Chapter 1054

Ob`tu*ra"tion (?) , n. [L. obturare to stop up: cf.F. obturation .] The act of stopping up, or closing, an opening. "Deaf by an outward obturation ."

Bp. Hall.

Obturator <Xpage=993>

Ob"tu*ra`tor (?) , n. [NL., fr. L. obturare to stop up: cf.F. obturateur .] 1. That which closes or stops an opening.

2. (Surg.) An apparatus designed to close an unnatural opening, as a fissure of the palate.

Obturator <Xpage=993>

Ob"tu*ra`tor , a. (Anat.) Serving as an obturator; closing an opening; pertaining to, or in the region of, the obturator foramen; as, the obturator nerve .

Obturator foramen (Anat.) , an opening situated between the public and ischial parts of the innominate bone and closed by the obturator membrane ; the thyroid foramen.

Obtusangular <Xpage=993>

Ob*tus"an`gu*lar (?) , a. See Obstuseangular .

Obtuse <Xpage=993>

Ob*tuse" (?) . a. [ Compar. Obtuser (<?/) ; superl. Obtusest .] [L. obtusus , p.p. of obtundere to blunt: cf. F. obtus . See Obtund .] 1. Not pointed or acute; blunt; -- applied esp. to angles greater than a right angle, or containing more than ninety degrees.

2. Not having acute sensibility or perceptions; dull; stupid; as, obtuse senses .

Milton.

3. Dull; deadened; as, obtuse sound .

Johnson.

Obtuse-angled, obtuse-angular <Xpage=993>

Ob*tuse"-an`gled (?) , ob*tuse"-an`gu*lar (?) , a. Having an obtuse angle; as, an obtuse-angled triangle .

Obtusely <Xpage=993>

Ob*tuse"ly , adv. In an obtuse manner.

Obtuseness <Xpage=993>

Ob*tuse"ness , n. State or quality of being obtuse.

Obtusion <Xpage=993>

Ob*tu"sion (<?/) , n. [L. obtusio , from obtundere to blunt. See Obtund .] 1. The act or process of making obtuse or blunt.

2. The state of being dulled or blunted; as, the obtusion of the senses .

Harvey.

Obtusity <Xpage=993>

Ob*tu"si*ty (?) , n. Obtuseness. Lond. Quart. Rev .

Obumbrant <Xpage=993>

Ob*um"brant (?) , a. [L. obumbrans , p.pr.] (Zo\'94l.) Overhanging; as, obumbrant feathers .

Obumbrate <Xpage=993>

Ob*um"brate (?) , v. t. [L. obumbratus , p.p. of obumbrare to overshadow, cloud; ob + umbrare to shade.] To shade; to darken; to cloud. [R.]

Howell.

Obumbration <Xpage=993>

Ob`um*bra"tion (?) , n. [L. obumbratio .] Act of darkening or obscuring. [R.]

Sir T. More.

Obuncous <Xpage=993>

Ob*un"cous (?) , a. [L. obuncus ; ob (see Ob- ) + uncus hooked.] Hooked or crooked in an extreme degree.

Maunder.

Obvention <Xpage=993>

Ob*ven"tion (?) , n. [L. obvention , fr. obvenire to come before or in the way of, to befall; ob (see Ob- ) + venire to come: cf.F. obvention .] The act of happening incidentally; that which happens casually; an incidental advantage; an occasional offering. [Obs.] "Tithes and other obventions ."

Spenser.

Legacies bequeathed by the deaths of princes and great persons, and other casualities and obventions . Fuller.

Obversant <Xpage=993>

Ob*vers"ant (?) , a. [L. obversans , p.pr. of obversari to hover before; ob (see Ob- ) + versare to move about.] Conversant; familiar. [Obs.]

Bacon.

Obverse <Xpage=993>

Ob*verse" (?) , a. [L. obversus , p.p. of obvertere . See Obvert .] Having the base, or end next the attachment, narrower than the top, as a leaf.

Obverse <Xpage=993>

Ob"verse (?) , n. [Cf.F. obverse , obvers . See Obverse , a. ] 1. The face of a coin which has the principal image or inscription upon it; -- the other side being the reverse .

2. Anything necessarily involved in, or answering to, another; the more apparent or conspicuous of two possible sides, or of two corresponding things.

The fact that it [a belief] invariably exists being the obverse of the fact that there is no alternative belief. H. Spencer.

<page="994"> Page 994

Obversely <Xpage=994>

Ob*verse"ly (?) , adv. In an obverse manner.

Obversion <Xpage=994>

Ob*ver"sion (?) , n. [L. obversio a turning towards.] 1. The act of turning toward or downward.

2. (Logic) The act of immediate inference, by which we deny the opposite of anything which has been affirmed; as, all men are mortal; then, by obversion , no men are immortal . This is also described as "immediate inference by privative conception."

Bain.

Obvert <Xpage=994>

Ob*vert" (?) , v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Obverted ; p. pr. & vb. n. Obverting .] [L. obvertere ; ob (see Ob- ) + vertere to turn. See Verse .] To turn toward.

If its base be obverted towards us. I. Watts.

Obviate <Xpage=994>

Ob"vi*ate (?) , v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Obviated (?) ; p. pr. & vb. n. Obviating .] [L. obviare ; ob (see Ob- ) + viare to go, fr. via way. See Voyage .]

1. To meet in the way. [Obs.]

Not to stir a step to obviate any of a different religion. Fuller.

2. To anticipate; to prevent by interception; to remove from the way or path; to make unnecessary; as, to obviate the necessity of going .

To lay down everything in its full light, so as to obviate all exceptions. Woodward.

Obviation <Xpage=994>

Ob`vi*a"tion (?) , n. The act of obviating, or the state of being obviated.

Obvious <Xpage=994>

Ob"vi*ous (?) , a. [L. obvius ; ob (see Ob- ) + via way. See Voyage .] 1. Opposing; fronting. [Obs.]

To the evil turn My obvious breast. Milton.

2. Exposed; subject; open; liable. [Obs.] " Obvious to dispute."

Milton.

3. Easily discovered, seen, or understood; readily perceived by the eye or the intellect; plain; evident; apparent; as, an obvious meaning; an obvious remark.

Apart and easy to be known they lie, Amidst the heap, and obvious to the eye. Pope.

Syn. -- Plain; clear; evident. See Manifest .

-- Ob"vi*ous*ly , adv. -- Ob"vi*ous-ness , n.

Obvolute, Obvoluted <Xpage=994>

Ob"vo*lute (?) , Ob`vo*lu"ted (?) , a. [L. obvolutus , p.p. of obvolvere to wrap round; ob (see Ob- ) + volvere to roll.] Overlapping; contorted; convolute; -- applied primarily, in botany, to two opposite leaves, each of which has one edge overlapping the nearest edge of the other, and secondarily to a circle of several leaves or petals which thus overlap.

Oby <Xpage=994>

O"by (?) , n. See Obi .

Oca <Xpage=994>

O"ca (?) , n. [Sp.] (Bot.) A Peruvian name for certain species of Oxalis ( O. crenata , and O. tuberosa ) which bear edible tubers.

Occamy <Xpage=994>

Oc"ca*my (?) , n. [A corruption of alchemy .] An alloy imitating gold or silver. [Written also ochimy , ochymy , etc.]

Occasion <Xpage=994>

Oc*ca"sion (?) , n. [F. occasion , L. occasio , fr. occidere , occasum , to fall down; ob (see Ob- ) + cadere to fall. See Chance , and cf. Occident .] 1. A falling out, happening, or coming to pass; hence, that which falls out or happens; occurrence; incident.

The unlooked-for incidents of family history, and its hidden excitements, and its arduous occasions . I. Taylor.

2. A favorable opportunity; a convenient or timely chance; convenience.

Sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me. Rom. vii. 11.

I'll take the occasion which he gives to bring Him to his death. Waller.

3. An occurrence or condition of affairs which brings with it some unlooked-for event; that which incidentally brings to pass an event, without being its efficient cause or sufficient reason; accidental or incidental cause.

Her beauty was the occasion of the war. Dryden.

4. Need; exigency; requirement; necessity; as, I have no occasion for firearms .

After we have served ourselves and our own occasions . Jer. Taylor.

When my occasions took me into France. Burke.

5. A reason or excuse; a motive; a persuasion.

Whose manner was, all passengers to stay, And entertain with her occasions sly. Spenser.

On occasion , in case of need; in necessity; as convenience requires; occasionally. "That we might have intelligence from him on occasion ,"

De Foe.

Syn. -- Need; incident; use. See Opportunity .

Occasion <Xpage=994>

Oc*ca"sion (?) , v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Occasioned (?) ; p. pr. & vb. n. Occasioning .] [Cf.F. occasionner .] To give occasion to; to cause; to produce; to induce; as, to occasion anxiety .

South.

If we inquire what it is that occasions men to make several combinations of simple ideas into distinct modes. Locke.

Occasionable <Xpage=994>

Oc*ca"sion*a*ble (?) , a. Capable of being occasioned or caused.

Barrow.

Occasional <Xpage=994>

Oc*ca"sion*al (?) , a. [Cf.F. occasionnel .] 1. Of or pertaining to an occasion or to occasions; occuring at times, but not constant, regular, or systematic; made or happening as opportunity requires or admits; casual; incidental; as, occasional remarks, or efforts .

The... occasional writing of the present times. Bagehot.

2. Produced by accident; as, the occasional origin of a thing . [Obs.]

Sir T. Browne.

Occasional cause ( Metaph. ), some circumstance preceding an effect which, without being the real cause, becomes the occasion of the action of the efficient cause; thus, the act of touching gunpowder with fire is the occasional , but not the efficient, cause of an explosion.

Occasionalism <Xpage=994>

Oc*ca"sion*al*ism (?) , n. (Metaph.) The system of occasional causes; -- a name given to certain theories of the Cartesian school of philosophers, as to the intervention of the First Cause, by which they account for the apparent reciprocal action of the soul and the body.

Occasionality <Xpage=994>

Oc*ca`sion*al"i*ty (?) , n. Quality or state of being occasional; occasional occurrence. [R.]

Occasionally <Xpage=994>

Oc*ca"sion*al*ly (?) , adv. In an occasional manner; on occasion; at times, as convenience requires or opportunity offers; not regularly.

Stewart.

The one, Wolsey, directly his subject by birth; the other, his subject occasionally by his preferment. Fuller.

Occasionate <Xpage=994>

Oc*ca"sion*ate (?) , v. t. To occasion. [Obs.]

The lowest may occasionate much ill. Dr. H. More.

Occasioner <Xpage=994>

Oc*ca"sion*er (?) , n. One who, or that which, occasions, causes, or produces.

Bp. Sanderson.

Occasive <Xpage=994>

Oc*ca"sive (?) , a. [L. occasivus , fr. occasus a going down, setting of the heavenly bodies, fr. occidere to fall or down. See Occasion .] Of or pertaining to the setting sun; falling; descending; western.

Occecation <Xpage=994>

Oc*ce*ca"tion (?) , n. [L. occaecatio , fr. occaecare to make blind; ob + caecare to blind, fr. caecus blind.] The act of making blind, or the state of being blind. [R.] "This inward occecation ."

Bp. Hall.

Occident <Xpage=994>

Oc"ci*dent (?) , n. [F., fr. L. occidens , occidentis , fr. occidents , p.pr. of occidere to fall or go down. See Occasion .] The part of the horizon where the sun last appears in the evening; that part of the earth towards the sunset; the west; -- opposed to orient . Specifically, in former times, Europe as opposed to Asia; now, also, the Western hemisphere.

Chaucer.

I may wander from east to occident . Shak.

Occidental <Xpage=994>

Oc`ci*den"tal (?) , a. [L. occidentalis ; cf. F. occidental .] 1. Of, pertaining to, or situated in, the occident, or west; western; -- opposed to oriental ; as, occidental climates, or customs; an occidental planet.

2. Possessing inferior hardness, brilliancy, or beauty; -- used of inferior precious stones and gems, because those found in the Orient are generally superior.

Occidentals <Xpage=994>

Oc`ci*den"tals (?) , n.pl. (Eccl.) Western Christians of the Latin rite. See Orientals .

Shipley.

Occiduous <Xpage=994>

Oc*cid"u*ous (?) , a. [L. occiduus , fr. occidere to go down.] Western; occidental. [R.]

Blount.

Occipital <Xpage=994>

Oc*cip"i*tal (?) , a. [Cf. F. occipital .] (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the occiput, or back part of the head, or to the occipital bone.

Occipital bone (Anat.) , the bone which forms the posterior segment of the skull and surrounds the great foramen by which the spinal cord leaves the cranium. In the higher vertebrates it is usually composed of four bones, which become consolidated in the adult. -- Occipital point (Anat.) , the point of the occiput in the mesial plane farthest from the ophryon.

Occipital <Xpage=994>

Oc*cip"i*tal , n. (Anat.) The occipital bone.

Occipito- <Xpage=994>

Oc*cip"i*to- (<?/) . [See Occiput .] A combining form denoting relation to , or situation near , the occiput ; as, occipito -axial; occipito -mastoid.

Occipitoaxial <Xpage=994>

Oc*cip`i*to*ax"i*al (?) , a. (Anat.) Of or pertaining to the occipital bone and second vertebra, or axis.

Occiput <Xpage=994>

Oc"ci*put (?) , n. ; pl. L. Occipita (#) , E. Occiputs . [L., fr. ob (see Ob- ) + caput head. See Chief .] 1. (Anat.) The back, or posterior, part of the head or skull; the region of the occipital bone.

2. (Zo\'94l.) A plate which forms the back part of the head of insects.

Occision <Xpage=994>

Oc*ci"sion (?) , n. [L. occisio , fr. occidere , occisium , to cut down, to kill; ob (see Ob- ) + caedere to cut.] A killing; the act of killing. [Obs.]

Sir M. Hale.

Occlude <Xpage=994>

Oc*clude" (?) , v. t. [L. occludere , occlusum ; ob (see Ob- ) + claudere to shut.] 1. To shut up; to close.

Sir T. Browne.

2. (Chem.) To take in and retain; to absorb; -- said especially with respect to gases; as iron, platinum, and palladium occlude large volumes of hydrogen.

Occludent <Xpage=994>

Oc*clud"ent (?) , a. [L. occludens , p.pr. of occludere .] Serving to close; shutting up. -- n. That which closes or shuts up.

Sterne.

Occluse <Xpage=994>

Oc*cluse" (?) , a. [L. occlusus, p.p. See Occlude .] Shut; closed. [Obs.]

Holder.

Occlusion <Xpage=994>

Oc*clu"sion (?) , n. [See Occlude .] 1. The act of occluding, or the state of being occluded.

Constriction and occlusion of the orifice. Howell.

2. (Med.) The transient approximation of the edges of a natural opening; imperforation.

Dunglison.

Occlusion of gases (Chem. & Physics) , the phenomenon of absorbing gases, as exhibited by platinum, palladium, iron, or charcoal; thus, palladium absorbs, or occludes , nearly a thousand times its own volume of hydrogen, and in this case a chemical compound seems to be formed.

Occrustate <Xpage=994>

Oc*crus"tate (?) , v. t. [See Ob- , and Crustated .] To incrust; to harden. [Obs.]

Dr. H. More.

Occult <Xpage=994>

Oc*cult" (?) , a. [L. occultus , p.p. of occulere to cover up, hide; ob (see Ob- ) + a root prob.akin to E. hell : cf. F. occulte .] Hidden from the eye or the understanding; inviable; secret; concealed; unknown.

It is of an occult kind, and is so insensible in its advances as to escape observation. I. Taylor.

Occult line (Geom.) , a line drawn as a part of the construction of a figure or problem, but not to appear in the finished plan. -- Occult qualities , those qualities whose effects only were observed, but the nature and relations of whose productive agencies were undetermined; -- so called by the schoolmen. -- Occult sciences , those sciences of the Middle Ages which related to the supposed action or influence of occult qualities, or supernatural powers, as alchemy, magic, necromancy, and astrology.

Occult <Xpage=994>

Oc*cult" , v. t. To eclipse; to hide from sight.

Occultation <Xpage=994>

Oc`cul*ta"tion (?) , n. [L. occultatio a hiding, fr. occultare , v. intens. of occulere : cf.F. occultation . See Occult .] 1. (Astron.) The hiding of a heavenly body from sight by the intervention of some other of the heavenly bodies; -- applied especially to eclipses of stars and planets by the moon, and to the eclipses of satellites of planets by their primaries.

2. Fig.: The state of being occult.

The reappearance of such an author after those long periods of occultation . Jeffrey.

Circle of perpetual occultation . See under Circle .

Occulted <Xpage=994>

Oc*cult"ed , a. 1. Hidden; secret. [Obs.]

Shak.

2. (Astron.) Concealed by the intervention of some other heavenly body, as a star by the moon.

Occulting <Xpage=994>

Oc*cult"ing (?) , n. Same as Occultation .

Occultism <Xpage=994>

Oc*cult"ism (?) , n. A certain Oriental system of theosophy.

A. P. Sinnett.

Occultist <Xpage=994>

Oc*cult"ist , n. An adherent of occultism.

Occultly <Xpage=994>

Oc*cult"ly , adv. In an occult manner.

Occultness <Xpage=994>

Oc*cult"ness , n. State or quality of being occult.

Occupancy <Xpage=994>

Oc"cu*pan*cy (?) , n. [See Occupant .] The act of taking or holding possession; possession; occupation.