Chapter 2

Canst thou so daff me? Thou hast killed my child.

Shak.

Daff, n. [See Daft.] A stupid, blockish fellow; a numskull. [Obs.] Chaucer.

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Daff (df), v. i. To act foolishly; to be foolish or sportive; to toy. [Scot.] Jamieson.

Daff, v. t. To daunt. [Prov. Eng.] Grose.

Daf"fo*dil (df"f*dl), n. [OE. affodylle, prop., the asphodel, fr. LL. affodillus (cf. D. affodille or OF. asphodile, aphodille, F. asphodèle), L. asphodelus, fr. Gr. 'asfo`delos. The initial d in English is not satisfactorily explained. See Asphodel.] (Bot.) (a) A plant of the genus Asphodelus. (b) A plant of the genus Narcissus (N. Pseudo-narcissus). It has a bulbous root and beautiful flowers, usually of a yellow hue. Called also daffodilly, daffadilly, daffadowndilly, daffydowndilly, etc.

With damask roses and daffadillies set.

Spenser.

Strow me the ground with daffadowndillies, And cowslips, and kingcups, and loved lilies.

Spenser.

A college gown That clad her like an April daffodilly.

Tennyson

And chance-sown daffodil.

Whittier.

Daft (dft), a. [OE. daft, deft, deft, stupid; prob. the same word as E. deft. See Deft.] 1. Stupid; foolish; idiotic; also, delirious; insane; as, he has gone daft.

Let us think no more of this daft business

Sir W. Scott.

2. Gay; playful; frolicsome. [Scot.] Jamieson.

Daft"ness, n. The quality of being daft.

Dag (dg), n. [Cf. F. dague, LL. daga, D. dagge (fr. French); all prob. fr. Celtic; Cf. Gael. dag a pistol, Armor. dag dagger, W. dager, dagr, Ir. daigear. Cf. Dagger.] 1. A dagger; a poniard. [Obs.] Johnson.

2. A large pistol formerly used. [Obs.]

The Spaniards discharged their dags, and hurt some.

Foxe.

A sort of pistol, called dag, was used about the same time as hand guns and harquebuts.

Grose.

3. (Zoöl.) The unbranched antler of a young deer.

Dag, n. [Of Scand. origin; cf. Sw. dagg, Icel. dögg. &radic;71. See Dew.] A misty shower; dew. [Obs.]

Dag, n. [OE. dagge (cf. Dagger); or cf. AS. dg what is dangling.] A loose end; a dangling shred.

Daglocks, clotted locks hanging in dags or jags at a sheep's tail.

Wedgwood.

Dag, v. t. [1, from Dag dew. 2, from Dag a loose end.] 1. To daggle or bemire. [Prov. Eng.] Johnson.

2. To cut into jags or points; to slash; as, to dag a garment. [Obs.] Wright.

Dag, v. i. To be misty; to drizzle. [Prov. Eng.]

Dag"ger (-gr), n. [Cf. OE. daggen to pierce, F. daguer. See Dag a dagger.] 1. A short weapon used for stabbing. This is the general term: cf. Poniard, Stiletto, Bowie knife, Dirk, Misericorde, Anlace.

2. (Print.) A mark of reference in the form of a dagger [&dagger;]. It is the second in order when more than one reference occurs on a page; -- called also obelisk.

Dagger moth (Zoöl.), any moth of the genus Apatalea. The larvæ are often destructive to the foliage of fruit trees, etc. -- Dagger of lath, the wooden weapon given to the Vice in the old Moralities. Shak. -- Double dagger, a mark of reference [&Dagger;] which comes next in order after the dagger. -- To look, or speak, daggers, to look or speak fiercely or reproachfully.

Dag"ger, v. t. To pierce with a dagger; to stab. [Obs.]

Dag"ger, n. [Perh. from diagonal.] A timber placed diagonally in a ship's frame. Knight.

Dagges (dgz), n. pl. [OE. See Dag a loose end.] An ornamental cutting of the edges of garments, introduced about a. d. 1346, according to the Chronicles of St Albans. [Obs.] Halliwell.

Dag"gle (dg"g'l), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Daggled (-g'ld); p. pr. & vb. n. Daggling (-glng).] [Freq. of dag, v. t., 1.] To trail, so as to wet or befoul; to make wet and limp; to moisten.

The warrior's very plume, I say, Was daggled by the dashing spray.

Sir W. Scott.

Dag"gle, v. i. To run, go, or trail one's self through water, mud, or slush; to draggle.

Nor, like a puppy [have I] daggled through the town.

Pope.

{ Dag"gle-tail` (dg"g'l-tl`), Dag"gle- tailed` (-tld`), } a. Having the lower ends of garments defiled by trailing in mire or filth; draggle- tailed.

Dag"gle-tail` (-tl`), n. A slovenly woman; a slattern; a draggle-tail.

Dag"lock` (-lk`), n. [Dag a loose end + lock.] A dirty or clotted lock of wool on a sheep; a taglock.

Da"go (d"g), n.; pl. Dagos (-gz). [Cf. Sp. Diego, E. James.] A nickname given to a person of Spanish (or, by extension, Portuguese or Italian) descent. [U. S.]

||Da*go"ba (d*g"b), n. [Singhalese dgoba.] A dome- shaped structure built over relics of Buddha or some Buddhist saint. [East Indies]

Da"gon (d"gn), [Heb. Dgon, fr. dag a fish: cf. Gr. Dagw`n.] The national god of the Philistines, represented with the face and hands and upper part of a man, and the tail of a fish. W. Smith.

This day a solemn feast the people hold To Dagon, their sea idol.

Milton.

They brought it into the house of Dagon.

1 Sam. v. 2.

Dag"on (dg"n), n. [See Dag a loose end.] A slip or piece. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Dag"swain` (?), n. [From Dag a loose end?] A coarse woolen fabric made of daglocks, or the refuse of wool. "Under coverlets made of dagswain." Holinshed.

Dag"-tailed` (?), a. [Dag a loose end + tail.] Daggle-tailed; having the tail clogged with daglocks. "Dag-tailed sheep." Bp. Hall.

{ Da*guer"re*an (d*gr"*an), Da*guerre"i*an (?), } a. Pertaining to Daguerre, or to his invention of the daguerreotype.

Da*guerre"o*type (d*gr"*tp), n. [From Daguerre the inventor + - type.] 1. An early variety of photograph, produced on a silver plate, or copper plate covered with silver, and rendered sensitive by the action of iodine, or iodine and bromine, on which, after exposure in the camera, the latent image is developed by the vapor of mercury.

2. The process of taking such pictures.

Da*guerre"o*type (d*gr"*tp), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Daguerreotyped (-tpt); p. pr. & vb. n. Daguerreotyping (-t`png).] 1. To produce or represent by the daguerreotype process, as a picture.

2. To impress with great distinctness; to imprint; to imitate exactly.

{ Da*guerre"o*ty`per (?), Da*guerre"o*ty`pist (?), } n. One who takes daguerreotypes.

Da*guerre"o*ty`py (?), n. The art or process of producing pictures by method of Daguerre.

||Da`ha*be"ah (dä`h*b"), n. [Ar.] A Nile boat constructed on the model of a floating house, having large lateen sails.

Dah"lia (däl"y or dl"y; 277, 106), n.; pl. Dahlias (#). [Named after Andrew Dahl a Swedish botanist.] (Bot.) A genus of plants native to Mexico and Central America, of the order Compositæ; also, any plant or flower of the genus. The numerous varieties of cultivated dahlias bear conspicuous flowers which differ in color.

Dah"lin (dä"ln), n. [From Dahlia.] (Chem.) A variety of starch extracted from the dahlia; -- called also inulin. See Inulin.

Dai"li*ness (?), n. Daily occurence. [R.]

Dai"ly (d"l), a. [AS. dæglc; dæg day + -lc like. See Day.] Happening, or belonging to, each successive day; diurnal; as, daily labor; a daily bulletin.

Give us this day our daily bread.

Matt. vi. 11.

Bunyan has told us . . . that in New England his dream was the daily subject of the conversation of thousands.

Macaulay.

Syn. -- Daily, Diurnal. Daily is Anglo-Saxon, and diurnal is Latin. The former is used in reference to the ordinary concerns of life; as, daily wants, daily cares, daily employments. The latter is appropriated chiefly by astronomers to what belongs to the astronomical day; as, the diurnal revolution of the earth.

Man hath his daily work of body or mind Appointed, which declares his dignity, And the regard of Heaven on all his ways.

Milton.

Half yet remains unsung, but narrower bound Within the visible diurnal sphere.

Milton.

Dai"ly, n.; pl. Dailies (&?;). A publication which appears regularly every day; as, the morning dailies.

Dai"ly, adv. Every day; day by day; as, a thing happens daily.

Dai"mi*o (?), n.; pl. Daimios (#). [Jap., fr. Chin. tai ming great name.] The title of the feudal nobles of Japan.

The daimios, or territorial nobles, resided in Yedo and were divided into four classes.

Am. Cyc.

Daint (?), n. [See Dainty, n.] Something of exquisite taste; a dainty. [Obs.] -- a. Dainty. [Obs.]

To cherish him with diets daint.

Spenser.

Dain"ti*fy (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Daintified (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Daintifying.] [Dainty + -fy.] To render dainty, delicate, or fastidious. "Daintified emotion." Sat. rev.

Dain"ti*ly, adv. In a dainty manner; nicely; scrupulously; fastidiously; deliciously; prettily.

Dain"ti*ness, n. The quality of being dainty; nicety; niceness; elegance; delicacy; deliciousness; fastidiousness; squeamishness.

The daintiness and niceness of our captains

Hakluyt.

More notorious for the daintiness of the provision . . . than for the massiveness of the dish.

Hakewill.

The duke exeeded in the daintiness of his leg and foot, and the earl in the fine shape of his hands,

Sir H. Wotton.

Dain"trel (?), n. [From daint or dainty; cf. OF. daintier.] Adelicacy. [Obs.] Halliwell.

Dain"ty (?), n.; pl. Dainties (#). [OE. deinie, dainte, deintie, deyntee, OF. deintié delicacy, orig., dignity, honor, fr. L. dignitas, fr. dignus worthy. See Deign, and cf. Dignity.] 1. Value; estimation; the gratification or pleasure taken in anything. [Obs.]

I ne told no deyntee of her love.

Chaucer.

2. That which is delicious or delicate; a delicacy.

That precious nectar may the taste renew Of Eden's dainties, by our parents lost.

Beau. & Fl.

3. A term of fondness. [Poetic] B. Jonson.

Syn. -- Dainty, Delicacy. These words are here compared as denoting articles of food. The term delicacy as applied to a nice article of any kind, and hence to articles of food which are particularly attractive. Dainty is stronger, and denotes some exquisite article of cookery. A hotel may be provided with all the delicacies of the season, and its table richly covered with dainties.

These delicacies I mean of taste, sight, smell, herbs, fruits, and flowers, Walks and the melody of birds.

Milton.

[A table] furnished plenteously with bread, And dainties, remnants of the last regale.

Cowper.

Dain"ty, a. [Compar. Daintier (?); superl. Daintiest.] 1. Rare; valuable; costly. [Obs.]

Full many a deynté horse had he in stable.

Chaucer.

Hence the proverb "dainty maketh dearth," i. e., rarity makes a thing dear or precious.

2. Delicious to the palate; toothsome.

Dainty bits Make rich the ribs.

Shak.

3. Nice; delicate; elegant, in form, manner, or breeding; well-formed; neat; tender.

Those dainty limbs which nature lent For gentle usage and soft delicacy.

Milton.

I would be the girdle. About her dainty, dainty waist.

Tennyson.

4. Requiring dainties. Hence: Overnice; hard to please; fastidious; squeamish; scrupulous; ceremonious.

Thew were a fine and dainty people.

Bacon.

And let us not be dainty of leave-taking, But shift away.

Shak.

To make dainty, to assume or affect delicacy or fastidiousness. [Obs.]

Ah ha, my mistresses! which of you all Will now deny to dance? She that makes dainty, She, I'll swear, hath corns.

Shak.

Dai"ry (d"r), n.; pl. Dairies (-rz). [OE. deierie, from deie, daie, maid; of Scand. origin; cf. Icel. deigja maid, dairymaid, Sw. deja, orig., a baking maid, fr. Icel. deig. &radic;66. See Dough.] 1. The place, room, or house where milk is kept, and converted into butter or cheese.

What stores my dairies and my folds contain.

Dryden.

2. That department of farming which is concerned in the production of milk, and its conversion into butter and cheese.

Grounds were turned much in England either to feeding or dairy; and this advanced the trade of English butter.

Temple.

3. A dairy farm. [R.]

Dairy is much used adjectively or in combination; as, dairy farm, dairy countries, dairy house or dairyhouse, dairyroom, dairywork, etc.

Dai"ry*ing, n. The business of conducting a dairy.

Dai"ry*maid` (?), n. A female servant whose business is the care of the dairy.

Dai"ry*man (?), n.; pl. Dairymen (&?;). A man who keeps or takes care of a dairy.

Dai"ry*wom`an (?), n.; pl. Dairywomen (&?;). A woman who attends to a dairy.

Da"is (d"s), n. [OE. deis, des, table, dais, OF. deis table, F. dais a canopy, L. discus a quoit, a dish (from the shape), LL., table, fr. Gr. &?; a quoit, a dish. See Dish.] 1. The high or principal table, at the end of a hall, at which the chief guests were seated; also, the chief seat at the high table. [Obs.]

2. A platform slightly raised above the floor of a hall or large room, giving distinction to the table and seats placed upon it for the chief guests.

3. A canopy over the seat of a person of dignity. [Obs.] Shiply.

Dai"sied (?), a. Full of daisies; adorned with daisies. "The daisied green." Langhorne.

The grass all deep and daisied.

G. Eliot.

Dai"sy (-z), n.; pl. Daisies (-zz). [OE. dayesye, AS. dæges-eáge day's eye, daisy. See Day, and Eye.] (Bot.) (a) A genus of low herbs (Bellis), belonging to the family Compositæ. The common English and classical daisy is B. perennis, which has a yellow disk and white or pinkish rays. (b) The whiteweed (Chrysanthemum Leucanthemum), the plant commonly called daisy in North America; -- called also oxeye daisy. See Whiteweed.

The word daisy is also used for composite plants of other genera, as Erigeron, or fleabane.

Michaelmas daisy (Bot.), any plant of the genus Aster, of which there are many species. -- Oxeye daisy (Bot.), the whiteweed. See Daisy (b).

Dak (dk or däk), n. [Hind. k.] Post; mail; also, the mail or postal arrangements; -- spelt also dawk, and dauk. [India]

Dak boat, a mail boat. Percy Smith. -- Dak bungalow, a traveler's rest- house at the end of a dak stage. -- To travel by dak, to travel by relays of palanquins or other carriage, as fast as the post along a road.

{ Da"ker (?), Da"kir (?), } n. [See Dicker.] (O. Eng. & Scots Law) A measure of certain commodities by number, usually ten or twelve, but sometimes twenty; as, a daker of hides consisted of ten skins; a daker of gloves of ten pairs. Burrill.

Da"ker hen` (?). [Perh. fr. W. crecial the daker hen; crec a sharp noise (creg harsh, hoarse, crechian to scream) + iar hen; or cf. D. duiken to dive, plunge.] (Zoöl.) The corncrake or land rail.

Da*koit", n., Da*koit"y, n. See Dacoit, Dacoity.

Da*ko"ta group` (?). (Geol.) A subdivision at the base of the cretaceous formation in Western North America; -- so named from the region where the strata were first studied.

Da*ko"tas (?), n. pl.; sing. Dacota (&?;). (Ethnol.) An extensive race or stock of Indians, including many tribes, mostly dwelling west of the Mississippi River; -- also, in part, called Sioux. [Written also Dacotahs.]

||Dal (?), n. [Hind.] Split pulse, esp. of Cajanus Indicus. [East Indies]

Dale (?), n. [AS. dæl; akin to LG., D., Sw., Dan., OS., & Goth. dal, Icel. dalr, OHG. tal, G. thal, and perh. to Gr. qo`los a rotunda, Skr. dhra depth. Cf. Dell.] 1. A low place between hills; a vale or valley.

Where mountaines rise, umbrageous dales descend.

Thomson.

2. A trough or spout to carry off water, as from a pump. Knight.

Dales"man (?), n.; pl. Dalesmen (&?;). One living in a dale; -- a term applied particularly to the inhabitants of the valleys in the north of England, Norway, etc. Macaulay.

Dalf (?), imp. of Delve. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Dal"li*ance (?), n. [From Dally.] 1. The act of dallying, trifling, or fondling; interchange of caresses; wanton play.

Look thou be true, do not give dalliance Too much the rein.

Shak.

O, the dalliance and the wit, The flattery and the strife!

Tennyson.

2. Delay or procrastination. Shak.

3. Entertaining discourse. [Obs.] Chaucer.

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Dal"li*er (?), n. One who fondles; a trifler; as, dalliers with pleasant words. Asham.

Dal"lop (dl"lp), n. [Etymol. unknown.] A tuft or clump. [Obs.] Tusser.

Dal"ly (-l), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Dallied (-ld); p. pr. & vb. n. Dallying.] [OE. dalien, dailien; cf. Icel. pylja to talk, G. dallen, dalen, dahlen, to trifle, talk nonsense, OSw. tule a droll or funny man; or AS. dol foolish, E. dull.] 1. To waste time in effeminate or voluptuous pleasures, or in idleness; to fool away time; to delay unnecessarily; to tarry; to trifle.

We have trifled too long already; it is madness to dally any longer.

Calamy.

We have put off God, and dallied with his grace.

Barrow.

2. To interchange caresses, especially with one of the opposite sex; to use fondling; to wanton; to sport.

Not dallying with a brace of courtesans.

Shak.

Our aerie . . . dallies with the wind.

Shak.

Dal"ly, v. t. To delay unnecessarily; to while away.

Dallying off the time with often skirmishes.

Knolles.

||Dal*ma"ni*a (?), n. [From Dalman, the geologist.] (Paleon.) A genus of trilobites, of many species, common in the Upper Silurian and Devonian rocks.

||Dal`ma*ni"tes (?), n. Same as Dalmania.

Dal*ma"tian (?), a. Of or pertaining to Dalmatia.

Dalmatian dog (Zoöl.), a carriage dog, shaped like a pointer, and having black or bluish spots on a white ground; the coach dog.

Dal*mat"i*ca (?), n., Dal*mat"ic (&?;), n. [LL. dalmatica: cf. F. dalmatique.] 1. (R. C. Ch.) A vestment with wide sleeves, and with two stripes, worn at Mass by deacons, and by bishops at pontifical Mass; -- imitated from a dress originally worn in Dalmatia.

2. A robe worn on state ocasions, as by English kings at their coronation.

||Dal` se"gno (?). [It., from the sign.] (Mus.) A direction to go back to the sign &?; and repeat from thence to the close. See Segno.

Dal*to"ni*an (?), n. One afflicted with color blindness.

Dal"ton*ism (?), n. Inability to perceive or distinguish certain colors, esp. red; color blindness. It has various forms and degrees. So called from the chemist Dalton, who had this infirmity. Nichol.

Dam (dm), n. [OE. dame mistress, lady; also, mother, dam. See Dame.] 1. A female parent; -- used of beasts, especially of quadrupeds; sometimes applied in contempt to a human mother.

Our sire and dam, now confined to horses, are a relic of this age (13th century) . . . .Dame is used of a hen; we now make a great difference between dame and dam.

T. L. K. Oliphant.

The dam runs lowing up and down, Looking the way her harmless young one went.

Shak.

2. A king or crowned piece in the game of draughts.

Dam, n. [Akin to OLG., D., & Dan. dam, G. & Sw. damm, Icel. dammr, and AS. fordemman to stop up, Goth. Faúrdammjan.] 1. A barrier to prevent the flow of a liquid; esp., a bank of earth, or wall of any kind, as of masonry or wood, built across a water course, to confine and keep back flowing water.

2. (Metal.) A firebrick wall, or a stone, which forms the front of the hearth of a blast furnace.

Dam plate (Blast Furnace), an iron plate in front of the dam, to strengthen it.

Dam, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dammed (dmd); p. pr. & vb. n. Damming.] 1. To obstruct or restrain the flow of, by a dam; to confine by constructing a dam, as a stream of water; -- generally used with in or up.

I'll have the current in this place dammed up.

Shak.

A weight of earth that dams in the water.

Mortimer.

2. To shut up; to stop up; to close; to restrain.

The strait pass was dammed With dead men hurt behind, and cowards.

Shak.

To dam out, to keep out by means of a dam.

Dam"age (dm"j; 48), n. [OF. damage, domage, F. dommage, fr. assumed LL. damnaticum, from L. damnum damage. See Damn.] 1. Injury or harm to person, property, or reputation; an inflicted loss of value; detriment; hurt; mischief.

He that sendeth a message by the hand of a fool cutteth off the feet and drinketh damage.

Prov. xxvi. 6.

Great errors and absurdities many commit for want of a friend to tell them of them, to the great damage both of their fame and fortune.

Bacon.

2. pl. (Law) The estimated reparation in money for detriment or injury sustained; a compensation, recompense, or satisfaction to one party, for a wrong or injury actually done to him by another.

In common-law actions, the jury are the proper judges of damages.

Consequential damage. See under Consequential. -- Exemplary damages (Law), damages imposed by way of example to others. - - Nominal damages (Law), those given for a violation of a right where no actual loss has accrued. -- Vindictive damages, those given specially for the punishment of the wrongdoer.

Syn. -- Mischief; injury; harm; hurt; detriment; evil; ill. See Mischief.

Dam"age, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Damaged (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Damaging (?).] [Cf. OF. damagier, domagier. See Damage, n.] To occasion damage to the soundness, goodness, or value of; to hurt; to injure; to impair.

He . . . came up to the English admiral and gave him a broadside, with which he killed many of his men and damaged the ship.

Clarendon.

Dam"age (dm"j), v. i. To receive damage or harm; to be injured or impaired in soundness or value; as, some colors in cloth damage in sunlight.

Dam"age*a*ble (?), a. [Cf. OF. damageable, F. dommageable for sense 2.] 1. Capable of being injured or impaired; liable to, or susceptible of, damage; as, a damageable cargo.

2. Hurtful; pernicious. [R.]

That it be not damageable unto your royal majesty.

Hakluyt.

Dam"age fea`sant (?). [OF. damage + F. faisant doing, p. pr. See Feasible.] (Law) Doing injury; trespassing, as cattle. Blackstone.

Da"man (dä"mn), n. (Zoöl.) A small herbivorous mammal of the genus Hyrax. The species found in Palestine and Syria is Hyrax Syriacus; that of Northern Africa is H. Brucei; -- called also ashkoko, dassy, and rock rabbit. See Cony, and Hyrax.

Dam"ar (?), n. See Dammar.

Dam"as*cene (dm"as*sn), a. [L. Damascenus of Damascus, fr. Damascus the city, Gr. Damasko`s. See Damask, and cf. Damaskeen, Damaskin, Damson.] Of or relating to Damascus.

Dam"as*cene (dm"as*sn), n. A kind of plum, now called damson. See Damson.

Dam`as*cene" (dm`as*sn"), v. t. Same as Damask, or Damaskeen, v. t. "Damascened armor." Beaconsfield. "Cast and damascened steel." Ure.

Da*mas"cus (?), n. [L.] A city of Syria.

Damascus blade, a sword or scimiter, made chiefly at Damascus, having a variegated appearance of watering, and proverbial for excellence. -- Damascus iron, or Damascus twist, metal formed of thin bars or wires of iron and steel elaborately twisted and welded together; used for making gun barrels, etc., of high quality, in which the surface, when polished and acted upon by acid, has a damask appearance. -- Damascus steel. See Damask steel, under Damask, a.

Dam"ask (dm"ask), n. [From the city Damascus, L. Damascus, Gr. Damasko`s, Heb. Dammesq, Ar. Daemeshq; cf. Heb. d'meseq damask; cf. It. damasco, Sp. damasco, F. damas. Cf. Damascene, DamassÉ.] 1. Damask silk; silk woven with an elaborate pattern of flowers and the like. "A bed of ancient damask." W. Irving.

2. Linen so woven that a pattern in produced by the different directions of the thread, without contrast of color.

3. A heavy woolen or worsted stuff with a pattern woven in the same way as the linen damask; -- made for furniture covering and hangings.

4. Damask or Damascus steel; also, the peculiar markings or "water" of such steel.

5. A deep pink or rose color. Fairfax.

Dam"ask, a. 1. Pertaining to, or originating at, the city of Damascus; resembling the products or manufactures of Damascus.

2. Having the color of the damask rose.

But let concealment, like a worm i' the bud, Feed on her damask cheek.

Shak.

Damask color, a deep rose-color like that of the damask rose. -- Damask plum, a small dark-colored plum, generally called damson. -- Damask rose (Bot.), a large, pink, hardy, and very fragrant variety of rose (Rosa damascena) from Damascus. "Damask roses have not been known in England above one hundred years." Bacon. -- Damask steel, or Damascus steel, steel of the kind originally made at Damascus, famous for its hardness, and its beautiful texture, ornamented with waving lines; especially, that which is inlaid with damaskeening; -- formerly much valued for sword blades, from its great flexibility and tenacity.