Chapter V: Hook (1)

V" hook`. (Steam Engine)

Defn: A gab at the end of an eccentric rod, with long jaws, shaped like the letter V.

VIA Vi"a, n. Etym: [L. See Way.]

Defn: A road way. Via Lactea Etym: [L.] (Anat.), the Milky Way, or Galaxy. See Galaxy, 1. -- Via media Etym: [L.] (Theol.), the middle way; -- a name applied to their own position by the Anglican high-churchmen, as being between the Roman Catholic Church and what they term extreme Protestantism.

VIA Vi"a, prep. Etym: [L., ablative of via way. See Way.]

Defn: By the way of; as, to send a letter via Queenstown to London.

VIABILITY Vi`a*bil"i*ty, n.

Defn: The quality or state of being viable. Specifically: --(a) (Law)

Defn: The capacity of living after birth. Bouvier. (b) The capacity of living, or being distributed, over wide geographical limits; as, the viability of a species.

VIABLE Vi"a*ble, a. Etym: [F., from vie life, L. vita. See Vital.] (Law)

Defn: Capable of living; born alive and with such form and development of organs as to be capable of living; -- said of a newborn, or a prematurely born, infant.

Note: Unless he [an infant] is born viable, he acquires no rights, and can not transmit them to his heirs, and is considered as if he had never been born. Bouvier.

VIADUCT Vi`a*duct, n. Etym: [L. via a way + -duct, as in aqueduct: cf. F. viaduc. See Via, and Aqueduct.]

Defn: A structure of considerable magnitude, usually with arches or supported on trestles, for carrying a road, as a railroad, high above the ground or water; a bridge; especially, one for crossing a valley or a gorge. Cf. Trestlework.

VIAGE Vi"age, n. Etym: [See Voyage.]

Defn: A voyage; a journey. [Obs.] Chaucer. Gower.

VIAL Vi"al, n. Etym: [OE. viole, fiole, F. fiole. See Phial.]

Defn: A small bottle, usually of glass; a little glass vessel with a narrow aperture intended to be closed with a stopper; as, a vial of medicine. [Written also phial.] Take thou this vial, being then in bed, And this distilled liquor thou off. Shak.

VIAL Vi"al, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Vialed or Vialled; p. pr. & vb. n. Vialing or Vialling.]

Defn: To put in a vial or vials. "Precious vialed liquors." Milton.

VIAMETER Vi*am"e*ter, n. Etym: [L. via a way + -meter.]

Defn: An odometer; -- called also viatometer.

VIAND Vi"and, n. Etym: [F. viande meat, food, LL. vianda, vivanda, vivenda, properly, things to live on, fr. L. vivere to live; akin to vivus living. See Vivid, and cf. Victualis.]

Defn: An article of food; provisions; food; victuals; -- used chiefly in the plural. Cowper. Viands of various kinds allure the taste. Pope.

VIANDER Vi"and*er, n.

Defn: A feeder; an eater; also, one who provides viands, or food; a host. [Obs.] Holinshed.

VI-APPLE Vi"-ap`ple, n.

Defn: See Otaheite apple.

VIARY Vi"a*ry, a. Etym: [L. viarius, fr. via a way, road.]

Defn: Of or pertaining to roads; happening on roads. [Obs.]

VIATECTURE Vi"a*tec`ture, n. Etym: [L. via way + -tecture, as in architecture.]

Defn: The art of making roads or ways for traveling, including the construction of bridges, canals, viaducts, etc. [R.] R. Park.

VIATIC Vi*at"ic, a. Etym: [L. viaticus, fr. via a way. See Voyage.]

Defn: Of or pertaining to a journey or traveling.

VIATICUM Vi*at"i*cum, n. Etym: [L., from viaticus, a. See Viatic.]

1. (Rom. Antiq.)

Defn: An allowance for traveling expenses made to those who were sent into the provinces to exercise any office or perform any service.

2. Provisions for a journey. Davies (Wit's Pilgr.).

3. (R. C. Ch.)

Defn: The communion, or eucharist, when given to persons in danger of death.

VIATOMETER Vi`a*tom"e*ter, n.

Defn: A viameter.

VIBICES Vi*bi"ces, n. pl. Etym: [L., pl. of vibex, -icis, the mark of a blow.] (Med.)

Defn: More or less extensive patches of subcutaneous extravasation of blood.

VIBRACULUM Vi*brac"u*lum, n.; pl. Vibracula. Etym: [NL., dim. from L. vibrare to vibrate.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: One of the movable, slender, spinelike organs or parts with which certain bryozoans are furnished. They are regarded as specially modified zooids, of nearly the same nature as Avicularia.

VIBRANCY Vi"bran*cy, n.

Defn: The state of being vibrant; resonance.

VIBRANT Vi"brant, a. Etym: [L. vibrans, p. pr.: cf. F. vibrant. See Vibrate.]

Defn: Vibrating; tremulous; resonant; as, vibrant drums. Longfellow.

VIBRATE Vi"brate, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Vibrate; p. pr. & vb. n. Vibrating.] Etym: [L. vibratus, p. p. of vibrare, v. t. & v. i., to snake, brandish, vibrate; akin to Skr. vip to tremble, Icel. veifa to wave, vibrate. See Waive and cf. Whip, v. t.]

1. To brandish; to move to and fro; to swing; as, to vibrate a sword or a staff.

2. To mark or measure by moving to and fro; as, a pendulum vibrating seconds.

3. To affect with vibratory motion; to set in vibration. Breath vocalized, that is, vibrated or undulated, may . . . impress a swift, tremulous motion. Holder. Star to star vibrates light. Tennyson.

VIBRATE Vi"brate, v. i.

1. To move to and fro, or from side to side, as a pendulum, an elastic rod, or a stretched string, when disturbed from its position of rest; to swing; to oscillate.

2. To have the constituent particles move to and fro, with alternate compression and dilation of parts, as the air, or any elastic body; to quiver.

3. To produce an oscillating or quivering effect of sound; as, a whisper vibrates on the ear. Pope.

4. To pass from one state to another; to waver; to fluctuate; as, a man vibrates between two opinions.

VIBRATILE Vi"bra*tile, a. Etym: [Cf. F. vibratile.]

Defn: Adapted to, or used in, vibratory motion; having the power of vibrating; vibratory; as, the vibratile organs of insects.

VIBRATILITY Vi`bra*til"i*ty, n. Etym: [Cf. F. vibratilité.]

Defn: The quality or state of being vibratile; disposition to vibration or oscillation. Rush.

VIBRATION Vi*bra"tion, n. Etym: [L. vibratio: cf. F. vibration.]

1. The act of vibrating, or the state of being vibrated, or in vibratory motion; quick motion to and fro; oscillation, as of a pendulum or musical string. As a harper lays his open palm Upon his harp, to deaden its vibrations. Longfellow.

2. (Physics)

Defn: A limited reciprocating motion of a particle of an elastic body or medium in alternately opposite directions from its position of equilibrium, when that equilibrium has been disturbed, as when a stretched cord or other body produces musical notes, or particles of air transmit sounds to the ear. The path of the particle may be in a straight line, in a circular arc, or in any curve whatever.

Note: Vibration and oscillation are both used, in mechanics, of the swinging, or rising and falling, motion of a suspended or balanced body; the latter term more appropriately, as signifying such motion produced by gravity, and of any degree of slowness, while the former applies especially to the quick, short motion to and fro which results from elasticity, or the action of molecular forces among the particles of a body when disturbed from their position of rest, as in a spring. Amplitude of vibration, the maximum displacement of a vibrating particle or body from its position of rest. -- Phase of vibration, any part of the path described by a particle or body in making a complete vibration, in distinction from other parts, as while moving from one extreme to the other, or on one side of the line of rest, in distinction from the opposite. Two particles are said to be in the same phase when they are moving in the same direction and with the same velocity, or in corresponding parts of their paths.

VIBRATIUNCLE Vi*bra"ti*un`cle, a. Etym: [Dim. of vibration.]

Defn: A small vibration. [R.] Chambers.

VIBRATIVE Vi"bra*tive, a. Vibrating

Defn: ; vibratory. "A vibrative motion." Sir I. Newton.

VIBRATOR Vi"bra*tor, n. One that vibrates, or causes vibration or oscillation of any kind; specif. (a) (Elec.) (1)

Defn: A trembler, as of an electric bell. (2)

Defn: A vibrating reed for transmitting or receiving pulsating currents in a harmonic telegraph system. (3)

Defn: A device for vibrating the pen of a siphon recorder to diminish frictional resistance on the paper. (4) An oscillator. (b) An ink-distributing roller in a printing machine, having an additional vibratory motion. (a) (Music) A vibrating reed, esp. in a reed organ. (d) (Weaving) Any of various vibrating devices, as one for slackening the warp as a shed opens. (e) An attachment, usually pneumatic, in a molding machine to shake the pattern loose.

VIBRATORY Vi"bra*to*ry, a. Etym: [Cf. F. vibratoire.]

Defn: Consisting in, or causing, vibration, or oscillation; vibrating; as, a vibratory motion; a vibratory power.

VIBRIO Vib"ri*o, n.; pl. E. Vibrios, L. Vibriones. Etym: [NL., fr. L. vibrare to vibrate, to move by undulations.] (Biol.)

Defn: A genus of motile bacteria characterized by short, slightly sinuous filaments and an undulatory motion; also, an individual of this genus.

VIBRISSA Vi*bris"sa, n.; pl. Vibrissæ. Etym: [L. vibrissae, pl., the hairs in the nostrils of man, fr. vibrare to vibrate; -- so called because touching them tickles a person, and causes him to shake his head.]

1. (Anat.)

Defn: One of the specialized or tactile hairs which grow about the nostrils, or on other parts of the face, in many animals, as the so- called whiskers of the cat, and the hairs of the nostrils of man.

2. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The bristlelike feathers near the mouth of many birds.

VIBROGRAPH Vi"bro*graph, n. [Vibrate + -graph.]

Defn: An instrument to observe and record vibrations.

VIBROSCOPE Vi"bro*scope, n.

1. An instrument for observing or tracing vibrations.

2. An instrument resembling the phenakistoscope.

VIBURNUM Vi*bur"num, n. Etym: [L., the wayfaring tree.] (Bot.)

Defn: A genus of shrubs having opposite, petiolate leaves and cymose flowers, several species of which are cultivated as ornamental, as the laurestine and the guelder-rose.

VICAR Vic"ar, n. Etym: [OE. vicar, viker, vicair, F. vicaire, fr. L. vicarius. See Vicarious.]

1. One deputed or authorized to perform the functions of another; a substitute in office; a deputy. [R.]

2. (Eng. Eccl. Law)

Defn: The incumbent of an appropriated benefice.

Note: The distinction between a parson [or rector] and vicar is this: The parson has, for the most part, the whole right to the ecclesiastical dues in his parish; but a vicar has generally an appropriator over him, entitled to the best part of the profits, to whom he is in fact perpetual curate with a standing salary. Burrill. Apostolic vicar, or Vicar apostolic. (R. C. Ch.) (a) A bishop to whom the Roman pontiff delegates a portion of his jurisdiction. (b) Any ecclesiastic acting under a papal brief, commissioned to exercise episcopal authority. (c) A titular bishop in a country where there is no episcopal see, or where the succession has been interrupted. -- Vicar forane. Etym: [Cf. LL. foraneus situated outside of the episcopal city, rural. See Vicar, and Foreign.] (R. C. Ch.) A dignitary or parish priest appointed by a bishop to exercise a limited jurisdiction in a particular town or district of a diocese. Addis & Arnold. -- Vicar-general. (a) (Ch. of Eng.) The deputy of the Archbishop of Canterbury or York, in whose court the bishops of the province are confirmed. Encyc. Brit. (b) (R. C. Ch.) An assistant to a bishop in the discharge of his official functions. -- Vicar of Jesus Christ (R. C. Ch.), the pope as representing Christ on earth.

VICARAGE Vic"ar*age (; 48), n.

1. The benefice of a vicar.

2. The house or residence of a vicar.

VICARIAL Vi*ca"ri*al, a. Etym: [Cf. F. vicarial.]

1. Of or pertaining to a vicar; as, vicarial tithes.

2. Delegated; vicarious; as, vicarial power.

VICARIAN Vi*ca"ri*an, n.

Defn: A vicar. [Obs.] Marston.

VICARIATE Vi*ca"ri*ate, a.

Defn: Having delegated power, as a vicar; vicarious. Barrow.

VICARIATE Vi*ca"ri*ate, n. Etym: [LL. vicariatus, or F. vicariat.]

Defn: Delegated office or power; vicarship; the office or oversight of a vicar. The vicariate of that part of Germany which is governed by the Saxon laws devolved on the elector of Saxony. Robertson.

VICARIOUS Vi*ca"ri*ous, a. Etym: [L. vicarius, from vicis change, alternation, turn, the position, place, or office of one person as assumed by another; akin to Gr. wechsel a change, and probably also to E. weak. See Weak, and cf. Vice, prep.]

1. Of or pertaining to a vicar, substitute, or deputy; deputed; delegated; as, vicarious power or authority.

2. Acting of suffering for another; as, a vicarious agent or officer. The soul in the body is but a subordinate efficient, and vicarious . . . in the hands of the Almighty. Sir M. Hale.

3. Performed of suffered in the place of another; substituted; as, a vicarious sacrifice; vicarious punishment. The vicarious work of the Great Deliverer. I. Taylor.

4. (Med.)

Defn: Acting as a substitute; -- said of abnormal action which replaces a suppressed normal function; as, vicarious hemorrhage replacing menstruation.

VICARIOUSLY Vi*ca"ri*ous*ly, adv.

Defn: In a vicarious manner.

VICARSHIP Vic"ar*ship, n.

Defn: The office or dignity of a vicar.

VICARY Vic"ar*y, n. Etym: [L. vicarius.]

Defn: A vicar. [Obs.]

VICE Vice, n. Etym: [F., from L. vitium.]

1. A defect; a fault; an error; a blemish; an imperfection; as, the vices of a political constitution; the vices of a horse. Withouten vice of syllable or letter. Chaucer. Mark the vice of the procedure. Sir W. Hamilton.

2. A moral fault or failing; especially, immoral conduct or habit, as in the indulgence of degrading appetites; customary deviation in a single respect, or in general, from a right standard, implying a defect of natural character, or the result of training and habits; a harmful custom; immorality; depravity; wickedness; as, a life of vice; the vice of intemperance. I do confess the vices of my blood. Shak. Ungoverned appetite . . . a brutish vice. Milton. When vice prevails, and impious men bear sway, The post of honor is a private station. Addison.

3. The buffoon of the old English moralities, or moral dramas, having the name sometimes of one vice, sometimes of another, or of Vice itself; -- called also Iniquity.

Note: This character was grotesquely dressed in a cap with ass's ears, and was armed with a dagger of lath: one of his chief employments was to make sport with the Devil, leaping on his back, and belaboring him with the dagger of lath till he made him roar. The Devil, however, always carried him off in the end. Nares. How like you the Vice in the play . . . I would not give a rush for a Vice that has not a wooden dagger to snap at everybody. B. Jonson.

Syn. -- Crime; sin; iniquity; fault. See Crime.

VICE Vice, n. Etym: [See Vise.]

1. (Mech.)

Defn: A kind of instrument for holding work, as in filing. Same as Vise.

2. A tool for drawing lead into cames, or flat grooved rods, for casements. [Written also vise.]

3. A gripe or grasp. [Obs.] Shak.

VICE Vice, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Viced; p. pr. & vb. n. Vicing.]

Defn: To hold or squeeze with a vice, or as if with a vice. Shak. The coachman's hand was viced between his upper and lower thigh. De Quincey.

VICE Vi"ce, prep. Etym: [L., abl. of vicis change, turn. See Vicarious.]

Defn: In the place of; in the stead; as, A. B. was appointed postmaster vice C. D. resigned.

VICE Vice, a. Etym: [Cf. F. vice-. See Vice, prep.]

Defn: Denoting one who in certain cases may assume the office or duties of a superior; designating an officer or an office that is second in rank or authority; as, vice president; vice agent; vice consul, etc. Vice admiral. Etym: [Cf. F. vice-amiral.] (a) An officer holding rank next below an admiral. By the existing laws, the rank of admiral and vice admiral in the United States Navy will cease at the death of the present incumbents. (b) A civil officer, in Great Britain, appointed by the lords commissioners of the admiralty for exercising admiralty jurisdiction within their respective districts. -- Vice admiralty, the office of a vice admiral. -- Vice-admiralty court, a court with admiralty jurisdiction, established by authority of Parliament in British possessions beyond the seas. Abbott. -- Vice chamberlain, an officer in court next in rank to the lord chamberlain. [Eng.] -- Vice chancellor. (a) (Law) An officer next in rank to a chancellor. (b) An officer in a university, chosen to perform certain duties, as the conferring of degrees, in the absence of the chancellor. (c) (R. C. Ch.) The cardinal at the head of the Roman Chancery. -- Vice consul Etym: [cf. F. vice-consul], a subordinate officer, authorized to exercise consular functions in some particular part of a district controlled by a consul. -- Vice king, one who acts in the place of a king; a viceroy. -- Vice legate Etym: [cf. F. vice-légat], a legate second in rank to, or acting in place of, another legate. -- Vice presidency, the office of vice president. -- Vice president Etym: [cf. F. vice-président], an officer next in rank below a president.

VICED Viced, a.

Defn: Vicious; corrupt. [Obs.] Shak.

VICEGERENCY Vice*ge"ren*cy, n.

Defn: The office of a vicegerent. South.

VICEGERENT Vice*ge"rent, a. Etym: [Vice, a + gerent: cf. F. vicegérant.]

Defn: Having or exercising delegated power; acting by substitution, or in the place of another. Milton.

VICEGERENT Vice*ge"rent, a. Etym: [Vice, a. + gerent: cf. F. vicegérant.]

Defn: Having or exercising delegated power; acting by substitution, or in the place of another. Milton.

VICEGERENT Vice*ge"rent, n.

Defn: An officer who is deputed by a superior, or by proper authority, to exercise the powers of another; a lieutenant; a vicar. Bacon. The symbol and vicegerent of the Deity. C. A. Young.

VICEMAN Vice"man, n.; pl. Vicemen (.

Defn: A smith who works at the vice instead of at the anvil.

VICENARY Vic"e*na*ry, a. Etym: [L. vicenarius, fr. viceni twenty each; akin to viginti twenty.]

Defn: Of or pertaining to twenty; consisting of twenty.

VICENNIAL Vi*cen"ni*al, a. Etym: [L. vicennium a period of twenty years; viceni twenty + annus year.]

1. Lasting or comprising twenty years.

2. Happening once in twenty years; as, a vicennial celebration.

VICE-REGAL Vice`-re"gal, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to a viceroy or viceroyalty. Macaulay.

VICEROY Vice"roy, n. Etym: [F. vice-roi; pref. vice- in the place of (L. vice) + roi a king, L. rex. See Vice, prep. and Royal.]

1. The governor of a country or province who rules in the name of the sovereign with regal authority, as the king's substitute; as, the viceroy of India.

2. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A large and handsome American butterfly (Basilarchia, or Limenitis, archippus). Its wings are orange-red, with black lines along the nervures and a row of white spots along the outer margins. The larvæ feed on willow, poplar, and apple trees.

VICEROYALTY Vice*roy"al*ty, n.

Defn: The dignity, office, or jurisdiction of a viceroy.

VICEROYSHIP Vice"roy*ship, n.

Defn: Viceroyalty.

VICETY Vi"ce*ty, n. Etym: [From Vice a fault.]

Defn: Fault; defect; coarseness. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

VICHY WATER Vi"chy wa`ter.

Defn: A mineral water found at Vichy, France. It is essentially an effervescent solution of sodium, calcium, and magnetism carbonates, with sodium and potassium chlorides; also, by extension, any artificial or natural water resembling in composition the Vichy water proper. Called also, colloquially, Vichy.

VICIATE Vi"ci*ate, v. t.

Defn: See Vitiate. [R.]

VICINAGE Vi"ci*nage (; 48), n. Etym: [OF. veisinage, F. voisinage, from OF. veisin, F. voisin, neighboring, a neighbor, L. vicunus. See Vicinity.]

Defn: The place or places adjoining or near; neighborhood; vicinity; as, a jury must be of the vicinage. "To summon the Protestant gentleman of the vicinage." Macaulay. Civil war had broken up all the usual ties of vicinage and good neighborhood. Sir W. Scott.

VICINAL Vic"i*nal, a. Etym: [L. vicinalis: cf. F. vicinal.]

Defn: Near; vicine. T. Warton. Vicinal planes (Min.), subordinate planes on a crystal, which are very near to the fundamental planes in angles, and sometimes take their place. They have in general very complex symbols.

VICINE Vic"ine, a. Etym: [L. vicinus: cf. F. voisin.]

Defn: Near; neighboring; vicinal. [R.] Glanvill.

VICINE Vic"ine, n. (Chem.)

Defn: An alkaloid ex tracted from the seeds of the vetch (Vicia sativa) as a white crystalline substance.

VICINITY Vi*cin"i*ty, n. Etym: [L. vicinitas, from vicinus neighboring, near, from vicus a row of houses, a village; akin to Gr. v a house, vi to enter, Goth. weihs town: cf. OF. vicinité. Cf. Diocese, Economy, Parish, Vicinage, Wick a village.]

1. The quality or state of being near, or not remote; nearness; propinquity; proximity; as, the value of the estate was increased by the vicinity of two country seats. A vicinity of disposition and relative tempers. Jer. Taylor.

2. That which is near, or not remote; that which is adjacent to anything; adjoining space or country; neighborhood. "The vicinity of the sun." Bentley.

Syn. -- Neighborhood; vicinage. See Neighborhood.

VICIOSITY Vi`ci*os"i*ty, n.

Defn: Vitiosity. [R.]

VICIOUS Vi"cious, a. Etym: [OF. vicious, F. vicieux, fr. L. vitiosus, fr. vitium vice. See Vice a fault.]

1. Characterized by vice or defects; defective; faulty; imperfect. Though I perchance am vicious in my guess. Shak. The title of these lords was vicious in its origin. Burke. A charge against Bentley of vicious reasoning. De Quincey.

2. Addicted to vice; corrupt in principles or conduct; depraved; wicked; as, vicious children; vicious examples; vicious conduct. Who . . . heard this heavy curse, Servant of servants, on his vicious race. Milton.

3. Wanting purity; foul; bad; noxious; as, vicious air, water, etc. Dryden.

4. Not correct or pure; corrupt; as, vicious language; vicious idioms.

5. Not well tamed or broken; given to bad tricks; unruly; refractory; as, a vicious horse.

6. Bitter; spiteful; malignant. [Colloq.]

Syn. -- Corrupt; faulty; wicked; depraved. -- Vi"cious*ly, adv. -- Vi"cious*ness, n.

VICISSITUDE Vi*cis"si*tude, n. Etym: [L. vicissitudo, fr. vicis change, turn: cf. F. vicissitude. See Vicarious.]

1. Regular change or succession from one thing to another; alternation; mutual succession; interchange. God made two great lights . . . To illuminate the earth and rule the day In their vicissitude, and rule the night. Milton.

2. Irregular change; revolution; mutation. This man had, after many vicissitudes of fortune, sunk at last into abject and hopeless poverty. Macaulay.

VICISSITUDINARY Vi*cis`si*tu"di*na*ry, a.

Defn: Subject to vicissitudes. Donne.

VICISSITUDINOUS Vi*cis`si*tu"di*nous, a.

Defn: Full of, or subject to, changes.

VICISSY DUCK Vi*cis"sy duck`. (Zoöl.)

Defn: A West Indian duck, sometimes domesticated.

VICKERS' GUN Vick"ers' gun. (Ordnance)

Defn: One of a system of guns manufactured by the firm of Vickers' Sons, at Sheffield, Eng. now included in Vickers-Maxim guns.

VICKERS-MAXIM AUTOMATIC MACHINE GUN Vick"ers-Max"im automatic machine gun.

Defn: An automatic machine gun in which the mechanism is worked by the recoil, assisted by the pressure of gases from the muzzle, which expand in a gas chamber against a disk attached to the end of the barrel, thus moving the latter to the rear with increased recoil, and against the front wall of the gas chamber, checking the recoil of the system.

VICKERS-MAXIM GUN Vickers-Maxim gun. (Ordnance)

Defn: One of a system of ordnance, including machine, quick-fire, coast, and field guns, of all calibers, manufactured by the combined firms of Vickers' Sons of Sheffield and Maxim of Birmingham and elsewhere, England.

VICONTIEL Vi*con"ti*el, a. Etym: [From OE. vicounte a viscount. See Viscount.] (O. Eng. Law)

Defn: Of or pertaining to the viscount or sheriff of a country. Vicontiel rents. See Vicontiels. -- Vicontiel writs, such writs as were triable in the sheriff, or county, court.

VICONTIELS Vi*con"ti*els, n. pl. Etym: [See Vicontiel.] (O. Eng. Law)

Defn: Things belonging to the sheriff; especially, farms (called also vicontiel rents) for which the sheriff used to pay rent to the king.

VICOUNT Vi"count, n.

Defn: See Viscount.

VICTIM Vic"tim, n. Etym: [L. victima: cf. F. victime.]

1. A living being sacrificed to some deity, or in the performance of a religious rite; a creature immolated, or made an offering of. Led like a victim, to my death I'll go. Dryden.

2. A person or thing destroyed or sacrificed in the pursuit of an object, or in gratification of a passion; as, a victim to jealousy, lust, or ambition.

3. A person or living creature destroyed by, or suffering grievous injury from, another, from fortune or from accident; as, the victim of a defaulter; the victim of a railroad accident.

4. Hence, one who is duped, or cheated; a dupe; a gull. [Colloq.]

VICTIMATE Vic"tim*ate, v. t. Etym: [L. victimatus, p. p. of victimare to sacrifice.]

Defn: To make a victim of; to sacrifice; to immolate. [Obs.] Bullokar.

VICTIMIZE Vic"tim*ize, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Victimized; p. pr. & vb. n. Victimizing.]

Defn: To make a victim of, esp. by deception; to dupe; to cheat.

VICTOR Vic"tor, n. Etym: [L. victor, fr. vincere, victum, to vanquish, to conquer. See Vanquish.]

1. The winner in a contest; one who gets the better of another in any struggle; esp., one who defeats an enemy in battle; a vanquisher; a conqueror; -- often followed by art, rarely by of. In love, the victors from the vanquished fly; They fly that wound, and they pursue that die. Waller.

2. A destroyer. [R. & Poetic] There, victor of his health, of fortune, friends, And fame, this lord of useless thousands ends. Pope.

VICTOR Vic"tor, a.

Defn: Victorious. "The victor Greeks." Pope.

VICTORESS Vic"tor*ess, n.

Defn: A victress. [Obs.] Spenser.

VICTORIA Vic*to"ri*a, n. Etym: [NL.]

1. (Bot.)

Defn: A genus of aquatic plants named in honor of Queen Victoria. The Victoria regia is a native of Guiana and Brazil. Its large, spreading leaves are often over five feet in diameter, and have a rim from three to five inches high; its immense rose-white flowers sometimes attain a diameter of nearly two feet.

2. A kind of low four-wheeled pleasure carriage, with a calash top, designed for two persons and the driver who occupies a high seat in front.

3. (Astron.)

Defn: An asteroid discovered by Hind in 1850; -- called also Clio. Victoria cross, a bronze Maltese cross, awarded for valor to members of the British army or navy. It was first bestowed in 1857, at the close of the Crimean war. The recipients also have a pension of £10 a year. -- Victoria green. (Chem.) See Emerald green, under Green. -- Victoria lily (Bot.), the Victoria regia. See def. 1, above.

VICTORIA CRAPE Victoria crape.

Defn: A kind of cotton crape.

VICTORIAN Vic*to"ri*an, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to the reign of Queen Victoria of England; as, the Victorian poets. Victorian period. See Dionysian period, under Dyonysian.

VICTORINE Vic`tor*ine", n.

Defn: A woman's fur tippet.

VICTORIOUS Vic*to"ri*ous, a. Etym: [L. victoriosus: cf. F. victorieux. See Victory.]

Defn: Of or pertaining to victory, or a victor' being a victor; bringing or causing a victory; conquering; winning; triumphant; as, a victorious general; victorious troops; a victorious day. But I shall rise victorious, and subdue My vanquisher. Milton. Now are our brows bound wind victorious wreaths. Shak. -- Vic*to"ri*ous*ly, adv. -- Vic*to"ri*ous*ness, n.

VICTORIUM Vic*to"ri*um, n. [NL. So named after Victoria, queen of Great Britain.] (Chem.)

Defn: A probable chemical element discovered by Sir William Crookes in 1898. Its nitrate is obtained byy practical decomposition and crystallization of yttrium nitrate. At. wt., about 117.

VICTORY Vic"to*ry, n.; pl. Victories. Etym: [OE. victorie, OF. victorie, victoire, F. victoire, L. victoria. See Victor.]

Defn: The defeat of an enemy in battle, or of an antagonist in any contest; a gaining of the superiority in any struggle or competition; conquest; triumph; -- the opposite of Ant: defeat. Death is swallowed up in victory. 1 Cor. xv. 54. God on our side, doubt not of victory. Shak. Victory may be honorable to the arms, but shameful to the counsels, of a nation. Bolingbroke.

VICTRESS Vic"tress, n. Etym: [Cf. L. victrix.]

Defn: A woman who wins a victory; a female victor.

VICTRICE Vic"trice, n.

Defn: A victress. [R.] B. Jonson.

VICTRIX Vic"trix, n. Etym: [L.]

Defn: Victress. C. Bronté.

VICTUAL Vict"ual, n.

1. Food; -- now used chiefly in the plural. See Victuals. 2 Chron. xi. 23. Shak. He was not able to keep that place three days for lack of victual. Knolles. There came a fair-hair'd youth, that in his hand Bare victual for the movers. Tennyson. Short allowance of victual. Longfellow.

2. Grain of any kind. [Scot.] Jamieson.

VICTUAL Vict"ual, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Victualed or Victualled; p. pr. & vb. n. Victualing or Victualling.]

Defn: To supply with provisions for subsistence; to provide with food; to store with sustenance; as, to victual an army; to victual a ship. I must go victual Orleans forthwith. Shak.

VICTUALAGE Vict"ual*age (; 48), n.

Defn: Victuals; food. [R.] "With my cargo of victualage." C. Bronté.

VICTUALER Vict"ual*er, n. Etym: [F. victuailleur.] [Written also victualler.]

1. One who furnishes victuals.

2. One who keeps a house of entertainment; a tavern keeper; an innkeeper. Shak.

3. A vessel employed to carry provisions, usually for military or naval use; a provision use; a provision ship.

4. One who deals in grain; a corn factor. [Scot.] Licensed victualer. See under Licensed.

VICTUALING Vict"ual*ing, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to victuals, or provisions; supplying provisions; as, a victualing ship.

VICTUALS Vict"uals, n. pl. Etym: [OE. vitaille, OF. vitaille, F. victuaille, pl. victuailles, fr. L. victualia, pl. of. victualis belonging to living or nourishment, fr. victus nourishment, from vivere, victum, to live; akin to vivus living. See Vivid.]

Defn: Food for human beings, esp. when it is cooked or prepared for the table; that which supports human life; provisions; sustenance; meat; viands. Then had we plenty of victuals. Jer. xliv. 17.

VICTUS Vic"tus, n. Etym: [L.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: Food; diet.

VICUNA; VICUNYA; VICUGNA Vi*cu"ña, Vi*cu"gna, n. Etym: [Sp. vicuña. Cf. Vigonia.] (Zoöl.)

Defn: A South American mammal (Auchenia vicunna) native of the elevated plains of the Andes, allied to the llama but smaller. It has a thick coat of very fine reddish brown wool, and long, pendent white hair on the breast and belly. It is hunted for its wool and flesh.

VIDA FINCH Vid"a finch`. (Zoöl.)

Defn: The whidah bird.

VIDAME Vi*dame", n. Etym: [F., fr. LL. vice-dominus, fr. L. vice instead of + dominus master, lord.] (Fr. Feud. Law)

Defn: One of a class of temporal officers who originally represented the bishops, but later erected their offices into fiefs, and became feudal nobles.

VIDE Vi"de,

Defn: imperative sing. of L. videre, to see; -- used to direct attention to something; as, vide supra, see above.

VIDELICET Vi*del"i*cet, adv. Etym: [L., contr. fr. videre licet, literally, it is easy to see, one may or can see.]

Defn: To wit; namely; -- often abbreviated to viz.

VIDETTE Vi*dette", n. (Mil.)

Defn: Same Vedette.

VIDONIA Vi*do"ni*a, n. Etym: [Cf. Pg. vidonho the quality of grapes, Sp. veduño.]

Defn: A dry white wine, of a tart flavor, produced in Teneriffe; -- called also Teneriffe.

VIDUAGE Vid"u*age, n. Etym: [See Vidual.]

Defn: The state of widows or of widowhood; also, widows, collectively.

VIDUAL Vid"u*al, a. Etym: [L. vidualis, fr. vidua a widow, fr. viduus widowed. See Widow.]

Defn: Of or pertaining to the state of a widow; widowed. [R.] Jer. Taylor.

VIDUATION Vid`u*a"tion, n.

Defn: The state of being widowed or bereaved; loss; bereavement. [R.]

VIDUITY Vi*du"i*ty, n. Etym: [L. viduitas: cf. F. viduité.]

Defn: Widowhood. [R.] "Chaste viduity." Ld. Ellenborough.

VIE Vie, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Vied; p. pr. & vb. n. Vying.] Etym: [OE. vien, shortened fr. envien, OF. envier to invite, to challenge, a word used in gambling, L. invitare to invite; of uncertain origin. Cf. Invite, Envie.]

1. To stake a sum upon a hand of cards, as in the old game of gleek. See Revie. [Obs.]

2. To strive for superiority; to contend; to use emulous effort, as in a race, contest, or competition. In a trading nation, the younger sons may be placed in such a way of life as . . . to vie with the best of their family. Addison. While Waterloo with Cannæ's carnage vies. Byron.

VIE Vie, v. t.

1. To stake; to wager. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

2. To do or produce in emulation, competition, or rivalry; to put in competition; to bandy. [Obs.] She hung about my neck; and kiss on kiss She vied so fast. Shak. Nor was he set over us to vie wisdom with his Parliament, but to be guided by them. Milton. And vying malice with my gentleness, Pick quarrels with their only happiness. Herbert.

VIE Vie, n.

Defn: A contest for superiority; competition; rivalry; strife; also, a challenge; a wager. [Obs.] We 'll all to church together instantly, And then a vie for boys. J. Fletcher.

VIELLE Vi*elle", n. Etym: [F. Cf. Viol.]

Defn: An old stringed instrument played upon with a wheel; a hurdy- gurdy.

VIENNA PASTE Vi*en"na paste`. (Pharm.)

Defn: A caustic application made up of equal parts of caustic potash and quicklime; -- called also Vienna caustic.

VIENNESE Vi`en*nese", a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to Vienna, or people of Vienna. -- n. sing. & pl.

Defn: An inhabitant, or the inhabitants, of Vienna.

VIERKLEUR Vier"kleur`, n. [D., fr. vier four + kleur color, F. couleur.]

Defn: The four-colored flag of the South African Republic, or Transvaal, -- red, white, blue, and green.

VIEW View, n. Etym: [OF. veue, F. vue, fr. OF. veoir to see, p. p. veu, F. voir, p. p. vu, fr. L. videre to see. See Vision, and cl. Interview, Purview, Review, Vista.]

1. The act of seeing or beholding; sight; look; survey; examination by the eye; inspection. Thenceforth I thought thee worth my nearer view. Milton. Objects near our view are thought greater than those of a larger size are more remote. Locke. Surveying nature with too nice a view. Dryden.

2. Mental survey; intellectual perception or examination; as, a just view of the arguments or facts in a case. I have with exact view perused thee, Hector. Shak.

3. Power of seeing, either physically or mentally; reach or range of sight; extent of prospect. The walls of Pluto's palace are in view. Dryden.

4. That which is seen or beheld; sight presented to the natural or intellectual eye; scene; prospect; as, the view from a window. 'T is distance lends enchantment to the view. Campbell.

5. The pictorial representation of a scene; a sketch, as, a fine view of Lake George.

6. Mode of looking at anything; manner of apprehension; conception; opinion; judgment; as, to state one's views of the policy which ought to be pursued. To give a right view of this mistaken part of liberty. Locke.

7. That which is looked towards, or kept in sight, as object, aim, intention, purpose, design; as, he did it with a view of escaping. No man sets himself about anything but upon some view or other which serves him for a reason. Locke.

8. Appearance; show; aspect. [Obs.] [Graces] which, by the splendor of her view Dazzled, before we never knew. Waller. Field of view. See under Field. -- Point of view. See under Point. -- To have in view, to have in mind as an incident, object, or aim; as, to have one's resignation in view. -- View halloo, the shout uttered by a hunter upon seeing the fox break cover. -- View of frankpledge (Law), a court of record, held in a hundred, lordship, or manor, before the steward of the leet. Blackstone. -- View of premises (Law), the inspection by the jury of the place where a litigated transaction is said to have occurred.

VIEW View, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Viewed; p. pr. & vb. n. Viewing.]

1. To see; to behold; especially, to look at with attention, or for the purpose of examining; to examine with the eye; to inspect; to explore. O, let me view his visage, being dead. Shak. Nearer to view his prey, and, unespied, To mark what of their state he more might learn. Milton.

2. To survey or examine mentally; to consider; as, to view the subject in all its aspects. The happiest youth, viewing his progress through. Shak.

VIEWER View"er, n.

1. One who views or examines.

2. (Law)

Defn: A person appointed to inspect highways, fences, or the like, and to report upon the same.

3. The superintendent of a coal mine. [Eng.]

VIEWINESS View"i*ness, n.

Defn: The quality or state of being viewy, or of having unpractical views.

VIEWLESS View"less, a.

Defn: Not perceivable by the eye; invisible; unseen. "Viewless winds." Shak. Swift through the valves the visionary fair Repassed, and viewless mixed with common air. Pope.

VIEWLY; VIEWSOME View"ly, View"some, a.

Defn: Pleasing to the sight; sightly. [Prov. Eng.]

VIEWY View"y, a.

1. Having peculiar views; fanciful; visionary; unpractical; as, a viewy person.

2. Spectacular; pleasing to the eye or the imagination. A government intent on showy absurdities and viewy enterprises rather than solid work. London Spectator.

VIFDA Vif"da, n.

Defn: In the Orkney and Shetland Islands, beef and mutton hung and dried, but not salted. [Scot.] [Written also vivda.] Jamieson.

VIGESIMAL Vi*ges"i*mal, a. Etym: [L. vigesimus twentieth, from viginti twenty.]

Defn: Twentieth; divided into, or consisting of, twenties or twenty parts. Tylor.

VIGESIMATION Vi*ges`i*ma"tion, n.

Defn: The act of putting to death every twentieth man. [R.]

VIGESIMO-QUARTO Vi*ges"i*mo-quar"to, a. Etym: [L. vigesimus quartus twenty-fourth. Cf. Duodecimo.]

Defn: Having twenty-four leaves to a sheet; as, a vigesimo-quarto form, book, leaf, size, etc.

VIGESIMO-QUARTO Vi*ges"i*mo-quar"to, n.; pl. -tos (.

Defn: A book composed of sheets each of which is folded into twenty- four leaves; hence, indicating more or less definitely a size of book so made; -- usually written 24mo, or 24º.

VIGIL Vig"il, n. Etym: [OE. vigile, L. vigilia, from vigil awake, watchful, probably akin to E. wake: cf. F. vigile. See Wake, v. i., and cf. Reveille, Surveillance, Vedette, Vegetable, Vigor.]

1. Abstinence from sleep, whether at a time when sleep is customary or not; the act of keeping awake, or the state of being awake, or the state of being awake; sleeplessness; wakefulness; watch. "Worn out by the labors and vigils of many months." Macaulay. Nothing wears out a fine face like the vigils of the card table and those cutting passions which attend them. Addison.

2. Hence, devotional watching; waking for prayer, or other religious exercises. So they in heaven their odes and vigils tuned. Milton. Be sober and keep vigil, The Judge is at the gate. Neale (Rhythm of St. Bernard).

3. (Eccl.) (a) Originally, the watch kept on the night before a feast. (b) Later, the day and the night preceding a feast. He that shall live this day, and see old age, Will yearly on the vigil feast his neighbors, And say, "To-morrow is St. Crispian." Shak.

(c) A religious service performed in the evening preceding a feast. Vigils, or Watchings, of flowers (Bot.), a peculiar faculty belonging to the flowers of certain plants of opening and closing their petals as certain hours of the day. [R.]

VIGILANCE Vig"i*lance, n. Etym: [L. vigilantia: cf. F. vigilance.]

1. The quality or state of being vigilant; forbearance of sleep; wakefulness.

2. Watchfulness in respect of danger; care; caution; circumspection. Cowper. And flaming ministers to watch and tend Their earthly charge; of these the vigilance I dread. Milton.

3. Guard; watch. [Obs.] "In at this gate none pass the vigilance here placed." Milton. Vigilance committee, a volunteer committee of citizens for the oversight and protection of any interest, esp. one organized for the summary suppression and punishment of crime, as when the processes of law appear inadequate.

VIGILANCY Vig"i*lan*cy, n.

Defn: Vigilance. [Obs.] Fuller.

VIGILANT Vig"i*lant, a. Etym: [L. vigilans, -antis, p. pr. of vigilare to watch, fr. vigil awake: cf. F. vigilant. See Vigil.]

Defn: Attentive to discover and avoid danger, or to provide for safety; wakeful; watchful; circumspect; wary. "Be sober, be vigilant." 1 Pet. v. 8. Sirs, take your places, and be vigilant. Shak.

VIGILANTLY Vig"i*lant*ly, adv.

Defn: In a vigilant manner.

VIGILY Vig"i*ly, n. Etym: [L. vigilia.]

Defn: A vigil. [Obs.] Chaucer.

VIGINTIVIRATE Vi`gin*tiv"i*rate, n. Etym: [L. vigintiviratus, fr. vigintiviri; viginti twenty + vir a man.]

Defn: The office of the vigintiviri, a body of officers of government consisting of twenty men; also, the vigintiviri. [R.]

VIGNETTE Vi*gnette", n. Etym: [F. vignette, fr. vigne a vine. See Vine, and cf. Vinette.]

1. (Arch.)

Defn: A running ornament consisting of leaves and tendrils, used in Gothic architecture.

2. A decorative design, originally representing vine branches or tendrils, at the head of a chapter, of a manuscript or printed book, or in a similar position; hence, by extension, any small picture in a book; hence, also, as such pictures are often without a definite bounding line, any picture, as an engraving, a photograph, or the like, which vanishes gradually at the edge.

VIGNETTE Vi*gnette", v. t.

Defn: To make, as an engraving or a photograph, with a border or edge insensibly fading away.

VIGNETTER Vi*gnett"er, n.

1. A device used by photographers in printing vignettes, consisting of a screen of paper or glass with a central aperture the edges of which become opaque by intensible gradations.

2. A maker of vignettes.

VIGONIA Vi*go"ni*a, a. Etym: [Cf. F. vigogne vicuña. See Vicuña.]

Defn: Of or pertaining to the vicuña; characterizing the vicuña; -- said of the wool of that animal, used in felting hats, and for other purposes. Prescott.

VIGOR Vig"or, n. Etym: [OE. vigour, vigor, OF. vigor, vigur, vigour, F. vigueur, fr. L. vigor, fr. vigere to be lively or strong. See Vegetable, Vigil.]

1. Active strength or force of body or mind; capacity for exertion, physically, intellectually, or morally; force; energy. The vigor of this arm was never vain. Dryden.

2. Strength or force in animal or force in animal or vegetable nature or action; as, a plant grows with vigor.

3. Strength; efficacy; potency. But in the fruithful earth . . . His beams, unactive else, their vigor find. Milton.

Note: Vigor and its derivatives commonly imply active strength, or the power of action and exertion, in distinction from passive strength, or strength to endure.

VIGOR Vig"or, v. t.

Defn: To invigorate. [Obs.] Feltham.

VIGORITE Vig"or*ite, n. Etym: [L. vigor strength.]

Defn: An explosive containing nitroglycerin. It is used in blasting.

VIGOROSO Vig`o*ro"so, a. & adv. Etym: [It.] (Mus.)

Defn: Vigorous; energetic; with energy; -- a direction to perform a passage with energy and force.

VIGOROUS Vig"or*ous, a. Etym: [Cf. OF. vigoros, F. vigoureux, LL. vigorosus.]

1. Possessing vigor; full of physical or mental strength or active force; strong; lusty; robust; as, a vigorous youth; a vigorous plant. Famed for his valor, young, At sea successful, vigorous and strong. Waller.

2. Exhibiting strength, either of body or mind; powerful; strong; forcible; energetic; as, vigorous exertions; a vigorous prosecution of a war. The beginnings of confederacies have been always vigorous and successful. Davenant. -- Vig"or*ous*ly, adv. -- Vig"or*ous*ness, n.

VIKING Vi"king, n. Etym: [Icel. vikingr, fr. vik a bay, inlet.]

Defn: One belonging to the pirate crews from among the Northmen, who plundered the coasts of Europe in the eighth, ninth, and tenth centuries. Of grim Vikings, and the rapture Of the sea fight, and the capture, And the life of slavery. Longfellow.

Note: Vikings differs in meaning from sea king, with which frequently confounded. "The sea king was a man connected with a royal race, either of the small kings of the country, or of the Haarfager family, and who, by right, received the title of king as soon he took the command of men, although only of a single ship's crew, and without having any land or kingdom . . . Vikings were merely pirates, alternately peasants and pirates, deriving the name of viking from the vicks, wicks, or inlets, on the coast in which they harbored with their long ships or rowing galleys." Laing.

VILANY Vil"a*ny, n.

Defn: Villainy. [Obs.] Chaucer.

VILAYET Vi`la*yet", n. Etym: [Turk., from Ar. wilayah.]

Defn: One of the chief administrative divisions or provinces of the Ottoman Empire; -- formerly called eyalet.

VILD Vild, a. Etym: [As if the p. p. of a verb to vile. See Vile, a.]

Defn: Vile. [Obs.] "That vild race." Spenser. -- Vild"ly, adv. [Obs.] Spenser.

VILE Vile, a. [Comp. Viler; superl. Vilest.] Etym: [OE. vil, F. vil, from L. vilis cheap, worthless, vile, base.]

1. Low; base; worthless; mean; despicable. A poor man in vile raiment. James ii. 2. The craft either of fishing, which was Peter's, or of making tents, which was Paul's, were [was] more vile than the science of physic. Ridley. The inhabitants account gold but as a vile thing. Abp. Abbot.

2. Morally base or impure; depraved by sin; hateful; in the sight of God and men; sinful; wicked; bad. "Such vile base practices." Shak. Behold, I am vile; what shall I answer thee Job xl. 4.

Syn. -- See Base. -- Vile"ly, adv. -- Vile"ness, n.

VILED Viled, a. Etym: [See Vild.]

Defn: Abusive; scurrilous; defamatory; vile. [Obs.] "Viled speeches." Hayward.

VILEYNS Vil"eyns, a. Etym: [See Villain.]

Defn: Villainous. [Obs.] "Vileyns sinful deeds make a churl." Chaucer.

VILIFICATION Vil`i*fi*ca"tion, n.

Defn: The act of vilifying or defaming; abuse. South.

VILIFIER Vil"i*fi`er, n.

Defn: One who vilifies or defames.

VILIFY Vil"i*fy, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Vilified; p. pr. & vb. n. Vilifying.] Etym: [L. vilis vile + -fly; cf. L. vilificare to esteem of little value.]

1. To make vile; to debase; to degrade; to disgrace. [R.] When themselves they vilified To serve ungoverned appetite. Milton.

2. To degrade or debase by report; to defame; to traduce; to calumniate. I. Taylor. Many passions dispose us to depress and vilify the merit of one rising in the esteem of mankind. Addison.

3. To treat as vile; to despise. [Obs.] I do vilify your censure. Beau. & Fl.

VILIPEND Vil"i*pend, v. t. Etym: [L. vilipendere; vilis vile + pendere to weigh, to value: cf. F. vilipender.]

Defn: To value lightly; to depreciate; to slight; to despise. To vilipend the art of portrait painting. Longfellow.

VILIPENDENCY Vil"i*pend"en*cy, n.

Defn: Disesteem; slight; disparagement. [R.] E. Waterhouse.

VILITY Vil"i*ty, n. Etym: [L. vilitas: cf. F. vileté, vilité, OF. vilté.]

Defn: Vileness; baseness. [Obs.] Kennet.

VILL Vill, n. Etym: [OF. ville, vile, a village, F. ville a town, city. See Villa.]

Defn: A small collection of houses; a village. "Every manor, town, or vill." Sir M. Hale. Not should e'er the crested fowl From thorp or vill his matins sound for me. Wordsworth.

Note: A word of various significations in English, law; as, a manor; a tithing; a town; a township; a parish; a part of a parish; a village. The original meaning of vill, in England, seems to have been derived from the Roman sense of the term villa, a single country residence or farm; a manor. Later, the term was applied only to a collection of houses more than two, and hence came to comprehend towns. Burrill. The statute of Exeter, 14 Edward I., mentions entire- vills, demivills, and hamlets.

VILLA Vil"la, n.; pl. Villas. Etym: [L. villa, LL. also village, dim. of L. vicus a village: cf. It. & F. villa. See Vicinity, and cf. Vill, Village, Villain.]

Defn: A country seat; a country or suburban residence of some pretensions to elegance. Dryden. Cowper.

VILLAGE Vil"lage (; 48), n. Etym: [F., fr. L. villaticus belonging to a country house or villa. See Villa, and cf. Villatic.]

Defn: A small assemblage of houses in the country, less than a town or city. Village cart, a kind of two-wheeled pleasure carriage without a top.

Syn. -- Village, Hamlet, Town, City. In England, a hamlet denotes a collection of houses, too small to have a parish church. A village has a church, but no market. A town has both a market and a church or churches. A city is, in the legal sense, an incorporated borough town, which is, or has been, the place of a bishop's see. In the United States these distinctions do not hold.

VILLAGER Vil"la*ger, n.

Defn: An inhabitant of a village. Brutus had rather be a villager Than to repute himself a son of Rome Under these hard condition. Shak.

VILLAGERY Vil"lage*ry, n.

Defn: Villages; a district of villages. [Obs.] "The maidens of the villagery." Shak.

VILLAIN Vil"lain, n. Etym: [OE. vilein, F. vilain, LL. villanus, from villa a village, L. villa a farm. See Villa.]

1. (Feudal Law)

Defn: One who holds lands by a base, or servile, tenure, or in villenage; a feudal tenant of the lowest class, a bondman or servant. [In this sense written also villan, and villein.] If any of my ansectors was a tenant, and a servant, and held his lands as a villain to his lord, his posterity also must do so, though accidentally they become noble. Jer. Taylor.

Note: Villains were of two sorts; villains regardant, that is, annexed to the manor (LL. adscripti glebæ); and villains in gross, that is, annexed to the person of their lord, and transferable from one to another. Blackstone.

2. A baseborn or clownish person; a boor. [R.] Pour the blood of the villain in one basin, and the blood of the gentleman in another, what difference shall there be proved Becon.

3. A vile, wicked person; a man extremely depraved, and capable or guilty of great crimes; a deliberate scoundrel; a knave; a rascal; a scamp. Like a villain with a smiling cheek. Shak. Calm, thinking villains, whom no faith could fix. Pope.

VILLAIN Vil"lain, a. Etym: [F. vilain.]

Defn: Villainous. [R.] Shak.

VILLAIN Vil"lain, v. t.

Defn: To debase; to degrade. [Obs.] Sir T. More.

VILLAINOUS Vil"lain*ous, a. Etym: [Written also villanous.]

1. Base; vile; mean; depraved; as, a villainous person or wretch.

2. Proceeding from, or showing, extreme depravity; suited to a villain; as, a villainous action.

3. Sorry; mean; mischievous; -- in a familiar sense. "A villainous trick of thine eye." Shak. Villainous judgment (O. E. Law), a judgment that casts reproach on the guilty person. --- Vil"lain*ous*ly, adv. Vil"lain*ous*ness, n.

VILLAINY Vil"lain*y, n.; pl. Villainies. Etym: [OE. vilanie, OF. vilanie, vilainie, vileinie, vilanie, LL. villania. See Villain, n.] [Written also villany.]

1. The quality or state of being a villain, or villainous; extreme depravity; atrocious wickedness; as, the villainy of the seducer. "Lucre of vilanye." Chaucer. The commendation is not in his wit, but in his villainy. Shak.

2. Abusive, reproachful language; discourteous speech; foul talk. [Archaic] He never yet not vileinye ne said In all his life, unto no manner wight. Chaucer. In our modern language, it [foul language] is termed villainy, as being proper for rustic boors, or men of coarsest education and employment. Barrow. Villainy till a very late day expressed words foul and disgraceful to the utterer much oftener than deeds. Trench.

3. The act of a villain; a deed of deep depravity; a crime. Such villainies roused Horace into wrath. Dryden. That execrable sum of all villainies commonly called a slave trade. John Wesley.

VILLAKIN Vil"la*kin, n.

Defn: A little villa. [R.] Gay.

VILLAN Vil"lan, n.

Defn: A villain. [R.]

VILLANAGE Vil"lan*age (; 48), n. Etym: [OF. villenage, vilenage. See Villain.]

1. (Feudal Law)

Defn: The state of a villain, or serf; base servitude; tenure on condition of doing the meanest services for the lord. [In this sense written also villenage, and villeinage.] I speak even now as if sin were condemned in a perpetual villanage, never to be manumitted. Milton. Some faint traces of villanage were detected by the curious so late as the days of the Stuarts. Macaulay.

2. Baseness; infamy; villainy. [Obs.] Dryden.

VILLANEL Vil`la*nel", n. Etym: [See Villanelle.]

Defn: A ballad. [Obs.] Cotton.

VILLANELLA Vil`la*nel"la, n.; pl. Villanelle. Etym: [It., a pretty country girl.] (Mus.)

Defn: An old rustic dance, accompanied with singing.

VILLANELLE Vil`la*nelle", n. Etym: [F.]

Defn: A poem written in tercets with but two rhymes, the first and third verse of the first stanza alternating as the third verse in each successive stanza and forming a couplet at the close. E. W. Gosse.

VILLANETTE Vil`la*nette", n. Etym: [Dim. of villa; formed on the analogy of the French.]

Defn: A small villa. [R.]

VILLANIZE Vil"lan*ize, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Villanized; p. pr. & vb. n. Villanizing.]

Defn: To make vile; to debase; to degrade; to revile. [R.] Were virtue by descent, a noble name Could never villanize his father's fame. Dryden.

VILLANIZER Vil"lan*i`zer, n.

Defn: One who villanizes. [R.]

VILLANOUS; VILLANOUSLY; VILLANOUSNESS Vil"lan*ous, a. Vil"lan*ous*ly, adv., Vil"lan*ous*ness, n.,

Defn: See Villainous, etc.

VILLANY Vil"lan*y, n.

Defn: See Villainy.

VILLATIC Vil*lat"ic, a. Etym: [L. villaticus belonging to a country house. See Village.]

Defn: Of or pertaining to a farm or a village; rural. "Tame villatic fowl." Milton.

VILLEIN Vil"lein, n. (Feudal Law)

Defn: See Villain, 1.

VILLENAGE Vil"len*age, n. Etym: [See Villanage.] (Feudal Law)

Defn: Villanage. Blackstone.

VILLENOUS Vil"len*ous, a.

Defn: Of or pertaining to a villein.

VILLI Vil"li, n.

Defn: , pl. of Villus.

VILLIFORM Vil"li*form, a. Etym: [Villus + -form.]

Defn: Having the form or appearance of villi; like close-set fibers, either hard or soft; as, the teeth of perch are villiform.

VILLOSE Vil*lose", a. (Bot.)

Defn: See Villous.

VILLOSITY Vil*los"i*ty, n.

1. State of being villous.

2. (Bot.)

Defn: A coating of long, slender hairs.

3. (Anat.)

Defn: A villus.

VILLOUS Vil"lous, a. Etym: [L. villosus: cf. F. villeux. Cf. Velvet.]

1. Abounding in, or covered with, fine hairs, or a woolly substance; shaggy with soft hairs; nappy.

2. (Anat.)

Defn: Furnished or clothed with villi.

VILLUS Vil"lus, n.; pl. Villi. Etym: [L., shaggy hair, a tuft of hair.]

1. (Anat.)

Defn: One of the minute papillary processes on certain vascular membranes; a villosity; as, villi cover the lining of the small intestines of many animals and serve to increase the absorbing surface.

2. pl. (Bot.)

Defn: Fine hairs on plants, resembling the pile of velvet.