Chapter 98

Black" let`ter (&?;). The old English or Gothic letter, in which the Early English manuscripts were written, and the first English books were printed. It was conspicuous for its blackness. See Type.

Black"-let`ter, a. 1. Written or printed in black letter; as, a black-letter manuscript or book.

2. Given to the study of books in black letter; that is, of old books; out of date.

Kemble, a black-letter man! J. Boaden.

3. Of or pertaining to the days in the calendar not marked with red letters as saints' days. Hence: Unlucky; inauspicious.

Black"list` (&?;), v. t. To put in a black list as deserving of suspicion, censure, or punishment; esp. to put in a list of persons stigmatized as insolvent or untrustworthy, -- as tradesmen and employers do for mutual protection; as, to blacklist a workman who has been discharged. See Black list, under Black, a.

If you blacklist us, we will boycott you. John Swinton.

Black"ly, adv. In a black manner; darkly, in color; gloomily; threateningly; atrociously. "Deeds so blackly grim and horrid." Feltham.

Black"mail` (&?;), n. [Black + mail a piece of money.] 1. A certain rate of money, corn, cattle, or other thing, anciently paid, in the north of England and south of Scotland, to certain men who were allied to robbers, or moss troopers, to be by them protected from pillage. Sir W. Scott.

2. Payment of money exacted by means of intimidation; also, extortion of money from a person by threats of public accusation, exposure, or censure.

3. (Eng. Law) Black rent, or rent paid in corn, flesh, or the lowest coin, a opposed to "white rent", which paid in silver.

To levy blackmail, to extort money by threats, as of injury to one's reputation.

Black"mail`, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Blackmailed (&?;); p. pr. & vb. n. Blackmailing.] To extort money from by exciting fears of injury other than bodily harm, as injury to reputation, distress of mind, etc.; as, to blackmail a merchant by threatening to expose an alleged fraud. [U. S.]

Black"mail`er (&?;), n. One who extorts, or endeavors to extort, money, by black mailing.

Black"mail`ing, n. The act or practice of extorting money by exciting fears of injury other than bodily harm, as injury to reputation.

Black" Mon`day (&?;). 1. Easter Monday, so called from the severity of that day in 1360, which was so unusual that many of Edward III.'s soldiers, then before Paris, died from the cold. Stow.

Then it was not for nothing that my nose fell a bleeding on Black Monday last. Shak.

2. The first Monday after the holidays; -- so called by English schoolboys. Halliwell.

Black" monk` (&?;). A Benedictine monk.

Black"moor (&?;), n. See Blackamoor.

Black"-mouthed` (&?;), a. Using foul or scurrilous language; slanderous.

Black"ness, n. The quality or state of being black; black color; atrociousness or enormity in wickedness.

They're darker now than blackness. Donne.

Black"poll` (&?;), n. [Black + poll head.] (Zoöl.) A warbler of the United States (Dendroica striata).

Black" pud"ding (&?;). A kind of sausage made of blood, suet, etc., thickened with meal.

And fat black puddings, -- proper food, For warriors that delight in blood. Hudibras.

Black" Rod` (&?;). (a) the usher to the Chapter of the Garter, so called from the black rod which he carries. He is of the king's chamber, and also usher to the House of Lords. [Eng.] (b) An usher in the legislature of British colonies. Cowell.

Committed to the custody of the Black Rod. Macaulay.

Black"root`, n. (Bot.) See Colicroot.

Blacks (&?;), n. pl. 1. The name of a kind of in used in copperplate printing, prepared from the charred husks of the grape, and residue of the wine press.

2. Soot flying in the air. [Eng.]

3. Black garments, etc. See Black, n., 4.

Black"salt`er (&?;), n. One who makes crude potash, or black salts.

Black" salts` (&?;). Crude potash. De Colange.

Black"smith` (&?;), n. [Black (in allusion to the color of the metal) + smith. Cf. Whitesmith.] 1. A smith who works in iron with a forge, and makes iron utensils, horseshoes, etc.

The blacksmith may forge what he pleases. Howell.

2. (Zoöl.) A fish of the Pacific coast (Chromis, or Heliastes, punctipinnis), of a blackish color.

{ Black" snake` (snk) or Black"snake }, n. (Zoöl.) A snake of a black color, of which two species are common in the United States, the Bascanium constrictor, or racer, sometimes six feet long, and the Scotophis Alleghaniensis, seven or eight feet long.

The name is also applied to various other black serpents, as Natrix atra of Jamaica.

Black"strap` (-strp), n. 1. A mixture of spirituous liquor (usually rum) and molasses.

No blackstrap to-night; switchel, or ginger pop. Judd.

2. Bad port wine; any common wine of the Mediterranean; -- so called by sailors.

Black"tail` (&?;), n. [Black + tail.] 1. (Zoöl.) A fish; the ruff or pope.

2. (Zoöl.) The black-tailed deer (Cervus or Cariacus Columbianus) of California and Oregon; also, the mule deer of the Rocky Mountains. See Mule deer.

Black"thorn` (&?;), n. (Bot.) (a) A spreading thorny shrub or small tree (Prunus spinosa), with blackish bark, and bearing little black plums, which are called sloes; the sloe. (b) A species of Cratægus or hawthorn (C. tomentosa). Both are used for hedges.

Black" vom"it (&?;). (Med.) A copious vomiting of dark-colored matter; or the substance so discharged; -- one of the most fatal symptoms in yellow fever.

{ Black" wash` (&?;) or Black"wash }, n. 1. (Med.) A lotion made by mixing calomel and lime water.

2. A wash that blackens, as opposed to whitewash; hence, figuratively, calumny.

To remove as far as he can the modern layers of black wash, and let the man himself, fair or foul, be seen. C. Kingsley.

Black"wood (&?;), n. A name given to several dark-colored timbers. The East Indian black wood is from the tree Dalbergia latifolia. Balfour.

Black"work` (&?;), n. Work wrought by blacksmiths; -- so called in distinction from that wrought by whitesmiths. Knight.

Blad"der (&?;), n. [OE. bladder, bleddre, AS. bl&?;dre, bl&?;ddre; akin to Icel. bla&?;ra, SW. bläddra, Dan. blære, D. blaar, OHG. bltara the bladder in the body of animals, G. blatter blister, bustule; all fr. the same root as AS. blwan, E. blow, to puff. See Blow to puff.]

1. (Anat.) A bag or sac in animals, which serves as the receptacle of some fluid; as, the urinary bladder; the gall bladder; -- applied especially to the urinary bladder, either within the animal, or when taken out and inflated with air.

2. Any vesicle or blister, especially if filled with air, or a thin, watery fluid.

3. (Bot.) A distended, membranaceous pericarp.

4. Anything inflated, empty, or unsound. "To swim with bladders of philosophy." Rochester.

Bladder nut, or Bladder tree (Bot.), a genus of plants (Staphylea) with bladderlike seed pods. -- Bladder pod (Bot.), a genus of low herbs (Vesicaria) with inflated seed pods. -- Bladdor senna (Bot.), a genus of shrubs (Colutea), with membranaceous, inflated pods. -- Bladder worm (Zoöl.), the larva of any species of tapeworm (Tænia), found in the flesh or other parts of animals. See Measle, Cysticercus. -- Bladder wrack (Bot.), the common black rock weed of the seacoast (Fucus nodosus and F. vesiculosus) -- called also bladder tangle. See Wrack.

Blad"der, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Bladdered (&?;); p. pr. & vb. n. Bladdering.] 1. To swell out like a bladder with air; to inflate. [Obs.] G. Fletcher.

2. To put up in bladders; as, bladdered lard.

Blad"der*wort` (&?;), n. (Bot.) A genus (Utricularia) of aquatic or marshy plants, which usually bear numerous vesicles in the divisions of the leaves. These serve as traps for minute animals. See Ascidium.

Blad"der*y (&?;), a. Having bladders; also, resembling a bladder.

Blade (bld), n. [OE. blade, blad, AS. blæd leaf; akin to OS., D., Dan., & Sw. blad, Icel. blað, OHG. blat, G. blatt, and perh. to L. folium, Gr. fy`llon. The root is prob. the same as that of AS. blwan, E. blow, to blossom. See Blow to blossom, and cf. Foil leaf of metal.]

1. Properly, the leaf, or flat part of the leaf, of any plant, especially of gramineous plants. The term is sometimes applied to the spire of grasses.

The crimson dulse . . . with its waving blade. Percival.

First the blade, then ear, after that the full corn in the ear. Mark iv. 28.

2. The cutting part of an instrument; as, the blade of a knife or a sword.

3. The broad part of an oar; also, one of the projecting arms of a screw propeller.

4. The scapula or shoulder blade.

5. pl. (Arch.) The principal rafters of a roof. Weale.

6. pl. (Com.) The four large shell plates on the sides, and the five large ones of the middle, of the carapace of the sea turtle, which yield the best tortoise shell. De Colange.

7. A sharp-witted, dashing, wild, or reckless, fellow; -- a word of somewhat indefinite meaning.

He saw a turnkey in a trice Fetter a troublesome blade. Coleridge.

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Blade (bld), v. t. To furnish with a blade.

Blade, v. i. To put forth or have a blade.

As sweet a plant, as fair a flower, is faded As ever in the Muses' garden bladed. P. Fletcher.

Blade"bone` (-bn`), n. The scapula. See Blade, 4.

Blad"ed (bld"d), a. 1. Having a blade or blades; as, a two-bladed knife.

Decking with liquid pearl the bladed grass. Shak.

2. Divested of blades; as, bladed corn.

3. (Min.) Composed of long and narrow plates, shaped like the blade of a knife.

Blade"fish` (&?;), n. (Zoöl.) A long, thin, marine fish of Europe (Trichiurus lepturus); the ribbon fish.

Blade"smith` (&?;), n. A sword cutler. [Obs.]

Blad"y (&?;), a. Consisting of blades. [R.] "Blady grass." Drayton.

Blæ (&?;), a. [See Blue.] Dark blue or bluish gray; lead-colored. [Scot.]

Blæ"ber*ry (&?;), n. [Blæ + berry; akin to Icel blber, Sw. bl&?;bär, D. blaabær. Cf. Blueberry.] The bilberry. [North of Eng. & Scot.]

||Blague (blg), n. [F.] Mendacious boasting; falsehood; humbug.

Blain (bln), n. [OE. blein, bleyn, AS. blgen; akin to Dan. blegn, D. blein; perh. fr. the same root as E. bladder. See Bladder.] 1. An inflammatory swelling or sore; a bulla, pustule, or blister.

Blotches and blains must all his flesh emboss. Milton.

2. (Far.) A bladder growing on the root of the tongue of a horse, against the windpipe, and stopping the breath.

Blam"a*ble (blm"*b'l), a. [Cf. F. blâmable.] Deserving of censure; faulty; culpable; reprehensible; censurable; blameworthy. -- Blam"a*ble*ness, n. -- Blam"a*bly (&?;), adv.

Blame (blm), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Blamed (blmd); p. pr. & vb. n. Blaming.] [OE. blamen, F. blâmer, OF. blasmer, fr. L. blasphemare to blaspheme, LL. also to blame, fr. Gr. blasfhmei^n to speak ill, to slander, to blaspheme, fr. bla`sfhmos evil speaking, perh, for blapsi`fhmos; bla`psis injury (fr. bla`ptein to injure) + fh`mh a saying, fr. fa`nai to say. Cf. Blaspheme, and see Fame.]

1. To censure; to express disapprobation of; to find fault with; to reproach.

We have none to blame but ourselves. Tillotson.

2. To bring reproach upon; to blemish. [Obs.]

She . . . blamed her noble blood. Spenser.

To blame, to be blamed, or deserving blame; in fault; as, the conductor was to blame for the accident.

You were to blame, I must be plain with you. Shak.

Blame, n. [OE. blame, fr. F. blâme, OF. blasme, fr. blâmer, OF. blasmer, to blame. See Blame, v.] 1. An expression of disapprobation fir something deemed to be wrong; imputation of fault; censure.

Let me bear the blame forever. Gen. xiiii. 9.

2. That which is deserving of censure or disapprobation; culpability; fault; crime; sin.

Holy and without blame before him in love. Eph. i. 4.

3. Hurt; injury. [Obs.] Spenser.

Syn. -- Censure; reprehension; condemnation; reproach; fault; sin; crime; wrongdoing.

Blame"ful (&?;), a. 1. Faulty; meriting blame. Shak.

2. Attributing blame or fault; implying or conveying censure; faultfinding; censorious. Chaucer.

-- Blame"ful*ly, adv. -- Blame"ful*ness, n.

Blame"less, a. Free from blame; without fault; innocent; guiltless; -- sometimes followed by of.

A bishop then must be blameless. 1 Tim. iii. 2.

Blameless still of arts that polish to deprave. Mallet.

We will be blameless of this thine oath. Josh. ii. 17.

Syn. -- Irreproachable; sinless; unblemished; inculpable. -- Blameless, Spotless, Faultless, Stainless. We speak of a thing as blameless when it is free from blame, or the just imputation of fault; as, a blameless life or character. The others are stronger. We speak of a thing as faultless, stainless, or spotless, only when we mean that it is absolutely without fault or blemish; as, a spotless or stainless reputation; a faultless course of conduct. The last three words apply only to the general character, while blameless may be used in reverence to particular points; as, in this transaction he was wholly blameless. We also apply faultless to personal appearance; as, a faultless figure; which can not be done in respect to any of the other words.

Blame"less*ly, adv. In a blameless manner.

Blame"less*ness, n. The quality or state of being blameless; innocence.

Blam"er (&?;), n. One who blames. Wyclif.

Blame"wor`thy (&?;), a. Deserving blame; culpable; reprehensible. -- Blame"wor`thi*ness, n.

Blan"card (&?;), n. [F., fr. blanc white.] A kind of linen cloth made in Normandy, the thread of which is partly blanches before it is woven.

Blanch (&?;), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Blanched (&?;); p. pr. & vb. n. Blanching.] [OE. blanchen, blaunchen, F. blanchir, fr. blanc white. See Blank, a.]

1. To take the color out of, and make white; to bleach; as, to blanch linen; age has blanched his hair.

2. (Gardening) To bleach by excluding the light, as the stalks or leaves of plants, by earthing them up or tying them together.

3. (Confectionery & Cookery) (a) To make white by removing the skin of, as by scalding; as, to blanch almonds. (b) To whiten, as the surface of meat, by plunging into boiling water and afterwards into cold, so as to harden the surface and retain the juices.

4. To give a white luster to (silver, before stamping, in the process of coining.).

5. To cover (sheet iron) with a coating of tin.

6. Fig.: To whiten; to give a favorable appearance to; to whitewash; to palliate.

Blanch over the blackest and most absurd things. Tillotson.

Syn. -- To Blanch, Whiten. To whiten is the generic term, denoting, to render white; as, to whiten the walls of a room. Usually (though not of necessity) this is supposed to be done by placing some white coloring matter in or upon the surface of the object in question. To blanch is to whiten by the removal of coloring matter; as, to blanch linen. So the cheek is blanched by fear, i. e., by the withdrawal of the blood, which leaves it white.

Blanch (&?;), v. i. To grow or become white; as, his cheek blanched with fear; the rose blanches in the sun.

[Bones] blanching on the grass. Tennyson.

Blanch, v. t. [See Blench.] 1. To avoid, as from fear; to evade; to leave unnoticed. [Obs.]

Ifs and ands to qualify the words of treason, whereby every man might express his malice and blanch his danger. Bacon.

I suppose you will not blanch Paris in your way. Reliq. Wot.

2. To cause to turn aside or back; as, to blanch a deer.

Blanch, v. i. To use evasion. [Obs.]

Books will speak plain, when counselors blanch. Bacon.

Blanch, n. (Mining) Ore, not in masses, but mixed with other minerals.

Blanch"er (&?;), n. One who, or that which, blanches or whitens; esp., one who anneals and cleanses money; also, a chemical preparation for this purpose.

Blanch"er, n. One who, or that which, frightens away or turns aside. [Obs.]

And Gynecia, a blancher, which kept the dearest deer from her. Sir P. Sidney.

And so even now hath he divers blanchers belonging to the market, to let and stop the light of the gospel. Latimer.

Blanch" hold`ing (&?;). (Scots Law) A mode of tenure by the payment of a small duty in white rent (silver) or otherwise.

Blanch*im"e*ter (&?;), n. [1st blanch + -meter.] An instrument for measuring the bleaching power of chloride of lime and potash; a chlorometer. Ure.

Blanc*mange" (&?;), n. [F. blancmanger, lit. white food; blanc white + manger to eat.] (Cookery) A preparation for desserts, etc., made from isinglass, sea moss, cornstarch, or other gelatinous or starchy substance, with mild, usually sweetened and flavored, and shaped in a mold.

Blanc*man"ger (&?;), n. [F. See Blancmange.] A sort of fricassee with white sauce, variously made of capon, fish, etc. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Bland (&?;), a. [L. blandus, of unknown origin.]

1. Mild; soft; gentle; smooth and soothing in manner; suave; as, a bland temper; bland persuasion; a bland sycophant. "Exhilarating vapor bland." Milton.

2. Having soft and soothing qualities; not drastic or irritating; not stimulating; as, a bland oil; a bland diet.

Blan*da"tion (&?;), n. [Cf. L. blanditia, blandities, fr. blandus. See Bland.] Flattery. [Obs.]

Blan*dil"o*quence (&?;), n. [L. blandiloquentia; blandus mild + loqui to speak.] Mild, flattering speech.

{ Blan*dil"o*quous (&?;), Blan*di*lo"qui*ous (&?;), } a. Fair-spoken; flattering.

Blan"dise (&?;), v. i. [Same word as Blandish.] To blandish any one. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Blan"dish (&?;), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Blandished (&?;); p. pr. & vb. n. Blandishing.] [OE. blaundisen, F. blandir, fr. L. blandiri, fr. blandus mild, flattering.] 1. To flatter with kind words or affectionate actions; to caress; to cajole.

2. To make agreeable and enticing.

Mustering all her wiles, With blandished parleys. Milton.

Blan"dish*er (&?;), n. One who uses blandishments.

Blan"dish*ment (&?;), n. [Cf. OF. blandissement.] The act of blandishing; a word or act expressive of affection or kindness, and tending to win the heart; soft words and artful caresses; cajolery; allurement.

Cowering low with blandishment. Milton.

Attacked by royal smiles, by female blandishments. Macaulay.

Bland"ly (&?;), adv. In a bland manner; mildly; suavely.

Bland"ness, n. The state or quality of being bland.

Blank (&?;), a. [OE. blank, blonc, blaunc, blaunche, fr. F. blanc, fem. blanche, fr. OHG. blanch shining, bright, white, G. blank; akin to E. blink, cf. also AS. blanc white. &?;98. See Blink, and cf. 1st Blanch.]

1. Of a white or pale color; without color.

To the blank moon Her office they prescribed. Milton.

2. Free from writing, printing, or marks; having an empty space to be filled in with some special writing; -- said of checks, official documents, etc.; as, blank paper; a blank check; a blank ballot.

3. Utterly confounded or discomfited.

Adam . . . astonied stood, and blank. Milton.

4. Empty; void; without result; fruitless; as, a blank space; a blank day.

5. Lacking characteristics which give variety; as, a blank desert; a blank wall; destitute of interests, affections, hopes, etc.; as, to live a blank existence; destitute of sensations; as, blank unconsciousness.

6. Lacking animation and intelligence, or their associated characteristics, as expression of face, look, etc.; expressionless; vacant. "Blank and horror-stricken faces." C. Kingsley.

The blank . . . glance of a half returned consciousness. G. Eliot.

7. Absolute; downright; unmixed; as, blank terror.

Blank bar (Law), a plea put in to oblige the plaintiff in an action of trespass to assign the certain place where the trespass was committed; -- called also common bar. -- Blank cartridge, a cartridge containing no ball. -- Blank deed. See Deed. -- Blank door, or Blank window (Arch.), a depression in a wall of the size of a door or window, either for symmetrical effect, or for the more convenient insertion of a door or window at a future time, should it be needed. -- Blank indorsement (Law), an indorsement which omits the name of the person in whose favor it is made; it is usually made by simply writing the name of the indorser on the back of the bill. -- Blank line (Print.), a vacant space of the breadth of a line, on a printed page; a line of quadrats. -- Blank tire (Mech.), a tire without a flange. -- Blank tooling. See Blind tooling, under Blind. -- Blank verse. See under Verse. -- Blank wall, a wall in which there is no opening; a dead wall.

Blank (&?;), n. 1. Any void space; a void space on paper, or in any written instrument; an interval void of consciousness, action, result, etc; a void.

I can not write a paper full, I used to do; and yet I will not forgive a blank of half an inch from you. Swift.

From this time there ensues a long blank in the history of French legislation. Hallam.

I was ill. I can't tell how long -- it was a blank. G. Eliot.

2. A lot by which nothing is gained; a ticket in a lottery on which no prize is indicated.

In Fortune's lottery lies A heap of blanks, like this, for one small prize. Dryden.

3. A paper unwritten; a paper without marks or characters a blank ballot; -- especially, a paper on which are to be inserted designated items of information, for which spaces are left vacant; a bland form.

The freemen signified their approbation by an inscribed vote, and their dissent by a blank. Palfrey.

4. A paper containing the substance of a legal instrument, as a deed, release, writ, or execution, with spaces left to be filled with names, date, descriptions, etc.

5. The point aimed at in a target, marked with a white spot; hence, the object to which anything is directed.

Let me still remain The true blank of thine eye. Shak.

6. Aim; shot; range. [Obs.]

I have stood . . . within the blank of his displeasure For my free speech. Shak.

7. A kind of base silver money, first coined in England by Henry V., and worth about 8 pence; also, a French coin of the seventeenth century, worth about 4 pence. Nares.

8. (Mech.) A piece of metal prepared to be made into something by a further operation, as a coin, screw, nuts.

9. (Dominoes) A piece or division of a piece, without spots; as, the "double blank"; the "six blank."

In blank, with an essential portion to be supplied by another; as, to make out a check in blank.

Blank, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Blanked (&?;); p. pr. & vb. n. Blanking.] [Cf. 3d Blanch.] 1. To make void; to annul. [Obs.] Spenser.

2. To blanch; to make blank; to damp the spirits of; to dispirit or confuse. [Obs.]

Each opposite that blanks the face of joy. Shak.

Blan"ket (&?;), n. [F. blanchet, OF. also blanket, a woolen waistcoat or shirt, the blanket of a printing press; prop. white woolen stuff, dim. of blanc white; blanquette a kind of white pear, fr. blanc white. See Blank, a.] 1. A heavy, loosely woven fabric, usually of wool, and having a nap, used in bed clothing; also, a similar fabric used as a robe; or any fabric used as a cover for a horse.

2. (Print.) A piece of rubber, felt, or woolen cloth, used in the tympan to make it soft and elastic.

3. A streak or layer of blubber in whales.

The use of blankets formerly as curtains in theaters explains the following figure of Shakespeare. Nares.

Nor heaven peep through the blanket of the dark To cry, "Hold, hold!" Shak.

Blanket sheet, a newspaper of folio size. -- A wet blanket, anything which damps, chills, dispirits, or discour&?;ges.

Blan"ket, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Blanketed; p. pr. & vb. n. Blanketing.] 1. To cover with a blanket.

I'll . . . blanket my loins. Shak.

2. To toss in a blanket by way of punishment.

We'll have our men blanket 'em i' the hall. B. Jonson.

3. To take the wind out of the sails of (another vessel) by sailing to windward of her.

Blanket cattle. See Belted cattle, under Belted.

Blan"ket*ing, n. 1. Cloth for blankets.

2. The act or punishment of tossing in a blanket.

That affair of the blanketing happened to thee for the fault thou wast guilty of. Smollett.

Blank"ly (&?;), adv. 1. In a blank manner; without expression; vacuously; as, to stare blankly. G. Eliot.

2. Directly; flatly; point blank. De Quincey.

Blank"ness, n. The state of being blank.