Chapter 37

A`gal-a"gal (#) , n. Same as Agar-agar .

Agalloch, Agallochum <Xpage=31>

Ag"al*loch (#) , A*gal"lo*chum (#) , n. [Gr. <?/, of Eastern origin: cf. Skr. aguru , Heb. pl. ah\'bel\'c6m .] A soft, resinous wood (Aquilaria Agallocha) of highly aromatic smell, burnt by the orientals as a perfume. It is called also agalwood and aloes wood . The name is also given to some other species.

Agalmatolite <Xpage=31>

Ag`al*mat"o*lite (#) , n. [Gr. <?/, <?/, image, statue + -lite : cf. F. agalmatolithe .] (Min.) A soft, compact stone, of a grayish, greenish, or yellowish color, carved into images by the Chinese, and hence called figure stone , and pagodite . It is probably a variety of pinite.

Agama <Xpage=31>

Ag"a*ma (#) , n. ; pl. Agamas (#) . [From the Caribbean name of a species of lizard.] (Zo\'94l.) A genus of lizards, one of the few which feed upon vegetable substances; also, one of these lizards.

Agami <Xpage=31>

Ag"a*mi (#) , n. ; pl. Agamis (#) . [F. agex>, fr. the native name.] (Zo\'94l.) A South American bird ( Psophia crepitans ), allied to the cranes, and easily domesticated; -- called also the gold-breasted trumpeter . Its body is about the size of the pheasant. See Trumpeter .

Agamic <Xpage=31>

A*gam"ic (#) , a. [ Agamous .] (a) (Biol.) Produced without sexual union; as, agamic or unfertilized eggs . (b) Not having visible organs of reproduction, as flowerless plants; agamous.

Agamically <Xpage=31>

A*gam"ic*al*ly (#) , adv. In an agamic manner.

Agamist <Xpage=31>

Ag"a*mist (#) , n. [See Agamous .] An unmarried person; also, one opposed to marriage.

Foxe.

Agamogenesis <Xpage=31>

Ag`a*mo*gen"e*sis (#) , n. [Gr. <?/ unmarried (<?/ priv. + <?/ marriage) + <?/ reproduction.] (Biol.) Reproduction without the union of parents of distinct sexes: asexual reproduction.

Agamogenetic <Xpage=31>

Ag`a*mo*ge*net"ic (#) , n. (Biol.) Reproducing or produced without sexual union. -- Ag`a*mo*ge*net"ic*al*ly (#) , adv.

All known agamogenetic processes end in a complete return to the primitive stock. Huxley.

Agamous <Xpage=31>

Ag"a*mous (#) , a. [Gr. <?/ unmarried; <?/ priv. + <?/ marriage.] (Biol.) Having no visible sexual organs; asexual. In Bo>., cryptogamous.

Aganglionic <Xpage=31>

A*gan`gli*o"nic (#) , a. [Pref. a- not + ganglionic .] (Physiol.) Without ganglia.

Agape <Xpage=31>

A*gape" (#) , adv. & a. [Pref. a- + gape .] Gaping, as with wonder, expectation, or eager attention.

Dazzles the crowd and sets them all agape . Milton.

Agape <Xpage=31>

Ag"a*pe (#) , n. ; pl. Agap\'91 (#) . [Gr. <?/ love, pl. <?/.] The love feast of the primitive Christians, being a meal partaken of in connection with the communion.

Agar-agar <Xpage=31>

A`gar-a"gar (#) , n. [Ceylonese local name.] A fucus or seaweed much used in the East for soups and jellies; Ceylon moss ( Gracilaria lichenoides ).

Agaric <Xpage=31>

Ag"a*ric (?; 277) , n. [L. agaricum , Gr. <?/, said to be fr. Agara , a town in Sarmatia.] 1. (Bot.) A fungus of the genus Ag/xex>, of many species, of which the common mushroom is an example.

2. An old name for severwal species of Polyporus , corky fungi growing on decaying wood.

&hand; The " female agaric " (Polyporus officinalic) was renowned as a cathartic; the " male agaric " (Polyporus igniarius) is used for preparing touchwood, called punk of German tinder.

Agaric mineral , a light, chalky deposit of carbonate of lime, sometimes called rock milk , formed in caverns or fissures of limestone.

Agasp <Xpage=31>

A*gasp" (#) , adv. & a. [. a- + gasp .] In a state of gasping.

Coleridge.

Agast or Aghast <Xpage=31>

A*gast" or A*ghast" (#) , v. t. To affright; to terrify. [Obs.]

Chaucer. Spenser.

Agast <Xpage=31>

A*gast" (#) , p. p. & a. See Aghast .

Agastric <Xpage=31>

A*gas"tric (#) , a. [Gr. <?/ priv. + <?/ stomach.] (Physiol.) Having to stomach, or distinct digestive canal, as the tapeworm.

Agate <Xpage=31>

A*gate" (#) , adv. [Pref. a- on + gate way.] On the way; agoing; as, to be agate ; to set the bells agate . [Obs.]

Cotgrave.

Agate <Xpage=31>

Ag"ate (#) , n. [F. agate , It. agata , L. achates , fr. Gr. <?/.] 1. (Min.) A semipellucid, uncrystallized variety of quartz, presenting various tints in the same specimen. Its colors are delicately arranged in stripes or bands, or blended in clouds.

&hand; The fortification agate , or Scotch pebble, the moss agate , the clouded agate , etc., are familiar varieties.

2. (Print.) A kind of type, larger than pearl and smaller than nonpareil; in England called ruby .

&hand; This line is printed in the type called agate .

3. A diminutive person; so called in allusion to the small figures cut in agate for rings and seals. [Obs.]

Shak.

4. A tool used by gold-wire drawers, bookbinders, etc.; -- so called from the agate fixed in it for burnishing.

Agatiferous <Xpage=31>

Ag`a*tif"er*ous (#) , a. [ Agate + -ferous .] Containing or producing agates.

Craig.

Agatine <Xpage=31>

Ag"a*tine (#) , a. Pertaining to, or like, agate.

Agatize <Xpage=31>

Ag"a*tize (#) , v. t. [Usually p. p. Agatized (#) .] To convert into agate; to make resemble agate.

Dana.

Agaty <Xpage=31>

Ag"a*ty (#) , a. Of the nature of agate, or containing agate.

Agave <Xpage=31>

A*ga"ve (#) , n. [L. Agave , prop. name, fr. Gr. <?/, fem. of <?/ illustrious, noble.] (bot.) A genus of plants (order Amaryllidace\'91 ) of which the chief species is the maguey or century plant (A. Americana) , wrongly called Aloe. It is from ten to seventy years, according to climate, in attaining maturity, when it produces a gigantic flower stem, sometimes forty feet in height, and perishes. The fermented juice is the pulque of the Mexicans; distilled, it yields mescal . A strong thread and a tough paper are made from the leaves, and the wood has many uses.

Agazed <Xpage=31>

A*gazed" (#) , p. p. [Only in p. p.; another spelling for aghast .] Gazing with astonishment; amazed. [Obs.]

The whole army stood agazed on him. Shak.

Age <Xpage=31>

Age (#) , n. [OF. aage , eage , F. \'83ge , fr. L. aetas through a supposed LL. aetaticum . L. aetas is contracted fr. aevitas , fr. aevum lifetime, age; akin to E. aye ever. Cf. Each .] 1. The whole duration of a being, whether animal, vegetable, or other kind; lifetime.

Mine age is as nothing before thee. Ps. xxxix. 5.

2. That part of the duration of a being or a thing which is between its beginning and any given time; as, what is the present age of a man, or of the earth?

3. The latter part of life; an advanced period of life; seniority; state of being old.

Nor wrong mine age with this indignity. Shak.

4. One of the stages of life; as, the age of infancy, of youth, etc.

Shak.

5. Mature age; especially, the time of life at which one attains full personal rights and capacities; as, to come of age ; he (or she) is of age . Abbott . In the United States, both males and females are of age when twenty-one years old.

6. The time of life at which some particular power or capacity is understood to become vested; as, the age of consent; the age of discretion.

Abbott.

7. A particular period of time in history, as distinguished from others; as, the golden age , the age of Pericles . "The spirit of the age ."

Prescott.

Truth, in some age or other, will find her witness. Milton.

Archeological ages are designated as three: The Stone age (the early and the later stone age, called paleolithic and neolithic ), the Bronze age , and the Iron age . During the Age of Stone man is supposed to have employed stone for weapons and implements.

See Augustan , Brazen , Golden , Heroic , Middle .

8. A great period in the history of the Earth.

The geologic ages are as follows: 1. The Arch\'91an, including the time when was no life and the time of the earliest and simplest forms of life. 2. The age of Invertebrates, or the Silurian, when the life on the globe consisted distinctively of invertebrates. 3. The age of Fishes, or the Devonian, when fishes were the dominant race. 4. The age of Coal Plants, or Acrogens, or the Carboniferous age . 5. The Mesozoic or Secondary age , or age of Reptiles, when reptiles prevailed in great numbers and of vast size. 6. The Tertiary age , or age of Mammals, when the mammalia, or quadrupeds, abounded, and were the dominant race. 7. The Quaternary age , or age of Man, or the modern era.

Dana.

9. A century; the period of one hundred years.

Fleury . . . apologizes for these five ages . Hallam.

10. The people who live at a particular period; hence, a generation. " Ages yet unborn."

Pope.

The way which the age follows. J. H. Newman.

Lo! where the stage, the poor, degraded stage, Holds its warped mirror to a gaping age . C. Sprague.

11. A long time. [Colloq.] "He made minutes an age ."

Tennyson.

Age of a tide , the time from the origin of a tide in the South Pacific Ocean to its arrival at a given place. -- Moon's age , the time that has elapsed since the last preceding conjunction of the sun and moon.

&hand; Age is used to form the first part of many compounds; as, age lasting, age -adorning, age -worn, age -enfeebled, age long.

Syn. -- Time; period; generation; date; era; epoch.

Age <Xpage=31>

Age , v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Aged (#) ; p. pr. & vb. n. Aging (#) .] To grow aged; to become old; to show marks of age; as, he grew fat as he aged .

They live one hundred and thirty years, and never age for all that. Holland.

I am aging ; that is, I have a whitish, or rather a light-colored, hair here and there. Landor.

Age <Xpage=31>

Age , v. t. To cause to grow old; to impart the characteristics of age to; as, grief ages us .

Aged <Xpage=31>

A"ged (#) , a. 1. Old; having lived long; having lived almost to or beyond the usual time allotted to that species of being; as, an aged man; an aged oak.

2. Belonging to old age. " Aged cramps."

Shak.

3. (#) Having a certain age; at the age of; having lived; as, a man aged forty years .

Agedly <Xpage=31>

A"ged*ly , adv. In the manner of an aged person.

Agedness <Xpage=31>

A"ged*ness , n. The quality of being aged; oldness.

Custom without truth is but agedness of error. Milton.

Ageless <Xpage=31>

Age"less (#) , a. Without old age limits of duration; as, fountains of ageless youth .

Agen <Xpage=31>

A*gen" (#) , adv. & prep. See Again . [Obs.]

Agency <Xpage=31>

A"gen*cy (#) , n. ; pl. Agencies (#) . [ agentia , fr. L. agens , agentis : cf. F. agence . See Agent .] 1. The faculty of acting or of exerting power; the state of being in action; action; instrumentality.

The superintendence and agency of Providence in the natural world. Woodward.

2. The office of an agent, or factor; the relation between a principal and his agent; business of one intrusted with the concerns of another.

3. The place of business of am agent.

Syn. -- Action; operation; efficiency; management.

Agend <Xpage=31>

A"gend (#) , n. See Agendum . [Obs.]

Agendum <Xpage=31>

A*gen"dum (#) , n. ; pl. Agenda (#) . [L., neut. of the gerundive of agere to act.] 1. Something to be done; in the pl. , a memorandum book.

2. A church service; a ritual or liturgy. [In this sense, usually Agenda .]

Agenesic <Xpage=31>

Ag`e*nes"ic (#) , a. [See Agensis .] (Physiol.) Characterized by sterility; infecund.

Agenesis <Xpage=31>

A*gen"e*sis (#) , n. [Gr. <?/ priv. + <?/ birth.] (Physiol.) Any imperfect development of the body, or any anomaly of organization.

Agennesis <Xpage=31>

Ag`en*ne"sis (#) , n. [Gr. <?/ priv. + <?/ an engendering.] (Physiol.) Impotence; sterility.

Agent <Xpage=31>

A"gent (#) , a. [L. agens , agentis , p. pr. of agere to act; akin to Gr. <?/ to lead, Icel. aka to drive, Skr. aj . <?/.] Acting<?/ -- opposed to patient , or sustaining, action. [Archaic] "The body agent ."

Bacon.

Agent <Xpage=31>

A"gent , n. 1. One who exerts power, or has the power to act; an actor.

Heaven made us agents , free to good or ill. Dryden.

2. One who acts for, or in the place of, another, by authority from him; one intrusted with the business of another; a substitute; a deputy; a factor.

3. An active power or cause; that which has the power to produce an effect; as, a physical, chemical, or medicinal agent ; as, heat is a powerful agent .

Agential <Xpage=31>

A*gen"tial (#) , a. Of or pertaining to an agent or an agency.

Fitzed. Hall.

Agentship <Xpage=31>

A"gent*ship (#) , n. Agency.

Beau. & Fl.

Ageratum <Xpage=31>

A*ger"a*tum (#) , n. [NL., fr. Gr. <?/ a sort of plant; <?/ priv. + <?/ old age.] (Bot.) A genus of plants, one species of which (A. Mexicanum) has lavender-blue flowers in dense clusters.

Aggeneration <Xpage=31>

Ag*gen`er*a"tion (#) , n. [L. aggenerare to beget in addition. See Generate .] The act of producing in addition. [Obs.]

T. Stanley.

Agger <Xpage=31>

Ag"ger (#) , n. [L., a mound, fr. aggerere to bear to a place, heap up; ad + gerere to bear.] An earthwork; a mound; a raised work. [Obs.]

Hearne.

Aggerate <Xpage=31>

Ag"ger*ate (#) , v. t. [L. aggeratus , p. p. of aggerare . See Agger .] To heap up. [Obs.]

Foxe.

Aggeration <Xpage=31>

Ag`ger*a"tion (#) , n. [L. aggeratio .] A heaping up; accumulation; as, aggerations of sand . [R.]

Aggerose <Xpage=31>

Ag`ger*ose" (#) , a. In heaps; full of heaps.

Aggest <Xpage=31>

Ag*gest" (#) , v. t. [L. aggestus , p. p. of aggerere . See Agger .] To heap up. [Obs.]

The violence of the waters aggested the earth. Fuller.

Agglomerate <Xpage=31>

Ag*glom"er*ate (#) , v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Agglomerated (#) ; p. pr. & vb. n. Agglomerating (#) .] [L. agglomeratus , p. p. of agglomerare ; ad + glomerare to form into a ball. See Glomerate .] To wind or collect into a ball; hence, to gather into a mass or anything like a mass.

Where he builds the agglomerated pile. Cowper.

Agglomerate <Xpage=31>

Ag*glom"er*ate , v. i. To collect in a mass.

Agglomerate, Agglomerated <Xpage=31>

Ag*glom"er*ate (#) , Ag*glom"er*a`ted (#) , a. 1. Collected into a ball, heap, or mass.

2. (Bot.) Collected into a rounded head of flowers.

Agglomerate <Xpage=31>

Ag*glom"er*ate (#) , n. 1. A collection or mass.

2. (Geol.) A mass of angular volcanic fragments united by heat; -- distinguished from conglomerate .

Agglomeration <Xpage=31>

Ag*glom`er*a"tion (#) , n. [Cf. F. agglom\'82ration .] 1. The act or process of collecting in a mass; a heaping together.

An excessive agglomeration of turrets. Warton.

2. State of being collected in a mass; a mass; cluster.

Agglomerative <Xpage=31>

Ag*glom"er*a*tive (#) , a. Having a tendency to gather together, or to make collections.

Taylor is eminently discursive, accumulative, and (to use one of his own words) agglomerative . Coleridge.

Agglutinant <Xpage=31>

Ag*glu"ti*nant (#) , a. [L. agglutinans , -antis , p. pr. of agglutinare .] Uniting, as glue; causing, or tending to cause, adhesion. -- n. Any viscous substance which causes bodies or parts to adhere.

Agglutinate <Xpage=31>

Ag*glu"ti*nate (#) , v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Agglutinated (#) ; p. pr. & vb. n. Agglutinating .] [L. agglutinatus , p. p. of agglutinare to glue or cement to a thing; ad + glutinare to glue; gluten glue. See Glue .] To unite, or cause to adhere, as with glue or other viscous substance; to unite by causing an adhesion of substances.

Agglutinate <Xpage=31>

Ag*glu"ti*nate (#) , a. 1. United with glue or as with glue; cemented together.

2. (physiol.) Consisting of root words combined but not materially altered as to form or meaning; as, agglutinate forms, languages, etc. See Agglutination , 2.

Agglutination <Xpage=31>

Ag*glu`ti*na"tion (#) , n. [Cf. F. agglutination .] 1. The act of uniting by glue or other tenacious substance; the state of being thus united; adhesion of parts.

2. (Physiol.) Combination in which root words are united with little or no change of form or loss of meaning. See Agglutinative , 2.

Agglutinative <Xpage=31>

Ag*glu"ti*na*tive (#) , a. [Cf. F. agglutinatif .] 1. Pertaining to agglutination; tending to unite, or having power to cause adhesion; adhesive.

2. (Philol.) Formed or characterized by agglutination, as a language or a compound.

In agglutinative languages the union of words may be compared to mechanical compounds, in inflective languages to chemical compounds. R. Morris.