D

1. The fourth letter of the English alphabet, and a vocal consonent. The English letter is from Latin, which is from Greek, which took it from Phoenician, the probable ultimate origin being Egyptian. It is related most nearly to t and th; as, Eng. deep, G. tief; Eng. daughter, G. tochter, Gr. duhitr. See Guide to Pronunciation, sq. root178, 179, 229.

2. (Mus.)

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

3. As a numeral D stands for 500. in this use it is not the initial of any word, or even strictly a letter, but one half of the sign

DAB Dab, n. Etym: [Perh. corrupted fr. adept.]

Defn: A skillful hand; a dabster; an expert. [Colloq.] One excels at a plan or the titlepage, another works away at the body of the book, and the therd is a dab at an index. Goldsmith.

DAB Dab, n. Etym: [Perh. so named from its quickness in diving beneath the sand. Cf. Dabchick.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: A name given to several species of Pleuronectes . TheAmerican rough dab is Hippoglossoides platessoides.

DAB Dab, v. i. [imp. & p.p. Dabbed; p.pr.& vb.n. Dabbing.] Etym: [OE. dabben to strice; akin to OD. dabben to pinch, knead, fumble, dabble, and perh. to G. tappen to grope.]

1. To strike or touch gently, as with a soft or moist substance; to tap; hence, to besmear with a dabber. A sore should . . . be wiped . . . only by dabbing it over with fine lint. S. Sharp.

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

DAB Dab, n.

1. A gentle blow with the hand or some soft substance; a sudden blow or hit; a peck. Astratch of her clame, a dab of her beack. Hawthorne.

2. A small mass of anything soft or moist.

DABB Dabb, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A large, spine-tailed lizard (Uromastix spinipes), found in Egypt, Arabia, and Palestine; — called also dhobb, and dhabb.

DABBER Dab"ber, n.

Defn: That with which one dabs; hence, a pad or other device used by printers, engravers, etc., as for dabbing type or engraved plates with ink.

DABBLE Dab"ble, v. t. [imp.&p.p Dabbled; p.pr.&vb.n. Dabbling.] Etym: [Freq. of dab: cf. OD. dabbelen.]

Defn: To wet by little dips or strokes; to spatter; to sprinkle; to moisten; to wet. "Bright hair dabbled in blood." Shak.

DABBLE Dab"ble, v. i.

1. To play in water, as with the hands; to paddle or splash in mud or water. Wher the duck dabbles Wordsworth.

2. To work in slight or superficial manner; to do in a small way; to tamper; to meddle. "Dabbling here and there with the text." Atterbury. During the ferst year at Dumfries, Burns for the ferst time began to dabble in politics. J. C. Shairp.

DABBLER Dab"bler, n.

1. One who dabbles.

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

DABBLINGLY Dab"bling*ly, adv.

Defn: In a dabbling manner.

DABCHICK Dab"chick`, n. Etym: [For dabchick. See Dap, Dip, cf. Dipchick.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: A small water bird (Podilymbus podiceps), allied to the grebes, remarkable for its quickness in diving; — called also dapchick, dobchick, dipchick, didapper, dobber, devil-diver, hell-diver, and pied-billed grebe.

DABOIA Da*boi"a, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A large and highly venomous Asiatic viper (Daboia xanthica).

DABSTER Dab"ster, n. Etym: [Cf. Dab an expert.]

Defn: One who is skilled; a master of his business; a proficient; an adept. [Colloq.]

Note: Sometimes improperly used for dabbler; as, "I am but a dabster with gentle art."

DACAPO Da`ca"po. Etym: [It., from [the] head or beginning.] (Mus.)

Defn: From the beginning; a direction to return to, and end with, the first strain; — indicated by the letters D. C. Also, the strain so repeated.

DACE Dace, n. Etym: [Written also dare, dart, fr. F. dard dase, dart, of German origin. Dace is for an older darce, fr. an OF. nom. darz. See Dart a javelin.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: A small European cyprinoid fish (Squalius leuciscus or Leuciscus vulgaris); — called also dare.

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

DACHSHUND Dachs"hund`, n. Etym: [G., from dachs badger + hund dog.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: One of a breed of small dogs with short crooked legs, and long body; — called also badger dog. There are two kinds, the rough- haired and the smooth-haired.

DACIAN Da"cian, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to Dacia or the Dacians. — n.

Defn: A native of ancient Dacia.

DACOIT Da*coit" (da*koit"), n. [Hind. dsakait, dsakayat.]

Defn: One of a class of robbers, in India, who act in gangs.

DACOITY Da*coit"y, n.

Defn: The practice of gang robbery in India; robbery committed by dacoits.

DACOTAHS Da*co"tahs, n. pl.; sing. Dacotan (. (Ethnol.)

Defn: Same as Dacotas. Longfellow.

DACTYL Dac"tyl, n. Etym: [L. dactylus, Gr. Digit.]

1. (Pros.)

Defn: A poetical foot of three sylables (— ~ ~), one long followed by two short, or one accented followed by two unaccented; as, L. tëgmînê, E. mer"ciful; — so called from the similarity of its arrangement to that of the joints of a finger. [Written also dactyle.]

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

DACTYLAR Dac"tyl*ar, a.

1. Pertaining to dactyl; dactylic.

2. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to a finger or toe, or to the claw of an insect crustacean.

DACTYLET Dac"tyl*et, n. Etym: [Dactyl + .]

Defn: A dactyl. [Obs.]

DACTYLIC Dac*tyl"ic, a. Etym: [L. dactylicus, Gr. , fr. .]

Defn: Pertaining to, consisting chiefly or wholly of, dactyls; as, dactylic verses.

DACTYLIC Dac*tyl"ic, n.

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

2. pl.

Defn: Dactylic meters.

DACTYLIOGLYPH Dactyl"i*o*glyph, n. Etym: [Gr. an engraver of gems; finger ring (fr. finger) + to engrave.] (Fine Arts) (a) An engraver of gems for rings and other ornaments. (b) The inscription of the engraver's name on a finger ring or gem.

DACTYLIOGLYPHY Dac*tyl`i*og"ly*phy, n.

Defn: The art or process of gem engraving.

DACTYLIOGRAPHY Dac*tyl`i*og"ra*phy, n. Etym: [Gr. finger ring + .] (Fine Arts) (a) The art of writing or engraving upon gems. (b) In general, the literature or history of the art.

DACTYLIOLOGY Dac*tyl`i* ol"o*gy, n. Etym: [Gr. finger ring + .] (Fine Arts) (a) That branch of archæology which has to do with gem engraving. (b) That branch of archæology which has to do with finger rings.

DACTYLIOMANCY Dac*tyl"i*o*man`cy, n. Etym: [Gr. dakty`lios + -mancy.]

Defn: Divination by means of finger rings.

DACTYLIST Dac"tyl*ist, n.

Defn: A writer of dactylic verse.

DACTYLITIS Dac`tyl*i"tis, n. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr. finger + -itis.] (Med.)

Defn: An inflammatory affection of the fingers. Gross.

DACTYLOLOGY Dac`tyl*o"logy, n. Etym: [Gr. finger + -logy.]

Defn: The art of communicating ideas by certain movements and positions of the fingers; — a method of conversing practiced by the deaf and dumb.

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

DACTYLOMANCY Dac*tyl"o*man`cy, n.

Defn: Dactylio mancy. [R.] Am. Cyc.

DACTYLONOMY Dac`tyl*on"o*my, n. Etym: [Gr. finger + law, distribution.]

Defn: The art of numbering or counting by the fingers.

DACTYLOPTEROUS Dac`tyl*op"ter*ous, a. Etym: [Gr. finger + wing, fin.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: Having the inferior rays of the pectoral fins partially or entirely free, as in the gurnards.

DACTYLOTHECA Dac`ty*lo*the"ca, n. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr. finger, toe + case, box.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: The scaly covering of the toes, as in birds.

DACTYLOZOOID Dac`tyl*o*zo"oid, n. Etym: [Gr. finger + E. zooid.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: A kind of zooid of Siphonophora which has an elongated or even vermiform body, with one tentacle, but no mouth. See Siphonophora.

DAD Dad, n. Etym: [Prob. of Celtic origin; cf. Ir. daid, Gael. daidein, W. tad, OL. , , Skr. tata.]

Defn: Father; — a word sometimes used by children. I was never so bethumped withwords, Since I first called my brother's father dad. Shak.

DADDLE Dad"dle, v. i. [imp. & p.p. Daddled, p.pr. & vb.n. Daddling.] Etym: [Prob. freq. of dade.]

Defn: To toddle; to walk unsteadily, like a child or an old man; hence, to do anything slowly or feebly.

DADDOCK Dad"dock, n. Etym: [Cf. Prov. E. dad a large piece.]

Defn: The rotten body of a tree. [Prov. Eng.] Wright.

DADDY Dad"dy, n.

Defn: Diminutive of Dad. Dryden.

DADDY LONGLEGS Dad"dy long"legs`.

1. (Zoöl.)

Defn: An arachnidan of the genus Phalangium, and allied genera, having a small body and four pairs of long legs; — called also harvestman, carter, and grandfather longlegs.

2. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A name applied to many species of dipterous insects of the genus Tipula, and allied genera, with slender bodies, and very long, slender legs; the crane fly; — called also father longlegs.

DADE Dade, v. t. Etym: [Of. uncertain origin. Cf. Dandle, Daddle.]

Defn: To hold up by leading strings or by the hand, as a child while he toddles. [Obs.] Little children when they learn to go By painful mothers daded to and fro. Drayton.

DADE Dade, v. i.

Defn: To walk unsteadily, as a child in leading strings, or just learning to walk; to move slowly. [Obs.] No sooner taught to dade, but from their mother trip. Drayton.

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

DAEDAL; DAEDALIAN Dæ"dal, Dæ*dal"ian, a. Etym: [L. daedalus cunningly wrought, fr. Gr. ; cf. to work cunningly. The word also alludes to the mythical Dædalus (Gr. , lit., the cunning worker).]

1. Cunningly or ingeniously formed or working; skillful; artistic; ingenious. Our bodies decked in our dædalian arms. Chapman. The dædal hand of Nature. J. Philips. The doth the dædal earth throw forth to thee, Out of her fruitful, abundant flowers. Spenser.

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

DAEDALOUS Dæd"a*lous, a. (Bot.)

Defn: Having a variously cut or incised margin; — said of leaves.

DAEMON; DAEMONIC Dæ"mon, n., Dæ*mon"ic (, a.

Defn: See Demon, Demonic.

DAFF Daff, v. t. Etym: [Cf. Doff.]

Defn: To cast aside; to put off; to doff. [Obs.] Canst thou so daff me Thou hast killed my child. Shak.

DAFF Daff, n. Etym: [See Daft.]

Defn: A stupid, blockish fellow; a numskull. [Obs.] Chaucer.

DAFF Daff, v. i.

Defn: To act foolishly; to be foolish or sportive; to toy. [Scot.] Jamieson.

DAFF Daff, v. t.

Defn: To daunt. [Prov. Eng.] Grose.

DAFFODIL Daf"fo*dil, n. Etym: [OE. affodylle, prop., the asphodel, fr. LL. affodillus (cf. D. affodille or OF. asphodile, aphodille, F. asphodèle), L. asphodelus, fr. Gr. . The initial d in English is not satisfactorily explained. See Asphodel.] (Bot.) (a) A plant of the genus Asphodelus. (b) A plant of the genus Narcissus (N. Pseudo-narcissus). It has a bulbous root and beautiful flowers, usually of a yellow hue. Called also daffodilly, daffadilly, daffadowndilly, daffydowndilly, etc. With damasc roses and daffadowndillies set. Spenser. Strow me the ground with daffadowndillies, And cowslips, and kingcups, and loved lilies. Spenser. A college gown That clad her like an April Daffodilly. Tennyson And chance-sown daffodil. Whittier.

DAFT Daft, a. Etym: [OE. daft, deft, deft, stupid; prob. the same word as E. deft. See Deft.]

1. Stupid; folish; idiotic; also, delirious; insance; as, he has gone daft. Let us think no more of this daft business Sir W. Scott.

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

DAFTNESS Daft"ness, n.

Defn: The quality of being daft.

DAG Dag, n. Etym: [Cf. F. dague, LL. daga, D. dagge (fr. French); all prob. fr. Celtic; Cf. Gael. dag a pistol, Armor. dag dagger, W. dager, dagr, Ir. daigear. Cf. Dagger.]

1. A dagger; a poniard. [Obs.] Johnson.

2. A large pistol formerly used. [Obs.] The Spaniards discharged their dags, and hurt some. Foxe. A sort of pistol, called dag, was used about the same time as hand guns and harquebuts. Grose.

3. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The unbrunched antler of a young deer.

DAG Dag, n. Etym: [Of Scand. origin; cf. Sw. dagg, Icel. dögg. sq. root71. See Dew.]

Defn: A misty shower; dew. [Obs.]

DAG Dag, n. Etym: [OE. dagge (cf. Dagger); or cf. AS. dag what is dangling.]

Defn: A loose end; a dangling shred. Daglocks, clotted locks hanging in dags or jags at a sheep's tail. Wedgwood.

DAG Dag, v. t. Etym: [1, from Dag dew. 2, from Dag a loose end.]

1. To daggle or bemire. [Prov. Eng.] Johnson.

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

DAG Dag, v. i.

Defn: To be misty; to drizzle. [Prov. Eng.]

DAGGER Dag"ger, n. Etym: [Cf. OE. daggen to pierce, F. daguer. See Dag a dagger.]

1. A short weapon used for stabbing. This is the general term: cf. Poniard, Stiletto, Bowie knife, Dirk, Misericorde, Anlace.

2. (Print.)

Defn: A mark of reference in the form of a dagger [|]. It is the second in order when more than one reference occurs on a page; — called also obelisk. Dagger moth (Zoöl.), any moth of the genus Apatalea. The larvæ are often destructive to the foliage of fruit trees, etc. — Dagger of lath, the wooden weapon given to the Vice in the old Moralities. Shak. — Double dagger, a mark of reference [||] which comes next in order after the dagger. — To look, or speak, daggers, to look or speak fiercely or reproachfully.

DAGGER Dag"ger, v. t.

Defn: To pierce with a dagger; to stab. [Obs.]

DAGGER Dag"ger, n. Etym: [Perh. from diagonal.]

Defn: A timber placed diagonally in a ship's frame. Knight.

DAGGES Dagges, n. pl. Etym: [OE. See Dag a loose end.]

Defn: An ornamental cutting of the edges of garments, introduced about a. d. 1346, according to the Chronicles of St Albans. [Obs.] Halliwell.

DAGGLE Dag"gle, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Daggled; p. pr. & vb. n. Daggling.] Etym: [Freq. of dag, v. t., 1.]

Defn: To trail, so as to wet or befoul; to make wet and limp; to moisten. The warrior's very plume, I say, Was daggled by the dashing spray. Sir W. Scott.

DAGGLE Dag"gle, v. i.

Defn: To run, go, or trail one's self through water, mud, or slush; to draggle. Nor, like a puppy [have I] daggled through the town. Pope.

DAGGLE-TAIL; DAGGLE-TAILED Dag"gle-tail`, Dag"gle-tailed`, a.

Defn: Having the lower ends of garments defiled by trailing in mire or filth; draggle-tailed.

DAGGLE-TAIL Dag"gle-tail`, n.

Defn: A slovenly woman; a slattern; a draggle-tail.

DAGLOCK Dag"lock`, n. Etym: [Dag a loose and + lock.]

Defn: A dirty or clotted lock of wool on a sheep; a taglock.

DAGO Da"go, n.; pl. Dagos. Etym: [Cf. Sp. Diego, E. James.]

Defn: A nickname given to a person of Spanish (or, by extension, Portuguese or Italian) descent. [U. S.]

DAGOBA Da*go"ba, n. Etym: [Singhalese dagoba.]

Defn: A dome-shaped structure built over relics of Buddha or some Buddhist saint. [East Indies]

DAGON Da"gon, Etym: [Heb. Dagon, fr. dag a fish: cf. Gr. .]

Defn: The national god of the Philistines, represented with the face and hands and upper part of a man, and the tail of a fish. W. Smith. This day a solemn feast the people hold To Dagon, their sea idol. Milton. They brought it into the house of Dagon. 1 Sam. v. 2.

DAGON Dag"on, n. Etym: [See Dag a loose end.]

Defn: A slip or piece. [Obs.] Chaucer.

DAGSWAIN Dag"swain`, n. Etym: [From Dag a loose end]

Defn: Acoarse woolen fabric made of daglocks, or the refuse of wool. "Under coverlets made of dagswain." Holinshed.

DAG-TAILED Dag"-tailed`, a. Etym: [Dag a loose end + tail.]

Defn: Daggle-tailed; having the tail clogged with daglocks. "Dag- tailed sheep." Bp. Hall.

DAGUERREAN; DAGUERREIAN Da*guer"re*an, Da*guerre"i*an, a.

Defn: Pertaining to Daguerre, or to his invention of the daguerreotype.

DAGUERREOTYPE Da*guerre"o*type, n. Etym: [From Daguerre the inventor + -type.]

1. An early variety of photograph, produced on a silver plate, or copper plate covered with silver, and rendered sensitive by the action of iodine, or iodine and bromine, on which, after exposure in the camera, the latent image is developed by the vapor of mercury.

2. The process of taking such pictures.

DAGUERREOTYPE Da*guerre"o*type, v. t. [imp. & p.p. Daguerreotyped; p. pr. & vb. n. Daguerreotyping.]

1. To produce or represent by the daguerreotype process, as a picture.

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

DAGUERREOTYPER; DAGUERREOTYPIST Da*guerre"o*ty`per, Da*guerre"o*ty`pist, n.

Defn: One who takes daguerreotypes.

DAGUERREOTYPY Da*guerre"o*ty`py, n.

Defn: The art or process of producing pictures by method of Daguerre.

DAHABEAH Da`ha*be"ah, n. Etym: [Ar.]

Defn: A nile boat

DAHLIA Dah"lia, n.; pl. Dahlias. Etym: [Named after Andrew Dahl a Swedish botanist.] (Bot.)

Defn: A genus of plants native to Mexico and Central America, of the order Compositæ; also, any plant or flower of the genus. The numerous varieties of cultivated dahlias bear conspicuous flowers which differ in color.

DAHLIN Dah"lin, n. Etym: [From Dahlia.] (Chem.)

Defn: A variety of starch extracted from the dahlia; — called also inulin. See Inulin.

DAHOON Da*hoon" (da*hoon"), [Origin unknown.]

Defn: An evergreen shrub or small tree (Ilex cassine) of the southern United States, bearing red drupes and having soft, white, close- grained wood; — called also dahoon holly.

DAILINESS Dai"li*ness, n.

Defn: Daily occurence. [R.]

DAILY Dai"ly, a. Etym: [AS. dæglic; dæg day + -lic like. See Day.]

Defn: Happening, or belonging to, each successive day; diurnal; as, daily labor; a daily bulletin. Give us this day our daily bread. Matt. vi. 11. Bunyan has told us . . . that in New England his dream was the daily subject of the conversation of thousands. Macaulay.

Syn. — Daily, Diurnal. Daily is Anglo-Saxon, and diurnal is Latin. The former is used in reference to the ordinary concerns of life; as, daily wants, daily cares, daily employments. The latter is appropriated chiefly by astronomers to what belongs to the astronomical day; as, the diurnal revolution of the earth. Man hath his daily work of body or mind Appointed, which declares his dignity, And the regard of Heaven on all his ways. Milton. Half yet remains unsung, but narrower bound Within the visible diurnal sphere. Milton.

DAILY Dai"ly, n.; pl. Dailies (.

Defn: A publication which appears regularly every day; as, the morning dailies.

DAILY Dai"ly, adv.

Defn: Every day; day by day; as, a thing happens daily.

DAIMIO Dai"mi*o, n.; pl. Daimios. Etym: [Jap., fr. Chin. tai ming great name.]

Defn: The title of the feudal nobles of Japan.daimyo The daimios, or territorial nobles, resided in Yedo and were divided into four classes. Am. Cyc.

DAINT Daint, n. Etym: [See Dainty, n.]

Defn: Something of exquisite taste; a dainty. [Obs.] — a.

Defn: Dainty. [Obs.] To cherish him with diets daint. Spenser.

DAINTIFY Dain"ti*fy, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Daintified; p. pr. & vb. n. Daintifying.] Etym: [Dainty + -fy.]

Defn: To render dainty, delicate, or fastidious. "Daintified emotion." Sat. rev.

DAINTILY Dain"ti*ly, adv.

Defn: In a dainty manner; nicely; scrupulously; fastidiously; deliciously; prettily.

DAINTINESS Dain"ti*ness, n.

Defn: The quality of being dainty; nicety; niceness; elegance; delicacy; deliciousness; fastidiousness; squeamishness. The daintiness and niceness of our captains Hakluyt. More notorious for the daintiness of the provision . . . than for the massiveness of the dish. Hakewill. The duke exeeded in the daintiness of his leg and foot, and the earl in the fine shape of his hands, Sir H. Wotton.

DAINTREL Dain"trel, n. Etym: [From daint or dainty; cf. OF. daintier.]

Defn: Adelicacy. [Obs.] Halliwell.

DAINTY Dain"ty, n.; pl. Dainties. Etym: [OE. deinie, dainte, deintie, deyntee, OF. deintié delicacy, orig., dignity, honor, fr. L. dignitas, fr. dignus worthy. See Deign, and cf. Dignity.]

1. Value; estimation; the gratification or pleasure taken in anything. [Obs.] I ne told no deyntee of her love. Chaucer.

2. That which is delicious or delicate; a delicacy. That precious nectar may the taste renew Of Eden's dainties, by our parents lost. Beau. & Fl.

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

Syn. — Dainty, Delicacy. These words are here compared as denoting articles of food. The term delicacy as applied to a nice article of any kind, and hence to articles of food which are particularly attractive. Dainty is stronger, and denotes some exquisite article of cookery. A hotel may be provided with all the delicacies of the season, and its table richly covered with dainties. These delicacies I mean of taste, sight, smell, herbs, fruits, and flowers, Walks and the melody of birds. Milton. [A table] furnished plenteously with bread, And dainties, remnants of the last regale. Cowper.

DAINTY Dain"ty, a. [Compar. Daintier; superl. Daintiest.]

1. Rare; valuable; costly. [Obs.] Full many a deynté horse had he in stable. Chaucer.

Note: Hence the proverb "dainty maketh dearth," i. e., rarity makes a thing dear or precious.

2. Delicious to the palate; toothsome. Dainty bits Make rich the ribs. Shak.

3. Nice; delicate;elegant, in form, manner, or breeding; well-formed; neat; tender. Those dainty limbs which nature lent For gentle usage and soft delicacy. Milton. Iwould be the girdle. About her dainty, dainty waist. Tennyson.

4. Requirinig daintles. Hence; Overnice; hard to please; fastidious; sqrupulous; ceremonious. Thew were a fine and Dainty people. Bacon. And let us not be dainty of leave taking, But shift away. Shak. To make dainty, to assume or affect delicacy or fastidiousness. [Obs.] Ah ha, my mistresses! which of you all Will now deny to dance She that makes dainty, She, I'll swear, hath corns. Shak.

DAIRA Da"ï*ra, n. [Turk. daire circuit department, fr. Ar. daïrah circle.]

Defn: Any of several valuable estates of the Egyptian khedive or his family. The most important are the Da"i*ra Sa"ni*eh, or Sa"ni*yeh, and the Da"i*ra Khas"sa, administered by the khedive's European bondholders, and known collectively as the Daira, or the Daira estates.

DAIRY Dai"ry, n.;pl. Dairies. Etym: [OE. deierie, from deie, daie, maid; of Scand. origin; cf. Icel. deigja maid, dairymaid, Sw. deja, orig., a baking maid, fr. Icel. deig. Dough.]

1. The place, room, or house where milk is kept, and converted into butter or cheese. What stores my dairies and my folds contain. Dryden.

2. That department of farming which is concerned in the production of milk, and its conversion into butter and cheese. Grounds were turned much in England either to feeding or dairy; and this advanced the trade of English butter. Temple.

3. A dairy farm. [R.]

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

DAIRYING Dai"ry*ing, n.

Defn: The business of conducting a dairy.

DAIRYMAID Dai"ry*maid`, n.

Defn: A female servant whose business is the care of the dairy.

DAIRYMAN Dai"ry*man, n.; pl. Dairymen (.

Defn: A man who keeps or takes care of a dairy.

DAIRYWOMAN Dai"ry*wom`an, n.; pl. Dairywomen (.

Defn: A woman who attends to a dairy.

DAIS Da"is (da"îs), n. Etym: [OE. deis, des, table, dais, OF. deis table, F. dais a canopy, L. discus a quoit, a dish (from the shape), LL., table, fr. Gr. a quoit, a dish. See Dish.]

1. The high or principal table, at the end of a hall, at which the chief guests were seated; also, the chief seat at the high table. [Obs.]

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

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

DAISIED Dai"sied, a.

Defn: Full of daisies; adorned with daisies. "The daisied green." Langhorne. The grass all deep and daisied. G. Eliot.

DAISY Dai"sy, n.; pl. Daisies. Etym: [OE. dayesye, AS. dæges day's eye, daisy. See Day, and Eye.] (Bot.) (a) A genus of low herbs (Bellis), belonging to the family Compositæ. The common English and classical daisy is B. prennis, which has a yellow disk and white or pinkish rays. (b) The whiteweed (Chrysanthemum Leucanthemum), the plant commonly called daisy in North America; — called also oxeye daisy. See Whiteweed.

Note: The word daisy is also used for composite plants of other genera, as Erigeron, or fleabane. Michaelmas daisy (Bot.), any plant of the genus Aster, of which there are many species. — Oxeye daisy (Bot.), the whiteweed. See Daisy (b).

DAK Dak, n. Etym: [Hind. .]

Defn: Post; mail; also, the mail or postal arrangements; — spelt also dawk, and dauk. [India] Dak boat, a mail boat. Percy Smith. — Dak bungalow, a traveler's rest-house at the and of a dak stage. — To travel by dak, to travel by relays of palanquines or other carriage, as fast as the post along a road.

DAKER; DAKIR Da"ker, Da"kir, n. Etym: [See Dicker.] (O. Eng. & Scots Law)

Defn: A measure of certain commodities by number, usually ten or twelve, but sometimes twenty; as, a daker of hides consisted of ten skins; a daker of gloves of ten pairs. Burrill.

DAKER HEN Da"ker hen`. Etym: [Perh. fr. W. crecial the daker hen; crec a sharp noise (creg harsh, hoarse, crechian to scream) + iar hen; or cf. D. duiken to dive, plunge.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: The corncrake or land rail.

DAKOIT; DAKOITY Da*koit", n., Da*koit"y, n.

Defn: See Dacoit, Dacoity.

DAKOTA GROUP Da*ko"ta group`. (Geol.)

Defn: A subdivision at the base of the cretaceous formation in Western North America; — so named from the region where the strata were first studied.

DAKOTAS Da*ko"tas, n. pl.; sing. Dacota (. (Ethnol.)

Defn: An extensive race or stock of Indians, including many tribes, mostly dwelling west of the Mississippi River; — also, in part, called Sioux. [Written also Dacotahs.]

DAL Dal, n. Etym: [Hind.]

Defn: Split pulse, esp. of Cajanus Indicus. [East Indies]

DALE Dale, n. Etym: [AS. dæl; akin to LG., D., Sw., Dan., OS., & Goth. dal, Icel. dalr, OHG. tal, G. thal, and perth. to Gr. a rotunda, Skr. dhara depth. Cf. Dell.]

1. A low place between hills; a vle or valley. Where mountaines rise, umbrageous dales descend. Thomson.

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

DALESMAN Dales"man, n.; pl. Dalesmen (.

Defn: One living in a dale; — a term applied particularly to the inhabitants of the valleys in the north of England, Norway, etc. Macaulay.

DALF Dalf,

Defn: imp. of Delve. [Obs.] Chaucer.

DALLES Dalles (dalz), n. pl. [F. dalle a tube, gutter, trough.]

Defn: A rapid, esp. one where the channel is narrowed between rock walls. [Northwestern U. S. & Canada]

The place below, where the compressed river wound like a silver thread among the flat black rocks, was the far-famed Dalles of the Columbia. F. H. Balch.

DALLIANCE Dal"li*ance, n. Etym: [From Dally.]

1. The act of dallying, trifling, or fondling; interchange of caresses; wanton play. Look thou be true, do not give dalliance Too mnch the rein. Shak. O, the dalliance and the wit, The flattery and the strifeTennyson.

2. Delay or procrastination. Shak.

3. Entertaining discourse. [Obs.] Chaucer.

DALLIER Dal"li*er, n.

Defn: One Who fondles; a trifler; as, dalliers with pleasant words. Asham.

DALLOP Dal"lop, n. Etym: [Etymol. unknown.]

Defn: A tuft or clump. [Obs.] Tusser.

DALLY Dal"ly, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Dallied; p. pr. & vb. n. Dallying.] Etym: [OE. , dailien; cf. Icel. pylja to talk, G. dallen, dalen, dahlen, to trifle, talk nonsense, OSw. tule a droll or funny man; or AS. dol foolish, E. dull.]

1. To waste time in effeminate or voluptuous pleasures, or in idleness; to fool away time; to delay unnecessarily; to tarry; to trifle. We have trifled too long already; it is madness to dally any longer. Calamy. We have put off God, and dallied with his grace. Barrow.

2. To interchange caresses, especially with one of the opposite sex; to use fondling; to wanton; to sport. Not dallying with a brace of courtesans. Shak. Our aerie . . . dallies with the wind. Shak.

DALLY Dal"ly, v. t.

Defn: To delay unnecessarily; to while away. Dallying off the time with often skirmishes. Knolles.

DALMANIA Dal*ma"ni*a, n. Etym: [From Dalman, the geologist.] (Paleon.)

Defn: A genus of trilobites, of many species, common in the Upper Silurian and Devonian rocks.

DALMANITES Dal`ma*ni"tes, n.

Defn: Same as Dalmania.

DALMATIAN Dal*ma"tian, a.

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

DALMATICA; DALMATIC Dal*mat"i*ca, n., Dal*mat"ic (, n. Etym: [LL. dalmatica: cf. F. dalmatique.]

1. (R. C. Ch.)

Defn: A vestment with wide sleeves, and with two stripes, worn at Mass by deacons, and by bishops at pontifical Mass; — imitated from a dress originally worn in Dalmatia.

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

DAL SEGNO Dal` se"gno. Etym: [It., from the sign.] (Mus.)

Defn: A direction to go back to the sign Segno.

DALTONIAN Dal*to"ni*an, n.

Defn: One afflicted with color blindness.

DALTONISM Dal"ton*ism, n.

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

DAM Dam, n. Etym: [OE. dame mistress, lady; also, mother, dam. See Dame.]

1. A female parent; — used of beasts, especially of quadrupeds; sometimes applied in contempt to a human mother. Our sire and dam, now confined to horses, are a relic of this age (13th century) . . . .Dame is used of a hen; we now make a great difference between dame and dam. T. L. K. Oliphant. The dam runs lowing up end down, Looking the way her harmless young one went. Shak.

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

DAM Dam, n. Etym: [Akin to OLG., D., & Dan. dam, G. & Sw. damm, Icel. dammr, and AS. fordemman to stop up, Goth. Faúrdammjan.]

1. A barrier to prevent the flow of a liquid; esp., a bank of earth, or wall of any kind, as of masonry or wood, built across a water course, to confine and keep back flowing water.

2. (Metal.)

Defn: A firebrick wall, or a stone, which forms the front of the hearth of a blast furnace. Dam plate (Blast Furnace), an iron plate in front of the dam, to strengthen it.

DAM Dam, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dammed; p. pr. & vb. n. Damming.]

1. To obstruct or restrain the flow of, by a dam; to confine by constructing a dam, as a stream of water; — generally used with in or up. I'll have the current in this place dammed up. Shak. A weight of earth that dams in the water. Mortimer.

2. To shut up; to stop up; to close; to restrain. The strait pass was dammed With dead men hurt behind, and cowards. Shak. To dam out, to keep out by means of a dam.

DAMAGE Dam"age, n. Etym: [OF. damage, domage, F. dommage, fr. assumed LL. damnaticum, from L. damnum damage. See Damn.]

1. Injury or harm to person, property, or reputation; an inflicted loss of value; detriment; hurt; mischief. He that sendeth a message by the hand of a fool cutteth off the feet and drinketh damage. Prov. xxvi. 6. Great errors and absurdities many commit for want of a friend to tell them of them, to the great damage both of their fame and fortune. Bacon.

2. pl. (Law)

Defn: The estimated reparation in money for detriment or injury sustained; a compensation, recompense, or satisfaction to one party, for a wrong or injury actually done to him by another.

Note: In common-law action, the jury are the proper judges of damages. Consequential damage. See under Consequential. — Exemplary damages (Law), damages imposed by way of example to others. — Nominal damages (Law), those given for a violation of a right where no actual loss has accrued. — Vindictive damages, those given specially for the punishment of the wrongdoer.

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

DAMAGE Dam"age, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Damages; p. pr. & vb. n. Damaging.] Etym: [Cf. OF. damagier, domagier. See Damage, n.]

Defn: To ocassion damage to the soudness, goodness, or value of; to hurt; to injure; to impair. He . . . came up to the English admiral and gave him a broadside, with which he killed many of his men and damaged the ship. Clarendon.

DAMAGE Dam"age, v. i.

Defn: To receive damage or harm; to be injured or impaired in soudness or value; as. some colors in damage in sunlight.

DAMAGEABLE Dam"age*a*ble, a. Etym: [Cf. OF. dammageable, for sense 2.]

1. Capable of being injured or impaired; liable to, or susceptible of, damage; as, a damageable cargo.

2. Hurtful; pernicious. [R.] That it be not demageable unto your royal majesty. Hakluit.

DAMAGE FEASANT Dam"age fea`sant. Etym: [OF. damage + F. faisant doing, p. pr. See Feasible.] (Law)

Defn: Doing injury; trespassing, as cattle. Blackstone.

DAMAN Da"man, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A small herbivorous mammal of the genus Hyrax. The species found in Palestine and Syria is Hyrax Syriacus; that of Northern Africa is H. Brucei; — called also ashkoko, dassy, and rock rabbit. See Cony, and Hyrax.

DAMAR Dam"ar, n.

Defn: See Dammar.

DAMARA Da*ma"ra, n. [The name is supposed to be from Hottentot dama vanquished.]

Defn: A native of Damaraland, German Southwest Africa. The Damaras include an important and warlike Bantu tribe, and the Hill Damaras, who are Hottentots and mixed breeds hostile to the Bantus.

DAMASCENE Dam"as*cene, a. Etym: [L. Damascenus of Damascus, fr. Damascus the city, Gr. . See Damask, and cf. Damaskeen, Damaskin, Damson.]

Defn: Of or relating to Damascus.

DAMASCENE Dam"as*cene, n.

Defn: A kind of plume, now called damson. See Damson.

DAMASCENE Dam"as*cene, v. t.

Defn: Same as Damask, or Damaskeen, v. t. "Damascened armor." Beaconsfield. "Cast and damascened steel." Ure.

DAMASCUS Da*mas"cus, n. Etym: [L.]

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

DAMASCUS STEEL Da*mas"cus steel.

Defn: See Damask steel, under Damask.

DAMASK Dam"ask, n. Etym: [From the city Damascus, L. Damascus, Gr. , Heb. Dammesq, Ar. Daemeshq; cf. Heb. d'meseq damask; cf. It. damasco, Sp. damasco, F. damas. Cf. Damascene, DamassÉ.]

1. Damask silk; silk woven with an elaborate pattern of flowers and the like. "A bed of ancient damask." W. Irving.

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

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

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

5. A deep pink or rose color. Fairfax.

DAMASK Dam"ask, a.

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

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

DAMASK Dam"ask, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Damasked; p. pr. & vb. n. Damasking.]

Defn: To decorate in a way peculiar to Damascus or attributed to Damascus; particularly: (a) with flowers and rich designs, as silk; (b) with inlaid lines of gold, etc., or with a peculiar marking or "water," as metal. See Damaskeen. Mingled metal damasked o'er with gold. Dryde On the soft, downy bank, damasked with flowers. Milton.

DAMASKEEN; DAMASKEN Dam"as*keen`, Dam"as*ken, v. t. Etym: [F. damaschinare. See Damascene, v.]

Defn: To decorate, as iron, steel, etc., with a peculiar marking or "water" produced in the process of manufacture, or with designs produced by inlaying or incrusting with another metal, as silver or gold, or by etching, etc., to damask. Damaskeening is is partly mosaic work, partly engraving, and partly carving. Ure.

DAMASKIN Dam"as*kin, n. Etym: [Cf. F. damasquin, adj., It. damaschino, Sp. damasquino. See Damaskeen.]

Defn: A sword of Damask steel. No old Toledo blades or damaskins. Howell

DAMASSE Da*mas*sé", a. Etym: [F. damassé, fr. damas. See Damask.]

Defn: Woven like damask. — n.

Defn: A damassé fabric, esp. one of linen.

DAMASSIN Dam"as*sin, n. Etym: [F., fr. damas. See Damask.]

Defn: A kind of modified damask or blocade.

DAMBONITE Dambo*nite, n. Etym: [Cf. F. dambonite.] (Chem.)

Defn: A white crystalline, sugary substance obtained from an African caotchouc.

DAMBOSE Dam"bose, n. (Chem.)

Defn: A crystalline vari ety of fruit sugar obtained from dambonite.

DAME Dame, n. Etym: [F. dame, LL. domna, fr. L. domina mistress, lady, fem. of dominus master, ruler, lord; akin to domare to tame, subdue. See Tame, and cf. Dam mother, Dan, Danger, Dangeon, Dungeon, Dominie, Don, n., Duenna.]

1. A mistress of a family, who is a lady; a womam in authority; especially, a lady. Then shall these lords do vex me half so much, As that proud dame, the lord protector's wife. Shak.

2. The mistress of a family in common life, or the mistress of a common school; as, a dame's school. In the dame's classes at the village school. Emerson.

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

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

DAMEWORT Dame"wort`, n. (Bot.)

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

DAMIANA Da`mi*a"na, n. Etym: [NL.; of uncertain origin.] (Med.)

Defn: A Mexican drug, used as an aphrodisiac.

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

DAMIANIST Da"mi*an*ist, n. (Eccl. Hist.)

Defn: A follower of Damian, patriarch of Alexandria in the 6th century, who held heretical opinions on the doctrine of the Holy Trinity.

DAMMAR; DAMMARA Dam"mar, Dam"ma*ra, n. Etym: [Jav. & Malay. damar.]

Defn: An oleoresin used in making varnishes; dammar gum; dammara resin. It is obtained from certain resin trees indigenous to the East Indies, esp. Shorea robusta and the dammar pine. Dammar pine, (Bot.), a tree of the Moluccas (Agathis, or Dammara, orientalis), yielding dammar.

DAMMARA Dam"ma*ra, n. (Bot.)

Defn: A large tree of the order Coniferæ, indigenous to the East Indies and Australasia; — called also Agathis. There are several species.

DAMN Damn, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Damned; p. pr. & vb. n. Damning.] Etym: [OE. damnen dap), OF. damner, dampner, F. damner, fr. L. damnare, damnatum, to condemn, fr. damnum damage, a fine, penalty. Cf. Condemn, Damage.]

1. To condemn; to declare guilty; to doom; to adjudge to punishment; to sentence; to censhure. He shall not live; look, with a spot I damn him. Shak.

2. (Theol.)

Defn: To doom to punishment in the future world; to consign to perdition; to curse.

3. To condemn as bad or displeasing, by open expression, as by denuciation, hissing, hooting, etc. You are not so arrant a critic as to damn them [the works of modern poets] . . . without hearing. Pope. Damn with faint praise, assent with civil leer, And without sneering teach the rest to sneer. Pope.

Note: Damn is sometimes used interjectionally, imperatively, and intensively.

DAMN Damn, v. i.

Defn: To invoke damnation; to curse. "While I inwardly damn." Goldsmith.

DAMNABILITY Dam`na*bil"i*ty, n.

Defn: The quality of being damnable; damnableness. Sir T. More.

DAMNABLE Dam"na*ble, a. Etym: [L. damnabilis, fr. damnare: cf. F. damnable. See Damn.]

1. Liable to damnation; deserving, or for which one deserves, to be damned; of a damning nature. A creature unprepared unmeet for dealth, And to transport him in the mind hi is, Were damnable. Shak.

2. Odious; pernicious; detestable. Begin, murderer; . . . leave thy damnable faces. Shak.

DAMNABLENESS Dam"na*ble*ness, n.

Defn: The state or quality of deserving damnation; execrableness. The damnableness of this most execrable impiety. Prynne.

DAMNABLY Dam"na*bly, adv.

1. In a manner to incur sever

2. Odiously; detestably; excessively. [Low]

DAMNATION Dam*na"tion, n. Etym: [F. damnation, L. damnatio, fr. damnare. See Damn.]

1. The state of being damned; condemnation; openly expressed disapprobation.

2. (Theol.)

Defn: Condemnation to everlasting punishment in the future state, or the punishment itself. How can ye escape the damnation of hell Matt. xxiii. 33. Wickedness is sin, and sin is damnation. Shak.

3. A sin daserving of everlasting punishment. [R.] The deep damnation of his taking-off. Shak.

DAMNATORY Dam"na*to*ry, a. Etym: [L. damnatorius, fr. damnator a condemner.]

Defn: Doo "Damnatory invectives." Hallam.

DAMNED Damned, a.

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

2. Hateful; detestable; abominable. But, O, what damned minutes tells he o'er Who doats, yet doubts, suspects, yet strongly loves. Shak.

DAMNIFIC Dam*nif"ic, a. Etym: [L. damnificus; damnum damage, loss + facere to make. See Damn.]

Defn: Procuring or causing loss; mischievous; injurious.

DAMNIFICATION Dam`ni*fi*ca"tion, n. Etym: [LL. damnificatio.]

Defn: That which causes damage or loss.

DAMNIFY Dam"ni*fy, v. t. Etym: [LL. damnificare, fr. L. damnificus: cf. OF. damnefier. See Damnific.]

Defn: To cause loss or damage to; to injure; to imparir. [R.] This work will ask as many more officials to make expurgations and expunctions, that the commonwealth of learning be not damnified. Milton.

DAMNING Damn"ing, a.

Defn: That damns; damnable; as, damning evidence of guilt.

DAMNINGNESS Damn"ing*ness, n.

Defn: Tendency to bring damnation. "The damningness of them [sins]." Hammond.

DAMNUM dam"num, n. Etym: [L.] (law)

Defn: Harm; detriment, either to character or property.

DAMOSEL; DAMOSELLA; DAMOISELLE Dam"o*sel, Dam`o*sel"la, Da`moi`selle", n.

Defn: See Damsel. [Archaic]

DAMOURITE Dam"our*ite, n. Etym: [Ater the French chemist Damour.] (Min.)

Defn: A kind of Muscovite, or potash mica, containing water.

DAMP Damp, n. Etym: [Akin to LG., D., & Dan. damp vapor, steam, fog, G. dampf, Icel. dampi, Sw. damb dust, and to MNG. dimpfen to smoke, imp. dampf.]

1. Moisture; humidity; fog; fogginess; vapor. Night . . . with black air Accompanied, with damps and dreadful gloom. Milton.

2. Dejection; depression; cloud of the mind. Even now, while thus I stand blest in thy presence, A secret damp of grief comes o'er my soul. Addison. It must have thrown a damp over your autumn excursion. J. D. Forbes.

3. (Mining)

Defn: A gaseous prodact, formed in coal mines, old wells, pints, etc. Choke damp, a damp consisting principally of carboniCarbonic acid, under Carbonic. — Damp sheet, a curtain in a mine gallery to direct air currents and prevent accumulation of gas. — Fire damp, a damp consisting chiefly of light carbureted hydrogen; — so called from its tendence to explode when mixed with atmospheric air and brought into contact with flame.

DAMP Damp, a. [Compar. Damper; superl. Dampest.]

1. Being in a state between dry and wet; moderately wet; moist; humid. O'erspread with a damp sweat and holy fear. Dryden.

2. Dejected; depressed; sunk. [R.] All these and more came flocking, but with looks Downcast and damp. Milton.

DAMP Damp, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Damped; p. pr. & vb. n. Damping.] Etym: [OE. dampen to choke, suffocate. See Damp, n.]

1. To render damp; to moisten; to make humid, or moderately wet; to dampen; as, to damp cloth.

2. To put out, as fire; to depress or deject; to deaden; to cloud; to check or restrain, as action or vigor; to make dull; to weaken; to discourage. "To damp your tender hopes." Akenside. Usury dulls and damps all industries, improvements, and new inventions, wherein money would be stirring if it were not for this slug. Bacon. How many a day has been damped and darkened by an angry word! Sir J. Lubbock. The failure of his enterprise damped the spirit of the soldiers. Macaulay.

DAMPEN Damp"en, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dampened; p. pr. & vb. n. Dampening.]

1. To make damp or moist; to make slightly wet.

2. To depress; to check; to make dull; to lessen. In a way that considerably dampened our enthusiasm. The Century.

DAMPEN Damp"en, v. i.

Defn: To become damp; to deaden. Byron.

DAMPER Damp"er, n.

Defn: That which damps or checks; as: (a) A valve or movable plate in the flue or other part of a stove, furnace, etc., used to check or regulate the draught of air. (b) A contrivance, as in a pianoforte, to deaden vibrations; or, as in other pieces of mechanism, to check some action at a particular time. Nor did Sabrina's presence seem to act as any damper at the modest little festivities. W. Black.

DAMPISH Damp"ish, a.

Defn: Moderately damp or moist. — Damp"ish*ly, adv. — Damp"ish*ness, n.

DAMPNE Damp"ne, v. t.

Defn: To damn. [Obs.] Chaucer.

DAMPNESS Damp"ness, n.

Defn: Moderate humidity; moisture; fogginess; moistness.

DAMP OFF Damp" off`.

Defn: To decay and perish through excessive moisture.

DAMPY Damp"y, a.

1. Somewhat damp. [Obs.] Drayton.

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

DAMSEL Dam"sel, n. Etym: [OE. damosel, damesel, damisel, damsel, fr. OF. damoisele, damisele, gentlewoman, F. demoiselle young lady; cf. OF. damoisel young nobleman, F. damoiseau; fr. LL. domicella, dominicella, fem., domicellus, dominicellus, masc., dim. fr. L. domina, dominus. See Dame, and cf. Demoiselle, Doncella.]

1. A young person, either male or female, of noble or gentle extraction; as, Damsel Pepin; Damsel Richard, Prince of Wales. [Obs.]

2. A young unmarried woman; a gerl; a maiden. With her train of damsels she was gone, In shady walks the scorching heat to shum. Dryden. Sometimes a troop of damsels glad, . . . Goes by to towered Cameleot. Tennyson.

3. (Milling)

Defn: An attachment to a millstone spindle for shaking the hoppe

DAMSON Dam"son, n. Etym: [OE. damasin the Damascus plum, fr. L. Damascenus. See Damascene.]

Defn: A small oval plum of a blue color, the fruit of a variety of the Prunus domestica; — called also damask plum.

DAN Dan, n. Etym: [OE. dan, danz, OF. danz (prop. only nom.), dan, master, fr. L. dominus. See Dame.]

Defn: A title of honor equivalent to master, or sir. [Obs.] Old Dan Geoffry, in gently spright The pure wellhead of poetry did dwell. Spenser. What time Dan Abraham left the Chaldee land. Thomson.

DAN Dan, n. Etym: [Etymol. uncertain.] (Mining)

Defn: A small truck or sledge used in coal mines.

DANAIDE Da"na*ide, n. Etym: [From the mythical Danaides, who were condemned to fill with water a vessel full of holes.] (Mach.)

Defn: A water wheel having a vertical axis, and an inner and outer tapering shell, between which are vanes or floats attached usually to both shells, but sometimes only to one.

DANAITE Da"na*ite, n. Etym: [Named after J. Freeman Dana.] (Min.)

Defn: A cobaltiferous variety of arsenopyrite.

DANALITE Da"na*lite, n. Etym: [Named after James Dwight Dana.] (Min.)

Defn: A mineral occuring in octahedral crystals, also massive, of a reddish color. It is a silicate of iron, zinc manganese, and glicinum, containing sulphur.

DANBURITE Dan"bu*rite, n. (Min.)

Defn: A borosilicate of lime, first found at Danbury, Conn. It is near the topaz in form. Dana.

DANCE Dance, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Danced; p. pr. & vb. n. Dancing.] Etym: [F. danser, fr. OHG. dans to draw; akin to dinsan to draw, Goth. apinsan, and prob. from the same root (meaning to stretch) as E. thin. See Thin.]

1. To move with measured steps, or to a musical accompaniment; to go through, either alone or in company with others, with a regulated succession of movements, (commonly) to the sound of music; to trip or leap rhytmically. Jack shall pipe and Gill shall dance. Wiher. Good shepherd, what fair swain is this Which dances with your dauther Shak.

2. To move nimbly or merrily; to express pleasure by motion; to caper; to frisk; to skip about. Then, 'tis time to dance off. Thackeray. More dances my rapt heart Than when I first my wedded mistress saw. Shak. Shadows in the glassy waters dance. Byron. Where rivulets dance their wayward round. Wordsworth. To dance on a rope, or To dance on nothing, to be hanged.

DANCE Dance, v. t.

Defn: To cause to dance, or move nimbly or merrily about, or up and down; to dandle. To dance our ringlets to the whistling wind. Shak. Thy grandsire loved thee well; Many a time he danced thee on his knee. Shak. To dance attendance, to come and go obsequiously; to be or remain in waiting, at the beck and call of another, with a view to please or gain favor. A man of his place, and so near our favor, To dance attendance on their lordships' pleasure. Shak.

DANCE Dance, n. Etym: [F. danse, of German origin. See Dance, v. i.]

1. The leaping, tripping, or measured stepping of one who dances; an amusement, in which the movements of the persons are regulated by art, in figures and in accord with music.

2. (Mus.)

Defn: A tune by which dancing is regulated, as the minuet, the waltz, the cotillon, etc.

Note: The word dance was used ironically, by the older writers, of many proceedings besides dancing. Of remedies of love she knew parchance For of that art she couth the olde dance. Chaucer. Dance of Death (Art), an allegorical representation of the power of death over all, — the old, the young, the high, and the low, being led by a dancing skeleton. — Morris dance. See Morris. — To lead one a dance, to cause one to go through a series of movements or experiences as if guided by a partner in a dance not understood.

DANCER Dan"cer, n.

Defn: One who dances or who practices dancing. The merry dancers, beams of the northern lights when they rise and fall alternately without any considerable change of length. See Aurora borealis, under Aurora.

DANCERESS Dan"cer*ess, n.

Defn: A female dancer. [Obs.] Wyclif.

DANCETTE Dan`cet`té", a. Etym: [Cf. F. danché dancetté, dent tooth.] (Her.)

Defn: Deeply indented; having large teeth; thus, a fess dancetté has only three teeth in the whole width of the escutcheon.

DANCING Dan"cing, p. a. & vb. n.

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

DANCY Dan"cy, a. (Her.)

Defn: Same as Dancetté.

DANDELION Dan"de*li`on, n. Etym: [F. dent de lion lion's tooth, fr. L. dens tooth + leo lion. See Tooth, n., and Lion.] (Bot.)

Defn: A well-known plant of the genus Taraxacum (T. officinale, formerly called T. Dens-leonis and Leontodos Taraxacum) bearing large, yellow, compound flowers, and deeply notched leaves.

DANDER Dan"der, n. Etym: [Corrupted from dandruff.]

1. Dandruff or scurf on the head.

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

DANDER Dan"der, v. i. Etym: [See Dandle.]

Defn: To wander about; to saunter; to talk incoherently. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

DANDI Dan"di, n. Etym: [Hind. , fr. an oar.]

Defn: A boatman; an oarsman. [India]

DANDIE Dan"die, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: One of a breed of small terriers; — called also Dandie Dinmont.

DANDIE DINMONT; DANDIE Dan"die Din"mont, or Dan"die, n.

1.

Defn: In Scott's "Guy Mannering", a Border farmer of eccentric but fine character, who owns two terriers claimed to be the progenitors of the Dandie Dinmont terriers.

2. One of a breed of terriers with short legs, long body, and rough coat, originating in the country about the English and Scotch border.

DANDIFIED Dan"di*fied, a.

Defn: Made up like a dandy; having the dress or manners of a dandy; buckish.

DANDIFY Dan"di*fy, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dandified; p. pr. & vb. n. Dandifying.] Etym: [Dandy + -fy.]

Defn: To cause to resemble a dandy; to make dandyish.

DANDIPRAT Dan"di*prat, n. Etym: [Dandy + brat child.]

1. A little fellow; — in sport or contempt. "A dandiprat hop-thumb." Stanyhurst.

2. A small coin. Henry VII. stamped a small coin called dandiprats. Camden.

DANDLE Dan"dle, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dandled; p. pr. & vb. n. Dandling.] Etym: [Cf. G. dändeln to trifly, dandle, OD. & Prov. G. danten, G. tand trifly, prattle; Scot. dandill, dander, to go about idly, to trifly.]

1. To move up and down on one's knee or in one's arms, in affectionate play, as an infant. Ye shall be dandled . . . upon her knees. Is.

2. To treat with fondness, as if a child; to fondle; to toy with; to pet. They have put me in a silk gown and gaudy fool's cap; I as ashamed to be dandled thus. Addison. The book, thus dandled into popularity by bishops and good ladies, contained many pieces of nursery eloquence. Jeffrey.

3. To play with; to put off or delay by trifles; to wheedle. [Obs.] Captains do so dandle their doings, and dally in the service, as it they would not have the enemy subdued. Spenser.

DANDLER Dan"dler, n.

Defn: One who dandles or fondles.

DANDRIFF Dan"driff, n.

Defn: See Dandruff. Swift.

DANDRUFF Dandruff, n. Etym: [Prob. from W. toncrust, peel, skin + AS. dr dirty, draffy, or W. drwg bad: cf. AS. tan a letter, an eruption. sq. root240.]

Defn: A scurf which forms on the head, and comes off in small or particles. [Written also dandriff.]

DANDY Dan"dy, n.; pl. Dandies. Etym: [Cf. F. dandin, ninny, silly fellow, dandiner to waddle, to play the fool; prob. allied to E. dandle. Senses 2&3 are of uncertain etymol.]

1. One who affects special finery or gives undue attention to dress; a fop; a coxcomb.

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

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

DANDY-COCK; DANDY-HEN Dan"dy-cock` (, n. masc., Dan"dy-hen` (, n. fem. Etym: [See Dandy.]

Defn: A bantam fowl.

DANDYISE; DANDYIZE Dan"dy*ise, v. t. & i.

Defn: To make, or to act, like a dandy; to dandify.

DANDYISH Dan"dy*ish, a.

Defn: Like a dandy.

DANDYISM Dan"dy*ism, n.

Defn: The manners and dress of a dandy; foppishness. Byron.

DANDYLING Dan"dy*ling, n. Etym: [Dandy + .]

Defn: A little or insignificant dandy; a contemptible fop.

DANE Dane, n. Etym: [LL. Dani: cf. AS. Dene.]

Defn: A native, or a naturalized inhabitant, of Denmark. Great Dane. (Zoöl.) See Danish dog, under Danish.

DANEGELD; DANEGELT Dane"geld`, Dane"gelt`, n. Etym: [AS. danegeld. See Dane, and Geld, n.] (Eng. Hist.)

Defn: An annual tax formerly laid on the English nation to buy off the ravages of Danish invaders, or to maintain forces to oppose them. It afterward became a permanent tax, raised by an assessment, at first of one shilling, afterward of two shillings, upon every hide of land throughout the realm. Wharton's Law Dict. Tomlins.

DANEWORT Dane"wort`, n. (Bot.)

Defn: A fetid European species of elder (Sambucus Ebulus); dwarf elder; wallwort; elderwort; — called also Daneweed, Dane's weed, and Dane's-blood.

Note: [Said to grow on spots where battles were fought against the Danes.]

DANG Dang,

Defn: imp. of Ding. [Obs.]

DANG Dang, v. t. Etym: [Cf. Ding.]

Defn: To dash. [Obs.] Till she, o'ercome with anguish, shame, and rage, Danged down to hell her loathsome carriage. Marlowe.

DANGER Dan"ger, n. Etym: [OE. danger, daunger, power, arrogance, refusal, difficulty, fr. OF. dagier, dongier (with same meaning), F. danger danger, fr. an assumed LL. dominiarium power, authority, from L. dominium power, property. See Dungeon, Domain, Dame.]

1. Authority; jurisdiction; control. [Obs.] In dangerhad he . . . the young girls. Chaucer.

2. Power to harm; subjection or liability to penalty. [Obs.] See In one's danger, below. You stand within his danger, do you not Shak. Covetousness of gains hath brought [them] in dangerof this statute. Robynson (More's Utopia).

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

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

5. Coyness; disdainful behavior. [Obs.] Chaucer. In one's danger, in one's power; liable to a penalty to be inflicted by him. [Obs.] This sense is retained in the proverb, "Out of debt out of danger." Those rich man in whose debt and danger they be not. Robynson (More's Utopia). — To do danger, to cause danger. [Obs.] Shak.

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

DANGER Dan"ger, v. t.

Defn: To endanger. [Obs.] Shak.

DANGERFUL Dan"ger*ful, a.

Defn: Full of danger; dangerous. [Obs.] — Dan"ger*ful*ly, adv. [Obs.] Udall.

DANGERLESS Dan"ger*less, a.

Defn: Free from danger. [R.]

DANGEROUS Dan"ger*ous, a. Etym: [OE., haughty, difficult, dangerous, fr. OF. dangereus, F. dangereux. See Danger.]

1. Attended or beset with danger; full of risk; perilous; hazardous; unsafe. Our troops set forth to-morrow; stay with us; The ways are dangerous. Shak. It is dangerous to assert a negative. Macaulay.

2. Causing danger; ready to do harm or injury. If they incline to think you dangerous To less than gods. Milton.

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

4. Hard to suit; difficult to please. [Obs.] My wages ben full strait, and eke full small; My lord to me is hard and dangerous. Chaucer.

5. Reserved; not affable. [Obs.] "Of his speech dangerous." Chaucer. — Dan"ger*ous*ly, adv. — Dan"ger*ous*ness, n.

DANGLE Dan"gle, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Dangled; p. pr. & vb. n. Dangling.] Etym: [Akin to Dan. dangle, dial. Sw. dangla, Dan. dingle, Sw. dingla, Icel. dingla; perh. from E. ding.]

Defn: To hang loosely, or with a swinging or jerking motion. he'd rather on a gibbet dangle Than miss his dear delight, to wrangle. Hudibras. From her lifted hand Dangled a length of ribbon. Tennyson. To dangle about or after, to hang upon importunately; to court the favor of; to beset. The Presbyterians, and other fanatics that dangle after them, are well inclined to pull down the present establishment. Swift.

DANGLE Dan"gle, v. t.

Defn: To cause to dangle; to swing, as something suspended loosely; as, to dangle the feet. And the bridegroom stood dangling his bonnet and plume. Sir W. Scott.

DANGLEBERRY Dan"gle*ber`ry, n. (Bot.)

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

DANGLER Dan"gler, n.

Defn: One who dangles about or after others, especially after women; a trifler. " Danglers at toilets." Burke.

DANIEL Dan"i*el, n.

Defn: A Hebrew prophet distinguished for sagacity and ripeness of judgment in youth; hence, a sagacious and upright judge. A Daniel come to judgment. Shak.

DANISH Dan"ish, a. Etym: [See Dane.]

Defn: Belonging to the Danes, or to their language or country. — n.

Defn: The language of the Danes. Danish dog (Zoöl.), one of a large and powerful breed of dogs reared in Denmark; — called also great Dane. See Illustration in Appendix.

DANITE Dan"ite, n.

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

2. Etym: [So called in remembrance of the prophecy in Gen. xlix. 17, "Dan shall be a serpent by the way," etc.]

Defn: One of a secret association of Mormons, bound by an oath to obey the heads of the church in all things. [U. S.]

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

Defn: Damp; moist; humid; wet. Now that the fields are dank and ways are mire. Milton. Cheerless watches on the cold, dank ground. Trench.

DANK Dank, n.

Defn: Moisture; humidity; water. [Obs.]

DANK Dank, n.

Defn: A small silver coin current in Persia.

DANKISH Dank"ish, a.

Defn: Somewhat dank. — Dank"ish*ness, n. In a dark and dankish vault at home. Shak.

DANNEBROG Dan"ne*brog, n.

Defn: The ancient battle standard of Denmark, bearing figures of cross and crown. Order of Dannebrog, an ancient Danish order of knighthood.

DANSEUSE Dan`seuse", n. Etym: [F., fr. danser to dance.]

Defn: a professional female dancer; a woman who dances at a public exhibition as in a ballet.

DANSK Dansk, a. Etym: [Dan.]

Defn: Danish. [Obs.]

DANSKER Dansk"er, n.

Defn: A Dane. [Obs.] Inquire me first what Danskers are in Paris. Shak.

DANTEAN Dan*te"an, a.

Defn: Relatingto, emanating from or resembling, the poet Dante or his writings.

DANTESQUE Dan*tesque", a. Etym: [Cf. It. Dantesco.]

Defn: Dantelike; Dantean. Earle.

DANUBIAN Da*nu"bi*an, a.

Defn: Pertainingto, or bordering on, the river Danube.

DAP Dap, v. i. Etym: [Cf. Dip.] (Angling)

Defn: To drop the bait gently on the surface of the water. To catch a club by dapping with a grasshoper. Walton.

DAPATICAL Da*pat"ic*al, a. Etym: [L. dapaticus, fr. daps feast.]

Defn: Sumptuous in cheer. [Obs.] Bailey.

DAPHNE Daph"ne, n. Etym: [L., a laurel tree, from Gr. .]

1. (Bot.)

Defn: A genus of diminutive Shrubs, mostly evergreen, and with fragrant blossoms.

2. (Myth.)

Defn: A nymph of Diana, fabled to have been changed into a laurel tree.

DAPHNETIN Daph"ne*tin, n. (Chem.)

Defn: A colorless crystalline substance, C9H6O4, extracted from daphnin.

DAPHNIA Daph"ni*a, n. Etym: [NL.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: A genus of the genus Daphnia.

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

DAPHNOMANCY Daph"no*man`cy, n. Etym: [Gr. da`fnh the laurel + -mancy.]

Defn: Divination by means of the laurel.

DAPIFER Dap"i*fer, n. Etym: [L., daps a feast + ferre to bear.]

Defn: One who brings meat to the table; hence, in some countries, the official title of the grand master or steward of the king's or a nobleman's household.

DAPPER Dap"per, a. Etym: [OE. daper; prob. fr. D. dapper brave, valiant; akin to G. tapfer brave, OHG. taphar heavy, weighty, OSlav. dobrû good, Russ. dobrui. Cf. Deft.]

Defn: Little and active; spruce; trim; smart; neat in dress or appearance; lively. He wondered how so many provinces could be held in subjection by such a dapper little man. Milton. The dapper ditties that I wont devise. Spenser. Sharp-nosed, dapper steam yachts. Julian Hawthorne.

DAPPERLING Dap"per*ling, n.

Defn: A dwarf; a dandiprat. [r.]

DAPPLE Dap"ple, n. Etym: [Cf. Icel. depill a spot, a dot, a dog with spots over the eyes, dapi a pool, and E. dimple.]

Defn: One of the spots on a dappled animal. He has . . . as many eyes on his body as my gray mare hath dapples. Sir P. Sidney.

DAPPLE; DAPPLED Dap"ple, Dap"pled, a.

Defn: Marked with spots of different shades of color; spotted; variegated; as, a dapple horse. Some dapple mists still floated along the peaks. Sir W. Scott.

Note: The word is used in composition to denote that some color is variegated or marked with spots; as, dapple-bay; dapple-gray. His steed was all dapple-gray. Chaucer. O, swiftly can speed my dapple-gray steed. Sir W. Scott.

DAPPLE Dap"ple, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dappled; p. pr. & vb. n. Dappling.]

Defn: To variegate with spots; to spot. The gentle day, . . . Dapples the drowsy east with spots of gray. Shak. The dappled pink and blushing rose. Prior.

DARBIES Dar"bies, n. pl.

Defn: Manacles; handcuffs. [Cant] Jem Clink will fetch you the darbies. Sir W. Scott.

Note: In "The Steel Glass" by Gascoigne, printed in 1576, occurs the line "To binde such babes in father Derbies bands."

DARBY Dar"by, n.

Defn: A plasterer's float, having two handles; — used in smoothing ceilings, etc.

DARBYITE Dar"by*ite, n.

Defn: One of the Plymouth Brethren, or of a sect among them; — so called from John N. Darby, one of the leaders of the Brethren.

DARDANIAN Dar*da"ni*an, a. & n.Etym: [From L. Dardania, poetic name of Troy.]

Defn: Trojan.

DARE Dare, v. i. [imp. Durst or Dared (; p. p. Dared; p. pr. & vb. n. Daring.] Etym: [OE. I dar, dear, I dare, imp. dorste, durste, AS. ic dear I dare, imp. dorste. inf. durran; akin to OS. gidar, gidorsta, gidurran, OHG. tar, torsta, turran, Goth. gadar, gadaúrsta, Gr. tharsei^n, tharrei^n, to be bold, tharsy`s bold, Skr. Dhrsh to be bold. sq. root70.]

Defn: To have adequate or sufficient courage for any purpose; to be bold or venturesome; not to be afraid; to venture. I dare do all that may become a man; Who dares do more is none. Shak. Why then did not the ministers use their new law Bacause they durst not, because they could not. Macaulay. Who dared to sully her sweet love with suspicion. Thackeray. The tie of party was stronger than the tie of blood, because a partisan was more ready to dare without asking why. Jowett (Thu

Note: The present tense, I dare, is really an old past tense, so that the third person is he dare, but the form he dares is now often used, and will probably displace the obsolescent he dare, through grammatically as incorrect as he shalls or he cans. Skeat. The pore dar plede (the poor man dare plead). P. Plowman. You know one dare not discover you. Dryden. The fellow dares nopt deceide me. Shak. Here boldly spread thy hands, no venom'd weed Dares blister them, no slimly snail dare creep. Beau. & Fl.

Note: Formerly durst was also used as the present. Sometimes the old form dare is found for durst or dared.

DARE Dare, v. y. [imp. & p. p. Dared; p. pr. & vb. n. Daring.]

1. To have courage for; to attempt courageously; to venture to do or to undertake. What high concentration of steady feeling makes men dare every thing and do anything Bagehot. To wrest it from barbarism, to dare its solitudes. The Century.

2. To challenge; to provoke; to defy. Time, I dare thee to discover Such a youth and such a lover. Dryden.

DARE Dare, n.

1. The quality of daring; venturesomeness; boldness; dash. [R.] It lends a luster . . . A large dare to our great enterprise. Shak.

2. Defiance; challenge. Childish, unworthy dares Are not enought to part our powers. Chapman. Sextus Pompeius Hath given the dare to Cæsar. Shak.

DARE Dare, v. i. Etym: [OE. darien, to lie hidden, be timid.]

Defn: To lurk; to lie hid. [Obs.] Chaucer.

DARE Dare, v. t.

Defn: To terrify; to daunt. [Obs.] For I have done those follies, those mad mischiefs, Would dare a woman. Beau. & Fl. To dare larks, to catch them by producing terror through to use of mirrors, scarlet cloth, a hawk, etc., so that they lie still till a net is thrown over them. Nares.

DARE Dare, n. Etym: [See Dace.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: A small fish; the dace.

DARE-DEVIL Dare"-dev`il, n.

Defn: A reckless fellow. Also used adjectively; as, dare-devil excitement. A humorous dare-devil — the very man To suit my prpose. Ld. Lytton.

DARE-DEVILTRY Dare"-dev`il*try, n; pl. Dare-deviltries (.

Defn: Reckless mischief; the action of a dare-devil.

DAREFUL Dare"ful, a.

Defn: Full af daring or of defiance; adveturous. [R.] Shak.

DARER Dar"er, n.

Defn: One who dares or defies.

DARG; DARGUE Darg, Dargue, n. Etym: [Scot., contr. fr. day work.]

Defn: A day's work; also, a fixed amount of work, whether more or less than that of a day. [Local, Eng. & Scott]

DARIC Dar"ic, n. Etym: [Gr.

1. (Antiq.) (a) A gold coin of ancient Persia, weighing usually a little more than 128 grains, and bearing on one side of the figure of an archer. (b) A silver coin of about 86 grains, having the figure of an archer, and hence, in modern times, called a daric.

2. Any very pure gold coin.

DARING Dar"ing, n.

Defn: Boldness; fearlessness; adventurousness; also, a daring act.

DARING Dar"ing, a.

Defn: Bold; fearless; adventurous; as, daring spirits. — Dar"ing*ly, adv. — Dar"ing*ness, n.

DARIOLE Da`ri*ole", n. [F.]

1. A crustade. [Obs.]

2. A shell or cup of pastry filled with custard, whipped cream, crushed macaroons, etc.

DARK Dark, a. Etym: [OE. dark, derk, deork, AS. dearc, deorc; cf. Gael. & Ir. dorch, dorcha, dark, black, dusky.]

1. Destitute, or partially destitute, of light; not receiving, reflecting, or radiating light; wholly or partially black, or of some deep shade of color; not light-colored; as, a dark room; a dark day; dark cloth; dark paint; a dark complexion. O dark, dark, dark, amid the blaze of noon, Irrecoverable dark, total eclipse Without all hope of day! milton. In the dark and silent grave. Sir W. Raleigh.

2. Not clear to the understanding; not easily The dark problems of existence. Shairp. What may seem dark at the first, will afterward be found more plain. Hooker. What's your dark meaning, mouse, of this light word Shak.

3. Destitute of knowledge and culture; in moral or intellectual darkness; unrefined; ignorant. The age wherin he lived was dark, but he Cobld not want light who taught the world oto see. Denhan. The tenth century used to be reckoned by mediæval historians as the darkest part of this intellectual night. Hallam.

4. Evincing blaxk or foul traits of character; vile; wicked; atrocious; as, a dark villain; a dark deed. Left him at large to his own dark designs. Milton.

5. Foreboding evil; gloomy; jealous; suspicious. More dark and dark our woes. Shak. A deep melancholy took possesion of him, and gave a dark tinge to all his views of human nature. Macaulay. There is, in every true woman-s heart, a spark of heavenly fire, which beams and blazes in the dark hour of adversity. W. Irving.

6. Deprived of sight; blind. [Obs.] He was, I think, at this time quite dark, and so had been for some years. Evelyn.

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

DARK Dark, n.

1. Absence of light; darkness; obscurity; a place where there is little or no light. Here stood he in the dark, his sharp sword out. Shak.

2. The condition of ignorance; gloom; secrecy. Look, what you do, you do it still i' th' dark. Shak. Till we perceive by our own understandings, we are as mucdark, and as void of knowledge, as before. Locke.

3. (Fine Arts)

Defn: A dark shade or dark passage in a painting, engraving, or the like; as, the light and darks are well contrasted. The lights may serve for a repose to the darks, and the darks to the lights. Dryden.

DARK Dark, v. t.

Defn: To darken to obscure. [Obs.] Milton.

DARKEN Dark"en, v. t. [Imp. & p. p. Darkened; p. pr. & vb. n. Darkening.] Etym: [AS. deorcian. See Dark, a.]

1. To make dark or black; to deprite of light; to obscure; as, a darkened room. They [locusts] covered the face of the whole earth, so that the land was darkened. Ex. x. 15. So spake the Sovran Voice; and clouds began To darken all the hill. Milton.

2. To render dim; to deprive of vision. Let their eyes be darkened, that they may not see. Rom. xi. 10.

3. To cloud, obscure, or perplex; to render less clear or intelligible. Such was his wisdom that his confidence did seldom darkenhis foresight. Bacon. Who is this that darkeneth counsel by words without knowledge Job. xxxviii. 2.

4. To cast a gloom upon. With these forced thoughts, I prithee, darken not The mirth of the feast. Shak.

5. To make foul; to sully; to tarnish. I must not think there are Evils enough to darken all his goodness. Shak.

DARKEN Dark"en, v. i.

Defn: To grow or darker.

DARKENER Dark"en*er, n.

Defn: One who, or that which, darkens.

DARKENING Dark"en*ing, n.

Defn: Twilight; gloaming. [Prov. Eng. & Scot.] Wright.

DARKFUL Dark"ful, a.

Defn: Full of darkness. [Obs.]

DARKISH Dark"ish, a.

Defn: Somewhat dark; dusky.

DARKLE Dar"kle, v. i. Etym: [Freq. of dark.]

Defn: To grow dark; to show indistinctly. Thackeray.

DARKLING Dark"ling, adv. Etym: [Dark + the adverbial suffix -ling.]

Defn: In the dark. [Poetic] So, out went the candle, and we were left darkling. Shak. As the wakeful bird Sings darkling. Milton.

DARKLING Dark"ling, p. pr. & a.

1. Becoming dark or gloomy; frowing. His honest brows darkling as he looked towards me. Thackeray.

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

DARKLY Dark"ly, adv.

1. With imperfect light, clearness, or knowledge; obscurely; dimly; blindly; uncertainly. What fame to future times conveys but darkly down. Dryden. so softly dark and darkly pure. Byron.

2. With a dark, gloomy, cruel, or menacing look. Looking darkly at the clerguman. Hawthorne.

DARKNESS Dark"ness, n.

1. The absence of light; blackness; obscurity; gloom. And darkness was upon the face of the deep. Gen. i. 2.

2. A state of privacy; secrecy. What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light. Matt. x. 27.

3. A state of ignorance or error, especially on moral or religious subjects; hence, wickedness; impurity. Men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. John. iii. 19. Pursue these sons of darkness: drive them out From all heaven's bounds. Milton.

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

5. A state of distress or trouble. A day of clouds and of thick darkness. Joel. ii. 2. Prince of darkness, the Devil; Satan. "In the power of the Prince of darkness." Locke.

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

DARKSOME Dark"some, a.

Defn: Dark; gloomy; obscure; shaded; cheerless. [Poetic] He brought him through a darksome narrow pass To a broad gate, all built of beaten gold. Spenser.

DARKY Dark"y, n.

Defn: A negro. [Sleng]

DARLING Dar"ling, n. Etym: [OE. derling, deorling, AS. deórling; deóre dear + -ling. See Dear, and -ling.]

Defn: One dearly beloved; a favorite. And can do naught but wail her darling's loss. Shak.

DARLING Dar"ling, a.

Defn: Dearly beloved; regarded with especial kindness and tenderness; favorite. "Some darling science." I. Watts. "Darling sin." Macaulay.

DARLINGTONIA Dar`ling*to"ni*a, n. Etym: [NL. Named after Dr. William Darlington, a botanist of West Chester, Penn.] (Bot.)

Defn: A genus of California pitcher plants consisting of a single species. The long tubular leaves are hooded at the top, and frequently contain many insects drowned in the secretion of the leaves.

DARN Darn, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Darned; p. pr. & vb. n. Darning.] Etym: [OE. derne, prob. of Celtic origin; cf. W. darnio to piece, break in pieces, W. & Arm. to E. tear. Cf. Tear, v. t.]

Defn: To mend as a rent or hole, with interlacing stitches of yarn or thread by means of a needle; to sew together with yarn or thread. He spent every day ten hours in his closet, in darning his stockins. Swift. Darning last. See under Last. — Darning needle. (a) A long, strong needle for mending holes or rents, especially in stockings. (b) (Zoöl.) Any species of dragon fly, having a long, cylindrical body, resembling a needle. These flies are harmless and without stings.

Note: [In this sense, usually written with a hyphen.] Called also devil's darning-needle.

DARN Darn, n.

Defn: A place mended by darning.

DARN Darn, v. t.

Defn: A colloquial euphemism for Damn.

DARNEL Dar"nel, n. Etym: [OE. darnel, dernel, of uncertain origin; cf. dial. F. darnelle, Sw. dår-repe; perh. named from a supposed intoxicating quality of the plant, and akin to Sw. dåra to infatuate, OD. door foolish, G. thor fool, and Ee. dizzy.] (Bot.)

Defn: Any grass of the genus Lolium, esp. the Lolium temulentum (bearded darnel), the grains of which have been reputed poisonous. Other species, as Lolium perenne (rye grass or ray grass), and its variety L. Italicum (Italian rye grass), are highly esteemed for pasture and for making hay.

Note: Under darnel our early herbalists comprehended all kinds of cornfield weeds. Dr. Prior.

DARNER Darn"er, n.

Defn: One who mends by darning.

DARNEX; DARNIC Dar"nex, Dar"nic, n.

Defn: Same as Dornick.

DAROO Da*roo", n. (Bot.)

Defn: The Egyptian sycamore (Ficus Sycamorus). See Sycamore.

DARR Darr, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The European black tern.

DARRAIGN; DARRAIN Dar"raign, Dar"rain,, v. t. Etym: [OF. deraisnier to explain, defend, to maintain in legal action by proof and reasonings, LL. derationare; de- + rationare to discourse, contend in law, fr. L. ratio reason, in LL., legal cause. Cf. Arraign, and see Reason.]

1. To make ready to fight; to array. [Obs.] Darrain your battle, for they are at hand. Shak.

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

DARREIN Dar"rein, a. Etym: [OF. darrein, darrain, fr. an assumed LL. deretranus; L. de + retro back, backward.] (Law)

Defn: Last; as, darrein continuance, the last continuance.

DART Dart, n. Etym: [OF. dart, of German origin; cf. OHG. tart javelin, dart, AS. dara, daro, Sw. dart dagger, Icel. darra dart.]

1. A pointed missile weapon, intended to be thrown by the hand; a short lance; a javelin; hence, any sharp-pointed missile weapon, as an arrow. And he [Joab] took three darts in his hand, and thrust them through the heart of Absalom. 2 Sa. xviii. 14.

2. Anything resembling a dart; anything that pierces or wounds like a dart. The artful inquiry, whose venomed dart Scarce wounds the hearing while it stabs the heart. Hannan More.

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

4. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A fish; the dace. See Dace. Dart sac (Zoöl.), a sac connected with the reproductive organs of land snails, which contains a dart, or arrowlike structure.

DART Dart, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Darted; p. pr. & vb. n. Darting.]

1. To throw with a sudden effort or thrust, as a dart or other missile weapon; to hurl or launch.

2. To throw suddenly or rapidly; to send forth; to emit; to shoot; as, the sun darts forth his beams. Or what ill eyes malignant glances dart Pope.

DART Dart, v. i.

1. To fly or pass swiftly, as a dart.

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

DARTARS Dar"tars, n. Etym: [F. dartre eruption, dandruff.

Defn: A kind of scab or ulceration on the skin of lambs.

DARTER Dart"er, n.

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

2. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The snakebird, a water bird of the genus Plotus; — so called because it darts out its long, snakelike neck at its prey. See Snakebird.

3. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A small fresh-water etheostomoid fish. The group includes numerous genera and species, all of them American. See Etheostomoid.

DARTINGLY Dart"ing*ly, adv.

Defn: Like a dart; rapidly.

DARTLE Dar"tle, v. t. & i.

Defn: To pierce or shoot through; to dart repeatedly: — frequentative of dart. My star that dartles the red and the blue. R. Browning.

DARTOIC Dar*to"ic, a. (Anat.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to the dartos.

DARTOID Dar"toid, a. Etym: [Dartos + -oid.] (Anat.)

Defn: Like the dartos; dartoic; as, dartoid tissue.

DARTOS Dar"tos, n. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr. flayed.] (Anat.)

Defn: A thin layer of peculiar contractile tissue directly beneath the skin of the scrotum.

DARTROUS Dar"trous, a. Etym: [F. dartreux. See Dartars.] (Med.)

Defn: Relating to, or partaking of the nature of, the disease called tetter; herpetic. Dartroud diathesis, A morbid condition of the system predisposing to the development of certain skin deseases, such as eczema, psoriasis, and pityriasis. Also called rheumic diathesis, and hipretism. Piffard.

DARWINIAN Dar*win"i*an, a. Etym: [From the name of Charles Darwin, an English scientist.]

Defn: Pertaining to Darwin; as, the Darwinian theory, a theory of the manner and cause of the supposed development of living things from certain original forms or elements.

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

DARWINIAN Dar*win"i*an, n.

Defn: An advocate of Darwinism.

DARWINIANISM Dar*win"i*an*ism, n.

Defn: Darwinism.

DARWINISM Dar"win*ism, n. (Biol.)

Defn: The theory or doctrines put forth by Darwin. See above. Huxley.

DASE Dase, v. t.

Defn: See Daze. [Obs.] Chaucer.

DASEWE Dase"we, v. i. Etym: [OE. dasewen, daswen; cf. AS. dysegian to be foolish.]

Defn: To become dim-sighted; to become dazed or dazzled. [Obs.] Chauscer.

DASH Dash, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dashed; p. pr. & vb. n. Dashing.] Etym: [Of. Scand. origin; cf. Dan daske to beat, strike, Sw. & Icel. daska, Dan. & Sw. dask blow.]

1. To throw with violence or haste; to cause to strike violently or hastily; — often used with against. If you dash a stone against a stone in the botton of the water, it maketh a sound. Bacon.

2. To break, as by throwing or by collision; to shatter; to crust; to frustrate; to ruin. Thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel. Ps. ii. 9. A brave vessel, . . . Dashed all to pieces. Shak. To perplex and dash Maturest counsels. Milton.

3. To put to shame; to confound; to confuse; to abash; to depress. South. Dash the proud gamesPope.

4. To throw in or on in a rapid, careless manner; to mix, reduce, or adulterate, by throwing in something of an inferior quality; to overspread partially; to bespatter; to touch here and there; as, to dash wine with water; to dash paint upon a picture. I take care to dash the character with such particular circumstance as may prevent ill-natured applications. Addison. The very source and fount of day Is dashed with wandering isles of night. Tennyson.

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

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

DASH Dash, v. i.

Defn: To rust with violence; to move impetuously; to strike violently; as, the waves dash upon rocks. [He] dashed through thick and thin. Dryden. On each hand the gushing waters play, And down the rough cascade all dashing fall. Thomson.

DASH Dash, n.

1. Violent striking together of two bodies; collision; crash.

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

3. A slight admixture, infusion, or adulteration; a partial overspreading; as, wine with a dash of water; red with a dash of purple. Innocence when it has in it a dash of folly. Addison.

4. A rapid movement, esp. one of short duration; a quick stroke or blow; a sudden onset or rush; as, a bold dash at the enemy; a dash of rain. She takes upon her bravely at first dash. Shak.

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

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

7. (Punctuation)

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

8. (Mus.) (a) The sign of staccato, a small mark [. (b) The line drawn through a figure in the thorough bass, as a direction to raise the interval a semitone.

9. (Racing)

Defn: A short, spirited effort or trial of speed upon a race course; — used in horse racing, when a single trial constitutes the race.

DASHBOARD Dash"board`, n.

1. A board placed on the fore part of a carriage, sleigh, or other vechicle, to intercept water, mud, or snow, thrown up by the heels of the horses; — in England commonly called splashboard.

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

DASHEEN Dash`een", n.

Defn: A tropical aroid (of the genus Caladium, syn. Colocasia) having an edible farinaceous root. It is related to the taro and to the tanier, but is much superior to it in quality and is as easily cooked as the potato. It is a staple food plant of the tropics, being prepared like potatoes, and has been introduced into the Southern United States.

DASHER Dash"er, n.

1. That which dashes or agitates; as, the dasher of a churn.

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

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

DASHING Dash"ing, a.

Defn: Bold; spirited; showy. The dashing and daring spirit is preferable to the listless. T. Campbell.

DASHINGLY Dash"ing*ly, adv.

Defn: Conspicuously; showily. [Colloq.] A dashingly dressed gentleman. Hawthorne.

DASHISM Dash"ism, n.

Defn: The character of making ostentatious or blustering parade or show. [R. & Colloq.] He must fight a duel before his claim to . . . dashism can be universally allowed. V. Knox.

DASHPOT Dash"pot`, n. (Mach.)

Defn: A pneumatic or hydraulic cushion for a falling weight, as in the valve gear of a steam engine, to prevent shock.

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

Note: A cataract of an engine is sometimes called a dashpot.

DASHY Dash"y, a. Etym: [From Dash.]

Defn: Calculated to arrest attention; ostentatiously fashionable; showy. [Colloq.]

DASTARD Das"tard, n. Etym: [Prob. from Icel. dæstr exhausted. breathless, p. p. of dæsa to groan, lose one's breath; cf. dasask to become exhausted, and E. daze.]

Defn: One who meanly shrinks from danger; an arrant coward; a poltroon. You are all recreants and dashtards, and delight to live in slavery to the nobility. Shak.

DASTARD Das"tard, a.

Defn: Meanly shrinking from danger; cowardly; dastardly. "Their dastard souls." Addison.

DASTARD Das"tard, v. t.

Defn: To dastardize. [R.] Dryden.

DASTARDIZE Das"tard*ize, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dastardized; p. pr. & vb. n. Dastardizing.]

Defn: To make cowardly; to intimidate; to dispirit; as, to dastardize my courage. Dryden.

DASTARDLINESS Das"tard*li*ness, n.

Defn: The quality of being dastardly; cowardice; base fear.

DASTARDLY Das"tard*ly, a.

Defn: Meanly timid; cowardly; base; as, a dastardly outrage.

DASTARDNESS Das"tard*ness, n.

Defn: Dastardliness.

DASTARDY Das"tard*y, n.

Defn: Base timidity; cowardliness.

DASWE Das"we, v. i.

Defn: See Dasewe [Obs.] Chaucer.

DASYMETER Da*sym"e*ter, n. Etym: [Gr. rough, thick + -meter.] (Physics)

Defn: An instrument for testing the density of gases, consisting of a thin glass globe, which is weighed in the gas or gases, and then in an atmosphere of known density.

DASYPAEDAL Das`y*pæ"dal, a. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Dasypædic.

DASYPAEDES Das`y*pæ"des, n. pl. Etym: [NL., from Gr. hairy, shaggy + , , a child.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: Those birds whose young are covered with down when hatched.

DASYPAEDIC Das`y*pæ"dic, a. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Pertaining to the Dasypædes; ptilopædic.

DASYURE Das"y*ure, n. Etym: [Gr. thick, shaggy + tail: cf. F. dasyure.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: A carnivorous marsupial quadruped of Australia, belonging to the genus Dasyurus. There are several species.

DASYURINE Das`y*u"rine, a. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Pertaining to, or like, the dasyures.

DATA Da"ta, n. pl. Etym: [L. pl. of datum.]

Defn: See Datum.

DATABLE Dat"a*ble, a.

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

DATARIA Da*ta"ri*a, n. Etym: [LL., fr. L. datum given.] (R. C. Ch.)

Defn: Formerly, a part of the Roman chancery; now, a separate office from which are sent graces or favors, cognizable in foro externo, such as appointments to benefices. The name is derived from the word datum, given or dated (with the indications of the time and place of granting the gift or favor).

DATARY Da"ta*ry, n. Etym: [LL. datarius. See Dataria.]

1. (R. C. Ch.)

Defn: An officer in the pope's court, having charge of the Dataria.

2. The office or employment of a datary.

DATE Date, n.Etym: [F. datte, L. dactylus, fr. Gr. , prob. not the same word as finger, but of Semitic origin.] (Bot.)

Defn: The fruit of the date palm; also, the date palm itself.

Note: This fruit is somewhat in the shape of an olive, containing a soft pulp, sweet, esculent, and wholesome, and inclosing a hard kernel. Date palm, or Date tree (Bot.), the genus of palms which bear dates, of which common species is Phoenix dactylifera. See Illust. — Date plum (Bot.), the fruit of several species of Diospyros, including the American and Japanese persimmons, and the European lotus (D. Lotus). — Date shell, or Date fish (Zoöl.), a bivalve shell, or its inhabitant, of the genus Pholas, and allied genera. See Pholas.

DATE Date, n. Etym: [F. date, LL. data, fr. L. datus given, p.p. of dare to give; akin to Gr. , OSlaw. dati, Skr. da. Cf. Datum, Dose, Dato, Die.]

1. That addition to a writing, inscription, coin, etc., which specifies the time (as day, month, and year) when the writing or inscription was given, or executed, or made; as, the date of a letter, of a will, of a deed, of a coin. etc. And bonds without a date, they say, are void. Dryden.

2. The point of time at which a transaction or event takes place, or is appointed to take place; a given point of time; epoch; as, the date of a battle. He at once, Down the long series of eventful time, So fixed the dates of being, so disposed To every living soul of every kind The field of motion, and the hour of rest. Akenside.

3. Assigned end; conclusion. [R.] What Time would spare, from Steel receives its date. Pope.

4. Given or assigned length of life; dyration. [Obs.] Good luck prolonged hath thy date. Spenser. Through his life's whole date. Chapman. To bear date, to have the date named on the face of it; — said of a writing.

DATE Date, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dated; p. pr. & vb. n. Dating.] Etym: [Cf. F. dater. See 2d Date.]

1. To note the time of writing or executing; to express in an instrument the time of its execution; as, to date a letter, a bond, a deed, or a charter.

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

Note: We may say dated at or from a place. The letter is dated at Philadephia. G. T. Curtis. You will be suprised, I don't question, to find among your correspondencies in foreign parts, a letter dated from Blois. Addison. In the countries of his jornal seems to have been written; parts of it are dated from them. M. Arnold.

DATE Date, v. i.

Defn: To have beginning; to begin; to be dated or reckoned; — with from. The Batavian republic dates from the successes of the French arms. E. Everett.

DATELESS Date"less, a.

Defn: Without date; having no fixed time.

DATE LINE Date line.

Defn: The hypothetical line on the surface of the earth fixed by international or general agreement as a boundary on one side of which the same day shall have a different name and date in the calendar from its name and date on the other side.

Speaking generally, the date line coincides with the meridian 180º from Greenwich. It deflects between north latitudes 80º and 45º, so that all Asia lies to the west, all North America, including the Aleutian Islands, to the east of the line; and between south latitudes 12º and 56º, so that Chatham Island and the Tonga group lie to the west of it. A vessel crossing this line to the westward sets the date forward by one day, as from Sunday to Monday. A vessel crossing the line to the eastward sets the date back by one day, as from Monday to Sunday. Hawaii has the same day name as San Francisco; Manila, the same day name as Australia, and this is one day later than the day of Hawaii. Thus when it is Monday May 1st at San Francisco it is Tuesday may 2d at Manila.