Chapter LI: Bella (81)

Defn: Any species of Erethizon and related genera, native of America. They are related to the true porcupines, but have shorter spines, and are arboreal in their habits. The Canada porcupine (Erethizon dorsatus) is a well known species. Porcupine ant-eater (Zoöl.), the echidna. -- Porcupine crab (Zoöl.), a large spiny Japanese crab (Acantholithodes hystrix). -- Porcupine disease (Med.). See Ichthyosis. -- Porcupine fish (Zoöl.), any plectognath fish having the body covered with spines which become erect when the body is inflated. See Diodon, and Globefish. -- Porcupine grass (Bot.), a grass (Stipa spartea) with grains bearing a stout twisted awn, which, by coiling and uncoiling through changes in moisture, propels the sharp-pointed and barbellate grain into the wool and flesh of sheep. It is found from Illinois westward. See Illustration in Appendix. -- Porcupine wood (Bot.), the hard outer wood of the cocoa palm; -- so called because, when cut horizontally, the markings of the wood resemble the quills of a porcupine.

PORE Pore, n. Etym: [F., fr. L. porus, Gr. Fare, v.]

1. One of the minute orifices in an animal or vegetable membrane, for transpiration, absorption, etc.

2. A minute opening or passageway; an interstice between the constituent particles or molecules of a body; as, the pores of stones.

PORE Pore, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Pored; p. pr. & vb. n. Poring.] Etym: [OE. poren, of uncertain origin; cf. D. porren to poke, thrust, Gael. purr.]

Defn: To look or gaze steadily in reading or studying; to fix the attention; to be absorbed; -- often with on or upon, and now usually with over."Painfully to pore upon a book." Shak. The eye grows weary with poring perpetually on the same thing. Dryden.

POREBLIND Pore"blind`, a. Etym: [Probably influenced by pore, v. See Purblind.]

Defn: Nearsighted; shortsighted; purblind. [Obs.] Bacon.

PORER Por"er, n.

Defn: One who pores.

PORGY Por"gy, n.; pl. Porgies. Etym: [See Paugie.] (Zoöl.) (a) The scup. (b) The sailor's choice, or pinfish. (c) The margate fish. (d) The spadefish. (e) Any one of several species of embiotocoids, or surf fishes, of the Pacific coast. The name is also given locally to several other fishes, as the bur fish. [Written also porgee, porgie, and paugy.]

PORIFERA Po*rif"e*ra, n. pl. Etym: [NL., fr. L. porus pore + ferre to bear.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: A grand division of the Invertebrata, including the sponges; -- called also Spongiæ, Spongida, and Spongiozoa. The principal divisions are Calcispongiæ, Keratosa or Fibrospongiæ, and Silicea.

PORIFERAN Po*rif"er*an, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: One of the Polifera.

PORIFERATA Po*rif`e*ra"ta, n. pl. Etym: [NL.]

Defn: The Polifera.

PORIFORM Po"ri*form, a. Etym: [L. porus pore + -form: cf. F. poriforme.]

Defn: Resembling a pore, or small puncture.

PORIME Po"rime, n. Etym: [Gr. (Math.)

Defn: A theorem or proposition so easy of demonstration as to be almost self-evident. [R.] Crabb.

PORINESS Por"i*ness, n.

Defn: Porosity. Wiseman.

PORISM Po"rism, n. Etym: [Gr. porisme.]

1. (Geom.)

Defn: A proposition affirming the possibility of finding such conditions as will render a certain determinate problem indeterminate or capable of innumerable solutions. Playfair.

2. (Gr. Geom.)

Defn: A corollary. Brande & C.

Note: Three books of porisms of Euclid have been lost, but several attempts to determine the nature of these propositions and to restore them have been made by modern geometers.

PORISMATIC; PORISMATICAL Po`ris*mat"ic, Po`ris*mat"ic*al, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to a porism; poristic.

PORISTIC; PORISTICAL Po*ris"tic, Po*ris"tic*al, a.Etym: [Gr.

Defn: Of or pertaining to a porism; of the nature of a porism.

PORITE Po"rite, n. Etym: [Cf. F. porite. See Pore, n.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: Any coral of the genus Porites, or family Poritidæ.

PORITES Po*ri"tes, n. Etym: [NL., fr. Gr. (Zoöl.)

Defn: An important genus of reef-building corals having small twelve- rayed calicles, and a very porous coral. Some species are branched, others grow in large massive or globular forms.

PORK Pork, n. Etym: [F. porc, L. porcus hog, pig. See Farrow a litter of pigs, and cf. Porcelain, Porpoise.]

Defn: The flesh of swine, fresh or salted, used for food.

PORKER Pork"er, n.

Defn: A hog. Pope.

PORKET Pork"et, n. Etym: [Dim. of F. porc. See Pork.]

Defn: A young hog; a pig. [R.] Dryden. W. Howitt.

PORKLING Pork"ling, n.

Defn: A pig; a porket. Tusser.

PORKWOOD Pork"wood`, n. (Bot.)

Defn: The coarse-grained brownish yellow wood of a small tree (Pisonia obtusata) of Florida and the West Indies. Also called pigeon wood, beefwood, and corkwood.

PORNERASTIC Por`ne*ras"tic, a. Etym: [Gr.

Defn: Lascivious; licentious. [R.] F. Harrison.

PORNOGRAPHIC Por`no*graph"ic, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to pornography; lascivious; licentious; as, pornographic writing.

PORNOGRAPHY Por*nog"ra*phy, n. Etym: [Gr. -graphy.]

1. Licentious painting or literature; especially, the painting anciently employed to decorate the walls of rooms devoted to bacchanalian orgies.

2. (Med.)

Defn: A treatise on prostitutes, or prostitution.

POROSITY Po*ros"i*ty, n. Etym: [Cf. F. porosité.]

Defn: The quality or state of being porous; -- opposed to density.

POROTIC Po*rot"ic, n. Etym: [Gr. (Med.)

Defn: A medicine supposed to promote the formation of callus.

POROTYPE Po"ro*type, n. [See Pore, n., and -type.]

Defn: A copy of a print, writing, etc., made by placing it upon a chemically prepared paper which is acted upon by a gas which permeates the paper of the print, writing, etc.

POROUS Por"ous, a. Etym: [Cf. F. poreux. See Pore, n.]

Defn: Full of pores; having interstices in the skin or in the substance of the body; having spiracles or passages for fluids; permeable by liquids; as, a porous skin; porous wood. "The veins of porous earth." Milton.

POROUSLY Por"ous*ly, adv.

Defn: In a porous manner.

POROUSNESS Por"ous*ness, n.

1. The quality of being porous.

2. The open parts; the interstices of anything. [R.] They will forcibly get into the porousness of it. Sir K. Digby.

PORPENTINE Por"pen*tine, n.

Defn: Porcupine. [Obs.] Shak.

PORPESSE Por"pesse, n.

Defn: A porpoise. [Obs.]

PORPHYRACEOUS Por`phy*ra"ceous, a.

Defn: Porphyritic.

PORPHYRE Por"phyre, n.

Defn: Porphyry. [Obs.] Locke.

PORPHYRITE Por"phy*rite, n. (Min.)

Defn: A rock with a porphyritic structure; as, augite porphyrite.

PORPHYRITIC Por`phy*rit"ic, a. Etym: [Cf. F. porphyritique.] (Min.)

Defn: Relating to, or resembling, porphyry, that is, characterized by the presence of distinct crystals, as of feldspar, quartz, or augite, in a relatively fine-grained base, often aphanitic or cryptocrystalline.

PORPHYRIZATION Por`phy*ri*za"tion, n.

Defn: The act of porphyrizing, or the state of being porphyrized.

PORPHYRIZE Por`phy*rize, v. t. Etym: [Cf. F. porphyriser, Gr.

Defn: To cause to resemble porphyry; to make spotted in composition, like porphyry.

PORPHYROGENITISM Por`phy*ro*gen"i*tism, n. Etym: [LL. porphyro genitus, fr. Gr.

Defn: The principle of succession in royal families, especially among the Eastern Roman emperors, by which a younger son, if born after the accession of his father to the throne, was preferred to an elder son who was not so born. Sir T. Palgrave.

PORPHYRY Por"phy*ry, n.; pl. Porphyries. Etym: [F. porphyre, L. porphyrites, fr. Gr. Purple.] (Geol.)

Defn: A term used somewhat loosely to designate a rock consisting of a fine-grained base (usually feldspathic) through which crystals, as of feldspar or quartz, are disseminated. There are red, purple, and green varieties, which are highly esteemed as marbles. Porphyry shell (Zoöl.), a handsome marine gastropod shell (Oliva porphyria), having a dark red or brown polished surface, marked with light spots, like porphyry.

PORPITA Por"pi*ta, n. Etym: [NL., from Gr. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A genus of bright-colored Siphonophora found floating in the warmer parts of the ocean. The individuals are round and disk-shaped, with a large zooid in the center of the under side, surrounded by smaller nutritive and reproductive zooids, and by slender dactylozooids near the margin. The disk contains a central float, or pneumatocyst.

PORPOISE Por"poise, n. Etym: [OE. porpeys, OF. porpeis, literally, hog fish, from L. porcus swine + piscis fish. See Pork, and Fish.]

1. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Any small cetacean of the genus Phocæna, especially P. communis, or P. phocæna, of Europe, and the closely allied American species (P. Americana). The color is dusky or blackish above, paler beneath. They are closely allied to the dolphins, but have a shorter snout. Called also harbor porpoise, herring hag, puffing pig, and snuffer.

2. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A true dolphin (Delphinus); -- often so called by sailors. Skunk porpoise, or Bay porpoise (Zoöl.), a North American porpoise (Lagenorhynchus acutus), larger than the common species, and with broad stripes of white and yellow on the sides. See Illustration in Appendix.

PORPORINO Por`po*ri"no, n. Etym: [It.]

Defn: A composition of quicksilver, tin, and sulphur, forming a yellow powder, sometimes used by mediæval artists, for the sake of economy, instead of gold. Fairholt.

PORPUS Por"pus, n.

Defn: A porpoise. [Obs.] Swift.

PORRACEOUS Por*ra"ceous, a. Etym: [L. porraceus, from porrum, porrus, a leek.]

Defn: Resembling the leek in color; greenish. [R.] "Porraceous vomiting." Wiseman.

PORRECT Por*rect", a. Etym: [L. porrectus, p. p. of porrigere to stretch out before one's self, to but forth.]

Defn: Extended horizontally; stretched out.

PORRECTION Por*rec"tion, n. Etym: [L. porrectio: cf. F. porrection.]

Defn: The act of stretching forth.

PORRET Por"ret, n. Etym: [F. porrette, fr. L. porrum, porrus, leek. See Porraceous.]

Defn: A scallion; a leek or small onion. [R.] Sir T. Browne.

PORRIDGE Por"ridge, n. Etym: [Probably corrupted fr. pottage; perh. influenced by OE. porree a kind of pottage, OF. porrée, fr. L. porrum, porrus, leek. See Pottage, and cf. Porringer.]

Defn: A food made by boiling some leguminous or farinaceous substance, or the meal of it, in water or in milk, making of broth or thin pudding; as, barley porridge, milk porridge, bean porridge, etc.

PORRINGER Por"rin*ger, n. Etym: [OE. pottanger, for pottager; cf. F. potager a soup basin. See Porridge.]

Defn: A porridge dish; esp., a bowl or cup from which children eat or are fed; as, a silver porringer. Wordsworth.

PORT Port, n. Etym: [From Oporto, in Portugal, i. e., the port, L. portus. See Port harbor.]

Defn: A dark red or purple astringent wine made in Portugal. It contains a large percentage of alcohol.

PORT Port, n. Etym: [AS. port, L. portus: cf. F. port. See Farm, v., Ford, and 1st, 3d, & 4h Port.]

1. A place where ships may ride secure from storms; a sheltered inlet, bay, or cove; a harbor; a haven. Used also figuratively.

Peering in maps for ports and piers and roads. Shak. We are in port if we have Thee. Keble.

2. In law and commercial usage, a harbor where vessels are admitted to discharge and receive cargoes, from whence they depart and where they finish their voyages. Free port. See under Free. -- Port bar. (Naut,) (a) A boom. See Boom, 4, also Bar, 3. (b) A bar, as of sand, at the mouth of, or in, a port. -- Port charges (Com.), charges, as wharfage, etc., to which a ship or its cargo is subjected in a harbor. -- Port of entry, a harbor where a customhouse is established for the legal entry of merchandise. -- Port toll (Law), a payment made for the privilege of bringing goods into port. -- Port warden, the officer in charge of a port; a harbor master.

PORT Port, n. Etym: [F. porte, L. porta, akin to portus; cf. AS. porte, fr. L. porta. See Port a harbor, and cf. Porte.]

1. A passageway; an opening or entrance to an inclosed place; a gate; a door; a portal. [Archaic] Him I accuse The city ports by this hath entered. Shak. Form their ivory port the cherubim Forth issuing. Milton.

2. (Naut.)

Defn: An opening in the side of a vessel; an embrasure through which cannon may be discharged; a porthole; also, the shutters which close such an opening. Her ports being within sixteen inches of the water. Sir W. Raleigh.

3. (Mach.)

Defn: A passageway in a machine, through which a fluid, as steam, water, etc., may pass, as from a valve to the interior of the cylinder of a steam engine; an opening in a valve seat, or valve face. Air port, Bridle port, etc. See under Air, Bridle, etc. -- Port bar (Naut.), a bar to secure the ports of a ship in a gale. -- Port lid (Naut.), a lid or hanging for closing the portholes of a vessel. -- Steam port, and Exhaust port (Steam Engine), the ports of the cylinder communicating with the valve or valves, for the entrance or exit of the steam, respectively.

PORT Port, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Ported; p. pr. & vb. n. Porting.] Etym: [F. porter, L. portare to carry. See Port demeanor.]

1. To carry; to bear; to transport. [Obs.] They are easily ported by boat into other shires. Fuller.

2. (Mil.)

Defn: To throw, as a musket, diagonally across the body, with the lock in front, the right hand grasping the small of the stock, and the barrel sloping upward and crossing the point of the left shoulder; as, to port arms. Began to hem him round with ported spears. Milton. Port arms, a position in the manual of arms, executed as above.

PORT Port, n. Etym: [F. port, fr. porter to carry, L. portare, prob. akin to E. fare, v. See Port harbor, and cf. Comport, Export, Sport.]

Defn: The manner in which a person bears himself; deportment; carriage; bearing; demeanor; hence, manner or style of living; as, a proud port. Spenser. And of his port as meek as is a maid. Chaucer. The necessities of pomp, grandeur, and a suitable port in the world. South.

PORT Port, n. Etym: [Etymology uncertain.] (Naut.)

Defn: The larboard or left side of a ship (looking from the stern toward the bow); as, a vessel heels to port. See Note under Larboard. Also used adjectively.

PORT Port, v. t. (Naut.)

Defn: To turn or put to the left or larboard side of a ship; -- said of the helm, and used chiefly in the imperative, as a command; as, port your helm.

PORTA Por"ta, n.; pl. Portæ. Etym: [L., a gate. See Port a hole.] (Anat.) (a) The part of the liver or other organ where its vessels and nerves enter; the hilus. (b) The foramen of Monro. B. G. Wilder.

PORTABILITY Port`a*bil"i*ty, n.

Defn: The quality or state of being portable; fitness to be carried.

PORTABLE Port"a*ble, a. Etym: [L. portabilis, fr. portare to carry: cf. F. portable. See Port demeanor.]

1. Capable of being borne or carried; easily transported; conveyed without difficulty; as, a portable bed, desk, engine. South.

2. Possible to be endured; supportable. [Obs.] How light and portable my pain seems now! Shak. Portable forge. See under Forge. -- Portable steam engine. See under Steam engine.

PORTABLENESS Port"a*ble*ness, n.

Defn: The quality or state of being portable; portability.

PORTACE Por"tace (; 48), n.

Defn: See Portass. [Obs.]

PORTAGE Port"age (; 48), n. Etym: [From 2d Port.] (Naut.) (a) A sailor's wages when in port. (b) The amount of a sailor's wages for a voyage.

PORTAGE Port"age, n. Etym: [3d Port.]

Defn: A porthole. [Obs.] Shak.

PORTAGE Por"tage, n. Etym: [F., from porter to carry. See Port to carry.]

1. The act of carrying or transporting.

2. The price of carriage; porterage. Bp. Fell.

3. Capacity for carrying; tonnage. [Obs.] Hakluyt.

4. A carry between navigable waters. See 3d Carry.

PORTAGE Por"tage, v. t. & i.

Defn: To carry (goods, boats, etc.) overland between navigable waters.

PORTAGE GROUP Por"tage group`. Etym: [So called from the township of Portage in New York.] (Geol.)

Defn: A subdivision of the Chemung period in American geology. See Chart of Geology.

PORTAGUE Por"ta*gue, n. Etym: [See Portuguese.]

Defn: A Portuguese gold coin formerly current, and variously estimated to be worth from three and one half to four and one half pounds sterling. [Obs.] [Written also portegue and portigue.] Ten thousand portagues, besides great pearls. Marlowe.

PORTAL Por"tal, n. Etym: [OF. portal, F. portail, LL. portale, fr. L. porta a gate. See Port a gate.]

1. A door or gate; hence, a way of entrance or exit, especially one that is grand and imposing. Thick with sparkling orient gems The portal shone. Milton. From out the fiery portal of the east. Shak.

2. (Arch.) (a) The lesser gate, where there are two of different dimensions. (b) Formerly, a small square corner in a room separated from the rest of the apartment by wainscoting, forming a short passage to another apartment. (c) By analogy with the French portail, used by recent writers for the whole architectural composition which surrounds and includes the doorways and porches of a church.

3. (Bridge Building)

Defn: The space, at one end, between opposite trusses when these are terminated by inclined braces.

4. A prayer book or breviary; a portass. [Obs.] Portal bracing (Bridge Building), a combination of struts and ties which lie in the plane of the inclined braces at a portal, serving to transfer wind pressure from the upper parts of the trusses to an abutment or pier of the bridge.

PORTAL Por"tal, a. (Anat.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to a porta, especially the porta of the liver; as, the portal vein, which enters the liver at the porta, and divides into capillaries after the manner of an artery.

Note: Portal is applied to other veins which break up into capillaries; as, the renal portal veins in the frog.

PORTAMENTO Por`ta*men"to, n. Etym: [It., fr. portare to carry.] (Mus.)

Defn: In singing, or in the use of the bow, a gradual carrying or lifting of the voice or sound very smoothly from one note to another; a gliding from tone to tone.

PORTANCE Por"tance, n.

Defn: See Port, carriage, demeanor. [Obs.] Spenser. Shak.

PORTASS Por"tass, n. Etym: [OF. porte-hors a kind of prayer book, so called from being portable; cf. LL. portiforium.]

Defn: A breviary; a prayer book. [Written variously portace, portasse, portesse, portise, porthose, portos, portus, portuse, etc.] [Obs.] Spenser. Camden. By God and by this porthors I you swear. Chaucer.

PORTATE Por"tate, a. Etym: [L. portatus, p. p. of portare to carry.] (Her.)

Defn: Borne not erect, but diagonally athwart an escutcheon; as, a cross portate.

PORTATIVE Por"ta*tive, a. Etym: [Cf. F. portatif.]

1. Portable. [Obs.]

2. (Physics)

Defn: Capable of holding up or carrying; as, the portative force of a magnet, of atmospheric pressure, or of capillarity.

PORTCLUSE Port"cluse, n.

Defn: A portcullis. [Obs.]

PORTCRAYON Port`cray"on, n. Etym: [F. porte-crayon; porter to carry + crayon a crayon.]

Defn: A metallic handle with a clasp for holding a crayon.

PORTCULLIS Port*cul"lis, n. Etym: [OF. porte coulisse, coleïce, a sliding door, fr. L. colare, colatum, to filter, to strain: cf. F. couler to glide. See Port a gate, and cf. Cullis, Colander.]

1. (Fort.)

Defn: A grating of iron or of timbers pointed with iron, hung over the gateway of a fortress, to be let down to prevent the entrance of an enemy. "Let the portcullis fall." Sir W. Scott. She . . . the huge portcullis high updrew. Milton.

2. An English coin of the reign of Elizabeth, struck for the use of the East India Company; -- so called from its bearing the figure of a portcullis on the reverse.

PORTCULLIS Port*cul"lis, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Portcullised; p. pr. & vb. n. Portcullising.]

Defn: To obstruct with, or as with, a portcullis; to shut; to bar. [R.] Shak.

PORTE Porte, n. Etym: [F. porte a gate, L. porta. See Port a gate.]

Defn: The Ottoman court; the government of the Turkish empire, officially called the Sublime Porte, from the gate (port) of the sultan's palace at which justice was administered.

PORTE-COCHERE Porte"-co`chère", n. Etym: [F. See Port a gate, and Coach.] (Arch.)

Defn: A large doorway allowing vehicles to drive into or through a building. It is common to have the entrance door open upon the passage of the porte-cochère. Also, a porch over a driveway before an entrance door.

PORTED Port"ed, a.

Defn: Having gates. [Obs.] We took the sevenfold-ported Thebes. Chapman.

PORTEGUE Por"te*gue, n.

Defn: See Portague. [Obs.]

PORTEMONNAIE Porte"mon*naie`, n. Etym: [F., fr. porter to carry + monnaie money.]

Defn: A small pocketbook or wallet for carrying money.

PORTEND Por*tend", v. t. [imp. & p. p. Portended; p. pr. & vb. n. Portending.] Etym: [L. portendre, portentum, to foretell, to predict, to impend, from an old preposition used in comp. + tendere to stretch. See Position, Tend.]

1. To indicate (events, misfortunes, etc.) as in future; to foreshow; to foretoken; to bode; -- now used esp. of unpropitious signs. Bacon. Many signs portended a dark and stormy day. Macaulay.

2. To stretch out before. [R.] "Doomed to feel the great Idomeneus' portended steel." Pope.

Syn. -- To foreshow; foretoken; betoken; forebode; augur; presage; foreshadow; threaten.

PORTENSION Por*ten"sion, n.

Defn: The act of foreshowing; foreboding. [R.] Sir T. Browne.

PORTENT Por*tent", n. Etym: [L. portentum. See Portend.]

Defn: That which portends, or foretoken; esp., that which portends evil; a sign of coming calamity; an omen; a sign. Shak. My loss by dire portents the god foretold. Dryden.

PORTENTIVE Por*tent"ive, a.

Defn: Presaging; foreshadowing.

PORTENTOUS Por*tent"ous, a. Etym: [L. portentosus.]

1. Of the nature of a portent; containing portents; foreschadowing, esp. foreschadowing ill; ominous. For, I believe, they are portentous things. Shak. Victories of strange and almost portentous splendor. Macaulay.

2. Hence: Monstrous; prodigious; wonderful; dreadful; as, a beast of portentous size. Roscommon. -- Por*tent"ous*ly, adv. -- Por*tent"ous*ness, n.

PORTER Por"ter, n. Etym: [F. portier, L. portarius, from porta a gate, door. See Port a gate.]

Defn: A man who has charge of a door or gate; a doorkeeper; one who waits at the door to receive messages. Shak. To him the porter openeth. John x. 3.

PORTER Por"ter, n. Etym: [F. porteur, fr. porter to carry, L. portare. See Port to carry.]

1. A carrier; one who carries or conveys burdens, luggage, etc.; for hire.

2. (Forging)

Defn: A bar of iron or steel at the end of which a forging is made; esp., a long, large bar, to the end of which a heavy forging is attached, and by means of which the forging is lifted and handled is hammering and heating; -- called also porter bar.

3. A malt liquor, of a dark color and moderately bitter taste, possessing tonic and intoxicating qualities.

Note: Porter is said to be so called as having been first used chiefly by the London porters, and this application of the word is supposed to be not older than 1750.

PORTERAGE Por"ter*age, n.

1. The work of a porter; the occupation of a carrier or of a doorkeeper.

2. Money charged or paid for the carriage of burdens or parcels by a porter.

PORTERESS Por"ter*ess, n.

Defn: See Portress.

PORTERHOUSE Por"ter*house, n.

Defn: A house where porter is sold. Porterhouse steak, a steak cut from a sirloin of beet, including the upper and under part.

PORTESSE Por"tesse, n.

Defn: See Porteass. [Obs.] Tyndale.

PORTFIRE Port"fire`, n.

Defn: A case of strong paper filled with a composition of niter, sulphur, and mealed powder, -- used principally to ignite the priming in proving guns, and as an incendiary material in shells.

PORTFOLIO Port*fol"io, n. Etym: [F. portefeuille; porter to carry + feuille a leaf. See Port to carry, and Folio.]

1. A portable case for holding loose papers, prints, drawings, etc.

2. Hence: The office and functions of a minister of state or member of the cabinet; as, to receive the portfolio of war; to resign the portfolio.

PORTGLAVE Port"glave, n. Etym: [F. porte-glaive; porter to carry + glaive a sword.]

Defn: A sword bearer. [Obs.]

PORTGREVE; PORTGRAVE Port"greve`, Port"grave`,Etym: [AS. portgerefa; port a harbor + gerefa a reeve or sheriff. See Reeve a steward, and cf. Portreeve.]

Defn: In old English law, the chief magistrate of a port or maritime town.; a portreeve. [Obs.] Fabyan.

PORTHOLE Port"hole`, n. (Naut.)

Defn: An embrasure in a ship's side. See 3d Port.

PORTHOOK Port"hook`, n. (Naut.)

Defn: One of the iron hooks to which the port hinges are attached. J. Knowles.

PORTHORS Port"hors`, n.

Defn: See Portass. [Obs.] Chaucer.

PORTICO Por"ti*co, n.; pl. Porticoes or Porticos. Etym: [It., L. porticus. See Porch.] (Arch.)

Defn: A colonnade or covered ambulatory, especially in classical styles of architecture; usually, a colonnade at the entrance of a building.

PORTICOED Por"ti*coed, a.

Defn: Furnished with a portico.

PORTIERE Por`tière"", n. Etym: [F., fr. porte gate, door. See Port a gate.]

Defn: A curtain hanging across a doorway.

PORTIGUE Por"ti*gue, n.

Defn: See Portague. Beau. & Fl.

PORTINGAL Por"tin*gal, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to Portugal; Portuguese. [Obs.] -- n.

Defn: A Portuguese. [Obs.]

PORTION Por"tion, n. Etym: [F., from L. portio, akin to pars, partis, a part. See Part, n.]

1. That which is divided off or separated, as a part from a whole; a separated part of anything.

2. A part considered by itself, though not actually cut off or separated from the whole. These are parts of his ways; but how little a portion is heard of him! Job xxvi. 14. Portions and parcels of the dreadful past. Tennyson.

3. A part assigned; allotment; share; fate. The lord of that servant . . . will appoint him his portion with the unbelievers. Luke xii. 46. Man's portion is to die and rise again. Keble.

4. The part of an estate given to a child or heir, or descending to him by law, and distributed to him in the settlement of the estate; an inheritance. Give me the portion of goods that falleth to me. Luke xv. 12.

5. A wife's fortune; a dowry. Shak.

Syn. -- Division; share; parcel; quantity; allotment; dividend. -- Portion, Part. Part is generic, having a simple reference to some whole. Portion has the additional idea of such a division as bears reference to an individual, or is allotted to some object; as, a portion of one's time; a portion of Scripture.

PORTION Por"tion, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Portioned; p. pr. & vb. n. Portioning.]

1. To separate or divide into portions or shares; to parcel; to distribute. And portion to his tribes the wide domain. Pope.

2. To endow with a portion or inheritance. Him portioned maids, apprenticed orphans, blest. Pope.

PORTIONER Por"tion*er, n.

1. One who portions.

2. (Eccl.)

Defn: See Portionist, 2.

PORTIONIST Por"tion*ist, n.

1. A scholar at Merton College, Oxford, who has a certain academical allowance or portion; -- corrupted into postmaster. Shipley.

2. (Eccl.)

Defn: One of the incumbents of a benefice which has two or more rectors or vicars.

PORTIONLESS Por"tion*less, a.

Defn: Having no portion.

PORTISE Por"tise, n.

Defn: See Portass. [Obs.]

PORTLAND CEMENT Port"land ce*ment".

Defn: A cement having the color of the Portland stone of England, made by calcining an artificial mixture of carbonate of lime and clay, or sometimes certain natural limestones or chalky clays. It contains a large proportion of clay, and hardens under water.

PORTLAND STONE Port"land stone".

Defn: A yellowish-white calcareous freestone from the Isle of Portland in England, much used in building.

PORTLAND VASE Port"land vase`.

Defn: A celebrated cinerary urn or vase found in the tomb of the Emperor Alexander Severus. It is owned by the Duke of Portland, and kept in the British Museum.

PORTLAST Port"last, n. (Naut.)

Defn: The portoise. See Portoise.

PORTLINESS Port"li*ness, n.

1. The quality or state of being portly; dignity of mien or of personal appearance; stateliness. Such pride is praise; such portliness is honor. Spenser.

2. Bulkiness; corpulence.

PORTLY Port"ly, a. Etym: [From Port demeanor.]

1. Having a dignified port or mien; of a noble appearance; imposing.

2. Bulky; corpulent. "A portly personage." Dickens.

PORTMAN Port"man, n.; pl. Portmen (.

Defn: An inhabitant or burgess of a port, esp. of one of the Cinque Ports.

PORTMANTEAU Port*man"teau, n.; pl. Portmanteaus. Etym: [F. porte-manteau; porter to carry + manteau a cloak, mantle. See Port to carry, and Mantle.]

Defn: A bag or case, usually of leather, for carrying wearing apparel, etc., on journeys. Thackeray.

PORTMANTLE Port*man"tle, n.

Defn: A portmanteau. [Obs.]

PORTMOTE Port"mote`, n.

Defn: In old English law, a court, or mote, held in a port town. [Obs.] Blackstone.

PORTOIR Por"toir, n. Etym: [OF., fr. porter to bear.]

Defn: One who, or that which, bears; hence, one who, or that which, produces. [Obs.] Branches . . . which were portoirs, and bare grapes. Holland.

PORTOISE Por"toise, n. Etym: [Perhaps fr. OF. porteis portative, portable.] (Naut.)

Defn: The gunwale of a ship. To lower the yards a-portoise, to lower them to the gunwale. -- To ride a portoise, to ride an anchor with the lower yards and topmasts struck or lowered, as in a gale of wind.

PORTOS Por"tos, n.

Defn: See Portass. [Obs.]

PORTPANE Port"pane, n. Etym: [From L. portare to carry + panis bread; prob. through French.]

Defn: A cloth for carrying bread, so as not to touch it with the hands. [Obs.]

PORTRAIT Por"trait, n. Etym: [F., originally p. p. of portraire to portray. See Portray.]

1. The likeness of a person, painted, drawn, or engraved; commonly, a representation of the human face painted from real life. In portraits, the grace, and, we may add, the likeness, consists more in the general air than in the exact similitude of every feature. Sir J. Reynolds.

Note: The meaning of the word is sometimes extended so as to include a photographic likeness.

2. Hence, any graphic or vivid delineation or description of a person; as, a portrait in words. Portrait bust, or Portrait statue, a bust or statue representing the actual features or person of an individual; -- in distinction from an ideal bust or statue.

PORTRAIT Por"trait, v. t.

Defn: To portray; to draw. [Obs.] Spenser.

PORTRAITIST Por"trait*ist, n.

Defn: A portrait painter. [R.] Hamerton.

PORTRAITURE Por"trai*ture, n. Etym: [F. portraiture.]

1. A portrait; a likeness; a painted resemblance; hence, that which is copied from some example or model. For, by the image of my cause, I see The portraiture of his. Shak. Divinity maketh the love of ourselves the pattern; the love of our neighbors but the portraiture. Bacon.

2. Pictures, collectively; painting. [Obs.] Chaucer.

3. The art or practice of making portraits. Walpole.

PORTRAITURE Por"trai*ture, v. t.

Defn: To represent by a portrait, or as by a portrait; to portray. [R.] Shaftesbury.

PORTRAY Por*tray", v. t. [Written also pourtray.] [imp. & p. p. portrayed (; p. pr. & vb. n. Portraying.] Etym: [OE. pourtraien, OF. portraire, pourtraire, F. portraire, fr. L. protrahere, protractum, to draw or drag forth; pro forward, forth + trahere to draw. See Trace, v. t., and cf. Protract.]

1. To paint or draw the likeness of; as, to portray a king on horseback. Take a tile, and lay it before thee, and portray upon it the city, even Jerusalem. Ezek. iv. 1.

2. Hence, figuratively, to describe in words.

3. To adorn with pictures. [R.] Spear and helmets thronged, and shields Various with boastful arguments potrayed. Milton.

PORTRAYAL Por*tray"al, n.

Defn: The act or process of portraying; description; delineation.

PORTRAYER Por*tray"er, n.

Defn: One who portrays. Chaucer.

PORTREEVE Port"reeve`, n.

Defn: A port warden.

PORTRESS Por"tress, n.

Defn: A female porter. Milton.

PORT-ROYALIST Port-roy"al*ist, n. (Eccl. Hist.)

Defn: One of the dwellers in the Cistercian convent of Port Royal des Champs, near Paris, when it was the home of the Jansenists in the 17th century, among them being Arnauld, Pascal, and other famous scholars. Cf. Jansenist.

PORTSALE Port"sale`, n. Etym: [Port gate + sale.]

Defn: Public or open sale; auction. [Obs.] Holland.

PORTUARY Por"tu*a*ry, n. Etym: [Cf. Portass.] (R. C. Ch.)

Defn: A breviary. [Eng.]

PORTUGUESE Por"tu*guese, a. Etym: [Cf. F. portugais, Sp. portugues, Pg. portuguez.]

Defn: Of or pertaining to Portugal, or its inhabitants. -- n. sing. & pl.

Defn: A native or inhabitant of Portugal; people of Portugal. Portuguese man-of-war. (Zoöl.) See Physalia.

PORTULACA Por`tu*la"ca, n. Etym: [L., purslane.] (Bot.)

Defn: A genus of polypetalous plants; also, any plant of the genus.

Note: Portulaca oleracea is the common purslane. P. grandiflora is a South American herb, widely cultivated for its showy crimson, scarlet, yellow, or white, ephemeral blossoms.

PORTULACACEOUS Por`tu*la*ca"ceous, a. (Bot.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to a natural order of plants (Portulacaceæ), of which Portulaca is the type, and which includes also the spring beauty (Claytonia) and other genera.

PORWIGLE Por"wi`gle, n.

Defn: See Polliwig.

PORY Por"y, a.

Defn: Porous; as, pory stone. [R.] Dryden.

POSE Po`sé", a. Etym: [F., placed, posed.] (Her.)

Defn: Standing still, with all the feet on the ground; -- said of the attitude of a lion, horse, or other beast.

POSE Pose, n. Etym: [AS. gepose; of uncertain origin; cf. W. pas a cough, Skr. kas to cough, and E. wheeze.]

Defn: A cold in the head; catarrh. [Obs.] Chaucer.

POSE Pose, n. Etym: [F. pose, fr. poser. See Pose, v. t.]

Defn: The attitude or position of a person; the position of the body or of any member of the body; especially, a position formally assumed for the sake of effect; an artificial position; as, the pose of an actor; the pose of an artist's model or of a statue.

POSE Pose, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Posed; p. pr. & vb. n. Posing.] Etym: [F. poser to place, to put, L. pausare to pause, in LL. also, to place, put, fr. L. pausa a pause, Gr. few. In compounds, this word appears corresponding to L. ponere to put, place, the substitution in French having been probably due to confusion of this word with L. positio position, fr. ponere. See Few, and cf. Appose, Dispose, Oppose, Pause, Repose, Position.]

Defn: To place in an attitude or fixed position, for the sake of effect; to arrange the posture and drapery of (a person) in a studied manner; as, to pose a model for a picture; to pose a sitter for a portrait.

POSE Pose, v. i.

Defn: To assume and maintain a studied attitude, with studied arrangement of drapery; to strike an attitude; to attitudinize; figuratively, to assume or affect a certain character; as, she poses as a prude. He . . . posed before her as a hero. Thackeray.

POSE Pose, v. t. Etym: [Shortened from appose, for oppose. See 2d Appose, Oppose.]

1. To interrogate; to question. [Obs.] "She . . . posed him and sifted him." Bacon.

2. To question with a view to puzzling; to embarrass by questioning or scrutiny; to bring to a stand. A question wherewith a learned Pharisee thought to pose and puzzle him. Barrow.

POSED Posed, a.

Defn: Firm; determined; fixed. "A most posed . . . and grave behavior." [Obs.] Urquhart.

POSER Pos"er, n.

Defn: One who, or that which, puzzles; a difficult or inexplicable question or fact. Bacon.

POSEUR; POSEUSE Po`seur", n. masc.; pl. Poseurs, Po`seuse", n. fem.; pl. Poseuses, [F.]

Defn: A person who poses or attitudizes, esp. mentally.

POSIED Po"sied, a.

Defn: Inscribed with a posy. In poised lockets bribe the fair. Gay.

POSINGLY Pos"ing*ly, adv.

Defn: So as to pose or puzzle.

POSIT Pos"it, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Posited; p. pr. & vb. n. Positing.] Etym: [L. ponere, positum, to place. See Position.]

1. To dispose or set firmly or fixedly; to place or dispose in relation to other objects. Sir M. Hale.

2. (Logic)

Defn: To assume as real or conceded; as, to posit a principle. Sir W. Hamilton.

POSITION Po*si"tion, n. Etym: [F. position, L. positio, fr. ponere, positum, to put, place; prob. for posino, fr. an old preposition used only in comp. (akin to Gr. sinere to leave, let, permit, place. See Site, and cf. Composite, Compound, v., Depone, Deposit, Expound, Impostor, Opposite, Propound, Pose, v., Posit, Post, n.]

1. The state of being posited, or placed; the manner in which anything is placed; attitude; condition; as, a firm, an inclined, or an upright position. We have different prospects of the same thing, according to our different positions to it. Locke.

2. The spot where a person or thing is placed or takes a place; site; place; station; situation; as, the position of man in creation; the fleet changed its position.

3. Hence: The ground which any one takes in an argument or controversy; the point of view from which any one proceeds to a discussion; also, a principle laid down as the basis of reasoning; a proposition; a thesis; as, to define one's position; to appear in a false position. Let not the proof of any position depend on the positions that follow, but always on those which go before. I. Watts.

4. Relative place or standing; social or official rank; as, a person of position; hence, office; post; as, to lose one's position.

5. (Arith.)

Defn: A method of solving a problem by one or two suppositions; -- called also the rule of trial and error. Angle of position (Astron.), the angle which any line (as that joining two stars) makes with another fixed line, specifically with a circle of declination. -- Double position (Arith.), the method of solving problems by proceeding with each of two assumed numbers, according to the conditions of the problem, and by comparing the difference of the results with those of the numbers, deducing the correction to be applied to one of them to obtain the true result. -- Guns of position (Mil.), heavy fieldpieces, not designed for quick movements. -- Position finder (Mil.), a range finder. See under Range. -- Position micrometer, a micrometer applied to the tube of an astronomical telescope for measuring angles of position in the field of view. -- Single position (Arith.), the method of solving problems, in which the result obtained by operating with an assumed number is to the true result as the number assumed is to the number required. -- Strategic position (Mil.), a position taken up by an army or a large detachment of troops for the purpose of checking or observing an opposing force.

Syn. -- Situation; station; place; condition; attitude; posture; proposition; assertion; thesis.

POSITION Po*si"tion, v. t.

Defn: To indicate the position of; to place. [R.] Encyc. Brit.

POSITIONAL Po*si"tion*al, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to position. Ascribing unto plants positional operations. Sir T. Browne.

POSITIVE Pos"i*tive, a. Etym: [OE. positif, F. positif, L. positivus. See Position.]

1. Having a real position, existence, or energy; existing in fact; real; actual; -- opposed to negative. "Positive good." Bacon.

2. Derived from an object by itself; not dependent on changing circumstances or relations; absolute; -- opposed to relative; as, the idea of beauty is not positive, but depends on the different tastes individuals.

3. Definitely laid down; explicitly stated; clearly expressed; -- opposed to implied; as, a positive declaration or promise. Positive words, that he would not bear arms against King Edward's son. Bacon.

4. Hence: Not admitting of any doubt, condition, qualification, or discretion; not dependent on circumstances or probabilities; not speculative; compelling assent or obedience; peremptory; indisputable; decisive; as, positive instructions; positive truth; positive proof. "'T is positive 'gainst all exceptions." Shak.

5. Prescribed by express enactment or institution; settled by arbitrary appointment; said of laws. In laws, that which is natural bindeth universally; that which is positive, not so. Hooker.

6. Fully assured; confident; certain; sometimes, overconfident; dogmatic; overbearing; -- said of persons. Some positive, persisting fops we know, That, if once wrong, will needs be always. Pope.

7. Having the power of direct action or influence; as, a positive voice in legislation. Swift.

8. (Photog.)

Defn: Corresponding with the original in respect to the position of lights and shades, instead of having the lights and shades reversed; as, a positive picture.

9. (Chem.) (a) Electro-positive. (b) Hence, basic; metallic; not acid; -- opposed to negative, and said of metals, bases, and basic radicals. Positive crystals (Opt.), a doubly refracting crystal in which the index of refraction for the extraordinary ray is greater than for the ordinary ray, and the former is refracted nearer to the axis than the latter, as quartz and ice; -- opposed to negative crystal, or one in which this characteristic is reversed, as Iceland spar, tourmaline, etc. -- Positive degree (Gram.), that state of an adjective or adverb which denotes simple quality, without comparison or relation to increase or diminution; as, wise, noble. -- Positive electricity (Elec), the kind of electricity which is developed when glass is rubbed with silk, or which appears at that pole of a voltaic battery attached to the plate that is not attacked by the exciting liquid; -- formerly called vitreous electricity; -- opposed to Ant: negative electricity. -- Positive eyepiece. See under Eyepiece. -- Positive law. See Municipal law, under Law. -- Positive motion (Mach.), motion which is derived from a driver through unyielding intermediate pieces, or by direct contact, and not through elastic connections, nor by means of friction, gravity, etc.; definite motion. -- Positive philosophy. See Positivism. -- Positive pole. (a) (Elec.) The pole of a battery or pile which yields positive or vitreous electricity; -- opposed to Ant: negative pole. (b) (Magnetism) The north pole. [R.] -- Positive quantity (Alg.), an affirmative quantity, or one affected by the sign plus [+]. -- Positive rotation (Mech.), left-handed rotation. -- Positive sign (Math.), the sign [+] denoting plus, or more, or addition.

POSITIVE Pos"i*tive, n.

1. That which is capable of being affirmed; reality. South.

2. That which settles by absolute appointment.

3. (Gram.)

Defn: The positive degree or form.

4. (Photog.)

Defn: A picture in which the lights and shades correspond in position with those of the original, instead of being reversed, as in a negative. R. Hunt.

5. (Elec.)

Defn: The positive plate of a voltaic or electrolytic cell.

POSITIVELY Pos"i*tive*ly, adv.

Defn: In a positive manner; absolutely; really; expressly; with certainty; indubitably; peremptorily; dogmatically; -- opposed to negatively. Good and evil which is removed may be esteemed good or evil comparatively, and positively simply. Bacon. Give me some breath, some little pause, my lord, Before I positively speak herein. Shak. I would ask . . . whether . . . the divine law does not positively require humility and meekness. Sprat. Positively charged or electrified (Elec.), having a charge of positive electricity; -- opposed to Ant: negatively electrified.

POSITIVENESS Pos"i*tive*ness, n.

Defn: The quality or state of being positive; reality; actualness; certainty; confidence; peremptoriness; dogmatism. See Positive, a. Positiveness, pedantry, and ill manners. Swift. The positiveness of sins of commission lies both in the habitude of the will and in the executed act too; the positiveness of sins of omission is in the habitude of the will only. Norris.

POSITIVISM Pos"i*tiv*ism, n.

Defn: A system of philosophy originated by M. Auguste Comte, which deals only with positives. It excludes from philosophy everything but the natural phenomena or properties of knowable things, together with their invariable relations of coexistence and succession, as occurring in time and space. Such relations are denominated laws, which are to be discovered by observation, experiment, and comparison. This philosophy holds all inquiry into causes, both efficient and final, to be useless and unprofitable.

POSITIVIST Pos"i*tiv*ist, n.

Defn: A believer in positivism. -- a.

Defn: Relating to positivism.

POSITIVITY Pos`i*tiv"i*ty, n.

Defn: Positiveness. J. Morley.

POSITURE Pos"i*ture, n.

Defn: See Posture. [Obs.]

POSNET Pos"net, n. Etym: [OF. poçonet, dim. of poçon a pot, a vessel.]

Defn: A little basin; a porringer; a skillet.

POSOLOGIC; POSOLOGICAL Pos`o*log"ic, Pos`o*log"ic*al, a. Etym: [Cf. F. posologique.]

Defn: Pertaining to posology.

POSOLOGY Po*sol"o*gy, n. Etym: [Gr. -logy: cf. F. posologie.] (Med.)

Defn: The science or doctrine of doses; dosology.

POSPOLITE Pos"po*lite, n. Etym: [Pol. pospolite ruszenie a general summons to arms, an arriere-ban; pospolity general + ruszenie a stirring.]

Defn: A kind of militia in Poland, consisting of the gentry, which, in case of invasion, was summoned to the defense of the country.

POSS Poss, v. t. Etym: [See Push.]

Defn: To push; to dash; to throw. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.] A cat . . . possed them [the rats] about. Piers Plowman.

POSSE Pos"se, n.

Defn: See Posse comitatus. In posse. See In posse in the Vocabulary.

POSSE COMITATUS Pos"se com`i*ta"tus. Etym: [L. posse to be able, to have power + LL. comitatus a county, from comes, comitis, a count. See County, and Power.]

1. (Law)

Defn: The power of the county, or the citizens who may be summoned by the sheriff to assist the authorities in suppressing a riot, or executing any legal precept which is forcibly opposed. Blackstone.

2. A collection of people; a throng; a rabble. [Colloq.]

Note: The word comitatus is often omitted, and posse alone used. "A whole posse of enthusiasts." Carlyle. As if the passion that rules were the sheriff of the place, and came off with all the posse. Locke.

POSSESS Pos*sess", v. t. [imp. & p. p. Possessed; p. pr. & vb. n. Possessing.] Etym: [L. possessus, p. p. of possidere to have, possess, from an inseparable prep. (cf. Position) + sedere to sit. See Sit.]

1. To occupy in person; to hold or actually have in one's own keeping; to have and to hold. Houses and fields and vineyards shall be possessed again in this land. Jer. xxxii. 15. Yet beauty, though injurious, hath strange power, After offense returning, to regain Love once possessed. Milton.

2. To have the legal title to; to have a just right to; to be master of; to own; to have; as, to possess property, an estate, a book. I am yours, and all that I possess. Shak.

3. To obtain occupation or possession of; to accomplish; to gain; to seize. How . . . to possess the purpose they desired. Spenser.

4. To enter into and influence; to control the will of; to fill; to affect; -- said especially of evil spirits, passions, etc. "Weakness possesseth me." Shak. Those which were possessed with devils. Matt. iv. 24. For ten inspired, ten thousand are possessed. Roscommon.

5. To put in possession; to make the owner or holder of property, power, knowledge, etc.; to acquaint; to inform; -- followed by of or with before the thing possessed, and now commonly used reflexively. I have possessed your grace of what I purpose. Shak. Record a gift . . . of all he dies possessed Unto his son. Shak. We possessed our selves of the kingdom of Naples. Addison. To possess our minds with an habitual good intention. Addison.

Syn. -- To have; hold; occupy; control; own. -- Possess, Have. Have is the more general word. To possess denotes to have as a property. It usually implies more permanence or definiteness of control or ownership than is involved in having. A man does not possess his wife and children: they are (so to speak) part of himself. For the same reason, we have the faculties of reason, understanding, will, sound judgment, etc.: they are exercises of the mind, not possessions.

POSSESSION Pos*ses"sion, n. Etym: [F. possession, L. possessio.]

1. The act or state of possessing, or holding as one's own.

2. (Law)

Defn: The having, holding, or detention of property in one's power or command; actual seizin or occupancy; ownership, whether rightful or wrongful.

Note: Possession may be either actual or constructive; actual, when a party has the immediate occupancy; constructive, when he has only the right to such occupancy.

3. The thing possessed; that which any one occupies, owns, or controls; in the plural, property in the aggregate; wealth; dominion; as, foreign possessions. When the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. Matt. xix. 22. Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession. Acts v. 1. The house of Jacob shall possess their possessions. Ob. 17.

4. The state of being possessed or controlled, as by an evil spirit, or violent passions; madness; frenzy; as, demoniacal possession. How long hath this possession held the man Shak. To give possession, to put in another's power or occupancy. -- To put in possession. (a) To invest with ownership or occupancy; to provide or furnish with; as, to put one in possession of facts or information. (b) (Law) To place one in charge of property recovered in ejectment or writ of entry. -- To take possession, to enter upon, or to bring within one's power or occupancy. -- Writ of possession (Law), a precept directing a sheriff to put a person in peaceable possession of property recovered in ejectment or writ of entry.

POSSESSION Pos*ses"sion, v. t.

Defn: To invest with property. [Obs.]

POSSESSIONARY Pos*ses"sion*a*ry, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to possession; arising from possession.

POSSESSIONER Pos*ses"sion*er, n.

1. A possessor; a property holder. [Obs.] "Possessioners of riches." E. Hall. Having been of old freemen and possessioners. Sir P. Sidney.

2. An invidious name for a member of any religious community endowed with property in lands, buildings, etc., as contrasted with mendicant friars. [Obs.] Wyclif.

POSSESSIVAL Pos`ses*si"val, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to the possessive case; as, a possessival termination. Earle.

POSSESSIVE Pos*sess"ive, a. Etym: [L. possessivus: cf. F. possessif.]

Defn: Of or pertaining to possession; having or indicating possession. Possessive case (Eng. Gram.), the genitive case; the case of nouns and pronouns which expresses ownership, origin, or some possessive relation of one thing to another; as, Homer's admirers; the pear's flavor; the dog's faithfulness. -- Possessive pronoun, a pronoun denoting ownership; as, his name; her home; my book.

POSSESSIVE Pos*sess"ive, n.

1. (Gram.)

Defn: The possessive case.

2. (Gram.)

Defn: A possessive pronoun, or a word in the possessive case.

POSSESSIVELY Pos*sess"ive*ly, adv.

Defn: In a possessive manner.

POSSESSOR Pos*sess"or, n. Etym: [L.: cf. F. possesseur.]

Defn: One who possesses; one who occupies, holds, owns, or controls; one who has actual participation or enjoyment, generally of that which is desirable; a proprietor. "Possessors of eternal glory." Law. As if he had been possessor of the whole world. Sharp.

Syn. -- Owner; proprietor; master; holder; occupant.

POSSESSORY Pos*sess"o*ry, a. Etym: [L. possessorius: cf. F. possessoire.]

Defn: Of or pertaining to possession, either as a fact or a right; of the nature of possession; as, a possessory interest; a possessory lord. Possessory action or suit (Law), an action to regain or obtain possession of something. See under Petitory.

POSSET Pos"set, n. Etym: [W. posel curdled milk, posset.]

Defn: A beverage composed of hot milk curdled by some strong infusion, as by wine, etc., -- much in favor formerly. "I have drugged their posset." Shak.

POSSET Pos"set, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Posseted; p. pr. & vb. n. Posseting.]

1. To curdle; to turn, as milk; to coagulate; as, to posset the blood. [Obs.] Shak.

2. To treat with possets; to pamper. [R.] "She was cosseted and posseted." O. W. Holmes.

POSSIBILITY Pos`si*bil"i*ty, n.; pl. Possibilities. Etym: [F. possibilité, L. possibilitas.]

1. The quality or state of being possible; the power of happening, being, or existing. "All possibility of error." Hooker. "Latent possibilities of excellence." Johnson.

2. That which is possible; a contingency; a thing or event that may not happen; a contingent interest, as in real or personal estate. South. Burrill.

POSSIBLE Pos"si*ble, a. Etym: [F., fr. L. possibilis, fr. posse to be able, to have power; potis able, capable + esse to be. See Potent, Am, and cf. Host a landlord.]

Defn: Capable of existing or occurring, or of being conceived or thought of; able to happen; capable of being done; not contrary to the nature of things; -- sometimes used to express extreme improbability; barely able to be, or to come to pass; as, possibly he is honest, as it is possible that Judas meant no wrong. With God all things are possible. Matt. xix. 26.

Syn. -- Practicable; likely. See Practicable.

POSSIBLY Pos"si*bly, adv.

Defn: In a possible manner; by possible means; especially, by extreme, remote, or improbable intervention, change, or exercise of power; by a chance; perhaps; as, possibly he may recover. Can we . . . possibly his love desert Milton. When possibly I can, I will return. Shak.

POSSUM Pos"sum, n. Etym: [Shortened from opossum.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: An opossum. [Colloq. U. S.] To play possum, To act possum, to feign ignorance, indifference or inattention, with the intent to deceive; to dissemble; -- in allusion to the habit of the opossum, which feigns death when attacked or alarmed.

POST- Post-. Etym: [L. post behind, after; cf. Skr. paçcabehind, afterwards.]

Defn: A prefix signifying behind, back, after; as, postcommissure, postdot, postscript.

POST Post, a. Etym: [F. aposter to place in a post or position, generally for a bad purpose.]

Defn: Hired to do what is wrong; suborned. [Obs.] Sir E. Sandys.

POST Post, n. Etym: [AS., fr. L. postis, akin to ponere, positum, to place. See Position, and cf. 4th Post.]

1. A piece of timber, metal, or other solid substance, fixed, or to be fixed, firmly in an upright position, especially when intended as a stay or support to something else; a pillar; as, a hitching post; a fence post; the posts of a house. They shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper doorpost of the houses. Ex. xii. 7. Then by main force pulled up, and on his shoulders bore, The gates of Azza, post and massy bar. Milton. Unto his order he was a noble post. Chaucer.

Note: Post, in the sense of an upright timber or strut, is used in composition, in such words as king-post, queen-post, crown-post, gatepost, etc.