Words whose 8th letter is S

Acanthus (n.) A genus of herbaceous prickly plants, found in the south of Europe, Asia Minor, and India; bear's-breech.

Acanthus (n.) An ornament resembling the foliage or leaves of the acanthus (Acanthus spinosus); -- used in the capitals of the Corinthian and Composite orders.

Actionist (n.) A shareholder in joint-stock company.

Actualist (n.) One who deals with or considers actually existing facts and conditions, rather than fancies or theories; -- opposed to idealist.

Acuteness (n.) The faculty of nice discernment or perception; acumen; keenness; sharpness; sensitiveness; -- applied to the senses, or the understanding. By acuteness of feeling, we perceive small objects or slight impressions: by acuteness of intellect, we discern nice distinctions.

Acuteness (n.) Shrillness; high pitch; -- said of sounds.

Adventist (n.) One of a religious body, embracing several branches, who look for the proximate personal coming of Christ; -- called also Second Adventists.

Advertise (v. t.) To give notice to; to inform or apprise; to notify; to make known; hence, to warn; -- often followed by of before the subject of information; as, to advertise a man of his loss.

Aegilops (n.) The great wild-oat grass or other cornfield weed.

Aftermost (a. superl.) Hindmost; -- opposed to foremost.

Albatross (n.) A web-footed bird, of the genus Diomedea, of which there are several species. They are the largest of sea birds, capable of long-continued flight, and are often seen at great distances from the land. They are found chiefly in the southern hemisphere.

Altrices (n. pl.) Nursers, -- a term applied to those birds whose young are hatched in a very immature and helpless condition, so as to require the care of their parents for some time; -- opposed to praecoces.

Amphidisc (n.) A peculiar small siliceous spicule having a denticulated wheel at each end; -- found in freshwater sponges.

Apterous (a.) Destitute of winglike membranous expansions, as a stem or petiole; -- opposed to alate.

Aquarius (n.) The Water-bearer; the eleventh sign in the zodiac, which the sun enters about the 20th of January; -- so called from the rains which prevail at that season in Italy and the East.

Aretaics (n.) The ethical theory which excludes all relations between virtue and happiness; the science of virtue; -- contrasted with eudemonics.

Arquebusade (n.) A distilled water from a variety of aromatic plants, as rosemary, millefoil, etc.; -- originally used as a vulnerary in gunshot wounds.

Asbestos (n.) A variety of amphibole or of pyroxene, occurring in long and delicate fibers, or in fibrous masses or seams, usually of a white, gray, or green-gray color. The name is also given to a similar variety of serpentine.

Atlantes (n. pl.) Figures or half figures of men, used as columns to support an entablature; -- called also telamones. See Caryatides.

Bacillus (n.) A variety of bacterium; a microscopic, rod-shaped vegetable organism.

Barbiers (n.) A variety of paralysis, peculiar to India and the Malabar coast; -- considered by many to be the same as beriberi in chronic form.

Baroness (n.) A baron's wife; also, a lady who holds the baronial title in her own right; as, the Baroness Burdett-Coutts.

Basylous (a.) Pertaining to, or having the nature of, a basyle; electro-positive; basic; -- opposed to chlorous.

Bimanous (a.) Having two hands; two-handed.

Blackfish (n.) The black sea bass (Centropristis atrarius) of the Atlantic coast. It is excellent food fish; -- locally called also black Harry.

Blacklist (v. t.) To put in a black list as deserving of suspicion, censure, or punishment; esp. to put in a list of persons stigmatized as insolvent or untrustworthy, -- as tradesmen and employers do for mutual protection; as, to blacklist a workman who has been discharged. See Black list, under Black, a.

Blackstrap (n.) Bad port wine; any common wine of the Mediterranean; -- so called by sailors.

Blameless (a.) Free from blame; without fault; innocent; guiltless; -- sometimes followed by of.

Bletonism (n.) The supposed faculty of perceiving subterraneous springs and currents by sensation; -- so called from one Bleton, of France.

Brahmoism (n.) The religious system of Brahmo-somaj.

Brankursine (n.) Bear's-breech, or Acanthus.

Brevirostrate (a.) Short-billed; having a short beak.

Broadcast (a.) Scattering in all directions (as a method of sowing); -- opposed to planting in hills, or rows.

Burghmaster (n.) An officer who directs and lays out the meres or boundaries for the workmen; -- called also bailiff, and barmaster.

Business (n.) Affair; concern; matter; -- used in an indefinite sense, and modified by the connected words.

Calipers (n. pl.) An instrument, usually resembling a pair of dividers or compasses with curved legs, for measuring the diameter or thickness of bodies, as of work shaped in a lathe or planer, timber, masts, shot, etc.; or the bore of firearms, tubes, etc.; -- called also caliper compasses, or caliber compasses.

Calmness (n.) The state of quality of being calm; quietness; tranquillity; self-repose.

Calvinism (n.) The theological tenets or doctrines of John Calvin (a French theologian and reformer of the 16th century) and his followers, or of the so-called calvinistic churches.

Careless (a.) Free from care or anxiety. hence, cheerful; light-hearted.

Catechise (v. t.) To instruct by asking questions, receiving answers, and offering explanations and corrections, -- esp. in regard to points of religious faith.

Catechise (v. t.) To question or interrogate; to examine or try by questions; -- sometimes with a view to reproof, by eliciting from a person answers which condemn his own conduct.

Catharist (n.) One aiming at or pretending to a greater purity of like than others about him; -- applied to persons of various sects. See Albigenses.

Cathartin (n.) The bitter, purgative principle of senna. It is a glucoside with the properties of a weak acid; -- called also cathartic acid, and cathartina.

Cathetus (n.) One Causeless (a.) 1. Self-originating; uncreated.

Cephalaspis (n.) A genus of fossil ganoid fishes found in the old red sandstone or Devonian formation. The head is large, and protected by a broad shield-shaped helmet prolonged behind into two lateral points.

Cerberus (n.) A monster, in the shape of a three-headed dog, guarding the entrance into the infernal regions, Hence: Any vigilant custodian or guardian, esp. if surly.

Cerebrose (n.) A sugarlike body obtained by the decomposition of the nitrogenous non-phosphorized principles of the brain.

Cernuous (a.) Inclining or nodding downward; pendulous; drooping; -- said of a bud, flower, fruit, or the capsule of a moss.

Chlorous (a.) Of, pertaining to, or derived from, chlorine; -- said of those compounds of chlorine in which this element has a valence of three, the next lower than in chloric compounds; as, chlorous acid, HClO2.

Chlorous (a.) Pertaining to, or resembling, the electro-negative character of chlorine; hence, electro-negative; -- opposed to basylous or zincous.

Chondrostei (n. pl.) An order of fishes, including the sturgeons; -- so named because the skeleton is cartilaginous.

Circumesophagal (a.) Surrounding the esophagus; -- in Zool. said of the nerve commissures and ganglia of arthropods and mollusks.

Cleavers (n.) A species of Galium (G. Aparine), having a fruit set with hooked bristles, which adhere to whatever they come in contact with; -- called also, goose grass, catchweed, etc.

Clematis (n.) A genus of flowering plants, of many species, mostly climbers, having feathery styles, which greatly enlarge in the fruit; -- called also virgin's bower.

Coalgoose (n.) The cormorant; -- so called from its black color.

Coamings (n. pl.) Raised pieces of wood of iron around a hatchway, skylight, or other opening in the deck, to prevent water from running bellow; esp. the fore-and-aft pieces of a hatchway frame as distinguished from the transverse head ledges.

Cockhorse (n.) A child's rocking-horse.

Cointension (n.) The condition of being of equal in intensity; -- applied to relations; as, 3:6 and 6:12 are relations of cointension.

Compressor (n.) An apparatus for confining or flattening between glass plates an object to be examined with the microscope; -- called also compressorium.

Congress (n.) A sudden encounter; a collision; a shock; -- said of things.

Coniform (a.) Cone-shaped; conical.

Coolness (n.) Calm impudence; self-possession.

Counterscarf (n.) The exterior slope or wall of the ditch; -- sometimes, the whole covered way, beyond the ditch, with its parapet and glacis; as, the enemy have lodged themselves on the counterscarp.

Countersunk (p. p. & a.) Chamfered at the top; -- said of a hole.

Couscous (n.) A kind of food used by the natives of Western Africa, made of millet flour with flesh, and leaves of the baobab; -- called also lalo.

Covetous (v. t.) Very desirous; eager to obtain; -- used in a good sense.

Covetous (v. t.) Inordinately desirous; excessively eager to obtain and possess (esp. money); avaricious; -- in a bad sense.

Covetousness (n.) A strong or inordinate desire of obtaining and possessing some supposed good; excessive desire for riches or money; -- in a bad sense.

Cracowes (n. pl.) Long-toed boots or shoes formerly worn in many parts of Europe; -- so called from Cracow, in Poland, where they were first worn in the fourteenth century.

Crankness (n.) Liability to be overset; -- said of a ship or other vessel.

Criticise (v. i.) To act as a critic; to pass literary or artistic judgment; to play the critic; -- formerly used with on or upon.

Decomposed (a.) Separated or broken up; -- said of the crest of birds when the feathers are divergent.

Deepness (n.) The state or quality of being deep, profound, mysterious, secretive, etc.; depth; profundity; -- opposed to shallowness.

Deergrass (n.) An American genus (Rhexia) of perennial herbs, with opposite leaves, and showy flowers (usually bright purple), with four petals and eight stamens, -- the only genus of the order Melastomaceae inhabiting a temperate clime.

Denarius (n.) A Roman silver coin of the value of about fourteen cents; the "penny" of the New Testament; -- so called from being worth originally ten of the pieces called as.

Dentirostral (a.) Having a toothed bill; -- applied to a group of passerine birds, having the bill notched, and feeding chiefly on insects, as the shrikes and vireos. See Illust. (N) under Beak.

Deviless (n.) A she-devil.

Dextrorse (a.) Turning from the left to the right, in the ascending line, as in the spiral inclination of the stem of the common morning-glory.

Dieresis (n.) The separation or resolution of one syllable into two; -- the opposite of synaeresis.

Dickcissel (n.) The American black-throated bunting (Spiza Americana).

Diogenes (n.) A Greek Cynic philosopher (412?-323 B. C.) who lived much in Athens and was distinguished for contempt of the common aims and conditions of life, and for sharp, caustic sayings.

Displease (v. t.) To make not pleased; to excite a feeling of disapprobation or dislike in; to be disagreeable to; to offend; to vex; -- often followed by with or at. It usually expresses less than to anger, vex, irritate, or provoke.

Dochmius (n.) A foot of five syllables (usually / -- -/ -).

Doldrums (n. pl.) A part of the ocean near the equator, abounding in calms, squalls, and light, baffling winds, which sometimes prevent all progress for weeks; -- so called by sailors.

Drawcansir (n.) A blustering, bullying fellow; a pot-valiant braggart; a bully.

Dyslogistic (a.) Unfavorable; not commendatory; -- opposed to eulogistic.

Easiness (n.) Freedom from effort, constraint, or formality; -- said of style, manner, etc.

Ecchymose (v. t.) To discolor by the production of an ecchymosis, or effusion of blood, beneath the skin; -- chiefly used in the passive form; as, the parts were much ecchymosed.

Embarrass (v. t.) To involve in difficulties concerning money matters; to incumber with debt; to beset with urgent claims or demands; -- said of a person or his affairs; as, a man or his business is embarrassed when he can not meet his pecuniary engagements.

Emeritus (a.) Honorably discharged from the performance of public duty on account of age, infirmity, or long and faithful services; -- said of an officer of a college or pastor of a church.

Enchodus (n.) A genus of extinct Cretaceous fishes; -- so named from their spear-shaped teeth. They were allied to the pike (Esox).

Entellus (n.) An East Indian long-tailed bearded monkey (Semnopithecus entellus) regarded as sacred by the natives. It is remarkable for the caplike arrangement of the hair on the head. Called also hoonoomaun and hungoor.

Entoglossal (a.) Within the tongue; -- applied to the glossohyal bone.

Entoplastron (n.) The median plate of the plastron of turtles; -- called also entosternum.

Eosaurus (n.) An extinct marine reptile from the coal measures of Nova Scotia; -- so named because supposed to be of the earliest known reptiles.

Epitasis (n.) That part which embraces the main action of a play, poem, and the like, and leads on to the catastrophe; -- opposed to protasis.

Equipoise (n.) Equality of weight or force; hence, equilibrium; a state in which the two ends or sides of a thing are balanced, and hence equal; state of being equally balanced; -- said of moral, political, or social interests or forces.

Erotesis (n.) A figure o/ speech by which a strong affirmation of the contrary, is implied under the form o/ an earnest interrogation, as in the following lines; -

Establish (a.) To originate and secure the permanent existence of; to found; to institute; to create and regulate; -- said of a colony, a state, or other institutions.

Establish (a.) To set up in business; to place advantageously in a fixed condition; -- used reflexively; as, he established himself in a place; the enemy established themselves in the citadel.

Exegetist (n.) One versed in the science of exegesis or interpretation; -- also called exegete.

Extravascular (a.) Outside the vessels; -- said of the substance of all the tissues.

Extravascular (a.) Destitute of vessels; non-vascular.

Factious (a.) Given to faction; addicted to form parties and raise dissensions, in opposition to government or the common good; turbulent; seditious; prone to clamor against public measures or men; -- said of persons.

Factious (a.) Pertaining to faction; proceeding from faction; indicating, or characterized by, faction; -- said of acts or expressions; as, factious quarrels.

Faintness (n.) The state of being faint; loss of strength, or of consciousness, and self-control.

Faintness (n.) Faint-heartedness; timorousness; dejection.

Fibrovascular (a.) Containing woody fiber and ducts, as the stems of all flowering plants and ferns; -- opposed to cellular.

Firecrest (n.) A small European kinglet (Regulus ignicapillus), having a bright red crest; -- called also fire-crested wren.

Firefish (n.) A singular marine fish of the genus Pterois, family Scorpaenidae, of several species, inhabiting the Indo-Pacific region. They are usually red, and have very large spinose pectoral and dorsal fins.

Flatness (n.) Depression of tone; the state of being below the true pitch; -- opposed to sharpness or acuteness.

Flying squirrel () One of a group of squirrels, of the genera Pteromus and Sciuropterus, having parachute-like folds of skin extending from the fore to the hind legs, which enable them to make very long leaps.

Forwards (adv.) Toward a part or place before or in front; onward; in advance; progressively; -- opposed to backward.

Frostfish (n.) The tomcod; -- so called because it is abundant on the New England coast in autumn at about the commencement of frost. See Tomcod.

Generalship (n.) The office of a general; the exercise of the functions of a general; -- sometimes, with the possessive pronoun, the personality of a general.

Generous (a.) Open-handed; free to give; not close or niggardly; munificent; as, a generous friend or father.

Glaucous (a.) Of a sea-green color; of a dull green passing into grayish blue.

Goldcrest (n.) The European golden-crested kinglet (Regulus cristatus, or R. regulus); -- called also golden-crested wren, and golden wren. The name is also sometimes applied to the American golden-crested kinglet. See Kinglet.

Gonimous (a.) Pertaining to, or containing, gonidia or gonimia, as that part of a lichen which contains the green or chlorophyll-bearing cells.

Gothamist (n.) A wiseacre; a person deficient in wisdom; -- so called from Gotham, in Nottinghamshire, England, noted for some pleasant blunders.

Governess (n.) A female governor; a woman invested with authority to control and direct; especially, one intrusted with the care and instruction of children, -- usually in their homes.

Grandiose (a.) Impressive or elevating in effect; imposing; splendid; striking; -- in a good sense.

Grandiose (a.) Characterized by affectation of grandeur or splendor; flaunting; turgid; bombastic; -- in a bad sense; as, a grandiose style.

Gymnotus (n.) A genus of South American fresh-water fishes, including the Gymnotus electricus, or electric eel. It has a greenish, eel-like body, and is possessed of electric power.

Haliotis (n.) A genus of marine shells; the ear-shells. See Abalone.

Happiness (n.) Fortuitous elegance; unstudied grace; -- used especially of language.

Hardness (n.) The cohesion of the particles on the surface of a body, determined by its capacity to scratch another, or be itself scratched;-measured among minerals on a scale of which diamond and talc form the extremes.

Hastings sands () The lower group of the Wealden formation; -- so called from its development around Hastings, in Sussex, England.

Hellenism (n.) The type of character of the ancient Greeks, who aimed at culture, grace, and amenity, as the chief elements in human well-being and perfection.

Helpless (a.) Unsupplied; destitute; -- with of.

Hexeikosane (n.) A hydrocarbon, C26H54, resembling paraffine; -- so called because each molecule has twenty-six atoms of carbon.

Hinderest (a.) Hindermost; -- superl. of Hind, a.

Hognosesnake () A harmless North American snake of the genus Heterodon, esp. H. platyrhynos; -- called also puffing adder, blowing adder, and sand viper.

Holoblastic (a.) Undergoing complete segmentation; composed entirely of germinal matter, the whole of the yolk undergoing fission; -- opposed to meroblastic.

Holocrystalline (a.) Completely crystalline; -- said of a rock like granite, all the constituents of which are crystalline.

Homoiousian (n.) One of the semi-Arians of the 4th century, who held that the Son was of like, but not the same, essence or substance with the Father; -- opposed to homoousian.

Homoplast (n.) One of the plastids composing the idorgan of Haeckel; -- also called homoorgan.

Houndfish (n.) Any small shark of the genus Galeus or Mustelus, of which there are several species, as the smooth houndfish (G. canis), of Europe and America; -- called also houndshark, and dogfish.

Hypaspist (n.) A shield-bearer or armor-bearer.

Hypoblast (n.) The inner or lower layer of the blastoderm; -- called also endoderm, entoderm, and sometimes hypoderm. See Illust. of Blastoderm, Delamination, and Ectoderm.

Hypocrystalline (a.) Partly crystalline; -- said of rock which consists of crystals imbedded in a glassy ground mass.

Hypoglossal (a.) Under the tongue; -- applied esp., in the higher vertebrates, to the twelfth or last pair of cranial nerves, which are distributed to the base of the tongue.

Hypoplastron (n.) The third lateral plate in the plastron of turtles; -- called also hyposternum.

Hypostasis (n.) Substance; subsistence; essence; person; personality; -- used by the early theologians to denote any one of the three subdivisions of the Godhead, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Hypostasis (n.) Principle; an element; -- used by the alchemists in speaking of salt, sulphur, and mercury, which they considered as the three principles of all material bodies.

Ichthyosauria (n. pl.) An extinct order of marine reptiles, including Ichthyosaurus and allied forms; -- called also Ichthyopterygia. They have not been found later than the Cretaceous period.

Ichthyosaurus (n.) An extinct genus of marine reptiles; -- so named from their short, biconcave vertebrae, resembling those of fishes. Several species, varying in length from ten to thirty feet, are known from the Liassic, Oolitic, and Cretaceous formations.

Ichthyosis (n.) A disease in which the skin is thick, rough, and scaly; -- called also fishskin.

Idioplasma (n.) That portion of the cell protoplasm which is the seat of all active changes, and which carries on the function of hereditary transmission; -- distinguished from the other portion, which is termed nutritive plasma. See Hygroplasm.

Inertness (n.) Absence of the power of self-motion; inertia.

Iridious (a.) Of or pertaining to iridium; -- applied specifically to compounds in which iridium has a low valence.

Isogonism (n.) The quality of having similar sexual zooids or gonophores and dissimilar hydrants; -- said of certain hydroids.

Jesuitism (n.) Cunning; deceit; deceptive practices to effect a purpose; subtle argument; -- an opprobrious use of the word.

Jinrikisha (n.) A small, two-wheeled, hooded vehicle drawn by one more men.

Johannes (n.) A Portuguese gold coin of the value of eight dollars, named from the figure of King John which it bears; -- often contracted into joe; as, a joe, or a half joe.

Kingtruss () A truss, framed with a king-post; -- used in roofs, bridges, etc.

Klamaths (n. pl.) A collective name for the Indians of several tribes formerly living along the Klamath river, in California and Oregon, but now restricted to a reservation at Klamath Lake; -- called also Clamets and Hamati.

Kneebrush (n.) A tuft or brush of hair on the knees of some species of antelopes and other animals; -- chiefly used in the plural.

Kneebrush (n.) A thick mass or collection of hairs on the legs of bees, by aid of which they carry the collected pollen to the hive or nest; -- usually in the plural.

Kneed (a.) Having knees;- used chiefly in composition; as, in-kneed; out-kneed; weak-kneed.

Lacrimoso (a.) Plaintive; -- a term applied to a mournful or pathetic movement or style.

Lancepesade (n.) An assistant to a corporal; a private performing the duties of a corporal; -- called also lance corporal.

Lecythis (n.) A genus of gigantic trees, chiefly Brazilian, of the order Myrtaceae, having woody capsules opening by an apical lid. Lecythis Zabucajo yields the delicious sapucaia nuts. L. Ollaria produces the monkey-pots, its capsules. Its bark separates into thin sheets, like paper, used by the natives for cigarette wrappers.

Listerism (n.) The systematic use of antiseptics in the performance of operations and the treatment of wounds; -- so called from Joseph Lister, an English surgeon.

Macrocosm (n.) The great world; that part of the universe which is exterior to man; -- contrasted with microcosm, or man. See Microcosm.

Macrocystis (n.) An immensely long blackish seaweed of the Pacific (Macrocystis pyrifera), having numerous almond-shaped air vessels.

Mademoiselle (n.) A marine food fish (Sciaena chrysura), of the Southern United States; -- called also yellowtail, and silver perch.

Madjoun (n.) An intoxicating confection from the hemp plant; -- used by the Turks and Hindoos.

Mainprise (v. t.) To suffer to go at large, on his finding sureties, or mainpernors, for his appearance at a day; -- said of a prisoner.

Matagasse (n.) A shrike or butcher bird; -- called also mattages.

Mattages (n.) A shrike or butcher bird; -- written also matagasse.

Merciless (a.) Destitute of mercy; cruel; unsparing; -- said of animate beings, and also, figuratively, of things; as, a merciless tyrant; merciless waves.

Meroblast (n.) An ovum, as that of a mammal, only partially composed of germinal matter, that is, consisting of both a germinal portion and an albuminous or nutritive one; -- opposed to holoblast.

Meroblastic (a.) Consisting only in part of germinal matter; characterized by partial segmentation only; as, meroblastic ova, in which a portion of the yolk only undergoes fission; meroblastic segmentation; -- opposed to holoblastic.

Methodist (n.) One of a sect of Christians, the outgrowth of a small association called the "Holy Club," formed at Oxford University, A.D. 1729, of which the most conspicuous members were John Wesley and his brother Charles; -- originally so called from the methodical strictness of members of the club in all religious duties.

Methodist (n.) A person of strict piety; one who lives in the exact observance of religious duties; -- sometimes so called in contempt or ridicule.

Midships (adv.) In the middle of a ship; -- properly amidships.

Mistressship (n.) Ladyship, a style of address; -- with the personal pronoun.

Mohicans (n. pl.) A tribe of Lenni-Lenape Indians who formerly inhabited Western Connecticut and Eastern New York.

Multicuspid (a.) Multicuspidate; -- said of teeth.

Musculospiral (a.) Of or pertaining to the muscles, and taking a spiral course; -- applied esp. to a large nerve of the arm.

Myosotis (n.) A genus of plants. See Mouse-ear.

Nautilus (n.) The argonaut; -- also called paper nautilus. See Argonauta, and Paper nautilus, under Paper.

Nearness (n.) The state or quality of being near; -- used in the various senses of the adjective.

Nebula (n.) A faint, cloudlike, self-luminous mass of matter situated beyond the solar system among the stars. True nebulae are gaseous; but very distant star clusters often appear like them in the telescope.

Neologist (n.) An innovator in any doctrine or system of belief, especially in theology; one who introduces or holds doctrines subversive of supernatural or revealed religion; a rationalist, so-called.

Nonprossed (imp. & p. p.) of Non-pros

Amitosis (n.) Cell division in which there is first a simple cleavage of the nucleus without change in its structure (such as the formation of chromosomes), followed by the division of the cytoplasm; direct cell division; -- opposed to mitosis. It is not the usual mode of division, and is believed by many to occur chiefly in highly specialized cells which are incapable of long-continued multiplication, in transitory structures, and in those in early stages of degeneration.

Anorthosite (n.) A granular igneous rock composed almost exclusively of a soda-lime feldspar, usually labradorite.

Ante mortem () Before death; -- generally used adjectivelly; as, an ante-mortem statement; ante-mortem examination.

Antimonsoon (n.) The upper, contrary-moving current of the atmosphere over a monsoon.

Apartment house () A building comprising a number of suites designed for separate housekeeping tenements, but having conveniences, such as heat, light, elevator service, etc., furnished in common; -- often distinguished in the United States from a flat house.

Autoclastic (a.) Broken in place; -- said of rocks having a broken or brecciated structure due to crushing, in contrast to those of brecciated materials brought from a distance.

Badger State () Wisconsin; -- a nickname.

Clockwise (a. & adv.) Like the motion of the hands of a clock; -- said of that direction of a rotation about an axis, or about a point in a plane, which is ordinarily reckoned negative.

Columbus Day () The 12th day of October, on which day in 1492 Christopher Columbus discovered America, landing on one of the Bahama Islands (probably the one now commonly called Watling Island), and naming it "San Salvador"; -- called also Discovery Day. This day is made a legal holiday in many States of The United States.

Cucullus (n.) A hood-shaped organ, resembling a cowl or monk's hood, as certain concave and arched sepals or petals.

Demotics (n.) The department of knowledge relative to the care and culture of the people; sociology in its broadest sense; -- in library cataloguing.

Extravasate (v. t.) To pass by infiltration or effusion from the normal channel, such as a blood vessel or a lymphatic, into the surrounding tissue; -- said of blood, lymph, etc.

Glockenspiel (n.) An instrument, originally a series of bells on an iron rod, now a set of flat metal bars, diatonically tuned, giving a bell-like tone when played with a mallet; a carillon.

Gongorism (n.) An affected elegance or euphuism of style, for which the Spanish poet Gongora y Argote (1561-1627), among others of his time, was noted.

Heckerism (n.) The teaching of Isaac Thomas Hecker (1819-88), which interprets Catholicism as promoting human aspirations after liberty and truth, and as the religion best suited to the character and institutions of the American people.

Horseless (a.) Being without a horse; specif., not requiring a horse; -- said of certain vehicles in which horse power has been replaced by electricity, steam, etc.; as, a horseless carriage or truck.

Hotchkiss gun () A built-up, rifled, rapid-fire gun of oil-tempered steel, having a rectangular breechblock which moves horizontally or vertically in a mortise cut completely through the jacket. It is made in France.

Lautverschiebung (n.) The regular changes which the primitive Indo-European stops, or mute consonants, underwent in the Teutonic languages, probably as early as the 3d century b. c. , often called the first Lautverschiebung, sound shifting, or consonant shifting.

Lumber State () Maine; -- a nickname.

Lyddite (n.) A high explosive consisting principally of picric acid, used as a shell explosive in the British service; -- so named from the proving grounds at Lydd, England.

Modernism (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.

Neoclassic (a.) Belonging to, or designating, the modern revival of classical, esp. Greco-Roman, taste and manner of work in architecture, etc.

Neoclassic architecture () All that architecture which, since the beginning of the Italian Renaissance, about 1420, has been designed with deliberate imitation of Greco-Roman buildings.

expenses () Those general charges or expenses in any business which cannot be charged up as belonging exclusively to any particular part of the work or product, as where different kinds of goods are made, or where there are different departments in a business; -- called also fixed, establishment, or (in a manufacturing business) administration, selling, and distribution, charges, etc.

Overshot (a.) Having the upper teeth projecting beyond the lower; -- said of the jaws of som Polyphase (a.) Having or producing two or more phases; multiphase; as, a polyphase machine, a machine producing two or more pressure waves of electro-motive force, differing in phase; a polyphase current.

Raiffeisen (a.) Designating, or pertaining to, a form of cooperative bank founded among the German agrarian population by Friedrich Wilhelm Raiffeisen (1818-88); as, Raiffeisen banks, the Raiffeisen system, etc. The banks are unlimited-liability institutions making small loans at a low rate of interest, for a designated purpose, to worthy members only.

Retrousse (a.) Turned up; -- said of a pug nose.

Rigger (n.) A long slender, and pointed sable brush for making fine lines, etc.; -- said to be so called from its use by marine painters for drawing the lines of the rigging.

Sagebrush State () Nevada; -- a nickname.

Smokeless powder () A high-explosive gunpowder whose explosion produces little, if any, smoke.

Sundrops (n.) Any one of the several species of Kneiffia, esp. K. fruticosa (syn. Oenothera fruticosa), of the Evening-primrose family, having flowers that open by daylight.

Telengiscope (n.) An instrument of such focal length that it may be used as an observing telescope for objects close at hand or as a long-focused microscope.

Wattless (a.) Without any power (cf. Watt); -- said of an alternating current or component of current when it differs in phase by ninety degrees from the electromotive force which produces it, or of an electromotive force or component thereof when the current it produces differs from it in phase by 90 degrees.

Weedless (a.) Free from weeds; -- said of a kind of motor-boat propeller the blades of which curve backwardly, as respects the direction of rotation, so that they draw through the water, and so do not gather weeds with which they come in contact.

Obdiplostemonous (a.) Having twice as many stamens as petals, those of the outer set being opposite the petals; -- said of flowers.

Opinicus (n.) An imaginary animal borne as a charge, having wings, an eagle's head, and a short tail; -- sometimes represented without wings.

Ornithosauria (n. pl.) An order of extinct flying reptiles; -- called also Pterosauria.

Ostracism (n.) Banishment by popular vote, -- a means adopted at Athens to rid the city of a person whose talent and influence gave umbrage.

Pancreas (n.) The sweetbread, a gland connected with the intestine of nearly all vertebrates. It is usually elongated and light-colored, and its secretion, called the pancreatic juice, is discharged, often together with the bile, into the upper part of the intestines, and is a powerful aid in digestion. See Illust. of Digestive apparatus.

Parsonish (a.) Appropriate to, or like, a parson; -- used in disparagement.

Pearlfish (n.) Any fish whose scales yield a pearl-like pigment used in manufacturing artificial pearls, as the bleak, and whitebait.

Pentabasic (a.) Capable of uniting with five molecules of a monacid base; having five acid hydrogen atoms capable of substitution by a basic radical; -- said of certain acids.

Pentecost (n.) A solemn festival of the Jews; -- so called because celebrated on the fiftieth day (seven weeks) after the second day of the Passover (which fell on the sixteenth of the Jewish month Nisan); -- hence called, also, the Feast of Weeks. At this festival an offering of the first fruits of the harvest was made. By the Jews it was generally regarded as commemorative of the gift of the law on the fiftieth day after the departure from Egypt.

Pentecost (n.) A festival of the Roman Catholic and other churches in commemoration of the descent of the Holy Spirit on the apostles; which occurred on the day of Pentecost; -- called also Whitsunday.

Pentecosty (n.) A troop of fifty soldiers in the Spartan army; -- called also pentecostys.

Penthouse (n.) A shed or roof sloping from the main wall or building, as over a door or window; a lean-to. Also figuratively.

Perkinism (n.) A remedial treatment, by drawing the pointed extremities of two rods, each of a different metal, over the affected part; tractoration, -- first employed by Dr. Elisha Perkins of Norwich, Conn. See Metallotherapy.

Pervious (a.) Open; -- used synonymously with perforate, as applied to the nostrils or birds.

Pessimism (n.) The opinion or doctrine that everything in nature is ordered for or tends to the worst, or that the world is wholly evil; -- opposed to optimism.

Pessimist (n.) One who advocates the doctrine of pessimism; -- opposed to optimist.

Petalous (a.) Having petals; petaled; -- opposed to apetalous.

Phillipsite (n.) A hydrous silicate of aluminia, lime, and soda, a zeolitic mineral commonly occurring in complex twin crystals, often cruciform in shape; -- called also christianite.

Philogynist (n.) A lover or friend of women; one who esteems woman as the higher type of humanity; -- opposed to misogynist.

Physicist (n.) A believer in the theory that the fundamental phenomena of life are to be explained upon purely chemical and physical principles; -- opposed to vitalist.

Pinchers (n. pl.) An instrument having two handles and two grasping jaws working on a pivot; -- used for griping things to be held fast, drawing nails, etc.

Pitiless (a.) Destitute of pity; hard-hearted; merciless; as, a pitilessmaster; pitiless elements.

Plateresque (a.) Resembling silver plate; -- said of certain architectural ornaments.

Pluckless (a.) Without pluck; timid; faint-hearted.

Plumbous (a.) Of, pertaining to, or containing, lead; -- used specifically to designate those compounds in which it has a lower valence as contrasted with plumbic compounds.

Plutonism (n.) The theory, early advanced in geology, that the successive rocks of the earth's crust were formed by igneous fusion; -- opposed to the Neptunian theory.

Polonaise (n.) A stately Polish dance tune, in 3-4 measure, beginning always on the beat with a quaver followed by a crotchet, and closing on the beat after a strong accent on the second beat; also, a dance adapted to such music; a polacca.

Prelatist (n.) One who supports of advocates prelacy, or the government of the church by prelates; hence, a high-churchman.

Princesse (a.) A term applied to a lady's long, close-fitting dress made with waist and skirt in one.

Proceres (n. pl.) An order of large birds; the Ratitae; -- called also Proceri.

Progress (n.) Toward ideal completeness or perfection in respect of quality or condition; -- applied to individuals, communities, or the race; as, social, moral, religious, or political progress.

Progressionist (n.) One who maintains the doctrine of progression in organic forms; -- opposed to uniformitarian.

Progressive (a.) Moving forward; proceeding onward; advancing; evincing progress; increasing; as, progressive motion or course; -- opposed to retrograde.

Proneness (n.) The state of lying with the face down; -- opposed to supineness.

Proneness (n.) Inclination of mind, heart, or temper; propension; disposition; as, proneness to self-gratification.

Prosthesis (n.) The addition to the human body of some artificial part, to replace one that is wanting, as a log or an eye; -- called also prothesis.

Protasis (n.) The introductory or subordinate member of a sentence, generally of a conditional sentence; -- opposed to apodosis. See Apodosis.

Proteles (n.) A South Africa genus of Carnivora, allied to the hyenas, but smaller and having weaker jaws and teeth. It includes the aard-wolf.

Quarterstaff (n.) A long and stout staff formerly used as a weapon of defense and offense; -- so called because in holding it one hand was placed in the middle, and the other between the middle and the end.

Quixotism (n.) That form of delusion which leads to extravagant and absurd undertakings or sacrifices in obedience to a morbidly romantic ideal of duty or honor, as illustrated by the exploits of Don Quixote in knight-errantry.

Readdress (v. t.) To address a second time; -- often used reflexively.

Reremouse (n.) The leather-winged bat (Vespertilio murinus).

Redbreast (n.) The knot, or red-breasted snipe; -- called also robin breast, and robin snipe. See Knot.

Redbreast (n.) The long-eared pondfish. See Pondfish.

Reimburse (v. t.) To make restoration or payment of an equivalent to (a person); to pay back to; to indemnify; -- often reflexive; as, to reimburse one's self by successful speculation.

Retrousse (a.) Turned up; -- said of a pug nose.

Rhotacism (n.) An oversounding, or a misuse, of the letter r; specifically (Phylol.), the tendency, exhibited in the Indo-European languages, to change s to r, as wese to were.

Ritualism (n.) Specifically :(a) The principles and practices of those in the Church of England, who in the development of the Oxford movement, so-called, have insisted upon a return to the use in church services of the symbolic ornaments (altar cloths, encharistic vestments, candles, etc.) that were sanctioned in the second year of Edward VI., and never, as they maintain, forbidden by competennt authority, although generally disused. Schaff-Herzog Encyc. (b) Also, the principles and practices> Rudistes (n. pl.) An extinct order or suborder of bivalve mollusks characteristic of the Cretaceous period; -- called also Rudista. See Illust. under Hippurite.

Sagebrush (n.) A low irregular shrub (Artemisia tridentata), of the order Compositae, covering vast tracts of the dry alkaScaldfish (n.) A European flounder (Arnoglossus laterna, or Psetta arnoglossa); -- called also megrim, and smooth sole.

Schottische (n.) A Scotch round dance in 2-4 time, similar to the polka, only slower; also, the music for such a dance; -- not to be confounded with the Ecossaise.

Semicrystalline (a.) Half crystalline; -- said of certain cruptive rocks composed partly of crystalline, partly of amorphous matter.

Semifloscule (n.) A floscule, or florest, with its corolla prolonged into a strap-shaped petal; -- called also semifloret.

Sepalous (a.) Having, or relating to, sepals; -- used mostly in composition. See under Sepal.

Shamanism (n.) The type of religion which once prevalied among all the Ural-Altaic peoples (Tungusic, Mongol, and Turkish), and which still survives in various parts of Northern Asia. The Shaman, or wizard priest, deals with good as well as with evil spirits, especially the good spirits of ancestors.

Shameless (a.) Destitute of shame; wanting modesty; brazen-faced; insensible to disgrace.

Shapeless (a.) Destitute of shape or regular form; wanting symmetry of dimensions; misshapen; -- opposed to shapely.

Sheatfish (n.) A European siluroid fish (Silurus glanis) allied to the cat-fishes. It is the largest fresh-water fish of Europe, sometimes becoming six feet or more in length. See Siluroid.

Siphonostomatous (a.) Having the front edge of the aperture of the shell prolonged in the shape of a channel for the protection of the siphon; -- said of certain gastropods.

Snipefish (n.) A long, slender deep-sea fish (Nemichthys scolopaceus) with a slender beak.

Socialism (n.) A theory or system of social reform which contemplates a complete reconstruction of society, with a more just and equitable distribution of property and labor. In popular usage, the term is often employed to indicate any lawless, revolutionary social scheme. See Communism, Fourierism, Saint-Simonianism, forms of socialism.

Softness (n.) The quality or state of being soft; -- opposed to hardness, and used in the various specific senses of the adjective.

Sonorous (a.) Loud-sounding; giving a clear or loud sound; as, a sonorous voice.

Sonorous (a.) Impressive in sound; high-sounding.

Sonorous (a.) Sonant; vibrant; hence, of sounds produced in a cavity, deep-toned; as, sonorous rhonchi.

Southwester (n.) A hat made of painted canvas, oiled cloth, or the like, with a flap at the back, -- worn in stormy weather.

Spadefish (n.) An American market fish (Chaetodipterus faber) common on the southern coasts; -- called also angel fish, moonfish, and porgy.

Spindleshanks (n.) A person with slender shanks, or legs; -- used humorously or in contempt.

Spinozism (n.) The form of Pantheism taught by Benedict Spinoza, that there is but one substance, or infinite essence, in the universe, of which the so-called material and spiritual beings and phenomena are only modes, and that one this one substance is God.

Spiritoso (a. & adv.) Spirited; spiritedly; -- a direction to perform a passage in an animated, lively manner.

Sporades (n. pl.) Stars not included in any constellation; -- called also informed, or unformed, stars.

Spoutfish (n.) A marine animal that spouts water; -- applied especially to certain bivalve mollusks, like the long clams (Mya), which spout, or squirt out, water when retiring into their holes.

Squarrose (a.) Consisting of scales widely divaricating; having scales, small leaves, or other bodies, spreading widely from the axis on which they are crowded; -- said of a calyx or stem.

Squarrose (a.) Having scales spreading every way, or standing upright, or at right angles to the surface; -- said of a shell.

Squash (n.) Hence, something unripe or soft; -- used in contempt.

Staidness (n.) The quality or state of being staid; seriousness; steadiness; sedateness; regularity; -- the opposite of wildness, or levity.

Startlish (a.) Easily startled; apt to start; startish; skittish; -- said especially of a hourse.

Studious (a.) Earnest in endeavors; aiming sedulously; attentive; observant; diligent; -- usually followed by an infinitive or by of; as, be studious to please; studious to find new friends and allies.

Suicidism (n.) The quality or state of being suicidal, or self-murdering.

Supervisor (n.) A spectator; a looker-on.

Suppression (n.) Complete stoppage of a natural secretion or excretion; as, suppression of urine; -- used in contradiction to retention, which signifies that the secretion or excretion is retained without expulsion.

Sutteeism (n.) The practice of self-immolation of widows in Hindostan.

'Swounds (interj.) An exclamation contracted from God's wounds; -- used as an oath.

Syngenesis (n.) A theory of generation in which each germ is supposed to contain the germs of all subsequent generations; -- the opposite of epigenesis.

Tarantass (n.) A low four-wheeled carriage used in Russia. The carriage box rests on two long, springy poles which run from the fore to the hind axletree. When snow falls, the wheels are taken off, and the body is mounted on a sledge.

Teleutospore (n.) The thick-celled winter or resting spore of the rusts (order Uredinales), produced in late summer. See Illust. of Uredospore.

Tenesmus (n.) An urgent and distressing sensation, as if a discharge from the intestines must take place, although none can be effected; -- always referred to the lower extremity of the rectum.

Tenuious (a.) Rare or subtile; tenuous; -- opposed to dense.

Tenuirostral (a.) Thin-billed; -- applied to birds with a slender bill, as the humming birds.

Tetrabasic (a.) Capable of neutralizing four molecules of a monacid base; having four hydrogen atoms capable of replacement by bases; quadribasic; -- said of certain acids; thus, normal silicic acid, Si(OH)4, is a tetrabasic acid.

Tetrakosane (n.) A hydrocarbon, C24H50, resembling paraffin, and like it belonging to the marsh-gas series; -- so called from having twenty-four atoms of carbon in the molecule.

Thalamus (n.) A mass of nervous matter on either side of the third ventricle of the brain; -- called also optic thalamus.

Thelphusian (n.) One of a tribe of fresh-water crabs which live in or on the banks of rivers in tropical countries.

Theocrasy (n.) An intimate union of the soul with God in contemplation, -- an ideal of the Neoplatonists and of some Oriental mystics.

Thrombosis (n.) The obstruction of a blood vessel by a clot formed at the site of obstruction; -- distinguished from embolism, which is produced by a clot or foreign body brought from a distance.

Thunderstone (n.) A thunderbolt, -- formerly believed to be a stone.

Thunderstrike (v. t.) To astonish, or strike dumb, as with something terrible; -- rarely used except in the past participle.

Tinnitus (n.) A ringing, whistling, or other imaginary noise perceived in the ears; -- called also tinnitus aurium.

Tortuous (a.) Oblique; -- applied to the six signs of the zodiac (from Capricorn to Gemini) which ascend most rapidly and obliquely.

Trackmaster (n.) One who has charge of the track; -- called also roadmaster.

Transpose (v. t.) To bring, as any term of an equation, from one side over to the other, without destroying the equation; thus, if a + b = c, and we make a = c - b, then b is said to be transposed.

Transubstantiation (n.) The doctrine held by Roman Catholics, that the bread and wine in the Mass is converted into the body and blood of Christ; -- distinguished from consubstantiation, and impanation.

Trehalose (n.) Mycose; -- so called because sometimes obtained from trehala.

Trespass (v. i.) To commit any offense, or to do any act that injures or annoys another; to violate any rule of rectitude, to the injury of another; hence, in a moral sense, to transgress voluntarily any divine law or command; to violate any known rule of duty; to sin; -- often followed by against.

Undermasted (a.) Having masts smaller than the usual dimension; -- said of vessels.

Urceolus (n.) Any urn-shaped organ of a plant.

Vanadous (a.) Of or pertaining to vanadium; obtained from vanadium; -- said of an acid containing one equivalent of vanadium and two of oxygen.

Vanglo (n.) Benne (Sesamum orientale); also, its seeds; -- so called in the West Indies.

Varietas (n.) A variety; -- used in giving scientific names, and often abbreviated to var.

Vestales (n. pl.) A group of butterflies including those known as virgins, or gossamer-winged butterflies.

Virtuous (a.) Chaste; pure; -- applied especially to women.

Whittuesday (n.) The day following Whitmonday; -- called also Whitsun Tuesday.

Winninish (n.) The land-locked variety of the common salmon.

Zephyrus (n.) The west wind, or zephyr; -- usually personified, and made the most mild and gentle of all the sylvan deities.

About the author

Mark McCracken Author: Mark McCracken is a corporate trainer and author living in Higashi Osaka, Japan. He is the author of thousands of online articles as well as the Business English textbook, "25 Business Skills in English".

Copyright © 2011 by Mark McCracken, All Rights Reserved.