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.
Shĕl'ter-less, a. p. 1217Destitute of shelter or protection; without home or refuge. Now sad and shelterless perhaps she lies. Rowe.Shēl'ter-y, a. p. 1217Affording shelter. [Rare.] White.Shēl'tie, n. p. 1217A Shetland pony; one of a breed of small ponies;— so called from Shetland, where they originated. [Written also shelty.]Shēlve, v. t. p. 1217To furnish with shelves; as, to shelve a closet or library. 2. To place on a shelf; hence, to lay on the shelf, or put aside with a view to prevent re-appearance; as, to shelve a claim.Shēlve, v. i. p. 1217To incline; to be sloping. “With rocks and shelving arches vaulted round.” Addison.Shĕlv'ing, n. p. 1217The act of laying on the shelf. 2. The shelves of a room, &c., collectively.Shēlv'y, a. p. 1217Full of rocks or sand-banks; shallow; as, a shelvy shore. See SHELFY.Shēm'ite, n. p. 1217A descendant of Shem.Shem-it'ic or Shēm'it-ish, a. p. 1217Pertaining to Shem, the son of Noah. [Written also Semitic.] The Shemitic languages are the Chaldee, Syriac, Arabic, Hebrew, Samaritan, Ethiopic, and Old Phenician.Shēm'īt-ism, n. p. 1217The system or peculiar forms of the Shemitic languages.Shēnd, v. t. p. 1217To injure, mar, or spoil. I fear my body will be shent. Dryden. 2. To blame, reproach, revile, degrade, or disgrace. The famous name of knighthood foully shend. Spencer. 3. To overpower or surpass.…Shē'ōl, n. p. 1217The place of departed spirits; Hades.Shĕp'herd, n. p. 1217A man employed in tending, feeding, and guarding sheep. 2. A swain; a rural lover. Raleigh. 3. The pastor of a parish, church, or congregation; a minister of the gospel who superintends a church or…Shĕp'herd, v. t. p. 1218To tend as a shepherd; to guard, herd, or drive, as a shepherd. [Rare.] White, fleecy clouds Were wandering in thick flocks along the mountains. Shepherded by the slow, unwilling wind. Shelley.Shĕp'herd-ess, n. p. 1218A woman that tends sheep; hence, a rural lass. She put herself into the garb of a shepherdess. Sidney.Shĕp'herd-ĭsh, a. p. 1218Resembling a shepherd; suiting a shepherd; pastoral; rustic.Shĕp'herd-ĭsm, n. p. 1218Pastoral life or occupation.Shĕp'herd-ling, n. p. 1218A little shepherd.Shĕp'herd-ly, a. p. 1218Resembling or becoming a shepherd; pastoral; rustic. Bp. Taylor.Shĕp'herd's-clŭb, n. p. 1218(Bot.) A species of mullein; Verbascum thapsus.Shĕp'herd's-nee'dle, n. p. 1218(Bot.) An annual plant of the genus Scandix; Venus's comb.Shĕp’herd’s-pouch or Shĕp’herd’s-pûrse, n. p. 1218(Bot.) An annual cruciferous plant (Capsella bursa-pastoris), bearing small white flowers.Shĕp'herd's-rŏd or Shĕp'herd's-stȧff, n. p. 1218(Bot.) A plant of the genus Dipsacus; teasel.Shẽr'bet, n. p. 1218A drink used in the East, composed of water, lemon-juice, and sugar, sometimes with perfumed cakes dissolved in it, with an infusion of some drops of rose-water or other ingredient, to give it an…Shẽrd, n. p. 1218A fragment; as, pot-sherd. See SHARD. “The thigh ('tis called the knuckle-bone) which all in sherds it drove.” Chapman.Shĕr'eef or Shĕr'if p. 1218Shĕr'if, n. [See SCHERIF and CHERIFF.] 1. A descendant of Mohammed. [Written also cherif, scherif, and sherriffe. See CHERIFF.] 2. The chief magistrate of Mecca.Shĕr'iff, n. p. 1218The chief officer of a shire or county, to whom is intrusted the execution of the laws. ☞ In England, sheriffs are appointed by the king. In the United States, sheriffs are elected by the…Shĕr'iff-al-ty or Shĕr'iff-dôm or Shĕr'iff-ship or Shĕr'iff-wĭck, n. p. 1218The office or jurisdiction of sheriff. See SHRIEVALTY.Shẽrn, n. p. 1218See SHEARN.Shĕr'ris, n. p. 1218The same as SHERRY. [Obs.] The second property of your excellent sherris is . . . the warming of the blood. Shak.Shĕr'ry, n. p. 1218A strong wine of a deep amber color, and having, when good, an aromatic odor;—so called from Xeres, near Cadiz, in Spain, where it is made. Sherry-cobbler, a beverage prepared with sherry wine…Shĕr'ry-văl'lies, n. pl. p. 1218Pantaloons of thick cloth or leather, buttoned on the outside of each leg, and generally worn over other pantaloons, to protect from dust or mud when riding on horseback. [Local U. S.] Bartlett.Shew or Shewed or Shewn p. 1218See SHOW, SHOWED, SHOWN. ☞ The use of shew for shewed or showed, common in some parts of the United States, is a gross vulgarism, which can not be too carefully avoided.Shew'-brĕad, n. p. 1218See SHOW-BREAD.Shew'er, n. p. 1218See SHOWER.Shĭ'ah, n. p. 1218A Shiite. See SHIITE.Shĭb'bo-leth, n. p. 1218A word which was made the criterion by which to distinguish the Ephraimites from the Gileadites. The Ephraimites, not being able to pronounce the letter ש, sh, pronounced the word sibboleth. See…Shīde, n. p. 1218A piece split off; a cleft; a piece; a billet of wood; a splinter. [Prov. Eng.]Shīe, v. t. p. 1218To throw; as, to shie a stone. [Written also shy.] [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.Shiēl, n. p. 1218See SHEELING.Shiēld, n. p. 1218A broad piece of defensive armor, carried on the arm; a buckler; — formerly used in war for the protection of the body. Now put your shields before your hearts and fight, With hearts more proof than…Shiēld, v. t. p. 1218To cover as with a shield; to cover from danger; to defend; to protect; to secure from assault or injury. To see the son the vanquished father shield. Dryden. 2. To ward off; to defend against; as…Shiēld'-drāke, n. p. 1218The same as SHELDRAKE.Shiēld'fērn, n. p. 1218(Bot.) A fern of the genus Aspidinus; — called also wood-fern.Shiēld'less, a. p. 1218Destitute of a shield, or of protection.Shiēld'less-ly, adv. p. 1218In a shieldless manner; without protection.Shiēld'less-ness, n. p. 1218The state of being shieldless; destitution of a shield, or of protection.Shiēl'ing or Shiēl'ling, n. p. 1218A hut or shelter; a small cottage. See SHEELING. H. Miller.Shift, v. t. p. 1218To change; to alter; as, to shift the scenes. 2. To transfer from one place or position to another; as, shift the helm; shift the sails. 3. To put off or out of the way by some expedient. “I shifted…Shift, v. i. p. 1218To vary from one point or direction to another; to change about; to move. Here the Baillie shifted and fidgeted about in his seat. W. Scott. 2. To change one's occupation or principles. 3. To change…Shift, n. p. 1218A turning from one thing to another; a change; hence, an expedient tried in difficulty; one thing tried when another fails; a contrivance. I'll find a thousand shifts to get away. Shak. 2. A…Shift'a-ble, a. p. 1218Admitting of being shifted. Ash.Shift'er, n. p. 1218One who shifts; one who plays tricks or practices artifice; a cozener. ’Twas such a shifter that, if truth were known, Death was half glad when he had got him down. Milton. 2. (Naut.) A person…Shift'ĭ-ness, n. p. 1218The quality of being shifty or changeable; variableness.Shift'ing-ly, adv. p. 1218By shifts and changes; deceitfully.Shift'less, a. p. 1218Characterized by failure, through negligence or incapacity, to provide for one's self, or to use means requisite for success; as, a shiftless fellow; shiftless management.Shift'less-ly, adv. p. 1218In a shiftless manner.Shift'less-ness, n. p. 1218A state of being shiftless.Shift'y, a. p. 1218Full of, or ready with, shifts; futile in expedients or contrivances. Wright. Shifty and thrifty as old Greek or modern Scot, there were few things he could not invent, and perhaps nothing he could…Shi'ite, n. p. 1218One belonging to that branch of the Mohammedans to which the Persians belong. They reject the first three caliphs, and consider Ali as being the first and only rightful successor of Mohammed. They do…