Chapter C: A. Young (1)

2. Having a sharp point, or sharp points; furnished or armed with spikes.

Or by the spiky harrow cleared away.

Dyer.

The spiky wheels through heaps of carnage tore.

Pope.

Spile (?), n. [Cf. LG. spile, dial. G. speil, speiler, D. spijl. √170.] 1. A small plug or wooden pin, used to stop a vent, as in a cask.

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2. A small tube or spout inserted in a tree for conducting sap, as from a sugar maple.

3. A large stake driven into the ground as a support for some superstructure; a pile.

Spile hole, a small air hole in a cask; a vent.

Spile (?), v. t. To supply with a spile or a spigot; to make a small vent in, as a cask.

Spil"i*kin (?), n. [OD. spelleken a small pin. See Spill a splinter.] One of a number of small pieces or pegs of wood, ivory, bone, or other material, for playing a game, or for counting the score in a game, as in cribbage. In the plural (spilikins), a game played with such pieces; pushpin. [Written also spillikin, spilliken.]

Spill (?), n. [&radic;170. Cf. Spell a splinter.] 1. A bit of wood split off; a splinter. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.]

2. A slender piece of anything. Specifically: --

(a) A peg or pin for plugging a hole, as in a cask; a spile.

(b) A metallic rod or pin.

(c) A small roll of paper, or slip of wood, used as a lamplighter, etc.

(d) (Mining) One of the thick laths or poles driven horizontally ahead of the main timbering in advancing a level in loose ground.

3. A little sum of money. [Obs.] Ayliffe.

Spill, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Spilt (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Spilling.] To cover or decorate with slender pieces of wood, metal, ivory, etc.; to inlay. [Obs.] Spenser.

Spill (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Spilled (?), or Spilt (&?;); p. pr. & vb. n. Spilling.] [OE. spillen,sually, to destroy, AS. spillan, spildan, to destroy; akin to Icel. spilla to destroy, Sw. spilla to spill, Dan. spilde,G. & D. spillen to squander, OHG. spildan.] 1. To destroy; to kill; to put an end to. [Obs.]

And gave him to the queen, all at her will To choose whether she
would him save or spill.

Chaucer.

Greater glory think [it] to save than spill.

Spenser.

2. To mar; to injure; to deface; hence, to destroy by misuse; to waste. [Obs.]

They [the colors] disfigure the stuff and spill the whole
workmanship.

Puttenham.

Spill not the morning, the quintessence of day, in recreations.

Fuller.

3. To suffer to fall or run out of a vessel; to lose, or suffer to be scattered; -- applied to fluids and to substances whose particles are small and loose; as, to spill water from a pail; to spill quicksilver from a vessel; to spill powder from a paper; to spill sand or flour.

Spill differs from pour in expressing accidental loss, -- a loss or waste contrary to purpose.

4. To cause to flow out and be lost or wasted; to shed, or suffer to be shed, as in battle or in manslaughter; as, a man spills another's blood, or his own blood.

And to revenge his blood so justly spilt.

Dryden.

5. (Naut.) To relieve a sail from the pressure of the wind, so that it can be more easily reefed or furled, or to lessen the strain.

Spilling line (Naut.), a rope used for spilling, or dislodging, the wind from the belly of a sail. Totten.

Spill, v. i. 1. To be destroyed, ruined, or wasted; to come to ruin; to perish; to waste. [Obs.]

That thou wilt suffer innocents to spill.

Chaucer.

2. To be shed; to run over; to fall out, and be lost or wasted. "He was so topful of himself, that he let it spill on all the company." I. Watts.

Spill"er (?), n. 1. One who, or that which, spills.

2. A kind of fishing line with many hooks; a boulter.

{ Spil"let fish`ing (?), Spil"liard fish`ing (?), } A system or method of fishing by means of a number of hooks set on snoods all on one line; -- in North America, called trawl fishing, bultow, or bultow fishing, and long-line fishing.

Spil"li*kin (?), n. See Spilikin.

Spill"way` (?), n. A sluiceway or passage for superfluous water in a reservoir, to prevent too great pressure on the dam.

Spilt (?), imp. & p. p. of Spill. Spilled.

Spil"ter (?), n. [From Spill, n.] Any one of the small branches on a stag's head. [Obs.] Howell.

Spilth (?), n. [From Spill.] Anything spilt, or freely poured out; slop; effusion. [Archaic] "With drunken spilth of wine." Shak.

Choicest cates, and the flagon's best spilth.

R. Browning.

Spin (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Spun (?) (Archaic imp. Span (&?;)); p. pr. & vb. n. Spinning.] [AS. spinnan; akin to D. & G. spinnen, Icel. & Sw. spinna, Dan. spinde, Goth. spinnan, and probably to E. span. &radic;170. Cf. Span, v. t., Spider.] 1. To draw out, and twist into threads, either by the hand or machinery; as, to spin wool, cotton, or flax; to spin goat's hair; to produce by drawing out and twisting a fibrous material.

All the yarn she [Penelope] spun in Ulysses' absence did but fill
Ithaca full of moths.

Shak.

2. To draw out tediously; to form by a slow process, or by degrees; to extend to a great length; -- with out; as, to spin out large volumes on a subject.

Do you mean that story is tediously spun out?

Sheridan.

3. To protract; to spend by delays; as, to spin out the day in idleness.

By one delay after another they spin out their whole lives.

L'Estrange.

4. To cause to turn round rapidly; to whirl; to twirl; as, to spin a top.

5. To form (a web, a cocoon, silk, or the like) from threads produced by the extrusion of a viscid, transparent liquid, which hardens on coming into contact with the air; -- said of the spider, the silkworm, etc.

6. (Mech.) To shape, as malleable sheet metal, into a hollow form, by bending or buckling it by pressing against it with a smooth hand tool or roller while the metal revolves, as in a lathe.

To spin a yarn (Naut.), to tell a story, esp. a long or fabulous tale. -- To spin hay (Mil.), to twist it into ropes for convenient carriage on an expedition. -- To spin street yarn, to gad about gossiping. [Collog.]

Spin (?), v. i. 1. To practice spinning; to work at drawing and twisting threads; to make yarn or thread from fiber; as, the woman knows how to spin; a machine or jenny spins with great exactness.

They neither know to spin, nor care to toll.

Prior.

2. To move round rapidly; to whirl; to revolve, as a top or a spindle, about its axis.

Round about him spun the landscape, Sky and forest reeled together.

Longfellow.

With a whirligig of jubilant mosquitoes spinning about each head.

G. W. Cable.

3. To stream or issue in a thread or a small current or jet; as, blood spinsfrom a vein. Shak.

4. To move swifty; as, to spin along the road in a carriage, on a bicycle, etc. [Colloq.]

Spin, n. 1. The act of spinning; as, the spin of a top; a spin a bicycle. [Colloq.]

2. (Kinematics) Velocity of rotation about some specified axis.

||Spi"na bif"i*da (?). (Med.) [L., cleft spine.] A congenital ||malformation in which the spinal column is cleft at its lower ||portion, and the membranes of the spinal cord project as an elastic ||swelling from the gap thus formed.

Spi*na"ceous (?), a. (Bot.) Of, pertaining to, or resembling, the plant spinach, or the family of plants to which it belongs.

{ Spin"ach, Spin"age } (?), n. [OF. espinache, espinoche, F. épinard; cf. F. spinace, Sp. espinaca; all fr. Ar. isfnj, isfinj, aspankh, probably of Persian origin.] (Bot.) A common pot herb (Spinacia oleracea) belonging to the Goosefoot family.

Mountain spinach. See Garden orache, under Orache. -- New Zealand spinach (Bot.), a coarse herb (Tetragonia expansa), a poor substitute for spinach.

Various other pot herbs are locally called spinach.

Spi"nal (?), a. [L. spinalis, fr. spina the spine: cf. F. spinal. See Spine.] 1. (Anat.) Of, pertaining to, or in the region of, the backbone, or vertebral column; rachidian; vertebral.

2. Of or pertaining to a spine or spines.

Spinal accessory nerves, the eleventh pair of cranial nerves in the higher vertebrates. They originate from the spinal cord and pass forward into the skull, from which they emerge in company with the pneumogastrics. -- Spinal column, the backbone, or connected series or vertebræ which forms the axis of the vertebrate skeleton; the spine; rachis; vertebral column. -- Spinal cord, the great nervous cord extending backward from the brain along the dorsal side of the spinal column of a vertebrate animal, and usually terminating in a threadlike appendage called the filum terminale; the spinal, or vertebral, marrow; the myelon. The nervous tissue consists of nerve fibers and nerve cells, the latter being confined to the so-called gray matter of the central portions of the cord, while the peripheral white matter is composed of nerve fibers only. The center of the cord is traversed by a slender canal connecting with the ventricles of the brain.

Spi"nate (?), a. Bearing a spine; spiniform.

Spin"dle (?), n. [AS. spinal, fr. spinnan to spin; akin to D. spil, G. spille, spindel, OHG. spinnala. &radic;170. See Spin.] 1. The long, round, slender rod or pin in spinning wheels by which the thread is twisted, and on which, when twisted, it is wound; also, the pin on which the bobbin is held in a spinning machine, or in the shuttle of a loom.

2. A slender rod or pin on which anything turns; an axis; as, the spindle of a vane. Specifically: --

(a) (Mach.) The shaft, mandrel, or arbor, in a machine tool, as a lathe or drilling machine, etc., which causes the work to revolve, or carries a tool or center, etc.

(b) (Mach.) The vertical rod on which the runner of a grinding mill turns.

(c) (Founding) A shaft or pipe on which a core of sand is formed.

3. The fusee of a watch.

4. A long and slender stalk resembling a spindle.

5. A yarn measure containing, in cotton yarn, 15,120 yards; in linen yarn, 14,400 yards.

6. (Geom.) A solid generated by the revolution of a curved line about its base or double ordinate or chord.

7. (Zoöl.) (a) Any marine univalve shell of the genus Rostellaria; -- called also spindle stromb. (b) Any marine gastropod of the genus Fusus.

Dead spindle (Mach.), a spindle in a machine tool that does not revolve; the spindle of the tailstock of a lathe. -- Live spindle (Mach.), the revolving spindle of a machine tool; the spindle of the headstock of a turning lathe. -- Spindle shell. (Zoöl.) See Spindle, 7. above. -- Spindle side, the female side in descent; in the female line; opposed to spear side. Ld. Lytton. [R.] "King Lycaon, grandson, by the spindle side, of Oceanus." Lowell. -- Spindle tree (Bot.), any shrub or tree of the genus Eunymus. The wood of E. Europæus was used for spindles and skewers. See Prickwood.

Spin"dle, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Spindled(?); p. pr. & vb. n. Spindling (?).] To shoot or grow into a long, slender stalk or body; to become disproportionately tall and slender.

It has begun to spindle into overintellectuality.

Lowell.

Spin"dle-legged` (?), a. Having long, slender legs.

Spin"dle*legs` (?), n. A spindleshanks.

Spin"dle-shanked` (?), a. Having long, slender legs. Addison.

Spin"dle*shanks` (?), n. A person with slender shanks, or legs; -- used humorously or in contempt.

Spin"dle-shaped` (?), a. 1. Having the shape of a spindle.

2. (Bot.) Thickest in the middle, and tapering to both ends; fusiform; -- applied chiefly to roots.

Spin"dle*tail` (?), n. (Zoöl.) The pintail duck. [Local, U.S.]

Spin"dle*worm` (?), n. (Zoöl.) The larva of a noctuid mmoth (Achatodes zeæ) which feeds inside the stalks of corn (maize), sometimes causing much damage. It is smooth, with a black head and tail and a row of black dots across each segment.

Spin"dling (?), a. Long and slender, or disproportionately tall and slender; as, a spindling tree; a spindling boy.

Spine (?), n. [L. spina thorn, the spine; akin to spica a point: cf. OF. espine, F. épine. Cf. Spike, Spinet a musical instrument, Spinny.] 1. (Bot.) A sharp appendage to any of a plant; a thorn.

2. (Zoöl.) (a) A rigid and sharp projection upon any part of an animal. (b) One of the rigid and undivided fin rays of a fish.

3. (Anat.) The backbone, or spinal column, of an animal; -- so called from the projecting processes upon the vertebræ.

4. Anything resembling the spine or backbone; a ridge.

Spine"back` (?), n. (Zoöl.) A fish having spines in, or in front of, the dorsal fins.

Spine"bill` (?), n. (Zoöl.) Any species of Australian birds of the genus Acanthorhynchus. They are related to the honey eaters.

Spined (?), a. Furnished with spines; spiny.

Spine"-finned` (?), a. (Zoöl.) Having fine supported by spinous fin rays; -- said of certain fishes.

{ Spi*nel" (?), Spi*nelle" (?), } n. [F. spinelle, or LL. spinellus, perhaps from L. spina a thorn, a prickle, in allusion to its pointed crystals.] (Min.) A mineral occuring in octahedrons of great hardness and various colors, as red, green, blue, brown, and black, the red variety being the gem spinel ruby. It consist essentially of alumina and magnesia, but commonly contains iron and sometimes also chromium.

The spinel group includes spinel proper, also magnetite, chromite, franklinite, gahnite, etc., all of which may be regarded as composed of a sesquioxide and a protoxide in equal proportions.

Spin"el (?), n. Bleached yarn in making the linen tape called inkle; unwrought inkle. Knight.

Spine"less (?), a. Having no spine.

Spi*nes"cent (?), a.[L. spinescens, -entis, p. pr. of spinescere to know to grow thorny, fr. spina a thorn: cf. F. spinescent.] (Bot.) Becoming hard and thorny; tapering gradually to a rigid, leafless point; armed with spines. Gray.

Spin"et (?), n. [OF. espinete, F. épinette (cf. It. spinetta), fr. L. spina a thorn; -- so called because its quills resemble thorns. See Spine.] (Mus.) A keyed instrument of music resembling a harpsichord, but smaller, with one string of brass or steel wire to each note, sounded by means of leather or quill plectrums or jacks. It was formerly much used.

Dumb spinet. (Mus.) See Manichordon.

Spi"net (?), n. [L. spinetum. See Spinny.] A spinny. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

Spine"tail` (?), n. (Zoöl.) (a) Any one or several species of swifts of the genus Acanthylis, or Chætura, and allied genera, in which the shafts of the tail feathers terminate in rigid spines. (b) Any one of several species of South American and Central American clamatorial birds belonging to Synallaxis and allied genera of the family Dendrocolaptidæ. They are allied to the ovenbirds. (c) The ruddy duck. [Local, U.S.]

Spine"-tailed (?), a. (Zoöl.) Having the tail quills ending in sharp, naked tips.

Spine-tailed swift. (Zoöl.) See Spinetail (a).

Spin"et*ed (?), a. Slit; cleft. [Obs. & R.]

Spi*nif"er*ous (?), a. [L. spinifer; spina thorn + ferre to produce.] Producing spines; bearing thorns or spines; thorny; spiny.

Spin"i*form (?), a. Shaped like a spine.

Spi*nig"er*ous (?), a. [L. spiniger; spina spine + gerere to bear.] Bearing a spine or spines; thorn-bearing.

Spin"i*ness (?), n. Quality of being spiny.

Spin`i-spir"u*late (?), a. (Zoöl.) Having spines arranged spirally. See Spicule.

Spink (spk), n. [Cf. dial. Sw. spink a kind of small bird, Gr. spi`ggos, and E. finch.] (Zoöl.) The chaffinch.

Spin"na*ker (?), n. (Naut.) A large triangular sail set upon a boom, -- used when running before the wind.

Spin"ner (?), n. 1. One who, or that which, spins one skilled in spinning; a spinning machine.

2. A spider. "Long-legged spinners." Shak.

3. (Zoöl.) A goatsucker; -- so called from the peculiar noise it makes when darting through the air.

4. (Zoöl.) A spinneret.

Ring spinner, a machine for spinning, in which the twist, given to the yarn by a revolving bobbin, is regulated by the drag of a small metal loop which slides around a ring encircling the bobbin, instead of by a throstle.

Spin"ner*et (?), n. (Zoöl.) One of the special jointed organs situated on the under side, and near the end, of the abdomen of spiders, by means of which they spin their webs. Most spiders have three pairs of spinnerets, but some have only two pairs. The ordinary silk line of the spider is composed of numerous smaller lines jointed after issuing from the spinnerets.

Spin"ner*ule (?), n. (Zoöl.) One of the numerous small spinning tubes on the spinnerets of spiders.

Spin"ney (?), n.; pl. Spinneys (&?;). Same as Spinny. T. Hughes.

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Spin"ning (?), a. & n. from Spin.

Spinning gland (Zoöl.), one of the glands which form the material for spinning the silk of silkworms and other larvæ. -- Spinning house, formerly a common name for a house of correction in England, the women confined therein being employed in spinning. -- Spinning jenny (Mach.), an engine or machine for spinning wool or cotton, by means of a large number of spindles revolving simultaneously. -- Spinning mite (Zoöl.), the red spider. -- Spinning wheel, a machine for spinning yarn or thread, in which a wheel drives a single spindle, and is itself driven by the hand, or by the foot acting on a treadle.

Spin"ny (?), n.; pl. Spinnies (#). [OF. espinaye,espinoye, espinei, espanoi, F. épinaie, from L. spinetum a thicket of thorns, fr. spina a thorn. See Spine.] A small thicket or grove with undergrowth; a clump of trees. [Written also spinney, and spinny.]

The downs rise steep, crowned with black fir spinnies.

C. Kingsley.

Spin"ny, a. [Cf. Spiny, a.] Thin and long; slim; slender. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.]

Spi*nose" (?), a.[L. spinosus, from spina a thorn.] Full of spines; armed with thorns; thorny.

Spi*nos"i*ty (?), n. The quality or state of being spiny or thorny; spininess.

Spi"nous (?), a. 1. Spinose; thorny.

2. Having the form of a spine or thorn; spinelike.

Spinous process of a vertebra (Anat.), the dorsal process of the neural arch of a vertebra; a neurapophysis.

Spi*no"zism (?), n. The form of Pantheism taught by Benedict Spinoza, that there is but one substance, or infinite essence, in the universe, of which the so- called material and spiritual beings and phenomena are only modes, and that one this one substance is God. [Written also Spinosism.]

Spi*no"zist (?), n. A believer in Spinozism.

Spin"ster (?), n. [Spin + - ster.] 1. A woman who spins, or whose occupation is to spin.

She spake to spinster to spin it out.

Piers Plowman.

The spinsters and the knitters in the sun.

Shak.

2. A man who spins. [Obs.] Shak.

3. (Law) An unmarried or single woman; -- used in legal proceedings as a title, or addition to the surname.

If a gentlewoman be termed a spinster, she may abate the writ.

Coke.

4. A woman of evil life and character; -- so called from being forced to spin in a house of correction. [Obs.]

Spin"stress (?), n. A woman who spins. T. Brown.

Spin"stry (?), n. The business of one who spins; spinning. [Obs.] Milton.

Spin"ule (?), n. [L. spinula, dim. of spina a spine: cf. F. spinule.] A minute spine. Dana.

Spin`u*les"cent (?), a. (Bot.) Having small spines; somewhat thorny.

{ Spin"u*lose` (?), Spin"u*lous (?) }, a. [Cf. F. spinuleux.] Covered with small spines.

Spin"y (?), a. [From Spine.] 1. Full of spines; thorny; as, a spiny tree.

2. Like a spine in shape; slender. "Spiny grasshoppers sit chirping." Chapman.

3. Fig.: Abounding with difficulties or annoyances.

The spiny deserts of scholastic philosophy.

Bp. Warburton.

Spiny lobster. (Zoöl.) Same as Rock lobster, under Rock. See also Lobster.

Spin"y, n. See Spinny.

||Spi*o"de*a (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Spio the typical genus.] (Zoöl.) An ||extensive division of marine Annelida, including those that are ||without oral tentacles or cirri, and have the gills, when present, ||mostly arranged along the sides of the body. They generally live in ||burrows or tubes.

Spi"ra*ble (?), a. [L. spirabilis.] Capable of being breathed; respirable. [Obs.] Nash.

Spir"a*cle (?), n.[L. spiraculum, fr. spirare to breathe: cf. F. spiracule. See Spirit.] 1. (Anat.) The nostril, or one of the nostrils, of whales, porpoises, and allied animals.

2. (Zoöl.) (a) One of the external openings communicating with the air tubes or tracheæ of insects, myriapods, and arachnids. They are variable in number, and are usually situated on the sides of the thorax and abdomen, a pair to a segment. These openings are usually elliptical, and capable of being closed. See Illust. under Coleoptera. (a) A tubular orifice communicating with the gill cavity of certain ganoid and all elasmobranch fishes. It is the modified first gill cleft.

3. Any small aperture or vent for air or other fluid.

Spi*rac"u*lar (?), a. Of or pertaining to a spiracle.

Spi*ræ"a (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?;&?;&?;, fr. &?;&?;&?; a coil.] (Bot.) A genus of shrubs or perennial herbs including the meadowsweet and the hardhack.

Spi*ræ"ic (?), a. (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or derived from, the meadowsweet (Spiræa); formerly, designating an acid which is now called salicylic acid.

Spi"ral (?), a. [Cf. F. spiral. See Spire a winding line.] 1. Winding or circling round a center or pole and gradually receding from it; as, the spiral curve of a watch spring.

2. Winding round a cylinder or imaginary axis, and at the same time rising or advancing forward; winding like the thread of a screw; helical.

3. (Geom.) Of or pertaining to a spiral; like a spiral.

Spiral gear, or Spiral wheel (Mach.), a gear resembling in general a spur gear, but having its teeth cut at an angle with its axis, or so that they form small portions of screws or spirals. -- Spiral gearing, a kind of gearing sometimes used in light machinery, in which spiral gears, instead of bevel gears, are used to transmit motion between shafts that are not parallel. -- Spiral operculum, an operculum whih has spiral lines of growth. -- Spiral shell, any shell in which the whorls form a spiral or helix. -- Spiral spring. See the Note under Spring, n., 4.

Spi"ral (?), n. [Cf. F. spirale. See Spiral, a.] 1. (Geom.) A plane curve, not reëntrant, described by a point, called the generatrix, moving along a straight line according to a mathematical law, while the line is revolving about a fixed point called the pole. Cf. Helix.

2. Anything which has a spiral form, as a spiral shell.

Equiangular spiral,a plane curve which cuts all its generatrices at the same angle. Same as Logarithmic spiral, under Logarithmic. -- Spiral of Archimedes, a spiral the law of which is that the generatrix moves uniformly along the revolving line, which also moves uniformly.

Spi*ral"i*ty (?), n. The quality or states of being spiral.

Spi"ral*ly (?), adv. In a spiral form, manner, or direction.

Spi*ra`lo*zo"oid (?), n. [Spiral + zooid. So called because they often have a spiral form when contracted.] (Zoöl.) One of the special defensive zooids of certain hydroids. They have the form of long, slender tentacles, and bear lasso cells.

Spi"rant (?), n. [L. spirans, -antis, p. pr. of spirare to breathe. See Spirit.] (Phon.) A term used differently by different authorities; -- by some as equivalent to fricative, - - that is, as including all the continuous consonants, except the nasals m, n, ng; with the further exception, by others, of the liquids r, l, and the semivowels w, y; by others limited to f, v, th surd and sonant, and the sound of German ch, -- thus excluding the sibilants, as well as the nasals, liquids, and semivowels. See Guide to Pronunciation, §§ 197-208.

Spi*ran"thy (?), n. [Gr. &?;&?;&?; a coil + &?;&?;&?; flower.] (Bot.) The occasional twisted growth of the parts of a flower.

Spi*ra"tion (?), n. [L. spiratio, fr. spirare to breathe.] The act of breathing. [Obs.] Barrow.

Spire (?), v. i. [L. spirare to breathe. See Spirit.] To breathe. [Obs.] Shenstone.

Spire, n. [OE. spire, spir, a blade of grass, a young shoot, AS. spr; akin to G. spier a blade of grass, Dan. spire a sprout, sprig, Sw. spira a spar, Icel. spra.] 1. A slender stalk or blade in vegetation; as, a spire grass or of wheat.

An oak cometh up a little spire.

Chaucer.

2. A tapering body that shoots up or out to a point in a conical or pyramidal form. Specifically (Arch.), the roof of a tower when of a pyramidal form and high in proportion to its width; also, the pyramidal or aspiring termination of a tower which can not be said to have a roof, such as that of Strasburg cathedral; the tapering part of a steeple, or the steeple itself. "With glistering spires and pinnacles adorned." Milton.

A spire of land that stand apart, Cleft from the main.

Tennyson.

Tall spire from which the sound of cheerful bells Just undulates
upon the listening ear.

Cowper.

3. (Mining) A tube or fuse for communicating fire to the chargen in blasting.

4. The top, or uppermost point, of anything; the summit.

The spire and top of praises.

Shak.

Spire, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Spired (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Spiring.] To shoot forth, or up in, or as if in, a spire. Emerson.

It is not so apt to spire up as the other sorts, being more
inclined to branch into arms.

Mortimer.

Spire, n. [L. spira coil, twist; akin to Gr. &?;&?;&?;: cf. F. spire.] 1. A spiral; a curl; a whorl; a twist. Dryden.

2. (Geom.) The part of a spiral generated in one revolution of the straight line about the pole. See Spiral, n.

Spire bearer. (Paleon.) Same as Spirifer.

Spired (?), a. Having a spire; being in the form of a spire; as, a spired steeple. Mason.

Spi"ri*cle (?), n. [Dim., fr. L. spira a coil.] (Bot.) One of certain minute coiled threads in the coating of some seeds. When moistened these threads protrude in great numbers. Gray.

Spi"ri*fer (?), n. [NL., fr. L. spira a coil + ferreto bear.] (Paleon.) Any one of numerous species of fossil brachipods of the genus Spirifer, or Delthyris, and allied genera, in which the long calcareous supports of the arms form a large spiral, or helix, on each side.

||Spi*ril"lum (?), n. [NL., dim. of L. spira a coil.] (Biol.) A genus ||of common motile microörganisms (Spirobacteria) having the form of ||spiral- shaped filaments. One species is said to be the cause of ||relapsing fever.

Spir"ing (?), a. Shooting up in a spire or spires. "The spiring grass." Dryton.

Spir"it (?), n. [OF. espirit, esperit, F. esprit, L. spiritus, from spirare to breathe, to blow. Cf. Conspire, Expire, Esprit, Sprite.] 1. Air set in motion by breathing; breath; hence, sometimes, life itself. [Obs.] "All of spirit would deprive." Spenser.

The mild air, with season moderate, Gently attempered, and disposed
eo well, That still it breathed foorth sweet spirit.

Spenser.

2. A rough breathing; an aspirate, as the letter h; also, a mark to denote aspiration; a breathing. [Obs.]

Be it a letter or spirit, we have great use for it.

B. Jonson.

3. Life, or living substance, considered independently of corporeal existence; an intelligence conceived of apart from any physical organization or embodiment; vital essence, force, or energy, as distinct from matter.

4. The intelligent, immaterial and immortal part of man; the soul, in distinction from the body in which it resides; the agent or subject of vital and spiritual functions, whether spiritual or material.

There is a spirit in man; and the inspiration of the Almighty
giveth them understanding.

Job xxxii. 8.

As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is
dead also.

James ii. 26.

Spirit is a substance wherein thinking, knowing, doubting, and a
power of moving, do subsist.

Locke.

5. Specifically, a disembodied soul; the human soul after it has left the body.

Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was, and the spirit
shall return unto God who gave it.

Eccl. xii. 7.

Ye gentle spirits far away, With whom we shared the cup of grace.

Keble.

6. Any supernatural being, good or bad; an apparition; a specter; a ghost; also, sometimes, a sprite,; a fairy; an elf.

Whilst young, preserve his tender mind from all impressions of
spirits and goblins in the dark.

Locke.

7. Energy, vivacity, ardor, enthusiasm, courage, etc.

"Write it then, quickly," replied Bede; and summoning all his
spirits together, like the last blaze of a candle going out, he
indited it, and expired.

Fuller.

8. One who is vivacious or lively; one who evinces great activity or peculiar characteristics of mind or temper; as, a ruling spirit; a schismatic spirit.

Such spirits as he desired to please, such would I choose for my
judges.

Dryden.

9. Temper or disposition of mind; mental condition or disposition; intellectual or moral state; -- often in the plural; as, to be cheerful, or in good spirits; to be downhearted, or in bad spirits.

God has . . . made a spirit of building succeed a spirit of pulling
down.

South.

A perfect judge will read each work of wit With the same spirit
that its author writ.

Pope.

10. Intent; real meaning; -- opposed to the letter, or to formal statement; also, characteristic quality, especially such as is derived from the individual genius or the personal character; as, the spirit of an enterprise, of a document, or the like.

11. Tenuous, volatile, airy, or vapory substance, possessed of active qualities.

All bodies have spirits . . . within them.

Bacon.

12. Any liquid produced by distillation; especially, alcohol, the spirits, or spirit, of wine (it having been first distilled from wine): -- often in the plural.

13. pl. Rum, whisky, brandy, gin, and other distilled liquors having much alcohol, in distinction from wine and malt liquors.

14. (Med.) A solution in alcohol of a volatile principle. Cf. Tincture. U. S. Disp.

15. (Alchemy) Any one of the four substances, sulphur, sal ammoniac, quicksilver, or arsenic (or, according to some, orpiment).

The four spirits and the bodies seven.

Chaucer.

16. (Dyeing) Stannic chloride. See under Stannic.

Spirit is sometimes joined with other words, forming compounds, generally of obvious signification; as, spirit- moving, spirit-searching, spirit-stirring, etc.

Astral spirits, Familiar spirits, etc. See under Astral, Familiar, etc. -- Animal spirits. (a) (Physiol.) The fluid which at one time was supposed to circulate through the nerves and was regarded as the agent of sensation and motion; -- called also the nervous fluid, or nervous principle. (b) Physical health and energy; frolicsomeness; sportiveness. -- Ardent spirits, strong alcoholic liquors, as brandy, rum, whisky, etc., obtained by distillation. -- Holy Spirit, or The Spirit (Theol.), the Spirit of God, or the third person of the Trinity; the Holy Ghost. The spirit also signifies the human spirit as influenced or animated by the Divine Spirit. -- Proof spirit. (Chem.) See under Proof. -- Rectified spirit (Chem.), spirit rendered purer or more concentrated by redistillation, so as to increase the percentage of absolute alcohol. -- Spirit butterfly (Zoöl.), any one of numerous species of delicate butterflies of tropical America belonging to the genus Ithomia. The wings are gauzy and nearly destitute of scales. -- Spirit duck. (Zoöl.) (a) The buffle-headed duck. (b) The golden-eye. -- Spirit lamp (Art), a lamp in which alcohol or methylated spirit is burned. -- Spirit level. See under Level. -- Spirit of hartshorn. (Old Chem.) See under Hartshorn. -- Spirit of Mindererus (Med.), an aqueous solution of acetate of ammonium; -- named after R. Minderer, physician of Augsburg. -- Spirit of nitrous ether (Med. Chem.), a pale yellow liquid, of a sweetish taste and a pleasant ethereal odor. It is obtained by the distillation of alcohol with nitric and sulphuric acids, and consists essentially of ethyl nitrite with a little acetic aldehyde. It is used as a diaphoretic, diuretic, antispasmodic, etc. Called also sweet spirit of niter. -- Spirit of salt (Chem.), hydrochloric acid; -- so called because obtained from salt and sulphuric acid. [Obs.] -- Spirit of sense, the utmost refinement of sensation. [Obs.] Shak. -- Spirits, or Spirit, of turpentine (Chem.), rectified oil of turpentine, a transparent, colorless, volatile, and very inflammable liquid, distilled from the turpentine of the various species of pine; camphine. See Camphine. -- Spirit of vitriol (Chem.), sulphuric acid; -- so called because formerly obtained by the distillation of green vitriol. [Obs.] -- Spirit of vitriolic ether (Chem.) ether; -- often but incorrectly called sulphuric ether. See Ether. [Obs.] -- Spirits, or Spirit, of wine (Chem.), alcohol; -- so called because formerly obtained by the distillation of wine. -- Spirit rapper, one who practices spirit rapping; a "medium" so called. -- Spirit rapping, an alleged form of communication with the spirits of the dead by raps. See Spiritualism, 3. -- Sweet spirit of niter. See Spirit of nitrous ether, above.

<! p. 1388 !>

Syn. -- Life; ardor; energy; fire; courage; animatioon; cheerfulness; vivacity; enterprise.

Spir"it (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Spirited; p. pr. & vb. n. Spiriting.] 1. To animate with vigor; to excite; to encourage; to inspirit; as, civil dissensions often spirit the ambition of private men; -- sometimes followed by up.

Many officers and private men spirit up and assist those obstinate
people to continue in their rebellion.

Swift.

2. To convey rapidly and secretly, or mysteriously, as if by the agency of a spirit; to kidnap; -- often with away, or off.

The ministry had him spirited away, and carried abroad as a
dangerous person.

Arbuthnot & Pope.

I felt as if I had been spirited into some castle of antiquity.

Willis.

Spiriting away (Law), causing to leave; the offense of inducing a witness to leave a jurisdiction so as to evade process requiring attendance at trial.

Spir"it*al*ly (?), adv.[L. spiritalis belonging to breathing.] By means of the breath. [Obs.] Holder.

Spir"it*ed, a. 1. Animated or possessed by a spirit. [Obs.] "So talked the spirited, sly snake." Milton.

2. Animated; full of life or vigor; lively; full of spirit or fire; as, a spirited oration; a spirited answer.

Spirited is much used in composition; as in high- spirited, low-spirited, mean-spirited, etc.

Syn. -- Lively; vivacious; animated; ardent; active; bold; courageous.

-- Spir"it*ed*ly, adv. -- Spir"it*ed*ness, n.

Spir"it*ful (?), a. Full of spirit; spirited. [R.]

The spiritful and orderly life of our own grown men.

Milton.

-- Spir"it*ful*ly, adv. -- Spir"it*ful*ness, n.

Spir"it*ism (?), n. Spiritualsm.

Spir"it*ist, n. A spiritualist.

Spir"it*less, a. 1. Destitute of spirit; wanting animation; wanting cheerfulness; dejected; depressed.

2. Destitute of vigor; wanting life, courage, or fire.

A men so faint, so spiritless, So dull, so dead in lock, so
woebegone.

Shak.

3. Having no breath; extinct; dead. "The spiritless body." Greenhill.

-- Spir"it*less*ly, adv. -- Spir"it*less*ness, n.

||Spi`ri*to"so (?), a. & adv. [It.] (Mus.) Spirited; spiritedly; -- a ||direction to perform a passage in an animated, lively manner.

Spir"it*ous (?), a. [Cf. Spirituous.] 1. Like spirit; refined; defecated; pure. [R.]

More refined, more spirituous and pure.

Milton.

2. Ardent; active. [R.]

Spir"it*ous*ness, n. Quality of being spiritous. [R.]

Spir"it*u*al (?), a. [L. spiritualis: cf. F. spirituel. See Spirit.] 1. Consisting of spirit; not material; incorporeal; as, a spiritual substance or being.

It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.

1 Cor. xv. 44.

2. Of or pertaining to the intellectual and higher endowments of the mind; mental; intellectual.

3. Of or pertaining to the moral feelings or states of the soul, as distinguished from the external actions; reaching and affecting the spirits.

God's law is spiritual; it is a transcript of the divine nature,
and extends its authority to the acts of the soul of man.

Sir T. Browne.

4. Of or pertaining to the soul or its affections as influenced by the Spirit; controlled and inspired by the divine Spirit; proceeding from the Holy Spirit; pure; holy; divine; heavenly-minded; -- opposed to carnal.

That I may impart unto you some spiritual gift.

Rom. i. ll.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath
blessed us with all spiritual blessings.

Eph. i. 3.

If a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore
such an one.

Gal. vi. 1.

5. Not lay or temporal; relating to sacred things; ecclesiastical; as, the spiritual functions of the clergy; lords spiritual and temporal; a spiritual corporation.

Spiritual coadjuctor. (Eccl.) See the Note under Jesuit. -- Spiritual court (Eccl. Law), an ecclesiastical court, or a court having jurisdiction in ecclesiastical affairs; a court held by a bishop or other ecclesiastic.

Spir"it*u*al, n. A spiritual function, office, or affair. See Spirituality, 2.

He assigns supremacy to the pope in spirituals, and to the emperor
in temporals.

Lowell.

Spir"it*u*al*ism (?), n. 1. The quality or state of being spiritual.

2. (Physiol.) The doctrine, in opposition to the materialists, that all which exists is spirit, or soul -- that what is called the external world is either a succession of notions impressed on the mind by the Deity, as maintained by Berkeley, or else the mere educt of the mind itself, as taught by Fichte.

3. A belief that departed spirits hold intercourse with mortals by means of physical phenomena, as by rappng, or during abnormal mental states, as in trances, or the like, commonly manifested through a person of special susceptibility, called a medium; spiritism; the doctrines and practices of spiritualists.

What is called spiritualism should, I think, be called a mental
species of materialism.

R. H. Hutton.

Spir"it*u*al*ist (?), n. 1. One who professes a regard for spiritual things only; one whose employment is of a spiritual character; an ecclesiastic.

2. One who maintains the doctrine of spiritualism.

3. One who believes in direct intercourse with departed spirits, through the agency of persons commonly called mediums, by means of physical phenomena; one who attempts to maintain such intercourse; a spiritist.

Spir"it*u*al*ist, a. Spiritualistic. Taylor.

Spir`it*u*al*is"tic (?), a. Relating to, or connected with, spiritualism.

Spir`it*u*al"i*ty (?), n.; pl. Spiritualities (#). [L. spiritualitas: cf. F. spiritualité.] 1. The quality or state of being spiritual; incorporeality; heavenly- mindedness.

A pleasure made for the soul, suitable to its spirituality.

South.

If this light be not spiritual, yet it approacheth nearest to
spirituality.

Sir W. Raleigh.

Much of our spirituality and comfort in public worship depends on
the state of mind in which we come.

Bickersteth.

2. (Eccl.) That which belongs to the church, or to a person as an ecclesiastic, or to religion, as distinct from temporalities.

During the vacancy of a see, the archbishop is guardian of the
spiritualities thereof.

Blackstone.

3. An ecclesiastical body; the whole body of the clergy, as distinct from, or opposed to, the temporality. [Obs.]

Five entire subsidies were granted to the king by the spirituality.

Fuller.

Spir`it*u*al*i*za"tion (?), n. The act of spiritualizing, or the state of being spiritualized.

Spir"it*u*al*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Spiritualized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Spiritualizing (?).] [Cf. F. spiritualiser.] 1. To refine intellectiually or morally; to purify from the corrupting influence of the world; to give a spiritual character or tendency to; as, to spiritualize soul.

This seen in the clear air, and the whole spiritualized by endless
recollections, fills the eye and the heart more forcibly than I can
find words to say.

Carlyle.

2. To give a spiritual meaning to; to take in a spiritual sense; -- opposed to literalize.

3. (Old Chem.) To extract spirit from; also, to convert into, or impregnate with, spirit.

Spir"it*u*al*i`zer (?), n. One who spiritualizes.

Spir"it*u*al*ly, adv. In a spiritual manner; with purity of spirit; like a spirit.

Spir"it*u*al-mind`ed (?), a. Having the mind set on spiritual things, or filled with holy desires and affections. -- Spir"it*u*al-mind`ed*ness, n.

Spir"it*u*al*ness, n. The quality or state of being spiritual or spiritual-minded; spirituality.

Spir"it*u*al*ty (?), n. [See Spirituality.] (Eccl.) An ecclesiastical body; a spirituality. Shak.

||Spi`ri`tu`elle" (?), a. [F.] Of the nature, or having the appearance, ||of a spirit; pure; refined; ethereal.

Spir`it*u*os"i*ty (?), n. The quality or state of being spirituous; spirituousness. [R.]

Spir"it*u*ous (?), a. [Cf. (for sense 2) F. spiritueux. Cf. Spiritous.] 1. Having the quality of spirit; tenuous in substance, and having active powers or properties; ethereal; immaterial; spiritual; pure.

2. Containing, or of the nature of, alcoholic (esp. distilled) spirit; consisting of refined spirit; alcoholic; ardent; as, spirituous liquors.

3. Lively; gay; vivid; airy. [Obs.] Sir H. Wotton.

The mind of man is of that spirituous, stirring nature, that it is
perpetually at work.

South.

Spir"it*u*ous*ness, n. The quality or state of being spirituous. [R.] Boyle.

Spirk"et*ing (?), n. (Naut.) The planking from the waterways up to the port sills. Totten.

Spirl"ing (?), n. Sparling. [Prov. Eng.]

||Spi`ro*bac*te"ri*a (?), n. pl.; sing. Spirobacterium (&?;). [NL. See ||4th Spire, and Bacterium.] (Biol.) See the Note under Microbacteria.

{ ||Spi`ro*chæ"ta (?), ||Spi`ro*chæ"te (?), } n. [L. spira a coil + Gr. &?;&?;&?; hair.] (Biol.) A genus of Spirobacteria similar to Spirillum, but distinguished by its motility. One species, the Spirochæte Obermeyeri, is supposed to be the cause of relapsing fever.

Spi"ro*graph (?), n. [L. spirare to breathe + -graph.] (Physiol.) An instrument for recording the respiratory movements, as the sphygmograph does those of the pulse.

Spi*rom"e*ter (?), n. [L. spirare to breathe + -meter.] An instrument for measuring the vital capacity of the lungs, or the volume of air which can be expelled from the chest after the deepest possible inspiration. Cf. Pneumatometer.

Spi*rom"e*try (?), n. The act or process of measuring the chest capacity by means of a spirometer.

Spi"ro*scope (?), n. [L. spirare to breathe + -scope.] (Physiol.) A wet meter used to determine the breathing capacity of the lungs.

{ Spi*royl"ic (?), Spi*royl"ous (?), } a. [NL. Spir&?; meadowsweet (a source of salicylal) + -yl + -ic, -ous.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, a substance now called salicylal. [Obs.]

Spirt (?), v. & n. Same as Spurt.

Spir"tle (?), v. t. To spirt in a scattering manner.

||Spir"u*la (?), n. [NL., dim. of L. spira a coil.] (Zoöl.) A genus of ||cephalopods having a multilocular, internal, siphunculated shell in ||the form of a flat spiral, the coils of which are not in contact.

Spir"u*late (?), n. (Zoöl.) Having the color spots, or structural parts, arranged spirally.

Spir"y (?), a. [From Spire a winding line.] Of a spiral form; wreathed; curled; serpentine.

Hid in the spiry volumes of the snake.

Dryden.

Spir"y, a. [FR. Spire a steeple.] Of or pertaining to a spire; like a spire, tall, slender, and tapering; abounding in spires; as, spiry turrets. "Spiry towns." Thomson.

Spiss (?), a. [L. spissus.] Thick; crowded; compact; dense. [Obs.]

This spiss and . . . copious, yet concise, treatise.

Brerewood.

Spis"sa*ted (?), a. Rendered dense or compact, as by evaporation; inspissated; thickened. [R.]

The spissated juice of the poppy.

Bp. Warburton.

Spis"si*tude (?), n. [L. spissitudo.] The quality or state of being spissated; as, the spissitude of coagulated blood, or of any coagulum. Arbuthnot.

Spit (?), n. [OE. spite, AS. spitu; akin to D. spit, G. spiess, OHG. spiz, Dan. spid. Sw. spett, and to G. spitz pointed. &radic;170.] 1. A long, slender, pointed rod, usually of iron, for holding meat while roasting.

2. A small point of land running into the sea, or a long, narrow shoal extending from the shore into the sea; as, a spit of sand. Cook.

3. The depth to which a spade goes in digging; a spade; a spadeful. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

Spit, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Spitted; p. pr. & vb. n. Spitting.] [From Spit, n.; cf. Speet.] 1. To thrust a spit through; to fix upon a spit; hence, to thrust through or impale; as, to spit a loin of veal. "Infants spitted upon pikes." Shak.

2. To spade; to dig. [Prov. Eng.]

Spit, v. i. To attend to a spit; to use a spit. [Obs.]

She's spitting in the kitchen.

Old Play.

Spit, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Spit (Spat, archaic); p. pr. & vb. n. Spitting.] [AS. spittan; akin to G. spützen, Dan. spytte, Sw. spotta,Icel. sp&?;ta, and prob. E. spew. The past tense spat is due to AS. sp&?;tte, from sp&?;tan to spit. Cf. Spat, n., Spew, Spawl, Spot, n.] 1. To eject from the mouth; to throw out, as saliva or other matter, from the mouth. "Thus spit I out my venom." Chaucer.

2. To eject; to throw out; to belch.

Spitted was sometimes used as the preterit and the past participle. "He . . . shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on." Luke xviii. 32.

Spit, n. The secretion formed by the glands of the mouth; spitle; saliva; sputum.

Spit, v. i. 1. To throw out saliva from the mouth.

2. To rain or snow slightly, or with sprinkles.

It had been spitting with rain.

Dickens.

To spit on or upon, to insult grossly; to treat with contempt. "Spitting upon all antiquity." South.

Spit"al (?), n. [Abbreviated from hospital.] [Written also spittle.] A hospital. [Obs.] Shak.

Spit"al*house` (?), n. A hospital. [Obs.]

Spit"ball` (?), n. Paper chewed, and rolled into a ball, to be thrown as a missile.

Spit"box` (?), n. A vessel to receive spittle.

Spitch"cock` (?), v. t. [1st spit + cock.] (Cookery) To split (as an eel) lengthwise, and broil it, or fry it in hot fat.

Spitch"cock`, n. (Cookery) An eel split and broiled.

Spitch"cocked` (?), a. (Cookery) Broiled or fried after being split lengthwise; -- said of eels.

Spit" curl` (?). A little lock of hair, plastered in a spiral form on the temple or forehead with spittle, or other adhesive substance. [Colloq.]

Spite (?), n. [Abbreviated fr. despite.] 1. Ill-will or hatred toward another, accompanied with the disposition to irritate, annoy, or thwart; petty malice; grudge; rancor; despite. Pope.

This is the deadly spite that angers.

Shak.

2. Vexation; chargrin; mortification. [R.] Shak.

In spite of, or Spite of, in opposition to all efforts of; in defiance or contempt of; notwithstanding. "Continuing, spite of pain, to use a knee after it had been slightly ibnjured." H. Spenser. "And saved me in spite of the world, the devil, and myself." South. "In spite of all applications, the patient grew worse every day." Arbuthnot. See Syn. under Notwithstanding. -- To owe one a spite, to entertain a mean hatred for him.

Syn. -- Pique, rancor; malevolence; grudge. -- Spite, Malice. Malice has more reference to the disposition, and spite to the manifestation of it in words and actions. It is, therefore, meaner than malice, thought not always more criminal. " Malice . . . is more frequently employed to express the dispositions of inferior minds to execute every purpose of mischief within the more limited circle of their abilities." Cogan. "Consider eke, that spite availeth naught." Wyatt. See Pique.

Spite, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Spited; p. pr. & vb. n. Spiting.] 1. To be angry at; to hate. [Obs.]

The Danes, then . . . pagans, spited places of religion.

Fuller.

2. To treat maliciously; to try to injure or thwart.

3. To fill with spite; to offend; to vex. [R.]

Darius, spited at the Magi, endeavored to abolish not only their
learning, but their language.

Sir. W. Temple.

<! p. 1389 !>

Spite"ful (?), a. Filled with, or showing, spite; having a desire to vex, annoy, or injure; malignant; malicious; as, a spiteful person or act. Shak. -- Spite"ful*ly, adv. Spite"ful*ness, n.

Spit"fire` (?), n. A violent, irascible, or passionate person. [Colloq.] Grose.

Spit"ful (?), n.; pl. Spitfuls (&?;). A spadeful. [Prov. Eng.]

Spit"ous (?), a. Having spite; spiteful. [Obs.]

Spit"ous*ly, adv. Spitefully. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Spits"cocked` (?), a. Spitchcocked.

Spit"ted (?), a. [From Spit.] 1. Put upon a spit; pierced as if by a spit.

2. Shot out long; -- said of antlers. Bacon.

Spit"ted, p. p. of Spit, v. i., to eject, to spit. [Obs.]

Spit"ter (?), n. [See Spit to eject from the mouth.] One who ejects saliva from the mouth.

Spit"ter, n. [See Spit an iron prong.] 1. One who puts meat on a spit.

2. (Zoöl.) A young deer whose antlers begin to shoot or become sharp; a brocket, or pricket.

Spit"tle (?), n. See Spital. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

Spit"tle, v. t. [See Spit to spade.] To dig or stir with a small spade. [Prov. Eng.]

Spit"tle, n. A small sort of spade. [Prov. Eng.]

Spit"tle, n. [From Spit to eject from the mouth: cf. Spattle, and AS. sptl.] The thick, moist matter which is secreted by the salivary glands; saliva; spit.

Spittle insect. (Zoöl.) See Cuckoo spit (b), under Cuckoo.

Spit"tly (?), a. Like spittle; slimy. [Obs.]

Spit*toon" (?), n. A spitbox; a cuspidor.

Spit"-ven"om (?), n. Poison spittle; poison ejected from the mouth. [R.] Hooker.

Spitz" dog" (?). [G. spitz, spitzhund.] (Zoöl.) A breed of dogs having erect ears and long silky hair, usually white; -- called also Pomeranian dog, and louploup.

Spitz"en*burgh (?), n. A kind of red and yellow apple, of medium size and spicy flavor. It originated at Newtown, on Long Island.

||Splanch`napoph"y*sis (?), n.; pl. Splanchnapophyses (#). [NL. See ||Splanchnic, and Apophysis.] (Anat.) Any element of the skeleton in ||relation with the alimentary canal, as the jaws and hyoidean ||apparatus. -- Splanch`nap`o*phys"i*al (#), a. Mivart.

Splanch"nic (?), a. [Gr. &?;&?;&?; an entrail.] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the viscera; visceral.

Splanch*nog"ra*phy (?), n. [Gr. &?;&?;&?;&?;&?; an entrail + -graphy.] Splanchnology.

Splanch*nol"o*gy (?), n. [Gr. &?;&?;&?;&?; an entrail + -logy.] That part of anatomy which treats of the viscera; also, a treatise on the viscera.

Splanch"no*pleure (?), n. [Gr. &?;&?;&?;&?; an entrail + &?;&?;&?;&?; side.] (Anat.) The inner, or visceral, one of the two lamellæ into which the vertebrate blastoderm divides on either side of the notochord, and from which the walls of the enteric canal and the umbilical vesicle are developed. See Somatopleure.

-- Splanch`no*pleu"ric (#), a.

Splanch`no-skel"e*ton (?), n. [Gr. &?;&?;&?;&?; an entrail + E. skeleton.] (Anat.) That part of the skeleton connected with the sense organs and the viscera. Owen.

Splanch*not"o*my (?), n. [Gr. &?;&?;&?;&?;&?; an entrail + &?;&?;&?;&?; to cut.] The dissection, or anatomy, of the viscera.

Splan"drel (?), n. See Spandrel. [R.]

Splash (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Splashed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Splashing.] [Akin to plash.] 1. To strike and dash about, as water, mud, etc.; to plash.

2. To spatter water, mud, etc., upon; to wet.

Splash, v. i. To strike and dash about water, mud, etc.; to dash in such a way as to spatter.

Splash, n. 1. Water, or water and dirt, thrown upon anything, or thrown from a puddle or the like; also, a spot or daub, as of matter which wets or disfigures.

2. A noise made by striking upon or in a liquid.

Splash"board` (?), n. A guard in the front part of vehicle, to prevent splashing by a mud or water from the horse's heels; -- in the United States commonly called dashboard.

Splash"er (?), n. 1. One who, or that which, splashes.

2. One of the guarde over the wheels, as of a carriage, locomotive, etc. Weale.

3. A guard to keep off splashes from anything.

Splash"y (?), a. Full of dirty water; wet and muddy, so as be easily splashed about; slushy.

Splat"ter (?), v. i. & t. To spatter; to splash.

Splat"ter*dash` (?), n . Uproar. Jamieson.

Splay (?), v. t. [Abbrev. of display.] 1. To display; to spread. [Obs.] "Our ensigns splayed." Gascoigne.

2. To dislocate, as a shoulder bone.

3. To spay; to castrate. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.]

4. To turn on one side; to render oblique; to slope or slant, as the side of a door, window, etc. Oxf. Gloss.

Splay, a. Displayed; spread out; turned outward; hence, flat; ungainly; as, splay shoulders.

Sonwthing splay, something blunt-edged, unhandy, and infelicitous.

M. Arnold.

Splay, a. (Arch.) A slope or bevel, especially of the sides of a door or window, by which the opening is made larged at one face of the wall than at the other, or larger at each of the faces than it is between them.

Splay"foot` (?), n.; pl. Splayfeet (&?;). A foot that is abnormally flattened and spread out; flat foot.

{ Splay"foot`, Splay"foot`ed } a. Having a splayfoot or splayfeet.

Splay"mouth` (?), n.; pl. Splaymouths (&?;). A wide mouth; a mouth stretched in derision. Dryden.

Splay`mouthed" (?), a. Having a splaymouth. T. Brown.

Spleen (?), n. [L. splen, Gr. &?;&?;&?;&?; the milt or spleen, affection of the spleen; cf. L. lien, plihan, plhan.] 1. (Anat.) A peculiar glandlike but ductless organ found near the stomach or intestine of most vertebrates and connected with the vascular system; the milt. Its exact function in not known.

2. Anger; latent spite; ill humor; malice; as, to vent one's spleen.

In noble minds some dregs remain, Not yet purged off, of spleen and
sour disdain.

Pope.

3. A fit of anger; choler. Shak.

4. A sudden motion or action; a fit; a freak; a whim. [Obs. or R.]

A thousand spleens bear her a thousand ways.

Shak.

5. Melancholy; hypochondriacal affections.

Bodies changed to various forms by spleen.

Pope.

There is a luxury in self-dispraise: And inward self-disparagement
affords To meditative spleen a grateful feast.

Wordsworth.

6. A fit of immoderate laughter or merriment. [Obs.]

Thy silly thought enforces my spleen.

Shak.

Spleen, v. t. To dislke. [Obs.] Bp. Hacket.

Spleened (?), a. 1. Deprived of the spleen.

2. Angered; annoyed. [Obs.] R. North.