Stab, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stabbed p. pr. & vb. n. Stabbing.] [Cf. OD. staven to fix, fasten, fr. stave, staff, a staff, rod; akin to G. stab a staff, stick, E. staff; also Gael. stob to stab, as n., a stake, a stub. Cf. Staff.]
1. To pierce with a pointed weapon; to wound or kill by the thrust of a pointed instrument; as to stab a man with a dagger; also to thrust; as to stab a dagger into a person.
2. Fig.: To injure secretly or by malicious falsehood or slander; as to stab a person’s reputation.
Stabat Mater
Sta"bat Ma"ter [L., the mother was standing.] A celebrated Latin hymn, beginning with these words, commemorating the sorrows of the mother of our Lord at the foot of the cross. It is read in the Mass of the Sorrows of the Virgin Mary, and is sung by Catholics when making "the way of the cross" ( Via Crucis). See Station, 7 (c).
Stabbingly
Stab´bing•ly, adv. By stabbing; with intent to injure covertly. Bp. Parker.
Stabiliment
Sta•bil´i•ment, n. [L. stabilimentum, fr. stabilire to make firm ir stable, fr. stabilis. See Stable, a. ] The act of making firm; firm support; establishment. [R.] Jer. taylor.
"They serve for stabiliment, propagation, and shade." Derham.
Stability
Sta•bil´i•ty, n. [L. stabilitas; cf. F. stabilite. See Stable, a. ]
1. The state or quality of being stable, or firm; steadiness; firmness; strength to stand without being moved or overthrown; as the stability of a structure; the stability of a throne or a constitution.
2. Steadiness or firmness of character, firmness of resolution or purpose; the quality opposite to fickleness, irresolution, or inconstancy; constancy; steadfastness; as a man of little stability, or of unusual stability.
3. Fixedness; — as opposed to fluidity.
"Since fluidness and stability are contary qualities." Boyle.
Syn. — Steadiness; stableness; constancy; immovability; firmness.
Stable
Sta´ble, a. [OE. estable, F. stable, fr. L. stabilis, fr. stare to stand. See Stand, v. i. and cf. Establish.]
1. Firmly established; not easily moved, shaken, or overthrown; fixed; as a stable government.
"In this region of chance, … where nothing is stable." Rogers.
2. Steady in purpose; constant; firm in resolution; not easily diverted from a purpose; not fickle or wavering; as a man of stable character.
"And to her husband ever meek and stable." Chaucer.
3. Durable; not subject to overthrow or change; firm; as a stable foundation; a stable position. Stable equibrium (Mech.), the kind of equilibrium of a body so placed that if disturbed it returns to its former position, as in the case when the center of gravity is below the point or axis of support; — opposed to unstable equilibrium, in which the body if disturbed does not tend to return to its former position, but to move farther away from it, as in the case of a body supported at a point below the center of gravity. Cf. Neutral equilibrium, under Neutral.
Syn. — Fixed; steady; constant; abiding; strong; durable; firm.
Stable
Sta´ble, v. t. To fix; to establish. [Obs.] Chaucer.
Stable
Sta´ble, n. [OF. estable, F. etable, from L. stabulum, fr. stare to stand. See Stand, v. i.] A house, shed, or building, for beasts to lodge and feed in; esp., a building or apartment with stalls, for horses; as a horse stable; a cow stable. Milton. Stable fly (Zoöl.), a common dipterous fly ( Stomoxys calcitrans) which is abundant about stables and often enters dwellings, especially in autumn. These files, unlike the common house files, which they resemble, bite severely, and are troublesome to horses and cattle.
Stable
Sta´ble, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stabled p. pr. & vb. n. Stabling ] To put or keep in a stable.
Stableness
Sta´ble•ness, n. The quality or state of being stable, or firmly established; stability.
Stably
Sta´bly, adv. In a stable manner; firmly; fixedly; steadily; as a government stably settled.
Stabulation
Stab•u•la´tion, n. [L. stabulatio, fr. stabulari to stable cattle, fr. stabulum. See Stable, n. ]
1. The act of stabling or housing beasts.
2. A place for lodging beasts; a stable. [Obs.]
Staccato
Stac•ca´to, a. [It., p. p. of staccere, equivalent to distaccare. See Detach.]
1. (Mus.) Disconnected; separated; distinct; — a direction to perform the notes of a passage in a short, distinct, and pointed manner. It is opposed to legato, and often indicated by heavy accents written over or under the notes, or by dots when the performance is to be less distinct and emphatic.
2. Expressed in a brief, pointed manner.
"Staccato and peremptory [literary criticism]." G. Eliot.
Stack, a. [Icel. stakkr; akin to Sw. stack, Dan. stak. Sf. Stake.]
1. A large pile of hay, grain, straw, or the like, usually of a nearly conical form, but sometimes rectangular or oblong, contracted at the top to a point or ridge, and sometimes covered with thatch.
"But corn was housed, and beans were in the stack." Cowper.
2. A pile of poles or wood, indefinite in quantity.
"Against every pillar was a stack of billets above a man’s height." Bacon.
3. A pile of wood containing 108 cubic feet. [Eng.]
4. (Arch.) (a) A number of flues embodied in one structure, rising above the roof. Hence: (b) Any single insulated and prominent structure, or upright pipe, which affords a conduit for smoke; as the brick smoke stack of a factory; the smoke stack of a steam vessel. Stack of arms (Mil.), a number of muskets or rifles set up together, with the bayonets crossing one another, forming a sort of conical self-supporting pile.
Stack, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stacked p. pr. & vb. n. Stacking.] [Cf. Sw. stacka, Dan. stakke. See Stack, n. ] To lay in a conical or other pile; to make into a large pile; as to stack hay, cornstalks, or grain; to stack or place wood. To stack arms (Mil.), to set up a number of muskets or rifles together, with the bayonets crossing one another, and forming a sort of conical pile.
Stacket
Stack´et, n. [Cf. F. estacade and E. stockade.] (Mil.) A stockade. [Scot.] Sir W. Scott.
Stack-guard
Stack´-guard, n. A covering or protection, as a canvas for a stack.
Stacking
Stack´ing, a. & n. from Stack. Stacking band, Stacking belt, a band or rope used in binding thatch or straw upon a stack. — Stacking stage, a stage used in building stacks.
Stackstand
Stack´stand, n. A staging for supporting a stack of hay or grain; a rickstand.
Stackyard
Stack´yard, n. A yard or inclosure for stacks of hay or grain. A. Smith.
Staddle
Stad´dle, n. [AS. staðol, sraðul, a foundation, firm seat; akin to E. stand. rad.163. See Stand, v. i.] [Formerly written stadle.]
1. Anything which serves for support; a staff; a prop; a crutch; a cane.
"His weak steps governing
And aged limbs on cypress stadle stout." Spenser.
2. The frame of a stack of hay or grain. [Eng.]
3. A row of dried or drying hay, etc. [Eng.]
4. A small tree of any kind, especially a forest tree. In America, trees are called staddles from the time that they are three or four years old till they are six or eight inches in diameter, or more. This is also the sense in which the word is used by Bacon and Tusser.
Stade, n. [Cf. F. stade.] A stadium. Donne.
Stade, n. [Cf. G. gestade shore.] A landing place or wharf. Knight.
Stafette
Sta•fette´, n. [Cf. G. stafette. See Estafet.] An estafet. [R.] arlyle.
Staff, n. ; pl. Staves ( or ; 277) or Staffs (#) in senses 1-9, Staffs in senses 10, 11. [AS. staef a staff; akin to LG. & D. staf, OFries stef, G. stab, Icel. stafr, Sw. staf, Dan. stav, Goth. stabs element, rudiment, Skr. sthapay to cause to stand, to place. See Stand, and cf. Stab, Stave, n. ]
1. A long piece of wood; a stick; the long handle of an instrument or weapon; a pole or srick, used for many purposes; as a surveyor’s staff; the staff of a spear or pike.
"And he put the staves into the rings on the sides of the altar to bear it withal." Ex. xxxviii. 7.
"With forks and staves the felon to pursue." Dryden.
2. A stick carried in the hand for support or defense by a person walking; hence, a support; that which props or upholds. "Hooked staves." Piers Plowman.
"The boy was the very staff of my age." Shak.
"He spoke of it [beer] in "The Earnest Cry," and likewise in the "Scotch Drink," as one of the staffs of life which had been struck from the poor man’s hand." Prof. Wilson.
3. A pole, stick, or wand borne as an ensign of authority; a badge of office; as a constable’s staff.
"Methought this staff, mine office badge in court,
Was broke in twain." Shak.
"All his officers brake their staves; but at their return new staves were delivered unto them." Hayward.
4. A pole upon which a flag is supported and displayed.
5. The round of a ladder. [R.]
"I ascend at one [ladder] of six hundred and thirty-nine staves." Dr. J. Campbell (E. Brown’s Travels).
6. A series of verses so disposed that, when it is concluded, the same order begins again; a stanza; a stave.
"Cowley found out that no kind of staff is proper for an heroic poem, as being all too lyrical." Dryden.
7. (Mus.) The five lines and the spaces on which music is written; — formerly called stave.
8. (Mech.) An arbor, as of a wheel or a pinion of a watch.
9. (Surg.) The grooved director for the gorget, or knife, used in cutting for stone in the bladder.
10. [From Staff, 3, a badge of office.] (Mil.) An establishment of officers in various departments attached to an army, to a section of an army, or to the commander of an army. The general’s staff consists of those officers about his person who are employed in carrying his commands into execution. See etat Major.
11. Hence: A body of assistants serving to carry into effect the plans of a superintendant or manager; as the staff of a newspaper. Jacob’s staff (Surv.), a single straight rod or staff, pointed and iron-shod at the bottom, for penetrating the ground, and having a socket joint at the top, used, instead of a tripod, for supporting a compass. — Staff angle (Arch.), a square rod of wood standing flush with the wall on each of its sides, at the external angles of plastering, to prevent their being damaged. — The staff of life, bread. "Bread is the staff of life." Swift. — Staff tree (Bot.), any plant of the genus Celastrus, mostly climbing shrubs of the northern hemisphere. The American species ( C. scandens) is commonly called bittersweet. See 2d Bittersweet, 3 (b). — To set, or To put, up, or down, one’s staff, to take up one’s residence; to lodge. [Obs.]
Staff, n. [G. staffiren to fill or fit out, adorn, fr. D. stoffeeren, OF. estoffer, F. etoffer, fr. OF. estoffe stuff, F. etoffe. See Stuff, n. ] (Arch.) Plaster combined with fibrous and other materials so as to be suitable for sculpture in relief or in the round, or for forming flat plates or boards of considerable size which can be nailed to framework to make the exterior of a larger structure, forming joints which may afterward be repaired and concealed with fresh plaster.
Staffier
Staf´fi•er, n. An attendant bearing a staff. [Obs.] "Staffiers on foot." Hudibras.
Staffman
Staff´man, n. ; pl. Staffmen . A workman employed in silk throwing.
Stag, n. [Icel. steggr the male of several animals; or a doubtful AS. stagga. Cf. Steg.]
1. (Zoöl.) (a) The adult male of the red deer ( Cervus elaphus), a large European species closely related to the American elk, or wapiti. (b) The male of certain other species of large deer.
2. A colt, or filly; also a romping girl. [Prov. Eng.]
3. A castrated bull; — called also bull stag, and bull seg. See the Note under Ox.
4. (Stock Exchange) (a) An outside irregular dealer in stocks, who is not a member of the exchange. [Cant] (b) One who applies for the allotment of shares in new projects, with a view to sell immediately at a premium, and not to hold the stock. [Cant]
5. (Zoöl.) The European wren. [Prov. Eng.] Stag beetle (Zoöl.), any one of numerous species of lamellicorn beetles belonging to Lucanus and allied genera, especially L. cervus of Europe and L. dama of the United States. The mandibles are large and branched, or forked, whence the name. The lava feeds on the rotten wood of dead trees. Called also horned bug, and horse beetle. — Stag dance, a dance by men only. [slang, U.S.] — Stag hog (Zoöl.), the babiroussa. — Stag-horn coral (Zoöl.), any one of several species of large branching corals of the genus Madrepora, which somewhat resemble the antlers of the stag, especially Madrepora cervicornis, and M. palmata, of Florida and the West Indies. — Stag-horn fern (Bot.), an Australian and West African fern ( Platycerium alcicorne) having the large fronds branched like a stag’s horns; also any species of the same genus. — Stag-horn sumac (Bot.), a common American shrub ( Rhus typhina) having densely velvety branchlets. See Sumac. — Stag party, a party consisting of men only. [Slang, U. S.] — Stag tick (Zoöl.), a parasitic dipterous insect of the family Hippoboscidae, which lives upon the stag and in usually wingless. The same species lives also upon the European grouse, but in that case has wings.
Stag, v. i. (Com.) To act as a "stag", or irregular dealer in stocks. [Cant]
Stag, v. t. To watch; to dog, or keep track of. [Prov. Eng. or Slang] H. Kingsley.
Stage, n. [OF. estage, F. etage, (assumed) LL. staticum, from L. stare to stand. See Stand, and cf. Static.]
1. A floor or story of a house. [Obs.] Wyclif.
2. An elevated platform on which an orator may speak, a play be performed, an exhibition be presented, or the like.
3. A floor elevated for the convenience of mechanical work, or the like; a scaffold; a staging.
4. A platform, often floating, serving as a kind of wharf.
5. The floor for scenic performances; hence, the theater; the playhouse; hence, also the profession of representing dramatic compositions; the drama, as acted or exhibited.
"Knights, squires, and steeds, must enter on the stage." Pope.
"Lo! Where the stage, the poor, degraded stage,
Holds its warped mirror to a gaping age." C. Sprague.
6. A place where anything is publicly exhibited; the scene of any noted action or carrer; the spot where any remarkable affair occurs.
"When we are born, we cry that we are come
To this stage of fools." Shak.
"Music and ethereal mirth
Wherewith the stage of air and earth did ring." Miton.
7. The platform of a microscope, upon which an object is placed to be viewed. See Illust. of Microscope.
8. A place of rest on a regularly traveled road; a stage house; a station; a place appointed for a relay of horses.
9. A degree of advancement in a journey; one of several portions into which a road or course is marked off; the distance between two places of rest on a road; as a stage of ten miles.
"A stage … signifies a certain distance on a road." Jeffrey.
"He traveled by gig, with his wife, his favorite horse performing the journey by easy stages." Smiles.
10. A degree of advancement in any pursuit, or of progress toward an end or result.
"Such a polity is suited only to a particular stage in the progress of society." Macaulay.
11. A large vehicle running from station to station for the accomodation of the public; a stagecoach; an omnibus. "A parcel sent you by the stage." Cowper.
"I went in the sixpenny stage." Swift.
12. (Biol.) One of several marked phases or periods in the development and growth of many animals and plants; as the larval stage; pupa stage; zœa stage. Stage box, a box close to the stage in a theater. — Stage carriage, a stagecoach. — Stage door, the actor’s and workmen’s entrance to a theater. — Stage lights, the lights by which the stage in a theater is illuminated. — Stage micrometer, a graduated device applied to the stage of a microscope for measuring the size of an object. — Stage wagon, a wagon which runs between two places for conveying passengers or goods. — Stage whisper, a loud whisper, as by an actor in a theater, supposed, for dramatic effect, to be unheard by one or more of his fellow actors, yet audible to the audience; an aside.
Stage, v. t. To exhibit upon a stage, or as upon a stage; to display publicly. Shak.
Stage manager. (Theat.) One in control of the stage during the production of a play. He directs the stage hands, property man, etc., has charge of all details behind the curtain, except the acting, and has a general oversight of the actors. Sometimes he is also the stage director.
Stagecoachman
Stage´coach•man, n. ; pl. Stagecoachmen . One who drives a stagecoach.
Stagehouse
Stage´house, n. A house where a stage regularly stops for passengers or a relay of horses.
Stagely
Stage´ly, a. Pertaining to a stage; becoming the theater; theatrical. [Obs.] Jer. Taylor.
Stageplay
Stage´play, n. A dramatic or theatrical entertainment. Dryden.
Stag-evil
Stag´-e•vil, n. (Far.) A kind of palsy affecting the jaw of a horse. Crabb.
Staggard
Stag´gard, n. [From Stag.] (Zoöl.) The male red deer when four years old.
Stagger
Stag´ger, v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Staggered p. pr. & vb. n. Staggering.] [OE. stakeren, Icel. stakra to push, to stagger, fr. staka to punt, push, stagger; cf. OD. staggeren to stagger. Cf. Stake, n. ]
1. To move to one side and the other, as if about to fall, in standing or walking; not to stand or walk with steadiness; to sway; to reel or totter.
"Deep was the wound; he staggered with the blow." Dryden.
2. To cease to stand firm; to begin to give way; to fail. "The enemy staggers." Addison.
3. To begin to doubt and waver in purposes; to become less confident or determined; to hesitate.
"He [Abraham] staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief." Rom. iv. 20.
Staggerwort
Stag´ger•wort, n. (Bot.) A kind of ragwort ( Senecio Jacobaea). { Stag"-horn• co"ral, Stag"-horn• fern•, etc.} See under Stag.
Stagnant
Stag´nant, a. [L. stagnans, -antis, p. pr. of stagnare. See Stagnate.]
1. That stagnates; not flowing; not running in a current or steam; motionless; hence, impure or foul from want of motion; as a stagnant lake or pond; stagnant blood in the veins.
2. Not active or brisk; dull; as business in stagnant.
"That gloomy slumber of the stagnant soul." Johnson.
"For him a stagnant life was not worth living." Palfrey.
Stagnate
Stag´nate (stag"nat), v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Stagnated p. pr. & vb. n. Stagnating.] [L. stagnatus, p. p. of stagnare to stagnate, make stagnant, from stagnum a piece of standing water. See Stank a pool, and cf. Stanch, v. t.]
1. To cease to flow; to be motionless; as blood stagnates in the veins of an animal; hence, to become impure or foul by want of motion; as air stagnates in a close room.
2. To cease to be brisk or active; to become dull or inactive; as commerce stagnates; business stagnates.
"Ready-witted tenderness … never stagnates in vain lamentations while there is any room for hope." Sir W. Scott.
Stagnate
Stag´nate, a. Stagnant. [Obs.] "A stagnate mass of vapors." Young.
Staid (stad), imp. & p. p. of Stay.
Staid, a. [From Stay to stop.] Sober; grave; steady; sedate; composed; regular; not wild, volatile, or fanciful. "Sober and staid persons." Addison.
"O’erlaid with black, staid Wisdom’s hue." Milton.
Syn. — Sober; grave; steady; steadfast; composed; regular; sedate.
Stain, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stained p. pr. & vb. n. Staining.] [Abbrev. fr. distain.]
1. To discolor by the application of foreign matter; to make foul; to spot; as to stain the hand with dye; armor stained with blood.
2. To color, as wood, glass, paper, cloth, or the like, by processess affecting, chemically or otherwise, the material itself; to tinge with a color or colors combining with, or penetrating, the substance; to dye; as to stain wood with acids, colored washes, paint rubbed in, etc.; to stain glass.
3. To spot with guilt or infamy; to bring reproach on; to blot; to soil; to tarnish.
"Of honor void,
Of innocence, of faith, of purity,
Our wonted ornaments now soiled and stained." Milton.
4. To cause to seem inferior or soiled by comparison.
"She stains the ripest virgins of her age." Beau. & Fl.
"That did all other beasts in beauty stain." Spenser. Stained glass, glass colored or stained by certain metallic pigments fused into its substance, — often used for making ornament windows.
Syn. — To paint; dye; blot; soil; sully; discolor; disgrace; taint. — Paint, Stain, Dye. These denote three different processes; the first mechanical, the other two, chiefly chemical. To paint a thing is so spread a coat of coloring matter over it; to stain or dye a thing is to impart color to its substance. To stain is said chiefly of solids, as wood, glass, paper; to dye, of fibrous substances, textile fabrics, etc.; the one, commonly, a simple process, as applying a wash; the other more complex, as fixing colors by mordants.
Stainer
Stain´er, n.
1. One who stains or tarnishes.
2. A workman who stains; as a stainer of wood.
Stainless
Stain´less, a. Free from stain; immaculate. Shak.
"The veery care he took to keep his name Stainless, with some was evidence of shame." Crabbe.
Syn. — Blameless; spotless; faultless. See Blameless.
Stair, n. [OE. steir, steyer, AS. stger, from igan to ascend, rise. rad.164. See Sty to ascend.]
1. One step of a series for ascending or descending to a different level; — commonly applied to those within a building.
2. A series of steps, as for passing from one story of a house to another; — commonly used in the plural; but originally used in the singular only. "I a winding stair found." Chaucer’s Dream.Below stairs, in the basement or lower part of a house, where the servants are. — Flight of stairs, the stairs which make the whole ascent of a story. — Pair of stairs, a set or flight of stairs. — pair, in this phrase, having its old meaning of a set. See Pair, n. , 1. — Run of stars (Arch.), a single set of stairs, or section of a stairway, from one platform to the next. — Stair rod, a rod, usually of metal, for holding a stair carpet to its place. — Up stairs. See Upstairs in the Vocabulary.
Stairway
Stair´way, n. A flight of stairs or steps; a staircase. "A rude and narrow stairway." Moore.
Staithman
Staith´man, n. A man employed in weighing and shipping at a staith. [Eng.]
Stake, n. [AS. staca, from the root of E. stick; akin to OFries. & LG. stake, D. staak, Sw. stake, Dan. stage. See Stick, v. t., and cf. Estacade, Stockade.]
1. A piece of wood, usually long and slender, pointed at one end so as to be easily driven into the ground as a support or stay; as a stake to support vines, fences, hedges, etc.
"A sharpened stake strong Dryas found." Dryden.
2. A stick inserted upright in a lop, eye, or mortise, at the side or end of a cart, a flat car, or the like, to prevent goods from falling off.
3. The piece of timber to which a martyr was affixed to be burned; hence, martyrdom by fire.
4. A small anvil usually furnished with a tang to enter a hole in a bench top, — used by tinsmiths, blacksmiths, etc., for light work, punching upon, etc.
5. That which is laid down as a wager; that which is staked or hazarded; a pledge. At stake, in danger; hazarded; pledged. "I see my reputation is at stake." Shak.
Stake, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Staked p. pr. & vb. n. Staking.]
1. To fasten, support, or defend with stakes; as to stake vines or plants.
2. To mark the limits of by stakes; — with out; as to stake out land; to stake out a new road.
3. To put at hazard upon the issue of competition, or upon a future contingency; to wager; to pledge.
"I’ll stake yon lamb, that near the fountain plays." Pope.
4. To pierce or wound with a stake. Spectator.
Staktometer
Stak•tom´e•ter, n. [Gr. falling by drops + -meter.] A drop measurer; a glass tube tapering to a small orifice at the point, and having a bulb in the middle, used for finding the number of drops in equal quantities of different liquids. See Pipette. Sir D. Brewster.
Stal, obs. imp. of Steal. Stole. { Sta•lac´tic, Sta•lac´tic•al }, a. (Geol.) Stalactitic.
Stalactiform
Sta•lac´ti•form, a. Like a stalactite; resembling a stalactite.
Stalactitiform
Stal•ac•tit´i•form, a. Having the form of a stalactite; stalactiform.
Stalder
Stal´der, n. [From the root of stall.] A wooden frame to set casks on. [Prov. Eng.]
Stale, a. [Akin to stale urine, and to stall, n. ; probably from Low German or Scandinavian. Cf. Stale, v. i.]
1. Vapid or tasteless from age; having lost its life, spirit, and flavor, from being long kept; as stale beer.
2. Not new; not freshly made; as stele bread.
3. Having lost the life or graces of youth; worn out; decayed. "A stale virgin." Spectator.
4. Worn out by use or familiarity; having lost its novelty and power of pleasing; trite; common. Swift.
"Wit itself, if stale is less pleasing." Grew.
"How weary, stale flat, and unprofitable
Seem to me all the uses of this world!" Shak. Stale affidavit (Law), an affidavit held above a year. Craig. — Stale demand (Law), a claim or demand which has not been pressed or demanded for a long time.
Stale, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Staled p. pr. & vb. n. Staling.] To make vapid or tasteless; to destroy the life, beauty, or use of; to wear out.
"Age can not wither her, nor custom stale
Her infinite variety." Shak.
Stale, v. i. [Akin to D. & G. stallen, Dan. stalle, Sw. stalla, and E. stall a stable. 163. See Stall, n. , and cf. Stale, a. ] To make water; to discharge urine; — said especially of horses and cattle. Hudibras.
Stale, n. [See Stale, a. & v. i.]
1. That which is stale or worn out by long keeping, or by use. [Obs.]
2. A prostitute. [Obs.] Shak.
3. Urine, esp. that of beasts. "Stale of horses." Shak.
Stale, n. [Cf. OF. estal place, position, abode, market, F. etal a butcher’s stall, OHG. stal station, place, stable, G. stall (see Stall, n. ); or from OE. stale theft, AS. stalu (see Steal, v. t.)]
1. Something set, or offered to view, as an allurement to draw others to any place or purpose; a decoy; a stool pigeon. [Obs.]
"Still, as he went, he crafty stales did lay." Spenser.
2. A stalking-horse. [Obs.] B. Jonson.
3. (Chess) A stalemate. [Obs.] Bacon.
4. A laughingstock; a dupe. [Obs.] Shak.
Stalely
Stale´ly, adv.
1. In a state stale manner.
2. Of old; long since. [Obs.] B. Jonson.
Stalemate
Stale´mate, v. t. (Chess) To subject to a stalemate; hence, to bring to a stand.
Staleness
Stale´ness, n. The quality or state of being stale.
Stalk, n. [OE. stalke, fr. AS. stael, stel, a stalk. See Stale a handle, Stall.]
1. (Bot.) (a) The stem or main axis of a plant; as a stalk of wheat, rye, or oats; the stalks of maize or hemp. (b) The petiole, pedicel, or peduncle, of a plant.
2. That which resembes the stalk of a plant, as the stem of a quill. Grew.
3. (Arch.) An ornament in the Corinthian capital resembling the stalk of a plant, from which the volutes and helices spring.
4. One of the two upright pieces of a ladder. [Obs.]
"To climd by the rungs and the stalks." Chaucer.
5. (Zoöl.) (a) A stem or peduncle, as of certain barnacles and crinoids. (b) The narrow basal portion of the abdomen of a hymenopterous insect. (c) The peduncle of the eyes of decapod crustaceans.
6. (Founding) An iron bar with projections inserted in a core to strengthen it; a core arbor. Stalk borer (Zoöl.), the larva of a noctuid moth ( Gortyna nitela), which bores in the stalks of the raspberry, strawberry, tomato, asters, and many other garden plants, often doing much injury.
Stalk, v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Stalked p. pr. & vb. n. Stalking.] [AS. staelcan, stealcian to go slowly; cf. stels high, elevated, Dan. stalke to stalk; probably akin to 1st stalk.]
1. To walk slowly and cautiously; to walk in a stealthy, noiseless manner; — sometimes used with a reflexive pronoun. Shak.
"Into the chamber he stalked him full still." Chaucer.
"[Bertran] stalks close behind her, like a witch’s fiend,
Pressing to be employed." Dryden.
2. To walk behind something as a screen, for the purpose of approaching game; to proceed under clover.
"The king … crept under the shoulder of his led horse; … "I must stalk," said he." Bacon.
"One underneath his horse, to get a shoot doth stalk." Drayton.
3. To walk with high and proud steps; usually implying the affectation of dignity, and indicating dislike. The word is used, however, especially by the poets, to express dignity of step.
"With manly mien he stalked along the ground." Dryden.
"Then stalking through the deep,
He fords the ocean." Addison.
"I forbear myself from entering the lists in which he has long stalked alone and unchallenged." Mericale.
Stalker
Stalk´er, n.
1. One who stalks.
2. A kind of fishing net.
Stalk-eyed
Stalk´-eyed, a. (Zoöl.) Having the eyes raised on a stalk, or peduncle; — opposed to sessile-eyed. Said especially of podophthalmous crustaceans. Stalk-eyed crustaceans. (Zoöl.) See Podophthalmia.
Stall (stal), n. [OE. stal, AS. steall, stall, a place, seat, or station, a stable; akin to D. & OHG. stal, G. & Sw. stall, Icel. stallr, Dan. stald, originally, a standing place; akin to G. stelle a place, stellen to place, Gr. ste•llein to set, place, send, and E. stand. rad.163. See Stand, and cf. Apostle, Epistle, Forestall, Install, Stale, a. & v. i., 1st Stalk, Stallion, Still.]
1. A stand; a station; a fixed spot; hence, the stand or place where a horse or an ox is kept and fed; the division of a stable, or the compartment, for one horse, ox, or other animal. "In an oxes stall." Chaucer.
2. A stable; a place for cattle.
"At last he found a stall where oxen stood." Dryden.
3. A small apartment or shed in which merchandise is exposed for sale; as a butcher’s stall; a book stall.
4. A bench or table on which small articles of merchandise are exposed for sale.
"How peddlers’ stalls with glittering toys are laid." Gay.
5. A seat in the choir of a church, for one of the officiating clergy. It is inclosed, either wholly or partially, at the back and sides. The stalls are frequently very rich, with canopies and elaborate carving.
"The dignified clergy, out of humility, have called their thrones by the names of stalls." Bp. Warburton.
"Loud the monks sang in their stalls." Longfellow.
6. In the theater, a seat with arms or otherwise partly inclosed, as distinguished from the benches, sofas etc.
7. (Mining) The space left by excavation between pillars. See Post and stall, under Post. Stall reader, one who reads books at a stall where they are exposed for sale.
"Cries the stall reader, "Bless us! what a word on
A titlepage is this!"" Milton.
Stall, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stalled (stald); p. pr. & vb. n. Stalling.] [Cf. Sw. stalla, Dan. stalde.]
1. To put into a stall or stable; to keep in a stall or stalls; as to stall an ox.
"Where King Latinus then his oxen stalled." Dryden.
2. To fatten; as to stall cattle. [Prov. Eng.]
3. To place in an office with the customary formalities; to install. Shak.
4. To plunge into mire or snow so as not to be able to get on; to set; to fix; as to stall a cart. Burton.
"His horses had been stalled in the snow." E. E. Hale.
5. To forestall; to anticipitate. [Obs.]
"This not to be stall’d by my report." Massinger.
6. To keep close; to keep secret. [Obs.]
"Stall this in your bosom." Shak.
Stall, v. i. [AS. steallian to have room. See Stall, n. ]
1. To live in, or as in, a stall; to dwell. [Obs.]
"We could not stall together
In the whole world." Shak.
2. To kennel, as dogs. Johnson.
3. To be set, as in mire or snow; to stick fast.
4. To be tired of eating, as cattle. [Prov. Eng.]
Stallage
Stall´age (stal"aj), n. [Cf. OF. estallage, of German origin. See Stall, n. ]
1. (Eng. Law) The right of erecting a stalls in fairs; rent paid for a stall.
2. Dung of cattle or horses, mixed with straw. [Obs.]
Stalled (stald or stal"ed), a. Put or kept in a stall; hence, fatted. "A stalled ox." Prov. xv. 17.
Stall-feed
Stall´-feed, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stall-fed ; p. pr. & vb. n. Stall-feeding.] To feed and fatten in a stall or on dry fodder; as to stall-feed an ox.
Stallion
Stal´lion, n. [OE. stalon, OF. estalon, F. etalon, fr. OHG. stal a stable. See Stall, n. ] A male horse not castrated; a male horse kept for breeding.
Stallon
Stal´lon, n. A slip from a plant; a scion; a cutting. [R.] Holinshed. { Stal´wart, Stal´worth }, a. [OE. stalworth, AS. staelwyrð serviceable, probably originally, good at stealing, or worth stealing or taking, and afterwards extended to other causes of estimation. See Steal, v. t., Worth, a. ] Brave; bold; strong; redoubted; daring; vehement; violent. "A stalwart tiller of the soil." Prof. Wilson.
"Fair man be was and wise, stalworth and bold." R. of Brunne. Stalworth is now disused, or bur little used, stalwart having taken its place.
Stamen
Sta´men, n. ; pl. E. Stamens (#) (used only in the second sense); L. Stamina (#) (in the first sense). [L. stamen the warp, a thread, fiber, akin to Gr. the warp, fr. to stand, akin to E. stand. See Stand, and cf. Stamin, Stamina.]
1. A thread; especially, a warp thread.
2. (pl. Stamens, rarely Stamina.) (Bot.) The male organ of flowers for secreting and furnishing the pollen or fecundating dust. It consists of the anther and filament.
Stamin
Sta´min, n. [OF. estamine, F. etamine, LL. staminea, stamineum, fr. L. stamineus consisting of threads, fr. stamen a thread. See Stamen, and cf. Stamineous, 2d Stammel, Tamine.] A kind of woolen cloth. [Written also stamine.] [Obs.]
Staminiferous
Stam•i•nif´er•ous, a. [ Stamen + -ferous.] Bearing or having stamens.
Staminodium
Stam•i•no´di•um, n. ; pl. Staminodia (#). [NL. See Stamen, and - oid.] (Bot.) An abortive stamen, or any organ modified from an abortive stamen.
Stammel
Stam´mel, n. A large, clumsy horse. [Prov. Eng.] Wright.
Stammel
Stam´mel, n. [OF. estamel; cf. OF. estamet a coarse woolen cloth, LL. stameta a kind of cloth, the same as staminea, and OF. estame a woolen stuff. See Stamin.]
1. A kind of woolen cloth formerly in use. It seems to have been often of a red color. [Obs.]
2. A red dye, used in England in the 15th and 16th centuries. B. Jonson.
Stammel
Stam´mel, a. Of the color of stammel; having a red color, thought inferior to scarlet.
Stammer
Stam´mer, v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Stammered p. pr. & vb. n. Stammering.] [OE. stameren, fr. AS. stamur, stamer, stammering; akin to D. & LG. stameren to stammer, G. stammeln, OHG. stammaln, stammn, Dan. stamme, Sw. stamma, Icel. stama, stamma, OHG. & Dan. stam stammering, Icel. stamr, Goth. stamms, and to G. stemmen to bear against, stumm dumb, D. stom. Cf. Stem to resist, Stumble.] To make involuntary stops in uttering syllables or words; to hesitate or falter in speaking; to speak with stops and diffivulty; to stutter.
"I would thou couldst stammer, that thou mightest pour this conclead man out of thy mouth, as wine comes out of a narrow-mouthed bottle, either too much at once, or none at all." Shak.
Stammer
Stam´mer, v. t. To utter or pronounce with hesitation or imperfectly; — sometimes with out.
Stammer
Stam´mer, n. Defective utterance, or involuntary interruption of utterance; a stutter.
Stammering
Stam´mer•ing, a. Apt to stammer; hesitating in speech; stuttering. — Stam´mer•ing•ly, adv.
Stamp v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stamped p. pr. & vb. n. Stamping.] [OE. stampen; akin to LG. & D. stampen, G. stampfen, OHG. stanpfn, Dan. stampe, Sw. stampa, Icel. stappa, G. stampf a pestle and E. step. See Step, v. i., and cf. Stampede.]
1. To strike beat, or press forcibly with the bottom of the foot, or by thrusting the foot downward. Shak.
"He frets, he fumes, he stares, he stamps the ground." Dryden.
2. To bring down (the foot) forcibly on the ground or floor; as he stamped his foot with rage.
3. To crush; to pulverize; specifically (Metal.), to crush by the blow of a heavy stamp, as ore in a mill.
"I took your sin, the calf which ye had made, and burnt it with fire, and stamped it, and ground it very small." Deut. ix. 21.
4. To impress with some mark or figure; as to stamp a plate with arms or initials.
5. Fig.: To impress; to imprint; to fix deeply; as to stamp virtuous principles on the heart.
"God … has stamped no original characters on our minds wherein we may read his being." Locke.
6. To cut out, bend, or indent, as paper, sheet metal, etc., into various forms, by a blow or suddenly applied pressure with a stamp or die, etc.; to mint; to coin.
7. To put a stamp on, as for postage; as to stamp a letter; to stamp a legal document. To stamp out, to put an end to by sudden and energetic action; to extinguish; as to stamp out a rebellion.
Stamp, n.
1. The act of stamping, as with the foot.
2. The which stamps; any instrument for making impressions on other bodies, as a die.
"’T is gold so pure
It can not bear the stamp without alloy." Dryden.
3. The mark made by stamping; a mark imprinted; an impression.
"That sacred name gives ornament and grace,
And, like his stamp, makes basest metals pass." Dryden.
4. that which is marked; a thing stamped.
"hanging a golden stamp about their necks." Shak.
5. [F. estampe, of german origin. See Stamp, v. t.] A picture cut in wood or metal, or made by impression; a cut; a plate. [Obs.]
"At Venice they put out very curious stamps of the several edifices which are most famous for their beauty and magnificence." Addison.
6. An offical mark set upon things chargeable with a duty or tax to government, as evidence that the duty or tax is paid; as the stamp on a bill of exchange.
7. Hence, a stamped or printed device, issued by the government at a fixed price, and required by law to be affixed to, or stamped on, certain papers, as evidence that the government dues are paid; as a postage stamp; a receipt stamp, etc.
8. An instrument for cutting out, or shaping, materials, as paper, leather, etc., by a downward pressure.
9. A character or reputation, good or bad, fixed on anything as if by an imprinted mark; current value; authority; as these persons have the stamp of dishonesty; the Scriptures bear the stamp of a divine origin.
"Of the same stamp is that which is obtruded on us, that an adamant suspends the attraction of the loadstone." Sir T. Browne.
10. Make; cast; form; character; as a man of the same stamp, or of a different stamp.
"A soldier of this season’s stamp." Shak.
11. A kind of heavy hammer, or pestle, raised by water or steam power, for beating ores to powder; anything like a pestle, used for pounding or bathing.
12. A half-penny. [Obs.] au. & Fl.
13. pl. Money, esp. paper money. [Slang, U.S.] Stamp act, an act of the British Parliament [1765] imposing a duty on all paper, vellum, and parchment used in the American colonies, and declaring all writings on unstamped materials to be null an void. — Stamp collector, an officer who receives or collects stamp duties; one who collects postage or other stamps. — Stamp duty, a duty, or tax, imposed on paper and parchment used for certain writings, as deeds, conveyances, etc., the evidence of the payment of the duty or tax being a stamp. [Eng.] — Stamp hammer, a hammer, worked by power, which rises and falls vertically, like a stamp in a stamp mill. — Stamp head, a heavy mass of metal, forming the head or lower end of a bar, which is lifted and let fall, in a stamp mill. — Stamp mill (Mining), a mill in which ore is crushed with stamps; also a machine for stamping ore. — Stamp note, a stamped certificate from a customhouse officer, which allows goods to be received by the captain of a ship as freight. [Eng.] — Stamp office, an office for the issue of stamps and the reception of stamp duties.
Stampede
Stam•pede´, n. [Sp. estampida (in America) a stampede, estampido a crackling, akin to estampar to stamp, of German origin. See Stamp, v. t.] A wild, headlong scamper, or running away, of a number of animals; usually caused by fright; hence, any sudden flight or dispersion, as of a crowd or an army in consequence of a panic.
"She and her husband would join in the general stampede." W. Black.
Stampede
Stam•pede´, v. t. To disperse by causing sudden fright, as a herd or drove of animals.
Stamper
Stamp´er, n.
1. One who stamps.
2. An instrument for pounding or stamping.
Stamping
Stamp´ing, a. & n. from Stamp, v. Stamping ground, a place frequented, and much trodden, by animals, wild or domesticated; hence (Colloq.), the scene of one’s labors or exploits; also one’s favorite resort. [U.S.] — Stamping machine, a machine for forming metallic articles or impressions by stamping. — Stamping mill (Mining), a stamp mill.
Stance, n. [OF. estance. See Stanza.]
1. A stanza. [Obs.] Chapman.
2. A station; a position; a site. [Scot.] Sir W. Scott.
Stanch, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stanched p. pr. & vb. n. Stanching.] [OF. estanchier, F. etancher to stpo a liquid from flowing; akin to Pr., Sp., & Pg. estancar, It. stancare to weary, LL. stancare, stagnare, to stanch, fr. L. stagnare to be or make stagnant. See Stagnate.]
1. To stop the flowing of, as blood; to check; also to stop the flowing of blood from; as to stanch a wound. [Written also staunch.]
"Iron or a stone laid to the neck doth stanch the bleeding of the nose." Bacon.
2. To extinguish; to quench, as fire or thirst. [Obs.]
Stanch, a. [ Compar. Stancher superl. Stanchest.] [From Stanch, v. t., and hence literally signifying, stopped or stayed; cf. Sp. estanco stopped, tight, not leaky, as a ship. See Stanch, v. t.] [Written also staunch.]
1. Strong and tight; sound; firm; as a stanch ship.
"One of the closets is parqueted with plain deal, set in diamond, exceeding stanch and pretty." Evelyn.
2. Firm in principle; constant and zealous; loyal; hearty; steady; steadfast; as a stanch churchman; a stanch friend or adherent. V. Knox.
"In politics I hear you ’re stanch." Prior.
3. Close; secret; private. [Obs.]
"This to be kept stanch." Locke.
Stancher
Stanch´er, n. One who, or that which, stanches, or stops, the flowing, as of blood.
Stanchion
Stan´chion, n. [OF. estanson, estançon, F. etançon, from OF. estance a stay, a prop, from L. stans, stantis, standing, p. pr. of stare to stand. See Stand, and cf. Stanza.] [Written also stanchel.]
1. (Arch.) A prop or support; a piece of timber in the form of a stake or post, used for a support or stay.
2. (Naut.) Any upright post or beam used as a support, as for the deck, the quarter rails, awnings, etc.
3. A vertical bar for confining cattle in a stall.
Stanchness
Stanch´ness, n. The quality or state of being stanch.
Stand, v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Stood p. pr. & vb. n. Standing.] [OE. standen; AS. standan; akin to OFries. stonda, stan, D. staan, OS. standan, stan, G. stehen, Icel. standa, Dan. staae, Sw. stå, Goth. standan, Russ. stoiate, L. stare, Gr. to cause to stand, to stand, Skr. stha. rad.163. Cf. Assist, Constant, Contrast, Desist, Destine, Ecstasy, Exist, Interstice, Obstacle, Obstinate, Prest, n. , Rest remainder, Soltice, Stable, a. & n. , State, n. , Statute, Stead, Steed, Stool, Stud of horses, Substance, System.]
1. To be at rest in an erect position; to be fixed in an upright or firm position; as: (a) To be supported on the feet, in an erect or nearly erect position; — opposed to lie, sit, kneel, etc. "I pray you all, stand up!" Shak. (b) To continue upright in a certain locality, as a tree fixed by the roots, or a building resting on its foundation.
"It stands as it were to the ground yglued." Chaucer.
"The ruined wall Stands when its wind worn battlements are gone." Byron.
2. To occupy or hold a place; to have a situation; to be situated or located; as Paris stands on the Seine.
"Wite ye not where there stands a little town?" Chaucer.
3. To cease from progress; not to proceed; to stop; to pause; to halt; to remain stationary.
"I charge thee, stand,
And tell thy name." Dryden.
"The star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was." Matt. ii. 9.
4. To remain without ruin or injury; to hold good against tendencies to impair or injure; to be permanent; to endure; to last; hence, to find endurance, strength, or resources.
"My mind on its own center stands unmoved." Dryden.
5. To maintain one’s ground; to be acquitted; not to fail or yield; to be safe.
"Readers by whose judgment I would stand or fall." Spectator.
6. To maintain an invincible or permanent attitude; to be fixed, steady, or firm; to take a position in resistance or opposition. "The standing pattern of their imitation." South.
"The king granted the Jews … to gather themselves together, and to stand for their life." Esther viii. 11.
7. To adhere to fixed principles; to maintain moral rectitude; to keep from falling into error or vice.
"We must labor so as to stand with godliness, according to his appointment." Latimer.
8. To have or maintain a position, order, or rank; to be in a particular relation; as Christian charity, or love, stands first in the rank of gifts.
9. To be in some particular state; to have essence or being; to be; to consist. "Sacrifices … which stood only in meats and drinks." Heb. ix. 10.
"Accomplish what your signs foreshow;
I stand resigned, and am prepared to go." Dryden.
"Thou seest how it stands with me, and that I may not tarry." Sir W. Scott.
10. To be consistent; to agree; to accord.
"Doubt me not; by heaven, I will do nothing
But what may stand with honor." Massinger.
11. (Naut.) To hold a course at sea; as to stand from the shore; to stand for the harbor.
"From the same parts of heaven his navy stands." Dryden.
12. To offer one’s self, or to be offered, as a candidate.
"He stood to be elected one of the proctors of the university." Walton.
13. To stagnate; not to flow; to be motionless.
"Or the black water of Pomptina stands." Dryden.
14. To measure when erect on the feet.
"Six feet two, as I think, he stands." Tennyson.
15. (Law) (a) To be or remain as it is; to continue in force; to have efficacy or validity; to abide. Bouvier. (b) To appear in court. Burrill. Stand by (Naut.), a preparatory order, equivalent to Be ready. — To stand against, to opposite; to resist. — To stand by. (a) To be near; to be a spectator; to be present. (b) To be aside; to be aside with disregard. "In the interim [we] let the commands stand by neglected." Dr. H. More. (c) To maintain; to defend; to support; not to desert; as to stand by one’s principles or party. (d) To rest on for support; to be supported by. Whitgift. — To stand corrected, to be set right, as after an error in a statement of fact. Wycherley. — To stand fast, to be fixed; to be unshaken or immovable. — To stand firmly on, to be satisfied or convinced of. "Though Page be a secure fool, and stands so firmly on his wife’s frailty." Shak. — To stand for. (a) To side with; to espouse the cause of; to support; to maintain, or to profess or attempt to maintain; to defend. "I stand wholly for you." Shak. (b) To be in the place of; to be the substitute or to represent; as a cipher at the left hand of a figure stands for nothing. "I will not trouble myself, whether these names stand for the same thing, or really include one another." Locke. — To stand in, to cost. "The same standeth them in much less cost." Robynson (More’s Utopia).
"The Punic wars could not have stood the human race in less than three millions of the species." Burke. — To stand in hand, to conduce to one’s interest; to be serviceable or advantageous. — To stand off. (a) To keep at a distance. (b) Not to comply. (c) To keep at a distance in friendship, social intercourse, or acquaintance. (d) To appear prominent; to have relief. "Picture is best when it standeth off, as if it were carved." Sir H. Wotton. — To stand off and on (Naut.), to remain near a coast by sailing toward land and then from it. — To stand on (Naut.), to continue on the same tack or course. — To stand out. (a) To project; to be prominent. "Their eyes stand out with fatness." Psalm lxxiii. 7. (b) To persist in opposition or resistance; not to yield or comply; not to give way or recede.
"His spirit is come in,
That so stood out against the holy church." Shak. — To stand to. (a) To ply; to urge; to persevere in using. "Stand to your tackles, mates, and stretch your oars." Dryden. (b) To remain fixed in a purpose or opinion. "I will stand to it, that this is his sense." Bp. Stillingfleet. (c) To abide by; to adhere to; as to a contrast, assertion, promise, etc.; as to stand to an award; to stand to one’s word. (d) Not to yield; not to fly; to maintain, as one’s ground. "Their lives and fortunes were put in safety, whether they stood to it or ran away." Bacon. (e) To be consistent with; to agree with; as it stands to reason that he could not have done so. (f) To support; to uphold. "Stand to me in this cause." Shak. — To stand together, to be consistent; to agree. — To stand to sea (Naut.), to direct the course from land. — To stand under, to undergo; to withstand. Shak. — To stand up. (a) To rise from sitting; to be on the feet. (b) To arise in order to speak or act. "Against whom, when the accusers stood up, they brought none accusation of such things as I supposed." Acts xxv. 18. (c) To rise and stand on end, as the hair. (d) To put one’s self in opposition; to contend. "Once we stood up about the corn." Shak. - - To stand up for, to defend; to justify; to support, or attempt to support; as to stand up for the administration. — To stand upon. (a) To concern; to interest. (b) To value; to esteem. "We highly esteem and stand much upon our birth." Ray. (c) To insist on; to attach much importance to; as to stand upon security; to stand upon ceremony. (d) To attack; to assault. [A Hebraism] "So I stood upon him, and slew him." 2 Sam. i. 10. — To stand with, to be consistent with. "It stands with reason that they should be rewarded liberally." Sir J. Davies.
Stand, n. [As. stand. See Stand, v. i.]
1. The act of standing.
"I took my stand upon an eminence … to look into thier several ladings." Spectator.
2. A halt or stop for the purpose of defense, resistance, or opposition; as to come to, or to make, a stand.
"Vice is at stand, and at the highest flow." Dryden.
3. A place or post where one stands; a place where one may stand while observing or waiting for something.
"I have found you out a stand most fit,
Where you may have such vantage on the duke,
He shall not pass you." Shak.
4. A station in a city or town where carriages or wagons stand for hire; as a cab stand. Dickens.
5. A raised platform or station where a race or other outdoor spectacle may be viewed; as the judge’s or the grand stand at a race course.
6. A small table; also something on or in which anything may be laid, hung, or placed upright; as a hat stand; an umbrella stand; a music stand.
7. A place where a witness stands to testify in court.
8. The situation of a shop, store, hotel, etc.; as a good, bad, or convenient stand for business. [U. S.]
9. Rank; post; station; standing.
"Father, since your fortune did attain
So high a stand, I mean not to descend." Daniel.
10. A state of perplexity or embarrassment; as to be at a stand what to do. L’Estrange.
11. A young tree, usually reserved when other trees are cut; also a tree growing or standing upon its own root, in distinction from one produced from a scion set in a stock, either of the same or another kind of tree.
12. (Com.) A weight of from two hundred and fifty to three hundred pounds, — used in weighing pitch. Microscope stand, the instrument, excepting the eyepiece, objective, and other removable optical parts. — Stand of ammunition, the projectile, cartridge, and sabot connected together. — Stand of arms. (Mil.) See under Arms. — Stand of colors (Mil.), a single color, or flag. Wilhelm (Mil. Dict.) — To be at a stand, to be stationary or motionless; to be at a standstill; hence, to be perplexed; to be embarrassed. — To make a stand, to halt for the purpose of offering resistance to a pursuing enemy.
Syn. — Stop; halt; rest; interruption; obstruction; perplexity; difficulty; embarrassment; hesitation.
Stand, v. i. (Card Playing) To be, or signify that one is, willing to play with one’s hand as dealt. { Stän"de•rath•, or Stän"de•rat• }, n. [G.] (Switzerland) See Legislature, above.
Standage
Stand´age, n. (Mining) A reservior in which water accumulates at the bottom of a mine.
Standard
Stand´ard, n. [OF. estendart, F. etendard, probably fr. L. extendere to spread out, extend, but influenced by E. stand. See Extend.]
1. A flag; colors; a banner; especially, a national or other ensign.
"His armies, in the following day,
On those fair plains their standards proud display." Fairfax.
2. That which is established by authority as a rule for the measure of quantity, extent, value, or quality; esp., the original specimen weight or measure sanctioned by government, as the standard pound, gallon, or yard.
3. That which is established as a rule or model by authority, custom, or general consent; criterion; test.
"The court, which used to be the standard of property and correctness of speech." Swift.
"A disposition to preserve, and an ability to improve, taken together, would be my standard of a statesman." Burke.
4. (Coinage) The proportion of weights of fine metal and alloy established by authority.
"By the present standard of the coinage, sixty- two shillings is coined out of one pound weight of silver." Arbuthnot.
5. (Hort.) A tree of natural size supported by its own stem, and not dwarfed by grafting on the stock of a smaller species nor trained upon a wall or trellis.
"In France part of their gardens is laid out for flowers, others for fruits; some standards, some against walls." Sir W. Temple.
6. (Bot.) The upper petal or banner of a papilionaceous corolla.
7. (Mech. & Carp.) An upright support, as one of the poles of a scaffold; any upright in framing.
8. (Shipbuilding) An inverted knee timber placed upon the deck instead of beneath it, with its vertical branch turned upward from that which lies horizontally.
9. The sheth of a plow.
10. A large drinking cup. Greene. Standard bearer, an officer of an army, company, or troop, who bears a standard; — commonly called color sergeantor color bearer; hence, the leader of any organization; as the standard bearer of a political party.
Standard
Stand´ard, a.
1. Being, affording, or according with, a standard for comparison and judgment; as standard time; standard weights and measures; a standard authority as to nautical terms; standard gold or silver.
2. Hence: Having a recognized and permanent value; as standard works in history; standard authors.
3. (Hort.) (a) Not supported by, or fastened to, a wall; as standard fruit trees. (b) Not of the dwarf kind; as a standard pear tree. Standard candle, Standard gauge. See under Candle, and Gauge. - - Standard solution. (Chem.) See Standardized solution, under Solution.
Standel
Stand´el, n. A young tree, especially one reserved when others are cut. [Obs.] Fuller.
Stander
Stand´er, n.
1. One who stands.
2. Same as Standel. [Obs.] Ascham.
Stander-by
Stand´er-by, n. One who stands near; one who is present; a bystander.
Standergrass
Stand´er•grass, n. (Bot.) A plant ( Orchis mascula); — called also standerwort, and long purple. See Long purple, under Long.
Standgale
Stand´gale, n. See Stannel. [Prov. Eng.]
Standing
Stand´ing, a.
1. Remaining erect; not cut down; as standing corn.
2. Not flowing; stagnant; as standing water.
3. Not transitory; not liable to fade or vanish; lasting; as a standing color.
4. Established by law, custom, or the like; settled; continually existing; permanent; not temporary; as a standing army; legislative bodies have standing rules of proceeding and standing committees.
5. Not movable; fixed; as a standing bed (distinguished from a trundle-bed). Standing army. See Standing army, under Army. — Standing bolt. See Stud bolt, under Stud, a stem. — Standing committee, in legislative bodies, etc., a committee appointed for the consideration of all subjects of a particular class which shall arise during the session or a stated period. — Standing cup, a tall goblet, with a foot and a cover. — Standing finish (Arch.), that part of the interior fittings, esp. of a dwelling house, which is permanent and fixed in its place, as distinguished from doors, sashes, etc. — Standing order (Eccl.), the denomination (Congregiational) established by law; — a term formerly used in Connecticut. See also under Order. — Standing part. (Naut.) (a) That part of a tackle which is made fast to a block, point, or other object. (b) That part of a rope around which turns are taken with the running part in making a knot of the like. — Standing rigging (Naut.), the cordage or rope which sustain the masts and remain fixed in their position, as the shrouds and stays, — distinguished from running rigging.
Standstill
Stand´still, n. A standing without moving forward or backward; a stop; a state or rest.
Stang, imp. of Sting. [Archaic]
Stang, n. [OE. stange, of Scand. or Dutch origin; cf. Icel. stöng, akin to Dan. stang, Sw. stång, D. stang, G. stange, OHG. stanga, AS. steng; from the root of E. sting.]
1. A long bar; a pole; a shaft; a stake.
2. In land measure, a pole, rod, or perch. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.] Swift. Stang ball, a projectile consisting of two half balls united by a bar; a bar shot. See Illust. of Bar shot, under Bar. — To ride the stang, to be carried on a pole on men’s shoulders. This method of punishing wife beaters, etc., was once in vogue in some parts of England.
Stang, v. i. [Akin to sting; cf. Icel. stanga to prick, to goad.] To shoot with pain. [Prov. Eng.]
Stanielry
Stan´iel•ry, n. Hawking with staniels, — a base kind of falconry. [Obs.]
Stank, a. [OF. estanc, or It. stanco. See Stanch, a. ] Weak; worn out. [Obs.] Spenser.
Stank, v. i. [Cf. Sw. stånka to pant. rad.165.] To sigh. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.]
Stank, imp. of Stink. Stunk.
Stank, n. [OF. estang, F. etang, from L. stagnum a pool. Cf. Stagnate, Tank a cistern.]
1. Water retained by an embankment; a pool water. [Prov. Eng. & Scot.] Robert of Brunne.
2. A dam or mound to stop water. [Prov. Eng.] Stank hen (Zoöl.), the moor hen; — called also stankie. [Prov. Eng.]
Stannary
Stan´na•ry, n. ; pl. Stannaries (#). [LL. stannaria.] A tin mine; tin works. Bp. Hall.
Stannate
Stan´nate, n. [Cf. F. stannate.] (Chem.) A salt of stannic acid.
Stannel
Stan´nel, n. [AS. stangella, stangilla; properly, stone yeller, i. e., a bird that yells from the rocks. See Stone, and Yell, and cf. Stonegall.] (Zoöl.) The kestrel; — called also standgale, standgall, stanchel, stand hawk, stannel hawk, steingale, stonegall. [Written also staniel, stannyel, and stanyel.]
"With what wing the staniel checks at it." Shak.
Stannum
Stan´num, n. [L., alloy of silver and lead; later, tin.] (Chem.) The technical name of tin. See Tin. { Stann´yel, Stan´yel }, n. (Zoöl.) See Stannel. { Stant, Stont } obs. 3d pers. sing. pres. of Stand, for standeth. Stands. Chaucer.
Stanza
Stan´za, n. ; pl. Stanzas (#). [It. stanza a room, habitation, a stanza, i. e., a stop, fr. L. stans, p. pr. of stare to stand. See Stand, and cf. Estancia, Stance, Stanchion.]
1. A number of lines or verses forming a division of a song or poem, and agreeing in meter, rhyme, number of lines, etc., with other divisions; a part of a poem, ordinarily containing every variation of measure in that poem; a combination or arrangement of lines usually recurring; whether like or unlike, in measure.
"Horace confines himself strictly to one sort of verse, or stanza, in every ode." Dryden.
2. (Arch.) An apartment or division in a building; a room or chamber.
Stanzaic
Stan•za´ic, a. Pertaining to, or consisting of, stanzas; as a couplet in stanzaic form.
Stapedial
Sta•pe´di•al, a. [LL. stapes stirrup.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to stapes.
Stapes
Sta´pes, n. [LL., a stirrup.] (Anat.) The innermost of the ossicles of the ear; the stirrup, or stirrup bone; — so called from its form. See Illust. of Ear.
Staphylinid
Staph•y•li´nid, n. [Gr. a kind of insect.] (Zoöl.) Any rove beetle.
Staple
Sta´ple, n. [AS. stapul, stapol, stapel, a step, a prop, post, table, fr. stapan to step, go, raise; akin to D. stapel a pile, stocks, emporium, G. stapela heap, mart, stake, staffel step of a ladder, Sw. stapel, Dan. stabel, and E. step cf. OF. estaple a mart, F. etape. See Step.]
1. A settled mart; an emporium; a city or town to which merchants brought commodities for sale or exportation in bulk; a place for wholesale traffic.
"The customs of Alexandria were very great, it having been the staple of the Indian trade." Arbuthnot.
"For the increase of trade and the encouragement of the worthy burgesses of Woodstock, her majesty was minded to erect the town into a staple for wool." Sir W. Scott. In England, formerly, the king’s staple was established in certain ports or towns, and certain goods could not be exported without being first brought to these places to be rated and charged with the duty payable of the king or the public. The principal commodities on which customs were lived were wool, skins, and leather; and these were originally the staple commodities.
2. Hence: Place of supply; source; fountain head.
"Whitehall naturally became the chief staple of news. Whenever there was a rumor that any thing important had happened or was about to happen, people hastened thither to obtain intelligence from the fountain head." Macaulay.
3. The principal commodity of traffic in a market; a principal commodity or production of a country or district; as wheat, maize, and cotton are great staples of the United States.
"We should now say, Cotton is the great staple, that is, the established merchandize, of Manchester." Trench.
4. The principal constituent in anything; chief item.
5. Unmanufactured material; raw material.
6. The fiber of wool, cotton, flax, or the like; as a coarse staple; a fine staple; a long or short staple.
7. A loop of iron, or a bar or wire, bent and formed with two points to be driven into wood, to hold a hook, pin, or the like.
8. (Mining) (a) A shaft, smaller and shorter than the principal one, joining different levels. (b) A small pit.
9. A district granted to an abbey. [Obs.] Camden.
Staple
Sta´ple, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. stapled p. pr. & vb. n. stapling.] To sort according to its staple; as to staple cotton.
Star (stär), n. [OE. sterre, AS. steorra; akin to OFries. stera, OS. sterro, D. ster, OHG. sterno, sterro, G. stern, Icel. stjarna, Sw. stjerna, Dan. stierne, Goth. staírno, Armor. & Corn. steren, L. stella, Gr. ’asth•r, ’a•stron, Skr. star; perhaps from a root meaning, to scatter, Skr. str, L. sternere (cf. Stratum), and originally applied to the stars as being strewn over the sky, or as being scatterers or spreaders of light. rad.296. Cf. Aster, Asteroid, Constellation, Disaster, Stellar.]
1. One of the innumerable luminous bodies seen in the heavens; any heavenly body other than the sun, moon, comets, and nebulae.
"His eyen twinkled in his head aright,
As do the stars in the frosty night." Chaucer. The stars are distinguished as planets, and fixed stars. See Planet, Fixed stars under Fixed, and Magnitude of a star under Magnitude.
2. The polestar; the north star. Shak.
3. (Astrol.) A planet supposed to influence one’s destiny; (usually pl. ) a configuration of the planets, supposed to influence fortune.
"O malignant and ill-brooding stars." Shak.
"Blesses his stars, and thinks it luxury." Addison.
4. That which resembles the figure of a star, as an ornament worn on the breast to indicate rank or honor.
"On whom …
Lavish Honor showered all her stars." Tennyson.
5. Specifically, a radiated mark in writing or printing; an asterisk [thus, •]; — used as a reference to a note, or to fill a blank where something is omitted, etc.
6. (Pyrotechny) A composition of combustible matter used in the heading of rockets, in mines, etc., which, exploding in the air, presents a starlike appearance.
7. A person of brilliant and attractive qualities, especially on public occasions, as a distinguished orator, a leading theatrical performer, etc. Star is used in the formation of compound words generally of obvious signification: as star-aspiring, star-bespangled, star-bestudded, star-blasting, star-bright, star-crowned, star-directed, star-eyed, star-headed, star-paved, star- roofed; star-sprinkled, star-wreathed. Blazing star, Double star, Multiple star, Shooting star, etc. See under Blazing, Double, etc. — Nebulous star (Astron.), a small well- defined circular nebula, having a bright nucleus at its center like a star. — Star anise (Bot.), any plant of the genus Illicium; — so called from its star-shaped capsules. — Star apple (Bot.), a tropical American tree ( Chrysophyllum Cainito), having a milky juice and oblong leaves with a silky-golden pubescence beneath. It bears an applelike fruit, the carpels of which present a starlike figure when cut across. The name is extended to the whole genus of about sixty species, and the natural order ( Sapotaceae) to which it belongs is called the Star-apple family. — Star conner, one who cons, or studies, the stars; an astronomer or an astrologer. Gascoigne. — Star coral (Zoöl.), any one of numerous species of stony corals belonging to Astraea, Orbicella, and allied genera, in which the calicles are round or polygonal and contain conspicuous radiating septa. — Star cucumber. (Bot.) See under Cucumber. — Star flower. (Bot.) (a) A plant of the genus Ornithogalum; star-of-Bethlehem. (b) See Starwort (b). (c) An American plant of the genus Trientalis ( Trientalis Americana). Gray. — Star fort (Fort.), a fort surrounded on the exterior with projecting angles; — whence the name. — Star gauge (Ordnance), a long rod, with adjustable points projecting radially at its end, for measuring the size of different parts of the bore of a gun. — Star grass. (Bot.) (a) A small grasslike plant ( Hypoxis erecta) having star-shaped yellow flowers. (b) The colicroot. See Colicroot. — Star hyacinth (Bot.), a bulbous plant of the genus Scilla ( S. autumnalis); — called also star-headed hyacinth. — Star jelly (Bot.), any one of several gelatinous plants ( Nostoc commune, N. edule, etc.). See Nostoc. — Star lizard. (Zoöl.) Same as Stellion. — Star- of-Bethlehem (Bot.), a bulbous liliaceous plant ( Ornithogalum umbellatum) having a small white starlike flower. — Star-of-the-earth (Bot.), a plant of the genus Plantago ( P. coronopus), growing upon the seashore. — Star polygon (Geom.), a polygon whose sides cut each other so as to form a star-shaped figure. — Stars and Stripes, a popular name for the flag of the United States, which consists of thirteen horizontal stripes, alternately red and white, and a union having, in a blue field, white stars to represent the several States, one for each.
"With the old flag, the true American flag, the Eagle, and the Stars and Stripes, waving over the chamber in which we sit." D. Webster. — Star showers. See Shooting star, under Shooting. — Star thistle (Bot.), an annual composite plant ( Centaurea solstitialis) having the involucre armed with radiating spines. — Star wheel (Mach.), a star-shaped disk, used as a kind of ratchet wheel, in repeating watches and the feed motions of some machines. — Star worm (Zoöl.), a gephyrean. — Temporary star (Astron.), a star which appears suddenly, shines for a period, and then nearly or quite disappears. These stars are supposed by some astronometers to be variable stars of long and undetermined periods. — Variable star (Astron.), a star whose brilliancy varies periodically, generally with regularity, but sometimes irregularly; — called periodical star when its changes occur at fixed periods. — Water star grass (Bot.), an aquatic plant ( Schollera graminea) with small yellow starlike blossoms.
Star (stär), v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Starred (stärd); p. pr. & vb. n. Starring.] To set or adorn with stars, or bright, radiating bodies; to bespangle; as a robe starred with gems. "A sable curtain starred with gold." Young.
Starboard
Star´board, n. [OE. sterbord, AS. steórbord, i.e., steer board. See Steer, v. t., Board of a vessel, and cf. Larboard.] (Naut.) That side of a vessel which is on the right hand of a person who stands on board facing the bow; - - opposed to larboard, or port.
Star-bowlines
Star´-bow•lines, n. pl. (Naut.) The men in the starboard watch. [Obs.] R. H. Dana, Jr.
Starch (stärch), a. [AS. stearc stark, strong, rough. See Stark.] Stiff; precise; rigid. [R.] Killingbeck.
Starch, n. [From starch stiff, cf. G. stärke, fr. stark strong.]
1. (Chem.) A widely diffused vegetable substance found especially in seeds, bulbs, and tubers, and extracted (as from potatoes, corn, rice, etc.) as a white, glistening, granular or powdery substance, without taste or smell, and giving a very peculiar creaking sound when rubbed between the fingers. It is used as a food, in the production of commercial grape sugar, for stiffening linen in laundries, in making paste, etc. Starch is a carbohydrate, being the typical amylose, C6H10O5, and is detected by the fine blue color given to it by free iodine. It is not fermentable as such, but is changed by diastase into dextrin and maltose, and by heating with dilute acids into dextrose. Cf. Sugar, Inulin, and Lichenin.
2. Fig.: A stiff, formal manner; formality. Addison. Starch hyacinth (Bot.), the grape hyacinth; — so called because the flowers have the smell of boiled starch. See under Grape.
Starch, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Starched p. pr. & vb. n. Starching.] To stiffen with starch.
Starched, a.
1. Stiffened with starch.
2. Stiff; precise; formal. Swift.
Starchness
Starch´ness, n. Of or pertaining to starched or starch; stiffness of manner; preciseness.
Starchwort
Starch´wort, n. (Bot.) The cuckoopint, the tubers of which yield a fine quality of starch.
Starchy
Starch´y, a. Consisting of starch; resembling starch; stiff; precise.
Stare, n. [AS. staer. See Starling.] (Zoöl.) The starling. [Obs.]
Stare, v. i. [ imp. & p. p. stared p. pr. & vb. n. staring.] [AS. starian; akin to LG. & D. staren, OHG. staren, G. starren, Icel. stara; cf. Icel. stira, Dan. stirre, Sw. stirra, and G. starr stiff, rigid, fixed, Gr. solid (E. stereo-), Skr. sthira firm, strong. rad.166. Cf. Sterile.]
1. To look with fixed eyes wide open, as through fear, wonder, surprise, impudence, etc.; to fasten an earnest and prolonged gaze on some object.
"For ever upon the ground I see thee stare." Chaucer.
"Look not big, nor stamp, nor stare, nor fret." Shak.
2. To be very conspicuous on account of size, prominence, color, or brilliancy; as staring windows or colors.
3. To stand out; to project; to bristle. [Obs.]
"Makest my blood cold, and my hair to stare." Shak.
"Take off all the staring straws and jags in the hive." Mortimer.
Syn. — To gaze; to look earnestly. See Gaze.
Starf, obs. imp. of Starve. Starved. Chaucer.
Starfish
Star´fish, n.
1. (Zoöl.) Any one of numerous species of echinoderms belonging to the class Asterioidea, in which the body is star-shaped and usually has five rays, though the number of rays varies from five to forty or more. The rays are often long, but are sometimes so short as to appear only as angles to the disklike body. Called also sea star, five-finger, and stellerid. The ophiuroids are also sometimes called starfishes. See Brittle star, and Ophiuroidea.
2. (Zoöl.) The dollar fish, or butterfish.
Stark, a. [ Compar. Starker superl. Starkest.] [OE. stark stiff, strong, AS. stearc; akin to OS. starc strong, D. sterk, OHG. starc, starah, G. & Sw. stark, Dan. staerk, Icel. sterkr, Goth. ga staúrknan to become dried up, Lith. strëgti to stiffen, to freeze. Cf. Starch, a. & n. ]
1. Stiff; rigid. Chaucer.
"Whose senses all were straight benumbed and stark." Spenser.
"His heart gan wax as stark as marble stone." Spenser.
"Many a nobleman lies stark and stiff
Under the hoofs of vaunting enemies." Shak.
"The north is not so stark and cold." B. Jonson.
2. Complete; absolute; full; perfect; entire. [Obs.]
"Consider the stark security
The common wealth is in now." B. Jonson.
3. Strong; vigorous; powerful.
"A stark, moss-trooping Scot." Sir W. Scott.
"Stark beer, boy, stout and strong beer." Beau. & Fl.
4. Severe; violent; fierce. [Obs.] "In starke stours." [ i. e., in fierce combats]. Chaucer.
5. Mere; sheer; gross; entire; downright.
"He pronounces the citation stark nonsense." Collier.
"Rhetoric is very good or stark naught; there’s no medium in rhetoric." Selden.
Stark, v. t. To stiffen. [R.]
"If horror have not starked your limbs." H. Taylor.
Starkness
Stark´ness, n. The quality or state of being stark.
Starless
Star´less, a. Being without stars; having no stars visible; as a starless night. Milton.
Starling
Star´ling, n. [OE. sterlyng, a dim. of OE. stare, AS. staer; akin to AS. stearn, G. star, staar, OHG. stara, Icel. starri, stari, Sw. stare, Dan. staer, L. sturnus. Cf. Stare a starling.]
1. (Zoöl.) Any passerine bird belonging to Sturnus and allied genera. The European starling ( Sturnus vulgaris) is dark brown or greenish black, with a metallic gloss, and spotted with yellowish white. It is a sociable bird, and builds about houses, old towers, etc. Called also stare, and starred. The pied starling of India is Sternopastor contra.
2. (Zoöl.) A California fish; the rock trout.
3. A structure of piles driven round the piers of a bridge for protection and support; — called also sterling. Rose-colored starling. (Zoöl.) See Pastor.
Starmonger
Star´mon•ger, n. A fortune teller; an astrologer; — used in contempt. B. Jonson.
Starost
Star´ost, n. [Pol. starosta, from stary old.] A nobleman who possessed a starosty. [Poland]
Starosty
Star´os•ty, n. A castle and domain conferred on a nobleman for life. [Poland] Brande & C.
Starproof
Star´proof, a. Impervious to the light of the stars; as a starproof elm. [Poetic] Milton.
Starred, a. [From Star.]
1. Adorned or studded with stars; bespangled.
2. Influenced in fortune by the stars. [Obs.]
"My third comfort, Starred most unluckily." Shak.
Starriness
Star´ri•ness, n. The quality or state of being starry; as the starriness of the heavens.
Start, v. i. [ imp. & p. p. started; p. pr. & vb. n. starting.] [OE. sterten; akin to D. storten 8hurl, rush, fall, G. stürzen, OHG. sturzen to turn over, to fall, Sw. störa to cast down, to fall, Dan. styrte, and probably also to E. start a tail; the original sense being, perhaps, to show the tail, to tumble over suddenly. rad.166. Cf. Start a tail.]
1. To leap; to jump. [Obs.]
2. To move suddenly, as with a spring or leap, from surprise, pain, or other sudden feeling or emotion, or by a voluntary act.
"And maketh him out of his sleep to start." Chaucer.
"I start as from some dreadful dream." Dryden.
"Keep your soul to the work when ready to start aside." I. Watts.
"But if he start,
It is the flesh of a corrupted heart." Shak.
3. To set out; to commence a course, as a race or journey; to begin; as to start business.
"At once they start, advancing in a line." Dryden.
"At intervals some bird from out the brakes Starts into voice a moment, then is still." Byron.
4. To become somewhat displaced or loosened; as a rivet or a seam may start under strain or pressure. To start after, to set out after; to follow; to pursue. — To start against, to act as a rival candidate against. — To start for, to be a candidate for, as an office. — To start up, to rise suddenly, as from a seat or couch; to come suddenly into notice or importance.
Start, n. [OE. stert a tail, AS. steort; akin to LG. stert, steert, D. staart, G. sterz, Icel. stertr, Dan. stiert, Sw. stjert. rad.166. Cf. Stark naked, under Stark, Start, v. i.]
1. A tail, or anything projecting like a tail.
2. The handle, or tail, of a plow; also any long handle. [Prov. Eng.]
3. The curved or inclined front and bottom of a water-wheel bucket.
4. (Mining) The arm, or level, of a gin, drawn around by a horse.
Starting
Start´ing, a. & n. from Start, v. Starting bar (Steam Eng.), a hand lever for working the values in starting an engine. — Starting hole, a loophole; evasion. [Obs.] — Starting point, the point from which motion begins, or from which anything starts. — Starting post, a post, stake, barrier, or place from which competitors in a race start, or begin the race.
Startingly
Start´ing•ly, adv. By sudden fits or starts; spasmodically. Shak.
Startish
Start´ish, a. Apt to start; skittish; shy; — said especially of a horse. [Colloq.]
Startle
Star´tle, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Startled p. pr. & vb. n. Startling ] [Freq. of start.] To move suddenly, or be excited, on feeling alarm; to start.
"Why shrinks the soul
Back on herself, and startles at destruction?" Addison.
Starve, v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Starved p. pr. & vb. n. Starving.] [OE. sterven to die, AS. steorfan; akin to D. sterven, G. sterben, OHG. sterban, Icel. starf labor, toil.]
1. To die; to perish. [Obs., except in the sense of perishing with cold or hunger.] Lydgate.
"In hot coals he hath himself raked …
Thus starved this worthy mighty Hercules." Chaucer.
2. To perish with hunger; to suffer extreme hunger or want; to be very indigent.
"Sometimes virtue starves, while vice is fed." Pope.
3. To perish or die with cold. Spenser.
"Have I seen the naked starve for cold?" Sandys.
"Starving with cold as well as hunger." W. Irving. In this sense, still common in England, but rarely used of the United States.
Starwort
Star´wort, n. (Bot.) (a) Any plant of the genus Aster. See Aster. (b) A small plant of the genus Stellaria, having star-shaped flowers; star flower; chickweed. Gray. Water starwort, an aquatic plant ( Callitriche verna) having some resemblance to chickweed. — Yellow starwort, a plant of the genus Inula; elecampane.
Statant
Sta´tant, a. [L. stare to stand.] (Her.) In a standing position; as a lion statant.
Statarian
Sta•ta´ri•an, a. Fixed; settled; steady; statary. [Obs.]
State, n. [OE. stat, OF. estat, F. etat, fr. L. status a standing, position, fr. stare, statum, to stand. See Stand, and cf. Estate, Status.]
1. The circumstances or condition of a being or thing at any given time.
"State is a term nearly synonymous with "mode," but of a meaning more extensive, and is not exclusively limited to the mutable and contingent." Sir W. Hamilton.
"Declare the past and present state of things." Dryden.
"Keep the state of the question in your eye." Boyle.
2. Rank; condition; quality; as the state of honor.
"Thy honor, state, and seat is due to me." Shak.
3. Condition of prosperity or grandeur; wealthy or prosperous circumstances; social importance.
"She instructed him how he should keep state, and yet with a modest sense of his misfortunes." Bacon.
"Can this imperious lord forget to reign,
Quit all his state, descend, and serve again?" Pope.
4. Appearance of grandeur or dignity; pomp.
"Where least og state there most of love is shown." Dryden.
5. A chair with a canopy above it, often standing on a dais; a seat of dignity; also the canopy itself. [Obs.]
"His high throne, … under state
Of richest texture spread." Milton.
"When he went to court, he used to kick away the state, and sit down by his prince cheek by jowl." Swift.
6. Estate, possession. [Obs.] Daniel.
"Your state, my lord, again in yours." Massinger.
7. A person of high rank. [Obs.] Latimer.
8. Any body of men united by profession, or constituting a community of a particular character; as the civil and ecclesiastical states, or the lords spiritual and temporal and the commons, in Great Britain. Cf. Estate, n. , 6.
9. The principal persons in a government.
"The bold design
Pleased highly those infernal states." Milton.
10. The bodies that constitute the legislature of a country; as the States-general of Holland.
11. A form of government which is not monarchial, as a republic. [Obs.]
"Well monarchies may own religion’s name,
But states are atheists in their very fame." Dryden.
12. A political body, or body politic; the whole body of people who are united one government, whatever may be the form of the government; a nation.
"Municipal law is a rule of conduct prescribed by the supreme power in a state." Blackstone.
"The Puritans in the reign of Mary, driven from their homes, sought an asylum in Geneva, where they found a state without a king, and a church without a bishop." R. Choate.
13. In the United States, one of the commonwealth, or bodies politic, the people of which make up the body of the nation, and which, under the national constitution, stands in certain specified relations with the national government, and are invested, as commonwealth, with full power in their several spheres over all matters not expressly inhibited. The term State, in its technical sense, is used in distinction from the federal system, i. e., the government of the United States.
14. Highest and stationary condition, as that of maturity between growth and decline, or as that of crisis between the increase and the abating of a disease; height; acme. [Obs.] When state is joined with another word, or used adjectively, it denotes public, or what belongs to the community or body politic, or to the government; also what belongs to the States severally in the American Union; as state affairs; state policy; State laws of Iowa. Nascent state. (Chem.) See under Nascent. — Secretary of state. See Secretary, n. , 3. — State bargea royal barge, or a barge belonging to a government. — State bed, an elaborately carved or decorated bed. — State carriage, a highly decorated carriage for officials going in state, or taking part in public processions. — State paper, an official paper relating to the interests or government of a state. Jay. — State prison, a public prison or penitentiary; — called also State’s prison. — State prisoner, one is confinement, or under arrest, for a political offense. — State rights, or States’ rights, the rights of the several independent States, as distinguished from the rights of the Federal government. It has been a question as to what rights have been vested in the general government. [U.S.] — State’s evidence. See Probator, 2, and under Evidence. — State sword, a sword used on state occasions, being borne before a sovereign by an attendant of high rank. — State trial, a trial of a person for a political offense. — States of the Church. See under Ecclesiastical.
Syn. — State, Situation, Condition. State is the generic term, and denotes in general the mode in which a thing stands or exists. The situation of a thing is its state in reference to external objects and influences; its condition is its internal state, or what it is in itself considered. Our situation is good or bad as outward things bear favorably or unfavorably upon us; our condition is good or bad according to the state we are actually in as respects our persons, families, property, and other things which comprise our sources of enjoyment.
"I do not, brother,
Infer as if I thought my sister’s state
Secure without all doubt or controversy." Milton.
"We hoped to enjoy with ease what, in our situation, might be called the luxuries of life." Cock.
"And, O, what man’s condition can be worse
Than his whom plenty starves and blessings curse?" Cowley.
State, a.
1. Stately. [Obs.] Spenser.
2. Belonging to the state, or body politic; public.
State, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stated; p. pr. & vb. n. Stating.]
1. To set; to settle; to establish. [R.]
"I myself, though meanest stated,
And in court now almost hated." Wither.
"Who calls the council, states the certain day." Pope.
2. To express the particulars of; to set down in detail or in gross; to represent fully in words; to narrate; to recite; as to state the facts of a case, one’s opinion, etc. To state it. To assume state or dignity. [Obs.] "Rarely dressed up, and taught to state it." Beau. & Fl.
State, n. A statement; also a document containing a statement. [R.] Sir W. Scott.
Statecraft
State´craft, n. The art of conducting state affairs; state management; statesmanship.
Stateful
State´ful, a. Full of state; stately. [Obs.] "A stateful silence." Marston.
Statehood
State´hood, n. The condition of being a State; as a territory seeking Statehood.
Stately
State´ly, a. [ Compar. Statelier superl. Stateliest.] Evincing state or dignity; lofty; majestic; grand; as statelymanners; a stately gait. "The stately homes of England!" Mrs. Hemans. "Filled with stately temples." Prescott.
"Here is a stately style indeed!" Shak.
Syn. — Lofty; dignified; majestic; grand; august; magnificent.
Statemonger
State´mon•ger, n. One versed in politics, or one who dabbles in state affairs.
Statesmanlike
States´man•like, a. Having the manner or wisdom of statesmen; becoming a statesman.
Statesmanship
States´man•ship, n. The qualifications, duties, or employments of a statesman.
Stathmograph
Stath´mo•graph, n. [Gr. a measuring line + -graph.] A contrivance for recording the speed of a railway train. Knight. { Stat´ic, Stat´ic•al } a. [Gr. causing to stand, skilled in weighing, fr. to cause to stand: cf. F. statique. See Stand, and cf. Stage.]
1. Resting; acting by mere weight without motion; as statical pressure; static objects.
2. Pertaining to bodies at rest or in equilibrium. Statical electricity. See Note under Electricity, 1. — Statical moment. See under Moment.
Statics
Stat´ics, n. [Cf. F. statique, Gr. the art of weighing, fr. . See Static.] That branch of mechanics which treats of the equilibrium of forces, or relates to bodies as held at rest by the forces acting on them; — distinguished from dynamics. Social statics, the study of the conditions which concern the existence and permanence of the social state.
Stating
Stat´ing, n. The act of one who states anything; statement; as the statingof one’s opinions.
Station
Sta´tion, n. [F., fr. L. statio, from stare, statum, to stand. See Stand.]
1. The act of standing; also attitude or pose in standing; posture. [R.]
"A station like the herald, Mercury." Shak.
"Their manner was to stand at prayer, whereupon their meetings unto that purpose … had the names of stations given them." Hooker.
2. A state of standing or rest; equilibrium. [Obs.]
"All progression is performed by drawing on or impelling forward some part which was before in station, or at quiet." Sir T. Browne.
3. The spot or place where anything stands, especially where a person or thing habitually stands, or is appointed to remain for a time; as the station of a sentinel. Specifically: (a) A regular stopping place in a stage road or route; a place where railroad trains regularly come to a stand, for the convenience of passengers, taking in fuel, moving freight, etc. (b) The headquarters of the police force of any precinct. (c) The place at which an instrument is planted, or observations are made, as in surveying. (d) (Biol.) The particular place, or kind of situation, in which a species naturally occurs; a habitat. (e) (Naut.) A place to which ships may resort, and where they may anchor safely. (f) A place or region to which a government ship or fleet is assigned for duty. (g) (Mil.) A place calculated for the rendezvous of troops, or for the distribution of them; also a spot well adapted for offensive measures. Wilhelm (Mil. Dict.). (h) (Mining) An enlargement in a shaft or galley, used as a landing, or passing place, or for the accomodation of a pump, tank, etc.
4. Post assigned; office; the part or department of public duty which a person is appointed to perform; sphere of duty or occupation; employment.
"By spending this day [Sunday] in religious exercises, we acquire new strength and resolution to perform God’s will in our several stations the week following." R. Nelson.
5. Situation; position; location.
"The fig and date — why love they to remain
In middle station, and an even plain?" Prior.
6. State; rank; condition of life; social status.
"The greater part have kept, I see,
Their station." Milton.
"They in France of the best rank and station." Shak.
7. (Eccl.) (a) The fast of the fourth and sixth days of the week, Wednesday and Friday, in memory of the council which condemned Christ, and of his passion. (b) (R. C. Ch.) A church in which the procession of the clergy halts on stated days to say stated prayers. Addis & Arnold. (c) One of the places at which ecclesiastical processions pause for the performance of an act of devotion; formerly, the tomb of a martyr, or some similarly consecrated spot; now, especially, one of those representations of the successive stages of our Lord’s passion which are often placed round the naves of large churches and by the side of the way leading to sacred edifices or shrines, and which are visited in rotation, stated services being performed at each; — called also Station of the cross. Fairholt. Station bill. (Naut.) Same as Quarter bill, under Quarter. — Station house. (a) The house serving for the headquarters of the police assigned to a certain district, and as a place of temporary confinement. (b) The house used as a shelter at a railway station. — Station master, one who has charge of a station, esp. of a railway station. — Station pointer (Surv.), an instrument for locating on a chart the position of a place from which the angles subtended by three distant objects, whose positions are known, have been observed. — Station staff (Surv.), an instrument for taking angles in surveying. Craig.
Syn. — Station, Depot. In the United States, a stopping place on a railway for passengers and freight is commonly called a depot: but to a considerable extent in official use, and in common speech, the more appropriate name, station, has been adopted.
Station
Sta´tion, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stationed p. pr. & vb. n. Stationing.] To place; to set; to appoint or assign to the occupation of a post, place, or office; as to station troops on the right of an army; to station a sentinel on a rampart; to station ships on the coasts of Africa.
"He gained the brow of the hill, where the English phalanx was stationed." Lyttelton.
Stationariness
Sta´tion•a•ri•ness, n. The quality or state of being stationary; fixity.
Stationary
Sta´tion•a•ry, a. [L. stationarius: cf. F. stationnaire. Cf. Stationer.]
1. Not moving; not appearing to move; stable; fixed.
"Charles Wesley, who is a more stationary man, does not believe the story." Southey.
2. Not improving or getting worse; not growing wiser, greater, better, more excellent, or the contrary.
3. Appearing to be at rest, because moving in the line of vision; not progressive or retrograde, as a planet. Stationary air (Physiol.), the air which under ordinary circumstances does not leave the lungs in respiration. — Stationary engine. (a) A steam engine thet is permanently placed, in distinction from a portable engine, locomotive, marine engine, etc. Specifically: (b) A factory engine, in distinction from a blowing, pumping, or other kind of engine which is also permanently placed.
Stationer
Sta´tion•er, n. [Cf. Stationary, a. ]
1. A bookseller or publisher; — formerly so called from his occupying a stand, or station, in the market place or elsewhere. [Obs.] Dryden.
2. One who sells paper, pens, quills, inkstands, pencils, blank books, and other articles used in writing.
Stationery
Sta´tion•er•y, a. Belonging to, or sold by, a stationer.
Statism
Sta´tism, n. [From State.] The art of governing a state; statecraft; policy. [Obs.]
"The enemies of God … call our religion statism." South.
Statist
Sta´tist, n. [From State.]
1. A statesman; a politician; one skilled in government. [Obs.]
"Statists indeed,
And lovers of their country." Milton.
2. A statistician. Fawcett. { Sta•tis´tic, Sta•tis´tic•al } a. [Cf. F. statistique.] Of or pertaining to statistics; as statistical knowledge, statistical tabulation.
Statistically
Sta•tis´tic•al•ly, adv. In the way of statistics.
Statistics
Sta•tis´tics, n. [Cf. F. statistique, G. statistik. See State, n. ]
1. The science which has to do with the collection and classification of certain facts respecting the condition of the people in a state. [In this sense gramatically singular.]
2. pl. Classified facts respecting the condition of the people in a state, their health, their longevity, domestic economy, arts, property, and political strength, their resources, the state of the country, etc., or respecting any particular class or interest; especially, those facts which can be stated in numbers, or in tables of numbers, or in any tabular and classified arrangement.
Statistology
Stat•is•tol´o•gy, n. [ Statistics + -logy.] See Statistics, 2.
Statoblast
Stat´o•blast, n. [Gr. standing ( i. e., remaining) + -blast.] (Zoöl.) One of a peculiar kind of internal buds, or germs, produced in the interior of certain Bryozoa and sponges, especially in the fresh- water species; — also called winter buds. They are protected by a firm covering, and are usually destined to perpetuate the species during the winter season. They burst open and develop in the spring. In some fresh-water sponges they serve to preserve the species during the dry season. See Illust. under Phylactolaemata.
Statuary
Stat´u•a•ry, n. ; pl. Statuaries (#). [L. statuarius, n., fr. statuarius, a., of or belonging to statues, fr. statua statue: cf. F. statuaire. See Statue.]
1. One who practices the art of making statues.
"On other occasions the statuaries took their subjects from the poets." Addison.
2. [L. statuaria (sc. ars): cf. F. statuaire.] The art of carving statues or images as representatives of real persons or things; a branch of sculpture. Sir W. Temple.
3. A collection of statues; statues, collectively.
Statue
Stat´ue, n. [F., fr. L. statua (akin to stativus standing still), fr. stare, statum, to stand. See Stand.]
1. The likeness of a living being sculptured or modeled in some solid substance, as marble, bronze, or wax; an image; as a statue of Hercules, or of a lion.
"I will raise her statue in pure gold." Shak.
2. A portrait. [Obs.] Massinger.
Statue
Stat´ue, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Statued p. pr. & vb. n. Statuing.] To place, as a statue; to form a statue of; to make into a statue. "The whole man becomes as if statued into stone and earth." Feltham.
Statuette
Stat•u•ette´, n. [F., cf. It. statuetta.] A small statue; — usually applied to a figure much less than life size, especially when of marble or bronze, or of plaster or clay as a preparation for the marble or bronze, as distinguished from a figure in terra cotta or the like. Cf. Figurine.
Stature
Stat´ure, n. [F. stature, OF. estature, from L. statura, originally, an upright posture, hence, height or size of the body, from stare, statum, to stand. See Stand.] The natural height of an animal body; — generally used of the human body.
"Foreign men of mighty stature came." Dryden.
Statute
Stat´ute, n. [F. statut, LL. statutum, from L. statutus, p. p. of statuere to set, station, ordain, fr. status position, station, fr. stare, statum, to stand. See Stand, and cf. Constitute, Destitute.]
1. An act of the legislature of a state or country, declaring, commanding, or prohibiting something; a positive law; the written will of the legislature expressed with all the requisite forms of legislation; — used in distinction fraom common law. See Common law, under Common, a. Bouvier. Statute is commonly applied to the acts of a legislative body consisting of representatives. In monarchies, legislature laws of the sovereign are called edicts, decrees, ordinances, rescripts, etc. In works on international law and in the Roman law, the term is used as embracing all laws imposed by competent authority. Statutes in this sense are divided into statutes real, statutes personal, and statutes mixed; statutes real applying to immovables; statutes personal to movables; and statutes mixed to both classes of property.
2. An act of a corporation or of its founder, intended as a permanent rule or law; as the statutes of a university.
3. An assemblage of farming servants (held possibly by statute) for the purpose of being hired; — called also statute fair. [Eng.] Cf. 3d Mop, 2. Halliwell. Statute book, a record of laws or legislative acts. Blackstone. — Statute cap, a kind of woolen cap; — so called because enjoined to be worn by a statute, dated in 1571, in behalf of the trade of cappers. [Obs.] Halliwell. — Statute fair. See Statute, n. , 3, above. — Statute labor, a definite amount of labor required for the public service in making roads, bridges, etc., as in certain English colonies. — Statute merchant (Eng. Law), a bond of record pursuant to the stat. 13 Edw. I., acknowledged in form prescribed, on which, if not paid at the day, an execution might be awarded against the body, lands, and goods of the debtor, and the obligee might hold the lands until out of the rents and profits of them the debt was satisfied; — called also a pocket judgment. It is now fallen into disuse. Tomlins. Bouvier. — Statute mile. See under Mile. — Statute of limitations (Law), a statute assigned a certain time, after which rights can not be enforced by action. — Statute staple, a bond of record acknowledged before the mayor of the staple, by virtue of which the creditor may, on nonpayment, forthwith have execution against the body, lands, and goods of the debtor, as in the statute merchant. It is now disused. Blackstone.
Syn. — Act; regulation; edict; decree. See Law.
Statutory
Stat´u•to•ry, a. Enacted by statute; depending on statute for its authority; as a statutory provision. { Staunch, Staunch´ly, Staunch´ness, etc. } See Stanch, Stanchly, etc.
Stave, n. [From Staff, and corresponding to the pl. staves. See Staff.]
1. One of a number of narrow strips of wood, or narrow iron plates, placed edge to edge to form the sides, covering, or lining of a vessel or structure; esp., one of the strips which form the sides of a cask, a pail, etc.
2. One of the cylindrical bars of a lantern wheel; one of the bars or rounds of a rack, a ladder, etc.
3. A metrical portion; a stanza; a staff.
"Let us chant a passing stave
In honor of that hero brave." Wordsworth.
4. (Mus.) The five horizontal and parallel lines on and between which musical notes are written or pointed; the staff. [Obs.] Stave jointer, a machine for dressing the edges of staves.
Stave, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Staved or Stove ; p. pr. & vb. n. Staving.] [From Stave, n. , or Staff, n. ]
1. To break in a stave or the staves of; to break a hole in; to burst; — often with in; as to stave a cask; to stave in a boat.
2. To push, as with a staff; — with off.
"The condition of a servant staves him off to a distance." South.
3. To delay by force or craft; to drive away; — usually with off; as to stave off the execution of a project.
"And answered with such craft as women use,
Guilty or guilties, to stave off a chance
That breaks upon them perilously." Tennyson.
4. To suffer, or cause, to be lost by breaking the cask.
"All the wine in the city has been staved." Sandys.
5. To furnish with staves or rundles. Knolles.
6. To render impervious or solid by driving with a calking iron; as to stave lead, or the joints of pipes into which lead has been run. To stave and tail, in bear baiting, ( to stave) to interpose with the staff, doubtless to stop the bear; ( to tail) to hold back the dog by the tail. Nares.
Staves, n. ; pl. of Staff. "Banners, scarves and staves." R. Browning. Also (stavz), pl. of Stave.
Staving
Stav´ing, n. A cassing or lining of staves; especially, one encircling a water wheel.
Staw, v. i. [Cf. Dan. staae to stand, Sw. stå. rad.163.] To be fixed or set; to stay. [Prov. Eng.]
Stay, n. [AS. staeg, akin to D., G., Icel., Sw., & Dan. stag; cf. OF. estai, F. etai, of Teutonic origin.] (Naut.) A large, strong rope, employed to support a mast, by being extended from the head of one mast down to some other, or to some part of the vessel. Those which lead forward are called fore-and-aft stays; those which lead to the vessel’s side are called backstays. See Illust. of Ship. In stays, or Hove in stays (Naut.), in the act or situation of staying, or going about from one tack to another. R. H. Dana, Jr. — Stay holes (Naut.), openings in the edge of a staysail through which the hanks pass which join it to the stay. — Stay tackle (Naut.), a tackle attached to a stay and used for hoisting or lowering heavy articles over the side. — To miss stays (Naut.), to fail in the attempt to go about. Totten. — Triatic stay (Naut.), a rope secured at the ends to the heads of the foremast and mainmast with thimbles spliced to its bight into which the stay tackles hook.
Stay, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stayed or Staid ; p. pr. & vb. n. Staying.] [OF. estayer, F. etayer to prop, fr. OF. estai, F. etai, a prop, probably fr. OD. stade, staeye, a prop, akin to E. stead; or cf. stay a rope to support a mast. Cf. Staid, a. , Stay, v. i.]
1. To stop from motion or falling; to prop; to fix firmly; to hold up; to support.
"Aaron and Hur stayed up his hands, the one on the one side, and the other on the other side." Ex. xvii. 12.
"Sallows and reeds … for vineyards useful found
To stay thy vines." Dryden.
2. To support from sinking; to sustain with strength; to satisfy in part or for the time.
"He has devoured a whole loaf of bread and butter, and it has not staid his stomach for a minute." Sir W. Scott.
3. To bear up under; to endure; to support; to resist successfully.
"She will not stay the siege of loving terms,
Nor bide the encounter of assailing eyes." Shak.
4. To hold from proceeding; to withhold; to restrain; to stop; to hold.
"Him backward overthrew and down him stayed
With their rude hands grisly grapplement." Spenser.
"All that may stay their minds from thinking that true which they heartly wish were false." Hooker.
5. To hinde; to delay; to detain; to keep back.
"Your ships are stayed at Venice." Shak.
"This business staid me in London almost a week." Evelyn.
"I was willing to stay my reader on an argument that appeared to me new." Locke.
6. To remain for the purpose of; to wait for. "I stay dinner there." Shak.
7. To cause to cease; to put an end to.
"Stay your strife." Shak.
"For flattering planets seemed to say
This child should ills of ages stay." Emerson.
8. (Engin.) To fasten or secure with stays; as to stay a flat sheet in a steam boiler.
9. (Naut.) To tack, as a vessel, so that the other side of the vessel shall be presented to the wind. To stay a mast (Naut.), to incline it forward or aft, or to one side, by the stays and backstays.
Stay, v. i. [rad.163. See Stay to hold up, prop.]
1. To remain; to continue in a place; to abide fixed for a space of time; to stop; to stand still.
"She would command the hasty sun to stay." Spenser.
"Stay, I command you; stay and hear me first." Dryden.
"I stay a little longer, as one stays
To cover up the embers that still burn." Longfellow.
2. To continue in a state.
"The flames augment, and stay
At their full height, then languish to decay." Dryden.
3. To wait; to attend; to forbear to act.
"I’ll tell thee all my whole device
When I am in my coach, which stays for us." Shak.
"The father can not stay any longer for the fortune." Locke.
4. To dwell; to tarry; to linger.
"I must stay a little on one action." Dryden.
5. To rest; to depend; to rely; to stand; to insist.
"I stay here on my bond." Shak.
"Ye despise this word, and trust in oppression and perverseness, and stay thereon." Isa. xxx. 12.
6. To come to an end; to cease; as that day the storm stayed. [Archaic]
"Here my commission stays." Shak.
7. To hold out in a race or other contest; as a horse stays well. [Colloq.]
8. (Naut.) To change tack; as a ship.
Stay, n. [Cf. OF. estai, F. etai support, and E. stay a rope to support a mast.]
1. That which serves as a prop; a support. "My only strength and stay." Milton.
"Trees serve as so many stays for their vines." Addison.
"Lord Liverpool is the single stay of this ministry." Coleridge.
2. pl. A corset stiffened with whalebone or other material, worn by women, and rarely by men.
"How the strait stays the slender waist constrain." Gay.
3. Continuance in a place; abode for a space of time; sojourn; as you make a short stay in this city.
"Make haste, and leave thy business and thy care;
No mortal interest can be worth thy stay." Dryden.
"Embrace the hero and his stay implore." Waller.
4. Cessation of motion or progression; stand; stop.
"Made of sphere metal, never to decay
Until his revolution was at stay." Milton.
"Affairs of state seemed rather to stand at a stay." Hayward.
5. Hindrance; let; check. [Obs.]
"They were able to read good authors without any stay, if the book were not false." Robynson (more’s Utopia).
6. Restraint of passion; moderation; caution; steadiness; sobriety. [Obs.] "Not grudging that thy lust hath bounds and stays." Herbert.
"The wisdom, stay, and moderation of the king." Bacon.
"With prudent stay he long deferred
The rough contention." Philips.
7. (Engin.) Strictly, a part in tension to hold the parts together, or stiffen them. Stay bolt (Mech.), a bolt or short rod, connecting opposite plates, so as to prevent them from being bulged out when acted upon by a pressure which tends to force them apart, as in the leg of a steam boiler. — Stay busk, a stiff piece of wood, steel, or whalebone, for the front support of a woman’s stays. Cf. Busk. — Stay rod, a rod which acts as a stay, particularly in a steam boiler.
Stayed, a. Staid; fixed; settled; sober; — now written staid. See Staid. Bacon. Pope.
Stayedness
Stayed´ness, n.
1. Staidness. [Archaic] W. Whately.
2. Solidity; weight. [R.] Camden.
Staymaker
Stay´mak•er, n. One whose occupation is to make stays.
Staynil
Stay´nil, n. (Zoöl.) The European starling. [Prov. Eng.]
Stayship
Stay´ship, n. (Zoöl.) A remora, — fabled to stop ships by attaching itself to them.
Stead, n. [OE. stede place, AS. stede; akin to LG. & D. stede, OS. stad, stedi, OHG. stat, G. statt, stätte, Icel. staðr, Dan. sted, Sw. stad, Goth. stas, and E. stand. rad.163. See Stand, and cf. Staith, Stithy.]
1. Place, or spot, in general. [Obs., except in composition.] Chaucer.
"Fly, therefore, fly this fearful stead anon." Spenser.
2. Place or room which another had, has or might have. "Stewards of your steads." Piers Plowman.
"In stead of bounds, he a pillar set." Chaucer.
3. A frame on which a bed is laid; a bedstead. [R.]
"The genial bed,
Sallow the feet, the borders, and the stead." Dryden.
4. A farmhouse and offices. [Prov. Eng. & Scot.] The word is now commonly used as the last part of a compound; as farm stead, home stead, read stead, etc. In stead of, in place of. See Instead. — To stand in stead, or To do stead, to be of use or great advantage.
"The smallest act … shall stand us in great stead." Atterbury.
"Here thy sword can do thee little stead." Milton.
Steady
Stead´y, a. [ Compar. Steadier superl. Steadiest.] [Cf. AS. stedig sterile, barren, staeig, steady (in gestaeig), D. stedig, stadig, steeg, G. stätig, stetig. See Stead, n. ]
1. Firm in standing or position; not tottering or shaking; fixed; firm. "The softest, steadiest plume." Keble.
"Their feet steady, their hands diligent, their eyes watchful, and their hearts resolute." Sir P. Sidney.
2. Constant in feeling, purpose, or pursuit; not fickle, changeable, or wavering; not easily moved or persuaded to alter a purpose; resolute; as a man steady in his principles, in his purpose, or in the pursuit of an object.
3. Regular; constant; undeviating; uniform; as the steady course of the sun; a steady breeze of wind.
Syn. — Fixed; regular; uniform; undeviating; invariable; unremitted; stable. Steady rest (Mach), a rest in a turning lathe, to keep a long piece of work from trembling.
Steady
Stead´y, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Steadied p. pr. & vb. n. Steadying.] To make steady; to hold or keep from shaking, reeling, or falling; to make or keep firm; to support; to make constant, regular, or resolute.
Steak, n. [OE. steike, Icel. steik, akin to Icel. steikja to roast, stikna to be roasted or scorched, and E. stick, the steak being broiled on a spit. See Stick, v. t.] A slice of beef, broiled, or cut for broiling; — also extended to the meat of other large animals; as venison steak; bear steak; pork steak; turtle steak.
Steal, n. [See Stale a handle.] A handle; a stale, or stele. [Archaic or Prov. Eng.]
"And in his hand a huge poleax did bear.
Whose steale was iron-studded but not long." Spenser.
Steal, v. t. [ imp. Stole p. p. Stolen p. pr. & vb. n. Stealing.] [OE. stelen, AS. stelan; akin to OFries. stela, D. stelen, OHG. stelan, G. stehlen, Icel. stela, SW. stjäla, Dan. stiaele, Goth. stilan.]
1. To take and carry away, feloniously; to take without right or leave, and with intent to keep wrongfully; as to steal the personal goods of another.
"Maugre thy heed, thou must for indigence
Or steal, or borrow, thy dispense." Chaucer.
"The man who stole a goose and gave away the giblets in lms." G. Eliot.
2. To withdraw or convey clandestinely (reflexive); hence, to creep furtively, or to insinuate.
"They could insinuate and steal themselves under the same by their humble carriage and submission." Spenser.
"He will steal himself into a man’s favor." Shak.
3. To gain by insinuating arts or covert means.
"So Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel." 2 Sam. xv. 6.
4. To get into one’s power gradually and by imperceptible degrees; to take possession of by a gradual and imperceptible appropriation; — with away.
"Variety of objects has a tendency to steal away the mind from its steady pursuit of any subject." I. Watts.
5. To accomplish in a concealed or unobserved manner; to try to carry out secretly; as to steal a look.
"Always, when thou changest thine opinion or course, profess it plainly, … and do not think to steal it." Bacon. To steal a march, to march in a covert way; to gain an advantage unobserved; — formerly followed by of, but now by on or upon, and sometimes by over; as to steal a march upon one’s political rivals.
"She yesterday wanted to steal a march of poor Liddy." Smollett.
"Fifty thousand men can not easily steal a march over the sea." Walpole.
Syn. — To filch; pilfer; purloin; thieve.
Stealth, n. [OE. staple. See Steal, v. t.]
1. The act of stealing; theft. [Obs.]
"The owner proveth the stealth to have been committed upon him by such an outlaw." Spenser.
2. The thing stolen; stolen property. [Obs.] "Sluttish dens … serving to cover stealths." Sir W. Raleigh.
3. The bringing to pass anything in a secret or concealed manner; a secret procedure; a clandestine practice or action; — in either a good or a bad sense.
"Do good by stealth, and blush to find it fame." Pope.
"The monarch, blinded with desire of wealth,
With steel invades the brother’s life by stealth." Dryden.
"I told him of your stealth unto this wood." Shak.
Stealthiness
Stealth´i•ness, n. The state, quality, or character of being stealthy; stealth.
Stealthy
Stealth´y, a. [ Compar. Stealthier superl. Stealthiest.] Done by stealth; accomplished clandestinely; unperceived; secret; furtive; sly.
"[Withered murder] with his stealthy pace, …
Moves like a ghost." Shak.
Steam, n. [OE. stem, steem, vapor, flame, AS. steám vapor, smoke, odor; akin to D. stoom steam, perhaps originally, a pillar, or something rising like a pillar; cf. Gr. to erect, a pillar, and E. stand.]
1. The elastic, aëriform fluid into which water is converted when heated to the boiling points; water in the state of vapor.
2. The mist formed by condensed vapor; visible vapor; — so called in popular usage.
3. Any exhalation. "A steam og rich, distilled perfumes." Milton. Dry steam, steam which does not contain water held in suspension mechanically; — sometimes applied to superheated steam. — Exhaust steam. See under Exhaust. — High steam, or High- pressure steam, steam of which the pressure greatly exceeds that of the atmosphere. — Low steam, or Low-pressure steam, steam of which the pressure is less than, equal to, or not greatly above, that of the atmosphere. — Saturated steam, steam at the temperature of the boiling point which corresponds to its pressure; — sometimes also applied to wet steam. — Superheated steam, steam heated to a temperature higher than the boiling point corresponding to its pressure. It can not exist in contact with water, nor contain water, and resembles a perfect gas; — called also surcharged steam, anhydrous steam, and steam gas. — Wet steam, steam which contains water held in suspension mechanically; — called also misty steam. Steam is often used adjectively, and in combination, to denote, produced by heat, or operated by power, derived from steam, in distinction from other sources of power; as in steam boiler or steam-boiler, steam dredger or steam-dredger, steam engine or steam-engine, steam heat, steam plow or steam-plow, etc. Steam blower. (a) A blower for producing a draught consisting of a jet or jets of steam in a chimney or under a fire. (b) A fan blower driven directly by a steam engine. — Steam boiler, a boiler for producing steam. See Boiler, 3, and Note. In the illustration, the shell a of the boiler is partly in section, showing the tubes, or flues, which the hot gases, from the fire beneath the boiler, enter, after traversing the outside of the shell, and through which the gases are led to the smoke pipe d, which delivers them to the chimney; b is the manhole; c the dome; e the steam pipe; f the feed and blow-off pipe; g the safety value; hthe water gauge. — Steam car, a car driven by steam power, or drawn by a locomotive. — Steam carriage, a carriage upon wheels moved on common roads by steam. — Steam casing. See Steam jacket, under Jacket. — Steam chest, the box or chamber from which steam is distributed to the cylinder of a steam engine, steam pump, etc., and which usually contains one or more values; — called also valve chest, and valve box. See Illust. of Slide valve, under Slide. — Steam chimney, an annular chamber around the chimney of a boiler furnace, for drying steam. — Steam coil, a coil of pipe, or collection of connected pipes, for containing steam; — used for heating, drying, etc. — Steam colors (Calico Printing), colors in which the chemical reaction fixed the coloring matter in the fiber is produced by steam. — Steam cylinder, the cylinder of a steam engine, which contains the piston. See Illust. of Slide valve, under Slide. — Steam dome (Steam Boilers), a chamber upon the top of the boiler, from which steam is conduced to the engine. See Illust. of Steam boiler, above. — Steam fire engine, a fire engine consisting of a steam boiler and engine, and pump which is driven by the engine, combined and mounted on wheels. It is usually drawn by horses, but is sometimes made self-propelling. — Steam fitter, a fitter of steam pipes. — Steam fitting, the act or the occupation of a steam fitter; also a pipe fitting for steam pipes. — Steam gas. See Superheated steam, above. — Steam gauge, an instrument for indicating the pressure of the steam in a boiler. The mercurial steam gauge is a bent tube partially filled with mercury, one end of which is connected with the boiler while the other is open to the air, so that the steam by its pressure raises the mercury in the long limb of the tume to a height proportioned to that pressure. A more common form, especially for high pressures, consists of a spring pressed upon by the steam, and connected with the pointer of a dial. The spring may be a flattened, bent tube, closed at one end, which the entering steam tends to straighten, or it may be a diaphragm of elastic metal, or a mass of confined air, etc. — Steam gun, a machine or contrivance from which projectiles may be thrown by the elastic force of steam. — Steam hammer, a hammer for forging, which is worked directly by steam; especially, a hammer which is guided vertically and operated by a vertical steam cylinder located directly over an anvil. In the variety known as Nasmyth’s, the cylinder is fixed, and the hammer is attached to the piston rod. In that known as Condie’s, the piston is fixed, and the hammer attached to the lower end of the cylinder. — Steam heater. (a) A radiator heated by steam. (b) An apparatus consisting of a steam boiler, radiator, piping, and fixures for warming a house by steam. — Steam jacket. See under Jacket. — Steam packet, a packet or vessel propelled by steam, and running periodically between certain ports. — Steam pipe, any pipe for conveying steam; specifically, a pipe through which steam is supplied to an engine. — Steam plow or plough, a plow, or gang of plows, moved by a steam engine. — Steam port, an opening for steam to pass through, as from the steam chest into the cylinder. — Steam power, the force or energy of steam applied to produce results; power derived from a steam engine. — Steam propeller. See Propeller. — Steam pump, a small pumping engine operated by steam. It is usually direct-acting. — Steam room (Steam Boilers), the space in the boiler above the water level, and in the dome, which contains steam. — Steam table, a table on which are dishes heated by steam for keeping food warm in the carving room of a hotel, restaurant, etc. — Steam trap, a self- acting device by means of which water that accumulates in a pipe or vessel containing steam will be discharged without permitting steam to escape. — Steam tug, a steam vessel used in towing or propelling ships. — Steam vessel, a vessel propelled by steam; a steamboat or steamship; — a steamer. — Steam whistle, an apparatus attached to a steam boiler, as of a locomotive, through which steam is rapidly discharged, producing a loud whistle which serves as a warning signal. The steam issues from a narrow annular orifice around the upper edge of the lower cup or hemisphere, striking the thin edge of the bell above it, and producing sound in the manner of an organ pipe or a common whistle.
Steam, v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Steamed p. pr. & vb. n. Steaming.]
1. To emit steam or vapor.
"My brother’s ghost hangs hovering there,
O’er his warm blood, that steams into the air." Dryden.
"Let the crude humors dance
In heated brass, steaming with fire intence." J. Philips.
2. To rise in vapor; to issue, or pass off, as vapor.
"The dissolved amber … steamed away into the air." Boyle.
3. To move or travel by the agency of steam.
"The vessel steamed out of port." N. P. Willis.
4. To generate steam; as the boiler steams well.
Steamer
Steam´er, n.
1. A vessel propelled by steam; a steamship or steamboat.
2. A steam fire engine. See under Steam.
3. A road locomotive for use on common roads, as in agricultural operations.
4. A vessel in which articles are subjected to the action of steam, as in washing, in cookery, and in various processes of manufacture.
5. (Zoöl.) The steamer duck. Steamer duck (Zoöl.), a sea duck ( Tachyeres cinereus), native of Patagonia and Terra del Fuego, which swims and dives with great agility, but which, when full grown, is incapable of flight, owing to its very small wings. Called also loggerhead, race horse, and side wheel duck.
Steaminess
Steam´i•ness, n. The quality or condition of being steamy; vaporousness; mistness.
Steamship
Steam´ship, n. A ship or seagoing vessel propelled by the power of steam; a steamer.
Steamy
Steam´y, a. Consisting of, or resembling, steam; full of steam; vaporous; misty. Cowper.
Stean, n. & v. See Steen. Spenser.
Stearrhea
Ste•ar•rhe´a, n. [NL., from Gr. tallow + to flow.] (Med.) seborrhea.
Steatomatous
Ste•a•tom´a•tous, a. (Med.) Of the nature of steatoma.
Sted, n. , Sted´fast, a. , Sted´fast•ly, adv. , etc. See Stead, Steadfast, etc.
Stee, n. [Cf. G. stiege. rad.164. See Stair.] A ladder. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.] [Written also stey.]
Steed, n. [OE. stede, AS. steda a stud-horse, war horse, fr. stod a stud of breeding steeds; akin to G. stute a mare, Icel. stedda, sto, a stud. rad.163. See Stud of horses.] A horse, especially a spirited horse for state of war; — used chiefly in poetry or stately prose. "A knight upon a steed." Chaucer.
"Mounted upon a hot and fiery steed." Shak.
Steedless
Steed´less, a. Having no steed; without a horse. { Steek, Steik }, v. t. [Cf. Stick, v. t.] To pierce with a sharp instrument; hence, to stitch; to sew; also to fix; to fasten. [Scot.]
Steel, n. [AS. stel, styl, style; akin to D. staal, G. stahl, OHG. stahal, Icel. stal, Dan. staal, Sw. stål, Old Prussian stakla.]
1. (Metal) A variety of iron intermediate in composition and properties between wrought iron and cast iron (containing between one half of one per cent and one and a half per cent of carbon), and consisting of an alloy of iron with an iron carbide. Steel, unlike wrought iron, can be tempered, and retains magnetism. Its malleability decreases, and fusibility increases, with an increase in carbon.
2. An instrument or implement made of steel; as: — (a) A weapon, as a sword, dagger, etc. "Brave Macbeth … with his brandished steel." Shak.
"While doubting thus he stood,
Received the steel bathed in his brother’s blood." Dryden. (b) An instrument of steel (usually a round rod) for sharpening knives. (c) A piece of steel for striking sparks from flint.
3. Fig.: Anything of extreme hardness; that which is characterized by sternness or rigor. "Heads of steel." Johnson. "Manhood’s heart of steel." Byron.
4. (Med.) A chalybeate medicine. Dunglison. Steel is often used in the formation of compounds, generally of obvious meaning; as steel-clad, steel- girt, steel-hearted, steel-plated, steel-pointed, etc. Bessemer steel (Metal.) See in the Vocabulary. — Blister steel. (Metal.) See under Blister. — Cast steel (Metal.), a fine variety of steel, originally made by smelting blister or cementation steel; hence, ordinarily, steel of any process of production when remelted and cast. — Cromium steel (Metal.), a hard, tenacious variety containing a little cromium, and somewhat resembling tungsten steel. — Mild steel (Metal.), a kind of steel having a lower proportion of carbon than ordinary steel, rendering it softer and more malleable. — Puddled steel (Metal.), a variety of steel produced from cast iron by the puddling process. — Steel duck (Zoöl.), the goosander, or merganser. [Prov. Eng.] — Steel mill. (a) (Firearms) See Wheel lock, under Wheel. (b) A mill which has steel grinding surfaces. (c) A mill where steel is manufactured. — Steel trap, a trap for catching wild animals. It consists of two iron jaws, which close by means of a powerful steel spring when the animal disturbs the catch, or tongue, by which they are kept open. — Steel wine, wine, usually sherry, in which steel filings have been placed for a considerable time, — used as a medicine. — Tincture of steel (Med.), an alcoholic solution of the chloride of iron. — Tungsten steel (Metal.), a variety of steel containing a small amount of tungsten, and noted for its tenacity and hardness, as well as for its malleability and tempering qualities. It is also noted for its magnetic properties.
Steel, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Steeled p. pr. & vb. n. Steeling.] [AS. stlan: cf. Icel. staela. See Steel, n. ]
1. To overlay, point, or edge with steel; as to steel a razor; to steel an ax.
2. To make hard or strong; hence, to make insensible or obdurate.
"Lies well steeled with weighty arguments." Shak.
"O God of battles! steel my soldier’s hearts." Shak.
"Why will you fight against so sweet a passion,
And steel your heart to such a world of charms?" Addison.
3. Fig.: To cause to resemble steel, as in smoothness, polish, or other qualities.
"These waters, steeled
By breezeless air to smoothest polish." Wordsworth.
4. (Elec.) To cover, as an electrotype plate, with a thin layer of iron by electrolysis. The iron thus deposited is very hard, like steel.
Steeler
Steel´er, n. One who points, edges, or covers with steel.
Steeling
Steel´ing, n. The process of pointing, edging, or overlaying with steel; specifically, acierage. See Steel, v.
Steem, n. & v. See Esteem. [Obs.] Spenser.
Steem, n. & v. See 1st and 2nd Stem. [Obs.] Chaucer.
Steen, n. [AS. stna. See Stone.] [Written also stean.]
1. A vessel of clay or stone. "An huge great earth-pot steane." Spenser.
2. A wall of brick, stone, or cement, used as a lining, as of a well, cistern, etc.; a steening.
Steen, v. t. [AS. stnan to adorn with stones or gems. See Stone.] To line, as a well, with brick, stone, or other hard material. [Written also stean, and stein.]
Steenbok
Steen´bok, n. [D. steen stone + bok buck.] (Zoöl.) Same as Steinbock.
Steep, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Steeped (stept); p. pr. & vb. n. Steeping.] [OE. stepen, probably fr. Icel. steypa to cause to stoop, cast down, pour out, to cast metals, causative of stupa to stoop; cf. Sw. stöpa to cast, to steep, Dan. stöbe, D. & G. stippen to steep, to dip. Cf. Stoop, v. t.] To soak in a liquid; to macerate; to extract the essence of by soaking; as to soften seed by steeping it in water. Often used figuratively.
"Let fancy still my sense in Lethe steep." Shak.
"In refreshing dew to steep
The little, trembling flowers." Wordsworth.
"The learned of the nation were steeped in Latin." Earle.
Steep, v. i. To undergo the process of soaking in a liquid; as the tea is steeping. [Colloq.]
Steep, a. [ Comper. Steeper superl. Steepest.] [OE. steep, step, AS. steáp; akin to Icel. steypr steep, and stupa to stoop, Sw. stupa to fall, to tilt; cf. OFries. stap high. Cf. Stoop, v. i., Steep, v. t., Steeple.]
1. Making a large angle with the plane of the horizon; ascending or descending rapidly with respect to a horizontal line or a level; precipitous; as a steep hill or mountain; a steep roof; a steep ascent; a steep declivity; a steep barometric gradient.
2. Difficult of access; not easy reached; lofty; elevated; high. [Obs.] Chapman.
3. Excessive; as a steep price. [Slang]
Steepen
Steep´en, v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Steepened p. pr. & vb. n. Steepening.] To become steep or steeper.
"As the way steepened … I could detect in the hollow of the hill some traces of the old path." H. Miller.
Steeper
Steep´er, n. A vessel, vat, or cistern, in which things are steeped.
Steeple
Stee´ple, n. [OE. stepel, AS. stepel, stpel; akin to E. steep, a.] (Arch.) A spire; also the tower and spire taken together; the whole of a structure if the roof is of spire form. See Spire. "A weathercock on a steeple." Shak. Rood steeple. See Rood tower, under Rood. — Steeple bush (Bot.), a low shrub ( Spiraea tomentosa) having dense panicles of minute rose-colored flowers; hardhack. — Steeple chase, a race across country between a number of horsemen, to see which can first reach some distant object, as a church steeple; hence, a race over a prescribed course obstructed by such obstacles as one meets in riding across country, as hedges, walls, etc. — Steeple chaser, one who rides in a steeple chase; also a horse trained to run in a steeple chase. — Steeple engine, a vertical back- acting steam engine having the cylinder beneath the crosshead. — Steeple house, a church. [Obs.] Jer. Taylor.
Steeplechasing
Stee´ple•chas•ing, n. The act of riding steeple chases.
Steeply
Steep´ly, adv. In a steep manner; with steepness; with precipitous declivity.
Steep-up
Steep´-up, a. Lofty and precipitous. [R.]
"Her stand she takes upon a steep-up hill." Shak.
Steer, n. [OE. steer, AS. steór; akin to D. & G. stier a bull, OHG. stior, Icel. stjorr, jorr, Sw. tjur, Dan. tyr, Goth. stiur, Russ. tur’, Pol. tur, Ir. & Gael. tarbh, W. tarw, L. taurus, Gr., Skr. sthra strong, stout, AS. stor large, Icel. storr, OHG. stri, stiuri. rad.168. Cf. Stirk, Taurine, a. ] A young male of the ox kind; especially, a common ox; a castrated taurine male from two to four years old. See the Note under Ox.
Steer, v. t. To castrate; — said of male calves.
Steer, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Steered p. pr. & vb. n. Steering.] [OE. steeren, steren, AS. stieran, stran, steóran; akin to OFries. stiora, stiura, D. sturen, OD. stieren, G. steuren, OHG. stiuren to direct, support, G. steuer contribution, tax, Icel. stra to steer, govern,Sw. styra, Dan. styre, Goth. stiurjan to establish, AS. steór a rudder, a helm, and probably to Icel. staurr a pale, stake, Gr., and perhaps ultimately to E. stand. rad.168. Cf. Starboard, Stern, n. ] To direct the course of; to guide; to govern; — applied especially to a vessel in the water.
"That with a staff his feeble steps did steer." Spenser.
Steer, n. [AS. steór, stiór; akin to D. stuur, G. steuer, Icel. stri. rad.186. See Steer, v. t.] [Written also stere.] A rudder or helm. [Obs.] Chaucer.
Steer, n. [AS. steóra. See Steer a rudder.] A helmsman, a pilot. [Obs.] Chaucer.
Steerable
Steer´a•ble, a. Capable of being steered; dirigible.
Steering
Steer´ing, a. & n. from Steer, v. Steering wheel (Naut.), the wheel by means of which the rudder of a vessel is turned and the vessel is steered.
Steeve (stev), v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Steeved p. pr. & vb. n. Steeving.] [Cf. OD. steve staff, E. stem, n.] (Shipbuilding) To project upward, or make an angle with the horizon or with the line of a vessel’s keel; — said of the bowsprit, etc.
Steeve, v. t.
1. (Shipbuilding) To elevate or fix at an angle with the horizon; — said of the bowsprit, etc.
2. To stow, as bales in a vessel’s hold, by means of a steeve. See Steeve, n. (b).
Steeving
Steev´ing, n.
1. The act or practice of one who steeves.
2. (Naut.) See Steeve, n. (a).
Steg (steg), n. [Icel. steggr the male of several animals. Cf. Stag.] (Zoöl.) A gander. [Written also stag.] [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.
Steganographist
Steg•a•nog´ra•phist, n. One skilled in steganography; a cryptographer.
Steganopod
Ste•gan´o•pod, n. (Zoöl.) One of the Steganopodes.
Steganopodous
Steg•a•nop´o•dous, a. (Zoöl.) Having all four toes webbed together.
Stegnosis
Steg•no´sis, n. [NL., fr. Gr. . See Stegnotic.] (Med.) Constipation; also constriction of the vessels or ducts.
Stegosauria
Steg•o•sau´ri•a (-sa"ri•a), n. pl. [NL. See Stegosaurus.] (Paleon.) An extinct order of herbivorous dinosaurs, including the genera Stegosaurus, Omosaurus, and their allies.
Steik, v. t. See Steek. [Scot.]
Steinbock
Stein´bock, n. [G. stein stone + bock buck, D. bok. Cf. Steenbok.] (Zoöl.) (a) The European ibex. (b) A small South African antelope ( Nanotragus tragulus) which frequents dry, rocky districts; — called also steenbok. [Written also steinboc, and steinbok; also called stonebock, and stonebuck.]
Stele
Ste´le (ste"le), n. [NL.] Same as Stela.
"One of these steles, containing the Greek version of the ordinance, has recently been discovered." I. Taylor (The Alphabet).
Stele (stel), n. [See Stale a handle.] A stale, or handle; a stalk. [Obs.] Chaucer. Holland.
Stelene
Ste´lene, a. [See Stela.] Resembling, or used as a stela; columnar. [R.]
Stell, v. t. [AS. stellan. rad.163.] To place or fix firmly or permanently. [Obs.] Shak.
Stell, n. [See Stell, v. t.]
1. A prop; a support, as for the feet in standing or cilmbing. [Scot.]
2. A partial inclosure made by a wall or trees, to serve as a shelter for sheep or cattle. [Prov. Eng. & Scot.] { Stel´lar, Stel´la•ry } a. [L. stellaris, fr. stella a star. See Star.]
1. Of or pertaining to stars; astral; as a stellar figure; stellary orbs.
"[These soft fires] in part shed down
Their stellar virtue." Milton.
2. Full of stars; starry; as stellar regions. { Stel´late, Stel´la•ted } a. [L. stellatus, p. p. of stellare to set or cover with stars, from stella a star. See Stellar.]
1. Resembling a star; pointed or radiated, like the emblem of a star.
2. (Bot.) Starlike; having similar parts radiating from a common center; as stellate flowers.
Stelled, a. [See Stell to place.] Firmly placed or fixed. [Obs.] "The stelled fires" [the stars]. Shak. [In this passage by some defined as "starry," as if from stellatus.]
Stellerid
Stel´ler•id, n. [L. stella a star.] (Zoöl.) A starfish.
Stelliform
Stel´li•form, a. [L. stella a star + -form.] Like a star; star-shaped; radiated.
Stelmatopoda
Stel•ma•top´o•da, n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. a block, post +,, eye +,, foot.] (Zoöl.) Same as Gymnolaemata.
Stem (stem), n. [AS. stemn, stefn, staefn; akin to OS. stamn the stem of a ship, D. stam stem, steven stem of a ship, G. stamm stem, steven stem of a ship, Icel. stafn, stamn, stem of a ship, stofn, stomn, stem, Sw. stam a tree trunk, Dan. stamme. Cf. Staff, Stand.]
1. The principal body of a tree, shrub, or plant, of any kind; the main stock; the part which supports the branches or the head or top.
"After they are shot up thirty feet in length, they spread a very large top, having no bough nor twig in the trunk or the stem." Sir W. Raleigh.
"The lowering spring, with lavish rain,
Beats down the slender stem and breaded grain." Dryden.
2. A little branch which connects a fruit, flower, or leaf with a main branch; a peduncle, pedicel, or petiole; as the stem of an apple or a cherry.
3. The stock of a family; a race or generation of progenitors. "All that are of noble stem." Milton.
"While I do pray, learn here thy stem
And true descent." Herbert.
4. A branch of a family.
"This is a stem
Of that victorious stock." Shak.
5. (Naut.) A curved piece of timber to which the two sides of a ship are united at the fore end. The lower end of it is scarfed to the keel, and the bowsprit rests upon its upper end. Hence, the forward part of a vessel; the bow.
6. Fig.: An advanced or leading position; the lookout.
"Wolsey sat at the stem more than twenty years." Fuller.
7. Anything resembling a stem or stalk; as the stem of a tobacco pipe; the stem of a watch case, or that part to which the ring, by which it is suspended, is attached.
8. (Bot.) That part of a plant which bears leaves, or rudiments of leaves, whether rising above ground or wholly subterranean.
9. (Zoöl.) (a) The entire central axis of a feather. (b) The basal portion of the body of one of the Pennatulacea, or of a gorgonian.
10. (Mus.) The short perpendicular line added to the body of a note; the tail of a crotchet, quaver, semiquaver, etc.
11. (Gram.) The part of an inflected word which remains unchanged (except by euphonic variations) throughout a given inflection; theme; base. From stem to stern (Naut.), from one end of the ship to the other, or through the whole length. — Stem leaf (Bot.), a leaf growing from the stem of a plant, as contrasted with a basal or radical leaf.
Stem, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stemmed p. pr. & vb. n. Stemming.] [Either from stem, n., or akin to stammer; cf. G. stemmen to press against.] To oppose or cut with, or as with, the stem of a vessel; to resist, or make progress against; to stop or check the flow of, as a current. "An argosy to stem the waves." Shak.
"[They] stem the flood with their erected breasts." Denham.
"Stemmed the wild torrent of a barbarous age." Pope.
Stemma
Stem´ma, n. ; pl. Stemmata (#). [NL., fr. Gr., pl., a garland or chaplet.] (Zoöl.) (a) One of the ocelli of an insect. See Ocellus. (b) One of the facets of a compound eye of any arthropod.
Stemmer
Stem´mer, n. One who, or that which, stems (in any of the senses of the verbs).
Stemmery
Stem´mer•y, n. A large building in which tobacco is stemmed. [U. S.] Bartlett.
Stemson
Stem´son, n. [See Stem, n. , and Keelson, and cf. Sternson.] (Shipbuilding) A piece of curved timber bolted to the stem, keelson, and apron in a ship’s frame near the bow.
Stem-winder
Stem´-wind•er, n. A stem- winding watch. [Colloq.]
Stem-winding
Stem´-wind•ing, a. Wound by mechanism connected with the stem; as a stem-winding watch.
Stench, v. t. To stanch. [Obs.] Harvey.
Stench, n. [AS. stenc a strong smell, fr. stincan. See Stink, v. i.]
1. A smell; an odor. [Obs.]
"Clouds of savory stench involve the sky." Dryden.
2. An ill smell; an offensive odor; a stink. Cowper. Stench trap, a contrivance to prevent stench or foul air from rising from the openings of sewers, drains, etc.
Stench, v. t. [AS. stencan to emit a smell, fr. stincan to smell. See Stench, n. ] To cause to emit a disagreeable odor; to cause to stink. [Obs.] Young.
Stencil
Sten´cil, n. [Probably from OF. estincelle spangle, spark, F. etincelle spark, L. scintilla. See Scintillate, and cf. Tinsel.] A thin plate of metal, leather, or other material, used in painting, marking, etc. The pattern is cut out of the plate, which is then laid flat on the surface to be marked, and the color brushed over it. Called also stencil plate.
Stencil
Sten´cil, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stenciled or Stencilled; p. pr. & vb. n. Stenciling or Stencilling.] To mark, paint, or color in figures with stencils; to form or print by means of a stencil.
Stenograph
Sten´o•graph, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stenographed p. pr. & vb. n. Stenographing ] To write or report in stenographic characters.
Stenophyllous
Ste•noph´yl•lous, a. [Gr. steno•s narrow + fy•llon leaf.] (Bot.) Having narrow leaves.
Stent, v. t. [ Obs. imp. Stente obs. p. p. Stent.] [See Stint.] To keep within limits; to restrain; to cause to stop, or cease; to stint.
"Then would he weep, he might not be stent." Chaucer.
"Yet n’ould she stent
Her bitter railing and foul revilement." Spenser.
Stent, v. i. To stint; to stop; to cease.
"And of this cry they would never stenten." Chaucer.
Stent, n. An allotted portion; a stint. "Attain’d his journey’s stent." Mir. for Mag.
Stentor
Sten´tor, n. [L. Stentor, Gr. .]
1. A herald, in the Iliad, who had a very loud voice; hence, any person having a powerful voice.
2. (Zoöl.) Any species of ciliated Infusoria belonging to the genus Stentor and allied genera, common in fresh water. The stentors have a bell-shaped, or cornucopia- like, body with a circle of cilia around the spiral terminal disk. See Illust. under Heterotricha.
3. (Zoöl.) A howling monkey, or howler.
Stentorin
Sten´to•rin, n. (Chem.) A blue coloring matter found in some stentors. See Stentor, 2.
Stentorophonic
Sten•to•ro•phon´ic, a. [Gr. Stentor + a sound, voice. See Stentor.] Speaking or sounding very loud; stentorian. [Obs.]
"Of this stentorophonic horn of Alexander there is a preserved in the Vatican." Derham.
Step, v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Stepped p. pr. & vb. n. Stepping.] [AS. staeppan; akin to OFries. steppa, D. stappen to step, stap a step, OHG. stepfen to step, G. stapfe a footstep, OHG. stapfo, G. stufe a step to step on; cf. Gr. to shake about, handle roughly, stamp Cf. Stamp, n. & a. ]
1. To move the foot in walking; to advance or recede by raising and moving one of the feet to another resting place, or by moving both feet in succession.
2. To walk; to go on foot; esp., to walk a little distance; as to step to one of the neighbors.
3. To walk slowly, gravely, or resolutely.
"Home the swain retreats,
His flock before him stepping to the fold." Thomson.
4. Fig.: To move mentally; to go in imagination.
"They are stepping almost three thousand years back into the remotest antiquity." Pope. To step aside, to walk a little distance from the rest; to retire from company. — To step forth, to move or come forth. — To stepin or into. (a) To walk or advance into a place or state, or to advance suddenly in.
"Whosoever then first, after the troubling of the water, stepped in, was made whole of whatsoever disease he had." John v. 4. (b) To enter for a short time; as I just stepped into the house. (c) To obtain possession without trouble; to enter upon easily or suddenly; as to step into an estate. — To step out. (a) (Mil.) To increase the length, but not the rapidity, of the step, extending it to thirty-tree inches. (b) To go out for a short distance or a short time. — To step short (Mil.), to diminish the length or rapidity of the step according to the established rules.
Step, n. [AS. staepe. See Step, v. i.]
1. An advance or movement made by one removal of the foot; a pace.
2. A rest, or one of a set of rests, for the foot in ascending or descending, as a stair, or a round of a ladder.
"The breadth of every single step or stair should be never less than one foot." Sir H. Wotton.
3. The space passed over by one movement of the foot in walking or running; as one step is generally about three feet, but may be more or less. Used also figuratively of any kind of progress; as he improved step by step, or by steps.
"To derive two or three general principles of motion from phenomena, and afterwards to tell us how the properties and actions of all corporeal things follow from those manifest principles, would be a very great step in philosophy." Sir I. Newton.
4. A small space or distance; as it is but a step.
5. A print of the foot; a footstep; a footprint; track.
6. Gait; manner of walking; as the approach of a man is often known by his step.
7. Proceeding; measure; action; an act.
"The reputation of a man depends on the first steps he makes in the world." Pope.
"Beware of desperate steps. The darkest day,
Live till to-morrow, will have passed away." Cowper.
"I have lately taken steps … to relieve the old gentleman’s distresses." G. W. Cable.
8. pl. Walk; passage.
"Conduct my steps to find the fatal tree." Dryden.
9. pl. A portable framework of stairs, much used indoors in reaching to a high position.
10. (Naut.) In general, a framing in wood or iron which is intended to receive an upright shaft; specif., a block of wood, or a solid platform upon the keelson, supporting the heel of the mast.
11. (Mach.) (a) One of a series of offsets, or parts, resembling the steps of stairs, as one of the series of parts of a cone pulley on which the belt runs. (b) A bearing in which the lower extremity of a spindle or a vertical shaft revolves.
12. (Mus.) The intervak between two contiguous degrees of the csale. The word tone is often used as the name of this interval; but there is evident incongruity in using tone for indicating the interval between tones. As the word scale is derived from the Italian scala, a ladder, the intervals may well be called steps.
13. (Kinematics) A change of position effected by a motion of translation. W. K. Clifford.Back step, Half step, etc. See under Back, Half, etc. — Step grate, a form of grate for holding fuel, in which the bars rise above one another in the manner of steps. — To take steps, to take action; to move in a matter.
Step-. [AS. steóp-; akin to OFries. stiap-, stiep-, D. & G. stief-, OHG. stiuf-, Icel. stjp-, Sw. styf-, and to AS. astepan, asteópan, to deprive, bereave, as children of their parents, OHG. stiufen.] A prefix used before father, mother, brother, sister, son, daughter, child, etc., to indicate that the person thus spoken of is not a blood relative, but is a relative by the marriage of a parent; as a stepmother to X is the wife of the father of X, married by him after the death of the mother of X. See Stepchild, Stepdaughter, Stepson, etc.
Stepfather
Step´fa•ther, n. [AS. steópfaeder.] The husband of one’s mother by a subsequent marriage.
Stepmother
Step´moth•er, n. [AS. steópmoder.] The wife of one’s father by a subsequent marriage.
Steppe, n. [From Russ. stepe, through G. or F. steppe.] One of the vast plains in Southeastern Europe and in Asia, generally elevated, and free from wood, analogous to many of the prairies in Western North America. See Savanna. Steppe murrain. (Far.) See Rinderpest.
Stepper
Step´per, n. One who, or that which, steps; as a quick stepper.
Stepsister
Step´sis•ter, n. A daughter of one’s stepfather or stepmother by a former marriage.
Stepson
Step´son, n. [AS. steópsunu.] A son of one’s husband or wife by a former marriage.
Stepstone
Step´stone, n. A stone laid before a door as a stair to rise on in entering the house.
Stercolin
Ster´co•lin, n. [L. stercus dung + oleum oil.] (Physiol. Chem.) Same as Serolin (b).
Stercoranism
Ster´co•ra•nism, n. (Eccl. Hist.) The doctrine or belief of the Stercoranists.
Stercorianism
Ster•co´ri•an•ism, n. (Eccl.) The doctrine or belief of the Stercoranists.
Stercorin
Ster´co•rin, n. [L. stercus, -oris, dung.] (Physiol. Chem.) Same as Serolin (b).
Stere, v. t. & i. To stir. [Obs.] Chaucer.
Stere, n. A rudder. See 5th Steer. [Obs.] Chaucer.
Stere, n. Helmsman. See 6th Steer. [Obs.] Chaucer.
Sterelmintha
Ster•el•min´tha, n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. stereo•s solid + a worm.] (Zoöl.) Same as Platyelminthes.
Stereo-
Ste´re•o- [Gr. stereo•s solid. See Stare to gaze.] A combining form meaning solid, hard, firm, as in stereo-chemistry, stereography.
Stereoplasm
Ste´re•o•plasm, n. [ Stereo- + Gr. anything formed or molded.] (Biol.) The solid or insoluble portion of the cell protoplasm. See Hygroplasm.
Stereopticon
Ste•re•op´ti•con, n. [NL. See Stereo-, and Optic.] An instrument, consisting essentially of a magic lantern in which photographic pictures are used, by which the image of a landscape, or any object, may be thrown upon a screen in such a manner as to seem to stand out in relief, so as to form a striking and accurate representation of the object itself; also a pair of magic lanterns for producing the effect of dissolving views.
Stereoscopist
Ste•re•os´co•pist, n. One skilled in the use or construction of stereoscopes.
Stereotype
Ste´re•o•type, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stereotyped p. pr. & vb. n. Stereotyping ] [Cf. F. stereotyper.]
1. To prepare for printing in stereotype; to make the stereotype plates of; as to stereotype the Bible.
2. Fig.: To make firm or permanent; to fix.
"Powerful causes tending to stereotype and aggravate the poverty of old conditions." Duke of Argyll (1887).
Stereotypic
Ste•re•o•typ´ic, a. Of or pertaining to stereotype, or stereotype plates.
Stereotypographer
Ste•re•o•ty•pog´ra•pher, n. A stereotype printer.
Stereotypy
Ste´re•o•ty•py, n. [Cf. F. stereotypie.] The art or process of making stereotype plates.
Sterile
Ster´ile, a. [F. sterile, L. sterilis, akin to Gr. stereo•s stiff, solid, stei^ros barren, stei^ra a cow that has not calved, Goth. stairo, fem., barren. See Stare to gaze.]
1. Producing little or no crop; barren; unfruitful; unproductive; not fertile; as sterile land; a sterile desert; a sterile year.
2. (Biol.) (a) Incapable of reproduction; unfitted for reproduction of offspring; not able to germinate or bear fruit; unfruitful; as a sterile flower, which bears only stamens. (b) Free from reproductive spores or germs; as a sterile fluid.
3. Fig.: Barren of ideas; destitute of sentiment; as a sterile production or author.
Sterilize
Ster´il•ize, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Sterilized p. pr. & vb. n. Sterilizing ] [Cf. F. steriliser.]
1. To make sterile or unproductive; to impoverish, as land; to exhaust of fertility. [R.] "Sterilizing the earth." Woodward.
2. (Biol.) (a) To deprive of the power of reproducing; to render incapable of germination or fecundation; to make sterile. (b) To destroy all spores or germs in (an organic fluid or mixture), as by heat, so as to prevent the development of bacterial or other organisms.
Sterling
Ster´ling, n. (Engin.) Same as Starling, 3.
Sterling
Ster´ling, n. [OE. sterlynge, starling, for easterling, LL. esterlingus, probably from Easterling, once the popular name of German trades in England, whose money was of the purest quality: cf. MHG. sterlink a certain coin. Cf. East. "Certain merchants of Norwaie, Denmarke, and of others those parties, called Ostomanni, or (as in our vulgar language we tearme them), easterlings, because they lie east in respect of us." Holinshed. "In the time of … King Richard the First, monie coined in the east parts of Germanie began to be of especiall request in England for the puritie thereof, and was called Easterling monie, as all inhabitants of those parts were called Easterlings, and shortly after some of that countrie, skillful in mint matters and allaies, were sent for into this realme to bring the coine to perfection; which since that time was called of them sterling, for Easterling." Camden. "Four thousand pound of sterlings." R. of Gloucester.]
1. Any English coin of standard value; coined money.
"So that ye offer nobles or sterlings." Chaucer.
"And Roman wealth in English sterling view." Arbuthnot.
2. A certain standard of quality or value for money.
"Sterling was the known and approved standard in England, in all probability, from the beginning of King Henry the Second’s reign." S. M. Leake.
Stern, n. [AS. stearn a kind of bird. See Starling.] (Zoöl.) The black tern.
Stern, a. [ Compar. Sterner superl. Sternest.] [OE. sterne, sturne, AS. styrne; cf. D. stuurish stern, Sw. stursk refractory. rad.166.] Having a certain hardness or severity of nature, manner, or aspect; hard; severe; rigid; rigorous; austere; fixed; unchanging; unrelenting; hence, serious; resolute; harsh; as a sternresolve; a stern necessity; a stern heart; a stern gaze; a stern decree.
"The sterne wind so loud gan to rout." Chaucer.
"I would outstare the sternest eyes that look." Shak.
"When that the poor have cried, Caesar hath wept;
Ambition should be made of sterner stuff." Shak.
"Stern as tutors, and as uncles hard." Dryden.
"These barren rocks, your stern inheritance." Wordsworth.
Syn. — Gloomy; sullen; forbidding; strict; unkind; hard- hearted; unfeeling; cruel; pitiless.
Stern, n. [Icel. stjorn a steering, or a doubtful AS. steórn. rad.166. See Steer, v. t.]
1. The helm or tiller of a vessel or boat; also the rudder. [Obs.] Chaucer.
2. (Naut.) The after or rear end of a ship or other vessel, or of a boat; the part opposite to the stem, or prow.
3. Fig.: The post of management or direction.
"And sit chiefest stern of public weal." Shak.
4. The hinder part of anything. Spenser.
5. The tail of an animal; — now used only of the tail of a dog. By the stern. (Naut.) See By the head, under By.
Stern, a. Being in the stern, or being astern; as the stern davits. Stern board (Naut.), a going or falling astern; a loss of way in making a tack; as to make a stern board. See Board, n. , 8 (b). — Stern chase. (Naut.) (a) See under Chase, n. (b) A stern chaser. — Stern chaser (Naut.), a cannon placed in a ship’s stern, pointing backward, and intended to annoy a ship that is in pursuit. — Stern fast (Naut.), a rope used to confine the stern of a ship or other vessel, as to a wharf or buoy. — Stern frame (Naut.), the framework of timber forms the stern of a ship. — Stern knee. See Sternson. — Stern port (Naut.), a port, or opening, in the stern of a ship. — Stern sheets (Naut.), that part of an open boat which is between the stern and the aftmost seat of the rowers, — usually furnished with seats for passengers. — Stern wheel, a paddle wheel attached to the stern of the steamboat which it propels.
Sternal
Ster´nal, a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the sternum; in the region of the sternum. Sternal ribs. See the Note under Rib, n. , 1.
Sterned, a. Having a stern of a particular shape; — used in composition; as square- sterned.
Sterner
Stern´er, n. [See 3d Stern.] A director. [Obs. & R.] Dr. R. Clerke.
Sternite
Ster´nite, n. [From Sternum.] (Zoöl.) The sternum of an arthropod somite.
Sternmost
Stern´most, a. Farthest in the rear; farthest astern; as the sternmost ship in a convoy.
Sternness
Stern´ness, n. The quality or state of being stern.
Sternocoracoid
Ster•no•cor´a•coid, a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the sternum and the coracoid.
Sternomastoid
Ster•no•mas´toid, a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the sternum and the mastoid process.
Sternothyroid
Ster•no•thy´roid, a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the sternum and the thyroid cartilage.
Sternson
Stern´son, n. [See Stern, n. , and cf. Stemson.] (Naut.) The end of a ship’s keelson, to which the sternpost is bolted; — called also stern knee.
Sternutative
Ster•nu´ta•tive, a. Having the quality of provoking to sneeze.
Sternutatory
Ster•nu´ta•to•ry, a. Sternutative. — n. A sternutatory substance or medicine.
Sternway
Stern´way, n. (Naut.) The movement of a ship backward, or with her stern foremost.
Stern-wheel
Stern´-wheel, a. Having a paddle wheel at the stern; as a stern-wheel steamer.
Sterrink
Ster´rink, n. (Zoöl.) The crab-eating seal ( Lobodon carcinophaga) of the Antarctic Ocean.
Stert, obs. p. p. of Start. Started. Chaucer.
Sterte
Ster´te, obs. p. p. of Start. Chaucer.
Stertorious
Ster•to´ri•ous (ster•to"ri•us), a. Stertorous. [R.]
Sterve (sterv), v. t. & i. To die, or cause to die; to perish. See Starve. [Obs.] Chaucer. Spenser.
Stet (stet), L., subj. 3d pers. sing. of stare to stand, remain. [See Stand.] (Print.) Let it stand; — a word used by proof readers to signify that something once erased, or marked for omission, is to remain.
Stet, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stetted p. pr. & vb. n. Stetting.] (Print.) To cause or direct to remain after having been marked for omission; to mark with the word stet, or with a series of dots below or beside the matter; as the proof reader stetted a deled footnote.
Stethograph
Steth´o•graph, n. [Gr. the breast + -graph.] (Physiol.) See Pneumatograph.
Stethoscopist
Ste•thos´co•pist, n. One skilled in the use of the stethoscope.
Stethoscopy
Ste•thos´co•py, n. The art or process of examination by the stethoscope.
Steve, v. t. [See Stevedore.] To pack or stow, as cargo in a ship’s hold. See Steeve.
Stevedore
Ste´ve•dore, n. [Sp. estivador a packer, a stower, fr. estivar to pack, to stow, L. stipare to press, compress, probably akin to E. stiff. See Stiff, Stive to stuff.] One whose occupation is to load and unload vessels in port; one who stows a cargo in a hold.
Stew, n. [Cf. Stow.]
1. A small pond or pool where fish are kept for the table; a vivarium. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.] Chaucer. Evelyn.
2. An artificial bed of oysters. [Local, U.S.]
Stew, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stewed p. pr. & vb. n. Stewing.] [OE. stuven, OF. estuver, F. etuver, fr. OF. estuve, F. etuve, a sweating house, a room heated for a bath; probably of Teutonic origin, and akin to E. stove. See Stove, and cf. Stive to stew.] To boil slowly, or with the simmering or moderate heat; to seethe; to cook in a little liquid, over a gentle fire, without boiling; as to stew meat; to stew oysters; to stew apples.
Stew, v. i. To be seethed or cooked in a slow, gentle manner, or in heat and moisture.
Stew, n. [OE. stue, stuwe, OF. estuve. See Stew, v. t.]
1. A place of stewing or seething; a place where hot bathes are furnished; a hothouse. [Obs.]
"As burning AEtna from his boiling stew
Doth belch out flames." Spenser.
"The Lydians were inhibited by Cyrus to use any armor, and give themselves to baths and stews." Abp. Abbot.
2. A brothel; — usually in the plural. Bacon. South.
"There be that hate harlots, and never were at the stews." Aschman.
3. A prostitute. [Obs.] Sir A. Weldon.
4. A dish prepared by stewing; as a stewof pigeons.
5. A state of agitating excitement; a state of worry; confusion; as to be in a stew. [Colloq.]
Steward
Stew´ard, n. [OE. stiward, AS. stiweard, stigweard, literally, a sty ward; stigu sty + weard warden, guardian, — his first duty having been probably to attend to the domestic animals. rad.164. See Sty pen for swine, Ward.]
1. A man employed in a large family, or on a large estate, to manage the domestic concerns, supervise other servants, collect the rents or income, keep accounts, and the like.
"Worthy to be stewards of rent and land." Chaucer.
"They came near to the steward of Joseph’s house." Gen. xliii. 19.
"As good stewards of the manifold grace of God." 1 Pet. iv. 10.
2. A person employed in a hotel, or a club, or on board a ship, to provide for the table, superintend the culinary affairs, etc. In naval vessels, the captain’s steward, wardroom steward, steerage steward, warrant officers steward, etc., are petty officers who provide for the messes under their charge.
3. A fiscal agent of certain bodies; as a steward in a Methodist church.
4. In some colleges, an officer who provides food for the students and superintends the kitchen; also an officer who attends to the accounts of the students.
5. In Scotland, a magistrate appointed by the crown to exercise jurisdiction over royal lands. Erskine. Lord high steward, formerly, the first officer of the crown; afterward, an officer occasionally appointed, as for a coronation, or upon the trial of a peer. [Eng.]
Sthenic
Sthen´ic, a. [Gr. strength: cf. F. sthenique.] (Med.) Strong; active; — said especially of morbid states attended with excessive action of the heart and blood vessels, and characterized by strength and activity of the muscular and nervous system; as a sthenic fever. Sthenic theory. See Stimulism (a).
Stibial
Stib´i•al, a. [See Stibium.] Like, or having the qualities of, antimony; antimonial.
Stibialism
Stib´i•al•ism, n. (Med.) Antimonial intoxication or poisoning. Dunglison.
Stibiated
Stib´i•a•ted, a. [NL. stibiatus, from L. stibium antimony.] (Med. Chem.) Combined or impregnated with antimony ( stibium). Stibiated tartar. See Tartar emetic, under Tartar.
Stibic
Stib´ic, a. (Chem.) Antimonic; — used with reference to certain compounds of antimony.
Stichwort
Stich´wort, n. (Bot.) A kind of chickweed ( Stellaria Holostea). [Written also stitchwort.]
Stick, n. [OE. sticke, AS. sticca; akin to stician to stab, prick, pierce, G. stecken a stick, staff, OHG. steccho, Icel. stik a stick. See Stick, v. t..]
1. A small shoot, or branch, separated, as by a cutting, from a tree or shrub; also any stem or branch of a tree, of any size, cut for fuel or timber.
"Withered sticks to gather, which might serve
Against a winter’s day." Milton.
2. Any long and comparatively slender piece of wood, whether in natural form or shaped with tools; a rod; a wand; a staff; as the stick of a rocket; a walking stick.
3. Anything shaped like a stick; as a stick of wax.
4. A derogatory expression for a person; one who is inert or stupid; as an odd stick; a poor stick. [Colloq.]
5. (Print.) A composing stick. See under Composing. It is usually a frame of metal, but for posters, handbills, etc., one made of wood is used.
6. A thrust with a pointed instrument; a stab. A stick of eels, twenty-five eels. [Prov. Eng.] — Stick chimney, a chimney made of sticks laid crosswise, and cemented with clay or mud, as in some log houses. [U.S.] — Stick insect, (Zoöl.), any one of various species of wingless orthopterous insects of the family Phasmidae, which have a long round body, resembling a stick in form and color, and long legs, which are often held rigidly in such positions as to make them resemble small twigs. They thus imitate the branches and twigs of the trees on which they live. The common American species is Diapheromera femorata. Some of the Asiatic species are more than a foot long. — To cut one’s stick, or To cut stick, to run away. [Slang] De Quincey.
Stick, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stuck (Obs. Sticked ); p. pr. & vb. n. Sticking.] [OE. stikien, v.t. & i., combined with steken, whence E. stuck), AS. stician, v.t. & i., and (assumed) stecan, v.t.; akin to OFries. steka, OS. stekan, OHG. stehhan, G. stechen, and to Gr. to prick, Skr. tij to be sharp. Cf. Distinguish, Etiquette, Extinct, Instigate, Instinct, Prestige, Stake, Steak, Stick, n. , Stigma, Stimulate, Sting, Stitch in sewing, Style for or in writing.]
1. To penetrate with a pointed instrument; to pierce; to stab; hence, to kill by piercing; as to stick a beast.
"And sticked him with bodkins anon." Chaucer.
"It was a shame … to stick him under the other gentleman’s arm while he was redding the fray." Sir W. Scott.
2. To cause to penetrate; to push, thrust, or drive, so as to pierce; as to stick a needle into one’s finger.
"Thou stickest a dagger in me." Shak.
3. To fasten, attach, or cause to remain, by thrusting in; hence, also to adorn or deck with things fastened on as by piercing; as to stick a pin on the sleeve.
"My shroud of white, stuck all with yew." Shak.
"The points of spears are stuck within the shield." Dryden.
4. To set; to fix in; as to stick card teeth.
5. To set with something pointed; as to stick cards.
6. To fix on a pointed instrument; to impale; as to stick an apple on a fork.
7. To attach by causing to adhere to the surface; as to stick on a plaster; to stick a stamp on an envelope; also to attach in any manner.
8. (Print.) To compose; to set, or arrange, in a composing stick; as to stick type. [Cant]
9. (Joinery) To run or plane (moldings) in a machine, in contradistinction to working them by hand. Such moldings are said to be stuck.
10. To cause to stick; to bring to a stand; to pose; to puzzle; as to stick one with a hard problem. [Colloq.]
11. To impose upon; to compel to pay; sometimes, to cheat. [Slang] To stick out, to cause to project or protrude; to render prominent.
Sticked
Stick´ed, obs. imp. of Stick. Stuck.
"And in the sand her ship sticked so fast." Chaucer.
"They sticked not to give their bodies to be burnt." Sir T. Browne.
Sticker
Stick´er, n.
1. One who, or that which, sticks; as a bill sticker.
2. That which causes one to stick; that which puzzles or poses. [Colloq.] Tackeray.
3. (Mus.) In the organ, a small wooden rod which connects (in part) a key and a pallet, so as to communicate motion by pushing.
4. Same as Paster, 2. [Political Cant, U.S.]
Stickful
Stick´ful, n. ; pl. Stickfuls . (Print.) As much set type as fills a composing stick.
Stickiness
Stick´i•ness, n. The quality of being sticky; as the stickiness of glue or paste.
Sticking
Stick´ing, a. & n. from Stick, v. Sticking piece, a piece of beef cut from the neck. [Eng.] — Sticking place, the place where a thing sticks, or remains fast; sticking point.
"But screw your courage to the sticking place,
And we’ll not fail." Shak. — Sticking plaster, an adhesive plaster for closing wounds, and for similar uses. — Sticking point. Same as Sticking place, above.
Stickle
Stic´kle, v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Stickled p. pr. & vb. n. Stickling.] [Probably fr. OE. stightlen, stitlen, to dispose, arrange, govern, freq. of stihten, AS. stihtan: cf. G. stiften to found, to establish.]
1. To separate combatants by intervening. [Obs.]
"When he [the angel] sees half of the Christians killed, and the rest in a fair way of being routed, he stickles betwixt the remainder of God’s host and the race of fiends." Dryden.
2. To contend, contest, or altercate, esp. in a pertinacious manner on insufficient grounds.
"Fortune, as she ’s wont, turned fickle,
And for the foe began to stickle." Hudibras.
"While for paltry punk they roar and stickle." Dryden.
"The obstinacy with which he stickles for the wrong." Hazlitt.
3. To play fast and loose; to pass from one side to the other; to trim.
Stickle
Stic´kle, n. [Cf. stick, v. t. & i.] A shallow rapid in a river; also the current below a waterfall. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.]
"Patient anglers, standing all the day
Near to some shallow stickle or deep bay." W. Browne.
Stickleback
Stic´kle•back, n. [OE. & Prov E. stickle a prickle, spine, sting (AS. sticel) + back. See Stick, v. t., and cf. Banstickle.] (Zoöl.) Any one of numerous species of small fishes of the genus Gasterosteus and allied genera. The back is armed with two or more sharp spines. They inhabit both salt and brackish water, and construct curious nests. Called also sticklebag, sharpling, and prickleback.
Stickler
Stic´kler (stik"kler), n. [See Stickle, v. t.] One who stickles. Specifically: — (a) One who arbitrates a duel; a sidesman to a fencer; a second; an umpire. [Obs.]
"Basilius, the judge, appointed sticklers and trumpets whom the others should obey." Sir P. Sidney.
"Our former chiefs, like sticklers of the war,
First sought to inflame the parties, then to poise." Dryden. (b) One who pertinaciously contends for some trifling things, as a point of etiquette; an unreasonable, obstinate contender; as a stickler for ceremony.
"The Tory or High-church were the greatest sticklers against the exorbitant proceedings of King James II." Swift.
Sticky
Stick´y, a. [ Compar. Stickier superl. Stickiest.] Having the quality of sticking to a surface; adhesive; gluey; viscous; viscid; glutinous; tenacious.
"Herbs which last longest are those of strong smell, and with a sticky stalk." Bacon.
Stiddy
Stid´dy, n. [See Stithy.] An anvil; also a smith shop. See Stithy. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.
Stiff, a. [ Compar. Stiffer superl. Stiffest.] [OE. stif, AS. stif; akin to D. stijf, G. steif, Dan. stiv, Sw. styf, Icel. stifr, Lith. stipti to be stiff; cf. L. stipes a post, trunk of a tree, stipare to press, compress. Cf. Costive, Stifle, Stipulate, Stive to stuff.]
1. Not easily bent; not flexible or pliant; not limber or flaccid; rigid; firm; as stiff wood, paper, joints.
"[They] rising on stiff pennons, tower
The mid aërial sky." Milton.
2. Not liquid or fluid; thick and tenacious; inspissated; neither soft nor hard; as the paste is stiff.
3. Firm; strong; violent; difficult to oppose; as a stiff gale or breeze.
4. Not easily subdued; unyielding; stubborn; obstinate; pertinacious; as a stiff adversary.
"It is a shame to stand stiff in a foolish argument." Jer. Taylor.
"A war ensues: the Cretans own their cause, Stiff to defend their hospitable laws." Dryden.
5. Not natural and easy; formal; constrained; affected; starched; as stiff behavior; a stiff style.
"The French are open, familiar, and talkative; the Italians stiff, ceremonious, and reserved." Addison.
6. Harsh; disagreeable; severe; hard to bear. [Obs. or Colloq.] "This is stiff news." Shak.
7. (Naut.) Bearing a press of canvas without careening much; as a stiff vessel; — opposed to crank. Totten.
8. Very large, strong, or costly; powerful; as a stiff charge; a stiff price. [Slang] Stiff neck, a condition of the neck such that the head can not be moved without difficulty and pain.
Syn. — Rigid; inflexible; strong; hardly; stubborn; obstinate; pertinacious; harsh; formal; constrained; affected; starched; rigorous.
Stiffen
Stiff´en, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stiffened p. pr. & vb. n. Stiffening.] [See Stiff.]
1. To make stiff; to make less pliant or flexible; as to stiffen cloth with starch.
"Stiffen the sinews, summon up the blood." Shak.
2. To inspissate; to make more thick or viscous; as to stiffen paste.
3. To make torpid; to benumb.
Stiff-hearted
Stiff´-heart•ed, a. [ Stiff + heart.] Obstinate; stubborn; contumacious. Ezek. ii. 4.
Stiff-neckedness
Stiff´-neck•ed•ness, n. The quality or state of being stiff-necked; stubbornness.
Stiff-tailed
Stiff´-tailed, a. (Zoöl.) Having the quill feathers of the tail somewhat rigid.
Stifle
Sti´fle, n. [From Stiff.] (Far.) The joint next above the hock, and near the flank, in the hind leg of the horse and allied animals; the joint corresponding to the knee in man; — called also stifle joint. See Illust. under Horse. Stifle bone, a small bone at the stifle joint; the patella, or kneepan.
Stifle
Sti´fle, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stifled p. pr. & vb. n. Stifling ] [Freq. of OE. stif stiff; cf. Icel. stifla to dam up.]
1. To stop the breath of by crowding something into the windpipe, or introducing an irrespirable substance into the lungs; to choke; to suffocate; to cause the death of by such means; as to stifle one with smoke or dust.
"Stifled with kisses, a sweet death he dies." Dryden.
"I took my leave, being half stifled with the closeness of the room." Swift.
2. To stop; to extinguish; to deaden; to quench; as to stifle the breath; to stifle a fire or flame.
"Bodies … stifle in themselves the rays which they do not reflect or transmit." Sir I. Newton.
3. To suppress the manifestation or report of; to smother; to conceal from public knowledge; as to stifle a story; to stifle passion.
"I desire only to have things fairly represented as they really are; no evidence smothered or stifled." Waterland.
Stifled
Sti´fled, a. Stifling.
"The close and stifled study." Hawthorne.
Stifler
Sti´fler, n.
1. One who, or that which, stifles.
2. (Mil.) See Camouflet.
Stigma
Stig´ma, n. ; pl. E. Stigmas (#), L. Stigmata (#). [L., a mark, a brand, from Gr.,, the prick or mark of a pointed instrument, a spot, mark, from to prick, to brand. See Stick, v. t.]
1. A mark made with a burning iron; a brand.
2. Any mark of infamy or disgrace; sign of moral blemish; stain or reproach caused by dishonorable conduct; reproachful characterization.
"The blackest stigma that can be fastened upon him." Bp. Hall.
"All such slaughters were from thence called Bartelmies, simply in a perpetual stigma of that butchery." Sir G. Buck.
3. (Bot.) That part of a pistil which has no epidermis, and is fitted to receive the pollen. It is usually the terminal portion, and is commonly somewhat glutinous or viscid. See Illust. of Stamen and of Flower.
4. (Anat.) A small spot, mark, scar, or a minute hole; — applied especially to a spot on the outer surface of a Graafian follicle, and to spots of intercellular substance in scaly epithelium, or to minute holes in such spots.
5. (Pathol.) A red speck upon the skin, produced either by the extravasation of blood, as in the bloody sweat characteristic of certain varieties of religious ecstasy, or by capillary congestion, as in the case of drunkards.
6. (Zoöl.) (a) One of the external openings of the tracheae of insects, myriapods, and other arthropods; a spiracle. (b) One of the apertures of the pulmonary sacs of arachnids. See Illust. of Scorpion. (c) One of the apertures of the gill of an ascidian, and of Amphioxus.
7. (Geom.) A point so connected by any law whatever with another point, called an index, that as the index moves in any manner in a plane the first point or stigma moves in a determinate way in the same plane.
8. pl. (R. C. Ch.) Marks believed to have been supernaturally impressed upon the bodies of certain persons in imitation of the wounds on the crucified body of Christ. See def. 5, above.
Stigmaria
Stig•ma´ri•a, n. [NL. See Stigma.] (Paleon.) The fossil root stem of a coal plant of the genus Sigillaria.
Stigmatic
Stig•mat´ic, n.
1. A notorious profligate or criminal who has been branded; one who bears the marks of infamy or punishment. [R.] Bullokar.
2. A person who is marked or deformed by nature. Shak. { Stig•mat´ic, Stig•mat´ic•al } a. [See Stigma.]
1. Marked with a stigma, or with something reproachful to character.
2. Impressing with infamy or reproach. [R.]
3. (Bot., Anat., etc) Of or pertaining to a stigma or stigmata. Stigmatic geometry, or Stigmatics, that science in which the correspondence of index and stigma (see Stigma, 7) is made use of to establish geometrical proportions.
Stigmatically
Stig•mat´ic•al•ly, adv. With a stigma, or mark of infamy or deformity.
Stigmatist
Stig´ma•tist, n. One believed to be supernaturally impressed with the marks of Christ’s wounds. See Stigma, 8.
Stigmatization
Stig•ma•ti•za´tion, n.
1. The act of stigmatizing.
2. (R. C. Ch.) The production of stigmata upon the body. See Stigma, 8.
Stigmatize
Stig´ma•tize, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stigmatized p. pr. & vb. n. Stigmatizing ] [F. stigmatiser, Gr. .]
1. To mark with a stigma, or brand; as the ancients stigmatized their slaves and soldiers.
"That … hold out both their ears with such delight and ravishment, to be stigmatized and bored through in witness of their own voluntary and beloved baseness." Milton.
2. To set a mark of disgrace on; to brand with some mark of reproach or infamy.
"To find virtue extolled and vice stigmatized." Addison.
Stike, n. [See Stich.] Stanza. [Obs.] Sackville.
Stilar
Sti´lar, a. [From Stile a style.] Of or pertaining to the style of a dial. [Written also stylar.]
Stilbene
Stil´bene, n. [See Stilbite.] (Chem.) A hydrocarbon, C14H12, produced artificially in large, fine crystals; — called also diphenyl ethylene, toluylene, etc.
Stile, n. [See Style.]
1. A pin set on the face of a dial, to cast a shadow; a style. See Style. Moxon.
2. Mode of composition. See Style. [Obs.]
"May I not write in such a stile as this?" Bunyan.
Stile, n. [OE. stile, AS. stigel a step, a ladder, from stigan to ascend; akin to OHG. stigila a stile. rad.164. See Sty, v. i., and cf. Stair.]
1. A step, or set of steps, for ascending and descending, in passing a fence or wall.
"There comes my master … over the stile, this way." Shak.
"Over this stile in the way to Doubting Castle." Bunyan.
2. (Arch.) One of the upright pieces in a frame; one of the primary members of a frame, into which the secondary members are mortised. In an ordinary door the principal upright pieces are called stiles, the subordinate upright pieces mullions, and the crosspieces rails. In wainscoting the principal pieces are sometimes called stiles, even when horizontal. Hanging stile, Pulley stile. See under Hanging, and Pulley.
Stilet
Sti´let, n. [Written also stilette, and stylet.]
1. A stiletto. [R.]
2. (Surg.) See Stylet, 2.
Stiletto
Sti•let´to, n. ; pl. Stilettos (#). [It., dim. of stilo a dagger, fr. L. stilus a pointed instrument. See Style for writing, and cf. Stylet.]
1. A kind of dagger with a slender, rounded, and pointed blade.
2. A pointed instrument for making eyelet holes in embroidery.
3. A beard trimmed into a pointed form. [Obs.]
"The very quack of fashions, the very he that
Wears a stiletto on his chin." Ford.
Stiletto
Sti•let´to, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stilettoed p. pr. & vb. n. Stilettoing ] To stab or kill with a stiletto. Bacon.
Still, a. [ Compar. Stiller superl. Stillest.] [OE. stille, AS. stille; akin to D. stil, OS. & OHG. stilli, G. still, Dan. stille, Sw. stilla, and to E. stall; from the idea of coming to a stand, or halt. Cf. Still, adv. ]
1. Motionless; at rest; quiet; as to stand still; to lie or sit still. "Still as any stone." Chaucer.
2. Uttering no sound; silent; as the audience is still; the animals are still.
"The sea that roared at thy command,
At thy command was still." Addison.
3. Not disturbed by noise or agitation; quiet; calm; as a still evening; a still atmosphere. "When all the woods are still." Milton.
4. Comparatively quiet or silent; soft; gentle; low. "A still small voice." 1 Kings xix. 12.
5. Constant; continual. [Obs.]
"By still practice learn to know thy meaning." Shak.
6. Not effervescing; not sparkling; as still wines. Still life. (Fine Arts) (a) Inanimate objects. (b) (Painting) The class or style of painting which represents inanimate objects, as fruit, flowers, dead game, etc.
Syn. — Quiet; calm; noiseless; serene; motionless; inert; stagnant.
Still, adv. [AS. stille quietly. See Still, a. The modern senses come from the idea of stopping and staying still, or motionless.]
1. To this time; until and during the time now present; now no less than before; yet.
"It hath been anciently reported, and is still received." Bacon.
2. In the future as now and before.
"Hourly joys be still upon you!" Shak.
3. In continuation by successive or repeated acts; always; ever; constantly; uniformly.
"The desire of fame betrays an ambitious man into indecencies that lessen his reputation; he is still afraid lest any of his actions should be thrown away in private." Addison.
"Chemists would be rich if they could still do in great quantities what they have sometimes done in little." Boyle.
4. In an increasing or additional degree; even more; — much used with comparatives.
"The guilt being great, the fear doth still exceed." Shak.
5. Notwithstanding what has been said or done; in spite of what has occured; nevertheless; — sometimes used as a conjunction. See Synonym of But.
"As sunshine, broken in the rill,
Though turned astray, is sunshine still." Moore.
6. After that; after what is stated.
"In the primitive church, such as by fear being compelled to sacrifice to strange gods, after repented, and kept still the office of preaching the gospel." Whitgift. Still and anon, at intervals and repeatedly; continually; ever and anon; now and then.
"And like the watchful minutes to the hour, Still and anon cheered up the heavy time." Shak.
Still, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stilled p. pr. & vb. n. Stilling.] [AS. stillan, from stille still, quiet, firm. See Still, a. ]
1. To stop, as motion or agitation; to cause to become quiet, or comparatively quiet; to check the agitation of; as to still the raging sea.
"He having a full sway over the water, had power to still and compose it, as well as to move and disturb it." Woodward.
2. To stop, as noise; to silence.
"With his name the mothers still their babies." Shak.
3. To appease; to calm; to quiet, as tumult, agitation, or excitement; as to still the passions. Shak.
"Toil that would, at least, have stilled an unquiet impulse in me." Hawthorne.
Syn. — To quiet; calm; allay; lull; pacify; appease; subdue; suppress; silence; stop; check; restrain.
Still, n. [Cf. OE. stillatorie. See Still, v. , to distill.]
1. A vessel, boiler, or copper used in the distillation of liquids; specifically, one used for the distillation of alcoholic liquors; a retort. The name is sometimes applied to the whole apparatus used in in vaporization and condensation.
2. A house where liquors are distilled; a distillery. Still watcher, a device for indicating the progress of distillation by the density of the liquid given over. Knight.
Still, v. i. [L. stillare. Cf. Distill.] To drop, or flow in drops; to distill. [Obs.] Spenser.
Stillage
Stil´lage, n. (Bleaching) A low stool to keep the goods from touching the floor. Knight.
Stillatory
Stil´la•to•ry, n. ; pl. -ries (#). [From Still, for distill. Cf. Still, n. , and Distillatory, a. ]
1. An alembic; a vessel for distillation. [R.] Bacon.
2. A laboratory; a place or room in which distillation is performed. [R.] Dr. H. More. Sir H. Wotton.
Still-burn
Still´-burn, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. still-burnt or Still-burned ; p. pr. & vb. n. Still-burning.] To burn in the process of distillation; as to still-burn brandy.
Still-closing
Still´-clos´ing, a. Ever closing. [Obs.] "Still-clothing waters." Shak.
Stillhouse
Still´house, n. A house in which distillation is carried on; a distillery.
Stilliform
Stil´li•form, a. [L. stilla a drop + -form.] Having the form of a drop. Owen.
Stillion
Stil´lion, n. [See Stilling.] A stand, as for casks or vats in a brewery, or for pottery while drying.
Stillson wrench
Still"son wrench A pipe wrench having an adjustable L-shaped jaw piece sliding in a sleeve that is pivoted to, and loosely embraces, the handle. Pressure on the handle increases the grip. { Stil"ton cheese", orStil´ton }, n. A peculiarly flavored unpressed cheese made from milk with cream added; — so called from the village or parish of Stilton, England, where it was originally made. It is very rich in fat.
"Thus, in the outset he was gastronomic; discussed the dinner from the soup to the stilton." C. Lever. { Sti´mey, Sti´mie }, n. & v. t. See Stymie. { Sting raySting´ray• }, n. Any one of numerous rays of the family Dasyatidae, syn. Trygonidae, having one or more large sharp barbed dorsal spines, on the whiplike tail, capable of inflicting severe wounds. Some species reach a large size, and some, esp., on the American Pacific coast, are very destructive to oysters.
Stilly
Still´y, a. Still; quiet; calm.
"The stilly hour when storms are gone." Moore.
Stilt, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stilted p. pr. & vb. n. Stilting.] To raise on stilts, or as if on stilts.
Stiltbird
Stilt´bird, n. (Zoöl.) See Stilt, n. , 3.
Stiltify
Stilt´i•fy, v. t. [ Stilt + -fy.] To raise upon stilts, or as upon stilts; to stilt.
Stilty
Stilt´y, a. Unreasonably elevated; pompous; stilted; as a stilty style.
Stime, n. [Etymology uncertain.] A slight gleam or glimmer; a glimpse. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.
Stimulant
Stim´u•lant, a. [L. stimulans, p. pr.; cf. F. stimulant. See Stimulate.]
1. Serving to stimulate.
2. (Physiol.) Produced increased vital action in the organism, or in any of its parts.
Stimulate
Stim´u•late, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stimulated p. pr. & vb. n. Stimulating.] [L. stimulatus, p. p. of stimulare to prick or goad on, to incite, fr. stimulus a goad. See Stimulus.]
1. To excite as if with a goad; to excite, rouse, or animate, to action or more vigorous exertion by some pungent motive or by persuasion; as to stimulate one by the hope of reward, or by the prospect of glory.
"To excite and stimulate us thereunto." Dr. J. Scott.
2. (Physiol.) To excite; to irritate; especially, to excite the activity of (a nerve or an irritable muscle), as by electricity.
Syn. — To animate; incite; encourage; impel; urge; instigate; irritate; exasperate; incense.
Stimulative
Stim´u•la•tive, a. Having the quality of stimulating. — n. That which stimulates.
Stimulator
Stim´u•la•tor, n. [L.: cf. F. stimulateur.] One who stimulates.
Stimulus
Stim´u•lus, n. ; pl. Stimuli (#). [L., for stigmulus, akin to L. instigare to stimulate. See Instigare, Stick, v. t.]
1. A goad; hence, something that rouses the mind or spirits; an incentive; as the hope of gain is a powerful stimulus to labor and action.
2. That which excites or produces a temporary increase of vital action, either in the whole organism or in any of its parts; especially (Physiol.), any substance or agent capable of evoking the activity of a nerve or irritable muscle, or capable of producing an impression upon a sensory organ or more particularly upon its specific end organ. Of the stimuli applied to the sensory apparatus, physiologists distinguish two kinds: ( a) Homologous stimuli, which act only upon the end organ, and for whose action the sense organs are especially adapted, as the rods and cones of the retina for the vibrations of the either. ( b) Heterologous stimuli, which are mechanical, chemical, electrical, etc., and act upon the nervous elements of the sensory apparatus along their entire course, producing, for example, the flash of light beheld when the eye is struck. Landois & Stirling.
Sting, n. [AS. sting a sting. See Sting, v. t.]
1. (Zoöl.) Any sharp organ of offense and defense, especially when connected with a poison gland, and adapted to inflict a wound by piercing; as the caudal sting of a scorpion. The sting of a bee or wasp is a modified ovipositor. The caudal sting, or spine, of a sting ray is a modified dorsal fin ray. The term is sometimes applied to the fang of a serpent. See Illust. of Scorpion.
2. (Bot.) A sharp-pointed hollow hair seated on a gland which secrets an acrid fluid, as in nettles. The points of these hairs usually break off in the wound, and the acrid fluid is pressed into it.
3. Anything that gives acute pain, bodily or mental; as the stings of remorse; the stings of reproach.
"The sting of death is sin." 1 Cor. xv. 56.
4. The thrust of a sting into the flesh; the act of stinging; a wound inflicted by stinging. "The lurking serpent’s mortal sting." Shak.
5. A goad; incitement. Shak.
6. The point of an epigram or other sarcastic saying. Sting moth (Zoöl.), an Australian moth ( Doratifera vulnerans) whose larva is armed, at each end of the body, with four tubercles bearing powerful stinging organs. — Sting ray. (Zoöl.) See under 6th Ray. — Sting winkle (Zoöl.), a spinose marine univalve shell of the genus Murex, as the European species ( Murex erinaceus). See Illust. of Murex.
Sting, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stung (Archaic Stang ); p. pr. & vb. n. Stinging.] [AS. stingan; akin to Icel. & Sw. stinga, Dan. stinge, and probably to E. stick, v.t.; cf. Goth. us stiggan to put out, pluck out. Cf. Stick, v. t.]
1. To pierce or wound with a sting; as bees will sting an animal that irritates them; the nettles stung his hands.
2. To pain acutely; as the conscience is stung with remorse; to bite. "Slander stings the brave." Pope.
3. To goad; to incite, as by taunts or reproaches.
Stingaree
Sting•a•ree´, n. (Zoöl.) Any sting ray. See under 6th Ray.
Stingbull
Sting´bull, n. (Zoöl.) The European greater weever fish ( Trachinus draco), which is capable of inflicting severe wounds with the spinous rays of its dorsal fin. See Weever.
Stinginess
Stin´gi•ness, n. The quality or state of being stingy.
Stinging
Sting´ing, a. Piercing, or capable of piercing, with a sting; inflicting acute pain as if with a sting, goad, or pointed weapon; pungent; biting; as stinging cold; a stinging rebuke. — Sting´ing•ly, adv. Stinging cell. (Zoöl.) Same as Lasso cell, under Lasso.
Stingo
Stin´go, n. [From Sting.] Old beer; sharp or strong liquor. [Old Slang]
"Shall I set a cup of old stingo at your elbow?" Addison.
Stingy
Sting´y, a. Stinging; able to sting.
Stingy
Stin´gy, a. [ Compar. Stingier superl. Stingiest.] [Probably from sting, and meaning originally, stinging; hence, biting, nipping (of the wind), churlish, avaricious; or cf. E. skinch.] Extremely close and covetous; meanly avaricious; niggardly; miserly; penurious; as a stingy churl.
"A stingy, narrow-hearted fellow that had a deal of choice fruit, had not the heart to touch it till it began to be rotten." L’estrange.
Stink, v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Stunk, Stank, p. pr. & vb. n. Stinking.] [AS. stinkan to have a smell (whether good or bad); akin to OHG. stinchan, G. & D. stinken to stink; of uncertain origin; cf. Icel. stökkva to leap, to spring, Goth. stigqan to push, strike, or Gr. rancid. Cf. Stench.] To emit a strong, offensive smell; to send out a disgusting odor.
Stink, v. t. To cause to stink; to affect by a stink.
Stink, n. [AS. stinc.] A strong, offensive smell; a disgusting odor; a stench. Fire stink. See under Fire. — Stink-fire lance. See under Lance. - - Stink rat (Zoöl.), the musk turtle. [Local, U.S.] — Stink shad (Zoöl.), the gizzard shad. [Local, U.S.] — Stink trap, a stench trap. See under Stench.
Stinkhorn
Stink´horn, n. (Bot.) A kind of fungus of the genus Phallus, which emits a fetid odor.
Stinking
Stink´ing, a. & n. from Stink, v. Stinking badger (Zoöl.), the teledu. — Stinking cedar (Bot.), the California nutmeg tree; also a related tree of Florida ( Torreya taxifolia).
Stinkingly
Stink´ing•ly, adv. In a stinking manner; with an offensive smell.
Stinkpot
Stink´pot, n.
1. An earthen jar charged with powder, grenades, and other materials of an offensive and suffocating smell, — sometimes used in boarding an enemy’s vessel.
2. A vessel in which disinfectants are burned.
3. (Zoöl.) The musk turtle, or musk tortoise. See under Musk.
Stinkweed
Stink´weed, n. (Bot.) Stramonium. See Jamestown weed, and Datura.
Stint, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stinted; p. pr. & vb. n. Stinting.] [OE. stinten, stenten, stunten, to cause to cease, AS. styntan (in comp.) to blunt, dull, fr. stunt dull, stupid; akin to Icel. stytta to shorten, stuttr short, dial, Sw. stynta to shorten, stunt short. Cf. Stent, Stunt.]
1. To restrain within certain limits; to bound; to confine; to restrain; to restrict to a scant allowance.
"I shall not go about to extenuate the latitude of the curse upon the earth, or stint it only to the production of weeds." Woodward.
"She stints them in their meals." Law.
2. To put an end to; to stop. [Obs.] Shak.
3. To assign a certain ( i. e., limited) task to (a person), upon the performance of which one is excused from further labor for the day or for a certain time; to stent.
4. To serve successfully; to get with foal; — said of mares.
"The majority of maiden mares will become stinted while at work." J. H. Walsh.
Stint, n. [Also written stent. See Stint, v. t.]
1. Limit; bound; restraint; extent.
"God has wrote upon no created thing the utmost stint of his power." South.
2. Quantity or task assigned; proportion allotted.
"His old stint — three thousand pounds a year." Cowper.
Stintless
Stint´less, a. Without stint or restraint.
"The stintlesstears of old Heraclitus." Marston.
Stipel
Sti´pel, n. [See Stipule.] (Bot.) The stipule of a leaflet. Gray.
Stipendiarian
Sti•pen•di•a´ri•an, a. Acting from mercenary considerations; stipendiary. A. Seward.
Stipendless
Sti´pend•less (sti"pend•les), a. Having no stipend.
Stipitate
Stip´i•tate, a. [NL. stipitatus, from L. stipes, gen. stipitis, a stock. See Stipe.] (Bot.) Supported by a stipe; elevated on a stipe, as the fronds of most ferns, or the pod of certain cruciferous plants.
Stipitiform
Stip´i•ti•form, a. [ Stipes + -form.] (Bot.) Having the shape of a stalk; stalklike.
Stipple
Stip´ple, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stippled p. pr. & vb. n. Stippling ] [D. stippelen to make points, to spot, dot, from stippel, dim. of stip a dot, spot.]
1. To engrave by means of dots, in distinction from engraving in lines.
"The interlaying of small pieces can not altogether avoid a broken, stippled, spotty effect." Milman.
2. To paint, as in water colors, by small, short touches which together produce an even or softly graded surface. { Stip´ple, Stip´pling } n. (Engraving) A mode of execution which produces the effect by dots or small points instead of lines.
2. (Paint.) A mode of execution in which a flat or even tint is produced by many small touches.
Stipula
Stip´u•la, n. ; pl. E. Stipulas (#), L. Stipulae (#). [L., a stalk, stem.]
1. (Bot.) A stipule.
2. (Zoöl.) A newly sprouted feather. { Stip•u•la´ceous, Stip´u•lar } a. [Cf. F. stipulace, stipulaire. See Stipula.] (Bot.) Of or pertaining to stipules; resembling stipules; furnished with stipules; growing on stipules, or close to them; occupying the position of stipules; as stipular glands and stipular tendrils.
Stipulary
Stip´u•la•ry, a. (Bot.) Of or pertaining to stipules; stipular.
Stipulate
Stip´u•late, a. (Bot.) Furnished with stipules; as a stipulate leaf.
Stipulate
Stip´u•late, v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Stipulated p. pr. & vb. n. Stipulating.] [L. stipulatus, p. p. of stipulari to stipulate, fr. OL. stipulus firm, fast; probably akin to L. stipes a post. Cf. Stiff.] To make an agreement or covenant with any person or company to do or forbear anything; to bargain; to contract; to settle terms; as certain princes stipulated to assist each other in resisting the armies of France.
Stipulation
Stip•u•la´tion, n. [L. stipulatio: cf. F. stipulation.]
1. The act of stipulating; a contracting or bargaining; an agreement.
2. That which is stipulated, or agreed upon; that which is definitely arranged or contracted; an agreement; a covenant; a contract or bargain; also any particular article, item, or condition, in a mutual agreement; as the stipulations of the allied powers to furnish each his contingent of troops.
3. (Law) A material article of an agreement; an undertaking in the nature of bail taken in the admiralty courts; a bargain. Bouvier. Wharton.
Syn. — Agreement; contract; engagement. See Covenant.
Stipulation
Stip•u•la´tion, n. [See Stipule.] (Bot.) The situation, arrangement, and structure of the stipules.
Stipulator
Stip´u•la•tor, n. [L.] One who stipulates, contracts, or covenants.
Stipule
Stip´ule, n. [L. stipula a stalk, stem, straw: cf. F. stipule. Cf. Stubble.] (Bot.) An appendage at the base of petioles or leaves, usually somewhat resembling a small leaf in texture and appearance.
Stipuled
Stip´uled, a. (Bot.) Furnished with stipules, or leafy appendages.
Stir, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stirred p. pr. & vb. n. Stirring.] [OE. stiren, steren, sturen, AS. styrian; probably akin to D. storen to disturb, G. stören, OHG. storen to scatter, destroy. rad.166.]
1. To change the place of in any manner; to move.
"My foot I had never yet in five days been able to stir." Sir W. Temple.
2. To disturb the relative position of the particles of, as of a liquid, by passing something through it; to agitate; as to stir a pudding with a spoon.
"My mind is troubled, like a fountain stirred." Shak.
3. To bring into debate; to agitate; to moot.
"Stir not questions of jurisdiction." Bacon.
4. To incite to action; to arouse; to instigate; to prompt; to excite. "To stir men to devotion." Chaucer.
"An Ate, stirring him to blood and strife." Shak.
"And for her sake some mutiny will stir." Dryden. In all senses except the first, stir is often followed by up with an intensive effect; as to stir up fire; to stir up sedition.
Syn. — To move; incite; awaken; rouse; animate; stimulate; excite; provoke.
Stiriated
Stir´i•a•ted, a. [L. stiria an icicle.] Adorned with pendants like icicles.
Stirious
Stir´i•ous, a. [L. stiria an icicle.] Resembling icicles. [Obs.] Sir T. Browne.
Stirk, n. [AS. stric, from steór a steer. See Steer a young ox.] A young bullock or heifer. [Prov. Eng. & Scot.] Sir W. Scott.
Stirless
Stir´less, a. Without stirring; very quiet; motionless. "Lying helpless and stirless." Hare.
Stirp, n. [L. stirps, stirpis.] Stock; race; family. [Obs.] Bacon.
Stirrage
Stir´rage, n. The act of stirring; stir; commotion. [Obs.] T. Granger.
Stirrup
Stir´rup, n. [OE. stirop, AS. stigrap; stigan to mount, ascend + rap a rope; akin to G. stegreif a stirrup. rad.164. See Sty, v. i., and Rope.]
1. A kind of ring, or bent piece of metal, wood, leather, or the like, horizontal in one part for receiving the foot of a rider, and attached by a strap to the saddle, — used to assist a person in mounting a horse, and to enable him to sit steadily in riding, as well as to relieve him by supporting a part of the weight of the body.
"Our host upon his stirpoes stood anon." Chaucer.
2. (Carp. & Mach.) Any piece resembling in shape the stirrup of a saddle, and used as a support, clamp, etc. See Bridle iron.
3. (Naut.) A rope secured to a yard, with a thimble in its lower end for supporting a footrope. Totten. Stirrup bone (Anat.), the stapes. — Stirrup cup, a parting cup taken after mounting. — Stirrup iron, an iron stirrup. — Stirrup leather, or Stirrup strap, the strap which attaches a stirrup to the saddle. See Stirrup, 1.
Stirt, obs. p. p. of Start, v. i. Started; leaped.
"They privily be stirt into a well." Chaucer.
Stirte
Stir´te, obs. imp. of Start, v. i. & t. Chaucer.
Stitch, n. [OE. stiche, AS. stice a pricking, akin to stician to prick. See Stick, v. i.]
1. A single pass of a needle in sewing; the loop or turn of the thread thus made.
2. A single turn of the thread round a needle in knitting; a link, or loop, of yarn; as to let down, or drop, a stitch; to take up a stitch.
3. [Cf. OE. sticche, stecche, stucche, a piece, AS. stycce. Cf. Stock.] A space of work taken up, or gone over, in a single pass of the needle; hence, by extension, any space passed over; distance.
"You have gone a good stitch." Bunyan.
"In Syria the husbandmen go lightly over with their plow, and take no deep stitch in making their furrows." Holland.
4. A local sharp pain; an acute pain, like the piercing of a needle; as a stitch in the side.
"He was taken with a cold and with stitches, which was indeed, a pleurisy." Bp. Burnet.
5. A contortion, or twist. [Obs.]
"If you talk,
Or pull your face into a stitch again,
I shall be angry." Marston.
6. Any least part of a fabric or dress; as to wet every stitch of clothes. [Colloq.]
7. A furrow. Chapman. Chain stitch, Lock stitch. See in the Vocabulary. — Pearl, or Purl stitch. See 2nd Purl, 2.
Stitch, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stitched p. pr. & vb. n. Stitching.]
1. To form stitches in; especially, to sew in such a manner as to show on the surface a continuous line of stitches; as to stitch a shirt bosom.
2. To sew, or unite together by stitches; as to stitch printed sheets in making a book or a pamphlet.
3. (Agric.) To form land into ridges. To stitch up, to mend or unite with a needle and thread; as to stitch up a rent; to stitch up an artery.
Stith, a. [AS. stið.] Strong; stiff; rigid. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.]
Stith, n. [Icel. steði an anvil, akin to staðr place. See Stead.] An anvil; a stithy. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.]
"He invented also pincers, hammers, iron crows, and the anvil, or stith." Holland.
Stithy
Stith´y, n. [See Stith, and cf. Stiddy.]
1. An anvil. Sir W. Scott.
2. A smith’s shop; a smithy; a smithery; a forge. "As foul as Vulcan’s stithy." Shak.
Stithy
Stith´y, v. t. To forge on an anvil.
"The forge that stithied Mars his helm." Shak.
Stive, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stived p. pr. & vb. n. Stiving.] [Probably fr. F. estiver to compress, stow, L. stipare: cf. It. stivare, Sp. estivar. Cf. Stevedore, Stiff.] To stuff; to crowd; to fill full; hence, to make hot and close; to render stifling. Sandys.
"His chamber was commonly stived with friends or suitors of one kind or other." Sir H. Wotton.
Stive, v. i. To be stifled or suffocated.
Stive, n. The floating dust in flour mills caused by the operation or grinding. De Colange.
Stives, n. pl. [OE. See Stew.] Stews; a brothel. [Obs.] Chaucer.
Stoat, n. [OE. stot a stoat, horse, bullock; perhaps originally only of male animals, and akin to D. stooten to push, E. stutter; cf. Icel. sttr a bull, Sw. stut a bullock. Cf. Stot.] (Zoöl.) The ermine in its summer pelage, when it is reddish brown, but with a black tip to the tail. The name is sometimes applied also to other brown weasels.
Stoccado
Stoc•ca´do, n. [F. estocade, fr. Sp. estocada, or It. stoccata, from Sp. estoque, or It. stocco, a rapier, fr. G. stock a stick. See Stock.] A stab; a thrust with a rapier. Shak.
Stock (stok), n. [AS. stocc a stock, trunk, stick; akin to D. stok, G. stock, OHG. stoc, Icel. stokkr, Sw. stock, Dan. stok, and AS. stycce a piece; cf. Skr. tuj to urge, thrust. Cf. Stokker, Stucco, and Tuck a rapier.]
1. The stem, or main body, of a tree or plant; the fixed, strong, firm part; the trunk.
"Though the root thereof wax old in the earth, and the stock thereof die in the ground, yet through the scent of water it will bud, and bring forth boughs like a plant." Job xiv. 8,9.
2. The stem or branch in which a graft is inserted.
"The scion overruleth the stock quite." Bacon.
3. A block of wood; something fixed and solid; a pillar; a firm support; a post.
"All our fathers worshiped stocks and stones." Milton.
"Item, for a stock of brass for the holy water, seven shillings; which, by the canon, must be of marble or metal, and in no case of brick." Fuller.
4. Hence, a person who is as dull and lifeless as a stock or post; one who has little sense.
"Let’s be no stoics, nor no stocks." Shak.
5. The principal supporting part; the part in which others are inserted, or to which they are attached. Specifically: — (a) The wood to which the barrel, lock, etc., of a musket or like firearm are secured; also a long, rectangular piece of wood, which is an important part of several forms of gun carriage. (b) The handle or contrivance by which bits are held in boring; a bitstock; a brace. (c) (Joinery) The block of wood or metal frame which constitutes the body of a plane, and in which the plane iron is fitted; a plane stock. (d) (Naut.) The wooden or iron crosspiece to which the shank of an anchor is attached. See Illust. of Anchor. (e) The support of the block in which an anvil is fixed, or of the anvil itself. (f) A handle or wrench forming a holder for the dies for cutting screws; a diestock. (g) The part of a tally formerly struck in the exchequer, which was delivered to the person who had lent the king money on account, as the evidence of indebtedness. See Counterfoil. [Eng.]
6. The original progenitor; also the race or line of a family; the progenitor of a family and his direct descendants; lineage; family.
"And stand betwixt them made, when, severally,
All told their stock." Chapman.
"Thy mother was no goddess, nor thy stock
From Dardanus." Denham.
7. Money or capital which an individual or a firm employs in business; fund; in the United States, the capital of a bank or other company, in the form of transferable shares, each of a certain amount; money funded in government securities, called also the public funds; in the plural, property consisting of shares in joint-stock companies, or in the obligations of a government for its funded debt; — so in the United States, but in England the latter only are called stocks, and the former shares.
8. (Bookkeeping) Same as Stock account, below.
9. Supply provided; store; accumulation; especially, a merchant’s or manufacturer’s store of goods; as to lay in a stock of provisions.
"Add to that stock which justly we bestow." Dryden.
10. (Agric.) Domestic animals or beasts collectively, used or raised on a farm; as a stock of cattle or of sheep, etc.; — called also live stock.
11. (Card Playing) That portion of a pack of cards not distributed to the players at the beginning of certain games, as gleek, etc., but which might be drawn from afterward as occasion required; a bank.
"I must buy the stock; send me good cardings." Beau. & Fl.
12. A thrust with a rapier; a stoccado. [Obs.]
13. [Cf. Stocking.] A covering for the leg, or leg and foot; as upper stocks (breeches); nether stocks (stockings). [Obs.]
"With a linen stock on one leg." Shak.
14. A kind of stiff, wide band or cravat for the neck; as a silk stock.
15. pl. A frame of timber, with holes in which the feet, or the feet and hands, of criminals were formerly confined by way of punishment.
"He shall rest in my stocks." Piers Plowman.
16. pl. (Shipbuilding) The frame or timbers on which a ship rests while building.
17. pl. Red and gray bricks, used for the exterior of walls and the front of buildings. [Eng.]
18. (Bot.) Any cruciferous plant of the genus Matthiola; as common stock ( Matthiola incana) (see Gilly-flower); ten-weeks stock ( M. annua).
19. (Geol.) An irregular metalliferous mass filling a large cavity in a rock formation, as a stock of lead ore deposited in limestone.
20. A race or variety in a species.
21. (Biol.) In tectology, an aggregate or colony of persons (see Person), as trees, chains of salpae, etc.
22. The beater of a fulling mill. Knight.
23. (Cookery) A liquid or jelly containing the juices and soluble parts of meat, and certain vegetables, etc., extracted by cooking; — used in making soup, gravy, etc. Bit stock. See Bitstock. — Dead stock (Agric.), the implements of husbandry, and produce stored up for use; — in distinction from live stock, or the domestic animals on the farm. See def. 10, above. — Head stock. See Headstock. — Paper stock, rags and other material of which paper is made. — Stock account (Bookkeeping), an account on a merchant’s ledger, one side of which shows the original capital, or stock, and the additions thereto by accumulation or contribution, the other side showing the amounts withdrawn. — Stock car, a railway car for carrying cattle. — Stock company (Com.), an incorporated company the capital of which is represented by marketable shares having a certain equal par value. — Stock duck (Zoöl.), the mallard. — Stock exchange. (a) The building or place where stocks are bought and sold; stock market; hence, transactions of all kinds in stocks. (b) An association or body of stockbrokers who meet and transact business by certain recognized forms, regulations, and usages. Wharton. Brande & C. — Stock farmer, a farmer who makes it his business to rear live stock. — Stock gillyflower (Bot.), the common stock. See Stock, n. , 18. — Stock gold, gold laid up so as to form a stock, or hoard. — Stock in trade, the goods kept for sale by a shopkeeper; the fittings and appliances of a workman. Simmonds. — Stock list, a list of stocks, or shares, dealt in, of transactions, and of prices. — Stock lock, a lock inclosed in a wooden case and attached to the face of a door. — Stock market. (a) A place where stocks are bought and sold; the stock exchange. (b) A market for live stock. — Stock pigeon. (Zoöl.) Same as Stockdove. — Stock purse. (a) A common purse, as distinguished from a private purse. (b) (Mil.) Moneys saved out of the expenses of a company or regiment, and applied to objects of common interest. [Eng.] — Stock shave, a tool used by blockmakers. — Stock station, a place or district for rearing stock. [Australia] W. Howitt. — Stock tackle (Naut.), a tackle used when the anchor is hoisted and secured, to keep its stock clear of the ship’s sides. Totten. — Stock taking, an examination and inventory made of goods or stock in a shop or warehouse; — usually made periodically. — Tail stock. See Tailstock. — To have something on the stock, to be at work at something. — To take stock, to take account of stock; to make an inventory of stock or goods on hand. Dickens. — To take stock in. (a) To subscribe for, or purchase, shares in a stock company. (b) To put faith in; to accept as trustworthy; as to take stock in a person’s fidelity. [Slang] — To take stock of, to take account of the stock of; to take an inventory of; hence, to ascertain the facts in regard to (something). [Eng.]
"At the outset of any inquiry it is proper to take stock of the results obtained by previous explorers of the same field." Leslie Stephen.
Syn. — Fund; capital; store; supply; accumulation; hoard; provision.
Stock (stok), v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stocked (stokt); p. pr. & vb. n. Stocking.]
1. To lay up; to put aside for future use; to store, as merchandise, and the like.
2. To provide with material requisites; to store; to fill; to supply; as to stock a warehouse, that is, to fill it with goods; to stock a farm, that is, to supply it with cattle and tools; to stock land, that is, to occupy it with a permanent growth, especially of grass.
3. To suffer to retain milk for twenty-four hours or more previous to sale, as cows.
4. To put in the stocks. [R.] Shak. To stock an anchor (Naut.), to fit it with a stock, or to fasten the stock firmly in place. — To stock cards (Card Playing), to arrange cards in a certain manner for cheating purposes. [Cant] — To stock down (Agric.), to sow, as plowed land, with grass seed, in order that it may become swarded, and produce grass. — To stock up, to extirpate; to dig up.
Stockade
Stock•ade´, n. [F. estacade stockade, boom (confused in French with estocade; see 1st Stoccado); fr. It. steccata a palisade (influenced by OF. estach, estaque, a stake, post), or from Sp. estacada a palisade; both of German origin, and akin to E. stake, stick; cf. G. stecken stick, OHG. steccho. See Stake, n. , Stick, n. & v. t., and cf. Estacade, Stacket.]
1. (Mil.) A line of stout posts or timbers set firmly in the earth in contact with each other (and usually with loopholes) to form a barrier, or defensive fortification. [Written also stoccade.]
2. An inclosure, or pen, made with posts and stakes.
Stockade
Stock•ade´, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stockaded; p. pr. & vb. n. Stockading.] To surround, fortify, or protect with a stockade.
Stocker
Stock´er, n. One who makes or fits stocks, as of guns or gun carriages, etc.
Stocking
Stock´ing, n. [From Stock, which was formerly used of a covering for the legs and feet, combining breeches, or upper stocks, and stockings, or nether stocks.] A close-fitting covering for the foot and leg, usually knit or woven. Blue stocking. See Bluestocking. — Stocking frame, a machine for knitting stockings or other hosiery goods.
Stockjobbing
Stock´job•bing, n. The act or art of dealing in stocks; the business of a stockjobber.
Stocky
Stock´y, a. [From Stock.]
1. Short and thick; thick rather than tall or corpulent. Addison.
"Stocky, twisted, hunchback stems." Mrs. H. H. Jackson.
2. Headstrong. [Prov. Eng.] G. Eliot.
Stœchiology
Stœch•i•ol"o•gy, n. , Stœch•i•om"e•try, n. , etc. See Stoichiology, Stoichiometry, etc.
Stogy
Sto´gy, a. [Etym. uncertain. Cf. Stocky.] heavy; coarse; clumsy. [Colloq.]
Stoic
Sto´ic, n. [L. stoicus, Gr., fr., adj., literally, of or pertaining to a colonnade, from a roofed colonnade, a porch, especially, a porch in Athens where Zeno and his successors taught.]
1. A disciple of the philosopher Zeno; one of a Greek sect which held that men should be free from passion, unmoved by joy or grief, and should submit without complaint to unavoidable necessity, by which all things are governed.
2. Hence, a person not easily excited; an apathetic person; one who is apparently or professedly indifferent to pleasure or pain.
"A Stoic of the woods, a man without a tear." Campbell. School of Stoics. See The Porch, under Porch. { Sto´ic, Sto´ic•al } a. [L. stoicus, Gr. : cf. F. stoïque. See Stoic, n. ]
1. Of or pertaining to the Stoics; resembling the Stoics or their doctrines.
2. Not affected by passion; manifesting indifference to pleasure or pain. — Sto´ic•al•ly, adv. — Sto´ic•al•ness, n.
Stoichiological
Stoi•chi•o•log´ic•al, a. Of or pertaining to stoichiology.
Stoke, v. t. [OE. stoken, fr. D. stoken, fr. stok a stick (cf. OF. estoquier to thrust, stab; of Teutonic origin, and akin to D. stok). See Stock.]
1. To stick; to thrust; to stab. [Obs.]
"Nor short sword for to stoke, with point biting." Chaucer.
2. To poke or stir up, as a fire; hence, to tend, as the fire of a furnace, boiler, etc.
Stoke, v. i. To poke or stir up a fire; hence, to tend the fires of furnaces, steamers, etc.
Stoker
Stok´er, n. [D. See Stoke, v. t.]
1. One who is employed to tend a furnace and supply it with fuel, especially the furnace of a locomotive or of a marine steam boiler; also a machine for feeding fuel to a fire.
2. A fire poker. [R.] C. Richardson (Dict.).
Stola
Sto´la, n. ; pl. Stolae (#). [L. See Stole a garment.] (Rom. Antiq.) A long garment, descending to the ankles, worn by Roman women.
"The stola was not allowed to be worn by courtesans, or by women who had been divorced from their husbands." Fairholt.
Stole, n. [L. stolo, - onis.] (Bot.) A stolon.
Stole, n. [AS. stole, L. stola, Gr. a stole, garment, equipment, fr. to set, place, equip, send, akin to E. stall. See Stall.]
1. A long, loose garment reaching to the feet. Spenser.
"But when mild morn, in saffron stole,
First issues from her eastern goal." T. Warton.
2. (Eccl.) A narrow band of silk or stuff, sometimes enriched with embroidery and jewels, worn on the left shoulder of deacons, and across both shoulders of bishops and priests, pendent on each side nearly to the ground. At Mass, it is worn crossed on the breast by priests. It is used in various sacred functions. Groom of the stole, the first lord of the bedchamber in the royal household. [Eng.] Brande & C.
Stolon
Sto´lon, n. [L. stolo, - onis: cf. F. stolon. Cf. Stole a stolon, 1st Stool.]
1. (Bot.) A trailing branch which is disposed to take root at the end or at the joints; a stole.
2. (Zoöl.) An extension of the integument of the body, or of the body wall, from which buds are developed, giving rise to new zooids, and thus forming a compound animal in which the zooids usually remain united by the stolons. Such stolons are often present in Anthozoa, Hydroidea, Bryozoa, and social ascidians. See Illust. under Scyphistoma.
Stoma
Sto´ma, n. ; pl. Stomata (#). [NL., fr. Gr.,, a mouth.]
1. (Anat.) One of the minute apertures between the cells in many serous membranes.
2. (Bot.) (a) The minute breathing pores of leaves or other organs opening into the intercellular spaces, and usually bordered by two contractile cells. (b) The line of dehiscence of the sporangium of a fern. It is usually marked by two transversely elongated cells. See Illust. of Sporangium.
3. (Zoöl.) A stigma. See Stigma, n. , 6 (a) & (b).
Stomach
Stom´ach, n. [OE. stomak, F. estomac, L. stomachus, fr. Gr. sto•machos stomach, throat, gullet, fr. sto•ma a mouth, any outlet or entrance.]
1. (Anat.) An enlargement, or series of enlargements, in the anterior part of the alimentary canal, in which food is digested; any cavity in which digestion takes place in an animal; a digestive cavity. See Digestion, and Gastric juice, under Gastric.
2. The desire for food caused by hunger; appetite; as a good stomach for roast beef. Shak.
3. Hence appetite in general; inclination; desire.
"He which hath no stomach to this fight,
Let him depart." Shak.
4. Violence of temper; anger; sullenness; resentment; willful obstinacy; stubbornness. [Obs.]
"Stern was his look, and full of stomach vain." Spenser.
"This sort of crying proceeding from pride, obstinacy, and stomach, the will, where the fault lies, must be bent." Locke.
5. Pride; haughtiness; arrogance. [Obs.]
"He was a man
Of an unbounded stomach." Shak. Stomach pump (Med.), a small pump or syringe with a flexible tube, for drawing liquids from the stomach, or for injecting them into it. — Stomach tube (Med.), a long flexible tube for introduction into the stomach. — Stomach worm (Zoöl.), the common roundworm ( Ascaris lumbricoides) found in the human intestine, and rarely in the stomach.
Stomach
Stom´ach, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stomached p. pr. & vb. n. Stomaching.] [Cf. L. stomachari, v.t. & i., to be angry or vexed at a thing.]
1. To resent; to remember with anger; to dislike. Shak.
"The lion began to show his teeth, and to stomach the affront." L’Estrange.
"The Parliament sit in that body … to be his counselors and dictators, though he stomach it." Milton.
2. To bear without repugnance; to brook. [Colloq.]
Stomachic
Sto•mach´ic, n. (Med.) A medicine that strengthens the stomach and excites its action.
Stomachless
Stom´ach•less, a.
1. Being without a stomach.
2. Having no appetite. [R.] Bp. Hall.
Stomachous
Stom´ach•ous, a. [L. stomachosus angry, peexish. See Stomach.] Stout; sullen; obstinate. [Obs.]
"With stern looks and stomachous disdain." Spenser.
Stomapoda
Sto•map´o•da, n. pl. [NL. See Stoma, and -poda.] (Zoöl.) An order of Crustacea including the squillas. The maxillipeds are leglike in form, and the large claws are comblike. They have a large and elongated abdomen, which contains a part of the stomach and heart; the abdominal appendages are large, and bear the gills. Called also Gastrula, Stomatopoda, and Squilloidea.
Stomatic
Sto•mat´ic, a. (Bot.) Of or pertaining to a stoma; of the nature of a stoma.
Stomatiferous
Stom•a•tif´er•ous, a. [Gr. sto•ma, -atos mouth + -ferous.] Having or producing stomata.
Stomatodaeum
Stom•a•to•dae´um, n. (Anat.) Same as Stomodaeum.
Stomatoplasty
Stom´a•to•plas•ty, n. [Gr.,, mouth + -plasty.] Plastic surgery of the mouth.
Stomatopoda
Stom•a•top´o•da, n. pl. [NL. See Stoma, and -pod.] (Zoöl.) Same as Stomapoda.
Stomatopodous
Stom•a•top´o•dous, a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Stomatopoda.
Stomodaeum
Stom•o•dae´um, n. [NL., from Gr.,, mouth + to divide.]
1. (Anat.) A part of the alimentary canal. See under Mesenteron.
2. (Zoöl.) The primitive mouth and esophagus of the embryo of annelids and arthropods.
Stomp, v. i. [See Stamp.] To stamp with the foot. [Colloq.] "In gallant procession, the priests mean to stomp." R. Browning.
Stone, n. [OE. ston, stan, AS. stan; akin to OS. & OFries. sten, D. steen, G. stein, Icel. steinn, Sw. sten, Dan. steen, Goth. stains, Russ. stiena a wall, Gr.,, a pebble. rad.167. Cf. Steen.]
1. Concreted earthy or mineral matter; also any particular mass of such matter; as a house built of stone; the boy threw a stone; pebbles are rounded stones. "Dumb as a stone." Chaucer.
"They had brick for stone, and slime … for mortar." Gen. xi. 3. In popular language, very large masses of stone are called rocks; small masses are called stones; and the finer kinds, gravel, or sand, or grains of sand. Stone is much and widely used in the construction of buildings of all kinds, for walls, fences, piers, abutments, arches, monuments, sculpture, and the like.
2. A precious stone; a gem. "Many a rich stone." Chaucer. "Inestimable stones, unvalued jewels." Shak.
3. Something made of stone. Specifically: - (a) The glass of a mirror; a mirror. [Obs.]
"Lend me a looking-glass;
If that her breath will mist or stain the stone,
Why, then she lives." Shak. (b) A monument to the dead; a gravestone. Gray.
"Should some relenting eye
Glance on the where our cold relics lie." Pope.
4. (Med.) A calculous concretion, especially one in the kidneys or bladder; the disease arising from a calculus.
5. One of the testes; a testicle. Shak.
6. (Bot.) The hard endocarp of drupes; as the stone of a cherry or peach. See Illust. of Endocarp.
7. A weight which legally is fourteen pounds, but in practice varies with the article weighed. [Eng.] The stone of butchers’ meat or fish is reckoned at 8 lbs.; of cheese, 16 lbs.; of hemp, 32 lbs.; of glass, 5 lbs.
8. Fig.: Symbol of hardness and insensibility; torpidness; insensibility; as a heart of stone.
"I have not yet forgot myself to stone." Pope.
9. (Print.) A stand or table with a smooth, flat top of stone, commonly marble, on which to arrange the pages of a book, newspaper, etc., before printing; — called also imposing stone. Stone is used adjectively or in composition with other words to denote made of stone, containing a stone or stones, employed on stone, or, more generally, of or pertaining to stone or stones; as stone fruit, or stone-fruit; stone-hammer, or stone hammer; stone falcon, or stone-falcon. Compounded with some adjectives it denotes a degree of the quality expressed by the adjective equal to that possessed by a stone; as stone-dead, stone-blind, stone-cold, stone-still, etc. Atlantic stone, ivory. [Obs.] "Citron tables, or Atlantic stone." Milton. — Bowing stone. Same as Cromlech. Encyc. Brit. — Meteoric stones, stones which fall from the atmosphere, as after the explosion of a meteor. — Philosopher’s stone. See under Philosopher. — Rocking stone. See Rocking-stone. — Stone age, a supposed prehistoric age of the world when stone and bone were habitually used as the materials for weapons and tools; — called also flint age. The bronze age succeeded to this. — Stone bass (Zoöl.), any one of several species of marine food fishes of the genus Serranus and allied genera, as Serranus Couchii, and Polyprion cernium of Europe; — called also sea perch. — Stone biter (Zoöl.), the wolf fish. — Stone boiling, a method of boiling water or milk by dropping hot stones into it, — in use among savages. Tylor. — Stone borer (Zoöl.), any animal that bores stones; especially, one of certain bivalve mollusks which burrow in limestone. See Lithodomus, and Saxicava. — Stone bramble (Bot.), a European trailing species of bramble ( Rubus saxatilis). — Stone- break. [Cf. G. steinbrech.] (Bot.) Any plant of the genus Saxifraga; saxifrage. — Stone bruise, a sore spot on the bottom of the foot, from a bruise by a stone. — Stone canal. (Zoöl.) Same as Sand canal, under Sand. — Stone cat (Zoöl.), any one of several species of small fresh-water North American catfishes of the genus Noturus. They have sharp pectoral spines with which they inflict painful wounds. — Stone coal, hard coal; mineral coal; anthracite coal. — Stone coral (Zoöl.), any hard calcareous coral. — Stone crab. (Zoöl.) (a) A large crab ( Menippe mercenaria) found on the southern coast of the United States and much used as food. (b) A European spider crab ( Lithodes maia). Stone crawfish (Zoöl.), a European crawfish ( Astacus torrentium), by many writers considered only a variety of the common species ( A. fluviatilis). — Stone curlew. (Zoöl.) (a) A large plover found in Europe ( Edicnemus crepitans). It frequents stony places. Called also thick-kneed plover or bustard, and thick-knee. (b) The whimbrel. [Prov. Eng.] (c) The willet. [Local, U.S.] — Stone crush. Same as Stone bruise, above. — Stone eater. (Zoöl.) Same as Stone borer, above. — Stone falcon (Zoöl.), the merlin. — Stone fern (Bot.), a European fern ( Asplenium Ceterach) which grows on rocks and walls. — Stone fly (Zoöl.), any one of many species of pseudoneuropterous insects of the genus Perla and allied genera; a perlid. They are often used by anglers for bait. The larvae are aquatic. — Stone fruit (Bot.), any fruit with a stony endocarp; a drupe, as a peach, plum, or cherry. — Stone grig (Zoöl.), the mud lamprey, or pride. — Stone hammer, a hammer formed with a face at one end, and a thick, blunt edge, parallel with the handle, at the other, — used for breaking stone. — Stone hawk (Zoöl.), the merlin; — so called from its habit of sitting on bare stones. — Stone jar, a jar made of stoneware. — Stone lily (Paleon.), a fossil crinoid. — Stone lugger. (Zoöl.) See Stone roller, below. — Stone marten (Zoöl.), a European marten ( Mustela foina) allied to the pine marten, but having a white throat; — called also beech marten. — Stone mason, a mason who works or builds in stone. — Stone-mortar (Mil.), a kind of large mortar formerly used in sieges for throwing a mass of small stones short distances. — Stone oil, rock oil, petroleum. — Stone parsley (Bot.), an umbelliferous plant ( Seseli Labanotis). See under Parsley. — Stone pine. (Bot.) A nut pine. See the Note under Pine, and Piñon. — Stone pit, a quarry where stones are dug. — Stone pitch, hard, inspissated pitch. — Stone plover. (Zoöl.) (a) The European stone curlew. (b) Any one of several species of Asiatic plovers of the genus Esacus; as the large stone plover ( E. recurvirostris). (c) The gray or black- bellied plover. [Prov. Eng.] (d) The ringed plover. (e) The bar-tailed godwit. [Prov. Eng.] Also applied to other species of limicoline birds. — Stone roller. (Zoöl.) (a) An American fresh-water fish ( Catostomus nigricans) of the Sucker family. Its color is yellowish olive, often with dark blotches. Called also stone lugger, stone toter, hog sucker, hog mullet. (b) A common American cyprinoid fish ( Campostoma anomalum); — called also stone lugger. — Stone’s cast, or Stone’s throw, the distance to which a stone may be thrown by the hand. — Stone snipe (Zoöl.), the greater yellowlegs, or tattler. [Local, U.S.] — Stone toter. (Zoöl.) (a) See Stone roller (a), above. (b) A cyprinoid fish ( Exoglossum maxillingua) found in the rivers from Virginia to New York. It has a three-lobed lower lip; — called also cutlips. — To leave no stone unturned, to do everything that can be done; to use all practicable means to effect an object.
Stone, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stoned p. pr. & vb. n. Stoning.] [From Stone, n. : cf. AS. stnan, Goth. stainjan.]
1. To pelt, beat, or kill with stones.
"And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." Acts vii. 59.
2. To make like stone; to harden.
"O perjured woman! thou dost stone my heart." Shak.
3. To free from stones; also to remove the seeds of; as to stone a field; to stone cherries; to stone raisins.
4. To wall or face with stones; to line or fortify with stones; as to stone a well; to stone a cellar.
5. To rub, scour, or sharpen with a stone.
Stonebird
Stone´bird, n. The yellowlegs; — called also stone snipe. See Tattler, 2. [Local, U.S.]
Stone-blind
Stone´-blind, a. As blind as a stone; completely blind.
Stonebow
Stone´bow, n. A kind of crossbow formerly used for shooting stones. Shak.
Stonebrash
Stone´brash, n. A subsoil made up of small stones or finely-broken rock; brash.
Stonebrearer
Stone´brear•er, n. A machine for crushing or hammering stone. Knight.
Stonecray
Stone´cray, n. [ Stone + F. craie chalk, L. creta.] A distemper in hawks.
Stonecrop
Stone´crop, n. [AS. stancropp.]
1. A sort of tree. [Obs.] Mortimer.
2. (Bot.) Any low succulent plant of the genus Sedum, esp. Sedum acre, which is common on bare rocks in Europe, and is spreading in parts of America. See Orpine. Virginian, or Ditch, stonecrop, an American plant ( Penthorum sedoides).
Stone-deaf
Stone´-deaf, a. As deaf as a stone; completely deaf.
Stonegall
Stone´gall, n. [Cf. D. steengal, G. steingall. See Stannel.] (Zoöl.) See Stannel. [Prov. Eng.]
Stonehatch
Stone´hatch, n. (Zoöl.) The ring plover, or dotterel. [Prov. Eng.]
Stone-hearted
Stone´-heart•ed, a. Hard- hearted; cruel; pitiless; unfeeling.
Stoneroot
Stone´root, n. (Bot.) A North American plant ( Collinsonia Canadensis) having a very hard root; horse balm. See Horse balm, under Horse.
Stonesmickle
Stone´smic•kle, n. (Zoöl.) The stonechat; — called also stonesmitch. [Prov. Eng.]
Stoneware
Stone´ware, n. A species of coarse potter’s ware, glazed and baked.
Stonework
Stone´work, n. Work or wall consisting of stone; mason’s work of stone. Mortimer.
Stonewort
Stone´wort, n. (Bot.) Any plant of the genus Chara; — so called because they are often incrusted with carbonate of lime. See Chara.
Stoniness
Ston´i•ness, n. The quality or state of being stony.
Stonish
Ston´ish, a. Stony. [R.] "Possessed with stonish insensibility." Robynson (More’s Utopia).
Stony
Ston´y, a. [ Compar. Stonier superl. Stoniest.] [AS. stanig. See Stone.]
1. Of or pertaining to stone, consisting of, or abounding in, stone or stones; resembling stone; hard; as a stony tower; a stony cave; stony ground; a stony crust.
2. Converting into stone; petrifying; petrific.
"The stony dart of senseless cold." Spenser.
3. Inflexible; cruel; unrelenting; pitiless; obdurate; perverse; cold; morally hard; appearing as if petrified; as a stony heart; a stony gaze. Stony coral. (Zoöl.) Same as Stone coral, under Stone.
Stook, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stooked p. pr. & vb. n. Stooking.] (Agric.) To set up, as sheaves of grain, in stooks.
Stool, n. [L. stolo. See Stolon.] (Hort.) A plant from which layers are propagated by bending its branches into the soil. P. Henderson.
Stool, v. i. (Agric.) To ramfy; to tiller, as grain; to shoot out suckers. R. D. Blackmore.
Stool, n. [AS. stol a seat; akin to OFries. & OS. stol, D. stoel, G. stuhl, OHG. stuol, Icel. stoll, Sw. & Dan. stol, Goth. stols, Lith. stalas a table, Russ. stol’; from the root of E. stand. rad.163. See Stand, and cf. Fauteuil.]
1. A single seat with three or four legs and without a back, made in various forms for various uses.
2. A seat used in evacuating the bowels; hence, an evacuation; a discharge from the bowels.
3. A stool pigeon, or decoy bird. [U. S.]
4. (Naut.) A small channel on the side of a vessel, for the dead-eyes of the backstays. Totten.
5. A bishop’s seat or see; a bishop- stool. J. P. Peters.
6. A bench or form for resting the feet or the knees; a footstool; as a kneeling stool.
7. Material, such as oyster shells, spread on the sea bottom for oyster spat to adhere to. [Local, U.S.] Stool of a window, orWindow stool (Arch.), the flat piece upon which the window shuts down, and which corresponds to the sill of a door; in the United States, the narrow shelf fitted on the inside against the actual sill upon which the sash descends. This is called a window seat when broad and low enough to be used as a seat. — Stool of repentance, the cuttystool. [Scot.] — Stool pigeon, a pigeon used as a decoy to draw others within a net; hence, a person used as a decoy for others.
Stoom, v. t. [D. stommen to adulterate, to drug (wine). rad.163. Cf. Stum.] To stum. [R.]
Stoop, n. [Cf. Icel. staup a knobby lump.] A post fixed in the earth. [Prov. Eng.]
Stoop, v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Stooped p. pr. & vb. n. Stooping.] [OE. stoupen; akin to AS. stpian, OD. stuypen, Icel. stupa, Sw. stupa to fall, to tilt. Cf 5th Steep.]
1. To bend the upper part of the body downward and forward; to bend or lean forward; to incline forward in standing or walking; to assume habitually a bent position.
2. To yield; to submit; to bend, as by compulsion; to assume a position of humility or subjection.
"Mighty in her ships stood Carthage long, …
Yet stooped to Rome, less wealthy, but more strong." Dryden.
"These are arts, my prince,
In which your Zama does not stoop to Rome." Addison.
3. To descend from rank or dignity; to condescend. "She stoops to conquer." Goldsmith.
"Where men of great wealth stoop to husbandry, it multiplieth riches exceedingly." Bacon.
4. To come down as a hawk does on its prey; to pounce; to souse; to swoop.
"The bird of Jove, stooped from his aëry tour,
Two birds of gayest plume before him drove." Milton.
5. To sink when on the wing; to alight.
"And stoop with closing pinions from above." Dryden.
"Cowering low
With blandishment, each bird stooped on his wing." Milton.
Syn. — To lean; yield; submit; condescend; descend; cower; shrink.
Stooping
Stoop´ing, a. & n. from Stoop. — Stoop´ing•ly, adv.
Stoor, v. i. [Cf. D. storen to disturb. Cf. Stir.] To rise in clouds, as dust. [Prov. Eng.] { Stoor, Stor }, a. [AS. stor; akin to LG. stur, Icel. storr.] Strong; powerful; hardy; bold; audacious. [Obs. or Scot.]
"O stronge lady stoor, what doest thou?" Chaucer.
Stop, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stopped p. pr. & vb. n. Stopping.] [OE. stoppen, AS. stoppian (in comp.); akin to LG. & D. stoppen, G. stopfen, Icel. stoppa, Sw. stoppa, Dan. stoppe; all probably fr. LL. stopare, stupare, fr. L. stuppa the coarse part of flax, tow, oakum. Cf. Estop, Stuff, Stupe a fomentation.]
1. To close, as an aperture, by filling or by obstructing; as to stop the ears; hence, to stanch, as a wound. Shak.
2. To obstruct; to render impassable; as to stop a way, road, or passage.
3. To arrest the progress of; to hinder; to impede; to shut in; as to stop a traveler; to stop the course of a stream, or a flow of blood.
4. To hinder from acting or moving; to prevent the effect or efficiency of; to cause to cease; to repress; to restrain; to suppress; to interrupt; to suspend; as to stop the execution of a decree, the progress of vice, the approaches of old age or infirmity.
"Whose disposition all the world well knows
Will not be rubbed nor stopped." Shak.
5. (Mus.) To regulate the sounds of, as musical strings, by pressing them against the finger board with the finger, or by shortening in any way the vibrating part.
6. To point, as a composition; to punctuate. [R.]
"If his sentences were properly stopped." Landor.
7. (Naut.) To make fast; to stopper.
Syn. — To obstruct; hinder; impede; repress; suppress; restrain; discontinue; delay; interrupt. To stop off (Founding), to fill (a part of a mold) with sand, where a part of the cavity left by the pattern is not wanted for the casting. — To stop the mouth. See under Mouth.
Stop, n.
1. The act of stopping, or the state of being stopped; hindrance of progress or of action; cessation; repression; interruption; check; obstruction.
"It is doubtful … whether it contributed anything to the stop of the infection." De Foe.
"Occult qualities put a stop to the improvement of natural philosophy." Sir I. Newton.
"It is a great step toward the mastery of our desires to give this stop to them." Locke.
2. That which stops, impedes, or obstructs; as obstacle; an impediment; an obstruction.
"A fatal stop traversed their headlong course." Daniel.
"So melancholy a prospect should inspire us with zeal to oppose some stop to the rising torrent." Rogers.
3. (Mach.) A device, or piece, as a pin, block, pawl, etc., for arresting or limiting motion, or for determining the position to which another part shall be brought.
4. (Mus.) (a) The closing of an aperture in the air passage, or pressure of the finger upon the string, of an instrument of music, so as to modify the tone; hence, any contrivance by which the sounds of a musical instrument are regulated.
"The organ sound a time survives the stop." Daniel. (b) In the organ, one of the knobs or handles at each side of the organist, by which he can draw on or shut off any register or row of pipes; the register itself; as the vox humana stop.
5. (Arch.) A member, plain or molded, formed of a separate piece and fixed to a jamb, against which a door or window shuts. This takes the place, or answers the purpose, of a rebate. also a pin or block to prevent a drawer from sliding too far.
6. A point or mark in writing or printing intended to distinguish the sentences, parts of a sentence, or clauses; a mark of punctuation. See Punctuation.
7. (Opt.) The diaphragm used in optical instruments to cut off the marginal portions of a beam of light passing through lenses.
8. (Zoöl.) The depression in the face of a dog between the skull and the nasal bones. It is conspicuous in the bulldog, pug, and some other breeds.
9. (Phonetics) Some part of the articulating organs, as the lips, or the tongue and palate, closed (a) so as to cut off the passage of breath or voice through the mouth and the nose (distinguished as a lip-stop, or a front-stop, etc., as in p, t, d, etc.), or (b) so as to obstruct, but not entirely cut off, the passage, as in l, n, etc.; also any of the consonants so formed. H. Sweet.Stop bead (Arch.), the molding screwed to the inner side of a window frame, on the face of the pulley stile, completing the groove in which the inner sash is to slide. — Stop motion (Mach.), an automatic device for arresting the motion of a machine, as when a certain operation is completed, or when an imperfection occurs in its performance or product, or in the material which is supplied to it, etc. — Stop plank, one of a set of planks employed to form a sort of dam in some hydraulic works. — Stop valve, a valve that can be closed or opened at will, as by hand, for preventing or regulating flow, as of a liquid in a pipe; — in distinction from a valve which is operated by the action of the fluid it restrains. — Stop watch, a watch the hands of which can be stopped in order to tell exactly the time that has passed, as in timing a race. See Independent seconds watch, under Independent, a.
Syn. — Cessation; check; obstruction; obstacle; hindrance; impediment; interruption.
Stope, n. [Cf. Step, n. & v. i.] (Mining) A horizontal working forming one of a series, the working faces of which present the appearance of a flight of steps.
Stope, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stoped p. pr. & vb. n. Stoping.] (Mining) (a) To excavate in the form of stopes. (b) To fill in with rubbish, as a space from which the ore has been worked out. { Stope, Sto´pen }, p. p. of Step. Stepped; gone; advanced. [Obs.]
"A poor widow, somedeal stope in age." Chaucer.
Stoping
Stop´ing, n. (Mining) The act of excavating in the form of stopes.
Stop-over
Stop´-o•ver, a. Permitting one to stop over; as a stop-over check or ticket. See To stop over, under Stop, v. i. [Railroad Cant, U.S.]
Stop-over
Stop´-o•ver, n. Act or privilege of stopping over. [Cant]
Stopper
Stop´per, n.
1. One who stops, closes, shuts, or hinders; that which stops or obstructs; that which closes or fills a vent or hole in a vessel.
2. (Naut.) A short piece of rope having a knot at one or both ends, with a lanyard under the knot, — used to secure something. Totten.
3. (Bot.) A name to several trees of the genus Eugenia, found in Florida and the West Indies; as the red stopper. See Eugenia. C. S. Sargent.Ring stopper (Naut.), a short rope or chain passing through the anchor ring, to secure the anchor to the cathead. — Stopper bolt (Naut.), a large ringbolt in a ship’s deck, to which the deck stoppers are hooked.
Stopper
Stop´per, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stoppered p. pr. & vb. n. Stoppering.] To close or secure with a stopper.
Stopple
Stop´ple, n. [Cf. G. stöpfel, stöpsel. See Stop, n. & v. t.] That which stops or closes the mouth of a vessel; a stopper; as a glass stopple; a cork stopple.
Stopple
Stop´ple, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stoppled p. pr. & vb. n. Stoppling.] To close the mouth of anything with a stopple, or as with a stopple. Cowper.
Stor, a. See Stoor. [Obs.] Chaucer.
Storage
Stor´age, n.
1. The act of depositing in a store or warehouse for safe keeping; also the safe keeping of goods in a warehouse.
2. Space for the safe keeping of goods.
3. The price changed for keeping goods in a store. Storage battery. (Physics) See the Note under Battery.
Storax
Sto´rax, n. [L. storax, styrax, Gr. . Cf. Styrax.] Any one of a number of similar complex resins obtained from the bark of several trees and shrubs of the Styrax family. The most common of these is liquid storax, a brown or gray semifluid substance of an agreeable aromatic odor and balsamic taste, sometimes used in perfumery, and in medicine as an expectorant. A yellow aromatic honeylike substance, resembling, and often confounded with, storax, is obtained from the American sweet gum tree ( Liquidambar styraciflua), and is much used as a chewing gum, called sweet gum, and liquid storax. Cf. Liquidambar.
Store, n. [OE. stor, stoor, OF. estor, provisions, supplies, fr. estorer to store. See Store, v. t.]
1. That which is accumulated, or massed together; a source from which supplies may be drawn; hence, an abundance; a great quantity, or a great number.
"The ships are fraught with store of victuals." Bacon.
"With store of ladies, whose bright eyes
Rain influence, and give the prize." Milton.
2. A place of deposit for goods, esp. for large quantities; a storehouse; a warehouse; a magazine.
3. Any place where goods are sold, whether by wholesale or retail; a shop. [U.S. & British Colonies]
4. pl. Articles, especially of food, accumulated for some specific object; supplies, as of provisions, arms, ammunition, and the like; as the stores of an army, of a ship, of a family.
"His swine, his horse, his stoor, and his poultry." Chaucer. In store, in a state of accumulation; in keeping; hence, in a state of readiness. "I have better news in store for thee." Shak. — Store clothes, clothing purchased at a shop or store; — in distinction from that which is home-made. [Colloq. U.S.] — Store pay, payment for goods or work in articles from a shop or store, instead of money. [U.S.] — To set store by, to value greatly; to have a high appreciation of. — To tell no store of, to make no account of; to consider of no importance.
Syn. — Fund; supply; abundance; plenty; accumulation; provision. — Store, Shop. The English call the place where goods are sold (however large or splendid it may be) a shop, and confine the word store to its original meaning; viz., a warehouse, or place where goods are stored. In America the word store is applied to all places, except the smallest, where goods are sold. In some British colonies the word store is used as in the United States.
"In his needy shop a tortoise hung,
An alligator stuffed, and other skins
Of ill-shaped fishes; and about his shelves
A beggarly account of empty boxes." Shak.
"Sulphurous and nitrous foam, …
Concocted and adjusted, they reduced
To blackest grain, and into store conveyed." Milton.
Store, a. Accumulated; hoarded. Bacon.
Store, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stored p. pr. & vb. n. Storing.] [OE. storen, OF. estorer to construct, restore, store, LL. staurare, for L. instaurare to renew, restore; in + staurare (in comp.) Cf. Instore, Instaurate, Restore, Story a floor.]
1. To collect as a reserved supply; to accumulate; to lay away.
"Dora stored what little she could save." Tennyson.
2. To furnish; to supply; to replenish; esp., to stock or furnish against a future time.
"Her mind with thousand virtues stored." Prior.
"Wise Plato said the world with men was stored." Denham.
"Having stored a pond of four acres with carps, tench, and other fish." Sir M. Hale.
3. To deposit in a store, warehouse, or other building, for preservation; to warehouse; as to store goods.
Storekeeper
Store´keep•er, n.
1. A man in charge of stores or goods of any kind; as a naval storekeeper.
2. One who keeps a "store;" a shopkeeper. See 1st Store, 3. [U. S.]
Storeroom
Store´room, n. Room in a storehouse or repository; a room in which articles are stored.
Storeship
Store´ship, n. A vessel used to carry naval stores for a fleet, garrison, or the like.
Storied
Sto´ried, a. [From Story.]
1. Told in a story.
2. Having a history; interesting from the stories which pertain to it; venerable from the associations of the past.
"Some greedy minion, or imperious wife,
The trophied arches, storied halls, invade." Pope.
"Can storied urn, or animated bust,
Back to its mansion call the fleeting breath?" Gray.
3. Having (such or so many) stories; — chiefly in composition; as a two- storied house.
Storier
Sto´ri•er, n. A relater of stories; an historian. [Obs.] Bp. Peacock.
Stork, n. [AS. storc; akin to G. storch, OHG. storah, Icel. storkr, Dan. & Sw. stork, and perhaps to Gr. a vulture.] (Zoöl.) Any one of several species of large wading birds of the family Ciconidae, having long legs and a long, pointed bill. They are found both in the Old World and in America, and belong to Ciconia and several allied genera. The European white stork ( Ciconia alba) is the best known. It commonly makes its nests on the top of a building, a chimney, a church spire, or a pillar. The black stork ( C. nigra) is native of Asia, Africa, and Europe. Black-necked stork, the East Indian jabiru. — Hair-crested stork, the smaller adjutant of India ( Leptoptilos Javanica). — Giant stork, the adjutant. — Marabou stork. See Marabou. — Saddle-billed stork, the African jabiru. See Jabiru. — Stork’s bill (Bot.), any plant of the genus Pelargonium; — so called in allusion to the beaklike prolongation of the axis of the receptacle of its flower. See Pelargonium.
Stork-billed
Stork´-billed, a. Having a bill like that of the stork.
Storm, n. [AS. storm; akin to D. storm, G. sturm, Icel. stormr; and perhaps to Gr. assault, onset, Skr. s to flow, to hasten, or perhaps to L. sternere to strew, prostrate (cf. Stratum). rad.166.]
1. A violent disturbance of the atmosphere, attended by wind, rain, snow, hail, or thunder and lightning; hence, often, a heavy fall of rain, snow, or hail, whether accompanied with wind or not.
"We hear this fearful tempest sing,
Yet seek no shelter to avoid the storm." Shak.
2. A violent agitation of human society; a civil, political, or domestic commotion; sedition, insurrection, or war; violent outbreak; clamor; tumult.
"I will stir up in England some black storm." Shak.
"Her sister
Began to scold and raise up such a storm." Shak.
3. A heavy shower or fall, any adverse outburst of tumultuous force; violence.
"A brave man struggling in the storms of fate." Pope.
4. (Mil.) A violent assault on a fortified place; a furious attempt of troops to enter and take a fortified place by scaling the walls, forcing the gates, or the like. Storm is often used in the formation of self- explained compounds; as storm-presaging, stormproof, storm-tossed, and the like. Magnetic storm. See under Magnetic. — Storm-and-stress period [a translation of G. sturm und drang periode], a designation given to the literary agitation and revolutionary development in Germany under the lead of Goethe and Schiller in the latter part of the 18th century. — Storm center (Meteorol.), the center of the area covered by a storm, especially by a storm of large extent. — Storm door (Arch.), an extra outside door to prevent the entrance of wind, cold, rain, etc.; — usually removed in summer. — Storm path (Meteorol.), the course over which a storm, or storm center, travels. — Storm petrel. (Zoöl.) See Stormy petrel, under Petrel. — Storm sail (Naut.), any one of a number of strong, heavy sails that are bent and set in stormy weather. — Storm scud. See the Note under Cloud.
Syn. — Tempest; violence; agitation; calamity. — Storm, Tempest. Storm is violent agitation, a commotion of the elements by wind, etc., but not necessarily implying the fall of anything from the clouds. Hence, to call a mere fall or rain without wind a storm is a departure from the true sense of the word. A tempest is a sudden and violent storm, such as those common on the coast of Italy, where the term originated, and is usually attended by a heavy rain, with lightning and thunder.
"Storms beat, and rolls the main;
O! beat those storms, and roll the seas in vain." Pope.
"What at first was called a gust, the same
Hath now a storm’s, anon a tempest’s name." Donne.
Storm, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stormed p. pr. & vb. n. Storming.] (Mil.) To assault; to attack, and attempt to take, by scaling walls, forcing gates, breaches, or the like; as to storm a fortified town.
Storm, n. — Anticyclonic storm (Meteor.), a storm characterized by a central area of high atmospheric pressure, and having a system of winds blowing spirally outward in a direction contrary to that cyclonic storms. It is attended by low temperature, dry air, infrequent precipitation, and often by clear sky. Called also high- area storm, anticyclone. When attended by high winds, snow, and freezing temperatures such storms have various local names, as blizzard, wet norther, purga, buran, etc. — Cyclonic storm. (Meteor.) A cyclone, or low-area storm. See Cyclone, above. { Sto´va•in, n. Also -ine }. [ Stove (a translation of the name of the discoverer, Fourneau + -in, -ine.] (Pharm.) A substance, C14H22O2NCl, the hydrochloride of an amino compound containing benzol, used, in solution with strychnine, as a local anaesthetic, esp. by injection into the sheath of the spinal cord, producing anaesthesia below the point of introduction.
Storm-beat
Storm´-beat, a. Beaten, injured, or impaired by storms. Spenser.
Stormcock
Storm´cock, n. (Zoöl.) (a) The missel thrush. (b) The fieldfare. (c) The green woodpecker.
Stormful
Storm´ful, a. Abounding with storms. "The stormful east." Carlyle. — Storm´ful•ness, n.
Storming
Storm´ing, a. & n. from Storm, v. Storming party (Mil.), a party assigned to the duty of making the first assault in storming a fortress.
Stormwind
Storm´wind, n. A heavy wind; a wind that brings a storm; the blast of a storm. Longfellow.
Stormy
Storm´y, a. [ Compar. Stormier superl. Stormiest.]
1. Characterized by, or proceeding from, a storm; subject to storms; agitated with furious winds; biosterous; tempestous; as a stormy season; a stormy day or week. "Beyond the stormy Hebrides." Milton.
2. Proceeding from violent agitation or fury; as a stormy sound; stormy shocks.
3. Violent; passionate; rough; as stormy passions.
"Stormy chiefs of a desert but extensive domain." Sir W. Scott.
Storven
Stor´ven, obs. p. p. of Starve. Chaucer.
Story
Sto´ry, n. ; pl. Stories (#). [OF. estore, estoree, built, erected, p. p. of estorer to build, restore, to store. See Store, v. t.] A set of rooms on the same floor or level; a floor, or the space between two floors. also a horizontal division of a building’s exterior considered architecturally, which need not correspond exactly with the stories within. [Written also storey.] A story comprehends the distance from one floor to another; as a story of nine or ten feet elevation. The spaces between floors are numbered in order, from below upward; as the lower, second, or third story; a house of one story, of two stories, of five stories. Story post (Arch.), a vertical post used to support a floor or superincumbent wall.
Story
Sto´ry, n. [OE. storie, OF. estoire, F. histoire, fr. L. historia. See History.]
1. A narration or recital of that which has occurred; a description of past events; a history; a statement; a record.
"One malcontent who did indeed get a name in story." Barrow.
"Venice, with its unique city and its Impressive story." Ed. Rev.
"The four great monarchies make the subject of ancient story." Sir W. Temple.
2. The relation of an incident or minor event; a short narrative; a tale; especially, a fictitious narrative less elaborate than a novel; a short romance. Addison.
3. A euphemism or child’s word for "a lie;" a fib; as to tell a story. [Colloq.]
Story
Sto´ry, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Storied p. pr. & vb. n. Storying.] To tell in historical relation; to make the subject of a story; to narrate or describe in story.
"How worthy he is I will leave to appear hereafter, rather than story him in his own hearing." Shak.
"It is storied of the brazen colossus in Rhodes, that it was seventy cubits high." Bp. Wilkins.
Storybook
Sto´ry•book, n. A book containing stories, or short narratives, either true or false.
Stot (stot), n. [AS. stotte a hack, jade, or worthless horse; cf. Sw. stut a bull, Dan. stud an ox. Cf. Stoat.]
1. A horse. [Obs.] Chaucer. Thorold Rogers.
2. A young bull or ox, especially one three years old. [Prov. Eng. & Scot.]
Stound (stound), v. i. [Cf. Astound, Stun.] To be in pain or sorrow. [Obs. or Prov. Eng. & Scot.]
Stound a. [See Stound, v. i.] Stunned. [Obs.]
Stound, n. [Cf. Stand.] A vessel for holding small beer. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.
Stoup (stoop), n. [See Stoop a vessel.]
1. A flagon; a vessel or measure for liquids. [Scot.] Jamieson.
2. (Eccl.) A basin at the entrance of Roman Catholic churches for containing the holy water with which those who enter, dipping their fingers in it, cross themselves; — called also holy-water stoup.
Stour, n. [OF. estour, estor, tumult, combat, of Teutonic origin. See Storm.] A battle or tumult; encounter; combat; disturbance; passion. [Obs.] Fairfax. "That woeful stowre." Spenser.
"She that helmed was in starke stours [fierce conflicts]." Chaucer.
Stour, a. [See Stoor, a. ] Tall; strong; stern. [Obs. or Prov. Eng. & Scot.]
Stout, a. [ Compar. Stouter superl. Stoutest.] [D. stout bold (or OF. estout bold, proud, of Teutonic origin); akin to AS. stolt, G. stolz, and perh. to E. stilt.]
1. Strong; lusty; vigorous; robust; sinewy; muscular; hence, firm; resolute; dauntless.
"With hearts stern and stout." Chaucer.
"A stouter champion never handled sword." Shak.
"He lost the character of a bold, stout, magnanimous man." Clarendon.
"The lords all stand
To clear their cause, most resolutely stout." Daniel.
2. Proud; haughty; arrogant; hard. [Archaic]
"Your words have been stout against me." Mal. iii. 13.
"Commonly … they that be rich are lofty and stout." Latimer.
3. Firm; tough; materially strong; enduring; as a stout vessel, stick, string, or cloth.
4. Large; bulky; corpulent.
Syn. — Stout, Corpulent, Portly. Corpulent has reference simply to a superabundance or excess of flesh. Portly implies a kind of stoutness or corpulence which gives a dignified or imposing appearance. Stout, in our early writers (as in the English Bible), was used chiefly or wholly in the sense of strong or bold; as a stout champion; a stout heart; a stout resistance, etc. At a later period it was used for thickset or bulky, and more recently, especially in England, the idea has been carried still further, so that Taylor says in his Synonyms: "The stout man has the proportions of an ox; he is corpulent, fat, and fleshy in relation to his size." In America, stout is still commonly used in the original sense of strong as a stout boy; a stout pole.
Stout-hearted
Stout´-heart´ed, a. Having a brave heart; courageous. — Stout´-heart´ed•ness, n.
Stove, n. [D. stoof a foot stove, originally, a heated room, a room for a bath; akin to G. stube room, OHG. stuba a heated room, AS. stofe, Icel. stofa a room, bathing room, Sw. stufva, stuga, a room, Dan. stue; of unknown origin. Cf. Estufa, Stew, Stufa.]
1. A house or room artificially warmed or heated; a forcing house, or hothouse; a drying room; — formerly, designating an artificially warmed dwelling or room, a parlor, or a bathroom, but now restricted, in this sense, to heated houses or rooms used for horticultural purposes or in the processes of the arts.
"When most of the waiters were commanded away to their supper, the parlor or stove being nearly emptied, in came a company of musketeers." Earl of Strafford.
"How tedious is it to them that live in stoves and caves half a year together, as in Iceland, Muscovy, or under the pole!" Burton.
2. An apparatus, consisting essentially of a receptacle for fuel, made of iron, brick, stone, or tiles, and variously constructed, in which fire is made or kept for warming a room or a house, or for culinary or other purposes. Cooking stove, a stove with an oven, opening for pots, kettles, and the like, — used for cooking. — Dry stove. See under Dry. — Foot stove. See under Foot. — Franklin stove. See in the Vocabulary. — Stove plant (Bot.), a plant which requires artificial heat to make it grow in cold or cold temperate climates. — Stove plate, thin iron castings for the parts of stoves.
Stove, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stoved p. pr. & vb. n. Stoving.]
1. To keep warm, in a house or room, by artificial heat; as to stove orange trees. Bacon.
2. To heat or dry, as in a stove; as to stove feathers.
Stover
Sto´ver, n. [OE. estoveir, estovoir, necessity, provisions, properly an inf., "to be necessary." Cf. Estovers.] Fodder for cattle, especially straw or coarse hay.
"Where live nibbling sheep,
And flat meads thatched with stover them to keep." Shak.
"Thresh barley as yet but as need shall require,
Fresh threshed for stover thy cattle desire." Tusser.
Stow, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stowed p. pr. & vb. n. Stowing.] [OE. stowen, fr. stowe a place, AS. stow; cf. Icel. eld stoa fireplace, hearth, OFries. sto, and E. stand. rad.163.]
1. To place or arrange in a compact mass; to put in its proper place, or in a suitable place; to pack; as to stowbags, bales, or casks in a ship’s hold; to stow hay in a mow; to stow sheaves.
"Some stow their oars, or stop the leaky sides." Dryden.
2. To put away in some place; to hide; to lodge.
"Foul thief! where hast thou stowed my daughter?" Shak.
3. To arrange anything compactly in; to fill, by packing closely; as to stow a box, car, or the hold of a ship.
Stowboard
Stow´board, n. A place into which rubbish is put. [Written also stowbord.]
Stowce, n. (Mining) (a) A windlass. (b) A wooden landmark, to indicate possession of mining land.
Stowre, a. See Stour, a. [Obs.]
Stowre, n. See Stour, n. [Obs.] Spenser.
Straddle
Strad´dle, v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Straddled p. pr. & vb. n. Straddling ] [Freq. from the root of stride.]
1. To part the legs wide; to stand or to walk with the legs far apart.
2. To stand with the ends staggered; — said of the spokes of a wagon wheel where they join the hub.
Straddling
Strad´dling, a. Applied to spokes when they are arranged alternately in two circles in the hub. See Straddle, v. i., and Straddle, v. t., 3. Knight.
Straggle
Strag´gle, v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Straggled p. pr. & vb. n. Straggling ] [Freq. of OE. straken to roam, to stroke. See Stroke, v. t.]
1. To wander from the direct course or way; to rove; to stray; to wander from the line of march or desert the line of battle; as when troops are on the march, the men should not straggle. Dryden.
2. To wander at large; to roam idly about; to ramble.
"The wolf spied out a straggling kid." L’Estrange.
3. To escape or stretch beyond proper limits, as the branches of a plant; to spread widely apart; to shoot too far or widely in growth.
"Trim off the small, superfluous branches on each side of the hedge that straggle too far out." Mortimer.
4. To be dispersed or separated; to occur at intervals. "Straggling pistol shots." Sir W. Scott.
"They came between Scylla and Charybdis and the straggling rocks." Sir W. Raleigh.
Straight, a. A variant of Strait, a. [Obs. or R.]
"Egypt is a long country, but it is straight, that is to say, narrow." Sir J. Mandeville.
Straight, a. [ Compar. Straighter superl. Straightest.] [OE. streit, properly p. p. of strecchen to stretch, AS. streht, p. p. of streccan to stretch, to extend. See Stretch.]
1. Right, in a mathematical sense; passing from one point to another by the nearest course; direct; not deviating or crooked; as a straight line or course; a straight piece of timber.
"And the crooked shall be made straight." Isa. xl. 4.
"There are many several sorts of crooked lines, but there is only one which is straight." Dryden.
2. (Bot.) Approximately straight; not much curved; as straight ribs are such as pass from the base of a leaf to the apex, with a small curve.
3. (Card Playing) Composed of cards which constitute a regular sequence, as the ace, king, queen, jack, and ten-spot; as a straight hand; a straight flush.
4. Conforming to justice and rectitude; not deviating from truth or fairness; upright; as straight dealing.
5. Unmixed; undiluted; as to take liquor straight. [Slang]
6. Making no exceptions or deviations in one’s support of the organization and candidates of a political party; as a straight Republican; a straight Democrat; also containing the names of all the regularly nominated candidates of a party and no others; as a straight ballot. [Political Cant, U.S.] Straight arch (Arch.), a form of arch in which the intrados is straight, but with its joints drawn radially, as in a common arch. — A straight face, one giving no evidence of merriment or other emotion. — A straight line. "That which lies evenly between its extreme points." Euclid. "The shortest line between two points." Chauvenet. "A line which has the same direction through its whole length." Newcomb. — Straight- way valve, a valve which, when opened widely, affords a straight passageway, as for water.
Straighten
Straight´en, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Straighted p. pr. & vb. n. Straighting.]
1. To make straight; to reduce from a crooked to a straight form.
2. To make right or correct; to reduce to order; as to straighten one’s affairs; to straighten an account. To straighten one’s face, to cease laughing or smiling, etc., and compose one’s features.
Straighten
Straight´en, v. t. A variant of Straiten. [Obs. or R.]
Straightener
Straight´en•er, n. One who, or that which, straightens.
Straightly
Straight´ly, adv. In a right line; not crookedly.
Straightly
Straight´ly, adv. A variant of Straitly. See 1st Straight.
Straight-pight
Straight´-pight, a. Straight in form or upright in position; erect. [Obs.] Shak.
Straight-spoken
Straight´-spo•ken, a. Speaking with directness; plain-spoken. [Colloq. U.S.] Lowell.
Strain, n. [See Strene.]
1. Race; stock; generation; descent; family.
"He is of a noble strain." Shak.
"With animals and plants a cross between different varieties, or between individuals of the same variety but of another strain, gives vigor and fertility to the offspring." Darwin.
2. Hereditary character, quality, or disposition.
"Intemperance and lust breed diseases, which, propogated, spoil the strain of nation." Tillotson.
3. Rank; a sort. "The common strain." Dryden.
Strain, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Strained p. pr. & vb. n. Straining.] [OF. estraindre, estreindre, F. etreindre, L. stringere to draw or bind tight; probably akin to Gr. a halter, that which is squeezwd out, a drop, or perhaps to E. strike. Cf. Strangle, Strike, Constrain, District, Strait, a. Stress, Strict, Stringent.]
1. To draw with force; to extend with great effort; to stretch; as to strain a rope; to strain the shrouds of a ship; to strain the cords of a musical instrument. "To strain his fetters with a stricter care." Dryden.
2. (Mech.) To act upon, in any way, so as to cause change of form or volume, as forces on a beam to bend it.
3. To exert to the utmost; to ply vigorously.
"He sweats, Strains his young nerves." Shak.
"They strain their warbling throats
To welcome in the spring." Dryden.
4. To stretch beyond its proper limit; to do violence to, in the matter of intent or meaning; as to strain the law in order to convict an accused person.
"There can be no other meaning in this expression, however some may pretend to strain it." Swift.
5. To injure by drawing, stretching, or the exertion of force; as the gale strained the timbers of the ship.
6. To injure in the muscles or joints by causing to make too strong an effort; to harm by overexertion; to sprain; as to strain a horse by overloading; to strain the wrist; to strain a muscle.
"Prudes decayed about may track, Strain their necks with looking back." Swift.
7. To squeeze; to press closely.
"Evander with a close embrace Strained his departing friend." Dryden.
8. To make uneasy or unnatural; to produce with apparent effort; to force; to constrain.
"He talks and plays with Fatima, but his mirth
Is forced and strained." Denham.
"The quality of mercy is not strained." Shak.
9. To urge with importunity; to press; as to strain a petition or invitation.
"Note, if your lady strain his entertainment." Shak.
10. To press, or cause to pass, through a strainer, as through a screen, a cloth, or some porous substance; to purify, or separate from extraneous or solid matter, by filtration; to filter; as to strain milk through cloth. To strain a point, to make a special effort; especially, to do a degree of violence to some principle or to one’s own feelings. — To strain courtesy, to go beyond what courtesy requires; to insist somewhat too much upon the precedence of others; — often used ironically. Shak.
Strain, n.
1. The act of straining, or the state of being strained. Specifically: — (a) A violent effort; an excessive and hurtful exertion or tension, as of the muscles; as he lifted the weight with a strain; the strain upon a ship’s rigging in a gale; also the hurt or injury resulting; a sprain.
"Whether any poet of our country since Shakespeare has exerted a greater variety of powers with less strain and less ostentation." Landor.
"Credit is gained by custom, and seldom recovers a strain." Sir W. Temple. (b) (Mech. Physics) A change of form or dimensions of a solid or liquid mass, produced by a stress. Rankine.
2. (Mus.) A portion of music divided off by a double bar; a complete musical period or sentence; a movement, or any rounded subdivision of a movement.
"Their heavenly harps a lower strain began." Dryden.
3. Any sustained note or movement; a song; a distinct portion of an ode or other poem; also the pervading note, or burden, of a song, poem, oration, book, etc.; theme; motive; manner; style; also a course of action or conduct; as he spoke in a noble strain; there was a strain of woe in his story; a strain of trickery appears in his career. "A strain of gallantry." Sir W. Scott.
"Such take too high a strain at first." Bacon.
"The genius and strain of the book of Proverbs." Tillotson.
"It [Pilgrim’s Progress] seems a novelty, and yet contains
Nothing but sound and honest gospel strains." Bunyan.
4. Turn; tendency; inborn disposition. Cf. 1st Strain.
"Because heretics have a strain of madness, he applied her with some corporal chastisements." Hayward.
Strain, n. (Hort.) A cultural subvariety that is only slightly differentiated.
Strainable
Strain´a•ble (-a•b’l), a.
1. Capable of being strained.
2. Violent in action. Holinshed.
Straining
Strain´ing, a. & n. from Strain. Straining piece (Arch.), a short piece of timber in a truss, used to maintain the ends of struts or rafters, and keep them from slipping. See Illust. of Queen- post.
Straint (strant), n. [OF. estrainte, estreinte, F. etrainte. See 2nd Strain.] Overexertion; excessive tension; strain. [Obs.] Spenser.
Strait, a. A variant of Straight. [Obs.]
Strait, a. [ Compar. Straiter superl. Straitest.] [OE. straight, streyt, streit, OF. estreit, estroit, F. etroit, from L. strictus drawn together, close, tight, p. p. of stringere to draw tight. See 2nd Strait, and cf. Strict.]
1. Narrow; not broad.
"Strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it." Matt. vii. 14.
"Too strait and low our cottage doors." Emerson.
2. Tight; close; closely fitting. Shak.
3. Close; intimate; near; familiar. [Obs.] "A strait degree of favor." Sir P. Sidney.
4. Strict; scrupulous; rigorous.
"Some certain edicts and some strait decrees." Shak.
"The straitest sect of our religion." Acts xxvi. 5 (Rev. Ver.).
5. Difficult; distressful; straited.
"To make your strait circumstances yet straiter." Secker.
6. Parsimonious; niggargly; mean. [Obs.]
"I beg cold comfort, and you are so strait,
And so ingrateful, you deny me that." Shak.
Strait, adv. Strictly; rigorously. [Obs.] Shak.
Strait, n. ; pl. Straits (#). [OE. straight, streit, OF. estreit, estroit. See Strait, a. ]
1. A narrow pass or passage.
"He brought him through a darksome narrow strait
To a broad gate all built of beaten gold." Spenser.
"Honor travels in a strait so narrow
Where one but goes abreast." Shak.
2. Specifically: (Geog.) A (comparatively) narrow passageway connecting two large bodies of water; — often in the plural; as the strait, or straits, of Gibraltar; the straits of Magellan; the strait, or straits, of Mackinaw.
"We steered directly through a large outlet which they call a strait, though it be fifteen miles broad." De Foe.
3. A neck of land; an isthmus. [R.]
"A dark strait of barren land." Tennyson.
4. Fig.: A condition of narrowness or restriction; doubt; distress; difficulty; poverty; perplexity; — sometimes in the plural; as reduced to great straits.
"For I am in a strait betwixt two." Phil. i. 23.
"Let no man, who owns a Providence, grow desperate under any calamity or strait whatsoever." South.
"Ulysses made use of the pretense of natural infirmity to conceal the straits he was in at that time in his thoughts." Broome.
Straiten
Strait´en, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Straitened p. pr. & vb. n. Straitening.]
1. To make strait; to make narrow; hence, to contract; to confine.
"Waters, when straitened, as at the falls of bridges, give a roaring noise." Bacon.
"In narrow circuit, straitened by a foe." Milton.
2. To make tense, or tight; to tighten.
"They straiten at each end the cord." Pope.
3. To restrict; to distress or embarrass in respect of means or conditions of life; — used chiefly in the past participle; — as a man straitened in his circumstances.
Strait-waistcoat
Strait´-waist•coat, n. Same as Strait-jacket.
Strake, obs. imp. of Strike. Spenser.
Strake, n. [See Streak.]
1. A streak. [Obs.] Spenser. "White strake." Gen. xxx. 37.
2. An iron band by which the fellies of a wheel are secured to each other, being not continuous, as the tire is, but made up of separate pieces.
3. (Shipbuilding) One breadth of planks or plates forming a continuous range on the bottom or sides of a vessel, reaching from the stem to the stern; a streak. The planks or plates next the keel are called the garboard strakes; the next, or the heavy strakes at the bilge, are the bilge strakes; the next, from the water line to the lower port sill, the wales; and the upper parts of the sides, the sheer strakes.
4. (Mining) A trough for washing broken ore, gravel, or sand; a launder.
Stramash
Stram´ash, v. t. [Cf. Stramazoun.] To strike, beat, or bang; to break; to destroy. [Scot. & Prov. Eng.]
Stramash
Stram´ash, n. A turmoil; a broil; a fray; a fight. [Scot. & Prov. Eng.] Barham.
Stramonium
Stra•mo´ni•um, n. [NL.; Cf. F. stramoine.] (Bot.) A poisonous plant ( Datura Stramonium); stinkweed. See Datura, and Jamestown weed.
Strand, v. t. To break a strand of (a rope).
Strand, n. [AS. strand; akin to D., G., Sw., & Dan. strand, Icel. strönd.] The shore, especially the beach of a sea, ocean, or large lake; rarely, the margin of a navigable river. Chaucer. Strand birds. (Zoöl.) See Shore birds, under Shore. — Strand plover (Zoöl.), a black-bellied plover. See Illust. of Plover. — Strand wolf (Zoöl.), the brown hyena.
Strand, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stranded; p. pr. & vb. n. Stranding.] To drive on a strand; hence, to run aground; as to strand a ship.
Strand, v. i. To drift, or be driven, on shore to run aground; as the ship stranded at high water.
Strang, a. [See Strong.] Strong. [Obs. or Prov. Eng. & Scot.] Halliwell.
Strange, a. [ Compar. Stranger superl. Strangest ] [OE. estrange, F. etrange, fr. L. extraneus that is without, external, foreign, fr. extra on the outside. See Extra, and cf. Estrange, Extraneous.]
1. Belonging to another country; foreign. "To seek strange strands." Chaucer.
"One of the strange queen’s lords." Shak.
"I do not contemn the knowledge of strange and divers tongues." Ascham.
2. Of or pertaining to others; not one’s own; not pertaining to one’s self; not domestic.
"So she, impatient her own faults to see,
Turns from herself, and in strange things delights." Sir J. Davies.
3. Not before known, heard, or seen; new.
"Here is the hand and seal of the duke; you know the character, I doubt not; and the signet is not strange to you." Shak.
4. Not according to the common way; novel; odd; unusual; irregular; extraordinary; unnatural; queer. "He is sick of a strange fever." Shak.
"Sated at length, erelong I might perceive Strange alteration in me." Milton.
5. Reserved; distant in deportment. Shak.
"She may be strange and shy at first, but will soon learn to love thee." Hawthorne.
6. Backward; slow. [Obs.]
"Who, loving the effect, would not be strange
In favoring the cause." Beau. & Fl.
7. Not familiar; unaccustomed; inexperienced.
"In thy fortunes am unlearned and strange." Shak. Strange is often used as an exclamation.
"Strange! what extremes should thus preserve the snow
High on the Alps, or in deep caves below." Waller. Strange sail (Naut.), an unknown vessel. — Strange woman (Script.), a harlot. Prov. v. 3. — To make it strange. (a) To assume ignorance, suspicion, or alarm, concerning it. Shak. (b) To make it a matter of difficulty. [Obs.] Chaucer. — To make strange, To make one’s self strange. (a) To profess ignorance or astonishment. (b) To assume the character of a stranger. Gen. xlii. 7.
Syn. — Foreign; new; outlandish; wonderful; astonishing; marvelous; unusual; odd; uncommon; irregular; queer; eccentric.
Strange, adv. Strangely. [Obs.]
"Most strange, but yet most truly, will I speak." Shak.
Strangeness
Strange´ness, n. The state or quality of being strange (in any sense of the adjective).
Stranger
Stran´ger, n. [OF. estrangier, F. etranger. See Strange.]
1. One who is strange, foreign, or unknown. Specifically: — (a) One who comes from a foreign land; a foreigner.
"I am a most poor woman and a stranger,
Born out of your dominions." Shak. (b) One whose home is at a distance from the place where he is, but in the same country. (c) One who is unknown or unacquainted; as the gentleman is a stranger to me; hence, one not admitted to communication, fellowship, or acquaintance.
"Melons on beds of ice are taught to bear,
And strangers to the sun yet ripen here." Granville.
"My child is yet a stranger in the world." Shak.
"I was no stranger to the original." Dryden.
2. One not belonging to the family or household; a guest; a visitor.
"To honor and receive
Our heavenly stranger." Milton.
3. (Law) One not privy or party an act, contract, or title; a mere intruder or intermeddler; one who interferes without right; as actual possession of land gives a good title against a stranger having no title; as to strangers, a mortgage is considered merely as a pledge; a mere stranger to the levy.
Stranger
Stran´ger, v. t. To estrange; to alienate. [Obs.] Shak.
Strangle
Stran´gle, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Strangled p. pr. & vb. n. Strangling ] [OF. estrangler, F. etrangler, L. strangulare, Gr.,, fr. a halter; and perhaps akin to E. string, n. Cf. Strain, String.]
1. To compress the windpipe of (a person or animal) until death results from stoppage of respiration; to choke to death by compressing the throat, as with the hand or a rope.
"Our Saxon ancestors compelled the adulteress to strangle herself." Ayliffe.
2. To stifle, choke, or suffocate in any manner.
"Shall I not then be stifled in the vault, …
And there die strangled ere my Romeo comes?" Shak.
3. To hinder from appearance; to stifle; to suppress. "Strangle such thoughts." Shak.
Strangleable
Stran´gle•a•ble, a. Capable of being strangled. [R.] Chesterfield.
Strangulated
Stran´gu•la•ted, a.
1. (Med.) Having the circulation stopped by compression; attended with arrest or obstruction of circulation, caused by constriction or compression; as a strangulated hernia.
2. (Bot.) Contracted at irregular intervals, if tied with a ligature; constricted. Strangulated hernia. (Med.) See under Hernia.
Strangulation
Stran´gu•la•tion, n. [L. strangulatio: cf. F. strangulation. See Strangle.]
1. The act of strangling, or the state of being strangled.
2. (Med.) Inordinate compression or constriction of a tube or part, as of the throat; especially, such as causes a suspension of breathing, of the passage of contents, or of the circulation, as in cases of hernia.
Strangurious
Stran•gu´ri•ous, a. [L. stranguriosus.] (Med.) Of or pertaining to strangury. Cheyne.
Strangury
Stran´gu•ry, n. [L. stranguria, Gr. ;,, a drop + to make water, urine: cf. F. strangurie. See Strangle, and Urine.]
1. (Med.) A painful discharge of urine, drop by drop, produced by spasmodic muscular contraction.
2. (Bot.) A swelling or other disease in a plant, occasioned by a ligature fastened tightly about it.
Strap, n. [OE. strope, AS. stropp, L. stroppus, struppus, perhaps fr. Gr. a band or cord, fr. to twist, to turn (cf. Strophe). Cf. Strop a strap, a piece of rope.]
1. A long, narrow, pliable strip of leather, cloth, or the like; specifically, a strip of thick leather used in flogging.
"A lively cobbler that … had scarce passed a day without giving her [his wife] the discipline of the strap." Addison.
2. Something made of such a strip, or of a part of one, or a combination of two or more for a particular use; as a boot strap, shawl strap, stirrup strap.
3. A piece of leather, or strip of wood covered with a suitable material, for sharpening a razor; a strop.
4. A narrow strip of anything, as of iron or brass. Specifically: — (a) (Carp. & Mach.) A band, plate, or loop of metal for clasping and holding timbers or parts of a machine. (b) (Naut.) A piece of rope or metal passing around a block and used for fastening it to anything.
5. (Bot.) (a) The flat part of the corolla in ligulate florets, as those of the white circle in the daisy. (b) The leaf, exclusive of its sheath, in some grasses.
6. A shoulder strap. See under Shoulder. Strap bolt, a bolt of which one end is a flat bar of considerable length. — Strap head (Mach.), a journal box, or pair of brasses, secured to the end of a connecting rod by a strap. See Illust. of Gib and key, under Gib. — Strap hinge, a hinge with long flaps by which it is fastened, as to a door or wall. — Strap rail (Railroads), a flat rail formerly used.
Strap, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Strapped p. pr. & vb. n. Strapping.]
1. To beat or chastise with a strap.
2. To fasten or bind with a strap. Cowper.
3. To sharpen by rubbing on a strap, or strop; as to strap a razor.
Strappado
Strap•pa´do, v. t. To punish or torture by the strappado. Milton.
Strapper
Strap´per, n.
1. One who uses strap.
2. A person or thing of uncommon size. [Colloq.]
Strapple
Strap´ple, v. t. To hold or bind with, or as with, a strap; to entangle. [Obs.] Chapman.
Strap-shaped
Strap´-shaped, a. Shaped like a strap; ligulate; as a strap-shaped corolla.
Strass, n. [So called from its inventor, a German jeweler: cf. F. stras.] (Chem.) A brilliant glass, used in the manufacture of artificial paste gems, which consists essentially of a complex borosilicate of lead and potassium. Cf. Glass.
Stratagem
Strat´a•gem, n. [F. stratagème (cf. Sp. estratagema, It. stratagemma), L. strategema, Gr., fr. to be leader of an army, fr. a general; an army (probably as being spread out; cf. Stratum) + to lead. See Agent.] An artifice or trick in war for deceiving the enemy; hence, in general, artifice; deceptive device; secret plot; evil machination.
"Fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils." Shak.
"Those oft are stratagems which error seem,
Nor is it Homer nods, but we that dream." Pope.
Stratagemical
Strat•a•gem´ic•al, a. Containing stratagem; as a stratagemical epistle. [R.] Swift.
Strategus
Stra•te´gus, n. ; pl. Strategi (#). [L., fr. Gr. . See Stratagem.] (Gr. Antiq.) The leader or commander of an army; a general.
Strategy
Strat´e•gy, n. [Gr. : cf. F. strategie. See Stratagem.]
1. The science of military command, or the science of projecting campaigns and directing great military movements; generalship.
2. The use of stratagem or artifice.
Stratified
Strat´i•fied, a. Having its substance arranged in strata, or layers; as stratified rock.
Stratify
Strat´i•fy, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stratified p. pr. & vb. n. Stratifying ] [ Stratum + -fy: cf. F. stratifier.] To form or deposit in strata, or layers, as substances in the earth; to arrange in strata. { Strat•i•graph´ic, Strat•i•graph´ic•al, } a. (Geol.) Pertaining to, or depended upon, the order or arrangement of strata; as stratigraphical evidence. — Strat•i•graph´ic•al•ly, adv. { Strat•i•graph´ic, -ic•al }, a. (Mil.) See Stratographic.
Strato-cirrus
Stra•to-cir´rus, n. [ Stratus + cirrus.] (Meteor.) An alto-stratus cloud.
Stratonic
Stra•ton´ic, a. [Gr. an army.] Of or pertaining to an army. [R.]
Stratum
Stra´tum, n. ; pl. E. Stratums (#), L. Strata (#). The latter is more common. [L., from sternere, stratum, to spread; akin to Gr. to spread, strew. See Strew, and cf. Consternation, Estrade, Prostrate, Stratus, Street.]
1. (Geol.) A bed of earth or rock of one kind, formed by natural causes, and consisting usually of a series of layers, which form a rock as it lies between beds of other kinds. Also used figuratively.
2. A bed or layer artificially made; a course.
Stratus
Stra´tus, n. [L. stratus a spreading out, scattering, from sternere, stratum, to spread.] (Meteor.) A form of clouds in which they are arranged in a horizontal band or layer. See Cloud.
Straught, obs. imp. & p. p. of Stretch.
Straught, v. t. To stretch; to make straight. [Written also straucht.] [Scot.] Sir W. Scott.
Straw, v. t. To spread or scatter. See Strew, and Strow. Chaucer.
Straw, n. [OE. straw, stre, stree, AS. streáw, from the root of E. strew; akin to OFries. stre, D. stroo, G. stroh, OHG. stro, Icel. stra, Dan. straa, Sw. strå. rad.166. See Strew.]
1. A stalk or stem of certain species of grain, pulse, etc., especially of wheat, rye, oats, barley, more rarely of buckwheat, beans, and pease.
2. The gathered and thrashed stalks of certain species of grain, etc.; as a bundle, or a load, of rye straw.
3. Anything proverbially worthless; the least possible thing; a mere trifle.
"I set not a straw by thy dreamings." Chaucer. Straw is often used in the formation of self- explaining compounds; as straw-built, straw-crowned, straw-roofed, straw-stuffed, and the like. Man of straw, an effigy formed by stuffing the garments of a man with straw; hence, a fictitious person; an irresponsible person; a puppet. — Straw bail, worthless bail, as being given by irresponsible persons. [Colloq. U.S.] — Straw bid, a worthless bid; a bid for a contract which the bidder is unable or unwilling to fulfill. [Colloq. U.S.] — Straw cat (Zoöl.), the pampas cat. — Straw color, the color of dry straw, being a delicate yellow. — Straw drain, a drain filled with straw. — Straw plait, or Straw plat, a strip formed by plaiting straws, used for making hats, bonnets, etc. — To be in the straw, to be brought to bed, as a pregnant woman. [Slang]
Strawberry
Straw´ber•ry, n. [AS. streáwberige; streáw straw + berie berry; perhaps from the resemblance of the runners of the plant to straws.] (Bot.) A fragrant edible berry, of a delicious taste and commonly of a red color, the fruit of a plant of the genus Fragaria, of which there are many varieties. also the plant bearing the fruit. The common American strawberry is Fragaria virginiana; the European, F. vesca. There are also other less common species. Strawberry bass. (Zoöl.) See Calico bass, under Calico. — Strawberry blite. (Bot.) See under Blite. — Strawberry borer (Zoöl.), any one of several species of insects whose larvae burrow in the crown or roots of the strawberry vine. Especially: (a) The root borer ( Anarsia lineatella), a very small dark gray moth whose larvae burrow both in the larger roots and crown, often doing great damage. (b) The crown borer ( Tyloderma fragariae), a small brown weevil whose larva burrows in the crown and kills the plant. — Strawberry bush (Bot.), an American shrub ( Euonymus Americanus), a kind of spindle tree having crimson pods and the seeds covered with a scarlet aril. — Strawberry crab (Zoöl.), a small European spider crab ( Eurynome aspera); — so called because the back is covered with pink tubercles. — Strawberry fish (Zoöl.), the amadavat. — Strawberry geranium (Bot.), a kind of saxifrage ( Saxifraga sarmentosa) having reniform leaves, and producing long runners like those of the strawberry. — Strawberry leaf. (a) The leaf of the strawberry. (b) The symbol of the rank or estate of a duke, because the ducal coronet is twined with strawberry leaves. "The strawberry leaves on her chariot panels are engraved on her ladyship’s heart." Thackeray. — Strawberry-leaf roller (Zoöl.), any one of several species of moths whose larvae roll up, and feed upon, the leaves of the strawberry vine; especially, Phoxopteris fragariae, and Eccopsis permundana. — Strawberry moth (Zoöl.), any one of several species of moth whose larvae feed on the strawberry vines; as: (a) The smeared dagger ( Apatela oblinita), whose large hairy larva is velvety black with two rows of bright yellow spots on each side. (b) A geometrid ( Angerona crocataria) which is yellow with dusky spots on the wings. Called also currant moth. — Strawberry pear (Bot.), the red ovoid fruit of a West Indian plant of the genus Cereus ( C. triangularia). It has a sweetish flavor, and is slightly acid, pleasant, and cooling. also the plant bearing the fruit. — Strawberry sawfly (Zoöl.), a small black sawfly ( Emphytus maculatus) whose larva eats the leaves of the strawberry vine. — Strawberry tomato. (Bot.) See Alkekengi. — Strawberry tree. (Bot.) See Arbutus. — Strawberry vine (Bot.), the plant which yields the strawberry. — Strawberry worm (Zoöl.), the larva of any moth which feeds on the strawberry vine.
Straw-colored
Straw´-col•ored, a. Being of a straw color. See Straw color, under Straw, n.
Straw-cutter
Straw´-cut•ter, n. An instrument to cut straw for fodder.
Strawed, imp. & p. p. of Straw. [Obs.]
Strawy
Straw´y, a. Of or pertaining to straw; made of, or resembling, straw. Shak.
Stray, v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Strayed p. pr. & vb. n. Straying.] [OF. estraier, estraer, to stray, or as adj., stray, fr. (assumed) L. stratarius roving the streets, fr. L. strata (sc. via) a paved road. See Street, and Stray, a. ]
1. To wander, as from a direct course; to deviate, or go out of the way.
"Thames among the wanton valleys strays." Denham.
2. To wander from company, or from the proper limits; to rove at large; to roam; to go astray.
"Now, until the break of day,
Through this house each fairy stray." Shak.
"A sheep doth very often stray." Shak.
3. Figuratively, to wander from the path of duty or rectitude; to err.
"We have erred and strayed from thy ways." of Com. Prayer.
"While meaner things, whom instinct leads,
Are rarely known to stray." Cowper.
Syn. — To deviate; err; swerve; rove; roam; wander.
Stray, v. t. To cause to stray. [Obs.] Shak.
Stray, a. [Cf. OF. estraie, p. p. of estraier. See Stray, v. i., and cf. Astray, Estray.] Having gone astray; strayed; wandering; as a strayhorse or sheep. Stray line (Naut.), that portion of the log line which is veered from the reel to allow the chip to get clear of the stern eddies before the glass is turned. — Stray mark (Naut.), the mark indicating the end of the stray line.
Streak, v. t. [Cf. Stretch, Streek.] To stretch; to extend; hence, to lay out, as a dead body. [Obs. or Prov. Eng. & Scot.]
Streak, n. [OE. streke; akin to D. streek a line, stroke, G. strich, AS. strica, Sw. strek, Dan. streg, Goth. stricks, and E. strike, stroke. See Strike, Stroke, n. , and cf. Strake.]
1. A line or long mark of a different color from the ground; a stripe; a vein.
"What mean those colored streaks in heaven?" Milton.
2. (Shipbuilding) A strake.
3. (Min.) The fine powder or mark yielded by a mineral when scratched or rubbed against a harder surface, the color of which is sometimes a distinguishing character.
4. The rung or round of a ladder. [Obs.]
Streak, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Streaked p. pr. & vb. n. Streaking.]
1. To form streaks or stripes in or on; to stripe; to variegate with lines of a different color, or of different colors.
"A mule … streaked and dappled with white and black." Sandys.
"Now streaked and glowing with the morning red." Prior.
2. With it as an object: To run swiftly. [Colloq.]
Streaked, a.
1. Marked or variegated with stripes.
2. Uncomfortable; out of sorts. [Local, U.S.]
Streaky
Streak´y, a. Same as Streaked, 1. "The streaky west." Cowper.
Stream (strem), n. [AS. streám; akin to OFries. stram, OS. strom, D. stroom, G. strom, OHG. stroum, strum, Dan. & Sw. ström, Icel. straumr, Ir. sroth, Lith. srove, Russ. struia, Gr. "ry•sis a flowing, "rei^n to flow, Skr. sru. rad.174. Cf. Catarrh, Diarrhea, Rheum, Rhythm.]
1. A current of water or other fluid; a liquid flowing continuously in a line or course, either on the earth, as a river, brook, etc., or from a vessel, reservoir, or fountain; specifically, any course of running water; as many streams are blended in the Mississippi; gas and steam came from the earth in streams; a stream of molten lead from a furnace; a stream of lava from a volcano.
2. A beam or ray of light. "Sun streams." Chaucer.
3. Anything issuing or moving with continued succession of parts; as a stream of words; a stream of sand. "The stream of beneficence." Atterbury. "The stream of emigration." Macaulay.
4. A continued current or course; as a stream of weather. "The very stream of his life." Shak.
5. Current; drift; tendency; series of tending or moving causes; as the stream of opinions or manners. Gulf stream. See under Gulf. — Stream anchor, Stream cable. (Naut.) See under Anchor, and Cable. — Stream ice, blocks of ice floating in a mass together in some definite direction. — Stream tin, particles or masses of tin ore found in alluvial ground; — so called because a stream of water is the principal agent used in separating the ore from the sand and gravel. — Stream works (Cornish Mining), a place where an alluvial deposit of tin ore is worked. Ure. — To float with the stream, figuratively, to drift with the current of opinion, custom, etc., so as not to oppose or check it.
Syn. — Current; flow; rush; tide; course. — Stream, Current. These words are often properly interchangeable; but stream is the broader word, denoting a prevailing onward course. The stream of the Mississippi rolls steadily on to the Gulf of Mexico, but there are reflex currents in it which run for a while in a contrary direction.
Stream, v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Streamed p. pr. & vb. n. Streaming.]
1. To issue or flow in a stream; to flow freely or in a current, as a fluid or whatever is likened to fluids; as tears streamed from her eyes.
"Beneath those banks where rivers stream." Milton.
2. To pour out, or emit, a stream or streams.
"A thousand suns will stream on thee." Tennyson.
3. To issue in a stream of light; to radiate.
4. To extend; to stretch out with a wavy motion; to float in the wind; as a flag streams in the wind.
Stream, v. t. To send forth in a current or stream; to cause to flow; to pour; as his eyes streamed tears.
"It may so please that she at length will stream
Some dew of grace into my withered heart." Spenser.
2. To mark with colors or embroidery in long tracts.
"The herald’s mantle is streamed with gold." Bacon.
3. To unfurl. Shak. To stream the buoy. (Naut.) See under Buoy.
Stream clock. (Physiol.) An instrument for ascertaining the velocity of the blood in a vessel.
Stream gold. (Mining) Gold in alluvial deposits; placer gold.
Streamful
Stream´ful, a. Abounding in streams, or in water. "The streamful tide." Drayton.
Streaminess
Stream´i•ness, n. The state of being streamy; a trailing. R. A. Proctor.
Streek, v. t. To stretch; also to lay out, as a dead body. See Streak. [Obs. or Prov. Eng. & Scot.]
Streel, v. i. [Cf. Stroll.] To trail along; to saunter or be drawn along, carelessly, swaying in a kind of zigzag motion. [Colloq.] Thackeray.
Streen, n. See Strene. [Obs.] Chaucer.
Street (stret), n. [OE. strete, AS. straet, fr. L. strata (sc. via) a paved way, properly fem. p. p. of sternere, stratum, to spread; akin to E. strew. See Strew, and cf. Stratum, Stray, v. & a. ] Originally, a paved way or road; a public highway; now commonly, a thoroughfare in a city or village, bordered by dwellings or business houses.
"He removed [the body of] Amasa from the street unto the field." Coverdale.
"At home or through the high street passing." Milton. In an extended sense, street designates besides the roadway, the walks, houses, shops, etc., which border the thoroughfare.
"His deserted mansion in Duke Street." Macaulay. The street (Broker’s Cant), that thoroughfare of a city where the leading bankers and brokers do business; also figuratively, those who do business there; as the street would not take the bonds. — Street Arab, Street broker, etc. See under Arab, Broker, etc. — Street door, a door which opens upon a street, or is nearest the street.
Syn. — See Way.
Streetwalker
Street´walk•er, n. A common prostitute who walks the streets to find customers.
Streetward
Street´ward, n. An officer, or ward, having the care of the streets. [Obs.] Cowell.
Streit, a. [See Stretch.] Drawn. [Obs.]
"Pyrrhus with his streite sword." Chaucer.
Strene, n. [OE. stren, streen, streon, AS. ge strienan, ge strnan, ge streónan, to beget, to obtain, ge streón gain, wealth; akin to OHG. striunan to gain. Cf. Strian race, family.] Race; offspring; stock; breed; strain. [Obs.] Chaucer. { Stren´ger, Stren´gest }, the original compar. & superl. of Strong. [Obs.]
"Two of us shall strenger be than one." Chaucer.
Strength, n. [OE. strengthe, AS. strengðu, fr. strang strong. See Strong.]
1. The quality or state of being strong; ability to do or to bear; capacity for exertion or endurance, whether physical, intellectual, or moral; force; vigor; power; as strength of body or of the arm; strength of mind, of memory, or of judgment.
"All his [Samson’s] strength in his hairs were." Chaucer.
"Thou must outlive
Thy youth, thy strength, thy beauty." Milton.
2. Power to resist force; solidity or toughness; the quality of bodies by which they endure the application of force without breaking or yielding; — in this sense opposed to frangibility; as the strength of a bone, of a beam, of a wall, a rope, and the like. "The brittle strength of bones." Milton.
3. Power of resisting attacks; impregnability. "Our castle’s strength will laugh a siege to scorn." Shak.
4. That quality which tends to secure results; effective power in an institution or enactment; security; validity; legal or moral force; logical conclusiveness; as the strength of social or legal obligations; the strength of law; the strength of public opinion; strength of evidence; strength of argument.
5. One who, or that which, is regarded as embodying or affording force, strength, or firmness; that on which confidence or reliance is based; support; security.
"God is our refuge and strength." Ps. xlvi. 1.
"What they boded would be a mischief to us, you are providing shall be one of our principal strengths." Sprat.
"Certainly there is not a greater strength against temptation." Jer. Taylor.
6. Force as measured; amount, numbers, or power of any body, as of an army, a navy, and the like; as what is the strength of the enemy by land, or by sea?
7. Vigor or style; force of expression; nervous diction; — said of literary work.
"And praise the easy vigor of a life
Where Denham’s strength and Waller’s sweetness join." Pope.
8. Intensity; — said of light or color.
"Bright Phœbus in his strength." Shak.
9. Intensity or degree of the distinguishing and essential element; spirit; virtue; excellence; — said of liquors, solutions, etc.; as the strength of wine or of acids.
10. A strong place; a stronghold. [Obs.] Shak. On, or Upon, the strength of, in reliance upon. "The allies, after a successful summer, are too apt, upon the strength of it, to neglect their preparations for the ensuing campaign." Addison.
Syn. — Force; robustness; toughness; hardness; stoutness; brawniness; lustiness; firmness; puissance; support; spirit; validity; authority. See Force.
Strengthen
Strength´en, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Strengthened p. pr. & vb. n. Strengthening.]
1. To make strong or stronger; to add strength to; as to strengthen a limb, a bridge, an army; to strengthen an obligation; to strengthen authority.
"Let noble Warwick, Cobham, and the rest, …
With powerful policy strengthen themselves." Shak.
2. To animate; to encourage; to fix in resolution.
"Charge Joshua, and encourage him, and strengthen him." Deut. iii. 28.
Syn. — To invigorate; confirm; establish; fortify; animate; encourage.
Strengthener
Strength´en•er, n. One who, or that which, gives or adds strength. Sir W. Temple.
Strenuity
Stre•nu´i•ty, n. [L. strenuatis.] Strenuousness; activity. [Obs.] Chapman.
Streperous
Strep´er•ous, a. [LL. streperus, fr. L. strepere. See Strepent, and cf. Obstreperous.] Loud; boisterous. [R.] Sir T. Browne.
Strepsiptera
Strep•sip´te•ra, n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. a turning (fr. to twist) + a wing.] (Zoöl.) A group of small insects having the anterior wings rudimentary, and in the form of short and slender twisted appendages, while the posterior ones are large and membranous. They are parasitic in the larval state on bees, wasps, and the like; — called also Rhipiptera. See Illust. under Rhipipter.
Strepsipterous
Strep•sip´ter•ous, a. [See Strepsiptera.] (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to Strepsiptera.
Strepsorhina
Strep•so•rhi´na, n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. a turning +,, the nose.] (Zoöl.) Same as Lemuroidea.
Strepsorhine
Strep´so•rhine, a. (Zoöl.) Having twisted nostrils; — said of the lemurs. — n. (Zoöl.) One of the Strepsorhina; a lemur. See Illust. under Monkey.
Stress, n. [Abbrev. fr. distress; or cf. OF. estrecier to press, pinch, (assumed) LL. strictiare, fr. L. strictus. See Distress.]
1. Distress. [Obs.]
"Sad hersal of his heavy stress." Spenser.
2. Pressure, strain; — used chiefly of immaterial things; except in mechanics; hence, urgency; importance; weight; significance.
"The faculties of the mind are improved by exercise, yet they must not be put to a stress beyond their strength." Locke.
"A body may as well lay too little as too much stress upon a dream." L’Estrange.
3. (Mech. & Physics) The force, or combination of forces, which produces a strain; force exerted in any direction or manner between contiguous bodies, or parts of bodies, and taking specific names according to its direction, or mode of action, as thrust or pressure, pull or tension, shear or tangential stress. Rankine.
"Stress is the mutual action between portions of matter." Clerk Maxwell.
4. (Pron.) Force of utterance expended upon words or syllables. Stress is in English the chief element in accent and is one of the most important in emphasis. See Guide to pronunciation, §§ 31-35.
5. (Scots Law) Distress; the act of distraining; also the thing distrained. Stress of voice, unusual exertion of the voice. — Stress of weather, constraint imposed by continued bad weather; as to be driven back to port by stress of weather. — To lay stress upon, to attach great importance to; to emphasize. "Consider how great a stress is laid upon this duty." Atterbury. — To put stress upon, or To put to a stress, to strain.
Stretch, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stretched p. pr. & vb. n. Stretching.] [OE. strecchen, AS. streccan; akin to D. strekken, G. strecken, OHG. strecchen, Sw. sträcka, Dan. straekke; cf. AS. straeck, strec, strong, violent, G. strack straight; of uncertain origin, perhaps akin to E. strong. Cf. Straight.]
1. To reach out; to extend; to put forth.
"And stretch forth his neck long and small." Chaucer.
"I in conquest stretched mine arm." Shak.
2. To draw out to the full length; to cause to extend in a straight line; as to stretch a cord or rope.
3. To cause to extend in breadth; to spread; to expand; as to stretch cloth; to stretch the wings.
4. To make tense; to tighten; to distend forcibly.
"The ox hath therefore stretched his yoke in vain." Shak.
5. To draw or pull out to greater length; to strain; as to stretch a tendon or muscle.
"Awake, my soul, stretch every nerve." Doddridge.
6. To exaggerate; to extend too far; as to stretch the truth; to stretch one’s credit.
"They take up, one day, the most violent and stretched prerogative." Burke.
Stretch, n.
1. Act of stretching, or state of being stretched; reach; effort; struggle; strain; as a stretch of the limbs; a stretch of the imagination.
"By stretch of arms the distant shore to gain." Dryden.
"Those put a lawful authority upon the stretch, to the abuse of yower, under the color of prerogative." L’Estrange.
2. A continuous line or surface; a continuous space of time; as grassy stretches of land.
"A great stretch of cultivated country." W. Black.
"But all of them left me a week at a stretch." E. Eggleston.
3. The extent to which anything may be stretched.
"Quotations, in their utmost stretch, can signify no more than that Luther lay under severe agonies of mind." Atterbury.
"This is the utmost stretch that nature can." Granville.
4. (Naut.) The reach or extent of a vessel’s progress on one tack; a tack or board.
5. Course; direction; as the stretch of seams of coal. To be on the stretch, to be obliged to use one’s utmost powers. — Home stretch. See under Home, a.
Stretching
Stretch´ing, a. & n. from Stretch, v. Stretching course (Masonry), a course or series of stretchers. See Stretcher, 2. Britton.
Strew, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Strewed p. p. strewn p. pr. & vb. n. Strewing.] [OE. strewen, strawen, AS. strewian, streówian; akin to Ofries. strewa, OS. strewian, D. strooijen, G. streuen, OHG. strewen, Icel. stra, Sw. strö, Dan. ströe, Goth. straujan, L. sternere, stratum, Gr.,, Skr. st. rad.166. Cf. Stratum, Straw, Street.]
1. To scatter; to spread by scattering; to cast or to throw loosely apart; — used of solids, separated or separable into parts or particles; as to strew seed in beds; to strew sand on or over a floor; to strew flowers over a grave.
"And strewed his mangled limbs about the field." Dryden.
"On a principal table a desk was open and many papers [were] strewn about." Beaconsfield.
2. To cover more or less thickly by scattering something over or upon; to cover, or lie upon, by having been scattered; as they strewed the ground with leaves; leaves strewed the ground.
"The snow which does the top of Pindus strew." Spenser.
"Is thine alone the seed that strews the plain?" Pope.
3. To spread abroad; to disseminate.
"She may strew dangerous conjectures." Shak.
Strewment
Strew´ment, n. Anything scattered, as flowers for decoration. [Obs.] Shak.
Striate
Stri´ate, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Striated p. pr. & vb. n. Striating.] [See Striate, a. ] To mark with striaae. "Striated longitudinally." Owen. { Stri´ate, Stri´a•ted } a. [L. striatus, p. p. of striare to furnish with channels, from stria a channel.] Marked with striaae, or fine grooves, or lines of color; showing narrow structural bands or lines; as a striated crystal; striated muscular fiber.
Strich, n. [Cf. L. strix, strigs, a streech owl.] (Zoöl.) An owl. [Obs.] Spenser.
Strick, n. A bunch of hackled flax prepared for drawing into slivers. Knight.
Stricken
Strick´en, p. p. & a. from Strike.
1. Struck; smitten; wounded; as the stricken deer. [See Strike, n. ]
2. Worn out; far gone; advanced. See Strike, v. t., 21.
"Abraham was old and well stricken in age." Gen. xxiv. 1.
3. Whole; entire; — said of the hour as marked by the striking of a clock. [Scot.]
"He persevered for a stricken hour in such a torrent of unnecessary tattle." Sir W. Scott.
"Speeches are spoken by the stricken hour, day after day, week, perhaps, after week." Bayne.
Strickle
Stric´kle, n. [See Strike.]
1. An instrument to strike grain to a level with the measure; a strike.
2. An instrument for whetting scythes; a rifle.
3. (Founding) An instrument used for smoothing the surface of a core.
4. (Carp. & Mason.) A templet; a pattern.
5. An instrument used in dressing flax. [Prov. Eng.]
Strickless
Strick´less, n. See Strickle. [Prov. Eng.]
Strict, a. [ Compar. Stricter superl. Strictest.] [L. strictus, p. p. of stringere to draw or bind tight, to strain. See Strain, and cf. Strait, a. ]
1. Strained; drawn close; tight; as a strict embrace; a strict ligature. Dryden.
2. Tense; not relaxed; as a strict fiber.
3. Exact; accurate; precise; rigorously nice; as to keep strict watch; to pay strict attention. Shak.
"It shall be still in strictest measure." Milton.
4. Governed or governing by exact rules; observing exact rules; severe; rigorous; as very strict in observing the Sabbath. "Through the strict senteries." Milton.
5. Rigidly; interpreted; exactly limited; confined; restricted; as to understand words in a strict sense.
6. (Bot.) Upright, or straight and narrow; — said of the shape of the plants or their flower clusters.
Syn. — Exact; accurate; nice; close; rigorous; severe. — Strict, Severe. Strict, applied to a person, denotes that he conforms in his motives and acts to a principle or code by which he is bound; severe is strict with an implication often, but not always, of harshness. Strict is opposed to lax; severe is opposed to gentle.
"And rules as strict his labored work confine,
As if the Stagirite o’erlooked each line." Pope.
"Soon moved with touch of blame, thus Eve: -
"What words have passed thy lips, Adam severe!"" Milton. The Strict Observance, or Friars of the Strict Observance. (R. C. Ch.) See Observance.
Striction
Stric´tion, n. [L. strictio. See Stringent.] The act of constricting, or the state of being constricted. Line of striction (Geom.), the line on a skew surface that cuts each generator in that point of it that is nearest to the succeeding generator.
Strictly
Strict´ly, adv. In a strict manner; closely; precisely.
Stricture
Stric´ture, n. [L. strictura a contraction, from stringere, strictum, to draw tight: cf. F. stricture. See Strict.]
1. Strictness. [Obs.]
"A man of stricture and firm abstinence." Shak.
2. A stroke; a glance; a touch. [Obs.] Sir M. Hale.
3. A touch of adverse criticism; censure.
"[I have] given myself the liberty of these strictures by way of reflection on all and every passage." Hammond.
4. (Med.) A localized morbid contraction of any passage of the body. Cf. Organic stricture, and Spasmodic stricture, under Organic, and Spasmodic. Arbuthnot.
Strictured
Stric´tured, a. (Med.) Affected with a stricture; as a strictured duct.
Strid, n. [See Stride.] A narrow passage between precipitous rocks or banks, which looks as if it might be crossed at a stride. [Prov. Eng.] Howitt.
"This striding place is called the Strid." Wordsworth.
Stride, v. t. [ imp. Strode (Obs. Strid ); p. p. Stridden (Obs. Strid); p. pr. & vb. n. Striding.] [AS. stridan to stride, to strive; akin to LG. striden, OFries. strida to strive, D. strijden to strive, to contend, G. streiten, OHG. stritan; of uncertain origin. Cf. Straddle.]
1. To walk with long steps, especially in a measured or pompous manner.
"Mars in the middle of the shining shield
Is graved, and strides along the liquid field." Dryden.
2. To stand with the legs wide apart; to straddle.
Stridulate
Strid´u•late, v. t. [See Stridulous.] To make a shrill, creaking noise; specifically (Zoöl.), to make a shrill or musical sound, such as is made by the males of many insects.
Stridulator
Strid´u•la•tor, n. [NL.] That which stridulates. Darwin.
Stridulous
Strid´u•lous, a. [L. stridulus. See Strident.] Making a shrill, creaking sound. Sir T. Browne.
"The Sarmatian boor driving his stridulous cart." Longfellow. Stridulous laryngitis (Med.), a form of croup, or laryngitis, in children, associated with dyspnœa, occurring usually at night, and marked by crowing or stridulous breathing.
Strife, n. [OF. estrif. See Strive.]
1. The act of striving; earnest endeavor. [Archaic] Shak.
2. Exertion or contention for superiority; contest of emulation, either by intellectual or physical efforts.
"Doting about questions and strifes of words." 1 Tim. vi. 4.
"Thus gods contended — noble strife -
Who most should ease the wants of life." Congreve.
3. Altercation; violent contention; fight; battle.
"Twenty of them fought in this black strife." Shak.
"These vows, thus granted, raised a strife above
Betwixt the god of war and queen of love." Dryden.
4. That which is contended against; occasion of contest. [Obs.] "Lamenting her unlucky strife." Spenser.
Syn. — Contest; struggle; quarrel. See Contention.
Strifeful
Strife´ful, a. Contentious; discordant.
"The ape was strifeful and ambitious." Spenser.
Strigate
Stri´gate, a. (Zoöl.) Having transverse bands of color.
Strigillose
Strig´il•lose, a. [Dim. fr. strigose.] (Bot.) Set with stiff, slender bristles.
Strigine
Stri´gine, a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to owls; owl-like.
Strigment
Strig´ment, n. [L. strigmentum.] Scraping; that which is scraped off. [Obs.] Sir T. Browne.
Strigose
Stri•gose´, a. [Cf. F. strigueux. See Strigil.] (Bot.) Set with stiff, straight bristles; hispid; as a strigose leaf.
Strike, v. t. [ imp. Struck p. p. Struck, Stricken (Stroock, Strucken, Obs.); p. pr. & vb. n. Striking. Struck is more commonly used in the p. p. than stricken.] [OE. striken to strike, proceed, flow, AS. strican to go, proceed, akin to D. strijken to rub, stroke, strike, to move, go, G. streichen, OHG. strihhan, L. stringere to touch lightly, to graze, to strip off (but perhaps not to L. stringere in sense to draw tight), striga a row, a furrow. Cf. Streak, Stroke.]
1. To touch or hit with some force, either with the hand or with an instrument; to smite; to give a blow to, either with the hand or with any instrument or missile.
"He at Philippi kept
His sword e’en like a dancer; while I struck
The lean and wrinkled Cassius." Shak.
2. To come in collision with; to strike against; as a bullet struck him; the wave struck the boat amidships; the ship struck a reef.
3. To give, as a blow; to impel, as with a blow; to give a force to; to dash; to cast.
"They shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two sideposts." Ex. xii. 7.
"Who would be free, themselves must strike the blow." Byron.
4. To stamp or impress with a stroke; to coin; as to strike coin from metal: to strike dollars at the mint.
5. To thrust in; to cause to enter or penetrate; to set in the earth; as a tree strikes its roots deep.
6. To punish; to afflict; to smite.
"To punish the just is not good, nor strike princes for equity." Prov. xvii. 26.
7. To cause to sound by one or more beats; to indicate or notify by audible strokes; as the clock strikes twelve; the drums strike up a march.
8. To lower; to let or take down; to remove; as to strike sail; to strike a flag or an ensign, as in token of surrender; to strike a yard or a topmast in a gale; to strike a tent; to strike the centering of an arch.
9. To make a sudden impression upon, as by a blow; to affect sensibly with some strong emotion; as to strike the mind, with surprise; to strike one with wonder, alarm, dread, or horror.
"Nice works of art strike and surprise us most on the first view." Atterbury.
"They please as beauties, here as wonders strike." Pope.
10. To affect in some particular manner by a sudden impression or impulse; as the plan proposed strikes me favorably; to strike one dead or blind.
"How often has stricken you dumb with his irony!" Landor.
11. To cause or produce by a stroke, or suddenly, as by a stroke; as to strike a light.
"Waving wide her myrtle wand,
She strikes a universal peace through sea and land." Milton.
12. To cause to ignite; as to strike a match.
13. To make and ratify; as to strike a bargain. Probably borrowed from the L. fœdus ferrire, to strike a compact, so called because an animal was struck and killed as a sacrifice on such occasions.
14. To take forcibly or fraudulently; as to strike money. [Old Slang]
15. To level, as a measure of grain, salt, or the like, by scraping off with a straight instrument what is above the level of the top.
16. (Masonry) To cut off, as a mortar joint, even with the face of the wall, or inward at a slight angle.
17. To hit upon, or light upon, suddenly; as my eye struck a strange word; they soon struck the trail.
18. To borrow money of; to make a demand upon; as he struck a friend for five dollars. [Slang]
19. To lade into a cooler, as a liquor. B. Edwards.
20. To stroke or pass lightly; to wave.
"Behold, I thought, He will … strike his hand over the place, and recover the leper." 2 Kings v. 11.
21. To advance; to cause to go forward; — used only in past participle. "Well struck in years." Shak. To strike an attitude, To strike a balance. See under Attitude, and Balance. — To strike a jury (Law), to constitute a special jury ordered by a court, by each party striking out a certain number of names from a prepared list of jurors, so as to reduce it to the number of persons required by law. Burrill. — To strike a lead. (a) (Mining) To find a vein of ore. (b) Fig.: To find a way to fortune. [Colloq.] — To strikea ledger, or an account, to balance it. — To strike hands with. (a) To shake hands with. Halliwell. (b) To make a compact or agreement with; to agree with. — To strike off. (a) To erase from an account; to deduct; as to strike off the interest of a debt. (b) (Print.) To impress; to print; as to strike off a thousand copies of a book. (c) To separate by a blow or any sudden action; as to strike off what is superfluous or corrupt. — To strike oil, to find petroleum when boring for it; figuratively, to make a lucky hit financially. [Slang, U.S.] — To strike one luck, to shake hands with one and wish good luck. [Obs.] Beau. & Fl. — To strike out. (a) To produce by collision; to force out, as to strike out sparks with steel. (b) To blot out; to efface; to erase. "To methodize is as necessary as to strike out." Pope. (c) To form by a quick effort; to devise; to invent; to contrive, as to strike out a new plan of finance. (d) (Baseball) To cause a player to strike out; — said of the pitcher. See To strike out, under Strike, v. i. — To strike sail. See under Sail. — To strike up. (a) To cause to sound; to begin to beat. "Strike up the drums." Shak. (b) To begin to sing or play; as to strike up a tune. (c) To raise (as sheet metal), in making diahes, pans, etc., by blows or pressure in a die. — To strike work, to quit work; to go on a strike.
Strike, n.
1. A sudden finding of rich ore in mining; hence, any sudden success or good fortune, esp. financial.
2. (Bowling, U. S.) Act of leveling all the pins with the first bowl; also the score thus made. Sometimes called double spare.
3. (Baseball) Any actual or constructive striking at the pitched ball, three of which, if the ball is not hit fairly, cause the batter to be put out; hence, any of various acts or events which are ruled as equivalent to such a striking, as failing to strike at a ball so pitched that the batter should have struck at it.
4. (Tenpins) Same as Ten- strike.
Striking
Strik´ing, a. & n. from Strike, v. Striking distance, the distance through which an object can be reached by striking; the distance at which a force is effective when directed to a particular object. — Striking plate. (a) The plate against which the latch of a door lock strikes as the door is closed. (b) A part of the centering of an arch, which is driven back to loosen the centering in striking it.
String (string), n. [OE. string, streng, AS. streng; akin to D. streng, G. strang, Icel. strengr, Sw. sträng, Dan. straeng; probably from the adj., E. strong (see Strong); or perhaps originally meaning, twisted, and akin to E. strangle.]
1. A small cord, a line, a twine, or a slender strip of leather, or other substance, used for binding together, fastening, or tying things; a cord, larger than a thread and smaller than a rope; as a shoe string; a bonnet string; a silken string. Shak.
"Round Ormond’s knee thou tiest the mystic string." Prior.
2. A thread or cord on which a number of objects or parts are strung or arranged in close and orderly succession; hence, a line or series of things arranged on a thread, or as if so arranged; a succession; a concatenation; a chain; as a string of shells or beads; a string of dried apples; a string of houses; a string of arguments. "A string of islands." Gibbon.
3. A strip, as of leather, by which the covers of a book are held together. Milton.
4. The cord of a musical instrument, as of a piano, harp, or violin; specifically ( pl. ), the stringed instruments of an orchestra, in distinction from the wind instruments; as the strings took up the theme. "An instrument of ten strings." Ps. xxx. iii. 2.
"Me softer airs befit, and softer strings
Of lute, or viol still." Milton.
5. The line or cord of a bow. Ps. xi. 2.
"He twangs the grieving string." Pope.
6. A fiber, as of a plant; a little, fibrous root.
"Duckweed putteth forth a little string into the water, from the bottom." Bacon.
7. A nerve or tendon of an animal body.
"The string of his tongue was loosed." Mark vii. 35.
8. (Shipbuilding) An inside range of ceiling planks, corresponding to the sheer strake on the outside and bolted to it.
9. (Bot.) The tough fibrous substance that unites the valves of the pericap of leguminous plants, and which is readily pulled off; as the strings of beans.
10. (Mining) A small, filamentous ramification of a metallic vein. Ure.
11. (Arch.) Same as Stringcourse.
12. (Billiards) The points made in a game. String band (Mus.), a band of musicians using only, or chiefly, stringed instruments. — String beans. (a) A dish prepared from the unripe pods of several kinds of beans; — so called because the strings are stripped off. (b) Any kind of beans in which the pods are used for cooking before the seeds are ripe; usually, the low bush bean. — To have two strings to one’s bow, to have a means or expedient in reserve in case the one employed fails.
String (string), v. t. [ imp. Strung (strung); p. p. Strung (R. Stringed (stringd)); p. pr. & vb. n. Stringing.]
1. To furnish with strings; as to string a violin.
"Has not wise nature strung the legs and feet
With firmest nerves, designed to walk the street?" Gay.
2. To put in tune the strings of, as a stringed instrument, in order to play upon it.
"For here the Muse so oft her harp has strung,
That not a mountain rears its head unsung." Addison.
3. To put on a string; to file; as to string beads.
4. To make tense; to strengthen.
"Toil strung the nerves, and purified the blood." Dryden.
5. To deprive of strings; to strip the strings from; as to string beans. See String, n. , 9.
Stringency
Strin´gen•cy (strin"j en•sy), n. The quality or state of being stringent.
Stringendo
Strin´gen•do, a. [It.] (Mus.) Urging or hastening the time, as to a climax.
Stringent
Strin´gent (strin"j ent), a. [L. stringens, -entis, p. pr. of stringere to draw or bind tight. See Strain.] Binding strongly; making strict requirements; restrictive; rigid; severe; as stringent rules.
"They must be subject to a sharper penal code, and to a more stringent code of procedure." Macaulay. — Strin´gent•ly, adv. — Strin´gent•ness, n.
Stringless
String´less, a. Having no strings.
"His tongue is now a stringless instrument." Shak.
Strip, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stripped p. pr. & vb. n. Stripping.] [OE. stripen, strepen, AS. strpan in be strpan to plunder; akin to D. stroopen, MHG. stroufen, G. streifen.]
1. To deprive; to bereave; to make destitute; to plunder; especially, to deprive of a covering; to skin; to peel; as to strip a man of his possession, his rights, his privileges, his reputation; to strip one of his clothes; to strip a beast of his skin; to strip a tree of its bark.
"And strippen her out of her rude array." Chaucer.
"They stripped Joseph out of his coat." Gen. xxxvii. 23.
"Opinions which … no clergyman could have avowed without imminent risk of being stripped of his gown." Macaulay.
2. To divest of clothing; to uncover.
"Before the folk herself strippeth she." Chaucer.
"Strip your sword stark naked." Shak.
3. (Naut.) To dismantle; as to strip a ship of rigging, spars, etc.
4. (Agric.) To pare off the surface of, as land, in strips.
5. To deprive of all milk; to milk dry; to draw the last milk from; hence, to milk with a peculiar movement of the hand on the teats at the last of a milking; as to strip a cow.
6. To pass; to get clear of; to outstrip. [Obs.]
"When first they stripped the Malean promontory." Chapman.
"Before he reached it he was out of breath,
And then the other stripped him." Beau. & Fl.
7. To pull or tear off, as a covering; to remove; to wrest away; as to strip the skin from a beast; to strip the bark from a tree; to strip the clothes from a man’s back; to strip away all disguisses.
"To strip bad habits from a corrupted heart, is stripping off the skin." Gilpin.
8. (Mach.) (a) To tear off (the thread) from a bolt or nut; as the thread is stripped. (b) To tear off the thread from (a bolt or nut); as the bolt is stripped.
9. To remove the metal coating from (a plated article), as by acids or electrolytic action.
10. (Carding) To remove fiber, flock, or lint from; — said of the teeth of a card when it becomes partly clogged.
11. To pick the cured leaves from the stalks of (tobacco) and tie them into "hands"; to remove the midrib from (tobacco leaves).
Strip, v. i.
1. To take off, or become divested of, clothes or covering; to undress.
2. (Mach.) To fail in the thread; to lose the thread, as a bolt, screw, or nut. See Strip, v. t., 8.
Stripe, n. [OD. strijpe a stripe, streak; akin to LG. stripe, D. streep, Dan. stribe, G. strief, striefen, MHG. striefen to glide, march.]
1. A line, or long, narrow division of anything of a different color or structure from the ground; hence, any linear variation of color or structure; as a stripe, or streak, of red on a green ground; a raised stripe.
2. (Weaving) A pattern produced by arranging the warp threads in sets of alternating colors, or in sets presenting some other contrast of appearance.
3. A strip, or long, narrow piece attached to something of a different color; as a red or blue stripe sewed upon a garment.
4. A stroke or blow made with a whip, rod, scourge, or the like, such as usually leaves a mark.
"Forty stripes he may give him, and not exceed." Deut. xxv. 3.
5. A long, narrow discoloration of the skin made by the blow of a lash, rod, or the like.
"Cruelty marked him with inglorious stripes." Thomson.
6. Color indicating a party or faction; hence, distinguishing characteristic; sign; likeness; sort; as persons of the same political stripe. [Colloq. U.S.]
7. pl. (Mil.) The chevron on the coat of a noncommissioned officer. Stars and Stripes. See under Star, n.
Stripe, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Striped p. pr. & vb. n. Striping.]
1. To make stripes upon; to form with lines of different colors or textures; to variegate with stripes.
2. To strike; to lash. [R.]
Striped, a. Having stripes of different colors; streaked. Striped bass. (Zoöl.) See under Bass. — Striped maple (Bot.), a slender American tree ( Acer Pennsylvanicum) with finely striped bark. Called also striped dogwood, and moosewood. — Striped mullet. (Zoöl.) See under Mullet, 2. — Striped snake (Zoöl.), the garter snake. — Striped squirrel (Zoöl.), the chipmunk.
Strip-leaf
Strip´-leaf, n. Tobacco which has been stripped of its stalks before packing.
Stripper
Strip´per, n. One who, or that which, strips; specifically, a machine for stripping cards.
Strive, v. i. [ imp. Strove p. p. Striven (Rarely, Strove); p. pr. & vb. n. Striving.] [OF. estriver; of Teutonic origin, and akin to G. streben, D. streven, Dan. straebe, Sw. sträfva. Cf. Strife.]
1. To make efforts; to use exertions; to endeavor with earnestness; to labor hard.
"Was for this his ambition strove
To equal Caesar first, and after, Jove?" Cowley.
2. To struggle in opposition; to be in contention or dispute; to contend; to contest; — followed by against or with before the person or thing opposed; as strive against temptation; strive for the truth. Chaucer.
"My Spirit shall not always strive with man." Gen. vi. 3.
"Why dost thou strive against him?" Job xxxiii. 13.
"Now private pity strove with public hate,
Reason with rage, and eloquence with fate." Denham.
3. To vie; to compete; to be a rival. Chaucer.
"[Not] that sweet grove
Of Daphne, by Orontes and the inspired
Castalian spring, might with this paradise
Of Eden strive." Milton.
Syn. — To contend; vie; struggle; endeavor; aim.
Strived, obs. p. p. of Strive. Striven.
"Yea, so have I strived to preach the gospel." Rom. xv. 20.
Striving
Striv´ing, a. & n. from Strive. — Striv´ing•ly, adv.
Strix, n. [L. strix, strigis.] (Arch.) One of the flutings of a column.
Strobilaceous
Strob•i•la´ceous, a. [See Strobila.] (Bot.) (a) Of or pertaining to a strobile or cone. (b) Producing strobiles.
Strobilation
Strob•i•la´tion, n. (Zoöl.) The act or phenomenon of spontaneously dividing transversely, as do certain species of annelids and helminths; transverse fission. See Illust. under Syllidian.
Strobile
Strob´ile, n. [L. strobilus a pine cone, Gr. : cf. F. strobole.] [Written also strobil.]
1. (Bot.) A scaly multiple fruit resulting from the ripening of an ament in certain plants, as the hop or pine; a cone. See Cone, n. , 3.
2. (Biol.) An individual asexually producing sexual individuals differing from itself also in other respects, as the tapeworm, — one of the forms that occur in metagenesis.
3. (Zoöl.) Same as Strobila.
Stroboscope
Strob´o•scope, n. [Gr. a whirling + -scope.]
1. An instrument for studying or observing the successive phases of a periodic or varying motion by means of light which is periodically interrupted.
2. An optical toy similar to the phenakistoscope. See Phenakistoscope.
Strode, n. See Strude. [Obs.]
Stroke, obs. imp. of Strike. Struck.
Stroke, n. [OE. strok, strook, strak, fr. striken. See Strike, v. t.]
1. The act of striking; a blow; a hit; a knock; esp., a violent or hostile attack made with the arm or hand, or with an instrument or weapon.
"His hand fetcheth a stroke with the ax to cut down the tree." Deut. xix. 5.
"A fool’s lips enter into contention and his mouth calleth for strokes." Prov. xviii. 6.
"He entered and won the whole kingdom of Naples without striking a stroke." Bacon.
2. The result of effect of a striking; injury or affliction; soreness.
"In the day that Lord bindeth up the breach of his people, and healeth the stroke of their wound." Isa. xxx. 26.
3. The striking of the clock to tell the hour.
"Well, but what’s o’clock?
- Upon the stroke of ten. — Well, let is strike." Shak.
4. A gentle, caressing touch or movement upon something; a stroking. Dryden.
5. A mark or dash in writing or printing; a line; the touch of a pen or pencil; as an up stroke; a firm stroke.
"O, lasting as those colors may they shine,
Free as thy stroke, yet faultless as thy line." Pope.
6. Hence, by extension, an addition or amandment to a written composition; a touch; as to give some finishing strokes to an essay. Addison.
7. A sudden attack of disease; especially, a fatal attack; a severe disaster; any affliction or calamity, especially a sudden one; as a stroke of apoplexy; the stroke of death.
"At this one stroke the man looked dead in law." Harte.
8. A throb or beat, as of the heart. Tennyson.
9. One of a series of beats or movements against a resisting medium, by means of which movement through or upon it is accomplished; as the stroke of a bird’s wing in flying, or an oar in rowing, of a skater, swimmer, etc.; also: (Rowing) (a) The rate of succession of stroke; as a quick stroke. (b) The oar nearest the stern of a boat, by which the other oars are guided; - - called also stroke oar. (c) The rower who pulls the stroke oar; the strokesman.
10. A powerful or sudden effort by which something is done, produced, or accomplished; also something done or accomplished by such an effort; as a stroke of genius; a stroke of business; a master stroke of policy.
11. (Mach.) The movement, in either direction, of the piston plunger, piston rod, crosshead, etc., as of a steam engine or a pump, in which these parts have a reciprocating motion; as the forward stroke of a piston; also the entire distance passed through, as by a piston, in such a movement; as the piston is at half stroke. The respective strokes are distinguished as up and down strokes, outward and inward strokes, forward and back strokes, the forward stroke in stationary steam engines being toward the crosshead, but in locomotives toward the front of the vehicle.
12. Power; influence. [Obs.] "Where money beareth [hath] all the stroke." Robynson (More’s Utopia).
"He has a great stroke with the reader." Dryden.
13. Appetite. [Obs.] Swift. To keep stroke, to make strokes in unison.
"The oars where silver,
Which to the tune of flutes kept stroke." Shak.
Stroke, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Strokeed p. pr. & vb. n. Strokeing.] [OE. stroken, straken, AS. stracian, fr. strican to go over, pass. See Strike, v. t., and cf. Straggle.]
1. To strike. [Obs.]
"Ye mote with the plat sword again Stroken him in the wound, and it will close." Chaucer.
2. To rib gently in one direction; especially, to pass the hand gently over by way of expressing kindness or tenderness; to caress; to soothe.
"He dried the falling drops, and, yet more kind,
He stroked her cheeks." Dryden.
3. To make smooth by rubbing. Longfellow.
4. (Masonry) To give a finely fluted surface to.
5. To row the stroke oar of; as to stroke a boat.
Stroking
Strok´ing, n.
1. The act of rubbing gently with the hand, or of smoothing; a stroke.
"I doubt not with one gentle stroking to wipe away ten thousand tears." Milton.
2. (Needlework) The act of laying small gathers in cloth in regular order.
3. pl. See Stripping, 2. Smollett.
Stroll, v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Strolled p. pr. & vb. n. Strolling.] [Cf. Dan. stryge to stroll, Sw. stryka to stroke, to ramble, dial. Sw. strykel one who strolls about, Icel. strjka to stroke, D. struikelen to stumble, G. straucheln. Cf. Struggle.] To wander on foot; to ramble idly or leisurely; to rove.
"These mothers stroll to beg sustenance for their helpless infants." Swift.
Syn. — To rove; roam; range; stray.
Stroll, n. A wandering on foot; an idle and leisurely walk; a ramble.
Stromb, n. (Zoöl.) Any marine univalve mollusk of the genus Strombus and allied genera. See Conch, and Strombus.
Strombite
Strom´bite, n. (Paleon.) A fossil shell of the genus Strombus.
Stromboid
Strom´boid, a. [ Strombus + -oid.] (Zoöl.) Of, pertaining to, or like, Strombus.
Strombuliform
Strom•bu´li•form, a. [NL. strombulus, dim. of strombus + -form. See Strombus.]
1. (Geol.) Formed or shaped like a top.
2. (Bot.) Coiled into the shape of a screw or a helix.
Strombus
Strom´bus, n. [L., fr. Gr. .] (Zoöl.) A genus of marine gastropods in which the shell has the outer lip dilated into a broad wing. It includes many large and handsome species commonly called conch shells, or conchs. See Conch.
Strong, a. [ Compar. Stronger superl. Strongest ] [AS. strang, strong; akin to D. & G. streng strict, rigorous, OHG. strengi strong, brave, harsh, Icel. strangr strong, severe, Dan. streng, Sw. sträng strict, severe. Cf. Strength, Stretch, String.]
1. Having active physical power, or great physical power to act; having a power of exerting great bodily force; vigorous.
"That our oxen may be strong to labor." Ps. cxliv. 14.
"Orses the strong to greater strength must yield." Dryden.
2. Having passive physical power; having ability to bear or endure; firm; hale; sound; robust; as a strong constitution; strong health.
3. Solid; tough; not easily broken or injured; able to withstand violence; able to sustain attacks; not easily subdued or taken; as a strong beam; a strong rock; a strong fortress or town.
4. Having great military or naval force; powerful; as a strong army or fleet; a nation strong at sea.
5. Having great wealth, means, or resources; as a strong house, or company of merchants.
6. Reaching a certain degree or limit in respect to strength or numbers; as an army ten thousand strong.
7. Moving with rapidity or force; violent; forcible; impetuous; as a strong current of water or wind; the wind was strong from the northeast; a strong tide.
8. Adapted to make a deep or effectual impression on the mind or imagination; striking or superior of the kind; powerful; forcible; cogent; as a strong argument; strong reasons; strong evidence; a strong example; strong language.
9. Ardent; eager; zealous; earnestly engaged; as a strong partisan; a strong Whig or Tory.
"Her mother, ever strong against that match." Shak.
10. Having virtues of great efficacy; or, having a particular quality in a great degree; as a strong powder or tincture; a strong decoction; strong tea or coffee.
11. Full of spirit; containing a large proportion of alcohol; intoxicating; as strong liquors.
12. Affecting any sense powerfully; as strong light, colors, etc.; a strong flavor of onions; a strong scent.
13. Solid; nourishing; as strong meat. Heb. v. 12.
14. Well established; firm; not easily overthrown or altered; as a strong custom; a strong belief.
15. Violent; vehement; earnest; ardent.
"He had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears." Heb. v. 7.
16. Having great force, vigor, power, or the like, as the mind, intellect, or any faculty; as a man of a strong mind, memory, judgment, or imagination.
"I was stronger in prophecy than in criticism." Dryden.
17. Vigorous; effective; forcible; powerful.
"Like her sweet voice is thy harmonious song,
As high, as sweet, as easy, and as strong." E. Smith.
18. (Stock Exchange) Tending to higher prices; rising; as a strong market.
19. (Gram.) (a) Pertaining to, or designating, a verb which forms its preterit (imperfect) by a variation in the root vowel, and the past participle (usually) by the addition of -en (with or without a change of the root vowel); as in the verbs strive, strove, striven; break, broke, broken; drink, drank, drunk. Opposed to weak, or regular. See Weak. (b) Applied to forms in Anglo-Saxon, etc., which retain the old declensional endings. In the Teutonic languages the vowel stems have held the original endings most firmly, and are called strong; the stems in -n are called weak other constant stems conform, or are irregular. F. A. March.Strong conjugation (Gram.), the conjugation of a strong verb; — called also old, or irregular, conjugation, and distinguished from the weak, or regular, conjugation. Strong is often used in the formation of self- explaining compounds; as strong-backed, strong-based, strong-bodied, strong-colored, strong-fisted, strong-handed, strong-ribbed, strong-smelling, strong-voiced, etc.
Syn. — Vigorous; powerful; stout; solid; firm; hardy; muscular; forcible; cogent; valid. See Robust.
Stronghold
Strong´hold, n. A fastness; a fort or fortress; fortfield place; a place of security.
Strontium
Stron´ti•um, n. [NL. See Strontia.] (Chem.) A metallic element of the calcium group, always naturally occurring combined, as in the minerals strontianite, celestite, etc. It is isolated as a yellowish metal, somewhat malleable but harder than calcium. It is chiefly employed (as in the nitrate) to color pyrotechnic flames red. Symbol Sr. Atomic weight 87.3.
Strook, obs. imp. of Strike. Dryden.
Stroot, v. t. [Cf. Strut, v. i.] To swell out; to strut. [Obs.] Chapman.
Strop, n. [See Strap.] A strap; specifically, same as Strap, 3.
Strop, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stropped p. pr. & vb. n. Stropping.] To draw over, or rub upon, a strop with a view to sharpen; as to strop a razor.
Strop, n. [Cf. F. estrope, etrope, fr. L. struppus. See Strop a strap.] (Naut.) A piece of rope spliced into a circular wreath, and put round a block for hanging it.
Strophe
Stro´phe, n. ; pl. Strophes (#). [NL., from Gr., fr. to twist, to turn; perh. akin to E. strap.] In Greek choruses and dances, the movement of the chorus while turning from the right to the left of the orchestra; hence, the strain, or part of the choral ode, sung during this movement. Also sometimes used of a stanza of modern verse. See the Note under Antistrophe.
Stroud, n. A kind of coarse blanket or garment used by the North American Indians.
Strout, v. i. [See Strut.] To swell; to puff out; to project. [Obs.] Chaucer.
Strout, v. t. To cause to project or swell out; to enlarge affectedly; to strut. [Obs.] Bacon.
Strow, v. t. [ imp. Strowed p. p. Strown or Strowed.] Same as Strew.
"Thick as autumnal leaves that strow the brooks
In Vallombrosa." Milton.
"A manner turbid … and strown with blemished." M. Arnold.
Struck, imp. & p. p. of Strike. Struck jury (Law), a special jury, composed of persons having special knowledge or qualifications, selected by striking from the panel of jurors a certain number for each party, leaving the number required by law to try the cause.
Structural
Struc´tur•al, a.
1. Of or pertaining to structure; affecting structure; as a structural error.
2. (Biol.) Of or pertaining to organit structure; as a structural element or cell; the structural peculiarities of an animal or a plant. Structural formula. (Chem.) See Rational formula, under Formula.
Structure
Struc´ture, n. [L. structura, from struere, structum, to arrange, build, construct; perhaps akin to E. strew: cf. F. structure. Cf. Construe, Destroy, Instrument, Obstruct.]
1. The act of building; the practice of erecting buildings; construction. [R.]
"His son builds on, and never is content
Till the last farthing is in structure spent." J. Dryden, Jr.
2. Manner of building; form; make; construction.
"Want of insight into the structure and constitution of the terraqueous globe." Woodward.
3. Arrangement of parts, of organs, or of constituent particles, in a substance or body; as the structure of a rock or a mineral; the structure of a sentence.
"It [basalt] has often a prismatic structure." Dana.
4. (Biol.) Manner of organization; the arrangement of the different tissues or parts of animal and vegetable organisms; as organic structure, or the structure of animals and plants; cellular structure.
5. That which is built; a building; esp., a building of some size or magnificence; an edifice.
"There stands a structure of majestic frame." Pope. Columnar structure. See under Columnar.
Structurist
Struc´tur•ist, n. One who forms structures; a builder; a constructor. [R.]
Strude, n. A stock of breeding mares. [Written also strode.] [Obs.] Bailey.
Struggle
Strug´gle, v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Struggled p. pr. & vb. n. Struggling ] [OE. strogelen; cf. Icel. strjka to stroke, to beat, to flog, Sw. stryka to stroke, to strike, Dan. stryge, G. straucheln to stumble. Cf. Stroll.]
1. To strive, or to make efforts, with a twisting, or with contortions of the body.
2. To use great efforts; to labor hard; to strive; to contend forcibly; as to struggle to save one’s life; to struggle with the waves; to struggle with adversity.
"The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it [Gettysburg] far above our power to add or detract." Lincoln.
3. To labor in pain or anguish; to be in agony; to labor in any kind of difficulty or distress.
"’T is wisdom to beware,
And better shun the bait than struggle in the snare." Dryden.
Syn. — To strive; contend; labor; endeavor.
Strum, v. t. & i. [ imp. & p. p. Strummed p. pr. & vb. n. Strumming.] [Probably of imitative origin. Cf. Thrum.] To play on an instrument of music, or as on an instrument, in an unskillful or noisy way; to thrum; as to strum a piano.
Strumstrum
Strum´strum, n. A rude musical instrument somewhat like a cittern. [R.] Dampier.
Struntian
Strun´tian, n. A kind of worsted braid, about an inch broad. [Scot.] Jamieson.
Struse, n. [Russ. strug’.] (Naut.) A Russian river craft used for transporting freight.
Strut, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Strutted p. pr. & vb. n. Strutting.] [OE. struten, strouten, to swell; akin to G. strozen to be swelled, to be puffed up, to strut, Dan. strutte.]
1. To swell; to bulge out. [R.]
"The bellying canvas strutted with the gale." Dryden.
2. To walk with a lofty, proud gait, and erect head; to walk with affected dignity.
"Does he not hold up his head, … and strut in his gait?" Shak.
Strut, n. [For senses 2 & 3 cf. LG. strutt rigid.]
1. The act of strutting; a pompous step or walk.
2. (Arch.) In general, any piece of a frame which resists thrust or pressure in the direction of its own length. See Brace, and Illust. of Frame, and Roof.
3. (Engin.) Any part of a machine or structure, of which the principal function is to hold things apart; a brace subjected to compressive stress; — the opposite of stay, and tie.
Strut, v. t. To hold apart. Cf. Strut, n. , 3.
Strut, a. Protuberant. [Obs.] Holland. Stru´thi•an, a. (Zoöl.) Struthious.
Struthioidea
Stru•thi•oi´de•a, n. pl. [NL. See Struthio, and -oid.] (Zoöl.) Same as Struthiones.
Struthiones
Stru•thi•o´nes, n. pl. [NL. See Struthio.] (Zoöl.) (a) A division, or order, of birds, including only the African ostriches. (b) In a wider sense, an extensive group of birds including the ostriches, cassowaries, emus, moas and allied birds incapable of flight. In this sense it is equivalent to Ratitae, or Dromaeognathae.
Strutting
Strut´ting, a. & n. from Strut, v. — Strut´ting•ly, adv.
Strychnia
Strych´ni•a, n. [NL. See Strychnine.] (Chem.) Strychnine.
Strychnos
Strych´nos, n. [L., a kind of nightshade, Gr. .] (Bot.) A genus of tropical trees and shrubs of the order Loganiaceae. See Nux vomica.
Stub, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stubbed p. pr. & vb. n. Stubbing.]
1. To grub up by the roots; to extirpate; as to stub up edible roots.
"What stubbing, plowing, digging, and harrowing is to a piece of land." Berkley.
2. To remove stubs from; as to stub land.
3. To strike as the toes, against a stub, stone, or other fixed object. [U. S.]
Stubbedness
Stub´bed•ness, n. The quality or state of being stubbed.
Stubble
Stub´ble, n. [OE. stobil, stoble, OF. estouble, estuble, F. etuele, LL. stupla, stupula, L. stipula stubble, stalk; cf. D. & G. stopped, OHG. stupfila. Cf. Stipule.] The stumps of wheat, rye, barley, oats, or buckwheat, left in the ground; the part of the stalk left by the scythe or sickle. "After the first crop is off, they plow in the wheast stubble." Mortimer. Stubble goose (Zoöl.), the graylag goose. [Prov. Eng.] Chaucer. — Stubble rake, a rake with long teeth for gleaning in stubble.
Stubborn
Stub´born, a. [OE. stoburn, stiborn; probably fr. AS. styb a stub. See Stub.] Firm as a stub or stump; stiff; unbending; unyielding; persistent; hence, unreasonably obstinate in will or opinion; not yielding to reason or persuasion; refractory; harsh; — said of persons and things; as stubborn wills; stubborn ore; a stubborn oak; as stubborn as a mule. "Bow, stubborn knees." Shak. "Stubborn attention and more than common application." Locke. "Stubborn Stoics." Swift.
"And I was young and full of ragerie [wantonness] Stubborn and strong, and jolly as a pie." Chaucer.
"These heretics be so stiff and stubborn." Sir T. More.
"Your stubborn usage of the pope." Shak.
Syn. — Obstinate; inflexible; obdurate; headstrong; stiff; hardy; firm; refractory; intractable; rugged; contumacious; heady. — Stubborn, Obstinate. Obstinate is used of either active or passive persistence in one’s views or conduct, in spite of the wishes of others. Stubborn describes an extreme degree of passive obstinacy. — Stub´born•ly, adv. — Stub´born•ness, n.
Stubby
Stub´by, a.
1. Abounding with stubs.
2. Short and thick; short and strong, as bristles.
Stucco
Stuc´co, n. ; pl. Stuccoes (#), Stuccos. [It., fr. OHG. stucchi a crust, piece, G. stück piece; akin to AS. stycce. See Stock.]
1. Plaster of any kind used as a coating for walls, especially, a fine plaster, composed of lime or gypsum with sand and pounded marble, used for internal decorations and fine work.
2. Work made of stucco; stuccowork.
Stucco
Stuc´co, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stuccoed p. pr. & vb. n. Stuccoing ] To overlay or decorate with stucco, or fine plaster.
Stuck, n. [Cf. 1st Stoccado.] A thrust. [Obs.] Shak.
Stuckle
Stuc´kle, n. [From Stook.] A number of sheaves set together in the field; a stook.
Stud, n. [OE. stod, stood, AS. stod; akin to OHG. stuota, G. stute a mare, Icel. sto stud, Lith. stodas a herd, Russ. stado, and to E. stand. The sense is properly, a stand, an establishment. rad.163. See Stand, and cf. Steed.] A collection of breeding horses and mares, or the place where they are kept; also a number of horses kept for a racing, riding, etc.
"In the studs of Ireland, where care is taken, we see horses bred of excellent shape, vigor, and size." Sir W. Temple.
"He had the finest stud in England, and his delight was to win plates from Tories." Macaulay.
Stud, n. [AS. studu a post; akin to Sw. stöd a prop, Icel. sto a post, styja to prop, and probably ultimately to E. stand; cf. D. stut a prop, G. stütze. See Stand.]
1. A stem; a trunk. [Obs.]
"Seest not this same hawthorn stud?" Spenser.
2. (Arch.) An upright scanting, esp. one of the small uprights in the framing for lath and plaster partitions, and furring, and upon which the laths are nailed.
3. A kind of nail with a large head, used chiefly for ornament; an ornamental knob; a boss.
"A belt of straw and ivy buds,
With coral clasps and amber studs." Marlowe.
"Crystal and myrrhine cups, embossed with gems
And studs of pearl." Milton.
4. An ornamental button of various forms, worn in a shirt front, collar, wristband, or the like, not sewed in place, but inserted through a buttonhole or eyelet, and transferable.
5. (Mach.) (a) A short rod or pin, fixed in and projecting from something, and sometimes forming a journal. (b) A stud bolt.
6. An iron brace across the shorter diameter of the link of a chain cable. Stud bolt, a bolt with threads on both ends, to be screwed permanently into a fixed part at one end and receive a nut upon the other; — called also standing bolt.
Stud, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Studded p. pr. & vb. n. Studding.]
1. To adorn with shining studs, or knobs.
"Thy horses shall be trapped,
Their harness studded all with gold and pearl." Shak.
2. To set with detached ornaments or prominent objects; to set thickly, as with studs.
"The sloping sides and summits of our hills, and the extensive plains that stretch before our view, are studded with substantial, neat, and commodious dwellings of freemen." Bp. Hobart.
Studding
Stud´ding, n. Material for studs, or joists; studs, or joists, collectively; studs.
Studding sail
Stud"ding sail (Naut.) A light sail set at the side of a principal or square sail of a vessel in free winds, to increase her speed. Its head is bent to a small spar which is called the studding-sail boom. See Illust. of Sail. Toten.
Student
Stu´dent, n. [L. studens, -entis, p. pr. of studere to study. See Study, n. ]
1. A person engaged in study; one who is devoted to learning; a learner; a pupil; a scholar; especially, one who attends a school, or who seeks knowledge from professional teachers or from books; as the students of an academy, a college, or a university; a medical student; a hard student.
"Keep a gamester from the dice, and a good student from his book." Shak.
2. One who studies or examines in any manner; an attentive and systematic observer; as a student of human nature, or of physical nature.
Stud-horse
Stud´-horse, n. [AS. stod- hors.] A stallion, esp. one kept for breeding.
Studio
Stu´di•o, n. ; pl. Studios (#). [It. studio, properly, study. See Study.] The working room of an artist.
Studious
Stu´di•ous, a. [L. studious: cf. F. studieux. See Study.]
1. Given to study; devoted to the acquisition of knowledge from books; as a studious scholar.
2. Given to thought, or to the examination of subjects by contemplation; contemplative. Locke.
3. Earnest in endeavors; aiming sedulously; attentive; observant; diligent; — usually followed by an infinitive or by of; as be studious to please; studious to find new friends and allies.
"You that are so studious
Of my affairs, wholly neglect your own." Massinger.
4. Planned with study; deliberate; studied.
"For the frigid villainy of studious lewdness, … with apology can be invented?" Rambler.
5. Favorable to study; suitable for thought and contemplation; as the studious shade. [Poetic]
"But let my due feet never fail
To walk the studious cloister’s pale." Milton. — Stu´di•ous•ly, adv. — Stu´di•ous•ness, n.
Study
Stud´y, n. ; pl. Studies (#). [OE. studie, L. studium, akin to studere to study; possibly akin to Gr. haste, zeal, to hasten; cf. OF. estudie, estude, F. etude. Cf. Etude, Student, Studio, Study, v. i.]
1. A setting of the mind or thoughts upon a subject; hence, application of mind to books, arts, or science, or to any subject, for the purpose of acquiring knowledge.
"Hammond … spent thirteen hours of the day in study." Bp. Fell.
"Study gives strength to the mind; conversation, grace." Sir W. Temple.
2. Mental occupation; absorbed or thoughtful attention; meditation; contemplation.
"Just men they seemed, and all their study bent
To worship God aright, and know his works." Milton.
3. Any particular branch of learning that is studied; any object of attentive consideration.
"The Holy Scriptures, especially the New Testament, are her daily study." Law.
"The proper study of mankind is man." Pope.
4. A building or apartment devoted to study or to literary work. "His cheery little study." Hawthorne.
5. (Fine Arts) A representation or rendering of any object or scene intended, not for exhibition as an original work of art, but for the information, instruction, or assistance of the maker; as a study of heads or of hands for a figure picture.
6. (Mus.) A piece for special practice. See Etude.
Study
Stud´y, v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Studied p. pr. & vb. n. Studying ] [OE. studien, OF. estudier, F. etudier. See Study, n. ]
1. To fix the mind closely upon a subject; to dwell upon anything in thought; to muse; to ponder. Chaucer.
"I found a moral first, and then studied for a fable." Swift.
2. To apply the mind to books or learning. Shak.
3. To endeavor diligently; to be zealous. 1 Thes. iv. 11.
Stufa
Stu´fa, n. [It. stufa a stove. See Stove.] A jet of steam issuing from a fissure in the earth.
Stuff, n. [OF. estoffe, F. etoffe; of uncertain origin, perhaps of Teutonic origin and akin to E. stop, v.t. Cf. Stuff, v. t.]
1. Material which is to be worked up in any process of manufacture.
"For the stuff they had was sufficient for all the work to make it, and too much." Ex. xxxvi. 7.
"Ambitions should be made of sterner stuff." Shak.
"The workman on his stuff his skill doth show,
And yet the stuff gives not the man his skill." Sir J. Davies.
2. The fundamental material of which anything is made up; elemental part; essence.
"Yet do I hold it very stuff o’ the conscience
To do no contrived murder." Shak.
3. Woven material not made into garments; fabric of any kind; specifically, any one of various fabrics of wool or worsted; sometimes, worsted fiber.
"What stuff wilt have a kirtle of?" Shak.
"It [the arras] was of stuff and silk mixed, though, superior kinds were of silk exclusively." F. G. Lee.
4. Furniture; goods; domestic vessels or utensils.
"He took away locks, and gave away the king’s stuff." Hayward.
5. A medicine or mixture; a potion. Shak.
6. Refuse or worthless matter; hence, also foolish or irrational language; nonsense; trash.
"Anger would indite
Such woeful stuff as I or Shadwell write." Dryden.
7. (Naut.) A melted mass of turpentine, tallow, etc., with which the masts, sides, and bottom of a ship are smeared for lubrication. Ham. Nav. Encyc.
8. Paper stock ground ready for use. When partly ground, called half stuff. Knight. Clear stuff. See under Clear. — Small stuff (Naut.), all kinds of small cordage. Ham. Nav. Encyc. — Stuff gown, the distinctive garb of a junior barrister; hence, a junior barrister himself. See Silk gown, under Silk.
Stuff, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stuffed p. pr. & vb. n. Stuffing.] [OE. stoffen; cf. OF. estoffer, F. etoffer, to put stuff in, to stuff, to line, also OF. estouffer to stifle, F. etouffer; both perhaps of Teutonic origin, and akin to E. stop. Cf. Stop, v. t., Stuff, n. ]
1. To fill by crowding something into; to cram with something; to load to excess; as to stuff a bedtick.
"Sometimes this crook drew hazel bought adown,
And stuffed her apron wide with nuts so brown." Gay.
"Lest the gods, for sin,
Should with a swelling dropsy stuff thy skin." Dryden.
2. To thrust or crowd; to press; to pack.
"Put roses into a glass with a narrow mouth, stuffing them close together … and they retain smell and color." Bacon.
3. To fill by being pressed or packed into.
"With inward arms the dire machine they load,
And iron bowels stuff the dark abode." Dryden.
4. (Cookery) To fill with a seasoning composition of bread, meat, condiments, etc.; as to stuff a turkey.
5. To obstruct, as any of the organs; to affect with some obstruction in the organs of sense or respiration.
"I’m stuffed, cousin; I can not smell." Shak.
6. To fill the skin of, for the purpose of preserving as a specimen; — said of birds or other animals.
7. To form or fashion by packing with the necessary material.
"An Eastern king put a judge to death for an iniquitous sentence, and ordered his hide to be stuffed into a cushion, and placed upon the tribunal." Swift.
8. To crowd with facts; to cram the mind of; sometimes, to crowd or fill with false or idle tales or fancies.
9. To put fraudulent votes into (a ballot box). [U. S.]
Stuff, v. i. To feed gluttonously; to cram.
"Taught harmless man to cram and stuff." Swift.
Stull, n. [CF. Stum.] A framework of timber covered with boards to support rubbish; also a framework of boards to protect miners from falling stones. [Prov. Eng.]
Stultification
Stul•ti•fi•ca´tion, n. The act of stultifying, or the state of being stultified.
Stultify
Stul´ti•fy, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stultified p. pr. & vb. n. Stultifying ] [L. stultus foolish + -fy.]
1. To make foolish; to make a fool of; as to stultify one by imposition; to stultify one’s self by silly reasoning or conduct. Burke.
2. To regard as a fool, or as foolish. [R.]
"The modern sciolist stultifies all understanding but his own, and that which he conceives like his own." Hazlitt.
3. (Law) To allege or prove to be of unsound mind, so that the performance of some act may be avoided.
Stultiloquent
Stul•til´o•quent, a. [Cf. L. stultiloquus. See Stultiloquence.] Given to, or characterized by, silly talk; babbling. — Stul•til´o•quent•ly, adv.
Stulty
Stul´ty, a. [L. stultus foolish.] Foolish; silly. [Obs.] Testament of Love.
Stum, n. [D. stom must, new wort, properly, dumb; cf. F. vin muet stum. Cf. Stammer, Stoom.]
1. Unfermented grape juice or wine, often used to raise fermentation in dead or vapid wines; must.
"Let our wines, without mixture of stum, be all fine." B. Jonson.
"And with thy stum ferment their fainting cause." Dryden.
2. Wine revived by new fermentation, reulting from the admixture of must. Hudibras.
Stum, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stummed p. pr. & vb. n. Stumming.] To renew, as wine, by mixing must with it and raising a new fermentation.
"We stum our wines to renew their spirits." Floyer.
Stumble
Stum´ble, v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Stumbled p. pr. & vb. n. Stumbling ] [OE. stumblen, stomblen; freq. of a word akin to E. stammer. See Stammer.]
1. To trip in walking or in moving in any way with the legs; to strike the foot so as to fall, or to endanger a fall; to stagger because of a false step.
"There stumble steeds strong and down go all." Chaucer.
"The way of the wicked is as darkness: they know at what they stumble." Prov. iv. 19.
2. To walk in an unsteady or clumsy manner.
"He stumbled up the dark avenue." Sir W. Scott.
3. To fall into a crime or an error; to err.
"He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion og stumbling in him." 1 John ii. 10.
4. To strike or happen (upon a person or thing) without design; to fall or light by chance; — with on, upon, or against.
"Ovid stumbled, by some inadvertency, upon Livia in a bath." Dryden.
"Forth as she waddled in the brake,
A gray goose stumbled on a snake." C. Smart.
Stump, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stumped p. pr. & vb. n. Stumping.]
1. To cut off a part of; to reduce to a stump; to lop.
"Around the stumped top soft moss did grow." Dr. H. More.
2. To strike, as the toes, against a stone or something fixed; to stub. [Colloq.]
3. To challenge; also to nonplus. [Colloq.]
4. To travel over, delivering speeches for electioneering purposes; as to stump a State, or a district. See To go on the stump, under Stump, n. [Colloq. U.S.]
5. (Cricket) (a) To put (a batsman) out of play by knocking off the bail, or knocking down the stumps of the wicket he is defending while he is off his allotted ground; — sometimes with out. T. Hughes. (b) To bowl down the stumps of, as of a wicket.
"A herd of boys with clamor bowled,
And stumped the wicket." Tennyson. To stump it. (a) To go afoot; hence, to run away; to escape. [Slang] Ld. Lytton. (b) To make electioneering speeches. [Colloq. U.S.]
Stump, v. i. To walk clumsily, as if on stumps. To stump up, to pay cash. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.
Stun, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stunned p. pr. & vb. n. Stunning.] [OE. stonien, stownien; either fr. AS. stunian to resound (cf. D. stenen to groan, G. stöhnen, Icel. stynja, Gr., Skr. stan to thunder, and E. thunder), or from the same source as E. astonish. rad.168.]
1. To make senseless or dizzy by violence; to render senseless by a blow, as on the head.
"One hung a poleax at his saddlebow,
And one a heavy mace to stun the foe." Dryden.
2. To dull or deaden the sensibility of; to overcome; especially, to overpower one’s sense of hearing.
"And stunned him with the music of the spheres." Pope.
3. To astonish; to overpower; to bewilder.
"William was quite stunned at my discourse." De Foe.
Stunsail
Stun´sail, n. (Naut.) A contraction of Studding sail.
"With every rag set, stunsails, sky scrapers and all." Lowell.
Stunt, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stunted p. pr. & vb. n. Stunting.] [See Stint.] To hinder from growing to the natural size; to prevent the growth of; to stint, to dwarf; as to stunt a child; to stunt a plant.
"When, by a cold penury, I blast the abilities of a nation, and stunt the growth of its active energies, the ill or may do is beyond all calculation." Burke.
Stunt, n. [Cf. Stint a task.] A feat hard to perform; an act which is striking for the skill, strength, or the like, required to do it; a feat. [Colloq.]
"An extraordinary man does three or four different "stunts" with remarkable dexterity." The Bookman.
"He does not try to do stunts; and, above all, he does not care to go in swimming." L. Hutton.
Stupa
Stu´pa (stoo"pa), n. [Skr. stupa.] A mound or monument commemorative of Buddha.
Stupe, n. [L. stupa, or better stuppa, tow. Cf. Stop, v. t.] (Med.) Cloth or flax dipped in warm water or medicaments and applied to a hurt or sore.
Stupe, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stuped p. pr. & vb. n. Stuping.] To foment with a stupe. Wiseman.
Stupe, n. [See Stupid.] A stupid person. [Obs.]
Stupefacient
Stu•pe•fa´cient, a. [L. stupefaciens, p. pr. of stupefacere to stupefy; stupere to be stupefied + facere to make. Cf. Stupefy.] [Written also stupifacient.] Producing stupefaction; stupefactive. — n. (Med.) Anything promoting stupefaction; a narcotic.
Stupefaction
Stu•pe•fac´tion, n. [Cf. F. stupefaction. See Stupefacient.] The act of stupefying, or the state of being stupefied. [Written also stupifaction.]
"Resistance of the dictates of conscience brings a hardness and stupefaction upon it." South.
Stupefactive
Stu•pe•fac´tive, a. & n. [Cf. F. stupefactif, LL. stupefactivus.] Same as Stupefacient. [Written also stupifactive.]
Stupefier
Stu´pe•fi•er, n. One who, or that which, stupefies; a stupefying agent.
Stupefy
Stu´pe•fy, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stupefied p. pr. & vb. n. Stupefying ] [F. stupefier, fr. L. stupere to be stupefied + ficare (in comp.) to make, akin to facere. See Stupid, Fact, and cf. Stupefacient.] [Written also stupify, especially in England.]
1. To make stupid; to make dull; to blunt the faculty of perception or understanding in; to deprive of sensibility; to make torpid.
"The fumes of drink discompose and stupefy the brain." South.
2. To deprive of material mobility. [Obs.]
"It is not malleable; but yet is not fluent, but stupefied." Bacon.
Stupendous
Stu•pen´dous, a. [L. stupendus astonishing, p. future pass. of stupere to be astonished at. Cf. Stupid.] Astonishing; wonderful; amazing; especially, astonishing in magnitude or elevation; as a stupendous pile. "A stupendous sum." Macaulay.
"All are but parts of one stupendous whole." Pope. — Stu•pen´dous•ly, adv. — Stu•pen´dous•ness, n.
Stupeous
Stu´pe•ous, a. [L. stupa, or better stuppa, tow; cf. L. stuppeus made of tow. Cf. Stupose.] Resembling tow; having long, loose scales, or matted filaments, like tow; stupose.
Stupose
Stu•pose, a. [L. stupa, or better stuppa, tow. Cf. Stupeous.] (Bot.) Composed of, or having, tufted or matted filaments like tow; stupeous.
Stupration
Stu•pra´tion, n. Violation of chastity by force; rape. [R.] Sir T. Browne.
Sturdy
Stur´dy, a. [ Compar. Sturdier superl. Sturdiest.] [OE. sturdi inconsiderable, OF. estourdi stunned, giddy, thoughtless, rash, F. etourdi, p. p. of OF. estourdir to stun, to render giddy, to amaze, F. etourdir; of uncertain origin. The sense has probably been influenced by E. stout.]
1. Foolishly obstinate or resolute; stubborn; unrelenting; unfeeling; stern.
"This sturdy marquis gan his hearte dress
To rue upon her wifely steadfastness." Chaucer.
"This must be done, and I would fain see
Mortal so sturdy as to gainsay." Hudibras.
"A sturdy, hardened sinner shall advance to the utmost pitch of impiety with less reluctance than he took the first steps." Atterbury.
2. Resolute, in a good sense; or firm, unyielding quality; as a man of sturdy piety or patriotism.
3. Characterized by physical strength or force; strong; lusty; violent; as a sturdy lout.
"How bowed the woods beneath their sturdy stroke!" Gray.
4. Stiff; stout; strong; as a sturdy oak. Milton.
"He was not of any delicate contexture; his limbs rather sturdy than dainty." Sir H. Wotton.
Syn. — Hardy; stout; strong; firm; robust; stiff.
Sturgeon
Stur´geon, n. [F. esturgeon, LL. sturio, sturgio, OHG. sturjo, G. stör; akin to AS. styria, styriga.] (Zoöl.) Any one of numerous species of large cartilaginous ganoid fishes belonging to Acipenser and allied genera of the family Acipenseridae. They run up rivers to spawn, and are common on the coasts and in the large rivers and lakes of North America, Europe, and Asia. Caviare is prepared from the roe, and isinglass from the air bladder. The common North American species are Acipenser sturio of the Atlantic coast region, A. transmontanus of the Pacific coast, and A. rubicundus of the Mississippi River and its tributaries. In Europe, the common species is Acipenser sturio, and other well-known species are the sterlet and the huso. The sturgeons are included in the order Chondrostei. Their body is partially covered by five rows of large, carinated, bony plates, of which one row runs along the back. The tail is heterocercal. The toothless and protrusile mouth is beneath the head, and has four barbels in front. Shovel-nosed sturgeon. (Zoöl.) See Shovelnose (d).
Sturiones
Stu•ri•o´nes, n. pl. [NL., from LL. sturio. See Sturgeon.] (Zoöl.) An order of fishes including the sturgeons.
Sturionian
Stu•ri•o´ni•an, n. (Zoöl.) One of the family of fishes of which the sturgeon is the type.
Sturk, n. See Stirk. [Prov. Eng. & Scot.]
Sturnoid
Stur´noid, a. [L. sturnus a starling + -oid.] (Zoöl.) Like or pertaining to the starlings.
Sturt, v. t. [Cf. Start, v. i.] To vex; to annoy; to startle. [Obs. or Prov. Eng. & Scot.]
Stutter
Stut´ter, v. t. & i. [ imp. & p. p. Stuttered p. pr. & vb. n. Stuttering.] [Freq. of stut, OE. stoten; probably of Dutch or Low German origin; cf. D. & LG. stotteren, G. stottern, D. stooten to push, to strike; akin to G. stossen, Icel. stauta, Sw. stöta, Dan. stöde, Goth. stautan, L. tundere, Skr. tud to thrust. Cf. Contuse, Obtuse.] To hesitate or stumble in uttering words; to speak with spasmodic repetition or pauses; to stammer.
"Trembling, stuttering, calling for his confessor." Macaulay.
Stutter
Stut´ter, n.
1. The act of stuttering; a stammer. See Stammer, and Stuttering.
2. One who stutters; a stammerer. [Obs.] Bacon.
Stuttering
Stut´ter•ing, a. Apt to stutter; hesitating; stammering. — Stut´ter•ing•ly, adv.
Sty, n. ; pl. Sties . [Written also stigh.] [AS. stigu, fr. stigan to rise; originally, probably, a place into which animals climbed or went up. rad.164. See Sty, v. i., and cf. Steward.]
1. A pen or inclosure for swine.
2. A place of bestial debauchery.
"To roll with pleasure in a sensual sty." Milton.
Sty, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stied p. pr. & vb. n. Stying ] To shut up in, or as in, a sty. Shak.
Sty, v. i. [OE. stien, stien, AS. stigan to rise; akin to D. stijgen, OS. & OHG. stigan, G. steigen, Icel. stiga, Sw. stiga, Dan. stige, Goth. steigan, L. vestigium footstep, Gr. to walk, to go, Skr. stigh to mount. Cf. Distich, Stair steps, Stirrup, Sty a boil, a pen for swine, Vestige.] To soar; to ascend; to mount. See Stirrup. [Obs.]
"With bolder wing shall dare aloft to sty,
To the last praises of this Faery Queene." Spenser.
Sty, n. [For older styan, styanye, understood as sty on eye, AS. stigend (sc. eáge eye), properly, rising, or swelling (eye), p. p. of stigan to rise. See Sty, v. i.] (Med.) An inflamed swelling or boil on the edge of the eyelid. [Written also stye.]
Styan
Sty´an, n. See Sty, a boil. [R.] De quincey.
Stye, n. See Sty, a boil.
Stygian
Styg´i•an, a. [L. Stygius, fr. Styx, Stygis, Gr.,, the Styx.] Of or pertaining to the river Styx; hence, hellish; infernal. See Styx.
"At that so sudden blaze, the Stygian throng
Bent their aspect." Milton.
Style, n. [OE. stile, F. style, Of. also stile, L. stilus a style or writing instrument, manner or writing, mode of expression; probably for stiglus, meaning, a pricking instrument, and akin to E. stick. See Stick, v. t., and cf. Stiletto. The spelling with y is due to a supposed connection with Gr. a pillar.]
1. An instrument used by the ancients in writing on tablets covered with wax, having one of its ends sharp, and the other blunt, and somewhat expanded, for the purpose of making erasures by smoothing the wax.
2. Hence, anything resembling the ancient style in shape or use. Specifically: — (a) A pen; an author’s pen. Dryden. (b) A sharp-pointed tool used in engraving; a graver. (c) A kind of blunt-pointed surgical instrument. (d) (Zoöl.) A long, slender, bristlelike process, as the anal styles of insects. (e) [Perhaps fr. Gr. a pillar.] The pin, or gnomon, of a dial, the shadow of which indicates the hour. See Gnomon. (f) [Probably fr. Gr. a pillar.] (Bot.) The elongated part of a pistil between the ovary and the stigma. See Illust. of Stamen, and of Pistil.
3. Mode of expressing thought in language, whether oral or written; especially, such use of language in the expression of thought as exhibits the spirit and faculty of an artist; choice or arrangement of words in discourse; rhetorical expression.
"High style, as when that men to kinges write." Chaucer.
"Style is the dress of thoughts." Chesterfield.
"Proper words in proper places make the true definition of style." Swift.
"It is style alone by which posterity will judge of a great work." I. Disraeli.
4. Mode of presentation, especially in music or any of the fine arts; a characteristic of peculiar mode of developing in idea or accomplishing a result.
"The ornamental style also possesses its own peculiar merit." Sir J. Reynolds.
5. Conformity to a recognized standard; manner which is deemed elegant and appropriate, especially in social demeanor; fashion.
"According to the usual style of dedications." C. Middleton.
6. Mode or phrase by which anything is formally designated; the title; the official designation of any important body; mode of address; as the style of Majesty.
"One style to a gracious benefactor, another to a proud, insulting foe." Burke.
7. (Chron.) A mode of reckoning time, with regard to the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Style is Old or New. The Old Style follows the Julian manner of computing the months and days, or the calendar as established by Julius Caesar, in which every fourth year consists of 366 days, and the other years of 365 days. This is about 11 minutes in a year too much. Pope Georgy XIII. reformed the calendar by retrenching 10 days in October, 1582, in order to bring back the vernal equinox to the same day as at the time of the Council of Nice, a. d. 325. This reformation was adopted by act of the British Parliament in 1751, by which act 11 days in September, 1752, were retrenched, and the third day was reckoned the fourteenth. This mode of reckoning is called New Style, according to which every year divisible by 4, unless it is divisible by 100 without being divisible by 400, has 366 days, and any other year 365 days. Style of court, the practice or manner observed by a court in its proceedings. Ayliffe.
Syn. — Diction; phraseology; manner; course; title. See Diction.
Style, v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Styled p. pr. & vb. n. Styling.] To entitle; to term, name, or call; to denominate. "Styled great conquerors." Milton.
"How well his worth and brave adventures styled." Dryden.
Syn. — To call; name; denominate; designate; term; characterize.
Stylet
Sty´let, n. [F., dim. of style; cf. It. stiletto. See Stiletto.] A small poniard; a stiletto.
2. (Surg.) (a) An instrument for examining wounds and fistulas and for passing setons, and the like; a probe, — called also specillum. (b) A stiff wire, inserted in catheters or other tubular instruments to maintain their shape and prevent clogging.
3. (Zoöl.) Any small, more or less rigid, bristlelike organ; as the caudal stylets of certain insects; the ventral stylets of certain Infusoria.
Styliferous
Sty•lif´er•ous, a. [ Style + -ferous.] (Bot.) Bearing one or more styles.
Stylobate
Sty´lo•bate, n. [L. stylobates, stylobata, Gr. ; a pillar + one that treads, fr. to go.] (Arch.) The uninterrupted and continuous flat band, coping, or pavement upon which the bases of a row of columns are supported. See Sub-base.
Stylographical
Sty•lo•graph´ic•al, a. Same as Stylographic, 1. — Sty•lo•graph´ic•al•ly, adv.
Stylohyoid
Sty•lo•hy´oid, a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the styloid process and the hyoid bone.
Stylometer
Sty•lom´e•ter, n. [Gr. column + -meter.] An instrument for measuring columns.
Stylommata
Sty•lom´ma•ta, n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. a pillar +,, the eye.] Same as Stylommatophora.
Stylommatophora
Sty•lom•ma•toph´o•ra, n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. column + eye + to bear.] (Zoöl.) A division of Pulmonata in which the eyes are situated at the tips of the tentacles. It includes the common land snails and slugs. See Illust. under Snail.
Stylommatophorous
Sty•lom•ma•toph´o•rous, a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to Stylommatophora.
Stylopodium
Sty•lo•po´di•um, n. ; pl. Stylopodia (#). [NL. See Style, and Podium.] (Bot.) An expansion at the base of the style, as in umbelliferous plants.
Stylops
Sty´lops, n. [NL., fr. Gr. a pillar +,, the eye.] (Zoöl.) A genus of minute insects parasitic, in their larval state, on bees and wasps. It is the typical genus of the group Strepsiptera, formerly considered a distinct order, but now generally referred to the Coleoptera. See Strepsiptera.
Stylus
Sty´lus, n. [L. stylus, or better stilus.] An instrument for writing. See Style, n. , 1.
Stypticity
Styp•tic´i•ty, n. [Cf. F. stypticite.] The quality or state of being styptic; astringency.
Styracin
Styr´a•cin, n. [See Styrax.] (Chem.) A white crystalline tasteless substance extracted from gum storax, and consisting of a salt of cinnamic acid with cinnamic alcohol.
Styrax
Sty´rax, n. [L. styrax, storax, Gr. . See Storax.]
1. (Bot.) A genus of shrubs and trees, mostly American or Asiatic, abounding in resinous and aromatic substances. Styrax officinalis yields storax, and S. Benzoin yields benzoin.
2. Same as Storax.
Styrol
Sty´rol, n. [ Styrax + L. oleum oil.] (Chem.) See Styrolene.