Lo`ret*tine" (?),n.[FromLoretoin Italy.](R. C. Ch.)(a)One of an order of nuns founded in 1812 at Loretto, in Kentucky. The members of the order (called also Sisters of Loretto, or Friends of Mary at the Foot of the Cross) devote themselves to the cause of education and the care of destitute orphans, their labors being chiefly confined to the western United States.(b)A Loreto nun.
||Loup`-ga`rou" (?),n.; pl.Loups-garous(#). [F., fr.loupwolf + a Teutonic word akin to E.werewolf.] A werewolf; a lycanthrope.
The superstition of theloup-garou, or werewolf, belongs to the folklore of most modern nations, and has its reflex in the story of "Little Red Riding-hood" and others.
The superstition of theloup-garou, or werewolf, belongs to the folklore of most modern nations, and has its reflex in the story of "Little Red Riding-hood" and others.
Brinton.
Loup"ing (?). [From Loup to leap.](Veter.)An enzoötic, often fatal, disease of sheep and other domestic animals, of unknown cause. It is characterized by muscular tremors and spasms, followed by more or less complete paralysis. The principal lesion is an inflammation of the membranes covering the brain and spinal cord.
Lov"ing cup`. A large ornamental drinking vessel having two or more handles, intended to pass from hand to hand, as at a banquet.
Low"boy` (?),n.A chest of drawers not more than four feet high; -- applied commonly to the lower half of a tallboy from which the upper half has been removed. [U. S.]
Low steel. See under Low.
Luf"fa (?),n.[NL., fr. Ar.lfah.](Bot.)(a)A small genus of tropical cucurbitaceous plants having white flowers, the staminate borne in racemes, and large fruits with a dry fibrous pericarp. The fruit of several species and the species themselves, esp.L. Ægyptiaca, are calleddishcloth gourds.(b)Any plant of this genus, or its fruit.(c)The fibrous skeleton of the fruit, used as a sponge and in the manufacture of caps and women's hats; -- written alsoloofah.
Lum"ber State. Maine; -- a nickname.
||Lu"men (?),n.; pl. L.Lumina(#), E.Lumens(#). [L., light, an opening for light.]1.(Photom.)(a)A unit of illumination, being the amount of illumination of a unit area of spherical surface, due to a light of unit intensity placed at the center of the sphere.(b)A unit of light flux, being the flux through one square meter of surface the illumination of which is uniform and of unit brightness.
2.(Biol.)An opening, space, or cavity, esp. a tubular cavity; a vacuole.
Lu`mi*nes"cence (?),n.[See Luminescent.]1.(Physics)Any emission of light not ascribable directly to incandescence, and therefore occurring at low temperatures, as in phosphorescence and fluorescence or other luminous radiation resulting from vital processes, chemical action, friction, solution, or the influence of light or of ultraviolet or cathode rays, etc.
2.(Zoöl.)(a)The faculty or power of voluntarily producing light, as in the firefly and glowworm.(b)The light thus produced; luminosity; phosphorescence.
Lu`mi*nes"cent (?),a.[L.luminareto illuminate +-escent.](Physics)Shining with a light due to any of the various causes which produce luminescence.
Lump"y-jaw`.(Med.)Actinomycosis. [Colloq.]
Lush (?),n.[Etymol uncertain; said to be fr.Lushington, name of a London brewer.] Liquor, esp. intoxicating liquor; drink. [Slang]C. Lever.
Lu*te"ci*um (?),n.(Chem.)A metallic element separated from ytterbium in 1907, by Urbain in Paris and by von Welsbach in Vienna. Symbol,Lu; at. wt. 174.0.
||Ly`cée" (?),n.[F. Cf. Lyceum.] A French lyceum, or secondary school supported by the French government, for preparing students for the university.
Lydd"ite (?),n.(Chem.)A high explosive consisting principally of picric acid, used as a shell explosive in the British service; -- so named from the proving grounds atLydd, England.
Lymph,n.(Physiol. Chem.)A fluid containing certain products resulting from the growth of specific microörganisms upon some culture medium, and supposed to be possessed of curative properties.
Lymph node.(Anat.)A lymphatic gland.
M.
||Ma`cé`doine" (?),n.[F., apparently the same word asMacédoineMacedonia.] A kind of mixed dish, as of cooked vegetables with white sauce, sweet jelly with whole fruit, etc. Also, fig., a medley.
Mack"i*naw boat. A flat-bottomed boat with a pointed prow and square stern, using oars or sails or both, used esp. on the upper Great Lakes and their tributaries.
Mackinaw coat. A short, heavy, double-breasted plaid coat, the design of which is large and striking. [Local, U. S.]
Mackinaw trout. The namaycush.
M'-Naught" (mak*nt"),v. t.(Steam Engines)To increase the power of (a single- cylinder beam engine) by adding a small high-pressure cylinder with a piston acting on the beam between the center and the flywheel end, using high-pressure steam and working as a compound engine, -- a plan introduced by M'Naught, a Scottish engineer, in 1845.
Mac"ro*graph (?),n.[Macro-+-graph.] A picture of an object as seen by the naked eye (that is, unmagnified); as, amacrographof a metallic fracture.
Ma*crog"ra*phy (?),n.Examination or study with the naked eye, as distinguished frommicrography.
Ma*dei"ra vine (?).(Bot.)A herbaceous climbing vine (Boussingaultia baselloides) very popular in cultivation, having shining entire leaves and racemes of small fragrant white flowers.
Madeira wood.(Bot.)(a)The mahogany tree (Swietenia Mahogoni).(b)A West Indian leguminous tree (Lysiloma Latisiliqua) the wood of which is used for boat trimming.
Ma*dras" (?),n.[So named afterMadras, a city and presidency of India.] A large silk-and- cotton kerchief, usually of bright colors, such as those often used by negroes for turbans.
A black woman in blue cotton gown, red-and-yellowmadrasturban . . . crouched against the wall.
A black woman in blue cotton gown, red-and-yellowmadrasturban . . . crouched against the wall.
G. W. Cable.
{ ||Maf"fi*a (?), ||Ma"fi*a (?) },n.[It.maffia.] A secret society which organized in Sicily as a political organization, but is now widespread among Italians, and is used to further or protect private interests, reputedly by illegal methods.
{ ||Maf`fi*o"so (?), ||Ma`fi*o"so (?) },n.; pl.-si(#). [It.maffioso.] A member of the maffia.
Mag`a*zine",n.1.A country or district especially rich in natural products.
2.A city viewed as a marketing center.
3.A reservoir or supply chamber for a stove, battery, camera, typesetting machine, or other apparatus.
4.A store, or shop, where goods are kept for sale.
Magazine camera.(Photog.)A camera in which a number of plates can be exposed without reloading.
Mag`net*o*mo"tive (?),a.[Magneto-+motive, a.](Elec.)Pertaining to, or designating, a force producing magnetic flux, analogous to electromotive force, and equal to the magnetic flux multiplied by the magnetic reluctance.
Ma*hat"ma (?),n.[Skr.mahtman, lit., great-souled, wise.](Theosophy)One of a class of sages, or "adepts," reputed to have knowledge and powers of a higher order than those of ordinary men. -- Ma*hat"ma*ism (#),n.
Mah"di*ism (?),n.See Mahdism.
Mah"dism (?),n.Belief in the coming of the Mahdi; fanatical devotion to the cause of the Mahdi or a pretender to that title. -- Mah"dist (#),n.
Mahdismhas proved the most shameful and terrible instrument of bloodshed and oppression which the modern world has ever witnessed.
Mahdismhas proved the most shameful and terrible instrument of bloodshed and oppression which the modern world has ever witnessed.
E. N. Bennett.
||Mai*dan" (?),n.[Written alsomidan,meidan,mydan, etc.] [Hind. & Per.maidn, fr. Ar.maidn.] In various parts of Asia, an open space, as for military exercises, or for a market place; an open grassy tract; an esplanade.
A gallop on the greenmaidan.
A gallop on the greenmaidan.
M. Crawford.
Make and break.(Elec.)Any apparatus for making and breaking an electric circuit; a circuit breaker.
Malaria parasite. Any of several minute protozoans of the genusPlasmodium(syn.Hæmatozoön) which in their adult condition live in the tissues of mosquitoes of the genusAnopheles(which see) and when transferred to the blood of man, by the bite of the mosquito, produce malaria. The young parasites, orsporozoites, enter the red blood corpuscles, growing at their expense, undergoing sporulation, and finally destroying the corpuscles, thus liberating in the blood plasma an immense number of small spores calledmerozoites. An indefinite but not ultimated number of such generations may follow, but if meanwhile the host is bitten by a mosquito, the parasites develop into gametes in the stomach of the insect. These conjugate, the zygote thus produced divides, forming spores, and eventually sporozoites, which, penetrating to the salivary glands of the mosquito, may be introduced into a new host. The attacks of the disease coincide with the dissolution of the corpuscles and liberation of the spores and products of growth of the parasites into the blood plasma. Several species of the parasite are distinguished, asP. vivax, producing tertian malaria;P. malariæ, quartan malaria; andP. (subgenus Laverania) falciferum, the malarial fever of summer and autumn common in the tropics.
Mal"lee (?),n.[Native name.]1.(Bot.)A dwarf Australian eucalypt with a number of thin stems springing from a thickened stock. The most common species areEucalyptus dumosaandE. Gracilis.
2.Scrub or thicket formed by the mallee. [Australia]
Mal"pais` (?),n.[Cf. Sp.mal,malo, bad, andpaíscountry.](Geol.)The rough surface of a congealed lava stream. [Southwestern U. S.]
Man,n.--Man of sin(Script.), one who is the embodiment of evil, whose coming is represented (2 Thess. ii. 3) as preceding the second coming of Christ. [A Hebraistic expression] --Man-stopping bullet(Mil.), a bullet which will produce a sufficient shock to stop a soldier advancing in a charge; specif., a small-caliber bullet so modified as to expand when striking the human body. Such bullets are chiefly used in wars with savage tribes.
Man"bird` (?),n.An aviator. [Colloq.]
Man*do"la (?),n.[It. See Mandolin.](Mus.)An instrument closely resembling the mandolin, but of larger size and tuned lower.
Man`ga*nese" steel. Cast steel containing a considerable percentage of manganese, which makes it very hard and tough. See Alloy steel, above.
Man*han"dle (?),v. t.[imp. & p. p.-handled (?);p. pr. & vb. n.-handling (?).]1.To move, or manage, by human force without mechanical aid; as, tomanhandlea cannon.
2.To handle roughly; as, the captive wasmanhandled.
Man`hès" proc"ess (?).(Copper Metal.)A process by which copper matte is treated by passing through it a blast of air, to oxidize and remove sulphur. It is analogous in apparatus to the Bessemer process for decarbonizing cast iron. So called from Pierre Manhès, a French metallurgist, who invented it.
Man"ic (?),a.[Gr. &?; mad, frenzied.](Med.)Of or pert. to, or characterized by, mania, or excitement.
Man"i*cure,n.The care of the hands and nails.
Man"i*cure,v. t. & i.[imp. & p. p.Manicured (?);p. pr. & vb. n.Manicuring (?).] To care for (the hands and nails); to care for the hands and nails of; to do manicure work.
||Män"ner*chor` (?),n.;G. pl.-chöre(#). [G.;männer, pl. ofmannman +chorchorus.] A German men's chorus or singing club.
||Ma"no (?),n.[Sp., lit., hand.] The muller, or crushing and grinding stone, used in grinding corn on a metate. [Mexico & Local U. S.]
Man"o*graph (?),n.[Gr. &?; thin, rare +-graph: cf. F.manographe.](Engin.)An optical device for making an indicator diagram for high-speed engines. It consists of a light-tight box or camera having at one end a small convex mirror which reflects a beam of light on to the ground glass or photographic plate at the other end. The mirror is pivoted so that it can be moved in one direction by a small plunger operated by an elastic metal diaphragm which closes a tube connected with the engine cylinder. It is also moved at right angles to this direction by a reducing motion, called areproducer, so as to copy accurately on a smaller scale the motion of the engine piston. The resultant of these two movements imparts to the reflected beam of light a motion similar to that of the pencil of the ordinary indicator, and this can be traced on the sheet of ground glass, or photographed.
Man`tel*let"ta (?),n.[It.mantelletta. See Mantelet.](R. C. Ch.)A silk or woolen vestment without sleeves worn by cardinals, bishops, abbots, and the prelates of the Roman court. It has a low collar, is fastened in front, and reaches almost to the knees.
Man`za*nil"la (?),n.(Olive Trade)A kind of small roundish olive with a small freestone pit, a fine skin, and a peculiar bitterish flavor. Manzanillas are commonly pitted and stuffed with Spanish pimientos.
Mar`a*bou" (?),n.A kind of thrown raw silk, nearly white naturally, but capable of being dyed without scouring; also, a thin fabric made from it, as for scarfs, which resembles the feathers of the marabou in delicacy, -- whence the name.
{ Ma*ra"thi (?), Mah*rat"ta (?) },n.A Sanskritic language of western India, prob. descended from the Maharastri Prakrit, spoken by the Marathas and neighboring peoples. It has an abundant literature dating from the 13th century. It has a book alphabet nearly the same as Devanagari and a cursive script translation between the Devanagari and the Gujarati.
Mar*co"ni (?),a.[After GuglielmoMarconi(b. 1874), Italian inventor.] Designating, or pert. to, Marconi's system of wireless telegraphy; as,Marconiaërial, coherer, station, system, etc.
Mar*co"ni*gram (?),n.[Marconi+-gram.] A Marconi wireless message.
Mar*co"ni*graph (?),n.[Marconi+-graph.] The apparatus used in Marconi wireless telegraphy.
Mar*co"ni's law (?).(Wireless Teleg.)The law that the maximum good signaling distance varies directly as the square of the height of the transmitting antenna.
Mar*co"nism (?),n.The theory or practice of Marconi's wireless telegraph system.
Mar*co"ni system (?).(Elec.)A system or wireless telegraphy developed by G.Marconi, an Italian physicist, in which Hertzian waves are used in transmission and a coherer is used as the receiving instrument.
||Ma"re clau"sum (?). [L.](Internat. Law)Lit., closed sea; hence, a body of water within the separate jurisdiction of the nation; -- opposed toopen sea, the water open to all nations and over which no single nation has special control.
Mar"ga*rine (?),n.[F.]1.Artificial butter; oleomargarine.
The wordmargarineshall mean all substances, whether compounds or otherwise, prepared in imitation of butter, and whether mixed with butter or not.
The wordmargarineshall mean all substances, whether compounds or otherwise, prepared in imitation of butter, and whether mixed with butter or not.
Margarine Act, 1887 (50 & 51 Vict. c. 29).
2.Margarin.
Mar"ga*ry*ize (?),v. t.[imp. & p. p.-ized (?);p. pr. & vb. n.-izing (?).] [(J. J. Lloyd)Margary, inventor of the process +-ize.] To impregnate (wood) with a preservative solution of copper sulphate (often called Mar"ga*ry's flu"id [-rz]).
Ma*ri"nism (?),n.A bombastic literary style marked by the use of metaphors and antitheses characteristic of the Italian poet Giambattista Marini (1569- 1625). -- Ma*ri"nist (#),n.
Mar"riage,n.In bézique, penuchle, and similar games at cards, the combination of a king and queen of the same suit. If of the trump suit, it is called aroyal marriage.
Mar"tian (?),a.[L.Martius.] Of or pertaining to Mars, the Roman god of war, or to the planet bearing his name; martial.
Mar"tian,n.An inhabitant of the planet Mars.Du Maurier.
{ Mash"ie, Mash"y } (?),n.; pl.Mashies(#). [Etym. uncert.] A golf club like the iron, but with a shorter head, slightly more lofted, used chiefly for short approaches.
Mask (?),n.1.A person wearing a mask; a masker.
Themaskthat has the arm of the Indian queen.
Themaskthat has the arm of the Indian queen.
G. W. Cable.
2.(Sporting)The head or face of a fox.
Death mask, a cast of the face of a dead person.
Mas"sage (?),v. t.(Med.)To treat by means of massage; to rub or knead; as, tomassagea patient with ointment.
Mas"sag*ist (?),n.One who practices massage; a masseur or masseuse.
||Mas`seur" (m`sûr"),n.; pl.-seurs(-sûrz";F.-sûr"). [F. See Massage.]1.A man who practices massage.
2.An instrument used in the performance of massage.
||Mas`seuse" (m*sûz"),n.; pl.-seuses(F.-sûz"). [F.] A woman who practices massage.
Mast,n.(Aëronautics)A spar or strut to which tie wires or guys are attached for stiffening purposes.
{ Mas"ta*ba (?),n.Also Mas"ta*bah }. [Ar.maçtabaha large stone bench.]1.In Mohammedan countries, a fixed seat, common in dwellings and in public places.
2.(Egyptology)A type of tomb, of the time of the Memphite dynasties, comprising an oblong structure with sloping sides (sometimes containing a decorated chamber, sometimes of solid masonry), and connected with a mummy chamber in the rock beneath.
Mas"ter vi"bra*tor. In an internal-combustion engine with two or more cylinders, an induction coil and vibrator placed in the circuit between the battery or magneto and the coils for the different cylinders, which are used without vibrators of their own.
Mas`toid*i*tis (?),n.[NL. See Mastoid, and -itis.](Med.)Inflammation in the mastoid process of the temporal bone.
{ Mat`a*be"le (?), or Mat`a*be"les (?) },n. pl.,sing.Matabele. [Written alsoMatabili.](Ethnol.)A warlike South African Kaffir tribe.
Mat"a*dor (?),n.1.[Skat]The jack of clubs, or any other trump held in sequence with it, whether by the player or by his adversaries.
2.A certain game of dominoes in which four dominoes (the 4-3, 5-2, 6-1, and double blank), calledmatadors, may be played at any time in any way.
Ma`ta*jue"lo (mä`t*hw"l; 239),n.[Cf. Sp.matajudíoa kind of fish.] A large squirrel fish (Holocentrus ascensionis) of Florida and the West Indies.
Ma`ta*jue"lo blan"co (?). [Sp.blancowhite.] A West Indian food fish (Malacanthus plumieri) related to the tilefish.
Match game. A game arranged as a test of superiority; also, one of a series of such games.
Match play.(Golf)Play in which the score is reckoned by counting the holes won or lost by each side; -- disting. frommedal play.
||Mate`las`sé" (?),a.[F., p.p. ofmatelasserto cushion, to cover as with a mattress, fr.matelasmattress. See Mattress.] Ornamented by means of an imitation or suggestion of quilting, the surface being marked by depressed lines which form squares or lozenges in relief; as,matelassésilks.
||Mate`las`sé",n.A quilted ornamented dress fabric of silk or silk and wool.
{ Mat"e*lote (?), Mat"e*lotte (?) },n.[F.matelote, fr.matelota sailor; properly, a dish such as a sailors prepare.]1.A stew, commonly of fish, flavored with wine, and served with a wine sauce containing onions, mushrooms, etc.
2.An old dance of sailors, in double time, and somewhat like a hornpipe.
Mat"toid (?),n.[It.mattomad (cf. L.mattus,matus, drunk) +-oid.] A person of congenitally abnormal mind bordering on insanity or degeneracy.
||Mat*toir" (?),n.[F.matoir.](Engraving)A kind of coarse punch with a rasplike face, used for making a rough surface on etching ground, or on the naked copper, the effect after biting being very similar to stippled lines.
Maun"dy (?),n.[See Maundy Thursday.]1.The sacrament of the Lord's Supper. [Obs.]
2.The ceremony of washing the feet of the poor on Maundy Thursday.
3.The alms distributed in connection with this ceremony or on Maundy Thursday.
In England, the foot washing is obsolete, but the "royal maundy" is distributed annually on behalf of the sovereign. Since 1890 this distribution has been made from Westminster Abbey.
{ Maundy coins or money }. Silver coins or money of the nominal value of 1d., 2d., 3d., and 4d., struck annually for the Maundy alms.
Mav"er*ick (?),v. t.To take a maverick. [Western U. S.]
Maverick brand. A brand originated by a dishonest cattleman, who, without owning any stock, gradually accumulates a herd by finding mavericks. [Western U. S.]
{ Ma*vour"nin, Ma*vour"neen } (m*vr"nn),n.[Ir.mo mhuirninmy darling;momy +mhuirnindarling.] My darling; -- an Irish term of endearment for a girl or woman. "Erinmavournin."Campbell.
Max"im gun` (?). A kind of machine gun; -- named after its inventor, Hiram S.Maxim.
Ma"yan (?),a.1.Designating, or pertaining to, an American Indian linguistic stock occupying the Mexican States of Veracruz, Chiapas, Tabasco, Campeche, and Yucatan, together with a part of Guatemala and a part of Salvador. The Mayan peoples are dark, short, and brachycephallic, and at the time of the discovery had attained a higher grade of culture than any other American people. They cultivated a variety of crops, were expert in the manufacture and dyeing of cotton fabrics, used cacao as a medium of exchange, and were workers of gold, silver, and copper. Their architecture comprised elaborately carved temples and places, and they possessed a superior calendar, and a developed system of hieroglyphic writing, with records said to go back to about 700 a. d.
2.Of or pertaining to the Mayas.
{ Mayan arch, or Maya arch }. A form of corbel arch employing regular small corbels.
May laws.1.See Kulturkampf, above.
2.In Russia, severe oppressive laws against Jews, which have given occasion for great persecution; -- so called because they received the assent of the czar in May, 1882, and because likened to the Prussian May laws (see Kulturkampf).
Maz`a*rine" (?),n.(Cookery)A forcemeat entrée.
Med"al play`.(Golf)Play in which the score is reckoned by counting the number of strokes.
Med"i*cine,n.1.(a)Among the North American Indians, any object supposed to give control over natural or magical forces, to act as a protective charm, or to cause healing; also, magical power itself; the potency which a charm, token, or rite is supposed to exert.
The North American Indian boy usually took as hismedicinethe first animal of which he dreamed during the long and solitary fast that he observed at puberty.
The North American Indian boy usually took as hismedicinethe first animal of which he dreamed during the long and solitary fast that he observed at puberty.
F. H. Giddings.
(b)Hence, a similar object or agency among other savages.
2.Short for Medicine man.
3.Intoxicating liquor; drink. [Slang]
Mediterranean fruit fly. A two-winged fly (Ceratitis capitata) with black and white markings, native of the Mediterranean countries, but now widely distributed. Its larva lives in ripening oranges, peaches, and other fruits, causing them to decay and fall.
{ Me*dji"di*e, Me*dji"di*eh } (?),n.[Turk.majdieh(prop. fem. a., fr. Ar.mejdglorious); -- so called after the sultan AbdulMejid, lit., "servant of the Glorious One," i.e., of God.]1.(a)A silver coin of Turkey formerly rated at twenty, but since 1880 at nineteen, piasters (about 83 cents).(b)A gold coin of Turkey equal to one hundred piastres ($4.396 or 18s. ¾d.); a lira, or Turkish pound.
2.A Turkish honorary order established in 1851 by Abdul-Mejid, having as its badge a medallion surrounded by seven silver rays and crescents. It is often conferred on foreigners.
{ ||Meg`a*lo*ce*pha"li*a (?), Meg`a*lo*ceph"a*ly (?) },n.[NL.megalocephalia, fr. Gr. &?; having a large head.](Med.)The condition of having an abnormally large head. -- Meg`a*lo*ce*phal"ic (#),a.
{ Meg`a*scop"ic (?), Meg`a*scop"ic*al (?) },a.1.(Physics)Of or pertaining to the megascope or the projection upon a screen of images of opaque objects.(b)Enlarged or magnified; -- said of images or of photographic pictures, etc.
2.(Geol.)Large enough to be seen; -- said of the larger structural features and components of rocks which do not require the use of the microscope to be perceived. Opposed tomicroscopic.
Mel`an*co`ni*a"ce*æ (?),n. pl.[NL.](Bot.)A family of fungi constituting the order Melanconiales. -- Mel`an*co`ni*a"ceous (#),a.
Mel`an*co`ni*a"les (?),n. pl.[NL., fr.Melanconium, name of the typical genus, fr. Gr. &?; black + &?; dust, in allusion to the dark spores.](Bot.)The smallest of the three orders of Fungi Imperfecti, including those with no asci nor pycnidia, but as a rule having the spores in cavities without special walls. They cause many of the plant diseases known as anthracnose.
Mel"a*nism (?),n.(Ethnol.)The character of having a high degree of pigmentation, as shown in dark skin, eyes, and hair.
||Mel`a*no"ma (?),n.; L. pl.- nomata(#). [NL.; Gr. &?;, &?;, black +-oma.](Med.)(a)A tumor containing dark pigment.(b)Development of dark-pigmented tumors.
Meld (?),v. t. & i.[imp. & p. p.Melded;p. pr. & vb. n.Melding.] [G.meldento announce.](Card Playing)In the game of pinochle, to declare or announce for a score; as, tomelda sequence.
Meld,n.(Card Playing)Any combination or score which may be declared, or melded, in pinochle.
||Mê`lée" (?),n.A cavalry exercise in which two groups of riders try to cut paper plumes off the helmets of their opponents, the contest continuing until no member of one group retains his plume; -- sometimes calledBalaklava mêlée.
Mé"lin*ite (?),n.[F.](Chem.)A high explosive similar to lyddite, consisting principally of picric acid, used in the French military service.
Me*lun"geon (?),n.[Cf. F.mélangerto mix,mélangea mixture.] One of a mixed white and Indian people living in parts of Tennessee and the Carolinas. They are descendants of early intermixtures of white settlers with natives. In North Carolina theCroatan Indians, regarded as descended from Raleigh's lost colony of Croatan, formerly classed with negroes, are now legally recognized as distinct.
||Me*men"to mo"ri (?). [L.] Lit., remember to die, i.e., that you must die; a warning to be prepared for death; an object, as a death's-head or a personal ornament, usually emblematic, used as a reminder of death.
Me*mo"ri*al Day. A day, May 30, appointed for commemorating, by decorating their graves with flowers, by patriotic exercises, etc., the dead soldiers and sailors who served the Civil War (1861-65) in the United States; Decoration Day. It is a legal holiday in most of the States. In the Southern States, the Confederate Memorial Day is: May 30 in Virginia; April 26 in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and Mississippi; May 10 in North Carolina and South Carolina; the second Friday in May in Tennessee; June 3 in Louisiana. [U. S.]
Memorial rose. A Japanese evergreen rose (Rosa wichuraiana) with creeping branches, shining leaves, and single white flowers. It is often planted in cemeteries.
||Mem"-sa`hib (?),n.[Hind.mem- shib;mem(fr. E.ma'am) + Ar.çhibmaster. See Sahib.] Lady; mistress; -- used by Hindustani-speaking natives in India in addressing European women.
Men*de"li*an (?),a.[See Mendel's law.](Biol.)Pert. to Mendel, or to Mendel's law. -- Men*de"li*an*ism (#), Men*del"ism (#),n.
Mendelian character.(Biol.)A character which obeys Mendel's law in regard to its hereditary transmission.
Men"del's law (?). A principle governing the inheritance of many characters in animals and plants, discovered by Gregor J. Mendel (Austrian Augustinian abbot, 1822-84) in breeding experiments with peas. He showed that the height, color, and other characters depend on the presence of determinating factors behaving as units. In any given germ cell each of these is either present or absent. The following example (using letters as symbols of the determining factors and hence also of the individuals possessing them) shows the operation of the law: Tallness being due to a factorT, a tall plant, arising by the union in fertilization of two germ cells both bearing this factor, isTT; a dwarf, being withoutT, istt. Crossing these, crossbreeds,Tt, result (called generationF1). In the formation of the germ cells of these crossbreeds a process of segregation occurs such that germ cells, whether male or female, are produced of two kinds,Tandt, in equal numbers. TheTcells bear the factor "tallness," thetcells are devoid of it. The offspring, generationF2, which arise from the chance union of these germ cells in pairs, according to the law of probability, are therefore on an average in the following proportions:
1TT: 2Tt: 1tt;
and thus plants pure in tallness (TT) and dwarfness (tt), as well as crossbreeds (Tt), are formed by the interbreeding of crossbreeds. Frequently, as in this example, owning to what is called thedominanceof a factor, the operation of Mendel's law may be complicated by the fact that when adominantfactor (asT) occurs with its allelomorph (ast), calledrecessive, in the crossbreedTt, the individualTtis itself indistinguishable from the pure formTT. GenerationF1, containing only theTtform, consists entirely of dominants (tall plants) and generationF2 consists of three dominants (2Tt, 1TT) to one dwarf (tt), which, displaying the feature suppressed inF1, is calledrecessive. Such qualitative and numerical regularity has been proved to exist in regard to very diverse qualities or characters which compose living things, both wild and domesticated, such as colors of flowers, of hair or eyes, patterns, structure, chemical composition, and power of resisting certain diseases. The diversity of forms produced in crossbreeding by horticulturists and fanciers generally results from a process of analytical variation or recombination of the factors composing the parental types. Purity of type consequently acquires a specific meaning. An individual is pure in respect of a given character when it results from the union of two sexual cells both bearing that character, or both without it.
Mer"cer*ize (?),v. t.[imp. & p. p.-ized (?);p. pr. & vb. n.-izing (?).] [From (John)Mercer(1791-1866), an English calico printer who introduced the process +-ize.] To treat (cotton fiber or fabrics) with a solution of caustic alkali. Such treatment causes the fiber to shrink in length and become stronger and more receptive of dyes. If the yarn or cloth is kept under tension during the process, it assumes a silky luster. -- Mer`cer*i*za"tion (#),n.
Mer*cu"ri*al*ism (?),n.[Mercurial+-ism.](Med.)The morbid condition produced by the excessive use of mercury, or by exposure to its fumes, as in mining or smelting.
||Me"ro (?),n.[Sp.; cf. Pg.mero.] Any of several large groupers of warm seas, esp. the guasa (Epinephelus guaza), the red grouper (E. morio), the black grouper (E. nigritas), distinguished as Me"ro de lo al"to (&?;), and a species called alsorock hind, distinguished as Me"ro ca*brol"la (&?;).
Mer`o*zo"ite (?),n.[Gr. &?; part + Sporozoa.](Zoöl.)A form of spore, usually elongate or falciform, and somewhat amœboid, produced by segmentation of the schizonts of certain Sporozoa, as the malaria parasite.
||Mes`o*my*ce"tes (?),n. pl.[NL.;meso-+mycetes.](Bot.)One of the three classes into which the fungi are divided in Brefeld's classification. -- ||Mes`o*my*ce"tous (#),a.
||Mes`o*tho"ri*um (?),n.[NL.;meso-+thorium.](Chem.)A radioactive product intermediate between thorium and radiothorium, with a period of 5.5 years.
Mes*qui"te bean. The pod or seed of the mesquite.
Mess,v. t.To make a mess of; to disorder or muddle; to muss; to jumble; to disturb.
It was n't right either to bemessinganother man's sleep.
It was n't right either to bemessinganother man's sleep.
Scribner's Mag.
Mes"sage stick. A stick, carved with lines and dots, used, esp. by Australian aborigines, to convey information.
Mess beef. Barreled salt beef, packed with about 80 pounds chuck and rump, two flanks, and the rest plates.
Me*tab"o*lism (?),n.(Biol.)The series of chemical changes which take place in an organism, by means of which food is manufactured and utilized and waste materials are eliminated.
Me*tal"lo*phone (?),n.[L.metallummetal + Gr. &?; sound.](Music)(a)An instrument like a pianoforte, but having metal bars instead of strings.(b)An instrument like the xylophone, but having metallic instead of wooden bars.
||Me*ta"te (?),n.[Sp., fr. Mex.metlatl.] A flat or somewhat hollowed stone upon which grain or other food is ground, by means of a smaller stone or pestle. [Southwestern U. S. & Sp. Amer.]
Meth`a*nom"e*ter (?),n.[Methane+-meter.] An instrument, resembling a eudiometer, to detect the presence and amount of methane, as in coal mines.
||Mé`tier" (?),n.[F.] Calling; vocation; business; trade.
Not only is it the business of no one to preach the truth but it is themétierof many to conceal it.
Not only is it the business of no one to preach the truth but it is themétierof many to conceal it.
A. R. Colquhoun.
Me"tol (?),n.[G.; trade name, fr.meta-+ kresolcresol.] A whitish soluble powder used as a developer in photography. Chemically, it is the sulphate of methyl-p-amino-m-cresol.
Met"ric ton. A weight of 1,000 kilograms, or 2,204.6 pounds avoirdupois.
||Me"um (?),n.[L., neut. ofmeusmine.] Lit., mine; that which is mine; -- used in the phrasemeum et tuum, ormeum and tuum; as, to confoundmeum and tuum, to fail to distinguish one's own property from that of others; to be dishonest.
Ancestors . . . generally esteemed more renowned for ancient family and high courage than for accurately regarding the trifling distinction ofmeum and tuum.
Ancestors . . . generally esteemed more renowned for ancient family and high courage than for accurately regarding the trifling distinction ofmeum and tuum.
Sir W. Scott.
||Mez"za ma*jol"i*ca (?). [It. See Mezzo; Majolica.](Ceramics)Italian pottery of the epoch and general character of majolica, but less brilliantly decorated, esp. such pottery without tin enamel, but painted and glazed.
Mez"za*nine (?),n.1.A flooring laid over a floor to bring it up to some height or level.
2.Alsomezzanine floor.(Theat.)A floor under the stage, from which various contrivances, as traps, are worked.
Mho (?),n.[Anagram ofohm.](Elec.)A unit of conductivity, being the reciprocal of the ohm.
Mhom"e*ter (?),n.[Mho+- meter.](Elec.)An instrument for measuring conductivity.
Mi`cro*a*nal"y*sis (?),n.[Micro-+analysis.] Analysis of the structure of materials from careful observation of photomicrographs.
Mi`cro*bar"o*graph (?),n.[Micro-+barograph.] An instrument for recording minor fluctuations of atmospheric pressure, as opposed to general barometric surges.
Mi`cro*bi*ol"o*gy (?),n.[See Microbe; -logy.] The study of minute organisms, or microbes, as the bacteria. -- Mi`cro*bi`o*log"ic*al (#),a.-- Mi`cro*bi*ol"o*gist (#),n.
Mi*crog"ra*phy (?),n.[Micro-+-graphy.] Examination or study by means of the microscope, as of an etched surface of metal to determine its structure.
Mi`cro*par"a*site (?),n.A parasitic microörganism. -- Mi`cro*par`a*sit"ic (#),a.
Mi`cro*phon"ic (?),a.Of or pert. to a microphone; serving to intensify weak sounds.
Mi"cro*seism (?),n.[Micro-+ Gr. &?; an earthquake, fr. &?; to shake.] A feeble earth tremor not directly perceptible, but detected only by means of specially constructed apparatus. -- Mi`cro*seis"mic (#), *seis"mic*al (#),a.
Mi`cro*seis"mo*graph (?),n.[Microseiem+-graph.] A microseismometer; specif., a microseismometer producing a graphic record.
Mi`cro*seis*mol"o*gy (?),n.[Microseiem+-logy.] Science or study of microseisms.
Mi`cro*seis*mom"e*ter (?),n.[Microseism+-meter.] A seismometer for measuring amplitudes or periods, or both, of microseisms. -- Mi`cro*seis*mom"e*try (#),n.
{ Mi`cro*tom"ic (?), Mi`cro*tom"ic*al (?) },a.Of or pert. to the microtome or microtomy; cutting thin slices.
{ Mid"gard (md"gärd),n.Also Mid"garth (-gär), ||Mith"garthr (Icel.m"gärr') }. [Icel.miðgarðr.](Teut. Myth.)The middle space or region between heaven and hell, the abode of human beings; the earth.
Mid"night` sun. The sun shining at midnight in the arctic or antarctic summer.
Mi*la"dy (?),n.[F., fr. English.] Lit., my lady; hence (as used on the Continent), an English noblewoman or gentlewoman.
||Mi`lieu" (?),n.[F., fr.mimiddle (L.medius) +lieuplace. See Demi-, Lieu.] Environment.
The intellectual and moralmilieucreated by multitudes of self-centered, cultivated personalities.
The intellectual and moralmilieucreated by multitudes of self-centered, cultivated personalities.
J. A. Symonds.
It is one of the great outstanding facts of his progressive relation to the elements of his socialmilieu.
It is one of the great outstanding facts of his progressive relation to the elements of his socialmilieu.
J. M. Baldwin.
Milk (?),v. i.1.To draw or to yield milk.
2.(Elec.)To give off small gas bubbles during the final part of the charging operation; -- said of a storage battery.
Milk sickness.(Veter.)A peculiar malignant disease, occurring in parts of the western United States, and affecting certain kinds of farm stock (esp. cows), and persons using the meat or dairy products of infected cattle. Its chief symptoms in man are uncontrollable vomiting, obstinate constipation, pain, and muscular tremors. Its origin in cattle has been variously ascribed to the presence of certain plants in their food, and to polluted water.
Mill (?),v. i.1.To undergo hulling, as maize.
2.To move in a circle, as cattle upon a plain.
The deer and the pig and the nilghar weremillinground and round in a circle of eight or ten miles radius.
The deer and the pig and the nilghar weremillinground and round in a circle of eight or ten miles radius.
Kipling.
3.To swim suddenly in a new direction; -- said of whales.
4.To take part in a mill; to box. [Cant]
Mill,n.1.Short for Treadmill.
2.The raised or ridged edge or surface made in milling anything, as a coin or screw.
Mill,v. t.1.(Mining)To fill (a winze or interior incline) with broken ore, to be drawn out at the bottom.
2.To cause to mill, or circle round, as cattle.
Mil"li*mi`cron (?),n.[Milli-+micron.] The thousandish part of a micron or the millionth part of a millimeter; -- a unit of length used in measuring light waves, etc.
Mi*lord" (?),n.[F. (also It., Sp., Russ.), fr. E.my lord.] Lit., my lord; hence (as used on the Continent), an English nobleman or gentleman.
Min"er*al*ize,v. t.To charge or impregnate with ore.
Min"i*mal (?),a.Of, pertaining to, or having a character of, a minim or minimum; least; smallest; as, aminimalamount or value.
||Mi`no*rat" (?),n.[G. Cf. Minor,a.](Law)A custom or right, analogous to borough-English in England, formerly existing in various parts of Europe, and surviving in parts of Germany and Austria, by which certain entailed estates, as a homestead and adjacent land, descend to the youngest male heir.
Mint sauce.1.A sauce of vinegar and sugar flavored with spearmint leaves.
2.Money. [Slang, Eng.]
Min*yan" (?),n.(Jewish Relig.)A quorum, or number necessary, for conducting public worship.
Mir"li*ton (?),n.[F.] A kind of musical toy into which one sings, hums, or speaks, producing a coarse, reedy sound.
Trilby singing "Ben Bolt" into amirlitonwas a thing to be remembered, whether one would or no!
Trilby singing "Ben Bolt" into amirlitonwas a thing to be remembered, whether one would or no!
Du Maurier.
Mir"ror*scope (?),n.[Mirror+-scope.] See Projector, below.
Mir"ya*chit` (?),n.[Written alsomyriachit.] [Yakootmerjäkepileptic, fr.imerekjerk, rage.](Med.)A nervous disease in which the patient involuntarily imitates the words or action of another.
Mi"tis cast`ing (?). [Perh. fr. L.mitismild.] A process, invented by P. Ostberg, for producing malleable iron castings by melting wrought iron, to which from 0.05 to 0.1 per cent of aluminium is added to lower the melting point, usually in a petroleum furnace, keeping the molten metal at the bubbling point until it becomes quiet, and then pouring the molten metal into a mold lined with a special mixture consisting essentially of molasses and ground burnt fire clay; also, a casting made by this process; -- called alsowrought-iron casting.
Mitis metal. The malleable iron produced by mitis casting; -- called also simplymitis.
Mi*tot"ic (?),a.(Biol.)Of or pertaining to mitosis; karyokinetic; as,mitoticcell division; -- opposed toamitotic. -- Mi*tot"ic*al*ly (#),adv.
||Mi`tra`illeur" (?),n.A mitralleuse.
Mix"er,n.A person who has social intercourse with others of many sorts; a person viewed as to his casual sociability; -- commonly used with some characterizing adjective; as, a goodmixer; a badmixer. [Colloq. or Slang, U. S.]
Mo"ab*ite stone (?).(Archæol.)A block of black basalt, found at Dibon in Moab by Rev. F. A. Klein, Aug. 19, 1868, which bears an inscription of thirty-four lines, dating from the 9th century b. c., and written in the Moabite alphabet, the oldest Phœnician type of the Semitic alphabet. It records the victories of Mesha, king ofMoab, esp. those over Israel (2 Kings iii. 4, 5, 27).
Mod"ern*ism,n.Certain methods and tendencies which, in Biblical questions, apologetics, and the theory of dogma, in the endeavor to reconcile the doctrines of the Roman Catholic Church with the conclusions of modern science, replace the authority of the church by purely subjective criteria; -- so called officially by Pope Pius X.
Mod"ern*ist,n.An advocate of the teaching of modern subjects, as modern languages, in preference to the ancient classics.
||Mo`diste" (?),n.[F. See Mode; cf. Modist.] One, esp. woman, who makes, or deals in, articles of fashion, esp. of the fashionable dress of ladies; a dress- maker or milliner.
||Mo"dus vi*ven"di (?). [L.] Mode, or manner, of living; hence, a temporary arrangement of affairs until disputed matters can be settled.
Mog (?),v. t.[imp. & p. p.Mogged (?);p. pr. & vb. n.Mogging.] [Etym. unknown.] To move away; to go off. [Prov. Eng. or Local, U. S.]
Mo*gul",n.A great personage; magnate; autocrat.
Mo*ham"med*an cal"en*dar. A lunar calendar reckoning from the year of the hegira, 622 a. d. Thirty of its years constitute a cycle, of which the 2d, 5th, 7th, 10th, 13th, 16th, 18th, 21st, 24th, 26th, and 29th are leap years, having 355 days; the others are common, having 354 days. By the following tables any Mohammedan date may be changed into the Christian date, or vice versa, for the years 1900-1935 a. d.
Months of the Mohammedan year.
1 Muharram . . . .. 30 2 Safar . . . . . . .. 29 3 Rabia I . . . . . . 30 4 Rabia II . . . .. 29 5 Jumada I . . . .. 30 6 Jumada II . . . . 29 7 Rajab . . . . . . .. 30 8 Shaban . . . . . . . 29 9 Ramadan . . . . . . 30 10 Shawwal . . . . . . 29 11 Zu'lkadah . . . . 30 12 Zu'lhijjah . . . 29* * in leap year, 30 days
a. h. a. d. a. h. a. d.
1317 begins May 12, 1899 1336* begins Oct.17, 1917 1318 May 1, 1900 1337 Oct. 7, 1918 1319* Apr.20, 1901 1338* Sept.26,1919 1320 Apr.10, 1902 1339 Sept.15,1920 1321+ Mar.30, 1903 1340 Sept.4, 1921 1322* Mar.18, 1904 1341* Aug.24, 1922 1323 Mar. 8, 1905 1342 Aug.14, 1923 1324 Feb.25, 1906 1343 Aug. 2, 1924 1325* Feb.14, 1907 1344* July 22,1925 1326 Feb. 4, 1908 1345 July 12,1926 1327* Jan.23, 1909 1346* July 1, 1927 1328 Jan.13, 1910 1347 June 20,1928 1329 Jan. 2, 1911 1348 June 9, 1929 1330* Dec.22, 1911 1349* May 29, 1930 1331 Dec.11, 1912 1350 May 19, 1931 1332 Nov.30, 1913 1351++ May 7, 1932 1333* Nov.19, 1914 1352* Apr.26, 1933 1334 Nov. 9, 1915 1353 Apr.16, 1934 1335 Oct.28, 1916 1354 Apr. 5, 1935 * Leap year + First year of the 45th cycle ++ First year of the 46th cycle
The following general rule for finding the date of commencement of any Mohammedan year has a maximum error of a day: Multiply 970,224 by the Mohammedan year, point off six decimal places, and add 621.5774. The whole number will be the year a. d., and the decimal multiplied by 365 will give the day of the year.
Mohammedan Era. The era in use in Mohammedan countries. See Mohammedan year, below.
Mohammedan year. The year used by Mohammedans, consisting of twelve lunar months without intercalation, so that they retrograde through all the seasons in about 32½ years. The Mohammedan era begins with the year 622 a.d., the first day of the Mohammedan year 1332 begin Nov. 30, 1913, acording to the Gregorian calendar.
||Moi`ré" (?),a.[F., p.p. ofmoirerto water (silk, etc.). See Moire.] Watered; having a watered or clouded appearance; -- as of silk or metals.
||Moi`ré" (?),n.1.A watered, clouded, or frosted appearance on textile fabrics or metallic surfaces.
2.Erroneously, moire, the fabric.
Moi*ré" (?),v. t.[imp. & p. p.Moiréed (?);p. pr. & vb. n.Moiréeing (?).] Also Moire. [F.moiré.] To give a watered or clouded appearance to (a surface).
Mo*jar"ra (?),n.[Sp.] Any of certain basslike marine fishes (mostly of tropical seas, and having a deep, compressed body, protracile mouth, and large silvery scales) constituting the familyGerridæ, asGerres plumieri, found from Florida to Brazil and used as food. Also, any of numerous other fishes of similar appearance but belonging to other families.
Moke (?),n.1.A stupid person; a dolt; a donkey.
2.A negro. [U. S.]
3.(Theat. Slang)[More fullymusical moke.] A performer, as a minstrel, who plays on several instruments.
{ Mol`o*ka"ne (?), Mol`o*ka"ny },n. pl.[Russ.molokane.] See Raskolnik.
Mon (?),n.[Jap.](Japan)The badge of a family, esp. of a family of the ancient feudal nobility. The most frequent form of the mon is circular, and it commonly consists of conventionalized forms from nature, flowers, birds, insects, the lightnings, the waves of the sea, or of geometrical symbolic figures; color is only a secondary character. It appears on lacquer and pottery, and embroidered on, or woven in, fabrics. The imperial chrysanthemum, the mon of the reigning family, is used as a national emblem. Formerly the mon of the shoguns of the Tokugawa family was so used.
Mon"goose (?),n.; pl.Mongooses(#). [Tamilmanegos.] A Madagascan lemur (Lemur mongos).
||Mo*nil`i*a"les (?),n. pl.[NL., fr. L.monilenecklace, -- because the conidia are produced in chains.](Bot.)The largest of the three orders into which the Fungi Imperfecti are divided, including various forms.
Mon"ism (?),n.The doctrine that the universe is an organized unitary being or total self-inclusive structure.
Monismmeans that the whole of reality, i.e., everything that is, constitutes one inseparable and indivisible entirety.Monismaccordingly is a unitary conception of the world. It always bears in mind that our words are abstracts representing parts or features of the One and All, and not separate existences. Not only are matter and mind, soul and body, abstracts, but also such scientific terms as atoms and molecules, and also religious terms such as God and world.
Monismmeans that the whole of reality, i.e., everything that is, constitutes one inseparable and indivisible entirety.Monismaccordingly is a unitary conception of the world. It always bears in mind that our words are abstracts representing parts or features of the One and All, and not separate existences. Not only are matter and mind, soul and body, abstracts, but also such scientific terms as atoms and molecules, and also religious terms such as God and world.
Paul Carus.
Mon"i*tor,n.A monitor nozzle.
Monitor nozzle. A nozzle capable of turning completely round in a horizontal plane and having a limited play in a vertical plane, used in hydraulic mining, fire-extinguishing apparatus, etc.
{ Mon`o*sac"cha*ride (?),n.Also - rid }. [Mono-+saccharide.](Chem.)A simple sugar; any of a number of sugars (including the trioses, tetroses, pentoses, hexoses, etc.), not decomposable into simpler sugars by hydrolysis. Specif., as used by some, a hexose. The monosaccharides are all open-chain compounds containing hydroxyl groups and either an aldehyde group or a ketone group.
Mon"o*type (?),n.[Mono-+- type.]1.(Biol.)The only representative of its group, as a single species constituting a genus.
2.A print (but one impression can be taken) made by painting on metal and then transferring the painting to paper by pressure; also, the process of making such prints.
3.A kind of typesetting and casting machine that makes and sets individual types.
||Mon"te (?),n.In Spanish America, a wood; forest; timber land; esp., in parts of South America, a comparatively wooden region.
Mon*teith" (?),n.A kind of cotton handkerchief having a uniform colored ground with a regular pattern of white spots produced by discharging the color; -- so called from the Glasgow manufactures.
||Monte"-jus" (?),n.[F., fr.monterto bring up +jusjuice.] An apparatus for raising a liquid by pressure of air or steam in a reservoir containing the liquid.
Mon`tes*so"ri Meth"od (?).(Pedagogy)A system of training and instruction, primarily for use with normal children aged from three to six years, devised by Dr. Maria Montessori while teaching in the "Houses of Childhood" (schools in the poorest tenement districts of Rome, Italy), and first fully described by her in 1909. Leading features are freedom for physical activity (no stationary desks and chairs), informal and individual instruction, the very early development of writing, and an extended sensory and motor training (with special emphasis on vision, touch, perception of movement, and their interconnections), mediated by a patented, standardized system of "didactic apparatus," which is declared to be "auto-regulative." Most of the chief features of the method are borrowed from current methods used in many institutions for training feeble-minded children, and dating back especially to the work of the French-American physician Edouard O. Seguin (1812-80).
Mon"tre (?),n.[F., show, show case, organ case.]1.(Organ Building)A stop, usually the open diapason, having its pipes "shown" as part of the organ case, or otherwise specially mounted.
2.A hole in the wall of a pottery kiln, by which the state of the pieces within can be judged.
Moon"light`er (?),n.One who follows an occupation or pastime by moonlight; as:(a)A moonshiner.(b)In Ireland, one of a band that engaged in agrarian outrages by night.(c)A serenader by moonlight. [Local, U. S.]
Moon"shine` (?),n.Liquor smuggled or illicitly distilled. [Dial. Eng., & Colloq. or Slang, U. S.]
Moon"shine`,a.1.Empty; trivial; idle.
2.Designating, or pertaining to, illicit liquor; as,moonshinewhisky. [Dial. Eng., & Colloq. or Slang, U. S.]
Moon"shin`ing (?),n.Illicit distilling. [Slang or Colloq., U. S.]
Moose (?),n.A member of the Progressive Party; a Bull Moose. [Cant]
||Mor`a*to"ri*um (?),n.[NL. See Moratory.](Law)A period during which an obligor has a legal right to delay meeting an obligation, esp. such a period granted, as to a bank, by a moratory law.
Mor"a*to*ry (?),a.[L.moratoriusdelaying, fr.morarito delay.] Of or pertaining to delay; esp., designating a law passed, as in a time of financial panic, to postpone or delay for a period the time at which notes, bills of exchange, and other obligations, shall mature or become due.
||Mo"res (m"rz),n. pl.;sing.Mos(ms). [L.] Customs; habits; esp., customs conformity to which is more or less obligatory; customary law.
Mor"gan (?),n.(Zoöl.)One of a celebrated breed of American trotting horses; -- so called from the name of the stud from which the breed originated in Vermont.
Mor"mon,n.(Eccl.)A member of a sect, called the Reorganized Church of Jesus of Latterday Saints, which has always rejected polygamy. It was organized in 1852, and is represented in about forty States and Territories of the United States.
Mo"ron (?),n.(Pedagogy)A person whose intellectual development proceeds normally up to about the eighth year of age and is then arrested so that there is little or no further development.
Mo*ron" (?),n.;Sp. pl.Morones(#). [Sp.] An inferior olive size having a woody pulp and a large clingstone pit, growing in the mountainous and high-valley districts around the city of Moron, in Spain.
Mo"ros (?),n. pl.;sing.Moro(&?;). [Sp., pl. ofMoroMoor.](Ethnol.)The Mohammedan tribes of the southern Philippine Islands, said to have formerly migrated from Borneo. Some of them are warlike and addicted to piracy.
Mor"ris-chair` (?),n.[Prob. fr. the proper nameMorris.] A kind of easy-chair with a back which may be lowered or raised.
||Mor"ro (?),n.[Sp., any spherical object.] A round hill or point of land; hence,Morro castle, a castle on a hill.
Morse" code" (?).(Teleg.)The telegraphic code, consisting of dots, dashes, and spaces, invented by Samuel B.Morse. The Alphabetic code which is in use in North America is given below. In length, or duration, one dash is theoretically equal to three dots; the space between the elements of a letter is equal to one dot; the interval in spaced letters, as O . ., is equal to three dots. There are no spaces in any letter composed wholly or in part of dashes.
Alphabet