Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (part 51 of 60)

Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (part 51 of 60)

2. To color, as wood, glass, paper, cloth, or the like, by processess affecting, chemically or otherwise, the material itself; to tinge with a color or colors combining with, or penetrating, the substance; to dye; as, to stain wood with acids, colored washes, paint rubbed in, etc.; to stain glass.

3. To spot with guilt or infamy; to bring reproach on; to blot; to soil; to tarnish. Of honor void, Of innocence, of faith, of purity, Our wonted ornaments now soiled and stained. Milton.

4. To cause to seem inferior or soiled by comparison. She stains the ripest virgins of her age. Beau. & Fl. That did all other beasts in beauty stain. Spenser. Stained glass, glass colored or stained by certain metallic pigments fused into its substance, -- often used for making ornament windows.

Syn. -- To paint; dye; blot; soil; sully; discolor; disgrace; taint. -- Paint, Stain, Dye. These denote three different processes; the first mechanical, the other two, chiefly chemical. To paint a thing is so spread a coat of coloring matter over it; to stain or dye a thing is to impart color to its substance. To stain is said chiefly of solids, as wood, glass, paper; to dye, of fibrous substances, textile fabrics, etc.; the one, commonly, a simple process, as applying a wash; the other more complex, as fixing colors by mordants.

STAIN Stain, v. i.

Defn: To give or receive a stain; to grow dim.

STAIN Stain, n.

1. A discoloration by foreign matter; a spot; as, a stain on a garment or cloth. Shak.

2. A natural spot of a color different from the gound. Swift trouts, diversified with crimson stains. Pope.

3. Taint of guilt; tarnish; disgrace; reproach. Nor death itself can wholly wash their stains. Dryden. Our opinion . . . is, I trust, without any blemish or stain of heresy. Hooker.

4. Cause of reproach; shame. Sir P. Sidney.

5. A tincture; a tinge. [R.] You have some stain of soldier in you. Shak.

Syn. -- Blot; spot; taint; pollution; blemish; tarnish; color; disgrace; infamy; shame.

STAINER Stain"er, n.

1. One who stains or tarnishes.

2. A workman who stains; as, a stainer of wood.

STAINLESS Stain"less, a.

Defn: Free from stain; immaculate. Shak. The veery care he took to keep his name Stainless, with some was evidence of shame. Crabbe.

Syn. -- Blameless; spotless; faultless. See Blameless.

STAINLESSLY Stain"less*ly, adv.

Defn: In a stainless manner.

STAIR Stair, n. Etym: [OE. steir, steyer, AS. st, from to ascend, rise. sq. root164. See Sty to ascend.]

1. One step of a series for ascending or descending to a different level; -- commonly applied to those within a building.

2. A series of steps, as for passing from one story of a house to another; -- commonly used in the plural; but originally used in the singular only. "I a winding stair found." Chaucer's Dream. Below stairs, in the basement or lower part of a house, where the servants are. -- Flight of stairs, the stairs which make the whole ascent of a story. -- Pair of stairs, a set or flight of stairs. -- pair, in this phrase, having its old meaning of a set. See Pair, n., 1. -- Run of stars (Arch.), a single set of stairs, or section of a stairway, from one platform to the next. -- Stair rod, a rod, usually of metal, for holding a stair carpet to its place. -- Up stairs. See Upstairs in the Vocabulary.

STAIRCASE Stair"case`, n.

Defn: A flight of stairs with their supporting framework, casing, balusters, etc. To make a complete staircase is a curious piece of architecture. Sir H. Wotton. Staircase shell. (Zoöl.) (a) Any scalaria, or wentletrap. (b) Any species of Solarium, or perspective shell.

STAIRHEAD Stair"head`, n.

Defn: The head or top of a staircase.

STAIRWAY Stair"way`, n.

Defn: A flight of stairs or steps; a staircase. "A rude and narrow stairway." Moore.

STAITH Staith, n. Etym: [AS. stæ a bank, shore, from the root of E. stead.]

Defn: A landing place; an elevated staging upon a wharf for discharging coal, etc., as from railway cars, into vessels.

STAITHMAN Staith"man, n.

Defn: A man employed in weighing and shipping at a staith. [Eng.]

STAKE Stake, n. Etym: [AS. staca, from the root of E. stick; akin to OFries. & LG. stake, D. staak, Sw. stake, Dan. stage. See Stick, v. t., and cf. Estacade, Stockade.]

1. A piece of wood, usually long and slender, pointed at one end so as to be easily driven into the ground as a support or stay; as, a stake to support vines, fences, hedges, etc. A sharpened stake strong Dryas found. Dryden.

2. A stick inserted upright in a lop, eye, or mortise, at the side or end of a cart, a flat car, or the like, to prevent goods from falling off.

3. The piece of timber to which a martyr was affixed to be burned; hence, martyrdom by fire.

4. A small anvil usually furnished with a tang to enter a hole in a bench top, -- used by tinsmiths, blacksmiths, etc., for light work, punching upon, etc.

5. That which is laid down as a wager; that which is staked or hazarded; a pledge. At stake, in danger; hazarded; pledged. "I see my reputation is at stake." Shak.

STAKE Stake, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Staked; p. pr. & vb. n. Staking.]

1. To fasten, support, or defend with stakes; as, to stake vines or plants.

2. To mark the limits of by stakes; -- with out; as, to stake out land; to stake out a new road.

3. To put at hazard upon the issue of competition, or upon a future contingency; to wager; to pledge. I'll stake yon lamb, that near the fountain plays. Pope.

4. To pierce or wound with a stake. Spectator.

STAKE-DRIVER Stake"-driv`er, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The common American bittern (Botaurus lentiginosus); -- so called because one of its notes resembles the sound made in driving a stake into the mud. Called also meadow hen, and Indian hen.

STAKEHEAD Stake"head`, n. (Rope making)

Defn: A horizontal bar on a stake, used for supporting the yarns which are kept apart by pins in the bar.

STAKEHOLDER Stake"hold`er, n.

Defn: The holder of a stake; one with whom the bets are deposited when a wager is laid.

STAKTOMETER Stak*tom"e*ter, n. Etym: [Gr. -meter.]

Defn: A drop measurer; a glass tube tapering to a small orifice at the point, and having a bulb in the middle, used for finding the number of drops in equal quantities of different liquids. See Pipette. Sir D. Brewster.

STAL Stal, obs. imp. of Steal.

Defn: Stole.

STALACTIC; STALACTICAL Sta*lac"tic, Sta*lac"tic*al, a. (Geol.)

Defn: Stalactic.

STALACTIFORM Sta*lac"ti*form, a.

Defn: Like a stalactite; resembling a stalactite.

STALACTITE Sta*lac"tite, n.; pl. Stalactites. Etym: [Gr. stalactite.] (Geol.) (a) A pendent cone or cylinder of calcium carbonate resembling an icicle in form and mode of attachment. Stalactites are found depending from the roof or sides of caverns, and are produced by deposition from waters which have percolated through, and partially dissolved, the overlying limestone rocks. (b) In an extended sense, any mineral or rock of similar form and origin; as, a stalactite of lava.

STALACTITES Stal`ac*ti"tes, n. Etym: [NL.]

Defn: A stalactite. [Obs.] Woodward.

STALACTITIC; STALACTITICAL Stal`ac*tit"ic, Stal`ac*tit"ic*al, a. Etym: [Cf. F. stalactitique.] (Geol.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to a stalactite; having the form or characters of a stalactite; stalactic.

STALACTITIFORM Stal`ac*tit"i*form, a.

Defn: Having the form of a stalactite; stalactiform.

STALAGMITE Sta*lag"mite, n. Etym: [Gr. stalagmite.] (Geol.)

Defn: A deposit more or less resembling an inverted stalactite, formed by calcareous water dropping on the floors of caverns; hence, a similar deposit of other material.

STALAGMITIC; STALAGMITICAL Stal`ag*mit"ic, Stal`ag*mit"ic*al, a.

Defn: Having the form or structure of stalagmites. -- Stal`ag*mit"ic*al*ly, adv.

STALDER Stal"der, n. Etym: [From the root of stall.]

Defn: A wooden frame to set casks on. [Prov. Eng.]

STALE Stale, n. Etym: [OE. stale, stele, AS. stæl, stel; akin to LG. & D. steel, G. stiel; cf. L. stilus stake, stalk, stem, Gr. stall, stalk, n.]

Defn: The stock or handle of anything; as, the stale of a rake. [Written also steal, stele, etc.] But seeling the arrow's stale without, and that the head did go No further than it might be seen. Chapman.

STALE Stale, a. Etym: [Akin to stale urine, and to stall, n.; probably from Low German or Scandinavian. Cf. Stale, v. i.]

1. Vapid or tasteless from age; having lost its life, spirit, and flavor, from being long kept; as, stale beer.

2. Not new; not freshly made; as, stele bread.

3. Having lost the life or graces of youth; worn out; decayed. "A stale virgin." Spectator.

4. Worn out by use or familiarity; having lost its novelty and power of pleasing; trite; common. Swift. Wit itself, if stale is less pleasing. Grew. How weary, stale flat, and unprofitable Seem to me all the uses of this world! Shak. Stale affidavit (Law), an affidavit held above a year. Craig. -- Stale demand (Law), a claim or demand which has not been pressed or demanded for a long time.

STALE Stale, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Staled; p. pr. & vb. n. Staling.]

Defn: To make vapid or tasteless; to destroy the life, beauty, or use of; to wear out. Age can not wither her, nor custom stale Her infinite variety. Shak.

STALE Stale, v. i. Etym: [Akin to D. & G. stallen, Dan. stalle, Sw. stalla, and E. stall a stable. Stall, n., and cf. Stale, a.]

Defn: To make water; to discharge urine; -- said especially of horses and cattle. Hudibras.

STALE Stale, n. Etym: [See Stale, a. & v. i.]

1. That which is stale or worn out by long keeping, or by use. [Obs.]

2. A prostitute. [Obs.] Shak.

3. Urine, esp. that of beasts. "Stale of horses." Shak.

STALE Stale, n. Etym: [Cf. OF. estal place, position, abode, market, F. étal a butcher's stall, OHG. stal station, place, stable, G. stall (see Stall, n.); or from OE. stale theft, AS. stalu (see Steal, v. t.)]

1. Something set, or offered to view, as an allurement to draw others to any place or purpose; a decoy; a stool pigeon. [Obs.] Still, as he went, he crafty stales did lay. Spenser.

2. A stalking-horse. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

3. (Chess)

Defn: A stalemate. [Obs.] Bacon.

4. A laughingstock; a dupe. [Obs.] Shak.

STALELY Stale"ly, adv.

1. In a state stale manner.

2. Of old; long since. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

STALEMATE Stale"mate`, n. (Chess)

Defn: The position of the king when he can not move without being placed on check and there is no other piece which can be moved.

STALEMATE Stale"mate`, v. t. (Chess)

Defn: To subject to a stalemate; hence, to bring to a stand.

STALENESS Stale"ness, n.

Defn: The quality or state of being stale.

STALK Stalk, n. Etym: [OE. stalke, fr. AS. stæl, stel, a stalk. See Stale a handle, Stall.]

1. (Bot.) (a) The stem or main axis of a plant; as, a stalk of wheat, rye, or oats; the stalks of maize or hemp. (b) The petiole, pedicel, or peduncle, of a plant.

2. That which resembes the stalk of a plant, as the stem of a quill. Grew.

3. (Arch.)

Defn: An ornament in the Corinthian capital resembling the stalk of a plant, from which the volutes and helices spring.

4. One of the two upright pieces of a ladder. [Obs.] To climd by the rungs and the stalks. Chaucer.

5. (Zoöl.) (a) A stem or peduncle, as of certain barnacles and crinoids. (b) The narrow basal portion of the abdomen of a hymenopterous insect. (c) The peduncle of the eyes of decapod crustaceans.

6. (Founding)

Defn: An iron bar with projections inserted in a core to strengthen it; a core arbor. Stalk borer (Zoöl.), the larva of a noctuid moth (Gortyna nitela), which bores in the stalks of the raspberry, strawberry, tomato, asters, and many other garden plants, often doing much injury.

STALK Stalk, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Stalked; p. pr. & vb. n. Stalking.] Etym: [AS. stælcan, stealcian to go slowly; cf. stels high, elevated, Dan. stalke to stalk; probably akin to 1st stalk.]

1. To walk slowly and cautiously; to walk in a stealthy, noiseless manner; -- sometimes used with a reflexive pronoun. Shak. Into the chamber he stalked him full still. Chaucer. [Bertran] stalks close behind her, like a witch's fiend, Pressing to be employed. Dryden.

2. To walk behind something as a screen, for the purpose of approaching game; to proceed under clover. The king . . . crept under the shoulder of his led horse; . . . "I must stalk," said he. Bacon. One underneath his horse, to get a shoot doth stalk. Drayton.

3. To walk with high and proud steps; usually implying the affectation of dignity, and indicating dislike. The word is used, however, especially by the poets, to express dignity of step. With manly mien he stalked along the ground. Dryden. Then stalking through the deep, He fords the ocean. Addison. I forbear myself from entering the lists in which he has long stalked alone and unchallenged. Mericale.

STALK Stalk, v. t.

Defn: To approach under cover of a screen, or by stealth, for the purpose of killing, as game. As for shooting a man from behind a wall, it is cruelly like to stalking a deer. Sir W. Scott.

STALK Stalk, n.

Defn: A high, proud, stately step or walk. Thus twice before, . . . With martial stalk hath he gone by our watch. Shak. The which with monstrous stalk behind him stepped. Spenser.

STALKED Stalked, a.

Defn: Having a stalk or stem; borne upon a stem. Stalked barnacle (Zoöl.), a goose barnacle, or anatifer; -- called also stalk barnacle. -- Stalked crinoid (Zoöl.), any crinoid having a jointed stem.

STALKER Stalk"er, n.

1. One who stalks.

2. A kind of fishing net.

STALK-EYED Stalk"-eyed`, a. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Having the eyes raised on a stalk, or peduncle; -- opposed to sessile-eyed. Said especially of podophthalmous crustaceans. Stalked- eyed crustaceans. (Zoöl.) See Podophthalmia.

STALKING-HORSE Stalk"ing-horse, n.

1. A horse, or a figure resembling a horse, behind which a hunter conceals himself from the game he is aiming to kill.

2. Fig.: Something used to cover up a secret project; a mask; a pretense. Hypocrisy is the devil's stalking-horse under an affectation of simplicity and religion. L'Estrange. How much more abominable is it to make of him [Christ] and religion a stalking-horse, to get and enjoy the world! Bunyan.

STALKLESS Stalk"less, a.

Defn: Having no stalk.

STALKY Stalk"y, a.

Defn: Hard as a stalk; resembling a stalk. At the top [it] bears a great stalky head. Mortimer.

STALL Stall, n. Etym: [OE. stal, AS. steall, stall, a place, seat, or station, a stable; akin to D. & OHG. stal, G. & Sw. stall, stallr, Dan. stald, originally, a standing place; akin to G. selle a place, stellen to place, Gr. stand. Stand, and cf. Apostle, Epistle, Forestall, Install, Stale, a. & v. i., 1st Stalk, Stallion, Still.]

1. A stand; a station; a fixed spot; hence, the stand or place where a horse or an ox kept and fed; the division of a stable, or the compartment, for one horse, ox, or other animal. "In an oxes stall." Chaucer.

2. A stable; a place for cattle. At last he found a stall where oxen stood. Dryden.

3. A small apartment or shed in which merchandise is exposed for sale; as, a butcher's stall; a bookstall.

4. A bench or table on which small articles of merchandise are exposed for sale. How peddlers' stalls with glittering toys are laid. Gay.

5. A seat in the choir of a church, for one of the officiating clergy. It is inclosed, either wholly or partially, at the back and sides. The stalls are frequently very rich, with canopies and elaborate carving. The dignifird clergy, out of humanility, have called their thrones by the names of stalls. Bp. Warburton. Loud the monks in their stalls. Longfellow.

6. In the theater, a seat with arms or otherwise partly inclosed, as distinguished from the benches, sofas, etc.

7. (Mining)

Defn: The space left by excavation between pillars. See Post and stall, under Post. Stall reader, one who reads books at a stall where they are exposed for sale. Cries the stall reader, "Bless us! what a word on A titlepage is this!" Milton.

STALL Stall, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stalled; p. pr. & vb. n. Stalling.] Etym: [Cf. Sw. stalla, Dan. stalde.]

1. To put into a stall or stable; to keep in a stall or stalls; as, to stall an ox. Where King Latinus then his oxen stalled. Dryden.

2. To fatten; as, to stall cattle. [Prov. Eng.]

3. To place in an office with the customary formalities; to install. Shak.

4. To plunge into mire or snow so as not to be able to get on; to set; to fix; as, to stall a cart. Burton. His horses had been stalled in the snow. E. E. Hale.

5. To forestall; to anticipitate. Having This not to be stall'd by my report. Massinger.

6. To keep close; to keep secret. [Obs.] Stall this in your bosom. Shak.

STALL Stall, v. i. Etym: [AS. steallian to have room. See Stall, n.]

1. To live in, or as in, a stall; to dwell. [Obs.] We could not stall together In the whole world. Shak.

2. To kennel, as dogs. Johnson.

3. To be set, as in mire or snow; to stick fast.

4. To be tired of eating, as cattle. [Prov. Eng.]

STALLAGE Stall"age, n. Etym: [Cf. OF.estallange, of German origin. See Stall, n. ]

1. (Eng. Law)

Defn: The right of erecting a stalls in fairs; rent paid for a stall.

2. Dung of cattle or horses, mixed with straw. [Obs.]

STALLATION Stal*la"tion, n.

Defn: Installation. [Obs.]

STALLED Stalled, a.

Defn: Put or kept in a stall; hence, fatted. "A stalled ox." Prov. xv. 17.

STALLER Stall"er, n.

Defn: A standard bearer. obtaining Fuller.

STALL-FEED Stall"-feed, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stall-fed (; p. pr. & vb. n. Stall- feeding.]

Defn: To feed and fatten in a stall or on dry fodder; as, to stall- feed an ox.

STALLING Stall"ing, n.

Defn: Stabling. Tennyson.

STALLION Stal"lion, n. Etym: [OE. stalon, OF. estalon, F. étalon, fr. OHG. stal a stable. See Stall, n.]

Defn: A male horse not castrated; a male horse kept for breeding.

STALLMAN Stall"man, n.; pl. Stallmen (.

Defn: One who keeps a stall for the sale of merchandise, especially books. Sterne.

STALLON Stal"lon, n.

Defn: A slip from a plant; a scion; a cutting. [R.] Holished.

STALWART; STALWORTH Stal"wart, Stal"worth, a. Etym: [OE. stalworth, AS. stælwyrth serviceable, probably originally, good at stealing, or worth stealing or taking, and afterwards extended to other causes of estimation. See Steal, v. t., Worth, a.]

Defn: Brave; bold; strong; redoubted; daring; vehement; violent. "A stalwart tiller of the soil." Prof. Wilson. Fair man be was and wise, stalworth and bold. R. of Brunne.

Note: Stalworth is now disused, or bur little used, stalwart having taken its place.

STALWARTLY Stal"wart*ly, adv.

Defn: In a stalwart manner.

STALWARTNESS Stal"wart*ness, n.

Defn: The quality of being stalwart.

STALWORTHHOOD; STALWORTHNESS Stal"worth*hood, Stal"worth*ness (, n.

Defn: The quality or state of being stalworth; stalwartness; boldness; daring. [Obs.]

STAMEN Sta"men, n.; pl. E. Stamens (used only in the second sense); L. Stamina (in the first sense). Etym: [L. stamen the warp, a thread, fiber, akin to Gr. stand. See Stand, and cf. Stamin, Stamina.]

1. A thread; especially, a warp thread.

2. (pl. Stamens, rarely Stamina.) (Bot.)

Defn: The male organ of flowers for secreting and furnishing the pollen or fecundating dust. It consists of the anther and filament.

STAMENED Sta"mened, a.

Defn: Furnished with stamens.

STAMIN Sta"min, n. Etym: [OF. estamine, F. étamine, LL. staminea, stamineum, fr. L. stamineus consisting of threads, fr. stamen a thread. See Stamen, and cf. Stamineous, 2d Stammel, Tamine.]

Defn: A kind of woolen cloth. [Written also stamine.] [Obs.]

STAMINA Stam"i*na, n. pl.

Defn: See Stamen.

STAMINA Stam"i*na, n. pl.

1. The fixed, firm part of a body, which supports it or gives it strength and solidity; as, the bones are the stamina of animal bodies; the ligneous parts of trees are the stamina which constitute their strength.

2. Whatever constitutes the principal strength or support of anything; power of endurance; backbone; vigor; as, the stamina of a constitution or of life; the stamina of a State. He succeeded to great captains who had sapped the whole stamina and resistance of the contest. De Quincey.

STAMINAL Stam"i*nal, a. Etym: [Cf. F. staminal.]

Defn: Of or pertaining to stamens or stamina; consisting in stamens.

STAMINATE Stam"i*nate, a. Etym: [L. staminatus consisting of threads, fr. stamen thread: cf. F. staminé.] (Bot.) (a) Furnished with stamens; producing stamens. (b) Having stamens, but lacking pistils.

STAMINATE Stam"i*nate, v. t.

Defn: To indue with stamina. [R.]

STAMINEAL; STAMINEOUS Sta*min"e*al, Sta*min"e*ous, a. Etym: [L. stamineus, from stamen thread.]

1. Consisting of stamens or threads.

2. (Bot.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to the stamens; possessing stamens; also, attached to the stamens; as, a stamineous nectary.

STAMINIFEROUS Stam`i*nif"er*ous, a. Etym: [Stamen + -ferous.]

Defn: Bearing or having stamens.

STAMINODE Stam"i*node, n. (Bot.)

Defn: A staminodium.

STAMINODIUM Stam`i*no"di*um, n.; pl. Staminodia. Etym: [NL. See Stamen, and - oid.] (Bot.)

Defn: An abortive stamen, or any organ modified from an abortive stamen.

STAMMEL Stam"mel, n.

Defn: A large, clumsy horse. [Prov. Eng.] Wright.

STAMMEL Stam"mel, n. Etym: [OF. estamel; cf. OF. estamet a coarse woolen cloth, LL. stameta a kind of cloth, the same as staminea, and OF. estame a woolen stuff. See Stamin.]

1. A kind of woolen cloth formerly in use. It seems to have been often of a red color. [Obs.]

2. A red dye, used in England in the 15th and 16th centuries. B. Jonson.

STAMMEL Stam"mel, a.

Defn: Of the color of stammel; having a red color, thought inferior to scarlet.

STAMMER Stam"mer, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Stammered; p. pr. & vb. n. Stammering.] Etym: [OE. stameren, fr. AS. stamur, stamer, stammering; akin to D. & LG. stameren to stammer, G. stammeln, OHG. stammal, stamm, Dan. stamme, Sw. stamma, Icel. stama, stamma, OHG. & Dan. stam stammering, Icel. stamr, Goth. stamms, and to G. stemmen to bear against, stumm dumb, D. stom. Cf. Stem to resist, Stumble.]

Defn: To make involuntary stops in uttering syllables or words; to hesitate or falter in speaking; to speak with stops and diffivulty; to stutter. I would thou couldst stammer, that thou mightest pour this conclead man out of thy mouth, as wine comes out of a narrow-mouthed bottle, either too much at once, or none at all. Shak.

STAMMER Stam"mer, v. t.

Defn: To utter or pronounce with hesitation or imperfectly; -- sometimes with out.

STAMMER Stam"mer, n.

Defn: Defective utterance, or involuntary interruption of utterance; a stutter.

STAMMERER Stam"mer*er, n.

Defn: One who stammers.

STAMMERING Stam"mer*ing, a.

Defn: Apt to stammer; hesitating in speech; stuttering. -- Stam"mer*ing*ly, adv.

STAMMERING Stam"mer*ing, n. (Physiol.)

Defn: A disturbance in the formation of sounds. It is due essentially to long-continued spasmodic contraction of the diaphragm, by which expiration is preented, and hence it may be considered as a spasmodic inspiration.

STAMP Stamp v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stamped; p. pr. & vb. n. Stamping.] Etym: [OE. stampen; akin to LG. & D. stampen, G. stampfen, OHG. stanpf, Dan. stampe, Sw. stampa, Icel. stappa, G. stampf a pestle and E. step. See Step, v. i., and cf. Stampede.]

1. To strike beat, or press forcibly with the bottom of the foot, or by thrusting the foot downward. Shak. He frets, he fumes, he stares, he stamps the ground. Dryden.

2. To bring down (the foot) forcibly on the ground or floor; as, he stamped his foot with rage.

3. To crush; to pulverize; specifically (Metal.), to crush by the blow of a heavy stamp, as ore in a mill. I took your sin, the calf which ye had made, and burnt it with fire, and stamped it, and ground it very small. Deut. ix. 21.

4. To impress with some mark or figure; as, to stamp a plate with arms or initials.

5. Fig.: To impress; to imprint; to fix deeply; as, to stamp virtuous principles on the heart. God . . . has stamped no original characters on our minds wherein we may read his being. Locke.

6. To cut out, bend, or indent, as paper, sheet metal, etc., into various forms, by a blow or suddenly applied pressure with a stamp or die, etc.; to mint; to coin.

7. To put a stamp on, as for postage; as, to stamp a letter; to stamp a legal document. To stamp out, to put an end to by sudden and energetic action; to extinguish; as, to stamp out a rebellion.

STAMP Stamp, v. i.

1. To strike; to beat; to crush. These cooks how they stamp and strain and grind. Chaucer.

2. To strike the foot forcibly downward. But starts, exclaims, and stamps, and raves, and dies. dennis.

STAMP Stamp, n.

1. The act of stamping, as with the foot.

2. The which stamps; any instrument for making impressions on other bodies, as a die. 'T is gold so pure It can not bear the stamp without alloy. Dryden.

3. The mark made by stamping; a mark imprinted; an impression. That sacred name gives ornament and grace, And, like his stamp, makes basest metals pass. Dryden.

4. that which is marked; a thing stamped. hanging a golden stamp about their necks. Shak.

5. Etym: [F. estampe, of german origin. See Stamp, v. t.]

Defn: A picture cut in wood or metal, or made by impression; a cut; a plate. [Obs.] At Venice they put out very curious stamps of the several edifices which are most famous for their beauty and magnificence. Addison.

6. An offical mark set upon things chargeable with a duty or tax to government, as evidence that the duty or tax is paid; as, the stamp on a bill of exchange.

7. Hence, a stamped or printed device, issued by the government at a fixed price, and required by law to be affixed to, or stamped on, certain papers, as evidence that the government dues are paid; as, a postage stamp; a receipt stamp, etc.

8. An instrument for cutting out, or shaping, materials, as paper, leather, etc., by a downward pressure.

9. A character or reputation, good or bad, fixed on anything as if by an imprinted mark; current value; authority; as, these persons have the stamp of dishonesty; the Scriptures bear the stamp of a divine origin. Of the same stamp is that which is obtruded on us, that an adamant suspends the attraction of the loadstone. Sir T. Browne.

10. Make; cast; form; character; as, a man of the same stamp, or of a different stamp. A soldier of this season's stamp. Shak.

11. A kind of heavy hammer, or pestle, raised by water or steam power, for beating ores to powder; anything like a pestle, used for pounding or bathing.

12. A half-penny. [Obs.] au. & Fl.

13. pl.

Defn: Money, esp. paper money. [Slang, U.S.] Stamp act, an act of the British Parliament [1765] imposing a duty on all paper, vellum, and parchment used in the American colonies, and declaring all writings on unstamped materials to be null an void. -- Stamp collector, an officer who receives or collects stamp duties; one who collects postage or other stamps. -- Stamp duty, a duty, or tax, imposed on paper and parchment used for certain writings, as deeds, conveyances, etc., the evidence of the payment of the duty or tax being a stamp. [Eng.] -- Stamp hammer, a hammer, worked by power, which rises and falls vertically, like a stamp in a stamp mill. -- Stamp head, a heavy mass of metal, forming the head or lower end of a bar, which is lifted and let fall, in a stamp mill. -- Stamp mill (Mining), a mill in which ore is crushed with stamps; also, a machine for stamping ore. -- Stamp note, a stamped certificate from a customhouse officer, which allows goods to be received by the captain of a ship as freight. [Eng.] -- Stamp office, an office for the issue of stamps and the reception of stamp duties.

STAMPEDE Stam*pede", n. Etym: [Sp. estampida (in America) a stampede, estampido a crackling, akin to estampar to stamp, of German origin. See Stamp, v. t.]

Defn: A wild, headlong scamper, or running away, of a number of animals; usually caused by fright; hence, any sudden flight or dispersion, as of a crowd or an army in consequence of a panic. She and her husband would join in the general stampede. W. Black.

STAMPEDE Stam*pede", v. i.

Defn: To run away in a panic; -- said droves of cattle, horses, etc., also of armies.

STAMPEDE Stam*pede", v. t.

Defn: To disperse by causing sudden fright, as a herd or drove of animals.

STAMPER Stamp"er, n.

1. One who stamps.

2. An instrument for pounding or stamping.

STAMPING Stamp"ing, a. & n.

Defn: from Stamp, v. Stamping ground, a place frequented, and much trodden, by animals, wild or domesticated; hence (Colloq.), the scene of one's labors or exploits; also, one's favorite resort. [U.S.] -- Stamping machine, a machine for forming metallic articles or impressions by stamping. -- Stamping mill (Mining), a stamp mill.

STANCE Stance, n. Etym: [OF. estance. See Stanza.]

1. A stanza. [Obs.] Chapman.

2. A station; a position; a site. [Scot.] Sir W. Scott.

STANCH Stanch, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stanched; p. pr. & vb. n. Stanching.] Etym: [OF. estanchier, F. étancher to stpo a liquid from flowing; akin to Pr., Sp., & Pg. estancar, It. stancare to weary, LL. stancare, stagnare, to stanch, fr. L. stagnare to be or make stagnant. See Stagnate.]

1. To stop the flowing of, as blood; to check; also, to stop the flowing of blood from; as, to stanch a wound. [Written also staunch.] Iron or a stone laid to the neck doth stanch the bleeding of the nose. Bacon.

2. To extinguish; to quench, as fire or thirst. [Obs.]

STANCH Stanch, v. i.

Defn: To cease, as the flowing of blood. Immediately her issue of blood stanched. Luke viii. 44.

STANCH Stanch, n.

1. That which stanches or checks. [Obs.]

2. A flood gate by which water is accumulated, for floating a boat over a shallow part of a stream by its release. Knight.

STANCH Stanch, a. [Compar. Stancher; superl. Stanchest.] Etym: [From Stanch, v. t., and hence literally signifying, stopped or stayed; cf. Sp. estanco stopped, tight, not leaky, as a ship. See Stanch, v. t.] [Written also staunch.]

1. Strong and tight; sound; firm; as, a stanch ship. One of the closets is parqueted with plain deal, set in diamond, exceeding stanch and pretty. Evelyn.

2. Firm in principle; constant and zealous; loyal; hearty; steady; steadfast; as, a stanch churchman; a stanch friend or adherent. V. Knox. In politics I hear you 're stanch. Prior.

3. Close; secret; private. [Obs.] This to be kept stanch. Locke.

STANCH Stanch, v. t.

Defn: To prop; to make stanch, or strong. His gathered sticks to stanch the wall Of the snow tower when snow should fall. Emerson.

STANCHEL Stan"chel, n.

Defn: A stanchion.

STANCHER Stanch"er, n.

Defn: One who, or that which, stanches, or stops, the flowing, as of blood.

STANCHION Stan"chion, n. Etym: [OF. estanson, estançon, F. étançon, from OF. estance a stay, a prop, from L. stans, stantis, standing, p.pr. of stare to stand. See Stand, and cf. Stanza.] [Written also stanchel.]

1. (Arch.)

Defn: A prop or support; a piece of timber in the form of a stake or post, used for a support or stay.

2. (Naut.)

Defn: Any upright post or beam used as a support, as for the deck, the quarter rails, awnings, etc.

3. A vertical bar for confining cattle in a stall.

STANCHLESS Stanch"less, a.

1. Incapable of being stanched, or stopped.

2. Unquenchable; insatiable. [Obs.] Shak.

STANCHLY Stanch"ly, adv.

Defn: In a stanch manner.

STANCHNESS Stanch"ness, n.

Defn: The quality or state of being stanch.

STAND Stand, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Stood; p. pr. & vb. n. Standing.] Etym: [OE. standen; AS. standan; akin to OFries. stonda, stan, D. staan, OS. standan, stan, G. stehen, Icel. standa, Dan. staae, Sw. stå, Goth. standan, Russ. stoiate, L. stare, Gr. stha. *163. Cf. Assist, Constant, Contrast, Desist, Destine, Ecstasy, Exist, Interstice, Obstacle, Obstinate, Prest, n., Rest remainder, Soltice, Stable, a. & n., State, n., Statute, Stead, Steed, Stool, Stud of horses, Substance, System.]

1. To be at rest in an erect position; to be fixed in an upright or firm position; as: (a) To be supported on the feet, in an erect or nearly erect position; -- opposed to lie, sit, kneel, etc. "I pray you all, stand up!" Shak. (b) To continue upright in a certain locality, as a tree fixed by the roots, or a building resting on its foundation. It stands as it were to the ground yglued. Chaucer. The ruined wall Stands when its wind worn battlements are gone. Byron.

2. To occupy or hold a place; to have a situation; to be situated or located; as, Paris stands on the Seine. Wite ye not where there stands a little town Chaucer.

3. To cease from progress; not to proceed; to stop; to pause; to halt; to remain stationary. I charge thee, stand, And tell thy name. Dryden. The star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was. Matt. ii. 9.

4. To remain without ruin or injury; to hold good against tendencies to impair or injure; to be permanent; to endure; to last; hence, to find endurance, strength, or resources. My mind on its own center stands unmoved. Dryden.

5. To maintain one's ground; to be acquitted; not to fail or yield; to be safe. Readers by whose judgment I would stand or fall. Spectator.

6. To maintain an invincible or permanent attitude; to be fixed, steady, or firm; to take a position in resistance or opposition. "The standing pattern of their imitation." South. The king granted the Jews . . . to gather themselves together, and to stand for their life. Esther viii. 11.

7. To adhere to fixed principles; to maintain moral rectitude; to keep from falling into error or vice. We must labor so as to stand with godliness, according to his appointment. Latimer.

8. To have or maintain a position, order, or rank; to be in a particular relation; as, Christian charity, or love, stands first in the rank of gifts.

9. To be in some particular state; to have essence or being; to be; to consist. "Sacrifices . . . which stood only in meats and drinks." Heb. ix. 10. Accomplish what your signs foreshow; I stand resigned, and am prepared to go. Dryden. Thou seest how it stands with me, and that I may not tarry. Sir W. Scott.

10. To be consistent; to agree; to accord. Doubt me not; by heaven, I will do nothing But what may stand with honor. Massinger.

11. (Naut.)

Defn: To hold a course at sea; as, to stand from the shore; to stand for the harbor. From the same parts of heaven his navy stands. Dryden.

12. To offer one's self, or to be offered, as a candidate. He stood to be elected one of the proctors of the university. Walton.

13. To stagnate; not to flow; to be motionless. Or the black water of Pomptina stands. Dryden.

14. To measure when erect on the feet. Six feet two, as I think, he stands. Tennyson.

15. (Law) (a) To be or remain as it is; to continue in force; to have efficacy or validity; to abide. Bouvier. (b) To appear in court. Burrill. Stand by (Naut.), a preparatory order, equivalent to Be ready. -- To stand against, to opposite; to resist. -- To stand by. (a) To be near; to be a spectator; to be present. (b) To be aside; to be aside with disregard. "In the interim [we] let the commands stand by neglected." Dr. H. More. (c) To maintain; to defend; to support; not to desert; as, to stand by one's principles or party. (d) To rest on for support; to be supported by. Whitgift. -- To stand corrected, to be set right, as after an error in a statement of fact. Wycherley. -- To stand fast, to be fixed; to be unshaken or immovable. -- To stand firmly on, to be satisfied or convinced of. "Though Page be a secure fool, and stands so firmly on his wife's frailty." Shak. -- To stand for. (a) To side with; to espouse the cause of; to support; to maintain, or to profess or attempt to maintain; to defend. "I stand wholly for you." Shak. (b) To be in the place of; to be the substitute or to represent; as, a cipher at the left hand of a figure stands for nothing. "I will not trouble myself, whether these names stand for the same thing, or really include one another." Locke. -- To stand in, to cost. "The same standeth them in much less cost." Robynson (More's Utopia). The Punic wars could not have stood the human race in less than three millions of the species. Burke. -- To stand in hand, to conduce to one's interest; to be serviceable or advantageous. -- To stand off. (a) To keep at a distance. (b) Not to comply. (c) To keep at a distance in friendship, social intercourse, or acquaintance. (d) To appear prominent; to have relief. "Picture is best when it standeth off, as if it were carved." Sir H. Wotton. -- To stand off and on (Naut.), to remain near a coast by sailing toward land and then from it. -- To stand on (Naut.), to continue on the same tack or course. -- To stand out. (a) To project; to be prominent. "Their eyes stand out with fatness." Psalm lxxiii. 7. (b) To persist in opposition or resistance; not to yield or comply; not to give way or recede. His spirit is come in, That so stood out against the holy church. Shak. -- To stand to. (a) To ply; to urge; to persevere in using. "Stand to your tackles, mates, and stretch your oars." Dryden. (b) To remain fixed in a purpose or opinion. "I will stand to it, that this is his sense." Bp. Stillingfleet. (c) To abide by; to adhere to; as to a contrast, assertion, promise, etc.; as, to stand to an award; to stand to one's word. (d) Not to yield; not to fly; to maintain, as one's ground. "Their lives and fortunes were put in safety, whether they stood to it or ran away." Bacon. (e) To be consistent with; to agree with; as, it stands to reason that he could not have done so. (f) To support; to uphold. "Stand to me in this cause." Shak. -- To stand together, to be consistent; to agree. -- To stand to sea (Naut.), to direct the course from land. -- To stand under, to undergo; to withstand. Shak. -- To stand up. (a) To rise from sitting; to be on the feet. (b) To arise in order to speak or act. "Against whom, when the accusers stood up, they brought none accusation of such things as I supposed." Acts xxv. 18. (c) To rise and stand on end, as the hair. (d) To put one's self in opposition; to contend. "Once we stood up about the corn." Shak. -- To stand up for, to defend; to justify; to support, or attempt to support; as, to stand up for the administration. -- To stand upon. (a) To concern; to interest. (b) To value; to esteem. "We highly esteem and stand much upon our birth." Ray. (c) To insist on; to attach much importance to; as, to stand upon security; to stand upon ceremony. (d) To attack; to assault. [A Hebraism] "So I stood upon him, and slew him." 2 Sam. i. 10. -- To stand with, to be consistent with. "It stands with reason that they should be rewarded liberally." Sir J. Davies.

STAND Stand, v. t.

1. To endure; to sustain; to bear; as, I can not stand the cold or the heat.

2. To resist, without yielding or receding; to withstand. "Love stood the siege." Dryden. He stood the furious foe. Pope.

3. To abide by; to submit to; to suffer. Bid him disband his legions, . . . And stand the judgment of a Roman senate. Addison.

4. To set upright; to cause to stand; as, to stand a book on the shelf; to stand a man on his feet.

5. To be at the expense of; to pay for; as, to stand a treat. [Colloq.] Tackeray. To stand fire, to receive the fire of arms from an enemy without giving way. -- To stand one's ground, to keep the ground or station one has taken; to maintain one's position. "Pleasants and burghers, however brave, are unable to stand their ground against veteran soldiers." Macaulay. -- To stand trial, to sustain the trial or examination of a cause; not to give up without trial.

STAND Stand, n. Etym: [As. stand. See Stand, v. i.]

1. The act of standing. I took my stand upon an eminence . . . to look into thier several ladings. Spectator.

2. A halt or stop for the purpose of defense, resistance, or opposition; as, to come to, or to make, a stand. Vice is at stand, and at the highest flow. Dryden.

3. A place or post where one stands; a place where one may stand while observing or waiting for something. I have found you out a stand most fit, Where you may have such vantage on the duke, He shall not pass you. Shak.

4. A station in a city or town where carriages or wagons stand for hire; as, a cab stand. Dickens.

5. A raised platform or station where a race or other outdoor spectacle may be viewed; as, the judge's or the grand stand at a race course.

6. A small table; also, something on or in which anything may be laid, hung, or placed upright; as, a hat stand; an umbrella stand; a music stand.

7. A place where a witness stands to testify in court.

8. The situation of a shop, store, hotel, etc.; as, a good, bad, or convenient stand for business. [U. S.]

9. Rank; post; station; standing. Father, since your fortune did attain So high a stand, I mean not to descend. Daniel.

10. A state of perplexity or embarrassment; as, to be at a stand what to do. L'Estrange.

11. A young tree, usually reserved when other trees are cut; also, a tree growing or standing upon its own root, in distinction from one produced from a scion set in a stock, either of the same or another kind of tree.

12. (Com.)

Defn: A weight of from two hundred and fifty to three hundred pounds, -- used in weighing pitch. Microscope stand, the instrument, excepting the eyepiece, objective, and other removable optical parts. -- Stand of ammunition, the projectile, cartridge, and sabot connected together. -- Stand of arms. (Mil.) See under Arms. -- Stand of colors (Mil.), a single color, or flag. Wilhelm (Mil. Dict.) -- To be at a stand, to be stationary or motionless; to be at a standstill; hence, to be perplexed; to be embarrassed. -- To make a stand, to halt for the purpose of offering resistance to a pursuing enemy.

Syn. -- Stop; halt; rest; interruption; obstruction; perplexity; difficulty; embarrassment; hesitation.

STANDAGE Stand"age, n. (Mining)

Defn: A reservior in which water accumulates at the bottom of a mine.

STANDARD Stand"ard, n. Etym: [OF. estendart, F. étendard, probably fr. L. extendere to spread out, extend, but influenced by E. stand. See Extend.]

1. A flag; colors; a banner; especially, a national or other ensign. His armies, in the following day, On those fair plains their standards proud display. Fairfax.

2. That which is established by authority as a rule for the measure of quantity, extent, value, or quality; esp., the original specimen weight or measure sanctioned by government, as the standard pound, gallon, or yard.

3. That which is established as a rule or model by authority, custom, or general consent; criterion; test. The court, which used to be the standard of property and correctness of speech. Swift. A disposition to preserve, and an ability to improve, taken together, would be my standard of a statesman. Burke.

4. (Coinage)

Defn: The proportion of weights of fine metal and alloy established by authority. By the present standard of the coinage, sixty-two shillings is coined out of one pound weight of silver. Arbuthnot.

5. (Hort.)

Defn: A tree of natural size supported by its own stem, and not dwarfed by grafting on the stock of a smaller species nor trained upon a wall or trellis. In France part of their gardens is laid out for flowers, others for fruits; some standards, some against walls. Sir W. Temple.

6. (Bot.)

Defn: The upper petal or banner of a papilionaceous corolla.

7. (Mech. & Carp.)

Defn: An upright support, as one of the poles of a scaffold; any upright in framing.

8. (Shipbuilding)

Defn: An inverted knee timber placed upon the deck instead of beneath it, with its vertical branch turned upward from that which lies horizontally.

9. The sheth of a plow.

10. A large drinking cup. Greene. Standard bearer, an officer of an army, company, or troop, who bears a standard; -- commonly called color sergeantor color bearer; hence, the leader of any organization; as, the standard bearer of a political party.

STANDARD Stand"ard, a.

1. Being, affording, or according with, a standard for comparison and judgment; as, standard time; standard weights and measures; a standard authority as to nautical terms; standard gold or silver.

2. Hence: Having a recognized and permanent value; as, standard works in history; standard authors.

3. (Hort.) (a) Not supported by, or fastened to, a wall; as, standard fruit trees. (b) Not of the dwarf kind; as, a standard pear tree. Standard candle, Standard gauge. See under Candle, and Gauge. -- Standard solution. (Chem.) See Standardized solution, under Solution.

STANDARD-BRED Stand"ard-bred`, a.

Defn: Bred in conformity to a standard. Specif., applied to a registered trotting horse which comes up to the standard adopted by the National Association of Trotting-horse Breeders. [U. S.]

STANDARDIZE Stand"ard*ize, v. t. (Chem.)

Defn: To reduce to a normal standard; to calculate or adjust the strength of, by means of, and for uses in, analysis.

STANDARD-WING Stand"ard-wing`, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A curious paradise bird (Semioptera Wallacii) which has two long special feathers standing erect on each wing.

STAND-BY Stand"-by`, n.

Defn: One who, or that which, stands by one in need; something upon which one relies for constant use or in an emergency.

STANDEL Stand"el, n.

Defn: A young tree, especially one reserved when others are cut. [Obs.] Fuller.

STANDER Stand"er, n.

1. One who stands.

2. Same as Standel. [Obs.] Ascham.

STANDERATH; STANDERAT Stän"de*rath`, or Stän"de*rat`, n. [G.] (Switzerland)

Defn: See Legislature, above.

STANDER-BY Stand"er-by`, n.

Defn: One who stands near; one who is present; a bystander.

STANDERGRASS Stand"er*grass`, n. (Bot.)

Defn: A plant (Orchis mascula); -- called also standerwort, and long purple. See Long purple, under Long.

STANDGALE Stand"gale`, n.

Defn: See Stannel. [Prov. Eng.]

STANDING Stand"ing, a.

1. Remaining erect; not cut down; as, standing corn.

2. Not flowing; stagnant; as, standing water.

3. Not transitory; not liable to fade or vanish; lasting; as, a standing color.

4. Established by law, custom, or the like; settled; continually existing; permanent; not temporary; as, a standing army; legislative bodies have standing rules of proceeding and standing committees.

5. Not movable; fixed; as, a standing bed (distinguished from a trundle-bed). Standing army. See Standing army, under Army. -- Standing bolt. See Stud bolt, under Stud, a stem. -- Standing committee, in legislative bodies, etc., a committee appointed for the consideration of all subjects of a particular class which shall arise during the session or a stated period. -- Standing cup, a tall goblet, with a foot and a cover. -- Standing finish (Arch.), that part of the interior fittings, esp. of a dwelling house, which is permanent and fixed in its place, as distinguished from doors, sashes, etc. -- Standing order (Eccl.), the denomination (Congregiational) established by law; -- a term formerly used in Connecticut. See also under Order. -- Standing part. (Naut.) (a) That part of a tackle which is made fast to a block, point, or other object. (b) That part of a rope around which turns are taken with the running part in making a knot of the like. -- Standing rigging (Naut.), the cordage or rope which sustain the masts and remain fixed in their position, as the shrouds and stays, - - distinguished from running rigging.

STANDING Stand"ing, n.

1. The act of stopping, or coming to a stand; the state of being erect upon the feet; stand.

2. Maintenance of position; duration; duration or existence in the same place or condition; continuance; as, a custom of long standing; an officer of long standing. An ancient thing of long standing. Bunyan.

3. Place to stand in; station; stand. I will provide you a good standing to see his entry. Bacon. I think in deep mire, where there is no standing. Ps. lxix. 2.

4. Condition in society; relative position; reputation; rank; as, a man of good standing, or of high standing. Standing off (Naut.), sailing from the land. -- Standing on (Naut.), sailing toward land.

STANDISH Stand"ish, n. Etym: [Stand + dish.]

Defn: A stand, or case, for pen and ink. I bequeath to Dean Swift, Esq., my large silver standish. Swift.

STANDPIPE Stand"pipe`, n.

1. (Engin.)

Defn: A vertical pipe, open at the top, between a hydrant and a reservoir, to equalize the flow of water; also, a large vertical pipe, near a pumping engine, into which water is forced up, so as to give it sufficient head to rise to the required level at a distance.

2. (Steam Boiler)

Defn: A supply pipe of sufficient elevation to enable the water to flow into the boiler, notwithstanding the pressure of the steam. Knight.

STANDPOINT Stand"point`, n. Etym: [Cf. G. standpunkt.]

Defn: A fixed point or station; a basis or fundamental principle; a position from which objects or principles are viewed, and according to which they are compared and judged.

STANDSTILL Stand"still`, n.

Defn: A standing without moving forward or backward; a stop; a state or rest.

STANE Stane, n.

Defn: A stone. [Scot. & Prov. Eng.]

STANG Stang,

Defn: imp. of Sting. [Archaic]

STANG Stang, n. Etym: [OE. stange, of Scand. or Dutch origin; cf. Icel. stöng, akin to Dan. stang, Sw. stång, D. stang, G. stange, OHG. stanga, AS. steng; from the root of E. sting.]

1. A long bar; a pole; a shaft; a stake.

2. In land measure, a pole, rod, or perch. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.] Swift. Stang ball, a projectile consisting of two half balls united by a bar; a bar shot. See Illust. of Bar shot, under Bar. -- To ride the stang, to be carried on a pole on men's shoulders. This method of punishing wife beaters, etc., was once in vogue in some parts of England.

STANG Stang, v. i. Etym: [Akin to sting; cf. Icel. stanga to prick, to goad.]

Defn: To shoot with pain. [Prov. Eng.]

STANHOPE Stan"hope, n.

Defn: A light two-wheeled, or sometimes four-wheeled, carriage, without a top; -- so called from Lord Stanhope, for whom it was contrived.

STANIEL Stan"iel, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: See Stannel.

STANIELRY Stan"iel*ry, n.

Defn: Hawking with staniels, -- a base kind of falconry. [Obs.]

STANK Stank, a. Etym: [OF. estanc, or It. stanco. See Stanch, a.]

Defn: Weak; worn out. [Obs.] Spenser.

STANK Stank, v. i. Etym: [Cf. Sw. stånka to pant. *165.]

Defn: To sigh. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.]

STANK Stank, imp. of Stink.

Defn: Stunk.

STANK Stank, n. Etym: [OF. estang, F. étang, from L. stagnum a pool. Cf. Stagnate, Tank a cistern.]

1. Water retained by an embankment; a pool water. [Prov. Eng. & Scot.] Robert of Brunne.

2. A dam or mound to stop water. [Prov. Eng.] Stank hen (Zoöl.), the moor hen; -- called also stankie. [Prov. Eng.]

STANNARY Stan"na*ry, a. Etym: [L. stannum tin, an alloy of silver and lead.]

Defn: Of or pertaining to tin mines, or tin works. The stannary courts of Devonshire and Cornwall, for the administration of justice among the tinners therein, are also courts of record. Blackstone.

STANNARY Stan"na*ry, n.; pl. Stannaries. Etym: [LL. stannaria.]

Defn: A tin mine; tin works. Bp. Hall.

STANNATE Stan"nate, n. Etym: [Cf. F. stannate.] (Chem.)

Defn: A salt of stannic acid.

STANNEL Stan"nel, n. Etym: [AS. stangella, stangilla; properly, stone yeller, i.e., a bird that yells from the rocks. See Stone, and Yell, and cf. Stonegall.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: The kestrel; -- called also standgale, standgall, stanchel, stand hawk, stannel hawk, steingale, stonegall. [Written also staniel, stannyel, and stanyel.] With what wing the staniel checks at it. Shak.

STANNIC Stan"nic, a. Etym: [L. stannum tin: cf. F. stannique.] (Chem.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to tin; derived from or containing tin; specifically, designating those compounds in which the element has a higher valence as contrasted with stannous compounds. Stannic acid. (a) A hypothetical substance, Sn(OH)4, analogous to silic acid, and called also normal stannic acid. (b) Metastannic acid. -- Stannic chloride, a thin, colorless, fuming liquid, SnCl4, used as a mordant in calico printing and dyeing; -- formerly called spirit of tin, or fuming liquor of Libavius. -- Stannic oxide, tin oxide, SnO2, produced artificially as a white amorphous powder, and occurring naturally in the mineral cassiterite. It is used in the manufacture of white enamels, and, under the name of putty powder, for polishing glass, etc.

STANNIFEROUS Stan*nif"er*ous, a. Etym: [L. stannum tin + -ferous.]

Defn: Containing or affording tin.

STANNINE; STANNITE Stan"nine, Stan"nite, n. (Min.)

Defn: A mineral of a steel

STANNO- Stan"no-. Etym: [L. stannum tin.] (Chem.)

Defn: A combining form (also used adjectively) denoting relation to, or connection with, tin, or including tin as an ingredient.

STANNOFLUORIDE Stan`no*flu"or*ide, n. (Chem.)

Defn: Any one of a series of double fluorides of tin (stannum) and some other element.

STANNOSO- Stan*no"so-, a. (Chem.)

Defn: A combining form (also used adjectively) denoting relation to, or connection with, certain stannnous compounds.

STANNOTYPE Stan"no*type, n. Etym: [Stanno- + -type.] (Photog.)

Defn: A photograph taken upon a tin plate; a tintype.

STANNOUS Stan"nous, a. (Chem.)

Defn: Pertaining to, or containing, tin; specifically, designating those compounds in which the element has a lower valence as contrasted with stannic compounds. Stannous chloride (Chem.), a white crystalline substance, SnCl2.(H2O)2, obtained by dissolving tin in hydrochloric acid. It is used as a mordant in dyeing.

STANNUM Stan"num, n. Etym: [L., alloy of silver and lead; later, tin.] (Chem.)

Defn: The technical name of tin. See Tin.

STANNYEL; STANYEL Stann"yel, Stan"yel, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: See Stannel.

STANT; STONT Stant, Stont, obs. 3d pers. sing. pres. of Stand, for standeth.

Defn: Stands. Chaucer.

STANZA Stan"za, n.; pl. Stanzas. Etym: [It. stanza a room, habitation, a stanza, i. e., a stop, fr. L. stans, p.pr. of stare to stand. See Stand, and cf. Estancia, Stance, Stanchion.]

1. A number of lines or verses forming a division of a song or poem, and agreeing in meter, rhyme, number of lines, etc., with other divisions; a part of a poem, ordinarily containing every variation of measure in that poem; a combination or arrangement of lines usually recurring; whether like or unlike, in measure. Horace confines himself strictly to one sort of verse, or stanza, in every ode. Dryden.

2. (Arch.)

Defn: An apartment or division in a building; a room or chamber.

STANZAIC Stan*za"ic, a.

Defn: Pertaining to, or consisting of, stanzas; as, a couplet in stanzaic form.

STAPEDIAL Sta*pe"di*al, a. Etym: [LL. stapes stirrup.] (Anat.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to stapes.

STAPELIA Sta*pe"li*a, n. Etym: [NL. So named after John Bodæus a Stapel, a physician of Amsterdam.] (Bot.)

Defn: An extensive and curious genus of African plants of the natural order Asclepiadaceæ (Milkweed family). They are succulent plants without leaves, frequently covered with dark tubercles giving them a very grotesque appearance. The odor of the blossoms is like that of carrion.

STAPES Sta"pes, n. Etym: [LL., a stirrup.] (Anat.)

Defn: The innermost of the ossicles of the ear; the stirrup, or stirrup bone; -- so called from its form. See Illust. of Ear.

STAPHYLINE Staph"y*line, a. Etym: [Gr. (Anat.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to the uvula or the palate.

STAPHYLINID Staph`y*li"nid, n. Etym: [Gr. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Any rove beetle.

STAPHYLOMA Staph`y*lo"ma, n. Etym: [L., fr. Gr. (Med.)

Defn: A protrusion of any part of the globe of the eye; as, a staphyloma of the cornea.

STAPHYLOMATOUS Staph`y*lo"ma*tous, a. (Med.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to staphyloma; affected with staphyloma.

STAPHYLOPLASTY Staph"y*lo*plas`ty, n. Etym: [Gr. -plasty.] (Surg.)

Defn: The operation for restoring or replacing the soft palate when it has been lost. Dunglison. -- Staph`y*lo*plas"tic, a.

STAPHYLORAPHY; STAPHYLORRHAPHY Staph`y*lor"a*phy, Staph`y*lor"rha*phy, n. Etym: [Gr. staphylorraphie.]

Defn: The operation of uniting a cleft palate, consisting in paring and bringing together the edges of the cleft. -- Staph`y*lo*raph"ic, Staph`y*lor*rhaph"ic, a.

STAPHYLOTOMY Staph`y*lot"o*my, n. Etym: [Gr. (Surg.)

Defn: The operation of removing a staphyloma by cutting.

STAPLE Sta"ple, n. Etym: [AS. stapul, stapol, stapel, a step, a prop, post, table, fr. stapan to step, go, raise; akin to D. stapel a pile, stocks, emporium, G. stapela heap, mart, stake, staffel step of a ladder, Sw. stapel, Dan. stabel, and E. step cf. OF. estaple a mart, F. étape. See Step.]

1. A settled mart; an emporium; a city or town to which merchants brought commodities for sale or exportation in bulk; a place for wholesale traffic. The customs of Alexandria were very great, it having been the staple of the Indian trade. Arbuthnot. For the increase of trade and the encouragement of the worthy burgesses of Woodstock, her majesty was minded to erect the town into a staple for wool. Sir W. Scott.

Note: In England, formerly, the king's staple was established in certain ports or towns, and certain goods could not be exported without being first brought to these places to be rated and charged with the duty payable of the king or the public. The principal commodities on which customs were lived were wool, skins, and leather; and these were originally the staple commodities.

2. Hence: Place of supply; source; fountain head. Whitehall naturally became the chief staple of news. Whenever there was a rumor that any thing important had happened or was about to happen, people hastened thither to obtain intelligence from the fountain head. Macaulay.

3. The principal commodity of traffic in a market; a principal commodity or production of a country or district; as, wheat, maize, and cotton are great staples of the United States. We should now say, Cotton is the great staple, that is, the established merchandize, of Manchester. Trench.

4. The principal constituent in anything; chief item.

5. Unmanufactured material; raw material.

6. The fiber of wool, cotton, flax, or the like; as, a coarse staple; a fine staple; a long or short staple.

7. A loop of iron, or a bar or wire, bent and formed with two points to be driven into wood, to hold a hook, pin, or the like.

8. (Mining) (a) A shaft, smaller and shorter than the principal one, joining different levels. (b) A small pit.

9. A district granted to an abbey. [Obs.] Camden.

STAPLE Sta"ple, a.

1. Pertaining to, or being market of staple for, commodities; as, a staple town. [R.]

2. Established in commerce; occupying the markets; settled; as, a staple trade. Dryden.

3. Fit to be sold; marketable. [R.] Swift.

4. Regularly produced or manufactured in large quantities; belonging to wholesale traffic; principal; chief. Wool, the great staple commodity of England. H

STAPLE Sta"ple, v. t. [imp. & p. p. stapled; p. pr. & vb. n. stapling.]

Defn: To sort according to its staple; as, to staple cotton.

STAPLER Sta"pler, n.

1. A dealer in staple goods.

2. One employed to assort wool according to its staple.

STAR Star, n. Etym: [OE. sterre, AS. steorra; akin to OFries. stera, OS. sterro, D. ster, OHG. sterno, sterro, G. stern, Icel. stjarna, Sw. stjerna, Dan. stierne, Goth. staírno, Armor. & Corn. stern, L. stella, Gr. star; perhaps from a root meaning, to seater, Skr. st, L. sternere (cf. Stratum), and originally applied to the stars as beingstrewn over the sky, or as beingscatterers or spreaders of light. *296. Cf. Aster, Asteroid, Constellation, Disaster, Stellar.]

1. One of the innumerable luminous bodies seen in the heavens; any heavenly body other than the sun, moon, comets, and nebulæ. His eyen twinkled in his head aright, As do the stars in the frosty night. Chaucer.

Note: The stars are distinguished as planets, and fixed stars. See Planet, Fixed stars under Fixed, and Magnitude of a star under Magnitude.

2. The polestar; the north star. Shak.

3. (Astrol.)

Defn: A planet supposed to influence one's destiny; (usually pl.) a configuration of the planets, supposed to influence fortune. O malignant and ill-brooding stars. Shak. Blesses his stars, and thinks it luxury. Addison.

4. That which resembles the figure of a star, as an ornament worn on the breast to indicate rank or honor. On whom . . . Lavish Honor showered all her stars. Tennyson.

5. Specifically, a radiated mark in writing or printing; an asterisk [thus, *]; -- used as a reference to a note, or to fill a blank where something is omitted, etc.

6. (Pyrotechny)

Defn: A composition of combustible matter used in the heading of rockets, in mines, etc., which, exploding of a air, presents a starlike appearance.

7. A person of brilliant and attractive qualities, especially on public occasions, as a distinguished orator, a leading theatrical performer, etc.

Note: Star is used in the formation of compound words generally or obvious signification: as, star-aspiring, star-bespangled, star- bestudded, star-blasting, star-bright, star-crowned, star-directed, star-eyed, star-headed, star-paved, star-roofed; star-sprinkled, star-wreathed.

Blazing star, Double star, Multiple star, Shooting star, etc. See under Blazing, Double, etc. -- Nebulous star (Astron.), a small well-defined circular nebula, having a bright nucleus at its center like a star. -- Star anise (Bot.), any plant of the genus Illicium; -- so called from its star-shaped capsules. -- Star apple (Bot.), a tropical American tree (Chrysophyllum Cainito), having a milky juice and oblong leaves with a silky-golden pubescence beneath. It bears an applelike fruit, the carpels of which present a starlike figure when cut across. The name is extended to the whole genus of about sixty species, and the natural order (Sapotaceæ) to which it belongs is called the Star-apple family. -- Star conner, one who cons, or studies, the stars; an astronomer or an astrologer. Gascoigne. -- Star coral (Zoöl.), any one of numerous species of stony corals belonging to Astræa, Orbicella, and allied genera, in which the calicles are round or polygonal and contain conspicuous radiating septa. -- Star cucumber. (Bot.) See under Cucumber. -- Star flower. (Bot.) (a) A plant of the genus Ornithogalum; star- of-Bethlehem. (b) See Starwort (b). (c) An American plant of the genus Trientalis (Trientalis Americana). Gray. -- Star fort (Fort.), a fort surrounded on the exterior with projecting angles; -- whence the name. -- Star gauge (Ordnance), a long rod, with adjustable points projecting radially at its end, for measuring the size of different parts of the bore of a gun. -- Star grass. (Bot.) (a) A small grasslike plant (Hypoxis erecta) having star-shaped yellow flowers. (b) The colicroot. See Colicroot. -- Star hyacinth (Bot.), a bulbous plant of the genus Scilla (S. autumnalis); -- called also star-headed hyacinth. -- Star jelly (Bot.), any one of several gelatinous plants (Nostoc commune, N. edule, etc.). See Nostoc. -- Star lizard. (Zoöl.) Same as Stellion. -- Star-of-Bethlehem (Bot.), a bulbous liliaceous plant (Ornithogalum umbellatum) having a small white starlike flower. -- Star-of-the-earth (Bot.), a plant of the genus Plantago (P. coronopus), growing upon the seashore. -- Star polygon (Geom.), a polygon whose sides cut each other so as to form a star-shaped figure. -- Stars and Stripes, a popular name for the flag of the United States, which consists of thirteen horizontal stripes, alternately red and white, and a union having, in a blue field, white stars to represent the several States, one for each. With the old flag, the true American flag, the Eagle, and the Stars and Stripes, waving over the chamber in which we sit. D. Webster. -- Star showers. See Shooting star, under Shooting. -- Star thistle (Bot.), an annual composite plant (Centaurea solstitialis) having the involucre armed with radiating spines. -- Star wheel (Mach.), a star-shaped disk, used as a kind of ratchet wheel, in repeating watches and the feed motions of some machines. -- Star worm (Zoöl.), a gephyrean. -- Temporary star (Astron.), a star which appears suddenly, shines for a period, and then nearly or quite disappears. These stars are supposed by some astronometers to be variable stars of long and undetermined periods. -- Variable star (Astron.), a star whose brilliancy varies periodically, generally with regularity, but sometimes irregularly; - - called periodical star when its changes occur at fixed periods. -- Water star grass (Bot.), an aquatic plant (Schollera graminea) with small yellow starlike blossoms.

STAR Star, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Starred; p. pr. & vb. n. Starring.]

Defn: To set or adorn with stars, or bright, radiating bodies; to bespangle; as, a robe starred with gems. "A sable curtain starred with gold." Young.

STAR Star, v. i.

Defn: To be bright, or attract attention, as a star; to shine like a star; to be brilliant or prominent; to play a part as a theatrical star. W. Irving.

STAR-BLIND Star"-blind`, a.

Defn: Half blind.

STARBOARD Star"board`, n. Etym: [OE. sterbord, AS. steórbord, i.e., steer board. See Steer, v. t., Board of a vessel, and cf. Larboard.] (Naut.)

Defn: That side of a vessel which is one of the right hand of a person who stands on board facing the bow; -- opposed to Ant: larboard, or Ant: port.

STARBOARD Star"board`, a. (Naut.)

Defn: Pertaining to the right-hand side of a ship; being or lying on the right side; as, the starboard quarter; starboard tack.

STARBOARD Star"board`, v. t. (Naut.)

Defn: To put to the right, or starboard, side of a vessel; as, to starboard the helm.

STAR-BOWLINES Star-"bow`lines, n. pl. (Naut.)

Defn: The men in the starboard watch. [Obs.] R. H. Dana, Jr.

STARCH Starch, a. Etym: [AS. stearc stark, strong, rough. See Stark.]

Defn: Stiff; precise; rigid. [R.] Killingbeck.

STARCH Starch, n. Etym: [From starch stiff, cf. G. stärke, fr. stark strong.]

1. (Chem.)

Defn: A widely diffused vegetable substance found especially in seeds, bulbs, and tubers, and extracted (as from potatoes, corn, rice, etc.) as a white, glistening, granular or powdery substance, without taste or smell, and giving a very peculiar creaking sound when rubbed between the fingers. It is used as a food, in the production of commercial grape sugar, for stiffening linen in laundries, in making paste, etc.

Note: Starch is a carbohydrate, being the typical amylose, C6H10O5, and is detected by the fine blue color given to it by free iodine. It is not fermentable as such, but is changed by diastase into dextrin and maltose, and by heating with dilute acids into dextrose. Cf. Sugar, Inulin, and Lichenin.

2. Fig.: A stiff, formal manner; formality. Addison. Starch hyacinth (Bot.), the grape hyacinth; -- so called because the flowers have the smell of boiled starch. See under Grape.

STARCH Starch, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Starched; p. pr. & vb. n. Starching.]

Defn: To stiffen with starch.

STAR-CHAMBER Star"-cham`ber, n. Etym: [So called (as conjectured by Blackstone) from being held in a room at the Exchequer where the chests containing certain Jewish comtracts and obligations called starrs (from the Heb. shetar, pron. shtar) were kept; or from the stars with which the ceiling is supposed to have been decorated.] (Eng. Hist.)

Defn: An ancient high court exercising jurisdiction in certain cases, mainly criminal, which sat without the intervention of a jury. It consisted of the king's council, or of the privy council only with the addition of certain judges. It could proceed on mere rumor or examine witnesses; it could apply torture. It was abolished by the Long Parliament in 1641. Encyc. Brit.

STARCHED Starched, a.

1. Stiffened with starch.

2. Stiff; precise; formal. Swift.

STARCHEDNESS Starch"ed*ness, n.

Defn: The quality or state of being starched; stiffness in manners; formality.

STARCHER Starch"er, n.

Defn: One who starches.

STARCHLY Starch"ly, adv.

Defn: In a starched or starch manner.

STARCHNESS Starch"ness, n.

Defn: Of or pertaining to starched or starch; stiffness of manner; preciseness.

STARCHWORT Starch"wort`, n. (Bot.)

Defn: The cuckoopint, the tubers of which yield a fine quality of starch.

STARCHY Starch"y, a.

Defn: Consisting of starch; resembling starch; stiff; precise.

STARCRAFT Star"craft, n.

Defn: Astrology. [R.] Tennyson.

STAR-CROSSED Star"-crossed`, a.

Defn: Not favored by the stars; ill-fated. [Poetic] Shak. Such in my star-crossed destiny. Massinger.

STAR DRIFT Star drift. (Astron.)

Defn: Similar and probably related motion of the stars of an asterism, as distinguished from apparent change of place due to solar motion.-- ## = star streaming --

STARE Stare, n. Etym: [AS. stær. See Starling.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: The starling. [Obs.]

STARE Stare, v. i. [imp. & p. p. stared; p. pr. & vb. n. staring.] Etym: [AS. starian; akin to LG. & D. staren, OHG. staren, G. starren, Icel. stara; cf. Icel. stira, Dan. stirre, Sw. stirra, and G. starr stiff, rigid, fixed, Gr. stereo-), Skr. sthira firm, strong. *166. Cf. Sterile.]

1. To look with fixed eyes wide open, as through fear, wonder, surprise, impudence, etc.; to fasten an earnest and prolonged gaze on some object. For ever upon the ground I see thee stare. Chaucer. Look not big, nor stamp, nor stare, nor fret. Shak.

2. To be very conspicuous on account of size, prominence, color, or brilliancy; as, staring windows or colors.

3. To stand out; to project; to bristle. [Obs.] Makest my blood cold, and my hair to stare. Shak. Take off all the staring straws and jags in the hive. Mortimer.

Syn. -- To gaze; to look earnestly. See Gaze.

STARE Stare, v. t.

Defn: To look earnestly at; to gaze at. I will stare him out of his wits. Shak. To stare in the face, to be before the eyes, or to be undeniably evident. "The law . . . stares them in the face whilst they are breaking it." Locke.

STARE Stare, n.

Defn: The act of staring; a fixed look with eyes wide open. "A dull and stupid stare." Churchill.

STARER Star"er, n.

Defn: One who stares, or gazes.

STARF Starf, obs. imp. of Starve.

Defn: Starved. Chaucer.

STARFINCH Star"finch`, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The European redstart.

STARFISH Star"fish, n.

1. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Any one of numerous species of echinoderms belonging to the class Asterioidea, in which the body is star-shaped and usually has five rays, though the number of rays varies from five to forty or more. The rays are often long, but are sometimes so short as to appear only as angles to the disklike body. Called also sea star, five-finger, and stellerid.

Note: The ophiuroids are also sometimes called starfishes. See Brittle star, and Ophiuroidea.

2. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The dollar fish, or butterfish.

STARGASER Star"gas`er, n.

1. One who gazes at the stars; an astrologer; sometimes, in derision or contempt, an astronomer.

2. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Any one of several species of spiny-rayed marine fishes belonging to Uranoscopus, Astroscopus, and allied genera, of the family Uranoscopidæ. The common species of the Eastern United States are Astroscopus anoplus, and A. guttatus. So called from the position of the eyes, which look directly upward.

STARGASING Star"gas`ing, n.

1. The act or practice of observing the stars with attention; contemplation of the stars as connected with astrology or astronomy. Swift.

2. Hence, absent-mindedness; abstraction.

STARINGLY Star"ing*ly, adv.

Defn: With a staring look.

STARK Stark, a. [Compar. Starker; superl. Starkest.] Etym: [OE. stark stiff, strong, AS. stearc; akin to OS. starc strong, D. sterk, OHG. starc, starah, G. & Sw. stark, Dan. stærk, Icel. sterkr, Goth. gastaúrknan to become dried up, Lith. strëgti to stiffen, to freeze. Cf. Starch, a. & n.]

1. Stiff; rigid. Chaucer. Whose senses all were straight benumbed and stark. Spenser. His heart gan wax as stark as marble stone. Spenser. Many a nobleman lies stark and stiff Under the hoofs of vaunting enemies. Shak. The north is not so stark and cold. B. Jonson.

2. Complete; absolute; full; perfect; entire. [Obs.] Consider the stark security The common wealth is in now. B. Jonson.

3. Strong; vigorous; powerful. A stark, moss-trooping Scot. Sir W. Scott. Stark beer, boy, stout and strong beer. Beau. & Fl.

4. Severe; violent; fierce. [Obs.] "In starke stours." [i. e., in fierce combats]. Chaucer.

5. Mere; sheer; gross; entire; downright. He pronounces the citation stark nonsense. Collier. Rhetoric is very good or stark naught; there's no medium in rhetoric. Selden.

STARK Stark, adv.

Defn: Wholly; entirely; absolutely; quite; as, stark mind. Shak. Held him strangled in his arms till he was stark dead. Fuller. Stark naked, wholly naked; quite bare. Strip your sword stark naked. Shak.

Note: According to Professor Skeat, "stark-naked" is derived from steort-naked, or start-naked, literally tail-naked, and hence wholly naked. If this etymology be true the preferable form is stark-naked.

STARK Stark, v. t.

Defn: To stiffen. [R.] If horror have not starked your limbs. H. Taylor.

STARKLY Stark"ly, adv.

Defn: In a stark manner; stiffly; strongly. Its onward force too starky pent In figure, bone, and lineament. Emerson.

STARKNESS Stark"ness, n.

Defn: The quality or state of being stark.

STARLESS Star"less, a.

Defn: Being without stars; having no stars visible; as, a starless night. Milton.

STARLIGHT Star"light`, n.

Defn: The light given by the stars. Nor walk by moon, Or glittering starlight, without thee is sweet. Milton.

STARLIGHT Star"light`, a.

Defn: Lighted by the stars, or by the stars only; as, a starlight night. A starlight evening and a morning fair. Dryden.

STARLIKE Star"like`, a.

1. Resembling a star; stellated; radiated like a star; as, starlike flowers.

2. Shining; bright; illustrious. Dryden. The having turned many to righteousness shall confer a starlike and immortal brightness. Boyle.

STARLING Star"ling, n. Etym: [OE. sterlyng, a dim. of OE. stare, AS. stær; akin to AS. stearn, G. star, staar, OHG. stara, Icel. starri, stari, Sw. stare, Dan. stær, L. sturnus. Cf. Stare a starling.]

1. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Any passerine bird belonging to Sturnus and allied genera. The European starling (Sturnus vulgaris) is dark brown or greenish black, with a metallic gloss, and spotted with yellowish white. It is a sociable bird, and builds about houses, old towers, etc. Called also stare, and starred. The pied starling of India is Sternopastor contra.

2. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A California fish; the rock trout.

3. A structure of piles driven round the piers of a bridge for protection and support; -- called also sterling. Rose-colored starling. (Zoöl.) See Pastor.

STARLIT Star"lit`, a.

Defn: Lighted by the stars; starlight.

STARMONGER Star"mon`ger, n.

Defn: A fortune teller; an astrologer; -- used in contempt. B. Jonson.

STARN Starn, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The European starling. [Prov. Eng.]

STARNOSE Star"nose`, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A curious American mole (Condylura cristata) having the nose expanded at the end into a stellate disk; -- called also star-nosed mole.

STAROST Star"ost, n. Etym: [Pol. starosta, from stary old.]

Defn: A nobleman who possessed a starosty. [Poland]

STAROSTY Star"os*ty, n.

Defn: A castle and domain conferred on a nobleman for life. [Poland] Brande & C.

STARPROOF Star"proof`, a.

Defn: Impervious to the light of the stars; as, a starproof elm. [Poetic] Milton.

STAR-READ Star"-read`, n.

Defn: Doctrine or knowledge of the stars; star lore; astrology; astronomy. [Obs.] Which in star-read were wont have best insight. Spenser.

STARRED Starred, a. Etym: [From Star.]

1. Adorned or studded with stars; bespangled.

2. Influenced in fortune by the stars. [Obs.] My third comfort, Starred most unluckily. Shak.

STARRINESS Star"ri*ness, n.

Defn: The quality or state of being starry; as, the starriness of the heavens.

STARRY Star"ry, a.

1. Abounding with stars; adorned with stars. "Above the starry sky." Pope.

2. Consisting of, or proceeding from, the stars; stellar; stellary; as, starry light; starry flame. Do not Christians and Heathens, Jews and Gentiles, poets and philosophers, unite in allowing the starry influence Sir W. Scott.

3. Shining like stars; sparkling; as, starry eyes.

4. Arranged in rays like those of a star; stellate. Starry ray (Zoöl.), a European skate (Raita radiata); -- so called from the stellate bases of the dorsal spines.

STARSHINE Star"shine`, n.

Defn: The light of the stars. [R.] The starshine lights upon our heads. R. L. Stevenson.

STARSHOOT Star"shoot`, n.

Defn: See Nostoc.

STAR-SPANGLED Star"-span`gled, a.

Defn: Spangled or studded with stars. Star-spangled banner, the popular name for the national ensign of the United States. F. S. Key.

STAR STEREOGRAM Star stereogram.

Defn: A view of the universe of brighter stars as it would appear to an observer transported into space outside or beyond our universe of stars.

STARSTONE Star"stone`, n. (Min.)

Defn: Asteriated sapphire.

START Start, v. i. [imp. & p. p. started; p. pr. & vb. n. starting.] Etym: [OE. sterten; akin to D. storten 8hurl, rush, fall, G. stürzen, OHG. sturzen to turn over, to fall, Sw. störa to cast down, to fall, Dan. styrte, and probably also to E. start a tail; the original sense being, perhaps, to show the tail, to tumble over suddenly. *166. Cf. Start a tail.]

1. To leap; to jump. [Obs.]

2. To move suddenly, as with a spring or leap, from surprise, pain, or other sudden feeling or emotion, or by a voluntary act. And maketh him out of his sleep to start. Chaucer. I start as from some dreadful dream. Dryden. Keep your soul to the work when ready to start aside. I. Watts. But if he start, It is the flesh of a corrupted heart. Shak.

3. To set out; to commence a course, as a race or journey; to begin; as, to start business. At once they start, advancing in a line. Dryden. At intervals some bird from out the brakes Starts into voice a moment, then is still. Byron.

4. To become somewhat displaced or loosened; as, a rivet or a seam may start under strain or pressure. To start after, to set out after; to follow; to pursue. -- To start against, to act as a rival candidate against. -- To start for, to be a candidate for, as an office. -- To start up, to rise suddenly, as from a seat or couch; to come suddenly into notice or importance.

START Start, v. t.

1. To cause to move suddenly; to disturb suddenly; to startle; to alarm; to rouse; to cause to flee or fly; as, the hounds started a fox. Upon malicious bravery dost thou come To start my quiet Shak. Brutus will start a spirit as soon as Cæsar. Shak.

2. To bring onto being or into view; to originate; to invent. Sensual men agree in the pursuit of every pleasure they can start. Sir W. Temple.

3. To cause to move or act; to set going, running, or flowing; as, to start a railway train; to start a mill; to start a stream of water; to start a rumor; to start a business. I was engaged in conversation upon a subject which the people love to start in discourse. Addison.

4. To move suddenly from its place or position; to displace or loosen; to dislocate; as, to start a bone; the storm started the bolts in the vessel. One, by a fall in wrestling, started the end of the clavicle from the sternum. Wiseman.

5. Etym: [Perh. from D. storten, which has this meaning also.] (Naut.)

Defn: To pour out; to empty; to tap and begin drawing from; as, to start a water cask.

START Start, n.

1. The act of starting; a sudden spring, leap, or motion, caused by surprise, fear, pain, or the like; any sudden motion, or beginning of motion. The fright awakened Arcite with a start. Dryden.

2. A convulsive motion, twitch, or spasm; a spasmodic effort. For she did speak in starts distractedly. Shak. Nature does nothing by starts and leaps, or in a hurry. L'Estrange.

3. A sudden, unexpected movement; a sudden and capricious impulse; a sally; as, starts of fancy. To check the starts and sallies of the soul. Addison.

4. The beginning, as of a journey or a course of action; first motion from a place; act of setting out; the outset; -- opposed to finish. The start of first performance is all. Bacon. I see you stand like greyhounds in the slips, Straining upon the start. Shak. At a start, at once; in an instant. [Obs.] At a start he was betwixt them two. Chaucer. To get, or have, the start, to before another; to gain or have the advantage in a similar undertaking; -- usually with of. "Get the start of the majestic world." Shak. "She might have forsaken him if he had not got the start of her." Dryden.

START Start, n. Etym: [OE. stert a tail, AS. steort; akin to LG. stert, steert, D. staart, G. sterz, Icel. stertr, Dan. stiert, Sw. stjert. *166. Cf. Stark naked, under Stark, Start, v. i.]

1. A tail, or anything projecting like a tail.

2. The handle, or tail, of a plow; also, any long handle. [Prov. Eng.]

3. The curved or inclined front and bottom of a water-wheel bucket.

4. (Mining)

Defn: The arm, or level, of a gin, drawn around by a horse.

STARTER Start"er, n.

1. One who, or that which, starts; as, a starter on a journey; the starter of a race.

2. A dog that rouses game.

STARTFUL Start"ful, a.

Defn: Apt to start; skittish. [R.]

STARTFULNESS Start"ful*ness, n.

Defn: Aptness to start. [R.]

STARTHROAT Star"throat`, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Any humming bird of the genus Heliomaster. The feathers of the throat have a brilliant metallic luster.

STARTING Start"ing, a. & n.

Defn: from Start, v. Starting bar (Steam Eng.), a hand lever for working the values in starting an engine. -- Starting hole, a loophole; evasion. [Obs.] -- Starting point, the point from which motion begins, or from which anything starts. -- Starting post, a post, stake, barrier, or place from which competitors in a race start, or begin the race.

STARTINGLY Start"ing*ly, adv.

Defn: By sudden fits or starts; spasmodically. Shak.

STARTISH Start"ish, a.

Defn: Apt to start; skittish; shy; -- said especially of a horse. [Colloq.]

STARTLE Star"tle, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Startled; p. pr. & vb. n. Startling.] Etym: [Freq. of start.]

Defn: To move suddenly, or be excited, on feeling alarm; to start. Why shrinks the soul Back on herself, and startles at destruction Addison.

STARTLE Star"tle, v. t.

1. To excite by sudden alarm, surprise, or apprehension; to frighten suddenly and not seriously; to alarm; to surprise. The supposition, at least, that angels do sometimes assume bodies need not startle us. Locke.

2. To deter; to cause to deviate. [R.] Clarendon.

Syn. -- To start; shock; fright; frighten; alarm.

STARTLE Star"tle, n.

Defn: A sudden motion or shock caused by an unexpected alarm, surprise, or apprehension of danger. After having recovered from my first startle, I was very well pleased with the accident. Spectator.

STARTLINGLY Star"tling*ly, adv.

Defn: In a startling manner.

STARTLISH Star"tlish, a.

Defn: Easily startled; apt to start; startish; skittish; -- said especially of a hourse. [Colloq.]

START-UP Start"-up`, n.

1. One who comes suddenly into notice; an upstart. [Obs.] Shak.

2. A kind of high rustic shoe. [Obs.] Drayton. A startuppe, or clownish shoe. Spenser.

START-UP Start"-up`, a.

Defn: Upstart. [R.] Walpole.

STARVATION Star*va"tion, n.

Defn: The act of starving, or the state of being starved.

Note: This word was first used, according to Horace Walpole, by Henry Dundas, the first Lord Melville, in a speech on American affairs in 1775, which obtained for him the nickname of Starvation Dundas. "Starvation, we are also told, belongs to the class of 'vile compounds' from being a mongrel; as if English were not full of mongrels, and if it would not be in distressing straits without them." Fitzed. Hall.

STARVE Starve, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Starved; p. pr. & vb. n. Starving.] Etym: [OE. sterven to die, AS. steorfan; akin to D. sterven, G. sterben, OHG. sterban, Icel. starf labor, toil.]

1. To die; to perish. [Obs., except in the sense of perishing with cold or hunger.] Lydgate. In hot coals he hath himself raked . . . Thus starved this worthy mighty Hercules. Chaucer.

2. To perish with hunger; to suffer extreme hunger or want; to be very indigent. Sometimes virtue starves, while vice is fed. Pope.

3. To perish or die with cold. Spenser. Have I seen the naked starve for cold Sandys. Starving with cold as well as hunger. W. Irving.

Note: In this sense, still common in England, but rarely used of the United States.

STARVE Starve, v. t.

1. To destroy with cold. [Eng.] From beds of raging fire, to starve in ice Their soft ethereal warmth. Milton.

2. To kill with hunger; as, maliciously to starve a man is, in law, murder.

3. To distress or subdue by famine; as, to starvea garrison into a surrender. Attalus endeavored to starve Italy by stopping their convoy of provisions from Africa. Arbuthnot.

4. To destroy by want of any kind; as, to starve plans by depriving them of proper light and air.

5. To deprive of force or vigor; to disable. The pens of historians, writing thereof, seemed starved for matter in an age so fruitful of memorable actions. Fuller. The powers of their minds are starved by disuse. Locke.

STARVEDLY Starv"ed*ly, adv.

Defn: In the condition of one starved or starving; parsimoniously. Some boasting housekeeper which keepth open doors for one day, . . . and lives starvedly all the year after. Bp. Hall.

STARVELING Starve"ling, n. Etym: [Starve + -ling.]

Defn: One who, or that which, pines from lack or food, or nutriment. Old Sir John hangs with me, and thou knowest he is no starveling. Shak.

STARVELING Starve"ling, a.

Defn: Hungry; lean; pining with want.

STARWORT Star"wort`, n. (Bot.) (a) Any plant of the genus Aster. See Aster. (b) A small plant of the genus Stellaria, having star-shaped flowers; star flower; chickweed. Gray. Water starwort, an aquatic plant (Callitriche verna) having some resemblance to chickweed. -- Yellow starwort, a plant of the genus Inula; elecampane.

STASIMON Stas"i*mon, n.; pl. Stasmia. Etym: [NL., from Gr. sta`simon, neut. of sta`simos stationary, steadfast.]

Defn: In the Greek tragedy, a song of the chorus, continued without the interruption of dialogue or anapæstics. Liddell & Scott.

STASIS Sta"sis, n. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr. (Physiol.)

Defn: A slackening or arrest of the blood current in the vessels, due not to a lessening of the heart's beat, but presumably to some abnormal resistance of the capillary walls. It is one of the phenomena observed in the capillaries in inflammation.

STATABLE Stat"a*ble, a.

Defn: That can be stated; as, a statablegrievance; the question at issue is statable.

STATAL Sta"tal, a.

Defn: Of, pertaining to, or existing with reference to, a State of the American Union, as distinguished from the general government. [R.] I have no knowledge of any other kind of political citizenship, higher or lower, statal or national. Edward Bates.

STATANT Sta"tant, a. Etym: [L. stare to stand.] (Her.)

Defn: In a standing position; as, a lion statant.

STATARIAN Sta*ta"ri*an, a.

Defn: Fixed; settled; steady; statary. [Obs.]

STATARIANLY Sta*ta"ri*an*ly, adv.

Defn: Fixedly; steadly. [Obs.]

STATARY Sta"ta*ry, a. Etym: [L. statarius standing fast, fr. stare to stand.]

Defn: Fixed; settled. [Obs.] "The set and statary times of paring of nails and cutting hair." Sir T. Browne.

STATE State, n. Etym: [OE. stat, OF. estat, F. état, fr. L. status a standing, position, fr. stare, statum, to stand. See Stand, and cf. Estate, Status.]

1. The circumstances or condition of a being or thing at any given time. State is a term nearly synonymous with "mode," but of a meaning more extensive, and is not exclusively limited to the mutable and contingent. Sir W. Hamilton. Declare the past and present state of things. Dryden. Keep the state of the question in your eye. Boyle.

2. Rank; condition; quality; as, the state of honor. Thy honor, state, and seat is due to me. Shak.

3. Condition of prosperity or grandeur; wealthy or prosperous circumstances; social importance. She instructed him how he should keep state, and yet with a modest sense of his misfortunes. Bacon. Can this imperious lord forget to reign, Quit all his state, descend, and serve again Pope.

4. Appearance of grandeur or dignity; pomp. Where least og state there most of love is shown. Dryden.

5. A chair with a canopy above it, often standing on a dais; a seat of dignity; also, the canopy itself. [Obs.] His high throne, . . . under state Of richest texture spread. Milton. When he went to court, he used to kick away the state, and sit down by his prince cheek by jowl. Swift.

6. Estate, possession. [Obs.] Daniel. Your state, my lord, again in yours. Massinger.

7. A person of high rank. [Obs.] Latimer.

8. Any body of men united by profession, or constituting a community of a particular character; as, the civil and ecclesiastical states, or the lords spiritual and temporal and the commons, in Great Britain. Cf. Estate, n., 6.

9. The principal persons in a government. The bold design Pleased highly those infernal states. Milton.

10. The bodies that constitute the legislature of a country; as, the States-general of Holland.

11. A form of government which is not monarchial, as a republic. [Obs.] Well monarchies may own religion's name, But states are atheists in their very fame. Dryden.

12. A political body, or body politic; the whole body of people who are united one government, whatever may be the form of the government; a nation. Municipal law is a rule of conduct prescribed by the supreme power in a state. Blackstone. The Puritans in the reign of Mary, driven from their homes, sought an asylum in Geneva, where they found a state without a king, and a church without a bishop. R. Choate.

13. In the United States, one of the commonwealth, or bodies politic, the people of which make up the body of the nation, and which, under the national constitution, stands in certain specified relations with the national government, and are invested, as commonwealth, with full power in their several spheres over all matters not expressly inhibited.

Note: The term State, in its technical sense, is used in distinction from the federal system, i. e., the government of the United States.

14. Highest and stationary condition, as that of maturity between growth and decline, or as that of crisis between the increase and the abating of a disease; height; acme. [Obs.]

Note: When state is joined with another word, or used adjectively, it denotes public, or what belongs to the community or body politic, or to the government; also, what belongs to the States severally in the American Union; as, state affairs; state policy; State laws of Iowa. Nascent state. (Chem.) See under Nascent. -- Secretary of state. See Secretary, n., 3. -- State bargea royal barge, or a barge belonging to a government. -- State bed, an elaborately carved or decorated bed. -- State carriage, a highly decorated carriage for officials going in state, or taking part in public processions. -- State paper, an official paper relating to the interests or government of a state. Jay. -- State prison, a public prison or penitentiary; -- called also State's prison. -- State prisoner, one is confinement, or under arrest, for a political offense. -- State rights, or States' rights, the rights of the several independent States, as distinguished from the rights of the Federal government. It has been a question as to what rights have been vested in the general government. [U.S.] -- State's evidence. See Probator, 2, and under Evidence. -- State sword, a sword used on state occasions, being borne before a sovereign by an attendant of high rank. -- State trial, a trial of a person for a political offense. -- States of the Church. See under Ecclesiastical.

Syn. -- State, Situation, Condition. State is the generic term, and denotes in general the mode in which a thing stands or exists. The situation of a thing is its state in reference to external objects and influences; its condition is its internal state, or what it is in itself considered. Our situation is good or bad as outward things bear favorably or unfavorably upon us; our condition is good or bad according to the state we are actually in as respects our persons, families, property, and other things which comprise our sources of enjoyment. I do not, brother, Infer as if I thought my sister's state Secure without all doubt or controversy. Milton. We hoped to enjoy with ease what, in our situation, might be called the luxuries of life. Cock. And, O, what man's condition can be worse Than his whom plenty starves and blessings curse Cowley.

STATE State, a.

1. Stately. [Obs.] Spenser.

2. Belonging to the state, or body politic; public.

STATE State, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stated; p. pr. & vb. n. Stating.]

1. To set; to settle; to establish. [R.] I myself, though meanest stated, And in court now almost hated. Wither. Who calls the council, states the certain day. Pope.

2. To express the particulars of; to set down in detail or in gross; to represent fully in words; to narrate; to recite; as, to state the facts of a case, one's opinion, etc. To state it. To assume state or dignity. [Obs.] "Rarely dressed up, and taught to state it." Beau. & Fl.

STATE State, n.

Defn: A statement; also, a document containing a statement. [R.] Sir W. Scott.

STATECRAFT State"craft`, n.

Defn: The art of conducting state affairs; state management; statesmanship.

STATED Stat"ed, a.

1. Settled; established; fixed. He is capable of corruption who receives more than what is the stated and unquestionable fee of his office. Addison.

2. Recurring at regular time; not occasional; as, stated preaching; stated business hours.

STATEDLY Stat"ed*ly, adv.

Defn: At stated times; regularly.

STATEFUL State"ful, a.

Defn: Full of state; stately. [Obs.] "A stateful silence." Marston.

STATEHOOD State"hood, n.

Defn: The condition of being a State; as, a territory seeking Statehood.

STATEHOUSE State"house`, n.

Defn: The building in which a State legislature holds its sessions; a State capitol. [U. S.]

STATELESS State"less, a.

Defn: Without state or pomp.

STATELILY State"li*ly, adv.

Defn: In a stately manner.

STATELINESS State"li*ness, n.

Defn: The quality or state of being stately. For stateliness and majesty, what is comparable to a horse Dr. H. More.

STATELY State"ly, a. [Compar. Statelier; superl. Stateliest.]

Defn: Evincing state or dignity; lofty; majestic; grand; as, statelymanners; a stately gait. "The stately homes of England!" Mrs. Hemans. "Filled with stately temples." Prescott. Here is a stately style indeed! Shak.

Syn. -- Lofty; dignified; majestic; grand; august; magnificent.

STATELY State"ly, adv.

Defn: Majestically; loftily. Milton.

STATEMENT State"ment, n.

1. The act of stating, reciting, or presenting, orally or in paper; as, to interrupt a speaker in the statement of his case.

2. That which is stated; a formal embodiment in language of facts or opinions; a narrative; a recital. "Admirable perspicuity of statement!" Brougham.

STATEMONGER State"mon`ger, n.

Defn: One versed in politics, or one who dabbles in state affairs.

STATEPRISON State`pris"on.

Defn: See under State, n.

STATER Stat"er, n.

Defn: One who states.

STATER Sta"ter, n. Etym: [L. stater, Gr. (Gr. Antiq.)

Defn: The principal gold coin of ancient Grece. It varied much in value, the stater best known at Athens being worth about £1 2s., or about $5.35. The Attic silver tetradrachm was in later times called stater.

STATEROOM State"room`, n.

1. A magnificent room in a place or great house.

2. A small apartment for lodging or sleeping in the cabin, or on the deck, of a vessel; also, a somewhat similar apartment in a railway sleeping car.

STATES-GENERAL States"-gen"er*al, n.

1. In France, before the Revolution, the assembly of the three orders of the kingdom, namely, the clergy, the nobility, and the third estate, or commonalty.

2. In the Netherlands, the legislative body, composed of two chambers.

STATESMAN States"man, n.; pl. Statesmen (.

1. A man versed in public affairs and in the principles and art of government; especially, one eminent for political abilities. The minds of some of our statesmen, like the pupil of the human eye, contract themselves the more, the stronger light there is shed upon them. More.

2. One occupied with the affairs of government, and influental in shaping its policy.

3. A small landholder. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

STATESMANLIKE States"man*like`, a.

Defn: Having the manner or wisdom of statesmen; becoming a statesman.

STATESMANLY States"man*ly, a.

Defn: Becoming a statesman.

STATESMANSHIP States"man*ship, n.

Defn: The qualifications, duties, or employments of a statesman.

STATE SOCIALISM State socialism.

Defn: A form of socialism, esp. advocated in Germany, which, while retaining the right of private property and the institution of the family and other features of the present form of the state, would intervene by various measures intended to give or maintain equality of opportunity, as compulsory state insurance, old-age pensions, etc., answering closely to socialism of the chair.

STATESWOMAN States"wom`an, n.; pl. Stateswomen (.

Defn: A woman concerned in public affairs. A rare stateswoman; I admire her bearing. B. Jonson.

STATHMOGRAPH Stath"mo*graph, n. Etym: [Gr. -graph.]

Defn: A contrivance for recording the speed of a railway train. Knight.

STATIC; STATICAL Stat"ic, Stat"ic*al, a. Etym: [Gr. statique. See Stand, and cf. Stage.]

1. Resting; acting by mere weight without motion; as, statical pressure; static objects.

2. Pertaining to bodies at rest or in equilibrium. Statical electricity. See Note under Electricity, 1. -- Statical moment. See under Moment.

STATICALLY Stat"ic*al*ly, adv.

Defn: In a statical manner.

STATICS Stat"ics, n. Etym: [Cf. F. statique, Gr. Static.]

Defn: That branch of mechanics which treats of the equilibrium of forces, or relates to bodies as held at rest by the forces acting on them; -- distinguished from dynamics. Social statics, the study of the conditions which concern the existence and permanence of the social state.

STATING Stat"ing, n.

Defn: The act of one who states anything; statement; as, the statingof one's opinions.

STATION Sta"tion, n. Etym: [F., fr. L. statio, from stare, statum, to stand. See Stand.]

1. The act of standing; also, attitude or pose in standing; posture. [R.] A station like the herald, Mercury. Shak. Their manner was to stand at prayer, whereupon their meetings unto that purpose . . . had the names of stations given them. Hooker.

2. A state of standing or rest; equilibrium. [Obs.] All progression is performed by drawing on or impelling forward some part which was before in station, or at quiet. Sir T. Browne.

3. The spot or place where anything stands, especially where a person or thing habitually stands, or is appointed to remain for a time; as, the station of a sentinel. Specifically: (a) A regular stopping place in a stage road or route; a place where railroad trains regularly come to a stand, for the convenience of passengers, taking in fuel, moving freight, etc. (b) The headquarters of the police force of any precinct. (c) The place at which an instrument is planted, or observations are made, as in surveying. (d) (Biol.)

Defn: The particular place, or kind of situation, in which a species naturally occurs; a habitat. (e) (Naut.)

Defn: A place to which ships may resort, and where they may anchor safely. (f) A place or region to which a government ship or fleet is assigned for duty. (g) (Mil.) A place calculated for the rendezvous of troops, or for the distribution of them; also, a spot well adapted for offensive measures. Wilhelm (Mil. Dict.). (h) (Mining) An enlargement in a shaft or galley, used as a landing, or passing place, or for the accomodation of a pump, tank, etc.

4. Post assigned; office; the part or department of public duty which a person is appointed to perform; sphere of duty or occupation; employment. By spending this day [Sunday] in religious exercises, we acquire new strength and resolution to perform God's will in our several stations the week following. R. Nelson.

5. Situation; position; location. The fig and date -- why love they to remain In middle station, and an even plain Prior.

6. State; rank; condition of life; social status. The greater part have kept, I see, Their station. Milton. They in France of the best rank and station. Shak.

7. (Eccl.) (a) The fast of the fourth and sixth days of the week, Wednesday and Friday, in memory of the council which condemned Christ, and of his passion. (b) (R. C. Ch.) A church in which the procession of the clergy halts on stated days to say stated prayers. Addis & Arnold. (c) One of the places at which ecclesiastical processions pause for the performance of an act of devotion; formerly, the tomb of a martyr, or some similarly consecrated spot; now, especially, one of those representations of the successive stages of our Lord's passion which are often placed round the naves of large churches and by the side of the way leading to sacred edifices or shrines, and which are visited in rotation, stated services being performed at each; -- called also Station of the cross. Fairholt. Station bill. (Naut.) Same as Quarter bill, under Quarter. -- Station house. (a) The house serving for the headquarters of the police assigned to a certain district, and as a place of temporary confinement. (b) The house used as a shelter at a railway station. -- Station master, one who has charge of a station, esp. of a railway station. -- Station pointer (Surv.), an instrument for locating on a chart the position of a place from which the angles subtended by three distant objects, whose positions are known, have been observed. -- Station staff (Surv.), an instrument for taking angles in surveying. Craig.

Syn. -- Station, Depot. In the United States, a stopping place on a railway for passengers and freight is commonly called a depot: but to a considerable extent in official use, and in common speech, the more appropriate name, station, has been adopted.

STATION Sta"tion, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stationed; p. pr. & vb. n. Stationing.]

Defn: To place; to set; to appoint or assign to the occupation of a post, place, or office; as, to station troops on the right of an army; to station a sentinel on a rampart; to station ships on the coasts of Africa. He gained the brow of the hill, where the English phalanx was stationed. Lyttelton.

STATIONAL Sta"tion*al, a. Etym: [L. stationalis: cf. F. stationnale (église).]

Defn: Of or pertaining to a station. [R.]

STATIONARINESS Sta"tion*a*ri*ness, n.

Defn: The quality or state of being stationary; fixity.

STATIONARY Sta"tion*a*ry, a. Etym: [L. stationarius: cf. F. stationnaire. Cf. Stationer.]

1. Not moving; not appearing to move; stable; fixed. Charles Wesley, who is a more stationary man, does not believe the story. Southey.

2. Not improving or getting worse; not growing wiser, greater, better, more excellent, or the contrary.

3. Appearing to be at rest, because moving in the line of vision; not progressive or retrograde, as a planet. Stationary air (Physiol.), the air which under ordinary circumstances does not leave the lungs in respiration. -- Stationary engine. (a) A steam engine thet is permanently placed, in distinction from a portable engine, locomotive, marine engine, etc. Specifically: (b) A factory engine, in distinction from a blowing, pumping, or other kind of engine which is also permanently placed.

STATIONARY Sta"tion*a*ry, n.; pl. -ries (.

Defn: One who, or that which, is stationary, as a planet when apparently it has neither progressive nor retrograde motion. Holland.

STATIONER Sta"tion*er, n. Etym: [Cf. Stationary, a.]

1. A bookseller or publisher; -- formerly so called from his occupying a stand, or station, in the market place or elsewhere. [Obs.] Dryden.

2. One who sells paper, pens, quills, inkstands, pencils, blank books, and other articles used in writing.

STATIONERY Sta"tion*er*y, n.

Defn: The articles usually sold by stationers, as paper, pens, ink, quills, blank books, etc.

STATIONERY Sta"tion*er*y, a.

Defn: Belonging to, or sold by, a stationer.

STATISM Sta"tism, n. Etym: [From State.]

Defn: The art of governing a state; statecraft; policy. [Obs.] The enemies of God . . . call our religion statism. South.

STATIST Sta"tist, n. Etym: [From State.]

1. A statesman; a politician; one skilled in government. [Obs.] Statists indeed, And lovers of their country. Milton.

2. A statistician. Fawcett.

STATISTIC; STATISTICAL Sta*tis"tic, Sta*tis"tic*al, a. Etym: [Cf. F. statistique.]

Defn: Of or pertaining to statistics; as, statistical knowledge, statistical tabulation.

STATISTICALLY Sta*tis"tic*al*ly, adv.

Defn: In the way of statistics.

STATISTICIAN Stat`is*ti"cian, n. Etym: [Cf. F. statisticien.]

Defn: One versed in statistics; one who collects and classifies facts for statistics.

STATISTICS Sta*tis"tics, n. Etym: [Cf. F. statistique, G. statistik. See State, n.]

1. The science which has to do with the collection and classification of certain facts respecting the condition of the people in a state.

Note: [In this sense gramatically singular.]

2. pl.

Defn: Classified facts respecting the condition of the people in a state, their health, their longevity, domestic economy, arts, property, and political strength, their resources, the state of the country, etc., or respecting any particular class or interest; especially, those facts which can be stated in numbers, or in tables of numbers, or in any tabular and classified arrangement.

Defn: The branch of mathematics which studies methods for the calculation of probabilities.

STATISTOLOGY Stat`is*tol"o*gy, n. Etym: [Statistics + -logy.]

Defn: See Statistics, 2.

STATIVE Sta"tive, a. Etym: [L. stativus, fr. stare, statum, to stand.] (Mil.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to a fixed camp, or military posts or quarters. [Obs. or R.]

STATOBLAST Stat"o*blast, n. Etym: [Gr. i.e., remaining) + -blast.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: One of a peculiar kind of internal buds, or germs, produced in the interior of certain Bryozoa and sponges, especially in the fresh- water species; -- also called winter buds.

Note: They are protected by a firm covering, and are usually destined to perpetuate the species during the winter season. They burst open and develop in the spring. In some fresh-water sponges they serve to preserve the species during the dry season. See Illust. under Phylactolæmata.

STATOCRACY Sta*toc"ra*cy, n. Etym: [State + -cracy, as in democracy.]

Defn: Government by the state, or by political power, in distinction from government by ecclesiastical power. [R.] O. A. Brownson.

STATOR Sta"tor, n. (Mach.)

Defn: A stationary part in or about which another part (the rotor) revolves, esp. when both are large; as, (a) (Elec.) The stationary member of an electrical machine, as of an induction motor. (b) (Steam Turbine) The case inclosing a turbine wheel; the body of stationary blades or nozzles.

STATUA Stat"u*a, n. Etym: [L.]

Defn: A statue. [Obs.] They spake not a word; But, like dumb statuas or breathing stones, Gazed each on other. Shak.

STATUARY Stat"u*a*ry, n.; pl. Statuaries. Etym: [L. statuarius, n., fr. statuarius, a., of or belonging to statues, fr. statua statue: cf. F. statuaire. See Statue.]

1. One who practices the art of making statues. On other occasions the statuaries took their subjects from the poets. Addison.

2. Etym: [L. statuaria (sc. ars): cf. F. statuaire.]

Defn: The art of carving statues or images as representatives of real persons or things; a branch of sculpture. Sir W. Temple.

3. A collection of statues; statues, collectively.

STATUE Stat"ue, n. Etym: [F., fr. L. statua (akin to stativus standing still), fr. stare, statum, to stand. See Stand.]

1. The likeness of a living being sculptured or modeled in some solid substance, as marble, bronze, or wax; an image; as, a statue of Hercules, or of a lion. I will raise her statue in pure gold. Shak.

2. A portrait. [Obs.] Massinger.

STATUE Stat"ue, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Statued; p. pr. & vb. n. Statuing.]

Defn: To place, as a statue; to form a statue of; to make into a statue. "The whole man becomes as if statued into stone and earth." Feltham.

STATUED Stat"ued, a.

Defn: Adorned with statues. "The statued hall." Longfellow. "Statued niches." G. Eliot.

STATUELESS Stat"ue*less, a.

Defn: Without a statue.

STATUELIKE Stat"ue*like`, a.

Defn: Like a statue; motionless.

STATUESQUE Stat`u*esque", a.

Defn: Partaking of, or exemplifying, the characteristics of a statue; having the symmetry, or other excellence, of a statue artistically made; as, statuesquelimbs; a statuesque attitude. Their characters are mostly statuesque even in this respect, that they have no background. Hare.

STATUESQUELY Stat`u*esque"ly, adv.

Defn: In a statuesque manner; in a way suggestive of a statue; like a statue. A character statuesquely simple in its details. Lowell.

STATUETTE Stat`u*ette", n. Etym: [F., cf. It. statuetta.]

Defn: A small statue; -- usually applied to a figure much less than life size, especially when of marble or bronze, or of plaster or clay as a preparation for the marble or bronze, as distinguished from a figure in terra cotta or the like. Cf. Figurine.

STATUMINATE Sta*tu"mi*nate, v. t. Etym: [L. statuminatus, p.p. of statuminare to prop, fr. statumen a prop, fr. statuere to place.]

Defn: To prop or support. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

STATURE Stat"ure, n. Etym: [F. stature, OF. estature, from L. statura, originally, an upright posture, hence, height or size of the body, from stare, statum, to stand. See Stand.]

Defn: The natural height of an animal body; -- generally used of the human body. Foreign men of mighty stature came. Dryden.

STATURED Stat"ured, a.

Defn: Arrived at full stature. [R.]

STATUS Sta"tus, n. Etym: [L.]

Defn: State; condition; position of affairs.

STATUS IN QUO; STATUS QUO Sta"tus in` quo", Sta"tus quo". Etym: [L., state in which.]

Defn: The state in which anything is already. The phrase is also used retrospectively, as when, on a treaty of place, matters return to the status quo ante bellum, or are left in statu quo ante bellum, i.e., the state (or, in the state) before the war.

STATUTABLE Stat"u*ta*ble, a.

1. Made or introduced by statute; proceeding from an act of the legistature; as, a statutable provision or remedy.

2. Made or being in conformity to statute; standard; as, statutable measures.

STATUTABLY Stat"u*ta*bly, adv.

Defn: Conformably to statute.

STATUTE Stat"ute, n. Etym: [F. statut, LL. statutum, from L. statutus, p.p. of statuere to set, station, ordain, fr. status position, station, fr. stare, statum, to stand. See Stand, and cf. Constitute, Destitute.]

1. An act of the legislature of a state or country, declaring, commanding, or prohibiting something; a positive law; the written will of the legislature expressed with all the requisite forms of legislation; -- used in distinction fraom common law. See Common law, under Common, a. Bouvier.

Note: Statute is commonly applied to the acts of a legislative body consisting of representatives. In monarchies, legislature laws of the sovereign are called edicts, decrees, ordinances, rescripts, etc. In works on international law and in the Roman law, the term is used as embracing all laws imposed by competent authority. Statutes in this sense are divided into statutes real, statutes personal, and statutes mixed; statutes real applying to immovables; statutes personal to movables; and statutes mixed to both classes of property.

2. An act of a corporation or of its founder, intended as a permanent rule or law; as, the statutes of a university.

3. An assemblage of farming servants (held possibly by statute) for the purpose of being hired; -- called also statute fair. [Eng.] Cf. 3d Mop, 2. Halliwell. Statute book, a record of laws or legislative acts. Blackstone. -- Statute cap, a kind of woolen cap; -- so called because enjoined to be worn by a statute, dated in 1571, in behalf of the trade of cappers. [Obs.] Halliwell. -- Statute fair. See Statute, n., 3, above. -- Statute labor, a definite amount of labor required for the public service in making roads, bridges, etc., as in certain English colonies. -- Statute merchant (Eng. Law), a bond of record pursuant to the stat. 13 Edw. I., acknowledged in form prescribed, on which, if not paid at the day, an execution might be awarded against the body, lands, and goods of the debtor, and the obligee might hold the lands until out of the rents and profits of them the debt was satisfied; -- called also a pocket judgment. It is now fallen into disuse. Tomlins. Bouvier. -- Statute mile. See under Mile. -- Statute of limitations (Law), a statute assigned a certain time, after which rights can not be enforced by action. -- Statute staple, a bond of record acknowledged before the mayor of the staple, by virtue of which the creditor may, on nonpayment, forthwith have execution against the body, lands, and goods of the debtor, as in the statute merchant. It is now disused. Blackstone.

Syn. -- Act; regulation; edict; decree. See Law.

STATUTORY Stat"u*to*ry, a.

Defn: Enacted by statute; depending on statute for its authority; as, a statutory provision.

STAUNCH; STAUNCHLY; STAUNCHNESS Staunch, Staunch"ly, Staunch"ness, etc.

Defn: See Stanch, Stanchly, etc.

STAUROLITE Stau"ro*lite, n. Etym: [Gr. -lite.] (Min.)

Defn: A mineral of a brown to black color occurring in prismatic crystals, often twinned so as to form groups resembling a cross. It is a silicate of aluminia and iron, and is generally found imbedded in mica schist. Called also granatite, and grenatite.

STAUROLITIC Stau`ro*lit"ic, a. (Min.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to staurolite; resembling or containing staurolite.

STAUROSCOPE Stau"ro*scope, n. Etym: [Gr. -scope.] (Crystallog.)

Defn: An optical instrument used in determining the position of the planes of light-vibration in sections of crystals.

STAUROTIDE Stau"ro*tide, n. Etym: [F. staurotide, from Gr. (Min.)

Defn: Staurolite.

STAVE Stave, n. Etym: [From Staff, and corresponding to the pl. staves. See Staff.]

1. One of a number of narrow strips of wood, or narrow iron plates, placed edge to edge to form the sides, covering, or lining of a vessel or structure; esp., one of the strips which form the sides of a cask, a pail, etc.

2. One of the cylindrical bars of a lantern wheel; one of the bars or rounds of a rack, a ladder, etc.

3. A metrical portion; a stanza; a staff. Let us chant a passing stave In honor of that hero brave. Wordsworth.

4. (Mus.)

Defn: The five horizontal and parallel lines on and between which musical notes are written or pointed; the staff. [Obs.] Stave jointer, a machine for dressing the edges of staves.

STAVE Stave, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Staved or Stove (; p. pr. & vb. n. Staving.] Etym: [From Stave, n., or Staff, n.]

1. To break in a stave or the staves of; to break a hole in; to burst; -- often with in; as, to stave a cask; to stave in a boat.

2. To push, as with a staff; -- with off. The condition of a servant staves him off to a distance. South.

3. To delay by force or craft; to drive away; -- usually with off; as, to stave off the execution of a project. And answered with such craft as women use, Guilty or guilties, to stave off a chance That breaks upon them perilously. Tennyson.

4. To suffer, or cause, to be lost by breaking the cask. All the wine in the city has been staved. Sandys.

5. To furnish with staves or rundles. Knolles.

6. To render impervious or solid by driving with a calking iron; as, to stave lead, or the joints of pipes into which lead has been run. To stave and tail, in bear baiting, (to stave) to interpose with the staff, doubtless to stop the bear; (to tail) to hold back the dog by the tail. Nares.

STAVE Stave, v. i.

Defn: To burst in pieces by striking against something; to dash into fragments. Like a vessel of glass she stove and sank. Longfellow.

STAVES Staves, n.;

Defn: pl. of Staff. "Banners, scarves and staves." R. Browning. Also (stavz),

Defn: pl. of Stave.

STAVESACRE Staves"a`cre, n. Etym: [Corrupted from NL. staphis agria, Gr. (Bot.)

Defn: A kind of larkspur (Delphinium Staphysagria), and its seeds, which are violently purgative and emetic. They are used as a parasiticide, and in the East for poisoning fish.

STAVEWOOD Stave`wood`, n. (Bot.)

Defn: A tall tree (Simaruba amara) growing in tropical America. It is one of the trees which yields quassia.

STAVING Stav"ing, n.

Defn: A cassing or lining of staves; especially, one encircling a water wheel.

STAW Staw, v. i. Etym: [Cf. Dan. staae to stand, Sw. stå. *163.]

Defn: To be fixed or set; to stay. [Prov. Eng.]

STAY Stay, n. Etym: [AS. stæg, akin to D., G., Icel., Sw., & Dan. stag; cf. OF. estai, F. étai, of Teutonic origin.] (Naut.)

Defn: A large, strong rope, employed to support a mast, by being extended from the head of one mast down to some other, or to some part of the vessel. Those which lead forward are called fore-and-aft stays; those which lead to the vessel's side are called backstays. See Illust. of Ship. In stays, or Hove in stays (Naut.), in the act or situation of staying, or going about from one tack to another. R. H. Dana, Jr. -- Stay holes (Naut.), openings in the edge of a staysail through which the hanks pass which join it to the stay. -- Stay tackle (Naut.), a tackle attached to a stay and used for hoisting or lowering heavy articles over the side. -- To miss stays (Naut.), to fail in the attempt to go about. Totten. -- Triatic stay (Naut.), a rope secured at the ends to the heads of the foremast and mainmast with thimbles spliced to its bight into which the stay tackles hook.

STAY Stay, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stayed or Staid (; p. pr. & vb. n. Staying.] Etym: [OF. estayer, F. étayer to prop, fr. OF. estai, F. étai, a prop, probably fr. OD. stade, staeye, a prop, akin to E. stead; or cf. stay a rope to support a mast. Cf. Staid, a., Stay, v. i.]

1. To stop from motion or falling; to prop; to fix firmly; to hold up; to support. Aaron and Hur stayed up his hands, the one on the one side, and the other on the other side. Ex. xvii. 12. Sallows and reeds . . . for vineyards useful found To stay thy vines. Dryden.

2. To support from sinking; to sustain with strength; to satisfy in part or for the time. He has devoured a whole loaf of bread and butter, and it has not staid his stomach for a minute. Sir W. Scott.

3. To bear up under; to endure; to support; to resist successfully. She will not stay the siege of loving terms, Nor bide the encounter of assailing eyes. Shak.

4. To hold from proceeding; to withhold; to restrain; to stop; to hold. Him backward overthrew and down him stayed With their rude hands grisly grapplement. Spenser. All that may stay their minds from thinking that true which they heartly wish were false. Hooker.

5. To hinde Your ships are stayed at Venice. Shak. This business staid me in London almost a week. Evelyn. I was willing to stay my reader on an argument that appeared to me new. Locke.

6. To remain for the purpose of; to wait for. "I stay dinner there." Shak.

7. To cause to cease; to put an end to. Stay your strife. Shak. For flattering planets seemed to say This child should ills of ages stay. Emerson.

8. (Engin.)

Defn: To fasten or secure with stays; as, to stay a flat sheet in a steam boiler.

9. (Naut.)

Defn: To tack, as a vessel, so that the other side of the vessel shall be presented to the wind. To stay a mast (Naut.), to incline it forward or aft, or to one side, by the stays and backstays.

STAY Stay, v. i. Etym: [*163. See Stay to hold up, prop.]

1. To remain; to continue in a place; to abide fixed for a space of time; to stop; to stand still. She would command the hasty sun to stay. Spenser. Stay, I command you; stay and hear me first. Dryden. I stay a little longer, as one stays To cover up the embers that still burn. Longfellow.

2. To continue in a state. The flames augment, and stay At their full height, then languish to decay. Dryden.

3. To wait; to attend; to forbear to act. I'll tell thee all my whole device When I am in my coach, which stays for us. Shak. The father can not stay any longer for the fortune. Locke.

4. To dwell; to tarry; to linger. I must stay a little on one action. Dryden.

5. To rest; to depend; to rely; to stand; to insist. I stay here on my bond. Shak. Ye despise this word, and trust in oppression and perverseness, and stay thereon. Isa. xxx. 12.

6. To come to an end; to cease; as, that day the storm stayed. [Archaic] Here my commission stays. Shak.

7. To hold out in a race or other contest; as, a horse stays well. [Colloq.]

8. (Naut.)

Defn: To change tack; as a ship.

STAY Stay, n. Etym: [Cf. OF. estai, F. étai support, and E. stay a rope to support a mast.]

1. That which serves as a prop; a support. "My only strength and stay." Milton. Trees serve as so many stays for their vines. Addison. Lord Liverpool is the single stay of this ministry. Coleridge.

2. pl.

Defn: A corset stiffened with whalebone or other material, worn by women, and rarely by men. How the strait stays the slender waist constrain. Gay.

3. Continuance in a place; abode for a space of time; sojourn; as, you make a short stay in this city. Make haste, and leave thy business and thy care; No mortal interest can be worth thy stay. Dryden. Embrace the hero and his stay implore. Waller.

4. Cessation of motion or progression; stand; stop. Made of sphere metal, never to decay Until his revolution was at stay. Milton. Affairs of state seemed rather to stand at a stay. Hayward.

5. Hindrance; let; check. [Obs.] They were able to read good authors without any stay, if the book were not false. Robynson (more's Utopia).

6. Restraint of passion; moderation; caution; steadiness; sobriety. [Obs.] "Not grudging that thy lust hath bounds and stays." Herbert. The wisdom, stay, and moderation of the king. Bacon. With prudent stay he long deferred The rough contention. Philips.

7. (Engin.)

Defn: Strictly, a part in tension to hold the parts together, or stiffen them. Stay bolt (Mech.), a bolt or short rod, connecting opposite plates, so as to prevent them from being bulged out when acted upon by a pressure which tends to force them apart, as in the leg of a steam boiler. -- Stay busk, a stiff piece of wood, steel, or whalebone, for the front support of a woman's stays. Cf. Busk. -- Stay rod, a rod which acts as a stay, particularly in a steam boiler.

STAYED Stayed, a.

Defn: Staid; fixed; settled; sober; -- now written staid. See Staid. Bacon. Pope.

STAYEDLY Stayed"ly, adv.

Defn: Staidly. See Staidly. [R.]

STAYEDNESS Stayed"ness, n.

1. Staidness. [Archaic] W. Whately.

2. Solidity; weight. [R.] Camden.

STAYER Stay"er, n.

Defn: One who upholds or supports that which props; one who, or that which, stays, stops, or restrains; also, colloquially, a horse, man, etc., that has endurance, an a race.

STAYLACE Stay"lace`, n.

Defn: A lace for fastening stays.

STAYLESS Stay"less, a.

Defn: Without stop or delay. Mir. for Mag.

STAYMAKER Stay"mak`er, n.

Defn: One whose occupation is to make stays.

STAYNIL Stay"nil, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The European starling. [Prov. Eng.]

STAYSAIL Stay"sail`, n. (Naut.)

Defn: Any sail extended on a stay.

STAYSHIP Stay"ship`, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A remora, -- fabled to stop ships by attaching itself to them.

STEAD Stead, n. Etym: [OE. stede place, AS. stede; akin to LG. & D. stede, OS. stad, stedi, OHG. stat, G. statt, stätte, Icel. staedhr, Dan. sted, Sw. stad, Goth. sta, and E. stand. *163. See Stand, and cf. Staith, Stithy.]

1. Place, or spot, in general. [Obs., except in composition.] Chaucer. Fly, therefore, fly this fearful stead anon. Spenser.

2. Place or room which another had, has, or might have. "Stewards of your steads." Piers Plowman. In stead of bounds, he a pillar set. Chaucer.

3. A frame on which a bed is laid; a bedstead. [R.] The genial bed, Sallow the feet, the borders, and the stead. Dryden.

4. A farmhouse and offices. [Prov. Eng. & Scot.]

Note: The word is now commonly used as the last part of a compound; as, farmstead, homestead, readstead, etc. In stead of, in place of. See Instead. -- To stand in stead, or To do stead, to be of use or great advantage. The smallest act . . . shall stand us in great stead. Atterbury. Here thy sword can do thee little stead. Milton.

STEAD Stead, v. t.

1. To help; to support; to benefit; to assist. Perhaps my succour or advisement meet, Mote stead you much your purpose to subdue. Spenser. It nothing steads us To chide him from our eaves. Shak.

2. To fill place of. [Obs.] Shak.

STEADFAST Stead"fast, a. Etym: [Stead + fast, that is, fast in place.] Etym: [Written also stedfast.]

1. Firmly fixed or established; fast fixed; firm. "This steadfast globe of earth." Spenser.

2. Not fickle or wavering; constant; firm; resolute; unswerving; steady. "Steadfast eye." Shak. Abide steadfast unto him [thy neighbor] in the time of his trouble. Ecclus. xxii. 23. Whom resist steadfast in the faith. 1 Pet. v. 9.

STEADFASTLY Stead"fast*ly, adv.

Defn: In a steadfast manner; firmly. Steadfast believe that whatever God has revealed is infallibly true. Wake.

STEADFASTNESS Stead"fast*ness, n.

Defn: The quality or state of being steadfast; firmness; fixedness; constancy. "The steadfastness of your faith." Col. ii. 5. To prove her wifehood and her steadfastness. Chaucer.

STEADILY Stead"i*ly, adv.

Defn: In a steady manner.

STEADINESS Stead"i*ness, n.

Defn: The quality or state of being steady. Steadiness is a point of prudence as well as of courage. L'Estrange.

Syn. -- Constancy; resolution; unchangeableness.

STEADING Stead"ing, n.

Defn: The brans, stables, cattle-yards, etc., of a farm; -- called also onstead, farmstead, farm offices, or farmery. [Prov. Eng. & Scot.]

STEADY Stead"y, a. [Compar. Steadier; superl. Steadiest.] Etym: [Cf. AS. stedig sterile, barren, stæ, steady (in gestæ), D. stedig, stadig, steeg, G. stätig, stetig. See Stead, n.]

1. Firm in standing or position; not tottering or shaking; fixed; firm. "The softest, steadiest plume." Keble. Their feet steady, their hands diligent, their eyes watchful, and their hearts resolute. Sir P. Sidney.

2. Constant in feeling, purpose, or pursuit; not fickle, changeable, or wavering; not easily moved or persuaded to alter a purpose; resolute; as, a man steady in his principles, in his purpose, or in the pursuit of an object.

3. Regular; constant; undeviating; uniform; as, the steady course of the sun; a steady breeze of wind.

Syn. -- Fixed; regular; uniform; undeviating; invariable; unremitted; stable. Steady rest (Mach), a rest in a turning lathe, to keep a long piece of work from trembling.

STEADY Stead"y, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Steadied; p. pr. & vb. n. Steadying.]

Defn: To make steady; to hold or keep from shaking, reeling, or falling; to make or keep firm; to support; to make constant, regular, or resolute.

STEADY Stead"y, v. i.

Defn: To become steady; to regain a steady position or state; to move steadily. Without a breeze, without a tide, She steadies with upright keel. Coleridge.

STEAK Steak, n. Etym: [OE. steike, Icel. steik, akin to Icel. steikja to roast, stikna to be roasted or scorched, and E. stick, the steak being broiled on a spit. See Stick, v. t.]

Defn: A slice of beef, broiled, or cut for broiling; -- also extended to the meat of other large animals; as, venison steak; bear steak; pork steak; turtle steak.

STEAL Steal, n. Etym: [See Stale a handle.]

Defn: A handle; a stale, or stele. [Archaic or Prov. Eng.] And in his hand a huge poleax did bear. Whose steale was iron-studded but not long. Spenser.

STEAL Steal, v. t. [imp. Stole; p. p. Stolen; p. pr. & vb. n. Stealing.] Etym: [OE. stelen, AS. stelan; akin to OFries. stela, D. stelen, OHG. stelan, G. stehlen, Icel. stela, SW. stjäla, Dan. stiæle, Goth. stilan.]

1. To take and carry away, feloniously; to take without right or leave, and with intent to keep wrongfully; as, to steal the personal goods of another. Maugre thy heed, thou must for indigence Or steal, or borrow, thy dispense. Chaucer. The man who stole a goose and gave away the giblets in G. Eliot.

2. To withdraw or convey clandestinely (reflexive); hence, to creep furtively, or to insinuate. They could insinuate and steal themselves under the same by their humble carriage and submission. Spenser. He will steal himself into a man's favor. Shak.

3. To gain by insinuating arts or covert means. So Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel. 2 Sam. xv. 6.

4. To get into one's power gradually and by imperceptible degrees; to take possession of by a gradual and imperceptible appropriation; -- with away. Variety of objects has a tendency to steal away the mind from its steady pursuit of any subject. I. Watts.

5. To accomplish in a concealed or unobserved manner; to try to carry out secretly; as, to steal a look. Always, when thou changest thine opinion or course, profess it plainly, . . . and do not think to steal it. Bacon. To steal a march, to march in a covert way; to gain an advantage unobserved; -- formerly followed by of, but now by on or upon, and sometimes by over; as, to steal a march upon one's political rivals. She yesterday wanted to steal a march of poor Liddy. Smollett. Fifty thousand men can not easily steal a march over the sea. Walpole.

Syn. -- To filch; pilfer; purloin; thieve.

STEAL Steal, v. i.

1. To practice, or be guilty of, theft; to commit larceny or theft. Thou shalt not steal. Ex. xx. 15.

2. To withdraw, or pass privily; to slip in, along, or away, unperceived; to go or come furtively. Chaucer. Fixed of mind to avoid further entreaty, and to fly all company, one night she stole away. Sir P. Sidney. From whom you now must steal, and take no leave. Shak. A soft and solemn breathing sound Rose like a steam of rich, distilled perfumes, And stole upon the air. Milton.

STEALER Steal"er, n.

1. One who steals; a thief.

2. (Shipbuilding)

Defn: The endmost plank of a strake which stops short of the stem or stern.

STEALING Steal"ing, n.

1. The act of taking feloniously the personal property of another without his consent and knowledge; theft; larceny.

2. That which is stolen; stolen property; -- chiefly used in the plural.

STEALINGLY Steal"ing*ly, adv.

Defn: By stealing, or as by stealing, furtively, or by an invisible motion. Sir P. Sidney.

STEALTH Stealth, n. Etym: [OE. staple. See Steal, v. t.]

1. The act of stealing; theft. [Obs.] The owner proveth the stealth to have been committed upon him by such an outlaw. Spenser.

2. The thing stolen; stolen property. [Obs.] "Sluttish dens . . . serving to cover stealths." Sir W. Raleigh.

3. The bringing to pass anything in a secret or concealed manner; a secret procedure; a clandestine practice or action; -- in either a good or a bad sense. Do good by stealth, and blush to find it fame. Pope. The monarch, blinded with desire of wealth, With steel invades the brother's life by stealth. Dryden. I told him of your stealth unto this wood. Shak.

STEALTHFUL Stealth"ful, a.

Defn: Given to stealth; stealthy. [Obs.] -- Stealth"ful*ly, adv. [Obs.] -- Stealth"ful*ness, n. [Obs.]

STEALTHILY Stealth"i*ly, adv.

Defn: In a stealthy manner.

STEALTHINESS Stealth"i*ness, n.

Defn: The state, quality, or character of being stealthy; stealth.

STEALTHLIKE Stealth"like`, a.

Defn: Stealthy; sly. Wordsworth.

STEALTHY Stealth"y, a. [Compar. Stealthier; superl. Stealthiest.]

Defn: Done by stealth; accomplished clandestinely; unperceived; secret; furtive; sly. [Withered murder] with his stealthy pace, . . . Moves like a ghost. Shak.

STEAM Steam, n. Etym: [OE. stem, steem, vapor, flame, AS. steám vapor, smoke, odor; akin to D. stoom steam, perhaps originally, a pillar, or something rising like a pillar; cf. Gr. stand.]

1. The elastic, aëriform fluid into which water is converted when heated to the boiling points; water in the state of vapor.

2. The mist formed by condensed vapor; visible vapor; -- so called in popular usage.

3. Any exhalation. "A steam og rich, distilled perfumes." Milton. Dry steam, steam which does not contain water held in suspension mechanically; -- sometimes applied to superheated steam. -- Exhaust steam. See under Exhaust. -- High steam, or High-pressure steam, steam of which the pressure greatly exceeds that of the atmosphere. -- Low steam, or Low-pressure steam, steam of which the pressure is less than, equal to, or not greatly above, that of the atmosphere. -- Saturated steam, steam at the temperature of the boiling point which corresponds to its pressure; -- sometimes also applied to wet steam. -- Superheated steam, steam heated to a temperature higher than the boiling point corresponding to its pressure. It can not exist in contact with water, nor contain water, and resembles a perfect gas; - - called also surcharged steam, anhydrous steam, and steam gas. -- Wet steam, steam which contains water held in suspension mechanically; -- called also misty steam.

Note: Steam is often used adjectively, and in combination, to denote, produced by heat, or operated by power, derived from steam, in distinction from other sources of power; as in steam boiler or steam- boiler, steam dredger or steam-dredger, steam engine or steam-engine, steam heat, steam plow or steam-plow, etc. Steam blower. (a) A blower for producing a draught consisting of a jet or jets of steam in a chimney or under a fire. (b) A fan blower driven directly by a steam engine. -- Steam boiler, a boiler for producing steam. See Boiler, 3, and Note. In the illustration, the shell a of the boiler is partly in section, showing the tubes, or flues, which the hot gases, from the fire beneath the boiler, enter, after traversing the outside of the shell, and through which the gases are led to the smoke pipe d, which delivers them to the chimney; b is the manhole; c the dome; e the steam pipe; f the feed and blow-off pipe; g the safety value; hthe water gauge. -- Steam car, a car driven by steam power, or drawn by a locomotive. -- Steam carriage, a carriage upon wheels moved on common roads by steam. -- Steam casing. See Steam jacket, under Jacket. -- Steam chest, the box or chamber from which steam is distributed to the cylinder of a steam engine, steam pump, etc., and which usually contains one or more values; -- called also valve chest, and valve box. See Illust. of Slide valve, under Slide. -- Steam chimney, an annular chamber around the chimney of a boiler furnace, for drying steam. -- Steam coil, a coil of pipe, or collection of connected pipes, for containing steam; -- used for heating, drying, etc. -- Steam colors (Calico Printing), colors in which the chemical reaction fixed the coloring matter in the fiber is produced by steam. -- Steam cylinder, the cylinder of a steam engine, which contains the piston. See Illust. of Slide valve, under Slide. -- Steam dome (Steam Boilers), a chamber upon the top of the boiler, from which steam is conduced to the engine. See Illust. of Steam boiler, above. -- Steam fire engine, a fire engine consisting of a steam boiler and engine, and pump which is driven by the engine, combined and mounted on wheels. It is usually drawn by horses, but is sometimes made self- propelling. -- Steam fitter, a fitter of steam pipes. -- Steam fitting, the act or the occupation of a steam fitter; also, a pipe fitting for steam pipes. -- Steam gas. See Superheated steam, above. -- Steam gauge, an instrument for indicating the pressure of the steam in a boiler. The mercurial steam gauge is a bent tube partially filled with mercury, one end of which is connected with the boiler while the other is open to the air, so that the steam by its pressure raises the mercury in the long limb of the tume to a height proportioned to that pressure. A more common form, especially for high pressures, consists of a spring pressed upon by the steam, and connected with the pointer of a dial. The spring may be a flattened, bent tube, closed at one end, which the entering steam tends to straighten, or it may be a diaphragm of elastic metal, or a mass of confined air, etc. -- Steam gun, a machine or contrivance from which projectiles may be thrown by the elastic force of steam. -- Steam hammer, a hammer for forging, which is worked directly by steam; especially, a hammer which is guided vertically and operated by a vertical steam cylinder located directly over an anvil. In the variety known as Nasmyth's, the cylinder is fixed, and the hammer is attached to the piston rod. In that known as Condie's, the piston is fixed, and the hammer attached to the lower end of the cylinder. -- Steam heater. (a) A radiator heated by steam. (b) An apparatus consisting of a steam boiler, radiator, piping, and fixures for warming a house by steam. -- Steam jacket. See under Jacket. -- Steam packet, a packet or vessel propelled by steam, and running periodically between certain ports. -- Steam pipe, any pipe for conveying steam; specifically, a pipe through which steam is supplied to an engine. -- Steam plow or plough, a plow, or gang of plows, moved by a steam engine. -- Steam port, an opening for steam to pass through, as from the steam chest into the cylinder. -- Steam power, the force or energy of steam applied to produce results; power derived from a steam engine. -- Steam propeller. See Propeller. -- Steam pump, a small pumping engine operated by steam. It is usually direct-acting. -- Steam room (Steam Boilers), the space in the boiler above the water level, and in the dome, which contains steam. -- Steam table, a table on which are dishes heated by steam for keeping food warm in the carving room of a hotel, restaurant, etc. -- Steam trap, a self-acting device by means of which water that accumulates in a pipe or vessel containing steam will be discharged without permitting steam to escape. -- Steam tug, a steam vessel used in towing or propelling ships. -- Steam vessel, a vessel propelled by steam; a steamboat or steamship; -- a steamer. -- Steam whistle, an apparatus attached to a steam boiler, as of a locomotive, through which steam is rapidly discharged, producing a loud whistle which serves as a warning signal. The steam issues from a narrow annular orifice around the upper edge of the lower cup or hemisphere, striking the thin edge of the bell above it, and producing sound in the manner of an organ pipe or a common whistle.

STEAM Steam, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Steamed; p. pr. & vb. n. Steaming.]

1. To emit steam or vapor. My brother's ghost hangs hovering there, O'er his warm blood, that steams into the air. Dryden. Let the crude humors dance In heated brass, steaming with fire intence. J. Philips.

2. To rise in vapor; to issue, or pass off, as vapor. The dissolved amber . . . steamed away into the air. Boyle.

3. To move or travel by the agency of steam. The vessel steamed out of port. N. P. Willis.

4. To generate steam; as, the boiler steams well.

STEAM Steam, v. t.

1. To exhale. [Obs.] Spenser.

2. To expose to the action of steam; to apply steam to for softening, dressing, or preparing; as, to steam wood; to steamcloth; to steam food, etc.

STEAMBOAT Steam"boat`, n.

Defn: A boat or vessel propelled by steam power; -- generally used of river or coasting craft, as distinguished from ocean steamers.

STEAMBOATING Steam"boat`ing, n.

1. The occupation or business of running a steamboat, or of transporting merchandise, passengers, etc., by steamboats.

2. (Bookbinding)

Defn: The shearing of a pile of books which are as yet uncovered, or out of boards. Knight.

STEAM ENGINE Steam" en"gine.

Defn: An engine moved by steam.

Note: In its most common forms its essential parts are a piston, a cylinder, and a valve gear. The piston works in the cylinder, to which steam is admitted by the action of the valve gear, and communicates motion to the machinery to be actuated. Steam engines are thus classified: 1. According to the wat the steam is used or applied, as condencing, noncondencing, compound, double-acting, single-acting, triple-expansion, etc. 2. According to the motion of the piston, as reciprocating, rotary, etc. 3. According to the motion imparted by the engine, as rotative and nonrotative. 4. According to the arrangement of the engine, as stationary, portable, and semiportable engines, beam engine, oscillating engine, direct-acting and back-acting engines, etc. 5. According to their uses, as portable, marine, locomotive, pumping, blowing, winding, and stationary engines. Locomotive and portable engines are usually high- pressure, noncondencing, rotative, and direct-acting. Marine engines are high or low pressure, rotative, and generally condencing, double- acting, and compound. Paddle engines are generally beam, sideScrew engines are generally direct-acting, back-acting, or oscillating. Stationary engines belong to various classes, but are generally rotative. A horizontal or inclined stationary steam engine is called a left-hand or a right-hand engine when the crank shaft and driving pulley are on the left-hand side, or the right-hand side, respectively, or the engine, to a person looking at them from the cylinder, and is said to run forward or backward when the crank traverses the upward half, or lower half, respectively, of its path, while the piston rod makes its stroke outward from the cylinder. A marine engine, or the engine of a locomotive, is said to run forward when its motion is such as would propel the vessel or the locomotive forward. Steam engines are further classified as double-cylinder, disk, semicylinder, trunk engines, etc. Machines, such as cranes, hammers, etc., of which the steam engine forms a part, are called steam cranes, steam hammers, etc. See Illustration in Appendix. Back- acting, or Back-action, steam engine, a steam engine in which the motion is transmitted backward from the crosshead to a crank which is between the crosshead and the cylinder, or beyond the cylinder. -- Portable steam engine, a steam engine combined with, and attached to, a boiler which is mounted on wheels so as to admit of easy transportation; -- used for driving machinery in the field, as trashing machines, draining pumps, etc. -- Semiportable steam engine, a steam engine combined with, and attached to, a steam boiler, but not mounted on wheels.

STEAMER Steam"er, n.

1. A vessel propelled by steam; a steamship or steamboat.

2. A steam fire engine. See under Steam.

3. A road locomotive for use on common roads, as in agricultural operations.

4. A vessel in which articles are subjected to the action of steam, as in washing, in cookery, and in various processes of manufacture.

5. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The steamer duck. Steamer duck (Zoöl.), a sea duck (Tachyeres cinereus), native of Patagonia and Terra del Fuego, which swims and dives with great agility, but which, when full grown, is incapable of flight, owing to its very small wings. Called also loggerhead, race horse, and side wheel duck.

STEAMINESS Steam"i*ness, n.

Defn: The quality or condition of being steamy; vaporousness; mistness.

STEAMSHIP Steam"ship`, n.

Defn: A ship or seagoing vessel propelled by the power of steam; a steamer.

STEAMY Steam"y, a.

Defn: Consisting of, or resembling, steam; full of steam; vaporous; misty. Cowper.

STEAN Stean, n. & v.

Defn: See Steen. Spenser.

STEANINGP Stean"ingp, n.

Defn: See Steening.

STEAPSIN Ste*ap"sin, n. (Physiol Chem.)

Defn: An unorganized ferment or enzyme present in pancreatic juice. It decomposes neutral fats into glycerin and fatty acids.

STEARATE Ste"a*rate, n. (Chem.)

Defn: A salt of stearic acid; as, ordinary soap consists largely of sodium or potassium stearates.

STEARIC Ste*ar"ic, a. Etym: [Cf. F. stéarique.] (Physiol. Chem.)

Defn: Pertaining to, or obtained from, stearin or tallow; resembling tallow. Stearic acid (Chem.), a monobasic fatty acid, obtained in the form of white crystalline scales, soluble in alcohol and ether. It melts to an oily liquid at 69°C.C18H36O2, CH3.(CH2)16.COOH; sodium stearate, with sodium palmitate, is the main component of ordinary bar soaps (Such as Ivory soap).

STEARIN Ste"a*rin, n. Etym: [Gr. stéarine.] (Physiol. Chem.)

Defn: One of the constituents of animal fats and also of some vegetable fats, as the butter of cacao. It is especially characterized by its solidity, so that when present in considerable quantity it materially increases the hardness, or raises the melting point, of the fat, as in mutton tallow. Chemically, it is a compound of glyceryl with three molecules of stearic acid, and hence is technically called tristearin, or glyceryl tristearate.

STEAROLIC Ste`a*rol"ic, a. Etym: [Stearic + oleic + -ic.] (Chem.)

Defn: Of, pertaining to, or designating, an acid of the acetylene series, isologous with stearis acid, and obtained, as a white crystalline substance, from oleïc acid.

STEARONE Ste"a*rone, n. (Chem.)

Defn: The ketone of stearic acid, obtained as a white crystalline substance, (C17H35)2.CO, by the distillation of calcium stearate.

STEAROPTENE Ste`a*rop"tene, n. Etym: [Stearic + -optene as in elæoptene.] (Chem.)

Defn: The more solid ingredient of certain volatile oils; -- contrasted with elæoptene.

STEARRHEA Ste`ar*rhe"a, n. Etym: [NL., from Gr. (Med.)

Defn: seborrhea.

STEARYL Ste"a*ryl, n. Etym: [Stearic + -yl.] (Chem.)

Defn: The hypothetical radical characteristic of stearic acid.

STEATITE Ste"a*tite, n. Etym: [Gr. stéatite.] (Min.)

Defn: A massive variety of talc, of a grayish green or brown color. It forms extensive beds, and is quarried for fireplaces and for coarse utensils. Called also potstone, lard stone, and soapstone.

STEATITIC Ste`a*tit"ic, n. (Min.)

Defn: Pertaining to, or of the nature of, steatite; containing or resembling steatite.

STEATOMA Ste`a*to"ma, n. Etym: [L., fr. Gr. (Med.)

Defn: A cyst containing matter like suet.

STEATOMATOUS Ste`a*tom"a*tous, a. (Med.)

Defn: Of the nature of steatoma.

STEATOPYGA Ste`a*top"y*ga, n. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr.

Defn: A remarkable accretion of fat upon the buttocks of Africans of certain tribes, especially of Hottentot women.

STEATOPYGOUS Ste`a*top"y*gous, a.

Defn: Having fat buttocks. Specimens of the steatopygous Abyssinian breed. Burton.

STED; STEDFAST; STEDFASTLY Sted, n., Sted"fast, a., Sted"fast*ly, adv., etc.

Defn: See Stead, Steadfast, etc.

STEE Stee, n. Etym: [Cf. G. stiege. *164. See Stair.]

Defn: A ladder. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.] [Written also stey.]

STEED Steed, n. Etym: [OE. stede, AS. steda a stud-horse, war horse, fr. stod a stud of breeding steeds; akin to G. stute a mare, Icel. stedda, sto, a stud. *163. See Stud of horses.]

Defn: A horse, especially a spirited horse for state of war; -- used chiefly in poetry or stately prose. "A knight upon a steed." Chaucer. Mounted upon a hot and fiery steed. Shak.

STEEDLESS Steed"less, a.

Defn: Having no steed; without a horse.

STEEK; STEIK Steek, Steik, v. t. Etym: [Cf. Stick, v. t.]

Defn: To pierce with a sharp instrument; hence, to stitch; to sew; also, to fix; to fasten. [Scot.]

STEEL Steel, n. Etym: [AS. stel, styl, style; akin to D. staal, G. stahl, OHG. stahal, Icel. stal, Dan. staal, Sw. stål, Old Prussian stakla.]

1. (Metal)

Defn: A variety of iron intermediate in composition and properties between wrought iron and cast iron (containing between one half of one per cent and one and a half per cent of carbon), and consisting of an alloy of iron with an iron carbide. Steel, unlike wrought iron, can be tempered, and retains magnetism. Its malleability decreases, and fusibility increases, with an increase in carbon.

2. An instrument or implement made of steel; as: -- (a) A weapon, as a sword, dagger, etc. "Brave Macbeth . . . with his brandished steel." Shak. While doubting thus he stood, Received the steel bathed in his brother's blood. Dryden.

(b) An instrument of steel (usually a round rod) for sharpening knives. (c) A piece of steel for striking sparks from flint.

3. Fig.: Anything of extreme hardness; that which is characterized by sternness or rigor. "Heads of steel." Johnson. "Manhood's heart of steel." Byron.

4. (Med.)

Defn: A chalybeate medicine. Dunglison.

Note: Steel is often used in the formation of compounds, generally of obvious meaning; as, steel-clad, steel-girt, steel-hearted, steel- plated, steel-pointed, etc. Bessemer steel (Metal.) See in the Vocabulary. -- Blister steel. (Metal.) See under Blister. -- Cast steel (Metal.), a fine variety of steel, originally made by smelting blister or cementation steel; hence, ordinarily, steel of any process of production when remelted and cast. -- Cromium steel (Metal.), a hard, tenacious variety containing a little cromium, and somewhat resembling tungsten steel. -- Mild steel (Metal.), a kind of steel having a lower proportion of carbon than ordinary steel, rendering it softer and more malleable. -- Puddled steel (Metal.), a variety of steel produced from cast iron by the puddling process. -- Steel duck (Zoöl.), the goosander, or merganser. [Prov. Eng.] -- Steel mill. (a) (Firearms) See Wheel lock, under Wheel. (b) A mill which has steel grinding surfaces. (c) A mill where steel is manufactured. -- Steel trap, a trap for catching wild animals. It consists of two iron jaws, which close by means of a powerful steel spring when the animal disturbs the catch, or tongue, by which they are kept open. -- Steel wine, wine, usually sherry, in which steel filings have been placed for a considerable time, -- used as a medicine. -- Tincture of steel (Med.), an alcoholic solution of the chloride of iron. -- Tungsten steel (Metal.), a variety of steel containing a small amount of tungsten, and noted for its tenacity and hardness, as well as for its malleability and tempering qualities. It is also noted for its magnetic properties.

STEEL Steel, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Steeled; p. pr. & vb. n. Steeling.] Etym: [AS. stlan: cf. Icel. stæla. See Steel, n.]

1. To overlay, point, or edge with steel; as, to steel a razor; to steel an ax.

2. To make hard or strong; hence, to make insensible or obdurate. Lies well steeled with weighty arguments. Shak. O God of battles! steel my soldier's hearts. Shak. Why will you fight against so sweet a passion, And steel your heart to such a world of charms Addison.

3. Fig.: To cause to resemble steel, as in smoothness, polish, or other qualities. These waters, steeled By breezeless air to smoothest polish. Wordsworth.

4. (Elec.)

Defn: To cover, as an electrotype plate, with a thin layer of iron by electrolysis. The iron thus deposited is very hard, like steel.

STEELBOW GOODS Steel"bow` goods". (Scots Law)

Defn: Those goods on a farm, such as corn, cattle, implements husbandry, etc., which may not be carried off by a removing tenant, as being the property of the landlord.

STEELER Steel"er, n.

Defn: One who points, edges, or covers with steel.

STEELER Steel"er, n. (Shipbuilding)

Defn: Same as Stealer.

STEELHEAD Steel"head`, n.

1. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A North Pacific salmon (Salmo Gairdneri) found from Northern California to Siberia; -- called also hardhead, and preesil.

2. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The ruddy duck.

STEELINESS Steel"i*ness, n.

Defn: The quality of being steely.

STEELING Steel"ing, n.

Defn: The process of pointing, edging, or overlaying with steel; specifically, acierage. See Steel, v.

STEELY Steel"y, a.

1. Made of steel; consisting of steel. "The steely point of Clifford's lance." Shak. Around his shop the steely sparkles flew. Gay.

2. Resembling steel; hard; firm; having the color of steel. "His hair was steely gray." The Century. She would unarm her noble heart of that steely resistance against the sweet blows of love. Sir P. Sidney. Steely iron, a compound of iron containing less than one half of one per cent of carbon.

STEELYARD Steel"yard, n. Etym: [So named from a place in London called the Steelyard, which was a yard in which steel was sold.]

Defn: A form of balance in which the body to be weighed is suspended from the shorter arm of a lever, which turns on a fulcrum, and a counterpoise is caused to slide upon the longer arm to produce equilibrium, its place upon this arm (which is notched or graduated) indicating the weight; a Roman balance; -- very commonly used also in the plural form, steelyards.

STEEM Steem, n. & v.

Defn: See Esteem. [Obs.] Spenser.

STEEM Steem, n. & v.

Defn: See 1st and 2nd Stem. [Obs.] Chaucer.

STEEN Steen, n. Etym: [AS. st. See Stone.] [Written also stean.]

1. A vessel of clay or stone. "An huge great earth-pot steane." Spenser.

2. A wall of brick, stone, or cement, used as a lining, as of a well, cistern, etc.; a steening.

STEEN Steen, v. t. Etym: [AS. st to adorn with stones or gems. See Stone.]

Defn: To line, as a well, with brick, stone, or other hard material. [Written also stean, and stein.]

STEENBOK Steen"bok`, n. Etym: [D. steen stone + bok buck.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: Same as Steinbock.

STEENING Steen"ing, n.

Defn: A lining made of brick, stone, or other hard material, as for a well. [Written also steaning.]

STEENKIRK; STEINKIRK Steen"kirk`, Stein"kirk`, n. Etym: [So called from the battle of Steinkirk, in 1692, on which occasion the French nobles had no time to arrange their lace neckcloths.]

Defn: A kind of neckcloth worn in a loose and disorderly fashion.

STEEP Steep (step), a.

Defn: Bright; glittering; fiery. [Obs.] His eyen steep, and rolling in his head. Chaucer.

STEEP Steep, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Steeped (stept); p. pr. & vb. n. Steeping.] Etym: [OE. stepen, probably fr. Icel. steypa to cause to stoop, cast down, pour out, to cast metals, causative of stupa to stoop; cf. Sw. stöpa to cast, to steep, Dan. stöbe, D. & G. stippen to steep, to dip. Cf. Stoop, v. t.]

Defn: To soak in a liquid; to macerate; to extract the essence of by soaking; as, to soften seed by steeping it in water. Often used figuratively. Let fancy still my sense in Lethe steep. Shak. In refreshing dew to steep The little, trembling flowers. Wordsworth. The learned of the nation were steeped in Latin. Earle.

STEEP Steep, v. i.

Defn: To undergo the process of soaking in a liquid; as, the tea is steeping. [Colloq.]

STEEP Steep, n.

1. Something steeped, or used in steeping; a fertilizing liquid to hasten the germination of seeds.

2. A rennet bag. [Prov. Eng.]

STEEP Steep, a. [Comper. Steeper; superl. Steepest.] Etym: [OE. steep, step, AS. steáp; akin to Icel. steyp steep, and stupa to stoop, Sw. stupa to fall, to tilt; cf. OFries. stap high. Cf. Stoop, v. i., Steep, v. t., Steeple.]

1. Making a large angle with the plane of the horizon; ascending or descending rapidly with respect to a horizontal line or a level; precipitous; as, a steep hill or mountain; a steep roof; a steep ascent; a steep declivity; a steep barometric gradient.

2. Difficult of access; not easy reached; lofty; elevated; high. [Obs.] Chapman.

3. Excessive; as, a steep price. [Slang]

STEEP Steep, n.

Defn: A precipitous place, hill, mountain, rock, or ascent; any elevated object sloping with a large angle to the plane of the horizon; a precipice. Dryden. We had on each side naked rocks and mountains broken into a thousand irregular steeps and precipices. Addison. Bare steeps, where desolation stalks. Wordsworth.

STEEP-DOWN Steep"-down`, a.

Defn: Deep and precipitous, having steep descent. [R.] Wash me in steep-down gulfs of liquid fire. Shak.

STEEPEN Steep"en, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Steepened; p. pr. & vb. n. Steepening.]

Defn: To become steep or steeper. As the way steepened . . . I could detect in the hollow of the hill some traces of the old path. H. Miller.

STEEPER Steep"er, n.

Defn: A vessel, vat, or cistern, in which things are steeped.

STEEPINESS Steep"i*ness, n.

Defn: Steepness. Howell.

STEEPISH Steep"ish, a.

Defn: Somewhat steep. Carlyle.

STEEPLE Stee"ple, n. Etym: [OE. stepel, AS. stepel, st; akin to E. steep, a.] (Arch.)

Defn: A spire; also, the tower and spire taken together; the whole of a structure if the roof is of spire form. See Spire. "A weathercock on a steeple." Shak. Rood steeple. See Rood tower, under Rood. -- Steeple bush (Bot.), a low shrub (Spiræa tomentosa) having dense panicles of minute rose-colored flowers; hardhack. -- Steeple chase, a race across country between a number of horsemen, to see which can first reach some distant object, as a church steeple; hence, a race over a prescribed course obstructed by such obstacles as one meets in riding across country, as hedges, walls, etc. -- Steeple chaser, one who rides in a steeple chase; also, a horse trained to run in a steeple chase. -- Steeple engine, a vertical back-acting steam engine having the cylinder beneath the crosshead. -- Steeple house, a church. [Obs.] Jer. Taylor.

STEEPLECHASING Stee"ple*chas`ing, n.

Defn: The act of riding steeple chases.

STEEPLE-CROWNED Stee"ple-crowned`, a.

1. Bearing a steeple; as, a steeple-crowned building.

2. Having a crown shaped like a steeple; as, a steeple-crowned hat; also, wearing a hat with such a crown. This grave, beared, sable-cloaked, and steeple-crowned progenitor. Hawthorne.

STEEPLED Stee"pled, a.

Defn: Furnished with, or having the form of, a steeple; adorned with steeples. Fairfax.

STEEPLY Steep"ly, adv.

Defn: In a steep manner; with steepness; with precipitous declivity.

STEEPNESS Steep"ness, n.

1. Quality or state of being steep; precipitous declivity; as, the steepnessof a hill or a roof.

2. Height; loftiness. [Obs.] Chapman.

STEEP-UP Steep"-up`, a.

Defn: Lofty and precipitous. [R.] Her stand she takes upon a steep-up hill. Shak.

STEEPY Steep"y, a.

Defn: Steep; precipitous. [Poetic] No more, my goats, shall I belong you climb The steepy cliffs, or crop the flow'ry thyme. Dryden.

STEER Steer, n. Etym: [OE. steer, AS. steór; akin to D. & G. stier a bull, OHG. stior, Icel. stjorr, , Sw. tjur, Dan. tyr, Goth. stiur, Russ. tur', Pol. tur, Ir. & Gael. tarbh, W. tarw, L. taurus, Gr. sth strong, stout, AS. stor large, Icel. storr, OHG. st, stiuri. *168. Cf. Stirk, Taurine, a.]

Defn: A young male of the ox kind; especially, a common ox; a castrated taurine male from two to four years old. See the Note under Ox.

STEER Steer, v. t.

Defn: To castrate; -- said of male calves.

STEER Steer, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Steered; p. pr. & vb. n. Steering.] Etym: [OE. steeren, steren, AS. stiéran, st, steóran; akin to OFries. stiora, stiura, D. sturen, OD. stieren, G. steuren, OHG. stiuren to direct, support, G. steuer contribution, tax, Icel. st to steer, govern,Sw. styra, Dan. styre, Goth. stiurjan to establish, AS. steór a rudder, a helm, and probably to Icel. staurr a pale, stake, Gr. stand. *168. Cf. Starboard, Stern, n.]

Defn: To direct the course of; to guide; to govern; -- applied especially to a vessel in the water. That with a staff his feeble steps did steer. Spenser.

STEER Steer, v. i.

1. To direct a vessel in its course; to direct one's course. "No helmsman steers." Tennyson.

2. To be directed and governed; to take a direction, or course; to obey the helm; as, the boat steers easily. Where the wind Veers oft, as oft [a ship] so steers, and shifts her sail. Milton.

3. To conduct one's self; to take or pursue a course of action.

STEER Steer, n. Etym: [AS. steór, stiór; akin to D. stuur, G. steuer, Icel. st. *186. See Steer, v. t.] [Written also stere.]

Defn: A rudder or helm. [Obs.] Chaucer.

STEER Steer, n. Etym: [AS. steóra. See Steer a rudder.]

Defn: A helmsman, a pilot. [Obs.] Chaucer.

STEERABLE Steer"a*ble, a.

Defn: Capable of being steered; dirigible.

STEERAGE Steer"age, n.

1. The act or practice of steering, or directing; as, the steerage of a ship. He left the city, and, in a most tempestuous season, forsook the helm and steerage of the common wealth. Milton.

2. (Naut.) (a) The effect of the helm on a ship; the manner in which an individual ship is affected by the helm. (b) The hinder part of a vessel; the stern. [R.] Swift. (c) Properly, the space in the after part of a vessel, under the cabin, but used generally to indicate any part of a vessel having the poorest accommodations and occupied by passengers paying the lowest rate of fare.

3. Direction; regulation; management; guidance. He that hath the steerage of my course. Shak.

4. That by which a course is directed. [R.] Here he hung on high, The steerage of his wings. Dryden. Steerage passenger, a passenger who takes passage in the steerage of a vessel.

STEERAGEWAY Steer"age*way`, n. (Naut.)

Defn: A rate of motion through the water sufficient to render a vessel governable by the helm.

STEERER Steer"er, n.

Defn: One who steers; as, a boat steerer.

STEERING Steer"ing, a. & n.

Defn: from Steer, v. Steering wheel (Naut.), the wheel by means of which the rudder of a vessel is turned and the vessel is steered.

STEERLESS Steer"less, a.

Defn: Having no rudder. [Obs.] Chaucer.

STEERLING Steer"ling, n.

Defn: A young small steer.

STEERSMAN Steers"man, n.; pl. Steersmen. Etym: [Steer a rudder + man: cf. AS. steórman.]

Defn: One who steers; the helmsman of a vessel. Milton.

STEERSMATE Steers"mate, n. Etym: [Steer a rudder + mate a companion.]

Defn: One who steers; steersman. [Obs.] Milton.

STEEVE Steeve, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Steeved; p. pr. & vb. n. Steeving.] Etym: [Cf. OD. steve staff, E. stem, n.] (Shipbuilding)

Defn: To project upward, or make an angle with the horizon or with the line of a vessel's keel; -- said of the bowsprit, etc.

STEEVE Steeve, v. t.

1. (Shipbuilding)

Defn: To elevate or fix at an angle with the horizon; -- said of the bowsprit, etc.

2. To stow, as bales in a vessel's hold, by means of a steeve. See Steeve, n. (b).

STEEVE Steeve, n. (Naut.) (a) The angle which a bowsprit makes with the horizon, or with the line of the vessel's keel; -- called also steeving. (b) A spar, with a block at one end, used in stowing cotton bales, and similar kinds of cargo which need to be packed tightly.

STEEVING Steev"ing, n.

1. The act or practice of one who steeves.

2. (Naut.)

Defn: See Steeve, n. (a).

STEG Steg, n. Etym: [Icel. steggr the male of several animals. Cf. Stag.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: A gander. [Written also stag.] [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

STEGANOGRAPHIST Steg`a*nog"ra*phist, n.

Defn: One skilled in steganography; a cryptographer.

STEGANOGRAPHY Steg`a*nog"ra*phy, n. Etym: [Gr. -graphy.]

Defn: The art of writing in cipher, or in characters which are not intelligible except to persons who have the key; cryptography.

STEGANOPHTHALMATA Steg`a*noph*thal"ma*ta, n. pl. Etym: [NL., from Gr. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The Discophora, or Phanerocarpæ. Called also Steganophthalmia.

STEGANOPOD Ste*gan"o*pod, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: One of the Steganopodes.

STEGANOPODES Steg`a*nop"o*des, n. pl. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A division of swimming birds in which all four toes are united by a broad web. It includes the pelicans, cormorants, gannets, and others.

STEGANOPODOUS Steg`a*nop"o*dous, a. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Having all four toes webbed together.

STEGNOSIS Steg*no"sis, n. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr. Stegnotic.] (Med.)

Defn: Constipation; also, constriction of the vessels or ducts.

STEGNOTIC Steg*no"tic, a. Etym: [Gr. (Med.)

Defn: Tending to render costive, or to diminish excretions or discharges generally. -- n.

Defn: A stegnotic medicine; an astringent.

STEGOCEPHALA Steg`o*ceph"a*la, n. pl. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr. (Paleon.)

Defn: An extinct order of amphibians found fossil in the Mesozoic rocks; called also Stegocephali, and Labyrinthodonta.

Note: Their teeth, in transverse sections, usually show a labyrinthiform arrangement of the cement and dentine. The under side of the body was covered with bony plates. Some of the Stegocephala were of very large size, and the form of the body varied from short, stout forms to others that were as slender as serpents.

STEGOSAURIA Steg`o*sau"ri*a, n. pl. Etym: [NL. See Stegosaurus.] (Paleon.)

Defn: An extinct order of herbivorous dinosaurs, including the genera Stegosaurus, Omosaurus, and their allies.

STEGOSAURUS Steg`o*sau"rus, n. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr. (Paleon.)

Defn: A genus of large Jurassic dinosaurs remarkable for a powerful dermal armature of plates and spines.

STEIK Steik, v. t.

Defn: See Steek. [Scot.]

STEIN Stein, n. & v.

Defn: See Steen.

STEINBOCK Stein"bock`, n. Etym: [G. stein stone + bock buck, D. bok. Cf. Steenbok.] (Zoöl.) (a) The European ibex. (b) A small South African antelope (Nanotragus tragulus) which frequents dry, rocky districts; -- called also steenbok. [Written also steinboc, and steinbok; also called stonebock, and stonebuck.]

STEINGALE Stein"gale, n.

Defn: The stannel. [Prov. Eng.]

STEINING Stein"ing, n.

Defn: See Steening.

STEINKIRK Stein"kirk`, n.

Defn: Same as Steenkirk.

STEINKLE Stein"kle, n.

Defn: The wheater. [Prov. Eng.]

STELA Ste"la, n.; pl. Stelæ. Etym: [L., from Gr. (Gr. Antiq.)

Defn: A small column or pillar, used as a monument, milestone, etc.

STELE Ste"le, n. Etym: [NL.]

Defn: Same as Stela. One of these steles, containing the Greek version of the ordinance, has recently been discovered. I. Taylor (The Alphabet).

STELE Stele, n. Etym: [See Stale a handle.]

Defn: A stale, or handle; a stalk. [Obs.] Chaucer. Holland.

STELENE Ste"lene, a. Etym: [See Stela.]

Defn: Resembling, or used as, a stela; columnar. [R.]

STELL Stell, v. t. Etym: [AS. stellan. *163.]

Defn: To place or fix firmly or permanently. [Obs.] Shak.

STELL Stell, n. Etym: [See Stell, v. t.]

1. A prop; a support, as for the feet in standing or cilmbing. [Scot.]

2. A partial inclosure made by a wall or trees, to serve as a shelter for sheep or cattle. [Prov. Eng. & Scot.]

STELLAR; STELLARY Stel"lar, Stel"la*ry, a. Etym: [L. stellaris, fr. stella a star. See Star.]

1. Of or pertaining to stars; astral; as, a stellar figure; stellary orbs. [These soft fires] in part shed down Their stellar virtue. Milton.

2. Full of stars; starry; as, stellar regions.

STELLATE; STELLATED Stel"late, Stel"la*ted, a. Etym: [L. stellatus, p.p. of stellare to set or cover with stars, from stella a star. See Stellar.]

1. Resembling a star; pointed or radiated, like the emblem of a star.

2. (Bot.)

Defn: Starlike; having similar parts radiating from a common center; as, stellate flowers.

STELLATION Stel*la"tion, n.

Defn: Radiation of light. [Obs.]

STELLED Stelled, a. Etym: [See Stell to place.]

Defn: Firmly placed or fixed. [Obs.] "The stelled fires" [the stars]. Shak.

Note: [In this passage by some defined as "starry," as if from stellatus.]

STELLER Stel"ler, n. Etym: [After Geo. W.Steller, a German naturalist.] (Zoöl)

Defn: The rytina; -- called also stellerine.

STELLERID Stel"ler*id, n. Etym: [L. stella a star.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: A starfish.

STELLERIDA Stel*ler"i*da, n. pl. Etym: [NL.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: An extensive group of echinoderms, comprising the starfishes and ophiurans.

STELLERIDAN; STELLERIDEAN Stel*ler"i*dan, Stel`ler*id"e*an, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A starfish, or brittle star.

STELLIFEROUS Stel*lif"er*ous, a. Etym: [L. stellifer; stella star + ferre 8bear.]

Defn: Having, or abounding with, stars.

STELLIFORM Stel"li*form, a. Etym: [L. stella a star + -form.]

Defn: Like a star; star-shaped; radiated.

STELLIFY Stel"li*fy, v. t. Etym: [L. stella a star + -fy.]

Defn: To turn into a star; to cause to appear like a star; to place among the stars, or in heaven. [Obs. or R.] B. Jonson.

STELLION Stel"lion, n. Etym: [L. stellio a newt having starlike spots on its back, fr. stella a star.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: A lizard (Stellio vulgaris), common about the Eastern Mediterranean among ruins. In color it is olive-green, shaded with black, with small stellate spots. Called also hardim, and star lizard.

STELLIONATE Stel"lion*ate, n. Etym: [L. stellionatus cozenage, trickery, fr. stellio a newt, a crafty, knavish person.] (Scots & Roman Law)

Defn: Any fraud not distinguished by a more special name; -- chiefly applied to sales of the same property to two different persons, or selling that for one's own which belongs to another, etc. Erskine.

STELLULAR Stel"lu*lar, a. Etym: [L. stellula, dim. of stella a star.]

1. Having the shape or appearance of little stars; radiated.

2. Marked with starlike spots of color.

STELLULATE Stel"lu*late, a. (Bot.)

Defn: Minutely stellate.

STELMATOPODA Stel`ma*top"o*da, n. pl. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Same as Gymnolæmata.

STELOGRAPHY Ste*log"ra*phy, n. Etym: [Gr. -graphy: cf. Gr.

Defn: The art of writing or inscribing characters on pillars. [R.] Stackhouse.

STEM; STEEM Stem, Steem, v. i.

Defn: To gleam. [Obs.] His head bald, that shone as any glass, . . . [And] stemed as a furnace of a leed [caldron]. Chaucer.

STEM; STEEM Stem, Steem, n.

Defn: A gleam of light; flame. [Obs.]

STEM Stem, n. Etym: [AS. stemn, stefn, stæfn; akin to OS. stamn the stem of a ship, D. stam stem, steven stem of a ship, G. stamm stem, steven stem of a ship, Icel. stafn, stamn, stem of a ship, stofn, stomn, stem, Sw. stam a tree trunk, Dan. stamme. Cf. Staff, Stand.]

1. The principal body of a tree, shrub, or plant, of any kind; the main stock; the part which supports the branches or the head or top. After they are shot up thirty feet in length, they spread a very large top, having no bough nor twig in the trunk or the stem. Sir W. Raleigh. The lowering spring, with lavish rain, Beats down the slender stem and breaded grain. Dryden.

2. A little branch which connects a fruit, flower, or leaf with a main branch; a peduncle, pedicel, or petiole; as, the stem of an apple or a cherry.

3. The stock of a family; a race or generation of progenitors. "All that are of noble stem." Milton. While I do pray, learn here thy stem And true descent. Herbert.

4. A branch of a family. This is a stem Of that victorious stock. Shak.

5. (Naut.)

Defn: A curved piece of timber to which the two sides of a ship are united at the fore end. The lower end of it is scarfed to the keel, and the bowsprit rests upon its upper end. Hence, the forward part of a vessel; the bow.

6. Fig.: An advanced or leading position; the lookout. Wolsey sat at the stem more than twenty years. Fuller.

7. Anything resembling a stem or stalk; as, the stem of a tobacco pipe; the stem of a watch case, or that part to which the ring, by which it is suspended, is attached.

8. (Bot.)

Defn: That part of a plant which bears leaves, or rudiments of leaves, whether rising above ground or wholly subterranean.

9. (Zoöl.) (a) The entire central axis of a feather. (b) The basal portion of the body of one of the Pennatulacea, or of a gorgonian.

10. (Mus.)

Defn: The short perpendicular line added to the body of a note; the tail of a crotchet, quaver, semiquaver, etc.

11. (Gram.)

Defn: The part of an inflected word which remains unchanged (except by euphonic variations) throughout a given inflection; theme; base. From stem to stern (Naut.), from one end of the ship to the other, or through the whole length. -- Stem leaf (Bot.), a leaf growing from the stem of a plant, as contrasted with a basal or radical leaf.

STEM Stem, v. t.

1. To remove the stem or stems from; as, to stem cherries; to remove the stem and its appendages (ribs and veins) from; as, to stem tobacco leaves.

2. To ram, as clay, into a blasting hole.

STEM Stem, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stemmed; p. pr. & vb. n. Stemming.] Etym: [Either from stem, n., or akin to stammer; cf. G. stemmen to press against.]

Defn: To oppose or cut with, or as with, the stem of a vessel; to resist, or make progress against; to stop or check the flow of, as a current. "An argosy to stem the waves." Shak. [They] stem the flood with their erected breasts. Denham. Stemmed the wild torrent of a barbarous age. Pope.

STEM Stem, v. i.

Defn: To move forward against an obstacle, as a vessel against a current. Stemming nightly toward the pole. Milton.

STEM-CLASPING Stem"-clasp`ing, a. (Bot.)

Defn: Embracing the stem with its base; amplexicaul; as a leaf or petiole.

STEMLESS Stem"less, a.

Defn: Having no stem; (Bot.) acaulescent.

STEMLET Stem"let, n.

Defn: A small or young stem.

STEMMA Stem"ma, n.; pl. Stemmata. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr. (Zoöl.) (a) One of the ocelli of an insect. See Ocellus. (b) One of the facets of a compound eye of any arthropod.

STEMMER Stem"mer, n.

Defn: One who, or that which, stems (in any of the senses of the verbs).

STEMMERY Stem"mer*y, n.

Defn: A large building in which tobacco is stemmed. [U. S.] Bartlett.

STEMMY Stem"my, a.

Defn: Abounding in stems, or mixed with stems; -- said of tea, dried currants, etc. [Colloq.]

STEMPLE Stem"ple, n. Etym: [G. stempel a stamp, a prop, akin to E. stamp.] (Mining)

Defn: A crossbar of wood in a shaft, serving as a step.

STEMSON Stem"son, n. Etym: [See Stem, n., and Keelson, and cf. Sternson.] (Shipbuilding)

Defn: A piece of curved timber bolted to the stem, keelson, and apron in a ship's frame near the bow.

STEM-WINDER Stem"-wind`er, n.

Defn: A stem-winding watch. [Colloq.]

STEM-WINDING Stem"-wind`ing, a.

Defn: Wound by mechanism connected with the stem; as, a stem-winding watch.

STENCH Stench, v. t.

Defn: To stanch. [Obs.] Harvey.

STENCH Stench, n. Etym: [AS. stenc a strong smell, fr. stincan. See Stink, v. i.]

1. A smell; an odor. [Obs.] Clouds of savory stench involve the sky. Dryden.

2. An ill smell; an offensive odor; a stink. Cowper. Stench trap, a contrivance to prevent stench or foul air from rising from the openings of sewers, drains, etc.

STENCH Stench, v. t. Etym: [AS. stencan to emit a smell, fr. stincan to smell. See Stench, n.]

Defn: To cause to emit a disagreeable odor; to cause to stink. [Obs.] Young.

STENCHY Stench"y, a.

Defn: Having a stench. [Obs.] Dyer.

STENCIL Sten"cil, n. Etym: [Probably from OF. estincelle spangle, spark, F. étincelle spark, L. scintilla. See Scintillate, and cf. Tinsel.]

Defn: A thin plate of metal, leather, or other material, used in painting, marking, etc. The pattern is cut out of the plate, which is then laid flat on the surface to be marked, and the color brushed over it. Called also stencil plate.

STENCIL Sten"cil, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stenciled or Stencilled; p. pr. & vb. n. Stenciling or Stencilling.]

Defn: To mark, paint, or color in figures with stencils; to form or print by means of a stencil.

STENCILER Sten"cil*er, n.

Defn: One who paints or colors in figures by means of stencil. [Written also stenciller.]

STENODERM Sten"o*derm, n. Etym: [Gr. -derm.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: Any species of bat belonging to the genus Stenoderma, native of the West Indies and South America. These bats have a short or rudimentary tail and a peculiarly shaped nose membrane.

STENODERMINE Sten`o*der"mine, a. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to the genus Stenoderma, which includes several West Indian and South American nose-leaf bats.

STENOGRAPH Sten"o*graph, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stenographed; p. pr. & vb. n. Stenographing.]

Defn: To write or report in stenographic characters.

STENOGRAPH Sten"o*graph, n.

Defn: A production of stenography; anything written in shorthand. I saw the reporters' room, in which they redact their hasty stenographs. Emerson.

STENOGRAPHER Ste*nog"ra*pher, n.

Defn: One who is skilled in stenography; a writer of shorthand.

STENOGRAPHIC; STENOGRAPHICAL Sten`o*graph"ic, Sten`o*graph"ic*al, a. Etym: [Cf. F. sténographique.]

Defn: Of or pertaining to stenography.

STENOGRAPHIST Ste*nog"ra*phist, n.

Defn: A stenographer.

STENOGRAPHY Ste*nog"ra*phy, n. Etym: [Gr. graphy: cf. F. sténographie, G. stenographie.]

Defn: The art of writing in shorthand, by using abbreviations or characters for whole words; shorthand.

STENOPHYLLOUS Ste*noph"yl*lous, a. Etym: [Gr. (Bot.)

Defn: Having narrow leaves.

STENOSIS Ste*no"sis, n. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr. (Med.)

Defn: A narrowing of the opening or hollow of any passage, tube, or orifice; as, stenosis of the pylorus. It differs from stricture in being applied especially to diffused rather than localized contractions, and in always indicating an origin organic and not spasmodic.

STENOSTOME Sten"o*stome, a. Etym: [Gr. steno`s narrow, little + sto`ma mouth.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: Having a small or narrow mouth; -- said of certain small ground snakes (Opoterodonta), which are unable to dilate their jaws.

STENT Stent, v. t. [Obs. imp. Stente; obs. p. p. Stent.] Etym: [See Stint.]

Defn: To keep within limits; to restain; to cause to stop, or cease; to stint. Then would he weep, he might not be stent. Chaucer. Yet n'ould she stent Her bitter railing and foul revilement. Spenser.

STENT Stent, v. i.

Defn: To stint; to stop; to cease. And of this cry they would never stenten. Chaucer.

STENT Stent, n.

Defn: An allotted portion; a stint. "Attain'd his journey's stent." Mir. for Mag.

STENTING Stent"ing, n.

Defn: An opening in a wall in a coal mine. [Written also stenton.] [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

STENTOR Sten"tor, n. Etym: [L. Stentor, Gr.

1. A herald, in the Iliad, who had a very loud voice; hence, any person having a powerful voice.

2. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Any species of ciliated Infusoria belonging to the genus Stentor and allied genera, common in fresh water. The stentors have a bell-shaped, or cornucopia-like, body with a circle of cilia around the spiral terminal disk. See Illust. under Heterotricha.

3. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A howling monkey, or howler.

STENTORIAN Sten*to"ri*an, a. Etym: [L. stentoreus; cf. Gr.

Defn: Of or pertaining to a stentor; extremely loud; powerful; as, a stentorian voice; stentorian lungs.

STENTORIN Sten"to*rin, n. (Chem.)

Defn: A blue coloring matter found in some stentors. See Stentor, 2.

STENTORIOUS Sten*to"ri*ous, a.

Defn: Stentorian. [R.]

STENTORONIC Sten`to*ron"ic, a.

Defn: Stentorian. [Obs.]

STENTOROPHONIC Sten`to*ro*phon"ic, a. Etym: [Gr. Stentor.]

Defn: Speaking or sounding very loud; stentorian. [Obs.] Of this stentorophonic horn of Alexander there is a preserved in the Vatican. Derham.

STEP Step, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Stepped; p. pr. & vb. n. Stepping.] Etym: [AS. stæppan; akin to OFries. steppa, D. stappen to step, stap a step, OHG. stepfen to step, G. stapfe a footstep, OHG. stapfo, G. stufe a step to step on; cf. Gr. Stamp, n. & a.]

1. To move the foot in walking; to advance or recede by raising and moving one of the feet to another resting place, or by moving both feet in succession.

2. To walk; to go on foot; esp., to walk a little distance; as, to step to one of the neighbors.

3. To walk slowly, gravely, or resolutely. Home the swain retreats, His flock before him stepping to the fold. Thomson.

4. Fig.: To move mentally; to go in imagination. They are stepping almost three thousand years back into the remotest antiquity. Pope. To step aside, to walk a little distance from the rest; to retire from company. -- To step forth, to move or come forth. -- To step in or into. (a) To walk or advance into a place or state, or to advance suddenly in. Whosoever then first, after the troubling of the water, stepped in, was made whole of whatsoever disease he had. John v. 4. (b) To enter for a short time; as, I just stepped into the house. (c) To obtain possession without trouble; to enter upon easily or suddenly; as, to step into an estate. -- To step out. (a) (Mil.) To increase the length, but not the rapidity, of the step, extending it to thirty-tree inches. (b) To go out for a short distance or a short time. -- To step short (Mil.), to diminish the length or rapidity of the step according to the established rules.

STEP Step, v. t.

1. To set, as the foot.

2. (Naut.)

Defn: To fix the foot of (a mast) in its step; to erect. To step off, to measure by steps, or paces; hence, to divide, as a space, or to form a series of marks, by successive measurements, as with dividers.

STEP Step, n. Etym: [AS. stæpe. See Step, v. i.]

1. An advance or movement made by one removal of the foot; a pace.

2. A rest, or one of a set of rests, for the foot in ascending or descending, as a stair, or a round of a ladder. The breadth of every single step or stair should be never less than one foot. Sir H. Wotton.

3. The space passed over by one movement of the foot in walking or running; as, one step is generally about three feet, but may be more or less. Used also figuratively of any kind of progress; as, he improved step by step, or by steps. To derive two or three general principles of motion from phenomena, and afterwards to tell us how the properties and actions of all corporeal things follow from those manifest principles, would be a very great step in philosophy. Sir I. Newton.

4. A small space or distance; as, it is but a step.

5. A print of the foot; a footstep; a footprint; track.

6. Gait; manner of walking; as, the approach of a man is often known by his step.

7. Proceeding; measure; action; an act. The reputation of a man depends on the first steps he makes in the world. Pope. Beware of desperate steps. The darkest day, Live till to-morrow, will have passed away. Cowper. I have lately taken steps . . . to relieve the old gentleman's distresses. G. W. Cable.

8. pl.

Defn: Walk; passage. Conduct my steps to find the fatal tree. Dryden.

9. pl.

Defn: A portable framework of stairs, much used indoors in reaching to a high position.

10. (Naut.)

Defn: In general, a framing in wood or iron which is intended to receive an upright shaft; specif., a block of wood, or a solid platform upon the keelson, supporting the heel of the mast.

11. (Mach.) (a) One of a series of offsets, or parts, resembling the steps of stairs, as one of the series of parts of a cone pulley on which the belt runs. (b) A bearing in which the lower extremity of a spindle or a vertical shaft revolves.

12. (Mus.)

Defn: The intervak between two contiguous degrees of the csale.

Note: The word tone is often used as the name of this interval; but there is evident incongruity in using tone for indicating the interval between tones. As the word scale is derived from the Italian scala, a ladder, the intervals may well be called steps.

13. (Kinematics)

Defn: A change of position effected by a motion of translation. W. K. Clifford. Back step, Half step, etc. See under Back, Half, etc. -- Step grate, a form of grate for holding fuel, in which the bars rise above one another in the manner of steps. -- To take steps, to take action; to move in a matter.

STEP- Step-. Etym: [AS. steóp-; akin to OFries. stiap-, stiep-, D. & G. stief-, OHG. stiuf-, Icel. stj, Sw. styf-, and to AS. astepan, asteópan, to deprive, bereave, as children of their parents, OHG. stiufen.]

Defn: A prefix used before father, mother, brother, sister, son, daughter, child, etc., to indicate that the person thus spoken of is not a blood relative, but is a relative by the marriage of a parent; as, a stepmother to X is the wife of the father of X, married by him after the death of the mother of X. See Stepchild, Stepdaughter, Stepson, etc.

STEPBROTHER Step"broth`er, n.

Defn: A brother by the marriage of one's father with the mother of another, or of one's mother with the father of another.

STEPCHILD Step"child`, n. Etym: [AS. steópcild.]

1. A bereaved child; one who has lost father or mother. [Obs.]

2. A son or daughter of one's wife or husband by a former marriage.

STEPDAME Step"dame`, n.

Defn: A stepmother. Spenser.

STEPDAUGHTER Step"daugh`ter, n. Etym: [AS. steópdohtor.]

Defn: A daughter of one's wife or husband by a former marriage.

STEP-DOWN Step"-down`, a. (Elec.)

Defn: Transforming or converting a current of high potential or pressure into one of low pressure; as, a step-down transformer.

STEPFATHER Step"fa`ther, n. Etym: [AS. steópfæder.]

Defn: The husband of one's mother by a subsequent marriage.

STEPHANION Ste*pha"ni*on, n. Etym: [NL., from Gr. (Anat.)

Defn: The point on the side of the skull where the temporal line, or upper edge of the temporal fossa, crosses the coronal suture.

STEPHANITE Steph"an*ite, n. Etym: [So named after the Archduke Stephan, mining director of Austria.] (Min.)

Defn: A sulphide of antimony and silver of an iron-black color and metallic luster; called also black silver, and brittle silver ore.

STEPHANOTIS Steph`a*no"tis, n. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr.

1. (Bot.)

Defn: A genus of climbing asclepiadaceous shrubs, of Madagascar, Malaya, etc. They have fleshy or coriaceous opposite leaves, and large white waxy flowers in cymes.

2. A perfume said to be prepared from the flowers of Stephanotis floribunda.

STEPLADDER Step"lad`der, n.

Defn: A portable set of steps.

STEPMOTHER Step"moth`er, n. Etym: [AS. steópmoder.]

Defn: The wife of one's father by a subsequent marriage.

STEPPARENT Step"par`ent, n.

Defn: Stepfather or stepmother.

STEPPE Steppe, n. Etym: [From Russ. stepe, through G. or F. steppe.]

Defn: One of the vast plains in Southeastern Europe and in Asia, generally elevated, and free from wood, analogous to many of the prairies in Western North America. See Savanna. Steppe murrain. (Far.) See Rinderpest.

STEPPED Stepped, a.

Defn: Provided with a step or steps; having a series of offsets or parts resembling the steps of stairs; as, a stepped key. Stepped gear, a cogwheel of which the teeth cross the face in a series of steps.

STEPPER Step"per, n.

Defn: One who, or that which, steps; as, a quick stepper.

STEPPING-STONE Step"ping-stone`, n.

1. A stone to raise the feet above the surface of water or mud in walking.

2. Fig.: A means of progress or advancement. These obstacles his genius had turned into stepping-stones. Macaulay. That men may rise on stepping-stones Of their dead selves to higher things. Tennyson.

STEPSISTER Step"sis`ter, n.

Defn: A daughter of one's stepfather or stepmother by a former marriage.

STEPSON Step"son`, n. Etym: [AS. steópsunu.]

Defn: A son of one's husband or wife by a former marriage.

STEPSTONE Step"stone`, n.

Defn: A stone laid before a door as a stair to rise on in entering the house.

STEP-UP Step"-up`, a. (Elec.)

Defn: Transforming or converting a low-pressure current into one of high pressure; as, a step-up transformer.

-STER -ster. Etym: [OE. & AS. -estre, -istre.]

Defn: A suffix denoting the agent (originally a woman), especially a person who does something with skill or as an occupation; as in spinster (originally, a woman who spins), songster, baxter (= bakester), youngster.

Note: Brewing, baking, and weaving were formerly feminine labors, and consequently brewster, baxter, and webster meant, originally, the woman (not the man) who brews, bakes, or weaves. When men began to perform these duties the feminine appellations were retained.

STERCOBILIN Ster`co*bi"lin, n. Etym: [L. stercus dung + E. bilin.] (Physiol. Chem.)

Defn: A coloring matter found in the fæces, a product of the alteration of the bile pigments in the intestinal canal, -- identical with hydrobilirubin.

STERCOLIN Ster"co*lin, n. Etym: [L. stercus dung + oleum oil.] (Physiol. Chem.)

Defn: Same as Serolin (b).

STERCORACEOUS Ster`co*ra"ceous, a. Etym: [L. stercus, -oris, dung.]

Defn: Of or pertaining to dung; partaking of the nature of, or containing, dung.

STERCORANISM Ster"co*ra*nism, n. (Eccl. Hist.)

Defn: The doctrine or belief of the Stercoranists.

STERCORANIST Ster"co*ra*nist, n. Etym: [LL. stercoranista, fr. L. stercus, -oris, dung.] (Eccl. Hist.)

Defn: A nickname formerly given to those who held, or were alleged to hold, that the consecrated elements in the eucharist undergo the process of digestion in the body of the recipient.

STERCORARIAN Ster`co*ra"ri*an, n.

Defn: A Stercoranist.

STERCORARY Ster"co*ra*ry, n. Etym: [LL. stercorarium, from L. stercorarius belonging to dung.]

Defn: A place, properly secured from the weather, for containing dung.

STERCORATE Ster"co*rate, n.

Defn: Excrement; dung. [Obs.]

STERCORATION Ster`co*ra"tion, n. Etym: [L. stercoratio, from stercorare to dung.]

Defn: Manuring with dung. [Obs.] Bacon.

STERCORIANISM Ster*co"ri*an*ism, n. (Eccl.)

Defn: The doctrine or belief of the Stercoranists.

STERCORIN Ster"co*rin, n. Etym: [L. stercus, -oris, dung.] (Physiol. Chem.)

Defn: Same as Serolin (b).

STERCORY Ster"co*ry, n.

Defn: Excrement; dung. [Obs.]

STERCULIACEOUS Ster*cu`li*a"ceous, a. Etym: [NL. Sterculia, the typical genus, fr. L. Sterculius the deity that presided over manuring, from stercus dung. So called because one of the original species is fetid.] (Bot.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to a natural order (Sterculiaceæ) of polypetalous exogenous plants, mostly tropical. The cacao (Theobroma Cacao) is the most useful plant of the order.

STERE Stere, n. Etym: [F. stère, fr. Gr.

Defn: A unit of cubic measure in the metric system, being a cubic meter, or kiloliter, and equal to 35.3 cubic feet, or nearly 1

STERE Stere, v. t. & i.

Defn: To stir. [Obs.] Chaucer.

STERE Stere, n.

Defn: A rudder. See 5th Steer. [Obs.] Chaucer.

STERE Stere, n.

Defn: Helmsman. See 6th Steer. [Obs.] Chaucer.

STERELMINTHA Ster`el*min"tha, n. pl. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr. stereo`s solid + (Zoöl.)

Defn: Same as Platyelminthes.

STEREO- Ste"re*o-. Etym: [Gr. stereo`s solid. See Stare to gaze.]

Defn: A combining form meaning solid, hard, firm, as in stereo- chemistry, stereography.

STEREOBATE Ste"re*o*bate, n. Etym: [Gr. stereo`s solid + stéréobate.] (Arch.)

Defn: The lower part or basement of a building or pedestal; -- used loosely for several different forms of basement.

STEREO-CHEMIC; STEREO-CHEMICAL Ste`re*o-chem"ic, Ste`re*o-chem"ic*al, a. (Chem.)

Defn: Pertaining to, or illustrating, the hypothetical space relations of atoms in the molecule; as, a stereo-chemic formula.

STEREO-CHEMISTRY Ste`re*o-chem"is*try, n. Etym: [Stereo- + chemistry.] (Chem.)

Defn: Chemistry considered with reference to the space relations of atoms.

STEREOCHROME Ste"re*o*chrome, n.

Defn: Stereochromic picture.

STEREOCHROMIC Ste`re*o*chro"mic, a.

Defn: Pertaining to the art of stereochromy; produced by stereochromy. -- Ste`re*o*chro"mic*al*ly, adv.

STEREOCHROMY Ste`re*och"ro*my, n. Etym: [Stereo- + Gr. chrw^ma color.]

Defn: A style of painting on plastered walls or stone, in which the colors are rendered permanent by sprinklings of water, in which is mixed a proportion of soluble glass (a silicate of soda).

STEREOELECTRIC Ste`re*o*e*lec"tric, a. Etym: [Stereo- + electric.] (Physics)

Defn: Of or pertaining to the generation of electricity by means of solid bodies alone; as, a stereoelectric current is one obtained by means of solids, without any liquid.

STEREOGRAM Ste"re*o*gram, n. Etym: [Stereo- + -gram.]

Defn: A diagram or picture which represents objects in such a way as to give the impression of relief or solidity; also, a stereograph.

STEREOGRAPH Ste"re*o*graph, n. Etym: [Stereo- + -graph.]

Defn: Any picture, or pair of pictures, prepared for exhibition in the stereoscope. Stereographs are now commonly made by means of photography.

STEREOGRAPHIC; STEREOGRAPHICAL Ste`re*o*graph"ic, Ste`re*o*graph"ic*al, a. Etym: [Cf. F. stéréographique.]

Defn: Made or done according to the rules of stereography; delineated on a plane; as, a stereographic chart of the earth. Stereographic projection (Geom.), a method of representing the sphere in which the center of projection is taken in the surface of the sphere, and the plane upon which the projection is made is at right andles to the diameter passing through the center of projection.

STEREOGRAPHICALLY Ste`re*o*graph"ic*al*ly, adv.

Defn: In a stereographical manner; by delineation on a plane.

STEREOGRAPHY Ste`re*og"ra*phy, n. Etym: [Stereo- + graphy: cf. F. stéréographie.]

Defn: The art of delineating the forms of solid bodies on a plane; a branch of solid geometry which shows the construction of all solids which are regularly defined.

Note: By cutting pieces of cardboard, or other suitable material, in the forms represented in the cut, folding them along the lines indicated, and joining their edges, the five regular solids may be formed.

STEREOMETER Ste`re*om"e*ter, n. Etym: [Stereo- + meter.] (Physics)

1. An instrument for measuring the solid contents of a body, or the capacity of a vessel; a volumenometer.

2. An instrument for determining the specific gravity of liquid bodies, porous bodies, and powders, as well as solids.

STEREOMETRIC; STEREOMETRICAL Ste`re*o*met"ric, Ste`re*o*met"ric*al, a. Etym: [Cf. F. stéréométrique.]

Defn: Of or pertaining to stereometry; performed or obtained by stereometry. -- Ste`re*o*met"ric*al*ly, adv.

STEREOMETRY Ste`re*om"e*try, n. Etym: [Stereo- + -metry: cf. F. stéréométrie.]

Defn: The art of measuring and computing the cubical contents of bodies and figures; -- distinguished from planimetry.

STEREOMONOSCOPE Ste`re*o*mon"o*scope, n. Etym: [Stereo- + mono- + -scope.]

Defn: An instrument with two lenses, by which an image of a single picture projected upon a screen of ground glass is made to present an appearance of relief, and may be viewed by several persons at once.

STEREOPLASM Ste"re*o*plasm, n. Etym: [Stereo- + Gr. (Biol.)

Defn: The solid or insoluble portion of the cell protoplasm. See Hygroplasm.

STEREOPTICON Ste`re*op"ti*con, n. Etym: [NL. See Stereo-, and Optic.]

Defn: An instrument, consisting essentially of a magic lantern in which photographic pictures are used, by which the image of a landscape, or any object, may be thrown upon a screen in such a manner as to seem to stand out in relief, so as to form a striking and accurate representation of the object itself; also, a pair of magic lanterns for producing the effect of dissolving views.

STEREOSCOPE Ste"re*o*scope, n. Etym: [Stereo- + -scope.]

Defn: An optical instrument for giving to pictures the appearance of solid forms, as seen in nature. It combines in one, through a bending of the rays of light, two pictures, taken for the purpose from points of view a little way apart. It is furnished with two eyeglasses, and by refraction or reflection the pictures are superimposed, so as to appear as one to the observer.

Note: In the reflecting stereoscope, the rays from the two pictures are turned into the proper direction for stereoscopic vision by two plane mirrors set at an angle with each other, and between the pictures. In the lenticular stereoscope, the form in general use, the eyeglasses are semilenses, or marginal portions of the same convex lenses, set with their edges toward each other, so that they deflect the rays coming from the picture so as to strike the eyes as if coming direct from an intermediate point, where the two pictures are seen apparently as one.

STEREOSCOPIC; STEREOSCOPICAL Ste`re*o*scop"ic, Ste`re*o*scop"ic*al, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to the stereoscope; characteristic of, or adapted to, the stereoscope; as, a stereoscopic effect; the stereoscopic function of the eyeglasses; stereoscopic views. -- Ste`re*o*scop"ic*al*ly, adv.

STEREOSCOPIST Ste`re*os"co*pist, n.

Defn: One skilled in the use or construction of stereoscopes.

STEREOSCOPY Ste`re*os"co*py, n.

Defn: The art or science of using the stereoscope, or of constructing the instrument or the views used with it.

STEREOSTATIC Ste`re*o*stat"ic, a. Etym: [Stereo- + static.] (Civil. Engin.)

Defn: Geostatic.

STEREOTOMIC; STEREOTOMICAL Ste`re*o*tom"ic, Ste`re*o*tom"ic*al, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to stereotomy; performed by stereotomy.

STEREOTOMY Ste`re*ot"o*my, n. Etym: [Stereo- + Gr. stéréotomie.]

Defn: The science or art of cutting solids into certain figures or sections, as arches, and the like; especially, the art of stonecutting.

STEREOTYPE Ste"re*o*type, n. Etym: [Stereo- + -type: cf. F. stéréotype.]

1. A plate forming an exact faximile of a page of type or of an engraving, used in printing books, etc.; specifically, a plate with type-metal face, used for printing.

Note: A stereotype, or stereotypr plate, is made by setting movable type as for ordinary printing; from these a cast is taken in plaster of Paris, paper pulp, or the like, and upon this cast melted type metal is poured, which, when hardened, makes a solid page or column, from which the impression is taken as from type.

2. The art or process of making such plates, or of executing work by means of them. Stereotype block, a block, usually of wood, to which a stereotype plate is attached while being used in printing.

STEREOTYPE Ste"re*o*type, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stereotyped; p. pr. & vb. n. Stereotyping.] Etym: [Cf. F. stéréotyper.]

1. To prepare for printing in stereotype; to make the stereotype plates of; as, to stereotype the Bible.

2. Fig.: To make firm or permanent; to fix. Powerful causes tending to stereotype and aggravate the poverty of old conditions. Duke of Argyll (1887).

STEREOTYPED Ste"re*o*typed, a.

1. Formed into, or printed from, stereotype plates.

2. Fig.: Formed in a fixed, unchangeable manner; as, stereotyped opinions. Our civilization, with its stereotyped ways and smooth conventionalities. J. C. Shairp.

STEREOTYPER Ste"re*o*ty`per, n.

Defn: One who stereotypes; one who makes stereotype plates, or works in a stereotype foundry.

STEREOTYPERY Ste"re*o*ty`per*y, n.

1. The art, process, or employment of making stereotype plates.

2. A place where stereotype plates are made; a stereotype foundry.

STEREOTYPIC Ste`re*o*typ"ic, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to stereotype, or stereotype plates.

STEREOTYPIST Ste"re*o*ty`pist, n.

Defn: A stereotyper.

STEREOTYPOGRAPHER Ste`re*o*ty*pog"ra*pher, n.

Defn: A stereotype printer.

STEREOTYPOGRAPHY Ste`re*o*ty*pog"ra*phy, n. Etym: [Stereo- + typography.]

Defn: The act or art of printing from stereotype plates.

STEREOTYPY Ste"re*o*ty`py, n. Etym: [Cf. F. stéréotypie.]

Defn: The art or process of making stereotype plates.

STERHYDRAULIC Ster`hy*drau"lic, a. Etym: [Stereo- + hydraulic.]

Defn: Pertaining to, or designating, a kind of hydraulic press; resembling such a press in action or principle. Sterhydraulic press, an hydraulic press producing pressure or motion by the introduction of a solid substance (as a long rod, or a cord wound on a roller) into a cylinder previously filled with a liquid.

STERILE Ster"ile, a. Etym: [F. stérile, L. sterilis, akin to Gr. stereo`s stiff, solid, stei^ros barren, stei^ra a cow that has not calved, Goth. stairo, fem., barren. See Stare to gaze.]

1. Producing little or no crop; barren; unfruitful; unproductive; not fertile; as, sterile land; a sterile desert; a sterile year.

2. (Biol.) (a) Incapable of reproduction; unfitted for reproduction of offspring; not able to germinate or bear fruit; unfruitful; as, a sterile flower, which bears only stamens. (b) Free from reproductive spores or germs; as, a sterile fluid.

3. Fig.: Barren of ideas; destitute of sentiment; as, a sterile production or author.

STERILITY Ste*ril"i*ty, n. Etym: [L. sterilitas: cf. F. stérilité.]

1. The quality or condition of being sterile.

2. (Biol.)

Defn: Quality of being sterile; infecundity; also, the state of being free from germs or spores.

STERILIZATION Ster`il*i*za"tion, n. (Biol.)

Defn: The act or process of sterilizing, or rendering sterile; also, the state of being sterile.

STERILIZE Ster"il*ize, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Sterilized; p. pr. & vb. n. Sterilizing.] Etym: [Cf. F. stériliser.]

1. To make sterile or unproductive; to impoverish, as land; to exhaust of fertility. [R.] "Sterilizing the earth." Woodward.

2. (Biol.) (a) To deprive of the power of reproducing; to render incapable of germination or fecundation; to make sterile. (b) To destroy all spores or germs in (an organic fluid or mixture), as by heat, so as to prevent the development of bacterial or other organisms.

STERILIZER Ster"il*i`zer, n.

Defn: One that sterilizes anything; specif., an apparatus for sterilizing an organic fluid or mixture.

STERLET Ster"let, n. Etym: [Russ. sterliade.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: A small sturgeon (Acipenser ruthenus) found in the Caspian Sea and its rivers, and highly esteemed for its flavor. The finest caviare is made from its roe.

STERLING Ster"ling, n. (Engin.)

Defn: Same as Starling, 3.

STERLING Ster"ling, n. Etym: [OE. sterlynge, starling, for easterling, LL. esterlingus, probably from Easterling, once the popular name of German trades in England, whose money was of the purest quality: cf. MHG. sterlink a certain coin. Cf. East. "Certain merchants of Norwaie, Denmarke, and of others those parties, called Ostomanni, or (as in our vulgar language we tearme them), easterlings, because they lie east in respect of us." Holinshed. "In the time of . . . King Richard the First, monie coined in the east parts of Germanie began to be of especiall request in England for the puritie thereof, and was called Easterling monie, as all inhabitants of those parts were called Easterlings, and shortly after some of that countrie, skillful in mint matters and allaies, were sent for into this realme to bring the coine to perfection; which since that time was called of them sterling, for Easterling." Camden. "Four thousand pound of sterlings." R. of Gloucester.]

1. Any English coin of standard value; coined money. So that ye offer nobles or sterlings. Chaucer. And Roman wealth in English sterling view. Arbuthnot.

2. A certain standard of quality or value for money. Sterling was the known and approved standard in England, in all probability, from the beginning of King Henry the Second's reign. S. M. Leake.

STERLING Ster"ling, a.

1. Belonging to, or relating to, the standard British money of account, or the British coinage; as, a pound sterling; a shilling sterling; a penny sterling; -- now chiefly applied to the lawful money of England; but sterling cost, sterling value, are used. "With sterling money." Shak.

2. Genuine; pure; of excellent quality; conforming to the highest standard; of full value; as, a work of sterling merit; a man of sterling good sense.

STERN Stern, n. Etym: [AS. stearn a kind of bird. See Starling.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: The black tern.

STERN Stern, a. [Compar. Sterner; superl. Sternest.] Etym: [OE. sterne, sturne, AS. styrne; cf. D. stuurish stern, Sw. stursk refractory. *166.]

Defn: Having a certain hardness or severity of nature, manner, or aspect; hard; severe; rigid; rigorous; austere; fixed; unchanging; unrelenting; hence, serious; resolute; harsh; as, a sternresolve; a stern necessity; a stern heart; a stern gaze; a stern decree. The sterne wind so loud gan to rout. Chaucer. I would outstare the sternest eyes that look. Shak. When that the poor have cried, Cæsar hath wept; Ambition should be made of sterner stuff. Shak. Stern as tutors, and as uncles hard. Dryden. These barren rocks, your stern inheritance. Wordsworth.

Syn. -- Gloomy; sullen; forbidding; strict; unkind; hard-hearted; unfeeling; cruel; pitiless.

STERN Stern, n. Etym: [Icel. stjorn a steering, or a doubtful AS. steórn. *166. See Steer, v. t.]

1. The helm or tiller of a vessel or boat; also, the rudder. [Obs.] Chaucer.

2. (Naut.)

Defn: The after or rear end of a ship or other vessel, or of a boat; the part opposite to the stem, or prow.

3. Fig.: The post of management or direction. And sit chiefest stern of public weal. Shak.

4. The hinder part of anything. Spenser.

5. The tail of an animal; -- now used only of the tail of a dog. By the stern. (Naut.) See By the head, under By.

STERN Stern, a.

Defn: Being in the stern, or being astern; as, the stern davits. Stern board (Naut.), a going or falling astern; a loss of way in making a tack; as, to make a stern board. See Board, n., 8 (b). -- Stern chase. (Naut.) (a) See under Chase, n. (b) A stern chaser. -- Stern chaser (Naut.), a cannon placed in a ship's stern, pointing backward, and intended to annoy a ship that is in pursuit. -- Stern fast (Naut.), a rope used to confine the stern of a ship or other vessel, as to a wharf or buoy. -- Stern frame (Naut.), the framework of timber forms the stern of a ship. -- Stern knee. See Sternson. -- Stern port (Naut.), a port, or opening, in the stern of a ship. -- Stern sheets (Naut.), that part of an open boat which is between the stern and the aftmost seat of the rowers, -- usually furnished with seats for passengers. -- Stern wheel, a paddle wheel attached to the stern of the steamboat which it propels.stern wheeler.

STERNAGE Stern"age, n.

Defn: Stern. [R.] Shak.

STERNAL Ster"nal, a. (Anat.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to the sternum; in the region of the sternum. Sternal ribs. See the Note under Rib, n., 1.

STERNBERGITE Stern"berg*ite, n. Etym: [So named after Count Kaspar Sternberg of Prague.] (Min.)

Defn: A sulphide of silver and iron, occurring in soft flexible laminæ varying in color from brown to black.

STERNEBRA Ster"ne*bra, n.; pl. Sternebræ. Etym: [NL., fr. sternum + -bra of vertebra.] (Anat.)

Defn: One of the segments of the sternum. -- Ster"ne*bral, a.

STERNED Sterned, a.

Defn: Having a stern of a particular shape; -- used in composition; as, square-sterned.

STERNER Stern"er, n. Etym: [See 3d Stern.]

Defn: A director. [Obs. & R.] Dr. R. Clerke.

STERNFOREMOST Stern`fore"most`, adv.

Defn: With the stern, instead of the bow, in advance; hence, figuratively, in an awkward, blundering manner. A fatal genius for going sternforemost. Lowell.

STERNITE Ster"nite, n. Etym: [From Sternum.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: The sternum of an arthropod somite.

STERNLY Stern"ly, adv.

Defn: In a stern manner.

STERNMOST Stern"most`, a.

Defn: Farthest in the rear; farthest astern; as, the sternmost ship in a convoy.

STERNNESS Stern"ness, n.

Defn: The quality or state of being stern.

STERNO- Ster"no-.

Defn: A combining form used in anatomy to indicate connection with, or relation to, the sternum; as, sternocostal, sternoscapular.

STERNOCORACOID Ster`no*cor"a*coid, a. (Anat.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to the sternum and the coracoid.

STERNOCOSTAL Ster`no*cos"tal, a. Etym: [Sterno- + costal.] (Anat.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to the sternum and the ribs; as, the sternocostal cartilages.

STERNOHYOID Ster`no*hy"oid, a. (Anat.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to the sternum and the hyoid bone or cartilage.

STERNOMASTOID Ster`no*mas"toid, a. (Anat.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to the sternum and the mastoid process.

STERNOTHYROID Ster`no*thy"roid, a. (Anat.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to the sternum and the thyroid cartilage.

STERNPOST Stern"post`, n. (Naut.)

Defn: A straight piece of timber, or an iron bar or beam, erected on the extremity of the keel to support the rudder, and receive the ends of the planks or plates of the vessel.

STERNSMAN Sterns"man, n.

Defn: A steersman. [Obs.]

STERNSON Stern"son, n. Etym: [See Stern, n., and cf. Stemson.] (Naut.)

Defn: The end of a ship's keelson, to which the sternpost is bolted; -- called also stern knee.

STERNUM Ster"num, n.; pl. L. Sterna, E. Sternums. Etym: [NL., from Gr.

1. (Anat.)

Defn: A plate of cartilage, or a series of bony or cartilaginous plates or segments, in the median line of the pectoral skeleton of most vertebrates above fishes; the breastbone.

Note: The sternum is connected with the ribs or the pectorial girdle, or with both. In man it is a flat bone, broad anteriorly, narrowed behind, and connected with the clavicles and the cartilages of the seven anterior pairs of ribs. In most birds it has a high median keel for the attachment of the muscles of the wings.

2. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The ventral part of any one of the somites of an arthropod.

STERNUTATION Ster`nu*ta"tion, n. Etym: [L. sternutatio, fr. sternutare to sneeze, intens. from sternuere.]

Defn: The act of sneezing. Quincy.

STERNUTATIVE Ster*nu"ta*tive, a.

Defn: Having the quality of provoking to sneeze.

STERNUTATORY Ster*nu"ta*to*ry, a.

Defn: Sternutative. -- n.

Defn: A sternutatory substance or medicine.

STERNWAY Stern"way`, n. (Naut.)

Defn: The movement of a ship backward, or with her stern foremost.

STERN-WHEEL Stern"-wheel`, a.

Defn: Having a paddle wheel at the stern; as, a stern-wheel steamer.

STERN-WHEELER Stern"-wheel`er, n.

Defn: A steamboat having a stern wheel instead of side wheels. [Colloq. U.S.]

STERQUILINOUS Ster*quil"i*nous, a. Etym: [L. sterquilinium a dung pit, fr. stercus dung.]

Defn: Pertaining to a dunghill; hence, mean; dirty; paltry. [Obs.] Howell.

STERRE Ster"re, n.

Defn: A star. [Obs.] Chaucer.

STERRINK Ster"rink, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The crab-eating seal (Lobodon carcinophaga) of the Antarctic Ocean.

STERROMETAL Ster"ro*met`al, n. Etym: [Gr. metal.]

Defn: Any alloy of copper, zinc, tin, and iron, of which cannon are sometimes made.

STERT Stert, obs. p. p. of Start.

Defn: Started. Chaucer.

STERTE Ster"te, obs.

Defn: p. p. of Start. Chaucer.

STERTORIOUS Ster*to"ri*ous, a.

Defn: Stertorous. [R.]

STERTOROUS Ster"to*rous, a. Etym: [L. stertere to snore: cf. F. stertoreux.]

Defn: Characterized by a deep snoring, which accompaines inspiration in some diseases, especially apoplexy; hence, hoarsely breathing; snoring. Burning, stertorous breath that hurt her cheek. Mrs. Browning. The day has ebbed away, and it is night in his room, before his stertorous breathing lulls. Dickens.

STERVE Sterve, v. t. & i.

Defn: To die, or cause to die; to perish. See Starve. [Obs.] Chaucer. Spenser.

STET Stet, Etym: L., subj. 3d pers. sing. of stare to stand, remain. Etym: [See Stand.] (Print.)

Defn: Let it stand; -- a word used by proof readers to signify that something once erased, or marked for omission, is to remain.

STET Stet, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stetted; p. pr. & vb. n. Stetting.] (Print.)

Defn: To cause or direct to remain after having been marked for omission; to mark with the word stet, or with a series of dots below or beside the matter; as, the proof reader stetted a deled footnote.

STETHAL Steth"al, n. Etym: [Stearic + ethal.] (Chem.)

Defn: One of the higher alcohols of the methane series, homologous with ethal, and found in small quantities as an ethereal salt of stearic acid in spermaceti.

STETHOGRAPH Steth"o*graph, n. Etym: [Gr. -graph.] (Physiol.)

Defn: See Pneumatograph.

STETHOMETER Ste*thom"e*ter, n. Etym: [Gr. -meter.] (Physiol.)

Defn: An apparatus for measuring the external movements of a given point of the chest wall, during respiration; -- also called thoracometer.

STETHOSCOPE Steth"o*scope, n. Etym: [Gr. -scope: cf. F. stéthoscope.] (Med.)

Defn: An instrument used in auscultation for examining the organs of the chest, as the heart and lungs, by conveying to the ear of the examiner the sounds produced in the thorax.

STETHOSCOPE Steth"o*scope, v. t.

Defn: To auscultate, or examine, with a stethoscope. M. W. Savage.

STETHOSCOPIC; STETHOSCOPICAL Steth`o*scop"ic, Steth`o*scop"ic*al, a. Etym: [Cf. F. stéthoscopique.]

Defn: Of or pertaining to a stethoscope; obtained or made by means of a stethoscope. -- Steth`o*scop"ic*al*ly, adv.

STETHOSCOPIST Ste*thos"co*pist, n.

Defn: One skilled in the use of the stethoscope.

STETHOSCOPY Ste*thos"co*py, n.

Defn: The art or process of examination by the stethoscope.

STEVE Steve, v. t. Etym: [See Stevedore.]

Defn: To pack or stow, as cargo in a ship's hold. See Steeve.

STEVEDORE Ste"ve*dore`, n. Etym: [Sp. estivador a packer, a stower, fr. estivar to pack, to stow, L. stipare to press, compress, probably akin to E. stiff. See Stiff, Stive to stuff.]

Defn: One whose occupation is to load and unload vessels in port; one who stows a cargo in a hold.

STEVEN Ste"ven, n. Etym: [AS. stefn, stemn, voice; akin to D. stem, G. stimme, Goth. stibna.]

1. Voice; speech; language. [Obs. or Scot.] Ye have as merry a steven As any angel hath that is in heaven. Chaucer.

2. An outcry; a loud call; a clamor. [Obs.] Spenser. To set steven, to make an appointment. [Obs.] They setten steven for to meet To playen at the dice. Chaucer.

STEW Stew, n. Etym: [Cf. Stow.]

1. A small pond or pool where fish are kept for the table; a vivarium. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.] Chaucer. Evelyn.

2. An artificial bed of oysters. [Local, U.S.]

STEW Stew, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stewed; p. pr. & vb. n. Stewing.] Etym: [OE. stuven, OF. estuver, F. étuver, fr. OF. estuve, F. étuve, a sweating house, a room heated for a bath; probably of Teutonic origin, and akin to E. stove. See Stove, and cf. Stive to stew.]

Defn: To boil slowly, or with the simmering or moderate heat; to seethe; to cook in a little liquid, over a gentle fire, without boiling; as, to stew meat; to stew oysters; to stew apples.

STEW Stew, v. i.

Defn: To be seethed or cooked in a slow, gentle manner, or in heat and moisture.

STEW Stew, n. Etym: [OE. stue, stuwe, OF. estuve. See Stew, v. t.]

1. A place of stewing or seething; a place where hot bathes are furnished; a hothouse. [Obs.] As burning Ætna from his boiling stew Doth belch out flames. Spenser. The Lydians were inhibited by Cyrus to use any armor, and give themselves to baths and stews. Abp. Abbot.

2. A brothel; -- usually in the plural. Bacon. South. There be that hate harlots, and never were at the stews. Aschman.

3. A prostitute. [Obs.] Sir A. Weldon.

4. A dish prepared by stewing; as, a stewof pigeons.

5. A state of agitating excitement; a state of worry; confusion; as, to be in a stew. [Colloq.]

STEWARD Stew"ard, n. Etym: [OE. stiward, AS. stiweard, stigweard, literally, a sty ward; stigu sty + weard warden, guardian, -- his first duty having been probably to attend to the domestic animals. *164. See Sty pen for swine, Ward.]

1. A man employed in a large family, or on a large estate, to manage the domestic concerns, supervise other servants, collect the rents or income, keep accounts, and the like. Worthy to be stewards of rent and land. Chaucer. They came near to the steward of Joseph's house. Gen. xliii. 19. As good stewards of the manifold grace of God. 1 Pet. iv. 10.

2. A person employed in a hotel, or a club, or on board a ship, to provide for the table, superintend the culinary affairs, etc. In naval vessels, the captain's steward, wardroom steward, steerage steward, warrant officers steward, etc., are petty officers who provide for the messes under their charge.

3. A fiscal agent of certain bodies; as, a steward in a Methodist church.

4. In some colleges, an officer who provides food for the students and superintends the kitchen; also, an officer who attends to the accounts of the students.

5. In Scotland, a magistrate appointed by the crown to exercise jurisdiction over royal lands. Erskine. Lord high steward, formerly, the first officer of the crown; afterward, an officer occasionally appointed, as for a coronation, or upon the trial of a peer. [Eng.]

STEWARD Stew"ard, v. t.

Defn: To manage as a steward. [Obs.]

STEWARDESS Stew"ard*ess, n.

Defn: A female steward; specifically, a woman employed in passenger vessels to attend to the wants of female passengers.

STEWARDLY Stew"ard*ly, adv.

Defn: In a manner, or with the care, of a steward. [R.] To be stewardly dispensed, not wastefully spent. Tooker.

STEWARDSHIP Stew"ard*ship, n.

Defn: The office of a steward. Shak.

STEWARTRY Stew"art*ry, n.

1. An overseer or superintendent. [R.] "The stewartry of provisions." Tooke.

2. The office of a steward; stewardship. [R.] Byron.

3. In Scotland, the jurisdiction of a steward; also, the lands under such jurisdiction.

STEWISH Stew"ish, a.

Defn: Suiting a stew, or brothel. Bp. Hall.

STEWPAN Stew"pan`, n.

Defn: A pan used for stewing.

STEWPOT Stew"pot`, n.

Defn: A pot used for stewing.

STEY Stey, n.

Defn: See Stee.

STHENIC Sthen"ic, a. Etym: [Gr. sthénique.] (Med.)

Defn: Strong; active; -- said especially of morbid states attended with excessive action of the heart and blood vessels, and characterized by strength and activity of the muscular and nervous system; as, a sthenic fever. Sthenic theory. See Stimulism (a).

STIACCIATO Sti*ac*cia"to, n. Etym: [It., crushed, flattened.] (Sculp.)

Defn: The lowest relief, -- often used in Italian sculpture of the 15th and 16th centuries.

STIAN Sti"an, n.

Defn: A sty on the eye. See Styan.

STIBBORN Stib"born, a.

Defn: Stubborn. [Obs.] Chaucer.

STIBIAL Stib"i*al, a. Etym: [See Stibium.]

Defn: Like, or having the qualities of, antimony; antimonial.

STIBIALISM Stib"i*al*ism, n. (Med.)

Defn: Antimonial intoxication or poisoning. Dunglison.

STIBIATED Stib"i*a`ted, a. Etym: [NL. stibiatus, from L. stibium antimony.] (Med. Chem.)

Defn: Combined or impregnated with antimony (stibium). Stibiated tartar. See Tartar emetic, under Tartar.

STIBIC Stib"ic, a. (Chem.)

Defn: Antimonic; -- used with reference to certain compounds of antimony.

STIBICONITE Stib"i*co*nite, n. (Min.)

Defn: A native oxide of antimony occurring in masses of a yellow color.

STIBINE Stib"ine, n. (Chem.)

Defn: Antimony hydride, or hydrogen antimonide, a colorless gas produced by the action of nascent hydrogen on antimony. It has a characteristic odor and burns with a characteristic greenish flame. Formerly called also antimoniureted hydrogen.

STIBIOUS Stib"i*ous, a. (Chem.)

Defn: Antimonious. [R.]

STIBIUM Stib"i*um, n. Etym: [L. stibium, stibi, Gr.

1. (Chem.)

Defn: The technical name of antimony.

2. (Min.)

Defn: Stibnite. [Obs.]

STIBNITE Stib"nite, n. (Min.)

Defn: A mineral of a lead-gray color and brilliant metallic luster, occurring in prismatic crystals; sulphide of antimony; -- called also antimony glance, and gray antimony.

STIBONIUM Sti*bo"ni*um, n. (Chem.)

Defn: The hypothetical radical SbH4, analogous to ammonium; -- called also antimonium.

STICCADO Stic*ca"do, n. Etym: [Cf. It. steccato a palisade.] (Mus.)

Defn: An instrument consisting of small bars of wood, flat at the bottom and rounded at the top, and resting on the edges of a kind of open box. They are unequal in size, gradually increasing from the smallest to the largest, and are tuned to the diatonic scale. The tones are produced by striking the pieces of wood with hard balls attached to flexible sticks.

STICH Stich, n. Etym: [Gr. sti`chos a row, line, akin to to go, march, E. sty, v.i.]

1. A verse, of whatever measure or number of feet.

2. A line in the Scriptures; specifically (Hebrew Scriptures), one of the rhythmic lines in the poetical books and passages of the Old Treatment, as written in the oldest Hebrew manuscripts and in the Revised Version of the English Bible.

3. A row, line, or rank of trees.

STICHIC Stich"ic, a. Etym: [Gr. stichiko`s.]

Defn: Of or pertaining to stichs, or lines; consisting of stichs, or lines. [R.]

STICHIDIUM Sti*chid"i*um, n.; pl. Stichida. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr. (Bot.)

Defn: A special podlike or fusiform branch containing tetraspores. It is found in certain red algæ.

STICHOMANCY Stich"o*man`cy, n. Etym: [Gr. -mancy.]

Defn: Divination by lines, or passages of books, taken at hazard.

STICHOMETRICAL Stich`o*met"ric*al, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to stichometry; characterized by stichs, or lines.

STICHOMETRY Stich*om"e*try, n. Etym: [Gr. -metry.]

1. Measurement of books by the number of lines which they contain.

2. Division of the text of a book into lines; especially, the division of the text of books into lines accommodated to the sense, - - a method of writing manuscripts used before punctuation was adopted.

STICHWORT Stich"wort`, n. (Bot.)

Defn: A kind of chickweed (Stellaria Holostea). [Written also stitchwort.]

STICK Stick, n. Etym: [OE. sticke, AS. sticca; akin to stician to stab, prick, pierce, G. stecken a stick, staff, OHG. steccho, Icel. stik a stick. See Stick, v. t..]

1. A small shoot, or branch, separated, as by a cutting, from a tree or shrub; also, any stem or branch of a tree, of any size, cut for fuel or timber. Withered sticks to gather, which might serve Against a winter's day. Milton.

2. Any long and comparatively slender piece of wood, whether in natural form or shaped with tools; a rod; a wand; a staff; as, the stick of a rocket; a walking stick.

3. Anything shaped like a stick; as, a stick of wax.

4. A derogatory expression for a person; one who is inert or stupid; as, an odd stick; a poor stick. [Colloq.]

5. (Print.)

Defn: A composing stick. See under Composing. It is usually a frame of metal, but for posters, handbills, etc., one made of wood is used.

6. A thrust with a pointed instrument; a stab. A stick of eels, twenty-five eels. [Prov. Eng.] -- Stick chimney, a chimney made of sticks laid crosswise, and cemented with clay or mud, as in some log houses. [U.S.] -- Stick insect, (Zoöl.), any one of various species of wingless orthopterous insects of the family Phasmidæ, which have a long round body, resembling a stick in form and color, and long legs, which are often held rigidly in such positions as to make them resemble small twigs. They thus imitate the branches and twigs of the trees on which they live. The common American species is Diapheromera femorata. Some of the Asiatic species are more than a foot long. -- To cut one's stick, or To cut stick, to run away. [Slang] De Quincey.

STICK Stick, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stuck (Obs. Sticked (); p. pr. & vb. n. Sticking.] Etym: [OE. stikien, v.t. & i., combined with steken, whence E. stuck), AS. stician, v.t. & i., and (assumed) stecan, v.t.; akin to OFries. steka, OS. stekan, OHG. stehhan, G. stechen, and to Gr. tij to be sharp. Cf. Distinguish, Etiquette, Extinct, Instigate, Instinct, Prestige, Stake, Steak, Stick, n., Stigma, Stimulate, Sting, Stitch in sewing, Style for or in writing.]

1. To penetrate with a pointed instrument; to pierce; to stab; hence, to kill by piercing; as, to stick a beast. And sticked him with bodkins anon. Chaucer. It was a shame . . . to stick him under the other gentleman's arm while he was redding the fray. Sir W. Scott.

2. To cause to penetrate; to push, thrust, or drive, so as to pierce; as, to stick a needle into one's finger. Thou stickest a dagger in me. Shak.

3. To fasten, attach, or cause to remain, by thrusting in; hence, also, to adorn or deck with things fastened on as by piercing; as, to stick a pin on the sleeve. My shroud of white, stuck all with yew. Shak. The points of spears are stuck within the shield. Dryden.

4. To set; to fix in; as, to stick card teeth.

5. To set with something pointed; as, to stick cards.

6. To fix on a pointed instrument; to impale; as, to stick an apple on a fork.

7. To attach by causing to adhere to the surface; as, to stick on a plaster; to stick a stamp on an envelope; also, to attach in any manner.

8. (Print.)

Defn: To compose; to set, or arrange, in a composing stick; as, to stick type. [Cant]

9. (Joinery)

Defn: To run or plane (moldings) in a machine, in contradistinction to working them by hand. Such moldings are said to be stuck.

10. To cause to stick; to bring to a stand; to pose; to puzzle; as, to stick one with a hard problem. [Colloq.]

11. To impose upon; to compel to pay; sometimes, to cheat. [Slang] To stick out, to cause to project or protrude; to render prominent.

STICK Stick, v. i.

1. To adhere; as, glue sticks to the fingers; paste sticks to the wall. The green caterpillar breedeth in the inward parts of roses not blown, where the dew sticketh. Bacon.

2. To remain where placed; to be fixed; to hold fast to any position so as to be moved with difficulty; to cling; to abide; to cleave; to be united closely. A friend that sticketh closer than a brother. Prov. xviii. 24. I am a kind of bur; I shall stick. Shak. If on your fame our sex a bolt has thrown, 'T will ever stick through malice of your own. Young.

3. To be prevented from going farther; to stop by reason of some obstacle; to be stayed. I had most need of blessing, and "Amen" Stuck in my throat. Shak. The trembling weapon passed Through nine bull hides, . . . and stuck within the last. Dryden.

4. To be embarrassed or puzzled; to hesitate; to be deterred, as by scruples; to scruple; -- often with at. They will stick long at part of a demonstration for want of perceiving the connection of two ideas. Locke. Some stick not to say, that the parson and attorney forged a will. Arbuthnot.

5. To cause difficulties, scruples, or hesitation. This is the difficulty that sticks with the most reasonable. Swift. To stick by. (a) To adhere closely to; to be firm in supporting. "We are your only friends; stick by us, and we will stick by you." Davenant. (b) To be troublesome by adhering. "I am satisfied to trifle away my time, rather than let it stick by me." Pope. -- To stick out. (a) To project; to be prominent. "His bones that were not seen stick out." Job xxxiii. 21. (b) To persevere in a purpose; to hold out; as, the garrison stuck out until relieved. [Colloq.]v.i. to stick it out. -- To stick to, to be persevering in holding to; as, to stick to a party or cause. "The advantage will be on our side if we stick to its essentials." Addison. -- To stick up, to stand erect; as, his hair sticks up. -- To stick up for, to assert and defend; as, to stick up for one's rights or for a friend. [Colloq.] -- To stick upon, to dwell upon; not to forsake. "If the matter be knotty, the mind must stop and buckle to it, and stick upon it with labor and thought." Locke.

STICKED Stick"ed, obs. imp. of Stick.

Defn: Stuck. And in the sand her ship sticked so fast. Chaucer. They sticked not to give their bodies to be burnt. Sir T. Browne.

STICKER Stick"er, n.

1. One who, or that which, sticks; as, a bill sticker.

2. That which causes one to stick; that which puzzles or poses. [Colloq.] Tackeray.

3. (Mus.)

Defn: In the organ, a small wooden rod which connects (in part) a key and a pallet, so as to communicate motion by pushing.

4. Same as Paster, 2. [Political Cant, U.S.]

STICKFUL Stick"ful, n.; pl. Stickfuls (. (Print.)

Defn: As much set type as fills a composing stick.

STICKINESS Stick"i*ness, n.

Defn: The quality of being sticky; as, the stickiness of glue or paste.

STICKING Stick"ing,

Defn: a. & n. from Stick, v. Sticking piece, a piece of beef cut from the neck. [Eng.] -- Sticking place, the place where a thing sticks, or remains fast; sticking point. But screw your courage to the sticking place, And we'll not fail. Shak. -- Sticking plaster, an adhesive plaster for closing wounds, and for similar uses. -- Sticking point. Same as Sticking place, above.

STICKIT Stick"it, a.

Defn: Stuck; spoiled in making. [Scot.] Stickit minister, a candidate for the clerical office who fails, disqualified by incompetency or immorality.

STICK-LAC Stick"-lac`, n.

Defn: See the Note under Lac.

STICKLE Stic"kle, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Stickled; p. pr. & vb. n. Stickling.] Etym: [Probably fr. OE. stightlen, sti, to dispose, arrange, govern, freq. of stihten, AS. stihtan: cf. G. stiften to found, to establish.]

1. To separate combatants by intervening. [Obs.] When he [the angel] sees half of the Christians killed, and the rest in a fair way of being routed, he stickles betwixt the remainder of God's host and the race of fiends. Dryden.

2. To contend, contest, or altercate, esp. in a pertinacious manner on insufficient grounds. Fortune, as she 's wont, turned fickle, And for the foe began to stickle. Hudibras. While for paltry punk they roar and stickle. Dryden. The obstinacy with which he stickles for the wrong. Hazlitt.

3. To play fast and loose; to pass from one side to the other; to trim.

STICKLE Stic"kle, v. t.

1. To separate, as combatants; hence, to quiet, to appease, as disputants. [Obs.] Which [question] violently they pursue, Nor stickled would they be. Drayton.

2. To intervene in; to stop, or put an end to, by intervening; hence, to arbitrate. [Obs.] They ran to him, and, pulling him back by force, stickled that unnatural fray. Sir P. Sidney.

STICKLE Stic"kle, n. Etym: [Cf. stick, v. t. & i.]

Defn: A shallow rapid in a river; also, the current below a waterfall. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.] Patient anglers, standing all the day Near to some shallow stickle or deep bay. W. Browne.

STICKLEBACK Stic"kle*back`, n. Etym: [OE. & Prov E. stickle a prickle, spine, sting (AS. sticel) + back. See Stick, v. t., and cf. Banstickle.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: Any one of numerous species of small fishes of the genus Gasterosteus and allied genera. The back is armed with two or more sharp spines. They inhabit both salt and brackish water, and construct curious nests. Called also sticklebag, sharpling, and prickleback.

STICKLER Stic"kler, n. Etym: [See Stickle, v. t.]

Defn: One who stickles. Specifically: -- (a) One who arbitrates a duel; a sidesman to a fencer; a second; an umpire. [Obs.] Basilius, the judge, appointed sticklers and trumpets whom the others should obey. Sir P. Sidney. Our former chiefs, like sticklers of the war, First sought to inflame the parties, then to poise. Dryden.

(b) One who pertinaciously contends for some trifling things, as a point of etiquette; an unreasonable, obstinate contender; as, a stickler for ceremony. The Tory or High-church were the greatest sticklers against the exorbitant proceedings of King James II. Swift.

STICK-SEED Stick"-seed`, n. (Bot.)

Defn: A plant (Echinospermum Lappula) of the Borage family, with small blue flowers and prickly nutlets.

STICKTAIL Stick"tail`, n.

Defn: The ruddy duck. [Local, U.S.]

STICK-TIGHT Stick"-tight`, n. (Bot.)

Defn: Beggar's ticks.

STICKY Stick"y, a. [Compar. Stickier; superl. Stickiest.]

Defn: Having the quality of sticking to a surface; adhesive; gluey; viscous; viscid; glutinous; tenacious. Herbs which last longest are those of strong smell, and with a sticky stalk. Bacon.

STIDDY Stid"dy, n. Etym: [See Stithy.]

Defn: An anvil; also, a smith shop. See Stithy. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

STIFF Stiff, a. [Compar. Stiffer; superl. Stiffest.] Etym: [OE. stif, AS. stif; akin to D. stijf, G. steif, Dan. stiv, Sw. styf, Icel. stifr, Lith. stipti to be stiff; cf. L. stipes a post, trunk of a tree, stipare to press, compress. Cf. Costive, Stifle, Stipulate, Stive to stuff.]

1. Not easily bent; not flexible or pliant; not limber or flaccid; rigid; firm; as, stiff wood, paper, joints. [They] rising on stiff pennons, tower The mid aërial sky. Milton.

2. Not liquid or fluid; thick and tenacious; inspissated; neither soft nor hard; as, the paste is stiff.

3. Firm; strong; violent; difficult to oppose; as, a stiff gale or breeze.

4. Not easily subdued; unyielding; stubborn; obstinate; pertinacious; as, a stiff adversary. It is a shame to stand stiff in a foolish argument. Jer. Taylor. A war ensues: the Cretans own their cause, Stiff to defend their hospitable laws. Dryden.

5. Not natural and easy; formal; constrained; affected; starched; as, stiff behavior; a stiff style. The French are open, familiar, and talkative; the Italians stiff, ceremonious, and reserved. Addison.

6. Harsh; disagreeable; severe; hard to bear. [Obs. or Colloq.] "This is stiff news." Shak.

7. (Naut.)

Defn: Bearing a press of canvas without careening much; as, a stiff vessel; -- opposed to crank. Totten.

8. Very large, strong, or costly; powerful; as, a stiff charge; a stiff price. [Slang] Stiff neck, a condition of the neck such that the head can not be moved without difficulty and pain.

Syn. -- Rigid; inflexible; strong; hardly; stubborn; obstinate; pertinacious; harsh; formal; constrained; affected; starched; rigorous.

STIFF-BACKED Stiff"-backed`, a.

Defn: Obstinate. J. H. Newman.

STIFFEN Stiff"en, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stiffened; p. pr. & vb. n. Stiffening.] Etym: [See Stiff.]

1. tiono make stiff; to make less pliant or flexible; as, to stiffen cloth with starch. Stiffen the sinews, summon up the blood. Shak.

2. To inspissate; to make more thick or viscous; as, to stiffen paste.

3. To make torpid; to benumb.

STIFFEN Stiff"en, v. i.

Defn: To become stiff or stiffer, in any sense of the adjective. Like bristles rose my stiffening hair. Dryden. The tender soil then stiffening by degrees. Dryden. Some souls we see, Grow hard and stiffen with adversity. Dryden.

STIFFENER Stiff"en*er, n.

Defn: One who, or that which, stiffens anything, as a piece of stiff cloth in a cravat.

STIFFENING Stiff"en*ing, n.

1. Act or process of making stiff.

2. Something used to make anything stiff. Stiffening order (Com.), a permission granted by the customs department to take cargo or ballast on board before the old cargo is out, in order to steady the ship.

STIFF-HEARTED Stiff"-heart`ed, a. Etym: [Stiff + heart.]

Defn: Obstinate; stubborn; contumacious. Ezek. ii. 4.

STIFFISH Stiff"ish, a.

Defn: Somewhat stiff.

STIFFLY Stiff"ly, adv.

Defn: In a stiff manner.

STIFF-NECKED Stiff"-necked`, a.

Defn: Stubborn; inflexibly obstinate; contumacious; as, stiff-necked pride; a stiff-necked people. Ex. xxxii. 9.

STIFF-NECKEDNESS Stiff"-neck`ed*ness, n.

Defn: The quality or state of being stiff-necked; stubbornness.

STIFFNESS Stiff"ness, n.

Defn: The quality or state of being stiff; as, the stiffness of cloth or of paste; stiffness of manner; stiffness of character. The vices of old age have the stiffness of it too. South.

STIFFTAIL Stiff"tail`, n.

Defn: The ruddy duck. [Local, U.S.]

STIFF-TAILED Stiff"-tailed`, a. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Having the quill feathers of the tail somewhat rigid.

STIFLE Sti"fle, n. Etym: [From Stiff.] (Far.)

Defn: The joint next above the hock, and near the flank, in the hind leg of the horse and allied animals; the joint corresponding to the knee in man; -- called also stifle joint. See Illust. under Horse. Stifle bone, a small bone at the stifle joint; the patella, or kneepan.

STIFLE Sti"fle, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stifled; p. pr. & vb. n. Stifling.] Etym: [Freq. of OE. stif stiff; cf. Icel. stifla to dam up.]

1. To stop the breath of by crowding something into the windpipe, or introducing an irrespirable substance into the lungs; to choke; to suffocate; to cause the death of by such means; as, to stifle one with smoke or dust. Stifled with kisses, a sweet death he dies. Dryden. I took my leave, being half stifled with the closeness of the room. Swift.

2. To stop; to extinguish; to deaden; to quench; as, to stifle the breath; to stifle a fire or flame. Bodies . . . stifle in themselves the rays which they do not reflect or transmit. Sir I. Newton.

3. To suppress the manifestation or report of; to smother; to conceal from public knowledge; as, to stifle a story; to stifle passion. I desire only to have things fairly represented as they really are; no evidence smothered or stifled. Waterland.

STIFLE Sti"fle, v. i.

Defn: To die by reason of obstruction of the breath, or because some noxious substance prevents respiration. You shall stifle in your own report. Shak.

STIFLED Sti"fled, a.

Defn: Stifling. The close and stifled study. Hawthorne.

STIFLER Sti"fler, n.

1. One who, or that which, stifles.

2. (Mil.)

Defn: See Camouflet.

STIGMA Stig"ma, n.; pl. E. Stigmas, L. Stigmata. Etym: [L., a mark, a brand, from Gr. Stick, v. t.]

1. A mark made with a burning iron; a brand.

2. Any mark of infamy or disgrace; sign of moral blemish; stain or reproach caused by dishonorable conduct; reproachful characterization. The blackest stigma that can be fastened upon him. Bp. Hall. All such slaughters were from thence called Bartelmies, simply in a perpetual stigma of that butchery. Sir G. Buck.

3. (Bot.)

Defn: That part of a pistil which has no epidermis, and is fitted to receive the pollen. It is usually the terminal portion, and is commonly somewhat glutinous or viscid. See Illust. of Stamen and of Flower.

4. (Anat.)

Defn: A small spot, mark, scar, or a minute hole; -- applied especially to a spot on the outer surface of a Graafian follicle, and to spots of intercellular substance in scaly epithelium, or to minute holes in such spots.

5. (Pathol.)

Defn: A red speck upon the skin, produced either by the extravasation of blood, as in the bloody sweat characteristic of certain varieties of religious ecstasy, or by capillary congestion, as in the case of drunkards.

6. (Zoöl.) (a) One of the external openings of the tracheæ of insects, myriapods, and other arthropods; a spiracle. (b) One of the apertures of the pulmonary sacs of arachnids. See Illust. of Scorpion. (c) One of the apertures of the gill of an ascidian, and of Amphioxus.

7. (Geom.)

Defn: A point so connected by any law whatever with another point, called an index, that as the index moves in any manner in a plane the first point or stigma moves in a determinate way in the same plane.

8. pl. (R. C. Ch.)

Defn: Marks believed to have been supernaturally impressed upon the bodies of certain persons in imitation of the wounds on the crucified body of Christ. See def. 5, above.

STIGMARIA Stig*ma"ri*a, n. Etym: [NL. See Stigma.] (Paleon.)

Defn: The fossil root stem of a coal plant of the genus Sigillaria.

STIGMATA Stig"ma*ta, n.;

Defn: pl. of Stigma.

STIGMATIC Stig*mat"ic, n.

1. A notorious profligate or criminal who has been branded; one who bears the marks of infamy or punishment. [R.] Bullokar.

2. A person who is marked or deformed by nature. Shak.

STIGMATIC; STIGMATICAL Stig*mat"ic, Stig*mat"ic*al, a. Etym: [See Stigma.]

1. Marked with a stigma, or with something reproachful to character.

2. Impressing with infamy or reproach. [R.]

3. (Bot., Anat., etc)

Defn: Of or pertaining to a stigma or stigmata. Stigmatic geometry, or Stigmatics, that science in which the correspondence of index and stigma (see Stigma, 7) is made use of to establish geometrical proportions.

STIGMATICALLY Stig*mat"ic*al*ly, adv.

Defn: With a stigma, or mark of infamy or deformity.

STIGMATIST Stig"ma*tist, n.

Defn: One believed to be supernaturally impressed with the marks of Christ's wounds. See Stigma, 8.

STIGMATIZATION Stig`ma*ti*za"tion, n.

1. The act of stigmatizing.

2. (R. C. Ch.)

Defn: The production of stigmata upon the body. See Stigma, 8.

STIGMATIZE Stig"ma*tize, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stigmatized; p. pr. & vb. n. Stigmatizing.] Etym: [F. stigmatiser, Gr.

1. To mark with a stigma, or brand; as, the ancients stigmatized their slaves and soldiers. That . . . hold out both their ears with such delight and ravishment, to be stigmatized and bored through in witness of their own voluntary and beloved baseness. Milton.

2. To set a mark of disgrace on; to brand with some mark of reproach or infamy. To find virtue extolled and vice stigmatized. Addison.

STIGMATOSE Stig"ma*tose`, a. (Bot.)

Defn: Same as Stigmatic.

STIGONOMANCY Stig"o*no*man`cy, n. Etym: [Gr. -mancy.]

Defn: Divination by writing on the bark of a tree.

STIKE Stike, n. Etym: [See Stich.]

Defn: Stanza. [Obs.] Sackville.

STILAR Sti"lar, a. Etym: [From Stile a style.]

Defn: Of or pertaining to the style of a dial. [Written also stylar.]

STILBENE Stil"bene, n. Etym: [See Stilbite.] (Chem.)

Defn: A hydrocarbon, C14H12, produced artificially in large, fine crystals; -- called also diphenyl ethylene, toluylene, etc.

STILBITE Stil"bite, n. Etym: [Gr. stilbite.] (Min.)

Defn: A common mineral of the zeolite family, a hydrous silicate of alumina and lime, usually occurring in sheaflike aggregations of crystals, also in radiated masses. It is of a white or yellowish color, with pearly luster on the cleavage surface. Called also desmine.

STILE Stile, n. Etym: [See Style.]

1. A pin set on the face of a dial, to cast a shadow; a style. See Style. Moxon.

2. Mode of composition. See Style. [Obs.] May I not write in such a stile as this Bunyan.

STILE Stile, n. Etym: [OE. stile, AS. stigel a step, a ladder, from stigan to ascend; akin to OHG. stigila a stile. *164. See Sty, v. i., and cf. Stair.]

1. A step, or set of steps, for ascending and descending, in passing a fence or wall. There comes my master . . . over the stile, this way. Shak. Over this stile in the way to Doubting Castle. Bunyan.

2. (Arch.)

Defn: One of the upright pieces in a frame; one of the primary members of a frame, into which the secondary members are mortised.

Note: In an ordinary door the principal upright pieces are called stiles, the subordinate upright pieces mullions, and the crosspieces rails. In wainscoting the principal pieces are sometimes called stiles, even when horizontal. Hanging stile, Pulley stile. See under Hanging, and Pulley.

STILET Sti"let, n. Etym: [Written also stilette, and stylet.]

1. A stiletto. [R.]

2. (Surg.)

Defn: See Stylet, 2.

STILETTO Sti*let"to, n.; pl. Stilettos. Etym: [It., dim. of stilo a dagger, fr. L. stilus a pointed instrument. See Style for writing, and cf. Stylet.]

1. A kind of dagger with a slender, rounded, and pointed blade.

2. A pointed instrument for making eyelet holes in embroidery.

3. A beard trimmed into a pointed form. [Obs.] The very quack of fashions, the very he that Wears a stiletto on his chin. Ford.

STILETTO Sti*let"to, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stilettoed; p. pr. & vb. n. Stilettoing.]

Defn: To stab or kill with a stiletto. Bacon.

STILL Still, a. [Compar. Stiller; superl. Stillest.] Etym: [OE. stille, AS. stille; akin to D. stil, OS. & OHG. stilli, G. still, Dan. stille, Sw. stilla, and to E. stall; from the idea of coming to a stand, or halt. Cf. Still, adv.]

1. Motionless; at rest; quiet; as, to stand still; to lie or sit still. "Still as any stone." Chaucer.

2. Uttering no sound; silent; as, the audience is still; the animals are still. The sea that roared at thy command, At thy command was still. Addison.

3. Not disturbed by noise or agitation; quiet; calm; as, a still evening; a still atmosphere. "When all the woods are still." Milton.

4. Comparatively quiet or silent; soft; gentle; low. "A still small voice." 1 Kings xix. 12.

5. Constant; continual. [Obs.] By still practice learn to know thy meaning. Shak.

6. Not effervescing; not sparkling; as, still wines. Still life. (Fine Arts) (a) Inanimate objects. (b) (Painting) The class or style of painting which represents inanimate objects, as fruit, flowers, dead game, etc.

Syn. -- Quiet; calm; noiseless; serene; motionless; inert; stagnant.

STILL Still, n. Etym: [Cf. G. stille.]

1. Freedom from noise; calm; silence; as, the still of midnight. [Poetic]

2. A steep hill or ascent. [Obs.] W. Browne.

STILL Still, adv. Etym: [AS. stille quietly. See Still, a. The modern senses come from the idea of stopping and staying still, or motionless.]

1. To this time; until and during the time now present; now no less than before; yet. It hath been anciently reported, and is still received. Bacon.

2. In the future as now and before. Hourly joys be still upon you! Shak.

3. In continuation by successive or repeated acts; always; ever; constantly; uniformly. The desire of fame betrays an ambitious man into indecencies that lessen his reputation; he is still afraid lest any of his actions should be thrown away in private. Addison. Chemists would be rich if they could still do in great quantities what they have sometimes done in little. Boyle.

4. In an increasing or additional degree; even more; -- much used with comparatives. The guilt being great, the fear doth still exceed. Shak.

5. Notwithstanding what has been said or done; in spite of what has occured; nevertheless; -- sometimes used as a conjunction. See Synonym of But. As sunshine, broken in the rill, Though turned astray, is sunshine still. Moore.

6. After that; after what is stated. In the primitive church, such as by fear being compelled to sacrifice to strange gods, after repented, and kept still the office of preaching the gospel. Whitgift. Still and anon, at intervals and repeatedly; continually; ever and anon; now and then. And like the watchful minutes to the hour, Still and anon cheered up the heavy time. Shak.

STILL Still, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stilled; p. pr. & vb. n. Stilling.] Etym: [AS. stillan, from stille still, quiet, firm. See Still, a.]

1. To stop, as motion or agitation; to cause to become quiet, or comparatively quiet; to check the agitation of; as, to still the raging sea. He having a full sway over the water, had power to still and compose it, as well as to move and disturb it. Woodward.

2. To stop, as noise; to silence. With his name the mothers still their babies. Shak.

3. To appease; to calm; to quiet, as tumult, agitation, or excitement; as, to still the passions. Shak. Toil that would, at least, have stilled an unquiet impulse in me. Hawthorne.

Syn. -- To quiet; calm; allay; lull; pacify; appease; subdue; suppress; silence; stop; check; restrain.

STILL Still, n. Etym: [Cf. OE. stillatorie. See Still, v., to distill.]

1. A vessel, boiler, or copper used in the distillation of liquids; specifically, one used for the distillation of alcoholic liquors; a retort. The name is sometimes applied to the whole apparatus used in in vaporization and condensation.

2. A house where liquors are distilled; a distillery. Still watcher, a device for indicating the progress of distillation by the density of the liquid given over. Knight.

STILL Still, v. t. Etym: [Abbreviated fr. distill.]

1. To cause to fall by drops.

2. To expel spirit from by heat, or to evaporate and condense in a refrigeratory; to distill. Tusser.

STILL Still, v. i. Etym: [L. stillare. Cf. Distill.]

Defn: To drop, or flow in drops; to distill. [Obs.] Spenser.

STILLAGE Stil"lage, n. (Bleaching)

Defn: A low stool to keep the goods from touching the floor. Knight.

STILLATITIOUS Stil`la*ti"tious, a. Etym: [L. stillaticius, fr. stillare to drop, stilla a drop.]

Defn: Falling in drops; drawn by a still.

STILLATORY Stil"la*to*ry, n.; pl. -ries. Etym: [From Still, for distill. Cf. Still, n., and Distillatory, a.]

1. An alembic; a vessel for distillation. [R.] Bacon.

2. A laboratory; a place or room in which distillation is performed. [R.] Dr. H. More. Sir H. Wotton.

STILLBIRTH Still"birth`, n.

Defn: The birth of a dead fetus.

STILLBORN Still"born`, a.

1. Dead at the birth; as, a stillborn child.

2. Fig.: Abortive; as, a stillborn poem. Swift.

STILL-BURN Still"-burn`, v. t. Etym: [imp. & p. p. still-burnt or Still-burned (; p. pr. & vb. n. Still-burning.]

Defn: To burn in the process of distillation; as, to still-burn brandy.

STILL-CLOSING Still"-clos"ing, a.

Defn: Ever closing. [Obs.] "Still-clothing waters." Shak.

STILLER Still"er, n.

Defn: One who stills, or quiets.

STILLHOUSE Still"house`, n.

Defn: A house in which distillation is carried on; a distillery.

STILL-HUNT Still"-hunt`, n.

Defn: A hunting for game in a quiet and cautious manner, or under cover; stalking; hence, colloquially, the pursuit of any object quietly and cautiously. -- Still"-hunt`er, n. -- Still"-hunt`ing, n. [U.S.]

STILLICIDE Stil"li*cide, n. Etym: [L. stillicidium; stilla a drop + cadere to fall.]

Defn: A continual falling or succession of drops; rain water falling from the eaves. Bacon.

STILLICIDIOUS Stil`li*cid"i*ous, a.

Defn: Falling in drops. [Obs.]

STILLIFORM Stil"li*form, a. Etym: [L. stilla a drop + -form.]

Defn: Having the form of a drop. Owen.

STILLING Still"ing, n. Etym: [Cf. LG. stelling, G. stellen to set, to place.]

Defn: A stillion. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.]

STILLION Stil"lion, n. Etym: [See Stilling.]

Defn: A stand, as for casks or vats in a brewery, or for pottery while drying.

STILLNESS Still"ness, n.

1. The quality or state of being still; quietness; silence; calmness; inactivity. Painting, then, was the art demanded by the modern intellect upon its emergence from the stillness of the Middle Ages. J. A. Symonds.

2. Habitual silence or quiet; taciturnity. The gravity and stillness of your youth The world hath noted. Shak.

STILLROOM Still"room`, n.

1. A room for distilling.

2. An apartment in a house where liquors, preserves, and the like, are kept. [Eng.] Floors are rubbed bright, . . . stillroom and kitchen cleared for action. Dickens.

STILLSON WRENCH Still"son wrench.

Defn: A pipe wrench having an adjustable L-shaped jaw piece sliding in a sleeve that is pivoted to, and loosely embraces, the handle. Pressure on the handle increases the grip.

STILLSTAND Still"stand`, n.

Defn: A standstill. [R.] Shak.

STILLY Still"y, a.

Defn: Still; quiet; calm. The stilly hour when storms are gone. Moore.

STILLY Stil"ly, adv.

Defn: In a still manner; quietly; silently; softly. Dr. H. More. The hum of either army stilly sounds. Shak.

STILPNOMELANE Stilp*nom"e*lane, n. Etym: [Gr. stilpno`s shining + me`las, -anos, black.] (Min.)

Defn: A black or greenish black mineral occurring in foliated flates, also in velvety bronze-colored incrustations. It is a hydrous silicate of iron and alumina.

STILT Stilt, n. Etym: [OE. stilte; akin to Dan. stylte, Sw. stylta, LG. & D. stelt, OHG. stelza, G. stelze, and perh. to E. stout.]

1. A pole, or piece of wood, constructed with a step or loop to raise the foot above the ground in walking. It is sometimes lashed to the leg, and sometimes prolonged upward so as to be steadied by the hand or arm. Ambition is but avarice on stilts, and masked. Landor.

2. A crutch; also, the handle of a plow. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

3. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Any species of limicoline birds belonging to Himantopus and allied genera, in which the legs are remarkably long and slender. Called also longshanks, stiltbird, stilt plover, and lawyer.

Note: The American species (Himantopus Mexicanus) is well known. The European and Asiatic stilt (H. candidus) is usually white, except the wings and interscapulars, which are greenish black. The white-headed stilt (H. leucocephalus) and the banded stilt (Cladorhynchus pectoralis) are found in Australia. Stilt plover (Zoöl.), the stilt. -- Stilt sandpiper (Zoöl.), an American sandpiper (Micropalama himantopus) having long legs. The bill is somewhat expanded at the tip.

STILT Stilt, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stilted; p. pr. & vb. n. Stilting.]

Defn: To raise on stilts, or as if on stilts.

STILTBIRD Stilt"bird`, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: See Stilt, n., 3.

STILTED Stilt"ed, a.

Defn: Elevated as if on stilts; hence, pompous; bombastic; as, a stilted style; stilted declamation. Stilted arch (Arch.), an arch in which the springing line is some distance above the impost, the space between being occupied by a vertical member, molded or ornamented, as a continuation of the archivolt, intrados, etc.

STILTIFY Stilt"i*fy, v. t. Etym: [Stilt + -fy.]

Defn: To raise upon stilts, or as upon stilts; to stilt.

STILTON CHEESE; STILTON Stil"ton cheese", or Stil"ton, n.

Defn: A peculiarly flavored unpressed cheese made from milk with cream added; -- so called from the village or parish of Stilton, England, where it was originally made. It is very rich in fat.

Thus, in the outset he was gastronomic; discussed the dinner from the soup to the stilton. C. Lever.

STILTY Stilt"y, a.

Defn: Unreasonably elevated; pompous; stilted; as, a stilty style.

STIME Stime, n. Etym: [Etymology uncertain.]

Defn: A slight gleam or glimmer; a glimpse. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

STIMEY; STIMIE Sti"mey, Sti"mie, n. & v. t.

Defn: See Stymie.

STIMULANT Stim"u*lant, a. Etym: [L. stimulans, p.pr.; cf. F. stimulant. See Stimulate.]

1. Serving to stimulate.

2. (Physiol.)

Defn: Produced increased vital action in the organism, or in any of its parts.

STIMULANT Stim"u*lant, n. Etym: [Cf. F. stimulant.]

1. That which stimulates, provokes, or excites. His feelings had been exasperated by the constant application of stimulants. Macaulay.

2. (Physiol. & Med.)

Defn: An agent which produces a temporary increase of vital activity in the organism, or in any of its parts; -- sometimes used without qualification to signify an alcoholic beverage used as a stimulant.

STIMULATE Stim"u*late, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stimulated; p. pr. & vb. n. Stimulating.] Etym: [L. stimulatus, p.p. of stimulare to prick or goad on, to incite, fr. stimulus a goad. See Stimulus.]

1. To excite as if with a goad; to excite, rouse, or animate, to action or more vigorous exertion by some pungent motive or by persuasion; as, to stimulate one by the hope of reward, or by the prospect of glory. To excite and stimulate us thereunto. Dr. J. Scott.

2. (Physiol.)

Defn: To excite; to irritate; especially, to excite the activity of (a nerve or an irritable muscle), as by electricity.

Syn. -- To animate; incite; encourage; impel; urge; instigate; irritate; exasperate; incense.

STIMULATION Stim`u*la"tion, n. Etym: [L. stimulatio: cf. F. stimulation.]

1. The act of stimulating, or the state of being stimulated.

2. (Physiol.)

Defn: The irritating action of various agents (stimuli) on muscles, nerves, or a sensory end organ, by which activity is evoked; especially, the nervous impulse produced by various agents on nerves, or a sensory end organ, by which the part connected with the nerve is thrown into a state of activity; irritation.

STIMULATIVE Stim"u*la*tive, a.

Defn: Having the quality of stimulating. -- n.

Defn: That which stimulates.

STIMULATOR Stim"u*la`tor, n. Etym: [L.: cf. F. stimulateur.]

Defn: One who stimulates.

STIMULATRESS Stim"u*la`tress, n.

Defn: A woman who stimulates.

STIMULISM Stim"u*lism, n. (Med.) (a) The theory of medical practice which regarded life as dependent upon stimulation, or excitation, and disease as caused by excess or deficiency in the amount of stimulation. (b) The practice of treating disease by alcoholic stimulants. Dr. H. Hartshorne.

STIMULUS Stim"u*lus, n.; pl. Stimuli. Etym: [L., for stigmulus, akin to L. instigare to stimulate. See Instigare, Stick, v. t.]

1. A goad; hence, something that rouses the mind or spirits; an incentive; as, the hope of gain is a powerful stimulus to labor and action.

2. That which excites or produces a temporary increase of vital action, either in the whole organism or in any of its parts; especially (Physiol.), any substance or agent capable of evoking the activity of a nerve or irritable muscle, or capable of producing an impression upon a sensory organ or more particularly upon its specific end organ.

Note: Of the stimuli applied to the sensory apparatus, physiologists distinguish two kinds: (a) Homologous stimuli, which act only upon the end organ, and for whose action the sense organs are especially adapted, as the rods and cones of the retina for the vibrations of the either. (b) Heterologous stimuli, which are mechanical, chemical, electrical, etc., and act upon the nervous elements of the sensory apparatus along their entire course, producing, for example, the flash of light beheld when the eye is struck. Landois & Stirling.

STING Sting, n. Etym: [AS. sting a sting. See Sting, v. t.]

1. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Any sharp organ of offense and defense, especially when connected with a poison gland, and adapted to inflict a wound by piercing; as the caudal sting of a scorpion. The sting of a bee or wasp is a modified ovipositor. The caudal sting, or spine, of a sting ray is a modified dorsal fin ray. The term is sometimes applied to the fang of a serpent. See Illust. of Scorpion.

2. (Bot.)

Defn: A sharp-pointed hollow hair seated on a gland which secrets an acrid fluid, as in nettles. The points of these hairs usually break off in the wound, and the acrid fluid is pressed into it.

3. Anything that gives acute pain, bodily or mental; as, the stings of remorse; the stings of reproach. The sting of death is sin. 1 Cor. xv. 56.

4. The thrust of a sting into the flesh; the act of stinging; a wound inflicted by stinging. "The lurking serpent's mortal sting." Shak.

5. A goad; incitement. Shak.

6. The point of an epigram or other sarcastic saying. Sting moth (Zoöl.), an Australian moth (Doratifera vulnerans) whose larva is armed, at each end of the body, with four tubercles bearing powerful stinging organs. -- Sting ray. (Zoöl.) See under 6th Ray. -- Sting winkle (Zoöl.), a spinose marine univalve shell of the genus Murex, as the European species (Murex erinaceus). See Illust. of Murex.

STING Sting, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stung (Archaic Stang (); p. pr. & vb. n. Stinging.] Etym: [AS. stingan; akin to Icel. & Sw. stinga, Dan. stinge, and probably to E. stick, v.t.; cf. Goth. usstiggan to put out, pluck out. Cf. Stick, v. t.]

1. To pierce or wound with a sting; as, bees will sting an animal that irritates them; the nettles stung his hands.

2. To pain acutely; as, the conscience is stung with remorse; to bite. "Slander stings the brave." Pope.

3. To goad; to incite, as by taunts or reproaches.

STINGAREE Sting`a*ree", n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Any sting ray. See under 6th Ray.

STINGBULL Sting"bull`, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The European greater weever fish (Trachinus draco), which is capable of inflicting severe wounds with the spinous rays of its dorsal fin. See Weever.

STINGER Sting"er, n.

Defn: One who, or that which, stings. Professor E. Forbes states that only a small minority of the medusæ of our seas are stingers. Owen.

STINGFISH Sting"fish`, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The weever.

STINGILY Stin"gi*ly, adv.

Defn: In a stingy manner.

STINGINESS Stin"gi*ness, n.

Defn: The quality or state of being stingy.

STINGING Sting"ing, a.

Defn: Piercing, or capable of piercing, with a sting; inflicting acute pain as if with a sting, goad, or pointed weapon; pungent; biting; as, stinging cold; a stinging rebuke. -- Sting"ing*ly, adv. Stinging cell. (Zoöl.) Same as Lasso cell, under Lasso.

STINGLESS Sting"less, a.

Defn: Having no sting.

STINGO Stin"go, n. Etym: [From Sting.]

Defn: Old beer; sharp or strong liquor. [Old Slang] Shall I set a cup of old stingo at your elbow Addison.

STING RAY; STINGRAY Sting ray or Sting"ray`, n.

Defn: Any one of numerous rays of the family Dasyatidæ, syn. Trygonidæ, having one or more large sharp barbed dorsal spines, on the whiplike tail, capable of inflicting severe wounds. Some species reach a large size, and some, esp., on the American Pacific coast, are very destructive to oysters.

STINGTAIL Sting"tail`, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A sting ray.

STINGY Sting"y, a.

Defn: Stinging; able to sting.

STINGY Stin"gy, a. [Compar. Stingier; superl. Stingiest.] Etym: [Probably from sting, and meaning originally, stinging; hence, biting, nipping (of the wind), churlish, avaricious; or cf. E. skinch.]

Defn: Extremely close and covetous; meanly avaricious; niggardly; miserly; penurious; as, a stingy churl. A stingy, narrow-hearted fellow that had a deal of choice fruit, had not the heart to touch it till it began to be rotten. L'estrange.

STINK Stink, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Stunk, Stank (, p. pr. & vb. n. Stinking.] Etym: [AS. stinkan to have a smell (whether good or bad); akin to OHG. stinchan, G. & D. stinken to stink; of uncertain origin; cf. Icel. stökkva to leap, to spring, Goth. stigqan to push, strike, or Gr. Stench.]

Defn: To emit a strong, offensive smell; to send out a disgusting odor.

STINK Stink, v. t.

Defn: To cause to stink; to affect by a stink.

STINK Stink, n. Etym: [AS. stinc.]

Defn: A strong, offensive smell; a disgusting odor; a stench. Fire stink. See under Fire. -- Stink-fire lance. See under Lance. -- Stink rat (Zoöl.), the musk turtle. [Local, U.S.] -- Stink shad (Zoöl.), the gizzard shad. [Local, U.S.] Stink trap, a stench trap. See under Stench.

STINKARD Stink"ard, n.

1. A mean, stinking, paltry fellow. B. Jonson.

2. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The teledu of the East Indies. It emits a disagreeable odor.

STINKBALL Stink"ball`, n.

Defn: A composition of substances which in combustion emit a suffocating odor; -- used formerly in naval warfare.

STINKER Stink"er, n.

1. One who, or that which, stinks.

2. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Any one of the several species of large antarctic petrels which feed on blubber and carrion and have an offensive odor, as the giant fulmar.

STINKHORN Stink"horn`, n. (Bot.)

Defn: A kind of fungus of the genus Phallus, which emits a fetid odor.

STINKING Stink"ing, a. & n.

Defn: from Stink, v. Stinking badger (Zoöl.), the teledu. -- Stinking cedar (Bot.), the California nutmeg tree; also, a related tree of Florida (Torreya taxifolia).

STINKINGLY Stink"ing*ly, adv.

Defn: In a stinking manner; with an offensive smell.

STINKPOT Stink"pot`, n.

1. An earthen jar charged with powder, grenades, and other materials of an offensive and suffocating smell, -- sometimes used in boarding an enemy's vessel.

2. A vessel in which disinfectants are burned.

3. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The musk turtle, or musk tortoise. See under Musk.

STINKSTONE Stink"stone`, n. (Min.)

Defn: One of the varieties of calcite, barite, and feldspar, which emit a fetid odor on being struck; -- called also swinestone.

STINKWEED Stink"weed`, n. (Bot.)

Defn: Stramonium. See Jamestown weed, and Datura.

STINKWOOD Stink"wood`, n. (Bot.)

Defn: A name given to several kinds of wood with an unpleasant smell, as that of the Foetidia Mauritiana of the Mauritius, and that of the South African Ocotea bullata.

STINT Stint, n. (Zoöl.) (a) Any one of several species of small sandpipers, as the sanderling of Europe and America, the dunlin, the little stint of India (Tringa minuta), etc. Called also pume. (b) A phalarope.

STINT Stint, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stinted; p. pr. & vb. n. Stinting.] Etym: [OE. stinten, stenten, stunten, to cause to cease, AS. styntan (in comp.) to blunt, dull, fr. stunt dull, stupid; akin to Icel. stytta to shorten, stuttr short, dial, Sw. stynta to shorten, stunt short. Cf. Stent, Stunt.]

1. To restrain within certain limits; to bound; to confine; to restrain; to restrict to a scant allowance. I shall not go about to extenuate the latitude of the curse upon the earth, or stint it only to the production of weeds. Woodward. She stints them in their meals. Law.

2. To put an end to; to stop. [Obs.] Shak.

3. To assign a certain (i. e., limited) task to (a person), upon the performance of which one is excused from further labor for the day or for a certain time; to stent.

4. To serve successfully; to get with foal; -- said of mares. The majority of maiden mares will become stinted while at work. J. H. Walsh.

STINT Stint, v. i.

Defn: To stop; to cease. [Archaic] They can not stint till no thing be left. Chaucer. And stint thou too, I pray thee. Shak. The damsel stinted in her song. Sir W. Scott.

STINT Stint, n. Etym: [Also written stent. See Stint, v. t.]

1. Limit; bound; restraint; extent. God has wrote upon no created thing the utmost stint of his power. South.

2. Quantity or task assigned; proportion allotted. His old stint -- three thousand pounds a year. Cowper.

STINTANCE Stint"ance, n.

Defn: Restraint; stoppage. [Obs.]

STINTEDNESS Stint"ed*ness, n.

Defn: The state of being stinted.

STINTER Stint"er, n.

Defn: One who, or that which, stints.

STINTLESS Stint"less, a.

Defn: Without stint or restraint. The stintlesstears of old Heraclitus. Marston.

STIPE Stipe, n. Etym: [L. stipes a stock, post, branch: cf. F. stipe.] (Bot.) (a) The stalk or petiole of a frond, as of a fern. (b) The stalk of a pistil. (c) The trunk of a tree. (d) The stem of a fungus or mushroom.

STIPEL Sti"pel, n. Etym: [See Stipule.] (Bot.)

Defn: The stipule of a leaflet. Gray.

STIPELLATE Sti*pel"late, a. (Bot.)

Defn: Having stipels.

STIPEND Sti"pend, n. Etym: [L. stipendium; stips, gen. stipis, a gift, donation, given in small coin + pendere to weigh or pay out.]

Defn: Settled pay or compensation for services, whether paid daily, monthly, or annually.

STIPEND Sti"pend, v. t.

Defn: To pay by settled wages. [R.]

STIPENDIARIAN Sti*pen`di*a"ri*an, a.

Defn: Acting from mercenary considerations; stipendiary. A. Seward.

STIPENDIARY Sti*pen"di*a*ry, a. Etym: [L. stipendiarius: cf. F. stipendiaire.]

Defn: Receiving wages, or salary; performing services for a stated price or compensation. His great stipendiary prelates came with troops of evil-appointed horseman not half full. Knolles.

STIPENDIARY Sti*pen"di*a*ry, n.; pl. Stipendiaries (.

Defn: One who receives a stipend. If thou art become A tyrant's vile stipendiary. Glover.

STIPENDIATE Sti*pen"di*ate, v. t. Etym: [L. stipendiatus, p.p. of stipendiari to receive pay.]

Defn: To provide with a stipend, or salary; to support; to pay. Evelyn. It is good to endow colleges, and to found chairs, and to stipendiate professors. I. Taylor.

STIPENDLESS Sti"pend*less (sti"pênd*lês), a.

Defn: Having no stipend.

STIPES Sti"pes (-pez), n.; pl. Stipites. Etym: [L., a stock.] (Zoöl.) (a) The second joint of a maxilla of an insect or a crustacean. (b) An eyestalk.

STIPITATE Stip"i*tate, a. Etym: [NL. stipitatus, from L. stipes, gen. stipitis, a stock. See Stipe.] (Bot.)

Defn: Supported by a stipe; elevated on a stipe, as the fronds of most ferns, or the pod of certain cruciferous plants.

STIPITIFORM Stip"i*ti*form, a. Etym: [Stipes + -form.] (Bot.)

Defn: Having the shape of a stalk; stalklike.

STIPPLE Stip"ple, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stippled; p. pr. & vb. n. Stippling.] Etym: [D. stippelen to make points, to spot, dot, from stippel, dim. of stip a dot, spot.]

1. To engrave by means of dots, in distinction from engraving in lines. The interlaying of small pieces can not altogether avoid a broken, stippled, spotty effect. Milman.

2. To paint, as in water colors, by small, short touches which together produce an even or softly graded surface.

STIPPLE; STIPPLING Stip"ple, Stip"pling, n. (Engraving)

Defn: A mode of execution which produces the effect by dots or small points instead of lines.

2. (Paint.)

Defn: A mode of execution in which a flat or even tint is produced by many small touches.

STIPTIC Stip"tic, a. & n. (Med.)

Defn: See Styptic.

STIPULA Stip"u*la, n.; pl. E. Stipulas, L. Stipulæ. Etym: [L., a stalk, stem.]

1. (Bot.)

Defn: A stipule.

2. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A newly sprouted feather.

STIPULACEOUS; STIPULAR Stip`u*la"ceous, Stip"u*lar, a. Etym: [Cf. F. stipulacé, stipulaire. See Stipula.] (Bot.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to stipules; resembling stipules; furnished with stipules; growing on stipules, or close to them; occupying the position of stipules; as, stipular glands and stipular tendrils.

STIPULARY Stip"u*la*ry, a. (Bot.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to stipules; stipular.

STIPULATE Stip"u*late, a. (Bot.)

Defn: Furnished with stipules; as, a stipulate leaf.

STIPULATE Stip"u*late, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Stipulated; p. pr. & vb. n. Stipulating.] Etym: [L. stipulatus, p.p. of stipulari to stipulate, fr. OL. stipulus firm, fast; probably akin to L. stipes a post. Cf. Stiff.]

Defn: To make an agreement or covenant with any person or company to do or forbear anything; to bargain; to contract; to settle terms; as, certain princes stipulated to assist each other in resisting the armies of France.

STIPULATION Stip`u*la"tion, n. Etym: [L. stipulatio: cf. F. stipulation.]

1. The act of stipulating; a contracting or bargaining; an agreement.

2. That which is stipulated, or agreed upon; that which is definitely arranged or contracted; an agreement; a covenant; a contract or bargain; also, any particular article, item, or condition, in a mutual agreement; as, the stipulations of the allied powers to furnish each his contingent of troops.

3. (Law)

Defn: A material article of an agreement; an undertaking in the nature of bail taken in the admiralty courts; a bargain. Bouvier. Wharton.

Syn. -- Agreement; contract; engagement. See Covenant.

STIPULATION Stip`u*la"tion, n. Etym: [See Stipule.] (Bot.)

Defn: The situation, arrangement, and structure of the stipules.

STIPULATOR Stip"u*la`tor, n. Etym: [L.]

Defn: One who stipulates, contracts, or covenants.

STIPULE Stip"ule, n. Etym: [L. stipula a stalk, stem, straw: cf. F. stipule. Cf. Stubble.] (Bot.)

Defn: An appendage at the base of petioles or leaves, usually somewhat resembling a small leaf in texture and appearance.

STIPULED Stip"uled, a. (Bot.)

Defn: Furnished with stipules, or leafy appendages.

STIR Stir, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stirred; p. pr. & vb. n. Stirring.] Etym: [OE. stiren, steren, sturen, AS. styrian; probably akin to D. storen to disturb, G. stören, OHG. storen to scatter, destroy. *166.]

1. To change the place of in any manner; to move. My foot I had never yet in five days been able to stir. Sir W. Temple.

2. To disturb the relative position of the particles of, as of a liquid, by passing something through it; to agitate; as, to stir a pudding with a spoon. My mind is troubled, like a fountain stirred. Shak.

3. To bring into debate; to agitate; to moot. Stir not questions of jurisdiction. Bacon.

4. To incite to action; to arouse; to instigate; to prompt; to excite. "To stir men to devotion." Chaucer. An Ate, stirring him to blood and strife. Shak. And for her sake some mutiny will stir. Dryden.

Note: In all senses except the first, stir is often followed by up with an intensive effect; as, to stir up fire; to stir up sedition.

Syn. -- To move; incite; awaken; rouse; animate; stimulate; excite; provoke.

STIR Stir, v. i.

1. To move; to change one's position. I had not power to stir or strive, But felt that I was still alive. Byron.

2. To be in motion; to be active or bustling; to exert or busy one's self. All are not fit with them to stir and toil. Byron. The friends of the unfortunate exile, far from resenting his unjust suspicions, were stirring anxiously in his behalf. Merivale.

3. To become the object of notice; to be on foot. They fancy they have a right to talk freely upon everything that stirs or appears. I. Watts.

4. To rise, or be up, in the morning. [Colloq.] Shak.

STIR Stir, n.

1. The act or result of stirring; agitation; tumult; bustle; noise or various movements. Why all these words, this clamor, and this stir Denham. Consider, after so much stir about genus and species, how few words we have yet settled definitions of. Locke.

2. Public disturbance or commotion; tumultuous disorder; seditious uproar. Being advertised of some stirs raised by his unnatural sons in England. Sir J. Davies.

3. Agitation of thoughts; conflicting passions.

STIRABOUT Stir"a*bout`, n.

Defn: A dish formed of oatmeal boiled in water to a certain consistency and frequently stirred, or of oatmeal and dripping mixed together and stirred about in a pan; a hasty pudding.

STIRIATED Stir"i*a`ted, a. Etym: [L. stiria an icicle.]

Defn: Adorned with pendants like icicles.

STIRIOUS Stir"i*ous, a. Etym: [L. stiria an icicle.]

Defn: Resembling icicles. [Obs.] Sir T. Browne.

STIRK Stirk, n. Etym: [AS. stric, from steór a steer. See Steer a young ox.]

Defn: A young bullock or heifer. [Prov. Eng. & Scot.] Sir W. Scott.

STIRLESS Stir"less, a.

Defn: Without stirring; very quiet; motionless. "Lying helpless and stirless." Hare.

STIRP Stirp, n. Etym: [L. stirps, stirpis.]

Defn: Stock; race; family. [Obs.] Bacon.

STIRPICULTURE Stir"pi*cul`ture, n. Etym: [L. stirps, stirpis, stem, stock, race + cultura culture.]

Defn: The breeding of special stocks or races.

STIRPS Stirps, n.; pl. Stirpes. Etym: [L., stem, stock.]

1. (Law)

Defn: Stock; race; family. Blackstone.

2. (Bot.)

Defn: A race, or a fixed and permanent variety.

STIRRAGE Stir"rage, n.

Defn: The act of stirring; stir; commotion. [Obs.] T. Granger.

STIRRER Stir"rer, n.

Defn: One who, or that which, stirs something; also, one who moves about, especially after sleep; as, an early stirrer. Shak. Stirrer up, an instigator or inciter. Atterbury.

STIRRING Stir"ring, a.

Defn: Putting in motion, or being in motion; active; active in business; habitually employed in some kind of business; accustomed to a busy life. A more stirring and intellectual age than any which had gone before it. Southey.

Syn. -- Animating; arousing; awakening; stimulating; quickening; exciting.

STIRRUP Stir"rup, n. Etym: [OE. stirop, AS. stigrap; stigan to mount, ascend + rap a rope; akin to G. stegreif a stirrup. *164. See Sty, v. i., and Rope.]

1. A kind of ring, or bent piece of metal, wood, leather, or the like, horizontal in one part for receiving the foot of a rider, and attached by a strap to the saddle, -- used to assist a person in mounting a horse, and to enable him to sit steadily in riding, as well as to relieve him by supporting a part of the weight of the body. Our host upon his stirpoes stood anon. Chaucer.

2. (Carp. & Mach.)

Defn: Any piece resembling in shape the stirrup of a saddle, and used as a support, clamp, etc. See Bridle iron.

3. (Naut.)

Defn: A rope secured to a yard, with a thimble in its lower end for supporting a footrope. Totten. Stirrup bone (Anat.), the stapes. -- Stirrup cup, a parting cup taken after mounting. -- Stirrup iron, an iron stirrup. -- Stirrup leather, or Stirrup strap, the strap which attaches a stirrup to the saddle. See Stirrup, 1.

STIRT Stirt, obs. p. p. of Start, v. i.

Defn: Started; leaped. They privily be stirt into a well. Chaucer.

STIRTE Stir"te, obs.

Defn: imp. of Start, v. i. & t. Chaucer.

STITCH Stitch, n. Etym: [OE. stiche, AS. stice a pricking, akin to stician to prick. See Stick, v. i.]

1. A single pass of a needle in sewing; the loop or turn of the thread thus made.

2. A single turn of the thread round a needle in knitting; a link, or loop, of yarn; as, to let down, or drop, a stitch; to take up a stitch.

3. Etym: [Cf. OE. sticche, stecche, stucche, a piece, AS. stycce. Cf. Stock.]

Defn: A space of work taken up, or gone over, in a single pass of the needle; hence, by extension, any space passed over; distance. You have gone a good stitch. Bunyan. In Syria the husbandmen go lightly over with their plow, and take no deep stitch in making their furrows. Holland.

4. A local sharp pain; an acute pain, like the piercing of a needle; as, a stitch in the side. He was taken with a cold and with stitches, which was, indeed, a pleurisy. Bp. Burnet.

5. A contortion, or twist. [Obs.] If you talk, Or pull your face into a stitch again, I shall be angry. Marston.

6. Any least part of a fabric or dress; as, to wet every stitch of clothes. [Colloq.]

7. A furrow. Chapman. Chain stitch, Lock stitch. See in the Vocabulary. -- Pearl, or Purl stitch. See 2nd Purl, 2.

STITCH Stitch, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stitched; p. pr. & vb. n. Stitching.]

1. To form stitches in; especially, to sew in such a manner as to show on the surface a continuous line of stitches; as, to stitch a shirt bosom.

2. To sew, or unite together by stitches; as, to stitch printed sheets in making a book or a pamphlet.

3. (Agric.)

Defn: To form land into ridges. To stitch up, to mend or unite with a needle and thread; as, to stitch up a rent; to stitch up an artery.

STITCH Stitch, v. i.

Defn: To practice stitching, or needlework.

STITCHEL Stitch"el, n.

Defn: A kind of hairy wool. [Prov.]

STITCHER Stitch"er, n.

Defn: One who stitches; a seamstress.

STITCHERY Stitch"er*y, n.

Defn: Needlework; -- in comtempt. Shak.

STITCHING Stitch"ing, n.

1. The act of one who stitches.

2. Work done by sewing, esp. when a continuous line of stitches is shown on the surface; stitches, collectively.

STITCHWORT Stitch"wort`, n. (Bot.)

Defn: See Stichwort.

STITH Stith, a. Etym: [AS. sti.]

Defn: Strong; stiff; rigid. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.]

STITH Stith, n. Etym: [Icel. ste an anvil, akin to sta place. See Stead.]

Defn: An anvil; a stithy. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.] He invented also pincers, hammers, iron crows, and the anvil, or stith. Holland.

STITHY Stith"y, n. Etym: [See Stith, and cf. Stiddy.]

1. An anvil. Sir W. Scott.

2. A smith's shop; a smithy; a smithery; a forge. "As foul as Vulcan's stithy." Shak.

STITHY Stith"y, v. t.

Defn: To forge on an anvil. The forge that stithied Mars his helm. Shak.

STIVE Stive, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stived; p. pr. & vb. n. Stiving.] Etym: [Probably fr. F. estiver to compress, stow, L. stipare: cf. It. stivare, Sp. estivar. Cf. Stevedore, Stiff.]

Defn: To stuff; to crowd; to fill full; hence, to make hot and close; to render stifling. Sandys. His chamber was commonly stived with friends or suitors of one kind or other. Sir H. Wotton.

STIVE Stive, v. i.

Defn: To be stifled or suffocated.

STIVE Stive, n.

Defn: The floating dust in flour mills caused by the operation or grinding. De Colange.

STIVER Sti"ver, n. Etym: [D. stuiver; akin to G. stüber, Dan. styver, Sw. styfver.]

Defn: A Dutch coin, and money of account, of the value of two cents, or about one penny sterling; hence, figuratively, anything of little worth.

STIVES Stives, n. pl. Etym: [OE. See Stew.]

Defn: Stews; a brothel. [Obs.] Chaucer.

STOAK Stoak, v. t. Etym: [Cf. G. stocken.] (Naut.)

Defn: To stop; to choke.

STOAT Stoat, n. Etym: [OE. stot a stoat, horse, bullock; perhaps originally only of male animals, and akin to D. stooten to push, E. stutter; cf. Icel. st a bull, Sw. stut a bullock. Cf. Stot.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: The ermine in its summer pelage, when it is reddish brown, but with a black tip to the tail. The name is sometimes applied also to other brown weasels.

STOCAH Sto"cah, n. Etym: [Ir. & Gael. stocach an idle fellow who lives on the industry of others, a lounger.]

Defn: A menial attendant. [Obs.] Spenser.

STOCCADE Stoc*cade", n. & v.

Defn: See Stockade.

STOCCADO Stoc*ca"do, n. Etym: [F. estocade, fr. Sp. estocada, or It. stoccata, from Sp. estoque, or It. stocco, a rapier, fr. G. stock a stick. See Stock.]

Defn: A stab; a thrust with a rapier. Shak.

STOCHASTIC Sto*chas"tic, a. Etym: [Gr.

Defn: Conjectural; able to conjecture. [Obs.] Whitefoot.

STOCK Stock, n. Etym: [AS. stocc a stock, trunk, stick; akin to D. stok, G. stock, OHG. stoc, Icel. stokkr, Sw. stock, Dan. stok, and AS. stycce a piece; cf. Skr. tuj to urge, thrust. Cf. Stokker, Stucco, and Tuck a rapier.]

1. The stem, or main body, of a tree or plant; the fixed, strong, firm part; the trunk. Though the root thereof wax old in the earth, and the stock thereof die in the ground, yet through the scent of water it will bud, and bring forth boughs like a plant. Job xiv. 8,9.

2. The stem or branch in which a graft is inserted. The scion overruleth the stock quite. Bacon.

3. A block of wood; something fixed and solid; a pillar; a firm support; a post. All our fathers worshiped stocks and stones. Milton. Item, for a stock of brass for the holy water, seven shillings; which, by the canon, must be of marble or metal, and in no case of brick. Fuller.

4. Hence, a person who is as dull and lifeless as a stock or post; one who has little sense. Let's be no stoics, nor no stocks. Shak.

5. The principal supporting part; the part in which others are inserted, or to which they are attached. Specifically: -- (a) The wood to which the barrel, lock, etc., of a musket or like firearm are secured; also, a long, rectangular piece of wood, which is an important part of several forms of gun carriage. (b) The handle or contrivance by which bits are held in boring; a bitstock; a brace. (c) (Joinery) The block of wood or metal frame which constitutes the body of a plane, and in which the plane iron is fitted; a plane stock. (d) (Naut.) The wooden or iron crosspiece to which the shank of an anchor is attached. See Illust. of Anchor. (e) The support of the block in which an anvil is fixed, or of the anvil itself. (f) A handle or wrench forming a holder for the dies for cutting screws; a diestock. (g) The part of a tally formerly struck in the exchequer, which was delivered to the person who had lent the king money on account, as the evidence of indebtedness. See Counterfoil. [Eng.]

6. The original progenitor; also, the race or line of a family; the progenitor of a family and his direct descendants; lineage; family. And stand betwixt them made, when, severally, All told their stock. Chapman. Thy mother was no goddess, nor thy stock From Dardanus. Denham.

7. Money or capital which an individual or a firm employs in business; fund; in the United States, the capital of a bank or other company, in the form of transferable shares, each of a certain amount; money funded in government securities, called also the public funds; in the plural, property consisting of shares in joint-stock companies, or in the obligations of a government for its funded debt; -- so in the United States, but in England the latter only are called stocks, and the former shares.

8. (Bookkeeping)

Defn: Same as Stock account, below.

9. Supply provided; store; accumulation; especially, a merchant's or manufacturer's store of goods; as, to lay in a stock of provisions. Add to that stock which justly we bestow. Dryden.

10. (Agric.)

Defn: Domestic animals or beasts collectively, used or raised on a farm; as, a stock of cattle or of sheep, etc.; -- called also live stock.

11. (Card Playing)

Defn: That portion of a pack of cards not distributed to the players at the beginning of certain games, as gleek, etc., but which might be drawn from afterward as occasion required; a bank. I must buy the stock; send me good cardings. Beau. & Fl.

12. A thrust with a rapier; a stoccado. [Obs.]

13. Etym: [Cf. Stocking.]

Defn: A covering for the leg, or leg and foot; as, upper stocks (breeches); nether stocks (stockings). [Obs.] With a linen stock on one leg. Shak.

14. A kind of stiff, wide band or cravat for the neck; as, a silk stock.

15. pl.

Defn: A frame of timber, with holes in which the feet, or the feet and hands, of criminals were formerly confined by way of punishment. He shall rest in my stocks. Piers Plowman.

16. pl. (Shipbuilding)

Defn: The frame or timbers on which a ship rests while building.

17. pl.

Defn: Red and gray bricks, used for the exterior of walls and the front of buildings. [Eng.]

18. (Bot.)

Defn: Any cruciferous plant of the genus Matthiola; as, common stock (Matthiola incana) (see Gilly-flower); ten-weeks stock (M. annua).

19. (Geol.)

Defn: An irregular metalliferous mass filling a large cavity in a rock formation, as a stock of lead ore deposited in limestone.

20. A race or variety in a species.

21. (Biol.)

Defn: In tectology, an aggregate or colony of persons (see Person), as trees, chains of salpæ, etc.

22. The beater of a fulling mill. Knight.

23. (Cookery)

Defn: A liquid or jelly containing the juices and soluble parts of meat, and certain vegetables, etc., extracted by cooking; -- used in making soup, gravy, etc. Bit stock. See Bitstock. -- Dead stock (Agric.), the implements of husbandry, and produce stored up for use; -- in distinction from live stock, or the domestic animals on the farm. See def. 10, above. -- Head stock. See Headstock. -- Paper stock, rags and other material of which paper is made. -- Stock account (Bookkeeping), an account on a merchant's ledger, one side of which shows the original capital, or stock, and the additions thereto by accumulation or contribution, the other side showing the amounts withdrawn. -- Stock car, a railway car for carrying cattle. -- Stock company (Com.), an incorporated company the capital of which is represented by marketable shares having a certain equal par value. -- Stock duck (Zoöl.), the mallard. -- Stock exchange. (a) The building or place where stocks are bought and sold; stock market; hence, transactions of all kinds in stocks. (b) An association or body of stockbrokers who meet and transact business by certain recognized forms, regulations, and usages. Wharton. Brande & C. -- Stock farmer, a farmer who makes it his business to rear live stock. -- Stock gillyflower (Bot.), the common stock. See Stock, n., 18. -- Stock gold, gold laid up so as to form a stock, or hoard. -- Stock in trade, the goods kept for sale by a shopkeeper; the fittings and appliances of a workman. Simmonds. -- Stock list, a list of stocks, or shares, dealt in, of transactions, and of prices. -- Stock lock, a lock inclosed in a wooden case and attached to the face of a door. -- Stock market. (a) A place where stocks are bought and sold; the stock exchange. (b) A market for live stock. -- Stock pigeon. (Zoöl.) Same as Stockdove. -- Stock purse. (a) A common purse, as distinguished from a private purse. (b) (Mil.) Moneys saved out of the expenses of a company or regiment, and applied to objects of common interest. [Eng.] -- Stock shave, a tool used by blockmakers. -- Stock station, a place or district for rearing stock. [Australia] W. Howitt. -- Stock tackle (Naut.), a tackle used when the anchor is hoisted and secured, to keep its stock clear of the ship's sides. Totten. -- Stock taking, an examination and inventory made of goods or stock in a shop or warehouse; -- usually made periodically. -- Tail stock. See Tailstock. -- To have something on the stock, to be at work at something. -- To take stock, to take account of stock; to make an inventory of stock or goods on hand. Dickens. -- To take stock in. (a) To subscribe for, or purchase, shares in a stock company. (b) To put faith in; to accept as trustworthy; as, to take stock in a person's fidelity. [Slang] -- To take stock of, to take account of the stock of; to take an inventory of; hence, to ascertain the facts in regard to (something). [Eng.] At the outset of any inquiry it is proper to take stock of the results obtained by previous explorers of the same field. Leslie Stephen.

Syn. -- Fund; capital; store; supply; accumulation; hoard; provision.

STOCK Stock, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stocked; p. pr. & vb. n. Stocking.]

1. To lay up; to put aside for future use; to store, as merchandise, and the like.

2. To provide with material requisites; to store; to fill; to supply; as, to stock a warehouse, that is, to fill it with goods; to stock a farm, that is, to supply it with cattle and tools; to stock land, that is, to occupy it with a permanent growth, especially of grass.

3. To suffer to retain milk for twenty-four hours or more previous to sale, as cows.

4. To put in the stocks. [R.] Shak. To stock an anchor (Naut.), to fit it with a stock, or to fasten the stock firmly in place. -- To stock cards (Card Playing), to arrange cards in a certain manner for cheating purposes. [Cant] -- To stock down (Agric.), to sow, as plowed land, with grass seed, in order that it may become swarded, and produce grass. -- To stock up, to extirpate; to dig up.

STOCK Stock, a.

Defn: Used or employed for constant service or application, as if constituting a portion of a stock or supply; standard; permanent; standing; as, a stock actor; a stock play; a stock sermon. "A stock charge against Raleigh." C. Kingsley. Stock company (Theater), a company of actors regularly employed at one theater, or permanently acting together in various plays under one management.

STOCKADE Stock*ade", n. Etym: [F. estacade stockade, boom (confused in French with estocade; see 1st Stoccado); fr. It. steccata a palisade (influenced by OF. estach, estaque, a stake, post), or from Sp. estacada a palisade; both of German origin, and akin to E. stake, stick; cf. G. stecken stick, OHG. steccho. See Stake, n., Stick, n. & v. t., and cf. Estacade, Stacket.]

1. (Mil.)

Defn: A line of stout posts or timbers set firmly in the earth in contact with each other (and usually with loopholes) to form a barrier, or defensive fortification. [Written also stoccade.]

2. An inclosure, or pen, made with posts and stakes.

STOCKADE Stock*ade", v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stockaded; p. pr. & vb. n. Stockading.]

Defn: To surround, fortify, or protect with a stockade.

STOCK-BLIND Stock"-blind`, a.

Defn: Blind as a stock; wholly blind.

STOCKBROKER Stock"bro`ker, n.

Defn: A broker who deals in stocks.

STOCKDOVE Stock"dove`, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A common European wild pigeon (Columba ænas), so called because at one time believed to be the stock of the domestic pigeon, or, according to some, from its breeding in the stocks, or trunks, of trees.

Note: The name is applied, also, to other related species, as the Indian stockdove (Palumbæna Eversmanni).

STOCKER Stock"er, n.

Defn: One who makes or fits stocks, as of guns or gun carriages, etc.

STOCKFISH Stock"fish`, n. Etym: [Cf. D. stokvisch.]

1. Salted and dried fish, especially codfish, hake, ling, and torsk; also, codfish dried without being salted.

2. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Young fresh cod.

STOCKHOLDER Stock"hold`er, n.

Defn: One who is a holder or proprietor of stock in the public funds, or in the funds of a bank or other stock company.

STOCKINET Stock`i*net", n.

Defn: An elastic textile fabric imitating knitting, of which stockings, under-garments, etc., are made.

STOCKING Stock"ing, n. Etym: [From Stock, which was formerly used of a covering for the legs and feet, combining breeches, or upper stocks, and stockings, or nether stocks.]

Defn: A close-fitting covering for the foot and leg, usually knit or woven. Blue stocking. See Bluestocking. -- Stocking frame, a machine for knitting stockings or other hosiery goods.

STOCKING Stock"ing, v. t.

Defn: To dress in GBs. Dryden.

STOCKINGER Stock"ing*er, n.

Defn: A stocking weaver.

STOCKISH Stock"ish, a.

Defn: Like a stock; stupid; blockish. Since naught so stockish, hard, and full of rage, But music for the time doth change his nature. Shak.

STOCKJOBBER Stock"job`ber, n. Etym: [Stock + job.]

Defn: One who speculates in stocks for gain; one whose occupation is to buy and sell stocks. In England a jobber acts as an intermediary between brokers.

STOCKJOBBING Stock"job`bing, n.

Defn: The act or art of dealing in stocks; the business of a stockjobber.

STOCKMAN Stock"man, n.; pl. Stockmen (.

Defn: A herdsman; a ranchman; one owning, or having charge of, herds of live stock. [Australia & U.S.] W. Howitt.

STOCK-STILL Stock"-still`, a. Etym: [CF. G. stock-still.]

Defn: Still as a stock, or fixed post; perfectly still. His whole work stands stock-still. Sterne.

STOCKWORK Stock"work`, n. Etym: [G. stockwerk.]

1. (Mining)

Defn: A system of working in ore, etc., when it lies not in strata or veins, but in solid masses, so as to be worked in chambers or stories.

2. (Geol.)

Defn: A metalliferous deposit characterized by the impregnation of the mass of rock with many small veins or nests irregularly grouped. This kind of deposit is especially common with tin ore. Such deposits are worked in floors or stories.

STOCKY Stock"y, a. Etym: [From Stock.]

1. Short and thick; thick rather than tall or corpulent. Addison. Stocky, twisted, hunchback stems. Mrs. H. H. Jackson.

2. Headstrong. [Prov. Eng.] G. Eliot.

STODGY Stodg"y, a.

Defn: Wet. [Prov. Eng.] G. Eliot.

STOECHIOLOGY; STOECHIOMETRY Stoech`i*ol"o*gy, n., Stoech`i*om"e*try (, n., etc.

Defn: See Stoichiology, Stoichiometry, etc.

STOGY Sto"gy, a. [Etym. uncertain. Cf. Stocky.]

Defn: heavy; coarse; clumsy. [Colloq.]

STOGY Sto"gy, n.; pl. Stogies. [Written also stogie.] [Colloq.]

1. A stout, coarse boot or shoe; a brogan.

2. A kind of cheap, but not necessary inferior, cigar made in the form of a cylindrical roll.

STOIC Sto"ic, n. Etym: [L. stoicus, Gr.

1. A disciple of the philosopher Zeno; one of a Greek sect which held that men should be free from passion, unmoved by joy or grief, and should submit without complaint to unavoidable necessity, by which all things are governed.

2. Hence, a person not easily excited; an apathetic person; one who is apparently or professedly indifferent to pleasure or pain. A Stoic of the woods, a man without a tear. Campbell. School of Stoics. See The Porch, under Porch.

STOIC; STOICAL Sto"ic, Sto"ic*al, a. Etym: [L. stoicus, Gr. stoïque. See Stoic, n.]

1. Of or pertaining to the Stoics; resembling the Stoics or their doctrines.

2. Not affected by passion; manifesting indifference to pleasure or pain. -- Sto"ic*al*ly, adv. -- Sto"ic*al*ness, n.

STOICHIOLOGICAL Stoi`chi*o*log"ic*al, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to stoichiology.

STOICHIOLOGY Stoi`chi*ol"o*gy, n. Etym: [Gr. -logy.] [Written also stoechiology.]

1. That part of the science of physiology which treats of the elements, or principles, composing animal tissues.

2. (Logic)

Defn: The doctrine of the elementary requisites of mere thought. Sir W. Hamilton.

3. The statement or discussion of the first principles of any science or art.

STOICHIOMETRIC; STOICHIOMETRICAL Stoi`chi*o*met"ric, Stoi`chi*o*met"ric*al, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to stoichiometry; employed in, or obtained by, stoichiometry.

STOICHIOMETRY Stoi`chi*om"e*try, n. Etym: [Gr. -metry.]

Defn: The art or process of calculating the atomic proportions, combining weights, and other numerical relations of chemical elements and their compounds.

STOICISM Sto"i*cism, n. Etym: [Cf. F. stoïcisme.]

1. The opinions and maxims of the Stoics.

2. A real or pretended indifference to pleasure or pain; insensibility; impassiveness.

STOICITY Sto*ic"i*ty, n.

Defn: Stoicism. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

STOKE Stoke, v. t. Etym: [OE. stoken, fr. D. stoken, fr. stok a stick (cf. OF. estoquier to thrust, stab; of Teutonic origin, and akin to D. stok). See Stock.]

1. To stick; to thrust; to stab. [Obs.] Nor short sword for to stoke, with point biting. Chaucer.

2. To poke or stir up, as a fire; hence, to tend, as the fire of a furnace, boiler, etc.

STOKE Stoke, v. i.

Defn: To poke or stir up a fire; hence, to tend the fires of furnaces, steamers, etc.

STOKEHOLD Stoke"hold`, n. (Naut.)

Defn: The space, or any of the spaces, in front of the boilers of a ship, from which the furnaces are fed; the stokehole of a ship; also, a room containing a ship's boilers; as, forced draft with closed stokehold; -- called also, in American ships, fireroom.

STOKEHOLE Stoke"hole`, n.

Defn: The mouth to the grate of a furnace; also, the space in front of the furnace, where the stokers stand.

STOKER Stok"er, n. Etym: [D. See Stoke, v. t.]

1. One who is employed to tend a furnace and supply it with fuel, especially the furnace of a locomotive or of a marine steam boiler; also, a machine for feeding fuel to a fire.

2. A fire poker. [R.] C. Richardson (Dict.).

STOKEY Sto"key, a.

Defn: Close; sultry. [Prov. Eng.]

STOLA Sto"la, n.; pl. Stolæ. Etym: [L. See Stole a garment.] (Rom. Antiq.)

Defn: A long garment, descending to the ankles, worn by Roman women. The stola was not allowed to be worn by courtesans, or by women who had been divorced from their husbands. Fairholt.

STOLE Stole,

Defn: imp. of Steal.

STOLE Stole, n. Etym: [L. stolo, -onis.] (Bot.)

Defn: A stolon.

STOLE Stole, n. Etym: [AS. stole, L. stola, Gr. stall. See Stall.]

1. A long, loose garment reaching to the feet. Spenser. But when mild morn, in saffron stole, First issues from her eastern goal. T. Warton.

2. (Eccl.)

Defn: A narrow band of silk or stuff, sometimes enriched with embroidery and jewels, worn on the left shoulder of deacons, and across both shoulders of bishops and priests, pendent on each side nearly to the ground. At Mass, it is worn crossed on the breast by priests. It is used in various sacred functions. Groom of the stole, the first lord of the bedchamber in the royal household. [Eng.] Brande & C.

STOLED Stoled, a.

Defn: Having or wearing a stole. After them flew the prophets, brightly stoled In shining lawn. G. Fletcher.

STOLEN Stol"en,

Defn: p. p. of Steal.

STOLID Stol"id, a. Etym: [L. stolidus.]

Defn: Hopelessly insensible or stupid; not easily aroused or excited; dull; impassive; foolish.

STOLIDITY Sto*lid"i*ty, n. Etym: [L. stoliditas.]

Defn: The state or quality of being stolid; dullness of intellect; obtuseness; stupidity. Indocile, intractable fools, whose stolidity can baffle all arguments, and be proof against demonstration itself. Bentley.

STOLIDNESS Stol"id*ness, n.

Defn: Same as Stolidity.

STOLON Sto"lon, n. Etym: [L. stolo, -onis: cf. F. stolon. Cf. Stole a stolon, 1st Stool.]

1. (Bot.)

Defn: A trailing branch which is disposed to take root at the end or at the joints; a stole.

2. (Zoöl.)

Defn: An extension of the integument of the body, or of the body wall, from which buds are developed, giving rise to new zooids, and thus forming a compound animal in which the zooids usually remain united by the stolons. Such stolons are often present in Anthozoa, Hydroidea, Bryozoa, and social ascidians. See Illust. under Scyphistoma.

STOLONIFEROUS Stol`o*nif"er*ous, a. Etym: [Stolon + -ferous: cf. F. stolonifère.]

Defn: Producing stolons; putting forth suckers.

STOMA Sto"ma, n.; pl. Stomata. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr.

1. (Anat.)

Defn: One of the minute apertures between the cells in many serous membranes.

2. (Bot.) (a) The minute breathing pores of leaves or other organs opening into the intercellular spaces, and usually bordered by two contractile cells. (b) The line of dehiscence of the sporangium of a fern. It is usually marked by two transversely elongated cells. See Illust. of Sporangium.

3. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A stigma. See Stigma, n., 6 (a) & (b).

STOMACH Stom"ach, n. Etym: [OE. stomak, F. estomac, L. stomachus, fr. Gr. sto`machos stomach, throat, gullet, fr. sto`ma a mouth, any outlet or entrance.]

1. (Anat.)

Defn: An enlargement, or series of enlargements, in the anterior part of the alimentary canal, in which food is digested; any cavity in which digestion takes place in an animal; a digestive cavity. See Digestion, and Gastric juice, under Gastric.

2. The desire for food caused by hunger; appetite; as, a good stomach for roast beef. Shak.

3. Hence appetite in general; inclination; desire. He which hath no stomach to this fight, Let him depart. Shak.

4. Violence of temper; anger; sullenness; resentment; willful obstinacy; stubbornness. [Obs.] Stern was his look, and full of stomach vain. Spenser. This sort of crying proceeding from pride, obstinacy, and stomach, the will, where the fault lies, must be bent. Locke.

5. Pride; haughtiness; arrogance. [Obs.] He was a man Of an unbounded stomach. Shak. Stomach pump (Med.), a small pump or syringe with a flexible tube, for drawing liquids from the stomach, or for injecting them into it. -- Stomach tube (Med.), a long flexible tube for introduction into the stomach. -- Stomach worm (Zoöl.), the common roundworm (Ascaris lumbricoides) found in the human intestine, and rarely in the stomach.

STOMACH Stom"ach, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stomached; p. pr. & vb. n. Stomaching.] Etym: [Cf. L. stomachari, v.t. & i., to be angry or vexed at a thing.]

1. To resent; to remember with anger; to dislike. Shak. The lion began to show his teeth, and to stomach the affront. L'Estrange. The Parliament sit in that body . . . to be his counselors and dictators, though he stomach it. Milton.

2. To bear without repugnance; to brook. [Colloq.]

STOMACH Stom"ach, v. i.

Defn: To be angry. [Obs.] Hooker.

STOMACHAL Stom"ach*al, a. Etym: [Cf. F. stomacal.]

1. Of or pertaining to the stomach; gastric.

2. Helping the stomach; stomachic; cordial.

STOMACHAL Stom"ach*al, n.

Defn: A stomachic. Dunglison.

STOMACHER Stom"ach*er, n.

1. One who stomachs.

2. (

Defn: An ornamental covering for the breast, worn originally both by men and women. Those worn by women were often richly decorated. A stately lady in a diamond stomacher. Johnson.

STOMACHFUL Stom"ach*ful, a.

Defn: Willfully obstinate; stubborn; perverse. [Obs.] -- Stom"ach*ful*ly, adv. [Obs.] -- Stom"ach*ful*ness, n. [Obs.]

STOMACHIC; STOMACHICAL Sto*mach"ic, Sto*mach"ic*al, a. Etym: [L. stomachicus, Gr. stomachique.]

1. Of or pertaining to the stomach; as, stomachic vessels.

2. Strengthening to the stomach; exciting the action of the stomach; stomachal; cordial.

STOMACHIC Sto*mach"ic, n. (Med.)

Defn: A medicine that strengthens the stomach and excites its action.

STOMACHING Stom"ach*ing, n.

Defn: Resentment. [Obs.]

STOMACHLESS Stom"ach*less, a.

1. Being without a stomach.

2. Having no appetite. [R.] Bp. Hall.

STOMACHOUS Stom"ach*ous, a. Etym: [L. stomachosus angry, peexish. See Stomach.]

Defn: Stout; sullen; obstinate. [Obs.] With stern looks and stomachous disdain. Spenser.

STOMACHY Stom"ach*y, a.

Defn: Obstinate; sullen; haughty. A little, bold, solemn, stomachy man, a great professor of piety. R. L. Stevenson.

STOMAPOD Sto"ma*pod, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: One of the Stomapoda.

STOMAPODA Sto*map"o*da, n. pl. Etym: [NL. See Stoma, and -poda.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: An order of Crustacea including the squillas. The maxillipeds are leglike in form, and the large claws are comblike. They have a large and elongated abdomen, which contains a part of the stomach and heart; the abdominal appendages are large, and bear the gills. Called also Gastrula, Stomatopoda, and Squilloidea.

STOMATE Sto"mate, n. (Bot.)

Defn: A stoma.

STOMATIC Sto*mat"ic, a. (Bot.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to a stoma; of the nature of a stoma.

STOMATIC Sto*mat"ic, n. Etym: [Gr. sto`ma, -atos, mouth.] (Med.)

Defn: A medicine for diseases of the mouth. Dunglison.

STOMATIFEROUS Stom`a*tif"er*ous, a. Etym: [Gr. sto`ma, -atos mouth + -ferous.]

Defn: Having or producing stomata.

STOMATITIS Stom`a*ti"tis, n. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr. sto`ma, -atos, mouth + -itis.] (Med.)

Defn: Inflammation of the mouth.

STOMATODA Stom`a*to"da, n. pl. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A division of Protozoa in which a mouthlike opening exists.

STOMATODAEUM Stom`a*to*dæ"um, n. (Anat.)

Defn: Same as Stomodæum.

STOMATODE Stom"a*tode, a. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Having a mouth; -- applied to certain Protozoa. -- n.

Defn: One of the Stomatoda.

STOMATOGASTRIC Stom`a*to*gas"tric, a. Etym: [Gr. gastric.]

Defn: Of or pertaining to the mouth and the stomach; as, the stomatogastric ganglion of certain Mollusca.

STOMATOLOGY Sto`ma*tol"o*gy, n. [Gr. , , mouth + -logy.] (Med.)

Defn: Scientific study or knowledge of the mouth.

STOMATOPLASTIC Stom`a*to*plas"tic, a. Etym: [Gr. -plastic.] (Med.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to the operation of forming a mouth where the aperture has been contracted, or in any way deformed.

STOMATOPLASTY Stom"a*to*plas`ty, n. [Gr. , , mouth + -plasty.]

Defn: Plastic surgery of the mouth.

STOMATOPOD Stom"a*to*pod, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: One of the Stomatopoda.

STOMATOPODA Stom`a*top"o*da, n. pl. Etym: [NL. See Stoma, and -pod.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: Same as Stomapoda.

STOMATOPODOUS Stom`a*top"o*dous, a. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to the Stomatopoda.

STOMATOSCOPE Stom"a*to*scope, n. Etym: [Gr. -scope.] (Med.)

Defn: An apparatus for examining the interior of the mouth.

STOMATOUS Stom"a*tous, a.

Defn: Having a stoma.

STOMODAEUM Stom`o*dæ"um, n. Etym: [NL., from Gr.

1. (Anat.)

Defn: A part of the alimentary canal. See under Mesenteron.

2. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The primitive mouth and esophagus of the embryo of annelids and arthropods.

STOMP Stomp, v. i. Etym: [See Stamp.]

Defn: To stamp with the foot. [Colloq.] "In gallant procession, the priests mean to stomp." R. Browning.

STOND Stond, n. Etym: [For stand.]

1. Stop; halt; hindrance. [Obs.] Bacon.

2. A stand; a post; a station. [Obs.] Spenser.

STOND Stond, v. i.

Defn: To stand. [Obs.] Chaucer.

STONE Stone, n. Etym: [OE. ston, stan, AS. stan; akin to OS. & OFries. sten, D. steen, G. stein, Icel. steinn, Sw. sten, Dan. steen, Goth. stains, Russ. stiena a wall, Gr. Steen.]

1. Concreted earthy or mineral matter; also, any particular mass of such matter; as, a house built of stone; the boy threw a stone; pebbles are rounded stones. "Dumb as a stone." Chaucer. They had brick for stone, and slime . . . for mortar. Gen. xi. 3.

Note: In popular language, very large masses of stone are called rocks; small masses are called stones; and the finer kinds, gravel, or sand, or grains of sand. Stone is much and widely used in the construction of buildings of all kinds, for walls, fences, piers, abutments, arches, monuments, sculpture, and the like.

2. A precious stone; a gem. "Many a rich stone." Chaucer. "Inestimable stones, unvalued jewels." Shak.

3. Something made of stone. Specifically: - (a) The glass of a mirror; a mirror. [Obs.] Lend me a looking-glass; If that her breath will mist or stain the stone, Why, then she lives. Shak.

(b) A monument to the dead; a gravestone. Gray. Should some relenting eye Glance on the where our cold relics lie. Pope.

4. (Med.)

Defn: A calculous concretion, especially one in the kidneys or bladder; the disease arising from a calculus.

5. One of the testes; a testicle. Shak.

6. (Bot.)

Defn: The hard endocarp of drupes; as, the stone of a cherry or peach. See Illust. of Endocarp.

7. A weight which legally is fourteen pounds, but in practice varies with the article weighed. [Eng.]

Note: The stone of butchers' meat or fish is reckoned at 8 lbs.; of cheese, 16 lbs.; of hemp, 32 lbs.; of glass, 5 lbs.

8. Fig.: Symbol of hardness and insensibility; torpidness; insensibility; as, a heart of stone. I have not yet forgot myself to stone. Pope.

9. (Print.)

Defn: A stand or table with a smooth, flat top of stone, commonly marble, on which to arrange the pages of a book, newspaper, etc., before printing; -- called also imposing stone.

Note: Stone is used adjectively or in composition with other words to denote made of stone, containing a stone or stones, employed on stone, or, more generally, of or pertaining to stone or stones; as, stone fruit, or stone-fruit; stone-hammer, or stone hammer; stone falcon, or stone-falcon. Compounded with some adjectives it denotes a degree of the quality expressed by the adjective equal to that possessed by a stone; as, stone-dead, stone-blind, stone-cold, stone- still, etc. Atlantic stone, ivory. [Obs.] "Citron tables, or Atlantic stone." Milton. -- Bowing stone. Same as Cromlech. Encyc. Brit. -- Meteoric stones, stones which fall from the atmosphere, as after the explosion of a meteor. -- Philosopher's stone. See under Philosopher. -- Rocking stone. See Rocking-stone. -- Stone age, a supposed prehistoric age of the world when stone and bone were habitually used as the materials for weapons and tools; -- called also flint age. The bronze age succeeded to this. -- Stone bass (Zoöl.), any one of several species of marine food fishes of the genus Serranus and allied genera, as Serranus Couchii, and Polyprion cernium of Europe; -- called also sea perch. -- Stone biter (Zoöl.), the wolf fish. -- Stone boiling, a method of boiling water or milk by dropping hot stones into it, -- in use among savages. Tylor. -- Stone borer (Zoöl.), any animal that bores stones; especially, one of certain bivalve mollusks which burrow in limestone. See Lithodomus, and Saxicava. -- Stone bramble (Bot.), a European trailing species of bramble (Rubus saxatilis). -- Stone-break. Etym: [Cf. G. steinbrech.] (Bot.) Any plant of the genus Saxifraga; saxifrage. -- Stone bruise, a sore spot on the bottom of the foot, from a bruise by a stone. -- Stone canal. (Zoöl.) Same as Sand canal, under Sand. -- Stone cat (Zoöl.), any one of several species of small fresh- water North American catfishes of the genus Noturus. They have sharp pectoral spines with which they inflict painful wounds. -- Stone coal, hard coal; mineral coal; anthracite coal. -- Stone coral (Zoöl.), any hard calcareous coral. -- Stone crab. (Zoöl.) (a) A large crab (Menippe mercenaria) found on the southern coast of the United States and much used as food. (b) A European spider crab (Lithodes maia). Stone crawfish (Zoöl.), a European crawfish (Astacus torrentium), by many writers considered only a variety of the common species (A. fluviatilis). -- Stone curlew. (Zoöl.) (a) A large plover found in Europe (Edicnemus crepitans). It frequents stony places. Called also thick- kneed plover or bustard, and thick-knee. (b) The whimbrel. [Prov. Eng.] (c) The willet. [Local, U.S.] -- Stone crush. Same as Stone bruise, above. -- Stone eater. (Zoöl.) Same as Stone borer, above. -- Stone falcon (Zoöl.), the merlin. -- Stone fern (Bot.), a European fern (Asplenium Ceterach) which grows on rocks and walls. -- Stone fly (Zoöl.), any one of many species of pseudoneuropterous insects of the genus Perla and allied genera; a perlid. They are often used by anglers for bait. The larvæ are aquatic. -- Stone fruit (Bot.), any fruit with a stony endocarp; a drupe, as a peach, plum, or cherry. -- Stone grig (Zoöl.), the mud lamprey, or pride. -- Stone hammer, a hammer formed with a face at one end, and a thick, blunt edge, parallel with the handle, at the other, -- used for breaking stone. -- Stone hawk (Zoöl.), the merlin; -- so called from its habit of sitting on bare stones. -- Stone jar, a jar made of stoneware. -- Stone lily (Paleon.), a fossil crinoid. -- Stone lugger. (Zoöl.) See Stone roller, below. -- Stone marten (Zoöl.), a European marten (Mustela foina) allied to the pine marten, but having a white throat; -- called also beech marten. -- Stone mason, a mason who works or builds in stone. -- Stone-mortar (Mil.), a kind of large mortar formerly used in sieges for throwing a mass of small stones short distances. -- Stone oil, rock oil, petroleum. -- Stone parsley (Bot.), an umbelliferous plant (Seseli Labanotis). See under Parsley. -- Stone pine. (Bot.) A nut pine. See the Note under Pine, and Piñon. -- Stone pit, a quarry where stones are dug. -- Stone pitch, hard, inspissated pitch. -- Stone plover. (Zoöl.) (a) The European stone curlew. (b) Any one of several species of Asiatic plovers of the genus Esacus; as, the large stone plover (E. recurvirostris). (c) The gray or black-bellied plover. [Prov. Eng.] (d) The ringed plover. (e) The bar-tailed godwit. [Prov. Eng.] Also applied to other species of limicoline birds. -- Stone roller. (Zoöl.) (a) An American fresh-water fish (Catostomus nigricans) of the Sucker family. Its color is yellowish olive, often with dark blotches. Called also stone lugger, stone toter, hog sucker, hog mullet. (b) A common American cyprinoid fish (Campostoma anomalum); -- called also stone lugger. -- Stone's cast, or Stone's throw, the distance to which a stone may be thrown by the hand. -- Stone snipe (Zoöl.), the greater yellowlegs, or tattler. [Local, U.S.] -- Stone toter. (Zoöl.) (a) See Stone roller (a), above. (b) A cyprinoid fish (Exoglossum maxillingua) found in the rivers from Virginia to New York. It has a three-lobed lower lip; -- called also cutlips. -- To leave no stone unturned, to do everything that can be done; to use all practicable means to effect an object.

STONE Stone, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stoned; p. pr. & vb. n. Stoning.] Etym: [From Stone, n.: cf. AS. st, Goth. stainjan.]

1. To pelt, beat, or kill with stones. And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. Acts vii. 59.

2. To make like stone; to harden. O perjured woman! thou dost stone my heart. Shak.

3. To free from stones; also, to remove the seeds of; as, to stone a field; to stone cherries; to stone raisins.

4. To wall or face with stones; to line or fortify with stones; as, to stone a well; to stone a cellar.

5. To rub, scour, or sharpen with a stone.

STONEBIRD Stone"bird`, n.

Defn: The yellowlegs; -- called also stone snipe. See Tattler, 2. [Local, U.S.]

STONE-BLIND Stone"-blind`, a.

Defn: As blind as a stone; completely blind.

STONEBOW Stone"bow`, n.

Defn: A kind of crossbow formerly used for shooting stones. Shak.

STONEBRASH Stone"brash`, n.

Defn: A subsoil made up of small stones or finely-broken rock; brash.

STONEBREARER Stone"brear`er, n.

Defn: A machine for crushing or hammering stone. Knight.

STONEBUCK Stone"buck`, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: See Steinbock.

STONECHAT Stone"chat`, n. Etym: [Stone + chat.] Etym: [So called from the similarity of its alarm note to the clicking together of two pebbles.] (Zoöl.) (a) A small, active, and very common European singing bird (Pratincola rubicola); -- called also chickstone, stonechacker, stonechatter, stoneclink, stonesmith. (b) The wheatear. (c) The blue titmouse.

Note: The name is sometimes applied to various species of Saxicola, Pratincola, and allied genera; as, the pied stonechat of India (Saxicola picata).

STONE-COLD Stone"-cold`, a.

Defn: Cold as a stone. Stone-cold without, within burnt with love's flame. Fairfax.

STONECRAY Stone"cray`, n. Etym: [Stone + F. craie chalk, L. creta.]

Defn: A distemper in hawks.

STONECROP Stone"crop`, n. Etym: [AS. stancropp.]

1. A sort of tree. [Obs.] Mortimer.

2. (Bot.)

Defn: Any low succulent plant of the genus Sedum, esp. Sedum acre, which is common on bare rocks in Europe, and is spreading in parts of America. See Orpine. Virginian, or Ditch, stonecrop, an American plant (Penthorum sedoides).

STONECUTTER Stone"cut`ter, n.

Defn: One whose occupation is to cut stone; also, a machine for dressing stone.

STONECUTTING Stone"cut`ting, n.

Defn: Hewing or dressing stone.

STONE-DEAD Stone"-dead`, a.

Defn: As dead as a stone.

STONE-DEAF Stone"-deaf`, a.

Defn: As deaf as a stone; completely deaf.

STONEGALL Stone"gall`, n. Etym: [Cf. D. steengal, G. steingall. See Stannel.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: See Stannel. [Prov. Eng.]

STONEHATCH Stone"hatch`, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The ring plover, or dotterel. [Prov. Eng.]

STONE-HEARTED Stone"-heart`ed, a.

Defn: Hard-hearted; cruel; pitiless; unfeeling.

STONEHENGE Stone"henge, n.

Defn: An assemblage of upright stones with others placed horizontally on their tops, on Salisbury Plain, England, -- generally supposed to be the remains of an ancient Druidical temple.

STONE-HORSE Stone"-horse`, n.

Defn: Stallion. [Obs.] Mortimer.

STONER Ston"er, n.

1. One who stones; one who makes an assault with stones.

2. One who walls with stones.

STONEROOT Stone"root`, n. (Bot.)

Defn: A North American plant (Collinsonia Canadensis) having a very hard root; horse balm. See Horse balm, under Horse.

STONERUNNER Stone"run`ner, n. (Zoöl.) (a) The ring plover, or the ringed dotterel. [Prov. Eng.] (b) The dotterel. [Prov. Eng.]

STONESMICKLE Stone"smic`kle, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The stonechat; -- called also stonesmitch. [Prov. Eng.]

STONE-STILL Stone"-still`, a.

Defn: As still as a stone. Shak.

STONEWARE Stone"ware`, n.

Defn: A species of coarse potter's ware, glazed and baked.

STONEWEED Stone"weed`, n. (Bot.)

Defn: Any plant of the genus Lithospermum, herbs having a fruit composed of four stony nutlets.

STONEWORK Stone"work`, n.

Defn: Work or wall consisting of stone; mason's work of stone. Mortimer.

STONEWORT Stone"wort`, n. (Bot.)

Defn: Any plant of the genus Chara; -- so called because they are often incrusted with carbonate of lime. See Chara.

STONILY Ston"i*ly, adv.

Defn: In a stony manner.

STONINESS Ston"i*ness, n.

Defn: The quality or state of being stony.

STONISH Ston"ish, a.

Defn: Stony. [R.] "Possessed with stonish insensibility." Robynson (More's Utopia).

STONT Stont, obs.

Defn: 3d pers. sing. present of Stand.

STONY Ston"y, a. [Compar. Stonier; superl. Stoniest.] Etym: [AS. stanig. See Stone.]

1. Of or pertaining to stone, consisting of, or abounding in, stone or stones; resembling stone; hard; as, a stony tower; a stony cave; stony ground; a stony crust.

2. Converting into stone; petrifying; petrific. The stony dart of senseless cold. Spenser.

3. Inflexible; cruel; unrelenting; pitiless; obdurate; perverse; cold; morally hard; appearing as if petrified; as, a stony heart; a stony gaze. Stony coral. (Zoöl.) Same as Stone coral, under Stone.

STOOD Stood,

Defn: imp. & p. p. of Stand.

STOOK Stook, n. Etym: [Scot. stook, stouk; cf. LG. stuke a heap, bundle, G. stauche a truss, bundle of flax.] (Agric.)

Defn: A small collection of sheaves set up in the field; a shock; in England, twelve sheaves.

STOOK Stook, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stooked; p. pr. & vb. n. Stooking.] (Agric.)

Defn: To set up, as sheaves of grain, in stooks.

STOOL Stool, n. Etym: [L. stolo. See Stolon.] (Hort.)

Defn: A plant from which layers are propagated by bending its branches into the soil. P. Henderson.

STOOL Stool, v. i. (Agric.)

Defn: To ramfy; to tiller, as grain; to shoot out suckers. R. D. Blackmore.

STOOL Stool, n. Etym: [AS. stol a seat; akin to OFries. & OS. stol, D. stoel, G. stuhl, OHG. stuol, Icel. stoll, Sw. & Dan. stol, Goth. stols, Lith. stalas a table, Russ. stol'; from the root of E. stand. *163. See Stand, and cf. Fauteuil.]

1. A single seat with three or four legs and without a back, made in various forms for various uses.

2. A seat used in evacuating the bowels; hence, an evacuation; a discharge from the bowels.

3. A stool pigeon, or decoy bird. [U. S.]

4. (Naut.)

Defn: A small channel on the side of a vessel, for the dead-eyes of the backstays. Totten.

5. A bishop's seat or see; a bishop-stool. J. P. Peters.

6. A bench or form for resting the feet or the knees; a footstool; as, a kneeling stool.

7. Material, such as oyster shells, spread on the sea bottom for oyster spat to adhere to. [Local, U.S.] Stool of a window, or Window stool (Arch.), the flat piece upon which the window shuts down, and which corresponds to the sill of a door; in the United States, the narrow shelf fitted on the inside against the actual sill upon which the sash descends. This is called a window seat when broad and low enough to be used as a seat. Stool of repentance, the cuttystool. [Scot.] -- Stool pigeon, a pigeon used as a decoy to draw others within a net; hence, a person used as a decoy for others.

STOOLBALL Stool"ball`, n.

Defn: A kind of game with balls, formerly common in England, esp. with young women. Nausicaa With other virgins did at stoolball play. Chapman.

STOOM Stoom, v. t. Etym: [D. stommen to adulterate, to drug (wine). *163. Cf. Stum.]

Defn: To stum. [R.]

STOOP Stoop, n. Etym: [D. stoep.] (Arch.)

Defn: Originally, a covered porch with seats, at a house door; the Dutch stoep as introduced by the Dutch into New York. Afterward, an out-of-door flight of stairs of from seven to fourteen steps, with platform and parapets, leading to an entrance door some distance above the street; the French perron. Hence, any porch, platform, entrance stairway, or small veranda, at a house door. [U. S.]

STOOP Stoop, n. Etym: [OE. stope, Icel. staup; akin to AS. steáp, D. stoop, G. stauf, OHG. stouph.]

Defn: A vessel of liquor; a flagon. [Written also stoup.] Fetch me a stoop of liquor. Shak.

STOOP Stoop, n. Etym: [Cf. Icel. staup a knobby lump.]

Defn: A post fixed in the earth. [Prov. Eng.]

STOOP Stoop, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Stooped; p. pr. & vb. n. Stooping.] Etym: [OE. stoupen; akin to AS. st, OD. stuypen, Icel. stupa, Sw. stupa to fall, to tilt. Cf 5th Steep.]

1. To bend the upper part of the body downward and forward; to bend or lean forward; to incline forward in standing or walking; to assume habitually a bent position.

2. To yield; to submit; to bend, as by compulsion; to assume a position of humility or subjection. Mighty in her ships stood Carthage long, . . . Yet stooped to Rome, less wealthy, but more strong. Dryden. These are arts, my prince, In which your Zama does not stoop to Rome. Addison.

3. To descend from rank or dignity; to condescend. "She stoops to conquer." Goldsmith. Where men of great wealth stoop to husbandry, it multiplieth riches exceedingly. Bacon.

4. To come down as a hawk does on its prey; to pounce; to souse; to swoop. The bird of Jove, stooped from his aëry tour, Two birds of gayest plume before him drove. Milton.

5. To sink when on the wing; to alight. And stoop with closing pinions from above. Dryden. Cowering low With blandishment, each bird stooped on his wing. Milton.

Syn. -- To lean; yield; submit; condescend; descend; cower; shrink.

STOOP Stoop, v. t.

1. To bend forward and downward; to bow down; as, to stoop the body. "Have stooped my neck." Shak.

2. To cause to incline downward; to slant; as, to stoop a cask of liquor.

3. To cause to submit; to prostrate. [Obs.] Many of those whose states so tempt thine ears Are stooped by death; and many left alive. Chapman.

4. To degrade. [Obs.] Shak.

STOOP Stoop, n.

1. The act of stooping, or bending the body forward; inclination forward; also, an habitual bend of the back and shoulders.

2. Descent, as from dignity or superiority; condescension; an act or position of humiliation. Can any loyal subject see With patience such a stoop from sovereignty Dryden.

3. The fall of a bird on its prey; a swoop. L'Estrange.

STOOPER Stoop"er, n.

Defn: One who stoops.

STOOPING Stoop"ing, a. & n.

Defn: from Stoop. -- Stoop"ing*ly, adv.

STOOR Stoor, v. i. Etym: [Cf. D. storen to disturb. Cf. Stir.]

Defn: To rise in clouds, as dust. [Prov. Eng.]

STOOR; STOR Stoor, Stor, a. Etym: [AS. stor; akin to LG. stur, Icel. storr.]

Defn: Strong; powerful; hardy; bold; audacious. [Obs. or Scot.] O stronge lady stoor, what doest thou Chaucer.

STOP Stop, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stopped; p. pr. & vb. n. Stopping.] Etym: [OE. stoppen, AS. stoppian (in comp.); akin to LG. & D. stoppen, G. stopfen, Icel. stoppa, Sw. stoppa, Dan. stoppe; all probably fr. LL. stopare, stupare, fr. L. stuppa the coarse part of flax, tow, oakum. Cf. Estop, Stuff, Stupe a fomentation.]

1. To close, as an aperture, by filling or by obstructing; as, to stop the ears; hence, to stanch, as a wound. Shak.

2. To obstruct; to render impassable; as, to stop a way, road, or passage.

3. To arrest the progress of; to hinder; to impede; to shut in; as, to stop a traveler; to stop the course of a stream, or a flow of blood.

4. To hinder from acting or moving; to prevent the effect or efficiency of; to cause to cease; to repress; to restrain; to suppress; to interrupt; to suspend; as, to stop the execution of a decree, the progress of vice, the approaches of old age or infirmity. Whose disposition all the world well knows Will not be rubbed nor stopped. Shak.

5. (Mus.)

Defn: To regulate the sounds of, as musical strings, by pressing them against the finger board with the finger, or by shortening in any way the vibrating part.

6. To point, as a composition; to punctuate. [R.] If his sentences were properly stopped. Landor.

7. (Naut.)

Defn: To make fast; to stopper.

Syn. -- To obstruct; hinder; impede; repress; suppress; restrain; discontinue; delay; interrupt. To stop off (Founding), to fill (a part of a mold) with sand, where a part of the cavity left by the pattern is not wanted for the casting. -- To stop the mouth. See under Mouth.

STOP Stop, v. i.

1. To cease to go on; to halt, or stand still; to come to a stop. He bites his lip, and starts; Stops on a sudden, looks upon the ground; Then lays his finger on his temple: strait Springs out into fast gait; then stops again. Shak.

2. To cease from any motion, or course of action. Stop, while ye may, suspend your mad career! Cowper.

3. To spend a short time; to reside temporarily; to stay; to tarry; as, to stop with a friend. [Colloq.] By stopping at home till the money was gone. R. D. Blackmore. To stop over, to stop at a station beyond the time of the departure of the train on which one came, with the purpose of continuing one's journey on a subsequent train; to break one's journey. [Railroad Cant, U.S.] stopover

STOP Stop, n.

1. The act of stopping, or the state of being stopped; hindrance of progress or of action; cessation; repression; interruption; check; obstruction. It is doubtful . . . whether it contributed anything to the stop of the infection. De Foe. Occult qualities put a stop to the improvement of natural philosophy. Sir I. Newton. It is a great step toward the mastery of our desires to give this stop to them. Locke.

2. That which stops, impedes, or obstructs; as obstacle; an impediment; an obstruction. A fatal stop traversed their headlong course. Daniel. So melancholy a prospect should inspire us with zeal to oppose some stop to the rising torrent. Rogers.

3. (Mach.)

Defn: A device, or piece, as a pin, block, pawl, etc., for arresting or limiting motion, or for determining the position to which another part shall be brought.

4. (Mus.) (a) The closing of an aperture in the air passage, or pressure of the finger upon the string, of an instrument of music, so as to modify the tone; hence, any contrivance by which the sounds of a musical instrument are regulated. The organ sound a time survives the stop. Daniel.

(b) In the organ, one of the knobs or handles at each side of the organist, by which he can draw on or shut off any register or row of pipes; the register itself; as, the vox humana stop.

5. (Arch.)

Defn: A member, plain or molded, formed of a separate piece and fixed to a jamb, against which a door or window shuts. This takes the place, or answers the purpose, of a rebate. Also, a pin or block to prevent a drawer from sliding too far.

6. A point or mark in writing or printing intended to distinguish the sentences, parts of a sentence, or clauses; a mark of punctuation. See Punctuation.

7. (Opt.)

Defn: The diaphragm used in optical instruments to cut off the marginal portions of a beam of light passing through lenses.

8. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The depression in the face of a dog between the skull and the nasal bones. It is conspicuous in the bulldog, pug, and some other breeds.

9. (Phonetics)

Defn: Some part of the articulating organs, as the lips, or the tongue and palate, closed (a) so as to cut off the passage of breath or voice through the mouth and the nose (distinguished as a lip-stop, or a front-stop, etc., as in p, t, d, etc.), or (b) so as to obstruct, but not entirely cut off, the passage, as in l, n, etc.; also, any of the consonants so formed. H. Sweet. Stop bead (Arch.), the molding screwed to the inner side of a window frame, on the face of the pulley stile, completing the groove in which the inner sash is to slide. -- Stop motion (Mach.), an automatic device for arresting the motion of a machine, as when a certain operation is completed, or when an imperfection occurs in its performance or product, or in the material which is supplied to it, etc. -- Stop plank, one of a set of planks employed to form a sort of dam in some hydraulic works. -- Stop valve, a valve that can be closed or opened at will, as by hand, for preventing or regulating flow, as of a liquid in a pipe; -- in distinction from a valve which is operated by the action of the fluid it restrains. -- Stop watch, a watch the hands of which can be stopped in order to tell exactly the time that has passed, as in timing a race. See Independent seconds watch, under Independent, a.

Syn. -- Cessation; check; obstruction; obstacle; hindrance; impediment; interruption.

STOPCOCK Stop"cock`, n.

1. A bib, faucet, or short pipe, fitted with a turning stopper or plug for permitting or restraining the flow of a liquid or gas; a cock or valve for checking or regulating the flow of water, gas, etc., through or from a pipe, etc.

2. The turning plug, stopper, or spigot of a faucet. [R.]

STOPE Stope, n. Etym: [Cf. Step, n. & v. i.] (Mining)

Defn: A horizontal working forming one of a series, the working faces of which present the appearance of a flight of steps.

STOPE Stope, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stoped; p. pr. & vb. n. Stoping.] (Mining) (a) To excavate in the form of stopes. (b) To fill in with rubbish, as a space from which the ore has been worked out.

STOPE; STOPEN Stope, Sto"pen, p. p. of Step.

Defn: Stepped; gone; advanced. [Obs.] A poor widow, somedeal stope in age. Chaucer.

STOP-GAP Stop"-gap`, n.

Defn: That which closes or fills up an opening or gap; hence, a temporary expedient. Moral prejudices are the stop-gaps of virtue. Hare.

STOPING Stop"ing, n. (Mining)

Defn: The act of excavating in the form of stopes.

STOPLESS Stop"less, a.

Defn: Not to be stopped. Davenant.

STOP ORDER Stop order. (Finance)

Defn: An order that aims to limit losses by fixing a figure at which purchases shall be sold or sales bought in, as where stock is bought at 100 and the broker is directed to sell if the market price drops to 98.

STOP-OVER Stop"-o`ver, a.

Defn: Permitting one to stop over; as, a stop-over check or ticket. See To stop over, under Stop, v. i. [Railroad Cant, U.S.]

STOPPAGE Stop"page, n.

Defn: The act of stopping, or arresting progress, motion, or action; also, the state of being stopped; as, the stoppage of the circulation of the blood; the stoppage of commerce.

STOPPED Stopped, a. (Phonetics)

Defn: Made by complete closure of the mouth organs; shut; -- said of certain consonants (p, b, t, d, etc.). H. Sweet.

STOPPER Stop"per, n.

1. One who stops, closes, shuts, or hinders; that which stops or obstructs; that which closes or fills a vent or hole in a vessel.

2. (Naut.)

Defn: A short piece of rope having a knot at one or both ends, with a lanyard under the knot, -- used to secure something. Totten.

3. (Bot.)

Defn: A name to several trees of the genus Eugenia, found in Florida and the West Indies; as, the red stopper. See Eugenia. C. S. Sargent. Ring stopper (Naut.), a short rope or chain passing through the anchor ring, to secure the anchor to the cathead. -- Stopper bolt (Naut.), a large ringbolt in a ship's deck, to which the deck stoppers are hooked.

STOPPER Stop"per, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stoppered; p. pr. & vb. n. Stoppering.]

Defn: To close or secure with a stopper.

STOPPING Stop"ping, n.

1. Material for filling a cavity.

2. (Mining)

Defn: A partition or door to direct or prevent a current of air.

3. (Far.)

Defn: A pad or poultice of dung or other material applied to a horse's hoof to keep it moist. Youatt.

STOPPING-OUT Stop"ping-out`, n.

Defn: A method adopted in etching, to keep the acid from those parts which are already sufficiently corroded, by applying varnish or other covering matter with a brush, but allowing the acid to act on the other parts.

STOPPLE Stop"ple, n. Etym: [Cf. G. stöpfel, stöpsel. See Stop, n. & v. t.]

Defn: That which stops or closes the mouth of a vessel; a stopper; as, a glass stopple; a cork stopple.

STOPPLE Stop"ple, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stoppled; p. pr. & vb. n. Stoppling.]

Defn: To close the mouth of anything with a stopple, or as with a stopple. Cowper.

STOPSHIP Stop"ship`, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A remora. It was fabled to stop ships by attaching itself to them. Sylvester.

STOR Stor, a.

Defn: See Stoor. [Obs.] Chaucer.

STORAGE Stor"age, n.

1. The act of depositing in a store or warehouse for safe keeping; also, the safe keeping of goods in a warehouse.

2. Space for the safe keeping of goods.

3. The price changed for keeping goods in a store. Storage battery. (Physics) See the Note under Battery.

STORAX Sto"rax, n. Etym: [L. storax, styrax, Gr. Styrax.]

Defn: Any one of a number of similar complex resins obtained from the bark of several trees and shrubs of the Styrax family. The most common of these is liquid storax, a brown or gray semifluid substance of an agreeable aromatic odor and balsamic taste, sometimes used in perfumery, and in medicine as an expectorant.

Note: A yellow aromatic honeylike substance, resembling, and often confounded with, storax, is obtained from the American sweet gum tree (Liquidambar styraciflua), and is much used as a chewing gum, called sweet gum, and liquid storax. Cf. Liquidambar.

STORE Store, n. Etym: [OE. stor, stoor, OF. estor, provisions, supplies, fr. estorer to store. See Store, v. t.]

1. That which is accumulated, or massed together; a source from which supplies may be drawn; hence, an abundance; a great quantity, or a great number. The ships are fraught with store of victuals. Bacon. With store of ladies, whose bright eyes Rain influence, and give the prize. Milton.

2. A place of deposit for goods, esp. for large quantities; a storehouse; a warehouse; a magazine.

3. Any place where goods are sold, whether by wholesale or retail; a shop. [U.S. & British Colonies]

4. pl.

Defn: Articles, especially of food, accumulated for some specific object; supplies, as of provisions, arms, ammunition, and the like; as, the stores of an army, of a ship, of a family. His swine, his horse, his stoor, and his poultry. Chaucer. In store, in a state of accumulation; in keeping; hence, in a state of readiness. "I have better news in store for thee." Shak. -- Store clothes, clothing purchased at a shop or store; -- in distinction from that which is home-made. [Colloq. U.S.] -- Store pay, payment for goods or work in articles from a shop or store, instead of money. [U.S.] -- To set store by, to value greatly; to have a high appreciation of. -- To tell no store of, to make no account of; to consider of no importance.

Syn. -- Fund; supply; abundance; plenty; accumulation; provision. -- Store, Shop. The English call the place where goods are sold (however large or splendid it may be) a shop, and confine the word store to its original meaning; viz., a warehouse, or place where goods are stored. In America the word store is applied to all places, except the smallest, where goods are sold. In some British colonies the word store is used as in the United States. In his needy shop a tortoise hung, An alligator stuffed, and other skins Of ill-shaped fishes; and about his shelves A beggarly account of empty boxes. Shak. Sulphurous and nitrous foam, . . . Concocted and adjusted, they reduced To blackest grain, and into store conveyed. Milton.

STORE Store, a.

Defn: Accumulated; hoarded. Bacon.

STORE Store, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stored; p. pr. & vb. n. Storing.] Etym: [OE. storen, OF. estorer to construct, restore, store, LL. staurare, for L. instaurare to renew, restore; in + staurare (in comp.) Cf. Instore, Instaurate, Restore, Story a floor.]

1. To collect as a reserved supply; to accumulate; to lay away. Dora stored what little she could save. Tennyson.

2. To furnish; to supply; to replenish; esp., to stock or furnish against a future time. Her mind with thousand virtues stored. Prior. Wise Plato said the world with men was stored. Denham. Having stored a pond of four acres with carps, tench, and other fish. Sir M. Hale.

3. To deposit in a store, warehouse, or other building, for preservation; to warehouse; as, to store goods.

STORED Stored, a.

Defn: Collected or accumulated as a reserve supply; as, stored electricity. It is charged with stored virtue. Bagehot.

STOREHOUSE Store"house`, n.

1. A building for keeping goods of any kind, especially provisions; a magazine; a repository; a warehouse. Joseph opened all the storehouses, and sold unto Egyptians. Gen. xli. 56. The Scripture of God is a storehouse abounding with estimable treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Hooker.

2. A mass or quality laid up. [Obs.] Spenser.

STOREKEEPER Store"keep`er, n.

1. A man in charge of stores or goods of any kind; as, a naval storekeeper.

2. One who keeps a "store;" a shopkeeper. See 1st Store, 3. [U. S.]

STORER Stor"er, n.

Defn: One who lays up or forms a store.

STOREROOM Store"room`, n.

Defn: Room in a storehouse or repository; a room in which articles are stored.

STORESHIP Store"ship`, n.

Defn: A vessel used to carry naval stores for a fleet, garrison, or the like.

STOREY Sto"rey, n.

Defn: See Story.

STORGE Stor"ge, n. Etym: [NL., from Gr.

Defn: Parental affection; the instinctive affection which animals have for their young.

STORIAL Sto"ri*al, a.

Defn: Historical. [Obs.] Chaucer.

STORIED Sto"ried, a. Etym: [From Story.]

1. Told in a story.

2. Having a history; interesting from the stories which pertain to it; venerable from the associations of the past. Some greedy minion, or imperious wife, The trophied arches, storied halls, invade. Pope. Can storied urn, or animated bust, Back to its mansion call the fleeting breath Gray.

3. Having (such or so many) stories; -- chiefly in composition; as, a two-storied house.

STORIER Sto"ri*er, n.

Defn: A relater of stories; an historian. [Obs.] Bp. Peacock.

STORIFY Sto"ri*fy, v. t. Etym: [Story + -fy.]

Defn: To form or tell stories of; to narrate or describe in a story. [Obs.]

STORK Stork, n. Etym: [AS. storc; akin to G. storch, OHG. storah, Icel. storkr, Dan. & Sw. stork, and perhaps to Gr. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Any one of several species of large wading birds of the family Ciconidæ, having long legs and a long, pointed bill. They are found both in the Old World and in America, and belong to Ciconia and several allied genera. The European white stork (Ciconia alba) is the best known. It commonly makes its nests on the top of a building, a chimney, a church spire, or a pillar. The black stork (C. nigra) is native of Asia, Africa, and Europe. Black-necked stork, the East Indian jabiru. -- Hair-crested stork, the smaller adjutant of India (Leptoptilos Javanica). -- Giant stork, the adjutant. -- Marabou stork. See Marabou. -- Saddle-billed stork, the African jabiru. See Jabiru. -- Stork's bill (Bot.), any plant of the genus Pelargonium; -- so called in allusion to the beaklike prolongation of the axis of the receptacle of its flower. See Pelargonium.

STORK-BILLED Stork"-billed`, a.

Defn: Having a bill like that of the stork.

STORM Storm, n. Etym: [AS. storm; akin to D. storm, G. sturm, Icel. stormr; and perhaps to Gr. s to flow, to hasten, or perhaps to L. sternere to strew, prostrate (cf. Stratum). *166.]

1. A violent disturbance of the atmosphere, attended by wind, rain, snow, hail, or thunder and lightning; hence, often, a heavy fall of rain, snow, or hail, whether accompanied with wind or not. We hear this fearful tempest sing, Yet seek no shelter to avoid the storm. Shak.

2. A violent agitation of human society; a civil, political, or domestic commotion; sedition, insurrection, or war; violent outbreak; clamor; tumult. I will stir up in England some black storm. Shak. Her sister Began to scold and raise up such a storm. Shak.

3. A heavy shower or fall, any adverse outburst of tumultuous force; violence. A brave man struggling in the storms of fate. Pope.

4. (Mil.)

Defn: A violent assault on a fortified place; a furious attempt of troops to enter and take a fortified place by scaling the walls, forcing the gates, or the like.

Note: Storm is often used in the formation of self-explained compounds; as, storm-presaging, stormproof, storm-tossed, and the like. Magnetic storm. See under Magnetic. -- Storm-and-stress period Etym: [a translation of G. sturm und drang periode], a designation given to the literary agitation and revolutionary development in Germany under the lead of Goethe and Schiller in the latter part of the 18th century. -- Storm center (Meteorol.), the center of the area covered by a storm, especially by a storm of large extent. -- Storm door (Arch.), an extra outside door to prevent the entrance of wind, cold, rain, etc.; -- usually removed in summer. -- Storm path (Meteorol.), the course over which a storm, or storm center, travels. -- Storm petrel. (Zoöl.) See Stormy petrel, under Petrel. -- Storm sail (Naut.), any one of a number of strong, heavy sails that are bent and set in stormy weather. -- Storm scud. See the Note under Cloud.

Syn. -- Tempest; violence; agitation; calamity. -- Storm, Tempest. Storm is violent agitation, a commotion of the elements by wind, etc., but not necessarily implying the fall of anything from the clouds. Hence, to call a mere fall or rain without wind a storm is a departure from the true sense of the word. A tempest is a sudden and violent storm, such as those common on the coast of Italy, where the term originated, and is usually attended by a heavy rain, with lightning and thunder. Storms beat, and rolls the main; O! beat those storms, and roll the seas, in vain. Pope. What at first was called a gust, the same Hath now a storm's, anon a tempest's name. Donne.

STORM Storm, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stormed; p. pr. & vb. n. Storming.] (Mil.)

Defn: To assault; to attack, and attempt to take, by scaling walls, forcing gates, breaches, or the like; as, to storm a fortified town.

STORM Storm, v. i. Etym: [Cf. AS. styrman.]

1. To raise a tempest. Spenser.

2. To blow with violence; also, to rain, hail, snow, or the like, usually in a violent manner, or with high wind; -- used impersonally; as, it storms.

3. To rage; to be in a violent passion; to fume. The master storms, the lady scolds. Swift.

STORM-BEAT Storm"-beat`, a.

Defn: Beaten, injured, or impaired by storms. Spenser.

STORMCOCK Storm"cock`, n. (Zoöl.) (a) The missel thrush. (b) The fieldfare. (c) The green woodpecker.

STORMFINCH Storm"finch`, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The storm petrel.

STORMFUL Storm"ful, a.

Defn: Abounding with storms. "The stormful east." Carlyle. -- Storm"ful*ness, n.

STORMGLASS Storm"glass`, n.

Defn: A glass vessel, usually cylindrical, filled with a solution which is sensitive to atmospheric changes, indicating by a clouded appearance, rain, snow, etc., and by clearness, fair weather.

STORMILY Storm"i*ly, adv.

Defn: In a stormy manner.

STORMINESS Storm"i*ness, n.

Defn: The state of being stormy; tempestuousness; biosteruousness; impetuousness.

STORMING Storm"ing, a. & n.

Defn: from Storm, v. Storming party (Mil.), a party assigned to the duty of making the first assault in storming a fortress.

STORMLESS Storm"less, a.

Defn: Without storms. Tennyson.

STORMWIND Storm"wind`, n.

Defn: A heavy wind; a wind that brings a storm; the blast of a storm. Longfellow.

STORMY Storm"y, a. [Compar. Stormier; superl. Stormiest.]

1. Characterized by, or proceeding from, a storm; subject to storms; agitated with furious winds; biosterous; tempestous; as, a stormy season; a stormy day or week. "Beyond the stormy Hebrides." Milton.

2. Proceeding from violent agitation or fury; as, a stormy sound; stormy shocks.

3. Violent; passionate; rough; as, stormy passions. Stormy chiefs of a desert but extensive domain. Sir W. Scott.

STORTHING Stor"thing, n. Etym: [Norw. storting; stor great + ting court, court of justice; cf. Dan. ting, thing.]

Defn: The Parliament of Norway, chosen by indirect election once in three years, but holding annual sessions.

STORVEN Stor"ven, obs.

Defn: p. p. of Starve. Chaucer.

STORY Sto"ry, n.; pl. Stories. Etym: [OF. estoré, estorée, built, erected, p.p. of estorer to build, restore, to store. See Store, v. t.]

Defn: A set of rooms on the same floor or level; a floor, or the space between two floors. Also, a horizontal division of a building's exterior considered architecturally, which need not correspond exactly with the stories within. [Written also storey.]

Note: A story comprehends the distance from one floor to another; as, a story of nine or ten feet elevation. The spaces between floors are numbered in order, from below upward; as, the lower, second, or third story; a house of one story, of two stories, of five stories. Story post (Arch.), a vertical post used to support a floor or superincumbent wall.

STORY Sto"ry, n. Etym: [OE. storie, OF. estoire, F. histoire, fr. L. historia. See History.]

1. A narration or recital of that which has occurred; a description of past events; a history; a statement; a record. One malcontent who did indeed get a name in story. Barrow. Venice, with its unique city and its Impressive story. Ed. Rev. The four great monarchies make the subject of ancient story. Sir W. Temple.

2. The relation of an incident or minor event; a short narrative; a tale; especially, a fictitious narrative less elaborate than a novel; a short romance. Addison.

3. A euphemism or child's word for "a lie;" a fib; as, to tell a story. [Colloq.]

STORY Sto"ry, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Storied; p. pr. & vb. n. Storying.]

Defn: To tell in historical relation; to make the subject of a story; to narrate or describe in story. How worthy he is I will leave to appear hereafter, rather than story him in his own hearing. Shak. It is storied of the brazen colossus in Rhodes, that it was seventy cubits high. Bp. Wilkins.

STORYBOOK Sto"ry*book`, n.

Defn: A book containing stories, or short narratives, either true or false.

STORY-TELLER Sto"ry-tell`er, n.

1. One who tells stories; a narrator of anecdotes,incidents, or fictitious tales; as, an amusing story-teller.

2. An historian; -- in contempt. Swift.

3. A euphemism or child's word for "a liar."

STORY-TELLING Sto"ry-tell`ing, a.

Defn: Being accustomed to tell stories. -- n.

Defn: The act or practice of telling stories.

STORY-WRITER Sto"ry-writ`er, n.

1. One who writes short stories, as for magazines.

2. An historian; a chronicler. [Obs.] "Rathums, the story-writer." 1 Esdr. ii. 17.

STOT Stot, n. Etym: [AS. stotte a hack, jade, or worthless horse; cf. Sw. stut a bull, Dan. stud an ox. Cf. Stoat.]

1. A horse. [Obs.] Chaucer. Thorold Rogers.

2. A young bull or ox, especially one three years old. [Prov. Eng. & Scot.]

STOTE Stote, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: See Stoat.

STOUND Stound, v. i. Etym: [Cf. Astound, Stun.]

Defn: To be in pain or sorrow. [Obs. or Prov. Eng. & Scot.]

STOUND Stound, a. Etym: [See Stound, v. i.]

Defn: Stunned. [Obs.]

STOUND Stound, n.

1. A sudden, severe pain or grief; peril; alarm. [Obs.] Spenser.

2. Astonishment; amazement. [Obs.] Spenser. Gay.

STOUND Stound, n. Etym: [AS. stund; akin to D. stond, G. stunde, Icel. stund.]

1. Hour; time; season. [Obs.] Chaucer.

2. A brief space of time; a moment. [Obs.] Chaucer. In a stound, suddenly. [Obs.] Chaucer.

STOUND Stound, n. Etym: [Cf. Stand.]

Defn: A vessel for holding small beer. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

STOUP Stoup, n. Etym: [See Stoop a vessel.]

1. A flagon; a vessel or measure for liquids. [Scot.]

2. (Eccl.)

Defn: A basin at the entrance of Roman Catholic churches for containing the holy water with which those who enter, dipping their fingers in it, cross themselves; -- called also holy-water stoup.

STOUR Stour, n. Etym: [OF. estour, estor, tumult, combat, of Teutonic origin. See Storm.]

Defn: A battle or tumult; encounter; combat; disturbance; passion. [Obs.] Fairfax. "That woeful stowre." Spenser. She that helmed was in starke stours [fierce conflicts]. Chaucer.

STOUR Stour, a. Etym: [See Stoor, a.]

Defn: Tall; strong; stern. [Obs. or Prov. Eng. & Scot.]

STOUT Stout, a. [Compar. Stouter; superl. Stoutest.] Etym: [D. stout bold (or OF. estout bold, proud, of Teutonic origin); akin to AS. stolt, G. stolz, and perh. to E. stilt.]

1. Strong; lusty; vigorous; robust; sinewy; muscular; hence, firm; resolute; dauntless. With hearts stern and stout. Chaucer. A stouter champion never handled sword. Shak. He lost the character of a bold, stout, magnanimous man. Clarendon. The lords all stand To clear their cause, most resolutely stout. Daniel.

2. Proud; haughty; arrogant; hard. [Archaic] Your words have been stout against me. Mal. iii. 13. Commonly . . . they that be rich are lofty and stout. Latimer.

3. Firm; tough; materially strong; enduring; as, a stout vessel, stick, string, or cloth.

4. Large; bulky; corpulent.

Syn. -- Stout, Corpulent, Portly. Corpulent has reference simply to a superabundance or excess of flesh. Portly implies a kind of stoutness or corpulence which gives a dignified or imposing appearance. Stout, in our early writers (as in the English Bible), was used chiefly or wholly in the sense of strong or bold; as, a stout champion; a stout heart; a stout resistance, etc. At a later period it was used for thickset or bulky, and more recently, especially in England, the idea has been carried still further, so that Taylor says in his Synonyms: "The stout man has the proportions of an ox; he is corpulent, fat, and fleshy in relation to his size." In America, stout is still commonly used in the original sense of strong as, a stout boy; a stout pole.

STOUT Stout, n.

Defn: A strong malt liquor; strong porter. Swift.

STOUT-HEARTED Stout"-heart"ed, a.

Defn: Having a brave heart; courageous. -- Stout"-heart"ed*ness, n.

STOUTISH Stout"ish, a.

Defn: Somewhat stout; somewhat corpulent.

STOUTLY Stout"ly, adv.

Defn: In a stout manner; lustily; boldly; obstinately; as, he stoutly defended himself.

STOUTNESS Stout"ness, n.

Defn: The state or quality of being stout.

Syn. -- Strength; bulk; courage; force; valor; lustiness; brawniness; boldness; fortitude; stubbornness.

STOVAIN; STOVAINE Sto"va*in, n. Also -ine. [Stove (a translation of the name of the discoverer, Fourneau + -in, -ine.] (Pharm.)

Defn: A substance, C14H22O2NCl, the hydrochloride of an amino compound containing benzol, used, in solution with strychnine, as a local anæsthetic, esp. by injection into the sheath of the spinal cord, producing anæsthesia below the point of introduction.

STOVE Stove,

Defn: imp. of Stave.

STOVE Stove, n. Etym: [D. stoof a foot stove, originally, a heated room, a room for a bath; akin to G. stube room, OHG. stuba a heated room, AS. stofe, Icel. stofa a room, bathing room, Sw. stufva, stuga, a room, Dan. stue; of unknown origin. Cf. Estufa, Stew, Stufa.]

1. A house or room artificially warmed or heated; a forcing house, or hothouse; a drying room; -- formerly, designating an artificially warmed dwelling or room, a parlor, or a bathroom, but now restricted, in this sense, to heated houses or rooms used for horticultural purposes or in the processes of the arts. When most of the waiters were commanded away to their supper, the parlor or stove being nearly emptied, in came a company of musketeers. Earl of Strafford. How tedious is it to them that live in stoves and caves half a year together, as in Iceland, Muscovy, or under the pole! Burton.

2. An apparatus, consisting essentially of a receptacle for fuel, made of iron, brick, stone, or tiles, and variously constructed, in which fire is made or kept for warming a room or a house, or for culinary or other purposes. Cooking stove, a stove with an oven, opening for pots, kettles, and the like, -- used for cooking. -- Dry stove. See under Dry. -- Foot stove. See under Foot. -- Franklin stove. See in the Vocabulary. -- Stove plant (Bot.), a plant which requires artificial heat to make it grow in cold or cold temperate climates. -- Stove plate, thin iron castings for the parts of stoves.

STOVE Stove, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stoved; p. pr. & vb. n. Stoving.]

1. To keep warm, in a house or room, by artificial heat; as, to stove orange trees. Bacon.

2. To heat or dry, as in a stove; as, to stove feathers.

STOVEHOUSE Stove"house`, n.

Defn: A hothouse.

STOVEPIPE Stove"pipe`, n.

Defn: Pipe made of sheet iron in length and angular or curved pieces fitting together, -- used to connect a portable stove with a chimney flue. Stovepipe hat, the common tall silk hat. [Slang, U.S.]

STOVER Sto"ver, n. Etym: [OE. estoveir, estovoir, necessity, provisions, properly an inf., "to be necessary." Cf. Estovers.]

Defn: Fodder for cattle, especially straw or coarse hay. Where live nibbling sheep, And flat meads thatched with stover them to keep. Shak. Thresh barley as yet but as need shall require, Fresh threshed for stover thy cattle desire. Tusser.

STOW Stow, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stowed; p. pr. & vb. n. Stowing.] Etym: [OE. stowen, fr. stowe a place, AS. stow; cf. Icel. eldstoa fireplace, hearth, OFries. sto, and E. stand. *163.]

1. To place or arrange in a compact mass; to put in its proper place, or in a suitable place; to pack; as, to stowbags, bales, or casks in a ship's hold; to stow hay in a mow; to stow sheaves. Some stow their oars, or stop the leaky sides. Dryden.

2. To put away in some place; to hide; to lodge. Foul thief! where hast thou stowed my daughter Shak.

3. To arrange anything compactly in; to fill, by packing closely; as, to stow a box, car, or the hold of a ship.

STOWAGE Stow"age, n.

1. The act or method of stowing; as, the stowage of provisions in a vessel.

2. Room in which things may be stowed. Cook. In every vessel is stowage for immense treasures. Addison.

3. The state of being stowed, or put away. "To have them in safe stowage." Shak.

4. Things stowed or packed. Beau. & Fl.

5. Money paid for stowing goods.

STOWAWAY Stow"a*way`, n.

Defn: One who conceals himself board of a vessel about to leave port, or on a railway train, in order to obtain a free passage.

STOWBOARD Stow"board, n.

Defn: A place into which rubbish is put. [Written also stowbord.]

STOWCE Stowce, n. (Mining) (a) A windlass. (b) A wooden landmark, to indicate possession of mining land.

STOWING Stow"ing, n. (Mining)

Defn: A method of working in which the waste is packed into the space formed by excavating the vein.

STOWRE Stowre, a.

Defn: See Stour, a. [Obs.]

STOWRE Stowre, n.

Defn: See Stour, n. [Obs.] Spenser.

STRABISM Stra"bism, n. (Med.)

Defn: Strabismus.

STRABISMOMETER Stra`bis*mom"e*ter, n. Etym: [Strabismus + -meter.] (Med.)

Defn: An instrument for measuring the amount of strabismus.

STRABISMUS Stra*bis"mus, n. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr. (Med.)

Defn: An affection of one or both eyes, in which the optic axes can not be directed to the same object, -- a defect due either to undue contraction or to undue relaxation of one or more of the muscles which move the eyeball; squinting; cross-eye.

STRABOTOMY Stra*bot"o*my, n. Etym: [Gr. (Surg.)

Defn: The operation for the removal of squinting by the division of such muscles as distort the eyeball.

STRADDLE Strad"dle, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Straddled; p. pr. & vb. n. Straddling.] Etym: [Freq. from the root of stride.]

1. To part the legs wide; to stand or to walk with the legs far apart.

2. To stand with the ends staggered; -- said of the spokes of a wagon wheel where they join the hub.

STRADDLE Strad"dle, v. t.

Defn: To place one leg on one side and the other on the other side of; to stand or sit astride of; as, to straddle a fence or a horse.

STRADDLE Strad"dle, n.

1. The act of standing, sitting, or walking, with the feet far apart.

2. The position, or the distance between the feet, of one who straddles; as, a wide straddle.

3. A stock option giving the holder the double privilege of a "put" and a "call," i. e., securing to the buyer of the option the right either to demand of the seller at a certain price, within a certain time, certain securities, or to require him to take at the same price, and within the same time, the same securities. [Broker's Cant]

STRADDLING Strad"dling, a.

Defn: Applied to spokes when they are arranged alternately in two circles in the hub. See Straddle, v. i., and Straddle, v. t., 3. Knight.

STRADOMETRICAL Strad`o*met"ric*al, a. Etym: [It. strada street or road + E. metrical.]

Defn: Of, or relating to, the measuring of streets or roads. [R.]

STRAGGLE Strag"gle, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Straggled; p. pr. & vb. n. Straggling.] Etym: [Freq. of OE. straken to roam, to stroke. See Stroke, v. t.]

1. To wander from the direct course or way; to rove; to stray; to wander from the line of march or desert the line of battle; as, when troops are on the march, the men should not straggle. Dryden.

2. To wander at large; to roam idly about; to ramble. The wolf spied out a straggling kid. L'Estrange.

3. To escape or stretch beyond proper limits, as the branches of a plant; to spread widely apart; to shoot too far or widely in growth. Trim off the small, superfluous branches on each side of the hedge that straggle too far out. Mortimer.

4. To be dispersed or separated; to occur at intervals. "Straggling pistol shots." Sir W. Scott. They came between Scylla and Charybdis and the straggling rocks. Sir W. Raleigh.

STRAGGLE Strag"gle, n.

Defn: The act of straggling. [R.] Carlyle.

STRAGGLER Strag"gler, n.

1. One who straggles, or departs from the direct or proper course, or from the company to which he belongs; one who falls behind the rest; one who rambles without any settled direction.

2. A roving vagabond. Shak.

3. Something that shoots, or spreads out, beyond the rest, or too far; an exuberant growth. Let thy hand supply the pruning knife, And crop luxuriant stragglers. Dryden.

4. Something that stands alone or by itself.

STRAGGLING Strag"gling, a. & n.

Defn: from Straggle, v.

STRAGGLINGLY Strag"gling*ly, adv.

Defn: In a straggling manner.

STRAGULUM Strag"u*lum, n.; pl. Stragula. Etym: [L., a spread or covering, from sternere to spread out.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: The mantle, or pallium, of a bird.

STRAIGHT Straight, a.

Defn: A variant of Strait, a. [Obs. or R.] Egypt is a long country, but it is straight, that is to say, narrow. Sir J. Mandeville.

STRAIGHT Straight, a. [Compar. Straighter; superl. Straightest.] Etym: [OE. strei, properly p.p. of strecchen to stretch, AS. streht, p.p. of streccan to stretch, to extend. See Stretch.]

1. Right, in a mathematical sense; passing from one point to another by the nearest course; direct; not deviating or crooked; as, a straight line or course; a straight piece of timber. And the crooked shall be made straight. Isa. xl. 4. There are many several sorts of crooked lines, but there is only one which is straight. Dryden.

2. (Bot.)

Defn: Approximately straight; not much curved; as, straight ribs are such as pass from the base of a leaf to the apex, with a small curve.

3. (Card Playing)

Defn: Composed of cards which constitute a regular sequence, as the ace, king, queen, jack, and ten-spot; as, a straight hand; a straight flush.

4. Conforming to justice and rectitude; not deviating from truth or fairness; upright; as, straight dealing.

5. Unmixed; undiluted; as, to take liquor straight. [Slang]

6. Making no exceptions or deviations in one's support of the organization and candidates of a political party; as, a straight Republican; a straight Democrat; also, containing the names of all the regularly nominated candidates of a party and no others; as, a straight ballot. [Political Cant, U.S.] Straight arch (Arch.), a form of arch in which the intrados is straight, but with its joints drawn radially, as in a common arch. -- A straight face, one giving no evidence of merriment or other emotion. -- A straight line. "That which lies evenly between its extreme points." Euclid. "The shortest line between two points." Chauvenet. "A line which has the same direction through its whole length." Newcomb. -- Straight-way valve, a valve which, when opened widely, affords a straight passageway, as for water. walk the straight and narrow.

STRAIGHT Straight, adv.

Defn: In a straight manner; directly; rightly; forthwith; immediately; as, the arrow went straight to the mark. "Floating straight." Shak. I know thy generous temper well; Fling but the appearance of dishonor on it, It straight takes fire, and mounts into a blaze. Addison. Everything was going on straight. W. Black.

STRAIGHT Straight, n. (Poker)

Defn: A hand of five cards in consecutive order as to value; a sequence. When they are of one suit, it is calles straight flush.

STRAIGHT Straight, v. t.

Defn: To straighten. [R.] A Smith.

STRAIGHTEDGE Straight"edge`, n.

Defn: A board, or piece of wood or metal, having one edge perfectly straight, -- used to ascertain whether a line is straight or a surface even, and for drawing straight lines.

STRAIGHTEN Straight"en, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Straighted; p. pr. & vb. n. Straighting.]

1. To make straight; to reduce from a crooked to a straight form.

2. To make right or correct; to reduce to order; as, to straighten one's affairs; to straighten an account. To straighten one's face, to cease laughing or smiling, etc., and compose one's features.

STRAIGHTEN Straight"en, v. t.

Defn: A variant of Straiten. [Obs. or R.]

STRAIGHTENER Straight"en*er, n.

Defn: One who, or that which, straightens.

STRAIGHTFORTH Straight"forth`, adv.

Defn: Straightway. [Obs.]

STRAIGHTFORWARD Straight`for"ward, a.

Defn: Proceeding in a straight course or manner; not deviating; honest; frank. -- adv.

Defn: In a straightforward manner. -- Straight`for"ward*ly, adv. -- Straight`for"ward*ness, n.

STRAIGHTHORN Straight"horn`, n. (Paleon.)

Defn: An orthoceras.

STRAIGHT-JOINT Straight"-joint`, a. (Arch.)

Defn: Having straight joints. Specifically: (a) Applied to a floor the boards of which are so laid that the joints form a continued line transverse to the length of the boards themselves. Brandle & C. (b) In the United States, applied to planking or flooring put together without the tongue and groove, the pieces being laid edge to edge.

STRAIGHT-LINED Straight"-lined`, a.

Defn: Having straight lines.

STRAIGHTLY Straight"ly, adv.

Defn: In a right line; not crookedly.

STRAIGHTLY Straight"ly, adv.

Defn: A variant of Straitly. See 1st Straight.

STRAIGHTNESS Straight"ness, n.

Defn: The quality, condition, or state, of being straight; as, the straightness of a path.

STRAIGHTNESS Straight"ness, n.

Defn: A variant of Straitness.

STRAIGHT-OUT Straight"-out`, a.

Defn: Acting without concealment, obliquity, or compromise; hence, unqualified; thoroughgoing. [Colloq. U.S.] Straight-out and generous indignation. Mrs. Stowe.

STRAIGHT-PIGHT Straight"-pight`, a.

Defn: Straight in form or upright in position; erect. [Obs.] Shak.

STRAIGHT-SPOKEN Straight"-spo`ken, a.

Defn: Speaking with directness; plain-spoken. [Colloq. U.S.] Lowell.

STRAIGHTWAY Straight"way`, adv.

Defn: Immediately; without loss of time; without delay. He took the damsel by the hand, and said unto her, Talitha cumi. . . . And straightway the damsel arose. Mark v. 41,42.

STRAIGHTWAYS Straight"ways`, adv.

Defn: Straightway. [Obs.]

STRAIK Straik, n.

Defn: A strake.

STRAIN Strain, n. Etym: [See Strene.]

1. Race; stock; generation; descent; family. He is of a noble strain. Shak. With animals and plants a cross between different varieties, or between individuals of the same variety but of another strain, gives vigor and fertility to the offspring. Darwin.

2. Hereditary character, quality, or disposition. Intemperance and lust breed diseases, which, propogated, spoil the strain of nation. Tillotson.

3. Rank; a sort. "The common strain." Dryden.

STRAIN Strain, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Strained; p. pr. & vb. n. Straining.] Etym: [OF. estraindre, estreindre, F. étreindre, L. stringere to draw or bind tight; probably akin to Gr. strike. Cf. Strangle, Strike, Constrain, District, Strait, a. Stress, Strict, Stringent.]

1. To draw with force; to extend with great effort; to stretch; as, to strain a rope; to strain the shrouds of a ship; to strain the cords of a musical instrument. "To strain his fetters with a stricter care." Dryden.

2. (Mech.)

Defn: To act upon, in any way, so as to cause change of form or volume, as forces on a beam to bend it.

3. To exert to the utmost; to ply vigorously. He sweats, Strains his young nerves. Shak. They strain their warbling throats To welcome in the spring. Dryden.

4. To stretch beyond its proper limit; to do violence to, in the matter of intent or meaning; as, to strain the law in order to convict an accused person. There can be no other meaning in this expression, however some may pretend to strain it. Swift.

5. To injure by drawing, stretching, or the exertion of force; as, the gale strained the timbers of the ship.

6. To injure in the muscles or joints by causing to make too strong an effort; to harm by overexertion; to sprain; as, to strain a horse by overloading; to strain the wrist; to strain a muscle. Prudes decayed about may track, Strain their necks with looking back. Swift.

7. To squeeze; to press closely. Evander with a close embrace Strained his departing friend. Dryden.

8. To make uneasy or unnatural; to produce with apparent effort; to force; to constrain. He talks and plays with Fatima, but his mirth Is forced and strained. Denham. The quality of mercy is not strained. Shak.

9. To urge with importunity; to press; as, to strain a petition or invitation. Note, if your lady strain his entertainment. Shak.

10. To press, or cause to pass, through a strainer, as through a screen, a cloth, or some porous substance; to purify, or separate from extraneous or solid matter, by filtration; to filter; as, to strain milk through cloth. To strain a point, to make a special effort; especially, to do a degree of violence to some principle or to one's own feelings. -- To strain courtesy, to go beyond what courtesy requires; to insist somewhat too much upon the precedence of others; -- often used ironically. Shak.

STRAIN Strain, v. i.

1. To make violent efforts. "Straining with too weak a wing." Pope. To build his fortune I will strain a little. Shak.

2. To percolate; to be filtered; as, water straining through a sandy soil.

STRAIN Strain, n.

1. The act of straining, or the state of being strained. Specifically: -- (a) A violent effort; an excessive and hurtful exertion or tension, as of the muscles; as, he lifted the weight with a strain the strain upon a ship's rigging in a gale; also, the hurt or injury resulting; a sprain. Whether any poet of our country since Shakespeare has exerted a greater variety of powers with less strain and less ostentation. Landor. Credit is gained by custom, and seldom recovers a strain. Sir W. Temple. (b) (Mech. Physics)

Defn: A change of form or dimensions of a solid or liquid mass, produced by a stress. Rankine.

2. (Mus.)

Defn: A portion of music divided off by a double bar; a complete musical period or sentence; a movement, or any rounded subdivision of a movement. Their heavenly harps a lower strain began. Dryden.

3. Any sustained note or movement; a song; a distinct portion of an ode or other poem; also, the pervading note, or burden, of a song, poem, oration, book, etc.; theme; motive; manner; style; also, a course of action or conduct; as, he spoke in a noble strain; there was a strain of woe in his story; a strain of trickery appears in his career. "A strain of gallantry." Sir W. Scott. Such take too high a strain at first. Bacon. The genius and strain of the book of Proverbs. Tillotson. It [Pilgrim's Progress] seems a novelty, and yet contains Nothing but sound and honest gospel strains. Bunyan.

4. Turn; tendency; inborn disposition. Cf. 1st Strain. Because heretics have a strain of madness, he applied her with some corporal chastisements. Hayward.

STRAINABLE Strain"a*ble, a.

1. Capable of being strained.

2. Violent in action. Holinshed.

STRAINABLY Strain"a*bly, adv.

Defn: Violently. Holinshed.

STRAINED Strained, a.

1. Subjected to great or excessive tension; wrenched; weakened; as, strained relations between old friends.

2. Done or produced with straining or excessive effort; as, his wit was strained.

STRAINER Strain"er, n.

1. One who strains.

2. That through which any liquid is passed for purification or to separate it from solid matter; anything, as a screen or a cloth, used to strain a liquid; a device of the character of a sieve or of a filter; specifically, an openwork or perforated screen, as for the end of the suctionpipe of a pump, to prevent large solid bodies from entering with a liquid.

STRAINING Strain"ing, a. & n.

Defn: from Strain. Straining piece (Arch.), a short piece of timber in a truss, used to maintain the ends of struts or rafters, and keep them from slipping. See Illust. of Queen-post.

STRAINT Straint, n. Etym: [OF. estrainte, estreinte, F. étrainte. See 2nd Strain.]

Defn: Overexertion; excessive tension; strain. [Obs.] Spenser.

STRAIT Strait, a.

Defn: A variant of Straight. [Obs.]

STRAIT Strait, a. [Compar. Straiter; superl. Straitest.] Etym: [OE. straight, streyt, streit, OF. estreit, estroit, F. étroit, from L. strictus drawn together, close, tight, p.p. of stringere to draw tight. See 2nd Strait, and cf. Strict.]

1. Narrow; not broad. Strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it. Matt. vii. 14. Too strait and low our cottage doors. Emerson.

2. Tight; close; closely fitting. Shak.

3. Close; intimate; near; familiar. [Obs.] "A strait degree of favor." Sir P. Sidney.

4. Strict; scrupulous; rigorous. Some certain edicts and some strait decrees. Shak. The straitest sect of our religion. Acts xxvi. 5 (Rev. Ver.).

5. Difficult; distressful; straited. To make your strait circumstances yet straiter. Secker.

6. Parsimonious; niggargly; mean. [Obs.] I beg cold comfort, and you are so strait, And so ingrateful, you deny me that. Shak.

STRAIT Strait, adv.

Defn: Strictly; rigorously. [Obs.] Shak.

STRAIT Strait, n.; pl. Straits. Etym: [OE. straight, streit, OF. estreit, estroit. See Strait, a.]

1. A narrow pass or passage. He brought him through a darksome narrow strait To a broad gate all built of beaten gold. Spenser. Honor travels in a strait so narrow Where one but goes abreast. Shak.

2. Specifically: (Geog.)

Defn: A (comparatively) narrow passageway connecting two large bodies of water; -- often in the plural; as, the strait, or straits, of Gibraltar; the straits of Magellan; the strait, or straits, of Mackinaw. We steered directly through a large outlet which they call a strait, though it be fifteen miles broad. De Foe.

3. A neck of land; an isthmus. [R.] A dark strait of barren land. Tennyson.

4. Fig.: A condition of narrowness or restriction; doubt; distress; difficulty; poverty; perplexity; -- sometimes in the plural; as, reduced to great straits. For I am in a strait betwixt two. Phil. i. 23. Let no man, who owns a Providence, grow desperate under any calamity or strait whatsoever. South. Ulysses made use of the pretense of natural infirmity to conceal the straits he was in at that time in his thoughts. Broome.

STRAIT Strait, v. t.

Defn: To put to difficulties. [Obs.] Shak.

STRAITEN Strait"en, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Straitened; p. pr. & vb. n. Straitening.]

1. To make strait; to make narrow; hence, to contract; to confine. Waters, when straitened, as at the falls of bridges, give a roaring noise. Bacon. In narrow circuit, straitened by a foe. Milton.

2. To make tense, or tight; to tighten. They straiten at each end the cord. Pope.

3. To restrict; to distress or embarrass in respect of means or conditions of life; -- used chiefly in the past participle; -- as, a man straitened in his circumstances.

STRAIT-HANDED Strait"-hand`ed, a.

Defn: Parsimonious; sparing; niggardly. [R.] -- Strait"-hand`ed*ness, n. [R.]

STRAIT-JACKET Strait"-jack`et, n.

Defn: A dress of strong materials for restraining maniacs or those who are violently delirious. It has long sleeves, which are closed at the ends, confining the hands, and may be tied behind the back.

STRAIT-LACED Strait"-laced`, a.

1. Bound with stays. Let nature have scope to fashion the body as she thinks best; we have few well-shaped that are strait-laced. Locke.

2. Restricted; stiff; constrained. [R.] Fuller.

3. Rigid in opinion; strict in manners or morals.

STRAITLY Strait"ly, adv.

1. In a strait manner; narrowly; strictly; rigorously. Mark i. 43.

2. Closely; intimately. [Obs.]

STRAITNESS Strait"ness, n.

Defn: The quality or condition of being strait; especially, a pinched condition or situation caused by poverty; as, the straitnessof their circumstances.

STRAIT-WAISTCOAT Strait"-waist`coat, n.

Defn: Same as Strait-jacket.

STRAKE Strake, obs.

Defn: imp. of Strike. Spenser.

STRAKE Strake, n. Etym: [See Streak.]

1. A streak. [Obs.] Spenser."White strake." Gen. xxx. 37.

2. An iron band by which the fellies of a wheel are secured to each other, being not continuous, as the tire is, but made up of separate pieces.

3. (Shipbuilding)

Defn: One breadth of planks or plates forming a continuous range on the bottom or sides of a vessel, reaching from the stem to the stern; a streak.

Note: The planks or plates next the keel are called the garboard strakes; the next, or the heavy strakes at the bilge, are the bilge strakes; the next, from the water line to the lower port sill, the wales; and the upper parts of the sides, the sheer strakes.

4. (Mining)

Defn: A trough for washing broken ore, gravel, or sand; a launder.

STRALE Strale, n.

Defn: Pupil of the eye. [Prov. Eng.]

STRAM Stram, v. t. Etym: [Cf. LG. strammen to strain, straiten, stretch, D. stram strained, tight, G. stramm.]

Defn: To spring or recoil with violence. [Prov. Eng.]

STRAM Stram, v. t.

Defn: To dash down; to beat. [Prov. Eng.]

STRAMASH Stram"ash, v. t. Etym: [Cf. Stramazoun.]

Defn: To strike, beat, or bang; to break; to destroy. [Scot. & Prov. Eng.]

STRAMASH Stram"ash, n.

Defn: A turmoil; a broil; a fray; a fight. [Scot. & Prov. Eng.] Barham.

STRAMAZOUN Stram"a*zoun, n. Etym: [F. estramaçon, It. stramazzone.]

Defn: A direct descending blow with the edge of a sword. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

STRAMINEOUS Stra*min"e*ous, a. Etym: [L. stramineus, fr. stramen straw, fr. sternere, stratum, to spread out, to strew.]

1. Strawy; consisting of straw. Robinson.

2. Chaffy; like straw; straw-colored. Burton.

STRAMONIUM Stra*mo"ni*um, n. Etym: [NL.; Cf. F. stramoine.] (Bot.)

Defn: A poisonous plant (Datura Stramonium); stinkweed. See Datura, and Jamestown weed.

STRAMONY Stram"o*ny, n. (Bot.)

Defn: Stramonium.

STRAND Strand, n. Etym: [Probably fr. D. streen a skein; akin to G. strähne a skein, lock of hair, strand of a rope.]

Defn: One of the twists, or strings, as of fibers, wires, etc., of which a rope is composed.

STRAND Strand, v. t.

Defn: To break a strand of (a rope).

STRAND Strand, n. Etym: [AS. strand; akin to D., G., Sw., & Dan. strand, Icel. strönd.]

Defn: The shore, especially the beach of a sea, ocean, or large lake; rarely, the margin of a navigable river. Chaucer. Strand birds. (Zoöl.) See Shore birds, under Shore. -- Strand plover (Zoöl.), a black-bellied plover. See Illust. of Plover. -- Strand wolf (Zoöl.), the brown hyena.

STRAND Strand, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stranded; p. pr. & vb. n. Stranding.]

Defn: To drive on a strand; hence, to run aground; as, to strand a ship.

STRAND Strand, v. i.

Defn: To drift, or be driven, on shore to run aground; as, the ship stranded at high water.

STRANG Strang, a. Etym: [See Strong.]

Defn: Strong. [Obs. or Prov. Eng. & Scot.] Halliwell.

STRANGE Strange, a. [Compar. Stranger; superl. Strangest.] Etym: [OE. estrange, F. étrange, fr. L. extraneus that is without, external, foreign, fr. extra on the outside. See Extra, and cf. Estrange, Extraneous.]

1. Belonging to another country; foreign. "To seek strange strands." Chaucer. One of the strange queen's lords. Shak. I do not contemn the knowledge of strange and divers tongues. Ascham.

2. Of or pertaining to others; not one's own; not pertaining to one's self; not domestic. So she, impatient her own faults to see, Turns from herself, and in strange things delights. Sir J. Davies.

3. Not before known, heard, or seen; new. Here is the hand and seal of the duke; you know the character, I doubt not; and the signet is not strange to you. Shak.

4. Not according to the common way; novel; odd; unusual; irregular; extraordinary; unnatural; queer. "He is sick of a strange fever." Shak. Sated at length, erelong I might perceive Strange alteration in me. Milton.

5. Reserved; distant in deportment. Shak. She may be strange and shy at first, but will soon learn to love thee. Hawthorne.

6. Backward; slow. [Obs.] Who, loving the effect, would not be strange In favoring the cause. Beau. & Fl.

7. Not familiar; unaccustomed; inexperienced. In thy fortunes am unlearned and strange. Shak.

Note: Strange is often used as an exclamation. Strange! what extremes should thus preserve the snow High on the Alps, or in deep caves below. Waller. Strange sail (Naut.), an unknown vessel. -- Strange woman (Script.), a harlot. Prov. v. 3. -- To make it strange. (a) To assume ignorance, suspicion, or alarm, concerning it. Shak. (b) To make it a matter of difficulty. [Obs.] Chaucer. -- To make strange, To make one's self strange. (a) To profess ignorance or astonishment. (b) To assume the character of a stranger. Gen. xlii. 7.

Syn. -- Foreign; new; outlandish; wonderful; astonishing; marvelous; unusual; odd; uncommon; irregular; queer; eccentric.

STRANGE Strange, adv.

Defn: Strangely. [Obs.] Most strange, but yet most truly, will I speak. Shak.

STRANGE Strange, v. t.

Defn: To alienate; to estrange. [Obs.]

STRANGE Strange, v. i.

1. To be estranged or alienated. [Obs.]

2. To wonder; to be astonished. [Obs.] Glanvill.

STRANGELY Strange"ly, adv.

1. As something foreign, or not one's own; in a manner adapted to something foreign and strange. [Obs.] Shak.

2. In the manner of one who does not know another; distantly; reservedly; coldly. You all look strangely on me. Shak. I do in justice charge thee . . . That thou commend it strangely to some place Where chance may nurse or end it. Shak.

3. In a strange manner; in a manner or degree to excite surprise or wonder; wonderfully. How strangely active are the arts of peace! Dryden. It would strangely delight you to see with what spirit he converses. Law.

STRANGENESS Strange"ness, n.

Defn: The state or quality of being strange (in any sense of the adjective).

STRANGER Stran"ger, n. Etym: [OF. estrangier, F. étranger. See Strange.]

1. One who is strange, foreign, or unknown. Specifically: -- (a) One who comes from a foreign land; a foreigner. I am a most poor woman and a stranger, Born out of your dominions. Shak.

(b) One whose home is at a distance from the place where he is, but in the same country. (c) One who is unknown or unacquainted; as, the gentleman is a stranger to me; hence, one not admitted to communication, fellowship, or acquaintance. Melons on beds of ice are taught to bear, And strangers to the sun yet ripen here. Granville. My child is yet a stranger in the world. Shak. I was no stranger to the original. Dryden.

2. One not belonging to the family or household; a guest; a visitor. To honor and receive Our heavenly stranger. Milton.

3. (Law)

Defn: One not privy or party an act, contract, or title; a mere intruder or intermeddler; one who interferes without right; as, actual possession of land gives a good title against a stranger having no title; as to strangers, a mortgage is considered merely as a pledge; a mere stranger to the levy.

STRANGER Stran"ger, v. t.

Defn: To estrange; to alienate. [Obs.] Shak.

STRANGLE Stran"gle, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Strangled; p. pr. & vb. n. Strangling.] Etym: [OF. estrangler, F. étrangler, L. strangulare, Gr. string, n. Cf. Strain, String.]

1. To compress the windpipe of (a person or animal) until death results from stoppage of respiration; to choke to death by compressing the throat, as with the hand or a rope. Our Saxon ancestors compelled the adulteress to strangle herself. Ayliffe.

2. To stifle, choke, or suffocate in any manner. Shall I not then be stifled in the vault, . . . And there die strangled ere my Romeo comes Shak.

3. To hinder from appearance; to stifle; to suppress. "Strangle such thoughts." Shak.

STRANGLE Stran"gle, v. i.

Defn: To be strangled, or suffocated.

STRANGLEABLE Stran"gle*a*ble, a.

Defn: Capable of being strangled. [R.] Chesterfield.

STRANGLE HOLD Stran"gle hold.

Defn: In wrestling, a hold by which one's opponent is choked. It is usually not allowed.

STRANGLER Stran"gler, n.

Defn: One who, or that which, strangles. "The very strangler of their amity." Shak.

STRANGLES Stran"gles, n.

Defn: A disease in horses and swine, in which the upper part of the throat, or groups of lymphatic glands elsewhere, swells.

STRANGULATE Stran"gu*late, a. (Bot.)

Defn: Strangulated.

STRANGULATED Stran"gu*la`ted, a.

1. (Med.)

Defn: Having the circulation stopped by compression; attended with arrest or obstruction of circulation, caused by constriction or compression; as, a strangulated hernia.

2. (Bot.)

Defn: Contracted at irregular intervals, if tied with a ligature; constricted. Strangulated hernia. (Med.) See under Hernia.

STRANGULATION Stran"gu*la`tion, n. Etym: [L. strangulatio: cf. F. strangulation. See Strangle.]

1. The act of strangling, or the state of being strangled.

2. (Med.)

Defn: Inordinate compression or constriction of a tube or part, as of the throat; especially, such as causes a suspension of breathing, of the passage of contents, or of the circulation, as in cases of hernia.

STRANGURIOUS Stran*gu"ri*ous, a. Etym: [L. stranguriosus.] (Med.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to strangury. Cheyne.

STRANGURY Stran"gu*ry, n. Etym: [L. stranguria, Gr. strangurie. See Strangle, and Urine.]

1. (Med.)

Defn: A painful discharge of urine, drop by drop, produced by spasmodic muscular contraction.

2. (Bot.)

Defn: A swelling or other disease in a plant, occasioned by a ligature fastened tightly about it.

STRANY Stra"ny, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The guillemot. [Prov. Eng.]

STRAP Strap, n. Etym: [OE. strope, AS. stropp, L. stroppus, struppus, perhaps fr. Gr. Strophe). Cf. Strop a strap, a piece of rope.]

1. A long, narrow, pliable strip of leather, cloth, or the like; specifically, a strip of thick leather used in flogging. A lively cobbler that . . . had scarce passed a day without giving her [his wife] the discipline of the strap. Addison.

2. Something made of such a strip, or of a part of one, or a combination of two or more for a particular use; as, a boot strap, shawl strap, stirrup strap.

3. A piece of leather, or strip of wood covered with a suitable material, for sharpening a razor; a strop.

4. A narrow strip of anything, as of iron or brass. Specifically: -- (a) (Carp. & Mach.)

Defn: A band, plate, or loop of metal for clasping and holding timbers or parts of a machine. (b) (Naut.)

Defn: A piece of rope or metal passing around a block and used for fastening it to anything.

5. (Bot.) (a) The flat part of the corolla in ligulate florets, as those of the white circle in the daisy. (b) The leaf, exclusive of its sheath, in some grasses.

6. A shoulder strap. See under Shoulder. Strap bolt, a bolt of which one end is a flat bar of considerable length. -- Strap head (Mach.), a journal box, or pair of brasses, secured to the end of a connecting rod by a strap. See Illust. of Gib and key, under Gib. -- Strap hinge, a hinge with long flaps by which it is fastened, as to a door or wall. -- Strap rail (Railroads), a flat rail formerly used.

STRAP Strap, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Strapped; p. pr. & vb. n. Strapping.]

1. To beat or chastise with a strap.

2. To fasten or bind with a strap. Cowper.

3. To sharpen by rubbing on a strap, or strop; as, to strap a razor.

STRAPPADO Strap*pa"do, n.; pl. Strappadoes. Etym: [It. strappata a pull, the strappado, from strappare to pull, from Prov. G. strapfen: cf. G. straff tense, stretched.]

Defn: A military punishment formerly practiced, which consisted in drawing an offender to the top of a beam and letting him fall to the length of the rope, by which means a limb was often dislocated. Shak.

STRAPPADO Strap*pa"do, v. t.

Defn: To punish or torture by the strappado. Milton.

STRAPPER Strap"per, n.

1. One who uses strap.

2. A person or thing of uncommon size. [Colloq.]

STRAPPING Strap"ping, a.

Defn: Tall; strong; lusty; large; as, a strapping fellow. [Colloq.] There are five and thirty strapping officers gone. Farquhar.

STRAPPLE Strap"ple, v. t.

Defn: To hold or bind with, or as with, a strap; to entangle. [Obs.] Chapman.

STRAP-SHAPED Strap"-shaped`, a.

Defn: Shaped like a strap; ligulate; as, a strap-shaped corolla.

STRAPWORK Strap"work`, n. (Arch.)

Defn: A kind of ornament consisting of a narrow fillet or band folded, crossed, and interlaced.

STRASS Strass, n. Etym: [So called from its inventor, a German jeweler: cf. F. stras.] (Chem.)

Defn: A brilliant glass, used in the manufacture of artificial paste gems, which consists essentially of a complex borosilicate of lead and potassium. Cf. Glass.

STRATA Stra"ta, n.,

Defn: pl. of Stratum.

STRATAGEM Strat"a*gem, n. Etym: [F. stratagème (cf. Sp. estratagema, It. stratagemma), L. strategema, Gr. Stratum) + Agent.]

Defn: An artifice or trick in war for deceiving the enemy; hence, in general, artifice; deceptive device; secret plot; evil machination. Fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils. Shak. Those oft are stratagems which error seem, Nor is it Homer nods, but we that dream. Pope.

STRATAGEMICAL Strat`a*gem"ic*al, a.

Defn: Containing stratagem; as, a stratagemical epistle. [R.] Swift.

STRATARITHMETRY Strat`a*rith"me*try, n. Etym: [Gr. -metry.] (Mil.)

Defn: The art of drawing up an army, or any given number of men, in any geometrical figure, or of estimating or expressing the number of men in such a figure.

STRATEGETIC; STRATEGETICAL Strat`e*get"ic, Strat`e*get"ic*al, a.

Defn: Strategic.

STRATEGETICS Strat`e*get"ics, n.

Defn: Strategy.

STRATEGIC; STRATEGICAL Stra*te"gic, Stra*te"gic*al, a. Etym: [Gr. stratégique.]

Defn: Of or pertaining to strategy; effected by artifice. -- Stra*te"gic*al*ly, adv. Strategic line (Mil.), a line joining strategic points. -- Strategic point (Mil.), any point or region in the theater or warlike operations which affords to its possessor an advantage over his opponent, as a mountain pass, a junction of rivers or roads, a fortress, etc.

STRATEGICS Stra*te"gics, n.

Defn: Strategy.

STRATEGIST Strat"e*gist, n. Etym: [Cf. F. stratégiste.]

Defn: One skilled in strategy, or the science of directing great military movements.

STRATEGUS Stra*te"gus, n.; pl. Strategi. Etym: [L., fr. Gr. Stratagem.] (Gr. Antiq.)

Defn: The leader or commander of an army; a general.

STRATEGY Strat"e*gy, n. Etym: [Gr. stratégie. See Stratagem.]

1. The science of military command, or the science of projecting campaigns and directing great military movements; generalship.

2. The use of stratagem or artifice.

STRATH Strath, n. Etym: [Gael. srath.]

Defn: A valley of considerable size, through which a river runs; a valley bottom; -- often used in composition with the name of the river; as, Strath Spey, Strathdon, Strathmore. [Scot.] The long green strath of Napa valley. R. L. Stevenson.

STRATHSPEY Strath"spey`, n. Etym: [So called from the district of Strath Spey in Scotland.]

Defn: A lively Scottish dance, resembling the reel, but slower; also, the tune.

STRATICULATE Stra*tic"u*late, a. Etym: [Dim. Fr. stratum.] (Min.)

Defn: Characterized by the presence of thin parallel strata, or layers, as in an agate.

STRATIFICATION Strat`i*fi*ca"tion, n. Etym: [Cf. F. stratification.]

1. The act or process of laying in strata, or the state of being laid in the form of strata, or layers.

2. (Physiol.)

Defn: The deposition of material in successive layers in the growth of a cell wall, thus giving rise to a stratified appearance.

STRATIFIED Strat"i*fied, a.

Defn: Having its substance arranged in strata, or layers; as, stratified rock.

STRATIFORM Strat"i*form, a.

Defn: Having the form of strata.

STRATIFY Strat"i*fy, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stratified; p. pr. & vb. n. Stratifying.] Etym: [Stratum + -fy: cf. F. stratifier.]

Defn: To form or deposit in strata, or layers, as substances in the earth; to arrange in strata.

STRATIGRAPHIC; STRATIGRAPHICAL Strat`i*graph"ic, Strat`i*graph"ic*al, a. (Geol.)

Defn: Pertaining to, or depended upon, the order or arrangement of strata; as, stratigraphical evidence. -- Strat`i*graph"ic*al*ly, adv.

STRATIGRAPHIC; STRATIGRAPHICAL Strat`i*graph"ic, -ic*al, a. (Mil.)

Defn: See Stratographic.

STRATIGRAPHY Stra*tig"ra*phy, n. Etym: [Stratum + -graphy.]

Defn: That branch of geology which treats of the arrangement and succession of strata.

STRATO-CIRRUS Stra`to-cir"rus, n. [Stratus + cirrus.] (Meteor.)

Defn: An alto-stratus cloud.

STRATOCRACY Stra*toc"ra*cy, n. Etym: [Gr. -cracy, as in democracy: cf. F. stratocratie.]

Defn: A military government; government by military chiefs and an army.

STRATO-CUMULUS Stra`to-cu"mu*lus, n. [Stratus + cumulus.] (Meteor.)

Defn: Large balls or rolls of dark cloud which frequently cover the whole sky, esp. in winter, and give it at times an undulated appearance.

STRATOGRAPHIC; STRATOGRAPHICAL Strat`o*graph"ic, Strat`o*graph"ic*al, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to stratography.

STRATOGRAPHY Stra*tog"ra*phy, n. Etym: [Gr. -graphy.]

Defn: A description of an army, or of what belongs to an army.

STRATONIC Stra*ton"ic, a. Etym: [Gr.

Defn: Of or pertaining to an army. [R.]

STRATOTIC Stra*tot"ic, a.

Defn: Warlike; military. [R.]

STRATUM Stra"tum, n.; pl. E. Stratums, L. Strata. The latter is more common. Etym: [L., from sternere, stratum, to spread; akin to Gr. Strew, and cf. Consternation, Estrade, Prostrate, Stratus, Street.]

1. (Geol.)

Defn: A bed of earth or rock of one kind, formed by natural causes, and consisting usually of a series of layers, which form a rock as it lies between beds of other kinds. Also used figuratively.

2. A bed or layer artificially made; a course.

STRATUS Stra"tus, n. Etym: [L. stratus a spreading out, scattering, from sternere, stratum, to spread.] (Meteor.)

Defn: A form of clouds in which they are arranged in a horizontal band or layer. See Cloud.

STRAUGHT Straught, obs.

Defn: imp. & p. p. of Stretch.

STRAUGHT Straught, v. t.

Defn: To stretch; to make straight. [Written also straucht.] [Scot.] Sir W. Scott.

STRAW Straw, v. t.

Defn: To spread or scatter. See Strew, and Strow. Chaucer.

STRAW Straw, n. Etym: [OE. straw, stre, stree, AS. streáw, from the root of E. strew; akin to OFries. stre, D. stroo, G. stroh, OHG. stro, Icel. stra, Dan. straa, Sw. strå. *166. See Strew.]

1. A stalk or stem of certain species of grain, pulse, etc., especially of wheat, rye, oats, barley, more rarely of buckwheat, beans, and pease.

2. The gathered and thrashed stalks of certain species of grain, etc.; as, a bundle, or a load, of rye straw.

3. Anything proverbially worthless; the least possible thing; a mere trifle. I set not a straw by thy dreamings. Chaucer.

Note: Straw is often used in the formation of self-explaining compounds; as, straw-built, straw-crowned, straw-roofed, straw- stuffed, and the like. Man of straw, an effigy formed by stuffing the garments of a man with straw; hence, a fictitious person; an irresponsible person; a puppet.set up a straw man; -- used in disputation. Typically, one party accuses an opponent of setting up a straw man, meaning that the opponent is distorting his true opinion in order to make it look absurd. -- Straw bail, worthless bail, as being given by irresponsible persons. [Colloq. U.S.] -- Straw bid, a worthless bid; a bid for a contract which the bidder is unable or unwilling to fulfill. [Colloq. U.S.] -- Straw cat (Zoöl.), the pampas cat. -- Straw color, the color of dry straw, being a delicate yellow. -- Straw drain, a drain filled with straw. -- Straw plait, or Straw plat, a strip formed by plaiting straws, used for making hats, bonnets, etc. -- To be in the straw, to be brought to bed, as a pregnant woman. [Slang]

STRAWBERRY Straw"ber*ry, n. Etym: [AS. streáwberige; streáw straw + berie berry; perhaps from the resemblance of the runners of the plant to straws.] (Bot.)

Defn: A fragrant edible berry, of a delicious taste and commonly of a red color, the fruit of a plant of the genus Fragaria, of which there are many varieties. Also, the plant bearing the fruit. The common American strawberry is Fragaria virginiana; the European, F. vesca. There are also other less common species. Strawberry bass. (Zoöl.) See Calico bass, under Calico. -- Strawberry blite. (Bot.) See under Blite. -- Strawberry borer (Zoöl.), any one of several species of insects whose larvæ burrow in the crown or roots of the strawberry vine. Especially: (a) The root borer (Anarsia lineatella), a very small dark gray moth whose larvæ burrow both in the larger roots and crown, often doing great damage. (b) The crown borer (Tyloderma fragariæ), a small brown weevil whose larva burrows in the crown and kills the plant. -- Strawberry bush (Bot.), an American shrub (Euonymus Americanus), a kind of spindle tree having crimson pods and the seeds covered with a scarlet aril. -- Strawberry crab (Zoöl.), a small European spider crab (Eurynome aspera); -- so called because the back is covered with pink tubercles. -- Strawberry fish (Zoöl.), the amadavat. -- Strawberry geranium (Bot.), a kind of saxifrage (Saxifraga sarmentosa) having reniform leaves, and producing long runners like those of the strawberry. -- Strawberry leaf. (a) The leaf of the strawberry. (b) The symbol of the rank or estate of a duke, because the ducal coronet is twined with strawberry leaves. "The strawberry leaves on her chariot panels are engraved on her ladyship's heart." Thackeray. -- Strawberry-leaf roller (Zoöl.), any one of several species of moths whose larvæ roll up, and feed upon, the leaves of the strawberry vine; especially, Phoxopteris fragariæ, and Eccopsis permundana. -- Strawberry moth (Zoöl.), any one of several species of moth whose larvæ feed on the strawberry vines; as: (a) The smeared dagger (Apatela oblinita), whose large hairy larva is velvety black with two rows of bright yellow spots on each side. (b) A geometrid (Angerona crocataria) which is yellow with dusky spots on the wings. Called also currant moth. -- Strawberry pear (Bot.), the red ovoid fruit of a West Indian plant of the genus Cereus (C. triangularia). It has a sweetish flavor, and is slightly acid, pleasant, and cooling. Also, the plant bearing the fruit. -- Strawberry sawfly (Zoöl.), a small black sawfly (Emphytus maculatus) whose larva eats the leaves of the strawberry vine. -- Strawberry tomato. (Bot.) See Alkekengi. -- Strawberry tree. (Bot.) See Arbutus. -- Strawberry vine (Bot.), the plant which yields the strawberry. -- Strawberry worm (Zoöl.), the larva of any moth which feeds on the strawberry vine.

STRAWBOARD Straw"board`, n.

Defn: Pasteboard made of pulp of straw.

STRAW-COLORED Straw"-col`ored, a.

Defn: Being of a straw color. See Straw color, under Straw, n.

STRAW-CUTTER Straw"-cut`ter, n.

Defn: An instrument to cut straw for fodder.

STRAWED Strawed,

Defn: imp. & p. p. of Straw. [Obs.]

STRAWWORM Straw"worm`, n.

Defn: A caddice worm.

STRAWY Straw"y, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to straw; made of, or resembling, straw. Shak.

STRAY Stray, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Strayed; p. pr. & vb. n. Straying.] Etym: [OF. estraier, estraer, to stray, or as adj., stray, fr. (assumed) L. stratarius roving the streets, fr. L. strata (sc. via) a paved road. See Street, and Stray, a.]

1. To wander, as from a direct course; to deviate, or go out of the way. Thames among the wanton valleys strays. Denham.

2. To wander from company, or from the proper limits; to rove at large; to roam; to go astray. Now, until the break of day, Through this house each fairy stray. Shak. A sheep doth very often stray. Shak.

3. Figuratively, to wander from the path of duty or rectitude; to err. We have erred and strayed from thy ways. While meaner things, whom instinct leads, Are rarely known to stray. Cowper.

Syn. -- To deviate; err; swerve; rove; roam; wander.

STRAY Stray, v. t.

Defn: To cause to stray. [Obs.] Shak.

STRAY Stray, a. Etym: [Cf. OF. estraié, p.p. of estraier. See Stray, v. i., and cf. Astray, Estray.]

Defn: Having gone astray; strayed; wandering; as, a strayhorse or sheep. Stray line (Naut.), that portion of the log line which is veered from the reel to allow the chip to get clear of the stern eddies before the glass is turned. -- Stray mark (Naut.), the mark indicating the end of the stray line.

STRAY Stray, n.

1. Any domestic animal that has an inclosure, or its proper place and company, and wanders at large, or is lost; an estray. Used also figuratively. Seeing him wander about, I took him up for a stray. Dryden.

2. The act of wandering or going astray. [R.] Shak.

STRAYER Stray"er, n.

Defn: One who strays; a wanderer.

STRE Stre, n.

Defn: Straw. [Obs.] Chaucer.

STREAK Streak, v. t. Etym: [Cf. Stretch, Streek.]

Defn: To stretch; to extend; hence, to lay out, as a dead body. [Obs. or Prov. Eng. & Scot.]

STREAK Streak, n. Etym: [OE. streke; akin to D. streek a line, stroke, G. strich, AS. strica, Sw. strek, Dan. streg, Goth. stricks, and E. strike, stroke. See Strike, Stroke, n., and cf. Strake.]

1. A line or long mark of a different color from the ground; a stripe; a vein. What mean those colored streaks in heaven Milton.

2. (Shipbuilding)

Defn: A strake.

3. (Min.)

Defn: The fine powder or mark yielded by a mineral when scratched or rubbed against a harder surface, the color of which is sometimes a distinguishing character.

4. The rung or round of a ladder. [Obs.]

STREAK Streak, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Streaked; p. pr. & vb. n. Streaking.]

1. To form streaks or stripes in or on; to stripe; to variegate with lines of a different color, or of different colors. A mule . . . streaked and dappled with white and black. Sandys. Now streaked and glowing with the morning red. Prior.

2. With it as an object: To run swiftly. [Colloq.]

STREAKED Streaked, a.

1. Marked or variegated with stripes.

2. Uncomfortable; out of sorts. [Local, U.S.]

STREAKY Streak"y, a.

Defn: Same as Streaked, 1. "The streaky west." Cowper.

STREAM Stream, n. Etym: [AS. streám; akin to OFries. stram, OS. strom, D. stroom, G. strom, OHG. stroum, str, Dan. & Sw. ström, Icel. straumr, Ir. sroth, Lith. srove, Russ. struia, Gr. sru. *174. Cf. Catarrh, Diarrhea, Rheum, Rhythm.]

1. A current water or other fluid; a liquid flowing continuously in a line or course, either on the earth, as a river, brook, etc., or from a vessel, reservoir, or fountain; specifically, any course of running water; as, many streams are blended in the Mississippi; gas and steam came from the earth in streams; a stream of molten lead from a furnace; a stream of lava from a volcano.

2. A beam or ray of light. "Sun streams." Chaucer.

3. Anything issuing or moving with continued succession of parts; as, a stream of words; a stream of sand. "The stream of beneficence." Atterbury. "The stream of emigration." Macaulay.

4. A continued current or course; as, a stream of weather. "The very stream of his life." Shak.

5. Current; drift; tendency; series of tending or moving causes; as, the stream of opinions or manners. Gulf stream. See under Gulf. -- Stream anchor, Stream cable. (Naut.) See under Anchor, and Cable. -- Stream ice, blocks of ice floating in a mass together in some definite direction. -- Stream tin, particles or masses of tin ore found in alluvial ground; -- so called because a stream of water is the principal agent used in separating the ore from the sand and gravel. -- Stream works (Cornish Mining), a place where an alluvial deposit of tin ore is worked. Ure. -- To float with the stream, figuratively, to drift with the current of opinion, custom, etc., so as not to oppose or check it.

Syn. -- Current; flow; rush; tide; course. -- Stream, Current. These words are often properly interchangeable; but stream is the broader word, denoting a prevailing onward course. The stream of the Mississippi rolls steadily on to the Gulf of Mexico, but there are reflex currents in it which run for a while in a contrary direction.

STREAM Stream, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Streamed; p. pr. & vb. n. Streaming.]

1. To issue or flow in a stream; to flow freely or in a current, as a fluid or whatever is likened to fluids; as, tears streamed from her eyes. Beneath those banks where rivers stream. Milton.

2. To pour out, or emit, a stream or streams. A thousand suns will stream on thee. Tennyson.

3. To issue in a stream of light; to radiate.

4. To extend; to stretch out with a wavy motion; to float in the wind; as, a flag streams in the wind.

STREAM Stream, v. t.

Defn: To send forth in a current or stream; to cause to flow; to pour; as, his eyes streamed tears. It may so please that she at length will stream Some dew of grace into my withered heart. Spenser.

2. To mark with colors or embroidery in long tracts. The herald's mantle is streamed with gold. Bacon.

3. To unfurl. Shak. To stream the buoy. (Naut.) See under Buoy.

STREAM CLOCK Stream clock. (Physiol.)

Defn: An instrument for ascertaining the velocity of the blood in a vessel.

STREAMER Stream"er, n.

1. An ensign, flag, or pennant, which floats in the wind; specifically, a long, narrow, ribbonlike flag. Brave Rupert from afar appears, Whose waving streamers the glad general knows. Dryden.

3. A stream or column of light shooting upward from the horizon, constituting one of the forms of the aurora borealis. Macaulay. While overhead the North's dumb streamers shoot. Lowell.

3. (Mining)

Defn: A searcher for stream tin.

STREAMFUL Stream"ful, a.

Defn: Abounding in streams, or in water. "The streamful tide." Drayton.

STREAM GOLD Stream gold. (Mining)

Defn: Gold in alluvial deposits; placer gold.

STREAMINESS Stream"i*ness, n.

Defn: The state of being streamy; a trailing. R. A. Proctor.

STREAMING Stream"ing, a.

Defn: Sending forth streams.

STREAMING Stream"ing, n.

1. The act or operation of that which streams; the act of that which sends forth, or which runs in, streams.

2. (Mining)

Defn: The reduction of stream tin; also, the search for stream tin.

STREAMLESS Stream"less, a.

Defn: Destitute of streams, or of a stream, as a region of country, or a dry channel.

STREAMLET Stream"let, n.

Defn: A small stream; a rivulet; a rill.

STREAM LINE Stream line.

Defn: The path of a constituent particle of a flowing fluid undisturbed by eddies or the like.

STREAMLINE Stream"line`, a.

Defn: Of or pert. to a stream line; designating a motion or flow that is free from turbulence, like that of a particle in a streamline; hence, designating a surface, body, etc., that is designed so as to afford an unbroken flow of a fluid about it, esp. when the resistance to flow is the least possible; as, a streamline body for an automobile or airship.

STREAM WHEEL Stream wheel.

Defn: A wheel used for measuring, by its motion when submerged, the velocity of flowing water; a current wheel.

STREAMY Stream"y, a.

1. Abounding with streams, or with running water; streamful. Arcadia However streamy now, adust and dry, Denied the goddess water. Prior.

2. Resembling a stream; issuing in a stream. His nodding helm emits a streamy ray. Pope.

STREE Stree, n.

Defn: Straw. [Obs.] Chaucer.

STREEK Streek, v. t.

Defn: To stretch; also, to lay out, as a dead body. See Streak. [Obs. or Prov. Eng. & Scot.]

STREEL Streel, v. i. Etym: [Cf. Stroll.]

Defn: To trail along; to saunter or be drawn along, carelessly, swaying in a kind of zigzag motion. [Colloq.] Thackeray.

STREEN Streen, n.

Defn: See Strene. [Obs.] Chaucer.

STREET Street, n. Etym: [OE. strete, AS. str, fr. L. strata (sc. via) a paved way, properly fem. p.p. of sternere, stratum, to spread; akin to E. strew. See Strew, and cf. Stratum, Stray, v. & a.]

Defn: Originally, a paved way or road; a public highway; now commonly, a thoroughfare in a city or village, bordered by dwellings or business houses. He removed [the body of] Amasa from the street unto the field. Coverdale. At home or through the high street passing. Milton.

Note: In an extended sense, street designates besides the roadway, the walks, houses, shops, etc., which border the thoroughfare. His deserted mansion in Duke Street. Macaulay. The street (Broker's Cant), that thoroughfare of a city where the leading bankers and brokers do business; also, figuratively, those who do business there; as, the street would not take the bonds. -- Street Arab, Street broker, etc. See under Arab, Broker, etc. -- Street door, a door which opens upon a street, or is nearest the street.

Syn. -- See Way.

STREETWALKER Street"walk`er, n.

Defn: A common prostitute who walks the streets to find customers.

STREETWARD Street"ward`, n.

Defn: An officer, or ward, having the care of the streets. [Obs.] Cowell.

STREETWARD Street"ward, a.

Defn: Facing toward the street. Their little streetward sitting room. Tennyson.

STREIGHT Streight, a., n., & adv.

Defn: See 2nd Strait. [Obs.]

STREIGHTEN Streight"en, v. t.

Defn: See Straiten. [Obs.]

STREIN Strein, v. t.

Defn: To strain. [Obs.] Chaucer.

STREIT Streit, a. Etym: [See Stretch.]

Defn: Drawn. [Obs.] Pyrrhus with his streite sword. Chaucer.

STREIT Streit, a.

Defn: Close; narrow; strict. [Obs.] See Strait.

STREITE Streite, adv.

Defn: Narrowly; strictly; straitly. [Obs.]

STRELITZ Strel"itz, n.sing. & pl. Etym: [Russ. strieliéts' a shooter, archer.]

Defn: A soldier of the ancient Muscovite guard or Russian standing army; also, the guard itself.

STRELITZIA Stre*litz"i*a, n. Etym: [NL., named after Charlotte, Princess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, and queen of George III of Great Britain.] (Bot.)

Defn: A genus of plants related to the banana, found at the Cape of Good Hope. They have rigid glaucous distichous leaves, and peculiar richly colored flowers.

STRENE Strene, n. Etym: [OE. stren, streen, streon, AS. gestriénan, gestr, gestreónan, to beget, to obtain, gestreón gain, wealth; akin to OHG. striunan to gain. Cf. Strian race, family.]

Defn: Race; offspring; stock; breed; strain. [Obs.] Chaucer.

STRENGER; STRENGEST Stren"ger, Stren"gest

Defn: , the original compar. & superl. of Strong. [Obs.] Two of us shall strenger be than one. Chaucer.

STRENGTH Strength, n. Etym: [OE. strengthe, AS. streng, fr. strang strong. See Strong.]

1. The quality or state of being strong; ability to do or to bear; capacity for exertion or endurance, whether physical, intellectual, or moral; force; vigor; power; as, strength of body or of the arm; strength of mind, of memory, or of judgment. All his [Samson's] strength in his hairs were. Chaucer. Thou must outlive Thy youth, thy strength, thy beauty. Milton.

2. Power to resist force; solidity or toughness; the quality of bodies by which they endure the application of force without breaking or yielding; -- in this sense opposed to frangibility; as, the strength of a bone, of a beam, of a wall, a rope, and the like. "The brittle strength of bones." Milton.

3. Power of resisting attacks; impregnability. "Our castle's strength will laugh a siege to scorn." Shak.

4. That quality which tends to secure results; effective power in an institution or enactment; security; validity; legal or moral force; logical conclusiveness; as, the strength of social or legal obligations; the strength of law; the strength of public opinion; strength of evidence; strength of argument.

5. One who, or that which, is regarded as embodying or affording force, strength, or firmness; that on which confidence or reliance is based; support; security. God is our refuge and strength. Ps. xlvi. 1. What they boded would be a mischief to us, you are providing shall be one of our principal strengths. Sprat. Certainly there is not a greater strength against temptation. Jer. Taylor.

6. Force as measured; amount, numbers, or power of any body, as of an army, a navy, and the like; as, what is the strength of the enemy by land, or by sea

7. Vigor or style; force of expression; nervous diction; -- said of literary work. And praise the easy vigor of a life Where Denham's strength and Waller's sweetness join. Pope.

8. Intensity; -- said of light or color. Bright Phoebus in his strength. Shak.

9. Intensity or degree of the distinguishing and essential element; spirit; virtue; excellence; -- said of liquors, solutions, etc.; as, the strength of wine or of acids.

10. A strong place; a stronghold. [Obs.] Shak. On, or Upon, the strength of, in reliance upon. "The allies, after a successful summer, are too apt, upon the strength of it, to neglect their preparations for the ensuing campaign." Addison.

Syn. -- Force; robustness; toughness; hardness; stoutness; brawniness; lustiness; firmness; puissance; support; spirit; validity; authority. See Force.

STRENGTH Strength, v. t.

Defn: To strengthen. [Obs.] Chaucer.

STRENGTHEN Strength"en, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Strengthened; p. pr. & vb. n. Strengthening.]

1. To make strong or stronger; to add strength to; as, to strengthen a limb, a bridge, an army; to strengthen an obligation; to strengthen authority. Let noble Warwick, Cobham, and the rest, . . . With powerful policy strengthen themselves. Shak.

2. To animate; to encourage; to fix in resolution. Charge Joshua, and encourage him, and strengthen him. Deut. iii. 28.

Syn. -- To invigorate; confirm; establish; fortify; animate; encourage.

STRENGTHEN Strength"en, v. i.

Defn: To grow strong or stronger. The young disease, that must subdue at length, Grows with his growth, and strengthens with his strength. Pope.

STRENGTHENER Strength"en*er, n.

Defn: One who, or that which, gives or adds strength. Sir W. Temple.

STRENGTHENING Strength"en*ing, a.

Defn: That strengthens; giving or increasing strength. -- Strength"en*ing*ly, adv. Strengthening plaster (Med.), a plaster containing iron, and supposed to have tonic effects.

STRENGTHFUL Strength"ful, a.

Defn: Abounding in strength; full of strength; strong. -- Strength"ful*ness, n. Florence my friend, in court my faction Not meanly strengthful. Marston.

STRENGTHING Strength"ing, n.

Defn: A stronghold. [Obs.]

STRENGTHLESS Strength"less, a.

Defn: Destitute of strength. Boyle.

STRENGTHNER Strength"ner, n.

Defn: See Strengthener.

STRENGTHY Strength"y, a.

Defn: Having strength; strong. [Obs.]

STRENUITY Stre*nu"i*ty, n. Etym: [L. strenuatis.]

Defn: Strenuousness; activity. [Obs.] Chapman.

STRENUOUS Stren"u*ous, a. Etym: [L. strenuus; cf. Gr.

Defn: Eagerly pressing or urgent; zealous; ardent; earnest; bold; valiant; intrepid; as, a strenuous advocate for national rights; a strenuous reformer; a strenuous defender of his country. And spirit-stirring wine, that strenuous makes. Chapman. Strenuous, continuous labor is pain. I. Taylor. -- Stren"u*ous*ly, adv. -- Stren"u*ous*ness, n.

STREPENT Strep"ent, a. Etym: [L. strepens, p.pr. of strepere to make a noise.]

Defn: Noisy; loud. [R.] Shenstone.

STREPEROUS Strep"er*ous, a. Etym: [LL. streperus, fr. L. strepere. See Strepent, and cf. Obstreperous.]

Defn: Loud; boisterous. [R.] Sir T. Browne.

STREPITORES Strep`i*to"res, n. pl. Etym: [NL., fr. L. strepitus clamor.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: A division of birds, including the clamatorial and picarian birds, which do not have well developed singing organs.

STREPSIPTER; STREPSIPTERAN Strep*sip"ter, Strep*sip"ter*an, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: One of the Strepsiptera.

STREPSIPTERA Strep*sip"te*ra, n. pl. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A group of small insects having the anterior wings rudimentary, and in the form of short and slender twisted appendages, while the posterior ones are large and membranous. They are parasitic in the larval state on bees, wasps, and the like; -- called also Rhipiptera. See Illust. under Rhipipter.

STREPSIPTEROUS Strep*sip"ter*ous, a. Etym: [See Strepsiptera.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to Strepsiptera.

STREPSORHINA Strep`so*rhi"na, n. pl. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Same as Lemuroidea.

STREPSORHINE Strep"so*rhine, a. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Having twisted nostrils; -- said of the lemurs. -- n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: One of the Strepsorhina; a lemur. See Illust. under Monkey.

STREPTOBACTERIA Strep`to*bac*te"ri*a, n. pl.; sing. Streptobracterium (. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr. bacteria.] (Biol.)

Defn: A so-called variety of bacterium, consisting in reality of several bacteria linked together in the form of a chain.

STREPTOCOCCUS Strep`to*coc"cus, n.; pl. Streptococci. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr. (Biol.)

Defn: A long or short chain of micrococci, more or less curved.

STREPTONEURA Strep`to*neu"ra, n. pl. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr. (Zoöl.)

Defn: An extensive division of gastropod Mollusca in which the loop or visceral nerves is twisted, and the sexes separate. It is nearly to equivalent to Prosobranchiata.

STREPTOTHRIX Strep"to*thrix, n. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr. (Biol.)

Defn: A genus of bacilli occurring of the form of long, smooth and apparently branched threads, either straight or twisted.

STRESS Stress, n. Etym: [Abbrev. fr. distress; or cf. OF. estrecier to press, pinch, (assumed) LL. strictiare, fr. L. strictus. See Distress.]

1. Distress. [Obs.] Sad hersal of his heavy stress. Spenser.

2. Pressure, strain; -- used chiefly of immaterial things; except in mechanics; hence, urgency; importance; weight; significance. The faculties of the mind are improved by exercise, yet they must not be put to a stress beyond their strength. Locke. A body may as well lay too little as too much stress upon a dream. L'Estrange.

3. (Mech. & Physics)

Defn: The force, or combination of forces, which produces a strain; force exerted in any direction or manner between contiguous bodies, or parts of bodies, and taking specific names according to its direction, or mode of action, as thrust or pressure, pull or tension, shear or tangential stress. Rankine. Stress is the mutual action between portions of matter. Clerk Maxwell.

4. (Pron.)

Defn: Force of utterance expended upon words or syllables. Stress is in English the chief element in accent and is one of the most important in emphasis. See Guide to pronunciation, §§ 31-35.

5. (Scots Law)

Defn: Distress; the act of distraining; also, the thing distrained. Stress of voice, unusual exertion of the voice. -- Stress of weather, constraint imposed by continued bad weather; as, to be driven back to port by stress of weather. -- To lay stress upon, to attach great importance to; to emphasize. "Consider how great a stress is laid upon this duty." Atterbury. -- To put stress upon, or To put to a stress, to strain.

STRESS Stress, v. t.

1. To press; to urge; to distress; to put to difficulties. [R.] Spenser.

2. To subject to stress, pressure, or strain.

STRESSFUL Stress"ful, a.

Defn: Having much stress. Rush.

STRETCH Stretch, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stretched; p. pr. & vb. n. Stretching.] Etym: [OE. strecchen, AS. streccan; akin to D. strekken, G. strecken, OHG. strecchen, Sw. sträcka, Dan. strække; cf. AS. stræck, strec, strong, violent, G. strack straight; of uncertain origin, perhaps akin to E. strong. Cf. Straight.]

1. To reach out; to extend; to put forth. And stretch forth his neck long and small. Chaucer. I in conquest stretched mine arm. Shak.

2. To draw out to the full length; to cause to extend in a straight line; as, to stretch a cord or rope.

3. To cause to extend in breadth; to spread; to expand; as, to stretch cloth; to stretch the wings.

4. To make tense; to tighten; to distend forcibly. The ox hath therefore stretched his yoke in vain. Shak.

5. To draw or pull out to greater length; to strain; as, to stretch a tendon or muscle. Awake, my soul, stretch every nerve. Doddridge.

6. To exaggerate; to extend too far; as, to stretch the truth; to stretch one's credit. They take up, one day, the most violent and stretched prerogative. Burke.

STRETCH Stretch, v. i.

1. To be extended; to be drawn out in length or in breadth, or both; to spread; to reach; as, the iron road stretches across the continent; the lake stretches over fifty square miles. As far as stretcheth any ground. Gower.

2. To extend or spread one's self, or one's limbs; as, the lazy man yawns and stretches.

3. To be extended, or to bear extension, without breaking, as elastic or ductile substances. The inner membrane . . . because it would stretch and yield, remained umbroken. Boyle.

4. To strain the truth; to exaggerate; as, a man apt to stretch in his report of facts. [Obs. or Colloq.]

5. (Naut.)

Defn: To sail by the wind under press of canvas; as, the ship stretched to the eastward. Ham. Nav. Encyc. Stretch out, an order to rowers to extend themselves forward in dipping the oar.

STRETCH Stretch, n.

1. Act of stretching, or state of being stretched; reach; effort; struggle; strain; as, a stretch of the limbs; a stretch of the imagination. By stretch of arms the distant shore to gain. Dryden. Those put a lawful authority upon the stretch, to the abuse of yower, under the color of prerogative. L'Estrange.

2. A continuous line or surface; a continuous space of time; as, grassy stretches of land. A great stretch of cultivated country. W. Black. But all of them left me a week at a stretch. E. Eggleston.

3. The extent to which anything may be stretched. Quotations, in their utmost stretch, can signify no more than that Luther lay under severe agonies of mind. Atterbury. This is the utmost stretch that nature can. Granville.

4. (Naut.)

Defn: The reach or extent of a vessel's progress on one tack; a tack or board.

5. Course; direction; as, the stretch of seams of coal. To be on the stretch, to be obliged to use one's utmost powers. -- Home stretch. See under Home, a.

STRETCHER Stretch"er, n.

1. One who, or that which, stretches.

2. (Masonry)

Defn: A brick or stone laid with its longer dimension in the line of direction of the wall. Gwilt.

3. (Arch.)

Defn: A piece of timber used in building.

4. (Naut.) (a) A narrow crosspiece of the bottom of a boat against which a rower braces his feet. (b) A crosspiece placed between the sides of a boat to keep them apart when hoisted up and griped. Dana.

5. A litter, or frame, for carrying disabled, wounded, or dead persons.

6. An overstretching of the truth; a lie. [Slang]

7. One of the rods in an umbrella, attached at one end to one of the ribs, and at the other to the tube sliding upon the handle.

8. An instrument for stretching boots or gloves.

9. The frame upon which canvas is stretched for a painting.

STRETCHING Stretch"ing, a. & n.

Defn: from Stretch, v. Stretching course (Masonry), a course or series of stretchers. See Stretcher, 2. Britton.

STRETTO Stret"to, n. Etym: [It., close or contacted, pressed.] (Mus.) (a) The crowding of answer upon subject near the end of a fugue. (b) In an opera or oratorio, a coda, or winding up, in an accelerated time. [Written also stretta.]

STREW Strew, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Strewed; p. p. strewn; p. pr. & vb. n. Strewing.] Etym: [OE. strewen, strawen, AS. strewian, streówian; akin to Ofries. strewa, OS. strewian, D. strooijen, G. streuen, OHG. strewen, Icel. stra, Sw. strö, Dan. ströe, Goth. straujan, L. sternere, stratum, Gr. st. *166. Cf. Stratum, Straw, Street.]

1. To scatter; to spread by scattering; to cast or to throw loosely apart; -- used of solids, separated or separable into parts or particles; as, to strew seed in beds; to strew sand on or over a floor; to strew flowers over a grave. And strewed his mangled limbs about the field. Dryden. On a principal table a desk was open and many papers [were] strewn about. Beaconsfield.

2. To cover more or less thickly by scattering something over or upon; to cover, or lie upon, by having been scattered; as, they strewed the ground with leaves; leaves strewed the ground. The snow which does the top of Pindus strew. Spenser. Is thine alone the seed that strews the plain Pope.

3. To spread abroad; to disseminate. She may strew dangerous conjectures. Shak.

STREWING Strew"ing, n.

1. The act of scattering or spreading.

2. Anything that is, or may be, strewed; -- used chiefly in the plural. Shak.

STREWMENT Strew"ment, n.

Defn: Anything scattered, as flowers for decoration. [Obs.] Shak.

STREWN Strewn,

Defn: p. p. of Strew.

STRIA Stri"a, n.; pl. Striæ. Etym: [L., a furrow, channel, hollow.]

1. A minute groove, or channel; a threadlike line, as of color; a narrow structural band or line; a striation; as, the striæ, or groovings, produced on a rock by a glacier passing over it; the striæ on the surface of a shell; a stria of nervous matter in the brain.

2. (Arch.)

Defn: A fillet between the flutes of columns, pilasters, or the like. Oxf. Gloss.

STRIATE Stri"ate, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Striated; p. pr. & vb. n. Striating.] Etym: [See Striate, a.]

Defn: To mark with striaæ. "Striated longitudinally." Owen.

STRIATE; STRIATED Stri"ate, Stri"a*ted, a. Etym: [L. striatus, p.p. of striare to furnish with channels, from stria a channel.]

Defn: Marked with striaæ, or fine grooves, or lines of color; showing narrow structural bands or lines; as, a striated crystal; striated muscular fiber.

STRIATION Stri*a"tion, n.

1. The quality or condition of being striated.

2. A stria; as, the striations on a shell.

STRIATUM Stri*a"tum, n. Etym: [NL.] (Anat.)

Defn: The corpus striatum.

STRIATURE Stri"a*ture, n. Etym: [L. striatura.]

Defn: A stria.

STRICH Strich, n. Etym: [Cf. L. strix, strigs, a streech owl.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: An owl. [Obs.] Spenser.

STRICK Strick, n.

Defn: A bunch of hackled flax prepared for drawing into slivers. Knight.

STRICKEN Strick"en, p. p. & a. from Strike.

1. Struck; smitten; wounded; as, the stricken deer.

Note: [See Strike, n.]

2. Worn out; far gone; advanced. See Strike, v. t., 21. Abraham was old and well stricken in age. Gen. xxiv. 1.

3. Whole; entire; -- said of the hour as marked by the striking of a clock. [Scot.] He persevered for a stricken hour in such a torrent of unnecessary tattle. Sir W. Scott. Speeches are spoken by the stricken hour, day after day, week, perhaps, after week. Bayne.

STRICKLE Stric"kle, n. Etym: [See Strike.]

1. An instrument to strike grain to a level with the measure; a strike.

2. An instrument for whetting scythes; a rifle.

3. (Founding)

Defn: An instrument used for smoothing the surface of a core.

4. (Carp. & Mason.)

Defn: A templet; a pattern.

5. An instrument used in dressing flax. [Prov. Eng.]

STRICKLER Stric"kler, n.

Defn: See Strickle.

STRICKLESS Strick"less, n.

Defn: See Strickle. [Prov. Eng.]

STRICT Strict, a. [Compar. Stricter; superl. Strictest.] Etym: [L. strictus, p.p. of stringere to draw or bind tight, to strain. See Strain, and cf. Strait, a.]

1. Strained; drawn close; tight; as, a strict embrace; a strict ligature. Dryden.

2. Tense; not relaxed; as, a strict fiber.

3. Exact; accurate; precise; rigorously nice; as, to keep strict watch; to pay strict attention. Shak. It shall be still in strictest measure. Milton.

4. Governed or governing by exact rules; observing exact rules; severe; rigorous; as, very strict in observing the Sabbath. "Through the strict senteries." Milton.

5. Rigidly; interpreted; exactly limited; confined; restricted; as, to understand words in a strict sense.

6. (Bot.)

Defn: Upright, or straight and narrow; -- said of the shape of the plants or their flower clusters.

Syn. -- Exact; accurate; nice; close; rigorous; severe. -- Strict, Severe. Strict, applied to a person, denotes that he conforms in his motives and acts to a principle or code by which he is bound; severe is strict with an implication often, but not always, of harshness. Strict is opposed to lax; severe is opposed to gentle. And rules as strict his labored work confine, As if the Stagirite o'erlooked each line. Pope. Soon moved with touch of blame, thus Eve: -"What words have passed thy lips, Adam severe!" Milton. The Strict Observance, or Friars of the Strict Observance. (R. C. Ch.) See Observance.

STRICTION Stric"tion, n. Etym: [L. strictio. See Stringent.]

Defn: The act of constricting, or the state of being constricted. Line of striction (Geom.), the line on a skew surface that cuts each generator in that point of it that is nearest to the succeeding generator.

STRICTLY Strict"ly, adv.

Defn: In a strict manner; closely; precisely.

STRICTNESS Strict"ness, n.

Defn: Quality or state of being strict.

STRICTURE Stric"ture, n. Etym: [L. strictura a contraction, from stringere, strictum, to draw tight: cf. F. stricture. See Strict.]

1. Strictness. [Obs.] A man of stricture and firm abstinence. Shak.

2. A stroke; a glance; a touch. [Obs.] Sir M. Hale.

3. A touch of adverse criticism; censure. [I have] given myself the liberty of these strictures by way of reflection on all and every passage. Hammond.

4. (Med.)

Defn: A localized morbid contraction of any passage of the body. Cf. Organic stricture, and Spasmodic stricture, under Organic, and Spasmodic. Arbuthnot.

STRICTURED Stric"tured, a. (Med.)

Defn: Affected with a stricture; as, a strictured duct.

STRID Strid, n. Etym: [See Stride.]

Defn: A narrow passage between precipitous rocks or banks, which looks as if it might be crossed at a stride. [Prov. Eng.] Howitt. This striding place is called the Strid. Wordsworth.

STRIDE Stride, v. t. [imp. Strode (Obs. Strid (); p. p. Stridden (Obs. Strid); p. pr. & vb. n. Striding.] Etym: [AS. stridan to stride, to strive; akin to LG. striden, OFries. strida to strive, D. strijden to strive, to contend, G. streiten, OHG. stritan; of uncertain origin. Cf. Straddle.]

1. To walk with long steps, especially in a measured or pompous manner. Mars in the middle of the shining shield Is graved, and strides along the liquid field. Dryden.

2. To stand with the legs wide apart; to straddle.

STRIDE Stride, v. t.

1. To pass over at a step; to step over. "A debtor that not dares to stride a limit." Shak.

2. To straddle; to bestride. I mean to stride your steed. Shak.

STRIDE Stride, n.

Defn: The act of stridding; a long step; the space measured by a long step; as, a masculine stride. Pope. God never meant that man should scale the heavens By strides of human wisdom. Cowper.

STRIDENT Stri"dent, a. Etym: [L. stridens, -entis, p.pr. of stridere to make a grating or creaking noise.]

Defn: Characterized by harshness; grating; shrill. "A strident voice." Thackeray.

STRIDOR Stri"dor, n. Etym: [L., from stridere to make any harsh, grating, or creaking sound.]

Defn: A harsh, shrill, or creaking noise. Dryden.

STRIDULATE Strid"u*late, v. t. Etym: [See Stridulous.]

Defn: To make a shrill, creaking noise; specifically (Zoöl.),

Defn: to make a shrill or musical sound, such as is made by the males of many insects.

STRIDULATION Strid`u*la"tion, n.

Defn: The act of stridulating. Specifically: (Zoöl.) (a) The act of making shrill sounds or musical notes by rubbing together certain hard parts, as is done by the males of many insects, especially by Orthoptera, such as crickets, grasshoppers, and locusts. (b) The noise itself.

Note: The crickets stridulate by rubbing together the strong nervures of the fore wings. Many grasshoppers stridulate by rubbing the hind legs across strong nervures on the fore wings. The green grasshoppers and katydids stridulate by means of special organs at the base of the fore wings.

STRIDULATOR Strid"u*la`tor, n. Etym: [NL.]

Defn: That which stridulates. Darwin.

STRIDULATORY Strid"u*la*to*ry, a.

Defn: Stridulous; able to stridulate; used in stridulating; adapted for stridulation. Darwin.

STRIDULOUS Strid"u*lous, a. Etym: [L. stridulus. See Strident.]

Defn: Making a shrill, creaking sound. Sir T. Browne. The Sarmatian boor driving his stridulous cart. Longfellow. Stridulous laryngitis (Med.), a form of croup, or laryngitis, in children, associated with dyspnoea, occurring usually at night, and marked by crowing or stridulous breathing.

STRIFE Strife, n. Etym: [OF. estrif. See Strive.]

1. The act of striving; earnest endeavor. [Archaic] Shak.

2. Exertion or contention for superiority; contest of emulation, either by intellectual or physical efforts. Doting about questions and strifes of words. 1 Tim. vi. 4. Thus gods contended -- noble strife -Who most should ease the wants of life. Congreve.

3. Altercation; violent contention; fight; battle. Twenty of them fought in this black strife. Shak. These vows, thus granted, raised a strife above Betwixt the god of war and queen of love. Dryden.

4. That which is contended against; occasion of contest. [Obs.] "Lamenting her unlucky strife." Spenser.

Syn. -- Contest; struggle; quarrel. See Contention.

STRIFEFUL Strife"ful, a.

Defn: Contentious; discordant. The ape was strifeful and ambitious. Spenser.

STRIGATE Stri"gate, a. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Having transverse bands of color.

STRIGES Stri"ges, n. pl. Etym: [L., pl. of strix a streech owl; cf. Gr. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The tribe of birds which comprises the owls.

STRIGIL Strig"il, n. Etym: [L. strigilis, from stringere to graze, scrape.] (Gr. & Rom. Antiq.)

Defn: An instrument of metal, ivory, etc., used for scraping the skin at the bath.

STRIGILLOSE Strig"il*lose`, a. Etym: [Dim. fr. strigose.] (Bot.)

Defn: Set with stiff, slender bristles.

STRIGINE Stri"gine, a. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to owls; owl-like.

STRIGMENT Strig"ment, n. Etym: [L. strigmentum.]

Defn: Scraping; that which is scraped off. [Obs.] Sir T. Browne.

STRIGOSE Stri*gose", a. Etym: [Cf. F. strigueux. See Strigil.] (Bot.)

Defn: Set with stiff, straight bristles; hispid; as, a strigose leaf.

STRIGOUS Stri"gous, a. (Bot.)

Defn: Strigose. [R.]

STRIKE Strike, v. t. [imp. Struck; p. p. Struck, Stricken ( (Stroock (, Strucken (, Obs.); p. pr. & vb. n. Striking. Struck is more commonly used in the p.p. than stricken.] Etym: [OE. striken to strike, proceed, flow, AS. strican to go, proceed, akin to D. strijken to rub, stroke, strike, to move, go, G. streichen, OHG. strihhan, L. stringere to touch lightly, to graze, to strip off (but perhaps not to L. stringere in sense to draw tight), striga a row, a furrow. Cf. Streak, Stroke.]

1. To touch or hit with some force, either with the hand or with an instrument; to smite; to give a blow to, either with the hand or with any instrument or missile. He at Philippi kept His sword e'en like a dancer; while I struck The lean and wrinkled Cassius. Shak.

2. To come in collision with; to strike against; as, a bullet struck him; the wave struck the boat amidships; the ship struck a reef.

3. To give, as a blow; to impel, as with a blow; to give a force to; to dash; to cast. They shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two sideposts. Ex. xii. 7. Who would be free, themselves must strike the blow. Byron.

4. To stamp or impress with a stroke; to coin; as, to strike coin from metal: to strike dollars at the mint.

5. To thrust in; to cause to enter or penetrate; to set in the earth; as, a tree strikes its roots deep.

6. To punish; to afflict; to smite. To punish the just is not good, nor strike princes for equity. Prov. xvii. 26.

7. To cause to sound by one or more beats; to indicate or notify by audible strokes; as, the clock strikes twelve; the drums strike up a march.

8. To lower; to let or take down; to remove; as, to strike sail; to strike a flag or an ensign, as in token of surrender; to strike a yard or a topmast in a gale; to strike a tent; to strike the centering of an arch.

9. To make a sudden impression upon, as by a blow; to affect sensibly with some strong emotion; as, to strike the mind, with surprise; to strike one with wonder, alarm, dread, or horror. Nice works of art strike and surprise us most on the first view. Atterbury. They please as beauties, here as wonders strike. Pope.

10. To affect in some particular manner by a sudden impression or impulse; as, the plan proposed strikes me favorably; to strike one dead or blind. How often has stricken you dumb with his irony! Landor.

11. To cause or produce by a stroke, or suddenly, as by a stroke; as, to strike a light. Waving wide her myrtle wand, She strikes a universal peace through sea and land. Milton.

12. To cause to ignite; as, to strike a match.

13. To make and ratify; as, to strike a bargain.

Note: Probably borrowed from the L. foedus ferrire, to strike a compact, so called because an animal was struck and killed as a sacrifice on such occasions.

14. To take forcibly or fraudulently; as, to strike money. [Old Slang]

15. To level, as a measure of grain, salt, or the like, by scraping off with a straight instrument what is above the level of the top.

16. (Masonry)

Defn: To cut off, as a mortar joint, even with the face of the wall, or inward at a slight angle.

17. To hit upon, or light upon, suddenly; as, my eye struck a strange word; they soon struck the trail.

18. To borrow money of; to make a demand upon; as, he struck a friend for five dollars. [Slang]

19. To lade into a cooler, as a liquor. B. Edwards.

20. To stroke or pass lightly; to wave. Behold, I thought, He will . . . strike his hand over the place, and recover the leper. 2 Kings v. 11.

21. To advance; to cause to go forward; -- used only in past participle. "Well struck in years." Shak. To strike an attitude, To strike a balance. See under Attitude, and Balance. -- To strike a jury (Law), to constitute a special jury ordered by a court, by each party striking out a certain number of names from a prepared list of jurors, so as to reduce it to the number of persons required by law. Burrill. -- To strike a lead. (a) (Mining) To find a vein of ore. (b) Fig.: To find a way to fortune. [Colloq.] -- To strike a ledger, or an account, to balance it. -- To strike hands with. (a) To shake hands with. Halliwell. (b) To make a compact or agreement with; to agree with. -- To strike off. (a) To erase from an account; to deduct; as, to strike off the interest of a debt. (b) (Print.) To impress; to print; as, to strike off a thousand copies of a book. (c) To separate by a blow or any sudden action; as, to strike off what is superfluous or corrupt. -- To strike oil, to find petroleum when boring for it; figuratively, to make a lucky hit financially. [Slang, U.S.] -- To strike one luck, to shake hands with one and wish good luck. [Obs.] Beau. & Fl. -- To strike out. (a) To produce by collision; to force out, as, to strike out sparks with steel. (b) To blot out; to efface; to erase. "To methodize is as necessary as to strike out." Pope. (c) To form by a quick effort; to devise; to invent; to contrive, as, to strike out a new plan of finance. (d) (Baseball) To cause a player to strike out; -- said of the pitcher. See To strike out, under Strike, v. i. -- To strike sail. See under Sail. -- To strike up. (a) To cause to sound; to begin to beat. "Strike up the drums." Shak. (b) To begin to sing or play; as, to strike up a tune. (c) To raise (as sheet metal), in making diahes, pans, etc., by blows or pressure in a die. -- To strike work, to quit work; to go on a strike.

STRIKE Strike, v. i.

Defn: To move; to advance; to proceed; to take a course; as, to strike into the fields. A mouse . . . struck forth sternly [bodily]. Piers Plowman.

2. To deliver a quick blow or thrust; to give blows. And fiercely took his trenchant blade in hand, With which he stroke so furious and so fell. Spenser. Strike now, or else the iron cools. Shak.

3. To hit; to collide; to dush; to clash; as, a hammer strikes against the bell of a clock.

4. To sound by percussion, with blows, or as with blows; to be struck; as, the clock strikes. A deep sound strikes like a rising knell. Byron.

5. To make an attack; to aim a blow. A puny subject strikes At thy great glory. Shak. Struck for throne, and striking found his doom. Tennyson.

6. To touch; to act by appulse. Hinder light but from striking on it [porphyry], and its colors vanish. Locke.

7. To run upon a rock or bank; to be stranded; as, the ship struck in the night.

8. To pass with a quick or strong effect; to dart; to penetrate. Till a dart strike through his liver. Prov. vii. 23. Now and then a glittering beam of wit or passion strikes through the obscurity of the poem. Dryden.

9. To break forth; to commence suddenly; -- with into; as, to strike into reputation; to strike into a run.

10. To lower a flag, or colors, in token of respect, or to signify a surrender of a ship to an enemy. That the English ships of war should not strike in the Danish seas. Bp. Burnet.

11. To quit work in order to compel an increase, or prevent a reduction, of wages.

12. To become attached to something; -- said of the spat of oysters.

13. To steal money. [Old Slang, Eng.] Nares. To strike at, to aim a blow at. -- To strike for, to start suddenly on a course for. -- To strike home, to give a blow which reaches its object, to strike with effect. -- To strike in. (a) To enter suddenly. (b) To disappear from the surface, with internal effects, as an eruptive disease. (c) To come in suddenly; to interpose; to interrupt. "I proposed the embassy of Constantinople for Mr. Henshaw, but my Lord Winchelsea struck in." Evelyn. (d) To join in after another has begun,as in singing. -- To strike in with, to conform to; to suit itself to; to side with, to join with at once. "To assert this is to strike in with the known enemies of God's grace." South. To strike out. (a) To start; to wander; to make a sudden excursion; as, to strike out into an irregular course of life. (b) To strike with full force. (c) (Baseball) To be put out for not hitting the ball during one's turn at the bat. -- To strike up, to commence to play as a musician; to begin to sound, as an instrument. "Whilst any trump did sound, or drum struck up." Shak.

STRIKE Strike, n.

1. The act of striking.

2. An instrument with a straight edge for leveling a measure of grain, salt, and the like, scraping off what is above the level of the top; a strickle.

3. A bushel; four pecks. [Prov. Eng.] Tusser.

4. An old measure of four bushels. [Prov. Eng.]

5. Fullness of measure; hence, excellence of quality. Three hogsheads of ale of the first strike. Sir W. Scott.

6. An iron pale or standard in a gate or fence. [Obs.]

7. The act of quitting work; specifically, such an act by a body of workmen, done as a means of enforcing compliance with demands made on their employer. Strikes are the insurrections of labor. F. A. Walker.

8. (Iron Working)

Defn: A puddler's stirrer.

9. (Geol.)

Defn: The horizontal direction of the outcropping edges of tilted rocks; or, the direction of a horizontal line supposed to be drawn on the surface of a tilted stratum. It is at right angles to the dip.

10. The extortion of money, or the attempt to extort money, by threat of injury; blackmailing. Strike block (Carp.), a plane shorter than a jointer, used for fitting a short joint. Moxon. -- Strike of flax, a handful that may be hackled at once. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.] Chaucer. -- Strike of sugar. (Sugar Making) (a) The act of emptying the teache, or last boiler, in which the cane juice is exposed to heat, into the coolers. (b) The quantity of the sirup thus emptied at once.

STRIKER Strik"er, n.

1. One who, or that which, strikes; specifically, a blacksmith's helper who wieds the sledge.

2. A harpoon; also, a harpooner. Wherever we come to an anchor, we always send out our strikers, and put out hooks and lines overboard, to try fish. Dampier.

3. A wencher; a lewd man. [Obs.] Massinger.

4. A workman who is on a strike.

5. A blackmailer in politics; also, one whose political influence can be bought. [Political Cant]

STRIKING Strik"ing,

Defn: a. & n. from Strike, v. Striking distance, the distance through which an object can be reached by striking; the distance at which a force is effective when directed to a particular object. -- Striking plate. (a) The plate against which the latch of a door lock strikes as the door is closed. (b) A part of the centering of an arch, which is driven back to loosen the centering in striking it.

STRIKING Strik"ing, a.

Defn: Affecting with strong emotions; surprising; forcible; impressive; very noticeable; as, a striking representation or image; a striking resemblance. "A striking fact." De Quincey. -- Strik"ing*ly, adv. -- Strik"ing*ness, n.

STRIKLE Strik"le, n.

Defn: See Strickle.

STRING String, n. Etym: [OE. string, streng, AS. streng; akin to D. streng, G. strang, Icel. strengr, Sw. sträng, Dan. stræng; probably from the adj., E. strong (see Strong); or perhaps originally meaning, twisted, and akin to E. strangle.]

1. A small cord, a line, a twine, or a slender strip of leather, or other substance, used for binding together, fastening, or tying things; a cord, larger than a thread and smaller than a rope; as, a shoe string; a bonnet string; a silken string. Shak. Round Ormond's knee thou tiest the mystic string. Prior.

2. A thread or cord on which a number of objects or parts are strung or arranged in close and orderly succession; hence, a line or series of things arranged on a thread, or as if so arranged; a succession; a concatenation; a chain; as, a string of shells or beads; a string of dried apples; a string of houses; a string of arguments. "A string of islands." Gibbon.

3. A strip, as of leather, by which the covers of a book are held together. Milton.

4. The cord of a musical instrument, as of a piano, harp, or violin; specifically (pl.), the stringed instruments of an orchestra, in distinction from the wind instruments; as, the strings took up the theme. "An instrument of ten strings." Ps. xxx. iii. 2. Me softer airs befit, and softer strings Of lute, or viol still. Milton.

5. The line or cord of a bow. Ps. xi. 2. He twangs the grieving string. Pope.

6. A fiber, as of a plant; a little, fibrous root. Duckweed putteth forth a little string into the water, from the bottom. Bacon.

7. A nerve or tendon of an animal body. The string of his tongue was loosed. Mark vii. 35.

8. (Shipbuilding)

Defn: An inside range of ceiling planks, corresponding to the sheer strake on the outside and bolted to it.

9. (Bot.)

Defn: The tough fibrous substance that unites the valves of the pericap of leguminous plants, and which is readily pulled off; as, the strings of beans.

10. (Mining)

Defn: A small, filamentous ramification of a metallic vein. Ure.

11. (Arch.)

Defn: Same as Stringcourse.

12. (Billiards)

Defn: The points made in a game. String band (Mus.), a band of musicians using only, or chiefly, stringed instruments. -- String beans. (a) A dish prepared from the unripe pods of several kinds of beans; -- so called because the strings are stripped off. (b) Any kind of beans in which the pods are used for cooking before the seeds are ripe; usually, the low bush bean. -- To have two strings to one's bow, to have a means or expedient in reserve in case the one employed fails.

STRING String, v. t. [imp. Strung; p. p. Strung (R. Stringed); p. pr. & vb. n. Stringing.]

1. To furnish with strings; as, to string a violin. Has not wise nature strung the legs and feet With firmest nerves, designed to walk the street Gay.

2. To put in tune the strings of, as a stringed instrument, in order to play upon it. For here the Muse so oft her harp has strung, That not a mountain rears its head unsung. Addison.

3. To put on a string; to file; as, to string beads.

4. To make tense; to strengthen. Toil strung the nerves, and purified the blood. Dryden.

5. To deprive of strings; to strip the strings from; as, to string beans. See String, n., 9.

STRINGBOARD String"board`, n.

Defn: Same as Stringpiece.

STRINGCOURSE String"course`, n. (Arch.)

Defn: A horizontal band in a building, forming a part of the design, whether molded, projecting, or carved, or in any way distinguished from the rest of the work.

STRINGED Stringed, a.

1. Having strings; as, a stringed instrument. Ps. cl. 4.

2. Produced by strings. "Answering the stringed noise." Milton.

STRINGENCY Strin"gen*cy, n.

Defn: The quality or state of being stringent.

STRINGENDO Strin"gen*do, a. Etym: [It.] (Mus.)

Defn: Urging or hastening the time, as to a climax.

STRINGENT Strin"gent, a. Etym: [L. stringens, -entis, p.pr. of stringere to draw or bind tight. See Strain.]

Defn: Binding strongly; making strict requirements; restrictive; rigid; severe; as, stringent rules. They must be subject to a sharper penal code, and to a more stringent code of procedure. Macaulay. -- Strin"gent*ly, adv. -- Strin"gent*ness, n.

STRINGER String"er, n.

1. One who strings; one who makes or provides strings, especially for bows. Be content to put your trust in honest stringers. Ascham.

2. A libertine; a wencher. [Obs.] Beau. & Fl.

3. (Railroad)

Defn: A longitudinal sleeper.

4. (Shipbuilding)

Defn: A streak of planking carried round the inside of a vessel on the under side of the beams.

5. (Carp.)

Defn: A long horizontal timber to connect uprights in a frame, or to support a floor or the like.

STRINGHALT String"halt`, n. (Far.)

Defn: An habitual sudden twitching of the hinder leg of a horse, or an involuntary or convulsive contraction of the muscles that raise the hock. [Written also springhalt.]

STRINGINESS String"i*ness, n.

Defn: Quality of being stringy.

STRINGLESS String"less, a.

Defn: Having no strings. His tongue is now a stringless instrument. Shak.

STRINGPIECE String"piece`, n. (Arch.) (a) A long piece of timber, forming a margin or edge of any piece of construction; esp.: (b) One of the longitudinal pieces, supporting the treads and rises of a flight or run of stairs.

STRINGY String"y, a.

1. Consisting of strings, or small threads; fibrous; filamentous; as, a stringy root.

2. Capable of being drawn into a string, as a glutinous substance; ropy; viscid; gluely. Stringy bark (Bot.), a name given in Australia to several trees of the genus Eucalyptus (as E. amygdalina, obliqua, capitellata, macrorhyncha, piperita, pilularis, and tetradonta), which have a fibrous bark used by the aborigines for making cordage and cloth.

STRIP Strip, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stripped; p. pr. & vb. n. Stripping.] Etym: [OE. stripen, strepen, AS. str in bestr to plunder; akin to D. stroopen, MHG. stroufen, G. streifen.]

1. To deprive; to bereave; to make destitute; to plunder; especially, to deprive of a covering; to skin; to peel; as, to strip a man of his possession, his rights, his privileges, his reputation; to strip one of his clothes; to strip a beast of his skin; to strip a tree of its bark. And strippen her out of her rude array. Chaucer. They stripped Joseph out of his coat. Gen. xxxvii. 23. Opinions which . . . no clergyman could have avowed without imminent risk of being stripped of his gown. Macaulay.

2. To divest of clothing; to uncover. Before the folk herself strippeth she. Chaucer. Strip your sword stark naked. Shak.

3. (Naut.)

Defn: To dismantle; as, to strip a ship of rigging, spars, etc.

4. (Agric.)

Defn: To pare off the surface of, as land, in strips.

5. To deprive of all milk; to milk dry; to draw the last milk from; hence, to milk with a peculiar movement of the hand on the teats at the last of a milking; as, to strip a cow.

6. To pass; to get clear of; to outstrip. [Obs.] When first they stripped the Malean promontory. Chapman. Before he reached it he was out of breath, And then the other stripped him. Beau. & Fl.

7. To pull or tear off, as a covering; to remove; to wrest away; as, to strip the skin from a beast; to strip the bark from a tree; to strip the clothes from a man's back; to strip away all disguisses. To strip bad habits from a corrupted heart, is stripping off the skin. Gilpin.

8. (Mach.) (a) To tear off (the thread) from a bolt or nut; as, the thread is stripped. (b) To tear off the thread from (a bolt or nut); as, the bolt is stripped.

9. To remove the metal coating from (a plated article), as by acids or electrolytic action.

10. (Carding)

Defn: To remove fiber, flock, or lint from; -- said of the teeth of a card when it becomes partly clogged.

11. To pick the cured leaves from the stalks of (tobacco) and tie them into "hands"; to remove the midrib from (tobacco leaves).

STRIP Strip, v. i.

1. To take off, or become divested of, clothes or covering; to undress.

2. (Mach.)

Defn: To fail in the thread; to lose the thread, as a bolt, screw, or nut. See Strip, v. t., 8.

STRIP Strip, n.

1. A narrow piece, or one comparatively long; as, a strip of cloth; a strip of land.

2. (Mining)

Defn: A trough for washing ore.

3. (Gunnery)

Defn: The issuing of a projectile from a rifled gun without acquiring the spiral motion. Farrow.

STRIPE Stripe, n. Etym: [OD. strijpe a stripe, streak; akin to LG. stripe, D. streep, Dan. stribe, G. strief, striefen, MHG. striefen to glide, march.]

1. A line, or long, narrow division of anything of a different color or structure from the ground; hence, any linear variation of color or structure; as, a stripe, or streak, of red on a green ground; a raised stripe.

2. (Weaving)

Defn: A pattern produced by arranging the warp threads in sets of alternating colors, or in sets presenting some other contrast of appearance.

3. A strip, or long, narrow piece attached to something of a different color; as, a red or blue stripe sewed upon a garment.

4. A stroke or blow made with a whip, rod, scourge, or the like, such as usually leaves a mark. Forty stripes he may give him, and not exceed. Deut. xxv. 3.

5. A long, narrow discoloration of the skin made by the blow of a lash, rod, or the like. Cruelty marked him with inglorious stripes. Thomson.

6. Color indicating a party or faction; hence, distinguishing characteristic; sign; likeness; sort; as, persons of the same political stripe. [Colloq. U.S.]

7. pl. (Mil.)

Defn: The chevron on the coat of a noncommissioned officer. Stars and Stripes. See under Star, n.

STRIPE Stripe, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Striped; p. pr. & vb. n. Striping.]

1. To make stripes upon; to form with lines of different colors or textures; to variegate with stripes.

2. To strike; to lash. [R.]

STRIPED Striped, a.

Defn: Having stripes of different colors; streaked. Striped bass. (Zoöl.) See under Bass. -- Striped maple (Bot.), a slender American tree (Acer Pennsylvanicum) with finely striped bark. Called also striped dogwood, and moosewood. -- Striped mullet. (Zoöl.) See under Mullet, 2. -- Striped snake (Zoöl.), the garter snake. -- Striped squirrel (Zoöl.), the chipmunk.

STRIP-LEAF Strip"-leaf`, n.

Defn: Tobacco which has been stripped of its stalks before packing.

STRIPLING Strip"ling, n. Etym: [Dim. of strip; as if a small strip from the main stock or steam.]

Defn: A youth in the state of adolescence, or just passing from boyhood to manhood; a lad. Inquire thou whose son the stripling is. 1 Sam. xvii. 56.

STRIPPER Strip"per, n.

Defn: One who, or that which, strips; specifically, a machine for stripping cards.

STRIPPET Strip"pet, n. Etym: [Dim. of strip.]

Defn: A small stream. [Obs.] "A little brook or strippet." Holinshed.

STRIPPING Strip"ping, n.

1. The act of one who strips. The mutual bows and courtesies . . . are remants of the original prostrations and strippings of the captive. H. Spencer. Never were cows that required such stripping. Mrs. Gaskell.

2. pl.

Defn: The last milk drawn from a cow at a milking.

STRISORES Stri*so"res, n. pl. Etym: [NL.; cf. L. stridere to creak, whiz, buzz.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: A division of passerine birds including the humming birds, swifts, and goatsuckers. It is now generally considered an artificial group.

STRIVE Strive, v. i. [imp. Strove; p. p. Striven (Rarely, Strove); p. pr. & vb. n. Striving.] Etym: [OF. estriver; of Teutonic origin, and akin to G. streben, D. streven, Dan. stræbe, Sw. sträfva. Cf. Strife.]

1. To make efforts; to use exertions; to endeavor with earnestness; to labor hard. Was for this his ambition strove To equal Cæsar first, and after, Jove Cowley.

2. To struggle in opposition; to be in contention or dispute; to contend; to contest; -- followed by against or with before the person or thing opposed; as, strive against temptation; strive for the truth. Chaucer. My Spirit shall not always strive with man. Gen. vi. 3. Why dost thou strive against him Job xxxiii. 13. Now private pity strove with public hate, Reason with rage, and eloquence with fate. Denham.

3. To vie; to compete; to be a rival. Chaucer. [Not] that sweet grove Of Daphne, by Orontes and the inspired Castalian spring, might with this paradise Of Eden strive. Milton.

Syn. -- To contend; vie; struggle; endeavor; aim.

STRIVE Strive, n.

1. An effort; a striving. [R.] Chapman.

2. Strife; contention. [Obs.] Wyclif (luke xxi. 9).

STRIVED Strived, obs. p. p. of Strive.

Defn: Striven. Yea, so have I strived to preach the gospel. Rom. xv. 20.

STRIVEN Striv"en,

Defn: p. p. of Strive.

STRIVER Striv"er, n.

Defn: One who strives.

STRIVING Striv"ing, a. & n.

Defn: from Strive. -- Striv"ing*ly, adv.

STRIX Strix, n. Etym: [L. strix, strigis.] (Arch.)

Defn: One of the flutings of a column.

STROAM Stroam, v. i. Etym: [Prov. E. strome to walk with long strides.]

1. To wander about idly and vacantly. [Obs.]

2. To take long strides in walking. [Prov. Eng.]

STROBILA Stro*bi"la, n.; pl. Strobilæ. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr. (Zoöl.) (a) A form of the larva of certain Discophora in a state of development succeeding the scyphistoma. The body of the strobila becomes elongated, and subdivides transversely into a series of lobate segments which eventually become ephyræ, or young medusæ. (b) A mature tapeworm.

STROBILACEOUS Strob`i*la"ceous, a. Etym: [See Strobila.] (Bot.) (a) Of or pertaining to a strobile or cone. (b) Producing strobiles.

STROBILATION Strob`i*la"tion, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The act or phenomenon of spontaneously dividing transversely, as do certain species of annelids and helminths; transverse fission. See Illust. under Syllidian.

STROBILE Strob"ile, n. Etym: [L. strobilus a pine cone, Gr. strobole.] [Written also strobil.]

1. (Bot.)

Defn: A scaly multiple fruit resulting from the ripening of an ament in certain plants, as the hop or pine; a cone. See Cone, n., 3.

2. (Biol.)

Defn: An individual asexually producing sexual individuals differing from itself also in other respects, as the tapeworm, -- one of the forms that occur in metagenesis.

3. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Same as Strobila.

STROBILIFORM Stro*bil"i*form, a.

Defn: Shaped like a strobile.

STROBILINE Strob"i*line, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to a strobile; strobilaceous; strobiliform; as, strobiline fruits.

STROBOSCOPE Strob"o*scope, n. Etym: [Gr. -scope.]

1. An instrument for studying or observing the successive phases of a periodic or varying motion by means of light which is periodically interrupted.

2. An optical toy similar to the phenakistoscope. See Phenakistoscope.

STROCKLE Stroc"kle, n. (Glass Manuf.)

Defn: A shovel with a turned-up edge, for frit, sand, etc. [Written also strocal, strocle, strokal.]

STRODE Strode, n.

Defn: See Strude. [Obs.]

STRODE Strode,

Defn: imp. of Stride.

STROKE Stroke, obs. imp. of Strike.

Defn: Struck.

STROKE Stroke, n. Etym: [OE. strok, strook, strak, fr. striken. See Strike, v. t.]

1. The act of striking; a blow; a hit; a knock; esp., a violent or hostile attack made with the arm or hand, or with an instrument or weapon. His hand fetcheth a stroke with the ax to cut down the tree. Deut. xix. 5. A fool's lips enter into contention and his mouth calleth for strokes. Prov. xviii. 6. He entered and won the whole kingdom of Naples without striking a stroke. Bacon.

2. The result of effect of a striking; injury or affliction; soreness. In the day that Lord bindeth up the breach of his people, and healeth the stroke of their wound. Isa. xxx. 26.

3. The striking of the clock to tell the hour. Well, but what's o'clock - Upon the stroke of ten. -- Well, let is strike. Shak.

4. A gentle, caressing touch or movement upon something; a stroking. Dryden.

5. A mark or dash in writing or printing; a line; the touch of a pen or pencil; as, an up stroke; a firm stroke. O, lasting as those colors may they shine, Free as thy stroke, yet faultless as thy line. Pope.

6. Hence, by extension, an addition or amandment to a written composition; a touch; as, to give some finishing strokes to an essay. Addison.

7. A sudden attack of disease; especially, a fatal attack; a severe disaster; any affliction or calamity, especially a sudden one; as, a stroke of apoplexy; the stroke of death. At this one stroke the man looked dead in law. Harte.

8. A throb or beat, as of the heart. Tennyson.

9. One of a series of beats or movements against a resisting medium, by means of which movement through or upon it is accomplished; as, the stroke of a bird's wing in flying, or an oar in rowing, of a skater, swimmer, etc.; also: (Rowing) (a) The rate of succession of stroke; as, a quick stroke. (b) The oar nearest the stern of a boat, by which the other oars are guided; -- called also stroke oar. (c) The rower who pulls the stroke oar; the strokesman.

10. A powerful or sudden effort by which something is done, produced, or accomplished; also, something done or accomplished by such an effort; as, a stroke of genius; a stroke of business; a master stroke of policy.

11. (Mach.)

Defn: The movement, in either direction, of the piston plunger, piston rod, crosshead, etc., as of a steam engine or a pump, in which these parts have a reciprocating motion; as, the forward stroke of a piston; also, the entire distance passed through, as by a piston, in such a movement; as, the piston is at half stroke.

Note: The respective strokes are distinguished as up and down strokes, outward and inward strokes, forward and back strokes, the forward stroke in stationary steam engines being toward the crosshead, but in locomotives toward the front of the vehicle.

12. Power; influence. [Obs.] "Where money beareth [hath] all the stroke." Robynson (More's Utopia). He has a great stroke with the reader. Dryden.

13. Appetite. [Obs.] Swift. To keep stroke, to make strokes in unison. The oars where silver, Which to the tune of flutes kept stroke. Shak.

STROKE Stroke, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Strokeed; p. pr. & vb. n. Strokeing.] Etym: [OE. stroken, straken, AS. stracian, fr. strican to go over, pass. See Strike, v. t., and cf. Straggle.]

1. To strike. [Obs.] Ye mote with the plat sword again Stroken him in the wound, and it will close. Chaucer.

2. To rib gently in one direction; especially, to pass the hand gently over by way of expressing kindness or tenderness; to caress; to soothe. He dried the falling drops, and, yet more kind, He stroked her cheeks. Dryden.

3. To make smooth by rubbing. Longfellow.

4. (Masonry)

Defn: To give a finely fluted surface to.

5. To row the stroke oar of; as, to stroke a boat.

STROKER Strok"er, n.

Defn: One who strokes; also, one who pretends to cure by stroking. Cures worked by Greatrix the stroker. Bp. Warburton.

STROKESMAN Strokes"man, n.; pl. Strokesman (. (Rowing)

Defn: The man who rows the aftermost oar, and whose stroke is to be followed by the rest. Totten.

STROKING Strok"ing, n.

1. The act of rubbing gently with the hand, or of smoothing; a stroke. I doubt not with one gentle stroking to wipe away ten thousand tears. Milton.

2. (Needlework)

Defn: The act of laying small gathers in cloth in regular order.

3. pl.

Defn: See Stripping, 2. Smollett.

STROLL Stroll, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Strolled; p. pr. & vb. n. Strolling.] Etym: [Cf. Dan. stryge to stroll, Sw. stryka to stroke, to ramble, dial. Sw. strykel one who strolls about, Icel. strj to stroke, D. struikelen to stumble, G. straucheln. Cf. Struggle.]

Defn: To wander on foot; to ramble idly or leisurely; to rove. These mothers stroll to beg sustenance for their helpless infants. Swift.

Syn. -- To rove; roam; range; stray.

STROLL Stroll, n.

Defn: A wandering on foot; an idle and leisurely walk; a ramble.

STROLLER Stroll"er, n.

Defn: One who strolls; a vagrant.

STROMA Stro"ma, n.; pl. Stromata. Etym: [L., a bed covering, Gr.

1. (Anat.) (a) The connective tissue or supporting framework of an organ; as, the stroma of the kidney. (b) The spongy, colorless framework of a red blood corpuscle or other cell.

2. (Bot.)

Defn: A layer or mass of cellular tissue, especially that part of the thallus of certain fungi which incloses the perithecia.

STROMATIC Stro*mat"ic, a. Etym: [Gr. miscellaneous writings, fr.

Defn: Miscellaneous; composed of different kinds.

STROMATOLOGY Stro`ma*tol"o*gy, n. Etym: [Gr. -logy.] (Geol.)

Defn: The history of the formation of stratified rocks.

STROMB Stromb, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Any marine univalve mollusk of the genus Strombus and allied genera. See Conch, and Strombus.

STROMBITE Strom"bite, n. (Paleon.)

Defn: A fossil shell of the genus Strombus.

STROMBOID Strom"boid, a. Etym: [Strombus + -oid.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: Of, pertaining to, or like, Strombus.

STROMBULIFORM Strom*bu"li*form, a. Etym: [NL. strombulus, dim. of strombus + -form. See Strombus.]

1. (Geol.)

Defn: Formed or shaped like a top.

2. (Bot.)

Defn: Coiled into the shape of a screw or a helix.

STROMBUS Strom"bus, n. Etym: [L., fr. Gr. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A genus of marine gastropods in which the shell has the outer lip dilated into a broad wing. It includes many large and handsome species commonly called conch shells, or conchs. See Conch.

STROMEYERITE Stro"mey`er*ite, n. Etym: [So named from the German chemist Friedrich Stromeyer.] (Min.)

Defn: A steel-gray mineral of metallic luster. It is a sulphide of silver and copper.

STROND Strond, n.

Defn: Strand; beach. [Obs.] Shak.

STRONG Strong, a. [Compar. Stronger; superl. Strongest.] Etym: [AS. strang, strong; akin to D. & G. streng strict, rigorous, OHG. strengi strong, brave, harsh, Icel. strangr strong, severe, Dan. streng, Sw. sträng strict, severe. Cf. Strength, Stretch, String.]

1. Having active physical power, or great physical power to act; having a power of exerting great bodily force; vigorous. That our oxen may be strong to labor. Ps. cxliv. 14. Orses the strong to greater strength must yield. Dryden.

2. Having passive physical power; having ability to bear or endure; firm; hale; sound; robust; as, a strong constitution; strong health.

3. Solid; tough; not easily broken or injured; able to withstand violence; able to sustain attacks; not easily subdued or taken; as, a strong beam; a strong rock; a strong fortress or town.

4. Having great military or naval force; powerful; as, a strong army or fleet; a nation strong at sea.

5. Having great wealth, means, or resources; as, a strong house, or company of merchants.

6. Reaching a certain degree or limit in respect to strength or numbers; as, an army ten thousand strong.

7. Moving with rapidity or force; violent; forcible; impetuous; as, a strong current of water or wind; the wind was strong from the northeast; a strong tide.

8. Adapted to make a deep or effectual impression on the mind or imagination; striking or superior of the kind; powerful; forcible; cogent; as, a strong argument; strong reasons; strong evidence; a strong example; strong language.

9. Ardent; eager; zealous; earnestly engaged; as, a strong partisan; a strong Whig or Tory. Her mother, ever strong against that match. Shak.

10. Having virtues of great efficacy; or, having a particular quality in a great degree; as, a strong powder or tincture; a strong decoction; strong tea or coffee.

11. Full of spirit; containing a large proportion of alcohol; intoxicating; as, strong liquors.

12. Affecting any sense powerfully; as, strong light, colors, etc.; a strong flavor of onions; a strong scent.

13. Solid; nourishing; as, strong meat. Heb. v. 12.

14. Well established; firm; not easily overthrown or altered; as, a strong custom; a strong belief.

15. Violent; vehement; earnest; ardent. He had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears. Heb. v. 7.

16. Having great force, vigor, power, or the like, as the mind, intellect, or any faculty; as, a man of a strong mind, memory, judgment, or imagination. I was stronger in prophecy than in criticism. Dryden.

17. Vigorous; effective; forcible; powerful. Like her sweet voice is thy harmonious song, As high, as sweet, as easy, and as strong. E. Smith.

18. (Stock Exchange)

Defn: Tending to higher prices; rising; as, a strong market.

19. (Gram.) (a) Pertaining to, or designating, a verb which forms its preterit (imperfect) by a variation in the root vowel, and the past participle (usually) by the addition of -en (with or without a change of the root vowel); as in the verbs strive, strove, striven; break, broke, broken; drink, drank, drunk. Opposed to weak, or regular. See Weak. (b) Applied to forms in Anglo-Saxon, etc., which retain the old declensional endings. In the Teutonic languages the vowel stems have held the original endings most firmly, and are called strong; the stems in -n are called weak other constant stems conform, or are irregular. F. A. March. Strong conjugation (Gram.), the conjugation of a strong verb; -- called also old, or irregular, conjugation, and distinguished from the weak, or regular, conjugation.

Note: Strong is often used in the formation of self-explaining compounds; as, strong-backed, strong-based, strong-bodied, strong- colored, strong-fisted, strong-handed, strong-ribbed, strong- smelling, strong-voiced, etc.

Syn. -- Vigorous; powerful; stout; solid; firm; hardy; muscular; forcible; cogent; valid. See Robust.

STRONGHAND Strong"hand`, n.

Defn: Violence; force; power. It was their meaning to take what they needed by stronghand. Sir W. Raleigh.

STRONGHOLD Strong"hold`, n.

Defn: A fastness; a fort or fortress; fortfield place; a place of security.

STRONGISH Strong"ish, a.

Defn: Somewhat strong.

STRONGLY Strong"ly, adv.

Defn: In a strong manner; so as to be strong in action or in resistance; with strength; with great force; forcibly; powerfully; firmly; vehemently; as, a town strongly fortified; he objected strongly.

STRONG-MINDED Strong"-mind`ed, a.

Defn: Having a vigorous mind; esp., having or affecting masculine qualities of mind; -- said of women. -- Strong"-mind`ed*ness, n.

STRONG-WATER Strong"-wa`ter, n.

1. An acid. [Obs.]

2. Distilled or ardent spirits; intoxicating liquor.

STRONGYLID Stron"gy*lid, a. & n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Strongyloid.

STRONGYLOID Stron"gy*loid, a. Etym: [NL. Strongylus the genus (from Gr. -oid.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: Like, or pertaining to, Strongylus, a genus of parasitic nematode worms of which many species infest domestic animals. Some of the species, especially those living in the kidneys, lungs, and bronchial tubes, are often very injurious. -- n.

Defn: A strongyloid worm.

STRONTIA Stron"ti*a, n. Etym: [NL. strontia, fr. Strontian, in Argyleshire, Scotland, where strontianite was first found.] (Chem.)

Defn: An earth of a white color resembling lime in appearance, and baryta in many of its properties. It is an oxide of the metal strontium.

STRONTIAN Stron"ti*an, n. (Min.)

Defn: Strontia.

STRONTIANITE Stron"ti*an*ite, n. (Min.)

Defn: Strontium carbonate, a mineral of a white, greenish, or yellowish color, usually occurring in fibrous massive forms, but sometimes in prismatic crystals.

STRONTIC Stron"tic, a. (Chem.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to strontium; containing, or designating the compounds of, strontium.

STRONTITIC Stron*tit"ic, a.

Defn: Strontic.

STRONTIUM Stron"ti*um, n. Etym: [NL. See Strontia.] (Chem.)

Defn: A metallic element of the calcium group, always naturally occurring combined, as in the minerals strontianite, celestite, etc. It is isolated as a yellowish metal, somewhat malleable but harder than calcium. It is chiefly employed (as in the nitrate) to color pyrotechnic flames red. Symbol Sr. Atomic weight 87.3. A radioactive isotope of strontium produced by certain nuclear reactions, and constituting one of the prominent harmful components of radioactive fallout from nuclear explosions; also called radiostrontium. It has a half-life of 28 years.

STROOK Strook, obs.

Defn: imp. of Strike. Dryden.

STROOK Strook, n.

Defn: A stroke. [Obs.] Chaucer.

STROOT Stroot, v. t. Etym: [Cf. Strut, v. i.]

Defn: To swell out; to strut. [Obs.] Chapman.

STROP Strop, n. Etym: [See Strap.]

Defn: A strap; specifically, same as Strap, 3.

STROP Strop, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stropped; p. pr. & vb. n. Stropping.]

Defn: To draw over, or rub upon, a strop with a view to sharpen; as, to strop a razor.

STROP Strop, n. Etym: [Cf. F. estrope, étrope, fr. L. struppus. See Strop a strap.] (Naut.)

Defn: A piece of rope spliced into a circular wreath, and put round a block for hanging it.

STROPHANTHUS Stro*phan"thus, n. Etym: [NL., from Gr. (Bot.)

Defn: A genus of tropical apocynaceous shrubs having singularly twisted flowers. One species (Strophanthus hispidus) is used medicinally as a cardiac sedative and stimulant.

STROPHE Stro"phe, n.; pl. Strophes. Etym: [NL., from Gr. strap.]

Defn: In Greek choruses and dances, the movement of the chorus while turning from the right to the left of the orchestra; hence, the strain, or part of the choral ode, sung during this movement. Also sometimes used of a stanza of modern verse. See the Note under Antistrophe.

STROPHIC Stroph"ic, a.

Defn: Pertaining to, containing, or consisting of, strophes.

STROPHIOLATE; STROPHIOLATED Stro"phi*o*late, Stro"phi*o*la`ted, a. (Bot.)

Defn: Furnished with a strophiole, or caruncle, or that which resembles it. Gray.

STROPHIOLE Stro"phi*ole, n. Etym: [L. strophiolum a little chaplet, dim. of strophium a band, Gr. strophiole.] (Bot.)

Defn: A crestlike excrescence about the hilum of certain seeds; a caruncle.

STROPHULUS Stroph"u*lus, n. Etym: [NL.] (Med.)

Defn: See Red-gum, 1.

STROUD Stroud, n.

Defn: A kind of coarse blanket or garment used by the North American Indians.

STROUDING Stroud"ing, n.

Defn: Material for strouds; a kind of coarse cloth used in trade with the North American Indians.

STROUT Strout, v. i. Etym: [See Strut.]

Defn: To swell; to puff out; to project. [Obs.] Chaucer.

STROUT Strout, v. t.

Defn: To cause to project or swell out; to enlarge affectedly; to strut. [Obs.] Bacon.

STROVE Strove,