Chapter I: W. W (11)

LAMPREY Lam"prey, n. ; pl. Lampreys. Etym: [OE. lampreie, F. lamproie, LL. lampreda, lampetra, from L. lambere to lick + petra rock, stone. The lampreys are so called because they attach themselves with their circular mouths to rocks and stones, whence they are also called rocksuckers. See Lap to drink, Petrify.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: An eel-like marsipobranch of the genus Petromyzon, and allied genera. The lampreys have a round, sucking mouth, without jaws, but set with numerous minute teeth, and one to three larger teeth on the palate (see Illust. of Cyclostomi). There are seven small branchial openings on each side. [Written also lamper eel, lamprel, and lampron.]

Note: The common or sea lamprey of America and Europe (Petromyzon marinus), which in spring ascends rivers to spawn, is considered excellent food by many, and is sold as a market fish in some localities. The smaller river lampreys mostly belong to the genus Ammocoeles, or Lampetra, as A. fluviatilis, of Europe, and A. æpypterus of America. All lampreys attach themselves to other fishes, as parasites, by means of the suckerlike mouth.

LAMPRON Lam"pron, n. Etym: [Cf. OE. lampreon. See Lamprey.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: See Lamprey.

LAMPYRINE Lam*py"rine, n. Etym: [See Lampyris.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: An insect of the genus Lampyris, or family Lampyridæ. See Lampyris.

LAMPYRIS Lam*py"ris, n. Etym: [L., glowworm, Gr. ( (Zoöl.)

Defn: A genus of coleopterous insects, including the glowworms.

LANARKITE Lan"ark*ite, n. Etym: [From Lanarkshire, a county in Scotland.] (Min.)

Defn: A mineral consisting of sulphate of lead, occurring either massive or in long slender prisms, of a greenish white or gray color.

LANARY La"na*ry, n. Etym: [L. lanaria, fr. lanarius belonging to wool, lana wool.]

Defn: A place for storing wool.

LANATE; LANATED La"nate, La"na*ted,Etym: [L. lanatus, fr. lana wool, down.]

Defn: Wooly; covered with fine long hair, or hairlike filaments.

LANCASHIRE BOILER La"ca*shire boil"er

Defn: . A steam boiler having two flues which contain the furnaces and extend through the boiler from end to end.

LANCASTERIAN Lan`cas*te"ri*an, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to the monitorial system of instruction followed by Joseph Lancaster, of England, in which advanced pupils in a school teach pupils below them.

LANCE Lance, n. Etym: [OE. lance, F. lance, fr. L. lancea; cf. Gr. Launch.]

1. A weapon of war, consisting of a long shaft or handle and a steel blade or head; a spear carried by horsemen, and often decorated with a small flag; also, a spear or harpoon used by whalers and fishermen. A braver soldier never couched lance. Shak.

2. A soldier armed with a lance; a lancer.

3. (Founding)

Defn: A small iron rod which suspends the core of the mold in casting a shell.

4. (Mil.)

Defn: An instrument which conveys the charge of a piece of ordnance and forces it home.

5. (Pyrotech.)

Defn: One of the small paper cases filled with combustible composition, which mark the outlines of a figure. Free lance, in the Middle Ages, and subsequently, a knight or roving soldier, who was free to engage for any state or commander that purchased his services; hence, a person who assails institutions or opinions on his own responsibility without regard to party lines or deference to authority. -- Lance bucket (Cavalry), a socket attached to a saddle or stirrup strap, in which to rest the but of a lance. -- Lance corporal, same as Lancepesade. -- Lance knight, a lansquenet. B. Jonson. -- Lance snake (Zoöl.), the fer-de-lance. -- Stink-fire lance (Mil.), a kind of fuse filled with a composition which burns with a suffocating odor; -- used in the counter operations of miners. To break a lance, to engage in a tilt or contest.

LANCE Lance, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Lanced (; p. pr. & vb. n. Lancing.]

1. To pierce with a lance, or with any similar weapon. Seized the due victim, and with fury lanced Her back. Dryden.

2. To open with a lancet; to pierce; as, to lance a vein or an abscess.

3. To throw in the manner of a lance. See Lanch.

LANCE FISH Lance" fish`. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A slender marine fish of the genus Ammodytes, especially Ammodytes tobianus of the English coast; -- called also sand lance.

LANCEGAY; LANCEGAYE Lance"gay`, Lance"gaye`, n. Etym: [OF. lancegaie, corrupted from the same source as E. assagai, under the influence of F. lance lance. See Assagai.]

Defn: A kind of spear anciently used. Its use was prohibited by a statute of Richard II. Nares. In his hand a launcegay, A long sword by his side. Chaucer.

LANCELET Lance"let, n. Etym: [Lance + -let.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: A small fishlike animal (Amphioxus lanceolatus), remarkable for the rudimentary condition of its organs. It is the type of the class Leptocardia. See Amphioxus, Leptocardia.

LANCELY Lance"ly, a.

Defn: Like a lance. [R.] Sir P. Sidney.

LANCEOLAR Lan"ce*o*lar, a. Etym: [L. lanceola a little lance, dim. of lancea lance: cf. F. lancéolaire.] (Bot.)

Defn: Lanceolate.

LANCEOLATE; LANCEOLATED Lan"ce*o*late, Lan"ce*o*la`ted a. Etym: [L. lanceolatus: cf. F. lancéol. See Lanceolar.] (Bot. & Zoöl.)

Defn: Rather narrow, tapering to a point at the apex, and sometimes at the base also; as, a lanceolate leaf.

LANCEPESADE Lance`pe*sade", n. Etym: [F. lancepessade, lanspessade, anspessade, It. lancia spezzata a broken lance or demilance, a demilance roan, a light horseman, bodyguard.]

Defn: An assistant to a corporal; a private performing the duties of a corporal; -- called also lance corporal.

LANCER Lan"cer, n. Etym: [Cf. F. lancier.]

1. One who lances; one who carries a lance; especially, a member of a mounted body of men armed with lances, attached to the cavalry service of some nations. Wilhelm.

2. A lancet. [Obs.]

3. pl. (Dancing)

Defn: A set of quadrilles of a certain arrangement. [Written also lanciers.]

LANCET Lan"cet, n. Etym: [F. lancette, dim. of lance lance. See Lance.]

1. A surgical instrument of various forms, commonly sharp-pointed and two-edged, used in venesection, and in opening abscesses, etc.

2. (Metal.)

Defn: An iron bar used for tapping a melting furnace. Knight. Lancet arch (Arch.), a pointed arch, of which the width, or span, is narrow compared with the height. -- Lancet architecture, a name given to a style of architecture, in which lancet arches are common; -- peculiar to England and 13th century. -- Lancet fish. (Zoöl.) (a) A large, voracious, deep-sea fish (Alepidosaurus ferox), having long, sharp, lancetlike teeth. (b) The doctor, or surgeon fish.

LANCEWOOD Lance"wood`, n. (Bot.)

Defn: A tough, elastic wood, often used for the shafts of gigs, archery bows, fishing rods, and the like. Also, the tree which produces this wood, Duguetia Quitarensis (a native of Guiana and Cuba), and several other trees of the same family (Anonaseæ). Australian lancewood, a myrtaceous tree (Backhousia Australis).

LANCH Lanch, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Lanched; p. pr. & vb. n. Lanching. See Lanching. See Launch, Lance.]

Defn: To throw, as a lance; to let fly; to launch. See Whose arm can lanch the surer bolt. Dryden & Lee.

LANCIFEROUS Lan*cif"er*ous, a Etym: [Lance + -ferous.]

Defn: Bearing a lance.

LANCIFORM Lan"ci*form, a Etym: [Lance + -form: cf. F. lanciforme.]

Defn: Having the form of a lance.

LANCINATE Lan"ci*nate, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Lancinated; p. pr. & vb. n. Lancinating.] Etym: [L. lancinatus, p. p. of lancinare to fear.]

Defn: To tear; to lacerate; to pierce or stab. De Quincey.

LANCINATING Lan"ci*na`ting, a.

Defn: Piercing; seeming to pierce or stab; as, lancinating pains (i.e., severe, darting pains).

LANCINATION Lan`ci*na"tion, n.

Defn: A tearing; laceration. "Lancinations of the spirit." Jer. Taylor.

LAND Land, n.

Defn: Urine. See Lant. [Obs.]

LAND Land, n. Etym: [AS. land, lond; akin to D., G., Icel., Sw., Dan., and Goth. land. ]

1. The solid part of the surface of the earth; -- opposed to water as constituting a part of such surface, especially to oceans and seas; as, to sight land after a long voyage. They turn their heads to sea, their sterns to land. Dryden.

2. Any portion, large or small, of the surface of the earth, considered by itself, or as belonging to an individual or a people, as a country, estate, farm, or tract. Go view the land, even Jericho. Josh. ii. 1. Ill fares the land, to hastening ills a prey, Where wealth accumulates and men decay. Goldsmith.

Note: In the expressions "to be, or dwell, upon land," "to go, or fare, on land," as used by Chaucer, land denotes the country as distinguished from the town. A poor parson dwelling upon land [i.e., in the country]. Chaucer.

3. Ground, in respect to its nature or quality; soil; as, wet land; good or bad land.

4. The inhabitants of a nation or people. These answers, in the silent night received, The kind himself divulged, the land believed. Dryden.

5. The mainland, in distinction from islands.

6. The ground or floor. [Obs.] Herself upon the land she did prostrate. Spenser.

7. (Agric.)

Defn: The ground left unplowed between furrows; any one of several portions into which a field is divided for convenience in plowing.

8. (Law)

Defn: Any ground, soil, or earth whatsoever, as meadows, pastures, woods, etc., and everything annexed to it, whether by nature, as trees, water, etc., or by the hand of man, as buildings, fences, etc.; real estate. Kent. Bouvier. Burrill.

9. (Naut.)

Defn: The lap of the strakes in a clinker-built boat; the lap of plates in an iron vessel; -- called also landing. Knight.

10. In any surface prepared with indentations, perforations, or grooves, that part of the surface which is not so treated, as the level part of a millstone between the furrows, or the surface of the bore of a rifled gun between the grooves. Land agent, a person employed to sell or let land, to collect rents, and to attend to other money matters connected with land. -- Land boat, a vehicle on wheels propelled by sails. -- Land blink, a peculiar atmospheric brightness seen from sea over distant snow-covered land in arctic regions. See Ice blink. -- Land breeze. See under Breeze. -- Land chain. See Gunter's chain. -- Land crab (Zoöl.), any one of various species of crabs which live much on the land, and resort to the water chiefly for the purpose of breeding. They are abundant in the West Indies and South America. Some of them grow to a large size. -- Land fish a fish on land; a person quite out of place.Shak. -- Land force, a military force serving on land, as distinguished from a naval force. -- Land, ho! (Naut.), a sailor's cry in announcing sight of land. -- Land ice, a field of ice adhering to the coast, in distinction from a floe. -- Land leech (Zoöl.), any one of several species of blood-sucking leeches, which, in moist, tropical regions, live on land, and are often troublesome to man and beast. -- Land measure, the system of measurement used in determining the area of land; also, a table of areas used in such measurement. -- Land, or House, of bondage, in Bible history, Egypt; by extension, a place or condition of special oppression. -- Land o' cakes, Scotland. -- Land of Nod, sleep. -- Land of promise, in Bible history, Canaan: by extension, a better country or condition of which one has expectation. -- Land of steady habits, a nickname sometimes given to the State of Connecticut. -- Land office, a government office in which the entries upon, and sales of, public land are registered, and other business respecting the public lands is transacted. [U.S.] -- Land pike. (Zoöl.) (a) The gray pike, or sauger. (b) The Menobranchus. -- Land service, military service as distinguished from naval service. -- Land rail. (Zoöl) (a) The crake or corncrake of Europe. See Crake. (b) An Australian rail (Hypotænidia Phillipensis); -- called also pectoral rail. -- Land scrip, a certificate that the purchase money for a certain portion of the public land has been paid to the officer entitled to receive it. [U.S.] -- Land shark, a swindler of sailors on shore. [Sailors' Cant] -- Land side (a) That side of anything in or on the sea, as of an island or ship, which is turned toward the land. (b) The side of a plow which is opposite to the moldboard and which presses against the unplowed land. -- Land snail (Zoöl.), any snail which lives on land, as distinguished from the aquatic snails are Pulmonifera, and belong to the Geophila; but the operculated land snails of warm countries are Dioecia, and belong to the Tænioglossa. See Geophila, and Helix. -- Land spout, a descent of cloud and water in a conical form during the occurrence of a tornado and heavy rainfall on land. -- Land steward, a person who acts for another in the management of land, collection of rents, etc. -- Land tortoise, Land turtle (Zoöl.), any tortoise that habitually lives on dry land, as the box tortoise. See Tortoise. -- Land warrant, a certificate from the Land Office, authorizing a person to assume ownership of a public land. [U.S.] -- Land wind. Same as Land breeze (above). -- To make land (Naut.), to sight land. To set the land, to see by the compass how the land bears from the ship. -- To shut in the land, to hide the land, as when fog, or an intervening island, obstructs the view.

LAND Land, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Landed; p. pr. & vb. n. Landing.]

1. To set or put on shore from a ship or other water craft; to disembark; to debark. I 'll undertake top land them on our coast. Shak.

2. To catch and bring to shore; to capture; as, to land a fish.

3. To set down after conveying; to cause to fall, alight, or reach; to bring to the end of a course; as, he landed the quoit near the stake; to be thrown from a horse and landed in the mud; to land one in difficulties or mistakes.

LAND Land, v. i.

Defn: To go on shore from a ship or boat; to disembark; to come to the end of a course.

LANDAMMAN Lan"dam*man, n. Etym: [G. Landamman; land land, country + amimann bailiff. See Land, and Ambassador.]

1. A chief magistrate in some of the Swiss cantons.

2. The president of the diet of the Helvetic republic.

LANDAU Lan"dau, n. Etym: [From the town Ladau in Germany; cf. F. landau. See Land, Island.]

Defn: A four-wheeled covered vehicle, the top of which is divided into two sections which can be let down, or thrown back, in such a manner as to make an open carriage. [Written also landaw.]

LANDAULET Lan`dau*let", n. Etym: [Cf. F. landaulet, dim, of landau. See Landau.]

Defn: A small landau.

LANDDROST; LANDTROST Land"drost`, n.; pl. -drosten (#). Sometimes incorrectly Landtrost. [D., fr. land land + drost a kind of official; akin to G. truchsess.] In Cape Colony: (a) A chief magistrate in rural districts. He was replaced in 1827 by "resident magistrates." (b) The president of the Heemraad.

LANDED Land"ed, a.

1. Having an estate in land. The House of Commons must consist, for the most part, of landed men. Addison.

2. Consisting in real estate or land; as, landed property; landed security.

LANDER Land"er, n.

1. One who lands, or makes a landing. "The lander in a lonely isle." Tennyson.

2. (Mining)

Defn: A person who waits at the mouth of the shaft to receive the kibble of ore.

LANDFALL Land"fall, n.

1. A sudden transference of property in land by the death of its owner.

2. (Naut.)

Defn: Sighting or making land when at sea. A good landfall (Naut.), the sighting of land in conformity with the navigator's reckoning and expectation.

LANDFLOOD Land"flood`, n.

Defn: An overflowing of land by river; an inundation; a freshet. Clarendon.

LANDGRAVE Land"grave`, n. Etym: [G. landgraf; land land + graf earl, count; cf. D. landgraaf, F. landgrave.]

Defn: A German nobleman of a rank corresponding to that of an earl in England and of a count in France.

Note: The title was first adopted by some German counts in the twelfth century, to distinguish themselves from the inferior counts under their jurisdiction. Three of them were princes of the empire.

LANDGRAVIATE Land*gra"vi*ate, n. Etym: [Cf. F. landgraviat.]

1. The territory held by a landgrave.

2. The office, jurisdiction, or authority of a landgrave.

LANDGRAVINE Land"gra*vine, n. Etym: [G. landgräfin; cf. D. landgravin.]

Defn: The wife of a landgrave.

LANDHOLDER Land"hold`er, n.

Defn: A holder, owner, or proprietor of land. -- Land"hold`ing, n. & a.

LANDING Land"ing, a.

Defn: Of, pertaining to or used for, setting, bringing, or going, on shore. Landing charges, charges or fees paid on goods unloaded from a vessel. -- Landing net, a small, bag-shaped net, used in fishing to take the fish from the water after being hooked. -- Landing stage, a floating platform attached at one end to a wharf in such a manner as to rise and fall with the tide, and thus facilitate passage between the wharf and a vessel lying beside the stage. -- Landing waiter, a customhouse officer who oversees the landing of goods, etc., from vessels; a landwaiter.

LANDING Land"ing, n.

1. A going or bringing on shore.

2. A place for landing, as from a ship, a carriage. etc.

3. (Arch.)

Defn: The level part of a staircase, at the top of a flight of stairs, or connecting one flight with another. Landing place. me as Landing, n., 2 and 3.

LANDLADY Land"la`dy, n.; pl. Landladies. Etym: [Cf. Landlord.]

1. A woman having real estate which she leases to a tenant or tenants.

2. The mistress of an inn or lodging house.

LAND LEAGUE Land League.

Defn: In Ireland, a combination of tenant farmers and other, organized, with Charles Stewart Parnell as president, in 1879 with a view to the reduction of farm rents and a reconstruction of the land laws. -- Land"*lea`guer (#), n. -- Land"*lea`guism (#), n.

The Land League, of which Machael Davitt was the founder, originated in Mayo in August, and at a Dublin in October the organization was extended to all Ireland, with Parnell as president. Encyc. Brit.

LANDLEAPER Land"leap`er, n.

Defn: See Landlouper.

LANDLESS Land"less, a.

Defn: Having no property in land.

LANDLOCK Land"lock`, v. t.

Defn: To inclose, or nearly inclose, as a harbor or a vessel, with land.

LANDLOCKED Land"locked`, a.

1. Inclosed, or nearly inclosed, by land.

2. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Confined to a fresh-water lake by reason of waterfalls or dams; -- said of fishes that would naturally seek the sea, after spawning; as, the landlocked salmon.

LANDLOPER Land"lo`per, n.

Defn: Same as Landlouper.

LANDLORD Land"lord`, n. Etym: [See Land, and Lord.]

1. The lord of a manor, or of land; the owner of land or houses which he leases to a tenant or tenants.

2. The master of an inn or of a lodging house. Upon our arrival at the inn, my companion fetched out the jolly landlord. Addison.

LANDLORDISM Land"lord`ism, n.

Defn: The state of being a landlord; the characteristics of a landlord; specifically, in Great Britain, the relation of landlords to tenants, especially as regards leased agricultural lands. J. S. Mill.

LANDLORDRY Land"lord`ry, n.

Defn: The state of a landlord. [Obs.]

LANDLOUPER Land"loup`er, n. Etym: [D. landlooper, lit., landrunner; land land + loopen to run. See Land, and Leap.]

Defn: A vagabond; a vagrant. [Written also landleaper and landloper.] "Bands of landloupers." Moltey.

LANDLOUPING Land"loup`ing, a.

Defn: Vagrant; wandering about.

LANDLUBBER Land"lub`ber, n. Etym: [Prop. fr. land + lubber, or possibly corrupted fr. laudlouper.] (Naut.)

Defn: One who passes his life on land; -- so called among seamen in contempt or ridicule.

LANDMAN Land"man, n.; pl. Landmen (.

1. A man who lives or serves on land; -- opposed to seaman.

2. (Eng.)

Defn: An occupier of land. Cowell.

LANDMARK Land"mark`, n. Etym: [AS. landmearc. See Land, and Mark a sign.]

1. A mark to designate the boundary of land; any , mark or fixed object (as a marked tree, a stone, a ditch, or a heap of stones) by which the limits of a farm, a town, or other portion of territory may be known and preserved.

2. Any conspicuous object on land that serves as a guide; some prominent object, as a hill or steeple. Landmarks of history, important events by which eras or conditions are determined.

LAND OF STEADY HABITS Land of Steady Habits.

Defn: Connecticut; -- a nickname alluding to the moral character of its inhabitants, implied by the rigid laws (see Blue laws) of the early period.

LANDOWNER Land"own`er, n.

Defn: An owner of land.

LANDOWNING Land"own`ing, n.

Defn: The owning of land. -- a.

Defn: Having property in land; of or pertaining to landowners.

LAND-POOR Land"-poor`, a.

Defn: Pecuniarily embarrassed through owning much unprofitable land. [Colloq.]

LANDREEVE Land"reeve`, n. Etym: [Land + reeve an officer.]

Defn: A subordinate officer on an extensive estate, who acts as an assistant to the steward.

LANDSCAPE Land"scape, n. [Formerly written also landskip.] Etym: [D. landschap; land land + -schap, equiv. to E. -schip; akin to G. landschaft, Sw. landskap, Dan. landskab. See Land, and -schip.]

1. A portion of land or territory which the eye can comprehend in a single view, including all the objects it contains.

2. A picture representing a scene by land or sea, actual or fancied, the chief subject being the general aspect of nature, as fields, hills, forests, water. etc.

3. The pictorial aspect of a country. The landscape of his native country had taken hold on his heart. Macaulay. Landscape gardening, The art of laying out grounds and arranging trees, shrubbery, etc., in such a manner as to produce a picturesque effect.

LANDSCAPIST Land"scap`ist, n.

Defn: A painter of landscapes.

LANDSKIP Land"skip, n. Etym: [See Landscape.]

Defn: A landscape. [Obs. except in poetry.] Straight my eye hath caught new pleasures, Whilst the landskip round it measures. Milton.

LANDSLIP; LANDSLIDE Land"slip`, Land"slide`, n.

1. The slipping down of a mass of land from a mountain, hill, etc.

2. The land which slips down.

LANDSMAN Lands"man, n.; pl. Landsmen.

1. One who lives on the land; -- opposed to seaman.

2. (Naut.)

Defn: A sailor on his first voyage.

LANDSTHING Lands"thing`, n. [Dan. landsthing, landsting, fr. land land + thing, ting, parliament. See Land; Thing.] (Denmark.)

Defn: See Legislature, below.

LANDSTORM Land"storm`, n. [Sw.]

Defn: See Varnpligtige.

LANDSTREIGHT Land"streight`, n. Etym: [See Strait.]

Defn: A narrow strip of land. [Obs.]

LANDSTURM Land"sturm`, n. Etym: [G. See Land, and Storm.]

Defn: That part of the reserve force in Germany which is called out last.

LANDTAG Land"tag`, n. Etym: [G. See Land, and Day.]

Defn: The diet or legislative body; as, the Landtag of Prussia.

LANDWAITER Land"wait`er, n.

Defn: See Landing waiter, under Landing, a.

LANDWARD Land"ward, adv. & a.

Defn: Toward the land.

LANDWEHR Land"wehr`, n. Etym: [G., fr. land land, country + wehr defense.]

Defn: That part of the army, in Germany and Austria, which has completed the usual military service and is exempt from duty in time of peace, except that it is called out occasionally for drill.

LANE Lane, a. Etym: [See Lone.]

Defn: Alone [Scot.] His lane, by himself; himself alone.

LANE Lane, n. Etym: [OE. lane, lone, AS. lone, lone; akin to D. laan, OFries. lana, lona.]

Defn: A passageway between fences or hedges which is not traveled as a highroad; an alley between buildings; a narrow way among trees, ras, a lane between lines of men, or through a field of ice. It is become a turn-again lane unto them which they can not go through. Tyndale.

LANG Lang, a. & adv.

Defn: Long. [Obs. or Scot.]

LANGAHA Lan"ga*ha, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A curious colubriform snake of the genus Xyphorhynchus, from Madagascar. It is brownish red, and its hose is prolonged in the form of a sharp blade.

LANGAREY Lan`ga*rey", n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: One of numerous species of long-winged, shrikelike birds of Australia and the East Indies, of the genus Artamus, and allied genera; called also wood swallow.

LANGATE Lan"gate, n. (Surg.)

Defn: A linen roller used in dressing wounds.

LANGDAK Lang"dak`, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A wolf (Canis pallipes), found in India, allied to the jackal.

LANGRAGE; LANGREL Lan"grage, Lan"grel, n.

Defn: A kind of shot formerly used at sea for tearing sails and rigging. It consisted of bolts, nails, and other pieces of iron fastened together or inclosed in a canister.

LANGRET Lan"gret, n.

Defn: A kind of loaded die. [Obs.]

LANGRIDGE Lan"gridge, n.

Defn: See Langrage.

Note: [Sometimes compounded with shot.]

LANGSYNE Lang`syne", adv. & n. Etym: [Scot. lang long + syne since.]

Defn: Long since; long ago. [Scot.]

LANGTERALOO Lang`ter*a*loo", n. Etym: [See Loo.]

Defn: An old game at cards. See Loo (a) Tatler.

LANGUAGE Lan"guage, n. Etym: [OE. langage, F. langage, fr. L. lingua the tongue, hence speech, language; akin to E. tongue. See Tongue, cf. Lingual.]

1. Any means of conveying or communicating ideas; specifically, human speech; the expression of ideas by the voice; sounds, expressive of thought, articulated by the organs of the throat and mouth.

Note: Language consists in the oral utterance of sounds which usage has made the representatives of ideas. When two or more persons customarily annex the same sounds to the same ideas, the expression of these sounds by one person communicates his ideas to another. This is the primary sense of language, the use of which is to communicate the thoughts of one person to another through the organs of hearing. Articulate sounds are represented to the eye by letters, marks, or characters, which form words.

2. The expression of ideas by writing, or any other instrumentality.

3. The forms of speech, or the methods of expressing ideas, peculiar to a particular nation.

4. The characteristic mode of arranging words, peculiar to an individual speaker or writer; manner of expression; style. Others for language all their care express. Pope.

5. The inarticulate sounds by which animals inferior to man express their feelings or their wants.

6. The suggestion, by objects, actions, or conditions, of ideas associated therewith; as, the language of flowers. There was . . . language in their very gesture. Shak.

7. The vocabulary and phraseology belonging to an art or department of knowledge; as, medical language; the language of chemistry or theology.

8. A race, as distinguished by its speech. [R.] All the people, the nations, and the languages, fell down and worshiped the golden image. Dan. iii. 7. Language master, a teacher of languages.[Obs.]

Syn. -- Speech; tongue; idiom; dialect; phraseology; diction; discourse; conversation; talk. -- Language, Speech, Tongue, Idiom, Dialect. Language is generic, denoting, in its most extended use, any mode of conveying ideas; speech is the language of articulate sounds; tongue is the Anglo- Saxon tern for language, esp. for spoken language; as, the English tongue. Idiom denotes the forms of construction peculiar to a particular language; dialects are varieties if expression which spring up in different parts of a country among people speaking substantially the same language.

LANGUAGE Lan"guage, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Languaged; p. pr. & vb. n. Languaging.]

Defn: To communicate by language; to express in language. Others were languaged in such doubtful expressions that they have a double sense. Fuller.

LANGUAGED Lan"guaged, a.

Defn: Having a language; skilled in language; -- chiefly used in composition. " Manylanguaged nations." Pope.

LANGUAGELESS Lan"guage*less, a.

Defn: Lacking or wanting language; speechless; silent. Shak.

LANGUED Langued, a. Etym: [F. langue tongue. See Language.] (Her.)

Defn: Tongued; having the tongue visible. Lions . . . represented as armed and langued gules. Cussans.

LANGUE D'OC Langue` d'oc". Etym: [F., language of oc yes.]

Defn: The dialect, closely akin to French, formerly spoken south of the Loire (in which the word for "yes" was oc); Provencal.

LANGUE D'OIL Langue` d'oïl". Etym: [F., language of oïl yes.]

Defn: The dialect formerly spoken north of the Loire (in which the word for "yes" was oïl, F. oui).

LANGUENTE Lan*guen"te, adv. Etym: [It., p. pr. of languire. See Languish.] (Mus.)

Defn: In a languishing manner; pathetically.

LANGUET Lan"guet, n. Etym: [F. languette, dim. of langue tongue, L. lingua.]

1. Anything resembling the tongue in form or office; specif., the slip of metal in an organ pipe which turns the current of air toward its mouth.

2. That part of the hilt, in certain kinds of swords, which overlaps the scabbard.

LANGUID Lan"guid, a. Etym: [L. languidus, fr. languere to be faint or languid: cf. F. languide. See Languish.]

1. Drooping or flagging from exhaustion; indisposed to exertion; without animation; weak; weary; heavy; dull. " Languid, powerless limbs. " Armstrong. Fire their languid souls with Cato's virtue. Addison.

2. Slow in progress; tardy. " No motion so swift or languid." Bentley.

3. Promoting or indicating weakness or heaviness; as, a languid day. Feebly she laugheth in the languid moon. Keats. Their idleness, aimless and languid airs. W. Black.

Syn. -- Feeble; weak; faint; sickly; pining; exhausted; weary; listless; heavy; dull; heartless. -- Lan"guid*ly, adv. -- Lan"guid*ness, n.

LANGUISH Lan"guish, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Languished; p. pr. & vb. n. Languishing.] Etym: [OE. languishen, languissen, F. languir, L. languere; cf. Gr. lakra to lag behind; prob. akin to E. lag, lax, and perh. to E. slack.See -ish.]

1. To become languid or weak; to lose strength or animation; to be or become dull, feeble or spiritless; to pine away; to wither or fade. We . . . do languish of such diseases. 2 Esdras viii. 31. Cease, fond nature, cease thy strife, And let me landguish into life. Pope. For the fields of Heshbon languish. Is. xvi. 8.

2. To assume an expression of weariness or tender grief, appealing for sympathy. Tennyson.

Syn. -- To pine; wither; fade; droop; faint.

LANGUISH Lan"guish, v. i.

Defn: To cause to dr [Obs.] Shak. Dryden.

LANGUISH Lan"guish, n.

Defn: See Languishiment. [Obs. or Poetic] What, of death, too, That rids our dogs of languish Shak. And the blue languish of soft Allia's eye. Pope.

LANGUISHER Lan"guish*er, n.

Defn: One who languishes.

LANGUISHING Lan"guish*ing, a.

1. Becoming languid and weak; pining; losing health and strength.

2. Amorously pensive; as, languishing eyes, or look.

LANGUISHINGLY Lan"guish*ing*ly, adv.

Defn: In a languishing manner.

LANGUISHMENT Lan"guish*ment, n.

1. The state of languishing. " Lingering languishment." Shak.

2. Tenderness of look or mien; amorous pensiveness.

LANGUISHNESS Lan"guish*ness, n.

Defn: Languishment. [Obs.]

LANGUOR Lan"guor, n. Etym: [OE. langour, OF. langour, F. langueur, L. languor. See Languish.]

1. A state of the body or mind which is caused by exhaustion of strength and characterized by a languid feeling; feebleness; lassitude; laxity.

2. Any enfeebling disease. [Obs.] Sick men with divers languors. Wyclif (Luke iv. 40).

3. Listless indolence; dreaminess. Pope. " German dreams, Italian languors." The Century.

Syn. -- Feebleness; weakness; faintness; weariness; dullness; heaviness; lassitude; listlessness.

LANGUOROUS Lan"guor*ous, a. Etym: [From Languor: cf. F. langoureux.]

Defn: Producing, or tending to produce, languor; characterized by languor. [Obs. or Poetic] Whom late I left in languorous constraint. Spenser. To wile the length from languorous hours, and draw The sting from pain. Tennyson.

LANGURE Lan"gure, v. i.

Defn: To languish. [Obs.] Chaucer.

LANGYA Lan"gya, n. (Zoöl.) Etym: [Native name Anglicized.]

Defn: One of several species of East Indian and Asiatic fresh-water fishes of the genus Ophiocephalus, remarkable for their power of living out of water, and for their tenacity of life; -- called also walking fishes.

LANIARD Lan"iard, n.

Defn: See Lanyard.

LANIARIFORM La`ni*ar"i*form, a. Etym: [Laniary + -form.] (Anat.)

Defn: Shaped like a laniary, or canine, tooth. Owen.

LANIARY La"ni*a*ry, a. Etym: [L. laniarius, fr. lanius butcher, laniare to tear in pieces: cf. F. laniaire.] (Anat.)

Defn: Lacerating or tearing; as, the laniary canine teeth.

LANIARY La"ni*a*ry, n. Etym: [L. Laniary, a.]

1. The shambles; a place of slaughter. [R.]

2. (Anat.)

Defn: A laniary, or canine, tooth.

LANIATE La"ni*ate, v. t. Etym: [L. laniatus, p. p. of laniare.]

Defn: To tear in pieces. [R.]

LANIATION La`ni*a"tion, n. Etym: [L. laniatio.]

Defn: A tearing in pieces. [R.]

LANIER Lan"ier, n. Etym: [F. lanière. See Lanyard.] [Written also lanner, lanyer.]

1. A thong of leather; a whip lash. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

2. A strap used to fasten together parts of armor, to hold the shield by, and the like. Fairholt.

LANIFEROUS La*nif"er*ous, n. Etym: [L. lanifer; lana wool + ferre to bear: cf. F. lanifère.]

Defn: Bearing or producing wool.

LANIFICAL La*nif"i*cal, a. Etym: [L. lanificus; lana wool + facere to make.]

Defn: Working in wool.

LANIFICE Lan"i*fice, n. Etym: [L. lanificium: cf. OF. lanifice.]

Defn: Anything made of wool. [Obs.] Bacon.

LANIGEROUS La*nig"er*ous, a. Etym: [L. laniger; lano wool + gerere to hear.]

Defn: Bearing or producing wool.

LANIOID La"ni*oid, a. Etym: [NL. Lanius (fr. L. lanius a butcher), the typical genus + -oid.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to the shrikes (family Laniidæ).

LANK Lank, a. [Compar. Lanker; superl. Lankest.] Etym: [AS. hlanc; cf. G. lenken to turn, gelenk joint, OHG. hlanca hip, side, flank, and E. link of a chain.]

1. Slender and thin; not well filled out; not plump; shrunken; lean. Meager and lank with fasting grown. Swift. Who would not choose . . . to have rather a lank purse than an empty brain Barrow.

2. Languid; drooping.[Obs.] Who, piteous of her woes, reared her lank head. Milton. Lank hair, long, thin hair. Macaulay.

LANK Lank, v. i. & t.

Defn: To become lank; to make lank. [Obs.] Shak. G. Fletcher.

LANKINESS Lank"i*ness, n.

Defn: The condition or quality or being lanky.

LANKLY Lank"ly, adv.

Defn: In a lank manner.

LANKNESS Lank"ness, n.

Defn: The state or quality of being lank.

LANKY Lank"y, a.

Defn: Somewhat lank. Thackeray. The lanky Dinka, nearly seven feet in height. The Century.

LANNER; LANNERET Lan"ner, n. f. Lan"ner*et, n. m. Etym: [F. lanier, OF. also, lasnier. Cf. Lanyard.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: A long-tailed falcon (Falco lanarius), of Southern Europe, Asia, and Northern Africa, resembling the American prairie falcon.

LANOLIN Lan"o*lin, n. Etym: [L. lana wool + oleum oil.] (Physiol. Chem.)

Defn: A peculiar fatlike body, made up of cholesterin and certain fatty acids, found in feathers, hair, wool, and keratin tissues generally.

Note: Under the same name, it is prepared from wool for commercial purposes, and forms an admirable basis for ointments, being readily absorbed by the skin.

LANSEH Lan"seh, n.

Defn: The small, whitish brown fruit of an East Indian tree (Lansium domesticum). It has a fleshy pulp, with an agreeable subacid taste. Balfour.

LANSQUENET Lans"que*net, n. Etym: [F., fr. G. landsknecht a foot soldier, also a game of cards introduced by these foot soldiers; land country + knecht boy, servant. See Land, and Knight.]

1. A German foot soldier in foreign service in the 15th and 16th centuries; a soldier of fortune; -- a term used in France and Western Europe.

2. A game at cards, vulgarly called lambskinnet. [They play] their little game of lansquenet. Longfellow.

LANT Lant, n.

Defn: Urine. [Prov. Eng.] Nares.

LANT Lant, n. Etym: [Cf. Lance.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: Any one of several species of small, slender, marine fishes of the genus Ammedytes. The common European species (A. tobianus) and the American species (A. Americanus) live on sandy shores, buried in the sand, and are caught in large quantities for bait. Called also launce, and sand eel.

LANT Lant, n.

Defn: See Lanterloo. [Obs.] Halliwell.

LANTANIUM; LANTANUM Lan*ta"ni*um, Lan"ta*num, n. (Chem.)

Defn: See Lanthanum.

LANTANURIC Lan`ta*nu"ric, a. Etym: [Formed by transposition of the letters of allantoin and -uric.] (Chem.)

Defn: Pertaining to, or designating, a nitrogenous organic acid of the uric acid group, obtained by the decomposition of allantoin, and usually called allanturic acid.

LANTERLOO Lan"ter*loo`, n.

Defn: An old name of loo (a).

LANTERN Lan"tern, n. Etym: [F. lanterne, L. lanterna, laterna, from Gr. Lamp.]

1. Something inclosing a light, and protecting it from wind, rain, etc. ; -- sometimes portable, as a closed vessel or case of horn, perforated tin, glass, oiled paper, or other material, having a lamp or candle within; sometimes fixed, as the glazed inclosure of a street light, or of a lighthouse light.

2. (Arch.) (a) An open structure of light material set upon a roof, to give light and air to the interior. (b) A cage or open chamber of rich architecture, open below into the building or tower which it crowns. (c) A smaller and secondary cupola crowning a larger one, for ornament, or to admit light; such as the lantern of the cupola of the Capitol at Washington, or that of the Florence cathedral.

3. (Mach.)

Defn: A lantern pinion or trundle wheel. See Lantern pinion (below).

4. (Steam Engine)

Defn: A kind of cage inserted in a stuffing box and surrounding a piston rod, to separate the packing into two parts and form a chamber between for the reception of steam, etc. ; -- called also lantern brass.

5. (Founding)

Defn: A perforated barrel to form a core upon.

6. (Zoöl.)

Defn: See Aristotle's lantern.

Note: Fig. 1 represents a hand lantern; fig. 2, an arm lantern; fig. 3, a breast lantern; -- so named from the positions in which they are carried. Dark lantern, a lantern with a single opening, which may be closed so as to conceal the light; -- called also bull's-eye. -- Lantern fly, Lantern carrier (Zoöl.), any one of several species of large, handsome, hemipterous insects of the genera Laternaria, Fulgora, and allies, of the family Fulgoridæ. The largest species is Laternaria phosphorea of Brazil. The head of some species has been supposed to be phosphorescent. -- Lantern jaws, long, thin jaws; hence, a thin visage. -- Lantern pinion, Lantern wheel (Mach.), a kind of pinion or wheel having cylindrical bars or trundles, instead of teeth, inserted at their ends in two parallel disks or plates; -- so called as resembling a lantern in shape; -- called also wallower, or trundle. -- Lantern shell (Zoöl.), any translucent, marine, bivalve shell of the genus Anatina, and allied genera. -- Magic lantern, an optical instrument consisting of a case inclosing a light, and having suitable lenses in a lateral tube, for throwing upon a screen, in a darkened room or the like, greatly magnified pictures from slides placed in the focus of the outer lens.

LANTERN Lan"tern, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Lanterned; p. pr. & vb. n. Lanterning.] Etym: [Cf. F. lanterner to hang at the lamp post, fr. lanterne. See Lantern.]

Defn: To furnish with a lantern; as, to lantern a lighthouse.

LANTERN-JAWED Lan"tern-jawed`, a.

Defn: Having lantern jaws or long, thin jaws; as, a lantern-jawed person.

LANTHANITE Lan"tha*nite, n. (Min.)

Defn: Hydrous carbonate of lanthanum, found in tabular while crystals.

LANTHANUM Lan"tha*num, n. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr. (Chem.)

Defn: A rare element of the group of the earth metals, allied to aluminium. It occurs in certain rare minerals, as cerite, gadolinite, orthite, etc., and was so named from the difficulty of separating it from cerium, didymium, and other rare elements with which it is usually associated. Atomic weight 138.5. Symbol La. [Formerly written also lanthanium.]

LANTHOPINE Lan"tho*pine, n. Etym: [Gr. (Chem.)

Defn: An alkaloid found in opium in small quantities, and extracted as a white crystalline substance.

LANTHORN Lan"thorn, n.

Defn: See Lantern. [Obs.]

LANUGINOSE; LANUGINOUS La*nu"gi*nose`, La*nu"gi*nous, a. Etym: [L. lanuginosus, fr. lanugo, -ginis, woolly substance, down, fr. lana wool: cf. F. lanugineux.]

Defn: Covered with down, or fine soft hair; downy.

LANUGO La*nu"go, n. Etym: [See Lanuginose.] (Anat.)

Defn: The soft woolly hair which covers most parts of the mammal fetus, and in man is shed before or soon after birth.

LANYARD Lan"yard, n. Etym: [F.lanière thong, strap, OF. lasniere, fr. lasne strap, thong, L. lacinia lappet. flap, edge of a garment. Cf. Lanier.] [Written also laniard.]

1. (Naut.)

Defn: A short piece of rope or line for fastening something in ships; as, the lanyards of the gun ports, of the buoy, and the like; esp., pieces passing through the dead-eyes, and used to extend shrouds, stays, etc.

2. (Mil.)

Defn: A strong cord, about twelve feet long, with an iron hook at one end a handle at the other, used in firing cannon with a friction tube.

LANYER Lan"yer, n.

Defn: See Lanier.

LAOCOON; LAOCOOEN La*oc"o*ön, n. Etym: [L., fr. Gr.

1. (Class. Myth.)

Defn: A priest of Apollo, during the Trojan war. (See 2.)

2. (Sculp.)

Defn: A marble group in the Vatican at Rome, representing the priest Laocoön, with his sons, infolded in the coils of two serpents, as described by Virgil.

LAODICEAN La*od`i*ce"an, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to Laodicea, a city in Phrygia Major; like the Christians of Laodicea; lukewarm in religion. Rev. iii. 14-16.

LAP Lap, n. Etym: [OE. lappe, AS. læppa; akin to D. lap patch, piece, G. lappen, OHG. lappa, Dan. lap, Sw. lapp.]

1. The loose part of a coat; the lower part of a garment that plays loosely; a skirt; an apron. Chaucer.

2. An edge; a border; a hem, as of cloth. Chaucer. If he cuts off but a lap of truth's garment, his heart smites him. Fuller.

3. The part of the clothing that lies on the knees or thighs when one sits down; that part of the person thus covered; figuratively, a place of rearing and fostering; as, to be reared in the lap of luxury. Men expect that happiness should drop into their laps. Tillotson.

4. That part of any substance or fixture which extends over, or lies upon, or by the side of, a part of another; as, the lap of a board; also, the measure of such extension over or upon another thing.

Note: The lap of shingles or slates in roofing is the distance one course extends over the second course below, the distance over the course immediately below being called the cover.

5. (Steam Engine)

Defn: The amount by which a slide valve at its half stroke overlaps a port in the seat, being equal to the distance the valve must move from its mid stroke position in order to begin to open the port. Used alone, lap refers to outside lap. See Outside lap (below).

6. The state or condition of being in part extended over or by the side of something else; or the extent of the overlapping; as, the second boat got a lap of half its length on the leader.

7. One circuit around a race track, esp. when the distance is a small fraction of a mile; as, to run twenty laps; to win by three laps. See Lap, to fold, 2.

8. In card playing and other games, the points won in excess of the number necessary to complete a game; -- so called when they are counted in the score of the following game.

9. (Cotton Manuf.)

Defn: A sheet, layer, or bat, of cotton fiber prepared for the carding machine.

10. (Mach.)

Defn: A piece of brass, lead, or other soft metal, used to hold a cutting or polishing powder in cutting glass, gems, and the like, or in polishing cutlery, etc. It is usually in the form of wheel or disk, which revolves on a vertical axis. Lap joint, a joint made by one layer, part, or piece, overlapping another, as in the scarfing of timbers. -- Lap weld, a lap joint made by welding together overlapping edges or ends. -- Inside lap (Steam Engine), lap of the valve with respect to the exhaust port. -- Outside lap, lap with respect to the admission, or steam, port.

LAP Lap, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Lapped (; p. pr. & vb. n. Lapping.]

1. To rest or recline in a lap, or as in a lap. To lap his head on lady's breast. Praed.

2. To cut or polish with a lap, as glass, gems, cutlery, etc. See 1st Lap, 10.

LAP Lap, v. t. Etym: [OE. lappen to fold (see Lap, n.); cf. also OE. wlappen, perh. another form of wrappen, E, wrap.]

1. To fold; to bend and lay over or on something; as, to lap a piece of cloth.

2. To wrap or wind around something. About the paper . . . I lapped several times a slender thread of very black silk. Sir I. Newton.

3. To infold; to hold as in one's lap; to cherish. Her garment spreads, and laps him in the folds. Dryden.

4. To lay or place over anything so as to partly or wholly cover it; as, to lap one shingle over another; to lay together one partly over another; as, to lap weather-boards; also, to be partly over, or by the side of (something); as, the hinder boat lapped the foremost one.

5. (Carding & Spinning)

Defn: To lay together one over another, as fleeces or slivers for further working. To lap boards, shingles, etc., to lay one partly over another. -- To lap timbers, to unite them in such a way as to preserve the same breadth and depth throughout, as by scarfing. Weale.

LAP Lap, v. i.

Defn: To be turned or folded; to lie partly upon or by the side of something, or of one another; as, the cloth laps back; the boats lap; the edges lap. The upper wings are opacous; at their hinder ends, where they lap over, transparent, like the wing of a flay. Grew.

LAP Lap, v. i. Etym: [OE. lappen, lapen, AS. lapian; akin to LG. lappen, OHG. laffan, Icel. lepja, Dan. lade, Sw. läppja, L. lambere; cf. Gr. llepio. Cf. Lambent.]

1. To take up drink or food with the tongue; to drink or feed by licking up something. The dogs by the River Nilus's side, being thirsty, lap hastily as they run along the shore. Sir K. Digby.

2. To make a sound like that produced by taking up drink with the tongue. I heard the ripple washing in the reeds, And the wild water lapping on the crag. Tennyson.

LAP Lap, v. t.

Defn: To take into the mouth with the tongue; to lick up with a quick motion of the tongue. They 'II take suggestion as a cat laps milk. Shak.

LAP Lap, n.

1. The act of lapping with, or as with, the tongue; as, to take anything into the mouth with a lap.

2. The sound of lapping.

LAPAROCELE Lap"a*ro*cele`, n. Etym: [Gr. (Med.)

Defn: A rupture or hernia in the lumbar regions.

LAPAROTOMY Lap`a*rot"o*my, n. Etym: [Gr. (Surg.)

Defn: A cutting through the walls of the abdomen, as in the Cæsarean section.

LAPBOARD Lap"board`, n.

Defn: A board used on the lap as a substitute for a table, as by tailors.

LAPDOG Lap"dog`, n.

Defn: A small dog fondled in the lap.

LAPEL La*pel", n. Etym: [Dim. of lap a fold.]

Defn: That part of a garment which is turned back; specifically, the lap, or fold, of the front of a coat in continuation of collar. [Written also lappel and lapelle.]

LAPELLED La*pelled", a.

Defn: Furnished with lapels.

LAPFUL Lap"ful, n.; pl. Lapfuls (.

Defn: As much as the lap can contain.

LAPICIDE Lap"i*cide, n. Etym: [L. lapicida, fr. lapis stone + caedere to cut.]

Defn: A stonecutter. [Obs.]

LAPIDARIAN Lap`i*da"ri*an, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to stone; inscribed on stone; as, a lapidarian record.

LAPIDARIOUS Lap`i*da"ri*ous, a. Etym: [L. lapidarius, fr. lapis, -idis, stone.]

Defn: Consisting of stones.

LAPIDARY Lap"i*da*ry, n. ; pl. Lapidaries. Etym: [L. lapidarius, fr. lapidarius pertaining to stone: cf. F. lapidaire.]

1. An artificer who cuts, polishes, and engraves precious stones; hence, a dealer in precious stones.

2. A virtuoso skilled in gems or precious stones; a connoisseur of lapidary work. Lapidary's lathe, mill, or wheel, a machine consisting essentially of a revolving lap on a vertical spindle, used by a lapidary for grinding and polishing.

LAPIDARY Lap"i*da*ry, a. Etym: [L. lapidarius pertaining to stone: cf. F. lapidaire.]

1. Of or pertaining to the art of cutting stones, or engraving on stones, either gems or monuments; as, lapidary ornamentation.

2. Of or pertaining to monumental inscriptions; as, lapidary adulation. Lapidary style, that style which is proper for monumental and other inscriptions; terse; sententious.

LAPIDATE Lap"i*date, v. t. Etym: [L.lapidatus, p. p. of lapidare, fr. lapis stone.]

Defn: To stone. [Obs.]

LAPIDATION Lap`i*da"tion, n. Etym: [L. lapidatio: cf. F. lapidation.]

Defn: The act of stoning. [Obs.] Bp. Hall.

LAPIDEOUS La*pid"e*ous, a. Etym: [L. lapideus, fr. lapis stone.]

Defn: Of the nature of stone; [Obs.] Ray.

LAPIDESCENCE Lap`i*des"cence, n.

1. The state or quality of being lapidescent.

2. A hardening into a stone substance.

3. A stony concretion. Sir T. Browne.

LAPIDESCENT Lap`i*des"cent, a. Etym: [L. lapidescens, p. pr. of lapidescere to become stone, fr. lapis, -idis, stone: cf. F. lapidescent.]

Defn: Undergoing the process of becoming stone; having the capacity of being converted into stone; having the quality of petrifying bodies.

LAPIDESCENT Lap"i*des"cent, n.

Defn: Any substance which has the quality of petrifying other bodies, or of converting or being converted into stone.

LAPIDIFIC; LAPIDIFICAL Lap`i*dif"ic, Lap`i*dif"ic*al, a. Etym: [L. lapis, -idis, stone + facere to make: cf. F. lapidifique.]

Defn: Forming or converting into stone.

LAPIDIFICATION La*pid`i*fi*ca"tion, n. Etym: [Cf. F. lapidification.]

Defn: The act or process of lapidifying; fossilization; petrifaction.

LAPIDIFY La*pid"i*fy, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Lapidified; p. pr. & vb. n. Lapidifying.] Etym: [Cf. f. lapidifier. See Lapidific, and -fy.]

Defn: To convert into stone or stony material; to petrify.

LAPIDIFY La*pid"i*fy, v. i.

Defn: To become stone or stony

LAPIDIST Lap"i*dist, n. Etym: [L. lapis, -idis, a stone.]

Defn: A lapidary. Ray.

LAPILLATION Lap"il*la"tion, n.Etym: [See Lapilli.]

Defn: The state of being, or the act of making, stony.

LAPILLI La*pil"li, n. pl. Etym: [L. lapillus a little stone, dim. of lapis stone.] (Min.)

Defn: Volcanic ashes, consisting of small, angular, stony fragments or particles.

LAPIS La"pis, n.; pl. Lapides. Etym: [L.]

Defn: A stone. Lapis calaminaris (. Etym: [NL.] (Min.) Calamine. -- Lapis infernalis (. Etym: [L.] Fused nitrate of silver; lunar caustic.

LAPIS LAZULI La"pis laz"u*li. (Min.)

Defn: An albuminous mineral of a rich blue color. Same as Lazuli, which see.

LAP-JOINTED Lap"-joint`ed, a.

Defn: Having a lap joint, or lap joints, as many kinds of woodwork and metal work.

LAPLANDER Lap"land*er, n.

Defn: A native or inhabitant of Lapland; -- called also Lapp.

LAPLANDISH Lap"land*ish, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to Lapland.

LAPLING Lap"ling, n. Etym: [Lap of a garment + ling.]

Defn: One who has been fondled to excess; one fond of ease and sensual delights; -- a term of contempt.

LAPP Lapp, n.

Defn: Same as Laplander. Cf. Lapps.

LAPPACEOUS Lap*pa"ceous, a. Etym: [L. lappaceus burlike, fr. lappa a bur.] (Bot.)

Defn: Resembling the capitulum of burdock; covered with forked points.

LAPPER Lap"per, n. Etym: [From Lap to drink.]

Defn: One who takes up food or liquid with his tongue.

LAPPET Lap"pet, n. Etym: [Dim. of lap a fold.]

Defn: A small decorative fold or flap, esp, of lace or muslin, in a garment or headdress. Swift. Lappet moth (Zoöl.), one of several species of bombycid moths, which have stout, hairy caterpillars, flat beneath. Two common American species (Gastropacha Americana, and Tolype velleda) feed upon the apple tree.

LAPPET Lap"pet, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Lappeted; p. pr. & vb. n. Lappeting.]

Defn: To decorate with, or as with, a lappet. [R.] Landor.

LAPPIC Lap"pic, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to Lapland, or the Lapps. -- n.

Defn: The language of the Lapps. See Lappish.

LAPPING Lap"ping, n.

Defn: A kind of machine blanket or wrapping material used by calico printers. Ure. Lapping engine, Lapping machine (Textile Manuf.), A machine for forming fiber info a lap. See its Lap, 9.

LAPPISH Lap"pish, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to the Lapps; Laplandish. -- n.

Defn: The language spoken by the Lapps in Lapland. It is related to the Finnish and Hungarian, and is not an Aryan language.

LAPPONIAN; LAPPONIC Lap*po"ni*an, Lap*pon"ic, a.

Defn: Laplandish; Lappish.

LAPPS Lapps, n. pl.; sing. Lapp (. (Ethnol.)

Defn: A branch of the Mongolian race, now living in the northern parts of Norway, Sweden, and the adjacent parts of Russia.

LAPSABLE Laps"a*ble, a.

Defn: Lapsible. Cudworth.

LAPSE Lapse, n. Etym: [L. lapsus, fr. labi, p. p. lapsus, to slide, to fall: cf. F. laps. See Sleep.]

1. A gliding, slipping, or gradual falling; an unobserved or imperceptible progress or passing away,; -- restricted usually to immaterial things, or to figurative uses. The lapse to indolence is soft and imperceptible. Rambler. Bacon was content to wait the lapse of long centuries for his expected revenue of fame. I. Taylor.

2. A slip; an error; a fault; a failing in duty; a slight deviation from truth or rectitude. To guard against those lapses and failings to which our infirmities daily expose us. Rogers.

3. (Law)

Defn: The termination of a right or privilege through neglect to exercise it within the limited time, or through failure of some contingency; hence, the devolution of a right or privilege.

4. (Theol.)

Defn: A fall or apostasy.

LAPSE Lapse, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Lapsed; p. pr. & vb. n. Lapsing.]

1. To pass slowly and smoothly downward, backward, or away; to slip downward, backward, or away; to glide; -- mostly restricted to figurative uses. A tendency to lapse into the barbarity of those northern nations from whom we are descended. Swift. Homer, in his characters of Vulcan and Thersites, has lapsed into the burlesque character. Addison.

2. To slide or slip in moral conduct; to fail in duty; to fall from virtue; to deviate from rectitude; to commit a fault by inadvertence or mistake. To lapse in fullness Is sorer than to lie for need. Shak.

3. (Law) (a) To fall or pass from one proprietor to another, or from the original destination, by the omission, negligence, or failure of some one, as a patron, a legatee, etc. (b) To become ineffectual or void; to fall. If the archbishop shall not fill it up within six months ensuing, it lapses to the king. Ayliffe.