreve;n*n&ibreve;st), n. One who believes in the millennium. [Obs.] Johnson.

Mil*len”ni*um (m&ibreve;l*l&ebreve;n”n&ibreve;*ŭm), n. [LL., fr. L. mille a thousand + annus a year. See Mile, and Annual.] A thousand years; especially, the thousand years mentioned in the twentieth chapter of Revelation, during which holiness is to be triumphant throughout the world. Some believe that, during this period, Christ will reign on earth in person with his saints.

Mil”le*ped (m&ibreve;l”l&esl;*p&ebreve;d&ibreve;), n. [L. millepeda; mille a thousand + pes, pedis, foot: cf. F. mille-pieds.] (Zoöl.) A myriapod with many legs, esp. a chilognath, as the galleyworm. [Written also millipede and milliped.]

||Mil*le*po”ra (m&ibreve;l*l&esl;*pō“r&adot;), n. [NL.] (Zoöl.) A genus of Hydrocorallia, which includes the millipores.

Mil”le*pore (m&ibreve;l”l&esl;*pōr), n. [L. mille thousand + porus pore: cf. F. millépore.] (Zoöl.) Any coral of the genus Millepora, having the surface nearly smooth, and perforated with very minute unequal pores, or cells. The animals are hydroids, not Anthozoa. See Hydrocorallia.

Mil”le*po*rite (?), n. (Paleon.) A fossil millepore.

Mill”er (m&ibreve;l”&etilde;r), n. 1. One who keeps or attends a flour mill or gristmill.

2. A milling machine.

3. (Zoöl.) (a) A moth or lepidopterous insect; — so called because the wings appear as if covered with white dust or powder, like a miller’s clothes. Called also moth miller. (b) The eagle ray. (c) The hen harrier. [Prov. Eng.]

Miller’s thumb. (Zoöl.) (a) A small fresh-water fish of the genus Uranidea (formerly Cottus), as the European species (U. gobio), and the American (U. gracilis); — called also bullhead. (b) A small bird, as the gold-crest, chiff-chaff, and long-tailed tit. [Prov. Eng.]

Mil”ler*ite (?), n. A believer in the doctrine of William Miller (d. 1849), who taught that the end of the world and the second coming of Christ were at hand.

Mil”ler*ite, n. [From W. H. Miller, of Cambridge, Eng.] (Min.) A sulphide of nickel, commonly occurring in delicate capillary crystals, also in incrustations of a bronze yellow; — sometimes called hair pyrites.

Mil*les”i*mal (?), a. [L. millesimus, fr. mille a thousand.] Thousandth; consisting of thousandth parts; as, millesimal fractions.

Mil”let (?), n. [F., dim. of mil, L. milium; akin to Gr. &?;, AS. mil.] (Bot.) The name of several cereal and forage grasses which bear an abundance of small roundish grains. The common millets of Germany and Southern Europe are Panicum miliaceum, and Setaria Italica.

&fist; Arabian millet is Sorghum Halepense. — Egyptian or East Indian, millet is Penicillaria spicata. — Indian millet is Sorghum vulgare. (See under Indian.) — Italian millet is Setaria Italica, a coarse, rank-growing annual grass, valuable for fodder when cut young, and bearing nutritive seeds; — called also Hungarian grass. — Texas millet is Panicum Texanum. — Wild millet, or Millet grass, is Milium effusum, a tail grass growing in woods.

Mil”li- (?). [From L. mille a thousand.] (Metric System, Elec., Mech., etc.) A prefix denoting a thousandth part of; as, millimeter, milligram, milliampère.

Mil`li*am`père” (?), n. [Milli- + ampère.] (Elec.) The thousandth part of one ampère.

||Mil`liard” (?), n. [F., from mille, mil, thousand, L. mille.] A thousand millions; — called also billion. See Billion.

Mil”li*a*ry (?), a. [L. milliarius containing a thousand, fr. mille thousand: cf. F. milliaire milliary. See Mile.] Of or pertaining to a mile, or to distance by miles; denoting a mile or miles.

A milliary column, from which they used to compute the distance of all the cities and places of note.

Evelyn.

Mil”li*a*ry, n.; pl. Milliaries (#). [L. milliarium. See Milliary, a.] A milestone.

||Mil`lier” (?), n. [F., fr. mille thousand.] A weight of the metric system, being one million grams; a metric ton.

Mil”li*fold` (?), a. [L. mille thousand + E. fold times.] Thousandfold. [R.] Davies (Holy Roode).

{ Mil”li*gram, Mil”li*gramme } (?), n. [F. milligramme; milli- milli- + gramme. See 3d Gram.] A measure of weight, in the metric system, being the thousandth part of a gram, equal to the weight of a cubic millimeter of water, or .01543 of a grain avoirdupois.

{ Mil”li*li`ter, Mil”li*li`tre } (?), n. [F. millilitre; milli- milli- + litre. See Liter.] A measure of capacity in the metric system, containing the thousandth part of a liter. It is a cubic centimeter, and is equal to .061 of an English cubic inch, or to .0338 of an American fluid ounce.

{ Mil”li*me`ter, Mil”li*me`tre } (?), n. [F. millimètre; milli- milli- + mètre. See 3d Meter.] A lineal measure in the metric system, containing the thousandth part of a meter; equal to .03937 of an inch. See 3d Meter.

Mil”li*ner (?), n. [From Milaner an inhabitant of Milan, in Italy; hence, a man from Milan who imported women’s finery.]

1. Formerly, a man who imported and dealt in small articles of a miscellaneous kind, especially such as please the fancy of women. [Obs.]

No milliner can so fit his customers with gloves.

Shak.

2. A person, usually a woman, who makes, trims, or deals in hats, bonnets, headdresses, etc., for women.

Man milliner, a man who makes or deals in millinery; hence, contemptuously, a man who is busied with trifling occupations or embellishments.

Mil”li*ner*y (?), n. 1. The articles made or sold by milliners, as headdresses, hats or bonnets, laces, ribbons, and the like.

2. The business of work of a milliner.

Mil`li*net” (?), n. A stiff cotton fabric used by milliners for lining bonnets.

Mill”ing (?), n. The act or employment of grinding or passing through a mill; the process of fulling; the process of making a raised or intented edge upon coin, etc.; the process of dressing surfaces of various shapes with rotary cutters. See Mill.

High milling, milling in which grain is reduced to flour by a succession of crackings, or of slight and partial crushings, alternately with sifting and sorting the product. — Low milling, milling in which the reduction is effected in a single crushing or grinding. — Milling cutter, a fluted, sharp-edged rotary cutter for dressing surfaces, as of metal, of various shapes. — Milling machine, a machine tool for dressing surfaces by rotary cutters. — Milling tool, a roller with indented edge or surface, for producing like indentations in metal by rolling pressure, as in turning; a knurling tool; a milling cutter.

Mil”lion (m&ibreve;l”yŭn), n. [F., from LL. millio, fr. L. mille a thousand. See Mile.] 1. The number of ten hundred thousand, or a thousand thousand, — written 1,000,000. See the Note under Hundred.

2. A very great number; an indefinitely large number.

Millions of truths that a man is not concerned to know.

Locke.

3. The mass of common people; — with the article the.

For the play, I remember, pleased not the million.

Shak.

Mil`lion*aire” (?; 277), n. [F. millionnaire.] One whose wealth is counted by millions of francs, dollars, or pounds; a very rich person; a person worth a million or more. [Written also millionnaire.]

Mil`lion*air”ess, n. A woman who is a millionaire, or the wife of a millionaire. [Humorous] Holmes.

Mil”lion*a*ry (?), a. Of or pertaining to millions; consisting of millions; as, the millionary chronology of the pundits. Pinkerton.

Mil”lioned (?), a. Multiplied by millions; innumerable. [Obs.] Shak.

||Mil`lion`naire” (?), n. [F.] Millionaire.

Mil”lionth (?), a. Being the last one of a million of units or objects counted in regular order from the first of a series or succession; being one of a million.

Mil”lionth, n. The quotient of a unit divided by one million; one of a million equal parts.

Mil”li*ped (?), n. (Zoöl.) The same Milleped.

Mil”li*stere (?), n. [F. millistère, from milli- milli- + stère.] A liter, or cubic decimeter.

Mil`li*we”ber (?), n. [Milli- + weber.] (Physics) The thousandth part of one weber.

{ Mill”rea` (m&ibreve;l”rē`), Mill”ree`, Mill”reis` (-rēs`) }, n. See Milreis.

{ Mill”rind` (rīnd`), Mill”rynd` ( rīnd`) }, n. [Mill + rynd.] (Her.) A figure supposed to represent the iron which holds a millstone by being set into its center.

Mill”-sixpence (?), n. A milled sixpence; — the sixpence being one of the first English coins milled (1561).

Mill”stone` (?), n. One of two circular stones used for grinding grain or other substance.

No man shall take the nether or the upper millstone to pledge.

Deut. xxiv. 6.

&fist; The cellular siliceous rock called buhrstone is usually employed for millstones; also, some kinds of lava, as that Niedermendig, or other firm rock with rough texture. The surface of a millstone has usually a series of radial grooves in which the powdered material collects.

Millstone girt (Geol.), a hard and coarse, gritty sandstone, dividing the Carboniferous from the Subcarboniferous strata. See Farewell rock, under Farewell, a., and Chart of Geology. — To see into, or through, a millstone, to see into or through a difficult matter. (Colloq.)

Mill”work` (?), n. 1. The shafting, gearing, and other driving machinery of mills.

2. The business of setting up or of operating mill machinery.

Mill”wright` (?), n. A mechanic whose occupation is to build mills, or to set up their machinery.

Mil”reis` (?), n. [Pg. mil reis, i. e., one thousand reis; mil a thousand + reis, pl. of real a rei.] A Portuguese money of account rated in the treasury department of the United States at one dollar and eight cents; also, a Brazilian money of account rated at fifty-four cents and six mills.

Milt (?), n. [AS. milte; akin to D. milt, G. milz, OHG. milzi, Icel. milti, Dan. milt, Sw. mjälte, and prob. to E. malt, melt. √108. See Malt the grain.] (Anat.) The spleen.

Milt, n. [Akin to Dan. melk, Sw. mjölke, G. milch, and E. milk. See Milk.] (Zoöl.) (a) The spermatic fluid of fishes. (b) The testes, or spermaries, of fishes when filled with spermatozoa.

Milt, v. t. To impregnate (the roe of a fish) with milt.

Milt”er (?), n. [Cf. D. milter, G. milcher, milchner. See 2d Milt.] (Zoöl.) A male fish.

Mil*to”ni*an (?), a. Miltonic. Lowell.

Mil*ton”ic (?), a. Of, pertaining to, or resembling, Milton, or his writings; as, Miltonic prose.

Milt”waste` (?), [1st milt + waste.] (Bot.) A small European fern (Asplenium Ceterach) formerly used in medicine.

Mil”vine (?), a. [L. milvus kite.] (Zoöl.) Of or resembling birds of the kite kind.

Mil”vine, n. (Zoöl.) A bird related to the kite.

||Mil”vus (?), n. [L., a kite.] (Zoöl.) A genus of raptorial birds, including the European kite.

Mime (?), n. [L. mimus, Gr. &?;, akin to &?; to imitate, to mimic: cf. F. mime. Cf. Mimosa.]

1. A kind of drama in which real persons and events were generally represented in a ridiculous manner.

2. An actor in such representations.

Mime, v. i. To mimic. [Obs.] — Mim”er (#), n.

Mim”e*o*graph (?), n. [Gr. &?; to imitate + -graph.] An autographic stencil copying device invented by Edison.

||Mi*me”sis (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; imitation.] (Rhet. & Biol.) Imitation; mimicry.

Mim”e*tene (?), n. (Min.) See Mimetite.

{ Mi*met”ic (?; 277), Mi*met”ic*al (?), }[Gr. &?;, fr. &?; to imitate.]

1. Apt to imitate; given to mimicry; imitative.

2. (Biol.) Characterized by mimicry; – - applied to animals and plants; as, mimetic species; mimetic organisms. See Mimicry.

Mim”e*tism (?), n. [From Gr. &?; to mimic.] (Biol.) Same as Mimicry.

Mim”e*tite (?), n. [Gr. &?; an imitator. So called because it resembles pyromorphite.] (Min.) A mineral occurring in pale yellow or brownish hexagonal crystals. It is an arseniate of lead.

{ Mim”ic (?), Mim”ic*al (?), } a. [L. mimicus, Gr. &?;, fr. &?; mime: cf. F. mimique. See Mime.]

1. Imitative; mimetic.

Oft, in her absence, mimic fancy wakes
To imitate her.

Milton.

Man is, of all creatures, the most mimical.

W. Wotton.

2. Consisting of, or formed by, imitation; imitated; as, mimic gestures. “Mimic hootings.” Wordsworth.

3. (Min.) Imitative; characterized by resemblance to other forms; — applied to crystals which by twinning resemble simple forms of a higher grade of symmetry.

&fist; Mimic often implies something droll or ludicrous, and is less dignified than imitative.

Mimic beetle (Zoöl.), a beetle that feigns death when disturbed, esp. the species of Hister and allied genera.

Mim”ic, n. One who imitates or mimics, especially one who does so for sport; a copyist; a buffoon. Burke.

Mim”ic, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mimicked (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mimicking.]

1. To imitate or ape for sport; to ridicule by imitation.

The walk, the words, the gesture, could supply,
The habit mimic, and the mien belie.

Dryden.

2. (Biol.) To assume a resemblance to (some other organism of a totally different nature, or some surrounding object), as a means of protection or advantage.

Syn. — To ape; imitate; counterfeit; mock.

Mim”ic*al*ly (?), adv. In an imitative manner.

Mim”ick*er (?), n. 1. One who mimics; a mimic.

2. (Zoöl.) An animal which imitates something else, in form or habits.

Mim”ic*ry (?), n. 1. The act or practice of one who mimics; ludicrous imitation for sport or ridicule.

2. (Biol.) Protective resemblance; the resemblance which certain animals and plants exhibit to other animals and plants or to the natural objects among which they live, — a characteristic which serves as their chief means of protection against enemies; imitation; mimesis; mimetism.

Mi*mog”ra*pher (?), n. [L. mimographus, Gr. &?;; &?; a mime + &?; to write: cf. F. mimographe.] A writer of mimes. Sir T. Herbert.

||Mi*mo”sa (?; 277), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; imitator. Cf. Mime.] (Bot.) A genus of leguminous plants, containing many species, and including the sensitive plants (Mimosa sensitiva, and M. pudica).

&fist; The term mimosa is also applied in commerce to several kinds bark imported from Australia, and used in tanning; — called also wattle bark. Tomlinson.

Mi`mo*tan”nic (?), a. [Mimosa + tannic.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, a variety of tannin or tannic acid found in Acacia, Mimosa, etc.

||Mi”na (?), n.; pl. L. Minæ (#), E. Minas (#). [L., fr. Gr. &?;.] An ancient weight or denomination of money, of varying value. The Attic mina was valued at a hundred drachmas.

Mi”na (?), n. (Zoöl.) See Myna.

Min”a*ble (?), a. Such as can be mined; as, minable earth. Sir T. North.

Mi*na”cious (?), a. [L. minax, -acis. See Menace.] Threatening; menacing. [R.]

Mi*nac”i*ty (?), n. Disposition to threaten. [R.]

Min”a*ret (?), n. [Sp. minarete, Ar. manārat lamp, lantern, lighthouse, turret, fr. nār to shine.] (Arch.) A slender, lofty tower attached to a mosque and surrounded by one or more projecting balconies, from which the summon to prayer is cried by the muezzin.

Min*ar”gent (?), n. [Prob. contr. from aluminium + L. argentum silver.] An alloy consisting of copper, nickel, tungsten, and aluminium; — used by jewelers.

{ Min`a*to”ri*al*ly (?), Min”a*to*ri*ly (?) }, adv. In a minatory manner; with threats.

Min”a*to*ry (?), a. [L. minatorius, fr. minari to threaten. See Menace.] Threatening; menacing. Bacon.

Mi*naul” (?), n. (Zoöl.) Same as Manul.

Mince (m&ibreve;ns), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Minced (m&ibreve;nst); p. pr. & vb. n. Minging (m&ibreve;n”s&ibreve;ng).] [AS. minsian to grow less, dwindle, fr. min small; akin to G. minder less, Goth. minniza less, mins less, adv., L. minor, adj. (cf. Minor); or more likely fr. F. mincer to mince, prob. from (assumed) LL. minutiare. √101. See Minish.]

1. To cut into very small pieces; to chop fine; to hash; as, to mince meat. Bacon.

2. To suppress or weaken the force of; to extenuate; to palliate; to tell by degrees, instead of directly and frankly; to clip, as words or expressions; to utter half and keep back half of.

I know no ways to mince it in love, but directly to say — “I love you.”

Shak.

Siren, now mince the sin,
And mollify damnation with a phrase.

Dryden.

If, to mince his meaning, I had either omitted some part of what he said, or taken from the strength of his expression, I certainly had wronged him.

Dryden.

3. To affect; to make a parade of. [R.] Shak.

Mince, v. i. 1. To walk with short steps; to walk in a prim, affected manner.

The daughters of Zion are haughty, and walk with stretched forth necks and wanton eyes, . . . mincing as they go.

Is. iii. 16.

I ‘ll . . . turn two mincing steps
Into a manly stride.

Shak.

2. To act or talk with affected nicety; to affect delicacy in manner.

Mince, n. A short, precise step; an affected manner.

Mince”-meat` (?), n. Minced meat; meat chopped very fine; a mixture of boiled meat, suet, apples, etc., chopped very fine, to which spices and raisins are added; — used in making mince pie.

Mince” pie` (?). A pie made of mince-meat.

Min”cer (?), n. One who minces.

Min”cing (?), a. That minces; characterized by primness or affected nicety.

Min”cing*ly, adv. In a mincing manner; not fully; with affected nicety.

Mind (mīnd), n. [AS. mynd, gemynd; akin to OHG. minna memory, love, G. minne love, Dan. minde mind, memory, remembrance, consent, vote, Sw. minne memory, Icel. minni, Goth. gamunds, L. mens, mentis, mind, Gr. me`nos, Skr. manas mind, man to think. √104, 278. Cf. Comment, Man, Mean, v., 3d Mental, Mignonette, Minion, Mnemonic, Money.]

1. The intellectual or rational faculty in man; the understanding; the intellect; the power that conceives, judges, or reasons; also, the entire spiritual nature; the soul; — often in distinction from the body.

By the mind of man we understand that in him which thinks, remembers, reasons, wills.

Reid.

What we mean by mind is simply that which perceives, thinks, feels, wills, and desires.

Sir W. Hamilton.

Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind.

Rom. xiv. 5.

The mind shall banquet, though the body pine.

Shak.

2. The state, at any given time, of the faculties of thinking, willing, choosing, and the like; psychical activity or state; as: (a) Opinion; judgment; belief.

A fool uttereth all his mind.

Prov. xxix. 11.

Being so hard to me that brought your mind, I fear she’ll prove as hard to you in telling her mind.

Shak.

(b) Choice; inclination; liking; intent; will.

If it be your minds, then let none go forth.

2 Kings ix. 15.

(c) Courage; spirit. Chapman.

3. Memory; remembrance; recollection; as, to have or keep in mind, to call to mind, to put in mind, etc.

To have a mind or great mind, to be inclined or strongly inclined in purpose; — used with an infinitive. “Sir Roger de Coverly . . . told me that he had a great mind to see the new tragedy with me.” Addison. — To lose one’s mind, to become insane, or imbecile. — To make up one’s mind, to come to an opinion or decision; to determine. — To put in mind, to remind. “Regard us simply as putting you in mind of what you already know to be good policy.” Jowett (Thucyd. ).

Mind (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Minded; p. pr. & vb. n. Minding.] [AS. myndian, gemyndīan to remember. See Mind, n.]

1. To fix the mind or thoughts on; to regard with attention; to treat as of consequence; to consider; to heed; to mark; to note. “Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate.” Rom. xii. 16.

My lord, you nod: you do not mind the play.

Shak.

2. To occupy one’s self with; to employ one’s self about; to attend to; as, to mind one’s business.

Bidding him be a good child, and mind his book.

Addison.

3. To obey; as, to mind parents; the dog minds his master.

4. To have in mind; to purpose. Beaconsfield.

I mind to tell him plainly what I think.

Shak.

5. To put in mind; to remind. [Archaic] M. Arnold.

He minded them of the mutability of all earthly things.

Fuller.

I do thee wrong to mind thee of it.

Shak.

Never mind, do not regard it; it is of no consequence; no matter.

Syn. — To notice; mark; regard; obey. See Attend.

Mind, v. i. To give attention or heed; to obey; as, the dog minds well.

Mind”ed, a. Disposed; inclined; having a mind.

Joseph . . . was minded to put her away privily.

Matt. i. 19.

If men were minded to live virtuously.

Tillotson.

&fist; Minded is much used in composition; as, high- minded, feeble-minded, sober-minded, double- minded.

Mind”er (?), n. 1. One who minds, tends, or watches something, as a child, a machine, or cattle; as, a minder of a loom.

2. One to be attended; specif., a pauper child intrusted to the care of a private person. [Eng.] Dickens.

Mind”ful (?), a. Bearing in mind; regardful; attentive; heedful; observant.

What is man, that thou art mindful of him?

Ps. viii. 4.

I promise you to be mindful of your admonitions.

Hammond.

— Mind”ful*ly, adv. — Mind”ful*ness, n.

Mind”ing, n. Regard; mindfulness.

Mind”less, a. 1. Not indued with mind or intellectual powers; stupid; unthinking.

2. Unmindful; inattentive; heedless; careless.

Cursed Athens, mindless of thy worth.

Shak.

Mine (mēn), n. [F.] See Mien. [Obs.]

Mine (mīn), pron. & a. [OE. min, fr. AS. mīn; akin to D. mijn, OS., OFries., & OHG. mīn, G. mein, Sw. & Dan. min, Icel. minn, Goth. meins my, mine, meina of me, and E. me. √187. See Me, and cf. My.] Belonging to me; my. Used as a pronominal to me; my. Used as a pronominal adjective in the predicate; as, “Vengeance is mine; I will repay.” Rom. xii. 19. Also, in the old style, used attributively, instead of my, before a noun beginning with a vowel.

I kept myself from mine iniquity.

Ps. xviii. 23.

&fist; Mine is often used absolutely, the thing possessed being understood; as, his son is in the army, mine in the navy.

When a man deceives me once, says the Italian proverb, it is his fault; when twice, it is mine.

Bp. Horne.

This title honors me and mine.

Shak.

She shall have me and mine.

Shak.

Mine, v. i. [F. miner, L. minare to drive animals, in LL. also, to lead, conduct, dig a mine (cf. E. lode, and lead to conduct), akin to L. minari to threaten; cf. Sp. mina mine, conduit, subterraneous canal, a spring or source of water, It. mina. See Menace, and cf. Mien.]

1. To dig a mine or pit in the earth; to get ore, metals, coal, or precious stones, out of the earth; to dig in the earth for minerals; to dig a passage or cavity under anything in order to overthrow it by explosives or otherwise.

2. To form subterraneous tunnel or hole; to form a burrow or lodge in the earth; as, the mining cony.

Mine, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mined (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mining.]

1. To dig away, or otherwise remove, the substratum or foundation of; to lay a mine under; to sap; to undermine; hence, to ruin or destroy by slow degrees or secret means.

They mined the walls.

Hayward.

Too lazy to cut down these immense trees, the spoilers . . . had mined them, and placed a quantity of gunpowder in the cavity.

Sir W. Scott.

2. To dig into, for ore or metal.

Lead veins have been traced . . . but they have not been mined.

Ure.

3. To get, as metals, out of the earth by digging.

The principal ore mined there is the bituminous cinnabar.

Ure.

Mine, n. [F., fr. LL. mina. See Mine, v. i.]

1. A subterranean cavity or passage; especially: (a) A pit or excavation in the earth, from which metallic ores, precious stones, coal, or other mineral substances are taken by digging; — distinguished from the pits from which stones for architectural purposes are taken, and which are called quarries. (b) (Mil.) A cavity or tunnel made under a fortification or other work, for the purpose of blowing up the superstructure with some explosive agent.

2. Any place where ore, metals, or precious stones are got by digging or washing the soil; as, a placer mine.

3. Fig.: A rich source of wealth or other good. Shak.

Mine dial, a form of magnetic compass used by miners. — Mine pig, pig iron made wholly from ore; in distinction from cinder pig, which is made from ore mixed with forge or mill cinder. Raymond.

Min”er (?), n. [Cf. F. mineur.]

1. One who mines; a digger for metals, etc.; one engaged in the business of getting ore, coal, or precious stones, out of the earth; one who digs military mines; as, armies have sappers and miners.

2. (Zoöl.) (a) Any of numerous insects which, in the larval state, excavate galleries in the parenchyma of leaves. They are mostly minute moths and dipterous flies. (b) The chattering, or garrulous, honey eater of Australia (Myzantha garrula).

Miner’s elbow (Med.), a swelling on the black of the elbow due to inflammation of the bursa over the olecranon; — so called because of frequent occurrence in miners. — Miner’s inch, in hydraulic mining, the amount of water flowing under a given pressure in a given time through a hole one inch in diameter. It is a unit for measuring the quantity of water supplied.

Min”er*al (?), n. [F. minéral, LL. minerale, fr. minera mine. See Mine, v. i.]

1. An inorganic species or substance occurring in nature, having a definite chemical composition and usually a distinct crystalline form. Rocks, except certain glassy igneous forms, are either simple minerals or aggregates of minerals.

2. A mine. [Obs.] Shak.

3. Anything which is neither animal nor vegetable, as in the most general classification of things into three kingdoms (animal, vegetable, and mineral).

Min”er*al, a. 1. Of or pertaining to minerals; consisting of a mineral or of minerals; as, a mineral substance.

2. Impregnated with minerals; as, mineral waters.

Mineral acids (Chem.), inorganic acids, as sulphuric, nitric, phosphoric, hydrochloric, acids, etc., as distinguished from the organic acids. — Mineral blue, the name usually given to azurite, when reduced to an impalpable powder for coloring purposes. — Mineral candle, a candle made of paraffine. — Mineral caoutchouc, an elastic mineral pitch, a variety of bitumen, resembling caoutchouc in elasticity and softness. See Caoutchouc, and Elaterite. — Mineral chameleon (Chem.) See Chameleon mineral, under Chameleon. — Mineral charcoal. See under Charcoal. — Mineral cotton. See Mineral wool (below). — Mineral green, a green carbonate of copper; malachite. — Mineral kingdom (Nat. Sci.), that one of the three grand divisions of nature which embraces all inorganic objects, as distinguished from plants or animals. — Mineral oil. See Naphtha, and Petroleum. — Mineral paint, a pigment made chiefly of some natural mineral substance, as red or yellow iron ocher. — Mineral patch. See Bitumen, and Asphalt. — Mineral right, the right of taking minerals from land. — Mineral salt (Chem.), a salt of a mineral acid. — Mineral tallow, a familiar name for hatchettite, from its fatty or spermaceti- like appearance. — Mineral water. See under Water. — Mineral wax. See Ozocerite. — Mineral wool, a fibrous wool-like material, made by blowing a powerful jet of air or steam through melted slag. It is a poor conductor of heat.

Min”er*al*ist, n. [Cf. F. minéraliste.] One versed in minerals; mineralogist. [R.]

Min`er*al*i*za”tion (?), n. [Cf. F. minéralisation.]

1. The process of mineralizing, or forming a mineral by combination of a metal with another element; also, the process of converting into a mineral, as a bone or a plant.

2. The act of impregnating with a mineral, as water.

3. (Bot.) The conversion of a cell wall into a material of a stony nature.

Min”er*al*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mineralized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mineralizing (?).] [Cf. F. minéraliser.]

1. To transform into a mineral.

In these caverns the bones are not mineralized.

Buckland.

2. To impregnate with a mineral; as, mineralized water.

Min”er*al*ize, v. i. To go on an excursion for observing and collecting minerals; to mineralogize.

Min”er*al*i`zer (?), n. An element which is combined with a metal, thus forming an ore. Thus, in galena, or lead ore, sulphur is a mineralizer; in hematite, oxygen is a mineralizer.

Min`er*al*og”ic*al (?), a. [Cf. F. minéralogique. See Mineralogy.] Of or pertaining to mineralogy; as, a mineralogical table.

Min`er*al*og”ic*al*ly, adv. According to the principles of, or with reference to, mineralogy.

Min`er*al”o*gist (?), n. [Cf. F. minéralogiste.]

1. One versed in mineralogy; one devoted to the study of minerals.

2. (Zoöl.) A carrier shell (Phorus).

Min`er*al”o*gize (?), v. i. To study mineralogy by collecting and examining minerals. Miss Edgeworth.

Min`er*al”o*gy (?), n.; pl. Mineralogies (#). [Mineral + -logy: cf. F. minéralogie.]

1. The science which treats of minerals, and teaches how to describe, distinguish, and classify them.

2. A treatise or book on this science.

Mi*ner”va (?), n. [L.] (Rom. Myth.) The goddess of wisdom, of war, of the arts and sciences, of poetry, and of spinning and weaving; — identified with the Grecian Pallas Athene.

Mi*nette” (?), n. The smallest of regular sizes of portrait photographs.

Min”e*ver (?), n. Same as Miniver.

Minge (?), v. t. [AS. myngian; akin to E. mind.] To mingle; to mix. [Obs.]

Minge, n. [Prob. corrupt. fr. midge.] (Zoöl.) A small biting fly; a midge. [Local, U. S.]

Min”gle (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mingled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mingling (?).] [From OE. mengen, AS. mengan; akin to D. & G. mengen, Icel. menga, also to E. among, and possibly to mix. Cf. Among, Mongrel.]

1. To mix; intermix; to combine or join, as an individual or part, with other parts, but commonly so as to be distinguishable in the product; to confuse; to confound.

There was . . . fire mingled with the hail.

Ex. ix. 24.

2. To associate or unite in society or by ties of relationship; to cause or allow to intermarry; to intermarry.

The holy seed have mingled themselves with the people of those lands.

Ezra ix. 2.

3. To deprive of purity by mixture; to contaminate.

A mingled, imperfect virtue.

Rogers.

4. To put together; to join. [Obs.] Shak.

5. To make or prepare by mixing the ingredients of.

[He] proceeded to mingle another draught.

Hawthorne.

Min”gle, v. i. To become mixed or blended.

Min”gle, n. A mixture. [Obs.] Dryden.

Min”gle*a*ble (?), a. That can be mingled. Boyle.

Min”gled*ly (?), adv. Confusedly.

Min”gle-man`gle (?), v. t. [Reduplicated fr. mingle.] To mix in a disorderly way; to make a mess of. [Obs.] Udall.

Min”gle-man`gle, n. A hotchpotch. [Obs.] Latimer.

Min”gle*ment (?), n. The act of mingling, or the state of being mixed.

Min”gler (?), n. One who mingles.

Min”gling*ly (?), adv. In a mingling manner.

Min`*a”ceous (?), a. Of the color of minium or red lead; miniate.

Min”iard (?), a. Migniard. [Obs.]

Min”iard*ize (?), v. t. To render delicate or dainty. [Obs.] Howell.

Min”i*ate (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Miniated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Miniating (?).] [L. miniatus, p. p. of miniare. See Minium.] To paint or tinge with red lead or vermilion; also, to decorate with letters, or the like, painted red, as the page of a manuscript. T. Wharton.

Min”i*ate (?), a. Of or pertaining to the color of red lead or vermilion; painted with vermilion.

Min”i*a*ture (?; 277), n. [It. miniatura, fr. L. miniare. See Miniate, v.,Minium.]

1. Originally, a painting in colors such as those in mediæval manuscripts; in modern times, any very small painting, especially a portrait.

2. Greatly diminished size or form; reduced scale.

3. Lettering in red; rubric distinction. [Obs.]

4. A particular feature or trait. [Obs.] Massinger.

Min”i*a*ture, a. Being on a small scale; much reduced from the reality; as, a miniature copy.

Min”i*a*ture, v. t. To represent or depict in a small compass, or on a small scale.

Min”i*a*tur`ist (?), n. A painter of miniatures.

Min”i*bus (?), n. [L. minor less + -bus, as in omnibus.] A kind of light passenger vehicle, carrying four persons.

Min”ie ball` (?). [From the inventor, Captain Minié, of France.] A conical rifle bullet, with a cavity in its base plugged with a piece of iron, which, by the explosion of the charge, is driven farther in, expanding the sides to fit closely the grooves of the barrel.

Min”ie ri”fle (?). A rifle adapted to minie balls.

Min”i*fy (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Minified (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Minifying (?).] [L. minor less + -fly.]

1. To make small, or smaller; to diminish the apparent dimensions of; to lessen.

2. To degrade by speech or action.

Min”i*kin (?), n. [OD. minneken a darling, dim. of minne love; akin to G. minne, and to E. mind.]

1. A little darling; a favorite; a minion. [Obs.] Florio.

2. A little pin. [Obs.]

Min”i*kin, a. Small; diminutive. Shak.

Min”im (?), n. [F. minime, L. minimus the least, smallest, a superl. of minor: cf. It. minima a note in music. See Minor, and cf. Minimum.]

1. Anything very minute; as, the minims of existence; — applied to animalcula; and the like.

2. The smallest liquid measure, equal to about one drop; the sixtieth part of a fluid drachm.

3. (Zoöl.) A small fish; a minnow. [Prov. Eng.]

4. A little man or being; a dwarf. [Obs.] Milton.

5. (Eccl. Hist.) One of an austere order of mendicant hermits or friars founded in the 15th century by St. Francis of Paola.

6. (Mus.) A time note, formerly the shortest in use; a half note, equal to half a semibreve, or two quarter notes or crotchets.

7. A short poetical encomium. [Obs.] Spenser.

Min”im, a. Minute. “Minim forms.” J. R. Drake.

Min”i*ment (?), n. [Prob. corrupt. of moniment.] A trifle; a trinket; a token. [Obs.] Spenser.

Min`i*mi*za”tion (?), n. The act or process of minimizing. Bentham.

Min”i*mize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Minimized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Minimizing (?).] To reduce to the smallest part or proportion possible; to reduce to a minimum. Bentham.

Min”i*mum (?), n.; pl. Minima (#). [L., fr. minimus. See Minim.] The least quantity assignable, admissible, or possible, in a given case; hence, a thing of small consequence; — opposed to maximum.

Minimum thermometer, a thermometer for recording the lowest temperature since its last adjustment.

||Min”i*mus (?), n.; pl. Minimi (#). [L. See Minim.] 1. A being of the smallest size. [Obs.] Shak.

2. (Anat.) The little finger; the fifth digit, or that corresponding to it, in either the manus or pes.

Min”ing (?), n. [See Mine, v. i.] The act or business of making mines or of working them.

Min”ing, a. Of or pertaining to mines; as, mining engineer; mining machinery; a mining region.

Mining engineering. See the Note under Engineering.

Min”ion (?), n. Minimum. [Obs.] Burton.

Min”ion, n. [F. mignon, fr. OHG. minni love, G. minne; akin to E. mind. See Mind, and cf. Mignonette.]

1. A loved one; one highly esteemed and favored; — in a good sense. [Obs.]

God’s disciple and his dearest minion.

Sylvester.

Is this the Athenian minion whom the world
Voiced so regardfully?

Shak.

2. An obsequious or servile dependent or agent of another; a fawning favorite. Sir J. Davies.

Go, rate thy minions, proud, insulting boy!

Shak.

3. (Print.) A small kind of type, in size between brevier and nonpareil.

&fist; This line is printed in minion type.

4. An ancient form of ordnance, the caliber of which was about three inches. [Obs.] Beau. & Fl.

Min”ion, a. [See 2d Minion.] Fine; trim; dainty. [Obs.] “Their . . . minion dancing.” Fryth.

Min`ion*ette” (?), a. Small; delicate. [Obs.] “His minionette face.” Walpole.

Min”ion*ette, n. (Print.) A size of type between nonpareil and minion; — used in ornamental borders, etc.

Min”ion*ing (?), n. Kind treatment. [Obs.]

Min”ion*ize (?), v. t. To flavor. [Obs.]

{ Min”ion*like` (?), Min”ion*ly, } a. & adv. Like a minion; daintily. Camden.

Min”ion*ship, n. State of being a minion. [R.]

Min”ious (?), a. [L. minium red lead.] Of the color of red or vermilion. [Obs.] Sir T. Browne.

Min”ish (?), v. t. [OE. menusen, F. menuiser to make small, cut small, fr. (assumed) LL. minutiare, for minutare, fr. L. minutus small. See Minute, a., and cf. Diminish, Minge.] To diminish; to lessen.

The living of poor men thereby minished.

Latimer.

Min”ish*ment (?), n. The act of diminishing, or the state of being diminished; diminution. [Obs.]

Min”is*ter (?), n. [OE. ministre, F. ministre, fr. L. minister, orig. a double comparative from the root of minor less, and hence meaning, an inferior, a servant. See 1st Minor, and cf. Master, Minstrel.]

1. A servant; a subordinate; an officer or assistant of inferior rank; hence, an agent, an instrument.

Moses rose up, and his minister Joshua.

Ex. xxiv. 13.

I chose
Camillo for the minister, to poison
My friend Polixenes.

Shak.

2. An officer of justice. [Obs.]

I cry out the on the ministres, quod he,
That shoulde keep and rule this cité.

Chaucer.

3. One to whom the sovereign or executive head of a government intrusts the management of affairs of state, or some department of such affairs.

Ministers to kings, whose eyes, ears, and hands they are, must be answerable to God and man.

Bacon.

4. A representative of a government, sent to the court, or seat of government, of a foreign nation to transact diplomatic business.

&fist; Ambassadors are classed (in the diplomatic sense) in the first rank of public ministers, ministers plenipotentiary in the second. “The United States diplomatic service employs two classes of ministers, — ministers plenipotentiary and ministers resident.” Abbott.

5. One who serves at the altar; one who performs sacerdotal duties; the pastor of a church duly authorized or licensed to preach the gospel and administer the sacraments. Addison.

Syn. — Delegate; official; ambassador; clergyman; parson; priest.

Min”is*ter, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Ministered (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Ministering.] [OE. ministren, OF. ministrer, fr. L. ministrare. See Minister, n.] To furnish or apply; to afford; to supply; to administer.

He that ministereth seed to the sower.

2 Cor. ix. 10.

We minister to God reason to suspect us.

Jer. Taylor.

Min”is*ter, v. i. 1. To act as a servant, attendant, or agent; to attend and serve; to perform service in any office, sacred or secular.

The Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister.

Matt. xx. 28.

2. To supply or to things needful; esp., to supply consolation or remedies. Matt. xxv. 44.

Canst thou not minister to a mind diseased?

Shak.

Min`is*te”ri*al (?), a. [L. ministerialis: cf. F. ministériel. See Minister, and cf. Minstrel.]

1. Of or pertaining to ministry or service; serving; attendant.

Enlightening spirits and ministerial flames.

Prior.

2. Of or pertaining to the office of a minister or to the ministry as a body, whether civil or sacerdotal. “Ministerial offices.” Bacon. “A ministerial measure.” Junius. “Ministerial garments.” Hooker.

3. Tending to advance or promote; contributive. “Ministerial to intellectual culture.” De Quincey.

The ministerial benches, the benches in the House of Commons occupied by members of the cabinet and their supporters; — also, the persons occupying them. “Very solid and very brilliant talents distinguish the ministerial benches.” Burke.

Syn. — Official; priestly; sacerdotal; ecclesiastical.

Min`is*te”ri*al*ist, n. A supporter of the ministers, or the party in power.

Min`is*te”ri*al*ly, adv. In a ministerial manner; in the character or capacity of a minister.

Min”is*ter*y (?), n. See Ministry. Milton.

Min”is*tra*cy (?), n. Ministration. [Obs.]

Min”is*tral (?), a. Ministerial. [Obs.] Johnson.

Min”is*trant (m&ibreve;n”&ibreve;s*trant), a. [L. ministrans, -antis, of ministrare to minister.] Performing service as a minister; attendant on service; acting under command; subordinate. “Princedoms and dominations ministrant.” Milton. — n. One who ministers.

Min`is*tra”tion (?), n. [L. ministratio, fr. ministrare.] The act of ministering; service; ministry. “The days of his ministration.” Luke i. 23.

Min”is*tra*tive (?), a. Serving to aid; ministering.

Min”is*tress (?), n. [Cf. L. ministrix.] A woman who ministers. Akenside.

Min”is*try (?), n.; pl. Ministries (#). [L. ministerium. See Minister, n., and cf. Mystery a trade.]

1. The act of ministering; ministration; service. “With tender ministry.” Thomson.

2. Hence: Agency; instrumentality.

The ordinary ministry of second causes.

Atterbury.

The wicked ministry of arms.

Dryden.

3. The office, duties, or functions of a minister, servant, or agent; ecclesiastical, executive, or ambassadorial function or profession.

4. The body of ministers of state; also, the clergy, as a body.

5. Administration; rule; term in power; as, the ministry of Pitt.

Min”is*try*ship, n. The office of a minister. Swift.

Min”i*um (?; 277), n. [L. minium, an Iberian word, the Romans getting all their cinnabar from Spain; cf. Basque armineá.] (Chem.) A heavy, brilliant red pigment, consisting of an oxide of lead, Pb_3O_4, obtained by exposing lead or massicot to a gentle and continued heat in the air. It is used as a cement, as a paint, and in the manufacture of flint glass. Called also red lead.

Min”i*ver (?), n. [See Meniver.] A fur esteemed in the Middle Ages as a part of costume. It is uncertain whether it was the fur of one animal only or of different animals.

Min”i*vet (?), n. (Zoöl.) A singing bird of India of the family Campephagidæ.

Mink (?), n. [Cf. 2d Minx.] (Zoöl.) A carnivorous mammal of the genus Putorius, allied to the weasel. The European mink is Putorius lutreola. The common American mink (P. vison) varies from yellowish brown to black. Its fur is highly valued. Called also minx, nurik, and vison.

Min”ne*sing`er (?), n. [G., fr. minne love + singen to sing.] A love-singer; specifically, one of a class of German poets and musicians who flourished from about the middle of the twelfth to the middle of the fourteenth century. They were chiefly of noble birth, and made love and beauty the subjects of their verses.

Min”now, n. [OE. menow, cf. AS. myne; also OE. menuse, OF. menuise small fish; akin to E. minish, minute.] [Written also minow.]

1. (Zoöl.) A small European fresh-water cyprinoid fish (Phoxinus lævis, formerly Leuciscus phoxinus); sometimes applied also to the young of larger kinds; — called also minim and minny. The name is also applied to several allied American species, of the genera Phoxinus, Notropis, or Minnilus, and Rhinichthys.

2. (Zoöl.) Any of numerous small American cyprinodont fishes of the genus Fundulus, and related genera. They live both in fresh and in salt water. Called also killifish, minny, and mummichog.

Min”ny (?), n. (Zoöl.) A minnow.

Mi”no bird” (mī“n&osl; b&etilde;rd). [Hind. mainā.] (Zoöl.) An Asiatic bird (Gracula musica), allied to the starlings. It is black, with a white spot on the wings, and a pair of flat yellow wattles on the head. It is often tamed and taught to pronounce words.

Mi”nor (mī“n&etilde;r), a. [L., a comparative with no positive; akin to AS. min small, G. minder less, OHG. minniro, a., min, adv., Icel. minni, a., minnr, adv., Goth. minniza, a., mins, adv., Ir. & Gael. min small, tender, L. minuere to lessen, Gr. miny`qein, Skr. mi to damage. Cf. Minish, Minister, Minus, Minute.]

1. Inferior in bulk, degree, importance, etc.; less; smaller; of little account; as, minor divisions of a body.

2. (Mus.) Less by a semitone in interval or difference of pitch; as, a minor third.

Asia Minor (Geog.), the Lesser Asia; that part of Asia which lies between the Euxine, or Black Sea, on the north, and the Mediterranean on the south. — Minor mode (Mus.), that mode, or scale, in which the third and sixth are minor, — much used for mournful and solemn subjects. — Minor orders (Eccl.), the rank of persons employed in ecclesiastical offices who are not in holy orders, as doorkeepers, acolytes, etc. — Minor scale (Mus.) The form of the minor scale is various. The strictly correct form has the third and sixth minor, with a semitone between the seventh and eighth, which involves an augmented second interval, or three semitones, between the sixth and seventh, as, 6/F, 7/G♯, 8/A. But, for melodic purposes, both the sixth and the seventh are sometimes made major in the ascending, and minor in the descending, scale, thus: —

See Major. — Minor term of a syllogism (Logic), the subject of the conclusion.

Mi”nor (?), n. 1. A person of either sex who has not attained the age at which full civil rights are accorded; an infant; in England and the United States, one under twenty-one years of age.

&fist; In hereditary monarchies, the minority of a sovereign ends at an earlier age than of a subject. The minority of a sovereign of Great Britain ends upon the completion of the eighteenth year of his age.

2. (Logic) The minor term, that is, the subject of the conclusion; also, the minor premise, that is, that premise which contains the minor term; in hypothetical syllogisms, the categorical premise. It is the second proposition of a regular syllogism, as in the following: Every act of injustice partakes of meanness; to take money from another by gaming is an act of injustice; therefore, the taking of money from another by gaming partakes of meanness.

3. A Minorite; a Franciscan friar.

Mi”nor*ate (?), v. t. [L. minoratus; p. p. of minorare to diminish, fr. minor, a. See 1st Minor.] To diminish. [R.] Sir T. Browne.

Mi`nor*a”tion (?), n. [L. minoratio: cf. F. minoration.] A diminution. [R.] Sir T. Browne.

Mi”nor*ess (?), n. See Franciscan Nuns, under Franciscan, a.

Mi”nor*ite (?), n. [L. minor less. Cf. 2d Minor, 3.] A Franciscan friar.

Mi*nor”i*ty (?), n.; pl. Minorities (#). [Cf. F. minorité. See Minor, a. & n.]

1. The state of being a minor, or under age.

2. State of being less or small. [Obs.] Sir T. Browne.

3. The smaller number; — opposed to majority; as, the minority must be ruled by the majority.

Mi”nos (?), n. [Gr. &?;.] (Class. Myth.) A king and lawgiver of Crete, fabled to be the son of Jupiter and Europa. After death he was made a judge in the Lower Regions.

Min”o*taur (m&ibreve;n”&ocl;*t&add;r), n. [L. Minotaurus, Gr. Minw`tayros; Mi`nos, the husband of Pasiphaë + tay^ros a bull, the Minotaur being the offspring of Pasiphaë and a bull: cf. F. minotaure.] (Class. Myth.) A fabled monster, half man and half bull, confined in the labyrinth constructed by Dædalus in Crete.

Min”ow (?), n. See Minnow.

Min”ster (?), n. [AS. mynster, fr. L. monasterium. See Monastery.] (Arch.) A church of a monastery. The name is often retained and applied to the church after the monastery has ceased to exist (as Beverly Minster, Southwell Minster, etc.), and is also improperly used for any large church.

Minster house, the official house in which the canons of a cathedral live in common or in rotation. Shipley.

Min”strel (?), n. [OE. minstrel, menestral, OF. menestrel, fr. LL. ministerialis servant, workman (cf. ministrellus harpist), fr. L. ministerium service. See Ministry, and cf. Ministerial.] In the Middle Ages, one of an order of men who subsisted by the arts of poetry and music, and sang verses to the accompaniment of a harp or other instrument; in modern times, a poet; a bard; a singer and harper; a musician. Chaucer.

Min”strel*sy (?), n. 1. The arts and occupation of minstrels; the singing and playing of a minstrel.

2. Musical instruments. [Obs.] Chaucer.

3. A collective body of minstrels, or musicians; also, a collective body of minstrels’ songs. Chaucer. “The minstrelsy of heaven.” Milton.

Mint (m&ibreve;nt), n. [AS. minte, fr. L. mentha, Gr. mi`nqa, mi`nqh.] (Bot.) The name of several aromatic labiate plants, mostly of the genus Mentha, yielding odoriferous essential oils by distillation. See Mentha.

&fist; Corn mint is Mentha arvensis. — Horsemint is M. sylvestris, and in the United States Monarda punctata, which differs from the true mints in several respects. — Mountain mint is any species of the related genus Pycnanthemum, common in North America. — Peppermint is M. piperita. — Spearmint is M. viridis. — Water mint is M. aquatica.

Mint camphor. (Chem.) See Menthol. — Mint julep. See Julep. — Mint sauce, a sauce flavored with spearmint, for meats.

Mint, n. [AS. mynet money, coin, fr. L. moneta the mint, coined money, fr. Moneta, a surname of Juno, in whose at Rome money was coined; akin to monere to warn, admonish, AS. manian, and to E. mind. See Mind, and cf. Money, Monition.] 1. A place where money is coined by public authority.

2. Hence: Any place regarded as a source of unlimited supply; the supply itself.

A mint of phrases in his brain.

Shak.

Mint, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Minted; p. pr. & vb. n. Minting.] [AS. mynetian.]

1. To make by stamping, as money; to coin; to make and stamp into money.

2. To invent; to forge; to fabricate; to fashion.

Titles . . . of such natures as may be easily minted.

Bacon.

Minting mill, a coining press.

Mint”age (?), n. 1. The coin, or other production, made in a mint.

Stamped in clay, a heavenly mintage.

Sterling.

2. The duty paid to the mint for coining.

Mint”er (?), n. One who mints.

Mint”man (?), n.; pl. Mintmen (&?;). One skilled in coining, or in coins; a coiner.

Mint”-mas`ter (?), n. The master or superintendent of a mint. Also used figuratively.

Min”u*end (?), n. [L. minuendus to be diminished, fr. minuere to lessen, diminish. See Minish.] (Arith.) The number from which another number is to be subtracted.

Min”u*et (?), n. [F., fr. menu small, L. minutus small. So called on account of the short steps of the dance. See 4th Minute.]

1. A slow graceful dance consisting of a coupee, a high step, and a balance.

2. (Mus.) A tune or air to regulate the movements of the dance so called; a movement in suites, sonatas, symphonies, etc., having the dance form, and commonly in 3-4, sometimes 3-8, measure.

Min”um (?), n. [See 2d Minion, Minum, 6.] [Obs.]

1. A small kind of printing type; minion.

2. (Mus.) A minim.

Mi”nus (mī“nŭs), a. [L. See Minor, and cf. Mis- pref. from the French.] (Math.) Less; requiring to be subtracted; negative; as, a minus quantity.

Minus sign (Math.), the sign [-] denoting minus, or less, prefixed to negative quantities, or quantities to be subtracted. See Negative sign, under Negative.

Mi*nus”cule (?), n. [L. minusculus rather small, fr. minus less: cf. F. minuscule.]

1. Any very small, minute object.

2. A small Roman letter which is neither capital nor uncial; a manuscript written in such letters. — a. Of the size and style of minuscules; written in minuscules.

These minuscule letters are cursive forms of the earlier uncials.

I. Taylor (The Alphabet).

Min”u*ta*ry (?), a. Pertaining to, or consisting of, minutes. [Obs.] Fuller.

Min”ute (?; 277), n. [LL. minuta a small portion, small coin, fr. L. minutus small: cf. F. minute. See 4th Minute.]

1. The sixtieth part of an hour; sixty seconds. (Abbrev. m.; as, 4 h. 30 m.)

Four minutes, that is to say, minutes of an hour.

Chaucer.

2. The sixtieth part of a degree; sixty seconds (Marked thus (′); as, 10° 20′).

3. A nautical or a geographic mile.

4. A coin; a half farthing. [Obs.] Wyclif (Mark xii. 42)

5. A very small part of anything, or anything very small; a jot; a tittle. [Obs.]

Minutes and circumstances of his passion.

Jer. Taylor.

6. A point of time; a moment.

I go this minute to attend the king.

Dryden.

7. The memorandum; a record; a note to preserve the memory of anything; as, to take minutes of a contract; to take minutes of a conversation or debate.

8. (Arch.) A fixed part of a module. See Module.

&fist; Different writers take as the minute one twelfth, one eighteenth, one thirtieth, or one sixtieth part of the module.

Min”ute, a. Of or pertaining to a minute or minutes; occurring at or marking successive minutes.

Minute bell, a bell tolled at intervals of a minute, as to give notice of a death or a funeral. — Minute book, a book in which written minutes are entered. — Minute glass, a glass measuring a minute or minutes by the running of sand. — Minute gun, a discharge of a cannon repeated every minute as a sign of distress or mourning. — Minute hand, the long hand of a watch or clock, which makes the circuit of the dial in an hour, and marks the minutes.

Min”ute, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Minuted; p. pr. & vb. n. Minuting.] To set down a short sketch or note of; to jot down; to make a minute or a brief summary of.

The Empress of Russia, with her own hand, minuted an edict for universal tolerance.

Bancroft.

Mi*nute” (?), a. [L. minutus, p. p. of minuere to lessen. See Minish, Minor, and cf. Menu, Minuet.]

1. Very small; little; tiny; fine; slight; slender; inconsiderable. “Minute drops.” Milton.

2. Attentive to small things; paying attention to details; critical; particular; precise; as, a minute observer; minute observation.

Syn. — Little; diminutive; fine; critical; exact; circumstantial; particular; detailed. — Minute, Circumstantial, Particular. A circumstantial account embraces all the leading events; a particular account includes each event and movement, though of but little importance; a minute account goes further still, and omits nothing as to person, time, place, adjuncts, etc.

Mi*nute”-jack` (?), n. 1. A figure which strikes the hour on the bell of some fanciful clocks; — called also jack of the clock house.

2. A timeserver; an inconstant person. Shak.

Mi*nute”ly (?), adv. [From 4th Minute.] In a minute manner; with minuteness; exactly; nicely.

Min”ute*ly (?), a. [From 1st Minute.] Happening every minute; continuing; unceasing. [Obs.]

Throwing themselves absolutely upon God’s minutely providence.

Hammond.

Min”ute*ly, adv. At intervals of a minute; very often and regularly. J. Philips.

Minutely proclaimed in thunder from heaven.

Hammond.

Min”ute*man (?), n.; pl. Minutemen (&?;). A militiaman who was to be ready to march at a moment’s notice; — a term used in the American Revolution.

Mi*nute”ness (?), n. The quality of being minute.

||Mi*nu”ti*a, n.; pl. Minutiæ (-ē). [L., fr. minutus small, minute. See 4th Minute.] A minute particular; a small or minor detail; — used chiefly in the plural.

Minx (?), n. [Prob. of Low German origin; cf. LG. minsk wench, jade, hussy, D. mensch; prop. the same word as D. & G. mensch man, human being, OHG. mennisco, AS. mennisc, fr. man. See Man.]

1. A pert or a wanton girl. Shak.

2. A she puppy; a pet dog. [Obs.] Udall.

Minx, n. [See Mink.] (Zoöl.) The mink; — called also minx otter. [Obs.]

Min”y (mīn”&ybreve;), a. Abounding with mines; like a mine. “Miny caverns.” Thomson.

Mi”o*cene (mī”&osl;*sēn), a. [Gr. mei`wn less + kaino`s new, fresh, recent.] (Geol.) Of or pertaining to the middle division of the Tertiary. — n. The Miocene period. See Chart of Geology.

||Mi`o*hip”pus (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. mei`wn less + “ippo`s horse.] (Paleon.) An extinct Miocene mammal of the Horse family, closely related to the genus Anhithecrium, and having three usable hoofs on each foot.

Miq”ue*let (?), n. [Sp. miquelete.] (Mil.) An irregular or partisan soldier; a bandit.

Mir (?), n. A Russian village community. D. M. Wallace.

Mir, n. [Per. mīr.] Same as Emir.

||Mi”ra (?), n. [NL., from L. mirus wonderful.] (Astron.) A remarkable variable star in the constellation Cetus (ο Ceti).

Mi*rab”i*la*ry (?), n.; pl. Mirabilaries (&?;). One who, or a work which, narrates wonderful things; one who writes of wonders. [Obs.] Bacon.

||Mi*rab”i*lis (?), n. [L., wonderful.] (Bot.) A genus of plants. See Four- o’clock.

Mi*rab”i*lite (?), n. (Min.) Native sodium sulphate; Glauber’s salt.

Mi”ra*ble (?), a. [L. mirabilis, fr. mirari to wonder: cf. OF. mirable. See Marvel.] Wonderful; admirable. [Obs.] Shak.

Mir”a*cle (?), n. [F., fr. L. miraculum, fr. mirari to wonder. See Marvel, and cf. Mirror.]

1. A wonder or wonderful thing.

That miracle and queen of genus.

Shak.

2. Specifically: An event or effect contrary to the established constitution and course of things, or a deviation from the known laws of nature; a supernatural event, or one transcending the ordinary laws by which the universe is governed.

They considered not the miracle of the loaves.

Mark vi. 52.

3. A miracle play.

4. A story or legend abounding in miracles. [Obs.]

When said was all this miracle.

Chaucer.

Miracle monger, an impostor who pretends to work miracles. — Miracle play, one of the old dramatic entertainments founded on legends of saints and martyrs or (see 2d Mystery, 2) on events related in the Bible.

Mir”a*cle, v. t. To make wonderful. [Obs.] Shak.

Mi*rac”u*lize (?), v. t. To cause to seem to be a miracle. [R.] Shaftesbury.

Mi*rac”u*lous (?), a. [F. miraculeux. See Miracle.]

1. Of the nature of a miracle; performed by supernatural power; effected by the direct agency of almighty power, and not by natural causes.

2. Supernatural; wonderful.

3. Wonder-working. “The miraculous harp.” Shak.

— Mi*rac”u*lous*ly, adv. — Mi*rac”u*lous*ness, n.

Mir`a*dor” (?), n. [Sp., fr. mirar to behold, view. See Mirror.] (Arch.) Same as Belvedere.

Mi`rage” (?), n. [F., fr. mirer to look at carefully, to aim, se mirer to look at one’s self in a glass, to reflect, to be reflected, LL. mirare to look at. See Mirror.] An optical effect, sometimes seen on the ocean, but more frequently in deserts, due to total reflection of light at the surface common to two strata of air differently heated. The reflected image is seen, commonly in an inverted position, while the real object may or may not be in sight. When the surface is horizontal, and below the eye, the appearance is that of a sheet of water in which the object is seen reflected; when the reflecting surface is above the eye, the image is seen projected against the sky. The fata Morgana and looming are species of mirage.

By the mirage uplifted the land floats vague in the ether,
Ships and the shadows of ships hang in the motionless air.

Longfellow.

Mir”bane (?), n. See Nitrobenzene.

Mire (mīr), n. [AS. mīre, m&ymacr;re; akin to D. mier, Icel. maurr, Dan. myre, Sw. myra; cf. also Ir. moirbh, Gr. my`rmhx.] An ant. [Obs.] See Pismire.

Mire, n. [OE. mire, myre; akin to Icel. m&ymacr;rr swamp, Sw. myra marshy ground, and perh. to E. moss.] Deep mud; wet, spongy earth. Chaucer.

He his rider from the lofty steed
Would have cast down and trod in dirty mire.

Spenser.

Mire crow (Zoöl.), the pewit, or laughing gull. [Prov. Eng.] — Mire drum, the European bittern. [Prov. Eng.]

Mire, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mired (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Miring.]

1. To cause or permit to stick fast in mire; to plunge or fix in mud; as, to mire a horse or wagon.

2. To soil with mud or foul matter.

Smirched thus and mired with infamy.

Shak.

Mire, v. i. To stick in mire. Shak.

{ Mi*rif”ic (?), Mi*rif”ic*al (?), } a. [L. mirificus; mirus wonderful + -ficare (in comp.) to make. See -fy.] Working wonders; wonderful.

Mi*rif”i*cent (?), a. Wonderful. [Obs.]

Mir”i*ness (?), n. The quality of being miry.

Mirk (?), a. [See Murky.] Dark; gloomy; murky. Spenser. Mrs. Browning.

Mirk, n. Darkness; gloom; murk. “In mirk and mire.” Longfellow.

Mirk”some (?), a. Dark; gloomy; murky. [Archaic] Spenser. — Mirk”some*ness, n. [Archaic]

Mirk”y (?), a. Dark; gloomy. See Murky.

Mir”ror (?), n. [OE. mirour, F. miroir, OF. also mireor, fr. (assumed) LL. miratorium, fr. mirare to look at, L. mirari to wonder. See Marvel, and cf. Miracle, Mirador.]

1. A looking-glass or a speculum; any glass or polished substance that forms images by the reflection of rays of light.

And in her hand she held a mirror bright,
Wherein her face she often viewèd fair.

Spenser.

2. That which gives a true representation, or in which a true image may be seen; hence, a pattern; an exemplar.

She is mirour of all courtesy.

Chaucer.

O goddess, heavenly bright,
Mirror of grace and majesty divine.

Spenser.

3. (Zoöl.) See Speculum.

Mirror carp (Zoöl.), a domesticated variety of the carp, having only three or fur rows of very large scales side. — Mirror plate. (a) A flat glass mirror without a frame. (b) Flat glass used for making mirrors. — Mirror writing, a manner or form of backward writing, making manuscript resembling in slant and order of letters the reflection of ordinary writing in a mirror. The substitution of this manner of writing for the common manner is a symptom of some kinds of nervous disease.

Mir”ror (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mirrored (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mirroring.] To reflect, as in a mirror.

Mirth (?), n. [OE. mirthe, murthe, merthe, AS. myrð, myrgð, merhð, mirhð. See Merry.]

1. Merriment; gayety accompanied with laughter; jollity.

Then will I cause to cease . . . from the streets of Jerusalem, the voice of mirth.

Jer. vii. 34.

2. That which causes merriment. [Obs.] Shak.

Syn. — Merriment; joyousness; gladness; fun; frolic; glee; hilarity; festivity; jollity. See Gladness.

Mirth”ful (?), a. 1. Full of mirth or merriment; merry; as, mirthful children.

2. Indicating or inspiring mirth; as, a mirthful face.

Mirthful, comic shows.

Shak.

— Mirth”ful*ly, adv. — Mirth”ful*ness, n.

Mirth”less, a. Without mirth. — Mirth”less*ness, n.

Mir”y (?), a. [From 2d Mire.] Abounding with deep mud; full of mire; muddy; as, a miry road.

Mir”za (?), n. [Per. mīrzā, abbrev. fr. mīrzādeh son of the prince; mīr prince (Ar. amīr, emīr) + zādeh son.] The common title of honor in Persia, prefixed to the surname of an individual. When appended to the surname, it signifies Prince.

Mis- (m&ibreve;s-). [In words of Teutonic origin, fr. AS. mis-; akin to D. mis-, G. miss-, OHG. missa- , missi-, Icel. & Dan. mis-, Sw. miss-, Goth. missa-; orig., a p. p. from the root of G. meiden to shun, OHG. mīdan, AS. mīðan (√100. Cf. Miss to fail of). In words from the French, fr. OF. mes-, F. mé-, mes-, fr. L. minus less (see Minus). In present usage these two prefixes are commonly confounded.] A prefix used adjectively and adverbially in the sense of amiss, wrong, ill, wrongly, unsuitably; as, misdeed, mislead, mischief, miscreant.

Mis (m&ibreve;s), a. & adv. [See Amiss.] Wrong; amiss. [Obs.] “To correcten that [which] is mis.” Chaucer.

Mis*ac`cep*ta”tion (?), n. Wrong acceptation; understanding in a wrong sense.

Mis`ac*compt” (?), v. t. To account or reckon wrongly. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mis`ad*just” (?), v. t. To adjust wrongly of unsuitably; to throw of adjustment. I. Taylor.

Mis`ad*just”ment (?), n. Wrong adjustment; unsuitable arrangement.

Mis`ad*ven”ture (?; 135), n. [OE. mesaventure, F. mésaventure.] Mischance; misfortune; ill luck; unlucky accident; ill adventure. Chaucer.

Homicide by misadventure (Law), homicide which occurs when a man, doing a lawful act, without any intention of injury, unfortunately kills another; — called also excusable homicide. See Homicide. Blackstone.

Syn. — Mischance; mishap; misfortune; disaster; calamity.

Mis`ad*ven”tured (?), a. Unfortunate. [Obs.]

Mis`ad*ven”tur*ous (?), a. Unfortunate.

Mis`ad*vert”ence (?), n. Inadvertence.

Mis`ad*vice” (?), n. Bad advice.

Mis`ad*vise” (?), v. t. To give bad counsel to.

Mis`ad*vised” (?), a. Ill advised. — Mis`ad*vis”ed*ly (#), adv.

Mis`af*fect” (?), v. t. To dislike. [Obs.]

Mis`af*fect”ed, a. Ill disposed. [Obs.]

Mis`af*fec”tion (?), n. An evil or wrong affection; the state of being ill affected. [Obs.] Bp. Hall.

Mis`af*firm” (?), v. t. To affirm incorrectly.

Mis*aimed” (?), a. Not rightly aimed. Spenser.

Mis*al`le*ga”tion (?), n. A erroneous statement or allegation. Bp. Hall.

Mis`al*lege” (?), v. t. To state erroneously.

Mis`al*li”ance (?), n. [F. mésalliance.] A marriage with a person of inferior rank or social station; an improper alliance; a mesalliance.

A Leigh had made a misalliance, and blushed
A Howard should know it.

Mrs. Browning.

Mis`al*lied” (?), a. Wrongly allied or associated.

Mis`al*lot”ment (?), n. A wrong allotment.

Mis*al”ter (?), v. t. To alter wrongly; esp., to alter for the worse. Bp. Hall.

Mis”an*thrope (m&ibreve;s”ăn*thrōp), n. [Gr. misa`nqrwpos; misei^n to hate + ‘a`nqrwpos a man; cf. F. misanthrope. Cf. Miser.] A hater of mankind; a misanthropist.

{ Mis`an*throp”ic (?), Mis`an*throp”ic*al (?), } a. [Cf. F. misanthropique.] Hating or disliking mankind.

Mis*an”thro*pist (?), n. A misanthrope.

Mis*an”thro*pos (?), n. [NL. See Misanthrope.] A misanthrope. [Obs.] Shak.

Mis*an”thro*py (?), n. [Gr. &?;: cf. F. misanthropie.] Hatred of, or dislike to, mankind; — opposed to philanthropy. Orrery.

Mis*ap`pli*ca”tion (?), n. A wrong application. Sir T. Browne.

Mis`ap*ply” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Misapplied (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Misapplying.] To apply wrongly; to use for a wrong purpose; as, to misapply a name or title; to misapply public money.

Mis`ap*pre”ci*a`ted (?), a. Improperly appreciated.

Mis*ap`pre*hend” (?), v. t. To take in a wrong sense; to misunderstand. Locke.

Mis*ap`pre*hen”sion (?), n. A mistaking or mistake; wrong apprehension of one’s meaning of a fact; misconception; misunderstanding.

Mis*ap`pre*hen”sive*ly (?), adv. By, or with, misapprehension.

Mis`ap*pro”pri*ate (?), v. t. To appropriate wrongly; to use for a wrong purpose.

Mis`ap*pro`pri*a”tion (?), n. Wrong appropriation; wrongful use.

Mis`ar*range” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Misarranged (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Misarranging (?).] To place in a wrong order, or improper manner.

Mis`ar*range”ment (?), n. Wrong arrangement.

Mis`ar*cribe” (?), v. t. To ascribe wrongly.

Mis`as*say” (?), v. t. To assay, or attempt, improperly or unsuccessfully. [Obs.] W. Browne.

Mis`as*sign” (?), v. t. To assign wrongly.

Mis`at*tend” (?), v. t. To misunderstand; to disregard. [Obs.] Milton.

Mis`a*ven”ture (?), n. Misadventure. [Obs.]

Mis`a*vize” (?), v. t. To misadvise. [Obs.]

Mis*bear” (?), v. t. To carry improperly; to carry (one’s self) wrongly; to misbehave. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mis`be*come” (?), v. t. Not to become; to suit ill; not to befit or be adapted to. Macaulay.

Thy father will not act what misbecomes him.

Addison.

Mis`be*com”ing, a. Unbecoming. Milton. — Mis`be*com”ing*ly, adv. — Mis`be*com”ing*ness, n. Boyle.

Mis*bede” (?), v. t. [imp. Misbode (?); p. p. Misboden (?).] [AS. mis-beôdan.] To wrong; to do injury to. [Obs.]

Who hath you misboden or offended?

Chaucer.

Mis`be*fit”ting (?), a. Not befitting.

{ Mis`be*got” (?), Mis`be*got”ten (&?;), } p. a. Unlawfully or irregularly begotten; of bad origin; pernicious. “Valor misbegot.” Shak.

Mis`be*have” (?), v. t. & i. [imp. & p. p. Misbehaved (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Misbehaving.] To behave ill; to conduct one’s self improperly; — often used with a reciprocal pronoun.

Mis`be*haved” (?), a. Guilty of ill behavior; illbred; rude. “A misbehaved and sullen wench.” Shak.

Mis`be*hav”ior (?), n. Improper, rude, or uncivil behavior; ill conduct. Addison.

Mis`be*lief” (?), n. Erroneous or false belief.

Mis`be*lieve” (&?;), v. i. To believe erroneously, or in a false religion. “That misbelieving Moor.” Shak.

Mis`be*liev”er (?), n. One who believes wrongly; one who holds a false religion. Shak.

Mis`be*seem” (?), v. t. To suit ill.

Mis`be*stow” (?), v. t. To bestow improperly.

Mis`be*stow”al (?), n. The act of misbestowing.

Mis`bi*leve” (?), n. Misbelief; unbelief; suspicion. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mis*bode” (?), imp. of Misbede.

Mis*bo”den (?), p. p. of Misbede.

Mis”born` (?), a. Born to misfortune. Spenser.

Mis*cal”cu*late (?), v. t. & i. To calculate erroneously; to judge wrongly. — Mis*cal`cu*la”tion (#), n.

Mis*call” (?), v. t. 1. To call by a wrong name; to name improperly.

2. To call by a bad name; to abuse. [Obs.] Fuller.

Mis*car”riage (?), n. 1. Unfortunate event or issue of an undertaking; failure to attain a desired result or reach a destination.

When a counselor, to save himself,
Would lay miscarriages upon his prince.

Dryden.

2. Ill conduct; evil or improper behavior; as, the failings and miscarriages of the righteous. Rogers.

3. The act of bringing forth before the time; premature birth.

Mis*car”riage*a*ble (?), a. Capable of miscarrying; liable to fail. [R.] Bp. Hall.

Mis*car”ry (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Miscarried (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Miscarrying.]

1. To carry, or go, wrong; to fail of reaching a destination, or fail of the intended effect; to be unsuccessful; to suffer defeat.

My ships have all miscarried.

Shak.

The cardinal’s letters to the pope miscarried.

Shak.

2. To bring forth young before the proper time.

Mis*cast” (?), v. t. To cast or reckon wrongly.

Mis*cast”, n. An erroneous cast or reckoning.

Mis`ce*ge*na”tion (?), n. [L. miscere to mix + the root of genus race.] A mixing of races; amalgamation, as by intermarriage of black and white.

Mis`cel*la*na”ri*an (?), a. [See Miscellany.] Of or pertaining to miscellanies. Shaftesbury. — n. A writer of miscellanies.

Mis”cel*lane (?), n. [See Miscellaneous, and cf. Maslin.] A mixture of two or more sorts of grain; — now called maslin and meslin. Bacon.

||Mis”cel*la”ne*a (?), n. pl. [L. See Miscellany.] A collection of miscellaneous matters; matters of various kinds.

Mis`cel*la”ne*ous (?), a. [L. miscellaneus mixed, miscellaneous, fr. miscellus mixed, fr. miscere to mix. See Mix, and cf. Miscellany.] Mixed; mingled; consisting of several things; of diverse sorts; promiscuous; heterogeneous; as, a miscellaneous collection. “A miscellaneous rabble.” Milton. — Mis`cel*la”ne*ous*ly, adv. — Mis`cel*la”ne*ous*ness, n.

Mis”cel*la*nist (?), n. A writer of miscellanies; miscellanarian.

Mis”cel*la*ny (?), n.; pl. Miscellanies (#). [L. miscellanea, neut. pl. of. miscellaneus: cf. F. miscellanée, pl. miscellanées. See Miscellaneous.] A mass or mixture of various things; a medley; esp., a collection of compositions on various subjects.

‘T is but a bundle or miscellany of sin; sins original, and sins actual.

Hewyt.

Miscellany madam, a woman who dealt in various fineries; a milliner. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

Mis”cel*la*ny (m&ibreve;s”s&ebreve;l*l&asl;*n&ybreve;), a. Miscellaneous; heterogeneous. [Obs.] Bacon.

Mis*cen”sure (?), v. t. To misjudge. [Obs.] Daniel. — n. Erroneous judgment. [Obs.] Sylvester.

Mis*chance” (?), n. [OE. meschance, OF. mescheance.] Ill luck; ill fortune; mishap. Chaucer.

Never come mischance between us twain.

Shak.

Syn. — Calamity; misfortune; misadventure; mishap; infelicity; disaster. See Calamity.

Mis*chance”, v. i. To happen by mischance. Spenser.

Mis*chance”ful (?), a. Unlucky. R. Browning.

Mis*char”ac*ter*ize (?), v. t. To characterize falsely or erroneously; to give a wrong character to.

They totally mischaracterize the action.

Eton.

Mis*charge” (?), v. t. To charge erroneously, as in an account. — n. A mistake in charging.

Mis”chief (m&ibreve;s”ch&ibreve;f), n. [OE. meschef bad result, OF. meschief; pref. mes- (L. minus less) + chief end, head, F. chef chief. See Minus, and Chief.]

1. Harm; damage; esp., disarrangement of order; trouble or vexation caused by human agency or by some living being, intentionally or not; often, calamity, mishap; trivial evil caused by thoughtlessness, or in sport. Chaucer.

Thy tongue deviseth mischiefs.

Ps. lii. 2.

The practice whereof shall, I hope, secure me from many mischiefs.

Fuller.

2. Cause of trouble or vexation; trouble. Milton.

The mischief was, these allies would never allow that the common enemy was subdued.

Swift.

To be in mischief, to be doing harm or causing annoyance. — To make mischief, to do mischief, especially by exciting quarrels. — To play the mischief, to cause great harm; to throw into confusion. [Colloq.]

Syn. — Damage; harm; hurt; injury; detriment; evil; ill. — Mischief, Damage, Harm. Damage is an injury which diminishes the value of a thing; harm is an injury which causes trouble or inconvenience; mischief is an injury which disturbs the order and consistency of things. We often suffer damage or harm from accident, but mischief always springs from perversity or folly.

Mis”chief, v. t. To do harm to. [Obs.] Milton.

Mis”chief*a*ble (?), a. Mischievous. [R.] Lydgate.

Mis”chief*ful (?), a. Mischievous. [Obs.] Foote.

Mis”chief-mak`er (?), n. One who makes mischief; one who excites or instigates quarrels or enmity.

Mis”chief-mak`ing, a. Causing harm; exciting enmity or quarrels. Rowe. — n. The act or practice of making mischief, inciting quarrels, etc.

Mis”chie*vous (m&ibreve;s”ch&esl;*vŭs), a. Causing mischief; harmful; hurtful; — now often applied where the evil is done carelessly or in sport; as, a mischievous child. “Most mischievous foul sin.” Shak.

This false, wily, doubling disposition is intolerably mischievous to society.

South.

Syn. — Harmful; hurtful; detrimental; noxious; pernicious; destructive.

— Mis”chie*vous*ly, adv. — Mis”chie*vous*ness, n.

Misch”na (?), n. See Mishna.

Misch”nic (?), a. See Mishnic.

Mis*choose” (?), v. t. [imp. Mischose (?); p. p. Mischosen (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mischoosing.] To choose wrongly. Milton.

Mis*choose”, v. i. To make a wrong choice.

Mis*chris”ten (?), v. t. To christen wrongly.

Mis`ci*bil”i*ty (?), n. [Cf. F. miscibilité.] Capability of being mixed.

Mis”ci*ble (?), a. [Cf. F. miscible, fr. L. miscere to mix.] Capable of being mixed; mixable; as, water and alcohol are miscible in all proportions. Burke.

Mis`ci*ta”tion (?), n. Erroneous citation.

Mis*cite”, v. t. To cite erroneously.

Mis*claim” (?), n. A mistaken claim.

Mis*cog”ni*zant (?), a. (Law) Not cognizant; ignorant; not knowing.

Mis*cog”nize (?), v. t. To fail to apprehend; to misunderstand. [Obs.] Holland.

Mis*col`lo*ca”tion (?), n. Wrong collocation. De Quincey.

Mis*col”or (?), v. t. To give a wrong color to; figuratively, to set forth erroneously or unfairly; as, to miscolor facts. C. Kingsley.

Mis*com”fort (?), n. Discomfort. [Obs.]

Mis*com`pre*hend” (?), v. t. To get a wrong idea of or about; to misunderstand.

Mis*com`pu*ta”tion (?), n. Erroneous computation; false reckoning.

Mis`com*pute” (?), v. t. [Cf. Miscount.] To compute erroneously. Sir T. Browne.

Mis`con*ceit” (?), n. Misconception. [Obs.]

Mis`con*ceive” (?), v. t. & i. [imp. & p. p. Misconceived (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Misconceiving.] To conceive wrongly; to interpret incorrectly; to receive a false notion of; to misjudge; to misapprehend.

Those things which, for want of due consideration heretofore, they have misconceived.

Hooker.

Syn. — To misapprehend; misunderstand; mistake.

Mis`con*ceiv”er (?), n. One who misconceives.

Mis`con*cep”tion (?), n. Erroneous conception; false opinion; wrong understanding. Harvey.

Mis`con*clu”sion (?), n. An erroneous inference or conclusion. Bp. Hall.

Mis*con”duct (?), n. Wrong conduct; bad behavior; mismanagement. Addison.

Syn. — Misbehavior; misdemeanor; mismanagement; misdeed; delinquency; offense.

Mis`con*duct” (?), v. t. To conduct amiss; to mismanage. Johnson.

To misconduct one’s self, to behave improperly.

Mis`con*duct”, v. i. To behave amiss.

Mis*con”fi*dent (?), a. Having a mistaken confidence; wrongly trusting. [R.] Bp. Hall.

Mis`con*jec”ture (?; 135), n. A wrong conjecture or guess. Sir T. Browne.

Mis`con*jec”ture (?), v. t. & i. To conjecture wrongly.

Mis*con”se*crate (?), v. t. To consecrate amiss. “Misconsecrated flags.” Bp. Hall.

Mis*con`se*cra”tion, n. Wrong consecration.

Mis*con”se*quence (?), n. A wrong consequence; a false deduction.

Mis*con”stru*a*ble (?), a. Such as can be misconstrued, as language or conduct. R. North.

Mis`con*struct” (?), v. t. To construct wrongly; to construe or interpret erroneously.

Mis`con*struc”tion (?), n. Erroneous construction; wrong interpretation. Bp. Stillingfleet.

Mis*con”strue (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Misconstrued (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Misconstruing.] To construe wrongly; to interpret erroneously.

Do not, great sir, misconstrue his intent.

Dryden.

Much afflicted to find his actions misconstrued.

Addison.

Mis*con”stru*er (?), n. One who misconstrues.

Mis`con*tent” (?), a. Discontent. [Obs.]

Mis`con*tin”u*ance (?), n. (Law) Discontinuance; also, continuance by undue process.

Mis*copy” (?), v. t. To copy amiss.

Mis*copy”, n. A mistake in copying. North Am. Rev.

Mis`cor*rect” (?), v. t. To fail or err in attempting to correct. “Scaliger miscorrects his author.” Dryden.

Mis*coun”sel (?), v. t. To counsel or advise wrongly.

Mis*count” (?), v. t. & i. [Cf. OF. mesconter, F. mécompter. Cf. Miscompute.] To count erroneously.

Mis*count”, n. [Cf. F. mécompte error, OF. mesconte.] An erroneous counting.

Mis*cov”et (?), v. t. To covet wrongfully. [Obs.]

{ Mis”cre*ance (?), Mis”cre*an*cy (?), } n. [OF. mescreance, F. mécréance incredulity.] The quality of being miscreant; adherence to a false religion; false faith. [Obs.] Ayliffe.

Mis”cre*ant (?), n. [OF. mescreant, F. mécréant; pref. mes- (L. minus less) + p. pr. fr. L. credere to believe. See Creed.]

1. One who holds a false religious faith; a misbeliever. [Obs.] Spenser. De Quincey.

Thou oughtest not to be slothful to the destruction of the miscreants, but to constrain them to obey our Lord God.

Rivers.

2. One not restrained by Christian principles; an unscrupulous villain; a vile wretch. Addison.
[1913 Webster]

Mis”cre*ant, a. 1. Holding a false religious faith.

2. Destitute of conscience; unscrupulous. Pope.

Mis`cre*ate” (?), a. Miscreated; illegitimate; forged; as, miscreate titles. [Obs. or Poet.] Shak.

Mis`cre*ate” (?), v. t. To create badly or amiss.

Mis`cre*at”ed (?), a. Formed unnaturally or illegitimately; deformed. Spenser. Milton.

Mis`cre*a”tive, a. Creating amiss. [R.]

Mis*cre”dent (?), n. [Pref. mis- + credent. Cf. Miscreant.] A miscreant, or believer in a false religious doctrine. [Obs.] Holinshed.

Mis`cre*du”li*ty (?), n. Wrong credulity or belief; misbelief. Bp. Hall.

Mis*cue” (?), n. (Billiards) A false stroke with a billiard cue, the cue slipping from the ball struck without impelling it as desired.

Mis*date”, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Misdated; p. pr. & vb. n. Misdating.] To date erroneously. Young.

Mis*deal” (?), v. t. & i. [imp. & p. p. Misdealt (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Misdealing.] To deal or distribute wrongly, as cards; to make a wrong distribution.

Mis*deal”, n. The act of misdealing; a wrong distribution of cards to the players.

Mis*deed” (?), n. [AS. misd&aemacr;d. See Deed, n.] An evil deed; a wicked action.

Evils which our own misdeeds have wrought.

Milton.

Syn. — Misconduct; misdemeanor; fault; offense; trespass; transgression; crime.

Mis*deem” (?), v. t. To misjudge. [Obs.] Milton.

Mis`de*mean” (?), v. t. To behave ill; — with a reflexive pronoun; as, to misdemean one’s self.

Mis`de*mean”ant (?), n. One guilty of a misdemeanor. Sydney Smith.

Mis`de*mean”or (?), n. 1. Ill behavior; evil conduct; fault. Shak.

2. (Law) A crime less than a felony. Wharton.

&fist; As a rule, in the old English law, offenses capitally punishable were felonies; all other indictable offenses were misdemeanors. In common usage, the word crime is employed to denote the offenses of a deeper and more atrocious dye, while small faults and omissions of less consequence are comprised under the gentler name of misdemeanors. Blackstone.

The distinction, however, between felonies and misdemeanors is purely arbitrary, and is in most jurisdictions either abrogated or so far reduced as to be without practical value. Cf. Felony. Wharton.

Syn. — Misdeed; misconduct; misbehavior; fault; trespass; transgression.

Mis*dempt” (?), obs. p. p. of Misdeem. Spenser.

Mis`de*part” (?), v. t. To distribute wrongly. [Obs.]

He misdeparteth riches temporal.

Chaucer.

Mis`de*rive” (?), v. t. 1. To turn or divert improperly; to misdirect. [Obs.] Bp. Hall.

2. To derive erroneously.

Mis`de*scribe” (?), v. t. To describe wrongly.

Mis`de*sert”, n. Ill desert. [Obs.] Spenser.

Mis`de*vo”tion (?), n. Mistaken devotion.

Mis*di”et (?), n. Improper diet. [Obs.] Spenser.

Mis*di”et, v. t. To diet improperly.

Mis*dight” (?), a. Arrayed, prepared, or furnished, unsuitably. [Archaic] Bp. Hall.

Mis`di*rect” (?), v. t. To give a wrong direction to; as, to misdirect a passenger, or a letter; to misdirect one’s energies. Shenstone.

Mis`di*rec”tion (?), n. 1. The act of directing wrongly, or the state of being so directed.

2. (Law) An error of a judge in charging the jury on a matter of law. Mozley & W.

Mis*dis`po*si”tion (?), n. Erroneous disposal or application. Bp. Hall.

Mis`dis*tin”guish (?), v. t. To make wrong distinctions in or concerning. Hooker.

Mis`di*vide” (?), v. t. To divide wrongly.

Mis`di*vi”sion (?), n. Wrong division.

Mis*do” (m&ibreve;s*d&oomac;”), v. t. [imp. Misdid (?); p. p. Misdone (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Misdoing.] [AS. misdōn. See Do, v.]

1. To do wrongly.

Afford me place to show what recompense
Towards thee I intend for what I have misdone.

Milton.

2. To do wrong to; to illtreat. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mis*do”, v. i. To do wrong; to commit a fault.

I have misdone, and I endure the smart.

Dryden.

Mis*do”er, n. A wrongdoer. Spenser.

Mis*do”ing, n. A wrong done; a fault or crime; an offense; as, it was my misdoing.

Mis*doubt” (?), v. t. & i. To be suspicious of; to have suspicion. [Obs.]

I do not misdoubt my wife.

Shak.

Mis*doubt”, n. 1. Suspicion. [Obs.]

2. Irresolution; hesitation. [Obs.] Shak.

Mis*doubt”ful (?), a Misgiving; hesitating. [Obs.] “Her misdoubtful mind.” Spenser.

Mis*dread” (?), n. Dread of evil. [Obs.]

Mise (?), n. [F. mise a putting, setting, expense, fr. mis, mise, p. p. of mettre to put, lay, fr. LL. mittere to send.]

1. (Law) The issue in a writ of right.

2. Expense; cost; disbursement. [Obs.]

3. A tax or tallage; in Wales, an honorary gift of the people to a new king or prince of Wales; also, a tribute paid, in the country palatine of Chester, England, at the change of the owner of the earldom. [Obs.]

Mis*ease” (?), n. [OE. mesaise, OF. mesaise.] Want of ease; discomfort; misery. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mis*eased” (?), a. Having discomfort or misery; troubled. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mis*eas”y (?), a. Not easy; painful. [Obs.]

Mis`e*di”tion (?), n. An incorrect or spurious edition. [Obs.] Bp. Hall.

Mis*ed”u*cate (?; 135), v. t. To educate in a wrong manner.

Mis`em*ploy” (?), v. t. To employ amiss; as, to misemploy time, advantages, talents, etc.

Their frugal father’s gains they misemploy.

Dryden.

Mis`em*ploy”ment (?), n. Wrong or mistaken employment. Johnson.

Mis*en”ter (?), v. t. To enter or insert wrongly, as a charge in an account.

Mis`en*treat” (?), v. t. To treat wrongfully. [Obs.] Grafton.

Mis*en”try (?), n. An erroneous entry or charge, as of an account.

Mi”ser (mī“z&etilde;r), n. [L. miser wretched, miserable; cf. Gr. mi^sos hate, misei^n to hate: cf. It. & Sp. misero wretched, avaricious.]

1. A wretched person; a person afflicted by any great misfortune. [Obs.] Spenser.

The woeful words of a miser now despairing.

Sir P. Sidney.

2. A despicable person; a wretch. [Obs.] Shak.

3. A covetous, grasping, mean person; esp., one having wealth, who lives miserably for the sake of saving and increasing his hoard.

As some lone miser, visiting his store,
Bends at his treasure, counts, recounts it o’er.

Goldsmith.

4. A kind of large earth auger. Knight.

Mis”er*a*ble (?), a. [F. misérable, L. miserabilis, fr. miserari to lament, pity, fr. miser wretched. See Miser.]

1. Very unhappy; wretched.

What hopes delude thee, miserable man?

Dryden.

2. Causing unhappiness or misery.

What ‘s more miserable than discontent?

Shak.

3. Worthless; mean; despicable; as, a miserable fellow; a miserable dinner.

Miserable comforters are ye all.

Job xvi. 2.

4. Avaricious; niggardly; miserly. [Obs.] Hooker.

Syn. — Abject; forlorn; pitiable; wretched.

Mis”er*a*ble, n. A miserable person. [Obs.] Sterne.

Mis”er*a*ble*ness, n. The state or quality of being miserable.

Mis”er*a*bly, adv. In a miserable; unhappily; calamitously; wretchedly; meanly.

They were miserably entertained.

Sir P. Sidney.

The fifth was miserably stabbed to death.

South.

Mis`er*a”tion (?), n. Commiseration. [Obs.]

||Mis`e*re”re (?), n. [L., have mercy, fr. misereri to have mercy, fr. miser. See Miser.]

1. (R. C. Ch.) The psalm usually appointed for penitential acts, being the 50th psalm in the Latin version. It commences with the word miserere.

2. A musical composition adapted to the 50th psalm.

Where only the wind signs miserere.

Lowell.

3. (Arch.) A small projecting boss or bracket, on the under side of the hinged seat of a church stall (see Stall). It was intended, the seat being turned up, to give some support to a worshiper when standing. Called also misericordia.

4. (Med.) Same as Ileus.

Mis”er*i*corde” (?), n. [F. miséricorde. See Misericordia.]

1. Compassion; pity; mercy. [Obs.]

2. (Anc. Armor.) Same as Misericordia, 2.

||Mis`e*ri*cor”di*a (?), n. [L., mercy, compassion; miser wretched + cor, cordis, heart.]

1. (O. Law) An amercement. Burrill.

2. (Anc. Armor.) A thin-bladed dagger; so called, in the Middle Ages, because used to give the death wound or “mercy” stroke to a fallen adversary.

3. (Eccl.) An indulgence as to food or dress granted to a member of a religious order. Shipley.

Mi”ser*ly (mī“z&etilde;r*l&ybreve;), a. [From Miser.] Like a miser; very covetous; sordid; niggardly.

Syn. — Avaricious; niggardly; sordid; parsimonious; penurious; covetous; stingy; mean. See Avaricious.

Mi”ser*y (?), n.; pl. Miseries (#). [OE. miserie, L. miseria, fr. miser wretched: cf. F. misère, OF. also, miserie.]

1. Great unhappiness; extreme pain of body or mind; wretchedness; distress; woe. Chaucer.

Destruction and misery are in their ways.

Rom. iii. 16.

2. Cause of misery; calamity; misfortune.

When we our betters see bearing our woes,
We scarcely think our miseries our foes.

Shak.

3. Covetousness; niggardliness; avarice. [Obs.]

Syn. — Wretchedness; torture; agony; torment; anguish; distress; calamity; misfortune.

Mis`es*teem” (?), n. [Cf. F. mésestime.] Want of esteem; disrespect. Johnson.

Mis*es”ti*mate (?), v. t. To estimate erroneously. J. S. Mill.

Mis*ex`pla*na”tion (?), n. An erroneous explanation.

Mis*ex`pli*ca”tion (?), n. Wrong explication.

Mis*ex`po*si”tion (?), n. Wrong exposition.

Mis`ex*pound” (?), v. t. To expound erroneously.

Mis`ex*pres”sion (?), n. Wrong expression.

Mis*faith” (?), n. Want of faith; distrust. “[Anger] born of your misfaith.” Tennyson.

Mis*fall” (?), v. t. [imp. Misfell; p. p. Misfallen (&?;); p. pr. & vb. n. Misfalling.] To befall, as ill luck; to happen to unluckily. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mis*fare” (?), v. i. [AS. misfaran.] To fare ill. [Obs.] — n. Misfortune. [Obs.] Spenser.

Mis*fash”ion (?), v. t. To form wrongly.

Mis*fea”sance (?), n. [OF. pref. mes- wrong (L. minus less) + faisance doing, fr. faire to do, L. facere. Cf. Malfeasance.] (Law) A trespass; a wrong done; the improper doing of an act which a person might lawfully do. Bouvier. Wharton.

Mis*fea”ture (?), n. Ill feature. [R.] Keats.

Mis*feel”ing (?), a. Insensate. [Obs.] Wyclif.

Mis*feign” (?), v. i. To feign with an evil design. [Obs.] Spenser.

Mis*fit” (?), n. 1. The act or the state of fitting badly; as, a misfit in making a coat; a ludicrous misfit.

2. Something that fits badly, as a garment.

I saw an uneasy change in Mr. Micawber, which sat tightly on him, as if his new duties were a misfit.

Dickens.

Mis*form” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Misformed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Misforming.] To make in an ill form. Spenser.

Mis`for*ma”tion (?), n. Malformation.

Mis*for”tu*nate (?; 135), a. Producing misfortune. [Obs.]

Mis*for”tune (?), n. Bad fortune or luck; calamity; an evil accident; disaster; mishap; mischance.

Consider why the change was wrought,
You ‘ll find his misfortune, not his fault.

Addison.

Syn. — Calamity; mishap; mischance; misadventure; ill; harm; disaster. See Calamity.

Mis*for”tune, v. i. To happen unluckily or unfortunately; to miscarry; to fail. [Obs.] Stow.

Mis*for”tuned (?), a. Unfortunate. [Obs.]

Mis*frame” (?), v. t. To frame wrongly.

Mis*get” (?), v. t. To get wrongfully. [Obs.]

Mis*gie” (?), v. t. See Misgye. [Obs.]

Mis*give” (?), v. t. [imp. Misgave (?); p. p. Misgiven (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Misgiving.]

1. To give or grant amiss. [Obs.] Laud.

2. Specifically: To give doubt and apprehension to, instead of confidence and courage; to impart fear to; to make irresolute; — usually said of the mind or heart, and followed by the objective personal pronoun.

So doth my heart misgive me in these conflicts
What may befall him, to his harm and ours.

Shak.

Such whose consciences misgave them, how ill they had deserved.

Milton.

3. To suspect; to dread. [Obs.] Shak.

Mis*give”, v. i. To give out doubt and apprehension; to be fearful or irresolute. “My mind misgives.” Shak.

Mis*giv”ing, n. Evil premonition; doubt; distrust. “Suspicious and misgivings.” South.

Mis*go” (-gō”), v. i. To go astray. Spenser.

Mis*got”ten (-g&obreve;t”t’n), a. Unjustly gotten. Spenser.

Mis*gov”ern (?), v. t. To govern ill; as, to misgovern a country. Knolles.

Mis*gov”ern*ance (?), n. Misgovernment; misconduct; misbehavior. [Obs.] Chaucer. Spenser.

Mis*gov”erned (?), a. Ill governed, as a people; ill directed. “Rude, misgoverned hands.” Shak.

Mis*gov”ern*ment (?), n. Bad government; want of government. Shak.

Mis*gra”cious (?), a. Not gracious. [Obs.]

Mis*graff” (?), v. t. To misgraft. [Obs.] Shak.

Mis*graft” (?), v. t. To graft wrongly.

Mis*ground” (?), v. t. To found erroneously. “Misgrounded conceit.” Bp. Hall.

Mis*growth” (?), n. Bad growth; an unnatural or abnormal growth.

Mis*guess” (?), v. t. & i. To guess wrongly.

Mis*guid”ance (?), n. Wrong guidance.

Mis*guide” (?), v. t. To guide wrongly; to lead astray; as, to misguide the understanding.

Mis*guide”, n. Misguidance; error. [Obs.] Spenser.

Mis*guid”ing, a. Misleading. — Mis*guid”ing*ly, adv.

Mis*gye” (?), v. t. To misguide. [Obs.]

Mis*han”dle (?), v. t. To handle ill or wrongly; to maltreat.

Mis*hap” (?), n. Evil accident; ill luck; misfortune; mischance. Chaucer.

Secure from worldly chances and mishaps.

Shak.

Mis*hap” (?), v. i. To happen unluckily; — used impersonally. [Obs.] “If that me mishap.” Chaucer.

Mis*hap”pen (?), v. i. To happen ill or unluckily. Spenser.

Mis*hap”py (?), a. Unhappy. [Obs.]

Mish*cup” (?), n. [See Scup.] (Zoöl.) The scup. [Local, U. S.]

Mis*hear” (?), v. t. & i. To hear incorrectly.

Mish”mash` (?), n. [Cf. G. mish- mash, fr. mischen to mix.] A hotchpotch. Sir T. Herbert.

Mish”na (?), n. [NHeb. mishnāh, i. e., repetition, doubling, explanation (of the divine law), fr. Heb. shānāh to change, to repeat.] A collection or digest of Jewish traditions and explanations of Scripture, forming the text of the Talmud. [Written also Mischna.]

Mish”nic (?), a. Of or pertaining to the Mishna.

Mis`im*ag`i*na”tion (?), n. Wrong imagination; delusion. Bp. Hall.

Mis`im*prove” (?), v. t. To use for a bad purpose; to abuse; to misuse; as, to misimprove time, talents, advantages, etc. South.

Mis`im*prove”ment (?), n. Ill use or employment; use for a bad purpose.

Mis”in*cline” (?), v. t. To cause to have a wrong inclination or tendency; to affect wrongly.

Mis`in*fer” (?), v. t. To infer incorrectly.

Mis`in*form” (?), v. t. To give untrue information to; to inform wrongly.

Mis`in*form”, v. i. To give untrue information; (with against) to calumniate. [R.] Bp. Montagu.

Mis`in*form”ant (?), n. A misinformer.

Mis*in`for*ma”tion (?), n. Untrue or incorrect information. Bacon.

Mis`in*form”er (?), n. One who gives untrue or incorrect information.

Mis`in*struct” (?), v. t. To instruct amiss.

Mis`in*struc”tion (?), n. Wrong or improper instruction.

Mis`in*tel”li*gence (?), n. 1. Wrong information; misinformation.

2. Disagreement; misunderstanding. [Obs.]

Mis`in*tend” (?), v. t. To aim amiss. [Obs.]

Mis`in*ter”pret (?), v. t. To interpret erroneously; to understand or to explain in a wrong sense.

Mis`in*ter”pret*a*ble (?), a. Capable of being misinterpreted; liable to be misunderstood.

Mis`in*ter”pre*ta”tion (?), n. The act of interpreting erroneously; a mistaken interpretation.

Mis`in*ter”pret*er (?), n. One who interprets erroneously.

Mis*join” (?), v. t. To join unfitly or improperly.

Mis*join”der (?), n. (Law) An incorrect union of parties or of causes of action in a procedure, criminal or civil. Wharton.

Mis*judge” (?), v. t. & i. To judge erroneously or unjustly; to err in judgment; to misconstrue.

Mis*judg”ment (?), n. [Written also misjudgement.] A wrong or unjust judgment.

Mis*keep” (?), v. t. To keep wrongly. Chaucer.

Mis*ken” (?), v. t. Not to know. [Obs.]

Mis”kin (?), n. [Prob. for music + – kin.] (Mus.) A little bagpipe. [Obs.] Drayton.

Mis*kin”dle (?), v. t. To kindle amiss; to inflame to a bad purpose; to excite wrongly.

Mis*know” (?), v. t. To have a mistaken notion of or about. [Obs.] Bp. Hall.

Mis`lac*ta”tion (?), n. (Med.) Defective flow or vitiated condition of the milk.

Mis*lay” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mislaid (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mislaying.]

1. To lay in a wrong place; to ascribe to a wrong source.

The fault is generally mislaid upon nature.

Locke.

2. To lay in a place not recollected; to lose.

The . . . charter, indeed, was unfortunately mislaid: and the prayer of their petition was to obtain one of like import in its stead.

Hallam.

Mis*lay”er (?), n. One who mislays.

Mi”sle (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Misled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Misling (?).] [Prop. mistle, fr. mist. Cf. Mistle, Mizzle.] To rain in very fine drops, like a thick mist; to mizzle.

Mi”sle, n. A fine rain; a thick mist; mizzle.

Mis*lead” (m&ibreve;s*lēd”), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Misled (- l&ebreve;d”); p. pr. & vb. n. Misleading.] [AS. misl&aemacr;dan. See Mis-, and Lead to conduct.] To lead into a wrong way or path; to lead astray; to guide into error; to cause to mistake; to deceive.

Trust not servants who mislead or misinform you.

Bacon.

To give due light
To the mislead and lonely traveler.

Milton.

Syn. — To delude; deceive. See Deceive.

Mis*lead”er (?), n. One who leads into error.

Mis*lead”ing, a. Leading astray; delusive.

Mis*learn” (?), v. t. To learn wrongly.

Mis*led” (?), imp. & p. p. of Mislead.

Mis”len (?), n. See Maslin.

Mis”le*toe (?), n. See Mistletoe.

Mis*light” (?), v. t. To deceive or lead astray with a false light. Herrick.

Mis*like” (-līk”), v. t. & i. [imp. & p. p. Misliked (līkt”); p. pr. & vb. n. Misliking.] [AS. mislīcian to displease. See Like, v.] To dislike; to disapprove of; to have aversion to; as, to mislike a man.

Who may like or mislike what he says.

I. Taylor.

Mis*like”, n. Dislike; disapprobation; aversion.

Mis*lik”er (?), n. One who dislikes.

Mis*lik”ing, n. Dislike; aversion.

Mis”lin (?), n. & a. See Maslin.

Mis*live” (?), v. i. To live amiss.

Mis*lodge” (?), v. t. To lodge amiss. [Obs.]

Mis*luck” (?), n. Ill luck; misfortune.

Mis”ly (?), a. Raining in very small drops.

Mis*make” (m&ibreve;s*māk”), v. t. To make or form amiss; to spoil in making. “Limping possibilities of mismade human nature.” Mrs. Browning.

Mis*man”age (?), v. t. & i. To manage ill or improperly; as, to mismanage public affairs.

Mis*man”age*ment (?), n. Wrong or bad management; as, he failed through mismagement.

Mis*man”a*ger (?), n. One who manages ill.

Mis*mark” (?), v. t. To mark wrongly.

Mis*match” (?), v. t. To match unsuitably.

Mis*mate” (?), v. t. To mate wrongly or unsuitably; as, to mismate gloves or shoes; a mismated couple.

Mis*meas”ure (?; 135), v. t. To measure or estimate incorrectly.

Mis*meas”ure*ment, n. Wrong measurement.

Mis*me”ter (?), v. t. To give the wrong meter to, as to a line of verse. [R.] Chaucer.

Mis*name” (?), v. t. To call by the wrong name; to give a wrong or inappropriate name to.

Mis*no”mer (?), n. [OF. pref. mes- amiss, wrong (L. minus less) + F. nommer to name, L. nominare, fr. nomen name. See Name.] The misnaming of a person in a legal instrument, as in a complaint or indictment; any misnaming of a person or thing; a wrong or inapplicable name or title.

Many of the changes, by a great misnomer, called parliamentary “reforms”.

Burke.

The word “synonym” is fact a misnomer.

Whatel&?;.

Mis*no”mer, v. t. To misname. [R.]

Mis*num”ber (?), v. t. To number wrongly.

Mis*nur”ture (?; 135), v. t. To nurture or train wrongly; as, to misnurture children. Bp. Hall.

Mis`o*be”di*ence (?), n. Mistaken obedience; disobedience. [Obs.] Milton.

Mis`ob*serve” (?), v. t. To observe inaccurately; to mistake in observing. Locke.

Mis`ob*serv”er (?), n. One who misobserves; one who fails to observe properly.

Mi*sog”a*mist (?), n. [Gr. misei^n to hate + &?; marriage.] A hater of marriage.

Mi*sog”a*my (?), n. [Cf. F. misogamie.] Hatre&?; of marriage.

Mi*sog”y*nist (m&ibreve;*s&obreve;j”&ibreve;*n&ibreve;st), n. [Gr. misogy`nhs, misogy`naios; misei^n to hate + gynh`: cf. F. misogyne.] A woman hater. Fuller.

Mi*sog”y*nous (?), a. Hating women.

Mi*sog”y*ny (?; 277), n. [Gr. misogyni`a: cf. F. misogynie.] Hatred of women. Johnson.

Mi*sol”o*gy (m&ibreve;*s&obreve;l”&osl;*j&ybreve;), n. [Gr. misologi`a; misei^n to hate + lo`gos discourse.] Hatred of argument or discussion; hatred of enlightenment. G. H. Lewes.

Mis`o*pin”ion, n. Wrong opinion. [Obs.]

Mis*or”der (?), v. t. To order ill; to manage erroneously; to conduct badly. [Obs.] Shak.

Mis*or”der, n. Irregularity; disorder. [Obs.] Camden.

Mis*or”der*ly, a. Irregular; disorderly. [Obs.]

Mis*or`di*na”tion (?), n. Wrong ordination.

Mis”o*the`ism (?), n. [Gr. misei^n to hate + qeo`s god.] Hatred of God. De Quincey.

Mis*paint” (?), v. t. To paint ill, or wrongly.

Mis*pas”sion (?), n. Wrong passion or feeling. [Obs.]

Mis*pay” (?), v. t. [Cf. Appay.] To dissatisfy. [Obs.]

Mis*pell” (?), v. t., Mis*pend” (&?;), v. t., etc. See Misspell, Misspend, etc.

Mis*pense” (?), n. See Misspense. Bp. Hall.

Mis`per*cep”tion (?), n. Erroneous perception.

Mis`per*suade” (?), v. t. To persuade amiss.

Mis`per*sua”sion (?), n. A false persuasion; wrong notion or opinion. Dr. H. More.

Mis*pick”el (?), n. [G.] (Min.) Arsenical iron pyrites; arsenopyrite.

Mis*place” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Misplaced (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Misplacing (?).] To put in a wrong place; to set or place on an improper or unworthy object; as, he misplaced his confidence.

Mis*place”ment (?), n. The act of misplacing, or the state of being misplaced.

Mis*plead” (?), v. i. To err in pleading.

Mis*plead”ing, n. (Law) An error in pleading.

Mis*point” (?), v. t. To point improperly; to punctuate wrongly.

Mis*pol”i*cy (?), n. Wrong policy; impolicy.

Mis*prac”tice (?), n. Wrong practice.

Mis*praise” (?), v. t. To praise amiss.

Mis*print” (?), v. t. To print wrong.

Mis*print”, n. A mistake in printing; a deviation from the copy; as, a book full of misprints.

Mis*prise” (?), v. t. See Misprize. [Obs.] Shak.

Mis*prise”, v. t. [OF. mesprise mistake, F. méprise, fr. mespris, masc., mesprise, fem., p. p. of mesprendre to mistake; F. méprendre; pref. mes- amiss + prendre to take, L. prehendere.] To mistake. [Obs.] Shak.

Mis*pri”sion (?), n. [LL. misprisio, or OF. mesprison, prop., a mistaking, but confused with OF. mespris contempt, F. mépris. See 2d Misprise, Misprize, Prison.]

1. The act of misprising; misapprehension; misconception; mistake. [Archaic] Fuller.

The misprision of this passage has aided in fostering the delusive notion.

Hare.

2. Neglect; undervaluing; contempt. [Obs.] Shak.

3. (Law) A neglect, negligence, or contempt.

&fist; In its larger and older sense it was used to signify “every considerable misdemeanor which has not a certain name given to it in the law.” Russell.

In a more modern sense it is applied exclusively to two offenses: – -
1. Misprision of treason, which is omission to notify the authorities of an act of treason by a person cognizant thereof. Stephen. 2. Misprision of felony, which is a concealment of a felony by a person cognizant thereof. Stephen.

Mis*prize” (m&ibreve;s*prīz”), v. t. [OF. mesprisier to deprise, F. mépriser; pref. amiss, wrong (L. minus less + LL. pretium price. See price, Prize, v.] To slight or undervalue.

O, for those vanished hours, so much misprized!

Hillhouse.

I do not blame them, madam, nor misprize.

Mrs. Browning.

Mis`pro*ceed”ing (?), n. Wrong or irregular proceding.

Mis`pro*fess” (?), v. i. To make a false profession; to make pretensions to skill which is not possessed.

Mis`pro*fess”, v. t. To make a false profession of.

Mis`pro*nounce” (?), v. t. & i. [imp. & p. p. Mispronounced (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mispronouncing (?).] To pronounce incorrectly.

Mis`pro*nun`ci*a”tion (? or ?), n. Wrong or improper pronunciation.

Mis`pro*por”tion (?), v. t. To give wrong proportions to; to join without due proportion.

Mis*proud”, a. Viciously proud. [Obs.] Shak.

Mis*punc”tu*ate (?; 135), v. t. To punctuate wrongly or incorrectly.

Mis`quo*ta”tion (?), n. Erroneous or inaccurate quotation.

Mis*quote” (?), v. t. & i. To quote erroneously or incorrectly. Shak.

Mis*raise” (?), v. t. To raise or excite unreasonable. “Misraised fury.” Bp. Hall.

Mis*rate” (?), v. t. To rate erroneously.

Mis*read” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Misread (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Misreading (?).] To read amiss; to misunderstand in reading.

Mis`re*ceive” (?), v. t. To receive wrongly.

Mis`re*cit”al (?), n. An inaccurate recital.

Mis`re*cite” (?), v. t. & i. To recite erroneously.

Mis*reck”on (?), v. t. & i. To reckon wrongly; to miscalculate. Swift.

Mis*reck”on*ing, n. An erroneous computation.

Mis*rec`ol*lect” (?), v. t. & i. To have an erroneous remembrance of; to suppose erroneously that one recollects. Hitchcock.

Mis*rec`ol*lec”tion (?), n. Erroneous or inaccurate recollection.

Mis`re*form” (?), v. t. To reform wrongly or imperfectly.

Mis`re*gard” (?), n. Wrong understanding; misconstruction. [Obs.] Spenser.

Mis*reg”u*late (?), v. t. To regulate wrongly or imperfectly; to fail to regulate.

Mis`re*hearse” (?), v. t. To rehearse or quote incorrectly. Sir T. More.

Mis`re*late” (?), v. t. To relate inaccurately.

Mis`re*la”tion (?), n. Erroneous relation or narration. Abp. Bramhall.

Mis`re*li”gion (?), n. False religion. [R.]

Mis`re*mem”ber (?), v. t. & i. To mistake in remembering; not to remember correctly. Sir T. More.

Mis*ren”der (?), v. t. To render wrongly; to translate or recite wrongly. Boyle.

Mis`re*peat” (?), v. t. To repeat wrongly; to give a wrong version of. Gov. Winthrop.

Mis`re*port” (?), v. t. & i. To report erroneously; to give an incorrect account of. Locke.

Mis`re*port”, n. An erroneous report; a false or incorrect account given. Denham. South.

Mis*rep`re*sent” (?), v. t. To represent incorrectly (almost always, unfavorably); to give a false or erroneous representation of, either maliciously, ignorantly, or carelessly. Swift.

Mis*rep`re*sent”, v. i. To make an incorrect or untrue representation. Milton.

Mis*rep`re*sen*ta”tion (?), n. Untrue representation; false or incorrect statement or account; — usually unfavorable to the thing represented; as, a misrepresentation of a person’s motives. Sydney Smith.

&fist; In popular use, this word often conveys the idea of intentional untruth.

Mis*rep`re*sent”a*tive (?), a. Tending to convey a wrong impression; misrepresenting.

Mis*rep`re*sent”er (?), n. One who misrepresents.

Mis`re*pute” (?), v. t. To have in wrong estimation; to repute or estimate erroneously.

Mis*rule” (?), v. t. & i. To rule badly; to misgovern.

Mis*rule”, n. 1. The act, or the result, of misruling.

2. Disorder; confusion; tumult from insubordination.

Enormous riot and misrule surveyed.

Pope.

Abbot of Misrule, or Lord of Misrule. See under Abbot, and Lord.

Mis*rul”y (?), a. Unruly. [Obs.] Bp. Hall.

Miss (m&ibreve;s), n.; pl. Misses (-s&ebreve;z). [Contr. fr. mistress.] 1. A title of courtesy prefixed to the name of a girl or a woman who has not been married. See Mistress, 5.

&fist; There is diversity of usage in the application of this title to two or more persons of the same name. We may write either the Miss Browns or the Misses Brown.

2. A young unmarried woman or a girl; as, she is a miss of sixteen.

Gay vanity, with smiles and kisses,
Was busy ‘mongst the maids and misses.

Cawthorn.

3. A kept mistress. See Mistress, 4. [Obs.] Evelyn.

4. (Card Playing) In the game of three-card loo, an extra hand, dealt on the table, which may be substituted for the hand dealt to a player.

Miss, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Missed (m&ibreve;st); p. pr. & vb. n. Missing.] [AS. missan; akin to D. & G. missen, OHG. missan, Icel. missa, Sw. mista, Dan. miste. √100. See Mis-, pref.] 1. To fail of hitting, reaching, getting, finding, seeing, hearing, etc.; as, to miss the mark one shoots at; to miss the train by being late; to miss opportunites of getting knowledge; to miss the point or meaning of something said.

When a man misses his great end, happiness, he will acknowledge he judged not right.

Locke.

2. To omit; to fail to have or to do; to get without; to dispense with; — now seldom applied to persons.

She would never miss, one day,
A walk so fine, a sight so gay.

Prior.

We cannot miss him; he does make our fire,
Fetch in our wood.

Shak.

3. To discover the absence or omission of; to feel the want of; to mourn the loss of; to want. Shak.

Neither missed we anything . . . Nothing was missed of all that pertained unto him.

1 Sam. xxv. 15, 21.

What by me thou hast lost, thou least shalt miss.

Milton.

To miss stays. (Naut.) See under Stay.

Miss (?), v. i. 1. To fail to hit; to fly wide; to deviate from the true direction.

Men observe when things hit, and not when they miss.

Bacon.

Flying bullets now,
To execute his rage, appear too slow;
They miss, or sweep but common souls away.

Waller.

2. To fail to obtain, learn, or find; — with of.

Upon the least reflection, we can not miss of them.

Atterbury.

3. To go wrong; to err. [Obs.]

Amongst the angels, a whole legion
Of wicked sprites did fall from happy bliss;
What wonder then if one, of women all, did miss?

Spenser.

4. To be absent, deficient, or wanting. [Obs.] See Missing, a.

What here shall miss, our toil shall strive to mend.

Shak.

Miss, n. 1. The act of missing; failure to hit, reach, find, obtain, etc.

2. Loss; want; felt absence. [Obs.]

There will be no great miss of those which are lost.

Locke.

3. Mistake; error; fault. Shak.

He did without any great miss in the hardest points of grammar.

Ascham.

4. Harm from mistake. [Obs.] Spenser.

||Mis”sa (?), n.; pl. Missæ (#). [LL. See 1st Mass.] (R.C.Ch.) The service or sacrifice of the Mass.

Mis”sal (?), n. [LL. missale, liber missalis, from missa mass: cf. F. missel. See 1st Mass.] The book containing the service of the Mass for the entire year; a Mass book.

Mis”sal, a. Of or pertaining to the Mass, or to a missal or Mass book. Bp. Hall.

Mis*say” (?), v. t. 1. To say wrongly.

2. To speak evil of; to slander. [Obs.]

Mis*say”, v. i. To speak ill. [Obs.] Spenser.

Mis*seek” (?), v. t. To seek for wrongly. [Obs.]

Mis*seem” (?), v. i. 1. To make a false appearance. [Obs.]

2. To misbecome; to be misbecoming. [Obs.] Spenser.

Mis”sel (?), n. Mistletoe. [Obs.]

Missel bird, Missel thrush (Zoöl.), a large European thrush (Turdus viscivorus) which feeds on the berries of the mistletoe; — called also mistletoe thrush and missel.

Mis”sel*dine (?), n. [See Mistletoe.] [Written also misselden.] The mistletoe. [Obs.] Baret.

Mis”sel*toe (?), n. See Mistletoe.

Mis*sem”blance (?), n. False resemblance or semblance. [Obs.]

Mis*send” (?), v. t. To send amiss or incorrectly.

Mis*serve” (?), v. t. & i. To serve unfaithfully.

Mis*set” (m&ibreve;s*s&ebreve;t”), v. t. To set or place wrongly.

Mis*shape” (?), v. t. To shape ill; to give an ill or unnatural from to; to deform. “Figures monstrous and misshaped.” Pope.

Mis*shap”en (?), a. Having a bad or ugly form. “The mountains are misshapen.” Bentley.

— Mis*shap”en*ly, adv. — Mis*shap”en*ness, n.

Mis*sheathed” (?), a. Sheathed by mistake; wrongly sheathed; sheathed in a wrong place. Shak.

Mis*sif”i*cate (?), v. i. [LL. missa Mass + ficare (in comp.) to make. See fy .] To perform Mass. [Obs.] Milton.

Mis”sile (?), a. [L. missils, fr. mittere, missum, to cause to go, to send, to throw; cf. Lith. mesti to throw: cf. F. missile. Cf. Admit, Dismiss, Mass the religious service, Message, Mission.] Capable of being thrown; adapted for hurling or to be projected from the hand, or from any instrument or engine, so as to strike an object at a distance.

We bend the bow, or wing the missile dart.

Pope.

Mis”sile, n. [L. missile.] A weapon thrown or projected or intended to be projected, as a lance, an arrow, or a bullet.

Miss”ing (?), a. [From Miss, v. i.] Absent from the place where it was expected to be found; lost; wanting; not present when called or looked for.

Neither was there aught missing unto them.

1 Sam. xxv. 7.

For a time caught up to God, as once
Moses was in the mount, and missing long.

Milton.

Miss”ing*ly, adv. With a sense of loss. [Obs.] Shak.

Mis”sion (?), n. [L. missio, fr. mittere, missum, to send: cf. F. mission. See Missile.] 1. The act of sending, or the state of being sent; a being sent or delegated by authority, with certain powers for transacting business; comission.

Whose glorious deeds, but in these fields of late,
Made emulous missions ‘mongst the gods themselves.

Shak.

2. That with which a messenger or agent is charged; an errand; business or duty on which one is sent; a commission.

How to begin, how to accomplish best
His end of being on earth, and mission high.

Milton.

3. Persons sent; any number of persons appointed to perform any service; a delegation; an embassy.

In these ships there should be a mission of three of the fellows or brethren of Solomon’s house.

Bacon.

4. An assotiation or organization of missionaries; a station or residence of missionaries.

5. An organization for worship and work, dependent on one or more churches.

6. A course of extraordinary sermons and services at a particular place and time for the special purpose of quickening the faith and zeal participants, and of converting unbelievers. Addis & Arnold.

7. Dismission; discharge from service. [Obs.]

Mission school. (a) A school connected with a mission and conducted by missionaries. (b) A school for the religious instruction of children not having regular church privileges.

Syn. — Message; errand; commission; deputation.

Mis”sion (?), v. t. To send on a mission. [Mostly used in the form of the past participle.] Keats.

Mis”sion*ary (?), n.; pl. Missionaries (#). [Cf. F. missionnaire. See Mission, n.] One who is sent on a mission; especially, one sent to propagate religion. Swift.

Missionary apostolic, a Roman Catholic missionary sent by commission from the pope.

Mis”sion*a*ry, a. Of or pertaining to missions; as, a missionary meeting; a missionary fund.

Mis”sion*er (?), n. A missionary; an envoy; one who conducts a mission. See Mission, n., 6. “Like mighty missioner you come.” Dryden.

Mis”sis (?), n. A mistress; a wife; — so used by the illiterate. G. Eliot.

Miss”ish, a. Like a miss; prim; affected; sentimental.

— Miss”ish*ness, n.

Mis*sit” (?), v. t. To sit badly or imperfectly upon; to misbecome. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mis”sive (?), a. [See Missive, n.] 1. Specially sent; intended or prepared to be sent; as, a letter missive. Ayliffe.

2. Missile. “The missive weapons fly.” Dryden.

Letters missive, letters conveying the permission, comand, or advice of a superior authority, as a sovereign. They are addressed and sent to some certain person or persons, and are distinguished from letters patent, which are addressed to the public.

Mis”sive, n. [F. lettre missive. See Mission, n.] 1. That which is sent; a writing containing a message.

2. One who is sent; a messenger. [Obs.] Shak.

Mis*sound” (?), v. t. To sound wrongly; to utter or pronounce incorrectly. E,Hall.

Mis*speak” (?), v. i. To err in speaking.

Mis*speak”, v. t. To utter wrongly.

Mis*speech” (?), n. Wrong speech. [Obs.]

Mis*spell” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Misspelled (?), or Misspelt (&?;); p. pr. & vb. n. Misspelling.] To spell incorrectly.

Mis*spell”ing, n. A wrong spelling.

Mis*spend” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Misspent (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Misspending.] To spend amiss or for wrong purposes; to squander; to waste; as, to misspend time or money. J. Philips.

Mis*spend”er (?), n. One who misspends.

Mis*spense” (?), n. A spending improperly; a wasting. [Obs.] Barrow.

Mis*spent” (?), imp. & p. p. of Misspend.

Mis*state” (?), v. t. To state wrongly; as, to misstate a question in debate. Bp. Sanderson.

Mis*state”ment (?), n. An incorrect statement.

Mis*stayed” (?), a. (Naut.) Having missed stays; — said of a ship.

Mis*step”, n. A wrong step; an error of conduct.

Mis*step”, v. i. To take a wrong step; to go astray.

Mis`suc*cess” (?), n. Failure. [Obs.]

Mis`sug*ges”tion (? or ?), n. Wrong or evil suggestion. [Obs.] Bp. Hall.

Mis`sum*ma”tion, n. Wrong summation.

Mis*swear” (?), v. i. To swear falsely.

Mis”sy (?), n. (Min.) See Misy.

Mis”sy, n. An affectionate, or contemptuous, form of miss; a young girl; a miss. — a. Like a miss, or girl.

Mist (m&ibreve;st), n. [AS. mist; akin to D. & Sw. mist, Icel. mistr, G. mist dung, Goth. maíhstus, AS. mīgan to make water, Icel. mīga, Lith. migla mist, Russ. mgla, L. mingere, meiere, to make water, Gr. &?; to make water, &?; mist, Skr. mih to make water, n., a mist m&fist;gha cloud. √102. Cf. Misle, Mizzle, Mixen.] 1. Visible watery vapor suspended in the atmosphere, at or near the surface of the earth; fog.

2. Coarse, watery vapor, floating or falling in visible particles, approaching the form of rain; as, Scotch mist.

3. Hence, anything which dims or darkens, and obscures or intercepts vision.

His passion cast a mist before his sense.

Dryden.

Mist flower (Bot.), a composite plant (Eupatorium cœlestinum), having heart-shaped leaves, and corymbs of lavender-blue flowers. It is found in the Western and Southern United States.

Mist, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Misted; p. pr. & vb. n. Misting.] To cloud; to cover with mist; to dim. Shak.

Mist, v. i. To rain in very fine drops; as, it mists.

Mis*tak”a*ble (?), a. Liable to be mistaken; capable of being misconceived. Sir T. Browne.

Mis*take” (m&ibreve;s*tāk”), v. t. [imp. & obs. p. p. Mistook (- t&oocr;k”); p. p. Mistaken (tāk“‘n); p. pr. & vb. n. Mistaking.] [Pref. mis + take: cf. Icel. mistaka.] 1. To take or choose wrongly. [Obs. or R.] Shak.

2. To take in a wrong sense; to misunderstand misapprehend, or misconceive; as, to mistake a remark; to mistake one’s meaning. Locke.

My father’s purposes have been mistook.

Shak.

3. To substitute in thought or perception; as, to mistake one person for another.

A man may mistake the love of virtue for the practice of it.

Johnson.

4. To have a wrong idea of in respect of character, qualities, etc.; to misjudge.

Mistake me not so much,
To think my poverty is treacherous.

Shak.

Mis*take”, v. i. To err in knowledge, perception, opinion, or judgment; to commit an unintentional error.

Servants mistake, and sometimes occasion misunderstanding among friends.

Swift.

Mis*take” (m&ibreve;s*tāk”), n. 1. An apprehending wrongly; a misconception; a misunderstanding; a fault in opinion or judgment; an unintentional error of conduct.

Infallibility is an absolute security of the understanding from all possibility of mistake.

Tillotson.

2. (Law) Misconception, error, which when non-negligent may be ground for rescinding a contract, or for refusing to perform it.

No mistake, surely; without fail; as, it will happen at the appointed time, and no mistake. [Low]

Syn. — Blunder; error; bull. See Blunder.

Mis*tak”en (?), p. a. 1. Being in error; judging wrongly; having a wrong opinion or a misconception; as, a mistaken man; he is mistaken.

2. Erroneous; wrong; as, a mistaken notion.

Mis*tak”en*ly, adv. By mistake. Goldsmith.

Mis*tak”en*ness, n. Erroneousness.

Mis*tak”er (?), n. One who mistakes.

Well meaning ignorance of some mistakers.

Bp. Hall.

Mis*tak”ing, n. An error; a mistake. Shak.

Mis*tak”ing*ly, adv. Erroneously.

Mis*taught” (m&ibreve;s*t&add;t”), a. [See Misteach.] Wrongly taught; as, a mistaught youth. L’Estrange.

Mis*teach” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mistaught (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Misteaching.] [AS. mist&aemacr;can.] To teach wrongly; to instruct erroneously.

Mis*tell” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mistold (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mistelling.] To tell erroneously.

Mis*tem”per (?), v. t. To temper ill; to disorder; as, to mistemper one’s head. Warner.

This inundation of mistempered humor.

Shak.

Mis”ter (?), n. [See Master, and cf. Mistress.] A title of courtesy prefixed to the name of a man or youth. It is usually written in the abbreviated form Mr.

To call your name, inquire your where,
Or what you think of Mister Some-one’s book,
Or Mister Other’s marriage or decease.

Mrs. Browning.

Mis”ter, v. t. To address or mention by the title Mr.; as, he mistered me in a formal way. [Colloq.]

Mis”ter, n. [OF. mistier trade, office, ministry, need, F. métier trade, fr. L. ministerium service, office, ministry. See Ministry, Mystery trade.] [Written also mester.] 1. A trade, art, or occupation. [Obs.]

In youth he learned had a good mester.

Chaucer.

2. Manner; kind; sort. [Obs.] Spenser.

But telleth me what mester men ye be.

Chaucer.

3. Need; necessity. [Obs.] Rom. of R.

Mis”ter, v. i. To be needful or of use. [Obs.]

As for my name, it mistereth not to tell.

Spenser.

Mis*term” (?), v. t. To call by a wrong name; to miscall.

Mis”ter*y (?), n. See Mystery, a trade.

Mist”ful (?), a. Clouded with, or as with, mist.

Mis*think” (?), v. i. [See Think.] To think wrongly. [Obs.] “Adam misthought of her.” Milton.

Mis*think”, v. t. To have erroneous thoughts or judgment of; to think ill of. [Obs.] Shak.

Mis*thought” (?), n. Erroneous thought; mistaken opinion; error. [Obs.] Spenser.

Mis*thrive” (?), v. i. To thrive poorly; to be not thrifty or prosperous. [Obs.]

Mis*throw” (?), v. t. To throw wrongly.

{ Mis”tic (?), Mis”ti*co (?), } n. [Sp. místico.] A kind of small sailing vessel used in the Mediterranean. It is rigged partly like a xebec, and partly like a felucca.

Mis*tide” (?), v. i. [AS. mistīdan. See Tide.] To happen or come to pass unfortunately; also, to suffer evil fortune. [Obs.]

{ ||Mis`ti`gris” (?), ||Mis`ti`gri” }, n. [F. mistigri.] A variety of the game of poker in which the joker is used, and called mistigris or mistigri.

Mist”i*head (?), n. Mistiness. [Obs.]

Mist”i*ly, adv. With mist; darkly; obscurely.

Mis*time” (?), v. t. [AS. mistīmain to turn out ill.] To time wrongly; not to adapt to the time.

Mist”i*ness (?), n. State of being misty.

Mis”tion (?), n. [L. mistio, mixtio. See Mix, and cf. Mixtion.] Mixture. [Obs.]

Mis*ti”tle (?), v. t. To call by a wrong title.

Mis”tle (?), v. i. [Eng. mist. See Misle, and Mizzle.] To fall in very fine drops, as rain.

Mis”tle*toe (?), n. [AS. misteltān; mistel mistletoe + tān twig. AS. mistel is akin of D., G., Dan. & Sw. mistel, OHG. mistil, Icel. mistilteinn; and AS. tān to D. teen, OHG. zein, Icel. teinn, Goth. tains. Cf. Missel.] (Bot.) A parasitic evergreen plant of Europe (Viscum album), bearing a glutinous fruit. When found upon the oak, where it is rare, it was an object of superstitious regard among the Druids. A bird lime is prepared from its fruit. [Written also misletoe, misseltoe, and mistleto.] Lindley. Loudon.

&fist; The mistletoe of the United States is Phoradendron flavescens, having broader leaves than the European kind. In different regions various similar plants are called by this name.

||Mis”to*nusk (?), n. [From the Indian name.] (Zoöl.) The American badger.

Mis*took” (?), imp. & obs. p. p. of Mistake.

Mis`tra*di”tion (?), n. A wrong tradition. “Monsters of mistradition.” Tennyson.

Mis*train” (?), v. t. To train amiss.

Mis”tral (?), n. [F., fr. Provençal.] A violent and cold northwest wind experienced in the Mediterranean provinces of France, etc.

Mis`trans*late” (?), v. t. To translate erroneously.

Mis`trans*la”tion (?), n. Wrong translation.

Mis`trans*port” (?), v. t. To carry away or mislead wrongfully, as by passion. [Obs.] Bp. Hall.

Mis*tread”ing (?), n. Misstep; misbehavior. “To punish my mistreadings.” Shak.

Mis*treat” (?), v. t. To treat amiss; to abuse.

Mis*treat”ment (?), n. Wrong treatment.

Mis”tress (?), n. [OE. maistress, OF. maistresse, F. maîtresse, LL. magistrissa, for L. magistra, fem. of magister. See Master, Mister, and cf. Miss a young woman.] 1. A woman having power, authority, or ownership; a woman who exercises authority, is chief, etc.; the female head of a family, a school, etc.

The late queen’s gentlewoman! a knight’s daughter!
To be her mistress‘ mistress!

Shak.

2. A woman well skilled in anything, or having the mastery over it.

A letter desires all young wives to make themselves mistresses of Wingate’s Arithmetic.

Addison.

3. A woman regarded with love and devotion; she who has command over one’s heart; a beloved object; a sweetheart. [Poetic] Clarendon.

4. A woman filling the place, but without the rights, of a wife; a concubine; a loose woman with whom one consorts habitually. Spectator.

5. A title of courtesy formerly prefixed to the name of a woman, married or unmarried, but now superseded by the contracted forms, Mrs., for a married, and Miss, for an unmarried, woman.

Now Mistress Gilpin (careful soul).

Cowper.

6. A married woman; a wife. [Scot.]

Several of the neighboring mistresses had assembled to witness the event of this memorable evening.

Sir W. Scott.

7. The old name of the jack at bowls. Beau. & Fl.

To be one’s own mistress, to be exempt from control by another person.

Mis”tress, v. i. To wait upon a mistress; to be courting. [Obs.] Donne.

Mis”tress*ship, n. 1. Female rule or dominion.

2. Ladyship, a style of address; — with the personal pronoun. [Obs.] Massinger.

Mis*tri”al (?), n. (Law) A false or erroneous trial; a trial which has no result.

Mis*trist” (?), v. t. To mistrust. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mis*trow” (?), v. i. To think wrongly. [Obs.]

Mis*trust” (?), n. Want of confidence or trust; suspicion; distrust. Milton.

Mis*trust”, v. t. 1. To regard with jealousy or suspicion; to suspect; to doubt the integrity of; to distrust.

I will never mistrust my wife again.

Shak.

2. To forebode as near, or likely to occur; to surmise.

By a divine instinct, men’s minds mistrust
Ensuing dangers.

Shak.

Mis*trust”er (?), n. One who mistrusts.

Mis*trust”ful (?), a. Having or causing mistrust, suspicions, or forebodings.

Their light blown out in some mistrustful wood.

Shak.

— Mis*trust”ful*ly, adv. — Mis*trust”ful*ness, n.

Mis*trust”ing*ly, adv. With distrust or suspicion.

Mis*trust”less, a. Having no mistrust or suspicion.

The swain mistrustless of his smutted face.

Goldsmith.

Mis*tune” (?), v. t. To tune wrongly.

||Mis*tu”ra (?), n. [L. See Mixture.] (Med.) (a) A mingled compound in which different ingredients are contained in a liquid state; a mixture. See Mixture, n., 4. (b) Sometimes, a liquid medicine containing very active substances, and which can only be administered by drops. Dunglison.

Mis*turn” (?), v. t. To turn amiss; to pervert.

Mis*tu”tor (?), v. t. To instruct amiss.

Mist”y (m&ibreve;st”&ybreve;), a. [Compar. Mistier (-&ibreve;*&etilde;r); superl. Mistiest.] [AS. mistig. See Mist. In some senses misty has been confused with mystic.] 1. Accompanied with mist; characterized by the presence of mist; obscured by, or overspread with, mist; as, misty weather; misty mountains; a misty atmosphere.

2. Obscured as if by mist; dim; obscure; clouded; as, misty sight.

The more I muse therein [theology],
The mistier it seemeth.

Piers Plowman.

Mis*un`der*stand” (m&ibreve;s*ŭn`d&etilde;r*stănd”), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Misunderstood (- st&oocr;d”); p. pr. & vb. n. Misunderstanding.] To misconceive; to mistake; to miscomprehend; to take in a wrong sense.

Mis*un`der*stand”er (-&etilde;r), n. One who misunderstands. Sir T. More.

Mis*un`der*stand”ing, n. 1. Mistake of the meaning; error; misconception. Bacon.

2. Disagreement; difference of opinion; dissension; quarrel. “Misunderstandings among friends.” Swift.

||Mi`su*ra”to (mē`s&oomac;*rä“t&osl;), a. [It.] (Mus.) Measured; — a direction to perform a passage in strict or measured time.

Mis*us”age (m&ibreve;s*ūz”&asl;j), n. [Cf. F. mésusage.] Bad treatment; abuse. Spenser.

Mis*use” (ūz”), v. t. [F. mésuser. See Mis, prefix from French, and Use.] 1. To treat or use improperly; to use to a bad purpose; to misapply; as, to misuse one’s talents. South.

The sweet poison of misused wine.

Milton.

2. To abuse; to treat ill.

O, she misused me past the endurance of a block.

Shak.

Syn. — To maltreat; abuse; misemploy; misapply.

Mis*use” (m&ibreve;s*ūs”), n. 1. Wrong use; misapplication; erroneous or improper use.

Words little suspected for any such misuse.

Locke.

2. Violence, or its effects. [Obs.] Shak.

Mis*use”ment (?), n. Misuse. [Obs.]

Mis*us”er (?), n. 1. One who misuses. “Wretched misusers of language.” Coleridge.

2. (Law) Unlawful use of a right; use in excess of, or varying from, one’s right. Bouvier.

Mis*val”ue (?), v. t. To value wrongly or too little; to undervalue.

But for I am so young, I dread my work
Wot be misvalued both of old and young.

W. Browne.

Mis*vouch” (?), v. t. To vouch falsely.

Mis*wan”der (?), v. i. To wander in a wrong path; to stray; to go astray. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mis*way” (?), n. A wrong way. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mis*wear” (?), v. t. To wear ill. [Obs.] Bacon.

Mis*wed” (?), v. t. To wed improperly.

Mis*ween” (?), v. i. To ween amiss; to misjudge; to distrust; to be mistaken. [Obs.] Spenser.

Mis*wend” (?), v. i. To go wrong; to go astray. [Obs.] “The world is miswent.” Gower.

Mis*word” (?), v. t. To word wrongly; as, to misword a message, or a sentence.

Mis*word”, n. A word wrongly spoken; a cross word. [Obs.] Sylvester. Breton.

Mis*wor”ship (?), n. Wrong or false worship; mistaken practices in religion. Bp. Hall.

Such hideous jungle of misworships.

Carlyle.

Mis*wor”ship, v. t. To worship wrongly. Bp. Hall.

Mis*wor”ship*er (?), n. One who worships wrongly.

Mis*write” (?), v. t. To write incorrectly.

Mis*wrought” (?), a. Badly wrought. Bacon.

Mi”sy (?), n. [Cf. L. misy a mineral, perh. copperas, Gr. &?;.] (Min.) An impure yellow sulphate of iron; yellow copperas or copiapite.

Mis*yoke” (?), v. t. To yoke improperly.

Mis*zeal”ous (?), a. Mistakenly zealous. [Obs.]

Mite (mīt), n. [AS. mīte mite (in sense 1); akin to LG. mite, D. mijt, G. miete, OHG. mīza; cf. Goth. maitan to cut.] 1. (Zoöl.) A minute arachnid, of the order Acarina, of which there are many species; as, the cheese mite, sugar mite, harvest mite, etc. See Acarina.

2. [D. mijt; prob. the same word.] A small coin formerly circulated in England, rated at about a third of a farthing. The name is also applied to a small coin used in Palestine in the time of Christ.

Two mites, which make a farthing.

Mark xii. 49.

3. A small weight; one twentieth of a grain.

4. Anything very small; a minute object; a very little quantity or particle.

For in effect they be not worth a myte.

Chaucer.

{ Mi”ter, Mi”tre } (?), n. [F. mitre, fr. L. mitra headband, turban, Gr. &?;.] 1. A covering for the head, worn on solemn occasions by church dignitaries. It has been made in many forms, the present form being a lofty cap with two points or peaks. Fairholt.

2. The surface forming the beveled end or edge of a piece where a miter joint is made; also, a joint formed or a junction effected by two beveled ends or edges; a miter joint.

3. (Numis.) A sort of base money or coin.

Miter box (Carp. & Print.), an apparatus for guiding a handsaw at the proper angle in making a miter joint; esp., a wooden or metal trough with vertical kerfs in its upright sides, for guides. — Miter dovetail (Carp.), a kind of dovetail for a miter joint in which there is only one joint line visible, and that at the angle. — Miter gauge (Carp.), a gauge for determining the angle of a miter. — Miter joint, a joint formed by pieces matched and united upon a line bisecting the angle of junction, as by the beveled ends of two pieces of molding or brass rule, etc. The term is used especially when the pieces form a right angle. See Miter, 2. — Miter shell (Zoöl.), any one of numerous species of marine univalve shells of the genus Mitra. — Miter square (Carp.), a bevel with an immovable arm at an angle of 45°, for striking lines on stuff to be mitered; also, a square with an arm adjustable to any angle. — Miter wheels, a pair of bevel gears, of equal diameter, adapted for working together, usually with their axes at right angles.

{ Mi”ter, Mi”tre }, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mitered (?) or Mitred; p. pr. & vb. n. Mitering (?) or Mitring.] 1. To place a miter upon; to adorn with a miter. “Mitered locks.” Milton.

2. To match together, as two pieces of molding or brass rule on a line bisecting the angle of junction; to bevel the ends or edges of, for the purpose of matching together at an angle.

{ Mi”ter, Mi”tre }, v. i. To meet and match together, as two pieces of molding, on a line bisecting the angle of junction.

Mi”ter*wort` (?), n. (Bot.) Any plant of the genus Mitella, — slender, perennial herbs with a pod slightly resembling a bishop’s miter; bishop’s cap.

False miterwort, a white-flowered perennial herb of the United States (Tiarella cardifolia).

Mith”ic (?), a. See Mythic.

||Mi”thras (?), n. [L., from Gr. &?;.] The sun god of the Persians.

Mith”ri*date (?), n. (Med.) An antidote against poison, or a composition in form of an electuary, supposed to serve either as a remedy or a preservative against poison; an alexipharmic; — so called from King Mithridates, its reputed inventor.

[Love is] a drop of the true elixir; no mithridate so effectual against the infection of vice.

Southey.

Mith`ri*dat”ic (m&ibreve;th`r&ibreve;*dăt”&ibreve;k), a. Of or pertaining to King Mithridates, or to a mithridate.

Mit”i*ga*ble (?), a. Admitting of mitigation; that may be mitigated.

Mit”i*gant (?), a. [L. mitigans, p. pr. of mitigare. See Mitigate.] Tending to mitigate; mitigating; lenitive. Johnson.

Mit”i*gate (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mitigated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mitigating.] [L. mitigatus, p. p. of mitigare to soften, mitigate; mitis mild, soft + the root of agere to do, drive.] 1. To make less severe, intense, harsh, rigorous, painful, etc.; to soften; to meliorate; to alleviate; to diminish; to lessen; as, to mitigate heat or cold; to mitigate grief.

2. To make mild and accessible; to mollify; – - applied to persons. [Obs.]

This opinion . . . mitigated kings into companions.

Burke.

Syn. — To alleviate; assuage; allay. See Alleviate.

Mit`i*ga”tion (?), n. [OE. mitigacioun, F. mitigation, fr. L. mitigatio.] The act of mitigating, or the state of being mitigated; abatement or diminution of anything painful, harsh, severe, afflictive, or calamitous; as, the mitigation of pain, grief, rigor, severity, punishment, or penalty.

Syn. — Alleviation; abatement; relief.

Mit”i*ga*tive (?), a. [L. mitigativus: cf. F. mitigatif.] Tending to mitigate; alleviating.

Mit”i*ga`tor (?), n. One who, or that which, mitigates.

Mit”i*ga*to*ry (?), a. Tending to mitigate or alleviate; mitigative.

Mit”ing (?), n. [From Mite.] A little one; — used as a term of endearment. [Obs.] Skelton.

Mi”tome (?), n. [Gr. &?; a thread.] (Biol.) The denser part of the protoplasm of a cell.

||Mi*to”sis (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; a thread.] (Biol.) See Karyokinesis.

||Mi`traille” (?), n. [F. See Mitrailleur.] Shot or bits of iron used sometimes in loading cannon.

||Mi`tra`illeur” (?), n. [F.] (Mil.) One who serves a mitrailleuse.

||Mi`tra`illeuse” (?), n. [F., fr. mitrailler to fire grapeshot, fr. mitraille old iron, grapeshot, dim. of OF. mite a mite.] (Mil.) A breech-loading machine gun consisting of a number of barrels fitted together, so arranged that the barrels can be fired simultaneously, or successively, and rapidly.

Mi”tral (?), a. [Cf. F. mitral. See Miter.] Pertaining to a miter; resembling a miter; as, the mitral valve between the left auricle and left ventricle of the heart.

Mi”tre (?), n. & v. See Miter.

Mit”ri*form (?), a. [Miter + -form: cf. F. mitriforme.] Having the form of a miter, or a peaked cap; as, a mitriform calyptra. Gray.

Mitt (?), n. [Abbrev. fr. mitten.] A mitten; also, a covering for the wrist and hand and not for the fingers.

Mit”ten (?), n. [OE. mitaine, meteyn, F. mitaine, perh. of Celtic origin; cf. Ir. miotog, Gael. miotag, Ir. & Gael. mutan a muff, a thick glove. Cf. Mitt.] 1. A covering for the hand, worn to defend it from cold or injury. It differs from a glove in not having a separate sheath for each finger. Chaucer.

2. A cover for the wrist and forearm.

To give the mitten to, to dismiss as a lover; to reject the suit of. [Colloq.] — To handle without mittens, to treat roughly; to handle without gloves. [Colloq.]

Mit”tened (?), a. Covered with a mitten or mittens. “Mittened hands.” Whittier.

Mit”tent (?), a. [L. mittens, p. pr. of mittere to send.] Sending forth; emitting. [Obs.] Wiseman.

||Mit”ti*mus (?), n. [L., we send, fr. mittere to send.] (Law) (a) A precept or warrant granted by a justice for committing to prison a party charged with crime; a warrant of commitment to prison. Burrill. (b) A writ for removing records from one court to another. Brande & C.

Mit”tler’s green` (?). (Chem.) A pigment of a green color, the chief constituent of which is oxide of chromium.

Mit”ty (?), n. The stormy petrel. [Prov. Eng.]

Mi”tu (mī“t&usl;), n. [Braz. mitu poranga.] (Zoöl.) A South American curassow of the genus Mitua.

Mit”y (?), a. [From Mite.] Having, or abounding with, mites.

Mix (m&ibreve;ks), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mixed (m&ibreve;kst) (less properly Mixt); p. pr. & vb. n. Mixing.] [AS. miscan; akin to OHG. misken, G. mischen, Russ. mieshate, W. mysgu, Gael. measg, L. miscere, mixtum, Gr. mi`sgein, migny`nai, Skr. miçra mixed. The English word has been influenced by L. miscere, mixtum (cf. Mixture), and even the AS. miscan may have been borrowed fr. L. miscere. Cf. Admix, Mash to bruise, Meddle.] 1. To cause a promiscuous interpenetration of the parts of, as of two or more substances with each other, or of one substance with others; to unite or blend into one mass or compound, as by stirring together; to mingle; to blend; as, to mix flour and salt; to mix wines.

Fair persuasions mixed with sugared words.

Shak.

2. To unite with in company; to join; to associate.

Ephraim, he hath mixed himself among the people.

Hos. vii. 8.

3. To form by mingling; to produce by the stirring together of ingredients; to compound of different parts.

Hast thou no poison mixed?

Shak.

I have chosen an argument mixed of religious and civil considerations.

Bacon.

Mix (?), v. i. 1. To become united into a compound; to be blended promiscuously together.

2. To associate; to mingle.

He had mixed
Again in fancied safety with his kind.

Byron.

Mix”a*ble (?), a. Capable of being mixed.

Mixed (?), a. Formed by mixing; united; mingled; blended. See Mix, v. t. & i.

Mixed action (Law), a suit combining the properties of a real and a personal action. — Mixed angle, a mixtilineal angle. — Mixed fabric, a textile fabric composed of two or more kinds of fiber, as a poplin. — Mixed marriage, a marriage between persons of different races or religions; specifically, one between a Roman Catholic and a Protestant. — Mixed number, a whole number and a fraction taken together. — Mixed train, a railway train containing both passenger and freight cars. — Mixed voices (Mus.), voices of both males and females united in the same performance.

Mix”ed*ly (?), adv. In a mixed or mingled manner.

Mix”en (?), n. [AS. mixen, myxen, fr. meohx, meox, dung, filth; akin to E. mist. See Mist.] A compost heap; a dunghill. Chaucer. Tennyson.

Mix”er (?), n. One who, or that which, mixes.

Mix*og”a*mous (?), a. [Gr. &?; a mixing + &?; marriage.] (Zoöl.) Pairing with several males; — said of certain fishes of which several males accompany each female during spawning.

Mix`o*lyd”i*an mode` (?). [Gr. &?; a mixing + E. Lydian.] (Mus.) The seventh ecclesiastical mode, whose scale commences on G.

{ Mix`ti*lin”e*al (?), Mix`ti*lin”e*ar (?), } a. [L. mixtus mixed (p. p. of miscere to mix) + E. lineal, linear.] Containing, or consisting of, lines of different kinds, as straight, curved, and the like; as, a mixtilinear angle, that is, an angle contained by a straight line and a curve. [R.]

Mix”tion (?), n. [L. mixtio, mistio: cf. F. mixtion. See Mistion, Mix.] 1. Mixture. [Obs.]

2. A kind of cement made of mastic, amber, etc., used as a mordant for gold leaf.

Mixt”ly (?), adv. With mixture; in a mixed manner; mixedly. Bacon.

Mix”ture (?), n. [L. mixtura, fr. miscere, mixtum, to mix: cf. F. mixture. See Mix.] 1. The act of mixing, or the state of being mixed; as, made by a mixture of ingredients. Hooker.

2. That which results from mixing different ingredients together; a compound; as, to drink a mixture of molasses and water; — also, a medley.

There is also a mixture of good and evil wisely distributed by God, to serve the ends of his providence.

Atterbury.

3. An ingredient entering into a mixed mass; an additional ingredient.

Cicero doubts whether it were possible for a community to exist that had not a prevailing mixture of piety in its constitution.

Addison.

4. (Med.) A kind of liquid medicine made up of many ingredients; esp., as opposed to solution, a liquid preparation in which the solid ingredients are not completely dissolved.

5. (Physics & Chem.) A mass of two or more ingredients, the particles of which are separable, independent, and uncompounded with each other, no matter how thoroughly and finely commingled; — contrasted with a compound; thus, gunpowder is a mechanical mixture of carbon, sulphur, and niter.

6. (Mus.) An organ stop, comprising from two to five ranges of pipes, used only in combination with the foundation and compound stops; — called also furniture stop. It consists of high harmonics, or overtones, of the ground tone.

Syn. — Union; admixture; intermixture; medley.

Miz”maze` (?), n. A maze or labyrinth. [Obs.]

Miz”zen (?), a. [It. mezzana, fr. mezzano middle, fr. mezzo middle, half: cf. F. misaine foresail. See Mezzo.] (Naut.) Hindmost; nearest the stern; as, the mizzen shrouds, sails, etc.

Miz”zen, n. (Naut.) The hindmost of the fore and aft sails of a three-masted vessel; also, the spanker.

Miz”zen*mast (?), n. (Naut.) The hindmost mast of a three-masted vessel, or of a yawl-rigged vessel.

Miz”zle (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Mizzled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mizzling (?).] [See Misle, and cf. Mistle.] 1. To rain in very fine drops. Spenser.

2. To take one’s self off; to go. [Slang]

As long as George the Fourth could reign, he reigned,
And then he mizzled.

Epigram, quoted by Wright.

Miz”zle, n. Mist; fine rain.

Miz”zy (?), n. [Cf. F. moisi moldy, musty, p. p. of moisir to mold, fr. L. mucere to be moldy.] A bog or quagmire. [Obs.] Ainsworth.

{ Mne*mon”ic (n&esl;*m&obreve;n”&ibreve;k), Mne*mon”ic*al (-&ibreve;*kal), } a. [Gr. mnhmoniko`s, fr. mnh`mwn mindful, remembering, mnh`mh memory, mna^sqai to think on, remember; akin to E. mind.] Assisting in memory.

Mne`mo*ni”cian (?), n. One who instructs in the art of improving or using the memory.

Mne*mon”ics (?), n. [Gr. ta~ mnhmonika`: cf. F. mnémonique.] The art of memory; a system of precepts and rules intended to assist the memory; artificial memory.

Mne*mos”y*ne (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. mnhmosy`nh remembrance, memory, and the goddess of memory. See Mnemonic.] (Class Myth.) The goddess of memory and the mother of the Muses.

Mne”mo*tech`ny (?), n. [Gr. &?; memory + &?; art: cf. F. mnémotechnie.] Mnemonics.

Mo (?), a., adv., & n. [Written also moe.] [AS. mā. See More.] More; — usually, more in number. [Obs.]

An hundred thousand mo.

Chaucer.

Likely to find mo to commend than to imitate it.

Fuller.

-mo (?). A suffix added to the names of certain numerals or to the numerals themselves, to indicate the number of leaves made by folding a sheet of paper; as, sixteenmo or 16mo; eighteenmo or 18mo. It is taken from the Latin forms similarly used; as, duodecimo, sextodecimo, etc. A small circle, placed after the number and near its top, is often used for -mo; as, 16°, 18°, etc.

Mo”a (mō”&adot;), n. [Native name.] (Zoöl.) Any one of several very large extinct species of wingless birds belonging to Dinornis, and other related genera, of the suborder Dinornithes, found in New Zealand. They are allied to the apteryx and the ostrich. They were probably exterminated by the natives before New Zealand was discovered by Europeans. Some species were much larger than the ostrich.

Mo”ab*ite (?), n. One of the posterity of Moab, the son of Lot. (Gen. xix. 37.) Also used adjectively.

Mo”ab*i`tess (?), n. A female Moabite. Ruth i. 22.

Mo”ab*i`tish (?), a. Moabite. Ruth ii. 6.

Moan (mōn), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Moaned (mōnd); p. pr. & vb. n. Moaning.] [AS. m&aemacr;nan to moan, also, to mean; but in the latter sense perh. a different word. Cf. Mean to intend.] 1. To make a low prolonged sound of grief or pain, whether articulate or not; to groan softly and continuously.

Unpitied and unheard, where misery moans.

Thomson.

Let there bechance him pitiful mischances,
To make him moan.

Shak.

2. To emit a sound like moan; — said of things inanimate; as, the wind moans.

Moan, v. t. 1. To bewail audibly; to lament.

Ye floods, ye woods, ye echoes, moan
My dear Columbo, dead and gone.

Prior.

2. To afflict; to distress. [Obs.]

Which infinitely moans me.

Beau. & Fl.

Moan, n. [OE. mone. See Moan, v. i.] 1. A low prolonged sound, articulate or not, indicative of pain or of grief; a low groan.

Sullen moans, hollow groans.

Pope.

2. A low mournful or murmuring sound; — of things.

Rippling waters made a pleasant moan.

Byron.

Moan”ful (?), a. Full of moaning; expressing sorrow. — Moan”ful*ly, adv.

Moat (?), n. [OF. mote hill, dike, bank, F. motte clod, turf: cf. Sp. & Pg. mota bank or mound of earth, It. motta clod, LL. mota, motta, a hill on which a fort is built, an eminence, a dike, Prov. G. mott bog earth heaped up; or perh. F. motte, and OF. mote, are from a LL. p. p. of L. movere to move (see Move). The name of moat, properly meaning, bank or mound, was transferred to the ditch adjoining: cf. F. dike and ditch.] (Fort.) A deep trench around the rampart of a castle or other fortified place, sometimes filled with water; a ditch.

Moat, v. t. To surround with a moat. Dryden.

Moate (?), v. i. [See Mute to molt.] To void the excrement, as a bird; to mute. [Obs.]

Mob (?), n. [See Mobcap.] A mobcap. Goldsmith.

Mob, v. t. To wrap up in, or cover with, a cowl. [R.]

Mob, n. [L. mobile vulgus, the movable common people. See Mobile, n.] 1. The lower classes of a community; the populace, or the lowest part of it.

A cluster of mob were making themselves merry with their betters.

Addison.

2. Hence: A throng; a rabble; esp., an unlawful or riotous assembly; a disorderly crowd.

The mob of gentlemen who wrote with ease.

Pope.

Had every Athenian citizen been a Socrates, every Athenian assembly would still have been a mob.

Madison.

Confused by brainless mobs.

Tennyson.

Mob law, law administered by the mob; lynch law. — Swell mob, well dressed thieves and swindlers, regarded collectively. [Slang] Dickens.

Mob, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mobbed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mobbing.] To crowd about, as a mob, and attack or annoy; as, to mob a house or a person.

Mob”bish (?), a. Like a mob; tumultuous; lawless; as, a mobbish act. Bp. Kent.

Mob”cap` (?), n. [D. mop-muts; OD. mop a woman’s coif + D. muts cap.] A plain cap or headdress for women or girls; especially, one tying under the chin by a very broad band, generally of the same material as the cap itself. Thackeray.

Mo”bile (?), a. [L. mobilis, for movibilis, fr. movere to move: cf. F. mobile. See Move.] 1. Capable of being moved; not fixed in place or condition; movable. “Fixed or else mobile.” Skelton.

2. Characterized by an extreme degree of fluidity; moving or flowing with great freedom; as, benzine and mercury are mobile liquids; — opposed to viscous, viscoidal, or oily.

3. Easily moved in feeling, purpose, or direction; excitable; changeable; fickle. Testament of Love.

The quick and mobile curiosity of her disposition.

Hawthorne.

4. Changing in appearance and expression under the influence of the mind; as, mobile features.

5. (Physiol.) Capable of being moved, aroused, or excited; capable of spontaneous movement.

Mo”bile (mō“b&ibreve;l; L. m&obreve;b”&ibreve;*lē), n. [L. mobile vulgus. See Mobile, a., and cf. 3d Mob.] The mob; the populace. [Obs.] “The unthinking mobile.” South.

Mo*bil”i*ty (m&osl;*b&ibreve;l”&ibreve;*t&ybreve;), n. [L. mobilitas: cf. F. mobilité.] 1. The quality or state of being mobile; as, the mobility of a liquid, of an army, of the populace, of features, of a muscle. Sir T. Browne.

2. The mob; the lower classes. [Humorous] Dryden.

Mob`i*li*za”tion (?), n. [F. mobilization.] The act of mobilizing.

Mob”i*lize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mobilized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mobilizing (?).] [F. mobiliser.] To put in a state of readiness for active service in war, as an army corps.

Mo”ble (?), v. t. [From Mob to wrap up.] To wrap the head of in a hood. [Obs.] Shak.

Mo”bles (?), n. pl. See Moebles. [Obs.]

Mob*oc”ra*cy (?), n. [Mob rabble + -cracy, as in democracy.] A condition in which the lower classes of a nation control public affairs without respect to law, precedents, or vested rights.

It is good name that Dr. Stevens has given to our present situation (for one can not call it a government), a mobocracy.

Walpole.

Mob”o*crat (?), n. One who favors a form of government in which the unintelligent populace rules without restraint. Bayne.

Mob`o*crat”ic (?), a. Of, or relating to, a mobocracy.

Moc”ca*sin (?), n. [An Indian word. Algonquin makisin.] [Sometimes written moccason.] 1. A shoe made of deerskin, or other soft leather, the sole and upper part being one piece. It is the customary shoe worn by the American Indians.

2. (Zoöl.) A poisonous snake of the Southern United States. The water moccasin (Ancistrodon piscivorus) is usually found in or near water. Above, it is olive brown, barred with black; beneath, it is brownish yellow, mottled with darker. The upland moccasin is Ancistrodon atrofuscus. They resemble rattlesnakes, but are without rattles.

Moccasin flower (Bot.), a species of lady’s slipper (Cypripedium acaule) found in North America. The lower petal is two inches long, and forms a rose-colored moccasin-shaped pouch. It grows in rich woods under coniferous trees.

Moc”ca*sined (?), a. Covered with, or wearing, a moccasin or moccasins. “Moccasined feet.” Harper’s Mag.

Mo”cha (?), n. 1. A seaport town of Arabia, on the Red Sea.

2. A variety of coffee brought from Mocha.

3. An Abyssinian weight, equivalent to a Troy grain.

Mocha stone (Min.), moss agate.

||Moche (?), n. [F.] A bale of raw silk.

Moche (?), a. Much. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Moch”el (?), a. & adv. Much. [Obs.] Chaucer.

||Mo*chi”la (?), n. [Sp.] A large leather flap which covers the saddletree. [Western U.S.]

Mock (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mocked (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mocking.] [F. moquer, of uncertain origin; cf. OD. mocken to mumble, G. mucken, OSw. mucka.] 1. To imitate; to mimic; esp., to mimic in sport, contempt, or derision; to deride by mimicry.

To see the life as lively mocked as ever
Still sleep mocked death.

Shak.

Mocking marriage with a dame of France.

Shak.

2. To treat with scorn or contempt; to deride.

Elijah mocked them, and said, Cry aloud.

1 Kings xviii. 27.

Let not ambition mock their useful toil.

Gray.

3. To disappoint the hopes of; to deceive; to tantalize; as, to mock expectation.

Thou hast mocked me, and told me lies.

Judg. xvi. 13.

He will not . . .
Mock us with his blest sight, then snatch him hence.

Milton.

Syn. — To deride; ridicule; taunt; jeer; tantalize; disappoint. See Deride.

Mock, v. i. To make sport in contempt or in jest; to speak in a scornful or jeering manner.

When thou mockest, shall no man make thee ashamed?

Job xi. 3.

She had mocked at his proposal.

Froude.

Mock, n. 1. An act of ridicule or derision; a scornful or contemptuous act or speech; a sneer; a jibe; a jeer.

Fools make a mock at sin.

Prov. xiv. 9.

2. Imitation; mimicry. [R.] Crashaw.

Mock, a. Imitating reality, but not real; false; counterfeit; assumed; sham.

That superior greatness and mock majesty.

Spectator.

Mock bishop’s weed (Bot.), a genus of slender umbelliferous herbs (Discopleura) growing in wet places. — Mock heroic, burlesquing the heroic; as, a mock heroic poem. — Mock lead. See Blende (a). — Mock nightingale (Zoöl.), the European blackcap. — Mock orange (Bot.), a genus of American and Asiatic shrubs (Philadelphus), with showy white flowers in panicled cymes. P. coronarius, from Asia, has fragrant flowers; the American kinds are nearly scentless. — Mock sun. See Parhelion. — Mock turtle soup, a soup made of calf’s head, veal, or other meat, and condiments, in imitation of green turtle soup. — Mock velvet, a fabric made in imitation of velvet. See Mockado.

Mock”a*ble (?), a. Such as can be mocked. Shak.

Mock”a*do (?), n. A stuff made in imitation of velvet; — probably the same as mock velvet. [Obs.]

Our rich mockado doublet.

Ford.

Mock”a*dour (?), n. See Mokadour. [Obs.]

Mock”age (?), n. Mockery. [Obs.] Fuller.

Mock”bird` (?), n. (Zoöl.) The European sedge warbler (Acrocephalus phragmitis).

Mock”er (?), n. 1. One who, or that which, mocks; a scorner; a scoffer; a derider.

2. A deceiver; an impostor.

3. (Zoöl.) A mocking bird.

Mocker nut (Bot.), a kind of hickory (Carya tomentosa) and its fruit, which is far inferior to the true shagbark hickory nut.

Mock”er*y (?), n.; pl. Mockeries (#). [F. moquerie.] 1. The act of mocking, deriding, and exposing to contempt, by mimicry, by insincere imitation, or by a false show of earnestness; a counterfeit appearance.

It is, as the air, invulnerable,
And our vain blows malicious mockery.

Shak.

Grace at meals is now generally so performed as to look more like a mockery upon devotion than any solemn application of the mind to God.

Law.

And bear about the mockery of woe.

Pope.

2. Insulting or contemptuous action or speech; contemptuous merriment; derision; ridicule.

The laughingstock of fortune’s mockeries.

Spenser.

3. Subject of laughter, derision, or sport.

The cruel handling of the city whereof they made a mockery.

2 Macc. viii. 17.

Mock”ing, a. Imitating, esp. in derision, or so as to cause derision; mimicking; derisive.

Mocking bird (Zoöl.), a North American singing bird (Mimus polyglottos), remarkable for its exact imitations of the notes of other birds. Its back is gray; the tail and wings are blackish, with a white patch on each wing; the outer tail feathers are partly white. The name is also applied to other species of the same genus, found in Mexico, Central America, and the West Indies. — Mocking thrush (Zoöl.), any species of the genus Harporhynchus, as the brown thrush (H. rufus). — Mocking wren (Zoöl.), any American wren of the genus Thryothorus, esp. T. Ludovicianus.

Mock”ing*ly, adv. By way of derision; in a contemptuous or mocking manner.

Mock”ing*stock` (?), n. A butt of sport; an object of derision. [R.]

Mock”ish, a. Mock; counterfeit; sham. [Obs.]

Moc”kle (?), a. See Mickle.

Mo”co (?), n. (Zoöl.) A South American rodent (Cavia rupestris), allied to the Guinea pig, but larger; — called also rock cavy.

Mo”dal (?), a. [Cf. F. modal. See Mode.] 1. Of or pertaining to a mode or mood; consisting in mode or form only; relating to form; having the form without the essence or reality. Glanvill.

2. (Logic & Metaph.) Indicating, or pertaining to, some mode of conceiving existence, or of expressing thought.

Mo”dal*ist, n. (Theol.) One who regards Father, Son, and Spirit as modes of being, and not as persons, thus denying personal distinction in the Trinity. Eadie.

Mo*dal”i*ty (?), n. [Cf. F. modalité.] 1. The quality or state of being modal.

2. (Logic & Metaph.) A modal relation or quality; a mode or point of view under which an object presents itself to the mind. According to Kant, the quality of propositions, as assertory, problematical, or apodeictic.

Mo”dal*ly (?), adv. In a modal manner.

A compound proposition, the parts of which are united modally . . . by the particles “as” and “so.”

Gibbs.

Mode (?), n. [L. modus a measure, due or proper measure, bound, manner, form; akin to E. mete: cf. F. mode. See Mete, and cf. Commodious, Mood in grammar, Modus.] 1. Manner of doing or being; method; form; fashion; custom; way; style; as, the mode of speaking; the mode of dressing.

The duty of itself being resolved on, the mode of doing it may easily be found.

Jer. Taylor.

A table richly spread in regal mode.

Milton.

2. Prevailing popular custom; fashion, especially in the phrase the mode.

The easy, apathetic graces of a man of the mode.

Macaulay.

3. Variety; gradation; degree. Pope.

4. (Metaph.) Any combination of qualities or relations, considered apart from the substance to which they belong, and treated as entities; more generally, condition, or state of being; manner or form of arrangement or manifestation; form, as opposed to matter.

Modes I call such complex ideas, which, however compounded, contain not in them the supposition of subsisting by themselves, but are considered as dependencies on, or affections of, substances.

Locke.

5. (Logic) The form in which the proposition connects the predicate and subject, whether by simple, contingent, or necessary assertion; the form of the syllogism, as determined by the quantity and quality of the constituent proposition; mood.

6. (Gram.) Same as Mood.

7. (Mus.) The scale as affected by the various positions in it of the minor intervals; as, the Dorian mode, the Ionic mode, etc., of ancient Greek music.

&fist; In modern music, only the major and the minor mode, of whatever key, are recognized.

8. A kind of silk. See Alamode, n.

Syn. — Method; manner. See Method.

Mod”el (?), n. [F. modèle, It. modello, fr. (assumed) L. modellus, fr. modulus a small measure, dim. of modus. See Mode, and cf. Module.] 1. A miniature representation of a thing, with the several parts in due proportion; sometimes, a facsimile of the same size.

In charts, in maps, and eke in models made.

Gascoigne.

I had my father’s signet in my purse,
Which was the model of that Danish seal.

Shak.

You have the models of several ancient temples, though the temples and the gods are perished.

Addison.

2. Something intended to serve, or that may serve, as a pattern of something to be made; a material representation or embodiment of an ideal; sometimes, a drawing; a plan; as, the clay model of a sculpture; the inventor’s model of a machine.

[The application for a patent] must be accompanied by a full description of the invention, with drawings and a model where the case admits of it.

Am. Cyc.

When we mean to build
We first survey the plot, then draw the model.

Shak.

3. Anything which serves, or may serve, as an example for imitation; as, a government formed on the model of the American constitution; a model of eloquence, virtue, or behavior.

4. That by which a thing is to be measured; standard.

He that despairs measures Providence by his own little, contracted model.

South.

5. Any copy, or resemblance, more or less exact.

Thou seest thy wretched brother die,
Who was the model of thy father’s life.

Shak.

6. A person who poses as a pattern to an artist.

A professional model.

H. James.

Working model, a model of a machine which can do on a small scale the work which the machine itself does, or is expected to do.

Mod”el (?), a. Suitable to be taken as a model or pattern; as, a model house; a model husband.

Mod”el, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Modeled (?) or Modelled; p. pr. & vb. n. Modeling or Modelling.] [Cf. F. modeler, It. modellare.] To plan or form after a pattern; to form in model; to form a model or pattern for; to shape; to mold; to fashion; as, to model a house or a government; to model an edifice according to the plan delineated.

Mod”el, v. i. (Fine Arts) To make a copy or a pattern; to design or imitate forms; as, to model in wax.

Mod”el*er (?), n. One who models; hence, a worker in plastic art. [Written also modeller.]

Mod”el*ing, n. (Fine Arts) The act or art of making a model from which a work of art is to be executed; the formation of a work of art from some plastic material. Also, in painting, drawing, etc., the expression or indication of solid form. [Written also modelling.]

Modeling plane, a small plane for planing rounded objects. — Modeling wax, beeswax melted with a little Venice turpentine, or other resinous material, and tinted with coloring matter, usually red, — used in modeling.

Mod”el*ize (?), v. t. To model. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

||Mod”e*na (?), n. [From Modena, in Italy.] A certain crimsonlike color. Good.

Mod`e*nese” (?), a. Of or pertaining to Modena or its inhabitants. — n. sing. & pl. A native or inhabitant of Modena; the people of Modena.

Mo”der (?), n. [OE. See Mother female parent.] 1. A mother. [Obs.] Chaucer.

2. The principal piece of an astrolabe, into which the others are fixed. [Obs.]

Mod”er (?), v. t. To moderate. [Obs.]

Mod”er*a*ble (?), a. [L. moderabilis.] Moderate; temperate. [Obs.]

Mod”er*ance (?), n. Moderation. [Obs.] Caxton.

Mod”er*ate (?), a. [L. moderatus, p. p. of moderate, moderati, to moderate, regulate, control, fr. modus measure. See Mode.] Kept within due bounds; observing reasonable limits; not excessive, extreme, violent, or rigorous; limited; restrained; as: (a) Limited in quantity; sparing; temperate; frugal; as, moderate in eating or drinking; a moderate table. (b) Limited in degree of activity, energy, or excitement; reasonable; calm; slow; as, moderate language; moderate endeavors. (c) Not extreme in opinion, in partisanship, and the like; as, a moderate Calvinist.

A number of moderate members managed . . . to obtain a majority in a thin house.

Swift.

(d) Not violent or rigorous; temperate; mild; gentle; as, a moderate winter. “Moderate showers.” Walter. (e) Limited as to degree of progress; as, to travel at moderate speed. (f) Limited as to the degree in which a quality, principle, or faculty appears; as, an infusion of moderate strength; a man of moderate abilities. (g) Limited in scope or effects; as, a reformation of a moderate kind. Hooker.

Mod”er*ate, n. (Eccl. Hist.) One of a party in the Church of Scotland in the 18th century, and part of the 19th, professing moderation in matters of church government, in discipline, and in doctrine.

Mod”er*ate (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Moderated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Moderating.] 1. To restrain from excess of any kind; to reduce from a state of violence, intensity, or excess; to keep within bounds; to make temperate; to lessen; to allay; to repress; to temper; to qualify; as, to moderate rage, action, desires, etc.; to moderate heat or wind.

By its astringent quality, it moderates the relaxing quality of warm water.

Arbuthnot.

To moderate stiff minds disposed to strive.

Spenser.

2. To preside over, direct, or regulate, as a public meeting; as, to moderate a synod.

Mod”er*ate, v. i. 1. To become less violent, severe, rigorous, or intense; as, the wind has moderated.

2. To preside as a moderator.

Dr. Barlow [was] engaged . . . to moderate for him in the divinity disputation.

Bp. Barlow’s Remains (1693).

Mod”er*ate*ly (?), adv. In a moderate manner or degree; to a moderate extent.

Each nymph but moderately fair.

Waller.

Mod”er*ate*ness, n. The quality or state of being moderate; temperateness; moderation.

Mod`er*a”tion (?), n. [L. moderatio: cf. F. modération.] 1. The act of moderating, or of imposing due restraint.

2. The state or quality of being mmoderate.

In moderation placing all my glory,
While Tories call me Whig, and Whigs a Tory.

Pope.

3. Calmness of mind; equanimity; as, to bear adversity with moderation.

The calm and judicious moderation of Orange.

Motley.

4. pl. The first public examinations for degrees at the University of Oxford; — usually contracted to mods.

Mod”er*a*tism (m&obreve;d”&etilde;r*&asl;*t&ibreve;z’m), n. Moderation in doctrines or opinion, especially in politics or religion.

||Mod`e*ra”to (?), a. & adv. [It. See Moderate.] (Mus.) With a moderate degree of quickness; moderately.

Allegro moderato, a little slower than allegro. — Andante moderato, a little faster than andante.

Mod”er*a`tor (?), n. [L.: cf. F. modérateur.] 1. One who, or that which, moderates, restrains, or pacifies. Sir W. Raleigh.

Angling was . . . a moderator of passions.

Walton.

2. The officer who presides over an assembly to preserve order, propose questions, regulate the proceedings, and declare the votes.

3. In the University of Oxford, an examiner for moderations; at Cambridge, the superintendant of examinations for degrees; at Dublin, either the first (senior) or second (junior) in rank in an examination for the degree of Bachelor of Arts.

4. A mechanical arrangement for regulating motion in a machine, or producing equality of effect.

Mod”er*a`tor*ship, n. The office of a moderator.

Mod”er*a`tress (?), n. A female moderator. Fuller.

Mod”er*a`trix (?), n. [L.] A female moderator.

Mod”ern (?), a. [F. moderne, L. modernus; akin to modo just now, orig. abl. of modus measure; hence, by measure, just now. See Mode.] 1. Of or pertaining to the present time, or time not long past; late; not ancient or remote in past time; of recent period; as, modern days, ages, or time; modern authors; modern fashions; modern taste; modern practice. Bacon.

2. New and common; trite; commonplace. [Obs.]

We have our philosophical persons, to make modern and familiar, things supernatural and causeless.

Shak.

Modern English. See the Note under English.

Mod”ern, n. A person of modern times; — opposed to ancient. Pope.

Mod”ern*ism (?), n. Modern practice; a thing of recent date; esp., a modern usage or mode of expression.

Mod”ern*ist, n. [Cf. F. moderniste.] One who admires the moderns, or their ways and fashions.

Mo*der”ni*ty (?), n. Modernness; something modern. Walpole.

Mod`ern*i*za”tion (?), n. The act of rendering modern in style; the act or process of causing to conform to modern of thinking or acting.

Mod”ern*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Modernized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Modernizing (?).] [Cf. F. moderniser.] To render modern; to adapt to modern person or things; to cause to conform to recent or present usage or taste. Percy.

Mod”ern*i`zer (?), n. One who modernizes.

Mod”ern*ly, adv. In modern times. Milton.

Mod”ern*ness, n. The quality or state of being modern; recentness; novelty. M. Arnold.

Mod”est (?), a. [F. modeste, L. modestus, fr. modus measure. See Mode.] 1. Restraining within due limits of propriety; not forward, bold, boastful, or presumptious; rather retiring than pushing one’s self forward; not obstructive; as, a modest youth; a modest man.

2. Observing the proprieties of the sex; not unwomanly in act or bearing; free from undue familiarity, indecency, or lewdness; decent in speech and demeanor; — said of a woman.

Mrs. Ford, the honest woman, the modest wife.

Shak.

The blushing beauties of a modest maid.

Dryden.

3. Evincing modestly in the actor, author, or speaker; not showing presumption; not excessive or extreme; moderate; as, a modest request; modest joy.

Syn. — Reserved; unobtrusive; diffident; bashful; coy; shy; decent; becoming; chaste; virtuous.

Mod”est*ly, adv. In a modest manner.

Mod”es*ty (?), n. [L. modestia: cf. F. modestie. See Modest.] 1. The quality or state of being modest; that lowly temper which accompanies a moderate estimate of one’s own worth and importance; absence of self-assertion, arrogance, and presumption; humility respecting one’s own merit.

2. Natural delicacy or shame regarding personal charms and the sexual relation; purity of thought and manners; due regard for propriety in speech or action.

Her blush is guiltiness, not modesty.

Shak.

Modesty piece, a narrow piece of lace worn by women over the bosom. [Obs.] Addison.

Syn. — Bashfulness; humility; diffidence; shyness. See Bashfulness, and Humility.

Mo*dic”i*ty (?), n. [LL. modicitas; cf. F. modicité.] Moderateness; smallness; meanness. [Obs.]

Mod”i*cum (?), n. [L., fr. modicus moderate, fr. modus. See Mode.] A little; a small quantity; a measured supply. “Modicums of wit.” Shak.

Her usual modicum of beer and punch.

Thackeray.

Mod`i*fi`a*bil”i*ty (?), n. Capability of being modified; state or quality of being modifiable.

Mod”i*fi`a*ble (?), a. [From Modify.] Capable of being modified; liable to modification.

Mo*dif”i*ca*ble (?), a. Modifiable. [Obs.]

Mod”i*fi*cate (?), v. t. [See Modify.] To qualify. [Obs.] Bp. Pearson.

Mod`i*fi*ca”tion (?), n. [L. modificatio a measuring: cf. F. modification. See Modify.] The act of modifying, or the state of being modified; a modified form or condition; state as modified; a change; as, the modification of an opinion, or of a machine; the various modifications of light. Bentley.

Mod”i*fi*ca*tive (?), n. That which modifies or qualifies, as a word or clause.

Mod”i*fi*ca`to*ry (?), a. Tending or serving to modify; modifying. Max Müller.

Mod”i*fi`er (?), n. One who, or that which, modifies. Hume.

Mod”i*fy (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Modified (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Modifying (?).] [F. modifier, L. modificare, modificari; modus limit + -ficare (in comp.) to make. See Mode, and -fy.] 1. To change somewhat the form or qualities of; to alter somewhat; as, to modify a contrivance adapted to some mechanical purpose; to modify the terms of a contract.

2. To limit or reduce in extent or degree; to moderate; to qualify; to lower.

Of his grace
He modifies his first severe decree.

Dryden.

Mo*dil”lion (?), n. [F. modillon, It. modiglione. Cf. Module, n.] (Arch.) The enriched block or horizontal bracket generally found under the cornice of the Corinthian and Composite entablature, and sometimes, less ornamented, in the Ionic and other orders; — so called because of its arrangement at regulated distances.

Mo*di”o*lar (?), a. [L. modiolus, dim. of modius the Roman corn measure.] Shaped like a bushel measure.

||Mo*di”o*lus (?), n.; pl. Modioli (#). [L., a small measure.] (Anat.) The central column in the osseous cochlea of the ear.

Mod”ish (?), a. According to the mode, or customary manner; conformed to the fashion; fashionable; hence, conventional; as, a modish dress; a modish feast. Dryden. “Modish forms of address.” Barrow.

— Mod”ish*ly, adv. — Mod”ish*ness, n.

Mod”ist (?), n. One who follows the fashion.

||Mo`diste” (?), n. [F. See Mode, and cf. Modist.] A female maker of, or dealer in, articles of fashion, especially of the fashionable dress of ladies; a woman who gives direction to the style or mode of dress.

||Mo”di*us (?), n.; pl. Modii (#). [L.] (Rom. Antiq.) A dry measure, containing about a peck.

Mo”docs (?), n. pl.; sing. Modoc (&?;). (Ethnol.) A tribe of warlike Indians formerly inhabiting Northern California. They are nearly extinct.

Mod”u*lar (?), a. Of or pertaining to mode, modulation, module, or modius; as, modular arrangement; modular accent; modular measure.

Mod”u*late (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Modulated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Modulating (?).] [L. modulatus, p. p. of modulari to measure, to modulate, fr. modulus a small measure, meter, melody, dim. of modus. See Mode.] 1. To form, as sound, to a certain key, or to a certain portion.

2. To vary or inflect in a natural, customary, or musical manner; as, the organs of speech modulate the voice in reading or speaking.

Could any person so modulate her voice as to deceive so many?

Broome.

Mod”u*late, v. i. (Mus.) To pass from one key into another.

Mod`u*la”tion (?), n. [L. modulatio: cf. F. modulation.] 1. The act of modulating, or the state of being modulated; as, the modulation of the voice.

2. Sound modulated; melody. [R.] Thomson.

3. (Mus.) A change of key, whether transient, or until the music becomes established in the new key; a shifting of the tonality of a piece, so that the harmonies all center upon a new keynote or tonic; the art of transition out of the original key into one nearly related, and so on, it may be, by successive changes, into a key quite remote. There are also sudden and unprepared modulations.

Mod”u*la`tor (?), n. [L.] One who, or that which, modulates. Denham.

Mod”ule (?), n. [F., fr. L. modulus a small measure, dim. of modus. See Mode, and cf. Model, Modulus, Mold a matrix.] 1. A model or measure.

2. (Arch.) The size of some one part, as the diameter of semi-diameter of the base of a shaft, taken as a unit of measure by which the proportions of the other parts of the composition are regulated. Generally, for columns, the semi-diameter is taken, and divided into a certain number of parts, called minutes (see Minute), though often the diameter is taken, and any dimension is said to be so many modules and minutes in height, breadth, or projection.

Mod”ule, v. t. [See module, n., Modulate.] To model; also, to modulate. [Obs.] Sandys. Drayton.

||Mod”u*lus (?), n.; pl. Moduli (#). [L., a small measure. See Module, n.] (Math., Mech., & Physics) A quantity or coefficient, or constant, which expresses the measure of some specified force, property, or quality, as of elasticity, strength, efficiency, etc.; a parameter.

Modulus of a machine, a formula expressing the work which a given machine can perform under the conditions involved in its construction; the relation between the work done upon a machine by the moving power, and that yielded at the working points, either constantly, if its motion be uniform, or in the interval of time which it occupies in passing from any given velocity to the same velocity again, if its motion be variable; — called also the efficiency of the machine. Mosley. Rankine. — Modulus of a system of logarithms (Math.), a number by which all the Napierian logarithms must be multiplied to obtain the logarithms in another system. — Modulus of elasticity. (a) The measure of the elastic force of any substance, expressed by the ratio of a stress on a given unit of the substance to the accompanying distortion, or strain. (b) An expression of the force (usually in terms of the height in feet or weight in pounds of a column of the same body) which would be necessary to elongate a prismatic body of a transverse section equal to a given unit, as a square inch or foot, to double, or to compress it to half, its original length, were that degree of elongation or compression possible, or within the limits of elasticity; — called also Young’s modulus. — Modulus of rupture, the measure of the force necessary to break a given substance across, as a beam, expressed by eighteen times the load which is required to break a bar of one inch square, supported flatwise at two points one foot apart, and loaded in the middle between the points of support. Rankine.

||Mo”dus (?), n.; pl. Modi (#). [L. See Mode.] (Old Law) 1. The arrangement of, or mode of expressing, the terms of a contract or conveyance.

2. (Law) A qualification involving the idea of variation or departure from some general rule or form, in the way of either restriction or enlargement, according to the circumstances of the case, as in the will of a donor, an agreement between parties, and the like. Bracton.

3. (Law) A fixed compensation or equivalent given instead of payment of tithes in kind, expressed in full by the phrase modus decimandi. Blackstone.

They, from time immemorial, had paid a modus, or composition.

Landor.

||Modus operandi (&?;) [L.], manner of operating.

Mod”y (?), a. [From Mode.] Fashionable. [R.]

Moe (?), n. A wry face or mouth; a mow. [Obs.]

Moe, v. i. To make faces; to mow. [Obs.]

Moe, a., adv., & n. [AS. mā See More.] More. See Mo. [Obs.] “Sing no more ditties, sing no moe.” Shak.

Moe”bles (?), n. pl. [OE., fr. OF. moeble, mueble, movable, from L. mobilis.] Movables; furniture; — also used in the singular (moeble). [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mo”el*line (?), n. [F. moelle, fr. L. medulla marrow.] An unguent for the hair.

Mo”el*lon (?), n. [F.] Rubble masonry.

Mœ`so*goth”ic (?), a. Belonging to the Mœsogoths, a branch of the Goths who settled in Mœsia.

Mœ`so*goth”ic, n. The language of the Mœsogoths; — also called Gothic.

Moeve (?), v. t. & i. To move. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Moff (?), n. A thin silk stuff made in Caucasia.

Mog”gan (?), n. A closely fitting knit sleeve; also, a legging of knitted material. [Scot.]

Mo*gul” (?), n. [From the Mongolian.] 1. A person of the Mongolian race.

2. (Railroad) A heavy locomotive for freight traffic, having three pairs of connected driving wheels and a two-wheeled truck.

Great, or Grand, Mogul, the sovereign of the empire founded in Hindostan by the Mongols under Baber in the sixteenth century. Hence, a very important personage; a lord; — sometimes only mogul. Dryden.

Mo”ha (?), n. (Bot.) A kind of millet (Setaria Italica); German millet.

Mo”hair` (?), n. [F. moire, perh. from Ar. mukhayyar a kind of coarse camelot or haircloth; but prob. fr. L. marmoreus of marble, resembling marble. Cf. Moire, Marble.] The long silky hair or wool of the Angora goat of Asia Minor; also, a fabric made from this material, or an imitation of such fabric.

Mo*ham”med*an (?), a. [From Mohammed, fr. Ar. muhámmad praiseworthy, highly praised.] Of or pertaining to Mohammed, or the religion and institutions founded by Mohammed. [Written also Mahometan, Mahomedan, Muhammadan, etc.]

Mo*ham”med*an, n. A follower of Mohammed, the founder of Islamism; one who professes Mohammedanism or Islamism.

{ Mo*ham”med*an*ism, Mo*ham”med*ism } (?), n. The religion, or doctrines and precepts, of Mohammed, contained in the Koran; Islamism.

{ Mo*ham”med*an*ize, Mo*ham”med*ize } (?), v. t. To make conformable to the principles, or customs and rites, of Mohammedanism. [Written also Mahometanize.]

Mo”hawk (?), n. 1. (Ethnol.) One of a tribe of Indians who formed part of the Five Nations. They formerly inhabited the valley of the Mohawk River.

2. One of certain ruffians who infested the streets of London in the time of Addison, and took the name from the Mohawk Indians. [Slang] Spectator. Macaulay.

Mo*hi”cans (?), n. pl.; sing. Mohican (&?;). (Ethnol.) A tribe of Lenni-Lenape Indians who formerly inhabited Western Connecticut and Eastern New York. [Written also Mohegans.]

||Mo”ho (?), n. [Native name.] (Zoöl.) A gallinule (Notornis Mantelli) formerly inhabiting New Zealand, but now supposed to be extinct. It was incapable of flight. See Notornis.

Mo”hock (?), n. See Mohawk.

||Mo*ho”li (?), n. (Zoöl.) See Maholi.

Mohr (?), n. (Zoöl.) A West African gazelle (Gazella mohr), having horns on which are eleven or twelve very prominent rings. It is one of the species which produce bezoar. [Written also mhorr.]

Mo”hur (?), n. [Hind., fr. Per. muhur, muhr, a gold coin, a seal, seal ring.] A British Indian gold coin, of the value of fifteen silver rupees, or $7.21. Malcom.

{ ||Mo*hur”rum (?), ||Mu*har”ram (?) }, n. [Ar. muharram, prop., sacred, forbidden, n., the first month of the Mohammedan lunar year.] 1. The first month of the Mohammedan year. Whitworth.

2. A festival of the Shiah sect of the Mohammedans held during the first ten days of the month Mohurrum.

Moi”der (?), v. i. To toil. [Prov. Eng. & Scot.]

Moi”dore (?), n. [Pg. moeda d’ouro, lit., coin of gold. Cf. Money, and Aureate.] A gold coin of Portugal, valued at about 27s. sterling.

Moi”e*ty (moi”&esl;*t&ybreve;), n.; pl. Moieties (-t&ibreve;z). [F. moitié, L. medietas, fr. medius middle, half. See Mid, a., and cf. Mediate, Mediety.] 1. One of two equal parts; a half; as, a moiety of an estate, of goods, or of profits; the moiety of a jury, or of a nation. Shak.

The more beautiful moiety of his majesty’s subject.

Addison.

2. An indefinite part; a small part. Shak.

Moil (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Moiled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Moiling.] [OE. moillen to wet, OF. moillier, muillier, F. mouller, fr. (assumed) LL. molliare, fr. L. mollis soft. See Mollify.] To daub; to make dirty; to soil; to defile.

Thou . . . doest thy mind in dirty pleasures moil.

Spenser.

Moil, v. i. [From Moil to daub; prob. from the idea of struggling through the wet.] To soil one’s self with severe labor; to work with painful effort; to labor; to toil; to drudge.

Moil not too much under ground.

Bacon.

Now he must moil and drudge for one he loathes.

Dryden.

Moil, n. A spot; a defilement.

The moil of death upon them.

Mrs. Browning.

Moile (?), n. [F. mule a slipper.] A kind of high shoe anciently worn. [Written also moyle.]

||Moi”neau (?), n. [F.] (Fort.) A small flat bastion, raised in the middle of an overlong curtain.

||Moi”ra (moi”r&adot;), n. [NL., fr. Gr. Moi^ra.] (Greek Myth.) The deity who assigns to every man his lot.

||Moire (?), n. [F. Cf. Mohair.] 1. Originally, a fine textile fabric made of the hair of an Asiatic goat; afterwards, any textile fabric to which a watered appearance is given in the process of calendering.

2. A watered, clouded, or frosted appearance produced upon either textile fabrics or metallic surfaces.

Moire antique, a superior kind of thick moire.

||Moi`ré” mé`tal`lique” (?). [F.] A crystalline or frosted appearance produced by some acids on tin plate; also, the tin plate thus treated.

Moist (?), a. [OE. moiste, OF. moiste, F. moite, fr. L. muccidus, for mucidus, moldy, musty. Cf. Mucus, Mucid.] 1. Moderately wet; damp; humid; not dry; as, a moist atmosphere or air. “Moist eyes.” Shak.

2. Fresh, or new. [Obs.] “Shoes full moist and new.” “A draught of moist and corny ale.” Chaucer.

Moist, v. t. To moisten. [Obs.] Shak.

Mois”ten (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Moistened (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Moistening.] 1. To make damp; to wet in a small degree.

A pipe a little moistened on the inside.

Bacon.

2. To soften by making moist; to make tender.

It moistened not his executioner’s heart with any pity.

Fuller.

Mois”ten*er (?), n. One who, or that which, moistens. Johnson.

Moist”ful (?), a. Full of moisture. [R.]

Moist”less, a. Without moisture; dry. [R.]

Moist”ness, n. The quality or state of being moist.

Mois”ture (?), n. [Cf. OF. moistour, F. moiteur.] 1. A moderate degree of wetness. Bacon.

2. That which moistens or makes damp or wet; exuding fluid; liquid in small quantity.

All my body’s moisture
Scarce serves to quench my furnace-burning heat.

Shak.

Mois”ture*less, a. Without moisture.

Moist”y (?), a. Moist. [Obs.]

Moi”ther (?), v. t. [Etymol. uncertain.] To perplex; to confuse. [Prov. Eng.] Lamb.

Moi”ther, v. i. To toil; to labor. [Prov. Eng.]

Mok”a*dour (?), n. [Sp. mocador handkerchief.] A handkerchief. [Obs.]

Moke (?), n. A donkey. [Cant] Thackeray.

Moke (?), n. A mesh of a net, or of anything resembling a net. Halliwell.

Mo”ky (?), a. [Cf. Icel. mökkvi cloud, mist, mökkr a dense cloud, W. mwg smoke, and E. muggy, muck.] Misty; dark; murky; muggy. [Obs.]

Mo”la (?), n. (Zoöl.) See Sunfish, 1.

Mo”lar (?), a. [L. moles mass.] (Mech.) Of or pertaining to a mass of matter; — said of the properties or motions of masses, as distinguished from those of molecules or atoms. Carpenter.

Mo”lar, a. [L. molaris, fr. mola mill, fr. molere to grind in a mill. See Mill the machine.] Having power to grind; grinding; as, the molar teeth; also, of or pertaining to the molar teeth. Bacon.

Mo”lar, n. (Anat.) Any one of the teeth back of the incisors and canines. The molars which replace the deciduous or milk teeth are designated as premolars, and those which are not preceded by deciduous teeth are sometimes called true molars. See Tooth.

Mo”la*ry (?), a. Same as 2d Molar.

Mo*lasse” (?), n. [F. molasse, prob. fr. mollasse flabby, flimsy, fr. L. mollis soft.] (Geol.) A soft Tertiary sandstone; — applied to a rock occurring in Switzerland. See Chart of Geology.

Mo*las”ses (?), n. [F. mélasse, cf. Sp. melaza, Pg. melaço, fr. L. mellaceus honeylike, honey-sweet, mel, mellis, honey. See Mellifluous, and cf. Melasses.] The thick, brown or dark colored, viscid, uncrystallizable sirup which drains from sugar, in the process of manufacture; any thick, viscid, sweet sirup made from vegetable juice or sap, as of the sorghum or maple. See Treacle.

Mold (?), n. [See Mole a spot.] A spot; a blemish; a mole. [Obs.] Spenser.

{ Mold, Mould} (?), n. [OE. molde, AS. molde; akin to D. mul, G. mull, mulm, OHG. molt, molta, Icel. mold, Dan. muld, Sw. mull, Goth. mulda, and E. meal flour. See Meal, and cf. Mole an animal, Mull, v.] [The prevalent spelling is, perhaps, mould; but as the u has not been inserted in the other words of this class, as bold, gold, old, cold, etc., it seems desirable to complete the analogy by dropping it from this word, thus spelling it as Spenser, South, and many others did. The omission of the u is now very common in America.] 1. Crumbling, soft, friable earth; esp., earth containing the remains or constituents of organic matter, and suited to the growth of plants; soil.

2. Earthy material; the matter of which anything is formed; composing substance; material.

The etherial mold,
Incapable of stain.

Milton.

Nature formed me of her softest mold.

Addison.

{ Mold, Mould } (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Molded or Moulded; p. pr. & vb. n. Molding or Moulding.] To cover with mold or soil. [R.]

{ Mold, Mould, } n. [From the p. p. of OE. moulen to become moldy, to rot, prob. fr. Icel. mygla to grow musty, mugga mugginess; cf. Sw. mögla to grow moldy. See Muggy, and cf. Moldy.] (Bot.) A growth of minute fungi of various kinds, esp. those of the great groups Hyphomycetes, and Physomycetes, forming on damp or decaying organic matter.

&fist; The common blue mold of cheese, the brick-red cheese mold, and the scarlet or orange strata which grow on tubers or roots stored up for use, when commencing to decay, are familiar examples. M. J. Berkley.

{ Mold, Mould, } v. t. To cause to become moldy; to cause mold to grow upon.

{ Mold, Mould, } v. i. To become moldy; to be covered or filled, in whole or in part, with a mold.

{ Mold, Mould, } n. [OE. molde, OF. mole, F. moule, fr. L. modulus. See Model.] [For spelling, see 2d Mold, above.] 1. The matrix, or cavity, in which anything is shaped, and from which it takes its form; also, the body or mass containing the cavity; as, a sand mold; a jelly mold. Milton.

2. That on which, or in accordance with which, anything is modeled or formed; anything which serves to regulate the size, form, etc., as the pattern or templet used by a shipbuilder, carpenter, or mason.

The glass of fashion and the mold of form.

Shak.

3. Cast; form; shape; character.

Crowned with an architrave of antique mold.

Pope.

4. (Arch.) A group of moldings; as, the arch mold of a porch or doorway; the pier mold of a Gothic pier, meaning the whole profile, section, or combination of parts.

5. (Anat.) A fontanel.

6. (Paper Making) A frame with a wire cloth bottom, on which the pump is drained to form a sheet, in making paper by hand.

{ Mold, Mould, } v. t. [Cf. F. mouler, OF. moler, moller. See Mold the matrix.] 1. To form into a particular shape; to shape; to model; to fashion.

He forgeth and moldeth metals.

Sir M. Hale.

Did I request thee, Maker, from my clay
To mold me man?

Milton.

2. To ornament by molding or carving the material of; as, a molded window jamb.

3. To knead; as, to mold dough or bread.

4. (Founding) To form a mold of, as in sand, in which a casting may be made.

{ Mold”a*ble, Mould”a*ble } (?), a. Capable of being molded or formed.

{ Mold”board`, Mould”board` } (?), n. 1. A curved plate of iron (originally of wood) back of the share of a plow, which turns over the earth in plowing.

2. (Founding) A follow board.

{ Mold”er, Mould”er } (?), n. One who, or that which, molds or forms into shape; specifically (Founding), one skilled in the art of making molds for castings.

{ Mold”er, Mould”er, } v. i. [imp. & p. p. Moldered (?) or Mouldered; p. pr. & vb. n. Moldering or Mouldering.] [From Mold fine soft earth: cf. Prov. G. multern.] To crumble into small particles; to turn to dust by natural decay; to lose form, or waste away, by a gradual separation of the component particles, without the presence of water; to crumble away.

The moldering of earth in frosts and sun.

Bacon.

When statues molder, and when arches fall.

Prior.

If he had sat still, the enemy’s army would have moldered to nothing.

Clarendon.

{ Mold”er, Mould”er, } v. t. To turn to dust; to cause to crumble; to cause to waste away.

[Time’s] gradual touch
Has moldered into beauty many a tower.

Mason.

{ Mold”er*y, Mould”er*y } (?), a. Covered or filled with mold; consisting of, or resembling, mold.

{ Mold”i*ness, Mould”i*ness } (?), n. [From Moldy.] The state of being moldy.

{ Mold”ing, Mould”ing, } n. 1. The act or process of shaping in or on a mold, or of making molds; the art or occupation of a molder.

2. Anything cast in a mold, or which appears to be so, as grooved or ornamental bars of wood or metal.

3. (Arch.) A plane, or curved, narrow surface, either sunk or projecting, used for decoration by means of the lights and shades upon its surface. Moldings vary greatly in pattern, and are generally used in groups, the different members of each group projecting or retreating, one beyond another. See Cable, n., 3, and Crenelated molding, under Crenelate, v. t.

{ Mold”ing, Mould”ing, } p. a. Used in making a mold or moldings; used in shaping anything according to a pattern.

Molding, or Moulding, board. (a) See Follow board, under Follow, v. t. (b) A board on which bread or pastry is kneaded and shaped. — Molding, or Moulding, machine. (a) (Woodworking) A planing machine for making moldings. (b) (Founding) A machine to assist in making molds for castings. — Molding, or Moulding, mill, a mill for shaping timber. — Molding, or Moulding, sand (Founding), a kind of sand containing clay, used in making molds.

{ Mold”warp, Mould”warp } (?), n. [OE. moldwerp: AS. molde soil + weorpan to throw up; cf. OD. molworp, G. maulwurf, Icel. moldvarpa, Dan. muldvarp. See Mold soil, Warp, and cf. Mole the animal.] (Zoöl.) See Mole the animal. Spenser.

{ Mold”y, Mould”y } (?), a. [Compar. Moldier (?) or Mouldier; superl. Moldiest or Mouldiest.] [From Mold the growth of fungi.] Overgrown with, or containing, mold; as, moldy cheese or bread.

Mole (?), n. [AS. māl; akin to OHG. meil, Goth. mail Cf. Mail a spot.] 1. A spot; a stain; a mark which discolors or disfigures. [Obs.] Piers Plowman.

2. A spot, mark, or small permanent protuberance on the human body; esp., a spot which is dark-colored, from which commonly issue one or more hairs.

Mole, n. [L. mola.] A mass of fleshy or other more or less solid matter generated in the uterus.

Mole, n. [F. môle, L. moles. Cf. Demolish, Emolument, Molest.] A mound or massive work formed of masonry or large stones, etc., laid in the sea, often extended either in a right line or an arc of a circle before a port which it serves to defend from the violence of the waves, thus protecting ships in a harbor; also, sometimes, the harbor itself. Brande & C.

Mole, n. [OE. molle, either shortened fr. moldwerp, or from the root of E. mold soil: cf. D. mol, OD. molworp. See Moldwarp.] 1. (Zoöl.) Any insectivore of the family Talpidæ. They have minute eyes and ears, soft fur, and very large and strong fore feet.

&fist; The common European mole, or moldwarp (Talpa Europæa), is noted for its extensive burrows. The common American mole, or shrew mole (Scalops aquaticus), and star- nosed mole (Condylura cristata) have similar habits.

&fist; In the Scriptures, the name is applied to two unindentified animals, perhaps the chameleon and mole rat.

2. A plow of peculiar construction, for forming underground drains. [U.S.]

Duck mole. See under Duck. — Golden mole. See Chrysochlore. — Mole cricket (Zoöl.), an orthopterous insect of the genus Gryllotalpa, which excavates subterranean galleries, and throws up mounds of earth resembling those of the mole. It is said to do damage by injuring the roots of plants. The common European species (Gryllotalpa vulgaris), and the American (G. borealis), are the best known. — Mole rat (Zoöl.), any one of several species of Old World rodents of the genera Spalax, Georychus, and several allied genera. They are molelike in appearance and habits, and their eyes are small or rudimentary. — Mole shrew (Zoöl.), any one of several species of short-tailed American shrews of the genus Blarina, esp. B. brevicauda. — Water mole, the duck mole.

Mole, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Moled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Moling.] 1. To form holes in, as a mole; to burrow; to excavate; as, to mole the earth.

2. To clear of molehills. [Prov. Eng.] Pegge.

Mole”but (?), n. (Zoöl.) The sunfish (Orthagoriscus, or Mola). [Written also molebat.]

Mole”cast` (?), n. A little elevation of earth made by a mole; a molehill. Mortimer.

Mo”lech (?), n. [Heb. molek king.] (Script.) The fire god of the Ammonites, to whom human sacrifices were offered; Moloch. Lev. xviii. 21.

Mo*lec”u*lar (?), a. [Cf. F. moléculare. See Molecule.] (Phys. & Chem.) Pertaining to, connected with, produced by, or consisting of, molecules; as, molecular forces; molecular groups of atoms, etc.

Molecular attraction (Phys.), attraction acting between the molecules of bodies, and at insensible distances. — Molecular weight (Chem.), the weight of a molecule of any gas or vapor as compared with the hydrogen atom as a standard; the sum of the atomic weights of the constituents of a molecule; thus, the molecular weight of water (H_2O) is 18.

Mo*lec`u*lar”i*ty (?), n. (Phys. & Chem.) The state of consisting of molecules; the state or quality of being molecular.

Mo*lec”u*lar*ly (?), adv. (Phys. & Chem.) With molecules; in the manner of molecules. W. R. Grove.

Mol”e*cule (?), n. [Dim. fr. L. moles a mass: cf. F. molécule. See 3d Mole.] 1. One of the very small invisible particles of which all matter is supposed to consist.

2. (Physics) The smallest part of any substance which possesses the characteristic properties and qualities of that substance, and which can exist alone in a free state.

3. (Chem.) A group of atoms so united and combined by chemical affinity that they form a complete, integrated whole, being the smallest portion of any particular compound that can exist in a free state; as, a molecule of water consists of two atoms of hydrogen and one of oxygen. Cf. Atom.

Mole”-eyed` (?), a. Having eyes like those of the mole; having imperfect sight.

Mole”hill` (?), n. A little hillock of earth thrown up by moles working under ground; hence, a very small hill, or an insignificant obstacle or difficulty.

Having leapt over such mountains, lie down before a molehill.

South.

{ Mo*len`di*na”ceous (m&osl;*l&ebreve;n`d&ibreve;*nā“shŭs), Mo*len`di*na”ri*ous (m&osl;*l&ebreve;n`d&ibreve;*nā“r&ibreve;*ŭs), } a. [L. molendinarius, fr. molendinum a mill, fr. molere to grind.] (Bot.) Resembling the sails of a windmill.

Mole”skin` (mōl”sk&ibreve;n), n. Any fabric having a thick soft shag, like the fur of a mole; esp., a kind of strong twilled fustian.

Mo*lest” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Molested; p. pr. & vb. n. Molesting.] [F. molester, L. molestare, fr. molestus troublesome, fr. moles a heavy mass, load, burden. See 3d Mole.] To trouble; to disturb; to render uneasy; to interfere with; to vex.

They have molested the church with needless opposition.

Hooker.

Syn. — To trouble; disturb; incommode; inconvenience; annoy; vex; tease.

Mo*lest”, n. Molestation. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mol`es*ta”tion (?), n. [Cf. F. molestation.] The act of molesting, or the state of being molested; disturbance; annoyance.

Mo*lest”er (?), n. One who molests.

Mo*lest”ful (?), a. Troublesome; vexatious. [R.]

{ Mo*les”tie, Mo*les”ty (?) }, n. [L. molestia.] Molestation. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mole”warp` (?), n. (Zoöl.) See Moldwarp.

Mo*lim”i*nous (?), a. [L. molimen a great exertion; moles a heavy mass.] Of great bulk or consequence; very important. [Obs.] Dr. H. More.

Mo”line (?), n. [L. molina mill, fr. molere to grind. See Mill.] The crossed iron that supports the upper millstone by resting on the spindle; a millrind.

Cross moline (Her.), a cross each arm of which is divided at the end into two rounded branches or divisions.

Mo”lin*ism (?), n. (Eccl. Hist.) The doctrines of the Molinists, somewhat resembling the tenets of the Arminians.

Mo”lin*ist, n. (Eccl. Hist.) A follower of the opinions of Molina, a Spanish Jesuit (in respect to grace); an opposer of the Jansenists.

||Moll (?), a. [G., fr. L. mollis soft, tender, elegiac. Cf. Molle.] (Mus.) Minor; in the minor mode; as, A moll, that is, A minor.

||Mol”lah (?), n. [Ar. maulā, commonly mollāin Turkey.] One of the higher order of Turkish judges; also, a Turkish title of respect for a religious and learned man. [Written also moolah.]

Mol”le (?), a. [See Moll.] (Mus.) Lower by a semitone; flat; as, E molle, that is, E flat.

Mol”le*bart (?), n. An agricultural implement used in Flanders, consisting of a kind of large shovel drawn by a horse and guided by a man. [Written also mollebært and mouldebært.] Simmonds.

Mol”le*moke` (?), n. [Sw. mallemucke the stormy petrel.] (Zoöl.) Any one of several species of large pelagic petrels and fulmars, as Fulmarus glacialis, of the North Atlantic, and several species of Æstrelata, of the Southern Ocean. See Fulmar. [Written also mollymawk, malmock, mollemock, mallemocke, etc.]

Mol”lient (?), a. [L. molliens, p. p. of mollire to soften, fr. mollis soft.] Serving to soften; assuaging; emollient.

Mol”lient*ly, adv. Assuagingly.

Mol”li*fi`a*ble (?), a. Capable of being mollified.

Mol`li*fi*ca”tion (?), n. [LL. mollificatio; cf. F. mollification.] The act of mollifying, or the state of being mollified; a softening. Chaucer.

Mol”li*fi`er (?), n. One who, or that which, mollifies. Bacon.

Mol”li*fy (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mollified (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mollifying (?).] [F. mollifier, L. mollificare; mollis soft + ficare (in comp.) to make. See Enmollient, Moil, v. t., and fy.] 1. To soften; to make tender; to reduce the hardness, harshness, or asperity of; to qualify; as, to mollify the ground.

With sweet science mollified their stubborn hearts.

Spenser.

2. To assuage, as pain or irritation, to appease, as excited feeling or passion; to pacify; to calm.

Mol”li*net (?), n. [Cf. Moline.] A little mill.

Mol`li*pi*lose” (?), a. [L. mollis soft + pilosus hairy.] (Zoöl.) Having soft hairs; downy.

||Mol*li”ti*es (?), n. [L., softness.] (Med.) Unnatural softness of any organ or part. Dunglison.

Mol”li*tude (?), n. [L. mollitudo, fr. mollis soft.] Softness; effeminacy; weakness. [R.]

Mol”lusc (?), n. (Zoöl.) Same as Mollusk.

||Mol*lus”ca (?), n. pl. [NL. See Mollusk.] (Zoöl.) One of the grand divisions of the animal kingdom, including the classes Cephalopoda, Gastropoda, Pteropoda, Scaphopoda, and Lamellibranchiata, or Conchifera. These animals have an unsegmented bilateral body, with most of the organs and parts paired, but not repeated longitudinally. Most of them develop a mantle, which incloses either a branchial or a pulmonary cavity. They are generally more or less covered and protected by a calcareous shell, which may be univalve, bivalve, or multivalve.

&fist; Formerly the Brachiopoda, Bryzoa, and Tunicata were united with the Lamellibranchiata in an artificial group called Acephala, which was also included under Mollusca. See Molluscoidea.

Mol*lus”can (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to mollusks. — n. A mollusk; one of the Mollusca.

Mol*lus”coid (?), a. [Mollusca + -oid.] (Zoöl.) Resembling the true mollusks; belonging to the Molluscoidea. — n. One of the Molluscoidea.

Mol`lus*coid”al (?), a. (Zoöl.) Molluscoid.

||Mol`lus*coi”de*a (?), n. pl. [NL. See Mollusk, and -oid.] (Zoöl.) A division of Invertebrata which includes the classes Brachiopoda and Bryozoa; – - called also Anthoid Mollusca.

&fist; Originally the Tunicata were included under Molluscoidea, from which they are known to differ widely in structure and embryology. Molluscoidea were formerly considered a subdivision of Mollusca, but they are now known to have more relationship with Annelida than with Mollusca.

Mol*lus”cous (?), a. (Zoöl.) Molluscan.

||Mol*lus”cum (?), n. [NL. See Mollusk.] (Med.) A cutaneous disease characterized by numerous tumors, of various forms, filled with a thick matter; — so called from the resemblance of the tumors to some molluscous animals. Dunglison.

Mol”lusk (?), n. [F. mollusque, L. mollusca a kind of soft nut with a thin shell, fr. molluscus soft, mollis soft. See Mollify.] (Zoöl.) One of the Mollusca. [Written also mollusc.]

Mol”ly (?), n. (Zoöl.) Same as Mollemoke.

Mol”ly, n. A pet or colloquial name for Mary.

Molly cottontail. (Zoöl.) See Cottontail. — Molly Maguire (m&adot;*gwīr”); pl. Molly Maguires (- gwīrz). (a) A member of a secret association formed among the tenantry in Ireland about 1843, principally for the purpose of intimidating law officers and preventing the service of legal writs. Its members disguised themselves in the dress of women. (b) A member of a similar association of Irishmen organized in the anthracite coal region of Pennsylvania, about 1854, for the purpose of intimidating employers and officers of the law, and for avenging themselves by murder on persons obnoxious to them. The society was broken up by criminal prosecutions in 1876.

Mol”ly-mawk` (?), n. (Zoöl.) See Mollemoke.

Mo”loch (?), n. [Heb. molek king.] 1. (Script.) The fire god of the Ammonites in Canaan, to whom human sacrifices were offered; Molech. Also applied figuratively.

2. (Zoöl.) A spiny Australian lizard (Moloch horridus). The horns on the head and numerous spines on the body give it a most formidable appearance.

Mo*losse” (?), n. See Molossus.

Mo*los”ses (?), n. Molasses. [Obs.]

Mo*los”sine (?), n. (Zoöl.) A bat of the genus Molossus, as the monk bat.

||Mo*los”sus (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?;, prop., Molossian, belonging to the Molossians, a people in the eastern part of Epirus.] (Gr. & Lat. Pros.) A foot of three long syllables. [Written also molosse.]

Molt (?), obs. imp. of Melt. Chaucer. Spenser.

{ Molt, Moult } (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Molted or Moulted; p. pr. & vb. n. Molting or Moulting.] [OE. mouten, L. mutare. See Mew to molt, and cf. Mute, v. t.] [The prevalent spelling is, perhaps, moult; but as the u has not been inserted in the otherwords of this class, as, bolt, colt, dolt, etc., it is desirable to complete the analogy by the spelling molt.] To shed or cast the hair, feathers, skin, horns, or the like, as an animal or a bird. Bacon.

{ Molt, Moult, } v. t. To cast, as the hair, skin, feathers, or the like; to shed.

{ Molt, Moult, } n. The act or process of changing the feathers, hair, skin, etc.; molting.

Molt”a*ble (?), a. Capable of assuming a molten state; meltable; fusible. [Obs.]

Mol”ten (?), a. [See Melt.] 1. Melted; being in a state of fusion, esp. when the liquid state is produced by a high degree of heat; as, molten iron.

2. Made by melting and casting the substance or metal of which the thing is formed; as, a molten image.

||Mol”to (?), adv. [It.] (Mus.) Much; very; as, molto adagio, very slow.

Mo”ly (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?;.] 1. A fabulous herb of occult power, having a black root and white blossoms, said by Homer to have been given by Hermes to Ulysses to counteract the spells of Circe. Milton.

2. (Bot.) A kind of garlic (Allium Moly) with large yellow flowers; — called also golden garlic.

Mo*lyb”date (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of molybdic acid.

Mol`yb*de”na (?), n. [L. molybdaena galena, Gr. &?;, fr. &?; lead.] (Min.) See Molybdenite.

Mo*lyb”de*nite (?), n. [Cf. F. molybdénite. See Molybdena.] (Min.) A mineral occurring in soft, lead-gray, foliated masses or scales, resembling graphite; sulphide of molybdenum.

Mo*lyb”de*nous (?), a. (Chem.) See Molybdous.

Mol`yb*de”num (?), n. [NL.: cf. F. molybdène. See Molybdena.] (Chem.) A rare element of the chromium group, occurring in nature in the minerals molybdenite and wulfenite, and when reduced obtained as a hard, silver-white, difficulty fusible metal. Symbol Mo. Atomic weight 95.9.

Mo*lyb”dic (?), a. [Cf. F. molybdique. See molybdena.] (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or containing, molybdenum; specif., designating those compounds in which the element has a higher valence, as contrasted with molybdous compounds; as, molybdic oxide.

Mo*lyb”dite (?), n. (Min.) Molybdic ocher.

Mo*lyb”dous (?), a. [See Molybdena.] Of, pertaining to, or containing, molybdenum; specif., designating those compounds in which molybdenum has a lower valence as contrasted with molybdic compounds.

Mome (?), n. [Cf. Mumm, Momus.] A dull, silent person; a blockhead. [Obs.] Spenser.

Mo”ment (?), n. [F. moment, L. momentum, for movimentum movement, motion, moment, fr. movere to move. See Move, and cf. Momentum, Movement.] 1. A minute portion of time; a point of time; an instant; as, at that very moment.

In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye.

1 Cor. xv. 52.

2. Impulsive power; force; momentum.

The moments or quantities of motion in bodies.

Berkley.

Touch, with lightest moment of impulse,
His free will.

Milton.

3. Importance, as in influence or effect; consequence; weight or value; consideration.

Matters of great moment.

Shak.

It is an abstruse speculation, but also of far less moment and consequence of us than the others.

Bentley.

4. An essential element; a deciding point, fact, or consideration; an essential or influential circumstance.

5. (Math.) An infinitesimal change in a varying quantity; an increment or decrement. [Obs.]

6. (Mech.) Tendency, or measure of tendency, to produce motion, esp. motion about a fixed point or axis.

Moment of a couple (Mech.), the product of either of its forces into the perpendicular distance between them. — Moment of a force. (Mech.) (a) With respect to a point, the product of the intensity of the force into the perpendicular distance from the point to the line of direction of the force. (b) With respect to a line, the product of that component of the force which is perpendicular to the plane passing through the line and the point of application of the force, into the shortest distance between the line and this point. (c) With respect to a plane that is parallel to the force, the product of the force into the perpendicular distance of its point of application from the plane. — Moment of inertia, of a rotating body, the sum of the mass of each particle of matter of the body into the square of its distance from the axis of rotation; — called also moment of rotation and moment of the mass. — Statical moment, the product of a force into its leverage; the same as moment of a force with respect to a point, line, etc. — Virtual moment. See under Virtual.

Syn. — Instant; twinkling; consequence; weight; force; value; consideration; signification; avail.

Mo*men”tal (?), a. [Cf. OF. momental.] [Obs.] 1. Lasting but a moment; brief.

Not one momental minute doth she swerve.

Breton.

2. Important; momentous.

3. (Mech.) Of or pertaining to moment or momentum.

Mo*men”tal*ly, adv. For a moment. [Obs.]

{ Mo`men*ta”ne*ous (?), Mo”men*ta*ny (?), } a. [L. momentaneus: cf. F. momentané.] Momentary. [Obs.] Hooker. “Momentany as a sound.” Shak.

Mo”men*ta*ri*ly (?), adv. Every moment; from moment to moment. Shenstone.

Mo”men*ta*ri*ness, n. The state or quality of being momentary; shortness of duration.

Mo”men*ta*ry (?), a. [L. momentarius. See Moment.] Done in a moment; continuing only a moment; lasting a very short time; as, a momentary pang.

This momentary joy breeds months of pain.

Shak.

Mo”ment*ly (?), adv. 1. For a moment.

2. In a moment; every moment; momentarily.

Mo*men”tous (?), a. [Cf. L. momentosus rapid, momentary.] Of moment or consequence; very important; weighty; as, a momentous decision; momentous affairs. — Mo*men”tous*ly, adv. — Mo*men”tous*ness, n.

Mo*men”tum (?), n.; pl. L. Momenta (#), F. Momentums (#). [L. See Moment.] 1. (Mech.) The quantity of motion in a moving body, being always proportioned to the quantity of matter multiplied into the velocity; impetus.

2. Essential element, or constituent element.

I shall state the several momenta of the distinction in separate propositions.

Sir W. Hamilton.

Mom”i*er (?), n. [F. mômier, fr. OF. momer, mommer, to mumm, to mask one’s self.] A name given in contempt to strict Calvinists in Switzerland, France, and some parts of Germany, in the early part of the 19th century.

Mom”mer*y (?), n. See Mummery. Rowe.

Mo”mot (?), n. [Momot and motmot, the native American name.] (Zoöl.) See Motmot.

||Mo”mus (?), n. [Gr. &?; blame, ridicule, Momus.] (Gr. Myth.) The god of mockery and censure.

Mon- (?). Same as Mono-.

||Mo”na (?), n. [CF. Sp. & Pg. mona, fem. of mono a monkey, ape.] (Zoöl.) A small, handsome, long-tailed West American monkey (Cercopithecus mona). The body is dark olive, with a spot of white on the haunches.

Mon”a*chal (?), a. [L. monachus a monk: cf. F. monacal. See Monk.] Of or pertaining to monks or a monastic life; monastic.

Mon”a*chism (?), n. [Cf. F. monachisme.] The system and influences of a monastic life; monasticism.

Mon*ac”id (?), a. [Mon- + acid.] (Chem.) Having one hydrogen atom replaceable by a negative or acid atom or radical; capable of neutralizing a monobasic acid; — said of bases, and of certain metals.

Mon”ad (?), n. [L. monas, - adis, a unit, Gr. &?;, &?;, fr. mo`nos alone.] 1. An ultimate atom, or simple, unextended point; something ultimate and indivisible.

2. (Philos. of Leibnitz) The elementary and indestructible units which were conceived of as endowed with the power to produce all the changes they undergo, and thus determine all physical and spiritual phenomena.

3. (Zoöl.) One of the smallest flagellate Infusoria; esp., the species of the genus Monas, and allied genera.

4. (Biol.) A simple, minute organism; a primary cell, germ, or plastid.

5. (Chem.) An atom or radical whose valence is one, or which can combine with, be replaced by, or exchanged for, one atom of hydrogen.

Monad deme (Biol.), in tectology, a unit of the first order of individuality.

||Mon`a*da”ri*a (m&obreve;n`&adot;dā“r&ibreve;&adot;), n. pl. [NL. See Monad.] (Zoöl.) The Infusoria.

||Mon`a*del”phi*a (?), n. pl. [NL., from Gr. mo`nos alone + ‘adelfo`s brother.] (Bot.) A Linnæan class of plants having the stamens united into a tube, or ring, by the filaments, as in the Mallow family.

{ Mon`a*del”phi*an (?), Mon`a*del”phous (?), } a. [Cf. F. monadelphie.] (Bot.) Of or pertaining to the Monadelphia; having the stamens united in one body by the filaments.

{ Mo*nad”ic (?), Mo*nad”ic*al (?), } a. Of, pertaining to, or like, a monad, in any of its senses. See Monad, n. Dr. H. More.

Mo*nad”i*form (?), a. [Monad + -form.] (Biol.) Having the form of a monad; resembling a monad in having one or more filaments of vibratile protoplasm; as, monadiform young.

Mon`ad*ol”o*gy (?), n. [Monad + -logy.] (Philos.) The doctrine or theory of monads.

Mo*nal” (?), n. (Zoöl.) Any Asiatic pheasant of the genus Lophophorus, as the Impeyan pheasant.

Mon*am”ide (?), n. [Mon- + amide.] (Chem.) An amido compound with only one amido group.

Mon*am”ine (?), n. [Mon- + amine.] (Chem.) A basic compound containing one amido group; as, methyl amine is a monamine.

Mo*nan”der (?), n. (Bot.) One of the Monandria.

||Mo*nan”dri*a (?), n. pl. [NL., from Gr. mo`nos alone + ‘anh`r, ‘andro`s, a man.] (Bot.) A Linnæan class of plants embracing those having but a single stamen.

Mo*nan”dri*an (?), a.; (Bot.) Same as Monandrous.

Mo*nan”dric (?), a. Of or pertaining to monandry; practicing monandry as a system of marriage.

Mo*nan”drous (?), a. (Bot.) Of or pertaining to the monandria; having but one stamen.

Mo*nan”dry (?), n. [See Monandria.] The possession by a woman of only one husband at the same time; — contrasted with polyandry.

Mo*nan”thous (?), a. [Mon- + Gr. ‘a`nqos flower.] (Bot.) Having but one flower; one-flowered. Gray.

Mon”arch (?), n. [F. monarque, L. monarcha, fr. Gr. &?;, &?;; mo`nos alone + &?; to be first, rule, govern. See Archi-.] 1. A sole or supreme ruler; a sovereign; the highest ruler; an emperor, king, queen, prince, or chief.

He who reigns
Monarch in heaven, . . . upheld by old repute.

Milton.

2. One superior to all others of the same kind; as, an oak is called the monarch of the forest.

3. A patron deity or presiding genius.

Come, thou, monarch of the vine,
Plumpy Bacchus.

Shak.

4. (Zoöl.) A very large red and black butterfly (Danais Plexippus); — called also milkweed butterfly.

Mon”arch, a. Superior to others; preëminent; supreme; ruling. “Monarch savage.” Pope.

Mo*nar”chal (?), a. Pertaining to a monarch; suiting a monarch; sovereign; regal; imperial.

Satan, whom now transcendent glory raised
Above his fellows, with monarchal pride.

Milton.

Mon”arch*ess, n. A female monarch. [Obs.]

Mo*nar”chi*al (?), a. Monarchic. Burke.

Mo*nar”chi*an (?), n. (Eccl. Hist.) One of a sect in the early Christian church which rejected the doctrine of the Trinity; — called also patripassian.

{ Mo*nar”chic (?), Mo*nar”chic*al (?), } a. [F. monarchique, Gr. &?;.] Of or pertaining to a monarch, or to monarchy. Burke. — Mo*nar”chic*al*ly, adv.

Mon”arch*ism (?), n. The principles of, or preference for, monarchy.

Mon”arch*ist, n. [Cf. F. monarchiste.] An advocate of, or believer in, monarchy.

Mon”arch*ize (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Monarchized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Monarchizing (?).] To play the sovereign; to act the monarch. [R.] Shak.

Mon”arch*ize, v. t. To rule; to govern. [R.]

Mon”arch*i`zer (?), n. One who monarchizes; also, a monarchist.

Mo*nar”cho (?), n. The nickname of a crackbrained Italian who fancied himself an emperor. [Obs.] Shak.

Mon”arch*y (?), n.; pl. Monarchies (#). [F. monarchie, L. monarchia, Gr. &?;. See Monarch.] 1. A state or government in which the supreme power is lodged in the hands of a monarch.

2. A system of government in which the chief ruler is a monarch.

In those days he had affected zeal for monarchy.

Macaulay.

3. The territory ruled over by a monarch; a kingdom.

What scourage for perjury
Can this dark monarchy afford false Clarence.

Shak.

Fifth monarchy, a universal monarchy, supposed to be the subject of prophecy in Daniel ii.; the four preceding monarchies being Assyrian, Persian, Grecian, and Roman. See Fifth Monarchy men, under Fifth.

||Mo”nas (?), n. [NL. See Monad.] (Zoöl.) A genus of minute flagellate Infusoria of which there are many species, both free and attached. See Illust. under Monad.

Mon`as*te”ri*al (?), a. [L. monasterials, fr. monasterium.] Of or pertaining to monastery, or to monastic life. — Mon`as*te”ri*al*ly, adv.

Mon”as*te*ry (?), n.; pl. Monasteries (#). [L. monasterium, Gr. &?;, fr. &?; a solitary, a monk, fr. &?; to be alone, live in solitude, fr. mo`nos alone. Cf. Minister.] A house of religious retirement, or of secusion from ordinary temporal concerns, especially for monks; — more rarely applied to such a house for females.

Syn. — Convent; abbey; priory. See Cloister.

Mo*nas”tic (?), n. A monk.

{ Mo*nas”tic (?), Mo*nas”tic*al (?), } a. [Gr. &?; monk: cf. F. monastique. See Monastery.] 1. Of or pertaining to monasteries, or to their occupants, rules, etc., as, monastic institutions or rules.

2. Secluded from temporal concerns and devoted to religion; recluse. “A life monastic.” Denham.

Mo*nas”tic*al*ly, adv. In a monastic manner.

Mo*nas”ti*cism (?), n. The monastic life, system, or condition. Milman.

Mo*nas”ti*con (?), n. [NL. See Monastic.] A book giving an account of monasteries.

Mon`a*tom”ic (?), adv. [Mon- + atomic.] (Chem.) (a) Consisting of, or containing, one atom; as, the molecule of mercury is monatomic. (b) Having the equivalence or replacing power of an atom of hydrogen; univalent; as, the methyl radical is monatomic.

Mo*nax”i*al (?), a. [Mon- + axial.] (Biol.) Having only one axis; developing along a single line or plane; as, monaxial development.

Mon”a*zite (m&obreve;n”&adot;*zīt), n. [From Gr. mona`zein to be solitary, in allusion to its isolated crystals.] (Min.) A mineral occurring usually in small isolated crystals, — a phosphate of the cerium metals.

Mon”day (mŭn”d&asl;; 48), n. [OE. moneday, monenday, AS. mōnandæg, i.e., day of the moon, day sacred to the moon; akin to D. maandag, G. montag, OHG. mānatag, Icel. mānadagr, Dan. mandag, Sw. måndag. See Moon, and Day.] The second day of the week; the day following Sunday.

||Monde (môNd), n. [F. See Mundane.] The world; a globe as an ensign of royalty. [R.] A. Drummond.

||Le beau monde [F.], fashionable society. See Beau monde. — ||Demi monde. See Demimonde.

Mone (?), n. The moon. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mone, n. A moan. [Obs.] Chaucer.

{ Mo*ne”cian (?), Mo*ne”cious (?), } a. (Bot.) See Monœcian, and Monœcious.

Mon*em”bry*o*ny (?), n. [See Mono- , and Embryo.] (Bot.) The condition of an ovule having but a single embryo. — Mon*em`bry*on”ic (#), a.

Mo”ner (?), n. (Zoöl.) One of the Monera.

||Mo*ne”ra (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. mo`nos single.] (Zoöl.) The lowest division of rhizopods, including those which resemble the amœbas, but are destitute of a nucleus.

Mo*ne”ral (?), a. Of or pertaining to the Monera.

Mo*ne”ran (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Monera. — n. One of the Monera.

||Mo*ne”ron (?), n.; pl. L. Monera (#); E. Monerons (#). [NL.] (Zoöl.) One of the Monera.

||Mo*ner”u*la (?), n. [NL., dim. of moner. See Monera.] (Biol.) A germ in that stage of development in which its form is simply that of a non- nucleated mass of protoplasm. It precedes the one-celled germ. So called from its likeness to a moner. Haeckel.

Mo*ne”sia (?), n. (Pharm.) The bark, or a vegetable extract brought in solid cakes from South America and believed to be derived from the bark, of the tree Chrysophyllum glycyphlœum. It is used as an alterative and astringent.

Mo*ne”sin (?), n. The acrid principle of Monesia, sometimes used as a medicine.

Mo*nest” (?), v. t. [See Admonish.] To warn; to admonish; to advise. [Obs.] Wyclif (2 Cor. v. 20).

Mon”e*ta*ry (?), a. [L. monetarius belonging to a mint. See Money.] Of or pertaining to money, or consisting of money; pecuniary. “The monetary relations of Europe.” E. Everett.

Monetary unit, the standard of a national currency, as the dollar in the United States, the pound in England, the franc in France, the mark in Germany.

Mon”eth (?), n. A month. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mon`e*ti*za”tion (?), n. The act or process of converting into money, or of adopting as money; as, the monetization of silver.

Mon”e*tize (?), v. t. To convert into money; to adopt as current money; as, to monetize silver.

Mon”ey (?), n.; pl. Moneys (#). [OE. moneie, OF. moneie, F. monnaie, fr. L. moneta. See Mint place where coin is made, Mind, and cf. Moidore, Monetary.] 1. A piece of metal, as gold, silver, copper, etc., coined, or stamped, and issued by the sovereign authority as a medium of exchange in financial transactions between citizens and with government; also, any number of such pieces; coin.

To prevent such abuses, . . . it has been found necessary . . . to affix a public stamp upon certain quantities of such particular metals, as were in those countries commonly made use of to purchase goods. Hence the origin of coined money, and of those public offices called mints.

A. Smith.

2. Any written or stamped promise, certificate, or order, as a government note, a bank note, a certificate of deposit, etc., which is payable in standard coined money and is lawfully current in lieu of it; in a comprehensive sense, any currency usually and lawfully employed in buying and selling.

&fist; Whatever, among barbarous nations, is used as a medium of effecting exchanges of property, and in the terms of which values are reckoned, as sheep, wampum, copper rings, quills of salt or of gold dust, shovel blades, etc., is, in common language, called their money.

3. In general, wealth; property; as, he has much money in land, or in stocks; to make, or lose, money.

The love of money is a root of all kinds of evil.

1 Tim vi. 10 (Rev. Ver. ).

Money bill (Legislation), a bill for raising revenue. — Money broker, a broker who deals in different kinds of money; one who buys and sells bills of exchange; — called also money changer. — Money cowrie (Zoöl.), any one of several species of Cypræa (esp. C. moneta) formerly much used as money by savage tribes. See Cowrie. — Money of account, a denomination of value used in keeping accounts, for which there may, or may not, be an equivalent coin; e. g., the mill is a money of account in the United States, but not a coin. — Money order, an order for the payment of money; specifically, a government order for the payment of money, issued at one post office as payable at another; — called also postal money order. — Money scrivener, a person who procures the loan of money to others. [Eng.] — Money spider, Money spinner (Zoöl.), a small spider; — so called as being popularly supposed to indicate that the person upon whom it crawls will be fortunate in money matters. — Money’s worth, a fair or full equivalent for the money which is paid. — A piece of money, a single coin. — Ready money, money held ready for payment, or actually paid, at the time of a transaction; cash. – - To make money, to gain or acquire money or property; to make a profit in dealings.

Mon”ey (?), v. t. To supply with money. [Obs.]

Mon”ey*age (?), n. [Cf. F. monnayage coinage.] 1. A tax paid to the first two Norman kings of England to prevent them from debashing the coin. Hume.

2. Mintage; coinage. [Obs.]

Mon”eyed (?), adv. 1. Supplied with money; having money; wealthy; as, moneyed men. Bacon.

2. Converted into money; coined.

If exportation will not balance importation, away must your silver go again, whether moneyed or not moneyed.

Locke.

3. Consisting in, or composed of, money. A. Hamilton.

Mon”ey*er (?), n. [From Money; cf. OF. monoier, F. monnoayeur, L. monetarius a master of the mint. Cf. Monetary.] 1. A person who deals in money; banker or broker. [Obs. or R.]

2. An authorized coiner of money. Sir M. Hale.

The Company of Moneyers, the officials who formerly coined the money of Great Britain, and who claimed certain prescriptive rights and privileges.

Mon”ey*less, a. Destitute of money; penniless; impecunious. Swift.

Mon”ey-mak`er (?), n. 1. One who coins or prints money; also, a counterfeiter of money. [R.]

2. One who accumulates money or wealth; specifically, one who makes money-getting his governing motive.

Mon”ey-mak`ing, n. The act or process of making money; the acquisition and accumulation of wealth.

Obstinacy in money-making.

Milman.

Mon”ey-mak`ing, a. 1. Affording profitable returns; lucrative; as, a money- making business.

2. Successful in gaining money, and devoted to that aim; as, a money-making man.

Mon”ey*wort` (?), n. (Bot.) A trailing plant (Lysimachia Nummularia), with rounded opposite leaves and solitary yellow flowers in their axils.

Mong”corn` (?), n. See Mangcorn.

Mon”ger (?), n. [AS. mangere, fr. mangian to trade; akin to Icel. manga to trade, mangari a trader, OHG. mangari, mengari; cf. L. mango a dealer in slaves.] 1. A trader; a dealer; — now used chiefly in composition; as, fishmonger, ironmonger, newsmonger.

2. A small merchant vessel. [Obs.] Blount.

Mon”ger, v. t. To deal in; to make merchandise of; to traffic in; — used chiefly of discreditable traffic.

Mon”gol (?), n. One of the Mongols. — a. Of or pertaining to Mongolia or the Mongols.

Mon*go”li*an (?), a. Of or pertaining to Mongolia or the Mongols. — n. One of the Mongols.

Mon*gol”ic (?), a. See Mongolian.

Mon”go*loid (?), a. [Mongol + -oid.] Resembling a Mongol or the Mongols; having race characteristics, such as color, hair, and features, like those of the Mongols. Huxley.

{ Mon”gols (?), Mon*go”li*ans (?) }, n. pl. (Ethnol.) One of the great races of man, including the greater part of the inhabitants of China, Japan, and the interior of Asia, with branches in Northern Europe and other parts of the world. By some American Indians are considered a branch of the Mongols. In a more restricted sense, the inhabitants of Mongolia and adjacent countries, including the Burats and the Kalmuks.

{ Mon”goose, Mon”goos } (?), n. (Zoöl.) A species of ichneumon (Herpestes griseus), native of India. Applied also to other allied species, as the African banded mongoose (Crossarchus fasciatus). [Written also mungoose, mungoos, mungous.]

Mon”grel (?), n. [Prob. shortened fr. mongrel, and akin to AS. mengan to mix, and E. mingle. See Mingle.] The progeny resulting from a cross between two breeds, as of domestic animals; anything of mixed breed. Drayton.

Mon”grel, a. 1. (Zoöl.) Not of a pure breed.

2. Of mixed kinds; as, mongrel language.

Mon”grel*ize (?), v. t. & i. To cause to be mongrel; to cross breeds, so as to produce mongrels.

‘Mongst (?), prep. See Amongst.

Mon”ied (?), a. See Moneyed.

Mo*nif”i*er (?), n. [NL., fr. L. monile necklace + ferre to bear.] (Paleon.) A fossil fish.

Mo*nil”i*form (?), a. [L. monile necklace + -form: cf. F. moniliforme.] (Biol.) Joined or constricted, at regular intervals, so as to resemble a string of beads; as, a moniliform root; a moniliform antenna. See Illust. of Antenna.

Mon”i*ment (?), n. [L. monimentum, monumentum. See Monument.] Something to preserve memory; a reminder; a monument; hence, a mark; an image; a superscription; a record. [Obs.] Spenser.

Mon”ish (?), v. t. [OE. monesten. See Admonish, Monition.] To admonish; to warn. See Admonish. [Archaic] Ascham.

Mon”ish*er (?), n. One who monishes; an admonisher. [Archaic]

Mon”ish*ment (?), n. Admonition. [Archaic]

Mon”ism (m&obreve;n”&ibreve;z’m or mō“n&ibreve;z’m), n. [From Gr. mo`nos single.] 1. (Metaph.) That doctrine which refers all phenomena to a single ultimate constituent or agent; — the opposite of dualism.

&fist; The doctrine has been held in three generic forms: matter and its phenomena have been explained as a modification of mind, involving an idealistic monism; or mind has been explained by and resolved into matter, giving a materialistic monism; or, thirdly, matter, mind, and their phenomena have been held to be manifestations or modifications of some one substance, like the substance of Spinoza, or a supposed unknown something of some evolutionists, which is capable of an objective and subjective aspect.

2. (Biol.) See Monogenesis, 1.

Mon”ist, n. A believer in monism.

Mo*nis”tic (?), a. Of, pertaining to, or involving, monism.

Mo*ni”tion (?), n. [F., fr. L. monitio, from monere to warn, bring to mind; akin to E. mind. See Mind, and cf. Admonish, Money, Monster.] 1. Instruction or advice given by way of caution; an admonition; a warning; a caution.

Sage monitions from his friends.

Swift.

2. Information; indication; notice; advice.

We have no visible monition of . . . other periods, such as we have of the day by successive light and darkness.

Holder.

3. (Admiralty Practice) A process in the nature of a summons to appear and answer.

4. (Eccl. Law) An order monishing a party complained against to obey under pain of the law. Shipley.

Mon”i*tive (?), a. Conveying admonition; admonitory. Barrow.

Mon”i*tor (?), n. [L., fr. monere. See Monition, and cf. Mentor.] 1. One who admonishes; one who warns of faults, informs of duty, or gives advice and instruction by way of reproof or caution.

You need not be a monitor to the king.

Bacon.

2. Hence, specifically, a pupil selected to look to the school in the absence of the instructor, to notice the absence or faults of the scholars, or to instruct a division or class.

3. (Zoöl.) Any large Old World lizard of the genus Varanus; esp., the Egyptian species (V. Niloticus), which is useful because it devours the eggs and young of the crocodile. It is sometimes five or six feet long.

4. [So called from the name given by Captain Ericson, its designer, to the first ship of the kind.] An ironclad war vessel, very low in the water, and having one or more heavily-armored revolving turrets, carrying heavy guns.

5. (Mach.) A tool holder, as for a lathe, shaped like a low turret, and capable of being revolved on a vertical pivot so as to bring successively the several tools in holds into proper position for cutting.

Monitor top, the raised central portion, or clearstory, of a car roof, having low windows along its sides.

Mon`i*to”ri*al (?), a. 1. Of or pertaining to a monitor or monitors.

2. Done or performed by a monitor; as, monitorial work; conducted or taught by monitors; as, a monitorial school; monitorial instruction.

Mon`i*to”ri*al*ly, adv. In a monitorial manner.

Mon”i*tor*ship (?), n. The post or office of a monitor.

Mon”i*to*ry (?), a. [L. monitorius.] Giving admonition; instructing by way of caution; warning.

Losses, miscarriages, and disappointments, are monitory and instructive.

L’Estrange.

Mon”i*to*ry, n. Admonition; warning; especially, a monition proceeding from an ecclesiastical court, but not addressed to any one person.

{ Mon”i*tress (?), Mon”i*trix (?), } n. A female monitor.

Monk (?), n. [AS. munuc, munec, munc, L. monachus, Gr. &?;, fr. mo`nos alone. Cf. Monachism.] 1. A man who retires from the ordinary temporal concerns of the world, and devotes himself to religion; one of a religious community of men inhabiting a monastery, and bound by vows to a life of chastity, obedience, and poverty. “A monk out of his cloister.” Chaucer.

Monks in some respects agree with regulars, as in the substantial vows of religion; but in other respects monks and regulars differ; for that regulars, vows excepted, are not tied up to so strict a rule of life as monks are.

Ayliffe.

2. (Print.) A blotch or spot of ink on a printed page, caused by the ink not being properly distributed. It is distinguished from a friar, or white spot caused by a deficiency of ink.

3. A piece of tinder made of agaric, used in firing the powder hose or train of a mine.

4. (Zoöl.) (a) A South American monkey (Pithecia monachus); also applied to other species, as Cebus xanthocephalus. (b) The European bullfinch.

Monk bat (Zoöl.), a South American and West Indian bat (Molossus nasutus); — so called because the males live in communities by themselves. — Monk bird(Zoöl.), the friar bird. — Monk seal (Zoöl.), a species of seal (Monachus albiventer) inhabiting the Black Sea, the Mediterranean Sea, and the adjacent parts of the Atlantic. — Monk’s rhubarb (Bot.), a kind of dock; — also called patience (Rumex Patientia).

Monk”er*y (?), n.; pl. Monkeries (&?;). 1. The life of monks; monastic life; monastic usage or customs; — now usually applied by way of reproach.

Miters, and wretched dead mediæval monkeries.

Carlyle.

2. A collective body of monks. [Obs.]

Though he have a whole monkery to sing for him.

Latimer.

Mon”key (?), n.; pl. Monkeys (#). [Cf. OIt. monicchio, It. monnino, dim. of monna an ape, also dame, mistress, contr. fr. madonna. See Madonna.] 1. (Zoöl.) (a) In the most general sense, any one of the Quadrumana, including apes, baboons, and lemurs. (b) Any species of Quadrumana, except the lemurs. (c) Any one of numerous species of Quadrumana (esp. such as have a long tail and prehensile feet) exclusive of apes and baboons.

&fist; The monkeys are often divided into three groups: (a) Catarrhines, or Simidæ. These have an oblong head, with the oblique flat nostrils near together. Some have no tail, as the apes. All these are natives of the Old World. (b) Platyrhines, or Cebidæ. These have a round head, with a broad nasal septum, so that the nostrils are wide apart and directed downward. The tail is often prehensile, and the thumb is short and not opposable. These are natives of the New World. (c) Strepsorhines, or Lemuroidea. These have a pointed head with curved nostrils. They are natives of Southern Asia, Africa, and Madagascar.

2. A term of disapproval, ridicule, or contempt, as for a mischievous child.

This is the monkey’s own giving out; she is persuaded I will marry her.

Shak.

3. The weight or hammer of a pile driver, that is, a very heavy mass of iron, which, being raised on high, falls on the head of the pile, and drives it into the earth; the falling weight of a drop hammer used in forging.

4. A small trading vessel of the sixteenth century.

Monkey boat. (Naut.) (a) A small boat used in docks. (b) A half- decked boat used on the River Thames. — Monkey block (Naut.), a small single block strapped with a swivel. R. H. Dana, Jr. — Monkey flower (Bot.), a plant of the genus Mimulus; — so called from the appearance of its gaping corolla. Gray. — Monkey gaff (Naut.), a light gaff attached to the topmast for the better display of signals at sea. — Monkey jacket, a short closely fitting jacket, worn by sailors. — Monkey rail (Naut.), a second and lighter rail raised about six inches above the quarter rail of a ship. — Monkey shine, monkey trick. [Slang, U.S.] — Monkey trick, a mischievous prank. Saintsbury. — Monkey wheel. See Gin block, under 5th Gin. — Monkey wrench, a wrench or spanner having a movable jaw.

Mon”key, v. t. & i. To act or treat as a monkey does; to ape; to act in a grotesque or meddlesome manner.

To monkey with, to handle in a meddlesome manner. [Colloq.]

Mon”key-bread` (?), n. (Bot.) The fruit of the Adansonia digitata; also, the tree. See Adansonia.

Mon”key-cup` (?), n. (Bot.) See Nepenthes.

Mon”key-pot` (?), n. (Zoöl.) The fruit of two South American trees (Lecythis Ollaria, and L. Zabucajo), which have for their fruit large, pot-shaped, woody capsules containing delicious nuts, and opening almost explosively by a circular lid at the top. Vases and pots are made of this capsule.

Mon”key’s puz”zle (?). (Bot.) A lofty coniferous Chilian tree (Araucaria imbricata), the branches of which are so crowded and intertwisted “as to puzzle a monkey to climb.” The edible nuts are over an inch long, and are called piñon by the Chilians.

Mon”key*tail` (?), n. (Naut.) A short, round iron bar or lever used in naval gunnery. Totten.

Monk”fish (?), n. (Zoöl.) (a) The angel fish (Squatina). (b) The angler (Lophius).

Monk”flow`er (?), n. (Bot.) A name of certain curious orchids which bear three kinds of flowers formerly referred to three genera, but now ascertained to be sexually different forms of the same genus (Catasetum tridentatum, etc.).

Monk”hood (?), n. [Monk + - hood.] 1. The character or condition of a monk. Atterbury.

2. Monks, regarded collectively. Longfellow.

Monk”ing, a. Monkish. [R.] Coleridge.

Monk”ish, a. Like a monk, or pertaining to monks; monastic; as, monkish manners; monkish dress; monkish solitude. — Monk”ish*ness, n.

Monk”ly, a. Like, or suitable to, a monk. [R.]

Monks”hood` (?), n. (Bot.) A plant of the genus Aconitum; aconite. See Aconite.

Monk’s” seam` (?). (Naut.) An extra middle seam made at the junction of two breadths of canvas, ordinarily joined by only two rows of stitches.

{ Mon”o- (?), Mon- (?) }. [Gr. &?;.] A prefix signifying one, single, alone; as, monocarp, monopoly; (Chem.) indicating that a compound contains one atom, radical, or group of that to the name of which it is united; as, monoxide, monosulphide, monatomic, etc.

||Mo”no (?), n. [Sp.] (Zoöl.) The black howler of Central America (Mycetes villosus).

Mon`o*ba”sic (?), a. [Mono- + basic.] (Chem.) Capable of being neutralized by a univalent base or basic radical; having but one acid hydrogen atom to be replaced; — said of acids; as, acetic, nitric, and hydrochloric acids are monobasic.

Mon`o*car*bon”ic (?), a. [Mono- + carbonic.] (Chem.) Containing one carboxyl group; as, acetic acid is a monocarbonic acid.

Mon`o*car”di*an (?), a. [Mono- + Gr. &?; heart.] (Zoöl.) Having a single heart, as fishes and amphibians. — n. An animal having a single heart.

Mon”o*carp (?), n. (Bot.) A monocarpic plant.

Mon`o*car”pel*la*ry (?), a. [Mono- + carpellary.] (Bot.) Consisting of a single carpel, as the fruit of the pea, cherry, and almond.

{ Mon`o*car”pic (?), Mon`o*car”pous (?), } a. [Mono- + Gr. &?; fruit: cf. F. monocarpe.] (Bot.) Bearing fruit but once, and dying after fructification, as beans, maize, mustard, etc.

&fist; Annual and biennual herbs are monocarpic, so also some plants of longer duration, as the century plant.

Mon`o*ceph”a*lous (?), a. [Mono- + Gr. kefalh` head.] (Bot.) Having a solitary head; — said of unbranched composite plants.

||Mo*noc”e*ros (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?;; mo`nos alone, single + ke`ras horn.] 1. A one-horned creature; a unicorn; a sea monster with one horn.

Mighty monoceroses with immeasured tails.

Spenser.

2. (Astron.) The Unicorn, a constellation situated to the east Orion.

Mon`o*chla*myd”e*ous (?), a. [Mono- + Gr. &?;, &?;, cloak: cf. F. monochlamydé.] (Bot.) Having a single floral envelope, that is, a calyx without a corolla, or, possibly, in rare cases, a corolla without a calyx.

Mon”o*chord (?), n. [L. monochordon, Gr. &?;, fr. &?; with but one string; &?; only, single + &?; string: cf. F. monocorde. See Chord, and cf. Mainchord.] (Mus.) An instrument for experimenting upon the mathematical relations of musical sounds. It consists of a single string stretched between two bridges, one or both of which are movable, and which stand upon a graduated rule for the purpose of readily changing and measuring the length of the part of the string between them.

Mon`o*chro*mat”ic (?), a. [Cf. F. monochromatique. See Monochrome.] Consisting of one color, or presenting rays of light of one color only.

Monochromatic lamp (Opt.),a lamp whose flame yields rays of some one homogenous light. It is of great importance in optical experiments.

Mon”o*chrome (?), n. [Gr. &?; of one color; mo`nos single + &?; color: cf. F. monochrome.] A painting or drawing in a single color; a picture made with a single color.

Mon`o*chro”mic (?), a. Made, or done, with a single color; as, a monochromic picture.

Mon”o*chro`my (?), n. The art of painting or drawing in monochrome.

Mon`o*chron”ic (?), a. [Mono- + Gr. &?; time.] Existing at the same time; contemporaneous.

Mon`o*cil”i*a`ted (?), a. [Mono- + ciliated.] (Biol.) Having but one cilium.

Mon”o*cle (?), n. [F. See Monocular.] An eyeglass for one eye. Simmonds.

Mon`o*cli”nal (?), a. [See Monoclinic.] (Geol.) Having one oblique inclination; — applied to strata that dip in only one direction from the axis of elevation.

Mon”o*cline (?), n. (Geol.) A monoclinal fold.

Mon`o*clin”ic (?), a. [Mono- + Gr. &?; to incline.] (Crystallog.) Having one oblique intersection; — said of that system of crystallization in which the vertical axis is inclined to one, but at right angles to the other, lateral axis. See Crystallization.

Mo*noc”li*nous (?), a. [Mono- + Gr. &?; couch, fr. &?; to lie down: cf. F. monocline.] (Bot.) Hermaphrodite, or having both stamens and pistils in every flower.

||Mon`o*con”dy*la (?), n. pl. [NL. See Mono-, and Condyle.] (Zoöl.) A group of vertebrates, including the birds and reptiles, or those that have only one occipital condyle; the Sauropsida.

Mon”o*co*tyl (?), n. (Bot.) Any monocotyledonous plant.

Mon”o*co*tyle (?), a. [Cf. F. monocotyle.] (Bot.) Monocotyledonous.

Mon`o*cot`y*le”don (?), n. [Mono- + cotyledon: cf. F. monocotylédone.] (Bot.) A plant with only one cotyledon, or seed lobe.

&fist; The plural, monocotyledons, is used as the name of a large class of plants, and is generally understood to be equivalent to the term endogens.

Mon`o*cot`y*le”don*ous (?), a. [Cf. F. monocotylédoné.] (Bot.) Having only one cotyledon, seed lobe, or seminal leaf. Lindley.

Mo*noc”ra*cy (?), n. [Mono- + -cracy, as in democracy.] Government by a single person; undivided rule. Sydney Smith.

Mon”o*crat (?), n. [Cf. Gr. &?; ruling alone.] One who governs alone.

Mon`o*crot”ic (?), a. (Physiol.) Of, pertaining to, or showing, monocrotism; as, a monocrotic pulse; a pulse of the monocrotic type.

Mo*noc”ro*tism (?), n. [Gr. mo`nos alone + &?; a beating.] (Physiol.) That condition of the pulse in which the pulse curve or sphygmogram shows but a single crest, the dicrotic elevation entirely disappearing.

Mo*noc”u*lar (?), a. [L. monoculus; Gr. mo`nos single + L. oculus eye: cf. F. monoculaire.] 1. Having only one eye; with one eye only; as, monocular vision.

2. Adapted to be used with only one eye at a time; as, a monocular microscope.

Mon”o*cule (m&obreve;n”&osl;*kūl), n. [See Monocular.] (Zoöl.) A small crustacean with one median eye.

Mo*noc”u*lous (?), a. Monocular. Glanvill.

Mon`o*cys”tic (?), a. [See Mono- , and Cyst.] (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to a division (Monocystidea) of Gregarinida, in which the body consists of one sac.

Mon`o*dac”tyl*ous (?), a. [Gr. monoda`ktylos; mo`nos single + da`ktylos finger: cf. F. monodactyle.] (Zoöl.) Having but one finger or claw.

{ Mon”o*delph (?), Mon`o*del”phi*an (?), } n. (Zoöl.) One of the Monodelphia.

||Mon`o*del”phi*a (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. mo`nos single + delfy`s the womb.] (Zoöl.) The group that includes all ordinary or placental mammals; the Placentalia. See Mammalia.

{ Mon`o*del”phic (?), Mon`o*del”phous (?), } a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Monodelphia.

{ Mo*nod”ic (?), Mo*nod”ic*al (?), } a. [Gr. &?;.] 1. Belonging to a monody.

2. (Mus.) (a) For one voice; monophonic. (b) Homophonic; — applied to music in which the melody is confined to one part, instead of being shared by all the parts as in the style called polyphonic.

Mon`o*di*met”ric (?), a. [Mono- + dimetric.] (Crystallog.) Dimetric.

Mon”o*dist (?), n. A writer of a monody.

{ Mon”o*dra`ma (?), Mon”o*drame (?), } n. [Mono- + Gr. &?; drama.] A drama acted, or intended to be acted, by a single person.

Mon`o*dra*mat”ic (?), a. Pertaining to a monodrama.

Mon”o*dy (?), n.; pl. Monodies (#). [L. monodia, Gr. &?;, fr. &?; singing alone; mo`nos single + &?; song: cf. F. monodie. See Ode.] A species of poem of a mournful character, in which a single mourner expresses lamentation; a song for one voice.

Mon`o*dy*nam”ic (?), a. [Mono- + dynamic.] Possessing but one capacity or power. “Monodynamic men.” De Quincey.

Mon`o*dy”na*mism (?), n. The theory that the various forms of activity in nature are manifestations of the same force. G. H. Lewes.

||Mo*nœ“ci*a (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. mo`nos single + &?; house.] (Bot.) A Linnæan class of plants, whose stamens and pistils are in distinct flowers in the same plant.

Mo*nœ“cian (?), a. 1. (Bot.) Of or pertaining to the Monœcia; monœcious. — n. One of the Monœcia.

2. (Zoöl.) A monœcious animal, as certain mollusks.

Mo*nœ“cious (?), a. (Biol.) Having the sexes united in one individual, as when male and female flowers grow upon the same individual plant; hermaphrodite; — opposed to diœcious.

Mo*nœ“cism (?), n. (Biol.) The state or condition of being monœcious.

Mon”o*gam (?), n. (Bot.) One of the Monogamia.

||Mon`o*ga”mi*a (?), n. pl. [NL. See Monogamous.] (Bot.) A Linnæan order of plants, having solitary flowers with united anthers, as in the genus Lobelia.

{ Mon`o*ga”mi*an (?), Mon`o*gam”ic (?), } a. [See Monogamous.] 1. Pertaining to, or involving, monogamy.

2. (Bot.) Of or pertaining to the Monogamia; having a simple flower with united anthers.

Mo*nog”a*mist (?), n. One who practices or upholds monogamy. Goldsmith.

Mo*nog”a*mous (?), a. [L. monogamus having but one wife, Gr. &?;; mo`nos single + &?; marriage.] 1. Upholding, or practicing, monogamy.

2. (Bot.) Same as Monogamian.

3. (Zoöl.) Mating with but one of the opposite sex; — said of birds and mammals.

Mo*nog”a*my (?), n. [L. monogamia, Gr. &?;: cf. F. monogamie.] 1. Single marriage; marriage with but one person, husband or wife, at the same time; — opposed to polygamy. Also, one marriage only during life; — opposed to deuterogamy.

2. (Zoöl.) State of being paired with a single mate.

Mon`o*gas”tric (?), a. [Mono- + Gr. &?; belly.] Having but a single stomach.

Mon`o*gen”e*sis (?), n. [Mono- + genesis.] 1. Oneness of origin; esp. (Biol.), development of all beings in the universe from a single cell; — opposed to polygenesis. Called also monism. Dana. Haeckel.

2. (Biol.) That form of reproduction which requires but one parent, as in reproduction by fission or in the formation of buds, etc., which drop off and form new individuals; asexual reproduction. Haeckel.

3. (Biol.) The direct development of an embryo, without metamorphosis, into an organism similar to the parent organism; — opposed to metagenesis. E. van Beneden.

Mon`o*ge*net”ic (?), a. [See Monogenesis.] 1. (Geol.) One in genesis; resulting from one process of formation; — used of a mountain range. Dana.

2. (Biol.) Relating to, or involving, monogenesis; as, the monogenetic school of physiologists, who admit but one cell as the source of all beings.

Mon`o*gen”ic (?), a. 1. (Biol.) Of or pertaining to monogenesis.

2. (Zoöl.) Producing only one kind of germs, or young; developing only in one way.

Mo*nog”e*nism (?), n. (Anthropol.) The theory or doctrine that the human races have a common origin, or constitute a single species.

Mo*nog”e*nist (?), n. (Anthropol.) One who maintains that the human races are all of one species; — opposed to polygenist.

Mon`o*ge*nis”tic (?), a. Monogenic.

Mo*nog”e*nous (?), a. (Biol.) Of or pertaining to monogenesis; as, monogenous, or asexual, reproduction.

Mo*nog”e*ny (?), n. 1. Monogenesis.

2. (Anthropol.) The doctrine that the members of the human race have all a common origin.

Mon`o*go*neu”tic (?), a. [Mono- + Gr. &?; offspring.] (Zoöl.) Having but one brood in a season.

Mon”o*gram (?), n. [L. monogramma; Gr. mo`nos single + gra`mma letter, fr. gra`fein to write: cf. F. monogramme. See Graphic.] 1. A character or cipher composed of two or more letters interwoven or combined so as to represent a name, or a part of it (usually the initials). Monograms are often used on seals, ornamental pins, rings, buttons, and by painters, engravers, etc., to distinguish their works.

Monogram.

&fist; The monogram above, combining the letters of the name Karolvs, was used by Charlemagne.

2. A picture in lines; a sketch. [R.]

3. An arbitrary sign for a word. [R.]

Mon”o*gram`mal (?), a. See Monogrammic.

Mon`o*gram*mat”ic (?), a. Monogrammic.

Mon`o*gram”mic (?), a. Of, pertaining to, or resembling, a monogram.

Mon”o*gram`mous (?), a. Monogrammic.

Mon”o*graph (?), n. [Mono- + -graph.] A written account or description of a single thing, or class of things; a special treatise on a particular subject of limited range.

Mo*nog”ra*pher (?), n. A writer of a monograph.

{ Mon`o*graph”ic (?), Mon`o*graph”ic*al (?), } a. [Cf. F. monographique.] Of or pertaining to a monograph, or to a monography; as, a monographic writing; a monographic picture. — Mon`o*graph”ic*al*ly, adv.

Mo*nog”ra*phist (?), n. One who writes a monograph.

Mo*nog”ra*phous (?), a. Monographic. [Obs.]

Mo*nog”ra*phy (?), n. [Mono- + -graphy: cf. F. monographie.] 1. Representation by lines without color; an outline drawing.

2. A monograph. [Obs.]

Mon”o*gyn (?), n. (Bot.) One of the Monogynia.

||Mon`o*gyn”i*a (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. mo`nos single + &?; woman, female.] (Bot.) A Linnæan order of plants, including those which have only one style or stigma.

Mon`o*gyn”i*an (?), a. (Bot.) Pertaining to the Monogynia; monogynous. — n. One of the Monogynia.

Mo*nog”y*nous (?), a. [Cf. F. monogyne.] (Bot.) Of or pertaining to Monogynia; having only one style or stigma.

Mo*nog”y*ny (?), n. [See Monogynia.] 1. Marriage with the one woman only.

2. (Bot.) The state or condition of being monogynous.

Mon`o*hem”er*ous (?), a. [Mono- + Gr. &?; day.] (Med.) Lasting but one day.

Mo*noi”cous (?), a. (Bot.) Monœcious.

Mo*nol”a*try (?), n. [Mono- + Gr. &?; worship.] Worship of a single deity.

Mon”o*lith (?), n. [F. monolithe, L. monolithus consisting of a single stone, Gr. &?;; mo`nos single + li`qos stone.] A single stone, especially one of large size, shaped into a pillar, statue, or monument.

Mon”o*lith`al (?), a. Monolithic.

Mon`o*lith”ic (?), a. Of or pertaining to a monolith; consisting of a single stone.

Mo*nol”o*gist (?), n. [See Monologue.] One who soliloquizes; esp., one who monopolizes conversation in company. De Quincey.

Mon”o*logue (?), n. [F. monologue, Gr. &?; speaking alone; mo`nos alone, single, sole + lo`gos speech, discourse, le`gein to speak. See Legend.] 1. A speech uttered by a person alone; soliloquy; also, talk or discourse in company, in the strain of a soliloquy; as, an account in monologue. Dryden.

2. A dramatic composition for a single performer.

Mo*nol”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. &?;.] The habit of soliloquizing, or of monopolizing conversation.

It was not by an insolent usurpation that Coleridge persisted in monology through his whole life.

De Quincey.

{ ||Mon`o*ma”chi*a (?), Mo*nom”a*chy (?), } n. [L. monomachia, Gr. &?;, fr. &?; fighting in single combat; mo`nos single, alone + &?; to fight.] A duel; single combat. “The duello or monomachia.” Sir W. Scott.

Mo*nom”a*chist (?), n. One who fights in single combat; a duelist.

Mon”o*mane (?), n. A monomaniac. [R.]

Mon`o*ma”ni*a (?), n. [Mono- + mania.] Derangement of the mind in regard of a single subject only; also, such a concentration of interest upon one particular subject or train of ideas to show mental derangement.

Syn. — Insanity; madness; alienation; aberration; derangement; mania. See Insanity.

Mon`oma”ni*ac (?), n. A person affected by monomania.

{ Mon`oma”ni*ac (?), Mon`oma”ni*a*cal (?), } a. [Cf. F. monomaniaque.] Affected with monomania, or partial derangement of intellect; caused by, or resulting from, monomania; as, a monomaniacal delusion.

Mon”ome (?), n. [F., fr. Gr. mo`nos single + -nome as in binome. See Binomial.] (Math.) A monomial.

Mo*nom”er*ous (?), a. [Gr. mo`nos single; mo`nos alone + &?; part.] 1. (Bot.) Composed of solitary parts, as a flower with one sepal, one petal, one stamen, and one pistil.

2. (Zoöl.) Having but one joint; — said of the foot of certain insects.

Mon`o*me*tal”lic (?), a. Consisting of one metal; of or pertaining to monometallism.

Mon`o*met”al*lism (?), n. [Mono- + metal.] The legalized use of one metal only, as gold, or silver, in the standard currency of a country, or as a standard of money values. See Bimetallism.

Mon`o*met”al*list (?), n. One who believes in monometallism as opposed to bimetallism, etc.

Mo*nom”e*ter (?), n. [Gr. &?; of one meter; mo`nos single + &?; measure.] A rhythmic series, consisting of a single meter.

Mon`o*met”ric (?), a. [Cf. F. monométrique.] (Crystallog.) Same as Isometric.

Mo*no”mi*al (?), n. [See Monome, Binomial.] (Alg.) A single algebraic expression; that is, an expression unconnected with any other by the sign of addition, substraction, equality, or inequality.

Mo*no”mi*al, a. (Alg.) Consisting of but a single term or expression.

{ Mon`o*mor”phic (?), Mon`o*mor”phous (?), } a. [Mono- + Gr. &?; form.] (Biol.) Having but a single form; retaining the same form throughout the various stages of development; of the same or of an essentially similar type of structure; — opposed to dimorphic, trimorphic, and polymorphic.

||Mo*nom”pha*lus (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. mo`nos alone + &?; the navel.] A form of double monster, in which two individuals are united by a common umbilicus.

{ ||Mo*no”my*a (?), ||Mon`o*my*a”ri*a (?), } n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. mo`nos single + &?;, &?;, muscle.] (Zoöl.) An order of lamellibranchs having but one muscle for closing the shell, as the oyster.

{ Mon`o*my”a*ri*an (?), Mon`o*my”a*ry (?), } a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Monomya. — n. One of the Monomya.

Mon`o*no”mi*al (?), n. & a. Monomyal.

{ Mon`o*ou”si*an (?), Mon`o*ou”si*ous (?), } a. [Mono- + Gr. &?; being, substance, essence.] (Theil.) Having but one and the same nature or essence.

Mo*nop”a*thy (?), n. [Gr. &?;; mo`nos alone + &?;, &?;, to suffer.] Suffering or sensibility in a single organ or function. — Mon`o*path”ic, a.

Mon`o*per”son*al (?), a. [Mono- + personal.] Having but one person, or form of existence.

Mon`o*pet”al*ous (?), a. [Mono- + petal: cf. F. monopétale.] (Bot.) Having only one petal, or the corolla in one piece, or composed of petals cohering so as to form a tube or bowl; gamopetalous.

&fist; The most recent authors restrict this form to flowers having a solitary petal, as in species of Amorpha, and use gamopetalous for a corolla of several petals combined into one piece. See Illust. of Gamopetalous.

Mo*noph”a*nous (?), a. [Mono- + Gr. &?; to show.] Having one and the same appearance; having a mutual resemblance.

Mon`o*phon”ic (?), a. [Mono- + Gr. &?; a voice.] (Mus.) Single-voiced; having but one part; as, a monophonic composition; — opposed to polyphonic.

Mon”oph*thong (?), n. [Gr. &?; with one sound; mo`nos alone + &?; sound, voice.] 1. A single uncompounded vowel sound.

2. A combination of two written vowels pronounced as one; a digraph.

Mon`oph*thon”gal (?), a. Consisting of, or pertaining to, a monophthong.

Mon`o*phy*let”ic (?), a. [Gr. &?; of one tribe, fr. mo`nos single + &?; clan.] (Biol.) Of or pertaining to a single family or stock, or to development from a single common parent form; — opposed to polyphyletic; as, monophyletic origin.

Mo*noph”yl*lous (?), a. [Gr. mono`fyllos; mo`nos alone + fy`llon leaf: cf. F. monophylle.] (Bot.) One-leaved; composed of a single leaf; as, a monophyllous involucre or calyx.

Mon`o*phy”o*dont (?), a. [Gr. mo`nos single (mo`nos alone + &?; to produce) + ‘odoy`s, ‘odo`ntos, a tooth.] (Anat.) Having but one set of teeth; — opposed to diphyodont.

Mo*noph”y*site (?), n. [Gr. &?;; mo`nos single + &?; nature: cf. F. monophysite.] (Eccl. Hist.) One of a sect, in the ancient church, who maintained that the human and divine in Jesus Christ constituted but one composite nature. Also used adjectively.

Mon`o*phy*sit”ic*al (?), a. Of or pertaining to Monophysites, or their doctrines.

Mon”o*plast (?), n. [Mono- + -plast.] (Biol.) A monoplastic element.

Mon`o*plas”tic (?), a. [Mono- + -plastic.] (Biol.) That has one form, or retains its primary form, as, a monoplastic element.

||Mon`ople”gi*a (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. mo`nos single + &?; a stroke.] (Med.) Paralysis affecting a single limb.

||Mon`op*neu”mo*na (?), n. pl. [NL. See Mono-, and Pneumonia.] (Zoöl.) A suborder of Dipnoi, including the Ceratodus. [Written also monopneumonia.]

Mon”o*pode (?), n. 1. One of a fabulous tribe or race of Ethiopians having but one leg and foot. Sir J. Mandeville. Lowell.

2. (Bot.) A monopodium.

Mon`o*po”di*al (?), a. (Bot.) Having a monopodium or a single and continuous axis, as a birchen twig or a cornstalk.

||Mon`o*po”di*um (?), n.; pl. L. Monopodia (#), E. -ums (#). [L. See Monopody.] (Bot.) A single and continuous vegetable axis; — opposed to sympodium.

Mo*nop”o*dy (?), n. [Mono- + Gr. poy`s, podo`s, foot: cf. &?;, &?;, one-footed.] (Pros.) A measure of but a single foot.

Mo*nop”o*ler (?), n. A monopolist. [Obs.]

Mo*nop”o*list (m&osl;*n&obreve;p”&osl;*l&ibreve;st), n. One who monopolizes; one who has a monopoly; one who favors monopoly.

Mo*nop`o*lis”tic (-l&ibreve;s”t&ibreve;k), a. Of or pertaining to a monopolist. North Am. Rev.

Mo*nop”o*lite (?), n. A monopolist. Sylvester.

Mo*nop”o*lize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Monopolized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Monopolizing (?).] [From Monopoly.] To acquire a monopoly of; to have or get the exclusive privilege or means of dealing in, or the exclusive possession of; to engross the whole of; as, to monopolize the coffee trade; to monopolize land.

Mo*nop”o*li`zer (?), n. One who monopolizes.

Mo*nop”o*ly (?), n.; pl. Monopolies (#). [L. monopolium, Gr. &?;, &?;; mo`nos alone + &?; to sell.] 1. The exclusive power, or privilege of selling a commodity; the exclusive power, right, or privilege of dealing in some article, or of trading in some market; sole command of the traffic in anything, however obtained; as, the proprietor of a patented article is given a monopoly of its sale for a limited time; chartered trading companies have sometimes had a monopoly of trade with remote regions; a combination of traders may get a monopoly of a particular product.

Raleigh held a monopoly of cards, Essex a monopoly of sweet wines.

Macaulay.

2. Exclusive possession; as, a monopoly of land.

If I had a monopoly out, they would have part on ‘t.

Shak.

3. The commodity or other material thing to which the monopoly relates; as, tobacco is a monopoly in France. [Colloq.]

Mon`o*pol”y*logue (?), n. [Mono- + Gr. poly`s many + lo`gos speech.] An exhibition in which an actor sustains many characters.

Mon`o*psy”chism (?), n. [Mono- + Gr. &?; soul.] The doctrine that there is but one immortal soul or intellect with which all men are endowed.

Mo*nop”ter*al (?), a. [Gr. &?; with a row of pillars only; mo`nos alone, only + &?; feather, wing, also, a row of pillars: cf. F. monoptère.] (Arch.) Round and without a cella; consisting of a single ring of columns supporting a roof; — said esp. of a temple.

||Mo*nop”ter*on (?), n.; pl. Monoptera (#). [NL. See Monopteral.] (Arch.) A circular temple consisting of a roof supported on columns, without a cella.

Mon”op*tote (?), n. [L. monoptotum, Gr. &?;; mo`nos single + &?; apt to fall, fallen, fr. &?; to fall; cf. &?; case.] (Gram.) 1. A noun having only one case. Andrews.

2. A noun having only one ending for the oblique cases.

Mon`o*py*re”nous (?), a. [Mono- + pyrene.] (Bot.) Having but a single stone or kernel.

Mon`or*gan”ic (?), a. [Mon- + organic.] (Biol. & Med.) Belonging to, or affecting, a single organ, or set of organs.

||Mon`o*rhi”na (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. mo`nos single + &?;, &?;, nose.] (Zoöl.) The Marsipobranchiata.

Mon”o*rhyme (?), n. [Mono- + rhyme: cf. F. monorime.] A composition in verse, in which all the lines end with the same rhyme.

Mon`o*sep”al*ous (?), a. [Mono- + sepal: cf. F. monosépale.] (Bot.) Having only one sepal, or the calyx in one piece or composed of the sepals united into one piece; gamosepalous.

&fist; The most recent writers restrict this term to flowers having a solarity sepal, and use gamosepalous for a calyx formed by several sepals combined into one piece. Cf. Monopetalous.

Mon”o*sperm (?), n. (Bot.) A monospermous plant.

{ Mon`o*sper”mal (?), Mon`o*sper”mous (?), } a. [Mono- + Gr. spe`rma seed: cf. F. monosperme.] (Bot.) Having only one seed.

Mon`o*spher”ic*al (?), a. [Mono- + spherical.] Consisting of one sphere only.

Mon”o*stich (?), n. [Gr. &?;, from &?; consisting of one verse; mo`nos single + sti`chos line, verse.] A composition consisting of one verse only.

Mo*nos”ti*chous (m&osl;*n&obreve;s”t&ibreve;*kŭs), a. [See Monostich.] (Bot.) Arranged in a single row on one side of an axis, as the flowers in grasses of the tribe Chloridæ.

Mo*nos”tro*phe (m&osl;*n&obreve;s”tr&osl;*f&esl;), n. [NL., fr. Gr. mono`strofos monostrophic.] A metrical composition consisting of a single strophe.

Mon`o*stroph”ic (m&obreve;n`&osl;*str&obreve;f”&ibreve;k), a. [Gr. monostrofiko`s; mo`nos single + strofh` strophe.] (Pros.) Having one strophe only; not varied in measure; written in unvaried measure. Milton.

Mon`o*sul”phide (?), n. [Mono- + sulphide.] (Chem.) A sulphide containing one atom of sulphur, and analogous to a monoxide; — contrasted with a polysulphide; as, galena is a monosulphide.

Mon`o*sul”phu*ret (?), n. [Mono- + sulphuret.] (Chem.) See Monosulphide.

Mon`o*syl*lab”ic (?), a. [Cf. F. monosyllabique.] Being a monosyllable, or composed of monosyllables; as, a monosyllabic word; a monosyllabic language. — Mon`o*syl*lab”ic*al*ly (#), adv.

Mon`o*syl”la*bism (?), n. The state of consisting of monosyllables, or having a monosyllabic form; frequent occurrence of monosyllables.

Mon”o*syl`la*ble (?), n. [L. monosyllabus of one syllable, Gr. &?;: cf. F. monosyllabe. See Mono-, Syllable.] A word of one syllable.

Mon”o*syl`la*bled (?), a. Formed into, or consisting of, monosyllables. Cleveland.

{ Mon`o*sym*met”ric (?), Mon`o*sym*met”ric*al (?), } a. [Mono- + symmetric, - ical.] (Crystallog.) Same as Monoclinic.

Mon`o*tes”sa*ron (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. mo`nos single + &?; four.] A single narrative framed from the statements of the four evangelists; a gospel harmony. [R.]

||Mon`o*thal”a*ma (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. mo`nos single + qa`lamos a chamber.] (Zoöl.) A division of Foraminifera including those that have only one chamber.

Mon`o*thal”a*man (?), n. [See Monothalamous.] (Zoöl.) A foraminifer having but one chamber.

Mon`o*thal”a*mous (?), a. [Mono- + Gr. qa`lamos chamber: cf. F. monothalame.] (Zoöl.) One-chambered.

Mon`o*thal”mic (?), a. [See Monothalamous.] (Bot.) Formed from one pistil; — said of fruits. R. Brown.

Mon`o*the”cal (?), a. [Mono- + Br. &?; box.] (Bot.) Having a single loculament.

Mon”o*the*ism (?), n. [Mono- + Gr. &?; god: cf. F. monothéisme.] The doctrine or belief that there is but one God.

Mon”o*the*ist, n. [Cf. F. monothéiste.] One who believes that there is but one God.

Mon`o*the*is”tic (?), a. Of or pertaining to monotheism.

{ Mo*noth”e*lism (?), Mo*noth”e*li*tism (?), } n. [Cf. F. monothélisme, monothélitisme.] The doctrine of the Monothelites.

Mo*noth”e*lite (?), n. [Gr. &?;; mo`nos alone, only + &?;, &?;, to will, be willing: cf. F. monothélite.] (Eccl. Hist.) One of an ancient sect who held that Christ had but one will as he had but one nature. Cf. Monophysite. Gibbon.

Mon`o*the*lit”ic (?), a. Of or pertaining to the Monothelites, or their doctrine.

Mo*not”o*cous (?), a. [Mono- + Gr. &?; birth, offspring.] 1. (Bot.) Bearing fruit but once; monocarpic.

2. (Zoöl.) Uniparous; laying a single egg.

Mo*not”o*mous (?), a. [Mono- + Gr. &?; cutting, fr. &?; to cut.] (Min.) Having a distinct cleavage in a single direction only.

Mon”o*tone (?), n. [See Monotonous, Monotony.] 1. (Mus.) A single unvaried tone or sound.

2. (Rhet.) The utterance of successive syllables, words, or sentences, on one unvaried key or line of pitch.

{ Mon`o*ton”ic (?), Mon`o*ton”ic*al (?), } a. Of, pertaining to, or uttered in, a monotone; monotonous. “Monotonical declamation.” Chesterfield.

Mo*not”o*nist (?), n. One who talks in the same strain or on the same subject until weariness is produced. Richardson.

Mo*not”o*nous (?), a. [Gr. &?;; mo`nos alone, single + &?; tone. See Tone.] Uttered in one unvarying tone; continued with dull uniformity; characterized by monotony; without change or variety; wearisome. — Mo*not”o*nous*ly, adv. — Mo*not”o*nous*ness, n.

Mo*not”o*ny (?), n. [Gr. &?;: cf. F. monotonie. See Monotonius.] 1. A frequent recurrence of the same tone or sound, producing a dull uniformity; absence of variety, as in speaking or singing.

2. Any irksome sameness, or want of variety.

At sea, everything that breaks the monotony of the surrounding expanse attracts attention.

W. Irving.

||Mon`o*trem”a*ta (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. mo`nos single + &?; hole.] (Zoöl.) A subclass of Mammalia, having a cloaca in which the ducts of the urinary, genital, and alimentary systems terminate, as in birds. The female lays eggs like a bird. See Duck mole, under Duck, and Echidna.

Mon`o*trem”a*tous (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Monotremata.

Mon”o*treme (?), n. [Cf. F. monotrème.] (Zoöl.) One of the Monotremata.

Mon`o*tri”glyph (?), n. [Mono- + triglyph: cf. F. monotriglyphe.] (Arch.) A kind of intercolumniation in an entablature, in which only one triglyph and two metopes are introduced.

||Mo*not”ro*pa (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. mo`nos single + &?; turn, from &?; to turn.] (Bot.) A genus of parasitic or saprophytic plants including the Indian pipe and pine sap. The name alludes to the dropping end of the stem.

{ Mon”o*type (?), Mon`o*typ”ic (?), } a. [Mono- + -type: cf. F. monotype.] (Biol.) Having but one type; containing but one representative; as, a monotypic genus, which contains but one species.

Mo*nov”a*lent (?), a. [Mono- + L. valens, p. pr. See Valence.] (Chem.) Having a valence of one; univalent. See Univalent.

Mo*nox”ide (?), n. [Mon- + oxide.] (Chem.) An oxide containing one atom of oxygen in each molecule; as, barium monoxide.

||Mo*nox”y*lon (?), n. [NL., from Gr. &?;, fr. &?; made from one piece of wood; mo`nos alone + &?; wood.] A canoe or boat made from one piece of timber.

Mo*nox”y*lous (?), a. [See Monoxylon.] Made of one piece of wood.

||Mon`o*zo”a (?), n. pl. [NL., from Gr. mo`nos single + zo^,on an animal.] (Zoöl.) A division of Radiolaria; — called also Monocyttaria. — Mon`o*zo”ic (#), a.

Mon*roe” doc”trine. See under Doctrine.

||Mon`sei`gneur” (?), n.; pl. Messeigneurs (#). [F., fr. mon my + seigneur lord, L. senior older. See Senior, and cf. Monsieur.] My lord; — a title in France of a person of high birth or rank; as, Monseigneur the Prince, or Monseigneur the Archibishop. It was given, specifically, to the dauphin, before the Revolution of 1789. (Abbrev. Mgr.)

Mon”sel’s salt` (?). (Med.) A basic sulphate of iron; — so named from Monsel, a Frenchman.

Mon”sel’s so*lu”tion (?). [See Monsel’s salt.] (Med.) An aqueous solution of Monsel’s salt, having valuable styptic properties.

||Mon*sieur” (?), n.; pl. Messieurs (#). [F., fr. mon my + Sieur, abbrev. of seigneur lord. See Monseigneur.] 1. The common title of civility in France in speaking to, or of, a man; Mr. or Sir. [Represented by the abbreviation M. or Mons. in the singular, and by MM. or Messrs. in the plural.]

2. The oldest brother of the king of France.

3. A Frenchman. [Contemptuous] Shak.

||Mon`si*gno”re (?), n.; pl. Monsignors (#). [It., my lord. Cf. Monseigneur.] My lord; — an ecclesiastical dignity bestowed by the pope, entitling the bearer to social and domestic rank at the papal court. (Abbrev. Mgr.)

Mon*soon” (?), n. [Malay mūsim, fr. Ar. mausim a time, season: cf. F. monson, mousson, Sr. monzon, Pg. monção, It. monsone.] A wind blowing part of the year from one direction, alternating with a wind from the opposite direction; — a term applied particularly to periodical winds of the Indian Ocean, which blow from the southwest from the latter part of May to the middle of September, and from the northeast from about the middle of October to the middle of December.

Mon”ster (?), n. [OE. monstre, F. monstre, fr. L. monstrum, orig., a divine omen, indicating misfortune; akin of monstrare to show, point out, indicate, and monere to warn. See Monition, and cf. Demonstrate, Muster.] 1. Something of unnatural size, shape, or quality; a prodigy; an enormity; a marvel.

A monster or marvel.

Chaucer.

2. Specifically , an animal or plant departing greatly from the usual type, as by having too many limbs.

3. Any thing or person of unnatural or excessive ugliness, deformity, wickedness, or cruelty.

Mon”ster, a. Monstrous in size. Pope.

Mon”ster, v. t. To make monstrous. [Obs.] Shak.

Mon”strance (?), n. [LL. monstrantia, fr. L. monstrare to show: cf. OF. monstrance. See Monster.] (R. C. Ch.) A transparent pyx, in which the consecrated host is exposed to view.

Mon*stra”tion (?), n. [L. monstratio.] The act of demonstrating; proof. [Obs.]

A certain monstration.

Grafton.

Mon*stros”i*ty (?), n.; pl. Monstrosities (#). [Cf. F. monstruosité. See Monstrous.] The state of being monstrous, or out of the common order of nature; that which is monstrous; a monster. South.

A monstrosity never changes the name or affects the immutability of a species.

Adanson (Trans. ).

Mon”strous (?), a. [OE. monstruous, F. monstrueux, fr. L. monstruosus, fr. monstrum. See Monster.] 1. Marvelous; strange. [Obs.]

2. Having the qualities of a monster; deviating greatly from the natural form or character; abnormal; as, a monstrous birth. Locke.

He, therefore, that refuses to do good to them whom he is bound to love . . . is unnatural and monstrous in his affections.

Jer. Taylor.

3. Extraordinary in a way to excite wonder, dislike, apprehension, etc.; — said of size, appearance, color, sound, etc.; as, a monstrous height; a monstrous ox; a monstrous story.

4. Extraordinary on account of ugliness, viciousness, or wickedness; hateful; horrible; dreadful.

So bad a death argues a monstrous life.

Shak.

5. Abounding in monsters. [R.]

Where thou, perhaps, under the whelming tide
Visitest the bottom of the monstrous world.

Milton.

Mon”strous, adv. Exceedingly; very; very much. “A monstrous thick oil on the top.” Bacon.

And will be monstrous witty on the poor.

Dryden.

Mon”strous*ly, adv. In a monstrous manner; unnaturally; extraordinarily; as, monstrously wicked. “Who with his wife is monstrously in love.” Dryden.

Mon”strous*ness, n. The state or quality of being monstrous, unusual, extraordinary. Shak.

Mon`stru*os”i*ty (?), n. Monstrosity. [Obs.] Shak.

Mon”stru*ous (?), a. Monstrous. [Obs.]

||Mont (?), n. [F. See Mount, n.] Mountain.

Mon”taigne (?), n. A mountain. [Obs.]

Mon*tan”ic (?), a. [L. montanus, fr. mons, montis, mountain. See Mount, n.] Of or pertaining to mountains; consisting of mountains.

Mon”ta*nist (?), n. (Eccl. Hist.) A follower of Mintanus, a Phrygian enthusiast of the second century, who claimed that the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete, dwelt in him, and employed him as an instrument for purifying and guiding men in the Christian life. — Mon`ta*nis”tic (#), Mon`ta*nis”tic*al (#), a.

Mon”tant (?), n. [F.,prop., mounting, fr. monter to mount, fr. L. mons, montis, mountain. See Mount.] 1. (Fencing) An upward thrust or blow. Shak.

2. (Arch.) An upright piece in any framework; a mullion or muntin; a stile. [R.] See Stile.

||Mont” de pi`é`té” (?). [F., fr. It. monte di pietà mount of piety.] One of certain public pawnbroking establishments which originated in Italy in the 15th century, the object of which was to lend money at a low rate of interest to poor people in need; — called also mount of piety. The institution has been adopted in other countries, as in Spain and France. See Lombard-house.

||Mon”te (m&obreve;n”t&asl;), n. [Sp., lit., mountain, hence, the stock of cards remaining after laying out a certain number, fr. L. mons, montis, mountain.] A favorite gambling game among Spaniards, played with dice or cards.

Monte`-ac”id (?), n. [F. monter to raise + acide acid.] (Chem.) An acid elevator, as a tube through which acid is forced to some height in a sulphuric acid manufactory.

Mon*teith” (?), n. See Monteth.

Mon”tem (?), n. [L. ad montem to the hillock. See Mount, n.] A custom, formerly practiced by the scholars at Eton school, England, of going every third year, on Whittuesday, to a hillock near the Bath road, and exacting money from all passers-by, to support at the university the senior scholar of the school.

Mon*te”ro (?), n. [Sp. montera a hunting cap, fr. montero a huntsman, monte a mountain, forest, L. mons, montis, mountain. See Mount, n.] An ancient kind of cap worn by horsemen or huntsmen. Bacon.

{ Mon*teth” (?), Mon*teith” (?) }, n. A vessel in which glasses are washed; — so called from the name of the inventor.

New things produce new words, and thus Monteth
Has by one vessel saved his name from death.

King.

||Mont`gol”fier (?), n. A balloon which ascends by the buoyancy of air heated by a fire; a fire balloon; — so called from two brothers, Stephen and Joseph Montgolfier, of France, who first constructed and sent up a fire balloon.

Month (mŭnth), n. [OE. month, moneth, AS. mōnð, mōnað; akin to mōna moon, and to D. maand month, G. monat, OHG. mānōd, Icel. mānuðr, mānaðr, Goth. mēnōþs. √272. See Moon.] One of the twelve portions into which the year is divided; the twelfth part of a year, corresponding nearly to the length of a synodic revolution of the moon, — whence the name. In popular use, a period of four weeks is often called a month.

&fist; In the common law, a month is a lunar month, or twenty-eight days, unless otherwise expressed. Blackstone. In the United States the rule of the common law is generally changed, and a month is declared to mean a calendar month. Cooley’s Blackstone.

A month mind. (a) A strong or abnormal desire. [Obs.] Shak. (b) A celebration made in remembrance of a deceased person a month after death. Strype. — Calendar months, the months as adjusted in the common or Gregorian calendar; April, June, September, and November, containing 30 days, and the rest 31, except February, which, in common years, has 28, and in leap years 29. — Lunar month, the period of one revolution of the moon, particularly a synodical revolution; but several kinds are distinguished, as the synodical month, or period from one new moon to the next, in mean length 29 d. 12 h. 44 m. 2.87 s.; the nodical month, or time of revolution from one node to the same again, in length 27 d. 5 h. 5 m. 36 s.; the sidereal, or time of revolution from a star to the same again, equal to 27 d. 7 h. 43 m. 11.5 s.; the anomalistic, or time of revolution from perigee to perigee again, in length 27 d. 13 h. 18 m. 37.4 s.; and the tropical, or time of passing from any point of the ecliptic to the same again, equal to 27 d. 7 h. 43 m. 4.7 s. — Solar month, the time in which the sun passes through one sign of the zodiac, in mean length 30 d. 10 h. 29 m. 4.1 s.

Month”ling (?), n. That which is a month old, or which lives for a month. [R.] Wordsworth.

Month”ly, a. 1. Continued a month, or a performed in a month; as, the monthly revolution of the moon.

2. Done, happening, payable, published, etc., once a month, or every month; as, a monthly visit; monthly charges; a monthly installment; a monthly magazine.

Monthly nurse, a nurse who serves for a month or some short time, esp. one which attends women after childbirth.

Month”ly, n.; pl. Monthlies (&?;). A publication which appears regularly once a month.

Month”ly, adv. 1. Once a month; in every month; as, the moon changes monthly. Shak.

2. As if under the influence of the moon; in the manner of a lunatic. [Obs.] Middleton.

Mon”ti*cle (?), n. [L. monticulus, dim. of mons, montis, mountain: cf. F. monticule. See Mount, n.] A little mount; a hillock; a small elevation or prominence. [Written also monticule.]

Mon*tic”u*late (?), a. Furnished with monticles or little elevations.

Mon”ti*cule (?), n. See Monticle.

Mon*tic”u*lous (?), a. Monticulate.

Mon”ti*form (?), a. [L. mons, montis, mountain + -form.] Resembling a mountain in form.

Mon*tig”e*nous (?), a. [L. montigena; mons, montis, mountain + the root of gignere to beget.] Produced on a mountain.

||Mon`toir” (?), n. [F., fr. monter to mount. See Montant.] A stone used in mounting a horse; a horse block.

Mon”ton (?), n. [Sp.] (Mining) A heap of ore; a mass undergoing the process of amalgamation.

Mon*tross” (?), n. See Matross. [Obs.]

Mon”true (?), n. [F., fr. monter to mount. See Montoir.] That on which anything is mounted; a setting; hence, a saddle horse. [Obs.] Spenser.

Mon”u*ment (?), n. [F., fr. L. monumentum, fr. monere to remind, admonish. See Monition, and cf. Moniment.] 1. Something which stands, or remains, to keep in remembrance what is past; a memorial.

Of ancient British art
A pleasing monument.

Philips.

Our bruised arms hung up for monuments.

Shak.

2. A building, pillar, stone, or the like, erected to preserve the remembrance of a person, event, action, etc.; as, the Washington monument; the Bunker Hill monument. Also, a tomb, with memorial inscriptions.

On your family’s old monument
Hang mournful epitaphs, and do all rites
That appertain unto a burial.

Shak.

3. A stone or other permanent object, serving to indicate a limit or to mark a boundary.

4. A saying, deed, or example, worthy of record.

Acts and Monuments of these latter and perilous days.

Foxe.

Syn. — Memorial; remembrance; tomb; cenotaph.

Mon`u*men”tal (?), a. [L. monumentalis: cf. F. monumental.] 1. Of, pertaining to, or suitable for, a monument; as, a monumental inscription.

2. Serving as a monument; memorial; preserving memory. “Of pine, or monumental oak.” Milton.

A work outlasting monumental brass.

Pope.

Mon`u*men”tal*ly, adv. 1. By way of memorial.

2. By means of monuments.

Mon*u”re*id (?), n. [Mon- + ureid.] (Chem.) Any one of a series of complex nitrogenous substances regarded as derived from one molecule of urea; as, alloxan is a monureid. [Written also monureide.]

Moo (mō), a., adv., & n. See Mo. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Moo (m&oomac;), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Mooed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mooing.] [Of imitative origin.] To make the noise of a cow; to low; — a child’s word.

Moo, n. The lowing of a cow.

Mood (m&oomac;d), n. [The same word as mode, perh. influenced by mood temper. See Mode.] 1. Manner; style; mode; logical form; musical style; manner of action or being. See Mode which is the preferable form).

2. (Gram.) Manner of conceiving and expressing action or being, as positive, possible, hypothetical, etc., without regard to other accidents, such as time, person, number, etc.; as, the indicative mood; the infinitive mood; the subjunctive mood. Same as Mode.

Mood, n. [OE. mood, mod, AS. mōdmind, feeling, heart, courage; akin to OS. & OFries. mōd, D. moed, OHG. muot, G. muth, mut, courage, Dan. & Sw. mod, Icel. mōðr wrath, Goth. mōds.] Temper of mind; temporary state of the mind in regard to passion or feeling; humor; as, a melancholy mood; a suppliant mood.

Till at the last aslaked was his mood.

Chaucer.

Fortune is merry,
And in this mood will give us anything.

Shak.

The desperate recklessness of her mood.

Hawthorne.

Moo”der (?), n. Mother. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mood”i*ly (m&oomac;d”&ibreve;*l&ybreve;), adv. In a moody manner.

Mood”i*ness, n. The quality or state of being moody; specifically, liability to strange or violent moods.

||Moo”dir (?), n. [Ar. mudīr.] The governor of a province in Egypt, etc. [Written also mudir.]

Mood”ish (?), a. Moody. [Obs.]

Mood”ish*ly, adv. Moodily. [Obs.]

Mood”y (-&ybreve;), a. [Compar. Moodier (?); superl. Moodiest.] [AS. mōdig courageous.] 1. Subject to varying moods, especially to states of mind which are unamiable or depressed.

2. Hence: Out of humor; peevish; angry; fretful; also, abstracted and pensive; sad; gloomy; melancholy. “Every peevish, moody malcontent.” Rowe.

Arouse thee from thy moody dream!

Sir W. Scott.

Syn. — Gloomy; pensive; sad; fretful; capricious.

{ Moo”lah (?), Mool”lah }, n. See Mollah.

Mool”ley (?), n. Same as Mulley.

Moon (m&oomac;n), n. [OE. mone, AS. mōna; akin to D. maan, OS. & OHG. māno, G. mond, Icel. māni, Dan. maane, Sw. måne, Goth. mēna, Lith. menů, L. mensis month, Gr. mh`nh moon, mh`n month, Skr. mās moon, month; prob. from a root meaning to measure (cf. Skr. mā to measure), from its serving to measure the time. √271. Cf. Mete to measure, Menses, Monday, Month.] 1. The celestial orb which revolves round the earth; the satellite of the earth; a secondary planet, whose light, borrowed from the sun, is reflected to the earth, and serves to dispel the darkness of night. The diameter of the moon is 2,160 miles, its mean distance from the earth is 240,000 miles, and its mass is one eightieth that of the earth. See Lunar month, under Month.

The crescent moon, the diadem of night.

Cowper.

2. A secondary planet, or satellite, revolving about any member of the solar system; as, the moons of Jupiter or Saturn.

3. The time occupied by the moon in making one revolution in her orbit; a month. Shak.

4. (Fort.) A crescentlike outwork. See Half-moon.

Moon blindness. (a) (Far.) A kind of ophthalmia liable to recur at intervals of three or four weeks. (b) (Med.) Hemeralopia. — Moon dial, a dial used to indicate time by moonlight. — Moon face, a round face like a full moon. — Moon madness, lunacy. [Poetic] — Moon month, a lunar month. — Moon trefoil (Bot.), a shrubby species of medic (Medicago arborea). See Medic. — Moon year, a lunar year, consisting of lunar months, being sometimes twelve and sometimes thirteen.

Moon, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mooned (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mooning.] To expose to the rays of the moon.

If they have it to be exceeding white indeed, they seethe it yet once more, after it hath been thus sunned and mooned.

Holland.

Moon, v. i. To act if moonstruck; to wander or gaze about in an abstracted manner.

Elsley was mooning down the river by himself.

C. Kingsley.

Moon”beam` (?), n. A ray of light from the moon.

Moon”blind` (?), a. Dim-sighted; purblind.

Moon”blink` (?), n. A temporary blindness, or impairment of sight, said to be caused by sleeping in the moonlight; — sometimes called nyctalopia.

Moon”calf` (?), n. 1. A monster; a false conception; a mass of fleshy matter, generated in the uterus.

2. A dolt; a stupid fellow. Dryden.

Moon”-cul”mi*na`ting (?), a. Culminating, or coming to the meredian, at or about the same time with the moon; — said of a star or stars, esp. of certain stars selected beforehand, and named in an ephemeris (as the Nautical Almanac), as suitable to be observed in connection with the moon at culmination, for determining terrestrial longitude.

Mooned (?), a. Of or resembling the moon; symbolized by the moon. “Sharpening in mooned horns.” “Mooned Ashtaroth.” Milton.

Moon”er (?), n. One who abstractedly wanders or gazes about, as if moonstruck. [R.] Dickens.

Moon”er*y (?), n. Conduct of one who moons. [R.]

Moon”et (?), n. A little moon. [R.] Bp. Hall.

Moon”-eye` (?), n. 1. A eye affected by the moon; also, a disease in the eye of a horse.

2. (Zoöl.) (a) Any species of American fresh-water fishes of the genus Hyodon, esp. H. tergisus of the Great Lakes and adjacent waters. (b) The cisco.

Moon”-eyed` (?), a. Having eyes affected by the moon; moonblind; dim-eyed; purblind.

Moon”-faced` (?), a. Having a round, full face.

Moon”fish` (?), n. (Zoöl.) (a) An American marine fish (Vomer setipennis); — called also bluntnosed shiner, horsefish, and sunfish. (b) A broad, thin, silvery marine fish (Selene vomer); — called also lookdown, and silver moonfish. (c) The mola. See Sunfish, 1.

Moon”flow`er (?), n. (Bot.) (a) The oxeye daisy; — called also moon daisy. (b) A kind of morning glory (Ipomœa Bona-nox) with large white flowers opening at night.

Moong (?), n. (Bot.) Same as Mung.

Moon”glade` (?), n. The bright reflection of the moon’s light on an expanse of water. [Poetic]

Moo”nie (m&oomac;“n&ibreve;), n. (Zoöl.) The European goldcrest.

Moon”ish (m&oomac;n”&ibreve;sh), a. Like the moon; variable.

Being but a moonish youth.

Shak.

Moon”less, a. Being without a moon or moonlight.

Moon`light` (?), n. The light of the moon. — a. Occurring during or by moonlight; characterized by moonlight.

Moon”ling (?), n. A simpleton; a lunatic. [Obs.]

Moon”lit` (?), a. Illumined by the moon. “The moonlit sea.” Moore. “Moonlit dells.” Lowell.

Moon”rak`er (?), n. (Naut.) Same as Moonsail.

Moon”rise` (?), n. The rising of the moon above the horizon; also, the time of its rising.

Moon”sail` (?), n. (Naut.) A sail sometimes carried in light winds, above a skysail. R. H. Dana, Jr.

Moon”seed` (?), n. (Bot.) A climbing plant of the genus Menispermum; — so called from the crescentlike form of the seeds.

Moon”set` (?), n. The descent of the moon below the horizon; also, the time when the moon sets.

||Moon”shee (?), n. [Hind. munishī, fr. Ar. munishī a writer, author, secretary, tutor.] A Mohammedan professor or teacher of language. [India]

Moon”shine` (?), n. 1. The light of the moon.

2. Hence, show without substance or reality.

3. A month. [R.] Shak.

4. A preparation of eggs for food. [Obs.]

Moon”shine`, a. Moonlight. [R.] Clarendon.

Moon”shin`er (?), n. A person engaged in illicit distilling; — so called because the work is largely done at night. [Cant, U.S.]

Moon”shin`y (?), a. Moonlight. [Colloq.]

I went to see them in a moonshiny night.

Addison.

Moon”stone` (-stōn`), n. (Min.) A nearly pellucid variety of feldspar, showing pearly or opaline reflections from within. It is used as a gem. The best specimens come from Ceylon.

Moon”strick`en (?), a. See Moonstruck.

Moon”struck` (?), a. 1. Mentally affected or deranged by the supposed influence of the moon; lunatic.

2. Produced by the supposed influence of the moon. “Moonstruck madness.” Milton.

3. Made sick by the supposed influence of the moon, as a human being; made unsuitable for food, as fishes, by such supposed influence.

Moon”wort` (?), n. (Bot.) (a) The herb lunary or honesty. See Honesty. (b) Any fern of the genus Botrychium, esp. B. Lunaria; — so named from the crescent-shaped segments of its frond.

Moon”y (?), a. 1. Of or pertaining to the moon.

Soft and pale as the moony beam.

J. R. Drake.

2. Furnished with a moon; bearing a crescent.

But soon the miscreant moony host
Before the victor cross shall fly.

Fenton.

3. Silly; weakly sentimental. [Colloq.] G. Eliot.

Moor (m&oomac;r), n. [F. More, Maure, L. Maurus a Moor, a Mauritanian, an inhabitant of Mauritania, Gr. May^ros; cf. may^ros black, dark. Cf. Morris a dance, Morocco.] 1. One of a mixed race inhabiting Morocco, Algeria, Tunis, and Tripoli, chiefly along the coast and in towns.

2. (Hist.) Any individual of the swarthy races of Africa or Asia which have adopted the Mohammedan religion. “In Spanish history the terms Moors, Saracens, and Arabs are synonymous.” Internat. Cyc.

Moor, n. [OE. mor, AS. mōr moor, morass; akin to D. moer moor, G. moor, and prob. to Goth. marei sea, E. mere. See Mere a lake.] 1. An extensive waste covered with patches of heath, and having a poor, light soil, but sometimes marshy, and abounding in peat; a heath.

In her girlish age she kept sheep on the moor.

Carew.

2. A game preserve consisting of moorland.

Moor buzzard (Zoöl.), the marsh harrier. [Prov. Eng.] — Moor coal (Geol.), a friable variety of lignite. — Moor cock (Zoöl.), the male of the moor fowl or red grouse of Europe. — Moor coot. (Zoöl.) See Gallinule. — Moor fowl. (Zoöl.) (a) The European ptarmigan, or red grouse (Lagopus Scoticus). (b) The European heath grouse. See under Heath. — Moor game. (Zoöl.) Same as Moor fowl (above). — Moor grass (Bot.), a tufted perennial grass (Sesleria cærulea), found in mountain pastures of Europe. — Moor hawk (Zoöl.), the marsh harrier. — Moor hen. (Zoöl.) (a) The female of the moor fowl. (b) A gallinule, esp. the European species. See Gallinule. (c) An Australian rail (Tribonyx ventralis). — Moor monkey (Zoöl.), the black macaque of Borneo (Macacus maurus). — Moor titling (Zoöl.), the European stonechat (Pratinocola rubicola).

Moor (m&oomac;r), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Moored (m&oomac;rd); p. pr. & vb. n. Mooring.] [Prob. fr. D. marren to tie, fasten, or moor a ship. See Mar.] 1. (Naut.) To fix or secure, as a vessel, in a particular place by casting anchor, or by fastening with cables or chains; as, the vessel was moored in the stream; they moored the boat to the wharf.

2. Fig.: To secure, or fix firmly. Brougham.

Moor, v. i. To cast anchor; to become fast.

On oozy ground his galleys moor.

Dryden.

Moor”age (?), n. A place for mooring.

Moor”ball` (?), n. (Bot.) A fresh-water alga (Cladophora Ægagropila) which forms a globular mass.

Moor”band` (?), n. See Moorpan.

Moor”ess (?), n. A female Moor; a Moorish woman.

Moor”ing, n. 1. The act of confining a ship to a particular place, by means of anchors or fastenings.

2. That which serves to confine a ship to a place, as anchors, cables, bridles, etc.

3. pl. The place or condition of a ship thus confined.

And the tossed bark in moorings swings.

Moore.

Mooring block (Naut.), a heavy block of cast iron sometimes used as an anchor for mooring vessels.

Moor”ish, a. [From 2d Moor.] Having the characteristics of a moor or heath. “Moorish fens.” Thomson.

Moor”ish, a. [See 1st Moor, and cf. Morris, Moresque.] Of or pertaining to Morocco or the Moors; in the style of the Moors.

Moorish architecture, the style developed by the Moors in the later Middle Ages, esp. in Spain, in which the arch had the form of a horseshoe, and the ornamentation admitted no representation of animal life. It has many points of resemblance to the Arabian and Persian styles, but should be distinguished from them. See Illust. under Moresque.

Moor”land (?), n. [AS. mōrland.] Land consisting of a moor or moors.

Moor”pan` (?), n. [Cf. Hard pan, under Hard.] A clayey layer or pan underlying some moors, etc.

Moor”stone` (?), n. A species of English granite, used as a building stone.

||Moo”ruk (?), n. [Native name.] (Zoöl.) A species of cassowary (Casuarius Bennetti) found in New Britain, and noted for its agility in running and leaping. It is smaller and has stouter legs than the common cassowary. Its crest is bilobed; the neck and breast are black; the back, rufous mixed with black; and the naked skin of the neck, blue.

Moor”y (?), a. Of or pertaining to moors; marshy; fenny; boggy; moorish. Mortimer.

As when thick mists arise from moory vales.

Fairfax.

Moor”y, n. A kind of blue cloth made in India. Balfour (Cyc of India).

Moose (m&oomac;s), n. [A native name; Knisteneaux mouswah; Algonquin monse. Mackenzie.] (Zoöl.) A large cervine mammal (Alces machlis, or A. Americanus), native of the Northern United States and Canada. The adult male is about as large as a horse, and has very large, palmate antlers. It closely resembles the European elk, and by many zoölogists is considered the same species. See Elk.

Moose bird (Zoöl.), the Canada jayor whisky jack. See Whisky jack. — Moose deer. Same as Moose. — Moose yard (Zoöl.), a locality where moose, in winter, herd together in a forest to feed and for mutual protection.

Moose”wood` (?), n. (Bot.) (a) The striped maple (Acer Pennsylvanicum). (b) Leatherwood.

Moot (mōt), v. See 1st Mot. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Moot (m&oomac;t), n. (Shipbuilding) A ring for gauging wooden pins.

Moot, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mooted (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mooting.] [OE. moten, motien, AS. mōtan to meet or assemble for conversation, to discuss, dispute, fr. mōt, gemōt, a meeting, an assembly; akin to Icel. mōt, MHG. muoz. Cf. Meet to come together.] 1. To argue for and against; to debate; to discuss; to propose for discussion.

A problem which hardly has been mentioned, much less mooted, in this country.

Sir W. Hamilton.

2. Specifically: To discuss by way of exercise; to argue for practice; to propound and discuss in a mock court.

First a case is appointed to be mooted by certain young men, containing some doubtful controversy.

Sir T. Elyot.

Moot (?), v. i. To argue or plead in a supposed case.

There is a difference between mooting and pleading; between fencing and fighting.

B. Jonson.

Moot, n. [AS. mōt, gemōt, a meeting; — usually in comp.] [Written also mote.] 1. A meeting for discussion and deliberation; esp., a meeting of the people of a village or district, in Anglo-Saxon times, for the discussion and settlement of matters of common interest; — usually in composition; as, folk- moot. J. R. Green.

2. [From Moot, v.] A discussion or debate; especially, a discussion of fictitious causes by way of practice.

The pleading used in courts and chancery called moots.

Sir T. Elyot.

Moot case, a case or question to be mooted; a disputable case; an unsettled question. Dryden. — Moot court, a mock court, such as is held by students of law for practicing the conduct of law cases. — Moot point, a point or question to be debated; a doubtful question.

Moot, a. Subject, or open, to argument or discussion; undecided; debatable; mooted.

Moot”a*ble (?), a. Capable of being mooted.

Moot”er (?), n. A disputer of a mooted case.

{ Moot”-hall` (?), Moot”house` (?), } n. [AS. mōth&?;s.] A hall for public meetings; a hall of judgment. [Obs.] “The moot hall of Herod.” Wyclif.

Moot”-hill` (?), n. (O. Eng. Law) A hill of meeting or council; an elevated place in the open air where public assemblies or courts were held by the Saxons; – - called, in Scotland, mute-hill. J. R. Green.

Moot”man (?), n.; pl. Mootmen (&?;). (O. Eng. Law) One who argued moot cases in the inns of court.

Mop (?), n. [See Mope.] A made-up face; a grimace. “What mops and mowes it makes!” Beau. & Fl.

Mop, v. i. To make a wry mouth. [Obs.] Shak.

Mop, n. [CF. W. mop, mopa, Ir. moipal, Gael. moibeal, moibean; or OF. mappe a napkin (see Map, Napkin).] 1. An implement for washing floors, or the like, made of a piece of cloth, or a collection of thrums, or coarse yarn, fastened to a handle.

2. A fair where servants are hired. [Prov. Eng.]

3. The young of any animal; also, a young girl; a moppet. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

Mop head. (a) The end of a mop, to which the thrums or rags are fastened. (b) A clamp for holding the thrums or rags of a mop. [U.S.]

Mop, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mopped (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mopping.] To rub or wipe with a mop, or as with a mop; as, to mop a floor; to mop one’s face with a handkerchief.

Mop”board` (?), n. (Carp.) A narrow board nailed against the wall of a room next to the floor; skirting board; baseboard. See Baseboard.

Mope (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Moped (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Moping.] [Cf. D. moppen to pout, Prov. G. muffen to sulk.] To be dull and spiritless. “Moping melancholy.” Milton.

A sickly part of one true sense
Could not so mope.

Shak.

Mope, v. t. To make spiritless and stupid. [Obs.]

Mope, n. A dull, spiritless person. Burton.

Mope”-eyed` (?), a. Shortsighted; purblind.

Mope”ful (?), a. Mopish. [R.]

Mop”ish (?), a. Dull; spiritless; dejected. — Mop”ish*ly, adv. — Mop”ish*ness, n.

Mop”lah (?), n. [Malayalam māpplia.] One of a class of Mohammedans in Malabar.

Mop”pet (?), n. [From 3d Mop.] 1. A rag baby; a puppet made of cloth; hence, also, in fondness, a little girl, or a woman.

2. (Zoöl.) A long-haired pet dog.

{ Mop”sey, Mop”sy } (?), n. 1. A moppet.

2. A slatternly, untidy woman. Halliwell.

Mop”si*cal (?), a. Shortsighted; mope-eyed.

Mop”stick` (?), n. The long handle of a mop.

Mo”pus (mō“pŭs), n. A mope; a drone. [Obs.] Swift.

||Mo*quette” (?), n. [F.] A kind of carpet having a short velvety pile.

||Mor”a (?), n. [It.] A game of guessing the number of fingers extended in a quick movement of the hand, — much played by Italians of the lower classes.

Mo”ra (?), n. (Bot.) A leguminous tree of Guiana and Trinidad (Dimorphandra excelsa); also, its timber, used in shipbuilding and making furniture.

||Mo”ra, n. [L.] (Rom. & Civil Law) Delay; esp., culpable delay; postponement.

Mo*raine” (?), n. [F. Cf. Prov. G. mur stones broken off, It. mora a heap of stones, hillock, G. mürbe soft, broken up, OHG. muruwi, AS. mearu tender, Gr. &?; to cause to wither, Skr. mlā to relax.] (Geol.) An accumulation of earth and stones carried forward and deposited by a glacier. Lyell.

&fist; If the moraine is at the extremity of the glacier it is a terminal moraine; if at the side, a lateral moraine; if parallel to the side on the central portion of the glacier, a medial moraine. See Illust. of Glacier. In the last case it is formed by the union of the lateral moraines of the branches of the glacier. A ground moraine is one beneath the mass of ice.

Mo*rain”ic (?), a. Of or pertaining to a moranie.

Mor”al (?), a. [F., fr. It. moralis, fr. mos, moris, manner, custom, habit, way of life, conduct.] 1. Relating to duty or obligation; pertaining to those intentions and actions of which right and wrong, virtue and vice, are predicated, or to the rules by which such intentions and actions ought to be directed; relating to the practice, manners, or conduct of men as social beings in relation to each other, as respects right and wrong, so far as they are properly subject to rules.

Keep at the least within the compass of moral actions, which have in them vice or virtue.

Hooker.

Mankind is broken loose from moral bands.

Dryden.

She had wandered without rule or guidance in a moral wilderness.

Hawthorne.

2. Conformed to accepted rules of right; acting in conformity with such rules; virtuous; just; as, a moral man. Used sometimes in distinction from religious; as, a moral rather than a religious life.

The wiser and more moral part of mankind.

Sir M. Hale.

3. Capable of right and wrong action or of being governed by a sense of right; subject to the law of duty.

A moral agent is a being capable of those actions that have a moral quality, and which can properly be denominated good or evil in a moral sense.

J. Edwards.

4. Acting upon or through one’s moral nature or sense of right, or suited to act in such a manner; as, a moral arguments; moral considerations. Sometimes opposed to material and physical; as, moral pressure or support.

5. Supported by reason or probability; practically sufficient; — opposed to legal or demonstrable; as, a moral evidence; a moral certainty.

6. Serving to teach or convey a moral; as, a moral lesson; moral tales.

Moral agent, a being who is capable of acting with reference to right and wrong. — Moral certainty, a very high degree or probability, although not demonstrable as a certainty; a probability of so high a degree that it can be confidently acted upon in the affairs of life; as, there is a moral certainty of his guilt. — Moral insanity, insanity, so called, of the moral system; badness alleged to be irresponsible. — Moral philosophy, the science of duty; the science which treats of the nature and condition of man as a moral being, of the duties which result from his moral relations, and the reasons on which they are founded. — Moral play, an allegorical play; a morality. [Obs.] — Moral sense, the power of moral judgment and feeling; the capacity to perceive what is right or wrong in moral conduct, and to approve or disapprove, independently of education or the knowledge of any positive rule or law. — Moral theology, theology applied to morals; practical theology; casuistry.

Mor”al (?), n. 1. The doctrine or practice of the duties of life; manner of living as regards right and wrong; conduct; behavior; — usually in the plural.

Corrupt in their morals as vice could make them.

South.

2. The inner meaning or significance of a fable, a narrative, an occurrence, an experience, etc.; the practical lesson which anything is designed or fitted to teach; the doctrine meant to be inculcated by a fiction; a maxim.

Thus may we gather honey from the weed,
And make a moral of the devil himself.

Shak.

To point a moral, or adorn a tale.

Johnson.

We protest against the principle that the world of pure comedy is one into which no moral enters.

Macaulay.

3. A morality play. See Morality, 5.

Mor”al, v. i. To moralize. [Obs.] Shak.

||Mo`rale” (?), n. [F. See Moral, a.] The moral condition, or the condition in other respects, so far as it is affected by, or dependent upon, moral considerations, such as zeal, spirit, hope, and confidence; mental state, as of a body of men, an army, and the like.

Mor”al*er (?), n. A moralizer. [Obs.] Shak.

Mor”al*ism (?), n. A maxim or saying embodying a moral truth. Farrar.

Mor”al*ist, n. [Cf. F. moraliste.] 1. One who moralizes; one who teaches or animadverts upon the duties of life; a writer of essays intended to correct vice and inculcate moral duties. Addison.

2. One who practices moral duties; a person who lives in conformity with moral rules; one of correct deportment and dealings with his fellow-creatures; — sometimes used in contradistinction to one whose life is controlled by religious motives.

The love (in the moralist of virtue, but in the Christian) of God himself.

Hammond.

Mo*ral”i*ty (?), n.; pl. Moralities (#). [L. moralitas: cf. F. moralité.] 1. The relation of conformity or nonconformity to the moral standard or rule; quality of an intention, a character, an action, a principle, or a sentiment, when tried by the standard of right.

The morality of an action is founded in the freedom of that principle, by virtue of which it is in the agent’s power, having all things ready and requisite to the performance of an action, either to perform or not perform it.

South.

2. The quality of an action which renders it good; the conformity of an act to the accepted standard of right.

Of moralitee he was the flower.

Chaucer.

I am bold to think that morality is capable of demonstration.

Locke.

3. The doctrines or rules of moral duties, or the duties of men in their social character; ethics.

The end of morality is to procure the affections to obey reason, and not to invade it.

Bacon.

The system of morality to be gathered out of . . . ancient sages falls very short of that delivered in the gospel.

Swift.

4. The practice of the moral duties; rectitude of life; conformity to the standard of right; virtue; as, we often admire the politeness of men whose morality we question.

5. A kind of allegorical play, so termed because it consisted of discourses in praise of morality between actors representing such characters as Charity, Faith, Death, Vice, etc. Such plays were occasionally exhibited as late as the reign of Henry VIII. Strutt.

6. Intent; meaning; moral. [Obs.]

Taketh the morality thereof, good men.

Chaucer.

Mor`al*i*za”tion (?), n. [Cf. F. moralisation.] 1. The act of moralizing; moral reflections or discourse.

2. Explanation in a moral sense. T. Warton.

Mor”al*ize (m&obreve;r”al*īz), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Moralized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Moralizing (?).] [Cf. F. moraliser.] 1. To apply to a moral purpose; to explain in a moral sense; to draw a moral from.

This fable is moralized in a common proverb.

L’Estrange.

Did he not moralize this spectacle?

Shak.

2. To furnish with moral lessons, teachings, or examples; to lend a moral to.

While chastening thoughts of sweetest use, bestowed
By Wisdom, moralize his pensive road.

Wordsworth.

3. To render moral; to correct the morals of.

It had a large share in moralizing the poor white people of the country.

D. Ramsay.

4. To give a moral quality to; to affect the moral quality of, either for better or worse.

Good and bad stars moralize not our actions.

Sir T. Browne.

Mor”al*ize (?), v. i. To make moral reflections; to regard acts and events as involving a moral.

Mor”al*i`zer (?), n. One who moralizes.

Mor”al*ly, adv. 1. In a moral or ethical sense; according to the rules of morality.

By good, good morally so called, “bonum honestum” ought chiefly to be understood.

South.

2. According to moral rules; virtuously. “To live morally.” Dryden.

3. In moral qualities; in disposition and character; as, one who physically and morally endures hardships.

4. In a manner calculated to serve as the basis of action; according to the usual course of things and human judgment; according to reason and probability.

It is morally impossible for an hypocrite to keep himself long upon his guard.

L’Estrange.

Mo*rass” (?), n. [OE. marras, mareis (perh. through D. moeras), fr. F. marais, prob. from L. mare sea, in LL., any body of water; but perh. influenced by some German word. See Mere a lake, and cf. Marsh.] A tract of soft, wet ground; a marsh; a fen.

Morass ore. (Min.) See Bog ore, under Bog.

mo*rass”y (?), a. Marshy; fenny. [R.] Pennant.

Mo”rate (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of moric acid.

Mo*ra”tion (?), n. [L. moratio.] A delaying tarrying; delay. [R.] Sir T. Browne.

Mo*ra”vi*an (?), a. Of or pertaining to Moravia, or to the United Brethren. See Moravian, n.

Mo*ra”vi*an, n. (Eccl. Hist.) One of a religious sect called the United Brethren (an offshoot of the Hussites in Bohemia), which formed a separate church of Moravia, a northern district of Austria, about the middle of the 15th century. After being nearly extirpated by persecution, the society, under the name of The Renewed Church of the United Brethren, was reëstablished in 1722-35 on the estates of Count Zinzendorf in Saxony. Called also Herrnhuter.

Mo*ra”vi*an*ism (?), n. The religious system of the Moravians.

Mor”ay (?), n. (Zoöl.) A muræna.

Mor”bid (?), a. [L. morbidus, fr. morbus disease; prob. akin to mori to die: cf. F. morbide, It. morbido. See Mortal.] 1. Not sound and healthful; induced by a diseased or abnormal condition; diseased; sickly; as, morbid humors; a morbid constitution; a morbid state of the juices of a plant. “Her sick and morbid heart.” Hawthorne.

2. Of or pertaining to disease or diseased parts; as, morbid anatomy.

Syn. — Diseased; sickly; sick. — Morbid, Diseased. Morbid is sometimes used interchangeably with diseased, but is commonly applied, in a somewhat technical sense, to cases of a prolonged nature; as, a morbid condition of the nervous system; a morbid sensibility, etc.

||Mor`bi*dez”za (?), n. [It., softness, delicacy. See Morbid.] 1. (Fine Arts) Delicacy or softness in the representation of flesh.

2. (Mus.) A term used as a direction in execution, signifying, with extreme delicacy. Ludden.

Mor*bid”i*ty (?), n. 1. The quality or state of being morbid.

2. Morbid quality; disease; sickness. C. Kingsley.

3. Amount of disease; sick rate.

Mor”bid*ly (?), adv. In a morbid manner.

Mor”bid*ness, n. The quality or state of being morbid; morbidity.

{ Mor*bif”ic (?), Mor*bif”ic*al (?), } a. [L. morbus disease + -ficare (in comp.) to make: cf. F. morbifique. See -fy.] Causing disease; generating a sickly state; as, a morbific matter.

Mor*bil”lous (?), a. [LL. morbilli measles, dim. of L. morbus disease: cf. F. morbilleux.] Pertaining to the measles; partaking of the nature of measels, or resembling the eruptions of that disease; measly.

Mor*bose” (?), a. [L. morbosus, fr. morbus disease.] Proceeding from disease; morbid; unhealthy.

Morbose tumors and excrescences of plants.

Ray.

Mor*bos”i*ty (?), n. [L. morbositas.] A diseased state; unhealthiness. [R.] Sir T. Browne.

||Mor`ceau” (?), n. [F.] A bit; a morsel.

Mor*da”cious (?), a. [L. mordax, -acis, fr. mordere, morsum, to bite. See Morsel.] Biting; given to biting; hence, figuratively, sarcastic; severe; scathing. — Mor*da”cious*ly, adv.

Mor*dac”i*ty (?), n. [L. mordacitas: cf. F. mordacité. See Mordacious.] The quality of being mordacious; biting severity, or sarcastic quality. Bacon.

Mor”dant (?), a. [F., p. pr. of mordere to bite; L. mordere. See Morsel.] 1. Biting; caustic; sarcastic; keen; severe.

2. (Dyeing & Calico Printing) Serving to fix colors.

Mor”dant, n. [F., originally, biting.] 1. Any corroding substance used in etching.

2. (Dyeing & Calico Printing) Any substance, as alum or copperas, which, having a twofold attraction for organic fibers and coloring matter, serves as a bond of union, and thus gives fixity to, or bites in, the dyes.

3. (Gilding) Any sticky matter by which the gold leaf is made to adhere.

Mor”dant (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mordanted; p. pr. & vb. n. Mordanting.] To subject to the action of, or imbue with, a mordant; as, to mordant goods for dyeing.

Mor”dant*ly, adv. In the manner of a mordant.

||Mor*den”te (?), n. [It.] (Mus.) An embellishment resembling a trill.

Mor”di*can*cy (?), n. A biting quality; corrosiveness. [R.] Evelyn.

Mor”di*cant (?), a. [L. mordicans, p. pr. of mordicare to bite, fr. mordere: cf. F. mordicant.] Biting; acrid; as, the mordicant quality of a body. [R.] Boyle.

Mor`di*ca”tion (?), n. [L. mordicatio.] The act of biting or corroding; corrosion. [R.] Bacon.

Mor”di*ca*tive (?), a. [L. mordicativus.] Biting; corrosive. [R.] Holland.

More (mōr), n. [AS. mōr. See Moor a waste.] A hill. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

More, n. [AS. more, moru; akin to G. möhre carrot, OHG. moraha, morha.] A root. [Obs.] Chaucer.

More, a., compar. [Positive wanting; superl. Most (mōst).] [OE. more, mare, and (orig. neut. and adv.) mo, ma, AS. māra, and (as neut. and adv.) mā; akin to D. meer, OS. mēr, G. mehr, OHG. mēro, mēr, Icel. meiri, meirr, Dan. meere, meer, Sw. mera, mer, Goth. maiza, a., mais, adv., and perh. to L. major greater, compar. of magnus great, and magis, adv., more. √103. Cf. Most, uch, Major.] 1. Greater; superior; increased; as: (a) Greater in quality, amount, degree, quality, and the like; with the singular.

He gat more money.

Chaucer.

If we procure not to ourselves more woe.

Milton.

&fist; More, in this sense, was formerly used in connection with some other qualifying word, — a, the, this, their, etc., — which now requires the substitution of greater, further, or the like, for more.

Whilst sisters nine, which dwell on Parnasse height,
Do make them music for their more delight.

Spenser.

The more part knew not wherefore they were come together.

Acts xix. 32.

Wrong not that wrong with a more contempt.

Shak.

(b) Greater in number; exceeding in numbers; — with the plural.

The people of the children of Israel are more and mighter than we.

Ex. i. 9.

2. Additional; other; as, he wept because there were no more worlds to conquer.

With open arms received one poet more.

Pope.

More, n. 1. A greater quantity, amount, or number; that which exceeds or surpasses in any way what it is compared with.

And the children of Israel did so, and gathered, some more, some less.

Ex. xvi. 17.

2. That which is in addition; something other and further; an additional or greater amount.

They that would have more and more can never have enough.

L’Estrange.

O! That pang where more than madness lies.

Byron.

Any more. (a) Anything or something additional or further; as, I do not need any more. (b) Adverbially: Further; beyond a certain time; as, do not think any more about it. — No more, not anything more; nothing in addition. — The more and less, the high and low. [Obs.] Shak. “All cried, both less and more.” Chaucer.

More, adv. 1. In a greater quantity; in or to a greater extent or degree. (a) With a verb or participle.

Admiring more
The riches of Heaven’s pavement.

Milton.

(b) With an adjective or adverb (instead of the suffix -er) to form the comparative degree; as, more durable; more active; more sweetly.

Happy here, and more happy hereafter.

Bacon.

&fist; Double comparatives were common among writers of the Elizabeth period, and for some time later; as, more brighter; more dearer.

The duke of Milan
And his more braver daughter.

Shak.

2. In addition; further; besides; again.

Yet once more, O ye laurels, and once more,
Ye myrtles brown, with ivy never sere,
I come to pluck your berries harsh and crude.

Milton.

More and more, with continual increase. “Amon trespassed more and more.” 2 Chron. xxxiii. 23. – - The more, to a greater degree; by an added quantity; for a reason already specified. — The more — the more, by how much more — by so much more. “The more he praised it in himself, the more he seems to suspect that in very deed it was not in him.” Milton. — To be no more, to have ceased to be; as, Cassius is no more; Troy is no more.

Those oracles which set the world in flames,
Nor ceased to burn till kingdoms were no more.

Byron.

More, v. t. To make more; to increase. [Obs.] Gower.

Mo*reen” (?), n. [Cf. Mohair.] A thick woolen fabric, watered or with embossed figures; — used in upholstery, for curtains, etc.

Mor”el (?), n. [See Moril.] (Bot.) An edible fungus (Morchella esculenta), the upper part of which is covered with a reticulated and pitted hymenium. It is used as food, and for flavoring sauces. [Written also moril.]

Mor”el, n. [See Morelle.] (Bot.) 1. Nightshade; — so called from its blackish purple berries. [Written also morelle.]

2. A kind of cherry. See Morello.

Great morel, the deadly nightshade. — Petty morel, the black nightshade. See Nightshade.

More”land (?), n. Moorland.

Mo*relle” (?), n. [F., orig. fem. of moreau black, OF. morel, fr. LL. morellus. Cf. Morello, Murrey.] (Bot.) Nightshade. See 2d Morel.

Mo*rel”lo (?), n. [Cf. It. morello blackish, OF. morel. Cf. Morelle.] (Bot.) A kind of nearly black cherry with dark red flesh and juice, — used chiefly for preserving.

||Mo*ren”do (?), a. & n. [It.] (Mus.) Dying; a gradual decrescendo at the end of a strain or cadence.

More”ness (?), n. Greatness. [Obs.] Wyclif.

More*o”ver (?), adv. [More + over.] Beyond what has been said; further; besides; in addition; furthermore; also; likewise.

Moreover, he hath left you all his walks.

Shak.

Syn. — Besides, Moreover. Of the two words, moreover is the stronger and is properly used in solemn discourse, or when what is added is important to be considered. See Besides.

More”pork` (?), n. [So named from its cry.] (Zoöl.) The Australian crested goatsucker (Ægotheles Novæ-Hollandiæ). Also applied to other allied birds, as Podargus Cuveiri.

Mo*resk” (?), a. & n. Moresque. [Obs.]

Mo*resque” (?), a. [F., fr. It. moresco, or Sp. morisco. See Morris.] Of or pertaining to, or in the manner or style of, the Moors; Moorish. — n. The Moresque style of architecture or decoration. See Moorish architecture, under Moorish. [Written also mauresque.]

Mor`ga*nat”ic (?), a. [LL. matrimonium ad morganaticam, fr. morganatica a morning gift, a kind of dowry paid on the morning before or after the marriage, fr. OHG. morgan morning, in morgangeba morning gift, G. morgengabe. See Morn.] Pertaining to, in the manner of, or designating, a kind of marriage, called also left-handed marriage, between a man of superior rank and a woman of inferior, in which it is stipulated that neither the latter nor her children shall enjoy the rank or inherit the possessions of her husband. Brande & C. — Mor`ga*nat”ic*al*ly (#), adv.

Mor”gay (?), n. [W. morgi dogfish, shark; mor sea + ci dog.] (Zoöl.) The European small-spotted dogfish, or houndfish. See the Note under Houndfish.

Mor”glay (?), n. [Cf. Claymore.] A sword. [Obs.] Beau. & Fl.

Morgue (?), n. [F.] A place where the bodies of persons found dead are exposed, that they may be identified, or claimed by their friends; a deadhouse.

||Mo”ri*a (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; folly.] Idiocy; imbecility; fatuity; foolishness.

Mo”ri*an (?), n. (Ethnol.) A Moor. [Obs.]

In vain the Turks and Morians armed be.

Fairfax.

Mor”i*bund (?), a. [L. moribundus, from moriri to die. See Mortal.] In a dying state; dying; at the point of death.

The patient was comatose and moribund.

Copland.

Mor”i*bund (?), n. A dying person. [R.]

Mo”ric (?), a. Pertaining to, or derived from, fustic (see Morin); as, moric acid.

Mor”ice (?), n. See Morisco.

Mo*rig”er*ate (?), a. [L. morigeratus, p. p. of morigerari to comply with. See Morigerous.] Obedient. [Obs.]

Mo*rig`er*a”tion (?), n. [L. morigeratio.] Obsequiousness; obedience. [Obs.] Evelyn.

Mo*rig”er*ous (?), a. [L. morigerus; mos, moris, custom, manner + gerere to bear, conduct.] Obedient; obsequious. [Obs.] Brathwait.

Mor”il (?), n. [F. morille; cf. OHG. morhila, G. morchel, OHG. morha carrot. See More a root.] (Bot.) An edible fungus. Same as 1st Morel.

Mo”rin (?), n. (Chem.) A yellow crystalline substance of acid properties extracted from fustic (Maclura tinctoria, formerly called Morus tinctoria); – - called also moric acid.

Mo*rin”da (?), n. (Bot.) A genus of rubiaceous trees and shrubs, mostly East Indian, many species of which yield valuable red and yellow dyes. The wood is hard and beautiful, and used for gunstocks.

Mo*rin”din (?), n. (Chem.) A yellow dyestuff extracted from the root bark of an East Indian plant (Morinda citrifolia).

Mor”i*nel` (?), n. [Cf. F. morinelle.] (Zoöl.) The dotterel.

Mo*rin”ga (?), n. [Malayam murunggi.] (Bot.) A genus of trees of Southern India and Northern Africa. One species (Moringa pterygosperma) is the horse-radish tree, and its seeds, as well as those of M. aptera, are known in commerce as ben or ben nuts, and yield the oil called oil of ben.

Mo*rin”gic (?), a. (Chem.) Designating an organic acid obtained from oil of ben. See Moringa.

Mo`rin*tan”nic (?), a. [NL. Morus fustic + E. tannic.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, a variety of tannic acid extracted from fustic (Maclura, formerly Morus, tinctoria) as a yellow crystalline substance; — called also maclurin.

Mo”ri*on (?), n. [F. morion, Sp. morrion; cf. Sp. morra the upper part of the head, morro anything that is round.] A kind of open helmet, without visor or beaver, and somewhat resembling a hat.

A battered morion on his brow.

Sir W. Scott.

Mo”ri*on, n. [G.] (Min.) A dark variety of smoky quartz.

Mo”ri*o*plas`ty (?), n. [Gr. &?; piece (dim. of &?; a part + -plasty.] (Surg.) The restoration of lost parts of the body.

Mo*ris”co (m&osl;*r&ibreve;s”k&osl;), a. [Sp. See Morris the dance.] Moresque.

Mo*ris”co, n. [Sp. morisco Moorish.] A thing of Moorish origin; as: (a) The Moorish language. (b) A Moorish dance, now called morris dance. Marston. (c) One who dances the Moorish dance. Shak. (d) Moresque decoration or architecture.

Mo”risk (?), n. Same as Morisco.

Mor”kin (?), n. [Akin to Sw. murken putrefied, Icel. morkinn putrid.] A beast that has died of disease or by mischance. [Obs.] Bp. Hall.

Mor”land (?), n. Moorland. [Obs.]

Mor”ling (?), n. [Cf. F. mort dead, L. mortuus, fr. moriri to die.] Mortling. [Eng.] Ainsworth.

Mor”mal (?), n. [F. mort-mai a deadly evil. Nares.] A bad sore; a gangrene; a cancer. [Obs.] [Written also morrimal and mortmal.] Chaucer.

Mor”mo (?), n. [Gr. mormw` a hideous she-monster, a bugbear.] A bugbear; false terror. [Obs.] Jonhson.

||Mor”mon (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. mormw`n monster, bugbear.] (Zoöl.) (a) A genus of sea birds, having a large, thick bill; the puffin. (b) The mandrill.

Mor”mon (?), n. (Eccl.) One of a sect in the United States, followers of Joseph Smith, who professed to have found an addition to the Bible, engraved on golden plates, called the Book of Mormon, first published in 1830. The Mormons believe in polygamy, and their hierarchy of apostles, etc., has control of civil and religious matters.

&fist; The Mormons call their religious organization The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Its head claims to receive revelations of God’s will, and to have certain supernatural powers.

Mor”mon, a. Of or pertaining to the Mormons; as, the Mormon religion; Mormon practices.

Mor”mon*dom (?), n. The country inhabited by the Mormons; the Mormon people.

Mor”mon*ism (?), n. The doctrine, system, and practices of the Mormons.

Mor”mon*ite (?), n. A Mormon. — a. Mormon. “Mormonite religion.” F. W. Newman.

Morn (môrn), n. [OE. morwen, morgen, AS. morgen; akin to D. morgen, OS. morgan, G. morgen, Icel. morginn, morgunn, Sw. morgon, Dan. morgen, Goth. maúrgins. Cf. Morrow, Morning.] The first part of the day; the morning; — used chiefly in poetry.

From morn
To noon he fell, from noon to dewy eve.

Milton.

Mor”ne (môr”ne), a. Of or pertaining to the morn; morning. [Obs.] “White as morne milk.” Chaucer.

||Morne (môrn), n. [F., fr. morne sad, sorrowful. See Mourn.] A ring fitted upon the head of a lance to prevent wounding an adversary in tilting.

||Mor`né” (môr`n&asl;”), a. [F., fr. morne a morne.] (Her.) Without teeth, tongue, or claws; — said of a lion represented heraldically.

Morn”ing (môrn”&ibreve;ng), n. [OE. morning, morwening. See Morn.] 1. The first or early part of the day, variously understood as the earliest hours of light, the time near sunrise; the time from midnight to noon, from rising to noon, etc.

2. The first or early part; as, the morning of life.

3. The goddess Aurora. [Poetic] Shak.

Morn”ing, a. Pertaining to the first part or early part of the day; being in the early part of the day; as, morning dew; morning light; morning service.

She looks as clear
As morning roses newly washed with dew.

Shak.

Morning gown, a gown worn in the morning before one is dressed for the day. — Morning gun, a gun fired at the first stroke of reveille at military posts. — Morning sickness (Med.), nausea and vomiting, usually occurring in the morning; — a common sign of pregnancy. — Morning star. (a) Any one of the planets (Venus, Jupiter, Mars, or Saturn) when it precedes the sun in rising, esp. Venus. Cf. Evening star, Evening. (b) Satan. See Lucifer.

Since he miscalled the morning star,
Nor man nor fiend hath fallen so far.

Byron.

(c) A weapon consisting of a heavy ball set with spikes, either attached to a staff or suspended from one by a chain. — Morning watch (Naut.), the watch between four A. M. and eight A. M..

Morn”ing-glo`ry (?), n. (Bot.) A climbing plant (Ipomœa purpurea) having handsome, funnel-shaped flowers, usually red, pink, purple, white, or variegated, sometimes pale blue. See Dextrorsal.

Morn”ing*tide` (?), n. Morning time. [Poetic]

Morn”ward (?), adv. Towards the morn. [Poetic]

And mornward now the starry hands move on.

Lowell.

Mo”ro (?), n. [Cf. It. mora mulberry, L. morum.] (Med.) A small abscess or tumor having a resemblance to a mulberry. Dunglison.

Mo*roc”can (?), a. Of or pertaining to Morocco, or its inhabitants.

Mo*roc”co (?), n. [Named from Morocco, the country. Cf. Morris the dance.] A fine kind of leather, prepared commonly from goatskin (though an inferior kind is made of sheepskin), and tanned with sumac and dyed of various colors; — said to have been first made by the Moors.

Mo*rol”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. mwrologi`a foolish talk, mw^ros foolish + lo`gos discourse.] Foolish talk; nonsense; folly. [Obs.]

Mo*rone” (m&osl;*rōn”), n. Maroon; the color of an unripe black mulberry.

||Mo`ro*sau”rus (?), n. [NL., from Gr. mw^ros stupid + sau^ros lizard.] (Paleon.) An extinct genus of large herbivorous dinosaurs, found in Jurassic strata in America.

Mo*rose” (m&osl;*rōs”), a. [L. morosus, prop., excessively addicted to any particular way or habit, fr. mos, moris, manner, habit, way of life: cf. F. morose.] 1. Of a sour temper; sullen and austere; ill-humored; severe. “A morose and affected taciturnity.” I. Watts.

2. Lascivious; brooding over evil thoughts. [Obs.]

Syn. — Sullen; gruff; severe; austere; gloomy; crabbed; crusty; churlish; surly; ill-humored.

Mo*rose”ly (?), adv. Sourly; with sullen austerity.

Mo*rose”ness, n. Sourness of temper; sulenness.

Learn good humor, never to oppose without just reason; abate some degrees of pride and moroseness.

I. Watts.

&fist; Moroseness is not precisely peevishness or fretfulness, though often accompanied with it. It denotes more of silence and severity, or ill-humor, than the irritability or irritation which characterizes peevishness.

||Mo*ro”sis (m&osl;*rō“s&ibreve;s), n. [NL., fr. Gr. mw`rwsis, fr. mw^ros silly, foolish.] (Med.) Idiocy; fatuity; stupidity.

Mo*ros”i*ty (?), n. [L. morositas: cf. F. morosité.] Moroseness. [R.] Jer. Taylor.

Mo”ro*soph (?), n. [Gr. mo^ros foolish + sofo`s wise.] A philosophical or learned fool. [Obs.]

Mo*ro”sous (?), a. Morose. [Obs.] Sheldon.

Mo*rox”ite (?), n. [Cf. Gr. &?;, &?;, a sort of pipe clay.] (Min.) A variety of apatite of a greenish blue color.

Mo*rox”y*late (?), n. (Chem.) A morate.

Mor`ox*yl”ic (?), a. [L. morus a mulberry tree + Gr. &?; wood.] (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or derived from, the mulberry; moric.

Mor”phe*an (?), a. Of or relating to Morpheus, to dreams, or to sleep. Keats.

Mor”pheus (môr”fūs or môr”f&esl;*ŭs), n. [L., fr. Gr. Morfey`s prop., the fashioner or molder, because of the shapes he calls up before the sleeper, fr. morfh` form, shape.] (Class. Myth.) The god of dreams.

Mor”phew (?), n. [F. morpheé, LL. morphea; cf. It. morfea.] A scurfy eruption. [Obs.] Drayton.

Mor”phew, v. t. To cover with a morphew. [Obs.]

Mor”phi*a (?), n. [NL.] (Chem.) Morphine.

Mor”phine (?), n. [From Morpheus: cf. F. morphine.] (Chem.) A bitter white crystalline alkaloid found in opium, possessing strong narcotic properties, and much used as an anodyne; — called also morphia, and morphina.

Mor”phin*ism (?), n. (Med.) A morbid condition produced by the excessive or prolonged use of morphine.

||Mor”pho (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;, an epithet of Venus.] (Zoöl.) Any one of numerous species of large, handsome, tropical American butterflies, of the genus Morpho. They are noted for the very brilliant metallic luster and bright colors (often blue) of the upper surface of the wings. The lower surface is usually brown or gray, with eyelike spots.

Mor*phog”e*ny (?), n. [form + root of &?; to be born.] (Biol.) History of the evolution of forms; that part of ontogeny that deals with the germ history of forms; — distinguished from physiogeny. Haeckel.

{ Mor`pho*log”ic (?), Mor`pho*log”ic*al (?), } a. [Cf. F. morphologique.] (Biol.) Of, pertaining to, or according to, the principles of morphology. — Mor`pho*log”ic*al*ly, adv.

Mor*phol”o*gist (?), n. (Biol.) One who is versed in the science of morphology.

Mor*phol”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. &?; form + -logy: cf. F. morphologie.] (Biol.) That branch of biology which deals with the structure of animals and plants, treating of the forms of organs and describing their varieties, homologies, and metamorphoses. See Tectology, and Promorphology.

Mor”phon (?), n. [Gr. &?;, p. pr. of &?; to form.] (Biol.) A morphological individual, characterized by definiteness of form, in distinction from bion, a physiological individual. See Tectology. Haeckel.

&fist; Of morphons there are six orders or categories: 1. Plastids or elementary organisms. 2. Organs, homoplastic or heteroplastic. 3. Antimeres (opposite or symmetrical or homotypic parts). 4. Metameres (successive or homodynamous parts). 5. Personæ (shoots or buds of plants, individuals in the narrowest sense among the higher animals). 6. Corms (stocks or colonies). For orders 2, 3, and 4 the term idorgan has been recently substituted. See Idorgan.

Mor*phon”o*my (?), n. [Gr. &?; form + &?; a law.] (Biol.) The laws of organic formation.

Mor”pho*phy`ly (?), n. [Gr. &?; form + &?; a clan.] (Biol.) The tribal history of forms; that part of phylogeny which treats of the tribal history of forms, in distinction from the tribal history of functions. Haeckel.

||Mor*pho”sis (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; form, fr. &?; form.] (Biol.) The order or mode of development of an organ or part.

Mor*phot”ic (?), a. [Gr. &?; fit for forming.] (Physiol.) Connected with, or becoming an integral part of, a living unit or of the morphological framework; as, morphotic, or tissue, proteids. Foster.

-mor”phous (?). [Gr. &?; form.] A combining form denoting form, shape; as, isomorphous.

Mor”pi*on (?), n. [F., fr. mordre to bite + L. pedis louse.] (Zoöl.) A louse. Hudibras.

Mor”rice (?), n. Same as 1st Morris.

Mor”rice, a. Dancing the morrice; dancing.

In shoals and bands, a morrice train.

Wordsworth.

Mor”ri*cer (?), n. A morris dancer. [Obs.]

Mor”ri*mal (?), n. & a. See Mormal.

Mor”ris (?), n. [Sp. morisco Moorish, fr. Moro a Moor: cf. F. moresque, It. moresca.] 1. A Moorish dance, usually performed by a single dancer, who accompanies the dance with castanets.

2. A dance formerly common in England, often performed in pagenats, processions, and May games. The dancers, grotesquely dressed and ornamented, took the parts of Robin Hood, Maidmarian, and other fictitious characters.

3. An old game played with counters, or men, which are placed at the angles of a figure drawn on a board or on the ground; also, the board or ground on which the game is played.

The nine-men’s morris is filled up with mud.

Shak.

&fist; The figure consists of three concentric squares, with lines from the angles of the outer one to those of the inner, and from the middle of each side of the outer square to that of the inner. The game is played by two persons with nine or twelve pieces each (hence called nine-men’s morris or twelve-men’s morris). The pieces are placed alternately, and each player endeavors to prevent his opponent from making a straight row of three. Should either succeed in making a row, he may take up one of his opponent’s pieces, and he who takes off all of his opponent’s pieces wins the game.

Mor”ris (?), n. [So called from its discoverer.] (Zoöl.) A marine fish having a very slender, flat, transparent body. It is now generally believed to be the young of the conger eel or some allied fish.

Mor”ris-pike` (?), n. A Moorish pike. [Obs.]

Mor”rot (?), n. (Zoöl.) See Marrot.

Mor”row (?), n. [OE. morwe, morwen, AS. morgen. See Morn.] 1. Morning. [Obs.] “White as morrow’s milk.” Bp. Hall.

We loved he by the morwe a sop in wine.

Chaucer.

2. The next following day; the day subsequent to any day specified or understood. Lev. vii. 16.

Till this stormy night is gone,
And the eternal morrow dawn.

Crashaw.

3. The day following the present; to- morrow.

Good morrow, good morning; — a form of salutation. — To morrow. See To- morrow in the Vocabulary.

Morse (?), n. [F. morse, Russ. morj’; perh. akin to E. mere lake; cf. Russ. more sea.] (Zoöl.) The walrus. See Walrus.

Morse, n. [L. morsus a biting, a clasp, fr. mordere to bite.] A clasp for fastening garments in front. Fairholt.

Morse” al”pha*bet (?). A telegraphic alphabet in very general use, inventing by Samuel F.B.Morse, the inventor of Morse’s telegraph. The letters are represented by dots and dashes impressed or printed on paper, as, .- (A), – . . . (B), -.. (D), . (E), .. (O), . . . (R), — (T), etc., or by sounds, flashes of light, etc., with greater or less intervals between them.

Mor”sel (?), n. [OF. morsel, F. morceau, LL. morsellus, a dim. fr. L. morsus a biting, bite, fr. mordere to bite; prob. akin to E. smart. See Smart, and cf. Morceau, Mordant, Muse, v., Muzzle, n.] 1. A little bite or bit of food. Chaucer.

Every morsel to a satisfied hunger is only a new labor to a tired digestion.

South.

2. A small quantity; a little piece; a fragment.

Mor”sing horn` (?). A horn or flask for holding powder, as for priming. [Scot.] Sir W. Scott.

Mor`si*ta”tion (?), n. The act of biting or gnawing. [Obs.]

Mor”sure (?), n. [F., fr. L. mordere, morsum, to bite.] The act of biting. Swift.

Mort (?), n. [Cf. Icel. margt, neut. of margr many.] A great quantity or number. [Prov. Eng.]

There was a mort of merrymaking.

Dickens.

Mort, n. [Etym. uncert.] A woman; a female. [Cant]

Male gypsies all, not a mort among them.

B. Jonson.

Mort, n. [Etymol. uncertain.] (Zoöl.) A salmon in its third year. [Prov. Eng.]

Mort, n. [F., death, fr. L. mors, mortis.] 1. Death; esp., the death of game in the chase.

2. A note or series of notes sounded on a horn at the death of game.

The sportsman then sounded a treble mort.

Sir W. Scott.

3. The skin of a sheep or lamb that has died of disease. [Prov. Eng. & Scot.]

Mort cloth, the pall spread over a coffin; black cloth indicative or mourning; funeral hangings. Carlyle. — Mort stone, a large stone by the wayside on which the bearers rest a coffin. [Eng.] H. Taylor.

Mor”tal (?), a. [F. mortel, L. mortalis, from mors, mortis, death, fr. moriri 8die; akin to E. murder. See Murder, and cf. Filemot, Mere a lake, Mortgage.] 1. Subject to death; destined to die; as, man is mortal.

2. Destructive to life; causing or occasioning death; terminating life; exposing to or deserving death; deadly; as, a mortal wound; a mortal sin.

3. Fatally vulnerable; vital.

Last of all, against himself he turns his sword, but missing the mortal place, with his poniard finishes the work.

Milton.

4. Of or pertaining to the time of death.

Safe in the hand of one disposing Power,
Or in the natal or the mortal hour.

Pope.

5. Affecting as if with power to kill; deathly.

The nymph grew pale, and in a mortal fright.

Dryden.

6. Human; belonging to man, who is mortal; as, mortal wit or knowledge; mortal power.

The voice of God
To mortal ear is dreadful.

Milton.

7. Very painful or tedious; wearisome; as, a sermon lasting two mortal hours. [Colloq.] Sir W. Scott.

Mortal foe, Mortal enemy, an inveterate, desperate, or implacable enemy; a foe bent on one’s destruction.

Mor”tal, n. A being subject to death; a human being; man. “Warn poor mortals left behind.” Tickell.

Mor*tal”i*ty (?), n. [L. mortalitas: cf. F. mortalité.] 1. The condition or quality of being mortal; subjection to death or to the necessity of dying.

When I saw her die,
I then did think on your mortality.

Carew.

2. Human life; the life of a mortal being.

From this instant
There ‘s nothing serious in mortality.

Shak.

3. Those who are, or that which is, mortal; the human race; humanity; human nature.

Take these tears, mortality’s relief.

Pope.

4. Death; destruction. Shak.

5. The whole sum or number of deaths in a given time or a given community; also, the proportion of deaths to population, or to a specific number of the population; death rate; as, a time of great, or low, mortality; the mortality among the settlers was alarming.

Bill of mortality. See under Bill. — Law of mortality, a mathematical relation between the numbers living at different ages, so that from a given large number of persons alive at one age, it can be computed what number are likely to survive a given number of years. — Table of mortality, a table exhibiting the average relative number of persons who survive, or who have died, at the end of each year of life, out of a given number supposed to have been born at the same time.

Mor”tal*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mortalized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mortalizing (?).] To make mortal. [R.]

Mor”tal*ly, adv. 1. In a mortal manner; so as to cause death; as, mortally wounded.

2. In the manner of a mortal or of mortal beings.

I was mortally brought forth.

Shak.

3. In an extreme degree; to the point of dying or causing death; desperately; as, mortally jealous.

Adrian mortally envied poets, painters, and artificers, in works wherein he had a vein to excel.

Bacon.

Mor”tal*ness, n. Quality of being mortal; mortality.

Mor”tar (?), n. [OE. morter, AS. mortēre, L. mortarium: cf. F. mortier mortar. Cf. sense 2 (below), also 2d Mortar, Martel, Morter.] 1. A strong vessel, commonly in form of an inverted bell, in which substances are pounded or rubbed with a pestle.

2. [F. mortier, fr. L. mortarium mortar (for trituarating).] (Mil.) A short piece of ordnance, used for throwing bombs, carcasses, shells, etc., at high angles of elevation, as 45°, and even higher; — so named from its resemblance in shape to the utensil above described.

Mortar bed (Mil.), a framework of wood and iron, suitably hollowed out to receive the breech and trunnions of a mortar. — Mortar boat or vessel (Naut.), a boat strongly built and adapted to carrying a mortar or mortars for bombarding; a bomb ketch. — Mortar piece, a mortar. [Obs.] Shak.

Mor”tar, n. [OE. mortier, F. mortier, L. mortarium mortar, a large basin or trough in which mortar is made, a mortar (in sense 1, above). See 1st Mortar.] (Arch.) A building material made by mixing lime, cement, or plaster of Paris, with sand, water, and sometimes other materials; — used in masonry for joining stones, bricks, etc., also for plastering, and in other ways.

Mortar bed, a shallow box or receptacle in which mortar is mixed. — Mortar board. (a) A small square board with a handle beneath, for holding mortar; a hawk. (b) A cap with a broad, projecting, square top; — worn by students in some colleges. [Slang]

Mor”tar, v. t. To plaster or make fast with mortar.

Mor”tar (?), n. [F. mortier. See Mortar a vessel.] A chamber lamp or light. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mort”gage (môr”g&asl;j; 48), n. [F. mort-gage; mort dead (L. mortuus) + gage pledge. See Mortal, and Gage.] 1. (Law) A conveyance of property, upon condition, as security for the payment of a debt or the preformance of a duty, and to become void upon payment or performance according to the stipulated terms; also, the written instrument by which the conveyance is made.

&fist; It was called a mortgage (or dead pledge) because, whatever profit it might yield, it did not thereby redeem itself, but became lost or dead to the mortgager upon breach of the condition. But in equity a right of redemption is an inseparable incident of a mortgage until the mortgager is debarred by his own laches, or by judicial decree. Cowell. Kent.

2. State of being pledged; as, lands given in mortgage.

Chattel mortgage. See under Chattel. — To foreclose a mortgage. See under Foreclose. — Mortgage deed (Law), a deed given by way of mortgage.

Mort”gage, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mortgaged (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mortgaging (?).] 1. (Law) To grant or convey, as property, for the security of a debt, or other engagement, upon a condition that if the debt or engagement shall be discharged according to the contract, the conveyance shall be void, otherwise to become absolute, subject, however, to the right of redemption.

2. Hence: To pledge, either literally or figuratively; to make subject to a claim or obligation.

Mortgaging their lives to covetise.

Spenser.

I myself an mortgaged to thy will.

Shak.

Mort`ga*gee” (?), n. (Law) The person to whom property is mortgaged, or to whom a mortgage is made or given.

{ Mort”gage*or, Mort”ga*gor } (?), n. (Law) One who gives a mortgage.

&fist; The letter e is required analogically after the second g in order to soften it; but the spelling mortgagor is in fact the prevailing form. When the word is contradistinguished from mortgagee it is accented on the last syllable (-jôr”).

Mort”ga*ger (?), n. (Law) One who gives a mortgage.

Mor”tif”er*ous (?), a. [L. mortifier; mors, mortis, death + ferre to bring: cf. F. mortifère.] Bringing or producing death; deadly; destructive; as, a mortiferous herb. Gov. of Tongue.

Mor`ti*fi*ca”tion (?), n. [F., fr. L. mortificatio a killing. See Mortify.] 1. The act of mortifying, or the condition of being mortified; especially: (a) (Med.) The death of one part of an animal body, while the rest continues to live; loss of vitality in some part of a living animal; gangrene. Dunglison. (b) (Alchem. & Old Chem.) Destruction of active qualities; neutralization. [Obs.] Bacon. (c) Subjection of the passions and appetites, by penance, abstinence, or painful severities inflicted on the body.

The mortification of our lusts has something in it that is troublesome, yet nothing that is unreasonable.

Tillotson.

(d) Hence: Deprivation or depression of self- approval; abatement of pride; humiliation; chagrin; vexation.

We had the mortification to lose sight of Munich, Augsburg, and Ratisbon.

Addison.

2. That which mortifies; the cause of humiliation, chagrin, or vexation.

It is one of the vexatious mortifications of a studious man to have his thoughts discovered by a tedious visit.

L’Estrange.

3. (Scots Law) A gift to some charitable or religious institution; — nearly synonymous with mortmain.

Syn. — Chagrin; vexation; shame. See Chagrin.

Mor”ti*fied (?), imp. & p. p. of Mortify.

Mor”ti*fied*ness (?), n. The state of being mortified; humiliation; subjection of the passions. [R.]

Mor”ti*fi`er (?), n. One who, or that which, mortifies.

Mor”ti*fy (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mortified (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mortifying (?).] [OE. mortifien, F. mortifier, fr. L. mortificare; L. mors, mortis, death + ficare (in comp.) to make. See Mortal, and fy.] 1. To destroy the organic texture and vital functions of; to produce gangrene in.

2. To destroy the active powers or essential qualities of; to change by chemical action. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Quicksilver is mortified with turpentine.

Bacon.

He mortified pearls in vinegar.

Hakewill.

3. To deaden by religious or other discipline, as the carnal affections, bodily appetites, or worldly desires; to bring into subjection; to abase; to humble.

With fasting mortified, worn out with tears.

Harte.

Mortify thy learned lust.

Prior.

Mortify, therefore, your members which are upon the earth.

Col. iii. 5.

4. To affect with vexation, chagrin, or humiliation; to humble; to depress.

The news of the fatal battle of Worcester, which exceedingly mortified our expectations.

Evelyn.

How often is the ambitious man mortified with the very praises he receives, if they do not rise so high as he thinks they ought!

Addison.

Mor”ti*fy, v. i. 1. To lose vitality and organic structure, as flesh of a living body; to gangrene.

2. To practice penance from religious motives; to deaden desires by religious discipline.

This makes him . . . give alms of all that he hath, watch, fast, and mortify.

Law.

3. To be subdued; to decay, as appetites, desires, etc.

Mor”ti*fy`ing (?), a. 1. Tending to mortify; affected by, or having symptoms of, mortification; as, a mortifying wound; mortifying flesh.

2. Subduing the appetites, desires, etc.; as, mortifying penances.

3. Tending to humble or abase; humiliating; as, a mortifying repulse.

Mor”ti*fy`ing*ly, adv. In a mortifying manner.

Mor”tise (?), n. [F. mortaise; cf. Sp. mortaja, Ar. murtazz fixed, or W. mortais, Ir. mortis, moirtis, Gael. moirteis.] A cavity cut into a piece of timber, or other material, to receive something (as the end of another piece) made to fit it, and called a tenon.

Mortise and tenon (Carp.), made with a mortise and tenon; joined or united by means of a mortise and tenon; — used adjectively. — Mortise joint, a joint made by a mortise and tenon. — Mortise lock. See under Lock. — Mortise wheel, a cast-iron wheel, with wooden clogs inserted in mortises on its face or edge; — also called mortise gear, and core gear.

Mor”tise, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mortised (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mortising.] 1. To cut or make a mortise in.

2. To join or fasten by a tenon and mortise; as, to mortise a beam into a post, or a joist into a girder.

Mort”ling (?), n. [See Morling.] 1. An animal, as a sheep, dead of disease or privation; a morling. [Eng.]

2. Wool plucked from a dead sheep; morling.

Mort”main` (?), n. [F. mort, morte, dead + main hand; F. main-morte. See Mortal, and Manual.] (Law) Possession of lands or tenements in, or conveyance to, dead hands, or hands that cannot alienate.

&fist; The term was originally applied to conveyance of land made to ecclesiastical bodies; afterward to conveyance made to any corporate body. Burrill.

Mort”mal (?), n. See Mormal. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

Mort”pay` (?), n. [F. mort dead + E. pay.] Dead pay; the crime of taking pay for the service of dead soldiers, or for services not actually rendered by soldiers. [Obs.] Bacon.

{ Mor”tress (?), Mor”trew (?), } n. [See Mortar.] A dish of meats and other ingredients, cooked together; an ollapodrida. Chaucer. Bacon.

Mor”tu*a*ry (?), n.; pl. Mortuaries (#). [LL. mortuarium. See Mortuary, a.] 1. A sort of ecclesiastical heriot, a customary gift claimed by, and due to, the minister of a parish on the death of a parishioner. It seems to have been originally a voluntary bequest or donation, intended to make amends for any failure in the payment of tithes of which the deceased had been guilty.

2. A burial place; a place for the dead.

3. A place for the reception of the dead before burial; a deadhouse; a morgue.

Mor”tu*a*ry (?), a. [L. mortuarius, fr. mortuus dead: cf. F. mortuaire. See Mortal.] Of or pertaining to the dead; as, mortuary monuments.

Mortuary urn, an urn for holding the ashes of the dead.

||Mor”u*la (?), n.; pl. Morulæ (#). [NL., dim. of L. morum a mulberry.] (Biol.) The sphere or globular mass of cells (blastomeres), formed by the clevage of the ovum or egg in the first stages of its development; — called also mulberry mass, segmentation sphere, and blastosphere. See Segmentation.

Mor`u*la”tion (?), n. (Biol.) The process of cleavage, or segmentation, of the ovum, by which a morula is formed.

||Mo”rus (?), n. [L., mulberry tree. See Mulberry.] (Bot.) A genus of trees, some species of which produce edible fruit; the mulberry. See Mulberry.

&fist; Morus alba is the white mulberry, a native of India or China, the leaves of which are extensively used for feeding silkworms, for which it furnishes the chief food. — Morus multicaulis, the many-stemmed or Chinese mulberry, is only a form of white mulberry, preferred on account of its more abundant leaves. — Morus nigra, the black mulberry, produces a dark-colored fruit, of an agreeable flavor.

Mor”we (?), n. See Morrow. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mor”wen*ing (?), n. Morning. [Obs.]

Mo*sa”ic (?), n. [F. mosaïque; cf. Pr. mozaic, musec, Sp. & Pg. mosaico, It. mosaico, musaico, LGr. &?;, &?;, L. musivum; all fr. Gr. &?; belonging to the Muses. See Muse the goddess.] 1. (Fine Arts) A surface decoration made by inlaying in patterns small pieces of variously colored glass, stone, or other material; — called also mosaic work.

2. A picture or design made in mosaic; an article decorated in mosaic.

Mo*sa”ic, a. Of or pertaining to the style of work called mosaic; formed by uniting pieces of different colors; variegated; tessellated; also, composed of various materials or ingredients.

A very beautiful mosaic pavement.

Addison.

Florentine mosaic. See under Florentine. — Mosaic gold. (a) See Ormolu. (b) Stannic sulphide, SnS_2, obtained as a yellow scaly crystalline powder, and used as a pigment in bronzing and gilding wood and metal work. It was called by the alchemists aurum musivum, or aurum mosaicum. Called also bronze powder. — Mosaic work. See Mosaic, n.

Mo*sa”ic, a. [From Moses.] Of or pertaining to Moses, the leader of the Israelites, or established through his agency; as, the Mosaic law, rites, or institutions.

Mo*sa”ic*al (?), a. Mosaic (in either sense). “A mosaical floor.” Sir P. Sidney.

Mo*sa”ic*al*ly, adv. In the manner of a mosaic.

Mo”sa*ism (?), n. Attachment to the system or doctrines of Moses; that which is peculiar to the Mosaic system or doctrines.

{ Mos”a*saur (?), Mos`a*sau”ri*an (?), } n. (Paleon.) One of an extinct order of reptiles, including Mosasaurus and allied genera. See Mosasauria.

||Mos`a*sau”ri*a (?), n. pl. [NL. See Mosasaurus.] (Paleon.) An order of large, extinct, marine reptiles, found in the Cretaceous rocks, especially in America. They were serpentlike in form and in having loosely articulated and dilatable jaws, with large recurved teeth, but they had paddlelike feet. Some of them were over fifty feet long. They are, essentially, fossil sea serpents with paddles. Called also Pythonomarpha, and Mosasauria.

||Mos`a*sau”rus (?), n. [NL., fr. L. Mosa the River Meuse (on which Meastricht is situated) + Gr. &?; a lizard.] (Paleon.) A genus of extinct marine reptiles allied to the lizards, but having the body much elongated, and the limbs in the form of paddles. The first known species, nearly fifty feet in length, was discovered in Cretaceous beds near Maestricht, in the Netherlands. [Written also Mososaurus.]

Mos”cha*tel` (?), n. [Gr. &?; musk: cf. F. moscatelline. See Muscadel, Musk.] (Bot.) A plant of the genus Adoxa (A. moschatellina), the flowers of which are pale green, and have a faint musky smell. It is found in woods in all parts of Europe, and is called also hollow root and musk crowfoot. Loudon.

Mos”chine (?), a. Of or pertaining to Moschus, a genus including the musk deer.

Mos”el (?), n. & v. See Muzzle. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mo*selle” (?), n. A light wine, usually white, produced in the vicinity of the river Moselle.

Mo”ses (?), n. A large flatboat, used in the West Indies for taking freight from shore to ship.

Mosk (?), n. See Mosque.

Mos”lem (m&obreve;z”l&ebreve;m), n.; pl. Moslems (-l&ebreve;mz), or collectively Moslem. [Ar. muslim a true believer in the Mohammedan faith, fr. salama to submit to God, to resign one’s self to the divine will. Cf. Islam, Mussulman.] A Mussulman; an orthodox Mohammedan. [Written also muslim.] “Heaps of slaughtered Moslem.” Macaulay.

They piled the ground with Moslem slain.

Halleck.

Mos”lem (m&obreve;z”l&ebreve;m), a. Of or pertaining to the Mohammedans; Mohammedan; as, Moslem lands; the Moslem faith.

Mos”lings (?), n. pl. Thin shreds of leather shaved off in dressing skins. Simmonds.

||Mos`o*sau”rus (?), n. [NL.] (Paleon.) Same as Mosasaurus.

Mosque (m&obreve;sk), n. [F. mosquée, Sp. mezquita, Ar. masjid, from sajada to bend, adore.] A Mohammedan church or place of religious worship. [Written also mosk.]

Mos*qui”to (m&obreve;s*kē*t&osl;), n.; pl. Mosquitoes (#). [Sp. mosquito, fr. moscafly, L. musca. Cf. Musket.] (Zoöl.) Any one of various species of gnats of the genus Culex and allied genera. The females have a proboscis containing, within the sheathlike labium, six fine, sharp, needlelike organs with which they puncture the skin of man and animals to suck the blood. These bites, when numerous, cause, in many persons, considerable irritation and swelling, with some pain. The larvæ and pupæ, called wigglers, are aquatic. [Written also musquito.]

Mosquito bar, Mosquito net, a net or curtain for excluding mosquitoes, — used for beds and windows. — Mosquito fleet, a fleet of small vessels. — Mosquito hawk (Zoöl.), a dragon fly; — so called because it captures and feeds upon mosquitoes. — Mosquito netting, a loosely-woven gauzelike fabric for making mosquito bars.

Moss (?), n. [OE. mos; akin to AS. meós, D. mos, G. moos, OHG. mos, mios, Icel. mosi, Dan. mos, Sw. mossa, Russ. mokh’, L. muscus. Cf. Muscoid.] 1. (Bot.) A cryptogamous plant of a cellular structure, with distinct stem and simple leaves. The fruit is a small capsule usually opening by an apical lid, and so discharging the spores. There are many species, collectively termed Musci, growing on the earth, on rocks, and trunks of trees, etc., and a few in running water.

&fist; The term moss is also popularly applied to many other small cryptogamic plants, particularly lichens, species of which are called tree moss, rock moss, coral moss, etc. Fir moss and club moss are of the genus Lycopodium. See Club moss, under Club, and Lycopodium.

2. A bog; a morass; a place containing peat; as, the mosses of the Scottish border.

&fist; Moss is used with participles in the composition of words which need no special explanation; as, moss-capped, moss-clad, moss-covered, moss-grown, etc.

Black moss. See under Black, and Tillandsia. — Bog moss. See Sphagnum. — Feather moss, any moss branched in a feathery manner, esp. several species of the genus Hypnum. — Florida moss, Long moss, or Spanish moss. See Tillandsia. — Iceland moss, a lichen. See Iceland Moss. — Irish moss, a seaweed. See Carrageen. — Moss agate (Min.), a variety of agate, containing brown, black, or green mosslike or dendritic markings, due in part to oxide of manganese. Called also Mocha stone. – - Moss animal (Zoöl.), a bryozoan. — Moss berry (Bot.), the small cranberry (Vaccinium Oxycoccus). — Moss campion (Bot.), a kind of mosslike catchfly (Silene acaulis), with mostly purplish flowers, found on the highest mountains of Europe and America, and within the Arctic circle. — Moss land, land produced accumulation of aquatic plants, forming peat bogs of more or less consistency, as the water is grained off or retained in its pores. — Moss pink (Bot.), a plant of the genus Phlox (P. subulata), growing in patches on dry rocky hills in the Middle United States, and often cultivated for its handsome flowers. Gray. — Moss rose (Bot.), a variety of rose having a mosslike growth on the stalk and calyx. It is said to be derived from the Provence rose. — Moss rush (Bot.), a rush of the genus Juncus (J. squarrosus). — Scale moss. See Hepatica.

Moss, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mossed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mossing.] To cover or overgrow with moss.

An oak whose boughs were mossed with age.

Shak.

Moss”back` (?), n. A veteran partisan; one who is so conservative in opinion that he may be likened to a stone or old tree covered with moss. [Political Slang, U.S.]

{ Moss”bank`er (?), Moss”bunk`er (?), } n. (Zoöl.) The menhaded.

Moss”-grown` (?), a. Overgrown with moss.

Moss”i*ness (?), n. The state of being mossy.

Moss”troop`er (?), n. [Moss + trooper.] One of a class of marauders or bandits that formerly infested the border country between England and Scotland; — so called in allusion to the mossy or boggy character of much of the border country.

Moss”y (?), a. [Compar. Mossier (?); superl. Mossiest.] 1. Overgrown with moss; abounding with or edged with moss; as, mossy trees; mossy streams.

Old trees are more mossy far than young.

Bacon.

2. Resembling moss; as, mossy green.

Most (mōst), a., superl. of More. [OE. most, mast, mest, AS. m&aemacr;st; akin to D. meest, OS. mēst, G. meist, Icel. mestr, Goth. maists; a superl. corresponding to E. more. √103. See More, a.] 1. Consisting of the greatest number or quantity; greater in number or quantity than all the rest; nearly all. “Most men will proclaim every one his own goodness.” Prov. xx. 6.

The cities wherein most of his mighty works were done.

Matt. xi. 20.

2. Greatest in degree; as, he has the most need of it. “In the moste pride.” Chaucer.

3. Highest in rank; greatest. [Obs.] Chaucer.

&fist; Most is used as a noun, the words part, portion, quantity, etc., being omitted, and has the following meanings: 1. The greatest value, number, or part; preponderating portion; highest or chief part. 2. The utmost; greatest possible amount, degree, or result; especially in the phrases to make the most of, at the most, at most.

A quarter of a year or some months at the most.

Bacon.

A covetous man makes the most of what he has.

L’Estrange.

For the most part, in reference to the larger part of a thing, or to the majority of the persons, instances, or things referred to; as, human beings, for the most part, are superstitious; the view, for the most part, was pleasing. — Most an end, generally. See An end, under End, n. [Obs.] “She sleeps most an end.” Massinger.

Most, adv. [AS. m&aemacr;st. See Most, a.] In the greatest or highest degree.

Those nearest to this king, and most his favorites, were courtiers and prelates.

Milton.

&fist; Placed before an adjective or adverb, most is used to form the superlative degree, being equivalent to the termination -est; as, most vile, most wicked; most illustrious; most rapidly. Formerly, and until after the Elizabethan period of our literature, the use of the double superlative was common. See More, adv.

The most unkindest cut of all.

Shak.

The most straitest sect of our religion.

Acts xxvi. 5.

Mos`ta*hi”ba (?), n. See Mustaiba.

Mos”te (?), obs. imp. of Mote. Chaucer.

{ Mos”tic, Mos”tick } (?), n. [See Maul-stick.] A painter’s maul-stick.

Most”ly (?), adv. For the greatest part; for the most part; chiefly; in the main.

||Mos”tra (?), n. [It.] (Mus.) See Direct, n.

Most”what` (?), adv. For the most part. [Obs.] “All the rest do mostwhat far amiss.” Spenser.

Mot (mōt), v. [Sing. pres. ind. Mot, Mote, Moot (mōt), pl. Mot, Mote, Moote, pres. subj. Mote; imp. Moste.] [See Must, v.] [Obs.] May; must; might.

He moot as well say one word as another

Chaucer.

The wordes mote be cousin to the deed.

Chaucer.

Men moot [i.e., one only] give silver to the poore freres.

Chaucer.

So mote it be, so be it; amen; — a phrase in some rituals, as that of the Freemasons.

Mot (m&obreve;t; m&osl;, def. 2), n. [F. See Motto.] 1. A word; hence, a motto; a device. [Obs.] Bp. Hall.

Tarquin’s eye may read the mot afar.

Shak.

2. A pithy or witty saying; a witticism. [A Gallicism]

Here and there turns up a . . . savage mot.

N. Brit. Rev.

3. A note or brief strain on a bugle. Sir W. Scott.

Mot”a*cil (?), n. [Cf. F. motacille.] (Zoöl.) Any singing bird of the genus Motacilla; a wagtail.

Mo*ta”tion (?), n. [L. motare, motatum, to keep moving.] The act of moving; motion. [Obs.]

Mote (?), v. See 1st Mot. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mote, n. [See Moot, a meeting.] [Obs., except in a few combinations or phrases.] 1. A meeting of persons for discussion; as, a wardmote in the city of London.

2. A body of persons who meet for discussion, esp. about the management of affairs; as, a folkmote.

3. A place of meeting for discussion.

Mote bell, the bell rung to summon to a mote. [Obs.]

Mote, n. The flourish sounded on a horn by a huntsman. See Mot, n., 3, and Mort. Chaucer.

Mote, n. [OE. mot, AS. mot.] A small particle, as of floating dust; anything proverbially small; a speck.

The little motes in the sun do ever stir, though there be no wind.

Bacon.

We are motes in the midst of generations.

Landor.

Mot”ed (?), a. Filled with motes, or fine floating dust; as, the air. “Moted sunbeams.” Tennyson.

Mo*tet” (?), n. [F., a dim. of mot word; cf. It. mottetto, dim. of motto word, device. See Mot, Motto.] (Mus.) A composition adapted to sacred words in the elaborate polyphonic church style; an anthem.

Moth (m&obreve;th), n. A mote. [Obs.] Shak.

Moth, n.; pl. Moths (m&obreve;thz). [OE. mothe, AS. moððe; akin to D. mot, G. motte, Icel. motti, and prob. to E. mad an earthworm. Cf. Mad, n., Mawk.] 1. (Zoöl.) Any nocturnal lepidopterous insect, or any not included among the butterflies; as, the luna moth; Io moth; hawk moth.

2. (Zoöl.) Any lepidopterous insect that feeds upon garments, grain, etc.; as, the clothes moth; grain moth; bee moth. See these terms under Clothes, Grain, etc.

3. (Zoöl.) Any one of various other insects that destroy woolen and fur goods, etc., esp. the larvæ of several species of beetles of the genera Dermestes and Anthrenus. Carpet moths are often the larvæ of Anthrenus. See Carpet beetle, under Carpet, Dermestes, Anthrenus.

4. Anything which gradually and silently eats, consumes, or wastes any other thing.

Moth blight (Zoöl.), any plant louse of the genus Aleurodes, and related genera. They are injurious to various plants. — Moth gnat (Zoöl.), a dipterous insect of the genus Bychoda, having fringed wings. — Moth hunter (Zoöl.), the goatsucker. — Moth miller (Zoöl.), a clothes moth. See Miller, 3, (a). — Moth mullein (Bot.), a common herb of the genus Verbascum (V. Blattaria), having large wheel-shaped yellow or whitish flowers.

Moth”-eat` (?), v. t. To eat or prey upon, as a moth eats a garment. [Rarely used except in the form moth-eaten, p. p. or a.]

Ruin and neglect have so moth-eaten her.

Sir T. Herbert.

Moth”en (?), a. Full of moths. [Obs.] Fulke.

Moth”er (?), n. [OE. moder, AS. mōdor; akin to D. moeder, OS. mōdar, G. mutter, OHG. muotar, Icel. mōðir, Dan. & Sw. moder, OSlav. mati, Russ. mate, Ir. & Gael. mathair, L. mater, Gr. mh`thr, Skr. māt&rsdot;; cf. Skr. mā to measure. √268. Cf. Material, Matrix, Metropolis, Father.] 1. A female parent; especially, one of the human race; a woman who has borne a child.

2. That which has produced or nurtured anything; source of birth or origin; generatrix.

Alas! poor country! . . . it can not
Be called our mother, but our grave.

Shak.

I behold . . . the solitary majesty of Crete, mother of a religion, it is said, that lived two thousand years.

Landor.

3. An old woman or matron. [Familiar]

4. The female superior or head of a religious house, as an abbess, etc.

5. Hysterical passion; hysteria. [Obs.] Shak.

Mother Carey’s chicken (Zoöl.), any one of several species of small petrels, as the stormy petrel (Procellaria pelagica), and Leach’s petrel (Oceanodroma leucorhoa), both of the Atlantic, and O. furcata of the North Pacific. — Mother Carey’s goose (Zoöl.), the giant fulmar of the Pacific. See Fulmar. — Mother’s mark (Med.), a congenital mark upon the body; a nævus.

Moth”er, a. Received by birth or from ancestors; native, natural; as, mother language; also acting the part, or having the place of a mother; producing others; originating.

It is the mother falsehood from which all idolatry is derived.

T. Arnold.

Mother cell (Biol.), a cell which, by endogenous divisions, gives rise to other cells (daughter cells); a parent cell. — Mother church, the original church; a church from which other churches have sprung; as, the mother church of a diocese. — Mother country, the country of one’s parents or ancestors; the country from which the people of a colony derive their origin. – - Mother liquor (Chem.), the impure or complex residual solution which remains after the salts readily or regularly crystallizing have been removed. — Mother queen, the mother of a reigning sovereign; a queen mother. — Mother tongue. (a) A language from which another language has had its origin. (b) The language of one’s native land; native tongue. — Mother water. See Mother liquor (above). — Mother wit, natural or native wit or intelligence.

Moth”er, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mothered (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mothering.] To adopt as a son or daughter; to perform the duties of a mother to.

The queen, to have put lady Elizabeth besides the crown, would have mothered another body’s child.

Howell.

Moth”er, n. [Akin to D. modder mud, G. moder mold, mud, Dan. mudder mud, and to E. mud. See Mud.] A film or membrane which is developed on the surface of fermented alcoholic liquids, such as vinegar, wine, etc., and acts as a means of conveying the oxygen of the air to the alcohol and other combustible principles of the liquid, thus leading to their oxidation.

&fist; The film is composed of a mass of rapidly developing microörganisms of the genus Mycoderma, and in the mother of vinegar the microörganisms (Mycoderma aceti) composing the film are the active agents in the Conversion of the alcohol into vinegar. When thickened by growth, the film may settle to the bottom of the fluid. See Acetous fermentation, under Fermentation.

Moth”er, v. i. To become like, or full of, mother, or thick matter, as vinegar.

Moth”ered (?), a. Thick, like mother; viscid.

They oint their naked limbs with mothered oil.

Dryden.

Moth”er*hood (?), n. The state of being a mother; the character or office of a mother.

Moth”er*ing, n. A rural custom in England, of visiting one’s parents on Midlent Sunday, — supposed to have been originally visiting the mother church to make offerings at the high altar.

Moth”er-in-law` (?), n. The mother of one’s husband or wife.

Moth”er*land` (?), n. The country of one’s ancestors; — same as fatherland.

Moth”er*less, a. [AS. mōdorleás.] Destitute of a mother; having lost a mother; as, motherless children.

Moth”er*li*ness (?), n. The state or quality of being motherly.

Moth”er*ly, a. [AS. mōdorlic.] Of or pertaining to a mother; like, or suitable for, a mother; tender; maternal; as, motherly authority, love, or care. Hooker.

Syn. — Maternal; paternal. — Motherly, Maternal. Motherly, being Anglo-Saxon, is the most familiar word of the two when both have the same meaning. Besides this, maternal is confined to the feelings of a mother toward her own children, whereas motherly has a secondary sense, denoting a care like that of a mother for her offspring. There is, perhaps, a growing tendency thus to separate the two, confining motherly to the latter signification. “They termed her the great mother, for her motherly care in cherishing her brethren whilst young.” Sir W. Raleigh.

Moth”er*ly, adv. In a manner of a mother.

Moth”er-na`ked (?), a. Naked as when born.

Moth”er-of-pearl` (?), n. (Zoöl.) The hard pearly internal layer of several kinds of shells, esp. of pearl oysters, river mussels, and the abalone shells; nacre. See Pearl.

Moth”er-of-thyme` (?), n. (Bot.) An aromatic plant (Thymus Serphyllum); — called also wild thyme.

Moth”er*wort` (?), n. (Bot.) (a) A labiate herb (Leonurus Cardiaca), of a bitter taste, used popularly in medicine; lion’s tail. (b) The mugwort. See Mugwort.

Moth”er*y (mŭ&thlig;”&etilde;r*&ybreve;), a. Consisting of, containing, or resembling, mother (in vinegar).

Moth”y (?), a. Infested with moths; moth-eaten. “An old mothy saddle.” Shak.

Mo”tif (?), n. [F.] Motive.

Mo*tif”ic (?), a. [L. motus motion (fr. movere to move) + facere to make.] Producing motion. [R.]

Mo”tile (?), a. [See Motive.] 1. (Biol.) Having powers of self-motion, though unconscious; as, the motile spores of certain seaweeds.

2. Producing motion; as, motile powers.

Mo*til”i*ty (?), n. [Cf. F. motilité.] (Physiol.) Capability of motion; contractility.

Mo”tion (?), n. [F., fr. L. motio, fr. movere, motum, to move. See Move.] 1. The act, process, or state of changing place or position; movement; the passing of a body from one place or position to another, whether voluntary or involuntary; — opposed to rest.

Speaking or mute, all comeliness and grace
attends thee, and each word, each motion, forms.

Milton.

2. Power of, or capacity for, motion.

Devoid of sense and motion.

Milton.

3. Direction of movement; course; tendency; as, the motion of the planets is from west to east.

In our proper motion we ascend.

Milton.

4. Change in the relative position of the parts of anything; action of a machine with respect to the relative movement of its parts.

This is the great wheel to which the clock owes its motion.

Dr. H. More.

5. Movement of the mind, desires, or passions; mental act, or impulse to any action; internal activity.

Let a good man obey every good motion rising in his heart, knowing that every such motion proceeds from God.

South.

6. A proposal or suggestion looking to action or progress; esp., a formal proposal made in a deliberative assembly; as, a motion to adjourn.

Yes, I agree, and thank you for your motion.

Shak.

7. (Law) An application made to a court or judge orally in open court. Its object is to obtain an order or rule directing some act to be done in favor of the applicant. Mozley & W.

8. (Mus.) Change of pitch in successive sounds, whether in the same part or in groups of parts.

The independent motions of different parts sounding together constitute counterpoint.

Grove.

&fist; Conjunct motion is that by single degrees of the scale. Contrary motion is that when parts move in opposite directions. Disjunct motion is motion by skips. Oblique motion is that when one part is stationary while another moves. Similar or direct motion is that when parts move in the same direction.

9. A puppet show or puppet. [Obs.]

What motion‘s this? the model of Nineveh?

Beau. & Fl.

&fist; Motion, in mechanics, may be simple or compound. Simple motions are: (a) straight translation, which, if of indefinite duration, must be reciprocating. (b) Simple rotation, which may be either continuous or reciprocating, and when reciprocating is called oscillating. (c) Helical, which, if of indefinite duration, must be reciprocating. Compound motion consists of combinations of any of the simple motions.

Center of motion, Harmonic motion, etc. See under Center, Harmonic, etc. — Motion block (Steam Engine), a crosshead. — Perpetual motion (Mech.), an incessant motion conceived to be attainable by a machine supplying its own motive forces independently of any action from without.

Syn. — See Movement.

Mo”tion, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Motioned (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Motioning.] 1. To make a significant movement or gesture, as with the hand; as, to motion to one to take a seat.

2. To make proposal; to offer plans. [Obs.] Shak.

Mo”tion, v. t. 1. To direct or invite by a motion, as of the hand or head; as, to motion one to a seat.

2. To propose; to move. [Obs.]

I want friends to motion such a matter.

Burton.

Mo”tion*er (?), n. One who makes a motion; a mover. Udall.

Mo”tion*ist, n. A mover. [Obs.]

Mo”tion*less, a. Without motion; being at rest.

Mo”tive (?), n. [F. motif, LL. motivum, from motivus moving, fr. L. movere, motum, to move. See Move.] 1. That which moves; a mover. [Obs.] Shak.

2. That which incites to action; anything prompting or exciting to choise, or moving the will; cause; reason; inducement; object.

By motive, I mean the whole of that which moves, excites, or invites the mind to volition, whether that be one thing singly, or many things conjunctively.

J. Edwards.

3. (Mus.) The theme or subject; a leading phrase or passage which is reproduced and varied through the course of a comor a movement; a short figure, or melodic germ, out of which a whole movement is develpoed. See also Leading motive, under Leading. [Written also motivo.]

4. (Fine Arts) That which produces conception, invention, or creation in the mind of the artist in undertaking his subject; the guiding or controlling idea manifested in a work of art, or any part of one.

Syn. — Incentive; incitement; inducement; reason; spur; stimulus; cause. — Motive, Inducement, Reason. Motive is the word originally used in speaking of that which determines the choice. We call it an inducement when it is attractive in its nature. We call it a reason when it is more immediately addressed to the intellect in the form of argument.

Mo”tive, a. Causing motion; having power to move, or tending to move; as, a motive argument; motive power. “Motive faculty.” Bp. Wilkins.

Motive power (Mach.), a natural agent, as water, steam, wind, electricity, etc., used to impart motion to machinery; a motor; a mover.

Mo”tive (?), v. t. To prompt or incite by a motive or motives; to move.

Mo”tive*less, a. Destitute of a motive; not incited by a motive. — Mo”tive*less*ness, n. G. Eliot.

Mo*tiv”i*ty (?), n. [See Motive, n.] 1. The power of moving or producing motion.

2. The quality of being influenced by motives. [R.]

||Mo*ti”vo (?), n. [It. See Motive, n.] See Motive, n., 3, 4.

Mot”ley (?), a. [OE. mottelee, motle; cf. OF. mattelé clotted, curdled, OF, ciel mattonné a mottled sky, mate, maton, curdled milk, Prov. G. matte curd. Cf. Mottle.] 1. Variegated in color; consisting of different colors; dappled; party-colored; as, a motley coat.

2. Wearing motley or party-colored clothing. See Motley, n., 1. “A motley fool.” Shak.

3. Composed of different or various parts; heterogeneously made or mixed up; discordantly composite; as, motley style. Byron.

Mot”ley, n. 1. A combination of distinct colors; esp., the party-colored cloth, or clothing, worn by the professional fool. Chaucer. “Motley ‘s the only wear.” Shak.

2. Hence, a jester, a fool. [Obs.] Shak.

Man of motley, a fool. [Obs.] Beau. & Fl.

Mot”ley-mind`ed (?), a. Having a mind of a jester; foolish. Shak.

Mot”mot (?), n. [Cf. Momot.] (Zoöl.) Any one of several species of long-tailed, passerine birds of the genus Momotus, having a strong serrated beak. In most of the species the two long middle tail feathers are racket-shaped at the tip, when mature. The bird itself is said by some writers to trim them into this shape. They feed on insects, reptiles, and fruit, and are found from Mexico to Brazil. The name is derived from its note. [Written also momot.]

||Mo”to (?), n. [It.] (Mus.) Movement; manner of movement; particularly, movement with increased rapidity; — used especially in the phrase con moto, directing to a somewhat quicker movement; as, andante con moto, a little more rapidly than andante, etc.

Mo”ton (?), n. [Etymol. uncertain.] (Anc. Armor) A small plate covering the armpit in armor of the 14th century and later.

Mo”tor (?), n. [L., fr. movere, motum, to move.] 1. One who, or that which, imparts motion; a source of mechanical power.

2. (Mach.) A prime mover; a machine by means of which a source of power, as steam, moving water, electricity, etc., is made available for doing mechanical work.

{ Mo”tor (?), Mo”to*ry (?), Mo*to”ri*al (?), } a. [L. motorius that has motion. See Motor, n.] Causing or setting up motion; pertaining to organs of motion; — applied especially in physiology to those nerves or nerve fibers which only convey impressions from a nerve center to muscles, thereby causing motion.

Mo”tor*man (?), n. A man who controls a motor.

Mo`tor*path”ic (?), a. Of or pertaining to motorpathy.

Mo*tor”pa*thy (?), n. [L. motor a mover + Gr. &?;, &?;, to suffer.] (Med.) Kinesiatrics.

Motte (?), n. [Cf. F. motte a clod, clump, or hillock.] A clump of trees in a prairie. [Local, U.S.]

Mot”tle (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mottled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mottling (?).] [From Mottled.] To mark with spots of different color, or shades of color, as if stained; to spot; to maculate.

Mot”tle, n. A mottled appearance.

Mot”tled (?), a. [From Motley.] Marked with spots of different colors; variegated; spotted; as, mottled wood. “The mottled meadows.” Drayton.

Mot”to (?), n.; pl. Mottoes (#). [It. motto a word, a saying, L. muttum a mutter, a grunt, cf. muttire, mutire, to mutter, mumble; prob. of imitative origin. Cf. Mot a word.] 1. (Her.) A sentence, phrase, or word, forming part of an heraldic achievment.

2. A sentence, phrase, or word, prefixed to an essay, discourse, chapter, canto, or the like, suggestive of its subject matter; a short, suggestive expression of a guiding principle; a maxim.

It was the motto of a bishop eminent for his piety and good works, . . . “Serve God, and be cheerful.”

Addison.

Mot”toed (?), a. Bearing or having a motto; as, a mottoed coat or device.

Mot”ty (?), a. Full of, or consisting of, motes. [Written also mottie.] [Scot.]

The motty dust reek raised by the workmen.

H. Miller.

||Mou`choir” (m&oomac;`shwär”), n. [F.] A handkerchief.

Mou*ez”zin (?), n. [F.] See Muezzin.

Mouf”lon (?), n. [F. mouflon.] (Zoöl.) A wild sheep (Ovis musimon), inhabiting the mountains of Sardinia, Corsica, etc. Its horns are very large, with a triangular base and rounded angles. It is supposed by some to be the original of the domestic sheep. Called also musimon or musmon. [Written also moufflon.]

Mought (?), obs. imp. of May. Might.

||Mouil*la”tion (?), n. [See Mouillé.] (Phon.) The act of uttering the sound of a mouillé letter.

||Mouil`lé” (?), a. [F., lit., wet.] (Phon.) Applied to certain consonants having a “liquid” or softened sound; e.g., in French, l or ll and gn (like the lli in million and ni in minion); in Italian, gl and gn; in Spanish, ll and ñ; in Portuguese, lh and nh.

{ Mould (mōld), Mould”er (?), Mould”y (?), etc. } See Mold, Molder, Moldy, etc.

Moule (mōl), v. i. [OE. moulen. See Mold.] To contract mold; to grow moldy; to mold. [Obs.]

Let us not moulen thus in idleness.

Chaucer.

{ Mou*line” (?), Mou”li*net (?), } n. [F. moulinet, orig., a little mill, dim. of moulin mill. See Mill.] 1. The drum upon which the rope is wound in a capstan, crane, or the like.

2. A machine formerly used for bending a crossbow by winding it up.

3. In sword and saber exercises, a circular swing of the weapon.

Moult (mōlt), v. & n. See Molt.

Moult”en (-‘n), a. Having molted. [Obs.] “A moulten raven.” Shak.

Moun (moun), v., pl. of Mow, may. [Obs.] Wyclif.

Mounch (mounch), v. t. To munch. [Obs.]

Mound (mound), n. [F. monde the world, L. mundus. See Mundane.] A ball or globe forming part of the regalia of an emperor or other sovereign. It is encircled with bands, enriched with precious stones, and surmounted with a cross; — called also globe.

Mound, n. [OE. mound, mund, protection, AS. mund protection, hand; akin to OHG. munt, Icel. mund hand, and prob. to L. manus. See Manual.] An artificial hill or elevation of earth; a raised bank; an embarkment thrown up for defense; a bulwark; a rampart; also, a natural elevation appearing as if thrown up artificially; a regular and isolated hill, hillock, or knoll.

To thrid the thickets or to leap the mounds.

Dryden.

Mound bird. (Zoöl.) Same as Mound maker (below). — Mound builders (Ethnol.), the tribe, or tribes, of North American aborigines who built, in former times, extensive mounds of earth, esp. in the valleys of the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers. Formerly they were supposed to have preceded the Indians, but later investigations go to show that they were, in general, identical with the tribes that occupied the country when discovered by Europeans. — Mound maker (Zoöl.), any one of the megapodes. — Shell mound, a mound of refuse shells, collected by aborigines who subsisted largely on shellfish. See Midden, and Kitchen middens.

Mound, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mounded; p. pr. & vb. n. Mounding.] To fortify or inclose with a mound.

Mount (mount), n. [OE. munt, mont, mount, AS. munt, fr. L. mons, montis; cf. L. minae protections, E. eminent, menace: cf. F. mont. Cf. Mount, v., Mountain, Mont, Monte, Montem.] 1. A mass of earth, or earth and rock, rising considerably above the common surface of the surrounding land; a mountain; a high hill; — used always instead of mountain, when put before a proper name; as, Mount Washington; otherwise, chiefly in poetry.

2. A bulwark for offense or defense; a mound. [Obs.]

Hew ye down trees, and cast a mount against Jerusalem.

Jer. vi. 6.

3. [See Mont de piété.] A bank; a fund.

Mount of piety. See Mont de piété.

Mount, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Mounted (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mounting.] [OE. mounten, monten, F. monter, fr. L. mons, montis, mountain. See Mount, n. (above).] 1. To rise on high; to go up; to be upraised or uplifted; to tower aloft; to ascend; — often with up.

Though Babylon should mount up to heaven.

Jer. li. 53.

The fire of trees and houses mounts on high.

Cowley.

2. To get up on anything, as a platform or scaffold; especially, to seat one’s self on a horse for riding.

3. To attain in value; to amount.

Bring then these blessings to a strict account,
Make fair deductions, see to what they mount.

Pope.

Mount, v. t. 1. To get upon; to ascend; to climb.

Shall we mount again the rural throne?

Dryden.

2. To place one’s self on, as a horse or other animal, or anything that one sits upon; to bestride.

3. To cause to mount; to put on horseback; to furnish with animals for riding; to furnish with horses. “To mount the Trojan troop.” Dryden.

4. Hence: To put upon anything that sustains and fits for use, as a gun on a carriage, a map or picture on cloth or paper; to prepare for being worn or otherwise used, as a diamond by setting, or a sword blade by adding the hilt, scabbard, etc.

5. To raise aloft; to lift on high.

What power is it which mounts my love so high?

Shak.

&fist; A fort or ship is said to mount cannon, when it has them arranged for use in or about it.

To mount guard (Mil.), to go on guard; to march on guard; to do duty as a guard. — To mount a play, to prepare and arrange the scenery, furniture, etc., used in the play.

Mount, n. [From Mount, v.] That upon which a person or thing is mounted, as: (a) A horse.

She had so good a seat and hand, she might be trusted with any mount.

G. Eliot.

(b) The cardboard or cloth on which a drawing, photograph, or the like is mounted; a mounting.

Mount”a*ble (?), a. Such as can be mounted.

Moun”tain (?), n. [OE. mountaine, montaine, F. montagne, LL. montanea, montania, fr. L. mons, montis, a mountain; cf. montanus belonging to a mountain. See 1st Mount.] 1. A large mass of earth and rock, rising above the common level of the earth or adjacent land; earth and rock forming an isolated peak or a ridge; an eminence higher than a hill; a mount.

2. pl. A range, chain, or group of such elevations; as, the White Mountains.

3. A mountainlike mass; something of great bulk.

I should have been a mountain of mummy.

Shak.

The Mountain (La montagne) (French Hist.), a popular name given in 1793 to a party of extreme Jacobins in the National Convention, who occupied the highest rows of seats.

Moun”tain (moun”t&ibreve;n), a. 1. Of or pertaining to a mountain or mountains; growing or living on a mountain; found on or peculiar to mountains; among mountains; as, a mountain torrent; mountain pines; mountain goats; mountain air; mountain howitzer.

2. Like a mountain; mountainous; vast; very great.

The high, the mountain majesty of worth.

Byron.

Mountain antelope (Zoöl.), the goral. — Mountain ash (Bot.), an ornamental tree, the Pyrus (Sorbus) Americana, producing beautiful bunches of red berries. Its leaves are pinnate, and its flowers white, growing in fragrant clusters. The European species is the P. aucuparia, or rowan tree. — Mountain barometer, a portable barometer, adapted for safe transportation, used in measuring the heights of mountains. — Mountain beaver (Zoöl.), the sewellel. — Mountain blue (Min.), blue carbonate of copper; azurite. — Mountain cat (Zoöl.), the catamount. See Catamount. — Mountain chain, a series of contiguous mountain ranges, generally in parallel or consecutive lines or curves. — Mountain cock (Zoöl.), capercailzie. See Capercailzie. — Mountain cork (Min.), a variety of asbestus, resembling cork in its texture. — Mountain crystal. See under Crystal. — Mountain damson (Bot.), a large tree of the genus Simaruba (S. amarga) growing in the West Indies, which affords a bitter tonic and astringent, sometimes used in medicine. — Mountain dew, Scotch whisky, so called because often illicitly distilled among the mountains. [Humorous] — Mountain ebony (Bot.), a small leguminous tree (Bauhinia variegata) of the East and West Indies; — so called because of its dark wood. The bark is used medicinally and in tanning. — Mountain flax (Min.), a variety of asbestus, having very fine fibers; amianthus. See Amianthus. — Mountain fringe (Bot.), climbing fumitory. See under Fumitory. — Mountain goat. (Zoöl.) See Mazama. — Mountain green. (Min.) (a) Green malachite, or carbonate of copper. (b) See Green earth, under Green, a. — Mountain holly (Bot.), a branching shrub (Nemopanthes Canadensis), having smooth oblong leaves and red berries. It is found in the Northern United States. — Mountain laurel (Bot.), an American shrub (Kalmia latifolia) with glossy evergreen leaves and showy clusters of rose-colored or white flowers. The foliage is poisonous. Called also American laurel, ivy bush, and calico bush. See Kalmia. — Mountain leather (Min.), a variety of asbestus, resembling leather in its texture. — Mountain licorice (Bot.), a plant of the genus Trifolium (T. Alpinum). – - Mountain limestone (Geol.), a series of marine limestone strata below the coal measures, and above the old red standstone of Great Britain. See Chart of Geology. — Mountain linnet (Zoöl.), the twite. — Mountain magpie. (Zoöl.) (a) The yaffle, or green woodpecker. (b) The European gray shrike. — Mountain mahogany (Bot.) See under Mahogany. — Mountain meal (Min.), a light powdery variety of calcite, occurring as an efflorescence. — Mountain milk (Min.), a soft spongy variety of carbonate of lime. — Mountain mint. (Bot.) See Mint. — Mountain ousel (Zoöl.), the ring ousel; — called also mountain thrush and mountain colley. See Ousel. — Mountain pride, or Mountain green (Bot.), a tree of Jamaica (Spathelia simplex), which has an unbranched palmlike stem, and a terminal cluster of large, pinnate leaves. — Mountain quail (Zoöl.), the plumed partridge (Oreortyx pictus) of California. It has two long, slender, plumelike feathers on the head. The throat and sides are chestnut; the belly is brown with transverse bars of black and white; the neck and breast are dark gray. — Mountain range, a series of mountains closely related in position and direction. — Mountain rice. (Bot.) (a) An upland variety of rice, grown without irrigation, in some parts of Asia, Europe, and the United States. (b) An American genus of grasses (Oryzopsis). — Mountain rose (Bot.), a species of rose with solitary flowers, growing in the mountains of Europe (Rosa alpina). — Mountain soap (Min.), a soft earthy mineral, of a brownish color, used in crayon painting; saxonite. — Mountain sorrel (Bot.), a low perennial plant (Oxyria digyna with rounded kidney-form leaves, and small greenish flowers, found in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, and in high northern latitudes. Gray. — Mountain sparrow (Zoöl.), the European tree sparrow. — Mountain spinach. (Bot.) See Orach. — Mountain tobacco (Bot.), a composite plant (Arnica montana) of Europe; called also leopard’s bane. — Mountain witch (Zoöl.), a ground pigeon of Jamaica, of the genus Geotrygon.

Moun`tain*eer” (moun`t&ibreve;n*ēr”), n. [OF. montanier, LL. montanarius. See Mountain.] 1. An inhabitant of a mountain; one who lives among mountains.

2. A rude, fierce person. [Obs.]

No savage fierce, bandit, or mountaineer.

Milton.

Moun`tain*eer”, v. i. To live or act as a mountaineer; to climb mountains.

You can’t go mountaineering in a flat country.

H. James.

Moun”tain*er (?), n. A mountaineer. [Obs.]

Moun”tain*et (?), n. A small mountain. [R.]

Moun”tain*ous (?), a. [F. montagneux, L. montaniosus.] 1. Full of, or containing, mountains; as, the mountainous country of the Swiss.

2. Inhabiting mountains. [Obs.] Bacon.

3. Large as, or resembling, a mountain; huge; of great bulk; as, a mountainous heap. Prior.

Moun”tain*ous*ness, n. The state or quality of being mountainous.

Mount”ance (?), n. [OF. montance.] Amount; sum; quantity; extent. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mount”ant (?), a. [F. montant, p. pr. of monter. See Mount, and cf. Montant.] Raised; high. [Obs.]

Mount”e*bank (?), n. [It. montimbanco, montambanco; montare to mount + in in, upon + banco bench. See Mount, and 4th Bank.] 1. One who mounts a bench or stage in the market or other public place, boasts of his skill in curing diseases, and vends medicines which he pretends are infallible remedies; a quack doctor.

Such is the weakness and easy credulity of men, that a mountebank . . . is preferred before an able physician.

Whitlock.

2. Any boastful or false pretender; a charlatan; a quack.

Nothing so impossible in nature but mountebanks will undertake.

Arbuthnot.

Mount”e*bank, v. t. To cheat by boasting and false pretenses; to gull. [R.] Shak.

Mount”e*bank, v. i. To play the mountebank.

Mount”e*bank`er*y (?), n. The practices of a mountebank; quackery; boastful and vain pretenses.

Mount”e*bank`ish, a. Like a mountebank or his quackery. Howell.

Mount”e*bank*ism (?), n. The practices of a mountebank; mountebankery.

Mount”ed, a. 1. Seated or serving on horseback or similarly; as, mounted police; mounted infantry.

2. Placed on a suitable support, or fixed in a setting; as, a mounted gun; a mounted map; a mounted gem.

Mount”e*naunce (?), n. Mountance. [Obs.]

Mount”er (?), n. 1. One who mounts.

2. An animal mounted; a monture. [Obs.]

Mount”ing, n. 1. The act of one that mounts.

2. That by which anything is prepared for use, or set off to advantage; equipment; embellishment; setting; as, the mounting of a sword or diamond.

Mount”ing*ly, adv. In an ascending manner.

Mount”let (?), n. A small or low mountain. [R.]

Mount”y (?), n. [F. montée, fr. monter. See Mount, v.] The rise of a hawk after prey. Sir P. Sidney.

Mourn (mōrn), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Mourned (mōrnd); p. pr. & vb. n. Mourning.] [AS. murnan; akin to OS. mornian, OHG. mornen, Goth. maúrnan.] 1. To express or to feel grief or sorrow; to grieve; to be sorrowful; to lament; to be in a state of grief or sadness.

Abraham came to mourn for Sarah, and to weep for her.

Gen. xxiii. 2.

2. To wear the customary garb of a mourner.

We mourn in black; why mourn we not in blood?

Shak.

Grieve for an hour, perhaps, then mourn a year.

Pope.

Mourn, v. t. 1. To grieve for; to lament; to deplore; to bemoan; to bewail.

As if he mourned his rival’s ill success.

Addison.

And looking over the hills, I mourn
The darling who shall not return.

Emerson.

2. To utter in a mournful manner or voice.

The lovelorn nightingale
Nightly to thee her sad song mourneth well.

Milton.

Syn. — See Deplore.

Mourne (mōrn), n. [See 2d Morne.] The armed or feruled end of a staff; in a sheephook, the end of the staff to which the hook is attached. Sir P. Sidney.

Mourn”er (mōrn”&etilde;r), n. 1. One who mourns or is grieved at any misfortune, as the death of a friend.

His mourners were two hosts, his friends and foes.

Byron.

2. One who attends a funeral as a hired mourner.

Mourners were provided to attend the funeral.

L’Estrange.

Mourn”ful (?), a. Full of sorrow; expressing, or intended to express, sorrow; mourning; grieving; sad; also, causing sorrow; saddening; grievous; as, a mournful person; mournful looks, tones, loss. — Mourn”ful*ly, adv. — Mourn”ful*ness, n.

Syn. — Sorrowful; lugubrious; sad; doleful; heavy; afflictive; grievous; calamitous.

Mourn”ing, n. [AS. murnung.] 1. The act of sorrowing or expressing grief; lamentation; sorrow.

2. Garb, drapery, or emblems indicative of grief, esp. clothing or a badge of somber black.

The houses to their tops with black were spread,
And ev’n the pavements were with mourning hid.

Dryden.

Deep mourning. See under Deep.

Mourn”ing, a. 1. Grieving; sorrowing; lamenting.

2. Employed to express sorrow or grief; worn or used as appropriate to the condition of one bereaved or sorrowing; as, mourning garments; a mourning ring; a mourning pin, and the like.

Mourning bride (Bot.), a garden flower (Scabiosa atropurpurea) with dark purple or crimson flowers in flattened heads. — Mourning dove (Zoöl.), a wild dove (Zenaidura macroura) found throughout the United States; — so named from its plaintive note. Called also Carolina dove. See Illust. under Dove. — Mourning warbler (Zoöl.), an American ground warbler (Geothlypis Philadelphia). The male has the head, neck, and chest, deep ash- gray, mixed with black on the throat and chest; other lower parts are pure yellow.

Mourn”ing*ly, adv. In a mourning manner.

Mour”ni*val (?), n. See Murnival.

Mouse (mous), n.; pl. Mice (mīs). [OE. mous, mus, AS. mūs, pl. m&ymacr;s; akin to D. muis, G. maus, OHG. & Icel. mūs, Dan. muus, Sw. mus, Russ. muishe, L. mus, Gr. my^s, Skr. mūsh mouse, mush to steal. √277. Cf. Muscle, Musk.] 1. (Zoöl.) Any one of numerous species of small rodents belonging to the genus Mus and various related genera of the family Muridæ. The common house mouse (Mus musculus) is found in nearly all countries. The American white-footed, or deer, mouse (Hesperomys leucopus) sometimes lives in houses. See Dormouse, Meadow mouse, under Meadow, and Harvest mouse, under Harvest.

2. (Naut.) (a) A knob made on a rope with spun yarn or parceling to prevent a running eye from slipping. (b) Same as 2d Mousing, 2.

3. A familiar term of endearment. Shak.

4. A dark-colored swelling caused by a blow. [Slang]

5. A match used in firing guns or blasting.

Field mouse, Flying mouse, etc. See under Field, Flying, etc. — Mouse bird (Zoöl.), a coly. — Mouse deer (Zoöl.), a chevrotain, as the kanchil. — Mouse galago (Zoöl.), a very small West American galago (Galago murinus). In color and size it resembles a mouse. It has a bushy tail like that of a squirrel. — Mouse hawk. (Zoöl.) (a) A hawk that devours mice. (b) The hawk owl; — called also mouse owl. — Mouse lemur (Zoöl.), any one of several species of very small lemurs of the genus Chirogaleus, found in Madagascar. — Mouse piece (Cookery), the piece of beef cut from the part next below the round or from the lower part of the latter; — called also mouse buttock.

Mouse (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Moused (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mousing (?).] 1. To watch for and catch mice.

2. To watch for or pursue anything in a sly manner; to pry about, on the lookout for something.

Mouse, v. t. 1. To tear, as a cat devours a mouse. [Obs.] “[Death] mousing the flesh of men.” Shak.

2. (Naut.) To furnish with a mouse; to secure by means of a mousing. See Mouse, n., 2.

Mouse”-ear` (?), n. (Bot.) (a) The forget-me-not (Myosotis palustris) and other species of the same genus. (b) A European species of hawkweed (Hieracium Pilosella).

Mouse-ear chickweed, a name of two common species of chickweed (Cerastium vulgarium, and C. viscosum). — Mouse-ear cress, a low cruciferous herb (Sisymbrium Thaliana). All these are low herbs with soft, oval, or obovate leaves, whence the name.

Mouse”fish` (?), n. (Zoöl.) See Frogfish.

Mouse”hole` (?), n. A hole made by a mouse, for passage or abode, as in a wall; hence, a very small hole like that gnawed by a mouse.

Mouse”kin (?), n. A little mouse. Thackeray.

Mous”er (?), n. 1. A cat that catches mice.

2. One who pries about on the lookout for something.

Mouse”tail` (?), n. (Bot.) A genus of ranunculaceous plants (Myosurus), in which the prolonged receptacle is covered with imbricating achenes, and so resembles the tail of a mouse.

Mous”ie (?), n. Diminutive for Mouse. Burns.

Mous”ing (?), a. Impertinently inquisitive; prying; meddlesome. “Mousing saints.” L’Estrange.

Mous”ing, n. 1. The act of hunting mice.

2. (Naut.) A turn or lashing of spun yarn or small stuff, or a metallic clasp or fastening, uniting the point and shank of a hook to prevent its unhooking or straighening out.

3. A ratchet movement in a loom.

Mousing hook, a hook with an attachment which prevents its unhooking.

Mou”sle (?), v. t. To sport with roughly; to rumple. [Written also mouzle.] [Obs.] Wycherley.

||Mousse`line” (?), n. [F.] Muslin.

||Mousseline de laine (&?;). [F., muslin of wool.] Muslin delaine. See under Muslin. — Mousseline glass, a kind of thin blown glassware, such as wineglasses, etc.

Mous`tache” (?), n. [F.] Mustache.

Mous”y (mouz”&ybreve;), a. Infested with mice; smelling of mice.

Mou”tan (?), n. (Bot.) The Chinese tree peony (Pæonia Mountan), a shrub with large flowers of various colors.

Mouth (mouth), n.; pl. Mouths (mou&thlig;z). [OE. mouth, muþ, AS. mūð; akin to D. mond, OS. mūð, G. mund, Icel. muðr, munnr, Sw. mun, Dan. mund, Goth. munþs, and possibly L. mentum chin; or cf. D. muil mouth, muzzle, G. maul, OHG. mūla, Icel. mūli, and Skr. mukha mouth.] 1. The opening through which an animal receives food; the aperture between the jaws or between the lips; also, the cavity, containing the tongue and teeth, between the lips and the pharynx; the buccal cavity.

2. Hence: An opening affording entrance or exit; orifice; aperture; as: (a) The opening of a vessel by which it is filled or emptied, charged or discharged; as, the mouth of a jar or pitcher; the mouth of the lacteal vessels, etc. (b) The opening or entrance of any cavity, as a cave, pit, well, or den. (c) The opening of a piece of ordnance, through which it is discharged. (d) The opening through which the waters of a river or any stream are discharged. (e) The entrance into a harbor.

3. (Saddlery) The crosspiece of a bridle bit, which enters the mouth of an animal.

4. A principal speaker; one who utters the common opinion; a mouthpiece.

Every coffeehouse has some particular statesman belonging to it, who is the mouth of the street where he lives.

Addison.

5. Cry; voice. [Obs.] Dryden.

6. Speech; language; testimony.

That in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.

Matt. xviii. 16.

7. A wry face; a grimace; a mow.

Counterfeit sad looks,
Make mouths upon me when I turn my back.

Shak.

Down in the mouth, chapfallen; of dejected countenance; depressed; discouraged. [Obs. or Colloq.] — Mouth friend, one who professes friendship insincerely. Shak. — Mouth glass, a small mirror for inspecting the mouth or teeth. — Mouth honor, honor given in words, but not felt. Shak. — Mouth organ. (Mus.) (a) Pan’s pipes. See Pandean. (b) An harmonicon. — Mouth pipe, an organ pipe with a lip or plate to cut the escaping air and make a sound. — To stop the mouth, to silence or be silent; to put to shame; to confound.

The mouth of them that speak lies shall be stopped.

Ps. lxiii. 11.

Whose mouths must be stopped.

Titus i. 11.

Mouth (mou&thlig;), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mouthed (mou&thlig;d); p. pr. & vb. n. Mouthing.] 1. To take into the mouth; to seize or grind with the mouth or teeth; to chew; to devour. Dryden.

2. To utter with a voice affectedly big or swelling; to speak in a strained or unnaturally sonorous manner. “Mouthing big phrases.” Hare.

Mouthing out his hollow oes and aes.

Tennyson.

3. To form or cleanse with the mouth; to lick, as a bear her cub. Sir T. Browne.

4. To make mouths at. [R.] R. Blair.

Mouth, v. i. 1. To speak with a full, round, or loud, affected voice; to vociferate; to rant.

I’ll bellow out for Rome, and for my country,
And mouth at Cæsar, till I shake the senate.

Addison.

2. To put mouth to mouth; to kiss. [R.] Shak.

3. To make grimaces, esp. in ridicule or contempt.

Well I know, when I am gone,
How she mouths behind my back.

Tennyson.

Mouthed (?), a. 1. Furnished with a mouth.

2. Having a mouth of a particular kind; using the mouth, speech, or voice in a particular way; — used only in composition; as, wide-mouthed; hard-mouthed; foul- mouthed; mealy-mouthed.

Mouth”er (?), n. One who mouths; an affected speaker.

Mouth”-foot`ed (?), a. (Zoöl.) Having the basal joints of the legs converted into jaws.

Mouth”ful (?), n.; pl. Mouthfuls (&?;). 1. As much as is usually put into the mouth at one time.

2. Hence, a small quantity.

Mouth”less, a. [AS. mūðleás.] Destitute of a mouth.

Mouth”-made` (?), a. Spoken without sincerity; not heartfelt. “Mouth-made vows.” Shak.

Mouth”piece` (?), n. 1. The part of a musical or other instrument to which the mouth is applied in using it; as, the mouthpiece of a bugle, or of a tobacco pipe.

2. An appendage to an inlet or outlet opening of a pipe or vessel, to direct or facilitate the inflow or outflow of a fluid.

3. One who delivers the opinion of others or of another; a spokesman; as, the mouthpiece of his party.

Egmont was imprudent enough to make himself the mouthpiece of their remonstrance.

Motley.

Mov`a*bil”i*ty (?), n. Movableness.

Mov”a*ble (?), a. [Cf. OF. movable. See Move.] 1. Capable of being moved, lifted, carried, drawn, turned, or conveyed, or in any way made to change place or posture; susceptible of motion; not fixed or stationary; as, a movable steam engine.

2. Changing from one time to another; as, movable feasts, i. e., church festivals, the date of which varies from year to year.

Movable letter (Heb. Gram.), a letter that is pronounced, as opposed to one that is quiescent.

Mov”a*ble, n.; pl. Movables (&?;). 1. An article of wares or goods; a commodity; a piece of property not fixed, or not a part of real estate; generally, in the plural, goods; wares; furniture.

Furnished with the most rich and princely movables.

Evelyn.

2. (Rom. Law) Property not attached to the soil.

&fist; The word is not convertible with personal property, since rents and similar incidents of the soil which are personal property by our law are immovables by the Roman law. Wharton.

Mov”a*ble*ness, n. The quality or state of being movable; mobility; susceptibility of motion.

Mov”a*bly, adv. In a movable manner or condition.

Move (m&oomac;v), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Moved (m&oomac;vd); p. pr. & vb. n. Moving.] [OE. moven, OF. moveir, F. mouvoir, L. movere; cf. Gr. ‘amei`bein to change, exchange, go in or out, quit, Skr. mīv, p. p. mūta, to move, push. Cf. Emotion, Mew to molt, Mob, Mutable, Mutiny.] 1. To cause to change place or posture in any manner; to set in motion; to carry, convey, draw, or push from one place to another; to impel; to stir; as, the wind moves a vessel; the horse moves a carriage.

2. (Chess, Checkers, etc.) To transfer (a piece or man) from one space or position to another, according to the rules of the game; as, to move a king.

3. To excite to action by the presentation of motives; to rouse by representation, persuasion, or appeal; to influence.

Minds desirous of revenge were not moved with gold.

Knolles.

No female arts his mind could move.

Dryden.

4. To arouse the feelings or passions of; especially, to excite to tenderness or compassion; to touch pathetically; to excite, as an emotion. Shak.

When he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them.

Matt. ix. 36.

[The use of images] in orations and poetry is to move pity or terror.

Felton.

5. To propose; to recommend; specifically, to propose formally for consideration and determination, in a deliberative assembly; to submit, as a resolution to be adopted; as, to move to adjourn.

Let me but move one question to your daughter.

Shak.

They are to be blamed alike who move and who decline war upon particular respects.

Hayward.

6. To apply to, as for aid. [Obs.] Shak.

Syn. — To stir; agitate; trouble; affect; persuade; influence; actuate; impel; rouse; prompt; instigate; incite; induce; incline; propose; offer.

Move, v. i. 1. To change place or posture; to stir; to go, in any manner, from one place or position to another; as, a ship moves rapidly.

The foundations also of the hills moved and were shaken, because he was wroth.

Ps. xviii. 7.

On the green bank I sat and listened long, . . .
Nor till her lay was ended could I move.

Dryden.

2. To act; to take action; to stir; to begin to act; as, to move in a matter.

3. To change residence; to remove, as from one house, town, or state, to another.

4. (Chess, Checkers, etc.) To change the place of a piece in accordance with the rules of the game.

Move (?), n. 1. The act of moving; a movement.

2. (Chess, Checkers, etc.) The act of moving one of the pieces, from one position to another, in the progress of the game.

3. An act for the attainment of an object; a step in the execution of a plan or purpose.

To make a move. (a) To take some action. (b) To move a piece, as in a game. — To be on the move, to bustle or stir about. [Colloq.]

Move`less, a. Motionless; fixed. “Moveless as a tower.” Pope.

Move”ment (?), n. [F. mouvement. See Move, and cf. Moment.] 1. The act of moving; change of place or posture; transference, by any means, from one situation to another; natural or appropriate motion; progress; advancement; as, the movement of an army in marching or maneuvering; the movement of a wheel or a machine; the party of movement.

2. Motion of the mind or feelings; emotion.

3. Manner or style of moving; as, a slow, or quick, or sudden, movement.

4. (Mus.) (a) The rhythmical progression, pace, and tempo of a piece. “Any change of time is a change of movement.” Busby. (b) One of the several strains or pieces, each complete in itself, with its own time and rhythm, which make up a larger work; as, the several movements of a suite or a symphony.

5. (Mech.) A system of mechanism for transmitting motion of a definite character, or for transforming motion; as, the wheelwork of a watch.

Febrile movement (Med.), an elevation of the body temperature; a fever. — Movement cure. (Med.) See Kinesiatrics. — Movement of the bowels, an evacuation or stool; a passage or discharge.

Syn. — Motion. — Movement, Motion. Motion expresses a general idea of not being at rest; movement is oftener used to express a definite, regulated motion, esp. a progress.

Mo”vent (?), a. [L. movens, p. pr. of movere. See Move.] Moving. [R.] Grew.

Mo”vent, n. That which moves anything. [R.]

Mov”er (?), n. 1. A person or thing that moves, stirs, or changes place.

2. A person or thing that imparts motion, or causes change of place; a motor.

3. One who, or that which, excites, instigates, or causes movement, change, etc.; as, movers of sedition.

These most poisonous compounds,
Which are the movers of a languishing death.

Shak.

4. A proposer; one who offers a proposition, or recommends anything for consideration or adoption; as, the mover of a resolution in a legislative body.

Mov”ing, a. 1. Changing place or posture; causing motion or action; as, a moving car, or power.

2. Exciting movement of the mind; adapted to move the sympathies, passions, or affections; touching; pathetic; as, a moving appeal.

I sang an old moving story.

Coleridge.

Moving force (Mech.), a force that accelerates, retards, or deflects the motion of a body. — Moving plant (Bot.), a leguminous plant (Desmodium gyrans); — so called because its leaflets have a distinct automatic motion.

Mov”ing, n. The act of changing place or posture; esp., the act of changing one’s dwelling place or place of business.

Moving day, a day when one moves; esp., a day when a large number of tenants change their dwelling place.

Mov”ing*ly, adv. In a moving manner. Addison.

Mov”ing*ness, n. The power of moving.

Mow (?), n. [Written also moe and mowe.] [F. moue pouting, a wry face; cf. OD. mouwe the protruded lip.] A wry face. “Make mows at him.” Shak.

Mow, v. i. To make mouths.

Nodding, becking, and mowing.

Tyndale.

Mow, n. (Zoöl.) Same as Mew, a gull.

Mow, v. [pres. sing. Mow, pl. Mowe, Mowen, Moun.] [AS. magan. See May, v.] May; can. “Thou mow now escapen.” [Obs.] Chaucer.

Our walles mowe not make hem resistence.

Chaucer.

Mow (mō), v. t. [imp. Mowed (mōd); p. p. Mowed or Mown (mōn); p. pr. & vb. n. Mowing.] [OE. mowen, mawen, AS. māwan; akin to D. maaijen, G. mähen, OHG. mājan, Dan. meie, L. metere to reap, mow, Gr. ‘ama^n. Cf. Math, Mead a meadow, Meadow.] 1. To cut down, as grass, with a scythe or machine.

2. To cut the grass from; as, to mow a meadow.

3. To cut down; to cause to fall in rows or masses, as in mowing grass; — with down; as, a discharge of grapeshot mows down whole ranks of men.

Mow, v. i. To cut grass, etc., with a scythe, or with a machine; to cut grass for hay.

Mow (?), n. [OE. mowe, AS. m&?;ga.] 1. A heap or mass of hay or of sheaves of grain stowed in a barn.

2. The place in a barn where hay or grain in the sheaf is stowed.

Mow (?), v. t. To lay, as hay or sheaves of grain, in a heap or mass in a barn; to pile and stow away.

Mow”burn` (?), v. i. To heat and ferment in the mow, as hay when housed too green.

Mowe (?), v. See 4th Mow. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mowe, n. & v. See 1st & 2d Mow. [Obs.]

Mow”er (?), n. One who, or that which, mows; a mowing machine; as, a lawn mower.

Mow”ing, n. 1. The act of one who, or the operation of that which, mows.

2. Land from which grass is cut; meadow land.

Mowing machine, an agricultural machine armed with knives or blades for cutting standing grass, etc. It is drawn by a horse or horses, or propelled by steam.

Mown (?), p. p. & a. Cut down by mowing, as grass; deprived of grass by mowing; as, a mown field.

Mow”yer (?), n. A mower. [Obs.]

Mox”a (?), n. [A corruption of Japan. mogusa (pronounced mongsa), an escharotic made from the plant yomigi: cf. F. moxa.] 1. (Med.) A soft woolly mass prepared from the young leaves of Artemisia Chinensis, and used as a cautery by burning it on the skin; hence, any substance used in a like manner, as cotton impregnated with niter, amadou.

2. (Bot.) A plant from which this substance is obtained, esp. Artemisia Chinensis, and A. moxa.

Mox”ie (?), n. [fr. Moxie, a trade name for a beverage.] 1. energy; pep.

2. courage, determination.

3. Know-how, expertise. MW10.

||Moy”a (?), n. Mud poured out from volcanoes during eruptions; — so called in South America.

Moyle (?), n. & v. See Moil, and Moile.

{ Moz”a*rab (?), Moz`a*rab”ic (?) }. Same as Muzarab, Muzarabic.

{ Mo*zet”ta (?), Moz*zet”ta (?), } n. [It. mozzetta: cf. F. mosette. Cf. Amice a hood or cape.] (Eccl.) A cape, with a small hood; — worn by the pope and other dignitaries of the Roman Catholic Church.

Mr.. (&?;). The customary abbreviation of Mister in writing and printing. See Master, 4.

Mrs. (&?;). The customary abbreviation of Mistress when used as a title of courtesy, in writing and printing.

Mu*cam”ide (?), n. [Mucic + amide.] (Chem.) The acid amide of mucic acid, obtained as a white crystalline substance.

Mu”cate (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of mucic acid.

Muce (?), n. See Muse, and Muset.

Mu*ce”din (?), n. [From Mucus.] (Bot. Chem.) A yellowish white, amorphous, nitrogenous substance found in wheat, rye, etc., and resembling gluten; — formerly called also mucin.

Much (mŭch), a. [Compar. & superl. wanting, but supplied by More (mōr), and Most (mōst), from another root.] [OE. moche, muche, miche, prob. the same as mochel, muchel, michel, mikel, fr. AS. micel, mycel; cf. Gr. me`gas, fem. mega`lh, great, and Icel. mjök, adv., much. √103. See Mickle.] 1. Great in quantity; long in duration; as, much rain has fallen; much time.

Thou shalt carry much seed out into the field, and shalt gather but little in.

Deut. xxviii. 38.

2. Many in number. [Archaic]

Edom came out against him with much people.

Num. xx. 20.

3. High in rank or position. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Much, n. 1. A great quantity; a great deal; also, an indefinite quantity; as, you have as much as I.

He that gathered much had nothing over.

Ex. xvi. 18.

&fist; Muchin this sense can be regarded as an adjective qualifying a word unexpressed, and may, therefore, be modified by as, so, too, very.

2. A thing uncommon, wonderful, or noticeable; something considerable.

And [he] thought not much to clothe his enemies.

Milton.

To make much of, to treat as something of especial value or worth.

Much, adv. [Cf. Icel. mjök. See Much, a.] To a great degree or extent; greatly; abundantly; far; nearly. “Much suffering heroes.” Pope.

Thou art much mightier than we.

Gen. xxvi. 16.

Excellent speech becometh not a fool, much less do lying lips a prince.

Prov. xvii. 7.

Henceforth I fly not death, nor would prolong
Life much.

Milton.

All left the world much as they found it.

Sir W. Temple.

Much”el (?), a. [√103. See Mickle.] Much. [Obs.]

Much”ness, n. Greatness; extent. [Obs. or Colloq.]

The quantity and muchness of time which it filcheth.

W. Whately.

Much of a muchness, much the same. [Colloq.] “Men’s men; gentle or simple, they’re much of a muchness.” G. Eliot.

Much”what` (?), adv. Nearly; almost; much. [Obs.] “Muchwhat after the same manner.” Glanvill.

Mu”cic (?), a. [L. mucus mucus: cf. F. mucique.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or derived from, gums and micilaginous substances; specif., denoting an acid obtained by the oxidation of gums, dulcite, etc., as a white crystalline substance isomeric with saccharic acid.

Mu”cid (?), a. [L. mucidus, fr. L. mucus mucus. See Mucus, and cf. Moist.] Musty; moldy; slimy; mucous. — Mu”cid*ness, n.

Mu*cif”ic (?), a. [Mucus + L. -ficare (in comp.) to make. See -fy.] 1. (Med.) Inducing or stimulating the secretion of mucus; blennogenous.

2. (Physiol.) Secreting mucus.

Mu”ci*form (?), a. [Mucus + - form.] (Physiol.) Resembling mucus; having the character or appearance of mucus.

Mu”ci*gen (?), n. [Mucin + - gen.] (Physiol.) A substance which is formed in mucous epithelial cells, and gives rise to mucin.

Mu*cig”e*nous (?), a. (Physiol.) Connected with the formation of mucin; resembling mucin.

The mucigenous basis is manufactured at the expense of the ordinary protoplasm of the cell.

Foster.

Mu”ci*lage (?), n. [F., from L. mucilago a musty juice, fr. mucus mucus, slime. See Mucus.] 1. (Bot. Chem.) A gummy or gelatinous substance produced in certain plants by the action of water on the cell wall, as in the seeds of quinces, of flax, etc.

2. An aqueous solution of gum, or of substances allied to it; as, medicinal mucilage; mucilage for fastening envelopes.

Mu`ci*lag”i*nous (?), a. [Cf. F. mucilagineux. See Mucilage.] 1. Partaking of the nature of, or resembling, mucilage; moist, soft, and viscid; slimy; ropy; as, a mucilaginous liquid.

2. Of, pertaining to, or secreting, mucilage; as, the mucilaginous glands.

3. Soluble in water, but not in alcohol; yielding mucilage; as, mucilaginous gums or plants. — Mu`ci*lag”i*nous*ness, n.

Mu”cin (mū“s&ibreve;n), n. [From Mucus.] 1. (Bot. Chem.) See Mucedin. [Obs.]

2. (Physiol. Chem.) An albuminoid substance which is contained in mucus, and gives to the latter secretion its peculiar ropy character. It is found in all the secretions from mucous glands, and also between the fibers of connective tissue, as in tendons. See Illust. of Demilune.

Mu*cin”o*gen (m&usl;*s&ibreve;n”&osl;*j&ebreve;n), n. [Mucin + -gen.] (Physiol.) Same as Mucigen.

Mu*cip”a*rous (m&usl;*s&ibreve;“p&adot;*rŭs), a. [Mucus + L. parere to produce.] (Physiol.) Secreting, or producing, mucus or mucin.

Mu”ci*vore (mū“s&ibreve;*vōr), n. [L. mucus slime, mucus + vorare to devour.] (Zoöl.) An insect which feeds on mucus, or the sap of plants, as certain Diptera, of the tribe Mucivora.

Muck (mŭk), abbreviation of Amuck.

To run a muck. See Amuck.

Muck, n. [Icel. myki; akin to D. mög. Cf. Midden.] 1. Dung in a moist state; manure. Bacon.

2. Vegetable mold mixed with earth, as found in low, damp places and swamps.

3. Anything filthy or vile. Spenser.

4. Money; — in contempt.

The fatal muck we quarreled for.

Beau. & Fl.

Muck bar, bar iron which has been through the rolls only once. — Muck iron, crude puddled iron ready for the squeezer or rollers. Knight.

Muck, a. Like muck; mucky; also, used in collecting or distributing muck; as, a muck fork.

Muck, v. t. To manure with muck.

Muck”en*der (?), n. [Sp. mocador. Cf. Mokadour.] A handkerchief. [Obs.] [Written also muckinder, muckiter, mockadour.]

Muck”er (?), n. A term of reproach for a low or vulgar labor person. [Slang]

Muck”er, v. t. To scrape together, as money, by mean labor or shifts. [Obs.] Udall.

Muck”er*er (?), n. A miser; a niggard. [Obs.]

Muck”i*ness (?), n. The quality of being mucky.

Muc”kle (?), a. [See Mickle.] Much. [Obs.]

Muck”mid`den (?), n. A dunghill. [Scot.]

Muck”sy (?), a. Somewhat mucky; soft, sticky, and dirty; muxy. [Prov. Eng.] R. D. Blackmore.

Muck”worm` (?), n. 1. (Zoöl.) A larva or grub that lives in muck or manure; — applied to the larvæ of the tumbledung and allied beetles.

2. One who scrapes together money by mean labor and devices; a miser. “Misers are muckworms.” Pope.

Muck”y (?), a. 1. Filthy with muck; miry; as, a mucky road. “Mucky filth.” Spenser.

2. Vile, in a moral sense; sordid. [Obs.] Spenser.

Mucky money and false felicity.

Latimer.

Mu”co*cele (?), n. [Mucus + Gr. kh`lh tumor.] (Med.) An enlargement or protrusion of the mucous membrane of the lachrymal passages, or dropsy of the lachrymal sac, dependent upon catarrhal inflammation of the latter. Dunglison.

Mu”coid (?), a. [Mucus + - oid.] Resembling mucus. Dunglison.

Mucoid degeneration, a form of degeneration in which the tissues are transformed into a semisolid substance resembling mucus. Quain.

Mu”co*nate (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of muconic acid.

Mu*con”ic (?), a. [Mucic + itaconic.] (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or designating, an organic acid, obtained indirectly from mucic acid, and somewhat resembling itaconic acid.

Mu`co*pu”ru*lent (?), a. [Mucus + purulent.] (Med.) Having the character or appearance of both mucus and pus. Dunglison.

||Mu”cor (?), n. [L., fr. mucere to be moldy or musty.] (Bot.) A genus of minute fungi. The plants consist of slender threads with terminal globular sporangia; mold.

Mu*cos”i*ty (?), n. The quality or state of being mucous or slimy; mucousness.

Mu”cous (?), a. [L. mucosus, fr. mucus mucus.] 1. Of, pertaining to, or resembling, mucus; slimy, ropy, or stringy, and lubricous; as, a mucous substance.

2. Secreting a slimy or mucigenous substance; as, the mucous membrane.

Mucous membrane. (Anat.) See under Membrane. — Mucous patches (Med.), elevated patches found in the mucous membranes of the mouth and anus, usually due to syphilis. — Mucous tissue (Anat.), a form of connective tissue in an early stage of development, found in the umbilical cord and in the embryo, and also in certain tumors called myxomata.

Mu”cous*ness, n. The quality or state of being mucous; sliminess.

||Mu”cro (?), n. [L.] (Bot. & Zoöl.) A minute abrupt point, as of a leaf; any small, sharp point or process, terminating a larger part or organ.

{ Mu”cro*nate (?), Mu”cro*na`ted (?), } a. [L. mucronatus, fr. mucro a sharp point: cf. F. mucroné.] Ending abruptly in a sharp point; abruptly tipped with a short and sharp point; as, a mucronate leaf. — Mu”cro*nate*ly, adv.

Mu*cron”u*late (?), a. Having, or tipped with, a small point or points.

Mu”cu*lent (?), a. [L. muculentus, fr. mucus.] Slimy; moist, and moderately viscous.

Mu”cus (mū“kŭs), n. [L. mucus, muccus; cf. mucere to be moldy or musty, Gr. my`xa mucus, and Skr. muc to release. Cf. Match for striking fire, Moist, Mucilage.] 1. (Physiol.) A viscid fluid secreted by mucous membranes, which it serves to moisten and protect. It covers the lining membranes of all the cavities which open externally, such as those of the mouth, nose, lungs, intestinal canal, urinary passages, etc.

2. (Physiol.) Any other animal fluid of a viscid quality, as the synovial fluid, which lubricates the cavities of the joints; — improperly so used.

3. (Bot.) A gelatinous or slimy substance found in certain algæ and other plants.

Mu”cus*in (?), n. (Physiol. Chem.) Mucin. [R.]

Mud (?), n. [Akin to LG. mudde, D. modder, G. moder mold, OSw. modd mud, Sw. modder mother, Dan. mudder mud. Cf. Mother a scum on liquors.] Earth and water mixed so as to be soft and adhesive.

Mud bass (Zoöl.), a fresh-water fish (Acantharchum pomotis) of the Eastern United States. It produces a deep grunting note. — Mud bath, an immersion of the body, or some part of it, in mud charged with medicinal agents, as a remedy for disease. — Mud boat, a large flatboat used in dredging. — Mud cat. See Catfish. — Mud crab (Zoöl.), any one of several American marine crabs of the genus Panopeus. — Mud dab (Zoöl.), the winter flounder. See Flounder, and Dab. — Mud dauber (Zoöl.), a mud wasp. — Mud devil (Zoöl.), the fellbender. — Mud drum (Steam Boilers), a drum beneath a boiler, into which sediment and mud in the water can settle for removal. — Mud eel (Zoöl.), a long, slender, aquatic amphibian (Siren lacertina), found in the Southern United States. It has persistent external gills and only the anterior pair of legs. See Siren. — Mud frog (Zoöl.), a European frog (Pelobates fuscus). — Mud hen. (Zoöl.) (a) The American coot (Fulica Americana). (b) The clapper rail. – - Mud lark, a person who cleans sewers, or delves in mud. [Slang] — Mud minnow (Zoöl.), any small American fresh-water fish of the genus Umbra, as U. limi. The genus is allied to the pickerels. — Mud plug, a plug for stopping the mudhole of a boiler. — Mud puppy (Zoöl.), the menobranchus. — Mud scow, a heavy scow, used in dredging; a mud boat. [U.S.] — Mud turtle, Mud tortoise (Zoöl.), any one of numerous species of fresh-water tortoises of the United States. — Mud wasp (Zoöl.), any one of numerous species of hymenopterous insects belonging to Pepæus, and allied genera, which construct groups of mud cells, attached, side by side, to stones or to the woodwork of buildings, etc. The female places an egg in each cell, together with spiders or other insects, paralyzed by a sting, to serve as food for the larva. Called also mud dauber.

Mud, v. t. 1. To bury in mud. [R.] Shak.

2. To make muddy or turbid. Shak.

||Mu”dar (?), n. [Hind. madār.] (Bot.) Either one of two asclepiadaceous shrubs (Calotropis gigantea, and C. procera), which furnish a strong and valuable fiber. The acrid milky juice is used medicinally.

Mu”da*rin (?), n. (Chem.) A brown, amorphous, bitter substance having a strong emetic action, extracted from the root of the mudar.

Mud”di*ly (?), adv. In a muddy manner; turbidly; without mixture; cloudily; obscurely; confusedly.

Mud”di*ness, n. 1. The condition or quality of being muddy; turbidness; foulness caused by mud, dirt, or sediment; as, the muddiness of a stream.

2. Obscurity or confusion, as in treatment of a subject; intellectual dullness.

Mud”dle (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Muddled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Muddling (?).] [From Mud.] 1. To make turbid, or muddy, as water. [Obs.]

He did ill to muddle the water.

L’Estrange.

2. To cloud or stupefy; to render stupid with liquor; to intoxicate partially.

Epicurus seems to have had brains so muddled and confounded, that he scarce ever kept in the right way.

Bentley.

Often drunk, always muddled.

Arbuthnot.

3. To waste or misuse, as one does who is stupid or intoxicated. [R.]

They muddle it [money] away without method or object, and without having anything to show for it.

Hazlitt.

4. To mix confusedly; to confuse; to make a mess of; as, to muddle matters; also, to perplex; to mystify. F. W. Newman.

Mud”dle, v. i. 1. To dabble in mud. [Obs.] Swift.

2. To think and act in a confused, aimless way.

Mud”dle, n. A state of being turbid or confused; hence, intellectual cloudiness or dullness.

We both grub on in a muddle.

Dickens.

Mud”dle*head` (?), n. A stupid person. [Colloq.] C. Reade. — Mud”dle-head`ed, a. [Colloq.] Dickens.

Mud”dler (?), n. One who, or that which, muddles.

Mud”dy (?), a. [Compar. Muddier (?); superl. Muddiest.] 1. Abounding in mud; besmeared or dashed with mud; as, a muddy road or path; muddy boots.

2. Turbid with mud; as, muddy water.

3. Consisting of mud or earth; gross; impure.

This muddy vesture of decay.

Shak.

4. Confused, as if turbid with mud; cloudy in mind; dull; stupid; also, immethodical; incoherent; vague.

Cold hearts and muddy understandings.

Burke.

Dost think I am so muddy, so unsettled.

Shak.

5. Not clear or bright. Swift.

Mud”dy, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Muddied (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Muddying (?).] 1. To soil with mud; to dirty; to render turbid.

2. Fig.: To cloud; to make dull or heavy. Grew.

Mud”dy-head`ed (?), a. Dull; stupid.

Mud”dy-met`tled (?), a. Dull- spirited. Shak.

Mud”fish` (?), n. (Zoöl.) (a) The European loach. (b) The bowfin. (c) The South American lipedosiren, and the allied African species (Protopterus annectens). See Lipedosiren. (d) The mud minnow.

Mud”hole` (?), n. 1. A hole, or hollow place, containing mud, as in a road.

2. (Steam Boilers) A hole near the bottom, through which the sediment is withdrawn.

Mu”dir (?), n. Same as Moodir.

Mud”sill` (?), n. The lowest sill of a structure, usually embedded in the soil; the lowest timber of a house; also, that sill or timber of a bridge which is laid at the bottom of the water. See Sill.

Mud”suck`er (?), n. (Zoöl.) A woodcock.

Mud”wall` (?), n. (Zoöl.) The European bee-eater. See Bee-eater. [Written also modwall.]

Mud”wort` (?), n. (Bot.) A small herbaceous plant growing on muddy shores (Limosella aquatica).

Mue (mū), v. i. To mew; to molt. [Obs.] Quarles.

Mu*ez”zin (m&usl;*&ebreve;z”z&ibreve;n), n. [Ar.] A Mohammedan crier of the hour of prayer. [Written also mouezzin, mueddin, and muwazzin.]

Muff (mŭf), n. [Cf. LG. muff, D. mof, G., Dan., & Sw. muff, F. moufle mitten, LL. muffula, MHG. mouwe sleeve, D. mouw, and E. muffle, v.] 1. A soft cover of cylindrical form, usually of fur, worn by women to shield the hands from cold.

2. (Mech.) A short hollow cylinder surrounding an object, as a pipe.

3. (Glass Manuf.) A blown cylinder of glass which is afterward flattened out to make a sheet.

4. [Perhaps a different word; cf. Prov. E. maffle to slammer.] A stupid fellow; a poor-spirited person. [Colloq.] “A muff of a curate.” Thackeray.

5. [See 4.] (Baseball) A failure to hold a ball when once in the hands.

6. (Zoöl.) The whitethroat. [Prov. Eng.]

Muff, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Muffed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Muffing.] To handle awkwardly; to fumble; to fail to hold, as a ball, in catching it.

Muf`fe*tee” (?), n. A small muff worn over the wrist. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

Muf”fin (?), n. [From Muff.] A light, spongy, cylindrical cake, used for breakfast and tea.

Muf`fin*eer” (?), n. A dish for keeping muffins hot.

Muff”ish (?), a. [See Muff, 4 & 5.] Stupid; awkward. [Colloq.]

Muf”fle (mŭf”f’l), n. The bare end of the nose between the nostrils; — used esp. of ruminants.

Muf”fle, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Muffled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Muffling (?).] [Cf. F. moufle a mitten, LL. muffula, OD. moffel a muff. See Muff.] 1. To wrap up in something that conceals or protects; to wrap, as the face and neck, in thick and disguising folds; hence, to conceal or cover the face of; to envelop; to inclose; — often with up. South.

The face lies muffled up within the garment.

Addison.

He muffled with a cloud his mournful eyes.

Dryden.

Muffled up in darkness and superstition.

Arbuthnot.

2. To prevent seeing, or hearing, or speaking, by wraps bound about the head; to blindfold; to deafen.

3. To wrap with something that dulls or deadens the sound of; as, to muffle the strings of a drum, or that part of an oar which rests in the rowlock.

Muf”fle, v. i. [Cf. F. maffle, mumble, D. moffelen.] To speak indistinctly, or without clear articulation.

Muf”fle, n. [F. moufle, prop., a mitten, from the resemblance in shape. See Muffle, v. t., Muff.] 1. Anything with which another thing, as an oar or drum, is muffled; also, a boxing glove; a muff.

2. (Metal.) An earthenware compartment or oven, often shaped like a half cylinder, used in furnaces to protect objects heated from the direct action of the fire, as in scorification of ores, cupellation of ore buttons, etc.

3. (Ceramics) A small oven for baking and fixing the colors of painted or printed pottery, without exposing the pottery to the flames of the furnace or kiln.

4. A pulley block containing several sheaves. Knight.

Muf”fler (?), n. 1. Anything used in muffling; esp., a scarf for protecting the head and neck in cold weather; a tippet.

Fortune is painted blind, with a muffler above her eyes.

Shak.

2. (Mus.) A cushion for terminating or softening a note made by a stringed instrument with a keyboard.

3. A kind of mitten or boxing glove, esp. when stuffed.

4. One who muffles.

Muf”lon (?), n. (Zoöl.) See Mouflon.

Muf”ti (?), n.; pl. Muftis (#). [Ar. mufti.] An official expounder of Mohammedan law.

Muf”ti, n. Citizen’s dress when worn by a naval or military officer; — a term derived from the British service in India. [Colloq. Eng.]

Mug (?), n. [Cf. Ir. mugam a mug, mucog a cup.] 1. A kind of earthen or metal drinking cup, with a handle, — usually cylindrical and without a lip.

2. The face or mouth. [Slang] Thackeray.

Mug”gard (?), a. [Cf. G. mucker a sulky person, muckish sullen, peevish, mucken to mutter, grumble.] Sullen; displeased. [Obs.]

Mug”get (?), n. The small entrails of a calf or a hog.

Mug”gi*ness (?), n. The condition or quality of being muggy.

Mug”gish (?), a. See Muggy.

Mug`gle*to”ni*an (?), n. (Eccl. Hist.) One of an extinct sect, named after Ludovic Muggleton, an English journeyman tailor, who (about 1657) claimed to be inspired. Eadie.

Mug”gy (mŭg”g&ybreve;), a. [Compar. Muggier (-g&ibreve;*&etilde;r); superl. Muggiest.] [Cf. Icel. mugga mist, mugginess. Cf. 4th Mold.] 1. Moist; damp; moldy; as, muggy straw.

2. Warm, damp, and close; as, muggy air, weather.

Mug”house` (mŭg”hous`), n. An alehouse; a pothouse. Tickel.

Mu”gi*en*cy (?), n. A bellowing. [Obs.]

Mu”gi*ent (?), a. [L. mugiens, p. pr. of mugire to bellow.] Lowing; bellowing. [Obs.] Sir T. Browne.

||Mu”gil (?), n. [L., a sort of fish.] (Zoöl.) A genus of fishes including the gray mullets. See Mullet.

Mu”gi*loid (?), a. (Zoöl.) Like or pertaining to the genus Mugil, or family Mugilidæ.

Mug”weed` (?), n. (Bot.) A slender European weed (Galium Cruciata); — called also crossweed.

Mug”wort` (?), n. [AS. mucgwyrt. Cf. Midge.] (Bot.) A somewhat aromatic composite weed (Artemisia vulgaris), at one time used medicinally; — called also motherwort.

Mug”wump` (?), n. [Cf. Algonquin mugquomp a chief.] A bolter from the Republican party in the national election of 1884; an Independent. [Political Cant, U.S.]

{ Mug”wump`er*y (?), Mug”wump*ism (?), } n. The acts and views of the mugwumps. [Political Cant, U.S.]

{ Mu*ham”mad*an (?), Mu*ham”med*an (?), } a. & n. Mohammedan.

Mu*ham”mad*an*ism (?), n. Mohammedanism.

||Mu*la”da (?), n. A moor. [Scot.] Lockhart.

||Mu*la”da (?), n. [Sp. Amer., fr. Sp. mulo, mula, a mule.] A drove of mules. [Southwest. U.S.]

Mu*lat”to (?), n.; pl. Mulattoes (#). [Sp. & Pg. mulato, masc., mulata, fem., of a mixed breed, fr. mulo mule, L. mulus. See Mule.] The offspring of a negress by a white man, or of a white woman by a negro, — usually of a brownish yellow complexion.

Mu*lat”tress, n. A female mulatto. G. W. Gable.

Mul”ber*ry (?), n.; pl. Mulberries (#). [OE. moolbery, murberie, AS. murberie, where the first part is fr. L. morum mulberry; cf. Gr. &?;, &?;. Cf. Murrey, Sycamore.] 1. (Bot.) The berry or fruit of any tree of the genus Morus; also, the tree itself. See Morus.

2. A dark pure color, like the hue of a black mulberry.

Mulberry mass. (Biol.) See Morula. — Paper mulberry, a tree (Broussonetia papyrifera), related to the true mulberry, used in Polynesia for making tapa cloth by macerating and pounding the inner bark, and in China and Japan for the manufacture of paper. It is seen as a shade tree in America.

Mul”ber*ry-faced` (-fāst`), a. Having a face of a mulberry color, or blotched as if with mulberry stains.

Mulch (?), n. [Cf. mull dirt, also Prov. G. mulsch, molsch, rotten, soft, mellow, as fruit.] Half-rotten straw, or any like substance strewn on the ground, as over the roots of plants, to protect from heat, drought, etc., and to preserve moisture.

Mulch, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mulched (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mulching.] To cover or dress with mulch.

Mulct (?), n. [L. mulcta, multa.] 1. A fine or penalty, esp. a pecuniary punishment or penalty.

2. A blemish or defect. [Obs.]

Syn. — Amercement; forfeit; forfeiture; penalty.

Mulct, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mulcted; p. pr. & vb. n. Mulcting.] [L. mulctare, multare.] 1. To punish for an offense or misdemeanor by imposing a fine or forfeiture, esp. a pecuniary fine; to fine.

2. Hence, to deprive of; to withhold by way of punishment or discipline. [Obs.]

{ Mulc”ta*ry (?), Mulc”tu*a*ry (?), } a. Imposing a pecuniary penalty; consisting of, or paid as, a fine.

Fines, or some known mulctuary punishments.

Sir W. Temple.

Mule (mūl), n. [F., a she-mule, L. mula, fem. of mulus; cf. Gr. my`klos, mychlo`s. Cf. AS. mūl, fr. L. mulus. Cf. Mulatto.] 1. (Zoöl.) A hybrid animal; specifically, one generated between an ass and a mare, sometimes a horse and a she-ass. See Hinny.

&fist; Mules are much used as draught animals. They are hardy, and proverbial for stubbornness.

2. (Bot.) A plant or vegetable produced by impregnating the pistil of one species with the pollen or fecundating dust of another; — called also hybrid.

3. A very stubborn person.

4. A machine, used in factories, for spinning cotton, wool, etc., into yarn or thread and winding it into cops; — called also jenny and mule-jenny.

Mule armadillo (Zoöl.), a long- eared armadillo (Tatusia hybrida), native of Buenos Aires; — called also mulita. See Illust. under Armadillo. — Mule deer (Zoöl.), a large deer (Cervus, or Cariacus, macrotis) of the Western United States. The name refers to its long ears. — Mule pulley (Mach.), an idle pulley for guiding a belt which transmits motion between shafts that are not parallel. — Mule twist, cotton yarn in cops, as spun on a mule; — in distinction from yarn spun on a throstle frame.

Mule”-jen`ny (?), n. See Mule, 4.

Mu`le*teer” (?), n. [F. muletier, fr. mulet a mule, dim. fr. L. mulus.] One who drives mules.

Mule”wort` (?), n. (Bot.) A fern of the genus Hemionitis.

Mu”ley (?), n. (Sawmills) A stiff, long saw, guided at the ends but not stretched in a gate.

Muley axle (Railroad), a car axle without collars at the outer ends of the journals. Forney.

Mul”ey (?), n. See Mulley.

Mu`li*eb”ri*ty (mū`l&ibreve;*&ebreve;b”r&ibreve;*t&ybreve;), n. [L. muliebritas, fr. muliebris belonging to a woman, fr. mulier a woman.] 1. The state of being a woman or of possessing full womanly powers; womanhood; — correlate of virility.

2. Hence: Effeminancy; softness.

||Mu”li*er (?), n. [L., a woman.] 1. A woman.

2. (Law) (a) Lawful issue born in wedlock, in distinction from an elder brother born of the same parents before their marriage; a lawful son. (b) (Civ. Law) A woman; a wife; a mother. Blount. Cowell.

Mu”li*er*ly, adv. In the manner or condition of a mulier; in wedlock; legitimately. [Obs.]

Mu”li*er*ose` (?), a. [L. mulierosus.] Fond of woman. [R.] Charles Reade.

Mu`li*er*os”i*ty (?), n. [L. mulierositas.] A fondness for women. [R.] Dr. H. More.

Mu”li*er*ty (?), n. (Law) Condition of being a mulier; position of one born in lawful wedlock.

Mul”ish (mūl”&ibreve;sh), a. Like a mule; sullen; stubborn. — Mul”ish*ly, adv. — Mul”ish*ness, n.

Mull (mŭl), n. [Perh. contr. fr. mossul. See Muslin.] A thin, soft kind of muslin.

Mull, n. [Icel. mūli a snout, muzzle, projecting crag; or cf. Ir. & Gael. meall a heap of earth, a mound, a hill or eminence, W. moel. Cf. Mouth.] 1. A promontory; as, the Mull of Cantyre. [Scot.]

2. A snuffbox made of the small end of a horn.

Mull, n. [Prob. akin to mold. √108. See Mold.] Dirt; rubbish. [Obs.] Gower.

Mull, v. t. [OE. mullen. See 2d Muller.] To powder; to pulverize. [Prov. Eng.]

Mull, v. i. To work (over) mentally; to cogitate; to ruminate; — usually with over; as, to mull over a thought or a problem. [Colloq. U.S.]

Mull, n. An inferior kind of madder prepared from the smaller roots or the peelings and refuse of the larger.

Mull, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mulled (mŭld); p. pr. & vb. n. Mulling.] [From mulled, for mold, taken as a p. p.; OE. mold-ale funeral ale or banquet. See Mold soil.] 1. To heat, sweeten, and enrich with spices; as, to mull wine.

New cider, mulled with ginger warm.

Gay.

2. To dispirit or deaden; to dull or blunt. Shak.

||Mul”la (?), n. Same as Mollah.

Mul`la*ga*taw”ny (?), n. [Tamil milagu-tannīr pepper water.] An East Indian curry soup.

Mul”lah (?), n. See Mollah.

Mul”lar (?), n. A die, cut in intaglio, for stamping an ornament in relief, as upon metal.

Mul”lein (?), n. [OE. moleyn, AS. molegn.] (Bot.) Any plant of the genus Verbascum. They are tall herbs having coarse leaves, and large flowers in dense spikes. The common species, with densely woolly leaves, is Verbascum Thapsus.

Moth mullein. See under Moth. — Mullein foxglove, an American herb (Seymeria macrophylla) with coarse leaves and yellow tubular flowers with a spreading border. — Petty mullein, the cowslip. Dr. Prior.

Mul”len (?), n. (Bot.) See Mullein.

Mull”er (?), n. 1. One who, or that which, mulls.

2. A vessel in which wine, etc., is mulled over a fire.

Mull”er, n. [OE. mullen to pulverize, bruise; cf. Icel. mylja; prob. akin to E. mold soil. See Mold soil, and cf. Mull dirt.] A stone or thick lump of glass, or kind of pestle, flat at the bottom, used for grinding pigments or drugs, etc., upon a slab of similar material.

Mül*le”ri*an (?), a. (Anat.) Of, pertaining to, or discovered by, Johannes Müller.

Müllerian ducts (Anat.), a pair of embryonic ducts which give rise to the genital passages in the female, but disappear in the male. — Müllerian fibers (Anat.), the sustentacular or connective- tissue fibers which form the framework of the retina.

Mul”let (?), n. [OE. molet, mulet, F. mulet, fr. L. mullus.] 1. (Zoöl.) Any one of numerous fishes of the genus Mugil; — called also gray mullets. They are found on the coasts of both continents, and are highly esteemed as food. Among the most valuable species are Mugil capito of Europe, and M. cephalus which occurs both on the European and American coasts.

2. (Zoöl.) Any species of the genus Mullus, or family Mullidæ; called also red mullet, and surmullet, esp. the plain surmullet (Mullus barbatus), and the striped surmullet (M. surmulletus) of Southern Europe. The former is the mullet of the Romans. It is noted for the brilliancy of its colors. See Surmullet.

French mullet. See Ladyfish (a).

Mul”let, n. [F. molette.] (Her.) A star, usually five pointed and pierced; — when used as a difference it indicates the third son.

Mul”let, n. [Cf. F. molet a sort of pinchers.] Small pinchers for curling the hair. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

{ Mul”ley (?), Mool”ley }, n. [CF. Gael. maolag a hornless cow, maol bald, hornless, blunt.] 1. A mulley or polled animal. [U. S.]

2. A cow. [Prov. Eng.; U.S., a child’s word.]

Leave milking and dry up old mulley, thy cow.

Tusser.

{ Mul”ley (?), Mool”ley }, a. Destitute of horns, although belonging to a species of animals most of which have horns; hornless; polled; as, mulley cattle; a mulley (or moolley) cow. [U. S.] [Written also muley.]

Mul`li*ga*taw”ny (?), n. See Mullagatawny.

Mul”li*grubs (?), n. [Cf. Prov. E. mull to squeeze, pull about, mulling numb or dull.] 1. A griping of the intestines; colic. [Slang]

Whose dog lies sick of the mulligrubs?

Beau. & Fl.

2. Hence, sullenness; the sulks. [Slang]

Mul”lin*gong (?), n. (Zoöl.) See Duck mole, under Duck. [Written also mollingong.]

Mul”lion (?), n. [A corruption of munnion, F. moignon stump of an amputated limb, stump, OF. moing mutilated; cf. Armor. moñ, mouñ, mank, monk, and also L. mancus maimed.] (Arch.) (a) A slender bar or pier which forms the division between the lights of windows, screens, etc. (b) An upright member of a framing. See Stile.

Mul”lion, v. t. To furnish with mullions; to divide by mullions.

Mul”lock (?), n. [From Mull dirt: cf. Scot. mulloch, mulock, crumb. √108.] Rubbish; refuse; dirt. [Obs.]

All this mullok [was] in a sieve ythrowe.

Chaucer.

Mul”loid (mŭl”loid), a. [NL. Mullus, generic name (fr. L. mullus surmullet) + - oid.] (Zoöl.) Like or pertaining to the genus Mullus, which includes the surmullet, or red mullet.

Mul”mul (?), n. A fine, soft muslin; mull.

Mulse (mŭls), n. [L. mulsum (sc. vinum), fr. mulsus mixed with honey, honey-sweet, p. p. of mulcere to sweeten, soften.] Wine boiled and mingled with honey.

Mult-. See Multi-.

Mul*tan”gu*lar (?), a. [L. multangulus; multus much, many + angulus angle: cf. F. multangulaire.] Having many angles. — Mul*tan”gu*lar*ly, adv. — Mul*tan”gu*lar*ness, n.

Mul*tan”i*mous (?), a. [Mult- + L. animus mind.] Many-minded; many-sided.

The multanimous nature of the poet.

J. R. Lowell.

Mul`tar*tic”u*late (?), a. [Mult- + articulate.] Having many articulations or joints.

Mul*te”i*ty (?), n. [L. multus much, many.] Multiplicity. [R.] Coleridge.

{ Mul”ti- (?), Mult- (?) }. [L. multus much.] A prefix signifying much or many; several; more than one; as, multiaxial, multocular.

Mul`ti*ax”i*al (?), a. [Multi- + axial.] (Biol.) Having more than one axis; developing in more than a single line or plain; — opposed to monoaxial.

Mul`ti*cap”su*lar (?), a. [Multi- + capsular: cf. F. multicapsulaire.] (Bot.) Having many, or several, capsules.

Mul`ti*car”i*nate (?), a. [Multi- + carinate.] (Zoöl.) Many- keeled.

Mul`ti*ca”vous (?), a. [L. multicavus; multus much, many + cavum, cavus, a cavity, hole, fr. cavus hollow.] Having many cavities.

Mul`ti*cel”lu*lar (?), a. Consisting of, or having, many cells or more than one cell.

Mul`ti*cen”tral (?), a. [Multi- + central.] Having many, or several, centers; as, a multicentral cell.

Multicentral development (Biol.), growth, or development, from several centers. According as the insubordination to a single center is more or less pronounced, the resultant organism will be more or less irregular in form and may even become discontinuous.

Mul`ti*cip”i*tal (?), a. [Multi- + L. caput head.] (Bot.) Having many heads or many stems from one crown or root. Gray.

Mul”ti*col`or (?), a. [See Multi- , and Color.] Having many, or several, colors.

Mul`ti*cos”tate (?), a. [Multi- + costate.] Having numerous ribs, or costæ, as the leaf of a plant, or as certain shells and corals.

Mul`ti*cus”pid (?), a. [See Multi- , and Cuspid.] Multicuspidate; — said of teeth.

Mul`ti*cus”pi*date (?), a. [Multi- + cuspidate.] Having many cusps or points.

Mul`ti*den”tate (?), a. [Multi- + dentate.] Having many teeth, or toothlike processes.

Mul`ti*dig”i*tate (?), a. [Multi- + digitate.] Having many fingers, or fingerlike processes.

Mul”ti*faced` (?), a. [Multi- + face.] Having many faces.

Mul`ti*fa”ri*ous (?), a. [L. multifarius; multus much, many. Cf. Bifarious.] 1. Having multiplicity; having great diversity or variety; of various kinds; diversified; made up of many differing parts; manifold.

There is a multifarious artifice in the structure of the meanest animal.

Dr. H. More.

2. (Bot.) Having parts, as leaves, arranged in many vertical rows.

Mul`ti*fa”ri*ous*ly, adv. With great multiplicity and diversity; with variety of modes and relations.

Mul`ti*fa”ri*ous*ness, n. 1. Multiplied diversity.

2. (Law) The fault of improperly uniting in one bill distinct and independent matters, and thereby confounding them. Burrill.

Mul*tif”er*ous (?), a. [L. multifer; multus much, many + ferre to bear.] Bearing or producing much or many. [R.]

Mul”ti*fid (?), a. [L. multifidus; multus much, many + findere to split: cf. F. multifide.] (Bot.) Having many segments; cleft into several parts by linear sinuses; as, a multifid leaf or corolla.

Mul`ti*flo”rous (?), a. [L. multiflorus; multus much, many + flos, floris, flower: cf. F. multiflore.] (Bot.) Having many flowers.

Mul”ti*flue (mŭl”t&ibreve;*flū), a. [Multi- + flue.] Having many flues; as, a multiflue boiler. See Boiler.

Mul”ti*foil (?), n. [Multi- + foil.] (Arch.) An ornamental foliation consisting of more than five divisions or foils. [R.] See Foil.

Mul”ti*foil, a. Having more than five divisions or foils.

Mul”ti*fold (?), a. [Multi- + fold.] Many times doubled; manifold; numerous.

Mul”ti*form (?), a. [L. multiformis; multus much, many + forma shape: cf. F. multiforme.] Having many forms, shapes, or appearances.

A plastic and multiform unit.

Hare.

Mul`ti*form”i*ty (?), n. [L. multiformitas.] The quality of being multiform; diversity of forms; variety of appearances in the same thing. Purchas.

Mul`ti*form”ous (?), a. Multiform. [Obs.]

Mul`ti*gen”er*ous (?), a. [L. multigenerus; multus + genus, generis, kind.] Having many kinds.

Mul`ti*gran”u*late (?), a. [Multi- + granulate.] Having, or consisting of, many grains.

Mul*tij”u*gate (?), a. Having many pairs of leaflets.

Mul*tij”u*gous (?), a. [L. multijugus; multus + jugum yoke.] 1. Consisting of many parts.

2. (Bot.) Same as Multijugate.

Mul`ti*lat”er*al (?), a. [Multi- + lateral.] Having many sides; many-sided.

Mul`ti*lin”e*al (?), a. [Multi- + lineal.] Having many lines. Steevens.

Mul`ti*lo”bar (?), a. [Multi- + lobar.] Consisting of, or having, many lobes.

Mul`ti*loc”u*lar (?), a. [Multi- + locular: cf. F. multiloculaire.] Having many or several cells or compartments; as, a multilocular shell or capsule.

Mul*til”o*quence (?), n. Quality of being multiloquent; use of many words; talkativeness.

{ Mul*til”o*quent (?), Mul*til”o*quous (?), } a. [L. multiloquus; multus much, many + loqui to speak.] Speaking much; very talkative; loquacious.

Mul*til”o*quy (?), n. [L. multiloquium.] Excess of words or talk. [R.]

Mul`ti*no”date (?), a. [Multi- + nodate.] Having many knots or nodes.

Mul`ti*no”dous (?), a. [L. multinodus.] Same as Multinodate.

Mul`ti*no”mi*al (?), n. & a. [Multi- + -nomial, as in binomial. See Binomial.] (Alg.) Same as Polynomial.

{ Mul`ti*nom”i*nal (?), Mul`ti*nom”i*nous (?), } a. [L. multinominis; multus many + nomen nominis name.] Having many names or terms.

Mul`ti*nu”cle*ar (?), a. [Multi- + nuclear.] (Biol.) Containing many nuclei; as, multinuclear cells.

{ Mul`ti*nu”cle*ate (?), Mul`ti*nu”cle*a`ted (?), } a. (Biol.) Multinuclear.

Mul*tip”a*rous (?), a. [Multi- + L. parere to produce: cf. F. multipare.] Producing many, or more than one, at a birth.

Mul*tip”ar*tite (?), a. [L. multipartitus multus much, many partitus divided, p. p.: cf. F. multipartite. See Partite.] Divided into many parts; having several parts.

Mul”ti*ped (?), n. [L. multipes, multipeda; multus much, many + pes, pedis, foot: cf. F. multipède.] (Zoöl.) An insect having many feet, as a myriapod.

Mul”ti*ped, a. Having many feet.

Mul”ti*ple (?), a. [Cf. F. multiple, and E. quadruple, and multiply.] Containing more than once, or more than one; consisting of more than one; manifold; repeated many times; having several, or many, parts.

Law of multiple proportion (Chem.), the generalization that when the same elements unite in more than one proportion, forming two or more different compounds, the higher proportions of the elements in such compounds are simple multiples of the lowest proportion, or the proportions are connected by some simple common factor; thus, iron and oxygen unite in the proportions FeO, Fe_2O_3, Fe_3O_4, in which compounds, considering the oxygen, 3 and 4 are simple multiplies of 1. Called also the Law of Dalton, from its discoverer. — Multiple algebra, a branch of advanced mathematics that treats of operations upon units compounded of two or more unlike units. — Multiple conjugation (Biol.), a coalescence of many cells (as where an indefinite number of amœboid cells flow together into a single mass) from which conjugation proper and even fertilization may have been evolved. — Multiple fruits. (Bot.) See Collective fruit, under Collective. — Multiple star (Astron.), several stars in close proximity, which appear to form a single system.

Mul”ti*ple, n. (Math.) A quantity containing another quantity a number of times without a remainder.

&fist; A common multiple of two or more numbers contains each of them a number of times exactly; thus, 24 is a common multiple of 3 and 4. The least common multiple is the least number that will do this; thus, 12 is the least common multiple of 3 and 4.

Mul”ti*plex (?), a. [L. multiplex, -plicis. See Multiply.] Manifold; multiple.

Mul”ti*pli`a*ble (?), a. [Cf. F. multipliable.] Capable of being multiplied. — Mul”ti*pli`a*ble*ness, n.

Mul”ti*pli*ca*ble (?), a. [L. multiplicabilis.] Capable of being multiplied; multipliable.

Mul”ti*pli*cand` (?), n. [L. multiplicandus to be multiplied: cf. F. multiplicande.] (Math.) The number which is to be multiplied by another number called the multiplier. See Note under Multiplication.

Mul”ti*pli*cate (?), a. [L. multiplicatus, p. p. of multiplicare. See Multiply.] Consisting of many, or of more than one; multiple; multifold.

Multiplicate flower (Bot.), a flower that is double, or has an unusual number of petals in consequence of the abnormal multiplication of the parts of the floral whorls.

Mul`ti*pli*ca”tion (?), n. [L. multiplicatio: cf. F. multiplication. See Multiply.] 1. The act or process of multiplying, or of increasing in number; the state of being multiplied; as, the multiplication of the human species by natural generation.

The increase and multiplication of the world.

Thackeray.

2. (Math.) The process of repeating, or adding to itself, any given number or quantity a certain number of times; commonly, the process of ascertaining by a briefer computation the result of such repeated additions; also, the rule by which the operation is performed; — the reverse of division.

&fist; The word multiplication is sometimes used in mathematics, particularly in multiple algebra, to denote any distributive operation expressed by one symbol upon any quantity or any thing expressed by another symbol. Corresponding extensions of meaning are given to the words multiply, multiplier, multiplicand, and product. Thus, since φ(x + y) = φx + φy (see under Distributive), where φ(x + y), φx, and φy indicate the results of any distributive operation represented by the symbol φ upon x + y, x, and y, severally, then because of many very useful analogies φ(x + y) is called the product of φ and x + y, and the operation indicated by φ is called multiplication. Cf. Facient, n., 2.

3. (Bot.) An increase above the normal number of parts, especially of petals; augmentation.

4. The art of increasing gold or silver by magic, — attributed formerly to the alchemists. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Multiplication table, a table giving the product of a set of numbers multiplied in some regular way; commonly, a table giving the products of the first ten or twelve numbers multiplied successively by 1, 2, 3, etc., up to 10 or 12.

Mul”ti*pli*ca*tive (?), a. [Cf. F. multiplicatif.] Tending to multiply; having the power to multiply, or incease numbers.

Mul”ti*pli*ca*tive*ly, adv. So as to multiply.

Mul”ti*pli*ca`tor (?), n. [L.: cf. F. multiplicateur. Cf. Multiplier.] The number by which another number is multiplied; a multiplier.

Mul`ti*pli”cious (?), a. [See Multiplex.] Manifold. [Obs.]

Mul`ti*plic”ity (?), n. [Cf. F. multiplicité.] The quality of being multiple, manifold, or various; a state of being many; a multitude; as, a multiplicity of thoughts or objects. “A multiplicity of goods.” South.

Mul”ti*pli`er (?), n. [Cf. F. multiplier. Cf. Multiplicator.] 1. One who, or that which, multiplies or increases number.

2. (Math.) The number by which another number is multiplied. See the Note under Multiplication.

3. (Physics) An instrument for multiplying or increasing by repetition or accumulation the intensity of a force or action, as heat or electricity. It is particularly used to render such a force or action appreciable or measurable when feeble. See Thermomultiplier.

Mul”ti*ply (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Multiplied (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Multiplying (?).] [F. multiplier, L. multiplicare, fr. multiplex manifold. See Multitude, Complex.] 1. To increase in number; to make more numerous; to add quantity to.

Impunity will multiply motives to disobedience.

Ames.

2. (Math.) To add (any given number or quantity) to itself a certain number of times; to find the product of by multiplication; thus 7 multiplied by 8 produces the number 56; to multiply two numbers. See the Note under Multiplication.

3. To increase (the amount of gold or silver) by the arts of alchemy. [Obs.]

Multiplying gear (Mach.), gear for increasing speed. — Multiplying lens. (Opt.) See under Lens.

Mul”ti*ply, v. i. 1. To become greater in number; to become numerous.

When men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them.

Gen. vi. 1.

2. To increase in extent and influence; to spread.

The word of God grew and multiplied.

Acts xii. 24.

3. To increase amount of gold or silver by the arts of alchemy. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Mul`ti*po”lar (?), a. [Multi- + polar.] (Biol.) Having many poles; — applied especially to those ganglionic nerve cells which have several radiating processes.

Mul*tip”o*tent (?), a. [L. multipotens; multus much + potens powerful. See Potent.] Having manifold power, or power to do many things. “Jove multipotent.” Shak.

Mul`ti*pres”ence (?), n. The state or power of being multipresent.

The multipresence of Christ’s body.

Bp. Hall.

Mul`ti*pres”ent (?), a. [Multi- + present, a.] Being, or having the power to be, present in two or more places at once.

Mul`ti*ra”di*ate (?), a. [Multi- + radiate.] Having many rays.

Mul`ti*ram”i*fied (?), a. [Multi- + p. p. of ramify.] Divided into many branches.

Mul`ti*ra*mose” (?), a. [Multi- + ramose.] Having many branches.

Mul*tis”cious (?), a. [L. multiscius; multus much + scius knowing, fr. scire to know.] Having much or varied knowledge. [Obs.]

Mul”ti*sect (?), a. [Multi- + L. sectus, p. p. of secare to cut.] (Zoöl.) Divided into many similar segments; — said of an insect or myriapod.

Mul`ti*sep”tate (?), a. [Multi- + septate.] (Bot.) Divided into many chambers by partitions, as the pith of the pokeweed.

Mul`ti*se”ri*al (?), a. [Multi- + serial.] (Bot.) Arranged in many rows, or series, as the scales of a pine cone, or the leaves of the houseleek.

Mul`ti*sil”i*quous (?), a. [Multi- + siliquious.] (Bot.) Having many pods or seed vessels.

Mul*tis”o*nous (?), a. [L. multisonus; multus much, many + sonus sound.] Having many sounds, or sounding much.

Mul`ti*spi”ral (?), a. [Multi- + spiral.] (Zoöl.) Having numerous spiral coils round a center or nucleus; — said of the opercula of certain shells.

Mul`ti*stri”ate (?), a. [Multi- + striate.] Having many streaks.

Mul`ti*sul”cate (?), a. [Multi- + sulcate.] Having many furrows.

Mul”ti*syl`la*ble (?), n. [Multi- + syllable.] A word of many syllables; a polysyllable. [R.] — Mul`ti*syl*lab”ic (#), a.

Mul`ti*tit”u*lar (?), a. [Multi- + titular.] Having many titles.

Mul`ti*tu”bu*lar (?), a. [Multi- + tubular.] Having many tubes; as, a multitubular boiler.

Mul”ti*tude (?), n. [F. multitude, L. multitudo, multitudinis, fr. multus much, many; of unknown origin.] 1. A great number of persons collected together; a numerous collection of persons; a crowd; an assembly.

But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them.

Matt. ix. 36.

2. A great number of persons or things, regarded collectively; as, the book will be read by a multitude of people; the multitude of stars; a multitude of cares.

It is a fault in a multitude of preachers, that they utterly neglect method in their harangues.

I. Watts.

A multitude of flowers
As countless as the stars on high.

Longfellow.

3. The state of being many; numerousness.

They came as grasshoppers for multitude.

Judg. vi. 5.

The multitude, the populace; the mass of men.

Syn. — Throng; crowd; assembly; assemblage; commonalty; swarm; populace; vulgar. See Throng.

Mul`ti*tu”di*na*ry (?), a. Multitudinous.

Mul`ti*tu”di*nous (?), a. 1. Consisting of a multitude; manifold in number or condition; as, multitudinous waves. “The multitudinous seas.” Shak.

A renewed jingling of multitudinous chains.

G. Kennan.

2. Of or pertaining to a multitude. “The multitudinous tongue.” Shak.

— Mul`ti*tu”di*nous*ly, adv. — Mul`ti*tu”di*nous*ness, n.

{ Mul*tiv”a*gant (?), Mul*tiv”a*gous (?), } a. [L. multivagus; multus much + vagus wandering; cf. vagans, p. pr. of vagari. See Vagary.] Wandering much. [Obs.]

Mul*tiv”a*lence (?), n. (Chem.) Quality, state, or degree, of a multivalent element, atom, or radical.

Mul*tiv”a*lent (?), a. [Multi- + L. valens, p. pr. See Valence.] (Chem.) (a) Having a valence greater than one, as silicon. (b) Having more than one degree of valence, as sulphur.

Mul”ti*valve (?), n. [Cf. F. multivalve.] (Zoöl.) Any mollusk which has a shell composed of more than two pieces.

{ Mul”ti*valve (?), Mul`ti*val”vu*lar (?), } a. [Multi- + valve, valvular: cf. F. multivalve.] 1. Having many valves.

2. (Zoöl.) Many-valved; having more than two valves; — said of certain shells, as the chitons.

Mul*tiv”er*sant (?), a. [Multi- + L. versans, p. pr. See Versant.] Turning into many shapes; assuming many forms; protean.

Mul*tiv”i*ous (?), a. & adv. [L. multivius; multus many + via way.] Having many ways or roads; by many ways. [Obs.]

Mul*tiv”o*cal (?), a. [Multi- + vocal.] Signifying many different things; of manifold meaning; equivocal. “An ambiguous multivocal word.” Coleridge.

— n. A multivocal word. [R.] Fitzed. Hall.

Mul*toc”u*lar (?), a. [Multi- + L. oculus eye.] Having many eyes, or more than two.

Mul”tum (?), n. An extract of quassia licorice, fraudulently used by brewers in order to economize malt and hops. Craig.

Hard multum, a preparation made from Cocculus Indicus, etc., used to impart an intoxicating quality to beer.

Mul*tun”gu*late (?), a. [Multi- + ungulate.] Having many hoofs.

Mul”ture (?), n. [OF. multure, moulture, F. mouture, fr. L. molitura a grinding, molere to grind. See Mill the machine.] 1. (Scots Law) The toll for grinding grain. Erskine.

2. A grist or grinding; the grain ground.

Mum (?), a. [Of imitative origin. Cf. Mumble.] Silent; not speaking. Thackeray.

The citizens are mum, and speak not a word.

Shak.

Mum, interj. Be silent! Hush!

Mum, then, and no more.

Shak.

Mum, n. Silence. [R.] Hudibras.

Mum, n. [G. mummere, fr. Christian Mumme, who first brewed it in 1492.] A sort of strong beer, originally made in Brunswick, Germany. Addison.

The clamorous crowd is hushed with mugs of mum.

Pope.

Mum”ble (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mumbled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mumbling (?).] [OE. momelen; cf. D. mompelen, mommelen, G. mummelen, Sw. mumla, Dan. mumle. Cf. Mum, a., Mumm, Mump, v.] 1. To speak with the lips partly closed, so as to render the sounds inarticulate and imperfect; to utter words in a grumbling indistinct manner, indicating discontent or displeasure; to mutter.

Peace, you mumbling fool.

Shak.

A wrinkled hag, with age grown double,
Picking dry sticks, and mumbling to herself.

Otway.

2. To chew something gently with closed lips.

Mum”ble (mŭm”b’l), v. t. 1. To utter with a low, inarticulate voice. Bp. Hall.

2. To chew or bite gently, as one without teeth.

Gums unarmed, to mumble meat in vain.

Dryden.

3. To suppress, or utter imperfectly.

Mum”ble*news` (?), n. A talebearer. [Obs.]

Mum”bler (?), n. One who mumbles.

Mum”bling (?), a. Low; indistinct; inarticulate. — Mum”bling*ly, adv.

Mum”bo Jum`bo (?). An object of superstitious homage and fear. Carlyle.

The miserable Mumbo Jumbo they paraded.

Dickens.

Mum”-chance` (?), n. 1. A game of hazard played with cards in silence. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.] Decker.

2. A silent, stupid person. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

Mum”-chance`, a. Silent and idle. [Colloq.]

Boys can’t sit mum-chance always.

J. H. Ewing.

Mumm (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Mummed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mumming.] [D. mimmen to mask, mom a mask; akin to G. mumme disguise; prob. of imitative origin, and akin to E. mum, mumble, in allusion to the indistinctness of speech occasioned by talking from behind a mask. Cf. Mumble, Mummery.] To sport or make diversion in a mask or disguise; to mask.

With mumming and with masking all around.

Spenser.

Mumm”er (?), n. [Cf. OF. mommeur. See Mumm, and cf. Momier.] One who mumms, or makes diversion in disguise; a masker; a buffon.

Jugglers and dancers, antics, mummers.

Milton.

Mum”mer*y (?), n.; pl. Mummeries (#). [F. momerie, of Dutch or German origin. See Mumm.] 1. Masking; frolic in disguise; buffoonery.

The mummery of foreign strollers.

Fenton.

2. Farcical show; hypocritical disguise and parade or ceremonies. Bacon.

Mum”mi*chog (?), n. [Amer. Indian name.] (Zoöl.) Any one of several species of small American cyprinodont fishes of the genus Fundulus, and of allied genera; the killifishes; — called also minnow. [Written also mummychog, mummachog.]

Mum`mi*fi*ca”tion (?), n. [See Mummify.] The act of making a mummy.

Mum”mi*fied (?), a. Converted into a mummy or a mummylike substance; having the appearance of a mummy; withered.

Mum”mi*form (?), a. [Mummy + -form.] Having some resemblance to a mummy; — in zoölogy, said of the pupæ of certain insects.

Mum”mi*fy (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mummified (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mummifying (?).] [Mummy + -fy: cf. F. momifier.] To embalm and dry as a mummy; to make into, or like, a mummy. Hall (1646).

Mum”my (mŭm”m&ybreve;), n.; pl. Mummies (#). [F. momie; cf. Sp. & Pg. momia, It. mummia; all fr. Per. mūmiyā, fr. mūm wax.] 1. A dead body embalmed and dried after the manner of the ancient Egyptians; also, a body preserved, by any means, in a dry state, from the process of putrefaction. Bacon.

2. Dried flesh of a mummy. [Obs.] Sir. J. Hill.

3. A gummy liquor that exudes from embalmed flesh when heated; — formerly supposed to have magical and medicinal properties. [Obs.] Shak. Sir T. Herbert.

4. A brown color obtained from bitumen. See Mummy brown (below).

5. (Gardening) A sort of wax used in grafting, etc.

6. One whose affections and energies are withered.

Mummy brown, a brown color, nearly intermediate in tint between burnt umber and raw umber. A pigment of this color is prepared from bitumen, etc., obtained from Egyptian tombs. — Mummy wheat (Bot.), wheat found in the ancient mummy cases of Egypt. No botanist now believes that genuine mummy wheat has been made to germinate in modern times. — To beat to a mummy, to beat to a senseless mass; to beat soundly.

Mum”my, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mummied (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mummying.] To embalm; to mummify.

Mum”my*chog (?), n. (Zoöl.) See Mummichog.

Mump (?), v. i. [Akin to mumble; cf. D. mompen to cheat; perh. orig., to whine like a beggar, D. mompelen to mumble. See Mumble, Mum, and cf. Mumps.] 1. To move the lips with the mouth closed; to mumble, as in sulkiness.

He mumps, and lovers, and hangs the lip.

Taylor, 1630.

2. To talk imperfectly, brokenly, or feebly; to chatter unintelligibly.

3. To cheat; to deceive; to play the beggar.

And then when mumping with a sore leg, . . . canting and whining.

Burke.

4. To be sullen or sulky. [Prov. Eng.]

Mump, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mumped (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mumping.] 1. To utter imperfectly, brokenly, or feebly.

Old men who mump their passion.

Goldsmith.

2. To work over with the mouth; to mumble; as, to mump food.

3. To deprive of (something) by cheating; to impose upon.

Mump”er (?), n. A beggar; a begging impostor.

Deceived by the tales of a Lincoln’s Inn mumper.

Macaulay.

Mump”ish, a. Sullen, sulky. — Mump”ish*ly, adv. — Mump”ish*ness, n.

Mumps (?), n. [Prov. E. mump to be sulky. Cf. Mump, Mumble, and Mum.] 1. pl. Sullenness; silent displeasure; the sulks. Skinner.

2. [Prob. so called from the patient’s appearance.] (Med.) A specific infectious febrile disorder characterized by a nonsuppurative inflammation of the parotid glands; epidemic or infectious parotitis.

Mun (?), n. [See Mouth.] The mouth. [Obs.]

One a penny, two a penny, hot cross buns,
Butter them and sugar them and put them in your muns.

Old Rhyme. Halliwell.

Munch (?), v. t. & i. [imp. & p. p. Munched (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Munching.] [Prob. akin to mumble: cf. also F. manger to eat (cf. Mange), and mâcher to cher (cf. Masticate). See Mumble.] To chew with a grinding, crunching sound, as a beast chews provender; to chew deliberately or in large mouthfuls. [Formerly written also maunch and mounch.]

I could munch your good dry oats.

Shak.

Mun*chau”sen*ism (?), n. [So called in allusion to Baron Munchausen’s extravagant tales of travel.] An extravagant fiction embodying an account of some marvelous exploit or adventure.

Munch”er (?), n. One who munches.

Mund (?), n. See Mun.

Mun”dane (?), a. [L. mundanus, fr. mundus the world, an implement, toilet adornments, or dress; cf. mundus, a., clean, neat, Skr. ma&nsdot;&dsdot; to adorn, dress, ma&nsdot;&dsdot;a adornment. Cf. Monde, Mound in heraldry.] Of or pertaining to the world; worldly; earthly; terrestrial; as, the mundane sphere. — Mun”dane*ly, adv.

The defilement of mundane passions.

I. Taylor.

Mun*dan”i*ty (?), n. Worldliness. [Obs.]

Mun*da”tion (?), n. [L. mundatio, fr. mundare to make clean.] The act of cleansing. [Obs.]

Mun”da*to*ry (?), a. [L. mundatorius.] Cleansing; having power to cleanse. [Obs.]

Mun”dic (?), n. Iron pyrites, or arsenical pyrites; — so called by the Cornish miners.

Mun*dif”i*cant (?), a. [L. mundificans, p. pr. of mundificare to make clean, fr. mundus clean + ficare (in comp.) to make. See fy.] Serving to cleanse and heal. — n. A mundificant ointment or plaster.

Mun`di*fi*ca”tion (?), n. The act or operation of cleansing.

Mun*dif”i*ca*tive (?), a. Cleansing. — n. A detergent medicine or preparation.

Mun”di*fy (?), v. t. [Cf. F. mondifier, L. mundificare. See Mundificant.] To cleanse. [Obs.]

Mun”dil (?), n. A turban ornamented with an imitation of gold or silver embroidery.

Mun*div”a*gant (?), a. [L. mundus the world + vagans wandering, p. pr. of vagari. See Vagary.] Wandering over the world. [R.]

Mun*dun”gus (?), n. [Cf. Sp. mondongo paunch, tripe, black pudding.] A stinking tobacco.

Mu”ner*a*ry (?), a. [L. munerarius, from munus a gift.] Having the nature of a gift. [Obs.]

Mu”ner*ate (?), v. t. [L. muneratus, p. p. of munerare to give, bestow, fr. munus a gift.] To remunerate.

Mu`ner*a”tion (?), n. [L. muneratio.] Remuneration. [Obs.]

Mung (mŭng), n. [Hind. mūng.] (Bot.) Green gram, a kind of pulse (Phaseolus Mungo), grown for food in British India. Balfour (Cyc. of India).

Mun”ga (?), n. (Zoöl.) See Bonnet monkey, under Bonnet.

Mung”corn` (?), n. Same as Mangcorn.

Mun”go (?), n. A fibrous material obtained by deviling rags or the remnants of woolen goods.

&fist; Mungo properly signifies the disintegrated rags of woolen cloth, as distinguished from those of worsted, which form shoddy. The distinction is very commonly disregarded. Beck (Draper’s Dict. ).

{ Mun”goose, Mun”goos } (?), n. (Zoöl.) See Mongoose.

Mun”grel (?), n. & a. See Mongrel.

Mu*nic”i*pal (?), a. [L. municipalis, fr. municipium a town, particularly in Italy, which possessed the right of Roman citizenship, but was governed by its own laws, a free town, fr. municeps an inhabitant of a free town, a free citizen; munia official duties, functions + capere to take: cf. F. municipal. Cf. Immunity, and Capacoius.] 1. Of or pertaining to a city or a corporation having the right of administering local government; as, municipal rights; municipal officers.

2. Of or pertaining to a state, kingdom, or nation.

Municipal law is properly defined to be a rule of civil conduct prescribed by the supreme power in a state.

Blackstone.

Mu*nic”i*pal*ism (?), n. Municipal condition.

Mu*nic`i*pal”i*ty (?), n.; pl. Municipalities (#). [Cf. F. municipalité.] A municipal district; a borough, city, or incorporated town or village.

Mu*nic”i*pal*ly (?), adv. In a municipal relation or condition.

Mu*nif”ic (?), a. [See Munificent.] Munificent; liberal. [Obs. or R.]

Mu*nif”i*cate (?), v. t. [L. munificatus, p. p. of munificare to present with a thing, fr. munificus. See Munificent.] To enrich. [Obs.]

Mu*nif”i*cence (?), n. [Cf. L. munire to fortify.] Means of defense; fortification. [Obs.] Spenser.

Mu*nif”i*cence, n. [L. munificentia: cf. F. munificence.] The quality or state of being munificent; a giving or bestowing with extraordinary liberality; generous bounty; lavish generosity.

The virtues of liberality and munificence.

Addison.

Syn. — Benevolence; beneficence; liberality; generosity; bounty; bounteousness. See Benevolence.

Mu*nif”i*cent (?), a. [L. munificus; munus service, gift + -ficare (in comp.) to make. Cf. Immunity, -fy.] Very liberal in giving or bestowing; lavish; as, a munificent benefactor. — Mu*nif”i*cent*ly, adv.

Syn. — Bounteous; bountiful; liberal; generous.

Mu”ni*fy (?), v. t. & i. [See Munificate.] To prepare for defense; to fortify. [Obs.]

Mu”ni*ment (?), n. [L. munimentum, fr. munire to fortify. See Munition.] 1. The act of supporting or defending. [Obs.]

2. That which supports or defends; stronghold; place or means of defense; munition; assistance. “Other muniments and petty helps.” Shak.

3. (Law) A record; the evidences or writings whereby a man is enabled to defend the title to his estate; title deeds and papers. Blount.

Muniment house or room, that room in a cathedral, castle, or other public building, which is used for keeping the records, charters, seals, deeds, and the like. Gwilt.

Mu*nite” (?), v. t. [L. munitus, p. p. of munire to wall, fortify.] To fortify; to strengthen. [Obs.]

Mu*ni”tion (?), n. [F., munition of war, L. munitio a fortifying, fortification, fr. munire to fortify, defend with a wall; cf. moenia walls, murus (for moirus) a wall, and Skr. mi to fix, make firm. Cf. Ammunition.] 1. Fortification; stronghold. [Obs.]

His place of defense shall be the munitions of rocks.

Is. xxxiii. 16.

2. Whatever materials are used in war for defense or for annoying an enemy; ammunition; also, stores and provisions; military stores of all kinds.

The bodies of men, munition, and money, may justly be called the sinews of war.

Sir W. Raleigh.

Mu”ni*ty (?), n. [See Immunity.] Freedom; security; immunity. [Obs.] W. Montagu.

Mun*jeet” (?), n. [Hind. majī&tsdot;h a drug used for dyeing red.] See Indian madder, under Madder.

Mun”jis*tin (?), n. (Chem.) An orange-red coloring substance resembling alizarin, found in the root of an East Indian species of madder (Rubia munjista).

Mun”nion (?), n. See Mullion.

{ Mun”tin (?), Mun”ting (?), } n. [CF. Montant.] (Arch.) Same as Mullion; — especially used in joiner’s work.

Munt”jac (?), n. (Zoöl.) Any one of several species of small Asiatic deer of the genus Cervulus, esp. C. muntjac, which occurs both in India and on the East Indian Islands. [Written also muntjak.]

Muntz” met`al (?). See under Metal.

||Mu*ræ“na (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?;.] (Zoöl.) A genus of large eels of the family Murænidæ. They differ from the common eel in lacking pectoral fins and in having the dorsal and anal fins continuous. The murry (Muræna Helenæ) of Southern Europe was the muræna of the Romans. It is highly valued as a food fish.

{ Mu*ræ“noid, Mu*re”noid } (?), a. [NL. Muræna, the generic name + -oid.] (Zoöl.) Like or pertaining to the genus Muræna, or family Murænidæ.

Mu”rage (?), n. [F., fr. murer to wall, fr. mur wall, L. murus. See Mure a wall.] A tax or toll paid for building or repairing the walls of a fortified town.

Mu”ral (?), a. [F., fr. L. muralis, fr. murus wall. See Mure a wall.] 1. Of or pertaining to a wall; being on, or in, a wall; growing on, or against, a wall; as, a mural quadrant. “Mural breach.” Milton. “Mural fruit.” Evelyn.

2. Resembling a wall; perpendicular or steep; as, a mural precipice.

Mural circle (Astron.), a graduated circle, in the plane of the meridian, attached permanently to a perpendicular wall; — used for measuring arcs of the meridian. See Circle, n., 3. — Mural crown (Rom. Antiq.), a golden crown, or circle of gold indented so as to resemble a battlement, bestowed on him who first mounted the wall of a besieged place, and there lodged a standard.

Mur”der (mûr”d&etilde;r), n. [OE. morder, morther, AS. morðor, fr. morð murder; akin to D. moord, OS. morð, G., Dan., & Sw. mord, Icel. morð, Goth. maúrþr, OSlav. mrēti to die, Lith. mirti, W. marw dead, L. mors, mortis, death, mori, moriri, to die, Gr. broto`s (for mroto`s) mortal, ‘a`mbrotos immortal, Skr. m&rsdot; to die, m&rsdot;ta death. √105. Cf. Amaranth, Ambrosia, Mortal.] The offense of killing a human being with malice prepense or aforethought, express or implied; intentional and unlawful homicide. “Mordre will out.” Chaucer.

The killing of their children had, in the account of God, the guilt of murder, as the offering them to idols had the guilt of idolatry.

Locke.

Slaughter grows murder when it goes too far.

Dryden.

&fist; Murder in the second degree, in most jurisdictions, is a malicious homicide committed without a specific intention to take life. Wharton.

Mur”der, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Murdered (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Murdering.] [OE. mortheren, murtheren, AS. myrðrian; akin to OHG. murdiren, Goth. maúrþrjan. See Murder, n.] 1. To kill with premediated malice; to kill (a human being) willfully, deliberately, and unlawfully. See Murder, n.

2. To destroy; to put an end to.

[Canst thou] murder thy breath in middle of a word?

Shak.

3. To mutilate, spoil, or deform, as if with malice or cruelty; to mangle; as, to murder the king’s English.

Syn. — To kill; assassinate; slay. See Kill.

Mur”der*er (mûr”d&etilde;r*&etilde;r), n. 1. One guilty of murder; a person who, in possession of his reason, unlawfully kills a human being with premeditated malice.

2. A small cannon, formerly used for clearing a ship’s decks of boarders; — called also murdering piece. [Obs.]

Mur”der*ess, n. A woman who commits murder.

Mur”der*ment (?), n. Murder. [Obs.] Farfax.

Mur”der*ous (?), a. Of or pertaining to murder; characterized by, or causing, murder or bloodshed; having the purpose or quality of murder; bloody; sanguinary; as, the murderous king; murderous rapine; murderous intent; a murderous assault. “Murderous coward.” Shak. — Mur”der*ous*ly, adv.

Syn. — Bloody; sanguinary; bloodguilty; bloodthirsty; fell; savage; cruel.

Mur”dress (?), n. A battlement in ancient fortifications with interstices for firing through.

Mure (?), n. [L. murus; or F. mur, fr. L. murus. Cf. Munition.] A wall. [Obs.] Shak.

Mure, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mured (?).] [F. murer, L. murare. See Mure, n.] To inclose in walls; to wall; to immure; to shut up. Spenser.

The five kings are mured in a cave.

John. x. (Heading).

Mu”ren*ger (?), n. One who had charge of the wall of a town, or its repairs.

||Mu”rex (?), n.; pl. Murices (#). [L., the purple fish.] (Zoöl.) A genus of marine gastropods, having rough, and frequently spinose, shells, which are often highly colored inside; the rock shells. They abound in tropical seas.

Mu*rex”an (?), n. [From Murexide.] (Chem.) A complex nitrogenous substance obtained from murexide, alloxantin, and other ureids, as a white, or yellowish, crystalline which turns red on exposure to the air; — called also uramil, dialuramide, and formerly purpuric acid.

Mu*rex”ide (?), n. [L. murex the purple fish, purple.] (Chem.) A crystalline nitrogenous substance having a splendid dichroism, being green by reflected light and garnet-red by transmitted light. It was formerly used in dyeing calico, and was obtained in a large quantities from guano. Formerly called also ammonium purpurate.

Mu*rex”o*ïn (?), n. (Chem.) A complex nitrogenous compound obtained as a scarlet crystalline substance, and regarded as related to murexide.

Mu”ri*ate (?), n. [See Muriatic.] (Chem.) A salt of muriatic hydrochloric acid; a chloride; as, muriate of ammonia.

&fist; This term, as also the word muriatic, was formerly applied to the chlorides before their true composition was understood, and while they were erroneously supposed to be compounds of an acid with an oxide. Muriate and muriatic are still occasionally used as commercial terms, but are obsolete in scientific language.

Mu”ri*a`ted (?), a. 1. Put in brine. Evelyn.

2. (Chem.) Combined or impregnated with muriatic or hydrochloric acid.

3. (Photog.) Prepared with chloride of silver through the agency of common salt.

Mu`ri*at”ic (?), a. [L. muriaticus pickled, from muria brine: cf. F. muriatique.] (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or obtained from, sea salt, or from chlorine, one of the constituents of sea salt; hydrochloric.

Muriatic acid, hydrochloric acid, HCl; — formerly called also marine acid, and spirit of salt. See hydrochloric, and the Note under Muriate.

Mu`ri*a*tif”er*ous (?), a. [Muriatic + -ferous.] (Old Chem.) Producing muriatic substances or salt. [Obs.]

{ Mu”ri*cate (?), Mu”ri*ca`ted (?), } a. [L. muricatus, fr. murex a pointed rock or stone.] Formed with sharp points; full of sharp points or of pickles; covered, or roughened, as a surface, with sharp points or excrescences.

Mu”ri*coid (?), a. [Murex + - oid.] (Zoöl.) Like, or pertaining to, the genus Murex, or family Muricidæ.

Mu*ric”u*late (?), a. Minutely muricate.

Mu”ride (?), n. [L. muria brine.] (Old Chem.) Bromine; — formerly so called from its being obtained from sea water.

Mu”ri*form (?), a. [L. murus a wall + -form.] (Bot.) Resembling courses of bricks or stones in squareness and regular arrangement; as, a muriform variety of cellular tissue.

Mu”rine (?), a. [L. murinus, from mus, muris, mouse: cf. F. murin.] (Zoöl.) Pertaining to a family of rodents (Muridæ), of which the mouse is the type.

Mu”rine, n. (Zoöl.) One of a tribe of rodents, of which the mouse is the type.

Mu”rin*ger (?), n. See Murenger. Jacob.

Murk (?), a. [See Murky.] Dark; murky.

He can not see through the mantle murk.

J. R. Drake.

Murk, n. Darkness; mirk. [Archaic] Shak.

Murk, n. The refuse of fruit, after the juice has been expressed; marc.

Murk”i*ly (?), adv. Darkly; gloomily.

Murk”i*ness, n. The state of being murky.

Murk”y (?), a. [Compar. Murkier (?); superl. Murkiest.] [OE. mirke, merke, AS. myrce, mirce; akin to Icel. myrkr, Dan. & Sw. mörk.] Dark; obscure; gloomy. “The murkiest den.” Shak.

A murky deep lowering o’er our heads.

Addison.

Mur”lins (?), n. (Bot.) A seaweed. See Baddrelocks.

Mur”mur (?), n. [F. murmure: cf. L. murmur. CF. Murmur, v. i.] 1. A low, confused, and indistinct sound, like that of running water.

2. A complaint half suppressed, or uttered in a low, muttering voice. Chaucer.

Some discontents there are, some idle murmurs.

Dryden.

Mur”mur, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Murmured (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Murmuring.] [F. murmurer, L. murmurare, murmurari, fr. murmur murmur; cf. Gr.&?; to roar and boil, said of water, Skr. marmara a rustling sound; prob. of imitative origin.] 1. To make a low continued noise, like the hum of bees, a stream of water, distant waves, or the wind in a forest.

They murmured as doth a swarm of bees.

Chaucer.

2. To utter complaints in a low, half- articulated voice; to feel or express dissatisfaction or discontent; to grumble; — often with at or against. “His disciples murmured at it.” John vi. 61.

And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron.

Num. xiv. 2.

Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured.

1 Cor. x. 10.

Mur”mur, v. t. To utter or give forth in low or indistinct words or sounds; as, to murmur tales. Shak.

The people murmured such things concerning him.

John vii. 32.

Mur`mur*a”tion (?), n. [L. murmuratio.] The act of murmuring; a murmur. [Obs.] Skelton.

Mur”mur*er (?), n. One who murmurs.

Mur”mur*ing, a. & n. Uttering murmurs; making low sounds; complaining. — Mur”mur*ing*ly, adv.

Mur”mur*ous (?), a. [Cf. L. murmuriosus, OF. murmuros.] Attended with murmurs; exciting murmurs or complaint; murmuring. [Archaic or Poetic]

The lime, a summer home of murmurous wings.

Tennyson.

Mur”ni*val (?), n. [Perh. fr. F. mornifle a game at cards.] In the game of gleek, four cards of the same value, as four aces or four kings; hence, four of anything. [Obs.] [Written also mournival.]

Mur”phy (?), n. A potato. [Humorous] Thackeray.

Murr (?), n. [Prob. abbrev. from murrain.] A catarrh. [Obs.] Gascoigne.

Mur”rain (?), n. [OE. moreine, OF. morine, fr. OF. morir, murir, 8die, L. mori, moriri.] (Far.) An infectious and fatal disease among cattle. Bacon.

A murrain on you, may you be afflicted with a pestilent disease. Shak.

Mur”rain, a. Having, or afflicted with, murrain.

Mur”ray*in (?), n. (Chem.) A glucoside found in the flowers of a plant (Murraya exotica) of South Asia, and extracted as a white amorphous slightly bitter substance.

Murre (?), n. (Zoöl.) Any one of several species of sea birds of the genus Uria, or Catarractes; a guillemot.

&fist; The murres are allied to the auks, and are abundant on the northern coasts of Europe and America. They often breed in large communities on the projecting ledges of precipituous cliffs, laying one or two large eggs on the bare rocks.

Murre”let (?), n. [Murre + - let.] (Zoöl.) One of several species of sea birds of the genera Synthliboramphus and Brachyramphus, inhabiting the North Pacific. They are closely related to the murres.

Mur”rey (?), n. [OF. morée a dark red color, mor blackish brown, fr. L. morum mulberry, blackberry, or fr. Maurus a Moor. Cf. Mulberry, Moor, Morelle.] A dark red color. — a. Of a dark red color. Bacon.

Mur”rhine (?), a. [L. murrhinus, fr. murrha: cf. F. murrhin.] Made of the stone or material called by the Romans murrha; — applied to certain costly vases of great beauty and delicacy used by the luxurious in Rome as wine cups; as, murrhine vases, cups, vessels.

Murrhine glass, glassware made in imitation of murrhine vases and cups.

Mur”ri*on (?), a. [See Murrain.] Infected with or killed by murrain. [Obs.] Shak.

Mur”ri*on, n. A morion. See Morion.

Mur”ry (?), n. (Zoöl.) See Muræna.

Murth (?), n. [Etymol. uncertain.] Plenty; abundance. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.]

Mur”ther (?), n. & v. Murder, n. & v. [Obs. or Prov.] “The treason of the murthering.” Chaucer.

Mur”ther*er (?), n. A murderer. [Obs. or Prov.]

Mur”za (?), n. One of the hereditary nobility among the Tatars, esp. one of the second class.

&fist; This word must not be confounded with the Persian Mirza, though perhaps of the same origin.

||Mus (?), n.; pl. Mures (#). [L., a mouse.] (Zoöl.) A genus of small rodents, including the common mouse and rat.

||Mu”sa (?), n.; pl. Musæ (#). [NL., fr. Ar. mauz, mauza, banana.] (Bot.) A genus of perennial, herbaceous, endogenous plants of great size, including the banana (Musa sapientum), the plantain (M. paradisiaca of Linnæus, but probably not a distinct species), the Abyssinian (M. Ensete), the Philippine Island (M. textilis, which yields Manila hemp), and about eighteen other species. See Illust. of Banana and Plantain.

Mu*sa”ceous (?), a. Of, pertaining to, or resembling, plants of the genus Musa.

Mus”al (?), a. Of or pertaining to the Muses, or to Poetry. [R.]

Mu*sang” (?), n. (Zoöl.) A small animal of Java (Paradoxirus fasciatus), allied to the civets. It swallows, but does not digest, large quantities of ripe coffee berries, thus serving to disseminate the coffee plant; hence it is called also coffee rat.

Mu”sar (?), n. An itinerant player on the musette, an instrument formerly common in Europe.

Mu”sard (?), n. [F., fr. muser to loiter, trifle. See Muse, v. i.] A dreamer; an absent-minded person. [Obs.] Rom. of R.

||Mus”ca (?), n.; pl. Muscæ (#). [L., a fly.] 1. (Zoöl.) A genus of dipterous insects, including the common house fly, and numerous allied species.

&fist; Formerly, a large part of the Diptera were included under the genus Musca.

2. (Astron.) A small constellation situated between the Southern Cross and the Pole.

||Muscæ volitantes (&?;). [L., flying flies.] (Med.) Specks or filaments apparently seen moving or gliding about in the field of vision. Their appearance is often a symptom of disease of the eye, or of disorder of the nervous system.

Mus”ca*del` (?), n. [It. moscadello, moscatello, LL. muscatellum or muscadellum (sc. vinum), fr. muscatellus nutmeglike, dim. of muscatus smelling like musk, muscatum and muscata (sc. nux) nutmeg: cf. F. muscadelle, fr. Italian. See Musk and cf. Moschatel, Muscardin, Muscat, Nutmeg.] See Muscatel, n.

Quaffed off the muscadel.

Shak.

Mus”ca*dine (?), n. [See Muscadel.] 1. (Bot.) A name given to several very different kinds of grapes, but in America used chiefly for the scuppernong, or southern fox grape, which is said to be the parent stock of the Catawba. See Grapevine.

2. (Bot.) A fragrant and delicious pear.

3. (Zoöl.) See Muscardin.

Northern muscadine (Bot.), a derivative of the northern fox grape, and scarcely an improvement upon it. — Royal muscadine (Bot.), a European grape of great value. Its berries are large, round, and of a pale amber color. Called also golden chasselas.

||Mus*ca”les (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. L. muscus moss.] (Bot.) An old name for mosses in the widest sense, including the true mosses and also hepaticæ and sphagna.

Mus”cal*longe (?), n. (Zoöl.) See Muskellunge.

Mus”car*din (?), n. [F., fr. muscadin a musk-scented lozenge, fr. muscade nutmeg, fr. L. muscus musk. See Muscadel.] (Zoöl.) The common European dormouse; — so named from its odor. [Written also muscadine.]

Mus`car*dine” (?), n. [F.] A disease which is very destructive to silkworms, and which sometimes extends to other insects. It is attended by the development of a fungus (provisionally called Botrytis bassiana). Also, the fungus itself.

Mus*car”i*form (?), a. [L. muscarium fly brush + -form.] Having the form of a brush.

Mus*ca”rin (?), n. (Physiol. Chem.) A solid crystalline substance, C_5H_13NO_2, found in the toadstool (Agaricus muscarius), and in putrid fish. It is a typical ptomaine, and a violent poison.

Mus”cat (?), n. [F. See Muscadel.] (Bot.) A name given to several varieties of Old World grapes, differing in color, size, etc., but all having a somewhat musky flavor. The muscat of Alexandria is a large oval grape of a pale amber color. [Written also muskat.]

Mus”ca*tel` (?), a. Of, pertaining to, or designating, or derived from, a muscat grapes or similar grapes; as, muscatel grapes; muscatel wine, etc.

Mus”ca*tel`, n. 1. A common name for several varieties of rich sweet wine, made in Italy, Spain, and France.

2. pl. Finest raisins, dried on the vine; “sun raisins.”

[Variously written moscatel, muscadel, etc.]

||Musch”el*kalk` (?), n. [G., from muschel shell + kalk limestone.] (Geol.) A kind of shell limestone, whose strata form the middle one of the three divisions of the Triassic formation in Germany. See Chart, under Geology.

||Mus”ci (?), n. pl. [L. muscus moss.] (Bot.) An order or subclass of cryptogamous plants; the mosses. See Moss, and Cryptogamia.

Mus*cic”a*pine (?), a. [L. musca a fly + capere to catch.] (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Muscicapidæ, a family of birds that includes the true flycatchers.

Mus”cid (?), n. Any fly of the genus Musca, or family Muscidæ.

Mus”ci*form (?), a. [Musca + -form.] (Zoöl.) Having the form or structure of flies of the genus Musca, or family Muscidæ.

Mus”ci*form, a. [Muscus + - form.] (Bot.) Having the appearance or form of a moss.

Mus”cle (?), n. [F., fr. L. musculus a muscle, a little mouse, dim. of mus a mouse. See Mouse, and cf. sense 3 (below).] 1. (Anat.) (a) An organ which, by its contraction, produces motion. See Illust. of Muscles of the Human Body, in Appendix. (b) The contractile tissue of which muscles are largely made up.

&fist; Muscles are of two kinds, striated and nonstriated. The striated muscles, which, in most of the higher animals, constitute the principal part of the flesh, exclusive of the fat, are mostly under the control of the will, or voluntary, and are made up of great numbers of elongated fibres bound together into bundles and inclosed in a sheath of connective tissue, the perimysium. Each fiber is inclosed in a delicate membrane (the sarcolemma), is made up of alternate segments of lighter and darker material which give it a transversely striated appearance, and contains, scattered through its substance, protoplasmic nuclei, the so-called muscle corpuscles.

The nonstriated muscles are involuntary. They constitute a large part of the walls of the alimentary canal, blood vessels, uterus, and bladder, and are found also in the iris, skin, etc. They are made up of greatly elongated cells, usually grouped in bundles or sheets.

2. Muscular strength or development; as, to show one’s muscle by lifting a heavy weight. [Colloq.]

3. [AS. muscle, L. musculus a muscle, mussel. See above.] (Zoöl.) See Mussel.

Muscle curve (Physiol.), contraction curve of a muscle; a myogram; the curve inscribed, upon a prepared surface, by means of a myograph when acted upon by a contracting muscle. The character of the curve represents the extent of the contraction.

Mus”cled (?), a. Furnished with muscles; having muscles; as, things well muscled.

Mus”cling (?), n. (Fine Arts) Exhibition or representation of the muscles. [R.]

A good piece, the painters say, must have good muscling, as well as coloring and drapery.

Shaftesbury.

Mus*co”gees (?), n. pl. See Muskogees.

Mus”coid (?), a. [Muscus + - oid: cf. F. muscoide.] (Bot.) Mosslike; resembling moss.

Mus”coid, n. (Bot.) A term formerly applied to any mosslike flowerless plant, with a distinct stem, and often with leaves, but without any vascular system.

Mus*col”o*gy (?), n. [Muscus + -logy.] Bryology.

Mus*cos”i*ty (?), n. [L. muscosus mossy, fr. muscus moss.] Mossiness. Jonhson.

Mus`co*va”do (?), a. [Corrupted fr. Sp. mascabado; cf. Pg. mascavado, F. moscouade, n., formerly also mascovade, It. mascavato.] Pertaining to, or of the nature of, unrefined or raw sugar, obtained from the juice of the sugar cane by evaporating and draining off the molasses. Muscovado sugar contains impurities which render it dark colored and moist.

Mus`co*va”do, n. Unrefined or raw sugar.

Mus”co*vite (?), n. [See Muscovy glass.] 1. A native or inhabitant of Muscovy or ancient Russia; hence, a Russian.

2. (Min.) Common potash mica. See Mica.

Mus”co*vy duck` (?). [A corruption of musk duck.] (Zoöl.) A duck (Cairina moschata), larger than the common duck, often raised in poultry yards. Called also musk duck. It is native of tropical America, from Mexico to Southern Brazil.

Mus”co*vy glass` (?). [From Muscovy, the old name of Russia: cf. F. verre de Moscovie.] Mica; muscovite. See Mica.

Mus”cu*lar (?), a. [Cf. F. musculaire. See Muscle.] 1. Of or pertaining to a muscle, or to a system of muscles; consisting of, or constituting, a muscle or muscles; as, muscular fiber.

Great muscular strength, accompanied by much awkwardness.

Macaulay.

2. Performed by, or dependent on, a muscle or the muscles. “The muscular motion.” Arbuthnot.

3. Well furnished with muscles; having well- developed muscles; brawny; hence, strong; powerful; vigorous; as, a muscular body or arm.

Muscular Christian, one who believes in a part of religious duty to maintain a healthful and vigorous physical state. T. Hughes. — Muscular Christianity. (a) The practice and opinion of those Christians who believe that it is a part of religious duty to maintain a vigorous condition of the body, and who therefore approve of athletic sports and exercises as conductive to good health, good morals, and right feelings in religious matters. T. Hughes. (b) An active, robust, and cheerful Christian life, as opposed to a meditative and gloomy one. C. Kingsley. — Muscular excitability (Physiol.), that property in virtue of which a muscle shortens, when it is stimulated; irritability. — Muscular sense (Physiol.), muscular sensibility; the sense by which we obtain knowledge of the condition of our muscles and to what extent they are contracted, also of the position of the various parts of our bodies and the resistance offering by external objects.

Mus`cu*lar”i*ty (?), n. The state or quality of being muscular. Grew.

Mus”cu*lar*ize (?), v. t. To make muscular. Lowell.

Mus”cu*lar*ly, adv. In a muscular manner.

Mus`cu*la”tion (?), n. (Anat.) The muscular system of an animal, or of any of its parts.

Mus”cu*la*ture (?), n. [Cf. F. musculature.] (Anat.) Musculation.

Mus”cule (?), n. [L. musculus: cf. F. muscule.] (Mil.) A long movable shed used by besiegers in ancient times in attacking the walls of a fortified town.

Mus”cu*lin (?), n. [L. musculus a muscle.] (Physiol. Chem.) See Syntonin.

Mus`cu*lo*cu*ta”ne*ous (?), a. [L. musculus + E. cutaneous.] (Anat.) Pertaining both to muscles and skin; as, the musculocutaneous nerve.

Mus`cu*lo*phren”ic (?), a. [L. musculus muscle + E. phrenic.] (Anat.) Pertaining to the muscles and the diaphragm; as, the musculophrenic artery.

Mus`cu*los”i*ty (?), n. The quality or state of being musculous; muscularity. [Obs.]

Mus`cu*lo*spi”ral (?), a. [L. musculus muscle + E. spiral.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the muscles, and taking a spiral course; — applied esp. to a large nerve of the arm.

Mus”cu*lous (?), a. [L. musculosus: cf. F. musculeux.] Muscular. [Obs.] Jonhson.

Muse (?), n. [From F. musse. See Muset.] A gap or hole in a hedge, hence, wall, or the like, through which a wild animal is accustomed to pass; a muset.

Find a hare without a muse.

Old Prov.

Muse, n. [F. Muse, L. Musa, Gr. &?;. Cf. Mosaic, n., Music.] 1. (Class. Myth.) One of the nine goddesses who presided over song and the different kinds of poetry, and also the arts and sciences; — often used in the plural.

Granville commands; your aid, O Muses, bring:
What Muse for Granville can refuse to sing?

Pope.

&fist; The names of the Muses were Calliope, Clio, Erato, Euterpe, Melpomene, Polymnia or Polyhymnia, Terpsichore, Thalia, and Urania.

2. A particular power and practice of poetry. Shak.

3. A poet; a bard. [R.] Milton.

Muse, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Mused (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Musing.] [F. muser to loiter or trifle, orig., to stand with open mouth, fr. LL. musus, morsus, muzzle, snout, fr. L. morsus a biting, bite, fr. mordere to bite. See Morsel, and cf. Amuse, Muzzle, n.] 1. To think closely; to study in silence; to meditate. “Thereon mused he.” Chaucer.

He mused upon some dangerous plot.

Sir P. Sidney.

2. To be absent in mind; to be so occupied in study or contemplation as not to observe passing scenes or things present; to be in a brown study. Daniel.

3. To wonder. [Obs.] Spenser. B. Jonson.

Syn. — To consider; meditate; ruminate. See Ponder.

Muse, v. t. 1. To think on; to meditate on.

Come, then, expressive Silence, muse his praise.

Thomson.

2. To wonder at. [Obs.] Shak.

Muse, n. 1. Contemplation which abstracts the mind from passing scenes; absorbing thought; hence, absence of mind; a brown study. Milton.

2. Wonder, or admiration. [Obs.] Spenser.

Muse”ful (?), a. Meditative; thoughtfully silent. “Museful mopings.” Dryden. – - Muse”ful*ly, adv.

Muse”less, a. Unregardful of the Muses; disregarding the power of poetry; unpoetical. Milton.

Mus”er (?), n. One who muses.

Mu”set (?), n. [OF. mussette, dim. of musse, muce, a hiding place, fr. F. musser, OF. mucier, muchier, to conceal, hide. Cf. Micher.] A small hole or gap through which a wild animal passes; a muse. Shak.

Mu*sette” (?), n. [F., dim. of OF. muse.] 1. A small bagpipe formerly in use, having a soft and sweet tone.

2. An air adapted to this instrument; also, a kind of rustic dance.

Mu*se”um (?), n. [L., a temple of the Muses, hence, a place of study, fr. Gr. &?;, fr. &?; a Muse.] A repository or a collection of natural, scientific, or literary curiosities, or of works of art.

Museum beetle, Museum pest. (Zoöl.) See Anthrenus.

Mush (?), n. [Cf. Gael. mus, muss, pap, porridge, any thick preparation of fruit, OHG. muos; akin to AS. & OS. mōs food, and prob, to E. meat. See Meat.] Meal (esp. Indian meal) boiled in water; hasty pudding; supawn. [U.S.]

Mush, v. t. [Cf. F. moucheter to cut with small cuts.] To notch, cut, or indent, as cloth, with a stamp.

Mush”room (?), n. [OE. muscheron, OF. mouscheron, F. mousseron; perhaps fr. mousse moss, of German origin. See Moss.] 1. (Bot.) (a) An edible fungus (Agaricus campestris), having a white stalk which bears a convex or oven flattish expanded portion called the pileus. This is whitish and silky or somewhat scaly above, and bears on the under side radiating gills which are at first flesh-colored, but gradually become brown. The plant grows in rich pastures and is proverbial for rapidity of growth and shortness of duration. It has a pleasant smell, and is largely used as food. It is also cultivated from spawn. (b) Any large fungus, especially one of the genus Agaricus; a toadstool. Several species are edible; but many are very poisonous.

2. One who rises suddenly from a low condition in life; an upstart. Bacon.

Mush”room, a. 1. Of or pertaining to mushrooms; as, mushroom catchup.

2. Resembling mushrooms in rapidity of growth and shortness of duration; short-lived; ephemerial; as, mushroom cities.

Mushroom anchor, an anchor shaped like a mushroom, capable of grasping the ground in whatever way it falls. — Mushroom coral (Zoöl.), any coral of the genus Fungia. See Fungia. — Mushroom spawn (Bot.), the mycelium, or primary filamentous growth, of the mushroom; also, cakes of earth and manure containing this growth, which are used for propagation of the mushroom.

Mush”room-head`ed (?), a. (Bot.) Having a cylindrical body with a convex head of larger diameter; having a head like that of a mushroom.

Mush”y (?), a. Soft like mush; figuratively, good-naturedly weak and effusive; weakly sentimental.

She ‘s not mushy, but her heart is tender.

G. Eliot.

Mu”sic (?), n. [F. musique, fr. L. musica, Gr. &?; (sc. &?;), any art over which the Muses presided, especially music, lyric poetry set and sung to music, fr. &?; belonging to Muses or fine arts, fr. &?; Muse.] 1. The science and the art of tones, or musical sounds, i. e., sounds of higher or lower pitch, begotten of uniform and synchronous vibrations, as of a string at various degrees of tension; the science of harmonical tones which treats of the principles of harmony, or the properties, dependences, and relations of tones to each other; the art of combining tones in a manner to please the ear.

&fist; Not all sounds are tones. Sounds may be unmusical and yet please the ear. Music deals with tones, and with no other sounds. See Tone.

2. (a) Melody; a rhythmical and otherwise agreeable succession of tones. (b) Harmony; an accordant combination of simultaneous tones.

3. The written and printed notation of a musical composition; the score.

4. Love of music; capacity of enjoying music.

The man that hath no music in himself
Nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds,
Is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils.

Shak.

5. (Zoöl.) A more or less musical sound made by many of the lower animals. See Stridulation.

Magic music, a game in which a person is guided in finding a hidden article, or in doing a specific art required, by music which is made more loud or rapid as he approaches success, and slower as he recedes. Tennyson. — Music box. See Musical box, under Musical. — Music hall, a place for public musical entertainments. — Music loft, a gallery for musicians, as in a dancing room or a church. – - Music of the spheres, the harmony supposed to be produced by the accordant movement of the celestial spheres. — Music paper, paper ruled with the musical staff, for the use of composers and copyists. — Music pen, a pen for ruling at one time the five lines of the musical staff. — Music shell (Zoöl.), a handsomely colored marine gastropod shell (Voluta musica) found in the East Indies; — so called because the color markings often resemble printed music. Sometimes applied to other shells similarly marked. — To face the music, to meet any disagreeable necessity without flinching. [Colloq. or Slang]

Mu”sic*al (?), a. [Cf. F. musical.] Of or pertaining to music; having the qualities of music; or the power of producing music; devoted to music; melodious; harmonious; as, musical proportion; a musical voice; musical instruments; a musical sentence; musical persons.

Musical, or Music, box, a box or case containing apparatus moved by clockwork so as to play certain tunes automatically. — Musical fish (Zoöl.), any fish which utters sounds under water, as the drumfish, grunt, gizzard shad, etc. — Musical glasses, glass goblets or bowls so tuned and arranged that when struck, or rubbed, they produce musical notes. Cf. Harmonica, 1.

Mu”sic*al, n. 1. Music. [Obs.]

To fetch home May with their musical.

Spenser.

2. A social entertainment of which music is the leading feature; a musical party. [Colloq.]

||Mu`si`cale” (?), n. [F. Cf. Soirée musicale.] A social musical party. [Colloq.]

Mu”sic*al*ly (?), adv. In a musical manner.

Mu”sic*al*ness, n. The quality of being musical.

Mu*si”cian (?), n. [F. musicien.] One skilled in the art or science of music; esp., a skilled singer, or performer on a musical instrument.

Mu`si*co*ma”ni*a (?), n. [Music + mania: cf. F. musicomanie.] (Med.) A kind of monomania in which the passion for music becomes so strong as to derange the intellectual faculties. Dunglison.

Mus”i*mon (?), n. [See Musmon.] (Zoöl.) See Mouflon.

Mus”ing*ly (?), adv. In a musing manner.

Mu”sit (?), n. See Muset.

Musk (?), n. [F. musc, L. muscus, Per. musk, fr. Skr. mushka testicle, orig., a little mouse. See Mouse, and cd. Abelmosk, Muscadel, Muscovy duck, Nutmeg.] 1. A substance of a reddish brown color, and when fresh of the consistence of honey, obtained from a bag being behind the navel of the male musk deer. It has a slightly bitter taste, but is specially remarkable for its powerful and enduring odor. It is used in medicine as a stimulant antispasmodic. The term is also applied to secretions of various other animals, having a similar odor.

2. (Zoöl.) The musk deer. See Musk deer (below).

3. The perfume emitted by musk, or any perfume somewhat similar.

4. (Bot.) (a) The musk plant (Mimulus moschatus). (b) A plant of the genus Erodium (E. moschatum); — called also musky heron’s-bill. (c) A plant of the genus Muscari; grape hyacinth.

Musk beaver (Zoöl.), muskrat (1). — Musk beetle (Zoöl.), a European longicorn beetle (Aromia moschata), having an agreeable odor resembling that of attar of roses. — Musk cat. See Bondar. — Musk cattle (Zoöl.), musk oxen. See Musk ox (below). — Musk deer (Zoöl.), a small hornless deer (Moschus moschiferus), which inhabits the elevated parts of Central Asia. The upper canine teeth of the male are developed into sharp tusks, curved downward. The male has scent bags on the belly, from which the musk of commerce is derived. The deer is yellow or red-brown above, whitish below. The pygmy musk deer are chevrotains, as the kanchil and napu. — Musk duck. (Zoöl.) (a) The Muscovy duck. (b) An Australian duck (Biziura lobata). — Musk lorikeet (Zoöl.), the Pacific lorikeet (Glossopsitta australis) of Australia. — Musk mallow (Bot.), a name of two malvaceous plants: (a) A species of mallow (Malva moschata), the foliage of which has a faint musky smell. (b) An Asiatic shrub. See Abelmosk. – - Musk orchis (Bot.), a European plant of the Orchis family (Herminium Minorchis); — so called from its peculiar scent. — Musk ox (Zoöl.), an Arctic hollow-horned ruminant (Ovibos moschatus), now existing only in America, but found fossil in Europe and Asia. It is covered with a thick coat of fine yellowish wool, and with long dark hair, which is abundant and shaggy on the neck and shoulders. The full-grown male weighs over four hundred pounds. — Musk parakeet. (Zoöl.) Same as Musk lorikeet (above). — Musk pear (Bot.), a fragrant kind of pear much resembling the Seckel pear. — Musk plant (Bot.), the Mimulus moschatus, a plant found in Western North America, often cultivated, and having a strong musky odor. — Musk root (Bot.), the name of several roots with a strong odor, as that of the nard (Nardostachys Jatamansi) and of a species of Angelica. — Musk rose (Bot.), a species of rose (Rosa moschata), having peculiarly fragrant white blossoms. — Musk seed (Bot.), the seed of a plant of the Mallow family (Hibiscus moschatus), used in perfumery and in flavoring. See Abelmosk. — Musk sheep (Zoöl.), the musk ox. — Musk shrew (Zoöl.), a shrew (Sorex murinus), found in India. It has a powerful odor of musk. Called also sondeli, and mondjourou. — Musk thistle (Bot.), a species of thistle (Carduus nutans), having fine large flowers, and leaves smelling strongly of musk. — Musk tortoise, Musk turtle (Zoöl.), a small American fresh- water tortoise (Armochelys, or Ozotheca, odorata), which has a distinct odor of musk; — called also stinkpot.

Musk (mŭsk), v. t. To perfume with musk.

Mus”ka*del` (mŭs”k&adot;*d&ebreve;l`), n. See Muscadel.

Mus”kat (mŭs”kăt), n. See Muscat.

Mus”kel*lunge (?), n. [From the Amer. Indian name.] (Zoöl.) A large American pike (Esox nobilior) found in the Great Lakes, and other Northern lakes, and in the St. Lawrence River. It is valued as a food fish. [Written also maskallonge, maskinonge, muskallonge, muskellonge, and muskelunjeh.]

Mus”ket (?), n. [F. mousquet, It. moschetto, formerly, a kind of hawk; cf. OF. mousket, moschet, a kind of hawk falcon, F. mouchet, prop., a little fly (the hawk prob. being named from its size), fr. L. musca a fly. Cf. Mosquito.] [Sometimes written also musquet.] 1. (Zoöl.) The male of the sparrow hawk.

2. A species of firearm formerly carried by the infantry of an army. It was originally fired by means of a match, or matchlock, for which several mechanical appliances (including the flintlock, and finally the percussion lock) were successively substituted. This arm has been generally superseded by the rifle.

Mus`ket*eer” (?), n. [F. mousquetaire; cf. It. moschettiere.] A soldier armed with a musket.

Mus*ke”to (?), n. See Mosquito.

Mus`ket*oon” (?), n. [F. mousqueton; cf. It. moschettone.] 1. A short musket.

2. One who is armed with such a musket.

Mus”ket*ry (?), n. [F. mousqueterie; cf. It. moschetteria.] 1. Muskets, collectively.

2. The fire of muskets. Motley.

Musk”i*ness (?), n. The quality or state of being musky; the scent of musk.

Musk”mel`on (?), n. [Musk + melon.] (Bot.) The fruit of a cucurbitaceous plant (Cucumis Melo), having a peculiar aromatic flavor, and cultivated in many varieties, the principal sorts being the cantaloupe (Cucumis Melo cantalupensis), of oval form and yellowish flesh, and the smaller nutmeg melon with greenish flesh. See Illust. of Melon.

Mus*ko”gees (?), n. pl.; sing. Muskogee (&?;). (Ethnol.) A powerful tribe of North American Indians that formerly occupied the region of Georgia, Florida, and Alabama. They constituted a large part of the Creek confederacy. [Written also Muscogees.]

Musk”rat` (?), n. 1. (Zoöl.) A North American aquatic fur-bearing rodent (Fiber zibethicus). It resembles a rat in color and having a long scaly tail, but the tail is compressed, the hind feet are webbed, and the ears are concealed in the fur. It has scent glands which secrete a substance having a strong odor of musk. Called also musquash, musk beaver, and ondatra.

2. (Zoöl.) The musk shrew.

3. (Zoöl.) The desman.

Musk”wood` (?), n. [So called from its fragrance.] (Bot.) (a) The wood of a West Indian tree of the Mahogany family (Moschoxylum Swartzii). (b) The wood of an Australian tree (Eurybia argophylla).

Musk”y (?), a. Having an odor of musk, or somewhat the like. Milton.

Mus”lim (?), n. See Moslem.

Mus”lin (?), n. [F. mousseline; cf. It. mussolino, mussolo, Sp. muselina; all from Mussoul a city of Mesopotamia, Ar. Mausil, Syr. Mauzol, Muzol, Mosul, where it was first manufactured. Cf. Mull a kind of cloth.] A thin cotton, white, dyed, or printed. The name is also applied to coarser and heavier cotton goods; as, shirting and sheeting muslins.

Muslin cambric. See Cambric. — Muslin delaine, a light woolen fabric for women’s dresses. See Delaine. [Written also mousseline de laine.]

Mus`lin*et” (?), n. [F. mousselinette.] A sort of coarse or light cotton cloth.

Mus”mon (?), n. [L. musmo, musimo, a Sardinian animal; cf. Gr. moy`smwn.] (Zoöl.) See Mouflon.

Mu`so*ma”ni*a (?), n. See Musicomania.

Mus”quash (?), n. [American Indian name.] (Zoöl.) See Muskrat.

Musquash root (Bot.), an umbelliferous plant (Cicuta maculata), having a poisonous root. See Water hemlock.

||Mus”quaw (?), n. [American Indian name.] (Zoöl.) The American black bear. See Bear.

Mus”quet (?), n. See Musket.

Mus*qui”to (?), n. (Zoöl.) See Mosquito.

{ Mus”role, Mus”rol } (?), n. [F. muserolle, fr. muserau a muzzle, OF. musel. See Muzzle.] The nose band of a horse’s bridle.

Muss (?), n. [Cf. OF. mousche a fly, also, the play called muss, fr. L. musca a fly.] A scramble, as when small objects are thrown down, to be taken by those who can seize them; a confused struggle. Shak.

Muss, n. A state of confusion or disorder; — prob. variant of mess, but influenced by muss, a scramble. [Colloq. U.S.]

Muss, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mussed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mussing.] To disarrange, as clothing; to rumple. [Colloq. U.S.]

Muss, n. [Cf. OE. mus a mouse. See Mouse.] A term of endearment. [Obs.] See Mouse. B. Jonson.

Mus”sel (?), n. [See Muscle, 3.] 1. (Zoöl.) Any one of many species of marine bivalve shells of the genus Mytilus, and related genera, of the family Mytidæ. The common mussel (Mytilus edulis; see Illust. under Byssus), and the larger, or horse, mussel (Modiola modiolus), inhabiting the shores both of Europe and America, are edible. The former is extensively used as food in Europe.

2. (Zoöl.) Any one of numerous species of Unio, and related fresh-water genera; — called also river mussel. See Naiad, and Unio.

Mussel digger (Zoöl.), the grayback whale. See Gray whale, under Gray.

Mus`si*ta”tion (?), n. [L. mussitatio suppression of the voice, fr. mussitare to be silent, to murmur.] A speaking in a low tone; mumbling. [Obs.]

Mus”site (?), n. (Min.) A variety of pyroxene, from the Mussa Alp in Piedmont; diopside.

Mus”sul*man, n.; pl. Mussulmans (#). [Ar. muslimīn, pl. of muslim: cf. F. & Sp. musulman. See Moslem.] A Mohammedan; a Moslem.

Mus`sul*man”ic (?), a. Of, pertaining to, or like, the Mussulmans, or their customs: Mohammedan.

Mus”sul*man*ish (?), a. Mohammedan.

Mus”sul*man*ism (?), n. Mohammedanism.

Mus”sul*man*ly, adv. In the manner of Moslems.

Muss”y (?), a. [From 2d Muss.] Disarranged; rumpled. [Colloq. U.S.]

Must (mŭst), v. i. or auxiliary. [OE. moste, a pret. generally meaning, could, was free to, pres. mot, moot, AS. mōste, pret. mōt, pres.; akin to D. moetan to be obliged, OS. mōtan to be free, to be obliged, OHG. muozan, G. müssen to be obliged, Sw. måste must, Goth. gamōtan to have place, have room, to able; of unknown origin.] 1. To be obliged; to be necessitated; – - expressing either physical or moral necessity; as, a man must eat for nourishment; we must submit to the laws.

2. To be morally required; to be necessary or essential to a certain quality, character, end, or result; as, he must reconsider the matter; he must have been insane.

Likewise must the deacons be grave.

1 Tim. iii. 8.

Morover, he [a bishop] must have a good report of them which are without.

1 Tim. iii. 7.

&fist; The principal verb, if easily supplied by the mind, was formerly often omitted when must was used; as, I must away. “I must to Coventry.” Shak.

Must, n. [AS. must, fr. L. mustum (sc. vinum), from mustus young, new, fresh. Cf. Mustard.] 1. The expressed juice of the grape, or other fruit, before fermentation. “These men ben full of must.” Wyclif (Acts ii. 13. ).

No fermenting must fills . . . the deep vats.

Longfellow.

2. [Cf. Musty.] Mustiness.

Must, v. t. & i. To make musty; to become musty.

Mus”tac (?), n. [F. moustac.] (Zoöl.) A small tufted monkey.

Mus*tache” (mŭs*t&adot;sh”; 277), n.; pl. Mustaches (&?;). [Written also moustache.] [F. moustache, It. mostaccio visage, mostacchio mustache, fr. Gr. my`stax upper lip and the beard upon it; cf. ma`stax mouth: cf. Sp. mostacho.] 1. That part of the beard which grows on the upper lip; hair left growing above the mouth.

2. (Zoöl.) A West African monkey (Cercopithecus cephus). It has yellow whiskers, and a triangular blue mark on the nose.

3. (Zoöl.) Any conspicuous stripe of color on the side of the head, beneath the eye of a bird.

Mus*ta”cho (?), n.; pl. Mustachios (&?;). A mustache. Longfellow.

Mus*ta”choed (?), a. Having mustachios.

Mus`ta*i”ba (?), n. A close- grained, heavy wood of a brownish color, brought from Brazil, and used in turning, for making the handles of tools, and the like. [Written also mostahiba.] MaElrath.

Mus”tang (?), n. [Sp. musteño belonging to the graziers, strayed, wild.] (Zoöl.) The half-wild horse of the plains in Mexico, California, etc. It is small, hardy, and easily sustained.

Mustard grape (Bot.), a species of grape (Vitis candicans), native in Arkansas and Texas. The berries are small, light-colored, with an acid skin and a sweet pulp.

Mus”tard (?), n. [OF. moustarde, F. moutarde, fr. L. mustum must, — mustard was prepared for use by being mixed with must. See Must, n.] 1. (Bot.) The name of several cruciferous plants of the genus Brassica (formerly Sinapis), as white mustard (B. alba), black mustard (B. Nigra), wild mustard or charlock (B. Sinapistrum).

&fist; There are also many herbs of the same family which are called mustard, and have more or less of the flavor of the true mustard; as, bowyer’s mustard (Lepidium ruderale); hedge mustard (Sisymbrium officinale); Mithridate mustard (Thlaspi arvense); tower mustard (Arabis perfoliata); treacle mustard (Erysimum cheiranthoides).

2. A powder or a paste made from the seeds of black or white mustard, used as a condiment and a rubefacient. Taken internally it is stimulant and diuretic, and in large doses is emetic.

Mustard oil (Chem.), a substance obtained from mustard, as a transparent, volatile and intensely pungent oil. The name is also extended to a number of analogous compounds produced either naturally or artificially.

Mus*tee” (?), n. See Mestee.

Mus”te*line (?), a. [L. mustelinus, fr. mustela weasel.] (Zoöl.) Like or pertaining to the family Mustelidæ, or the weasels and martens.

Mus”ter (?), n. [OE. moustre, OF. mostre, moustre, F. montre, LL. monstra. See Muster, v. t.] 1. Something shown for imitation; a pattern. [Obs.]

2. A show; a display. [Obs.] Piers Plowman.

3. An assembling or review of troops, as for parade, verification of numbers, inspection, exercise, or introduction into service.

The hurried muster of the soldiers of liberty.

Hawthorne.

See how in warlike muster they appear,
In rhombs, and wedges, and half-moons, and wings.

Milton.

4. The sum total of an army when assembled for review and inspection; the whole number of effective men in an army.

And the muster was thirty thousands of men.

Wyclif.

Ye publish the musters of your own bands, and proclaim them to amount of thousands.

Hooker.

5. Any assemblage or display; a gathering.

Of the temporal grandees of the realm, mentof their wives and daughters, the muster was great and splendid.

Macaulay.

Muster book, a book in which military forces are registered. — Muster file, a muster roll. — Muster master (Mil.), one who takes an account of troops, and of their equipment; a mustering officer; an inspector. [Eng.] — Muster roll (Mil.), a list or register of all the men in a company, troop, or regiment, present or accounted for on the day of muster. — To pass muster, to pass through a muster or inspection without censure.

Such excuses will not pass muster with God.

South.

Mus”ter, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mustered (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mustering.] [OE. mustren, prop., to show, OF. mostrer, mustrer, moustrer, monstrer, F. montrer, fr. L. monstrare to show. See Monster.] 1. To collect and display; to assemble, as troops for parade, inspection, exercise, or the like. Spenser.

2. Hence: To summon together; to enroll in service; to get together. “Mustering all its force.” Cowper.

All the gay feathers he could muster.

L’Estrange.

To muster troops into service (Mil.), to inspect and enter troops on the muster roll of the army. — To muster troops out of service (Mil.), to register them for final payment and discharge. — To muster up, to gather up; to succeed in obtaining; to obtain with some effort or difficulty.

One of those who can muster up sufficient sprightliness to engage in a game of forfeits.

Hazlitt.

Mus”ter, v. i. To be gathered together for parade, inspection, exercise, or the like; to come together as parts of a force or body; as, his supporters mustered in force. “The mustering squadron.” Byron.

Mus”ti*ly (?), a. In a musty state.

Mus”ti*ness, n. The quality or state of being musty.

Mus”ty (?), a. [Compar. Mustier (?); superl. Mustiest.] [From L. mustum must; or perh. fr. E. moist. Cf. Must, n., Moist.] 1. Having the rank, pungent, offensive odor and taste which substances of organic origin acquire during warm, moist weather; foul or sour and fetid; moldy; as, musty corn; musty books. Harvey.

2. Spoiled by age; rank; stale.

The proverb is somewhat musty.

Shak.

3. Dull; heavy; spiritless. “That he may not grow musty and unfit for conversation.” Addison.

Mu`ta*bil”i*ty (?), n. [L. mutabilitas: cf. F. mutabilité.] The quality of being mutable, or subject to change or alteration, either in form, state, or essential character; susceptibility of change; changeableness; inconstancy; variation.

Plato confessed that the heavens and the frame of the world are corporeal, and therefore subject to mutability.

Stillingfleet.

Mu”ta*ble (?), a. [L. mutabilis, fr. mutare to change. See Move.] 1. Capable of alteration; subject to change; changeable in form, qualities, or nature.

Things of the most accidental and mutable nature.

South.

2. Changeable; inconstant; unsettled; unstable; fickle. “Most mutable wishes.” Byron.

Syn. — Changeable; alterable; unstable; unsteady; unsettled; wavering; inconstant; variable; fickle.

Mu”ta*ble*ness, n. The quality of being mutable.

Mu”ta*bly, adv. Changeably.

Mu”ta*cism (?), n. See Mytacism.

Mu”tage (?), n. [F.] A process for checking the fermentation of the must of grapes.

||Mu*tan”dum (m&usl;*tăn”dŭm), n.; pl. Mutanda (#). [L., fr. mutare to change.] A thing which is to be changed; something which must be altered; — used chiefly in the plural.

Mu*ta”tion (m&usl;*tā“shŭn), n. [L. mutatio, fr. mutare to change: cf. F. mutation. See Mutable.] Change; alteration, either in form or qualities.

The vicissitude or mutations in the superior globe are no fit matter for this present argument.

Bacon.

Mutch (much), n. [Cf. D. mutse a cap, G. mütze. Cf. Amice a cape.] The close linen or muslin cap of an old woman. [Prov. Eng. & Scot.]

Mutch”kin (?), n. A liquid measure equal to four gills, or an imperial pint. [Scot.]

Mute (mūt), v. t. [L. mutare to change. See Molt.] To cast off; to molt.

Have I muted all my feathers?

Beau. & Fl.

Mute, v. t. & i. [F. mutir, émeutir, OF. esmeltir, fr. OD. smelten, prop., to melt. See Smelt.] To eject the contents of the bowels; — said of birds. B. Jonson.

Mute, n. The dung of birds. Hudibras.

Mute, a. [L. mutus; cf. Gr. &?; to shut, Skr. m&?;ta bound, m&?;ka dumb: cf. OE. muet, fr. F. muet, a dim. of OF. mu, L. mutus.] 1. Not speaking; uttering no sound; silent.

All the heavenly choir stood mute,
And silence was in heaven.

Milton.

&fist; In law a prisoner is said to stand mute, when, upon being arranged, he makes no answer, or does not plead directly, or will not put himself on trial.

2. Incapable of speaking; dumb. Dryden.

3. Not uttered; unpronounced; silent; also, produced by complete closure of the mouth organs which interrupt the passage of breath; — said of certain letters. See 5th Mute, 2.

4. Not giving a ringing sound when struck; — said of a metal.

Mute swan (Zoöl.), a European wild white swan (Cygnus gibbus), which produces no loud notes.

Syn. — Silent; dumb; speechless. — Mute, Silent, Dumb. One is silent who does not speak; one is dumb who can not, for want of the proper organs; as, a dumb beast, etc.; and hence, figuratively, we speak of a person as struck dumb with astonishment, etc. One is mute who is held back from speaking by some special cause; as, he was mute through fear; mute astonishment, etc. Such is the case with most of those who never speak from childhood; they are not ordinarily dumb, but mute because they are deaf, and therefore never learn to talk; and hence their more appropriate name is deaf-mutes.

They spake not a word;
But, like dumb statues, or breathing stones,
Gazed each on other.

Shak.

All sat mute,
Pondering the danger with deep thoughts.

Milton.

Mute, n. 1. One who does not speak, whether from physical inability, unwillingness, or other cause. Specifically: (a) One who, from deafness, either congenital or from early life, is unable to use articulate language; a deaf-mute. (b) A person employed by undertakers at a funeral. (c) A person whose part in a play does not require him to speak. (d) Among the Turks, an officer or attendant who is selected for his place because he can not speak.

2. (Phon.) A letter which represents no sound; a silent letter; also, a close articulation; an element of speech formed by a position of the mouth organs which stops the passage of the breath; as, p, b, d, k, t.

3. (Mus.) A little utensil made of brass, ivory, or other material, so formed that it can be fixed in an erect position on the bridge of a violin, or similar instrument, in order to deaden or soften the tone.

Mute”hill` (?), n. See Moot hill. [Scot.]

Mute”ly, adv. Without uttering words or sounds; in a mute manner; silently.

Mute”ness, n. The quality or state of being mute; speechlessness.

{ Mu”tic (?), Mu”ti*cous (?), } a. [L. muticus, for mutilus. See Mutilate.] (Bot. & Zoöl.) Without a point or pointed process; blunt.

Mu”ti*late (?), a. [L. mutilatus, p. p. of mutilare to mutilate, fr. mutilus maimed; cf. Gr. &?;, &?;. Cf. Mutton.] 1. Deprived of, or having lost, an important part; mutilated. Sir T. Browne.

2. (Zoöl.) Having finlike appendages or flukes instead of legs, as a cetacean.

Mu”ti*late, n. (Zoöl.) A cetacean, or a sirenian.

Mu”ti*late (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mutilated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mutilating (?).] 1. To cut off or remove a limb or essential part of; to maim; to cripple; to hack; as, to mutilate the body, a statue, etc.

2. To destroy or remove a material part of, so as to render imperfect; as, to mutilate the orations of Cicero.

Among the mutilated poets of antiquity, there is none whose fragments are so beautiful as those of Sappho.

Addison.

Mutilated gear, Mutilated wheel (Mach.), a gear wheel from a portion of whose periphery the cogs are omitted. It is used for giving intermittent movements.

Mu`ti*la”tion (?), n. [L. mutilatio: cf. F. mutilation.] The act of mutilating, or the state of being mutilated; deprivation of a limb or of an essential part.

Mu”ti*la”tor (?), n. [Cf. F. mutilateur.] One who mutilates.

Mu”ti*lous (?), a. [L. mutilus. See Mutilate.] Mutilated; defective; imperfect. [Obs.]

Mu”tine (?), n. [F. mutin.] A mutineer. [Obs.]

Mu”tine, v. i. [F. mutiner.] To mutiny. [Obs.]

Mu”ti*neer` (?), n. [See Mutiny.] One guilty of mutiny.

Mut”ing (?), n. Dung of birds.

Mu”ti*nous (?), a. [See Mutiny.] Disposed to mutiny; in a state of mutiny; characterized by mutiny; seditious; insubordinate.

The city was becoming mutinous.

Macaulay.

— Mu”ti*nous*ly, adv. — Mu”ti*nous*ness, n.

Mu”ti*ny (?), n.; pl. Mutinies (#). [From mutine to mutiny, fr. F. se mutiner, fr. F. mutin stubborn, mutinous, fr. OF. meute riot, LL. movita, fr. movitus, for L. motus, p. p. of movere to move. See Move.] 1. Insurrection against constituted authority, particularly military or naval authority; concerted revolt against the rules of discipline or the lawful commands of a superior officer; hence, generally, forcible resistance to rightful authority; insubordination.

In every mutiny against the discipline of the college, he was the ringleader.

Macaulay.

2. Violent commotion; tumult; strife. [Obs.]

To raise a mutiny betwixt yourselves.

Shak.

Mutiny act (Law), an English statute reënacted annually to punish mutiny and desertion. Wharton.

Syn. — See Insurrection.

Mu”ti*ny, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Mutinied (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mutinying (?).] 1. To rise against, or refuse to obey, lawful authority in military or naval service; to excite, or to be guilty of, mutiny or mutinous conduct; to revolt against one’s superior officer, or any rightful authority.

2. To fall into strife; to quarrel. [Obs.] Shak.

Mut”ism (?), n. The condition, state, or habit of being mute, or without speech. Max Müller.

Mut”ter (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Muttered (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Muttering.] [Prob. of imitative origin; cf. L. muttire, mutire.] 1. To utter words indistinctly or with a low voice and lips partly closed; esp., to utter indistinct complaints or angry expressions; to grumble; to growl.

Wizards that peep, and that mutter.

Is. viii. 19.

Meantime your filthy foreigner will stare,
And mutter to himself.

Dryden.

2. To sound with a low, rumbling noise.

Thick lightnings flash, the muttering thunder rolls.

Pope.

Mut”ter, v. t. To utter with imperfect articulations, or with a low voice; as, to mutter threats. Shak.

Mut”ter, n. Repressed or obscure utterance.

Mut”ter*er (?), n. One who mutters.

Mut”ter*ing*ly, adv. With a low voice and indistinct articulation; in a muttering manner.

Mut”ton (?), n. [OE. motoun, OF. moton, molton, a sheep, wether, F. mouton, LL. multo, by transposition of l fr. L. mutilus mutilated. See Mutilate.] 1. A sheep. [Obs.] Chapman.

Not so much ground as will feed a mutton.

Sir H. Sidney.

Muttons, beeves, and porkers are good old words for the living quadrupeds.

Hallam.

2. The flesh of a sheep.

The fat of roasted mutton or beef.

Swift.

3. A loose woman; a prostitute. [Obs.]

Mutton bird (Zoöl.), the Australian short-tailed petrel (Nectris brevicaudus). — Mutton chop, a rib of mutton for broiling, with the end of the bone at the smaller part chopped off. — Mutton fish (Zoöl.), the American eelpout. See Eelpout. — Mutton fist, a big brawny fist or hand. [Colloq.] Dryden. — Mutton monger, a pimp. [Low & Obs.] Chapman. — To return to one’s muttons. [A translation of a phrase from a farce by De Brueys, revenons à nos moutons let us return to our sheep.] To return to one’s topic, subject of discussion, etc. [Humorous]

I willingly return to my muttons.

H. R. Haweis.

Mut”ton*y (?), a. Like mutton; having a flavor of mutton.

Mu”tu*al (?), a. [F. mutuel, L. mutuus, orig., exchanged, borrowed, lent; akin to mutare to change. See Mutable.] 1. Reciprocally acting or related; reciprocally receiving and giving; reciprocally given and received; reciprocal; interchanged; as, a mutual love, advantage, assistance, aversion, etc.

Conspiracy and mutual promise.

Sir T. More.

Happy in our mutual help,
And mutual love.

Milton.

A certain shyness on such subjects, which was mutual between the sisters.

G. Eliot.

2. Possessed, experienced, or done by two or more persons or things at the same time; common; joint; as, mutual happiness; a mutual effort. Burke.

A vast accession of misery and woe from the mutual weeping, and wailing, and gnashing of teeth.

Bentley.

&fist; This use of mutual as synonymous with common is inconsistent with the idea of interchange, or reciprocal relation, which properly belongs to it; but the word has been so used by many writers of high authority. The present tendency is toward a careful discrimination.

Mutual, as Johnson will tell us, means something reciprocal, a giving and taking. How could people have mutual ancestors?

P. Harrison.

Mutual insurance, agreement among a number of persons to insure each other against loss, as by fire, death, or accident. — Mutual insurance company, one which does a business of insurance on the mutual principle, the policy holders sharing losses and profits pro rata.

Syn. — Reciprocal; interchanged; common.

Mu”tu*al*ism (?), n. (Ethics) The doctrine of mutual dependence as the condition of individual and social welfare. F. Harrison. H. Spencer. Mallock.

Mu`tu*al”i*ty (?), n. [Cf. F. mutualité.] 1. The quality of correlation; reciprocation; interchange; interaction; interdependence.

2. (Law) Reciprocity of consideration. Wharton.

Mu”tu*al*ly (?), adv. In a mutual manner.

Mu”tu*a*ry (?), n. [L. mutuarius mutual.See Mutuation.] (Law) One who borrows personal chattels which are to be consumed by him, and which he is to return or repay in kind. Bouvier.

Mu`tu*a”tion (?), n. [L. mutuatio, fr. mutuare, mutuari, to borrow, fr. mutuus. See Mutual.] The act of borrowing or exchanging. [Obs.] Bp. Hall.

Mu”tule (?), n. [F., fr. L. mutulus.] (Arch.) A projecting block worked under the corona of the Doric corice, in the same situation as the modillion of the Corinthian and Composite orders. See Illust. of Gutta. Oxf. Gloss.

Mux (?), n. [Cf. Mixen.] Dirt; filth; muck. [Prov. Eng.] ose.

Mux, v. t. To mix in an untidy and offensive way; to make a mess of. [Prov. Eng.; Colloq. U.S.]

Mux”y (?), a. Soft; sticky, and dirty. [Prov. Eng.] See Mucky.

Muz”a*rab (?), n. [Sp. mozarabe, fr. Ar. mosta’rib, a name applied to strange tribes living among the Arabs.] (Eccl. Hist.) One of a denomination of Christians formerly living under the government of the Moors in Spain, and having a liturgy and ritual of their own. [Written also Mozarab, Mostarab.] Brande & C.

Muz`a*rab”ic (?), a. Of or pertaining to Muzarabs; as, the Muzarabic liturgy. [Written also Mozarabic.]

Muz”zi*ness (?), n. The state or quality of being muzzy.

Muz”zle (?), n. [OE. mosel, OF. musel, F. museau muzzle or snout, LL. musellus, fr. musus, morsus. See Muse, v. i., and cf. Morsel.] 1. The projecting mouth and nose of a quadruped, as of a horse; a snout.

2. The mouth of a thing; the end for entrance or discharge; as, the muzzle of a gun.

3. A fastening or covering (as a band or cage) for the mouth of an animal, to prevent eating or vicious biting.

With golden muzzles all their mouths were bound

Dryden.

Muzzle sight. (Gun.) See Dispart, n., 2.

Muz”zle, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Muzzled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Muzzling (?).] [F. museler.] 1. To bind the mouth of; to fasten the mouth of, so as to prevent biting or eating; hence, figuratively, to bind; to sheathe; to restrain from speech or action. “My dagger muzzled.” Shak.

Thou shalt not muzzle the ox when he treadeth out the corn.

Deut. xxv. 4.

2. To fondle with the closed mouth. [Obs.] L’Estrange.

Muz”zle, v. i. To bring the mouth or muzzle near.

The bear muzzles and smells to him.

L’Estrange.

Muz”zle-load`er (?), n. A firearm which receives its charge through the muzzle, as distinguished from one which is loaded at the breech.

Muz”zle-load`ing, a. Receiving its charge through the muzzle; as, a muzzle-loading rifle.

Muz”zy (?), a. [Cf. F. muse.] Absent-minded; dazed; muddled; stupid.

The whole company stared at me with a whimsical, muzzy look, like men whose senses were a little obfuscated by beer rather than wine.

W. Irving.

My (?), a. & poss. pron. [OE. mi, fr. min. See Mine, and cf., for loss of n, A, a., An, a.] Of or belonging to me; — used always attributively; as, my body; my book; — mine is used in the predicate; as, the book is mine. See Mine.

||My”a (?), n. [L. mya a kind of mussel.] (Zoöl.) A genus of bivalve mollusks, including the common long, or soft-shelled, clam.

||My*al”gi*a (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; muscle + &?; pain.] (Med.) Pain in the muscles; muscular rheumatism or neuralgia.

My*all” wood` (?). (Bot.) A durable, fragrant, and dark-colored Australian wood, used by the natives for spears. It is obtained from the small tree Acacia homolophylla.

||My*a”ri*a (?), n. pl. [NL.] (Zoöl.) A division of bivalve mollusks of which the common clam (Mya) is the type.

||My*ce”li*um (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. my`khs a mushroom.] (Bot.) The white threads or filamentous growth from which a mushroom or fungus is developed; the so-called mushroom spawn. — My*ce”li*al (#), a.

Myc”e*loid (?), a. [Mycelium + -oid.] (Bot.) Resembling mycelium.

||My*ce”tes (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. mykhth`s a bellower, fr. myka^sqai to bellow.] (Zoöl.) A genus of South American monkeys, including the howlers. See Howler, 2, and Illust.

Myc”e*toid (?), [Gr. my`khs, -htos, a fungus + -oid.] (Bot.) Resembling a fungus.

||My`co*der”ma (?), n. [NL., from Gr. my`khs a fungus + de`rma skin.] 1. (Biol.) One of the forms in which bacteria group themselves; a more or less thick layer of motionless but living bacteria, formed by the bacteria uniting on the surface of the fluid in which they are developed. This production differs from the zoöglœa stage of bacteria by not having the intermediary mucous substance.

2. A genus of microörganisms of which the acetic ferment (Mycoderma aceti), which converts alcoholic fluids into vinegar, is a representative. Cf. Mother.

{ My`co*log”ic (?), My`co*log”ic*al (?), } a. Of or relating to mycology, or the fungi.

My*col”o*gist (?), n. One who is versed in, or who studies, mycology.

My*col”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. my`khs fungus + -logy.] That branch of botanical science which relates to the mushrooms and other fungi.

My`co*mel”ic (?), a. [Gr. (spurious) my^kos mucus (L. mucus) + me`li honey.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, a complex nitrogenous acid of the alloxan group, obtained as a honey-yellow powder. Its solutions have a gelatinous consistency.

My`co*pro”te*in (?), n. [Gr. (spurious) my^kos mucus (L. mucus) + E. protein.] (Biol.) The protoplasmic matter of which bacteria are composed.

My”cose (-kōs), n. [Gr. my`khs a mushroom.] (Chem.) A variety of sugar, isomeric with sucrose and obtained from certain lichens and fungi. Called also trehalose. [Written also mykose.]

||Myc”o*thrix (mīk”&osl;*thr&ibreve;ks), n. [NL., fr. Gr. (spurious) my`khs mucus (L. mucus) + qri`x, tricho`s, hair.] (Biol.) The chain of micrococci formed by the division of the micrococci in multiplication.

My*da”le*ine (?), n. [Gr. myda^n to be clammy (from decay).] (Physiol. Chem.) A toxic alkaloid (ptomaine) obtained from putrid flesh and from herring brines. As a poison it is said to execute profuse diarrhœa, vomiting, and intestinal inflammation. Brieger.

Myd`a*tox”in (?), n. [Gr. myda^n to be clammy (from decay) + toxic + in.] (Physiol. Chem.) A poisonous amido acid, C_6H_13NO_2, separated by Brieger from decaying horseflesh. In physiological action, it is similar to curare.

||Myd”a*us (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. myda^n to be clammy or damp.] (Zoöl.) The teledu.

||My*dri”a*sis (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?;.] (Physiol. & Med.) A long-continued or excessive dilatation of the pupil of the eye.

Myd`ri*at”ic (?), a. Causing dilatation of the pupil. — n. A mydriatic medicine or agent, as belladonna.

||My`e*len*ceph”a*la (?), n. pl. [NL. See Myelencephalon.] (Zoöl.) Same as Vertebrata.

My`e*len`ce*phal”ic (?), a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the myelencephalon; cerebro- spinal.

||My`e*len*ceph”a*lon (?), n. [NL., from Gr. myelo`s marrow + E. encephalon.] (Anat.) (a) The brain and spinal cord; the cerebro-spinal axis; the neuron. Sometimes abbreviated to myelencephal. (b) The metencephalon. Huxley.

My`e*len*ceph”a*lous (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Myelencephala.

My”e*lin (?), n. [Gr. marrow.] (Physiol. Chem.) (a) A soft white substance constituting the medullary sheaths of nerve fibers, and composed mainly of cholesterin, lecithin, cerebrin, albumin, and some fat. (b) One of a group of phosphorized principles occurring in nerve tissue, both in the brain and nerve fibers.

||My`e*li”tis (?), n. [NL., from Gr. myelo`s marrow + -itis.] (Med.) Inflammation of the spinal marrow or its membranes.

My”e*lo*cœle` (?), n. [Gr. myelo`s marrow + koi^los hollow.] (Anat.) The central canal of the spinal cord.

My`e*lo*gen”ic (?), a. [Gr. myelo`s marrow + the root of &?; to be born.] (Physiol.) Derived from, or pertaining to, the bone marrow.

My”e*loid (?), a. [Gr. myelo`s marrow + -oid.] Resembling marrow in appearance or consistency; as, a myeloid tumor.

My`e*loid”in (?), n. [Myelin + -oid + -in.] (Physiol. Chem.) A substance, present in the protoplasm of the retinal epithelium cells, and resembling, if not identical with, the substance (myelin) forming the medullary sheaths of nerve fibers.

||My”e*lon (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. myelo`s marrow.] (Anat.) The spinal cord. (Sometimes abbrev. to myel.)

My”e*lo`nal (?), a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the myelon; as, the myelonal, or spinal, nerves.

||My`e*lo*neu”ra (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. myelo`s + ney^ron a nerve.] (Zoöl.) The Vertebrata.

||My*el”o*plax (?), n.; pl. E. Myeloplaxes (#), L. Myeloplaces (#). [NL., fr. Gr. myelo`s marrow + &?; anything flat and broad.] (Anat.) One of the huge multinucleated cells found in the marrow of bone and occasionally in other parts; a giant cell. See Osteoclast.

||Myg”a*le (?), n. [L., a field mouse, Gr. &?;.] (Zoöl.) A genus of very large hairy spiders having four lungs and only four spinnerets. They do not spin webs, but usually construct tubes in the earth, which are often furnished with a trapdoor. The South American bird spider (Mygale avicularia), and the crab spider, or matoutou (M. cancerides) are among the largest species. Some of the species are erroneously called tarantulas, as the Texas tarantula (M. Hentzii).

Myl”o*don (?), n. [Gr. &?; a mill + ‘odoy`s, ‘odo`ntos, a tooth.] (Paleon.) An extinct genus of large slothlike American edentates, allied to Megatherium.

My`lo*hy”oid (?), a. [Gr. &?; the molar teeth + E. hyoid.] (Anat.) Pertaining to, or in the region of, the lower jaw and the hyoid apparatus; as, the mylohyoid nerve.

My”na (?), n. [See Mino bird.] (Zoöl.) Any one of numerous species of Asiatic starlings of the genera Acridotheres, Sturnopastor, Sturnia, Gracula, and allied genera. In habits they resemble the European starlings, and like them are often caged and taught to talk. See Hill myna, under Hill, and Mino bird. [Spelt also mynah.]

Myn”chen (?), n. [AS. mynecen, fr. munec monk. See Monk.] A nun. [Obs.]

Myn”cher*y (?), n. A nunnery; — a term still applied to the ruins of certain nunneries in England.

Myn*heer” (?), n. [D. mijnheer.] The Dutch equivalent of Mr. or Sir; hence, a Dutchman.

My”o- (?). A combining form of Gr. &?;, &?;, a muscle; as, myograph, myochrome.

||My`o*car*di”tis (?), n. [NL. see Myocardium.] (Med.) Inflammation of the myocardium.

||My`o*car”di*um (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;, &?;, muscle + &?; heart.] (Anat.) The main substance of the muscular wall of the heart inclosed between the epicardium and endocardium.

My”o*chrome (?), n. [Myo- + Gr. &?; color.] (Physiol.) A colored albuminous substance in the serum from red-colored muscles. It is identical with hemoglobin.

||My`o*com”ma (?), n.; pl. L. Myocommata (#), E. Myocommas (#). [NL. See Myo-, and Comma.] (Anat.) A myotome.

My`o*dy*nam”ics (?), n. [Myo- + dynamics.] (Physiol.) The department of physiology which deals with the principles of muscular contraction; the exercise of muscular force or contraction.

My`o*dy*na`mi*om”e*ter (?), n. A myodynamometer.

My`o*dy`na*mom”e*ter (?), n. [Myo- + E. dynamometer.] (Physiol.) An instrument for measuring the muscular strength of man or of other animals; a dynamometer. Dunglison.

My`o*ep`i*the”li*al (?), a. [Myo- + epithelial.] 1. (Biol.) Derived from epithelial cells and destined to become a part of the muscular system; — applied to structural elements in certain embryonic forms.

2. (Zoöl.) Having the characteristics of both muscle and epithelium; as, the myoepithelial cells of the hydra.

My*og”a*lid (?), n. [Myo- + Gr. &?; a weasel.] (Zoöl.) One of the Myogalodæ, a family of Insectivora, including the desman, and allied species.

My”o*gram (?), n. [Myo- + - gram.] (Physiol.) See Muscle curve, under Muscle.

My”o*graph (?), n. [Myo- + - graph.] (Physiol.) An instrument for determining and recording the different phases, as the intensity, velocity, etc., of a muscular contraction.

{ My`o*graph”ic (?), My`o*graph”ic*al (?), } a. Of or pertaining to myography.

My*og”ra*phy (?), n. [Cf. F. myographie.] The description of muscles, including the study of muscular contraction by the aid of registering apparatus, as by some form of myograph; myology.

My`o*hæm”a*tin (?), n. [Myo- + hæmatin.] (Physiol.) A red-colored respiratory pigment found associated with hemoglobin in the muscle tissue of a large number of animals, both vertebrate and invertebrate.

My”oid (?), a. [Myo- + - oid.] Composed of, or resembling, muscular fiber.

||My`o*lem”ma (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;, &?;, a muscle + &?; skin.] (Anat.) Sarcolemma.

My”o*lin (?), n. [Gr. &?;, &?;, muscle.] (Physiol.) The essential material of muscle fibers.

{ My`o*log”ic (?), My`o*log”ic*al (?), } a. Of or pertaining to myology.

My*ol”o*gist (?), n. One skilled in myology.

My*ol”o*gy (?), n. [Myo- + - logy: cf. F. myologie.] That part of anatomy which treats of muscles.

||My*o”ma (?), n. [NL. See Myo-, and -oma.] (Med.) A tumor consisting of muscular tissue.

My”o*man`cy (?), n. [Gr. my^s mouse + -mancy.] Divination by the movements of mice.

My”o*morph (?), n. One of the Myomorpha.

||My`o*mor”pha (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. my^s, myo`s, a mouse + &?; form.] (Zoöl.) An extensive group of rodents which includes the rats, mice, jerboas, and many allied forms.

||My`o*pa*thi”a (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;, &?;, a muscle + &?;, &?;, to suffer.] (Med.) Any affection of the muscles or muscular system.

My`o*path”ic (?), a. (Med.) Of or pertaining to myopathia.

My*op”a*thy (?), n. Same as Myopathia.

My”ope (?), n. [F., fr. Gr. &?;, &?;; &?; to close, shut the eyes + &?;, &?;, the eye.] A person having myopy; a myops.

My”o*phan (?), n. [Myo- + Gr. &?; to show.] (Zoöl.) A contractile striated layer found in the bodies and stems of certain Infusoria.

My*o”pi*a (?), n. [NL. See Myope.] (Med.) Nearsightedness; shortsightedness; a condition of the eye in which the rays from distant object are brought to a focus before they reach the retina, and hence form an indistinct image; while the rays from very near objects are normally converged so as to produce a distinct image. It is corrected by the use of a concave lens.

My*op”ic (?), a. Pertaining to, or affected with, or characterized by, myopia; nearsighted.

Myopic astigmatism, a condition in which the eye is affected with myopia in one meridian only.

||My”ops (mī”&obreve;ps), n. [NL.] See Myope.

||My*op”sis (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; fly + &?; sight.] (Med.) The appearance of muscæ volitantes. See Muscæ volitantes, under Musca.

My”o*py (?), n. [F. myopie.] (Med.) Myopia.

My”o*sin (?), n. [Gr. &?;, a muscle.] (Physiol. Chem.) An albuminous body present in dead muscle, being formed in the process of coagulation which takes place in rigor mortis; the clot formed in the coagulation of muscle plasma. See Muscle plasma, under Plasma.

&fist; Myosin belongs to the group of globulins. It is insoluble in water, but soluble in dilute solution of salt, and is especially characterized by being completely precipitated by saturation of its solutions with salt.

||My*o”sis (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; to close the eyes or lips.] (Med.) Long-continued contraction of the pupil of the eye.

My`o*sit”ic (?), a. (Med.) Myotic.

||My`o*si”tis (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;, &?;, muscle + -itis.] (Med.) Inflammation of the muscles.

||My`o*so”tis (?), n. [NL.; Gr. &?;, lit., mouse ear.] (Bot.) A genus of plants. See Mouse- ear.

My*ot”ic (?), a. [See Myosis.] (Med.) Producing myosis, or contraction of the pupil of the eye, as opium, calabar bean, etc. — n. A myotic agent.

My”o*tome (?), n. [See Myotomy.] (Anat.) (a) A muscular segment; one of the zones into which the muscles of the trunk, especially in fishes, are divided; a myocomma. (b) One of the embryonic muscular segments arising from the protovertebræ; also, one of the protovertebræ themselves. (c) The muscular system of one metamere of an articulate.

My`o*tom”ic (?), a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to a myotome or myotomes.

My*ot”o*my (?), n. [Myo- + Gr. &?; to cut: cf. F. myotomie.] The dissection, or that part of anatomy which treats of the dissection, of muscles.

||Myr”ci*a (?), n. [NL.] (Bot.) A large genus of tropical American trees and shrubs, nearly related to the true myrtles (Myrtus), from which they differ in having very few seeds in each berry.

Myr”i*a- (?). [Gr. &?; a myriad. See Myriad.] A prefix, esp. in the metric system, indicating ten thousand, ten thousand times; as, myriameter.

Myr`i*a*can”thous (?), a. [Gr. &?; numberless + ‘a`kanqa a spine.] (Zoöl.) Having numerous spines, as certain fishes.

Myr”i*ad (?), n. [Gr. &?;, &?;, fr. &?; numberless, pl. &?; ten thousand: cf. F. myriade.] 1. The number of ten thousand; ten thousand persons or things.

2. An immense number; a very great many; an indefinitely large number.

Myr”i*ad, a. Consisting of a very great, but indefinite, number; as, myriad stars.

{ Myr”i*a*gram, Myr”i*a*gramme } (?), n. [F. myriagramme. See Myria-, and 3d Gram.] A metric weight, consisting of ten thousand grams or ten kilograms. It is equal to 22.046 lbs. avoirdupois.

{ Myr”i*a*li`ter, Myr”i*a*li`tre } (?), n. [F. myrialitre. See Myria-, and Liter.] A metric measure of capacity, containing ten thousand liters. It is equal to 2641.7 wine gallons.

{ Myr”i*a*me`ter, Myr”i*a*me`tre } (?), n. [F. myriamètre. See Myria-, and Meter.] A metric measure of length, containing ten thousand meters. It is equal to 6.2137 miles.

Myr”i*a*pod (?), n. [Cf. F. myriapode.] (Zoöl.) One of the Myriapoda.

||Myr`i*ap”o*da (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; numberless + -poda.] (Zoöl.) A class, or subclass, of arthropods, related to the hexapod insects, from which they differ in having the body made up of numerous similar segments, nearly all of which bear true jointed legs. They have one pair of antennæ, three pairs of mouth organs, and numerous tracheæ, similar to those of true insects. The larvæ, when first hatched, often have but three pairs of legs. See Centiped, Galleyworm, Milliped.

&fist; The existing Myriapoda are divided into three orders: Chilopoda, Chilognatha or Diplopoda, and Pauropoda (see these words in the Vocabulary). Large fossil species (very different from any living forms) are found in the Carboniferous formation.

Myr”i*arch (?), n. [Gr. &?;, &?;; &?; ten thousand + &?; chief.] A captain or commander of ten thousand men.

Myr”i*are (?), n. [F. See Myria- , and 2d Are.] A measure of surface in the metric system containing ten thousand ares, or one million square meters. It is equal to about 247.1 acres.

||My*ri”ca (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?; tamarisk.] (Bot.) A widely dispersed genus of shrubs and trees, usually with aromatic foliage. It includes the bayberry or wax myrtle, the sweet gale, and the North American sweet fern, so called.

Myr”i*cin (?), n. [Cf. F. myricine. Prob. so called from a fancied resemblance to the wax of the bayberry (Myrica).] (Chem.) A silky, crystalline, waxy substance, forming the less soluble part of beeswax, and regarded as a palmitate of a higher alcohol of the paraffin series; — called also myricyl alcohol.

Myr”i*cyl (?), n. [Myricin + -yl.] (Chem.) A hypothetical radical regarded as the essential residue of myricin; — called also melissyl.

Myr`i*o*log”ic*al (?), a. Of or relating to a myriologue.

Myr`i*ol”o*gist (?), n. One who composes or sings a myriologue.

Myr”i*o*logue (?), n. [F. myriologue, myriologie, NGr. &?;, &?;, fr. Gr. Moi^ra the goddess of fate or death + lo`gos speech, discourse.] An extemporaneous funeral song, composed and sung by a woman on the death of a friend. [Modern Greece]

Myr`i*oph”yl*lous (?), a. [Gr. &?; numberless + fy`llon leaf.] (Bot.) Having an indefinitely great or countless number of leaves.

||Myr`i*op”o*da (?), n. pl. See Myriapoda.

Myr`i*o*ra”ma (?), n. [Gr. &?; numberless + &?; a sight, fr. &?; to see.] A picture made up of several smaller pictures, drawn upon separate pieces in such a manner as to admit of combination in many different ways, thus producing a great variety of scenes or landscapes.

Myr”i*o*scope (?), n. [Gr. &?; numberless + -scope.] A form of kaleidoscope.

My*ris”tate (m&ibreve;*r&ibreve;s”t&asl;t), n. (Chem.) A salt of myristic acid.

My*ris”tic (m&ibreve;*r&ibreve;s”t&ibreve;k), a. (Chem.) Pertaining to, or derived from, the nutmeg (Myristica). Specifically, designating an acid found in nutmeg oil and otoba fat, and extracted as a white crystalline waxy substance.

My*ris”tin (?), n. (Chem.) The myristate of glycerin, — found as a vegetable fat in nutmeg butter, etc.

My*ris”tone (?), n. [Myristic + -one.] (Chem.) The ketone of myristic acid, obtained as a white crystalline substance.

Myr”mi*cine (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to Myrmica, a genus of ants including the small house ant (M. molesta), and many others.

Myr”mi*don (?), n. [L. Myrmidones, Gr. &?;, pl.] 1. One of a fierce tribe or troop who accompanied Achilles, their king, to the Trojan war.

2. A soldier or a subordinate civil officer who executes cruel orders of a superior without protest or pity; — sometimes applied to bailiffs, constables, etc. Thackeray.

With unabated ardor the vindictive man of law and his myrmidons pressed forward.

W. H. Ainsworth.

Myr`mi*do”ni*an (?), a. Consisting of, or like, myrmidons. Pope.

Myr`mo*the”rine (?), a. [Gr. &?; an ant + &?; to hunt.] (Zoöl.) Feeding upon ants; — said of certain birds.

{ My*rob”a*lan (?), My*rob”o*lan (?), } n. [L. myrobalanum the fruit of a palm tree from which a balsam was made, Gr. &?;; &?; any sweet juice distilling from plants, any prepared unguent or sweet oil + &?; an acorn or any similar fruit: cf. F. myrobolan.] A dried astringent fruit much resembling a prune. It contains tannin, and was formerly used in medicine, but is now chiefly used in tanning and dyeing. Myrobolans are produced by various species of Terminalia of the East Indies, and of Spondias of South America.

My*ron”ic (?), a. [Gr. &?; a sweet- smelling unguent.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or obtained from, mustard; — used specifically to designate a glucoside called myronic acid, found in mustard seed.

My*rop”o*list (?), n. [Gr. &?;; &?; unguent + &?; to sell.] One who sells unguents or perfumery. [Obs.] Jonhson.

Myr”o*sin (?), n. (Chem.) A ferment, resembling diastase, found in mustard seeds.

||My*rox”y*lon (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; a sweet juice distilling from a plant + &?; wood.] (Bot.) A genus of leguminous trees of tropical America, the different species of which yield balsamic products, among which are balsam of Peru, and balsam of Tolu. The species were formerly referred to Myrospermum.

Myrrh (?), n. [OE. mirre, OF. mirre, F. myrrhe, L. myrrha, murra, Gr. &?;; cf. Ar. murr bitter, also myrrh, Heb. mar bitter.] A gum resin, usually of a yellowish brown or amber color, of an aromatic odor, and a bitter, slightly pungent taste. It is valued for its odor and for its medicinal properties. It exudes from the bark of a shrub of Abyssinia and Arabia, the Balsamodendron Myrrha. The myrrh of the Bible is supposed to have been partly the gum above named, and partly the exudation of species of Cistus, or rockrose.

False myrrh. See the Note under Bdellium.

Myr”rhic (?), a. Of, pertaining to, or obtained from, myrrh.

Myr”rhine (?), a. Murrhine.

Myr*ta”ceous (?), a. [L. myrtaceus.] (Bot.) Of, pertaining to, or resembling, a large and important natural order of trees and shrubs (Myrtaceæ), of which the myrtle is the type. It includes the genera Eucalyptus, Pimenta, Lechythis, and about seventy more.

Myr”ti*form (?), a. [L. myrtus myrtle + -form: cf. F. myrtiforme.] Resembling myrtle or myrtle berries; having the form of a myrtle leaf.

Myr”tle (m&etilde;r”t’l), n. [F. myrtil bilberry, prop., a little myrtle, from myrte myrtle, L. myrtus, murtus, Gr. my`rtos; cf. Per. mūrd.] (Bot.) A species of the genus Myrtus, especially Myrtus communis. The common myrtle has a shrubby, upright stem, eight or ten feet high. Its branches form a close, full head, thickly covered with ovate or lanceolate evergreen leaves. It has solitary axillary white or rosy flowers, followed by black several-seeded berries. The ancients considered it sacred to Venus. The flowers, leaves, and berries are used variously in perfumery and as a condiment, and the beautifully mottled wood is used in turning.

&fist; The name is also popularly but wrongly applied in America to two creeping plants, the blue-flowered periwinkle and the yellow- flowered moneywort. In the West Indies several myrtaceous shrubs are called myrtle.

Bog myrtle, the sweet gale. — Crape myrtle. See under Crape. — Myrtle warbler (Zoöl.), a North American wood warbler (Dendroica coronata); — called also myrtle bird, yellow-rumped warbler, and yellow- crowned warbler. — Myrtle wax. (Bot.) See Bayberry tallow, under Bayberry. — Sand myrtle, a low, branching evergreen shrub (Leiophyllum buxifolium), growing in New Jersey and southward. — Wax myrtle (Myrica cerifera). See Bayberry.

My*self” (?), pron.; pl. Ourselves (&?;). I or me in person; — used for emphasis, my own self or person; as I myself will do it; I have done it myself; — used also instead of me, as the object of the first person of a reflexive verb, without emphasis; as, I will defend myself.

My*selv”en (?), pron. Myself. [Obs.]

||My”sis (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; a closing of the lips or eyes.] (Zoöl.) A genus of small schizopod shrimps found both in fresh and salt water; the opossum shrimps. One species inhabits the Great Lakes of North America, and is largely eaten by the whitefish. The marine species form part of the food of right whales.

Mys”ta*cal (?), a. [Gr. my`stax mustache.] (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the upper lip, or mustache.

{ Mys`ta*gog”ic (?), Mys`ta*gog”ic*al (?), } a. Of or pertaining to interpretation of mysteries or to mystagogue; of the nature of mystagogy.

Mys”ta*gogue (?), n. [L. mystagogus, Gr. &?;; &?; one initiated in mysteries + &?; leading, n., a leader, fr. &?; to lead: cf. F. mystagogue. See 1st Mystery.] 1. One who interprets mysteries, especially of a religious kind.

2. One who keeps and shows church relics.

Mys”ta*go`gy (?), n. The doctrines, principles, or practice of a mystagogue; interpretation of mysteries.

Mys*te”ri*al (?), a. Mysterious. [Obs.]

Mys*te”ri*arch (?), n. [L. mysteriarches, Gr. &?;; &?; mystery + &?; chief.] One presiding over mysteries. [Obs.]

Mys*te”ri*ous (?), a. [F. mystèrieux. See 1st Mystery.] Of or pertaining to mystery; containing a mystery; difficult or impossible to understand; obscure; not revealed or explained; enigmatical; incomprehensible.

God at last
To Satan, first in sin, his doom applied,
Thought in mysterious terms.

Milton.

Syn. — Obscure; secret; occult; dark; mystic; cabalistic; enigmatical; unintelligible; incomprehensible.

Mys*te”ri*ous*ly, adv. In a mysterious manner.

Mys*te”ri*ous*ness, n. 1. The state or quality of being mysterious.

2. Something mysterious; a mystery. [R.] Jer. Taylor.

Mys”ter*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mysterized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mysterizing (?).] To make mysterious; to make a mystery of.

Mys”ter*y (m&ibreve;s”t&etilde;r*&ybreve;), n.; pl. Mysteries (- &ibreve;z). [L. mysterium, Gr. mysth`rion, fr. my`sths one initiated in mysteries; cf. myei^n to initiate into the mysteries, fr. my`ein to shut the eyes. Cf. Mute, a.] 1. A profound secret; something wholly unknown, or something kept cautiously concealed, and therefore exciting curiosity or wonder; something which has not been or can not be explained; hence, specifically, that which is beyond human comprehension.

We speak the wisdom of God in a mystery.

1 Cor. ii. 7.

If God should please to reveal unto us this great mystery of the Trinity, or some other mysteries in our holy religion, we should not be able to understand them, unless he would bestow on us some new faculties of the mind.

Swift.

2. A kind of secret religious celebration, to which none were admitted except those who had been initiated by certain preparatory ceremonies; — usually plural; as, the Eleusinian mysteries.

3. pl. The consecrated elements in the eucharist.

4. Anything artfully made difficult; an enigma.

Mys”ter*y, n.; pl. Mysteries. [OE. mistere, OF. mestier, F. métier, L. ministerium. See Ministry.] 1. A trade; a handicraft; hence, any business with which one is usually occupied.

Fie upon him, he will discredit our mystery.

Shak.

And that which is the noblest mystery
Brings to reproach and common infamy.

Spenser.

2. A dramatic representation of a Scriptural subject, often some event in the life of Christ; a dramatic composition of this character; as, the Chester Mysteries, consisting of dramas acted by various craft associations in that city in the early part of the 14th century.

“Mystery plays,” so called because acted by craftsmen.

Skeat.

{ Mys”tic (?), Mys”tic*al (?), } a. [L. mysticus, Gr. &?; belonging to secret rites, from &?; one initiated: cf. F. mystique. See 1st Mystery, Misty.] 1. Remote from or beyond human comprehension; baffling human understanding; unknowable; obscure; mysterious.

Heaven’s numerous hierarchy span
The mystic gulf from God to man.

Emerson.

God hath revealed a way mystical and supernatural.

Hooker.

2. Importing or implying mysticism; involving some secret meaning; allegorical; emblematical; as, a mystic dance; mystic Babylon.

Thus, then, did the spirit of unity and meekness inspire every joint and sinew of the mystical body.

Milton.

— Mys”tic*al*ly, adv. — Mys”tic*al*ness, n.

Mys”tic (?), n. One given to mysticism; one who holds mystical views, interpretations, etc.; especially, in ecclesiastical history, one who professed mysticism. See Mysticism.

Mys”ti*cete (?), n. [Gr. my`stax the upper lip, also, the mustache + kh^tos a whale.] (Zoöl.) Any right whale, or whalebone whale. See Cetacea.

Mys”ti*cism (?), n. [Cf. F. mysticisme.] 1. Obscurity of doctrine.

2. (Eccl. Hist.) The doctrine of the Mystics, who professed a pure, sublime, and wholly disinterested devotion, and maintained that they had direct intercourse with the divine Spirit, and aquired a knowledge of God and of spiritual things unattainable by the natural intellect, and such as can not be analyzed or explained.

3. (Philos.) The doctrine that the ultimate elements or principles of knowledge or belief are gained by an act or process akin to feeling or faith.

Mys`ti*fi*ca”tion (?), n. [Cf. F. mystification.] The act of mystifying, or the state of being mystied; also, something designed to, or that does, mystify.

The reply of Pope seems very much as though he had been playing off a mystification on his Grace.

De Quincey.

Mys”ti*fi*ca`tor (?), n. One who mystifies.

Mys”ti*fy (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Mystified (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Mystifying (?).] [F. mystifier, fr. Gr. &?; + L. - ficare (in comp.) to make. See 1st Mystery, and - fy.] 1. To involve in mystery; to make obscure or difficult to understand; as, to mystify a passage of Scripture.

2. To perplex the mind of; to puzzle; to impose upon the credulity of ; as, to mystify an opponent.

He took undue advantage of his credulity and mystified him exceedingly.

Ld. Campbell.

My”ta*cism (?), n. [Gr. &?;. Cf. Metacism.] Too frequent use of the letter m, or of the sound represented by it.

Myth (?), n. [Written also mythe.] [Gr. my^qos myth, fable, tale, talk, speech: cf. F. mythe.] 1. A story of great but unknown age which originally embodied a belief regarding some fact or phenomenon of experience, and in which often the forces of nature and of the soul are personified; an ancient legend of a god, a hero, the origin of a race, etc.; a wonder story of prehistoric origin; a popular fable which is, or has been, received as historical.

2. A person or thing existing only in imagination, or whose actual existence is not verifiable.

As for Mrs. Primmins’s bones, they had been myths these twenty years.

Ld. Lytton.

Myth history, history made of, or mixed with, myths.

Mythe (?), n. See Myth. Grote.

{ Myth”ic (?), Myth”ic*al (?), } a. [L. mythicus, Gr. &?;. See Myth.] Of or relating to myths; described in a myth; of the nature of a myth; fabulous; imaginary; fanciful. — Myth”ic*al*ly, adv.

The mythic turf where danced the nymphs.

Mrs. Browning.

Hengist and Horsa, Vortigern and Rowena, Arthur and Mordred, are mythical persons, whose very existence may be questioned.

Macaulay.

My*thog”ra*pher (?), n. [Gr. myqogra`fos; my^qos + gra`fein to write.] A composer of fables.

My*thol”o*ger (?), n. A mythologist.

Myth`o*lo”gi*an (?), n. A mythologist.

{ Myth`o*log”ic (?), Myth`o*log”ic*al (?), } a. [L. mythologicus: cf. F. mytholigique.] Of or pertaining to mythology or to myths; mythical; fabulous. — Myth`o*log”ic*al*ly, adv.

My*thol”o*gist (?), n. [Cf. F. mythologiste.] One versed in, or who writes on, mythology or myths.

My*thol”o*gize (?), v. i. [Cf. F. mythologiser.] 1. To relate, classify, and explain, or attempt to explain, myths; to write upon myths.

2. To construct and propagate myths.

My*thol”o*gi`zer (?), n. One who, or that which, mythologizes.

Imagination has always been, and still is, in a narrower sense, the great mythologizer.

Lowell.

Myth”o*logue (?), n. [See Mythology.] A fabulous narrative; a myth. [R.]

May we not . . . consider his history of the fall as an excellent mythologue, to account for the origin of human evil?

Geddes.

My*thol”o*gy (?), n.; pl. Mythologies (#). [F. mythologie, L. mythologia, Gr. myqologi`a; my^qos, fable, myth + lo`gos speech, discourse.] 1. The science which treats of myths; a treatise on myths.

2. A body of myths; esp., the collective myths which describe the gods of a heathen people; as, the mythology of the Greeks.

Myth”o*plasm (?), n. [Gr. my^qos myth + pla`ssein to form.] A narration of mere fable.

Myth`o*pœ“ic (?), a. [Gr. myqopoio`s making myths; my^qos myth + poiei^n to make.] Making or producing myths; giving rise to mythical narratives.

The mythopœic fertility of the Greeks.

Grote.

Myth`o*po*et”ic (?), a. [Gr. my^qos myth + &?; able to make, producing, fr. poiei^n to make.] Making or producing myths or mythical tales.

Myt”i*loid (?), a. [Mytilus + -oid.] (Zoöl.) Like, or pertaining to, the genus Mytilus, or family Mytilidæ.

Myt`i*lo*tox”ine (?), n. [Mytilus + toxic.] (Physiol. Chem.) A poisonous base (leucomaine) found in the common mussel. It either causes paralysis of the muscles, or gives rise to convulsions, including death by an accumulation of carbonic acid in the blood.

||Myt”i*lus (?), n. [L., a sea mussel, Gr. &?;.] (Zoöl.) A genus of marine bivalve shells, including the common mussel. See Illust. under Byssus.

||Myx”a (?), n. [L., a lamp nozzle, Gr. &?;.] (Zoöl.) The distal end of the mandibles of a bird.

Myx”ine (?), n. (Zoöl.) A genus of marsipobranchs, including the hagfish. See Hag, 4.

Myx”i*noid (?), a. (Zoöl.) Like, or pertaining to, the genus Myxine. — n. A hagfish.

||Myx`o*cys*to”de*a (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; mucus + &?; a bladder.] (Zoöl.) A division of Infusoria including the Noctiluca. See Noctiluca.

||Myx*o”ma (?), n.; pl. Myxomata (#). [NL., fr. Gr. &?; mucus + - oma.] (Med.) A tumor made up of a gelatinous tissue resembling that found in the umbilical cord.

Myx”o*pod (?), n. [Gr. &?; mucus, slime + -pod.] (Zoöl.) A rhizopod or moneran. Also used adjectively; as, a myxopod state.

||My*zon”tes (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; to suck.] (Zoöl.) The Marsipobranchiata.

||My`zo*stom”a*ta (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. my`zein to suck + sto`ma, -atos, mouth.] (Zoöl.) An order of curious parasitic worms found on crinoids. The body is short and disklike, with four pairs of suckers and five pairs of hook-bearing parapodia on the under side.

N.

N (&ebreve;n), the fourteenth letter of English alphabet, is a vocal consonent, and, in allusion to its mode of formation, is called the dentinasal or linguanasal consonent. Its commoner sound is that heard in ran, done; but when immediately followed in the same word by the sound of g hard or k (as in single, sink, conquer), it usually represents the same sound as the digraph ng in sing, bring, etc. This is a simple but related sound, and is called the gutturo-nasal consonent. See Guide to Pronunciation, §§ 243-246.

The letter N came into English through the Latin and Greek from the Phœnician, which probably derived it from the Egyptian as the ultimate origin. It is etymologically most closely related to M. See M.

N, n. (Print.) A measure of space equal to half an M (or em); an en.

Na (nä), a. & adv. No, not. See No. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Nab (năb), n. [Cf. Knap, Knop, Knob.] 1. The summit of an eminence. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

2. (Firearms) The cock of a gunlock. Knight.

3. (Locksmithing) The keeper, or box into which the lock is shot. Knight.

Nab, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nabbed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nabbing.] [Dan nappe, or Sw. nappa.] To catch or seize suddenly or unexpectedly. [Colloq.] Smollett.

Na”bit (nā“b&ibreve;t), n. Pulverized sugar candy. Crabb.

||Nabk (năbk), n. [Ar. nabiqa, nibqa.] (Bot.) The edible berries of the Zizyphys Lotus, a tree of Northern Africa, and Southwestern Europe. [Written also nubk.] See Lotus (b), and Sadr.

Na”bob (nā“b&obreve;b), n. [Hind. nawāb, from Ar. nawāb, pl. of nāïb a vicegerent, governor. Cf Nawab.] 1. A deputy or viceroy in India; a governor of a province of the ancient Mogul empire.

2. One who returns to Europe from the East with immense riches: hence, any man of great wealth. ” A bilious old nabob.” Macaulay.

Nac”a*rat (?), n. [F. nacarat, fr. Sp. or Pg. nacarado, fr. nácar mother-of- pearl. See Nacre.] 1. A pale red color, with a cast of orange. Ure.

2. Fine linen or crape dyed of this color. Ure.

Nack”er (?), n. See Nacre. Johnson.

Na”cre (?), n. [F., cf. Sp. nácara, nácar, It. nacchera, naccaro, LL. nacara, nacrum; of Oriental origin, cf. Ar. nakīr hollowed.] (Zoöl.) A pearly substance which lines the interior of many shells, and is most perfect in the mother-of-pearl. [Written also nacker and naker.] See Pearl, and Mother-of- pearl.

Na”cre*ous (?), a. [See Nacre.] (Zoöl.) Consisting of, or resembling, nacre; pearly.

{ Nad (?), Nad”de (?) }. [Contr. fr. ne hadde.] Had not. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Nad”der (?), n. [AS. nædre. See Adder.] An adder. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Na”dir (?), n. [F., Sp., & It. nadir; all fr. Ar. nasīru’s samt nadir, prop., the point opposite the zenith (as samt), in which nasīr means alike, corresponding to. Cf. Azimuth, Zenith.] 1. That point of the heavens, or lower hemisphere, directly opposite the zenith; the inferior pole of the horizon; the point of the celestial sphere directly under the place where we stand.

2. The lowest point; the time of greatest depression.

The seventh century is the nadir of the human mind in Europe.

Hallam.

Nadir of the sun (Astron.), the axis of the conical shadow projected by the earth. Crabb.

||Næ“ni*a (?), n. See Nenia.

Næve (?), n. [L. naevus.] A nævus. [Obs.] Dryden.

Næ“void (?), a. [Nævus + -oid.] Resembling a nævus or nævi; as, nævoid elephantiasis. Dunglison.

Næ“vose` (?), a. Spotted; freckled.

||Næ“vus (nē“vŭs), n.; pl. Nævi (- vī). [L.] (Med.) A spot or mark on the skin of children when born; a birthmark; — usually applied to vascular tumors, i. e., those consisting mainly of blood vessels, as dilated arteries, veins, or capillaries.

Nag (năg), n. [OE. nagge, D. negge; akin to E. neigh.] 1. A small horse; a pony; hence, any horse.

2. A paramour; — in contempt. [Obs.] Shak.

Nag, v. t. & i. [imp. & p. p. Nagged (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nagging (?).] [Cf. Sw. nagga to nibble, peck, Dan. nage to gnaw, Icel. naga, gnaga, G. nagen, & E. gnaw.] To tease in a petty way; to scold habitually; to annoy; to fret pertinaciously. [Colloq.] “She never nagged.” J. Ingelow.

Nag”ging (?), a. Fault-finding; teasing; persistently annoying; as, a nagging toothache. [Colloq.]

Nag”gy (?), a. Irritable; touchy. [Colloq.]

||Na”gor (?), n. (Zoöl.) A West African gazelle (Gazella redunca).

Nag”yag*ite (?), n. [So called from Nagyag, in Transylvania.] (Min.) A mineral of blackish lead-gray color and metallic luster, generally of a foliated massive structure; foliated tellurium. It is a telluride of lead and gold.

Na”iad (?), n. [L. naias, - adis, naïs, -idis, a water nymph, Gr &?;, &?;, fr. &?; to flow: cf. F. naïade. Cf. Naid.] 1. (Myth.) A water nymph; one of the lower female divinities, fabled to preside over some body of fresh water, as a lake, river, brook, or fountain.

2. (Zoöl.) Any species of a tribe (Naiades) of freshwater bivalves, including Unio, Anodonta, and numerous allied genera; a river mussel.

3. (Zoöl) One of a group of butterflies. See Nymph.

4. (Bot.) Any plant of the order Naiadaceæ, such as eelgrass, pondweed, etc.

Na”iant (?), a. (Her.) See Natant. Crabb.

Na”id (?), n. [See Naiad.] (Zoöl.) Any one of numerous species of small, fresh- water, chætopod annelids of the tribe Naidina. They belong to the Oligochæta.

Na”ïf` (&?;; formerly &?;), a. [F. naïf. See Naïve.] 1. Having a true natural luster without being cut; — applied by jewelers to a precious stone.

2. Naïve; as, a naïf remark. London Spectator.

||Na”ik (?), n. [Hind. nāyak.] A chief; a leader; a Sepoy corporal. Balfour (Cyc. of India).

Nail (?), n. [AS. nægel, akin to D. nagel, OS &?; OHG. nagal, G. nagel, Icel. nagl, nail (in sense 1), nagli nail (in sense 3), Sw. nagel nail (in senses 1 and 3), Dan. nagle, Goth. ganagljan to nail, Lith. nagas nail (in sense 1), Russ. nogote, L. unguis, Gr. &?;, Skr. nakha. &?;] 1. (Anat.) the horny scale of plate of epidermis at the end of the fingers and toes of man and many apes.

His nayles like a briddes claws were.

Chaucer.

&fist; The nails are strictly homologous with hoofs and claws. When compressed, curved, and pointed, they are called talons or claws, and the animal bearing them is said to be unguiculate; when they incase the extremities of the digits they are called hoofs, and the animal is ungulate.

2. (Zoöl.) (a) The basal thickened portion of the anterior wings of certain hemiptera. (b) The terminal horny plate on the beak of ducks, and other allied birds.

3. A slender, pointed piece of metal, usually with a head, used for fastening pieces of wood or other material together, by being driven into or through them.

&fist; The different sorts of nails are named either from the use to which they are applied, from their shape, from their size, or from some other characteristic, as shingle, floor, ship-carpenters’, and horseshoe nails, roseheads, diamonds, fourpenny, tenpenny (see Penny, a.), chiselpointed, cut, wrought, or wire nails, etc.

4. A measure of length, being two inches and a quarter, or the sixteenth of a yard.

Nail ball (Ordnance), a round projectile with an iron bolt protruding to prevent it from turning in the gun. — Nail plate, iron in plates from which cut nails are made. — On the nail, in hand; on the spot; immediately; without delay or time of credit; as, to pay money on the nail. “You shall have ten thousand pounds on the nail.” Beaconsfield. — To hit the nail on the head, to hit most effectively; to do or say a thing in the right way.

Nail, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nailed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nailing.] [AS. næglian. See Nail, n.] 1. To fasten with a nail or nails; to close up or secure by means of nails; as, to nail boards to the beams.

He is now dead, and nailed in his chest.

Chaucer.

2. To stud or boss with nails, or as with nails.

The rivets of your arms were nailed with gold.

Dryden.

3. To fasten, as with a nail; to bind or hold, as to a bargain or to acquiescence in an argument or assertion; hence, to catch; to trap.

When they came to talk of places in town, you saw at once how I nailed them.

Goldsmith.

4. To spike, as a cannon. [Obs.] Crabb.

To nail a lie or an assertion, etc., to detect and expose it, so as to put a stop to its currency; — an expression probably derived from the former practice of shopkeepers, who were accustomed to nail bad or counterfeit pieces of money to the counter.

Nail”brush`, n. A brush for cleaning the nails.

Nail”er (?), n. 1. One whose occupation is to make nails; a nail maker.

2. One who fastens with, or drives, nails.

Nail”er*ess, n. A women who makes nailes.

Nail”er*y (?), n.; pl. Naileries (&?;). A manufactory where nails are made.

Nail”-head`ed (?), a. Having a head like that of a nail; formed so as to resemble the head of a nail.

Nail-headed characters, arrowheaded or cuneiform characters. See under Arrowheaded. — Nail-headed molding (Arch.), an ornament consisting of a series of low four-sided pyramids resembling the heads of large nails; — called also nail-head molding, or nail-head. It is the same as the simplest form of dogtooth. See Dogtooth.

Nail”less, a. Without nails; having no nails.

Nain`sook” (?), n. [Nainsukh, a valley in Kaghan.] A thick sort of jaconet muslin, plain or striped, formerly made in India.

||Na”is (?), n. [L., a naiad.] (Zoöl.) See Naiad.

||Nais`sant” (?), a. [F., p. pr. of naître to be born, L. nasci.] (Her.) Same as Jessant.

Na”ïve` (?), a. [F. naïf, fem. naïve, fr. L. nativus innate, natural, native. See Native, and cf. Naïf.] Having native or unaffected simplicity; ingenuous; artless; frank; as, naïve manners; a naïve person; naïve and unsophisticated remarks.

Na”ïve`ly (?), adv. In a naïve manner.

||Na`ïve`té” (?), n. [F. See Naïve, and cf. Nativity.] Native simplicity; unaffected plainness or ingenuousness; artlessness.

A story which pleases me by its naïveté — that is, by its unconscious ingenuousness.

De Quincey.

Na”ïve`ty (?), n. Naïveté. Carlyle.

Nake (?), v. t. To make naked. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Come, be ready, nake your swords.

Old Play.

Na”ked (?), a. [AS. nacod; akin to D. naakt, G. nackt, OHG. nacchot, nahhot, Icel. nökviðr, nakinn, Sw. naken, Dan. nögen, Goth. naqaþs, Lith. nůgas, Russ. nagii, L. nudus, Skr. nagna. √266. Cf. Nude.]

1. Having no clothes on; uncovered; nude; bare; as, a naked body; a naked limb; a naked sword.

2. Having no means of defense or protection; open; unarmed; defenseless.

Thy power is full naked.

Chaucer.

Behold my bosom naked to your swords.

Addison.

3. Unprovided with needful or desirable accessories, means of sustenance, etc.; destitute; unaided; bare.

Patriots who had exposed themselves for the public, and whom they say now left naked.

Milton.

4. Without addition, exaggeration, or excuses; not concealed or disguised; open to view; manifest; plain.

The truth appears so naked on my side, That any purblind eye may find it out.

Shak.

All things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we to do.

Heb. iv. 13.

5. Mere; simple; plain.

The very naked name of love.

Shak.

6. (Bot.) Without pubescence; as, a naked leaf or stem; bare, or not covered by the customary parts, as a flower without a perianth, a stem without leaves, seeds without a pericarp, buds without bud scales.

7. (Mus.) Not having the full complement of tones; — said of a chord of only two tones, which requires a third tone to be sounded with them to make the combination pleasing to the ear; as, a naked fourth or fifth.

Naked bed, a bed the occupant of which is naked, no night linen being worn in ancient times. Shak. — Naked eye, the eye alone, unaided by glasses, or by telescope, microscope, or the like. — Naked-eyed medusa. (Zoöl.) See Hydromedusa. — Naked flooring (Carp.), the timberwork which supports a floor. Gwilt. — Naked mollusk (Zoöl.), a nudibranch. — Naked wood (Bot.), a large rhamnaceous tree (Colibrina reclinata) of Southern Florida and the West Indies, having a hard and heavy heartwood, which takes a fine polish. C. S. Sargent.

Syn. — Nude; bare; denuded; uncovered; unclothed; exposed; unarmed; plain; defenseless.

Na”ked*ly, adv. In a naked manner; without covering or disguise; manifestly; simply; barely.

Na”ked*ness, n. 1. The condition of being naked.

2. (Script.) The privy parts; the genitals.

Ham . . . saw the nakedness of his father.

Gen. ix. 22.

Na”ker (?), n. (Zoöl.) Same as Nacre.

Na”ker, n. [OE. nakere, F. nakaire, LL. nacara, Per. naqāret.] A kind of kettledrum. [Obs.] Chaucer.

||Na”koo (?), n. [From the native name.] (Zoöl.) The gavial. [Written also nako.]

Nale (?), n. [A corrupt form arising from the older “at þen ale” at the nale.] Ale; also, an alehouse. [Obs.]

Great feasts at the nale.

Chaucer.

Nall (?), n. [Either fr. Icel. nāl (see Needle); or fr. awl, like newt fr. ewt.] An awl. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.] Tusser.

Nam (?). [Contr. fr. ne am.] Am not. [Obs.]

Nam, obs. imp. of Nim. Chaucer.

Nam”a*ble (?), a. Capable of being named.

Na*ma”tion (?), n. [LL. namare to take; cf. AS. niman to take.] (O. Eng. & Scots Law) A distraining or levying of a distress; an impounding. Burrill.

Nam”ay*cush (?), n. [Indian name.] (Zool.) A large North American lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush). It is usually spotted with red, and sometimes weighs over forty pounds. Called also Mackinaw trout, lake trout, lake salmon, salmon trout, togue, and tuladi.

Nam”by-pam`by (?), n. [From Ambrose Phillips, in ridicule of the extreme simplicity of some of his verses.] Talk or writing which is weakly sentimental or affectedly pretty. Macaulay.

Nam”by-pam`by, a. Affectedly pretty; weakly sentimental; finical; insipid. Thackeray.

Namby-pamby madrigals of love.

W. Gifford.

Name (?), n. [AS. nama; akin to D. naam, OS. & OHG. namo, G. name, Icel. nafn, for namn, Dan. navn, Sw. namn, Goth. namō, L. nomen (perh. influenced by noscere, gnoscere, to learn to know), Gr. ‘o`mona, Scr. nāman. √267. Cf. Anonymous, Ignominy, Misnomer, Nominal, Noun.] 1. The title by which any person or thing is known or designated; a distinctive specific appellation, whether of an individual or a class.

Whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof.

Gen. ii. 19.

What’s in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet.

Shak.

2. A descriptive or qualifying appellation given to a person or thing, on account of a character or acts.

His name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

Is. ix. 6.

3. Reputed character; reputation, good or bad; estimation; fame; especially, illustrious character or fame; honorable estimation; distinction.

What men of name resort to him?

Shak.

Far above . . . every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come.

Eph. i. 21.

I will get me a name and honor in the kingdom.

1 Macc. iii. 14.

He hath brought up an evil name upon a virgin.

Deut. xxii. 19.

The king’s army . . . had left no good name behind.

Clarendon.

4. Those of a certain name; a race; a family.

The ministers of the republic, mortal enemies of his name, came every day to pay their feigned civilities.

Motley.

5. A person, an individual. [Poetic]

They list with women each degenerate name.

Dryden.

Christian name. (a) The name a person receives at baptism, as distinguished from surname; baptismal name. (b) A given name, whether received at baptism or not. — Given name. See under Given. — In name, in profession, or by title only; not in reality; as, a friend in name. — In the name of. (a) In behalf of; by the authority of. ” I charge you in the duke’s name to obey me.” Shak. (b) In the represented or assumed character of. “I’ll to him again in name of Brook.” Shak. — Name plate, a plate as of metal, glass, etc., having a name upon it, as a sign; a doorplate. — Pen name, a name assumed by an author; a pseudonym or nom de plume. Bayard Taylor. — Proper name (Gram.), a name applied to a particular person, place, or thing. — To call names, to apply opprobrious epithets to; to call by reproachful appellations. — To take a name in vain, to use a name lightly or profanely; to use a name in making flippant or dishonest oaths. Ex. xx. 7.

Syn. — Appellation; title; designation; cognomen; denomination; epithet. — Name, Appellation, Title, Denomination. Name is generic, denoting that combination of sounds or letters by which a person or thing is known and distinguished. Appellation, although sometimes put for name simply, denotes, more properly, a descriptive term, used by way of marking some individual peculiarity or characteristic; as, Charles the Bold, Philip the Stammerer. A title is a term employed to point out one’s rank, office, etc.; as, the Duke of Bedford, Paul the Apostle, etc. Denomination is to particular bodies what appellation is to individuals; thus, the church of Christ is divided into different denominations, as Congregationalists, Episcopalians, Presbyterians, etc.

Name (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Named (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Naming.] [AS. namian. See Name, n.] 1. To give a distinctive name or appellation to; to entitle; to denominate; to style; to call.

She named the child Ichabod.

1 Sam. iv. 21.

Thus was the building left
Ridiculous, and the work Confusion named.

Milton.

2. To mention by name; to utter or publish the name of; to refer to by distinctive title; to mention.

None named thee but to praise.

Halleck.

Old Yew, which graspest at the stones
That name the underlying dead.

Tennyson.

3. To designate by name or specifically for any purpose; to nominate; to specify; to appoint; as, to name a day for the wedding.

Whom late you have named for consul.

Shak.

4. (House of Commons) To designate (a member) by name, as the Speaker does by way of reprimand.

Syn. — To denominate; style; term; call; mention; specify; designate; nominate.

Name”less, a. 1. Without a name; not having been given a name; as, a nameless star. Waller.

2. Undistinguished; not noted or famous.

A nameless dwelling and an unknown name.

Harte.

3. Not known or mentioned by name; anonymous; as, a nameless writer.”Nameless pens.” Atterbury.

4. Unnamable; indescribable; inexpressible.

But what it is, that is not yet known; what
I can not name; &?;t is nameless woe,I wot.

Shak.

I have a nameless horror of the man.

Hawthorne.

Name”less*ly, adv. In a nameless manner.

Name”ly, adv. 1. By name; by particular mention; specifically; especially; expressly. [Obs.] Chaucer.

The solitariness of man . . . God hath namely and principally ordered to prevent by marriage.

Milton.

2. That is to say; to wit; videlicet; — introducing a particular or specific designation.

For the excellency of the soul, namely, its power of divining dreams; that several such divinations have been made, none &?;an question.

Addison.

Nam”er (?), n. One who names, or calls by name.

Name”sake` (?), n. [For name’s sake; i. e., one named for the sake of another’s name.] One that has the same name as another; especially, one called after, or named out of regard to, another.

Na*mo” (?), adv. No more. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Nan (?), interj. [For anan.] Anan. [Prov. Eng.]

Nan”dine (?), n. [Native name.] (Zoöl.) An African carnivore (Nandinia binotata), allied to the civets. It is spotted with black.

{ Nan”dou (?), Nan”du (?), } n. [Braz. nhandu or yandu.] (Zoöl.) Any one of three species of South American ostriches of the genera Rhea and Pterocnemia. See Rhea. [Written also nandow.]

Nan*keen” (?), n. [So called from its being originally manufactured at Nankin, in China.] [Written also nankin.] 1. A species of cloth, of a firm texture, originally brought from China, made of a species of cotton (Gossypium religiosum) that is naturally of a brownish yellow color quite indestructible and permanent.

2. An imitation of this cloth by artificial coloring.

3. pl. Trousers made of nankeen. Ld. Lytton.

Nankeen bird (Zoöl.), the Australian night heron (Nycticorax Caledonicus); — called also quaker.

Nan”ny (?), n. A diminutive of Ann or Anne, the proper name.

Nanny goat, a female goat. [Colloq.]

Nan”ny*ber`ry (?), n. (Bot.) See Sheepberry.

Nan”pie (?), n. (Zoöl.) The magpie.

||Na”os (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;&?;&?;&?; a temple, the cella.] (Arch.) A term used by modern archæologists instead of cella. See Cella.

Nap (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Napped (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Napping (?).] [OE. nappen, AS. hnæppian to take a nap, to slumber; cf. AS. hnipian to bend one’s self, Icel. hnipna, hnīpa, to droop.] 1. To have a short sleep; to be drowsy; to doze. Chaucer.

2. To be in a careless, secure state. Wyclif.

I took thee napping, unprepared.

Hudibras.

Nap, n. A short sleep; a doze; a siesta. Cowper.

Nap, n. [OE. noppe, AS. hnoppa; akin to D. nop, Dan. noppe, LG. nobbe.] 1. Woolly or villous surface of felt, cloth, plants, etc.; an external covering of down, of short fine hairs or fibers forming part of the substance of anything, and lying smoothly in one direction; the pile; — as, the nap of cotton flannel or of broadcloth.

2. pl. The loops which are cut to make the pile, in velvet. Knight.

Nap, v. t. To raise, or put, a nap on.

Nape (?), n. [Perh. akin to knap a knop.] The back part of the neck. Spenser.

Nape”-crest` (?), n. (Zoöl.) An African bird of the genus Schizorhis, related to the plantain eaters.

Na”per*y (?), n.; pl. Naperies (#). [OF. naperie, fr. nape a tablecloth, F. nappe, LL. napa, fr. L. mappa. See Map, and cf. Apron, Napkin.] Table linen; also, linen clothing, or linen in general. [Obs.] Gayton.

Na”pha wa`ter (?). [Sp. nafa, from Ar. napha odor.] A perfume distilled from orange flowers.

Na”phew (?), n. (Bot.) See Navew.

Naph”tha (?), n. [L. naphtha, Gr. &?;&?;&?;&?;&?;, fr.Ar. nafth, nifth.] 1. (Chem.) The complex mixture of volatile, liquid, inflammable hydrocarbons, occurring naturally, and usually called crude petroleum, mineral oil, or rock oil. Specifically: That portion of the distillate obtained in the refinement of petroleum which is intermediate between the lighter gasoline and the heavier benzine, and has a specific gravity of about 0.7, — used as a solvent for varnishes, as a carburetant, illuminant, etc.

2. (Chem.) One of several volatile inflammable liquids obtained by the distillation of certain carbonaceous materials and resembling the naphtha from petroleum; as, Boghead naphtha, from Boghead coal (obtained at Boghead, Scotland); crude naphtha, or light oil, from coal tar; wood naphtha, from wood, etc.

&fist; This term was applied by the earlier chemical writers to a number of volatile, strong smelling, inflammable liquids, chiefly belonging to the ethers, as the sulphate, nitrate, or acetate of ethyl. Watts.

Naphtha vitrioli [NL., naphtha of vitriol] (Old Chem.), common ethyl ether; — formerly called sulphuric ether. See Ether.

Naph”tha*late (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of naphthalic acid; a phthalate. [Obs.]

Naph”tha*lene (?), n. (Chem.) A white crystalline aromatic hydrocarbon, C_10H_8, analogous to benzene, and obtained by the distillation of certain bituminous materials, such as the heavy oil of coal tar. It is the type and basis of a large number of derivatives among organic compounds. Formerly called also naphthaline.

Naphthalene red (Chem.), a dyestuff obtained from certain diazo derivatives of naphthylamine, and called also magdala red. — Naphthalene yellow (Chem.), a yellow dyestuff obtained from certain nitro derivatives of naphthol.

Naph`tha*len”ic (?), a. (Chem.) Pertaining to , or derived from, naphthalene; — used specifically to designate a yellow crystalline substance, called naphthalenic acid and also hydroxy quinone, and obtained from certain derivatives of naphthol.

Naph*tha”lic (?), a. (Chem.) (a) Pertaining to, derived from, or related to, naphthalene; — used specifically to denote any one of a series of acids derived from naphthalene, and called naphthalene acids. (b) Formerly, designating an acid probably identical with phthalic acid.

Naph*thal”i*dine (?), n. [Naphthalene + toluidine.] (Chem.) Same as Naphthylamine.

{ Naph”tha*lin (?), Naph”tha*line (?), } n. [F. naphthaline.] (Chem.) See Naphthalene.

Naph”tha*lize (?), v. t. (Chem.) To mingle, saturate, or impregnate, with naphtha.

Naph*thaz”a*rin (?), n. [Naphthalene + alizarin.] (Chem.) A dyestuff, resembling alizarin, obtained from naphthoquinone as a red crystalline substance with a bright green, metallic luster; — called also naphthalizarin.

Naph”thene (?), n. (Chem.) A peculiar hydrocarbon occuring as an ingredient of Caucasian petroleum.

Naph”thide (?), n. (Chem.) A compound of naphthalene or its radical with a metallic element; as, mercuric naphthide.

Naph*tho”ic (?), a. (Chem.) Pertaining to, derived from, or related to, naphthalene; — used specifically to designate any one of a series of carboxyl derivatives, called naphthoic acids.

Naph”thol (?), n. [Naphthalene + -ol.] (Chem.) Any one of a series of hydroxyl derivatives of naphthalene, analogous to phenol. In general they are crystalline substances with a phenol (carbolic) odor.

Naphthol blue, Naphthol orange, Naphthol yellow (Chem.), brilliant dyestuffs produced from certain complex nitrogenous derivatives of naphthol or naphthoquinone.

Naph`tho*qui”none (?), n. [Naphthalene + quinone.] (Chem.) A yellow crystalline substance, C_10H_6O_2, analogous to quinone, obtained by oxidizing naphthalene with chromic acid.

Naph”thyl (?), n. [Naphthalene + -yl.] (Chem.) A hydrocarbon radical regarded as the essential residue of naphthalene.

Naph`thyl*am”ine (?), n. (Chem.) One of two basic amido derivatives of naphthalene, C_10H_7.NH_2, forming crystalline solids.

{ Na*pie”ri*an, Na*pe”ri*an , } (?), a. Of, pertaining to, or discovered by, Napier, or Naper.

Naperian logarithms. See under Logarithms.

{ Na”pi*er’s bones` (?), Na”pi*er’s rods` (?) }. A set of rods, made of bone or other material, each divided into nine spaces, and containing the numbers of a column of the multiplication table; — a contrivance of Baron Napier, the inventor of logarithms, for facilitating the operations of multiplication and division.

Na”pi*form (?), a. [L. napus turnip + -form: cf. F. napiforme. Cf. Navew.] (Bot.) Turnip-shaped; large and round in the upper part, and very slender below.

Nap”kin (?), n. [Dim. of OF. nape a tablecloth, cloth, F. nappe, L. mappa. See Napery.] 1. A little towel, or small cloth, esp. one for wiping the fingers and mouth at table.

2. A handkerchief. [Obs.] Shak.

Napkin pattern. See Linen scroll, under Linen. — Napkin ring, a ring of metal, ivory, or other material, used to inclose a table napkin.

Nap”less, a. Without nap; threadbare. Shak.

Na”ples yel”low (?). See under Yellow.

Na*po”le*on (?), n. [From the Emperor Napoleon 1.] A French gold coin of twenty francs, or about $3.86.

Na*po`le*on”ic (?), a. Of or pertaining to Napoleon I., or his family; resembling, or having the qualities of, Napoleon I. Lowell.

Na*po”le*on*ist (?), n. A supporter of the dynasty of the Napoleons.

Nappe (?), n. [F. nappe cloth, sheet. See Napery.] (Geom.) Sheet; surface; all that portion of a surface that is continuous in such a way that it is possible to pass from any one point of the portion to any other point of the portion without leaving the surface. Thus, some hyperboloids have one nappe, and some have two.

Nap”pi*ness (?), n. [From 2d Nappy.] The quality of having a nap; abundance of nap, as on cloth.

Nap”ping (?), n. 1. The act or process of raising a nap, as on cloth.

2. (Hat Making) A sheet of partially felted fur before it is united to the hat body. Knight.

Nap”py (?), a. [From 1st Nap.] 1. Inclined to sleep; sleepy; as, to feel nappy.

2. Tending to cause sleepiness; serving to make sleepy; strong; heady; as, nappy ale. [Obs.] Wyatt.

Nap”py, a. [From 3d Nap.] Having a nap or pile; downy; shaggy. Holland.

Nap”py, n.; pl. Nappies (#). [OE. nap, AS. hnæp cup, bowl. See Hanaper.] A round earthen dish, with a flat bottom and sloping sides. [Written also nappie.]

Nap”-tak`ing (?), n. A taking by surprise; an unexpected onset or attack. Carew.

||Na*pu” (?), n. [Native name.] (Zoöl.) A very small chevrotain (Tragulus Javanicus), native of Java. It is about the size of a hare, and is noted for its agility in leaping. Called also Java musk deer, pygmy musk deer, and deerlet.

||Na”pus (?), n. [L.] (Bot.) A kind of turnip. See Navew.

Nar”ce*ine (?), n. [L. narce numbness, torpor, Gr. &?;&?;&?;&?;&?;: cf. F. narcéïne.] (Chem.) An alkaloid found in small quantities in opium, and extracted as a white crystalline substance of a bitter astringent taste. It is a narcotic. Called also narceia.

Nar*cis”sine (?), a. Of or pertaining to Narcissus.

Nar*cis”sus (?), n.; pl. Narcissuses (#). [L. narcissus, and (personified) Narcissus, Gr. na`rkissos, Na`rkissos, fr. na`rkh torpor, in allusion to the narcotic properties of the flower. Cf. Narcotic.]

1. (Bot.) A genus of endogenous bulbous plants with handsome flowers, having a cup-shaped crown within the six-lobed perianth, and comprising the daffodils and jonquils of several kinds.

2. (Classical Myth.) A beautiful youth fabled to have been enamored of his own image as seen in a fountain, and to have been changed into the flower called Narcissus.

||Nar*co”sis (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. na`rkwsis. See Narcotic.] (Med.) Privation of sense or consciousness, due to a narcotic.

Nar*cot”ic (?), a. [F. narcotique, Gr. &?;&?;&?;&?;&?;&?;&?;&?;&?;&?;, fr. &?;&?;&?;&?;&?;&?;&?; to benumb, na`rkh numbness, torpor.] (Med.) Having the properties of a narcotic; operating as a narcotic.

— Nar*cot”ic*ness, n.

Nar*cot”ic (?), n. (Med.) A drug which, in medicinal doses, generally allays morbid susceptibility, relieves pain, and produces sleep; but which, in poisonous doses, produces stupor, coma, or convulsions, and, when given in sufficient quantity, causes death. The best examples are opium (with morphine), belladonna (with atropine), and conium.

Nercotykes and opye (opium) of Thebes.

Chaucer.

Nar*cot”ic*al (?), a. Narcotic.

— Nar*cot”ic*al*ly, adv.

Nar”co*tine (?), n. [Cf. F. narcotine. Cf. Cotarnine.] (Chem.) An alkaloid found in opium, and extracted as a white crystalline substance, tasteless and less poisonous than morphine; — called also narcotia.

Nar`co*tin”ic (?), a. Pertaining to narcotine.

Nar”co*tism (?), n. [Cf. F. narcotisme.] Narcosis; the state of being narcotized. G. Eliot.

Nar”co*tize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Narcotized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Narcotizing (?).] To imbue with, or subject to the influence of, a narcotic; to put into a state of narcosis.

Nard (?), n. [AS., fr. L. nardus, Gr. &?;&?;&?;&?;&?;&?;; cf. Heb. nêrd, Per. nard, Scr. nalada.] 1. (Bot.) An East Indian plant (Nardostachys Jatamansi) of the Valerian family, used from remote ages in Oriental perfumery.

2. An ointment prepared partly from this plant. See Spikenard.

3. (Bot.) A kind of grass (Nardus stricta) of little value, found in Europe and Asia.

Nard”ine (?), a. [L. nardinus, Gr. &?;&?;&?;&?;&?;&?;&?;&?;.] Of or pertaining to nard; having the qualities of nard.

||Nar*doo” (?), n. (Bot.) An Australian name for Marsilea Drummondii, a four-leaved cryptogamous plant, sometimes used for food.

Nare (?), n. [L. naris.] A nostril. [R.] B. Jonson.

||Na”res (?), n. pl. [L., pl. of naris nostril.] (Anat.) The nostrils or nasal openings, — the anterior nares being the external or proper nostrils, and the posterior nares, the openings of the nasal cavities into the mouth or pharynx.

{ Nar”gile (?), Nar”gi*leh (?), } n. [Per. nārghīl, prop., a cocoanut; prob. so called because first made of a cocoanut.] An apparatus for smoking tobacco. It has a long flexible tube, and the smoke is drawn through water.

||Nar”i*ca (?), n. (Zoöl.) The brown coati. See Coati.

Nar”i*form (?), a. [L. naris nostril + -form. See Nose.] Formed like the nose.

Nar”ine (?), a. Of or belonging to the nostrils.

Nar”ra*ble (?), a. [L. narrabilis, fr. narrare to narrate.] Capable of being narrated or told. [Obs.]

Nar`ra*gan”setts (?), n. pl.; sing. Narragansett (&?;). (Ethnol.) A tribe of Indians who formerly inhabited the shores of Narragansett Bay.

Nar*rate” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Narrated; p. pr. & vb. n. Narrating.] [L. narratus, p. p. of narrare to narrate, prob. for gnarigare, fr. gnarus knowing. See Ignore, Know.] To tell, rehearse, or recite, as a story; to relate the particulars of; to go through with in detail, as an incident or transaction; to give an account of.

Syn. — To relate; recount; detail; describe.

Nar*ra”tion (?), n. [L. narratio: cf. F. narration.] 1. The act of telling or relating the particulars of an event; rehearsal; recital.

2. That which is related; the relation in words or writing of the particulars of any transaction or event, or of any series of transactions or events; story; history.

3. (Rhet.) That part of a discourse which recites the time, manner, or consequences of an action, or simply states the facts connected with the subject.

Syn. — Account; recital; rehearsal; relation; description; explanation; detail; narrative; story; tale; history. See Account.

Nar”ra*tive (?), a. [Cf. F. narratif.] 1. Of or pertaining to narration; relating to the particulars of an event or transaction.

2. Apt or inclined to relate stories, or to tell particulars of events; story-telling; garrulous.

But wise through time, and narrative with age.

Pope.

Nar”ra*tive, n. That which is narrated; the recital of a story; a continuous account of the particulars of an event or transaction; a story.

Cyntio was much taken with my narrative.

Tatler.

Syn. — Account; recital; rehearsal; relation; narration; story; tale. See Account.

Nar”ra*tive*ly, adv. In the style of narration.

Nar*ra”tor (?), n. [L.] One who narrates; one who relates a series of events or transactions.

Nar”ra*to*ry (?), a. Giving an account of events; narrative; as, narratory letters. Howell.

Narre (?), a. Nearer. [Obs.] Spenser.

Nar”row (?), a. [Compar. Narrower (?); superl. Narrowest.] [OE. narwe, naru, AS. nearu; akin to OS. naru, naro.] 1. Of little breadth; not wide or broad; having little distance from side to side; as, a narrow board; a narrow street; a narrow hem.

Hath passed in safety through the narrow seas.

Shak.

2. Of little extent; very limited; circumscribed.

The Jews were but a small nation, and confined to a narrow compass in the world.

Bp. Wilkins.

3. Having but a little margin; having barely sufficient space, time, or number, etc.; close; near; — with special reference to some peril or misfortune; as, a narrow shot; a narrow escape; a narrow majority. Dryden.

4. Limited as to means; straitened; pinching; as, narrow circumstances.

5. Contracted; of limited scope; illiberal; bigoted; as, a narrow mind; narrow views. “A narrow understanding.” Macaulay.

6. Parsimonious; niggardly; covetous; selfish.

A very narrow and stinted charity.

Smalridge.

7. Scrutinizing in detail; close; accurate; exact.

But first with narrow search I must walk round
This garden, and no corner leave unspied.

Milton.

8. (Phon.) Formed (as a vowel) by a close position of some part of the tongue in relation to the palate; or (according to Bell) by a tense condition of the pharynx; — distinguished from wide; as ē (ēve) and &oomac; (f&oomac;d), etc., from &ibreve; (&ibreve;ll) and &oocr; (f&oocr;t), etc. See Guide to Pronunciation, § 13.

&fist; Narrow is not unfrequently prefixed to words, especially to participles and adjectives, forming compounds of obvious signification; as, narrowbordered, narrow brimmed, narrow-breasted, narrowedged, narrow faced, narrow-headed, narrowleaved, narrow pointed, narrow-souled, narrow-sphered, etc.

Narrow gauge. (Railroad) See Note under Gauge, n., 6.

Nar”row (?), n.; pl. Narrows (&?;). A narrow passage; esp., a contracted part of a stream, lake, or sea; a strait connecting two bodies of water; — usually in the plural; as, The Narrows of New York harbor.

Near the island lay on one side the jaws of a dangerous
narrow.

Gladstone.

Nar”row, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Narrowed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Narrowing.] [AS. nearwian.] 1. To lessen the breadth of; to contract; to draw into a smaller compass; to reduce the width or extent of. Sir W. Temple.

2. To contract the reach or sphere of; to make less liberal or more selfish; to limit; to confine; to restrict; as, to narrow one’s views or knowledge; to narrow a question in discussion.

Our knowledge is much more narrowed if we confine ourselves to our own solitary reasonings.

I. Watts.

3. (Knitting) To contract the size of, as a stocking, by taking two stitches into one.

Nar”row, v. i. 1. To become less broad; to contract; to become narrower; as, the sea narrows into a strait.

2. (Man.) Not to step out enough to the one hand or the other; as, a horse narrows. Farrier’s Dict.

3. (Knitting) To contract the size of a stocking or other knit article, by taking two stitches into one.

Nar”row*er (?), n. One who, or that which, narrows or contracts. Hannah More.

Nar”row*ing, n. 1. The act of contracting, or of making or becoming less in breadth or extent.

2. The part of a stocking which is narrowed.

Nar”row*ly, adv. [AS. nearulice.] 1. With little breadth; in a narrow manner.

2. Without much extent; contractedly.

3. With minute scrutiny; closely; as, to look or watch narrowly; to search narrowly.

4. With a little margin or space; by a small distance; hence, closely; hardly; barely; only just; — often with reference to an avoided danger or misfortune; as, he narrowly escaped.

5. Sparingly; parsimoniously.

Nar”row-mind`ed (?), a. Of narrow mental scope; illiberal; mean. — Nar”row- mind`ed*ness, n.

Nar”row*ness, n. [AS. nearunes.] The condition or quality of being narrow.

Nart (?). [For ne art.] Art not. [Obs.] Chaucer.

||Nar”thex (?), n. [L., giant fennel, Gr. &?;.] 1. (Bot.) A tall umbelliferous plant (Ferula communis). See Giant fennel, under Fennel.

2. (Arch.) The portico in front of ancient churches; sometimes, the atrium or outer court surrounded by ambulatories; — used, generally, for any vestibule, lobby, or outer porch, leading to the nave of a church.

Nar”wal (?), n. (Zoöl.) See Narwhal.

Nar”we (?), a. Narrow. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Nar”whal (?), n. [Sw. or Dan. narvhal; akin to Icel. nāhvalr, and E. whale. the first syllable is perh. from Icel. nār corpse, dead body, in allusion to the whitish color its skin. See Whale.] [Written also narwhale.] (Zoöl.) An arctic cetacean (Monodon monocerous), about twenty feet long. The male usually has one long, twisted, pointed canine tooth, or tusk projecting forward from the upper jaw like a horn, whence it is called also sea unicorn, unicorn fish, and unicorn whale. Sometimes two horns are developed, side by side.

Nas (näz). [For ne was.] Was not. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Nas. [Contr. fr. ne has.] Has not. [Obs.] Spenser.

Na”sal (nā“zal), a. [F., from L. nasus the nose. See Nose.] 1. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the nose.

2. (Phon.) Having a quality imparted by means of the nose; and specifically, made by lowering the soft palate, in some cases with closure of the oral passage, the voice thus issuing (wholly or partially) through the nose, as in the consonants m, n, ng (see Guide to Pronunciation, §§ 20, 208); characterized by resonance in the nasal passage; as, a nasal vowel; a nasal utterance.

Nasal bones (Anat.), two bones of the skull, in front of the frontals. — Nasal index (Anat.), in the skull, the ratio of the transverse the base of the aperture to the nasion, which latter distance is taken as the standard, equal to 100.

Na”sal, n. 1. An elementary sound which is uttered through the nose, or through both the nose and the mouth simultaneously.

2. (Med.) A medicine that operates through the nose; an errhine. [Archaic]

3. (Anc. Armor) Part of a helmet projecting to protect the nose; a nose guard.

4. (Anat.) One of the nasal bones.

5. (Zoöl.) A plate, or scale, on the nose of a fish, etc.

Na*sal”i*ty (?), n. [Cf. F. nasalité.] The quality or state of being nasal.

Na`sal*i*za”tion (?), n. The act of nasalizing, or the state of being nasalized.

Na”sal*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nasalized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nasalizing (?).] To render nasal, as sound; to insert a nasal or sound in.

Na”sal*ize, v. t. To utter words or letters with a nasal sound; to speak through the nose.

Na”sal*ly, adv. In a nasal manner; by the nose.

Nas”cal (?), n. [F. nascale.] (Med.) A kind of pessary of medicated wool or cotton, formerly used.

Nas”cen*cy (?), n. [L. nascentia. See Nascent.] State of being nascent; birth; beginning; origin.

Nas”cent (?), a. [L. nascens, -entis, p. pr. nasci to be born. See Nation, and cf. Naissant.] 1. Commencing, or in process of development; beginning to exist or to grow; coming into being; as, a nascent germ.

Nascent passions and anxieties.

Berkley.

2. (Chem.) Evolving; being evolved or produced.

Nascent state (Chem.), the supposed instantaneous or momentary state of an uncombined atom or radical just separated from one compound acid, and not yet united with another, — a hypothetical condition implying peculiarly active chemical properties; as, hydrogen in the nascent state is a strong reducer.

Nase”ber`ry (?), n. [Sp. nispero medlar and naseberry tree, fr. L. mespilus. See Medlar.] (Bot.) A tropical fruit. See Sapodilla. [Written also nisberry.]

Nash (?), a. [Etymol. uncertain.] Firm; stiff; hard; also, chilly. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

Nas`i*cor”nous (?), a. [L. nasus nose + cornu horn: cf. F. nasicorne.] (Zoöl.) Bearing a horn, or horns, on the nose, as the rhinoceros.

Nas”i*form (?), a. [L. nasus nose + -form. See Nose, and cf. Nariform.] Having the shape of a nose.

||Na*si*on (?), n. [NL., fr. L. nasus nose.] (Anat.) The middle point of the nasofrontal suture.

Na”so- (&?;). [L. nasus nose.] (Anat.) A combining form denoting pertaining to, or connected with, the nose; as, nasofrontal.

Na”so*buc”cal (?), a. [Naso + buccal.] (Anat.) Connected with both the nose and the mouth; as, the nasobuccal groove in the skate.

Na`so*fron”tal (?), a. [Naso- + frontal.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the nose and the front of the head; as, the embryonic nasofrontal process which forms the anterior boundary of the mouth.

Na`so*lach”ry*mal (?), a. [Naso- + lachrymal.] (Anat.) Connected with the lachrymal apparatus and the nose; as, the nasolachrymal, or lachrymal duct.

{ Na`so*pal”a*tal (?), Na`so*pal”a*tine (?) }, a. [Naso- + palatal.] (Anat.) Connected with both the nose and the palate; as, the nasopalatine or incisor, canal connecting the mouth and the nasal chamber in some animals; the nasopalatine nerve.

Na`so*phar`yn*ge”al (? or &?;), a. [Naso- + pharyngeal.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to both throat and nose; as, a nasopharyngeal polypus.

Na`so*sep”tal (?), a. [Naso- + septal.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the internasal septum.

Na`so*tur”bi*nal (?), a. [Naso- + turbinal.] (Anat.) Connected with, or near, both the turbinal and the nasal bones; as, the nasalturbinal bone, made up of the uppermost lammelæ of the ethmoturbinal, and sometimes united with the nasal. — n. The nasoturbinal bone.

Nas”sa (?), n.; pl. E. Nassas (#), L. NassÆ (#). [From L. nassa a kind of basket, in allusion to the reticulation of some species.] (Zoöl.) Any species of marine gastropods, of the genera Nassa, Tritia, and other allied genera of the family Nassidæ; a dog whelk. See Illust. under Gastropoda.

— nas”soid (#), a.

Nas”ti*ly (?), adv. In a nasty manner.

Nas”ti*ness, n. The quality or state of being nasty; extreme filthness; dirtiness; also, indecency; obscenity.

The nastiness of Plautus and Aristophanes.

Dryden.

Nas*tur”tion (?), n. [See Nasturtium.] (Bot.) Same as Nasturtium.

Nas*tur”tium (?), n. [L. nasturtium, for nasitortium, fr. nasus nose + torquere, tortum, to twist, torture, in allusion to the causing one to make a wry face by its pungent taste. See Nose of the face, and Torture.] 1. (Bot.) A genus of cruciferous plants, having white or yellowish flowers, including several species of cress. They are found chiefly in wet or damp grounds, and have a pungent biting taste.

2. (Bot.) Any plant of the genus Tropæolum, geraniaceous herbs, having mostly climbing stems, peltate leaves, and spurred flowers, and including the common Indian cress (Tropæolum majus), the canary-bird flower (T. peregrinum), and about thirty more species, all natives of South America. The whole plant has a warm pungent flavor, and the fleshy fruits are used as a substitute for capers, while the leaves and flowers are sometimes used in salads.

Nas”ty (?), a. [Compar. Nastier (&?;); superl. Nastiest.] [For older nasky; cf. dial. Sw. naskug, nasket.] 1. Offensively filthy; very dirty, foul, or defiled; disgusting; nauseous.

2. Hence, loosely: Offensive; disagreeable; unpropitious; wet; drizzling; as, a nasty rain, day, sky.

3. Characterized by obscenity; indecent; indelicate; gross; filthy.

Syn. — Nasty, Filthy, Foul, Dirty. Anything nasty is usually wet or damp as well as filthy or dirty, and disgusts by its stickiness or odor; but filthy and foul imply that a thing is filled or covered with offensive matter, while dirty describes it as defiled or sullied with dirt of any kind; as, filthy clothing, foul vapors, etc.

Na”sute (?), a. [L. nasutus, fr. nasus the nose.] 1. Having a nice sense of smell. [Obs.] Evelyn.

2. Critically nice; captious. [Obs.] auden.

Na”sut*ness, n. Quickness of scent; hence, nice discernment; acuteness. [Obs.] Dr. H. More.

Nat (?), adv. Not. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Nat [For ne at.] Not at; nor at. [Obs.] haucer.

Na”tal (?), a. [L. natalis, fr. natus, p. p. of nasci to be born: cf. F. natal. See Nation, and cf. Noel.] 1. Of or pertaining to one’s birth; accompying or dating from one’s birth; native.

Princes’ children took names from their natal places.

Camden.

Propitious star, whose sacred power
Presided o’er the monarch’s natal hour.

Prior.

2. (Actrol.) Presiding over nativity; as, natal Jove.

Syn. — Native, natural. See Native.

{ Na`ta*li”tial (?), Na`ta*li”tious (?) }, a. [L. natalitius, from natalis. See Natal.] Of or pertaining to one’s birth or birthday, or one’s nativity. [Obs.] “Natalitial poplar.” Evelyn. “Natalitious fire.” W. Cartwright.

Na*tal”o*in (?), n. [From Natal aloes.] (Chem.) A bitter crystalline substance constituting the essential principle of Natal aloes. Cf. Aloon.

Na*tal” plum` (?). (Bot.) The drupaceous fruit of two South African shrubs of the genus Arduina (A. bispinosa and A. grandiflora).

Na”tals (?), n. pl. One’s birth, or the circumstances attending it. [Obs.] Fitz- Geffry.

Na”tant (?), a. [L. natans, - antis, from swim, v. intens. fr. nare to swim: cf. F. natant.] 1. (Bot.) Floating in water, as the leaves of water lilies, or submersed, as those of many aquatic plants.

2. (Her.) Placed horizontally across the field, as if swimming toward the dexter side; said of all sorts of fishes except the flying fish.

Na”tant*ly (?), adv. In a floating manner; swimmingly.

Na*ta”tion (?), n. [L. natatio, fr. natare to swim: cf. F. natation. See Natant.] The act of floating on the water; swimming. Sir T. Browne.

||Na`ta*to”res (?), n. pl. [L. natator a swimmer.] (Zoöl.) The swimming birds.

&fist; They were formerly united into one order, which is now considered an artificial group.

Na`ta*to”rial (?), a. Inclined or adapted to swim; swimming; as, natatorial birds.

Na`ta*to”ri*ous (?), a. (Zoöl.) Adapted for swimming; — said of the legs of certain insects.

||Na`ta*to”rium (?), n. [L.] A swimming bath.

Na”ta*to*ry (?), a. [L. natatorius.] Adapted for swimming or floating; as, natatory organs.

Natch (?), n. [OF. nache fesse, LL. natica, from L. natis the rump, buttocks. Cf. Aitchbone.] The rump of beef; esp., the lower and back part of the rump.

Natch bone, the edgebone, or aitchbone, in beef.

Natch”ez (?), n. pl. (Ethnol.) A tribe of Indians who formerly lived near the site of the city of Natchez, Mississippi. In 1729 they were subdued by the French; the survivors joined the Creek Confederacy.

Natch”nee (?), n. (Bot.) An annual grass (Eleusine coracona), cultivated in India as a food plant.

||Na”tes (?), n. pl. [L., the buttocks.] 1. (Anat.) (a) The buttocks. (b) The two anterior of the four lobes on the dorsal side of the midbrain of most mammals; the anterior optic lobes.

2. (Zoöl.) The umbones of a bivalve shell.

Nath (?). [Contr. fr. ne hath,] hath not. [Obs.]

Nath”less (?), adv. [OE. natheles, na the les, not the less, AS. nā never. See Na, The, conj., and cf. Nevertheless.] Nevertheless. [Archaic] Chaucer. Milton. E. Arnold.

Nath”more` (?), adv. [OE. na the more.] Not the more; never the more. [Obs.] penser.

Nat”i*ca (?), n.; pl. Naticas (&?;), L. NaticÆ (- sē). (Zoöl.) Any one of numerous species of marine gastropods belonging to Natica, Lunatia, Neverita, and other allied genera (family Naticidæ.) They burrow beneath the sand, or mud, and drill other shells.

Nat”i*coid (?), a. [Natica + -oid.] (Zoöl.) Like or belonging to Natica, or the family Naticidæ.

Na”tion (?), n. [F. nation, L. natio nation, race, orig., a being born, fr. natus, p. p. of nasci, to be born, for gnatus, gnasci, from the same root as E. kin. √44. See Kin kindred, and cf. Cognate, Natal, Native.] 1. (Ethnol.) A part, or division, of the people of the earth, distinguished from the rest by common descent, language, or institutions; a race; a stock.

All nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues.

Rev. vii. 9.

2. The body of inhabitants of a country, united under an independent government of their own.

A nation is the unity of a people.

Coleridge.

Praise the power that hath made and preserved us a nation.

F. S. Key.

3. Family; lineage. [Obs.] Chaucer.

4. (a) One of the divisions of university students in a classification according to nativity, formerly common in Europe. (b) (Scotch Universities) One of the four divisions (named from the parts of Scotland) in which students were classified according to their nativity.

5. A great number; a great deal; — by way of emphasis; as, a nation of herbs. Sterne.

Five nations. See under Five. — Law of nations. See International law, under International, and Law.

Syn. — people; race. See People.

Na”tion*al (?; 277), a. [Cf. F. national.] 1. Of or pertaining to a nation; common to a whole people or race; public; general; as, a national government, language, dress, custom, calamity, etc.

2. Attached to one’s own country or nation.

National anthem, a popular song or hymn which has become by general acceptance the recognized musical expression of the patriotic sentiment of a nation; as, “God save the King” is called the national anthem of England. — National bank, the official common name of a class of banking corporations established under the laws of the United States. — National flag. See under Flag. — National guard, a body of militia, or a local military organization, as in Paris during the French Revolution, or as certain bodies of militia in other European countries and in the United States. — National salute, a salute consisting of as many guns as there are States in the Union. [U.S.]

Na”tion*al*ism (?), n. 1. The state of being national; national attachment; nationality.

2. An idiom, trait, or character peculiar to any nation.

3. National independence; the principles of the Nationalists.

Na”tion*al*ist, n. One who advocates national unity and independence; one of a party favoring Irish independence.

Na`tion*al”i*ty (?), n.; pl. Nationalities (#). [Cf. F. nationalité.] 1. The quality of being national, or strongly attached to one’s own nation; patriotism.

2. The sum of the qualities which distinguish a nation; national character.

3. A race or people, as determined by common language and character, and not by political bias or divisions; a nation.

the fulfillment of his mission is to be looked for in the condition of nationalities and the character of peoples.

H. W. Beecher.

4. Existence as a distinct or individual nation; national unity and integrity.

5. The state or quality of belonging to or being connected with a nation or government by nativity, character, ownership, allegiance, etc.

Na`tion*al*i*za”tion (?), n. The act of nationalizing, or the state of being nationalized.

Na”tion*al*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nationalized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nationalizing (?).] [Cf. F. nationaliser.] To make national; to make a nation of; to endow with the character and habits of a nation, or the peculiar sentiments and attachment of citizens of a nation.

Na”tion*al*ly, adv. In a national manner or way; as a nation. “The jews . . . being nationally espoused to God by covenant.” South.

Na”tion*al*ness, n. The quality or state of being national; nationality. Johnson.

Na”tive (?), a. [F. natif, L. nativus, fr. nasci, p. p. natus. See Nation, and cf. Naïve, Nelf a serf.] 1. Arising by birth; having an origin; born. [Obs.]

Anaximander’s opinion is, that the gods are native, rising and vanishing again in long periods of times.

Cudworth.

2. Of or pertaining to one’s birth; natal; belonging to the place or the circumstances in which one is born; — opposed to foreign; as, native land, language, color, etc.

3. Born in the region in which one lives; as, a native inhabitant, race; grown or originating in the region where used or sold; not foreign or imported; as, native oysters, or strawberries.

4. Original; constituting the original substance of anything; as, native dust. Milton.

5. Conferred by birth; derived from origin; born with one; inherent; inborn; not acquired; as, native genius, cheerfulness, simplicity, rights, etc.

Courage is native to you.

Jowett (Thucyd. ).

6. Naturally related; cognate; connected (with). [R.]

the head is not more native to the heart, . . .
Than is the throne of Denmark to thy father.

Shak.

7. (Min.) (a) Found in nature uncombined with other elements; as, native silver. (b) Found in nature; not artificial; as native sodium chloride.

Native American party. See under American, a. — Native bear (Zoöl.), the koala. — Native bread (Bot.), a large underground fungus, of Australia (Mylitta australis), somewhat resembling a truffle, but much larger. — Native devil. (Zoöl.) Same as Tasmanian devil, under Devil. — Native hen (Zoöl.), an Australian rail (Tribonyx Mortierii). — Native pheasant. (Zoöl.) See Leipoa. — Native rabbit (Zoöl.), an Australian marsupial (Perameles lagotis) resembling a rabbit in size and form. — Native sloth (Zoöl.), the koala. — Native thrush (Zoöl.), an Australian singing bird (Pachycephala olivacea); — called also thickhead. — Native turkey (Zoöl.), the Australian bustard (Choriotis australis); — called also bebilya.

Syn. — Natural; natal; original; congential. — Native, Natural, Natal. natural refers to the nature of a thing, or that which springs therefrom; native, to one’s birth or origin; as, a native country, language, etc.; natal, to the circumstances of one’s birth; as, a natal day, or star. Native talent is that which is inborn; natural talent is that which springs from the structure of the mind. Native eloquence is the result of strong innate emotion; natural eloquence is opposed to that which is studied or artificial.

Na”tive (?), n. 1. One who, or that which, is born in a place or country referred to; a denizen by birth; an animal, a fruit, or vegetable, produced in a certain region; as, a native of France.

2. (Stock Breeding) Any of the live stock found in a region, as distinguished from such as belong to pure and distinct imported breeds. [U.S.]

Na”tive*ly, adv. By natural or original condition; naturally; originally.

Na”tive*ness, n. The quality or state of being native.

Na”tiv*ism (?), n. 1. The disposition to favor the native inhabitants of a country, in preference to immigrants from foreign countries.

2. (Philos.) The doctrine of innate ideas, or that the mind possesses forms of thought independent of sensation.

Na”tiv*ist (?), n. An advocate of nativism.

Na`tiv*is”tic (?), a. Relating to nativism.

Na*tiv”i*ty (?), n.; pl. Nativies (#). [F. nativité, L. nativitas. See Native, and cf. NaïvetÉ.] 1. The coming into life or into the world; birth; also, the circumstances attending birth, as time, place, manner, etc. Chaucer.

I have served him from the hour of my nativity.

Shak.

Thou hast left . . . the land of thy nativity.

Ruth ii. 11.

These in their dark nativity the deep
Shall yield us, pregnant with infernal flame.

Milton.

2. (Fine Arts) A picture representing or symbolizing the early infancy of Christ. The simplest form is the babe in a rude cradle, and the heads of an ox and an ass to express the stable in which he was born.

3. (Astrol.) A representation of the positions of the heavenly bodies as the moment of one’s birth, supposed to indicate his future destinies; a horoscope.

The Nativity, the birth or birthday of Christ; Christmas day. — To cast, or calculate, one’s nativity (Astrol.), to find out and represent the position of the heavenly bodies at the time of one’s birth.

Nat”ka (?), a. (Zoöl.) A species of shrike.

Na”tri*um (?), n. [NL. See Natron.] (Chem.) The technical name for sodium.

Na”tro*lite (?; 277), n. [Natron + -lite: cf. F. natrolithe.] (Min.) A zeolite occuring in groups of glassy acicular crystals, and in masses which often have a radiated structure. It is a hydrous silicate of alumina and soda.

Na”tron (?), n. [F., fr. Sp. natron, Ar. natrūn, nitrūn. Cf. Niter, Anatron.] (Min.) Native sodium carbonate. [Written also anatron.]

Nat”ter (?), v. i. [Cf. Icel. knetta to grumble.] To find fault; to be peevish. [Prov. Eng. or Scot.]

Nat”ter*jack` (?), n. (Zoöl.) A European toad (Bufo calamita), having a yellow line along its back.

Nat”ty (?), a. [Cf. Neat clean.] Neat; tidy; spruce. [Colloq.]

— Nat”ti*ly, adv. — Nat”ti*ness, n.

Nat”u*ral (?; 135), a. [OE. naturel, F. naturel, fr. L. naturalis, fr. natura. See Nature.] 1. Fixed or determined by nature; pertaining to the constitution of a thing; belonging to native character; according to nature; essential; characteristic; not artificial, foreign, assumed, put on, or acquired; as, the natural growth of animals or plants; the natural motion of a gravitating body; natural strength or disposition; the natural heat of the body; natural color.

With strong natural sense, and rare force of will.

Macaulay.

2. Conformed to the order, laws, or actual facts, of nature; consonant to the methods of nature; according to the stated course of things, or in accordance with the laws which govern events, feelings, etc.; not exceptional or violent; legitimate; normal; regular; as, the natural consequence of crime; a natural death.

What can be more natural than the circumstances in the behavior of those women who had lost their husbands on this fatal day?

Addison.

3. Having to do with existing system to things; dealing with, or derived from, the creation, or the world of matter and mind, as known by man; within the scope of human reason or experience; not supernatural; as, a natural law; natural science; history, theology.

I call that natural religion which men might know . . . by the mere principles of reason, improved by consideration and experience, without the help of revelation.

Bp. Wilkins.

4. Conformed to truth or reality; as: (a) Springing from true sentiment; not artificial or exaggerated; — said of action, delivery, etc.; as, a natural gesture, tone, etc. (b) Resembling the object imitated; true to nature; according to the life; — said of anything copied or imitated; as, a portrait is natural.

5. Having the character or sentiments properly belonging to one’s position; not unnatural in feelings.

To leave his wife, to leave his babes, . . .
He wants the natural touch.

Shak.

6. Connected by the ties of consanguinity. “Natural friends.” J. H. Newman.

7. Begotten without the sanction of law; born out of wedlock; illegitimate; bastard; as, a natural child.

8. Of or pertaining to the lower or animal nature, as contrasted with the higher or moral powers, or that which is spiritual; being in a state of nature; unregenerate.

The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God.

1 Cor. ii. 14.

9. (Math.) Belonging to, to be taken in, or referred to, some system, in which the base is 1; — said or certain functions or numbers; as, natural numbers, those commencing at 1; natural sines, cosines, etc., those taken in arcs whose radii are 1.

10. (Mus.) (a) Produced by natural organs, as those of the human throat, in distinction from instrumental music. (b) Of or pertaining to a key which has neither a flat nor a sharp for its signature, as the key of C major. (c) Applied to an air or modulation of harmony which moves by easy and smooth transitions, digressing but little from the original key. Moore (Encyc. of Music).

Natural day, the space of twenty-four hours. Chaucer.

— Natural fats, Natural gas, etc. See under Fat, Gas. etc. — Natural Harmony (Mus.), the harmony of the triad or common chord. — Natural history, in its broadest sense, a history or description of nature as a whole, incuding the sciences of botany, zoölogy, geology, mineralogy, paleontology, chemistry, and physics. In recent usage the term is often restricted to the sciences of botany and zoölogy collectively, and sometimes to the science of zoology alone. — Natural law, that instinctive sense of justice and of right and wrong, which is native in mankind, as distinguished from specifically revealed divine law, and formulated human law. — Natural modulation (Mus.), transition from one key to its relative keys. — Natural order. (Nat. Hist.) See under order. — Natural person. (Law) See under person, n. — Natural philosophy, originally, the study of nature in general; in modern usage, that branch of physical science, commonly called physics, which treats of the phenomena and laws of matter and considers those effects only which are unaccompanied by any change of a chemical nature; — contrasted with mental and moral philosophy. — Natural scale (Mus.), a scale which is written without flats or sharps. Model would be a preferable term, as less likely to mislead, the so-called artificial scales (scales represented by the use of flats and sharps) being equally natural with the so-called natural scale — Natural science, natural history, in its broadest sense; — used especially in contradistinction to mental or moral science. — Natural selection (Biol.), a supposed operation of natural laws analogous, in its operation and results, to designed selection in breeding plants and animals, and resulting in the survival of the fittest. The theory of natural selection supposes that this has been brought about mainly by gradual changes of environment which have led to corresponding changes of structure, and that those forms which have become so modified as to be best adapted to the changed environment have tended to survive and leave similarly adapted descendants, while those less perfectly adapted have tended to die out though lack of fitness for the environment, thus resulting in the survival of the fittest. See Darwinism. — Natural system (Bot. & Zoöl.), a classification based upon real affinities, as shown in the structure of all parts of the organisms, and by their embryology.

It should be borne in mind that the natural system of botany is natural only in the constitution of its genera, tribes, orders, etc., and in its grand divisions.

Gray.

— Natural theology, or Natural religion, that part of theological science which treats of those evidences of the existence and attributes of the Supreme Being which are exhibited in nature; — distinguished from revealed religion. See Quotation under Natural, a., 3. — Natural vowel, the vowel sound heard in urn, furl, sir, her, etc.; — so called as being uttered in the easiest open position of the mouth organs. See Neutral vowel, under Neutral and Guide to Pronunciation, § 17.

Syn. — See Native.

Nat”u*ral (?; 135), n. 1. A native; an aboriginal. [Obs.] Sir W. Raleigh.

2. pl. Natural gifts, impulses, etc. [Obs.] Fuller.

3. One born without the usual powers of reason or understanding; an idiot. “The minds of naturals.” Locke.

4. (Mus.) A character [♮] used to contradict, or to remove the effect of, a sharp or flat which has preceded it, and to restore the unaltered note.

Nat”u*ral*ism (?), n. [Cf. F. naturalisme.] 1. A state of nature; conformity to nature.

2. (Metaph.) The doctrine of those who deny a supernatural agency in the miracles and revelations recorded in the Bible, and in spiritual influences; also, any system of philosophy which refers the phenomena of nature to a blind force or forces acting necessarily or according to fixed laws, excluding origination or direction by one intelligent will.

Nat”u*ral*ist, n. [Cf. F. naturaliste.] 1. One versed in natural science; a student of natural history, esp. of the natural history of animals.

2. One who holds or maintains the doctrine of naturalism in religion. H. Bushnell.

Nat`u*ral*is”tic (?), a. 1. Belonging to the doctrines of naturalism.

2. Closely resembling nature; realistic. “Naturalistic bit of pantomime.” W. D. Howells.

Nat`u*ral”i*ty (?), n. [L. naturalitas: cf. F. naturalité.] Nature; naturalness. [R.]

Nat`u*ral*i*za”tion (?), n. [Cf. F. naturalisation.] The act or process of naturalizing, esp. of investing an alien with the rights and privileges of a native or citizen; also, the state of being naturalized.

Nat”u*ral*ize (?; 135), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Naturalized (#); p. pr. & vb. n. Naturalizing (#).] [Cf. F. naturaliser. See Natural.] 1. To make natural; as, custom naturalizes labor or study.

2. To confer the rights and privileges of a native subject or citizen on; to make as if native; to adopt, as a foreigner into a nation or state, and place in the condition of a native subject.

3. To receive or adopt as native, natural, or vernacular; to make one’s own; as, to naturalize foreign words.

4. To adapt; to accustom; to habituate; to acclimate; to cause to grow as under natural conditions.

Its wearer suggested that pears and peaches might yet be naturalized in the New England climate.

Hawthorne.

Nat”u*ral*ize, v. i. 1. To become as if native.

2. To explain phenomena by natural agencies or laws, to the exclusion of the supernatural.

Infected by this naturalizing tendency.

H. Bushnell.

Nat”u*ral*ly, adv. In a natural manner or way; according to the usual course of things; spontaneously.

Nat”u*ral*ness, n. The state or quality of being natural; conformity to nature.

Na”ture (?; 135), n. [F., fr. L. natura, fr. natus born, produced, p. p. of nasci to be born. See Nation.] 1. The existing system of things; the world of matter, or of matter and mind; the creation; the universe.

But looks through nature up to nature’s God.

Pope.

Nature has caprices which art can not imitate.

Macaulay.

2. The personified sum and order of causes and effects; the powers which produce existing phenomena, whether in the total or in detail; the agencies which carry on the processes of creation or of being; — often conceived of as a single and separate entity, embodying the total of all finite agencies and forces as disconnected from a creating or ordering intelligence.

I oft admire
How Nature, wise and frugal, could commit
Such disproportions.

Milton.

3. The established or regular course of things; usual order of events; connection of cause and effect.

4. Conformity to that which is natural, as distinguished from that which is artificial, or forced, or remote from actual experience.

One touch of nature makes the whole world kin.

Shak.

5. The sum of qualities and attributes which make a person or thing what it is, as distinct from others; native character; inherent or essential qualities or attributes; peculiar constitution or quality of being.

Thou, therefore, whom thou only canst redeem,
Their nature also to thy nature join,
And be thyself man among men on earth.

Milton.

6. Hence: Kind, sort; character; quality.

A dispute of this nature caused mischief.

Dryden.

7. Physical constitution or existence; the vital powers; the natural life. “My days of nature.” Shak.

Oppressed nature sleeps.

Shak.

8. Natural affection or reverence.

Have we not seen
The murdering son ascend his parent’s bed,
Through violated nature foce his way?

Pope.

9. Constitution or quality of mind or character.

A born devil, on whose nature
Nurture can never stick.

Shak.

That reverence which is due to a superior nature.

Addison.

Good nature, Ill nature. see under Good and Ill. — In a state of nature. (a) Naked as when born; nude. (b) In a condition of sin; unregenerate. (c) Untamed; uncvilized. — Nature printng, a process of printing from metallic or other plates which have received an impression, as by heavy pressure, of an object such as a leaf, lace, or the like. — Nature worship, the worship of the personified powers of nature. — To pay the debt of nature, to die.

Na”ture, v. t. To endow with natural qualities. [Obs.]

He [God] which natureth every kind.

Gower.

Na”tured (?; 135), a. Having (such) a nature, temper, or disposition; disposed; — used in composition; as, good-natured, ill-natured, etc.

Na”ture*less (?), a. Not in accordance with nature; unnatural. [Obs.] Milton.

Na”tur*ism (?), n. (Med.) The belief or doctrine that attributes everything to nature as a sanative agent.

Na”tur*ist, n. One who believes in, or conforms to, the theory of naturism. Boyle.

Na*tu”ri*ty (?), n. The quality or state of being produced by nature. [Obs.] Sir T. Browne.

Na”tur*ize (?), v. t. To endow with a nature or qualities; to refer to nature. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

Nau”frage (?; 48), n. [F., fr. L. naufragium; navis + frangere.] Shipwreck; ruin. [Obs.] acon.

Nau”fra*gous (?), a. [L. naufragus. See Naufrage.] causing shipwreck. [Obs.] r. Taylor.

Naught (?), n. [OE. naught, nought, naht, nawiht, AS. n&?;wiht, n&?;uht, n&?;ht; ne not + &?; ever + wiht thing, whit; hence, not ever a whit. See No, adv. Whit, and cf. Aught, Not.] 1. Nothing. [Written also nought.]

Doth Job fear God for naught?

Job i. 9.

2. The arithmetical character 0; a cipher. See Cipher.

To set at naught, to treat as of no account; to disregard; to despise; to defy; to treat with ignominy. “Ye have set at naught all my counsel.” Prov. i. 25.

Naught, adv. In no degree; not at all. Chaucer.

To wealth or sovereign power he naught applied.

Fairfax.

Naught, a. 1. Of no value or account; worthless; bad; useless.

It is naught, it is naught, saith the buyer.

Prov. xx. 14.

Go, get you to your house; begone, away!
All will be naught else.

Shak.

Things naught and things indifferent.

Hooker.

2. Hence, vile; base; naughty. [Obs.]

No man can be stark naught at once.

Fuller.

Naugh”ti*ly (?), adv. In a naughty manner; wickedly; perversely. Shak.

Naugh”ti*ness, n. The quality or state of being naughty; perverseness; badness; wickedness.

I know thy pride, and the naughtiness of thine heart.

1 Sam. xvii. 28.

Naught”ly (?), adv. Naughtily; wrongly. [Obs.]

because my parents naughtly brought me up.

Mir. for Mag.

Naugh”ty (?), a. [Compar. Naughtier (?); superl. Naughtiest.] 1. Having little or nothing. [Obs.]

[Men] that needy be and naughty, help them with thy goods.

Piers Plowman.

2. Worthless; bad; good for nothing. [Obs.]

The other basket had very naughty figs.

Jer. xxiv. 2.

3. hence, corrupt; wicked. [Archaic]

So shines a good deed in a naughty world.

Shak.

4. Mischievous; perverse; froward; guilty of disobedient or improper conduct; as, a naughty child.

&fist; This word is now seldom used except in the latter sense, as applied to children, or in sportive censure.

Nau”ma*chy (?), n. [L. naumachia, Gr. &?;; &?; ship + &?; fight, battle, &?; to fight.] 1. A naval battle; esp., a mock sea fight.

2. (Rom. Antiq.) A show or spectacle representing a sea fight; also, a place for such exhibitions.

||Nau”pli*us (?), n.; pl. Nauplii (#). [L., a kind of shellfish, fr. Gr. &?; ship + &?; to sail.] (Zoöl.) A crustacean larva having three pairs of locomotive organs (corresponding to the antennules, antennæ, and mandibles), a median eye, and little or no segmentation of the body.

Nau`ro*pom”e*ter (?), n. [Gr. &?; ship + &?; inclination + -meter.] (Naut.) An instrument for measuring the amount which a ship heels at sea.

Naus”co*py (?), n. [Gr. &?; ship + - scopy: cf. F. nauscopie.] (Naut.) The power or act of discovering ships or land at considerable distances.

Nau”se*a (? or &?;), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?;, fr. &?; ship. See Nave of a church, and cf. Noise.] Seasickness; hence, any similar sickness of the stomach accompanied with a propensity to vomit; qualm; squeamishness of the stomach; loathing.

Nau”se*ant (?), n. [L. nauseans, p. pr. Of nauseare.] (Med.) A substance which produces nausea.

Nau”se*ate (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Nauseated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nauseating.] [L. nauseare, nauseatum, fr. nausea. See Nausea.] To become squeamish; to feel nausea; to turn away with disgust.

Nau”se*ate, v. t. 1. To affect with nausea; to sicken; to cause to feel loathing or disgust.

2. To sicken at; to reject with disgust; to loathe.

The patient nauseates and loathes wholesome foods.

Blackmore.

Nau`se*a”tion (?), n. The act of nauseating, or the state of being nauseated.

Nau”se*a*tive (? or &?;), a. Causing nausea; nauseous.

Nau”seous (?; 277), a. [L. nauseosus.] Causing, or fitted to cause, nausea; sickening; loathsome; disgusting; exciting abhorrence; as, a nauseous drug or medicine. — Nau”seous*ly, adv. — Nau”seous*ness, n.

The nauseousness of such company disgusts a reasonable man.

Dryden.

||Nautch (?), n. [Hind. nāch, fr. Skr. n&rsdot;tya dance.] An entertainment consisting chiefly of dancing by professional dancing (or Nautch) girls. [India]

Nau”tic (?), a. [See Nautical.] Nautical.

Nau”tic*al (?), a. [L. nauticus, Gr. naytiko`s, fr. nay`ths a seaman, sailor, fr. nay^s ship: cf. F. nautique. See Nave of a church.] Of or pertaining to seamen, to the art of navigation, or to ships; as, nautical skill.

Syn. — Naval; marine; maritime. See Naval.

Nautical almanac. See under Almanac. — Nautical distance, the length in nautical miles of the rhumb line joining any two places on the earth’s surface. — nautical mile. See under Mile.

Nau”tic*al*ly, adv. In a nautical manner; with reference to nautical affairs.

Nau”ti*form (?), a. [Gr. nay^s ship + -form.] Shaped like the hull of a ship.

Nau”ti*lite (?), n. (paleon.) A fossil nautilus.

Nau”ti*loid (?), a. [Nautilus + -oid: cf. F. nautiloïde.] (Zoöl.) Like or pertaining to the nautilus; shaped like a nautilus shell. — n. A mollusk, or shell, of the genus Nautilus or family Nautilidæ.

Nau”ti*lus (?), n.; pl. E. Nautiluses (#), L. Nautili (#). [L., fr. Gr. nayti`los a seaman, sailor, a kind of shellfish which was supposed to be furnished with a membrane which served as a sail; fr. nay^s ship. See Nave of a church.] 1. (Zoöl.) The only existing genus of tetrabranchiate cephalopods. About four species are found living in the tropical Pacific, but many other species are found fossil. The shell is spiral, symmetrical, and chambered, or divided into several cavities by simple curved partitions, which are traversed and connected together by a continuous and nearly central tube or siphuncle. See Tetrabranchiata.

&fist; The head of the animal bears numerous simple tapered arms, or tentacles, arranged in groups, but not furnished with suckers. The siphon, unlike, that of ordinary cephalopods, is not a closed tube, and is not used as a locomotive organ, but merely serves to conduct water to and from the gill cavity, which contains two pairs of gills. The animal occupies only the outer chamber of the shell; the others are filled with gas. It creeps over the bottom of the sea, not coming to the surface to swim or sail, as was formerly imagined.

2. The argonaut; — also called paper nautilus. See Argonauta, and Paper nautilus, under Paper.

3. A variety of diving bell, the lateral as well as vertical motions of which are controlled, by the occupants.

Na”va*joes (?), n. pl.; sing. Navajo (&?;). (Ethnol.) A tribe of Indians inhabiting New Mexico and Arizona, allied to the Apaches. They are now largely engaged in agriculture.

Na”val (?), a. [L. navalis, fr. navis ship: cf. F. naval. See Nave of a church.] Having to do with shipping; of or pertaining to ships or a navy; consisting of ships; as, naval forces, successes, stores, etc.

Naval brigade, a body of seamen or marines organized for military service on land. — Naval officer. (a) An officer in the navy. (b) A high officer in some United States customhouses. — Naval tactics, the science of managing or maneuvering vessels sailing in squadrons or fleets.

Syn. — Nautical; marine; maritime. — Naval, Nautical. Naval is applied to vessels, or a navy, or the things which pertain to them or in which they participate; nautical, to seamen and the art of navigation. Hence we speak of a naval, as opposed to a military, engagement; naval equipments or stores, a naval triumph, a naval officer, etc., and of nautical pursuits or instruction, nautical calculations, a nautical almanac, etc.

Na”vals (?), n. pl. Naval affairs. [Obs.]

Na”varch (?), n. [L. navarchus, Gr. nay`archo`s; nay^s ship + ‘archo`s chief.] (Gr. Antiq.) The commander of a fleet. Mitford.

Na”varch*y (?), n. [Gr. nayarchi`a.] Nautical skill or experience. [Obs.] Sir W. Petty.

Na`var*rese” (? or &?;), a. Of or pertaining to Navarre. — n. sing. & pl. A native or inhabitant of Navarre; the people of Navarre.

Nave (nāv), n. [AS. nafu; akin to D. naaf, G. nabe, OHG. naba, Icel. nöf, Dan. nav, Sw. naf, Skr. nābhi nave and navel: cf. L. umbo boss of a shield. √260. Cf. Navel.] 1. The block in the center of a wheel, from which the spokes radiate, and through which the axle passes; — called also hub or hob.

2. The navel. [Obs.] hak.

Nave, n. [F. nef, fr. L. navis ship, to which the church was often likened; akin to Gr. nay`archo`s, Skr. nāus, and perh. to AS. naca boat, G. nachen, Icel. nökkvi; cf. L. nare to swim, float. Cf. Nausea, Nautical, Naval.] (Arch.) The middle or body of a church, extending from the transepts to the principal entrances, or, if there are no transepts, from the choir to the principal entrance, but not including the aisles.

Na”vel (nā“v’l), n. [AS. nafela, fr. nafu nave; akin to D. navel, G. nabel, OHG. nabolo, Icel. nafli, Dan. navle, Sw. nafle, L. umbilicus, Gr. ‘omfalo`s, Skr. nābhīla. √260. See Nave hub, and cf. Omphalic, Nombril, Umbilical.] 1. (Anat.) A mark or depression in the middle of the abdomen; the umbilicus. See Umbilicus.

2. The central part or point of anything; the middle.

Within the navel of this hideous wood,
Immured in cypress shades, a sorcerer dwells.

Milton.

3. (Gun.) An eye on the under side of a carronade for securing it to a carriage.

Navel gall, a bruise on the top of the chine of the back of a horse, behind the saddle. Johnson. — Navel point. (Her.) Same as Nombril.

Na”vel-string` (?), n. The umbilical cord.

Na”vel*wort` (?), n. (Bot.) A European perennial succulent herb (Cotyledon umbilicus), having round, peltate leaves with a central depression; — also called pennywort, and kidneywort.

Na”vew (?), n. [OE. navel, naveau, a dim. fr. L. napus navew. Cf. Napiform.] (Bot.) A kind of small turnip, a variety of Brassica campestris. See Brassica. [Writen also naphew.]

Na*vic”u*lar (?), a. [L. navicularius, fr. navicula, dim. of navis ship: cf. F. naviculaire.] 1. Of, pertaining to, or resembling, a boat or ship.

2. Shaped like a boat; cymbiform; scaphoid; as, the navicular glumes of most grasses; the navicular bone.

Navicular bone. (Anat.) (a) One of the middle bones of the tarsus, corresponding to the centrale; — called also scaphoid. (b) A proximal bone on the radial side of the carpus; the scaphoid. — Navicular disease (Far.), a disease affecting the navicular bone, or the adjacent parts, in a horse’s foot.

Na*vic”u*lar, n. (Anat.) The navicular bone.

Nav`i*ga*bil”i*ty (?), n. [Cf. F. navigabilité.] The quality or condition of being navigable; navigableness.

Nav”i*ga*ble (?), a. [L. navigabilis: cf. F. navigable. See Navigate.] Capable of being navigated; deep enough and wide enough to afford passage to vessels; as, a navigable river.

&fist; By the common law, a river is considered as navigable only so far as the tide ebbs and flows in it. This is also the doctrine in several of the United States. In other States, the doctrine of the civil law prevails, which is, that a navigable river is a river capable of being navigated, in the common sense of the term. Kent. Burrill.

— Nav”i*ga*ble*ness, n. — Nav”i*ga*bly, adv.

Nav”i*gate (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Navigated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Navigating.] [L. navigatus, p. p. of navigare, v.t. & i.; navis ship + agere to move, direct. See Nave, and Agent.] To journey by water; to go in a vessel or ship; to perform the duties of a navigator; to use the waters as a highway or channel for commerce or communication; to sail.

The Phenicians navigated to the extremities of the Western Ocean.

Arbuthnot.

Nav”i*gate, v. t. 1. To pass over in ships; to sail over or on; as, to navigate the Atlantic.

2. To steer, direct, or manage in sailing; to conduct (ships) upon the water by the art or skill of seamen; as, to navigate a ship.

Nav`i*ga”tion (?), n. [L. navigatio: cf. F. navigation.] 1. The act of navigating; the act of passing on water in ships or other vessels; the state of being navigable.

2. (a) the science or art of conducting ships or vessels from one place to another, including, more especially, the method of determining a ship’s position, course, distance passed over, etc., on the surface of the globe, by the principles of geometry and astronomy. (b) The management of sails, rudder, etc.; the mechanics of traveling by water; seamanship.

3. Ships in general. [Poetic] Shak.

Aërial navigation, the act or art of sailing or floating in the air, as by means of ballons; aëronautic. — Inland navigation, Internal navigation, navigation on rivers, inland lakes, etc.

Nav”i*ga`tor (?), n. One who navigates or sails; esp., one who direct the course of a ship, or one who is skillful in the art of navigation; also, a book which teaches the art of navigation; as, Bowditch’s Navigator.

Na*vig”er*ous (?), a. [L. naviger; navis ship + gerere to bear.] Bearing ships; capable of floating vessels. [R.] Blount.

Nav”vy (?), n.; pl. Navies (#). [Abbreviated fr. navigator.] Originally, a laborer on canals for internal navigation; hence, a laborer on other public works, as in building railroads, embankments, etc. [Eng.]

Na”vy (?); n.; pl. Navies (#). [ OF. navie, fr. L. navis ship. See Nave of a church.] 1. A fleet of ships; an assemblage of merchantmen, or so many as sail in company. “The navy also of Hiram, that brought gold from Ophir.” 1 kings x. 11.

2. The whole of the war vessels belonging to a nation or ruler, considered collectively; as, the navy of Italy.

3. The officers and men attached to the war vessels of a nation; as, he belongs to the navy.

Navy bean. see Bean. — Navy yard, a place set apart as a shore station for the use of the navy. It often contains all the mechanical and other appliences for building and equipping war vessels and training their crews.

||Na*wab” (?), n. [See Nabob.] A deputy ruler or viceroy in India; also, a title given by courtesy to other persons of high rank in the East.

Nawl (?), n. [See Nall.] An awl. [Obs.] usser.

Nay (?), adv. [Icel. nei; akin to E. no. See No, adv.] 1. No; — a negative answer to a question asked, or a request made, now superseded by no. See Yes.

And eke when I say “ye,” ne say not “nay.”

Chaucer.

I tell you nay; but except ye repent, ye shall all likewisr perish.

Luke xiii. 3.

And now do they thrust us out privily? nay, verily; but let them come themselves and fetch us out.

Acts xvi. 37.

He that will not when he may,
When he would he shall have nay.

Old Prov.

&fist; Before the time of Henry VIII. nay was used to answer simple questions, and no was used when the form of the question involved a negative expression; nay was the simple form, no the emphatic. Skeat.

2. Not this merely, but also; not only so, but; — used to mark the addition or substitution of a more explicit or more emphatic phrase.

&fist; Nay in this sense may be interchanged with yea. “Were he my brother, nay, my kingdom’s heir.” Shak.

Nay, n.; pl. Nays (&?;). 1. Denial; refusal.

2. a negative vote; one who votes in the negative.

It is no nay, there is no denying it. [Obs.] haucer.

Nay, v. t. & i. To refuse. [Obs.] Holinshed.

||Na*yaur” (?), n. (Zoöl.) A specied of wild sheep (Ovis Hodgsonii), native of Nepaul and Thibet. It has a dorsal mane and a white ruff beneath the neck.

Nayt (?), v. t. [Icel. neita.] To refuse; to deny. [Obs.] “He shall not nayt ne deny his sin.” Chaucer.

Nay”ward (?), n. The negative side. [R.]

Howe’er you lean to the nayward.

Shak.

Nay”word` (?), n. A byword; a proverb; also, a watchword. [Obs.] hak.

Naz`a*rene” (?), n. [L. Nazarenus, Gr. &?;, fr. &?; Nazareth.] 1. A native or inhabitant of Nazareth; — a term of contempt applied to Christ and the early Christians.

2. (Eccl. Hist.) One of a sect of Judaizing Christians in the first and second centuries, who observed the laws of Moses, and held to certain heresies.

Naz”a*rite (?), n. A Jew bound by a vow to lave the hair uncut, to abstain from wine and strong drink, and to practice extraordinary purity of life and devotion, the obligation being for life, or for a certain time. The word is also used adjectively.

Naz”a*rite*ship, n. The state of a Nazarite.

Naz`a*rit”ic (?), a. Of or pertaining to a Nazarite, or to Nazarites.

Naz”a*ri*tism (?; 277), n. The vow and practice of a Nazarite.

Naze (?), n. [See Ness.] A promontory or headland.

Naz”i*rite (?), n. A Nazarite.

Ne (?), adv. [AS. ne. See No.] Not; never. [Obs.]

He never yet no villany ne said.

Chaucer.

&fist; Ne was formerly used as the universal adverb of negation, and survives in certain compounds, as never (= ne ever) and none (= ne one). Other combinations, now obsolete, will be found in the Vocabulary, as nad, nam, nil. See Negative, 2.

Ne, conj. [See Ne, adv.] Nor. [Obs.] Shak.

No niggard ne no fool.

Chaucer.

Ne . . . ne, neither . . . nor. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Neaf (?), n. See 2d Neif. Shak.

Neal (?), v. t. To anneal. [R.] Chaucer.

Neal, v. i. To be tempered by heat. [R.] Bacon.

Neap (?), n. [Cf. Neb, Nape.] The tongue or pole of a cart or other vehicle drawn by two animals. [U.S.]

Neap (?), a. [As. nēpflōd neap flood; cf. hnipian to bend, incline.] Low.

Neap tides, the lowest tides of the lunar month, which occur in the second and fourth quarters of the moon; — opposed to spring tides.

Neap, n. A neap tide.

High springs and dead neaps.

Harkwill.

Neaped (?), a. (Naut.) Left aground on the height of a spring tide, so that it will not float till the next spring tide; — called also beneaped.

Ne`a*pol”i*tan (?), a. [L. Neapolitanus, fr. Neapolis Naples, Gr. &?;, lit., New town.] Of of pertaining to Naples in Italy. — n. A native or citizen of Naples.

Near (nēr), adv. [AS. neár, compar. of neáh nigh. See Nigh.] 1. At a little distance, in place, time, manner, or degree; not remote; nigh.

My wife! my traitress! let her not come near me.

Milton.

2. Nearly; almost; well-nigh. “Near twenty years ago.” Shak. “Near a fortnight ago.” Addison.

Near about the yearly value of the land.

Locke.

3. Closely; intimately. Shak.

Far and near, at a distance and close by; throughout a whole region. — To come near to, to want but little of; to approximate to. “Such a sum he found would go near to ruin him.” Addison.

— Near the wind (Naut.), close to the wind; closehauled.

Near (?), a. [Compar. Nearer (?); superl. Nearest.] [See Near, adv.] 1. Not far distant in time, place, or degree; not remote; close at hand; adjacent; neighboring; nigh. “As one near death.” Shak.

He served great Hector, and was ever near,
Not with his trumpet only, but his spear.

Dryden.

2. Closely connected or related.

She is thy father’s near kinswoman.

Lev. xviii. 12.

3. Close to one’s interests, affection, etc.; touching, or affecting intimately; intimate; dear; as, a near friend.

4. Close to anything followed or imitated; not free, loose, or rambling; as, a version near to the original.

5. So as barely to avoid or pass injury or loss; close; narrow; as, a near escape.

6. Next to the driver, when he is on foot; in the Unted States, on the left of an animal or a team; as, the near ox; the near leg. See Off side, under Off, a.

7. Immediate; direct; close; short. “The nearest way.” Milton.

8. Close-fisted; parsimonious. [Obs. or Low, Eng.]

&fist; Near may properly be followed by to before the thing approached’; but more frequently to is omitted, and the adjective or the adverb is regarded as a preposition. The same is also true of the word nigh.

Syn. — Nigh; close; adjacent; proximate; contiguous; present; ready; intimate; dear.

Near, prep. Adjacent to; close by; not far from; nigh; as, the ship sailed near the land. See the Note under near, a.

Near, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Neared (?); p. pr. & vb. n Nearing.] [See Near, adv.] To approach; to come nearer; as, the ship neared the land.

Near, v. i. To draw near; to approach.

A speck, a mist, a shape, I wist!
And still it neared, and neared.

Coleridge.

Ne*arc”tic (?), a. [Neo + arctic.] Of or pertaining to a region of the earth’s surface including all of temperate and arctic North America and Greenland. In the geographical distribution of animals, this region is marked off as the habitat certain species.

Near”hand` (?), a. & adv. Near; near at hand; closely. [Obs. or Scot.] Bacon.

Near”-legged` (?), a. Having the feet so near together that they interfere in traveling. Shak.

Near”ly, adv. In a near manner; not remotely; closely; intimately; almost.

Near”ness, n. The state or quality of being near; — used in the various senses of the adjective.

Near”sight`ed (?), a. Seeing distinctly at short distances only; shortsighted. — Near”sight`ed*ness, n. See Myopic, and Myopia.

Neat (?), n. sing. & pl. [AS. neát; akin to OHG. n&?;z, Icel. naut, Sw. nöt, Dan. nöd, and to AS. neótan to make use of, G. geniessen, Goth. niutan to have a share in, have joy of, Lith. nauda use, profit.] (Zoöl.) Cattle of the genus Bos, as distinguished from horses, sheep, and goats; an animal of the genus Bos; as, a neat’s tongue; a neat’s foot. Chaucer.

Wherein the herds[men] were keeping of their neat.

Spenser.

The steer, the heifer, and the calf
Are all called neat.

Shak.

A neat and a sheep of his own.

Tusser.

Neat’s-foot, an oil obtained by boiling the feet of neat cattle. It is used to render leather soft and pliable.

Neat, a. [See neat, n.] Of or pertaining to the genus Bos, or to cattle of that genus; as, neat cattle.

Neat, a. [Compar. Neater (?); superl. Neatest.] [OE. nett, F. nett, fr. L. nitidus, fr. nitere to shine. Cf. Nitid, Net, a., Natty.] 1. Free from that which soils, defiles, or disorders; clean; cleanly; tidy.

If you were to see her, you would wonder what poor body it was that was so surprisingly neat and clean.

Law.

2. Free from what is unbecoming, inappropriate, or tawdry; simple and becoming; pleasing with simplicity; tasteful; chaste; as, a neat style; a neat dress.

3. Free from admixture or adulteration; good of its kind; as, neat brandy. “Our old wine neat.” Chapman.

4. Excellent in character, skill, or performance, etc.; nice; finished; adroit; as, a neat design; a neat thief.

5. With all deductions or allowances made; net. [In this sense usually written net. See Net, a., 3.]

neat line (Civil Engin.), a line to which work is to be built or formed. — Neat work, work built or formed to neat lines.

Syn. — Nice; pure; cleanly; tidy; trim; spruce.

‘Neath (? or &?;), prep. & adv. An abbreviation of Beneath. [Poetic]

Neat”herd` (?), n. A person who has the care of neat cattle; a cowherd. Dryden.

Neat”house` (?), n. A building for the shelter of neat cattle. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.] Massinger.

Neat”i*fy (?), v. t. [Neat, a. + -fy.] To make neat. [Obs.] olland.

Neat”ly, adv. In a neat manner; tidily; tastefully.

neat”ness, n. The state or quality of being neat.

Neat”ress (?), n. [From neat cattle.] A woman who takes care of cattle. [R.] Warner.

Neb (?), n. [AS. nebb head, face; akin to D. neb, Icel. nef, beak of a bird, nose, Dan. næb beak, bill, Sw. näbb, näf, and prob. also to D. sneb, snavel, bill, beak, G. schnabel, Dan. & Sw. snabel, and E. snap. Cf. Nib, Snap, Snaffle.] The nose; the snout; the mouth; the beak of a bird; a nib, as of a pen. [Also written nib.] Shak.

||Ne*ba”li*a (?), n. [NL., of uncertain origin.] (Zoöl.) A genus of small marine Crustacea, considered the type of a distinct order (Nebaloidea, or Phyllocarida.)

Neb”-neb` (?), n. Same as Bablh.

Neb”u*la (?), n.; pl. Nebulæ (#). [L., mist, cloud; akin to Gr. &?;, &?;, cloud, mist, G. nebel mist, OHG. nebul, D. nevel, Skr. nabhas cloud, mist. Cf. Nebule.] 1. (Astron.) A faint, cloudlike, self- luminous mass of matter situated beyond the solar system among the stars. True nebulæ are gaseous; but very distant star clusters often appear like them in the telescope.

2. (Med.) (a) A white spot or a slight opacity of the cornea. (b) A cloudy appearance in the urine. [Obs.]

Neb”u*lar (?), a. Of or pertaining to nebulæ; of the nature of, or resembling, a nebula.

Nebular hypothesis, an hypothesis to explain the process of formation of the stars and planets, presented in various forms by Kant, Herschel, Laplace, and others. As formed by Laplace, it supposed the matter of the solar system to have existed originally in the form of a vast, diffused, revolving nebula, which, gradually cooling and contracting, threw off, in obedience to mechanical and physical laws, succesive rings of matter, from which subsequently, by the same laws, were produced the several planets, satellites, and other bodies of the system. The phrase may indicate any hypothesis according to which the stars or the bodies of the solar system have been evolved from a widely diffused nebulous form of matter.

Neb”u*la`ted (?), a. Clouded with indistinct color markings, as an animal.

Neb`u*la”tion (?), n. The condition of being nebulated; also, a clouded, or ill-defined, color mark.

Neb”ule (?), n. [Cf. F. nébule. See nebula.] A little cloud; a cloud. [Obs.]

O light without nebule.

Old Ballad.

{ ||Né`bu`lé” (?), Neb”u*ly (?) }, a. [F. nébulé.] (Her.) Composed of successive short curves supposed to resemble a cloud; — said of a heraldic line by which an ordinary or subordinary may be bounded.

Neb`u*li*za”tion (?), n. (Med.) The act or process of nebulizing; atomization.

Neb”u*lize (?), v. t. [See Nebula.] To reduce (as a liquid) to a fine spray or vapor; to atomize.

Neb”u*li`zer (?), n. An atomizer.

Neb”u*lose` (?), a. Nebulous; cloudy. Derham.

Neb`u*los”i*ty (?), n. [L. nebulositas: cf. F. nébulosité] 1. The state or quality of being nebulous; cloudiness; haziness; mistiness; nebulousness.

The nebulosity . . . of the mother idiom.

I. Disraeli.

2. (Astron.) (a) The stuff of which a nebula is formed. (b) A nebula.

Neb”u*lous (?), a. [L. nebulosus: cf. F. nébuleux. See Nebula.] 1. Cloudy; hazy; misty.

2. (Astron.) Of, pertaining to, or having the appearance of, a nebula; nebular; cloudlike.

— Neb”u*lous*ly, adv. — Neb”u*lous*ness, n.

Neb”u*ly, n. (Her. & Arch.) A line or a decoration composed of successive short curves or waves supposed to resemble a cloud. See Nébulé

Nec`es*sa”ri*an (?), n. [Cf. F. nécessarien. See Necessary.] An advocate of the doctrine of philosophical necessity; a necessitarian.

Nec`es*sa”ri*an, a. Of or pertaining to necessarianism.

Nec`es*sa”ri*an*ism (?), n. The doctrine of philosophical necessity; necessitarianism. Hixley.

Nec”es*sa*ri*ly (?), adv. In a necessary manner; by necessity; unavoidably; indispensably.

Nec”es*sa*ri*ness, n. The quality of being necessary.

Nec”es*sa*ry (?), a. [L. necessarius, from necesse unavoidable, necessary; of uncertain origin: cf. F. nécessaire.] 1. Such as must be; impossible to be otherwise; not to be avoided; inevitable.

Death, a necessary end,
Will come when it will come.

Shak.

2. Impossible to be otherwise, or to be dispensed with, without preventing the attainment of a desired result; indispensable; requisite; essential. “‘T is necessary he should die.” Shak.

A certain kind of temper is necessary to the pleasure and quiet of our minds.

Tillotson.

3. Acting from necessity or compulsion; involuntary; — opposed to free; as, whether man is a necessary or a free agent is a question much discussed.

Nec”es*sa*ry, n.; pl. Necessaries (&?;). 1. A thing that is necessary or indispensable to some purpose; something that one can not do without; a requisite; an essential; — used chiefly in the plural; as, the necessaries of life.

2. A privy; a water-closet.

3. pl. (Law) Such things, in respect to infants, lunatics, and married women, as are requisite for support suitable to station.

Ne*ces`si*ta”ri*an (?), a. Of or pertaining to the doctrine of philosophical necessity in regard to the origin and existence of things, especially as applied to the actings or choices of the will; — opposed to libertarian.

Ne*ces`si*ta”ri*an, n. One who holds to the doctrine of necessitarianism.

Ne*ces`si*ta”ri*an*ism (?), n. The doctrine of philosophical necessity; the doctrine that results follow by invariable sequence from causes, and esp. that the will is not free, but that human actions and choices result inevitably from motives; determinism. M. Arnold.

Ne*ces”si*tate (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Necessitated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Necessitating (?).] [Cf. L. necessitatus, p. p. of necessitare, and F. nécessiter. See Necessity.] 1. To make necessary or indispensable; to render unavoidable.

Sickness [might] necessitate his removal from the court.

South.

This fact necessitates a second line.

J. Peile.

2. To reduce to the necessity of; to force; to compel.

The Marquis of Newcastle, being pressed on both sides, was necessitated to draw all his army into York.

Clarendon.

Ne*ces`si*tat”tion (?), n. [Cf. F. nécessitation.] The act of making necessary, or the state of being made necessary; compulsion. [R.] bp. Bramhall.

Ne*ces”si*tied (?), a. In a state of want; necessitous. [Obs.] Shak.

Ne*ces”si*tous (?), a. [Cf. F. nécessiteux.] 1. Very needy or indigent; pressed with poverty.

Necessitous heirs and penurious parents.

Arbuthnot.

2. Narrow; destitute; pinching; pinched; as, necessitous circumstances.

— Ne*ces”si*tous*ly, adv. — Ne*ces”si*tous*ness, n.

Ne*ces”si*tude (?), n. [L. necessitudo, fr. necesse. See Necessray.] 1. Necessitousness; want. Sir M. Hale.

2. Necessary connection or relation.

Between kings and their people, parents and their children, there is so great a necessitude, propriety, and intercourse of nature.

Jer. Taylor.

Ne*ces”si*ty (?), n.; pl. Necessities (#). [OE. necessite, F. nécessité, L. necessitas, fr. necesse. See Necessary.] 1. The quality or state of being necessary, unavoidable, or absolutely requisite; inevitableness; indispensableness.

2. The condition of being needy or necessitous; pressing need; indigence; want.

Urge the necessity and state of times.

Shak.

The extreme poverty and necessity his majesty was in.

Clarendon.

3. That which is necessary; a necessary; a requisite; something indispensable; — often in the plural.

These should be hours for necessities,
Not for delights.

Shak.

What was once to me
Mere matter of the fancy, now has grown
The vast necessity of heart and life.

Tennyson.

4. That which makes an act or an event unavoidable; irresistible force; overruling power; compulsion, physical or moral; fate; fatality.

So spake the fiend, and with necessity,
The tyrant’s plea, excused his devilish deeds.

Milton.

5. (Metaph.) The negation of freedom in voluntary action; the subjection of all phenomena, whether material or spiritual, to inevitable causation; necessitarianism.

Of necessity, by necessary consequence; by compulsion, or irresistible power; perforce.

Syn. — See Need.

Neck (?), n. [OE. necke, AS. hnecca; akin to D. nek the nape of the neck, G. nacken, OHG. nacch, hnacch, Icel. hnakki, Sw. nacke, Dan. nakke.] 1. The part of an animal which connects the head and the trunk, and which, in man and many other animals, is more slender than the trunk.

2. Any part of an inanimate object corresponding to or resembling the neck of an animal; as: (a) The long slender part of a vessel, as a retort, or of a fruit, as a gourd. (b) A long narrow tract of land projecting from the main body, or a narrow tract connecting two larger tracts. (c) (Mus.) That part of a violin, guitar, or similar instrument, which extends from the head to the body, and on which is the finger board or fret board.

3. (Mech.) A reduction in size near the end of an object, formed by a groove around it; as, a neck forming the journal of a shaft.

4. (Bot.) the point where the base of the stem of a plant arises from the root.

Neck and crop, completely; wholly; altogether; roughly and at once. [Colloq.] — Neck and neck (Racing), so nearly equal that one cannot be said to be before the other; very close; even; side by side. — Neck of a capital. (Arch.) See Gorgerin. — Neck of a cascabel (Gun.), the part joining the knob to the base of the breech. — Neck of a gun, the small part of the piece between the chase and the swell of the muzzle. — Neck of a tooth (Anat.), the constriction between the root and the crown. — Neck or nothing (Fig.), at all risks. — Neck verse. (a) The verse formerly read to entitle a party to the benefit of clergy, said to be the first verse of the fifty-first Psalm, “Miserere mei,” etc. Sir W. Scott. (b) Hence, a verse or saying, the utterance of which decides one’s fate; a shibboleth.

These words, “bread and cheese,” were their neck verse or shibboleth to distinguish them; all pronouncing “broad and cause,” being presently put to death.

Fuller.

— Neck yoke. (a) A bar by which the end of the tongue of a wagon or carriage is suspended from the collars of the harnesses. (b) A device with projecting arms for carrying things (as buckets of water or sap) suspended from one’s shoulders. — On the neck of, immediately after; following closely. “Commiting one sin on the neck of another.” W. Perkins. — Stiff neck, obstinacy in evil or wrong; inflexible obstinacy; contumacy. “I know thy rebellion, and thy stiff neck.” Deut. xxxi. 27. — To break the neck of, to destroy the main force of. “What they presume to borrow from her sage and virtuous rules . . . breaks the neck of their own cause.” Milton. — To harden the neck, to grow obstinate; to be more and more perverse and rebellious. Neh. ix. 17. — To tread on the neck of, to oppress; to tyrannize over.

Neck, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Necked (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Necking.] (Mech.) To reduce the diameter of (an object) near its end, by making a groove around it; — used with down; as, to neck down a shaft.

Neck”ar nut` (?). (Bot.) See Nicker nut.

Neck”band` (?), n. A band which goes around the neck; often, the part at the top of a garment.

Neck”cloth` (?; 115), n. A piece of any fabric worn around the neck.

Necked (?), a. 1. Having (such) a neck; — chiefly used in composition; as, stiff- necked.

2. (Naut.) Cracked; — said of a treenail.

Neck”er*chief (?), n. [For neck kerchief.] A kerchief for the neck; — called also neck handkerchief.

Neck”ing, n. Same as Neckmold.

Neck”lace (?; 48), n. 1. A string of beads, etc., or any continuous band or chain, worn around the neck as an ornament.

2. (Naut.) A rope or chain fitted around the masthead to hold hanging blocks for jibs and stays.

neck”laced (?), a. Wearing a necklace; marked as with a necklace.

The hooded and the necklaced snake.

Sir W. Jones.

neck”land (?), n. A neck of land. [Obs.]

neck”let (?), n. A necklace. E. Anold.

{ Neck”mold`, Neck”mould` } (?), n. (Arch.) A small convex molding surrounding a column at the junction of the shaft and capital. Weale.

Neck”plate` (?), n. See Gorget, 1 and 2.

Neck”tie` (?), n. A scarf, band, or kerchief of silk, etc., passing around the neck or collar and tied in front; a bow of silk, etc., fastened in front of the neck.

Neck”wear` (?), n. A collective term for cravats, collars, etc. [Colloq. or trade name]

Neck”weed` (?), n. (Bot.) (a) An American annual weed (veronica peregrina), with small white flowers and a roundish pod. (b) The hemp; — so called as furnishing ropes for hanging criminals. Dr. prior.

||Nec`ro*bi*o”sis (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; dead + &?; way of life, fr. &?; life.] (Biol. & Med.) The death of a part by molecular disintegration and without loss of continuity, as in the processes of degeneration and atrophy. Virchow.

Nec`ro*bi*ot”ic (?), a. (Biol. & Med.) Of or pertaining to necrobiosis; as, a necrobiotic metamorphosis.

Ne*crol”a*try (?), n. [Gr. &?; a dead person + &?; to worship.] The worship of the dead; manes worship. H. Spenser.

Nec”ro*lite (?), n. [Gr. &?; a corpse + -lite.] (Min.) Same as Necronite.

{ Nec`ro*log”ic (?), Nec`ro*log”ic*al (?) }, a. [Cf. F. nécrologique.] Of or pertaining to necrology; of the nature of necrology; relating to, or giving, an account of the dead, or of deaths.

Ne*crol”o*gist (?), n. One who gives an account of deaths.

Ne*crol”o*gy (?), n.; pl. Necrologies (#). [Gr. &?; a dead person + - logy: cf. F. nécrologie. See Necromancy.] An account of deaths, or of the dead; a register of deaths; a collection of obituary notices.

Nec”ro*man`cer (?), n. One who practices necromancy; a sorcerer; a wizard.

Nec”ro*man`cy (?), n. [OE. nigromaunce, nigromancie, OF. nigromance, F. nécromance, nécromancie, from L. necromantia, Gr. &?;; &?; a dead body (akin to L. necare to kill, Skr. na(&?;) to perish, vanish) + &?; divination, fr. &?; diviner, seer, akin to E. mania. See Mania, and cf. Internecine, Noxious. The old spelling is due to confusion with L. niger black. Hence the name black art.] The art of revealing future events by means of a pretended communication with the dead; the black art; hence, magic in general; conjuration; enchantment. See Black art.

This palace standeth in the air,
By necromancy placèd there.

Drayton.

Nec`ro*man”tic (?), n. Conjuration. [R.]

With all the necromantics of their art.

Young.

{ Nec`ro*man”tic (?), Nec`ro*man”tic*al (?) }, a. Of or pertaining to necromancy; performed by necromancy. — Nec`ro*man”tic*al*ly, adv.

Nec”ro*nite (?), n. [Gr. &?; a dead body.] (Min.) Fetid feldspar, a mineral which, when struck, exhales a fetid odor.

Ne*croph”a*gan (?), a. [See Necrophagous.] (Zoöl.) Eating carrion. — n. (Zoöl.) Any species of a tribe (Necrophaga) of beetles which, in the larval state, feed on carrion; a burying beetle.

Ne*croph”a*gous (?), a. [Gr. &?; eating corpses; &?; a dead body + &?; to eat: cf. F. nécrophage.] (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Necrophaga; eating carrion. See Necrophagan.

Nec`ro*pho”bi*a (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; a dead body + &?; to fear.] An exaggerated fear of death or horror of dead bodies.

Nec”ro*phore (?), n. [Gr. &?; a dead body + &?; to bear.] (Zoöl.) Any one of numerous species of beetles of the genus Necrophorus and allied genera; — called also burying beetle, carrion beetle, sexton beetle.

Ne*crop”o*lis (?), n.; pl. Necropolises (#). [NL., fr. Gr. &?;; &?; a dead body, adj., dead + &?; city.] A city of the dead; a name given by the ancients to their cemeteries, and sometimes applied to modern burial places; a graveyard.

Nec”rop*sy (?), n. [Gr. &?; a dead body + &?; sight: cf. F. nécropsie.] (Med.) A post-mortem examination or inspection; an autopsy. See Autopsy.

{ Nec`ro*scop”ic (?), Nec`ro*scop”ic*al (?) }, a. [Gr. &?; a dead body + -scope.] Or or relating to post-mortem examinations.

Ne*crose” (?), v. t. & i. (Med.) To affect with necrosis; to undergo necrosis. Quain.

Ne*crosed” (?), a. (Med.) Affected by necrosis; dead; as, a necrosed bone. Dunglison.

||Ne*cro”sis (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;, fr. &?; to make dead, to mortify, &?; a dead body.] 1. (med.) Mortification or gangrene of bone, or the death of a bone or portion of a bone in mass, as opposed to its death by molecular disintegration. See Caries.

2. (Bot.) A disease of trees, in which the branches gradually dry up from the bark to the center.

Ne*crot”ic (?), a. (Med.) Affected with necrosis; as, necrotic tissue; characterized by, or producing, necrosis; as, a necrotic process.

Nec”tar (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?;.] 1. (Myth. & Poetic) The drink of the gods (as ambrosia was their food); hence, any delicious or inspiring beverage.

2. (Bot.) A sweetish secretion of blossoms from which bees make honey.

Nec*ta”re*al (?), a. 1. Nectareous.

2. (Bot.) Of or pertaining to a nectary.

Nec*ta”re*an (?), a. [L. nectareus: cf. F. nectaréen.] Resembling nectar; very sweet and pleasant. “nectarean juice.” Talfourd.

Nec”tared (?), a. Imbued with nectar; mingled with nectar; abounding with nectar. Milton.

Nec*ta”re”ous (?), a. Of, pertaining to, containing, or resembling nectar; delicious; nectarean. Pope.

— Nec*ta”re*ous*ly, adv. — Nec*ta”re*ous*ness, n.

Nec*ta”ri*al (?), a. Of or pertaining to the nectary of a plant.

Nec”ta*ried (?), a. Having a nectary.

Nec`tar*if”er*ous (?), a. [L. nectar nectar + -ferous: cf. F. nectarifère.] (Bot.) Secreting nectar; — said of blossoms or their parts.

Nec”tar*ine (?), a. Nectareous. [R.] Milton.

Nec”tar*ine, n. [Cf. F. nectarine. See Nectar.] (Bot.) A smooth- skinned variety of peach.

Spanish nectarine, the plumlike fruit of the West Indian tree Chrysobalanus Icaco; — also called cocoa plum. it is made into a sweet conserve which a largely exported from Cuba.

Nec”tar*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nectarized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nectarizing (?).] To mingle or infuse with nectar; to sweeten. [Obs.] Cockeram.

Nec”tar*ous (?), a. Nectareous. Milton.

Nec”ta*ry (?), n.; pl. Nectaries (#). [From Nectar: cf. F. nectaire.] (Bot.) That part of a blossom which secretes nectar, usually the base of the corolla or petals; also, the spur of such flowers as the larkspur and columbine, whether nectariferous or not. See the Illustration of Nasturtium.

||Nec`to*ca”lyx (?), n.; pl. Nectocalyces (#). [NL., fr. Gr. &?; swimming + &?; a calyx.] (Zoöl.) (a) The swimming bell or umbrella of a jellyfish of medusa. (b) One of the zooids of certain Siphonophora, having somewhat the form, and the essential structure, of the bell of a jellyfish, and acting as a swimming organ.

{ Nec”to*sac, Nec”to*sack } (?), n. [Gr. &?; swimming + E. sac, sack.] (Zoöl.) The cavity of a nectocalyx.

Nec”to*stem (?), n. [Gr. &?; swimming + E. stem.] (Zoöl.) That portion of the axis which bears the nectocalyces in the Siphonophora.

Ned”der (?), n. [See Adder.] (Zoöl.) An adder. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.] Chaucer.

Ned”dy (?), n.; pl. Neddies (&?;). (Zoöl.) A pet name for a donkey.

||Nee (?), p. p., fem. [F., fr. L. nata, fem. of natus, p. p. of nasci to be born. See Nation.] Born; — a term sometimes used in introducing the name of the family to which a married woman belongs by birth; as, Madame de Staël, née Necker.

Need (?), n. [OE. need, neod, nede, AS. neád, n&ymacr;d; akin to D. nood, G. not, noth, Icel. nauðr, Sw. & Dan. nöd, Goth. naups.] 1. A state that requires supply or relief; pressing occasion for something; necessity; urgent want.

And the city had no need of the sun.

Rev. xxi. 23.

I have no need to beg.

Shak.

Be governed by your needs, not by your fancy.

Jer. Taylor.

2. Want of the means of subsistence; poverty; indigence; destitution. Chaucer.

Famine is in thy cheeks;
Need and oppression starveth in thine eyes.

Shak.

3. That which is needful; anything necessary to be done; (pl.) necessary things; business. [Obs.] Chaucer.

4. Situation of need; peril; danger. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Syn. — Exigency; emergency; strait; extremity; necessity; distress; destitution; poverty; indigence; want; penury. — Need, Necessity. Necessity is stronger than need; it places us under positive compulsion. We are frequently under the necessity of going without that of which we stand very greatly in need. It is also with the corresponding adjectives; necessitous circumstances imply the direct pressure of suffering; needy circumstances, the want of aid or relief.

Need (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Needed; p. pr. & vb. n. Needing.] [See Need, n. Cf. AS. n&?;dan to force, Goth. nau&?;jan.] To be in want of; to have cause or occasion for; to lack; to require, as supply or relief.

Other creatures all day long
Rove idle, unemployed, and less need rest.

Milton.

&fist; With another verb, need is used like an auxiliary, generally in a negative sentence expressing requirement or obligation, and in this use it undergoes no change of termination in the third person singular of the present tense. “And the lender need not fear he shall be injured.” Anacharsis (Trans. ).

Need, v. i. To be wanted; to be necessary. Chaucer.

When we have done it, we have done all that is in our power, and all that needs.

Locke.

Need, adv. Of necessity. See Needs. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Need”er (?), n. One who needs anything. Shak.

Need”ful (?), a. 1. Full of need; in need or want; needy; distressing. [Archaic] Chaucer.

The needful time of trouble.

Bk. of Com. Prayer.

2. Necessary for supply or relief; requisite.

All things needful for defense abound.

Dryden.

— Need”ful*ly, adv. — Need”ful*ness, n.

Need”i*ly (?), adv. [From Needy.] In a needy condition or manner; necessarily. Chaucer.

Need”i*ness, n. The state or quality of being needy; want; poverty; indigence.

Nee”dle (?), n. [OE. nedle, AS. n&?;dl; akin to D. neald, OS. nādla, G. nadel, OHG. nādal, nādala, Icel. nāl, Sw. nål, Dan. naal, and also to G. nähen to sew, OHG. nājan, L. nere to spin, Gr. &?;, and perh. to E. snare: cf. Gael. & Ir. snathad needle, Gael. snath thread, G. schnur string, cord.] 1. A small instrument of steel, sharply pointed at one end, with an eye to receive a thread, — used in sewing. Chaucer.

&fist; In some needles(as for sewing machines) the eye is at the pointed end, but in ordinary needles it is at the blunt end.

2. See Magnetic needle, under Magnetic.

3. A slender rod or wire used in knitting; a knitting needle; also, a hooked instrument which carries the thread or twine, and by means of which knots or loops are formed in the process of netting, knitting, or crocheting.

4. (Bot.) One of the needle-shaped secondary leaves of pine trees. See Pinus.

5. Any slender, pointed object, like a needle, as a pointed crystal, a sharp pinnacle of rock, an obelisk, etc.

Dipping needle. See under Dipping. — Needle bar, the reciprocating bar to which the needle of a sewing machine is attached. — Needle beam (Arch.), to shoring, the horizontal cross timber which goes through the wall or a pier, and upon which the weight of the wall rests, when a building is shored up to allow of alterations in the lower part. — Needle furze (Bot.), a prickly leguminous plant of Western Europe; the petty whin (Genista Anglica). — Needle gun, a firearm loaded at the breech with a cartridge carrying its own fulminate, which is exploded by driving a slender needle, or pin, into it. — Needle loom (Weaving), a loom in which the weft thread is carried through the shed by a long eye- pointed needle instead of by a shuttle. — Needle ore (Min.), acicular bismuth; a sulphide of bismuth, lead, and copper occuring in acicular crystals; — called also aikinite. — Needle shell (Zoöl.), a sea urchin. — Needle spar (Min.), aragonite. — Needle telegraph, a telegraph in which the signals are given by the deflections of a magnetic needle to the right or to the left of a certain position. — Sea needle (Zoöl.), the garfish.

Nee”dle, v. t. To form in the shape of a needle; as, to needle crystals.

Nee”dle, v. i. To form needles; to crystallize in the form of needles.

Nee”dle*book` (?), n. A book- shaped needlecase, having leaves of cloth into which the needles are stuck.

Nee”dle*case` (?), n. A case to keep needles.

Nee”dle*fish` (?), n. (Zoöl.) (a) The European great pipefish (Siphostoma, or Syngnathus, acus); — called also earl, and tanglefish. (b) The garfish.

nee”dle*ful (?), n.; pl. needlefuls (&?;). As much thread as is used in a needle at one time.

Nee”dle-pointed` (?), a. Pointed as needles.

Nee”dler (?), n. One who makes or uses needles; also, a dealer in needles. Piers Plowman.

Nee”dless (?), a. 1. Having no need. [Obs.]

Weeping into the needless stream.

Shak.

2. Not wanted; unnecessary; not requisite; as, needless labor; needless expenses.

3. Without sufficient cause; groundless; causeless. “Needless jealousy.” Shak.

— Need”less*ly, adv. — Need”less*ness, n.

Nee”dle*stone` (?), n. (Min.) Natrolite; — called also needle zeolite.

Nee”dle*wom`an (?), n.; pl. Needlewomen (&?;). A woman who does needlework; a seamstress.

Nee”dle*work` (?), n. 1. Work executed with a needle; sewed work; sewing; embroidery; also, the business of a seamstress.

2. The combination of timber and plaster making the outside framework of some houses.

Nee”dly (?), a. Like a needle or needles; as, a needly horn; a needly beard. R. D. Blackmore.

Need”ly (?), adv. [AS. n&ymacr;dlice. See Need.] Necessarily; of necessity. [Obs.] hak.

Need”ment (?), n. Something needed or wanted. pl. Outfit; necessary luggage. [Archaic] Spenser.

Carrying each his needments.

Wordsworth.

Needs (?), adv. [Orig. gen. of need, used as an adverb. Cf. -wards.] Of necessity; necessarily; indispensably; — often with must, and equivalent to of need.

A man must needs love mauger his head.

Chaucer.

And he must needs go through Samaria.

John iv. 4.

He would needs know the cause of his reulse.

Sir J. Davies.

Needs”cost` (?), adv. Of necessity. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Needs”ly, adv. Of necessity. [Obs.] Drayton.

Need”y (?), a. [Compar. Needier (?); superl. Neediest.] 1. Distressed by want of the means of living; very poor; indigent; necessitous.

Thou shalt open thy hand wide unto thy brother, to thy poor, and to thy needy in thy land.

Deut. xv. 11.

Spare the blushes of needly merit.

Dr. T. Dwight.

2. Necessary; requisite. [Obs.]

Corn to make your needy bread.

Shak.

{ Neeld (?), Neele (?) }, n. [See Needle.] A needle. [Obs.] Shak.

Neel”ghau (?), n. (Zoöl.) See Nylghau.

Neem” tree` (?). [Hind. nīm.] (Bot.) An Asiatic name for Melia Azadirachta, and M. Azedarach. See Margosa.

Neer (?), adv. & a. Nearer. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Ne’er (? or ?), adv. a contraction of Never.

Neese (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Neesed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Neesing.] [OE. nesen; akin to D. niezen, G. niesen, Icel. hnjōsa.] To sneeze. [Obs.] [Written also neeze.]

Nees”ing (?), n. Sneezing. [Obs.] “By his neesings a light doth shine.” Job xli. 18.

||Ne` ex”e*at (?). [L. ne exeat regno let him not go out of the kingdom.] (Law) A writ to restrain a person from leaving the country, or the jurisdiction of the court. The writ was originally applicable to purposes of state, but is now an ordinary process of courts of equity, resorted to for the purpose of obtaining bail, or security to abide a decree. Kent.

Nef (?; F. &?;), n. [F. See Nave.] The nave of a church. Addison.

{ Ne”fand (?), Ne*fan”dous (?) }, a. [L. nefandus not to be spoken; ne not + fari to speak.] Unfit to speak of; unmentionable; impious; execrable. [Obs.] “Nefand adominations.” Sheldon. “Nefandous high treason.” Cotton Mather.

Ne*fa”ri*ous (?), a. [L. nefarius, fr. nefas crime, wrong; ne not + fas divine law; akin to fari to speak. See No, adv., and Fate.] Wicked in the extreme; abominable; iniquitous; atrociously villainous; execrable; detestably vile.

Syn. — Iniquitous; detestable; horrible; heinious; atrocious; infamous; impious. See Iniquitous.

— Ne*fa”ri*ous*ly, adv. — Ne*fa”ri*ous*ness, n.

||Ne”fasch (?), n. (Zoöl.) Any fish of the genus Distichodus. Several large species inhabit the Nile.

Ne”fast (?), a. [L. nefastus.] Wicked. [R.]

Ne*ga”tion (?), n. [L. negatio, fr. negare to say no, to deny; ne not + the root of aio I say; cf. Gr. &?;, Skr. ah to say; cf. F. négation. See No, adv., and cf. Adage, Deny, Renegade.] 1. The act of denying; assertion of the nonreality or untruthfulness of anything; declaration that something is not, or has not been, or will not be; denial; — the opposite of affirmation.

Our assertions and negations should be yea and nay.

Rogers.

2. (Logic) Description or definition by denial, exclusion, or exception; statement of what a thing is not, or has not, from which may be inferred what it is or has.

Neg”a*tive (?), a. [F. négatif, L. negativus, fr. negare to deny. See Negation.] 1. Denying; implying, containing, or asserting denial, negation or refusal; returning the answer no to an inquiry or request; refusing assent; as, a negative answer; a negative opinion; — opposed to affirmative.

If thou wilt confess,
Or else be impudently negative.

Shak.

Denying me any power of a negative voice.

Eikon Basilike.

Something between an affirmative bow and a negative shake.

Dickens.

2. Not positive; without affirmative statement or demonstration; indirect; consisting in the absence of something; privative; as, a negative argument; a negative morality; negative criticism.

There in another way of denying Christ, . . . which is negative, when we do not acknowledge and confess him.

South.

3. (Logic) Asserting absence of connection between a subject and a predicate; as, a negative proposition.

4. (Photog.) Of or pertaining to a picture upon glass or other material, in which the lights and shades of the original, and the relations of right and left, are reversed.

5. (Chem.) Metalloidal; nonmetallic; – - contracted with positive or basic; as, the nitro group is negative.

&fist; This word, derived from electro-negative, is now commonly used in a more general sense, when acidiferous is the intended signification.

Negative crystal. (a) A cavity in a mineral mass, having the form of a crystal. (b) A crystal which has the power of negative double refraction. See refraction. — negative electricity (Elec.), the kind of electricity which is developed upon resin or ebonite when rubbed, or which appears at that pole of a voltaic battery which is connected with the plate most attacked by the exciting liquid; — formerly called resinous electricity. Opposed to positive electricity. Formerly, according to Franklin’s theory of a single electric fluid, negative electricity was supposed to be electricity in a degree below saturation, or the natural amount for a given body. see Electricity. — Negative eyepiece. (Opt.) see under Eyepiece. — Negative quantity (Alg.), a quantity preceded by the negative sign, or which stands in the relation indicated by this sign to some other quantity. See Negative sign (below). — Negative rotation, right-handed rotation. See Right-handed, 3. — Negative sign, the sign -, or minus (opposed in signification to +, or plus), indicating that the quantity to which it is prefixed is to be subtracted from the preceding quantity, or is to be reckoned from zero or cipher in the opposite direction to that of quanties having the sign plus either expressed or understood; thus, in a – b, b is to be substracted from a, or regarded as opposite to it in value; and -10° on a thermometer means 10° below the zero of the scale.

Neg”a*tive, n. [Cf. F. négative.] 1. A proposition by which something is denied or forbidden; a conception or term formed by prefixing the negative particle to one which is positive; an opposite or contradictory term or conception.

This is a known rule in divinity, that there is no command that runs in negatives but couches under it a positive duty.

South.

2. A word used in denial or refusal; as, not, no.

&fist; In Old England two or more negatives were often joined together for the sake of emphasis, whereas now such expressions are considered ungrammatical, being chiefly heard in iliterate speech. A double negative is now sometimes used as nearly or quite equivalent to an affirmative.

No wine ne drank she, neither white nor red.

Chaucer.

These eyes that never did nor never shall
So much as frown on you.

Shak.

3. The refusal or withholding of assents; veto.

If a kind without his kingdom be, in a civil sense, nothing, then . . . his negative is as good as nothing.

Milton.

4. That side of a question which denies or refuses, or which is taken by an opposing or denying party; the relation or position of denial or opposition; as, the question was decided in the negative.

5. (Photog.) A picture upon glass or other material, in which the light portions of the original are represented in some opaque material (usually reduced silver), and the dark portions by the uncovered and transparent or semitransparent ground of the picture.

&fist; A negative is chiefly used for producing photographs by means of the sun’s light passing through it and acting upon sensitized paper, thus producing on the paper a positive picture.

6. (Elect.) The negative plate of a voltaic or electrolytic cell.

Negative pregnant (Law), a negation which implies an affirmation.

Neg”a*tive (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Negatived (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Negativing.] 1. To prove unreal or untrue; to disprove.

The omission or infrequency of such recitals does not negative the existence of miracles.

Paley.

2. To reject by vote; to refuse to enact or sanction; as, the Senate negatived the bill.

3. To neutralize the force of; to counteract.

Neg”a*tive*ly, adv. 1. In a negative manner; with or by denial. “He answered negatively.” Boyle.

2. In the form of speech implying the absence of something; — opposed to positively.

I shall show what this image of God in man is, negatively, by showing wherein it does not consist, and positively, by showing wherein it does consist.

South.

Negatively charged or electrified (Elec.), having a charge of the kind of electricity called negative.

{ Neg”a*tive*ness, Neg`a*tiv”i*ty } (?), n. The quality or state of being negative.

Neg”a*to*ry (?), a. [L. negatorius: cf. F. négatorie.] Expressing denial; belonging to negation; negative. Carlyle.

||Neg”i*noth (?), n. pl. [Heb. n&ebreve;gīnōth.] (Script.) Stringed instruments. Dr. W. Smith.

To the chief musician on Neginoth.

Ps. iv. 9heading).

Neg*lect” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Neglected; p. pr. & vb. n. Neglecting.] [L. neglectus, p. p. of neglegere (negligere) to disregard, neglect, the literal sense prob. neing, not to pick up; nec not, nor (fr. ne not + - que, a particle akin to Goth. -h, -uh, and prob. to E. who; cf. Goth. nih nor) + L. legere to pick up, gather. See No, adv., Legend, Who.] 1. Not to attend to with due care or attention; to forbear one’s duty in regard to; to suffer to pass unimproved, unheeded, undone, etc.; to omit; to disregard; to slight; as, to neglect duty or business; to neglect to pay debts.

I hope
My absence doth neglect no great designs.

Shak.

This, my long suffering and my day of grace,
Those who neglect and scorn shall never taste.

Milton.

2. To omit to notice; to forbear to treat with attention or respect; to slight; as, to neglect strangers.

Syn. — To slight; overlook; disregard; disesteem; contemn. See Slight.

Neg*lect”, n. [L. neglectus. See Neglect, v.] 1. Omission of proper attention; avoidance or disregard of duty, from heedlessness, indifference, or willfulness; failure to do, use, or heed anything; culpable disregard; as, neglect of business, of health, of economy.

To tell thee sadly, shepherd, without blame,
Or our neglect, we lost her as we came.

Milton.

2. Omission if attention or civilities; slight; as, neglect of strangers.

3. Habitual carelessness; negligence.

Age breeds neglect in all.

Denham.

4. The state of being disregarded, slighted, or neglected.

Rescue my poor remains from vile neglect.

Prior.

Syn. — Negligence; inattention; disregard; disesteem; remissness; indifference. See Negligence.

Neg*lect”ed*ness, n. The state of being neglected.

Neg*lect”er (?), n. One who neglects. South.

Neg*lect”ful (?), a. Full of neglect; heedless; careless; negligent; inattentive; indifferent. Pope.

A cold and neglectful countenance.

Locke.

Though the Romans had no great genius for trade, yet they were not entirely neglectful of it.

Arbuthnot.

— Neg*lect”ful*ly, adv. — Neg*lect”ful*ness, n.

Neg*lect”ing*ly, adv. Carelessly; heedlessly. Shak.

Neg*lec”tion (?), n. [L. neglectio.] The state of being negligent; negligence. [Obs.] Shak.

Neg*lect”ive (?), a. Neglectful. [R.] “Neglective of their own children.” Fuller.

Neg`li*gee” (?), n. [F. négligé, fr. négliger to neglect, L. negligere. See Neglect.] An easy, unceremonious attire; undress; also, a kind of easy robe or dressing gown worn by women.

Neg”li*gence (?), n. [F. négligence, L. negligentia.] The quality or state of being negligent; lack of due diligence or care; omission of duty; habitual neglect; heedlessness.

2. An act or instance of negligence or carelessness.

remarking his beauties, . . . I must also point out his negligences and defects.

Blair.

3. (Law) The omission of the care usual under the circumstances, being convertible with the Roman culpa. A specialist is bound to higher skill and diligence in his specialty than one who is not a specialist, and liability for negligence varies acordingly.

Contributory negligence. See under Contributory.

Syn. — Neglect; inattention; heedlessness; disregard; slight. — Negligence, Neglect. These two words are freely interchanged in our older writers; but a distinction has gradually sprung up between them. As now generally used, negligence is the habit, and neglect the act, of leaving things undone or unattended to. We are negligent as a general trait of character; we are guilty of neglect in particular cases, or in reference to individuals who had a right to our attentions.

Neg”li*gent (?), a. [F. négligent, L. negligens,p. pr. of negligere. See Neglect.] Apt to neglect; customarily neglectful; characterized by negligence; careless; heedless; culpably careless; showing lack of attention; as, disposed in negligent order. “Be thou negligent of fame.” Swift.

He that thinks he can afford to be negligent is not far from being poor.

Rambler.

Syn. — Careles; heedless; neglectful; regardless; thoughtless; indifferent; inattentive; remiss.

Neg”li*gent*ly (?), adv. In a negligent manner.

Neg”li*gi*ble (?), a. [Cf. F. négligible, négligeable.] That may neglected, disregarded, or left out of consideration.

Within very negligible limits of error.

Sir J. Herschel.

Ne*goce” (?), n. [F. négoce. See Negotiate.] Business; occupation. [Obs.] Bentley.

Ne*go`ti*a*bil”i*ty (? or ?), n. [Cf. F. négociabilité.] The quality of being negotiable or transferable by indorsement.

Ne*go”ti*a*ble (? or ?), a. [Cf. F. négotiable. See Negotiate.] Capable of being negotiated; transferable by assignment or indorsement to another person; as, a negotiable note or bill of exchange.

Negotiable paper, any commercial paper transferable by sale or delivery and indorsement, as bills of exchange, drafts, checks, and promissory notes.

Ne*go”ti*ant (?), n. [L. negotians, prop. p. pr. of negotiari: cf. F. négociant.] A negotiator. [R.] Sir W. Raleigh.

Ne*go”ti*ate (?), v. i. [L. negotiatus, p. p. of negotiari, fr. negotium business; nec not + otium leisure. Cf. Neglect.] 1. To transact business; to carry on trade. [Obs.] Hammond.

2. To treat with another respecting purchase and sale or some business affair; to bargain or trade; as, to negotiate with a man for the purchase of goods or a farm.

3. To hold intercourse respecting a treaty, league, or convention; to treat with, respecting peace or commerce; to conduct communications or conferences.

He that negotiates between God and man
Is God’s ambassador.

Cowper.

4. To intrigue; to scheme. [Obs.] Bacon.

Ne*go”ti*ate, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Negotiated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Negotiating (?).] 1. To carry on negotiations concerning; to procure or arrange for by negotiation; as, to negotiate peace, or an exchange.

Constantinople had negotiated in the isles of the Archipelago . . . the most indispensable supplies.

Gibbon.

2. To transfer for a valuable consideration under rules of commercial law; to sell; to pass.

The notes were not negotiated to them in the usual course of business or trade.

Kent.

Ne*go`ti*a”tion (?), n. [L. negotiatio: cf. F. négociation.] 1. The act or process of negotiating; a treating with another respecting sale or purchase. etc.

2. Hence, mercantile business; trading. [Obs.]

Who had lost, with these prizes, forty thousand pounds, after twenty years’ negotiation in the East Indies.

Evelyn.

3. The transaction of business between nations; the mutual intercourse of governments by diplomatic agents, in making treaties, composing difference, etc.; as, the negotiations at Ghent.

An important negotiation with foreign powers.

Macaulay.

Ne*go”ti*a`tor (?), n. [L.: cf. F. négociateur.] One who negotiates; a person who treats with others, either as principal or agent, in respect to purchase and sale, or public compacts.

Ne*go”ti*a*to*ry (? or ?), a. Of or pertaining to negotiation.

Ne*go`ti*a”trix (?), n. [L.] A woman who negotiates. Miss Edgeworth.

Ne*go`ti*os”i*ty (?), n. [L. negotiositas.] The state of being busy; multitude of business. [Obs.]

Ne*go”tious (?), a. [L. negotiosus.] Very busy; attentive to business; active. [R.] D. Rogers.

Ne*go”tious*ness, n. The state of being busily occupied; activity. [R.] D. Rogers.

Ne”gress (?), n.; pl. Negresses (&?;). [Cf. F. négrese, fem. of négre a negro. See Negro.] A black woman; a female negro.

||Ne*gri”ta (?), n. [Sp., blackish, fem. of negrito, dim. of negro black.] (Zoöl.) A blackish fish (Hypoplectrus nigricans), of the Sea-bass family. It is a native of the West Indies and Florida.

Ne*grit”ic (?), a. Of or pertaining to negroes; composed of negroes. Keary.

Ne*gri”tos (?), n. pl.; sing Negrito (&?;). [Sp., dim. of negro black.] (Ethnol.) A degraded Papuan race, inhabiting Luzon and some of the other east Indian Islands. They resemble negroes, but are smaller in size. They are mostly nomads.

Ne”gro (?), n.; pl. Negroes (&?;). [Sp. or Pg. negro, fr. negro black, L. niger; perh. akin to E. night.] A black man; especially, one of a race of black or very dark persons who inhabit the greater part of tropical Africa, and are distinguished by crisped or curly hair, flat noses, and thick protruding lips; also, any black person of unmixed African blood, wherever found.

Ne”gro, a. Of or pertaining to negroes; black.

Negro bug (Zoöl.), a minute black bug common on the raspberry and blackberry. It produced a very disagreeable flavor. — negro corn, the Indian millet or durra; — so called in the West Indies. see Durra. McElrath.

— Negro fly (Zoöl.), a black dipterous fly (Psila rosæ) which, in the larval state, is injurious to carrots; — called also carrot fly. — Negro head (Com.), Cavendish tobacco. [Cant] McElrath.

— Negro monkey (Zoöl.), the moor monkey.

Ne”groid (?), a. [Negro + - oid.] 1. Characteristic of the negro.

2. Resembling the negro or negroes; of or pertaining to those who resemble the negro.

Ne”gro*loid (?), a. See Negroid.

Ne”gus (?), n. A beverage made of wine, water, sugar, nutmeg, and lemon juice; — so called, it is said, from its first maker, Colonel Negus.

||Ne”hi*loth (?), n. pl. [Heb.] (Script.) A term supposed to mean, perforated wind instruments of music, as pipes or flutes. Ps. v. (heading).

Ne*hush”tan (?), n. [Heb.] A thing of brass; — the name under which the Israelites worshiped the brazen serpent made by Moses. 2 Kings xviii. 4.

{ Neif, Neife } (nēf), n. [OF. neïf, naïf, a born serf, fr. L. nativus born, imparted by birth. See Native.] A woman born in the state of villeinage; a female serf. Blackstone.

{ Neif, Neaf (nēf), } n. [Icel. hnefi; akin to Dan. næve, Sw. näfve.] The fist. [Obs.] “I kiss thy neif.” “Give me your neaf.” Shak.

Neigh (nā), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Neighed (nād); p. pr. & vb. n. Neighing.] [OE. neien, AS. hn&aemacr;gan, prob. of imitative origin; cf. MHG. nēgen, Icel. hneggja, gneggja, Sw. gnägga. Cf. Nag a horse.] 1. To utter the cry of the horse; to whinny.

2. To scoff or sneer; to jeer. [Obs.]

Neighed at his nakedness.

Beau. & Fl.

Neigh, n. The cry of a horse; a whinny.

Neigh”bor (nā“b&etilde;r), n. [OE. neighebour, AS. neáhgebūr; neáh nigh + gebūr a dweller, farmer; akin to D. nabuur, G. nachbar, OHG. nāhgibūr. See Nigh, and Boor.] [Spelt also neighbour.] 1. A person who lives near another; one whose abode is not far off. Chaucer.

Masters, my good friends, mine honest neighbors.

Shak.

2. One who is near in sympathy or confidence.

Buckingham
No more shall be the neighbor to my counsel.

Shak.

3. One entitled to, or exhibiting, neighborly kindness; hence, one of the human race; a fellow being.

Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbor unto him that fell among the thieves?

Luke x. 36.

The gospel allows no such term as “stranger;” makes every man my neighbor.

South.

Neigh”bor, a. Near to another; adjoining; adjacent; next; neighboring. “The neighbor cities.” Jer. l. 40. “The neighbor room.” Shak.

neigh”bor, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Neighbored (?); p. pr. & vb. n Neighboring.] 1. To adjoin; to border on; tobe near to.

Leisurely ascending hills that neighbor the shore.

Sandys.

2. To associate intimately with. [Obs.] Shak.

Neigh”bor, v. i. To dwell in the vicinity; to be a neighbor, or in the neighborhood; to be near. [Obs.]

A copse that neighbors by.

Shak.

Neigh”bor*hood (?), n. [Written also neighbourhood.] 1. The quality or condition of being a neighbor; the state of being or dwelling near; proximity.

Then the prison and the palace were in awful neighborhood.

Ld. Lytton.

2. A place near; vicinity; adjoining district; a region the inhabitants of which may be counted as neighbors; as, he lives in my neighborhood.

3. The inhabitants who live in the vicinity of each other; as, the fire alarmed all the neiborhood.

4. The disposition becoming a neighbor; neighborly kindness or good will. [Obs.] Jer. Taylor.

Syn. — Vicinity; vicinage; proximity. — Neighborhood, Vicinity. Neighborhood is Anglo- Saxon, and vicinity is Latin. Vicinity does not commonly denote so close a connection as neighborhood. A neighborhood is a more immediate vicinity. The houses immediately adjoining a square are in the neighborhood of that square; those which are somewhat further removed are also in the vicinity of the square.

Neigh”bor*ing, a. Living or being near; adjacent; as, the neighboring nations or countries.

Neigh”bor*li*ness (?), n. The quality or state of being neighborly.

Neigh”bor*ly, a. [Also written neighbourly.] Appropriate to the relation of neighbors; having frequent or familiar intercourse; kind; civil; social; friendly. — adv. In a neighborly manner.

Judge if this be neighborly dealing.

Arbuthnot.

Neigh”bor*ship, n. The state of being neighbors. [R.] J. Bailie.

||Neis”hout (?), n. [From D. niezen to sneeze + hout wood.] (Bot.) The mahogany-like wood of the South African tree Pteroxylon utile, the sawdust of which causes violent sneezing (whence the name). Also called sneezewood.

Nei”ther (? or ?; 277), a. [OE. neiter, nother, nouther, AS. nāwðer, nāhwæðer; nā never, not + hwæðer whether. The word has followed the form of either. See No, and Whether, and cf. Neuter, Nor.] Not either; not the one or the other.

Which of them shall I take?
Both? one? or neither? Neither can be enjoyed,
If both remain alive.

Shak.

He neither loves,
Nor either cares for him.

Shak.

Nei”ther, conj. not either; generally used to introduce the first of two or more coördinate clauses of which those that follow begin with nor.

Fight neither with small nor great, save only with the king.

1 Kings xxii. 31.

Hadst thou been firm and fixed in thy dissent,
Neither had I transgressed, nor thou with me.

Milton.

When she put it on, she made me vow
That I should neither sell, nor give, nor lose it.

Shak.

&fist; Neither was formerly often used where we now use nor. “For neither circumcision, neither uncircumcision is anything at all.” Tyndale. “Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it.” Gen. iii. 3. Neither is sometimes used colloquially at the end of a clause to enforce a foregoing negative (nor, not, no). “He is very tall, but not too tall neither.” Addison. ” ‘I care not for his thrust’ ‘No, nor I neither.’” Shak.

Not so neither, by no means. [Obs.] Shak.

||Ne*lum”bo (?), n. [Ceylonese word.] (Bot.) A genus of great water lilies. The North American species is Nelumbo lutea, the Asiatic is the sacred lotus, N. speciosa. [Written also Nelumbium.]

Nem”a*line (?), a. [L. nema thread, Gr. &?;, fr. &?; to spin.] (Min.) Having the form of threads; fibrous.

Nem”a*lite (?), n. [Gr. &?; thread + -lite: cf. F. némalite.] (Min.) A fibrous variety of brucite.

||Nem`a*tel”mi*a (?), n. pl. [NL.] (Zoöl.) Same as Nemathelminthes.

||Nem`a*the”ci*um (? or &?;), n.; pl. Nemathecia (#). [NL., fr. Gr. &?; a thread + &?; a box.] (Bot.) A peculiar kind of fructification on certain red algæ, consisting of an external mass of filaments at length separating into tetraspores.

{ ||Nem`a*thel*min”thes (?), ||Nem`a*tel*min”thes (?) }, n. pl. [NL. See Nemato-, and Helminthes.] (Zoöl.) An ordr of helminths, including the Nematoidea and Gordiacea; the roundworms. [Written also Nematelminthea.]

Nem”a*to- (?). A combining form from Gr. nh^ma, nh`matos, a thread.

Nem”a*to*blast (?), n. [Nemato- + -blast.] (Biol.) A spermatocyte or spermoblast.

||Nem`a*to*ca”lyx (?), n.; pl. Nematocalyces (#), E. plw>calyxes (#). [NL. See Nemato, and Calyx.] (Zoöl.) One of a peculiar kind of cups, or calicles, found upon hydroids of the family Plumularidæ. They contain nematocysts. See Plumularia.

||Nem`a*toc”e*ra (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;, &?;, a thread + ke`ras horn.] (Zoöl.) A suborder of dipterous insects, having long antennæ, as the mosquito, gnat, and crane fly; — called also Nemocera.

Nem”a*to*cyst (?), n. [Nemato- + cyst.] (Zoöl.) A lasso cell, or thread cell. See Lasso cell, under Lasso.

Nem”a*tode (?), a. & n. (Zoöl.) Same as Nematoid.

Nem”a*to*gene (?), n. [Nemato- + root of Gr. &?; to be born.] (Zoöl.) One of the dimorphic forms of the species of Dicyemata, which produced vermiform embryos; — opposed to rhombogene.

Nem`a*tog”nath (?), n. (Zoöl.) One of the Nematognathi.

||Nem`a*tog”na*thi (?), n. pl. [NL. See nemato-, and Gnathic.] (Zoöl.) An order of fishes having barbels on the jaws. It includes the catfishes, or siluroids. See Siluroid.

Nem”a*toid (?), a. [Nemato- + -oid.] (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Nematoidea. — n. One of the Nematoidea. See Illustration in Appendix.

||Nem`a*toi”de*a (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;, &?;, thread + -oid.] (Zoöl.) An order of worms, having a long, round, and generally smooth body; the roundworms. They are mostly parasites. Called also Nematodea, and Nematoda.

&fist; The trichina, stomach worm, and pinworm of man belong to this group. See also Vinegar eel, under Vinegar, and Gapeworm.

Nem`a*toid”e*an (?), a. & n. (Zoöl.) Nematoid.

||Nem`a*toph”o*ra (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;, &?;, a thread + &?; to bear.] (Zoöl.) Same as Cœlenterata.

Ne”me*an (nē“m&esl;*an; 277), a. [L. Nemeus, fr. Nemea, Gr. Neme`h.] Of or pertaining to Nemea, in Argolis, where the ancient Greeks celebrated games, and Hercules killed a lion.

Ne*mer”te*an (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Nemertina. — n. One of the Nemertina.

||Ne*mer”tes (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. nhmerth`s unerring.] (Zoöl.) A genus of Nemertina.

Ne*mer”ti*an (?), a. & n. (Zoöl.) Nemertean.

Ne*mer”tid (?), a. & n. (Zoöl.) Nemertean.

||Ne*mer”ti*da (?), n. pl. [NL.] (Zoöl.) Nemertina.

||Nem`er*ti”na (n&ebreve;m`&etilde;r*tī“n&adot;), n. pl. [NL. See Nemrtes.] (Zoöl.) An order of helminths usually having a long, slender, smooth, often bright-colored body, covered with minute vibrating cilia; — called also Nemertea, Nemertida, and Rhynchocœla.

&fist; The mouth is beneath the head, and the straight intestine at the posterior end. They have a very singular long tubular proboscis, which can be everted from a pore in the front of the head. Their nervous system and blood vessels are well developed. Some of the species become over one hundred feet long. They are mostly marine and seldom parasitic; a few inhabit fresh water. The two principal divisions are Anopla and Enopla.

Nem”e*sis (n&ebreve;m”&esl;*s&ibreve;s), n. [L., fr. Gr. Ne`mesis, orig., distribution, fr. ne`mein to distribute. See Nomad.] (Class. Myth.) The goddess of retribution or vengeance; hence, retributive justice personified; divine vengeance.

This is that ancient doctrine of nemesis who keeps watch in the universe, and lets no offense go unchastised.

Emerson.

Ne*moph”i*list (?), n. [See Nemophily.] One who is fond of forest or forest scenery; a haunter of the woods. [R.]

Ne*moph”i*ly (?), n. [Gr. ne`mos wooded pasture, glade + filei^n to love.] Fondness for forest scenery; love of the woods. [R.]

Nem”o*ral (?), a. [L. nemoralis, fr. nemus, nemoris, a wood or grove: cf. F. némoral.] Of or pertaining to a wood or grove. [R.]

Nem”o*rous (?), a. [L. nemorosus.] Woody. [R.]

Paradise itself was but a kind of nemorous temple.

Evelyn.

Nemp”ne (?), v. t. [AS. nemnan to name or call. See Name, v.] To name or call. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Nempt (?), p. p. of Nempne. Called; named. [Obs.]

Nems (?), n. (Zoöl.) The ichneumon.

||Ne”ni*a (?), n. [L. nenia, naenia.] A funeral song; an elegy.

Nen”u*phar (?), n. [F. nénufar: cf. Sp. nenúfar, It. nenufár; all fr. Per. nīl&?;far.] (Bot.) The great white water lily of Europe; the Nymphæa alba.

Ne”o- (&?;). [Gr. &?; youthful, new. See New.] A prefix meaning new, recent, late; and in chemistry designating specifically that variety of metameric hydrocarbons which, when the name was applied, had been recently classified, and in which at least one carbon atom in connected directly with four other carbon atoms; — contrasted with normal and iso-; as, neopentane; the neoparaffins. Also used adjectively.

||Ne`o*car”i*da (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; new + &?;, &?;, a kind of crustacean.] (Zoöl.) The modern, or true, Crustacea, as distinguished from the Merostomata.

Ne”o*cene (?), a. [Neo- + Gr. &?; new.] (Geol.) More recent than the Eocene, that is, including both the Miocene and Pliocene divisions of the Tertiary.

Ne`o-Chris*tian”i*ty (? or ?), n. [Neo- + Christianity.] Rationalism.

Ne`o*co”mi*an (?), n. [From Neocomium, the Latin name of Neuchatel, in Switzerland, where these rocks occur.] (Geol.) A term applied to the lowest deposits of the Cretaceous or chalk formation of Europe, being the lower greensand.

Ne`o*co”mi*an, a. (Geol.) Of or pertaining to the lower greensand.

Ne`o*cos”mic (?), a. [Neo- + cosmic.] Of or pertaining to the universe in its present state; specifically, pertaining to the races of men known to history.

Ne*oc”ra*cy (?), n. [Neo-+ - cracy, as in aristocracy.] Government by new or inexperienced hands; upstart rule; raw or untried officials.

Ne*od”a*mode (?), n. [Gr. &?;; &?; new + &?;, dh`mos, the people + &?; shape.] In ancient Sparta, one of those Helots who were freed by the state in reward for military service. Milford.

Ne`o*dym”i*um (?), n. [NL. Dee Neo- , and Didymium.] (Chem.) An elementary substance which forms one of the constituents of didymium. Symbol Nd. Atomic weight 140.8.

Ne`o*gæ“an (?), a. [Neo- + Gr. &?; earth.] (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the New World, or Western Hemisphere.

Ne*og”a*mist (?), n. [Gr. &?; newly married.] A person recently married.

Ne”o*gen (?), n. [Neo- + - gen.] (Chem.) An alloy resembling silver, and consisting chiefly of copper, zinc, and nickel, with small proportions of tin, aluminium, and bismuth. Ure.

Ne*og”ra*phy (?), n. [Neo- + -graphy.] A new method or system of writing.

Ne`o-Lat”in (?), a. [Neo- + Latin.] Applied to the Romance languages, as being mostly of Latin origin.

Ne`o*lith”ic (?), a. [Neo- + -lith + -ic.] (Archæol. & Geol.) Of or pertaining to, or designating, an era characterized by late remains in stone.

The Neolithic era includes the latter half of the “Stone age;” the human relics which belong to it are associated with the remains of animals not yet extinct. The kitchen middens of Denmark, the lake dwellings of Switzerland, and the stockaded islands, or “crannogs,” of the British Isles, belong to this era.

Lubbock.

Ne`o*lo*gi*an (?), a. Neologic; neological.

Ne`o*lo”gi*an, n. A neologist.

Ne`o*lo”gi*an*ism (?), n. Neologism.

{ Ne`o*log”ic (?), Ne`o*log”ic*al (?) }, a. [Cf. F. néologique.] Of or pertaining to neology; employing new words; of the nature of, or containing, new words or new doctrines.

A genteel neological dictionary.

Chesterfield.

Ne`o*log”ic*al*ly, adv. In a neological manner.

Ne*ol”o*gism (?), n. [Cf. F. néologisme.] 1. The introduction of new words, or the use of old words in a new sense. Mrs. Browning.

2. A new word, phrase, or expression.

3. A new doctrine; specifically, rationalism.

Ne*ol”o*gist (?), n. [Cf. F. néologiste.] 1. One who introduces new words or new senses of old words into a language.

2. An innovator in any doctrine or system of belief, especially in theology; one who introduces or holds doctrines subversive of supernatural or revealed religion; a rationalist, so- called.

{ Ne*ol`o*gis”tic (?), Ne*ol`o*gis”tic*al (?) }, a. Of or pertaining to neology; neological.

Ne*ol`o*gi*za”tion (?), n. The act or process of neologizing.

Ne*ol”o*gize (?), v. i. 1. To introduce or use new words or terms or new uses of old words.

2. To introduce innovations in doctrine, esp. in theological doctrine.

Ne*ol”o*gy (?), n. [Neo- + - logy: cf. F. néologie.] 1. The introduction of a new word, or of words or significations, into a language; as, the present nomenclature of chemistry is a remarkable instance of neology.

2. A new doctrine; esp. (Theol.), a doctrine at variance with the received interpretation of revealed truth; a new method of theological interpretation; rationalism.

||Ne`o*me”ni*a (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;; &?; new + mh`n month.] The time of the new moon; the beginning of the month in the lunar calendar.

||Ne`o*me*noi”de*a (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Neomenia, a representative genus (See Neomenia) + -oid.] (Zoöl.) A division of vermiform gastropod mollusks, without a shell, belonging to the Isopleura.

Ne”o*morph (?), n. [Neo- + Gr. &?; form.] (Biol.) A structure, part, or organ developed independently, that is, not derived from a similar structure, part, or organ, in a preexisting form.

Ne”o*nism (?), n. Neologism.

Ne`o*no”mi*an (?), n. [Neo- + Gr. &?; law.] One who advocates adheres to new laws; esp. one who holds or believes that the gospel is a new law.

Ne`o*no”mi*an, a. Of or pertaining to the Neonomians, or in accordance with their doctrines.

Ne`o*no”mi*an*ism (?), n. The doctrines or belief of the neonomians.

Ne”o*phyte (?), n. [L. neophytis, Gr. &?;, prop., newly planted; &?; new + &?; grown, &?; that which has grown, a plant, fr. &?; to grow: cf. F. néophyte. See New, and Be.] 1. A new convert or proselyte; — a name given by the early Christians, and still given by the Roman Catholics, to such as have recently embraced the Christian faith, and been admitted to baptism, esp. to converts from heathenism or Judaism.

2. A novice; a tyro; a beginner in anything.

||Ne`o*pla”si*a (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; new + &?; to form, mold.] (Physiol. & Med.) Growth or development of new material; neoplasty.

Ne”o*plasm (?), n. [See Neoplasia.] (Physiol. & Med.) A new formation or tissue, the product of morbid action.

Ne`o*plas”tic (?), a. (Physiol. & Med.) Of or pertaining to neoplasty, or neoplasia.

Ne”o*plas`ty (?), n. [See Neoplasia.] (Physiol. & Med.) Restoration of a part by granulation, adhesive inflammation, or autoplasty.

Ne`o*pla”ton”ic (?), a. Of, pertaining to, or resembling, Neoplatonism or the Neoplatonists.

Ne`o*pla`to*ni”cian (?), n. A Neoplatonist.

Ne`o*pla”to*nism (?), n. [Neo- + Platonism.] A pantheistic eclectic school of philosophy, of which Plotinus was the chief (A. D. 205-270), and which sought to reconcile the Platonic and Aristotelian systems with Oriental theosophy. It tended to mysticism and theurgy, and was the last product of Greek philosophy.

Ne`o*pla”to*nist (?), n. One who held to Neoplatonism; a member of the Neoplatonic school.

Ne`o*ra”ma (? or ?), n. [Gr. &?; temple + &?; a view.] A panorama of the interior of a building, seen from within.

Ne*os”sine (?), n. [Gr. neossia` a bird’s nest.] The substance constituting the edible bird’s nest.

Ne`os*sol”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. &?; a young bird + -logy.] (Zoöl.) The study of young birds.

{ Ne`o*ter”ic (?), Ne`o*ter”ic*al (?) }, a. [L. neotericus, Gr. &?;, fr. &?;, compar. of &?; young, new.] Recent in origin; modern; new. “Our neoteric verbs.” Fitzed. Hall.

Some being ancient, others neoterical.

Bacon.

Ne`o*ter”ic, n. One of modern times; a modern.

Neo`ter”ic*al*ly (?), adv. Recently; newly.

Ne*ot”er*ism (?), n. [Gr. &?; innovation] An innovation or novelty; a neoteric word or phrase.

Ne*ot”er*ist, n. One ho introduces new word&?; or phrases. Fitzed Hall.

Ne*ot”er*ize (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Neoterized; p. pr. & vb. n. Neoterized.] [Gr. &?; to innovate.] To innovate; to coin or introduce new words.

Freely as we of the nineteenth century neoterize.

fized. Hall.

Ne`o*trop”ic*al (?), a. [Neo- + tropical.] (Geog. & Zoöl.) Belonging to, or designating, a region of the earth’s surface which comprises most of South America, the Antilles, and tropical North America.

Ne`o*zo”ic (?), a. [Neo- + Gr. &?; life.] (Geol.) More recent than the Paleozoic, — that is, including the Mesozoic and Cenozoic.

Nep (?), n. [Abbrev. fr. Nepeta.] (Bot.) Catnip.

||Ne”pa (?), n. [L. nepa scorpion.] (Zoöl.) A genus of aquatic hemipterous insects. The species feed upon other insects and are noted for their voracity; — called also scorpion bug and water scorpion.

Nep`au*lese” (? or ?), a. Of or pertaining to Nepaul, a kingdom in Northern Hindostan. — n. sing. & pl. A native or natives of Nepaul.

Ne*pen”the (?), n. [Fr. Gr. &?; removing all sorrow; hence, an epithet of an Egyptian drug which lulled sorrow for the day; &?; not + &?; sorrow, grief.] A drug used by the ancients to give relief from pain and sorrow; — by some supposed to have been opium or hasheesh. Hence, anything soothing and comforting.

Lulled with the sweet nepenthe of a court.

Pope.

Quaff, O quaff this kind nepenthe.

Poe.

Ne*pen”thes (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;. See Nepenthe.] 1. Same as Nepenthe. Milton.

2. (Bot.) A genus of climbing plants found in India, Malaya, etc., which have the leaves prolonged into a kind of stout tendril terminating in a pitcherlike appendage, whence the plants are often called pitcher plants and monkey- cups. There are about thirty species, of which the best known is Nepenthes distillatoria. See Pitcher plant.

||Nep”e*ta (?), n. [L.] (Bot.) A genus of labiate plants, including the catnip and ground ivy.

Neph”a*lism (?), n. [Gr. &?; soberness, fr. &?; sober, &?; to drink no wine: cf. F. néphalisme.] Total abstinence from spirituous liquor.

Neph”a*list (?), n. [Cf. F. néphaliste.] One who advocates or practices nephalism.

{ Neph”e*line (?), Neph”e*lite (?) }, n. [gr. &?; cloud: cf. F. néphéline. Cf. Nebula.] (Min.) A mineral occuring at Vesuvius, in glassy hexagonal crystals; also elsewhere, in grayish or greenish masses having a greasy luster, as the variety elæolite. It is a silicate of aluminia, soda, and potash.

Neph`e*lo*dom”e*ter (?), n. [Gr. &?; a cloud + &?; way + -meter.] (Meteorol.) An instrument for reckoning the distances or velocities of clouds.

Neph`e*lom”e*ter (?), n. [Gr. &?; a cloud + -meter.] An instrument for measuring or registering the amount of cloudiness.

Neph”ew (n&ebreve;f”&usl;; in England n&ebreve;v”&usl;; 277), n. [OE. neveu, nevou, nevu, fr. F. neveu, OF. also, nevou, L. nepos; akin to AS. nefa, D. neef, G. neffe, OHG. nevo, Icel. nefi a kinsman, Gr. ne`podes, pl., brood, young, Skr. nepāt grandson, descendant. √262. Cf. Niece, Nepotism.] 1. A grandson or grandchild, or remoter lineal descendant. [Obs.]

But if any widow have children or nephews [Rev. Ver. grandchildren].

1 Tim. v. 4.

If naturalists say true that nephews are often liker to their grandfathers than to their fathers.

Jer. Taylor.

2. A cousin. [Obs.] Shak.

3. The son of a brother or a sister, or of a brother-in-law or sister-in-law. Chaucer.

||Neph”i*lim (?), n. pl. [Heb. n&ebreve;phīlīm.] Giants. Gen. vi. 4. Num. xiii. 33.

Neph”o*scope (?), n. [Gr. &?; a cloud + -scope.] (Meteorol.) An instrument for observing the clouds and their velocity.

{ ||Ne*phral”gi*a (?), Ne*phral”gy (?) }, n. [NL. nephralgia, fr. Gr. &?; a kidney + &?; pain: cf. F. néphralgie.] (Med.) Neuralgia of the kidneys; a disease characterized by pain in the region of the kidneys without any structural lesion of the latter. Quain.

Ne*phrid”i*al (?), a. (Zoöl. & Anat.) Of or pertaining to a nephridium.

||Ne*phrid”i*um (?), n.; pl. Nephridia (#). [NL., fr. Gr. &?; of the kidneys.] (Zoöl. & Anat.) A segmental tubule; one of the tubules of the primitive urinogenital organs; a segmental organ. See Illust. under Loeven’s larva.

Neph”rite (?; 277), n. [Cf. F. néphrite. See Nephritis.] (Min.) A hard compact mineral, of a dark green color, formerly worn as a remedy for diseases of the kidneys, whence its name; kidney stone; a kind of jade. See Jade.

{ Ne*phrit”ic (?), Ne*phrit”ic*al (?) }, a. [L. nephriticus, Gr. &?;: cf. F. néphrétique. See Nephritis.] 1. Of or pertaining to the kidneys or urinary organs; renal; as, a nephritic disease.

2. (Med.) (a) Affected with a disease of the kidneys; as, a nephritic patient. (b) Relieving disorders of the kidneys; affecting the kidneys; as, a nephritic medicine.

Nephritic stone (Min.), nephrite; jade. See Nephrite.

Ne*phrit”ic, n. (Med.) A medicine adapted to relieve or cure disease of the kidneys.

Ne*phri”tis (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?; (sc. &?;), fr. &?; a kidney.] (Med.) An inflammation of the kidneys.

neph`ro*lith”ic (?), a. [Gr. &?; a kidney + -lith + ic.] (Med.) Of or pertaining to gravel, or renal calculi. Dunglison.

Ne*phrol”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. &?; a kidney + -logy.] A treatise on, or the science which treats of, the kidneys, and their structure and functions.

Neph”ro*stome (?), n. [Gr. &?; a kidney + mouth.] (Zoöl. & Anat.) The funnel-shaped opening of a nephridium into the body cavity.

Ne*phrot”o*my (?), n. [Gr. &?; a kidney + &?; to cut: cf. F. néphrotomie.] (Surg.) Extraction of stone from the kidney by cutting.

Nep”o*tal (?), a. Of or relating to a nephew.

Ne*pot”ic (?), a. [See nepotism.] Of or pertaining to nepotism.

The nepotic ambition of the ruling pontiff.

Milman.

Nep”o*tism (?; 277), n. [L. nepus, nepotus, nephew: cf. F. népotisme. See Nephew.] Undue attachment to relations; favoritism shown to members of one’s family; bestowal of patronage in consideration of relationship, rather than of merit or of legal claim.

From nepotism Alexander V. was safe; for he was without kindred or relatives. But there was another perhaps more fatal nepotism, which turned the tide of popularity against him — the nepotism of his order.

Milman.

Nep”o*tist (?), n. One who practices nepotism.

Nep”tune (?), n. [L. Neptunus.] 1. (Rom. Myth.) The son of Saturn and Ops, the god of the waters, especially of the sea. He is represented as bearing a trident for a scepter.

2. (Astron.) The remotest known planet of our system, discovered — as a result of the computations of Leverrier, of Paris — by Galle, of Berlin, September 23, 1846. Its mean distance from the sun is about 2,775,000,000 miles, and its period of revolution is about 164,78 years.

Neptune powder, an explosive containing nitroglycerin, — used in blasting. — Neptune’s cup (Zoöl.), a very large, cup-shaped, marine sponge (Thalassema Neptuni).

Nep*tu”ni*an (?), a. [L. Neptunius belonging to Neptune: cf. F. neptunien.] 1. Of or pertaining to the ocean or sea.

2. (Geol.) Formed by water or aqueous solution; as, Neptunian rocks.

Neptunian races (Ethnol.), the Malay and Polynesian races. — Neptunian theory (Geol.), the theory of Werner, which referred the formation of all rocks and strata to the agency of water; — opposed to the Plutonic theory.

{ Nep*tu”ni*an (?), Nep”tu*nist (?) }, n. [Cf. F. neptinien, neptuniste.] (Geol.) One who adopts the Neptunian theory.

Nep*tu`ni*cen”tric (?), a. [Neptune + centric.] (Astron.) As seen from Neptune, or having Neptune as a center; as, Neptunicentric longitude or force.

Nep*tu”ni*um (?), n. [NL.] A new metallic element, of doubtful genuineness and uncertain identification, said to exist in certain minerals, as columbite. Hermann.

Ner (?), adv. & a. Nearer. [Obs.] See Nerre.

Nere (?). [Contr. fr. ne were.] Were not. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Ne”re*id (?), n.; pl. E. Nereids (#), L. Nereides (#). [L. Nereis, -idis, Gr. Nhrei:`s Nhrhi:`s, i:`dos, a daughter of Nereus, a nymph of the sea, fr. Nhrey`s Nereus, an ancient sea god; akin to nhro`s wet, Skr. nāra water, cf. Gr. na`ein to flow.] 1. (Class. Myth.) A sea nymph, one of the daughters of Nereus, who were attendants upon Neptune, and were represented as riding on sea horses, sometimes with the human form entire, and sometimes with the tail of a fish.

2. (Zoöl.) Any species of Nereis. The word is sometimes used for similar annelids of other families.

Ne`re*id”i*an (?), n. (Zoöl.) Any annelid resembling Nereis, or of the family Lycoridæ or allied families.

||Ne”re*is (? or ?), n.; pl. Nereides (#). [L.] 1. (Class. Myth.) A Nereid. See Nereid.

2. (Zoöl.) A genus, including numerous species, of marine chætopod annelids, having a well- formed head, with two pairs of eyes, antennæ, four pairs of tentacles, and a protrusile pharynx, armed with a pair of hooked jaws.

Ne”re*ites (?), n. pl. (Paleon.) Fossil tracks of annelids.

||Ne`re*o*cys”tis (?), n. [NL. See Nereid, and Cyst.] (Bot.) A genus of gigantic seaweeds.

&fist; Nereocystis Lutkeana, of the North Pacific, has a stem many fathoms long, terminating in a great vesicle, which is crowned with a tuft of long leaves. The stem is used by the Alaskans for fishing lines.

Nerf”ling (?), n. (Zoöl.) The id.

||Ne*ri”ta (?), n. [L., a sort of sea mussel, Gr. &?;, &?;.] (Zoöl.) A genus of marine gastropods, mostly natives of warm climates.

Ner”ite (? or ?; 277), n. (Zoöl.) Any mollusk of the genus Nerita.

||Ner`i*ti”na (?), n. (Zoöl.) A genus including numerous species of shells resembling Nerita in form. They mostly inhabit brackish water, and are often delicately tinted.

Ne”ro (?), n. A Roman emperor notorious for debauchery and barbarous cruelty; hence, any profligate and cruel ruler or merciless tyrant. — Ne*ro”ni*an (#), a.

Ner”o*li (?), n. [F. néroli, said to be from the name of an Italian princess.] (Chem.) An essential oil obtained by distillation from the flowers of the orange. It has a strong odor, and is used in perfumery, etc.

Neroli camphor (Chem.), a white crystalline waxy substance, tasteless and odorless, obtained from beroli oil; — called also auradin.

Ner”re (?), adv. & a. [See Near.] Nearer. [Obs.] [Written also neer, ner.] Chaucer.

Never the neer, never the nearer; no nearer. [Obs.]

Nerv”ate (?), a. (Bot.) Nerved.

Ner*va”tion (?), n. The arrangement of nerves and veins, especially those of leaves; neuration.

The outlines of the fronds of ferns, and their nervation, are frail characters if employed alone for the determination of existing genera.

J. D. Hooker.

Nerve (?), n. [OE. nerfe, F. nerf, L. nervus, akin to Gr. &?; sinew, nerve; cf. &?; string, bowstring; perh. akin to E. needle. Cf. Neuralgia.] 1. (Anat.) One of the whitish and elastic bundles of fibers, with the accompanying tissues, which transmit nervous impulses between nerve centers and various parts of the animal body.

&fist; An ordinary nerve is made up of several bundles of nerve fibers, each bundle inclosed in a special sheath (the perineurium) and all bound together in a connective tissue sheath and framework (the epineurium) containing blood vessels and lymphatics.

2. A sinew or a tendon. Pope.

3. Physical force or steadiness; muscular power and control; constitutional vigor.

he led me on to mightiest deeds,
Above the nerve of mortal arm.

Milton.

4. Steadiness and firmness of mind; self- command in personal danger, or under suffering; unshaken courage and endurance; coolness; pluck; resolution.

5. Audacity; assurance. [Slang]

6. (Bot.) One of the principal fibrovascular bundles or ribs of a leaf, especially when these extend straight from the base or the midrib of the leaf.

7. (Zoöl.) One of the nervures, or veins, in the wings of insects.

Nerve cell (Anat.), one of the nucleated cells with which nerve fibers are connected; a ganglion cell. — Nerve fiber (Anat.), one of the fibers of which nerves are made up. These fibers are either medullated or nonmedullated. in both kinds the essential part is the translucent threadlike axis cylinder which is continuous the whole length of the fiber. — Nerve stretching (Med.), the operation of stretching a nerve in order to remedy diseases such as tetanus, which are supposed to be influenced by the condition of the nerve or its connections.

Nerve (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nerved (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nerving.] To give strength or vigor to; to supply with force; as, fear nerved his arm.

Nerved (?), a. 1. Having nerves of a special character; as, weak- nerved.

2. (Bot.) Having nerves, or simple and parallel ribs or veins. Gray.

Nerve”less (?), a. 1. Destitute of nerves.

2. Destitute of strength or of courage; wanting vigor; weak; powerless.

A kingless people for a nerveless state.

Byron.

Awaking, all nerveless, from an ugly dream.

Hawthorne.

Nerve”less*ness, n. The state of being nerveless.

Nerve”-shak`en (?), a. Affected by a tremor, or by a nervous disease; weakened; overcome by some violent influence or sensation; shocked.

Ner`vi*mo”tion (?), n. [Nerve + motion.] (Physiol.) The movement caused in the sensory organs by external agents and transmitted to the muscles by the nerves. Dunglison.

Ner`vi*mo”tor (?), n. [Nerve + motor.] (Physiol.) Any agent capable of causing nervimotion. Dunglison.

Nerv”ine (?; 277) a. [L. nervinus made of sinews: cf.F. nervin. See Nerve.] (Med.) Having the quality of acting upon or affecting the nerves; quieting nervous excitement. — n. A nervine agent.

Ner`vo*mus”cu*lar (?), a. [Nerve + muscular.] (Physiol.) Of or pertaining to both nerves and muscles; of the nature of nerves and muscles; as, nervomuscular energy.

Ner*vose” (?), a. [See Nervous.] (Bot.) Same as Nerved.

Ner*vos”i*ty (?), n. [L. nervositas strength.] Nervousness. [R.]

Nerv”ous (?), a. [L. nervosus sinewy, vigorous: cf. F. nerveux. See Nerve.] 1. possessing nerve; sinewy; strong; vigorous. “Nervous arms.” Pope.

2. Possessing or manifesting vigor of mind; characterized by strength in sentiment or style; forcible; spirited; as, a nervous writer.

3. Of or pertaining to the nerves; seated in the nerves; as, nervous excitement; a nervous fever.

4. Having the nerves weak, diseased, or easily excited; subject to, or suffering from, undue excitement of the nerves; easily agitated or annoyed.

Poor, weak, nervous creatures.

Cheyne.

5. Sensitive; excitable; timid.

Our aristocratic class does not firmly protest against the unfair treatment of Irish Catholics, because it is nervous about the land.

M. Arnold.

Nervous fever (Med.), a low form of fever characterized by great disturbance of the nervous system, as evinced by delirium, or stupor, disordered sensibility, etc. — Nervous system (Anat.), the specialized coördinating apparatus which endows animals with sensation and volition. In vertebrates it is often divided into three systems: the central, brain and spinal cord; the peripheral, cranial and spinal nerves; and the sympathetic. See Brain, Nerve, Spinal cord, under Spinal, and Sympathetic system, under Sympathetic, and Illust. in Appendix. — Nervous temperament, a condition of body characterized by a general predominance of mental manifestations. Mayne.

Nerv”ous*ly, adv. In a nervous manner.

Nerv”ous*ness, n. State or quality of being nervous.

Nerv”ure (?), n. [F. See Nerve.] 1. (Bot.) One of the nerves of leaves.

2. (Zoöl.) One of the chitinous supports, or veins, in the wings of incests.

Nerv”y (?), a. [Compar. Nervier (?); superl. – iest.] Strong; sinewy. “His nervy knees.” Keats.

Nes”cience (?), n. [L. nescientia, fr. nesciens, p. pr. of nescire not to know; ne not + scire to know.] Want of knowledge; ignorance; agnosticism.

God fetched it about for me, in that absence and nescience of mine.

Bp. Hall.

Nese (?), n. Nose. [Obs.] Piers plowman.

Nesh (?), a. [AS. hnesc, hnæsc, akin to Goth. hnasqus.] Soft; tender; delicate. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.]

Ness (?), n. [AS. næs, ns; akin to Icel. nes, Sw. näs, Dan. næs, and E. nose. √ 261. See Nose.] A promontory; a cape; a headland. Hakluyt.

&fist; Ness is frequently used as a suffix in the names of places and promontories; as, Sheerness.

-ness (&?;). [AS. -ness, nyss, nys; akin to OS. -nissi, nussi, D. -nis, OHG. -nissa, -nassī, nussī, G. nis, -niss, Goth. -inasus.] A suffix used to form abstract nouns expressive of quality or state; as, goodness, greatness.

Ness”ler*ize (?), v. t. [From Nessler, the chemist.] (Chem.) To treat or test, as a liquid, with a solution of mercuric iodide in potassium iodide and potassium hydroxide, which is called Nessler’s solution or Nessler’s test, and is used to detect the presence of ammonia.

Nest (?), n. [AS. nest; akin to D. & G. nest, Sw. näste, L. nidus, for nisdus, Skr. nī&?;a resting place, nest; cf. Lith. lizdas, Arm. neiz, Gael. & Ir. nead. Prob. from the particle ni down, Skr. ni + the root of E. sit, and thus orig., a place to sit down in. √ 264. See Nether, and Sit, and cf. Eyas, Nidification, Nye.] 1. The bed or receptacle prepared by a fowl for holding her eggs and for hatching and rearing her young.

The birds of the air have nests.

Matt. viii. 20.

2. Hence: the place in which the eggs of other animals, as insects, turtles, etc., are laid and hatched; a snug place in which young animals are reared. Bentley.

3. A snug, comfortable, or cozy residence or situation; a retreat, or place of habitual resort; hence, those who occupy a nest, frequent a haunt, or are associated in the same pursuit; as, a nest of traitors; a nest of bugs.

A little cottage, like some poor man’s nest.

Spenser.

4. (Geol.) An aggregated mass of any ore or mineral, in an isolated state, within a rock.

5. A collection of boxes, cases, or the like, of graduated size, each put within the one next larger.

6. (Mech.) A compact group of pulleys, gears, springs, etc., working together or collectively.

Nest egg, an egg left in the nest to prevent the hen from forsaking it, and to induce her to lay more in the same place; hence, figuratively, something laid up as the beginning of a fund or collection. Hudibras.

Nest (?), v. i. To build and occupy a nest.

The king of birds nested within his leaves.

Howell.

Nest, v. t. To put into a nest; to form a nest for.

From him who nested himself into the chief power.

South.

Nest”ful (?), n.; pl. Nestfuls (&?;). As much or many as will fill a nest.

Nes”tle (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Nestled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nestling (?).] [AS. nestlian.] 1. To make and occupy a nest; to nest. [Obs.]

The kingfisher . . . nestles in hollow banks.

L’Estrange.

2. To lie close and snug, as a bird in her nest; to cuddle up; to settle, as in a nest; to harbor; to take shelter.

Their purpose was to fortify in some strong place of the wild country, and there nestle till succors came.

Bacon.

3. To move about in one’s place, like a bird when shaping the interior of her nest or a young bird getting close to the parent; as, a child nestles.

Nes”tle, v. t. To house, as in a nest.

2. To cherish, as a bird her young.

Nes”tling (?). n. 1. A young bird which has not abandoned the nest. Piers Plowman.

2. A nest; a receptacle. [Obs.] Bacon.

Nes”tling, a. Newly hatched; being yet in the nest.

Nes”tor (?), n. (Zoöl.) A genus of parrots with gray heads. of New Zeland and papua, allied to the cockatoos. See Kaka.

Nes*to”ri*an (?), n. (Eccl. Hist.) An adherent of Nestorius, patriarch of Constantinople in the fifth century, who has condemned as a heretic for maintaining that the divine and the human natures were not merged into one nature in Christ (who was God in man), and, hence, that it was improper to call Mary the mother of God though she might be called the mother of Christ; also, one of the sect established by the followers of Nestorius in Persia, India, and other Oriental countries, and still in existence. Opposed to Eutychian.

Nes*to”ri*an, a. 1. Of or relating to the Nestorians.

2. Relating to, or resembling, Nestor, the aged warrior and counselor mentioned by Homer; hence, wise; experienced; aged; as, Nestorian caution.

Nes*to”ri*an*ism (?), n. The doctrines of the Nestorian Christians, or of Nestorius.

Net (n&ebreve;t), n. [AS. net; akin to D. net, OS. net, netti, OHG. nezzi, G. netz, Icel. & Dan. net, Sw. nät, Goth. nati; of uncertain origin.] 1. A fabric of twine, thread, or the like, wrought or woven into meshes, and used for catching fish, birds, butterflies, etc.

2. Anything designed or fitted to entrap or catch; a snare; any device for catching and holding.

A man that flattereth his neighbor spreadeth a net for his feet.

Prov. xxix. 5.

In the church’s net there are fishes good or bad.

Jer. Taylor.

3. Anything wrought or woven in meshes; as, a net for the hair; a mosquito net; a tennis net.

4. (Geom.) A figure made up of a large number of straight lines or curves, which are connected at certain points and related to each other by some specified law.

Net, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Netted (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Netting.] 1. To make into a net; to make in the style of network; as, to net silk.

2. To take in a net; to capture by stratagem or wile.

And now I am here, netted and in the toils.

Sir W. Scott.

3. To inclose or cover with a net; as, to net a tree.

Net, v. i. To form network or netting; to knit.

Net, a. [F. See Neat clean.] 1. Without spot; pure; shining. [Obs.]

Her breast all naked as net ivory.

Spenser.

2. Free from extraneous substances; pure; unadulterated; neat; as, net wine, etc. [R.]

3. Not including superfluous, incidental, or foreign matter, as boxes, coverings, wraps, etc.; free from charges, deductions, etc; as, net profit; net income; net weight, etc. [Less properly written nett.]

Net tonnage (Naut.), the tonnage of a vessel after a deduction from the gross tonnage has been made, to allow space for crew, machinery, etc.

Net, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Netted; p. pr. & vb. n. Netting.] To produce or gain as clear profit; as, he netted a thousand dollars by the operation.

Net”fish` (?), n. (Zoöl.) An astrophyton.

Neth”er (n&ebreve;&thlig;”&etilde;r), a. [OE. nethere, neithere, AS. niðera, fr. the adv. niðer downward; akin to neoðan below, beneath, D. neder down, G. nieder, Sw. nedre below, nether, a. & adv., and also to Skr. ni down. √201. Cf. Beneath.] Situated down or below; lying beneath, or in the lower part; having a lower position; belonging to the region below; lower; under; — opposed to upper.

‘Twixt upper, nether, and surrounding fires.

Milton.

This darksome nether world her light
Doth dim with horror and deformity.

Spenser.

All my nether shape thus grew transformed.

Milton.

Neth”er*more` (n&ebreve;&thlig;”&etilde;r*mōr`), a. Lower, nether. [Obs.] Holland.

Neth”er*most` (-mōst`), a. [AS. niðemest. See Nether, and cf. Aftermost.] Lowest; as, the nethermost abyss. Milton.

||Neth”i*nim (?), n. pl. [Heb., pl. of nāthīn given, granted, a slave of the temple, fr. nāthan to give.] (jewish Antiq.) Servants of the priests and Levites in the menial services about the tabernacle and temple.

Net”i*fy (?), v. t. [Net, a. + -fy.] To render neat; to clean; to put in order. [R.] Chapman.

Net”ting (?), n. [From Net, n.] 1. The act or process of making nets or network, or of forming meshes, as for fancywork, fishing nets, etc.

2. A piece of network; any fabric, made of cords, threads, wires, or the like, crossing one another with open spaces between.

3. (Naut.) A network of ropes used for various purposes, as for holding the hammocks when not in use, also for stowing sails, and for hoisting from the gunwale to the rigging to hinder an enemy from boarding. Totten.

Netting needle, a kind of slender shuttle used in netting. See Needle, n., 3.

Net”ting, n. Urine. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

Net”tle (?), n. [AS. netele; akin to D. netel, G. nessel, OHG. nezzïla, nazza, Dan. nelde, nälde, Sw. nässla; cf, Lith. notere.] (Bot.) A plant of the genus Urtica, covered with minute sharp hairs containing a poison that produces a stinging sensation. Urtica gracitis is common in the Northern, and U. chamædryoides in the Southern, United States. the common European species, U. urens and U. dioica, are also found in the Eastern united States. U. pilulifera is the Roman nettle of England.

&fist; The term nettle has been given to many plants related to, or to some way resembling, the true nettle; as: Australian nettle, a stinging tree or shrub of the genus Laportea (as L. gigas and L. moroides); — also called nettle tree. — Bee nettle, Hemp nettle, a species of Galeopsis. See under Hemp. — Blind nettle, Dead nettle, a harmless species of Lamium. — False nettle (Bæhmeria cylindrica), a plant common in the United States, and related to the true nettles. — Hedge nettle, a species of Stachys. See under Hedge. — Horse nettle (Solanum Carolinense). See under Horse. — nettle tree. (a) Same as Hackberry. (b) See Australian nettle (above). — Spurge nettle, a stinging American herb of the Spurge family (Jatropha urens). — Wood nettle, a plant (Laportea Canadensis) which stings severely, and is related to the true nettles.

Nettle cloth, a kind of thick cotton stuff, japanned, and used as a substitute for leather for various purposes. — Nettle rash (Med.), an eruptive disease resembling the effects of whipping with nettles. — Sea nettle (Zoöl.), a medusa.

Net”tle, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nettled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nettling (?).] To fret or sting; to irritate or vex; to cause to experience sensations of displeasure or uneasiness not amounting to violent anger.

The princes were so nettled at the scandal of this affront, that every man took it to himself.

L’Estrange.

Net”tle*bird` (?), n. (Zoöl.) the European whitethroat. [Prov. Eng.]

Net”tler (?), n. One who nettles. [R.] Milton.

Net”tles (?), n. pl. [See Knittle.] (Naut.) (a) The halves of yarns in the unlaid end of a rope twisted for pointing or grafting. (b) Small lines used to sling hammocks under the deck beams. (c) Reef points.

Net”tling (?), n. (Rope Making) (a) A process (resembling splicing) by which two ropes are joined end to end so as to form one rope. (b) The process of tying together the ends of yarns in pairs, to prevent tangling.

Net”tling, p. pr. & a. Stinging; irritating.

Nettling cell (Zoöl.), a lasso cell. See under Lasso.

Net”ty (?), a. Like a net, or network; netted. [R.]

Net”-veined` (?), a. Having veins, or nerves, reticulated or netted; as, a net-veined wing or leaf.

Net”work` (?), n. 1. A fabric of threads, cords, or wires crossing each other at certain intervals, and knotted or secured at the crossings, thus leaving spaces or meshes between them.

2. Any system of lines or channels interlacing or crossing like the fabric of a net; as, a network of veins; a network of railroads.

Neu”rad (?), adv. [Gr. &?; nerve + L. ad to.] (Anat.) Toward the neural side; — opposed to hæmad.

Neu”ral (?), a. [Gr. &?; nerve.] (Anat. & Zoöl.) relating to the nerves or nervous system; taining to, situated in the region of, or on the side with, the neural, or cerebro-spinal, axis; — opposed to hemal. As applied to vertebrates, neural is the same as dorsal; as applied to invertebrates it is usually the same as ventral. Cf. Hemal.

Neural arch (Anat.), the cartilaginous or bony arch on the dorsal side of the centrum of the vertebra in a segment of the spinal skeleton, usually inclosing a segment of the spinal cord.

Neu*ral”gi*a (?), n. [NL., from Gr. &?; nerve + &?; pain. See nerve.] (Med.) A disease, the chief symptom of which is a very acute pain, exacerbating or intermitting, which follows the course of a nervous branch, extends to its ramifications, and seems therefore to be seated in the nerve. It seems to be independent of any structural lesion. Dunglison.

Neu*ral”gic (?), a. Of or pertaining to, or having the character of, neuralgia; as, a neuralgic headache.

Neu*ral”gy (?), n. Neuralgia.

Neu*rap`o*phys”i*al (?), a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to a neurapophysis.

||Neu`ra*poph”y*sis (?), n.; pl. Neurapophyses (#). [NL. See Neuro-, and Apophysis.] (Anat.) (a) One of the two lateral processes or elements which form the neural arch. (b) The dorsal process of the neural arch; neural spine; spinous process.

||Neu*ras`the*ni”a (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; nerve + &?; weakness.] (Med.) A condition of nervous debility supposed to be dependent upon impairment in the functions of the spinal cord.

Neu*ra”tion (?), n. (Biol.) The arrangement or distribution of nerves, as in the leaves of a plant or the wings of an insect; nervation.

Neu*rax”is (?), n. [Neuro- + axis.] (Anat.) See Axis cylinder, under Axis.

Neu`ren*ter”ic (?), a. [Neuro- + enteric.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to both the neuron and the enteron; as, the neurenteric canal, which, in embroys of many vertebrates, connects the medullary tube and the primitive intestine. See Illust. of Ectoderm.

Neu”ri*din (?), n. [From Neurine.] (Physiol. Chem.) a nontoxic base, C_5H_14N_2, found in the putrescent matters of flesh, fish, decaying cheese, etc.

||Neu`ri*lem”ma (?), n. [NL., from Gr. &?; nerve + &?; peel, skin.] (Anat.) (a) The delicate outer sheath of a nerve fiber; the primitive sheath. (b) The perineurium.

Neu*ril”i*ty (?), n. [Gr. &?; nerve.] (Physiol.) The special properties and functions of the nerves; that capacity for transmitting a stimulus which belongs to nerves. G. H. Lewes.

Neu”rine (? or ?), n. [Gr. &?; a nerve.] (Physiol. Chem.) A poisonous organic base (a ptomaine) formed in the decomposition of protagon with boiling baryta water, and in the putrefaction of proteid matter. It was for a long time considered identical with choline, a crystalline body originally obtained from bile. Chemically, however, choline is oxyethyl- trimethyl-ammonium hydroxide, while neurine is vinyl-trimethyl- ammonium hydroxide. [Written also neurin.]

Neu”rism (?), n. [Gr. &?; nerve.] (Biol.) Nerve force. See Vital force, under Vital.

||Neu*ri”tis (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; nerve + -itis.] (Med.) Inflammation of a nerve.

Neu”ro- (&?;). [Gr. ney^ron nerve.] (Anat.) A combining denoting a nerve, of or pertaining to a nerve or the nervous system.

Neu`ro-cen”tral (?), a. [Neuro- + central.] (Anat.) Between the neural arch and the centrum of a vertebra; as, the neurocentral suture. Huxley.

Neu”ro*chord (?), n., Neu`ro*chor”dal (&?;), a. (Zoöl.) See Neurocord.

Neu*roc”i*ty (?), n. (Physiol.) Nerve force.

Neu”ro*cœle (?), n. [Neuro- + Gr. koi^los a hollow.] (Anat.) The central canal and ventricles of the spinal cord and brain; the myelencephalic cavity.

Neu”ro*cord (?), n. [Neuro- + cord.] (Zoöl.) A cordlike organ composed of elastic fibers situated above the ventral nervous cord of annelids, like the earthworm. — Neu`ro*cor”dal (#), a.

Neu`ro-ep`i*der”mal (?), a. [Neuro- + epidermal.] (Anat.) Pertaining to, or giving rise to, the central nervous system and epidermis; as, the neuroepidermal, or epiblastic, layer of the blastoderm.

||Neu*rog”li*a (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. ney^ron ligament + &?; glue.] (Anat.) The delicate connective tissue framework which supports the nervous matter and blood vessels of the brain and spinal cord.

Neu*rog”ra*phy (?), n. [Neuro- + -graphy.] (Anat.) A description of the nerves. Dunglison.

Neu`ro*ker”a*tin (?), n. [Neuro- + keratin.] (Physiol. Chem.) A substance, resembling keratin, present in nerve tissue, as in the sheath of the axis cylinder of medullated nerve fibers. Like keratin it resists the action of most chemical agents, and by decomposition with sulphuric acid yields leucin and tyrosin.

Neu`ro*log”ic*al (?), a. Of or pertaining to neurology.

Neu*rol”o*gist (?), n. One who is versed in neurology; also, one skilled in the treatment of nervous diseases.

Neu*rol”o*gy (?), n. [Neuro- + -logy.] The branch of science which treats of the nervous system.

||Neu*ro”ma (?), n. [NL. See Neuro- , and -oma.] (Med.) A tumor developed on, or connected with, a nerve, esp. one consisting of new-formed nerve fibers.

Neu”ro*mere (?), n. [Neuro- + -mere.] (Anat.) A metameric segment of the cerebro-spinal nervous system.

Neu`ro*mus”cu*lar (?), a. [Neuro- + muscular.] (Physiol.) Nervomuscular.

||Neu”ron (?), n.; pl. Neura (#). [NL., from Gr. ney^ron nerve.] (Anat.) The brain and spinal cord; the cerebro- spinal axis; myelencephalon. B. G. Wilder.

Neu`ro*path”ic (?), a. Of or pertaining to neuropathy; of the nature of, or suffering from, nervous disease.

Neu*rop”a*thy (?), n. [Neuro- + Gr. &?;, &?;, to suffer.] (Med.) An affection of the nervous system or of a nerve.

Neu”ro*pod (?), n. [Neuro- + -pod.] (Zoöl.) A neuropodous animal. G. Rolleston.

||Neu`ro*po”di*um (?), n. [NL., from Gr. &?; a nerve + &?;, dim. of &?;, &?;, the foot.] (Zoöl.) The ventral lobe or branch of a parapodium.

Neu*rop”o*dous (?), a. [Neuro- + -pod + -ous.] (Zoöl.) Having the limbs on, or directed toward, the neural side, as in most invertebrates; — opposed to hæmapodous. G. Rolleston.

Neu”ro*pore (?), n. [Neuro- + pore.] (Anat.) An opening at either end of the embryonic neural canal.

Neu*rop”ter (n&usl;*r&obreve;p”t&etilde;r), n. (Zoöl.) One of the Neuroptera.

||Neu*rop”te*ra (-t&esl;*r&adot;), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. ney^ron nerve + ptero`n a wing, fr. pte`sqai to fly.] (Zoöl.) An order of hexapod insects having two pairs of large, membranous, net-veined wings. The mouth organs are adapted for chewing. They feed upon other insects, and undergo a complete metamorphosis. The ant-lion, hellgamite, and lacewing fly are examples. Formerly, the name was given to a much more extensive group, including the true Neuroptera and the Pseudoneuroptera.

Neu*rop”ter*al (n&usl;r&obreve;p”t&etilde;ral), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Neuroptera.

Neu*rop”ter*an (-an), n. (Zoöl.) A neuropter.

||Neu*rop”te*ris (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; a nerve + &?; a kind of fern.] (Paleon.) An extensive genus of fossil ferns, of which species have been found from the Devonian to the Triassic formation.

Neu*rop”ter*ous (?), a. (Zoöl.) Neuropteral.

Neu`ro*sen*sif”er*ous (?), a. [neuro- + sensiferous.] (Zoöl.) Pertaining to, or forming, both nerves and sense organs.

||Neu*ro”sis (?), n.; pl. Neuroses (#). [NL., fr. Gr. &?; nerve.] (Med.) A functional nervous affection or disease, that is, a disease of the nerves without any appreciable change of nerve structure.

Neu`ro*skel”e*tal (?), a. Of or pertaining to the neuroskeleton. [R.] Owen.

Neu`ro*skel”e*ton (?), n. [Neuro- + skeleton.] (Anat.) The deep-seated parts of the vertebrate skeleton which are in relation with the nervous axis and locomotion. Owen.

Neu”ro*spast (?), n. [L. neurospaston, Gr. &?;, fr. &?; drawn by strings.] A puppet. [R.] Dr. H. More.

Neu*rot”ic (?), a. [Gr. &?; nerve.] 1. Of or pertaining to the nerves; seated in the nerves; nervous; as, a neurotic disease.

2. Useful in disorders of, or affecting, the nerves.

Neu*rot”ic, n. 1. A disease seated in the nerves.

2. (Med.) Any toxic agent whose action is mainly directed to the great nerve centers.

&fist; Neurotic as a class include all those poisons whose mains action is upon the brain and spinal cord. They may be divided three orders: (a) Cerebral neurotics, or those which affect the brain only. (b) Spinal neurotics, or tetanics, those which affect the spinal cord. (c) Cerebro-spinal neurotics, or those which affect both brain and spinal cord.

Neu”ro*tome (?), n. [See Neurotomy.] 1. An instrument for cutting or dissecting nerves.

2. (Anat.) A neuromere.

Neu`ro*tom”ic*al (?), a. Of or pertaining to neurotomy.

Neu*rot”o*mist (?), n. One who skilled in or practices neurotomy.

Neu*rot”o*my (?), n. [Neuro- + Gr. &?; to cut.] 1. The dissection, or anatomy, of the nervous system.

2. (Med.) The division of a nerve, for the relief of neuralgia, or for other purposes. Dunglison.

||Neu”ru*la (?), n. [NL., dim. of Gr. &?; a nerve.] (Zoöl.) An embryo or certain invertebrates in the stage when the primitive band is first developed.

Neu”ter (?), a. [L., fr. ne not + uter whether; akin to E. whether. See No, and Whether, and cf. Neither.] 1. Neither the one thing nor the other; on neither side; impartial; neutral. [Archaic]

In all our undertakings God will be either our friend or our enemy; for Providence never stands neuter.

South.

2. (Gram.) (a) Having a form belonging more especially to words which are not appellations of males or females; expressing or designating that which is of neither sex; as, a neuter noun; a neuter termination; the neuter gender. (b) Intransitive; as, a neuter verb.

3. (Biol.) Having no generative organs, or imperfectly developed ones; sexless. See Neuter, n., 3.

Neu”ter, n. 1. A person who takes no part in a contest; one who is either indifferent to a cause or forbears to interfere; a neutral.

The world’s no neuter; it will wound or save.

Young.

2. (Gram.) (a) A noun of the neuter gender; any one of those words which have the terminations usually found in neuter words. (b) An intransitive verb.

3. (Biol.) An organism, either vegetable or animal, which at its maturity has no generative organs, or but imperfectly developed ones, as a plant without stamens or pistils, as the garden Hydrangea; esp., one of the imperfectly developed females of certain social insects, as of the ant and the common honeybee, which perform the labors of the community, and are called workers.

Neu”tral (?), a. [L. neutralis, fr. neuter. See Neuter.] 1. Not engaged on either side; not taking part with or assisting either of two or more contending parties; neuter; indifferent.

The heart can not possibly remain neutral, but constantly takes part one way or the other.

Shaftesbury.

2. Neither good nor bad; of medium quality; middling; not decided or pronounced.

Some things good, and some things ill, do seem,
And neutral some, in her fantastic eye.

Sir J. Davies.

3. (Biol.) Neuter. See Neuter, a., 3.

4. (Chem.) Having neither acid nor basic properties; unable to turn red litmus blue or blue litmus red; — said of certain salts or other compounds. Contrasted with acid, and alkaline.

Neutral axis, Neutral surface (Mech.), that line or plane, in a beam under transverse pressure, at which the fibers are neither stretched nor compressed, or where the longitudinal stress is zero. See Axis. — Neutral equilibrium (Mech.), the kind of equilibrium of a body so placed that when moved slighty it neither tends to return to its former position not depart more widely from it, as a perfect sphere or cylinder on a horizontal plane. — Neutral salt (Chem.), a salt formed by the complete replacement of the hydrogen in an acid or base; in the former case by a positive or basic, in the latter by a negative or acid, element or radical. — Neutral tint, a bluish gray pigment, used in water colors, made by mixing indigo or other blue some warm color. the shades vary greatly. – - Neutral vowel, the vowel element having an obscure and indefinite quality, such as is commonly taken by the vowel in many unaccented syllables. It is regarded by some as identical with the ŭ in up, and is called also the natural vowel, as unformed by art and effort. See Guide to Pronunciation, § 17.

Neu”tral (?), n. A person or a nation that takes no part in a contest between others; one who is neutral.

The neutral, as far as commerce extends, becomes a party in the war.

R. G. Harper.

Neu”tral*ist, n. A neutral; one who professes or practices neutrality. Milman.

Neu*tral”i*ty (?), n. [Cf. F. neutralité.] 1. The state or quality of being neutral; the condition of being unengaged in contests between others; state of taking no part on either side; indifference.

Men who possess a state of neutrality in times of public danger, desert the interest of their fellow subjects.

Addison.

2. Indifference in quality; a state neither very good nor bad. [Obs.] Donne.

3. (Chem.) The quality or state of being neutral. See Neutral, a., 4.

4. (International Law) The condition of a nation or government which refrains from taking part, directly or indirectly, in a war between other powers.

5. Those who are neutral; a combination of neutral powers or states.

Armed neutrality, the condition of a neutral power, in time of war, which holds itself ready to resist by force any aggression of either belligerent.

Neu`tral*i*za”tion (?), n. [Cf. F. neutralisation.] 1. The act or process of neutralizing, or the state of being neutralized.

2. (Chem.) The act or process by which an acid and a base are combined in such proportions that the resulting compound is neutral. See Neutral, a., 4.

Neu”tral*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Neutralized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Neutralizing (?).] [Cf. F. neutraliser.] 1. To render neutral; to reduce to a state of neutrality.

So here I am neutralized again.

Sir W. Scott.

2. (Chem.) To render inert or imperceptible the peculiar affinities of, as a chemical substance; to destroy the effect of; as, to neutralize an acid with a base.

3. To destroy the peculiar properties or opposite dispositions of; to reduce to a state of indifference or inefficiency; to counteract; as, to neutralize parties in government; to neutralize efforts, opposition, etc.

Counter citations that neutralize each other.

E. Everett.

Neu”tral*i`zer (?), n. One who, or that which, neutralizes; that which destroys, disguises, or renders inert the peculiar properties of a body.

Neu”tral*ly, adv. In a neutral manner; without taking part with either side; indifferently.

||Neu`vaines” (?), n. pl. [F. neuvaine, fr. LL. novena, fr. L. novem. See Noon.] (R.C.Ch.) Prayers offered up for nine successive days.

Ne*va”dite (?), n. (Min.) A granitoid variety of rhyolite, common in Nevada.

||Né`vé” (?), n. [F., fr. &?; nix, nivis, snow.] (Geol.) The upper part of a glacier, above the limit of perpetual snow. See Glacier.

Nev”en (?), v. t. [Icel. nefna. √ 267.] To name; to mention; to utter. [Obs.]

As oft I heard my lord them neven.

Chaucer.

Nev”er (?), adv. [AS. n&?;fre; ne not, no + &?;fre ever.] 1. Not ever; not at any time; at no time, whether past, present, or future. Shak.

Death still draws nearer, never seeming near.

Pope.

2. In no degree; not in the least; not.

Whosoever has a friend to guide him, may carry his eyes in another man’s head, and yet see never the worse.

South.

And he answered him to never a word.

Matt. xxvii. 14.

&fist; Never is much used in composition with present participles to form adjectives, as in never-ceasing, never-dying, never-ending, never-fading, never-failing, etc., retaining its usual signification.

Never a deal, not a bit. [Obs.] Chaucer.

— Never so, as never before; more than at any other time, or in any other circumstances; especially; particularly; — now often expressed or replaced by ever so.

Ask me never so much dower and gift.

Gen. xxxiv. 12.

A fear of battery, . . . though never so well grounded, is no duress.

Blackstone.

Nev”er*more` (?), adv. Never again; at no time hereafter. Testament of Love. Tyndale.

Where springtime of the Hesperides
Begins, but endeth nevermore.

Longfellow.

Nev`er*the*lat”er (?), adv. or conj. Nevertheless. [Obs.]

Nev`er*the*less” (?), adv. or conj. [Never + the (see The by that) + less.] Not the less; notwithstanding; in spite of that; yet.

No chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous; nevertheless, afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness.

Heb. xii. 11.

Syn. — However; at least; yet; still. See However.

Nev”ew (?), n. Nephew. [Obs.] Chaucer.

New (?), a. [Compar. Newer (?); superl. Newest.] [OE. OE. newe, AS. niwe, neowe; akin to D. nieuw, OS. niwi, OHG. niuwi, G. neu, Icel. n&?;r, Dan. & Sw. ny, Goth. niujis, Lith. naujas, Russ. novuii, Ir. nua, nuadh, Gael. nuadh, W. newydd, Armor. nevez, L. novus, Gr. &?;, Skr. nava, and prob. to E. now. √263. See Now, and cf. Announce, Innovate, Neophyte, Novel.] 1. Having existed, or having been made, but a short time; having originated or occured lately; having recently come into existence, or into one’s possession; not early or long in being; of late origin; recent; fresh; modern; — opposed to old, as, a new coat; a new house; a new book; a new fashion. “Your new wife.” Chaucer.

2. Not before seen or known, although existing before; lately manifested; recently discovered; as, a new metal; a new planet; new scenes.

3. Newly beginning or recurring; starting anew; now commencing; different from has been; as, a new year; a new course or direction.

4. As if lately begun or made; having the state or quality of original freshness; also, changed for the better; renovated; unworn; untried; unspent; as, rest and travel made him a new man.

Steadfasty purposing to lead a new life.

Bk. of Com. Prayer.

Men after long emaciating diets, fat, and almost new.

Bacon.

5. Not of ancient extraction, or of a family of ancient descent; not previously known or famous. Addison.

6. Not habituated; not familiar; unaccustomed.

New to the plow, unpracticed in the trace.

Pope.

7. Fresh from anything; newly come.

New from her sickness to that northern air.

Dryden.

New birth. See under Birth. — New Church, or New Jerusalem Church, the church holding the doctrines taught by Emanuel Swedenborg. See Swedenborgian. — New heart (Theol.), a heart or character changed by the power of God, so as to be governed by new and holy motives. — New land, land ckeared and cultivated for the first time. — New light. (Zoöl.) See Crappie. — New moon. (a) The moon in its first quarter, or when it first appears after being invisible. (b) The day when the new moon is first seen; the first day of the lunar month, which was a holy day among the Jews. 2 Kings iv. 23. — New Red Sandstone (Geol.), an old name for the formation immediately above the coal measures or strata, now divided into the Permian and Trias. See Sandstone. — New style. See Style. — New testament. See under Testament. — New world, the land of the Western Hemisphere; — so called because not known to the inhabitants of the Eastern Hemisphere until recent times.

Syn. — Novel; recent; fresh; modern. See Novel.

New (?), adv. Newly; recently. Chaucer.

&fist; New is much used in composition, adverbially, in the sense of newly, recently, to quality other words, as in new-born, new-formed, newfound, new mown.

Of new, anew. [Obs.] Chaucer.

New, v. t. & i. To make new; to renew. [Obs.]

New”born` (?), a. Recently born. Shak.

New”come` (?), a. Recently come.

New”com`er (?), n. One who has lately come.

New”el (?), n. [From New. Cf. Novel.] A novelty; a new thing. [Obs.] Spenser.

New”el (?), n. [OF. nual, F. noyau sone, of fruit, noyau d’escaler newel, fr. L. nucalis like a nut, fr. nux, nucis, nut. Cf Nowel the inner wall of a mold, Nucleus..] (Arch.) The upright post about which the steps of a circular staircase wind; hence, in stairs having straight flights, the principal post at the foot of a staircase, or the secondary ones at the landings. See Hollow newel, under Hollow.

New”fan`gle (?), a. [New + fangle.] Eager for novelties; desirous of changing. [Obs.]

So newfangel be they of their meat.

Chaucer.

New”fan`gle, v. t. To change by introducing novelties. [Obs.]

New”fan`gled (?), a. 1. Newmade; formed with the affectation of novelty. “A newfangled nomenclature.” Sir W. Hamilton.

2. Disposed to change; inclined to novelties; given to new theories or fashions. “Newfangled teachers.” 1 Tim. vi. (heading). “Newfangled men.” Latimer.

New”fan`gled*ness, n. Affectation of, or fondness for, novelty; vain or affected fashion or form.

New”fan`gle*ness (?), n. [OE. newefanglenes. See Fangle.] Newfangledness. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Proud newfangleness in their apparel.

Robynson (More’s Utopia).

New”fan`glist (?), n. One who is eager for novelties or desirous of change. [Obs.] Tooker.

New”fan`gly (?), adv. In a newfangled manner; with eagerness for novelty. [Obs.] Sir T. More.

New`fash”ioned (?), a. Made in a new form, or lately come into fashion.

New”found*land` (?, often &?;), n. 1. An island on the coast of British North America, famed for the fishing grounds in its vicinity.

2. A Newfoundland dog. Tennyson.

Newfoundland dog (Zoöl.), a breed of large dogs, with shaggy hair, which originated in Newfoundland, noted for intelligence, docility, and swimming powers.

New”ing (?), n. [From New, v. t.] Yeast; barm. [Prov. Eng.]

New”ish, a. Somewhat new; nearly new. Bacon.

New”ly, adv. 1. Lately; recently.

He rubbed it o’er with newly gathered mint.

Dryden.

2. Anew; afresh; freshly.

And the refined mind doth newly fashion
Into a fairer form.

Spenser.

New”mar`ket (?), n. [From Newmarket, England.] A long, closely fitting cloak.

New`-mod”el (?), v. t. To remodel.

New”ness (?), n. The quality or state of being new; as, the newness of a system; the newness of a scene; newness of life.

News (n&uamc;z), n [From New; cf. F. nounelles. News is plural in form, but is commonly used with a singular verb.] 1. A report of recent occurrences; information of something that has lately taken place, or of something before unknown; fresh tidings; recent intelligence.

Evil news rides post, while good news baits.

Milton.

2. Something strange or newly happened.

It is no news for the weak and poor to be a prey to the strong and rich.

L’Estrange.

3. A bearer of news; a courier; a newspaper. [Obs.]

There cometh a news thither with his horse.

Pepys.

News”-book` (?), n. A newspaper. [Obs.]

News”boy` (?), n. A boy who distributes or sells newspapers.

News”-let`ter (?), n. A circular letter, written or printed for the purpose of disseminating news. This was the name given to the earliest English newspapers.

News”man (?), n.; pl. Newsmen (&?;). 1. One who brings news. [Obs.] Spenser.

2. A man who distributes or sells newspapers.

News”mon`ger (?), n. One who deals in news; one who is active in hearing and telling news.

News”pa`per (?), n. A sheet of paper printed and distributed, at stated intervals, for conveying intelligence of passing events, advocating opinions, etc.; a public print that circulates news, advertisements, proceedings of legislative bodies, public announcements, etc.

News”room` (?), n. A room where news is collected and disseminated, or periodicals sold; a reading room supplied with newspapers, magazines, etc.

News”-vnd`er (?), n. A seller of newspapers.

News”-writ`er (?), n. One who gathered news for, and wrote, news-letters. Macaulay.

News”y (?), a. Full of news; abounding in information as to current events. [Colloq.]

Newt (?), n. [OE. ewt, evete, AS. efete, with n prefixed, an ewt being understood as a newt. Cf. Eft.] (Zoöl.) Any one of several species of small aquatic salamanders. The common British species are the crested newt (Triton cristatus) and the smooth newt (Lophinus punctatus). In America, Diemictylus viridescens is one of the most abundant species.

New*to”ni*an (?), a. Of or pertaining to Sir Isaac Newton, or his discoveries.

Newtonian philosophy, the philosophy of Sir Isaac Newton; — applied to the doctrine of the universe as expounded in Newton’s “Principia,” to the modern or experimental philosophy (as opposed to the theories of Descartes and others), and, most frequently, to the mathematical theory of universal gravitation. — Newtonian telescope (Astron.), a reflecting telescope, in which rays from the large speculum are received by a plane mirror placed diagonally in the axis, and near the open end of the tube, and thrown at right angles toward one side of the tube, where the image is formed and viewed through the eyeplace. — Newtonian theory of light. See Note under Light.

New*to”ni*an, n. A follower of Newton.

New”-year` (?), a. Of or pertaining to, or suitable for, the commencement of the year; as, New-year gifts or odes.

New” Year’s` Day” (?). the first day of a calendar year; the first day of January. Often colloquially abbreviated to New year’s or new year.

New` Zea”land (?). A group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean.

New Zealand flax. (a) (Bot.) A tall, liliaceous herb (Phormium tenax), having very long, sword-shaped, distichous leaves which furnish a fine, strong fiber very valuable for cordage and the like. (b) The fiber itself. — New Zealand tea (Bot.), a myrtaceous shrub (Leptospermum scoparium) of New Zealand and Australia, the leaves of which are used as a substitute for tea.

Nex”i*ble (?), a. [L. nexibilis, from nectere, nexum, to bind.] That may be knit together. [R.]

Next (n&ebreve;kst), a., superl. of Nigh. [AS. nēhst, niéhst, n&ymacr;hst, superl. of neáh nigh. See Nigh.] 1. Nearest in place; having no similar object intervening. Chaucer.

Her princely guest
Was next her side; in order sat the rest.

Dryden.

Fear followed me so hard, that I fled the next way.

Bunyan.

2. Nearest in time; as, the next day or hour.

3. Adjoining in a series; immediately preceding or following in order.

None could tell whose turn should be the next.

Gay.

4. Nearest in degree, quality, rank, right, or relation; as, the next heir was an infant.

The man is near of kin unto us, one of our next kinsmen.

Ruth ii. 20.

&fist; Next is usually followed by to before an object, but to is sometimes omitted. In such cases next in considered by many grammarians as a preposition.

Next friend (Law), one who represents an infant, a married woman, or any person who can not appear sui juris, in a suit at law.

Next, adv. In the time, place, or order nearest or immediately succeeding; as, this man follows next.

||Nex”us (?), n. [L.] Connection; tie.

Man is doubtless one by some subtile nexus . . . extending from the new-born infant to the superannuated dotard.

De Quincey.

||Nez” Per`cés” (?), pl.; sing. Nez PercÉ (&?;). [F., pierced noses.] (Ethnol.) A tribe of Indians, mostly inhabiting Idaho.

||Ngi”na (?), n. [Native name.] The gorilla.

Ni*ag”a*ra pe”ri*od (?). (Geol.) A subdivision or the American Upper Silurian system, embracing the Medina, Clinton, and Niagara epoch. The rocks of the Niagara epoch, mostly limestones, are extensively distributed, and at Niagara Falls consist of about eighty feet of shale supporting a greater thickness of limestone, which is gradually undermined by the removal of the shale. See Chart of Geology.

Ni”as (?), n. [F. niais. See Eyas.] A young hawk; an eyas; hence, an unsophisticated person. [Obs.]

Nib (n&ibreve;b), n. [A variabt of neb.] 1. A small and pointed thing or part; a point; a prong. “The little nib or fructifying principle.” Sir T. Browne.

2. (Zoöl.) The bill or beak of a bird; the neb.

3. The points of a pen; also, the pointed part of a pen; a short pen adapted for insertion in a holder.

4. One of the handles which project from a scythe snath; also, [Prov. Eng.], the shaft of a wagon.

Nib, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nebbed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nibbing.] To furnish with a nib; to point; to mend the point of; as, to nib a pen.

Nibbed (?), a. Having a nib or point.

Nib”ble (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nibbled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nibbling (?).] [Cf. Nip.] To bite by little at a time; to seize gently with the mouth; to eat slowly or in small bits.

Thy turfy mountains, where live nibbling sheep.

Shak.

Nib”ble, v. t. To bite upon something gently or cautiously; to eat a little of a thing, as by taking small bits cautiously; as, fishes nibble at the bait.

Instead of returning a full answer to my book, he manifestly falls a-nibbling at one single passage.

Tillotson.

Nib”ble, n. A small or cautious bite.

Nib”bler (?), n. One who, or that which, nibbles.

Nib”bling*ly (?), adv. In a nibbling manner; cautiously.

Nib”lick (?), n. A kind of golf stick used to lift the ball out of holes, ruts, etc.

||Ni*ca”gua (?), n. (Zoöl.) The laughing falcon. See under laughing.

Nic`a*ra”gua wood` (?). Brazil wood.

Nic”co*lite (?), n. [from NL. niccolum nickel.] (Min.) A mineral of a copper-red color and metallic luster; an arsenide of nickel; — called also coppernickel, kupfernickel.

Nice (?), a. [Compar. Nicer (?); superl. Nicest.] [OE., foolish, fr. OF. nice ignorant, fool, fr. L. nescius ignorant; ne not + scius knowing, scire to know. perhaps influenced by E. nesh delicate, soft. See No, and Science.] 1. Foolish; silly; simple; ignorant; also, weak; effeminate. [Obs.] Gower.

But say that we ben wise and nothing nice.

Chaucer.

2. Of trifling moment; unimportant; trivial. [Obs.]

The letter was not nice, but full of charge
Of dear import.

Shak.

3. Overscrupulous or exacting; hard to please or satisfy; fastidious in small matters.

Curious not knowing, not exact but nice.

Pope.

And to taste
Think not I shall be nice.

Milton.

4. Delicate; refined; dainty; pure.

Dear love, continue nice and chaste.

Donne.

A nice and subtile happiness.

Milton.

5. Apprehending slight differences or delicate distinctions; distinguishing accurately or minutely; carefully discriminating; as, a nice taste or judgment. “Our author happy in a judge so nice.” Pope. “Nice verbal criticism.” Coleridge.

6. Done or made with careful labor; suited to excite admiration on account of exactness; evidencing great skill; exact; fine; finished; as, nice proportions, nice workmanship, a nice application; exactly or fastidiously discriminated; requiring close discrimination; as, a nice point of law, a nice distinction in philosophy.

The difference is too nice
Where ends the virtue, or begins the vice.

Pope.

7. Pleasing; agreeable; gratifying; delightful; good; as, a nice party; a nice excursion; a nice person; a nice day; a nice sauce, etc. [Loosely & Colloquially]

To make nice of, to be scrupulous about. [Obs.] Shak.

Syn. — Dainty; delicate; exquisite; fine; accurate; exact; correct; precise; particular; scrupulous; punctilious; fastidious; squeamish; finical; effeminate; silly.

Nice”ly adv. In a nice manner.

Ni”cene (?), a. [L. Nicaenus, fr. Nicaea Nice, Gr. &?;.] Of or pertaining to Nice, a town of Asia Minor, or to the ecumenical council held there a. d. 325.

Nicene Creed (&?;), a summary of Christian faith, composed and adopted by the Council of Nice, against Arianism, a. d. 325, altered and confirmed by the Council of Constantinople, a. d. 381, and by subsequent councils.

Nice”ness (?), n. Quality or state of being nice.

Ni”cer*y (?), n. Nicety. [Colloq.] Chapman.

Ni”ce*ty (?), n.; pl. Niceties (#). [OE. niceté foolishness.] 1. The quality or state of being nice (in any of the senses of that word.).

The miller smiled of her nicety.

Chaucer.

2. Delicacy or exactness of perception; minuteness of observation or of discrimination; precision.

3. A delicate expression, act, mode of treatment, distinction, or the like; a minute distinction.

The fineness and niceties of words.

Locke.

To a nicety, with great exactness or accuracy.

Niche (?), n. [F., fr. It. nicchia, prop., a shell-like recess in a wall, fr. nicchio a shellfish, mussel, fr. L. mytilus.] A cavity, hollow, or recess, generally within the thickness of a wall, for a statue, bust, or other erect ornament. hence, any similar position, literal or figurative.

Images defended from the injuries of the weather by niches of stone wherein they are placed.

Evelun.

Niched. (&?;), a. Placed in a niche. “Those niched shapes of noble mold.” Tennyson.

Nick (&?;), n. [AS. nicor a marine monster; akin to D. nikker a water spite, Icel. nykr, ONG. nihhus a crocodile, G. nix a water sprite; cf. Gr. &?; to wash, Skr. nij. Cf. Nix.] (Northern Myth.) An evil spirit of the waters.

Old Nick, the evil one; the devil. [Colloq.]

Nick, n. [Akin to Nock.] 1. A notch cut into something; as: (a) A score for keeping an account; a reckoning. [Obs.] (b) (Print.) A notch cut crosswise in the shank of a type, to assist a compositor in placing it properly in the stick, and in distribution. W. Savage.

(c) A broken or indented place in any edge or surface; nicks in china.

2. A particular point or place considered as marked by a nick; the exact point or critical moment.

To cut it off in the very nick.

Howell.

This nick of time is the critical occasion for the gainger of a point.

L’Estrange.

Nick, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nicked (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nicking.] 1. To make a nick or nicks in; to notch; to keep count of or upon by nicks; as, to nick a stick, tally, etc.

2. To mar; to deface; to make ragged, as by cutting nicks or notches in.

And thence proceed to nicking sashes.

Prior.

The itch of his affection should not then
Have nicked his captainship.

Shak.

3. To suit or fit into, as by a correspondence of nicks; to tally with.

Words nicking and resembling one another are applicable to different significations.

Camden.

4. To hit at, or in, the nick; to touch rightly; to strike at the precise point or time.

The just season of doing things must be nicked, and all accidents improved.

L’Estrange.

5. To make a cross cut or cuts on the under side of (the tail of a horse, in order to make him carry it higher).

Nick, v. t. To nickname; to style. [Obs.]

For Warbeck, as you nick him, came to me.

Ford.

{ Nick”ar nut` (?), Nick”ar tree` (?) }. (Bot.) Same as Nicker nut, Nicker tree.

Nick”el (?), n. [G., fr. Sw. nickel, abbrev. from Sw. kopparnickel copper-nickel, a name given in derision, as it was thought to be a base ore of copper. The origin of the second part of the word is uncertain. Cf. Kupfer-nickel, Copper-nickel.] 1. (Chem.) A bright silver-white metallic element. It is of the iron group, and is hard, malleable, and ductile. It occurs combined with sulphur in millerite, with arsenic in the mineral niccolite, and with arsenic and sulphur in nickel glance. Symbol Ni. Atomic weight 58.6.

&fist; On account of its permanence in air and inertness to oxidation, it is used in the smaller coins, for plating iron, brass, etc., for chemical apparatus, and in certain alloys, as german silver. It is magnetic, and is very frequently accompanied by cobalt, both being found in meteoric iron.

2. A small coin made of or containing nickel; esp., a five-cent piece. [Colloq. U.S.]

Nickel silver, an alloy of nickel, copper, and zinc; — usually called german silver; called also argentan.

Nick*el”ic (?), a. (Chem.) Pertaining to, or containing, nickel; specifically, designating compounds in which, as contrasted with the nickelous compounds, the metal has a higher valence; as nickelic oxide.

Nick`el*if”er*ous (?), a. [Nickel + -ferous.] Containing nickel; as, nickelferous iron.

Nick”el*ine (? or ?), n. 1. (Chem.) An alloy of nickel, a variety of German silver.

2. (Min.) Niccolite.

Nick”el*ous (?), a. (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or designating, those compounds of nickel in which, as contrasted with the nickelic compounds, the metal has a lower valence; as, nickelous oxide. Frankland.

Nick”er (?), n. [From Nick, v. t.] 1. One of the night brawlers of London formerly noted for breaking windows with half- pence. [Cant] Arbuthnot.

2. The cutting lip which projects downward at the edge of a boring bit and cuts a circular groove in the wood to limit the size of the hole that is bored.

Nick”er nut` (?). A rounded seed, rather smaller than a nutmeg, having a hard smooth shell, and a yellowish or bluish color. The seeds grow in the prickly pods of tropical, woody climbers of the genus Cæsalpinia. C. Bonduc has yellowish seeds; C. Bonducella, bluish gray. [Spelt also neckar nut, nickar nut.]

Nick”er tree` (?). (Bot.) The plant producing nicker nuts. [Written also neckar tree and nickar tree.]

Nick”ing, n. [From Nick, v. t.] (Coal Mining) (a) The cutting made by the hewer at the side of the face. (b) pl. Small coal produced in making the nicking.

Nic”kle (?), n. (Zoöl.) The European woodpecker, or yaffle; — called also nicker pecker.

Nick”nack` (?), n. See Knickknack.

Nick”nack`er*y (?), n. See Knickknackery.

Nick”name` (?), n. [OE. ekename surname, hence, a nickname, an ekename being understood as a nekename, influenced also by E. nick, v. See Eke, and Name.] A name given in contempt, derision, or sportive familiarity; a familiar or an opprobrious appellation.

Nick”name`, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nicknamed (#); p. pr. & vb. n. Nicknaming.] To give a nickname to; to call by a nickname.

You nickname virtue; vice you should have spoke.

Shak.

I altogether disclaim what has been nicknamed the doctrine of finality.

Macaulay.

Ni`co*la”i*tan (?), n. [So called from Nicolas of Antioch, mentioned in Acts vi. 5.] (Eccl. Hist.) One of certain corrupt persons in the early church at Ephesus, who are censured in rev. ii. 6, 15.

Ni*co”tian (?), n. [F. nicotiane; — so called from Nicot, who introduced it into France, a. d. 1560.] Tobacco. [R.] B. Jonson.

Ni*co”tian, a. Pertaining to, or derived from, tobacco. [R.] Bp. Hall.

||Ni*co`ti*a”na (?), n. [NL. See Nicotian.] (Bot.) A genus of American and Asiatic solanaceous herbs, with viscid foliage and funnel-shaped blossoms. Several species yield tobacco. See Tobacco.

Ni*co”ti*a*nine (? or ?), n. [F. nicotianine. See Nicotian.] (Chem.) A white waxy substance having a hot, bitter taste, extracted from tobacco leaves and called also tobacco camphor.

Ni*cot”ic (?), a. (Chem.) Nicotinic.

Ni*cot”i*dine (? or ?), n. [Nicotine + pyridine.] (Chem.) A complex, oily, nitrogenous base, isomeric with nicotine, and obtained by the reduction of certain derivatives of the pyridine group.

Nic”o*tine (? or ?), n. [F. nicotine. See Nicotian.] (Chem.) An alkaloid which is the active principle of tobacco. It is a colorless, transparent, oily liquid, having an acrid odor, and an acrid burning taste. It is intensely poisonous. Ure.

Nic`o*tin”ic (?), a. (Chem.) Pertaining to, or derived from, nicotine; nicotic; — used specifically to designate an acid related to pyridine, obtained by the oxidation of nicotine, and called nicotinic acid.

Nic”tate (?), v. i. [L. nictare, nictatum, from nicere to beckon.] To wink; to nictitate.

Nic*ta”tion (?), n. [L. nictatio &?; cf. F. nictation.] the act of winking; nictitation.

Nic”ti*tate (?), v. i. [See Nictate.] To wink; to nictate.

Nictitating membrane (Anat.), a thin membrane, found in many animals at the inner angle, or beneath the lower lid, of the eye, and capable of being drawn across the eyeball; the third eyelid; the haw.

Nic`ti*ta”tion (?), n. The act of winking.

Nid`a*men”tal (?), a. [L. nidamentum materials for a nest, fr. nidus nest. See Nest.] (Zoöl.) Of, pertaining to, or baring, eggs or egg capsules; as, the nidament capsules of certain gastropods; nidamental glands. See Illust. of Dibranchiata.

Ni”da*ry (?), n. [L. nidus a nest.] A collection of nests. [R.] velyn.

Nide (?), n. [L. nidus a nest: cf. F. nid.] A nestful; a brood; as, a nide of pheasants. [Obs.]

Ni”der*ing (?), a. [See Niding.] Infamous; dastardly. [Obs.] Sir W. Scott.

Nidg”er*y (?), n. [See Nidget.] A trifle; a piece of foolery. [Obs.] Skinner.

Nidg”et (?), n. [Written also nigget, nigeot.] [Cf. F. nigaud a booby, fool, OF. niger to play the fool.] A fool; an idiot, a coward. [Obs.] Camden.

Nid”i*fi*cate (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Nidificated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nidificating.] [L. nidificare, nidificatum; nidus nest + -ficare (in comp.) to make. See -fy, and cf. nest.] To make a nest.

Where are the fishes which nidificated in trees?

Lowell.

Nid`i*fi*ca”tion (?), n. [Cf. F. nidification.] The act or process of building a nest.

Ni”ding (nī“d&ibreve;ng), n. [Written also nithing.] [AS. nīðing, fr. nīð wickness, malice, hatred.] A coward; a dastard; — a term of utmost opprobrium. [Obs.]

He is worthy to be called a niding.

Howell.

Ni”dor (?), n. [L.] Scent or savor of meat or food, cooked or cooking. [Obs.] Jer. Taylor.

Ni”dor*ose` (?), a. Nidorous. [R.] Arbuthnot.

Ni”dor*ous (?), a. [L. nidorosus steaming, reeking: cf. F. nidoreux. See Nidor.] Resembling the smell or taste of roast meat, or of corrupt animal matter. [R.]

Nid”u*lant (?), a. [L. nidulans, p. pr.: cf. F. Nidulant.] 1. Nestling, as a bird in its nest.

2. (Bot.) Lying loose in pulp or cotton within a berry or pericarp, as in a nest.

Nid”u*late (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Nidulated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nidulating.] [L. nidulari, fr. nidulus, dim. of nidus a nest.] To make a nest, as a bird. [R.] Cockeram.

Nid`u*la”tion (?), n. The time of remaining in the nest. [R.] Sir T. Browne.

Nid”u*lite (?), n. [L. nidulus a little nest.] (Paleon.) A Silurian fossil, formerly supposed to consist of eggs.

||Ni”dus (?), n.; pl. nidi (#). [L. See Nidi, Nest.] A nest: a repository for the eggs of birds, insects, etc.; a breeding place; esp., the place or substance where parasites or the germs of a disease effect lodgment or are developed.

Niece (?), n. [OE. nece, F. nièce, LL. neptia, for L. neptis a granddaughter, niece, akin to nepos. See Nephew.] 1. A relative, in general; especially, a descendant, whether male or female; a granddaughter or a grandson. [Obs.] B. Jonson. Wyclif. Shak.

2. A daughter of one’s brother or sister, or of one’s brother-in-law or sister-in-law.

Nief (?), n. See Neif, the fist.

Ni*el”list (?), n. One who practices the style of ornamentation called niello.

Ni*el”lo (?), n. [It. niello, LL. nigellum a black of blackish enamel, fr. L. nigellus, dim. of niger black. See Negro, and cf. Anneal.] 1. A metallic alloy of a deep black color.

2. The art, process, or method of decorating metal with incised designs filled with the black alloy.

3. A piece of metal, or any other object, so decorated.

4. An impression on paper taken from an ancient incised decoration or metal plate.

Ni”fle (n&ibreve;f“‘l), n. [OF.] A trifle. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Nig”gard (?), n. [Icel. hnöggr niggardly, stingy + -ard; cf. Sw. njugg, AS. hneáw.] A person meanly close and covetous; one who spends grudgingly; a stingy, parsimonious fellow; a miser. Chaucer.

A penurious niggard of his wealth.

Milton.

Be niggards of advice on no pretense.

Pope.

Nig”gard, a. Like a niggard; meanly covetous or parsimonious; niggardly; miserly; stingy.

Nig”gard, v. t. & i. To act the niggard toward; to be niggardly. [R.] Shak.

Nig”gard*ise (?), n. Niggardliness. [Obs.] Spenser.

Nig”gard*ish, a. Somewhat niggard.

Nig”gard*li*ness (?), n. The quality or state of being niggard; meanness in giving or spending; parsimony; stinginess.

Niggardliness is not good husbandry.

Addison.

Nig”gard*ly, a. Meanly covetous or avaricious in dealing with others; stingy; niggard.

Where the owner of the house will be bountiful, it is not for the steward to be niggardly.

Bp. Hall.

Syn. — Avaricious; covetous; parsimonious; sparing; miserly; penurious; sordid; stingy. See Avaricious.

Nig”gard*ly, adv. In a niggard manner.

Nig”gard*ness, n. Niggardliness. Sir P. Sidney.

Nig”gard*ous (?), a. Niggardly. [Obs.]

Covetous gathering and niggardous keeping.

Sir T. More.

Nig”gard*ship, n. Niggardliness. [Obs.] Sir T. Elyot.

Nig”gard*y (?), n. Niggardliness. [Obs.] Chaucer.

nigged (?), n. [Prov. E. nig to clip money.] (Masonry) Hammer-dressed; — said of building stone.

Nig”ger (?), n. A negro; — in vulgar derision or depreciation.

Nig”gish (?), a. [See Niggard.] Niggardly. [Obs.]

Nig”gle (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Niggled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Niggling (?).] [Dim. of Prov. E. nig to clip money; cf. also Prov. E. nig a small piece.] To trifle with; to deceive; to mock. [Obs.] Beau. & Fl.

Nig”gle, v. t. 1. To trifle or play.

Take heed, daughter,
You niggle not with your conscience and religion.

Massinger.

2. To act or walk mincingly. [Prov. Eng.]

3. To fret and snarl about trifles. [Prov. Eng.]

Nig”gler (?), n. One who niggles.

Nigh (?), a. [Compar. Nigher (?); superl. Nighest, or Next (&?;).] [OE. nigh, neigh, neih, AS. neáh, n&?;h; akin to D. na, adv., OS. nāh, a., OHG. nāh, G. nah, a., nach to, after, Icel. nā (in comp.) nigh, Goth. n&?;hw, n&?;hwa, adv., nigh. Cf. Near, Neighbor, Next.] 1. Not distant or remote in place or time; near.

The loud tumult shows the battle nigh.

Prior.

2. Not remote in degree, kindred, circumstances, etc.; closely allied; intimate. “Nigh kinsmen.” Knolles.

Ye . . . are made nigh by the blood of Christ.

Eph. ii. 13.

Syn. — Near; close; adjacent; contiguous; present; neighboring.

Nigh, adv. [AS. neáh, n&?;h. See Nigh, a.] 1. In a situation near in place or time, or in the course of events; near.

He was sick, nigh unto death.

Phil. ii. 27.

He drew not nigh unheard; the angel bright,
Ere he drew nigh, his radiant visage turned.

Milton.

2. Almost; nearly; as, he was nigh dead.

Nigh, v. t. & i. To draw nigh (to); to approach; to come near. [Obs.] Wyclif (Matt. iii. 2).

Nigh, prep. Near to; not remote or distant from. “was not this nigh shore?” Shak.

Nigh”ly, adv. In a near relation in place, time, degree, etc.; within a little; almost. [Obs.]

A cube and a sphere . . . nighly of the same bigness.

Locke.

Nigh”ness, n. The quality or state of being nigh. [R.] “Nighness of blood.” Holished.

Night (?), n. [OE. night, niht, AS. neaht, niht; akin to D. nacht, OS. & OHG. naht, G. nacht, Icel. n&?;tt, Sw. natt, Dan. nat, Goth. nachts, Lith. naktis, Russ. noche, W. nos, Ir. nochd, L. nox, noctis, Gr. &?;, &?;, Skr. nakta, nakti. √ 265. Cf. Equinox, Nocturnal.] 1. That part of the natural day when the sun is beneath the horizon, or the time from sunset to sunrise; esp., the time between dusk and dawn, when there is no light of the sun, but only moonlight, starlight, or artificial light.

And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night.

Gen. i. 5.

2. Hence: (a) Darkness; obscurity; concealment.

Nature and nature’s laws lay hid in night.

Pope.

(b) Intellectual and moral darkness; ignorance. (c) A state of affliction; adversity; as, a dreary night of sorrow. (d) The period after the close of life; death.

She closed her eyes in everlasting night.

Dryden.

(e) A lifeless or unenlivened period, as when nature seems to sleep. “Sad winter’s night“. Spenser.

&fist; Night is sometimes used, esp. with participles, in the formation of self-explaining compounds; as, night- blooming, night-born, night-warbling, etc.

Night by night, Night after night, nightly; many nights.

So help me God, as I have watched the night,
Ay, night by night, in studying good for England.

Shak.

— Night bird. (Zoöl.) (a) The moor hen (Gallinula chloropus). (b) The Manx shearwater (Puffinus Anglorum). — Night blindness. (Med.) See Hemeralopia. – - Night cart, a cart used to remove the contents of privies by night. — Night churr, (Zoöl.), the nightjar. — Night crow, a bird that cries in the night. — Night dog, a dog that hunts in the night, — used by poachers. — Night fire. (a) Fire burning in the night. (b) Ignis fatuus; Will-o’-the-wisp; Jask-with-a- lantern. — Night flyer (Zoöl.), any creature that flies in the night, as some birds and insects. — night glass, a spyglass constructed to concentrate a large amount of light, so as see objects distinctly at night. Totten. — Night green, iodine green. — Night hag, a witch supposed to wander in the night. — Night hawk (Zoöl.), an American bird (Chordeiles Virginianus), allied to the goatsucker. It hunts the insects on which it feeds toward evening, on the wing, and often, diving down perpendicularly, produces a loud whirring sound, like that of a spinning wheel. Also sometimes applied to the European goatsuckers. It is called also bull bat. — Night heron (Zoöl.), any one of several species of herons of the genus Nycticorax, found in various parts of the world. The best known species is Nycticorax griseus, or N. nycticorax, of Europe, and the American variety (var. nævius). The yellow-crowned night heron (Nycticorax violaceus) inhabits the Southern States. Called also qua-bird, and squawk. — Night house, a public house, or inn, which is open at night. — Night key, a key for unfastening a night latch. — Night latch, a kind of latch for a door, which is operated from the outside by a key. – - Night monkey (Zoöl.), an owl monkey. — night moth (Zoöl.), any one of the noctuids. — Night parrot (Zoöl.), the kakapo. — Night piece, a painting representing some night scene, as a moonlight effect, or the like. — Night rail, a loose robe, or garment, worn either as a nightgown, or over the dress at night, or in sickness. [Obs.] — Night raven (Zoöl.), a bird of ill omen that cries in the night; esp., the bittern. — Night rule. (a) A tumult, or frolic, in the night; — as if a corruption, of night revel. [Obs.] (b) Such conduct as generally rules, or prevails, at night.

What night rule now about this haunted grove?

Shak.

— Night sight. (Med.) See Nyctolopia. — Night snap, a night thief. [Cant] Beau. & Fl.

— Night soil, human excrement; — so called because in cities it is collected by night and carried away for manure. — Night spell, a charm against accidents at night. — Night swallow (Zoöl.), the nightjar. — Night walk, a walk in the evening or night. — Night walker. (a) One who walks in his sleep; a somnambulist; a noctambulist. (b) One who roves about in the night for evil purposes; specifically, a prostitute who walks the streets. — Night walking. (a) Walking in one’s sleep; somnambulism; noctambulism. (b) Walking the streets at night with evil designs. — Night warbler (Zoöl.), the sedge warbler (Acrocephalus phragmitis); — called also night singer. [prov. Eng.] — Night watch. (a) A period in the night, as distinguished by the change of watch. (b) A watch, or guard, to aford protection in the night. — Night watcher, one who watches in the night; especially, one who watches with evil designs. — Night witch. Same as Night hag, above.

Night”-bloom`ing (?), a. Blooming in the night.

Night-blooming cereus. (Bot.) See Note under Cereus.

Night”cap` (?), n. 1. A cap worn in bed to protect the head, or in undress.

2. A potion of spirit drank at bedtime. [Cant] Wright.

Night”dress` (?), n. A nightgown.

Night”ed, a. 1. Darkness; clouded. [R.] Shak.

2. Overtaken by night; belated. Beau. & Fl.

Night”er*tale (?), n. [Cf. Icel. nāttarpel.] period of night; nighttime. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Night”-eyed` (?), a. Capable of seeing at night; sharp-eyed. “Your night-eyed Tiberius.” B. Jonson.

Night”fall` (?), n. The close of the day. Swift.

Night”-far`ing (?), a. Going or traveling in the night. Gay.

Night”gown` (?), n. A loose gown used for undress; also, a gown used for a sleeping garment.

Night”in*gale (?), n. [OE. nihtegale,nightingale, AS. nihtegale; niht night + galan to sing, akin to E. yell; cf. D. nachtegaal, OS. nahtigala, OHG. nahtigala, G. nachtigall, Sw. näktergal, Dan. nattergal. See Night, and Yell.] 1. (Zoöl.) A small, plain, brown and gray European song bird (Luscinia luscinia). It sings at night, and is celebrated for the sweetness of its song.

2. (Zoöl.) A larger species (Lucinia philomela), of Eastern Europe, having similar habits; the thrush nightingale. The name is also applied to other allied species.

Mock nightingale. (Zoöl.) See Blackcap, n., 1 (a).

Night”ish, a. Of or pertaining to night.

Night”jar` (?), n. A goatsucker, esp. the European species. See Illust. of Goatsucker.

Night”less, a. Having no night.

Night”long` (?; 115), a. Lasting all night.

Night”ly, a. Of or pertaining to the night, or to every night; happening or done by night, or every night; as, nightly shades; he kept nightly vigils.

Night”ly, adv. At night; every night.

Night”man (?), n.; pl. Nightmen (&?;). One whose business is emptying privies by night.

Night”mare` (?), n. [Night + mare incubus. See Mare incubus.] 1. A fiend or incubus formerly supposed to cause trouble in sleep.

2. A condition in sleep usually caused by improper eating or by digestive or nervous troubles, and characterized by a sense of extreme uneasiness or discomfort (as of weight on the chest or stomach, impossibility of motion or speech, etc.), or by frightful or oppressive dreams, from which one wakes after extreme anxiety, in a troubled state of mind; incubus. Dunglison.

3. Hence, any overwhelming, oppressive, or stupefying influence.

Night”shade` (?), n. [AS. nichtscadu.] (Bot.) A common name of many species of the genus Solanum, given esp. to the Solanum nigrum, or black nightshade, a low, branching weed with small white flowers and black berries reputed to be poisonous.

Deadly nightshade. Same as Belladonna (a). — Enchanter’s nightshade. See under Enchanter. — Stinking nightshade. See Henbane. – - Three-leaved nightshade. See Trillium.

Night”shirt` (?), n. A kind of nightgown for men.

Night”time` (?), n. The time from dusk to dawn; — opposed to daytime.

Night”ward (?), a. Approaching toward night.

Ni*gran”i*line (? or ?), n. [L. niger black + E. aniline.] (Chem.) The complex, nitrogenous, organic base and dyestuff called also aniline black.

Ni*gres”cent (?), a. [L. nigrescens, p. pr. of nigrescere to grow black, fr. niger black. See Negro.] Growing black; changing to a black color; approaching to blackness. Johnson.

Nig`ri*fi*ca”tion (?), n. [L. nigrificare to blacken; niger black + -ficare (in comp.) to make. See -fy.] The act or process of making black. [R.] Johnson.

Ni”grine (?), n. [L. niger black: cf. F. nigrine.] (Min.) A ferruginous variety of rutile.

Nig”ri*tude (?), n. [L. nigritudo, fr. niger black.] Blackness; the state of being black. Lamb.

Nig”ro*man`cie (?), n. Necromancy. [Obs.]

Nig”ro*man`cien (?), n. A necromancer. [Obs.]

These false enchanters or nigromanciens.

Chaucer.

Ni”gro*sine (? or ?), n. [From L. niger black.] (Chem.) A dark blue dyestuff, of the induline group; — called also azodiphenyl blue.

||Ni”gua (?), n. [Sp.] (Zoöl.) The chigoe.

||Ni”hil (?), n. [L.] Nothing.

||Nihil album [L., white nothing] (Chem.), oxide of zinc. See under Zinc. — ||Nihil debet [L., he owes nothing] (Law), the general issue in certain actions of debt. — ||Nihil dicit [L., he says nothing] (Law), a declinature by the defendant to plead or answer. Tomlins.

Ni”hil*ism (?), n. [L. nihil nothing: cf. F. nihilisme. See Annihilate.] 1. Nothingness; nihility.

2. The doctrine that nothing can be known; scepticism as to all knowledge and all reality.

3. (Politics) The theories and practices of the Nihilists.

Ni”hil*ist, n. [Cf. F. nihiliste. See Nihilism.] 1. One who advocates the doctrine of nihilism; one who believes or teaches that nothing can be known, or asserted to exist.

2. (Politics) A member of a secret association (esp. in Russia), which is devoted to the destruction of the present political, religious, and social institutions.

Ni`hil*is”tic (?), a. Of, pertaining to, or characterized by, nihilism.

Ni*hil”i*ty (?), n. [Cf. F. nihilité. See Nihilism.] Nothingness; a state of being nothing.

Nil (?). [See Nill, v. t.] Will not. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Nil, n. & a. [L., a contr. of nihil.] Nothing; of no account; worthless; — a term often used for canceling, in accounts or bookkeeping. A. J. Ellis.

Nile (?), n. [L. Nilus, Gr. &?;.] The great river of Egypt.

Nile bird. (Zoöl.) (a) The wryneck. [Prov. Eng.] (b) The crocodile bird. — Nile goose (Zoöl.), the Egyptian goose. See Note under Goose, 2.

Nil”gau (?), n. (Zoöl.) see Nylghau.

Nill (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nilled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nilling.] [AS. nilan, nyllan; ne not + willan to will. See No, and Will.] Not to will; to refuse; to reject. [Obs.]

Certes, said he, I nill thine offered grace.

Spenser.

Nill, v. i. To be unwilling; to refuse to act.

The actions of the will are “velle” and “nolle,” to will and nill.

Burton.

Will he, nill he, whether he wills it or not.

Nill, n. [Cf. Ir. & Gael. neul star, light. Cf. Nebula.] 1. Shining sparks thrown off from melted brass.

2. Scales of hot iron from the forge. Knight.

Ni*lom”e*ter (?), n. [Gr. &?;; &?; the Nile + &?; measure: cf. F. nilomètre.] An instrument for measuring the rise of water in the Nile during its periodical flood.

Ni”lo*scope (?), n. [Gr. &?;; &?; the Nile + &?; to observe.] A Nilometer.

Ni*lot”ic (?), a. [L. Niloticus, fr. Nilus th Nile, Gr. &?;: cf. F. nilotique.] Of or pertaining to the river Nile; as, the Nilotic crocodile.

Nilt (?). [Contr. fr. ne wilt.] Wilt not. [Obs.]

Nim (?), v. t. [imp. Nam (?) or Nimmed (&?;); p. p. Nomen (?) or Nome (&?;).] [AS. niman. √ 7. Cf. Nimble.] To take; to steal; to filch. [Obs.]

This canon it in his hand nam.

Chaucer.

Nim*bif”er*ous (?), a. [L. nimbifer; nimbus a cloud + ferre to bear.] Serving to bring clouds or stormy weather.

Nim”ble (?), a. [Compar. Nimbler (?); superl. Nimblest (?).] [OE. nimel, prob. orig., quick at seizing, fr. nimen to take, AS. niman; akin to D. nemen, G. nehmen, OHG. neman, Icel. nema, Goth. nima, and prob. to Gr. &?; to distribute. √ 7. Cf. Nomand, Numb.] Light and quick in motion; moving with ease and celerity; lively; swift.

Through the mid seas the nimble pinnace sails.

Pope.

&fist; Nimble is sometimes used in the formation of self- explaining compounds; as, nimblefooted, nimble pinioned, nimble-winged, etc.

Nimble Will (Bot.), a slender, branching, American grass (Muhlenbergia diffusa), of some repute for grazing purposes in the Mississippi valley.

Syn. — Agile; quick; active; brisk; lively; prompt.

Nim”ble*ness, n. The quality of being nimble; lightness and quickness in motion; agility; swiftness.

Nim”bless (?), n. Nimbleness. [Obs.] Spenser.

Nim”bly, adv. In a nimble manner; with agility; with light, quick motion.

Nim*bose” (?), a. [L. nimbosus, fr. nimbus cloud.] Cloudy; stormy; tempestuous.

Nim”bus (?), n.; pl. L. Nimbi (#), E. Nimbuses (#). [L., a rain storm, a rain cloud, the cloudshaped which enveloped the gods when they appeared on earth.] 1. (Fine Arts) A circle, or disk, or any indication of radiant light around the heads of divinities, saints, and sovereigns, upon medals, pictures, etc.; a halo. See Aureola, and Glory, n., 5.

&fist; “The nimbus is of pagan origin.” “As an atribute of power, the nimbus is often seen attached to the heads of evil spirits.” Fairholl.

2. (Meteor.) A rain cloud; one of the four principal varieties of clouds. See Cloud.

Ni*mi”e*ty (?), n. [L. nimietas, fr. nimius, a., nimis, adv., too much.] State of being in excess. [R.]

There is a nimiety, a too-muchess, in all Germans.

Coleridge.

Nim”i*ous (?), a. [L. nimius.] Excessive; extravagant; inordinate. [Obs.]

Nim”mer (?), n. [From Nim.] A thief. [Obs.]

Nin (?). [Fr. ne in.] Not in. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Nin”com*poop (?), n. [A corruption of non compos.] A fool; a silly or stupid person. [Law]

An old ninnyhammer, a dotard, a nincompoop, is the best language she can afford me.

Addison.

Nine (?), a. [OE. nine, nihen, AS. nigon, nigan; akin to D. & LG. negen, OS. & OFries. nigun, OHG. niun, G. neun, Icel. nīu, sw. nio, Dan. ni, Goth. niun, Ir. & Gael. naoi, W. naw, L. novem, Gr. &?;, Skr. navan; of unknown origin. √307. Cf. Novembeer.] Eight and one more; one less than ten; as, nine miles.

Nine men’s morris. See Morris. – - Nine points circle (Geom.), a circle so related to any given triangle as to pass through the three points in which the perpendiculars from the angles of the triangle upon the opposite sides (or the sides produced) meet the sides. It also passes through the three middle points of the sides of the triangle and through the three middle points of those parts of the perpendiculars that are between their common point of meeting and the angles of the triangle. The circle is hence called the nine points or six points circle.

Nine, n. 1. The number greater than eight by a unit; nine units or objects.

2. A symbol representing nine units, as 9 or ix.

The Nine, the nine Muses.

Nine”-bark` (?), n. (Bot.) A white-flowered rosaceous shrub (Neillia, or Spiræa, opulifolia), common in the Northern United States. The bark separates into many thin layers, whence the name.

Nine”-eyes` (?), n. (Zoöl.) The lamprey.

Nine”fold` (?), a. Nine times repeated.

Nine”holes` (?), n. pl. A game in which nine holes are made in the ground, into which a ball is bowled.

Nine”-kill`er (?), n. [So called because it is believed to kill and impale on thorns nine birds, etc., in succession.] (Zoöl.) The northern butcher bird.

Nine”pence (?), n.; pl. Ninepences (&?;). 1. An old English silver coin, worth nine pence.

2. A New England name for the Spanish real, a coin formerly current in the United States, as valued at twelve and a half cents.

Nine”pins (?), n. pl. A game played with nine pins, or pieces of wood, set on end, at which a wooden ball is bowled to knock them down; bowling.

&fist; In the United States, ten pins are used for this game, which is therefore often called tenpins.

Nine”score` (?), a. Nine times twenty, or one hundred and eighty. — n. The product of nine times twenty; ninescore units or objects.

Nine”teen` (?), a. [AS. nigont&?;ne, nigont&?;ne. See Nine, and Ten.] Nine and ten; eighteen and one more; one less than twenty; as, nineteen months.

Nine”teen`, n. 1. The number greater than eighteen by a unit; the sum of ten and nine; nineteen units or objects.

2. A symbol for nineteen units, as 19 or xix.

Nine”teenth` (?), a. [Cf. AS. nigonteó&?;a.] 1. Following the eighteenth and preceding the twentieth; coming after eighteen others.

2. Constituting or being one of nineteen equal parts into which anything is divided.

Nine”teenth`, n. 1. The quotient of a unit divided by nineteen; one of nineteen equal parts of anything.

2. The next in order after the eighteenth.

3. (Mus.) An interval of two octaves and a fifth.

Nine”ti*eth (?), a. 1. Next in order after the eighty-ninth.

2. Constituting or being one of ninety equal parts.

Nine”ti*eth, n. 1. The quotient of a unit divided by ninety; one of ninety equal parts of anything.

2. The next in order after the eighty- ninth.

Nine”ty (?), a. [See Nine, and cf. Forty.] Nine times ten; eighty-nine and one more; as, ninety men.

Nine”ty, n.; pl. Nineties (&?;). 1. The sum of nine times ten; the number greater by a unit than eighty-nine; ninety units or objects.

2. A symbol representing ninety units, as 90 or xc.

Nin”ny (?), n.; pl. Ninnies (#). [Cf. It. ninno, ninna, a baby, Sp. niño, niña, child, infant, It. ninna, ninna nanna, lullably, prob. fr. ni, na, as used in singing a child to sleep.] A fool; a simpleton. Shak.

Nin”ny*ham`mer (?), n. A simpleton; a silly person. [Colloq.] Addison.

Ninth (?), a. [From Nine; cf. AS. nigoða.] 1. Following the eight and preceding the tenth; coming after eight others.

2. Constituting or being one of nine equal parts into which anything is divided.

Ninth, n. 1. The quotient of one divided by nine; one of nine equal parts of a thing; the next after the eighth.

2. (Mus.) (a) An interval containing an octave and a second. (b) A chord of the dominant seventh with the ninth added.

Ninth”ly, adv. In the ninth place.

Nin”ut (?), n. (Zoöl.) The magpie. [Prov. Eng.]

Ni”o*bate (?), n. [See Niobium.] (Chem.) Same as Columbate.

Ni”o*be (?), n. [L. Nioba, Niobe, Gr. &?;.] (Class, Myth.) The daughter of Tantalus, and wife of Amphion, king of Thebes. Her pride in her children provoked Apollo and Diana, who slew them all. Niobe herself was changed by the gods into stone.

Ni*ob”ic (?), a. (Chem.) Same as Columbic.

Ni”o*bite (?), n. (Min.) Same as Columbite.

Ni*o”bi*um (?), n. [NL., fr. L. & E. Niobe.] (Chem.) A later name of columbium. See Columbium.

Ni*o”po (?), n. A kind of snuff prepared by the natives of Venezuela from the roasted seeds of a leguminous tree (Piptadenia peregrina), thence called niopo tree.

Nip (?), n. [LG. & D. nippen to sip; akin to Dan. nippe, G. nippen.] A sip or small draught; esp., a draught of intoxicating liquor; a dram.

Nip, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nipped (?), less properly Nipt; p. pr. & vb. n. Nipping (?).] [OE. nipen; cf. D. niipen to pinch, also knippen to nip, clip, pinch, snap, knijpen to pinch, LG. knipen, G. kneipen, kneifen, to pinch, cut off, nip, Lith. knebti.] 1. To catch and inclose or compress tightly between two surfaces, or points which are brought together or closed; to pinch; to close in upon.

May this hard earth cleave to the Nadir hell,
Down, down, and close again, and nip me flat,
If I be such a traitress.

Tennyson.

2. To remove by pinching, biting, or cutting with two meeting edges of anything; to clip.

The small shoots . . . must be nipped off.

Mortimer.

3. Hence: To blast, as by frost; to check the growth or vigor of; to destroy.

4. To vex or pain, as by nipping; hence, to taunt.

And sharp remorse his heart did prick and nip.

Spenser.

To nip in the bud, to cut off at the verycommencement of growth; to kill in the incipient stage.

Nip, n. 1. A seizing or closing in upon; a pinching; as, in the northern seas, the nip of masses of ice.

2. A pinch with the nails or teeth.

3. A small cut, or a cutting off the end.

4. A blast; a killing of the ends of plants by frost.

5. A biting sarcasm; a taunt. Latimer.

6. (Naut.) A short turn in a rope.

Nip and tuck, a phrase signifying equality in a contest. [Low, U.S.]

Nip”per (?), n. 1. One who, or that which, nips.

2. A fore tooth of a horse. The nippers are four in number.

3. A satirist. [Obs.] Ascham.

4. A pickpocket; a young or petty thief. [Old Cant]

5. (Zoöl.) (a) The cunner. (b) A European crab (Polybius Henslowii).

Nip”per*kin, n. [See 1st Nip.] A small cup. [Obs.]

Nip”pers (?), n. pl. [From 2d Nip.] 1. Small pinchers for holding, breaking, or cutting.

2. (Mach.) A device with fingers or jaws for seizing an object and holding or conveying it; as, in a printing press, a clasp for catching a sheet and conveying it to the form.

3. (Naut.) A number of rope-yarns wound together, used to secure a cable to the messenger.

Nip”ping (?), a. Biting; pinching; painful; destructive; as, a nipping frost; a nipping wind.

Nip”ping*ly, adv. In a nipping manner.

Nip”pi*tate (?), a. [Cf. 1st Nip.] Peculiary strong and good; — said of ale or liquor. [Old Cant]

‘T will make a cup of wine taste nippitate.

Chapman.

Nip`pi*ta”to (?), n. Strong liquor. [Old Cant] Beau. & Fl.

Nip”ple (?), n. [Formerly neble, a dim. of neb. See Neb, Nib.] 1. (Anat.) The protuberance through which milk is drawn from the breast or mamma; the mammilla; a teat; a pap.

2. The orifice at which any animal liquid, as the oil from an oil bag, is discharged. [R.] Derham.

3. Any small projection or article in which there is an orifice for discharging a fluid, or for other purposes; as, the nipple of a nursing bottle; the nipple of a percussion lock, or that part on which the cap is put and through which the fire passes to the charge.

4. (Mech.) A pipe fitting, consisting of a short piece of pipe, usually provided with a screw thread at each end, for connecting two other fittings.

Solder nipple, a short pipe, usually of brass, one end of which is tapered and adapted for attachment to the end of a lead pipe by soldering.

Nip”ple*wort` (?), n. (Bot.) A yellow-flowered composite herb (Lampsana communis), formerly used as an external application to the nipples of women; — called also dock-cress.

||Nir*va”na (?), n. [Skr. nirvā&nsdot;a.] In the Buddhist system of religion, the final emancipation of the soul from transmigration, and consequently a beatific enfrachisement from the evils of worldly existence, as by annihilation or absorption into the divine. See Buddhism.

Nis (?). [From ne is.] Is not. [Obs.] Chaucer.

||Ni”san (?), n. [Heb. nīsān.] The first month of the Jewish ecclesiastical year, formerly answering nearly to the month of April, now to March, of the Christian calendar. See Abib.

Ni”sey (?), n.; pl. Nyseys. A simpleton. [Obs.]

||Ni”si (?), conj. [L.] Unless; if not.

&fist; In legal proceedings, this word is used to indicate that any order, etc., shall take effect at a given time, unless before that time the order, etc., in modified, or something else is done to prevent its taking effect. Continuance nisi is a conditional continuance of the case till the next term of the court, unless otherwise disposed of in the mean time.

Nisi prius (Law), unless before; — a phrase applied to terms of court, held generally by a single judge, with a jury, for the trial of civil causes. The term originated in a legal fiction. An issue of fact being made up, it is, according to the English practice, appointed by the entry on the record, or written proceedings, to be tried by a jury from the county of which the proceedings are dated, at Westminster, unless before the day appointed (nisi prius) the judges shall have come to the county in question (which they always do) and there try the cause. See In banc, under Banc.

Nis”te (?). [Contr. from ne wiste.] Wist not; knew not. [Obs.] Chaucer.

||Ni”sus (?), n. [L., fr. niti, p. p. nisus, to strive.] A striving; an effort; a conatus.

A nisus or energizing towards a presented object.

Hickok.

Nit (?), n. [AS. hnitu; akin to D. neet, G. niss, OHG. niz; cf. Gr. &?;, &?;, Icel. gnit, Sw. gnet, Dan. gnid, Russ. & Pol. gnida, Bohem. hnida, W. nedd.] (Zoöl.) The egg of a louse or other small insect.

Nit grass (Bot.), a pretty annual European grass (Gastridium lendigerum), with small spikelets somewhat resembling a nit. It is also found in California and Chili.

Ni”ten*cy (?), n. [L. nitens, p. pr. of nitere to shine.] Brightness; luster. [R.]

Ni”ten*cy, n. [From L. nitens, p. pr. of niti to strive.] Endeavor; effort; tendency. [R.] Boyle.

{ Ni”ter, Ni”tre } (?), n. [F. nitre, L. nitrum native soda, natron, Gr. &?;; cf. Ar. nitūn, natrūn natron. Cf. Natron.] 1. (Chem.) A white crystalline semitransparent salt; potassium nitrate; saltpeter. See Saltpeter.

2. (Chem.) Native sodium carbonate; natron. [Obs.]

For though thou wash thee with niter, and take thee much soap, yet thine iniquity is marked before me.

Jer. ii. 22.

Cubic niter, a deliquescent salt, sodium nitrate, found as a native incrustation, like niter, in Peru and Chili, whence it is known also as Chili saltpeter. — Niter bush (Bot.), a genus (Nitraria) of thorny shrubs bearing edible berries, and growing in the saline plains of Asia and Northern Africa.

Nith”ing (?), n. [Obs.] See Niding.

Nit”id (?), a. [L. nitidus, fr. nitere. See 3d Neat.] 1. Bright; lustrous; shining. [R.] Boyle.

2. Gay; spruce; fine; — said of persons. [R.] T. Reeve.

Ni`tra*nil”ic (?), a. [Nitro- + chloranil + -ic.] (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or designating, a complex organic acid produced as a white crystalline substance by the action of nitrous acid on hydroquinone.

Ni*tran”i*line (? or ?), n. [Nitro- + aniline.] (Chem.) Any one of a series of nitro derivatives of aniline. In general they are yellow crystalline substances.

Ni”trate (?), n. [Cf. F. nitrate.] (Chem.) A salt of nitric acid.

Nitrate of silver, a white crystalline salt (AgNO_3), used in photography and as a cauterizing agent; – - called also lunar caustic.

Ni”tra*ted (?), a. 1. (Chem.) Combined, or impregnated, with nitric acid, or some of its compounds.

2. (Photog.) Prepared with nitrate of silver.

Ni”tra*tine (?), n. (Min.) A mineral occurring in transparent crystals, usually of a white, sometimes of a reddish gray, or lemon-yellow, color; native sodium nitrate. It is used in making nitric acid and for manure. Called also soda niter.

Ni”tre (?), n. (Chem.) See Niter.

Ni”tri*a*ry (?), n. [See Niter.] An artificial bed of animal matter for the manufacture of niter by nitrification. See Nitrification, 2.

Ni”tric (?), a. [Cf. F. nitrique. See Niter.] (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or containing, nitrogen; specifically, designating any one of those compounds in which, as contrasted with nitrous compounds, the element has a higher valence; as, nitric oxide; nitric acid.

Nitric acid, a colorless or yellowish liquid obtained by distilling a nitrate with sulphuric acid. It is powerfully corrosive, being a strong acid, and in decomposition a strong oxidizer. — Nitric anhydride, a white crystalline oxide of nitrogen (N_2O_5), called nitric pentoxide, and regarded as the anhydride of nitric acid. — Nitric oxide, a colorless poisous gas (NO) obtained by treating nitric acid with copper. On contact with the air or with oxygen, it becomes reddish brown from the formation of nitric dioxide or peroxide.

Ni”tride (? or ?), n. [fromNitrogen.] (Chem.) A binary compound of nitrogen with a more metallic element or radical; as, boric nitride.

Ni*trif”er*ous (?), a. [Niter + -ferous.] Bearing niter; yielding, or containing, niter.

Ni`tri*fi*ca”tion (?), n. [Cf. F. nitrification. see Nitrify.] 1. (Chem.) (a) The act, process, or result of combining with nitrogen or some of its compounds. (b) The act or process of oxidizing nitrogen or its compounds so as to form nitrous or nitric acid.

2. A process of oxidation, in which nitrogenous vegetable and animal matter in the presence of air, moisture, and some basic substances, as lime or alkali carbonate, is converted into nitrates.

&fist; The process is going on at all times in porous soils and in water contaminated with nitrogenous matter, and is supposed to be due to the presence of an organized ferment or ferments, called nitrification ferments. In former times the process was extensively made use of in the production of saltpeter.

Ni”tri*fi`er (?), n. (Chem.) An agent employed in nitrification.

Ni”tri*fy (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nitrified (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nitrifying (?).] [Niter + -fy: cf. F. nitrifer. See Niter.] (Chem.) To combine or impregnate with nitrogen; to convert, by oxidation, into nitrous or nitric acid; to subject to, or produce by, nitrification.

Ni”trile (? or ?), n. [See Nitro- .] (Chem.) Any one of a series of cyanogen compounds; particularly, one of those cyanides of alcohol radicals which, by boiling with acids or alkalies, produce a carboxyl acid, with the elimination of the nitrogen as ammonia.

&fist; The nitriles are named with reference to the acids produced by their decomposition, thus, hydrocyanic acid is formic nitrile, and methyl cyanide is acetic nitrile.

Ni”trite (?), n. [Cf. F. nitrite. See Niter.] (Chem.) A salt of nitrous acid.

Amyl nitrite, a yellow oily volatile liquid, used in medicine as a depressant and a vaso-dilator. Its inhalation produces an instantaneous flushing of the face.

Ni”tro- (&?;). 1. A combining form or an adjective denoting the presence of niter.

2. (Chem.) A combining form (used also adjectively) designating certain compounds of nitrogen or of its acids, as nitrohydrochloric, nitrocalcite; also, designating the group or radical NO_2, or its compounds, as nitrobenzene.

Nitro group, the radical NO_2; — called also nitroxyl.

Ni`tro*ben”zene (? or ?), n. [Nitro- + benzene.] (Chem.) A yellow aromatic liquid (C_6H_5.NO_2), produced by the action of nitric acid on benzene, and called from its odor imitation oil of bitter almonds, or essence of mirbane. It is used in perfumery, and is manufactured in large quantities in the preparation of aniline. Fornerly called also nitrobenzol.

{ Ni`tro*ben”zol, Ni`tro*ben”zole, (&?; or &?;) }, n. See Nitrobenzene.

Ni`tro*cal”cite (?), n. [Nitro- + calcite.] (Min.) Nitrate of calcium, a substance having a grayish white color, occuring in efflorescences on old walls, and in limestone caves, especially where there exists decaying animal matter.

Ni`tro*car”bol (?), n. [Nitro- + carbon + L. oleum oil.] (Chem.) See Nitromethane.

Ni`tro*cel”lu*lose` (?), n. [Nitro- + cellulose.] (Chem.) See Gun cotton, under Gun.

Ni`tro-chlo”ro*form (?), n. [Nitro- + chloroform.] (Chem.) Same as Chlorpicrin.

Ni”tro*form (?), n. [Nitro- + formyl.] (Chem.) A nitro derivative of methane, analogous to chloroform, obtained as a colorless oily or crystalline substance, CH.(NO_2)3, quite explosive, and having well-defined acid properties.

Ni`tro*gel”a*tin (?), n. [Nitro- + gelatin.] An explosive consisting of gun cotton and camphor dissolved in nitroglycerin. [Written also nitrogelatine.]

Ni`tro*gen (?), n. [L. nitrum natron + -gen: cf. F. nitrogène. See Niter.] (Chem.) A colorless nonmetallic element, tasteless and odorless, comprising four fifths of the atmosphere by volume. It is chemically very inert in the free state, and as such is incapable of supporting life (hence the name azote still used by French chemists); but it forms many important compounds, as ammonia, nitric acid, the cyanides, etc, and is a constituent of all organized living tissues, animal or vegetable. Symbol N. Atomic weight 14. It was formerly regarded as a permanent noncondensible gas, but was liquefied in 1877 by Cailletet of Paris, and Pictet of Geneva.

Ni”tro*gen*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nitrogenized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nitrogenizing.] (Chem.) To combine, or impregnate, with nitrogen or its compounds.

Ni*trog”e*nous (?), a. (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or resembling, nitrogen; as, a nitrogenous principle; nitrogenous compounds.

Nitrogenous foods. See 2d Note under Food, n., 1.

Ni`tro*glyc”er*in (?), n. [Nitro- + glycerinn.] (Chem.) A liquid appearing like a heavy oil, colorless or yellowish, and consisting of a mixture of several glycerin salts of nitric acid, and hence more properly called glycerin nitrate. It is made by the action of nitric acid on glycerin in the presence of sulphuric acid. It is extremely unstable and terribly explosive. A very dilute solution is used in medicine as a neurotic under the name of glonion. [Written also nitroglycerine.]

&fist; A great number of explosive compounds have been produced by mixing nitroglycerin with different substances; as, dynamite, or giant powder, nitroglycerin mixed with siliceous earth; lithofracteur, nitroglycerin with gunpowder, or with sawdust and nitrate of sodium or barium; Colonia powder, gunpowder with nitroglycerin; dualin, nitroglycerin with sawdust, or with sawdust and nitrate of potassium and some other substances; lignose, wood fiber and nitroglycerin.

Ni`tro*hy`dro*chlo”ric (?), a. [Nitro- + hydrochloric.] (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or containing, nitric and hydrochloric acids.

Nitrohydrochloric acid, a mixture of nitric and hydrochloric acids, usually in the proportion of one part of the former to three of the latter, and remarkable for its solvent action on gold and platinum; — called also nitromuriatic acid, and aqua regia.

Ni”trol (?), n. (Chem.) Any one of a series of hydrocarbons containing the nitro and the nitroso or isonitroso group united to the same carbon atom.

Ni*tro”le*um (?), n. [NL., fr. L. nitrum natron + oleum oil.] (Chem.) Nitroglycerin.

Ni*trol”ic (?), a. (Chem.) Of, derived from, or designating, a nitrol; as, a nitrolic acid.

Ni`tro*mag”ne*site (?), n. [Nitro- + magnesite.] (Chem.) Nitrate of magnesium, a saline efflorescence closely resembling nitrate of calcium.

Ni*trom”e*ter (?), n. [Nitro- + -meter: cf. F. nitromètre.] (Chem.) An apparatus for determining the amount of nitrogen or some of its compounds in any substance subjected to analysis; an azotometer.

Ni`tro*meth”ane (?), n. [Nitro- + methane.] (Chem.) A nitro derivative of methane obtained as a mobile liquid; — called also nitrocarbol.

Ni`tro*mu`ri*at”ic (?), a. [Cf. F. nitromuriatique. See Nitro-, and Muriatic.] (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or composed of, nitric acid and muriatic acid; nitrohydrochloric. See Nitrohydrochloric.

Ni`tro*ph”nol (?), n. [Nitro- + phenol.] (Chem.) Any one of a series of nitro derivatives of phenol. They are yellow oily or crystalline substances and have well-defined acid properties, as picric acid.

Ni`tro*prus”sic (? or &?;), a. [Nitro- + prussic.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, derived from, or designating, a complex acid called nitroprussic acid, obtained indirectly by the action of nitric acid on potassium ferrocyanide (yellow prussiate), as a red crystalline unstable substance. It forms salts called nitroprussides, which give a rich purple color with alkaline sulphides.

Ni`tro*prus”side (?), n. See Nitroprussic.

Ni`tro*qui”nol (?), n. [Nitro- + quine + -ol.] (Chem.) A hypothetical nitro derivative of quinol or hydroquinone, not known in the free state, but forming a well defined series of derivatives.

Ni`tro*sac”cha*rin (?), n. [Nitro- + saccharin.] (Chem.) An explosive nitro derivative of certain sugars, analogous to nitroglycerin, gun cotton, etc.

Ni`tro*sal`i*cyl”ic (?), a. [Nitro- + salicylic.] (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or designating, a nitro derivative of salicylic acid, called also anilic acid.

Ni*trose” (?), a. (Chem.) See Nitrous.

Ni*tro”so- (&?; or &?;). (Chem.) A prefix (also used adjectively) designating the group or radical NO, called the nitroso group, or its compounds.

Ni*tro”syl (?), n. [Nitroso- + -yl.] (Chem.) the radical NO, called also the nitroso group. The term is sometimes loosely used to designate certain nitro compounds; as, nitrosyl sulphuric acid. Used also adjectively.

Ni`tro*syl”ic (?), a. (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or containing, nitrosyl; as, nitrosylic acid.

Ni”trous (?), a. [L. nitrosus full of natron: cf. F. nitreux. See Niter.] 1. Of, pertaining to, or containing, niter; of the quality of niter, or resembling it.

2. (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or designating, any one of those compounds in which nitrogen has a relatively lower valence as contrasted with nitric compounds.

Nitrous acid (Chem.), a hypothetical acid of nitrogen HNO_2, not known in the free state, but forming a well known series of salts, viz., the nitrites. — Nitrous oxide. See Laughing gas.

Ni*trox”yl (?), n. [Nitro- + oxygen + -yl.] (Chem.) The group NO_2, usually called the nitro group.

||Ni”trum (?), n. [L., natron. See Niter.] (Old Chem.) Niter.

||Nitrum flammans [L., flaming niter] (Old Chem.), ammonium nitrate; — probably so called because it deflagerates when suddenly heated.

Ni”try (?), a. (Chem.) Nitrous. [Obs.]

Ni”tryl (?), n. [Nitro- + - yl.] (Chem.) A name sometimes given to the nitro group or radical.

Nit”ter (?), n. [From Nit.] (Zoöl.) The horse louse; an insect that deposits nits on horses.

Nit”ti*ly (?), adv. Lousily. [Obs.] Hayward.

Nit”tings (?), n. pl. [Prob. from Nit.] (Mining) The refuse of good ore. Raymond.

Nit”ty (?), a. Full of nits. B. Jonson.

Nit”ty, a. [L. nitidus. See Nitid.] Shining; elegant; spruce. [Obs.] “O sweet, nitty youth.” Marston.

Ni”val (?), a. [L. nivalis, fr. nix, nivis, snow.] Abounding with snow; snowy. [Obs.] Johnson.

Niv”e*ous (?), a. [L. niveus, fr. nix, nivis, snow.] Snowy; resembling snow; partaking of the qualities of snow. Sir T. Browne.

||Ni`vose” (?), n. [F., fr. L. nix. nivis, snow.] The fourth month of the French republican calendar [1792-1806]. It commenced December 21, and ended January 19. See VendÉmiaire.

Nix (?), n.; fem. Nixe (&?;). [G. Cf. 1st Nick.] (Teut. Myth.) One of a class of water spirits, commonly described as of a mischievous disposition.

The treacherous nixes who entice men to a watery death.

Tylor.

Nix”ie (?), n. See Nix.

||Ni*zam” (?), n. [Hind. & Ar. nizām order, a ruler, fr. Ar. nazama arrange, govern.] The title of the native sovereigns of Hyderabad, in India, since 1719.

No (?), a. [OE. no, non, the same word as E. none; cf. E. a, an. See None.] Not any; not one; none.

Let there be no strife . . . between me and thee.

Gen. xiii. 8.

That goodness is no name, and happiness no dream.

Byron.

&fist; In Old England before a vowel the form non or noon was used. “No man.” “Noon apothercary.” Chaucer.

No, adv. [OE. no, na, AS. nā; ne not + ā ever. AS. ne is akin to OHG. ni, Goth. ni, Russ. ne, Ir., Gael. & W. ni, L. ne, Gr. nh (in comp.), Skr. na, and also to E. prefix un-. √ 193. See Aye, and cf. Nay, Not, Nice, Nefarious.] Nay; not; not at all; not in any respect or degree; — a word expressing negation, denial, or refusal. Before or after another negative, no is emphatic.

We do no otherwise than we are willed.

Shak.

I am perplx’d and doubtful whether or no
I dare accept this your congratulation.

Coleridge.

There is none righteous, no, not one.

Rom. iii. 10.

No! Nay, Heaven forbid.

Coleridge.

No (?), n.; pl. Noes (&?;). 1. A refusal by use of the wordd no; a denial.

2. A negative vote; one who votes in the negative; as, to call for the ayes and noes; the noes have it.

No*a”chi*an (?), a. Of or pertaining to the patriarch Noah, or to his time.

No”ah (?), n. [Heb. Nōakh rest.] A patriarch of Biblical history, in the time of the Deluge.

Noah’s ark. (a) (Zoöl.) A marine bivalve shell (Arca Noæ), which somewhat resembles an ark, or ship, in form. (b) A child’s toy, consisting of an ark-shaped box containing many different wooden animals.

Nob (?), n. [Cf. Knob.] The head. [Low]

Nob, n. [Abbrev. fr. noble.] A person in a superior position in life; a nobleman. [Slang]

Nob”bi*ly (?), adv. In a nobby manner. [Slang]

Nob”bler (?), n. A dram of spirits. [Australia]

Nob”by (?), a. [From 2d Nob.] Stylish; modish; elegant; showy; aristocratic; fashionable. [Slang]

No*bil”ia*ry (?), a. [F. nobiliare. See Noble.] Of or pertaining to the nobility. Fitzed. Hall.

No*bil”ia*ry, n. A history of noble families.

No*bil”i*fy (?), v. t. [L. nobilis noble + -fy.] To make noble; to nobiliate. [Obs.]

No*bil”i*tate (?), v. t. [L. nobilitatus, p. p. of nobilitare.] To make noble; to ennoble; to exalt. [Obs.]

No*bil`i*ta”tion (?), n. [Cf. OF. nobilitation.] The act of making noble. [Obs.] Dr. H. More.

No*bil”i*ty (?), n. [L. nobilitas: cf. OF. nobilité. See Noble.] 1. The quality or state of being noble; superiority of mind or of character; commanding excellence; eminence.

Though she hated Amphialus, yet the nobility of her courage prevailed over it.

Sir P. Sidney.

They thought it great their sovereign to control,
And named their pride nobility of soul.

Dryden.

2. The state of being of high rank or noble birth; patrician dignity; antiquity of family; distinction by rank, station, or title, whether inherited or conferred.

I fell on the same argument of preferring virtue to nobility of blood and titles, in the story of Sigismunda.

Dryden.

3. Those who are noble; the collective body of nobles or titled persons in a state; the aristocratic and patrician class; the peerage; as, the English nobility.

No”ble (?), a. [Compar. Nobler (?); superl. Noblest (?).] [F. noble, fr. L. nobilis that can be or is known, well known, famous, highborn, noble, fr. noscere to know. See know.] 1. Possessing eminence, elevation, dignity, etc.; above whatever is low, mean, degrading, or dishonorable; magnanimous; as, a noble nature or action; a noble heart.

Statues, with winding ivy crowned, belong
To nobler poets for a nobler song.

Dryden.

2. Grand; stately; magnificent; splendid; as, a noble edifice.

3. Of exalted rank; of or pertaining to the nobility; distinguished from the masses by birth, station, or title; highborn; as, noble blood; a noble personage.

&fist; Noble is used in the formation of self-explaining compounds; as, noble-born, noblehearted, noble minded.

Noble metals (Chem.), silver, gold, and platinum; — so called from their freedom from oxidation and permanence in air. Copper, mercury, aluminium, palladium, rhodium, iridium, and osmium are sometimes included.

Syn. — Honorable; worthy; dignified; elevated; exalted; superior; sublime; great; eminent; illustrious; renowned; stately; splendid; magnificent; grand; magnanimous; generous; liberal; free.

No”ble, n. 1. A person of rank above a commoner; a nobleman; a peer.

2. An English money of account, and, formerly, a gold coin, of the value of 6 s. 8 d. sterling, or about $1.61.

3. (Zoöl.) A European fish; the lyrie.

No”ble, v. t. To make noble; to ennoble. [Obs.]

Thou nobledest so far forth our nature.

Chaucer.

No”ble*man (?), n.; pl. Noblemen (&?;). One of the nobility; a noble; a peer; one who enjoys rank above a commoner, either by virtue of birth, by office, or by patent.

No”ble-mind`ed (?), a. Having a noble mind; honorable; magnanimous. — No”ble- mind`ed*ness, n.

No”ble*ness, n. The quality or state of being noble; greatness; dignity; magnanimity; elevation of mind, character, or station; nobility; grandeur; stateliness.

His purposes are full honesty, nobleness, and integrity.

Jer. Taylor.

{ No*bless”, No*blesse” } (?; 277), n. [F. noblesse. See Noble.] 1. Dignity; greatness; noble birth or condition. [Obs.] Chaucer. Spenser. B. Jonson.

2. The nobility; persons of noble rank collectively, including males and females. Dryden.

No”ble*wom`an (?), n.; pl. Noblewomen (&?;). A female of noble rank; a peeress.

No”bley (?), n. [OF. nobleie.] 1. The body of nobles; the nobility. [Obs.] Chaucer.

2. Noble birth; nobility; dignity. [Obs.] Chaucer.

No”bly (?), adv. 1. Of noble extraction; as, nobly born or descended.

2. In a noble manner; with greatness of soul; heroically; with magnanimity; as, a deed nobly done.

3. Splendidly; magnificently.

Syn. — Illustriously; honorably; magnanimously; heroically; worthly; eminently; grandly.

No”bod*y (?), n.; pl. Nobodies (#). [No, a. + body.] 1. No person; no one; not anybody.

2. Hence: A person of no influence or importance; an insignificant or contemptible person. [Colloq.]

No”cake (?), n. [Corrupted fr. Indian nookhik meal. Palfrey.] Indian corn parched, and beaten to powder, — used for food by the Northern American Indians.

No”cent (?), a. [L. nocens, p. pr. of nocere to hurt. See Nuisance, Noxious.] 1. Doing hurt, or having a tendency to hurt; hurtful; mischievous; noxious; as, nocent qualities. I. Watts.

2. Guilty; — the opposite of innocent. [Obs.] Foxe.

No”cent, n. A criminal. [Obs.] Sir T. Browne.

No”cent*ly, adv. Hurtfully; injuriously. [R.]

No”cive (?), a. [L. nocivus, fr. nocere to hurt.] Hurtful; injurious. [R.] Hooker.

Nock (?), n. [See Notch.] 1. A notch.

He took his arrow by the nock.

Chapman.

2. (Naut.) The upper fore corner of a boom sail or of a trysail.

Nock, v. t. To notch; to fit to the string, as an arrow; to string, as a bow. Chapman.

Noc*tam`bu*la”tion (?), n. [L. nox, noctis, night + ambulare to walk: cf. F. noctambulation.] Somnambulism; walking in sleep. Quain.

Noc*tam”bu*lism (?), n. Somnambulism.

Noc*tam”bu*list (?), n. A somnambulist.

Noc*tam”bu*lo (?), n. A noctambulist. [Obs.]

Noc*tid”i*al (?), a. [L. nox, noctos, night + dies day.] Comprising a night and a day; a noctidial day. [R.] Holder.

Noc*tif”er*ous (?), a. [L. noctifer; nox, noctis + ferre to bring.] Bringing night. [Obs.] Johnson.

Noc*til”i*o*nid (?), n. [Etymol. uncertain.] (Zoöl.) A South American bat of the genus Noctilio, having cheek pouches and large incisor teeth.

||Noc`ti*lu”ca (?), n.; pl. NoctilucÆ (#). [L. noctiluca something that shines by night, fr. nox, noctis, night + lucere to shine, lux light.] 1. (Old Chem.) That which shines at night; — a fanciful name for phosphorus.

2. (Zoöl.) A genus of marine flagellate Infusoria, remarkable for their unusually large size and complex structure, as well as for their phosphorescence. The brilliant diffuse phosphorescence of the sea is often due to myriads of Noctilucæ.

Noc*ti*lu”cin (?), n. (Zoöl.) A fatlike substance in certain marine animals, to which they owe their phosphorescent properties.

Noc`ti*lu”cine (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to Noctiluca.

Noc`ti*lu”cous (?), a. Shining in the night.

Noc*tiv”a*gant (?), a. [L. nox, noctis, night + vagans, p. pr. of vagari to wander about.] (Zoöl.) Going about in the night; night-wandering.

Noc*tiv`a*ga”tion (?), n. A roving or going about in the night. Gayton.

Noc*tiv”a*gous (?), a. [L. noctivagus; nox, noctis + vagus wandering.] Noctivagant.

Noc”to*graph (?), n. [L. nox, noctis, night + -graph.] 1. A kind of writing frame for the blind.

2. An instrument or register which records the presence of watchmen on their beats. Knight.

Noc”tu*a*ry (?; 135), n. [L. noctu by night.] A record of what passes in the night; a nightly journal; — distinguished from diary. [R.] Addison.

Noc”tu*id (?), n. [From L. nox, noctis, night.] (Zoöl.) Any one of numerous moths of the family Noctuidæ, or Noctuælitæ, as the cutworm moths, and armyworm moths; — so called because they fly at night. — a. Of or pertaining to the noctuids, or family Noctuidæ.

Noc”tule (?; 135), n. [F., fr. L. noctua a night owl, fr. nox, noctis, night.] (Zoöl.) A large European bat (Vespertilio, or Noctulina, altivolans).

Noc”turn (?), n. [F. nocturne, fr. L. nocturnus. See Nocturnal, and cf. Nocturne.] 1. An office of devotion, or act of religious service, by night.

2. One of the portions into which the Psalter was divided, each consisting of nine psalms, designed to be used at a night service. Hook.

Noc*tur”nal (?), a. [L. nocturnalis, nocturnus, fr. nox, noctis, night. See Night, and cf. Nocturn.] 1. Of, pertaining to, done or occuring in, the night; as, nocturnal darkness, cries, expedition, etc.; — opposed to diurnal. Dryden.

2. Having a habit of seeking food or moving about at night; as, nocturnal birds and insects.

Noc*tur”nal, n. An instrument formerly used for taking the altitude of the stars, etc., at sea. I. Watts.

Noc*tur”nal*ly, adv. By night; nightly.

Noc*turne” (?), n. [F. See Nocturn.] (Mus.) A night piece, or serenade. The name is now used for a certain graceful and expressive form of instrumental composition, as the nocturne for orchestra in Mendelsohn’s “Midsummer-Night’s Dream” music.

Noc”u*ment (?), n. [LL. nocumentum, fr. L. nocere to hurt.] Harm; injury; detriment. [Obs.]

Noc”u*ous (?), a. [L. nocuus, fr. nocere to hurt.] Hurtful; noxious. [R.] — Noc”u*ous*ly, adv. [R.]

Nod (?), v. i. [OE. nodden; cf. OHG. kn&?;t&?;n, genuot&?;n, to shake, and E. nudge.] 1. To bend or incline the upper part, with a quick motion; as, nodding plumes.

2. To incline the head with a quick motion; to make a slight bow; to make a motion of assent, of salutation, or of drowsiness, with the head; as, to nod at one.

3. To be drowsy or dull; to be careless.

Nor is it Homer nods, but we that dream.

Pope.

Nod, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nodded (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nodding.] 1. To incline or bend, as the head or top; to make a motion of assent, of salutation, or of drowsiness with; as, to nod the head.

2. To signify by a nod; as, to nod approbation.

3. To cause to bend. [Poetic]

By every wind that nods the mountain pine.

Keats.

Nod (?), n. 1. A dropping or bending forward of the upper part or top of anything.

Like a drunken sailor on a mast,
Ready with every nod to tumble down.

Shak.

2. A quick or slight downward or forward motion of the head, in assent, in familiar salutation, in drowsiness, or in giving a signal, or a command.

A look or a nod only ought to correct them [the children] when they do amiss.

Locke.

Nations obey my word and wait my nod.

Prior.

The land of Nod, sleep.

Nod”al (?), a. Of the nature of, or relating to, a node; as, a nodal point.

Nodal line, Nodal point, in a vibrating plate or cord, that line or point which remains at rest while the other parts of the body are in a state of vibration.

No”da*ted (?), a. [L. nodatus, p. p. of nodare to make knotty, fr. nodus knot. See Node.] Knotted.

Nodated hyperbola (Geom.), a certain curve of the third order having two branches which cross each other, forming a node.

No*da”tion (?), n. [L. nodatio knottiness.] Act of making a knot, or state of being knotted. [R.]

Nod”der (?), n. One who nods; a drowsy person.

Nod”ding (?), a. Curved so that the apex hangs down; having the top bent downward.

Nod”dle (?), n. [OE. nodil, nodle; perh. fr. nod, because the head is the nodding part of the body, or perh. akin to E. knot; cf. Prov. E. nod the nape of the neck.] 1. The head; – - used jocosely or contemptuously.

Come, master, I have a project in my noddle.

L’Estrange.

2. The back part of the head or neck. [Obs.]

For occasion . . . turneth a bald noddle, after she hath presented her locks in front, and no hold taken.

Bacon.

Nod”dy (?), n.; pl. Noddies (#). [Prob. fr. nod to incline the head, either as in assent, or from drowsiness.] 1. A simpleton; a fool. L’Estrange.

2. (Zoöl.) (a) Any tern of the genus Anous, as A. stolidus. (b) The arctic fulmar (Fulmarus glacialis). Sometimes also applied to other sea birds.

3. An old game at cards. Halliwell.

4. A small two-wheeled one-horse vehicle.

5. An inverted pendulum consisting of a short vertical flat spring which supports a rod having a bob at the top; — used for detecting and measuring slight horizontal vibrations of a body to which it is attached.

Node (?), n. [L. nodus; perh. akin to E. knot. Cf. Noose, Nowed.] 1. A knot, a knob; a protuberance; a swelling.

2. Specifically: (a) (Astron.) One of the two points where the orbit of a planet, or comet, intersects the ecliptic, or the orbit of a satellite intersects the plane of the orbit of its primary. (b) (Bot.) The joint of a stem, or the part where a leaf or several leaves are inserted. (c) (Dialing) A hole in the gnomon of a dial, through which passes the ray of light which marks the hour of the day, the parallels of the sun’s declination, his place in the ecliptic, etc. (d) (Geom.) The point at which a curve crosses itself, being a double point of the curve. See Crunode, and Acnode. (e) (Mech.) The point at which the lines of a funicular machine meet from different angular directions; — called also knot. W. R. Johnson. (f) (poet.) The knot, intrigue, or plot of a piece. (g) (Med.) A hard concretion or incrustation which forms upon bones attacked with rheumatism, gout, or syphilis; sometimes also, a swelling in the neighborhood of a joint. Dunglison. (h) (Mus) One of the fixed points of a sonorous string, when it vibrates by aliquot parts, and produces the harmonic tones; nodal line or point. (i) (Zoöl.) A swelling.

Ascending node (Astron.), the node at which the body is passing northerly, marked with the symbol &astascending;, called the Dragon’s head. Called also northern node. — Descending node, the node at which the body is moving southwardly, marked thus &astdescending;, called Dragon’s tail. — Line of nodes, a straight line joining the two nodes of an orbit.

Nod”ic*al (?), a. Of or pertaining to the nodes; from a node to the same node again; as, the nodical revolutions of the moon.

Nodical month. See Lunar month, under Month.

No`do*sa”rine (?), a. (Zoöl.) Resembling in form or structure a foraminiferous shell of the genus Nodosaria. — n. (Zoöl.) A foraminifer of the genus Nodosaria or of an allied genus.

No*dose” (?), a. [L. nodosus, fr. nodus knot.] 1. Knotty; having numerous or conspicuous nodes.

2. (Zoöl.) Having nodes or prominences; having the alternate joints enlarged, as the antennæ of certain insects.

No*dos”i*ty (&?;), n. [L. nodositas.] 1. The quality of being knotty or nodose; resemblance to a node or swelling; knottiness. Holland.

2. A knot; a node.

{ No*do”sous (?), No”dous (?) }, a. Nodose; knotty; knotted. [Obs.]

Nod”u*lar (?; 135), a. [Cf. F. nodulaire.] Of, pertaining to, or in the form of, a nodule or knot.

Nod”ule (?), n. [L. nodulus, dim. of nodus knot: cf. F. nodule.] A rounded mass or irregular shape; a little knot or lump.

Nod”uled (?), a. Having little knots or lumps.

{ Nod”u*lose` (?), Nod”u*lous (?), } a. (Biol.) Having small nodes or knots; diminutively nodose.

No”el (?), n. [F. noël, L. natalis birthday, fr. natalis natal. See Natal.] Same as Nowel.

No*e`ma*tach”o*graph (?), n. [Gr. &?; the understanding + &?; swiftness + -graph.] An instrument for determining and registering the duration of more or less complex operations of the mind. Dunglison.

{ No`e*mat”ic (?), No`e*mat”ic*al (?), } a. [Gr. &?; the understanding. See Noetic.] Of or pertaining to the understanding. [Obs.] Cudworth.

No*e”mics (?), n. [Gr. &?; the understanding. See Noetic.] The science of the understanding; intellectual science.

No*e”tian (?), n. (Eccl. Hist.) One of the followers of Noetus, who lived in the third century. He denied the distinct personality of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

{ No*et”ic (?), No*et”ic*al (?), } a. [Gr. &?;, fr. &?; to perceive, &?; mind, intellect.] Of or pertaining to the intellect; intellectual.

I would employ the word noetic to express all those cognitions which originate in the mind itself.

Sir W. Hamilton.

Nof (?). [Contr. fr. ne of.] Not of; nor of. [Obs.]

Nog (?), n. [Abbrev. fr. noggin.]

1. A noggin.

2. A kind of strong ale. Halliwell.

Nog, n. [Etymol. uncertain.]

1. A wooden block, of the size of a brick, built into a wall, as a hold for the nails of woodwork.

2. One of the square logs of wood used in a pile to support the roof of a mine.

3. (Shipbuilding) A treenail to fasten the shores.

Nog, v. t. [From 2d Nog.] 1. To fill in, as between scantling, with brickwork.

2. (Shipbuilding) To fasten, as shores, with treenails.

Nog”gen (?), a. [Prop., made of hemp, fr. Prov. E. nogs hemp.] Made of hemp; hence, hard; rough; harsh. [Obs.] Johnson.

Nog”gin (?), n. [Ir. noigin, or Gael. noigean. Cf. lst Nog.] 1. A small mug or cup.

2. A measure equivalent to a gill. [Prov. Eng.]

Nog”ging (?), n. [From Nog, v. t.] Rough brick masonry used to fill in the interstices of a wooden frame, in building.

Noght (?), adv. Not. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Noi”ance (?), n. [Abbrev. fr. OE. anoiance.] [Written also noyance.] Annoyance. [Obs.] Tusser.

Noie (?), v. t. To annoy. See Noy. [Obs.]

Noi”er (?), n. An annoyer. [Obs.] Tusser.

Noils (?), n. pl. [Etymol. uncertain.] Waste and knots of wool removed by the comb; combings.

Noint (?), v. t. To anoint. [Obs.] Sir T. North.

Noi”ous (?), a. Annoying; troublesome. [Obs.]

Noise (?), n. [F. noise noisy strife, quarrel, brawl, fr. L. nausea seasickness, sickness, disgust. See Nausea.]

1. Sound of any kind.

The heavens turn about in a most rapid motion without noise
to us perceived.

Bacon.

&fist; Noise is either a sound of too short a duration to be determined, like the report of a cannon; or else it is a confused mixture of many discordant sounds, like the rolling of thunder or the noise of the waves. Nevertheless, the difference between sound and noise is by no means precise. Ganot.

2. Especially, loud, confused, or senseless sound; clamor; din.

3. Loud or continuous talk; general talk or discussion; rumor; report. “The noise goes.” Shak.

What noise have we had about transplantation of diseases and transfusion of blood!

T. Baker.

Soerates lived in Athens during the great plague which has made so much noise in all ages.

Spectator.

4. Music, in general; a concert; also, a company of musicians; a band. [Obs.] Milton.

The king has his noise of gypsies.

B. Jonson.

Syn. — Cry; outcry; clamor; din; clatter; uproar.

Noise, v. i. To sound; to make a noise. Milton.

Noise, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Noised (?); p pr. & vb. n. Noising.] 1. To spread by rumor or report.

All these sayings were noised abroad.

Luke i. 65.

2. To disturb with noise. [Obs.] Dryden.

Noise”ful (?), a. Loud; clamorous. [Obs.] Dryden.

Noise”less, a. Making, or causing, no noise or bustle; without noise; silent; as, the noiseless foot of time.

So noiseless would I live.

Dryden.

— Noise”less*ly, adv. — Noise”less*ness, n.

Noi*sette” (?), n. (Bot.) A hybrid rose produced in 1817, by a French gardener, Noisette, of Charleston, South Carolina, from the China rose and the musk rose. It has given rise to many fine varieties, as the Lamarque, the Marechal (or Marshal) Niel, and the Cloth of gold. Most roses of this class have clustered flowers and are of vigorous growth. P. Henderson.

Nois”i*ly (?), adv. In a noisy manner.

Nois”i*ness, n. The state or quality of being noisy.

Noi”some (?), a. [For noysome, fr. noy for annoy. See Annoy.] 1. Noxious to health; hurtful; mischievous; unwholesome; insalubrious; destructive; as, noisome effluvia. “Noisome pestilence.” Ps. xci. 3.

2. Offensive to the smell or other senses; disgusting; fetid. “Foul breath is noisome.” Shak.

— Noi”some*ly, adv. — Noi”some*ness, n.

Syn. — Noxious; unwholesome; insalubrious; mischievous; destructive. — Noisome, Noxious. These words have to a great extent been interchanged; but there is a tendency to make a distinction between them, applying noxious to things that inflict evil directly; as, a noxious plant, noxious practices, etc., and noisome to things that operate with a remoter influence; as, noisome vapors, a noisome pestilence, etc. Noisome has the additional sense of disqusting. A garden may be free from noxious weeds or animals; but, if recently covered with manure, it may be filled with a noisome smell.

Nois”y (?), a. [Compar. Noisier (?); superl. Noisiest.] [From Noise.] 1. Making a noise, esp. a loud sound; clamorous; vociferous; turbulent; boisterous; as, the noisy crowd.

2. Full of noise. “The noisy town.” Dryden.

Nol”de (?). [Contr. fr. ne wolde.] Would not. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Nole (?), n. [See Noll.] The head. [Obs.] Shak.

||No”li-me-tan”ge*re (?), n. [L., touch me not.]

1. (Bot.) (a) Any plant of a genus of herbs (Impatiens) having capsules which, if touched when ripe, discharge their seeds. — See Impatiens. (b) The squirting cucumber. See under Cucumber.

2. (Med.) A name formerly applied to several varieties of ulcerous cutaneous diseases, but now restricted to Lupus exedens, an ulcerative affection of the nose.

No*li”tion (?), n. [L. nolle not to will, to be unwilling; ne + velle to will, to be willing.] Adverse action of will; unwillingness; — opposed to volition.

A nolition and a direct enmity against the lust.

Jer. Taylor.

Noll (?), n. [OE. nol, AS. hnoll top; akin to OHG. hnol top, head.] The head; the noddle. [Obs.]

Nol*le”i*ty (?), n. [L. nolle to be unwilling.] The state of being unwilling; nolition. [R.]

||Nol”le pros”e*qui (?). [L., to be unwilling to prosecute.] (Law) Will not prosecute; — an entry on the record, denoting that a plaintiff discontinues his suit, or the attorney for the public a prosecution; either wholly, or as to some count, or as to some of several defendants.

||No”lo con*ten”de*re (?). [L., I do not wish to contend.] (Law) A plea, by the defendant, in a criminal prosecution, which, without admitting guilt, subjects him to all the consequences of a plea of guilty.

Nol. pros. An abbrev. of Nolle prosequi.

Nol`-pros” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. -prossed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. -prossing.] To discontinue by entering a nolle prosequi; to decline to prosecute.

Nolt (?), n. sing. & pl. Neat cattle. [Prov. Eng.]

||Nom (?), n. [F. See Noun.] Name.

||Nom de guerre (&?;), literally, war name; hence, a fictitious name, or one assumed for a time. — ||Nom de plume (&?;), literally, pen name; hence, a name assumed by an author as his or her signature.

||No”ma (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;, lit., a feeding. See Name.] (Med.) See Canker, n., 1.

Nom”ad (?), n. [L. nomas, - adis, Gr. &?;, &?;, pasturing, roaming without fixed home, fr. &?; a pasture, allotted abode, fr. &?; to distribute, allot, drive to pasture; prob. akin to AS. niman to take, and E. nimble: cf. F. nomade. Cf. Astronomy, Economy, Nimble, Nemesis, Numb, Number.] One of a race or tribe that has no fixed location, but wanders from place to place in search of pasture or game.

Nom”ad, a. Roving; nomadic.

Nom”ade (?), n. [F.] See Nomad, n.

No*ma”di*an (?), n. A nomad. [R.]

No*mad”ic (?), a. [Gr. &?;. See Nomad.] Of or pertaining to nomads, or their way of life; wandering; moving from place to place for subsistence; as, a nomadic tribe. — No*mad”ic*al*ly (#), adv.

Nom”ad*ism (?), n. The state of being a nomad.

Nom”ad*ize (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Nomadized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nomadizing (?).] To lead the life of a nomad; to wander with flocks and herds for the sake of finding pasturage.

The Vogules nomadize chiefly about the Rivers Irtish, Obi, Kama, and Volga.

W. Tooke.

No”man*cy (?), n. [Cf. F. nomancie, nomance, abbrev. fr. onomancie. See Onomancy.] The art or practice of divining the destiny of persons by the letters which form their names.

No”-man’s` land` (?). 1. (Naut.) A space amidships used to keep blocks, ropes, etc.; a space on a ship belonging to no one in particular to care for.

2. Fig.: An unclaimed space or time.

That no-man’s land of twilight.

W. Black.

Nom”arch (?), n. [Gr. &?; a district + -arch.] The chief magistrate of a nome or nomarchy.

Nom”arch*y (?), n.; pl. Nomarchies (&?;). A province or territorial division of a kingdom, under the rule of a nomarch, as in modern Greece; a nome.

Nom”bles (?), n. pl. [F. nombles, fr. L. lumbulus, dim. of lumbus a loin. Cf. Numbles, Umbles, Humbles.] The entrails of a deer; the umbles. [Written also numbles.] Johnson.

Nom”bril (?), n. [F. nombril, for OF. lombril, i. e., ombril, with the article, a dim. fr. L. umbilicus the navel. See Navel.] (Her.) A point halfway between the fess point and the middle base point of an escutcheon; — called also navel point. See Escutcheon.

Nome (?), n. [Gr. &?;, fr. &?; to deal out, distribute.]

1. A province or political division, as of modern Greece or ancient Egypt; a nomarchy.

2. Any melody determined by inviolable rules. [Obs.]

Nome, n. [Cf. Binomial.] (Alg.) [Obs.] See Term.

{ Nome, No”men (?) }, obs. p. p. of Nim. Chaucer.

No”men*cla`tor (?), n. [L., fr. nomen name + calare to call. See Name, and Calendar.] 1. One who calls persons or things by their names.

&fist; In Rome, candidates for office were attended each by a nomenclator, who informed the candidate of the names of the persons whom they met and whose votes it was desirable to solicit.

2. One who gives names to things, or who settles and adjusts the nomenclature of any art or science; also, a list or vocabulary of technical names.

No”men*cla`tress (?), n. A female nomenclator.

No`men*cla”tur*al (?), a. Pertaining or according to a nomenclature.

No”men*cla`ture (?), n. [L. nomenclatura: cf. F. nomenclature. See Nomenclator.] 1. A name. [Obs.] Bacon.

2. A vocabulary, dictionary, or glossary. [R.]

3. The technical names used in any particular branch of science or art, or by any school or individual; as, the nomenclature of botany or of chemistry; the nomenclature of Lavoisier and his associates.

No”mi*al (?), n. [Cf. Binomial.] (Alg.) A name or term.

Nom”ic (?), a. [Gr. &?;, fr. &?; a law, custom.] Customary; ordinary; — applied to the usual English spelling, in distinction from strictly phonetic methods. H Sweet. — n. Nomic spelling. A. J. Ellis.

Nom”i*nal (?), a. [L. nominalis, fr. nomen, nominis, name. See Name.] 1. Of or pertaining to a name or names; having to do with the literal meaning of a word; verbal; as, a nominal definition. Bp. Pearson.

2. Existing in name only; not real; as, a nominal difference. “Nominal attendance on lectures.” Macaulay.

Nom”i*nal, n. 1. A nominalist. [Obs.] Camden.

2. (Gram.) A verb formed from a noun.

3. A name; an appellation.

A is the nominal of the sixth note in the natural diatonic scale.

Moore (Encyc. of Music. )

Nom”i*nal*ism (?), n. The principles or philosophy of the Nominalists.

Nom”i*nal*ist, n. (Metaph.) One of a sect of philosophers in the Middle Ages, who adopted the opinion of Roscelin, that general conceptions, or universals, exist in name only. Reid.

Nom`i*nal*is”tic (?), a. Of or pertaining to the Nominalists.

Nom”i*nal*ize (?), v. t. To convert into a noun. [Obs.]

Nom”i*nal*ly, adv. In a nominal manner; by name; in name only; not in reality. Burke.

Nom”i*nate (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nominated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nominating (?).] [L. nominatus, p. p. of nominare to nominate, fr. nomen name. See Name.]

1. To mention by name; to name. [Obs.]

To nominate them all, it is impossible.

Shak.

2. To call; to entitle; to denominate. [Obs.] Spenser.

3. To set down in express terms; to state. [Obs.]

Is it so noiminated in the bond?

Shak.

4. To name, or designate by name, for an office or place; to appoint; esp., to name as a candidate for an election, choice, or appointment; to propose by name, or offer the name of, as a candidate for an office or place.

Nom”i*nate*ly (?), adv. By name; particularly; namely. [Obs.] Spelman.

Nom`i*na”tion (?), n. [L. nominatio: cf. F. nomination.]

1. The act of naming or nominating; designation of a person as a candidate for office; the power of nominating; the state of being nominated.

The nomination of persons to places being . . . a flower of his crown, he would reserve to himself.

Clarendon.

2. The denomination, or name. [Obs.] Bp. Pearson.

Nom`i*na*ti”val (?), a. (Gram.) Of or pertaining to the nominative case.

Nom”i*na*tive (?), a. [L. nominativus belonging to a name, nominative.] (Gram.) Giving a name; naming; designating; — said of that case or form of a noun which stands as the subject of a finite verb. — n. The nominative case.

Nom”i*na*tive*ly, adv. In the manner of a nominative; as a nominative.

Nom”i*na`tor (?), n. [L.] One who nominates.

Nom`i*nee” (?), n. [See Nominate, and -ee.] A person named, or designated, by another, to any office, duty, or position; one nominated, or proposed, by others for office or for election to office.

Nom”i*nor` (?), n. [See Nominate, and -or.] A nominator. [Obs.] Bentham.

No*moc”ra*cy (?), n. [Gr. &?; law + -cracy, as in democracy.] Government in accordance with a system of law. Milman.

No*mog”ra*phy (?), n. [Gr. &?;; &?; law + &?; to write.] A treatise on laws; an exposition of the form proper for laws.

No*mol”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. &?; law + - logy.]

1. The science of law; legislation.

2. The science of the laws of the mind; rational psychology. Sir W. Hamilton.

Nom`o*pel”mous (?), a. [Gr. &?; law, custom + &?; sole of the foot.] (Zoöl.) Having a separate and simple tendon to flex the first toe, or hallux, as do passerine birds.

Nom”o*thete (?), n. [Gr. &?;; &?; + &?; to assign: cf. F. nomothète.] A lawgiver. [R.]

{ Nom`o*thet”ic (?), Nom`o*thet”ic*al (?), } a. [Gr. &?;.] Legislative; enacting laws; as, a nomothetical power. [R.] Bp. Barlow.

Non (?), a. No; not. See No, a. Chaucer.

Non- (?). [L. non, OL. noenu, noenum, fr. neoenum, lit., not one. See None.] A prefix used in the sense of not; un; in ; as in nonattention, or non-attention, nonconformity, nonmetallic, nonsuit.

&fist; The prefix non- may be joined to the leading word by means of a hyphen, or, in most cases, the hyphen may be dispensed with. The list of words having the prefix non- could easily be lengthened.

Non`a*bil”i*ty (?), n. 1. Want of ability.

2. (Law) An exception taken against a plaintiff in a cause, when he is unable legally to commence a suit.

Non`ac*cept”ance (?), n. A neglect or refusal to accept.

Non*ac”id (?), a. (Chem.) Destitute of acid properties; hence, basic; metallic; positive; — said of certain atoms and radicals.

Non`ac*quaint”ance (?), n. Want of acquaintance; the state of being unacquainted.

Non*ac`qui*es”cence (?), n. Refusal of acquiescence; failure to yield or comply.

Non`ad*mis”sion (?), n. Failure to be admitted.

Non`a*dult” (?), a. Not adult; immature.

Non*a`ër*o*bi*ot”ic (?), a. (Biol.) Capable of living without atmospheric oxygen; anaërobiotic.

Non”age (?), n. [LL. nonagium, from L. nonus ninth, novem nine.] (Eccl.) The ninth part of movable goods, formerly payable to the clergy on the death of persons in their parishes. Mozley & W.

Non”age, n. [Pref. non- + age.] Time of life before a person becomes of age; legal immaturity; minority.

The human mind . . . was still in its nonage.

Coleridge.

Non”aged (?), a. Having the quality of nonage; being a minor; immature. W. Browne.

Non`a*ge*na”ri*an (?), n. [L. nonagenarius containing, or consisting of, ninety, fr. nonageni ninety each; akin to novem nine.] A person ninety years old.

Non`a*ges”i*mal (?), a. [L. nonagesimus the ninetieth. See Nonagenarian.] (Astron.) Of or pertaining to the ninetieth degree or to a nonagesimal.

Non`a*ges”i*mal, n. (Astron.) The middle or highest point of the part of the ecliptic which is at any given moment above the horizon. It is the ninetieth degree of the ecliptic, reckoned from the points in which it is intersected by the horizon.

Non”a*gon (?), n. [L. nonus ninth + Gr. &?; angle.] (Math.) A figure or polygon having nine sides and nine angles.

Non*a”gri*an (?), n. [Etymol. uncertain.] (Zoöl.) Any moth of the genus Nonagria and allied genera, as the spindleworm and stalk borer.

Non*al`ien*a”tion (?), n. Failure to alienate; also, the state of not being alienated.

Non”ane (?), n. [L. nonus ninth.] (Chem.) One of a group of metameric hydrocarbons C_9H_20 of the paraffin series; — so called because of the nine carbon atoms in the molecule. Normal nonane is a colorless volatile liquid, an ingredient of ordinary kerosene.

Non`ap*pear”ance (?), n. Default of appearance, as in court, to prosecute or defend; failure to appear.

Non`ap*point”ment (?), n. Neglect of making appointment; failure to receive an appointment.

Non`ar*riv”al (?), n. Failure to arrive.

||Non` as*sump”sit (?). [L., he did not undertake.] (Law) The general plea or denial in an action of assumpsit.

Non`at*tend”ance (?), n. A failure to attend; omission of attendance; nonappearance.

Non`at*ten”tion (?), n. Inattention.

Non`bi*tu”mi*nous (?), a. Containing no bitumen; not bituminous.

Nonce (n&obreve;ns), n. [For the nonce, OE. for the nones, a corruption of for then ones, where n. in then is a relic of AS. m in ðam, dat. of the article and demonstrative pronoun, E. the. See For, Once, and The.] The one or single occasion; the present call or purpose; — chiefly used in the phrase for the nonce.

The miller was a stout carl for the nones.

Chaucer.

And that he calls for drink, I ‘ll have prepared him
A chalice for the nonce.

Shak.

Nonce word, “a word apparently employed only for the nonce“. Murray (New English Dict.).

||Non`cha`lance” (?), n. [F. See Nonchalant.] Indifference; carelessness; coolness.

||Non`cha`lant” (?), a. [F., fr. non not (L. non) + chaloir to concern one’s self for, fr. L. calere to be warm, to be inflamed with desire, to be troubled. See Non-, and Caldron.] Indifferent; careless; cool.

Non”cha*lant`ly (?), adv. In a nonchalant, indifferent, or careless manner; coolly.

Non”claim` (?), n. A failure to make claim within the time limited by law; omission of claim.

Non`co*he”sion (?), n. Want of cohesion.

Non`co*in”ci*dence, n. Lack of coincidence.

Non`co*in”ci*dent (?), a. Not coincident.

Non*com”bat*ant (?), n. (Mil.) Any person connected with an army, or within the lines of an army, who does not make it his business to fight, as any one of the medical officers and their assistants, chaplains, and others; also, any of the citizens of a place occupied by an army; also, any one holding a similar position with respect to the navy.

Non`com*mis”sioned (?), a. Not having a commission.

Noncommissioned officer (Mil.), a subordinate officer not appointed by a commission from the chief executive or supreme authority of the State; but by the Secretary of War or by the commanding officer of the regiment.

Non`com*mit”tal (?), n. A state of not being committed or pledged; forbearance or refusal to commit one’s self. Also used adjectively.

Non`com*mun”ion (?), n. Neglect or failure of communion.

Non`com*ple”tion (?), n. Lack of completion; failure to complete.

Non`com*pli”ance (?), n. Neglect of compliance; failure to comply.

Non`com*ply”ing (?), a. Neglecting or refusing to comply.

{ ||Non com”pos (?). ||Non com”pos men”tis (?). } [L.] Not of sound mind; not having the regular use of reason; hence, also, as a noun, an idiot; a lunatic; one devoid of reason, either by nature or from accident.

Non”con. (&?;), n. See Noncontent.

Non`con*clud”ing (?), a. Not concluding.

Non`con*cur” (?), v. i. To dissent or refuse to concur.

Non`con*cur”rence (?), n. Refusal to concur.

Non`con*den”si*ble (?), a. Not condensible; incapable of being liquefied; — said of gases.

Non`con*dens”ing, a. (Steam Engine) Not condensing; discharging the steam from the cylinder at a pressure nearly equal to or above that of the atmosphere and not into a condenser.

Non`con*duct”ing (?), a. Not conducting; not transmitting a fluid or force; thus, in electricity, wax is a nonconducting substance.

Non`con*duc”tion (?), n. The quality of not being able to conduct or transmit; failure to conduct.

Non`con*duct”or (?), n. (Physics) A substance which does not conduct, that is, convey or transmit, heat, electricity, sound, vibration, or the like, or which transmits them with difficulty; an insulator; as, wool is a nonconductor of heat; glass and dry wood are nonconductors of electricity.

Non`con*form”ing (?), a. Not conforming; declining conformity; especially, not conforming to the established church of a country.

Non`con*form”ist, n. One who does not conform to an established church; especially, one who does not conform to the established church of England; a dissenter.

Non*con*form”i*ty (?), n. Neglect or failure of conformity; especially, in England, the neglect or refusal to unite with the established church in its rites and modes of worship.

||Non`con”stat (?), n. [Law L.] It does not appear; it is not plain or clear; it does not follow.

Non`con*ta”gious (?), a. Not contagious; not catching; not communicable by contact. — Non`con*ta”gious*ness, n.

Non`con*tent” (?), n. (British House of Lords) One who gives a negative vote; — sometimes abridged into noncon. or non con.

{ Non`con*trib”u*ting (?), Non`con*trib”u*to*ry (?) }, a. Not contributing.

Non”da (?), n. (Bot.) The edible plumlike fruit of the Australian tree, Parinarium Nonda.

Non*dec”ane (?), n. [L. nonus ninth + decem ten.] (Chem.) A hydrocarbon of the paraffin series, a white waxy substance, C_19H_40; — so called from the number of carbon atoms in the molecule.

Non`de*cid”u*ate (?), a. (Anat.) Characterized by the absence of a decidua; indeciduate.

Non`de*liv”er*y (?), n. A neglect or failure of delivery; omission of delivery.

Non*dep`o*si”tion (?), n. A failure to deposit or throw down.

Non”de*script (?), a. [Pref. non- + L. descriptus described.] Not hitherto described; novel; hence, odd; abnormal; unclassifiable.

Non”de*script, n. A thing not yet described; that of which no account or explanation has been given; something abnormal, or hardly classifiable.

Non`de*vel”op*ment (?), n. Failure or lack of development.

Non`dis*cov”er*y (?), n. Want or failure of discovery.

Non”do (?), n. (Bot.) A coarse umbelliferous plant (Ligusticum actæifolium) with a large aromatic root. It is found chiefly in the Alleghany region. Also called Angelico.

None (?), a. & pron. [OE. none, non, nan, no, na, AS. nān, fr. ne not + ān one. &?;. See No, a. & adv., One, and cf. Non-, Null, a.]

1. No one; not one; not anything; — frequently used also partitively, or as a plural, not any.

There is none that doeth good; no, not one.

Ps. xiv. 3.

Six days ye shall gather it, but on the seventh day, which is the Sabbath, in it there shall be none.

Ex. xvi. 26.

Terms of peace yet none
Vouchsafed or sought.

Milton.

None of their productions are extant.

Blair.

2. No; not any; — used adjectively before a vowel, in old style; as, thou shalt have none assurance of thy life.

None of, not at all; not; nothing of; — used emphatically. “They knew that I was none of the register that entered their admissions in the universities.” Fuller. — None-so-pretty (Bot.), the Saxifraga umbrosa. See London pride (a), under London.

None, n. [F.] Same as Nones, 2.

Non`ef*fect”ive (?), a. 1. Not effective.

2. (Mil.) Not fit or available for duty.

||Non-e”go (?), n. [L., not I.] (Metaph.) The union of being and relation as distinguished from, and contrasted with, the ego. See Ego.

Non`e*las”tic (?), a. Not having elasticity.

Non`e*lect” (?), n. sing. & pl. (Theol.) A person or persons not elected, or chosen, to salvation.

Non`e*lec”tion (?), n. Failure of election.

{ Non`e*lec”tric (?), Non`e*lec”tric*al (?) }, a. Not electric; conducting electricity.

Non`e*lec”tric, n. (Physics) A substance that is not an electric; that which transmits electricity, as a metal.

{ Non`em*phat”ic (?), Non`em*phat”ic*al (?) }, a. Having no emphasis; unemphatic.

Non*en”ti*ty (?), n.; pl. Nonentities (&?;).

1. Nonexistence; the negation of being.

2. A thing not existing. South.

3. A person or thing of little or no account. [Colloq.]

Non`-E*pis”co*pal (?), a. Not Episcopal; not pertaining to the Episcopal church or system.

Nones (?), n. pl. [L. nonae, so called because it was the ninth day before the ides, fr. nonus ninth, from novem nine. See Nine, Nones, 2, Noon .]

1. (Roman Cal.) The fifth day of the months January, February, April, June, August, September, November, and December, and the seventh day of March, May, July, and October. The nones were nine days before the ides, reckoning inclusively, according to the Roman method.

2. [F. none, fr. L. See Noon.] The canonical office, being a part of the Breviary, recited at noon (formerly at the ninth hour, 3 P. M.) in the Roman Catholic Church.

3. The hour of dinner; the noonday meal. [Obs.]

At my supper and sometimes at nones.

P. Plowman.

Non`es*sen”tial (?), a. Not essential.

Non`es*sen”tial, n. A thing not essential.

||Non` est` fac”tum (?). [Law L. it is not (his) deed.] (Law) The plea of the general issue in an action of debt on bond.

||Non` est` in*ven”tus (?). [L., he is not found.] (Law) The return of a sheriff on a writ, when the defendant is not found in his county. Bouvier.

None”such` (?), n. A person or thing of a sort that there is no other such; something extraordinary; a thing that has not its equal. It is given as a name to various objects, as to a choice variety of apple, a species of medic (Medicago lupulina), a variety of pottery clay, etc.

{ No*net” (?), ||No*net”to (?) }, n. [From L. nonus ninth, like E. duet, fr. L. duo.] (Mus.) A composition for nine instruments, rarely for nine voices.

Non”ett (?), n. (Zoöl.) The titmouse. [Obs.]

Non*ex`e*cu”tion (?), n. Neglect or failure of execution; nonperformance.

Non`ex*ist”ence (?), n. 1. Absence of existence; the negation of being; nonentity. A. Baxter.

2. A thing that has no existence. Sir T. Browne.

Non`ex*ist”ent (?), a. Not having existence.

Non*ex`por*ta”tion (?), n. A failure of exportation; a not exporting of commodities.

Non`ex*ten”sile (?), a. Not extensile; incapable of being stretched.

Non-fea”sance (?), n. [Pref. non- + OF. faisance a doing, fr. faire to do.] (Law) An omission or neglect to do something, esp. that which ought to have been done. Cf. Malfeasance.

Non`ful*fill”ment, n. Neglect or failure to fulfill.

No*nil”lion (?), n. [L. nonus ninth + -illion, as in E. million.] According to the French and American notation, a thousand octillions, or a unit with thirty ciphers annexed; according to the English notation, a million octillions, or a unit with fifty-four ciphers annexed. See the Note under Numeration.

Non*im`por*ta”tion (?), n. Want or failure of importation; a not importing of commodities.

Non`im*port”ing (?), a. Not importing; not bringing from foreign countries.

Non`in*flec”tion*al (?), a. Not admitting of, or characterized by, inflection.

Non`in*hab”it*ant (?), n. One who is not an inhabitant; a stranger; a foreigner; a nonresident.

Non*in`ter*ven”tion (?), n. The state or habit of not intervening or interfering; as, the nonintervention of one state in the affairs of another.

No”ni*us (?), n. [Latinized form of Nunez, the name of a Portuguese mathematician.] A vernier.

Non*join”der (?), n. (Law) The omission of some person who ought to have been made a plaintiff or defendant in a suit, or of some cause of action which ought to be joined.

Non*ju”rant (?), a. Nonjuring.

Non*ju”ring (?), a. [F. jurer to swear, or L. jurare, jurari, to swear, fr. L. jus, juris, right, law, justice. See Jury.] Not swearing allegiance; — applied to the party in Great Britain that would not swear allegiance to William and Mary, or their successors.

Non*ju”ror (?), n. (Eng. Hist.) One of those adherents of James II. who refused to take the oath of allegiance to William and Mary, or to their successors, after the revolution of 1688; a Jacobite.

Non*ju”ror*ism (?), n. (Eng. Hist.) The doctrines, or action, of the Nonjurors.

Non*lim`i*ta”tion (?), n. Want of limitation; failure to limit.

||Non` li”quet (?). [L.] It is not clear; — a verdict given by a jury when a matter is to be deferred to another day of trial.

Non`ma*lig”nant (?), a. Not malignant, as a disease.

Non*man`u*fac”tur*ing (?), a. Not carrying on manufactures.

Non*med”ul*la`ted (?), a. Not medullated; (Anat.) without a medulla or marrow, or without a medullary sheath; as, a nonmedullated nerve fiber.

Non*mem”ber, n. One who is not a member.

Non*mem”ber*ship, n. State of not being a member.

Non”met`al (?), n. (Chem.) Any one of the set of elements which, as contrasted with the metals, possess, produce, or receive, acid rather than basic properties; a metalloid; as, oxygen, sulphur, and chlorine are nonmetals.

Non`me*tal”lic (?), a. 1. Not metallic.

2. (Chem.) Resembling, or possessing the properties of, a nonmetal or metalloid; as, sulphur is a nonmetallic element.

Non*nat”u*ral, a. Not natural; unnatural.

Nonne (?), n. A nun. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Non`ne*ces”si*ty (?), n. Absence of necessity; the quality or state of being unnecessary.

Non`ni*trog”nous (?), a. Devoid of nitrogen; as, a nonnitrogenous principle; a nonnitrogenous food. See the Note under Food, n., 1.

Non*nu”cle*a`ted (?), a. Without a nucleus.

Non”ny (?), n. A silly fellow; a ninny.

Non`o*be”di*ence (?), n. Neglect of obedience; failure to obey.

Non`ob*serv”ance (?), n. Neglect or failure to observe or fulfill.

||Non` ob*stan”te (?). [L.] 1. Notwithstanding; in opposition to, or in spite of, what has been stated, or is to be stated or admitted.

2. (Law) A clause in old English statutes and letters patent, importing a license from the crown to do a thing notwithstanding any statute to the contrary. This dispensing power was abolished by the Bill of Rights.

In this very reign [Henry III.] the practice of dispensing with statutes by a non obstante was introduced.

Hallam.

||Non obstante veredicto [LL.] (Law), a judgment sometimes entered by order of the court, for the plaintiff, notwithstanding a verdict for the defendant. Stephen.

No*no”ic (?), a. (Chem.) Pertaining to, derived from, or resembling, nonane; as, nonoic acid, which is also called pelargonic acid. Cf. Pelargonic.

Non”one (?), n. [Nonane + - one, suffix denoting the third degree of unsaturation.] (Chem.) Any one of several metameric unsaturated hydrocarbons (C_9H_14) of the valylene series.

Non`ox*yg”e*nous (?), a. (Chem.) Without oxygen; characterized by the absence of oxygen; as, a nonoxygenous alkaloid.

Non`pa*reil” (?), n. [See Nonpareil, a. ]

1. Something of unequaled excellence; a peerless thing or person; a nonesuch; — often used as a name.

2. [F. nonpareille.] (Print.) A size of type next smaller than minion and next larger than agate (or ruby).

&fist; This line is printed in the type called nonpareil.

3. (Zoöl.) (a) A beautifully colored finch (Passerina ciris), native of the Southern United States. The male has the head and neck deep blue, rump and under parts bright red, back and wings golden green, and the tail bluish purple. Called also painted finch. (b) Any other similar bird of the same genus.

Non`pa*reil”, a. [F., from non not + pareil equal, fr. LL. pariculus, dim. of L. par equal. See Non, and Pair, Peer.] Having no equal; peerless.

Non*pay”ment, n. Neglect or failure to pay.

Non`per*form”ance, n. Neglect or failure to perform.

Non*pho`to*bi*ot”ic (?), a. (Biol.) Capable of living without light; as, nonphotobiotic plant cells, or cells which habitually live in darkness.

Non`plane” (?), a. (Math.) Not lying in one plane; — said of certain curves.

Non”plus (?), n. [L. non not + plus more, further. See Plural.] A state or condition which baffles reason or confounds judgment; insuperable difficulty; inability to proceed or decide; puzzle; quandary.

Both of them are a perfect nonplus and baffle to all human understanding.

South.

Non”plus` (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nonplused (?) or Nonplussed; p. pr. & vb. n. Nonplusing or Nonplussing.] To puzzle; to confound; to perplex; to cause to stop by embarrassment.

He has been nonplused by Mr. Dry’s desiring him to tell what it was that he endeavored to prove.

Spectator.

Non*prep`a*ra”tion (?), n. Neglect or failure to prepare; want of preparation.

Non*pres`en*ta”tion (?), n. Neglect or failure to present; state of not being presented.

Non`pro*duc”tion, n. A failure to produce or exhibit.

Non`pro*fes”sion*al (?), a. Not belonging to a profession; not done by, or proceeding from, professional men; contrary to professional usage.

Non`pro*fi”cien*cy (?), n. Want of proficiency; failure to make progress.

Non`pro*fi”cient (?), n. One who has failed to become proficient.

Non” pros.` (&?;). An abbreviation of Non prosequitur.

Non`-pros” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nonprossed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Non-prossing (?).] To decline or fail to prosecute; to allow to be dropped (said of a suit); to enter judgment against (a plaintiff who fails to prosecute); as, the plaintiff was non-prossed.

||Non” pro*seq”ui*tur (?). [L. he does not prosecute.] (Law) A judgment entered against the plaintiff in a suit where he does not appear to prosecute. See Nolle prosequi.

Non`re*cur”rent (?), a. Not recurring.

Non`re*cur”ring (?), a. Nonrecurrent.

Non`re*gard”ance (?), n. Want of due regard; disregard; slight. [Obs.] Shak.

Non`re”gent (?), n. (Eng. Universities) A master of arts whose regency has ceased. See Regent.

Non`ren*di”tion (?), n. Neglect of rendition; the not rendering what is due.

The nonrendition of a service which is due.

S. E. Dwight.

Non`re*sem”blance (?), n. Want of resemblance; unlikeness; dissimilarity.

Non*res”i*dence (?), n. The state or condition of being nonresident, Swift.

Non*res”i*dent (?), a. Not residing in a particular place, on one’s own estate, or in one’s proper place; as, a nonresident clergyman or proprietor of lands.

Non*res”i*dent, n. A nonresident person; one who does not reside in the State or jurisdiction.

Non`re*sist”ance (?), n. The principles or practice of a nonresistant; passive obedience; submission to authority, power, oppression, or violence without opposition.

Non`re*sist”ant (?), a. Making no resistance.

Non`re*sist”ant, n. One who maintains that no resistance should be made to constituted authority, even when unjustly or oppressively exercised; one who advocates or practices absolute submission; also, one who holds that violence should never be resisted by force.

Non`re*sist”ing, a. Not making resistance.

Non*ru”mi*nant (?), a. Not ruminating; as, a nonruminant animal.

Non`sane” (?), a. Unsound; not perfect; as, a person of nonsane memory. Blackstone.

Non”sense (?), n. [Pref. non- + sense: cf. F. nonsens.]

1. That which is not sense, or has no sense; words, or language, which have no meaning, or which convey no intelligible ideas; absurdity.

2. Trifles; things of no importance.

Nonsense verses, lines made by taking any words which occur, but especially certain words which it is desired to recollect, and arranging them without reference to anything but the measure, so that the rhythm of the lines may aid in recalling the remembrance of the words.

Syn. — Folly; silliness; absurdity; trash; balderdash.

Non*sen”si*cal (?), a. Without sense; unmeaning; absurd; foolish; irrational; preposterous. — Non*sen”si*cal*ly, adv. — Non*sen”si*cal*ness, n.

Non*sen”si*tive (?), a. Not sensitive; wanting sense or perception; not easily affected.

||Non seq”ui*tur (?). [L., it does not follow.] (Logic) An inference which does not follow from the premises.

Non*sex”u*al (?), a. Having no distinction of sex; sexless; neuter.

Non*slave”hold`ing (?), a. Not possessing or holding slaves; as, a nonslaveholding State.

Non`so*lu”tion (?), n. Failure of solution or explanation.

Non*sol”ven*cy (?), n. Inability to pay debts; insolvency.

Non*sol”vent (?), a. Not solvent; insolvent.

Non*sol”vent, n. An insolvent.

Non*so”nant (?), a. Not sonant. — n. A nonsonant or nonvocal consonant.

Non*spar”ing (?), a. Sparing none.

Non*stri”a*ted (?), a. (Nat. Hist.) Without striations; unstriped; as, nonstriated muscle fibers.

Non`sub*mis”sion (?), n. Want of submission; failure or refusal to submit.

Non`sub*mis”sive (?), a. Not submissive.

Non”such (?), n. See Nonesuch.

Non”suit` (?), n. (Law) A neglect or failure by the plaintiff to follow up his suit; a stopping of the suit; a renunciation or withdrawal of the cause by the plaintiff, either because he is satisfied that he can not support it, or upon the judge’s expressing his opinion. A compulsory nonsuit is a nonsuit ordered by the court on the ground that the plaintiff on his own showing has not made out his case.

Non”suit`, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nonsuited; p. pr. & vb. n. Nonsuiting.] (Law) To determine, adjudge, or record (a plaintiff) as having dropped his suit, upon his withdrawal or failure to follow it up. “When two are joined in a writ, and one is nonsuited.” Z. Swift.

Non”suit`, a. Nonsuited. D. A. Tyng.

Non*sure”ty (?), n. Insecurity. [Obs.]

Non*ten”ure (?), n. (Law) A plea of a defendant that he did not hold the land, as affirmed.

Non”term` (?), n. (Law) A vacation between two terms of a court.

Non*tox”ic (?), a. Not toxic.

Non”tro*nite (?), n. [So called because found in the arrondissement of Notron, France.] (Min.) A greenish yellow or green mineral, consisting chiefly of the hydrous silicate of iron.

Non*u”ni*form`ist (?), n. One who believes that past changes in the structure of the earth have proceeded from cataclysms or causes more violent than are now operating; — called also nonuniformitarian.

Non*un”ion*ist (?), n. One who does not belong, or refuses to belong, to a trades union.

Non*us”ance (?), n. Neglect of using; failure to use. [R.] Sir T. Browne.

Non*us”er (?), 1. A not using; failure to use.

An office may be forfeited by misuser or nonuser.

Blackstone.

2. (Law) Neglect or omission to use an easement or franchise or to assert a right. Kent.

Non*vas”cu*lar (?), a. (Anat.) Destitute of vessels; extravascular.

Non`ver*nac”u*lar (?), a. Not vernacular.

A nonvernacular expression.

Sir W. Hamilton.

Non*vo”cal (?), a. Not vocal; destitute of tone. — n. A nonvocal consonant.

Non”yl (?), n. [Nonane + - yl.] (Chem.) The hydrocarbon radical, C_9H_19, derived from nonane and forming many compounds. Used also adjectively; as, nonyl alcohol.

Non”y*lene (?), n. [Nonane + ethylene.] (Chem.) Any one of a series of metameric, unsaturated hydrocarbons C_9H_18 of the ethylene series.

Non`y*len”ic (?), a. (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, related to, or designating, nonylene or its compounds; as, nonylenic acid.

No*nyl”ic (?), a. (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or designating, nonyl or its compounds; as, nonylic acid.

Noo”dle (?), n. [Cf. Noddle, Noddy.] A simpleton; a blockhead; a stupid person; a ninny. [Low]

The chuckling grin of noodles.

Sydney Smith.

Noo”dle, n. [G. nudel vermicelli.] A thin strip of dough, made with eggs, rolled up, cut into small pieces, and used in soup.

Nook (?), n. [OE. nok; cf. Gael. & Ir. niuc.] A narrow place formed by an angle in bodies or between bodies; a corner; a recess; a secluded retreat.

How couldst thou find this dark, sequestered nook?

Milton.

Nook”-shot`ten (?), a. Full of nooks, angles, or corners. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.]

That nook-shotten isle of Albion.

Shak.

No`ö*log”ic*al (?), a. Of or pertaining to noölogy.

No*öl”o*gist (?), n. One versed in noölogy.

No*öl”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. &?;, &?;, the mind + -logy.] The science of intellectual phenomena.

Noon (?), a. No. See the Note under No. [Obs.]

Noon (?), n. [AS. n&?;n, orig., the ninth hour, fr. L. nona (sc. hora) the ninth hour, then applied to the church services (called nones) at that hour, the time of which was afterwards changed to noon. See Nine, and cf. Nones, Nunchion.] 1. The middle of the day; midday; the time when the sun is in the meridian; twelve o’clock in the daytime.

2. Hence, the highest point; culmination.

In the very noon of that brilliant life which was destined to be so soon, and so fatally, overshadowed.

Motley.

High noon, the exact meridian; midday. — Noon of night, midnight. [Poetic] Dryden.

Noon (?), a. Belonging to midday; occurring at midday; meridional. Young.

Noon, v. i. To take rest and refreshment at noon.

Noon”day` (?), n. Midday; twelve o’clock in the day; noon.

Noon”day` (?), a. Of or pertaining to midday; meridional; as, the noonday heat. “Noonday walks.” Addison.

Noon”-flow`er (?), n. (Bot.) The goat’s beard, whose flowers close at midday.

Noon”ing, n. A rest at noon; a repast at noon.

Noon”shun (?), n. [Obs.] See Nunchion. Nares.

Noon”stead (?), n. The position of the sun at noon. [Obs.] Drayton.

Noon”tide` (?), n. [From noon + tide time; cf. AS. n&?;ntīd the ninth hour.] The time of noon; midday.

Noose (?), n. [Prob. fr. OF. nous, nom. sing. or acc. pl. of nou knot, F. n&?;ud, L. nodus. Cf. Node.] A running knot, or loop, which binds the closer the more it is drawn.

Noose (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Noosed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Noosing.] To tie in a noose; to catch in a noose; to entrap; to insnare.

Noot (?). See lst Not. [Obs.] Chaucer.

No”pal (?), n. [Mexican nopalli.] (Bot.) A cactaceous plant (Nopalea cochinellifera), originally Mexican, on which the cochineal insect feeds, and from which it is collected. The name is sometimes given to other species of Cactaceæ.

No”pal*ry (?), n.; pl. Nopalries (&?;). A plantation of the nopal for raising the cochineal insect.

Nope (?), n. (Zoöl.) A bullfinch. [Prov. Eng.]

Nor (?), conj. [OE. nor, contr. from nother. See Neither.] A negative connective or particle, introducing the second member or clause of a negative proposition, following neither, or not, in the first member or clause (as or in affirmative propositions follows either). Nor is also used sometimes in the first member for neither, and sometimes the neither is omitted and implied by the use of nor.

Provide neither gold nor silver, nor brass, in your purses, nor scrip for your journey.

Matt. x. 9, 10.

Where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt.

Matt. vi. 20.

I love him not, nor fear him.

Shak.

Where neither party is nor true, nor kind.

Shak.

Simois nor Xanthus shall be wanting there.

Dryden.

Nor”bert*ine (?), n. See Premonstrant.

No”ri*a (?), n. [Sp., from Ar. nā’&?;ra.] A large water wheel, turned by the action of a stream against its floats, and carrying at its circumference buckets, by which water is raised and discharged into a trough; used in Arabia, China, and elsewhere for irrigating land; a Persian wheel.

No”ri*an (?), a. [From norite.] (Geol.) Pertaining to the upper portion of the Laurentian rocks. T. S. Hunt.

Nor”ice (?), n. Nurse. [Obs.] Chaucer.

No”rie (?), n. [Etymol. uncertain.] (Zoöl.) The cormorant. [Prov. Eng.]

Nor”i*mon (?), n.; pl. Norimons (&?;). A Japanese covered litter, carried by men. B. Taylor.

No”rite (?), n. [F., fr. Norvège Norway .] (Min.) A granular crystalline rock consisting essentially of a triclinic feldspar (as labradorite) and hypersthene.

No”ri*um (?), n. [NL.] (Chem.) A supposed metal alleged to have been discovered in zircon.

Norm (?), n. [L. norma a rule. See Normal, a.]

1. A rule or authoritative standard; a model; a type.

2. (Biol.) A typical, structural unit; a type. Agassiz.

Nor”ma (?), n. [L.] 1. A norm; a principle or rule; a model; a standard. J. S. Mill.

2. A mason’s or a carpenter’s square or rule.

3. A templet or gauge.

Nor”mal (?), a. [L. normalis, fr. norma rule, pattern, carpenter’s square; prob. akin to noscere to know; cf. Gr. &?; well known, &?; gnomon, also, carpenter’s square: cf. F. normal. See Known, and cf. Abnormal, Enormous.]

1. According to an established norm, rule, or principle; conformed to a type, standard, or regular form; performing the proper functions; not abnormal; regular; natural; analogical.

Deviations from the normal type.

Hallam.

2. (Geom.) According to a square or rule; perpendicular; forming a right angle. Specifically: Of or pertaining to a normal.

3. (Chem.) Standard; original; exact; typical. Specifically: (a) (Quantitative Analysis) Denoting a solution of such strength that every cubic centimeter contains the same number of milligrams of the element in question as the number of its molecular weight. (b) (Chem.) Denoting certain hypothetical compounds, as acids from which the real acids are obtained by dehydration; thus, normal sulphuric acid and normal nitric acid are respectively S(OH)6, and N(OH)5. (c) (Organ. Chem.) Denoting that series of hydrocarbons in which no carbon atom is united with more than two other carbon atoms; as, normal pentane, hexane, etc. Cf. Iso-.

Normal equations (Method of Least Squares), a set of equations of the first degree equal in number to the number of unknown quantities, and derived from the observations by a specified process. The solution of the normal equations gives the most probable values of the unknown quantities. — Normal group (Geol.), a group of rocks taken as a standard. Lyell. — Normal place (of a planet or comet) (Astron.), the apparent place in the heavens of a planet or comet at a specified time, the place having been determined by a considerable number of observations, extending perhaps over many days, and so combined that the accidental errors of observation have largely balanced each other. — Normal school, a school whose methods of instruction are to serve as a model for imitation; an institution for the training of teachers.

Syn. — Normal, Regular, Ordinary. Regular and ordinary are popular terms of well-known signification; normal has now a more specific sense, arising out of its use in science. A thing is normal, or in its normal state, when strictly conformed to those principles of its constitution which mark its species or to the standard of a healthy and natural condition. It is abnormal when it departs from those principles.

Nor”mal (?), n. [Cf. F. normale, ligne normale. See Normal, a.] 1. (Geom.) Any perpendicular.

2. (Geom.) A straight line or plane drawn from any point of a curve or surface so as to be perpendicular to the curve or surface at that point.

&fist; The term normal is also used to denote the distance along the normal line from the curve to the axis of abscissas or to the center of curvature.

Nor”mal*cy (?), n. The quality, state, or fact of being normal; as, the point of normalcy. [R.]

Nor`mal*i*za”tion (?), n. Reduction to a standard or normal state.

Nor”mal*ly, adv. In a normal manner. Darwin.

Nor”man (?), n. [F. normand.] (Naut.) A wooden bar, or iron pin. W. C. Russell.

Nor”man, a. [F. normand, of Scand. origin. See Northman, and cf. Norse.] Of or pertaining to Normandy or to the Normans; as, the Norman language; the Norman conquest.

Norman style (Arch.), a style of architecture which arose in the tenth century, characterized by great massiveness, simplicity, and strength, with the use of the semicircular arch, heavy round columns, and a great variety of ornaments, among which the zigzag and spiral or cable-formed ornaments were prominent.

Nor”man, n. A native or inhabitant of Normandy; originally, one of the Northmen or Scandinavians who conquered Normandy in the 10th century; afterwards, one of the mixed (Norman-French) race which conquered England, under William the Conqueror.

Nor”man*ism (?), n. A Norman idiom; a custom or expression peculiar to the Normans. M. Arnold.

{ Norn (?), Nor”na (?) }, n. [Icel. norn, pl. nornir.]

1. (Scandinavian Myth.) One of the three Fates, Past, Present, and Future. Their names were Urd, Verdandi, and Skuld.

2. A tutelary deity; a genius.

No*ro`pi*an”ic (?), a. [Etymology uncertain.] (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or designating, an acid of the aromatic series obtained from opianic acid.

Nor”roy (?), n. [Lit., north king, fr. F. nord north + roi king.] (Her.) The most northern of the English Kings-at-arms. See King-at-arms, under King.

Norse (?), a. [Dan. Norsk, fr. nord north. See North.] Of or pertaining to ancient Scandinavia, or to the language spoken by its inhabitants.

Norse, n. The Norse language.

Norse”man (?), n.; pl. Norsemen (&?;). One of the ancient Scandinavians; a Northman.

Nor”tel*ry (?), n. [Cf. Nurture.] Nurture; education; culture; bringing up. [Obs.]

Nortelry . . . learned at the nunnery.

Chaucer.

North (?), n. [AS. norð; akin to D. noord, G., Sw., & Dan. nord, Icel. norðr. Cf. Norman, Norse.]

1. That one of the four cardinal points of the compass, at any place, which lies in the direction of the true meridian, and to the left hand of a person facing the east; the direction opposite to the south.

2. Any country or region situated farther to the north than another; the northern section of a country.

3. Specifically: That part of the United States lying north of Mason and Dixon’s line. See under Line.

North, a. Lying toward the north; situated at the north, or in a northern direction from the point of observation or reckoning; proceeding toward the north, or coming from the north.

North following. See Following, a., 2. — North pole, that point in the heavens, or on the earth, ninety degrees from the equator toward the north. — North preceding. See Following, a., 2. — North star, the star toward which the north pole of the earth very nearly points, and which accordingly seems fixed and immovable in the sky. The star α (alpha) of the Little Bear, is our present north star, being distant from the pole about 1° 25′, and from year to year approaching slowly nearer to it. It is called also Cynosura, polestar, and by astronomers, Polaris.

North, v. i. To turn or move toward the north; to veer from the east or west toward the north.

North, adv. Northward.

North`east” (?), n. The point between the north and east, at an equal distance from each; the northeast part or region.

North`east”, a. Of or pertaining to the northeast; proceeding toward the northeast, or coming from that point; as, a northeast course; a northeast wind.

Northeast passage, a passage or communication by sea between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans along the north coast of Asia.

North`east”, adv. Toward the northeast.

North`east”er (?), n. A storm, strong wind, or gale, coming from the northeast.

North`east”er*ly, a. Pertaining to the northeast; toward the northeast, or coming from the northeast.

North`east”er*ly, adv. Toward the northeast.

North`east”ern (?), a. Of or pertaining to the northeast; northeasterly.

{ North`east”ward (?), North`east”ward*ly (?) }, adv. Toward the northeast.

North”er (?), n. A wind from the north; esp., a strong and cold north wind in Texas and the vicinity of the Gulf of Mexico.

North”er*li*ness (?), n. The quality or state of being northerly; direction toward the north.

North”er*ly, a. Of or pertaining to the north; toward the north, or from the north; northern.

North”er*ly, adv. Toward the north.

North”ern (?), a. [AS. norðerne.]

1. Of or pertaining to the north; being in the north, or nearer to that point than to the east or west.

2. In a direction toward the north; as, to steer a northern course; coming from the north; as, a northern wind.

Northern diver. (Zoöl.) See Loon. — Northern lights. See Aurora borealis, under Aurora. — Northern spy (Bot.), an excellent American apple, of a yellowish color, marked with red.

North”ern*er (?), n. 1. One born or living in the north.

2. A native or inhabitant of the Northern States; — contradistinguished from Southerner. [U. S.]

North”ern*ly, adv. Northerly. [Obs.] Hakewill.

North”ern*most` (?), a. [Cf. Northmost.] Farthest north.

North”ing, n. 1. (Surv. & Navigation) Distance northward from any point of departure or of reckoning, measured on a meridian; — opposed to southing.

2. (Astron.) The distance of any heavenly body from the equator northward; north declination.

North”man (nôrth”man), n.; pl. Northmen (-men). [AS. norðman. See North, and Man, and cf. Norman.] One of the inhabitants of the north of Europe; esp., one of the ancient Scandinavians; a Norseman.

North”most` (-mōst), a. [AS. norðmest. Cf. Aftermost.] Lying farthest north; northernmost.

Northmost part of the coast of Mozambique.

De Foe.

North”ness, n. A tendency in the end of a magnetic needle to point to the north. Faraday.

North*um”bri*an (?), a. Of or pertaining to Northumberland in England. — n. A native or inhabitant of Northumberland.

North”ward (?), a. [AS. norðweard.] Toward the north; nearer to the north than to the east or west point.

{ North”ward (?), North”wards (?) }, adv. Toward the north, or toward a point nearer to the north than to the east or west point.

North”ward*ly, a. Having a northern direction.

North”ward*ly, adv. In a northern direction.

North`west” (?), n. [AS. norðwest.] The point in the horizon between the north and west, and equally distant from each; the northwest part or region.

North`west”, a. 1. Pertaining to, or in the direction of, the point between the north and west; being in the northwest; toward the northwest, or coming from the northwest; as, the northwest coast.

2. Coming from the northwest; as, a northwest wind.

Northwest passage, a passage or communication by sea between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans along the north coast of America, long sought for by navigators.

North`west”, adv. Toward the northwest.

North`west”er (?), n. A storm or gale from the northwest; a strong northwest wind.

North`west”er*ly, a. Toward the northwest, or from the northwest.

North`west”ern (?), a. Of, pertaining to, or being in, the northwest; in a direction toward the northwest; coming from the northwest; northwesterly; as, a northwestern course.

{ North`west”ward (?), North`west”ward*ly (?), } adv. Toward the northwest.

Nor*we”gi*an (?), a. [Cf. Icel. Noregr, Norvegr, Norway. See North, and Way.] Of or pertaining to Norway, its inhabitants, or its language.

Nor*we”gi*an, n. 1. A native of Norway.

2. That branch of the Scandinavian language spoken in Norway.

Nor*we”gi*um (?), n. [NL. See Norwegian.] (Chem.) A rare metallic element, of doubtful identification, said to occur in the copper-nickel of Norway.

Nor*we”yan (?), a. Norwegian. [Obs.] Shak.

Nose (?), n. [AS. nosu; akin to D. neus, G. nase, OHG. nasa, Icel. nös, Sw. näsa, Dan. näse, Lith. nosis, Russ. nos’, L. nasus, nares, Skr. nāsā, nās. &?; Cf. Nasal, Nasturtium, Naze, Nostril, Nozzle.]

1. (Anat.) The prominent part of the face or anterior extremity of the head containing the nostrils and olfactory cavities; the olfactory organ. See Nostril, and Olfactory organ under Olfactory.

2. The power of smelling; hence, scent.

We are not offended with a dog for a better nose than his master.

Collier.

3. A projecting end or beak at the front of an object; a snout; a nozzle; a spout; as, the nose of a bellows; the nose of a teakettle.

Nose bit (Carp.), a bit similar to a gouge bit, but having a cutting edge on one side of its boring end. — Nose hammer (Mach.), a frontal hammer. — Nose hole (Glass Making), a small opening in a furnace, before which a globe of crown glass is held and kept soft at the beginning of the flattening process. — Nose key (Carp.), a fox wedge. — Nose leaf (Zoöl.), a thin, broad, membranous fold of skin on the nose of many species of bats. It varies greatly in size and form. — Nose of wax, fig., a person who is pliant and easily influenced. “A nose of wax to be turned every way.” Massinger — Nose piece, the nozzle of a pipe, hose, bellows, etc.; the end piece of a microscope body, to which an objective is attached. — To hold, put, or bring one’s nose to the grindstone. See under Grindstone. — To lead by the nose, to lead at pleasure, or to cause to follow submissively; to lead blindly, as a person leads a beast. Shak. — To put one’s nose out of joint, to humiliate one’s pride, esp. by supplanting one in the affections of another. [Slang] — To thrust one’s nose into, to meddle officiously in. — To wipe one’s nose of, to deprive of; to rob. [Slang]

Nose, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nosed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nosing.] 1. To smell; to scent; hence, to track, or trace out.

2. To touch with the nose; to push the nose into or against; hence, to interfere with; to treat insolently.

Lambs . . . nosing the mother’s udder.

Tennyson.

A sort of national convention, dubious in its nature . . . nosed Parliament in the very seat of its authority.

Burke.

3. To utter in a nasal manner; to pronounce with a nasal twang; as, to nose a prayer. [R.] Cowley.

Nose (nōz), v. i. 1. To smell; to sniff; to scent. Audubon.

2. To pry officiously into what does not concern one.

Nose”bag` (?), n. A bag in which feed for a horse, ox, or the like, may be fastened under the nose by a string passing over the head.

Nose”band` (?), n. That part of the headstall of a bridle which passes over a horse’s nose.

Nose”bleed` (?), n. 1. A bleeding at the nose.

2. (Bot.) The yarrow. See Yarrow.

Nosed (?), a. Having a nose, or such a nose; — chieflay used in composition; as, pug- nosed.

Nose”gay` (?), n. [Nose + gay in the sense of a gay or showy thing.] A bunch of odorous and showy flowers; a bouquet; a posy. Pope.

Nos”el (?), v. t. [See Noursle.] To nurse; to lead or teach; to foster; to nuzzle. [Obs.]

If any man use the Scripture . . . to nosel thee in anything save in Christ, he is a false prophet.

Tyndale.

Nose”less (?), a. Destitute of a nose.

Nose”smart` (?), n. (Bot.) A kind of cress, a pungent cruciferous plant, including several species of the genus Nasturtium.

{ Nose”thirl (?), Nose”thril (?) }, n. Nostril. [Obs.] [Written also nosethurl, nosthrill.] Chaucer.

Nos”ing (?), n. (Arch.) That part of the treadboard of a stair which projects over the riser; hence, any like projection, as the projecting edge of a molding.

No”sle (?), n. [See Nozzle, Nose.] Nozzle. [Obs.]

Nos`o*co”mi*al (?), a. [L. nosocomium a hospital, Gr. &?;; &?; disease + &?; to attend to.] Of or pertaining to a hospital; as, nosocomial atmosphere. Dunglison.

No*sog”ra*phy (?), n. [Gr. &?; disease + -graphy: cf. F. nosographie.] A description or classification of diseases.

Nos`o*log”ic*al (?), a. [Cf. F. nosologique.] Of or pertaining to nosology.

No*sol”o*gist (?), n. [Cf. F. nosologiste.] One versed in nosology.

No*sol”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. &?; disease + -logy: cf. F. nosologie.] 1. A systematic arrangement, or classification, of diseases.

2. That branch of medical science which treats of diseases, or of the classification of diseases.

Nos`o*po*et”ic (?), a. [Gr. &?; disease + &?; productive, fr. &?; to make.] Producing diseases. [R.] Arbuthnot.

Nost (?). [Contr. from ne wost.] Wottest not; knowest not. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Nos*tal”gi*a (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; a return home + &?; pain.] (Med.) Homesickness; esp., a severe and sometimes fatal form of melancholia, due to homesickness.

Nos*tal”gic (?), a. [Cf. F. nostalgique.] Of or pertaining to nostalgia; affected with nostalgia.

Nos*tal”gy (?), n. Same as Nostalgia.

Nos”toc (?), n. [F.] (Bot.) A genus of algæ. The plants are composed of moniliform cells imbedded in a gelatinous substance.

&fist; Nostoc commune is found on the ground, and is ordinarily not seen; but after a rain it swells up into a conspicuous jellylike mass, whish was formerly supposed to have fallen from the sky, whence the popular names, fallen star and star jelly. Also called witches’ butter.

Nos”tril (?), n. [OE. nosethril, nosethirl, AS. nospyrl; nos for nosu nose + pyrel opening, hole, from pyrel pierced, for pyrhel, fr. purh through. &?; See Nose, and Through, and cf. Thrill.]

1. (Anat.) One of the external openings of the nose, which give passage to the air breathed and to secretions from the nose and eyes; one of the anterior nares.

&fist; In sperm whales, porpoises, and allied animals, there is only one nostril, which is situated on the top of the head and called a spiracle.

2. Perception; insight; acuteness. [Obs.]

Methinks a man
Of your sagacity and clear nostril should
Have made another choice.

B. Jonson.

Nos”trum (-trŭm), n.; pl. Nostrums (-trŭmz). [Neut. sing. of L. noster ours, fr. nos we. See Us.]

1. A medicine, the ingredients of which are kept secret for the purpose of restricting the profits of sale to the inventor or proprietor; a quack medicine.

2. Any scheme or device proposed by a quack.

The incentives of agitators, the arts of impostors and the nostrums of quacks.

Brougham.

Not (?). [Contr. from ne wot. See 2d Note.] Wot not; know not; knows not. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Not, a. Shorn; shaven. [Obs.] See Nott.

Not, adv. [OE. not, noht, nought, naught, the same word as E. naught. See Naught.] A word used to express negation, prohibition, denial, or refusal.

Not one word spake he more than was need.

Chaucer.

Thou shalt not steal.

Ex. xx. 15.

Thine eyes are upon me, and I am not.

Job vii. 8.

The question is, may I do it, or may I not do it?

Bp. Sanderson.

Not . . . but, or Not but, only. [Obs. or Colloq.] Chaucer.

||No`ta*bil”i*a (?), n. pl. [Neut. pl. of L. notabilis notable.] Things worthy of notice.

Not`a*bil”i*ty (?), n.; pl. Notabilities (#). [Cf. F. notabilité .] 1. Quality of being notable.

2. A notable, or remarkable, person or thing; a person of note. “Parisian notabilities” Carlyle.

3. A notable saying. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Not”a*ble (?), a. [F. notable, L. notabilis, fr. notare to mark, nota mark, note. See 5th Note.]

1. Capable of being noted; noticeable; plan; evident.

2. Worthy of notice; remarkable; memorable; noted or distinguished; as, a notable event, person.

&fist; Notable in the sense of careful, thrifty, characterized by thrift and capacity (as, a notable housekeeper) is pronounced by many good orthoëpists, n&obreve;t”&adot;*b’l, the derivatives notableness, and notably, being also similarly pronounced with short o in the first syllable.

3. Well-known; notorious. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Not”a*ble (?), n. 1. A person, or thing, of distinction.

2. (French Hist.) One of a number of persons, before the revolution of 1789, chiefly of the higher orders, appointed by the king to constitute a representative body.

Not”a*ble*ness, n. The quality of being notable.

Not”a*bly, adv. In a notable manner.

||No*tæ“um (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; pertaining to the notum or back.] (Zoöl.) The back or upper surface, as of a bird.

No”tal (?), a. [Gr. &?; the back.] Of or pertaining to the back; dorsal.

||No*tan”dum (?), n.; pl. Notanda (#). [L., fr. notare to observe.] A thing to be noted or observed; a notable fact; — chiefly used in the plural.

No*ta”ri*al (?), a. [Cf. F. notarial.] Of or pertaining to a notary; done or taken by a notary; as, a notarial seal; notarial evidence or attestation.

No*ta”ri*al*ly, adv. In a notarial manner.

No”ta*ry (?), n.; pl. Notaries (#). [F. notaire, L. notarius notary (in sense 1), fr. nota mark. See 5th Note.]

1. One who records in shorthand what is said or done; as, the notary of an ecclesiastical body.

2. (Eng. & Am. Law) A public officer who attests or certifies deeds and other writings, or copies of them, usually under his official seal, to make them authentic, especially in foreign countries. His duties chiefly relate to instruments used in commercial transactions, such as protests of negotiable paper, ship’s papers in cases of loss, damage, etc. He is generally called a notary public.

No”tate (?), a. [L. notatus marked, p. p. of notare to mark. See 5th Note.] (Bot.) Marked with spots or lines, which are often colored. Henslow.

No*ta”tion (?), n. [L. notatio a marking, observing, etymology, fr. notare to mark, nota a mark: cf. F. notation. See 5th Note.] 1. The act or practice of recording anything by marks, figures, or characters.

2. Any particular system of characters, symbols, or abbreviated expressions used in art or science, to express briefly technical facts, quantities, etc. Esp., the system of figures, letters, and signs used in arithmetic and algebra to express number, quantity, or operations.

3. Literal or etymological signification. [Obs.]

“Conscience” is a Latin word, and, according to the very notation of it, imports a double or joint knowledge.

South.

Notch (?), n. [Akin to nock; cf. OD. nock, OSw. nocka. Cf. Nick a notch.]

1. A hollow cut in anything; a nick; an indentation.

And on the stick ten equal notches makes.

Swift.

2. A narrow passage between two elevation; a deep, close pass; a defile; as, the notch of a mountain.

Notch, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Notched (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Notching.] 1. To cut or make notches in ; to indent; also, to score by notches; as, to notch a stick.

2. To fit the notch of (an arrow) to the string.

God is all sufferance; here he doth show
No arrow notched, only a stringless bow.

Herrick.

Notch”board` (?), n. (Carp.) The board which receives the ends of the steps in a staircase.

Notch”ing, n. 1. The act of making notches; the act of cutting into small hollows.

2. The small hollow, or hollows, cut; a notch or notches.

3. (Carp.) A method of joining timbers, scantling, etc., by notching them, as at the ends, and overlapping or interlocking the notched portions.

4. (Engin.) A method of excavating, as in a bank, by a series of cuttings side by side. See also Gulleting.

Notch”weed` (?), n. (Bot.) A foul-smelling weed, the stinking goosefoot (Chenopodium Vulvaria).

Note (?), v. t. [AS. hnītan to strike against, imp. hnāt.] To butt; to push with the horns. [Prov. Eng.]

Note (?). [AS. nāt; ne not + wāt wot. See Not, and Wot.] Know not; knows not. [Obs.]

Note, n. Nut. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Note, n. [AS. notu use, profit.] Need; needful business. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Note, n. [F. note, L. nota; akin to noscere, notum, to know. See Know.] 1. A mark or token by which a thing may be known; a visible sign; a character; a distinctive mark or feature; a characteristic quality.

Whosoever appertain to the visible body of the church, they have also the notes of external profession.

Hooker.

She [the Anglican church] has the note of possession, the note of freedom from party titles,the note of life — a tough life and a vigorous.

J. H. Newman.

What a note of youth, of imagination, of impulsive eagerness, there was through it all !

Mrs. Humphry Ward.

2. A mark, or sign, made to call attention, to point out something to notice, or the like; a sign, or token, proving or giving evidence.

3. A brief remark; a marginal comment or explanation; hence, an annotation on a text or author; a comment; a critical, explanatory, or illustrative observation.

The best writers have been perplexed with notes, and obscured with illustrations.

Felton.

4. A brief writing intended to assist the memory; a memorandum; a minute.

5. pl. Hence, a writing intended to be used in speaking; memoranda to assist a speaker, being either a synopsis, or the full text of what is to be said; as, to preach from notes; also, a reporter’s memoranda; the original report of a speech or of proceedings.

6. A short informal letter; a billet.

7. A diplomatic missive or written communication.

8. A written or printed paper acknowledging a debt, and promising payment; as, a promissory note; a note of hand; a negotiable note.

9. A list of items or of charges; an account. [Obs.]

Here is now the smith’s note for shoeing.

Shak.

10. (Mus.) (a) A character, variously formed, to indicate the length of a tone, and variously placed upon the staff to indicate its pitch. Hence: (b) A musical sound; a tone; an utterance; a tune. (c) A key of the piano or organ.

The wakeful bird . . . tunes her nocturnal note.

Milton.

That note of revolt against the eighteenth century, which we detect in Goethe, was struck by Winckelmann.

W. Pater.

11. Observation; notice; heed.

Give orders to my servants that they take
No note at all of our being absent hence.

Shak.

12. Notification; information; intelligence. [Obs.]

The king . . . shall have note of this.

Shak.

13. State of being under observation. [Obs.]

Small matters . . . continually in use and in note.

Bacon.

14. Reputation; distinction; as, a poet of note.

There was scarce a family of note which had not poured out its blood on the field or the scaffold.

Prescott.

15. Stigma; brand; reproach. [Obs.] Shak.

Note of hand, a promissory note.

Note (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Noted; p. pr. & vb. n. Noting.] [F. noter, L. notare, fr. nota. See Note, n.]

1. To notice with care; to observe; to remark; to heed; to attend to. Pope.

No more of that; I have noted it well.

Shak.

2. To record in writing; to make a memorandum of.

Every unguarded word . . . was noted down.

Maccaulay.

3. To charge, as with crime (with of or for before the thing charged); to brand. [Obs.]

They were both noted of incontinency.

Dryden.

4. To denote; to designate. Johnson.

5. To annotate. [R.] W. H. Dixon.

6. To set down in musical characters.

To note a bill or draft, to record on the back of it a refusal of acceptance, as the ground of a protest, which is done officially by a notary.

Note”book` (?), n. 1. A book in which notes or memorandums are written.

2. A book in which notes of hand are registered.

Not”ed (?), a. Well known by reputation or report; eminent; celebrated; as, a noted author, or traveler. — Not”ed*ly, adv. — Not”ed*ness, n.

Note”ful (?), a. Useful. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Note”less, a. Not attracting notice; not conspicuous.

Noteless as the race from which he sprung.

Sir W. Scott.

Note”less*ness, n. A state of being noteless.

Note”let (?), n. A little or short note; a billet.

Note” pa`per (?). Writing paper, not exceeding in size, when folded once, five by eight inches.

Not”er (?), n. 1. One who takes notice.

2. An annotator. [Obs.]

Note”wor`thy (?), a. Worthy of observation or notice; remarkable.

Noth”er (?), conj. Neither; nor. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Noth”ing (?), n. [From no, a. + thing.]

1. Not anything; no thing (in the widest sense of the word thing); — opposed to anything and something.

Yet had his aspect nothing of severe.

Dryden.

2. Nonexistence; nonentity; absence of being; nihility; nothingness. Shak.

3. A thing of no account, value, or note; something irrelevant and impertinent; something of comparative unimportance; utter insignificance; a trifle.

Behold, ye are of nothing, and your work of nought.

Is. xli. 24.

‘T is nothing, says the fool; but, says the friend,
This nothing, sir, will bring you to your end.

Dryden.

4. (Arith.) A cipher; naught.

Nothing but, only; no more than. Chaucer. — To make nothing of. (a) To make no difficulty of; to consider as trifling or important. “We are industrious to preserve our bodies from slavery, but we make nothing of suffering our souls to be slaves to our lusts.” Ray. (b) Not to understand; as, I could make nothing of what he said.

Noth”ing, adv. In no degree; not at all; in no wise.

Adam, with such counsel nothing swayed.

Milton.

The influence of reason in producing our passions is nothing near so extensive as is commonly believed.

Burke.

Nothing off (Naut.), an order to the steersman to keep the vessel close to the wind.

Noth`ing*a”ri*an (?), n. One of no certain belief; one belonging to no particular sect.

Noth”ing*ism (?), n. Nihility; nothingness. [R.]

Noth”ing*ness, n. 1. Nihility; nonexistence.

2. The state of being of no value; a thing of no value.

No”tice (?), n. [F., fr. L. notitia a being known, knowledge, fr. noscere, notum, to know. See Know.]

1. The act of noting, remarking, or observing; observation by the senses or intellect; cognizance; note.

How ready is envy to mingle with the notices we take of other persons !

I. Watts.

2. Intelligence, by whatever means communicated; knowledge given or received; means of knowledge; express notification; announcement; warning.

I . . . have given him notice that the Duke of Cornwall and Regan his duchess will be here.

Shak.

3. An announcement, often accompanied by comments or remarks; as, book notices; theatrical notices.

4. A writing communicating information or warning.

5. Attention; respectful treatment; civility.

To take notice of, to perceive especially; to observe or treat with particular attention.

Syn. — Attention; regard; remark; note; heed; consideration; respect; civility; intelligence; advice; news.

No”tice, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Noticed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Noticing (?).] 1. To observe; to see to mark; to take note of; to heed; to pay attention to.

2. To show that one has observed; to take public note of; remark upon; to make comments on; to refer to; as, to notice a book.

This plant deserves to be noticed in this place.

Tooke.

Another circumstance was noticed in connection with the suggestion last discussed.

Sir W. Hamilton.

3. To treat with attention and civility; as, to notice strangers.

Syn. — To remark; observe; perceive; see; mark; note; mind; regard; heed; mention. See Remark.

No”tice*a*ble (?), a. Capable of being observed; worthy of notice; likely to attract observation; conspicuous.

A noticeable man, with large gray eyes.

Wordsworth.

No”tice*a*bly, adv. In a noticeable manner.

No”ti*cer (?), n. One who notices.

No`ti*da”ni*an (?), n. [Gr. &?; back + &?; comely.] (Zoöl.) Any one of several species of sharks of the family Notidanidæ, or Hexanchidæ. Called also cow sharks. See Shark.

No`ti*fi*ca”tion (?), n. [Cf. F. notification. See Notify.] 1. The act of notifying, or giving notice; the act of making known; especially, the act of giving official notice or information to the public or to individuals, corporations, companies, or societies, by words, by writing, or by other means.

2. Notice given in words or writing, or by signs.

3. The writing which communicates information; an advertisement, or citation, etc.

No”ti*fy (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Notified (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Notifying (?).] [F. notifier, L. notificare; notus known (p. p. of noscere to known) + - ficare (in comp.) to make. See Know, and -fy.]

1. To make known; to declare; to publish; as, to notify a fact to a person.

No law can bind till it be notified or promulged.

Sowth.

2. To give notice to; to inform by notice; to apprise; as, the constable has notified the citizens to meet at the city hall; the bell notifies us of the time of meeting.

The President of the United States has notified the House of Representatives that he has approved and signed the act.

Journal of the Senate, U. S.

&fist; This application of notify has been condemned; but it is in constant good use in the United States, and in perfect accordance with the use of certify.

No”tion (?), [L. notio, fr. noscere to know: cf. F. notion. See Know.] 1. Mental apprehension of whatever may be known or imagined; an idea; a conception; more properly, a general or universal conception, as distinguishable or definable by marks or notæ.

What hath been generally agreed on, I content myself to assume under the notion of principles.

Sir I. Newton.

Few agree in their notions about these words.

Cheyne.

That notion of hunger, cold, sound, color, thought, wish, or fear which is in the mind, is called the “idea” of hunger, cold, etc.

I. Watts.

Notion, again, signifies either the act of apprehending, signalizing, that is, the remarking or taking note of, the various notes, marks, or characters of an object which its qualities afford, or the result of that act.

Sir W. Hamilton.

2. A sentiment; an opinion.

The extravagant notion they entertain of themselves.

Addison.

A perverse will easily collects together a system of notions to justify itself in its obliquity.

J. H. Newman.

3. Sense; mind. [Obs.] Shak.

4. An invention; an ingenious device; a knickknack; as, Yankee notions. [Colloq.]

5. Inclination; intention; disposition; as, I have a notion to do it. [Colloq.]

No”tion*al (?), a. 1. Consisting of, or conveying, notions or ideas; expressing abstract conceptions.

2. Existing in idea only; visionary; whimsical.

Discourses of speculative and notional things.

Evelyn.

3. Given to foolish or visionary expectations; whimsical; fanciful; as, a notional man.

No`tion*al”i*ty (?), n. A notional or groundless opinion. [R.] Glanvill.

No”tion*al*ly (?), adv. In mental apprehension; in conception; not in reality.

Two faculties . . . notionally or really distinct.

Norris.

No”tion*ate (?), a. Notional. [R.]

No”tion*ist, n. One whose opinions are ungrounded notions. [R.] Bp. Hopkins.

No”tist (?), n. An annotator. [Obs.]

||No`to*bran`chi*a*ta (?), n. pl. [NL. See Notum, and Branchia.] (Zoöl.) (a) A division of nudibranchiate mollusks having gills upon the back. (b) The Dorsibranchiata.

No`to*bran”chi*ate (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Notobranchiata.

No”to*chord (?), n. [Gr. &?; the back + E. chord.] (Anat.) An elastic cartilagelike rod which is developed beneath the medullary groove in the vertebrate embryo, and constitutes the primitive axial skeleton around which the centra of the vertebræ and the posterior part of the base of the skull are developed; the chorda dorsalis. See Illust. of Ectoderm.

No`to*chor”dal (?), a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the notochord; having a notochord.

No`to*don”tian (?), n. [Gr. &?; the back + ‘odoy`s, ‘odo`ntos, a tooth.] (Zoöl.) Any one of several species of bombycid moths belonging to Notodonta, Nerice, and allied genera. The caterpillar of these moths has a hump, or spine, on its back.

||No`to*po”di*um (?), n.; pl. L. Notopodia (#), E. Notopodiums (#). [NL., fr. Gr. &?; the back + &?;, &?;, the foot.] (Zoöl.) The dorsal lobe or branch of a parapodium. See Parapodium.

No`to*rhi”zal (?), a. [Gr. &?; the back + &?; a root.] (Bot.) Having the radicle of the embryo lying against the back of one of the cotyledons; incumbent.

No`to*ri”e*ty (?), n. [Cf. F. notoriété. See Notorious.] The quality or condition of being notorious; the state of being generally or publicly known; — commonly used in an unfavorable sense; as, the notoriety of a crime.

They were not subjects in their own nature so exposed to public notoriety.

Addison.

No*to”ri*ous (?), a. [L. notorius pointing out, making known, fr. noscere, notum, to known: cf. F. notoire. See Know.] Generally known and talked of by the public; universally believed to be true; manifest to the world; evident; — usually in an unfavorable sense; as, a notorious thief; a notorious crime or vice.

Your goodness,
Since you provoke me, shall be most notorious.

Shak.

Syn. — Distinguished; remarkable; conspicuous; celebrated; noted; famous; renowned.

— No*to”ri*ous*ly, adv. — No*to”ri*ous*ness, n.

||No*tor”nis (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; the south, or southwest + &?; bird.] (Zoöl.) A genus of birds allied to the gallinules, but having rudimentary wings and incapable of flight. Notornis Mantelli was first known as a fossil bird of New Zealand, but subsequently a few individuals were found living on the southern island. It is supposed to be now nearly or quite extinct.

||No`to*the”ri*um (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; the south + &?; a wild animal.] (Zoöl.) An extinct genus of gigantic herbivorous marsupials, found in the Pliocene formation of Australia.

||No`to*tre”ma (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; back + &?; a hole.] (Zoöl.) The pouched, or marsupial, frog of South America.

{ Not”-pat`ed (?), Nott”-pat`ed }, a. Same as Nott-headed. [Obs.] Shak.

Not”self` (?), n. (Metaph.) The negative of self. “A cognizance of notself.” Sir. W. Hamilton.

Nott (?), a. [AS. hnot shorn.] Shorn. [Obs.]

Nott, v. t. To shear. [Obs.] Stow.

Nott”-head`ed (?), a. Having the hair cut close. [Obs.] Chapman.

||Not*tur”no (?), n. [It.] (Mus.) Same as Nocturne.

||No”tum (?), n.; pl. Nota (#). [NL., fr. Gr. &?;.] (Zoöl.) The back.

||No”tus (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?;.] The south wind.

Not”wheat` (?), n. [Nott + wheat.] Wheat not bearded. Carew.

Not`with*stand”ing (?), prep. Without prevention, or obstruction from or by; in spite of.

We gentil women bee
Loth to displease any wight,
Notwithstanding our great right.

Chaucer’s Dream.

Those on whom Christ bestowed miraculous cures were so transported that their gratitude made them, notwithstanding his prohibition, proclaim the wonders he had done.

Dr. H. More.

&fist; Notwithstanding was, by Johnson and Webster, viewed as a participle absolute, an English equivalent of the Latin non obstante. Its several meanings, either as preposition, adverb, or conjunction, are capable of being explained in this view. Later grammarians, while admitting that the word was originally a participle, and can be treated as such, prefer to class it as a preposition or disjunctive conjunction.

Syn. — In spite of; despite. — Notwithstanding, In spite of, Despite. These words and phrases are often interchanged, but there is a difference between them, chiefly in strength. Notwithstanding is the weaker term, and simply points to some obstacle that may exist; as, I shall go, notwithstanding the rain. In spite or despite of has reference primarily to active opposition to be encountered from others; as, “I’ll be, in man’s despite, a monarch; ” “I’ll keep mine own, despite of all the world.” Shak. Hence, these words, when applied to things, suppose greater opposition than notwithstanding. We should say. “He was thrust rudely out of doors in spite of his entreaties,” rather than “notwithstanding“. On the other hand, it would be more civil to say, “Notwithstanding all you have said, I must still differ with you.”

Not`with*stand”ing, adv. or conj. [Originally the participle of withstand, with not prefixed.] Nevertheless; however; although; as, I shall go, notwithstanding it rains.

I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant. Notwithstanding, in thy days I will not do it.

1 Kings xi. 11, 12.

They which honor the law as an image of the wisdom of God himself, are, notwithstanding, to know that the same had an end in Christ.

Hooker.

You did wisely and honestly too, notwithstanding
She is the greatest beauty in the parish.

Fielding.

Notwithstanding that, notwithstanding; although.

These days were ages to him, notwithstanding that he was basking in the smiles of the pretty Mary.

W. Irving.

Nouch (?), n. [See Ouch.] An ouch; a jewel. [Obs.] Chaucer.

||Nou`gat” (?), n. [F.] A cake, sweetmeat, or confectión made with almonds or other nuts.

Nought (?), n. & adv. See Naught. Chaucer.

Nould (?). [Contr. fr. ne would.] Would not. [Obs.] “By those who nould repent.” Fairfax.

Noule (?), n. [See Noll.] The top of the head; the head or noll. [Obs.] Spenser.

Nou”me*nal (?), a. (Metaph.) Of or pertaining to the noumenon; real; — opposed to phenomenal. G. H. Lewes.

||Nou”me*non (?), n. [NL. fr. Gr. &?; the thing perceived, p. pr. pass. of &?; to perceive, &?; the mind.] (Metaph.) The of itself unknown and unknowable rational object, or thing in itself, which is distinguished from the phenomenon through which it is apprehended by the senses, and by which it is interpreted and understood; — so used in the philosophy of Kant and his followers.

Noun (?), n. [OF. noun, nun, num, non, nom, F. nom, fr. L. nomen name. See Name.] (Gram.) A word used as the designation or appellation of a creature or thing, existing in fact or in thought; a substantive.

&fist; By some grammarians the term noun is so used as to include adjectives, as being descriptive; but in general it is limited to substantives.

Noun”al (?), a. Of or pertaining to a noun.

Verbs which in whole or in part have shed their old nounal coat.

Earle.

Noun”ize (?), v. t. To change (an adjective, verb, etc.) into a noun. Earle.

Nour”ice (?), n. A nurse. [Obs.] Spenser.

Nour”ish (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nourished (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nourishing.] [OE. norisen, norischen, OF. nurir, nurrir, norir, F. norrir, fr. L. nutrire. Cf. Nurse, Nutriment, and see - ish.]

1. To feed and cause to grow; to supply with matter which increases bulk or supplies waste, and promotes health; to furnish with nutriment.

He planteth an ash, and the rain doth nourish it.

Is. xliv. 14.

2. To support; to maintain.

Whiles I in Ireland nourish a mighty band.

Shak.

3. To supply the means of support and increase to; to encourage; to foster; as, to nourish rebellion; to nourish the virtues. “Nourish their contentions.” Hooker.

4. To cherish; to comfort.

Ye have nourished your hearts.

James v. 5.

5. To educate; to instruct; to bring up; to nurture; to promote the growth of in attainments. Chaucer.

Nourished up in the words of faith.

1 Tim. iv. 6.

Syn. — To cherish; feed; supply. See Nurture.

Nour”ish, v. i. 1. To promote growth; to furnish nutriment.

Grains and roots nourish more than their leaves.

Bacon.

2. To gain nourishment. [R.] Bacon.

Nour”ish, n. A nurse. [Obs.] Hoolland.

Nour”ish*a*ble (?), a. [Cf. F. nourrissable.]

1. Capable of being nourished; as, the nourishable parts of the body. Grew.

2. Capable of giving nourishment. [Obs.] Bp. Hall.

Nour”ish*er (?), n. One who, or that which, nourishes. Milton.

Nour”ish*ing, a. Promoting growth; nutritious,

Nour”ish*ing*ly, adv. Nutritively; cherishingly.

Nour”ish*ment (?), n. [Cf. OF. norrissement.]

1. The act of nourishing, or the state of being nourished; nutrition.

2. That which serves to nourish; nutriment; food.

Learn to seek the nourishment of their souls.

Hooker.

Nour”i*ture (?), n. Nurture. [Obs.] Spenser.

Nour”sle (?), v. t. [Freq., fr. OE. nourse. See Nurse.] To nurse; to rear; to bring up. [Obs.] [Written also nosel, nousel, nousle, nowsle, nusle, nuzzle, etc.]

She noursled him till years he raught.

Spenser.

||Nous (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; mind.] Intellect; understanding; talent; — used humorously.

{ Nous”el, Nou”sle } (?), v. t. [See Noose.] To insnare; to entrap. [Obs.] Johnson.

{ Nou”the, Now”the (?) }, adv. [Now + the.] Just now; at present. [Obs.]

But thereof needeth not to speak as nouthe.

Chaucer.

No*vac”u*lite (?), n. [L. novacula a sharp knife, razor: cf. F. novaculite.] (Min.) A variety of siliceous slate, of which hones are made; razor stone; Turkey stone; hone stone; whet slate.

No*va”tian (?), n. (Eccl. Hist.) One of the sect of Novatius, or Novatianus, who held that the lapsed might not be received again into communion with the church, and that second marriages are unlawful.

No*va”tian*ism (?), n. The doctrines or principles of the Novatians. Milner.

No*va”tion (?), n. [L. novatio; novus new: cf. F. novation.] 1. Innovation. [Obs.]

I shall easily grant that novations in religion are a main cause of distempers in commonwealths.

Laud.

2. (Law) A substitution of a new debt for an old one; also, the remodeling of an old obligation.

No*va”tor (?), n. An innovator. [Obs.]

Nov”el (?), a. [OF. novel, nuvel, F. nouvel, nouveau, L. novellus, dim. of novus new. See New.] Of recent origin or introduction; not ancient; new; hence, out of the ordinary course; unusual; strange; surprising.

&fist; In civil law, the novel or new constitutions are those which are supplemental to the code, and posterior in time to the other books. These contained new decrees of successive emperors.

Novel assignment (Law), a new assignment or specification of a suit.

Syn. — New; recent; modern; fresh; strange; uncommon; rare; unusual. — Novel, New . Everything at its first occurrence is new; that is novel which is so much out of the ordinary course as to strike us with surprise. That is a new sight which is beheld for the first time; that is a novel sight which either was never seen before or is seen but seldom. We have daily new inventions, but a novel one supposes some very peculiar means of attaining its end. Novel theories are regarded with distrust, as likely to prove more ingenious than sound.

Nov”el, n. [F. nouvelle. See Novel, a.]

1. That which is new or unusual; a novelty.

2. pl. News; fresh tidings. [Obs.]

Some came of curiosity to hear some novels.

Latimer.

3. A fictitious tale or narrative, professing to be conformed to real life; esp., one intended to exhibit the operation of the passions, and particularly of love. Dryden.

4. [L. novellae (sc. constitutiones): cf. F. novelles.] (Law) A new or supplemental constitution. See the Note under Novel, a.

Nov`el*ette” (?), n. [Dim. of novel, n. See Novel.] A short novel.

Nov”el*ism (?), n. Innovation. [Obs.]

Nov”el*ist, n. 1. An innovator; an asserter of novelty. [Obs.] Cudworth.

2. [Cf. F. nouvelliste, It. novellista.] A writer of news. [Obs.] Tatler (178).

3. [Cf. F. nouvelliste.] A writer of a novel or novels.

Nov”el*ize (?), v. i. To innovate. [Obs.]

Nov”el*ize, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Novelized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Novelizing (?).] 1. To innovate. [Obs.]

2. To put into the form of novels; to represent by fiction. “To novelize history.” Sir J. Herschel.

Nov”el*ry (?), n. [OF. novelerie.] Novelty; new things. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Nov”el*ty (?), n.; pl. Novelties (#). [OF. novelté, F. nouveauté, L. novellitas.]

1. The quality or state of being novel; newness; freshness; recentness of origin or introduction.

Novelty is the great parent of pleasure.

South.

2. Something novel; a new or strange thing.

No*vem”ber (?), n. [L. November, or Novembris (sc. mensis), the ninth month of the old Roman year, which began with March, fr. novem nine: cf. F. Novembre. See Nine.] The eleventh month of the year, containing thirty days.

Nov”e*na*ry (?), a. [L. novenarius, from novem nine.] Of or pertaining to the number nine.

Nov”e*na*ry, n. The number of nine units; nine, collectively.

No”vene (?), a. [L. novenus nine each, in LL., ninth, fr. L. novem nine.] Relating to, or dependent on, the number nine; novenary. [R.]

The triple and novene division ran throughout.

Milman.

No*ven”ni*al (?), a. [L. novennis of nine years; novem nine + annus year.] Done or recurring every ninth year.

No*ver”cal (?), a. [L. novennis of nine years; novem nine + annus year.] Done or recurring every ninth year.

No*ver”cal (?), a. [L. novercalis, from noverca a stepmother.] Of or pertaining to a stepmother; suitable to, or in the manner of, a stepmother. Derham.

Nov”ice (?), n. [F., from L. novicius, novitius, new, from novus new. See New, and cf. Novitious.]

1. One who is new in any business, profession, or calling; one unacquainted or unskilled; one yet in the rudiments; a beginner; a tyro.

I am young; a novice in the trade.

Dryden.

2. One newly received into the church, or one newly converted to the Christian faith. 1 Tim. iii. 6.

3. (Eccl.) One who enters a religious house, whether of monks or nuns, as a probationist. Shipley.

No poore cloisterer, nor no novys.

Chaucer.

Nov”ice, a. Like a novice; becoming a novice. [Obs.]

Nov”ice*ship (?), n. The state of being a novice; novitiate.

No`vi*lu”nar (?), a. [L. novus new + luna the moon.] Of or pertaining to the new moon. [R.]

No*vi”ti*ate (?), n. [LL. novitiatus: cf. F. noviciat.]

1. The state of being a novice; time of initiation or instruction in rudiments.

2. Hence: Time of probation in a religious house before taking the vows.

3. One who is going through a novitiate, or period of probation; a novice. Addison.

4. The place where novices live or are trained. [R.]

No*vi”tious (?), a. [L. novitius, novicius.] Newly invented; recent; new. [Obs.] Bp. Pearson.

Nov”i*ty (?), n. [L. novitas, fr. novus new.] Newness; novelty. [Obs.] Sir T. Browne.

No”vum (?), n. A game at dice, properly called novem quinque (L., nine five), the two principal throws being nine and five. [Obs.] Shak.

Now (?), adv. [OE. nou, nu, AS. nū, nu; akin to D., OS., & OHG. nu, G. nu, nun, Icel., nū, Dan., Sw., & Goth. nu, L. nunc, Gr. &?;, &?;, Skr. nu, nū. √193. Cf. New.]

1. At the present time; at this moment; at the time of speaking; instantly; as, I will write now.

I have a patient now living, at an advanced age, who discharged blood from his lungs thirty years ago.

Arbuthnot.

2. Very lately; not long ago.

They that but now, for honor and for plate,
Made the sea blush with blood, resign their hate.

Waller.

3. At a time contemporaneous with something spoken of or contemplated; at a particular time referred to.

The ship was now in the midst of the sea.

Matt. xiv. 24.

4. In present circumstances; things being as they are; — hence, used as a connective particle, to introduce an inference or an explanation.

How shall any man distinguish now betwixt a parasite and a man of honor ?

L’Estrange.

Why should he live, now nature bankrupt is ?

Shak.

Then cried they all again, saying, Not this man, but Barabbas. Now, Barabbas was a robber.

John xviii. 40.

The other great and undoing mischief which befalls men is, by their being misrepresented. Now, by calling evil good, a man is misrepresented to others in the way of slander.

South.

Now and again, now and then; occasionally. — Now and now, again and again; repeatedly. [Obs.] Chaucer. — Now and then, at one time and another; indefinitely; occasionally; not often; at intervals. “A mead here, there a heath, and now and then a wood.” Drayton. — Now now, at this very instant; precisely now. [Obs.] “Why, even now now, at holding up of this finger, and before the turning down of this.” J. Webster (1607). — Now . . . now, alternately; at one time . . . at another time. “Now high, now low, now master up, now miss.” Pope.

Now, a. Existing at the present time; present. [R.] “Our now happiness.” Glanvill.

Now, n. The present time or moment; the present.

Nothing is there to come, and nothing past;
But an eternal now does ever last.

Cowley.

Now”a*days` (?), adv. [For now on (OE. an) days. See A-, 1.] In these days; at the present time.

What men of spirit, nowadays,
Come to give sober judgment of new plays ?

Garrick.

{ No”way` (?), No”ways` (?), } adv. [No, a. + way. Cf. - wards.] In no manner or degree; not at all; nowise.

But Ireland will noways allow that name unto it.

Fuller.

Nowch (?), n. See Nouch. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Nowd (?), n. (Zoöl.) The European gray gurnard (Trigla gurnardus). [Written also knoud.]

Now”ed (?), a. [F. noué, p. p. of nouer to knot, fr. L. nodare. See Nodated.] (Her.) Knotted; tied in a knot, as a serpent.

Now”el (?), n. [See Noel.] [Written also noël.]

1. Christmas; also, a shout of joy at Christmas for the birth of the Savior. [Obs.]

2. (Mus.) A kind of hymn, or canticle, of mediæval origin, sung in honor of the Nativity of our Lord; a Christmas carol. Grove.

Now”el, n. [F. noyau, prop., a kernel. See Noyau, Newel a post.] (Founding) (a) The core, or the inner part, of a mold for casting a large hollow object. (b) The bottom part of a mold or of a flask, in distinction from the cope; the drag.

Nowes (?), n. pl. [From OF. nous. See Noose, Node.] The marriage knot. [Obs.] Crashaw.

No”where` (?), adv. [AS. nāhw&aemacr;r. See No, and Where.] Not anywhere; not in any place or state; as, the book is nowhere to be found.

No”whith`er (?), adv. [No + whither.] Not anywhither; in no direction; nowhere. [Archaic] “Thy servant went nowhither.” 2 Kings v. 25.

No”wise` (?), adv. [For in no wise. See Wise, n.] Not in any manner or degree; in no way; noways.

Others whose case is nowise different.

Earle.

Nowt (?), n. pl. (Zoöl.) Neat cattle.

Now”the (?). See Nouthe. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Nox”ious (?), a. [L. noxius, fr. noxa harm; akin to nocere to harm, hurt. Cf. Nuisance, Necromancy.]

1. Hurtful; harmful; baneful; pernicious; injurious; destructive; unwholesome; insalubrious; as, noxious air, food, or climate; pernicious; corrupting to morals; as, noxious practices or examples.

Too frequent an appearance in places of public resort is noxious to spiritual promotions.

Swift.

2. Guilty; criminal. [R.]

Those who are noxious in the eye of the law.

Abp. Bramhall.

Syn. — Noisome; hurtful; harmful; injurious; destructive; pernicious; mischievous; corrupting; baneful; unwholesome; insalubrious. See Noisome.

— Nox”ious*ly, adv. — Nox”ious*ness, n.

Noy (?), v. t. [See Annoy.] To annoy; to vex. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.] Piers Plowman.

All that noyed his heavy spright.

Spenser.

Noy, n. That which annoys. [Obs.] Piers Plowman.

Noy”ance (?), n. Annoyance. [Obs.] Spenser.

||Noy`au” (?), n. [F., prop., the stone or nut of a fruit, fr. L. nucalis like a nut. See Newel a post.] A cordial of brandy, etc., flavored with the kernel of the bitter almond, or of the peach stone, etc.

Noy”er (?), n. An annoyer. [Obs.] Tusser.

Noy”ful (?), a. Full of annoyance. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Noyls (?), n. pl. See Noils.

Noy”ous (?), a. Annoying; disagreeable. [Obs.]

Watch the noyous night, and wait for &?; yous day.

Spenser.

No”zle (?), n. Nozzle. [Obs.]

Noz”zle (?), n. [A dim. of nose. √261] [Written also nosle.] 1. The nose; the snout; hence, the projecting vent of anything; as, the nozzle of a bellows.

2. Specifically: (a) A short tube, usually tapering, forming the vent of a hose or pipe. (b) A short outlet, or inlet, pipe projecting from the end or side of a hollow vessel, as a steam-engine cylinder or a steam boiler.

||Nu`ance” (?), n. [F.] A shade of difference; a delicate gradation.

Nub (?), v. t. [Cf. Knob.] To push; to nudge; also, to beckon. [Prov. Eng.]

Nub, n. A jag, or snag; a knob; a protuberance; also, the point or gist, as of a story. [Colloq.]

Nub”bin (?), n. A small or imperfect ear of maize. [Colloq. U. S.]

Nub”ble (?), v. t. [Cf. LG. nubben to knock, cuff.] To beat or bruise with the fist. [Obs.] Ainsworth.

||Nu*bec”u*la (?), n.; pl. Nubeculæ (-lē). [L., dim. of nubes cloud.] 1. (Astron.) (a) A nebula. (b) pl. Specifically, the Magellanic clouds.

2. (Med.) (a) A slight spot on the cornea. (b) A cloudy object or appearance in urine. Dunglison.

Nu”bi*a (?), n. [From L. nubes cloud.] A light fabric of wool, worn on the head by women; a cloud.

Nu”bi*an (?), a. Of or pertaining to Nubia in Eastern Africa. — n. A native of Nubia.

Nu*bif”er*ous (?), a. [L. nubifer; nubes cloud + ferre to bear: cf. F. nubifère.] Bringing, or producing, clouds.

Nu*big”e*nous (?), a. [L. nubes cloud + -genous.] Born of, or produced from, clouds. [R.]

Nu”bi*late (?), v. t. [L. nubilatus, p. p. of nubilare to cloud, fr. nubes cloud.] To cloud. [Obs.]

Nu”bile (?), a. [L. nubilis, fr. nubere to marry: cf. F. nubile. See Nuptial.] Of an age suitable for marriage; marriageable. Prior.

Nu*bil”i*ty (?), n. [Cf. F. nubilité .] The state of being marriageable. [R.]

{ Nu”bi*lose` (?), Nu”bi*lous (?), } a. [L. nubilosus, nubilus, fr. nubes cloud.] Cloudy. [R.]

Nu”ca*ment (?), n. [L. nucamenta fir cones, fr. nux, nucis, a nut.] (Bot.) A catkin or ament; the flower cluster of the hazel, pine, willow, and the like.

Nu`ca*men*ta”ceous (?), a. [See Nucament.] (Bot.) Like a nut either in structure or in being indehiscent; bearing one-seeded nutlike fruits. [Written also nucumentaceous.]

||Nu*cel”lus (?), n.; pl. Nucelli (#). [NL., dim. of nux, nucis, a nut.] (Bot.) See Nucleus, 3 (a).

||Nu”cha (?), n.; pl. Nuch&?; (#). [LL.] (Zoöl.) The back or upper part of the neck; the nape.

Nu”chal (?), a. [Cf. F. nucal.] (Anat.) Of, pertaining to, or in the region of, the back, or nape, of the neck; — applied especially to the anterior median plate in the carapace of turtles.

Nu*cif”er*ous (?), a. [L. nux, nucis, nut + -ferous.] Bearing, or producing, nuts.

Nu”ci*form (?), a. [L. nux, nucis, nut + -form.] (Bot.) Shaped like a nut; nut-shaped.

Nu”cin (?), n. [L. nux, nucis, a nut.] (Chem.) See Juglone.

{ Nu”cle*al (?), Nu”cle*ar (?), } a. Of or pertaining to a nucleus; as, the nuclear spindle (see Illust. of Karyokinesis) or the nuclear fibrils of a cell; the nuclear part of a comet, etc.

Nu”cle*ate (?), a. [L. nucleatus having a kernel.] Having a nucleus; nucleated.

Nu”cle*ate (?), v. t. [Cf. L. nucleare to become kernelly.] To gather, as about a nucleus or center.

Nu”cle*a`ted (?), a. Having a nucleus; nucleate; as, nucleated cells.

Nu*cle”i*form (?), a. [L. nucleus kernel + -form.] Formed like a nucleus or kernel.

Nu”cle*in (?), n. (Physiol. Chem.) A constituent of the nuclei of all cells. It is a colorless amorphous substance, readily soluble in alkaline fluids and especially characterized by its comparatively large content of phosphorus. It also contains nitrogen and sulphur.

Nu”cle*o*branch (?), a. (Zoöl.) Belonging to the Nucleobranchiata. — n. One of the Nucleobranchiata.

||Nu`cle*o*bran`chi*a”ta (?), n. pl. [NL. See Nucleus, and Branchia] (Zoöl.) See Heteropoda.

||Nu`cle*o*id`i*o*plas”ma (?), n. [NL. See Nucleus, and Idioplasma.] (Biol.) Hyaline plasma contained in the nucleus of vegetable cells.

Nu*cle”o*lar (?), a. (Biol.) Of or pertaining to the nucleolus of a cell.

Nu”cle*o*la`ted (?), a. Having a nucleole, or second inner nucleus.

Nu”cle*ole (?), n. [See Nucleolus.] The nucleus within a nucleus; nucleolus.

Nu*cle”o*lus (?), n.; pl. Nucleoli (#). [L., a little nut, dim. of nucleus.]

1. A little nucleus.

2. (Biol.) A small rounded body contained in the nucleus of a cell or a protozoan.

&fist; It was termed by Agassiz the entoblast. In the protozoa, where it may be situated on one side of the nucleus, it is sometimes called the endoplastule, and is supposed to be concerned in the male part of the reproductive process. See Nucleus.

Nu”cle*o*plasm (?), n. [Nucleus + -plasm.] (Biol.) The matter composing the nucleus of a cell; the protoplasm of the nucleus; karyoplasma.

Nu`cle*o*plas”mic (?), a. (Biol.) Of or pertaining to nucleoplasm; — esp. applied to a body formed in the developing ovum from the plasma of the nucleus of the germinal vesicle.

Nu”cle*us (?), n.; pl. E. Nucleuses (#), L. Nuclei (#). [L., a kernel, dim. fr. nux, nucis, nut. Cf. Newel post.]

1. A kernel; hence, a central mass or point about which matter is gathered, or to which accretion is made; the central or material portion; — used both literally and figuratively.

It must contain within itself a nucleus of truth.

I. Taylor.

2. (Astron.) The body or the head of a comet.

3. (Bot.) (a) An incipient ovule of soft cellular tissue. (b) A whole seed, as contained within the seed coats.

4. (Biol.) A body, usually spheroidal, in a cell or a protozoan, distinguished from the surrounding protoplasm by a difference in refrangibility and in behavior towards chemical reagents. It is more or less protoplasmic, and consists of a clear fluid (achromatin) through which extends a network of fibers (chromatin) in which may be suspended a second rounded body, the nucleolus (see Nucleoplasm). See Cell division, under Division.

&fist; The nucleus is sometimes termed the endoplast or endoblast, and in the protozoa is supposed to be concerned in the female part of the reproductive process. See Karyokinesis.

5. (Zoöl.) (a) The tip, or earliest part, of a univalve or bivalve shell. (b) The central part around which additional growths are added, as of an operculum. (c) A visceral mass, containing the stomach and other organs, in Tunicata and some mollusks.

||Nu”cu*la (?), n. [L., little nut, dim. of nux, nucis, a nut.] (Zoöl.) A genus of small marine bivalve shells, having a pearly interior.

Nu”cule (nū“k&usl;l), n. [L. nucula a small nut.] (Bot.) Same as Nutlet.

Nu`cu*men*ta”ceous (?), a. (Bot.) See Nucamentaceous.

Nu*da”tion (?), n. [L. nudatio, fr. nudare to make naked, fr. nudus naked. See Nude.] The act of stripping, or making bare or naked.

Nud”dle (?), v. i. To walk quickly with the head bent forward; — often with along. [Prov. Eng.]

Nude (?), a. [L. nudus. See Naked.]

1. Bare; naked; unclothed; undraped; as, a nude statue.

2. (Law) Naked; without consideration; void; as, a nude contract. See Nudum pactum. Blackstone.

The nude, the undraped human figure in art.

— Nude”ly, adv.- Nude”ness, n.

Nudge (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nudge&?; (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nudging.] [Cf. Prov. G. knütschen to squeeze, pinch, E. Knock.] To touch gently, as with the elbow, in order to call attention or convey intimation.

Nudge (?), n. A gentle push, or jog, as with the elbow.

Nu`di*brach”i*ate (?), a. [L. nudus naked + brachium an arm.] (Zoöl.) Having tentacles without vibratile cilia. Carpenter.

Nu”di*branch (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Nudibranchiata. — n. One of the Nudibranchiata.

||Nu`di*bran`chi*a”ta (?), n. pl. [NL. See Nude, and Branchia.] (Zoöl.) A division of opisthobranchiate mollusks, having no shell except while very young. The gills are naked and situated upon the back or sides. See Ceratobranchia.

Nu`di*bran”chi*ate (?), a. & n. (Zoöl.) Same as Nudibranch.

Nu”di*caul (?), a. [L. nudus naked + caulis stem.] (Bot.) Having the stems leafless.

Nu`di*fi*ca”tion (?), n. [L. nudus naked + ficare (in comp.) to make. See fy.] The act of making nude.

Nu”di*ty (?), n.; pl. Nudities (#). [Cf. F. nudité .]

1. The quality or state of being nude; nakedness.

2. That which is nude or naked; naked part; undraped or unclothed portion; esp. (Fine Arts), the human figure represented unclothed; any representation of nakedness; — chiefly used in the plural and in a bad sense.

There are no such licenses permitted in poetry any more than in painting, to design and color obscene nudities.

Dryden.

||Nu”dum pac”tum (?). [L., a nude pact.] (Law) A bare, naked contract, without any consideration. Tomlins.

Nu*gac”i*ty (?), n. [L. nugacitas, fr. nugax, -acis, trifling.] Futility; trifling talk or behavior; drollery. [R.] Dr. H. More.

||Nu”gæ (?), n. pl. [L.] Trifles; jests.

Nu*ga”tion (?), n. [Cf. OF. nugation.] The act or practice of trifling. [R.] Bacon.

Nu”ga*to*ry (?), a. [L. nugatorius, fr. nugari to trifle, nugae jests, trifles.]

1. Trifling; vain; futile; insignificant.

2. Of no force; inoperative; ineffectual.

If all are pardoned, and pardoned as a mere act of clemency, the very substance of government is made nugatory.

I. Taylor.

Nug”get (?), n. [Earlier niggot, prob. for nigot, an ingot. See Ingot.] A lump; a mass, esp. a native lump of a precious metal; as, a nugget of gold.

Nu”gi*fy (?), v. t. [L. nuggae trifles + -fy.] To render trifling or futile; to make silly. [R.] Coleridge.

Nui”sance (?), n. [OE. noisance, OF. noisance, nuisance, fr. L. nocentia guilt, fr. nocere to hurt, harm; akin to necare to kill. Cf Necromancy, Nocent, Noxious, Pernicious.] That which annoys or gives trouble and vexation; that which is offensive or noxious.

&fist; Nuisances are public when they annoy citizens in general; private, when they affect individuals only.

Nui”san*cer (?), n. (Law) One who makes or causes a nuisance.

Nul (?), a. [F. See Null, a.] (Law) No; not any; as, nul disseizin; nul tort.

Null (?), a. [L. nullus not any, none; ne not + ullus any, a dim. of unus one; cf. F. nul. See No, and One, and cf. None.] Of no legal or binding force or validity; of no efficacy; invalid; void; nugatory; useless.

Faultily faultless, icily regular, splendidly null,
Dead perfection; no more.

Tennyson.

Null, n. 1. Something that has no force or meaning.

2. That which has no value; a cipher; zero. Bacon.

Null method (Physics.), a zero method. See under Zero.

Null, v. t. [From null, a., or perh. abbrev. from annul.] To annul. [Obs.] Milton.

Null, n. [Etymol. uncertain.] One of the beads in nulled work.

Nulled (?), a. Turned so as to resemble nulls.

Nulled work (Cabinetwork), ornamental turned work resembling nulls or beads strung on a rod.

Nul`li*bi”e*ty (?), n. [L. nullibi nowhere.] The state or condition of being nowhere. [Obs.]

Nul`li*fi*ca”tion (?), n. [L. nullificatio contempt. See Nullify.] The act of nullifying; a rendering void and of no effect, or of no legal effect.

Right of nullification (U. S. Hist.), the right claimed in behalf of a State to nullify or make void, by its sovereign act or decree, an enactment of the general government which it deems unconstitutional.

Nul`li*fid”i*an (?), a. [L. nullus none + fide&?; faith.] Of no faith; also, not trusting to faith for salvation; — opposed to solifidian. Feltham.

Nul`li*fid”i*an, n. An unbeliever. B. Jonson.

Nul”li*fi`er (?), n. One who nullifies or makes void; one who maintains the right to nullify a contract by one of the parties.

Nul”li*fy (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nullified (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nullifying (?).] [L. nullificare; nullus none + -ficare (in comp.) to make. See Null, a., and -fy.] To make void; to render invalid; to deprive of legal force or efficacy.

Such correspondence would at once nullify the conditions of the probationary system.

I. Taylor.

Syn. — To abrogate; revoke; annul; repeal; invalidate; cancel. See Abolish.

Nul”li*pore (?), n. [L. nullus none + porus pope.] (Bot.) A name for certain crustaceous marine algæ which secrete carbonate of lime on their surface, and were formerly thought to be of animal nature. They are now considered corallines of the genera Melobesia and Lithothamnion.

Nul”li*ty (?), n.; pl. Nullities. [LL. nullitias, fr. L. nullus none: cf. F. nullité . See Null.]

1. The quality or state of being null; nothingness; want of efficacy or force.

2. (Law) Nonexistence; as, a decree of nullity of marriage is a decree that no legal marriage exists.

3. That which is null.

Was it not absurd to say that the convention was supreme in the state, and yet a nullity ?

Macaulay.

Numb (?), a. [OE. nume, nome, prop., seized, taken, p. p. of nimen to take, AS. niman, p. p. numen. √7. See Nimble, Nomad, and cf. Benumb.]

1. Enfeebled in, or destitute of, the power of sensation and motion; rendered torpid; benumbed; insensible; as, the fingers or limbs are numb with cold. “A stony image, cold and numb.” Shak.

2. Producing numbness; benumbing; as, the numb, cold night. [Obs.] Shak.

Numb, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Numbed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Numbing (?).] To make numb; to deprive of the power of sensation or motion; to render senseless or inert; to deaden; to benumb; to stupefy.

For lazy winter numbs the laboring hand.

Dryden.

Like dull narcotics, numbing pain.

Tennyson.

Numb”ed*ness (?), n. Numbness. [Obs.] Wiseman.

Num”ber (?), n. [OE. nombre, F. nombre, L. numerus; akin to Gr. &?; that which is dealt out, fr. &?; to deal out, distribute. See Numb, Nomad, and cf. Numerate, Numero, Numerous.] 1. That which admits of being counted or reckoned; a unit, or an aggregate of units; a numerable aggregate or collection of individuals; an assemblage made up of distinct things expressible by figures.

2. A collection of many individuals; a numerous assemblage; a multitude; many.

Ladies are always of great use to the party they espouse, and never fail to win over numbers.

Addison.

3. A numeral; a word or character denoting a number; as, to put a number on a door.

4. Numerousness; multitude.

Number itself importeth not much in armies where the people are of weak courage.

Bacon.

5. The state or quality of being numerable or countable.

Of whom came nations, tribes, people, and kindreds out of number.

2 Esdras iii. 7.

6. Quantity, regarded as made up of an aggregate of separate things.

7. That which is regulated by count; poetic measure, as divisions of time or number of syllables; hence, poetry, verse; — chiefly used in the plural.

I lisped in numbers, for the numbers came.

Pope.

8. (Gram.) The distinction of objects, as one, or more than one (in some languages, as one, or two, or more than two), expressed (usually) by a difference in the form of a word; thus, the singular number and the plural number are the names of the forms of a word indicating the objects denoted or referred to by the word as one, or as more than one.

9. (Math.) The measure of the relation between quantities or things of the same kind; that abstract species of quantity which is capable of being expressed by figures; numerical value.

Abstract number, Abundant number, Cardinal number, etc. See under Abstract, Abundant, etc. — In numbers, in numbered parts; as, a book published in numbers.

Num”ber, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Numbered (?); p. pr & vb. n. Numbering.] [OE. nombren, noumbren, F. nombrer, fr. L. numerare, numeratum. See Number, n.]

1. To count; to reckon; to ascertain the units of; to enumerate.

If a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered.

Gen. xiii. 16.

2. To reckon as one of a collection or multitude.

He was numbered with the transgressors.

Is. liii. 12.

3. To give or apply a number or numbers to; to assign the place of in a series by order of number; to designate the place of by a number or numeral; as, to number the houses in a street, or the apartments in a building.

4. To amount; to equal in number; to contain; to consist of; as, the army numbers fifty thousand.

Thy tears can not number the dead.

Campbell.

Numbering machine, a machine for printing consecutive numbers, as on railway tickets, bank bills, etc.

Syn. — To count; enumerate; calculate; tell.

Num”ber*er (?), n. One who numbers.

Num”ber*ful (?), a. Numerous. [Obs.]

Num”ber*less, a. Innumerable; countless.

Num”ber*ous (?), a. Numerous. [Obs.] Drant.

Num”bers (?), n. pl. of Number. The fourth book of the Pentateuch, containing the census of the Hebrews.

Numb”fish` (?), n. (Zoöl.) The torpedo, which numbs by the electric shocks which it gives.

Num”bless (?), n. pl. See Nombles.

Numb”ness (?), n. The condition of being numb; that state of a living body in which it loses, wholly or in part, the power of feeling or motion.

Nu”mer*a*ble (?), a. [L. numerabilis. See Number, v. t.] Capable of being numbered or counted.

Nu”mer*al (?), a. [L. numeralis, fr. numerus number: cf. F. numéral. See Number, n.]

1. Of or pertaining to number; consisting of number or numerals.

A long train of numeral progressions.

Locke.

2. Expressing number; representing number; as, numeral letters or characters, as X or 10 for ten.

Nu”mer*al, n. 1. A figure or character used to express a number; as, the Arabic numerals, 1, 2, 3, etc.; the Roman numerals, I, V, X, L, etc.

2. A word expressing a number.

Nu”mer*al*ly, adv. According to number; in number; numerically.

Nu”mer*a*ry (?), a. [LL. numerarius: cf. F. numéraire.] Belonging to a certain number; counting as one of a collection or body.

A supernumerary canon, when he obtains a prebend, becomes a numerary canon.

Ayliffe.

Nu”mer*ate (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Numerated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Numerating (?).] [L. numeratus, p. p. of numerare to count. See Number, v.] (Arith.) To divide off and read according to the rules of numeration; as, to numerate a row of figures.

Nu`mer*a”tion (?), n. [L. numeratio a counting out: cf. F. numération.] 1. The act or art of numbering.

Numeration is but still the adding of one unit more, and giving to the whole a new name or sign.

Locke.

2. The act or art of reading numbers when expressed by means of numerals. The term is almost exclusively applied to the art of reading numbers written in the scale of tens, by the Arabic method. Davies & Peck.

&fist; For convenience in reading, numbers are usually separated by commas into periods of three figures each, as 1,155,465. According to what is called the “English” system, the billion is a million of millions, a trillion a million of billions, and each higher denomination is a million times the one preceding. According to the system of the French and other Continental nations and also that of the United States, the billion is a thousand millions, and each higher denomination is a thousand times the preceding.

Nu”mer*a*tive (?), a. Of or pertaining to numeration; as, a numerative system. Eng. Cyc.

Nu”mer*a”tor (?), n. [L. numerator: cf. F. numérateur.]

1. One who numbers.

2. (Math.) The term in a fraction which indicates the number of fractional units that are taken.

&fist; In a vulgar fraction the numerator is written above a line; thus, in the fraction &frac59; (five ninths) 5 is the numerator; in a decimal fraction it is the number which follows the decimal point. See Fraction.

{ Nu*mer”ic (?), Nu*mer”ic*al (?), } a. [Cf. F. numérique. See Number, n.]

1. Belonging to number; denoting number; consisting in numbers; expressed by numbers, and not letters; as, numerical characters; a numerical equation; a numerical statement.

&fist; Numerical, as opposed to algebraical, is used to denote a value irrespective of its sign; thus, -5 is numerically greater than -3, though algebraically less.

2. The same in number; hence, identically the same; identical; as, the same numerical body. [Obs.] South.

Would to God that all my fellow brethren, which with me bemoan the loss of their books, . . . might rejoice for the recovery thereof, though not the same numerical volumes.

Fuller.

Numerical equation (Alg.), an equation which has all the quantities except the unknown expressed in numbers; — distinguished from literal equation. — Numerical value of an equation or expression, that deduced by substituting numbers for the letters, and reducing.

Nu*mer”ic, n. (Math.) Any number, proper or improper fraction, or incommensurable ratio. The term also includes any imaginary expression like m + n√- 1, where m and n are real numerics.

Nu*mer”ic*al*ly, adv. In a numerical manner; in numbers; with respect to number, or sameness in number; as, a thing is numerically the same, or numerically different.

Nu”mer*ist (?), n. One who deals in numbers. [Obs.] Sir T. Browne.

Nu”me*ro (?), n. [It., or F. numéro ; both fr. L. numerus number.] Number; — often abbrev. No.

Nu`mer*os”i*ty (?), n. [L. numerositas.]

1. The state of being numerous; numerousness. [Obs.]

2. Rhythm; harmony; flow. [Obs.]

The numerosity of the sentence pleased the ear.

S. Parr.

Nu”mer*ous (?), a. [L. numerosus. See Number.]

1. Consisting of a great number of units or individual objects; being many; as, a numerous army.

Such and so numerous was their chivalry.

Milton.

2. Consisting of poetic numbers; rhythmical; measured and counted; melodious; musical. [Obs.]

Such prompt eloquence
Flowed from their lips, in prose or numerous verse.

Milton.

— Nu”mer*ous*ly, adv. — Nu”mer*ous*ness, n.

Nu*mid”i*an (?), a. Of or pertaining to ancient Numidia in Northern Africa.

Numidian crane. (Zoöl.) See Demoiselle, 2.

{ Nu`mis*mat”ic (?), Nu`mis*mat”ic*al (?), } a. [L. numisma, nomisma, a piece of money, coin, fr. Gr. &?; anything sanctioned by usage, the current coin, fr. &?; to introduce a custom, or usage, fr. &?; a custom, or usage, fr. &?; to distribute, assign: cf. F. numismatique. See Nomad.] Of or pertaining to coins; relating to the science of coins or medals.

Nu`mis*mat”ics (?), n. [Cf. F. numismatique.] The science of coins and medals.

Nu*mis”ma*tist (?), n. One skilled in numismatics; a numismatologist.

Nu*mis`ma*tog”ra*phy (?), n. [L. numisma, -atis (Gr. &?;) + -graphy.] A treatise on, or description of, coins and medals.

Nu*mis`ma*tol”o*gist (?), n. One versed in numismatology.

Nu*mis`ma*tol”o*gy (?), n. [L. numisma, -atis + -logy.] The science which treats of coins and medals, in their relation to history; numismatics.

Num”ma*ry (?), a. [L. nummarius, from nummus a coin.] Of or relating to coins or money.

{ Num”mu*lar (?), Num”mu*la*ry (?), } a. [L. nummularius, fr. nummulus, dim. of nummus a coin: cf. F. nummulaire.]

1. Of or pertaining to coin or money; pecuniary; as, the nummulary talent.

2. (Pathol.) Having the appearance or form of a coin. “Nummular sputa.” Sir T. Watson.

Num`mu*la”tion (?), n. (Physiol.) The arrangement of the red blood corpuscles in rouleaux, like piles of coins, as when a drop of human blood is examined under the microscope.

Num”mu*lite (?), n. [L. nummus a coin + -lite: cf. F. nummulite.] (Paleon.) A fossil of the genus Nummulites and allied genera.

||Num`mu*li”tes (?), n. [NL. See Nummulite.] (Paleon.) A genus of extinct Tertiary Foraminifera, having a thin, flat, round shell, containing a large number of small chambers arranged spirally.

Num`mu*lit”ic (?), a. Of, like, composed of, containing, nummulites; as, nummulitic beds.

Numps (?), n. [Cf. Numb.] A dolt; a blockhead. [Obs.] Bp. Parker.

Num”skull` (?), n. [Numb + skull.] A dunce; a dolt; a stupid fellow. [Colloq.]

They have talked like numskulls.

Arbuthnot.

Num”skulled` (?), a. Stupid; doltish. [Colloq.]

Nun (?), n. [OE. nunne, AS. nunne, fr. L. nonna nun, nonnus monk; cf. Gr. &?;, &?;; of unknown origin. Cf. Nunnery.]

1. A woman devoted to a religious life, who lives in a convent, under the three vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience.

They holy time is quiet as a nun
Breathless with adoration.

Wordsworth.

2. (Zoöl.) (a) A white variety of domestic pigeons having a veil of feathers covering the head. (b) The smew. (c) The European blue titmouse.

Gray nuns (R. C. Ch.), the members of a religious order established in Montreal in 1745, whence branches were introduced into the United States in 1853; — so called from the color or their robe, and known in religion as Sisters of Charity of Montreal. — Nun buoy. See under Buoy.

Nun”chion (?), n. [OE. nonechenche, for noneschenche, prop., a noon drink; none noon + schenchen, schenken, skinken, to pour, AS. scencan. See Noon, and Skink, v. i.] A portion of food taken at or after noon, usually between full meals; a luncheon. [Written also noonshun.] Hudibras.

Nun”ci*ate (?), n. One who announces; a messenger; a nuncio. [Obs.] Hoole.

Nun”ci*a*ture (?), n. [L. nunciare, nuntiare, to announce, report, fr. nuncius, nuntius, messenger: cf. F. nonciature, It. nunziatura. See Nuncio.] The office of a nuncio. Clarendon.

Nun”ci*o (?), n.; pl. Nuncios (#). [It. nunzio, nuncio, fr. L. nuncius, nuntius, messenger; perh. akin to novus new, E. new, and thus, one who brings news. Cf. Announce.]

1. A messenger. [Obs.] Shak.

2. The permanent official representative of the pope at a foreign court or seat of government. Distinguished from a legate a latere, whose mission is temporary in its nature, or for some special purpose. Nuncios are of higher rank than internuncios.

||Nun”ci*us (?), n.; pl. Nuncii (#). [L.] (Roman & Old Eng. Law) (a) A messenger. (b) The information communicated.

Nun”cu*pate (?), v. t. [L. nuncupatus, p. p. of nuncupare to nuncupate, prob. fr. nomen name + capere to take.] 1. To declare publicly or solemnly; to proclaim formally. [Obs.]

In whose presence did St. Peter nuncupate it ?

Barrow.

2. To dedicate by declaration; to inscribe; as, to nuncupate a book. [Obs.] Evelyn.

Nun`cu*pa”tion (?), n. [L. nuncupatio.] The act of nuncupating. [Obs.]

Nun*cu”pa*tive (?), a. [L. nuncupativus nominal: cf. F. nuncupatif.] 1. Publicly or solemnly declaratory. [Obs.]

2. Nominal; existing only in name. [Obs.]

3. Oral; not written.

Nuncupative will or testament, a will or testament made by word of mouth only, before witnesses, as by a soldier or seaman, and depending on oral testimony for proof. Blackstone.

Nun*cu”pa*to*ry (?), a. Nuncupative; oral.

Nun”di*nal (?), n. A nundinal letter.

{ Nun”di*nal (?), Nun”di*na*ry (?), } a. [L. nundinalis, nundinarius, fr. nundinae the market day, the weekly market, prop., the ninth day, fr. nundinus belonging to nine days; novem nine + dies day: cf. F. nundinal.] Of or pertaining to a fair, or to a market day.

Nundinal letter, among the Romans, one of the first eight letters of the alphabet, which were repeated successively from the first to the last day of the year. One of these always expressed the market day, which returned every nine days (every eight days by our reckoning).

Nun”di*nate (?), v. i. [L. nundinatus, p. p. of nundinary to attend fairs, to traffic. See Nundinal, a.] To buy and sell at fairs or markets. [Obs.]

Nun`di*na”tion (?), n. [L. nundinatio.] Traffic at fairs; marketing; buying and selling. [Obs.]

Common nundination of pardons.

Abp. Bramhall.

Nun*na”tion (?), n. [From nun, the Arabic name of the letter n: cf. NL. nunnatio, F. nunnation.] (Arabic Gram.) The pronunciation of n at the end of words.

Nun”ner*y (?), n.; pl. Nunneries (#). [OE. nonnerie, OF. nonerie, F. nonnerie, fr. nonne nun, L. nonna. See Nun.] A house in which nuns reside; a cloister or convent in which women reside for life, under religious vows. See Cloister, and Convent.

Nun”nish (?), a. Of, pertaining to, or resembling a nun; characteristic of a nun. — Nun”nish*ness, n.

Nup (?), n. Same as Nupson. [Obs.]

||Nu”phar (?), n. [Per. n&?;far.] (Bot.) A genus of plants found in the fresh-water ponds or lakes of Europe, Asia, and North America; the yellow water lily. Cf. Nymphaea.

Nup”son (?), n. [Of doubtful origin.] A simpleton; a fool. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

Nup”tial (?), a. [L. nuptialis, fr. nuptiae marriage, wedding, fr. nubere, nuptum, prop., to cover, to veil, hence, to marry, as the head of the bride was covered with a veil; cf. Gr. &?; bride, nymph: cf. F. nuptial.] Of or pertaining to marriage; done or used at a wedding; as, nuptial rites and ceremonies.

Then, all in heat,
They light the nuptial torch.

Milton.

Nup”tial, n.; pl. Nuptials (&?;). Marriage; wedding; nuptial ceremony; — now only in the plural.

Celebration of that nuptial, which
We two have sworn shall come.

Shak.

Preparations . . . for the approaching nuptials.

Prescott.

Nur (?), n. [Cf. Knur.] A hard knot in wood; also, a hard knob of wood used by boys in playing hockey.

I think I’m as hard as a nur, and as tough as whitleather.

W. Howitt.

Nurl (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nurled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nurling.] [Cf. Knurl.] To cut with reeding or fluting on the edge of, as coins, the heads of screws, etc.; to knurl.

Nurse (?), n. [OE. nourse, nurice, norice, OF. nurrice, norrice, nourrice, F. nourrice, fr. L. nutricia nurse, prop., fem. of nutricius that nourishes; akin to nutrix, -icis, nurse, fr. nutrire to nourish. See Nourish, and cf. Nutritious.] 1. One who nourishes; a person who supplies food, tends, or brings up; as: (a) A woman who has the care of young children; especially, one who suckles an infant not her own. (b) A person, especially a woman, who has the care of the sick or infirm.

2. One who, or that which, brings up, rears, causes to grow, trains, fosters, or the like.

The nurse of manly sentiment and heroic enterprise.

Burke.

3. (Naut.) A lieutenant or first officer, who is the real commander when the captain is unfit for his place.

4. (Zoöl.) (a) A peculiar larva of certain trematodes which produces cercariæ by asexual reproduction. See Cercaria, and Redia. (b) Either one of the nurse sharks.

Nurse shark. (Zoöl.) (a) A large arctic shark (Somniosus microcephalus), having small teeth and feeble jaws; — called also sleeper shark, and ground shark. (b) A large shark (Ginglymostoma cirratum), native of the West Indies and Gulf of Mexico, having the dorsal fins situated behind the ventral fins. — To put to nurse, or To put out to nurse, to send away to be nursed; to place in the care of a nurse. — Wet nurse, Dry nurse. See Wet nurse, and Dry nurse, in the Vocabulary.

Nurse, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nursed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nursing.] 1. To nourish; to cherish; to foster; as: (a) To nourish at the breast; to suckle; to feed and tend, as an infant. (b) To take care of or tend, as a sick person or an invalid; to attend upon.

Sons wont to nurse their parents in old age.

Milton.

Him in Egerian groves Aricia bore,
And nursed his youth along the marshy shore.

Dryden.

2. To bring up; to raise, by care, from a weak or invalid condition; to foster; to cherish; — applied to plants, animals, and to any object that needs, or thrives by, attention. “To nurse the saplings tall.” Milton.

By what hands [has vice] been nursed into so uncontrolled a dominion?

Locke.

3. To manage with care and economy, with a view to increase; as, to nurse our national resources.

4. To caress; to fondle, as a nurse does. A. Trollope.

To nurse billiard balls, to strike them gently and so as to keep them in good position during a series of caroms.

Nurse”hound` (?), n. (Zoöl.) See Houndfish.

Nurse”maid` (?), n. A girl employed to attend children.

Nurse”pond`, n. A pond where fish are fed. Walton.

Nurs”er (?), n. One who nurses; a nurse; one who cherishes or encourages growth.

Nurs”er*y (?), n.; pl. Nurseries (#). [Cf. F. nourricerie.] 1. The act of nursing. [Obs.] “Her kind nursery.” Shak.

2. The place where nursing is carried on; as: (a) The place, or apartment, in a house, appropriated to the care of children. (b) A place where young trees, shrubs, vines, etc., are propagated for the purpose of transplanting; a plantation of young trees. (c) The place where anything is fostered and growth promoted. “Fair Padua, nursery of arts.” Shak.

Christian families are the nurseries of the church on earth, as she is the nursery of the church in heaven.

J. M. Mason.

(d) That which forms and educates; as, commerce is the nursery of seamen.

3. That which is nursed. [R.] Milton.

Nurs”er*y*man (?), n.; pl. Nurserymen (&?;). One who cultivates or keeps a nursery, or place for rearing trees, etc.

Nurs”ing, a. Supplying or taking nourishment from, or as from, the breast; as, a nursing mother; a nursing infant.

Nurs”ling (?), n. [Nurse + - ling.] One who, or that which, is nursed; an infant; a fondling.

I was his nursling once, and choice delight.

Milton.

Nurs”tle (?), v. t. To nurse. See Noursle. [Obs.]

Nur”ture (?), n. [OE. norture, noriture, OF. norriture, norreture, F. nourriture, fr. L. nutritura a nursing, suckling. See Nourish.] 1. The act of nourishing or nursing; thender care; education; training.

A man neither by nature nor by nurture wise.

Milton.

2. That which nourishes; food; diet. Spenser.

Nur”ture (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nurtured (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nurturing.] 1. To feed; to nourish.

2. To educate; to bring or train up.

He was nurtured where he had been born.

Sir H. Wotton.

Syn. — To nourish; nurse; cherish; bring up; educate; tend. — To Nurture, Nourish, Cherish. Nourish denotes to supply with food, or cause to grow; as, to nourish a plant, to nourish rebellion. To nurture is to train up with a fostering care, like that of a mother; as, to nurture into strength; to nurture in sound principles. To cherish is to hold and treat as dear; as, to cherish hopes or affections.

Nus”tle (?), v. t. [Cf. Nuzzle.] To fondle; to cherish. [Obs.]

Nut (?), n. [OE. nute, note, AS. hnutu; akin to D. noot, G. nuss, OHG. nuz, Icel. hnot, Sw. nöt, Dan. nöd.]

1. (Bot.) The fruit of certain trees and shrubs (as of the almond, walnut, hickory, beech, filbert, etc.), consisting of a hard and indehiscent shell inclosing a kernel.

2. A perforated block (usually a small piece of metal), provided with an internal or female screw thread, used on a bolt, or screw, for tightening or holding something, or for transmitting motion. See Illust. of lst Bolt.

3. The tumbler of a gunlock. Knight.

4. (Naut.) A projection on each side of the shank of an anchor, to secure the stock in place.

Check nut, Jam nut, Lock nut, a nut which is screwed up tightly against another nut on the same bolt or screw, in order to prevent accidental unscrewing of the first nut. — Nut buoy. See under Buoy. — Nut coal, screened coal of a size smaller than stove coal and larger than pea coal; — called also chestnut coal. – - Nut crab (Zoöl.), any leucosoid crab of the genus Ebalia as, Ebalia tuberosa of Europe. — Nut grass (Bot.), a plant of the Sedge family (Cyperus rotundus, var. Hydra), which has slender rootstocks bearing small, nutlike tubers, by which the plant multiplies exceedingly, especially in cotton fields. — Nut lock, a device, as a metal plate bent up at the corners, to prevent a nut from becoming unscrewed, as by jarring. — Nut pine. (Bot.) See under Pine. — Nut rush (Bot.), a genus of cyperaceous plants (Scleria) having a hard bony achene. Several species are found in the United States and many more in tropical regions. — Nut tree, a tree that bears nuts. — Nut weevil (Zoöl.), any species of weevils of the genus Balaninus and other allied genera, which in the larval state live in nuts.

Nut, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Nutted (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Nutting.] To gather nuts.

Nu”tant (?), a. [L. nutans, p. pr. of nutare to nod, v. intens. fr. nuere (in comp.) to nod; cf. Gr. &?;.] Nodding; having the top bent downward.

Nu*ta”tion (?), n. [L. nutatio a nodding, fr. nutare to nod: cf. F. nutation.]

1. The act of nodding.

So from the midmost the nutation spreads,
Round and more round, o’er all the sea of heads.

Pope.

2. (Astron.) A very small libratory motion of the earth’s axis, by which its inclination to the plane of the ecliptic is constantly varying by a small amount.

3. (Bot.) (a) The motion of a flower in following the apparent movement of the sun, from the east in the morning to the west in the evening. (b) Circumnutation.

Nut”break`er (?), n. (Zoöl.) (a) The European nuthatch. (b) The nutcracker.

Nut”-brown` (?), a. Brown as a nut long kept and dried. “The spicy nutbrown ale.” Milton.

Nut”crack`er (?), n. 1. An instrument for cracking nuts.

2. (Zoöl.) (a) A European bird (Nucifraga caryocatactes), allied to the magpie and crow. Its color is dark brown, spotted with white. It feeds on nuts, seeds, and insects. (b) The American, or Clarke’s, nutcracker (Picicorvus Columbianus) of Western North America.

Nut”gall` (?), n. A more or less round gall resembling a nut, esp. one of those produced on the oak and used in the arts. See Gall, Gallnut.

Nut”hatch` (?), n. [OE. nuthake. See 2d Hack.] (Zoöl.) Any one of several species of birds of the genus Sitta, as the European species (Sitta Europæa). The white-breasted nuthatch (S. Carolinensis), the red-breasted nuthatch (S. Canadensis), the pygmy nuthatch (S. pygmæa), and others, are American.

Nut”hook` (?), n. 1. A hook at the end of a pole to pull down boughs for gathering the nuts.

2. A thief who steals by means of a hook; also, a bailiff who hooks or seizes malefactors. Shak.

Nut”job`ber (?), n. (Zoöl.) The nuthatch. [Prov. Eng.]

Nut”let (?), n. (Bot.) A small nut; also, the stone of a drupe.

Nut”meg (?), n. [OE. notemuge; note nut + OF. muge musk, of the same origin as E. musk; cf. OF. noix muguette nutmeg, F. noix muscade. See Nut, and Musk.] (Bot.) The kernel of the fruit of the nutmeg tree (Myristica fragrans), a native of the Molucca Islands, but cultivated elsewhere in the tropics.

&fist; This fruit is a nearly spherical drupe, of the size of a pear, of a yellowish color without and almost white within. This opens into two nearly equal longitudinal valves, inclosing the nut surrounded by its aril, which is mace The nutmeg is an aromatic, very grateful to the taste and smell, and much used in cookery. Other species of Myristica yield nutmegs of inferior quality.

American, Calabash, or Jamaica, nutmeg, the fruit of a tropical shrub (Monodora Myristica). It is about the size of an orange, and contains many aromatic seeds imbedded in pulp. — Brazilian nutmeg, the fruit of a lauraceous tree, Cryptocarya moschata. — California nutmeg, tree of the Yew family (Torreya Californica), growing in the Western United States, and having a seed which resembles a nutmeg in appearance, but is strongly impregnated with turpentine. — Clove nutmeg, the Ravensara aromatica, a laura ceous tree of Madagascar. The foliage is used as a spice, but the seed is acrid and caustic. — Jamaica nutmeg. See American nutmeg (above). — Nutmeg bird (Zoöl.), an Indian finch (Munia punctularia). — Nutmeg butter, a solid oil extracted from the nutmeg by expression. — Nutmeg flower (Bot.), a ranunculaceous herb (Nigella sativa) with small black aromatic seeds, which are used medicinally and for excluding moths from furs and clothing. — Nutmeg liver (Med.), a name applied to the liver, when, as the result of heart or lung disease, it undergoes congestion and pigmentation about the central veins of its lobules, giving it an appearance resembling that of a nutmeg. — Nutmeg melon (Bot.), a small variety of muskmelon of a rich flavor. — Nutmeg pigeon (Zoöl.), any one of several species of pigeons of the genus Myristicivora, native of the East Indies and Australia. The color is usually white, or cream-white, with black on the wings and tail. — Nutmeg wood (Bot.), the wood of the Palmyra palm. — Peruvian nutmeg, the aromatic seed of a South American tree (Laurelia sempervirens). — Plume nutmeg (Bot.), a spicy tree of Australia (Atherosperma moschata).

Nut”megged (?), a. Seasoned with nutmeg.

Nut”peck`er (?), n. (Zoöl.) The nuthatch.

Nu”tri*a (?), n. [Sp. nutria an otter, fr. L. lutra, lytra.] The fur of the coypu. See Coypu.

Nu`tri*ca”tion (?), n. [L. nutricatio, fr. nutricare, nutricari, to suckle, nourish, fr. nutrix a nurse.] The act or manner of feeding. [Obs.] Sir T. Browne.

Nu”tri*ent (?), a. [L. nutriens, p. pr. of nutrire. See Nourish.] Nutritious; nourishing; promoting growth. — n. Any substance which has nutritious qualities, i. e., which nourishes or promotes growth.

Nu”tri*ment (?), n. [L. nutrimentum, fr. nutrire to nourish. See Nourish.]

1. That which nourishes; anything which promotes growth and repairs the natural waste of animal or vegetable life; food; aliment.

The stomach returns what it has received, in strength and nutriment diffused into all parts of the body.

South.

2. That which promotes development or growth.

Is not virtue in mankind
The nutriment that feeds the mind ?

Swift.

Nu`tri*men”tal (?), a. Nutritious.

Nu*tri”tial (?), a. Pertaining to, or connected with, nutrition; nutritious. [Obs.] Chapman.

Nu*tri”tion (?), n. [Cf. F. nutrition. See Nutritious.]

1. (Physiol.) In the broadest sense, a process or series of processes by which the living organism as a whole (or its component parts or organs) is maintained in its normal condition of life and growth.

&fist; In this wide sense it comprehends digestion, absorption, circulation, assimilation, etc., in fact all of the steps by which the nutritive matter of the food is fitted for incorporation with the different tissues, and the changes which it undergoes after its assimilation, prior to its excretion. See Metabolism.

2. (Physiol.) In a more limited sense, the process by which the living tissues take up, from the blood, matters necessary either for their repair or for the performance of their healthy functions.

3. That which nourishes; nutriment.

Fixed like a plant, on his peculiar spot,
To draw nutrition, propagate, and rot.

Pope.

Nu*tri”tion*al (?), a. Of or pertaining to nutrition; as, nutritional changes.

Nu*tri”tious (?), a. [L. nutricius, nutritius, from nutrix, -icis, a nurse, nutrire to nourish. See Nurse, Nourish.] Nourishing; promoting growth, or preventing decay; alimental. — Nu*tri”tious*ly, adv. — Nu*tri”tious*ness, n.

Nu”tri*tive (?), a. [Cf. F. nutritif.] Of or pertaining to nutrition; as, the nutritive functions; having the quality of nourishing; nutritious; nutrimental; alimental; as, nutritive food or berries.

Nutritive plasma. (Biol.) See Idioplasma. — Nutritive polyp (Zoöl.), any one of the zooids of a compound hydroid, or coral, which has a mouth and digestive cavity.

— Nu”tri*tive*ly, adv. — Nu”tri*tive*ness, n.

Nu”tri*ture (?), n. [L. nutritura, fr. nutrir&?; to nourish.] Nutrition; nourishment. [Obs.] Harvey.

Nut”shell` (?), n. 1. The shell or hard external covering in which the kernel of a nut is inclosed.

2. Hence, a thing of little compass, or of little value.

3. (Zoöl.) A shell of the genus Nucula.

To be, or lie, in a nutshell, to be within a small compass; to admit of very brief or simple determination or statement. “The remedy lay in a nutshell.” Macaulay.

Nut”ter (?), n. A gatherer of nuts.

Nut”ting (?), n. The act of gathering nuts.

Nut”ty (?), a. 1. Abounding in nuts.

2. Having a flavor like that of nuts; as, nutty wine.

Nux` vom”i*ca (?). [NL., fr. L. nux &?; nut + vomere to vomit.] The seed of Strychnos Nuxvomica, a tree which abounds on the Malabar and Coromandel coasts of the East Indies. From this seed the deadly poisons known as strychnine and brucine are obtained. The seeds are sometimes called Quaker buttons.

Nuz”zle (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nuzzied (?);p. pr. & vb. n. Nuzzling (?).] [See Noursle.]

1. To noursle or nurse; to foster; to bring up. [Obs.]

The people had been nuzzled in idolatry.

Milton.

2. [Perh. a corruption of nestle. Cf. Nustle.] To nestle; to house, as in a nest.

Nuz”zle (?), v. i. [Dim. fr. nose. See Nozzle.]

1. To work with the nose, like a swine in the mud.

And nuzzling in his flank, the loving swine
Sheathed, unaware, the tusk in his soft groin.

Shak.

He charged through an army of lawyers, sometimes . . . nuzzling like an eel in the mud.

Arbuthnot.

2. To go with head poised like a swine, with nose down.

Sir Roger shook his ears, and nuzzled along.

Arbuthnot.

3. [Cf. Nuzzle, v. t., 2.] To hide the head, as a child in the mother’s bosom; to nestle.

4. To loiter; to idle. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

Ny (?). [Contr. fr. ne I.] Not I; nor I. [Obs.]

{ Ny, Nye (?) }, a. & adv. Nigh. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Ny”as (?), n. See Nias.

||Nyc`ta*lo”pi*a (?), n. [L. nyctalopia, fr. nyctalops a nyctalops, Gr. &?;. Gr. &?; meant, a person affected either with day blindness or with night blindness, and in the former case was derived fr. &?;, &?;, night + &?;, &?;, the eye; in the latter, fr. &?; + &?; blind + &?;.] (Med.) (a) A disease of the eye, in consequence of which the patient can see well in a faint light or at twilight, but is unable to see during the day or in a strong light; day blindness. (b) See Moonblink.

&fist; Some writers (as Quain) use the word in the opposite sense, night blindness. See Hemeralopia.

Nyc”ta*lops (?), n. [L., from Gr. &?;.] One afflicted with nyctalopia.

Nyc”ta*lo`py (?), n. Same as Nyctalopia.

Nyc*the”me*ron (?), n. [Gr. &?;; &?;, &?;, night + &?; day.] The natural day and night, or space of twenty-four hours.

Nyc”ti*bune (?), n. (Zoöl.) A South American bird of the genus Nyctibius, allied to the goatsuckers.

Nyc`ti*trop”ic (?), a. [From Gr. &?;, &?;, night + &?; turning.] (Bot.) Turning or bending at night into special positions.

&fist; Nyctitropic movements of plants usually consist in a folding or drooping of the leaves, the advantage being in lessening the radiation of heat.

Nyc”to*phile (?), n. [Gr. &?;, &?;, night + &?; to love.] (Zoöl.) Any Australian bat of the genus Nyctophilus, having a very simple nasal appendage.

Nye (?), n. [Prob. fr. F. nid nest, brood, L. nidus nest. See Nest, and cf. Eye brood, Nide.] A brood or flock of pheasants.

||Ny*en”tek (?), n. (Zoöl.) A carnivorous mammal (Helictis moscatus, or H. orientalis), native of Eastern Asia and the Indies. It has a dorsal white stripe, and another one across the shoulders. It has a strong musky odor.

{ Nyl”ghau, Nyl”gau } (?), n. [Hind. & Per. nīlgāw, prop., a blue cow; Per. nīl blue + gāw cow. See Lilac, and Cow the animal.] (Zoöl.) A large Asiatic antelope (Boselaphus, or Portax, tragocamelus), found in Northern India. It has short horns, a black mane, and a bunch of long hair on the throat. The general color is grayish brown. [Written also neelghau, nilgau, and nylghaie.]

Nymph (?), n. [L. nympha nymph, bride, young woman, Gr. &?;: cf. F. nymphe. Cf. Nuptial.]

1. (Class. Myth.) A goddess of the mountains, forests, meadows, or waters.

Where were ye, nymphs, when the remorseless deep
Closed o’er the head of your loved Lycidas ?

Milton.

2. Hence: A lovely young girl; a maiden; a damsel.

Nymph, in thy orisons
Be all my sins remembered.

Shak.

3. (Zoöl.) The pupa of an insect; a chrysalis.

4. (Zoöl.) Any one of a subfamily (Najades) of butterflies including the purples, the fritillaries, the peacock butterfly, etc.; — called also naiad.

||Nym”pha (?), n.; pl. Nymphæ (#). [L. See Nymph a goddess.] 1. (Zoöl.) Same as Nymph, 3.

2. pl. (Anat.) Two folds of mucous membrane, within the labia, at the opening of the vulva.

||Nym*phæ“a (?), n. [L., the water lily, Gr. &?;.] (Bot.) A genus of aquatic plants having showy flowers (white, blue, pink, or yellow, often fragrant), including the white water lily and the Egyptia lotus.

&fist; Recent critics have endeavored to show that this genus should be called Castalia, and the name Nymphæa transferred to what is now known as Nuphar.

Nymph”al (?), a. Of or pertaining to a nymph or nymphs; nymphean.

||Nym*pha”les (?), n. pl. [NL.] (Zoöl.) An extensive family of butterflies including the nymphs, the satyrs, the monarchs, the heliconias, and others; — called also brush-footed butterflies.

Nym*phe”an (?), a. [Gr. &?;. See Nymph.] Of, pertaining to, or appropriate to, nymphs; inhabited by nymphs; as, a nymphean cave.

Nymph”et (?), n. A little or young nymph. [Poetic] “The nymphets sporting there.” Drayton.

{ Nymph”ic (?), Nymph”ic*al (?), } a. [Gr. &?; bridal.] Of or pertaining to nymphs.

Nym*phip”a*rous (?), a. [Nymph + L. parere to produce.] (Zoöl.) Producing pupas or nymphs.

Nymph”ish (?), a. Relating to nymphs; ladylike. “Nymphish war.” Drayton.

{ Nymph”like` (?), Nymph”ly (?), } a. Resembling, or characteristic of, a nymph.

Nym”pho*lep`sy (?), n. [Gr. &?; a nymph + &?; to seize.] A species of demoniac enthusiasm or possession coming upon one who had accidentally looked upon a nymph; ecstasy. [R.] De Quincey.

The nympholepsy of some fond despair.

Byron.

Nym`pho*lep”tic (?), a. Under the influence of nympholepsy; ecstatic; frenzied. [Poetic]

Nym`pho*ma”ni*a (?), n. [Gr. &?; a bride + &?; madness.] (Med.) Morbid and uncontrollable sexual desire in women, constituting a true disease.

Nym”pho*ma`ny (?), n. [Cf. F. nymphomanie.] (Med.) Same as Nymphomania.

Nym*phot”o*my (?), n. [Nympha + Gr. &?; to cut.] (Med.) Excision of the nymphæ.

Nys (?). Is not. See Nis. Chaucer. Spenser.

||Nys*tag”mus (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; drowsiness, fr. &?; to nod in sleep, to slumber.] (Med.) A rapid involuntary oscillation of the eyeballs.

Ny*u”la (?), n. (Zoöl.) A species of ichneumon (Herpestes nyula). Its fur is beautifully variegated by closely set zigzag markings.

O.

O (ō). 1. O, the fifteenth letter of the English alphabet, derives its form, value, and name from the Greek O, through the Latin. The letter came into the Greek from the Phœnician, which possibly derived it ultimately from the Egyptian. Etymologically, the letter o is most closely related to a, e, and u; as in E. bone, AS. bān; E. stone, AS. stān; E. broke, AS. brecan to break; E. bore, AS. beran to bear; E. dove, AS. dūfe; E. toft, tuft; tone, tune; number, F. nombre.

The letter o has several vowel sounds, the principal of which are its long sound, as in bone, its short sound, as in nod, and the sounds heard in the words orb, son, do (feod), and wolf (book). In connection with the other vowels it forms several digraphs and diphthongs. See Guide to Pronunciation, §§ 107-129.

2. Among the ancients, O was a mark of triple time, from the notion that the ternary, or number 3, is the most perfect of numbers, and properly expressed by a circle, the most perfect figure.

O was also anciently used to represent 11: with a dash over it (Ō), 11,000.

O (ō), n.; pl. O’s or Oes (ōz). 1. The letter O, or its sound. “Mouthing out his hollow oes and aes.” Tennyson.

2. Something shaped like the letter O; a circle or oval. “This wooden O [Globe Theater]”. Shak.

3. A cipher; zero. [R.]

Thou art an O without a figure.

Shak.

O’. [Ir. o a descendant.] A prefix to Irish family names, which signifies grandson or descendant of, and is a character of dignity; as, O’Neil, O’Carrol.

O’ (ō; unaccented &osl;), prep. A shortened form of of or on. “At the turning o’ the tide.” Shak.

O (ō), a. [See One.] One. [Obs.] Chaucer. “Alle thre but o God.” Piers Plowman.

O (?), interj. An exclamation used in calling or directly addressing a person or personified object; also, as an emotional or impassioned exclamation expressing pain, grief, surprise, desire, fear, etc.

For ever, O Lord, thy word is settled in heaven.

Ps. cxix. 89.

O how love I thy law ! it is my meditation all the day.

Ps. cxix. 97.

&fist; O is frequently followed by an ellipsis and that, an in expressing a wish: “O [I wish] that Ishmael might live before thee !” Gen. xvii. 18; or in expressions of surprise, indignation, or regret: “O [it is sad] that such eyes should e’er meet other object !” Sheridan Knowles.

&fist; A distinction between the use of O and oh is insisted upon by some, namely, that O should be used only in direct address to a person or personified object, and should never be followed by the exclamation point, while Oh (or oh) should be used in exclamations where no direct appeal or address to an object is made, and may be followed by the exclamation point or not, according to the nature or construction of the sentence. Some insist that oh should be used only as an interjection expressing strong feeling. The form O, however, is, it seems, the one most commonly employed for both uses by modern writers and correctors for the press. “O, I am slain !” Shak. “O what a fair and ministering angel !” “O sweet angel !” Longfellow.

O for a kindling touch from that pure flame !

Wordsworth.

But she is in her grave, — and oh
The difference to me !

Wordsworth.

Oh for a lodge in some vast wilderness !

Cowper.

We should distinguish between the sign of the vocative and the emotional interjection, writing O for the former, and oh for the latter.

Earle.

O dear, ∧ O dear me! [corrupted fr. F. O Dieu! or It. O Dio! O God! O Dio mio! O my God! Wyman.], exclamations expressive of various emotions, but usually promoted by surprise, consternation, grief, pain, etc.

Oad (ōd), n. See Woad. [Obs.] Coles.

Oaf (ōf), n. [See Auf.] Originally, an elf’s child; a changeling left by fairies or goblins; hence, a deformed or foolish child; a simpleton; an idiot.

Oaf”ish, a. Like an oaf; simple. — Oaf”ish*ness, n.

Oak (ōk), n. [OE. oke, ok, ak, AS. āc; akin to D. eik, G. eiche, OHG. eih, Icel. eik, Sw. ek, Dan. eeg.]

1. (Bot.) Any tree or shrub of the genus Quercus. The oaks have alternate leaves, often variously lobed, and staminate flowers in catkins. The fruit is a smooth nut, called an acorn, which is more or less inclosed in a scaly involucre called the cup or cupule. There are now recognized about three hundred species, of which nearly fifty occur in the United States, the rest in Europe, Asia, and the other parts of North America, a very few barely reaching the northern parts of South America and Africa. Many of the oaks form forest trees of grand proportions and live many centuries. The wood is usually hard and tough, and provided with conspicuous medullary rays, forming the silver grain.

2. The strong wood or timber of the oak.

&fist; Among the true oaks in America are: Barren oak, or Black-jack, Q. nigra. — Basket oak, Q. Michauxii. — Black oak, Q. tinctoria; — called also yellow or quercitron oak. — Bur oak (see under Bur.), Q. macrocarpa; — called also over-cup or mossy-cup oak. — Chestnut oak, Q. Prinus and Q. densiflora. — Chinquapin oak (see under Chinquapin), Q. prinoides. — Coast live oak, Q. agrifolia, of California; — also called enceno. — Live oak (see under Live), Q. virens, the best of all for shipbuilding; also, Q. Chrysolepis, of California. — Pin oak. Same as Swamp oak. – - Post oak, Q. obtusifolia. — Red oak, Q. rubra. — Scarlet oak, Q. coccinea. — Scrub oak, Q. ilicifolia, Q. undulata, etc. — Shingle oak, Q. imbricaria. — Spanish oak, Q. falcata. — Swamp Spanish oak, or Pin oak, Q. palustris. — Swamp white oak, Q. bicolor. — Water oak, Q. aguatica. — Water white oak, Q. lyrata. — Willow oak, Q. Phellos.

Among the true oaks in Europe are: Bitter oak, or Turkey oak, Q. Cerris (see Cerris). — Cork oak, Q. Suber. — English white oak, Q. Robur. — Evergreen oak, Holly oak, or Holm oak, Q. Ilex. — Kermes oak, Q. coccifera. — Nutgall oak, Q. infectoria.

&fist; Among plants called oak, but not of the genus Quercus, are: African oak, a valuable timber tree (Oldfieldia Africana). — Australian, or She, oak, any tree of the genus Casuarina (see Casuarina). — Indian oak, the teak tree (see Teak). — Jerusalem oak. See under Jerusalem. — New Zealand oak, a sapindaceous tree (Alectryon excelsum). — Poison oak, the poison ivy. See under Poison. — Silky, or Silk-bark, oak, an Australian tree (Grevillea robusta).

Green oak, oak wood colored green by the growth of the mycelium of certain fungi. — Oak apple, a large, smooth, round gall produced on the leaves of the American red oak by a gallfly (Cynips confluens). It is green and pulpy when young. — Oak beauty (Zoöl.), a British geometrid moth (Biston prodromaria) whose larva feeds on the oak. — Oak gall, a gall found on the oak. See 2d Gall. — Oak leather (Bot.), the mycelium of a fungus which forms leatherlike patches in the fissures of oak wood. — Oak pruner. (Zoöl.) See Pruner, the insect. — Oak spangle, a kind of gall produced on the oak by the insect Diplolepis lenticularis. — Oak wart, a wartlike gall on the twigs of an oak. — The Oaks, one of the three great annual English horse races (the Derby and St. Leger being the others). It was instituted in 1779 by the Earl of Derby, and so called from his estate. — To sport one’s oak, to be “not at home to visitors,” signified by closing the outer (oaken) door of one’s rooms. [Cant, Eng. Univ.]

Oak”en (?), a. [AS. ācen.] Made or consisting of oaks or of the wood of oaks. “In oaken bower.” Milton.

Oaken timber, wherewith to build ships.

Bacon.

Oak”er (?), n. See Ocher. [Obs.] Spenser.

Oak”ling (?), n. A young oak. Evelyn.

Oak”um (?), n. [AS. ācumba; pref. &?; (cf.G. er-, Goth. us-, orig. meaning, out) + cemban to comb, camb comb. See Comb.] 1. The material obtained by untwisting and picking into loose fiber old hemp ropes; — used for calking the seams of ships, stopping leaks, etc.

2. The coarse portion separated from flax or hemp in nackling. Knight.

White oakum, that made from untarred rope.

Oak”y (?), n. Resembling oak; strong. Bp. Hall.

Oar (?), n [AS. ār; akin to Icel. ār, Dan. aare, Sw. åra; perh. akin to E. row, v. Cf. Rowlock.]

1. An implement for impelling a boat, being a slender piece of timber, usually ash or spruce, with a grip or handle at one end and a broad blade at the other. The part which rests in the rowlock is called the loom.

&fist; An oar is a kind of long paddle, which swings about a kind of fulcrum, called a rowlock, fixed to the side of the boat.

2. An oarsman; a rower; as, he is a good oar.

3. (Zoöl.) An oarlike swimming organ of various invertebrates.

Oar cock (Zoöl), the water rail. [Prov. Eng.] — Spoon oar, an oar having the blade so curved as to afford a better hold upon the water in rowing. — To boat the oars, to cease rowing, and lay the oars in the boat. — To feather the oars. See under Feather., v. t. — To lie on the oars, to cease pulling, raising the oars out of water, but not boating them; to cease from work of any kind; to be idle; to rest. — To muffle the oars, to put something round that part which rests in the rowlock, to prevent noise in rowing. — To put in one’s oar, to give aid or advice; — commonly used of a person who obtrudes aid or counsel not invited. — To ship the oars, to place them in the rowlocks. — To toss the oars, To peak the oars, to lift them from the rowlocks and hold them perpendicularly, the handle resting on the bottom of the boat. – - To trail oars, to allow them to trail in the water alongside of the boat. — To unship the oars, to take them out of the rowlocks.

Oar, v. t. & i. [imp. & p. p. Oared (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Oaring.] To row. “Oared himself.” Shak.

Oared with laboring arms.

Pope.

Oared (?), a. 1. Furnished with oars; — chiefly used in composition; as, a four- oared boat.

2. (Zoöl.) (a) Having feet adapted for swimming. (b) Totipalmate; — said of the feet of certain birds. See Illust. of Aves.

Oared shrew (Zoöl.), an aquatic European shrew (Crossopus ciliatus); — called also black water shrew.

Oar”fish` (ōr”f&ibreve;sh`), n. (Zoöl.) The ribbon fish.

Oar”foot` (-f&oomcr;t`), n. (Zoöl.) Any crustacean of the genus Remipes.

Oar”-foot`ed a. Having feet adapted for swimming.

Oar”less, a. Without oars. Sylvester.

Oar”lock` (ōr”l&obreve;k`), n. (Naut.), The notch, fork, or other device on the gunwale of a boat, in which the oar rests in rowing. See Rowlock.

Oars”man (ōrz”man), n.; pl. Oarsmen (-men). One who uses, or is skilled in the use of, an oar; a rower.

At the prow of the boat, rose one of the oarsmen.

Longfellow.

Oars”weed` (ōr”wēd`), n. (Bot.) Any large seaweed of the genus Laminaria; tangle; kelp. See Kelp.

Oar”y (ōr”&ybreve;), a. Having the form or the use of an oar; as, the swan’s oary feet. Milton. Addison.

O”as*is (ō”&adot;*s&ibreve;s or &osl;*ā“s&ibreve;s; 277), n.; pl. Oases (-sēz). [L., fr. Gr. ‘o`asis; cf. Copt. ouahe.] A fertile or green spot in a waste or desert, esp. in a sandy desert.

My one oasis in the dust and drouth
Of city life.

Tennyson.

Oast (ōst), n. [OE. ost, AS. āst; cf. Gr. a’i^qos burning heat.] A kiln to dry hops or malt; a cockle. Mortimer.

Oat (ōt), n.; pl. Oats (ōts). [OE. ote, ate, AS. āta, akin to Fries. oat. Of uncertain origin.] 1. (Bot.) A well-known cereal grass (Avena sativa), and its edible grain; — commonly used in the plural and in a collective sense.

2. A musical pipe made of oat straw. [Obs.] Milton.

Animated oats or Animal oats (Bot.), A grass (Avena sterilis) much like oats, but with a long spirally twisted awn which coils and uncoils with changes of moisture, and thus gives the grains an apparently automatic motion. — Oat fowl (Zoöl.), the snow bunting; — so called from its feeding on oats. [Prov. Eng.] — Oat grass (Bot.), the name of several grasses more or less resembling oats, as Danthonia spicata, D. sericea, and Arrhenatherum avenaceum, all common in parts of the United States. — To feel one’s oats, to be conceited ro self-important. [Slang] — To sow one’s wild oats, to indulge in youthful dissipation. Thackeray. — Wild oats (Bot.), a grass (Avena fatua) much resembling oats, and by some persons supposed to be the original of cultivated oats.

Oat”cake (?), n. A cake made of oatmeal.

Oat”en (?), a. 1. Consisting of an oat straw or stem; as, an oaten pipe. Milton.

2. Made of oatmeal; as, oaten cakes.

Oath (ōth), n.; pl. Oaths (ō&thlig;z). [OE. othe, oth, ath, AS. āð; akin to D. eed, OS. ēð, G. eid, Icel. eiðr, Sw. ed, Dan. eed, Goth. aiþs; cf. OIr. oeth.] 1. A solemn affirmation or declaration, made with a reverent appeal to God for the truth of what is affirmed. “I have an oath in heaven” Shak.

An oath of secrecy for the concealing of those [inventions] which we think fit to keep secret.

Bacon.

2. A solemn affirmation, connected with a sacred object, or one regarded as sacred, as the temple, the altar, the blood of Abel, the Bible, the Koran, etc.

3. (Law) An appeal (in verification of a statement made) to a superior sanction, in such a form as exposes the party making the appeal to an indictment for perjury if the statement be false.

4. A careless and blasphemous use of the name of the divine Being, or anything divine or sacred, by way of appeal or as a profane exclamation or ejaculation; an expression of profane swearing. “A terrible oath” Shak.

Oath”a*ble (?), a. Capable of having an oath administered to. [Obs.] Shak.

Oath”break`ing (?), n. The violation of an oath; perjury. Shak

Oat”meal` (?), n. 1. Meal made of oats. Gay.

2. (Bot.) A plant of the genus Panicum; panic grass.

Ob- (?). [L. ob, prep. Cf. Epi-.] A prefix signifying to, toward, before, against, reversely, etc.; also, as a simple intensive; as in oblige, to bind to; obstacle, something standing before; object, lit., to throw against; obovate, reversely, ovate. Ob- is commonly assimilated before c, f, g, and p, to oc-, of-, og-, and op- .

Ob”com*pressed” (?). a. [Pref. ob- + compressed.] Compressed or flattened antero- posteriorly, or in a way opposite to the usual one.

{ Ob*con”ic (?), Ob*con”ic*al (?), } a. [Pref. ob- + conic, conical.] Conical, but having the apex downward; inversely conical.

Ob*cor”date (?), a. [Pref. ob- + cordate.] Heart-shaped, with the attachment at the pointed end; inversely cordate: as, an obcordate petal or leaf.

Ob*dip`lo*stem”o*nous (?), a. [Pref. ob- + diplostemonous.] (Bot.) Having twice as many stamens as petals, those of the outer set being opposite the petals; — said of flowers. Gray.

Ob*dip”lo*stem”o*ny (?), n. (Bot.) The condition of being obdiplostemonous.

Ob”dor*mi”tion (?), n. [L. obdormire to fall asleep.] Sleep. [Obs.] Bp. Hall.

Ob*duce” (?), v. t. [L. obducere, obductum; ob (see Ob-) + ducere to lead.] To draw over, as a covering. [Obs.] Sir M. Hale.

Ob*duct” (&?;), v. t. [See Obduce.] To draw over; to cover. [Obs.] Sir T. Browne.

Ob*duc”tion (?), n. [L. obductio.] The act of drawing or laying over, as a covering. [Obs.]

Ob”du*ra*cy (?), n. The duality or state of being obdurate; invincible hardness of heart; obstinacy. “Obduracy and persistency.” Shak.

The absolute completion of sin in final obduracy.

South.

Ob”du*rate (?), a. [L. obduratus, p. p. of obdurare to harden; ob (see Ob-)+ durare to harden, durus hard. See Dure.] 1. Hardened in feelings, esp. against moral or mollifying influences; unyielding; hard-hearted; stubbornly wicked.

The very custom of evil makes the heart obdurate against whatsoever instructions to the contrary.

Hooker.

Art thou obdurate, flinty, hard as steel, Nay, more than flint, for stone at rain relenteth?

Shak.

2. Hard; harsh; rugged; rough; intractable. “Obdurate consonants.” Swift.

&fist; Sometimes accented on the second syllable, especially by the older poets.

There is no flesh in man’s obdurate heart.

Cowper.

Syn. — Hard; firm; unbending; inflexible; unyielding; stubborn; obstinate; impenitent; callous; unfeeling; insensible; unsusceptible. — Obdurate, Callous, Hardened. Callous denotes a deadening of the sensibilities; as. a callous conscience. Hardened implies a general and settled disregard for the claims of interest, duty, and sympathy; as, hardened in vice. Obdurate implies an active resistance of the heart and will aganst the pleadings of compassion and humanity.

— Ob”du*rate*ly (#), adv. — Ob”du*rate*ness, n.

Ob”du*rate (?), v. t. To harden. [Obs.]

Ob”du*ra”tion (?), n. [L. obduratio.] A hardening of the heart; hardness of heart. [Obs.]

Ob*dure” (&obreve;b*dūr”), v. t. To harden. [Obs.] Milton.

{ Ob*dure” (&obreve;b*dūr”), Ob*dured” (&obreve;b*dūrd”), } a. Obdurate; hard. [Obs.]

This saw his hapless foes, but stood obdured.

Milton.

{ Ob*dure”ness, n., Ob*dur”ed*ness (?), n.} Hardness. [Obs.] Bp. Hall.

Ob”e (ō“b&esl;), n. See Obi.

O*be”ah (?). n. Same as Obi. — a. Of or pertaining to obi; as, the obeah man. B. Edwards.

O*be”di*ble (?), a. Obedient. [Obs.] Bp. Hall.

O*be”di*ence (?), n. [F. obédience, L. obedientia, oboedientia. See Obedient, and cf. Obeisance.]

1. The act of obeying, or the state of being obedient; compliance with that which is required by authority; subjection to rightful restraint or control.

Government must compel the obedience of individuals.

Ames.

2. Words or actions denoting submission to authority; dutifulness. Shak.

3. (Eccl.) (a) A following; a body of adherents; as, the Roman Catholic obedience, or the whole body of persons who submit to the authority of the pope. (b) A cell (or offshoot of a larger monastery) governed by a prior. (c) One of the three monastic vows. Shipley. (d) The written precept of a superior in a religious order or congregation to a subject.

Canonical obedience. See under Canonical. — Passive obedience. See under Passive.

O*be`di*en”ci*a*ry (?), n. One yielding obedience. [Obs.] Foxe.

O*be”di*ent (?), a. [OF. obedient, L. obediens, oboediens, -entis. p. pr. of obedire, oboedire, to obey. See Obey.] Subject in will or act to authority; willing to obey; submissive to restraint, control, or command.

And floating straight, obedient to the stream.

Shak.

The chief his orders gives; the obedient band,
With due observance, wait the chief’s command.

Pope.

Syn. — Dutiful; respectful; compliant; submissive.

O*be`di*en”tial (?), a. [Cf. F. obédientiel.] According to the rule of obedience. [R.]

An obediental subjection to the Lord of Nature.

Sir M. Hale.

O*be”di*ent*ly (?), adv. In an obedient manner; with obedience.

O*bei”sance (?), n. [F. obéissance obedience, fr. obéissant. See Obey, and cf. Obedience, Abaisance.] 1. Obedience. [Obs.] Chaucer.

2. A manifestation of obedience; an expression of difference or respect; homage; a bow; a courtesy.

Bathsheba bowed and did obeisance unto the king.

1 Kings i. 16.

O*bei”san*cy (?), n. See Obeisance. [Obs.]

O*bei”sant (?), a. [F. obéissant, p. pr. of obéir to obey.] Ready to obey; reverent; differential; also, servilely submissive.

||O*be”li*on (?), n. [NL., from Gr. &?; a spit.] (Anat.) The region of the skull between the two parietal foramina where the closure of the sagittal suture usually begins.

Ob`e*lis”cal (?), a. Formed like an obelisk.

Ob”e*lisk (?), n. [L. obeliscus, Gr. &?;, dim. of &?; a spit, a pointed pillar: cf. F. obélisque.] 1. An upright, four- sided pillar, gradually tapering as it rises, and terminating in a pyramid called pyramidion. It is ordinarily monolithic. Egyptian obelisks are commonly covered with hieroglyphic writing from top to bottom.

2. (Print.) A mark of reference; — called also dagger [†]. See Dagger, n., 2.

Ob”e*lisk, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Obelisked (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Obelisking.] To mark or designate with an obelisk.

Ob”e*lize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Obelized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Obelizing (?).] [Gr. &?;, fr. ‘obelo`s. See Obelus.] To designate with an obelus; to mark as doubtful or spirituous. [R.]

||Ob”e*lus (?), n.; pl. Obeli (#). [L., fr. Gr. ‘obelo`s, prop., a spit.] (Print.) A mark [thus —, or ÷]; — so called as resembling a needle. In old MSS. or editions of the classics, it marks suspected passages or readings.

Ob*eq”ui*tate (?), v. i. [L. obequitatus, p. p. of obequitare to ride about.] To ride about. [Obs.] — Ob*eq`ui*ta”tion (#), n. [Obs.] Cockerman.

Ob”er*on (&obreve;b”&etilde;r*&obreve;n), n. [F., fr. OF. Auberon; prob. of Frankish origin.] (Mediæval Mythol.) The king of the fairies, and husband of Titania or Queen Mab. Shak.

Ob`er*ra”tion (?), n. [L. oberrate to wander about.] A wandering about. [Obs.] Jonhson.

O*bese” (?). a. [L. obesus eaten away, lean; also, that has eaten itself fat, fat, stout, p. p. of obedere to devour; ob (see Ob-) + edere to eat. See Eat.] Excessively corpulent; fat; fleshy.

O*bese”ness, n. Quality of being obese; obesity.

O*bes”i*ty (?), n.[L. obesitas: cf.F. obésité.] The state or quality of being obese; incumbrance of flesh.

O*bey” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Obeyed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Obeying.] [OE. obeyen, F. obéir, fr. L. obedire, oboedire; ob (see Ob-) + audire to hear. See Audible, and cf. Obeisance.] 1. To give ear to; to execute the commands of; to yield submission to; to comply with the orders of.

Children, obey your parents in the Lord.

Eph. vi. 1.

Was she the God, that her thou didst obey?

Milton.

2. To submit to the authority of; to be ruled by.

My will obeyed his will.

Chaucer.

Afric and India shall his power obey.

Dryden.

3. To yield to the impulse, power, or operation of; as, a ship obeys her helm.

O*bey”, v. i. To give obedience.

Will he obey when one commands?

Tennyson.

&fist; By some old writers obey was used, as in the French idiom, with the preposition to.

His servants ye are, to whom ye obey.

Rom. vi. 16.

He commanded the trumpets to sound: to which the two brave knights obeying, they performed their courses.

Sir. P. Sidney.

O*bey”er (?), n. One who yields obedience. Holland.

O*bey”ing*ly, adv. Obediently; submissively.

{ Ob*firm” (?), Ob*firm”ate (?), } v. t. [L. obfirmatus, p. p. of obfirmare to make steadfast. See Ob-, and Firm, v. t.] To make firm; to harden in resolution. [Obs.] Bp. Hall. Sheldon.

Ob”fir*ma”tion (?), n. [LL. obfirmatio.] Hardness of heart; obduracy. [Obs.] Jer. Taylor.

Ob*fus”cate (?), a. [L. obfuscatus, p. p. of obfuscare to darken; ob (see Ob-) + fuscare, fuscatum, to darken, from fuscus dark.] Obfuscated; darkened; obscured. [Obs.] [Written also offuscate.] Sir. T. Elyot.

Ob*fus”cate (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Obfuscated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Obfuscating.] To darken; to obscure; to becloud; hence, to confuse; to bewilder.

His head, like a smokejack, the funnel unswept, and the ideas whirling round and round about in it, all obfuscated and darkened over with fuliginous matter.

Sterne.

Clouds of passion which might obfuscate the intellects of meaner females.

Sir. W. Scott.

Ob`fus*ca”tion (?), n. [L. obfuscatio.] The act of darkening or bewildering; the state of being darkened. “Obfuscation of the cornea.” E. Darwin.

O”bi (?), n. [Prob. of African origin.] 1. A species of sorcery, probably of African origin, practiced among the negroes of the West Indies. [Written also obe and obeah.] De Quincey. B. Edwards.

2. A charm or fetich. [West Indies] B. Edwards.

Ob*im”bri*cate (?), a. [Pref. ob- + imbricate.] (Bot.) Imbricated, with the overlapping ends directed downward.

O”bit (?), n. [OF. obit, L. obitus, fr. obire to go against, to go to meet, (sc. mortem) to die; ob (see Ob-) + ire to go. See Issue.] 1. Death; decease; the date of one’s death. Wood.

2. A funeral solemnity or office; obsequies.

3. A service for the soul of a deceased person on the anniversary of the day of his death.

The emoluments and advantages from oblations, obits, and other sources, increased in value.

Milman.

Post obit [L. post obitum]. See Post-obit.

||Ob”i*ter (?), adv. [L., on the way; ob (see Ob-) + iter a going, a walk, way.] In passing; incidentally; by the way.

||Obiter dictum (Law), an incidental and collateral opinion uttered by a judge. See Dictum, n., 2 (a).

O*bit”u*al (?), a. [L. obitus death. See Obit.] Of or pertaining to obits, or days when obits are celebrated; as, obitual days. Smart.

O*bit”u*a*ri*ly (?), adv. In the manner of an obituary.

O*bit”u*a*ry (?), a. [See Obit.] Of or pertaining to the death of a person or persons; as, an obituary notice; obituary poetry.

O*bit”u*a*ry, n.; pl. Obituaries (#). [Cf. F. obituaire. See Obit.] 1. That which pertains to, or is called forth by, the obit or death of a person; esp., an account of a deceased person; a notice of the death of a person, accompanied by a biographical sketch.

2. (R.C.Ch.) A list of the dead, or a register of anniversary days when service is performed for the dead.

Ob*ject” (&obreve;b*j&ebreve;kt”), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Objected; p. pr. & vb. n. Objecting.] [L. objectus, p. p. of objicere, obicere, to throw or put before, to oppose; ob (see Ob-) + jacere to throw: cf. objecter. See Jet a shooting forth.] 1. To set before or against; to bring into opposition; to oppose. [Obs.]

Of less account some knight thereto object,
Whose loss so great and harmful can not prove.

Fairfax.

Some strong impediment or other objecting itself.

Hooker.

Pallas to their eyes
The mist objected, and condensed the skies.

Pope.

2. To offer in opposition as a criminal charge or by way of accusation or reproach; to adduce as an objection or adverse reason.

He gave to him to object his heinous crime.

Spencer.

Others object the poverty of the nation.

Addison.

The book . . . giveth liberty to object any crime against such as are to be ordered.

Whitgift.

Ob*ject”, v. i. To make opposition in words or argument; — usually followed by to. Sir. T. More.

Ob”ject (&obreve;b”j&ebreve;kt), n. [L. objectus. See Object, v. t.]

1. That which is put, or which may be regarded as put, in the way of some of the senses; something visible or tangible; as, he observed an object in the distance; all the objects in sight; he touched a strange object in the dark.

2. That which is set, or which may be regarded as set, before the mind so as to be apprehended or known; that of which the mind by any of its activities takes cognizance, whether a thing external in space or a conception formed by the mind itself; as, an object of knowledge, wonder, fear, thought, study, etc.

Object is a term for that about which the knowing subject is conversant; what the schoolmen have styled the “materia circa quam.”

Sir. W. Hamilton.

The object of their bitterest hatred.

Macaulay.

3. That by which the mind, or any of its activities, is directed; that on which the purpose are fixed as the end of action or effort; that which is sought for; end; aim; motive; final cause.

Object, beside its proper signification, came to be abusively applied to denote motive, end, final cause . . . . This innovation was probably borrowed from the French.

Sir. W. Hamilton.

Let our object be, our country, our whole country, and nothing but our country.

D. Webster.

4. Sight; show; appearance; aspect. [Obs.] Shak.

He, advancing close
Up to the lake, past all the rest, arose
In glorious object.

Chapman.

5. (Gram.) A word, phrase, or clause toward which an action is directed, or is considered to be directed; as, the object of a transitive verb.

Object glass, the lens, or system of lenses, placed at the end of a telescope, microscope, etc., which is toward the object. Its office is to form an image of the object, which is then viewed by the eyepiece. Called also objective. See Illust. of Microscope. — Object lesson, a lesson in which object teaching is made use of. — Object staff. (Leveling) Same as Leveling staff. — Object teaching, a method of instruction, in which illustrative objects are employed, each new word or idea being accompanied by a representation of that which it signifies; — used especially in the kindergarten, for young children.

Ob*ject” (?), a. [L. objectus, p. p.] Opposed; presented in opposition; also, exposed. [Obs.]

Ob*ject”a*ble (?), a. Such as can be presented in opposition; that may be put forward as an objection. [R.]

Ob*jec”ti*fy (?), v. t. [Object + -fy.] To cause to become an object; to cause to assume the character of an object; to render objective. J. D. Morell.

Ob*jec”tion (?), n. [L. objectio: cf. F. objection.] 1. The act of objecting; as, to prevent agreement, or action, by objection. Johnson.

2. That which is, or may be, presented in opposition; an adverse reason or argument; a reason for objecting; obstacle; impediment; as, I have no objection to going; unreasonable objections. “Objections against every truth.” Tyndale.

3. Cause of trouble; sorrow. [Obs. or R.]

He remembers the objection that lies in his bosom, and he sighs deeply.

Jer. Taylor.

Syn. — Exception; difficulty; doubt; scruple.

Ob*jec”tion*a*ble (?), a. Liable to objection; likely to be objected to or disapproved of; offensive; as, objectionable words. — Ob*jec”tion*a*bly, adv.

Ob”ject*ist (?), n. One who adheres to, or is skilled in, the objective philosophy. Ed. Rev.

Ob*jec”ti*vate (?), v. t. To objectify.

Ob*jec`ti*va”tion (?), n. Converting into an object.

Ob*jec”tive (?), a. [Cf.F. objectif.] 1. Of or pertaining to an object.

2. (Metaph.) Of or pertaining to an object; contained in, or having the nature or position of, an object; outward; external; extrinsic; — an epithet applied to whatever ir exterior to the mind, or which is simply an object of thought or feeling, and opposed to subjective.

In the Middle Ages, subject meant substance, and has this sense in Descartes and Spinoza: sometimes, also, in Reid. Subjective is used by William of Occam to denote that which exists independent of mind; objective, what is formed by the mind. This shows what is meant by realitas objectiva in Descartes. Kant and Fichte have inverted the meanings. Subject, with them, is the mind which knows; object, that which is known; subjective, the varying conditions of the knowing mind; objective, that which is in the constant nature of the thing known.

Trendelenburg.

Objective means that which belongs to, or proceeds from, the object known, and not from the subject knowing, and thus denotes what is real, in opposition to that which is ideal – - what exists in nature, in contrast to what exists merely in the thought of the individual.

Sir. W. Hamilton.

Objective has come to mean that which has independent exostence or authority, apart from our experience or thought. Thus, moral law is said to have objective authority, that is, authority belonging to itself, and not drawn from anything in our nature.

Calderwood (Fleming’s Vocabulary).

3. (Gram.) Pertaining to, or designating, the case which follows a transitive verb or a preposition, being that case in which the direct object of the verb is placed. See Accusative, n.

&fist; The objective case is frequently used without a governing word, esp. in designations of time or space, where a preposition, as at, in, on, etc., may be supplied.

My troublous dream [on] this night make me sad.

Shak.

To write of victories [in or for] next year.

Hudibras.

Objective line (Perspective), a line drawn on the geometrical plane which is represented or sought to be represented. — Objective plane (Perspective), any plane in the horizontal plane that is represented. — Objective point, the point or result to which the operations of an army are directed. By extension, the point or purpose to which anything, as a journey or an argument, is directed.

Syn. — Objective, Subjective. Objective is applied to things exterior to the mind, and objects of its attention; subjective, to the operations of the mind itself. Hence, an objective motive is some outward thing awakening desire; a subjective motive is some internal feeling or propensity. Objective views are those governed by outward things; subjective views are produced or modified by internal feeling. Sir Walter Scott’s poetry is chiefly objective; that of Wordsworth is eminently subjective.

In the philosophy of mind, subjective denotes what is to be referred to the thinking subject, the ego; objective what belongs to the object of thought, the non- ego.

Sir. W. Hamilton

Ob*jec”tive, n. 1. (Gram.) The objective case.

2. An object glass. See under Object, n.

3. Same as Objective point, under Objective, a.

Ob*jec”tive*ly, adv. In the manner or state of an object; as, a determinate idea objectively in the mind.

Ob*jec”tive*ness, n. Objectivity.

Is there such a motion or objectiveness of external bodies, which produceth light?

Sir M. Hale

Ob`jec*tiv”i*ty (?), n. [Cf.F. objectivité.] The state, quality, or relation of being objective; character of the object or of the objective.

The calm, the cheerfulness, the disinterested objectivity have disappeared [in the life of the Greeks].

M. Arnold.

Ob”ject*ize (?), v. t. To make an object of; to regard as an object; to place in the position of an object.

In the latter, as objectized by the former, arise the emotions and affections.

Coleridge.

Ob”ject*less, a. Having no object; purposeless.

Ob*ject”or (?), n. [L., an accuser.] One who objects; one who offers objections to a proposition or measure.

Ob*jib”ways (?), n. pl. See Chippeways.

Ob*jic”i*ent (?), n. [L. objiciens, p. pr. of objicere to object.] One who makes objection; an objector. [R.] Cardinal Wiseman.

Ob`ju*ra”tion (?), n. [L. objurare to bind by oath; ob (see Ob-) + jurare to swear, fr. jus right.] A binding by oath. [R.] Abp. Bramhall.

Ob*jur”gate (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Objurgated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Objurgating.] [L. objurgatus, p. p. of objurgare to chide; ob (see Ob-) + jurgare to quarrel, scold, fr. jus right, court. See Jury.] To chide; to reprove.

Ob`jur*ga”tion (?), n. [L. objurgatio: cf.F. objurgation.] The act of objurgating; reproof.

While the good lady was bestowing this objurgation on Mr. Ben Allen.

Dickens.

With a strong objurgation of the elbow in his ribs.

Landor.

Ob*jur”ga*to*ry (?), a. [L. objurgatorius.] Designed to objurgate or chide; containing or expressing reproof; culpatory. Bancroft.

The objurgatory question of the Pharisees.

Paley.

Ob*lan”ce*o*late (?), a. [Pref. ob- + lanceolate.] Lanceolate in the reversed order, that is, narrowing toward the point of attachment more than toward the apex.

Ob*late” (?), a. [L. oblatus, used as p. p. of offerre to bring forward, offer, dedicate; ob (see Ob-) + latus borne, for tlatus. See Tolerate.]

1. (Geom.) Flattened or depressed at the poles; as, the earth is an oblate spheroid.

2. Offered up; devoted; consecrated; dedicated; — used chiefly or only in the titles of Roman Catholic orders. See Oblate, n.

Oblate ellipsoid or spheroid (Geom.), a solid generated by the revolution of an ellipse about its minor axis; an oblatum. See Ellipsoid of revolution, under Ellipsoid.

Ob*late”, n. [From Oblate, a.] (R. C. Ch.) (a) One of an association of priests or religious women who have offered themselves to the service of the church. There are three such associations of priests, and one of women, called oblates. (b) One of the Oblati.

Ob*late”ness, n. The quality or state of being oblate.

||Ob*la”ti (?), n. pl. [LL., fr. L. oblatus. See Oblate.] (R.C.Ch.) (a) Children dedicated in their early years to the monastic state. (b) A class of persons, especially in the Middle Ages, who offered themselves and their property to a monastery. Addis & Arnold.

Ob*la”tion (?), n. [L. oblatio: cf. F. oblation. See Oblate.] 1. The act of offering, or of making an offering. Locke.

2. Anything offered or presented in worship or sacred service; an offering; a sacrifice.

A peculiar . . . oblation given to God.

Jer. Taylor.

A pin was the usual oblation.

Sir. W. Scott.

3. A gift or contribution made to a church, as for the expenses of the eucharist, or for the support of the clergy and the poor.

Ob*la”tion*er (?), n. One who makes an offering as an act worship or reverence. Dr. H. More.

Ob*la”trate (?), v. i. [L. oblatratus, p. p. of oblatrare to bark against.] To bark or snarl, as a dog. [Obs.]

Ob`la*tra”tion (?), n. The act of oblatrating; a barking or snarling. Bp. Hall.

||Ob*la”tum (?), n.; pl. Oblata (#). [NL. See Oblate.] (Geom.) An oblate spheroid; a figure described by the revolution of an ellipse about its minor axis. Cf. Oblongum.

Ob*lec”tate (?), v. t. [L. oblectatus, p. p. of oblectare.] To delight; to please greatly. [Obs.]

Ob”lec*ta”tion (?), n. [L. oblectatio.] The act of pleasing highly; the state of being greatly pleased; delight. [R.] Feltham.

Ob”li*ga*ble (?), a. Acknowledging, or complying with, obligation; trustworthy. [R.]

The main difference between people seems to be, that one man can come under obligations on which you can rely, — is obligable; and another is not.

Emerson.

Ob”li*gate (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Obligated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Obligating.] [L. obligatus, p. p. of obligare. See Oblige.] 1. To bring or place under obligation, moral or legal; to hold by a constraining motive. “Obligated by a sense of duty.” Proudfit.

That’s your true plan — to obligate
The present ministers of state.

Churchill.

2. To bind or firmly hold to an act; to compel; to constrain; to bind to any act of duty or courtesy by a formal pledge.

That they may not incline or be obligated to any vile or lowly occupations.

Landor.

Ob”li*ga”tion (?), n. [F. obligation. L. obligatio. See Oblige.] 1. The act of obligating.

2. That which obligates or constrains; the binding power of a promise, contract, oath, or vow, or of law; that which constitutes legal or moral duty.

A tender conscience is a stronger obligation than a proson.

Fuller.

3. Any act by which a person becomes bound to do something to or for anouther, or to forbear something; external duties imposed by law, promise, or contract, by the relations of society, or by courtesy, kindness, etc.

Every man has obligations which belong to his station. Duties extend beyond obligation, and direct the affections, desires, and intentions, as well as the actions.

Whewell.

4. The state of being obligated or bound; the state of being indebted for an act of favor or kindness; as, to place others under obligations to one.

5. (Law) A bond with a condition annexed, and a penalty for nonfulfillment. In a larger sense, it is an acknowledgment of a duty to pay a certain sum or do a certain things.

Days of obligation. See under Day.

||Ob”li*ga”to (?), a. [It.] See Obbligato.

Ob”li*ga*to*ri*ly (?), adv. In an obligatory manner; by reason of obligation. Foxe.

Ob”li*ga*to*ri*ness, n. The quality or state of being obligatory.

Ob”li*ga*to*ry (?), a. [L. obligatorius: cf.F. obligatoire.] Binding in law or conscience; imposing duty or obligation; requiring performance or forbearance of some act; — often followed by on or upon; as, obedience is obligatory on a soldier.

As long as the law is obligatory, so long our obedience is due.

Jer. Taylor.

O*blige” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Obliged (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Obliging (?).] [OF. obligier, F. obliger, L. obligare; ob (see Ob-) + ligare to bind. See Ligament, and cf. Obligate.] 1. To attach, as by a bond. [Obs.]

He had obliged all the senators and magistrates firmly to himself.

Bacon.

2. To constrain by physical, moral, or legal force; to put under obligation to do or forbear something.

The obliging power of the law is neither founded in, nor to be measured by, the rewards and punishments annexed to it.

South.

Religion obliges men to the practice of those virtues which conduce to the preservation of our health.

Tillotson.

3. To bind by some favor rendered; to place under a debt; hence, to do a favor to; to please; to gratify; to accommodate.

Thus man, by his own strength, to heaven would soar,
And would not be obliged to God for more.

Dryden.

The gates before it are brass, and the whole much obliged to Pope Urban VIII.

Evelyn.

I shall be more obliged to you than I can express.

Mrs. E. Montagu.

Ob”li*gee” (?), n. [F. obligé, p. p. of obliger. See Oblige.] The person to whom another is bound, or the person to whom a bond is given. Blackstone.

O*blige”ment (?), n. Obligation. [R.]

I will not resist, therefore, whatever it is, either of divine or human obligement, that you lay upon me.

Milton.

O*bli”ger (?), n. One who, or that which, obliges. Sir H. Wotton.

O*bli”ging, a. Putting under obligation; disposed to oblige or do favors; hence, helpful; civil; kind.

Mons.Strozzi has many curiosities, and is very obliging to a stranger who desires the sight of them.

Addison.

Syn. — Civil; complaisant; courteous; kind, — Obliging, Kind, Complaisant. One is kind who desires to see others happy; one is complaisant who endeavors to make them so in social intercourse by attentions calculated to please; one who is obliging performs some actual service, or has the disposition to do so.

— O*bli”ging*ly. adv. — O*bli”ging*ness, n.

Ob`li*gor” (?), n. The person who binds himself, or gives his bond to another. Blackstone.

Ob`li*qua”tion (?), n. [L. obliquatio, fr. obliquare to turn obliquely. See Oblique.] 1. The act of becoming oblique; a turning to one side; obliquity; as, the obliquation of the eyes. [R.] Sir T. Browne.

2. Deviation from moral rectitude. [R.]

Ob*lique” (?), a. [F., fr. L. obliquus; ob (see Ob-) + liquis oblique; cf. licinus bent upward, Gr &?; slanting.] [Written also oblike.]

1. Not erect or perpendicular; neither parallel to, nor at right angles from, the base; slanting; inclined.

It has a direction oblique to that of the former motion.

Cheyne.

2. Not straightforward; indirect; obscure; hence, disingenuous; underhand; perverse; sinister.

The love we bear our friends . . .
Hath in it certain oblique ends.

Drayton.

This mode of oblique research, when a more direct one is denied, we find to be the only one in our power.

De Quincey.

Then would be closed the restless, oblique eye.
That looks for evil, like a treacherous spy.

Wordworth.

3. Not direct in descent; not following the line of father and son; collateral.

His natural affection in a direct line was strong, in an oblique but weak.

Baker.

Oblique angle, Oblique ascension, etc. See under Angle,Ascension, etc. — Oblique arch (Arch.), an arch whose jambs are not at right angles with the face, and whose intrados is in consequence askew. — Oblique bridge, a skew bridge. See under Bridge, n. — Oblique case (Gram.), any case except the nominative. See Case, n. — Oblique circle (Projection), a circle whose plane is oblique to the axis of the primitive plane. — Oblique fire (Mil.), a fire the direction of which is not perpendicular to the line fired at. — Oblique flank (Fort.), that part of the curtain whence the fire of the opposite bastion may be discovered. Wilhelm. — Oblique leaf. (Bot.) (a) A leaf twisted or inclined from the normal position. (b) A leaf having one half different from the other. — Oblique line (Geom.), a line that, meeting or tending to meet another, makes oblique angles with it. — Oblique motion (Mus.), a kind of motion or progression in which one part ascends or descends, while the other prolongs or repeats the same tone, as in the accompanying example. — Oblique muscle (Anat.), a muscle acting in a direction oblique to the mesial plane of the body, or to the associated muscles; — applied especially to two muscles of the eyeball. — Oblique narration. See Oblique speech. — Oblique planes (Dialing), planes which decline from the zenith, or incline toward the horizon. — Oblique sailing (Naut.), the movement of a ship when she sails upon some rhumb between the four cardinal points, making an oblique angle with the meridian. — Oblique speech (Rhet.), speech which is quoted indirectly, or in a different person from that employed by the original speaker. — Oblique sphere (Astron. & Geog.), the celestial or terrestrial sphere when its axis is oblique to the horizon of the place; or as it appears to an observer at any point on the earth except the poles and the equator. — Oblique step (Mil.), a step in marching, by which the soldier, while advancing, gradually takes ground to the right or left at an angle of about 25°. It is not now practiced. Wilhelm. — Oblique system of coördinates (Anal. Geom.), a system in which the coördinate axes are oblique to each other.

Ob*lique”, n. (Geom.) An oblique line.

Ob*lique”, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Obliqued (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Obliquing.] 1. To deviate from a perpendicular line; to move in an oblique direction.

Projecting his person towards it in a line which obliqued from the bottom of his spine.

Sir. W. Scott.

2. (Mil.) To march in a direction oblique to the line of the column or platoon; — formerly accomplished by oblique steps, now by direct steps, the men half- facing either to the right or left.

Ob*lique”-an`gled (?), a. Having oblique angles; as, an oblique-angled triangle.

Ob*lique”ly, adv. In an oblique manner; not directly; indirectly. “Truth obliquely leveled.” Bp. Fell.

Declining from the noon of day,
The sun obliquely shoots his burning ray.

Pope

His discourse tends obliquely to the detracting from others.

Addison.

Ob*lique”ness, n. Quality or state of being oblique.

Ob*liq”ui*ty, n.; pl. Obliquities (#). [L. obliquitas: cf. F. obliquité.] 1. The condition of being oblique; deviation from a right line; deviation from parallelism or perpendicularity; the amount of such deviation; divergence; as, the obliquity of the ecliptic to the equator.

2. Deviation from ordinary rules; irregularity; deviation from moral rectitude.

To disobey [God] . . . imports a moral obliquity.

South.

Ob”lite (?), a. [L. oblitus, p. p. pf oblinere to besmear.] Indistinct; slurred over. [Obs.] “Obscure and oblite mention.” Fuller.

Ob*lit”er*ate (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Obliterated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Obliterating.] [L. obliteratus, p. p. of obliterare to obliterate; ob (see Ob-) + litera, littera, letter. See Letter.] 1. To erase or blot out; to efface; to render undecipherable, as a writing.

2. To wear out; to remove or destroy utterly by any means; to render imperceptible; as. to obliterate ideas; to obliterate the monuments of antiquity.

The harsh and bitter feelings of this or that experience are slowly obliterated.

W. Black.

Ob*lit”er*ate (?), a. (Zoöl.) Scarcely distinct; — applied to the markings of insects.

Ob*lit`er*a”tion (?), n. [L. obliteratio: cf.F. oblitération.] The act of obliterating, or the state of being obliterated; extinction. Sir. M. Hale.

Ob*lit”er*a*tive (?), a. Tending or serving to obliterate.

Ob*liv”i*on (?), n. [L. oblivio, akin to oblivisci to forget: cf. OF. oblivion.] 1. The act of forgetting, or the state of being forgotten; cessation of remembrance; forgetfulness.

Second childishness and mere oblivion.

Shak.

Among our crimes oblivion may be set.

Dryden

The origin of our city will be buried in eternal oblivion.

W. Irving.

2. Official ignoring of offenses; amnesty, or general pardon; as, an act of oblivion. Sir J. Davies.

Syn. — See Forgetfulness.

Ob*liv”i*ous (?), a. [L. obliviosus: cf.F. oblivieux.]

1. Promoting oblivion; causing forgetfulness. “The oblivious pool.” Milton.

She lay in deep, oblivious slumber.

Longfellow.

2. Evincing oblivion; forgetful.

Through are both weak in body and oblivious.

Latimer.

— Obliv”i*ous*ly, adv. — Ob*liv”i*ous*ness, n. Foxe.

Ob*loc”u*tor (?), n. [L. oblocutor, obloquutor, fr. obloqui, oblocutus, to speak against; ob (see Ob-) + loqui to speak. See Loquacious.] A disputer; a gainsayer. [Obs.] Bale.

Ob”long (?), a. [L. oblongus; ob (see Ob-) + longus long: cf. F. oblong.] Having greater length than breadth, esp. when rectangular.

Ob”long, n. A rectangular figure longer than it is broad; hence, any figure longer than it is broad.

The best figure of a garden I esteem an oblong upon a descent.

Sir W. Temple.

||Ob`lon*ga”ta (?), n. [NL.] (Anat.) The medulla oblongata. B. G. Wilder.

Ob”lon*ga”tal (?), a. Of or pertaining to the medulla oblongata; medullar.

Ob”long*ish (?), a. Somewhat oblong.

Ob”long*ly, adv. In an oblong form.

Ob”long*ness, n. State or quality of being oblong.

Ob”long-o”vate (?), a. Between oblong and ovate, but inclined to the latter.

||Ob*lon”gum (?), n.; pl. Oblonga (#). [NL. See Oblong.] (Geom.) A prolate spheroid; a figure described by the revolution of an ellipse about its greater axis. Cf. Oblatum, and see Ellipsoid of revolution, under Ellipsoid.

Ob*lo”qui*ous (?), a. Containing obloquy; reproachful [R.] Naunton.

Ob”lo*quy (&obreve;b”l&osl;*kw&ybreve;), n. [L. obloquium, fr. obloqui. See Oblocutor.] 1. Censorious speech; defamatory language; language that casts contempt on men or their actions; blame; reprehension.

Shall names that made your city the glory of the earth be mentioned with obloquy and detraction?

Addison.

2. Cause of reproach; disgrace. [Obs.] Shak.

Syn. — Reproach; odium; censure; contumely; gainsaying; reviling; calumny; slander; detraction.

Ob`luc*ta”tion (?), n. [L. oblictutio, fr. obluctari to struggle against.] A struggle against; resistance; opposition. [Obs.] Fotherby.

Ob`mu*tes”cence (&obreve;b`m&usl;*t&ebreve;s”sens), n. [L. obmutescens, p. pr of obmutescere to become dumb; ob (see Ob-) + mutescere to grow dumb, fr. mutus dumb.] 1. A becoming dumb; loss of speech. Sir T. Browne.

2. A keeping silent or mute. Paley.

Ob*nox”ious (&obreve;b*n&obreve;k”shŭs), a. [L. obnoxius; ob (see Ob-) + noxius hurtful. See Noxious.] 1. Subject; liable; exposed; answerable; amenable; — with to.

The writings of lawyers, which are tied obnoxious to their particular laws.

Bacon.

Esteeming it more honorable to live on the public than to be obnoxious to any private purse.

Milton.

Obnoxious, first or last,
To basest things

Milton.

2. Liable to censure; exposed to punishment; reprehensible; blameworthy. “The contrived and interested schemes of . . . obnoxious authors.” Bp. Fell.

All are obnoxious, and this faulty land,
Like fainting Hester, does before you stand
Watching your scepter.

Waller.

3. Offensive; odious; hateful; as, an obnoxious statesman; a minister obnoxious to the Whigs. Burke.

— Ob*nox”ious*ly, adv. — Ob*nox”ious*ness, n. South.

Ob*nu”bi*late (?), v. t. [L. obnubilatus, p. p. of obnubilare to obscure. See Ob- , and Nubilate.] To cloud; to obscure. [Obs.] Burton. — Ob*nu”bi*la”tion (#), n. [Obs.] Beddoes.

O”boe (?), n. [It., fr. F. hautbois. See Hautboy.] (Mus.) One of the higher wind instruments in the modern orchestra, yet of great antiquity, having a penetrating pastoral quality of tone, somewhat like the clarinet in form, but more slender, and sounded by means of a double reed; a hautboy.

||Oboe d’amore [It., lit., oboe of love], and ||Oboe di caccia [It., lit., oboe of the chase], are names of obsolete modifications of the oboe, often found in the scores of Bach and Handel.

O”bo*ist (?), n. A performer on the oboe.

Ob”o*la*ry (?), a. [See Obolus.] Possessing only small coins; impoverished. [R.] Lamb.

Ob”ole (?), n. [Cf.F. obole. See Obolus.] (Old Pharm.) A weight of twelve grains; or, according to some, of ten grains, or half a scruple. [Written also obol.]

Ob”o*lize (?), v. t. See Obelize.

Ob”o*lo (?), n. [Cf. Obolus.] A copper coin, used in the Ionian Islands, about one cent in value.

||Ob”o*lus (?), n.;pl. Oboli (#). [L., fr Gr. (&?;)] (Gr.Antiq.) (a) A small silver coin of Athens, the sixth part of a drachma, about three cents in value. (b) An ancient weight, the sixth part of a drachm.

Ob`o*me”goid (?), a. [Pref. ob- + omegoid.] (Zoöl.) Obversely omegoid.

Ob*o”val (?), a. [Pref. ob- + oval.] Obovate.

Ob*o”vate (?). a. [Pref. ob- + ovate.] (Bot.) Inversely ovate; ovate with the narrow end downward; as, an obovate leaf.

Ob*rep”tion (?), n. [L. obreptio, fr. obrepere, obreptum, to creep up to; ob (see Ob-) + repere to creep.] 1. The act of creeping upon with secrecy or by surprise. [Obs.] Cudworth.

2. (Scots Law) The obtaining gifts of escheat by fraud or surprise. Bell.

Ob`rep*ti”tious (?), a. [L. obreptitus. See Obreption.] Done or obtained by surprise; with secrecy, or by concealment of the truth. [R.] Cotgrave.

Ob”ro*gate (?), v. t. [L. obrogatus, p. p. of obrogare to obrogate.] To annul indirectly by enacting a new and contrary law, instead of by expressly abrogating or repealing the old one. [Obs.] Bailey.

||Ob”rok (?), n. [Russ. obrok’.] (a) A rent. (b) A poll tax paid by peasants absent from their lord’s estate. [Russia] Brande & C.

Ob*scene” (?), a. [L. obscenus, obscaenus, obscoenus, ill looking, filthy, obscene: cf. F. obscéne.]

1. Offensive to chastity or modesty; expressing or presenting to the mind or view something which delicacy, purity, and decency forbid to be exposed; impure; as, obscene language; obscene pictures.

Words that were once chaste, by frequent use grew obscene and uncleanly.

I. Watts.

2. Foul; fifthy; disgusting.

A girdle foul with grease b&?;&?;ds his obscene attire.

Dryden.

3. Inauspicious; ill-omened. [R.] [A Latinism]

At the cheerful light,
The groaning ghosts and birds obscene take flight.

Dryden.

Syn. — Impure; immodest; indecent; unchaste; lewd.

— Ob*scene”ly, adv. — Ob*scene”ness, n.

Ob*scen”i*ty (?), n.; pl. Obscenities (#). [L. obscentias: cf.F. obscénité.] That quality in words or things which presents what is offensive to chasity or purity of mind; obscene or impure lanquage or acts; moral impurity; lewdness; obsceneness; as, the obscenity of a speech, or a picture.

Mr.Cowley asserts plainly, that obscenity has no place in wit.

Dryden.

No pardon vile obscenity should find.

Pope.

Ob*scur”ant (?), n. [L. obscurans, p. pr. of obscurare to obscure.] One who obscures; one who prevents enlightenment or hinders the progress of knowledge and wisdom. Coleridge.

Ob*scur”ant*ism (?), n. The system or the principles of the obscurants. C. Kingsley.

Ob*scur”ant*ist, n. Same as Obscurant. Ed. Rev.

Ob`scu*ra”tion (?), n. [L. obscurativ: cf.F. obscuration. See Obscure, v. t. ] The act or operation of obscuring; the state of being obscured; as, the obscuration of the moon in an eclipse. Sir J. Herschel.

Ob*scure” (?), a. [Compar. Obscurer (?); superl. Obscurest.] [L. obscurus, orig., covered; ob- (see Ob-) + a root probably meaning, to cover; cf. L. scutum shield, Skr. sku to cover: cf.F. obscur. Cf. Sky.]

1. Covered over, shaded, or darkened; destitute of light; imperfectly illuminated; dusky; dim.

His lamp shall be put out in obscure darkness.

Prov. xx. 20.

2. Of or pertaining to darkness or night; inconspicuous to the sight; indistinctly seen; hidden; retired; remote from observation; unnoticed.

The obscure bird
Clamored the livelong night.

Shak.

The obscure corners of the earth.

Sir J. Davies.

3. Not noticeable; humble; mean. “O base and obscure vulgar.” Shak. “An obscure person.” Atterbury.

4. Not easily understood; not clear or legible; abstruse or blind; as, an obscure passage or inscription.

5. Not clear, full, or distinct; clouded; imperfect; as, an obscure view of remote objects.

Obscure rays (Opt.), those rays which are not luminous or visible, and which in the spectrum are beyond the limits of the visible portion.

Syn. — Dark; dim; darksome; dusky; shadowy; misty; abstruse; intricate; difficult; mysterious; retired; unnoticed; unknown; humble; mean; indistinct.

Ob*scure”, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Obscured (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Obscuring.] [L. obscurare, fr. obscurus: cf. OF. obscurer. See Obscure, a.] To render obscure; to darken; to make dim; to keep in the dark; to hide; to make less visible, intelligible, legible, glorious, beautiful, or illustrious.

They are all couched in a pit hard by Herne’s oak, with obscured lights.

Shak.

Why, ‘t is an office of discovery, love,
And I should be obscured.

Shak.

There is scarce any duty which has been so obscured by the writings of learned men as this.

Wake.

And seest not sin obscures thy godlike frame?

Dryden.

Ob*scure” (?), v. i. To conceal one’s self; to hide; to keep dark. [Obs.]

How! There’s bad news.
I must obscure, and hear it.

Beau. & Fl.

Ob*scure”, n. Obscurity. [Obs.] Milton.

Ob*scure”ly, adv. In an obscure manner. Milton.

Ob*scure”ment (?), n. The act of obscuring, or the state of being obscured; obscuration. Pomfret.

Ob*scure”ness, n. Obscurity. Bp. Hall.

Ob*scur”er (?), n. One who, or that which, obscures.

Ob*scu”ri*ty (?), n. [L. obscuritas: cf. F. obscurité.] The quality or state of being obscure; darkness; privacy; inconspicuousness; unintelligibleness; uncertainty.

Yuo are not for obscurity designed.

Dryden.

They were now brought forth from obscurity, to be contemplated by artists with admiration and despair.

Macaulay.

Syn. — Darkness; dimness; gloom. See Darkness.

Ob”se*crate (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Obsecrated (?); p. pr. & vb, n. Obsecrating.] [L. obsecratus, p. p. of obsecrare, prop., to ask on religious grounds; ob (see Ob-) + sacrare to declare as sacred, from sacer sacred.] To beseech; to supplicate; to implore. [R.]. Cockerman.

Ob”se*cra”tion (?), n. [L. obsecratio: cf. F. obsecration.] 1. The act of obsecrating or imploring; as, the obsecrations of the Litany, being those clauses beginning with “By.” Bp. Stillingfeet. Shipley.

2. (Rhet.) A figure of speech in which the orator implores the assistance of God or man.

Ob”se*cra*to*ry (?), a. Expressing, or used in, entreaty; supplicatory. [R.] Bp. Hall.

Ob”se*quent (?), a. [L. obsequens, p. pr. of obsequi; ob (see Ob- ) + sequi. See Sequence.] Obedient; submissive; obsequious. [Obs.] Fotherby.

Ob*se”qui*ence (?), n. Obsequiousness. [R.]

Ob”se*quies (?), n. pl. See Obsequy.

Ob*se”qui*ous (?), a. [L. obsequiosus, fr. obsequium compliance, fr. obsequi, fr. obsequi: cf. F. obséquieux, See Obsequent, and cf. Obsequy.] 1. Promptly obedient, or submissive, to the will of another; compliant; yielding to the desires of another; devoted. [Obs.]

His servants weeping,
Obsequious to his orders, bear him hither.

Addison.

2. Servilely or meanly attentive; compliant to excess; cringing; fawning; as, obsequious flatterer, parasite.

There lies ever in “obsequious” at the present the sense of an observance which is overdone, of an unmanly readiness to fall in with the will of another.

Trench.

3. [See Obsequy.] Of or pertaining to obsequies; funereal. [R.] “To do obsequious sorrow.” Shak.

Syn. — Compliant; obedient; servile. See Yielding.

Ob*se”qui*ous*ly, adv. 1. In an obsequious manner; compliantly; fawningly. Dryden.

2. In a manner appropriate to obsequies. [Obs.]

Whilst I a while obsequiously lament
The untimely fall of virtuous Lancaster.

Shak.

Ob*se”qui*ous*ness, n. The quality or state of being obsequious. South.

Ob”se*quy (?), n.; pl. Obsequies (#). [L. obsequiae, pl., funeral rites, fr. obsequi: cf.F. obsèques. See Obsequent, and cf. Obsequious.] 1. The last duty or service to a person, rendered after his death; hence, a rite or ceremony pertaining to burial; — now used only in the plural. Spencer.

I will . . . fetch him hence, and solemnly attend,
With silent obsequy and funeral train.

Milton

I will myself
Be the chief mourner at his obsequies.

Dryden.

The funeral obsequies were decently and privately performed by his family

J. P. Mahaffy.

2. Obsequiousness. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

Ob*serv”a*ble (?), a. [L. observabilis: cf.F. observable.] Worthy or capable of being observed; discernible; noticeable; remarkable. Sir. T. Browne.

The difference is sufficiently observable.

Southey.

— Ob*serv”a*ble*ness, n. — Ob*serv”a*bly, adv.

Ob*serv”ance (?), n. [F. observance, L. observantia. See Observant.] 1. The act or practice of observing or noticing with attention; a heeding or keeping with care; performance; — usually with a sense of strictness and fidelity; as, the observance of the Sabbath is general; the strict observance of duties.

It is a custom
More honored in the breach than the observance.

Shak.

2. An act, ceremony, or rite, as of worship or respect; especially, a customary act or service of attention; a form; a practice; a rite; a custom.

At dances
These young folk kept their observances.

Chaucer.

Use all the observance of civility.

Shak.

Some represent to themselves the whole of religion as consisting in a few easy observances.

Rogers.

O I that wasted time to tend upon her,
To compass her with sweet observances!

Tennyson.

3. Servile attention; sycophancy. [Obs.]

Salads and flesh, such as their haste could get,
Served with observance.

Chapman.

This is not atheism,
But court observance.

Beau. & Fl.

Syn. — Observance, Observation. These words are discriminated by the two distinct senses of observe. To observe means (1) to keep strictly; as, to observe a fast day, and hence, observance denotes the keeping or heeding with strictness; (2) to consider attentively, or to remark; and hence, observation denotes either the act of observing, or some remark made as the result thereof. We do not say the observation of Sunday, though the word was formerly so used. The Pharisees were curious in external observances; the astronomers are curious in celestial observations.

Love rigid honesty,
And strict observance of impartial laws.

Roscommon.

Ob*serv”an*cy (?), n. Observance. [Obs.]

||Ob*ser`van”dum (?), n.; pl. Observanda (#). [L.] A thing to be observed. Swift.

Ob*serv”ant (?), a. [L. observans, -anits, p. pr. of observare: cf. F. observant. See Observe.]

1. Taking notice; viewing or noticing attentively; watchful; attentive; as, an observant spectator; observant habits.

Wandering from clime to clime observant stray’d.

Pope.

2. Submissively attentive; obediently watchful; regardful; mindful; obedient (to); — with of, as, to be observant of rules.

We are told how observant Alexander was of his master Aristotle.

Sir K. Digby.

Ob*serv”ant, n. 1. One who observes forms and rules. [Obs.] Hooker.

2. A sycophantic servant. [Obs.]

Silly ducking observants,
That stretch their duties nicely.

Shak.

3. (R.C.Ch.) An Observantine.

Ob`ser*van”tine (?), n. [Fr. observantin.] (R.C.Ch.) One of a branch of the Order of Franciscans, who profess to adhere more strictly than the Conventuals to the intention of the founder, especially as to poverty; — called also Observants.

Ob*serv”ant*ly, adv. In an observant manner.

Ob`ser*va”tion (?), n. [L. observatio: cf.F. observation.] 1. The act or the faculty of observing or taking notice; the act of seeing, or of fixing the mind upon, anything.

My observation, which very seldom lies.

Shak.

2. The result of an act, or of acts, of observing; view; reflection; conclusion; judgment.

In matters of human prudence, we shall find the greatest advantage in making wise observations on our conduct.

I. Watts.

3. Hence: An expression of an opinion or judgment upon what one has observed; a remark. “That’s a foolish observation.” Shak.

To observations which ourselves we make
We grow more partial for the observer’s sake.

Pope.

4. Performance of what is prescribed; adherence in practice; observance. [Obs.]

We are to procure dispensation or leave to omit the observation of it in such circumstances.

Jer. Taylor.

5. (Science) (a) The act of recognizing and noting some fact or occurrence in nature, as an aurora, a corona, or the structure of an animal. (b) Specifically, the act of measuring, with suitable instruments, some magnitude, as the time of an occultation, with a clock; the right ascension of a star, with a transit instrument and clock; the sun’s altitude, or the distance of the moon from a star, with a sextant; the temperature, with a thermometer, etc. (c) The information so acquired.

&fist; When a phenomenon is scrutinized as it occurs in nature, the act is termed an observation. When the conditions under which the phenomenon occurs are artificial, or arranged beforehand by the observer, the process is called an experiment. Experiment includes observation.

To take an observation (Naut.), to ascertain the altitude of a heavenly body, with a view to fixing a vessel’s position at sea.

Syn. — Observance; notice; attention; remark; comment; note. See Observance.

Ob`ser*va”tion*al (?), a. Of a pertaining to observation; consisting of, or containing, observations. Chalmers.

Ob*serv”a*tive (?), a. Observing; watchful.

Ob”ser*va`tor (?), n. [L.] 1. One who observes or takes notice. [Obs.] Sir M. Hale.

2. One who makes a remark. [Obs.] Dryden.

Ob*serv”a*to*ry (?), n.; pl. Observatories (#). [Cf. F. observatoire.] 1. A place or building for making observations on the heavenly bodies.

The new observatory in Greenwich Park.

Evelyn.

2. A building fitted with instruments for making systematic observations of any particular class or series of natural phenomena.

3. A place, as an elevated chamber, from which a view may be observed or commanded.

4. (Mil.) A lookout on a flank of a battery whence an officer can note the range and effect of the fire. Farrow.

Ob*serve” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Observed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Observing.] [L. observare, observatum; ob (see Ob-) + servare to save, preserve, keep, heed, observe: cf.F. observer. See Serve.] 1. To take notice of by appropriate conduct; to conform one’s action or practice to; to keep; to heed; to obey; to comply with; as, to observe rules or commands; to observe civility.

Ye shall observe the feast of unleavened bread.

Ex. xii. 17.

He wolde no such cursedness observe.

Chaucer.

Must I budge? Must I observe you?

Shak.

With solemn purpose to observe
Immutably his sovereign will.

Milton.

2. To be on the watch respecting; to pay attention to; to notice with care; to see; to perceive; to discover; as, to observe an eclipse; to observe the color or fashion of a dress; to observe the movements of an army.

3. To express as what has been noticed; to utter as a remark; to say in a casual or incidental way; to remark.

Ob*serve”, v. i. 1. To take notice; to give attention to what one sees or hears; to attend.

2. To make a remark; to comment; — generally with on or upon.

I have barely quoted . . . without observing upon it.

Pope.

Syn. — To remark. See Remark.

Ob*serv”er (?), n. 1. One who observes, or pays attention to, anything; especially, one engaged in, or trained to habits of, close and exact observation; as, an astronomical observer.

The observed of all observers.

Shak.

Careful observers may foretell the hour,
By sure prognostic, when to dread a shower.

Swift.

2. One who keeps any law, custom, regulation, rite, etc.; one who conforms to anything in practice. “Diligent observers of old customs.” Spenser.

These . . . hearkend unto observers of times.

Deut. xviii. 14.

3. One who fulfills or performs; as, an observer of his promises.

4. A sycophantic follower. [Obs.] Beau. & Fl.

Ob*serv”er*ship (?), n. The office or work of an observer.

Ob*serv”ing, a. Giving particular attention; habitually attentive to what passes; as, an observing person; an observing mind. — Ob*serv”ing*ly, adv.

Ob*sess” (?), v. t. [L. obsessus, p. p. of obsidere to besiege; ob (see Ob-) + sedere to sit.] To besiege; to beset. Sir T. Elyot.

Ob*ses”sion (?), n. [L. obsessio: cf.F. obsession.] 1. The act of besieging. Johnson.

2. The state of being besieged; — used specifically of a person beset by a spirit from without. Tylor.

Whether by obsession or possession, I will not determine.

Burton.

Ob*sid”i*an (?), n. [L. Obsidianus lapis, so named, according to Pliny, after one Obsidius, who discovered it in Ethiopia: cf.F. obsidiane, obsidienne. The later editions of Pliny read Obsianus lapis, and Obsius, instead of Obsidianus lapis, and Obsidius.] (Min.) A kind of glass produced by volcanoes. It is usually of a black color, and opaque, except in thin splinters.

&fist; In a thin section it often exhibits a fluidal structure, marked by the arrangement of microlites in the lines of the flow of the molten mass.

Ob*sid”i*o*nal (?), a. [L. obsidionalis, from obsidio a siege, obsidere to besiege: cf.F. obsidional. See Obsess.] Of or pertaining to a siege.

Obsidional crown (Rom.Antiq.), a crown bestowed upon a general who raised the siege of a beleaguered place, or upon one who held out against a siege.

Ob*sig`il*la”tion (?), n. [L. ob (see Ob-) + sigillum a seal.] A sealing up. [Obs.] Maunder.

Ob*sign” (?), v. t. [See Obsignate.] To seal; to confirm, as by a seal or stamp. [Obs.] Bradford.

Ob*sig”nate (?), v. t. [L. obsignated, p. p. of obsignare to seal. See Ob-, and Sign.] To seal; to ratify. [Obs.] Barrow.

Ob`sig*na”tion (?), n. [L. obsignatio.] The act of sealing or ratifying; the state of being sealed or confirmed; confirmation, as by the Holy Spirit.

The spirit of manifestation will but upbraid you in the shame and horror of a sad eternity, if you have not the spirit of obsignation.

Jer. Taylor.

Ob*sig”na*to*ry (?), a. Ratifying; confirming by sealing. [Obs.] Samuel Ward (1643)

Ob`so*lesce” (?), v. i. [L. obsolescere. See Obsolescent.] To become obsolescent. [R.] Fitzed. Hall.

Ob`so*les”cence (?), n. [See Obsolescent.] The state of becoming obsolete.

Ob`so*les”cent (?), a. [L. obsolescens, entis, p. pr. of obsolescere, to wear out gradually, to fall into disuse; ob (see Ob) + solere to use, be wont.] Going out of use; becoming obsolete; passing into desuetude.

Ob”so*lete (?), a. [L. obsoletus, p. p. of obsolescere. See Obsolescent.] 1. No longer in use; gone into disuse; disused; neglected; as, an obsolete word; an obsolete statute; — applied chiefly to words, writings, or observances.

2. (Biol.) Not very distinct; obscure; rudimental; imperfectly developed; abortive.

Syn. — Ancient; antiquated; old-fashioned; antique; old; disused; neglected. See Ancient.

Ob”so*lete, v. i. To become obsolete; to go out of use. [R.] Fitzed. Hall.

Ob”so*lete*ly, adv. In an obsolete manner.

Ob”so*lete*ness, n. 1. The state of being obsolete, or no longer used; a state of desuetude.

2. (Biol.) Indistinctness; want of development.

Ob”so*let*ism (?), n. A disused word or phrase; an archaism. Fitzed. Hall.

Ob”sta*cle (?), n. [F., fr. L. obstaculum, fr. obstare to withstand, oppose; ob (see Ob-) + stare to stand. See Stand. and cf. Oust, v.] That which stands in the way, or opposes; anything that hinders progress; a hindrance; an obstruction, physical or moral.

If all obstacles were cut away.
And that my path were even to the crown.

Shak.

Syn. — Impediment; obstuction; hindrance; difficulty. See Impediment, and Obstruction.

Ob”stan*cy (?), n. [L. obstantia, fr. obstans, p. pr. of obstare. See Obstacle.] Opposition; impediment; obstruction. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

{ Ob*stet”ric (?), Ob*stet”ric*al (?), } a. [L. obstetricius, fr. obstetrix, -icis, a midwife, fr. obstare to stand before: cf.F. obstétrique. See Obstacle.] Of or pertaining to midwifery, or the delivery of women in childbed; as, the obstetric art.

Obstetrical toad (Zoöl.), a European toad of the genus Alytes, especially A. obstetricans. The eggs are laid in a string which the male winds around his legs, and carries about until the young are hatched.

Ob*stet”ri*cate (?), v. i. [L. obstetricatus, p. p. of obstetricare, fr. obstetrix.] To perform the office of midwife. [Obs.] “Nature does obstetricate.” Evelyn.

Ob*stet”ri*cate, v. t. To assist as a midwife. [Obs.] E. Waterhouse.

Ob*stet”ri*ca”tion (?), n. The act of assisting as a midwife; delivery. [Obs.] Bp. Hall.

Ob`ste*tri”cian (?), n. One skilled in obstetrics; an accoucheur.

Ob`ste*tri”cious (?), a. [See Obstetric.] Serving to assist childbirth; obstetric; hence, facilitating any bringing forth or deliverance. [Obs.]

Yet is all human teaching but maieutical, or obstetricious.

Cudworth.

Ob*stet”rics (?), n. [Cf. F. obstétrique. See Obstetric.] The science of midwifery; the art of assisting women in parturition, or in the trouble incident to childbirth.

Ob*stet”ri*cy (?), n. Obstetrics. [R.] Dunglison.

Ob”sti*na*cy (?), n. [See Obstinate.] 1. A fixedness in will, opinion, or resolution that can not be shaken at all, or only with great difficulty; firm and usually unreasonable adherence to an opinion, purpose, or system; unyielding disposition; stubborness; pertinacity; persistency; contumacy.

You do not well in obstinacy
To cavil in the course of this contract.

Shak.

To shelter their ignorance, or obstinacy, under the obscurity of their terms.

Locke.

2. The quality or state of being difficult to remedy, relieve, or subdue; as, the obstinacy of a disease or evil.

Syn. — Pertinacity; firmness; resoluteness; inflexibility; persistency; stubbornness; perverseness; contumacy. — Obstinacy, Pertinacity. Pertinacity denotes great firmness in holding to a thing, aim, etc. Obstinacy is great firmness in holding out against persuasion, attack, etc. The former consists in adherence, the latter in resistance. An opinion is advocated with pertinacity or defended with obstinacy. Pertinacity is often used in a good sense; obstinacy generally in a bad one. “In this reply was included a very gross mistake, and if with pertinacity maintained, a capital error.” Sir T. Browne. “Every degree of obstinacy in youth is one step to rebellion.” South.

Ob”sti*nate (?), a. [L. obstinatus, p. p. of obstinare to set about a thing with firmness, to persist in; ob (see Ob-) + a word from the root of stare to stand. See Stand, and cf. Destine.] 1. Pertinaciously adhering to an opinion, purpose, or course; persistent; not yielding to reason, arguments, or other means; stubborn; pertinacious; — usually implying unreasonableness.

I have known great cures done by obstinate resolution of drinking no wine.

Sir W. Temple.

No ass so meek, no ass so obstinate.

Pope.

Of sense and outward things.

Wordsworth.

2. Not yielding; not easily subdued or removed; as, obstinate fever; obstinate obstructions.

Syn. — Stubborn; inflexible; immovable; firm; pertinacious; persistent; headstrong; opinionated; unyielding; refractory; contumacious. See Stubborn.

— Ob”sti*nate*ly, adv. — Ob”sti*nate*ness, n.

Ob`sti*na”tion (?), n. [L. obstinatio.] Obstinacy; stubbornness. [Obs.] Jer. Taylor.

Ob`sti*pa”tion (?), n. [L. obstipatio a close pressure; ob (see Ob-) + stipare to press.] 1. The act of stopping up, as a passage. [Obs.] Bailey.

2. (Med.) Extreme constipation. [Obs.] Hooper.

Ob*strep”er*ous (?), a. [L. obstreperus, from obstrepere to make a noise at; ob (see Ob-) + strepere to make a noise.] Attended by, or making, a loud and tumultuous noise; clamorous; noisy; vociferous. “The obstreperous city.” Wordsworth. “Obstreperous approbation.” Addison.

Beating the air with their obstreperous beaks.

B. Jonson.

— Ob*strep”er*ous*ly, adv. — Ob*strep”er*ous*ness, n.

Ob*stric”tion (?), n. [L. obstringere, obstrictum, to bind to or about.] The state of being constrained, bound, or obliged; that which constrains or obliges; obligation; bond. [R.] Milton.

Ob*stringe” (?), v. t. [See Obstriction.] To constrain; to put under obligation. [R.] Bp. Gardiner.

Ob*struct” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Obstructed; p. pr. & vb. n. Obstructing.] [L. obstructus, p. p. of obstruere to build up before or against, to obstruct; ob (see Ob- ) + struere to pile up. See Structure.]

1. To block up; to stop up or close, as a way or passage; to place an obstacle in, or fill with obstacles or impediments that prevent or hinder passing; as, to obstruct a street; to obstruct the channels of the body.

‘T is the obstructed paths of sound shall clear.

Pope.

2. To be, or come, in the way of; to hinder from passing; to stop; to impede; to retard; as, the bar in the harbor obstructs the passage of ships; clouds obstruct the light of the sun; unwise rules obstruct legislation. “Th’ impatience of obstructed love.” Johnson.

Syn. — To bar; barricade; stop; arrest; check; interrupt; clog; choke; impede; retard; embarrass; oppose.

Ob*struct”er (?), n. One who obstructs or hinders.

Ob*struc”tion (?), n. [L. obstructio.]

1. The act of obstructing, or state of being obstructed.

2. That which obstructs or impedes; an obstacle; an impediment; a hindrance.

A popular assembly free from obstruction.

Swift.

3. The condition of having the natural powers obstructed in their usual course; the arrest of the vital functions; death. [Poetic]

To die, and go we know not where,
To lie in cold obstruction, and to rot.

Shak.

Syn. — Obstacle; bar; barrier; impediment; clog; check; hindrance. — Obstruction, Obstacle. The difference between these words is that indicated by their etymology; an obstacle is something standing in the way; an obstruction is something put in the way. Obstacle implies more fixedness and is the stronger word. We remove obstructions; we surmount obstacles.

Disparity in age seems a greater obstacle to an intimate friendship than inequality of fortune.

Collier.

The king expected to meet with all the obstructions and difficulties his enraged enemies could lay in his way.

Clarendon.

Ob*struc”tion*ism (?), n. The act or the policy of obstructing progress. Lond. Lit. World.

Ob*struc”tion*ist, n. One who hinders progress; one who obstructs business, as in a legislative body. — a. Of or pertaining to obstructionists. [Recent]

Ob*struct”ive (?), a. [Cf.F. obstrictif.] Tending to obstruct; presenting obstacles; hindering; causing impediment. — Ob*struct”ive*ly, adv.

Ob*struct”ive, n. An obstructive person or thing.

Ob”stru*ent (?), a. [L. obstruens, p. pr. of obstruere. See Obstruct.] Causing obstruction; blocking up; hindering; as, an obstruent medicine. Johnson.

Ob”stru*ent, n. Anything that obstructs or closes a passage; esp., that which obstructs natural passages in the body; as, a medicine which acts as an obstruent.

Ob*stu`pe*fac”tion (?), n. [L. obstuperfacere to stupefy.] See Stupefaction. [Obs.] Howell.

Ob*stu`pe*fac”tive (?), a. Stupefactive. [Obs.]

Ob*stu”pe*fy (?), v. t. [Cf.L. obstupefacere. See Ob-, and Stupefy.] See Stupefy. [Obs.]

Ob*tain” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Obtained (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Obtaining.] [F. obtenir, L. obtinere; ob (see Ob-) + tenere to hold. See Tenable.]

1. To hold; to keep; to possess. [Obs.]

His mother, then, is mortal, but his Sire
He who obtains the monarchy of heaven.

Milton.

2. To get hold of by effort; to gain possession of; to procure; to acquire, in any way.

Some pray for riches; riches they obtain.

Dryden.

By guileful fair words peace may be obtained.

Shak.

It may be that I may obtain children by her.

Gen. xvi. 2.

Syn. — To attain; gain; procure; acquire; win; earn. See Attain. — To Obtain, Get, Gain, Earn, Acquire. The idea of getting is common to all these terms. We may, indeed, with only a slight change of sense, substitute get for either of them; as, to get or to gain a prize; to get or to obtain an employment; to get or to earn a living; to get or to acquire a language. To gain is to get by striving; and as this is often a part of our good fortune, the word gain is peculiarly applicable to whatever comes to us fortuitously. Thus, we gain a victory, we gain a cause, we gain an advantage, etc. To earn is to deserve by labor or service; as, to earn good wages; to earn a triumph. Unfortunately, one does not always get or obtain what he has earned. To obtain implies desire for possession, and some effort directed to the attainment of that which is not immediately within our reach. Whatever we thus seek and get, we obtain, whether by our own exertions or those of others; whether by good or bad means; whether permanently, or only for a time. Thus, a man obtains an employment; he obtains an answer to a letter, etc. To acquire is more limited and specific. We acquire what comes to us gradually in the regular exercise of our abilities, while we obtain what comes in any way, provided we desire it. Thus, we acquire knowledge, property, honor, reputation, etc. What we acquire becomes, to a great extent, permanently our own; as, to acquire a language; to acquire habits of industry, etc.

Ob*tain”, v. i. 1. To become held; to gain or have a firm footing; to be recognized or established; to subsist; to become prevalent or general; to prevail; as, the custom obtains of going to the seashore in summer.

Sobriety hath by use obtained to signify temperance in drinking.

Jer. Taylor.

The Theodosian code, several hundred years after Justinian’s time, did obtain in the western parts of Europe.

Baker.

2. To prevail; to succeed. [R.] Evelyn.

So run that ye may obtain.

1 Cor. ix. 24.

There is due from the judge to the advocate, some commendation, where causes are fair pleaded; especially towards the side which obtaineth not.

Bacon.

Ob*tain”a*ble (?), a. Capable of being obtained.

Ob*tain”er (?), n. One who obtains.

Ob*tain”ment (?), n. The act or process of obtaining; attainment. Milton.

Ob*tect”ed (?), a. [L. obtectus, p. p. of obtegere to cover over.] 1. Covered; protected. [Obs.]

2. (Zoöl.) Covered with a hard chitinous case, as the pupa of certain files.

Ob*tem”per (?), v. t. & i. [See Obtemperate.] (Scots Law) To obey (a judgment or decree).

Ob*tem”per*ate (?), v. t. [L. obtemperare, obtemperatum to obey.] To obey. [Obs.] Johnson.

Ob*tend” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Obtended; p. pr. & vb. n. Obtending.] [L. obtendere, obtentum, to stretch or place before or against; ob (see Ob-) + tendere to stretch.] 1. To oppose; to hold out in opposition. [Obs.] Dryden.

2. To offer as the reason of anything; to pretend. [Obs.] Dryden

Ob*ten`e*bra”tion (?), n. [L. obtenebrate to make dark.] The act of darkening; the state of being darkened; darkness. [Obs.]

In every megrim or vertigo, there is an obtenebration joined with a semblance of turning round.

Bacon.

Ob*ten”sion (?), n. [L. obtentio. See Obtend.] The act of obtending. [Obs.] Johnson.

Ob*test” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Obtested; p. pr. & vb. n. Obtesting.] [L. obtestari; ob (see Ob-) + testari to witness, fr. testis a witness.] 1. To call to witness; to invoke as a witness. [R.] Dryden.

2. To beseech; to supplicate; to beg for. [R.]

Ob*test”, v. i. To protest. [R.] E. Waterhouse.

Ob`tes*ta”tion (?), n. [L. obtestatio.] The act of obtesting; supplication; protestation. [R.]

Antonio asserted this with great obtestation.

Evelyn.

Ob`trec*ta”tion (?), n. [L. obtrectatio, from obtrectare to detract from through envy. See Detract.] Slander; detraction; calumny. [Obs.] Barrow.

Ob*trude” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Obtruded, p. pr. & vb. n. Obtruding.] [L. obtrudere, obtrusum; ob (see Ob-) + trudere to thrust. See Threat.] 1. To thrust impertinently; to present without warrant or solicitation; as, to obtrude one’s self upon a company.

The objects of our senses obtrude their particular ideas upon our minds, whether we will or no.

Lock.

2. To offer with unreasonable importunity; to urge unduly or against the will. Milton.

Ob*trude”, v. i. To thrust one’s self upon a company or upon attention; to intrude.

Syn. — To Obtrude, Intrude. To intrude is to thrust one’s self into a place, society, etc., without right, or uninvited; to obtrude is to force one’s self, remarks, opinions, etc., into society or upon persons with whom one has no such intimacy as to justify such boldness.

Ob*trud”er (?), n. One who obtrudes. Boyle.

Ob*trun”cate (?), v. t. [L. obtruncatus, p. p. of obtruncare.] To deprive of a limb; to lop. [R.]

Ob`trun*ca”tion (?), n. [L. obtruncatio.] The act of lopping or cutting off. [R.] Cockeram.

Ob*tru”sion (?), n. [L. obtrusio. See Obtrude.] 1. The act of obtruding; a thrusting upon others by force or unsolicited; as, the obtrusion of crude opinions on the world.

2. That which is obtruded. Milton.

Ob*tru”sion*ist, n. One who practices or excuses obtrusion. [R.] Gent. Mag.

Ob*tru”sive (?), a. Disposed to obtrude; inclined to intrude or thrust one’s self or one’s opinions upon others, or to enter uninvited; forward; pushing; intrusive. — Ob*tru”sive*ly, adv. – - Ob*tru”sive*ness, n.

Not obvious, not obtrusive, but retired.

Milton.

Ob*tund” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Obtunded; p. pr. & vb. n. Obtunding.] [L. obtundere, obtusum; ob (see Ob-) + tundere to strike or beat. See Stutter.] To reduce the edge, pungency, or violent action of; to dull; to blunt; to deaden; to quell; as, to obtund the acrimony of the gall. [Archaic] Harvey.

They . . . have filled all our law books with the obtunding story of their suits and trials.

Milton.

Ob*tund”ent (?), n. [L. obtundens, p. pr. of obtundere.] (Med.) A substance which sheathes a part, or blunts irritation, usually some bland, oily, or mucilaginous matter; — nearly the same as demulcent. Forsyth.

Ob*tund”er (?), n. (Med.) That which obtunds or blunts; especially, that which blunts sensibility.

Ob`tu*ra”tion (?), n. [L. obturare to stop up: cf.F. obturation.] The act of stopping up, or closing, an opening. “Deaf by an outward obturation.” Bp. Hall.

Ob”tu*ra`tor (?), n. [NL., fr. L. obturare to stop up: cf.F. obturateur.] 1. That which closes or stops an opening.

2. (Surg.) An apparatus designed to close an unnatural opening, as a fissure of the palate.

Ob”tu*ra`tor, a. (Anat.) Serving as an obturator; closing an opening; pertaining to, or in the region of, the obturator foramen; as, the obturator nerve.

Obturator foramen (Anat.), an opening situated between the public and ischial parts of the innominate bone and closed by the obturator membrane; the thyroid foramen.

Ob*tus”an`gu*lar (?), a. See Obstuseangular.

Ob*tuse” (?). a. [Compar. Obtuser (&?;); superl. Obtusest.] [L. obtusus, p. p. of obtundere to blunt: cf. F. obtus. See Obtund.] 1. Not pointed or acute; blunt; — applied esp. to angles greater than a right angle, or containing more than ninety degrees.

2. Not having acute sensibility or perceptions; dull; stupid; as, obtuse senses. Milton.

3. Dull; deadened; as, obtuse sound. Johnson.

{ Ob*tuse”-an`gled (?), ob*tuse”an`gu*lar (?), } a. Having an obtuse angle; as, an obtuse angled triangle.

Ob*tuse”ly, adv. In an obtuse manner.

Ob*tuse”ness, n. State or quality of being obtuse.

Ob*tu”sion (&?;), n. [L. obtusio, from obtundere to blunt. See Obtund.] 1. The act or process of making obtuse or blunt.

2. The state of being dulled or blunted; as, the obtusion of the senses. Harvey.

Ob*tu”si*ty (?), n. Obtuseness. Lond. Quart. Rev.

Ob*um”brant (?), a. [L. obumbrans, p. pr.] (Zoöl.) Overhanging; as, obumbrant feathers.

Ob*um”brate (?), v. t. [L. obumbratus, p. p. of obumbrare to overshadow, cloud; ob + umbrare to shade.] To shade; to darken; to cloud. [R.] Howell.

Ob`um*bra”tion (?), n. [L. obumbratio.] Act of darkening or obscuring. [R.] Sir T. More.

Ob*un”cous (?), a. [L. obuncus; ob (see Ob-) + uncus hooked.] Hooked or crooked in an extreme degree. Maunder.

Ob*ven”tion (?), n. [L. obvention, fr. obvenire to come before or in the way of, to befall; ob (see Ob-) + venire to come: cf.F. obvention.] The act of happening incidentally; that which happens casually; an incidental advantage; an occasional offering. [Obs.] “Tithes and other obventions.” Spenser.

Legacies bequeathed by the deaths of princes and great persons, and other casualities and obventions.

Fuller.

Ob*vers”ant (?), a. [L. obversans, p. pr. of obversari to hover before; ob (see Ob-) + versare to move about.] Conversant; familiar. [Obs.] Bacon.

Ob*verse” (?), a. [L. obversus, p. p. of obvertere. See Obvert.] Having the base, or end next the attachment, narrower than the top, as a leaf.

Ob”verse (?), n. [Cf.F. obverse, obvers. See Obverse, a.] 1. The face of a coin which has the principal image or inscription upon it; — the other side being the reverse.

2. Anything necessarily involved in, or answering to, another; the more apparent or conspicuous of two possible sides, or of two corresponding things.

The fact that it [a belief] invariably exists being the obverse of the fact that there is no alternative belief.

H. Spencer.

Ob*verse”ly (?), adv. In an obverse manner.

Ob*ver”sion (?), n. [L. obversio a turning towards.] 1. The act of turning toward or downward.

2. (Logic) The act of immediate inference, by which we deny the opposite of anything which has been affirmed; as, all men are mortal; then, by obversion, no men are immortal. This is also described as “immediate inference by privative conception.” Bain.

Ob*vert” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Obverted; p. pr. & vb. n. Obverting.] [L. obvertere; ob (see Ob-) + vertere to turn. See Verse.] To turn toward.

If its base be obverted towards us.

I. Watts.

Ob”vi*ate (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Obviated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Obviating.] [L. obviare; ob (see Ob-) + viare to go, fr. via way. See Voyage.]

1. To meet in the way. [Obs.]

Not to stir a step to obviate any of a different religion.

Fuller.

2. To anticipate; to prevent by interception; to remove from the way or path; to make unnecessary; as, to obviate the necessity of going.

To lay down everything in its full light, so as to obviate all exceptions.

Woodward.

Ob`vi*a”tion (?), n. The act of obviating, or the state of being obviated.

Ob”vi*ous (?), a. [L. obvius; ob (see Ob-) + via way. See Voyage.] 1. Opposing; fronting. [Obs.]

To the evil turn
My obvious breast.

Milton.

2. Exposed; subject; open; liable. [Obs.] “Obvious to dispute.” Milton.

3. Easily discovered, seen, or understood; readily perceived by the eye or the intellect; plain; evident; apparent; as, an obvious meaning; an obvious remark.

Apart and easy to be known they lie,
Amidst the heap, and obvious to the eye.

Pope.

Syn. — Plain; clear; evident. See Manifest.

— Ob”vi*ous*ly, adv. — Ob”vi*ous- ness, n.

{ Ob”vo*lute (?), Ob`vo*lu”ted (?), } a. [L. obvolutus, p. p. of obvolvere to wrap round; ob (see Ob-) + volvere to roll.] Overlapping; contorted; convolute; — applied primarily, in botany, to two opposite leaves, each of which has one edge overlapping the nearest edge of the other, and secondarily to a circle of several leaves or petals which thus overlap.

O”by (?), n. See Obi.

||O”ca (?), n. [Sp.] (Bot.) A Peruvian name for certain species of Oxalis (O. crenata, and O. tuberosa) which bear edible tubers.

Oc”ca*my (?), n. [A corruption of alchemy.] An alloy imitating gold or silver. [Written also ochimy, ochymy, etc.]

Oc*ca”sion (&obreve;k*kā“zhŭn), n. [F. occasion, L. occasio, fr. occidere, occasum, to fall down; ob (see Ob- ) + cadere to fall. See Chance, and cf. Occident.] 1. A falling out, happening, or coming to pass; hence, that which falls out or happens; occurrence; incident.

The unlooked-for incidents of family history, and its hidden excitements, and its arduous occasions.

I. Taylor.

2. A favorable opportunity; a convenient or timely chance; convenience.

Sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me.

Rom. vii. 11.

I’ll take the occasion which he gives to bring
Him to his death.

Waller.

3. An occurrence or condition of affairs which brings with it some unlooked-for event; that which incidentally brings to pass an event, without being its efficient cause or sufficient reason; accidental or incidental cause.

Her beauty was the occasion of the war.

Dryden.

4. Need; exigency; requirement; necessity; as, I have no occasion for firearms.

After we have served ourselves and our own occasions.

Jer. Taylor.

When my occasions took me into France.

Burke.

5. A reason or excuse; a motive; a persuasion.

Whose manner was, all passengers to stay,
And entertain with her occasions sly.

Spenser.

On occasion, in case of need; in necessity; as convenience requires; occasionally. “That we might have intelligence from him on occasion,” De Foe.

Syn. — Need; incident; use. See Opportunity.

Oc*ca”sion (&obreve;k*kā“zhŭn), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Occasioned (- zhŭnd); p. pr. & vb. n. Occasioning.] [Cf.F. occasionner.] To give occasion to; to cause; to produce; to induce; as, to occasion anxiety. South.

If we inquire what it is that occasions men to make several combinations of simple ideas into distinct modes.

Locke.

Oc*ca”sion*a*ble (?), a. Capable of being occasioned or caused. Barrow.

Oc*ca”sion*al (?), a. [Cf.F. occasionnel.] 1. Of or pertaining to an occasion or to occasions; occuring at times, but not constant, regular, or systematic; made or happening as opportunity requires or admits; casual; incidental; as, occasional remarks, or efforts.

The . . . occasional writing of the present times.

Bagehot.

2. Produced by accident; as, the occasional origin of a thing. [Obs.] Sir T. Browne.

Occasional cause (Metaph.), some circumstance preceding an effect which, without being the real cause, becomes the occasion of the action of the efficient cause; thus, the act of touching gunpowder with fire is the occasional, but not the efficient, cause of an explosion.

Oc*ca”sion*al*ism (?), n. (Metaph.) The system of occasional causes; — a name given to certain theories of the Cartesian school of philosophers, as to the intervention of the First Cause, by which they account for the apparent reciprocal action of the soul and the body.

Oc*ca`sion*al”i*ty (?), n. Quality or state of being occasional; occasional occurrence. [R.]

Oc*ca”sion*al*ly (?), adv. In an occasional manner; on occasion; at times, as convenience requires or opportunity offers; not regularly. Stewart.

The one, Wolsey, directly his subject by birth; the other, his subject occasionally by his preferment.

Fuller.

Oc*ca”sion*ate (?), v. t. To occasion. [Obs.]

The lowest may occasionate much ill.

Dr. H. More.

Oc*ca”sion*er (?), n. One who, or that which, occasions, causes, or produces. Bp. Sanderson.

Oc*ca”sive (?), a. [L. occasivus, fr. occasus a going down, setting of the heavenly bodies, fr. occidere to fall or down. See Occasion.] Of or pertaining to the setting sun; falling; descending; western.

Oc*ce*ca”tion (?), n. [L. occaecatio, fr. occaecare to make blind; ob + caecare to blind, fr. caecus blind.] The act of making blind, or the state of being blind. [R.] “This inward occecation.” Bp. Hall.

Oc”ci*dent (?), n. [F., fr. L. occidens, occidentis, fr. occidents, p. pr. of occidere to fall or go down. See Occasion.] The part of the horizon where the sun last appears in the evening; that part of the earth towards the sunset; the west; — opposed to orient. Specifically, in former times, Europe as opposed to Asia; now, also, the Western hemisphere. Chaucer.

I may wander from east to occident.

Shak.

Oc`ci*den”tal (?), a. [L. occidentalis; cf. F. occidental.] 1. Of, pertaining to, or situated in, the occident, or west; western; — opposed to oriental; as, occidental climates, or customs; an occidental planet.

2. Possessing inferior hardness, brilliancy, or beauty; — used of inferior precious stones and gems, because those found in the Orient are generally superior.

Oc`ci*den”tals (?), n. pl. (Eccl.) Western Christians of the Latin rite. See Orientals. Shipley.

Oc*cid”u*ous (?), a. [L. occiduus, fr. occidere to go down.] Western; occidental. [R.] Blount.

Oc*cip”i*tal (?), a. [Cf. F. occipital.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the occiput, or back part of the head, or to the occipital bone.

Occipital bone (Anat.), the bone which forms the posterior segment of the skull and surrounds the great foramen by which the spinal cord leaves the cranium. In the higher vertebrates it is usually composed of four bones, which become consolidated in the adult. — Occipital point (Anat.), the point of the occiput in the mesial plane farthest from the ophryon.

Oc*cip”i*tal, n. (Anat.) The occipital bone.

Oc*cip”i*to- (&?;). [See Occiput.] A combining form denoting relation to, or situation near, the occiput; as, occipitoaxial; occipito mastoid.

Oc*cip`i*to*ax”i*al (?), a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the occipital bone and second vertebra, or axis.

Oc”ci*put (?), n.; pl. L. Occipita (#), E. Occiputs. [L., fr. ob (see Ob-) + caput head. See Chief.] 1. (Anat.) The back, or posterior, part of the head or skull; the region of the occipital bone.

2. (Zoöl.) A plate which forms the back part of the head of insects.

Oc*ci”sion (?), n. [L. occisio, fr. occidere, occisium, to cut down, to kill; ob (see Ob-) + caedere to cut.] A killing; the act of killing. [Obs.] Sir M. Hale.

Oc*clude” (?), v. t. [L. occludere, occlusum; ob (see Ob-) + claudere to shut.] 1. To shut up; to close. Sir T. Browne.

2. (Chem.) To take in and retain; to absorb; — said especially with respect to gases; as iron, platinum, and palladium occlude large volumes of hydrogen.

Oc*clud”ent (?), a. [L. occludens, p. pr. of occludere.] Serving to close; shutting up. — n. That which closes or shuts up. Sterne.

Oc*cluse” (?), a. [L. occlusus, p. p. See Occlude.] Shut; closed. [Obs.] Holder.

Oc*clu”sion (?), n. [See Occlude.] 1. The act of occluding, or the state of being occluded.

Constriction and occlusion of the orifice.

Howell.

2. (Med.) The transient approximation of the edges of a natural opening; imperforation. Dunglison.

Occlusion of gases (Chem. & Physics), the phenomenon of absorbing gases, as exhibited by platinum, palladium, iron, or charcoal; thus, palladium absorbs, or occludes, nearly a thousand times its own volume of hydrogen, and in this case a chemical compound seems to be formed.

Oc*crus”tate (?), v. t. [See Ob- , and Crustated.] To incrust; to harden. [Obs.] Dr. H. More.

Oc*cult” (?), a. [L. occultus, p. p. of occulere to cover up, hide; ob (see Ob- ) + a root prob.akin to E. hell: cf. F. occulte.] Hidden from the eye or the understanding; inviable; secret; concealed; unknown.

It is of an occult kind, and is so insensible in its advances as to escape observation.

I. Taylor.

Occult line (Geom.), a line drawn as a part of the construction of a figure or problem, but not to appear in the finished plan. — Occult qualities, those qualities whose effects only were observed, but the nature and relations of whose productive agencies were undetermined; — so called by the schoolmen. — Occult sciences, those sciences of the Middle Ages which related to the supposed action or influence of occult qualities, or supernatural powers, as alchemy, magic, necromancy, and astrology.

Oc*cult”, v. t. To eclipse; to hide from sight.

Oc`cul*ta”tion (?), n. [L. occultatio a hiding, fr. occultare, v. intens. of occulere: cf.F. occultation. See Occult.] 1. (Astron.) The hiding of a heavenly body from sight by the intervention of some other of the heavenly bodies; — applied especially to eclipses of stars and planets by the moon, and to the eclipses of satellites of planets by their primaries.

2. Fig.: The state of being occult.

The reappearance of such an author after those long periods of occultation.

Jeffrey.

Circle of perpetual occultation. See under Circle.

Oc*cult”ed, a. 1. Hidden; secret. [Obs.] Shak.

2. (Astron.) Concealed by the intervention of some other heavenly body, as a star by the moon.

Oc*cult”ing (?), n. Same as Occultation.

Oc*cult”ism (?), n. A certain Oriental system of theosophy. A. P. Sinnett.

Oc*cult”ist, n. An adherent of occultism.

Oc*cult”ly, adv. In an occult manner.

Oc*cult”ness, n. State or quality of being occult.

Oc”cu*pan*cy (?), n. [See Occupant.] The act of taking or holding possession; possession; occupation.

Title by occupancy (Law), a right of property acquired by taking the first possession of a thing, or possession of a thing which belonged to nobody, and appropriating it. Blackstone. Kent.

Oc”cu*pant (?), n. [L. occupans, p. pr. of occupare: cf. F. occupant. See Occupy.] 1. One who occupies, or takes possession; one who has the actual use or possession, or is in possession, of a thing.

&fist; This word, in law, sometimes signifies one who takes the first possession of a thing that has no owner.

2. A prostitute. [Obs.] Marston.

Oc”cu*pate (?), v. t. [L. occupatus, p. p. of occupare. See Occupy.] To occupy. [Obs.] Bacon.

Oc`cu*pa”tion (?), n. [L. occupatio: cf.F. occupation.] 1. The act or process of occupying or taking possession; actual possession and control; the state of being occupied; a holding or keeping; tenure; use; as, the occupation of lands by a tenant.

2. That which occupies or engages the time and attention; the principal business of one’s life; vocation; employment; calling; trade.

Absence of occupation is not rest.

Cowper.

Occupation bridge (Engin.), a bridge connecting the parts of an estate separated by a railroad, a canal, or an ordinary road.

Syn. — Occupancy; possession; tenure; use; employment; avocation; engagement; vocation; calling; office; trade; profession.

Oc”cu*pi`er (?), n. 1. One who occupies, or has possession.

2. One who follows an employment; hence, a tradesman. [Obs.] “Merchants and occupiers.” Holland.

The occupiers of thy merchandise.

Ezek. xxvii. 27.

Oc”cu*py (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Occupied (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Occupying (?).] [OE. occupien, F. occuper, fr.L. occupare; ob (see Ob-) + a word akin to capere to take. See Capacious.] 1. To take or hold possession of; to hold or keep for use; to possess.

Woe occupieth the fine [/end] of our gladness.

Chaucer.

The better apartments were already occupied.

W. Irving.

2. To hold, or fill, the dimensions of; to take up the room or space of; to cover or fill; as, the camp occupies five acres of ground. Sir J. Herschel.

3. To possess or use the time or capacity of; to engage the service of; to employ; to busy.

An archbishop may have cause to occupy more chaplains than six.

Eng. Statute (Hen. VIII. )

They occupied themselves about the Sabbath.

2 Macc. viii. 27.

4. To do business in; to busy one’s self with. [Obs.]

All the ships of the sea, with their mariners, were in thee to occupy the merchandise.

Ezek. xxvii. 9.

Not able to occupy their old crafts.

Robynson (More’s Utopia).

5. To use; to expend; to make use of. [Obs.]

All the gold that was occupied for the work.

Ex. xxxviii. 24.

They occupy not money themselves.

Robynson (More’s Utopia).

6. To have sexual intercourse with. [Obs.] Nares.

Oc”cu*py, v. i. 1. To hold possession; to be an occupant. “Occupy till I come.” Luke xix. 13.

2. To follow business; to traffic.

Oc*cur” (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Occurred(?); p. pr. & vb. n. Occurring (?).] [L. occurrere, occursum; ob (see Ob-) + currere to run. See Course.] 1. To meet; to clash. [Obs.]

The resistance of the bodies they occur with.

Bentley.

2. To go in order to meet; to make reply. [Obs.]

I must occur to one specious objection.

Bentley.

3. To meet one’s eye; to be found or met with; to present itself; to offer; to appear; to happen; to take place; as, I will write if opportunity occurs.

In Scripture, though the word heir occur, yet there is no such thing as “heir” in our author’s sense.

Locke.

4. To meet or come to the mind; to suggest itself; to be presented to the imagination or memory.

There doth not occur to me any use of this experiment for profit.

Bacon.

Oc*cur”rence (?), n. [Cf. F. occurrence. See Occur.] 1. A coming or happening; as, the occurence of a railway collision.

Voyages detain the mind by the perpetual occurrence and expectation of something new.

I. Watts.

2. Any incident or event; esp., one which happens without being designed or expected; as, an unusual occurrence, or the ordinary occurrences of life.

All the occurrence of my fortune.

Shak.

Syn. — See Event.

Oc*cur”rent (?), a. [L. occurrens, -entis, p. pr. of occurrere: cf.F. occurrent. See Occur.] Occurring or happening; hence, incidental; accidental.

Oc*cur”rent (?), n. 1. One who meets; hence, an adversary. [Obs.] Holland.

2. Anything that happens; an occurrence. [Obs.]

These we must meet with in obvious occurrents of the world.

Sir T. Browne.

Oc*curse” (?), n. [L. occursus.] Same as Occursion. [Obs.] Bentley.

Oc*cur”sion (?), n. [L. occursio. See Occur.] A meeting; a clash; a collision. [Obs.] Boyle.

O”cean (ō“shan), n. [F. océan, L. oceanus, Gr. ‘wkeano`s ocean, in Homer, the great river supposed to encompass the earth.] 1. The whole body of salt water which covers more than three fifths of the surface of the globe; — called also the sea, or great sea.

Like the odor of brine from the ocean
Comes the thought of other years.

Longfellow.

2. One of the large bodies of water into which the great ocean is regarded as divided, as the Atlantic, Pacific, Indian, Arctic and Antarctic oceans.

3. An immense expanse; any vast space or quantity without apparent limits; as, the boundless ocean of eternity; an ocean of affairs. Locke.

O”cean (ō“shan), a. Of or pertaining to the main or great sea; as, the ocean waves; an ocean stream. Milton.

O`ce*an”ic (?), a. [Cf.F. océanique. See Ocean.] 1. Of or pertaining to the ocean; found or formed in or about, or produced by, the ocean; frequenting the ocean, especially mid- ocean.

Petrels are the most aërial and oceanic of birds.

Darwin.

2. Of or pertaining to Oceania or its inhabitants.

O`cean*og”ra*phy (?), n. [Ocean + -graphy.] A description of the ocean.

O`cean*ol”o*gy (?), n. [Ocean + -logy.] That branch of science which relates to the ocean.

||O*ce”a*nus (?), n. [L., from Gr. &?;.] (Gr.Myth.) The god of the great outer sea, or the river which was believed to flow around the whole earth.

O*cel”la*ry (?), a. Of or pertaining to ocelli.

O*cel”late (?), a. Same as Ocellated.

O*cel”la*ted (?), a. [L. ocellatus, fr. ocellus a little eye, dim. of oculus an eye.] 1. Resembling an eye.

2. Marked with eyelike spots of color; as, the ocellated blenny.

Ocellated turkey (Zoöl.), the wild turkey of Central America (Meleagris ocellata).

||O*cel”lus (?), n.; pl. Ocelli (#). [L., dim. of oculus an eye.] (Zoöl.) (a) A little eye; a minute simple eye found in many invertebrates. (b) An eyelike spot of color, as those on the tail of the peacock.

O”ce*loid (?), a. [Ocelot + - oid.] (Zoöl.) Resembling the ocelot.

O”ce*lot (?), n. [Mexican ocelotl.] (Zoöl.) An American feline carnivore (Felis pardalis). It ranges from the Southwestern United States to Patagonia. It is covered with blackish ocellated spots and blotches, which are variously arranged. The ground color varies from reddish gray to tawny yellow.

{ O”cher, O”chre } (?), n. [F. ocre, L. ochra, fr. Gr. &?;, from (&?;) pale, pale yellow.] (Min.) (a) A impure earthy ore of iron or a ferruginous clay, usually red (hematite) or yellow (limonite), — used as a pigment in making paints, etc. The name is also applied to clays of other colors. (b) A metallic oxide occurring in earthy form; as, tungstic ocher or tungstite.

{ O”cher*ous, O”chre*ous } (?), a. [Cf. F. ocreux.] Of or pertaining to ocher; containing or resembling ocher; as, ocherous matter; ocherous soil.

O”cher*y (?), a. Ocherous. [Written also ochrey, ochry.]

Och`i*my (?), n. [Obs.] See Occamy.

||Och*le”sis (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; disturbance, fr. &?; crowd, mob.] (Med.) A general morbid condition induced by the crowding together of many persons, esp. sick persons, under one roof. G. Gregory.

Och*loc”ra*cy (?), n. [Gr. &?;; &?; the populace, multitude + &?; to be strong, to rule, &?; strength: cf.F. ochlocratie.] A form of government by the multitude; a mobocracy. Hare.

{ Och`lo*crat`ic (?), Och`lo*crat`ic*al (?), } a. Of or pertaining to ochlocracy; having the form or character of an ochlocracy; mobocratic.

— Och`lo*crat”ic*al*ly, adv.

O*chra”ceous (?), a. Ocherous.

O”chre (?), n. (Min.) See Ocher.

||O”chre*a (?), n.; pl. Ochreæe (#). [L.] 1. (Antiq.) A greave or legging.

2. (Bot.) A kind of sheath formed by two stipules united round a stem.

{ O”chre*ate (?), O”chre*a`ted (?), } a. 1. Wearing or furnished with an ochrea or legging; wearing boots; booted.

A scholar undertook . . . to address himself ochreated unto the vice chancellor.

Fuller.

2. (Bot.) Provided with ochrea, or sheathformed stipules, as the rhubarb, yellow dock, and knotgrass.

O”chre*ous (?), a. See Ocherous.

O”chrey (?), a. See Ochery.

Och`ro*leu”cous (?), a. [Gr. &?; ocher + &?; white.] Yellowish white; having a faint tint of dingy yellow. Gray.

O”chry (?), a. See Ochery.

Och”y*my (?), n. [Obs.] See Occamy.

-ock (?). [AS. -uc.] A suffix used to form diminutives; as, bullock, hillock.

O”cra (?), n. (Bot.) See Okra.

||O”cre*a (?), n. [L.] See Ochrea.

{ O”cre*ate (?), O”cre*a”ted (?), } a. [See Ochrea.] Same as Ochreate, Ochreated.

Oc”ta- (?). A prefix meaning eight. See Octo-.

Oc”ta*chord (?), n. [Gr. &?; with eight strings; &?; (for &?; eight) + &?; string, chord: cf.F. octacorde.] (Mus.) An instrument of eight strings; a system of eight tones. [Also written octochord.]

Oc”tad (?), n. [Gr. &?;, &?;, the number eight.] (Chem.) An atom or radical which has a valence of eight, or is octavalent.

Oc`ta*e”dral (?), a. See Octahedral.

||Oc`ta*em”e*ron (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;, neut. of &?; of the eighth day.] (Eccl.) A fast of eight days before a great festival. Shipley.

Oc”ta*gon (?), n. [Gr. &?; eight- cornered; &?; (for &?; eight) + &?; an angle: cf.F. cctogone.] 1. (Geom.) A plane figure of eight sides and eight angles.

2. Any structure (as a fortification) or place with eight sides or angles.

Regular octagon, one in which the sides are all equal, and the angles also are all equal.

Oc*tag”o*nal (?), a. Having eight sides and eight angles.

Oc*tag”y*nous (?), a. [Octa- + Gr. &?; wife.] (Bot.) Having eight pistils or styles; octogynous.

Oc`ta*he”dral (?), a. [See Octahedron.] Having eight faces or sides; of, pertaining to, or formed in, octahedrons; as, octahedral cleavage.

Octahedral borax (Chem.), borax obtained from a saturated solution in octahedral crystals, which contain five molecules of water of crystallization; distinguished from common or prismatic borax. — Octahedral iron ore (Min.), magnetite.

Oc`ta*he”drite (?), n. (Min.) Titanium dioxide occurring in acute octahedral crystals.

Oc`ta*he”dron (?), n. [Gr.&?;, fr. &?; eight-side; &?; (for &?; eight) + &?; seat, base, from &?; to sit.] (Geom.) A solid bounded by eight faces. The regular octahedron is contained by eight equal equilateral triangles.

Oc*tam”er*ous (?), a. [Octa- + Gr. &?; part.] (Biol.) Having the parts in eights; as, an octamerous flower; octamerous mesenteries in polyps.

Oc*tam”e*ter (?), n. [Cf.L. octameter in eight feet. See Octa-, and meter.] (Pros.) A verse containing eight feet; as, —

Deep'b6 in|to'b6 the | dark'b6ness | peer'b6ing, | long'b6 I | stood'b6 there | wond’'b6ring, | fear'b6ing.

Poe.

Oc*tan”der (?), n. One of the Octandria.

||Oc*tan”dri*a (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; (for &?; eight) + &?;, &?;, male, man.] (Bot.) A Linnæan class of plants, in which the flowers have eight stamens not united to one another or to the pistil.

{ Oc*tan”dri*an (?), Oc*tan”drous (?), } a. (Bot.) Of or pertaining to the Octandria; having eight distinct stamens.

Oc”tane (?), n. [See Octa-] . (Chem.) Any one of a group of metametric hydrocarcons (C_8H_18) of the methane series. The most important is a colorless, volatile, inflammable liquid, found in petroleum, and a constituent of benzene or ligroin.

Oc*tan”gu*lar (?), a. [L. octangulus eight-cornered; octo eight + angulus angle.] Having eight angles; eight-angled. — Oc*tan”gu*lar*ness, n.

Oc”tant (?), n. [L. octans, - antis. fr. octo eight. See Octave.] 1. (Geom.) The eighth part of a circle; an arc of 45 degrees.

2. (Astron. & Astrol.) The position or aspect of a heavenly body, as the moon or a planet, when half way between conjunction, or opposition, and quadrature, or distant from another body 45 degrees.

3. An instrument for measuring angles (generally called a quadrant), having an arc which measures up to 9O°, but being itself the eighth part of a circle. Cf. Sextant.

4. (Math. & Crystallog.) One of the eight parts into which a space is divided by three coördinate planes.

||Oc”ta*pla (?), n.; etymol. pl., but syntactically sing. [NL., fr.Gr. &?; (for &?; eight) + -pla, as in E. hexapla; cf.Gr. &?; eightfold.] A portion of the Old Testament prepared by Origen in the 3d century, containing the Hebrew text and seven Greek versions of it, arranged in eight parallel columns.

Oc`ta*roon” (?), n. See Octoroon.

Oc”ta*style (?), a. See Octostyle.

Oc”ta*teuch (?), n. [L. octateuchus, Gr. &?;.] A collection of eight books; especially, the first eight books of the Old Testament. [R.]

Oc*tav”a*lent (?), a. [Octa- + L. valens, p. pr. See Valence.] (Chem.) Having a valence of eight; capable of being combined with, exchanged for, or compared with, eight atoms of hydrogen; — said of certain atoms or radicals.

Oc”tave (?), n. [F., fr. L. octava an eighth, fr. octavus eighth, fr. octo eight. See Eight, and cf. Octavo, Utas.] 1. The eighth day after a church festival, the festival day being included; also, the week following a church festival. “The octaves of Easter.” Jer. Taylor.

2. (Mus.) (a) The eighth tone in the scale; the interval between one and eight of the scale, or any interval of equal length; an interval of five tones and two semitones. (b) The whole diatonic scale itself.

&fist; The ratio of a musical tone to its octave above is 1:2 as regards the number of vibrations producing the tones.

3. (Poet.) The first two stanzas of a sonnet, consisting of four verses each; a stanza of eight lines.

With mournful melody it continued this octave.

Sir P. Sidney.

Double octave. (Mus.) See under Double. — Octave flute (Mus.), a small flute, the tones of which range an octave higher than those of the German or ordinary flute; — called also piccolo. See Piccolo.

4. A small cask of wine, the eighth part of a pipe.

Oc”tave (?), a. Consisting of eight; eight. Dryden.

Oc*ta”vo (?), n.;pl. Octavos (#). [L. in octavo; in in + octavo, abl. of octavus. See Octave.] A book composed of sheets each of which is folded into eight leaves; hence, indicating more or less definitely a size of book so made; — usually written 8vo or 8°.

Oc*ta”vo, a. Having eight leaves to a sheet; as, an octavo form, book, leaf, size, etc.

Oc”tene (?), n. [See Octo-.] (Chem.) Same as Octylene.

Oc*ten”ni*al (?), a. [L. octennium a period of eight years; octo eight + annus year.] Happening every eighth year; also, lasting a period of eight years. Johnson. — Oc*ten”ni*al*ly, adv.

Oc*tet” (?), n. [From L. octo eight, like E. duet, fr.L. duo. See Octave.] (Mus.) A composition for eight parts, usually for eight solo instruments or voices.

Oc”tic (?), a. [Octo- + - ic.] (Math.) Of the eighth degree or order. — n. (Alg.) A quantic of the eighth degree.

Oc”tile (?), n. [Cf. F. octil, a. See Octant.] Same as Octant, 2. [R.]

Oc*til”lion (?), n. [L. octo eight + -illion, as in E. million: cf. F. octillion.] According to the French method of numeration (which method is followed also in the United States) the number expressed by a unit with twenty-seven ciphers annexed. According to the English method, the number expressed by a unit with forty-eight ciphers annexed. See Numeration.

{ Oc”to- (?), Oc”ta- (?) }. [L. octo eight, Gr. &?;, with a combining form &?;. Cf. Eight.] A combining form meaning eight; as in octodecimal, octodecimal, octolocular.

Oc”to*ate (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of an octoic acid; a caprylate.

Oc*to”ber (?), n. [L., the eighth month of the primitive Roman year, which began in March, fr. octo eight: cf.F. Octobre. See Octave.] 1. The tenth month of the year, containing thirty-one days.

2. Ale or cider made in that month.

The country gentlemen had a posset or drink they called October.

Emerson.

||Oc*toc”e*ra (?), n. pl. [NL.] Octocerata.

||Oc`to*cer”a*ta (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr.&?; eight + &?;, a horn.] (Zoöl.) A suborder of Cephalopoda including Octopus, Argonauta, and allied genera, having eight arms around the head; — called also Octopoda.

Oc”to*chord (?), n. (Mus.) See Octachord.

Oc`todec”i*mo (?), a. [L. octodecim eighteen. See Octavo, Decimal, and -mo.] Having eighteen leaves to a sheet; as, an octodecimo form, book, leaf, size, etc.

Oc`to*dec”i*mo, n.; pl. Octodecimos (&?;). A book composed of sheets each of which is folded into eighteen leaves; hence; indicating more or less definitely a size of book, whose sheets are so folded; — usually written 18mo or 18°, and called eighteenmo.

Oc`to*den”tate (?), a. [Octo- + dentate.] Having eight teeth.

Oc”to*dont (?), a. [Octo- + Gr. &?;, &?;.] (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Octodontidæ, a family of rodents which includes the coypu, and many other South American species.

Oc`to*ed”ric*al (?), a. See Octahedral. [Obs.] Sir T. Browne.

Oc”to*fid (?), a. [Octo- + root of L. findere to split: cf.F. octofide.] (Bot.) Cleft or separated into eight segments, as a calyx.

Oc*tog”a*my (?), n. [Octo- + Gr. &?; marriage.] A marrying eight times. [R.] Chaucer.

Oc`to*ge*na”ri*an (?), n. A person eighty years, or more, of age.

Oc*tog”e*na*ry (?), a. [L. octogenarrus, from octogeni eighty each, octoginta eighty, fr. octo eight. See Eight, Eighty.] Of eighty years of age. “Being then octogenary.” Aubrey.

Oc”to*gild (?), n. [Octo- + AS. gild payment.] (Anglo-Saxon Law) A pecuniary compensation for an injury, of eight times the value of the thing.

Oc*tog”o*nal (?), a. See Octagonal. [Obs.]

||Oc`to*gyn”i*a (?), n. pl. [NL., from Gr. &?; eight + &?; a woman, female.] (Bot.) A Linnaean order of plants having eight pistils.

{ Oc`to*gyn”i*an (?), Oc*tog”y*nous (?), } a. (Bot.) Having eight pistils; octagynous.

Oc*to”ic (?), a. [See Octo-.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, derived from, or resembling, octane; — used specifically, to designate any one of a group of acids, the most important of which is called caprylic acid.

Oc`to*loc”u*lar (?), a. [Octo- + locular.] (Bot.) Having eight cells for seeds.

Oc`to*naph”thene (?), n. [Octo- + naphthene.] (Chem.) A colorless liquid hydrocarbon of the octylene series, occurring in Caucasian petroleum.

Oc`to*na*ry (?), a. [L. octonarius, fr. octoni eight each, fr. octo eight.] Of or pertaining to the number eight. Dr. H. More.

Oc`to*noc”u*lar (?), a. [L. octoni eight each + E. ocular.] Having eight eyes. Derham.

Oc`to*pede (?), n. [Octo- + L. pes, pedis, foot.] (Zoöl.) An animal having eight feet, as a spider.

Oc`to*pet”al*ous (?), a. [Octo- + petal.] (Bot.) Having eight petals or flower leaves.

Oc”to*pod (?), n. [Gr. &?; eight- footed; &?; eight + poy`s, podo`s, foot: cf.F. octopode.] (Zoöl.) One of the Octocerata.

||Oc*top”o*da (?), n. pl. [NL.] (Zoöl.) (a) Same as Octocerata. (b) Same as Arachnida.

||Oc`to*po”di*a (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; eight + &?; a little foot.] (Zoöl.) Same as Octocerata.

Oc”to*pus (?), n. [NL. See Octopod.] (Zoöl.) A genus of eight-armed cephalopods, including numerous species, some of them of large size. See Devilfish,

Oc`to*ra”*di*a`ted (?), a. [Octo- + radiated.] Having eight rays.

Oc`to*roon” (?), n. [L. octo eight + -roon, as in quadroon.] The offspring of a quadroon and a white person; a mestee.

Oc`to*sper”mous (?), a. [Octo- + Cr. &?; seed.] (Bot.) Containing eight seeds.

Oc*tos”ti*chous (?), a. [Octo- + Gr. &?; a row.] (Bot.) In eight vertical ranks, as leaves on a stem.

Oc”to*style (?), a. [Octo- + Gr. &?; a pillar: cf.F. octostyle.] (Arch.) Having eight columns in the front; — said of a temple or portico. The Parthenon is octostyle, but most large Greek temples are hexastele. See Hexastyle. — n. An octostyle portico or temple.

{ Oc`to*syl*lab”ic (?), Oc`to*syl*lab”ic*al (?), } a. [L. octosyllabus. See Octo-, and Syllable.] Consisting of or containing eight syllables.

Oc”to*syl`la*ble (?), a. Octosyllabic.

Oc”to*syl`la*ble, n. A word of eight syllables.

Oc”to*yl (&?;), n. [Octoic + -yl.] (Chem.) A hypothetical radical (C_8H_15O), regarded as the essential residue of octoic acid.

||Oc`troi” (?), n. [F.] 1. A privilege granted by the sovereign authority, as the exclusive right of trade granted to a guild or society; a concession.

2. A tax levied in money or kind at the gate of a French city on articles brought within the walls.

[Written also octroy.]

Oc”tu*or (?), n. [From L. octo eight + -uor, as in L. quatuor.] (Mus.) See Octet. [R.]

Oc”tu*ple (?), a. [L. octuplus; cf. Gr. &?;: cf.F. octuple.] Eightfold.

Oc”tyl (?), n. [Octane + - yl.] (Chem.) A hypothetical hydrocarbon radical regarded as an essential residue of octane, and as entering into its derivatives; as, octyl alcohol.

Oc”tyl*ene (?), n. [Octane + ethylene.] (Chem.) Any one of a series of metameric hydrocarbons (C_8H_16) of the ethylene series. In general they are combustible, colorless liquids.

Oc*tyl”ic (?), a. (Chem.) Pertaining to, derived from, or containing, octyl; as, octylic ether.

Oc”u*lar (?), a. [L. ocularis, ocularius, fr. oculus the eye: cf.F. oculaire. See Eye, and cf. Antler, Inveigle.] 1. Depending on, or perceived by, the eye; received by actual sight; personally seeing or having seen; as, ocular proof. Shak.

Thomas was an ocular witness of Christ’s death.

South.

2. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the eye; optic.

Oc”u*lar, n. (Opt.) The eyepiece of an optical instrument, as of a telescope or microscope.

Oc”u*lar*ly, adv. By the eye, or by actual sight.

Oc”u*la*ry (?), a. Of or pertaining to the eye; ocular; optic; as, oculary medicines. Holland.

{ Oc”u*late (?), Oc”u*la`ted (?), } a. [L. oculatus, fr. oculus eye.] 1. Furnished with eyes.

2. Having spots or holes resembling eyes; ocellated.

Oc`u*li*form (?), a. [L. oculus the eye + form: cf.F. oculiforme.] In the form of an eye; resembling an eye; as, an oculiform pebble.

||Oc`u*li”na (?), n. [NL., fr. L. oculus the eye.] (Zoöl.) A genus of tropical corals, usually branched, and having a very volid texture.

||Oc`u*li*na”*ce*a (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. NL. oculina the name of a typical genus.] (Zoöl.) A suborder of corals including many reef- building species, having round, starlike calicles.

Oc”u*list (?), n. [L. oculus the eye: cf. F. oculiste.] One skilled in treating diseases of the eye.

Oc”u*lo- (?). A combining form from L. oculus the eye.

Oc`u*lo*mo”tor (?), a. [Oculo- + motor.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the movement of the eye; — applied especially to the common motor nerves (or third pair of cranial nerves) which supply many of the muscles of the orbit. — n. The oculomotor nerve.

Oc`u*lo*na”sal (?), a. [Oculo- + nasal.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the region of the eye and the nose; as, the oculonasal, or nasal, nerve, one of the branches of the ophthalmic.

||Oc”u*lus (?), n.; pl. Oculi (#). [L., an eye.] 1. An eye; (Bot.) a leaf bud.

2. (Arch.) A round window, usually a small one.

O`cy*po”di*an, n. [Gr. ‘wky`s swift + poy`s, podo`s, foot.] (Zoöl.) One of a tribe of crabs which live in holes in the sand along the seashore, and run very rapidly, — whence the name.

Od (?), n. [G., fr. Gr. &?; passage.] (Physics) An alleged force or natural power, supposed, by Reichenbach and others, to produce the phenomena of mesmerism, and to be developed by various agencies, as by magnets, heat, light, chemical or vital action, etc.; — called also odyle or the odylic force. [Archaic]

That od force of German Reichenbach
Which still, from female finger tips, burnt blue.

Mrs. Browning.

||O`da`lisque” (?), n. [F., fr. Turk. odaliq chambermaid, fr. oda chamber, room.] A female slave or concubine in the harem of the Turkish sultan. [Written also odahlic, odalisk, and odalik.]

Not of those that men desire, sleek
Odalisques, or oracles of mode.

Tennyson.

Odd (?), a. [Compar. Odder (?); superl. Oddest.] [OE. odde, fr.Icel. oddi a tongue of land, a triangle, an odd number (from the third or odd angle, or point, of a triangle), orig., a point, tip; akin to Icel. oddr point, point of a weapon, Sw. udda odd, udd point, Dan. od, AS. ord, OHG. ort, G. ort place (cf. E. point, for change of meaning).] 1. Not paired with another, or remaining over after a pairing; without a mate; unmatched; single; as, an odd shoe; an odd glove.

2. Not divisible by 2 without a remainder; not capable of being evenly paired, one unit with another; as, 1, 3, 7, 9, 11, etc., are odd numbers.

I hope good luck lies in odd numbers.

Shak.

3. Left over after a definite round number has been taken or mentioned; indefinitely, but not greatly, exceeding a specified number; extra.

Sixteen hundred and odd years after the earth was made, it
was destroyed in a deluge.

T. Burnet.

There are yet missing of your company
Some few odd lads that you remember not.

Shak.

4. Remaining over; unconnected; detached; fragmentary; hence, occasional; inconsiderable; as, odd jobs; odd minutes; odd trifles.

5. Different from what is usual or common; unusual; singular; peculiar; unique; strange. “An odd action.” Shak. “An odd expression.” Thackeray.

The odd man, to perform all things perfectly, is, in my poor opinion, Joannes Sturmius.

Ascham.

Patients have sometimes coveted odd things.

Arbuthnot.

Locke’s Essay would be a very odd book for a man to make himself master of, who would get a reputation by critical writings.

Spectator.

Syn. — Quaint; unmatched; singular; unusual; extraordinary; strange; queer; eccentric, whimsical; fantastical; droll; comical. See Quaint.

Odd” Fel`low (?). A member of a secret order, or fraternity, styled the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, established for mutual aid and social enjoyment.

Odd”i*ty (?), n.; pl. Oddities (&?;). 1. The quality or state of being odd; singularity; queerness; peculiarity; as, oddity of dress, manners, and the like.

That infinitude of oddities in him.

Sterne.

2. That which is odd; as, a collection of oddities.

Odd”ly, adv. 1. In an odd manner; unevently. [R.]

2. In a peculiar manner; strangely; queerly; curiously. “A figure a little more oddly turned.” Locke.

A great black substance, . . . very oddly shaped.

Swift.

3. (Math.) In a manner measured by an odd number.

Odd”ness, n. 1. The state of being odd, or not even.

Take but one from three, and you not only destroy the oddness, but also the essence of that number.

Fotherby.

2. Singularity; strangeness; eccentricity; irregularity; uncouthness; as, the oddness of dress or shape; the oddness of an event. Young.

Odds (&obreve;dz), n. sing. & pl. [See Odd, a.] 1. Difference in favor of one and against another; excess of one of two things or numbers over the other; inequality; advantage; superiority; hence, excess of chances; probability. “Preëminent by so much odds.” Milton. “The fearful odds of that unequal fray.” Trench.

The odds
Is that we scarce are men and you are gods.

Shak.

There appeared, at least, four to one odds against them.

Swift.

All the odds between them has been the different scope . . . given to their understandings to range in.

Locke.

Judging is balancing an account and determining on which side the odds lie.

Locke.

2. Quarrel; dispute; debate; strife; — chiefly in the phrase at odds.

Set them into confounding odds.

Shak.

I can not speak
Any beginning to this peevish odds.

Shak.

At odds, in dispute; at variance. “These squires at odds did fall.” Spenser. “He flashes into one gross crime or other, that sets us all at odds.” Shak. — It is odds, it is probable. [Obs.] Jer. Taylor. — Odds and ends, that which is left; remnants; fragments; refuse; scraps; miscellaneous articles. “My brain is filled . . . with all kinds of odds and ends.” W. Irving.

Ode (?), n. [F., fr. L. ode, oda, Gr. &?; a song, especially a lyric song, contr. fr. &?;, fr. &?; to sing; cf.Skr. vad to speak, sing. Cf. Comedy, Melody, Monody.] A short poetical composition proper to be set to music or sung; a lyric poem; esp., now, a poem characterized by sustained noble sentiment and appropriate dignity of style.

Hangs odes upon hawthorns and elegies on brambles.

Shak.

O! run; prevent them with thy humble ode,
And lay it lowly at his blessed feet.

Milton.

Ode factor, one who makes, or who traffics in, odes; — used contemptuously.

Ode”let (?), n. A little or short ode.

O*de”on (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;, fr. &?;: cf.F. odéon. See Ode.] A kind of theater in ancient Greece, smaller than the dramatic theater and roofed over, in which poets and musicians submitted their works to the approval of the public, and contended for prizes; — hence, in modern usage, the name of a hall for musical or dramatic performances.

||O*de”um (?), n. [L.] See Odeon.

O”di*ble (?), a. [L. odibilis. See Odium.] Fitted to excite hatred; hateful. [Obs.] Bale.

Od”ic (?), a. Of or pertaining to od. See Od. [Archaic] — Od”ic*al*ly (#), adv.

O”din (?), n. [Icel. &?;; prob.akin to E. wood, a. See Wednesday.] (Northern Myth.) The supreme deity of the Scandinavians; — the same as Woden, of the German tribes.

There in the Temple, carved in wood,
The image of great Odin stood.

Longfellow.

O*din”ic (?), a. Of or pertaining to Odin.

O”di*ous (?), a. [L. odiosus, from odium hatred: cf. F. odieux. See Odium.] 1. Hateful; deserving or receiving hatred; as, an odious name, system, vice. “All wickedness will be most odious.” Sprat.

He rendered himself odious to the Parliament.

Clarendon.

2. Causing or provoking hatred, repugnance, or disgust; offensive; disagreeable; repulsive; as, an odious sight; an odious smell. Milton.

The odious side of that polity.

Macaulay.

Syn. — Hateful; detestable; abominable; disgusting; loathsome; invidious; repulsive; forbidding; unpopular.

— O”di*ous`ly. adv. — O”di*ous*ness, n.

Od”ist (?), n. A writer of an ode or odes.

O”di*um (?), n. [L., fr. odi I hate. Gr. Annoy, Noisome.] 1. Hatred; dislike; as, his conduct brought him into odium, or, brought odium upon him.

2. The quality that provokes hatred; offensiveness.

She threw the odium of the fact on me.

Dryden.

||Odium theologicum (&?;) [L.], the enmity peculiar to contending theologians.

Syn. — Hatred; abhorrence; detestation; antipathy. — Odium, Hatred. We exercise hatred; we endure odium. The former has an active sense, the latter a passive one. We speak of having a hatred for a man, but not of having an odium toward him. A tyrant incurs odium. The odium of an offense may sometimes fall unjustly upon one who is innocent.

I wish I had a cause to seek him there,
To oppose his hatred fully.

Shak.

You have . . . dexterously thrown some of the odium of your polity upon that middle class which you despise.

Beaconsfield.

Od”ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Odized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Odizing.] To charge with od. See Od. [Archaic]

Od”myl (?), n. [Gr. &?;, &?;, stench + -yl.] (Chem.) A volatile liquid obtained by boiling sulphur with linseed oil. It has an unpleasant garlic odor.

O*dom”e*ter (&osl;*d&obreve;m”&esl;*t&etilde;r), n. [Gr. ‘odo`metron, ‘odo`metros, an instrument for measuring distance; ‘odo`s way + me`tron measure: cf. F. odométre, hodométre.] An instrument attached to the wheel of a vehicle, to measure the distance traversed; also, a wheel used by surveyors, which registers the miles and rods traversed.

O`do*met”ric*al (?), a. [Cf. F. odométrique, hodométrique.] Of or pertaining to the odometer, or to measurements made with it.

O*dom”e*trous (?), a. Serving to measure distance on a road. [R.] Sydney Smith.

O*dom”e*try (?), n. Measurement of distances by the odometer.

||O*don”a*ta (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. ‘odoy`s, ‘odo`ntos, a tooth.] (Zoöl.) The division of insects that includes the dragon flies.

||O`don*tal”gi*a (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;; ‘odoy`s, ‘odo`ntos, a tooth + &?; pain.] (Med.) Toothache.

O`don*tal”gic (?), a. [Cf. F. odontalgique.] Of or pertaining to odontalgia. — n. A remedy for the toothache.

O`don*tal”gy (?), n. (Med.) Same as Odontalgia.

||O`don*ti”a*sis (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. ‘odoy`s, ‘odo`ntos, a tooth.] Cutting of the teeth; dentition.

O*don”to- (?). A combining form from Gr. ‘odoy`s, ‘odo`ntos, a tooth.

O*don”to*blast (?), n. [Odonto- + -blast.]

1. (Anat.) One of the more or less columnar cells on the outer surface of the pulp of a tooth; an odontoplast. They are supposed to be connected with the formation of dentine.

2. (Zoöl.) One of the cells which secrete the chitinous teeth of Mollusca.

||O*don`to*ce”te (?), n. pl. [NL., from Gr. ‘odoy`s, ‘odo`ntos, a tooth + &?; a whale.] (Zoöl.) A subdivision of Cetacea, including the sperm whale, dolphins, etc.; the toothed whales.

O`don*tog”e*ny (?), n. [Odonto- + root of Gr. &?; to be born: cf: F. odontogénie.] (Physiol.) Generetion, or mode of development, of the teeth.

O*don”to*graph (?), n. [Odonto- + -graph.] An instrument for marking or laying off the outlines of teeth of gear wheels.

O*don`to*graph”ic (?), a. Of or pertaining to odontography.

O`don*tog”ra*phy (?), n. A description of the teeth.

O*don”toid (?), a. [Gr. &?;; ‘odoy`s, ‘odo`ntos, a tooth + &?; form: cf.F. odontoïde.] (Anat.) (a) Having the form of a tooth; toothlike. (b) Of or pertaining to the odontoid bone or to the odontoid process.

Odontoid bone (Anat.), a separate bone, in many reptiles, corresponding to the odontoid process. – - Odontoid process, or Odontoid peg (Anat.), the anterior process of the centrum of the second vertebra, or axis, in birds and mammals. See Axis.

||O`don*tol”cae (?), n. pl. [NL., from Gr. ‘odoy`s, ‘odo`ntos, a tooth + &?; a furrow.] (Paleon.) An extinct order of ostrichlike aquatic birds having teeth, which are set in a groove in the jaw. It includes Hesperornis, and allied genera. See Hesperornis. [Written also Odontholcae, and Odontoholcae.]

O*don”to*lite (?), n. [Odonto- + -lite.] (Min.) A fossil tooth colored a bright blue by phosphate of iron. It is used as an imitation of turquoise, and hence called bone turquoise.

O`don*tol”o*gy (?), n. [Odonto- + -logy: cf.F. odontologie.] The science which treats of the teeth, their structure and development.

||O`don*toph”o*ra (?), n. pl. [NL. See Odontophore.] (Zoöl.) Same as Cephalophora.

O*don”to*phore (?), n. [Odonto- + Gr. &?; to bear.] (Zoöl.) A special structure found in the mouth of most mollusks, except bivalves. It consists of several muscles and a cartilage which supports a chitinous radula, or lingual ribbon, armed with teeth. Also applied to the radula alone. See Radula.

O`don*toph”o*rous (?), a. (Zoöl.) Having an odontophore.

O*don”to*plast (?), n. [Odonto- + Gr. &?; to form, mold.] (Anat.) An odontoblast.

||O`don*top”te*ryx (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. ‘odoy`s, ‘odo`ntos, a tooth + pte`ryx a wing.] (Paleon.) An extinct Eocene bird having the jaws strongly serrated, or dentated, but destitute of true teeth. It was found near London.

||O*don`tor*ni*“thes (?), n. pl. [NL., fr.Gr. ‘odoy`s, ‘odo`ntos, a tooth + &?;, &?;, a bird.] (Paleon.) A group of Mesozoic birds having the jaws armed with teeth, as in most other vertebrates. They have been divided into three orders: Odontolcæ, Odontotormæ, and Saururæ.

O*don”to*stom”a*tous (?), a. [Odonto- + Gr. &?;, &?;, the mouth.] (Zoöl.) Having toothlike mandibles; — applied to certain insects.

||O*don`to*tor”mae (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. ‘odoy`s, ‘odo`ntos, a tooth + &?; a socket.] (Paleon.) An order of extinct toothed birds having the teeth in sockets, as in the genus Ichthyornis. See Ichthyornis.

O”dor (?), n. [OE. odor, odour, OF. odor, odour, F. odeur, fr. L. odor; akin to olere to smell, Gr. &?;, Lith. &?; Cf. Olfactory, Osmium, Ozone, Redolent.] [Written also odour.] Any smell, whether fragrant or offensive; scent; perfume.

Meseemed I smelt a garden of sweet flowers,
That dainty odors from them threw around.

Spenser.

To be in bad odor, to be out of favor, or in bad repute.

O”dor*a*ment (?), n. [L. odoramentum. See Odorate.] A perfume; a strong scent. [Obs.] Burton.

O”dor*ant (?), a. [L. odorans, -antis, p. pr.] Yielding odors; fragrant. Holland.

O”dor*ate (?), a. [L. odoratus, p. p. of odorare to perfume, fr. odor odor.] Odorous. [Obos.] Bacon.

O”dor*a`ting (?), a. Diffusing odor or scent; fragrant.

O`dor*if”er*ous (?), a. [L. odorifer; odor odor + ferre to bear. See Odoe, and 1st Bear.] Bearing or yielding an odor; perfumed; usually, sweet of scent; fragrant; as, odoriferous spices, particles, fumes, breezes. Milton.

— O`dor*if”er*ous*ly, adv. — O`dor*if”er*ous*ness, n.

O”dor*ine (?), n. (Chem.) A pungent oily substance obtained by redistilling bone oil. [Obs.]

O”dor*less, a. Free from odor.

O”dor*ous (?), a. [Written also odourous.] [L. odorus, fr. odor odor: cf. OF. odoros, odoreux.] Having or emitting an odor or scent, esp. a sweet odor; fragrant; sweet-smelling. “Odorous bloom.” Keble.

Such fragrant flowers do give most odorous smell.

Spenser.

— O”dor*ous*ly, adv. — O”dor*ous*ness, n.

Ods (?), interj. A corruption of God’s; — formerly used in oaths and ejaculatory phrases. “Ods bodikin.” “Ods pity.” Shak.

{ Od”yl, Od”yle } (?), n. [Gr. &?;, passage + &?; matter or material.] (Physics) See Od. [Archaic].

O*dyl”ic (?), a. (Physics) Of or pertaining to odyle; odic; as, odylic force. [Archaic]

Od”ys*sey (?), n. [L. Odyssea, Gr. &?;, fr. &?; Ulysses: cf.F. Odyssée.] An epic poem attributed to Homer, which describes the return of Ulysses to Ithaca after the siege of Troy.

Œ (ē), a diphthong, employed in the Latin language, and thence in the English language, as the representative of the Greek diphthong oi. In many words in common use, e alone stands instead of œ. Classicists prefer to write the diphthong oe separate in Latin words.

Œ“coid (?), n. [Gr. &?; a house + -oid.] (Anat.) The colorless porous framework, or stroma, of red blood corpuscles from which the zooid, or hemoglobin and other substances of the corpuscles, may be dissolved out.

Œ*col”o*gy (?), n. [Gr.&?; house + -logy.] (Biol.) The various relations of animals and plants to one another and to the outer world.

Œ`co*nom”ic*al (?), a. See Economical.

Œ`co*nom”ics (?), n. See Economics.

Œ*con”o*my (?), n. See Economy.

Œc`u*men”ic*al (?), a. See Ecumenical.

||Œ*de”ma (?), n. [NL., from Gr. &?; a swelling, tumor, fr. &?; to swell.] (Med.) A swelling from effusion of watery fluid in the cellular tissue beneath the skin or mucous membrance; dropsy of the subcutaneous cellular tissue. [Written also edema.]

Œ*dem”a*tous (?), a. (Med.) Pertaining to, or of the nature of, edema; affected with edema.

{ Œ*il”iad (?), ||Œil”lade` (?), } n. [F. œillade, fr. œel eye. See Eyelent.] A glance of the eye; an amorous look. [Obs.]

She gave strange œillades and most speaking looks.

Shak.

Œ“let (?), n. [See Eyelet.] An eye, bud, or shoot, as of a plant; an oilet. [Obs.] Holland.

Œ*nan”thate (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of the supposed œnanthic acid.

Œ*nan”thic (?), a. [Gr. &?; the first shoot of the vine, the vine blossom, the vine; &?; the vine + &?; bloom, &?; flower.] (Chem.) Having, or imparting, the odor characteristic of the bouquet of wine; specifically used, formerly, to designate an acid whose ethereal salts were supposed to occasion the peculiar bouquet, or aroma, of old wine. Cf. Œnanthylic.

Œnanthic acid, an acid obtained from œnanthic ether by the action of alkalies. — Œnanthic ether, an ethereal substance (not to be confused with the bouquet, or aroma, of wine) found in wine lees, and consisting of a complex mixture of the ethereal salts of several of the higher acids of the acetic acid series. It has an ethereal odor, and it used in flavoring artificial wines and liquors. Called also oil of wine. See Essential oil, under Essential.

Œ*nan”thol (?), n. [œnanthylic + L. oleum oil.] (Chem.) An oily substance obtained by the distillation of castor oil, recognized as the aldehyde of œnanthylic acid, and hence called also œnanthaldehyde.

Œ*nan”thone (?), n. [œnanthic + -one] (Chem.) The ketone of œnanthic acid.

Œ*nan”thyl (?), n. [œnnthic + -yl.] (Chem.) A hydrocarbon radical formerly supposed to exist in œnanthic acid, now known to be identical with heptyl.

Œ*nan”thyl*ate (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of œnanthylic acid; as, potassium œnanthylate.

Œ`nan*thyl”ic (?), a. (Chem.) Pertaining to, derived from, or containing, œnanthyl; specifically, designating an acid formerly supposed to be identical with the acid in œnanthic ether, but now known to be identical with heptoic acid.

Œ`nan*thyl”i*dene (?), n. (Chem.) A colorless liquid hydrocarbon, having a garlic odor; heptine.

Œ*nan”thyl*ous (?), a. (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or designating, an acid formerly supposed to be the acid of œnanthylic ether, but now known to be a mixture of higher acids, especially capric acid. [Obs.]

Œ`no*cy”an (?), n. [Gr. &?; wine + &?; a dark-blue substance.] (Chem.) The coloring matter of red wines.

Œ*nol”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. &?; wine + -logy.] Knowledge of wine, scientific or practical.

||Œn`o*ma”ni*a (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; wine + &?; mania.] (Med.) (a) Delirium tremens. Rayer. (b) Dipsomania.

Œn”o*mel (?), n. [Gr. &?; wine + &?; honey.] Wine mixed with honey; mead, [R.]

Œ*nom”e*ter (?), n. [Gr. &?; wine + -meter.] See Alcoholometer.

Œ*noph”i*list (?), n. [Gr. &?; wine + &?; to love.] A lover of wine. [R.] Thackeray.

Œ`no*thi*on”ic (?), a. [Gr. &?; wine + thionic.] (Chem.) Pertaining to an acid now called sulphovinic, or ethyl sulphuric, acid.

O’er (?), prep. & adv. A contr. of Over. [Poetic]

Œ*soph”a*gus, n., Œ`so*phag”e*al, a., etc. Same as Esophagus, Esophageal, etc.

Œs”tri*an (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the gadflies. — n. A gadfly.

Œs”tru*al (?), a. [See Œstrus.] (Physiol.) Of or pertaining to sexual desire; — mostly applied to brute animals; as, the œstrual period; œstrual influence.

Œs`tru*a”tion (?), n. (Physiol.) The state of being under œstrual influence, or of having sexual desire.

||Œs”trus (?), n. [L., a gadfly; also, frenzy, fr.Gr. &?; gadfly; hence, sting, fury, insane desire, frenzy.] 1. (Zoöl.) A genus of gadflies. The species which deposits its larvæ in the nasal cavities of sheep is œstrus ovis.

2. A vehement desire; esp. (Physiol.), the periodical sexual impulse of animals; heat; rut.

Of (?), prep. [AS. of of, from, off; akin to D. & OS. af, G. ab off, OHG. aba from, away, Icel., Dan., Sw., & Goth. af, L. ab, Gr. &?;, Skr. apa. Cf. Off, A- (2), Ab-, After, Epi-.] In a general sense, from, or out from; proceeding from; belonging to; relating to; concerning; — used in a variety of applications; as:

1. Denoting that from which anything proceeds; indicating origin, source, descent, and the like; as, he is of a race of kings; he is of noble blood.

That holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.

Luke i. 35.

I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you.

1 Cor. xi. 23.

2. Denoting possession or ownership, or the relation of subject to attribute; as, the apartment of the consul: the power of the king; a man of courage; the gate of heaven. “Poor of spirit.” Macaulay.

3. Denoting the material of which anything is composed, or that which it contains; as, a throne of gold; a sword of steel; a wreath of mist; a cup of water.

4. Denoting part of an aggregate or whole; belonging to a number or quantity mentioned; out of; from amongst; as, of this little he had some to spare; some of the mines were unproductive; most of the company.

It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed.

Lam. iii. 22.

It is a duty to communicate of those blessings we have received.

Franklin.

5. Denoting that by which a person or thing is actuated or impelled; also, the source of a purpose or action; as, they went of their own will; no body can move of itself; he did it of necessity.

For it was of the Lord to harden their hearts.

Josh. xi. 20.

6. Denoting reference to a thing; about; concerning; relating to; as, to boast of one’s achievements.

Knew you of this fair work?

Shak.

7. Denoting nearness or distance, either in space or time; from; as, within a league of the town; within an hour of the appointed time.

8. Denoting identity or equivalence; — used with a name or appellation, and equivalent to the relation of apposition; as, the continent of America; the city of Rome; the Island of Cuba.

9. Denoting the agent, or person by whom, or thing by which, anything is, or is done; by.

And told to her of [by] some.

Chaucer.

He taught in their synagogues, being glorified of all.

Luke iv. 15.

[Jesus] being forty days tempted of the devil.

Luke iv. 1, 2.

&fist; The use of the word in this sense, as applied to persons, is nearly obsolete.

10. Denoting relation to place or time; belonging to, or connected with; as, men of Athens; the people of the Middle Ages; in the days of Herod.

11. Denoting passage from one state to another; from. [Obs.] “O miserable of happy.” Milton.

12. During; in the course of.

Not be seen to wink of all the day.

Shak.

My custom always of the afternoon.

Shak.

&fist; Of may be used in a subjective or an objective sense. “The love of God” may mean, our love for God, or God’s love for us.

&fist; From is the primary sense of this preposition; a sense retained in off, the same word differently written for distinction. But this radical sense disappears in most of its application; as, a man of genius; a man of rare endowments; a fossil of a red color, or of an hexagonal figure; he lost all hope of relief; an affair of the cabinet; he is a man of decayed fortune; what is the price of corn? In these and similar phrases, of denotes property or possession, or a relation of some sort involving connection. These applications, however all proceeded from the same primary sense. That which proceeds from, or is produced by, a person or thing, either has had, or still has, a close connection with the same; and hence the word was applied to cases of mere connection, not involving at all the idea of separation.

Of consequence, of importance, value, or influence. — Of late, recently; in time not long past. — Of old, formerly; in time long past. — Of one’s self, by one’s self; without help or prompting; spontaneously.

Why, knows not Montague, that of itself
England is safe, if true within itself?

Shak.

Off (?), adv. [OE. of, orig. the same word as R. of, prep., AS. of, adv. & prep. √194. See Of.] In a general sense, denoting from or away from; as:

1. Denoting distance or separation; as, the house is a mile off.

2. Denoting the action of removing or separating; separation; as, to take off the hat or cloak; to cut off, to pare off, to clip off, to peel off, to tear off, to march off, to fly off, and the like.

3. Denoting a leaving, abandonment, departure, abatement, interruption, or remission; as, the fever goes off; the pain goes off; the game is off; all bets are off.

4. Denoting a different direction; not on or towards: away; as, to look off.

5. Denoting opposition or negation. [Obs.]

The questions no way touch upon puritanism, either off or on.

Bp. Sanderson.

From off, off from; off. “A live coal . . . taken with the tongs from off the altar.” Is. vi. 6. — Off and on. (a) Not constantly; not regularly; now and then; occasionally. (b) (Naut.) On different tacks, now toward, and now away from, the land. — To be off. (a) To depart; to escape; as, he was off without a moment’s warning. (b) To be abandoned, as an agreement or purpose; as, the bet was declared to be off. [Colloq.] — To come off, To cut off, To fall off, To go off, etc. See under Come, Cut, Fall, Go, etc. — To get off. (a) To utter; to discharge; as, to get off a joke. (b) To go away; to escape; as, to get off easily from a trial. [Colloq.] — To take off, to mimic or personate. — To tell off (Mil.), to divide and practice a regiment or company in the several formations, preparatory to marching to the general parade for field exercises. Farrow. — To be well off, to be in good condition. — To be ill off, To be badly off, to be in poor condition.

Off (?), interj. Away; begone; — a command to depart.

Off, prep. Not on; away from; as, to be off one’s legs or off the bed; two miles off the shore. Addison.

Off hand. See Offhand. — Off side (Football), out of play; — said when a player has got in front of the ball in a scrimmage, or when the ball has been last touched by one of his own side behind him. — To be off color, to be of a wrong color. — To be off one’s food, to have no appetite. (Colloq.)

Off, a. 1. On the farther side; most distant; on the side of an animal or a team farthest from the driver when he is on foot; in the United States, the right side; as, the off horse or ox in a team, in distinction from the nigh or near horse or ox; the off leg.

2. Designating a time when one is not strictly attentive to business or affairs, or is absent from his post, and, hence, a time when affairs are not urgent; as, he took an off day for fishing: an off year in politics. “In the off season.” Thackeray.

Off side. (a) The right hand side in driving; the farther side. See Gee. (b) (Cricket) See Off, n.

Off, n. (Cricket) The side of the field that is on the right of the wicket keeper.

Of”fal (?), n. [Off + fall.] 1. The rejected or waste parts of a butchered animal.

2. A dead body; carrion. Shak.

3. That which is thrown away as worthless or unfit for use; refuse; rubbish.

The off als of other profession.

South.

Off”cut` (?), n. 1. That which is cut off.

2. (Bookbinding) A portion ofthe printed sheet, in certain sizes of books, that is cut off before folding.

Of*fence” (?), n. See Offense.

Of*fend (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Offended; p. pr. & vb. n. Offending.] [OF. offendre, L. offendere, offensum; ob (see Ob-) + fendere (in comp.) to thrust, dash. See Defend.] 1. To strike against; to attack; to assail. [Obs.] Sir P. Sidney.

2. To displease; to make angry; to affront.

A brother offended is harder to be won than a strong city.

Prov. xviii. 19.

3. To be offensive to; to harm; to pain; to annoy; as, strong light offends the eye; to offend the conscience.

4. To transgress; to violate; to sin against. [Obs.]

Marry, sir, he hath offended the law.

Shak.

5. (Script.) To oppose or obstruct in duty; to cause to stumble; to cause to sin or to fall. [Obs.]

Who hath you misboden or offended.

Chaucer.

If thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out . . . And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off.

Matt. v. 29, 3O.

Great peace have they which love thy law, and nothing shall offend them.

Ps. cxix. 165.

Of*fend”, v. i. 1. To transgress the moral or divine law; to commit a crime; to stumble; to sin.

Whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.

James ii. 10.

If it be a sin to cevet honor,
I am the most offending soul alive.

Shak.

2. To cause dislike, anger, or vexation; to displease.

I shall offend, either to detain or give it.

Shak.

To offend against, to do an injury or wrong to; to commit an offense against. “We have offended against the Lord already.” 2 Chron. xxviii. 13.

Of*fend”ant (?), n. An offender. [R.] Holland.

Of*fend”er (?), n. One who offends; one who violates any law, divine or human; a wrongdoer.

I and my son Solomon shall be counted offenders.

1 Kings i. 21.

Of*fend”ress (?), n. A woman who offends. Shak.

{ Of*fense”, Of*fence” } (?), n. [F., fr. L. offensa. See Offend.] 1. The act of offending in any sense; esp., a crime or a sin, an affront or an injury.

Who was delivered for our offenses, and was raised again for our justification.

Rom. iv. 25.

I have given my opinion against the authority of two great men, but I hope without offense to their memories.

Dryden.

2. The state of being offended or displeased; anger; displeasure.

He was content to give them just cause of offense, when they had power to make just revenge.

Sir P. Sidney.

3. A cause or occasion of stumbling or of sin. [Obs.]

Woe to that man by whom the offense cometh!

Matt. xviii. 7.

&fist; This word, like expense, is often spelled with a c. It ought, however, to undergo the same change with expense, the reasons being the same, namely, that s must be used in offensive as in expensive, and is found in the Latin offensio, and the French offense.

To take offense, to feel, or assume to be, injured or affronted; to become angry or hostile. — Weapons of offense, those which are used in attack, in distinction from those of defense, which are used to repel.

Syn. — Displeasure; umbrage; resentment; misdeed; misdemeanor; trespass; transgression; delinquency; fault; sin; crime; affront; indignity; outrage; insult.

Of*fense”ful (?), a. Causing offense; displeasing; wrong; as, an offenseful act. [R.]

Of*fense”less, a. Unoffending; inoffensive.

Of*fen”si*ble (?), a. That may give offense. [Obs.]

Of*fen”sion (?), n. [OF., fr. L. offensio an offense.] Assault; attack. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Of*fen”sive (?), a. [Cf.F. offensif. See Offend.]

1. Giving offense; causing displeasure or resentment; displeasing; annoying; as, offensive words.

2. Giving pain or unpleasant sensations; disagreeable; revolting; noxious; as, an offensive smell; offensive sounds. “Offensive to the stomach.” Bacon.

3. Making the first attack; assailant; aggressive; hence, used in attacking; — opposed to defensive; as, an offensive war; offensive weapons.

League offensive and defensive, a leaque that requires all the parties to it to make war together against any foe, and to defend one another if attacked.

Syn. — Displeasing; disagreeable; distasteful; obnoxious; abhorrent; disgusting; impertinent; rude; saucy; reproachful; opprobrious; insulting; insolent; abusive; scurrilous; assailant; attacking; invading.

— Of*fen”sive*ly, adv. — Of*fen”sive*ness, n.

Of*fen”sive (?), n. The state or posture of one who offends or makes attack; aggressive attitude; the act of the attacking party; — opposed to defensive.

To act on the offensive, to be the attacking party.

Of”fer (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Offered (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Offering.] [OE. offren, AS. offrian to sacrifice, fr. L. offerre; ob (see OB-) + ferre to bear, bring. The English word was influenced by F. offrir to offer, of the same origin. See 1st Bear.] 1. To present, as an act of worship; to immolate; to sacrifice; to present in prayer or devotion; — often with up.

Thou shalt offer every day a bullock for a sin offering for atonement.

Ex. xxix. 36.

A holy priesthood to offer up spiritual sacrifices.

1 Pet. ii. 5.

2. To bring to or before; to hold out to; to present for acceptance or rejection; as, to offer a present, or a bribe; to offer one’s self in marriage.

I offer thee three things.

2 Sam. xxiv. 12.

3. To present in words; to proffer; to make a proposal of; to suggest; as, to offer an opinion. With the infinitive as an objective: To make an offer; to declare one’s willingness; as, he offered to help me.

4. To attempt; to undertake.

All that offer to defend him.

Shak.

5. To bid, as a price, reward, or wages; as, to offer a guinea for a ring; to offer a salary or reward.

6. To put in opposition to; to manifest in an offensive way; to threaten; as, to offer violence, attack, etc.

Syn. — To propose; propound; move; proffer; tender; sacrifice; immolate.

Of”fer, v. i. 1. To present itself; to be at hand.

The occasion offers, and the youth complies.

Dryden.

2. To make an attempt; to make an essay or a trial; — used with at. “Without offering at any other remedy.” Swift.

He would be offering at the shepherd’s voice.

L’Estrange.

I will not offer at that I can not master.

Bacon.

Of”fer (?), n. [Cf. F. offre, fr. offrir to offer, fr. L. offerre. See Offer, v. t.] 1. The act of offering, bringing forward, proposing, or bidding; a proffer; a first advance. “This offer comes from mercy.” Shak.

2. That which is offered or brought forward; a proposal to be accepted or rejected; a sum offered; a bid.

When offers are disdained, and love denied.

Pope.

3. Attempt; endeavor; essay; as, he made an offer to catch the ball. “Some offer and attempt.” South.

Of”fer*a*ble (?), a. Capable of being offered; suitable or worthy to be offered.

Of”fer*er (?), n. One who offers; esp., one who offers something to God in worship. Hooker.

Of”fer*ing, n. 1. The act of an offerer; a proffering.

2. That which is offered, esp. in divine service; that which is presented as an expiation or atonement for sin, or as a free gift; a sacrifice; an oblation; as, sin offering.

They are polluted offerings more abhorred
Than spotted livers in the sacrifice.

Shak.

3. A sum of money offered, as in church service; as, a missionary offering. Specif.: (Ch. of Eng.) Personal tithes payable according to custom, either at certain seasons as Christmas or Easter, or on certain occasions as marriages or christenings.

[None] to the offering before her should go.

Chaucer.

Burnt offering, Drink offering, etc. See under Burnt. etc.

Of”fer*to*ry (?), n.; pl. Offertories . [L. offertorium the place to which offerings were brought, in LL. offertory: cf.F. offertoire.] 1. The act of offering, or the thing offered. [Obs. or R.] Bacon. Bp. Fell.

2. (R.C.Ch.) (a) An anthem chanted, or a voluntary played on the organ, during the offering and first part of the Mass. (b) That part of the Mass which the priest reads before uncovering the chalice to offer up the elements for consecration. (c) The oblation of the elements.

3. (Ch. of Eng. & Prot. Epis. Ch.) (a) The Scripture sentences said or sung during the collection of the offerings. (b) The offerings themselves.

Of”fer*ture (?), n. [LL. offertura an offering.] Offer; proposal; overture. [Obs.]

More offertures and advantages to his crown.

Milton.

Off”hand` (?), a. Instant; ready; extemporaneous; as, an offhand speech; offhand excuses. — adv. In an offhand manner; as, he replied offhand.

Of”fice (?), n. [F., fr. L. officium, for opificium; ops ability, wealth, holp + facere to do or make. See Opulent, Fact.] 1. That which a person does, either voluntarily or by appointment, for, or with reference to, others; customary duty, or a duty that arises from the relations of man to man; as, kind offices, pious offices.

I would I could do a good office between you.

Shak.

2. A special duty, trust, charge, or position, conferred by authority and for a public purpose; a position of trust or authority; as, an executive or judical office; a municipal office.

3. A charge or trust, of a sacred nature, conferred by God himself; as, the office of a priest under the old dispensation, and that of the apostles in the new.

Inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office.

Rom. xi. 13.

4. That which is performed, intended, or assigned to be done, by a particular thing, or that which anything is fitted to perform; a function; — answering to duty in intelligent beings.

They [the eyes] resign their office and their light.

Shak.

Hesperus, whose office is to bring
Twilight upon the earth.

Milton.

In this experiment the several intervals of the teeth of the comb do the office of so many prisms.

Sir I. Newton.

5. The place where a particular kind of business or service for others is transacted; a house or apartment in which public officers and others transact business; as, the register’s office; a lawyer’s office.

6. The company or corporation, or persons collectively, whose place of business is in an office; as, I have notified the office.

7. pl. The apartments or outhouses in which the domestics discharge the duties attached to the service of a house, as kitchens, pantries, stables, etc. [Eng.]

As for the offices, let them stand at distance.

Bacon.

8. (Eccl.) Any service other than that of ordination and the Mass; any prescribed religious service.

This morning was read in the church, after the office was done, the declaration setting forth the late conspiracy against the king’s person.

Evelyn.

Holy office. Same as Inquisition, n., 3. — Houses of office. Same as def. 7 above. Chaucer. — Little office (R.C.Ch.), an office recited in honor of the Virgin Mary. — Office bearer, an officer; one who has a specific office or duty to perform. — Office copy (Law), an authenticated or certified copy of a record, from the proper office. See Certified copies, under Copy. Abbott. — Office- found (Law), the finding of an inquest of office. See under Inquest. — Office holder. See Officeholder in the Vocabulary

Of`fice (?), v. t. To perform, as the duties of an office; to discharge. [Obs.] Shak.

Of”fice*hold”er (?), n. An officer, particularly one in the civil service; a placeman.

Of”fi*cer (?), n. [F. officier. See Office, and cf. Official, n.] 1. One who holds an office; a person lawfully invested with an office, whether civil, military, or ecclesiastical; as, a church officer; a police officer; a staff officer. “I am an officer of state.” Shak.

2. (U. S. Mil.) Specifically, a commissioned officer, in distinction from a warrant officer.

Field officer, General officer, etc. See under Field, General. etc. — Officer of the day (Mil.), the officer who, on a given day, has charge for that day of the quard, prisoners, and police of the post or camp. — Officer of the deck, or Officer of the watch (Naut.), the officer temporarily in charge on the deck of a vessel, esp. a war vessel.

Of”fi*cer, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Officered (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Officering.] 1. To furnish with officers; to appoint officers over. Marshall.

2. To command as an officer; as, veterans from old regiments officered the recruits.

Of*fi”cial (?), a. [L. officialis: cf. F. officiel. See Office, and cf. Official, n.] 1. Of or pertaining to an office or public trust; as, official duties, or routine.

That, in the official marks invested, you
Anon do meet the senate.

Shak.

2. Derived from the proper office or officer, or from the proper authority; made or communicated by virtue of authority; as, an official statement or report.

3. (Pharm.) Approved by authority; sanctioned by the pharmacopœia; appointed to be used in medicine; as, an official drug or preparation. Cf. Officinal.

4. Discharging an office or function. [Obs.]

The stomach and other parts official unto nutrition.

Sir T. Browne.

Of*fi”cial, n. [L. officialis a magistrate’s servant or attendant: cf.F. official. See Official, a., and cf. Officer.] 1. One who holds an office; esp., a subordinate executive officer or attendant.

2. An ecclesiastical judge appointed by a bishop, chapter, archdeacon, etc., with charge of the spiritual jurisdiction. Blackstone.

Of*fi”cial*ism (?), n. The state of being official; a system of official government; also, adherence to office routine; red-tapism.

Officialism may often drift into blunders.

Smiles.

Of*fi`ci*al”i*ty (&obreve;f*f&ibreve;sh`&ibreve;*ăl”&ibreve;*t&ybreve;), n. See Officialty.

Of*fi”cial*ly (?), adv. By the proper officer; by virtue of the proper authority; in pursuance of the special powers vested in an officer or office; as, accounts or reports officially verified or rendered; letters officially communicated; persons officially notified.

Of*fi”cial*ty (?), n. [Cf.F. officialité.] The charge, office, court, or jurisdiction of an official. Ayliffe.

Of*fi”ciant (?), n. [L. officians, p. pr. See Officiate.] (Eccl.) The officer who officiates or performs an office, as the burial office. Shipley.

Of*fi”ci*a*ry (?), a. Of or pertaining to an office or an officer; official. [R.] Heylin.

Of*fi”ci*ate (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Officiated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Officiating.] [LL. officiare. See Office.] To act as an officer in performing a duty; to transact the business of an office or public trust; to conduct a public service. Bp. Stillingfleet.

Of*fi”ci*ate, v. t. To discharge, perform, or supply, as an official duty or function. [Obs.]

Merely to officiate light
Round this opacous earth.

Milton.

Of*fi”ci*a`tor (?), n. One who officiates. Tylor.

Of*fic”i*nal (?), a. [F., fr. L. officina a workshop, contr.fr. opificina, fr. opifex a workman; opus work + facere to make or do.] 1. Used in a shop, or belonging to it. [Obs. or R.] Johnson.

2. (Pharm.) Kept in stock by apothecaries; — said of such drugs and medicines as may be obtained without special preparation or compounding; not magistral.

&fist; This term is often interchanged with official, but in strict use officinal drugs are not necessarily official. See Official, a., 3.

Of*fi”cious (?), a. [L. officiosus: cf.F. officieux. See Office.] 1. Pertaining to, or being in accordance with, duty. [R.]

If there were any lie in the case, it could be no more than as officious and venial one.

Note on Gen. xxvii. (Douay version).

2. Disposed to serve; kind; obliging. [Archaic]

Yet not to earth are those bright luminaries
Officious.

Milton.

They were tolerably well bred, very officious, humane, and hospitable.

Burke.

3. Importunately interposing services; intermeddling in affairs in which one has no concern; meddlesome.

You are too officious
In her behalf that scorns your services.

Shak.

Syn. — Impertinent; meddling. See Impertinent.

— Of*fi”cious*ly, adv. — Of*fi”cious*ness, n.

Off”ing (?), n. [From Off.] That part of the sea at a good distance from the shore, or where there is deep water and no need of a pilot; also, distance from the shore; as, the ship had ten miles offing; we saw a ship in the offing.

Off”ish, a. Shy or distant in manner. [Colloq. U.S.]

Off”let, n. [Off + let.] A pipe to let off water.

Off”scour`ing (?), n. [Off + scour.] That which is scoured off; hence, refuse; rejected matter; that which is vile or despised. Lam. iii. 45.

Off”scum` (?), n. [Off + scum.] Removed scum; refuse; dross.

Off”set` (?), n. [Off + set. Cf. Set-off.] In general, that which is set off, from, before, or against, something; as: —

1. (Bot.) A short prostrate shoot, which takes root and produces a tuft of leaves, etc. See Illust. of Houseleek.

2. A sum, account, or value set off against another sum or account, as an equivalent; hence, anything which is given in exchange or retaliation; a set-off.

3. A spur from a range of hills or mountains.

4. (Arch.) A horizontal ledge on the face of a wall, formed by a diminution of its thickness, or by the weathering or upper surface of a part built out from it; — called also set-off.

5. (Surv.) A short distance measured at right angles from a line actually run to some point in an irregular boundary, or to some object.

6. (Mech.) An abrupt bend in an object, as a rod, by which one part is turned aside out of line, but nearly parallel, with the rest; the part thus bent aside.

7. (Print.) A more or less distinct transfer of a printed page or picture to the opposite page, when the pages are pressed together before the ink is dry or when it is poor.

Offset staff (Surv.), a rod, usually ten links long, used in measuring offsets.

Off*set” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Offset; p. pr. & vb. n. Offsetting.] 1. To set off; to place over against; to balance; as, to offset one account or charge against another.

2. To form an offset in, as in a wall, rod, pipe, etc.

Off”set, v. i. (Printing) To make an offset.

Off”shoot` (?), n. [Off + shoot.] That which shoots off or separates from a main stem, channel, family, race, etc.; as, the offshoots of a tree.

Off”shore” (?), a. From the shore; as, an offshore wind; an offshore signal.

Off”skip` (?), n. [Off + - skip, as in landskip.] (Paint.) That part of a landscape which recedes from the spectator into distance. [R.] Fairholt.

Off”spring` (?), n.sing. & pl. [Off + spring.]

1. The act of production; generation. [Obs.]

2. That which is produced; a child or children; a descendant or descendants, however remote from the stock.

To the gods alone
Our future offspring and our wives are known.

Dryden.

3. Origin; lineage; family. [Obs.] Fairfax.

{ Of*fus”cate (?), Of`fus*ca`tion (?) }. See Obfuscate, Obfuscation. [Obs.]

Oft (&obreve;ft; 115), adv. [AS. oft; akin to OS. & G. oft, OHG. ofto, Sw. ofta, Dan. ofte, Icel. opt, Goth. ufta; of uncertain origin. Cf. Often.] Often; frequently; not rarely; many times. [Poetic] Chaucer.

Oft she rejects, but never once offends.

Pope.

Oft, a. Frequent; often; repeated. [Poetic]

Of`ten (?), adv. [Compar. Oftener (?); superl. Oftenest.] [Formerly also ofte, fr. oft. See Oft., adv.] Frequently; many times; not seldom.

Of”ten, a. Frequent; common; repeated. [R.] “Thine often infirmities.” 1 Tim. v. 23.

And weary thee with often welcomes.

Beau. & Fl.

Of”ten*ness, n. Frequency. Hooker.

Of”ten*sith (?), adv. [Often + sith time.] Frequently; often. [Obs.]

For whom I sighed have so oftensith.

Gascoigne.

Of”ten*tide” (?), adv. [Often + tide time.] Frequently; often. [Obs.] Robert of Brunne.

Of”ten*times` (?), adv. [Often + time. Cf. -wards.] Frequently; often; many times. Wordsworth.

Oft”er (?), adv. Compar. of Oft. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Oft”times` (?), adv. [Oft + time. Cf. -wards.] Frequently; often. Milton.

Og”am (?), n. Same as Ogham.

Og”do*ad (?), n. [Gr. &?;, &?;, from &?; eight.] A thing made up of eight parts. Milman.

Og`do*as`tich (?), n. [Gr. &?; the eighth + &?; a verse.] A poem of eight lines. [Obs.] Selden

O*gee” (?), n. [F. ogive, augive, LL. augiva, of uncertain origin; cf.LL. ogis a support, prop. L. augere to increase, strengthen, Sp. auge highest point of power or fortune, apogee, Ar. auj, an astronomical term.]

1. (Arch.) A molding, the section of which is the form of the letter S, with the convex part above; cyma reversa. See Illust. under Cyma.

2. Hence, any similar figure used for any purpose.

Ogee arch (Arch.), a pointed arch, each of the sides of which has the curve of an ogee, that is, has a reversed curve near the apex.

O*gee”chee lime` (?). [So named from the Ogeechee River in Georgia.] (Bot.) (a) The acid, olive-shaped, drupaceous fruit of a species of tupelo (Nyssa capitata) which grows in swamps in Georgia and Florida. (b) The tree which bears this fruit.

Og`ga*ni”tion (?), n. [L. oggannire to snarl at; ob (see Ob-) + gannire to yelp.] Snarling; grumbling. [R.] Bp. Montagu.

Og”ham (?), n. [Ir.] A particular kind of writing practiced by the ancient Irish, and found in inscriptions on stones, metals, etc. [Written also ogam.]

O”give (?), n. [F. ogive, OF. augive a pointed arch, LL. augiva a double arch of two at right angles.] (Arch.) The arch or rib which crosses a Gothic vault diagonally.

O”gle (ōg’l), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Ogled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Ogling (?).] [From a Dutch word corresponding to G. äugeln to ogle, fr. auge eye; cf. D. ooglonken to ogle, OD. oogen to cast sheep’s eyes upon, ooge eye. See Eye.] To view or look at with side glances, as in fondness, or with a design to attract notice.

And ogling all their audience, ere they speak.

Dryden.

O”gle, n. An amorous side glance or look. Byron.

O”gler (?), n. One who ogles. Addison.

O”gli*o (?), n. See Olio.

O”gre (ō“g&etilde;r), n. [F., fr. Sp. ogro, fr. L. Orcus the god of the infernal regions; also, the lower world, hell.] An imaginary monster, or hideous giant of fairy tales, who lived on human beings; hence, any frightful giant; a cruel monster.

His schoolroom must have resembled an ogre’s den.

Maccaulay.

O”gre*ish, a. Resembling an ogre; having the character or appearance of an ogre; suitable for an ogre. “An ogreish kind of jocularity.” Dickens.

O”gress (?), n. [F. ogresse. See Ogre.] A female ogre. Tennyson.

{ O”gre*ism (?), O”grism (?) }, n. The character or manners of an ogre.

O*gyg”i*an (&osl;j&ibreve;j”&ibreve;an), a. [L. Ogygius, Gr. ‘Ogy`gios.] Of or pertaining to Ogyges, a mythical king of ancient Attica, or to a great deluge in Attica in his days; hence, primeval; of obscure antiquity.

Oh (ō), interj. [See O, interj.] An exclamation expressing various emotions, according to the tone and manner, especially surprise, pain, sorrow, anxiety, or a wish. See the Note under O.

Ohm (ōm), n. [So called from the German electrician, G. S. Ohm.] (Elec.) The standard unit in the measure of electrical resistance, being the resistance of a circuit in which a potential difference of one volt produces a current of one ampére. As defined by the International Electrical Congress in 1893, and by United States Statute, it is a resistance substantially equal to 10^9 units of resistance of the C. G. S. system of electro-magnetic units, and is represented by the resistance offered to an unvarying electric current by a column of mercury at the temperature of melting ice 14.4521 grams in mass, of a constant cross-sectional area, and of the length of 106.3 centimeters. As thus defined it is called the international ohm.

Ohm’s law (Elec.), the statement of the fact that the strength or intensity of an electrical current is directly proportional to the electro-motive force, and inversely proportional to the resistance of the circuit.

O*ho” (?), interj. An exclamation of surprise, etc.

-oid (-oid). [Gr. &?;, fr. e’i^dos form, akin to &?; to see, and E. wit: cf.F. oïde, L. oïdes.] A suffix or combining form meaning like, resembling, in the form of; as in anthropoid, asteroid, spheroid.

||O*ïd”i*um (?), n. [NL., dim. fr. Gr. w,‘o`n egg.] (Bot.) A genus of minute fungi which form a floccose mass of filaments on decaying fruit, etc. Many forms once referred to this genus are now believed to be temporary conditions of fungi of other genera, among them the vine mildew (Oïdium Tuckeri), which has caused much injury to grapes.

Oil (oil), n. [OE. oile, OF. oile, F. huile, fr. L. oleum; akin to Gr. &?;. Cf. Olive.] Any one of a great variety of unctuous combustible substances, not miscible with water; as, olive oil, whale oil, rock oil, etc. They are of animal, vegetable, or mineral origin and of varied composition, and they are variously used for food, for solvents, for anointing, lubrication, illumination, etc. By extension, any substance of an oily consistency; as, oil of vitriol.

&fist; The mineral oils are varieties of petroleum. See Petroleum. The vegetable oils are of two classes, essential oils (see under Essential), and natural oils which in general resemble the animal oils and fats. Most of the natural oils and the animal oils and fats consist of ethereal salts of glycerin, with a large number of organic acids, principally stearic, oleic, and palmitic, forming respectively stearin, olein, and palmitin. Stearin and palmitin prevail in the solid oils and fats, and olein in the liquid oils. Mutton tallow, beef tallow, and lard are rich in stearin, human fat and palm oil in palmitin, and sperm and cod-liver oils in olein. In making soaps, the acids leave the glycerin and unite with the soda or potash.

Animal oil, Bone oil, Dipple’s oil, etc. (Old Chem.), a complex oil obtained by the distillation of animal substances, as bones. See Bone oil, under Bone. — Drying oils, Essential oils. (Chem.) See under Drying, and Essential. — Ethereal oil of wine, Heavy oil of wine. (Chem.) See under Ethereal. — Fixed oil. (Chem.) See under Fixed. — Oil bag (Zoöl.), a bag, cyst, or gland in animals, containing oil. — Oil beetle (Zoöl.), any beetle of the genus Meloe and allied genera. When disturbed they emit from the joints of the legs a yellowish oily liquor. Some species possess vesicating properties, and are used instead of cantharides. — Oil box, or Oil cellar (Mach.), a fixed box or reservoir, for lubricating a bearing; esp., the box for oil beneath the journal of a railway-car axle. — Oil cake. See under Cake. — Oil cock, a stopcock connected with an oil cup. See Oil cup. — Oil color. (a) A paint made by grinding a coloring substance in oil. (b) Such paints, taken in a general sense. — Oil cup, a cup, or small receptacle, connected with a bearing as a lubricator, and usually provided with a wick, wire, or adjustable valve for regulating the delivery of oil. — Oil engine, a gas engine worked with the explosive vapor of petroleum. – - Oil gas, inflammable gas procured from oil, and used for lighting streets, houses, etc. — Oil gland. (a) (Zoöl.) A gland which secretes oil; especially in birds, the large gland at the base of the tail. (b) (Bot.) A gland, in some plants, producing oil. — Oil green, a pale yellowish green, like oil. — Oil of brick, empyreumatic oil obtained by subjecting a brick soaked in oil to distillation at a high temperature, — used by lapidaries as a vehicle for the emery by which stones and gems are sawn or cut. Brande & C. — Oil of talc, a nostrum made of calcined talc, and famous in the 17th century as a cosmetic. [Obs.] B. Jonson. — Oil of vitriol (Chem.), strong sulphuric acid; — so called from its oily consistency and from its forming the vitriols or sulphates. — Oil of wine, Œnanthic ether. See under Œnanthic. — Oil painting. (a) The art of painting in oil colors. (b) Any kind of painting of which the pigments are originally ground in oil. — Oil palm (Bot.), a palm tree whose fruit furnishes oil, esp. Elæis Guineensis. See Elæis. — Oil sardine (Zoöl.), an East Indian herring (Clupea scombrina), valued for its oil. — Oil shark (Zoöl.) (a) The liver shark. (b) The tope. — Oil still, a still for hydrocarbons, esp. for petroleum. — Oil test, a test for determining the temperature at which petroleum oils give off vapor which is liable to explode. — Oil tree. (Bot.) (a) A plant of the genus Ricinus (R. communis), from the seeds of which castor oil is obtained. (b) An Indian tree, the mahwa. See Mahwa. (c) The oil palm. — To burn the midnight oil, to study or work late at night. — Volatle oils. See Essential oils, under Essential.

Oil (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Oiled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Oiling.] To smear or rub over with oil; to lubricate with oil; to anoint with oil.

Oil”bird` (?), n. (Zoöl.) See Guacharo.

Oil”cloth” (?), n. Cloth treated with oil or paint, and used for marking garments, covering floors, etc.

Oiled (?), a. Covered or treated with oil; dressed with, or soaked in, oil.

Oiled silk, silk rendered waterproof by saturation with boiled oil.

Oil”er (?), n. 1. One who deals in oils.

2. One who, or that which, oils.

Oil”er*y (?), n. [Cf.F. huilerie.] The business, the place of business, or the goods, of a maker of, or dealer in, oils.

Oil”i*ness (?), n. The quality of being oily. Bacon.

Oil”let (?), n. [See Eyelet.] (Arch.) (a) A small opening or loophole, sometimes circular, used in mediæval fortifications. (b) A small circular opening, and ring of moldings surrounding it, used in window tracery in Gothic architecture. [Written also oylet.]

Oil”man (?), n.; pl. Oilmen (&?;). One who deals in oils; formerly, one who dealt in oils and pickles.

Oil”nut` (?), n. (Bot.) The buffalo nut. See Buffalo nut, under Buffalo.

&fist; The name is also applied to various nuts and seeds yielding oil, as the butternut, cocoanut, oil-palm nut.

Oil”seed` (?), n. (Bot.) (a) Seed from which oil is expressed, as the castor bean; also, the plant yielding such seed. See Castor bean. (b) A cruciferous herb (Camelina sativa). (c) The sesame.

Oil”skin` (?), n. Cloth made waterproof by oil.

Oil”stone` (?), n. A variety of hone slate, or whetstone, used for whetting tools when lubricated with oil.

Oil”y (?), a. [Compar. Oilier (?); superl. Oiliest.] 1. Consisting of oil; containing oil; having the nature or qualities of oil; unctuous; oleaginous; as, oily matter or substance. Bacon.

2. Covered with oil; greasy; hence, resembling oil; as, an oily appearance.

3. Smoothly subservient; supple; compliant; plausible; insinuating. “This oily rascal.” Shak.

His oily compliance in all alterations.

Fuller.

Oily grain (Bot.), the sesame. – - Oily palm, the oil palm.

Oi”ne*ment (?), n. Ointment. [Obs.] Chaucer.

||Oi`no*ma”ni*a (?), n. See œnomania.

Oint (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Ointed; p. pr & vb. n. Ointing.] [F. oint, p. p. of oindre, L. ungere. See Anoint, Ointment.] To anoint. [Obs.] Dryden.

Oint”ment (?), n. [OE. oinement, OF. oignement, fr.F. oindre to anoint, L. ungere, unguere; akin to Skr. a&?;j, and to G. anke (in Switzerland) butter. The first t in the E. word is due to the influence of anoint. Cf. Anoint, Unguent.] That which serves to anoint; any soft unctuous substance used for smearing or anointing; an unguent.

O*jib”ways (?), n. pl.; sing. Ojibway. (Ethnol.) Same as Chippeways.

||O”jo (?), n. [Sp., prop., an eye.] A spring, surrounded by rushes or rank grass; an oasis. [Southwestern U.S.] Bartlett.

Oke (?), n. [Turk. okkah, fr. Ar. ūkīyah, wakīyah, prob. fr. Gr. &?;, &?;, an ounce, fr. L. uncia. Cf. Ounce a weight.]

1. A Turkish and Egyptian weight, equal to about 2¾ pounds.

2. An Hungarian and Wallachian measure, equal to about 2½ pints.

O”ken*ite (?), n. [Prob. from Lorenz Oken, a German naturalist.] (Min.) A massive and fibrous mineral of a whitish color, chiefly hydrous silicate of lime.

O”ker (?), n. (Min.) See Ocher.

O”kra (?), n. (Bot.) An annual plant (Abelmoschus, or Hibiscus, esculentus), whose green pods, abounding in nutritious mucilage, are much used for soups, stews, or pickles; gumbo. [Written also ocra and ochra.]

-ol (?). [From alcohol.] (Chem.) A suffix denoting that the substance in the name of which it appears belongs to the series of alcohols or hydroxyl derivatives, as carbinol, glycerol, etc.

||O”lay (?), n. pl. [Tamil ōlai.] Palm leaves, prepared for being written upon with a style pointed with steel. [Written also ola.] Balfour (Cyc. of India).

Old (?), n. Open country. [Obs.] See World. Shak.

Old, a. [Compar. Older (?); superl. Oldest.] [OE. old, ald, AS. ald, eald; akin to D. oud, OS. ald, OFries. ald, old, G. alt, Goth. alpeis, and also to Goth. alan to grow up, Icel. ala to bear, produce, bring up, L. alere to nourish. Cf. Adult, Alderman, Aliment, Auld, Elder.]

1. Not young; advanced far in years or life; having lived till toward the end of the ordinary term of living; as, an old man; an old age; an old horse; an old tree.

Let not old age disgrace my high desire.

Sir P. Sidney.

The melancholy news that we grow old.

Young.

2. Not new or fresh; not recently made or produced; having existed for a long time; as, old wine; an old friendship. “An old acquaintance.” Camden.

3. Formerly existing; ancient; not modern; preceding; original; as, an old law; an old custom; an old promise. “The old schools of Greece.” Milton. “The character of the old Ligurians.” Addison.

4. Continued in life; advanced in the course of existence; having (a certain) length of existence; — designating the age of a person or thing; as, an infant a few hours old; a cathedral centuries old.

And Pharaoh said unto Jacob, How old art thou?

Cen. xlvii. 8.

&fist; In this use old regularly follows the noun that designates the age; as, she was eight years old.

5. Long practiced; hence, skilled; experienced; cunning; as, an old offender; old in vice.

Vane, young in years, but in sage counsel old.

Milton.

6. Long cultivated; as, an old farm; old land, as opposed to new land, that is, to land lately cleared.

7. Worn out; weakened or exhausted by use; past usefulness; as, old shoes; old clothes.

8. More than enough; abundant. [Obs.]

If a man were porter of hell gate, he should have old turning the key.

Shak.

9. Aged; antiquated; hence, wanting in the mental vigor or other qualities belonging to youth; — used disparagingly as a term of reproach.

10. Old-fashioned; wonted; customary; as of old; as, the good old times; hence, colloquially, gay; jolly.

11. Used colloquially as a term of cordiality and familiarity. “Go thy ways, old lad.” Shak.

Old age, advanced years; the latter period of life. — Old bachelor. See Bachelor, 1. — Old Catholics. See under Catholic. — Old English. See under English. n., 2. — Old Nick, Old Scratch, the devil. — Old lady (Zoöl.), a large European noctuid moth (Mormo maura). — Old maid. (a) A woman, somewhat advanced in years, who has never been married; a spinster. (b) (Bot.) A West Indian name for the pink-flowered periwinkle (Vinca rosea). (c) A simple game of cards, played by matching them. The person with whom the odd card is left is the old maid. — Old man’s beard. (Bot.) (a) The traveler’s joy (Clematis Vitalba). So named from the abundant long feathery awns of its fruit. (b) The Tillandsia usneoides. See Tillandsia. — Old man’s head (Bot.), a columnar cactus (Pilocereus senilis), native of Mexico, covered towards the top with long white hairs. — Old red sandstone (Geol.), a series of red sandstone rocks situated below the rocks of the Carboniferous age and comprising various strata of siliceous sandstones and conglomerates. See Sandstone, and the Chart of Geology. — Old school, a school or party belonging to a former time, or preserving the character, manner, or opinions of a former time; as, a gentleman of the old school; — used also adjectively; as, Old-School Presbyterians. — Old sledge, an old and well-known game of cards, called also all fours, and high, low, Jack, and the game. — Old squaw (Zoöl.), a duck (Clangula hyemalis) inhabiting the northern parts of both hemispheres. The adult male is varied with black and white and is remarkable for the length of its tail. Called also longtailed duck, south southerly, callow, hareld, and old wife. — Old style. (Chron.) See the Note under Style. — Old Testament. See under Testament. — Old wife. [In the senses b and cwritten also oldwife.] (a) A prating old woman; a gossip.

Refuse profane and old wives’ fables.

1 Tim. iv. 7.

(b) (Zoöl.) The local name of various fishes, as the European black sea bream (Cantharus lineatus), the American alewife, etc. (c) (Zoöl.) A duck; the old squaw. — Old World, the Eastern Hemisphere.

Syn. — Aged; ancient; pristine; primitive; antique; antiquated; old-fashioned; obsolete. See Ancient.

Old”en (?), a. Old; ancient; as, the olden time. “A minstrel of the olden stamp.” J. C. Shairp.

Old”en, v. i. To grow old; to age. [R.]

She had oldened in that time.

Thackeray.

Old`-fash”ioned (?), a. Formed according to old or obsolete fashion or pattern; adhering to old customs or ideas; as, an old-fashioned dress, girl. “Old-fashioned men of wit.” Addison.

This old-fashioned, quaint abode.

Longfellow.

Old`-gen”tle*man*ly (?), a. Pertaining to an old gentleman, or like one. Byron.

Old”ish, a. Somewhat old.

Old` lang syne” (?). See Auld lang syne.

Old`-maid”ish (?), a. Like an old maid; prim; precise; particular.

Old`-maid”ism (?), n. The condition or characteristics of an old maid. G. Eliot.

Old”ness, n. The state or quality of being old; old age.

Old”ster (?), n. [Cf. Youngster.] An old person. [Jocular] H. Kingsley.

Old`-wom`an*ish (?), a. Like an old woman; anile. — Old`-wom”an*ish*ness, n.

||O”le*a (?), n. [L. olive. See Olive.] (Bot.) A genus of trees including the olive.

&fist; The Chinese Olea fragrans, noted for its fragrance, and the American devilwood (Olea Americana) are now usually referred to another genus (Osmanthus).

O`le*a”ceous (?), a. [L. oléaceus of the olive tree.] (Bot.) Of, pertaining to, or resembling, a natural order of plants (Oleaceæ), mostly trees and shrubs, of which the olive is the type. It includes also the ash, the lilac, the true jasmine, and fringe tree.

O`le*ag`i*nous (?), a. [L. oleaginus, oleagineus, belonging to the olive, fr. olea olive: cf. F. oléagineux. See Olive, Oil.] Having the nature or qualities of oil; oily; unctuous.

O`le*ag`i*nous*ness, n. Oiliness. Boyle.

||O`le*a”men (?), n. [L.] (Med.) A soft ointment prepared from oil. Dunglison.

O`le*an”der (?), n. [F. oléandre (cf. It. oleandro, LL. lorandrum), prob. corrupted, under the influence of laurus laurel, fr. L. rhododendron, Gr. &?;; &?; rose + &?; tree.] (Bot.) A beautiful evergreen shrub of the Dogbane family, having clusters of fragrant red or white flowers. It is native of the East Indies, but the red variety has become common in the south of Europe. Called also rosebay, rose laurel, and South-sea rose.

&fist; Every part of the plant is dangerously poisonous, and death has occured from using its wood for skewers in cooking meat.

O`le*an”drine (?), n. (Chem.) One of several alkaloids found in the leaves of the oleander.

O`le*as”ter (?), n. [L., fr. olea olive tree. See Olive, Oil.] (Bot.) (a) The wild olive tree (Olea Europea, var. sylvestris). (b) Any species of the genus Elæagus. See Eleagnus. The small silvery berries of the common species (Elæagnus hortensis) are called Trebizond dates, and are made into cakes by the Arabs.

O”le*ate (?), n. [Cf.F. oléate.] (Chem.) A salt of oleic acid. Some oleates, as the oleate of mercury, are used in medicine by way of inunction.

O*lec”ra*nal (?), a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the olecranon.

O*lec”ra*non (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;; &?; elbow + krani`on the head.] (Anat.) The large process at the proximal end of the ulna which projects behind the articulation with the humerus and forms the bony prominence of the elbow.

O*le”fi*ant (?), a. [F. oléfiant, fr.L. oleum oil + -ficare (in comp.). Cf. -Fy.] (Chem.) Forming or producing an oil; specifically, designating a colorless gaseous hydrocarbon called ethylene. [Archaic]

O”le*fine (?), n. [From Olefiant.] (Chem.) Olefiant gas, or ethylene; hence, by extension, any one of the series of unsaturated hydrocarbons of which ethylene is a type. See Ethylene.

O”le*ic (?), a. [L. oleum oil: cf. F. oléique.] (Physiol.Chem.) Pertaining to, derived from, or contained in, oil; as, oleic acid, an acid of the acrylic acid series found combined with glyceryl in the form of olein in certain animal and vegetable fats and oils, such as sperm oil, olive oil, etc. At low temperatures the acid is crystalline, but melts to an oily liquid above 14&?; C.

O`le*if`er*ous (?), a. [L. oleum oil + -ferous: cf.F. oléifére.] Producing oil; as, oleiferous seeds.

O”le*in (?), n. [L. oleum oil: cf. F. oléine.] (Physiol. Chem.) A fat, liquid at ordinary temperatures, but solidifying at temperatures below 0° C., found abundantly in both the animal and vegetable kingdoms (see Palmitin). It dissolves solid fats, especially at 30-40° C. Chemically, olein is a glyceride of oleic acid; and, as three molecules of the acid are united to one molecule of glyceryl to form the fat, it is technically known as triolein. It is also called elain.

O”lent (?), a. [L. olens, p. pr. of olere to smell.] Scented. [R.] R. Browning.

O`le*o*graph (?), n. [L. oleum oil + -graph.]

1. (Chem.) The form or figure assumed by a drop of oil when placed upon water or some other liquid with which it does not mix.

2. (Painting) A picture produced in oils by a process analogous to that of lithographic printing.

O`le*o*mar”ga*rine (?), n. [L. oleum oil + E. margarine, margarin.] [Written also oleomargarin.] 1. A liquid oil made from animal fats (esp. beef fat) by separating the greater portion of the solid fat or stearin, by crystallization. It is mainly a mixture of olein and palmitin with some little stearin.

2. An artificial butter made by churning this oil with more or less milk.

&fist; Oleomargarine was wrongly so named, as it contains no margarin proper, but olein, palmitin, and stearin, a mixture of palmitin and stearin having formerly been called margarin by mistake.

O`le*om`e*ter (?), n. [L. oleum oil + -meter.] (Chem.) An instrument for ascertaining the weight and purity of oil; an elaiometer.

O”le*one (?), n. [L. oleum + – one, 1.] (Chem.) An oily liquid, obtained by distillation of calcium oleate, and probably consisting of the ketone of oleic acid.

O`le*op”tene (?), n. [L. oleum oil + Cr. &?; fleeting.] (Chem.) See Eleoptene. [R.]

O`le*o*res”in (?), n. [L. oleum oil + E. resin.]

1. (Chem.) A natural mixture of a terebinthinate oil and a resin.

2. (Med.) A liquid or semiliquid preparation extracted (as from capsicum, cubebs, or ginger) by means of ether, and consisting of fixed or volatile oil holding resin in solution.

— O`le*o*res”in*ous (#), a.

{ O”le*ose` (?), O”le*ous (?), } a. [L. oleosus, fr. oleum oil.] Oily. [R.] Ray. Floyer.

O`le*os”i*ty (?), n. The state or quality of being oily or fat; fatness. [R.] B. Jonson.

Ol`er*a”ceous (?), a. [L. oleraceus, from olus, oleris, garden or pot herbs, vegetables.] Pertaining to pot herbs; of the nature or having the qualities of herbs for cookery; esculent. Sir T. Browne.

Olf (?), n. [Etymol. uncertain.] (Zoöl.) The European bullfinch. [Prov.Eng.]

Ol*fac”tion (?), n. [See Olfactory.] (Physiol.) The sense by which the impressions made on the olfactory organs by the odorous particles in the atmosphere are perceived.

Ol*fac”tive (?), a. See Olfactory, a.

Ol*fac”tor (?), n. A smelling organ; a nose. [R.]

Ol*fac”to*ry (?), a. [L. olfactus, p. p. of olfacere to smell; olere to have a smell + facere to make. See Odor, and Fact.] (Physiol.) Of, pertaining to, or connected with, the sense of smell; as, the olfactory nerves; the olfactory cells.

Olfactory organ (Anat.), an organ for smelling. In vertebrates the olfactory organs are more or less complicated sacs, situated in the front part of the head and lined with epithelium innervated by the olfactory (or first cranial) nerves, and sensitive to odoriferous particles conveyed to it in the air or in water.

Ol*fac”to*ry (?), n.; pl. Olfactories (&?;). An olfactory organ; also, the sense of smell; — usually in the plural.

Ol”i*ban (?), n. (Chem.) See Olibanum.

O*lib”a*num (?), n. [LL., fr. Ar. al-luban frankincense; cf.Gr. &?;, &?;, of Semitic origin.] The fragrant gum resin of various species of Boswellia; Oriental frankincense.

Ol”i*bene (?), n. (Chem.) A colorless mobile liquid of a pleasant aromatic odor obtained by the distillation of olibanum, or frankincense, and regarded as a terpene; — called also conimene.

{ Ol”id (?), Ol”i*dous (?), } a. [L. olidus, fr. olere to smell.] Having a strong, disagreeable smell; fetid. [Obs.] Boyle. Sir T. Browne.

Ol”i*fant (?), n. [OF.] 1. An elephant. [Obs.]

2. An ancient horn, made of ivory.

Ol`i*gan”drous (?), a. [Oligo- + Gr. &?;, &?;, man, male.] (Bot.) Having few stamens.

Ol`i*gan”thous (?), a. [Oligo- + Gr. &?; flower.] (Bot.) Having few flowers.

Ol`i*garch (?), n. A member of an oligarchy; one of the rulers in an oligarchical government.

Ol`i*gar”chal (?), a. Oligarchic. Glover.

{ Ol`i*gar”chic (?), Ol`i*gar”chic*al, } a. [Gr. &?;: cf. F. oligarchique. See Oligarchy.] Of or pertaining to oligarchy, or government by a few. “Oligarchical exiles.” Jowett (Thucyd. ).

Ol”i*gar`chist (?), n. An advocate or supporter of oligarchy.

Ol”i*gar”chy (?), n.; pl. Oligarchies (#). [Gr. &?;; &?; few, little + &?; to rule, govern: cf.F. oligarchie.] A form of government in which the supreme power is placed in the hands of a few persons; also, those who form the ruling few.

All oligarchies, wherein a few men domineer, do what they list.

Burton.

Ol”i*gist (?), n. [See Oligist, a.] (Min.) Hematite or specular iron ore; — prob. so called in allusion to its feeble magnetism, as compared with magnetite.

{ Ol”i*gist (?), Ol`i*gis”tic (?), } a. [Gr. &?;, superl. of &?; few, little: cf. F. oligiste.] (Min.) Of or pertaining to hematite.

Ol”i*go- (?). A combining form from Gr. &?;, few, little, small.

Ol”i*go*cene (?), a. [Oligo- + Gr. &?; new, recent.] (Geol.) Of, pertaining to, or designating, certain strata which occupy an intermediate position between the Eocene and Miocene periods. — n. The Oligocene period. See the Chart of Geology.

||Ol`i*go*chæ“ta (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; little, pl., few + &?; hair.] (Zoöl.) An order of Annelida which includes the earthworms and related species.

Ol”i*go*chete (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Oligochæta.

Ol”i*go*clase (?), n. [Oligo- + Gr. &?; fracture, fr. &?; to break.] (Min.) A triclinic soda-lime feldspar. See Feldspar.

Ol`i*gom”er*ous (?), a. [Oligo- + Gr. &?; part.] (Bot.) Having few members in each set of organs; as, an oligomerous flower.

Ol`i*go”my*old (?), a. [Oligo- + Gr. &?;, &?;, a muscle + -oid.] (Anat.) Having few or imperfect syringeal muscles; — said of some passerine birds (Oligomyodi).

Ol`i*go*pet”al*ous (?), a. [Oligo- + petal.] (Bot.) Having few petals.

Ol`i*go*sep”al*ous (?), a. [Oligo- + sepal.] (Bot.) Having few sepals.

Ol`i*go*sid”er*ite (?), n. [Oligo- + siderite.] (Min.) A meteorite characterized by the presence of but a small amount of metallic iron.

Ol`i*go*sper”mous (?), a. [Oligo- + Gr. &?; a seed.] (Bot.) Having few seeds.

Ol`i*got”o*kous (?), a. [Oligo- + Gr. &?; offspring.] (Zoöl.) Producing few young.

O”li*o (?), n. [Sp. olla a round earthen pot, a dish of boiled or stewed meat, fr. L. olla a pot, dish. Cf. Olla, Olla-podrida.] 1. A dish of stewed meat of different kinds. [Obs.]

Besides a good olio, the dishes were trifling.

Evelyn.

2. A mixture; a medley. Dryden.

3. (Mus.) A collection of miscellaneous pieces.

Ol”i*to*ry (?), a. [L. olitorius belonging to a kitchen gardener, or to vegetables, fr. olitor a kitchen gardener, fr. olus, oleris, vegetables.] Of or pertaining to, or produced in, a kitchen garden; used for kitchen purposes; as, olitory seeds.

At convenient distance towards the olitory garden.

Evelyn.

||O*li”va (?), n. [L. an olive.] (Zoöl.) A genus of polished marine gastropod shells, chiefly tropical, and often beautifully colored.

Ol`i*va”ceous (?), a. [L. oliva olive.] Resembling the olive; of the color of the olive; olive- green.

Ol”i*va*ry (?), a. [L. olivarius belonging to olives, fr. oliva an olive: cf. F. olivaire.] (Anat.) Like an olive.

Olivary body (Anat.), an oval prominence on each side of the medulla oblongata; — called also olive.

Ol`i*vas”ter (?), a. [L. oliva olive: cf.F. olivâtre.] Of the color of the olive; tawny. Sir T. Herbert.

Ol”ive (?), n. [F., fr. L. oliva, akin to Gr. &?;. See Oil.] 1. (Bot.) (a) A tree (Olea Europæa) with small oblong or elliptical leaves, axillary clusters of flowers, and oval, one-seeded drupes. The tree has been cultivated for its fruit for thousands of years, and its branches are the emblems of peace. The wood is yellowish brown and beautifully variegated. (b) The fruit of the olive. It has been much improved by cultivation, and is used for making pickles. Olive oil is pressed from its flesh.

2. (Zoöl.) (a) Any shell of the genus Oliva and allied genera; — so called from the form. See Oliva. (b) The oyster catcher. [Prov.Eng.]

3. (a) The color of the olive, a peculiar dark brownish, yellowish, or tawny green. (b) One of the tertiary colors, composed of violet and green mixed in equal strength and proportion.

4. (Anat.) An olivary body. See under Olivary.

5. (Cookery) A small slice of meat seasoned, rolled up, and cooked; as, olives of beef or veal.

&fist; Olive is sometimes used adjectively and in the formation of self-explaining compounds; as, olive brown, olive green, olive-colored, olive-skinned, olive crown, olive garden, olive tree, olive yard, etc.

Bohemian olive (Bot.), a species of Elæagnus (E. angustifolia), the flowers of which are sometimes used in Southern Europe as a remedy for fevers. — Olive branch. (a) A branch of the olive tree, considered an emblem of peace. (b) Fig.: A child. — Olive brown, brown with a tinge of green. — Olive green, a dark brownish green, like the color of the olive. — Olive oil, an oil expressed from the ripe fruit of the olive, and much used as a salad oil, also in medicine and the arts. — Olive ore (Min.), olivenite. — Wild olive (Bot.), a name given to the oleaster or wild stock of the olive; also variously to several trees more or less resembling the olive.

Ol”ive, a. Approaching the color of the olive; of a peculiar dark brownish, yellowish, or tawny green.

Ol”ived (?), a. Decorated or furnished with olive trees. [R.] T. Warton.

O*liv”en*ite (?), n. (Min.) An olive-green mineral, a hydrous arseniate of copper; olive ore.

Ol”i*ver (?), n. 1. [OF. oliviere.] An olive grove. [Obs.] Chaucer.

2. [F. olivier.] An olive tree. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Ol”i*ver, n. A small tilt hammer, worked by the foot.

Ol`i*ve”ri*an (?), n. (Eng. Hist.) An adherent of Oliver Cromwell. Macaulay.

Ol`ive*wood” (?), n. (Bot.) (a) The wood of the olive. (b) An Australian name given to the hard white wood of certain trees of the genus Elæodendron, and also to the trees themselves.

Ol`i*vil (?), n. [Cf. F. olivile.] (Chem.) A white crystalline substance, obtained from an exudation from the olive, and having a bitter-sweet taste and acid proporties. [Written also olivile.] Gregory.

Ol”i*vin (?), n. (Chem.) A complex bitter gum, found on the leaves of the olive tree; — called also olivite.

Ol”i*vine (?), n. [Cf. F. olivine.] (Min.) A common name of the yellowish green mineral chrysolite, esp. the variety found in eruptive rocks.

Ol”i*vite (?), n. (Chem.) See Olivin.

Ol”la (?), n. [See Olio.] 1. A pot or jar having a wide mouth; a cinerary urn, especially one of baked clay.

2. A dish of stewed meat; an olio; an olla- podrida.

||Ol`la-po*dri”da (?), n. [Sp., lit., a rotten pot. See Olio.] 1. A favorite Spanish dish, consisting of a mixture of several kinds of meat chopped fine, and stewed with vegetables.

2. Any incongruous mixture or miscellaneous collection; an olio. B. Jonson.

Ol”o*gy (?), n. [See -logy.] A colloquial or humorous name for any science or branch of knowledge.

He had a smattering of mechanics, of physiology, geology, mineralogy, and all other ologies whatsoever.

De Quincey.

||Ol”pe (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;.] Originally, a leather flask or vessel for oils or liquids; afterward, an earthenware vase or pitcher without a spout.

||O*lu”sa*trum (?), n. [L. holusatrum, olusatrum; olus garden herb + ater black.] (Bot.) An umbelliferous plant, the common Alexanders of Western Europe (Smyrnium Olusatrum).

O*lym”pi*ad (&osl;*l&ibreve;m”p&ibreve;*ăd), n. [L. olympias, -adis, Gr. ‘olympia`s, -a`dos, fr. ‘O`lympos Olympus, a mountain in Macedonia: cf. F. olympiade.] (Greek Antiq.) A period of four years, by which the ancient Greeks reckoned time, being the interval from one celebration of the Olympic games to another, beginning with the victory of Corœbus in the foot race, which took place in the year 776 b.c.; as, the era of the olympiads.

{ O*lym”pi*an (i>an), O*lym”pic ( p&ibreve;k), } a. [L. Olympius, Olympicus, Gr. ‘Oly`mpios, ‘Olympiko`s, fr. ‘O`lympos: cf. F. olympique. See Olympiad.] Of or pertaining to Olympus, a mountain of Thessaly, fabled as the seat of the gods, or to Olympia, a small plain in Elis.

Olympic games, or Olympics (Greek Antiq.), the greatest of the national festivals of the ancient Greeks, consisting of athletic games and races, dedicated to Olympian Zeus, celebrated once in four years at Olympia, and continuing five days.

O*lym`pi*on”ic (?), n. [Gr. &?; a conqueror in the Olympic games.] An ode in honor of a victor in the Olympic games. [R.] Johnson.

-o”ma (?). [Gr. &?;, &?;.] A suffix used in medical terms to denote a morbid condition of some part, usually some kind of tumor; as in fibroma, glaucoma.

||Om”a*gra (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; shoulder + &?; seizure.] (Med.) Gout in the shoulder.

O”ma*has” (?), n. pl.; sing. Omaha (&?;). (Ethnol.) A tribe of Indians who inhabited the south side of the Missouri River. They are now partly civilized and occupy a reservation in Nebraska.

O*man”der wood` (?). [Etymol. uncertain.] (Bot.) The wood of Diospyros ebenaster, a kind of ebony found in Ceylon.

||O*ma”sum (?), n. [L.] (Anat.) The third division of the stomach of ruminants. See Manyplies, and Illust. under Ruminant.

{ Om”ber, Om”bre} (?), n. [F. hombre, fr. Sp. hombre, lit., a man, fr. L. homo. See Human.] A game at cards, borrowed from the Spaniards, and usually played by three persons. Pope.

When ombre calls, his hand and heart are free,
And, joined to two, he fails not to make three.

Young.

Om”bre, n. [F., of uncertain origin.] (Zoöl.) A large Mediterranean food fish (Umbrina cirrhosa): — called also umbra, and umbrine.

Om*brom”e*ter (?), n. [Gr. &?; rain + -meter: cf. F. ombrométre.] (Meteorol.) An instrument for measuring the rain that falls; a rain gauge.

O*me”ga (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;, i.e., the great or long o. Cf. Mickle.] 1. The last letter of the Greek alphabet. See Alpha.

2. The last; the end; hence, death.

“Omega! thou art Lord,” they said.

Tennyson.

Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending; hence, the chief, the whole. Rev. i. 8.

The alpha and omega of science.

Sir J. Herschel.

O*me”goid (?), a. [Omega + - oid.] Having the form of the Greek capital letter Omega (&OMEGA;).

Om”e*let (?), n. [F. omelette, OF. amelette, alumete, alumelle, perh. fr. L. lamella. Cf. Lamella.] Eggs beaten up with a little flour, etc., and cooked in a frying pan; as, a plain omelet.

O”men (?), n. [L. omen, the original form being osmen, according to Varro.] An occurrence supposed to portend, or show the character of, some future event; any indication or action regarded as a foreshowing; a foreboding; a presage; an augury.

Bid go with evil omen, and the brand
Of infamy upon my name.

Milton.

O”men, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Omened (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Omening.] To divine or to foreshow by signs or portents; to have omens or premonitions regarding; to predict; to augur; as, to omen ill of an enterprise.

The yet unknown verdict, of which, however, all omened the tragical contents.

Sir W. Scott.

O”mened (?), a. Attended by, or containing, an omen or omens; as, happy-omened day.

O*men”tal (?), a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to an omentum or the omenta.

O*men”tum (?), n.; pl. Omenta (#). [L.] (Anat.) A free fold of the peritoneum, or one serving to connect viscera, support blood vessels, etc.; an epiploön.

&fist; The great, or gastrocolic, omentum forms, in most mammals, a great sac, which is attached to the stomach and transverse colon, is loaded with fat, and covers more or less of the intestines; the caul. The lesser, or gastrohepatic, omentum connects the stomach and liver and contains the hepatic vessels. The gastrosplenic omentum, or ligament, connects the stomach and spleen.

O”mer (?), n. [Cf. Homer.] A Hebrew measure, the tenth of an ephah. See Ephah. Ex. xvi. 36.

Om`i*let”ic*al (?), a. Homiletical. [Obs.]

Om”i*nate (?), v. t. & i. [L. ominatus, p. p. of ominari to presage, fr. omen.] To presage; to foreshow; to foretoken. [Obs.] Dr. H. More.

Om`i*na”tion (?), n. [L. ominatio.] The act of ominating; presaging. [Obs.] Fuller.

Om”i*nous (?), a. [L. ominosus, fr. omen. See Omen.] Of or pertaining to an omen or to omens; being or exhibiting an omen; significant; portentous; — formerly used both in a favorable and unfavorable sense; now chiefly in the latter; foreboding or foreshowing evil; inauspicious; as, an ominous dread.

He had a good ominous name to have made a peace.

Bacon.

In the heathen worship of God, a sacrifice without a heart was accounted ominous.

South.

— Om”i*nous*ly, adv. — Om”i*nous*ness, n.

O*mis”si*ble (?), a. Capable of being omitted; that may be omitted.

O*mis”sion (?), n. [L. omissio: cf. F. omission. See Omit.] 1. The act of omitting; neglect or failure to do something required by propriety or duty.

The most natural division of all offenses is into those of omission and those of commission.

Addison.

2. That which is omitted or is left undone.

O*mis”sive (?), a. [See Omit.] Leaving out; omitting. Bp. Hall. — O*mis”sive*ly, adv.

O*mit” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Omitted; p. pr. & vb. n. Omitting.] [L. omittere, omissum; ob (see Ob- + mittere to cause to go, let go, send. See Mission.] 1. To let go; to leave unmentioned; not to insert or name; to drop.

These personal comparisons I omit.

Bacon.

2. To pass by; to forbear or fail to perform or to make use of; to leave undone; to neglect.

Her father omitted nothing in her education that might make her the most accomplished woman of her age.

Addison.

O*mit”tance (?), n. The act of omitting, or the state of being omitted; forbearance; neglect. Shak.

O*mit”ter (?), n. One who omits. Fuller.

Om`ma*te”al (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to an ommateum.

||Om`ma*te”um (?), n.; pl. Ommatea (#). [NL., fr. Gr. &?;, &?;, the eye.] (Zoöl.) A compound eye, as of insects and crustaceans.

||Om`ma*tid”i*um (?), n.; pl. Ommatidia (#). [NL., dim. of Gr. &?;, &?;, the eye.] (Zoöl.) One of the single eyes forming the compound eyes of crustaceans, insects, and other invertebrates.

Om”ni- (?). [L. omnis all.] A combining form denoting all, every, everywhere; as in omnipotent, all-powerful; omnipresent.

Om”ni*bus (?), n. [L., for all, dat. pl. from omnis all. Cf. Bus.] 1. A long four-wheeled carriage, having seats for many people; especially, one with seats running lengthwise, used in conveying passengers short distances.

2. (Glass Making) A sheet-iron cover for articles in a leer or annealing arch, to protect them from drafts.

Omnibus bill, a legislative bill which provides for a number of miscellaneous enactments or appropriations. [Parliamentary Cant, U.S.] — Omnibus box, a large box in a theater, on a level with the stage and having communication with it. [Eng.] Thackeray.

Om`ni*cor*po”re*al (?), a. [Omni- + corporeal.] Comprehending or including all bodies; embracing all substance. [R.] Cudworth.

Om*ni”e*ty (?), n. That which is all-pervading or all-comprehensive; hence, the Deity. [R.]

Omniety formed nullity into an essence.

Sir T. Browne.

Om`ni*fa”ri*ous (?), a. [L. omnifarius; omnis all + -farius. Cf. Bifarious.] Of all varieties, forms, or kinds. “Omnifarious learning.” Coleridge.

Om*nif”er*ous (?), a. [L. omnifer; omnis all + ferre to bear.] All- bearing; producing all kinds.

Om*nif”ic (?), a. [Omni- + L. -ficare (in comp.) to make.] All-creating. “The omnific word.” Milton.

Om”ni*form (?), a. [L. omniformis; omnis all + forma form: cf. F. omniforme.] Having every form or shape. Berkeley.

Om`ni*for”mi*ty (?), n. The condition or quality of having every form. Dr. H. More.

Om”ni*fy (?), v. t. [Omni- + -fy.] To render universal; to enlarge. [R.]

Omnify the disputed point into a transcendent, and you may defy the opponent to lay hold of it.

Coleridge.

Om*nig”e*nous (?), a. [L. omniqenus; omnis all + genus kind.] Consisting of all kinds. [R.]

Om”ni*graph (?), n. [Omni- + -graph.] A pantograph. [R.]

Om`ni*pa”ri*ent (?), a. [L. omniparens all-producing; omnis all + parere to bring forth.] Producing or bringing forth all things; all- producing. [R.]

Om`ni*par”i*ty (?), n. [Omni- + -parity.] Equality in every part; general equality.

Om*nip”a*rous (?), a. [See Omniparient.] Producing all things; omniparient.

Om`ni*pa”tient (?), a. [Omni- + patient.] Capable of enduring all things. [R.] Carlyle.

{ Om`ni*per*cip”i*ence (?), Om`ni*per*cip”i*en*cy (?), } n. Perception of everything.

Om`ni*per*cip”i*ent (?), a. [Omni- + percipient.] Perceiving everything. Dr. H. More.

{ Om*nip”o*tence (?), Om*nip”o*ten*cy (?), } n. [L. omnipotentia: cf.F. omnipotence.] 1. The state of being omnipotent; almighty power; hence, one who is omnipotent; the Deity.

Will Omnipotence neglect to save
The suffering virtue of the wise and brave?

Pope.

2. Unlimited power of a particular kind; as, love’s omnipotence. Denham.

Om*nip”o*tent (?), a. [F., fr.L. omnipotens, -entis; omnis all + potens powerful, potent. See Potent.] 1. Able in every respect and for every work; unlimited in ability; all-powerful; almighty; as, the Being that can create worlds must be omnipotent.

God’s will and pleasure and his omnipotent power.

Sir T. More.

2. Having unlimited power of a particular kind; as, omnipotent love. Shak.

The Omnipotent, The Almighty; God.

Milton.

Om*nip”o*tent*ly, adv. In an omnipotent manner.

Om`ni*pres”ence (?), n. [Cf. F. omniprésence.] Presence in every place at the same time; unbounded or universal presence; ubiquity.

His omnipresence fills
Land, sea, and air, and every kind that lives.

Milton.

Om`ni*pres”en*cy (?), n. Omnipresence. [Obs.]

Om`ni*pres”ent (?), a. [Omni- + present: cf.F. omniprésent.] Present in all places at the same time; ubiquitous; as, the omnipresent Jehovah. Prior.

Om`ni*pre*sen”tial (?), a. Implying universal presence. [R.] South.

Om`ni*prev”a*lent (?), a. [Omni- + prevalent.] Prevalent everywhere or in all things. Fuller.

Om*nis”cience (?), n. [Cf. F. omniscience.] The quality or state of being omniscient; – - an attribute peculiar to God. Dryden.

Om*nis”cien*cy (?), n. Omniscience.

Om*nis”cient (?), a. [Omni- + L. sciens, – entis, p. pr. of scire to know: cf. F. omniscient. See Science.] Having universal knowledge; knowing all things; infinitely knowing or wise; as, the omniscient God. — Om*nis”cient*ly, adv.

For what can scape the eye
Of God all-seeing, or deceive his heart
Omniscient?

Milton.

Om*nis”cious (?), a. [L. omniscius. See Omniscient.] All-knowing. [Obs.] Hakewill.

Om`ni*spec”tive (?), a. [Omni- + L. spectus, p. p. of specere, spicere, to view.] Beholding everything; capable of seeing all things; all- seeing. [R.] “Omnispective Power!” Boyse.

Om”ni*um (?), n. [L., of all, gen. pl. of omnis all.] (Eng.Stock Exchange) The aggregate value of the different stocks in which a loan to government is now usually funded. M’Culloch.

Om`ni*um-gath”er*um (?), n. [A macaronic compound of L. omnium, gen.pl. of omnis all, and E. gather.] A miscellaneous collection of things or persons; a confused mixture; a medley. [Colloq. & Humorous] Selden.

Om*niv”a*gant (?), a. [Omni + L. vagans, p. pr. of vagari to wander.] Wandering anywhere and everywhere. [R.]

||Om*niv”o*ra (?), n. pl. [NL. See Omnivorous.] (Zoöl.) A group of ungulate mammals including the hog and the hippopotamus. The term is also sometimes applied to the bears, and to certain passerine birds.

Om*niv”o*rous (?), a. [L. omnivorus; omnis all + vorate to eat greedily. See Voracious.] All-devouring; eating everything indiscriminately; as, omnivorous vanity; esp. (Zoöl.), eating both animal and vegetable food. — Om*niv”o*rous*ness, n.

O”mo- (?). [Gr. &?; the shoulder.] A combining form used in anatomy to indicate connection with, or relation to, the shoulder or the scapula.

O`mo*hy”oid (?), a. [Omo- + hyoid.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the shoulder and the hyoid bone; as, the omohyoid muscle.

O”mo*phag”ic (?), a. [Gr. &?;; &?; raw + &?; to eat.] Eating raw flesh; using uncooked meat as food; as, omophagic feasts, rites.

Om”o*plate (?), n. [F., from Gr. &?;. See Omo-, and Plate.] (Anat.) The shoulder blade, or scapula.

O*mos”te*gite (?), n. [Omo- + Gr. &?; a roof.] (Zoöl.) The part of the carapace of a crustacean situated behind the cervical groove.

O`mo*ster”nal (?), a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the omosternum.

O`mo*ster”num (?), n. [Omo- + sternum.] (Anat.) (a) The anterior element of the sternum which projects forward from between the clavicles in many batrachians and is usually tipped with cartilage. (b) In many mammals, an interarticular cartilage, or bone, between the sternum and the clavicle.

Om”pha*cine (?), a. [Gr. &?;, from &?; an unripe grape or olive: cf.F. omphacin.] Of, pertaining to, or expressed from, unripe fruit; as, omphacine oil.

Om*phal”ic, a. [Gr. &?; having a boss, bossy, fr. &?; the navel. See Navel.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the umbilicus, or navel.

Om”pha*lo- (?). [Gr. &?; the navel.] A combining form indicating connection with, or relation to, the umbilicus, or navel.

Om”pha*lo*cele` (?), n. [Gr. &?; the navel + &?; a tumor: cf.F. omphalocéle.] (Med.) A hernia at the navel.

Om”pha*lode (?), n. [Omphalo- + Gr. &?; form.] (Bot.) The central part of the hilum of a seed, through which the nutrient vessels pass into the rhaphe or the chalaza; — called also omphalodium.

Om”pha*lo*man”cy (?), n. [Omphalo- + -mancy.] Divination by means of a child’s navel, to learn how many children the mother may have. Crabb.

Om`pha*lo*mes`a*ra”ic (?), a. [Omphalo- + mesaraic.] (Anat.) Omphalomesenteric.

Om`pha*lo*mes`en*ter”ic (?), a. [Omphalo- + mesenteric.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the umbilicus and mesentery; omphalomesaraic; as, the omphalomesenteric arteries and veins of a fetus.

Om`pha*lop”sy*chite (?), n. [Omphalo- + Gr. &?; breath, spirit, soul: cf. F. omphalopsyque.] (Eccl.Hist.) A name of the Hesychasts, from their habit of gazing upon the navel.

{ Om`pha*lop”ter (?), Om`pha*lop”tic (?), } n. [Gr. &?; the navel + &?; one who looks, &?; belonging to sight: cf.F. omphaloptre.] An optical glass that is convex on both sides. [Obs.] Hutton.

||Om”pha*los (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?;.] (Anat.) The navel.

Om`pha*lot”o*my (?), n. [Gr. &?;; &?; the navel + &?; to cut: cf. F. omphalotomie.] (Surg.) The operation of dividing the navel-string.

O”my (?), a. Mellow, as land. [Prov.Eng.] Ray.

On (?), prep. [OE. on, an, o, a, AS. on, an; akin to D. aan, OS. & G. an, OHG. ana, Icel. ā, Sw. å, Goth. ana, Russ. na, L. an-, in anhelare to pant, Gr. ‘ana`, Zend ana. √195. Cf. A-, 1, Ana-, Anon.] The general signification of on is situation, motion, or condition with respect to contact or support beneath; as: —

1. At, or in contact with, the surface or upper part of a thing, and supported by it; placed or lying in contact with the surface; as, the book lies on the table, which stands on the floor of a house on an island.

I stood on the bridge at midnight.

Longfellow.

2. To or against the surface of; — used to indicate the motion of a thing as coming or falling to the surface of another; as, rain falls on the earth.

Whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken.

Matt. xxi. 44.

3. Denoting performance or action by contact with the surface, upper part, or outside of anything; hence, by means of; with; as, to play on a violin or piano. Hence, figuratively, to work on one’s feelings; to make an impression on the mind.

4. At or near; adjacent to; — indicating situation, place, or position; as, on the one hand, on the other hand; the fleet is on the American coast.

5. In addition to; besides; — indicating multiplication or succession in a series; as, heaps on heaps; mischief on mischief; loss on loss; thought on thought. Shak.

6. Indicating dependence or reliance; with confidence in; as, to depend on a person for assistance; to rely on; hence, indicating the ground or support of anything; as, he will promise on certain conditions; to bet on a horse.

7. At or in the time of; during; as, on Sunday we abstain from labor. See At (synonym).

8. At the time of, conveying some notion of cause or motive; as, on public occasions, the officers appear in full dress or uniform. Hence, in consequence of, or following; as, on the ratification of the treaty, the armies were disbanded.

9. Toward; for; — indicating the object of some passion; as, have pity or compassion on him.

10. At the peril of, or for the safety of. “Hence, on thy life.” Dryden.

11. By virtue of; with the pledge of; — denoting a pledge or engagement, and put before the thing pledged; as, he affirmed or promised on his word, or on his honor.

12. To the account of; — denoting imprecation or invocation, or coming to, falling, or resting upon; as, on us be all the blame; a curse on him.

His blood be on us and on our children.

Matt. xxvii. 25.

13. In reference or relation to; as, on our part expect punctuality; a satire on society.

14. Of. [Obs.] “Be not jealous on me.” Shak.

Or have we eaten on the insane root
That takes the reason prisoner?

Shak.

&fist; Instances of this usage are common in our older writers, and are sometimes now heard in illiterate speech.

15. Occupied with; in the performance of; as, only three officers are on duty; on a journey.

16. In the service of; connected with; of the number of; as, he is on a newspaper; on a committee.

&fist; On and upon are in general interchangeable. In some applications upon is more euphonious, and is therefore to be preferred; but in most cases on is preferable.

On a bowline. (Naut.) Same as Closehauled. — On a wind, or On the wind (Naut.), sailing closehauled. — On a sudden. See under Sudden. — On board, On draught, On fire, etc. See under Board, Draught, Fire, etc. — On it, On’t, of it. [Obs. or Colloq.] Shak. — On shore, on land; to the shore. — On the road, On the way, On the wing, etc. See under Road, Way, etc. — On to, upon; on; to; — sometimes written as one word, onto, and usually called a colloquialism; but it may be regarded in analogy with into.

They have added the -en plural form on to an elder plural.

Earle.

We see the strength of the new movement in the new class of ecclesiastics whom it forced on to the stage.

J. R. Green.

On, adv. [See On, prep.] 1. Forward, in progression; onward; — usually with a verb of motion; as, move on; go on. “Time glides on.” Macaulay.

The path is smooth that leadeth on to danger.

Shak.

2. Forward, in succession; as, from father to son, from the son to the grandson, and so on.

3. In continuance; without interruption or ceasing; as, sleep on, take your ease; say on; sing on.

4. Adhering; not off; as in the phrase, “He is neither on nor off,” that is, he is not steady, he is irresolute.

5. Attached to the body, as clothing or ornament, or for use. “I have boots on.” B. Gonson.

He put on righteousness as a breastplate.

Is. lix. 17.

6. In progress; proceeding; as, a game is on.

&fist; On is sometimes used as an exclamation, or a command to move or proceed, some verb being understood; as, on, comrades; that is, go on, move on.

On and on, continuously; for a long time together. “Toiling on and on and on.” Longfellow.

||On”a*ger (?), n.; pl. L. Onagri (#), E. Onagers (#). [L. onager, onagrus, Gr. &?;.] 1. (Rom.Antiq.) A military engine acting like a sling, which threw stones from a bag or wooden bucket, and was operated by machinery. Fairholt.

2. (Zoöl.) A wild ass, especially the koulan.

O*nag”ga (?), n. (Zoöl.) The dauw.

{ On`a*gra”ceous (&obreve;n`&adot;*grā“shŭs), On`a*gra*ri”e*ous (-gr&asl;*rī”&esl;*ŭs), } a. [From NL. Onagra an old scientific name of the evening primrose (Œnothera), fr. Gr. ‘ona`gra a kind of plant; of uncertain origin.] (Bot.) Pertaining to, or resembling, a natural order of plants (Onagraceæ or Onagrarieæ), which includes the fuchsia, the willow-herb (Epilobium), and the evening primrose (Œnothera).

O”nan*ism (?), n. [Onan (Gen. xxxviii. 9): cf. F. onanisme.] Self-pollution; masturbation.

||O*nap”po (?), n. (Zoöl.) A nocturnal South American monkey (Callithrix discolor), noted for its agility; — called also ventriloquist monkey.

Once (?), n. (Zoöl.) The ounce.

Once (?), adv. [OE. ones, anes, an adverbial form fr. one, on, an, one. See One-, -Wards.] 1. By limitation to the number one; for one time; not twice nor any number of times more than one.

Ye shall . . . go round about the city once.

Josh. vi. 3.

Trees that bear mast are fruitful but once in two years.

Bacon.

2. At some one period of time; — used indefinitely.

My soul had once some foolish fondness for thee.

Addison.

That court which we shall once govern.

Bp. Hall.

3. At any one time; — often nearly equivalent to ever, if ever, or whenever; as, once kindled, it may not be quenched.

Wilt thou not be made clean? When shall it once be?

Jer. xiii. 27.

To be once in doubt
Is once to be resolved.

Shak.

&fist; Once is used as a noun when preceded by this or that; as, this once, that once. It is also sometimes used elliptically, like an adjective, for once- existing. “The once province of Britain.” J. N. Pomeroy.

At once. (a) At the same point of time; immediately; without delay. “Stand not upon the order of your going, but go at once.” Shak. “I . . . withdrew at once and altogether.” Jeffrey. (b) At one and the same time; simultaneously; in one body; as, they all moved at once. — Once and again, once and once more; repeatedly. “A dove sent forth once and again, to spy.” Milton.

||On*cid”i*um (?), n. [NL.] (Bot.) A genus of tropical orchidaceous plants, the flower of one species of which (O. Papilio) resembles a butterfly.

On”co*graph (?), n. [Gr. &?; bulk + -graph.] (Physiol.) An instrument for registering the changes observable with an oncometer.

On*com”e*ter (?), n. [Gr. &?; bulk + -meter.] (Physiol.) An instrument for measuring the variations in size of the internal organs of the body, as the kidney, spleen, etc.

On*cot”o*my (&obreve;&nsm;“k&obreve;t*&osl;*m&ybreve;), n. [Gr. ‘o`gkos bulk, mass + te`mnein to cut: cf. F. oncotomie.] (Surg.) The opening of an abscess, or the removal of a tumor, with a cutting instrument. [Written also onkotomy.] Dunglison.

Onde (?), n. [AS. anda malice, anger; akin to Icel. andi, önd, breath.] Hatred; fury; envy. [Obs.]

||On` dit” (?). [F.] They say, or it is said. — n. A flying report; rumor; as, it is a mere on dit.

-one (?). [From Gr. -w`nh, signifying, female descendant.] (Chem.) A suffix indicating that the substance, in the name of which it appears, is a ketone; as, acetone.

-one.(Chem.) A termination indicating that the hydrocarbon to the name of which it is affixed belongs to the fourth series of hydrocarbons, or the third series of unsaturated hydrocarbonsl as, nonone.

One (?), a. [OE. one, on, an, AS. än; akin to D. een, OS. ën, OFries. ën, än, G. ein, Dan. een, Sw. en, Icel. einn, Goth. ains, W. un, Ir. & Gael. aon, L. unus, earlier oinos, oenos, Gr. &?; the ace on dice; cf. Skr. ëka. The same word as the indefinite article a, an. √ 299. Cf. 2d A, 1st An, Alone, Anon, Any, None, Nonce, Only, Onion, Unit.] 1. Being a single unit, or entire being or thing, and no more; not multifold; single; individual.

The dream of Pharaoh is one.

Gen. xli. 25.

O that we now had here
But one ten thousand of those men in England.

Shak.

2. Denoting a person or thing conceived or spoken of indefinitely; a certain. “I am the sister of one Claudio” [Shak.], that is, of a certain man named Claudio.

3. Pointing out a contrast, or denoting a particular thing or person different from some other specified; — used as a correlative adjective, with or without the.

From the one side of heaven unto the other.

Deut. iv. 32.

4. Closely bound together; undivided; united; constituting a whole.

The church is therefore one, though the members may be many.

Bp. Pearson

5. Single in kind; the same; a common.

One plague was on you all, and on your lords.

1 Sam. vi. 4.

6. Single; inmarried. [Obs.]

Men may counsel a woman to be one.

Chaucer.

&fist; One is often used in forming compound words, the meaning of which is obvious; as, one-armed, one-celled, one-eyed, one-handed, onehearted, one horned, one-idead, one-leaved, one-masted, one-ribbed, one-story, onesyllable, one stringed, one-winged, etc.

All one, of the same or equal nature, or consequence; as, he says that it is all one what course you take. Shak. — One day. (a) On a certain day, not definitely specified, referring to time past.

One day when Phoebe fair,
With all her band, was following the chase.

Spenser.

(b) Referring to future time: At some uncertain day or period; some day.

Well, I will marry one day.

Shak.

One, n. 1. A single unit; as, one is the base of all numbers.

2. A symbol representing a unit, as 1, or i.

3. A single person or thing. “The shining ones.” Bunyan. “Hence, with your little ones.” Shak.

He will hate the one, and love the other.

Matt. vi. 24.

That we may sit, one on thy right hand, and the other on thy left hand, in thy glory.

Mark x. 37.

After one, after one fashion; alike. [Obs.] Chaucer. — At one, in agreement or concord. See At one, in the Vocab. — Ever in one, continually; perpetually; always. [Obs.] Chaucer. — In one, in union; in a single whole. — One and one, One by one, singly; one at a time; one after another. “Raising one by one the suppliant crew.” Dryden.

One (?), indef. pron. Any person, indefinitely; a person or body; as, what one would have well done, one should do one’s self.

It was well worth one’s while.

Hawthorne.

Against this sort of condemnation one must steel one’s self as one best can.

G. Eliot.

One is often used with some, any, no, each, every, such, a, many a, another, the other, etc. It is sometimes joined with another, to denote a reciprocal relation.

When any one heareth the word.

Matt. xiii. 19.

She knew every one who was any one in the land of Bohemia.

Compton Reade.

The Peloponnesians and the Athenians fought against one another.

Jowett (Thucyd. ).

The gentry received one another.

Thackeray.

One, v. t. To cause to become one; to gather into a single whole; to unite; to assimilite. [Obs.]

The rich folk that embraced and oned all their heart to treasure of the world.

Chaucer.

One”ber`ry (?), n. (Bot.) The herb Paris. See Herb Paris, under Herb.

One”-hand` (?), a. Employing one hand; as, the one-hand alphabet. See Dactylology.

One”horse` (?), a. 1. Drawn by one horse; having but a single horse; as, a one horse carriage.

2. Second-rate; inferior; small. [Slang, U.S.]

O*nei”das (?), n. pl.; sing. Oneida (&?;). (Ethnol.) A tribe of Indians formerly inhabiting the region near Oneida Lake in the State of New York, and forming part of the Five Nations. Remnants of the tribe now live in New York, Canada, and Wisconsin.

O*nei`ro*crit`ic (?), n. [Cf.F. oneirocritique. See Oneirocritic, a.] An interpreter of dreams. Bp. Warburton. Addison.

{ O*nei`ro*crit`ic (?), O*nei`ro*crit`ic*al (?), } a. [Gr. &?;; &?; a dream + &?; critical, fr. &?; to discern.] Of or pertaining to the interpretation of dreams. Addison.

{ O*nei`ro*crit`i*cism (?), O*nei`ro*crit`ics (?), } n. The art of interpreting dreams.

O*nei”ro*man`cy (?), n. [Gr. &?; a dream + -mancy.] Divination by means of dreams. De Quincey.

O`nei*ros”co*pist, n. One who interprets dreams.

O`nei*ros”co*py (?), n. [Gr. &?; a dream + -scopy.] The interpretation of dreams.

One”li*ness (?), n. The state of being one or single. [Obs.] Cudworth.

One”ly (?), a. See Only. [Obs.] Spenser.

One”ment (?), n. The state of being at one or reconciled. [Obs.] Bp. Hall.

One”ness, n. The state of being one; singleness in number; individuality; unity.

Our God is one, or rather very oneness.

Hooker.

On”er*a*ry (?), a. [L. onerarius, fr. onus, oneris, load, burden: cf.F. onéraire.] Fitted for, or carrying, a burden. Johnson.

On”er*ate (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Onerated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Onerating.] [L. oneratus, p. p. pf onerare.] To load; to burden. [Obs.] Becon.

On`er*a”tion (?), n. The act of loading. [Obs.]

On”er*ous (?), a. [L. onerosus, fr. onus, oneris, a load, burden: cf.F. onéreux.] Burdensome; oppressive. “Too onerous a solicitude.” I. Taylor.

Onerous cause (Scots Law), a good and legal consideration; — opposed to gratuitous.

On”er*ous*ly, adv. In an onerous manner.

Ones (?), adv. Once. [Obs.] Chaucer.

One`self” (?), pron. A reflexive form of the indefinite pronoun one. Commonly writen as two words, one’s self.

One’s self (or more properly oneself), is quite a modern form. In Elizabethan English we find a man’s self=one’s self.

Morris.

One`-sid”ed (?), a. 1. Having one side only, or one side prominent; hence, limited to one side; partial; unjust; unfair; as, a one-sided view or statement. “Unguarded and one-sided language.” T. Arnold.

2. (Bot.) Growing on one side of a stem; as, one-sided flowers.

— One`-sid”ed-ly, adv. — One`- sid”ed*ness, n.

On*ethe” (?), adv. Scarcely. See Unnethe. [Obs.] Chaucer.

On”go`ing (?), n. The act of going forward; progress; (pl.) affairs; business; current events.

The common ongoings of this our commonplace world, and everyday life.

Prof. Wilson.

On”guent (?), n. [F.] An unguent.

On”hang`er (?), n. A hanger on.

On”ion (?), n. [F. ognon, fr. L. unio oneness, unity, a single large pearl, an onion. See One, Union.] (Bot.) A liliaceous plant of the genus Allium (A. cepa), having a strong-flavored bulb and long hollow leaves; also, its bulbous root, much used as an article of food. The name is often extended to other species of the genus.

Onion fish (Zoöl.), the grenadier. — Onion fly (Zoöl.) a dipterous insect whose larva feeds upon the onion; especially, Anthomyia ceparum and Ortalis flexa. — Welsh onion. (Bot.) See Cibol. — Wild onion (Bot.), a name given to several species of the genus Allium.

O*ni`ro*crit`ic (?), a. See Oneirocritic.

On”li*ness (?), n. The state of being alone. [Obs.]

On*loft” (?), adv. Aloft; above ground. [Obs.]

She kept her father’s life onloft.

Chaucer.

On”look`er (?), n. A looker on.

On”-look`ing, a. Looking on or forward.

On”ly (?), a. [OE. only, anly, onlich, AS. ānlic, i.e., onelike. See One, and Like, a.] 1. One alone; single; as, the only man present; his only occupation.

2. Alone in its class; by itself; not associated with others of the same class or kind; as, an only child.

3. Hence, figuratively: Alone, by reason of superiority; preëminent; chief. “Motley’s the only wear.” Shak.

On”ly (?), adv. [See Only, a.] 1. In one manner or degree; for one purpose alone; simply; merely; barely.

And to be loved himself, needs only to be known.

Dryden.

2. So and no otherwise; no other than; exclusively; solely; wholly. “She being only wicked.” Beau. & Fl.

Every imagination . . . of his heart was only evil.

Gen. vi. 5.

3. Singly; without more; as, only- begotten.

4. Above all others; particularly. [Obs.]

His most only elected mistress.

Marston.

On”ly, conj. Save or except (that); — an adversative used elliptically with or without that, and properly introducing a single fact or consideration.

He might have seemed some secretary or clerk . . . only that his low, flat, unadorned cap . . . indicated that he belonged to the city.

Sir W. Scott.

On`o*ce”rin (?), n. [NL. Ononis, the generic name of the plant + L. cera wax.] (Chem.) A white crystalline waxy substance extracted from the root of the leguminous plant Ononis spinosa.

O*nol”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. &?; an ass + -logy.] Foolish discourse. [R.]

On”o*man`cy (?), n. [Gr. &?; name + -mancy. Cf. Nomancy.] Divination by the letters of a name; nomancy. [R.] Camden.

{ On`o*man”tic (?), On`o*man”tic*al (?), } a. Of or pertaining to onomancy. [R.]

On`o*mas”tic (?), a. [Gr. &?;, from &?; to name, &?; name.] (Law) Applied to a signature when the body of the instrument is in another’s handwriting. Burrill.

On`o*mas”ti*con (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; (sc.&?;), fr. &?;. See Onomastic.] A collection of names and terms; a dictionary; specif., a collection of Greek names, with explanatory notes, made by Julius Pollux about A.D.180.

On”o*ma*tech`ny (?), n. [Gr. &?; + &?; art.] Prognostication by the letters of a name.

On`o*ma*tol”o*gist (?), n. One versed in the history of names. Southey.

On`o*ma*tol”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. &?;, &?; + -logy.] The science of names or of their classification.

O*nom”a*tope (?), n. [See Onomatopœia.] An imitative word; an onomatopoetic word.

On`o*mat`o*pœ“ia (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?;; &?;, &?;, a name + &?; to make.] (Philol.) The formation of words in imitation of sounds; a figure of speech in which the sound of a word is imitative of the sound of the thing which the word represents; as, the buzz of bees; the hiss of a goose; the crackle of fire.

&fist; It has been maintained by some philologist that all primary words, especially names, were formed by imitation of natural sounds.

On`o*mat`o*pœ“ic (?), a. Onomatopoetic. Whitney.

On`o*mat`o*po*et”ic (?), a. Of or pertaining to onomatopœia; characterized by onomatopœia; imitative; as, an onomatopoetic writer or word. Earle.

On`o*mat”o*py (?), n. Onomatopœia.

O*nom”o*man`cy (?), n. See Onomancy.

On`on*da”gas (?), n. pl.; sing. Onondaga (&?;). (Ethnol.) A tribe of Indians formerly inhabiting what is now a part of the State of New York. They were the central or head tribe of the Five Nations.

On”rush` (?), n. A rushing onward.

On”set` (?), n. [On + set.] 1. A rushing or setting upon; an attack; an assault; a storming; especially, the assault of an army. Milton.

The onset and retire
Of both your armies.

Shak.

Who on that day the word of onset gave.

Wordsworth.

2. A setting about; a beginning. [Obs.] Shak.

There is surely no greater wisdom than well to time the beginnings and onsets of things.

Bacon.

3. Anything set on, or added, as an ornament or as a useful appendage. [Obs.] Johnson.

On”set`, v. t. 1. To assault; to set upon. [Obs.]

2. To set about; to begin. [Obs.] Carew.

On”slaught` (?), n. [OE. on on + slaught, slaht, slaughter. See Slaughter.] 1. An attack; an onset; esp., a furious or murderous attack or assault.

By storm and onslaught to proceed.

Hudibras.

2. A bloody fray or battle. [Scot.] Jamieson.

On”stead (?), n. [Possibly a corruption of homestead.] A single farmhouse; a steading. [Prov.Eng. & Scot.] Grose. Jamieson.

On”to (?), prep. [On + to. Cf. Into.] On the top of; upon; on. See On to, under On, prep.

{ On`to*gen”e*sis (?), On*tog”e*ny (?), } n. [See Ontology, and Genesis.] (Biol.) The history of the individual development of an organism; the history of the evolution of the germ; the development of an individual organism, — in distinction from phylogeny, or evolution of the tribe. Called also henogenesis, henogeny.

On`to*ge*net”ic (?), a. (Biol.) Of or pertaining to ontogenesis; as, ontogenetic phenomena. — On`to*ge*net”ic*al*ly (#), adv.

On`to*gen”ic (?), a. (Biol.) Ontogenetic.

On`to*log”ic (?), a. Ontological.

On`to*log”ic*al (?), a. [Cf. F. ontologique.] Of or pertaining to ontology.

On`*to*log”ic*al*ly, adv. In an ontological manner.

On*tol”o*gist (?), n. [Cf.F. ontologiste.] One who is versed in or treats of ontology. Edin. Rev.

On*tol”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. &?; the things which exist (pl.neut. of &?;, &?;, being, p. pr. of &?; to be) + - logy: cf.F. ontologie.] That department of the science of metaphysics which investigates and explains the nature and essential properties and relations of all beings, as such, or the principles and causes of being.

||O”nus (?), n. [L.] A burden; an obligation.

||Onus probandi (&?;) [L.], obligation to furnish evidence to prove a thing; the burden of proof.

On”ward (?), a. 1. Moving in a forward direction; tending toward a contemplated or desirable end; forward; as, an onward course, progress, etc.

2. Advanced in a forward direction or toward an end.

Within a while, Philoxenus came to see how onward the fruits were of his friend’s labor.

Sir P. Sidney.

On”ward, adv. Toward a point before or in front; forward; progressively; as, to move onward.

Not one looks backward, onward still he goes.

Pope.

On”ward*ness, n. Progress; advancement.

On”wards (?), adv. [See -wards.] Onward.

On”y (?), a. Any. [Obs.] Chaucer.

On”y*cha (?), n. [NL., from L. onyx, -ychis, onyx, also, a kind of mussel, Gr. &?;, &?;. See Onyx.]

1. An ingredient of the Mosaic incense, probably the operculum of some kind of strombus. Ex. xxx. 34.

2. The precious stone called onyx. [R.]

||O*nych”i*a (?), n. [NL. See Onyx.] (Med.) (a) A whitlow. (b) An affection of a finger or toe, attended with ulceration at the base of the nail, and terminating in the destruction of the nail.

On”y*cho*man`cy (?), n. [Gr. &?;, &?;, a finger nail + -mancy: cf. F. onychomancie.] Divination by the nails.

||On`y*choph”o*ra (?), n. pl. [NL., from Gr. &?;, &?;, a claw + &?;.] (Zoöl.) Malacopoda.

O”nyx (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?; a claw, finger nail, a veined gem. See Nail, and cf. Onycha.] (Min.) Chalcedony in parallel layers of different shades of color. It is used for making cameos, the figure being cut in one layer with the next as a ground.

Onyx marble, a banded variety of marble or calcium carbonate resembling onyx. It is obtained from Mexico.

Oo, a. One. [Obs.] Chaucer.

||O”ö (?), n. [Hawaiian.] (Zoöl.) A beautiful bird (Moho nobilis) of the Hawaiian Islands. It yields the brilliant yellow feathers formerly used in making the royal robes. Called also yellow-tufted honeysucker.

||O*œ“ci*um (?), n.; pl. Oœcia (#). [NL., fr. Gr. w,‘o`n an egg + &?; a house.] (Zoöl.) One of the special zooids, or cells, of Bryozoa, destined to receive and develop ova; an ovicell. See Bryozoa.

O`ö*gen”e*sis (?), n. [Gr. w,‘o`n an egg + E. genesis.] (Physiol.) The development, or mode of origin, of the ova.

||O`ö*go”ni*um (?), n.; pl. L. Oögonia (#), E. Oögoniums (#). [NL., fr. Gr. w,‘o`n an egg + &?; offspring.] (Bot.) A special cell in certain cryptogamous plants containing oöspheres, as in the rockweeds (Fucus), and the orders Vaucherieæ and Peronosporeæ.

O*oi”dal (?), a. [Gr. &?;; w,‘o`n an egg + &?; form.] (Biol.) Shaped like an egg.

Ook (?), n. Oak. [Obs.] “A branched ook.” Chaucer.

O”ö*lite (?), n. [Gr. w,‘o`n an egg + -lite: cf.F. oölithe. So named from its resemblance to the roe of fish.] (Geol.) A variety of limestone, consisting of small round grains, resembling the roe of a fish. It sometimes constitutes extensive beds, as in the European Jurassic. See the Chart of Geology.

O`ö*lit”ic (?), a. [Cf.F. oölithique.] Of or pertaining to oölite; composed of, or resembling, oölite.

O`ö*log”ic*al (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to oölogy.

O*öl”o*gist (?), n. One versed in oölogy.

O*öl”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. w,‘o`n an egg + -logy.] The science of eggs in relation to their coloring, size, shape, and number.

Oo”long (?), n. [Chinese, green dragon.] A fragrant variety of black tea having somewhat the flavor of green tea. [Written also oulong.]

{ Oo”mi*ac, Oo”mi*ak} (?), n. A long, broad boat used by the Eskimos.

Oon (?), a. One. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Oones (?), adv. Once. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Oop (?), v. t. [Etymol. uncertain.] To bind with a thread or cord; to join; to unite. [Scot.] Jamieson.

{ Oo”pack, Oo”pak} (?), n. [So named from a district in China.] A kind of black tea.

O”ö*phore (?), n. [Gr. &?; egg- bearing; w,‘o`n an egg + &?; to bear.] (Bot.) An alternately produced form of certain cryptogamous plants, as ferns, mosses, and the like, which bears antheridia and archegonia, and so has sexual fructification, as contrasted with the sporophore, which is nonsexual, but produces spores in countless number. In ferns the oöphore is a minute prothallus; in mosses it is the leafy plant.

O`ö*pho*rec”to*my (?), n. [Gr. w,‘o`n egg + &?; to bear + &?; a cutting out.] (Surg.) Ovariotomy.

O`ö*phor”ic (?), a. (Bot.) Having the nature of, or belonging to, an oöphore.

||O`ö*pho*rid”i*um (?), n.; pl. L. Oöphorida (#), E. Oöphoridiums (#). [NL., dim. fr. Gr. &?;. See Oöphore.] (Bot.) The macrosporangium or case for the larger kind of spores in heterosporous flowerless plants.

||O`ö*pho*ri”tis (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. w,‘o`n egg + fe`rein to bear + - itis.] (Med.) Ovaritis.

O”ö*phyte (?), n. [Gr. w,‘o`n an egg + fyto`n a plant.] (Bot.) Any plant of a proposed class or grand division (collectively termed oöphytes or Oöphyta), which have their sexual reproduction accomplished by motile antherozoids acting on oöspheres, either while included in their oögonia or after exclusion.

&fist; This class was at first called Oösporeæ, and is made to include all algæ and fungi which have this kind of reproduction, however they may differ in all other respects, the contrasted classes of Thallophytes being Protophytes, Zygophytes, and Carpophytes. The whole system has its earnest advocates, but is rejected by many botanists. See Carpophyte.

O`ö*phyt”ic (?), a. (Bot.) Of or pertaining to an oöphyte.

O*ö“ri*al (?), n. (Zoöl.) A wild, bearded sheep inhabiting the Ladakh mountains. It is reddish brown, with a dark beard from the chin to the chest.

O”ö*sperm (omac/”&osl;*sp&etilde;rm), n. [Gr. &?; an egg + E. sperm.] (Biol.) The ovum, after fusion with the spermatozoön in impregnation. Balfour.

O”ö*sphere (-sfēr), n. [Gr. &?; an egg + E. sphere.]

1. (Bot.) An unfertilized, rounded mass of protoplasm, produced in an oögonium.

&fist; After being fertilized by the access of antherozoids it becomes covered with a cell wall and develops into an oöspore, which may grow into a new plant like the parent.

2. (Bot.) An analogous mass of protoplasm in the ovule of a flowering plant; an embryonic vesicle. Goodale.

||O`ö*spo*ran”gi*um (?), n.; pl. L. Oösporangia (#), E. Oösporangiums (#). [NL., fr. Gr. &?; an egg + &?; vessel.] (Bot.) An oögonium; also, a case containing oval or rounded spores of some other kind than oöspores.

O”ö*spore (?), n. [Gr. &?; an egg + &?; a seed.] (Bot.) (a) A special kind of spore resulting from the fertilization of an oösphere by antherozoids. (b) A fertilized oösphere in the ovule of a flowering plant.

O`ö*spor”ic (?), a. (Bot.) Of or pertaining to an oöspore.

O*ös”te*gite (?), n. [Gr. &?; + &?; a roof.] (Zoöl.) One of the plates which in some Crustacea inclose a cavity wherein the eggs are hatched.

||O`ö*the”ca (?), n.; pl. Oöthecæ (#). [NL., fr. Gr. &?; an egg + &?; a case.] (Zoöl.) An egg case, especially those of many kinds of mollusks, and of some insects, as the cockroach. Cf. Oœcium.

{ O*öt”*ooid (?), O*öt”o*coid (?), } n. [Gr. &?; laying eggs (&?; egg + &?; a bearing, &?; to bear) + -oid.] (Zoöl.) A half oviparous, or an oviparous, mammal; a marsupial or monotreme.

O”ö*type (?), n. [Gr. &?; + - type.] (Zoöl.) The part of the oviduct of certain trematode worms in which the ova are completed and furnished with a shell.

Ooze (?), n. [OE. wose, AS. wase dirt, mire, mud, akin to w&?;s juice, ooze, Icel. vās wetness, OHG. waso turf, sod, G. wasen.] 1. Soft mud or slime; earth so wet as to flow gently, or easily yield to pressure. “My son i’ the ooze is bedded.” Shak.

2. Soft flow; spring. Prior.

3. The liquor of a tan vat.

Ooze, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Oozed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Oozing.] [Prov. Eng. weeze, wooz. See Ooze, n.] 1. To flow gently; to percolate, as a liquid through the pores of a substance or through small openings.

The latent rill, scare oozing through the grass.

Thomson.

2. Fig.: To leak (out) or escape slowly; as, the secret oozed out; his courage oozed out.

Ooze, v. t. To cause to ooze. Alex. Smith.

||O`ö*zo”a (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; an egg + zo^,on an animal.] (Zoöl.) Same as Acrita.

Ooz”y (?), a. Miry; containing soft mud; resembling ooze; as, the oozy bed of a river. Pope.

O*pa”cate (?), v. t. [L. opacatus, p. p. of opacare.] To darken; to cloud. [Obs.] Boyle.

O*pac”i*ty (?), n. [L. opacitas: cf.F. opacité.] 1. The state of being opaque; the quality of a body which renders it impervious to the rays of light; want of transparency; opaqueness.

2. Obscurity; want of clearness. Bp. Hall.

O*pa”cous (?), a. [L. opacus. See Opaque.] Opaque. [R.] Milton. — O*pa”cous*ness, n. [R.]

O*pac”u*lar (?), a. Opaque. [Obs.] Sterne.

O”pah (?), n. (Zoöl.) A large oceanic fish (Lampris quttatus), inhabiting the Atlantic Ocean. It is remarkable for its brilliant colors, which are red, green, and blue, with tints of purple and gold, covered with round silvery spots. Called also king of the herrings.

O*pake” (?), a. See Opaque.

O”pal (?), n. [L. opalus: cf. Gr. &?;, Skr. upala a rock, stone, precious stone: cf. F. opale.] (Min.) A mineral consisting, like quartz, of silica, but inferior to quartz in hardness and specific gravity.

&fist; The precious opal presents a peculiar play of colors of delicate tints, and is highly esteemed as a gem. One kind, with a varied play of color in a reddish ground, is called the harlequin opal. The fire opal has colors like the red and yellow of flame. Common opal has a milky appearance. Menilite is a brown impure variety, occurring in concretions at Menilmontant, near Paris. Other varieties are cacholong, girasol, hyalite, and geyserite.

O`pal*esce” (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Opalesced (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Opalescing (?).] To give forth a play of colors, like the opal.

O`pal*es”cence (?), n. (Min.) A reflection of a milky or pearly light from the interior of a mineral, as in the moonstone; the state or quality of being opalescent.

O`pal*es”cent (?), a. Reflecting a milky or pearly light from the interior; having an opaline play of colors.

O”pal*ine (?), a. [Cf. F. opalin.] Of, pertaining to, or like, opal in appearance; having changeable colors like those of the opal.

O”pal*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Opalized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Opalizing.] [Cf. F. opaliser.] To convert into opal, or a substance like opal. Lyell.

O*pal”o*type (?), n. [Opal + -type.] (Photog.) A picture taken on “milky” glass.

O*paque” (?), a. [F., fr. L. opacus. Cf. Opacous.]

1. Impervious to the rays of light; not transparent; as, an opaque substance.

2. Obscure; not clear; unintelligible. [Colloq.]

O*paque”, n. That which is opaque; opacity. Young.

O*paque”ness, n. The state or quality of being impervious to light; opacity. Dr. H. More.

Ope (?), a. Open. [Poetic] Spenser.

On Sunday heaven’s gate stands ope.

Herbert.

Ope, v. t. & i. To open. [Poetic]

Wilt thou not ope thy heart to know
What rainbows teach and sunsets show?

Emerson.

O*pei”do*scope (?), n. [Gr. &?;, &?;, voice + &?; form + -scope.] (Physics) An instrument, consisting of a tube having one end open and the other end covered with a thin flexible membrance to the center of which is attached a small mirror. It is used for exhibiting upon a screen, by means of rays reflected from the mirror, the vibratory motions caused by sounds produced at the open end of the tube, as by speaking or singing into it. A. E. Dolbear.

Ope”let (?), n. (Zoöl.) A bright-colored European actinian (Anemonia, or Anthea, sulcata); — so called because it does not retract its tentacles.

O”pen (?), a. [AS. open; akin to D. open, OS. opan, G. offan, Icel. opinn, Sw. öppen, Dan. aaben, and perh. to E. up. Cf. Up, and Ope.] 1. Free of access; not shut up; not closed; affording unobstructed ingress or egress; not impeding or preventing passage; not locked up or covered over; — applied to passageways; as, an open door, window, road, etc.; also, to inclosed structures or objects; as, open houses, boxes, baskets, bottles, etc.; also, to means of communication or approach by water or land; as, an open harbor or roadstead.

Through the gate,
Wide open and unquarded, Satan passed.

Milton

Also, figuratively, used of the ways of communication of the mind, as by the senses; ready to hear, see, etc.; as, to keep one’s eyes and ears open.

His ears are open unto their cry.

Ps. xxxiv. 15.

2. Free to be used, enjoyed, visited, or the like; not private; public; unrestricted in use; as, an open library, museum, court, or other assembly; liable to the approach, trespass, or attack of any one; unprotected; exposed.

If Demetrius . . . have a matter against any man, the law is open and there are deputies.

Acts xix. 33.

The service that I truly did his life,
Hath left me open to all injuries.

Shak.

3. Free or cleared of obstruction to progress or to view; accessible; as, an open tract; the open sea.

4. Not drawn together, closed, or contracted; extended; expanded; as, an open hand; open arms; an open flower; an open prospect.

Each, with open arms, embraced her chosen knight.

Dryden.

5. Hence: (a) Without reserve or false pretense; sincere; characterized by sincerity; unfeigned; frank; also, generous; liberal; bounteous; — applied to personal appearance, or character, and to the expression of thought and feeling, etc.

With aspect open, shall erect his head.

Pope.

The Moor is of a free and open nature.

Shak.

The French are always open, familiar, and talkative.

Addison.

(b) Not concealed or secret; not hidden or disguised; exposed to view or to knowledge; revealed; apparent; as, open schemes or plans; open shame or guilt.

His thefts are too open.

Shak.

That I may find him, and with secret gaze
Or open admiration him behold.

Milton.

6. Not of a quality to prevent communication, as by closing water ways, blocking roads, etc.; hence, not frosty or inclement; mild; — used of the weather or the climate; as, an open season; an open winter. Bacon.

7. Not settled or adjusted; not decided or determined; not closed or withdrawn from consideration; as, an open account; an open question; to keep an offer or opportunity open.

8. Free; disengaged; unappropriated; as, to keep a day open for any purpose; to be open for an engagement.

9. (Phon.) (a) Uttered with a relatively wide opening of the articulating organs; — said of vowels; as, the än fär is open as compared with the ā in sāy. (b) Uttered, as a consonant, with the oral passage simply narrowed without closure, as in uttering s.

10. (Mus.) (a) Not closed or stopped with the finger; — said of the string of an instrument, as of a violin, when it is allowed to vibrate throughout its whole length. (b) Produced by an open string; as, an open tone.

The open air, the air out of doors. — Open chain. (Chem.) See Closed chain, under Chain. — Open circuit (Elec.), a conducting circuit which is incomplete, or interrupted at some point; — opposed to an uninterrupted, or closed circuit. — Open communion, communion in the Lord’s supper not restricted to persons who have been baptized by immersion. Cf. Close communion, under Close, a. — Open diapason (Mus.), a certain stop in an organ, in which the pipes or tubes are formed like the mouthpiece of a flageolet at the end where the wind enters, and are open at the other end. — Open flank (Fort.), the part of the flank covered by the orillon. — Open-front furnace (Metal.), a blast furnace having a forehearth. — Open harmony (Mus.), harmony the tones of which are widely dispersed, or separated by wide intervals. — Open hawse (Naut.), a hawse in which the cables are parallel or slightly divergent. Cf. Foul hawse, under Hawse. — Open hearth (Metal.), the shallow hearth of a reverberatory furnace. — Open-hearth furnace, a reverberatory furnace; esp., a kind of reverberatory furnace in which the fuel is gas, used in manufacturing steel. — Open-hearth process (Steel Manuf.), a process by which melted cast iron is converted into steel by the addition of wrought iron, or iron ore and manganese, and by exposure to heat in an open-hearth furnace; — also called the Siemens- Martin process, from the inventors. — Open-hearth steel, steel made by an open-hearth process; — also called Siemens-Martin steel. — Open newel. (Arch.) See Hollow newel, under Hollow. — Open pipe (Mus.), a pipe open at the top. It has a pitch about an octave higher than a closed pipe of the same length. — Open- timber roof (Arch.), a roof of which the constructional parts, together with the under side of the covering, or its lining, are treated ornamentally, and left to form the ceiling of an apartment below, as in a church, a public hall, and the like. — Open vowel or consonant. See Open, a., 9.

&fist; Open is used in many compounds, most of which are self-explaining; as, open-breasted, open-minded.

Syn. — Unclosed; uncovered; unprotected; exposed; plain; apparent; obvious; evident; public; unreserved; frank; sincere; undissembling; artless. See Candid, and Ingenuous.

O”pen (?), n. Open or unobstructed space; clear land, without trees or obstructions; open ocean; open water. “To sail into the open.” Jowett (Thucyd. ).

Then we got into the open.

W. Black.

In open, in full view; without concealment; openly. [Obs.] Beau. & Fl.

O”pen v. t. [imp. & p. p. Opened (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Opening.] [AS. openian. See Open,a.] 1. To make or set open; to render free of access; to unclose; to unbar; to unlock; to remove any fastening or covering from; as, to open a door; to open a box; to open a room; to open a letter.

And all the windows of my heart
I open to the day.

Whittier.

2. To spread; to expand; as, to open the hand.

3. To disclose; to reveal; to interpret; to explain.

The king opened himself to some of his council, that he was sorry for the earl’s death.

Bacon.

Unto thee have I opened my cause.

Jer. xx. 12.

While he opened to us the Scriptures.

Luke xxiv. 32.

4. To make known; to discover; also, to render available or accessible for settlements, trade, etc.

The English did adventure far for to open the North parts of America.

Abp. Abbot.

5. To enter upon; to begin; as, to open a discussion; to open fire upon an enemy; to open trade, or correspondence; to open a case in court, or a meeting.

6. To loosen or make less compact; as, to open matted cotton by separating the fibers.

To open one’s mouth, to speak. — To open up, to lay open; to discover; to disclose.

Poetry that had opened up so many delightful views into the character and condition of our “bold peasantry, their country’s pride.”

Prof. Wilson.

O”pen, v. i. 1. To unclose; to form a hole, breach, or gap; to be unclosed; to be parted.

The earth opened and swallowed up Dathan, and covered the company of Abiram.

Ps. cvi. 17.

2. To expand; to spread out; to be disclosed; as, the harbor opened to our view.

3. To begin; to commence; as, the stock opened at par; the battery opened upon the enemy.

4. (Sporting) To bark on scent or view of the game.

O”pen-air` (?), a. Taking place in the open air; outdoor; as, an open-air game or meeting.

O”pen*bill` (?), n. (Zoöl.) A bird of the genus Anastomus, allied to the stork; — so called because the two parts of the bill touch only at the base and tip. One species inhabits India, another Africa. Called also open- beak. See Illust. (m), under Beak.

O”pen*er (?), n. One who, or that which, opens. “True opener of my eyes.” Milton.

O”pen-eyed` (?), a. With eyes widely open; watchful; vigilant. Shak.

O”pen-hand`ed (?), a. Generous; liberal; munificent. — O”pen-hand`ed*ness, n. J. S. Mill.

O”pen-head`ed (?), a. Bareheaded. [Obs.]

O”pen-heart`ed (?), a. Candid; frank; generous. Dryden. — O”pen-heart`ed*ly, adv. — O”pen-heart`ed*ness, n. Walton.

O”pen*ing, n. 1. The act or process of opening; a beginning; commencement; first appearance; as, the opening of a speech.

The opening of your glory was like that of light.

Dryden.

2. A place which is open; a breach; an aperture; a gap; cleft, or hole.

We saw him at the opening of his tent.

Shak.

3. Hence: A vacant place; an opportunity; as, an opening for business. [Colloq.] Dickens.

4. A thinly wooded space, without undergrowth, in the midst of a forest; as, oak openings. [U.S.] Cooper.

O”pen*ly, adv. [AS. openlice.] 1. In an open manner; publicly; not in private; without secrecy.

How grossly and openly do many of us contradict the precepts of the gospel by our ungodliness!

Tillotson.

2. Without reserve or disguise; plainly; evidently.

My love . . . shall show itself more openly.

Shak.

O”pen-mouthed` (?), a. Having the mouth open; gaping; hence, greedy; clamorous. L’Estrange.

O”pen*ness, n. The quality or state of being open.

O”pen*work` (?), n. 1. Anything so constructed or manufactured (in needlework, carpentry, metal work, etc.) as to show openings through its substance; work that is perforated or pierced.

2. (Mining) A quarry; an open cut. Raymond.

Op”er*a (?), n. [It., fr. opera work, composition, opposed to an improvisation, fr. L. opera pains work, fr. opus, operis, work, labor: cf. F. opéra. See Operate.] 1. A drama, either tragic or comic, of which music forms an essential part; a drama wholly or mostly sung, consisting of recitative, arials, choruses, duets, trios, etc., with orchestral accompaniment, preludes, and interludes, together with appropriate costumes, scenery, and action; a lyric drama.

2. The score of a musical drama, either written or in print; a play set to music.

3. The house where operas are exhibited.

||Opéra bouffe [F. opéra opera + bouffe comic, It. buffo], ||Opera buffa [It.], light, farcical, burlesque opera. — Opera box, a partially inclosed portion of the auditorium of an opera house for the use of a small private party. — ||Opéra comique [F.], comic or humorous opera. — Opera flannel, a light flannel, highly finished. Knight. — Opera girl (Bot.), an East Indian plant (Mantisia saltatoria) of the Ginger family, sometimes seen in hothouses. It has curious flowers which have some resemblance to a ballet dancer, whence the popular name. Called also dancing girls. — Opera glass, a short telescope with concave eye lenses of low power, usually made double, that is, with a tube and set of glasses for each eye; a lorgnette; — so called because adapted for use at the opera, theater, etc. — Opera hat, a gentleman’s folding hat. — Opera house, specifically, a theater devoted to the performance of operas. — ||Opera seria [It.], serious or tragic opera; grand opera.

Op”er*a*ble (?), a. Practicable. [Obs.]

Op`er*am”e*ter (?), n. [L. opus, operis, pl. opera work + -meter.] An instrument or machine for measuring work done, especially for ascertaining the number of rotations made by a machine or wheel in manufacturing cloth; a counter. Ure.

{ Op”er*ance (?), Op”er*an*cy (?), } n. The act of operating or working; operation. [R.]

Op”er*and (?), n. [From neuter of L. operandus, gerundive of operari. See Operate.] (Math.) The symbol, quantity, or thing upon which a mathematical operation is performed; — called also faciend.

Op”er*ant (?), a. [L. operans, p. pr. of operari. See Operate.] Operative. [R.] Shak. — n. An operative person or thing. [R.] Coleridge.

Op”er*ate (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Operated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Operating.] [L. operatus, p. p. of operari to work, fr. opus, operis, work, labor; akin to Skr. apas, and also to G. üben to exercise, OHG. uoben, Icel. &?;fa. Cf. Inure, Maneuver, Ure.] 1. To perform a work or labor; to exert power or strengh, physical or mechanical; to act.

2. To produce an appropriate physical effect; to issue in the result designed by nature; especially (Med.), to take appropriate effect on the human system.

3. To act or produce effect on the mind; to exert moral power or influence.

The virtues of private persons operate but on a few.

Atterbury.

A plain, convincing reason operates on the mind both of a learned and ignorant hearer as long as they live.

Swift.

4. (Surg.) To perform some manual act upon a human body in a methodical manner, and usually with instruments, with a view to restore soundness or health, as in amputation, lithotomy, etc.

5. To deal in stocks or any commodity with a view to speculative profits. [Brokers’ Cant]

Op”er*ate, v. t. 1. To produce, as an effect; to cause.

The same cause would operate a diminution of the value of stock.

A. Hamilton.

2. To put into, or to continue in, operation or activity; to work; as, to operate a machine.

{ Op`er**at”ic (?), Op`er*at”ic*al (?), } a. Of or pertaining to the opera or to operas; characteristic of, or resembling, the opera.

Op`er*a”tion (?), n. [L. operatio: cf. F. opération.] 1. The act or process of operating; agency; the exertion of power, physical, mechanical, or moral.

The pain and sickness caused by manna are the effects of its operation on the stomach.

Locke.

Speculative painting, without the assistance of manual operation, can never attain to perfection.

Dryden.

2. The method of working; mode of action.

3. That which is operated or accomplished; an effect brought about in accordance with a definite plan; as, military or naval operations.

4. Effect produced; influence. [Obs.]

The bards . . . had great operation on the vulgar.

Fuller.

5. (Math.) Something to be done; some transformation to be made upon quantities, the transformation being indicated either by rules or symbols.

6. (Surg.) Any methodical action of the hand, or of the hand with instruments, on the human body, to produce a curative or remedial effect, as in amputation, etc.

Calculus of operations. See under Calculus.

Op”er*a*tive (?), a. [Cf.L. operativus, F. opératif.] 1. Having the power of acting; hence, exerting force, physical or moral; active in the production of effects; as, an operative motive.

It holds in all operative principles.

South.

2. Producing the appropriate or designed effect; efficacious; as, an operative dose, rule, or penalty.

3. (Surg.) Based upon, or consisting of, an operation or operations; as, operative surgery.

Op”er*a*tive, n. A skilled worker; an artisan; esp., one who operates a machine in a mill or manufactory.

Op”er*a*tive*ly, adv. In an operative manner.

Op”er*a`tor (?), n. [L.] 1. One who, or that which, operates or produces an effect.

2. (Surg.) One who performs some act upon the human body by means of the hand, or with instruments.

3. A dealer in stocks or any commodity for speculative purposes; a speculator. [Brokers’ Cant]

4. (Math.) The symbol that expresses the operation to be performed; — called also facient.

Op”er*a*to*ry (?), n. A laboratory. [Obs.]

O”per*cle (?), n. [Cf.F. opercule. See Operculum.] 1. (Anat.) Any one of the bony plates which support the gill covers of fishes; an opercular bone.

2. (Zoöl.) An operculum.

O*per”cu*la (?), n. pl. See Operculum.

O*per”cu*lar (?), a. Of, pertaining to, or like, an operculum.

O*per”cu*lar, n. (Anat.) The principal opercular bone or operculum of fishes.

{ O*per”cu*late (?), O*per”cu*la`ted (?), } a. [L. operculatus, p. p. of operculare to furnish with a lid, fr. operculum lid.] 1. (Bot.) Closed by a lid or cover, as the capsules of the mosses.

2. (Zoöl.) Having an operculum, or an apparatus for protecting the gills; — said of shells and of fishes.

O*per`cu*lif”er*ous (?), a. [Operculum + -ferous.] (Zoöl.) Bearing an operculum.

O*per”cu*li*form (?), a. [L. operculum a cover + -form: cf. F. operculiforme.] Having the form of a lid or cover.

O*per`cu*lig`e*nous (?), a. [Operculum + -genous.] (Zoöl.) Producing an operculum; — said of the foot, or part of the foot, of certain mollusks.

O*per”cu*lum (?), n.; pl. L. Opercula (#), E. Operculums (#). [L., a cover or lid, fr. operire to cover.] 1. (Bot.) (a) The lid of a pitcherform leaf. (b) The lid of the urnlike capsule of mosses.

2. (Anat.) (a) Any lidlike or operculiform process or part; as, the opercula of a dental follicle. (b) The fold of integument, usually supported by bony plates, which protects the gills of most fishes and some amphibians; the gill cover; the gill lid. (c) The principal opercular bone in the upper and posterior part of the gill cover.

3. (Zoöl.) (a) The lid closing the aperture of various species of shells, as the common whelk. See Illust. of Gastropoda. (b) Any lid-shaped structure closing the aperture of a tube or shell.

Op`er*et”ta (?), n. [It., dim. of opera.] (Mus.) A short, light, musical drama.

Op”er*ose` (?). a. [L. operosus, fr. opera pains, labor, opus, operis, work, labor.] Wrought with labor; requiring labor; hence, tedious; wearisome. “Operose proceeding.” Burke. “A very operose calculation.” De Quincey. — Op”er*ose`ly, adv. — Op”er*ose`ness, n.

Op`er*os”i*ty (?), n. [L. operositas.] Laboriousness. [R.] Bp. Hall.

Op”er*ous (?), a. Operose. [Obs.] Holder. — Op”er*ous*ly, adv. [Obs.]

Op`er*ta”ne*ous (?), a. [L. opertaneus; operire to hide.] Concealed; private. [R.]

Ope”tide` (?), n. [Ope + tide.] Open time; — applied to different things: (a) The early spring, or the time when flowers begin opening. [Archaic] Nares. (b) The time between Epiphany and Ash Wednesday wherein marriages were formerly solemnized publicly in churches. [Eng.] (c) The time after harvest when the common fields are open to all kinds of stock. [Prov.Eng.] Halliwell. [Written also opentide.]

O*phel”ic (?), a. (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or designating, a substance (called ophelic acid) extracted from a plant (Ophelia) of the Gentian family as a bitter yellowish sirup, used in India as a febrifuge and tonic.

Oph”i*cleide (?), n. [F. ophicléide, fr. Gr. ‘o`fis a serpent + &?;, gen. &?;, a key. So named because it was in effect the serpent, an old musical instrument, with keys added.] (Mus.) A large brass wind instrument, formerly used in the orchestra and in military bands, having a loud tone, deep pitch, and a compass of three octaves; — now generally supplanted by bass and contrabass tubas. Moore (Encyc. of Music).

||O*phid”i*a (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;, dim. of ‘o`fis a snake.] (Zoöl.) The order of reptiles which includes the serpents.

&fist; The most important divisions are: the Solenoglypha, having erectile perforated fangs, as the rattlesnake; the Proteroglypha, or elapine serpents, having permanently erect fang, as the cobra; the Asinea, or colubrine serpents, which are destitute of fangs; and the Opoterodonta, or Epanodonta, blindworms, in which the mouth is not dilatable.

O*phid”i*an (?), n. [Cf. F. ophidien.] (Zoöl.) One of the Ophidia; a snake or serpent.

O*phid”i*an, a. [Cf. F. ophidien.] (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Ophidia; belonging to serpents.

O*phid”i*oid (?), a. [Ophidion + -oid.] (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Ophidiidæ, a family of fishes which includes many slender species. — n. One of the Ophidiidæ.

||O*phid”i*on (?), n.; pl. Ophidia (#). [L., fr. Gr. &?; little snake, fr. ‘o`fis a serpent.] (Zoöl.) The typical genus of ophidioid fishes. [Written also Ophidium.] See Illust. under Ophidioid.

O*phid”i*ous (?), a. Ophidian.

O`phi*ol”a*try (?), n. [Gr. ‘o`fis serpent + &?; worship.] The worship of serpents.

{ O`phi*o*log”ic (?), O`phi*o*log”ic*al (?), } a. Of or pertaining to ophiology.

O`phi*ol”o*gist (?), n. One versed in the natural history of serpents.

O`phi*ol”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. ‘o`fis a serpent + -logy: cf.F. ophioloqie.] That part of natural history which treats of the ophidians, or serpents.

O”phi*o*man`cy (?), n. [Gr. ‘o`fis a serpent + -mancy: cf. F. ophiomantie.] Divination by serpents, as by their manner of eating, or by their coils.

||O`phi*o*mor”pha (?), n. pl. [NL. See Ophiomorphous.] (Zoöl.) An order of tailless amphibians having a slender, wormlike body with regular annulations, and usually with minute scales imbedded in the skin. The limbs are rudimentary or wanting. It includes the cæcilians. Called also Gymnophiona and Ophidobatrachia.

O`phi*o*mor”phite (?), n. [Gr. ‘o`fis a serpent + &?; form.] (Paleon.) An ammonite.

O`phi*o*mor”phous (?), a. [Gr. ‘o`fis a serpent + -morphous.] Having the form of a serpent.

O`phi*oph”a*gous (?), a. [Gr. ‘o`fis a serpent + fagei^n to eat: cf. F. ophiophage.] (Zoöl.) Feeding on serpents; — said of certain birds and reptiles.

||O`phi*oph”a*gus, n. [NL. See Ophiophagous.] (Zoöl.) A genus of venomous East Indian snakes, which feed on other snakes. Ophiophagus elaps is said to be the largest and most deadly of poisonous snakes.

O”phite (?), a. [Gr. ‘ofi`ths, fr. ‘o`fis a serpent.] Of or pertaining to a serpent. [Obs.]

O”phite, n. [L. ophites, Gr. ‘ofi`ths (sc. &?;), a kind of marble spotted like a serpent: cf. F. ophite.] (Min.) A greenish spotted porphyry, being a diabase whose pyroxene has been altered to uralite; — first found in the Pyreness. So called from the colored spots which give it a mottled appearance. — O*phi”ic (#), a.

O”phite, n. [L. Ophitae, pl. See Ophite, a.] (Eccl.Hist.) A mamber of a Gnostic serpent-worshiping sect of the second century.

||O`phi*u”chus (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?;, lit., holding a serpent; ‘o`fis a serpent + &?; to hold.] (Astron.) A constellation in the Northern Hemisphere, delineated as a man holding a serpent in his hands; — called also Serpentarius.

||O`phi*u”ra (?), n. [NL., from Gr. &?; snake + &?; a tail.] (Zoöl.) A genus of ophiurioid starfishes.

O`phi*u”ran (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Ophiurioidea. — n. One of the Ophiurioidea.

O`phi*u”rid (?), n. (Zoöl.) Same as Ophiurioid.

||O`phi*u”ri*da (?), n. pl. [NL.] (Zoöl.) Same as Ophiurioidea.

O`phi*u”ri*oid (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Ophiurioidea. — n. One of the Ophiurioidea. [Written also ophiuroid.]

{ ||O`phi*u`ri*oi”de*a (?), ||O`phi*u*roi”de*a (?), } n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; serpent + &?; tail + &?; form.] (Zoöl.) A class of star-shaped echinoderms having a disklike body, with slender, articulated arms, which are not grooved beneath and are often very fragile; — called also Ophiuroida and Ophiuridea. See Illust. under Brittle star.

||Oph”ry*on (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;, &?;, the brow.] (Anat.) The supraorbital point.

Oph*thal”mi*a (&obreve;f*thăl”m&ibreve;*&adot;), n. [F. ophthalmie, L. ophthalmia, fr. Gr. ‘ofqalmi`a, fr. ‘ofqalmo`s the eye, akin to E. optic. See Optic.] (Med.) An inflammation of the membranes or coats of the eye or of the eyeball.

Oph*thal”mic (&obreve;f*thăl”m&ibreve;k; 277), a. [Gr. ‘ofqalmiko`s: cf. F. ophthalmique. See Ophthalmia.] (Anat.) Of, pertaining to, or in the region of, the eye; ocular; as the ophthalmic, or orbitonasal, nerve, a division of the trigeminal, which gives branches to the lachrymal gland, eyelids, nose, and forehead.

Ophthalmic region (Zoöl.), the space around the eyes.

Oph*thal”mite (?), n. [Gr. ‘ofqalmo`s the eye.] (Zoöl.) An eyestalk; the organ which bears the compound eyes of decapod Crustacea.

Oph*thal`mo*log”ic*al (?), a. Of or pertaining to ophthalmology.

Oph`thal*mol”o*gist (?), n. One skilled in ophthalmology; an oculist.

Oph`thal*mol”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. ‘ofqalmo`s the eye + -logy: cf. F. ophthalmologie.] The science which treats of the structure, functions, and diseases of the eye.

Oph`thal*mom”e*ter, n. [Gr. ‘ofqalmo`s eye + -meter.] (Physiol.) An instrument devised by Helmholtz for measuring the size of a reflected image on the convex surface of the cornea and lens of the eye, by which their curvature can be ascertained.

Oph*thal”mo*scope (?), n. [From Gr. ‘ofqalmo`s the eye + -scope.] (Physiol.) An instrument for viewing the interior of the eye, particularly the retina. Light is thrown into the eye by a mirror (usually concave) and the interior is then examined with or without the aid of a lens. — Oph*thal`mo*scop”ic (#), a.

Oph`thal*mos”co*py (?), n. [Cf. F. ophthalmoscopie.] 1. A branch of physiognomy which deduces the knowledge of a person’s temper and character from the appearance of the eyes.

2. Examination of the eye with the ophthalmoscope.

Oph*thal”my (?), n. Same as Ophthalmia.

O`pi*an”ic (?), a. [From Opium.] (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or designating, an organic acid obtained by the oxidation of narcotine.

O”pi*a*nine (?), n. (Chem.) An alkaloid found in small quantity in opium. It is identical with narcotine.

O”pi*a*nyl, n. [Opianic + - yl.] (Chem.) Same as Meconin.

O”pi*ate (?), n. [From Opium: cf.F. opiat.]

1. Originally, a medicine of a thicker consistence than sirup, prepared with opium. Parr.

2. Any medicine that contains opium, and has the quality of inducing sleep or repose; a narcotic.

3. Anything which induces rest or inaction; that which quiets uneasiness.

They chose atheism as an opiate.

Bentley.

O”pi*ate, a. [See Opium.] Inducing sleep; somniferous; narcotic; hence, anodyne; causing rest, dullness, or inaction; as, the opiate rod of Hermes. Milton.

O”pi*ate (?), v. t. To subject to the influence of an opiate; to put to sleep. [R.] Fenton.

O”pi*a`ted (?), a. 1. Mixed with opiates.

2. Under the influence of opiates.

O”pie (?), n. Opium. [Obs.] Chaucer.

O*pif”er*ous (?), a. [L. opifer; ops, opis, help + ferre to bear.] Bringing help. [R.]

Op”i*fice (?), n. [L. opificium, fr. opifex workman. See Office.] Workmanship. [Obs.] Bailey.

O*pif”i*cer (?), n. An artificer; a workman. [Obs.] “The almighty opificer.” Bentley.

O*pin”a*ble (?), a. [L. opinabilis.] Capable of being opined or thought. Holland.

Op`i*na”tion (?), n. [L. opinatio. See Opine,] The act of thinking; a supposition. [Obs.]

O*pin”a*tive (?), a. Obstinate in holding opinions; opinionated. [Obs.] — O*pin”a*tive*ly, adv. [Obs.] Burton. Sir T. More.

Op”i*na`tor (?), n. [L.] One fond of his own opinious; one who holds an opinion. [Obs.] Glanvill.

O*pine” (?), v. t. & i. [imp. & p. p. Opined (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Opining.] [L. opinari, p. p. opinatus; akin to opinus (in comp.) thinking, and perh. to E. apt: cf. F. opiner.] To have an opinion; to judge; to think; to suppose. South.

O*pin”er (?), n. One who opines. Jer. Taylor.

{ O`pin*ias”ter (?), O`pin*ia”tre (?), } a. [OF. opiniastre, F. opiniâtre. See Opinion.] Opinionated. [Obs.] Sir W. Raleigh.

O`pin*ias”trous (?), a. See Opiniaster. [Obs.].

O*pin”iate (?), v. t. To hold or maintain persistently. [Obs.] Barrow.

O*pin”ia*ted (?), a. Opinionated. [Obs.]

O*pin”ia*tive (?), a. Opinionative. Glanvill. — O*pin”ia*tive*ly, adv. — O*pin”ia*tive*ness, n.

{ O`pin*ia”tor, O`pin*ia”tre } (?), n. One who is opinionated. [Obs.] South. Barrow.

O`pin*ia”tre, a. See Opiniaster. [Obs.] Locke.

O`pin*iat”re*ty (?), n. [Cf. F. opiniâtreté.] Obstinacy in opinious. [Written also opiniatry.] [Obs.]

O*pin”i*cus (&?;), n. (Her.) An imaginary animal borne as a charge, having wings, an eagle’s head, and a short tail; — sometimes represented without wings.

O*pin”ing (?), n. Opinion. [Obs.] Jer. Taylor.

O*pin”ion (?), n. [F., from L. opinio. See Opine.] 1. That which is opined; a notion or conviction founded on probable evidence; belief stronger than impression, less strong than positive knowledge; settled judgment in regard to any point of knowledge or action.

Opinion is when the assent of the understanding is so far gained by evidence of probability, that it rather inclines to one persussion than to another, yet not without a mixture of incertainty or doubting.

Sir M. Hale.

I can not put off my opinion so easily.

Shak.

2. The judgment or sentiment which the mind forms of persons or things; estimation.

I have bought golden opinions from all sorts of people.

Shak.

Friendship . . . gives a man a peculiar right and claim to the good opinion of his friend.

South.

However, I have no opinion of those things.

Bacon.

3. Favorable estimation; hence, consideration; reputation; fame; public sentiment or esteem. [Obs.]

Thou hast redeemed thy lost opinion.

Shak.

This gained Agricola much opinion, who . . . had made such early progress into laborious . . . enterprises.

Milton.

4. Obstinacy in holding to one’s belief or impression; opiniativeness; conceitedness. [Obs.] Shak.

5. (Law.) The formal decision, or expression of views, of a judge, an umpire, a counselor, or other party officially called upon to consider and decide upon a matter or point submitted.

To be of opinion, to think; to judge. – - To hold opinion with, to agree with. [Obs.] Shak.

Syn. — Sentiment; notion; persuasion; idea; view; estimation. See Sentiment.

O*pin”ion, v. t. To opine. [Obs.]

O*pin”ion*a*ble (?), a. Being, or capable of being, a matter of opinion; that can be thought; not positively settled; as, an opinionable doctrine. C. J. Ellicott.

O*pin”ion*ate (?), a. Opinionated.

O*pin”ion*a`ted (?), a. Stiff in opinion; firmly or unduly adhering to one’s own opinion or to preconceived notions; obstinate in opinion. Sir W. Scott.

O*pin”ion*ate*ly (?), adv. Conceitedly. Feltham.

O*pin”ion*a*tist (?), n. An opinionist. [Obs.]

O*pin”ion*a*tive, a. 1. Unduly attached to one’s own opinions; opinionated. Milton.

2. Of the nature of an opinion; conjectured. [Obs.] “Things both opinionative and practical.” Bunyan. — O*pin”ion*a*tive*ly, adv. — O*pin”ion*a*tive*ness, n.

O*pin”ion*a`tor (?), n. An opinionated person; one given to conjecture. [Obs.] South.

O*pin”ioned (?), a. Opinionated; conceited.

His opinioned zeal which he thought judicious.

Milton.

O*pin”ion*ist (?), n. [Cf. F. opinioniste.] One fond of his own notions, or unduly attached to his own opinions. Glanvill.

O*pip”a*rous (?), a. [L. opiparus, fr. ops, opis, riches + parare to provide.] Sumptuous. [Obs.] — O*pip”a*rous*ly, adv. [Obs.] E. Waterhouse.

Op`i*som”e*ter (?), n. [Gr. &?; backwards + -meter.] An instrument with a revolving wheel for measuring a curved line, as on a map.

||O*pis”thi*on (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; hinder.] (Anat.) The middle of the posterior, or dorsal, margin of the great foramen of the skull.

{ ||O*pis`tho*bran”chi*a (?), O*pis`tho*bran`chi*a”ta (?), } n. pl. [NL., from Gr. &?; behind + &?; gills.] (Zoöl.) A division of gastropod Mollusca, in which the breathing organs are usually situated behind the heart. It includes the tectibranchs and nudibranchs.

O*pis`tho*bran”chi*ate (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Opisthobranchiata. — n. One of the Opisthobranchiata.

{ O*pis`tho*cœ“li*an (?), O*pis`tho*cœ“lous (?), } a. [Gr. &?; behind + koi^los hollow,] (Anat.) Concave behind; — applied especially to vertebræ in which the anterior end of the centrum is convex and the posterior concave.

O*pis”tho*dome (?), n. [L. opisthodomus, Gr. &?;; &?; behind + do`mos house: cf. F. opisthodome.] (Arch.) A back chamber; especially, that part of the naos, or cella, farthest from the main entrance, sometimes having an entrance of its own, and often used as a treasury.

||O*pis`tho*glyph”a (?), n. pl. [NL., from Gr. &?; behind + &?; to carve.] (Zoöl.) A division of serpents which have some of the posterior maxillary teeth grooved for fangs.

Op`is*thog”ra*phy (?), n. [Gr. &?; behind + -graphy.] A writing upon the back of anything, as upon the back of a leaf or sheet already written upon on one side. [R.] Scudamore.

||Op`is*tho”mi (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; behind + &?; the shoulder.] (Zoöl.) An order of eellike fishes having the scapular arch attached to the vertebræ, but not connected with the skull.

O*pis`tho*pul”mo*nate (?), a.[Gr. &?; behind + E. pulmonate.] (Zoöl.) Having the pulmonary sac situated posteriorly; — said of certain air-breathing Mollusca.

Op`is*thot”ic (?), n. [Gr. &?; behind + &?;, &?;, ear.] (Anat.) The inferior and posterior of the three elements forming the periotic bone.

||Op`is*thot”o*nos (?), n. [NL., from Gr. &?; backwards + &?; a stretching.] (Med.) A tetanic spasm in which the body is bent backwards and stiffened.

O*pit`u*la”tion (?), n. [L. opitulatio, fr. opitulari to bring help.] The act of helping or aiding; help. [Obs.] Bailey.

O”pi*um (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?; poppy juice, dim. of &?; vegetable juice.] (Chem.) The inspissated juice of the Papaver somniferum, or white poppy.

&fist; Opium is obtained from incisions made in the capsules of the plant, and the best flows from the first incision. It is imported into Europe and America chiefly from the Levant, and large quantities are sent to China from India, Persia, and other countries. It is of a brownish yellow color, has a faint smell, and bitter and acrid taste. It is a stimulant narcotic poison, which may produce hallicinations, profound sleep, or death. It is much used in medicine to soothe pain and inflammation, and is smoked as an intoxicant with baneful effects.

Opium joint, a low resort of opium smokers. [Slang]

O”ple tree` (?). [L. opulus a kind of maple tree.] The witch-hazel. [Obs.] Ainsworth.

{ Op`o*bal”sam (?), ||Op`o*bal”sa*mum (?), } n. [L. opobalsamum, Gr. &?;; &?; vegetable juice + &?; balsam.] (Med.) The old name of the aromatic resinous juice of the Balsamodendron opobalsamum, now commonly called balm of Gilead. See under Balm.

Op`o*del”doc (?), n. [So called by Paracelsus. The first syllable may be fr. Gr. &?; vegetable juice.]

1. A kind of plaster, said to have been invented by Mindererus, — used for external injuries. [Obs.]

2. A saponaceous, camphorated liniment; a solution of soap in alcohol, with the addition of camphor and essential oils; soap liniment.

O*pop”a*nax (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?;; &?; vegetable juice + &?;, &?;. a kind of plant: cf. F. opopanax.] The inspissated juice of an umbelliferous plant (the Opoponax Chironum), brought from Turkey and the East Indies in loose granules, or sometimes in larger masses, of a reddish yellow color, with specks of white. It has a strong smell and acrid taste, and was formerly used in medicine as an emmenagogue and antispasmodic. Dunglison.

O*pos”sum (?), n. [Of N. American Indian origin.] (Zoöl.) Any American marsupial of the genera Didelphys and Chironectes. The common species of the United States is Didelphys Virginiana.

&fist; Several related species are found in South America. The water opossum of Brazil (Chironectes variegatus), which has the hind feet, webbed, is provided with a marsupial pouch and with cheek pouches. It is called also yapock.

Opossum mouse. (Zoöl.) See Flying mouse, under Flying. — Opossum shrimp (Zoöl.), any schizopod crustacean of the genus Mysis and allied genera. See Schizopoda.

Op”pi*dan (?), a. [L. oppidanus, fr. oppidum town.] Of or pertaining to a town. Howell.

Op”pi*dan, n. 1. An inhabitant of a town.

2. A student of Eton College, England, who is not a King’s scholar, and who boards in a private family.

Op*pig”ner*ate (?), v. i. [L. oppigneratus, p. p. of oppignerare to pawn. See Ob- , and Pignerate.] To pledge; to pawn. [Obs.] Bacon.

Op”pi*late (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Oppilated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Oppilating (?).] [L. oppilatus, p. p. of oppilare to stop up; ob (see Ob-) + pilare to ram down, to thrust.] To crowd together; to fill with obstructions; to block up. [Obs.] Cockeram.

Op`pi*la”tion (?), n. [L. oppilatio: cf. F. opilation.] The act of filling or crowding together; a stopping by redundant matter; obstruction, particularly in the lower intestines. Jer. Taylor.

Op`pi*la*tive (?), a. [Cf. F. opilatif. See Oppilate.] Obstructive. [Obs.] Sherwood.

{ Op*plete” (?), Op*plet”ed (?), } a. [L. oppletus, p. p. of opplere to fill up; ob (see Ob-) + plere to fill.] Filled; crowded. [Obs.] Johnson.

Op*ple”tion (?), n. The act of filling up, or the state of being filled up; fullness. [Obs.]

Op*pone” (?), v. t. [L. opponere. See Opponent.] To oppose. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

Op*po”nen*cy (?), n. The act of opening an academical disputation; the proposition of objections to a tenet, as an exercise for a degree. [Eng.] Todd.

Op*po”nent (?), a. [L. opponens, entis, p. pr. of opponere to set or place against, to oppose; ob (see Ob) + ponere to place. See Position.] Situated in front; opposite; hence, opposing; adverse; antagonistic. Pope.

Op*po”nent, n. 1. One who opposes; an adversary; an antagonist; a foe. Macaulay.

2. One who opposes in a disputation, argument, or other verbal controversy; specifically, one who attacks some theirs or proposition, in distinction from the respondent, or defendant, who maintains it.

How becomingly does Philopolis exercise his office, and seasonably commit the opponent with the respondent, like a long-practiced moderator!

Dr. H. More.

Syn. — Antagonist; opposer; foe. See Adversary.

Op`por*tune” (?), a. [F. opporiun, L. opportunus, lit., at or before the port; ob (see Ob-) + a derivative of portus port, harbor. See Port harbor.] Convenient; ready; hence, seasonable; timely. Milton.

This is most opportune to our need.

Shak.

— Op`por*tune”ly, adv. — Op`por*tune”ness, n.

Op`por*tune”, v. t. To suit. [Obs.] Dr. Clerke(1637).

Op`por*tun”ism (?), n. [Cf. F. opportunisme.] The art or practice of taking advantage of opportunities or circumstances, or of seeking immediate advantage with little regard for ultimate consequences. [Recent]

Op`por*tun”ist, n. [Cf. F. opportuniste.] One who advocates or practices opportunism. [Recent]

Op`por*tu”ni*ty (?), n.; pl. Opportunities (#). [F. opportunité, L. opportunitas. See Opportune.] 1. Fit or convenient time; a time or place favorable for executing a purpose; a suitable combination of conditions; suitable occasion; chance.

A wise man will make more opportunities than he finds.

Bacon.

2. Convenience of situation; fitness. [Obs.]

Hull, a town of great strength and opportunity, both to sea and land affairs.

Milton.

3. Importunity; earnestness. [Obs.] Jer. Taylor.

Syn. — Occasion; convenience; occurrence. — Opportunity, Occasion. An occasion is that which falls in our way, or presents itself in the course of events; an opportunity is a convenience or fitness of time, place, etc., for the doing of a thing. Hence, occasions often make opportunities. The occasion of sickness may give opportunity for reflection.

Op*pos`a*bil”i*ty (?), n. The condition or quality of being opposable.

In no savage have I ever seen the slightest approach to opposability of the great toe, which is the essential distinguishing feature of apes.

A. R. Wallace.

Op*pos”a*ble (?), a. 1. Capable of being opposed or resisted.

2. Capable of being placed opposite something else; as, the thumb is opposable to the forefinger.

Op*pos”al (?), n. Opposition. [R.] Sir T. Herbert.

Op*pose” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Opposed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Opposing.] [F. opposer. See Ob-, Pose, and cf.2d Appose, Puzzle, n. Cf.L. opponere, oppositum.] 1. To place in front of, or over against; to set opposite; to exhibit.

Her grace sat down . . .
In a rich chair of state; opposing freely
The beauty of her person to the people.

Shak.

2. To put in opposition, with a view to counterbalance or countervail; to set against; to offer antagonistically.

I may . . . oppose my single opinion to his.

Locke.

3. To resist or antagonize by physical means, or by arguments, etc.; to contend against; to confront; to resist; to withstand; as, to oppose the king in battle; to oppose a bill in Congress.

4. To compete with; to strive against; as, to oppose a rival for a prize.

I am . . . too weak
To oppose your cunning.

Shak.

Syn. — To combat; withstand; contradict; deny; gainsay; oppugn; contravene; check; obstruct.

Op*pose” (?), v. i. 1. To be set opposite. Shak.

2. To act adversely or in opposition; — with against or to; as, a servant opposed against the act. [Obs.] Shak.

3. To make objection or opposition in controversy.

Op*pose”less, a. Not to be effectually opposed; irresistible. [Obs.] “Your great opposeless wills.” Shak.

Op*pos”er (?), n. One who opposes; an opponent; an antagonist; an adversary.

Op”po*site (?), a. [F., fr. L. oppositus, p. p. of opponere. See Opponent.] 1. Placed over against; standing or situated over against or in front; facing; — often with to; as, a house opposite to the Exchange.

2. Applied to the other of two things which are entirely different; other; as, the opposite sex; the opposite extreme.

3. Extremely different; inconsistent; contrary; repugnant; antagonistic.

Novels, by which the reader is misled into another sort of pieasure opposite to that which is designed in an epic poem.

Dryden.

Particles of speech have divers, and sometimes almost opposite, significations.

Locke.

4. (Bot.) (a) Set over against each other, but separated by the whole diameter of the stem, as two leaves at the same node. (b) Placed directly in front of another part or organ, as a stamen which stands before a petal.

Op”po*site, n. 1. One who opposes; an opponent; an antagonist. [Obs.]

The opposites of this day’s strife.

Shak.

2. That which is opposed or contrary; as, sweetness and its opposite.

The virtuous man meets with more opposites and opponents than any other.

Landor.

Op”po*site*ly, adv. In a situation to face each other; in an opposite manner or direction; adversely.

Winds from all quarters oppositely blow.

May.

Op”po*site*ness, n. The quality or state of being opposite.

Op*pos`i*ti*fo”li*ous (?), a. [See Opposite, Folious.] (Bot.) Placed at the same node with a leaf, but separated from it by the whole diameter of the stem; as, an oppositifolious peduncle.

Op`po*si”tion (?), n. [F., fr. L. oppositio. See Opposite.] 1. The act of opposing; an attempt to check, restrain, or defeat; resistance.

The counterpoise of so great an opposition.

Shak.

Virtue which breaks through all opposition.

Milton.

2. The state of being placed over against; situation so as to front something else. Milton.

3. Repugnance; contrariety of sentiment, interest, or purpose; antipathy. Shak.

4. That which opposes; an obstacle; specifically, the aggregate of persons or things opposing; hence, in politics and parliamentary practice, the party opposed to the party in power.

5. (Astron.) The situation of a heavenly body with respect to another when in the part of the heavens directly opposite to it; especially, the position of a planet or satellite when its longitude differs from that of the sun 180°; – - signified by the symbol &?;; as, &?; &Jupiter; &Sun;, opposition of Jupiter to the sun.

6. (Logic) The relation between two propositions when, having the same subject and predicate, they differ in quantity, or in quality, or in both; or between two propositions which have the same matter but a different form.

Op`po*si”tion*ist, n. One who belongs to the opposition party. Praed.

Op*pos`i*ti*pet”al*ous (?), a. [See Opposite, and Petal.] (Bot.) Placed in front of a petal.

Op*pos`i*ti*sep”al*ous (?), a. [See Opposite, and Sepal.] (Bot.) Placed in front of a sepal.

Op*pos`i*tive (?), a. [Cf. F. oppositif. See Opposite.] Capable of being put in opposition. Bp. Hall.

Op*press” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Oppressed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Oppressing.] [F. oppresser, LL. oppressare, fr. L. oppressus, p. p. of opprimere; ob (see Ob- ) + premere to press. See Press.] 1. To impose excessive burdens upon; to overload; hence, to treat with unjust rigor or with cruelty. Wyclif.

For thee, oppressèd king, am I cast down.

Shak.

Behold the kings of the earth; how they oppress
Thy chosen !

Milton.

2. To ravish; to violate. [Obs.] Chaucer.

3. To put down; to crush out; to suppress. [Obs.]

The mutiny he there hastes to oppress.

Shak.

4. To produce a sensation of weight in (some part of the body); as, my lungs are oppressed by the damp air; excess of food oppresses the stomach.

Op*pres”sion (?), n. [F., fr. L. oppressio.]

1. The act of oppressing, or state of being oppressed.

2. That which oppresses; a hardship or injustice; cruelty; severity; tyranny. “The multitude of oppressions.” Job xxxv. 9.

3. A sense of heaviness or obstruction in the body or mind; depression; dullness; lassitude; as, an oppression of spirits; an oppression of the lungs.

There gentlee Sleep
First found me, and with soft oppression seized
My drowsed sense.

Milton.

4. Ravishment; rape. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Op*press”ive (?), a. [Cf. F. oppressif.]

1. Unreasonably burdensome; unjustly severe, rigorous, or harsh; as, oppressive taxes; oppressive exactions of service; an oppressive game law. Macaulay.

2. Using oppression; tyrannical; as, oppressive authority or commands.

3. Heavy; overpowering; hard to be borne; as, oppressive grief or woe.

To ease the soul of one oppressive weight.

Pope.

— Op*press”ive*ly, adv. — Op*press”ive*ness, n.

Op*press”or (?), n. [L.] One who oppresses; one who imposes unjust burdens on others; one who harasses others with unjust laws or unreasonable severity.

The orphan pines while the oppressor feeds.

Shak.

To relieve the oppressed and to punish the oppressor.

Swift.

Op*pres”sure (?), n. Oppression. [Obs.]

Op*pro”bri*ous (?), a. [L. opprobriosus, fr. opprobrium. See Opprobrium.] 1. Expressive of opprobrium; attaching disgrace; reproachful; scurrilous; as, opprobrious language.

They . . . vindicate themselves in terms no less opprobrious than those by which they are attacked.

Addison.

2. Infamous; despised; rendered hateful; as, an opprobrious name.

This dark, opprobrious den of shame.

Milton.

— Op*pro”bri*ous*ly, adv. — Op*pro”bri*ous*ness, n.

Op*pro”bri*um (?), n. [L., fr. ob (see Ob-) + probrum reproach, disgrace.] Disgrace; infamy; reproach mingled with contempt; abusive language.

Being both dramatic author and dramatic performer, he found himself heir to a twofold opprobrium.

De Quincey.

Op*pro”bry (?), n. Opprobrium. [Obs.] Johnson.

Op*pugn” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Oppugned (?); p pr. & vb. n. Oppugning.] [OF. oppugner, L. oppugnare; ob (see Ob-) + pugnare to fight. See Impugn.] To fight against; to attack; to be in conflict with; to oppose; to resist.

They said the manner of their impeachment they could not but conceive did oppugn the rights of Parliament.

Clarendon.

Op*pug”nan*cy (?), n. [See Oppugnant.] The act of oppugning; opposition; resistance. Shak.

Op*pug”nant (?), a. [L. oppugnans, p. pr. of oppugnare. See Oppugn.] Tending to awaken hostility; hostile; opposing; warring. “Oppugnant forces.” I. Taylor. — n. An opponent. [R.] Coleridge.

Op`pug*na”tion (?), n. [L. oppugnatio: cf. OF. oppugnation.] Opposition. [R.] Bp. Hall.

Op*pugn”er (?), n. One who opposes or attacks; that which opposes. Selden.

Op*sim”a*thy (?), n. [Gr. &?;.] Education late in life. [R.] Hales.

Op`si*om”e*ter (?), n. [Gr. &?; sight + -meter: cf. F. opsiomètre.] An instrument for measuring the limits of distincts vision in different individuals, and thus determiming the proper focal length of a lens for correcting imperfect sight. Brande & C.

Op`so*na”tion (?), n. [L. opsonatio.] A catering; a buying of provisions. [Obs.] Bailey.

Op”ta*ble (?), a. [L. optabilis.] That may be chosen; desirable. [Obs.] Cockeram.

Op”tate (?), v. i. [L. optatus, p. p. of optare.] To choose; to wish for; to desire. [Obs.] Cotgrave.

Op*ta”tion (?), n. [L. optatio. See Option.] The act of optating; a wish. [Obs.] Sir T. Browne.

Op”ta*tive (?), a. [L. optativus: cf. F. optatif.] Expressing desire or wish. Fuller.

Optative mood (Gram.), that mood or form of a verb, as in Greek, Sanskrit, etc., in which a wish or desire is expressed.

Op”ta*tive, n. [Cf. F. optatif.]

1. Something to be desired. [R.] Bacon.

2. (Gram.) The optative mood; also, a verb in the optative mood.

Op”ta*tive*ly, adv. In an optative manner; with the expression of desire. [R.]

God blesseth man imperatively, and man blesseth God optatively.

Bp. Hall.

Op”tic (?), n. [From Optic, a.] 1. The organ of sight; an eye.

The difference is as great between
The optics seeing, as the object seen.

Pope.

2. An eyeglass. [Obs.] Herbert.

{ Op”tic (?), Op”tic*al (?), } a. [F. optique, Gr. &?;; akin to &?; sight, &?; I have seen, &?; I shall see, and to &?; the two eyes, &?; face, L. oculus eye. See Ocular, Eye, and cf. Canopy, Ophthalmia.] 1. Of or pertaining to vision or sight.

The moon, whose orb
Through optic glass the Tuscan artist views.

Milton.

2. Of or pertaining to the eye; ocular; as, the optic nerves (the first pair of cranial nerves) which are distributed to the retina. See Illust. of Brain, and Eye.

3. Relating to the science of optics; as, optical works.

Optic angle (Opt.), the angle included between the optic axes of the two eyes when directed to the same point; — sometimes called binocular parallax. — Optic axis. (Opt.) (a) A line drawn through the center of the eye perpendicular to its anterior and posterior surfaces. In a normal eye it is in the direction of the optic axis that objects are most distinctly seen. (b) The line in a doubly refracting crystal, in the direction of which no double refraction occurs. A uniaxial crystal has one such line, a biaxial crystal has two. – - Optical circle (Opt.), a graduated circle used for the measurement of angles in optical experiments. — Optical square, a surveyor’s instrument with reflectors for laying off right angles.

Op”tic*al*ly, adv. By optics or sight; with reference to optics.

Optically active, Optically inactive (Chem. Physics), terms used of certain metameric substances which, while identical with each other in other respects, differ in this, viz., that they do or do not produce right- handed or left-handed circular polarization of light. — Optically positive, Optically negative. See under Refraction.

Op*ti”cian (?), n. [Cf. F. opticien. See Optic, a.]

1. One skilled in optics. [R.] A. Smith.

2. One who deals in optical glasses and instruments.

Op”tics (?), n. [Cf. F. optique, L. optice, Gr. &?; (sc. &?;). See Optic.] That branch of physical science which treats of the nature and properties of light, the laws of its modification by opaque and transparent bodies, and the phenomena of vision.

Op”ti*graph (?), n. [Optic + -graph: cf. F. opticographe. See Optic, a. ] A telescope with a diagonal eyepiece, suspended vertically in gimbals by the object end beneath a fixed diagonal plane mirror. It is used for delineating landscapes, by means of a pencil at the eye end which leaves the delineation on paper.

Op”ti*ma*cy (?), n. [Cf. F. optimatie. See Optimate.]

1. Government by the nobility. [R.] Howell.

2. Collectively, the nobility. [R.]

Op”ti*mate (?), a. [L. optimas, -atis, adj., optimates, n. pl., the adherents of the best men, the aristocrats, fr. optimus the best.] Of or pertaining to the nobility or aristocracy. [R.] — n. A nobleman or aristocrat; a chief man in a state or city. [R.] Chapman.

||Op`ti*ma”tes (?), n. pl. [L. See Optimate.] The nobility or aristocracy of ancient Rome, as opposed to the populares.

Op”ti*me (?), n. [L., adv. fr. optimus the best.] One of those who stand in the second rank of honors, immediately after the wranglers, in the University of Cambridge, England. They are divided into senior and junior optimes.

Op”ti*mism (?), n. [L. optimus the best; akin to optio choice: cf. F. optimisme. See Option.]

1. (Metaph.) The opinion or doctrine that everything in nature, being the work of God, is ordered for the best, or that the ordering of things in the universe is such as to produce the highest good.

2. A disposition to take the most hopeful view; — opposed to pessimism.

Op”ti*mist (?), n. [Cf. F. optimiste.]

1. (Metaph.) One who holds the opinion that all events are ordered for the best.

2. One who looks on the bright side of things, or takes hopeful views; — opposed to pessimist.

Op`ti*mis”tic (?), a. 1. (Metaph.) Of or pertaining to optimism; tending, or conforming, to the opinion that all events are ordered for the best.

2. Hopeful; sanguine; as, an optimistic view.

Op*tim”i*ty (?), n. [L. optimitas, fr. optimus the best.] The state of being best. [R.] Bailey.

Op”tion (?), n. [L. optio; akin to optare to choose, wish, optimus best, and perh. to E. apt: cf. F. option.]

1. The power of choosing; the right of choice or election; an alternative.

There is an option left to the United States of America, whether they will be respectable and prosperous, or contemptible and miserable, as a nation.

Washington.

2. The exercise of the power of choice; choice.

Transplantation must proceed from the option of the people, else it sounds like an exile.

Bacon.

3. A wishing; a wish. [Obs.] Bp. Hall.

4. (Ch. of Eng.) A right formerly belonging to an archbishop to select any one dignity or benefice in the gift of a suffragan bishop consecrated or confirmed by him, for bestowal by himself when next vacant; — annulled by Parliament in 1845.

5. (Stock Exchange) A stipulated privilege, given to a party in a time contract, of demanding its fulfillment on any day within a specified limit.

Buyer’s option, an option allowed to one who contracts to buy stocks at a certain future date and at a certain price, to demand the delivery of the stock (giving one day’s notice) at any previous time at the market price. — Seller’s option, an option allowed to one who contracts to deliver stock art a certain price on a certain future date, to deliver it (giving one day’s notice) at any previous time at the market price. Such options are privileges for which a consideration is paid. — Local option. See under Local.

Syn. — Choice; preference; selection. — Option, Choice. Choice is an act of choosing; option often means liberty to choose, and implies freedom from constraint in the act of choosing.

Op”tion*al (?), a. Involving an option; depending on the exercise of an option; left to one’s discretion or choice; not compulsory; as, optional studies; it is optional with you to go or stay. — n. See Elective, n.

If to the former the movement was not optional, it was the same that the latter chose when it was optional.

Palfrey.

Original writs are either optional or peremptory.

Blackstone.

Op”tion*al*ly, adv. In an optional manner.

{ Op”to*cœle (?), ||Op`to*cœ“li*a (?), } n. [NL. optocoelia, fr. Gr. &?; optic + koi^los a hollow.] (Anat.) The cavity of one of the optic lobes of the brain in many animals. B. G. Wilder.

Op”to*gram (?), n. [Optic + - gram: cf. F. optogramme.] (Physiol.) An image of external objects fixed on the retina by the photochemical action of light on the visual purple. See Optography.

Op*tog”ra*phy (?), n. [Optic + -graphy.] (Physiol.) The production of an optogram on the retina by the photochemical action of light on the visual purple; the fixation of an image in the eye. The object so photographed shows white on a purple or red background. See Visual purple, under Visual.

Op*tom”e*ter (?), n. [Optic + -meter.] (Physiol.) An instrument for measuring the distance of distinct vision, mainly for the selection of eveglasses.

Op”u*lence (?), n. [L. opulentia: cf. F. opulence. See Opulent.] Wealth; riches; affluence. Swift

Op”u*len*cy (?), n. See Opulence. Shak.

Op”u*lent (?), a. [L. opulens, opulentus, fr. ops, opis, power, wealth, riches, perh. akin to E. apt: cf. F. opulent. Cf. Copious, Couple, Office.] Having a large estate or property; wealthy; rich; affluent; as, an opulent city; an opulent citizen. — Op”u*lent*ly, adv.

I will piece
Her opulent throne with kingdoms.

Shak.

||O*pun”ti*a (?), n. [NL.] (Bot.) A genus of cactaceous plants; the prickly pear, or Indian fig.

||O”pus (?), n.; pl. Opera (#). [L. See Opera.] A work; specif. (Mus.), a musical composition.

&fist; Each composition, or set of pieces, as the composer may choose, is called an opus, and they are numbered in the order of their issue. (Often abbrev. to op.)

Opus incertum. [L.] (Arch.) See under Incertum.

{ O*pus”cle (?), O*pus”cule (?), } n. [L. opusculum, dim. of opus work: cf. F. opuscule.] A small or petty work.

||O*pus”cu*lum (?), n.; pl. Opuscula (#). [L.] An opuscule. Smart.

O”pye (?), n. Opium. [Obs.] Chaucer.

O*quas”sa (?), n. (Zoöl.) A small, handsome trout (Salvelinus oquassa), found in some of the lakes in Maine; — called also blueback trout.

-or. [L. -or: cf. OF. -or, ur, our, F. -eur.]

1. A noun suffix denoting an act; a state or quality; as in error, fervor, pallor, candor, etc.

2. A noun suffix denoting an agent or doer; as in auditor, one who hears; donor, one who gives; obligor, elevator. It is correlative to - ee. In general or is appended to words of Latin, and er to those of English, origin. See -er.

Or (?), conj. [OE. or, outher, other, auther, either, or, AS. āw&?;er, contr. from āhwæ&?;er; ā aye + hwæ&?;er whether. See Aye, and Whether, and cf. Either.] A particle that marks an alternative; as, you may read or may write, — that is, you may do one of the things at your pleasure, but not both. It corresponds to either. You may ride either to London or to Windsor. It often connects a series of words or propositions, presenting a choice of either; as, he may study law, or medicine, or divinity, or he may enter into trade.

If man’s convenience, health,
Or safety interfere, his rights and claims
Are paramount.

Cowper.

&fist; Or may be used to join as alternatives terms expressing unlike things or ideas (as, is the orange sour or sweet?), or different terms expressing the same thing or idea; as, this is a sphere, or globe.

&fist; Or sometimes begins a sentence. In this case it expresses an alternative or subjoins a clause differing from the foregoing. “Or what man is there of you, who, if his son shall ask him for a loaf, will give him a stone?” Matt. vii. 9 (Rev. Ver. ).

Or for either is archaic or poetic.

Maugre thine heed, thou must for indigence
Or steal, or beg, or borrow thy dispence.

Chaucer.

Or, prep. & adv. [AS. &?;r ere, before. √204. See Ere, prep. & adv.] Ere; before; sooner than. [Obs.]

But natheless, while I have time and space,
Or that I forther in this tale pace.

Chaucer.

Or ever, Or ere. See under Ever, and Ere.

Or, n. [F., fr. L. aurum gold. Cf. Aureate.] (Her.) Yellow or gold color, — represented in drawing or engraving by small dots.

O”ra (?), n. [AS. See 2d Ore.] A money of account among the Anglo-Saxons, valued, in the Domesday Book, at twenty pence sterling.

||O`ra*bas”su (?), n. (Zoöl.) A South American monkey of the genus Callithrix, esp. C. Moloch.

{ Or”ach, Or”ache} (?), n. [F. arroche, corrupted fr. L. atriplex, Gr. &?;. Cf. Arrach.] (Bot.) A genus (Atriplex) of herbs or low shrubs of the Goosefoot family, most of them with a mealy surface.

Garden orache, a plant (Atriplex hortensis), often used as a pot herb; — also called mountain spinach.

Or”a*cle (?), n. [F., fr. L. oraculum, fr. orare to speak, utter, pray, fr. os, oris, mouth. See Oral.]

1. The answer of a god, or some person reputed to be a god, to an inquiry respecting some affair or future event, as the success of an enterprise or battle.

Whatso’er she saith, for oracles must stand.

Drayton.

2. Hence: The deity who was supposed to give the answer; also, the place where it was given.

The oracles are dumb;
No voice or hideous hum
Runs through the arched roof in words deceiving.

Milton.

3. The communications, revelations, or messages delivered by God to the prophets; also, the entire sacred Scriptures — usually in the plural.

The first principles of the oracles of God.

Heb. v. 12.

4. (Jewish Antiq.) The sanctuary, or Most Holy place in the temple; also, the temple itself. 1 Kings vi. 19.

Siloa’s brook, that flow’d
Fast by the oracle of God.

Milton.

5. One who communicates a divine command; an angel; a prophet.

God hath now sent his living oracle
Into the world to teach his final will.

Milton.

6. Any person reputed uncommonly wise; one whose decisions are regarded as of great authority; as, a literary oracle. “Oracles of mode.” Tennyson.

The country rectors . . . thought him an oracle on points of learning.

Macaulay.

7. A wise sentence or decision of great authority.

Or”a*cle, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Oracled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Oracling (?).] To utter oracles. [Obs.]

O*rac”u*lar (?), a. [L. oracularius. See Oracle.]

1. Of or pertaining to an oracle; uttering oracles; forecasting the future; as, an oracular tongue.

2. Resembling an oracle in some way, as in solemnity, wisdom, authority, obscurity, ambiguity, dogmatism.

They have something venerable and oracular in that unadorned gravity and shortness in the expression.

Pope.

— O*rac”u*lar*ly, adv. — O*rac”u*lar*ness, n.

O*rac”u*lous (?), a. Oracular; of the nature of an oracle. [R.] “Equivocations, or oraculous speeches.” Bacon. “The oraculous seer.” Pope. — O*rac”u*lous*ly, adv. — O*rac”u*lous*ness, n.

O*ra”gious (?), a. [F. orageux.] Stormy. [R.]

Or”ai*son (?), n. See Orison. [Obs.] Shak.

O”ral (?), a. [L. os, oris, the mouth, akin to Skr. ās. Cf. Adore, Orison, Usher.] 1. Uttered by the mouth, or in words; spoken, not written; verbal; as, oral traditions; oral testimony; oral law.

2. Of or pertaining to the mouth; surrounding or lining the mouth; as, oral cilia or cirri.

O”ral*ly, adv. 1. In an oral manner. Tillotson.

2. By, with, or in, the mouth; as, to receive the sacrament orally. [Obs.] Usher.

O*rang” (?), n. (Zoöl.) See Orang-outang.

Or”ange (?), n. [F.; cf. It. arancia, arancio, LL. arangia, Sp. naranjia, Pg. laranja; all fr. Ar. nāranj, Per. nāranj, nārang; cf. Skr. nāranga orange tree. The o- in F. orange is due to confusion with or gold, L. aurum, because the orange resembles gold in color.]

1. The fruit of a tree of the genus Citrus (C. Aurantium). It is usually round, and consists of pulpy carpels, commonly ten in number, inclosed in a leathery rind, which is easily separable, and is reddish yellow when ripe.

&fist; There are numerous varieties of oranges; as, the bitter orange, which is supposed to be the original stock; the navel orange, which has the rudiment of a second orange imbedded in the top of the fruit; the blood orange, with a reddish juice; and the horned orange, in which the carpels are partly separated.

2. (Bot.) The tree that bears oranges; the orange tree.

3. The color of an orange; reddish yellow.

Mandarin orange. See Mandarin. – - Mock orange (Bot.), any species of shrubs of the genus Philadelphus, which have whitish and often fragrant blossoms. — Native orange, or Orange thorn (Bot.), an Australian shrub (Citriobatus parviflorus); also, its edible yellow berries. — Orange bird (Zoöl.), a tanager of Jamaica (Tanagra zena); — so called from its bright orange breast. — Orange cowry (Zoöl.), a large, handsome cowry (Cypræa aurantia), highly valued by collectors of shells on account of its rarity. — Orange grass (Bot.), an inconspicuous annual American plant (Hypericum Sarothra), having minute, deep yellow flowers. — Orange oil (Chem.), an oily, terpenelike substance obtained from orange rind, and distinct from neroli oil, which is obtained from the flowers. — Orange pekoe, a kind of black tea. — Orange pippin, an orange-colored apple with acid flavor. — Quito orange, the orangelike fruit of a shrubby species of nightshade (Solanum Quitoense), native in Quito. — Orange scale (Zoöl.) any species of scale insects which infests orange trees; especially, the purple scale (Mytilaspis citricola), the long scale (M. Gloveri), and the red scale (Aspidiotus Aurantii).

Or”ange, a. Of or pertaining to an orange; of the color of an orange; reddish yellow; as, an orange ribbon.

Or`ange*ade” (?), n. [F., fr. orange.] A drink made of orange juice and water, corresponding to lemonade; orange sherbet.

Or`an*geat” (?), n. [F., fr. orange.] Candied orange peel; also, orangeade.

Or”ange*ism (?), n. Attachment to the principles of the society of Orangemen; the tenets or practices of the Orangemen.

Or”ange*man (?), n.; pl. -men (&?;). One of a secret society, organized in the north of Ireland in 1795, the professed objects of which are the defense of the regning sovereign of Great Britain, the support of the Protestant religion, the maintenance of the laws of the kingdom, etc.; — so called in honor of William, Prince of Orange, who became William III. of England.

Or”ange*root` (?), n. (Bot.) An American ranunculaceous plant (Hidrastis Canadensis), having a yellow tuberous root; — also called yellowroot, golden seal, etc.

Or”an*ger*y (?), n. [F. orangerie, fr. orange. See Orange.] A place for raising oranges; a plantation of orange trees.

Or”ange*taw`ny (?), a. & n. Deep orange-yellow; dark yellow. Shak.

Or”an*gite (?), (Min.) An orange-yellow variety of the mineral thorite, found in Norway.

O*rang”-ou*tang` (?), n. [Malayan &?;rang &?;tan, i. e., man of the woods; &?;rang man + &?;tan a forest, wood, wild, savage.] (Zoöl.) An arboreal anthropoid ape (Simia satyrus), which inhabits Borneo and Sumatra. Often called simply orang. [Written also orang-outan, orang-utan, ourang- utang, and oran-utan.]

&fist; It is over four feet high, when full grown, and has very long arms, which reach nearly or quite to the ground when the body is erect. Its color is reddish brown. In structure, it closely resembles man in many respects.

O*ra”ri*an (?), a. [L. orarius, fr. ora coast.] Of or pertaining to a coast.

O*ra”tion (?), n.[L. oratio, fr. orare to speak, utter, pray. See Oral, Orison.] An elaborate discourse, delivered in public, treating an important subject in a formal and dignified manner; especially, a discourse having reference to some special occasion, as a funeral, an anniversary, a celebration, or the like; — distinguished from an argument in court, a popular harangue, a sermon, a lecture, etc.; as, Webster’s oration at Bunker Hill.

The lord archbishop . . . made a long oration.

Bacon.

Syn. — Address; speech. See Harangue.

O*ra”tion, v. i. To deliver an oration. Donne.

Or”a*tor (?), n. [L., fr. orare to speak, utter. See Oration.] 1. A public speaker; one who delivers an oration; especially, one distinguished for his skill and power as a public speaker; one who is eloquent.

I am no orator, as Brutus is.

Shak.

Some orator renowned
In Athens or free Rome.

Milton.

2. (Law) (a) In equity proceedings, one who prays for relief; a petitioner. (b) A plaintiff, or complainant, in a bill in chancery. Burrill.

3. (Eng. Universities) An officer who is the voice of the university upon all public occasions, who writes, reads, and records all letters of a public nature, presents, with an appropriate address, those persons on whom honorary degrees are to be conferred, and performs other like duties; — called also public orator.

Or`a*to”ri*al (?), a. Oratorical. [R.] Swift. — Or`a*to”ri*al*ly, adv.

Or`a*to”ri*an (?), a. Oratorical. [Obs.] R. North.

Or`a*to”ri*an, n. [Cf. F. oratorien.] (R. C. Ch.) See Fathers of the Oratory, under Oratory.

Or`a*tor”ic*al (?), a. Of or pertaining to an orator or to oratory; characterized by oratory; rhetorical; becoming to an orator; as, an oratorical triumph; an oratorical essay. — Or`a*tor”ic*al*ly, adv.

Or`a*to”ri*o (?), n. [It., fr. L. oratorius belonging to praying. See Orator, and cf. Oratory.]

1. (Mus.) A more or less dramatic text or poem, founded on some Scripture nerrative, or great divine event, elaborately set to music, in recitative, arias, grand choruses, etc., to be sung with an orchestral accompaniment, but without action, scenery, or costume, although the oratorio grew out of the Mysteries and the Miracle and Passion plays, which were acted.

&fist; There are instances of secular and mythological subjects treated in the form of the oratorios, and called oratorios by their composers; as Haydn’s “Seasons,” Handel’s “Semele,” etc.

2. Performance or rendering of such a composition.

Or`a*to”ri*ous (?), a. [LL. oratorius.] Oratorical. [Obs.] Jer. Taylor. — Or`a*to”ri*ous*ly, adv. [Obs.]

Or”a*tor*ize (?), v. i. To play the orator. [Jocose or derisive] Dickens.

Or”a*to*ry (?), n.; pl. Oratories (#). [OE. oratorie, fr. L. oratorium, fr. oratorius of praying, of an orator: cf. F. oratoire. See Orator, Oral, and cf. Oratorio.] A place of orisons, or prayer; especially, a chapel or small room set apart for private devotions.

An oratory [temple] . . . in worship of Dian.

Chaucer.

Do not omit thy prayers for want of a good oratory, or place to pray in.

Jer. Taylor.

Fathers of the Oratory (R. C. Ch.), a society of priests founded by St. Philip Neri, living in community, and not bound by a special vow. The members are called also oratorians.

Or”a*to*ry, n. [L. oratoria (sc. ars) the oratorical art.] The art of an orator; the art of public speaking in an eloquent or effective manner; the exercise of rhetorical skill in oral discourse; eloquence. “The oratory of Greece and Rome.” Milton.

When a world of men
Could not prevail with all their oratory.

Shak.

Or”a*tress (?), n. A woman who makes public addresses. Warner.

Or”a*trix (?), n. [L.] A woman plaintiff, or complainant, in equity pleading. Burrill.

Orb (?), n. [OF. orb blind, fr. L. orbus destitute.] (Arch.) A blank window or panel. [Obs.] Oxf. Gloss.

Orb, n. [F. orbe, fr. L. orbis circle, orb. Cf. Orbit.]

1. A spherical body; a globe; especially, one of the celestial spheres; a sun, planet, or star.

In the small orb of one particular tear.

Shak.

Whether the prime orb,
Incredible how swift, had thither rolled.

Milton.

2. One of the azure transparent spheres conceived by the ancients to be inclosed one within another, and to carry the heavenly bodies in their revolutions.

3. A circle; esp., a circle, or nearly circular orbit, described by the revolution of a heavenly body; an orbit.

The schoolmen were like astronomers, which did feign eccentrics, and epicycles, and such engines of orbs.

Bacon.

You seem to me as Dian in her orb.

Shak.

In orbs
Of circuit inexpressible they stood,
Orb within orb.

Milton.

4. A period of time marked off by the revolution of a heavenly body. [R.] Milton.

5. The eye, as luminous and spherical. [Poetic]

A drop serene hath quenched their orbs.

Milton.

6. A revolving circular body; a wheel. [Poetic]

The orbs
Of his fierce chariot rolled.

Milton.

7. A sphere of action. [R.] Wordsworth.

But in our orbs we’ll live so round and safe.

Shak

8. Same as Mound, a ball or globe. See lst Mound.

9. (Mil.) A body of soldiers drawn up in a circle, as for defense, esp. infantry to repel cavalry.

Syn. — Globe; ball; sphere. See Globe.

Orb (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Orbed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Orbing.] 1. To form into an orb or circle. [Poetic] Milton. Lowell.

2. To encircle; to surround; to inclose. [Poetic]

The wheels were orbed with gold.

Addison.

Orb, v. i. To become round like an orb. [Poetic]

And orb into the perfect star.

Tennyson.

Or”bate (?), a. [L. orbatus, p. p. of orbare to bereave, fr. orbus bereaved of parents or children. See Orphan.] Bereaved; fatherless; childless. [Obs.]

Or*ba”tion (?), n. [L. orbatio.] The state of being orbate, or deprived of parents or children; privation, in general; bereavement. [Obs.] Bp. Hall.

Orbed (?), a. Having the form of an orb; round.

The orbèd eyelids are let down.

Trench.

{ Or”bic (?), Or”bic*al (?), } a. [L. orbicus, or orbitus, fr. orbis orb.] Spherical; orbicular; orblike; circular. [R.] Bacon.

Or”bi*cle (?), n. [L. orbiculus, dim. of orbis orb.] A small orb, or sphere. [Obs.] G. Fletcher.

||Or*bic”u*la (?), n. [NL. See Orbicle.] (Zoöl.) Same as Discina.

Or*bic”u*lar (?), a. [L. orbicularis, fr. orbiculus, dim. of orbis orb: cf. F. orbiculaire.] Resembling or having the form of an orb; spherical; circular; orbiculate. — Or*bic”u*lar*ly, adv. — Or*bic”u*lar*ness, n.

Orbicular as the disk of a planet.

De Quincey.

Or*bic”u*late (?), n. That which is orbiculate; especially, a solid the vertical section of which is oval, and the horizontal section circular.

{ Or*bic”u*late (?), Or*bic”u*la`ted (?), } a. [L. orbiculatus. See Orbicular.] Made, or being, in the form of an orb; having a circular, or nearly circular, or a spheroidal, outline.

Orbiculate leaf (Bot.), a leaf whose outline is nearly circular.

Or*bic`u*la”tion (?), n. The state or quality of being orbiculate; orbicularness. Dr. H. More.

Or”bit (?), n. [L. orbita a track or rut made by a wheel, course, circuit, fr. orbis a circle: cf. F. orbite. See 2d Orb.] 1. (Astron.) The path described by a heavenly body in its periodical revolution around another body; as, the orbit of Jupiter, of the earth, of the moon.

2. An orb or ball. [Rare & Improper]

Roll the lucid orbit of an eye.

Young.

3. (Anat.) The cavity or socket of the skull in which the eye and its appendages are situated.

4. (Zoöl.) The skin which surrounds the eye of a bird.

Or”bit*al (?), a. Of or pertaining to an orbit. “Orbital revolution.” J. D. Forbes.

Orbital index (Anat.), in the skull, the ratio of the vertical height to the transverse width of the orbit, which is taken as the standard, equal to 100.

Or”bit*ar (?), a. [Cf. F. orbitaire.] Orbital. [R.] Dunglison.

Or”bit*a*ry (?), a. Situated around the orbit; as, the orbitary feathers of a bird.

||Or`bi*te”læ (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. L. orbis an orb + tela a web.] (Zoöl.) A division of spiders, including those that make geometrical webs, as the garden spider, or Epeira.

||Or`bi*to*li”tes (?), n. [NL. See Orbit, and -lite.] (Zoöl.) A genus of living Foraminifera, forming broad, thin, circular disks, containing numerous small chambers.

Or`bi*to*na”sal (?), a. [Orbit + nasal.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the orbit and the nose; as, the orbitonasal, or ophthalmic, nerve.

Or`bi*to*sphe”noid (?), a. [Orbit + sphenoid.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the sphenoid bone and the orbit, or to the orbitosphenoid bone. — n. The orbitosphenoid bone, which is situated in the orbit on either side of the presphenoid. It generally forms a part of the sphenoid in the adult.

Or`bi*to*sphe*noid”al (?), a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the orbitosphenoid bone; orbitosphenoid.

Or*bit”u*a*ry (?), a. Orbital. [R.]

{ Or”bi*tude (?), Or”bi*ty (?), } n. [L. orbitudo, orbitas, fr. orbus: cf. F. orbité. See Orbate.] Orbation. [Obs.] Bp. Hall.

||Or`bu*li”na (?), n. [NL., dim. of L. orbis orb.] (Zoöl.) A genus of minute living Foraminifera having a globular shell.

Orb”y (?), a. [From 2d Orb.] Orblike; having the course of an orb; revolving. [Obs.] “Orby hours.” Chapman.

Orc (?), n. [L. orca: cf. F. orque.] (Zoöl.) The grampus. [Written also ork and orch.] Milton.

Or*ca”di*an (?), a. [L. Orcades the Orkney Islands.] Of or pertaining to the Orkney Islands.

Or”ce*in (?), n. (Chem.) A reddish brown amorphous dyestuff, &?;, obtained from orcin, and forming the essential coloring matter of cudbear and archil. It is closely related to litmus.

Or”chal (?), n. See Archil.

Or”cha*net (?), n. [F. orcanète.] (Bot.) Same as Alkanet, 2. Ainsworth.

Or”chard (?), n. [AS. ortgeard, wyrtgeard, lit., wortyard, i. e., a yard for herbs; wyrt herb + geard yard. See Wort, Yard inclosure.] 1. A garden. [Obs.]

2. An inclosure containing fruit trees; also, the fruit trees, collectively; — used especially of apples, peaches, pears, cherries, plums, or the like, less frequently of nutbearing trees and of sugar maple trees.

Orchard grass (Bot.), a tall coarse grass (Dactylis glomerata), introduced into the United States from Europe. It grows usually in shady places, and is of value for forage and hay. — Orchard house (Hort.), a glazed structure in which fruit trees are reared in pots. — Orchard oriole (Zool.), a bright-colored American oriole (Icterus spurius), which frequents orchards. It is smaller and darker thah the Baltimore oriole.

Or”chard*ing (?), n. 1. The cultivation of orchards.

2. Orchards, in general.

Or”chard*ist, n. One who cultivates an orchard.

Or”chel (?), n. Archil.

Or`che*sog”ra*phy (?), n. [Gr. &?; dance + -graphy.] A treatise upon dancing. [R.]

Or”ches*ter (?), n. See Orchestra.

Or*ches”tian (?), n. [From Gr. &?; a dancer. See Orchestra.] (Zoöl.) Any species of amphipod crustacean of the genus Orchestia, or family Orchestidæ. See Beach flea, under Beach.

Or”ches*tra (?), n. [L. orchestra, Gr. &?;, orig., the place for the chorus of dancers, from &?; to dance: cf. F. orchestre.] 1. The space in a theater between the stage and the audience; — originally appropriated by the Greeks to the chorus and its evolutions, afterward by the Romans to persons of distinction, and by the moderns to a band of instrumental musicians.

2. The place in any public hall appropriated to a band of instrumental musicians.

3. (Mus.) (a) Loosely: A band of instrumental musicians performing in a theater, concert hall, or other place of public amusement. (b) Strictly: A band suitable for the performance of symphonies, overtures, etc., as well as for the accompaniment of operas, oratorios, cantatas, masses, and the like, or of vocal and instrumental solos. (c) A band composed, for the largest part, of players of the various viol instruments, many of each kind, together with a proper complement of wind instruments of wood and brass; — as distinguished from a military or street band of players on wind instruments, and from an assemblage of solo players for the rendering of concerted pieces, such as septets, octets, and the like.

4. (Mus.) The instruments employed by a full band, collectively; as, an orchestra of forty stringed instruments, with proper complement of wind instruments.

Or”ches*tral (?), a. Of or pertaining to an orchestra; suitable for, or performed in or by, an orchestra.

Or`ches*tra”tion (?), n. (Mus.) The arrangement of music for an orchestra; orchestral treatment of a composition; — called also instrumentation.

Or”ches*tre (?), n. [F.] See Orchestra.

Or*ches”tric (?), a. Orchestral.

Or*ches”tri*on (?), n. A large music box imitating a variety of orchestral instruments.

Or”chid (?), n. [See Orchis.] (Bot.) Any plant of the order Orchidaceæ. See Orchidaceous.

Or`chi*da”ceous (?), a. (Bot.) Pertaining to, or resembling, a natural order (Orchidaceæ) of endogenous plants of which the genus Orchis is the type. They are mostly perennial herbs having the stamens and pistils united in a single column, and normally three petals and three sepals, all adherent to the ovary. The flowers are curiously shaped, often resembling insects, the odd or lower petal (called the lip) being unlike the others, and sometimes of a strange and unexpected appearance. About one hundred species occur in the United States, but several thousand in the tropics.

&fist; Over three hundred genera are recognized.

Or*chid”e*an (?), a. (Bot.) Orchidaceous.

Or*chid”e*ous (?), a. (Bot.) Same as Orchidaceous.

Or`chid*ol”o*gist (?), n. One versed in orchidology.

Or`chid*ol”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. &?; the orchis + -logy.] The branch of botany which treats of orchids.

Or”chil (?), n. See Archil.

Or*chil”la weed` (?). (Bot.) The lichen from which archil is obtained. See Archil.

Or”chis (?), n.; pl. Orchises (#). [L., fr. Gr. &?; a testicle, the orchis; — so called from its tubers.]

1. (Bot.) A genus of endogenous plants growing in the North Temperate zone, and consisting of about eighty species. They are perennial herbs growing from a tuber (beside which is usually found the last year’s tuber also), and are valued for their showy flowers. See Orchidaceous.

2. (Bot.) Any plant of the same family with the orchis; an orchid.

&fist; The common names, such as bee orchis, fly orchis, butterfly orchis, etc., allude to the peculiar form of the flower.

||Or*chi”tis (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; a testicle + -itis.] (Med.) Inflammation of the testicles.

Or*chot”o*my (?), n. [Gr. &?; a testicle + &?; to cut.] (Surg.) The operation of cutting out or removing a testicle by the knife; castration.

Or”cin (?), n. [Etymology uncertain: cf. F. orcine.] (Chem.) A colorless crystalline substance, C_6H_3.CH_3.(OH)2, which is obtained from certain lichens (Roccella, Lecanora, etc.), also from extract of aloes, and artificially from certain derivatives of toluene. It changes readily into orcein.

Ord (?), n. [AS. ord point.] An edge or point; also, a beginning. [ Obs. or Prov. Eng.] Chaucer.

Ord and end, the beginning and end. Cf. Odds and ends, under Odds. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.] Chaucer. Halliwell.

Or*dain” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Ordained (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Ordaining.] [OE. ordeinen, OF. ordener, F. ordonner, fr. L. ordinare, from ordo, ordinis, order. See Order, and cf. Ordinance.] 1. To set in order; to arrange according to rule; to regulate; to set; to establish. “Battle well ordained.” Spenser.

The stake that shall be ordained on either side.

Chaucer.

2. To regulate, or establish, by appointment, decree, or law; to constitute; to decree; to appoint; to institute.

Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month.

1 Kings xii. 32.

And doth the power that man adores ordain
Their doom ?

Byron.

3. To set apart for an office; to appoint.

Being ordained his special governor.

Shak.

4. (Eccl.) To invest with ministerial or sacerdotal functions; to introduce into the office of the Christian ministry, by the laying on of hands, or other forms; to set apart by the ceremony of ordination.

Meletius was ordained by Arian bishops.

Bp. Stillingfleet.

Or*dain”a*ble (?), a. Capable of being ordained; worthy to be ordained or appointed. Bp. Hall.

Or*dain”er (?), n. One who ordains.

Or*dain”ment (?), n. Ordination. [R.] Burke.

Or”dal (?), n. Ordeal. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Or*da”li*an (?), a. [LL. ordalium.] Of or pertaining to trial by ordeal. [Obs.] Bp. Hall.

Or”de*al (ôr”d&esl;*al), n. [AS. ordāl, ord&aemacr;l, a judgment; akin to D. oordeel, G. urteil, urtheil; orig., what is dealt out, the prefix or- being akin to ā- compounded with verbs, G. er-, ur- , Goth. us-, orig. meaning, out. See Deal, v. & n., and cf. Arise, Ort.] 1. An ancient form of test to determine guilt or innocence, by appealing to a supernatural decision, — once common in Europe, and still practiced in the East and by savage tribes.

&fist; In England ordeal by fire and ordeal by water were used, the former confined to persons of rank, the latter to the common people. The ordeal by fire was performed, either by handling red-hot iron, or by walking barefoot and blindfold over red-hot plowshares, laid at unequal distances. If the person escaped unhurt, he was adjudged innocent; otherwise he was condemned as guilty. The ordeal by water was performed, either by plunging the bare arm to the elbow in boiling water, an escape from injury being taken as proof of innocence, or by casting the accused person, bound hand and foot, into a river or pond, when if he floated it was an evidence of guilt, but if he sunk he was acquitted. It is probable that the proverbial phrase, to go through fire and water, denoting severe trial or danger, is derived from the ordeal. See Wager of battle, under Wager.

2. Any severe trial, or test; a painful experience.

Ordeal bean. (Bot.) See Calabar bean, under Calabar. — Ordeal root (Bot.) the root of a species of Strychnos growing in West Africa, used, like the ordeal bean, in trials for witchcraft. — Ordeal tree (Bot.), a poisonous tree of Madagascar (Tanghinia, or Cerbera, venenata). Persons suspected of crime are forced to eat the seeds of the plumlike fruit, and criminals are put to death by being pricked with a lance dipped in the juice of the seeds.

Or”de*al, a. Of or pertaining to trial by ordeal.

Or”der (?), n. [OE. ordre, F. ordre, fr. L. ordo, ordinis. Cf. Ordain, Ordinal.]

1. Regular arrangement; any methodical or established succession or harmonious relation; method; system; as: (a) Of material things, like the books in a library. (b) Of intellectual notions or ideas, like the topics of a discource. (c) Of periods of time or occurrences, and the like.

The side chambers were . . . thirty in order.

Ezek. xli. 6.

Bright-harnessed angels sit in order serviceable.

Milton.

Good order is the foundation of all good things.

Burke.

2. Right arrangement; a normal, correct, or fit condition; as, the house is in order; the machinery is out of order. Locke.

3. The customary mode of procedure; established system, as in the conduct of debates or the transaction of business; usage; custom; fashion. Dantiel.

And, pregnant with his grander thought,
Brought the old order into doubt.

Emerson.

4. Conformity with law or decorum; freedom from disturbance; general tranquillity; public quiet; as, to preserve order in a community or an assembly.

5. That which prescribes a method of procedure; a rule or regulation made by competent authority; as, the rules and orders of the senate.

The church hath authority to establish that for an order at one time which at another time it may abolish.

Hooker.

6. A command; a mandate; a precept; a direction.

Upon this new fright, an order was made by both houses for disarming all the papists in England.

Clarendon.

7. Hence: A commission to purchase, sell, or supply goods; a direction, in writing, to pay money, to furnish supplies, to admit to a building, a place of entertainment, or the like; as, orders for blankets are large.

In those days were pit orders — beshrew the uncomfortable manager who abolished them.

Lamb.

8. A number of things or persons arranged in a fixed or suitable place, or relative position; a rank; a row; a grade; especially, a rank or class in society; a group or division of men in the same social or other position; also, a distinct character, kind, or sort; as, the higher or lower orders of society; talent of a high order.

They are in equal order to their several ends.

Jer. Taylor.

Various orders various ensigns bear.

Granville.

Which, to his order of mind, must have seemed little short of crime.

Hawthorne.

9. A body of persons having some common honorary distinction or rule of obligation; esp., a body of religious persons or aggregate of convents living under a common rule; as, the Order of the Bath; the Franciscan order.

Find a barefoot brother out,
One of our order, to associate me.

Shak.

The venerable order of the Knights Templars.

Sir W. Scott.

10. An ecclesiastical grade or rank, as of deacon, priest, or bishop; the office of the Christian ministry; — often used in the plural; as, to take orders, or to take holy orders, that is, to enter some grade of the ministry.

11. (Arch.) The disposition of a column and its component parts, and of the entablature resting upon it, in classical architecture; hence (as the column and entablature are the characteristic features of classical architecture) a style or manner of architectural designing.

&fist; The Greeks used three different orders, easy to distinguish, Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian. The Romans added the Tuscan, and changed the Doric so that it is hardly recognizable, and also used a modified Corinthian called Composite. The Renaissance writers on architecture recognized five orders as orthodox or classical, — Doric (the Roman sort), Ionic, Tuscan, Corinthian, and Composite. See Illust. of Capital.

12. (Nat. Hist.) An assemblage of genera having certain important characters in common; as, the Carnivora and Insectivora are orders of Mammalia.

&fist; The Linnæan artificial orders of plants rested mainly on identity in the numer of pistils, or agreement in some one character. Natural orders are groups of genera agreeing in the fundamental plan of their flowers and fruit. A natural order is usually (in botany) equivalent to a family, and may include several tribes.

13. (Rhet.) The placing of words and members in a sentence in such a manner as to contribute to force and beauty or clearness of expression.

14. (Math.) Rank; degree; thus, the order of a curve or surface is the same as the degree of its equation.

Artificial order or system. See Artificial classification, under Artificial, and Note to def. 12 above. — Close order (Mil.), the arrangement of the ranks with a distance of about half a pace between them; with a distance of about three yards the ranks are in open order. — The four Orders, The Orders four, the four orders of mendicant friars. See Friar. Chaucer. — General orders (Mil.), orders issued which concern the whole command, or the troops generally, in distinction from special orders. — Holy orders. (a) (Eccl.) The different grades of the Christian ministry; ordination to the ministry. See def. 10 above. (b) (R. C. Ch.) A sacrament for the purpose of conferring a special grace on those ordained. — In order to, for the purpose of; to the end; as means to.

The best knowledge is that which is of greatest use in order to our eternal happiness.

Tillotson.

— Minor orders (R. C. Ch.), orders beneath the diaconate in sacramental dignity, as acolyte, exorcist, reader, doorkeeper. — Money order. See under Money. — Natural order. (Bot.) See def. 12, Note. — Order book. (a) A merchant’s book in which orders are entered. (b) (Mil.) A book kept at headquarters, in which all orders are recorded for the information of officers and men. (c) A book in the House of Commons in which proposed orders must be entered. [Eng.] — Order in Council, a royal order issued with and by the advice of the Privy Council. [Great Britain] — Order of battle (Mil.), the particular disposition given to the troops of an army on the field of battle. — Order of the day, in legislative bodies, the special business appointed for a specified day. — Order of a differential equation (Math.), the greatest index of differentiation in the equation. — Sailing orders (Naut.), the final instructions given to the commander of a ship of war before a cruise. — Sealed orders, orders sealed, and not to be opened until a certain time, or arrival at a certain place, as after a ship is at sea. — Standing order. (a) A continuing regulation for the conduct of parliamentary business. (b) (Mil.) An order not subject to change by an officer temporarily in command. — To give order, to give command or directions. Shak. — To take order for, to take charge of; to make arrangements concerning.

Whiles I take order for mine own affairs.

Shak.

Syn. — Arrangement; management. See Direction.

Or”der (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Ordered (?); p pr. & vb. n. Ordering.] [From Order, n.] 1. To put in order; to reduce to a methodical arrangement; to arrange in a series, or with reference to an end. Hence, to regulate; to dispose; to direct; to rule.

To him that ordereth his conversation aright.

Ps. 1. 23.

Warriors old with ordered spear and shield.

Milton.

2. To give an order to; to command; as, to order troops to advance.

3. To give an order for; to secure by an order; as, to order a carriage; to order groceries.

4. (Eccl.) To admit to holy orders; to ordain; to receive into the ranks of the ministry.

These ordered folk be especially titled to God.

Chaucer.

Persons presented to be ordered deacons.

Bk. of Com. Prayer.

Order arms (Mil.), the command at which a rifle is brought to a position with its but resting on the ground; also, the position taken at such a command.

Or”der, v. i. To give orders; to issue commands.

Or”der*a*ble (?), a. Capable of being ordered; tractable. [R.]

Being very orderable in all his sickness.

Fuller.

Or”der*er (?), n. 1. One who puts in order, arranges, methodizes, or regulates.

2. One who gives orders.

Or”der*ing, n. Disposition; distribution; management. South.

Or”der*less, a. Being without order or regularity; disorderly; out of rule.

Or”der*li*ness (?), n. The state or quality of being orderly.

Or”der*ly, a. 1. Conformed to order; in order; regular; as, an orderly course or plan. Milton.

2. Observant of order, authority, or rule; hence, obedient; quiet; peaceable; not unruly; as, orderly children; an orderly community.

3. Performed in good or established order; well-regulated. “An orderly . . . march.” Clarendon.

4. Being on duty; keeping order; conveying orders. “Aids-de-camp and orderly men.” Sir W. Scott.

Orderly book (Mil.), a book for every company, in which the general and regimental orders are recorded. — Orderly officer, the officer of the day, or that officer of a corps or regiment whose turn it is to supervise for the day the arrangements for food, cleanliness, etc. Farrow. — Orderly room. (a) The court of the commanding officer, where charges against the men of the regiment are tried. (b) The office of the commanding officer, usually in the barracks, whence orders emanate. Farrow. — Orderly sergeant, the first sergeant of a company.

Or”der*ly (?), adv. According to due order; regularly; methodically; duly.

You are blunt; go to it orderly.

Shak.

Or”der*ly, n.; pl. Orderlies (&?;). 1. (Mil.) A noncommissioned officer or soldier who attends a superior officer to carry his orders, or to render other service.

Orderlies were appointed to watch the palace.

Macaulay.

2. A street sweeper. [Eng.] Mayhew.

Or`di*na*bil”i*ty (?), n. Capability of being ordained or appointed. [Obs.] Bp. Bull.

Or”di*na*ble (?), a. [See Ordinate, Ordain.] Capable of being ordained or appointed. [Obs.]

Or”di*nal (?), a. [L. ordinalis, fr. ordo, ordinis, order. See Order.] 1. Indicating order or succession; as, the ordinal numbers, first, second, third, etc.

2. Of or pertaining to an order.

Or”di*nal, n. 1. A word or number denoting order or succession.

2. (Ch. of Eng.) The book of forms for making, ordaining, and consecrating bishops, priests, and deacons.

3. (R. C. Ch.) A book containing the rubrics of the Mass. [Written also ordinale.]

Or”di*nal*ism (?), n. The state or quality of being ordinal. [R.] Latham.

Or”di*nance (?), n. [OE. ordenance, OF. ordenance, F. ordonnance. See Ordain, and cf. Ordnance, Ordonnance.]

1. Orderly arrangement; preparation; provision. [Obs.] Spenser.

They had made their ordinance
Of victual, and of other purveyance.

Chaucer.

2. A rule established by authority; a permanent rule of action; a statute, law, regulation, rescript, or accepted usage; an edict or decree; esp., a local law enacted by a municipal government; as, a municipal ordinance.

Thou wilt die by God’s just ordinance.

Shak.

By custom and the ordinance of times.

Shak.

Walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.

Luke i. 6.

&fist; Acts of Parliament are sometimes called ordinances; also, certain colonial laws and certain acts of Congress under Confederation; as, the ordinance of 1787 for the government of the territory of the United States northwest of the Ohio River; the colonial ordinance of 1641, or 1647. This word is often used in Scripture in the sense of a law or statute of sovereign power. Ex. xv. 25. Num. x. 8. Ezra iii. 10. Its most frequent application now in the United States is to laws and regulations of municipal corporations. Wharton (Law Dict.).

3. (Eccl.) An established rite or ceremony.

4. Rank; order; station. [Obs.] Shak.

5. [See Ordnance.] Ordnance; cannon. [Obs.] Shak.

Or”di*nand` (?), n. [L. ordinandus, gerundive of ordinare. See Ordain.] One about to be ordained.

Or”di*nant (?), a. [L. ordinans, p. pr. of ordinare. See Ordain.] Ordaining; decreeing. [Obs.] Shak.

Or”di*nant, n. One who ordains. F. G. Lee.

Or”di*na*ri*ly (?), adv. According to established rules or settled method; as a rule; commonly; usually; in most cases; as, a winter more than ordinarily severe.

Those who ordinarily pride themselves not a little upon their penetration.

I. Taylor.

Or”di*na*ry (?), a. [L. ordinarius, fr. ordo, ordinis, order: cf. F. ordinaire. See Order.] 1. According to established order; methodical; settled; regular. “The ordinary forms of law.” Addison.

2. Common; customary; usual. Shak.

Method is not less reguisite in ordinary conversation that in writing.

Addison.

3. Of common rank, quality, or ability; not distinguished by superior excellence or beauty; hence, not distinguished in any way; commonplace; inferior; of little merit; as, men of ordinary judgment; an ordinary book.

An ordinary lad would have acquired little or no useful knowledge in such a way.

Macaulay.

Ordinary seaman (Naut.), one not expert or fully skilled, and hence ranking below an able seaman.

Syn. — Normal; common; usual; customary. See Normal. — Ordinary, Common. A thing is common in which many persons share or partake; as, a common practice. A thing is ordinary when it is apt to come round in the regular common order or succession of events.

Or”di*na*ry, n.; pl. Ordinaries (-r&ibreve;z). 1. (Law) (a) (Roman Law) An officer who has original jurisdiction in his own right, and not by deputation. (b) (Eng. Law) One who has immediate jurisdiction in matters ecclesiastical; an ecclesiastical judge; also, a deputy of the bishop, or a clergyman appointed to perform divine service for condemned criminals and assist in preparing them for death. (c) (Am. Law) A judicial officer, having generally the powers of a judge of probate or a surrogate.

2. The mass; the common run. [Obs.]

I see no more in you than in the ordinary
Of nature’s salework.

Shak.

3. That which is so common, or continued, as to be considered a settled establishment or institution. [R.]

Spain had no other wars save those which were grown into an ordinary.

Bacon.

4. Anything which is in ordinary or common use.

Water buckets, wagons, cart wheels, plow socks, and other ordinaries.

Sir W. Scott.

5. A dining room or eating house where a meal is prepared for all comers, at a fixed price for the meal, in distinction from one where each dish is separately charged; a table d’hôte; hence, also, the meal furnished at such a dining room. Shak.

All the odd words they have picked up in a coffeehouse, or a gaming ordinary, are produced as flowers of style.

Swift.

He exacted a tribute for licenses to hawkers and peddlers and to ordinaries.

Bancroft.

6. (Her.) A charge or bearing of simple form, one of nine or ten which are in constant use. The bend, chevron, chief, cross, fesse, pale, and saltire are uniformly admitted as ordinaries. Some authorities include bar, bend sinister, pile, and others. See Subordinary.

In ordinary. (a) In actual and constant service; statedly attending and serving; as, a physician or chaplain in ordinary. An ambassador in ordinary is one constantly resident at a foreign court. (b) (Naut.) Out of commission and laid up; — said of a naval vessel. — Ordinary of the Mass (R. C. Ch.), the part of the Mass which is the same every day; — called also the canon of the Mass.

Or”di*na*ry*ship (?), n. The state of being an ordinary. [R.] Fuller.

Or”di*nate (?), a. [L. ordinatus, p. p. of ordinare. See Ordain.] Well-ordered; orderly; regular; methodical. “A life blissful and ordinate.” Chaucer.

Ordinate figure (Math.), a figure whose sides and angles are equal; a regular figure.

Or”di*nate, n. (Geom.) The distance of any point in a curve or a straight line, measured on a line called the axis of ordinates or on a line parallel to it, from another line called the axis of abscissas, on which the corresponding abscissa of the point is measured.

&fist; The ordinate and abscissa, taken together, are called coördinates, and define the position of the point with reference to the two axes named, the intersection of which is called the origin of coördinates. See Coordinate.

Or”di*nate (?), v. t. To appoint, to regulate; to harmonize. Bp. Hall.

Or”di*nate*ly (?), adv. In an ordinate manner; orderly. Chaucer. Skelton.

Or`di*na”tion (?), n. [L. ordinatio: cf. F. ordination.] 1. The act of ordaining, appointing, or setting apart; the state of being ordained, appointed, etc.

The holy and wise ordination of God.

Jer. Taylor.

Virtue and vice have a natural ordination to the happiness and misery of life respectively.

Norris.

2. (Eccl.) The act of setting apart to an office in the Christian ministry; the conferring of holy orders.

3. Disposition; arrangement; order. [R.]

Angle of ordination (Geom.), the angle between the axes of coördinates.

Or”di*na*tive (?), a. [L. ordinativus.] Tending to ordain; directing; giving order. [R.] Gauden.

Or”di*na`tor (?), n. [L.] One who ordains or establishes; a director. [R.] T. Adams.

Ord”nance (?), n. [From OE. ordenance, referring orig. to the bore or size of the cannon. See Ordinance.] Heavy weapons of warfare; cannon, or great guns, mortars, and howitzers; artillery; sometimes, a general term for all weapons and appliances used in war.

All the battlements their ordnance fire.

Shak.

Then you may hear afar off the awful roar of his [Rufus Choate’s] rifled ordnance.

E. Ererett.

Ordnance survey, the official survey of Great Britain and Ireland, conducted by the ordnance department.

Or”don*nance (?), n. [F. See Ordinance.] (Fine Arts) The disposition of the parts of any composition with regard to one another and the whole.

Their dramatic ordonnance of the parts.

Coleridge.

Or”don*nant (?), a. [F., p. pr. of ordonner. See Ordinant.] Of or pertaining to ordonnance. Dryden.

Or*do”vi*an (?), a. & n. (Geol.) Ordovician.

Or`do*vi”cian (?), a. [From L. Ordovices, a Celtic people in Wales.] (Geol.) Of or pertaining to a division of the Silurian formation, corresponding in general to the Lower Silurian of most authors, exclusive of the Cambrian. — n. The Ordovician formation.

Or”dure (?), n. [F. ordure, OF. ord filthy, foul, fr. L. horridus horrid. See Horrid.]

1. Dung; excrement; fæces. Shak.

2. Defect; imperfection; fault. [Obs.] Holland.

Or”dur*ous (?), a. Of or pertaining to ordure; filthy. Drayton.

Ore (ōr), n. [AS. ār.] Honor; grace; favor; mercy; clemency; happy augry. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Ore, n. [AS. āra; cf. ār brass, bronze, akin to OHG. ēr, G. ehern brazen, Icel. eir brass, Goth. ais, L. aes, Skr. ayas iron. √210. Cf. Ora, Era.]

1. The native form of a metal, whether free and uncombined, as gold, copper, etc., or combined, as iron, lead, etc. Usually the ores contain the metals combined with oxygen, sulphur, arsenic, etc. (called mineralizers).

2. (Mining) A native metal or its compound with the rock in which it occurs, after it has been picked over to throw out what is worthless.

3. Metal; as, the liquid ore. [R.] Milton.

Ore hearth, a low furnace in which rich lead ore is reduced; — also called Scotch hearth. Raymond.

O”re*ad (?), n. [L. Oreas, - adis, Gr. ‘Oreia`s, -a`dos, fr. ‘o`ros mountain: cf. F. oréade.] (Class. Myth.) One of the nymphs of mountains and grottoes.

Like a wood nymph light,
Oread or Dryad.

Milton.

||O*re”a*des (?), n. pl. [NL.] (Zoöl.) A group of butterflies which includes the satyrs. See Satyr, 2.

O*rec”tic (?), a. [Gr. ‘orektiko`s, fr. ‘o`rexis, yearning after, from ‘ore`gein to reach after.] (Philos.) Of or pertaining to the desires; hence, impelling to gratification; appetitive.

Or”e*gon grape` (&obreve;r”&esl;*g&obreve;n grāp`). (Bot.) An evergreen species of barberry (Berberis Aquifolium), of Oregon and California; also, its roundish, blue- black berries.

O”re*ide (?), n. See Oroide.

O”re*o*don (?), n. [Gr. ‘o`ros, -eos, mountain + ‘odoy`s, ‘odo`ntos, tooth.] (Paleon) A genus of extinct herbivorous mammals, abundant in the Tertiary formation of the Rocky Mountains. It is more or less related to the camel, hog, and deer.

O”re*o*dont (?), a. (Paleon.) Resembling, or allied to, the genus Oreodon.

O`re*o*graph”ic (?), a. Of or pertaining to oreography.

O`re*og”ra*phy (?), n. [Gr. ‘o`ros, -eos, mountain + -graphy.] The science of mountains; orography.

O`re*os”e*lin (?), n. (Chem.) A white crystalline substance which is obtained indirectly from the root of an umbelliferous plant (Imperatoria Oreoselinum), and yields resorcin on decomposition.

||O`re*o*so”ma (?), n. pl. [NL., from Gr. ‘o`ros, -eos, mountain + &?; body.] (Zoöl.) A genus of small oceanic fishes, remarkable for the large conical tubercles which cover the under surface.

Ore”weed` (?), n. Same as Oarweed.

Ore”wood` (?), n. Same as Oarweed.

{ Orf (?), Or”fe (?), } n. (Zoöl.) A bright-colored domesticated variety of the id. See Id.

Orf”gild` (?), n. [AS. orf, yrfe, cattle, property + gild, gield, money, fine.] (O. Eng. Law) Restitution for cattle; a penalty for taking away cattle. Cowell.

Or”fray (?), n. [F. orfraie. Cf. Osprey, Ossifrage.] (Zoöl.) The osprey. [Obs.] Holland.

Or”frays (?), n. [OF. orfrais, F. orfroi; F. or gold + fraise, frise, fringe, ruff. See Fraise, and cf. Auriphrygiate.] See Orphrey. [Obs.] Rom. of R.

Or”gal (?), n. (Chem.) See Argol. [Obs.]

Or”gan (?), n. [L. organum, Gr. &?;; akin to &?; work, and E. work: cf. F. organe. See Work, and cf. Orgue, Orgy.]

1. An instrument or medium by which some important action is performed, or an important end accomplished; as, legislatures, courts, armies, taxgatherers, etc., are organs of government.

2. (Biol.) A natural part or structure in an animal or a plant, capable of performing some special action (termed its function), which is essential to the life or well- being of the whole; as, the heart, lungs, etc., are organs of animals; the root, stem, foliage, etc., are organs of plants.

&fist; In animals the organs are generally made up of several tissues, one of which usually predominates, and determines the principal function of the organ. Groups of organs constitute a system. See System.

3. A component part performing an essential office in the working of any complex machine; as, the cylinder, valves, crank, etc., are organs of the steam engine.

4. A medium of communication between one person or body and another; as, the secretary of state is the organ of communication between the government and a foreign power; a newspaper is the organ of its editor, or of a party, sect, etc.

5. [Cf. AS. organ, fr. L. organum.] (Mus.) A wind instrument containing numerous pipes of various dimensions and kinds, which are filled with wind from a bellows, and played upon by means of keys similar to those of a piano, and sometimes by foot keys or pedals; — formerly used in the plural, each pipe being considired an organ.

The deep, majestic, solemn organs blow.

Pope.

&fist; Chaucer used the form orgon as a plural.

The merry orgon . . . that in the church goon [go].

Barrel organ, Choir organ, Great organ, etc. See under Barrel, Choir, etc. — Cabinet organ (Mus.), an organ of small size, as for a chapel or for domestic use; a reed organ. — Organ bird (Zoöl.), a Tasmanian crow shrike (Gymnorhina organicum). It utters discordant notes like those of a hand organ out of tune. — Organ fish (Zoöl.), the drumfish. — Organ gun. (Mil.) Same as Orgue (b). — Organ harmonium (Mus.), an harmonium of large capacity and power. — Organ of Gorti (Anat.), a complicated structure in the cochlea of the ear, including the auditory hair cells, the rods or fibers of Corti, the membrane of Corti, etc. See Note under Ear. — Organ pipe. See Pipe, n., 1. — Organ-pipe coral. (Zoöl.) See Tubipora. — Organ point (Mus.), a passage in which the tonic or dominant is sustained continuously by one part, while the other parts move.

Or”gan, v. t. To supply with an organ or organs; to fit with organs; to organize. [Obs.]

Thou art elemented and organed for other apprehensions.

Bp. Mannyngham.

{ Or”gan*die, Or”gan*dy } (?), n. [F. organdi.] A kind of transparent light muslin.

Or*gan”ic (?), a. [L. organicus, Gr. &?;: cf. F. organique.] 1. (Biol.) Of or pertaining to an organ or its functions, or to objects composed of organs; consisting of organs, or containing them; as, the organic structure of animals and plants; exhibiting characters peculiar to living organisms; as, organic bodies, organic life, organic remains. Cf. Inorganic.

2. Produced by the organs; as, organic pleasure. [R.]

3. Instrumental; acting as instruments of nature or of art to a certain destined function or end. [R.]

Those organic arts which enable men to discourse and write perspicuously.

Milton.

4. Forming a whole composed of organs. Hence: Of or pertaining to a system of organs; inherent in, or resulting from, a certain organization; as, an organic government; his love of truth was not inculcated, but organic.

5. Pertaining to, or denoting, any one of the large series of substances which, in nature or origin, are connected with vital processes, and include many substances of artificial production which may or may not occur in animals or plants; — contrasted with inorganic.

&fist; The principles of organic and inorganic chemistry are identical; but the enormous number and the completeness of related series of organic compounds, together with their remarkable facility of exchange and substitution, offer an illustration of chemical reaction and homology not to be paralleled in inorganic chemistry.

Organic analysis (Chem.), the analysis of organic compounds, concerned chiefly with the determination of carbon as carbon dioxide, hydrogen as water, oxygen as the difference between the sum of the others and 100 per cent, and nitrogen as free nitrogen, ammonia, or nitric oxide; — formerly called ultimate analysis, in distinction from proximate analysis. — Organic chemistry. See under Chemistry. — Organic compounds. (Chem.) See Carbon compounds, under Carbon. — Organic description of a curve (Geom.), the description of a curve on a plane by means of instruments. Brande & C. — Organic disease (Med.), a disease attended with morbid changes in the structure of the organs of the body or in the composition of its fluids; — opposed to functional disease. — Organic electricity. See under Electricity. — Organic law or laws, a law or system of laws, or declaration of principles fundamental to the existence and organization of a political or other association; a constitution. — Organic stricture (Med.), a contraction of one of the natural passages of the body produced by structural changes in its walls, as distinguished from a spasmodic stricture, which is due to muscular contraction.

Or*gan”ic*al (?), a. Organic.

The organical structure of human bodies, whereby they live and move.

Bentley.

Or*gan”ic*al*ly, adv. In an organic manner; by means of organs or with reference to organic functions; hence, fundamentally. Gladstone.

Or*gan”ic*al*ness, n. The quality or state of being organic.

Or*gan”i*cism (?), n. (Med.) The doctrine of the localization of disease, or which refers it always to a material lesion of an organ. Dunglison.

Or`gan*if”ic (?), a. [Organ + L. -ficare (in comp.) to make. See fy.] Making an organic or organized structure; producing an organism; acting through, or resulting from, organs. Prof. Park.

Or”gan*ism (?), n. [Cf. F. organisme.]

1. Organic structure; organization. “The advantageous organism of the eye.” Grew.

2. (Biol.) An organized being; a living body, either vegetable or animal, compozed of different organs or parts with functions which are separate, but mutually dependent, and essential to the life of the individual.

&fist; Some of the lower forms of life are so simple in structure as to be without organs, but are still called organisms, since they have different parts analogous in functions to the organs of higher plants and animals.

Or”gan*ist, n. [Cf. F. organiste.] 1. (Mus.) One who plays on the organ.

2. (R. C. Ch.) One of the priests who organized or sung in parts. [Obs.]

||Or`ga*nis”ta (?), n. [Sp., an organis.] (Zoöl.) Any one of several South American wrens, noted for the sweetness of their song.

Or*gan”i*ty (?), n. Organism. [R.]

Or`gan*i`za*bil”i*ty (?), n. Quality of being organizable; capability of being organized.

Or”gan*i`za*ble (?), a. Capable of being organized; esp. (Biol.), capable of being formed into living tissue; as, organizable matter.

Or`gan*i*za”tion (?), n. [Cf. F. organisation.]

1. The act of organizing; the act of arranging in a systematic way for use or action; as, the organization of an army, or of a deliberative body. “The first organization of the general government.” Pickering.

2. The state of being organized; also, the relations included in such a state or condition.

What is organization but the connection of parts in and for a whole, so that each part is, at once, end and means?

Coleridge.

3. That which is organized; an organized existence; an organism; specif. (Biol.), an arrangement of parts for the performance of the functions necessary to life.

The cell may be regarded as the most simple, the most common, and the earliest form of organization.

McKendrick.

Or”gan*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Organized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Organizing (?).] [Cf. F. organiser, Gr. &?;. See Organ.] 1. (Biol.) To furnish with organs; to give an organic structure to; to endow with capacity for the functions of life; as, an organized being; organized matter; — in this sense used chiefly in the past participle.

These nobler faculties of the mind, matter organized could never produce.

Ray.

2. To arrange or constitute in parts, each having a special function, act, office, or relation; to systematize; to get into working order; — applied to products of the human intellect, or to human institutions and undertakings, as a science, a government, an army, a war, etc.

This original and supreme will organizes the government.

Cranch.

3. (Mus.) To sing in parts; as, to organize an anthem. [R.] Busby.

Or”gan*i`zer (?), n. One who organizes.

Or”gan*ling (?), n. (Zoöl.) A large kind of sea fish; the orgeis.

Or”ga*no- (?). [See Organ.] A combining form denoting relation to, or connection with, an organ or organs.

Or*gan”o*gen (?), n. [Organo- + -gen.] (Chem.) A name given to any one of the four elements, carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen, which are especially characteristic ingredients of organic compounds; also, by extension, to other elements sometimes found in the same connection; as sulphur, phosphorus, etc.

Or`ga*no*gen”e*sis (?), n. [Organo- + genesis.]

1. (Biol.) The origin and development of organs in animals and plants.

2. (Biol.) The germ history of the organs and systems of organs, — a branch of morphogeny. Haeckel.

Or`ga*no*gen”ic (?), a. (Biol.) Of or pertaining to organogenesis.

Or`ga*nog”e*ny (?), n. (Biol.) Organogenesis.

{ Or`ga*no*graph”ic (?), Or`ga*no*graph”ic*al (?), } a. [Cf. F. organographique.] Of or pertaining to organography.

Or`ga*nog”ra*phist (?), n. One versed in organography.

Or`ga*nog”ra*phy (?), n. [Organo- + -graphy: cf. F. organographie.] A description of the organs of animals or plants.

Or`ga*no*lep”tic (?), a. [F. organoleptique, fr. Gr. &?; an organ + &?; to lay hold of.] (Physiol.) Making an impression upon an organ; plastic; – - said of the effect or impression produced by any substance on the organs of touch, taste, or smell, and also on the organism as a whole.

Or`ga*no*log”ic*al (?), a. Of or relating to organology.

Or`ga*nol”o*gy (?), n. [Organ + -logy: cf. F. organologie.] 1. The science of organs or of anything considered as an organic structure.

The science of style, as an organ of thought, of style in relation to the ideas and feelings, might be called the organology of style.

De Quincey.

2. That branch of biology which treats, in particular, of the organs of animals and plants. See Morphology.

Or`ga*no*me*tal”lic (?), a. (Chem.) Metalorganic.

{ ||Or”ga*non (?), ||Or”ga*num (?), } n. [NL. organon, L. organum. See Organ.] An organ or instrument; hence, a method by which philosophical or scientific investigation may be conducted; — a term adopted from the Aristotelian writers by Lord Bacon, as the title (“Novum Organon“) of part of his treatise on philosophical method. Sir. W. Hamilton.

Or`ga*non”y*my (?), n. [Organo- + Gr.&?;, for &?;, a name.] (Biol.) The designation or nomenclature of organs. B. G. Wilder.

Or`ga*noph”y*ly (?), n. [Organo- + Gr. &?; clan.] (Biol.) The tribal history of organs, — a branch of morphophyly. Haeckel.

Or`ga*no*plas”tic (?), a. [Organo- + -plastic.] (Biol.) Having the property of producing the tissues or organs of animals and plants; as, the organoplastic cells.

Or`ga*nos”co*py (?), n. [Organo- + -scopy.] Phrenology. Fleming.

Or`ga*no*troph”ic (?), a. [Organo- + Gr. &?; to nourish.] (Biol.) Relating to the creation, organization, and nutrition of living organs or parts.

Or”gan*ule (?), n. [Dim. of organ.] (Anat.) One of the essential cells or elements of an organ. See Sense organule, under Sense. Huxley.

Or”ga*ny (?), n. [AS. Organe, from the Latin. See Origan.] (Bot.) See Origan.

Or”gan*zine (?), n. [F. organsin; cf. Sp. organsino, It. organzino.] A kind of double thrown silk of very fine texture, that is, silk twisted like a rope with different strands, so as to increase its strength.

Or”gasm (?), n. [F. orgasme; cf. Gr. &?; a kneading, softening, prob. confused with &?; to swell, espicially with lust; to feel an ardent desire.] (Physiol.) Eager or immoderate excitement or action; the state of turgescence of any organ; erethism; esp., the height of venereal excitement in sexual intercourse.

Or”geat (?), n. [F., fr. orge barley, L. hordeum.] A sirup in which, formerly, a decoction of barley entered, but which is now prepared with an emulsion of almonds, — used to flavor beverages or edibles.

Or”ge*is (?), n. (Zoöl.) See Organling.

Or`gi*as”tic (?), a. [Gr. &?;. See Orgy.] Pertaining to, or of the nature of, orgies. Elton.

Or”gies (?), n. pl.; sing. Orgy (&?;). [The singular is rarely used.] [F. orgie, orgies, L. orgia, pl., Gr. &?;; akin to &?; work. See Organ, and Work.]

1. A sacrifice accompanied by certain ceremonies in honor of some pagan deity; especially, the ceremonies observed by the Greeks and Romans in the worship of Dionysus, or Bacchus, which were characterized by wild and dissolute revelry.

As when, with crowned cups, unto the Elian god,
Those priests high orgies held.

Drayton.

2. Drunken revelry; a carouse. B. Jonson. Tennyson.

Or”gil*lous (?), a. [OF. orguillous, F. orgueilleux, fr. OF. orgoil pride, F. orgueil.] Proud; haughty. [Obs.] Shak.

Orgue (?), n. [F., fr. L. organum organ, Gr. &?;. See Organ.] (Mil.) (a) Any one of a number of long, thick pieces of timber, pointed and shod with iron, and suspended, each by a separate rope, over a gateway, to be let down in case of attack. (b) A piece of ordnance, consisting of a number of musket barrels arranged so that a match or train may connect with all their touchholes, and a discharge be secured almost or quite simultaneously.

Or”gu*lous (?), a. See Orgillous. [Obs.]

Or”gy (?), n.; pl. Orgies (&?;). A frantic revel; drunken revelry. See Orgies

||Or*gy”i*a (&?;), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; the length of the outstretched arms. So named because, when at rest, it stretches forward its fore legs like arms.] (Zoöl.). A genus of bombycid moths whose caterpillars (esp. those of Orgyia leucostigma) are often very injurious to fruit trees and shade trees. The female is wingless. Called also vaporer moth.

Or”i*calche (?), n. [Obs.] See Orichalch.

Costly oricalche from strange Phœnice.

Spenser.

Or`i*chal”ce*ous (?), a. Pertaining to, or resembling, orichalch; having a color or luster like that of brass. Maunder.

Or”i*chalch (?), n. [L. orichalcum, Gr. &?;; ‘o`ros, mountain + chalko`s brass: cf. F. orichalque.] A metallic substance, resembling gold in color, but inferior in value; a mixed metal of the ancients, resembling brass; — called also aurichalcum, orichalcum, etc.

O”ri*el (?), n. [OF. oriol gallery, corridor, LL. oriolum portico, hall, prob. fr. L. aureolus gilded, applied to an apartment decorated with gilding. See Oriole.] [Formerly written also oriol, oryal, oryall.]

1. A gallery for minstrels. [Obs.] W. Hamper.

2. A small apartment next a hall, where certain persons were accustomed to dine; a sort of recess. [Obs.] Cowell.

3. (Arch.) A bay window. See Bay window.

The beams that thro’ the oriel shine
Make prisms in every carven glass.

Tennyson.

&fist; There is no generally admitted difference between a bay window and an oriel. In the United States the latter name is often applied to bay windows which are small, and either polygonal or round; also, to such as are corbeled out from the wall instead of resting on the ground.

O”ri*en*cy (?), n. [See Orient.] Brightness or strength of color. [R.] E. Waterhouse.

O”ri*ent (?), a. [F., fr. L. oriens, -entis, p. pr. of oriri to rise. See Origin.] 1. Rising, as the sun.

Moon, that now meet’st the orient sun.

Milton.

2. Eastern; oriental. “The orient part.” Hakluyt.

3. Bright; lustrous; superior; pure; perfect; pellucid; — used of gems and also figuratively, because the most perfect jewels are found in the East. “Pearls round and orient.” Jer. Taylor. “Orient gems.” Wordsworth. “Orient liquor in a crystal glass.” Milton.

O”ri*ent, n. 1. The part of the horizon where the sun first appears in the morning; the east.

[Morn] came furrowing all the orient into gold.

Tennyson.

2. The countries of Asia or the East. Chaucer.

Best built city throughout the Orient.

Sir T. Herbert.

3. A pearl of great luster. [R.] Carlyle.

O”ri*ent (?), v. t. [F. orienter. Cf. Orientate.]

1. To define the position of, in relation to the orient or east; hence, to ascertain the bearings of.

2. Fig.: To correct or set right by recurring to first principles; to arrange in order; to orientate.

O`ri*en”tal (?), a. [L. orientalis: cf. F. oriental.] Of or pertaining to the orient or east; eastern; concerned with the East or Orientalism; — opposed to occidental; as, Oriental countries.

The sun’s ascendant and oriental radiations.

Sir T. Browne.

O`ri*en”tal, n. 1. A native or inhabitant of the Orient or some Eastern part of the world; an Asiatic.

2. pl. (Eccl.) Eastern Christians of the Greek rite.

O`ri*en”tal*ism (?), n. [Cf. F. orientalisme.]

1. Any system, doctrine, custom, expression, etc., peculiar to Oriental people.

2. Knowledge or use of Oriental languages, history, literature, etc. London Quart. Rev.

O`ri*en”tal*ist, n. [Cf. F. orientaliste.]

1. An inhabitant of the Eastern parts of the world; an Oriental.

2. One versed in Eastern languages, literature, etc.; as, the Paris Congress of Orientalists. Sir J. Shore.

O`ri*en*tal”i*ty (?), n. The quality or state of being oriental or eastern. Sir T. Browne.

O`ri*en”tal*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Orientalized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Orientalizing (?).] to render Oriental; to cause to conform to Oriental manners or conditions.

O”ri*en*tate (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Orientated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Orientating.] [From Orient.]

1. To place or turn toward the east; to cause to assume an easterly direction, or to veer eastward.

2. To arrange in order; to dispose or place (a body) so as to show its relation to other bodies, or the relation of its parts among themselves.

A crystal is orientated when placed in its proper position so as to exhibit its symmetry.

E. S. Dana.

O”ri*en*tate, v. i. To move or turn toward the east; to veer from the north or south toward the east.

O`ri*en*ta”tion (?), n. [Cf. F. orientation.]

1. The act or process of orientating; determination of the points of the compass, or the east point, in taking bearings.

2. The tendency of a revolving body, when suspended in a certain way, to bring the axis of rotation into parallelism with the earth’s axis.

3. An aspect or fronting to the east; especially (Arch.), the placing of a church so that the chancel, containing the altar toward which the congregation fronts in worship, will be on the east end.

4. Fig.: A return to first principles; an orderly arrangement.

The task of orientation undertaken in this chapter.

L. F. Ward.

O”ri*ent*ness (?), n. The quality or state of being orient or bright; splendor. [Obs.] Fuller.

Or”i*fice (?), n. [F., from L. orificium; os, oris, a mouth + facere to make. See Oral, and Fact.] A mouth or aperture, as of a tube, pipe, etc.; an opening; as, the orifice of an artery or vein; the orifice of a wound. Shak.

Etna was bored through the top with a monstrous orifice.

Addison.

{ Or”i*flamb, Or”i*flamme } (?), n. [F. oriflamme, OF. oriflambe, LL. auriflamma; L. aurum gold + flamma flame; cf. L. flammula a little banner. So called because it was a flag of red silk, split into many points, and borne on a gilded lance.] 1. The ancient royal standard of France.

2. A standard or ensign, in battle. “A handkerchief like an oriflamb.” Longfellow.

And be your oriflamme to-day the helmet of Navarre.

Macaulay.

{ Or”i*gan (?), ||O*rig”a*num (?), } n. [L. origanum, Gr. &?;, &?;, prob. fr. ‘o`ros, mountain + &?; brightness, beauty. Cf. Organy.] (Bot.) A genus of aromatic labiate plants, including the sweet marjoram (O. Marjorana) and the wild marjoram (O. vulgare). Spenser.

Or”i*gen*ism (?), n. (Eccl. Hist.) The opinions of Origen of Alexandria, who lived in the 3d century, one of the most learned of the Greek Fathers. Prominent in his teaching was the doctrine that all created beings, including Satan, will ultimately be saved.

Or”i*gen*ist, n. A follower of Origen of Alexandria.

Or”i*gin (?), n. [F. origine, L. origo, -iginis, fr. oriri to rise, become visible; akin to Gr. ‘orny`nai to stir up, rouse, Skr. &rsdot;, and perh. to E. run.]

1. The first existence or beginning of anything; the birth.

This mixed system of opinion and sentiment had its origin in the ancient chivalry.

Burke.

2. That from which anything primarily proceeds; the fountain; the spring; the cause; the occasion.

3. (Anat.) The point of attachment or end of a muscle which is fixed during contraction; — in contradistinction to insertion.

Origin of coördinate axes (Math.), the point where the axes intersect. See Note under Ordinate.

Syn. — Commencement; rise; source; spring; fountain; derivation; cause; root; foundation. — Origin, Source. Origin denotes the rise or commencement of a thing; source presents itself under the image of a fountain flowing forth in a continuous stream of influences. The origin of moral evil has been much disputed, but no one can doubt that it is the source of most of the calamities of our race.

I think he would have set out just as he did, with the origin of ideas — the proper starting point of a grammarian, who is to treat of their signs.

Tooke.

Famous Greece,
That source of art and cultivated thought
Which they to Rome, and Romans hither, brought.

Waller.

O*rig”i*na*ble (?), a. Capable of being originated.

O*rig”i*nal (?), a. [F. original, L. originalis.]

1. Pertaining to the origin or beginning; preceding all others; first in order; primitive; primary; pristine; as, the original state of man; the original laws of a country; the original inventor of a process.

His form had yet not lost
All her original brightness.

Milton.

2. Not copied, imitated, or translated; new; fresh; genuine; as, an original thought; an original process; the original text of Scripture.

3. Having the power to suggest new thoughts or combinations of thought; inventive; as, an original genius.

4. Before unused or unknown; new; as, a book full of original matter.

Original sin (Theol.), the first sin of Adam, as related to its consequences to his descendants of the human race; — called also total depravity. See Calvinism.

O*rig”i*nal, n. [Cf. F. original.]

1. Origin; commencement; source.

It hath it original from much grief.

Shak.

And spangled heavens, a shining frame,
Their great Original proclaim.

Addison.

2. That which precedes all others of its class; archetype; first copy; hence, an original work of art, manuscript, text, and the like, as distinguished from a copy, translation, etc.

The Scriptures may be now read in their own original.

Milton.

3. An original thinker or writer; an originator. [R.]

Men who are bad at copying, yet are good originals.

C. G. Leland.

4. A person of marked eccentricity. [Colloq.]

5. (Zoöl. & Bot.) The natural or wild species from which a domesticated or cultivated variety has been derived; as, the wolf is thought by some to be the original of the dog, the blackthorn the original of the plum.

O*rig”i*nal*ist, n. One who is original. [R.]

O*rig`i*nal”i*ty (?), n. [Cf. F. originalité.] The quality or state of being original. Macaulay.

O*rig”i*nal*ly (?), adv. 1. In the original time, or in an original manner; primarily; from the beginning or origin; not by derivation, or imitation.

God is originally holy in himself.

Bp. Pearson.

2. At first; at the origin; at the time of formation or costruction; as, a book originally written by another hand. “Originally a half length [portrait].” Walpole.

O*rig”i*nal*ness (?), n. The quality of being original; originality. [R.] Johnson.

O*rig”i*nant (?), a. Originating; original. [R.]

An absolutely originant act of self will.

Prof. Shedd.

O*rig”i*na*ry (?), a. [L. originarius: cf. F. originaire.] 1. Causing existence; productive. [R.]

The production of animals, in the originary way, requires a certain degree of warmth.

Cheyne.

2. Primitive; primary; original. [R.]

The grand originary right of all rights.

Hickok.

O*rig”i*nate (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Originated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Originating.] [From Origin.] To give an origin or beginning to; to cause to be; to bring into existence; to produce as new.

A decomposition of the whole civill and political mass, for the purpose of originating a new civil order.

Burke.

O*rig”i*nate, v. i. To take first existence; to have origin or beginning; to begin to exist or act; as, the scheme originated with the governor and council.

O*rig`i*na”tion (?), n. [L. originatio.]

1. The act or process of bringing or coming into existence; first production. “The origination of the universe.” Keill.

What comes from spirit is a spontaneous origination.

Hickok.

2. Mode of production, or bringing into being.

This eruca is propagated by animal parents, to wit, butterflies, after the common origination of all caterpillars.

Ray.

O*rig”i*na*tive (?), a. Having power, or tending, to originate, or bring into existence; originating. H. Bushnell. — O*rig”i*na*tive*ly, adv.

O*rig”i*na`tor (?), n. One who originates.

O*ril”lon (?), n. [F., lit., a little ear, from oreille an ear, fr. L. oricula, auricula, dim. of auris an ear. See Ear.] (Fort.) A semicircular projection made at the shoulder of a bastion for the purpose of covering the retired flank, — found in old fortresses.

O”ri*ol (?), n. See Oriel.

O”ri*ole (?), n. [OF. oriol, oriouz, orieus, F. loriot (for l’oriol), fr. L. aureolus golden, dim. of aureus golden, fr. aurum gold. Cf. Aureole, Oriel, Loriot.] (Zoöl.) (a) Any one of various species of Old World singing birds of the family Oriolidæ. They are usually conspicuously colored with yellow and black. The European or golden oriole (Oriolus galbula, or O. oriolus) has a very musical flutelike note. (b) In America, any one of several species of the genus Icterus, belonging to the family Icteridæ. See Baltimore oriole, and Orchard oriole, under Orchard.

Crested oriole. (Zoöl.) See Cassican.

O*ri”on (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?;, orig., a celebrated hunter in the oldest Greek mythology, after whom this constellation was named.] (Astron.) A large and bright constellation on the equator, between the stars Aldebaran and Sirius. It contains a remarkable nebula visible to the naked eye.

The flaming glories of Orion’s belt.

E. Everett.

O*ris”ka*ny (?), a. [From Oriskany, in New York.] (Geol.) Designating, or pertaining to, certain beds, chiefly limestone, characteristic of the latest period of the Silurian age.

Oriskany period, a subdivision of the American Paleozoic system intermediate or translational in character between the Silurian and Devonian ages. See Chart of Geology.

O*ris`mo*log”ic*al (?), a. (Nat. Hist.) Of or pertaining to orismology.

O`ris*mol”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. &?; a marking out by boundaries, the definition of a word + -logy. See Horizon.] That departament of natural history which treats of technical terms.

Or”i*son (?), n. [OF. orison, oreson, oreison, F. oraison, fr. L. oratio speech, prayer. See Oration.] A prayer; a supplication. [Poetic] Chaucer. Shak.

Lowly they bowed, adoring, and began
Their orisons, each morning duly paid.

Milton.

Or”i*sont (?), n. Horizon. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Ork (?), n. (Zoöl.) See Orc.

Ork”ney*an (?), a. Of or pertaining to the Orkney islands. “Orkneyan skerries.” Longfellow.

Orle (?), n. [F. orle an orle, a fillet, fr. LL. orla border, dim. of L. ora border, margin.]

1. (Her.) A bearing, in the form of a fillet, round the shield, within, but at some distance from, the border.

2. (Her.) The wreath, or chaplet, surmounting or encircling the helmet of a knight and bearing the crest.

In orle, round the escutcheon, leaving the middle of the field vacant, or occupied by something else; — said of bearings arranged on the shield in the form of an orle.

Or”le*ans (?), n. [So called from the city of Orléans, in France.] 1. A cloth made of worsted and cotton, — used for wearing apparel.

2. A variety of the plum. See under Plum. [Eng.]

||Or”lo (?), n. [Sp.] (Mus.) A wind instrument of music in use among the Spaniards.

Or”lop (?), n. [D. overloop the upper deck, lit., a running over or overflowing, fr. overloopen to run over. See Over, and Leap, and cf. Overloop.] (Naut.) The lowest deck of a vessel, esp. of a ship of war, consisting of a platform laid over the beams in the hold, on which the cables are coiled.

Or”mer (?), n. (Zoöl.) An abalone.

Or`mo*lu” (?), n. [F. or moulu; or gold (L. aurum) + moulu, p. p. of moudre to grind, to mill, L. molere. See Aureate, and Mill.] A variety of brass made to resemble gold by the use of less zinc and more copper in its composition than ordinary brass contains. Its golden color is often heightened by means of lacquer of some sort, or by use of acids. Called also mosaic gold.

Ormolu varnish, a varnish applied to metals, as brass, to give the appearance of gold.

||Or”muzd (?), n. [Zend Ahuramazda.] The good principle, or being, of the ancient Persian religion. See Ahriman.

Orn (?), v. t. To ornament; to adorn. [Obs.] Joye.

Or”na*ment (?), n. [OE. ornement, F. ornement, fr. L. ornamentum, fr. ornare to adorn.] That which embellishes or adorns; that which adds grace or beauty; embellishment; decoration; adornment.

The ornament of a meek and quiet spirit.

1 Pet. iii. 4.

Like that long-buried body of the king
Found lying with his urns and ornaments.

Tennyson.

Or”na*ment (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Ornamented; p. pr. & vb. n. Ornamenting.] To adorn; to deck; to embellish; to beautify; as, to ornament a room, or a city.

Syn. — See Adorn.

Or`na*men”tal (?), a. [Cf. F. ornemental.] Serving to ornament; characterized by ornament; beautifying; embellishing.

Some think it most ornamental to wear their bracelets on their wrists; others, about their ankles.

Sir T. Browne.

Or`na*men”tal*ly, adv. By way of ornament.

Or`na*men*ta”tion (?), n. 1. The act or art of ornamenting, or the state of being ornamented.

2. That which ornaments; ornament. C. Kingsley.

Or”na*ment*er (?), n. One who ornaments; a decorator.

Or*nate” (?), a. [L. ornatus, p. p. of ornare to adorn.] 1. Adorned; decorated; beautiful. “So bedecked, ornate, and gay.” Milton.

2. Finely finished, as a style of composition.

A graceful and ornate rhetoric.

Milton.

Or*nate”, v. t. To adorn; to honor. [R.]

They may ornate and sanctify the name of God.

Latimer.

Or*nate”ly, adv. In an ornate manner. Sir T. More.

Or*nate”ness, n. The quality of being ornate.

Or”na*ture (?), n. [L. ornatura.] Decoration; ornamentation. [R.] Holinshed.

Or*nith”ic (?), a. [Gr. &?;, &?;, a bird.] Of or pertaining to birds; as, ornithic fossils. Owen.

Or`nith*ich”nite (?), n. [Ornitho- + Gr. &?; track.] (Paleon.) The footmark of a bird occurring in strata of stone. Hitchcock.

Or`nith*ich*nol”o*gy (?), n. [Ornitho- + ichnology.] (Paleon.) The branch of science which treats of ornithichnites. Hitchcock.

Ornitho-. [Cf. Ern.] A combining form fr. Gr. &?;, &?;, a bird.

||Or*ni`tho*del”phi*a (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; + &?; the womb.] Same as Monotremata. – - Or`ni*tho*del”phid (#), a.

Or`ni*thoid*ich”nite (?), n. [Ornitho- + -oid + Gr. &?; footstep, track.] (Paleon.) A fossil track resembling that of a bird. Hitchcock.

Or*nith”o*lite (?), n. [Ornitho- + -lite.] (Paleon.) (a) The fossil remains of a bird. (b) A stone of various colors bearing the figures of birds.

{ Or`ni*tho*log”ic (?), Or`ni*tho*log”ic*al (?), } a. [Cf. F. ornithologique.] Of or pertaining to ornithology.

Or`ni*thol”o*gist (?), n. [Cf. F. ornithologiste.] One skilled in ornithology; a student of ornithology; one who describes birds.

Or`ni*thol”o*gy (?), n. [Ornitho- + -logy: cf. F. ornithologie.] 1. That branch of zoölogy which treats of the natural history of birds and their classification.

2. A treatise or book on this science.

Or*nith”o*man`cy (?), n. [Gr. &?;; &?;, &?;, a bird + &?; divination: cf. F. ornithomancie.] Divination by means of birds, their flight, etc.

Ornithomancy grew into an elaborate science.

De Quincey.

||Or*ni”thon (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?;, fr. &?;, &?;, a bird.] An aviary; a poultry house. Weale.

||Or*ni`tho*pap”pi (?), n. pl. [NL., from Gr. &?; a bird + &?; an ancestor.] (Zoöl.) An extinct order of birds. It includes only the Archæopteryx.

||Or`ni*thop”o*da (?), n. pl. [NL. See Ornitho-, and -poda.] (Paleon.) An order of herbivorous dinosaurs with birdlike characteristics in the skeleton, esp. in the pelvis and hind legs, which in some genera had only three functional toes, and supported the body in walking as in Iguanodon. See Illust. in Appendix.

||Or`ni*tho*rhyn”chus (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;, &?;, a bird + &?; snout, beak.] (Zoöl.) See Duck mole, under Duck.

||Or*ni`tho*sau”ri*a (?), n. pl. [NL. See Ornitho-, and Sauria.] (Paleon.) An order of extinct flying reptiles; — called also Pterosauria.

||Or*ni`tho*scel”i*da (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;, &?;, a bird + &?; a leg.] (Zoöl.) A group of extinct Reptilia, intermediate in structure (especially with regard to the pelvis) between reptiles and birds. — Or`ni*tho*scel”i*dan (#), a.

Or`ni*thos”co*py (?), n. [Ornitho- + -scopy: cf. Gr. &?; divination from birds.] Observation of birds and their habits. [R.] De Quincey.

Or`ni*tho*tom”ic*al (?), a. Of or pertaining to ornithotomy.

Or`ni*thot”o*mist (?), n. One who is skilled in ornithotomy.

Or`ni*thot”o*my (?), n. [Gr. &?;, &?;, a bird + &?; to cut.] The anatomy or dissection of birds.

{ Or`o*graph”ic (?), Or`o*graph”ic*al (?), } a. Of or pertaining to orography.

O*rog”ra*phy (?), n. [Gr. ‘o`ros, a mountain + -graphy.] That branch of science which treats of mountains and mountain systems; orology; as, the orography of Western Europe.

||Or`o*hip”pus (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. ‘o`ros, mountain (referring to the Rocky Mountain region) + “i`ppos horse.] (Paleon.) A genus of American Eocene mammals allied to the horse, but having four toes in front and three behind.

O”roide (?), n. [F. or gold (L. aurum) + Gr. &?; form.] An alloy, chiefly of copper and zinc or tin, resembling gold in color and brilliancy. [Written also oreide.]

Or`o*log”ic*al (?), a. [Cf. F. orologique.] Of or pertaining to orology.

O*rol”o*gist (?), n. One versed in orology.

O*rol”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. &?; mountain + -logy: cf. F. orologie.] The science or description of mountains.

O”ro*tund` (?), a. [L. os, oris, the mouth + rotundus round, smooth.] Characterized by fullness, clearness, strength, and smoothness; ringing and musical; — said of the voice or manner of utterance. — n. The orotund voice or utterance Rush.

O`ro*tun”di*ty (?), n. The orotund mode of intonation.

Or”pha*line (?), n. See Orpheline. [Obs.]

Or”phan (?), n. [L. orphanus, Gr. &?;, akin to L. orbus. Cf. Orb a blank window.] A child bereaved of both father and mother; sometimes, also, a child who has but one parent living.

Orphans’ court (Law), a court in some of the States of the Union, having jurisdiction over the estates and persons of orphans or other wards. Bouvier.

Or”phan, a. Bereaved of parents, or (sometimes) of one parent.

Or”phan, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Orphaned (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Orphaning.] To cause to become an orphan; to deprive of parents. Young.

Or”phan*age (?), n. 1. The state of being an orphan; orphanhood; orphans, collectively.

2. An institution or asylum for the care of orphans.

Or”phan*cy (?), n. Orphanhood. Sir P. Sidney.

Or”phan*et (?), n. A little orphan. Drayton.

Or”phan*hood (?), n. The state or condition of being an orphan; orphanage.

Or”phan*ism (?), n. Orphanhood. [R.]

Or`phan*ot”ro*phism (?), n. The care and support of orphans. [R.] Cotton Mather (1711).

Or`phan*ot”ro*phy (?), n. [L. orphanotrophium, Gr. &?;; &?; an orphan + &?; to feed, bring up.]

1. A hospital for orphans. [R.] A. Chalmers.

2. The act of supporting orphans. [R.]

Or*pha”ri*on (?), n. (Mus.) An old instrument of the lute or cittern kind. [Spelt also orpheoreon.]

Or*phe”an (?), a. [L. Orph&?;us, Gr. &?;.] Of or pertaining to Orpheus, the mythic poet and musician; as, Orphean strains. Cowper.

Or”phe*line (?), n. [F. orphelin. See Orphan.] An orphan. [Obs.] Udcll.

Or”phe*us (?), n. [L. Orpheus, Gr. &?;.] (Gr. Myth.) The famous mythic Thracian poet, son of the Muse Calliope, and husband of Eurydice. He is reputed to have had power to entrance beasts and inanimate objects by the music of his lyre.

Or”phic (?), a. [L. Orphicus, Gr. &?;.] Pertaining to Orpheus; Orphean; as, Orphic hymns.

Or”phrey (?), n. [See Orfrays.] A band of rich embroidery, wholly or in part of gold, affixed to vestments, especially those of ecclesiastics. Pugin.

Or”pi*ment (?), n. [F., fr. L. auripigmentum; aurum gold + pigmentum pigment. Cf. Aureate, Pigment, Orpin, Orpine.] (Chem.) Arsenic sesquisulphide, produced artificially as an amorphous lemonyellow powder, and occurring naturally as a yellow crystalline mineral; — formerly called auripigment. It is used in king’s yellow, in white Indian fire, and in certain technical processes, as indigo printing.

Our orpiment and sublimed mercurie.

Chaucer.

Red orpiment, realgar; the red sulphide of arsenic. — Yellow orpiment, king’s yellow.

Or”pin, n. [F., orpiment, also, the plant orpine. See Orpiment.] 1. A yellow pigment of various degrees of intensity, approaching also to red.

2. (Bot.) The orpine.

Or”pine (?), n. [F. orpin the genus of plants which includes orpine; — so called from the yellow blossoms of a common species (Sedum acre). See Orpiment.] (Bot.) A low plant with fleshy leaves (Sedum telephium), having clusters of purple flowers. It is found on dry, sandy places, and on old walls, in England, and has become naturalized in America. Called also stonecrop, and live-forever. [Written also orpin.]

Or”rach (?), n. See Orach.

Or”re*ry (?), n.; pl. Orreries (#). [So named in honor of the Earl of Orrery.] An apparatus which illustrates, by the revolution of balls moved by wheelwork, the relative size, periodic motions, positions, orbits, etc., of bodies in the solar system.

Or”ris (?), n. [Prob. corrupted from It. ireos iris. See Iris.] (Bot.) A plant of the genus Iris (I. Florentina); a kind of flower-de- luce. Its rootstock has an odor resembling that of violets.

Orris pea (Med.), an issue pea made from orris root. — Orris root, the fragrant rootstock of the orris.

Or”ris (?), n. 1. [Contr. from orfrays, or from arras.] A sort of gold or silver lace. Johnson.

2. A peculiar pattern in which gold lace or silver lace is worked; especially, one in which the edges are ornamented with conical figures placed at equal distances, with spots between them.

{ Orse”dew (?), Or”se*due (?), } n. Leaf metal of bronze; Dutch metal. See under Dutch.

||Or`seille” (?), n. [F.] See Archil.

Or*sel”lic (?), a. [From F. orseille archil. See Archil.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, an acid found in certain lichens, and called also lecanoric acid. [Formerly written also orseillic.]

Or`sel*lin”ic (?), a. (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, an organic acid obtained by a partial decomposition of orsellic acid as a white crystalline substance, and related to protocatechuic acid.

Ort (?), n.; pl. Orts (#). [Akin to LG. ort, ortels, remnants of food, refuse, OFries. ort, OD. oorete, ooraete; prob. from the same prefix as in E. ordeal + a word akin to eat.] A morsel left at a meal; a fragment; refuse; — commonly used in the plural. Milton.

Let him have time a beggar’s orts to crave.

Shak.

Or`ta*lid”i*an (?), n. (Zoöl.) Any one of numerous small two-winged flies of the family Ortalidæ. The larvæ of many of these flies live in fruit; those of others produce galls on various plants.

Or”thid (?), n. (Zoöl.) A brachiopod shell of the genus Orthis, and allied genera, of the family Orthidæ.

||Or”this (ôr”th&ibreve;s), n. [NL., fr. Gr. ‘orqo`s straight.] (Zoöl.) An extinct genus of Brachiopoda, abundant in the Paleozoic rocks.

Or”thite (?), n. [Gr. &?; straight.] (Min.) A variety of allanite occurring in slender prismatic crystals.

Or”tho- (?). [Gr. &?; straight; akin to Skr. &?;rdhva upright, vrdh to grow, to cause to grow.]

1. A combining form signifying straight, right, upright, correct, regular; as, orthodromy, orthodiagonal, orthodox, orthographic.

2. (Chem.) A combining form (also used adjectively), designating: (a) (Inorganic Chem.) The one of several acids of the same element (as the phosphoric acids), which actually occurs with the greatest number of hydroxyl groups; as, orthophosphoric acid. Cf. Normal. (b) (Organic Chem.) Connection with, or affinity to, one variety of isomerism, characteristic of the benzene compounds; — contrasted with meta- or para-; as, the ortho position; hence, designating any substance showing such isomerism; as, an ortho compound.

&fist; In the graphic representation of the benzene nucleus (see Benzene nucleus, under Benzene), provisionally adopted, any substance exhibiting double substitution in adjacent and contiguous carbon atoms, as 1 & 2, 3 & 4, 4 & 5, etc., is designated by ortho-; as, orthoxylene; any substance exhibiting substitution of two carbon atoms with one intervening, as 1 & 3, 2 & 4, 3 & 5, 4 & 6, etc., by meta-; as, resorcin or metaxylene; any substance exhibiting substitution in opposite parts, as 1 & 4, 2 & 5, 3 & 6, by para-; as, hydroquinone or paraxylene.

Or`tho*car*bon”ic (?), a. [Ortho- + carbonic.] (Chem.) Designating a complex ether, C.(OC_2H_5)4, which is obtained as a liquid of a pleasant ethereal odor by means of chlorpicrin, and is believed to be a derivative of the hypothetical normal carbonic acid, C.(OH)4.

Or`tho*cen”ter (?), n. [Ortho- + center.] (Geom.) That point in which the three perpendiculars let fall from the angles of a triangle upon the opposite sides, or the sides produced, mutually intersect.

||Or*thoc”e*ras (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. ‘orqo`s straight + &?; a horn.] (Paleon.) An extinct genus of Paleozoic Cephalopoda, having a long, straight, conical shell. The interior is divided into numerous chambers by transverse septa.

Or`tho*cer”a*tite (?), n. [Ortho- + Gr. &?;, &?;, a horn.] (Zoöl.) An orthoceras; also, any fossil shell allied to Orthoceras.

Or”tho*clase (?), n. [Ortho- + Gr. &?; to break.] (Min.) Common or potash feldspar crystallizing in the monoclinic system and having two cleavages at right angles to each other. See Feldspar.

Or`tho*clas”tic (?), a. (Crystallog.) Breaking in directions at right angles to each other; — said of the monoclinic feldspars.

Or`tho*di*ag”o*nal (?), n. [Ortho- + diagonal.] (Crystallog.) The diagonal or lateral axis in a monoclinic crystal which is at right angles with the vertical axis.

Or”tho*dome (?), n. [Ortho- + dome.] (Crystallog.) See the Note under Dome, 4.

Or”tho*dox (?), a. [L. orthodoxus, Gr. ‘orqo`doxos; ‘orqo`s right, true + do`xa opinion, dokei^n to think, seem; cf. F. orthodoxe. See Ortho-, Dogma.] 1. Sound in opinion or doctrine, especially in religious doctrine; hence, holding the Christian faith; believing the doctrines taught in the Scriptures; — opposed to heretical and heterodox; as, an orthodox Christian.

2. According or congruous with the doctrines of Scripture, the creed of a church, the decree of a council, or the like; as, an orthodox opinion, book, etc.

3. Approved; conventional.

He saluted me on both cheeks in the orthodox manner.

H. R. Haweis.

&fist; The term orthodox differs in its use among the various Christian communions. The Greek Church styles itself the “Holy Orthodox Apostolic Church,” regarding all other bodies of Christians as more or less heterodox. The Roman Catholic Church regards the Protestant churches as heterodox in many points. In the United States the term orthodox is frequently used with reference to divergent views on the doctrine of the Trinity. Thus it has been common to speak of the Trinitarian Congregational churches in distinction from the Unitarian, as Orthodox. The name is also applied to the conservative, in distinction from the “liberal”, or Hicksite, body in the Society of Friends. Schaff-Herzog Encyc.

Or”tho*dox`al (?), a. Pertaining to, or evincing, orthodoxy; orthodox. [R.] Milton.

Or`tho*dox*al”i*ty (?), n. Orthodoxness. [R.]

Or”tho*dox`al*ly (?), adv. Orthodoxly. [R.] Milton

Or`tho*dox*as”tic*al (?), a. Orthodox. [Obs.]

Or`tho*dox”ic*al (?), a. Pertaining to, or evincing, orthodoxy; orthodox.

Or”tho*dox`ly (?), adv. In an orthodox manner; with soundness of faith. Sir W. Hamilton.

Or”tho*dox`ness, n. The quality or state of being orthodox; orthodoxy. Waterland.

Or”tho*dox`y (?), n. [Gr. &?;: cf. F. orthodoxie. See Orthodox.] 1. Soundness of faith; a belief in the doctrines taught in the Scriptures, or in some established standard of faith; — opposed to heterodoxy or to heresy.

Basil himself bears full and clear testimony to Gregory’s orthodoxy.

Waterland.

2. Consonance to genuine Scriptural doctrines; — said of moral doctrines and beliefs; as, the orthodoxy of a creed.

3. By extension, said of any correct doctrine or belief.

Or`tho*drom”ic (?), a. [Ortho- + Gr. &?; to run.] Of or pertaining to orthodromy.

Or`tho*drom”ics (?), n. The art of sailing in a direct course, or on the arc of a great circle, which is the shortest distance between any two points on the surface of the globe; great-circle sailing; orthodromy.

Or”tho*drom`y (?), n. [Cf. F. orthodromie.] The act or art of sailing on a great circle.

{ Or`tho*ëp”ic (?), Or`tho*ëp”ic*al (?), } a. Of or pertaining to orthoëpy, or correct pronunciation. — Or`tho*ëp”ic*al*ly, adv.

Or”tho*ë*pist (?), n. One who is skilled in orthoëpy.

Or”tho*ë*py (?), n. [Gr. &?;; ‘orqo`s right + &?; a word: cf. F. orthoépie. See Ortho-, and Epic.] The art of uttering words correctly; a correct pronunciation of words; also, mode of pronunciation.

Or*thog”a*my (?), n. [Ortho- + Gr. &?; marriage.] (Bot.) Direct fertilization in plants, as when the pollen fertilizing the ovules comes from the stamens of the same blossom; — opposed to heterogamy.

Or`thog*nath”ic (?), a. Orthognathous.

Or*thog”na*thism (?), n. (Anat.) The quality or state of being orthognathous. Huxley.

Or*thog”na*thous (?), a. [Ortho- + Gr. &?; the jaw.] (Anat.) Having the front of the head, or the skull, nearly perpendicular, not retreating backwards above the jaws; — opposed to prognathous. See Gnathic index, under Gnathic.

Or”tho*gon (?), n. [Ortho- + Gr. &?; angle: cf. F. orthogone, a.] (Geom.) A rectangular figure.

Or*thog”o*nal (?), a. [Cf. F. orthogonal.] Right-angled; rectangular; as, an orthogonal intersection of one curve with another.

Orthogonal projection. See under Orthographic.

Or*thog”o*nal*ly, adv. Perpendicularly; at right angles; as, a curve cuts a set of curves orthogonally.

Or*thog”ra*pher (?), n. One versed in orthography; one who spells words correctly.

{ Or`tho*graph”ic (?), Or`tho*graph”ic*al (?), } a. [Cf. F. orthographique, L. orthographus, Gr. &?;.]

1. Of or pertaining to orthography, or right spelling; also, correct in spelling; as, orthographical rules; the letter was orthographic.

2. (Geom.) Of or pertaining to right lines or angles.

Orthographic or Orthogonal, projection, that projection which is made by drawing lines, from every point to be projected, perpendicular to the plane of projection. Such a projection of the sphere represents its circles as seen in perspective by an eye supposed to be placed at an infinite distance, the plane of projection passing through the center of the sphere perpendicularly to the line of sight.

Or`tho*graph”ic*al*ly, adv. In an orthographical manner: (a) according to the rules of proper spelling; (b) according to orthographic projection.

Or*thog”ra*phist (?), n. One who spells words correctly; an orthographer.

Or*thog”ra*phize (?), v. t. To spell correctly or according to usage; to correct in regard to spelling.

In the coalesced into ith, which modern reaction has orthographized to i’ th’.

Earle.

Or*thog”ra*phy (?), n. [OE. ortographie, OF. orthographie, L. orthographia, Gr. &?;, fr. &?; writing correctly; ‘orqo`s right + gra`fein to write. See Ortho-, and Graphic.]

1. The art or practice of writing words with the proper letters, according to standard usage; conventionally correct spelling; also, mode of spelling; as, his orthography is vicious.

When spelling no longer follows the pronunciation, but is hardened into orthography.

Earle.

2. The part of grammar which treats of the letters, and of the art of spelling words correctly.

3. A drawing in correct projection, especially an elevation or a vertical section.

Or*thol”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. &?;; ‘orqo`s right + &?; speech, description: cf. F. orthologie.] The right description of things. [R.] Fotherby.

Or`tho*met”ric (?), a. [See Orthometry.] (Crystallog.) Having the axes at right angles to one another; — said of crystals or crystalline forms.

Or*thom”e*try (?), n. [Ortho- + -metry.] The art or practice of constructing verses correctly; the laws of correct versification.

Or`tho*mor”phic (?), a. [Ortho- + morphic.] (Geom.) Having the right form.

Orthomorphic projection, a projection in which the angles in the figure to be projected are equal to the corresponding angles in the projected figure.

{ Or`tho*ped”ic (?), Or`tho*ped”ic*al (?), } a. (Med.) Pertaining to, or employed in, orthopedy; relating to the prevention or cure of deformities of children, or, in general, of the human body at any age; as, orthopedic surgery; an orthopedic hospital.

Or*thop”e*dist (?), n. (Med.) One who prevents, cures, or remedies deformities, esp. in children.

Or*thop”e*dy (?), n. [Ortho- + Gr. &?;, &?;, a child.] (Med.) The art or practice of curing the deformities of children, or, by extension, any deformities of the human body.

Or*thoph”o*ny (?), n. [Ortho- + Gr. &?; voice.] The art of correct articulation; voice training.

Or`tho*pin”a*coid (?), n. [Ortho- + pinacoid.] (Crystallog.) A name given to the two planes in the monoclinic system which are parallel to the vertical and orthodiagonal axes.

{ ||Or`thop*nœ“a (?), Or*thop”ny (?), } n. [L. orthopnoea, Gr. &?;; ‘orqo`sstraight, right + pnei^n to breathe: cf. F. orthopnée.] (Med.) Specifically, a morbid condition in which respiration can be performed only in an erect posture; by extension, any difficulty of breathing.

||Or*thop”o*da (?), n. pl. [NL. See Ortho-, and -poda.] (Zoöl.) An extinct order of reptiles which stood erect on the hind legs, and resembled birds in the structure of the feet, pelvis, and other parts.

Or”tho*prax`y (?), n. [Gr. ‘orqo`s straight + &?; a doing.] (Med.) The treatment of deformities in the human body by mechanical appliances.

||Or*thop”te*ra (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. ‘orqo`s straight + &?; feather, wing.] (Zoöl.) An order of mandibulate insects including grasshoppers, locusts, cockroaches, etc. See Illust. under Insect.

&fist; The anterior wings are usually thickened and protect the posterior wings, which are larger and fold longitudinally like a fan. The Orthoptera undergo no metamorphosis.

Or*thop”ter*an (?), n. (Zoöl.) One of the Orthoptera.

Or*thop”ter*ous (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Orthoptera.

Or`tho*rhom”bic (?), a. [Ortho- + rhombic.] (Crystallog.) Noting the system of crystallization which has three unequal axes at right angles to each other; trimetric. See Crystallization.

Or”tho*scope (?), n. [Ortho- + -scope.] (Physyol.) An instrument designed to show the condition of the superficial portions of the eye.

Or`tho*scop”ic (?), a. (Opt.) Giving an image in correct or normal proportions; giving a flat field of view; as, an orthoscopic eyepiece.

Or`tho*si*lic”ic (?), a. [Ortho- + silicic.] (Chem.) Designating the form of silicic acid having the normal or highest number of hydroxyl groups.

Or`tho*sper”mous (?), a. [Ortho- + Gr. &?; seed.] (Bot.) Having the seeds straight, as in the fruits of some umbelliferous plants; — opposed to cœlospermous. Darwin.

Or”tho*stade (?), n. [Gr. &?;; ‘orqo`s straight + &?; to place.] (Anc. Costume) A chiton, or loose, ungirded tunic, falling in straight folds.

Or*thos”ti*chy (?), n.; pl. Orthostichies (#). [Ortho- + Gr. &?; row.] (Bot.) A longitudinal rank, or row, of leaves along a stem.

Or`tho*tom”ic (?), a. [Ortho- + Gr. &?; to cleave.] (Geom.) Cutting at right angles.

Orthotomic circle (Geom.), that circle which cuts three given circles at right angles.

Or*thot”o*mous (?), a. (Crystallog.) Having two cleavages at right angles with one another.

Or*thot”o*my (?), n. (Geom.) The property of cutting at right angles.

Or”tho*tone (?), a. [Ortho- + Gr. &?; tone, accent.] (Gr. Gram.) Retaining the accent; not enclitic; — said of certain indefinite pronouns and adverbs when used interrogatively, which, when not so used, are ordinarilly enclitic.

{ Or*thot”ro*pal (?), Or*thot”ro*pous (?), } a. [Ortho- + Gr. &?; to turn: cf. F. orthotrope.] (Bot.) Having the axis of an ovule or seed straight from the hilum and chalaza to the orifice or the micropyle; atropous.

&fist; This word has also been used (but improperly) to describe any embryo whose radicle points towards, or is next to, the hilum.

Or`tho*trop”ic (?), a. [See Orthotropal.] (Bot.) Having the longer axis vertical; — said of erect stems. Encyc. Brit.

Or`tho*xy”lene (?), n. [Ortho- + xylene.] (Chem.) That variety of xylene in which the two methyl groups are in the ortho position; a colorless, liquid, combustible hydrocarbon resembling benzene.

Or”tive (?), a. [L. ortivus, fr. oriri, ortus, to rise: cf. F. ortive.] Of or relating to the time or act of rising; eastern; as, the ortive amplitude of a planet.

Or”to*lan (?), n. [F., fr. It. ortolano ortolan, gardener, fr. L. hortulanus gardener, fr. hortulus, dim. of hortus garden. So called because it frequents the hedges of gardens. See Yard an inclosure, and cf. Hortulan.] (Zoöl.) (a) A European singing bird (Emberiza hortulana), about the size of the lark, with black wings. It is esteemed delicious food when fattened. Called also bunting. (b) In England, the wheatear (Saxicola œnanthe). (c) In America, the sora, or Carolina rail (Porzana Carolina). See Sora.

Or”ty*gan (?), n. [Gr. &?;, &?;, a quail.] (Zoöl.) One of several species of East Indian birds of the genera Ortygis and Hemipodius. They resemble quails, but lack the hind toe. See Turnix.

Or”val (?), n. [F. orvale.] (Bot.) A kind of sage (Salvia Horminum).

||Or`vet” (?), n. [F.] (Zoöl.) The blindworm.

Or`vi*e”tan (?), n. [F. orviétan: cf. It. orvietano. So called because invented at Orvieto, in Italy.] A kind of antidote for poisons; a counter poison formerly in vogue. [Obs.]

-o*ry (?). [L. -orius: cf. F. -oire.] 1. An adjective suffix meaning of or pertaining to, serving for; as in auditory, pertaining to or serving for hearing; prohibitory, amendatory, etc.

2. [L. -orium: cf. F. -oire.] A noun suffix denoting that which pertains to, or serves for; as in ambulatory, that which serves for walking; consistory, factory, etc.

{ O”ry*al (?), O”ry*all (?) }, n. See Oriel.

Or”yc*tere (?), n. [Gr. &?; digger: cf. F. oryctère.] (Zoöl.) The aard- vark.

O*ryc”ter*ope (?), n. [Gr. &?; digger + &?; foot.] (Zoöl.) Same as Oryctere.

Or`yc*tog”no*sy (?), n. [Gr. &?; dug (&?; to dig) + &?; knowledge.] Mineralogy. [Obs.] — Or`yc*tog*nos”tic (#), a. — Or`yc*tog*nos”tic*al (#), a. [Obs.] — Or`yc*tog*nos”tic*al*ly (#), adv. [Obs.]

Or`yc*tog”ra*phy (?), n. [Gr. &?; dug + -graphy.] Description of fossils. [Obs.]

Or`yc*to*log”ic*al (?), a. [Cf. F. oryctologique.] Of or pertaining to oryctology. [Obs.]

Or`yc*tol”o*gist (?), n. One versed in oryctology. [Obs.]

Or`yc*tol”o*gy (?), n. [Gr. &?; dug + -logy: cf. F. oryctologie.] 1. An old name for paleontology.

2. An old name for mineralogy and geology.

O”ryx (?), n. [NL., from Gr. &?; a kind of gazelle or antelope.] (Zoöl.) A genus of African antelopes which includes the gemsbok, the leucoryx, the bisa antelope (O. beisa), and the beatrix antelope (O. beatrix) of Arabia.

||O*ry”za (?), n. [L., rice, Gr. &?; See Rice.] (Bot.) A genus of grasses including the rice plant; rice.

||Os (?), n.; pl. Ossa (#). [L.] A bone.

||Os, n.; pl. Ora (#). [L.] A mouth; an opening; an entrance.

Os (?), n.; pl. Osar (#). [Sw. ås ridge, chain of hills, pl. åsar.] (Geol.) One of the ridges of sand or gravel found in Sweden, etc., supposed by some to be of marine origin, but probably formed by subglacial waters. The osar are similar to the kames of Scotland and the eschars of Ireland. See Eschar.

O”sage or”ange (?). (Bot.) An ornamental tree of the genus Maclura (M. aurantiaca), closely allied to the mulberry (Morus); also, its fruit. The tree was first found in the country of the Osage Indians, and bears a hard and inedible fruit of an orangelike appearance. See Bois d’arc.

O*sa”ges (?), n. pl.; sing. Osage (&?;). (Ethnol.) A tribe of southern Sioux Indians, now living in the Indian Territory.

O*san”ne (?), n. Hosanna. [Obs.] Chaucer.

O”sar (?), n. pl. (Geol.) See 3d Os.

Os”can (?), a. Of or pertaining to the Osci, a primitive people of Campania, a province of ancient Italy. — n. The language of the Osci.

Os”cil*lan*cy (?), n. The state of oscillating; a seesaw kind of motion. [R.]

||Os`cil*la”ri*a (?), n. [NL., fr. L. oscillare to swing.] (Bot.) A genus of dark green, or purplish black, filamentous, fresh-water algæ, the threads of which have an automatic swaying or crawling motion. Called also Oscillatoria.

Os”cil*late (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Oscillated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Oscillating (?).] [L. oscillare to swing, fr. oscillum a swing, a little mask or puppet made to be hung from trees and swing in the wind, prob. orig., a little mouth, a dim. from os mouth. See Oral, and cf. Osculate.]

1. To move backward and forward; to vibrate like a pendulum; to swing; to sway.

2. To vary or fluctuate between fixed limits; to act or move in a fickle or fluctuating manner; to change repeatedly, back and forth.

The amount of superior families oscillates rather than changes, that is, it fluctuates within fixed limits.

Dc Quincey.

Os”cil*la`ting (?), a. That oscillates; vibrating; swinging.

Oscillating engine, a steam engine whose cylinder oscillates on trunnions instead of being permanently fixed in a perpendicular or other direction. Weale.

Os`cil*la”tion (?), n. [L. oscillatio a swinging.]

1. The act of oscillating; a swinging or moving backward and forward, like a pendulum; vibration.

2. Fluctuation; variation; change back and forth.

His mind oscillated, undoubtedly; but the extreme points of the oscillation were not very remote.

Macaulay.

Axis of oscillation, Center of oscillation. See under Axis, and Center.

Os”cil*la*tive (?), a. Tending to oscillate; vibratory. [R.] I. Taylor.

||Os`cil*la*to”ri*a (?), n. pl. [NL. See Oscillatory.] (Bot.) Same as Oscillaria.

Os”cil*la*to*ry (?), a. [Cf. F. oscillatoire. See Oscillate.] Moving, or characterized by motion, backward and forward like a pendulum; swinging; oscillating; vibratory; as, oscillatory motion.

Os”cine (?), a. (Zoöl.) Relating to the Oscines.

||Os”ci*nes (?), n. pl. [L. oscen, -inis.] (Zoöl.) Singing birds; a group of the Passeres, having numerous syringeal muscles, conferring musical ability.

Os*cin”i*an (?), n. (Zoöl.) One of the Oscines, or singing birds.

Os*cin”i*an, n. (Zoöl.) Any one of numerous species of dipterous files of the family Oscinidæ.

&fist; Some, whose larvæ live in the stalks, are very destructive to barley, wheat, and rye; others, as the barley fly (Oscinis frit), destroy the heads of grain.

Os”ci*nine (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Oscines.

Os”ci*tan*cy (?), n. [See Oscitant.]

1. The act of gaping or yawning.

2. Drowsiness; dullness; sluggishness. Hallam.

It might proceed from the oscitancy of transcribers.

Addison.

Os”ci*tant (?), a. [L. oscitans, -antis, p. pr. of oscitare: cf. F. oscitant.] 1. Yawning; gaping.

2. Sleepy; drowsy; dull; sluggish; careless.

He must not be oscitant, but intent on his charge.

Barrow.

Os”ci*tant*ly, adv. In an oscitant manner.

Os”ci*tate (?), v. i. [L. oscitare; os the mouth + citare, v. intens. fr. ciere to move.] To gape; to yawn.

Os`ci*ta”tion (?), n. [L. oscitatio: cf. F. oscitation.] The act of yawning or gaping. Addison.

Os”cu*lant (?), a. [L. osculans, -antis, p. pr. of osculari to kiss. See Osculate.]

1. Kissing; hence, meeting; clinging.

2. (Zoöl.) Adhering closely; embracing; — applied to certain creeping animals, as caterpillars.

3. (Biol.) Intermediate in character, or on the border, between two genera, groups, families, etc., of animals or plants, and partaking somewhat of the characters of each, thus forming a connecting link; interosculant; as, the genera by which two families approximate are called osculant genera.

Os”cu*late (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Osculated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Osculating.] [L. osculatus, p. p. of osculari to kiss, fr. osculum a little mouth, a kiss, dim. of os mouth. See Oral, and cf. Oscillate.]

1. To kiss.

2. (Geom.) To touch closely, so as to have a common curvature at the point of contact. See Osculation, 2.

Os”cu*late, v. i. 1. To kiss one another; to kiss.

2. (Geom.) To touch closely. See Osculation, 2.

3. (Biol.) To have characters in common with two genera or families, so as to form a connecting link between them; to interosculate. See Osculant.

Os`cu*la”tion (?), n. [L. osculatio a kissing: cf. F. osculation.] 1. The act of kissing; a kiss.

2. (Geom.) The contact of one curve with another, when the number of consecutive points of the latter through which the former passes suffices for the complete determination of the former curve. Brande & C.

Os”cu*la*to*ry (?), a. 1. Of or pertaining to kissing; kissing. “The osculatory ceremony.” Thackeray.

2. (Geom.) Pertaining to, or having the properties of, an osculatrix; capable of osculation; as, a circle may be osculatory with a curve, at a given point.

Osculatory circle. (Geom.) See Osculating circle of a curve, under Circle. — Osculatory plane (to a curve of double curvature), a plane which passes through three successive points of the curve. — Osculatory sphere (to a line of double curvature), a sphere passing through four consecutive points of the curve.

Os”cu*la*to*ry, n. [LL. osculatorium. See Osculate.] (R. C. Ch.) Same as Pax, 2.

Os`cu*la”trix (?), n.; pl. Osculatrixes (#). [NL.] (Geom.) A curve whose contact with a given curve, at a given point, is of a higher order (or involves the equality of a greater number of successive differential coefficients of the ordinates of the curves taken at that point) than that of any other curve of the same kind.

Os”cule (?), n. [Cf. F. oscule. See Osculum.] (Zoöl.) One of the excurrent apertures of sponges.

||Os”cu*lum (?), n.; pl. Oscula (#). [L., a little mouth.] (Zoöl.) Same as Oscule.

-ose (?). [L. -osus: cf. F. ose. Cf. ous.]

1. A suffix denoting full of, containing, having the qualities of, like; as in verbose, full of words; pilose, hairy; globose, like a globe.

2. (Chem.) A suffix indicating that the substance to the name of which it is affixed is a member of the carbohydrate group; as in cellulose, sucrose, dextrose, etc.

O”sier (?), n. [F. osier: cf. Prov. F. oisis, Armor. ozil, aozil, Gr. &?;, &?;, &?;, L. vitex, and E. withy.] (Bot.) (a) A kind of willow (Salix viminalis) growing in wet places in Europe and Asia, and introduced into North America. It is considered the best of the willows for basket work. The name is sometimes given to any kind of willow. (b) One of the long, pliable twigs of this plant, or of other similar plants.

The rank of osiers by the murmuring stream.

Shak.

Osier bed, or Osier holt, a place where willows are grown for basket making. [Eng.] — Red osier. (a) A kind of willow with reddish twigs (Salix rubra). (b) An American shrub (Cornus stolonifera) which has slender red branches; — also called osier cornel.

O”sier, a. Made of osiers; composed of, or containing, osiers. “This osier cage of ours.” Shak.

O”siered (?), a. Covered or adorned with osiers; as, osiered banks. [Poetic] Collins.

O”sier*y (?), n. An osier bed.

O*si”ris (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?;; of Egyptian origin.] (Myth.) One of the principal divinities of Egypt, the brother and husband of Isis. He was figured as a mummy wearing the royal cap of Upper Egypt, and was symbolized by the sacred bull, called Apis. Cf. Serapis. — O*sir”i*an (#), a.

Os”man*li (?), n.; pl. Osmanlis (#). [So called from Osman. See Ottoman.] A Turkish official; one of the dominant tribe of Turks; loosely, any Turk.

Os”mate (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of osmic acid. [Formerly written also osmiate.]

||Os`ma*te”ri*um (?), n.; pl. Osmateria (#). [NL., fr. Gr. &?; smell.] (Zoöl.) One of a pair of scent organs which the larvæ of certain butterflies emit from the first body segment, either above or below.

Os”ma*zome (?), n. [Gr. &?; smell, odor + &?; broth: cf. F. osmazôme.] (Old Chem.) A substance formerly supposed to give to soup and broth their characteristic odor, and probably consisting of one or several of the class of nitrogenous substances which are called extractives.

Os`mi*am”ate (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of osmiamic acid.

Os`mi*am”ic (?), a. [Osmium + amido.] (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or designating, a nitrogenous acid of osmium, H_2N_2Os_2O_5, forming a well-known series of yellow salts.

Os”mic (?), a. (Chem.) Pertaining to, derived from, or containing, osmium; specifically, designating those compounds in which it has a valence higher than in other lower compounds; as, osmic oxide.

Osmic acid. (Chem.) (a) Osmic tetroxide. [Obs.] (b) Osmic acid proper, an acid analogous to sulphuric acid, not known in the free state, but forming a well-known and stable series of salts (osmates), which were formerly improperly called osmites. — Osmic tetroxide (Chem.), a white volatile crystalline substance, OsO_4, the most stable and characteristic of the compounds of osmium. It has a burning taste, and gives off a vapor, which is a powerful irritant poison, violently attacking the eyes, and emitting a strong chlorinelike odor. Formerly improperly called osmic acid.

||Os`mi*dro”sis (?), n. [NL., from Gr. &?; smell + &?; to sweat.] (Med.) The secretion of fetid sweat.

Os”mi*ous (?), a. (Chem.) Denoting those compounds of osmium in which the element has a valence relatively lower than in the osmic compounds; as, osmious chloride. [Written also osmous.]

Osmious acid (Chem.), an acid derived from osmium, analogous to sulphurous acid, and forming unstable salts. It is a brown amorphous substance.

Os”mite (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of osmious acid.

Os”mi*um (?), n. [Gr. &?; a smell, odor, akin to &?; to smell. So named in allusion to the strong chlorinelike odor of osmic tetroxide. See Odor.] (Chem.) A rare metallic element of the platinum group, found native as an alloy in platinum ore, and in iridosmine. It is a hard, infusible, bluish or grayish white metal, and the heaviest substance known. Its tetroxide is used in histological experiments to stain tissues. Symbol Os. Atomic weight 191.1. Specific gravity 22.477.

Os*mom”e*ter (?), n. [Gr. &?; impulse + -meter.] (Physics) An instrument for measuring the amount of osmotic action in different liquids.

Os*mom”e*try (?), n. (Physics) The study of osmose by means of the osmometer.

Os”mose (?), n. [Gr. &?;, equiv. to &?; impulse, fr. &?; to push.] (Chemical Physics) (a) The tendency in fluids to mix, or become equably diffused, when in contact. It was first observed between fluids of differing densities, and as taking place through a membrane or an intervening porous structure. The more rapid flow from the thinner to the thicker fluid was then called endosmose, and the opposite, slower current, exosmose. Both are, however, results of the same force. Osmose may be regarded as a form of molecular attraction, allied to that of adhesion. (b) The action produced by this tendency.

Electric osmose, or Electric endosmose (Elec.), the transportation of a liquid through a porous septum by the action of an electric current.

Os*mo”sis (?), n. [NL.] Osmose.

Os*mot”ic (?), a. Pertaining to, or having the property of, osmose; as, osmotic force.

Os”mund (?), n. (Bot.) A fern of the genus Osmunda, or flowering fern. The most remarkable species is the osmund royal, or royal fern (Osmunda regalis), which grows in wet or boggy places, and has large bipinnate fronds, often with a panicle of capsules at the top. The rootstock contains much starch, and has been used in stiffening linen.

Os”na*burg (?), n. A species of coarse linen, originally made in Osnaburg, Germany.

O”so-ber`ry (?), n. (Bot.) The small, blueblack, drupelike fruit of the Nuttallia cerasiformis, a shrub of Oregon and California, belonging to the Cherry tribe of Rosaceæ.

||Os*phra”di*um (?), n.; pl. Osphradia (#). [NL., fr. Gr. &?; strong scent, fr. &?; to smell.] (Zoöl.) The olfactory organ of some Mollusca. It is connected with the organ of respiration.

{ Os”prey, Os”pray } (?), n. [Through OF. fr. L. ossifraga (orig., the bone breaker); prob. influenced by oripelargus (mountain stork, a kind of eagle, Gr. &?;); cf. OF. orpres, and F. orfraie. See Ossifrage.] (Zoöl.) The fishhawk.

Oss (?), v. i. [See Osse, n.] To prophesy; to presage. [R. & Obs.] R. Edgeworth.

Osse (?), n. [Gr. &?;.] A prophetic or ominous utterance. [R. & Obs.] Holland.

Os”se*an (?), n. (Zoöl.) A fish having a bony skeleton; a teleost.

Os”se*in (?), n. [L. os bone.] (Physiol. Chem.) The organic basis of bone tissue; the residue after removal of the mineral matters from bone by dilute acid; in embryonic tissue, the substance in which the mineral salts are deposited to form bone; — called also ostein. Chemically it is the same as collagen.

Os”se*let (?), n. [F.] 1. A little bone.

2. (Zoöl.) The internal bone, or shell, of a cuttlefish.

Os”se*ous (?), a. [L. osseus, from os, ossis bone; akin to Gr. &?;, Skr. asthi. Cf. Oyster.] Composed of bone; resembling bone; capable of forming bone; bony; ossific.

Os”se*ter (?), n. [Russ, osetr’ sturgeon.] (Zoöl.) A species of sturgeon.

Os`si*an”ic (?), a. Of or pertaining to, or characteristic of, Ossian, a legendary Erse or Celtic bard.

The compositions might be fairly classed as Ossianic.

G. Eliot.

Os”si*cle (?), n. [L. ossiculum, dim. of os, ossis, a bone.] 1. A little bone; as, the auditory ossicles in the tympanum of the ear.

2. (Zoöl.) One of numerous small calcareous structures forming the skeleton of certain echinoderms, as the starfishes.

Os*sic”u*la`ted (?), a. Having small bones.

||Os*sic”u*lum (?), n.; pl. Ossicula (#). [L., a little bone.] (Zoöl.) Same as Ossicle.

Os*sif”er*ous (?), a. [L. os, ossis, a bone + -ferous: cf. F. ossifère.] Containing or yielding bone.

Os*sif”ic (?), a. [L. os, ossis, bone + facere to make: cf. F. ossifique. See Fact.] Capable of producing bone; having the power to change cartilage or other tissue into bone.

Os`si*fi*ca”tion (?), n. [Cf. F. ossification. See Ossify.] 1. (Physiol.) The formation of bone; the process, in the growth of an animal, by which inorganic material (mainly lime salts) is deposited in cartilage or membrane, forming bony tissue; ostosis.

&fist; Besides the natural ossification of growing tissue, there is the so-called accidental ossification which sometimes follows certain abnormal conditions, as in the ossification of an artery.

2. The state of being changed into a bony substance; also, a mass or point of ossified tissue.

Os”si*fied (?), a. Changed to bone or something resembling bone; hardened by deposits of mineral matter of any kind; — said of tissues.

Os”si*frage (?), n. [L. ossifraga, ossifragus, osprey, fr. ossifragus bone breaking; os, ossis, a bone + frangere, fractum, to break. See Osseous, Break, and cf. Osprey, Ossifragous.] (Zoöl.) (a) The lammergeir. (b) The young of the sea eagle or bald eagle. [Obs.]

Os*sif”ra*gous (?), a. [L. ossifragus. See Ossifrage.] Serving to break bones; bone-breaking.

Os”si*fy (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Ossified (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Ossifying (?).] [L. os, ossis, bone + - fy: cf. F. ossifier. See Osseous.] 1. (Physiol.) To form into bone; to change from a soft animal substance into bone, as by the deposition of lime salts.

2. Fig.: To harden; as, to ossify the heart. Ruskin.

Os”si*fy, v. i. (Physiol.) To become bone; to change from a soft tissue to a hard bony tissue.

Os”si*fy`ing (?), a. (Physiol.) Changing into bone; becoming bone; as, the ossifying process.

Os*siv”o*rous (?), a. [L. os, ossis, bone + vorare to devour: cf. F. ossivore.] Feeding on bones; eating bones; as, ossivorous quadrupeds. Derham.

Os”spring*er (?), n. The osprey. [R.]

||Os`su*a”ri*um (?), n. [L.] A charnel house; an ossuary. Walpole.

Os”su*a*ry (?), n.; pl. -ries (#). [L. ossuarium, fr. ossuarius of or bones, fr. os, ossis, bone: cf. F. ossuaire.] A place where the bones of the dead are deposited; a charnel house. [Obs.] Sir T. Browne.

Ost (?), n. See Oast.

Os”te*al (?), a. [Gr. &?; a bone.] Osseous.

Os”te*in (?), n. [Gr. &?; bone.] Ossein.

||Os`te*i”tis (?), n. [NL. See Osteo-, and -itis.] (Med.) Inflammation of bone.

Os”tel*er (?), n. Same as Hosteler. Wyclif.

Os*tend” (?), v. t. [L. ostendere to show.] To exhibit; to manifest. [Obs.]

Mercy to mean offenders we’ll ostend.

J. Webster.

Os*ten`si*bil”i*ty (?), n. The quality or state of being ostensible.

Os*ten”si*ble (?), a. [From L. ostensus, p. p. of ostendere to show, prop., to stretch out before; fr. prefix obs- (old form of ob-) + tendere to stretch. See Tend.]

1. Capable of being shown; proper or intended to be shown. [R.] Walpole.

2. Shown; exhibited; declared; avowed; professed; apparent; — often used as opposed to real or actual; as, an ostensible reason, motive, or aim. D. Ramsay.

Os*ten”si*bly (?), adv. In an ostensible manner; avowedly; professedly; apparently. Walsh.

Ostensibly, we were intended to prevent filibustering into Texas, but really as a menace to Mexico.

U. S. Grant.

Os*ten”sion (?), n. [L. ostensio a showing: cf. F. ostension. See Ostend.] (Eccl.) The showing of the sacrament on the altar in order that it may receive the adoration of the communicants.

Os*ten”sive (?), a. Showing; exhibiting.

Ostensive demonstration (Math.), a direct or positive demonstration, as opposed to the apagogical or indirect method.

Os*ten”sive*ly, adv. In an ostensive manner.

{ ||Os`ten*so”ri*um (?), Os*ten”so*ry (?), } n.; pl. L. -soria (#), E. -sories (#). [NL. ostensorium: cf. F. ostensoir. See Ostensible.] (R. C. Ch.) Same as Monstrance.

Os”tent (?), n. [L. ostentus, ostentum, fr. ostendere (p. p. ostensus and ostentus) to show. See Ostensible.]

1. Appearance; air; mien. Shak.

2. Manifestation; token; portent. Dryden.

We asked of God that some ostent might clear
Our cloudy business, who gave us sign.

Chapman.

Os”ten*tate (?), v. t. [L. ostentatus, p. p. of ostentare, v. intens. fr. ostendere. See Ostent.] To make an ambitious display of; to show or exhibit boastingly. [R.] Jer. Taylor.

Os`ten*ta”tion (?), n. [L. ostentatio: cf. F. ostentation.] 1. The act of ostentating or of making an ambitious display; unnecessary show; pretentious parade; — usually in a detractive sense. “Much ostentation vain of fleshly arm.” Milton.

He knew that good and bountiful minds were sometimes inclined to ostentation.

Atterbury.

2. A show or spectacle. [Obs.] Shak.

Syn. — Parade; pageantry; show; pomp; pompousness; vaunting; boasting. See Parade.

Os`ten*ta”tious (?), a. Fond of, or evincing, ostentation; unduly conspicuous; pretentious; boastful.

Far from being ostentatious of the good you do.

Dryden.

The ostentatious professions of many years.

Macaulay.

— Os`ten*ta”tious*ly, adv. — Os`ten*ta”tious*ness, n.

Os”ten*ta`tor (?), n. [L.] One fond of display; a boaster. Sherwood.

Os*ten”tive (?), a. Ostentatious. [Obs.]

Os*ten”tous (?), a. Ostentatious. [Obs.] Feltham.

Os”te*o-. A combining form of Gr. &?; a bone.

Os”te*o*blast (?), n. [Osteo- + -blast.] (Anat.) One of the protoplasmic cells which occur in the osteogenetic layer of the periosteum, and from or around which the matrix of the bone is developed; an osteoplast.

||Os`te*o*cla”sis (?), n. [NL. See Osteoclast.] (Surg.) The operation of breaking a bone in order to correct deformity.

Os”te*o*clast (?), n. [Osteo- + Gr. &?; to break.]

1. (Physiol.) A myeloplax.

&fist; The osteoclasts occur usually in pits or cavities which they appear to have excavated, and are supposed to be concerned in the absorption of the bone matrix.

2. An instrument for performing osteoclasis.

Os`te*o*col”la (?), n. [Osteo- + Gr. &?; glue.]

1. A kind of glue obtained from bones. Ure.

2. A cellular calc tufa, which in some places forms incrustations on the stems of plants, — formerly supposed to have the quality of uniting fractured bones.

||Os`te*o*com”ma (?), n.; pl. L. Osteocommata (#), E. Osteocommas (#). [NL. See Osteo-, and Comma.] (Anat.) A metamere of the vertebrate skeleton; an osteomere; a vertebra. Owen.

Os”te*o*cope (?), n. [Gr. &?;; &?; a bone + &?; a striking, pain: cf. F. ostéocope.] (Med.) Pain in the bones; a violent fixed pain in any part of a bone. — Os`te*o*cop”ic (#), a.

Os`te*o*cra”ni*um (?), n. [Osteo- + cranium.] (Anat.) The bony cranium, as distinguished from the cartilaginous cranium.

Os`te*o*den”tine (?), n. [Osteo- + denite.] (Anat.) A hard substance, somewhat like bone, which is sometimes deposited within the pulp cavity of teeth.

Os”te*o*gen (?), n. [Osteo- + -gen.] (Physiol.) The soft tissue, or substance, which, in developing bone, ultimately undergoes ossification.

{ Os`te*o*gen”e*sis (?), Os`te*og”e*ny (?), } n. [Osteo- + genesis, or the root of Gr. &?; to be born: cf. F. ostéogénie.] (Physiol.) The formation or growth of bone.

Os`te*o*ge*net”ic (?), a. (Physiol.) Connected with osteogenesis, or the formation of bone; producing bone; as, osteogenetic tissue; the osteogenetic layer of the periosteum.

Os`te*o*gen”ic (?), a. (Physiol.) Osteogenetic.

Os`te*og”ra*pher (?), n. An osteologist.

Os`te*og”ra*phy (?), n. [Osteo- + -graphy.] The description of bones; osteology.

Os”te*oid (?), a. [Osteo- + - oid: cf. Gr. &?;.] (Anat.) Resembling bone; bonelike.

Os”te*o*lite (?), n. [Osteo- + -lite.] (Min.) A massive impure apatite, or calcium phosphate.

Os`te*ol”o*ger (?), n. One versed in osteology; an osteologist.

{ Os`te*o*log”ic (?), Os`te*o*log”ic*al (?), } a. [Cf. F. ostéologique.] Of or pertaining to osteology. — Os`te*o*log”ic*al*ly, adv.

Os`te*ol”o*gist (?), n. One who is skilled in osteology; an osteologer.

Os`te*ol”o*gy (?), n. [Osteo- + -logy: cf. F. ostéologie.] The science which treats of the bones of the vertebrate skeleton.

||Os`te*o”ma (?), n.; pl. Osteomata (#). [NL. See Osteo-, and - oma.] (Med.) A tumor composed mainly of bone; a tumor of a bone.

||Os`te*o*ma*la”ci*a (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; bone + &?; softness.] (Med.) A disease of the bones, in which they lose their earthy material, and become soft, flexible, and distorted. Also called malacia.

Os”te*o*man`ty (?), n. [Osteo- Gr. &?; divination.] Divination by means of bones. [R.]

Os”te*o*mere (?), n. [Osteo- + -mere.] (Anat.) An osteocomma. Owen.

Os”te*o*phone (?), n. [Gr. &?; bone + &?; voice.] An instrument for transmission of auditory vibrations through the bones of the head, so as to be appreciated as sounds by persons deaf from causes other than those affecting the nervous apparatus of hearing.

Os”te*o*plast (?), n. [Osteo- + Gr. &?; to form.] (Anat.) An osteoblast.

Os`te*o*plas”tic (?), a. [Osteo- + -plastic.]

1. (Physiol.) Producing bone; as, osteoplastic cells.

2. (Med.) Of or pertaining to the replacement of bone; as, an osteoplastic operation.

Os”te*o*plas`ty (?), n. [Osteo- + -plasty.] (Med.) An operation or process by which the total or partial loss of a bone is remedied. Dunglison.

Os`te*op`ter*yg”i*ous (?), a. [Osteo- Gr. &?; a fin.] (Zoöl.) Having bones in the fins, as certain fishes.

||Os`te*o*sar*co”ma (?), n.; pl. Osteosarcomata (#). [NL. See Osteo-, and sarcoma.] (Med.) A tumor having the structure of a sacroma in which there is a deposit of bone; sarcoma connected with bone.

Os”te*o*tome (?), n. [Osteo- + Gr. &?;.] (Surg.) Strong nippers or a chisel for dividing bone.

Os`te*ot”o*mist (?), n. One skilled in osteotomy.

Os`te*ot”o*my (?), n. 1. The dissection or anatomy of bones; osteology.

2. (Surg.) The operation of dividing a bone or of cutting a piece out of it, — done to remedy deformity, etc.

||Os`te*o*zo”a (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; a bone + zo^,on an animal.] (Zoöl.) Same as Vertebrata.

Os”ti*a*ry (?), n.; pl. -ries (#). [L. ostium door, entrance. See Usher.] 1. The mouth of a river; an estuary. [R.] Sir T. Browne.

2. One who keeps the door, especially the door of a church; a porter. N. Bacon.

Os”tic (?), a. [From North American Indian oshtegwon a head.] Pertaining to, or applied to, the language of the Tuscaroras, Iroquois, Wyandots, Winnebagoes, and a part of the Sioux Indians. Schoolcraft.

Os”ti*ole (?), n. [L. ostiolum a little door, dim. of ostium a door: cf. F. ostiole.] (Bot.) (a) The exterior opening of a stomate. See Stomate. (b) Any small orifice.

||Os*ti”tis (?), n. [NL.] (Med.) See Osteitis.

||Os”ti*um (?), n.; pl. Ostia (#). [L.] (Anat.) An opening; a passage.

Ost”ler (?), n. See Hostler.

Ost”ler*ess, n. A female ostler. [R.] Tennyson.

Ost”ler*y (?), n. See Hostelry. [Obs.]

Ost”men (?), n. pl.; sing. Ostman. [See East, and Man.] East men; Danish settlers in Ireland, formerly so called. Lyttelton.

||Os*to”sis (?), n. [NL., from Gr. &?; a bone.] (Physiol.) Bone formation; ossification. See Ectostosis, and Endostosis.

||Os*tra”ce*a (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; shell of a testacean.] (Zoöl.) A division of bivalve mollusks including the oysters and allied shells.

Os*tra”cean (?), n. [L. ostrea an oyster. See Oyster.] (Zoöl.) Any one of a family of bivalves, of which the oyster is the type.

||Os*tra”ci*on (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; small shell.] (Zoöl.) A genus of plectognath fishes having the body covered with solid, immovable, bony plates. It includes the trunkfishes.

Os*tra”ci*ont (?), n. (Zoöl.) A fish of the genus Ostracion and allied genera.

Os”tra*cism (?), n. [Gr. &?;, fr. &?; to ostracize. See Ostracize.] 1. (Gr. Antiq.) Banishment by popular vote, — a means adopted at Athens to rid the city of a person whose talent and influence gave umbrage.

2. Banishment; exclusion; as, social ostracism.

Public envy is as an ostracism, that eclipseth men when they grow too great.

Bacon.

Sentenced to a perpetual ostracism from the . . . confidence, and honors, and emoluments of his country.

A. Hamilton.

Os”tra*cite (?), n. (Paleon.) A fossil oyster.

Os”tra*cize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Ostracized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Ostracizing (?).] [Gr. &?;, fr. &?; a tile, a tablet used in voting, a shell; cf. &?; oyster, &?; bone. Cf. Osseous, Oyster.] 1. (Gr. Antiq.) To exile by ostracism; to banish by a popular vote, as at Athens. Grote.

2. To banish from society; to put under the ban; to cast out from social, political, or private favor; as, he was ostracized by his former friends. Marvell.

||Os*trac”o*da (?), n. pl. (Zoöl.) Ostracoidea.

||Os`tra*coder”mi (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; shell of a testacean + &?; skin.] (Zoöl.) A suborder of fishes of which Ostracion is the type.

Os”tra*coid (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Ostracoidea. — n. One of the Ostracoidea.

||Os`tra*coi”de*a (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; shell of a testacean + -oid.] (Zoöl.) An order of Entomostraca possessing hard bivalve shells. They are of small size, and swim freely about. [Written also Ostracoda.]

||Os”tre*a (?), n. [L., an oyster.] (Zoöl.) A genus of bivalve Mollusca which includes the true oysters.

Os`tre*a”ceous (?), a. [L. ostrea an oyster. See Oyster.] (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to an oyster, or to a shell; shelly.

The crustaceous or ostreaceous body.

Cudworth.

Os”tre*a*cul`ture (?), n. The artificial cultivation of oysters.

Os`tre*oph”a*gist (?), n. [Gr.&?; an oyster + &?; to eat.] One who feeds on oysters.

Os”trich (?), n. [OE. ostriche, ostrice, OF. ostruche, ostruce, F. autruche, L. avis struthio; avis bird + struthio ostrich, fr. Gr. &?;, fr. &?; bird, sparrow. Cf. Aviary, Struthious.] [Formerly written also estrich.] (Zoöl.) A large bird of the genus Struthio, of which Struthio camelus of Africa is the best known species. It has long and very strong legs, adapted for rapid running; only two toes; a long neck, nearly bare of feathers; and short wings incapable of flight. The adult male is about eight feet high.

&fist; The South African ostrich (Struthio australis) and the Asiatic ostrich are considered distinct species by some authors. Ostriches are now domesticated in South Africa in large numbers for the sake of their plumes. The body of the male is covered with elegant black plumose feathers, while the wings and tail furnish the most valuable white plumes.

Ostrich farm, a farm on which ostriches are bred for the sake of their feathers, oil, eggs, etc. — Ostrich farming, the occupation of breeding ostriches for the sake of their feathers, etc. — Ostrich fern (Bot.) a kind of fern (Onoclea Struthiopteris), the tall fronds of which grow in a circle from the rootstock. It is found in alluvial soil in Europe and North America.

Os*trif”er*ous (?), a. [L. ostrifer; ostrea oyster + ferre.] Producing oysters; containing oysters.

Os”tro*goth (?), n. [L. Ostrogothi, pl. See East, and Goth.] One of the Eastern Goths. See Goth.

Os`tro*goth”ic (?), a. Of or pertaining to the Ostrogoths.

Os*we”go tea” (?). (Bot.) An American aromatic herb (Monarda didyma), with showy, bright red, labiate flowers.

Ot`a*cous”tic (?), a. [Oto- + acoustic: cf. F. otacoustique.] Assisting the sense of hearing; as, an otacoustic instrument.

{ Ot`a*cous”tic (?), Ot`a*cous”ti*con (?), } n. An instrument to facilitate hearing, as an ear trumpet.

O`ta*hei”te ap”ple (?). [So named from Otaheite, or Tahiti, one of the Society Islands.] (Bot.) (a) The fruit of a Polynesian anacardiaceous tree (Spondias dulcis), also called vi-apple. It is rather larger than an apple, and the rind has a flavor of turpentine, but the flesh is said to taste like pineapples. (b) A West Indian name for a myrtaceous tree (Jambosa Malaccensis) which bears crimson berries.

||O*tal”gi*a (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;; o’y^s, ‘wto`s, the ear + &?; pain: cf. F. otalgie.] (Med.) Pain in the ear; earache.

O*tal”gic (?), a. (Med.) Of or pertaining to otalgia. — n. A remedy for otalgia.

O*tal”gy (?), n. Pain in the ear; otalgia.

O”ta*ry (?), n.; pl. Otaries (#). [Gr. &?; large-eared, fr. &?;, &?;, ear: cf. F. otarie.] (Zoöl.) Any eared seal.

O”the*o*scope (?), n. [Gr. &?; to push + -scope.] (Physics) An instrument for exhibiting the repulsive action produced by light or heat in an exhausted vessel; a modification of the radoimeter. W. Crookes.

Oth”er (ŭ&thlig;”&etilde;r), conj. [See Or.] Either; — used with other or or for its correlative (as either . . . or are now used). [Obs.]

Other of chalk, other of glass.

Chaucer.

Oth”er, pron. & a. [AS. ōðer; akin to OS. āðar, ōðar, D. & G. ander, OHG. andar, Icel. annarr, Sw. annan, Dan. anden, Goth. anþar, Skr. antara: cf. L. alter; all orig. comparatives: cf. Skr. anya other. √180. Cf. Alter.] [Formerly other was used both as singular and plural.]

1. Different from that which, or the one who, has been specified; not the same; not identical; additional; second of two.

Each of them made other for to win.

Chaucer.

Whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.

Matt. v. 39.

2. Not this, but the contrary; opposite; as, the other side of a river.

3. Alternate; second; — used esp. in connection with every; as, every other day, that is, each alternate day, every second day.

4. Left, as opposed to right. [Obs.]

A distaff in her other hand she had.

Spenser.

&fist; Other is a correlative adjective, or adjective pronoun, often in contrast with one, some, that, this, etc.

The one shall be taken, and the other left.

Matt. xxiv. 41.

And some fell among thorns . . . but other fell into good ground.

Matt. xiii. 7, 8.

It is also used, by ellipsis, with a noun, expressed or understood.

To write this, or to design the other.

Dryden.

It is written with the indefinite article as one word, another; is used with each, indicating a reciprocal action or relation; and is employed absolutely, or eliptically for other thing, or other person, in which case it may have a plural.

The fool and the brutish person perish, and leave their wealth to others.

Ps. xlix. 10.

If he is trimming, others are true.

Thackeray.

Other is sometimes followed by but, beside, or besides; but oftener by than.

No other but such a one as he.

Coleridge.

Other lords beside thee have had dominion over us.

Is. xxvi. 13.

For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid.

1 Cor. iii. 11.

The whole seven years of . . . ignominy had been little other than a preparation for this very hour.

Hawthorne.

Other some, some others. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.] — The other day, at a certain time past, not distant, but indefinite; not long ago; recently; rarely, the third day past.

Bind my hair up: as’t was yesterday?
No, nor t’ other day.

B. Jonson.

Oth”er (?), adv. Otherwise. “It shall none other be.” Chaucer. “If you think other.” Shak.

Oth”er*gates` (?), adv. [Other + gate way. See wards.] In another manner. [Obs.]

He would have tickled you othergates.

Shak.

{ Oth”er*guise` (?), Oth”er*guess` (?) }, a. & adv. [A corruption of othergates.] Of another kind or sort; in another way. “Otherguess arguments.” Berkeley.

Oth”er*ness, n. The quality or state of being other or different; alterity; oppositeness.

Oth”er*ways` (?), adv. See Otherwise. Tyndale.

Oth”er*where` (?), adv. In or to some other place, or places; elsewhere. Milton. Tennyson.

{ Oth”er*while` (?), Oth”er*whiles` (?), } adv. At another time, or other times; sometimes; &?;ccasionally. [Archaic]

Weighing otherwhiles ten pounds and more.

Holland.

Oth”er*wise` (?), adv. [Other + wise manner.]

1. In a different manner; in another way, or in other ways; differently; contrarily. Chaucer.

Thy father was a worthy prince,
And merited, alas! a better fate;
But Heaven thought otherwise.

Addison.

2. In other respects.

It is said, truly, that the best men otherwise are not always the best in regard of society.

Hooker.

3. In different circumstances; under other conditions; as, I am engaged, otherwise I would accept.

&fist; Otherwise, like so and thus, may be used as a substitute for the opposite of a previous adjective, noun, etc.

Let no man think me a fool; if otherwise, yet as a fool receive me.

2 Cor. xi. 16.

Her eyebrows . . . rather full than otherwise.

Fielding.

Oth”man (?), n. & a. See Ottoman.

O”tic (?), a. [Gr. &?;, fr. o’y^s, ‘wto`s, the ear: cf. F. otique.] Of, pertaining to, or in the region of, the ear; auricular; auditory.

O”ti*ose` (?), a. [L. otiosus, fr. otium ease.] Being at leisure or ease; unemployed; indolent; idle. “Otiose assent.” Paley.

The true keeping of the Sabbath was not that otiose and un&?;rofitable cessation from even good deeds which they would enforce.

Alford.

O`ti*os”ity (?), n. [L. otiositas.] Leisure; indolence; idleness; ease. [R.] Thackeray.

||O”tis (?), n. [L., a kind of bustard, Gr. &?;.] (Zoöl.) A genus of birds including the bustards.

||O*ti”tis (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. o’y^s, ‘wto`s, the ear + -itis.] (Med.) Inflammation of the ear.

O”to- (?). [Gr. o’y^s, ‘wto`s, the ear.] A combining form denoting relation to, or situation near or in, the ear.

O*to”ba fat` (?). (Chem.) A colorless buttery substance obtained from the fruit of Myristica otoba, a species of nutmeg tree.

O*toc”o*nite (?), n. [Oto- + Gr. &?; dust.] (Anat.) (a) A mass of otoliths. (b) An otolith.

O”to*crane (?), n. [Oto- + Gr. &?; skull.] (Anat.) The cavity in the skull in which the parts of the internal ear are lodged.

O`to*cra”ni*al (?), a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the otocrane.

O”to*cyst (?), n. [Oto- + cyst.] (Zoöl. & Anat.) An auditory cyst or vesicle; one of the simple auditory organs of many invertebrates, containing a fluid and otoliths; also, the embryonic vesicle from which the parts of the internal ear of vertebrates are developed.

O*tog”ra*phy (?), n. [Oto- + -graphy.] A description of the ear.

{ O”to*lith (?), O”to*lite (?), } n. [Oto- + -lith, -lite.] (Anat.) One of the small bones or particles of calcareous or other hard substance in the internal ear of vertebrates, and in the auditory organs of many invertebrates; an ear stone. Collectively, the otoliths are called ear sand and otoconite.

{ O`to*lith”ic (?), O`to*lit”ic (?), } a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to otoliths.

O`to*log”ic*al (?), a. Of or pertaining tootology.

O*tol”o*gist (?), n. One skilled in otology; an aurist.

O*tol”o*gy (?), n. [Oto- + - logy.] The branch of science which treats of the ear and its diseases.

O*top”a*thy (?), n. [Oto- + Gr. &?; to suffer.] (Med.) A diseased condition of the ear.

||O`tor*rhœ“a (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. o’y^s, ‘wto`s, the ear + &?; to flow.] (Med.) A flow or running from the ear, esp. a purulent discharge.

O”to*scope (?), n. [Oto- + - scope.] An instrument for examining the condition of the ear.

O`to*scope”ic (?), a. Of or pertaining to the otoscope or to otoscopy.

O*tos”co*py (?), n. (Med.) The examination of the ear; the art of using the otoscope.

O*tos”te*al (?), n. [Oto- + Gr. &?; a bone.] (Anat.) An auditory ossicle. R. Owen.

||O`to*zo”um (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;, a fabled giant + zo^,on an animal.] (Paleon.) An extinct genus of huge vertebrates, probably dinosaurs, known only from four-toed tracks in Triassic sandstones.

Ot”tar (?), n. See Attar.

Ot”ta*was (?), n. pl.; sing. Ottawa (&?;). (Ethnol.) A tribe of Indians who, when first known, lived on the Ottawa River. Most of them subsequently migrated to the southwestern shore of Lake Superior.

Ot”ter (?), n. [OE. oter, AS. otor; akin to D. & G. otter, Icel. otr, Dan. odder, Sw. utter, Lith. udra, Russ, vuidra, Gr. “y`dra water serpent, hydra, Skr. udra otter, and also to E. water. √137, 215. See Water, and cf. Hydra.]

1. (Zoöl.) Any carnivorous animal of the genus Lutra, and related genera. Several species are described. They have large, flattish heads, short ears, and webbed toes. They are aquatic, and feed on fish. Their fur is soft and valuable. The common otter of Europe is Lutra vulgaris; the American otter is L. Canadensis; other species inhabit South America and Asia.

2. (Zoöl.) The larva of the ghost moth. It is very injurious to hop vines.

Otter hound, Otter dog (Zoöl.), a small breed of hounds, used in England for hunting otters. — Otter sheep. See Ancon sheep, under Ancon. — Otter shell (Zoöl.), very large bivalve mollusk (Schizothærus Nuttallii) found on the northwest coast of America. It is excellent food, and is extensively used by the Indians. — Sea otter. (Zoöl.) See in the Vocabulary.

Ot”ter, n. A corruption of Annotto.

Ot”to (?), n. See Attar.

Ot”to*man (?), a. [F. ottoman: cf. It. ottomano, ottomanno; — from Othoman, Othman, or Osman, the name of a sultan who assumed the government of Turkey about the year 1300. Cf. Osmanli, Ottoman a stuffed seat.] Of or pertaining to the Turks; as, the Ottoman power or empire.

Ot”to*man, n.; pl. Ottomans (&?;). 1. A Turk.

2. [F. ottomane, from ottoman Turkish.] A stuffed seat without a back, originally used in Turkey.

Ot”to*mite (?), n. An Ottoman. [R.] Shak.

Ot”trel*ite (?), n. [From Ottrez, on the borders of Luxembourg.] (Min.) A micaceous mineral occurring in small scales. It is characteristic of certain crystalline schists.

||Oua*ka”ri (?), n. [From the native name.] (Zoöl.) Any South American monkey of the genus Brachyurus, especially B. ouakari.

||Ouan`der*oo” (?), n. (Zoöl.) The wanderoo.

Oua`rine” (?), n. [F.] (Zoöl.) A Brazilian monkey of the genus Mycetes.

||Ou`bli`ette” (?), n. [F., fr. oublier to forget, fr. (assumed) LL. oblitare, L. oblivisci, p. p. oblitus.] A dungeon with an opening only at the top, found in some old castles and other strongholds, into which persons condemned to perpetual imprisonment, or to perish secretly, were thrust, or lured to fall.

Sudden in the sun
An oubliette winks. Where is he? Gone.

Mrs. Browning.

Ouch (ouch), n. [OE. ouch, nouche (a nouch being taken for an ouch: cf. Adder), fr. OF. nusche, nosche, nousche, buckle, clasp, LL. nusca, fr. OHG. nusca, nuscha.] A socket or bezel holding a precious stone; hence, a jewel or ornament worn on the person.

A precious stone in a rich ouche.

Sir T. Elyot.

Your brooches, pearls, and ouches.

Shak.

Ough”ne (ō“ne), a. Own. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Ought (&add;t), n. & adv. See Aught.

Ought, imp., p. p., or auxiliary. [Orig. the preterit of the verb to owe. OE. oughte, aughte, ahte, AS. āhte. √110. See Owe.] 1. Was or were under obligation to pay; owed. [Obs.]

This due obedience which they ought to the king.

Tyndale.

The love and duty I long have ought you.

Spelman.

[He] said . . . you ought him a thousand pound.

Shak.

2. Owned; possessed. [Obs.]

The knight the which that castle ought.

Spenser.

3. To be bound in duty or by moral obligation.

We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak.

Rom. xv. 1.

4. To be necessary, fit, becoming, or expedient; to behoove; — in this sense formerly sometimes used impersonally or without a subject expressed. “Well ought us work.” Chaucer.

To speak of this as it ought, would ask a volume.

Milton.

Ought not Christ to have suffered these things?

Luke xxiv. 26.

&fist; Ought is now chiefly employed as an auxiliary verb, expressing fitness, expediency, propriety, moral obligation, or the like, in the action or state indicated by the principal verb.

Syn. — Ought, Should. Both words imply obligation, but ought is the stronger. Should may imply merely an obligation of propriety, expendiency, etc.; ought denotes an obligation of duty.

Ought”ness (?), n. The state of being as a thing ought to be; rightness. [R.] N. W. Taylor.

Ough”where` (?), adv. [AS. āhwær.] Anywhere; somewhere. See Owher. [Obs.]

Ouis”ti*ti (?), n. [F.] (Zoöl.) See Wistit.

Oul (?), n. An awl. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Oul, n. An owl. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Ou”la*chan (?), n. (Zoöl.) Same as Eulachon.

Ounce (?), n. [F. once, fr. L. uncia a twelfth, the twelfth part of a pound or of a foot: cf. Gr. &?; bulk, mass, atom. Cf. 2d Inch, Oke.] 1. A weight, the sixteenth part of a pound avoirdupois, and containing 437&?; grains.

2. (Troy Weight) The twelfth part of a troy pound.

&fist; The troy ounce contains twenty pennyweights, each of twenty-four grains, or, in all, 480 grains, and is the twelfth part of the troy pound. The troy ounce is also a weight in apothecaries’ weight. [Troy ounce is sometimes written as one word, troyounce.]

3. Fig.: A small portion; a bit. [Obs.]

By ounces hung his locks that he had.

Chaucer.

Fluid ounce. See under Fluid, n.

Ounce, n. [F. once; cf. It. lonza, Sp. onza; prob. for lonce, taken as l’once, fr. L. lynx, Gr. &?;, or an (assumed) fem. adj. lyncea, from lynx. Cf. Lynx.] (Zoöl.) A feline quadruped (Felis irbis, or uncia) resembling the leopard in size, and somewhat in color, but it has longer and thicker fur, which forms a short mane on the back. The ounce is pale yellowish gray, with irregular dark spots on the neck and limbs, and dark rings on the body. It inhabits the lofty mountain ranges of Asia. Called also once.

{ Ound”ed (?), Oun”dy (?), } a. [F. ondé, -ée, fr. onde, L. unda, a wave.] Wavy; waving&?; curly. [Obs.] “Owndie hair.” Chaucer.

Ound”ing (?), vb. n. Waving. [Obs.]

Ounding, paling, winding, or bending . . . of cloth.

Chaucer.

Ouphe (?), n. [See Auf.] A fairy; a goblin; an elf. [Obs.] “Like urchins, ouphes, and fairies.” Shak.

Ouph”en (?), a. Elfish. [Obs.]

Our (?), possessive pron. [AS. &?;re our, of us; akin to &?;s us, to us, and to G. unser our, of us, Goth. unsara. √186 See Us.] Of or pertaining to us; belonging to us; as, our country; our rights; our troops; our endeavors. See I.

The Lord is our defense.

Ps. lxxxix. 18.

&fist; When the noun is not expressed, ours is used in the same way as hers for her, yours for your, etc.; as, whose house is that? It is ours.

Our wills are ours, we known not how.

Tennyson.

-our (?). [OF. our.] See or.

Ou*rang” (?), n. (Zoöl.) The orang-outang.

Ou*rang”-ou*tang` (?), n. (Zoöl.) See Orang-outang.

Ou`ra*nog”ra*phist (?), n. See Uranographist.

Ou`ra*nog”ra*phy (?), n. See Uranography.

||Ou”re*bi (?), n. (Zoöl.) A small, graceful, and swift African antelope, allied to the klipspringer.

Ou*ret”ic (?), a. [Gr. &?;, from &?; urine. Cf. Uretic.] (Chem.) Uric.

Ou*rol”o*gy (?), n. See Urology.

Ou*ros”co*py (?), n. [Gr. &?; urine + -scopy.] Ourology.

Ours (?), possessive pron. See Note under Our.

Our*selves” (?), pron. ; sing. Ourself (&?;). An emphasized form of the pronoun of the first person plural; — used as a subject, usually with we; also, alone in the predicate, in the nominative or the objective case.

We ourselves might distinctly number in words a great deal further then we usually do.

Locke.

Safe in ourselves, while on ourselves we stand.

Dryden.

&fist; The form ourself is usec only in the regal or formal style after we or us, denoting a single person.

Unless we would denude ourself of all force.

Clarendon.

-ous (?). [OF. -ous, us, -os, F. -eux, fr. L. -osus, and -us. Cf. -ose.] 1. An adjective suffix meaning full of, abounding in, having, possessing the qualities of, like; as in gracious, abounding in grace; arduous, full of ardor; bulbous, having bulbs, bulblike; riotous, poisonous, piteous, joyous, etc.

2. (Chem.) A suffix denoting that the element indicated by the name bearing it, has a valence lower than that denoted by the termination -ic; as, nitrous, sulphurous, etc., as contrasted with nitric, sulphuric, etc.

Ouse (?), n. & v. See Ooze. [Obs.]

Ou”sel (?), n. [OE. osel, AS. &?;sle; akin to G. amsel, OHG. amsala, and perh. to L. merula blackbird. Cf. Merle, Amsel.] (Zoöl.) One of several species of European thrushes, especially the blackbird (Merula merula, or Turdus merula), and the mountain or ring ousel (Turdus torquatus). [Written also ouzel.]

Rock ousel (Zoöl.), the ring ousel. — Water ousel (Zoöl.), the European dipper (Cinclus aquaticus), and the American dipper (C. Mexicanus).

Oust (?), n. See Oast.

Oust, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Ousted; p. pr. & vb. n. Ousting.] [OF. oster, F. ôter, prob. fr. L. obstare to oppose, hence, to forbid, take away. See Obstacle, and cf. Ouster.] 1. To take away; to remove.

Multiplication of actions upon the case were rare, formerly, and thereby wager of law ousted.

Sir M. Hale.

2. To eject; to turn out. Blackstone.

From mine own earldom foully ousted me.

Tennyson.

Oust”er (?), n. [Prob. fr. the OF. infin. oster, used substantively. See Oust.] A putting out of possession; dispossession; ejection; disseizin.

Ouster of the freehold is effected by abatement, intrusion, disseizin, discontinuance, or deforcement.

Blackstone.

Ouster le main. [Ouster + F. la main the hand, L. manus.] (Law) A delivery of lands out of the hands of a guardian, or out of the king’s hands, or a judgement given for that purpose. Blackstone.

Out (?), adv. [OE. out, ut, oute, ute, AS. ūt, and ūte, ūtan, fr. ūt; akin to D. uit, OS. ūt, G. aus, OHG. ūz, Icel. ūt, Sw. ut, Dan. ud, Goth. ut, Skr. ud. √198. Cf. About, But, prep., Carouse, Utter, a.] In its original and strict sense, out means from the interior of something; beyond the limits or boundary of somethings; in a position or relation which is exterior to something; — opposed to in or into. The something may be expressed after of, from, etc. (see Out of, below); or, if not expressed, it is implied; as, he is out; or, he is out of the house, office, business, etc.; he came out; or, he came out from the ship, meeting, sect, party, etc. Out is used in a variety of applications, as: —

1. Away; abroad; off; from home, or from a certain, or a usual, place; not in; not in a particular, or a usual, place; as, the proprietor is out, his team was taken out. “My shoulder blade is out.” Shak.

He hath been out (of the country) nine years.

Shak.

2. Beyond the limits of concealment, confinement, privacy, constraint, etc., actual of figurative; hence, not in concealment, constraint, etc., in, or into, a state of freedom, openness, disclosure, publicity, etc.; as, the sun shines out; he laughed out, to be out at the elbows; the secret has leaked out, or is out; the disease broke out on his face; the book is out.

Leaves are out and perfect in a month.

Bacon.

She has not been out [in general society] very long.

H. James.

3. Beyond the limit of existence, continuance, or supply; to the end; completely; hence, in, or into, a condition of extinction, exhaustion, completion; as, the fuel, or the fire, has burned out. “Hear me out.” Dryden.

Deceitiful men shall not live out half their days.

Ps. iv. 23.

When the butt is out, we will drink water.

Shak.

4. Beyond possession, control, or occupation; hence, in, or into, a state of want, loss, or deprivation; — used of office, business, property, knowledge, etc.; as, the Democrats went out and the Whigs came in; he put his money out at interest. “Land that is out at rack rent.” Locke. “He was out fifty pounds.” Bp. Fell.

I have forgot my part, and I am out.

Shak.

5. Beyond the bounds of what is true, reasonable, correct, proper, common, etc.; in error or mistake; in a wrong or incorrect position or opinion; in a state of disagreement, opposition, etc.; in an inharmonious relation. “Lancelot and I are out.” Shak.

Wicked men are strangely out in the calculating of their own interest.

South.

Very seldom out, in these his guesses.

Addison.

6. Not in the position to score in playing a game; not in the state or turn of the play for counting or gaining scores.

&fist; Out is largely used in composition as a prefix, with the same significations that it has as a separate word; as outbound, outbreak, outbuilding, outcome, outdo, outdoor, outfield. See also the first Note under Over, adv.

Day in, day out, from the beginning to the limit of each of several days; day by day; every day. — Out and out. (a) adv. Completely; wholly; openly. (b) adj. Without any reservation or disguise; absolute; as, an out and out villain. [As an adj. written also out-and-out.] — Out at, Out in, Out on, etc., elliptical phrases, that to which out refers as a source, origin, etc., being omitted; as, out (of the house and) at the barn; out (of the house, road, fields, etc., and) in the woods.

Three fishers went sailing out into the west,
Out into the west, as the sun went down.

C. Kingsley.

In these lines after out may be understood, “of the harbor,” “from the shore,” “of sight,” or some similar phrase. The complete construction is seen in the saying: “Out of the frying pan into the fire.” — Out from, a construction similar to out of (below). See Of and From.

Out of, a phrase which may be considered either as composed of an adverb and a preposition, each having its appropriate office in the sentence, or as a compound preposition. Considered as a preposition, it denotes, with verbs of movement or action, from the interior of; beyond the limit: from; hence, origin, source, motive, departure, separation, loss, etc.; — opposed to in or into; also with verbs of being, the state of being derived, removed, or separated from. Examples may be found in the phrases below, and also under Vocabulary words; as, out of breath; out of countenance.

Out of cess, beyond measure, excessively. Shak. — Out of character, unbecoming; improper. — Out of conceit with, not pleased with. See under Conceit. — Out of date, not timely; unfashionable; antiquated. — Out of door, Out of doors, beyond the doors; from the house; in, or into, the open air; hence, figuratively, shut out; dismissed. See under Door, also, Out-of-door, Outdoor, Outdoors, in the Vocabulary. “He ‘s quality, and the question’s out of door,” Dryden. — Out of favor, disliked; under displeasure. — Out of frame, not in correct order or condition; irregular; disarranged. Latimer. — Out of hand, immediately; without delay or preparation. “Ananias . . . fell down and died out of hand.” Latimer. — Out of harm’s way, beyond the danger limit; in a safe place. — Out of joint, not in proper connection or adjustment; unhinged; disordered. “The time is out of joint.” Shak. — Out of mind, not in mind; forgotten; also, beyond the limit of memory; as, time out of mind. — Out of one’s head, beyond commanding one’s mental powers; in a wandering state mentally; delirious. [Colloq.] — Out of one’s time, beyond one’s period of minority or apprenticeship. — Out of order, not in proper order; disarranged; in confusion. — Out of place, not in the usual or proper place; hence, not proper or becoming. — Out of pocket, in a condition of having expended or lost more money than one has received. — Out of print, not in market, the edition printed being exhausted; — said of books, pamphlets, etc. — Out of the question, beyond the limits or range of consideration; impossible to be favorably considered. — Out of reach, beyond one’s reach; inaccessible. — Out of season, not in a proper season or time; untimely; inopportune. — Out of sorts, wanting certain things; unsatisfied; unwell; unhappy; cross. See under Sort, n. — Out of temper, not in good temper; irritated; angry. — Out of time, not in proper time; too soon, or too late. – - Out of time, not in harmony; discordant; hence, not in an agreeing temper; fretful. — Out of twist, winding, or wind, not in warped condition; perfectly plain and smooth; — said of surfaces. — Out of use, not in use; unfashionable; obsolete. — Out of the way. (a) On one side; hard to reach or find; secluded. (b) Improper; unusual; wrong. — Out of the woods, not in a place, or state, of obscurity or doubt; free from difficulty or perils; safe. [Colloq.] — Out to out, from one extreme limit to another, including the whole length, breadth, or thickness; — applied to measurements. — Out West, in or towards, the West; specifically, in some Western State or Territory. [U. S.] — To come out, To cut out, To fall out, etc. See under Come, Cut, Fall, etc. — To put out of the way, to kill; to destroy. — Week in, week out. See Day in, day out (above).

Out (?), n. 1. One who, or that which, is out; especially, one who is out of office; — generally in the plural.

2. A place or space outside of something; a nook or corner; an angle projecting outward; an open space; — chiefly used in the phrase ins and outs; as, the ins and outs of a question. See under In.

3. (Print.) A word or words omitted by the compositor in setting up copy; an omission.

To make an out (Print.), to omit something, in setting or correcting type, which was in the copy.

Out, v. t. 1. To cause to be out; to eject; to expel.

A king outed from his country.

Selden.

The French have been outed of their holds.

Heylin.

2. To come out with; to make known. [Obs.] Chaucer.

3. To give out; to dispose of; to sell. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Out, v. i. To come or go out; to get out or away; to become public. “Truth will out.” Shak.

Out, interj. Expressing impatience, anger, a desire to be rid of; — with the force of command; go out; begone; away; off.

Out, idle words, servants to shallow fools !

Shak.

Out upon or on! equivalent to “shame upon!” “away with!” as, out upon you!

Out*act” (?), v. t. To do or beyond; to exceed in acting. [R.]

He has made me heir to treasures
Would make me outact a real window’s whining.

Otway.

Ou”ta*gam`ies (?), n. pl.; sing. Outagamie (&?;). (Ethnol.) See lst Fox, 7.

Out*ar”gue (?), v. t. To surpass or conquer in argument.

Out*bab”ble (?), v. t. To utter foolishly or excessively; to surpass in babbling. [R.] Milton.

Out*bal”ance (?), v. t. To outweight; to exceed in weight or effect.

Let dull Ajax bear away my right
When all his days outbalance this one night.

Dryden.

Out*bar” (?), v. t. To bar out. [R.] Spenser.

Out*beg” (?), v. t. To surpass in begging. [R.]

Out*bid” (?), v. t. [imp. Outbid or Outbade (&?;); p. p. Outbid or Outbidden (&?;); p. pr. & vb. n. Outbidding.] To exceed or surpass in bidding.

Prevent the greedy, and outbid the bold.

Pope.

Out*bid”der (?), n. One who outbids. Johnson.

Out*bleat” (?), v. t. To surpass in bleating.

Out”blown` (?), a. Inflated with wind. Dryden.

Out*blush” (?), v. t. To exceed in blushing; to surpass in rosy color. T. Shipman.

Out”board` (?), a. & adv. (Naut.) Beyond or outside of the lines of a vessel’s bulwarks or hull; in a direction from the hull or from the keel; — opposed to inboard; as, outboard rigging; swing the davits outboard.

Out”born` (?), a. Foreign; not native. [R.]

Out”bound` (?), a. Outward bound. Dryden.

Out”bounds` (?), n. pl. The farthest or exterior bounds; extreme limits; boundaries. Spenser.

Out*bow” (?), v. t. To excel in bowing. Young.

Out”bowed` (?), a. Convex; curved outward. “The convex or outbowed side of a vessel.” Bp. Hall.

Out*brag” (?), v. t. To surpass in bragging; hence, to make appear inferior.

Whose bare outbragg’d the web it seemed to wear.

Shak.

Out*brave” (?), v. t. 1. To excel in bravery o&?; in insolence; to defy with superior courage or audacity

2. To excel in magnificence or comeliness.

The basest weed outbraves his dignity.

Shak.

Out*bray” (?), v. t. 1. To exceed in braying.

2. To emit with great noise. [Obs.] Fairfax.

Out*bra”zen (?), v. t. To bear down with a brazen face; to surpass in impudence. T. Brown.

Out”break` (?), n. A bursting forth; eruption; insurrection. “Mobs and outbreaks.” J. H. Newman.

The flash and outbreak of a fiery mind.

Shak.

Out”break`ing, n. 1. The act of breaking out.

2. That which bursts forth.

Out*breast” (?), v. t. To surpass in singing. See Breast, n., 6. [Obs.]

Out*breathe” (?), v. t. 1. To breathe forth. “Outbreathed life.” Spenser.

2. To cause to be out of breath; to exhaust. Shak.

Out*breathe”, v. i. To issue, as breath; to be breathed out; to exhale. Beau. & Fl.

Out*bribe” (?), v. t. To surpass in bribing.

Out*bring” (?), v. t. To bring or bear out.

Out*bud” (?), v. i. To sprout. [Poetic] Spenser.

Out*build” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Outbuilt (?) or Outbuilded; p. pr. & vb. n. Outbuilding.] To exceed in building, or in durability of building.

Out”build`ing (?), n. A building separate from, and subordinate to, the main house; an outhouse.

Out*burn”, v. t. & i. 1. To exceed in burning.

2. To burn entirely; to be consumed. Shak.

Out”burst` (?), n. A bursting forth.

Out*cant” (?), v. t. To surpass in canting. Pope.

Out”cast` (?), a. [Cf. Sw. utkasta to cast out.] Cast out; degraded. “Outcast, rejected.” Longfellow.

Out”cast`, n. 1. One who is cast out or expelled; an exile; one driven from home, society, or country; hence, often, a degraded person; a vagabond.

The Lord . . . gathereth together the outcasts of Israel.

Ps. cxlvii. 2.

2. A quarrel; a contention. [Scot.] Jamieson.

Out”cast`ing, n. That which is cast out. [Obs.]

Out*cept” (?), prep. Except. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

Out*cheat” (?), v. t. To exceed in cheating.

Out*climb” (?), v. t. To climb bevond; to surpass in climbing. Davenant.

Out”come (?), n. That which comes out of, or follows from, something else; issue; result; consequence; upshot. “The logical outcome.” H. Spenser.

All true literature, all genuine poetry, is the direct outcome, the condensed essence, of actual life and thougth.

J. C. Shairp.

Out*com”pass (?), v. t. To exceed the compass or limits of. Bacon.

Out”court` (?), n. An outer or exterior court.

The skirts and outcourts of heaven.

South.

Out*craft”y (?), v. t. To exceed in cunning. [R.] Shak.

Out”cri`er (?), n. One who cries out or proclaims; a herald or crier.

Out”crop` (?), n. (Geol.) (a) The coming out of a stratum to the surface of the ground. Lyell. (b) That part of inclined strata which appears at the surface; basset.

Out*crop” (?), v. i. (Geol.) To come out to the surface of the ground; — said of strata.

Out”cry` (?), n. 1. A vehement or loud cry; a cry of distress, alarm, opposition, or detestation; clamor.

2. Sale at public auction. Massinger. Thackeray.

Out*dare” (?), v. t. To surpass in daring; to overcome by courage; to brave. Shak. R. Browning.

Out*dat”ed (?), a. Being out of date; antiquated. [Obs.] Hammond.

Out*daz”zle (?), v. t. To surpass in dazzing.

Out*do” (?), v. t. [imp. Outdid (?); p. p. Outdone (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Outdoing.] To go beyond in performance; to excel; to surpass.

An imposture outdoes the original.

L’ Estrange.

I grieve to be outdone by Gay.

Swift.

Out”door` (?), a. [For out of door.] Being, or done, in the open air; being or done outside of certain buildings, as poorhouses, hospitals, etc.; as, outdoor exercise; outdoor relief; outdoor patients.

Out”doors` (?), adv. Abread; out of the house; out of doors.

Out*draw” (?), v. t. To draw out; to extract. [R.] “He must the teeth outdraw.” Gower.

Out*dream” (?), v. t. To pass, or escape, while dreaming. “To oultdream dangers.” Beau. & Fl.

Out*drink” (?), v. t. To exceed in drinking.

Out*dure” (?), v. t. To outlast. [Obs.]

Out*dwell” (?), v. t. To dwell or stay beyond. [Poetic] “He outdwells his hour.” Shak.

Out”dwell`er (?), n. One who holds land in a parish, but lives elsewhere. [Eng.]

Out”er (out”&etilde;r), a. [Compar. of Out.] [AS. ūtor, compar. of ūt, adv., out. See Out, Utter, a.] Being on the outside; external; farthest or farther from the interior, from a given station, or from any space or position regarded as a center or starting place; — opposed to inner; as, the outer wall; the outer court or gate; the outer stump in cricket; the outer world.

Outer bar, in England, the body of junior (or utter) barristers; — so called because in court they occupy a place beyond the space reserved for Queen’s counsel.

Out”er, n. (a) The part of a target which is beyond the circles surrounding the bull’s- eye. (b) A shot which strikes the outer of a target.

Out”er, n. [From Out, v.] One who puts out, ousts, or expels; also, an ouster; dispossession. [R.]

Out”er*ly, adv. 1. Utterly; entirely. [Obs.] Chaucer.

2. Toward the outside. [R.] Grew.

Out”er*most` (?), a. [See Uttermost, Utmost, and cf. Outmost.] Being on the extreme external part; farthest outward; as, the outermost row. Boyle.

Out*face” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Outfaced (?); p pr. & vb. n. Outfacing (?).] To face or look (one) out of countenance; to resist or bear down by bold looks or effrontery; to brave. Shak.

Having outfaced all the world.

South.

Out”fall` (?), n. 1. The mouth of a river; the lower end of a water course; the open end of a drain, culvert, etc., where the discharge occurs.

2. A quarrel; a falling out. [Prov. Eng.]

Out*fang”thef (?), n. [AS. &?;t- fangen-&?;eóf. See Out, Fang, v. t., and Thief.] (Anglo-Saxon & O. Eng. Law) (a) A thief from without or abroad, taken within a lord’s fee or liberty. (b) The privilege of trying such a thief. Burrill.

Out*fawn” (?), v. t. To exceed in fawning.

Out*feast” (?), v. t. To exceed in feasting.

Out*feat” (?), v. t. To surpass in feats.

Out”field` (?), n. 1. Arable land which has been or is being exhausted. See Infield, 1. [Scot.]

2. A field beyond, or separated from, the inclosed land about the homestead; an uninclosed or unexplored tract. Also used figuratively.

The great outfield of thought or fact.

Trench.

3. (Baseball) The part of the field beyond the diamond, or infield. It is occupied by the fielders.

4. (Cricket) The part of the field farthest from the batsman.

Out”fit (?), n. A fitting out, or equipment, as of a ship for a voyage, or of a person for an expedition in an unoccupied region or residence in a foreign land; things required for equipment; the expense of, or allowance made for, equipment, as by the government of the United States to a diplomatic agent going abroad.

Out”fit`ter (?), n. One who furnishes outfits for a voyage, a journey, or a business.

Out*flank” (?), v. t. (Mil.) To go beyond, or be superior to, on the flank; to pass around or turn the flank or flanks of.

Out*flat”ter (?), v. t. To exceed in flattering.

Out”fling`, n. A gibe; a contemptuous remark.

Out”flow` (?), n. A flowing out; efflux.

Out*flow” (?), v. i. To flow out. Campbell.

Out*fly” (?), v. t. [imp. Outflew (?); p. p. Outflown (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Outflying.] To surpass in flying; to fly beyond or faster than. Shak.

Winged with fear outflies the wind.

Waller.

Out*fool”, v. t. To exceed in folly. [R.] Young.

Out”form (?), n. External appearance. [Obs.]

Out*frown” (?), v. t. To frown down; to overbear by frowning. Shak.

Out”gate` (?), n. An outlet. [Obs.] Spenser.

Out*gaze” (?), v. t. To gaze beyond; to exceed in sharpness or persistence of seeing or of looking; hence, to stare out of countenance.

Out*gen”er*al (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Outgeneraled (?) or Outgeneralled; p. pr. & vb. n. Outgeneraling or Outgeneralling.] To exceed in generalship; to gain advantage over by superior military skill or executive ability; to outmaneuver. Chesterfield.

Out*give” (?), v. t. To surpass in giving. Dryden.

Out*go” (?), v. t. [imp. Outwent (?); p. p. Outgone (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Outgoing.]

1. To go beyond; to exceed in swiftness; to surpass; to outdo.

2. To circumvent; to overreach. [Obs.] Denham.

Out”go` (?), n.; pl. Outgoes (&?;). That which goes out, or is paid out; outlay; expenditure; — the opposite of income. Lowell.

Out”go`er (?), n. One who goes out or departs.

Out”go`ing, n. 1. The act or the state of going out.

The outgoings of the morning and evening.

Ps. lxv. 8.

2. That which goes out; outgo; outlay.

3. The extreme limit; the place of ending. [Obs.]

The outgoings of the border were at the north bay of the salt sea, at the south end of Jordan.

Josh. xviii. 19.

Out”go`ing, a. Going out; departing; as, the outgoing administration; an outgoing steamer.

Out”ground` (?), n. Ground situated at a distance from the house; outlying land.

Out*grow” (?), v. t. [imp. Outgrew (?); p. p. Outgrown (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Outgrowing.]

1. To surpass in growing; to grow more than. Shak.

2. To grow out of or away from; to grow too large, or too aged, for; as, to outgrow clothing; to outgrow usefulness; to outgrow an infirmity.

Out”growth` (?), n. That which grows out of, or proceeds from, anything; an excrescence; an offshoot; hence, a result or consequence.

Out”guard` (?), n. (Mil.) A guard or small body of troops at a distance from the main body of an army, to watch for the approach of an enemy; hence, anything for defense placed at a distance from the thing to be defended.

Out”gush` (?), n. A pouring out; an outburst.

A passionate outgush of emotion.

Thackeray.

Out*gush” (?), v. i. To gush out; to flow forth.

Out”haul` (?), n. (Naut.) A rope used for hauling out a sail upon a spar; — opposite of inhaul.

Out*hees” (?), n. [Cf. LL. uthesium, hutesium, huesium, OF. hueis, and E. hue, in hue and cry.] Outcry; alarm. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Outh”er (?), conj. Other. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Out-Her”od (?), v. t. To surpass (Herod) in violence or wickedness; to exceed in any vicious or offensive particular. “It out-Herods Herod.” Shak.

Out-Heroding the preposterous fashions of the times.

Sir W. Scott.

Out*hire” (?), v. t. To hire out. [Obs.] Spenser.

Out”house` (?), n. A small house or building at a little distance from the main house; an outbuilding.

Out”ing, n. 1. The act of going out; an airing; an excursion; as, a summer outing.

2. A feast given by an apprentice when he is out of his time. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

Out*jest” (?), v. t. To surpass in jesting; to drive out, or away, by jesting. [R.] Shak.

Out”jet` (?), n. That which jets out or projects from anything. [R.] H. Miller.

Out*jug”gle (?), v. t. To surpass in juggling.

Out”keep`er (?), n. (Surv.) An attachment to a surveyor’s compass for keeping tally in chaining.

Out*knave” (?), v. t. To surpass in knavery.

Out*la”bor (?), v. t. To surpass in laboring.

Out”land (?), a. [Out + land. See Outlandish.] Foreign; outlandish. [Obs.] Strutt.

Out”land*er (?), n. A foreigner. Wood.

Out*land”ish (?), a. [AS. &?;tlendisc foreign. See Out, Land, and - ish.] 1. Foreign; not native.

Him did outlandish women cause to sin.

Neh. xiii. 26.

Its barley water and its outlandish wines.

G. W. Cable.

2. Hence: Not according with usage; strange; rude; barbarous; uncouth; clownish; as, an outlandish dress, behavior, or speech.

Something outlandish, unearthy, or at variance with ordinary fashion.

Hawthorne.

—Out*land”ish*ly, adv. — Out*land”ish*ness, n.

Out*last” (?), v. t. To exceed in duration; to survive; to endure longer than. Milton.

Out*laugh” (?), v. t. 1. To surpass or outdo in laughing. Dryden.

2. To laugh (one) out of a purpose, principle, etc.; to discourage or discomfit by laughing; to laugh down. [R.]

His apprehensions of being outlaughed will force him to continue in a restless obscurity.

Franklin.

Out”law` (?), n. [AS. &?;tlaga, &?;tlah. See Out, and Law.] A person excluded from the benefit of the law, or deprived of its protection. Blackstone.

Out”law`, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Outlawed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Outlawing.] [AS. &?;tlagian.]

1. To deprive of the benefit and protection of law; to declare to be an outlaw; to proscribe. Blackstone.

2. To remove from legal jurisdiction or enforcement; as, to outlaw a debt or claim; to deprive of legal force. “Laws outlawed by necessity.” Fuller.

Out”law`ry (?), n.; pl. Outlawries (&?;).

1. The act of outlawing; the putting a man out of the protection of law, or the process by which a man (as an absconding criminal) is deprived of that protection.

2. The state of being an outlaw.

Out*lay” (?), v. t. To lay out; to spread out; to display. [R.] Drayton.

Out”lay` (?), n. 1. A laying out or expending.

2. That which is expended; expenditure.

3. An outlying haunt. [Obs.] Beau. & Fl.

Out*leap” (?), v. t. To surpass in leaping.

Out”leap` (?), n. A sally. [R.] Locke.

Out*learn” (?), v. t. 1. To excel or surpass in learing.

2. To learn out [i. e., completely, utterly]; to exhaust knowledge of.

Naught, according to his mind,
He could outlearn.

Spenser.

Men and gods have not outlearned it [love].

Emerson.

Out”let` (?), n. The place or opening by which anything is let out; a passage out; an exit; a vent.

Receiving all, and having no outlet.

Fuller.

Out*let” (?), v. t. To let out; to emit. [R.] Daniel.

Out*lie” (?), v. t. To exceed in lying. Bp. Hall.

Out”li`er (?), n. 1. One who does not live where his office, or business, or estate, is. Bentley.

2. That which lies, or is, away from the main body.

3. (Geol.) A part of a rock or stratum lying without, or beyond, the main body, from which it has been separated by denudation.

Out”limb` (?), n. An extreme member or part of a thing; a limb. [Obs.] Fuller.

Out”line` (?), n. 1. (a) The line which marks the outer limits of an object or figure; the exterior line or edge; contour. (b) In art: A line drawn by pencil, pen, graver, or the like, by which the boundary of a figure is indicated. (c) A sketch composed of such lines; the delineation of a figure without shading.

Painters, by their outlines, colors, lights, and shadows, represent the same in their pictures.

Dryden.

2. Fig.: A sketch of any scheme; a preliminary or general indication of a plan, system, course of thought, etc.; as, the outline of a speech.

But that larger grief . . .
Is given in outline and no more.

Tennyson.

Syn. — Sketch; draught; delineation. See Sketch.

Out”line`, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Outlined (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Outlining.] 1. To draw the outline of.

2. Fig.: To sketch out or indicate as by an outline; as, to outline an argument or a campaign.

Out*lin”e*ar (?), a. Of or pertaining to an outline; being in, or forming, an outline. Trench.

Out*live” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Outlived (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Outliving.] To live beyond, or longer than; to survive.

They live too long who happiness outlive.

Dryden.

Out*liv”er (?), n. One who outlives. [R.]

Out*look” (?), v. t. 1. To face down; to outstare.

To outlook conquest, and to win renown.

Shak.

2. To inspect throughly; to select. [Obs.] Cotton.

Out”look`, n. 1. The act of looking out; watch.

2. One who looks out; also, the place from which one looks out; a watchower. Lyon Playfair.

3. The view obtained by one looking out; scope of vision; prospect; sight; appearance.

Applause
Which owes to man’s short outlook all its charms.

Young.

Out”loose` (?), n. A loosing from; an escape; an outlet; an evasion. [Obs.]

That “whereas” gives me an outloose.

Selden.

Out”lope (?), n. An excursion. [Obs.] Florio.

{ Out*lus”ter, Out*lus”tre } (?), v. t. To excel in brightness or luster. Shak.

Out”ly`ing (?), a. Lying or being at a distance from the central part, or the main body; being on, or beyond, the frontier; exterior; remote; detached.

{ Out`ma*neu”ver, Out`ma*nœu”vre } (?), v. t. To surpass, or get an advantage of, in maneuvering; to outgeneral.

Out*man”tle (?), v. t. To excel in mantling; hence, to excel in splendor, as of dress. [R.]

And with poetic trappings grace thy prose,
Till it outmantle all the pride of verse.

Cowper.

Out*march” (?), v. t. To surpass in marching; to march faster than, or so as to leave behind.

Out*meas”ure (?), v. t. To exceed in measure or extent; to measure more than. Sir T. Browne.

Out”most` (?), a. [OE. outemest, utmest, AS. &?;temest, a superl. fr. &?;te out. See Out, Utmost, and cf. Outermost.] Farthest from the middle or interior; farthest outward; outermost.

Out*mount” (?), v. t. To mount above. [R.]

Out*name” (?), v. t. 1. To exceed in naming or describing. [R.]

2. To exceed in name, fame, or degree. [Obs.]

And found out one to outname thy other faults.

Beau. & Fl.

Out”ness (?), n. 1. The state of being out or beyond; separateness.

2. (Metaph.) The state or quality of being distanguishable from the perceiving mind, by being in space, and possessing marerial quality; externality; objectivity.

The outness of the objects of sense.

Sir W. Hamiltom.

Out*noise” (?), v. t. To exceed in noise; to surpass in noisiness. [R.] Fuller.

Out*num”ber (?), v. t. To exceed in number.

Out`-of-door” (?), a. Being out of the house; being, or done, in the open air; outdoor; as, out-of- door exercise. See Out of door, under Out, adv.

Amongst out-of-door delights.

G. Eliot.

Out`-of-the-way”, a. See under Out, adv.

Out*pace” (?), v. t. [Cf. Outpass.] To outgo; to move faster than; to leave behind. [R.] Lamb.

Out*par”a*mour (?), v. t. To exceed in the number of mistresses. [R.] Shak.

Out”par`ish (?), n. A parish lying without the walls of, or in a remote part of, a town. Graunt.

Out”part` (?), n. An outlying part. [R.] Ayliffe.

Out*pass” (?), v. t. [Cf. Outpace.] To pass beyond; to exceed in progress.

Out*pas”sion (?), v. t. To exceed in passion.

Out”-pa`tient (?), n. A patient who is outside a hospital, but receives medical aid from it.

Out*peer” (?), v. t. To excel. [R.] Shak.

Out*play” (?), v. t. To excel or defeat in a game; to play better than; as, to be outplayed in tennis or ball.

Out*poise” (?), v. t. To outweigh. Howell.

Out”port` (?), n. A harbor or port at some distance from the chief town or seat of trade. Macaulay.

Out”post` (?), n. (Mil.) (a) A post or station without the limits of a camp, or at a distance from the main body of an army, for observation of the enemy. (b) The troops placed at such a station.

Out*pour” (?), v. t. To pour out. Milton.

Out”pour`, n. A flowing out; a free discharge.

Out*pow”er (?), v. t. To excel in power; to overpover. [Obs.] Fuller.

Out*pray” (?), v. t. To exceed or excel in prayer.

Out*preach” (?), v. t. To surpass in preaching.

And for a villain’s quick conversion
A pillory can outpreach a parson.

Trumbull.

Out*prize” (?), v. t. To prize beyong value, or in excess; to exceed in value. [Obs.] Shak.

Out”put` (?), n. 1. The amount of coal or ore put out from one or more mines, or the quantity of material produced by, or turned out from, one or more furnaces or mills, in a given time.

2. (Physiol.) That which is thrown out as products of the metabolic activity of the body; the egesta other than the fæces. See Income.

&fist; The output consists of: (a) The respiratory products of the lungs, skin, and alimentary canal, consisting chiefly of carbonic acid and water with small quantities of hydrogen and carbureted hydrogen. (b) Perspiration, consisting chiefly of water and salts. (c) The urine, which is assumed to contain all the nitrogen truly excreted by the body, besides a large quantity of saline matters and water. Foster.

Out*quench” (?), v. t. To quench entirely; to extinguish. “The candlelight outquenched.” Spenser.

Out*rage” (?), v. t. [Out + rage.] To rage in excess of. [R.] Young.

Out”rage (?), n. [F. outrage; OF. outre, oltre, beyond (F. outre, L. ultra) + -age, as, in courage, voyage. See Ulterior.] 1. Injurious violence or wanton wrong done to persons or things; a gross violation of right or decency; excessive abuse; wanton mischief; gross injury. Chaucer.

He wrought great outrages, wasting all the country.

Spenser.

2. Excess; luxury. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Syn. — Affront; insult; abuse. See Affront.

Out”rage (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Outragen (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Outraging (?).] [F. outrager. See Outrage, n.]

1. To commit outrage upon; to subject to outrage; to treat with violence or excessive abuse.

Base and insolent minds outrage men when they have hope of doing it without a return.

Atterbury.

This interview outrages all decency.

Broome.

2. Specifically, to violate; to commit an indecent assault upon (a female).

Out”rage, v. t. To be guilty of an outrage; to act outrageously.

Out*ra”geous (?), a. [OF. outrageus, F. outrageux. See Outrage, n.] Of the nature of an outrage; exceeding the limits of right, reason, or decency; involving or doing an outrage; furious; violent; atrocious. “Outrageous weeping.” Chaucer. “The most outrageous villainies.” Sir P. Sidney. “The vile, outrageous crimes.” Shak. “Outrageous panegyric.” Dryden.

Syn. — Violent; furious; exorbitant; excessive; atrocious; monstrous; wanton; nefarious; heinous.

— Out*ra”geous*ly (out*rā“jŭs*l&ybreve;), adv. — Out*ra”geous*ness, n.

||Ou`trance” (&oomac;`träNs”), n. [F. See OutrÆ.] The utmost or last extremity.

||Combat à outrance, a fight to the end, or to the death.

Out*rank” (out*ră&nsm;k”), v. t. To exceed in rank; hence, to take precedence of.

Out*ray” (-rā”), v. t. To outshine. [R.] Skelton.

Out*ray”, v. i. To spread out in array. [Obs.]

And now they outray to your fleet.

Chapman.

Out*raye” (?), v. i. See Outrage, v. i. [Obs.]

This warn I you, that ye not suddenly
Out of yourself for no woe should outraye.

Chaucer.

Out*raze” (?), v. t. To obliterate. [Obs.] Sandys.

||Ou`tré” (?), a. [F., p. p. of outrer to exaggerate, fr. L. ultra beyond. See Outrage.] Being out of the common course or limits; extravagant; bizarre.

Out*reach” (?), v. t. To reach beyond.

Out*rea”son (?), v. t. To excel or surpass in reasoning; to reason better than. South.

Out*reck”on (?), v. t. To exceed in reckoning or computation. Bp. Pearson.

||Ou`tre*cui`dance” (?), n. [F., fr. outre beyond + cuider to think, L. cogitare.] Excessive presumption. [R.] B. Jonson.

Out*rede” (?), v. t. To surpass in giving rede, or counsel. [Obs.] See Atrede. Chaucer.

Out*reign” (?), v. t. To go beyond in reigning; to reign through the whole of, or longer than. [R.] Spenser.

Out*ride” (?), v. t. To surpass in speed of riding; to ride beyond or faster than. Shak.

Out”ride`, n. 1. A riding out; an excursion. [R.]

2. A place for riding out. [R.]

Out”rid`er (?), n. 1. A summoner whose office is to cite men before the sheriff. [Obs.]

2. One who rides out on horseback. [Obs.] Chaucer.

3. A servant on horseback attending a carriage.

Out”rig`ger (?), n. 1. Any spar or projecting timber run out for temporary use, as from a ship’s mast, to hold a rope or a sail extended, or from a building, to support hoisting teckle.

2. (Naut.) (a) A projecting support for a rowlock, extended from the side of a boat. (b) A boat thus equipped. (c) A projecting contrivance at the side of a boat to prevent upsetting, as projecting spars with a log at the end.

Out”right` (?), adv. 1. Immediately; without delay; at once; as, he was killed outright.

2. Completely; utterly. Cardinal Manning.

Out*ring” (?), v. t. To excel in volume of ringing sound; to ring louder than.

Out*ri”val (?), v. t. To surpass in a rivalry.

Out*rive” (?), v. t. To river; to sever. [Obs.] Fairfax.

{ Out”road`, Out”rode` } (?), n. An excursion. [Obs.] “Outrodes by the ways of Judea.” Macc. xv. 41 (Geneva Bible).

Out*roar” (?), v. t. To exceed in roaring.

Out`ro*mance” (?), v. t. To exceed in romantic character. [R.] Fuller.

Out”room` (?), n. An outer room. [R.] Fuller.

Out*root” (?), v. t. To eradicate; to extirpate.

Out*run” (?), v. t. [imp. Outran (?); p. p. Outrun; p. pr. & vb. n. Outrunning.] To exceed, or leave behind, in running; to run faster than; to outstrip; to go beyond.

Your zeal outruns my wishes.

Sir W. Scott.

The other disciple did outrun Peter, and came first to the sepulcher.

Jhon xx. 4.

Out*run”ner (?), n. An offshoot; a branch. [R.] “Some outrunner of the river.” Lauson.

Out*rush” (?), v. i. To rush out; to issue, or ru&?; out, forcibly. Garth.

Out*sail” (?), v. t. To excel, or to leave behind, in sailing; to sail faster than. Beau. & Fl.

Out*scent” (?), v. t. To exceed in odor. Fuller.

Out*scold” (?), v. t. To exceed in scolding. Shak.

Out*scorn” (?), v. t. To confront, or subdue, with greater scorn. Shak.

Out”scour`ing (?), n. That which is scoured out o&?; washed out. Buckland.

Out*scout” (?), v. t. To overpower by disdain; to outface. [Obs.] Marston.

Out*see” (?), v. t. To see beyond; to excel in cer&?;ainty of seeing; to surpass in foresight.

Out*sell” (?), v. t. 1. To exceed in amount of sales; to sell more than.

2. To exceed in the price of selling; to fetch more than; to exceed in value. Fuller. Shak.

Out”sen`try (?), n. (Mil.) A sentry who guards the entrance or approach to a place; an outguard.

Out”set` (?), n. A setting out, starting, or beginning. “The outset of a political journey.” Burke.

Giving a proper direction to this outset of life.

J. Hawes.

Out”set`tler (?), n. One who settles at a distance, or away, from others.

Out*shine” (?), v. i. To shine forth. “Bright, outshining beams.” Shak.

Out*shine”, v. t. To excel in splendor.

A throne of royal state, which far
Outshone the wealth of Ormus and of Ind.

Milton.

Out*shoot” (?), v. t. To exceed or excel in shooting; to shoot beyond. Bacon.

Men are resolved never to outshoot their forefathers’ mark.

Norris.

Out*shut” (?), v. t. To shut out. [R.] Donne.

Out”side` (?), n. 1. The external part of a thing; the part, end, or side which forms the surface; that which appears, or is manifest; that which is superficial; the exterior.

There may be great need of an outside where there is little or nothing within.

South.

Created beings see nothing but our outside.

Addison.

2. The part or space which lies without an inclosure; the outer side, as of a door, walk, or boundary.

I threw open the door of my chamber, and found the family standing on the outside.

Spectator.

3. The furthest limit, as to number, quantity, extent, etc.; the utmost; as, it may last a week at the outside.

4. One who, or that which, is without; hence, an outside passenger, as distinguished from one who is inside. See Inside, n. 3. [Colloq. Eng.]

Out”side` (?), a. 1. Of or pertaining to the outside; external; exterior; superficial.

2. Reaching the extreme or farthest limit, as to extent, quantity, etc.; as, an outside estimate. [Colloq.]

Outside finish (Arch.), a term for the minor parts, as corner boards, hanging stiles, etc., required to complete the exterior of a wooden building; — rare in masonry.

Out”side` (?), adv. or prep. On or to the outside (of); without; on the exterior; as, to ride outside the coach; he stayed outside.

Out`sid”er (?), n. 1. One not belonging to the concern, institution, party, etc., spoken of; one disconnected in interest or feeling. [Recent] A. Trollope.

2. A locksmith’s pinchers for grasping the point of a key in the keyhole, to open a door from the outside when the key is inside.

3. A horse which is not a favorite in the betting. [Cant]

Out*sing” (?), v. t. To surpass in singing.

Out*sit” (?), v. t. To remain sitting, or in session, longer than, or beyond the time of; to outstay.

Out”skirt` (?), n. A part remote from the center; outer edge; border; — usually in the plural; as, the outskirts of a town. Wordsworth.

The outskirts of his march of mystery.

Keble.

Out*sleep” (?), v. t. To exceed in sleeping. Shak.

Out*slide” (?), v. i. To slide outward, onward, or forward; to advance by sliding. [Poetic]

At last our grating keels outslide.

Whittier.

Out*soar” (?), v. t. To soar beyond or above.

Out”sole` (?), n. The outside sole of a boot or shoe.

Out*sound” (?), v. t. To surpass in sounding.

Out*span” (?), v. t. & i. [D. uitspannen.] To unyoke or disengage, as oxen from a wagon. [S. Africa]

Out*spar”kle (?), v. t. To exceed in sparkling.

Out*speak” (?), v. t. 1. To exceed in speaking.

2. To speak openly or boldly. T. Campbell.

3. To express more than. Shak.

Out*speed” (?), v. t. To excel in speed.

Outspeed the realized miracles of steam.

Talfourd.

Out”spend` (?), n. Outlay; expenditure. [R.]

A mere outspend of savageness.

I. Taylor.

Out*spin” (?), v. t. To spin out; to finish.

Out*spo”ken (?), a. Speaking, or spoken, freely, openly, or boldly; as, an outspoken man; an outspoken rebuke. — Out*spo”ken*ness, n.

Out*sport” (?), v. t. To exceed in sporting. [R.] “Not to outsport discretion.” Shak.

Out*spread” (?), v. t. To spread out; to expand; — usually as a past part. or adj.

Out*spring” (?), v. i. To spring out; to issue.

Out*stand” (?), v. i. To stand out, or project, from a surface or mass; hence, to remain standing out.

Out*stand”, v. t. 1. To resist effectually; to withstand; to sustain without yielding. [R.] Woodward.

2. To stay beyond. “I have outstood my time.” Shak.

Out*stand”ing, a. That stands out; undischarged; uncollected; not paid; as, outstanding obligations.

Revenues . . . as well outstanding as collected.

A. Hamilton.

Out*stare” (?), v. t. To excel or overcome in staring; to face down.

I would outstare the sternest eyes that look.

Shak.

Out*start” (?), v. i. To start out or up. Chaucer.

Out*stay” (?), v. t. To stay beyond or longer than.

She concluded to outstay him.

Mad. D’ Arblay.

Out*step” (?), v. t. To exceed in stepping.

Out*storm” (?), v. t. To exceed in storming.

Insults the tempest and outstorms the skies.

J. Barlow.

Out”street` (?), n. A street remote from the center of a town. Johnson.

Out*stretch” (?), v. t. To stretch out. Milton.

Out*stride” (?), v. t. To surpass in striding.

Out*strike” (?), v. t. To strike out; to strike faster than. Shak.

Out*strip” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Outstripped (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Outstripping.] To go faster than; to outrun; to advance beyond; to leave behing.

Appetites which . . . had outstripped the hours.

Southey.

He still outstript me in the race.

Tennyson.

Out*suf”fer (?), v. t. To exceed in suffering.

Out*swear” (?), v. t. To exceed in swearing.

Out*sweet”en (?), v. t. To surpass in sweetness. [R.] Shak.

Out*swell” (?), v. t. 1. To exceed in swelling.

2. To swell beyond; to overflow. [Obs.] Hewyt.

Out*take” (?), prep. Except. [Obs.] R. of Brunne.

Out*tak”en (?), p. p. or prep. Excepted; save. [Obs.] Wyclif. Chaucer.

Out*talk” (?), v. t. To overpower by talking; to exceed in talking; to talk down. Shak.

Out*tell” (?), v. t. To surpass in telling, counting, or reckoning. “I have outtold the clock.” Beau. & Fl.

Out”term` (?), n. An external or superficial thing; outward manner; superficial remark, etc. [Obs.]

Not to bear cold forms, nor men’s outterms.

B. Jonson.

Out*throw” (?), v. t. 1. To throw out. Spenser.

2. To excel in throwing, as in ball playing.

Out*toil” (?), v. t. To exceed in toiling.

Out*tongue” (?), v. t. To silence by talk, clamor, or noise. [R.] Shak.

Out*top” (?), v. t. To overtop. [Obs.]

Out*trav”el (?), v. t. To exceed in speed o&?; distance traveled. Mad. D’ Arblay.

Out*twine” (?), v. t. To disentangle. [Obs.]

Out*val”ue (?), v. t. To exceed in value. Boyle.

Out*ven”om (?), v. t. To exceed in venom.

Out*vie” (?), v. t. To exceed in vying. Dryden.

Out*vil”lain (?), v. t. To exceed in villainy.

Out*voice” (?), v. t. To exceed in noise. Shak.

Out*vote” (?), v. t. To exceed in the number of votes given; to defeat by votes. South.

Out*walk” (?), v. t. To excel in walking; to leave behind in walking. B. Jonson.

Out”wall` (?), n. The exterior wall; the outside surface, or appearance. Shak.

{ Out”ward (?), Out”wards (?), } adv. [AS. &?;teweard. See Out, and -ward, -wards.] From the interior part; in a direction from the interior toward the exterior; out; to the outside; beyond; off; away; as, a ship bound outward.

The wrong side may be turned outward.

Shak.

Light falling on them is not reflected outwards.

Sir I. Newton.

Outward bound, bound in an outward direction or to foreign parts; — said especially of vessels, and opposed to homeward bound.

Out”ward, a. 1. Forming the superficial part; external; exterior; — opposed to inward; as, an outward garment or layer.

Though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.

Cor. iv. 16.

2. Of or pertaining to the outer surface or to what is external; manifest; public. “Sins outward.” Chaucer.

An outward honor for an inward toil.

Shak.

3. Foreign; not civil or intestine; as, an outward war. [Obs.] Hayward.

4. Tending to the exterior or outside.

The fire will force its outward way.

Dryden.

— Out”ward*ly, adv. — Out”ward*ness, n.

Outward stroke. (Steam Engine) See under Stroke.

Out”ward, n. External form; exterior. [R.]

So fair an outward and such stuff within.

Shak.

Out”wards (?), adv. See Outward, adv.

Out*watch” (?), v. t. To exceed in watching.

Out”way` (?), n. A way out; exit. [R.]

In divers streets and outways multiplied.

P. Fletcher.

Out*wear” (?), v. t. 1. To wear out; to consume or destroy by wearing. Milton.

2. To last longer than; to outlast; as, this cloth will outwear the other. “If I the night outwear.” Pope.

Out*wea”ry (?), v. t. To weary out. Cowley.

Out*weed” (?), v. t. To weed out. [Obs.]

Out*weep” (?), v. t. To exceed in weeping.

Out*weigh” (?), v. t. To exceed in weight or value.

Out*well” (?), v. t. To pour out. [Obs.] Spenser.

Out*well”, v. i. To issue forth. Thomson.

Out*went” (?), imp. of Outgo.

Out*whore” (?), v. t. To exceed in lewdness.

Out*win” (?), v. t. To win a way out of. [Obs.]

Out*wind” (?), v. t. To extricate by winding; to unloose. [R.] Spenser. Dr. H. More.

Out*wing” (?), v. t. To surpass, exceed, or outstrip in flying. Garth.

Out*wit” (?), v. t. To surpass in wisdom, esp. in cunning; to defeat or overreach by superior craft.

They did so much outwit and outwealth us !

Gauden.

Out”wit (?), n. The faculty of acquiring wisdom by observation and experience, or the wisdom so acquired; — opposed to inwit. [Obs.] Piers Plowman.

Out*woe” (?), v. t. To exceed in woe. [Obs.]

Out*work” (?), v. t. To exceed in working; to work more or faster than.

Out”work` (?), n. (Fort.) A minor defense constructed beyond the main body of a work, as a ravelin, lunette, hornwork, etc. Wilhelm.

Out*worth” (?), v. t. To exceed in worth. [R.]

Out*wrest” (?), v. t. To extort; to draw from or forth by violence. [Obs.] Spenser.

Out*write” (?), v. t. To exceed or excel in writing.

Out*za”ny (?), v. t. To exceed in buffoonery. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

Ou*va”ro*vite (?), n. [Named from the Russian Count Uvaroff.] (Min.) Chrome garnet.

Ouze (?), n. & v. See Ooze. [Obs.]

Ou”zel (?), n. (Zoöl.) Same as Ousel.

The mellow ouzel fluted in the elm.

Tennyson.

||O”va (?), n. pl. See Ovum.

O”val (?), a. [F. ovale, fr. L. ovum egg. Cf. Egg, Ovum.] 1. Of or pertaining to eggs; done in the egg, or inception; as, oval conceptions. [Obs.]

2. Having the figure of an egg; oblong and curvilinear, with one end broader than the other, or with both ends of about the same breadth; in popular usage, elliptical.

3. (Bot.) Broadly elliptical.

Oval chuck (Mech.), a lathe chuck so constructed that work attached to it, and cut by the turning tool in the usual manner, becomes of an oval form.

O”val, n. A body or figure in the shape of an egg, or popularly, of an ellipse.

Cassinian oval (Geom.), the locus of a point the product of whose distances from two fixed points is constant; — so called from Cassini, who first investigated the curve. Thus, in the diagram, if P moves so that P A.P B is constant, the point P describes a Cassinian oval. The locus may consist of a single closed line, as shown by the dotted line, or of two equal ovals about the points A and B.

{ O`val*bu”min (?), O`val*bu”men (?), } n. [Ovum + albumin.] (Physiol. Chem.) The albumin from white of eggs; egg albumin; — in distinction from serum albumin. See Albumin.

O*val”i*form (?), a. [Oval + -form.] Having the form of an egg; having a figure such that any section in the direction of the shorter diameter will be circular, and any in the direction of the longer diameter will be oval.

O”val*ly (?), adv. In an oval form.

O”vant (?), a. [L. ovans triumphant, p. pr. of ovare to exult.] Exultant. [Obs.] Holland.

{ O*va”ri*an (?), O*va”ri*al (?), } a. Of or pertaining to an ovary.

O*va”ri*ole (?), n. (Zoöl.) One of the tubes of which the ovaries of most insects are composed.

O*va`ri*ot”o*mist (?), n. One who performs, or is skilled in, ovariotomy.

O*va`ri*ot”o*my (?), n. [Ovarium + Gr. &?; to cut.] (Surg.) The operation of removing one or both of the ovaries; oöphorectomy.

O*va”ri*ous (?), a. Consisting of eggs; as, ovarious food. [R.] Thomson.

||O`va*ri”tis (?), n. [NL. See Ovarium, and -itis.] (Med.) Inflammation of the ovaries.

||O*va”ri*um (?), n.; pl. L. Ovaria (#), E. Ovariums (#). [NL.] An ovary. See Ovary.

O”va*ry (?), n.; pl. Ovaries (#). [NL. ovarium, fr. L. ovum egg: cf. F. ovaire. See Oval.] 1. (Bot.) That part of the pistil which contains the seed, and in most flowering plants develops into the fruit. See Illust. of Flower.

2. (Zoöl. & Anat.) The essential female reproductive organ in which the ova are produced. See Illust. of Discophora.

O”vate (?), a. [L. ovatus, from ovum egg. See Oval.]

1. Shaped like an egg, with the lower extremity broadest.

2. (Bot.) Having the shape of an egg, or of the longitudinal sectior of an egg, with the broader end basal. Gray.

O”vate-a*cu”mi*nate (?), a. Having an ovate form, but narrowed at the end into a slender point.

O”vate-cyl`in*dra”ceous (?), a. Having a form intermediate between ovate and cylindraceous.

O”va*ted (?), a. Ovate.

O”vate-lan”ce*o*late (?), a. Having a form intermediate between ovate and lanceolate.

O”vate-ob”long (?), a. Oblong. with one end narrower than the other; ovato-oblong.

O”vate-ro*tund”ate (?), a. Having a form intermediate between that of an egg and a sphere; roundly ovate.

O”vate-su”bu*late (?), a. Having an ovate form, but with a subulate tip or extremity.

O*va”tion (?), n. [L. ovatio, fr. ovare to exult, rejoice, triumph in an ovation; cf. Gr. &?; to shout: cf. F. ovation.] 1. (Rom. Antiq.) A lesser kind of triumph allowed to a commander for an easy, bloodless victory, or a victory over slaves.

2. Hence: An expression of popular homage; the tribute of the multitude to a public favorite.

To rain an April of ovation round
Their statues.

Tennyson.

O*va”to-a*cu”mi*nate (?), a. Same as Ovate-acuminate.

O*va”to-cyl`in*dra”ceous (?), a. Same as Ovate-cylindraceous.

O*va”to-ob”long (?), a. Same as Ovate-oblong.

O*va”to-ro*tund”ate (?), a. Same as Ovate-rotundate.

Ov”en (?), n. [AS. ofen; akin to D. oven, OHG. ofan, ovan, G. ofen, Icel. ofn, Dan. ovn, Sw. ugn, Goth. aúhns, Gr. &?;, Skr. ukhā pot.] A place arched over with brick or stonework, and used for baking, heating, or drying; hence, any structure, whether fixed or portable, which may be heated for baking, drying, etc.; esp., now, a chamber in a stove, used for baking or roasting.

Ov”en*bird` (?), n. (Zoöl.) (a) Any species of the genus Furnarius, allied to the creepers. They inhabit South America and the West Indies, and construct curious oven-shaped nests. (b) In the United States, Seiurus aurocapillus; — called also golden-crowned thrush. (c) In England, sometimes applied to the willow warbler, and to the long-tailed titmouse.

O”ver (?), prep. [AS. ofer; akin to D. over, G. über, OHG. ubir, ubar, Dan. over, Sw. öfver, Icel. yfir, Goth. ufar, L. super, Gr. &?;, Skr. upari. &?;199. Cf. Above, Eaves, Hyper-, Orlop, Super-, Sovereign, Up.] 1. Above, or higher than, in place or position, with the idea of covering; — opposed to under; as, clouds are over our heads; the smoke rises over the city.

The mercy seat that is over the testimony.

Ex. xxx. 6.

Over them gleamed far off the crimson banners of morning.

Longfellow.

2. Across; from side to side of; — implying a passing or moving, either above the substance or thing, or on the surface of it; as, a dog leaps over a stream or a table.

Certain lakes . . . poison birds which fly over them.

Bacon.

3. Upon the surface of, or the whole surface of; hither and thither upon; throughout the whole extent of; as, to wander over the earth; to walk over a field, or over a city.

4. Above; — implying superiority in excellence, dignity, condition, or value; as, the advantages which the Christian world has over the heathen. Swift.

5. Above in authority or station; — implying government, direction, care, attention, guard, responsibility, etc.; — opposed to under.

Thou shalt be over my house.

Gen. xli. 40.

I will make thee rules over many things.

Matt. xxv. 23.

Dost thou not watch over my sin ?

Job xiv. 16.

His tender mercies are over all his works.

Ps. cxlv. 9.

6. Across or during the time of; from beginning to end of; as, to keep anything over night; to keep corn over winter.

7. Above the perpendicular height or length of, with an idea of measurement; as, the water, or the depth of water, was over his head, over his shoes.

8. Beyond; in excess of; in addition to; more than; as, it cost over five dollars. “Over all this.” Chaucer.

9. Above, implying superiority after a contest; in spite of; notwithstanding; as, he triumphed over difficulties; the bill was passed over the veto.

&fist; Over, in poetry, is often contracted into o’er.

&fist; Over his signature (or name) is a substitute for the idiomatic English form, under his signature (name, hand and seal, etc.), the reference in the latter form being to the authority under which the writing is made, executed, or published, and not the place of the autograph, etc.

Over all (Her.), placed over or upon other bearings, and therefore hinding them in part; — said of a charge. — Over head and ears, beyond one’s depth; completely; wholly; hopelessly; as, over head and ears in debt. [Colloq.] — Over the left. See under Left. — To run over (Mach.), to have rotation in such direction that the crank pin traverses the upper, or front, half of its path in the forward, or outward, stroke; — said of a crank which drives, or is driven by, a reciprocating piece.

O”ver (?), adv. 1. From one side to another; from side to side; across; crosswise; as, a board, or a tree, a foot over, i. e., a foot in diameter.

2. From one person or place to another regarded as on the opposite side of a space or barrier; — used with verbs of motion; as, to sail over to England; to hand over the money; to go over to the enemy. “We will pass over to Gibeah.” Judges xix. 12. Also, with verbs of being: At, or on, the opposite side; as, the boat is over.

3. From beginning to end; throughout the course, extent, or expanse of anything; as, to look over accounts, or a stock of goods; a dress covered over with jewels.

4. From inside to outside, above or across the brim.

Good measure, pressed down . . . and running over.

Luke vi. 38.

5. Beyond a limit; hence, in excessive degree or quantity; superfluously; with repetition; as, to do the whole work over. “So over violent.” Dryden.

He that gathered much had nothing over.

Ex. xvi. 18.

6. In a manner to bring the under side to or towards the top; as, to turn (one’s self) over; to roll a stone over; to turn over the leaves; to tip over a cart.

7. At an end; beyond the limit of continuance; completed; finished. “Their distress was over.” Macaulay. “The feast was over.” Sir W. Scott.

&fist; Over, out, off, and similar adverbs, are often used in the predicate with the sense and force of adjectives, agreeing in this respect with the adverbs of place, here, there, everywhere, nowhere; as, the games were over; the play is over; the master was out; his hat is off.

&fist; Over is much used in composition, with the same significations that it has as a separate word; as in overcast, overflow, to cast or flow so as to spread over or cover; overhang, to hang above; overturn, to turn so as to bring the underside towards the top; overact, overreach, to act or reach beyond, implying excess or superiority.

All over. (a) Over the whole; upon all parts; completely; as, he is spatterd with mud all over. (b) Wholly over; at an end; as, it is all over with him. — Over again, once more; with repetition; afresh; anew. Dryden. — Over against, opposite; in front. Addison. — Over and above, in a manner, or degree, beyond what is supposed, defined, or usual; besides; in addition; as, not over and above well. “He . . . gained, over and above, the good will of all people.” L’ Estrange. — Over and over, repeatedly; again and again. — To boil over. See under Boil, v. i. — To come it over, To do over, To give over, etc. See under Come, Do, Give, etc. — To throw over, to abandon; to betray. Cf. To throw overboard, under Overboard.

O”ver, a. Upper; covering; higher; superior; also, excessive; too much or too great; — chiefly used in composition; as, overshoes, overcoat, over- garment, overlord, overwork, overhaste.

O”ver, n. (Cricket) A certain number of balls (usually four) delivered successively from behind one wicket, after which the ball is bowled from behind the other wicket as many times, the fielders changing places.

O`ver*a*bound” (?), v. i. To be exceedingly plenty or superabundant. Pope.

O`ver*act” (?), v. t. 1. To act or perform to excess; to exaggerate in acting; as, he overacted his part.

2. To act upon, or influence, unduly. [Obs.]

The hope of inheritance overacts them.

Milton.

O`ver*act” (?), v. i. To act more than is necessary; to go to excess in action. B. Jonson.

O”ver*ac”tion (?), n. Per&?;ormance to excess; exaggerated or excessive action.

O`ver*af*fect” (?), v. t. To affect or care for unduly. [Obs.] Milton.

O`ver*ag”i*tate (?), v. t. To agitate or discuss beyond what is expedient. Bp. Hall.

O”ver*all (?), adv. Everywhere. [Obs.] Chaucer.

O”ver*alls (?), n. pl. 1. A kind of loose trousers worn over others to protect them from soiling.

2. Waterproof leggings. R. D. Blackmore.

O”ver*anx*i”e*ty (?), n. The state of being overanxious; excessive anxiety.

O”ver*anx”ious (?), a. Anxious in an excessive or needless degree. — O”ver*anx”ious*ly, adv.

O`ver*arch” (?), v. t. & i. To make or place an arch over; to hang over like an arch. “Brown with o’erarching shades.” Pope.

O”ver-arm` (?), a. (Cricket, etc.) Done (as bowling or pitching) with the arm raised above the shoulder. See Overhard. “An over-arm with a round-arm bowler.” R. A. Proctor.

O`ver*awe” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overawed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overawing.] To awe exceedingly; to subjugate or restrain by awe or great fear.

The king was present in person to overlook the magistrates, and overawe these subjects with the terror of his sword.

Spenser.

O”ver*aw”ful (?), a. Awful, or reverential, in an excessive degree. [R.] Milton.

O`ver*bal”ance (?), v. t. 1. To exceed equality with; to outweigh. Locke.

2. To cause to lose balance or equilibrium.

O”ver*bal`ance (?), n. Excess of weight or value; something more than an equivalent; as, an overbalance of exports. J. Edwards.

O”ver*bar”ren (?), a. Excessively barren.

O”ver*bat”tle (?), a. [Over + battle, a.] Excessively fertile; bearing rank or noxious growths. [Obs.] “Overbattle grounds.” Hooker.

O`ver*bear” (?), v. t. 1. To bear down or carry down, as by excess of weight, power, force, etc.; to overcome; to suppress.

The point of reputation, when the news first came of the battle lost, did overbear the reason of war.

Bacon.

Overborne with weight the Cyprians fell.

Dryden.

They are not so ready to overbear the adversary who goes out of his own country to meet them.

Jowett (Thucyd. )

2. To domineer over; to overcome by insolence.

O`ver*bear”, v. i. To bear fruit or offspring to excess; to be too prolific.

O`ver*bear”ing, a. 1. Overpowering; subduing; repressing. I. Watts.

2. Aggressively haughty; arrogant; domineering; tyrannical; dictatorial; insolent.

—O`ver*bear”ing*ly, adv. — O`ver*bear”ing*ness, n.

O`ver*bend” (?), v. t. To bend to excess.

O`ver*bend”, v. i. To bend over. [R.]

O`ver*bid” (?), v. t. To bid or offer beyond, or in excess of. Dryden.

O`ver*bide” (?), v. t. To outlive. [Obs.] Chaucer.

O`ver*blow” (?), v. i. 1. To blow over, or be subdued. [R.] Spenser.

2. (Mus.) To force so much wind into a pipe that it produces an overtone, or a note higher than the natural note; thus, the upper octaves of a flute are produced by overblowing.

O`ver*blow”, v. t. To blow away; to dissipate by wind, or as by wind.

When this cloud of sorrow’s overblown.

Waller.

O”ver*board` (?), adv. Over the side of a ship; hence, from on board of a ship, into the water; as, to fall overboard.

To throw overboard, to discard; to abandon, as a dependent or friend.

O`ver*boil” (?), v. i. To boil over or unduly.

Nor is discontent to keep the mind
Deep in its fountain, lest it overboil
In the hot throng.

Byron.

O`ver*bold” (?), a. Excessively or presumptuously bold; impudent. Shak. — O”ver*bold”ly, adv.

O”ver*book”ish (?), a. Excessively bookish.

O”ver*boun”te*ous, a. Bounteous to excess.

O`ver*bow” (?), v. t. To bend or bow over; to bend in a contrary direction. [Obs.] Fuller.

O`ver*breed” (?), v. t. To breed to excess.

O`ver*brim” (?), v. i. To flow over the brim; to be so full as to overflow. [R.]

O`ver*brow” (?), v. t. To hang over like a brow; to impend over. [Poetic] Longfellow.

Did with a huge projection overbrow
Large space beneath.

Wordsworth.

O`ver*build” (?), v. t. 1. To build over. Milton.

2. To build too much; to build beyond the demand.

O`ver*built” (?), a. Having too many buildings; as, an overbuilt part of a town.

O`ver*bulk” (?), v. t. To oppress by bulk; to overtower. [Obs. & R.] Shak.

O`ver*bur”den (?), v. t. To load with too great weight or too much care, etc. Sir P. Sidney.

O”ver*bur`den, n. The waste which overlies good stone in a quarry. Raymond.

O”ver*bur”den*some (?), a. Too burdensome.

O`ver*burn” (?), v. t. & i. To burn too much; to be overzealous.

O”ver-bus”y (?), a. Too busy; officious.

O`ver*buy” (?), v. t. 1. To buy too much.

2. To buy at too dear a rate. Dryden.

O`ver*can”o*py (?), v. t. To cover as with a canopy. Shak.

O`ver*ca”pa*ble (?), a. Too capable. [R.]

Overcapable of such pleasing errors.

Hooker.

O”ver*care” (?), n. Excessive care. Dryden.

O”ver*care”ful (?), a. Too careful. Shak.

O”ver*cark”ing (?), a. Too anxious; too full of care. [Archaic] Fuller.

O`ver*car”ry (?), v. t. & i. To carry too far; to carry beyond the proper point. Hayward.

O`ver*cast” (?), v. t. 1. To cast or cover over; hence, to cloud; to darken.

Those clouds that overcast your morn shall fly.

Dryden.

2. To compute or rate too high. Bacon.

3. (Sewing) To take long, loose stitches over (the raw edges of a seam) to prevent raveling.

O`ver*catch” (?), v. t. To overtake. [Obs.]

O”ver*cau”tious (?), a. Too cautious; cautious or prudent to excess. — O”ver*cau”tious*ly, adv. — O”ver*cau”tiou*ness, n.

O”ver*change` (?), n. Too much or too frequent change; fickleness. [R.] Beau. & Fl.

O`ver*charge” (?), v. t. [Cf. Supercharge, Surcharge.]

1. To charge or load too heavily; to burden; to oppress; to cloy. Sir W. Raleigh.

2. To fill too full; to crowd.

Our language is overcharged with consonants.

Addison.

3. To charge excessively; to charge beyond a fair rate or price.

4. To exaggerate; as, to overcharge a description.

Overcharged mine. (Mil.) See Globe of compression, under Globe.

O`ver*charge”, v. i. To make excessive charges.

O”ver*charge` (?), n. [Cf. Supercargo, Supercharge.]

1. An excessive load or burden.

2. An excessive charge in an account.

O`ver*climb” (?), v. t. To climb over. Surrey.

O`ver*cloud” (?), v. t. To cover or overspread with clouds; to becloud; to overcast.

O`ver*cloy” (?), v. t. To fill beyond satiety. Shak.

O”ver*coat` (?), n. [Cf. Surcoat.] A coat worn over the other clothing; a greatcoat; a topcoat.

O”ver*cold” (?), a. Cold to excess. Wiseman.

O`ver*col”or (?), v. t. To color too highly.

O`ver*come” (?), v. t. [imp. Overcame (?); p. p. Overcome; p. pr & vb. n. Overcoming.] [AS. ofercuman. See Over, Come, and cf. Supervene.]

1. To get the better of; to surmount; to conquer; to subdue; as, to overcome enemies in battle.

This wretched woman overcome
Of anguish, rather than of crime, hath been.

Spenser.

2. To overflow; to surcharge. [Obs.] J. Philips.

3. To come or pass over; to spreads over. [Obs.]

And overcome us like a summer’s cloud.

Shak.

Syn. — To conquer; subdue; vanquish; overpower; overthrow; overturn; defeat; crush; overbear; overwhelm; prostrate; beat; surmount. See Conquer.

O`ver*come”, v. i. To gain the superiority; to be victorious. Rev. iii. 21.

O`ver*com”er (?), n. One who overcomes.

O`ver*com”ing (?), a. Conquering; subduing. — O`ver*com”ing*ly, adv.

O”ver*con”fi*dence (?), n. Excessive confidence; too great reliance or trust.

O”ver*con”fi*dent (?), a. Confident to excess. — O”ver*con”fi*dent*ly, adv.

O”ver*cost”ly (?), a. Too costly. Milton.

O`ver*count” (?), v. t. To rate too high; to outnumber. Shak.

O`ver*cov”er (?), v. t. To cover up. Shak.

O”ver*cred”u*lous (?), a. Too credulous.

O`ver*crow” (?), v. t. To crow, exult, or boast, over; to overpower. Spenser. Shak.

O`ver*crowd” (?), v. t. To crowd too much.

O”ver*cun”ning (?), a. Exceedingly or excessively cunning.

O”ver*cu”ri*ous (?), a. Too curious.

O`ver*dare” (?), v. t. & i. To dare too much or rashly; to be too daring.

O`ver*date” (?), v. t. To date later than the true or proper period. Milton.

O”ver*deal` (?), n. The excess. [Obs.]

The overdeal in the price will be double.

Holland.

O”ver*del”i*cate (?), a. Too delicate.

O”ver*de*light”ed (?), a. Delighted beyond measure.

O”ver*dight” (?), a. Covered over. [Obs.] Spenser.

O`ver*do” (?), v. t. [imp. Overdid (?); p. p. Overdone (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overdoing.] 1. To do too much; to exceed what is proper or true in doing; to exaggerate; to carry too far.

Anything so overdone is from the purpose of playing.

Shak.

2. To overtask. or overtax; to fatigue; to exhaust; as, to overdo one’s strength.

3. To surpass; to excel. [R.] Tennyson.

4. To cook too much; as, to overdo the meat.

O`ver*do”, v. i. To labor too hard; to do too much.

O`ver*do”er (?), n. One who overdoes.

O`ver*dose” (?), v. t. To dose to excess; to give an overdose, or too many doses, to.

O”ver*dose`, n. Too great a dose; an excessive dose.

O`ver*draw” (?), v. t. [imp. Overdrew (?); p. p. Overdrawn (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overdrawing.]

1. To exaggerate; to overdo.

2. (Banking) To make drafts upon or against, in excess of the proper amount or limit.

O`ver*dress” (?), v. t. To dress or adorn to excess; to dress too much. Pope.

O`ver*drink” (?), v. t. & i. To drink to excess.

O`ver*drive” (?), v. t. & i. To drive too hard, or far, or beyond strength.

O`ver*drown” (?), v. t. To wet or drench to excess. [Obs.] W. Browne.

O`ver*dry” (?), v. t. To dry too much. Burton.

O”ver*due” (?), a. Due and more than due; delayed beyond the proper time of arrival or payment, etc.; as, an overdue vessel; an overdue note.

O`ver*dye” (?), v. t. To dye with excess of color; to put one color over (another). Shak.

O`ver*ea”ger (?), a. Too eager; too impatient. — O`ver*ea”ger*ly, adv. — O”ver*ea”ger*ness, n.

O`ver*ear”nest (?), a. Too earnest. — O”ver*ear”nest*ly, adv. — O”ver*ear”nest*ness, n.

O`ver*eat” (?), v. t. & i. 1. To gnaw all over, or on all sides. [Obs.] Shak.

2. To eat to excess; — often with a reflexive.

O”ver*el”e*gant (?), a. Too elegant. Johnson.

O`ver*emp”ty (?), v. t. To make too empty; to exhaust. [R.] Carew.

O”ver*est (?), a. [Superl. of Over.] Uppermost; outermost.

Full threadbare was his overeste courtepy.

Chaucer.

O`ver*es”ti*mate (?), v. t. To estimate too highly; to overvalue.

O`ver*es”ti*mate (?), n. An estimate that is too high; as, an overestimate of the vote.

O`ver*ex*cite” (?), v. t. To excite too much.

O”ver*ex*cite”ment (?), n. Excess of excitement; the state of being overexcited.

O`ver*ex*ert” (?), v. t. To exert too much.

O”ver*ex*er”tion (?), n. Excessive exertion.

O”ver*ex”qui*site (?), a. Too exquisite; too exact or nice; too careful.

O`ver*eye” (?), v. t. 1. To superintend; to oversee; to inspect. [Obs.]

2. To see; to observe. [Obs.] Shak.

O”ver*fall` (?), n. 1. A cataract; a waterfall. [Obs.]

2. (Naut.) A turbulent surface of water, caused by strong currents setting over submerged ridges; also, a dangerous submerged ridge or shoal.

O”ver*fa*tigue” (?), n. Excessive fatigue.

O`ver*fa*tigue”, v. t. To fatigue to excess; to tire out.

O`ver*feed” (?), v. t. & i. [imp. & p. p. Overfed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overfeeding.] To feed to excess; to surfeit.

O”ver*fierce” (?), a. Excessively fierce.

o`ver*fill” (?), v. t. To fill to excess; to surcharge.

O`ver*fish” (?), v. t. To fish to excess.

O`ver*float” (?), v. t. To overflow. [R.] Dryden.

O`ver*flour”ish (?), v. t. 1. To make excessive display or flourish of. Collier.

2. To embellish with outward ornaments or flourishes; to varnish over. [Obs.] Shak.

O`ver*flow” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overflowed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overflowing.] [AS. oferfl&?;wan. See Over, and Flow.] 1. To flow over; to cover woth, or as with, water or other fluid; to spread over; to inundate; to overwhelm.

The northern nations overflowed all Christendom.

Spenser.

2. To flow over the brim of; to fill more than full.

O`ver*flow”, v. i. 1. To run over the bounds.

2. To be superabundant; to abound. Rogers.

O”ver*flow` (?), n. 1. A flowing over, as of water or other fluid; an inundation. Bacon.

2. That which flows over; a superfluous portion; a superabundance. Shak.

3. An outlet for the escape of surplus liquid.

Overflow meeting, a meeting constituted of the surplus or overflow of another audience.

O`ver*flow”ing (?), n. An overflow; that which overflows; exuberance; copiousness.

He was ready to bestow the overflowings of his full mind on anybody who would start a subject.

Macaulay.

O`ver*flow”ing*ly, adv. In great abundance; exuberantly. Boyle.

O`ver*flush” (?), v. t. To flush to excess. [R.]

O`ver*flut”ter (?), v. t. To flutter over.

O”ver*flux` (?), n. Overflow; exuberance. [R.]

O`ver*fly” (?), v. t. [imp. Overflew (?); p. p. Overflown (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overflying.] To cross or pass over by flight. Byron.

O”ver*fond” (?), a. Fond to excess. Milton.

— O”ver*fond”ly, adv. — O”ver*fond”ness, n.

O”ver*force` (?), n. Excessive force; violence.

O”ver*for”ward (?), a. Forward to excess; too forward. — O”ver*for”ward*ness, n.

O”ver*free” (?), a. Free to excess; too liberal; too familiar. — O”ver*free”ly, adv.

O`ver*freight” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overfreighted (Overfraught (?), obs.); p. pr. & vb. n. Overfreighting.] To put too much freight in or upon; to load too full, or too heavily; to overload.

O”ver*fre”quent (?), a. Too frequent.

O`ver*frieze” (?), v. t. To cover with a frieze, or as with a frieze. E. Hall.

O`ver*front” (?), v. t. To confront; to oppose; to withstand. [Obs.] Milton.

O”ver*fruit”ful (?), a. Too fruitful.

O”ver*full” (?), a. [AS. oferfull.] Too full; filled to overflowing; excessively full; surfeited. Shak.

O”ver*full”ness, n. The state of being excessively or abnormally full, so as to cause overflow, distention, or congestion; excess of fullness; surfeit.

O”ver-gar`ment (?), n. An outer garment.

O`ver*gar”ri*son (?), v. t. To garrison to excess.

O`ver*gaze” (?), v. t. To gaze; to overlook. [Poetic] “Earth’s o’ergazing mountains.” Byron.

O`ver*get” (?), v. t. 1. To reach; to overtake; to pass. [Obs.]

2. To get beyond; to get over or recover from. [R.]

O`ver*gild” (?), v. t. [AS. ofergyldan.] To gild over; to varnish.

O`ver*gird” (?), v. t. To gird too closely. [R.]

O`ver*give” (?), v. t. To give over; to surrender; to yield. [Obs.] Spenser.

O”ver*glad” (?), a. Excessively or unduly glad.

O`ver*glance” (?), v. t. To glance over.

O`ver*glide” (?), v. t. To glide over. Wyatt.

O`ver*gloom” (?), v. t. To spread gloom over; to make gloomy; to overshadow. [R.]

Overgloomed by memories of sorrow.

De Quincey.

O`ver*go” (?), v. t. [imp. Overwent (?); p. p. Overgone (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overgoing.] [AS. ofergān.]

1. To travel over. [R.] Shak.

2. To exceed; to surpass. [Obs.] Sir P. Sidney.

3. To cover. [Obs.] Chapman.

4. To oppress; to weigh down. [Obs.] Shak.

O`ver*gorge” (?), v. t. To gorge to excess.

O`ver*grace” (?), v. t. To grace or honor exceedingly or beyond desert. [R.] Beau. & Fl.

O”ver*grassed” (?), a. Overstocked, or overgrown, or covered, with grass. [Obs.] Spenser.

O`ver*great” (?), a. Too great.

O”ver*great”ness, n. Excessive greatness.

O”ver*greed”y (?), a. Excessively greedy.

O”ver*gross” (?), a. Too gross.

O”ver*ground” (?), a. Situated over or above ground; as, the overground portion of a plant.

O`ver*grow” (?), v. t. [imp. Overgrew (?); p. p. Overgrown (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overgrowing.]

1. To grow over; to cover with growth or herbage, esp. that which is rank.

The green . . . is rough and overgrown.

Sir W. Scott.

2. To grow beyond; to rise above; hence, to overcome; to oppress. [Obs.] Mortimer. “O’ergrown with labor.” Beau. & Fl.

[Usually in the past participle.]

O`ver*grow”, v. i. To grow beyond the fit or natural size; as, a huge, overgrown ox. L’Estrange.

O”ver*growth` (?), n. Excessive growth.

O`ver*hail” (?), v. t. See Overhaul. [Obs.]

O`ver*hale” (?), v. t. See Overhaul. [Obs.]

O”ver*hand` (?), n. The upper hand; advantage; superiority; mastery.

He had gotten thereby a great overhand on me.

Sir T. More.

O”ver*hand`, a. 1. (Sewing) Over and over; — applied to a style of sewing, or to a seam, in which two edges, usually selvedges, are sewed together by passing each stitch over both.

2. (Baseball, Cricket, etc.) Done (as pitching or bowling) with the hand higher than the elbow, or the arm above, or higher than, the shoulder.

Overhand knot. See Illustration of Knot.

O”ver*hand`, adv. In an overhand manner or style.

O`ver*han”dle (?), v. t. To handle, or use, too much; to mention too often. Shak.

O`ver*hang” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overhung (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overhanging.] 1. To impend or hang over. [R.] Beau. & Fl.

2. To hang over; to jut or project over. Pope.

O`ver*hang”, v. i. To jut over. Milton.

O`ver*hang`, n. (Arch.) 1. In a general sense, that which just out or projects; a projection; also, the measure of the projection; as, the overhang is five feet.

2. Specifically: The projection of an upper part (as a roof, an upper story, or other part) of a building beyond the lower part; as, the overhang of a roof, of the eaves, etc.

3. (Naut.) The portion of the bow or stem of a vessel that projects over the water beyond the water line.

4. (Mach.) The projection of a part beyond another part that is directly below it, or beyond a part by which it is supported; as, the overhang of a shaft; i. e., its projection beyond its bearing.

O”ver*hap”py (?), a. Exceedingly happy. Shak.

O`ver*hard”en (?), v. t. To harden too much; to make too hard. Boyle.

O”ver*har”dy (?), a. Too hardy; overbold.

O”ver*haste` (?), n. Too great haste.

O”ver*has”ty (?), a. Too hasty; precipitate; rash. — O”ver*has”ti*ly (#), adv. — O`ver*has”ti*ness, n.

O`ver*haul” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overhauled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overhauling.] 1. To haul or drag over; hence, to turn over for examination; to inspect; to examine thoroughly with a view to corrections or repairs.

2. (Naut.) To gain upon in a chase; to overtake.

To overhaul a tackle, to pull on the leading parts so as to separate the blocks. — To overhaul running rigging, to keep it clear, and see that no hitch occurs.

{ O”ver*haul` (?), O`ver*haul”ing, } n. A strict examination with a view to correction or repairs.

O`ver*head” (?), adv. Aloft; above; in or attached to the ceiling or roof; in the story or upon the floor above; in the zenith.

While overhead the moon
Sits arbitress.

Milton.

Also used adjectively; as, an overhead crane, gear, etc.

Overhead engine, a vertical steam engine in which the cylinder stands above the crank. — Overhead work, a general term in manufactories for countershafting and gearing, when overhead.

O`ver*hear” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overheard (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overhearing.] [AS. oferhiéran.]

1. To hear more of (anything) than was intended to be heard; to hear by accident or artifice. Shak.

2. To hear again. ShaK.

O`ver*heat” (?), v. t. [Cf. Superheat.] To heat to excess; to superheat. Cowper.

O”ver*heav`y (?), a. Excessively heavy.

O`ver*hele” (?), v. t. [AS. oferhelian.] To hele or cover over. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

O`ver*hent”, v. t. [See Hent.] To overtake. [Obs.]

So forth he went and soon them overhent.

Spenser.

O”ver*high” (?), a. [AS. oferheáh.] Too high.

O”ver*high”ly, adv. Too highly; too greatly.

O`ver*hip” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overhipped (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overhipping.] [Over + a word akin to E. hop to skip.] To pass over by, or as by a hop; to skip over; hence, to overpass. [Obs.] “When the time is overhipt.” Holland.

O`ver*hold” (?), v. t. To hold or value too highly; to estimate at too dear a rate. [Obs.] Shak.

O”ver*hung” (?), a. 1. Covered over; ornamented with hangings. Carlyle.

2. Suspended from above or from the top.

Overhung door, a sliding door, suspended door, suspended from the top, as upon rollers.

O`ver*in”flu*ence (?), v. t. To influence in an excessive degree; to have undue influence over.

O`ver*in*form” (?), v. t. To inform, fill, or animate, excessively. [R.] Johnson.

O”ver*is”sue (?), n. An excessive issue; an issue, as of notes or bonds, exceeding the limit of capital, credit, or authority.

An overissue of government paper.

Brougham.

O`ver*is”sue, v. t. To issue in excess.

O`ver*jeal”ous (?), a. [Over + jealous. Cf. Overzealous.] Excessively jealous; too jealous.

O`ver*joy” (?), v. t. To make excessively joyful; to gratify extremely.

O”ver*joy` (?), n. Excessive joy; transport.

O`ver*jump” (?), v. t. To jump over; hence, to omit; to ignore. Marston.

O”ver*king` (?), n. A king who has sovereignty over inferior kings or ruling princes. J. R. Green.

O”ver*know”ing (?), a. Too knowing or too cunning.

O`ver*la”bor (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overlabored (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overlaboring.]

1. To cause to labor excessively; to overwork. Dryden.

2. To labor upon excessively; to refine unduly.

O`ver*lade” (?), v. t. [imp. Overladed; p. p. Overladen (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overlading.] [Cf. Overload.] To load with too great a cargo; to overburden; to overload. Spenser.

O”ver*land` (?), a. Being, or accomplished, over the land, instead of by sea; as, an overland journey.

O”ver*land`, adv. By, upon, or across, land.

O”ver*land`er (?), n. One who travels over lands or countries; one who travels overland.

O”ver*lan”guaged (?), a. Employing too many words; diffuse. Lowell.

O`ver*lap” (?), v. t. & i. To lap over; to lap.

O”ver*lap` (?), n. 1. The lapping of one thing over another; as, an overlap of six inches; an overlap of a slate on a roof.

2. (Geol.) An extension of geological beds above and beyond others, as in a conformable series of beds, when the upper beds extend over a wider space than the lower, either in one or in all directions.

O”ver*large” (?), a. Too large; too great.

O”ver*large”ness, n. Excess of size or bulk.

O`ver*lash” (?), v. i. [Cf. Prov. E. lash extravagant, lashing lavish.] To drive on rashly; to go to excess; hence, to exaggerate; to boast. [Obs.] Barrow.

O`ver*lash”ing, n. Excess; exaggeration. [Obs.]

O”ver*late” (?), a. Too late; exceedingly late.

O`ver*lave” (?), v. t. To lave or bathe over.

O”ver*lav”ish (?), a. Lavish to excess.

O`ver*lay” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overlaid (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overlaying.] 1. To lay, or spread, something over or across; hence, to cover; to overwhelm; to press excessively upon.

When any country is overlaid by the multitude which live upon it.

Sir W. Raleigh.

As when a cloud his beams doth overlay.

Spenser.

Framed of cedar overlaid with gold.

Milton.

And overlay
With this portentous bridge the dark abyss.

Milton.

2. To smother with a close covering, or by lying upon.

This woman’s child died in the night; because she overlaid it.

1 Kings iii. 19.

A heap of ashes that o’erlays your fire.

Dryden.

3. (Printing) To put an overlay on.

O”ver*lay` (?), n. 1. A covering. Sir W. Scott.

2. (Printing) A piece of paper pasted upon the tympan sheet to improve the impression by making it stronger at a particular place.

O”ver*lay”er (?), n. One who overlays; that with which anything is overlaid.

O”ver*lay”ing, n. A superficial covering; a coating.

O`ver*lead” (?), v. t. To domineer over; to affront; to treat with indignity. [Obs.] Chaucer.

O`ver*leap” (?), v. t. [AS. oferhleápan. See Over, and Leap.] To leap over or across; hence, to omit; to ignore. “Let me o’erleap that custom.” Shak.

O”ver*learn”ed (?), a. Too learned. — O”ver*learn”ed, adv. — O”ver*learn”ed*ness, n.

O”ver*leath`er (?), n. Upper leather. Shak.

O`ver*leav”en (?), v. t. To leaven too much; hence, to change excessively; to spoil. [Obs.]

O”ver*lib”er*al (?), a. Too liberal.

O”ver*lib”er*al*ly, adv. In an overliberal manner.

O`ver*lick” (?), v. t. To lick over.

O`ver*lie” (?), v. t. [imp. Overlay (?); p. p. Overlain (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overlying.] To lie over or upon; specifically, to suffocate by lying upon; as, to overlie an infant. Quain.

A woman by negligence overlieth her child in her sleeping.

Chaucer.

O”ver*light` (?), n. Too strong a light. Bacon.

O”ver*light”, a. Too light or frivolous; giddy.

O”ver*li*ness (?), n. The quality or state of being overly; carelessness. [Obs.] Bp. Hall.

O”ver*lin”ger (?), v. t. To cause to linger; to detain too long. [Obs.] Fuller.

O”ver*lip` (?), n. [AS. oferlibban.] The upper lip. [Obs.] Chaucer.

O`ver*live” (?), v. t. To outlive. Sir P. Sidney.

The culture of Northumbria overlived the term of its political supermacy.

Earle.

O`ver*live” (?), v. i. To live too long, too luxuriously, or too actively. Milton. “Overlived in this close London life.” Mrs. Browning.

O”ver*liv”er (?), n. A survivor. Bacon.

O`ver*load” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overloaded; p. pr. & vb. n. Overloading.] [Cf. Overlade.] To load or fill to excess; to load too heavily.

O”ver*load` (?), n. An excessive load; the excess beyond a proper load.

O”ver*log”ic*al (?), a. Excessively logical; adhering too closely to the forms or rules of logic.

O”ver*long” (?), a. & adv. Too long. Shak.

O`ver*look” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overlooked (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overlooking.] 1. To look down upon from a place that is over or above; to look over or view from a higher position; to rise above, so as to command a view of; as, to overlook a valley from a hill. “The pile o’erlooked the town.” Dryden.

[Titan] with burning eye did hotly overlook them.

Shak.

2. Hence: To supervise; to watch over; sometimes, to observe secretly; as, to overlook a gang of laborers; to overlook one who is writing a letter.

3. To inspect; to examine; to look over carefully or repeatedly. “Overlook this pedigree.” Shak.

The time and care that are required
To overlook and file and polish well.

Roscommon.

4. To look upon with an evil eye; to bewitch by looking upon; to fascinate. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.] Shak.

If you trouble me I will overlook you, and then your pigs will die.

C. Kingsley.

5. To look over and beyond (anything) without seeing it; to miss or omit in looking; hence, to refrain from bestowing notice or attention upon; to neglect; to pass over without censure or punishment; to excuse.

The times of ignorance therefore God overlooked.

Acts xvii. 30 (Rev. Ver. )

They overlook truth in the judgments they pass.

Atterbury.

The pardoning and overlooking of faults.

Addison.

O”ver*look”er (?), n. One who overlooks.

O”ver*loop` (?), n. See Orlop. [Obs.]

O”ver*lord` (?), n. One who is lord over another or others; a superior lord; a master. Freeman.

O”ver*lord”ship (?), n. Lordship or supremacy of a person or a people over others. J. R. Green.

O”ver*loud” (?), a. Too loud; noisy.

O`ver*love” (?), v. t. To love to excess.

O”ver*lus”cious (?), a. Excessively luscious.

O”ver*lust”y (?), a. Too lusty, or lively. Shak.

O”ver*ly, a. 1. Careless; negligent; inattentive; superfical; not thorough. [Archaic] Bp. Hall.

2. Excessive; too much. [R.] Coleridge.

O”ver*ly, adv. In an overly manner. [Archaic]

O`ver*ly”ing (?), a. Lying over or upon something; as, overlying rocks.

O`ver*mag”ni*fy (?), v. t. To magnify too much. Bp. Hall.

O”ver*mal”a*pert (?), a. Excessively malapert or impudent. [Obs.] Prynne.

O”ver*man`ner (?), adv. In an excessive manner; excessively. [Obs.] Wiclif.

O`ver*march” (?), v. t. & i. To march too far, or too much; to exhaust by marching. Baker.

O`ver*mast” (?), v. t. (Naut.) To furnish (a vessel) with too long or too heavy a mast or masts.

O`ver*mas”ter (?), v. t. To overpower; to subdue; to vanquish; to govern.

O`ver*match” (?), v. t. 1. To be more than equal to or a match for; hence, to vanquish. Drayton.

2. To marry (one) to a superior. [Obs.] Burton.

O”ver*match` (?), n. One superior in power; also, an unequal match; a contest in which one of the opponents is overmatched. Milton. D. Webster.

O`ver*meas”ure (?), v. t. To measure or estimate too largely.

O”ver*meas`ure (?), n. Excessive measure; the excess beyond true or proper measure; surplus.

O`ver*med”dle (?), v. t. To meddle unduly.

O`ver*med”dling (?), n. Excessive interference. “Justly shent for their overmeddling.” Fuller.

O”ver*mel”low (?), a. Too mellow; overripe.

O”ver*mer”it (?), n. Excessive merit. Bacon.

O”ver*mic”kle (?), a. & adv. Overmuch. [Obs. or Prov. Eng. & Scot.]

O`ver*mix” (?), v. t. To mix with too much.

O”ver*mod”est (?), a. Modest to excess; bashful. — O”ver*mod”est*ly, adv.

O”ver*moist” (?), a. Excessively moist. Bacon.

O”ver*mois”ture (?), n. Excess of moisture.

O”ver*more” (?), adv. Beyond; moreover. [Obs.]

O”ver*mor”row (?), n. The day after or following to-morrow. [Obs.] Bible (1551).

O”ver*most` (?), a. Over the rest in authority; above all others; highest. [Obs.] Fabyan.

O`ver*mount” (?), v. t. [Cf. Surmount.] To mount over; to go higher than; to rise above.

O”ver*much” (?), a. Too much. — adv. In too great a degree; too much. — n. An excess; a surplus.

O`ver*much”ness (?), n. The quality or state of being in excess; superabundance. [R.] B. Jonson.

O`ver*mul”ti*ply (?), v. t. & i. To multiply or increase too much; to repeat too often.

O`ver*mul”ti*tude (?), v. t. To outnumber. [Obs.]

O`ver*name” (?), v. t. To name over or in a series; to recount. [Obs.] Shak.

O”ver*neat” (?), a. Excessively neat. Spectator.

O”ver*nice” (?), a. Excessively nice; fastidious. Bp. Hall. — O”ver*nice”ly, adv. — O”ver*nice”ness, n.

O”ver*night` (?), n. The fore part of the night last past; the previous evening. [R.] Shak.

O”ver*night”, adv. In the fore part of the night last past; in the evening before; also, during the night; as, the candle will not last overnight.

I had been telling her all that happened overnight.

Dickens.

O`ver*noise” (?), v. t. To overpower by noise.

O”ver*nu”mer*ous (?), a. Excessively numerous; too many.

O`ver*of”fice (?), v. t. To domineer over by virtue of office. [Obs.] Shak.

O”ver*of*fi”cious (?), a. Too busy; too ready to intermeddle; too officious. Collier.

O`ver*paint” (?), v. t. To color or describe too strongly. Sir W. Raleigh.

O`ver*pam”per (?), v. t. To pamper excessively; to feed or dress too much. Dryton.

O`ver*part” (?), v. t. To give too important or difficult a part to. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

O`ver*pass” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overpassed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overpassing.] [Cf. Surpass.]

1. To go over or beyond; to cross; as, to overpass a river; to overpass limits.

2. To pass over; to omit; to overlook; to disregard.

All the beauties of the East
He slightly viewed and slightly overpassed.

Milton.

3. To surpass; to excel. [R.] R. Browning.

O`ver*pass”, v. i. To pass over, away, or off.

O”ver*pas”sion*ate (?), a. Passionate to excess. — O”ver*pas”sion*ate*ly, adv.

O”ver*pa”tient (?), a. Patient to excess.

O`ver*pay” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overpaid (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overpaying.] To pay too much to; to reward too highly.

O`ver*peer” (?), v. t. To peer over; to rise above.

O`ver*peo”ple (?), v. t. To people too densely.

O`ver*perch” (?), v. t. To perch upon; to fly over. [Obs.] Shak.

O`ver*per*suade” (?), v. t. To persuade or influence against one’s inclination or judgment. Pope.

O`ver*pes”ter (?), v. t. To pester exceedingly or excessively. Sir W. Raleigh.

O`ver*pic”ture (?), v. t. To surpass nature in the picture or representation of. [Obs.] “O’erpicturing that Venus.” Shak.

O`ver*please” (?), v. t. To please excessively.

O”ver*plus (?), n. [Over + L. plus more. See Plus, and cf. Surplus.] That which remains after a supply, or beyond a quantity proposed; surplus. Shak.

“The overplus of a great fortune.” Addison.

O`ver*ply” (?), v. t. To ply to excess; to exert with too much vigor; to overwork. Milton.

O`ver*poise” (?), v. t. To outweigh; to overbalance. [R.] Sir T. Browne.

O”ver*poise`, n. Preponderant weight; a counterbalance. [R.] Mrs. Browning.

O`ver*pol”ish (?), v. t. To polish too much.

O”ver*pon”der*ous (?), a. Too heavy.

O`ver*post” (?), v. t. To post over; to pass over swiftly, as by post. Shak.

O”ver*po”tent (?), a. Too potent or powerful.

O`ver*pow”er (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overpowered (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overpowering.] To excel or exceed in power; to cause to yield; to vanquish; to subdue; as, the light overpowers the eyes. “And overpower’d that gallant few.” Wordsworth.

Syn. — To overbear; overcome; vanquish; defeat; crush; overwhelm; overthrow; rout; conquer; subdue.

O”ver*pow`er, n. A dominating power. Bacon.

O`ver*pow”er*ing, a. Excelling in power; too powerful; irresistible. — O`ver*pow”er*ing*ly, adv.

O`ver*praise” (?), v. t. [Cf. Overprize, Superpraise.] To praise excessively or unduly.

O`ver*prais”ing, n. The act of praising unduly; excessive praise. Milton.

O`ver*press” (?), v. t. 1. To bear upon with irresistible force; to crush; to overwhelm. Shak.

2. To overcome by importunity. Johnson.

O”ver*pres”sure (?), n. Excessive pressure or urging. London Athenæum.

O`ver*prize” (?), v. t. [Cf. Overpraise.] Toprize excessively; to overvalue. Sir H. Wotton.

O”ver*pro*duc”tion (?), n. Excessive production; supply beyond the demand. J. S. Mill.

O”ver*prompt” (?), a. Too prompt; too ready or eager; precipitate. — O`ver*prompt”ness, n.

O”ver*proof” (?), a. Containing more alcohol than proof spirit; stronger than proof spirit; that is, containing more than 49.3 per cent by weight of alcohol.

O`ver*pro*por”tion (?), v. t. To make of too great proportion.

O”ver*proud” (?), a. Exceedingly or unduly proud. “Overproud of his victory.” Milton.

O”ver*prov”i*dent (?), a. Too provident.

O`ver*pro*voke” (?), v. t. To provoke excessively. Bp. Hall.

O`ver*quell” (?), v. t. To quell or subdue completely. [R.] Bp. Hall.

O”ver*qui”et*ness (?), n. Too much quietness. Sir. T. Browne.

O`ver*rake” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overraked (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overraking.] (Naut.) To rake over, or sweep across, from end to end, as waves that break over a vessel anchored with head to the sea.

O”ver*rank” (?), a. Too rank or luxuriant.

O`ver*rate” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overrated; p. pr. & vb. n. Overrating.] To rate or value too highly.

O”ver*rate`, n. An excessive rate. [R.] Massinger.

O`ver*reach” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overreached (?), (Overraught (&?;), obs.); p. pr. & vb. n. Overreaching.]

1. To reach above or beyond in any direction.

2. To deceive, or get the better of, by artifice or cunning; to outwit; to cheat. Shak.

O`ver*reach”, v. i. 1. To reach too far; as: (a) To strike the toe of the hind foot against the heel or shoe of the forefoot; — said of horses. (b) (Naut.) To sail on one tack farther than is necessary. Shak.

2. To cheat by cunning or deception.

O”ver*reach` (?), n. The act of striking the heel of the fore foot with the toe of the hind foot; — said of horses.

O`ver*reach”er (?), n. One who overreaches; one who cheats; a cheat.

O`ver*read” (?), v. t. To read over, or peruse. Shak.

O”ver*read”y (?), a. Too ready. — O”ver*read”*i*ly (#), adv. — O”ver*read”i*ness, n.

O`ver*reck”on (?), v. t. To reckon too highly.

O`ver*red” (?), v. t. To smear with red. [Obs.]

O`ver*re*fine” (?), v. t. To refine too much.

O”ver*re*fine”ment (?), n. Excessive refinement.

O`ver*rent” (?), v. t. To rent for too much.

O”ver*rich” (?), a. Exccessively rich.

O`ver*ride” (?), v. t. [imp. Overrode (?); p. p. Overridden (?), Overrode, Overrid (&?;); p. pr. & vb. n. Overriding.] [AS. offerīdan.] 1. To ride over or across; to ride upon; to trample down.

The carter overridden with [i. e., by] his cart.

Chaucer.

2. To suppress; to destroy; to supersede; to annul; as, one low overrides another; to override a veto.

3. To ride beyond; to pass; to outride. [Obs.]

I overrode him on the way.

Shak.

4. To ride too much; to ride, as a horse, beyond its strength.

O”ver*rigged” (?), a. Having too much rigging.

O”ver*right”eous (?), a. Excessively righteous; — usually implying hypocrisy.

O”ver*rig”id (?), a. Too rigid; too severe.

O”ver*rig”or*ous (?), a. Too rigorous; harsh.

O”ver*ripe” (?), a. Matured to excess. Milton.

O`ver*rip”en (?), v. t. To make too ripe. Shak.

O`ver*roast” (?), v. t. To roast too much. Shak.

O`ver*rule” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overruled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overruling.] 1. To rule over; to govern or determine by superior authority.

2. To rule or determine in a contrary way; to decide against; to abrogate or alter; as, God overrules the purposes of men; the chairman overruled the point of order.

His passion and animosity overruled his conscience.

Clarendon.

These [difficulties] I had habitually overruled.

F. W. Newman.

3. (Law) To supersede, reject, annul, or rule against; as, the plea, or the decision, was overruled by the court.

O`ver*rule”, v. i. To be superior or supreme in rulling or controlling; as, God rules and overrules. Shak.

O`ver*rul”er (?), n. One who, or that which, controls, governs, or determines. Sir P. Sidney.

O`ver*rul”ing, a. Exerting controlling power; as, an overruling Providence. — O`ver*rul”ing*ly, adv.

O`ver*run” (?), v. t. [imp. Overran (?); p. p. Overrun; p. pr. & vb. n. Overrunning. ] 1. To run over; to grow or spread over in excess; to invade and occupy; to take possession of; as, the vine overran its trellis; the farm is overrun with witch grass.

Those barbarous nations that overran the world.

Spenser.

2. To exceed in distance or speed of running; to go beyond or pass in running.

Ahimaaz run by the way of the plain, and overran Cushi.

2 Sam. xviii. 23.

3. To go beyond; to extend in part beyond; as, one line overruns another in length.

&fist; In machinery, a sliding piece is said to overrun its bearing when its forward end goes beyond it.

4. To abuse or oppress, as if by treading upon.

None of them the feeble overran.

Spenser.

5. (Print.) (a) To carry over, or back, as type, from one line or page into the next after, or next before. (b) To extend the contents of (a line, column, or page) into the next line, column, or page.

O`ver*run”, v. i. 1. To run, pass, spread, or flow over or by something; to be beyond, or in excess.

Despised and trodden down of all that overran.

Spenser.

2. (Print.) To extend beyond its due or desired length; as, a line, or advertisement, overruns.

O`ver*run”ner (?), n. One that overruns. Lovelace.

O`ver*sat”u*rate (?), v. t. [Cf. Supersaturate.] To saturate to excess.

O`ver*say” (?), v. t. To say over; to repeat. Ford.

O`ver*scent”ed (?), a. 1. Scented excessively.

2. Covered or concealed by a different odor. Fuller.

O`ver*scru`pu*los”i*ty (?), n. Overscrupulousness.

O`ver*scru”pu*lous (?), a. Scrupulous to excess.

O`ver*scru”pu*lous*ness, n. The quality or state of being overscrupulous; excess of scrupulousness.

O”ver*sea” (?), a. Beyond the sea; foreign.

{ O”ver*sea” (?), O”ver*seas” (?), } adv. Over the sea; abroad. Milton. Tennyson.

O`ver*search” (?), v. t. To search all over.

O`ver*sea”son (?), v. t. To season too highly.

O`ver*see” (?), v. t. [imp. Oversaw (?); p. p. Overseen (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overseeing.] [AS. oferséon to survey, to despise. See Over, and See.]

1. To superintend; to watch over; to direct; to look or see after; to overlook.

2. To omit or neglect seeing. Spenser.

O`ver*see”, v. i. To see too or too much; hence, to be deceived. [Obs.]

The most expert gamesters may sometimes oversee.

Fuller.

Your partiality to me is much overseen, if you think me fit to correct your Latin.

Walpole.

O`ver*seer” (?), n. One who oversees; a superintendent; a supervisor; as, an overseer of a mill; specifically, one or certain public officers; as, an overseer of the poor; an overseer of highways.

O`ver*seer”ship, n. The office of an overseer.

O`ver*sell` (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Oversold (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overselling. ] 1. To sell for a higher price than; to exceed in selling price.

One whose beauty
Would oversell all Italy.

Beau. & Fl.

2. To sell beyond means of delivery. [Brokers’Cant]

Oversold market (Brokers’ Cant), a market in which stocks or commodities have been sold “short” to such an extent that it is difficult to obtain them for delivery.

O`ver*set” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overset; p. pr. & vb. n. Oversetting. ] 1. To turn or tip (anything) over from an upright, or a proper, position so that it lies upon its side or bottom upwards; to upset; as, to overset a chair, a coach, a ship, or a building. Dryden.

2. To cause to fall, or to tail; to subvert; to overthrow; as, to overset a government or a plot. Addison.

3. To fill too full. [Obs.] Howell.

O`ver*set”, v. i. To turn, or to be turned, over; to be upset. Mortimer.

O”ver*set` (?), n. 1. An upsetting; overturn; overthrow; as, the overset of a carriage.

2. An excess; superfluity. [Obs.] “This overset of wealth and pomp. ” Bp. Burnel.

O`ver*shade` (?), v. t. [AS. ofersceadwian. See Over, and Shade, and cf. Overshadow.] To cover with shade; to render dark or gloomy; to overshadow. Shak.

O`ver*shad”ow (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overshadowed(?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overshadowing. ] [Cf. Overshade. ] 1. To throw a shadow, or shade, over; to darken; to obscure.

There was a cloud that overshadowed them.

Mark ix. 7.

2. Fig.: To cover with a superior influence. Milton.

O”ver*shad”ow*er (?), n. One that throws a shade, or shadow, over anything. Bacon.

O”ver*shad”ow*y (?), a. Overshadowing. [R.]

O`ver*shake” (?), v. t. To shake over or away; to drive away; to disperse. [Obs.] Chaucer.

O`ver*shine” (?), v. t. 1. To shine over or upon; to illumine. Shak.

2. To excel in shining; to outshine. Shak.

O”ver*shoe` (?), n. A shoe that is worn over another for protection from wet or for extra warmth; esp., an India-rubber shoe; a galoche.

O`ver*shoot” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overshot (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overshooting.] 1. To shoot over or beyond. “Not to overshoot his game.” South.

2. To pass swiftly over; to fly beyond. Hartle.

3. To exceed; as, to overshoot the truth. Cowper.

To overshoot one’s self, to venture too far; to assert too much.

O`ver*shoot”, v. i. To fly beyond the mark. Collier.

O”ver*shot` (?), a. From Overshoot, v. t.

Overshot wheel, a vertical water wheel, the circumference of which is covered with cavities or buckets, and which is turned by water which shoots over the top of it, filling the buckets on the farther side and acting chiefly by its we’ght.

O”ver*sight` (?), n. 1. Watchful care; superintendence; general supervision.

2. An overlooking; an omission; an error. Hooker.

3. Escape from an overlooked peril. [R.] “His fool-happy oversight.” Spenser.

Syn. — Superintendence; supervision; inspection; overlooking; inadvertence; neglect; mistake; error; omission.

O`ver*size” (?), v. t. To surpass in size.

O`ver*size”, v. t. To cover with viscid matter. [R.]

O’ersized with coagulate gore.

Shak.

O`ver*skip” (?), v. t. To skip or leap over; to treat with indifference. Shak.

O”ver*skirt` (?), n. An upper skirt, shorter than the dress, and usually draped.

O”ver*slaugh` (?), n. [D. overslag.] A bar in a river; as, the overslaugh in the Hudson River. [Local, U. S.] Bartlett.

O`ver*slaugh”, v. t. [D. overslaan.] To hinder or stop, as by an overslaugh or an impediment; as, to overslaugh a bill in a legislative body; to overslaugh a military officer, that is, to hinder his promotion or employment. [Local Cant, U. S.]

O`ver*sleep” (?), v. t. To sleep beyond; as, to oversleep one’s self or one’s usual hour of rising.

O`ver*sleep”, v. i. To sleep too long.

O`ver*slide” (?), v. t. To slide over or by.

O`ver*slip” (?), v. t. To slip or slide over; to pass easily or carelessly beyond; to omit; to neglect; as, to overslip time or opportunity.

O”ver*slop` (?), n. [AS. oferslop.] An outer garment, or slop. [Obs.] Chaucer.

O`ver*slow” (?), v. t. To render slow; to check; to curb. [Obs.] Hammond.

O”ver*slow”, a. Too slow.

O”vers*man (?), n.; pl. Oversmen (&?;).

1. An overseer; a superintendent.

2. (Scots Law) An umpire; a third arbiter, appointed when two arbiters, previously selected, disagree.

O`ver*snow” (?), v. t. To cover with snow, or as with snow. [Poetic] Shak. Dryden.

O”ver*soon” (?), adv. Too soon. Sir P. Sidney.

O`ver*sor”row (?), v. t. To grieve or afflict to excess. [Obs.] Milton.

O”ver*soul` (?), n. The all- containing soul. [R.]

That unity, that oversout, within which every man’s particular being is contained and made one with all other.

Emerson.

O`ver*sow” (?), v. t. [AS. ofersawan.] To sow where something has already been sown. [R.]

His enemy came and oversowed cockle among the wheat.

Matt. x&?;ii. 25. (Douay Version).

O`ver*span” (?), v. t. To reach or extend over.

O`ver*speak” (?), v. t. & i. [AS. ofersprecan.] To exceed in speaking; to speak too much; to use too many words.

O`ver*spin” (?), v. t. To spin out to too great length; to protract unduly. W. Cartwright.

O`ver*spread” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overspread; p. pr. & vb. n. Overspreading.] [AS. oferspr&aemacr;dan.] To spread over; to cover; as, the deluge overspread the earth. Chaucer.

Those nations of the North
Which overspread the world.

Drayton.

O`ver*spread”, v. i. To be spread or scattered over.

O`ver*spring” (?), v. t. To spring or leap over.

O`ver*stand” (?), v. t. To stand on the price or conditions of, so as to lose a sale; to lose by an extravagant price or hard conditions. [Obs.]

What madman would o’erstand his market twice ?

Dryden.

O`ver*stare” (?), v. t. To outstare. [Obs.] Shak.

O`ver*stare”, v. i. To stare wildly. [Obs.] Ascham.

O`ver*state” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overstated; p. pr. & vb. n. Overstating.] To state in too strong terms; to exaggerate. Fuller.

O”ver*state”ment (?), n. An exaggerated statement or account.

O`ver*stay” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overstayed (?) or Overstaid (&?;); p. pr. & vb. n. Overstaying.] To stay beyond the time or the limits of; as, to overstay the appointed time. Bp. Hall.

O`ver*step” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overstepped (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overstepping.] [AS. ofersteppan.] To step over or beyond; to transgress. Shak.

O”ver*stock` (?), n. Stock in excess. Tatler.

O`ver*stock”, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overstocked (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overstocking.] To fill too full; to supply in excess; as, to overstock a market with goods, or a farm with cattle.

O`ver*store” (?), v. t. To overstock. Sir. M. Hale.

O`ver-sto`ry (?), n. (Arch.) The clearstory, or upper story, of a building.

O`ver*strain” (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Overstrained (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overstraining.] To strain one’s self to excess. Dryden.

O`ver*strain”, v. t. To stretch or strain too much; as to overstrain one’s nerves. Ayliffe.

O`ver*strait”ly (?), adv. Too straitly or strictly. [Obs.] Sir W. Raleigh.

O`ver*straw” (?), v. t. To overstrew. [Obs.] Shak.

O`ver*strew” (?), v. t. To strew or scatter over.

O”ver*strict” (?), a. Excessively strict.

O`ver*stride” (?), v. t. To stride over or beyond.

O`ver*strike” (?), v. t. To strike beyond. [Obs.]

O`ver*strow” (?), v. t. See Overstrew.

O”ver*stu”di*ous (?), a. Too studious.

O”ver*sub”tile (?), a. Excessively subtile.

O”ver*sum` (?), n. A sum or quantity over; surplus. [Obs.] Holinshed.

O`ver*sup*ply” (?), v. t. To supply in excess.

O”ver*sup*ply`, n. An excessive supply.

A general oversupply or excess of all commodities.

J. S. Mill.

O”ver*sure” (?), a. Excessively sure.

O`ver*sway” (?), v. t. To bear sway over.

O`ver*swell” (?), v. t. & i. To swell or rise above; to overflow. [R.] Shak.

O”vert (?), a. [OF. overt, F. ouvert, p. p. of OF. ovrir, F. ouvrir, to open, of uncertain origin; cf. It. aprire, OIt. also oprire, L. aperire to open, operire to cover, deoperire to uncover. Perch. from L. aperire influenced by F. couvrir to cover. Cf. Aperient, Cover.]

1. Open to view; public; apparent; manifest.

Overt and apparent virtues bring forth praise.

Bacon.

2. (Law) Not covert; open; public; manifest; as, an overt act of treason. Macaulay.

No person shall be convicted of treason unless on the testimony of two witnesses to the same overt act, or on confession in open court.

Constitution of the U. S.

&fist; In criminal law, an overt act is an open done in pursuance and manifestation of a criminal design; the mere design or intent not being punishable without such act. In English law, market overt is an open market; a pound overt is an open, uncovered pound.

O`ver*take” (?), v. t. [imp. Overtook (?); p. p. Overtaken (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overtaking.]

1. To come up with in a course, pursuit, progress, or motion; to catch up with.

Follow after the men; and when thou dost overtake them, say . . . Wherefore have ye rewarded evil for good.

Gen. xliv. 4.

He had him overtaken in his flight.

Spenser.

2. To come upon from behind; to discover; to surprise; to capture; to overcome.

If a man be overtaken in a fault.

Gal. vi. 1

I shall see
The winged vengeance overtake such children.

Shak.

3. Hence, figuratively, in the past participle (overtaken), drunken. [Obs.] Holland.

O`ver*talk” (?), v. i. To talk to excess. Milton.

O`ver*task” (?), v. t. To task too heavily.

O`ver*tax” (?), v. t. To tax or to task too heavily.

O`ver*te”di*ous (?), a. Too tedious.

O`ver*tempt” (?), v. t. To tempt exceedingly, or beyond the power of resistance. Milton.

O`ver*throw” (?), v. t. [imp. Overthrew (?); p. p. Overthrown (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overthrowing.]

1. To throw over; to overturn; to upset; to turn upside down.

His wife overthrew the table.

Jer. Taylor.

2. To cause to fall or to fail; to subvert; to defeat; to make a ruin of; to destroy.

When the walls of Thebes he overthrew.

Dryden.

[Gloucester] that seeks to overthrow religion.

Shak.

Syn. — To demolish; overturn; prostrate; destroy; ruin; subvert; overcome; conquer; defeat; discomfit; vanquish; beat; rout.

O”ver*throw` (?), n. 1. The act of overthrowing; the state of being overthrow; ruin.

Your sudden overthrow much rueth me.

Spenser.

2. (a) (Baseball) The act of throwing a ball too high, as over a player’s head. (b) (Cricket) A faulty return of the ball by a fielder, so that the striker makes an additional run.

O”ver*thwart” (ō“v&etilde;r*thw&add;rt”), a. 1. Having a transverse position; placed or situated across; hence, opposite. “Our overthwart neighbors.” Dryden.

2. Crossing in kind or disposition; perverse; adverse; opposing. “Overthwart humor.” Clarendon.

O”ver*thwart”, adv. Across; crosswise; transversely. “Y’clenched overthwart and endelong.” Chaucer.

O”ver*thwart”, prep. Across; from alde to side of. “Huge trees overthwart one another.” Milton.

O”ver*thwart`, n. That which is overthwart; an adverse circumstance; opposition. [Obs.] Surrey.

O`ver*thwart”, v. t. To cross; to oppose. [Obs.]

O”ver*thwart”ly, adv. In an overthwart manner; across; also, perversely. [Obs.] Peacham.

O”ver*thwart”ness, n. The state of being overthwart; perverseness. [Obs.] Lord Herbert.

O`ver*tilt” (?), v. t. To tilt over; to overturn.

O”ver*time` (?), n. Time beyond, or in excess of, a limit; esp., extra working time.

O`ver*tire” (?), v. t. To tire to excess; to exhaust.

O`ver*tire”, v. t. To become too tired. Br. Hall.

O`ver*ti”tle (?), v. t. To give too high a title to.

O”vert*ly (?), adv. Publicly; openly.

O`ver*toil” (?), v. t. To overwork.

O`ver*toil”, v. t. To weary excessively; to exhaust.

Then dozed a while herself, but overtoiled
By that day’s grief and travel.

Tennyson.

O”ver*tone` (?), n. [A translation of G. oberton. See Over,Tone.] (Mus.) One of the harmonics faintly heard with and above a tone as it dies away, produced by some aliquot portion of the vibrating sting or column of air which yields the fundamental tone; one of the natural harmonic scale of tones, as the octave, twelfth, fifteenth, etc.; an aliquot or “partial” tone; a harmonic. See Harmonic, and Tone. Tyndall.

O`ver*top” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overtopped (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overtopping.] 1. To rise above the top of; to exceed in height; to tower above. “To &?; ‘ertop old Pelion.” Shak.

2. To go beyond; to transcend; to transgress.

If kings presume to overtop the law by which they reign, . . . they are by law to be reduced into order.

Milton.

3. To make of less importance, or throw into the background, by superior excellence; to dwarf; to obscure. Becon.

O`ver*tow”er (?), v. t. To tower over or above.

O`ver*tow”er, v. i. To soar too high. [R.] Fuller.

O`ver*trade” (?), v. i. To trade beyond one’s capital; to buy goods beyond the means of paying for or seleng them; to overstock the market.

O`ver*trad”ing (?), n. The act or practice of buying goods beyond the means of payment; a glutting of the market.

O`ver*tread” (?), v. t. [AS. oferiredan.] To tread over or upon.

O`ver*trip” (?), v. t. To trip over nimbly.

O`ver*trou”bled (?), a. Excessively troubled.

O`ver*trow” (?), v. i. To be too trustful or confident; to trust too much. [Obs.] Wyclif &?;

O”ver*trust` (?), n. Excessive confidence.

O`ver*trust”, v. t. & i. To trust too much. Bp. Hall.

O”ver*ture (?), [OF. overture, F. ouverture, fr. OF. ovrir, F. ouvrir. See Overt.] 1. An opening or aperture; a recess; a recess; a chamber. [Obs.] Spenser. “The cave’s inmost overture.” Chapman.

2. Disclosure; discovery; revelation. [Obs.]

It was he
That made the overture of thy treasons to us.

Shak.

3. A proposal; an offer; a proposition formally submitted for consideration, acceptance, or rejection. “The great overture of the gospel.” Barrow.

4. (Mus.) A composition, for a full orchestra, designed as an introduction to an oratorio, opera, or ballet, or as an independent piece; — called in the latter case a concert overture.

O”ver*ture, v. t. To make an overture to; as, to overture a religious body on some subject.

O`ver*turn” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overturned (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overturning.] 1. To turn or throw from a basis, foundation, or position; to overset; as, to overturn a carriage or a building.

2. To subvert; to destroy; to overthrow.

3. To overpower; to conquer. Milton.

Syn. — To demolish; overthrow. See Demolish.

O”ver*turn`, n. The act off overturning, or the state of being overturned or subverted; overthrow; as, an overturn of parties.

O`ver*turn”a*ble (?), a. Capable of being, or liable to be, overturned or subverted.

O`ver*turn”er (?), n. One who overturns. South.

O`ver*vail” (?), v. t. See Overveil.

O”ver*val`u*a”tion (?), n. Excessive valuation; overestimate.

O`ver*val”ue (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overvalued (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overvaluing.] 1. To value excessively; to rate at too high a price. “To overvalue human power.” Holyday.

2. To exceed in value. [R.] H. Brooke.

O`ver*veil” (?), v. t. To veil or cover. Shak.

O”ver*view` (?), n. [Cf. Survey.] An inspection or overlooking. [Obs.] Shak.

O`ver*vote” (?), v. t. To outvote; to outnumber in votes given. [R.] Eikon Basilike.

O`ver*walk” (?), v. t. To walk over or upon.

O`ver*war” (?), v. t. To defeat. [Obs.] Warner.

O”ver*wa”ry (?), a. Too wary; too cautious.

O`ver*wash” (?), v. t. To overflow. Holinshed.

O`ver*wast”ed (?), a. Wasted or worn out; &?;onsumed; spent [Obs.] Drayton.

O”ver*watch” (?), v. t. 1. To watch too much.

2. To weary or exhaust by watching. Dryden.

O`ver*wax” (?), v. i. To wax or grow too rapindly or too much. [Obs.] R. of Gloucester.

O”ver*weak” (?), a. Too weak; too feeble.

O`ver*wear” (?), v. t. To wear too much; to wear out. Drayton.

O”ver*wea”ry (?), v. t. To weary too much; to tire out. Dryden.

O`ver*weath”er (?), v. t. To expose too long to the influence of the weather. [Obs.] Shak.

O`ver*ween” (?), v. t. [AS. oferw&?;nian. See Over, and Ween.] To think too highly or arrogantly; to regard one’s own thinking or conclusions too highly; hence, to egotistic, arrogant, or rash, in opinion; to think conceitedly; to presume.

They that overween,
And at thy growing virtues fret their spleen.

Milton.

O`ver*ween”er (?), n. One who overweens. [R.]

The conceits of warmed or overweening brain.

Locke.

O`ver*ween”ing, a. Unduly confident; arrogant; presumptuous; conceited. — O`ver*ween”ingly, adv. Milton. — O`ver*ween”ing*ness, n.

Here’s an overweening rogue.

Shak.

O`ver*ween”ing, n. Conceit; arrogance. Milton.

O`ver*weigh” (?), v. t. To exceed in weight; to overbalance; to weigh down. Drayton. Hooker.

O”ver*weight` (?), n. 1. Weight over and above what is required by law or custom.

2. Superabundance of weight; preponderance.

O”ver*weight”, a. Overweighing; excessive. [Obs.] “Of no overweight worth.” Fuller.

O`ver*well” (?), v. t. To overflow. R. D. Blackmore.

O”ver*wet (?), n. Excessive wetness. [Obs.]

Another ill accident is, overwet at sowing time.

Bacon.

O`ver*whelm” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overwhelmed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Overwhelming.]

1. To cover over completely, as by a great wave; to overflow and bury beneath; to ingulf; hence, figuratively, to immerse and bear down; to overpower; to crush; to bury; to oppress, etc., overpoweringly.

The sea overwhelmed their enemies.

Ps. lxxviii. 53.

Fearfulness and trembling are come upon me, and horror hath overwhelmed me.

Ps. lv. 5.

Foul deeds will rise,
Though all the earth o’erwhelm them.

Shak.

Gaza yet stands; but all her sons are fallen,
All in a moment overwhelmed and fallen.

Milton.

2. To project or impend over threateningly.

His louering brows o’erwhelming his fair sight.

Shak.

3. To cause to surround, to cover. Papin.

O”ver*whelm`, n. The act of overwhelming. [R.]

O`ver*whelm”ing, a. Overpowering; irresistible. — O`ver*whelm”ing*ly, adv.

O`ver*wind” (?), v. t. To wind too tightly, as a spring, or too far, as a hoisting rope on a drum.

O`ver*wing” (?), v. t. To outflank. [Obs.] Milton.

O”ver*wise” (?), a. Too wise; affectedly wise. — O`ver*wise”ly, adv. — O`ver*wise”ness, n.

O`ver*wit” (?), v. t. To outwit. Swift.

O`ver*word” (?), v. t. To say in too many words; to express verbosely. Hales.

O`ver*work” (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Overworked (?) or Overwrought (&?;); p. pr. & vb. n. Overworking.] 1. To work beyond the strength; to cause to labor too much or too long; to tire excessively; as, to overwork a horse.

2. To fill too full of work; to crowd with labor.

My days with toil are overwrought.

Longfellow.

3. To decorate all over.

O`ver*work”, v. t. To work too much, or beyond one’s strength.

O”ver*work`, n. Work in excess of the usual or stipulated time or quantity; extra work; also, excessive labor.

O`ver*worn” (?), p. p. & a. from Overwear, v. t. Worn out or subdued by toil; worn out so as to be trite.

O`ver*wrest” (?), v. t. To wrest or force from the natural or proper position. Shak.

O`ver*wres”tle (?), v. t. To subdue by wrestling. [Obs.] Spenser.

O`ver*wrought (?), p. p. & a. from Overwork. Wrought upon excessively; overworked; overexcited.

O”ver*zeal (?), n. Excess of zeal. Fairfax.

O”ver*zeal”ous (?), a. Too zealous.

O`vi*cap”sule (?), n. [Ovum + capsule.]

1. (Anat) The outer layer of a Graafian follicle.

2. (Zoöl.) Same as Oötheca.

O”vi*cell` (?), n. [Ovum + cell.] (Zoöl) One of the dilatations of the body wall of Bryozoa in which the ova sometimes undegro the first stages of their development. See Illust. of Chilostoma.

O*vic”u*lar (?), a. [L. ovum an egg.] (Biol.) Of or pertaining to an egg.

O”vi*cyst (?), n. [Ovum + cyst.] (Zoöl.) The pouch in which incubation takes place in some Tunicata.

O*vid”i*an (?), a. Of or pertaining to the Latin poet Ovid; resembling the style of Ovid.

O`vi*du”cal (?), a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to oviducts; as, oviducal glands.

O”vi*duct (?), n. [Ovum + duct: cf. F. oviducte.] (Anat.) A tube, or duct, for the passage of ova from the ovary to the exterior of the animal or to the part where further development takes place. In mammals the oviducts are also called Fallopian tubes.

O*vif”er*ous (?), a. [Ovum + -ferous: cf. F. ovifère.] (Biol.) Egg-bearing; — applied particularly to certain receptacles, as in Crustacea, that retain the eggs after they have been excluded from the formative organs, until they are hatched.

O”vi*form (?), a. [Ovum + - form: cf. F. oviforme.] (Biol.) Having the form or figure of an egg; egg-shaped; as, an oviform leaf.

O*vig”er*ons (?), a. [Ovum + -gerous: cf. F. ovigere.] (Biol.) Bearing eggs; oviferous.

O”vile (?), a. See Ovine.

O”vine (?), a. [L. ovinus, fr. ovis sheep: cf. F. ovine.] Of or pertaining to sheep; consisting of sheep.

||O*vip”a*ra (?), n. pl. [NL. See Oviparous.] (Zoöl.) An artificial division of vertebrates, including those that lay eggs; — opposed to Vivipara.

O`vi*par”i*ty (?), n. [See Oviparous.] (Biol.) Generation by means of ova. See Generation.

O*vip”a*rous (?), a. [L. oviparus; ovum egg + parere to bring forth: cf. F. ovipare.] (Physiol.) Producing young from rggs; as, an oviparous animal, in which the egg is generally separated from the animal, and hatched after exclusion; — opposed to viviparous.

O`vi*pos”it (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Oviposited; p. pr. & vb. n. Ovipositing.] [See Ovum, and Posit.] To lay or deposit eggs; — said esp. of insects.

O`vi*pos”it, v. t. To deposit or lay (an egg).

{ O`vi*pos”it*ing (?), O`vi*po*si”tion (?), } n. The depositing of eggs, esp. by insects.

O`vi*pos”i*tor (?), n. [L. ovum an egg + positor a placer, fr. ponere to place.] (Zoöl.) The organ with which many insects and some other animals deposit their eggs. Some ichneumon files have a long ovipositor fitted to pierce the eggs or larvæ of other insects, in order to lay their own eggs within the same.

O”vi*sac (?), n. [Ovum + sac.] (Anat) (a) A Graafian follicle; any sac containing an ovum or ova. (b) The inner layer of the fibrous wall of a Graafian follicle.

O”vist (?), n. (Biol.) Same as Ovulist.

||O`vo*coc”cus (?), n.; pl. Ovococci (#). [Ovum + Gr. &?; grain, seed.] (Biol.) A germinal vesicle.

{ O”void (?), O*void”al (?), } a. [Ovum + -oid: cf. F. ovoïde.] Resembling an egg in shape; egg-shaped; ovate; as, an ovoidal apple.

O”void (?), n. A solid resembling an egg in shape.

O”vo*lo (?), n. [It. ovolo, uovolo, fr. L. ovum an egg. Cf. Ovule.] (Arch.) A round, convex molding. See Illust. of Column.

&fist; In Roman work it is usually a quarter circle in section; in Greek work it is flatter, and is equivalent to the echinus; that is, it has in section the elastic curve of the shell of the sea urchin. In mediæval architecture it is not distinguishable from the multitude of convex moldings, of all sections, which are used.

O*vol”o*gy (?), n. [Ovum + - logy. Cf. F. ovologie.] That branch of natural history which treats of the origin and functions of eggs.

O`vo*plas”ma (?), n. [Ovum + plasma.] (Boil.) Yolk; egg yolk. Haeckel.

O`vo*test”tis (?), n. [NL. See Ovum, and Testis.] (Zoöl.) An organ which produces both ova and spermatozoids; an hermaphrodite gland.

O*vo*vi*vip”a*rous (?), a. [Ovum + viviparous: cf. F. ovovivipare.] (Biol.) Oviparous, but hatching the egg while it is within the body, as some fishes and reptiles.

O”vu*lar (?), a. (Biol.) Relating or belonging to an ovule; as, an ovular growth.

O”vu*la*ry (?), a. (Biol.) Pertaining to ovules.

O”vu*late (?), a. (Biol.) Containing an ovule or ovules.

O`vu*la”tion (?), n. (Phisiol.) The formation of ova or eggs in the ovary, and the discharge of the same. In the mammalian female the discharge occurs during menstruation.

O”vule (?), n. [Dim. of L. ovum an egg: cf. F. ovule. Cf. Ovolo, Ovulum.] (Biol.) (a) The rudiment of a seed. It grows from a placenta, and consists of a soft nucleus within two delicate coatings. The attached base of the ovule is the hilum, the coatings are united with the nucleus at the chalaza, and their minute orifice is the foramen. (b) An ovum.

O`vu*lif”er*ous (?), a. [Ovule + -ferous.] (biol.) Producing ovules.

O”vu*list (?), n. (Biol.) A believer in the theory (called encasement theory), current during the last century, that the egg was the real animal germ, and that at the time of fecundation the spermatozoa simply gave the impetus which caused the unfolding of the egg, in which all generations were inclosed one within the other. Also called ovist.

O”vu*lite (?), n. [Ovum + - lite.] A fossil egg.

||O”vu*lum (?), n.; pl. Ovula (#). [NL. See Ovule.] (Biol.) An ovule.

||O”vum (?), n.; pl. L. Ova (#), E. Ovums (#). [L., an egg. See Oval.] 1. (Biol.) A more or less spherical and transparent mass of granular protoplasm, which by a process of multiplication and growth develops into a mass of cells, constituting a new individual like the parent; an egg, spore, germ, or germ cell. See Illust. of Mycropyle.

&fist; The ovum is a typical cell, with a cell wall, cell substance, nucleus, and nucleolus. In man and the higher animals the cell wall, a vertically striated membrane, is called the zona pellucida; the cell contents, the vitellus; the nucleus, the germinal vesicle; and the nucleolus, the germinal spot. The diameter of the ripe ovum in man and the domestic animals varies between 1-200 and 1-120 of an inch.

2. (Arch.) One of the series of egg- shaped ornaments into which the ovolo is often carved. Gwilt.

Owch (?), n. See Ouch. [Obs.] Speser.

Owe (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Owed (?), (Ought (&?;) obs.); p. pr. & vb. n. Owing (?).] [OE. owen, awen,aghen, to have, own, have (to do), hence, owe, AS. āgan to have; akin to G. eigen, a., own, Icel. eiga to have, Dan. eie, Sw. äga, Goth. áigan, Skr. &?;. &?;&?;&?;&?;. Cf. Ought, v., 2d Own, Fraught.] 1. To possess; to have, as the rightful owner; to own. [Obs.]

Thou dost here usurp
The name thou ow’st not.

Shak.

2. To have or possess, as something derived or bestowed; to be obliged to ascribe (something to some source); to be indebted or obliged for; as, he owed his wealth to his father; he owed his victory to his lieutenants. Milton.

O deem thy fall not owed to man’s decree.

Pope.

3. Hence: To have or be under an obigation to restore, pay, or render (something) in return or compensation for something received; to be indebted in the sum of; as, the subject owes allegiance; the fortunate owe assistance to the unfortunate.

The one ought five hundred pence, and the other fifty.

Bible (1551).

A son owes help and honor to his father.

Holyday.

&fist; Owe was sometimes followed by an objective clause introduced by the infinitive. “Ye owen to incline and bow your heart.” Chaucer.

4. To have an obligation to (some one) on account of something done or received; to be indebted to; as, to iwe the grocer for supplies, or a laborer for services.

Ow”el (?), a. [OF. oel, owel, iwel,ivel, F. égal, fr. L. aequalis.] (Law) Equal. [Obs.] Burrill.

Ow”el*ty (?), n. [OF. oelté, ivelté.] (Law) Equality; — sometimes written ovelty and ovealty. Burrill.

Ow”en (?), a.[See Own.] Own. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Ow”en*ite (?), n. A follower of Robert Owen, who tried to reorganize society on a socialistic basis, and established an industrial community on the Clyde, Scotland, and, later, a similar one in Indiana.

O”wher (?), adv. [AS. āhwær.] Anywhere. [Obs.] “If he found owher a good fellow.” Chaucer.

Ow`ing (?), p. p. & a. [Used in a passive sense for owed (AS. āgen. See Own).] 1. Had or held under obligation of paying; due.

There is more owing her than is paid.

Shak.

2. Had or experienced as a consequence, result, issue, etc.; ascribable; — with to; as, misfortunes are often owing to vices; his failure was owing to speculations.

Owl (?), n. [AS. ūle; akin to D. uil, OHG. ūwila, G. eule, Icel. ugla, Sw. ugla, Dan. ugle.]

1. (Zoöl.) Any species of raptorial birds of the family Strigidæ. They have large eyes and ears, and a conspicuous circle of feathers around each eye. They are mostly nocturnal in their habits.

&fist; Some species have erectile tufts of feathers on the head. The feathers are soft and somewhat downy. The species are numerous. See Barn owl, Burrowing owl, Eared owl, Hawk owl, Horned owl, Screech owl, Snowy owl, under Barn, Burrowing, etc.

&fist; In the Scriptures the owl is commonly associated with desolation; poets and story-tellers introduce it as a bird of ill omen. . . . The Greeks and Romans made it the emblem of wisdom, and sacred to Minerva, — and indeed its large head and solemn eyes give it an air of wisdom. Am. Cyc.

2. (Zoöl.) A variety of the domestic pigeon.

Owl monkey (Zoöl.), any one of several species of South American nocturnal monkeys of the genus Nyctipithecus. They have very large eyes. Called also durukuli. — Owl moth (Zoöl.), a very large moth (Erebus strix). The expanse of its wings is over ten inches. — Owl parrot (Zoöl.), the kakapo. — Sea owl (Zoöl.), the lumpfish. — Owl train, a cant name for certain railway trains whose run is in the nighttime.

Owl, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Owled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Owling.] 1. To pry about; to prowl. [Prov. Eng.]

2. To carry wool or sheep out of England. [Obs.]

&fist; This was formerly illegal, and was done chiefly by night.

3. Hence, to carry on any contraband trade. [Eng.]

Owl”er (?), n. [From Owl, v. i.] One who owls; esp., one who conveys contraband goods. See Owling, n. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.] T. Brown.

Owl”er*y (?), n.; pl. Owleries (&?;). An abode or a haunt of owls.

Owl”et (?), n. [Dim. of owl. Cf. Howlet.] (Zoöl.) A small owl; especially, the European species (Athene noctua), and the California flammulated owlet (Megascops flammeolus).

Owlet moth (Zoöl.), any noctuid moth.

Owl”-eyed` (?), a. Having eyes like an owl’s.

Owl”ing, n. [From Owl, v. i.] (O. Eng. Law) The offense of transporting wool or sheep out of England contrary to the statute formerly existing. Blackstone.

Owl”ish, a. Resembling, or characteristic of, an owl.

Owl”ism (?), n. Affected wisdom; pompous dullness. [R.]

Owl”light` (?), n. Glimmering or imperfect light. [R.] Bp. Warburton.

Own (ōn), v. t. [OE. unnen to grant, permit, be pleased with, AS. unnan to grant; akin to OS. giunnan, G. gönnen, Icel. unna; of uncertain origin. This word has been confused with own to possess.] To grant; to acknowledge; to admit to be true; to confess; to recognize in a particular character; as, we own that we have forfeited your love.

The wakeful bloodhound rose, and shook his hide;
But his sagacious eye an inmate owns.

Keats.

Own, a. [OE. owen, awen, auen, aughen, AS. āgen, p. p. of āgan to possess; akin to OS. ēgan, G. & D. eigen, Icel. eiginn, Sw. & Dan. egen. √110. See Owe.] Belonging to; belonging exclusively or especially to; peculiar; — most frequently following a possessive pronoun, as my, our, thy, your, his, her, its, their, in order to emphasize or intensify the idea of property, peculiar interest, or exclusive ownership; as, my own father; my own composition; my own idea; at my own price. “No man was his own [i. e., no man was master of himself, or in possession of his senses].” Shak.

To hold one’s own, to keep or maintain one’s possessions; to yield nothing; esp., to suffer no loss or disadvantage in a contest. Shak.

Own, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Owned (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Owning.] [OE. ohnien, ahnien, AS. āgnian, fr. āgen own, a. See Own, a.] To hold as property; to have a legal or rightful title to; to be the proprietor or possessor of; to possess; as, to own a house.

Own”er (?), n. One who owns; a rightful proprietor; one who has the legal or rightful title, whether he is the possessor or not. Shak.

Own”er*less, a. Without an owner.

Own”er*ship, n. The state of being an owner; the right to own; exclusive right of possession; legal or just claim or title; proprietorship.

Owre (?), n. [AS. ūr; akin to G. auerochs, OHG. ūr, ūrohso, Icel. ūrr.] (Zoöl.) The aurochs. [Obs.]

{ Owse (ouz), Ow”ser (ou”z&etilde;r), } n. Tanner’s ooze. See Ooze, 3.

Ox (&obreve;ks), n.; pl. Oxen (#). [AS. oxa; akin to D. os. G. ochs, ochse, OHG. ohso, Icel. oxi, Sw. & Dan. oxe, Goth. aúhsa, Skr. ukshan ox, bull; cf. Skr. uksh to sprinkle. √214. Cf. Humid, Aurochs.] (Zoöl.) The male of bovine quadrupeds, especially the domestic animal when castrated and grown to its full size, or nearly so. The word is also applied, as a general name, to any species of bovine animals, male and female.

All sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field.

Ps. viii. 7.

&fist; The castrated male is called a steer until it attains its full growth, and then, an ox; but if castrated somewhat late in life, it is called a stag. The male, not castrated, is called a bull. These distinctions are well established in regard to domestic animals of this genus. When wild animals of this kind are spoken of, ox is often applied both to the male and the female. The name ox is never applied to the individual cow, or female, of the domestic kind. Oxen may comprehend both the male and the female.

Grunting ox (Zoöl.), the yak. — Indian ox (Zoöl.), the zebu. — Javan ox (Zoöl.), the banteng. — Musk ox. (Zoöl.) See under Musk. — Ox bile. See Ox gall, below. — Ox gall, the fresh gall of the domestic ox; — used in the arts and in medicine. — Ox pith, ox marrow. [Obs.] Marston. — Ox ray (Zoöl.), a very large ray (Dicerobatis Giornæ) of Southern Europe. It has a hornlike organ projecting forward from each pectoral fin. It sometimes becomes twenty feet long and twenty-eight feet broad, and weighs over a ton. Called also sea devil. — To have the black ox tread on one’s foot, to be unfortunate; to know what sorrow is (because black oxen were sacrificed to Pluto). Leigh Hunt.

Ox`ac”id (&obreve;ks`ăs”&ibreve;d), n. (Chem.) See Oxyacid.

Ox”a*lan (?), n. [From Alloxan, by transposition of letters.] (Chem.) A complex nitrogenous substance C_3N_3H_5O_3 obtained from alloxan (or when urea is fused with ethyl oxamate), as a stable white crystalline powder; — called also oxaluramide.

Ox`a*lan”tin (?), n. [From Alloxantin, by transposition of letters.] (Chem.) A white crystalline nitrogenous substance (C_6H_4N_4O_5) obtained by the reduction of parabanic acid; — called also leucoturic acid.

Ox”a*late (?), n. [Cf. F. oxalate. See Oxalic.] (Chem.) A salt of oxalic acid.

Ox*al”de*hyde (?), n. [Oxalic + aldehyde.] (Chem.) Same as Glyoxal.

Ox`al*eth”yl*ine (?), n. [Oxalic + ethyl + -ine.] A poisonous nitrogenous base (C_6H_10N_2) obtained indirectly from oxamide as a thick transparent oil which has a strong narcotic odor, and a physiological action resembling that of atropine. It is probably related to pyridine.

Ox*al”ic (?), a. [From Oxalis: cf. F. oxalique.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, derived from, or contained in, sorrel, or oxalis; specifically, designating an acid found in, and characteristic of, oxalis, and also certain plant of the Buckwheat family.

Oxalic acid (Chem.), a dibasic acid, existing combined in oxalis as an acid potassium oxalate, and in many plant tissues as the calcium oxalate. It is prepared on a large scale, by the action of fused caustic soda or potash on sawdust, as a white crystalline substance, which has a strong acid taste, and is poisonous in large doses. It is used in dyeing, calico printing, bleaching flax and straw, the preparation of formic acid, and in salts of lemon for removing ink stains, mold, etc.

Ox”a*line (?), n. [Glyoxal + – ine.] (Chem.) See Glyoxaline.

Ox”a*lis (?), n. [L., a kind of sorrel, Gr. &?;&?;&?;, fr. &?;&?;&?;&?; sharp, pungent, acid.] (Bot.) A genus of plants, mostly herbs, with acid-tasting trifoliolate or multifoliolate leaves; — called also wood sorrel.

Ox”a*lite (?), n. (Min.) A yellow mineral consisting of oxalate of iron.

Ox`a*lur*am”ide (?), n. [Oxaluric + amide.] (Chem.) Same as Oxalan.

Ox`a*lur”ate (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of oxaluric acid.

Ox`a*lur”ic (?), a. [Oxalyl + urea.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, a complex nitrogenous acid related to the ureids, and obtained from parabanic acid as a white silky crystalline substance.

Ox”a*lyl (?), n. [Oxalic + - yl.] (Chem.) (a) A hydrocarbon radical (C_2O_2) regarded as a residue of oxalic acid and occurring in derivatives of it. (b) An old name for carbonyl. (c) An old name for carboxyl.

Ox*am”ate (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of oxamic acid.

Ox`a*meth”ane (?), n. [Oxamic + ethyl.] (Chem.) Ethyl oxamate, obtained as a white scaly crystalline powder.

Ox`a*meth”yl*ane (?), n. [Oxamic + methyl.] (Chem.) Methyl oxamate, obtained as a pearly white crystalline substance.

Ox*am”ic (?), a. [Oxalic + amido] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, an acid NH_2.C_2O_2.HO obtained as a fine crystalline powder, intermediate between oxalic acid and oxamide. Its ammonium salt is obtained by boiling oxamide with ammonia.

Ox*am”ide (?), n, [Oxalic + amide.] (Chem.) A white crystalline neutral substance (C_2O_2(NH_2)2) obtained by treating ethyl oxalate with ammonia. It is the acid amide of oxalic acid. Formerly called also oxalamide.

Ox*am”i*dine (?), n. [Oxygen + amido + -ine.] (Chem.) One of a series of bases containing the amido and the isonitroso groups united to the same carbon atom.

Ox`a*nil*am”ide (?), n. [Oxanilic + amide.] (Chem.) A white crystalline nitrogenous substance, obtained indirectly by the action of cyanogen on aniline, and regarded as an anilide of oxamic acid; — called also phenyl oxamide.

Ox*an”i*late (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of oxanilic acid.

Ox`an*il”ic (?), a. [Oxalic + aniline.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or derived from, oxalic acid and aniline; — used to designate an acid obtained in white crystalline scales by heating these substances together.

Ox*an”i*lide (?), n. [Oxalic + aniline + amide.] (Chem.) A white crystalline substance, resembling oxanilamide, obtained by heating aniline oxalate, and regarded as a double anilide of oxalic acid; — called also diphenyl oxamide.

Ox”bane` (?), n. (Bot.) A poisonous bulbous plant (Buphane toxicaria) of the Cape of Good Hope.

Ox”bird` (?), n. (Zoöl.) (a) The dunlin. (b) The sanderling. (c) An African weaver bird (Textor alector).

Ox”bit`er (?), n. (Zoöl.) The cow blackbird. [Local, U. S.]

Ox”bow` (?), n. A frame of wood, bent into the shape of the letter U, and embracing an ox’s neck as a kind of collar, the upper ends passing through the bar of the yoke; also, anything so shaped, as a bend in a river.

Ox”eye` (?), n. [Ox + eye.] 1. (Bot.) (a) The oxeye daisy. See under Daisy. (b) The corn camomile (Anthemis arvensis). (c) A genus of composite plants (Buphthalmum) with large yellow flowers.

2. (Zoöl.) (a) A titmouse, especially the great titmouse (Parus major) and the blue titmouse (P. cœruleus). [Prov. Eng.] (b) The dunlin. (c) A fish; the bogue, or box.

Creeping oxeye (Bot.) a West Indian composite plant (Wedelia carnosa). — Seaside oxeye (Bot.), a West Indian composite shrub (Borrichia arborescens).

Ox”*eyed` (?), a. Having large, full eyes, like those of an ox. Burton.

Ox”fly` (?), n. (Zoöl.) The gadfly of cattle.

Ox”ford (?), a. Of or pertaining to the city or university of Oxford, England.

Oxford movement. See Tractarianism. — Oxford School, a name given to those members of the Church of England who adopted the theology of the so-called Oxford “Tracts for the Times,” issued the period 1833 — 1841. Shipley. — Oxford tie, a kind of shoe, laced on the instep, and usually covering the foot nearly to the ankle.

Ox”gang` (?), n. [Ox + gang, n., 1.] (O. Eng. Law) See Bovate.

Ox”goad` (?), n. A goad for driving oxen.

Ox”head` (?), n. [Cf. Hogshead.] Literally, the head of an ox (emblem of cuckoldom); hence, a dolt; a blockhead.

Dost make a mummer of me, oxhead?

Marston.

Ox”heal` (?), n. (Bot.) Same as Bear’s-foot.

Ox”heart` (?), n. A large heart- shaped cherry, either black, red, or white.

Ox”hide` (?), n. 1. The skin of an ox, or leather made from it.

2. (O. Eng. Law) A measure of land. See 3d Hide.

Ox”id (?), n. (Chem.) See Oxide.

Ox`i*da*bil”i*ty (?), n. [Cf. F. oxydabilité.] Capability of being converted into an oxide.

Ox”i*da*ble (?), a. [Cf. F. oxydable.] Capable of being converted into an oxide.

Ox”i*date (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Oxidated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Oxidating.] [Cf. f. oxyder. See Oxide.] (Chem.) To oxidize. [Obs.]

Ox`i*da”tion (?), n. [Cf. F. oxidation.] (Chem.) The act or process of oxidizing, or the state or result of being oxidized.

Ox”i*da`tor (?), n. 1. An oxidizer. [Obs.]

2. A contrivance for causing a current of air to impinge on the flame of the Argand lamp; — called also oxygenator.

Ox”ide (?), n. [F. oxygène oxygen + acide acid: cf. F. oxyde. The French word was correctly spelt oxide, till about the year 1840, when, in ignorance or forgetfulness of the true history and composition of the word, the orthography was change to make it represent the υ of Gr. ‘oxy`s, from which it was supposed to be directly derived.] (Chem.) A binary compound of oxygen with an atom or radical, or a compound which is regarded as binary; as, iron oxide, ethyl oxide, nitrogen oxide, etc.

&fist; In the chemical nomenclature adopted by Guyton de Morveau, Lavoisier,and their associates, the term oxides was made to include all compounds of oxygen which had no acid (F. acide) properties, as contrasted with the acids, all of which were at that time supposed to contain oxygen. The orthography oxyde, oxyd, etc., was afterwards introduced in ignorance or disregard of the true etymology, but these forms are now obsolete in English. The spelling oxid is not common.

Ox”i*di`za*ble (?), a. Capable of being oxidized.

Ox”i*dize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Oxidized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Oxidizing.] (Chem.) To combine with oxygen, or subject to the action of oxygen, or of an oxidizing agent. Specifically: (a) To combine with oxygen or with more oxygen; to add oxygen to; as, to oxidize nitrous acid so as to form nitric acid. (b) To remove hydrogen from (anything), as by the action of oxygen; as, to oxidize alcohol so as to form aldehyde. (c) To subject to the action of oxygen or of an oxidizing agent, so as to bring to a higher grade, as an -ous compound to an -ic compound; as, to oxidize mercurous chloride to mercuric chloride.

&fist; In certain cases to oxidize is identical with to acidify; for, in nearly all cases, the more oxygen a substance contains the more nearly does it approximate to acid qualities; thus, by oxidation many elements, as sulphur, nitrogen, carbon, chromium, manganese, etc., pass into compounds which are acid anhydrides, and thus practically in the acid state.

Ox”i*dize`ment (?), n. Oxidation. [R.]

Ox”i*di`zer (?), n. (Chem.) An agent employed in oxidation, or which facilitates or brings about combination with oxygen; as, nitric acid, chlorine, bromine, etc., are strong oxidizers.

Ox*id”u*la`ted (?), a. (Chem.) Existing in the state of a protoxide; — said of an oxide. [R.]

Ox”ime (?), n. (Chem.) One of a series of isonitroso derivatives obtained by the action of hydroxylamine on aldehydes or ketones.

Ox*in”dol (?), n. [Oxygen + indol.] (Chem.) A white crystalline nitrogenous substance (C_8H_7NO) of the indol group, obtained by the reduction of dioxindol. It is a so-called lactam compound.

Ox`i*od”ic (?), a. [Oxy- (a) + iodic.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, certain compounds of iodine and oxygen.

Ox”like (?), a. Characteristic of, or like, an ox.

Ox”lip` (?), n. [AS. oxanslyppe. See Ox, and Cowslip.] (Bot.) The great cowslip (Primula veris, var. elatior).

Ox”o*nate (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of oxonic acid.

Ox*o”ni*an (?), a. Of or relating to the city or the university of Oxford, England. Macaulay.

Ox*o”ni*an, n. A student or graduate of Oxford University, in England.

Ox*on”ic (?), a. [Prob. glyoxalic + carbonic.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, a complex nitrogenous acid (C_4H_5N_3O_4) not known in the free state, but obtained, in combination with its salts, by a slow oxidation of uric acid, to which it is related.

Ox”peck`er (?), n. (Zoöl.) An African bird of the genus Buphaga; the beefeater.

Ox”shoe` (?), n. A shoe for oxen, consisting of a flat piece of iron nailed to the hoof.

Ox”ter (?), n. [AS. ōhsta.] The armpit; also, the arm. [Prov. Eng. & Scot.]

Ox”tongue` (?), n. (Bot.) A name given to several plants, from the shape and roughness of their leaves; as, Anchusa officinalis, a kind of bugloss, and Helminthia echioides, both European herbs.

Ox”y- (?). (Chem.) A prefix, also used adjectively, designating: (a) A compound containing oxygen. (b) A compound containing the hydroxyl group, more properly designated by hydroxy-. See Hydroxy-.

Oxy acid. See Oxyacid (below).

Ox`y*a*ce”tic (?), a. [Oxy- (b) + acetic.] Hydroxyacetic; designating an acid called also glycolic acid.

Ox`y*ac”id (?), n. [Oxy- (a) + acid.] (Chem.) An acid containing oxygen, as chloric acid or sulphuric acid; — contrasted with the hydracids, which contain no oxygen, as hydrochloric acid. See Acid, and Hydroxy-.

Ox`y*am*mo”ni*a (?), n. [Oxy- (b) + ammonia.] (Chem.) Same as Hydroxylamine.

Ox`y*ben”zene (?), n. [Oxy- (b) + benzene.] (Chem.) Hydroxy benzene. Same as Phenol.

Ox`y*ben*zo”ic (?), a. [Oxy- (b) + benzoic.] (Chem.) Hydroxybenzoic; pertaining to, or designating, any one of several hydroxyl derivatives of benzonic acid, of which the commonest is salicylic acid.

Ox`y*bro”mic (?), a. [Oxy- (a) + bromic.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, certain compounds of oxygen and bromine.

Ox`y*bu*tyr”ic (?), a. [Oxy- (b) + butyric.] (Chem.) Hydroxybutyric; designating any one of a group of metameric acids (C_3H_6.OH.CO_2H).

Ox`y*cal”ci*um (?), a. [Oxy- (a) + calcium.] Of or pertaining to oxygen and calcium; as, the oxycalcium light. See Drummond light.

Ox`y*ca*pro”ic (?), a. (Chem.) See Leucic.

Ox`y*chlo”ric (?), a. [Oxy- (a) + chloric.] (Chem.) (a) Of, pertaining to, or designating in general, certain compounds containing oxygen and chlorine. (b) Formerly designating an acid now called perchloric acid. See Perchloric.

Ox`y*chlo”ride (?), n. [Oxy- (a) + chloride.] (Chem.) A ternary compound of oxygen and chlorine; as, plumbic oxychloride.

Ox”y*crate (?), n. [Gr. &?;&?;&?;&?;&?;;&?;&?;&?;&?; acid + &?;&?;&?;&?; to mix: cf. F. oxycrat.] (med.) A Mixture of water and vinegar. Wiseman.

Ox`y*cy”mene (?), n. [Oxy- (b) + cymene.] (Chem.) Hydroxy cymene. Same as Carvacrol.

Ox”y*gen (?), n. [F. oxygène, from Gr. &?;&?;&?;&?; sharp, acid + root of &?;&?;&?;&?; to be born. So called because originally supposed to be an essential part of every acid.]

1. (Chem.) A colorless, tasteless, odorless, gaseous element occurring in the free state in the atmosphere, of which it forms about 23 per cent by weight and about 21 per cent by volume, being slightly heavier than nitrogen. Symbol O. Atomic weight 15.96.

&fist; It occurs combined in immense quantities, forming eight ninths by weight of water, and probably one half by weight of the entire solid crust of the globe, being an ingredient of silica, the silicates, sulphates, carbonates, nitrates, etc. Oxygen combines with all elements (except fluorine), forming oxides, bases, oxyacid anhydrides, etc., the process in general being called oxidation, of which combustion is only an intense modification. At ordinary temperatures with most substances it is moderately active, but at higher temperatures it is one of the most violent and powerful chemical agents known. It is indispensable in respiration, and in general is the most universally active and efficient element. It may be prepared in the pure state by heating potassium chlorate.

This element (called dephlogisticated air by Priestley) was named oxygen by Lavoisier because he supposed it to be a constituent of all acids. This is not so in the case of a very few acids (as hydrochloric, hydrobromic, hydric sulphide, etc.), but these do contain elements analogous to oxygen in property and action. Moreover, the fact that most elements approach the nearer to acid qualities in proportion as they are combined with more oxygen, shows the great accuracy and breadth of Lavoisier’s conception of its nature.

2. Chlorine used in bleaching. [Manufacturing name]

Ox”y*gen*ate (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Oxygenated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Oxygenating (?).] [Cf. F. oxygéner.] (Chem.) To unite, or cause to combine, with oxygen; to treat with oxygen; to oxidize; as, oxygenated water (hydrogen dioxide).

Ox`y*gen*a”tion (?), n. [Cf. F. oxygénation.] (Chem.) The act or process of combining or of treating with oxygen; oxidation.

Ox”y*gen*a`tor (?), n. An oxidizer.

Ox`y*gen”ic (?), a. (Chem.) Pertaining to, containing, or resembling, oxygen; producing oxygen.

||Ox`y*ge”ni*um (?), n. [NL.] (Chem.) The technical name of oxygen. [R.]

Ox”y*gen*i”za*ble (?), a. (Chem.) Oxidizable.

Ox”y*gen*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Oxygenized (?); p pr. & vb. n. Oxygenizing (?).] (Chem.) To oxidize.

Ox”y*gen*ize`ment (?), n. Oxidation.

Ox*yg”e*nous (?), a. Oxygenic.

Ox”y*gon (?), n. [Gr. &?;&?;&?;&?; sharp + &?;&?;&?; an angle: cf.F. oxygone.] (Geom.) A triangle having three acute angles.

{ Ox*yg”o*nal (?), Ox`y*go”ni*al (?), } a. Having acute angles. Barlow.

{ Ox`Y*hæm`a*cy”a*nin (?), Ox`y*hæm`o*cy”a*nin (?), } n. [Oxy- (a) + hæmacyanin, hæmocyanin.] (Physiol. Chem.) See Hæmacyanin.

{ Ox`y*hæm`o*glo”bin, Ox`y*hem`o*glo”bin } (?), n. [Oxy- (a) + hæmoglobin, hemoglobin.] (Physiol. Chem.) See Hemoglobin.

Ox`y*hy”dro*gen (?), a. [Oxy- (a) + hydrogen.] (Chem.) Of or pertaining to a mixture of oxygen and hydrogen; as, oxyhydrogen gas.

Oxyhydrogen blowpipe. (Chem.) See Blowpipe. — Oxyhydrogen microscope, a form of microscope arranged so as to use the light produced by burning lime or limestone under a current of oxyhydrogen gas.

Ox”y*mel (?), n. [L. oxymeli, Gr. &?;&?;&?;; &?;&?;&?;&?; acid + &?;&?;&?; honey.] (Med.) A mixture of honey, water, vinegar, and spice, boiled to a sirup. Sir T. Elyot.

Ox`y*meth”yl*ene, n. [Oxy- (a) + methylene.] (Chem.) Formic aldehyde, regarded as a methylene derivative.

||Ox`y*mo”ron (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;&?;&?;, fr. &?;&?;&?; pointedly foolish; &?;&?;&?; sharp + &?;&?;&?; foolish.] (Rhet.) A figure in which an epithet of a contrary signification is added to a word; e. g., cruel kindness; laborious idleness.

Ox`y*mu”ri*ate (?), n. (Old Chem.) A salt of the supposed oxymuriatic acid; a chloride.

Oxymuriate of lime, chloride of lime.

Ox`y*mu`ri*at”ic (?), a. [Oxy- (a) + muriatic: cf. F. oxymuriatique.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or consisting of, oxygen and muriatic acid, that is, hydrochloric acid. [Archaic.]

Oxymuriatic acid, chlorine, formerly so called on the supposition that it was a compound of oxygen and muriatic acid. [Obs.]

Ox`y*neu”rine (?), n. (Chem.) See Betaine.

Ox*yn”tic (?), a. [Gr. &?;&?;&?;&?; to make acid.] (Physiol.) Acid; producing acid; -applied especially to certain glands and cells in the stomach.

{ ||Ox`y*o”pi*a (?), Ox”y*o`py (?), } n. [NL. oxyopia, from Gr. &?;&?;&?; sharp + &?;&?;&?; sight.] (Med.) Excessive acuteness of sight.

Ox`y*phe”nic (?), a. [Oxy- (b) + phenol.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, the phenol formerly called oxyphenic acid, and now oxyphenol and pyrocatechin. See Pyrocatechin.

Ox`y*phe”nol (?), n. (Chem.) A phenol, &?;&?;&?;&?;&?;, produced by the distillation of catechin; called also oxyphenic acid, and now pyrocatechin.

Ox*yph”o*ny (?), n. [Gr. &?;&?;&?; sharp + &?;&?;&?;&?; voice.] Acuteness or shrillness of voice.

Ox`y*quin”o*line (?), n. [Oxy- (b) + quinoline.] (Chem.) Hydroxy quinoline; a phenol derivative of quinoline, — called also carbostyril.

||Ox`y*rhyn”cha (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr.&?;&?;&?;&?; sharp + &?;&?;&?;&?;&?;&?; snout.] (Zoöl.) The maioid crabs.

Ox*yr”rho*dine (?), n. [Gr. &?;&?;&?; (sc. &?;&?;&?;); ‘oxy`s acid + &?;&?;&?;&?; made of roses, &?;&?;&?;&?; rose.] (Med.) A mixture of two parts of the oil of roses with one of the vinegar of roses. Floyer.

Ox”y*salt (?), n. [Oxy- (a) + salt.] (Chem.) A salt of an oxyacid, as a sulphate.

Ox`y*sul”phide (?), n. (Chem.) A ternary compound of oxygen and sulphur.

Ox`y*sul”phu*ret (?), n. (Chem.) An oxysulphide. [Obsolescent]

Ox`y*toc”ic (?), a. [Gr. &?;&?;&?;&?; sharp, quick + &?;&?;&?;&?; birth.] (Med.) Promoting uterine contractions, or parturition. — n. An oxytocic medicine or agent.

Ox`y*tol”u*ene (?), n. [Oxy- (a) + toluene.] One of three hydroxy derivatives of toluene, called the cresols. See Cresol.

Ox”y*tone (?), a. [Gr. &?;&?;&?;; &?;&?;&?; sharp + &?;&?;&?; tone.] Having an acute sound; (Gr. Gram.), having an acute accent on the last syllable.

Ox”y*tone, n. 1. An acute sound.

2. (Gr. Gram.) A word having the acute accent on the last syllable.

Ox`y*ton”ic*al (?), a. (Gr. Gram.) Oxytone.

O”yer (?), n. [Anglo F., a hearing, from OF. oïr, F. ouïr, to hear, L. audire. See Audible.] (Law) A hearing or an inspection, as of a deed, bond, etc., as when a defendant in court prays oyer of a writing. Blackstone.

Oyer and terminer (Law), a term used in England in commissions directed to judges of assize about to hold court, directing them to hear and determine cases brought before them. In the U.S. the phrase is used to designate certain criminal courts.

O”yez` (ōy&ebreve;s; 277), interj. [Anglo-F. oyez hear ye. See Oyer.] Hear; attend; — a term used by criers of courts to secure silence before making a proclamation. It is repeated three times. [Written also oyes.]

Oy”let (?), n. [See Eyelet.] 1. See Eyelet.

2. (Arch.) Same as Oillet.

Oy”noun (?), n. Onion. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Oys”ter (?), n. [OF. oistre, F. huître, L. ostrea, ostreum, Gr. ‘o`streon; prob. akin to ‘ostre`on bone, the oyster being so named from its shell. Cf. Osseous, Ostracize.] 1. (Zoöl.) Any marine bivalve mollusk of the genus Ostrea. They are usually found adhering to rocks or other fixed objects in shallow water along the seacoasts, or in brackish water in the mouth of rivers. The common European oyster (Ostrea edulis), and the American oyster (Ostrea Virginiana), are the most important species.

2. A name popularly given to the delicate morsel contained in a small cavity of the bone on each side of the lower part of the back of a fowl.

Fresh-water oyster (Zoöl.), any species of the genus Etheria, and allied genera, found in rivers of Africa and South America. They are irregular in form, and attach themselves to rocks like oysters, but they have a pearly interior, and are allied to the fresh-water mussels. — Oyster bed, a breeding place for oysters; a place in a tidal river or other water on or near the seashore, where oysters are deposited to grow and fatten for market. See 1st Scalp, n. — Oyster catcher (Zoöl.), any one of several species of wading birds of the genus Hæmatopus, which frequent seashores and feed upon shellfish. The European species (H. ostralegus), the common American species (H. palliatus), and the California, or black, oyster catcher (H. Bachmani) are the best known. — Oyster crab (Zoöl.) a small crab (Pinnotheres ostreum) which lives as a commensal in the gill cavity of the oyster. — Oyster dredge, a rake or small dragnet of bringing up oyster from the bottom of the sea. — Oyster fish. (Zoöl.) (a) The tautog. (b) The toadfish. — Oyster plant. (Bot.) (a) A plant of the genus Tragopogon (T. porrifolius), the root of which, when cooked, somewhat resembles the oyster in taste; salsify; — called also vegetable oyster. (b) A plant found on the seacoast of Northern Europe, America and Asia (Mertensia maritima), the fresh leaves of which have a strong flavor of oysters. — Oyster plover. (Zoöl.) Same as Oyster catcher, above. — Oyster shell (Zoöl.), the shell of an oyster. — Oyster wench, Oyster wife, Oyster women, a women who deals in oysters. — Pearl oyster. (Zoöl.) See under Pearl. — Thorny oyster (Zoöl.), any spiny marine shell of the genus Spondylus.

Oys”ter-green` (?), n. (Bot.) A green membranous seaweed (Ulva) often found growing on oysters but common on stones, piles, etc.

Oys”ter*ing, n. Gathering, or dredging for, oysters.

Oys”ter*ling (?), n. (Zoöl.) A young oyster.

O*ze”na (?), n. [NL., fr. L. ozaena, Gr. ‘o`zaina, fr. ‘o`zein to smell.] (Med.) A discharge of fetid matter from the nostril, particularly if associated with ulceration of the soft parts and disease of the bones of the nose.

O`zo*ce”rite (?), n. [Gr. ‘o`zein to smell + &?; wax.] (Min.) A waxlike mineral resin; — sometimes called native paraffin, and mineral wax.

O`zo*na”tion (?), n. (Chem.) The act of treating with ozone; also, the act of converting into, or producing, ozone; ozonization.

O”zone (?), n. [Gr. ‘o`zwn smelling, p. pr. of ‘o`zein to smell. See Odor.] (Chem.) A colorless gaseous substance (O&?;) obtained (as by the silent discharge of electricity in oxygen) as an allotropic form of oxygen, containing three atoms in the molecule. It is a streng oxidizer, and probably exists in the air, though by he ordinary tests it is liable to be confused with certain other substances, as hydrogen dioxide, or certain oxides of nitrogen. It derives its name from its peculiar odor, which resembles that of weak chlorine.

O*zon”ic (?), a. (Chem.) Pertaining to, resembling, or containing, ozone.

O*zo`ni*fi*ca”tion (?), n. [Ozone + L. -ficare to make. See fy. ] (Chem.) The act or process of producing, or of subjecting to the action of, ozone.

O`zo*ni*za”tion (?), n. (Chem.) Ozonation.

O”zo*nize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Ozonized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Ozonizing.] (Chem.) (a) To convert into ozone, as oxygen. (b) To treat with ozone.

O”zo*ni`zer (?), n. (Chem.) An apparatus or agent for the production or application of ozone.

O`zo*nom”e*ter (?), n. [Ozone + -meter.] An instrument for ascertaining the amount of ozone in the atmosphere, or in any gaseous mixture. Faraday.

O`zo*no*met”ric (?), a. (Chem.) Pertaining to, or used for, the determination of the amount of ozone; of or relating to ozonometry.

O`zo*nom”e*try (?), n. (Chem.) The measurement or determination of the quantity of ozone.

O*zo”no*scope (?), n. [Ozone + -scope.] (Chem.) An apparatus employed to indicate the presence, or the amount, of ozone.

O*zo`no*scop”ic (?), a. [Ozone + Gr. &?; to view.] (Chem.) Serving to indicate the presence or the amount of ozone.

O”zo*nous (?), a. Pertaining to or containing, ozone.