Chapter CCCLXXXIII: Prologue (34)

3. Having a curved outline or form; especially, one like the arc of a circle or an ellipse, or a portion of the surface of a sphere; rotund; bulging; protuberant; not angular or pointed; as, a round arch; round hills. "Their round haunches gored." Shak.

4. Full; complete; not broken; not fractional; approximately in even units, tens, hundreds, thousands, etc.; -- said of numbers. Pliny put a round number near the truth, rather than the fraction. Arbuthnot.

5. Not inconsiderable; large; hence, generous; free; as, a round price. Three thousand ducats; 'tis a good round sum. Shak. Round was their pace at first, but slackened soon. Tennyson.

6. Uttered or emitted with a full tone; as, a round voice; a round note.

7. (Phonetics)

Defn: Modified, as a vowel, by contraction of the lip opening, making the opening more or less round in shape; rounded; labialized; labial. See Guide to Pronunciation, § 11.

8. Outspoken; plain and direct; unreserved; unqualified; not mincing; as, a round answer; a round oath. "The round assertion." M. Arnold. Sir Toby, I must be round with you. Shak.

9. Full and smoothly expanded; not defective or abrupt; finished; polished; -- said of style, or of authors with reference to their style. [Obs.] In his satires Horace is quick, round, and pleasant. Peacham.

10. Complete and consistent; fair; just; -- applied to conduct. Round dealing is the honor of man's nature. Bacon. At a round rate, rapidly. Dryden. -- In round numbers, approximately in even units, tens, hundreds, etc.; as, a bin holding 99 or 101 bushels may be said to hold in round numbers 100 bushels. -- Round bodies (Geom.), the sphere right cone, and right cylinder. -- Round clam (Zoöl.), the quahog. -- Round dance one which is danced by couples with a whirling or revolving motion, as the waltz, polka, etc. -- Round game, a game, as of cards, in which each plays on his own account. -- Round hand, a style of penmanship in which the letters are formed in nearly an upright position, and each separately distinct; -- distinguished from running hand. -- Round robin. Etym: [Perhaps F. round round + ruban ribbon.] (a) A written petition, memorial, remonstrance, protest, etc., the signatures to which are made in a circle so as not to indicate who signed first. "No round robins signed by the whole main deck of the Academy or the Porch." De Quincey. (b) (Zoöl.) The cigar fish. -- Round shot, a solid spherical projectile for ordnance. -- Round Table, the table about which sat King Arthur and his knights. See Knights of the Round Table, under Knight. -- Round tower, one of certain lofty circular stone towers, tapering from the base upward, and usually having a conical cap or roof, which crowns the summit, -- found chiefly in Ireland. They are of great antiquity, and vary in heigh from thirty-five to one hundred and thiry feet. -- Round trot, one in which the horse throws out his feet roundly; a full, brisk, quick trot. Addison. -- Round turn (Naut.), one turn of a rope round a timber, a belaying pin, etc. -- To bring up with a round turn, to stop abruptly. [Colloq.]

Syn. -- Circular; spherical; globular; globase; orbicular; orbed; cylindrical; full; plump; rotund.

ROUND Round, n.

1. Anything round, as a circle, round" [the crown]. Shak. In labyrinth of many a round self-rolled. Milton.

2. A series of changes or events ending where it began; a series of like events recurring in continuance; a cycle; a periodical revolution; as, the round of the seasons; a round of pleasures.

3. A course of action or conduct performed by a number of persons in turn, or one after another, as if seated in a circle. Women to cards may be compared: we play A round or two; which used, we throw away. Granville. The feast was served; the bowl was crowned; To the king's pleasure went the mirthful round. Prior.

4. A series of duties or tasks which must be performed in turn, and then repeated. the trivial round, the common task. Keble.

5. A circular dance. Come, knit hands, and beat the ground, In a light fantastic round. Milton.

6. That which goes round a whole circle or company; as, a round of applause.

7. Rotation, as in office; succession. Holyday.

8. The step of a ladder; a rundle or rung; also, a crosspiece which joins and braces the legs of a chair. All the rounds like Jacob's ladder rise. Dryden.

9. A course ending where it began; a circuit; a beat; especially, one freguently or regulary traversed; also, the act of traversing a circuit; as, a watchman's round; the rounds of the postman.

10. (Mil.) (a) A walk performed by a guard or an officer round the rampart of a garrison, or among sentinels, to see that the sentinels are faithful and all things safe; also, the guard or officer, with his attendants, who performs this duty; -- usually in the plural. (b) A general discharge of firearms by a body of troops in which each soldier fires once. (c) Ammunition for discharging a piece or pieces once; as, twenty rounds of ammunition were given out.

11. (Mus.)

Defn: A short vocal piece, resembling a catch in which three or four voices follow each other round in a species of canon in the unison.

12. The time during which prize fighters or boxers are in actual contest without an intermission, as prescribed by their rules; a bout.

13. A brewer's vessel in which the fermentation is concluded, the yeast escaping through the bunghole.

14. A vessel filled, as for drinking. [R.]

15. An assembly; a group; a circle; as, a round of politicians. Addison.

16. (Naut.)

Defn: See Roundtop.

17. Same as Round of beef, below. Gentlemen of the round. (a) Gentlemen soldiers of low rank who made the rounds. See 10 (a), above. (b) Disbanded soldiers who lived by begging. [Obs.] Worm-eaten gentlemen of the round, such as have vowed to sit on the skirts of the city, let your provost and his half dozen of halberdiers do what they can. B. Jonson. -- Round of beef, the part of the thigh below the aitchbone, or between the rump and the leg. See Illust. of beef. -- Round steak, a beefsteak cut from the round. -- Sculpture in the round, sculpture giving the full form, as of man; statuary, distinguished from relief.

ROUND Round, adv.

1. On all sides; around. Round he throws his baleful eyes. Milton.

2. Circularly; in a circular form or manner; by revolving or reversing one's position; as, to turn one's head round; a wheel turns round.

3. In circumference; as, a ball is ten inches round.

4. From one side or party to another; as to come or turn round, -- that is, to change sides or opinions.

5. By or in a circuit; by a course longer than the direct course; back to the starting point.

6. Through a circle, as of friends or houses. The invitations were sent round accordingly. Sir W. Scott.

7. Roundly; fully; vigorously. [Obs.] Chaucer. All round, over the whole place; in every direction. -- All-round, of general capacity; as, an all-round man. [Colloq.] - - To bring one round. (a) To cause one to change his opinions or line of conduct. (b) To restore one to health. [Colloq.]

ROUND Round, prep.

Defn: On every side of, so as to encompass or encircle; around; about; as, the people atood round him; to go round the city; to wind a cable round a windlass. The serpent Error twines round human hearts. Cowper. Round about, an emphatic form for round or about. "Moses . . . set them [The elders] round about the tabernacle." Num. xi. 24. -- To come round, to gain the consent of, or circumvent, (a person) by flattery or deception. [Colloq.]

ROUND Round, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Rounded; p. pr. & vb. n. Rounding.]

1. To make circular, spherical, or cylindrical; to give a round or convex figure to; as, to round a silver coin; to round the edges of anything. Worms with many feet, which round themselves into balls, are bred chiefly under logs of timber. Bacon. The figures on our modern medals are raised and rounded to a very great perfection. Addison.

2. To surround; to encircle; to encompass. The inclusive verge Of golden metal that must round my brow. Shak.

3. To bring to fullness or completeness; to complete; hence, to bring to a fit conclusion. We are such stuff As dreams are made on, and our little life Is rounded with a sleep. Shak.

4. To go round wholly or in part; to go about (a corner or point); as, to round a corner; to round Cape Horn.

5. To make full, smooth, and flowing; as, to round periods in writing. Swift. To round in (Naut.) To haul up; usually, to haul the slack of (a rope) through its leading block, or to haul up (a tackle which hangs loose) by its fall. Totten. (b) To collect together (cattle) by riding around them, as on cattle ranches. [Western U.S.]

ROUND Round, v. i.

1. To grow round or full; hence, to attain to fullness, completeness, or perfection. The queen your mother rounds apace. Shak. So rounds he to a separate mind, From whence clear memory may begin. Tennyson.

2. To go round, as a guard. [Poetic] They . . . nightly rounding walk. Milton.

3. To go or turn round; to wheel about. Tennyson. To round to (Naut.), to turn the head of a ship toward the wind.

ROUNDABOUT Round"a*bout`, a.

1. Circuitous; going round; indirect; as, roundabout speech. We have taken a terrible roundabout road. Burke.

2. Encircling; enveloping; comprehensive. "Large, sound, roundabout sense." Locke.

ROUNDABOUT Round"a*bout`, n.

1. A horizontal wheel or frame, commonly with wooden horses, etc., on which children ride; a merry-go-round. Smart.

2. A dance performed in a circle. Goldsmith.

3. A short, close jacket worn by boys, sailors, etc.

4. A state or scene of constant change, or of recurring labor and vicissitude. Cowper.

ROUNDABOUTNESS Round"a*bout`ness, n.

Defn: The quality of being roundabout; circuitousness.

ROUND-ARM Round"-arm`, a. (Cricket)

Defn: Applied to the method delivering the ball in bowling, by swinging the arm horizontally. R. A. Proctor.

ROUND-BACKED Round"-backed`, a.

Defn: Having a round back or shoulders; round-shouldered.

ROUNDED Round"ed, a. (Phonetics)

Defn: Modified by contraction of the lip opening; labialized; labial. See Guide to Pronunciation, § 11.

ROUNDEL Roun"del, n. Etym: [OF. rondel a roundelay, F. rondel, rondeau, a dim. fr. rond; for sense 2, cf. F. rondelle a round, a round shield. See Round, a., and cf. Rondel, Rondelay.]

1. (Mus.)

Defn: A rondelay. "Sung all the roundel lustily." Chaucer. Come, now a roundel and a fairy song. Shak.

2. Anything having a round form; a round figure; a circle. The Spaniards, casting themselves into roundels, . . . made a flying march to Calais. Bacon. Specifically: (a) A small circular shield, sometimes not more than a foot in diameter, used by soldiers in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. (b) (Her.) A circular spot; a sharge in the form of a small circle. (c) (Fort.) A bastion of a circular form.

ROUNDELAY Round"e*lay, n. Etym: [OF. rondelet, dim. of rondel. See Roundel, Roundeau, and cf. Roundlet, Rundlet.]

1. (Poetry)

Defn: See Rondeau, and Rondel.

2. (Mus.) (a) A tune in which a simple strain is often repeated; a simple rural strain which is short and lively. Spenser. Tennyson. (b) A dance in a circle.

3. Anything having a round form; a roundel.

ROUNDER Round"er, n.

1. One who rounds; one who comes about frequently or regularly.

2. A tool for making an edge or surface round.

3. pl.

Defn: An English game somewhat resembling baseball; also, another English game resembling the game of fives, but played with a football. Now we play rounders, and then we played prisoner's base. Bagehot.

ROUNDFISH Round"fish, n. (Zoöl.) (a) Any ordinary market fish, exclusive of flounders, sole, halibut, and other flatfishes. (b) A lake whitefish (Coregonus quadrilateralis), less compressed than the common species. It is very abundant in British America and Alaska.

ROUNDHEAD Round"head`, n. (Eng. Hist.)

Defn: A nickname for a Puritan. See Roundheads, the, in the Dictionary of Noted Names in Fiction. Toone.

ROUNDHEADED Round"head`ed, a.

Defn: Having a round head or top.

ROUNDHOUSE Round"house`, n.

1. A constable's prison; a lockup, watch-house, or station house. [Obs.]

2. (Naut.) (a) A cabin or apartament on the after part of the quarter-deck, having the poop for its roof; -- sometimes called the coach. (b) A privy near the bow of the vessel.

3. A house for locomotive engines, built circularly around a turntable.

ROUNDING Round"ing, a.

Defn: Round or nearly round; becoming round; roundish.

ROUNDING Round"ing, n.

1. (Naut.)

Defn: Small rope, or strands of rope, or spun yarn, wound round a rope to keep it from chafing; -- called also service.

2. (Phonetics)

Defn: Modifying a speech sound by contraction of the lip opening; labializing; labialization. See Guide to Pronunciation, § 11.

ROUNDISH Round"ish, a.

Defn: Somewhat round; as, a roundish seed; a roundish figure. -- Round"ish*ness, n.

ROUNDLET Round"let, n.

Defn: A little circle. J. Gregory.

ROUNDLY Round"ly, adv.

1. In a round form or manner.

2. Openly; boldly; peremptorily; plumply. He affirms everything roundly. Addison.

3. Briskly; with speed. locke. Two of the outlaws walked roundly forward. Sir W. Scott.

4. Completely; vigorously; in earnest. Shak.

5. Without regard to detail; in gross; comprehensively; generally; as, to give numbers roundly. In speaking roundly of this period. H. Morley.

ROUNDNESS Round"ness, n.

1. The quality or state of being round in shape; as, the roundness of the globe, of the orb of the sun, of a ball, of a bowl, a column, etc.

2. Fullness; smoothness of flow; as, the roundness of a period; the roundness of a note; roundness of tone.

3. Openess; plainess; boldness; positiveness; as, the roundness of an assertion.

Syn. -- Circularity; sphericity; globosity; globularity; globularness; orbicularness; cylindricity; fullness; plumpness; rotundity.

ROUNDRIDGE Round"ridge`, v. t. (Agric.)

Defn: To form into round ridges by plowing. B. Edwards.

ROUND-SHOULDERED Round"-shoul`dered, a.

Defn: Having the shoulders stooping or projecting; round-backed.

ROUNDSMAN Rounds"man, n.; pl. Roundsmen (.

Defn: A patrolman; also, a policeman who acts as an inspector over the rounds of the patrolmen.

ROUNDTOP Round"top`, n. (Naut.)

Defn: A top; a platform at a masthead; -- so called because formerly round in shape.

ROUND-UP Round"-up`, n.

Defn: The act of collecting or gathering together scattered cattle by riding around them and driving them in. [Western U.S.]

ROUNDURE Roun"dure, n. Etym: [Cf. Rondure.]

Defn: Roundness; a round or circle. [Obs.] Shak.

ROUNDWORM Round"worm`, n. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A nematoid worm.

ROUNDY Round"y, a.

Defn: Round. [Obs.] Sir P. Sidney.

ROUP Roup, v. i. & t. Etym: [Cf. AS. hrrufen, Goth. hr. Cf. Roop.]

Defn: To cry or shout; hence, to sell by auction. [Scot.] Jamieson.

ROUP Roup, n.

1. An outcry; hence, a sale of gods by auction. [Scot.] Jamieson. To roup, that is, the sale of his crops, was over. J. C. Shairp.

2. A disease in poultry. See Pip.

ROUSANT Rous"ant, a. (her.)

Defn: Rising; -- applied to a bird in the attitude of rising; also, sometmes, to a bird in profile with wings addorsed.

ROUSE Rouse (rouz or rous), v. i. & t. Etym: [Perhaps the same word as rouse to start up, "buckle to."] (Naut.)

Defn: To pull or haul strongly and all together, as upon a rope, without the assistance of mechanical appliances.

ROUSE Rouse (rouz), n. Etym: [Cf. D. roes drunkeness, icel. r, Sw. rus, G. rauchen, and also E. rouse, v.t., rush, v.i. Cf. Row a disturbance.]

1. A bumper in honor of a toast or health. [Obs.] Shak.

2. A carousal; a festival; a drinking frolic. Fill the cup, and fill the can, Have a rouse before the morn. Tennyson.

ROUSE Rouse, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Roused (rouzd); p. pr. & vb. n. Rousing.] Etym: [Probably of Scan. origin; cf. Sw. rusa to rush, Dan. ruse, AS. hreósan to fall, rush. Cf. Rush, v.]

1. To cause to start from a covert or lurking place; as, to rouse a deer or other animal of the chase. Like wild boars late roused out of the brakes. Spenser. Rouse the fleet hart, and cheer the opening hound. Pope.

2. To wake from sleep or repose; as, to rouse one early or suddenly.

3. To excite to lively thought or action from a state of idleness, languor, stupidity, or indifference; as, to rouse the faculties, passions, or emotions. To rouse up a people, the most phlegmatic of any in Christendom. Atterbury.

4. To put in motion; to stir up; to agitate. Blustering winds, which all night long Had roused the sea. Milton.

5. To raise; to make erect. [Obs.] Spenser. Shak.

ROUSE Rouse, v. i.

1. To get or start up; to rise. [Obs.] Night's black agents to their preys do rouse. Shak.

2. To awake from sleep or repose. Morpheus rouses from his bed. Pope.

3. To be exited to thought or action from a state of indolence or inattention.

ROUSER Rous"er, n.

1. One who, or that which, rouses.

2. Something very exciting or great. [Colloq.]

3. (Brewing)

Defn: A stirrer in a copper for boiling wort.

ROUSING Rous"ing, a.

1. Having power to awaken or excite; exciting. I begin to feel Some rousing motions in me. Milton.

2. Very great; violent; astounding; as, a rousing fire; a rousing lie. [Colloq.]

ROUSINGLY Rous"ing*ly, adv.

Defn: In a rousing manner.

ROUSSETTE Rous*sette", n. Etym: [F.; -- so called in allusion to the color. See Russet.]

1. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A fruit bat, especially the large species (Pieropus vulgaris) inhabiting the islands of the Indian ocean. It measures about a yard across the expanded wings.

2. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Any small shark of the genus Scyllium; -- called also dogfish. See Dogfish.

ROUST Roust (roust), v. t.

Defn: To rouse; to disturb; as, to roust one out. [Prov. Eng. & Local, U.S.]

ROUST Roust, n. Etym: [Cf. Icel. röst an estuary.]

Defn: A strong tide or current, especially in a narrow channel. [Written also rost, and roost.] Jamieson.

ROUSTABOUT Roust"a*bout`, n. Etym: [Etymol. uncertain.]

Defn: A laborer, especially a deck hand, on a river steamboat, who moves the cargo, loads and unloads wood, and the like; in an opprobrious sense, a shiftless vagrant who lives by chance jobs. [Western U.S.]

ROUT Rout (rout), v. i. Etym: [AS. hrutan.]

Defn: To roar; to bellow; to snort; to snore loudly. [Obs. or Scot.] Chaucer.

ROUT Rout, n.

Defn: A bellowing; a shouting; noise; clamor; uproar; disturbance; tumult. Shak. This new book the whole world makes such a rout about. Sterne. "My child, it is not well," I said, "Among the graves to shout; To laugh and play among the dead, And make this noisy rout." Trench.

ROUT Rout, v. t. Etym: [A variant of root.]

Defn: To scoop out with a gouge or other tool; to furrow. To rout out (a) To turn up to view, as if by rooting; to discover; to find. (b) To turn out by force or compulsion; as, to rout people out of bed. [Colloq.]

ROUT Rout, v. i.

Defn: To search or root in the ground, as a swine. Edwards.

ROUT Rout, n. Etym: [OF. route, LL. rupta, properly, a breaking, fr. L. ruptus, p.p. of rumpere to break. See Rupture, reave, and cf. Rote repetition of forms, Route. In some senses this word has been confused with rout a bellowing, an uproar.] [Formerly spelled also route.]

1. A troop; a throng; a company; an assembly; especially, a traveling company or throng. [Obs.] "A route of ratones [rats]." Piers Plowman. "A great solemn route." Chaucer. And ever he rode the hinderest of the route. Chaucer. A rout of people there assembled were. Spenser.

2. A disorderly and tumultuous crowd; a mob; hence, the rabble; the herd of common people. the endless routs of wretched thralls. Spenser. The ringleader and head of all this rout. Shak. Nor do I name of men the common rout. Milton.

3. The state of being disorganized and thrown into confusion; -- said especially of an army defeated, broken in pieces, and put to flight in disorder or panic; also, the act of defeating and breaking up an army; as, the rout of the enemy was complete. thy army . . . Dispersed in rout, betook them all to fly. Daniel. To these giad conquest, murderous rout to those. pope.

4. (Law)

Defn: A disturbance of the peace by persons assembled together with intent to do a thing which, if executed, would make them rioters, and actually making a motion toward the executing thereof. Wharton.

5. A fashionable assembly, or large evening party. "At routs and dances." Landor. To put to rout, to defeat and throw into confusion; to overthrow and put to flight.

ROUT Rout, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Routed; p. pr. & vb. n. Routing.]

Defn: To break the ranks of, as troops, and put them to flight in disorder; to put to rout. That party . . . that charged the Scots, so totally routed and defeated their whole army, that they fied. Clarendon.

Syn. -- To defeat; discomfit; overpower; overthrow.

ROUT Rout, v. i.

Defn: To assemble in a crowd, whether orderly or disorderly; to collect in company. [obs.] Bacon. In all that land no Christian[s] durste route. Chaucer.

ROUT CAKE Rout" cake`.

Defn: A kind of rich sweet cake made for routs, or evening parties.

Twenty-four little rout cakes that were lying neglected in a plate. Thackeray.

ROUTE Route (root or rout; 277), n. Etym: [OE. & F. route, OF. rote, fr. L. rupta (sc. via), fr. ruptus, p.p. of rumpere to break; hence, literally, a broken or beaten way or path. See Rout, and cf. Rut a track.]

Defn: The course or way which is traveled or passed, or is to be passed; a passing; a course; a road or path; a march. Wide through the furzy field their route they take. Gay.

ROUTER Rout"er, n. (Carp.) (a) A plane made like a spokeshave, for working the inside edges of circular sashes. (b) A plane with a hooked tool protruding far below the sole, for smoothing the bottom of a cavity.

ROUTHE Routhe, n.

Defn: Ruth; sorrow. [Obs.] Chaucer.

ROUTINARY Rou"ti*na*ry, a.

Defn: Involving, or pertaining to, routine; ordinary; customary. [R.] Emerson.

ROUTINE Rou*tine", n. Etym: [F., fr. route a path, way, road. See Route, Roterepetition.]

1. A round of business, amusement, or pleasure, daily or frequently pursued; especially, a course of business or offical duties regularly or frequently returning.

2. Any regular course of action or procedure rigidly adhered to by the mere force of habit.

ROUTINISM Rou*tin""ism, n.

Defn: the practice of doing things with undiscriminating, mechanical regularity.

ROUTINIST Rou*tin"ist, n.

Defn: One who habituated to a routine.

ROUTISH Rout"ish, a.

Defn: Uproarious; riotous. [Obs.]

ROUTOUSLY Rout"ous*ly, adv. (Law)

Defn: With that violation of law called a rout. See 5th Rout, 4.

ROUX Roux, n. Etym: [F. beurre roux brown butter.] (Cookery)

Defn: A thickening, made of flour, for soups and gravies.

ROVE Rove, v. t. Etym: [perhaps fr. or akin to reeve.]

1. To draw through an eye or aperture.

2. To draw out into falkes; to card, as wool. Jamieson.

3. To twist slightly; to bring together, as slivers of wool or cotton, and twist slightly before spinning.

ROVE Rove, n.

1. A copper washer upon which the end of a nail is clinched in boat building.

2. A roll or sliver of wool or cotton drawn out and

ROVE Rove, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Roved; p. pr. & vb. n. Roving.] Etym: [Cf. D. rooven to rob; akin to E. reave. See Reave Rob.]

1. To practice robbery on the seas;to wander about on the seas in piracy. [Obs.] Hakluyt.

2. Hence, to wander; to ramble; to rauge; to go, move, or pass without certain direction in any manner, by sailing, walking, riding, flying, or otherwise. For who has power to walk has power to rove. Arbuthnot.

3. (Archery)

Defn: To shoot at rovers; hence, to shoot at an angle of elevation, not at point-blank (rovers usually being beyond the point-blank range). Fair Venusson that with thy cruel dart At that good knoght cunningly didst rove. Spenser.

Syn. -- To wander; roam; range; ramble stroll.

ROVE Rove, v. t.

1. To wander over or through. Roving the field, i chanced A goodly tree far distant to behold. milton.

2. To plow into ridges by turning the earth of two furrows together.

ROVE Rove, n.

Defn: The act of wandering; a ramble. In thy nocturnal rove one moment halt. Young. Rove beetle (Zoöl.), any one of numerous species of beetles of the family Staphylinidæ, having short elytra beneath which the wings are folded transversely. They are rapid runners, and seldom fly.

ROVER Rov"er, n. Etym: [D. roover a robber. See Rove, v. i.]

1. One who practices robbery on the seas; a pirate. Yet Pompey the Great deserveth honor more justly for scouring the seas, and taking from the rovers 846 sail of ships. Holland.

2. One who wanders about by sea or land; a wanderer; a rambler.

3. Hence, a fickle, inconstant person.

4. (Croquet)

Defn: A ball which has passed through all the hoops and would go out if it hit the stake but is continued in play; also, the player of such a ball.

5. (Archery) (a) Casual marks at uncertain distances. Encyc. Brit. (b) A sort of arrow. [Obs.] All sorts, flights, rovers, and butt shafts. B. Jonson. At rovers, at casual marks; hence, at random; as, shooting at rovers. See def. 5 (a) above. Addison. Bound down on every side with many bands because it shall not run at rovers. Robynson (More's Utopia).

ROVING Rov"ing, n.

1. The operatin of forming the rove, or slightly twisted sliver or roll of wool or cotton, by means of a machine for the purpose, called a roving frame, or roving machine.

2. A roll or sliver of wool or cotton drawn out and slightly twisted; a rove. See 2d Rove, 2. Roving frame, Roving machine, a machine for drawing and twisting roves and twisting roves and winding them on bobbin for the spinning machine.

ROVING Rov"ing, n.

Defn: The act of one who roves or wanders.

ROVINGLY Rov"ing*ly, adv.

Defn: In a wandering manner.

ROVINGNESS Rov"ing*ness, n.

Defn: The state of roving.

ROW Row, a. & adv. Etym: [See Rough.]

Defn: Rough; stern; angry. [Obs.] "Lock he never so row." Chaucer.

ROW Row, n. Etym: [Abbrev. fr. rouse, n.]

Defn: A noisy, turbulent quarrel or disturbance; a brawl. [Colloq.] Byron.

ROW Row, n. Etym: [OE. rowe, rawe, rewe, AS. raw, r; probably akin to D. rij, G. reihe; cf. Skr. r a line, stroke.]

Defn: A series of persons or things arranged in a continued line; a line; a rank; a file; as, a row of trees; a row of houses or columns. And there were windows in three rows. 1 Kings vii. 4. The bright seraphim in burning row. Milton. Row culture (Agric.), the practice of cultivating crops in drills. -- Row of points (Geom.), the points on a line, infinite in number, as the points in which a pencil of rays is intersected by a line.

ROW Row, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Rowed; p. pr. & vb. n. Rowing.] Etym: [AS. r; akin to D. roeijen, MHG. rüejen, Dan. roe, Sw. ro, Icel. r, L. remus oar, Gr. aritra. sq. root8. Cf. Rudder.]

1. To propel with oars, as a boat or vessel, along the surface of water; as, to row a boat.

2. To transport in a boat propelled with oars; as, to row the captain ashore in his barge.

ROW Row, v. i.

1. To use the oar; as, to row well.

2. To be moved by oars; as, the boat rows easily.

ROW Row, n.

Defn: The act of rowing; excursion in a rowboat.

ROWABLE Row"a*ble, a.

Defn: That may be rowed, or rowed upon. "That long barren fen, once rowable." B. Jonson.

ROWAN Row"an, n.

Defn: Rowan tree. Rowan barry, a barry of the rowan tree.

ROWAN TREE Row"an tree`. Etym: [Cf. Sw. rönn, Dan. rönne, Icel. reynir, and L. ornus.] (Bot.)

Defn: A european tree (Pyrus aucuparia) related to the apple, but with pinnate leaves and flat corymbs of small white flowers followed by little bright red berries. Called also roan tree, and mountain ash. The name is also applied to two American trees of similar habit (Pyrus Americana, and P. sambucifolia).

ROWBOAT Row"boat`, n.

Defn: A boat designed to be propelled by oars instead of sails.

ROWDY Row"dy, n.; pl. Rowdies. Etym: [From Rout, or Row a brawl.]

Defn: One who engages in rows, or noisy quarrels; a ruffianly fellow. M. Arnold.

ROWDYDOW Row"dy*dow, n.

Defn: Hubbub; uproar. [Vulgar]

ROWDYDOWDY Row"dy*dow`dy, a.

Defn: Uproarious. [Vulgar]

ROWDYISH Row"dy*ish, a.

Defn: Resembling a rowdy in temper or conduct; characteristic of a rowdy.

ROWDYISM Row"dy*ism, n.

Defn: the conduct of a rowdy.

ROWED Rowed, a.

Defn: Formed into a row, or rows; having a row, or rows; as, a twelve-rowed ear of corn.

ROWEL Row"el, n. Etym: [OF. roele, rouele, properly, a little wheel, F. rouelle collop, slice, LL. rotella a little wheel, dim. of L. rota a wheel. See Roll, and cf. Rota.]

1. The little wheel of a spur, with sharp points. With sounding whip, and rowels dyed in blood. Cowper.

2. A little flat ring or wheel on horses' bits. The iron rowels into frothy foam he bit. Spenser.

3. (Far.)

Defn: A roll of hair, silk, etc., passed through the flesh of horses, answering to a seton in human surgery.

ROWEL Row"el, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Roweled or Rowelled; p. pr. & vb. n. Roweling or Rowelling.] (Far.)

Defn: To insert a rowel, or roll of hair or silk, into (as the flesh of a horse). Mortimer.

ROWEL BONE Row"el bone`.

Defn: See rewel bone. [Obs.]

ROWEN Row"en, n. Etym: [Cf. E. rough, OE. row, rowe.] [Called also rowet, rowett, rowings, roughings.]

1. A stubble field left unplowed till late in the autumn, that it may be cropped by cattle. Turn your cows, that give milk, into your rowens till snow comes. Mortimer.

2. The second growth of grass in a season; aftermath. [Prov. Eng. & Local, U.S.]

ROWER Row"er, n.

Defn: One who rows with an oar.

ROWETT Row"ett, n.

Defn: See Rowen.

ROWLOCK Row"lock ( colloq. , n. Etym: [For oarlock; AS. *rloc, where the second part is skin to G. loch a hole, E. lock a fastening. See Oar, and Lock.] (Naut.)

Defn: A contrivance or arrangement serving as a fulcrum for an oar in rowing. It consists sometimes of a notch in the gunwale of a boat, sometimes of a pair of pins between which the oar rests on the edge of the gunwale, sometimes of a single pin passing through the oar, or of a metal fork or stirrup pivoted in the gunwale and suporting the oar.

ROWN Rown, v. i. & t.

Defn: see Roun. [Obs.] Chaucer.

ROWPORT Row"port, n. (Naut.)

Defn: An opening in the side of small vessels of war, near the surface of the water, to facilitate rowing in calm weather.

ROXBURGH Rox"burgh (; Scot. , n. Etym: [From the third duke of Roxburgh (Scotland), a noted book collector who had his books so bound.]

Defn: A style of bookbinding in which the back is plain leather, the sides paper or cloth, the top gilt-edged, but the front and bottom left uncut.

ROY Roy (roi), n. Etym: [F. roi.]

Defn: A king. [obs.]

ROY Roy, a.

Defn: Royal. [Obs.] Chapman.

ROYAL Roy"al, a. Etym: [OE. roial, riall, real, OF. roial. reial, F. royal, fr. L. regalis, fr. rex, regis, king. See Rich, and cf. regal, real a coin, Rial.]

1. Kingly; pertaining to the crown or the sovereign; suitable for a king or queen; regal; as, royal power or prerogative; royal domains; the royal family; royal state.

2. Noble; generous; magnificent; princely. How doth that royal merchant, good Antonio Shak.

3. Under the patronage of royality; holding a charter granted by the sovereign; as, the Royal Academy of Arts; the Royal Society. Battle royal. See under Battle. -- Royal bay (Bot.), the classic laurel (Laurus nobilis.) -- Royal eagle. (Zoöl.) See Golden eagle, under Golden. -- Royal fern (Bot.), the handsome fern Osmunda regalis. See Osmund. -- Royal mast (Naut.), the mast next above the topgallant mast and usually the highest on a square-rigged vessel. The royal yard and royal sail are attached to the royal mast. -- Royal metal, an old name for gold. -- Royal palm (Bot.), a magnificent West Indian palm tree (Oreodoxa regia), lately discovered also in Florida. -- Royal pheasant. See Curassow. -- Royal purple, an intense violet color, verging toward blue. -- Royal tern (Zoöl.), a large, crested American tern (Sterna maxima). -- Royal tiger. (Zoöl.) See Tiger. -- Royal touch, the touching of a diseased person by the hand of a king, with the view of restoring to health; -- formerly extensively practiced, particularly for the scrofula, or king's evil.

Syn. -- Kingly; regal; monarchical; imperial; kinglike; princely; august; majestic; superb; splendid; illustrious; noble; magnanimous.

ROYAL Roy"al, n.

1. Printing and writing papers of particular sizes. See under paper, n.

2. (Naut.)

Defn: A small sail immediately above the topgallant sail. Totten.

3. (Zoöl.)

Defn: One of the upper or distal branches of an antler, as the third and fourth tynes of the antlers of a stag.

4. (Gun.)

Defn: A small mortar.

5. (Mil.)

Defn: One of the soldiers of the first regiment of foot of the British army, formerly called the Royals, and supposed to be the oldest regular corps in Europe; -- now called the Royal Scots.

6. An old English coin. See Rial.

ROYALET Roy"al*et, n.

Defn: A petty or powerless king. [R.] there were at this time two other royalets, as only kings by his leave. Fuller.

ROYALISM Roy"al*ism, n. Etym: [Cf. F. royalisme.]

Defn: the principles or conduct of royalists.

ROYALIST Roy"al*ist, n. Etym: [Cf. F. royaliste.]

Defn: An adherent of a king (as of Charles I. in England, or of the Bourbons in france); one attached to monarchical government. Where Ca'ndish fought, the Royalists prevailed. Waller.

ROYALIZATION Roy`al*i*za"tion, n.

Defn: The act of making loyal to a king. [R.] Saintsbury.

ROYALIZE Roy"al*ize, v. t.

Defn: to make royal. Shak.

ROYALLY Roy"al*ly, adv.

Defn: In a royal or kingly manner; like a king; as becomes a king. His body shall be royally interred. Dryden.

ROYAL SPADE Royal spade. (Auction Bridge)

Defn: A spade when spades are trumps under the condition that every trick over six taken by the successful bidder has a score value of 9; -- usually in pl.

ROYALTY Roy"al*ty, n.; pl. Royalties. Etym: [OF. roialté, royaulté, F. royauté. See Royal, and cf. Regality.]

1. The state of being royal; the condition or quality of a royal person; kingship; kingly office; sovereignty. Royalty by birth was the sweetest way of majesty. Holyday.

2. The person of a king or sovereign; majesty; as, in the presence of royalty. For thus his royalty doth speak. Shak.

3. An emblem of royalty; -- usually in the plural, meaning regalia. [Obs.] Wherefore do I assume These royalties, and not refuse to reign Milton.

4. Kingliness; spirit of regal authority. In his royalty of nature Reigns that which would be fear'd. Shak.

5. Domain; province; sphere. Sir W. Scott.

6. That which is due to a sovereign, as a seigniorage on gold and silver coined at the mint, metals taken from mines, etc.; the tax exacted in lieu of such share; imperiality.

7. A share of the product or profit (as of a mine, forest, etc.), reserved by the owner for permitting another to use the property.

8. Hence (Com.), a duty paid by a manufacturer to the owner of a patent or a copyright at a certain rate for each article manufactured; or, a percentage paid to the owner of an article by one who hires the use of it.

ROYNE Royne (roin), v. t. Etym: [F. rogner, OF. rooignier, to clip, pare, scare, fr. L. rotundus round See Rotund.]

Defn: To bite; to gnaw. [Written also roin.] [Obs.] Spenser.

ROYNISH Royn"ish, a. Etym: [F. rogneux, from rogne scab, mange, itch.]

Defn: Mangy; scabby; hence, mean; paltry; troublesome. [Written also roinish.] [Obs.] "The roynish clown." Shak.

ROYSTER; ROYSTERER Roys"ter, Roys"ter*er, n.

Defn: same as Roister, Roisterer.

ROYSTON CROW Roys"ton crow`. Etym: [So called from Royston, a town in England.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: See Hooded crow, under Hooded.

ROYTELET Roy"te*let, n. Etym: [F. roitelet, dim. of roi king.]

Defn: A little king. [Archaic] Heylin. Bancroft.

ROYTISH Roy"tish, a. Etym: [Prob. for riotish, from riot, like Scot. roytous for riotous.]

Defn: Wild; irregular. [Obs.]

RUB Rub, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Rubbed; p. pr. & vb. n. Rubbing.] Etym: [Probably of Celtic origin; cf. W. rhwbiaw, gael. rub.]

1. To subject (a body) to the action of something moving over its surface with pressure and friction, especially to the action of something moving back and forth; as, to rub the flesh with the hand; to rub wood with sandpaper. It shall be expedient, after that body is cleaned, to rub the body with a coarse linen cloth. Sir T. Elyot.

2. To move over the surface of (a body) with pressure and friction; to graze; to chafe; as, the boat rubs the ground.

3. To cause (a body) to move with pressure and friction along a surface; as, to rub the hand over the body. Two bones rubbed hard against one another. Arbuthnot.

4. To spread a substance thinly over; to smear. The smoothed plank, . . . New rubbed with balm. Milton.

5. To scour; to burnish; to polish; to brighten; to cleanse; -- often with up or over; as, to rub up silver. The whole business of our redemption is to rub over the defaced copy of the creation. South.

6. To hinder; to cross; to thwart. [R.] 'T is the duke's pleasure, Whose disposition, all the world well knows, Will not be rubbed nor stopped. Shak. To rub down. (a) To clean by rubbing; to comb or curry; as, to down a horse. (b) To reduce or remove by rubbing; as, to rub down the rough points. -- To rub off, to clean anything by rubbing; to separate by friction; as, to rub off rust. -- To rub out, to remove or separate by friction; to erase; to obliterate; as, to rub out a mark or letter; to rub out a stain. -- To rub up. (a) To burnish; to polish; to clean. (b) To excite; to awaken; to rouse to action; as, to rub up the memory.

RUB Rub, v. i.

1. To move along the surface of a body with pressure; to grate; as, a wheel rubs against the gatepost.

2. To fret; to chafe; as, to rub upon a sore.

3. To move or pass with difficulty; as, to rub through woods, as huntsmen; to rub through the world. To rub along or on, to go on with difficulty; as, they manage, with strict economy, to rub along. [Colloq.]

RUB Rub, n. Etym: [Cf. W. rhwb. See Rub, v,t,]

1. The act of rubbing; friction.

2. That which rubs; that which tends to hinder or obstruct motion or progress; hindrance; obstruction, an impediment; especially, a difficulty or obstruction hard to overcome; a pinch. Every rub is smoothed on our way. Shak. To sleep, perchance to dream; ay, there's the rub. Shak. Upon this rub, the English ambassadors thought fit to demur. Hayward. One knows not, certainly, what other rubs might have been ordained for us by a wise Providence. W. Besant.

3. Inequality of surface, as of the ground in the game of bowls; unevenness. Shak.

4. Something grating to the feelings; sarcasm; joke; as, a hard rub.

5. Imperfection; failing; fault. [Obs.] Beau. & Fl.

6. A chance. [Obs.] Flight shall leave no Greek a rub. Chapman.

7. A stone, commonly flat, used to sharpen cutting tools; a whetstone; -- called also rubstone. Rub iron, an iron guard on a wagon body, against which a wheel rubs when cramped too much.

RUBA-DUB Rub"a-dub, n.

Defn: The sound of a drum when continuously beaten; hence, a clamorous, repeated sound; a clatter. The rubadub of the abolition presses. D. Webster.

RUBAIYAT Ru*bai*yat", n. pl.; sing. Rubai. [Ar. ruba'iyah quatrian, pl. of ruba'iy having four radicals, fr. ruba' four.]

Defn: Quatrians; as, the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam. Sometimes in pl. construed as sing., a poem in such stanzas.

RUBATO Ru*ba"to, a. Etym: [It.]

Defn: Robbed; borrowed. Temple rubato. Etym: [It.] (Mus.) Borrowed time; -- a term applied to a style of performance in which some tones are held longer than their legitimate time, while others are proportionally curtailed.

RUBBAGE Rub"bage (; 48), n.

Defn: Rubbish. [Obs.]

RUBBER Rub"ber, n.

1. One who, or that which, rubs. Specifically: (a) An instrument or thing used in rubbing, polishing, or cleaning. (b) A coarse file, or the rough part of a file. (c) A whetstone; a rubstone. (d) An eraser, usually made of caoutchouc. (e) The cushion of an electrical machine. (f) One who performs massage, especially in a Turkish bath. (g) Something that chafes or annoys; hence, something that grates on the feelings; a sarcasm; a rub. Thackeray.

2. In some games, as whist, the odd game, as the third or the fifth, when there is a tie between the players; as, to play the rubber; also, a contest determined by the winning of two out of three games; as, to play a rubber of whist. Beaconsfield. "A rubber of cribbage." Dickens.

3. India rubber; caoutchouc.

4. An overshoe made of India rubber. [Colloq.] Antimony rubber, an elastic durable variety of vulcanized caoutchouc of a red color. It contains antimony sulphide as an important constituent. -- Hard rubber, a kind of vulcanized caoutchouc which nearly resembles horn in texture, rigidity, etc. -- India rubber, caoutchouc. See Caoutchouc. -- Rubber cloth, cloth covered with caoutchouc for excluding water or moisture. -- Rubber dam (Dentistry), a shield of thin sheet rubber clasped around a tooth to exclude saliva from the tooth.

RUBBERIZE Rub"ber*ize, v. t.

Defn: To coat or impregnate with rubber or a rubber solution or preparation, as silk.

RUBBIDGE Rub"bidge, n.

Defn: Rubbish. [Obs.] Bp. Hall.

RUBBING Rub"bing,

Defn: a. & n. from Rub, v.

RUBBISH Rub"bish, n. Etym: [OE. robows, robeux, rubble, originally an Old French plural from an assumed dim. of robe, probably in the sense of trash; cf. It. robaccia trash, roba stuff, goods, wares, robe. Thus, etymologically rubbish is the pl. of rubble. See Robe, and cf. Rubble.]

Defn: Waste or rejected matter; anything worthless; valueless stuff; trash; especially, fragments of building materials or fallen buildings; ruins; débris. What rubbish and what offal! Shak. he saw the town's one half in rubbish lie. Dryden. Rubbish pulley. See Gin block, under Gin.

RUBBISH Rub"bish, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to rubbish; of the quality of rubbish; trashy. De Quincey.

RUBBLE Rub"ble, n. Etym: [From an assumed Old French dim. of robe See Rubbish.]

1. Water-worn or rough broken stones; broken bricks, etc., used in coarse masonry, or to fill up between the facing courses of walls. Inside [the wall] there was rubble or mortar. Jowett (Thucyd. ).

2. Rough stone as it comes from the quarry; also, a quarryman's term for the upper fragmentary and decomposed portion of a mass of stone; brash. Brande & C.

3. (Geol.)

Defn: A mass or stratum of fragments or rock lying under the alluvium, and derived from the neighboring rock. Lyell.

4. pl.

Defn: The whole of the bran of wheat before it is sorted into pollard, bran, etc. [Prov.Eng.] Simmonds. Coursed rubble, rubble masonry in which courses are formed by leveling off the work at certain heights.

RUBBLESTONE Rub"ble*stone`, n.

Defn: See Rubble, 1 and 2.

RUBBLEWORK Rub"ble*work`, n.

Defn: Masonry constructed of unsquared stones that are irregular in size and shape.

RUBBLY Rub"bly, a.

Defn: Relating to, or containing, rubble.

RUBEDINOUS Ru*bed"i*nous, a. Etym: [L. rubedo redness, fr. rubere to be red.]

Defn: Reddish. [R.] M. Stuart.

RUBEFACIENT Ru`be*fa"cient, a. Etym: [L. rubefaciens, p.pr. of rubefacere to make red; rubere to be red + facere to make.]

Defn: Making red. -- n. (Med.)

Defn: An external application which produces redness of the skin.

RUBEFACTION Ru`be*fac"tion, n.

Defn: The act or process of making red.

RUBELET Ru"be*let (ru"be*lêt), n.

Defn: A little ruby. Herrick.

RUBELL; RUBELLE Ru*bell", Ru*belle", n. Etym: [L. rubellus reddish.]

Defn: A red color used in enameling. Weale.

RUBELLA Ru*bel"la, n. Etym: [NL., fr. L. rubellus reddish.] (Med.)

Defn: An acute specific disease with a dusky red cutaneous eruption resembling that of measles, but unattended by catarrhal symptoms; -- called also German measles.

RUBELLITE Ru"bel*lite, n. Etym: [L. rubellus reddish, dim. of ruber red.] (Min.)

Defn: A variety of tourmaline varying in color from a pale rose to a deep ruby, and containing lithium.

RUBEOLA Ru*be"o*la, n. Etym: [NL., fr. L. ruber red.] (Med.) (a) the measles. (b) Rubella.

RUBERYTHRINIC Ru`ber*y*thrin"ic, a. Etym: [L. ruber red + erythrin.] (Chem.)

Defn: Pertaining to, or designating, an acid extracted from madder root. It is a yellow crystalline substance from which alizarin is obtained.

RUBESCENCE Ru*bes"cence, n.

Defn: The quality or state of being rubescent; a reddening; a flush.

RUBESCENT Ru*bes"cent, a. Etym: [L. rubescens, -entis, p.pr. of rubescere to grow red, v. incho from rubere to be red: cf. F. rubescent. See Ruby.]

Defn: Growing or becoming red; tending to redness.

RUBIACEOUS Ru`bi*a"ceous, a. Etym: [L. rubia madder, fr. rubeus red.] (Bot.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to a very large natural order of plants (Rubiaceæ) named after the madder (Rubia tinctoria), and including about three hundred and seventy genera and over four thousand species. Among them are the coffee tree, the trees yielding peruvian bark and quinine, the madder, the quaker ladies, and the trees bearing the edible fruits called genipap and Sierre Leone peach, besides many plants noted for the beauty or the fragrance of their blossoms.

RUBIACIN Ru"bi*a*cin, n. Etym: [L. rubia madder, fr. rubeus red.] (Chem)

Defn: A substance found in madder root, and probably identical with ruberythrinic acid.

RUBIAN Ru"bi*an, n. Etym: [L. rubia madder, fr. rubeus red.] (Chem.)

Defn: One of several color-producing glycosides found in madder root.

RUBIANIC Ru`bi*an"ic, a. (Chem.)

Defn: pertaining to, or derived from, rubian; specifically, designating an acid called also ruberythrinic acid. [Obs.]

RU BIBLE Ru" bi*ble, n.

Defn: A ribble. [Obs.] Chaucer.

RUBICAN Ru"bi*can, a. Etym: [F.]

Defn: Colored a prevailing red, bay, or black, with flecks of white or gray especially on the flanks; -- said of horses. Smart.

RUBICELLE Ru"bi*celle, n. Etym: [Cf. F. rubacelle, rubicelle, fr. L. rubeus red, reddish.] (Min.)

Defn: A variety of ruby of a yellowish red color, from Brazil.

RUBICON Ru"bi*con, n. (Anc. geog.)

Defn: A small river which separated Italy from Cisalpine Gaul, the province alloted to Julius Cæsar.

Note: By leading an army across this river, contrary to the prohibition of the civil government at Rome, Cæsar precipitated the civil war which resulted in the death of Pompey and the overthrow of the senate; hence, the phrase to pass or cross the Rubicon signifies to take the decisive step by which one is committed to a hazardous enterprise from which there is no retreat.

RUBICUND Ru"bi*cund, a. Etym: [L. rubicundus, fr. rubere to be red, akin to ruber red. See Red.]

Defn: Inclining to redness; ruddy; red. "His rubicund face." Longfellow.

RUBICUNDITY Ru`bi*cun"di*ty, n. Etym: [LL. rubicunditas.]

Defn: The quality or state of being rubicund; ruddiness. To parade your rubicundity and gray hairs. Walpole.

RUBIDIC Ru*bid"ic, a. (Chem.)

Defn: Of or pertaining to rubidium; containing rubidium.

RUBIDINE Ru"bi*dine ( or ), n. (Chem.)

Defn: A nitrogenous base homologous with pyridine, obtained from coal tar as an oily liquid, C11H17N; also, any one of the group od metameric compounds of which rubidine is the type.

RUBIDIUM Ru*bid"i*um, n. Etym: [NL., fr. L. rubidus red, fr. rubere to be red. So called from two dark red spectroscopic lines by means of which it was discovered in the lepidolite from Rozena, Moravia. See Rubicund.] (Chem.)

Defn: A rare metallic element. It occurs quite widely, but in small quantities, and always combined. It is isolated as a soft yellowish white metal, analogous to potassium in most of its properties. Symbol Rb. Atomic weight, 85.2.

RUBIFIC Ru*bif"ic, a. Etym: [L. ruber red + facere to make.]

Defn: Making red; as, rubific rays. Grew.

RUBIFICATION Ru`bi*fic*a"tion, n. Etym: [Cf. F. rubification.]

Defn: The act of making red. Howell.

RUBIFORM Ru"bi*form, a. Etym: [L. ruber red + -form.]

Defn: Having the nature or quality of red; as, the rubiform rays of the sun. [R.] Sir I. newton.

RUBIFY Ru"bi*fy, v. t. Etym: [Cf. F. rubéfier. See Rubific.]

Defn: To redden. [R.] "Waters rubifying." Chaucer.

RUBIGINOSE; RUBIGINOUS Ru*big"i*nose`, Ru*big"i*nous, a. Etym: [L. rubiginosus, fr. rubigo, robigo, rust: cf. F. rubigineux.] (Bot.)

Defn: Having the appearance or color of iron rust; rusty-looking.

RUBIGO Ru*bi"go, n. Etym: [L. rubigo, robigo, rust of metals, rust, blight.] (bot.)

Defn: same as Rust, n., 2.

RUBIN Ru"bin, n. Etym: [Cf. LL. rubinus, It. rubino. See Ruby.]

Defn: A ruby. [Obs.] Spenser.

RUBIOUS Ru"bi*ous, a. Etym: [L. rubeus, fr. rubere to be red. See Rouge.]

Defn: Red; ruddy. [Obs.] Shak.

RUBIRETIN Ru`bi*re"tin, n. Etym: [Rubian + Gr. (Chem.)

Defn: One of the red dye products extracted from madder root, and probably identical with ruberythrinic acid.

RUBLE Ru"ble, n. Etym: [Russ. ruble.]

Defn: The unit of monetary value in Russia. It is divided into 100 copecks, and in the gold coin of the realm (as in the five and ten ruble pieces) is worth about 77 cents. The silver ruble is a coin worth about 60 cents. [Written also rouble.]

RUBRIC Ru"bric, n. Etym: [OE. rubriche, OF. rubriche, F. rubrique ( cf. it. rubrica), fr. L. rubrica red earth for coloring, red chalk, the title of a law (because written in red), fr. ruber red. See red.]

Defn: That part of any work in the early manuscripts and typography which was colored red, to distinguish it from other portions. Hence, specifically: (a) A titlepage, or part of it, especially that giving the date and place of printing; also, the initial letters, etc., when printed in red. (b) (Law books) The title of a statute; -- so called as being anciently written in red letters. Bell. (c) (Liturgies) The directions and rules for the conduct of service, formerly written or printed in red; hence, also, an ecclesiastical or episcopal injunction; -- usually in the plural. All the clergy in England solemnly pledge themselves to observe the rubrics. Hook.

(d) Hence, that which is established or settled, as by authority; a thing definitely settled or fixed. Cowper. Nay, as a duty, it had no place or rubric in human conceptions before Christianity. De Quincey.

RUBRIC Ru"bric, v. t.

Defn: To adorn ith red; to redden; to rubricate. [R.] Johnson.

RUBRIC; RUBRICAL Ru"bric, Ru"bric*al, a.

1. Colored in, or marked with, red; placed in rubrics. What though my name stood rubric on the walls Or plaistered posts, with claps, in capitals Pope.

2. Of or pertaining to the rubric or rubrics. "Rubrical eccentricities." C. Kingsley.

RUBRICATE Ru"bri*cate, a. Etym: [L. rubricatus p.p. of rubricare to color red. See Rubric, n.]

Defn: Marked with red. Sp

RUBRICATE Ru"bri*cate, v. t.

Defn: To mark or distinguished with red; to arrange as in a rubric; to establish in a settled and unchangeable form. Foxe. A system . . . according to which the thoughts of men were to be classed and rubricated forever after. Hare.

RUBRICIAN; RUBRICIST Ru*bri"cian, Ru"bri*cist, n.

Defn: One skilled in, or tenaciously adhering to, the rubric or rubrics.

RUBRICITY Ru*bric"i*ty, n.

Defn: Redness. [R.]

RUBSTONE Rub"stone`, n.

Defn: A stone for scouring or rubbing; a whetstone; a rub.

RUBUS Ru"bus, n. Etym: [L.] (Bot.)

Defn: A genus of rosaceous plants, including the raspberry and blackberry.

RUBY Ru"by, n.; pl. Rubies. Etym: [F. rubis (cf. Pr. robi), LL. rubinus, robinus, fr. L. rubeus red, reddish, akin to ruber. See Rouge, red.]

1. (Min.)

Defn: A precious stone of a carmine red color, sometimes verging to violet, or intermediate between carmine and hyacinth red. It is a red crystallized variety of corundum.

Note: Besides the true or Oriental ruby above defined, there are the balas ruby, or ruby spinel, a red variety of spinel, and the rock ruby, a red variety of garnet. Of rubies, sapphires, and pearles white. Chaucer.

2. The color of a ruby; carmine red; a red tint. The natural ruby of your cheeks. Shak.

3. That which has the color of the ruby, as red wine. Hence, a red blain or carbuncle.

4. (Print.)

Defn: See Agate, n., 2. [Eng.]

5. (Zoöl.)

Defn: Any species of South American humming birds of the genus Clytolæma. The males have a ruby-colored throat or breast. Ruby of arsenic, Ruby of sulphur (Chem.), a glassy substance of a red color and a variable composition, but always consisting chiefly of the disulphide of arsenic; -- called also ruby sulphur. -- Ruby of zinc (Min.), zinc sulphide; the mineral zinc blende or sphalerite. -- Ruby silver (Min.), red silver. See under Red.

RUBY Ru"by, a.

Defn: Ruby-colored; red; as, ruby lips.

RUBY Ru"by, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Rubied; p. pr. & vb. n. Rubying.]

Defn: To make red; to redden. [R.] Pope.

RUBYTAIL Ru"by*tail`, n. (Zoöl.)