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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.

  1. Kĭck, v. t.p. 737To strike, thrust, or hit violently with the foot; as, a horse kicks a servant; a man kicks a dog. To kick the beam, to fly up and strike the beam; — said of the lighter arm of a loaded balance…
  2. Kīck, v. i.p. 737To practice striking with the foot or feet; as, a horse accustomed to kick. 2. To thrust out the foot or feet with violence, either in wantonness, resistance, anger, or contempt; to manifest…
  3. Kĭck, n.p. 737A blow with the foot or feet; a striking or thrust of the foot. A kick that scarce would move a horse, May kill a sound divine. Cooper. 2. The projection on the tang of a pocket-knife blade, which…
  4. Kīck'er, n.p. 737One who kicks.
  5. Kĭck'shaw, n.p. 738Something fantastical or uncommon, or something that has no particular name. Some pigeons, a joint of mutton, and any pretty little tiny kickshaws. Shak. 2. A fantastical dish. Cressy was lost by…
  6. Kick'shoe, n.p. 738A dancer; a caperer; a buffoon; — used in contempt.
  7. Kick'sy-wick'sy, n.p. 738A word of no definite meaning, except perhaps to imply restlessness, or that which is restless and uneasy; — applied contemptuously to a wife by Shakespeare. Nares. He wears his honor in a box…
  8. Kick'sy-wick'sy, a.p. 738Restless; uncertain; as, kicksy-wicksy flames. Nares.
  9. Kid, n.p. 738A young goat. The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid. Isa. xi. 6. 2. Hence, a child or infant. [Cant.] 3. A fagot; a bundle of heath and furze. 4. A…
  10. Kid, v. t. or i.p. 738To bring forth a young goat. 2. To make into a bundle, as fagots. Halliwell.
  11. Kid, v. t.p. 738To show, discover, or make known. [Obs.] Gower. 2. To hoax; to gull; to deceive; to kiddy. [Cant.]
  12. Kid'der, n.p. 738An engrosser of corn, or one who carries corn, provisions, or other merchandise, about the country for sale; a huckster. Halliwell.
  13. Kid'dle, n.p. 738A kind of wear in a river for catching fish;—corruptly pronounced kittle.
  14. Kid'dōw, n.p. 738A web-footed fowl; — called also guillemot, sea-hen, and skout.
  15. Kid'dy, v. t.p. 738To deceive; to hoax; to take advantage of. [Slang.] Some of the swell mob . . . so far kiddied us as to hire a horse and shay, start away from London by Whitechapel, and . . . come into Epsom from…
  16. Kĭd'dy, n.p. 738A young man or boy; formerly, a low thief. [Slang.]
  17. Kĭd'dy-ĭsh, a.p. 738Frolicsome; sportive. [Slang.]
  18. Kĭd'-fŏx, a.p. 738A young fox. [Obs.] Shak. ☞ Sometimes interpreted as meaning a discovered or detected fox.
  19. Kĭd'ling, n.p. 738A young kid.
  20. Kid'nāp, v. t.p. 738To steal and carry away or secrete, as a human being, man, woman, or child; to take by stealth or force for the purpose of carrying off, reducing to slavery, or the like. You may reason or…
  21. Kid'nāp-er, n.p. 738One who steals or forcibly carries away a human being; a man-stealer.
  22. Kid'ney, n.p. 738(Anat.) An oblong, flattened gland, situated at each side of the lumbar vertebræ, and surrounded with an abundant fatty tissue. They are two in number, of a reddish-brown color, and constitute the…
  23. Kid'ney-bēan, n.p. 738(Bot.) A sort of bean; — so named from its resemblance in shape to that of the kidney. It is of the genus Phaseolus (P. vulgaris); haricot.
  24. Kid'ney-fōrm or Kid'ney-shāpēd, a.p. 738Having the form or shape of a kidney.
  25. Kid'ney-vĕtch, n.p. 738(Bot.) A plant of the genus Anthyllis, the heads of whose flowers have a silky appearance. London.
  26. Kid'ney-wort, n.p. 738(Bot.) A plant of the genus Saxifraga.
  27. Kīe, n. pl.p. 738Kine. [Scot.]
  28. Kief'e-kil, n.p. 738(Min.) A species of clay;—called also meer'schaum. See MEERSCHAUM.
  29. Kiēve, n.p. 738See KEEVE.
  30. Kik'e-ku-nĕm'a-lo, n.p. 738An American resin resembling copal, but of very much greater purity, transparency, and whiteness. It forms the most beautiful of all varnishes. Ogilvie.
  31. Kil'der-kin, n.p. 738A small barrel; a liquid measure containing two firkins, or sixteen or eighteen gallons.
  32. Kill, v. t.p. 738To deprive of life, animal or vegetable, in any manner or by any means; to render inanimate; to put to death; to slay. Ah, kill me with thy weapon, not with words. Shak. 2. To deaden; to quell; to…
  33. Kīll, n.p. 738A kiln. [Obs. or Prov. Eng. and U. S.] See Kiln. How much of philosophy concurred to the first kill of malt! Fuller.
  34. Kĭll, n.p. 738A channel or arm of the sea; a river; a stream; as, the channel between Staten Island and Bergen Neck is the Kill van Kull, or the Kills;—used also in composition; as, Schuylkill, Catskill, &c.…
  35. Kïl'las, n.p. 738Clay-slate; — so called among the Cornish miners. Ure.
  36. Kill'-cour'te-sy, n.p. 738A discourteous person; one wanting in courtesy; a mere boor. [Rare.] Shak.
  37. Kĭll'-cow, n.p. 738A butcher. [Burlesque and rare.]
  38. Kill'dee or Kill'deer, n.p. 738(Ornith.) A small aquatic bird allied to the plover, Ægialites (Oxyechus) vociferus, which takes the name from its cry. It is of a light-brown color above, the feathers being tipped with a brownish…
  39. Kĭll'er, n.p. 738One who deprives of life; he or that which kills.
  40. Kïl'lesse, n.p. 738(Arch.) (a.) A groove; a gutter or channel. (b.) A dormer window.
  41. Kill'lick, n.p. 738A kind of anchor; a killock.
  42. Kĭl'li-ki-nĭck', n.p. 738See KINNIKINIC.
  43. Kil'lock, n.p. 738A small anchor. [U. S.] Bartlett.
  44. Kīl'lōw, n.p. 738An earth of a blackish or deep-blue color. Woodward.
  45. Kĭln, n.p. 738A large stove or oven; a fabric of brick or stone which may be heated for the purpose of hardening, burning, or drying any thing; as, a kiln for baking or hardening earthen vessels; a kiln for drying…
  46. Kiln'-dry, v. t.p. 738To dry in a kiln; as, to kiln-dry meal or grain.
  47. Kiln'-hōle, n.p. 738The mouth of a kiln or chimney. Shak.
  48. Kĭl'ō-grăm, n.p. 738A French measure of weight, being a thousand grammes, equal to 2.67951 pounds troy, or 2.20485 pounds avoirdupois (15442.42 grains). It is by law equal to the weight of a cubic decimeter of distilled…
  49. Kilogramme, n.p. 738The same as KILOGRAM, q. v.
  50. Kī-lŏl'ĭ-ter or Kĭl'o-lī'ter, n.p. 738A French measure of capacity equal to a cubic meter, or a thousand liters. It is equivalent to 35.3166 English, or 35.3105 American, cubic feet, and to 220.0967 Imperial gallons, or 264.14 American…
  51. Kilolitre, n.p. 738The same as KILOLITER, q. v.
  52. Kī-lŏm'e-ter or Kīl'o-mē'ter, n.p. 738A French measure of length, being a thousand meters. It is equal to 3280.899 English, or 3280.709 American, feet, or .62135 of a mile.
  53. Kilomètre, n.p. 738The same as KILOMETER, q. v.
  54. Kilostère, n.p. 738A French measure of solidity or volume, containing one thousand cubic meters, and equivalent to 55316.6 English, or 35310.5 American, cubic feet.
  55. Kilt, p. p.p. 738from kill. [Obs.] Spenser.
  56. Kilt, n.p. 738A kind of short petticoat, reaching from the belly to the knees, worn by men in the Highlands of Scotland, and by children in the Lowlands.
  57. Kilt, v. t.p. 738To tuck up; to truss up, as the clothes. [Scot.]
  58. Kilt'ed, a.p. 738Having on a kilt.
  59. Kil'ter, n.p. 738See KELTER.
  60. Kĭm'bo, a.p. 738Crooked; arched; bent; as, a kimbo handle. Dryden. To set the arms a-kimbo, to set the hands on the hips, with the elbows projecting outward.