Chapter VIII: Part 8

Pat"te*mar (?), n. See Patamar.

Pat"ten (?), n. [F. patin a high- heeled shoe, fr. patte paw, foot. Cf. Panton, PattÈ.] 1. A clog or sole of wood, usually supported by an iron ring, worn to raise the feet from the wet or the mud.

The patten now supports each frugal dame.

Gay.

2. A stilt. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

Pat"ten*ed (?), a. Wearing pattens. "Some pattened girl." Jane Austen.

Pat"ter (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Pattered (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Pattering.] [Freq. of pat to strike gently.] 1. To strike with a quick succession of slight, sharp sounds; as, pattering rain or hail; pattering feet.

The stealing shower is scarce to patter heard.

Thomson.

2. To mutter; to mumble; as, to patter with the lips. Tyndale. [In this sense, and in the following, perh. from paternoster.]

3. To talk glibly; to chatter; to harangue. [Colloq.]

I've gone out and pattered to get money.

Mayhew.

Pat"ter, v. t. 1. To spatter; to sprinkle. [R.] "And patter the water about the boat." J. R. Drake.

2. [See Patter, v. i., 2.] To mutter; as prayers.

[The hooded clouds] patter their doleful prayers.

Longfellow.

To patter flash, to talk in thieves' cant. [Slang]

Pat"ter, n. 1. A quick succession of slight sounds; as, the patter of rain; the patter of little feet.

2. Glib and rapid speech; a voluble harangue.

3. The cant of a class; patois; as, thieves's patter; gypsies' patter.

Pat"ter*er (?), n. One who patters, or talks glibly; specifically, a street peddler. [Cant, Eng.]

Pat"tern (?), n. [OE. patron, F. patron, a patron, also, a pattern. See Patron.] 1. Anything proposed for imitation; an archetype; an exemplar; that which is to be, or is worthy to be, copied or imitated; as, a pattern of a machine.

I will be the pattern of all patience.

Shak.

2. A part showing the figure or quality of the whole; a specimen; a sample; an example; an instance.

He compares the pattern with the whole piece.

Swift.

3. Stuff sufficient for a garment; as, a dress pattern.

4. Figure or style of decoration; design; as, wall paper of a beautiful pattern.

5. Something made after a model; a copy. Shak.

The patterns of things in the heavens.

Heb. ix. 23.

6. Anything cut or formed to serve as a guide to cutting or forming objects; as, a dressmaker's pattern.

7. (Founding) A full-sized model around which a mold of sand is made, to receive the melted metal. It is usually made of wood and in several parts, so as to be removed from the mold without injuring it.

Pattern box, chain, or cylinder (Figure Weaving), devices, in a loom, for presenting several shuttles to the picker in the proper succession for forming the figure. -- Pattern card. (a) A set of samples on a card. (b) (Weaving) One of the perforated cards in a Jacquard apparatus. -- Pattern reader, one who arranges textile patterns. -- Pattern wheel (Horology), a count- wheel.

Pat"tern, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Patterned (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Patterning.] 1. To make or design (anything) by, from, or after, something that serves as a pattern; to copy; to model; to imitate. Milton.

[A temple] patterned from that which Adam reared in Paradise.

Sir T. Herbert.

2. To serve as an example for; also, to parallel.

To pattern after, to imitate; to follow.

Pat"ty (?), n.; pl. Patties (#). [F. p‚tÈ. See Pasty.] A little pie.

Pat"ty*pan` (?), n. 1. A pan for baking patties.

2. A patty. [Obs.]

Pat"u*lous (?), a. [L. patulus, fr. patere to be open, extend.] Open; expanded; slightly spreading; having the parts loose or dispersed; as, a patulous calyx; a patulous cluster of flowers.

The eyes are large and patulous.

Sir J. Hill.

||Pau (?), n. See Pah.

Pau*cil"o*quent (?), a. Uttering few words; brief in speech. [R.]

Pau*cil"o*quy (?), n. [L. pauciloquium; paucus little + loqui to speak.] Brevity in speech. [R.]

Pau`ci*spi"ral (?), a. [L. paucus few + E. spiral.] (Zoˆl.) Having few spirals, or whorls; as, a paucispiral operculum or shell.

Pau"ci*ty (?), n. [L. paucitas, fr. paucus few, little: cf. F. paucitÈ See Few.] 1. Fewness; smallness of number; scarcity. Hooker.

Revelation denies it by the stern reserve, the paucity, and the
incompleteness, of its communications.

I. Taylor.

2. Smallnes of quantity; exiguity; insufficiency; as, paucity of blood. Sir T. Browne.

{ Pau"gie, Pau"gy } (?), n.; pl. Paugies (#). [Corrupted from Amer. Indian mishcuppauog. See Scup.] (Zoˆl.) The scup. See Porgy, and Scup.

Pau*hau"gen (?), n. [North Amer. Indian.] (Zoˆl.) The menhaden; -- called also poghaden.

Paul (?), n. See Pawl.

Paul, n. An Italian silver coin. See Paolo.

Paul"dron (?), n. [See Powldron.] (Mil. Antiq.) A piece of armor covering the shoulder at the junction of the body piece and arm piece.

{ Pau"li*an (?), Pau"li*an*ist (?), } n. (Eccl. Hist.) A follower of Paul of Samosata, a bishop of Antioch in the third century, who was deposed for denying the divinity of Christ.

Pau"li*cian (?), n. [Etymol. uncertain.] (Eccl. Hist.) One of a sect of Christian dualists originating in Armenia in the seventh century. They rejected the Old Testament and the part of the New.

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Pau"lin (?), n. (Naut.) See Tarpaulin.

Pau"line (?), a. [L. Paulinus, fr. Paulus Paul.] Of or pertaining to the apostle Paul, or his writings; resembling, or conforming to, the writings of Paul; as, the Pauline epistles; Pauline doctrine.

My religion had always been Pauline.

J. H. Newman.

Paul"ist (?), n. (R. C. Ch.) A member of The Institute of the Missionary Priests of St. Paul the Apostle, founded in 1858 by the Rev. I. T. Hecker of New York. The majority of the members were formerly Protestants.

||Pau*low"ni*a (?), n. [NL. So named from the Russian princess Anna ||Pavlovna.] (Bot.) A genus of trees of the order ScrophulariaceÊ, ||consisting of one species, Paulownia imperialis.

The tree is native to Japan, and has immense heart-shaped leaves, and large purplish flowers in panicles. The capsules contain many little winged seeds, which are beautiful microscopic objects. The tree is hardy in America as far north as Connecticut.

Paum (?), v. t. & i. [See Palm to cheat.] To palm off by fraud; to cheat at cards. [Obs.] Swift.

Paunce (?), n. [See Pansy.] (Bot.) The pansy. "The pretty paunce." Spenser.

Paunch (?), n. [OF. panch, pance, F. panse, L. pantex, panticis.] 1. (Anat.) The belly and its contents; the abdomen; also, the first stomach, or rumen, of ruminants. See Rumen.

2. (Naut.) A paunch mat; -- called also panch.

3. The thickened rim of a bell, struck by the clapper.

Paunch mat (Naut.), a thick mat made of strands of rope, used to prevent the yard or rigging from chafing.

Paunch, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Paunched (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Paunching.] 1. To pierce or rip the belly of; to eviscerate; to disembowel. Shak.

2. To stuff with food. [Obs.] Udall.

Paunch"y (?), a. Pot-bellied. [R.] Dickens.

Paune (?), n. A kind of bread. See Pone.

Pau"per (?), n. [L. See Poor.] A poor person; especially, one development on private or public charity. Also used adjectively; as, pouper immigrants, pouper labor.

Pau"per*ism (?), n. [Cf. F. paupÈrisme.] The state of being a pauper; the state of indigent persons requiring support from the community. Whatly.

Syn. -- Poverty; indigence; penury; want; need; destitution. See Poverty.

Pau`per*i*za"tion (?), n. The act or process of reducing to pauperism. C. Kingsley.

Pau"per*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Pauperized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Pauperizing (?).] To reduce to pauperism; as, to pauperize the peasantry.

||Pau*rop"o*da (?), n. pl. [NL., from Gr. &?; small + -poda.] (Zoˆl.) ||An order of small myriapods having only nine pairs of legs and ||destitute of tracheÊ.

Pause (?), n. [F., fr. L. pausa. See Pose.] 1. A temporary stop or rest; an intermission of action; interruption; suspension; cessation.

2. Temporary inaction or waiting; hesitation; suspence; doubt.

I stand in pause where I shall first begin.

Shak.

3. In speaking or reading aloud, a brief arrest or suspension of voice, to indicate the limits and relations of sentences and their parts.

4. In writing and printing, a mark indicating the place and nature of an arrest of voice in reading; a punctuation point; as, teach the pupil to mind the pauses.

5. A break or paragraph in writing.

He writes with warmth, which usually neglects method, and those
partitions and pauses which men educated in schools observe.

Locke.

6. (Mus.) A hold. See 4th Hold, 7.

Syn. -- Stop; cessation; suspension.

Pause, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Paused (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Pausing.] [Cf. F. pauser, L. pausare. See Pause, n., Pose.] 1. To make a short stop; to cease for a time; to intermit speaking or acting; to stop; to wait; to rest. "Tarry, pause a day or two." Shak.

Pausing while, thus to herself she mused.

Milton.

2. To be intermitted; to cease; as, the music pauses.

3. To hesitate; to hold back; to delay. [R.]

Why doth the Jew pause? Take thy forfeiture.

Shak.

4. To stop in order to consider; hence, to consider; to reflect. [R.] "Take time to pause." Shak.

To pause upon, to deliberate concerning. Shak.

Syn. -- To intermit; stop; stay; wait; delay; tarry; hesitate; demur.

Pause, v. t. To cause to stop or rest; -- used reflexively. [R.] Shak.

Paus"er (?), n. One who pauses. Shak.

Paus"ing*ly, adv. With pauses; haltingly. Shak.

||Paux"i (?), n. [From the native name: cf. Sp. pauji.] (Zoˆl.) A ||curassow (Ourax pauxi), which, in South America, is often ||domesticated.

Pav"age (?), n. [Cf. F. pavage.] See Pavage. [R.]

Pav"an (?), n. [F. pavane; cf. It. & Sp. pavana, and Sp. pavon, pavo, a peacock, L. pavo.] A stately and formal Spanish dance for which full state costume is worn; -- so called from the resemblance of its movements to those of the peacock. [Written also pavane, paven, pavian, and pavin.]

||Pa`vÈ" (?), n. [F., from paver to pave. See Pave.] The pavement.

||Nymphe du pavÈ (&?;), a prostitute who solicits in the street. [A low ||euphemism.]

Pave (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Paved (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Paving.] [F. paver to pave, LL. pavare, from L. pavire to beat, ram, or tread down; cf. Gr. &?; to beat, strike.] 1. To lay or cover with stone, brick, or other material, so as to make a firm, level, or convenient surface for horses, carriages, or persons on foot, to travel on; to floor with brick, stone, or other solid material; as, to pave a street; to pave a court.

With silver paved, and all divine with gold.

Dryden.

To pave thy realm, and smooth the broken ways.

Gay.

2. Fig.: To make smooth, easy, and safe; to prepare, as a path or way; as, to pave the way to promotion; to pave the way for an enterprise.

It might open and pave a prepared way to his own title.

Bacon.

Pave"ment (?), n. [F., fr. LL. pavamentum, L. pavimentum. See Pave.] That with which anythingis paved; a floor or covering of solid material, laid so as to make a hard and convenient surface for travel; a paved road or sidewalk; a decorative interior floor of tiles or colored bricks.

The riches of heaven's pavement, trodden gold.

Milton.

Pavement teeth (Zoˆl.), flattened teeth which in certain fishes, as the skates and cestracionts, are arranged side by side, like tiles in a pavement.

Pave"ment, v. t. To furnish with a pavement; to pave. [Obs.] "How richly pavemented!" Bp. Hall.

Pav"en (?), n. See Pavan.

Pav"er (?), n. One who paves; one who lays a pavement. [Written also pavier and pavior.]

Pav`e*sade" (?), n. [F. See Pavise.] A canvas screen, formerly sometimes extended along the side of a vessel in a naval engagement, to conceal from the enemy the operations on board.

{ Pa*vese" (?), Pa*vesse" (?) }, n. Pavise. [Obs.]

Pa"vi*age (?), n. (Law) A contribution or a tax for paving streets or highways. Bouvier.

Pav"i*an (?), n. See Pavan.

Pav"id (?), a. [L. pavidus, from pavere to be afraid.] Timid; fearful. [R.] Thackeray.

Pa*vid"i*ty (?), n. Timidity. [R.]

Pav"ier (?), n. A paver.

Pa"vi*in (p"v*n), n. (Chem.) A glucoside found in species of the genus Pavia of the Horse-chestnut family.

Pa*vil"ion (?), n. [F. pavillon, fr. L. pavilio a butterfly, also, a tent, because spread out like a butterfly's wings.] 1. A temporary movable habitation; a large tent; a marquee; esp., a tent raised on posts. "[The] Greeks do pitch their brave pavilions." Shak.

2. (Arch.) A single body or mass of building, contained within simple walls and a single roof, whether insulated, as in the park or garden of a larger edifice, or united with other parts, and forming an angle or central feature of a large pile.

3. (Mil.) A flag, colors, ensign, or banner.

4. (Her.) Same as Tent (Her.)

5. That part of a brilliant which lies between the girdle and collet. See Illust. of Brilliant.

6. (Anat.) The auricle of the ear; also, the fimbriated extremity of the Fallopian tube.

7. A covering; a canopy; figuratively, the sky.

The pavilion of heaven is bare.

Shelley.

Pa*vil"ion, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Pavilioned (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Pavilioning.] To furnish or cover with, or shelter in, a tent or tents.

The field pavilioned with his guardians bright.

Milton.

Pav"in (?), n. See Pavan.

Pav"ing (?), n. 1. The act or process of laying a pavement, or covering some place with a pavement.

2. A pavement.

Pav"ior (?), n. 1. One who paves; a paver.

2. A rammer for driving paving stones.

3. A brick or slab used for paving.

Pa*vise (?), n. [OF. pavaix, F. pavois; cf. It. pavese, LL. pavense; perh. named from Pavia in Italy.] (Mil. Antiq.) A large shield covering the whole body, carried by a pavisor, who sometimes screened also an archer with it. [Written also pavais, pavese, and pavesse.] Fairholt.

Pa*vis"or (?), n. (Mil. Antiq.) A soldier who carried a pavise.

||Pa"vo (?), n. [L., a peacock. See Peacock.] 1. (Zoˆl.) A genus of ||birds, including the peacocks.

2. (Astron.) The Peacock, a constellation of the southern hemisphere.

Pa"von (?), n. A small triangular flag, esp. one attached to a knight's lance; a pennon.

Pa*vone" (?), n. [Cf. It. pavone, Sp. pavon, fr. L. pavo.] (Zoˆl.) A peacock. [Obs.] Spenser.

Pa*vo"ni*an (?), a. Of or pertaining to a peacock. [R.] Southey.

Pav"o*nine (?), a. [L. pavoninus, fr. pavo a peacock. See Peacock.] 1. (Zoˆl.) Like, or pertaining to, the genus Pavo.

2. Characteristic of a peacock; resembling the tail of a peacock, as in colors; iridescent. P. Cleaveland.

Paw (p), n. [OE. pawe, poue, OF. poe: cf. patte, LG. pote, D. poot, G. pfote.] 1. The foot of a quadruped having claws, as the lion, dog, cat, etc.

2. The hand. [Jocose] Dryden.

Paw clam (Zoˆl.), the tridacna; - - so called because shaped like an animal's paw.

Paw, v. i. To draw the forefoot along the ground; to beat or scrape with the forefoot. Job xxxix. 21.

Paw, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Pawed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Pawing.] 1. To pass the paw over; to stroke or handle with the paws; hence, to handle fondly or rudely.

2. To scrape or beat with the forefoot.

His hot courser pawed the Hungarian plane.

Tickell.

Pawk (?), n. (Zoˆl.) A small lobster. Travis.

Paw"ky (?), a. [Cf. AS. pÊcean to deceive.] Arch; cunning; sly. [Scot.] Jamieson.

Pawl (?), n. [W. pawl a pole, a stake. Cf. Pole a stake.] (Mach.) A pivoted tongue, or sliding bolt, on one part of a machine, adapted to fall into notches, or interdental spaces, on another part, as a ratchet wheel, in such a manner as to permit motion in one direction and prevent it in the reverse, as in a windlass; a catch, click, or detent. See Illust. of Ratchet Wheel. [Written also paul, or pall.]

Pawl bitt (Naut.), a heavy timber, set abaft the windlass, to receive the strain of the pawls. -- Pawl rim or ring (Naut.), a stationary metallic ring surrounding the base of a capstan, having notches for the pawls to catch in.

Pawl, v. t. To stop with a pawl; to drop the pawls off.

To pawl the capstan. See under Capstan.

Pawn (?), n. See Pan, the masticatory.

Pawn, n. [OE. paune, poun, OF. peon, poon, F. pion, LL. pedo a foot soldier, fr. L. pes, pedis, foot. See Foot, and cf. Pioneer, Peon.] (Chess) A man or piece of the lowest rank.

Pawn, n. [OF. pan pledge, assurance, skirt, piece, F. pan skirt, lappet, piece, from L. pannus. See Pane.] 1. Anything delivered or deposited as security, as for the payment of money borrowed, or of a debt; a pledge. See Pledge, n., 1.

As for mortgaging or pawning, . . . men will not take pawns without
use [i. e., interest].

Bacon.

2. State of being pledged; a pledge for the fulfillment of a promise. [R.]

Redeem from broking pawn the blemish'd crown.

Shak.

As the morning dew is a pawn of the evening fatness.

Donne.

3. A stake hazarded in a wager. [Poetic]

My life I never held but as a pawn To wage against thy enemies.

Shak.

In pawn, At pawn, in the state of being pledged. "Sweet wife, my honor is at pawn." Shak. -- Pawn ticket, a receipt given by the pawnbroker for an article pledged.

Pawn, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Pawned (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Pawning.] 1. To give or deposit in pledge, or as security for the payment of money borrowed; to put in pawn; to pledge; as, to pawn one's watch.

And pawned the last remaining piece of plate.

Dryden.

2. To pledge for the fulfillment of a promise; to stake; to risk; to wager; to hazard.

Pawning his honor to obtain his lust.

Shak.

Pawna*ble (?), a. Capable of being pawned.

Pawn"bro`ker (?), n. One who makes a business of lending money on the security of personal property pledged or deposited in his keeping.

Pawn"bro`king, n. The business of a pawnbroker.

Pawn*ee" (?), n. (Law) One or two whom a pledge is delivered as security; one who takes anything in pawn.

Paw`nees" (?), n. pl.; sing. Pawnee (&?;). (Ethnol.) A tribe of Indians (called also Loups) who formerly occupied the region of the Platte river, but now live mostly in the Indian Territory. The term is often used in a wider sense to include also the related tribes of Rickarees and Wichitas. Called also Pani.

{ Pawn"er (?), Pawn*or" (?), } n. (Law) One who pawns or pledges anything as security for the payment of borrowed money or of a debt.

Paw`paw" (?), n. (Bot.) See Papaw.

Pax (?), n. [L. pax peace. See Peace.] 1. (Eccl.) The kiss of peace; also, the embrace in the sanctuary now substituted for it at High Mass in Roman Catholic churches.

2. (R. C. Ch.) A tablet or board, on which is a representation of Christ, of the Virgin Mary, or of some saint and which, in the Mass, was kissed by the priest and then by the people, in mediÊval times; an osculatory. It is still used in communities, confraternities, etc.

Kiss the pax, and be quiet like your neighbors.

Chapman.

Pax"il*lose` (?), a. [L. paxillus a small stake.] (Geol.) Resembling a little stake.

||Pax*il"lus (?), n.; pl. Paxilli (#). [L., a peg.] (Zoˆl.) One of a ||peculiar kind of spines covering the surface of certain starfishes. ||They are pillarlike, with a flattened summit which is covered with ||minute spinules or granules. See Illustration in Appendix.

Pax"wax` (?), n. [For faxvax, fr. AS. fea&?; hair (akin to OHG. fahs) + weaxan to grow. See Wax to grow, and cf. Faxed, Pectinate.] (Anat.) The strong ligament of the back of the neck in quadrupeds. It connects the back of the skull with dorsal spines of the cervical vertebrÊ, and helps to support the head. Called also paxywaxy and packwax.

Pax"y*wax`y (?), n. (Anat.) See Paxwax.

Pay (?), v. t. [OF. peier, fr. L. picare to pitch, i&?; pitch: cf. OF. peiz pitch, F. poix. See Pitch a black substance.] (Naut.) To cover, as bottom of a vessel, a seam, a spar, etc., with tar or pitch, or waterproof composition of tallow, resin, etc.; to smear.

Pay, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Paid (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Paying.] [OE. paien, F. payer, fr. L. pacare to pacify, appease, fr. pax, pacis, peace. See Peace.] 1. To satisfy, or content; specifically, to satisfy (another person) for service rendered, property delivered, etc.; to discharge one's obligation to; to make due return to; to compensate; to remunerate; to recompense; to requite; as, to pay workmen or servants.

May no penny ale them pay [i. e., satisfy].

P. Plowman.

[She] pays me with disdain.

Dryden.

2. Hence, figuratively: To compensate justly; to requite according to merit; to reward; to punish; to retort or retaliate upon.

For which, or pay me quickly, or I'll pay you.

B. Jonson.

3. To discharge, as a debt, demand, or obligation, by giving or doing what is due or required; to deliver the amount or value of to the person to whom it is owing; to discharge a debt by delivering (money owed). "Pay me that thou owest." Matt. xviii. 28.

Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.

Matt. xviii. 26.

If they pay this tax, they starve.

Tennyson.

4. To discharge or fulfill, as a duy; to perform or render duty, as that which has been promised.

This day have I paid my vows.

Prov. vii. 14.

5. To give or offer, without an implied obligation; as, to pay attention; to pay a visit.

Not paying me a welcome.

Shak.

To pay off. (a) To make compensation to and discharge; as, to pay off the crew of a ship. (b) To allow (a thread, cord, etc.) to run off; to unwind. -- To pay one's duty, to render homage, as to a sovereign or other superior. -- To pay out (Naut.), to pass out; hence, to slacken; to allow to run out; as, to pay out more cable. See under Cable. -- To pay the piper, to bear the cost, expense, or trouble. [Colloq.]

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Pay (p), v. i. To give a recompense; to make payment, requital, or satisfaction; to discharge a debt.

The wicked borroweth, and payeth not again.

Ps. xxxvii. 21.

2. Hence, to make or secure suitable return for expense or trouble; to be remunerative or profitable; to be worth the effort or pains required; as, it will pay to ride; it will pay to wait; politeness always pays.

To pay for. (a) To make amends for; to atone for; as, men often pay for their mistakes with loss of property or reputation, sometimes with life. (b) To give an equivalent for; to bear the expense of; to be mulcted on account of.

'T was I paid for your sleeps; I watched your wakings.

Beau. & Fl.

-- To pay off. [Etymol. uncertain.] (Naut.) To fall to leeward, as the head of a vessel under sail. -- To pay on. [Etymol. uncertain.] To beat with vigor; to redouble blows. [Colloq.] -- To pay round [Etymol. uncertain.] (Naut.) To turn the ship's head.

Pay, n. 1. Satisfaction; content. Chaucer.

2. An equivalent or return for money due, goods purchased, or services performed; salary or wages for work or service; compensation; recompense; payment; hire; as, the pay of a clerk; the pay of a soldier.

Where only merit constant pay receives.

Pope.

There is neither pay nor plunder to be got.

L'Estrange.

Full pay, the whole amount of wages or salary; maximum pay; especially, the highest pay or allowance to civil or military officers of a certain rank, without deductions. -- Half pay. See under Half. -- Pay day, the day of settlement of accounts. -- Pay dirt (Mining), earth which yields a profit to the miner. [Western U.S.] -- Pay office, a place where payment is made. -- Pay roll, a roll or list of persons entitled to payment, with the amounts due.

Pay"a*ble (?), a. [Cf. F. payable. Cf. Pacable.] 1. That may, can, or should be paid; suitable to be paid; justly due. Drayton.

Thanks are a tribute payable by the poorest.

South.

2. (Law) (a) That may be discharged or settled by delivery of value. (b) Matured; now due.

Pay*ee" (?), n. The person to whom money is to be, or has been, paid; the person named in a bill or note, to whom, or to whose order, the amount is promised or directed to be paid. See Bill of exchange, under Bill.

Pay"en (?), n. & a. Pagan. [F.] [Obs.] Chaucer.

Pay"er (?), n. One who pays; specifically, the person by whom a bill or note has been, or should be, paid.

Pay"mas`ter (?), n. One who pays; one who compensates, rewards, or requites; specifically, an officer or agent of a government, a corporation, or an employer, whose duty it is to pay salaries, wages, etc., and keep account of the same.

Pay"ment (?), n. [F. payment, paiement. See Pay to requite.] 1. The act of paying, or giving compensation; the discharge of a debt or an obligation.

No man envieth the payment of a debt.

Bacon.

2. That which is paid; the thing given in discharge of a debt, or an obligation, or in fulfillment of a promise; reward; recompense; requital; return. Shak.

3. Punishment; chastisement. [R.]

Payn (?), n. [OF. & F. pain, fr. L. panis bread.] Bread. Having Piers Plowman.

Payn`de*main" (?), n. [OF. pain bread + demaine manorial, lordly, own, private. See Payn, and Demesne. Said to be so called from the figure of our Lord impressed upon it.] The finest and whitest bread made in the Middle Ages; -- called also paynemain, payman. [Obs.]

Pay"nim (?), n. & a. See Painim.

Payn"ize (?), v. t. [From Mr. Payne, the inventor.] To treat or preserve, as wood, by a process resembling kyanizing.

Pay*or" (?), n. (Law) See Payer. [R.]

Payse (?), v. t. To poise. [Obs.] Spenser.

Pay"tine (?), n. (Chem.) An alkaloid obtained from a white bark resembling that of the cinchona, first brought from Payta, in Peru.

Pea (?), n. [OF. peis. See Poise.] The sliding weight on a steelyard. [Written also pee.]

Pea, n. (Naut.) See Peak, n., 3.

Pea, n.; pl. Peas (#) or Pease (#). [OE. pese, fr. AS. pisa, or OF. peis, F. pois; both fr. L. pisum; cf. Gr. &?;, &?;. The final s was misunderstood in English as a plural ending. Cf. Pease.] 1. (Bot.) A plant, and its fruit, of the genus Pisum, of many varieties, much cultivated for food. It has a papilionaceous flower, and the pericarp is a legume, popularly called a pod.

When a definite number, more than one, is spoken of, the plural form peas is used; as, the pod contained nine peas; but, in a collective sense, the form pease is preferred; as, a bushel of pease; they had pease at dinner. This distinction is not always preserved, the form peas being used in both senses.

2. A name given, especially in the Southern States, to the seed of several leguminous plants (species of Dolichos, Cicer, Abrus, etc.) esp. those having a scar (hilum) of a different color from the rest of the seed.

The name pea is given to many leguminous plants more or less closely related to the common pea. See the Phrases, below.

Beach pea (Bot.), a seashore plant, Lathyrus maritimus. -- Black-eyed pea, a West Indian name for Dolichos sphÊrospermus and its seed. -- Butterfly pea, the American plant Clitoria Mariana, having showy blossoms. -- Chick pea. See Chick-pea. -- Egyptian pea. Same as Chick-pea. -- Everlasting pea. See under Everlasting. -- Glory pea. See under Glory, n. -- Hoary pea, any plant of the genus Tephrosia; goat's rue. -- Issue pea, Orris pea. (Med.) See under Issue, and Orris. -- Milk pea. (Bot.) See under Milk. -- Pea berry, a kind of a coffee bean or grain which grows single, and is round or pea-shaped; often used adjectively; as, pea-berry coffee. -- Pea bug. (Zoˆl.) Same as Pea weevil. -- Pea coal, a size of coal smaller than nut coal. -- Pea crab (Zoˆl.), any small crab of the genus Pinnotheres, living as a commensal in bivalves; esp., the European species (P. pisum) which lives in the common mussel and the cockle. -- Pea dove (Zoˆl.), the American ground dove. -- Pea-flower tribe (Bot.), a suborder (PapilionaceÊ) of leguminous plants having blossoms essentially like that of the pea. G. Bentham. -- Pea maggot (Zoˆl.), the larva of a European moth (Tortrix pisi), which is very destructive to peas. -- Pea ore (Min.), argillaceous oxide of iron, occurring in round grains of a size of a pea; pisolitic ore. -- Pea starch, the starch or flour of the common pea, which is sometimes used in adulterating wheat flour, pepper, etc. -- Pea tree (Bot.), the name of several leguminous shrubs of the genus Caragana, natives of Siberia and China. -- Pea vine. (Bot.) (a) Any plant which bears peas. (b) A kind of vetch or tare, common in the United States (Lathyrus Americana, and other similar species). -- Pea weevil (Zoˆl.), a small weevil (Bruchus pisi) which destroys peas by eating out the interior. -- Pigeon pea. (Bot.) See Pigeon pea. -- Sweet pea (Bot.), the annual plant Lathyrus odoratus; also, its many-colored, sweet-scented blossoms.

Pea"bird` (?), n. (Zoˆl.) The wryneck; -- so called from its note. [Prov. Eng.]

Pea"bod*y bird` (?). (Zoˆl.) An American sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis) having a conspicuous white throat. The name is imitative of its note. Called also White- throated sparrow.

Peace (?), n. [OE. pees, pais, OF. pais, paiz, pes, F. paix, L. pax, pacis, akin to pacere, paciscere, pacisci, to make an agreement, and prob. also pangere to fasten. Cf. Appease, Fair, a., Fay, v., Fang, Pacify, Pact, Pay to requite.] A state of quiet or tranquillity; freedom from disturbance or agitation; calm; repose; specifically: (a) Exemption from, or cessation of, war with public enemies. (b) Public quiet, order, and contentment in obedience to law. (c) Exemption from, or subjection of, agitating passions; tranquillity of mind or conscience. (d) Reconciliation; agreement after variance; harmony; concord. "The eternal love and pees." Chaucer.

Peace is sometimes used as an exclamation in commanding silence, quiet, or order. "Peace! foolish woman." Shak.

At peace, in a state of peace. -- Breach of the peace. See under Breach. -- Justice of the peace. See under Justice. -- Peace of God. (Law) (a) A term used in wills, indictments, etc., as denoting a state of peace and good conduct. (b) (Theol.) The peace of heart which is the gift of God. -- Peace offering. (a) (Jewish Antiq.) A voluntary offering to God in token of devout homage and of a sense of friendly communion with Him. (b) A gift or service offered as satisfaction to an offended person. -- Peace officer, a civil officer whose duty it is to preserve the public peace, to prevent riots, etc., as a sheriff or constable. -- To hold one's peace, to be silent; to refrain from speaking. -- To make one's peace with, to reconcile one with, to plead one's cause with, or to become reconciled with, another. "I will make your peace with him." Shak.

Peace, v. t. & i. To make or become quiet; to be silent; to stop. [R.] "Peace your tattlings." Shak.

When the thunder would not peace at my bidding.

Shak.

Peace"a*ble (?), a. [OE. peisible, F. paisible.] Begin in or at peace; tranquil; quiet; free from, or not disposed to, war, disorder, or excitement; not quarrelsome. -- Peace"a*ble*ness, n. -- Peace"a*bly, adv.

Syn. -- Peaceful; pacific; tranquil; quiet; mild; undisturbed; serene; still. -- Peaceable, Peaceful. Peaceable describes the state of an individual, nation, etc., in reference to external hostility, attack, etc.; peaceful, in respect to internal disturbance. The former denotes "in the spirit of peace;" latter; "in the possession or enjoyment of peace." A peaceable adjustment of difficulties; a peaceful life, scene.

Peace"break`er (?), n. One who disturbs the public peace. -- Peace"break`ing, n.

Peace"ful (?), a. 1. Possessing or enjoying peace; not disturbed by war, tumult, agitation, anxiety, or commotion; quiet; tranquil; as, a peaceful time; a peaceful country; a peaceful end.

2. Not disposed or tending to war, tumult or agitation; pacific; mild; calm; peaceable; as, peaceful words.

Syn. -- See Peaceable.

--Peace"ful*ly, adv.. -- Peace"ful*ness, n.

Peace"less, a. Without peace; disturbed. Sandys.

Peace"mak`er (?), n. One who makes peace by reconciling parties that are at variance. Matt. v. 9.

--Peace"mak`ing, n.

Peach (?), v. t. [See Appeach, Impeach.] To accuse of crime; to inform against. [Obs.] Foxe.

Peach, v. i. To turn informer; to betray one's accomplice. [Obs. or Colloq.]

If I be ta'en, I'll peach for this.

Shak.

Peach (?), n. [OE. peche, peshe, OF. pesche, F. pÍche, fr. LL. persia, L. Persicum (sc. malum) a Persian apple, a peach. Cf. Persian, and Parsee.] (Bot.) A well-known high-flavored juicy fruit, containing one or two seeds in a hard almond-like endocarp or stone; also, the tree which bears it (Prunus, or Amygdalus Persica). In the wild stock the fruit is hard and inedible.

Guinea, or Sierra Leone, peach, the large edible berry of the Sarcocephalus esculentus, a rubiaceous climbing shrub of west tropical Africa. -- Palm peach, the fruit of a Venezuelan palm tree (Bactris speciosa). -- Peach color, the pale red color of the peach blossom. -- Peach-tree borer (Zoˆl.), the larva of a clearwing moth (∆geria, or Sannina, exitiosa) of the family ∆geriidÊ, which is very destructive to peach trees by boring in the wood, usually near the ground; also, the moth itself. See Illust. under Borer.

Peach"-col`ored (?), a. Of the color of a peach blossom. "Peach-colored satin." Shak.

Peach"er (?), n. One who peaches. [Low] Foxe.

Pea"chick` (?), n. (Zoˆl.) The chicken of the peacock.

Peach"y (?), a. Resembling a peach or peaches.

Pea"cock` (?), n. [OE. pecok. Pea- in this word is from AS. pe·, pwa, peacock, fr. L. pavo, prob. of Oriental origin; cf. Gr. &?;, &?;, Per. tus, twus, Ar. twu&?;s. See Cock the bird.] 1. (Zoˆl.) The male of any pheasant of the genus Pavo, of which at least two species are known, native of Southern Asia and the East Indies.

The upper tail coverts, which are long and capable of erection, are each marked with a black spot bordered by concentric bands of brilliant blue, green, and golden colors. The common domesticated species is Pavo cristatus. The Javan peacock (P. muticus) is more brilliantly colored than the common species.

2. In common usage, the species in general or collectively; a peafowl.

Peacock butterfly (Zoˆl.), a handsome European butterfly (Hamadryas Io) having ocelli like those of peacock. -- Peacock fish (Zoˆl.), the European blue-striped wrasse (Labrus variegatus); -- so called on account of its brilliant colors. Called also cook wrasse and cook. -- Peacock pheasant (Zoˆl.), any one of several species of handsome Asiatic pheasants of the genus Polyplectron. They resemble the peacock in color.

Pea"fowl` (?), n. [See Peacock.] (Zoˆl.) The peacock or peahen; any species of Pavo.

Pe"age (?), n. See Paage.

Pea"grit` (?), n. (Min.) A coarse pisolitic limestone. See Pisolite.

Pea"hen` (?), n. [See Peacock.] (Zoˆl.) The hen or female peafowl.

Pea"-jack`et (?), n. [Prob. fr. D. pij, pije, a coat of a coarse woolen stuff.] A thick loose woolen jacket, or coat, much worn by sailors in cold weather.

Peak (?), n. [OE. pek, AS. peac, perh of Celtic origin; cf. Ir. peac a sharp- pointed thing. Cf. Pike.] 1. A point; the sharp end or top of anything that terminates in a point; as, the peak, or front, of a cap. "Run your beard into a peak." Beau. & Fl.

2. The top, or one of the tops, of a hill, mountain, or range, ending in a point; often, the whole hill or mountain, esp. when isolated; as, the Peak of Teneriffe.

Silent upon a peak in Darien.

Keats.

3. (Naut.) (a) The upper aftermost corner of a fore-and-aft sail; -- used in many combinations; as, peak-halyards, peak-brails, etc. (b) The narrow part of a vessel's bow, or the hold within it. (c) The extremity of an anchor fluke; the bill. [In the last sense written also pea and pee.]

Fore peak. (Naut.) See under Fore.

Peak, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Peaked (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Peaking.] 1. To rise or extend into a peak or point; to form, or appear as, a peak.

There peaketh up a mighty high mount.

Holand.

2. To acquire sharpness of figure or features; hence, to look thin or sicky. "Dwindle, peak, and pine." Shak.

3. [Cf. Peek.] To pry; to peep slyly. Shak.

Peak arch (Arch.), a pointed or Gothic arch.

Peak, v. t. (Naut.) To raise to a position perpendicular, or more nearly so; as, to peak oars, to hold them upright; to peak a gaff or yard, to set it nearer the perpendicular.

Peaked (?), a. 1. Pointed; ending in a point; as, a peaked roof.

2. (Oftener &?;) Sickly; not robust. [Colloq.]

<! p. 1055 !>

Peak"ing (?), a. 1. Mean; sneaking. [Vulgar]

2. Pining; sickly; peakish. [Colloq.]

Peak"ish, a. 1. Of or relating to a peak; or to peaks; belonging to a mountainous region. "Her peakish spring." Drayton. "His peakish dialect." Bp. Hall.

2. Having peaks; peaked.

3. Having features thin or sharp, as from sickness; hence, sickly. [Colloq.]

Peak"y (?), a. 1. Having a peak or peaks. Tennyson.

2. Sickly; peaked. [Colloq.]

Peal (?), n. [Etymol. uncertain.] (Zoˆl.) A small salmon; a grilse; a sewin. [Prov. Eng.]

Peal, v. i. To appeal. [Obs.] Spencer.

Peal, n. [An abbrev. of F. appel a call, appeal, ruffle of a drum, fr. appeller to call, L. appellare. See Appeal.] 1. A loud sound, or a succession of loud sounds, as of bells, thunder, cannon, shouts, of a multitude, etc. "A fair peal of artillery." Hayward.

Whether those peals of praise be his or no.

Shak.

And a deep thunder, peal on peal, afar.

Byron.

2. A set of bells tuned to each other according to the diatonic scale; also, the changes rung on a set of bells.

To ring a peal. See under Ring.

Peal, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Pealed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Pealing.] 1. To utter or give out loud sounds.

There let the pealing organ blow.

Milton.

2. To resound; to echo.

And the whole air pealed With the cheers of our men.

Longfellow.

Peal, v. t. 1. To utter or give forth loudly; to cause to give out loud sounds; to noise abroad.

The warrior's name, Though pealed and chimed on all the tongues of
fame.

J. Barlow.

2. To assail with noise or loud sounds.

Nor was his ear less pealed.

Milton.

3. To pour out. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

Pean (?), n. [OF. pene, F. panne.] (Her.) One of the furs, the ground being sable, and the spots or tufts or.

Pe"an (?), n. A song of praise and triumph. See PÊan.

Pe"an*ism (?), n. [Gr. &?;, fr. &?; to chant the pÊan.] The song or shout of praise, of battle, or of triumph. [R.]

Pea"nut (?), n. (Bot.) The fruit of a trailing leguminous plant (Arachis hypogÊa); also, the plant itself, which is widely cultivated for its fruit.

The fruit is a hard pod, usually containing two or three seeds, sometimes but one, which ripen beneath the soil. Called also earthnut, groundnut, and goober.

Pear (p‚r), n. [OE. pere, AS. peru, L. pirum: cf. F. poire. Cf. Perry.] (Bot.) The fleshy pome, or fruit, of a rosaceous tree (Pyrus communis), cultivated in many varieties in temperate climates; also, the tree which bears this fruit. See Pear family, below.

Pear blight. (a) (Bot.) A name of two distinct diseases of pear trees, both causing a destruction of the branches, viz., that caused by a minute insect (Xyleborus pyri), and that caused by the freezing of the sap in winter. A. J. Downing. (b) (Zoˆl.) A very small beetle (Xyleborus pyri) whose larvÊ bore in the twigs of pear trees and cause them to wither. -- Pear family (Bot.), a suborder of rosaceous plants (PomeÊ), characterized by the calyx tube becoming fleshy in fruit, and, combined with the ovaries, forming a pome. It includes the apple, pear, quince, service berry, and hawthorn. -- Pear gauge (Physics), a kind of gauge for measuring the exhaustion of an air-pump receiver; -- so called because consisting in part of a pear-shaped glass vessel. -- Pear shell (Zoˆl.), any marine gastropod shell of the genus Pyrula, native of tropical seas; -- so called from the shape. -- Pear slug (Zoˆl.), the larva of a sawfly which is very injurious to the foliage of the pear tree.

Pearch (?), n. [Obs.] See Perch.

Pearl (?), n. A fringe or border. [Obs.] -- v. t. To fringe; to border. [Obs.] See Purl.

Pearl stitch. See Purl stitch, under Purl.

Pearl, n. [OE. perle, F. perle, LL. perla, perula, probably fr. (assumed) L. pirulo, dim. of L. pirum a pear. See Pear, and cf. Purl to mantle.] 1. (Zoˆl.) A shelly concretion, usually rounded, and having a brilliant luster, with varying tints, found in the mantle, or between the mantle and shell, of certain bivalve mollusks, especially in the pearl oysters and river mussels, and sometimes in certain univalves. It is usually due to a secretion of shelly substance around some irritating foreign particle. Its substance is the same as nacre, or mother-of- pearl. Pearls which are round, or nearly round, and of fine luster, are highly esteemed as jewels, and compare in value with the precious stones.

2. Hence, figuratively, something resembling a pearl; something very precious.

I see thee compassed with thy kingdom's pearl.

Shak.

And those pearls of dew she wears.

Milton.

3. Nacre, or mother-of-pearl.

4. (Zoˆl.) A fish allied to the turbot; the brill.

5. (Zoˆl.) A light-colored tern.

6. (Zoˆl.) One of the circle of tubercles which form the bur on a deer's antler.

7. A whitish speck or film on the eye. [Obs.] Milton.

8. A capsule of gelatin or similar substance containing some liquid for medicinal application, as ether.

9. (Print.) A size of type, between agate and diamond.

This line is printed in the type called pearl.

Ground pearl. (Zoˆl.) See under Ground. -- Pearl barley, kernels of barley, ground so as to form small, round grains. -- Pearl diver, one who dives for pearl oysters. -- Pearl edge, an edge of small loops on the side of some kinds of ribbon; also, a narrow kind of thread edging to be sewed on lace. -- Pearl eye, cataract. [R.] -- Pearl gray, a very pale and delicate blue-gray color. -- Pearl millet, Egyptian millet (Penicillaria spicata). -- Pearl moss. See Carrageen. -- Pearl moth (Zoˆl.), any moth of the genus Margaritia; -- so called on account of its pearly color. -- Pearl oyster (Zoˆl.), any one of several species of large tropical marine bivalve mollusks of the genus Meleagrina, or Margaritifera, found in the East Indies (especially at Ceylon), in the Persian Gulf, on the coast of Australia, and on the Pacific coast of America. Called also pearl shell, and pearl mussel. -- Pearl powder. See Pearl white, below. -- Pearl sago, sago in the form of small pearly grains. -- Pearl sinter (Min.), fiorite. -- Pearl spar (Min.), a crystallized variety of dolomite, having a pearly luster. -- Pearl white. (a) Basic bismuth nitrate, or bismuth subchloride; -- used chiefly as a cosmetic. (b) A variety of white lead blued with indigo or Berlin blue.

Pearl (?), a. Of or pertaining to pearl or pearls; made of pearls, or of mother-of-pearl.

Pearl, v. t. 1. To set or adorn with pearls, or with mother-of-pearl. Used also figuratively.

2. To cause to resemble pearls; to make into small round grains; as, to pearl barley.

Pearl, v. i. 1. To resemble pearl or pearls.

2. To give or hunt for pearls; as, to go pearling.

Pearl*a"ceous (?), a. Resembling pearl or mother-of-pearl; pearly in quality or appearance.

Pearl"ash` (?), n. (Chem.) A white amorphous or granular substance which consists principally of potassium carbonate, and has a strong alkaline reaction. It is obtained by lixiviating wood ashes, and evaporating the lye, and has been an important source of potassium compounds. It is used in making soap, glass, etc.

Pearl"-eyed` (?), a. Having a pearly speck in the eye; afflicted with the cataract.

Pearl"fish` (?), n. (Zoˆl.) Any fish whose scales yield a pearl-like pigment used in manufacturing artificial pearls, as the bleak, and whitebait.

{ Pearl"ins (?), Pearl"ings (?), } n. pl. [Prob. a corruption of purflings. See Purfle.] A kind of lace of silk or thread. [Scot.] Sir W. Scott.

{ Pearl"ite (?), Pearl"stone` (?), } n. (Min.) A glassy volcanic rock of a grayish color and pearly luster, often having a spherulitic concretionary structure due to the curved cracks produced by contraction in cooling. See Illust. under Perlitic.

Pearl"wort` (?), n. (Bot.) A name given to several species of Sagina, low and inconspicuous herbs of the Chickweed family.

Pearl"y (?), a. 1. Containing pearls; abounding with, or yielding, pearls; as, pearly shells. Milton.

2. Resembling pearl or pearls; clear; pure; transparent; iridescent; as, the pearly dew or flood.

Pear"main (?), n. (Bot.) The name of several kinds of apples; as, the blue pearmain, winter pearmain, and red pearmain.

Pear"-shaped` (?), a. Of the form of a pear.

Peart (?), a. [A variant of pert, a.] Active; lively; brisk; smart; -- often applied to convalescents; as, she is quite peart to-day. [O. Eng. & Colloq. U. S.]

There was a tricksy girl, I wot, albeit clad in gray, As peart as
bird, as straight as bolt, as fresh as flowers in May.

Warner (1592).

Peas"ant (?), n. [OF. paÔsant (the i being perh. due to confusion with the p. pr. of verbs), paÔsan, F. paysan, fr. OF. & F. pays country, fr. L. pagus the country. See Pagan.] A countryman; a rustic; especially, one of the lowest class of tillers of the soil in European countries.

Syn. -- Countryman; rustic; swain; hind.

Peas"ant, a. Rustic, rural. Spenser.

Peas"ant*like` (?), a. Rude; clownish; illiterate.

Peas"ant*ly, a. Peasantlike. [Obs.] Milton.

Peas"ant*ry (?), n. 1. Peasants, collectively; the body of rustics. "A bold peasantry." Goldsmith.

2. Rusticity; coarseness. [Obs.] p. Butler.

Peas"cod` (?), n. The legume or pericarp, or the pod, of the pea.

Pease (?), n.; obs.pl. Peases (#), Peasen (#). [See Pea.] 1. A pea. [Obs.] "A peose." "Bread . . . of beans and of peses." Piers Plowman.

2. A plural form of Pea. See the Note under Pea.

Pea"stone` (?), n. (Min.) Pisolite.

Peas"weep` (?), n. [So called from its note.] [Prov. Eng.] (Zoˆl.) (a) The pewit, or lapwing. (b) The greenfinch.

Peat (?), n. [Cf. Pet a fondling.] A small person; a pet; -- sometimes used contemptuously. [Obs.] Shak.

Peat, n. [Prob. for beat, prop., material used to make the fire burn better, fr. AS. b&?;tan to better, mend (a fire), b&?;t advantage. See Better, Boot advantage.] A substance of vegetable origin, consisting of roots and fibers, moss, etc., in various stages of decomposition, and found, as a kind of turf or bog, usually in low situations, where it is always more or less saturated with water. It is often dried and used for fuel.

Peat bog, a bog containing peat; also, peat as it occurs in such places; peat moss. -- Peat moss. (a) The plants which, when decomposed, become peat. (b) A fen producing peat. (c) (Bot.) Moss of the genus Sphagnum, which often grows abundantly in boggy or peaty places. -- Peat reek, the reek or smoke of peat; hence, also, the peculiar flavor given to whisky by being distilled with peat as fuel. [Scot.]

Peat"y (?), a. Composed of peat; abounding in peat; resembling peat.

Pe"ba (?), n. [Cf. Pg. peba.] (Zoˆl.) An armadillo (Tatusia novemcincta) which is found from Texas to Paraguay; -- called also tatouhou.

Peb"ble (?), n. [AS. papolstn; cf. L. papula pimple, mote. See Stone.] 1. A small roundish stone or bowlder; especially, a stone worn and rounded by the action of water; a pebblestone. "The pebbles on the hungry beach." Shak.

As children gathering pebbles on the shore.

Milton.

2. Transparent and colorless rock crystal; as, Brazilian pebble; -- so called by opticians.

Pebble powder, slow-burning gunpowder, in large cubical grains. -- Scotch pebble, varieties of quartz, as agate, chalcedony, etc., obtained from cavities in amygdaloid.

Peb"ble, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Pebbled; p. pr. & vb. n. Pebbling.] To grain (leather) so as to produce a surface covered with small rounded prominences.

Peb"bled (?), a. Abounding in pebbles. Thomson.

Peb"ble*stone` (?). A pebble; also, pebbles collectively. "Chains of pebblestone." Marlowe.

Peb"bly (?), a. Full of pebbles; pebbled. "A hard, pebbly bottom." Johnson.

||Pe`brine" (?), n. [F.] An epidemic disease of the silkworm, ||characterized by the presence of minute vibratory corpuscles in the ||blood.

Pe*can" (?), n. [Cf. F. pacane the nut.] (Bot.) A species of hickory (Carya olivÊformis), growing in North America, chiefly in the Mississippi valley and in Texas, where it is one of the largest of forest trees; also, its fruit, a smooth, oblong nut, an inch or an inch and a half long, with a thin shell and well-flavored meat. [Written also pacane.]

Pec"a*ry (?), n. (Zoˆl.) See Peccary.

Pec`ca*bil"i*ty (?), n. The state or quality of being peccable; lability to sin.

The common peccability of mankind.

Dr. H. More.

Pec"ca*ble (?), a. [Cf. F. peccable. See Peccant.] Liable to sin; subject to transgress the divine law. "A frail and peccable mortal." Sir W. Scott.

Pec`ca*dil"lo (?), n.; pl. Peccadillos (#). [Sp. pecadillo, dim. of pecado a sin, fr. L. peccatum. See Peccant.] A slight trespass or offense; a petty crime or fault. Sir W. Scott.

Pec"can*cy (?), n. [L. peccantia.] 1. The quality or state of being peccant.

2. A sin; an offense. W. Montagu.

Pec"cant (?), a. [L. peccans, -antis, p. pr. of peccare to sin: cf. F. peccant.] 1. Sinning; guilty of transgression; criminal; as, peccant angels. Milton.

2. Morbid; corrupt; as, peccant humors. Bacon.

3. Wrong; defective; faulty. [R.] Ayliffe.

Pec"cant, n. An offender. [Obs.] Whitlock.

Pec"cant*ly, adv. In a peccant manner.

Pec"ca*ry (?), n.; pl. Peccaries (#). [From the native South American name: cf. F. pÈcari, Sp. pecar.] (Zoˆl.) A pachyderm of the genus Dicotyles.

The collared peccary, or tajacu (Dicotyles torquatus), is about the size and shape of a small hog, and has a white ring aroung the neck. It ranges from Arkansas to Brazil. A larger species (D. labiatus), with white cheeks, is found in South America.

||Pec*ca"vi (?). [L.] I have sinned; -- used colloquially to express ||confession or acknowledgment of an offense. Aubrey.

Pec"co (?), n. See Pekoe.

Peck, n. [Perh. akin to pack; or, orig., an indefinite quantity, and fr. peck, v. (below): cf. also F. picotin a peak.] 1. The fourth part of a bushel; a dry measure of eight quarts; as, a peck of wheat. "A peck of provender." Shak.

2. A great deal; a large or excessive quantity. "A peck of uncertainties and doubts." Milton.

Peck, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Pecked (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Pecking.] [See Pick, v.] 1. To strike with the beak; to thrust the beak into; as, a bird pecks a tree.

2. Hence: To strike, pick, thrust against, or dig into, with a pointed instrument; especially, to strike, pick, etc., with repeated quick movements.

3. To seize and pick up with the beak, or as with the beak; to bite; to eat; -- often with up. Addison.

This fellow pecks up wit as pigeons peas.

Shak.

4. To make, by striking with the beak or a pointed instrument; as, to peck a hole in a tree.

Peck, v. i. 1. To make strokes with the beak, or with a pointed instrument. Carew.

2. To pick up food with the beak; hence, to eat.

[The hen] went pecking by his side.

Dryden.

To peck at, to attack with petty and repeated blows; to carp at; to nag; to tease.

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Peck (?), n. A quick, sharp stroke, as with the beak of a bird or a pointed instrument.

Peck"er (?), n. 1. One who, or that which, pecks; specif., a bird that pecks holes in trees; a woodpecker.

2. An instrument for pecking; a pick. Garth.

Flower pecker. (Zoˆl.) See under Flower.

Peck"ish, a. Inclined to eat; hungry. [Colloq.] "When shall I feel peckish again?" Beaconsfield.

Pec"kled (?), a. Speckled; spotted. [Obs.]

||Pe*cop"te*ris (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; to comb + &?; a kind of ||fern.] (Paleon.) An extensive genus of fossil ferns; -- so named from ||the regular comblike arrangement of the leaflets.

||Pec"o*ra (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. L. pecus. See Pecuniary.] (Zoˆl.) An ||extensive division of ruminants, including the antelopes, deer, and ||cattle.

Pec"tate (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of pectic acid.

Pec"ten (?), n. [L. pecten, - inis, a comb, a kind of shellfish. See Pectinate.] 1. (Anat.) (a) A vascular pigmented membrane projecting into the vitreous humor within the globe of the eye in birds, and in many reptiles and fishes; -- also called marsupium. (b) The pubic bone.

2. (Zoˆl.) Any species of bivalve mollusks of the genus Pecten, and numerous allied genera (family PectinidÊ); a scallop. See Scallop.

3. (Zoˆl.) The comb of a scorpion. See Comb, 4 (b).