La, n. (Mus.) (a) A syllable applied to the sixth tone of the scale in music in solmization. (b) The tone A; — so called among the French and Italians.

La, interj. [Cf. Lo.]
1. Look; see; behold; — sometimes followed by you. [Obs.] Shak.
2. An exclamation of surprise; — commonly followed by me; as La me! [Low]

Labadist
Lab´a•dist, n. (Eccl. Hist.) A follower of Jean de Labadie, a religious teacher of the 17th century, who left the Roman Catholic Church and taught a kind of mysticism, and the obligation of community of property among Christians.

Labarraque’s solution
La•bar•raque’s" so•lu"tion [From Labarraque, a Parisian apothecary.] (Med.) An aqueous solution of hypochlorite of sodium, extensively used as a disinfectant.

Labarum
Lab´a•rum, n. ; pl. Labara (#). [L.] The standard adopted by the Emperor Constantine after his conversion to Christianity. It is described as a pike bearing a silk banner hanging from a crosspiece, and surmounted by a golden crown. It bore a monogram of the first two letters (CHR) of the name of Christ in its Greek form. Later, the name was given to various modifications of this standard.

Labdanum
Lab´da•num, n. (Bot.) See Ladanum.

Label
La´bel (la"bel), n. [OF. label sort of ribbon or fringe, label in heraldry, F. lambeau shred, strip, rag; of uncertain origin; cf. L. labellum, dim. of labrum lip, edge, margin, G. lappen flap, patch, rag, tatter (cf. Lap of a dress), W. llab, llabed, label, flap, Gael. leab, leob, slice, shred, hanging lip.]
1. A tassel. [Obs.] Huloet. Fuller.
2. A slip of silk, paper, parchment, etc., affixed to anything, and indicating, usually by an inscription, the contents, ownership, destination, etc.; as the label of a bottle or a package.
3. A slip of ribbon, parchment, etc., attached to a document to hold the appended seal; also the seal.
4. A writing annexed by way of addition, as a codicil added to a will.
5. (Her.) A barrulet, or, rarely, a bendlet, with pendants, or points, usually three, especially used as a mark of cadency to distinguish an eldest or only son while his father is still living.
6. A brass rule with sights, formerly used, in connection with a circumferentor, to take altitudes. Knight.
7. (Gothic Arch.) The name now generally given to the projecting molding by the sides, and over the tops, of openings in mediaeval architecture. It always has a square form, as in the illustration. Arch. Pub. Soc.
8. In mediaeval art, the representation of a band or scroll containing an inscription. Fairholt.

Label
La´bel, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Labeled (-beld) or Labelled; p. pr. & vb. n. Labeling or Labelling.]
1. To affix a label to; to mark with a name, etc.; as to label a bottle or a package.
2. To affix in or on a label. [R.]

Labellum
La•bel´lum (la•bel"lum), n. ; pl. L. Labella (- la), E. Labellums (-lumz). [L., dim. of labrum lip.]
1. (Bot.) The lower or apparently anterior petal of an orchidaceous flower, often of a very curious shape.
2. (Zoöl.) A small appendage beneath the upper lip or labrum of certain insects.

Labent
La´bent, a. [L. labens, p. pr. of labi to slide, glide.] Slipping; sliding; gliding. [R.]

Labia
La´bi•a, n. pl. See Labium.

Labialism
La´bi•al•ism, n. (Phonetics) The quality of being labial; as the labialism of an articulation; conversion into a labial, as of a sound which is different in another language. J. Peile.

Labialization
La•bi•al•i•za´tion, n. (Phonetics) The modification of an articulation by contraction of the lip opening.

Labialize
La´bi•al•ize, v. t. (Phonetics) To modify by contraction of the lip opening.

Labially
La´bi•al•ly, adv. In a labial manner; with, or by means of, the lips.

Labiate
La´bi•ate, v. t. To labialize. Brewer.

Labiate
La´bi•ate, a. [NL. labiatus, fr. L. labium lip.] (Bot.) (a) Having the limb of a tubular corolla or calyx divided into two unequal parts, one projecting over the other like the lips of a mouth, as in the snapdragon, sage, and catnip. (b) Belonging to a natural order of plants ( Labiatae), of which the mint, sage, and catnip are examples. They are mostly aromatic herbs.

Labiate
La´bi•ate, n. (Bot.) A plant of the order Labiatae.

Labiated
La´bi•a•ted, a. (Bot.) Same as Labiate, a. (a). { La•bi•a•ti•flo´ral, La•bi•a•ti•flo´ral } a. [ Labiate + L. flos, floris, flower.] (Bot.) Having labiate flowers, as the snapdragon.

Labile
La´bile, a. [L. labilis apt to slip, fr. labi to slip.] Liable to slip, err, fall, or apostatize. [Obs.] Cheyne.

Lability
La•bil´i•ty, n. Liability to lapse, err, or apostatize. [Archaic] Coleridge.

Labimeter
La•bim´e•ter, n. [Cf. F. labimetre.] (Med.) See Labidometer.

Labionasal
La•bi•o•na´sal, a. [ Labium + nasal.] (Phonetics) Formed by the lips and the nose. — n. A labionasal sound or letter.

Labioplasty
La´bi•o•plas•ty (la"bi•o•plas•ty), n. [ Labium + -plasty.] (Surg.) A plastic operation for making a new lip, or for replacing a lost tissue of a lip.

Labiose
La´bi•ose, a. [From Labium.] (Bot.) Having the appearance of being labiate; — said of certain polypetalous corollas.

Labipalpus
La•bi•pal´pus, n. ; pl. Labipalpi . [NL. See Labium, and Palpus.] (Zoöl.) One of the labial palpi of an insect. See Illust. under Labium.

Lablab
Lab´lab (lab"lab), n. (Bot.) an East Indian name for several twining leguminous plants related to the bean, but commonly applied to the hyacinth bean ( Dolichos Lablab).

Labor
La´bor (la"ber), n. [OE. labour, OF. labour, laber, labur, F. labeur, L. labor; cf. Gr. lamba•nein to take, Skr. labh to get, seize.] [Written also labour.]
1. Physical toil or bodily exertion, especially when fatiguing, irksome, or unavoidable, in distinction from sportive exercise; hard, muscular effort directed to some useful end, as agriculture, manufactures, and like; servile toil; exertion; work.
"God hath set Labor and rest, as day and night, to men Successive." Milton.
2. Intellectual exertion; mental effort; as the labor of compiling a history.
3. That which requires hard work for its accomplishment; that which demands effort.
"Being a labor of so great a difficulty, the exact performance thereof we may rather wish than look for." Hooker.
4. Travail; the pangs and efforts of childbirth.
"The queen’s in labor, They say, in great extremity; and feared She’ll with the labor end." Shak.
5. Any pang or distress. Shak.
6. (Naut.) The pitching or tossing of a vessel which results in the straining of timbers and rigging.
7. [Sp.] A measure of land in Mexico and Texas equivalent to an area of 177&frac17; acres. Bartlett.
Syn. — Work; toil; drudgery; task; exertion; effort; industry; painstaking. See Toll.

Labor
La´bor, v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Labored p. pr. & vb. n. Laboring.] [OE. labouren, F. labourer, L. laborare. See Labor, n. ] [Written also labour.]
1. To exert muscular strength; to exert one’s strength with painful effort, particularly in servile occupations; to work; to toil.
"Adam, well may we labor still to dress This garden." Milton.
2. To exert one’s powers of mind in the prosecution of any design; to strive; to take pains.
3. To be oppressed with difficulties or disease; to do one’s work under conditions which make it especially hard, wearisome; to move slowly, as against opposition, or under a burden; to be burdened; — often with under, and formerly with of.
"The stone that labors up the hill." Granville.
"The line too labors,and the words move slow." Pope.
"To cure the disorder under which he labored." Sir W. Scott.
"Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." Matt. xi. 28
4. To be in travail; to suffer the pangs of childbirth.
5. (Naut.) To pitch or roll heavily, as a ship in a turbulent sea. Totten.

Labor
La´bor, v. t. [F. labourer, L. laborare.]
1. To work at; to work; to till; to cultivate by toil.
"The most excellent lands are lying fallow, or only labored by children." W. Tooke.
2. To form or fabricate with toil, exertion, or care. "To labor arms for Troy." Dryden.
3. To prosecute, or perfect, with effort; to urge strenuously; as to labor a point or argument.
4. To belabor; to beat. [Obs.] Dryden.

Labor
La´bor, n. (Mining.) A stope or set of stopes. [Sp. Amer.]

Labor Day. In most of the States and Territories of the United States, a day, usually the first Monday of September, set aside as a legal holiday, in honor of, or in the interest of, workingmen as a class. also a similar holiday in Canada, Australia, etc.

Laborant
Lab´o•rant, n. [L. laborans, p. pr. of laborare to labor.] A chemist. [Obs.] Boyle.

Laboratory
Lab´o•ra•to•ry, n. ; pl. Laboratories (#). [Shortened fr. elaboratory; cf. OF. elaboratoire, F. laboratoire. See Elaborate, Labor.] [Formerly written also elaboratory. ] The workroom of a chemist; also a place devoted to experiments in any branch of natural science; as a chemical, physical, or biological laboratory. Hence, by extension, a place where something is prepared, or some operation is performed; as the liver is the laboratory of the bile.

Laboredly
La´bored•ly, adv. In a labored manner; with labor.

Laborer
La´bor•er, n. [Written also labourer.] One who labors in a toilsome occupation; a person who does work that requires strength rather than skill, as distinguished from that of an artisan.

Laboring
La´bor•ing, a.
1. That labors; performing labor; esp., performing coarse, heavy work, not requiring skill also set apart for labor; as laboring days.
"The sleep of a laboring man is sweet." Eccl. v. 12.
2. Suffering pain or grief. Pope. Laboring oar, the oar which requires most strength and exertion; often used figuratively; as to have, or pull, the laboring oar in some difficult undertaking.

Laborious
La•bo´ri•ous, a. [L. laboriosus,fr. labor labor: cf. F. laborieux.]
1. Requiring labor, perseverance, or sacrifices; toilsome; tiresome.
"Dost thou love watchings, abstinence, or toil, Laborious virtues all ? Learn these from Cato." Addison.
2. Devoted to labor; diligent; industrious; as a laborious mechanic. — La•bo´ri•ous•ly, adv. — La•bo´ri•ous•ness, n.

Laborless
La´bor•less (la"ber•les), a. Not involving labor; not laborious; easy.

Laborous
La´bor•ous (la"ber•us), a. Laborious. [Obs.] Wyatt. — La´bor•ous•ly, adv. [Obs.] Sir T. Elyot.

Labor-saving
La´bor-sav•ing, a. Saving labor; adapted to supersede or diminish the labor of men; as labor-saving machinery.

Laborsome
La´bor•some, a.
1. Made with, or requiring, great labor, pains, or diligence. [Obs.] Shak.
2. (Naut.) Likely or inclined to roll or pitch, as a ship in a heavy sea; having a tendency to labor.

Labrador
Lab•ra•dor´, n. A region of British America on the Atlantic coast, north of Newfoundland. Labrador duck (Zoöl.), a sea duck ( Camtolaimus Labradorius) allied to the eider ducks. It was formerly common on the coast of New England, but is now supposed to be extinct, no specimens having been reported since 1878. — Labrador feldspar. See Labradorite. — Labrador tea (Bot.), a name of two low, evergreen shrubs of the genus Ledum ( L. palustre and L. latifolium), found in Northern Europe and America. They are used as tea in British America, and in Scandinavia as a substitute for hops.

Labret
La´bret, n. [L. labrum lip.] (Anthropology) A piece of wood, shell, stone, or other substance, worn in a perforation of the lip or cheek by many savages.

Labroid
La´broid, a. [ Labrus + - oid.] (Zoöl.) Like the genus Labrus; belonging to the family Labridae, an extensive family of marine fishes, often brilliantly colored, which are very abundant in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. The tautog and cunner are American examples.

Labrose
La´brose (l&amc;"bros•), a. [L. labrosus, fr. labrum lip.] Having thick lips.

Labrum
La´brum, n. ; pl. L. Labra (#), E. Labrums (#). [L.]
1. A lip or edge, as of a basin.
2. (Zoöl.) (a) An organ in insects and crustaceans covering the upper part of the mouth, and serving as an upper lip. See Illust. of Hymenoptera. (b) The external margin of the aperture of a shell. See Univalve.

Laburnine
La•bur•nine, n. (Chem.) A poisonous alkaloid found in the unripe seeds of the laburnum.

Laburnum
La•bur´num, n. [L.] (Bot.) A small leguminous tree ( Cytisus Laburnum), native of the Alps. The plant is reputed to be poisonous, esp. the bark and seeds. It has handsome racemes of yellow blossoms. Scotch laburnum ( Cytisus alpinus) is similar, but has smooth leaves; purple laburnum is C. purpureus.

Labyrinth
Lab´y•rinth, n. [L. labyrinthus, Gr. laby•rinthos: cf. F. labyrinthe.]
1. An edifice or place full of intricate passageways which render it difficult to find the way from the interior to the entrance; as the Egyptian and Cretan labyrinths.
2. Any intricate or involved inclosure; especially, an ornamental maze or inclosure in a park or garden.
3. Any object or arrangement of an intricate or involved form, or having a very complicated nature.
"The serpent … fast sleeping soon he found, In labyrinth of many a round self-rolled." Milton.
"The labyrinth of the mind." Tennyson.
4. An inextricable or bewildering difficulty.
"I’ the maze and winding labyrinths o’ the world." Denham.
5. (Anat.) The internal ear. See Note under Ear.
6. (Metal.) A series of canals through which a stream of water is directed for suspending, carrying off, and depositing at different distances, the ground ore of a metal. Ure.
7. (Arch.) A pattern or design representing a maze, — often inlaid in the tiled floor of a church, etc.
Syn. — Maze; confusion; intricacy; windings. — Labyrinth, Maze. Labyrinth, originally; the name of an edifice or excavation, carries the idea of design, and construction in a permanent form, while maze is used of anything confused or confusing, whether fixed or shifting. Maze is less restricted in its figurative uses than labyrinth. We speak of the labyrinth of the ear, or of the mind, and of a labyrinth of difficulties; but of the mazes of the dance, the mazes of political intrigue, or of the mind being in a maze.

Labyrinthian
Lab•y•rin´thi•an, a. Intricately winding; like a labyrinth; perplexed; labyrinthal.

Labyrinthibranch
Lab•y•rin´thi•branch, a. [See Labyrinth, and Branchia.] (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Labyrinthici. — n. One of the Labyrinthici. { Lab•y•rin´thic, Lab•y•rin•thic•al } a. [L. labyrinthicus: cf. F. labyrinthique.] Like or pertaining to a labyrinth.

Labyrinthine
Lab•y•rin´thine, a. Pertaining to, or like, a labyrinth; labyrinthal.

Labyrinthodon
Lab•y•rin´tho•don, n. [Gr. laby•rinqos labyrinth + ’odoy•s, ’odo•ntos, tooth.] (Paleon.) A genus of very large fossil amphibians, of the Triassic period, having bony plates on the under side of the body. It is the type of the order Labyrinthodonta. Called also Mastodonsaurus.

Labyrinthodont
Lab•y•rin´tho•dont, a. (Paleon.) Of or pertaining to the Labyrinthodonta. — n. One of the Labyrinthodonta.

Labyrinthodonta
Lab•y•rin•tho•don´ta, n. pl. [NL. See Labyrinthodon.] (Paleon.) An extinct order of Amphibia, including the typical genus Labyrinthodon, and many other allied forms, from the Carboniferous, Permian, and Triassic formations. By recent writers they are divided into two or more orders. See Stegocephala. { Lac (lak), Lakh (läk) }, n. [Hind. lak, lakh, laksh, Skr. laksha a mark, sign, lakh.] One hundred thousand; also a vaguely great number; as a lac of rupees. [Written also lack.] [East Indies]

Laccin
Lac´cin, n. [Cf. F. laccine.] (Chem.) A yellow amorphous substance obtained from lac. { Lac´co•lite, Lac´co•lith } n. [Gr. a cistern + -lite, - lith.] (Geol.) A mass of igneous rock intruded between sedimentary beds and resulting in a mammiform bulging of the overlying strata. — Lac•co•lit´ic (#), a.

Lace (las), n. [OE. las, OF. laz, F. lacs, dim. lacet, fr. L. laqueus noose, snare; prob. akin to lacere to entice. Cf. Delight, Elicit, Lasso, Latchet.]
1. That which binds or holds, especially by being interwoven; a string, cord, or band, usually one passing through eyelet or other holes, and used in drawing and holding together parts of a garment, of a shoe, of a machine belt, etc.
"His hat hung at his back down by a lace." Chaucer.
"For striving more, the more in laces strong Himself he tied." Spenser.
2. A snare or gin, especially one made of interwoven cords; a net. [Obs.] Fairfax.
"Vulcanus had caught thee [Venus] in his lace." Chaucer.
3. A fabric of fine threads of linen, silk, cotton, etc., often ornamented with figures; a delicate tissue of thread, much worn as an ornament of dress.
"Our English dames are much given to the wearing of costly laces." Bacon.
4. Spirits added to coffee or some other beverage. [Old Slang] Addison. Alencon lace, a kind of point lace, entirely of needlework, first made at Alencon in France, in the 17th century. It is very durable and of great beauty and cost. — Bone lace, Brussels lace, etc. See under Bone, Brussels, etc. — Gold lace, or Silver lace, lace having warp threads of silk, or silk and cotton, and a weft of silk threads covered with gold (or silver), or with gilt. — Lace leather, thin, oil-tanned leather suitable for cutting into lacings for machine belts. — Lace lizard (Zoöl.), a large, aquatic, Australian lizard ( Hydrosaurus giganteus), allied to the monitors. — Lace paper, paper with an openwork design in imitation of lace. — Lace piece (Shipbuilding), the main piece of timber which supports the beak or head projecting beyond the stem of a ship. — Lace pillow, ∧ Pillow lace. See under Pillow.

Lace, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Laced (ast); p. pr. & vb. n. Lacing ]
1. To fasten with a lace; to draw together with a lace passed through eyelet holes; to unite with a lace or laces, or, figuratively. with anything resembling laces. Shak.
"When Jenny’s stays are newly laced." Prior.
2. To adorn with narrow strips or braids of some decorative material; as cloth laced with silver. Shak.
3. To beat; to lash; to make stripes on. [Colloq.]
"I’ll lace your coat for ye." L’Estrange.
4. To add spirits to (a beverage). [Old Slang]

Lace, v. i. To be fastened with a lace, or laces; as these boots lace.

Lace, v. t. To twine or draw as a lace; to interlace; to intertwine.
"The Gond … picked up a trail of the Karela, the vine that bears the bitter wild gourd, and laced it to and fro across the temble door." Kipling.

Lace-bark
Lace´-bark, n. (Bot.) A shrub in the West Indies ( Lagetta Iintearia); — so called from the lacelike layers of its inner bark.

Laced, a.
1. Fastened with a lace or laces; decorated with narrow strips or braid. See Lace, v. t.
2. Decorated with the fabric lace.
"A shirt with laced ruffles." Fielding. Laced mutton, a prostitute. [Old slang] — Laced stocking, a strong stocking which can be tightly laced; — used in cases of weak legs, varicose veins, etc. Dunglison.

Laceman
Lace´man, n. ; pl. Lacemen . A man who deals in lace.

Lacerable
Lac´er•a•ble, a. [L. lacerabilis: cf. F. lacerable.] That can be lacerated or torn.

Lacerate
Lac´er•ate, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Lacerated p. pr. & vb. n. Lacerating (>).] [L. laceratus, p. p. of lacerare to lacerate, fr. lacer mangled, lacerated; cf. Gr. a rent, rending, to tear; perh. akin to E. slay.] To tear; to rend; to separate by tearing; to mangle; as to lacerate the flesh. Hence: To afflict; to torture; as to lacerate the heart. { Lac´er•ate, Lac´er•a•ted } p. a. [L. laceratus, p. p.]
1. Rent; torn; mangled; as a lacerated wound.
"By each other’s fury lacerate" Southey.
2. (Bot. & Zoöl.) Jagged, or slashed irregularly, at the end, or along the edge.

Lacerative
Lac´er•a•tive, a. Lacerating, or having the power to lacerate; as lacerative humors. Harvey.

Lacert
La´cert, n. [OE. lacerte. See Lacertus.] A muscle of the human body. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Lacertilia
Lac•er•til´i•a, n. pl. [NL., fr. L. lacertus a lizard.] (Zoöl.) An order of Reptilia, which includes the lizards. They are closely related to the snakes, and like the latter, usually have the body covered with scales or granules. They usually have eyelids, and most of then have well-formed legs; but in some groups (amphisbaena, glass-snake, etc.) the legs are wanting and the body is serpentlike. None are venomous, unless Heloderma be an exception. The order includes the chameleons, the Cionocrania, or typical lizards, and the amphisbaenas. See Amphisbaena, Gecko, Gila monster, and Lizard.

Lacertine
La•cer´tine, a. (Zoöl.) Lacertian.

Lacertus
La•cer´tus (la•ser"tus), n. ; pl. Lacerti (- ti). [L., the upper arm.] (Anat.) A bundle or fascicle of muscular fibers.

Lacewing
Lace´wing (las"wing•), n. (Zoöl.) Any one of several species of neuropterous insects of the genus Chrysopa and allied genera. They have delicate, lacelike wings and brilliant eyes. Their larvae are useful in destroying aphids. Called also lace-winged fly, and goldeneyed fly.

Lace-winged
Lace´-winged, a. (Zoöl.) Having thin, transparent, reticulated wings; as the lace- winged flies. { Lach´es, Lache } n. [OF. lachesse, fr. lache lax, indolent, F. lâche, ultimately fr. L. laxus loose, lax. See Lax.] (Law) Neglect; negligence; remissness; neglect to do a thing at the proper time; delay to assert a claim.
"It ill became him to take advantage of such a laches with the eagerness of a shrewd attorney." Macaulay.

Lachrymae Christi
Lach"ry•mae Chris"ti [L., lit., Christ’s tears.] A rich, sweet, red Neapolitan wine.

Lachrymal
Lach´ry•mal, a. [Cf. F. lacrymal. See Lachrymose.]
1. Of or pertaining to tears; as lachrymal effusions.
2. (Anat.) (a) Pertaining to, or secreting, tears; as the lachrymal gland. (b) Pertaining to the lachrymal organs; as lachrymal bone; lachrymal duct. { Lach´ry•mal, Lac´ry•mal }, n. See Lachrymatory.

Lachrymate
Lach´ry•mate (-mat), v. i. To weep. [R.] Blount.

Lachrymation
Lach•ry•ma´tion, n. [L. lacrimatio, from lacrimare to shed tears, fr. lacrima tear.] The act of shedding tears; weeping.

Lachrymatory
Lach´ry•ma•to•ry, n. ; pl. - ries (#). [Cf. F. lacrymatoire.] (Antiq.) A "tear-bottle;" a narrow-necked vessel found in sepulchers of the ancient Romans; — so called from a former notion that the tears of the deceased person’s friends were collected in it. Called also lachrymal or lacrymal.

Lachrymiform
Lach´ry•mi•form, a. , [L. lacrima tear + -form; cf. F. lacrymiforme.] Having the form of a tear; tear-shaped.

Lachrymose
Lach´ry•mose, a. [L. lacrymosus, better lacrimosus, fr. lacrima, lacruma (also badly spelt lachryma) a tear, for older dacrima, akin to E. tear. See Tear the secretion.] Generating or shedding tears; given to shedding tears; suffused with tears; tearful.
"You should have seen his lachrymose visnomy." Lamb. — Lach´ry•mose•ly, adv.

Lacinia
La•cin´i•a, n. ; pl. L. Laciniae (#). [L., the lappet or flap of a garment.]
1. (Bot.) (a) One of the narrow, jagged, irregular pieces or divisions which form a sort of fringe on the borders of the petals of some flowers. (b) A narrow, slender portion of the edge of a monophyllous calyx, or of any irregularly incised leaf.
2. (Zoöl.) The posterior, inner process of the stipes on the maxillae of insects. { La•cin´i•ate, La•cin´i•a´ted } a. [See Lacinia.]
1. Fringed; having a fringed border.
2. (Bot. & Zoöl.) Cut into deep, narrow, irregular lobes; slashed.

Lack, n. [OE. lak; cf. D. lak slander, laken to blame, OHG. lahan, AS. leán.]
1. Blame; cause of blame; fault; crime; offense. [Obs.] Chaucer.
2. Deficiency; want; need; destitution; failure; as a lack of sufficient food.
"She swooneth now and now for lakke of blood." Chaucer.
"Let his lack of years be no impediment." Shak.

Lack, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Lacked p. pr. & vb. n. Lacking.]
1. To blame; to find fault with. [Obs.]
"Love them and lakke them not." Piers Plowman.
2. To be without or destitute of; to want; to need.
"If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God." James i. 5.

Lack, v. i.
1. To be wanting; often, impersonally, with of, meaning, to be less than, short, not quite, etc.
"What hour now ? I think it lacks of twelve." Shak.
"Peradventure there shall lack five of the fifty." Gen. xvii. 28.
2. To be in want.
"The young lions do lack, and suffer hunger." Ps. xxxiv. 10.

Lack, interj. [Cf. Alack.] Exclamation of regret or surprise. [Prov. Eng.] Cowper.

Lackaday
Lack´a•day, interj. [Abbreviated from alackaday.] Alack the day; alas; — an expression of sorrow, regret, dissatisfaction, or surprise.

Lackbrain
Lack´brain, n. One who is deficient in understanding; a witless person. Shak.

Lacker
Lack´er, n. One who lacks or is in want.

Lacker
Lack´er, n. & v. See Lacquer.

Laconical
La•con´ic•al, a. See Laconic, a.

Laconicism
La•con´i•cism, n. Same as Laconism. Pope.

Laconize
Lac´o•nize, v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Laconized p. pr. & vb. n. Laconizing ] [Gr. . See Laconic.] To imitate the manner of the Laconians, especially in brief, pithy speech, or in frugality and austerity.

Lacquering
Lac´quer•ing, n. The act or business of putting on lacquer; also the coat of lacquer put on.

Lacrimoso
La•cri•mo´so, a. [It. See Lachrymose.] (Mus.) Plaintive; — a term applied to a mournful or pathetic movement or style. Moore.

Lactamic
Lac•tam´ic, a. (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, an amido acid related to lactic acid, and called also amido-propionic acid.

Lactamide
Lac•tam´ide, n. [ Lactic + amide.] (Chem.) An acid amide derived from lactic acid, and obtained as a white crystalline substance having a neutral reaction. It is metameric with alanine.

Lactant
Lac´tant, a. [L. lactans, p. pr. of lactare to suck, fr. lac, lactis, milk.] Suckling; giving suck.

Lactarene
Lac´ta•rene, n. [L. lac, lactis, milk.] A preparation of casein from milk, used in printing calico.

Lactary
Lac´ta•ry, a. [l. lactarius, fr. lac, lactis, milk: cf. F. lactaire.] Milky; full of white juice like milk. [Obs.] "Lactary or milky plants." Sir T. Browne.

Lactary
Lac´ta•ry, n. a dairyhouse. [R.]

Lactate
Lac´tate, n. [L. lac, lactis, milk: cf. F. lactate.] (Chem.) A salt of lactic acid.

Lactation
Lac•ta´tion, n. A giving suck; the secretion and yielding of milk by the mammary gland.

Lacteal
Lac´te•al, a. [L. lacteus milky, fr. lac, lactis, milk. Cf. Galaxy, Lettuce.]
1. Pertaining to, or resembling, milk; milky; as the lacteal fluid.
2. (Anat. & Physiol.) Pertaining to, or containing, chyle; as the lacteal vessels.

Lacteal
Lac´te•al, n. (Anat.) One of the lymphatic vessels which convey chyle from the small intestine through the mesenteric glands to the thoracic duct; a chyliferous vessel.

Lacteally
Lac´te•al•ly, adv. Milkily; in the manner of milk.

Lactean
Lac´te•an, a. [See Lacteal.]
1. Milky; consisting of, or resembling, milk. "This lactean whiteness." Moxon.
2. (Anat. & Physiol.) Lacteal; conveying chyle.

Lactescence
Lac•tes´cence, n. [Cf. F. lactescence.]
1. The state or quality of producing milk, or milklike juice; resemblance to milk; a milky color.
"This lactescence does commonly ensue when … fair water is suddenly poured upon the solution." Boyle.
2. (Bot.) The latex of certain plants. See Latex.

Lactiferous
Lac•tif´er•ous, a. [l. lac, lactis, milk + -ferous: cf. F. lactifè re.] Bearing or containing milk or a milky fluid; as the lactiferous vessels, cells, or tissue of various vascular plants. { Lac•tif´ic, Lac•tif´ic•al } a. [L. lac, lactis, milk + facere to make.] Producing or yielding milk.

Lactifuge
Lac´ti•fuge, n. [L. lac, lactis, milk + fugare to expel.] (Med.) A medicine to check the secretion of milk, or to dispel a supposed accumulation of milk in any part of the body.

Lactim
Lac´tim, n. [ Lactic + imido.] (Chem.) One of a series of anhydrides resembling the lactams, but of an imido type; as isatine is a lactim. Cf. Lactam.

Lactin
Lac´tin, n. [L. lac, lactis, milk: cf. F. lactine. Cf. Galactin.] (Physiol. Chem.) See Lactose.

Lactobutyrometer
Lac•to•bu•ty•rom´e•ter, n. [L. lac, lactis, milk + E. butyrometer.] An instrument for determining the amount of butter fat contained in a given sample of milk.

Lactodensimeter
Lac•to•den•sim´e•ter, n. [L. lac, lactis, milk + E. densimeter.] A form of hydrometer, specially graduated, for finding the density of milk, and thus discovering whether it has been mixed with water or some of the cream has been removed.

Lactometer
Lac•tom´e•ter, n. [L. lac, lactis, milk + meter: cf. F. lactomètre. Cf. Galactometer.] An instrument for estimating the purity or richness of milk, as a measuring glass, a specific gravity bulb, or other apparatus.

Lactonic
Lac•ton´ic, a. [From Lactone.] (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or derived from, lactone.

Lactonic
Lac•ton´ic, a. [From Lactose.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, an acid obtained by the oxidation of milk sugar ( lactose).

Lactory
Lac´to•ry, a. Lactiferous. [Obs.] "Lactory or milky plants." Sir T. Browne.

Lactoscope
Lac´to•scope, n. [L. lac, lactis + scope.] An instrument for estimating the amount of cream contained in milk by ascertaining its relative opacity.

Lactose
Lac´tose, n.
1. (Physiol. Chem.) Sugar of milk or milk sugar; a crystalline sugar present in milk, and separable from the whey by evaporation and crystallization. It has a slightly sweet taste, is dextrorotary, and is much less soluble in water than either cane sugar or glucose. Formerly called lactin.
2. (Chem.) See Galactose.

Lactucic
Lac•tu´cic, a. (Chem.) Pertaining to, or derived from, the juice of the Lactuca virosa; — said of certain acids.

Lactucin
Lac•tu´cin, n. [From Lactuca: cf. F. lactucine.] (Chem.) A white, crystalline substance, having a bitter taste and a neutral reaction, and forming one of the essential ingredients of lactucarium.

Lactyl
Lac´tyl, n. [ Lactic + - yl.] (Chem.) An organic residue or radical derived from lactic acid.

Lacuna
La•cu´na (la•ku"na), n. ; pl. L. Lacunae (#); E. Lacunas (#). [L., ditch, pit, lake, orig., anything hollow. See Lagoon.]
1. A small opening; a small pit or depression; a small blank space; a gap or vacancy; a hiatus.
2. (Biol.) A small opening; a small depression or cavity; a space, as a vacant space between the cells of plants, or one of the spaces left among the tissues of the lower animals, which serve in place of vessels for the circulation of the body fluids, or the cavity or sac, usually of very small size, in a mucous membrane. { La•cu´nal (la•ku"n al), La•cu´nar (la•ku"ner), } a. Pertaining to, or having, lacunae; as a lacunar circulation.

Lacune
La•cune´ (la•kun"), n. [F.] A lacuna. [R.] Landor. { Lac´u•nose•, La•cu´nous } a. [L. lacunosus full of holes or hollows; cf. F. lacuneux. See Lacuna.] (Biol.) Furrowed or pitted; having shallow cavities or lacunae; as a lacunose leaf. { La•cus´tral, La•cus´trine } a. [L. lacus lake: cf. F. lacustral, lacustre.] Found in, or pertaining to, lakes or ponds, or growing in them; as lacustrine flowers. Lacustrine deposits (Geol.), the deposits which have been accumulated in fresh-water areas. — Lacustrine dwellings. See Lake dwellings, under Lake.

Lad (lad), obs. p. p. of Lead, to guide. Chaucer.

Lad (lad), n. [OE. ladde, of Celtic origin; cf. W. llawd, Ir. lath. rad.123. Cf. Lass.]
1. A boy; a youth; a stripling. "Cupid is a knavish lad." Shak.
"There is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves and two small fishes." John vi. 9.
2. A companion; a comrade; a mate. Lad’s love. (Bot.) See Boy’s love, under Boy.

Lade (lad), v. t. [ imp. Laded; p. p. Laded, Laden (lad’n); p. pr. & vb. n. Lading.] [AS. hladan to heap, load, draw (water); akin to D. & G. laden to load, OHG. hladan, ladan, Icel. hlaða, Sw. ladda, Dan. lade, Goth. afhlaþan. Cf. Load, Ladle, Lathe for turning, Last a load.]
1. To load; to put a burden or freight on or in; — generally followed by that which receives the load, as the direct object.
"And they laded their asses with the corn." Gen. xlii. 26.
2. To throw in or out, with a ladle or dipper; to dip; as to lade water out of a tub, or into a cistern.
"And chides the sea that sunders him from thence, Saying, he’ll lade it dry to have his way." Shak.
3. (Plate Glass Manuf.) To transfer (the molten glass) from the pot to the forming table.

Lade, v. i. [See Lade, v. t.]
1. To draw water. [Obs.]
2. (Naut.) To admit water by leakage, as a ship, etc.

Lade, n. [Prov. E., a ditch or drain. Cf. Lode, Lead to conduct.]
1. The mouth of a river. [Obs.] Bp. Gibson.
2. A passage for water; a ditch or drain. [Prov. Eng.]

Laden
Lad´en, p. & a. Loaded; freighted; burdened; as a laden vessel; a laden heart.
"Ah sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity." Is. i. 4.
"A ship laden with gold." Shak.

Ladied
La´died, a. Ladylike; not rough; gentle. [Obs.] "Stroked with a ladied land." Feltham.

Ladies’ eardrops
La"dies’ ear•drops (Bot.) The small- flowered Fuchsia ( F. coccinea), and other closely related species.

Ladify
La´di•fy, v. t. [ Lady + - fy.] To make a lady of; to make ladylike. [Obs.] Massinger.

Ladin
La•din´, n. [From L. Latinus Latin. See Latin] A Romansch dialect spoken in some parts of Switzerland and the Tyrol.

Ladin
La•din´, n. A person speaking Ladin as a mother tongue.

Lading
Lad´ing, n.
1. The act of loading.
2. That which lades or constitutes a load or cargo; freight; burden; as the lading of a ship. Bill of lading. See under Bill.

Ladkin
Lad´kin, n. A little lad. [R.] Dr. H. More.

Ladle
La´dle, n. [AS. hlaedel, fr. hladan to load, drain. See Lade, v. t.]
1. A cuplike spoon, often of large size, with a long handle, used in lading or dipping.
"When the materials of glass have been kept long in fusion, the mixture casts up the superfluous salt, which the workmen take off with ladles." Boyle.
2. (Founding) A vessel to carry liquid metal from the furnace to the mold.
3. The float of a mill wheel; — called also ladle board.
4. (Gun.) (a) An instrument for drawing the charge of a cannon. (b) A ring, with a handle or handles fitted to it, for carrying shot. Ladle wood (Bot.), the wood of a South African tree ( Cassine Colpoon), used for carving.

Ladle
La´dle, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Ladled p. pr. & vb. n. Ladling ] To take up and convey in a ladle; to dip with, or as with, a ladle; as to ladle out soup; to ladle oatmeal into a kettle.

Ladrone
La•drone´, n. [Sp. ladron, L. latro servant, robber, Gr. a servant.] A robber; a pirate; hence, loosely, a rogue or rascal.

Lady
La´dy (la"dy), n. ; pl. Ladies (-diz). [OE. ladi, laefdi, AS. hlaefdige, hlaefdie; AS. hlaf loaf + a root of uncertain origin, possibly akin to E. dairy. See Loaf, and cf. Lord.]
1. A woman who looks after the domestic affairs of a family; a mistress; the female head of a household.
"Agar, the handmaiden of Sara, whence comest thou, and whither goest thou? The which answered, Fro the face of Sara my lady." Wyclif (Gen. xvi. 8.).
2. A woman having proprietary rights or authority; mistress; — a feminine correlative of lord. "Lord or lady of high degree." Lowell.
"Of all these bounds, even from this line to this, … We make thee lady." Shak.
3. A woman to whom the particular homage of a knight was paid; a woman to whom one is devoted or bound; a sweetheart.
"The soldier here his wasted store supplies, And takes new valor from his lady’s eyes." Waller.
4. A woman of social distinction or position. In England, a title prefixed to the name of any woman whose husband is not of lower rank than a baron, or whose father was a nobleman not lower than an earl. The wife of a baronet or knight has the title of Lady by courtesy, but not by right.
5. A woman of refined or gentle manners; a well-bred woman; — the feminine correlative of gentleman.
6. A wife; — not now in approved usage. Goldsmith.
7. (Zoöl.) The triturating apparatus in the stomach of a lobster; — so called from a fancied resemblance to a seated female figure. It consists of calcareous plates. Ladies’ man, a man who affects the society of ladies. — Lady altar, an altar in a lady chapel. Shipley. — Lady chapel, a chapel dedicated to the Virgin Mary. — Lady court, the court of a lady of the manor. — Lady crab (Zoöl.), a handsomely spotted swimming crab ( Platyonichus ocellatus) very common on the sandy shores of the Atlantic coast of the United States. — Lady fern. (Bot.) See Female fern, under Female, and Illust. of Fern. — Lady in waiting, a lady of the queen’s household, appointed to wait upon or attend the queen. — Lady Mass, a Mass said in honor of the Virgin Mary. Shipley. Lady of the manor, a lady having jurisdiction of a manor; also the wife of a manor lord. Lady’s maid, a maidservant who dresses and waits upon a lady. Thackeray. — Our Lady, the Virgin Mary.

Lady
La´dy, a. Belonging or becoming to a lady; ladylike. "Some lady trifles." Shak.

Lady Day
La"dy• Day (da). The day of the annunciation of the Virgin Mary, March 25. See Annunciation.

Lady’s bower
La"dy’s bow"er (Bot.) A climbing plant with fragrant blossoms ( Clematis vitalba). This term is sometimes applied to other plants of the same genus.

Lady’s cloth
La"dy’s cloth A kind of broadcloth of light weight, used for women’s dresses, cloaks, etc.

Lady’s comb
La"dy’s comb", (Bot.) An umbelliferous plant ( Scandix Pecten-Veneris), its clusters of long slender fruits remotely resembling a comb.

Lady’s cushion
La"dy’s cush"ion, (Bot.) An herb growing in dense tufts; the thrift ( Armeria vulgaris).

Lady’s finger
La"dy’s fin"ger,
1. pl. (Bot.) The kidney vetch.
2. (Cookery) A variety of small cake of about the dimensions of a finger.
3. A long, slender variety of the potato.
4. (Zoöl.) One of the branchiae of the lobster.

Lady’s garters
La"dy’s gar"ters (Bot.) Ribbon grass.

Lady’s hair
La"dy’s hair" (Bot.) A plant of the genus Briza ( B. media); a variety of quaking grass.

Lady’s laces
La"dy’s la"ces (Bot.) A slender climbing plant; dodder.

Lady’s looking-glass
La"dy’s look"ing-glass (Bot.) See Venus’s looking-glass, under Venus.

Lady’s seal
La"dy’s seal" (Bot.) (a) The European Solomon’s seal ( Polygonatum verticillatum). (b) The black bryony ( Tamus communis).

Lady’s slipper
La"dy’s slip"per (Bot.) Any orchidaceous plant of the genus Cypripedium, the labellum of which resembles a slipper. Less commonly, in the United States, the garden balsam ( Impatiens Balsamina).

Lady’s smock
La"dy’s smock" (Bot.) A plant of the genus Cardamine ( C. pratensis); cuckoo flower.

Lady’s thimble
La"dy’s thim"ble (Bot.) The harebell.

Lady’s thumb
La"dy’s thumb" (Bot.) An annual weed ( Polygonum Persicaria), having a lanceolate leaf with a dark spot in the middle. { La"dy’s tra"ces, La"dies’ tress"es } (Bot.) A name given to several species of the orchidaceous genus Spiranthes, in which the white flowers are set in spirals about a slender axis and remotely resemble braided hair.

Ladybird
La´dy•bird, n. [Equiv. to, bird of Our Lady.] (Zoöl.) Any one of numerous species of small beetles of the genus Coccinella and allied genera (family Coccinellidae); — called also ladybug, ladyclock, lady cow, lady fly, and lady beetle. Coccinella seplempunctata in one of the common European species. See Coccinella. The ladybirds are usually more or less hemispherical in form, with a smooth, polished surface, and often colored red, brown, or black, with small spots of brighter colors. Both the larvae and the adult beetles of most species feed on aphids, and for this reason they are very beneficial to agriculture and horticulture.

Ladyhood
La´dy•hood, n. The state or quality of being a lady; the personality of a lady.

Lady-killer
La´dy-kill•er, n. A gallant who captivates the hearts of women. "A renowned dandy and lady-killer." Blackw. Mag.

Lady-killing
La´dy-kill•ing, n. The art or practice of captivating the hearts of women.
"Better for the sake of womankind that this dangerous dog should leave off lady-killing." Thackeray.

Ladykin
La´dy•kin, n. [ Lady + - kin.] A little lady; — applied by the writers of Queen Elizabeth’s time, in the abbreviated form Lakin, to the Virgin Mary. The diminutive does not refer to size, but is equivalent to "dear." Brewer.

Ladylike
La´dy•like, a.
1. Like a lady in appearance or manners; well-bred.
"She was ladylike, too, after the manner of the feminine gentility of those days." Hawthorne.
2. Becoming or suitable to a lady; as ladylike manners. "With fingers ladylike." Warner.
3. Delicate; tender; feeble; effeminate.
"Too ladylike a long fatigue to bear." Dryden.

Ladylikeness
La´dy•like•ness, n. The quality or state of being ladylike.

Ladylove
La´dy•love, n. A sweetheart or mistress.

Ladyship
La´dy•ship, n. The rank or position of a lady; — given as a title (preceded by her or your).
"Your ladyship shall observe their gravity." B. Jonson.

Laelaps
Lae´laps, n. [NL., fr. Gr. a dark, furious storm.] (Paleon.) A genus of huge, carnivorous, dinosaurian reptiles from the Cretaceous formation of the United States. They had very large hind legs and tail, and are supposed to have been bipedal. Some of the species were about eighteen feet high.

Laemmergeyer
Laem´mer•gey•er, n. (Zoöl.) See Lammergeir.

Laemodipoda
Lae•mo•dip´o•da, n. pl. [NL., from Gr. throat + twice +,, foot.] (Zoöl.) A division of amphipod Crustacea, in which the abdomen is small or rudimentary and the legs are often reduced to five pairs. The whale louse, or Cyamus, and Caprella are examples.

Laemodipodous
Lae•mo•dip´o•dous, a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Laemodipoda.

Laetere Sunday
Lae•te"re Sun"day The fourth Sunday of Lent; — so named from the Latin word Laetare (rejoice), the first word in the antiphone of the introit sung that day in the Roman Catholic service.

Laevigate
Laev´i•gate, a. [See Levigate.] (Biol.) Having a smooth surface, as if polished.

Laft, obs. p. p. of Leave. Chaucer.

Lagan
La´gan, n. & v. See Ligan.

Lagenian
La•ge´ni•an, a. [See Lagena.] (Zoöl.) Like, or pertaining to, Lagena, a genus of Foraminifera having a straight, chambered shell.

Lager beer
La"ger beer [G. lager bed, storehouse + bier beer. See Lair, and Beer.] Originally a German beer, but now also made in immense quantities in the United States; — so called from its being laid up or stored for some months before use.

Laggard
Lag´gard, a. [ Lag + - ard.] Slow; sluggish; backward.

Laggard
Lag´gard, n. One who lags; a loiterer.

Lagger
Lag´ger, n. A laggard.

Lagging
Lag´ging, n.
1. (Mach.) The clothing (esp., an outer, wooden covering), as of a steam cylinder, applied to prevent the radiation of heat; a covering of lags; — called also deading and cleading.
2. Lags, collectively; narrow planks extending from one rib to another in the centering of arches.

Laggingly
Lag´ging•ly, adv. In a lagging manner; loiteringly.

Lagly
Lag´ly, adv. Laggingly. [Prov. Eng.]

Lagomorph
Lag´o•morph, n. (Zoöl.) One of the Lagomorpha.

Lagomorpha
Lag•o•mor´pha, n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. a hare + form.] (Zoöl.) A group of rodents, including the hares. They have four incisors in the upper jaw. Called also Duplicidentata.

Lagoon
La•goon´, n. [It. or Sp. laguna, L. lacuna ditch, pool, pond, lacus lake. See Lake, and cf. Lacuna.] [Written also lagune.]
1. A shallow sound, channel, pond, or lake, especially one into which the sea flows; as the lagoons of Venice.
2. A lake in a coral island, often occupying a large portion of its area, and usually communicating with the sea. See Atoll. Lagoon island, a coral island consisting of a narrow reef encircling a lagoon. { Lag•oph•thal´mi•a, Lag•oph•thal´mos } n. [NL. lagophtalmia, fr. Gr. lagw•s hare + ’ofqalmo•s eye; — so called from the notion that a hare sleeps with his eyes open.] (Med.) A morbid condition in which the eye stands wide open, giving a peculiar staring appearance.

Lagthing
Lag´thing, n. [Norw. lagting, lagthing; lag company, society (akin to E. law, lay) + ting, thing, parliament. See Thing.] See Legislatature, below.

Laicality
La´ic•al´i•ty, n. The state or quality of being laic; the state or condition of a layman.

Laically
La´ic•al•ly, adv. As a layman; after the manner of a layman; as to treat a matter laically.

Laid, imp. & p. p. of Lay. Laid paper, paper marked with parallel lines or water marks, as if ribbed, from parallel wires in the mold. It is called blue laid, cream laid, etc., according to its color.

Lain, p. p. of Lie, v. i.

Laism
La´ism, n. See Lamaism. [R.]

Laity
La´i•ty (la"i•ty), n. [See Lay, a. ]
1. The people, as distinguished from the clergy; the body of the people not in orders.
"A rising up of the laity against the sacerdotal caste." Macaulay.
2. The state of a layman. [Obs.] Ayliffe.
3. Those who are not of a certain profession, as law or medicine, in distinction from those belonging to it.

Lake (lak), n. [F. laque, fr. Per. See Lac.] A pigment formed by combining some coloring matter, usually by precipitation, with a metallic oxide or earth, esp. with aluminium hydrate; as madder lake; Florentine lake; yellow lake, etc.

Lake, n. [Cf. G. laken.] A kind of fine white linen, formerly in use. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Lake (lak), v. i. [AS. lacan, laecan, to spring, jump, lac play, sport, or fr. Icel. leika to play, sport; both akin to Goth. laikan to dance. rad.120. Cf. Knowledge.] To play; to sport. [Prov. Eng.]

Lake, n. [AS. lac, L. lacus; akin to AS. lagu lake, sea, Icel. lögr; OIr. loch; cf. Gr. la•kkos pond, tank. Cf. Loch, Lough.] A large body of water contained in a depression of the earth’s surface, and supplied from the drainage of a more or less extended area. Lakes are for the most part of fresh water; the salt lakes, like the Great Salt Lake of Utah, have usually no outlet to the ocean. Lake dwellers (Ethnol.), people of a prehistoric race, or races, which inhabited different parts of Europe. Their dwellings were built on piles in lakes, a short distance from the shore. Their relics are common in the lakes of Switzerland. — Lake dwellings (Archaeol.), dwellings built over a lake, sometimes on piles, and sometimes on rude foundations kept in place by piles; specifically, such dwellings of prehistoric times. Lake dwellings are still used by many savage tribes. Called also lacustrine dwellings. See Crannog. — Lake fly (Zoöl.), any one of numerous species of dipterous flies of the genus Chironomus. In form they resemble mosquitoes, but they do not bite. The larvae live in lakes. — Lake herring (Zoöl.), the cisco ( Coregonus Artedii). — Lake poets, Lake school, a collective name originally applied in contempt, but now in honor, to Southey, Coleridge, and Wordsworth, who lived in the lake country of Cumberland, England, Lamb and a few others were classed with these by hostile critics. Called also lakers and lakists. — Lake sturgeon (Zoöl.), a sturgeon ( Acipenser rubicundus), of moderate size, found in the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River. It is used as food. — Lake trout (Zoöl.), any one of several species of trout and salmon; in Europe, esp. Salmo fario; in the United States, esp. Salvelinus namaycush of the Great Lakes, and of various lakes in New York, Eastern Maine, and Canada. A large variety of brook trout ( S. fontinalis), inhabiting many lakes in New England, is also called lake trout. See Namaycush. — Lake whitefish. (Zoöl.) See Whitefish. — Lake whiting (Zoöl.), an American whitefish ( Coregonus Labradoricus), found in many lakes in the Northern United States and Canada. It is more slender than the common whitefish.

Laker
Lak´er, n. One that is connected with a lake or lakes, as in habitation, toil, etc.: (a) One of the poets of the Lake school. See Lake poets, under Lake, n. (b) (Zoöl.) A fish living in, or taken from, a lake, esp. the namaycush. (c) A lake steamer or canal boat.
"The bridge tender … thought the Cowies "a little mite" longer than that laker." The Century.

Lakh, n. Same as Lac, one hundred thousand.

Lalo
La´lo, n. The powdered leaves of the baobab tree, used by the Africans to mix in their soup, as the southern negroes use powdered sassafras. Cf. Couscous.

Lamaism
La´ma•ism, n. A modified form of Buddhism which prevails in Thibet, Mongolia, and some adjacent parts of Asia; — so called from the name of its priests. See 2d Lama. { La´ma•ist, La´ma•ite } n. One who believes in Lamaism.

Lamantin
La•man´tin, n. [F. lamantin, lamentin, prob. from the name of the animal in the Antilles. Cf. Manater.] (Zoöl.) The manatee. [Written also lamentin, and lamantine.]

Lamarckianism
La•marck´i•an•ism, n. (Biol.) Lamarckism.

Lamarckism
La´marck´ism, n. [From Lamarck, a distinguished French naturalist.] (Biol.) The theory that structural variations, characteristic of species and genera, are produced in animals and plants by the direct influence of physical environments, and esp., in the case of animals, by effort, or by use or disuse of certain organs.

Lamasery
La´ma•ser•y, n. [See 2d Lama.] A monastery or convent of lamas in Thibet, Mongolia, etc.

Lambale
Lamb´ale, n. A feast at the time of shearing lambs.

Lambaste
Lam•baste´, v. t. [ Lam + baste to beat.] To beat severely. [Low] Nares.

Lambative
Lam´ba•tive, a. [L. lambere to lick. See Lambent.] Taken by licking with the tongue. "Sirups and lambative medicines." Sir T. Browne.

Lambative
Lam´ba•tive, n. A medicine taken by licking with the tongue; a lincture. Wiseman.

Lambda
Lamb´da, n. [NL., fr. Gr. la•mbda.]
1. The name of the Greek letter Λ, λ, corresponding with the English letter L, l.
2. (Anat.) The point of junction of the sagittal and lambdoid sutures of the skull. Lambda moth (Zoöl.), a moth so called from a mark on its wings, resembling the Greek letter lambda (Λ).

Lambdacism
Lamb´da•cism, n. [L. lambdacismus, Gr., fr. la•mbda the letter lambda (Λ).]
1. A fault in speaking or in composition, which consists in too frequent use of the letter l, or in doubling it erroneously.
2. A defect in pronunciation of the letter l when doubled, which consists in giving it a sound as if followed by y, similar to that of the letters lli in billion.
3. The use of the sound of l for that of r in pronunciation; lallation; as Ame lican for Ame rican.

Lambdoid
Lamb´doid, a. [Gr., la•mbda the letter lambda (Λ) + e"i^dos shape.] Shaped like the Greek letter lambda (Λ); as the lambdoid suture between the occipital and parietal bones of the skull.

Lambdoidal
Lamb•doid´al, a. Same as Lambdoid.

Lambkill
Lamb´kill, n. (Bot.) A small American ericaceous shrub ( Kalmia angustifolia); — called also calfkill, sheepkill, sheep laurel, etc. It is supposed to poison sheep and other animals that eat it at times when the snow is deep and they cannot find other food.

Lambkin
Lamb´kin, n. A small lamb.

Lamblike
Lamb´like, a. Like a lamb; gentle; meek; inoffensive.

Lamboys
Lam´boys, n. pl. [Cf. F. lambeau. Cf. Label.] (Anc. Armor) Same as Base, n. , 19.

Lambskinnet
Lamb´skin•net´, n. See Lansquenet.

Lame (lam), a. [ Compar. Lamer superl. Lamest.] [OE. lame, AS. lama; akin to D. lam, G. lahm,OHG., Dan., & Sw. lam, Icel. lami, Russ. lomate to break, lomota rheumatism.]
1. (a) Moving with pain or difficulty on account of injury, defect, or temporary obstruction of a function; as a lame leg, arm, or muscle. (b) To some degree disabled by reason of the imperfect action of a limb; crippled; as a lame man. "Lame of one leg." Arbuthnot. "Lame in both his feet." 2 Sam. ix. 13. "He fell, and became lame." 2 Sam. iv. 4.
2. Hence, hobbling; limping; inefficient; imperfect. "A lame endeavor." Barrow.
"O, most lame and impotent conclusion!" Shak. Lame duck (stock Exchange), a person who can not fulfill his contracts. [Cant]

Lame, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Lamed p. pr. & vb. n. Laming.] To make lame.
"If you happen to let child fall and lame it." Swift.

Lamellary
Lam´el•la•ry, a. Of or pertaining to lamella or to lamellae; lamellar. { Lam´el•late, Lam´el•la•ted } a. [See Lamella.] Composed of, or furnished with, thin plates or scales. See Illust. of Antennae.

Lamellicorn
La•mel´li•corn, a. [ Lamella + L. cornu a horn: cf. F. lamellicorne. See Lamella.] (Zoöl.) (a) Having antennae terminating in a group of flat lamellae; — said of certain coleopterous insects. (b) Terminating in a group of flat lamellae; — said of antennae. — n. A lamellicorn insect.

Lamelliform
La•mel´li•form, a. [ Lamella + -form : cf. F. lamelliforme.] Thin and flat; scalelike; lamellar.

Lamellirostral
Lam•el•li•ros´tral, a. [ Lamella + rostral : cf. F. lamellirostre.] (Zoöl.) Having a lamellate bill, as ducks and geese.

Lamellirostres
La•mel•li•ros´tres, n. pl. [NL. See Lamella, and Rostrum.] (Zoöl.) A group of birds embracing the Anseres and flamingoes, in which the bill is lamellate.

Lamely
Lame´ly, adv. [See Lame.] In a lame, crippled, disabled, or imperfect manner; as to walk lamely; a figure lamely drawn.

Lament
La•ment´, v. i. [F. lamenter, L. lamentari, fr. lamentum a lament.] To express or feel sorrow; to weep or wail; to mourn.
"Jeremiah lamented for Josiah." 2 Chron. xxxv. 25.
"Ye shall weep and lament, but the world shall rejoice." John xvi. 20.

Lament
La•ment´, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Lamented; p. pr. & vb. n. Lamenting.] To mourn for; to bemoan; to bewail.
"One laughed at follies, one lamented crimes." Dryden.
Syn. — To deplore; mourn; bewail. See Deplore.

Lament
La•ment´, n. [L. lamentum. Cf. Lament, v. ]
1. Grief or sorrow expressed in complaints or cries; lamentation; a wailing; a moaning; a weeping.
"Torment, and loud lament, and furious rage." Milton.
2. An elegy or mournful ballad, or the like.

Lamentation
Lam•en•ta´tion, n. [F. lamentation, L. lamentatio.]
1. The act of bewailing; audible expression of sorrow; wailing; moaning.
"In Rama was there a voice heard, lamentation and weeping." Matt. ii. 18.
2. pl. (Script.) A book of the Old Testament attributed to the prophet Jeremiah, and taking its name from the nature of its contents.

Lamented
La•ment´ed, a. Mourned for; bewailed.
"This humble praise, lamented shade ! receive." Pope.

Lamenter
La•ment´er, n. One who laments.

Lamentin
La•men´tin, n. See Lamantin.

Lamentingly
La•ment´ing•ly, adv. In a lamenting manner.

Lames (lamz), n. pl. [F. lame a thin plate, L. lamina.] (Armor) Small steel plates combined together so as to slide one upon the other and form a piece of armor.

Lametta
La•met´ta, n. [Cf. It. lametta, dim. of lama a thin plate.] Foil or wire made of gold, silver, or brass. De Colange.

Lamia
La´mi•a, n. [L., fr. Gr. .] (Class. Myth.) A monster capable of assuming a woman’s form, who was said to devour human beings or suck their blood; a vampire; a sorceress; a witch.

Lamina
Lam´i•na (lam"i•na), n. ; pl. L. Laminae (- ne) E. Laminas (-naz). [L. cf. Lamella.]
1. A thin plate or scale; a layer or coat lying over another; — said of thin plates or platelike substances, as of bone or minerals.
2. (Bot.) The blade of a leaf; the broad, expanded portion of a petal or sepal of a flower. Gray.
3. (Zoöl.) A thin plate or scale; specif., one of the thin, flat processes composing the vane of a feather.

Laminable
Lam´i•na•ble, a. Capable of being split into laminae or thin plates, as mica; capable of being extended under pressure into a thin plate or strip.
"When a body can be readily extended in all directions under the hammer, it is said to be malleable; and when into fillets under the rolling press, it is said to be laminable." Ure. { Lam´i•nar, Lam´i•nal } a. [Cf. F. laminaire. See Lamina] In, or consisting of, thin plates or layers; having the form of a thin plate or lamina.

Laminarite
Lam´i•na•rite, n. [See Lamina.] (Paleon.) A broad-leafed fossil alga.

Laminate
Lam´i•nate, a. [See Lamina.] Consisting of, or covered with, laminae, or thin plates, scales, or layers, one over another; laminated.

Laminate
Lam´i•nate, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Laminated p. pr. & vb. n. Laminating ] [See Lamina.]
1. To cause to separate into thin plates or layers; to divide into thin plates.
2. To form, as metal, into a thin plate, as by rolling.

Laminate
Lam´i•nate, v. i. To separate into laminae.

Laminated
Lam´i•na•ted, a. Laminate. Laminated arch (Arch.), a timber arch made of layers of bent planks secured by treenails.

Laminating
Lam´i•na•ting, a. Forming, or separating into, scales or thin layers.

Lamination
Lam•i•na´tion, n. The process of laminating, or the state of being laminated.

Laminiferous
Lam•i•nif´er•ous, a. [ Lamina + -ferous.] Having a structure consisting of laminae, or thin layers.

Laminiplantar
Lam•i•ni•plan´tar, a. [ Lamina + L. planta sole of the foot.] (Zoöl.) Having the tarsus covered behind with a horny sheath continuous on both sides, as in most singing birds, except the larks.

Laminitis
Lam•i•ni´tis, n. [NL. See Lamina, and -itis.] (Far.) Inflammation of the laminae or fleshy plates along the coffin bone of a horse; founder. Youatt.

Lamm, v. t. See Lam.

Lampas
Lam´pas, n. [F. lampas.] An inflammation and swelling of the soft parts of the roof of the mouth immediately behind the fore teeth in the horse; — called also lampers.

Lampate
Lam´pate, n. [Cf. F. lampate.] (Chem.) A supposed salt of lampic acid. [Obs.]

Lampblack
Lamp´black, n. [ Lamp + black.] The fine impalpable soot obtained from the smoke of carbonaceous substances which have been only partly burnt, as in the flame of a smoking lamp. It consists of finely divided carbon, with sometimes a very small proportion of various impurities. It is used as an ingredient of printers’ ink, and various black pigments and cements.

Lamper eel
Lam"per eel (Zoöl.) See Lamprey.

Lampless
Lamp´less, a. Being without a lamp, or without light; hence, being without appreciation; dull.
"Your ladies’ eyes are lampless to that virtue." Beau. & Fl.

Lamplight
Lamp´light, n. Light from a lamp.
"This world’s artificial lamplights." Owen Meredith.

Lamplighter
Lamp´light•er, n.
1. One who, or that which, lights a lamp; esp., a person who lights street lamps.
2. (Zoöl.) The calico bass.

Lampoon
Lam•poon´, n. [F. lampon a drinking song, fr. lampons let us drink, — the burden of such a song, fr. lamper to guzzle, to drink much and greedily; of German origin, and akin to E. lap to drink. Prob. so called because drinking songs often contain personal slander or satire.] A personal satire in writing; usually, malicious and abusive censure written only to reproach and distress.
"Like her who missed her name in a lampoon, And grieved to find herself decayed so soon." Dryden.

Lampoon
Lam•poon´, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Lampooned p. pr. & vb. n. Lampooning.] To subject to abusive ridicule expressed in writing; to make the subject of a lampoon.
"Ribald poets had lampooned him." Macaulay.
Syn. — To libel; defame; satirize; lash.

Lampoonry
Lam•poon´ry, n. The act of lampooning; a lampoon, or lampoons.

Lamp-post
Lamp´-post, n. A post (generally a pillar of iron) supporting a lamp or lantern for lighting a street, park, etc.

Lamprel
Lam´prel, n. (Zoöl.) See Lamprey.

Lanarkite
Lan´ark•ite, n. [From Lanarkshire, a county in Scotland.] (Min.) A mineral consisting of sulphate of lead, occurring either massive or in long slender prisms, of a greenish white or gray color.

Lanary
La´na•ry, n. [L. lanaria, fr. lanarius belonging to wool, lana wool.] A place for storing wool. { La´nate, La´na•ted } [L. lanatus, fr. lana wool, down.] Wooly; covered with fine long hair, or hairlike filaments.

Lancashire boiler
Lan"ca•shire boil"er A steam boiler having two flues which contain the furnaces and extend through the boiler from end to end.

Lancasterian
Lan•cas•te´ri•an, a. Of or pertaining to the monitorial system of instruction followed by Joseph Lancaster, of England, in which advanced pupils in a school teach pupils below them.

Lance (lans), n. [OE. lance, F. lance, fr. L. lancea; cf. Gr. lo•gchh. Cf. Launch.]
1. A weapon of war, consisting of a long shaft or handle and a steel blade or head; a spear carried by horsemen, and often decorated with a small flag; also a spear or harpoon used by whalers and fishermen.
"A braver soldier never couched lance." Shak.
2. A soldier armed with a lance; a lancer.
3. (Founding) A small iron rod which suspends the core of the mold in casting a shell.
4. (Mil.) An instrument which conveys the charge of a piece of ordnance and forces it home.
5. (Pyrotech.) One of the small paper cases filled with combustible composition, which mark the outlines of a figure. Free lance, in the Middle Ages, and subsequently, a knight or roving soldier, who was free to engage for any state or commander that purchased his services; hence, a person who assails institutions or opinions on his own responsibility without regard to party lines or deference to authority. — Lance bucket (Cavalry), a socket attached to a saddle or stirrup strap, in which to rest the but of a lance. — Lance corporal, same as Lancepesade. — Lance knight, a lansquenet. B. Jonson. — Lance snake (Zoöl.), the fer-de-lance. — Stink-fire lance (Mil.), a kind of fuse filled with a composition which burns with a suffocating odor; — used in the counter operations of miners. — To break a lance, to engage in a tilt or contest.

Lance, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Lanced ; p. pr. & vb. n. Lancing ]
1. To pierce with a lance, or with any similar weapon.
"Seized the due victim, and with fury lanced Her back." Dryden.
2. To open with a lancet; to pierce; as to lance a vein or an abscess.
3. To throw in the manner of a lance. See Lanch.

Lanceolar
Lan´ce•o•lar, a. [L. lanceola a little lance, dim. of lancea lance: cf. F. lanceolaire.] (Bot.) Lanceolate. { Lan´ce•o•late, Lan´ce•o•la•ted } a. [L. lanceolatus: cf. F. lanceole. See Lanceolar.] (Bot. & Zoöl.) Rather narrow, tapering to a point at the apex, and sometimes at the base also; as a lanceolate leaf.

Lancer
Lan´cer, n. [Cf. F. lancier.]
1. One who lances; one who carries a lance; especially, a member of a mounted body of men armed with lances, attached to the cavalry service of some nations. Wilhelm.
2. A lancet. [Obs.]
3. pl. (Dancing) A set of quadrilles of a certain arrangement. [Written also lanciers.]

Lancet
Lan´cet, n. [F. lancette, dim. of lance lance. See Lance.]
1. A surgical instrument of various forms, commonly sharp-pointed and two-edged, used in venesection, and in opening abscesses, etc.
2. (Metal.) An iron bar used for tapping a melting furnace. Knight. Lancet arch (Arch.), a pointed arch, of which the width, or span, is narrow compared with the height. — Lancet architecture, a name given to a style of architecture, in which lancet arches are common; — peculiar to England and 13th century. — Lancet fish. (Zoöl.) (a) A large, voracious, deep- sea fish ( Alepidosaurus ferox), having long, sharp, lancetlike teeth. (b) The doctor, or surgeon fish.

Lanch (lanch), v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Lanched (lancht); p. pr. & vb. n. Lanching. See Launch, Lance.] To throw, as a lance; to let fly; to launch.
"See Whose arm can lanch the surer bolt." Dryden & Lee.

Lanciform
Lan´ci•form, a. [ Lance + -form: cf. F. lanciforme.] Having the form of a lance.

Lancinate
Lan´ci•nate, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Lancinated p. pr. & vb. n. Lancinating ] [L. lancinatus, p. p. of lancinare to fear.] To tear; to lacerate; to pierce or stab. De Quincey.

Lancination
Lan•ci•na´tion, n. A tearing; laceration. "Lancinations of the spirit." Jer. Taylor.

Land (land), n. Urine. See Lant. [Obs.]

Land, n. [AS. land, lond; akin to D., G., Icel., Sw., Dan., and Goth. land. ]
1. The solid part of the surface of the earth; - - opposed to water as constituting a part of such surface, especially to oceans and seas; as to sight land after a long voyage.
"They turn their heads to sea, their sterns to land." Dryden.
2. Any portion, large or small, of the surface of the earth, considered by itself, or as belonging to an individual or a people, as a country, estate, farm, or tract.
"Go view the land, even Jericho." Josh. ii. 1.
"Ill fares the land, to hastening ills a prey, Where wealth accumulates and men decay." Goldsmith. In the expressions "to be, or dwell, upon land," "to go, or fare, on land," as used by Chaucer, land denotes the country as distinguished from the town.
"A poor parson dwelling upon land [i.e., in the country]." Chaucer.
3. Ground, in respect to its nature or quality; soil; as wet land; good or bad land.
4. The inhabitants of a nation or people.
"These answers, in the silent night received, The king himself divulged, the land believed." Dryden.
5. The mainland, in distinction from islands.
6. The ground or floor. [Obs.]
"Herself upon the land she did prostrate." Spenser.
7. (Agric.) The ground left unplowed between furrows; any one of several portions into which a field is divided for convenience in plowing.
8. (Law) Any ground, soil, or earth whatsoever, as meadows, pastures, woods, etc., and everything annexed to it, whether by nature, as trees, water, etc., or by the hand of man, as buildings, fences, etc.; real estate. Kent. Bouvier. Burrill.
9. (Naut.) The lap of the strakes in a clinker-built boat; the lap of plates in an iron vessel; — called also landing. Knight.
10. In any surface prepared with indentations, perforations, or grooves, that part of the surface which is not so treated, as the level part of a millstone between the furrows, or the surface of the bore of a rifled gun between the grooves. Land agent, a person employed to sell or let land, to collect rents, and to attend to other money matters connected with land. — Land boat, a vehicle on wheels propelled by sails. — Land blink, a peculiar atmospheric brightness seen from sea over distant snow-covered land in arctic regions. See Ice blink. — Land breeze. See under Breeze. — Land chain. See Gunter’s chain. — Land crab (Zoöl.), any one of various species of crabs which live much on the land, and resort to the water chiefly for the purpose of breeding. They are abundant in the West Indies and South America. Some of them grow to a large size. — Land fish a fish on land; a person quite out of place. Shak. — Land force, a military force serving on land, as distinguished from a naval force. — Land, ho! (Naut.), a sailor’s cry in announcing sight of land. — Land ice, a field of ice adhering to the coast, in distinction from a floe. — Land leech (Zoöl.), any one of several species of blood-sucking leeches, which, in moist, tropical regions, live on land, and are often troublesome to man and beast. — Land measure, the system of measurement used in determining the area of land; also a table of areas used in such measurement. — Land, or House, of bondage, in Bible history, Egypt; by extension, a place or condition of special oppression. — Land o’ cakes, Scotland. — Land of Nod, sleep. — Land of promise, in Bible history, Canaan: by extension, a better country or condition of which one has expectation. — Land of steady habits, a nickname sometimes given to the State of Connecticut. — Land office, a government office in which the entries upon, and sales of, public land are registered, and other business respecting the public lands is transacted. [U.S.] — Land pike. (Zoöl.) (a) The gray pike, or sauger. (b) The Menobranchus. — Land service, military service as distinguished from naval service. — Land rail. (Zoöl) (a) The crake or corncrake of Europe. See Crake. (b) An Australian rail ( Hypotaenidia Phillipensis); — called also pectoral rail. — Land scrip, a certificate that the purchase money for a certain portion of the public land has been paid to the officer entitled to receive it. [U.S.] — Land shark, a swindler of sailors on shore. [Sailors’ Cant] — Land side (a) That side of anything in or on the sea, as of an island or ship, which is turned toward the land. (b) The side of a plow which is opposite to the moldboard and which presses against the unplowed land. — Land snail (Zoöl.), any snail which lives on land, as distinguished from the aquatic snails are Pulmonifera, and belong to the Geophila; but the operculated land snails of warm countries are Diœcia, and belong to the Taenioglossa. See Geophila, and Helix. — Land spout, a descent of cloud and water in a conical form during the occurrence of a tornado and heavy rainfall on land. - - Land steward, a person who acts for another in the management of land, collection of rents, etc. — Land tortoise, Land turtle (Zoöl.), any tortoise that habitually lives on dry land, as the box tortoise. See Tortoise. — Land warrant, a certificate from the Land Office, authorizing a person to assume ownership of a public land. [U.S.] — Land wind. Same as Land breeze (above). — To make land (Naut.), to sight land. To set the land, to see by the compass how the land bears from the ship. — To shut in the land, to hide the land, as when fog, or an intervening island, obstructs the view.

Land, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Landed; p. pr. & vb. n. Landing.]
1. To set or put on shore from a ship or other water craft; to disembark; to debark.
"I ’ll undertake to land them on our coast." Shak.
2. To catch and bring to shore; to capture; as to land a fish.
3. To set down after conveying; to cause to fall, alight, or reach; to bring to the end of a course; as he landed the quoit near the stake; to be thrown from a horse and landed in the mud; to land one in difficulties or mistakes.

Land, v. i. To go on shore from a ship or boat; to disembark; to come to the end of a course.

Land League. In Ireland, a combination of tenant farmers and other, organized, with Charles Stewart Parnell as president, in 1879 with a view to the reduction of farm rents and a reconstruction of the land laws. — Land´•lea•guer (#), n. — Land´•lea•guism (#), n.
"The Land League, of which Machael Davitt was the founder, originated in Mayo in August, and at a Dublin in October the organization was extended to all Ireland, with Parnell as president." Encyc. Brit.

Land of Steady Habits. Connecticut; — a nickname alluding to the moral character of its inhabitants, implied by the rigid laws (see Blue laws) of the early period.

Landed
Land´ed, a.
1. Having an estate in land.
"The House of Commons must consist, for the most part, of landed men." Addison.
2. Consisting in real estate or land; as landed property; landed security.

Lander
Land´er, n.
1. One who lands, or makes a landing. "The lander in a lonely isle." Tennyson.
2. (Mining) A person who waits at the mouth of the shaft to receive the kibble of ore.

Landfall
Land´fall, n.
1. A sudden transference of property in land by the death of its owner.
2. (Naut.) Sighting or making land when at sea. A good landfall (Naut.), the sighting of land in conformity with the navigator’s reckoning and expectation.

Landflood
Land´flood, n. An overflowing of land by river; an inundation; a freshet. Clarendon.

Landgrave
Land´grave, n. [G. landgraf; land land + graf earl, count; cf. D. landgraaf, F. landgrave.] A German nobleman of a rank corresponding to that of an earl in England and of a count in France. The title was first adopted by some German counts in the twelfth century, to distinguish themselves from the inferior counts under their jurisdiction. Three of them were princes of the empire.

Landgraviate
Land•gra´vi•ate, n. [Cf. F. landgraviat.]
1. The territory held by a landgrave.
2. The office, jurisdiction, or authority of a landgrave.

Landgravine
Land´gra•vine, n. [G. landgräfin; cf. D. landgravin.] The wife of a landgrave.

Landholder
Land´hold•er, n. A holder, owner, or proprietor of land. — Land´hold•ing, n. & a.

Landing
Land´ing, a. Of, pertaining to, or used for, setting, bringing, or going, on shore. Landing charges, charges or fees paid on goods unloaded from a vessel. — Landing net, a small, bag-shaped net, used in fishing to take the fish from the water after being hooked. — Landing stage, a floating platform attached at one end to a wharf in such a manner as to rise and fall with the tide, and thus facilitate passage between the wharf and a vessel lying beside the stage. — Landing waiter, a customhouse officer who oversees the landing of goods, etc., from vessels; a landwaiter.

Landing
Land´ing, n.
1. A going or bringing on shore.
2. A place for landing, as from a ship, a carriage. etc.
3. (Arch.) The level part of a staircase, at the top of a flight of stairs, or connecting one flight with another. Landing place. me as Landing, n. , 2 and 3.

Landlock
Land´lock, v. t. To inclose, or nearly inclose, as a harbor or a vessel, with land.

Landlocked
Land´locked, a.
1. Inclosed, or nearly inclosed, by land.
2. (Zoöl.) Confined to a fresh- water lake by reason of waterfalls or dams; — said of fishes that would naturally seek the sea, after spawning; as the landlocked salmon.

Landloper
Land´lo•per, n. Same as Landlouper.

Landlordry
Land´lord•ry, n. The state of a landlord. [Obs.]

Landlouper
Land´loup•er, n. [D. landlooper, lit., landrunner; land land + loopen to run. See Land, and Leap.] A vagabond; a vagrant. [Written also landleaper and landloper.] "Bands of landloupers." Moltey.

Landlubber
Land´lub•ber, n. [Prop. fr. land + lubber, or possibly corrupted fr. laudlouper.] (Naut.) One who passes his life on land; — so called among seamen in contempt or ridicule.

Landman
Land´man, n. ; pl. Landmen .
1. A man who lives or serves on land; — opposed to seaman.
2. (Eng.) An occupier of land. Cowell.

Landmark
Land´mark, n. [AS. landmearc. See Land, and Mark a sign.]
1. A mark to designate the boundary of land; any mark or fixed object (as a marked tree, a stone, a ditch, or a heap of stones) by which the limits of a farm, a town, or other portion of territory may be known and preserved.
2. Any conspicuous object on land that serves as a guide; some prominent object, as a hill or steeple. Landmarks of history, important events by which eras or conditions are determined.

Landowning
Land´own•ing, n. The owning of land. — a. Having property in land; of or pertaining to landowners.

Land-poor
Land´-poor, a. Pecuniarily embarrassed through owning much unprofitable land. [Colloq.]

Landreeve
Land´reeve, n. [ Land + reeve an officer.] A subordinate officer on an extensive estate, who acts as an assistant to the steward.

Landscape
Land´scape, n. [Formerly written also landskip.] [D. landschap; land land + - schap, equiv. to E. -schip; akin to G. landschaft, Sw. landskap, Dan. landskab. See Land, and -schip.]
1. A portion of land or territory which the eye can comprehend in a single view, including all the objects it contains.
2. A picture representing a scene by land or sea, actual or fancied, the chief subject being the general aspect of nature, as fields, hills, forests, water. etc.
3. The pictorial aspect of a country.
"The landscape of his native country had taken hold on his heart." Macaulay. Landscape gardening, The art of laying out grounds and arranging trees, shrubbery, etc., in such a manner as to produce a picturesque effect.

Landskip
Land´skip, n. [See Landscape.] A landscape. [Obs. except in poetry.]
"Straight my eye hath caught new pleasures, Whilst the landskip round it measures." Milton. { Land´slip•, Land´slide• } n.
1. The slipping down of a mass of land from a mountain, hill, etc.
2. The land which slips down.

Landsthing
Lands´thing, n. [Dan. landsthing, landsting, fr. land land + thing, ting, parliament. See Land; Thing.] (Denmark.) See Legislature, below.

Landwehr
Land´wehr, n. [G., fr. land land, country + wehr defense.] That part of the army, in Germany and Austria, which has completed the usual military service and is exempt from duty in time of peace, except that it is called out occasionally for drill.

Lane, a. [See Lone.] Alone. [Scot.] His lane, by himself; himself alone.

Lane, n. [OE. lane, lone, AS. lone, lone; akin to D. laan, OFries. lana, lona.] A passageway between fences or hedges which is not traveled as a highroad; an alley between buildings; a narrow way among trees, rocks, and other natural obstructions; hence, in a general sense, a narrow passageway; as a lane between lines of men, or through a field of ice.
"It is become a turn-again lane unto them which they can not go through." Tyndale.

Lang, a. & adv. Long. [Obs. or Scot.]

Langaha
Lan´ga•ha, n. (Zoöl.) A curious colubriform snake of the genus Xyphorhynchus, from Madagascar. It is brownish red, and its nose is prolonged in the form of a sharp blade.

Langarey
Lan•ga•rey´, n. (Zoöl.) One of numerous species of long-winged, shrikelike birds of Australia and the East Indies, of the genus Artamus, and allied genera; called also wood swallow.

Langate
Lan´gate, n. (Surg.) A linen roller used in dressing wounds.

Langdak
Lang´dak, n. (Zoöl.) A wolf ( Canis pallipes), found in India, allied to the jackal. { Lan´grage, Lan´grel } n. A kind of shot formerly used at sea for tearing sails and rigging. It consisted of bolts, nails, and other pieces of iron fastened together or inclosed in a canister.

Langret
Lan´gret, n. A kind of loaded die. [Obs.]

Langridge
Lan´gridge, n. See Langrage. [Sometimes compounded with shot.]

Langteraloo
Lang•ter•a•loo´, n. [See Loo.] An old game at cards. See Loo (a). Tatler.

Languageless
Lan´guage•less, a. Lacking or wanting language; speechless; silent. Shak.

Langue d’oc
Langue• d’oc" [F., language of oc yes.] The dialect, closely akin to French, formerly spoken south of the Loire (in which the word for "yes" was oc); Provençal.

Langue d’oïl
Langue• d’oïl" [F., language of oïl yes.] The dialect formerly spoken north of the Loire (in which the word for "yes" was oïl, F. oui).

Langued, a. [F. langue tongue. See Language.] (Her.) Tongued; having the tongue visible.
"Lions … represented as armed and langued gules." Cussans.

Languid
Lan´guid, a. [L. languidus, fr. languere to be faint or languid: cf. F. languide. See Languish.]
1. Drooping or flagging from exhaustion; indisposed to exertion; without animation; weak; weary; heavy; dull. " Languid, powerless limbs. " Armstrong.
"Fire their languid souls with Cato’s virtue." Addison.
2. Slow in progress; tardy. " No motion so swift or languid." Bentley.
3. Promoting or indicating weakness or heaviness; as a languid day.
"Feebly she laugheth in the languid moon." Keats.
"Their idleness, aimless flirtations and languid airs." W. Black.
Syn. — Feeble; weak; faint; sickly; pining; exhausted; weary; listless; heavy; dull; heartless. — Lan´guid•ly, adv. — Lan´guid•ness, n.

Languishing
Lan´guish•ing, a.
1. Becoming languid and weak; pining; losing health and strength.
2. Amorously pensive; as languishing eyes, or look.

Languishingly
Lan´guish•ing•ly, adv. In a languishing manner.

Languishment
Lan´guish•ment, n.
1. The state of languishing. " Lingering languishment." Shak.
2. Tenderness of look or mien; amorous pensiveness.

Languishness
Lan´guish•ness, n. Languishment. [Obs.]

Languor
Lan´guor, n. [OE. langour, OF. langour, F. langueur, L. languor. See Languish.]
1. A state of the body or mind which is caused by exhaustion of strength and characterized by a languid feeling; feebleness; lassitude; laxity.
2. Any enfeebling disease. [Obs.]
"Sick men with divers languors." Wyclif (Luke iv. 40).
3. Listless indolence; dreaminess. Pope. " German dreams, Italian languors." The Century.
Syn. — Feebleness; weakness; faintness; weariness; dullness; heaviness; lassitude; listlessness.

Languorous
Lan´guor•ous, a. [From Languor: cf. F. langoureux.] Producing, or tending to produce, languor; characterized by languor. [Obs. or Poetic]
"Whom late I left in languorous constraint." Spenser.
"To wile the length from languorous hours, and draw The sting from pain." Tennyson.

Langya
Lan´gya, n. (Zoöl.) [Native name Anglicized.] One of several species of East Indian and Asiatic fresh-water fishes of the genus Ophiocephalus, remarkable for their power of living out of water, and for their tenacity of life; — called also walking fishes.

Laniard
Lan´iard, n. See Lanyard.

Laniary
La´ni•a•ry, a. [L. laniarius, fr. lanius butcher, laniare to tear in pieces: cf. F. laniaire.] (Anat.) Lacerating or tearing; as the laniary canine teeth.

Laniary
La´ni•a•ry, n. [L. Laniary, a. ]
1. The shambles; a place of slaughter. [R.]
2. (Anat.) A laniary, or canine, tooth.

Laniation
La•ni•a´tion, n. [L. laniatio.] A tearing in pieces. [R.]

Lanier
Lan´ier, n. [F. lanière. See Lanyard.] [Written also lanner, lanyer.]
1. A thong of leather; a whip lash. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.
2. A strap used to fasten together parts of armor, to hold the shield by, and the like. Fairholt.

Lanifical
La•nif´i•cal, a. [L. lanificus; lana wool + facere to make.] Working in wool.

Lanifice
Lan´i•fice, n. [L. lanificium: cf. OF. lanifice.] Anything made of wool. [Obs.] Bacon.

Lanigerous
La•nig´er•ous, a. [L. laniger; lano wool + gerere to hear.] Bearing or producing wool.

Lanioid
La´ni•oid, a. [NL. Lanius (fr. L. lanius a butcher), the typical genus + -oid.] (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the shrikes (family Laniidae).

Lank, a. [ Compar. Lanker superl. Lankest.] [AS. hlanc; cf. G. lenken to turn, gelenk joint, OHG. hlanca hip, side, flank, and E. link of a chain.]
1. Slender and thin; not well filled out; not plump; shrunken; lean.
"Meager and lank with fasting grown." Swift.
"Who would not choose … to have rather a lank purse than an empty brain?" Barrow.
2. Languid; drooping.[Obs.]
"Who, piteous of her woes, reared her lank head." Milton. Lank hair, long, thin hair. Macaulay.

Lank, v. i. & t. To become lank; to make lank. [Obs.] Shak. G. Fletcher.

Lankiness
Lank´i•ness, n. The condition or quality or being lanky.

Lankly
Lank´ly, adv. In a lank manner.

Lankness
Lank´ness, n. The state or quality of being lank.

Lanky
Lank´y, a. Somewhat lank. Thackeray.
"The lanky Dinka, nearly seven feet in height." The Century. { Lan´ner, n. f.Lan´ner•et, n. m.} [F. lanier, OF. also lasnier. Cf. Lanyard.] (Zoöl.) A long-tailed falcon ( Falco lanarius), of Southern Europe, Asia, and Northern Africa, resembling the American prairie falcon.

Lanseh
Lan´seh, n. The small, whitish brown fruit of an East Indian tree ( Lansium domesticum). It has a fleshy pulp, with an agreeable subacid taste. Balfour.

Lansquenet
Lans´que•net, n. [F., fr. G. landsknecht a foot soldier, also a game of cards introduced by these foot soldiers; land country + knecht boy, servant. See Land, and Knight.]
1. A German foot soldier in foreign service in the 15th and 16th centuries; a soldier of fortune; — a term used in France and Western Europe.
2. A game at cards, vulgarly called lambskinnet.
"[They play] their little game of lansquenet." Longfellow.

Lanterloo
Lan´ter•loo, n. An old name of loo (a).

Lantern
Lan´tern (lan"tern), n. [F. lanterne, L. lanterna, laterna, from Gr. lampth•r light, torch. See Lamp.]
1. Something inclosing a light, and protecting it from wind, rain, etc.; — sometimes portable, as a closed vessel or case of horn, perforated tin, glass, oiled paper, or other material, having a lamp or candle within; sometimes fixed, as the glazed inclosure of a street light, or of a lighthouse light.
2. (Arch.) (a) An open structure of light material set upon a roof, to give light and air to the interior. (b) A cage or open chamber of rich architecture, open below into the building or tower which it crowns. (c) A smaller and secondary cupola crowning a larger one, for ornament, or to admit light; such as the lantern of the cupola of the Capitol at Washington, or that of the Florence cathedral.
3. (Mach.) A lantern pinion or trundle wheel. See Lantern pinion (below).
4. (Steam Engine) A kind of cage inserted in a stuffing box and surrounding a piston rod, to separate the packing into two parts and form a chamber between for the reception of steam, etc.; — called also lantern brass.
5. (Founding) A perforated barrel to form a core upon.
6. (Zoöl.) See Aristotle’s lantern. Fig. 1 represents a hand lantern; fig. 2, an arm lantern; fig. 3, a breast lantern; — so named from the positions in which they are carried. Dark lantern, a lantern with a single opening, which may be closed so as to conceal the light; — called also bull’s-eye. — Lantern fly, Lantern carrier (Zoöl.), any one of several species of large, handsome, hemipterous insects of the genera Laternaria, Fulgora, and allies, of the family Fulgoridae. The largest species is Laternaria phosphorea of Brazil. The head of some species has been supposed to be phosphorescent. — Lantern jaws, long, thin jaws; hence, a thin visage. — Lantern pinion, Lantern wheel (Mach.), a kind of pinion or wheel having cylindrical bars or trundles, instead of teeth, inserted at their ends in two parallel disks or plates; — so called as resembling a lantern in shape; — called also wallower, or trundle. — Lantern shell (Zoöl.), any translucent, marine, bivalve shell of the genus Anatina, and allied genera. — Magic lantern, an optical instrument consisting of a case inclosing a light, and having suitable lenses in a lateral tube, for throwing upon a screen, in a darkened room or the like, greatly magnified pictures from slides placed in the focus of the outer lens.

Lantern
Lan´tern, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Lanterned p. pr. & vb. n. Lanterning.] [Cf. F. lanterner to hang at the lamp post, fr. lanterne. See Lantern.] To furnish with a lantern; as to lantern a lighthouse.

Lanthanite
Lan´tha•nite (lan"tha•nit), n. (Min.) Hydrous carbonate of lanthanum, found in tabular white crystals.

Lanthanum
Lan´tha•num (-num), n. [NL., fr. Gr. lanqa•nein to lie hid, to be concealed.] (Chem.) A rare element of the group of the earth metals, allied to aluminium. It occurs in certain rare minerals, as cerite, gadolinite, orthite, etc., and was so named from the difficulty of separating it from cerium, didymium, and other rare elements with which it is usually associated. Atomic weight 138.5. Symbol La. [Formerly written also lanthanium.]

Lanthopine
Lan´tho•pine, n. [Gr. lanqa•nein to lie hid + E. opium.] (Chem.) An alkaloid found in opium in small quantities, and extracted as a white crystalline substance.

Lanthorn
Lan´thorn, n. See Lantern. [Obs.] { La•nu´gi•nose•, La•nu´gi•nous } a. [L. lanuginosus, fr. lanugo, - ginis, woolly substance, down, fr. lana wool: cf. F. lanugineux.] Covered with down, or fine soft hair; downy.

Laodicean
La•od•i•ce´an, a. Of or pertaining to Laodicea, a city in Phrygia Major; like the Christians of Laodicea; lukewarm in religion. Rev. iii. 14- 16.

Lap, n. [OE. lappe, AS. laeppa; akin to D. lap patch, piece, G. lappen, OHG. lappa, Dan. lap, Sw. lapp.]
1. The loose part of a coat; the lower part of a garment that plays loosely; a skirt; an apron. Chaucer.
2. An edge; a border; a hem, as of cloth. Chaucer.
"If he cuts off but a lap of truth’s garment, his heart smites him." Fuller.
3. The part of the clothing that lies on the knees or thighs when one sits down; that part of the person thus covered; figuratively, a place of rearing and fostering; as to be reared in the lap of luxury.
"Men expect that happiness should drop into their laps." Tillotson.
4. That part of any substance or fixture which extends over, or lies upon, or by the side of, a part of another; as the lap of a board; also the measure of such extension over or upon another thing. The lap of shingles or slates in roofing is the distance one course extends over the second course below, the distance over the course immediately below being called the cover.
5. (Steam Engine) The amount by which a slide valve at its half stroke overlaps a port in the seat, being equal to the distance the valve must move from its mid stroke position in order to begin to open the port. Used alone, lap refers to outside lap. See Outside lap (below).
6. The state or condition of being in part extended over or by the side of something else; or the extent of the overlapping; as the second boat got a lap of half its length on the leader.
7. One circuit around a race track, esp. when the distance is a small fraction of a mile; as to run twenty laps; to win by three laps. See Lap, to fold, 2.
8. In card playing and other games, the points won in excess of the number necessary to complete a game; — so called when they are counted in the score of the following game.
9. (Cotton Manuf.) A sheet, layer, or bat, of cotton fiber prepared for the carding machine.
10. (Mach.) A piece of brass, lead, or other soft metal, used to hold a cutting or polishing powder in cutting glass, gems, and the like, or in polishing cutlery, etc. It is usually in the form of wheel or disk, which revolves on a vertical axis. Lap joint, a joint made by one layer, part, or piece, overlapping another, as in the scarfing of timbers. — Lap weld, a lap joint made by welding together overlapping edges or ends. — Inside lap (Steam Engine), lap of the valve with respect to the exhaust port. — Outside lap, lap with respect to the admission, or steam, port.

Lap, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Lapped ; p. pr. & vb. n. Lapping.]
1. To rest or recline in a lap, or as in a lap.
"To lap his head on lady’s breast." Praed.
2. To cut or polish with a lap, as glass, gems, cutlery, etc. See 1st Lap, 10.

Lap, v. t. [OE. lappen to fold (see Lap, n. ); cf. also OE. wlappen, perh. another form of wrappen, E, wrap.]
1. To fold; to bend and lay over or on something; as to lap a piece of cloth.
2. To wrap or wind around something.
"About the paper … I lapped several times a slender thread of very black silk." Sir I. Newton.
3. To infold; to hold as in one’s lap; to cherish.
"Her garment spreads, and laps him in the folds." Dryden.
4. To lay or place over anything so as to partly or wholly cover it; as to lap one shingle over another; to lay together one partly over another; as to lap weather-boards; also to be partly over, or by the side of (something); as the hinder boat lapped the foremost one.
5. (Carding & Spinning) To lay together one over another, as fleeces or slivers for further working. To lap boards, shingles, etc., to lay one partly over another. — To lap timbers, to unite them in such a way as to preserve the same breadth and depth throughout, as by scarfing. Weale.

Lap, v. i. To be turned or folded; to lie partly upon or by the side of something, or of one another; as the cloth laps back; the boats lap; the edges lap.
"The upper wings are opacous; at their hinder ends, where they lap over, transparent, like the wing of a flay." Grew.

Lap, v. i. [OE. lappen, lapen, AS. lapian; akin to LG. lappen, OHG. laffan, Icel. lepja, Dan. lade, Sw. läppja, L. lambere; cf. Gr., W. llepio. Cf. Lambent.]
1. To take up drink or food with the tongue; to drink or feed by licking up something.
"The dogs by the River Nilus’s side, being thirsty, lap hastily as they run along the shore." Sir K. Digby.
2. To make a sound like that produced by taking up drink with the tongue.
"I heard the ripple washing in the reeds, And the wild water lapping on the crag." Tennyson.

Lap, v. t. To take into the mouth with the tongue; to lick up with a quick motion of the tongue.
"They ’II take suggestion as a cat laps milk." Shak.

Lap, n.
1. The act of lapping with, or as with, the tongue; as to take anything into the mouth with a lap.
2. The sound of lapping.

Laparocele
Lap´a•ro•cele, n. [Gr. loins + tumor.] (Med.) A rupture or hernia in the lumbar regions.

Laparotomy
Lap•a•rot´o•my, n. [Gr. loins + te•mnein to cut.] (Surg.) A cutting through the walls of the abdomen, as in the Caesarean section.