Chapter 432

Dic"tion*a*ry (?) , n. ; pl. Dictionaries (#) . [Cf. F. dictionnaire . See Diction .]

1. A book containing the words of a language, arranged alphabetically, with explanations of their meanings; a lexicon; a vocabulary; a wordbook.

I applied myself to the perusal of our writers; and noting whatever might be of use to ascertain or illustrate any word or phrase, accumulated in time the materials of a dictionary . Johnson.

2. Hence, a book containing the words belonging to any system or province of knowledge, arranged alphabetically; as, a dictionary of medicine or of botany; a biographical dictionary .

Dictum <Xpage=408>

Dic"tum (?) , n. ; pl. L. Dicta (#) , E. Dictums (#) . [L., neuter of dictus , p. p. of dicere to say. See Diction , and cf. Ditto .]

1. An authoritative statement; a dogmatic saying; an apothegm.

A class of critical dicta everywhere current. M. Arnold.

2. (Law) (a) A judicial opinion expressed by judges on points that do not necessarily arise in the case, and are not involved in it . (b) (French Law) The report of a judgment made by one of the judges who has given it . Bouvier . (c) An arbitrament or award.

Dictyogen <Xpage=408>

Dic*ty"o*gen (?) , n. [Gr. <?/ a net + -gen .] (Bot.) A plant with netveined leaves, and monocotyledonous embryos, belonging to the class Dictyogen\'91 , proposed by Lindley for the orders Dioscoreace\'91 , Smilace\'91 , Trilliace\'91 , etc.

Dicyanide <Xpage=408>

Di*cy"a*nide (?) , n. [Pref. di- + cyan ogen.] (Chem.) A compound of a binary type containing two cyanogen groups or radicals; -- called also bicyanide .

Dicyemata <Xpage=408>

Di`cy*e"ma*ta (?) , n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. <?/ = <?/ twice + <?/ an embryo.] (Zo\'94l.) An order of worms parasitic in cephalopods. They are remarkable for the extreme simplicity of their structure. The embryo exists in two forms.

Dicyemid <Xpage=408>

Di`cy*e"mid (?) , a. (Zo\'94l.) Like or belonging to the Dicyemata. -- n. One of the Dicyemata.

<page="409"> Page 409

Dicynodont <Xpage=409>

Di*cyn"o*dont (?) , n. [Gr. <?/ = <?/ twice + <?/ dog + <?/, <?/ , tooth.] (Paleon.) One of a group of extinct reptiles having the jaws armed with a horny beak, as in turtles, and in the genus Dicynodon , supporting also a pair of powerful tusks. Their remains are found in triassic strata of South Africa and India.

Did <Xpage=409>

Did (?) , imp. of Do .

Didactic, Didactical <Xpage=409>

Di*dac"tic (?) , Di*dac"tic*al (?) , a. [Gr. <?/, fr. <?/ to teach; akin to L. docere to teach: cf. F. didactique . See Docile .] Fitted or intended to teach; conveying instruction; preceptive; instructive; teaching some moral lesson; as, didactic essays . " Didactical writings."

Jer. Taylor.

The finest didactic poem in any language. Macaulay.

Didactic <Xpage=409>

Di*dac"tic , n. A treatise on teaching or education. [Obs.]

Milton.

Didactically <Xpage=409>

Di*dac"tic*al*ly , adv. In a didactic manner.

Didacticism <Xpage=409>

Di*dac"ti*cism (?) , n. The didactic method or system.

Didacticity <Xpage=409>

Di`dac*tic"i*ty (?) , n. Aptitude for teaching.

Hare.

Didactics <Xpage=409>

Di*dac"tics (?) , n. The art or science of teaching.

Didactyl <Xpage=409>

Di*dac"tyl (?) , n. [Gr. <?/ = <?/ twice + <?/ finger, toe: cf. F. didactyle .] (Zo\'94l.) An animal having only two digits.

Didactylous <Xpage=409>

Di*dac"tyl*ous (?) , a. (Zo\'94l.) Having only two digits; two-toed.

Didal <Xpage=409>

Di"dal (?) , n. A kind of triangular spade. [Obs.]

Didapper <Xpage=409>

Di"dap`per (?) , n. [For divedapper . See Dive , Dap , Dip , and cf. Dabchick .] (Zo\'94l.) See Dabchick .

Didascalar <Xpage=409>

Di*das"ca*lar (?) , a. Didascalic. [R.]

Didascalic <Xpage=409>

Di`das*cal"ic (?) , a. [L. didascalius , Gr. <?/, fr. <?/ to teach: cf. F. didascalique .] Didactic; preceptive. [R.]

Prior.

Diddle <Xpage=409>

Did"dle (?) , v. i. [Cf. Daddle .] To totter, as a child in walking. [Obs.]

Quarles.

Diddle <Xpage=409>

Did"dle , v. t. [Perh. from AS. dyderian to deceive, the letter r being changed to l .] To cheat or overreach. [Colloq.]

Beaconsfield.

Diddler <Xpage=409>

Did"dler (?) , n. A cheat. [Colloq.]

Jeremy Diddler , a character in a play by James Kenney, entitled "Raising the wind." The name is applied to any needy, tricky, constant borrower; a confidence man.

Didelphia <Xpage=409>

Di*del"phi*a (?) , n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. <?/ = <?/ matrix, uterus.] (Zo\'94l.) The subclass of Mammalia which includes the marsupials. See Marsupialia .

Didelphian <Xpage=409>

Di*del"phi*an (?) , a. (Zo\'94l.) Of or relating to the Didelphia. -- n. One of the Didelphia.

Didelphic <Xpage=409>

Di*del"phic (?) , a. (Zo\'94l.) Having the uterus double; of or pertaining to the Didelphia.

Didelphid <Xpage=409>

Di*del"phid (?) , a. (Zo\'94l.) Same as Didelphic .

Didelphid <Xpage=409>

Di*del"phid , n. (Zo\'94l.) A marsupial animal.

Didelphous <Xpage=409>

Di*del"phous (?) , a. (Zo\'94l.) Didelphic.

Didelphyc <Xpage=409>

Di*del"phyc (?) , a. (Zo\'94l.) Same as Didelphic .

Didelphous <Xpage=409>

Di*del"phous (?) , n. [NL. See Didelphia .] (Zo\'94l.) Formerly, any marsupial; but the term is now restricted to an American genus which includes the opossums, of which there are many species. See Opossum . [Written also Didelphis .] See Illustration in Appendix.

Cuvier.

Didine <Xpage=409>

Di"dine (?) , a. (Zo\'94l.) Like or pertaining to the genus Didus , or the dodo.

Dido <Xpage=409>

Di"do (?) , n. ; pl. Didos (<?/) . A shrewd trick; an antic; a caper.

To cut a dido , to play a trick; to cut a caper; -- perhaps so called from the trick of Dido, who having bought so much land as a hide would cover, is said to have cut it into thin strips long enough to inclose a spot for a citadel.

Didonia <Xpage=409>

Di*do"ni*a (?) , n. [NL. So called in allusion to the classical story of Dido and the bull's hide.] (Geom.) The curve which on a given surface and with a given perimeter contains the greatest area.

Tait.

Didrachm, Didrachma <Xpage=409>

Di"drachm (?) , Di*drach"ma (?) , n. [Gr. <?/; <?/ = <?/ twice + <?/ a drachm.] A two-drachma piece; an ancient Greek silver coin, worth nearly forty cents.

Didst <Xpage=409>

Didst (?) , the 2 d pers . sing . imp . of Do .

Diducement <Xpage=409>

Di*duce"ment (?) , n. Diduction; separation into distinct parts.

Bacon.

Diduction <Xpage=409>

Di*duc"tion (?) , n. [L. diductio , fr. diducere , diductum , to draw apart; di- = dis- + ducere to lead, draw.] The act of drawing apart; separation.

Didym <Xpage=409>

Di"dym (?) , n. (Chem.) See Didymium .

Didymium <Xpage=409>

Di*dym"i*um (?) , n. [NL., fr. Gr. <?/ twin.] (Chem.) A rare metallic substance usually associated with the metal cerium; -- hence its name. It was formerly supposed to be an element, but has since been found to consist of two simpler elementary substances, neodymium and praseodymium. See Neodymium , and Praseodymium .

Didymous <Xpage=409>

Did"y*mous (?) , a. [Gr. <?/ twofold, twin.] (Bot.) Growing in pairs or twins.

Didynamia <Xpage=409>

Did`y*na"mi*a (?) , n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. <?/ = <?/ twice + <?/ power.] (Bot.) A Linn\'91an class of plants having four stamens disposed in pairs of unequal length.

Didynamian <Xpage=409>

Did`y*na"mi*an (?) , a. Didynamous.

Didynamous <Xpage=409>

Di*dyn"a*mous (?) , a. (Bot.) Of or pertaining to the Didynamia; containing four stamens disposed in pairs of unequal length.

Die <Xpage=409>

Die (?) , v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Died (?) ; p. pr. & vb. n. Dying .] [OE. deyen , dien , of Scand. origin; cf. Icel. deyja ; akin to Dan. d\'94e , Sw. d\'94 , Goth. diwan (cf. Goth. afd<?/jan to harass), OFries. d<?/ia to kill, OS. doian to die, OHG. touwen , OSlav. daviti to choke, Lith. dovyti to torment. Cf. Dead , Death .]

1. To pass from an animate to a lifeless state; to cease to live; to suffer a total and irreparable loss of action of the vital functions; to become dead; to expire; to perish; -- said of animals and vegetables; often with of , by , with , from , and rarely for , before the cause or occasion of death; as, to die of disease or hardships; to die by fire or the sword; to die with horror at the thought.

To die by the roadside of grief and hunger. Macaulay.

She will die from want of care. Tennyson.

2. To suffer death; to lose life.

In due time Christ died for the ungodly. Rom. v. 6.

3. To perish in any manner; to cease; to become lost or extinct; to be extinguished.

Letting the secret die within his own breast. Spectator.

Great deeds can not die . Tennyson.

4. To sink; to faint; to pine; to languish, with weakness, discouragement, love, etc.

His heart died within, and he became as a stone. 1 Sam. xxv. 37.

The young men acknowledged, in love letters, that they died for Rebecca. Tatler.

5. To become indifferent; to cease to be subject; as, to die to pleasure or to sin .

6. To recede and grow fainter; to become imperceptible; to vanish; -- often with out or away .

Blemishes may die away and disappear amidst the brightness. Spectator.

7. (Arch.) To disappear gradually in another surface, as where moldings are lost in a sloped or curved face.

8. To become vapid, flat, or spiritless, as liquor.

To die in the last ditch , to fight till death; to die rather than surrender.

"There is one certain way," replied the Prince [William of Orange] " by which I can be sure never to see my country's ruin, -- I will die in the last ditch ." Hume (Hist. of Eng. ).

-- To die out , to cease gradually; as, the prejudice has died out .

Syn. -- To expire; decease; perish; depart; vanish.

Die <Xpage=409>

Die , n. ; pl. in 1 and (usually) in 2, Dice (d\'c6s) ; in 4 & 5, Dies (d\'c6z) . [OE. dee , die , F. d\'82 , fr. L. datus given, thrown, p. p. of dare to give, throw. See Date a point of time.]

1. A small cube, marked on its faces with spots from one to six, and used in playing games by being shaken in a box and thrown from it. See Dice .

2. Any small cubical or square body.

Words . . . pasted upon little flat tablets or dies . Watts.

3. That which is, or might be, determined, by a throw of the die; hazard; chance.

Such is the die of war. Spenser.

4. (Arch.) That part of a pedestal included between base and cornice; the dado.

5. (Mach.) (a) A metal or plate (often one of a pair) so cut or shaped as to give a certain desired form to, or impress any desired device on, an object or surface, by pressure or by a blow; used in forging metals, coining, striking up sheet metal, etc. (b) A perforated block, commonly of hardened steel used in connection with a punch, for punching holes, as through plates, or blanks from plates, or for forming cups or capsules, as from sheet metal, by drawing. (c) A hollow internally threaded screw-cutting tool, made in one piece or composed of several parts, for forming screw threads on bolts, etc.; one of the separate parts which make up such a tool.

Cutting die (Mech.) , a thin, deep steel frame, sharpened to a cutting edge, for cutting out articles from leather, cloth, paper, etc. -- The die is cast , the hazard must be run; the step is taken, and it is too late to draw back; the last chance is taken.

Diecian <Xpage=409>

Di*e"cian (?) , a. , Di*e"cious,/hw> (<?/) , a. (Bot.) See Di\'d2cian , and Di\'d2cious .

Diedral <Xpage=409>

Di*e"dral (?) , a. The same as Dihedral .

Diegesis <Xpage=409>

Di`e*ge"sis (?) , n. [NL., fr. Gr. <?/, fr. <?/ to narrate; <?/ through + <?/ to lead.] A narrative or history; a recital or relation.

Dielectric <Xpage=409>

Di`e*lec"tric (?) , n. [Pref. dia- + electric .] (Elec.) Any substance or medium that transmits the electric force by a process different from conduction, as in the phenomena of induction; a nonconductor. separating a body electrified by induction, from the electrifying body.

Dielytra <Xpage=409>

Di*el"y*tra (?) , n. (Bot.) See Dicentra .

Diencephalon <Xpage=409>

Di`en*ceph"a*lon (?) , n. [NL. See Dia- , and Encephalon .] (Anat.) The interbrain or thalamencephalon; -- sometimes abbreviated to dien . See Thalamencephalon .

Dieresis <Xpage=409>

Di*er"e*sis (?) , n. [NL.] Same as Di\'91resis .

Diesinker <Xpage=409>

Die"sink`er (?) , n. An engraver of dies for stamping coins, medals, etc.

Diesinking <Xpage=409>

Die"sink`ing , n. The process of engraving dies.

Diesis <Xpage=409>

Di"e*sis (?) , n. ; pl. Dieses (#) . [NL., fr. Gr. <?/, fr. <?/ to let go through, dissolve; <?/ through + <?/ to let go, send.]

1. (Mus.) A small interval, less than any in actual practice, but used in the mathematical calculation of intervals.

2. (Print.) The mark &ddagr;; -- called also double dagger .

Dies Ir\'91 <Xpage=409>

Di"es I"r\'91 (?) . Day of wrath; -- the name and beginning of a famous medi\'91val Latin hymn on the Last Judgment.

Dies juridicus <Xpage=409>

Di"es ju*rid"i*cus (?) ; pl. Dies juridici (#) . [L.] (Law) A court day.

Dies non <Xpage=409>

Di"es non" (?) . [L. dies non juridicus .] (Law) A day on which courts are not held, as Sunday or any legal holiday.

Diestock <Xpage=409>

Die"stock` (?) , n. A stock to hold the dies used for cutting screws.

Diet <Xpage=409>

Di"et (?) , n. [F. di\'8ate , L. diaeta , fr. Gr. <?/ manner of living.]

1. Course of living or nourishment; what is eaten and drunk habitually; food; victuals; fare. "No inconvenient diet ."

Milton.

2. A course of food selected with reference to a particular state of health; prescribed allowance of food; regimen prescribed.

To fast like one that takes diet . Shak.

Diet kitchen , a kitchen in which diet is prepared for invalids; a charitable establishment that provides proper food for the sick poor.

Diet <Xpage=409>

Di"et , v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Dieted ; p. pr. & vb. n. Dieting .]

1. To cause to take food; to feed. [R.]

Shak.

2. To cause to eat and drink sparingly, or by prescribed rules; to regulate medicinally the food of.

She diets him with fasting every day. Spenser.

Diet <Xpage=409>

Di"et , v. i.

1. To eat; to take one's meals. [Obs.]

Let him . . . diet in such places, where there is good company of the nation, where he traveleth. Bacon.

2. To eat according to prescribed rules; to ear sparingly; as, the doctor says he must diet .

Diet <Xpage=409>

Di"et , n. [F. di\'8ate , LL. dieta , diaeta , an assembly, a day's journey; the same word as diet course of living, but with the sense changed by L. dies day: cf. G. tag day<?/ and Reichstag .] A legislative or administrative assembly in Germany, Poland, and some other countries of Europe; a deliberative convention; a council; as, the Diet of Worms, held in 1521 .

Dietarian <Xpage=409>

Di`e*ta"ri*an (?) , n. One who lives in accordance with prescribed rules for diet; a dieter.

Dietary <Xpage=409>

Di"et*a*ry (?) , a. Pertaining to diet, or to the rules of diet.

Dietary <Xpage=409>

Di"et*a*ry , n. ; pl. Dietaries (<?/) . A rule of diet; a fixed allowance of food, as in workhouse, prison, etc.

Dieter <Xpage=409>

Di"et*er (?) , n. One who diets; one who prescribes, or who partakes of, food, according to hygienic rules.

Dietetic, Dietetical <Xpage=409>

Di`e*tet"ic (?) , Di`e*tet"ic*al (?) , a. [Gr. <?/: cf. F. di\'82t\'82tique . See Diet .] Of or performance to diet, or to the rules for regulating the kind and quantity of food to be eaten.

Dietetically <Xpage=409>

Di`e*tet"ic*al*ly , adv. In a dietetical manner.

Dietetics <Xpage=409>

Di`e*tet"ics (?) , n. That part of the medical or hygienic art which relates to diet or food; rules for diet.

To suppose that the whole of dietetics lies in determining whether or not bread is more nutritive than potatoes. H. Spencer.

Dietetist <Xpage=409>

Di`e*tet"ist , n. A physician who applies the rules of dietetics to the cure of diseases.

Dunglison.

Diethylamine <Xpage=409>

Di*eth`yl*am"ine (?) , n. [Pref. di- + ethylamine .] (Chem.) A colorless, volatile, alkaline liquid, NH(C2H5)2 , having a strong fishy odor resembling that of herring or sardines. Cf. Methylamine .

Dietic <Xpage=409>

Di*et"ic (?) , a. Dietetic.

Dietical <Xpage=409>

Di*et"ic*al (?) , a. Dietetic. [R.]

Ferrand.

Dietine <Xpage=409>

Di"et*ine (?) , n. [Cf. F. di\'82tine .] A subordinate or local assembly; a diet of inferior rank.

Dietist, Dietitian <Xpage=409>

Di"et*ist (?) , Di`e*ti"tian (?) , n. One skilled in dietetics. [R.]

Diffame <Xpage=409>