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.
Ma-caw', n. p. 797(Ornith.) A large bird, allied to the parrots, but having a deep lower mandible, a long tail, and the cheeks bare. It is a very showy bird, and is a native of the warmer parts of America. The green…Ma-caw'-tree, n. p. 797(Bot.) A species of thorny palm-tree, of the genus Nerocomia (N. aculeata sclerocarpa). From the fruit a fragrant, golden-yellow butter, of a sweetish taste, is obtained. It is found in the West…Măc'ea-bē'an, a. p. 797Pertaining to the Jewish princes called Maccabees, who rescued Judea from the tyranny of Antiochus Epiphanes, and rendered it independent for about a century.Măc'ca-bees, n. pl. p. 797Two apocryphal books of the Old Testament, which give an account of Jewish affairs in the time of the Maccabean princes.Măc'e'a-boy or Măc'e'o-boy, n. p. 797A kind of snuff.Māçe, n. p. 797A heavy staff or club of metal, used as a weapon in the days of chivalry. “A leaden mace.” Shak. “A heavy iron mace.” Knolles. 2. Hence, a staff borne by, or carried before, a magistrate as an ensign…Māçe, n. p. 797A certain spice; the second coat or aril which covers the nutmeg, a thin and membranaceous substance, of an oleaginous nature and yellowish color, being in flakes divided into many ramifications. It…Māce'-āle, n. p. 797Ale spiced with mace. Wiseman.Māce'-bear'er, n. p. 797A person who carries a mace before men in authority.Măç'e-dō'ni-an, a. p. 797(Geog.) Belonging, or relating, to Macedonia.Măç'e-dō'ni-an, n. p. 797(Geog.) A native or an inhabitant of Macedonia. 2. (Eccl. Hist.) One of a certain religious sect, so called from being followers of Macedonius, Bishop of Constantinople, in the fourth century, who…Māçe'-pro͞of, a. p. 797Free from arrest. Shirley.Mā'çer, n. p. 797A mace-bearer; an officer of a court. “A macer, or officer in attendance on the supreme court.” W. Scott.Măç'er-āte, v. t. p. 797To make lean; to wear away; to cause to pine or waste away; to mortify; to harass. [Obs. or rare.] Out of excessive zeal they macerate their bodies and impair their health. Fiddes. 2. To steep almost…Măc'er-ā'tion, n. p. 797The act or process of macerating, or making thin or lean by wearing away, or by mortification. [Obs. or rare.] 2. The act, process, or operation of softening and almost dissolving by steeping in a…Māce'-reed, n. p. 797(Bot.) A plant of the genus Typha (T. latifolia); cat-tail; — called also reed-mace.Ma-chāi'ro-dūs, n. p. 797(Palæon.) A genus of extinct mammals allied to the bear, found fossil in strata of the miocene period.Machete, n. p. 797A large, heavy knife resembling a broadsword, often two or three feet in length, used by the inhabitants of Spanish America as a hatchet to cut their way through thickets, and for various other…Măch'i-a-vĕl'ian, a. p. 797Pertaining to Machiavel, or to his supposed principles; politically cunning; using duplicity or bad faith; crafty.Măch'i-a-vēl'ian, n. p. 797One who adopts the principles of Machiavel; a cunning, crafty, or unprincipled politician.Māch'i-a-vēl'i-an-īsm or Māch'i-a-vēl-īsm, n. p. 797The supposed principles of Machiavel, or practice in conformity to them; political cunning and artifice, intended to favor arbitrary power.Ma-chīc'o-lā'ted, a. p. 797Having machicolations.Māch'i-co-lā'tion, n. p. 797(Mil. Arch.) A parapet or gallery projecting from the upper part of the wall of a house or fortification, supported by corbels or brackets, and perforated or furnished with apertures in the lower…Machicoulis, n. p. 797The same as MACHICOLATION, q. v.Māch'i-nal, a. p. 797Pertaining to machines.Māch'i-nāte, v. t. p. 797To plan; to contrive; to form, as a plot or a scheme.Măch'i-nā'tion, n. p. 797The act of machinating, or of planning or contriving a scheme for executing some purpose, particularly an evil purpose. 2. That which is plotted or devised; a hostile or treacherous scheme; an artful…Māch'i-nā'tor, n. p. 797One who forms a scheme, or who plots with evil designs. He hath become an active and earnest agitator, a murmurer, and a machinator. W. Scott.Ma-chīne', n. p. 797In general, any body or assemblage of bodies used to transmit and modify force and motion, as a lever, pulley, wedge, screw, &c.; especially, a construction, more or less complex, consisting of a…Ma-chīne', v. t. p. 798To subject to the action of machinery; to effect by aid of machinery; especially, to print with a printing machine. [Rare.]Ma·chīne', v. i. p. 798To be employed in tending or managing a machine or machinery; to do work by aid of machinery. [Rare.]Ma·chīn'er-y, n. p. 798Machines in general, or collectively; as, machinery of war. 2. The working parts of a machine, engine, or instrument arranged and constructed so as to apply and regulate force; as, the machinery of a…Ma·chīne'-shŏp, n. p. 798A manufactory in which materials, especially metals, are dressed, and machinery is made.Ma-chīne'-tool, n. p. 798A complex machine for shaping materials; strictly, an adjustable machine with an automatic feed, for shaping metals by cutting;—called also engine-tool. [Eng.]Ma·chīn'ing, a. p. 798Pertaining to the machinery of a poem. [Obs.] Dryden.Ma·chīn’ist, n. p. 798A constructor of machines and engines; one versed in the principles of machines.Macigno (mā-chēn'yo), n. p. 798(Min.) A kind of silicious sandstone found in Italy. There are two varieties, one of a grayish-yellow color, the other of a bluish-gray color. Dana.Măç'i-len-cy, n. p. 798Leanness. [Obs.] Bailey.Măç'i-lent, a. p. 798Having little flesh; lean; thin. [Obs.] Bailey.Măck'er-el, n. p. 798(Ichth.) A marine fish of the genus Scomber (S. vulgaris or scomber), spotted with blue, and largely used for food. It is found in the North Atlantic. Mackerel-gale, either a gale that ripples the…Măck'er-el, n. p. 798A pander or pimp; also, a bawd. [Obs.] Halliwell.Măck'in-tōsh, n. p. 798A water-proof outer garment; — so called from the name of the inventor.Măck'le, n. p. 798Same as MACULE, q. v.Măck'le, v. t. p. 798To sell to shopkeepers;—said only of weavers' goods. 2. To contrive. Wright.Māc'le, n. p. 798(Min.) (a.) A variety of chiastolite, the crystals of which present a tessellated appearance when cut transversely. (b.) A similar tessellated appearance in other crystals. Dana.Mac-lū'rite, n. p. 798(Min.) Same as CHONDRODITE, q. v.Mā'cro-bī-ōt'ic, a. p. 798Long-lived. Dunglison.Măc'ro-cĕph'a-lōus, a. p. 798Having a large head. 2. (Bot.) Having the cotyledons of a dicotyledonous embryo confluent, and forming a large mass compared with the rest of the body. Henslow.Măc'ro-cōsm or Mă'cro-cōsm, n. p. 798The great world; the universe, or the visible system of worlds; — opposed to microcosm, or the little world constituted by man.Mā'cro-dāc'tyl, n. p. 798(Ornith.) One of a tribe of wading birds, having very long toes.Māe'ro-dac·tyl'ic or Māe'ro-dac'tyl·ous, a. p. 798(Ornith.) Having long toes;—applied to a tribe of wading birds, including the rails, water-hens, and the like.Māc'ro-dī-ăg'o-nal, n. p. 798(Crystallog.) The longer of two or more diagonals, as of a rhombic prism.Măc'ro-dōme, n. p. 798(Crystallog.) A dome parallel to the longer lateral axis in the trimetric system. Dana.Ma-crŏl′-o-gy, n. p. 798Long and tedious talk; prolonged discourse without matter; superfluity of words.Ma-cròm'e-ter, n. p. 798An instrument for measuring inaccessible objects by means of two reflectors on a common sextant.Mā'cron, n. p. 798(Pron.) A short, straight, horizontal mark [−], placed over vowels to denote that they are to be pronounced with a long sound; as ā, in dāme; ē, in sēam; ī, in dīme; ō, in dōme.Ma·crōph'yl-lous or Măc'ro-phyl'lous, a. p. 798(Bot.) Having long leaves.Măc'ro-pŏd, n. p. 798[Gr. μακρός, long, large, and πούς, ποδός, foot. (Zoöl.) One of a tribe of short-tailed decapodous crustaceans remarkable for the enormous length of their feet; the sea-spider or spider-crab. Baird.Ma-crōp'o-dal, a. p. 798Having long or large feet. 2. (Bot.) Having an unusual protuberance of the radicle, as wheat. Henslow.Măc'ro·pō'di·an, n. p. 798(Zoöl.) Same as MACROPOD.