Dictionary
An American Dictionary of the English Language
Revised and enlarged (Goodrich & Porter)
Springfield, Mass. · G. & C. Merriam · 1865
- Entries
- 95,912
- Pages
- 1,538
- Illustrations
- 2,133
Look up a word as the writers of the time used it.
Bïx'wort, n. p. 137A plant.Bĭz'an-tine p. 137See BYZANTINE.Bi-zär're', a. p. 137Odd in manner or appearance; fantastical; whimsical; extravagant. C. Kingsley.Blăb, v. t. p. 137To utter or tell unnecessarily, or in a thoughtless manner; to publish secrets or trifles without reserve or discretion. And yonder a vile physician blabbing The case of his patient. Tennyson.Blăb, v. i. p. 137To talk thoughtlessly or without discretion; to tattle; to tell tales. “She must burst or blab.” Dryden.Blăb, n. p. 137One who betrays secrets or tells things which ought to be kept secret; a babbler; a tell-tale. “Avoided as a blab.” Milton. For who will open himself to a blab or a babbler. Byron.Blăb'ber, n. p. 137A tattler; a telltale.Blāb'ning, p. a. p. 137Telling indiscreetly what ought to be concealed; tattling. That can not hold his peace and blabbing tongue. Spencer.Blăck, a. p. 137Destitute of light, or incapable of reflecting it; of the color of soot or coal; as, black cloth. “O night, with hue so black.” Shak. 2. In a less literal sense, very dark or gloomy; as, the heavens…Blăck, n. p. 137That which is destitute of light or whiteness; the darkest color, or rather a destitution of all color; as, a cloth has a good black. Black is the badge of hell, the hue of dungeons, and the scowl of…Blăck, v. t. p. 137To make black; to blacken; to soil. They have their teeth blacked, both men and women, for they say a dog hath his teeth white, therefore they will black theirs. Hackluyt.Blăck'-ăct, n. p. 137The English statute 9 George I., which makes it a felony to appear armed in any park or warren, &c., or to hunt or steal deer, &c., with the face blacked or disguised. Blackstone.Blāck'-ārt, n. p. 137Conjuration; magic. This name was given in the middle ages to necromancy, under the idea that the latter term was derived from niger, black, instead of νεκρός, a dead person, and μαντεία, divination.…Black'a-moor, n. p. 137A negro; a black man. Ethiop, wench, and blackamoor. Lamb.Blăck'ball, n. p. 137A composition for blacking shoes, boots, &c. 2. A ball of black color, used as a negative in voting.Bläck'băll, v. t. p. 137To reject or exclude in choosing, by putting black balls into a ballot-box. He was blackballed at two clubs in succession. Thackeray.Bläck'bĕr-ry, n. p. 137The berry of the bramble, Rubus fruticosus; a popular name applied to different species of the genus Rubus, and their fruit. The high blackberry of America is the Rubus villosus; the low blackberry…Black-bind'weed, n. p. 137(Bot.) A twining plant of the species Polygonum convolvulus.Blăck'bird, n. p. 137(Ornith.) In England, a species of thrush, the Merula musica, a singing-bird with a fine note; but very loud. In America, this name is given to different birds, as to the Quiscalus versicolor, or…Blăck’bōard, n. p. 137A board used in schools, &c., for writing, drawing lines, and various other purposes of instruction.Bläck'-böök, n. p. 137One of several books of a political character, published at different times and for different purposes;—so called either from the color of the binding, or from the character of the contents. 2. A…Blăck'-browed, a. p. 137Having black eyebrows; gloomy; dismal; threatening; as, a black-browed gust. Dryden.Blăck'-brÿ'o-ny, n. p. 137(Bot.) A plant, the Tamus communis. London.Black'-cank'er, n. p. 137A disease in turnips and other crops, produced by a species of caterpillar.Blăck'-căp, n. p. 137(Ornith.) A bird of the order Passeres, or warblers, the Curruca atricapilla, or mock-nightingale; so called from its black crown. Ibid. 2. (Cookery.) An apple roasted till black, to be served up in…Blăck'-căt'tle, n. p. 137Cattle of the bovine genus reared for slaughter, in distinction from dairy-cattle. The term has no reference to their color. [Eng.]Bläck'-chalk, n. p. 137A mineral of a bluish-black color, of a slaty texture, and soiling the fingers when handled; a variety of argillaceous slate.Blăck'-cōat, n. p. 137A clergyman; familiarly so called, as a soldier is sometimes called a red-coat.Black'cock, n. p. 137(Ornith.) A fowl, called also black-grouse and black-game, the Tetrao tetrix of Linnæus.Bläck-cŭr'rant, n. p. 137(Bot.) A garden fruit (Ribes nigrum), used for jellies, jams, &c., of a black color. London.Bläck'-dĕath, n. p. 137The black plague of the fourteenth century.Blăck'-draught, n. p. 137(Med.) A cathartic medicine, composed of senna and magnesia.Blăck'-drōp, n. p. 137A liquid preparation of opium in vinegar. Dunglison.Blăck'-ēa'gle, n. p. 137(Ornith.) In Scotland, the Falco fulvus, the white-tailed eagle of Edwards.Bläck'-Earth, n. p. 137Mold; earth of a dark color. Woodward.Black'en, v. t. p. 137To make or render black. While the long funerals blacken all the way. Pope. 2. To make dark; to darken; to cloud. “Blackened the whole heavens.” South. 3. To sully, as reputation; to make infamous…Bläck'en, v. i. p. 137To grow black or dark.Blăck'en-er, n. p. 137One who blackens.Blăck'-èyed, a. p. 137Having black eyes. Dryden.Blăck'-fāçed, a. p. 137Having a black face. Shak.Blăck'fish, n. p. 137A fish caught on the rocky shores of New England; the tautog (Tautoga Americana). 2. A small kind of whale, about twenty feet long.Blăck'-flăg, n. p. 137The flag of a pirate. W. Scott.Blăck'-flŭx, n. p. 137A mixture of carbonate of potash and charcoal, obtained by deflagrating tartar with half its weight of niter. Brande.Bläck'-fôr'est, n. p. 137A forest in Germany, in Swabia; a part of the ancient Hercynian forest.Bläck'-frï'ar, n. p. 137(Eccl.) A friar of the Dominican order, called also Predicants and Preaching friars; in France, Jacobins.Blăck'-grăss, n. p. 137A coarse grass of the species Juncus bulbosus.Bläck'güärd, n. p. 137Originally, the scullions and lower menials of a court, who, in a removal from one residence to another, had charge of the kitchen utensils, &c., and being smutted by them, were jocularly called the…Blăck'gŭārd, v. t. p. 137To revile in scurrilous language. [Low.]Bläck'güärd, a. p. 137Scurrilous; abusive; as, blackguard language. Thou art some paltry, blackguard sprite, Condemned to drudgery in the night. Hudibras.Bläck'güärd-ism, n. p. 137The conduct or language of a blackguard.Bläck'güärd-ly, adv. p. 137In the manner of a blackguard; abusively; villainously.Bläck'-gŭm, n. p. 137An American tree, of the genus Nyssa (N. multiflora), growing south of Philadelphia. The wood is solid, and not apt to split, and hence is used for the naves or hubs of wheels, and in ship-building.…Bläck'-heärt'ed, a. p. 137Having a black or malignant heart.Bläck'ling, n. p. 137A preparation used for blacking shoes, boots, &c., variously made; any factitious matter for making things black.Bläck'ish, a. p. 137Somewhat black; moderately black or dark. Beyond the River Ganges . . . the people are caught with the sun, and begin to be blackish; but yet not all out so sun-burnt and black indeed as the Moors…Blăck'-jăck, n. p. 137A mineral, called also false galena. It is an ore, the sulphuret of zinc, consisting of sulphur, zinc, and a little iron; zinc-blende. 2. A leathern cup or can for beer. [Obs.] There's a Dead-sea of…Blăck-lĕad′, n. p. 137A mineral of a dark steel-gray color, and of a scaly texture, composed of carbon, with sometimes a small portion of iron; plumbago; graphite. ☞ The name, black-lead, is improper, as the mineral…Blăck'lĕg, n. p. 137A notorious gambler and cheat. 2. A disease among calves and sheep. It is a sort of jelly which settles in the legs, and sometimes in the neck. [Eng.]Blăck'-lĕt'ter, n. p. 137The old English or modern Gothic letter, in which the early English manuscripts were written, and the first English books were printed.Blăck'-lĕt'ter, a. p. 137Written or printed in black-letter; as, a black-letter manuscript or book. “The black-letter pages of our chronicles.” Hugh Miller. 2. Studious of books in black-letter; that is, of old books. Kemble…