Dictionary
An American Dictionary of the English Language
Revised and enlarged (Goodrich & Porter)
Springfield, Mass. · G. & C. Merriam · 1865
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Look up a word as the writers of the time used it.
Me-dū'să, n. p. 825(Myth.) A personage who was fabled to possess the power of turning all who looked upon her into stone. 2. (pl. MEDUSÆ.) (Zoöl.) An animal of one of the divisions of radiates; — called also…Mē-dū'si-an, n. p. 825(Zoöl.) One of the medusæ; a medusa.Meech, v. i. p. 825To lie hid; to conceal one's self; to skulk; hence, to be servilely humble or mean; to cower. See MICHE.Meech'ing, p. pr. & a. p. 825Skulking; cowering; servilely humble; mean. See MICHING.Meed, n. p. 825That which is bestowed or rendered in consideration of merit; reward; recompense. Thanks to men Of noble minds is honorable meed. Shak. Peace to the perished! may the warrior’s meed And tears of…Meed, v. t. p. 825To deserve or be worthy of; to merit. [Obs.] And yet thy body meeds a better grave. Heywood.Meed'ful-ly, adv. p. 825According to desert or merit; suitably. [Obs.] A wight, without needful compulsion, ought meedfully to be rewarded. Chaucer.Meek, a. p. 825Mild of temper; not easily provoked or irritated; given to forbearance under injuries; soft; gentle; yielding. Now the man Moses was very meek, above all men. Num. xii. 3. 2. Specifically, submissive…Meek or Meek'en (mēk'n), v. t. p. 825To make meek; to soften; to render mild. [Obs.] “To nurture him, to humble, to meek, and to teach him God's ways.” Tyndale.Meek'ly, adv. p. 825In a meek manner; mildly; gently; submissively; humbly. And this misseeming discord meekly lay aside. Spencer.Meek'ness, n. p. 825The quality of being meek; forbearance under injuries and provocations; softness of temper; mildness; gentleness. Meekness is a grace which Jesus alone inculcated, and which no ancient philosopher…Meer, a. p. 825Simple; unmixed. See MERE.Meer, n. p. 825A lake; a boundary. See MERE.Meered, a. p. 825Relating to a boundary. [Obs.] See MERE. Shak.Meer'schaum, n. p. 825(Min.) A fine white clay, consisting of one part each of magnesia, silica, and water. It occurs in various parts of Europe, but particularly in Natolia, and, when first taken out, is soft, and makes…Meet, v. t. p. 825To come together with, by approach from an opposite direction; to come upon or against; to happen upon; to fall in with. His daughter came out to meet him with timbrels and with dances. Judg. xi. 34.…Meet, v. i. p. 825To come together by mutual approach; to fall in with another; to come face to face; hence, to converge; to join. O, when meet now Such pairs in love and mutual honor joined! Milton. We can as easily…Meet, a. p. 825Prepared or adapted, as to a use or purpose; fit; suitable; proper; qualified; convenient. Ye shall pass over armed before your brethren, the children of Israel, all that are meet for the war. Deut.…Meet, n. p. 825A meeting of huntsmen for coursing. [Eng.]Meet'en, v. t. p. 825To render meet or fit for.Meet'er, n. p. 825One who meets or accosts.Meet'ing, n. p. 825A coming together; an interview; an assembly; as, a happy meeting of friends. 2. A congregation; a collection of people; a convention; as, the meeting was numerous; the meeting was clamorous; the…Meet'ing-house, n. p. 825A place of worship; a church; in England, a place of worship for dissenters.Meet'ly, adv. p. 825Fitly; suitably; properly.Meet'ness, n. p. 825Fitness; suitableness; propriety.Mēg'a-cōsm, n. p. 825The great world; macrocosm. Bp. Croft.Mĕg'a-lē'sian, a. p. 825Pertaining to, or in honor of, Cybele. Megalesian games (Rom. Antiq.), a festival, with magnificent scenic exhibitions, in honor of Cybele.Mĕg'a-lĭch'thys, n. p. 825(Palæon.) An extinct genus of fishes, some of which were of great size. Brande.Mēg'a-lith'ic, a. p. 825Formed of large stones.Mēg'a-lō'don, n. p. 825(Palæon.) An extinct genus of conchifera, found fossil in Devonian or old red sandstone strata. (Craig.)Mēg'a-lōn'yx or Mēg'a-lō'nyx, n. p. 825(Palæon.) A fossil mammal, of great size, allied to the sloth. Its bones have been found in the tertiary of the Middle United States. Dana.Mēg'a-lōph'o-noüs, a. p. 825Having a loud voice.Mĕg'a-lōp'o-lĭs, n. p. 825A chief city; a metropolis. [Obs.] Herbert.Mēg'a-lōp'sy-chy, n. p. 825Greatness of soul; magnanimity. [Obs.]Mēg'a-lōr'nis, n. p. 825(Ornith.) A genus of birds belonging to the family of the herons. M. cinerea is the common crane of Europe. Baird.Mēg'a-lo-saur' or Mēg'a-lo-sau'rus, n. p. 825(Palæon.) A gigantic saurian or lizard, now extinct, whose fossil remains have been found in England and elsewhere.Me-găp'hy-tōn, n. p. 825(Paleon.) An extinct genus of plants, of large size, found fossil.Mĕg'a-pōde, n. p. 825(Ornith.) A genus of gallinaceous birds found in Australia and the large islands of the East, some species of which are remarkable for raising very large mounds of leaves and decaying substances to…Me-gäp'o-lis, n. p. 826A great or chief city; a metropolis. [Obs.]Me-gā'ri-an or Me-gār'ic, a. p. 826Belonging, or pertaining, to Megara, a city of ancient Greece. Megarìan or Megaric school, a school of philosophy established at Megara, after the death of Socrates, by his disciples, and remarkable…Mĕg'a-scōpe, n. p. 826A modification of the solar microscope for viewing bodies of considerable dimensions. [Obs.]Me-gāss' or Me-gāssé', n. p. 826See BAGASSE.Mēg'as-thēne, n. p. 826(Zoöl.) One of a group of mammals having a typically large size. See MAMMALS.Mēg'as-thēn'ic, a. p. 826(Zoöl.) Having a typically large size; belonging to the megasthenes.Mēg'a-stōme, n. p. 826(Zoöl.) One of a family of univalve shells, including those which are not symmetrical, and which have a very large aperture or mouth. Brande.Mĕg'a-thē'ri-ŭm, n. p. 826(Paleon.) An extinct and gigantic mammiferous quadruped allied to the anteaters and sloths. Its remains are found in South America. Megatherium Cuvieri.Me-gāth'e-roid, n. p. 826(Paleon.) One of a family of extinct mammals found fossil in some parts of America. The family includes the megatherium, the megalonyx, &c.Mē’gĭlp or Mē’gĭlph, n. p. 826(Paint.) See MAGILP.Mē'grim, n. p. 826A vehement pain confined to one side of the head, sometimes to the forehead. 2. A fancy; a whim; a freak; a humor. These are his megrims, firks, and melancholies. Ford.Meĭ-bō'mi-an, a. p. 826Pertaining to, or discovered by, H. Meibomius. Meibomian glands (Anat.), minute glands, situated in the edge of the eyelids. They secrete a wax which keeps the moisture of the eye from flowing down…Mēine, v. t. p. 826To mingle. [Obs.]Mēin'e or Mēin'y, n. p. 826A retinue or family of servants; domestics. [Obs.] They summoned up their meiny; straight took horse, Commanded me to follow and attend. Shak.Mei'o-nīte, n. p. 826(Min.) A mineral chiefly consisting of the silicate of alumina and lime, found on Monte Somma, near Naples. Dana.Mei-ō'sis, n. p. 826(Rhet.) Diminution; a rhetorical figure, a species of hyperbole, representing a thing as being less than it really is.Mei'well, n. p. 826A small species of codfish.Mĕk'hi-tar-ist, n. p. 826(Eccl. Hist.) One of a congregation of Armenian monks, who reside on the Island of San Lazaro, in Venice. They publish works on theology, and also works on general literature and science.Me-lā'dā, n. p. 826A mixture of sugar and molasses; crude sugar as it comes from the pans without being drained.Mēl'āin, n. p. 826The dark coloring matter of the liquid of the cuttle-fish.Mē'lam, n. p. 826(Chem.) A white, insoluble powder, discovered by Liebig. It is prepared by fusing sulphocyanide of ammonia, or a mixture of two parts of sal ammoniac and one part of sulphocyanide of potassium.Mĕl'a-mīne, n. p. 826(Chem.) A base obtained from melam when decomposed by means of alkalies or dilute acids. Wright.