2. The materials of which a roof is composed; materials for a roof. Gwilt.
3. Hence, the roof itself; figuratively, shelter. "Fit roofing gave." Southey.
4. (Mining)
Defn: The wedging, as of a horse or car, against the top of an underground passage. Raymond.
ROOFLESSRoof"less, a.
1. Having no roof; as, a roofless house.
2. Having no house or home; shelterless; homeless.
ROOFLETRoof"let, n.
Defn: A small roof, covering, or shelter.
ROOFTREERoof"tree`, n.
Defn: The beam in the angle of a roof; hence, the roof itself.Now for me the woods may wither, now for me the rooftree fall.Tennyson.
ROOFYRoof`y, a.
Defn: Having roofs. [R.] Dryden.
ROOKRook, n.
Defn: Mist; fog. See Roke. [Obs.]
ROOKRook, v. i.
Defn: To squat; to ruck. [Obs.] Shak.
ROOK Rook, n. Etym: [F. roc (cf. Sp. roque), fr. Per. & Ar. rokh, or rukh, the rook or castle at chess, also the bird roc (in this sense pehaps a different word); cf. Hind. rath a war chariot, the castle at chess, Skr. ratha a car, a war car. Cf. Roll.] (Chess)
Defn: One of the four pieces placed on the corner squares of the board; a castle.
ROOKRook, n. Etym: [AS. hr; akin to OHG. hruoh, ruoh, ruoho, Icel. hr,Sw. roka, Dan. raage; cf. Goth. hrukjan to crow.]
1. (Zoöl.)
Defn: A European bird (Corvus frugilegus) resembling the crow, but smaller. It is black, with purple and violet reflections. The base of the beak and the region around it are covered with a rough, scabrous skin, which in old birds is whitish. It is gregarious in its habits. The name is also applied to related Asiatic species. The rook . . . should be treated as the farmer's friend. Pennant.
2. A trickish, rapacious fellow; a cheat; a sharper. Wycherley.
ROOKRook, v. t. & i. [imp. & p. p. Rooked; p. pr. & vb. n. Rooking.]
Defn: To cheat; to defraud by cheating. "A band of rooking officials." Milton.
ROOKERYRook"er*y, n.; pl. Rookeries (.
1. The breeding place of a colony of rooks; also, the birds themselves. Tennyson.
2. A breeding place of other gregarious birds, as of herons, penguins, etc.
3. The breeding ground of seals, esp. of the fur seals.
4. A dilapidated building with many rooms and occupants; a cluster of dilapidated or mean buildings.
5. A brothel. [Low]
ROOKYRook"y, a. Etym: [See Roky.]
Defn: Misty; gloomy. [Obs.]Light thickens, and the crow Makes wing to the rooky wood. Shak.
Note: Some make this Shakespearean word mean "abounding in rooks."
ROOM Room, n. Etym: [OE. roum, rum, space, AS. rum; akin to OS., OFries. & Icel. rum, D. ruim, G. raum, OHG. rum, Sw. & Dan. rum, Goth. rums, and to AS. rum, adj., spacious, D. ruim, Icel. rumr, Goth. rums; and prob. to L. rus country (cf. Rural), Zend ravanh wide, free, open, ravan a plain.]
1. Unobstructed spase; space which may be occupied by or devoted to any object; compass; extent of place, great or small; as, there is not room for a house; the table takes up too much room. Lord, it is done as thou hast commanded, and yet there is room. Luke xiv. 22. There was no room for them in the inn. Luke ii. 7.
2. A particular portion of space appropriated for occupancy; a place to sit, stand, or lie; a seat. If he have but twelve pence in his purse, he will give it for the best room in a playhouse. Overbury. When thou art bidden of any man to a wedding, sit not down in the highest room. Luke xiv. 8.
3. Especially, space in a building or ship inclosed or set apart by a partition; an apartment or chamber. I found the prince in the next room. Shak.
4. Place or position in society; office; rank; post; station; also, a place or station once belonging to, or occupied by, another, and vacated. [Obs.] When he heard that Archelaus did reign in Judea in the room of his father Herod. Matt. ii. 22. Neither that I look for a higher room in heaven. Tyndale. Let Bianca take her sister's room. Shak.
5. Possibility of admission; ability to admit; opportunity to act; fit occasion; as, to leave room for hope. There was no prince in the empire who had room for such an alliance. Addison. Room and space (Shipbuilding), the distance from one side of a rib to the corresponding side of the next rib; space being the distance between two ribs, in the clear, and room the width of a rib. — To give room, to withdraw; to leave or provide space unoccupied for others to pass or to be seated. — To make room, to open a space, way, or passage; to remove obstructions; to give room. Make room, and let him stand before our face. Shak.
Syn.— Space; compass; scope; latitude.
ROOMRoom, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Roomed; p. pr. & vb. n. Rooming.]
Defn: To occupy a room or rooms; to lodge; as, they arranged to room together.
ROOMRoom, a. Etym: [AS. rum.]
Defn: Spacious; roomy. [Obs.]No roomer harbour in the place. Chaucer.
ROOMAGERoom"age, n. Etym: [From Room. CF. Rummage.]
Defn: Space; place; room. [Obs.] Sir H. Wotton.
ROOMERRoom"er, n.
Defn: A lodger. [Colloq.]
ROOMERRoom"er, adv. Etym: [See Room, a.]
Defn: At a greater distance; farther off. [Obs.] Sir J. Harrington.
ROOMFULRoom"ful, a.
Defn: Abounding with room or rooms; roomy. "A roomful house." [R.]Donne.
ROOMFULRoom"ful, n.; pl. Roomfuls (.
Defn: As much or many as a room will hold; as, a roomful of men.Swift.
ROOMILYRoom"i*ly, adv.
Defn: Spaciously.
ROOMINESSRoom"i*ness, n.
Defn: The quality or state of being roomy; spaciousness; as, the roominess of a hall.
ROOMLESSRoom"less, a.
Defn: Being without room or rooms. Udall.
ROOMMATERoom"mate`, n.
Defn: One of twe or more occupying the same room or rooms; one who shares the occupancy of a room or rooms; a chum.
ROOMSOMERoom"some, a.
Defn: Roomy. [Obs.] Evelyn.
ROOMTHRoomth, n.
Defn: Room; space. [Obs.] Drayton.
ROOMTHYRoomth"y, a.
Defn: Roomy; spacious. [Obs.] Fuller.
ROOMYRoom"y, a.
Defn: Having ample room; spacious; large; as, a roomy mansion; a roomy deck. Dryden.
ROONRoon, a. & n.
Defn: Vermilion red; red. [R.]Her face was like the lily roon. J. R. Drake.
ROOPRoop, n.
Defn: See Roup. [Prov. Eng.]
ROORBACK; ROORBACHRoor"back, Roor"bach, n.
Defn: A defamatory forgery or falsehood published for purposes of political intrigue. [U.S.]
Note: The word originated in the election canvass of 1844, when such a forgery was published, to the detriment of James K. Polk, a candidate for President, purporting to be an extract from the "Travels of Baron Roorbach."
ROOSA OILRoo"sa oil`.
Defn: The East Indian name for grass oil. See under Grass.
ROOSTRoost, n.
Defn: Roast. [Obs.] Chaucer.
ROOSTRoost, v. t.
Defn: See Roust, v. t.
ROOST Roost, n. Etym: [AS. hrost; akin to OD. roest roost, roesten to roost, and probably to E. roof. Cf. Roof.]
1. The pole or other support on which fowls rest at night; a perch. He clapped his wings upon his roost. Dryden.
2. A collection of fowls roosting together. At roost, on a perch or roost; hence, retired to rest.
ROOSTRoost, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Roosted; p. pr. & vb. n. Roosting.]
1. To sit, rest, or sleep, as fowls on a pole, limb of a tree, etc.; to perch. Wordsworth.
2. Fig.; To lodge; to rest; to sleep. O, let me where thy roof my soul hath hid, O, let me roost and nestle there. Herbert.
ROOSTCOCKRoost"cock`, n.
Defn: The male of the domestic fowl; a cock. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.
ROOSTERRoost"er, n.
Defn: The male of the domestic fowl; a cock. [U.S.] Nor, when they [the Skinners and Cow Boys] wrung the neck of a rooster, did they trouble their heads whether he crowed for Congress or King George. W. Irving.
ROOT Root, v. i. Etym: [AS. wrotan; akin to wrot a snout, trunk, D. wroeten to root, G. rüssel snout, trunk, proboscis, Icel. rota to root, and perhaps to L. rodere to gnaw (E. rodent) or to E. root, n.]
1. To turn up the earth with the snout, as swine.
2. Hence, to seek for favor or advancement by low arts or groveling servility; to fawn servilely.
ROOTRoot, v. t.
Defn: To turn up or to dig out with the snout; as, the swine roots the earth.
ROOT Root, n. Etym: [Icel. rot (for vrot); akin to E. wort, and perhaps to root to turn up the earth. See Wort.]
1. (Bot.) (a) The underground portion of a plant, whether a true root or a tuber, a bulb or rootstock, as in the potato, the onion, or the sweet flag. (b) The descending, and commonly branching, axis of a plant, increasing in length by growth at its extremity only, not divided into joints, leafless and without buds, and having for its offices to fix the plant in the earth, to supply it with moisture and soluble matters, and sometimes to serve as a reservoir of nutriment for future growth. A true root, however, may never reach the ground, but may be attached to a wall, etc., as in the ivy, or may hang loosely in the air, as in some epiphytic orchids.
2. An edible or esculent root, especially of such plants as produce a single root, as the beet, carrot, etc.; as, the root crop.
3. That which resembles a root in position or function, esp. as a source of nourishment or support; that from which anything proceeds as if by growth or development; as, the root of a tooth, a nail, a cancer, and the like. Specifically: (a) An ancestor or progenitor; and hence, an early race; a stem. They were the roots out of which sprang two distinct people. Locke.
(b) A primitive form of speech; one of the earliest terms employed in language; a word from which other words are formed; a radix, or radical. (c) The cause or occasion by which anything is brought about; the source. "She herself . . . is root of bounty." Chaucer. The love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. 1 Tim. vi. 10 (rev. Ver. ) (d) (Math.)
Defn: That factor of a quantity which when multiplied into itself will produce that quantity; thus, 3 is a root of 9, because 3 multiplied into itself produces 9; 3 is the cube root of 27. (e) (Mus.) The fundamental tone of any chord; the tone from whose harmonics, or overtones, a chord is composed. Busby. (f) The lowest place, position, or part. "Deep to the roots of hell." Milton. "The roots of the mountains." Southey.
4. (Astrol.)
Defn: The time which to reckon in making calculations. When a root is of a birth yknowe [known]. Chaucer. Aërial roots. (Bot.) (a) Small roots emitted from the stem of a plant in the open air, which, attaching themselves to the bark of trees, etc., serve to support the plant. (b) Large roots growing from the stem, etc., which descend and establish themselves in the soil. See Illust. of Mangrove. — Multiple primary root (Bot.), a name given to the numerous roots emitted from the radicle in many plants, as the squash. — Primary root (Bot.), the central, first-formed, main root, from which the rootlets are given off. — Root and branch, every part; wholly; completely; as, to destroy an error root and branch. — Root-and-branch men, radical reformers; — a designation applied to the English Independents (1641). See Citation under Radical, n., 2. — Root barnacle (Zoöl.), one of the Rhizocephala. — Root hair (Bot.), one of the slender, hairlike fibers found on the surface of fresh roots. They are prolongations of the superficial cells of the root into minute tubes. Gray. — Root leaf (Bot.), a radical leaf. See Radical, a., 3 (b). — Root louse (Zoöl.), any plant louse, or aphid, which lives on the roots of plants, as the Phylloxera of the grapevine. See Phylloxera. — Root of an equation (Alg.), that value which, substituted for the unknown quantity in an equation, satisfies the equation. — Root of a nail (Anat.), the part of a nail which is covered by the skin. — Root of a tooth (Anat.), the part of a tooth contained in the socket and consisting of one or more fangs. — Secondary roots (Bot.), roots emitted from any part of the plant above the radicle. — To strike root, To take root, to send forth roots; to become fixed in the earth, etc., by a root; hence, in general, to become planted, fixed, or established; to increase and spread; as, an opinion takes root. "The bended twigs take root." Milton.
ROOTRoot, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Rooted; p. pr. & vb. n. Rooting.]
1. To fix the root; to enter the earth, as roots; to take root and begin to grow. In deep grounds the weeds root deeper. Mortimer.
2. To be firmly fixed; to be established. If any irregularity chanced to intervene and to cause misappehensions, he gave them not leave to root and fasten by concealment. Bp. Fell.
ROOTRoot, v. t.
1. To plant and fix deeply in the earth, or as in the earth; to implant firmly; hence, to make deep or radical; to establish; — used chiefly in the participle; as, rooted trees or forests; rooted dislike.
2. To tear up by the root; to eradicate; to extirpate; — with up, out, or away. "I will go root away the noisome weeds." Shak. The Lord rooted them out of their land . . . and cast them into another land. Deut. xxix. 28.
ROOTCAPRoot"cap`, n. (Bot.)
Defn: A mass of parenchym
ROOTEDRoot"ed, a.
Defn: Having taken root; firmly implanted; fixed in the heart. "Arooted sorrow." Shak.— Root"*ed*ly, adv.— Root"ed*ness, n.
ROOTERRooter, n.
Defn: One who, or that which, roots; one that tears up by the roots.
ROOTERYRoot"er*y, n.
Defn: A pile of roots, set with plants, mosses, etc., and used as an ornamental object in gardening.
ROOTLESSRoot"less, a.
Defn: Destitute of roots.
ROOTLETRoot"let, n.
Defn: A radicle; a little root.
ROOTSTOCKRoot"stock`, n. (Bot.)
Defn: A perennial underground stem, producing leafly s
ROOTYRoot"y, a.
Defn: Full of roots; as, rooty ground.
ROPALICRo*pal"ic, a.
Defn: See Rhopalic.
ROPE Rope, n. Etym: [AS. rap; akin to D. reep, G. reif ring hoop, Icel. reip rope, Sw. rep, Dan. reb, reeb Goth. skaudaraip latchet.]
1. A large, stout cord, usually one not less than an inch in circumference, made of strands twisted or braided together. It differs from cord, line, and string, only in its size. See Cordage.
2. A row or string consisting of a number of things united, as by braiding, twining, etc.; as, a rope of onions.
3. pl.
Defn: The small intestines; as, the ropes of birds. Rope ladder, a ladder made of ropes. — Rope mat., a mat made of cordage, or strands of old rope. — Rope of sand, something of no cohession or fiber; a feeble union or tie; something not to be relied upon. — Rope pump, a pump in which a rapidly running endless rope raises water by the momentum communicated to the water by its adhesion to the rope. — Rope transmission (Mach.), a method of transmitting power, as between distant places, by means of endless ropes running over grooved pulleys. — Rope's end, a piece of rope; especially, one used as a lash in inflicting punishment. — To give one rope, to give one liberty or license; to let one go at will uncheked.
ROPERope, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Roped; p. pr. & vb. n. Roping.]
Defn: To be formed into rope; to draw out or extend into a filament or thread, as by means of any glutinous or adhesive quality. Let us not hang like ropingicicles Upon our houses' thatch. Shak.
ROPERope, v. t.
1. To bind, fasten, or tie with a rope or cord; as, to rope a bale of goods. Hence: —
2. To connect or fasten together, as a party of mountain climbers, with a rope.
3. To partition, separate, or divide off, by means of a rope, so as to include or exclude something; as, to rope in, or rope off, a plot of ground; to rope out a crowd.
4. To lasso (a steer, horse). [Colloq. U.S.]
5. To draw, as with a rope; to entice; to inveigle; to decoy; as, to rope in customers or voters. [Slang, U.S.]
6. To prevent from winning (as a horse), by pulling or curbing. [Racing Slang, Eng.]
ROPEBANDRope"band`, n. (Naut.)
Defn: A small piece of spun yarn or marline, used to fasten the head of the sail to the spar. [Written also roband, and robbin.]
ROPEDANCERRope"dan`cer, n.
Defn: One who dances, walks, or performs acrobatic feats, on a rope extended through the air at some height. — Rope"dan`cing, n.
ROPERRop"er, n.
1. A maker of ropes. P. Plowman.
2. One who ropes goods; a packer.
3. One fit to be hanged. [Old Slang] Douce.
ROPERYRop"er*y, n.
1. A place where ropes are made.
2. Tricks deserving the halter; roguery. [Obs.] "Saucy merchant . . . so full of his ropery." Shak.
ROPE'S-ENDRope's"-end`, v. t.
Defn: To punish with a rope's end.
ROPEWALKRope"walk`, a.
Defn: A long, covered walk, or a low, level building, where ropes are manufactured.
ROPEWALKERRope"walk`er, n.
Defn: A ropedancer.
ROPE-YARNRope"-yarn`, n.
Defn: the yarn or thread of any stuff of which the strands of a rope are made.
ROPILYRop"i*ly, adv.
Defn: In a ropy manner; in a viscous or glutinous manner.
ROPINESSRop"i*ness, n.
Defn: Quality of being ropy; viscosity.
ROPISHRop"ish, a.
Defn: Somewhat ropy.
ROPYRop"y, a.
Defn: capable of being drawn into a thread, as a glutinous substance; stringy; viscous; tenacious; glutinous; as ropy sirup; ropy lees.
ROQUERoque (rok), n. [Abbr. fr. Croquet.]
Defn: A form of croquet modified for greater accuracy of play. The court has a wood border often faced with rubber, used as a cushion in bank shots. The balls are 3¼ in. in diameter, the cage (center arches or wickets) 3 3/8 in. wide, the other arches 3½ in. wide.
ROQUEFORT CHEESE; ROQUEFORTRoque`fort" cheese, or Roque`fort", n.
Defn: A highly flavored blue-molded cheese, made at Roquefort, department of Aveyron, France. It is made from milk of ewes, sometimes with cow's milk added, and is cured in caves. Improperly, a cheese made in imitation of it.
ROQUELAURE Roq"ue*laure, n. Etym: [F.; so called after Duc de Roquelaure, in the reign of Louis XIV.]
Defn: A cloak reaching about to, or just below, the knees, worn in the 18th century. [Written also roquelo.]
ROQUETRo*quet", v. t. Etym: [Etymol. uncertain] (Croquet)
Defn: To hit, as another's ball, with one's own ball.
ROQUETRo*quet", v. i.
Defn: To hit another's ball with one's own.
RORALRo"ral, a. Etym: [L. ros, roris, dew.]
Defn: Of or pertaining to dew; consisting of dew; dewy. [R.] M.Green.
RORATION Ro*ra"tion, n. Etym: [L. roratio, fr. rorare to drop dew, fr. ros dew.]
Defn: A falling of dew. [R.]
RORICRo"ric, a. Etym: [L. ros, roris, dew.]
Defn: Of or pertaining to dew; resembling dew; dewy. Roric figures (Physics), figures which appear upon a polished surface, as glass, when objects which have been near to, or in contact with, the surface are removed and the surface breathed upon; — called also Moser's images.
RORIDRo"rid, a. Etym: [L. roridus, fr. ros, roris, dew.]
Defn: Dewy; bedewed. [R.] T. Granger.
RORIFEROUS Ro*rif"er*ous, a. Etym: [L. rorifer; ros, roris, dew + ferre to bear: cf. F. rorifère.]
Defn: generating or producing dew. [R.]
RORIFLUENT Ro*rif"lu*ent, a. Etym: [L. ros, roris, dew + fluens, p.pr. of fluere to flow.]
Defn: Flowing with dew. [R.]
RORQUALRor"qual, n. Etym: [Norw. rorqualus a whale with folds.] (Zoöl.)
Defn: A very large North Atlantic whalebone whale (Physalus antiquorum, or Balænoptera physalus). It has a dorsal fin, and strong longitudinal folds on the throat and belly. Called also razorback.
Note: It is one of the largest of the whales, somethimes becoming nearly one hundred feet long, but it is more slender than the right whales, and is noted for its swiftness. The name is sometimes applied to other related species of finback whales.
RORULENTRo"ru*lent, a. Etym: [L. rorulentus, from ros, roris, dew.]
1. Full of, or abounding in, dew. [R.]
2. (Zoöl.)
Defn: Having the surface appearing as if dusty, or covered with fine dew.
RORYRo"ry, a. Etym: [L. ros, roris, dew.]
Defn: Dewy. [R.]And shook his wings with rory May-dew wet. Fairfax.
ROSACEOUSRo*sa"ceous, a. Etym: [L. rosaceus, fr. rosa rose.]
1. (Bot.) (a) Of or pertaining to a natural order of plants (Rosaceæ) of which the rose is the type. It includes also the plums and cherries, meadowsweet, brambles, the strawberry, the hawthorn, applies, pears, service tress, and quinces. (b) Like a rose in shape or appearance; as, a rosaceous corolla.
2. Of a pure purpish pink color.
ROSACICRo*sac"ic, a. Etym: [See Rosaceous.] (Old med. Chem.)
Defn: Pertaining to, or designating, an acid (called also lithic acid) found in certain red precipitates of urine. See Uric. [Obs.]
ROSALGARRo*sal"gar, n.
Defn: realgar. [Obs.] chaucer.
ROSALIARo*sa"li*a, n. Etym: [Cf. F. rosalie.] (Mus.)
Defn: A form of melody in which a phrase or passage is successively repeated, each time a step or half step higher; a melodic sequence.
ROSANILINERos*an"i*line ( or ), n. Etym: [Rose + aniline.] (Chem.)
Defn: A complex nitrogenous base, C20H21N3O, obtained by oxidizing a mixture of aniline and toluidine, as a colorless crystalline substance which forms red salts. These salts are essential components of many of the socalled aniline dyes, as fuchsine, aniline red, etc. By extension, any one of the series of substances derived from, or related to, rosaniline proper.
ROSARIANRo*sa"ri*an, n.
Defn: A cultivator of roses.
ROSARYRo"sa*ry, n.; pl. Rosaries. Etym: [LL. rosarium a string of beads, L.rosarium a place planted with roses, rosa a rose: cf. F. rosaire. SeeRose.]
1. A bed of roses, or place where roses grow. "Thick rosaries of scented thorn." Tennyson.
2. (R.C.Ch.)
Defn: A series of prayers (see Note below) arranged to be recited inorder, on beads; also, a string of beads by which the prayers arecounted.His idolized book, and the whole rosary of his prayers. Milton.
Note: A rosary consists of fifteen decades. Each decade contains ten Ave Marias marked by small beads, preceded by a Paternoster, marked by a larger bead, and concluded by a Gloria Patri. Five decades make a chaplet, a third part of the rosary. Bp. Fitzpatrick.
3. A chapelet; a garland; a series or collection, as of beautiful thoughts or of literary selections. Every day propound to yourself a rosary or chaplet of good works to present to God at night. Jer. Taylor.
4. A coin bearing the figure of a rose, fraudulently circulated in Ireland in the 13th century for a penny. Rosary shell (Zoöl.), any marine gastropod shell of the genus Monodonta. They are top-shaped, bright-colored and pearly.
ROSCIDRos"cid, a. Etym: [L. roscidus, fr. ros, roris, dew.]
Defn: Containing, or consisting of, dew; dewy. [R.] Bacon.
ROSCOELITE Ros"coe*lite, n. Etym: [From an English chemist, H.E. Roscoe + - lite.] (Min.)
Defn: A green micaceous mineral occurring in minute scales. It is essentially a silicate of aluminia and potash containing vanadium.
ROSERose,
Defn: imp. of Rise.
ROSERose, n. Etym: [AS. rose, L. rosa, probably akin to Gr. vard, OPer.vareda; and perhaps to E. wort: cf. F. rose, from the Latin. Cf.Copperas, Rhododendron.]
1. A flower and shrub of any species of the genus Rosa, of which there are many species, mostly found in the morthern hemispere
Note: Roses are shrubs with pinnate leaves and usually prickly stems. The flowers are large, and in the wild state have five petals of a color varying from deep pink to white, or sometimes yellow. By cultivation and hybridizing the number of petals is greatly increased and the natural perfume enhanced. In this way many distinct classes of roses have been formed, as the Banksia, Baurbon, Boursalt, China, Noisette, hybrid perpetual, etc., with multitudes of varieties in nearly every class.
2. A knot of ribbon formed like a rose; a rose knot; a rosette, esp. one worn on a shoe. Sha.
3. (Arch.)
Defn: A rose window. See Rose window, below.
4. A perforated nozzle, as of a pipe, spout, etc., for delivering water in fine jets; a rosehead; also, a strainer at the foot of a pump.
5. (Med.)
Defn: The erysipelas. Dunglison.
6. The card of the mariner's compass; also, a circular card with radiating lines, used in other instruments.
7. The color of a rose; rose-red; pink.
8. A diamond. See Rose diamond, below. Cabbage rose, China rose, etc.See under Cabbage, China, etc.— Corn rose (Bot.) See Corn poppy, under Corn.— Infantile rose (Med.), a variety of roseola.— Jamaica rose. (Bot.) See under Jamaica.— Rose acacia (Bot.), a low American leguminous shrub (Robiniahispida) with handsome clusters of rose-colored blossoms.— Rose aniline. (Chem.) Same as Rosaniline.— Rose apple (Bot.), the fruit of the tropical myrtaceous treeEugenia Jambos. It is an edible berry an inch or more in diameter,and is said to have a very strong roselike perfume.— Rose beetle. (Zoöl.) (a) A small yellowish or buff longleggedbeetle (Macrodactylus subspinosus), which eats the leaves of variousplants, and is often very injurious to rosebushes, apple trees,grapevines, etc. Called also rose bug, and rose chafer. (b) TheEuropean chafer.— Rose bug. (Zoöl.) same as Rose beetle, Rose chafer.— Rose burner, a kind of gas-burner producing a rose-shaped flame.— Rose camphor (Chem.), a solid odorless substance which separatesfrom rose oil.— Rose campion. (Bot.) See under Campion.— Rose catarrh (Med.), rose cold.— Rose chafer. (Zoöl.) (a) A common European beetle (Cetoniaaurata) which is often very injurious to rosebushes; — called alsorose beetle, and rose fly. (b) The rose beetle (a).— Rose cold (Med.), a variety of hay fever, sometimes attributed tothe inhalation of the effluvia of roses. See Hay fever, under Hay.— Rose color, the color of a rose; pink; hence, a beautiful hue orappearance; fancied beauty, attractiveness, or promise.
— Rose de Pompadour, Rose du Barry, names succesively given to a delicate rose color used on Sèvres porcelain. — Rose diamond, a diamond, one side of which is flat, and the other cut into twenty-four triangular facets in two ranges which form a convex face pointed at the top. Cf. Brilliant, n. — Rose ear. See under Ear. — Rose elder (Bot.), the Guelder-rose. — Rose engine, a machine, or an appendage to a turning lathe, by which a surface or wood, metal, etc., is engraved with a variety of curved lines. Craig. — Rose family (Bot.) the Roseceæ. See Rosaceous. — Rose fever (Med.), rose cold. — Rose fly (Zoöl.), a rose betle, or rose chafer. — Rose gall (Zoöl.), any gall found on rosebushes. See Bedeguar. — Rose knot, a ribbon, or other pliade band plaited so as to resemble a rose; a rosette. — Rose lake, Rose madder, a rich tint prepared from lac and madder precipitated on an earthy basis. Fairholt. — Rose mallow. (Bot.) (a) A name of several malvaceous plants of the genus Hibiscus, with large rose-colored flowers. (b) the hollyhock. — Rose nail, a nail with a convex, faceted head. — Rose noble, an ancient English gold coin, stamped with the figure of a rose, first struck in the reign of Edward III., and current at 6s. 8d. Sir W. Scott. — Rose of China. (Bot.) See China rose (b), under China. — Rose of Jericho (Bot.), a Syrian cruciferous plant (Anastatica Hierochuntica) which rolls up when dry, and expands again when moistened; — called also resurrection plant. — Rose of Sharon (Bot.), an ornamental malvaceous shrub (Hibiscus Syriacus). In the Bible the name is used for some flower not yet identified, perhaps a Narcissus, or possibly the great lotus flower. — Rose oil (Chem.), the yellow essential oil extracted from various species of rose blossoms, and forming the chief part of attar of roses. — Rose pink, a pigment of a rose color, made by dyeing chalk or whiting with a decoction of Brazil wood and alum; also, the color of the pigment. — Rose quartz (Min.), a variety of quartz which is rose-red. — Rose rash. (Med.) Same as Roseola. — Rose slug (Zoöl.), the small green larva of a black sawfly (Selandria rosæ). These larvæ feed in groups on the parenchyma of the leaves of rosebushes, and are often abundant and very destructive. — Rose window (Arch.), a circular window filled with ornamental tracery. Called also Catherine wheel, and marigold window. Cf. wheel window, under Wheel. — Summer rose (Med.), a variety of roseola. See Roseola. — Under the rose Etym: [a translation of L. sub rosa], in secret; privately; in a manner that forbids disclosure; — the rose being among the ancients the symbol of secrecy, and hung up at entertainments as a token that nothing there said was to be divulged. — Wars of the Roses (Eng. Hist.), feuds between the Houses of York and Lancaster, the white rose being the badge of the House of York, and the red rose of the House of Lancaster.
ROSERose, v. t.
1. To render rose-colored; to redden; to flush. [Poetic] "A maid yet rosed over with the virgin crimson of modesty." Shak.
2. To perfume, as with roses. [Poetic] Tennyson.
ROSEALRo"se*al, a. Etym: [L. roseus, fr. rosa a rose.]
Defn: resembling a rose in smell or color. [Obs.] Sir T. Elyot.
ROSEATERo"se*ate, a. Etym: [Cf. L. roseus, rosatus, prepared from roses. SeeRoseal, Rose.]
1. Full of roses; rosy; as, roseate bowers.
2. resembling a rose in color or fragrance; esp., tinged with rose color; blooming; as, roseate beauty; her roseate lips. Roseate tern (Zoöl.), an American and European tern (Sterna Dougalli) whose breast is roseate in the breeding season.
ROSEBAY Rose"bay`, n. (Bot.) (a) the oleander. [Obs.] (b) Any shrub of the genus Rhododendron. [U.S.] (c) An herb (Epilobium spicatum) with showy purple flowers, common in Europe and North America; — called also great willow herb.
ROSEBUDRose"bud`, n.
Defn: The flower of a rose before it opens, or when but partially open.
ROSEBUSHRose"bush`, n.
Defn: The bush or shrub which bears roses.
ROSE-COLOREDRose"-col`ored, a.
1. Having the color of a pink rose; rose-pink; of a delicate pink color.
2. Uncommonly beautiful; hence, extravagantly fine or pleasing; alluring; as, rose-colored anticipations.
ROSE-CUTRose"-cut`, a.
Defn: Cut flat on the reverse, and with a convex face formed of triangular facets in rows; — said of diamonds and other precious stones. See Rose diamond, under Rose. Cf. Brilliant, n.
ROSEDROPRose"drop`, n.
1. A lozenge having a rose flavor.
2. A kind of earring. Simmonds.
3. (Med.)
Defn: A ruddy eruption upon the nose caused by drinking ardent spirits; a grog blossom.
ROSEFINCHRose"finch, n. (Zoöl.)
Defn: Any one of numerous species of Asiatic finches of the genera Carpodacus, and Propasser, and allied genera, in which the male is more or less colored with rose red.
ROSEFISHRose"fish`, n. (Zoöl.)
Defn: A large marine scorpænoid food fish (Sebastes marinus) found on the northern coasts of Europe and America. called also red perch, hemdurgan, Norway haddok, and also, erroneously, snapper, bream, and bergylt.
Note: When full grown it is usually bright rose-red or orange-red; the young are usually mottled with red and ducky brown.
ROSEHEADRose"head`, n.
1. See Rose, n., 4.
2. A many-sided pyramidal head upon a nail; also a nail with such a head.
ROSEINERo"se*ine ( or ), n.
Defn: See Magenta.
ROSELITERo"se*lite, n. Etym: [From the German mineralogist G. Rose + -lite.](Min.)
Defn: A hydrous arsenite of cobalt, occuring in small red crystals, allied to erythrite.
ROSELLARo"sel"la, n. Etym: [NL., dim. of L. rosa rose.] (Zoöl.)
Defn: A beautiful Australian parrakeet (Platycercus eximius) often kept as a cage bird. The head and back of the neck are scarlet, the throat is white, the back dark green varied with lighter green, and the breast yellow.
ROSELLERo*selle", n. (Bot.)
Defn: a malvaceous plant (Hibiscus Sabdariffa) cultivated in the east and West Indies for its fleshy calyxes, which are used for making tarts and jelly and an acid drink.
ROSEMALOES Rose`mal"oes, n. Etym: [From the native name; cf. Malay rasamala the name of the tree.]
Defn: The liquid storax of the East Indian Liquidambar orientalis.
ROSEMARY Rose"ma*ry, n. Etym: [OE. rosmarine, L. rosmarinus; ros dew (cf. Russ. rosa, Lith. rasa, Skr. rasa juice) + marinus marine: cf. F. romarin. In English the word has been changed as if it meant the rose of Mary. See Marine.]
Defn: A labiate shrub (Rosmarinus officinalis) with narrow grayish leaves, growing native in the southern part of France, Spain, and Italy, also in Asia Minor and in China. It has a fragrant smell, and a warm, pungent, bitterish taste. It is used in cookery, perfumery, etc., and is an emblem of fidelity or constancy. There's rosemary, that's for remembrance. Shak. Marsh rosemary. (a) A little shrub (Andromeda polifolia) growing in cold swamps and having leaves like those of the rosemary. (b) See under Marsh. — Rosemary pine, the loblolly pine. See under Loblolly.
ROSENRos"en, a.
Defn: Consisting of roses; rosy. [Obs.]
ROSENMULLER'S ORGAN; ROSENMUELLER'S ORGANRo"sen*mül`ler's or"gan.
Defn: [So named from its first describer, J. C. Rosenmüller, a German anatomist.] (Anat.) The parovarium.
ROSEO-Ro"se*o-. (Chem.)
Defn: A prefix (also used adjectively) signifying rose-red; specifically used to designate certain rose-red compounds (called roseo-cobaltic compounds) of cobalt with ammonia. Cf. Luteo-.
ROSEOLARo*se"o*la, n. Etym: [NL., dim. of L. rosa a rose.] (med.)
Defn: A rose-colored efflorescence upon the skin, occurring in circumscribed patches of little or no elevation and often alternately fading and reviving; also, an acute specific disease which is characterized by an eruption of this character; — called also rose rash. — Ro*se"o*lous, a.
ROSE-PINKRose"-pink`, a.
1. Having a pink color like that of the rose, or like the pigment called rose pink. See Rose pink, under Rose.
2. Disposed to clothe everything with roseate hues; hence, sentimental. "Rose-pink piety." C. Kingsley.
ROSERRos"er, n.
Defn: A rosier; a rosebush. [Obs.]
ROSE-REDRose"-red`, a.
Defn: Red as a rose; specifically (Zoöl.), of a pure purplish red color. Chaucer.
ROSE-RIALRose"-ri`al, n. Etym: [See Rose, and Royal.]
Defn: A name of several English gold coins struck in different reigns and having having different values; a rose noble.
ROSEROOTRose"root`, n. (Bot.)
Defn: A fleshy-leaved herb (Rhodiola rosea); rosewort; — so called because the roots have the odor of roses.
ROSERYRos"er*y, n.
Defn: A place where roses are cultivated; a nursery of roses. SeeRosary, 1.
ROSETRo"set, n. Etym: [F. rosette. See Rosette.]
Defn: A red color used by painters. Peacham.
ROSETTA STONERo*set"ta stone`.
Defn: A stone found at Rosetta, in Egypt, bearing a trilingual inscription, by aid of which, with other inscriptions, a key was obtained to the hieroglyphics of ancient Egypt. Brande & C.
ROSETTA WOODRo*set"ta wood`.
Defn: An east Indian wood of a reddish orange color, handsomely veined with darker marks. It is occasionally used for cabinetwork. Ure.
ROSETTERo*sette, n. Etym: [F., dim. of rose a rose. Cf. Roset.]
1. An imitation of a rose by means of ribbon or other material, — used as an ornament or a badge.
2. (Arch.)
Defn: An ornament in the form of a rose or roundel, -much used in decoration.
3. A red color. See Roset.
4. A rose burner. See under Rose.
5. (Zoöl.) (a) Any structure having a flowerlike form; especially, the group of five broad ambulacra on the upper side of the spatangoid and clypeastroid sea urchins. See Illust. of Spicule, and Sand dollar, under Sand. (b) A flowerlike color marking; as, the rosettes on the leopard.
ROSE WATERRose" wa`ter.
Defn: Water tinctured with roses by distillation.
ROSE-WATERRose"-wa`ter, a.
Defn: Having the odor of rose water; hence, affectedly nice or delicate; sentimental. "Rose-water philantropy." Carlyle.
ROSEWOODRose"wood, n.
Defn: A valuable cabinet wood of a dark red color, streaked and variegated with black, obtained from several tropical leguminous trees of the genera Dalbergia and Machærium. The finest kind is from Brazil, and is said to be from the Dalbergia nigra. African rosewood, the wood of the leguminous tree Pterocarpus erinaceus. — Jamaica rosewood, the wood of two West Indian trees (Amyris balsamifera, and Linocieria ligustrina). — New South Wales rosewood, the wood of Trichilia glandulosa, a tree related to the margosa.
ROSEWORMRose"worm`, n. (Zoöl.)
Defn: The larva of any one of several species of lepidopterous insects which feed upon the leaves, buds, or blossoms of the rose, especially Cacæcia rosaceana, which rolls up the leaves for a nest, and devours both the leaves and buds.
ROSEWORT Rose"wort`, n. (Bot.) (a) Roseroot. (b) Any plant nearly related to the rose. Lindley.
ROSICRUCIAN Ros`i*cru"cian, n. Etym: [The name is probably due to a German theologian, Johann Valentin Andreä, who in anonymous pamphlets called himself a knight of the Rose Cross (G. Rosenkreuz), using a seal with a St. Andrew's cross and four roses.)]
Defn: One who, in the 17th century and the early part of the 18th, claimed to belong to a secret society of philosophers deeply versed in the secrets of nature, — the alleged society having existed, it was stated, several hundred years.
Note: The Rosicrucians also called brothers of the Rosy Cross, Rosy- cross Knights, Rosy-cross philosophers, etc. Among other pretensions, they claimed to be able to transmute metals, to prolong life, to know what is passing in distant places, and to discover the most hidden things by the application of the Cabala and science of numbers.
ROSICRUCIANRos`i*cru"cian, a.
Defn: Of or pertaining to the Rosicrucians, or their arts.
ROSIEDRos"ied, a.
Defn: Decorated with roses, or with the color of roses.
ROSIERRo"sier, n. Etym: [F., fr. L. rosarius of roses. Cf. Rosary.]
Defn: A rosebush; roses, collectively. [Obs.]Crowned with a garland of sweet rosier. Spenser.
ROSILYRos"i*ly, adv.
Defn: In a rosy manner. M. Arnold.
ROSINRos"in, n. Etym: [A variant of resin.]
Defn: The hard, amber-colored resin left after distilling off the volatile oil of turpentine; colophony. Rosin oil, an oil obtained from the resin of the pine tree, — used by painters and for lubricating machinery, etc.
ROSINRos"in, v. t.
Defn: To rub with rosin, as musicians rub the bow of a violin.Or with the rosined bow torment the string. Gay.
ROSINESSRos"i*ness, n.
Defn: The quality of being rosy.
ROSINWEED Ros"in*weed`, n. (Bot.) (a) The compass plant. See under Compass. (b) A name given in California to various composite plants which secrete resins or have a resinous smell.
ROSINYRos"in*y, a.
Defn: like rosin, or having its qualities.
ROSLANDRos"land, n. Etym: [W. rhos a meadow, a moor + E. land.]
Defn: heathy land; land full of heather; moorish or watery land. [prov. Eng.]
ROSMARINERos"ma*rine`, n. Etym: [OE. See Rosemary.]
1. Dew from the sea; sea dew. [Obs.] That purer brine And wholesome dew called rosmarine. B. Jonson.
2. Rosemary. [Obs.] Spenser. "Biting on anise seed and rosmarine." Bp. Hall.
ROSMARINE Ros"ma*rine, n. Etym: [Norw. rosmar a walrus; ros a horse (akin to E. horse) + (probably) mar the sea.]
Defn: A fabulous sea animal which was reported to climb by means of its teeth to the tops of rocks to feed upon the dew. And greedly rosmarines with visages deforme. Spenser.
ROSOLICRo*sol"ic, a. Etym: [Rose + carbolic.] (Chem.)
Defn: Pertaining to, or designating, a complex red dyestuff (called rosolic acid) which is analogous to rosaniline and aurin. It is produced by oxidizing a mixture of phenol and cresol, as a dark red amorphous mass, C20H16O3, which forms weak salts with bases, and stable ones with acids. Called also methyl aurin, and, formerly, corallin.
ROSSRoss; 115), n. Etym: [Etymol. uncertain.]
Defn: The rough, scaly matter on the surface of the bark of trees.[Prov. Eng. & Local, U.S.]
ROSSRoss, v. t.
Defn: To divest of the ross, or rough, scaly surface; as, to ross bark. [Local, U.S.]
ROSSELRos"sel, n.
Defn: Light land; rosland. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.] Mortimer.
ROSSEL CURRENTRos"sel cur`rent. [From Rossel Island, in the Louisiade Archipelago.](Oceanography)
Defn: A portion of the southern equatorial current flowing westward from the Fiji Islands to New Guinea.
ROSSEL CURRENTRos"sel cur`rent. [From Rossel Island, in the Louisiade Archipelago.](Oceanography)
Defn: A portion of the southern equatorial current flowing westward from the Fiji Islands to New Guinea. [Webster 1913 Suppl.]
ROSSELLYRos"sel*ly, a.
Defn: Loose; light. [Obs.] Mortimer.
ROSTRost, n.
Defn: See Roust. [Scot.] Jemieson.
ROSTEL Ros"tel, n. Etym: [L. rostellum, dim. of rostrum a beak: cf. F. rostelle.]
Defn: same as Rostellum.
ROSTELLARRos*tel"lar, a.
Defn: Pertaining to a rostellum.
ROSTELLATERos"tel*late, a. Etym: [NL. rostellatus.]
Defn: Having a rostellum, or small beak; terminating in a beak.
ROSTELLIFORMRos*tel"li*form, a.
Defn: Having the form of a rostellum, or small beak.
ROSTELLUMRos*tel"lum, n.; pl. Rostella. Etym: [L. See Rostel.]
Defn: A small beaklike process or extension of some part; a small rostrum; as, the rostellum of the stigma of violets, or of the operculum of many mosses; the rostellum on the head of a tapeworm.
ROSTERRos"ter, n. Etym: [Perhaps a corruption of register; or cf. roll.](Mil.)
Defn: A register or roll showing the order in which officers, enlisted men, companies, or regiments are called on to serve.
ROSTRARos"tra, n. pl.
Defn: See Rostrum, 2.
ROSTRAL Ros"tral, a. Etym: [L. rostralis, fr. rostrum a beak; cf. F. rostral.]
Defn: Of or pertaining to the beak or snout of an animal, or the beakof a ship; resembling a rostrum, esp., the rostra at Rome, or theirdecorations.[Monuments] adorned with rostral crowns and naval ornaments. Addison.
ROSTRATE; ROSTRATEDRos"trate, Ros"tra*ted, a. Etym: [L. rostratus, fr. rostrum a beak.See Rostrum.]
1. Having a process resembling the beak of a bird; beaked; rostellate.
2. Furnished or adorned with beaks; as, rostrated galleys.
ROSTRIFERA Ros*trif"e*ra, n. pl. Etym: [NL., fr. L. rostrum beak + ferre to bear.] (Zoöl.)
Defn: A division of pectinibranchiate gastropods, having the head prolonged into a snout which is not retractile.
ROSTRIFORM Ros"tri*form, a. Etym: [L. rostrum a beak + -form: cf. F. rostrifarme.]
Defn: Having the form of a beak.
ROSTRULUM Ros"tru*lum, n.; pl. Rostrula. Etym: [NL., dim. of L. rostrum a beak.]
Defn: A little rostrum, or beak, as of an insect.
ROSTRUM Ros"trum, n.; pl. L. Rostra, E. Rostrums. Etym: [L., beak, ship's beak, fr. rodere, rosum, to gnaw. See Rodent.]
1. The beak or head of a ship.
2. pl. (Rostra) (Rom. Antiq.)
Defn: The Beaks; the stage or platform in the forum where orations, pleadings, funeral harangues, etc., were delivered; — so called because after the Latin war, it was adorned with the beaks of captured vessels; later, applied also to other platforms erected in Rome for the use of public orators.
3. Hence, a stage for public speaking; the pulpit or platform occupied by an orator or public speaker. Myself will mount the rostrum in his favor. Addison.
4. (Zoöl.) (a) Any beaklike prolongation, esp. of the head of an animal, as the beak of birds. (b) The beak, or sucking mouth parts, of Hemiptera. (c) The snout of a gastropod mollusk. See Illust. of Littorina. (d) The anterior, often spinelike, prolongation of the carapace of a crustacean, as in the lobster and the prawn.
5. (Bot.)
Defn: Same as Rostellum.
6. (Old Chem.)
Defn: The pipe to convey the distilling liquor into its receiver in the common alembic. Quincy.
7. (Surg.)
Defn: A pair of forceps of various kinds, having a beaklike form.[Obs.] Coxe.
ROSULATERo"su*late, a. Etym: [NL. rosulatus, fr. L. rosa a rose.] (Bot.)
Defn: Arranged in little roselike clusters; — said of leaves and bracts.
ROSYRos"y, a. [Compar. Rosier; superl. Rosiest.]
Defn: Resembling a rose in color, form, or qualities; blooming; red;blushing; also, adorned with roses.A smile that glowed Celestial rosy-red, love's proper hue. Milton.While blooming youth and gay delight Sit thy rosy cheeks confessed.Prior.
Note: Rosy is sometimes used in the formation of selfrosy-bosomed, rosy-colored, rosy-crowned, rosy-fingered, rosy-tinted. Rosy cross. See the Note under Rosicrucian, n.
ROT Rot, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Rotted; p. pr. & vb. n. Rotting.] Etym: [OE. rotien, AS. rotian; akin to D. rotten, Prov. G. rotten, OHG. rozz, G. rösten to steep flax, Icel. rotna to rot, Sw. ruttna, Dan. raadne, Icel. rottin rotten. sq. root117. Cf. Ret, Rotten.]
1. To undergo a process common to organic substances by which they lose the cohesion of their parts and pass through certain chemical changes, giving off usually in some stages of the process more or less offensive odors; to become decomposed by a natural process; to putrefy; to decay. Fixed like a plant on his peculiar spot, To draw nutrition, propagate, and rot. Pope.
2. Figuratively: To perish slowly; to decay; to die; to becomecorrupt.Four of the sufferers were left to rot in irons. Macaulay.Rot, poor bachelor, in your club. Thackeray.
Syn.— To putrefy; corrupt; decay; spoil.
ROTRot, v. t.
1. To make putrid; to cause to be wholly or partially decomposed by natural processes; as, to rot vegetable fiber.
2. To expose, as flax, to a process of maceration, etc., for the purpose of separating the fiber; to ret.
ROTRot, n.
1. Process of rotting; decay; putrefaction.
2. (Bot.)
Defn: A disease or decay in fruits, leaves, or wood, supposed to be caused by minute fungi. See Bitter rot, Black rot, etc., below.
3. Etym: [Cf. G. rotz glanders.]
Defn: A fatal distemper which attacks sheep and sometimes other animals. It is due to the presence of a parasitic worm in the liver or gall bladder. See 1st Fluke, 2. His cattle must of rot and murrain die. Milton. Bitter rot (Bot.), a disease of apples, caused by the fungus Glæosporium fructigenum. F. L. Scribner. — Black rot (Bot.), a disease of grapevines, attacking the leaves and fruit, caused by the fungus Læstadia Bidwellii. F. L. Scribner. — Dry rot (Bot.) See under Dry. — Grinder's rot (Med.) See under Grinder. — Potato rot. (Bot.) See under Potato. — White rot (Bot.), a disease of grapes, first appearing in whitish pustules on the fruit, caused by the fungus Coniothyrium diplodiella. F. L. Scribner.
ROTA Ro"ta, n. Etym: [L. rota wheel. The name is said to allude to the design of the floor of the room in which the court used to sit, which was that of a wheel. See Rotary.]
1. An ecclesiastical court of Rome, called also Rota Romana, that takes cognizance of suits by appeal. It consists of twelve members.
2. (Eng. Hist.)
Defn: A short-lived political club established in 1659 by J.Harrington to inculcate the democratic doctrine of election of the principal officers of the state by ballot, and the annual retirement of a portion of Parliament.
ROTARo"ta, n. (Mus.)
Defn: A species of zither, played like a guitar, used in the MiddleAges in church music; — written also rotta.
ROTACISMRo"ta*cism, n.
Defn: See Rhotacism.
ROTALRo"tal, a.
Defn: Relating to wheels or to rotary motion; rotary. [R.]
ROTALITERo"ta*lite, n. Etym: [L. rota wheel + -lite.] (Paleon.)
Defn: Any fossil foraminifer of the genus Rotalia, abundant in the chalk formation. See Illust. under Rhizopod.
ROTARYRo"ta*ry, a. Etym: [L. rota a wheel. See Roll, v., and cf. barouche,Rodomontade, Roué, Round, a., Rowel.]
Defn: Turning, as a wheel on its axis; pertaining to, or resembling, the motion of a wheel on its axis; rotatory; as, rotary motion. Rotary engine, steam engine in which the continuous rotation of the shaft is produced by the direct action of the steam upon rotating devices which serve as pistons, instead of being derived from a reciprocating motion, as in the ordinary engine; a steam turbine; — called also rotatory engine. — Rotary pump, a pump in which the fluid is impelled by rotating devices which take the place of reciprocating buckets or pistons. — Rotary shears, shears, as for cloth, metal, etc., in which revolving sharp-edged or sharp-cornered wheels do the cutting. — Rotary valve, a valve acting by continuous or partial rotation, as in the four-way cock.
ROTASCOPERo"ta*scope, n. Etym: [L. rota a wheel + -scope.]
Defn: Same as Gyroscope, 1.
ROTATE Ro"tate, a. Etym: [L. rotatus, p.p. of rotare to turn round like a wheel, fr. rota wheel. See Rotary, and cf. Roue.]
Defn: Having the parts spreading out like a wheel; wheel-shaped; as, a rotate spicule or scale; a rotate corolla, i.e., a monopetalous corolla with a flattish border, and no tube or a very short one.
ROTATERo"tate, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Rotated; p. pr. & vb. n. Rotating.]
1. To turn, as a wheel, round an axis; to revolve.
2. To perform any act, function, or operation in turn, to hold office in turn; as, to rotate in office.
ROTATERo"tate, v. i.
1. To cause to turn round or revolve, as a wheel around an axle.
2. To cause to succeed in turn; esp., to cause to succeed some one, or to be succeeded by some one, in office. [Colloq.] "Both, after a brief service, were rotated out of office." Harper's Mag.
ROTATEDRo"ta*ted, a.
Defn: Turned round, as a wheel; also, wheel-shaped; rotate.
ROTATIONRo*ta"tion, n. Etym: [L. rotatio: cf. F. rotation.]
1. The act of turning, as a wheel or a solid body on its axis, as distinguished from the progressive motion of a revolving round another body or a distant point; thus, the daily turning of the earth on its axis is a rotation; its annual motion round the sun is a revolution.
2. Any return or succesion in a series. Moment of rotation. See Moment of inertia, under Moment. — Rotation in office, the practice of changing public officers at frequent intervals by discharges and substitutions. — Rotation of crops, the practices of cultivating an orderly succession of different crops on the same land.
ROTATIONRo*ta"tion, a.
Defn: Pertaining to, or resulting from, rotation; of the nature of, or characterized by, rotation; as, rotational velocity.
ROTATIVERo"ta*tive, a. Etym: [Cf. F. rotatif.]
Defn: turning, as a wheel; rotary; rotational. This high rotative velocity of the sun must cause an equatorial rise of the solar atmosphere. Siemens. Rotative engine, a steam engine in which the reciprocating motion of the piston is transformed into a continuous rotary motion, as by means of a connecting rod, a working beam and crank, or an oscillating cylinder.
ROTATORRo*ta"tor, n. Etym: [L.]
1. (Anat.)
Defn: that which gives a rotary or rolling motion, as a muscle which partially rotates or turns some part on its axis.
2. (Metal.)
Defn: A revolving reverberatory furnace.
ROTATORIARo`ta*to"ri*a, n. pl. Etym: [NL.] (Zoöl.)
Defn: Same as Rotifera.
ROTATORYRo"ta*to*ry, a. Etym: [Cf. F. rotatoire. See Rotate, Rotary.]
1. Turning as on an axis; rotary.
2. Going in a circle; following in rotation or succession; as, rotatory assembles. Burke.
3. (Opt.)
Defn: Producing rotation of the plane of polarization; as, the rotatory power of bodies on light. See the Note under polarization. Nichol.
ROTATORYRo"ta*to*ry, n. (Zoöl.)
Defn: A rotifer. [R.] Kirby.
ROTCHERotche, n. (Zoöl.)
Defn: A very small arctic sea bird (Mergulus alle, or Alle alle) common on both coasts of the Atlantic in winter; — called also little auk, dovekie, rotch, rotchie, and sea dove.
ROTCHETRotch"et, n. (Zoöl.)
Defn: The European red gurnard (Trigla pini).
ROTERote, n.
Defn: A root. [Obs.] Chaucer.
ROTERote, n. Etym: [OE. rote, probably of German origin; cf. MHG. rotte,OHG. rota, hrota, LL. chrotta. Cf. Crowd a kind of violin.] (Mus.)
Defn: A kind of guitar, the notes of which were produced by a small wheel or wheel-like arrangement; an instrument similar to the hurdy- gurdy. Well could he sing and play on a rote. Chaucer. extracting mistuned dirges from their harps, crowds, and rotes. Sir W. Scott.