Browse dictionary
Showing 1-20 of 24839 results in 24839 entries
1. A1, adj. View full entry 1776
...Esp. of a wooden ship: first-class in respect of both hull and fittings (originally and esp. as classified in Lloyd's Register: see note in etymology). Also A1 at Lloyd's. Now...
2. aal, n. View full entry 1798
...The noni or Indian mulberry, Morinda citrifolia. Also: the reddish dye obtained from this plant, used (esp. formerly) in India to colour cotton fabrics. Cf. Morinda...
3. aandblom, n. View full entry 1793
...Any of several evening-scented wild flowers of the family Iridaceae; esp. Hesperantha falcata, which has fragrant white flowers that open in the late afternoon....
4. aardvark, n. View full entry 1785
...A medium-sized, nocturnal African mammal, Orycteropus afer, which has sparse hair, long ears, an elongated snout, strong burrowing limbs, and a thick tail, feeding solely on ants and termites. Also...
5. Aaron's serpent, n. View full entry 1732
...= Aaron's rod1....
6. aba, n.1 View full entry 1792
...A loose-fitting overgarment of various forms, traditionally worn by esp. Arab men and women. Cf. abaya...
7. abaca, n. View full entry 1751
...A kind of banana plant, Musa textilis, native to the Philippines, the petioles of which yield a strong fibre. Also: the fibre itself, used for making paper, ropes, matting, etc.;...
8. abaciscus, n. View full entry 1753
...A square section containing part or all of the pattern of a mosaic pavement; (also) a single mosaic tile, a tessera. Now rare....
9. abandonedly, adv. View full entry 1723
...In an abandoned manner; spec.without moral or sexual constraint, profligately;without bounds or restriction, freely....
10. abandonly, adv.2 View full entry 1757
...Without constraint....
11. † abandum, n. View full entry 1729
...Anything which is sequestered, proscribed, or abandoned....
12. † abannation, n. View full entry 1721
...= abannition...
13. † abarcy, n. View full entry 1730
...Insatiableness....
14. † abarticulation, n. View full entry 1721
...= diarthrosis...
15. abatis, n. View full entry 1758
...Mil. A defensive barricade or entanglement constructed using sharpened stakes or felled trees positioned with their branches pointing towards the enemy to delay or repel attackers....
16. abatised, adj. View full entry 1777
...That is defended by an abatis (abatis); (also) formed into an abatis. Also fig. and in figurative contexts....
17. † abatude, n. View full entry 1729
...Something which is or has been diminished....
18. abbate, n. View full entry 1751
...In Italy and Italian contexts: an abbot. Also: a priest or clergyman in minor orders; esp. one without an assigned ecclesiastical duty, formerly often acting as a professor, private tutor,...
19. Abbevillian, adj. and n. View full entry 1783
...Of or relating to Abbeville or its inhabitants. Now rare....
20. abbey laird, n. View full entry 1700
...An insolvent debtor taking sanctuary in the precincts of Holyrood Abbey, Edinburgh. Cf. abbey3....
