D

D (dē) 1. The fourth letter of the English alphabet, and a vocal consonant. The English letter is from Latin, which is from Greek, which took it from Phœnician, the probable ultimate origin being Egyptian. It is related most nearly to t and th; as, Eng. deep, G. tief; Eng. daughter, G. tochter, Gr. qygathr, Skr. duhitr. See Guide to Pronunciation, √178, 179, 229.

2. (Mus.) The nominal of the second tone in the model major scale (that in C), or of the fourth tone in the relative minor scale of C (that in A minor), or of the key tone in the relative minor of F.

3. As a numeral D stands for 500. in this use it is not the initial of any word, or even strictly a letter, but one half of the sign &?; (or &?; ) the original Tuscan numeral for 1000.

Dab (dăb), n. [Perh. corrupted fr. adept.] A skillful hand; a dabster; an expert. [Colloq.]

One excels at a plan or the titlepage, another works away at the body of the book, and the third is a dab at an index.

Dab, n. [Perh. so named from its quickness in diving beneath the sand. Cf. Dabchick.] (Zoöl.) A name given to several species of flounders, esp. to the European species, Pleuronectes limanda. The American rough dab is Hippoglossoides platessoides.

Dab (dăb), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Dabbed (dăbd); p. pr. & vb. n. Dabbing.] [OE. dabben to strice; akin to OD. dabben to pinch, knead, fumble, dabble, and perh. to G. tappen to grope.] 1. To strike or touch gently, as with a soft or moist substance; to tap; hence, to besmear with a dabber.

A sore should . . . be wiped . . . only by dabbing it over with fine lint.

2. To strike by a thrust; to hit with a sudden blow or thrust. To dab him in the neck. Sir T. More.

Dab , n. 1. A gentle blow with the hand or some soft substance; a sudden blow or hit; a peck.

A scratch of her claw, a dab of her beak.

2. A small mass of anything soft or moist.

Dabb (d&adot;b), n. (Zoöl.) A large, spine-tailed lizard (Uromastix spinipes), found in Egypt, Arabia, and Palestine; -- called also dhobb, and dhubb.

Dabber (dăbb&etilde;r), n. That with which one dabs; hence, a pad or other device used by printers, engravers, etc., as for dabbing type or engraved plates with ink.

Dabble (dăbb'l), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dabbled (-b'ld); p. pr. & vb. n. Dabbling (-b'l&ibreve;ng).] [Freq. of dab: cf. OD. dabbelen.] To wet by little dips or strokes; to spatter; to sprinkle; to moisten; to wet. Bright hair dabbled in blood. Shak.

Dabble, v. i. 1. To play in water, as with the hands; to paddle or splash in mud or water.

Where the duck dabbles 'mid the rustling sedge.

2. To work in slight or superficial manner; to do in a small way; to tamper; to meddle. Dabbling here and there with the text. Atterbury.

During the first year at Dumfries, Burns for the first time began to dabble in politics.

Dabbler (dăbbl&etilde;r), n. 1. One who dabbles.

2. One who dips slightly into anything; a superficial meddler. our dabblers in politics. Swift.

Dabblingly , adv. In a dabbling manner.

Dabchick (dăbch&ibreve;k), n. [For dabchick. See Dap, Dip, cf. Dipchick.] (Zoöl.) A small water bird (Podilymbus podiceps), allied to the grebes, remarkable for its quickness in diving; -- called also dapchick, dobchick, dipchick, didapper, dobber, devil-diver, hell-diver, and pied- billed grebe.

Daboia , n. (Zoöl.) A large and highly venomous Asiatic viper (Daboia xanthica).

Dabster, n. [Cf. Dab an expert.] One who is skilled; a master of his business; a proficient; an adept. [Colloq.]

&fist; Sometimes improperly used for dabbler; as, I am but a dabster with gentle art.

Dacapo . [It., from [the] head or beginning.] (Mus.) From the beginning; a direction to return to, and end with, the first strain; -- indicated by the letters D. C. Also, the strain so repeated.

Dace , n. [Written also dare, dart, fr. F. dard dase, dart, of German origin. Dace is for an older darce, fr. an OF. nom. darz. See Dart a javelin.] (Zoöl.) A small European cyprinoid fish (Squalius leuciscus or Leuciscus vulgaris); -- called also dare.

&fist; In America the name is given to several related fishes of the genera Squalius, Minnilus, etc. The black-nosed dace is Rhinichthys atronasus the horned dace is Semotilus corporalis. For red dace, see Redfin.

Dachshund , n. [G., from dachs badger + hund dog.] (Zoöl.) One of a breed of small dogs with short crooked legs, and long body; -- called also badger dog. There are two kinds, the rough-haired and the smooth-haired.

Dacian , a. Of or pertaining to Dacia or the Dacians. -- n. A native of ancient Dacia.

Dacoit (d&adot;koit), n. [Hind. &dsdot;akait, &dsdot;ākāyat.] One of a class of robbers, in India, who act in gangs.

Dacoity , n. The practice of gang robbery in India; robbery committed by dacoits.

Dacotahs , n. pl.; sing. Dacotan (&?;). (Ethnol.) Same as Dacotas. Longfellow.

Dactyl , n. [L. dactylus, Gr. daktylos a finger, a dactyl. Cf. Digit.] 1. (Pros.) A poetical foot of three sylables (— ⌣ ⌣), one long followed by two short, or one accented followed by two unaccented; as, L. tëgm&ibreve;n&ebreve;, E. mer\b6ciful; -- so called from the similarity of its arrangement to that of the joints of a finger. [Written also dactyle.]

2. (Zoöl.) (a) A finger or toe; a digit. (b) The claw or terminal joint of a leg of an insect or crustacean.

Dactylar , a. 1. Pertaining to dactyl; dactylic.

2. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to a finger or toe, or to the claw of an insect crustacean.

Dactylet , n. [Dactyl + &?;et.] A dactyl. [Obs.]

Dactylic , a. [L. dactylicus, Gr. &?;, fr. &?;.] Pertaining to, consisting chiefly or wholly of, dactyls; as, dactylic verses.

Dactylic, n. 1. A line consisting chiefly or wholly of dactyls; as, these lines are dactylics.

2. pl. Dactylic meters.

Dactylioglyph (dăkt&ibreve;l&ibreve;&osl;gl&ibreve;f), n. [Gr. daktylioglyfos an engraver of gems; daktylios finger ring (fr. daktylos finger) + glyfein to engrave.] (Fine Arts) (a) An engraver of gems for rings and other ornaments. (b) The inscription of the engraver's name on a finger ring or gem.

Dactylioglyphy , n. The art or process of gem engraving.

Dactyliography , n. [Gr. daktylios finger ring + -graphy.] (Fine Arts) (a) The art of writing or engraving upon gems. (b) In general, the literature or history of the art.

Dactyliology , n. [Gr. daktylios finger ring + -logy.] (Fine Arts) (a) That branch of archæology which has to do with gem engraving. (b) That branch of archæology which has to do with finger rings.

Dactyliomancy , n. [Gr. daktylios + -mancy.] Divination by means of finger rings.

Dactylist , n. A writer of dactylic verse.

Dactylitis , n. [NL., fr. Gr. daktylos finger + -itis.] (Med.) An inflammatory affection of the fingers. Gross.

Dactylology , n. [Gr. daktylos finger + -logy.] The art of communicating ideas by certain movements and positions of the fingers; -- a method of conversing practiced by the deaf and dumb.

&fist; There are two different manual alphabets, the one- hand alphabet (which was perfected by Abbé de l'Epée, who died in 1789), and the two-hand alphabet. The latter was probably based on the manual alphabet published by George Dalgarus of Aberdeen, in 1680. See Illustration in Appendix.

Dactylomancy , n. Dactyliomancy. [R.] Am. Cyc.

Dactylonomy , n. [Gr. daktylos finger + nomos law, distribution.] The art of numbering or counting by the fingers.

Dactylopterous , a. [Gr. daktylos finger + &?; wing, fin.] (Zoöl.) Having the inferior rays of the pectoral fins partially or entirely free, as in the gurnards.

Dactylotheca (dăkt&ibreve;l&osl;thēk&adot;), n. [NL., fr. Gr. daktylos finger, toe + qhkh case, box.] (Zoöl.) The scaly covering of the toes, as in birds.

Dactylozooid (dăkt&ibreve;l&osl;zōoid), n. [Gr. daktylos finger + E. zooid.] (Zoöl.) A kind of zooid of Siphonophora which has an elongated or even vermiform body, with one tentacle, but no mouth. See Siphonophora.

Dad (dăd), n. [Prob. of Celtic origin; cf. Ir. daid, Gael. daidein, W. tad, OL. tata, Gr. tata, tetta, Skr. tāta.] Father; -- a word sometimes used by children.

I was never so bethumped with words,
Since I first called my brother's father dad.

Daddle (dădd'l), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Daddled , p. pr. & vb. n. Daddling.] [Prob. freq. of dade.] To toddle; to walk unsteadily, like a child or an old man; hence, to do anything slowly or feebly.

Daddock , n. [Cf. Prov. E. dad a large piece.] The rotten body of a tree. [Prov. Eng.] Wright.

Daddy , n. Diminutive of Dad. Dryden.

Daddy longlegs . 1. (Zoöl.) An arachnidan of the genus Phalangium, and allied genera, having a small body and four pairs of long legs; -- called also harvestman, carter, and grandfather longlegs.

2. (Zoöl.) A name applied to many species of dipterous insects of the genus Tipula, and allied genera, with slender bodies, and very long, slender legs; the crane fly; -- called also father longlegs.

Dade , v. t. [Of. uncertain origin. Cf. Dandle, Daddle.] To hold up by leading strings or by the hand, as a child while he toddles. [Obs.]

Little children when they learn to go
By painful mothers daded to and fro.

Dade, v. i. To walk unsteadily, as a child in leading strings, or just learning to walk; to move slowly. [Obs.]

No sooner taught to dade, but from their mother trip.

Dado , n.; pl. Dadoes (#). [It. dado die, cube, pedestal; of the same origin as E. die, n. See Die, n.] (Arch.) (a) That part of a pedestal included between the base and the cornice (or surbase); the die. See Illust. of Column. Hence: (b) In any wall, that part of the basement included between the base and the base course. See Base course, under Base. (c) In interior decoration, the lower part of the wall of an apartment when adorned with moldings, or otherwise specially decorated.

{ Dædal , Dædalian }, a. [L. daedalus cunningly wrought, fr. Gr. &?;; cf. &?; to work cunningly. The word also alludes to the mythical Dædalus (Gr. &?;, lit., the cunning worker).] 1. Cunningly or ingeniously formed or working; skillful; artistic; ingenious.

Our bodies decked in our dædalian arms.

The dædal hand of Nature.

The doth the dædal earth throw forth to thee,
Out of her fruitful, abundant flowers.

2. Crafty; deceitful. [R.] Keats.

Dædalous , a. (Bot.) Having a variously cut or incised margin; -- said of leaves.

Dæmon , n., Dæmonic (&?;), a. See Demon, Demonic.

Daff , v. t. [Cf. Doff.] To cast aside; to put off; to doff. [Obs.]

Canst thou so daff me? Thou hast killed my child.

Daff, n. [See Daft.] A stupid, blockish fellow; a numskull. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Daff (d&adot;f), v. i. To act foolishly; to be foolish or sportive; to toy. [Scot.] Jamieson.

Daff, v. t. To daunt. [Prov. Eng.] Grose.

Daffodil (dăff&osl;d&ibreve;l), n. [OE. affodylle, prop., the asphodel, fr. LL. affodillus (cf. D. affodille or OF. asphodile, aphodille, F. asphodèle), L. asphodelus, fr. Gr. 'asfodelos. The initial d in English is not satisfactorily explained. See Asphodel.] (Bot.) (a) A plant of the genus Asphodelus. (b) A plant of the genus Narcissus (N. Pseudo-narcissus). It has a bulbous root and beautiful flowers, usually of a yellow hue. Called also daffodilly, daffadilly, daffadowndilly, daffydowndilly, etc.

With damask roses and daffadillies set.

Strow me the ground with daffadowndillies,
And cowslips, and kingcups, and loved lilies.

A college gown
That clad her like an April daffodilly.

And chance-sown daffodil.

Daft (d&adot;ft), a. [OE. daft, deft, deft, stupid; prob. the same word as E. deft. See Deft.] 1. Stupid; foolish; idiotic; also, delirious; insane; as, he has gone daft.

Let us think no more of this daft business

2. Gay; playful; frolicsome. [Scot.] Jamieson.

Daftness, n. The quality of being daft.

Dag (dăg), n. [Cf. F. dague, LL. daga, D. dagge (fr. French); all prob. fr. Celtic; Cf. Gael. dag a pistol, Armor. dag dagger, W. dager, dagr, Ir. daigear. Cf. Dagger.] 1. A dagger; a poniard. [Obs.] Johnson.

2. A large pistol formerly used. [Obs.]

The Spaniards discharged their dags, and hurt some.

A sort of pistol, called dag, was used about the same time as hand guns and harquebuts.

3. (Zoöl.) The unbranched antler of a young deer.

Dag, n. [Of Scand. origin; cf. Sw. dagg, Icel. dögg. √71. See Dew.] A misty shower; dew. [Obs.]

Dag, n. [OE. dagge (cf. Dagger); or cf. AS. dāg what is dangling.] A loose end; a dangling shred.

Daglocks, clotted locks hanging in dags or jags at a sheep's tail.

Dag, v. t. [1, from Dag dew. 2, from Dag a loose end.] 1. To daggle or bemire. [Prov. Eng.] Johnson.

2. To cut into jags or points; to slash; as, to dag a garment. [Obs.] Wright.

Dag, v. i. To be misty; to drizzle. [Prov. Eng.]

Dagger (-g&etilde;r), n. [Cf. OE. daggen to pierce, F. daguer. See Dag a dagger.] 1. A short weapon used for stabbing. This is the general term: cf. Poniard, Stiletto, Bowie knife, Dirk, Misericorde, Anlace.

2. (Print.) A mark of reference in the form of a dagger [†]. It is the second in order when more than one reference occurs on a page; -- called also obelisk.

Dagger moth (Zoöl.), any moth of the genus Apatalea. The larvæ are often destructive to the foliage of fruit trees, etc. -- Dagger of lath, the wooden weapon given to the Vice in the old Moralities. Shak. -- Double dagger, a mark of reference [‡] which comes next in order after the dagger. -- To look, or speak, daggers, to look or speak fiercely or reproachfully.

Dagger, v. t. To pierce with a dagger; to stab. [Obs.]

Dagger, n. [Perh. from diagonal.] A timber placed diagonally in a ship's frame. Knight.

Dagges (dăgz), n. pl. [OE. See Dag a loose end.] An ornamental cutting of the edges of garments, introduced about a. d. 1346, according to the Chronicles of St Albans. [Obs.] Halliwell.

Daggle (dăgg'l), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Daggled (-g'ld); p. pr. & vb. n. Daggling (-gl&ibreve;ng).] [Freq. of dag, v. t., 1.] To trail, so as to wet or befoul; to make wet and limp; to moisten.

The warrior's very plume, I say,
Was daggled by the dashing spray.

Daggle, v. i. To run, go, or trail one's self through water, mud, or slush; to draggle.

Nor, like a puppy [have I] daggled through the town.

{ Daggle-tail (dăgg'l-tāl), Daggle- tailed (-tāld), } a. Having the lower ends of garments defiled by trailing in mire or filth; draggle- tailed.

Daggle-tail (-tāl), n. A slovenly woman; a slattern; a draggle-tail.

Daglock (-l&obreve;k), n. [Dag a loose end + lock.] A dirty or clotted lock of wool on a sheep; a taglock.

Dago (dāg&osl;), n.; pl. Dagos (-gōz). [Cf. Sp. Diego, E. James.] A nickname given to a person of Spanish (or, by extension, Portuguese or Italian) descent. [U. S.]

Dagoba (d&adot;gōb&adot;), n. [Singhalese dāgoba.] A dome- shaped structure built over relics of Buddha or some Buddhist saint. [East Indies]

Dagon (dāg&obreve;n), [Heb. Dāgon, fr. dag a fish: cf. Gr. Dagwn.] The national god of the Philistines, represented with the face and hands and upper part of a man, and the tail of a fish. W. Smith.

This day a solemn feast the people hold
To Dagon, their sea idol.

They brought it into the house of Dagon.

Dagon (dăg&obreve;n), n. [See Dag a loose end.] A slip or piece. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Dagswain , n. [From Dag a loose end?] A coarse woolen fabric made of daglocks, or the refuse of wool. Under coverlets made of dagswain. Holinshed.

Dag-tailed , a. [Dag a loose end + tail.] Daggle-tailed; having the tail clogged with daglocks. Dag-tailed sheep. Bp. Hall.

{ Daguerrean (d&adot;g&ebreve;r&ibreve;an), Daguerreian , } a. Pertaining to Daguerre, or to his invention of the daguerreotype.

Daguerreotype (d&adot;g&ebreve;r&osl;tīp), n. [From Daguerre the inventor + - type.] 1. An early variety of photograph, produced on a silver plate, or copper plate covered with silver, and rendered sensitive by the action of iodine, or iodine and bromine, on which, after exposure in the camera, the latent image is developed by the vapor of mercury.

2. The process of taking such pictures.

Daguerreotype (d&adot;g&ebreve;r&osl;tīp), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Daguerreotyped (-tīpt); p. pr. & vb. n. Daguerreotyping (-tīp&ibreve;ng).] 1. To produce or represent by the daguerreotype process, as a picture.

2. To impress with great distinctness; to imprint; to imitate exactly.

{ Daguerreotyper , Daguerreotypist , } n. One who takes daguerreotypes.

Daguerreotypy , n. The art or process of producing pictures by method of Daguerre.

Dahabeah (däh&adot;bē&adot;), n. [Ar.] A Nile boat constructed on the model of a floating house, having large lateen sails.

Dahlia (däly&adot; or dāly&adot;; 277, 106), n.; pl. Dahlias (#). [Named after Andrew Dahl a Swedish botanist.] (Bot.) A genus of plants native to Mexico and Central America, of the order Compositæ; also, any plant or flower of the genus. The numerous varieties of cultivated dahlias bear conspicuous flowers which differ in color.

Dahlin (däl&ibreve;n), n. [From Dahlia.] (Chem.) A variety of starch extracted from the dahlia; -- called also inulin. See Inulin.

Dailiness , n. Daily occurence. [R.]

Daily (dāl&ybreve;), a. [AS. dæglīc; dæg day + -līc like. See Day.] Happening, or belonging to, each successive day; diurnal; as, daily labor; a daily bulletin.

Give us this day our daily bread.

Bunyan has told us . . . that in New England his dream was the daily subject of the conversation of thousands.

Syn. -- Daily, Diurnal. Daily is Anglo-Saxon, and diurnal is Latin. The former is used in reference to the ordinary concerns of life; as, daily wants, daily cares, daily employments. The latter is appropriated chiefly by astronomers to what belongs to the astronomical day; as, the diurnal revolution of the earth.

Man hath his daily work of body or mind
Appointed, which declares his dignity,
And the regard of Heaven on all his ways.

Half yet remains unsung, but narrower bound
Within the visible diurnal sphere.

Daily, n.; pl. Dailies (&?;). A publication which appears regularly every day; as, the morning dailies.

Daily, adv. Every day; day by day; as, a thing happens daily.

Daimio , n.; pl. Daimios (#). [Jap., fr. Chin. tai ming great name.] The title of the feudal nobles of Japan.

The daimios, or territorial nobles, resided in Yedo and were divided into four classes.

Daint , n. [See Dainty, n.] Something of exquisite taste; a dainty. [Obs.] -- a. Dainty. [Obs.]

To cherish him with diets daint.

Daintify , v. t. [imp. & p. p. Daintified ; p. pr. & vb. n. Daintifying.] [Dainty + -fy.] To render dainty, delicate, or fastidious. Daintified emotion. Sat. rev.

Daintily, adv. In a dainty manner; nicely; scrupulously; fastidiously; deliciously; prettily.

Daintiness, n. The quality of being dainty; nicety; niceness; elegance; delicacy; deliciousness; fastidiousness; squeamishness.

The daintiness and niceness of our captains

More notorious for the daintiness of the provision . . . than for the massiveness of the dish.

The duke exeeded in the daintiness of his leg and foot, and the earl in the fine shape of his hands,

Daintrel , n. [From daint or dainty; cf. OF. daintier.] Adelicacy. [Obs.] Halliwell.

Dainty , n.; pl. Dainties (#). [OE. deinie, dainte, deintie, deyntee, OF. deintié delicacy, orig., dignity, honor, fr. L. dignitas, fr. dignus worthy. See Deign, and cf. Dignity.] 1. Value; estimation; the gratification or pleasure taken in anything. [Obs.]

I ne told no deyntee of her love.

2. That which is delicious or delicate; a delicacy.

That precious nectar may the taste renew
Of Eden's dainties, by our parents lost.

3. A term of fondness. [Poetic] B. Jonson.

Syn. -- Dainty, Delicacy. These words are here compared as denoting articles of food. The term delicacy as applied to a nice article of any kind, and hence to articles of food which are particularly attractive. Dainty is stronger, and denotes some exquisite article of cookery. A hotel may be provided with all the delicacies of the season, and its table richly covered with dainties.

These delicacies
I mean of taste, sight, smell, herbs, fruits, and flowers,
Walks and the melody of birds.

[A table] furnished plenteously with bread,
And dainties, remnants of the last regale.

Dainty, a. [Compar. Daintier ; superl. Daintiest.] 1. Rare; valuable; costly. [Obs.]

Full many a deynté horse had he in stable.

&fist; Hence the proverb dainty maketh dearth, i. e., rarity makes a thing dear or precious.

2. Delicious to the palate; toothsome.

Dainty bits
Make rich the ribs.

3. Nice; delicate; elegant, in form, manner, or breeding; well-formed; neat; tender.

Those dainty limbs which nature lent
For gentle usage and soft delicacy.

I would be the girdle.
About her dainty, dainty waist.

4. Requiring dainties. Hence: Overnice; hard to please; fastidious; squeamish; scrupulous; ceremonious.

Thew were a fine and dainty people.

And let us not be dainty of leave-taking,
But shift away.

To make dainty, to assume or affect delicacy or fastidiousness. [Obs.]

Ah ha, my mistresses! which of you all
Will now deny to dance? She that makes dainty,
She, I'll swear, hath corns.

Dairy (dār&ybreve;), n.; pl. Dairies (-r&ibreve;z). [OE. deierie, from deie, daie, maid; of Scand. origin; cf. Icel. deigja maid, dairymaid, Sw. deja, orig., a baking maid, fr. Icel. deig. √66. See Dough.] 1. The place, room, or house where milk is kept, and converted into butter or cheese.

What stores my dairies and my folds contain.

2. That department of farming which is concerned in the production of milk, and its conversion into butter and cheese.

Grounds were turned much in England either to feeding or dairy; and this advanced the trade of English butter.

3. A dairy farm. [R.]

&fist; Dairy is much used adjectively or in combination; as, dairy farm, dairy countries, dairy house or dairyhouse, dairyroom, dairywork, etc.

Dairying, n. The business of conducting a dairy.

Dairymaid , n. A female servant whose business is the care of the dairy.

Dairyman , n.; pl. Dairymen (&?;). A man who keeps or takes care of a dairy.

Dairywoman , n.; pl. Dairywomen (&?;). A woman who attends to a dairy.

Dais (dā&ibreve;s), n. [OE. deis, des, table, dais, OF. deis table, F. dais a canopy, L. discus a quoit, a dish (from the shape), LL., table, fr. Gr. &?; a quoit, a dish. See Dish.] 1. The high or principal table, at the end of a hall, at which the chief guests were seated; also, the chief seat at the high table. [Obs.]

2. A platform slightly raised above the floor of a hall or large room, giving distinction to the table and seats placed upon it for the chief guests.

3. A canopy over the seat of a person of dignity. [Obs.] Shiply.

Daisied , a. Full of daisies; adorned with daisies. The daisied green. Langhorne.

The grass all deep and daisied.

Daisy (-z&ybreve;), n.; pl. Daisies (-z&ibreve;z). [OE. dayesye, AS. dæges-eáge day's eye, daisy. See Day, and Eye.] (Bot.) (a) A genus of low herbs (Bellis), belonging to the family Compositæ. The common English and classical daisy is B. perennis, which has a yellow disk and white or pinkish rays. (b) The whiteweed (Chrysanthemum Leucanthemum), the plant commonly called daisy in North America; -- called also oxeye daisy. See Whiteweed.

&fist; The word daisy is also used for composite plants of other genera, as Erigeron, or fleabane.

Michaelmas daisy (Bot.), any plant of the genus Aster, of which there are many species. -- Oxeye daisy (Bot.), the whiteweed. See Daisy (b).

Dak (d&add;k or däk), n. [Hind. &dsdot;āk.] Post; mail; also, the mail or postal arrangements; -- spelt also dawk, and dauk. [India]

Dak boat, a mail boat. Percy Smith. -- Dak bungalow, a traveler's rest- house at the end of a dak stage. -- To travel by dak, to travel by relays of palanquins or other carriage, as fast as the post along a road.

{ Daker , Dakir , } n. [See Dicker.] (O. Eng. & Scots Law) A measure of certain commodities by number, usually ten or twelve, but sometimes twenty; as, a daker of hides consisted of ten skins; a daker of gloves of ten pairs. Burrill.

Daker hen . [Perh. fr. W. crecial the daker hen; crec a sharp noise (creg harsh, hoarse, crechian to scream) + iar hen; or cf. D. duiken to dive, plunge.] (Zoöl.) The corncrake or land rail.

Dakoit, n., Dakoity, n. See Dacoit, Dacoity.

Dakota group . (Geol.) A subdivision at the base of the cretaceous formation in Western North America; -- so named from the region where the strata were first studied.

Dakotas , n. pl.; sing. Dacota (&?;). (Ethnol.) An extensive race or stock of Indians, including many tribes, mostly dwelling west of the Mississippi River; -- also, in part, called Sioux. [Written also Dacotahs.]

Dal , n. [Hind.] Split pulse, esp. of Cajanus Indicus. [East Indies]

Dale , n. [AS. dæl; akin to LG., D., Sw., Dan., OS., & Goth. dal, Icel. dalr, OHG. tal, G. thal, and perh. to Gr. qolos a rotunda, Skr. dhāra depth. Cf. Dell.] 1. A low place between hills; a vale or valley.

Where mountaines rise, umbrageous dales descend.

2. A trough or spout to carry off water, as from a pump. Knight.

Dalesman , n.; pl. Dalesmen (&?;). One living in a dale; -- a term applied particularly to the inhabitants of the valleys in the north of England, Norway, etc. Macaulay.

Dalf , imp. of Delve. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Dalliance , n. [From Dally.] 1. The act of dallying, trifling, or fondling; interchange of caresses; wanton play.

Look thou be true, do not give dalliance
Too much the rein.

O, the dalliance and the wit,
The flattery and the strife!

2. Delay or procrastination. Shak.

3. Entertaining discourse. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Dallier , n. One who fondles; a trifler; as, dalliers with pleasant words. Asham.

Dallop (dăll&obreve;p), n. [Etymol. unknown.] A tuft or clump. [Obs.] Tusser.

Dally (-l&ybreve;), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Dallied (-l&ibreve;d); p. pr. & vb. n. Dallying.] [OE. dalien, dailien; cf. Icel. pylja to talk, G. dallen, dalen, dahlen, to trifle, talk nonsense, OSw. tule a droll or funny man; or AS. dol foolish, E. dull.] 1. To waste time in effeminate or voluptuous pleasures, or in idleness; to fool away time; to delay unnecessarily; to tarry; to trifle.

We have trifled too long already; it is madness to dally any longer.

We have put off God, and dallied with his grace.

2. To interchange caresses, especially with one of the opposite sex; to use fondling; to wanton; to sport.

Not dallying with a brace of courtesans.

Our aerie . . . dallies with the wind.

Dally, v. t. To delay unnecessarily; to while away.

Dallying off the time with often skirmishes.

Dalmania , n. [From Dalman, the geologist.] (Paleon.) A genus of trilobites, of many species, common in the Upper Silurian and Devonian rocks.

Dalmanites , n. Same as Dalmania.

Dalmatian , a. Of or pertaining to Dalmatia.

Dalmatian dog (Zoöl.), a carriage dog, shaped like a pointer, and having black or bluish spots on a white ground; the coach dog.

Dalmatica , n., Dalmatic (&?;), n. [LL. dalmatica: cf. F. dalmatique.] 1. (R. C. Ch.) A vestment with wide sleeves, and with two stripes, worn at Mass by deacons, and by bishops at pontifical Mass; -- imitated from a dress originally worn in Dalmatia.

2. A robe worn on state ocasions, as by English kings at their coronation.

Dal segno . [It., from the sign.] (Mus.) A direction to go back to the sign &?; and repeat from thence to the close. See Segno.

Daltonian , n. One afflicted with color blindness.

Daltonism , n. Inability to perceive or distinguish certain colors, esp. red; color blindness. It has various forms and degrees. So called from the chemist Dalton, who had this infirmity. Nichol.

Dam (dăm), n. [OE. dame mistress, lady; also, mother, dam. See Dame.] 1. A female parent; -- used of beasts, especially of quadrupeds; sometimes applied in contempt to a human mother.

Our sire and dam, now confined to horses, are a relic of this age (13th century) . . . .Dame is used of a hen; we now make a great difference between dame and dam.

The dam runs lowing up and down,
Looking the way her harmless young one went.

2. A king or crowned piece in the game of draughts.

Dam, n. [Akin to OLG., D., & Dan. dam, G. & Sw. damm, Icel. dammr, and AS. fordemman to stop up, Goth. Faúrdammjan.] 1. A barrier to prevent the flow of a liquid; esp., a bank of earth, or wall of any kind, as of masonry or wood, built across a water course, to confine and keep back flowing water.

2. (Metal.) A firebrick wall, or a stone, which forms the front of the hearth of a blast furnace.

Dam plate (Blast Furnace), an iron plate in front of the dam, to strengthen it.

Dam, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dammed (dămd); p. pr. & vb. n. Damming.] 1. To obstruct or restrain the flow of, by a dam; to confine by constructing a dam, as a stream of water; -- generally used with in or up.

I'll have the current in this place dammed up.

A weight of earth that dams in the water.

2. To shut up; to stop up; to close; to restrain.

The strait pass was dammed
With dead men hurt behind, and cowards.

To dam out, to keep out by means of a dam.

Damage (dăm&asl;j; 48), n. [OF. damage, domage, F. dommage, fr. assumed LL. damnaticum, from L. damnum damage. See Damn.] 1. Injury or harm to person, property, or reputation; an inflicted loss of value; detriment; hurt; mischief.

He that sendeth a message by the hand of a fool cutteth off the feet and drinketh damage.

Great errors and absurdities many commit for want of a friend to tell them of them, to the great damage both of their fame and fortune.

2. pl. (Law) The estimated reparation in money for detriment or injury sustained; a compensation, recompense, or satisfaction to one party, for a wrong or injury actually done to him by another.

&fist; In common-law actions, the jury are the proper judges of damages.

Consequential damage. See under Consequential. -- Exemplary damages (Law), damages imposed by way of example to others. - - Nominal damages (Law), those given for a violation of a right where no actual loss has accrued. -- Vindictive damages, those given specially for the punishment of the wrongdoer.

Syn. -- Mischief; injury; harm; hurt; detriment; evil; ill. See Mischief.

Damage, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Damaged ; p. pr. & vb. n. Damaging .] [Cf. OF. damagier, domagier. See Damage, n.] To occasion damage to the soundness, goodness, or value of; to hurt; to injure; to impair.

He . . . came up to the English admiral and gave him a broadside, with which he killed many of his men and damaged the ship.

Damage (dăm&asl;j), v. i. To receive damage or harm; to be injured or impaired in soundness or value; as, some colors in cloth damage in sunlight.

Damageable , a. [Cf. OF. damageable, F. dommageable for sense 2.] 1. Capable of being injured or impaired; liable to, or susceptible of, damage; as, a damageable cargo.

2. Hurtful; pernicious. [R.]

That it be not damageable unto your royal majesty.

Damage feasant . [OF. damage + F. faisant doing, p. pr. See Feasible.] (Law) Doing injury; trespassing, as cattle. Blackstone.

Daman (däm&adot;n), n. (Zoöl.) A small herbivorous mammal of the genus Hyrax. The species found in Palestine and Syria is Hyrax Syriacus; that of Northern Africa is H. Brucei; -- called also ashkoko, dassy, and rock rabbit. See Cony, and Hyrax.

Damar , n. See Dammar.

Damascene (dămassēn), a. [L. Damascenus of Damascus, fr. Damascus the city, Gr. Damaskos. See Damask, and cf. Damaskeen, Damaskin, Damson.] Of or relating to Damascus.

Damascene (dămassēn), n. A kind of plum, now called damson. See Damson.

Damascene (dămassēn), v. t. Same as Damask, or Damaskeen, v. t. Damascened armor. Beaconsfield. Cast and damascened steel. Ure.

Damascus , n. [L.] A city of Syria.

Damascus blade, a sword or scimiter, made chiefly at Damascus, having a variegated appearance of watering, and proverbial for excellence. -- Damascus iron, or Damascus twist, metal formed of thin bars or wires of iron and steel elaborately twisted and welded together; used for making gun barrels, etc., of high quality, in which the surface, when polished and acted upon by acid, has a damask appearance. -- Damascus steel. See Damask steel, under Damask, a.

Damask (dămask), n. [From the city Damascus, L. Damascus, Gr. Damaskos, Heb. Dammesq, Ar. Daemeshq; cf. Heb. d'meseq damask; cf. It. damasco, Sp. damasco, F. damas. Cf. Damascene, DamassÉ.] 1. Damask silk; silk woven with an elaborate pattern of flowers and the like. A bed of ancient damask. W. Irving.

2. Linen so woven that a pattern in produced by the different directions of the thread, without contrast of color.

3. A heavy woolen or worsted stuff with a pattern woven in the same way as the linen damask; -- made for furniture covering and hangings.

4. Damask or Damascus steel; also, the peculiar markings or water of such steel.

5. A deep pink or rose color. Fairfax.

Damask, a. 1. Pertaining to, or originating at, the city of Damascus; resembling the products or manufactures of Damascus.

2. Having the color of the damask rose.

But let concealment, like a worm i' the bud,
Feed on her damask cheek.

Damask color, a deep rose-color like that of the damask rose. -- Damask plum, a small dark-colored plum, generally called damson. -- Damask rose (Bot.), a large, pink, hardy, and very fragrant variety of rose (Rosa damascena) from Damascus. Damask roses have not been known in England above one hundred years. Bacon. -- Damask steel, or Damascus steel, steel of the kind originally made at Damascus, famous for its hardness, and its beautiful texture, ornamented with waving lines; especially, that which is inlaid with damaskeening; -- formerly much valued for sword blades, from its great flexibility and tenacity.

Damask, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Damasked ; p. pr. & vb. n. Damasking.] To decorate in a way peculiar to Damascus or attributed to Damascus; particularly: (a) with flowers and rich designs, as silk; (b) with inlaid lines of gold, etc., or with a peculiar marking or water, as metal. See Damaskeen.

Mingled metal damasked o'er with gold.

On the soft, downy bank, damasked with flowers.

{ Damaskeen , Damasken , } v. t. [F. damaschinare. See Damascene, v.] To decorate, as iron, steel, etc., with a peculiar marking or water produced in the process of manufacture, or with designs produced by inlaying or incrusting with another metal, as silver or gold, or by etching, etc., to damask.

Damaskeening is is partly mosaic work, partly engraving, and partly carving.

Damaskin , n. [Cf. F. damasquin, adj., It. damaschino, Sp. damasquino. See Damaskeen.] A sword of Damask steel.

No old Toledo blades or damaskins.

Damassé , a. [F. damassé, fr. damas. See Damask.] Woven like damask. -- n. A damassé fabric, esp. one of linen.

Damassin (dămass&ibreve;n), n. [F., fr. damas. See Damask.] A kind of modified damask or brocade.

Dambonite (-b&osl;nīt), n. [Cf. F. dambonite.] (Chem.) A white, crystalline, sugary substance obtained from an African caoutchouc.

Dambose (dămbōs), n. (Chem.) A crystalline variety of fruit sugar obtained from dambonite.

Dame (dām), n. [F. dame, LL. domna, fr. L. domina mistress, lady, fem. of dominus master, ruler, lord; akin to domare to tame, subdue. See Tame, and cf. Dam a mother, Dan, Danger, Dungeon, Dominie, Don, n., Duenna.] 1. A mistress of a family, who is a lady; a woman in authority; especially, a lady.

Then shall these lords do vex me half so much,
As that proud dame, the lord protector's wife.

2. The mistress of a family in common life, or the mistress of a common school; as, a dame's school.

In the dame's classes at the village school.

3. A woman in general, esp. an elderly woman.

4. A mother; -- applied to human beings and quadrupeds. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Damewort , n. (Bot.) A cruciferrous plant (Hesperis matronalis), remarkable for its fragrance, especially toward the close of the day; -- called also rocket and dame's violet. Loudon.

Damiana , n. [NL.; of uncertain origin.] (Med.) A Mexican drug, used as an aphrodisiac.

&fist; There are several varieties derived from different plants, esp. from a species of Turnera and from Bigelovia veneta. Wood & Bache.

Damianist , n. (Eccl. Hist.) A follower of Damian, patriarch of Alexandria in the 6th century, who held heretical opinions on the doctrine of the Holy Trinity.

{ Dammar , Dammara , } n. [Jav. & Malay. damar.] An oleoresin used in making varnishes; dammar gum; dammara resin. It is obtained from certain resin trees indigenous to the East Indies, esp. Shorea robusta and the dammar pine.

Dammar pine, (Bot.), a tree of the Moluccas (Agathis orientalis, or Dammara orientalis), yielding dammar.

Dammara, n. (Bot.) A large tree of the order Coniferæ, indigenous to the East Indies and Australasia; -- called also Agathis. There are several species.

Damn (dăm), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Damned (dămd or dămn&ebreve;d); p. pr. & vb. n. Damning (dăm&ibreve;ng or dămn&ibreve;ng).] [OE. damnen dampnen (with excrescent p), OF. damner, dampner, F. damner, fr. L. damnare, damnatum, to condemn, fr. damnum damage, a fine, penalty. Cf. Condemn, Damage.] 1. To condemn; to declare guilty; to doom; to adjudge to punishment; to sentence; to censure.

He shall not live; look, with a spot I damn him.

2. (Theol.) To doom to punishment in the future world; to consign to perdition; to curse.

3. To condemn as bad or displeasing, by open expression, as by denuciation, hissing, hooting, etc.

You are not so arrant a critic as to damn them [the works of modern poets] . . . without hearing.

Damn with faint praise, assent with civil leer,
And without sneering teach the rest to sneer.

&fist; Damn is sometimes used interjectionally, imperatively, and intensively.

Damn, v. i. To invoke damnation; to curse. While I inwardly damn. Goldsmith.

Damnability , n. The quality of being damnable; damnableness. Sir T. More.

Damnable , a. [L. damnabilis, fr. damnare: cf. F. damnable. See Damn.] 1. Liable to damnation; deserving, or for which one deserves, to be damned; of a damning nature.

A creature unprepared unmeet for death,
And to transport him in the mind he is,
Were damnable.

2. Odious; pernicious; detestable.

Begin, murderer; . . . leave thy damnable faces.

Damnableness, n. The state or quality of deserving damnation; execrableness.

The damnableness of this most execrable impiety.

Damnably, adv. 1. In a manner to incur severe censure, condemnation, or punishment.

2. Odiously; detestably; excessively. [Low]

Damnation , n. [F. damnation, L. damnatio, fr. damnare. See Damn.] 1. The state of being damned; condemnation; openly expressed disapprobation.

2. (Theol.) Condemnation to everlasting punishment in the future state, or the punishment itself.

How can ye escape the damnation of hell?

Wickedness is sin, and sin is damnation.

3. A sin deserving of everlasting punishment. [R.]

The deep damnation of his taking- off.

Damnatory (dămn&adot;t&osl;r&ybreve;), a. [L. damnatorius, fr. damnator a condemner.] Dooming to damnation; condemnatory. Damnatory invectives. Hallam.

Damned , a. 1. Sentenced to punishment in a future state; condemned; consigned to perdition.

2. Hateful; detestable; abominable.

But, O, what damned minutes tells he o'er
Who doats, yet doubts, suspects, yet strongly loves.

Damnific , a. [L. damnificus; damnum damage, loss + facere to make. See Damn.] Procuring or causing loss; mischievous; injurious.

Damnification , n. [LL. damnificatio.] That which causes damage or loss.

Damnify (dămn&ibreve;fī), v. t. [LL. damnificare, fr. L. damnificus: cf. OF. damnefier. See Damnific.] To cause loss or damage to; to injure; to impair. [R.]

This work will ask as many more officials to make expurgations and expunctions, that the commonwealth of learning be not damnified.

Damning , a. That damns; damnable; as, damning evidence of guilt.

Damningness, n. Tendency to bring damnation. The damningness of them [sins]. Hammond.

damnum , n. [L.] (law) Harm; detriment, either to character or property.

{ Damosel (dăm&osl;z&ebreve;l), Damosella (-z&ebreve;ll&adot;), Damoiselle (d&adot;mwäz&ebreve;l) }, n. See Damsel. [Archaic]

Damourite (dăm&oocr;īt), n. [Ater the French chemist Damour.] (Min.) A kind of Muscovite, or potash mica, containing water.

Damp (dămp), n. [Akin to LG., D., & Dan. damp vapor, steam, fog, G. dampf, Icel. dampi, Sw. damb dust, and to MNG. dimpfen to smoke, imp. dampf.] 1. Moisture; humidity; fog; fogginess; vapor.

Night . . . with black air
Accompanied, with damps and dreadful gloom.

2. Dejection; depression; cloud of the mind.

Even now, while thus I stand blest in thy presence,
A secret damp of grief comes o'er my soul.

It must have thrown a damp over your autumn excursion.

3. (Mining) A gaseous product, formed in coal mines, old wells, pints, etc.

Choke damp, a damp consisting principally of carbonic acid gas; -- so called from its extinguishing flame and animal life. See Carbonic acid, under Carbonic. -- Damp sheet, a curtain in a mine gallery to direct air currents and prevent accumulation of gas. -- Fire damp, a damp consisting chiefly of light carbureted hydrogen; -- so called from its tendence to explode when mixed with atmospheric air and brought into contact with flame.

Damp , a. [Compar. Damper ; superl. Dampest.] 1. Being in a state between dry and wet; moderately wet; moist; humid.

O'erspread with a damp sweat and holy fear.

2. Dejected; depressed; sunk. [R.]

All these and more came flocking, but with looks
Downcast and damp.

Damp, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Damped ; p. pr. & vb. n. Damping.] [OE. dampen to choke, suffocate. See Damp, n.] 1. To render damp; to moisten; to make humid, or moderately wet; to dampen; as, to damp cloth.

2. To put out, as fire; to depress or deject; to deaden; to cloud; to check or restrain, as action or vigor; to make dull; to weaken; to discourage. To damp your tender hopes. Akenside.

Usury dulls and damps all industries, improvements, and new inventions, wherein money would be stirring if it were not for this slug.

How many a day has been damped and darkened by an angry word!

The failure of his enterprise damped the spirit of the soldiers.

Dampen , v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dampened ; p. pr. & vb. n. Dampening.] 1. To make damp or moist; to make slightly wet.

2. To depress; to check; to make dull; to lessen.

In a way that considerably dampened our enthusiasm.

Dampen, v. i. To become damp; to deaden. Byron.

Damper , n. That which damps or checks; as: (a) A valve or movable plate in the flue or other part of a stove, furnace, etc., used to check or regulate the draught of air. (b) A contrivance, as in a pianoforte, to deaden vibrations; or, as in other pieces of mechanism, to check some action at a particular time.

Nor did Sabrina's presence seem to act as any damper at the modest little festivities.

Dampish , a. Moderately damp or moist.

-- Dampishly, adv. -- Dampishness, n.

Dampne , v. t. To damn. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Dampness, n. Moderate humidity; moisture; fogginess; moistness.

Damp off . To decay and perish through excessive moisture.

Dampy , a. 1. Somewhat damp. [Obs.] Drayton.

2. Dejected; gloomy; sorrowful. [Obs.] Dispel dampy throughts. Haywards.

Damsel , n. [OE. damosel, damesel, damisel, damsel, fr. OF. damoisele, damisele, gentlewoman, F. demoiselle young lady; cf. OF. damoisel young nobleman, F. damoiseau; fr. LL. domicella, dominicella, fem., domicellus, dominicellus, masc., dim. fr. L. domina, dominus. See Dame, and cf. Demoiselle, Doncella.] 1. A young person, either male or female, of noble or gentle extraction; as, Damsel Pepin; Damsel Richard, Prince of Wales. [Obs.]

2. A young unmarried woman; a girl; a maiden.

With her train of damsels she was gone,
In shady walks the scorching heat to shun.

Sometimes a troop of damsels glad, . . .
Goes by to towered Camelot.

3. (Milling) An attachment to a millstone spindle for shaking the hopper.

Damson (dămz'n), n. [OE. damasin the Damascus plum, fr. L. Damascenus. See Damascene.] A small oval plum of a blue color, the fruit of a variety of the Prunus domestica; -- called also damask plum.

Dan , n. [OE. dan, danz, OF. danz (prop. only nom.), dan, master, fr. L. dominus. See Dame.] A title of honor equivalent to master, or sir. [Obs.]

Old Dan Geoffry, in gently spright
The pure wellhead of poetry did dwell.

What time Dan Abraham left the Chaldee land.

Dan, n. [Etymol. uncertain.] (Mining) A small truck or sledge used in coal mines.

Danaide , n. [From the mythical Danaides, who were condemned to fill with water a vessel full of holes.] (Mach.) A water wheel having a vertical axis, and an inner and outer tapering shell, between which are vanes or floats attached usually to both shells, but sometimes only to one.

Danaite , n. [Named after J. Freeman Dana.] (Min.) A cobaltiferous variety of arsenopyrite.

Danalite , n. [Named after James Dwight Dana.] (Min.) A mineral occuring in octahedral crystals, also massive, of a reddish color. It is a silicate of iron, zinc manganese, and glucinum, containing sulphur.

Danburite , n. (Min.) A borosilicate of lime, first found at Danbury, Conn. It is near the topaz in form. Dana.

Dance (d&adot;ns), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Danced ; p. pr. & vb. n. Dancing.] [F. danser, fr. OHG. dansōn to draw; akin to dinsan to draw, Goth. apinsan, and prob. from the same root (meaning to stretch) as E. thin. See Thin.] 1. To move with measured steps, or to a musical accompaniment; to go through, either alone or in company with others, with a regulated succession of movements, (commonly) to the sound of music; to trip or leap rhythmically.

Jack shall pipe and Gill shall dance.

Good shepherd, what fair swain is this
Which dances with your daughter?

2. To move nimbly or merrily; to express pleasure by motion; to caper; to frisk; to skip about.

Then, 'tis time to dance off.

More dances my rapt heart
Than when I first my wedded mistress saw.

Shadows in the glassy waters dance.

Where rivulets dance their wayward round.

To dance on a rope, or To dance on nothing, to be hanged.

Dance , v. t. To cause to dance, or move nimbly or merrily about, or up and down; to dandle.

To dance our ringlets to the whistling wind.

Thy grandsire loved thee well;
Many a time he danced thee on his knee.

To dance attendance, to come and go obsequiously; to be or remain in waiting, at the beck and call of another, with a view to please or gain favor.

A man of his place, and so near our favor,
To dance attendance on their lordships' pleasure.

Dance, n. [F. danse, of German origin. See Dance, v. i.] 1. The leaping, tripping, or measured stepping of one who dances; an amusement, in which the movements of the persons are regulated by art, in figures and in accord with music.

2. (Mus.) A tune by which dancing is regulated, as the minuet, the waltz, the cotillon, etc.

&fist; The word dance was used ironically, by the older writers, of many proceedings besides dancing.

Of remedies of love she knew parchance
For of that art she couth the olde dance.

Dance of Death (Art), an allegorical representation of the power of death over all, -- the old, the young, the high, and the low, being led by a dancing skeleton. -- Morris dance. See Morris. -- To lead one a dance, to cause one to go through a series of movements or experiences as if guided by a partner in a dance not understood.

Dancer , n. One who dances or who practices dancing.

The merry dancers, beams of the northern lights when they rise and fall alternately without any considerable change of length. See Aurora borealis, under Aurora.

Danceress, n. A female dancer. [Obs.] Wyclif.

Dancetté , a. [Cf. F. danché dancetté, dent tooth.] (Her.) Deeply indented; having large teeth; thus, a fess dancetté has only three teeth in the whole width of the escutcheon.

Dancing , p. a. & vb. n. from Dance.

Dancing girl, one of the women in the East Indies whose profession is to dance in the temples, or for the amusement of spectators. There are various classes of dancing girls. -- Dancing master, a teacher of dancing. -- Dancing school, a school or place where dancing is taught.

Dancy , a. (Her.) Same as Dancetté.

Dandelion , n. [F. dent de lion lion's tooth, fr. L. dens tooth + leo lion. See Tooth, n., and Lion.] (Bot.) A well-known plant of the genus Taraxacum (T. officinale, formerly called T. Dens-leonis and Leontodos Taraxacum) bearing large, yellow, compound flowers, and deeply notched leaves.

Dander , n. [Corrupted from dandruff.] 1. Dandruff or scurf on the head.

2. Anger or vexation; rage. [Low] Halliwell.

Dander, v. i. [See Dandle.] To wander about; to saunter; to talk incoherently. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

Dandi , n. [Hind. &dsdot;ān&dsdot;i, fr. &dsdot;ān&dsdot; an oar.] A boatman; an oarsman. [India]

Dandie , n. (Zoöl.) One of a breed of small terriers; -- called also Dandie Dinmont.

Dandified , a. Made up like a dandy; having the dress or manners of a dandy; buckish.

Dandify , v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dandified ; p. pr. & vb. n. Dandifying.] [Dandy + -fy.] To cause to resemble a dandy; to make dandyish.

Dandiprat , n. [Dandy + brat child.] 1. A little fellow; -- in sport or contempt. A dandiprat hop-thumb. Stanyhurst.

2. A small coin.

Henry VII. stamped a small coin called dandiprats.

Dandle , v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dandled ; p. pr. & vb. n. Dandling .] [Cf. G. dändeln to trifly, dandle, OD. & Prov. G. danten, G. tand trifly, prattle; Scot. dandill, dander, to go about idly, to trifly.] 1. To move up and down on one's knee or in one's arms, in affectionate play, as an infant.

Ye shall be dandled . . . upon her knees.

2. To treat with fondness, as if a child; to fondle; to toy with; to pet.

They have put me in a silk gown and gaudy fool's cap; I as ashamed to be dandled thus.

The book, thus dandled into popularity by bishops and good ladies, contained many pieces of nursery eloquence.

3. To play with; to put off or delay by trifles; to wheedle. [Obs.]

Captains do so dandle their doings, and dally in the service, as it they would not have the enemy subdued.

Dandler (dăndl&etilde;r), n. One who dandles or fondles.

Dandriff (dăndr&ibreve;f), n. See Dandruff. Swift.

Dandruff (dăndrŭf), n. [Prob. from W. toncrust, peel, skin + AS. drōf dirty, draffy, or W. drwg bad: cf. AS. tan a letter, an eruption. √240.] A scurf which forms on the head, and comes off in small scales or particles. [Written also dandriff.]

Dandy (dănd&ybreve;), n.; pl. Dandies (-d&ibreve;z). [Cf. F. dandin, ninny, silly fellow, dandiner to waddle, to play the fool; prob. allied to E. dandle. Senses 2 & 3 are of uncertain etymol.] 1. One who affects special finery or gives undue attention to dress; a fop; a coxcomb.

2. (Naut.) (a) A sloop or cutter with a jigger on which a lugsail is set. (b) A small sail carried at or near the stern of small boats; -- called also jigger, and mizzen.

3. A dandy roller. See below.

Dandy brush, a yard whalebone brush. -- Dandy fever. See Dengue. -- Dandy line, a kind of fishing line to which are attached several crosspieces of whalebone which carry a hook at each end. -- Dandy roller, a roller sieve used in machines for making paper, to press out water from the pulp, and set the paper.

Dandy-cock (&?;), n. masc., Dandy-hen (&?;), n. fem. [See Dandy.] A bantam fowl.

Dandyish, a. Like a dandy.

Dandyism , n. The manners and dress of a dandy; foppishness. Byron.

Dandyize , v. t. & i. To make, or to act, like a dandy; to dandify.

Dandyling , n. [Dandy + -ling.] A little or insignificant dandy; a contemptible fop.

Dane , n. [LL. Dani: cf. AS. Dene.] A native, or a naturalized inhabitant, of Denmark.

Great Dane. (Zoöl.) See Danish dog, under Danish.

{ Danegeld , Danegelt }, n. [AS. danegeld. See Dane, and Geld, n.] (Eng. Hist.) An annual tax formerly laid on the English nation to buy off the ravages of Danish invaders, or to maintain forces to oppose them. It afterward became a permanent tax, raised by an assessment, at first of one shilling, afterward of two shillings, upon every hide of land throughout the realm. Wharton's Law Dict. Tomlins.

Danewort , n. (Bot.) A fetid European species of elder (Sambucus Ebulus); dwarf elder; wallwort; elderwort; -- called also Daneweed, Dane's weed, and Dane's-blood. [Said to grow on spots where battles were fought against the Danes.]

Dang , imp. of Ding. [Obs.]

Dang, v. t. [Cf. Ding.] To dash. [Obs.]

Till she, o'ercome with anguish, shame, and rage,
Danged down to hell her loathsome carriage.

Danger , n. [OE. danger, daunger, power, arrogance, refusal, difficulty, fr. OF. dagier, dongier (with same meaning), F. danger danger, fr. an assumed LL. dominiarium power, authority, from L. dominium power, property. See Dungeon, Domain, Dame.] 1. Authority; jurisdiction; control. [Obs.]

In dangerhad he . . . the young girls.

2. Power to harm; subjection or liability to penalty. [Obs.] See In one's danger, below.

You stand within his danger, do you not?

Covetousness of gains hath brought [them] in dangerof this statute.

3. Exposure to injury, loss, pain, or other evil; peril; risk; insecurity.

4. Difficulty; sparingness. [Obs.] Chaucer.

5. Coyness; disdainful behavior. [Obs.] Chaucer.

In one's danger, in one's power; liable to a penalty to be inflicted by him. [Obs.] This sense is retained in the proverb, Out of debt out of danger.

Those rich man in whose debt and danger they be not.

-- To do danger, to cause danger. [Obs.] Shak.

Syn. -- Peril; hazard; risk; jeopardy. -- Danger, Peril, Hazard, Risk, Jeopardy. Danger is the generic term, and implies some contingent evil in prospect. Peril is instant or impending danger; as, in peril of one's life. Hazard arises from something fortuitous or beyond our control; as, the hazard of the seas. Risk is doubtful or uncertain danger, often incurred voluntarily; as, to risk an engagement. Jeopardy is extreme danger. Danger of a contagious disease; the perils of shipwreck; the hazards of speculation; the risk of daring enterprises; a life brought into jeopardy.

Danger, v. t. To endanger. [Obs.] Shak.

Dangerful , a. Full of danger; dangerous. [Obs.] -- Dangerfully, adv. [Obs.] Udall.

Dangerless, a. Free from danger. [R.]

Dangerous , a. [OE., haughty, difficult, dangerous, fr. OF. dangereus, F. dangereux. See Danger.] 1. Attended or beset with danger; full of risk; perilous; hazardous; unsafe.

Our troops set forth to-morrow; stay with us;
The ways are dangerous.

It is dangerous to assert a negative.

2. Causing danger; ready to do harm or injury.

If they incline to think you dangerous
To less than gods.

3. In a condition of danger, as from illness; threatened with death. [Colloq.] Forby. Bartlett.

4. Hard to suit; difficult to please. [Obs.]

My wages ben full strait, and eke full small;
My lord to me is hard and dangerous.

5. Reserved; not affable. [Obs.] Of his speech dangerous. Chaucer.

-- Dangerously, adv. -- Dangerousness, n.

Dangle (dă&nsm;g'l), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Dangled ; p. pr. & vb. n. Dangling .] [Akin to Dan. dangle, dial. Sw. dangla, Dan. dingle, Sw. dingla, Icel. dingla; perh. from E. ding.] To hang loosely, or with a swinging or jerking motion.

He'd rather on a gibbet dangle
Than miss his dear delight, to wrangle.

From her lifted hand
Dangled a length of ribbon.

To dangle about or after, to hang upon importunately; to court the favor of; to beset.

The Presbyterians, and other fanatics that dangle after them,
are well inclined to pull down the present establishment.

Dangle , v. t. To cause to dangle; to swing, as something suspended loosely; as, to dangle the feet.

And the bridegroom stood dangling his bonnet and plume.

Dangleberry , n. (Bot.) A dark blue, edible berry with a white bloom, and its shrub (Gaylussacia frondosa) closely allied to the common huckleberry. The bush is also called blue tangle, and is found from New England to Kentucky, and southward.

Dangler , n. One who dangles about or after others, especially after women; a trifler. Danglers at toilets. Burke.

Daniel , n. A Hebrew prophet distinguished for sagacity and ripeness of judgment in youth; hence, a sagacious and upright judge.

A Daniel come to judgment.

Danish , a. [See Dane.] Belonging to the Danes, or to their language or country. - - n. The language of the Danes.

Danish dog (Zoöl.), one of a large and powerful breed of dogs reared in Denmark; -- called also great Dane. See Illustration in Appendix.

Danite , n. 1. A descendant of Dan; an Israelite of the tribe of Dan. Judges xiii. 2.

2. [So called in remembrance of the prophecy in Gen. xlix. 17, Dan shall be a serpent by the way, etc.] One of a secret association of Mormons, bound by an oath to obey the heads of the church in all things. [U. S.]

Dank , a. [Cf. dial, Sw. dank a moist place in a field, Icel. dökk pit, pool; possibly akin to E. damp or to daggle dew.] Damp; moist; humid; wet.

Now that the fields are dank and ways are mire.

Cheerless watches on the cold, dank ground.

Dank, n. Moisture; humidity; water. [Obs.]

Dank, n. A small silver coin current in Persia.

Dankish, a. Somewhat dank. -- Dankishness, n.

In a dark and dankish vault at home.

Dannebrog , n. The ancient battle standard of Denmark, bearing figures of cross and crown.

Order of Dannebrog, an ancient Danish order of knighthood.

Danseuse , n. [F., fr. danser to dance.] A professional female dancer; a woman who dances at a public exhibition as in a ballet.

Dansk , a. [Dan.] Danish. [Obs.]

Dansker , n. A Dane. [Obs.]

Inquire me first what Danskers are in Paris.

Dantean , a. Relating to, emanating from or resembling, the poet Dante or his writings.

Dantesque , a. [Cf. It. Dantesco.] Dantelike; Dantean. Earle.

Danubian , a. Pertaining to, or bordering on, the river Danube.

Dap (dăp), v. i. [Cf. Dip.] (Angling) To drop the bait gently on the surface of the water.

To catch a club by dapping with a grasshoper.

Dapatical , a. [L. dapaticus, fr. daps feast.] Sumptuous in cheer. [Obs.] Bailey.

Daphne , n. [L., a laurel tree, from Gr. dafnh.] 1. (Bot.) A genus of diminutive Shrubs, mostly evergreen, and with fragrant blossoms.

2. (Myth.) A nymph of Diana, fabled to have been changed into a laurel tree.

Daphnetin , n. (Chem.) A colorless crystalline substance, C₉H₆O₄, extracted from daphnin.

Daphnia , n. [NL.] (Zoöl.) A genus of the genus Daphnia.

Daphnin , n. [Cf. F. daphnine.] (Chem.) (a) A dark green bitter resin extracted from the mezereon (Daphne mezereum) and regarded as the essential principle of the plant. [R.] (b) A white, crystalline, bitter substance, regarded as a glucoside, and extracted from Daphne mezereum and D. alpina.

Daphnomancy , n. [Gr. dafnh the laurel + -mancy.] Divination by means of the laurel.

Dapifer , n. [L., daps a feast + ferre to bear.] One who brings meat to the table; hence, in some countries, the official title of the grand master or steward of the king's or a nobleman's household.

Dapper , a. [OE. daper; prob. fr. D. dapper brave, valiant; akin to G. tapfer brave, OHG. taphar heavy, weighty, OSlav. dobrŭ good, Russ. dobrui. Cf. Deft.] Little and active; spruce; trim; smart; neat in dress or appearance; lively.

He wondered how so many provinces could be held in subjection by such a dapper little man.

The dapper ditties that I wont devise.

Sharp-nosed, dapper steam yachts.

Dapperling , n. A dwarf; a dandiprat. [r.]

Dapple , n. [Cf. Icel. depill a spot, a dot, a dog with spots over the eyes, dapi a pool, and E. dimple.] One of the spots on a dappled animal.

He has . . . as many eyes on his body as my gray mare hath dapples.

{ Dapple , Dappled }, a. Marked with spots of different shades of color; spotted; variegated; as, a dapple horse.

Some dapple mists still floated along the peaks.

&fist; The word is used in composition to denote that some color is variegated or marked with spots; as, dapple-bay; dapple-gray.

His steed was all dapple-gray.

O, swiftly can speed my dapple-gray steed.

Dapple, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dappled ; p. pr. & vb. n. Dappling.] To variegate with spots; to spot.

The gentle day, . . .
Dapples the drowsy east with spots of gray.

The dappled pink and blushing rose.

Darbies , n. pl. Manacles; handcuffs. [Cant]

Jem Clink will fetch you the darbies.

&fist; In The Steel Glass by Gascoigne, printed in 1576, occurs the line To binde such babes in father Derbies bands.

Darby , n. A plasterer's float, having two handles; -- used in smoothing ceilings, etc.

Darbyite , n. One of the Plymouth Brethren, or of a sect among them; -- so called from John N. Darby, one of the leaders of the Brethren.

Dardanian , a. & n.[From L. Dardania, poetic name of Troy.] Trojan.

Dare , v. i. [imp. Durst or Dared (&?;); p. p. Dared; p. pr. & vb. n. Daring.] [OE. I dar, dear, I dare, imp. dorste, durste, AS. ic dear I dare, imp. dorste. inf. durran; akin to OS. gidar, gidorsta, gidurran, OHG. tar, torsta, turran, Goth. gadar, gadaúrsta, Gr. tharsei^n, tharrei^n, to be bold, tharsys bold, Skr. Dhrsh to be bold. √70.] To have adequate or sufficient courage for any purpose; to be bold or venturesome; not to be afraid; to venture.

I dare do all that may become a man; Who dares do more is none.

Why then did not the ministers use their new law? Bacause they durst not, because they could not.

Who dared to sully her sweet love with suspicion.

The tie of party was stronger than the tie of blood, because a partisan was more ready to dare without asking why.

&fist; The present tense, I dare, is really an old past tense, so that the third person is he dare, but the form he dares is now often used, and will probably displace the obsolescent he dare, through grammatically as incorrect as he shalls or he cans. Skeat.

The pore dar plede (the poor man dare plead).

You know one dare not discover you.

The fellow dares not deceive me.

Here boldly spread thy hands, no venom'd weed
Dares blister them, no slimy snail dare creep.

&fist; Formerly durst was also used as the present. Sometimes the old form dare is found for durst or dared.

Dare, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dared; p. pr. & vb. n. Daring.] 1. To have courage for; to attempt courageously; to venture to do or to undertake.

What high concentration of steady feeling makes men dare every thing and do anything?

To wrest it from barbarism, to dare its solitudes.

2. To challenge; to provoke; to defy.

Time, I dare thee to discover
Such a youth and such a lover.

Dare, n. 1. The quality of daring; venturesomeness; boldness; dash. [R.]

It lends a luster . . .
A large dare to our great enterprise.

2. Defiance; challenge.

Childish, unworthy dares
Are not enought to part our powers.

Sextus Pompeius
Hath given the dare to Cæsar.

Dare, v. i. [OE. darien, to lie hidden, be timid.] To lurk; to lie hid. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Dare, v. t. To terrify; to daunt. [Obs.]

For I have done those follies, those mad mischiefs,
Would dare a woman.

To dare larks, to catch them by producing terror through to use of mirrors, scarlet cloth, a hawk, etc., so that they lie still till a net is thrown over them. Nares.

Dare, n. [See Dace.] (Zoöl.) A small fish; the dace.

Dare-devil , n. A reckless fellow. Also used adjectively; as, dare-devil excitement.

A humorous dare-devil -- the very man
To suit my prpose.

Dare-deviltry , n; pl. Dare-deviltries (&?;). Reckless mischief; the action of a dare-devil.

Dareful , a. Full of daring or of defiance; adventurous. [R.] Shak.

Darer , n. One who dares or defies.

{ Darg, Dargue }, n. [Scot., contr. fr. day work.] A day's work; also, a fixed amount of work, whether more or less than that of a day. [Local, Eng. & Scot.]

Daric (dăr&ibreve;k), n. [Gr. dareikos, of Persian origin.] 1. (Antiq.) (a) A gold coin of ancient Persia, weighing usually a little more than 128 grains, and bearing on one side the figure of an archer. (b) A silver coin of about 86 grains, having the figure of an archer, and hence, in modern times, called a daric.

2. Any very pure gold coin.

Daring , n. Boldness; fearlessness; adventurousness; also, a daring act.

Daring, a. Bold; fearless; adventurous; as, daring spirits. -- Daringly, adv. -- Daringness, n.

Dark (därk), a. [OE. dark, derk, deork, AS. dearc, deorc; cf. Gael. & Ir. dorch, dorcha, dark, black, dusky.] 1. Destitute, or partially destitute, of light; not receiving, reflecting, or radiating light; wholly or partially black, or of some deep shade of color; not light-colored; as, a dark room; a dark day; dark cloth; dark paint; a dark complexion.

O dark, dark, dark, amid the blaze of noon,
Irrecoverably dark, total eclipse
Without all hope of day!

In the dark and silent grave.

2. Not clear to the understanding; not easily seen through; obscure; mysterious; hidden.

The dark problems of existence.

What may seem dark at the first, will afterward be found more plain.

What's your dark meaning, mouse, of this light word?

3. Destitute of knowledge and culture; in moral or intellectual darkness; unrefined; ignorant.

The age wherein he lived was dark, but he
Could not want light who taught the world to see.

The tenth century used to be reckoned by mediæval historians as the darkest part of this intellectual night.

4. Evincing black or foul traits of character; vile; wicked; atrocious; as, a dark villain; a dark deed.

Left him at large to his own dark designs.

5. Foreboding evil; gloomy; jealous; suspicious.

More dark and dark our woes.

A deep melancholy took possesion of him, and gave a dark tinge to all his views of human nature.

There is, in every true woman-s heart, a spark of heavenly fire, which beams and blazes in the dark hour of adversity.

6. Deprived of sight; blind. [Obs.]

He was, I think, at this time quite dark, and so had been for some years.

&fist; Dark is sometimes used to qualify another adjective; as, dark blue, dark green, and sometimes it forms the first part of a compound; as, dark-haired, dark-eyed, dark-colored, dark-seated, dark-working.

A dark horse, in racing or politics, a horse or a candidate whose chances of success are not known, and whose capabilities have not been made the subject of general comment or of wagers. [Colloq.] -- Dark house, Dark room, a house or room in which madmen were confined. [Obs.] Shak. -- Dark lantern. See Lantern. -- The Dark Ages, a period of stagnation and obscurity in literature and art, lasting, according to Hallam, nearly 1000 years, from about 500 to about 1500 A. D.. See Middle Ages, under Middle. -- The Dark and Bloody Ground, a phrase applied to the State of Kentucky, and said to be the significance of its name, in allusion to the frequent wars that were waged there between Indians. -- The dark day, a day (May 19, 1780) when a remarkable and unexplained darkness extended over all New England. -- To keep dark, to reveal nothing. [Low]

Dark , n. 1. Absence of light; darkness; obscurity; a place where there is little or no light.

Here stood he in the dark, his sharp sword out.

2. The condition of ignorance; gloom; secrecy.

Look, what you do, you do it still i' th' dark.

Till we perceive by our own understandings, we are as much in the dark, and as void of knowledge, as before.

3. (Fine Arts) A dark shade or dark passage in a painting, engraving, or the like; as, the light and darks are well contrasted.

The lights may serve for a repose to the darks, and the darks to the lights.

Dark, v. t. To darken; to obscure. [Obs.] Milton.

Darken (därk'n), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Darkened (-'nd); p. pr. & vb. n. Darkening (-n&ibreve;ng).] [AS. deorcian. See Dark, a.] 1. To make dark or black; to deprive of light; to obscure; as, a darkened room.

They [locusts] covered the face of the whole earth, so that the land was darkened.

So spake the Sovran Voice; and clouds began
To darken all the hill.

2. To render dim; to deprive of vision.

Let their eyes be darkened, that they may not see.

3. To cloud, obscure, or perplex; to render less clear or intelligible.

Such was his wisdom that his confidence did seldom darkenhis foresight.

Who is this that darkeneth counsel by words without knowledge?

4. To cast a gloom upon.

With these forced thoughts, I prithee, darken not
The mirth of the feast.

5. To make foul; to sully; to tarnish.

I must not think there are
Evils enough to darken all his goodness.

Darken, v. i. To grow or darker.

Darkener , n. One who, or that which, darkens.

Darkening, n. Twilight; gloaming. [Prov. Eng. & Scot.] Wright.

Darkful , a. Full of darkness. [Obs.]

Darkish , a. Somewhat dark; dusky.

Darkle , v. i. [Freq. of dark.] To grow dark; to show indistinctly. Thackeray.

Darkling , adv. [Dark + the adverbial suffix -ling.] In the dark. [Poetic]

So, out went the candle, and we were left darkling.

As the wakeful bird
Sings darkling.

Darkling, p. pr. & a. 1. Becoming dark or gloomy; frowing.

His honest brows darkling as he looked towards me.

2. Dark; gloomy. The darkling precipice. Moore.

Darkly, adv. 1. With imperfect light, clearness, or knowledge; obscurely; dimly; blindly; uncertainly.

What fame to future times conveys but darkly down.

so softly dark and darkly pure.

2. With a dark, gloomy, cruel, or menacing look.

Looking darkly at the clerguman.

Darkness, n. 1. The absence of light; blackness; obscurity; gloom.

And darkness was upon the face of the deep.

2. A state of privacy; secrecy.

What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light.

3. A state of ignorance or error, especially on moral or religious subjects; hence, wickedness; impurity.

Men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.

Pursue these sons of darkness: drive them out
From all heaven's bounds.

4. Want of clearness or perspicuity; obscurity; as, the darkness of a subject, or of a discussion.

5. A state of distress or trouble.

A day of clouds and of thick darkness.

Prince of darkness, the Devil; Satan. In the power of the Prince of darkness. Locke.

Syn. -- Darkness, Dimness, Obscurity, Gloom. Darkness arises from a total, and dimness from a partial, want of light. A thing is obscure when so overclouded or covered as not to be easily perceived. As tha shade or obscurity increases, it deepens into gloom. What is dark is hidden from view; what is obscure is difficult to perceive or penetrate; the eye becomes dim with age; an impending storm fills the atmosphere with gloom. When taken figuratively, these words have a like use; as, the darkness of ignorance; dimness of discernment; obscurity of reasoning; gloom of superstition.

Darksome , a. Dark; gloomy; obscure; shaded; cheerless. [Poetic]

He brought him through a darksome narrow pass
To a broad gate, all built of beaten gold.

Darky , n. A negro. [Sleng]

Darling , n. [OE. derling, deorling, AS. deórling; deóre dear + -ling. See Dear, and -ling.] One dearly beloved; a favorite.

And can do naught but wail her darling's loss.

Darling, a. Dearly beloved; regarded with especial kindness and tenderness; favorite. Some darling science. I. Watts. Darling sin. Macaulay.

Darlingtonia , n. [NL. Named after Dr. William Darlington, a botanist of West Chester, Penn.] (Bot.) A genus of California pitcher plants consisting of a single species. The long tubular leaves are hooded at the top, and frequently contain many insects drowned in the secretion of the leaves.

Darn (därn), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Darned (därnd); p. pr. & vb. n. Darning.] [OE. derne, prob. of Celtic origin; cf. W. darnio to piece, break in pieces, W. & Arm. to E. tear. Cf. Tear, v. t.] To mend as a rent or hole, with interlacing stitches of yarn or thread by means of a needle; to sew together with yarn or thread.

He spent every day ten hours in his closet, in darning his stockings.

Darning last. See under Last. -- Darning needle. (a) A long, strong needle for mending holes or rents, especially in stockings. (b) (Zoöl.) Any species of dragon fly, having a long, cylindrical body, resembling a needle. These flies are harmless and without stings. [In this sense, usually written with a hyphen.] Called also devil's darning- needle.

Darn, n. A place mended by darning.

Darn, v. t. A colloquial euphemism for Damn.

Darnel , n. [OE. darnel, dernel, of uncertain origin; cf. dial. F. darnelle, Sw. dår-repe; perh. named from a supposed intoxicating quality of the plant, and akin to Sw. dåra to infatuate, OD. door foolish, G. thor fool, and Ee. dizzy.] (Bot.) Any grass of the genus Lolium, esp. the Lolium temulentum (bearded darnel), the grains of which have been reputed poisonous. Other species, as Lolium perenne (rye grass or ray grass), and its variety L. Italicum (Italian rye grass), are highly esteemed for pasture and for making hay.

&fist; Under darnel our early herbalists comprehended all kinds of cornfield weeds. Dr. Prior.

Darner , n. One who mends by darning.

{ Darnex , Darnic , } n. Same as Dornick.

Daroo (d&adot;r&oomac;), n. (Bot.) The Egyptian sycamore (Ficus Sycamorus). See Sycamore.

Darr (dăr), n. (Zoöl.) The European black tern.

{ Darraign, Darrain, } , v. t. [OF. deraisnier to explain, defend, to maintain in legal action by proof and reasonings, LL. derationare; de- + rationare to discourse, contend in law, fr. L. ratio reason, in LL., legal cause. Cf. Arraign, and see Reason.] 1. To make ready to fight; to array. [Obs.]

Darrain your battle, for they are at hand.

2. To fight out; to contest; to decide by combat. [Obs.] To darrain the battle. Chaucer .

Darrein, a. [OF. darrein, darrain, fr. an assumed LL. deretranus; L. de + retro back, backward.] (Law) Last; as, darrein continuance, the last continuance.

Dart , n. [OF. dart, of German origin; cf. OHG. tart javelin, dart, AS. dara&?;, daro&?;, Sw. dart dagger, Icel. darra&?;r dart.] 1. A pointed missile weapon, intended to be thrown by the hand; a short lance; a javelin; hence, any sharp-pointed missile weapon, as an arrow.

And he [Joab] took three darts in his hand, and thrust them through the heart of Absalom.

2. Anything resembling a dart; anything that pierces or wounds like a dart.

The artful inquiry, whose venomed dart
Scarce wounds the hearing while it stabs the heart.

3. A spear set as a prize in running. [Obs.] Chaucer.

4. (Zoöl.) A fish; the dace. See Dace.

Dart sac (Zoöl.), a sac connected with the reproductive organs of land snails, which contains a dart, or arrowlike structure.

Dart, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Darted; p. pr. & vb. n. Darting.] 1. To throw with a sudden effort or thrust, as a dart or other missile weapon; to hurl or launch.

2. To throw suddenly or rapidly; to send forth; to emit; to shoot; as, the sun darts forth his beams.

Or what ill eyes malignant glances dart?

Dart, v. i. 1. To fly or pass swiftly, as a dart.

2. To start and run with velocity; to shoot rapidly along; as, the deer darted from the thicket.

Dartars , n. [F. dartre eruption, dandruff. √240.] A kind of scab or ulceration on the skin of lambs.

Darter , n. 1. One who darts, or who throw darts; that which darts.

2. (Zoöl.) The snakebird, a water bird of the genus Plotus; -- so called because it darts out its long, snakelike neck at its prey. See Snakebird.

3. (Zoöl.) A small fresh-water etheostomoid fish. The group includes numerous genera and species, all of them American. See Etheostomoid.

Dartingly , adv. Like a dart; rapidly.

Dartle , v. t. & i. To pierce or shoot through; to dart repeatedly: -- frequentative of dart.

My star that dartles the red and the blue.

Dartoic , a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the dartos.

Dartoid , a. [Dartos + - oid.] (Anat.) Like the dartos; dartoic; as, dartoid tissue.

Dartos , n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; flayed.] (Anat.) A thin layer of peculiar contractile tissue directly beneath the skin of the scrotum.

Dartrous , a. [F. dartreux. See Dartars.] (Med.) Relating to, or partaking of the nature of, the disease called tetter; herpetic.

Dartrous diathesis, A morbid condition of the system predisposing to the development of certain skin diseases, such as eczema, psoriasis, and pityriasis. Also called rheumic diathesis, and herpetism. Piffard.

Darwinian , a. [From the name of Charles Darwin, an English scientist.] Pertaining to Darwin; as, the Darwinian theory, a theory of the manner and cause of the supposed development of living things from certain original forms or elements.

&fist; This theory was put forth by Darwin in 1859 in a work entitled The Origin of species by Means of Natural Selection. The author argues that, in the struggle for existence, those plants and creatures best fitted to the requirements of the situation in which they are placed are the ones that will live; in other words, that Nature selects those which are to survive. This is the theory of natural selection or the survival of the fittest. He also argues that natural selection is capable of modifying and producing organisms fit for their circumstances. See Development theory, under Development.

Darwinian, n. An advocate of Darwinism.

Darwinianism , n. Darwinism.

Darwinism , n. (Biol.) The theory or doctrines put forth by Darwin. See above. Huxley.

Dase (dāz), v. t. See Daze. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Dasewe , v. i. [OE. dasewen, daswen; cf. AS. dysegian to be foolish.] To become dim-sighted; to become dazed or dazzled. [Obs.] Chauscer.

Dash , v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dashed ; p. pr. & vb. n. Dashing.] [Of. Scand. origin; cf. Dan daske to beat, strike, Sw. & Icel. daska, Dan. & Sw. dask blow.] 1. To throw with violence or haste; to cause to strike violently or hastily; -- often used with against.

If you dash a stone against a stone in the botton of the water, it maketh a sound.

2. To break, as by throwing or by collision; to shatter; to crust; to frustrate; to ruin.

Thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel.

A brave vessel, . . .
Dashed all to pieces.

To perplex and dash
Maturest counsels.

3. To put to shame; to confound; to confuse; to abash; to depress. South.

Dash the proud gamester in his gilded car.

4. To throw in or on in a rapid, careless manner; to mix, reduce, or adulterate, by throwing in something of an inferior quality; to overspread partially; to bespatter; to touch here and there; as, to dash wine with water; to dash paint upon a picture.

I take care to dash the character with such particular circumstance as may prevent ill-natured applications.

The very source and fount of day
Is dashed with wandering isles of night.

5. To form or sketch rapidly or carelessly; to execute rapidly, or with careless haste; -- with off; as, to dash off a review or sermon.

6. To erase by a stroke; to strike out; knock out; -- with out; as, to dash out a word.

Dash, v. i. To rush with violence; to move impetuously; to strike violently; as, the waves dash upon rocks.

[He] dashed through thick and thin.

On each hand the gushing waters play,
And down the rough cascade all dashing fall.

Dash, n. 1. Violent striking together of two bodies; collision; crash.

2. A sudden check; abashment; frustration; ruin; as, his hopes received a dash.

3. A slight admixture, infusion, or adulteration; a partial overspreading; as, wine with a dash of water; red with a dash of purple.

Innocence when it has in it a dash of folly.

4. A rapid movement, esp. one of short duration; a quick stroke or blow; a sudden onset or rush; as, a bold dash at the enemy; a dash of rain.

She takes upon her bravely at first dash.

5. Energy in style or action; animation; spirit.

6. A vain show; a blustering parade; a flourish; as, to make or cut a great dash. [Low]

7. (Punctuation) A mark or line [--], in writing or printing, denoting a sudden break, stop, or transition in a sentence, or an abrupt change in its construction, a long or significant pause, or an unexpected or epigrammatic turn of sentiment. Dashes are also sometimes used instead of marks or parenthesis. John Wilson.

8. (Mus.) (a) The sign of staccato, a small mark [&?;] denoting that the note over which it is placed is to be performed in a short, distinct manner. (b) The line drawn through a figure in the thorough bass, as a direction to raise the interval a semitone.

9. (Racing) A short, spirited effort or trial of speed upon a race course; -- used in horse racing, when a single trial constitutes the race.

Dashboard (dăshbōrd), n. 1. A board placed on the fore part of a carriage, sleigh, or other vehicle, to intercept water, mud, or snow, thrown up by the heels of the horses; -- in England commonly called splashboard.

2. (Naut.) (a) The float of a paddle wheel. (b) A screen at the bow af a steam launch to keep off the spray; -- called also sprayboard.

Dasher (dăsh&etilde;r), n. 1. That which dashes or agitates; as, the dasher of a churn.

2. A dashboard or splashboard. [U. S.]

3. One who makes an ostentatious parade. [Low]

Dashing, a. Bold; spirited; showy.

The dashing and daring spirit is preferable to the listless.

Dashingly, adv. Conspicuously; showily. [Colloq.]

A dashingly dressed gentleman.

Dashism (-&ibreve;z'm), n. The character of making ostentatious or blustering parade or show. [R. & Colloq.]

He must fight a duel before his claim to . . . dashism can be universally allowed.

Dashpot , n. (Mach.) A pneumatic or hydraulic cushion for a falling weight, as in the valve gear of a steam engine, to prevent shock.

&fist; It consists of a chamber, containing air or a liquid, in which a piston (a), attached to the weight, falls freely until it enters a space (as below the openings, b) from which the air or liquid can escape but slowly (as through cock c), when its fall is gradually checked.

A cataract of an engine is sometimes called a dashpot.

Dashy , a. [From Dash.] Calculated to arrest attention; ostentatiously fashionable; showy. [Colloq.]

Dastard , n. [Prob. from Icel. dæstr exhausted. breathless, p. p. of dæsa to groan, lose one's breath; cf. dasask to become exhausted, and E. daze.] One who meanly shrinks from danger; an arrant coward; a poltroon.

You are all recreants and dashtards, and delight to live in slavery to the nobility.

Dastard, a. Meanly shrinking from danger; cowardly; dastardly. Their dastard souls. Addison.

Dastard, v. t. To dastardize. [R.] Dryden.

Dastardize , v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dastardized ; p. pr. & vb. n. Dastardizing.] To make cowardly; to intimidate; to dispirit; as, to dastardize my courage. Dryden.

Dastardliness , n. The quality of being dastardly; cowardice; base fear.

Dastardly, a. Meanly timid; cowardly; base; as, a dastardly outrage.

Dastardness, n. Dastardliness.

Dastardy , n. Base timidity; cowardliness.

Daswe , v. i. See Dasewe [Obs.] Chaucer.

Dasymeter , n. [Gr. dasys rough, thick + -meter.] (Physics) An instrument for testing the density of gases, consisting of a thin glass globe, which is weighed in the gas or gases, and then in an atmosphere of known density.

Dasypædal , a. (Zoöl.) Dasypædic.

Dasypædes , n. pl. [NL., from Gr. dasys hairy, shaggy + &?;, &?;, a child.] (Zoöl.) Those birds whose young are covered with down when hatched.

Dasypædic , a. (Zoöl.) Pertaining to the Dasypædes; ptilopædic.

Dasyure (dăs&ibreve;ūr), n. [Gr. dasys thick, shaggy + o'yra tail: cf. F. dasyure.] (Zoöl.) A carnivorous marsupial quadruped of Australia, belonging to the genus Dasyurus. There are several species.

Dasyurine , a. (Zoöl.) Pertaining to, or like, the dasyures.

Data , n. pl. [L. pl. of datum.] See Datum.

Datable , a. That may be dated; having a known or ascertainable date. Datable almost to a year. The Century.

Dataria , n. [LL., fr. L. datum given.] (R. C. Ch.) Formerly, a part of the Roman chancery; now, a separate office from which are sent graces or favors, cognizable in foro externo, such as appointments to benefices. The name is derived from the word datum, given or dated (with the indications of the time and place of granting the gift or favor).

Datary , n. [LL. datarius. See Dataria.] 1. (R. C. Ch.) An officer in the pope's court, having charge of the Dataria.

2. The office or employment of a datary.

Date, n.[F. datte, L. dactylus, fr. Gr. &?;, prob. not the same word as daktylos finger, but of Semitic origin.] (Bot.) The fruit of the date palm; also, the date palm itself.

&fist; This fruit is somewhat in the shape of an olive, containing a soft pulp, sweet, esculent, and wholesome, and inclosing a hard kernel.

Date palm, or Date tree (Bot.), the genus of palms which bear dates, of which common species is Phœnix dactylifera. See Illust. -- Date plum (Bot.), the fruit of several species of Diospyros, including the American and Japanese persimmons, and the European lotus (D. Lotus). -- Date shell, or Date fish (Zoöl.), a bivalve shell, or its inhabitant, of the genus Pholas, and allied genera. See Pholas.

Date , n. [F. date, LL. data, fr. L. datus given, p. p. of dare to give; akin to Gr. &?;, OSlaw. dati, Skr. dā. Cf. Datum, Dose, Dato, Die.] 1. That addition to a writing, inscription, coin, etc., which specifies the time (as day, month, and year) when the writing or inscription was given, or executed, or made; as, the date of a letter, of a will, of a deed, of a coin. etc.

And bonds without a date, they say, are void.

2. The point of time at which a transaction or event takes place, or is appointed to take place; a given point of time; epoch; as, the date of a battle.

He at once,
Down the long series of eventful time,
So fixed the dates of being, so disposed
To every living soul of every kind
The field of motion, and the hour of rest.

3. Assigned end; conclusion. [R.]

What Time would spare, from Steel receives its date.

4. Given or assigned length of life; dyration. [Obs.]

Good luck prolonged hath thy date.

Through his life's whole date.

To bear date, to have the date named on the face of it; -- said of a writing.

Date, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dated; p. pr. & vb. n. Dating.] [Cf. F. dater. See 2d Date.] 1. To note the time of writing or executing; to express in an instrument the time of its execution; as, to date a letter, a bond, a deed, or a charter.

2. To note or fix the time of, as of an event; to give the date of; as, to date the building of the pyramids.

&fist; We may say dated at or from a place.

The letter is dated at Philadephia.

You will be suprised, I don't question, to find among your correspondencies in foreign parts, a letter dated from Blois.

In the countries of his jornal seems to have been written; parts of it are dated from them.

Date, v. i. To have beginning; to begin; to be dated or reckoned; -- with from.

The Batavian republic dates from the successes of the French arms.

Dateless, a. Without date; having no fixed time.

Dater , n. One who dates.

Datiscin , n. (Chem.) A white crystalline glucoside extracted from the bastard hemp (Datisca cannabina).

Dative , a. [L. dativus appropriate to giving, fr. dare to give. See 2d Date.] 1. (Gram.) Noting the case of a noun which expresses the remoter object, and is generally indicated in English by to or for with the objective.

2. (Law) (a) In one's gift; capable of being disposed of at will and pleasure, as an office. (b) Removable, as distinguished from perpetual; -- said of an officer. (c) Given by a magistrate, as distinguished from being cast upon a party by the law. Burril. Bouvier.

Dative executor, one appointed by the judge of probate, his office answering to that of an administrator.

Dative, n. [L. dativus.] The dative case. See Dative, a., 1.

Datively, adv. As a gift. [R.]

Datolite , n. [From. Gr. &?; to divide + -lite; in allusion to the granular structure of a massive variety.] (Min.) A borosilicate of lime commonly occuring in glassy,, greenish crystals. [Written also datholite.]

Datum , n.; pl. Data (#). [L. See 2d Date.] 1. Something given or admitted; a fact or principle granted; that upon which an inference or an argument is based; -- used chiefly in the plural.

Any writer, therefore, who . . . furnishes us with data sufficient to determine the time in which he wrote.

2. pl. (Math.) The quantities or relations which are assumed to be given in any problem.

Datum line (Surv.), the horizontal or base line, from which the heights of points are reckoned or measured, as in the plan of a railway, etc.

Datura , n. [NL.; cf. Skr. dhattūra, Per. & Ar. tatūra, Tatūla.] (Bot.) A genus of solanaceous plants, with large funnel-shaped flowers and a four-celled, capsular fruit.

&fist; The commonest species are the thorn apple (D. stramonium), with a prickly capsule (see Illust. of capsule), white flowers and green stem, and D. tatula, with a purplish tinge of the stem and flowers. Both are narcotic and dangerously poisonous.

Daturine , n. [From Datura.] (Chem.) Atropine; -- called also daturia and daturina.

Daub (d&add;b), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Daubed ; p. pr. & vb. n. Daubing.] [OE. dauben to smear, OF. dauber to plaster, fr. L. dealbare to whitewash, plaster; de- + albare to whiten, fr. albus white, perh. also confused with W. dwb plaster, dwbio to plaster, Ir. & OGael. dob plaster. See Alb, and cf. Dealbate.] 1. To smear with soft, adhesive matter, as pitch, slime, mud, etc.; to plaster; to bedaub; to besmear.

She took for him an ark of bulrushes, and daubed it with slime and with pitch.

2. To paint in a coarse or unskillful manner.

If a picture is daubed with many bright and glaring colors, the vulgar admire it is an excellent piece.

A lame, imperfect piece, rudely daubed over.

3. To cover with a specious or deceitful exterior; to disguise; to conceal.

So smooth he daubed his vice with show of virtue.

4. To flatter excessively or glossy. [R.]

I can safely say, however, that, without any daubing at all,
I am very sincerely your very affectionate, humble servant.

5. To put on without taste; to deck gaudily. [R.]

Let him be daubed with lace.

Daub , v. i. To smear; to play the flatterer.

His conscience . . . will not daub nor flatter.

Daub, n. 1. A viscous, sticky application; a spot smeared or daubed; a smear.

2. (Paint.) A picture coarsely executed.

Did you . . . take a look at the grand picture? . . . 'T is a melancholy daub, my lord.

Dauber , n. 1. One who, or that which, daubs; especially, a coarse, unskillful painter.

2. (Copperplate Print.) A pad or ball of rags, covered over with canvas, for inking plates; a dabber.

3. A low and gross flatterer.

4. (Zoöl.) The mud wasp; the mud dauber.

{ Daubery , or Daubry }, n. A daubing; specious coloring; false pretenses.

She works by charms, by spells, by the figure, and such daubery as this is.

Daubing, n. 1. The act of one who daubs; that which is daubed.

2. A rough coat of mortar put upon a wall to give it the appearance of stone; rough-cast.

3. In currying, a mixture of fish oil and tallow worked into leather; -- called also dubbing. Knight.

Daubreelite , n. [From Daubrée, a French mineralogist.] (Min.) A sulphide of chromium observed in some meteoric irons.

Dauby , a. Smeary; viscous; glutinous; adhesive. Dauby wax.

Daughter , n.; pl. Daughters (#); obs. pl. Daughtren (#). [OE. doughter, doghter, dohter, AS. dohtor, dohter; akin to OS. dohtar, D. dochter, G. tochter, Icel. dōttir, Sw. dotter, Dan. dotter, datter, Goth. daúhtar,, OSlav. dŭshti, Russ. doche, Lith. duktē, Gr. qygathr, Zend. dughdhar, Skr. duhit&rsdot;; possibly originally, the milker, cf. Skr. duh to milk. √68, 245.] 1. The female offspring of the human species; a female child of any age; -- applied also to the lower animals.

2. A female descendant; a woman.

This woman, being a daughter of Abraham.

Dinah, the daughter of Leah, which she bare unto Jacob, went out to see the daughter of the land.

3. A son's wife; a daughter-in-law.

And Naomi said, Turn again, my daughters.

4. A term of address indicating parental interest.

Daughter, be of good comfort.

Daughter cell (Biol.), one of the cells formed by cell division. See Cell division, under Division.

Daughter-in-law , n.; pl. Daughters-in-law. The wife of one's son.

Daughterliness , n. The state of a daughter, or the conduct becoming a daughter.

Daughterly, a. Becoming a daughter; filial.

Sir Thomas liked her natural and dear daughterly affection towards him.

Dauk , v. t. See Dawk, v. t., to cut or gush.

Daun , n. A variant of Dan, a title of honor. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Daunt , v. t. [imp. & p. p. Daunted; p. pr. & vb. n. Daunting.] [OF. danter, F. dompter to tame, subdue, fr. L. domitare, v. intens. of domare to tame. See Tame.] 1. To overcome; to conquer. [Obs.]

2. To repress or subdue the courage of; to check by fear of danger; to cow; to intimidate; to dishearten.

Some presences daunt and discourage us.

Syn. -- To dismay; appall. See Dismay.

Daunter , n. One who daunts.

Dauntless, a. Incapable of being daunted; undaunted; bold; fearless; intrepid.

Dauntless he rose, and to the fight returned.

-- Dauntlessly, adv. -- Dauntlessness, n.

Dauphin , n. [F. dauphin, prop., a dolphin, from L. delphinus. See Dolphin. The name was given, for some reason unexplained, to Guigo, count of Vienne, in the 12th century, and was borne by succeeding counts of Vienne. In 1349, Dauphiny was bequeathed to Philippe de Valois, king of France, on condition that the heir of the crown should always hold the title of Dauphin de Viennois.] The title of the eldest son of the king of France, and heir to the crown. Since the revolution of 1830, the title has been discontinued.

{ Dauphiness , or Dauphine }, n. The title of the wife of the dauphin.

Dauw , n. [D.] (Zoöl.) The striped quagga, or Burchell's zebra, of South Africa (Asinus Burchellii); -- called also peechi, or peetsi.

Davenport , n. [From the name of the original maker. Encyc. Dict.] A kind of small writing table, generally somewhat ornamental, and forming a piece of furniture for the parlor or boudoir.

A much battered davenport in one of the windows, at which sat a lady writing.

Davidic , a. Of or pertaining to David, the king and psalmist of Israel, or to his family.

Davit , n. [Cf. F. davier forceps, davit, cooper's instrument, G. david davit; all probably from the proper name David.] (Naut.) (a) A spar formerly used on board of ships, as a crane to hoist the flukes of the anchor to the top of the bow, without injuring the sides of the ship; -- called also the fish davit. (b) pl. Curved arms of timber or iron, projecting over a ship's side of stern, having tackle to raise or lower a boat, swing it in on deck, rig it out for lowering, etc.; -- called also boat davits. Totten.

Davy Jones . The spirit of the sea; sea devil; -- a term used by sailors.

This same Davy Jones, according to the mythology of sailors, is the fiend that presides over all the evil spirits of the deep, and is seen in various shapes warning the devoted wretch of death and woe.

Davy Jones's Locker, the ocean, or bottom of the ocean. -- Gone to Davy Jones's Locker, dead, and buried in the sea; thrown overboard.

Davy lamp . See Safety lamp, under Lamp.

Davyne , n. [See Davyum.] (Min.) A variety of nephelite from Vesuvius.

Davyum , n. [Named after Sir Humphry Davy, the English chemist.] (Chem.) A rare metallic element found in platinum ore. It is a white malleable substance. Symbol Da. Atomic weight 154.

Daw (d&add;), n. [OE. dawe; akin to OHG. tāha, MHG. tāhe, tāhele, G. dohle. Cf. Caddow.] (Zoöl.) A European bird of the Crow family (Corvus monedula), often nesting in church towers and ruins; a jackdaw.

The loud daw, his throat
displaying, draws
The whole assembly of his fellow daws.

&fist; The daw was reckoned as a silly bird, and a daw meant a simpleton. See in Shakespeare: -- Then thou dwellest with daws too. (Coriolanus iv. 5, 1. 47.) Skeat.

Daw, v. i. [OE. dawen. See Dawn.] To dawn. [Obs.] See Dawn. Drayton.

Daw, v. t. [Contr. fr. Adaw.] 1. To rouse. [Obs.]

2. To daunt; to terrify. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

Dawdle (d&add;d'l), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Dawdled ; p. pr. & vb. n. Dawdling .] [Cf. Daddle.] To waste time in trifling employment; to trifle; to saunter.

Come some evening and dawdle over a dish of tea with me.

We . . . dawdle up and down Pall Mall.

Dawdle, v. t. To waste by trifling; as, to dawdle away a whole morning.

Dawdle, n. A dawdler. Colman & Carrick.

Dawdler , n. One who wastes time in trifling employments; an idler; a trifler.

Dawe , n. [See Day.] Day. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Dawish , a. Like a daw.

Dawk , n. See Dak.

Dawk, v. t. [Prov. E. dauk to cut or pierce with a jerk; cf. OE. dalk a dimple. Cf. Ir. tolch, tollachd, tolladh, a hole, crevice, toll to bore, pierce, W. tyllu.] To cut or mark with an incision; to gash. Moxon.

Dawk, n. A hollow, crack, or cut, in timber. Moxon.

Dawn , v. i. [imp. & p. p. Dawned ; p. pr. & vb. n. Dawning.] [OE. dawnen, dawen, dagen, daien, AS. dagian to become day, to dawn, fr. dæg day; akin to D. dagen, G. tagen, Icel. daga, Dan. dages, Sw. dagas. See Day. √71.] 1. To begin to grow light in the morning; to grow light; to break, or begin to appear; as, the day dawns; the morning dawns.

In the end of the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene . . . to see the sepulcher.

2. To began to give promise; to begin to appear or to expand. In dawning youth. Dryden.

When life awakes, and dawns at every line.

Dawn on our darkness and lend us thine aid.

Dawn, n. 1. The break of day; the first appearance of light in the morning; show of approaching sunrise.

And oft at dawn, deep noon, or falling eve.

No sun, no moon, no morn, no noon,
No dawn, no dusk, no proper time of day.

2. First opening or expansion; first appearance; beginning; rise. The dawn of time. Thomson.

These tender circumstances diffuse a dawn of serenity over the soul.

Dawsonite , n. [Named after J. W. Dawson of Montreal.] (Min.) A hydrous carbonate of alumina and soda, occuring in white, bladed crustals.

Day , n. [OE. day, dai,, dei, AS. dæg; akin to OS., D., Dan., & Sw. dag, G, tag, Icel. dagr, Goth. dags; cf. Skr. dah (for dhagh ?) to burn. √69. Cf. Dawn.] 1. The time of light, or interval between one night and the next; the time between sunrise and sunset, or from dawn to darkness; hence, the light; sunshine.

2. The period of the earth's revolution on its axis. -- ordinarily divided into twenty-four hours. It is measured by the interval between two successive transits of a celestial body over the same meridian, and takes a specific name from that of the body. Thus, if this is the sun, the day (the interval between two successive transits of the sun's center over the same meridian) is called a solar day; if it is a star, a sidereal day; if it is the moon, a lunar day. See Civil day, Sidereal day, below.

3. Those hours, or the daily recurring period, allotted by usage or law for work.

4. A specified time or period; time, considered with reference to the existence or prominence of a person or thing; age; time.

A man who was great among the Hellenes of his day.

If my debtors do not keep their day, . . .
I must with patience all the terms attend.

5. (Preceded by the) Some day in particular, as some day of contest, some anniversary, etc.

The field of Agincourt,
Fought on the day of Crispin Crispianus.

His name struck fear, his conduct won the day.

&fist; Day is much used in self-explaining compounds; as, daybreak, daylight, workday, etc.

Anniversary day. See Anniversary, n. -- Astronomical day, a period equal to the mean solar day, but beginning at noon instead of at midnight, its twenty-four hours being numbered from 1 to 24; also, the sidereal day, as that most used by astronomers. -- Born days. See under Born. -- Canicular days. See Dog day. -- Civil day, the mean solar day, used in the ordinary reckoning of time, and among most modern nations beginning at mean midnight; its hours are usually numbered in two series, each from 1 to 12. This is the period recognized by courts as constituting a day. The Babylonians and Hindoos began their day at sunrise, the Athenians and Jews at sunset, the ancient Egyptians and Romans at midnight. -- Day blindness. (Med.) See Nyctalopia. -- Day by day, or Day after day, daily; every day; continually; without intermission of a day. See under By. Day by day we magnify thee. Book of Common Prayer. -- Days in bank (Eng. Law), certain stated days for the return of writs and the appearance of parties; -- so called because originally peculiar to the Court of Common Bench, or Bench (bank) as it was formerly termed. Burrill. - - Day in court, a day for the appearance of parties in a suit. -- Days of devotion (R. C. Ch.), certain festivals on which devotion leads the faithful to attend mass. Shipley. -- Days of grace. See Grace. -- Days of obligation (R. C. Ch.), festival days when it is obligatory on the faithful to attend Mass. Shipley. -- Day owl, (Zoöl.), an owl that flies by day. See Hawk owl. -- Day rule (Eng. Law), an order of court (now abolished) allowing a prisoner, under certain circumstances, to go beyond the prison limits for a single day. -- Day school, one which the pupils attend only in daytime, in distinction from a boarding school. -- Day sight. (Med.) See Hemeralopia. -- Day's work (Naut.), the account or reckoning of a ship's course for twenty-four hours, from noon to noon. -- From day to day, as time passes; in the course of time; as, he improves from day to day. -- Jewish day, the time between sunset and sunset. -- Mean solar day (Astron.), the mean or average of all the apparent solar days of the year. -- One day, One of these days, at an uncertain time, usually of the future, rarely of the past; sooner or later. Well, niece, I hope to see you one day fitted with a husband. Shak. -- Only from day to day, without certainty of continuance; temporarily. Bacon. -- Sidereal day, the interval between two successive transits of the first point of Aries over the same meridian. The Sidereal day is 23 h. 56 m. 4.09 s. of mean solar time. -- To win the day, to gain the victory, to be successful. S. Butler. -- Week day, any day of the week except Sunday; a working day. -- Working day. (a) A day when work may be legally done, in distinction from Sundays and legal holidays. (b) The number of hours, determined by law or custom, during which a workman, hired at a stated price per day, must work to be entitled to a day's pay.

Dayaks (dīăks), n. pl. (Ethnol.) See Dyaks.

Daybook (dāb&oocr;k), n. A journal of accounts; a primary record book in which are recorded the debts and credits, or accounts of the day, in their order, and from which they are transferred to the journal.

Daybreak (dābrāk), n. The time of the first appearance of light in the morning.

Day-coal (dākōl), n. (Mining) The upper stratum of coal, as nearest the light or surface.

Daydream (-drēm), n. A vain fancy speculation; a reverie; a castle in the air; unfounded hope.

Mrs. Lambert's little daydream was over.

Daydreamer , n. One given to daydreams.

Dayflower (-flou&etilde;r), n. (Bot.) A genus consisting mostly of tropical perennial herbs (Commelina), having ephemeral flowers.

Dayfly (dāflī), n. (Zoöl.) A neuropterous insect of the genus Ephemera and related genera, of many species, and inhabiting fresh water in the larval state; the ephemeral fly; -- so called because it commonly lives but one day in the winged or adult state. See Ephemeral fly, under Ephemeral.

Day-labor , n. Labor hired or performed by the day. Milton.

Day-laborer , n. One who works by the day; -- usually applied to a farm laborer, or to a workman who does not work at any particular trade. Goldsmith.

Daylight (-līt), n. 1. The light of day as opposed to the darkness of night; the light of the sun, as opposed to that of the moon or to artificial light.

2. pl. The eyes. [Prov. Eng.] Wright.

Day lily (l&ibreve;l&ybreve;). (Bot.) (a) A genus of plants (Hemerocallis) closely resembling true lilies, but having tuberous rootstocks instead of bulbs. The common species have long narrow leaves and either yellow or tawny-orange flowers. (b) A genus of plants (Funkia) differing from the last in having ovate veiny leaves, and large white or blue flowers.

Daymaid (-m&amc;d), n. A dairymaid. [Obs.]

Daymare (dāmâr), n. [Day + mare incubus.] (Med.) A kind of incubus which occurs during wakefulness, attended by the peculiar pressure on the chest which characterizes nightmare. Dunglison.

Day-net (-n&ebreve;t), n. A net for catching small birds.

Day-peep (-pēp), n. The dawn. [Poetic] Milton.

Daysman (dāzmăn), n. [From day in the sense of day fixed for trial.] An umpire or arbiter; a mediator.

Neither is there any daysman betwixt us.

Dayspring (dāspr&ibreve;ng), n. The beginning of the day, or first appearance of light; the dawn; hence, the beginning. Milton.

The tender mercy of our God; whereby the dayspring from on high hath visited us.

Day-star (-stär), n. 1. The morning star; the star which ushers in the day.

A dark place, until the day dawn, and the day- star arise in your hearts.

2. The sun, as the orb of day. [Poetic]

So sinks the day-star in the ocean bed,
And yet anon repairs his drooping head,
And tricks his beams, and with new-spangled ore
Flames in the forehead of the morning sky.

Daytime (-tīm), n. The time during which there is daylight, as distinguished from the night.

Daywoman (-w&oocr;man), n. A dairymaid. [Obs.]

Daze (dāz), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dazed (dāzd); p. pr. & vb. n. Dazing.] [OE. dasen, prob. from Icel. dasask to become weary, a reflexive verb; cf. Sw. dasa to lie idle, and OD. daesen to be foolish, insane, daes, dwaes, D. dwaas, foolish, insane, AS. dw&aemacr;s, dysig, stupid. √71. Cf. Dizzy, Doze.] To stupefy with excess of light; with a blow, with cold, or with fear; to confuse; to benumb.

While flashing beams do daze his feeble eyen.

Such souls,
Whose sudden visitations daze the world.

He comes out of the room in a dazed state, that is an odd though a sufficient substitute for interest.

Daze, n. 1. The state of being dazed; as, he was in a daze. [Colloq.]

2. (Mining) A glittering stone.

Dazzle , v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dazzled ; p. pr. & vb. n. Dazzling .] [Freq. of daze.] 1. To overpower with light; to confuse the sight of by brilliance of light.

Those heavenly shapes
Will dazzle now the earthly, with their blaze
Insufferably bright.

An unreflected light did never yet
Dazzle the vision feminine.

2. To bewilder or surprise with brilliancy or display of any kind. Dazzled and drove back his enemies. Shak.

Dazzle, v. i. 1. To be overpoweringly or intensely bright; to excite admiration by brilliancy.

Ah, friend! to dazzle, let the vain design.

2. To be overpowered by light; to be confused by excess of brightness.

An overlight maketh the eyes dazzle.

I dare not trust these eyes;
They dance in mists, and dazzle with surprise.

Dazzle, n. A light of dazzling brilliancy.

Dazzlement , n. Dazzling flash, glare, or burst of light. Donne.

Dazzlingly , adv. In a dazzling manner.

De- . A prefix from Latin de down, from, away; as in debark, decline, decease, deduct, decamp. In words from the French it is equivalent to Latin dis- apart, away; or sometimes to de. Cf. Dis-. It is negative and opposite in derange, deform, destroy, etc. It is intensive in deprave, despoil, declare, desolate, etc.

Deacon (dēk'n), n. [OE. diakne, deakne, deken, AS. diacon, deacon, L. diaconus, fr. Gr. &?; a servant or minister, a minister of the church; of uncertain origin. In sense 2 prob. confused with dean.] 1. (Eccl.) An officer in Christian churches appointed to perform certain subordinate duties varying in different communions. In the Roman Catholic and Episcopal churches, a person admitted to the lowest order in the ministry, subordinate to the bishops and priests. In Presbyterian churches, he is subordinate to the minister and elders, and has charge of certain duties connected with the communion service and the care of the poor. In Congregational churches, he is subordinate to the pastor, and has duties as in the Presbyterian church.

2. The chairman of an incorporated company. [Scot.]

Deacon , v. t. To read aloud each line of (a psalm or hymn) before singing it, -- usually with off. [Colloq. New. Eng.] See Line, v. t.

&fist; The expression is derived from a former custom in the Congregational churches of New England. It was part of the office of a deacon to read aloud the psalm given out, one line at a time, the congregation singing each line as soon as read; -- called, also, lining out the psalm.

Deaconess , n. (Eccl.) A female deacon; as: (a) (Primitive Ch.) One of an order of women whose duties resembled those of deacons. (b) (Ch. of Eng. and Prot. Epis. Ch.) A woman set apart for church work by a bishop. (c) A woman chosen as a helper in church work, as among the Congregationalists.

Deaconhood , n. The state of being a deacon; office of a deacon; deaconship.

Deaconry , n. See Deaconship.

Deaconship, n. The office or ministry of a deacon or deaconess.

Dead (d&ebreve;d), a. [OE. ded, dead, deed, AS. deád; akin to OS. dōd, D. dood, G. todt, tot, Icel. dauðr, Sw. & Dan. död, Goth. daubs; prop. p. p. of an old verb meaning to die. See Die, and cf. Death.] 1. Deprived of life; -- opposed to alive and living; reduced to that state of a being in which the organs of motion and life have irrevocably ceased to perform their functions; as, a dead tree; a dead man. The queen, my lord, is dead. Shak.

The crew, all except himself, were dead of hunger.

Seek him with candle, bring him dead or living.

2. Destitute of life; inanimate; as, dead matter.

3. Resembling death in appearance or quality; without show of life; deathlike; as, a dead sleep.

4. Still as death; motionless; inactive; useless; as, dead calm; a dead load or weight.

5. So constructed as not to transmit sound; soundless; as, a dead floor.

6. Unproductive; bringing no gain; unprofitable; as, dead capital; dead stock in trade.

7. Lacking spirit; dull; lusterless; cheerless; as, dead eye; dead fire; dead color, etc.

8. Monotonous or unvaried; as, a dead level or pain; a dead wall. The ground is a dead flat. C. Reade.

9. Sure as death; unerring; fixed; complete; as, a dead shot; a dead certainty.

I had them a dead bargain.

Dead ahead (Naut.), directly ahead; - - said of a ship or any object, esp. of the wind when blowing from that point toward which a vessel would go. -- Dead angle (Mil.), an angle or space which can not be seen or defended from behind the parapet. -- Dead block, either of two wooden or iron blocks intended to serve instead of buffers at the end of a freight car. -- Dead calm (Naut.), no wind at all. -- Dead center, or Dead point (Mach.), either of two points in the orbit of a crank, at which the crank and connecting rod lie a straight line. It corresponds to the end of a stroke; as, A and B are dead centers of the crank mechanism in which the crank C drives, or is driven by, the lever L. -- Dead color (Paint.), a color which has no gloss upon it. -- Dead coloring (Oil paint.), the layer of colors, the preparation for what is to follow. In modern painting this is usually in monochrome. -- Dead door (Shipbuilding), a storm shutter fitted to the outside of the quarter-gallery door. -- Dead flat (Naut.), the widest or midship frame. -- Dead freight (Mar. Law), a sum of money paid by a person who charters a whole vessel but fails to make out a full cargo. The payment is made for the unoccupied capacity. Abbott. -- Dead ground (Mining), the portion of a vein in which there is no ore. -- Dead hand, a hand that can not alienate, as of a person civilly dead. Serfs held in dead hand. Morley. See Mortmain. -- Dead head (Naut.), a rough block of wood used as an anchor buoy. -- Dead heat, a heat or course between two or more race horses, boats, etc., in which they come out exactly equal, so that neither wins. -- Dead horse, an expression applied to a debt for wages paid in advance. [Law] -- Dead language, a language which is no longer spoken or in common use by a people, and is known only in writings, as the Hebrew, Greek, and Latin. -- Dead letter. (a) A letter which, after lying for a certain fixed time uncalled for at the post office to which it was directed, is then sent to the general post office to be opened. (b) That which has lost its force or authority; as, the law has become a dead letter. -- Dead-letter office, a department of the general post office where dead letters are examined and disposed of. -- Dead level, a term applied to a flat country. -- Dead lift, a direct lift, without assistance from mechanical advantage, as from levers, pulleys, etc.; hence, an extreme emergency. (As we say) at a dead lift. Robynson (More's Utopia). -- Dead line (Mil.), a line drawn within or around a military prison, to cross which involves for a prisoner the penalty of being instantly shot. -- Dead load (Civil Engin.), a constant, motionless load, as the weight of a structure, in distinction from a moving load, as a train of cars, or a variable pressure, as of wind. -- Dead march (Mus.), a piece of solemn music intended to be played as an accompaniment to a funeral procession. -- Dead nettle (Bot.), a harmless plant with leaves like a nettle (Lamium album). -- Dead oil (Chem.), the heavy oil obtained in the distillation of coal tar, and containing phenol, naphthalus, etc. -- Dead plate (Mach.), a solid covering over a part of a fire grate, to prevent the entrance of air through that part. -- Dead pledge, a mortgage. See Mortgage. -- Dead point. (Mach.) See Dead center. -- Dead reckoning (Naut.), the method of determining the place of a ship from a record kept of the courses sailed as given by compass, and the distance made on each course as found by log, with allowance for leeway, etc., without the aid of celestial observations. -- Dead rise, the transverse upward curvature of a vessel's floor. -- Dead rising, an elliptical line drawn on the sheer plan to determine the sweep of the floorheads throughout the ship's length. -- Dead-Sea apple. See under Apple. -- Dead set. See under Set. -- Dead shot. (a) An unerring marksman. (b) A shot certain to be made. -- Dead smooth, the finest cut made; -- said of files. -- Dead wall (Arch.), a blank wall unbroken by windows or other openings. -- Dead water (Naut.), the eddy water closing in under a ship's stern when sailing. -- Dead weight. (a) A heavy or oppressive burden. Dryden. (b) (Shipping) A ship's lading, when it consists of heavy goods; or, the heaviest part of a ship's cargo. (c) (Railroad) The weight of rolling stock, the live weight being the load. Knight. -- Dead wind (Naut.), a wind directly ahead, or opposed to the ship's course. -- To be dead, to die. [Obs.]

I deme thee, thou must algate be dead.

Syn. -- Inanimate; deceased; extinct. See Lifeless.

Dead , adv. To a degree resembling death; to the last degree; completely; wholly. [Colloq.]

I was tired of reading, and dead sleepy.

Dead drunk, so drunk as to be unconscious.

Dead (d&ebreve;d), n. 1. The most quiet or deathlike time; the period of profoundest repose, inertness, or gloom; as, the dead of winter.

When the drum beat at dead of night.

2. One who is dead; -- commonly used collectively.

And Abraham stood up from before his dead.

Dead, v. t. To make dead; to deaden; to deprive of life, force, or vigor. [Obs.]

Heaven's stern decree,
With many an ill, hath numbed and deaded me.

Dead, v. i. To die; to lose life or force. [Obs.]

So iron, as soon as it is out of the fire, deadeth straightway.

Dead beat . See Beat, n., 7. [Low, U.S.]

Deadbeat , a. (Physics) Making a beat without recoil; giving indications by a single beat or excursion; -- said of galvanometers and other instruments in which the needle or index moves to the extent of its deflection and stops with little or no further oscillation.

Deadbeat escapement. See under Escapement.

Deadborn , a. Stillborn. Pope.

Deaden (d&ebreve;d'n), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Deadened (-'nd); p. pr. & vb. n. Deadening.] [From Dead; cf. AS. d&?;dan to kill, put to death. See Dead, a.] 1. To make as dead; to impair in vigor, force, activity, or sensation; to lessen the force or acuteness of; to blunt; as, to deaden the natural powers or feelings; to deaden a sound.

As harper lays his open palm
Upon his harp, to deaden its vibrations.

2. To lessen the velocity or momentum of; to retard; as, to deaden a ship's headway.

3. To make vapid or spiritless; as, to deaden wine.

4. To deprive of gloss or brilliancy; to obscure; as, to deaden gilding by a coat of size.

Deadener (d&ebreve;d'n&etilde;r), n. One who, or that which, deadens or checks.

Dead-eye (d&ebreve;dī), n. (Naut.) A round, flattish, wooden block, encircled by a rope, or an iron band, and pierced with three holes to receive the lanyard; -- used to extend the shrouds and stays, and for other purposes. Called also deadman's eye. Totten.

Deadhead , n. 1. One who receives free tickets for theaters, public conveyances, etc. [Colloq. U. S.]

2. (Naut.) A buoy. See under Dead, a.

Dead-hearted , a. Having a dull, faint heart; spiritless; listless. -- Dead- heartedness, n. Bp. Hall.

Deadhouse , n. A morgue; a place for the temporary reception and exposure of dead bodies.

Deadish, a. Somewhat dead, dull, or lifeless; deathlike.

The lips put on a deadish paleness.

Deadlatch , n. A kind of latch whose bolt may be so locked by a detent that it can not be opened from the inside by the handle, or from the outside by the latch key. Knight.

Deadlight , n. (Naut.) A strong shutter, made to fit open ports and keep out water in a storm.

Deadlihood , n. State of the dead. [Obs.]

Deadliness, n. The quality of being deadly.

Deadlock , n. 1. A lock which is not self-latching, but requires a key to throw the bolt forward.

2. A counteraction of things, which produces an entire stoppage; a complete obstruction of action.

Things are at a deadlock.

The Board is much more likely to be at a deadlock of two to two.

Deadly , a. 1. Capable of causing death; mortal; fatal; destructive; certain or likely to cause death; as, a deadly blow or wound.

2. Aiming or willing to destroy; implacable; desperately hostile; flagitious; as, deadly enemies.

Thy assailant is quick, skillful, and deadly.

3. Subject to death; mortal. [Obs.]

The image of a deadly man.

Deadly nightshade (Bot.), a poisonous plant; belladonna. See under Nightshade.

Deadly, adv. 1. In a manner resembling, or as if produced by, death. Deadly pale. Shak.

2. In a manner to occasion death; mortally.

The groanings of a deadly wounded man.

3. In an implacable manner; destructively.

4. Extremely. [Obs.] Deadly weary. Orrery. So deadly cunning a man. Arbuthnot.

Deadness, n. The state of being destitute of life, vigor, spirit, activity, etc.; dullness; inertness; languor; coldness; vapidness; indifference; as, the deadness of a limb, a body, or a tree; the deadness of an eye; deadness of the affections; the deadness of beer or cider; deadness to the world, and the like.

Dead-pay , n. Pay drawn for soldiers, or others, really dead, whose names are kept on the rolls.

O you commanders,
That, like me, have no dead-pays.

Dead-reckoning , n. (Naut.) See under Dead, a.

Deads , n. pl. (Mining) The substances which inclose the ore on every side.

Dead-stroke , a. (Mech.) Making a stroke without recoil; deadbeat.

Dead-stroke hammer (Mach.), a power hammer having a spring interposed between the driving mechanism and the hammer head, or helve, to lessen the recoil of the hammer and reduce the shock upon the mechanism.

Deadwood , n. 1. (Naut.) A mass of timbers built into the bow and stern of a vessel to give solidity.

2. Dead trees or branches; useless material.

Deadworks , n. pl. (Naut.) The parts of a ship above the water when she is laden.

Deaf (?; 277), a. [OE. def, deaf, deef, AS. deáf; akin to D. doof, G. taub, Icel. daufr, Dan. döv, Sw. döf, Goth. daubs, and prob. to E. dumb (the original sense being, dull as applied to one of the senses), and perh. to Gr. &?; (for &?;) blind, &?; smoke, vapor, folly, and to G. toben to rage. Cf. Dumb.] 1. Wanting the sense of hearing, either wholly or in part; unable to perceive sounds; hard of hearing; as, a deaf man.

Come on my right hand, for this ear is deaf.

2. Unwilling to hear or listen; determinedly inattentive; regardless; not to be persuaded as to facts, argument, or exhortation; -- with to; as, deaf to reason.

O, that men's ears should be
To counsel deaf, but not to flattery!

3. Deprived of the power of hearing; deafened.

Deaf with the noise, I took my hasty flight.

4. Obscurely heard; stifled; deadened. [R.]

A deaf murmur through the squadron went.

5. Decayed; tasteless; dead; as, a deaf nut; deaf corn. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

If the season be unkindly and intemperate, they [peppers] will catch a blast; and then the seeds will be deaf, void, light, and naught.

Deaf and dumb, without the sense of hearing or the faculty of speech. See Deaf-mute.

Deaf (?; 277), v. t. To deafen. [Obs.] Dryden.

Deafen , v. t. [imp. & p. p. Deafened ; p. pr. & vb. n. Deafening.] [From Deaf.] 1. To make deaf; to deprive of the power of hearing; to render incapable of perceiving sounds distinctly.

Deafened and stunned with their promiscuous cries.

2. (Arch.) To render impervious to sound, as a partition or floor, by filling the space within with mortar, by lining with paper, etc.

Deafening, n. The act or process of rendering impervious to sound, as a floor or wall; also, the material with which the spaces are filled in this process; pugging.

Deafly, adv. Without sense of sounds; obscurely.

Deafly, a. Lonely; solitary. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

Deaf-mute , n. A person who is deaf and dumb; one who, through deprivation or defect of hearing, has either failed the acquire the power of speech, or has lost it. [See Illust. of Dactylology.]

Deaf-mutes are still so called, even when, by artificial methods, they have been taught to speak imperfectly.

Deaf-mutism , n. The condition of being a deaf-mute.

Deafness , n. 1. Incapacity of perceiving sounds; the state of the organs which prevents the impression which constitute hearing; want of the sense of hearing.

2. Unwillingness to hear; voluntary rejection of what is addressed to the understanding.

Nervous deafness, a variety of deafness dependent upon morbid change in some portion of the nervous system, especially the auditory nerve.

Deal (dēl), n. [OE. del, deel, part, AS. d&aemacr;l; akin to OS. dēl, D. & Dan. deel, G. theil, teil, Icel. deild, Sw. del, Goth. dails. √65. Cf. 3d Dole.] 1. A part or portion; a share; hence, an indefinite quantity, degree, or extent, degree, or extent; as, a deal of time and trouble; a deal of cold.

Three tenth deals [parts of an ephah] of flour.

As an object of science it [the Celtic genius] may count for a good deal . . . as a spiritual power.

She was resolved to be a good deal more circumspect.

&fist; It was formerly limited by some, every, never a, a thousand, etc.; as, some deal; but these are now obsolete or vulgar. In general, we now qualify the word with great or good, and often use it adverbially, by being understood; as, a great deal of time and pains; a great (or good) deal better or worse; that is, better by a great deal, or by a great part or difference.

2. The process of dealing cards to the players; also, the portion disturbed.

The deal, the shuffle, and the cut.

3. Distribution; apportionment. [Colloq.]

4. An arrangement to attain a desired result by a combination of interested parties; -- applied to stock speculations and political bargains. [Slang]

5. [Prob. from D. deel a plank, threshing floor. See Thill.] The division of a piece of timber made by sawing; a board or plank; particularly, a board or plank of fir or pine above seven inches in width, and exceeding six feet in length. If narrower than this, it is called a batten; if shorter, a deal end.

&fist; Whole deal is a general term for planking one and one half inches thick.

6. Wood of the pine or fir; as, a floor of deal.

Deal tree, a fir tree. Dr. Prior.

Deal, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dealt (d&ebreve;lt); p. pr. & vb. n. Dealing.] [OE. delen, AS. d&aemacr;lan, fr. d&aemacr;l share; akin to OS. dēlian, D. deelen, G. theilen, teilen, Icel. deila, Sw. dela, Dan. dele, Goth. dailjan. See Deal, n.] 1. To divide; to separate in portions; hence, to give in portions; to distribute; to bestow successively; -- sometimes with out.

Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry?

And Rome deals out her blessings and her gold.

The nightly mallet deals resounding blows.

Hissing through the skies, the feathery deaths were dealt.

2. Specifically: To distribute, as cards, to the players at the commencement of a game; as, to deal the cards; to deal one a jack.

Deal, v. i. 1. To make distribution; to share out in portions, as cards to the players.

2. To do a distributing or retailing business, as distinguished from that of a manufacturer or producer; to traffic; to trade; to do business; as, he deals in flour.

They buy and sell, they deal and traffic.

This is to drive to wholesale trade, when all other petty merchants deal but for parcels.

3. To act as an intermediary in business or any affairs; to manage; to make arrangements; -- followed by between or with.

Sometimes he that deals between man and man, raiseth his own credit with both, by pretending greater interest than he hath in either.

4. To conduct one's self; to behave or act in any affair or towards any one; to treat.

If he will deal clearly and impartially, . . . he will acknowledge all this to be true.

5. To contend (with); to treat (with), by way of opposition, check, or correction; as, he has turbulent passions to deal with.

To deal by, to treat, either well or ill; as, to deal well by servants. Such an one deals not fairly by his own mind. Locke. -- To deal in. (a) To have to do with; to be engaged in; to practice; as, they deal in political matters. (b) To buy and sell; to furnish, as a retailer or wholesaler; as, they deal in fish. -- To deal with. (a) To treat in any manner; to use, whether well or ill; to have to do with; specifically, to trade with. Dealing with witches. Shak. (b) To reprove solemnly; to expostulate with.

The deacons of his church, who, to use their own phrase, dealt with him on the sin of rejecting the aid which Providence so manifestly held out.

Return . . . and I will deal well with thee.

Dealbate , v. t. [L. dealbatus, p. p. of dealbare. See Daub.] To whiten. [Obs.] Cockeram.

Dealbation , n. [L. dealbatio: cf. F. déalbation.] Act of bleaching; a whitening. [Obs.]

Dealer , n. 1. One who deals; one who has to do, or has concern, with others; esp., a trader, a trafficker, a shopkeeper, a broker, or a merchant; as, a dealer in dry goods; a dealer in stocks; a retail dealer.

2. One who distributes cards to the players.

Dealfish , n. [From deal a long, narrow plank.] (Zoöl.) A long, thin fish of the arctic seas (Trachypterus arcticus).

Dealing, n. The act of one who deals; distribution of anything, as of cards to the players; method of business; traffic; intercourse; transaction; as, to have dealings with a person.

Double dealing, insincere, treacherous dealing; duplicity. -- Plain dealing, fair, sincere, honorable dealing; honest, outspoken expression of opinion.

Dealth , n. Share dealt. [Obs.]

Deambulate , v. i. [L. deambulare, deambulatum; de- + ambulare to walk.] To walk abroad. [Obs.] Cockeram.

Deambulation , n. [L. deambulatio.] A walking abroad; a promenading. [Obs.] Sir T. Elyot.

Deambulatory , a. [Cf. LL. deambulator a traveler.] Going about from place to place; wandering; of or pertaining to a deambulatory. [Obs.] Deambulatory actors. Bp. Morton.

Deambulatory, n. [L. deambulatorium.] A covered place in which to walk; an ambulatory.

Dean , n. [OE. dene, deene, OF. deien, dien, F. doyen, eldest of a corporation, a dean, L. decanus the chief of ten, one set over ten persons, e. g., over soldiers or over monks, from decem ten. See Ten, and cf. Decemvir.] 1. A dignitary or presiding officer in certain ecclesiastical and lay bodies; esp., an ecclesiastical dignitary, subordinate to a bishop.

Dean of cathedral church, the chief officer of a chapter; he is an ecclesiastical magistrate next in degree to bishop, and has immediate charge of the cathedral and its estates. -- Dean of peculiars, a dean holding a preferment which has some peculiarity relative to spiritual superiors and the jurisdiction exercised in it. [Eng.] -- Rural dean, one having, under the bishop, the especial care and inspection of the clergy within certain parishes or districts of the diocese.

2. The collegiate officer in the universities of Oxford and Cambridge, England, who, besides other duties, has regard to the moral condition of the college. Shipley.

3. The head or presiding officer in the faculty of some colleges or universities.

4. A registrar or secretary of the faculty in a department of a college, as in a medical, or theological, or scientific department. [U.S.]

5. The chief or senior of a company on occasion of ceremony; as, the dean of the diplomatic corps; -- so called by courtesy.

Cardinal dean, the senior cardinal bishop of the college of cardinals at Rome. Shipley. -- Dean and chapter, the legal corporation and governing body of a cathedral. It consists of the dean, who is chief, and his canons or prebendaries. -- Dean of arches, the lay judge of the court of arches. -- Dean of faculty, the president of an incorporation or barristers; specifically, the president of the incorporation of advocates in Edinburgh. -- Dean of guild, a magistrate of Scotch burghs, formerly, and still, in some burghs, chosen by the Guildry, whose duty is to superintend the erection of new buildings and see that they conform to the law. -- Dean of a monastery, Monastic dean, a monastic superior over ten monks. -- Dean's stall. See Decanal stall, under Decanal.

Deanery , n.; pl. Deaneries (&?;). 1. The office or the revenue of a dean. See the Note under Benefice, n., 3.

2. The residence of a dean. Shak.

3. The territorial jurisdiction of a dean.

Each archdeaconry is divided into rural deaneries, and each deanery is divided into parishes.

Deanship, n. The office of a dean.

I dont't value your deanship a straw.

Dear (dēr), a. [Compar. Dearer (-&etilde;r); superl. Dearest (-&ebreve;st).] [OE. dere, deore, AS. deóre; akin to OS. diuri, D. duur, OHG. tiuri, G. theuer, teuer, Icel. d&ymacr;rr, Dan. & Sw. dyr. Cf. Darling, Dearth.] 1. Bearing a high price; high-priced; costly; expensive.

The cheapest of us is ten groats too dear.

2. Marked by scarcity or dearth, and exorbitance of price; as, a dear year.

3. Highly valued; greatly beloved; cherished; precious. Hear me, dear lady. Shak.

Neither count I my life dear unto myself.

And the last joy was dearer than the rest.

Dear as remember'd kisses after death.

4. Hence, close to the heart; heartfelt; present in mind; engaging the attention. (a) Of agreeable things and interests.

[I'll] leave you to attend him: some dear cause
Will in concealment wrap me up awhile.

His dearest wish was to escape from the bustle and glitter of Whitehall.

(b) Of disagreeable things and antipathies.

In our dear peril.

Would I had met my dearest foe in heaven
Or ever I had seen that day.

Dear, n. A dear one; lover; sweetheart.

That kiss I carried from thee, dear.

Dear, adv. Dearly; at a high price.

If thou attempt it, it will cost thee dear.

Dear, v. t. To endear. [Obs.] Shelton.

Dearborn , n. A four-wheeled carriage, with curtained sides.

Dear-bought , a. Bought at a high price; as, dear-bought experience.

Deare , variant of Dere, v. t. & n. [Obs.]

Dearie , n. Same as Deary. Dickens.

Dearling , n. A darling. [Obs.] Spenser.

Dear-loved , a. Greatly beloved. Shak.

Dearly, adv. 1. In a dear manner; with affection; heartily; earnestly; as, to love one dearly.

2. At a high rate or price; grievously.

He buys his mistress dearly with his throne.

3. Exquisitely. [Obs.] Shak.

Dearn , a. [AS. derne, dyrne, dierne, hidden, secret. Cf. Derne.] Secret; lonely; solitary; dreadful. [Obs.] Shak. -- Dearnly, adv. [Obs.] Chaucer.