Chapter 281

Claw (?) , n. [AS. clawu , cl\'be , cle\'a2 ; akin to D. klaauw , G. Klaue, Icel. kl\'d3 , SW. & Dan. klo , and perh. to E. clew .] 1. A sharp, hooked nail, as of a beast or bird.

2. The whole foot of an animal armed with hooked nails; the pinchers of a lobster, crab, etc.

3. Anything resembling the claw of an animal, as the curved and forked end of a hammer for drawing nails.

4. (Bot.) A slender appendage or process, formed like a claw, as the base of petals of the pink.

Gray.

Claw hammer , a hammer with one end of the metallic head cleft for use in extracting nails, etc. -- Claw hammer coat , a dress coat of the swallowtail pattern. [Slang] -- Claw sickness , foot rot, a disease affecting sheep.

Claw <Xpage=263>

Claw (?) , v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Clawed (?) ; p. pr. & vb. n. Clawing .] [AS. clawan . See Claw , n. ] 1. To pull, tear, or scratch with, or as with, claws or nails.

2. To relieve from some uneasy sensation, as by scratching; to tickle; hence, to flatter; to court. [Obs.]

Rich men they claw , soothe up, and flatter; the poor they contemn and despise. Holland.

3. To rail at; to scold. [Obs.]

In the aforesaid preamble, the king fairly claweth the great monasteries, wherein, saith he, religion, thanks be to God, is right well kept and observed; though he claweth them soon after in another acceptation. T. Fuller

Claw me , claw thee , stand by me and I will stand by you; -- an old proverb.

Tyndale.

To claw away , to scold or revile. "The jade Fortune is to be clawed away for it, if you should lose it."

L'Estrange.

To claw (one) on the back , to tickle; to express approbation. (Obs.)

Chaucer.

-- To claw (one) on the gall , to find falt with; to vex. [Obs.]

Chaucer.

Claw <Xpage=263>

Claw , v. i. To scrape, scratch, or dig with a claw, or with the hand as a claw. " Clawing [in ash barrels] for bits of coal."

W. D. Howells.

To claw off (Naut.) , to turn to windward and beat, to prevent falling on a lee shore.

Clawback <Xpage=263>

Claw"back` (?) , n. A flatterer or sycophant. [Obs.] "Take heed of these clawbacks ."

Latimer.

Clawback <Xpage=263>

Claw"back` , a. Flattering; sycophantic. [Obs.]

Like a clawback parasite. Bp. Hall.

Clawback <Xpage=263>

Claw"back` , v. t. To flatter. [Obs.]

Warner.

Clawed <Xpage=263>

Clawed (?) , a. Furnished with claws.

N. Grew.

Clawless <Xpage=263>

Claw"less , a. Destitute of claws.

Clay <Xpage=263>

Clay (?) , n. [AS. cl\'d6g ; akin to LG. klei , D. klei , and perh. to AS. cl\'bem clay, L. glus , gluten glue, Gr. <?/ glutinous substance, E. glue . Cf. Clog .] 1. A soft earth, which is plastuc, or may be molded with the hands, consisting of hydrous silicate of alumunium. It is the result of the wearing down and decomposition, in part, of rocks containing aluminous minerals, as granite. Lime, magnesia, oxide of iron, and other ingredients, are often present as impurities.

2. (Poetry & Script.) Earth in general, as representing the elementary particles of the human body; hence, the human body as formed from such particles.

I also am formed out of the clay . Job xxxiii. 6.

The earth is covered thick with other clay , Which her own clay shall cover. Byron.

Bowlder clay . See under Bowlder . -- Brick clay , the common clay, containing some iron, and therefore turning red when burned. -- Clay cold , cold as clay or earth; lifeless; inanimate. -- Clay ironstone , an ore of iron consisting of the oxide or carbonate of iron mixed with clay or sand. -- Clay marl , a whitish, smooth, chalky clay. -- Clay mill , a mill for mixing and tempering clay; a pug mill. -- Clay pit , a pit where clay is dug. -- Clay slate (Min.) , argillaceous schist; argillite. -- Fatty clays , clays having a greasy feel; they are chemical compounds of water, silica, and aluminia, as halloysite , bole , etc. -- Fire clay , a variety of clay, entirely free from lime, iron, or an alkali, and therefore infusible, and used for fire brick. -- Porcelain clay , a very pure variety, formed directly from the decomposition of feldspar, and often called kaolin . -- Potter's clay , a tolerably pure kind, free from iron.

Clay <Xpage=263>

Clay , v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Clayed (?) ; p. pr. & vb. n. Claying .] 1. To cover or manure with clay.

2. To clarify by filtering through clay, as sugar.

Clay-brained <Xpage=263>

Clay"-brained` (?) , a. Stupid. [Obs.]

Shak.

Clayes <Xpage=263>

Clayes (?) , n. pl. [F. claie hurdle.] (Fort.) Wattles, or hurdles, made with stakes interwoven with osiers, to cover lodgments. [Obs.]

Clayey <Xpage=263>

Clay"ey (?) , a. Consisting of clay; abounding with clay; partaking of clay; like clay.

Clayish <Xpage=263>

Clay"ish , a. Partaking of the nature of clay, or containing particles of it.

Claymore <Xpage=263>

Clay"more` (?) , n. [Gael. claidheamhmor a broadsword; Gael. claidheamh sword + mor great, large. Cf. Claymore .] A large two-handed sword used formerly by the Scottish Highlanders.

Claytonia <Xpage=263>

Clay*to"ni*a (?) , n. [Named after Dr.John Clayton , an American botanist.] (Bot.) An American genus of perennial herbs with delicate blossoms; -- sometimes called spring beauty .

Cleading <Xpage=263>

Clead"ing (?) , n. [Scot., clothing. See Cloth .]

1. A jacket or outer covering of wood, etc., to prevent radiation of heat, as from the boiler, cylinder. etc., of a steam engine.

2. The planking or boarding of a shaft, cofferdam, etc.

Clean <Xpage=263>

Clean (?) , a. [Compar. Cleaner (<?/) ; superl . Cleanest .] [OE. clene , AS. cl<?/ne ; akin to OHG. chleini pure, neat, graceful, small, G. klein small, and perh. to W. glan clean, pure, bright; all perh. from a primitive, meaning bright , shining . Cf. Glair .] 1. Free from dirt or filth; as, clean clothes .

2. Free from that which is useless or injurious; without defects; as, clean land; clean timber.

3. Free from awkwardness; not bungling; adroit; dexterous; as, a clean trick; a clean leap over a fence.

4. Free from errors and vulgarisms; as, a clean style .

5. Free from restraint or neglect; complete; entire.

When ye reap the harvest of your land, thou shalt not make clean riddance of corners of thy field. Le<?/.xxiii. 22

6. Free from moral defilement; sinless; pure.

Create in me a clean heart, O God. Ps. li. 10

That I am whole, and clean , and meet for Heaven Tennyson.

7. (Script.) Free from ceremonial defilement.

8. Free from that which is corrupting to the morals; pure in tone; healthy. "Lothair is clean ."

F. Harrison.

9. Well-proportioned; shapely; as, clean limbs .

A clean bill of health , a certificate from the proper authrity that a ship is free from infection. -- Clean breach . See under Breach , n. , 4. -- To make a clean breast . See under Breast .

Clean <Xpage=263>

Clean , adv. 1. Without limitation or remainder; quite; perfectly; wholly; entirely. "Domestic broils clean overblown."

Shak.

" Clean contrary."

Milton.

All the people were passed clean over Jordan. Josh. iii. 17.

2. Without miscarriage; not bunglingly; dexterously. [Obs.] "Pope came off clean with Homer."

Henley.

Clean <Xpage=263>

Clean (?) , v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Cleaned (?) ; p. pr. & vb. n. Cleaning .] [See Clean , a. , and cf. Cleanse .] To render clean; to free from whatever is foul, offensive, or extraneous; to purify; to cleanse.

To clean out , to exhaust; to empty; to get away from (one) all his money. [Colloq.]

De Quincey.

Clean-cut <Xpage=263>

Clean"-cut` (?) , a. See Clear-cut .

Cleaner <Xpage=263>

Clean"er (?) , n. One who, or that which, cleans.

Cleaning <Xpage=263>

Clean"ing , n. 1. The act of making clean.

2. The afterbirth of cows, ewes, etc.

Gardner.

Cleanlily <Xpage=263>

Clean"li*ly (?) , adv. In a cleanly manner.

Clean-limbed <Xpage=263>

Clean"-limbed` (?) , a. With well-proportioned, unblemished limbs; as, a clean-limbed young fellow .

Dickens.

Cleanliness <Xpage=263>

Clean"li*ness (?) , n. [From Cleanly .] State of being cleanly; neatness of person or dress.

Cleanliness from head to heel. Swift.

Cleanly <Xpage=263>

Clean"ly (?) , a. [ Compar. Cleanlier (?) ; superl. Cleanliest .] [From Clean .] 1. Habitually clean; pure; innocent. " Cleanly joys."

Glanvill.

Some plain but cleanly country maid. Dryden.

Displays her cleanly platter on the board. Goldsmith.

2. Cleansing; fitted to remove moisture; dirt, etc. [Obs.] "With cleanly powder dry their hair."

Prior.

3. Adroit; skillful; dexterous; artful. [Obs.]

Through his fine handling and his cleanly play. Spenser.

Cleanly <Xpage=263>

Clean"ly (?) , adv. 1. In a clean manner; neatly.

He was very cleanly dressed. Dickens.

2. Innocently; without stain.

Shak.

3. Adroitly; dexterously.

Middleton.

Cleanness <Xpage=263>

Clean"ness , n. [AS. cl<?/nnes . See Clean .] 1. The state or quality of being clean.

2. Purity of life or language; freedom from licentious courses.

Chaucer.

Cleansable <Xpage=263>

Cleans"a*ble (?) , a. Capable of being cleansed.

Sherwood.

Cleanse <Xpage=263>

Cleanse (?) , v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Cleansed (?) ; p. pr. & vb. n. Cleansing .] [AS. cl\'d6nsian , fr. cl\'d6ne clean. See Clean .] To render clean; to free from fith, pollution, infection, guilt, etc.; to clean.

If we walk in the light . . . the blood of Jesus Christ his son cleanseth us from all sin. 1 John i. 7.

Can'st thou not minister to a mind diseased, And with some sweet oblivious antidote Cleanse the suffed bosom of that perilous stuff Which weighs upon the heart? Shak.

Cleanser <Xpage=263>

Cleans"er (?) , n. [AS. cl<?/nsere .] One who, or that which, cleanses; a detergent.

Arbuthnot.

Clean-timbered <Xpage=263>

Clean"-tim`bered (?) , a. Well-propotioned; symmetrical. [Poetic]

Shak.

Clear <Xpage=263>

Clear (?) , a. [ Compar. Clearer (?) ; superl. Clearest .] [OE. cler , cleer , OF. cler , F. clair , fr.L. clarus , clear, broght, loud, distinct, renownwd; perh. akin to L. clamare to call, E. claim . Cf. Chanticleer , Clairvoyant , Claret , Clarufy .] 1. Free from opaqueness; transparent; bright; light; luminous; unclouded.

The stream is so transparent, pure, and clear . Denham.

Fair as the moon, clear as the sun. Canticles vi. 10.

2. Free from ambiquity or indistinctness; lucid; perspicuous; plain; evident; manifest; indubitable.

One truth is clear ; whatever is, is right. Pop<?/.

3. Able to perceive clearly; keen; acute; penetrating; discriminating; as, a clear intellect; a clear head.

Mother of science! now I feel thy power Within me clear , not only to discern Things in their causes, but to trace the ways Of highest agents. Milton.

4. Not clouded with passion; serene; cheerful.

With a countenance as clear As friendship wears at feasts. Shak.

5. Easily or distinctly heard; audible; canorous.

Hark! the numbers soft and clear Gently steal upon the ear. Pope.

6. Without mixture; entirely pure; as, clear sand .

7. Without defect or blemish, such as freckles or knots; as, a clear complexion; clear lumber.

8. Free from guilt or stain; unblemished.

Statesman, yet friend to truth! in soul sincere, In action faithful, and in honor clear . Pope.

9. Without diminution; in full; net; as, clear profit .

I often wished that I had clear , For life, six hundred pounds a-year. Swift .

10. Free from impediment or obstruction; unobstructed; as, a clear view; to keep clear of debt.

My companion . . . left the way clear for him. Addison.

11. Free from embarrassment; detention, etc.

The cruel corporal whispered in my ear, Five pounds, if rightly tipped, would set me clear . Gay.

Clear breach . See under Breach , n. , 4. -- Clear days (Law.) , days reckoned from one day to another, excluding both the first and last day; as, from Sunday to Sunday there are six clear days . -- Clear stuff , boards, planks, etc., free from knots.

Syn. -- Manifest; pure; unmixed; pellucid; transparent; luminous; obvious; visible; plain; evident; apparent; distinct; perspicuous. See Manifest .

Clear <Xpage=263>

Clear (?) , n. (Carp.) Full extent; distance between extreme limits; especially; the distance between the nearest surfaces of two bodies, or the space between walls; as, a room ten feet square in the clear .

Clear <Xpage=263>

Clear , adv. 1. In a clear manner; plainly.

Now clear I understand What oft . . . thoughts have searched in vain. Milton.

2. Without limitation; wholly; quite; entirely; as, to cut a piece clear off .

Clear <Xpage=263>

Clear , v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Cleared (?) ; p. pr. & vb. n. Clearing .] 1. To render bright, transparent, or undimmed; to free from clouds.

He sweeps the skies and clears the cloudy north. Dryden.

2. To free from impurities; to clarify; to cleanse.

3. To free from obscurity or ambiguity; to relive of perplexity; to make perspicuous.

Many knotty points there are Which all discuss, but few can clear . Prior.

4. To render more quick or acute, as the understanding; to make perspicacious.

Our common prints would clear up their understandings. Addison

5. To free from impediment or incumbrance, from defilement, or from anything injurious, useless, or offensive; as, to clear land of trees or brushwood, or from stones; to clear the sight or the voice; to clear one's self from debt ; -- often used with of , off , away , or out .

Clear your mind of cant. Dr. Johnson.

A statue lies hid in a block of marble; and the art of the statuary only clears away the superfluous matter. Addison.

6. To free from the imputation of guilt; to justify, vindicate, or acquit; -- often used with from before the thing imputed.

I . . . am sure he will clear me from partiality. Dryden.

How! wouldst thou clear rebellion? Addison.

7. To leap or pass by, or over, without touching or fallure; as, to clear a hedge; to clear a reef.

8. To gain without deduction; to net.

The profit which she cleared on the cargo. Macaulay.

To clear a ship at the customhouse , to exhibit the documents required by law, give bonds, or perform other acts requisite, and procure a permission to sail, and such papers as the law requires. -- To clear a ship for action , or To clear for action (Naut.) , to remove incumbrances from the decks, and prepare for an engagement. -- To clear the land (Naut.) , to gain such a distance from shore as to have sea room, and be out of danger from the land. -- To clear hawse (Naut.) , to disentangle the cables when twisted. -- To clear up , to explain; to dispel, as doubts, cares or fears.

Clear <Xpage=263>

Clear (?) , v. i. 1. To become free from clouds or fog; to become fair; -- often fallowed by up , off , or away .

So foul a sky clears without a strom. Shak.

Advise him to stay till the weather clears up. Swift.

2. To disengage one's self frpm incumbrances, distress, or entanglements; to become free. [rk>

He that clears at once will relapse; for finding himself out of straits, he will revert to the customs; but he that cleareth by degrees induceth a habit of frugality. Bacon.

3. (Banking) To make exchanges of checks and bills, and settle balances, as is done in a clearing house.

4. To obtain a clearance; as, the steamer cleared for Liverpool to-day .

To clear out, to go or run away; to depart. [Colloq.]

Clearage <Xpage=263>

Clear"age (?) , n. The act of reforming anything; clearance. [R.]

Clearance <Xpage=263>

Clear"ance (?) , n. 1. The act of clearing; as, to make a through clearance .

2. A certificate that a ship or vessel has been cleared at the customhouse; permission to sail.

Every ship was subject to seizure for want of stamped clearances . Durke

3. Clear or net profit.

Trollope.

4. (Mach.) The distance by which one object clears another, as the distance between the piston and cylinder head at the end of a stroke in a steam engine, or the least distance between the point of a cogwell tooth and the bottom of a space between teeth of a wheel with which it engages.

Clearance space (Steam engine) , the space inclosed in one end of the cylinder, between the valve or valves and the piston, at the beginning of a stroke; waste room. It includes the space caused by the piston's clearance and the space in ports, passageways, etc. Its volume is often expressed as a certain proportion of the volume swept by the piston in a single stroke.

Clear-cut <Xpage=263>

Clear"-cut` (?) , a. 1. Having a sharp, distinct outline, like that of a cameo.

She has . . . a cold and clear-cut face. Tennyson.