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.
Vār'ee, n. p. 1462Kelp or incinerated sea-weed; wrack; Fucus vesiculosus. Ure.Vā'rē, n. p. 1462(Zoöl.) A quadrumanous mammal found in Madagascar; the ring-tailed lemur (Lemur catta), a quadruped having its tail marked with rings of black and white.Vā'ri-a-bĭl'i-ty, n. p. 1462The state or quality of being variable; variableness.Vā'ri-a-ble, a. p. 1462Having the capacity of varying or changing; capable of alteration in any manner; changeable; as, variable winds or seasons; variable colors. 2. Over-susceptible of change; liable to change; mutable…Vā'ri-a-ble, n. p. 1462(Math.) A quantity which may increase or decrease; a quantity which admits of an infinite number of values in the same expression; thus, in the equation x² − y² = R², x and y are variables. 2.…Independent variables p. 1462any variables except one in an equation in which there are several, as distinguished from that one, which is called a function of the others.Vā'ri-a-ble-ness, n. p. 1462The state or quality of being variable; susceptibility of change; liableness or aptness to alter; changeableness; inconstancy; fickleness; unsteadiness; levity; as, the variableness of the weather…Vā'ri-a-bly, adv. p. 1462In a variable manner; changeably; inconstantly.Vā'ri-ance, n. p. 1462The act or state of being variant; alteration; change of condition. 2. (Law.) A disagreement or difference between two parts of the same legal proceeding, which, to be effectual, ought to agree…Vā'ri-ant, a. p. 1462Varying; different; diverse. [Rare.] Rawle.Vā'ri-ant, n. p. 1462(Lit.) A various reading. [Rare.]Vā'ri-āte, v. t. p. 1462To alter; to make different; to vary.Vā'ri-ā'tion, n. p. 1462The act of varying; a partial change in the form, position, state, or qualities of the same thing; alteration; mutation; diversity; as, a variation of color in different lights; a variation in the…Vā'ri-cĕl'li-a, n. p. 1462(Med.) A disease characterized by glabrous, transparent vesicles about the size of peas, scattered over the body; chicken-pox. Dunglison.Va-rĭç'i-fōrm, a. p. 1462Resembling the uneven dilatation of a vein. Craig.Vār'i-co-cēle, a. p. 1462(Surg.) A varicose enlargement of the veins of the spermatic cord; or, more rarely, a like enlargement of the veins of the scrotum.Vā'rĭ-eōse/ or Vā'rĭ-eōus, a. p. 1462Preternaturally enlarged, or permanently dilated;—applied only to veins.Vā'ried-ly, adv. p. 1462Diversely. [Rare.]Vā'ri-e-gāte, v. t. p. 1462To diversify in external appearance; to mark with different colors; as, to variegate a floor with marble of different colors. The shells are filled with a white spar, which variegates and adds to the…Vā'ri-e-gā'tion, n. p. 1462The act of variegating or diversifying, or state of being diversified, by different colors; diversity of colors.Va-ri'e-ty, n. p. 1462The quality of being various; difference; diversity; intermixture or succession of different things. Variety is nothing else but a continued novelty. South. The variety of colors depends on the…Vā'ri-fōrm, a. p. 1463Having different shapes or forms.Vā'ri-fôrmed, a. p. 1463Formed with different shapes.Vā'ri-fy, v. t. p. 1463To make different; to vary; to variegate. [Rare.] Clarke.Vā'ri-o-lō, n. p. 1463(Med.) The small-pox.Va-ri'o-lar or Va-ri-ŏl'ic, a. p. 1463The same as VARIOLOUS.Vā'ri-o-lite, n. p. 1463(Min.) A kind of rock, containing imbedded whitish spherules, which give the stone a spotted appearance.Vā'ri-o-loid or Văr'i-o-loid, a. p. 1463(Med.) Resembling small-pox; pertaining to the disease called varioloid. Dunglison.Vā'ri-o-loid or Vār'i-o-loid, n. p. 1463(Med.) The small-pox as modified by previous inoculation or vaccination. ☞ It is almost always a milder disease than small-pox, and this circumstance, with its shorter duration, exhibits the salutary…Va-ri'o-loūs, a. p. 1463Of, pertaining to, or designating, the small-pox; having pits or sunken impressions like those of the small-pox.Vā'ri-ō'rum p. 1463Of various persons or things; especially (used as an adjective), containing notes by different persons; as, a variorum edition of a book.Vā'ri-oŭs, a. p. 1463Different; diverse; several; manifold; as, men of various names; various occupations. “A wit as various, gay, grave, sage, or wild.” Byron. So many and so various laws are given. Milton. 2.…Vā'ri-oŭs-ly, adv. p. 1463In various or different ways; with change; with diversity; as, objects variously represented; flowers variously colored.Vār'ĭs-cīte, n. p. 1463(Min.) An apple-green mineral occurring in reniform masses, and consisting chiefly of alumina, phosphoric acid, and water. Dana.Va-risse′, n. p. 1463(Far.) An imperfec-tion on the inside of the hind leg in horses, different from a curb, but at the same height, and frequently injuring the sale of the animal by growing to an unsightly magnitude.…Vā'rīx, n. pl. p. 1463VĀR'I-CĒS. [Lat., from varus, bent, stretched; Fr. & It. varice, Sp. varice, variz, Pr. varica.] (Med.) An uneven and permanent dilatation of a vein. Varices are owing to local retardation of the…Vär'let, n. p. 1463A servant or footman; an attendant; a valet. [Obs.] Tusser. 2. Hence, a low fellow; a scoundrel; a rascal; as, an impudent varlet. What a brazen-faced varlet art thou! Shak.Vär'let-ry, n. p. 1463The rabble; the crowd. Shall they hoist me up, And show me to the shouting varletry Of censuring Rome? Shak.Vär'nish, n. p. 1463A thick, viscid liquid, consisting of a solution of resinous matter in a volatile liquid, laid on work with a brush, or otherwise, the volatile part soon evaporating, and the resinous part forming…Vär'nish, v. t. p. 1463To lay varnish on; to cover with a liquid, for giving a glossy surface to; as, to varnish a side-board or table. 2. To cover with something that gives a fair external appearance. “Close ambition…Vär'nish-er, n. p. 1463One who varnishes, or whose occupation is to varnish. 2. One who disguises or palliates; one who gives a fair external appearance.Vär'nish-ing, n. p. 1463The act of laying on varnish; also, materials for varnish.Vär'nish-tree, n. p. 1463(Bot.) A tree or shrub from the juice or resin of which varnish is made, as some species of the genus Rhus, especially R. verniciflua. The black varnish, called Japan lacquer, is obtained from…Vär'ta-bed, n. p. 1463(Eccl.) One of an order of ecclesiastics in the Armenian church. They differ from the priests by living in seclusion and celibacy. They also preach, while the priests do not. The bishops are all…Va'ru'ṇa p. 1463The god of the waters, the Indian Neptune, and regent of the west division of the earth. He is represented as a white man, four-armed, riding on a sea-animal, with a rope in one hand and a club in…Vär'veled, a. p. 1463Having varvels or rings. [Written also varvelled.] ☞ In heraldry, when the leather thongs which tie on the bells to the legs of hawks are borne flotant with rings at the end, the bearing is termed…Vär'vels, n. pl. p. 1463Rings, usually of silver, about the legs of a hawk, on which the owner's name is engraved. [Written also vervels.]Wär'vi-cite, n. p. 1463(Min.) An ore of manganese.Vā'ry, v. t. p. 1463To change the aspect of; to alter in form, appearance, substance, or position; to make different by a partial change; as, to vary a thing in dimensions; to vary its properties, proportions, or…Vā'ry, v. i. p. 1463To alter, or be altered, in any manner; to suffer a partial change; to become different; to alter; as, colors vary in different lights; opinions or customs vary with the times. That each from other…Vā'ry, n. p. 1463Alteration; change; variation. [Obs.]Văs'cu-lar, a. p. 1463Consisting of vessels, or containing them, as an essential part of a structure. 2. Operating by means of, or made up of, an arrangement of vessels; as, the vascular system in animals, including…Văs'cu-lā'rēs, n. pl. p. 1463(Bot.) Plants which have stamens, pistils, and spiral vessels, and bear proper flowers. Lindley.Vās'cu-lār'i-ty, n. p. 1463The state or quality of being vascular.Văs'cu-lif'er-ous, a. p. 1463(Bot.) Having seed-vessels divided into cells.Vāse, n. p. 1463A vessel, of various forms and materials, for domestic purposes, and anciently for sacrificial uses; especially, a vessel of antique or elegant pattern used for ornamental purposes; as, an alabaster…Vāse'-shāped, a. p. 1463Formed like a vase or flower-pot. Henslow.Văs'i-fōrm, a. p. 1463(Bot.) Having a variety of vascular tissue like that of ducts. Henslow. Vasiform tissue (Bot.), a kind of tissue composed of tubes, the sides of which are covered with small pits or depressions…Văs'sal, n. p. 1463One who holds land of a superior, and who vows fidelity and homage to him; a feudatory; a tenant. 2. A subject; a dependent; a servant; a bondman; a slave. “The vassals of his anger.” Milton. Rear…Văs'sal, a. p. 1464Resembling a vassal; slavish; servile.