Chapter 87

Lime twig. See under 4th Lime.

Lime"-twigged` (-twgd`), a. Beset with snares; insnared, as with birdlime. L. Addison.

Lime"wa`ter (-w`tr), n. Water impregnated with lime; esp., an artificial solution of lime for medicinal purposes.

||Li*mic"o*læ (l*mk"*l), n. pl. [L. limicola a dweller in the mud; ||limus mud + colere to dwell.] (Zoöl.) A group of shore birds, ||embracing the plovers, sandpipers, snipe, curlew, etc.; the Grallæ. || Li*mic"o*line (-ln), a. (Zoöl.) Shore-inhabiting; of or pertaining to the Limicolæ.

Lim"i*ness (lm"*ns), n. The state or quality of being limy.

Lim"it (lm"t), n. [From L. limes, limitis: cf. F. limite; or from E. limit, v. See Limit, v. t.] 1. That which terminates, circumscribes, restrains, or confines; the bound, border, or edge; the utmost extent; as, the limit of a walk, of a town, of a country; the limits of human knowledge or endeavor.

As eager of the chase, the maid Beyond the forest's verdant limits strayed.

Pope.

2. The space or thing defined by limits.

The archdeacon hath divided it Into three limits very equally.

Shak.

3. That which terminates a period of time; hence, the period itself; the full time or extent.

The dateless limit of thy dear exile.

Shak.

The limit of your lives is out.

Shak.

4. A restriction; a check; a curb; a hindrance.

I prithee, give no limits to my tongue.

Shak.

5. (Logic & Metaph.) A determining feature; a distinguishing characteristic; a differentia.

6. (Math.) A determinate quantity, to which a variable one continually approaches, and may differ from it by less than any given difference, but to which, under the law of variation, the variable can never become exactly equivalent.

Elastic limit. See under Elastic. -- Prison limits, a definite extent of space in or around a prison, within which a prisoner has liberty to go and come.

Syn. -- Boundary; border; edge; termination; restriction; bound; confine.

Lim"it (lm"t), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Limited; p. pr. & vb. n. Limiting.] [F. limiter, L. limitare, fr. limes, limitis, limit; prob. akin to limen threshold, E. eliminate; cf. L. limus sidelong.] To apply a limit to, or set a limit for; to terminate, circumscribe, or restrict, by a limit or limits; as, to limit the acreage of a crop; to limit the issue of paper money; to limit one's ambitions or aspirations; to limit the meaning of a word.

Limiting parallels (Astron.), those parallels of latitude between which only an occultation of a star or planet by the moon, in a given case, can occur.

Lim"it, v. i. To beg, or to exercise functions, within a certain limited region; as, a limiting friar. [Obs.]

Lim"it*a*ble (-*b'l), a. Capable of being limited.

Lim`i*ta"ne*ous (lm`*t"n*s), a. [L. limitaneus. See Limit, v. t.] Of or pertaining to a limit. [Obs.]

Lim`i*ta"ri*an (-r*an), a. Tending to limit.

Lim"i*ta*ry (lm"*t*r), a. [L. limitaris. See Limit , v. t.] 1. Placed at the limit, as a guard. "Proud limitary cherub." Milton.

2. Confined within limits; limited in extent, authority, power, etc. "The limitary ocean." Trench.

The poor, limitary creature calling himself a man of the world.

De Quincey.

3. Limiting, or tending to limit; restrictive.

Doctrines limitary, if not subversive of the papal power.

Milman.

Lim"i*ta*ry, n.; pl. - ries (-rz). 1. That which serves to limit; a boundary; border land. [Obs.] Fuller.

2. A limiter. See Limiter, 2.

Lim"i*tate (-*tt), a. [L. limitatus, p. p. of limitare to limit. See Limit, v. t. ] Bounded by a distinct line.

Lim`i*ta"tion (-t"shn), n. [L. limitatio: cf. F. limitation. See Limit, v. t.] 1. The act of limiting; the state or condition of being limited; as, the limitation of his authority was approved by the council.

They had no right to mistake the limitation . . . of their own faculties, for an inherent limitation of the possible modes of existence in the universe.

J. S. Mill.

2. That which limits; a restriction; a qualification; a restraining condition, defining circumstance, or qualifying conception; as, limitations of thought.

The cause of error is ignorance what restraints and limitations all principles have in regard of the matter whereunto they are applicable.

Hooker.

3. A certain precinct within which friars were allowed to beg, or exercise their functions; also, the time during which they were permitted to exercise their functions in such a district. Chaucer. Latimer.

4. A limited time within or during which something is to be done.

You have stood your limitation, and the tribunes Endue you with the people's voice.

Shak.

5. (Law) (a) A certain period limited by statute after which the claimant shall not enforce his claims by suit. (b) A settling of an estate or property by specific rules. (c) A restriction of power; as, a constitutional limitation. Wharton. Bouvier.

To know one's own limitations, to know the reach and limits of one's abilities. A. R. Wallace.

Lim"it*ed (lm"t*d), a. Confined within limits; narrow; circumscribed; restricted; as, our views of nature are very limited.

Limited company, a company in which the liability of each shareholder is limited by the number of shares he has taken, so that he can not be called on to contribute beyond the amount of his shares. [Eng.] Mozley & W.

Lim"it*ed*ly, adv. With limitation.

Lim"it*ed*ness, n. The quality of being limited.

Lim"it*er (-r), n. 1. One who, or that which, limits.

2. A friar licensed to beg within certain bounds, or whose duty was limited to a certain district. [Formerly written also limitour.] Chaucer.

A limitour of the Gray Friars, in the time of his limitation, preached many times, and had but one sermon at all times.

Latimer.

Lim"it*ive (-v), a. Involving a limit; as, a limitive law, one designed to limit existing powers. [R.]

Lim"it*less, a. Having no limits; unbounded; boundless. Davies (Wit's Pilgr.).

Lim"it*our (-r), n. See Limiter, 2.

Lim"mer (-mr), a. Limber. [Obs.] Holland.

Lim"mer, n. [F. limier. See Leamer.] 1. A limehound; a leamer.

2. (Zoöl.) A mongrel, as a cross between the mastiff and hound.

3. A low, base fellow; also, a prostitute. [Scot.]

Thieves, limmers, and broken men of the Highlands.

Sir W. Scott.

4. (Naut.) A man rope at the side of a ladder.

Limn (lm), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Limned (lmd); p. pr. & vb. n. Limning (lm"nng or lm"ng).] [OE. limnen, fr. luminen, for enluminen, F. enluminer to illuminate, to limn, LL. illuminare to paint. √122. See Illuminate, Luminous.] 1. To draw or paint; especially, to represent in an artistic way with pencil or brush.

Let a painter carelessly limn out a million of faces, and you shall find them all different.

Sir T. Browne.

2. To illumine, as books or parchments, with ornamental figures, letters, or borders.

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||Lim *næ"a (lm*n"), n. [NL., fr. Gr. limnai^os pertaining to a marsh, ||fr. li`mh a marsh.] (Zoöl.) A genus of fresh-water air-breathing ||mollusks, abundant in ponds and streams; -- called also pond snail. ||[Written also Lymnæa.] || Lim"ner (lm"nr), n. [F. enlumineur, LL. illuminator. See Limn, and cf. Alluminor.] A painter; an artist; esp.: (a) One who paints portraits. (b) One who illuminates books. [Archaic]

Lim"ni*ad (-n*d), n. [Gr. li`mh a pool.] (Myth.) See Limoniad.

Lim"ning (lm"nng or lm"ng), n. The act, process, or art of one who limns; the picture or decoration so produced.

Adorned with illumination which we now call limning.

Wood.

Li*moges" (l*mzh"), n. A city of Southern France.

Limoges enamel, a kind of enamel ware in which the enamel is applied to the whole surface of a metal plaque, vase, or the like, and painted in enamel colors. The art was brought to a high degree of perfection in Limoges in the 16th century. - - Limoges ware. (a) Articles decorated with Limoges enamel. (b) Articles of porcelain, etc., manufactured at Limoges.

Li*mo"ni*ad (l*m"n*d), n. [L. limoniades, pl., Gr. leimwnia`des, fr. leimw`n meadow.] (Class. Myth.) A nymph of the meadows; -- called also Limniad.

Li*mo"nin (l*m"nn), n. [From NL. Citrus Medica, var. Limonum, the scientific name of the lemon.] (Chem.) A bitter, white, crystalline substance found in orange and lemon seeds.

Li"mon*ite (l"mn*t), n. [Gr. leimw`n any moist grassy place, a meadow : cf. F. limonite, G. limonit.] (Min.) Hydrous sesquioxide of iron, an important ore of iron, occurring in stalactitic, mammillary, or earthy forms, of a dark brown color, and yellowish brown powder. It includes bog iron. Also called brown hematite.

||Li*mo"sis (l*m"ss), n. [NL., fr. Gr. limo`s hunger.] (Med.) A ||ravenous appetite caused by disease; excessive and morbid hunger. || Li"mous (l"ms), a. [L. limosus, fr. limus slime, mud.] Muddy; slimy; thick. Sir T. Browne.

Limp (lmp), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Limped (lmt; 215); p. pr. & vb. n. Limping.] [Cf. AS. lemphealt lame, OHG. limphen to limp, be weak; perh. akin to E. lame, or to limp, a &radic;120.] To halt; to walk lamely. Also used figuratively. Shak.

Limp, n. A halt; the act of limping.

Limp, n. (Ore Washing) A scraper for removing poor ore or refuse from the sieve.

Limp, a. [Cf. Icel. limpa limpness, weakness, and E. lap, n., lop, v. t. Cf. Limber, a.] 1. Flaccid; flabby, as flesh. Walton.

2. Lacking stiffness; flimsy; as, a limp cravat.

Limp"er (-r), n. One who limps.

Lim"pet (lm"pt), n. [Prob. through French fr. L. lepas, -adis, Gr. lepa`s, -a`dos.] (Zoöl.) 1. In a general sense, any hatshaped, or conical, gastropod shell.

2. Any one of many species of marine shellfish of the order Docoglossa, mostly found adhering to rocks, between tides.

The common European limpets of the genus Patella (esp. P. vulgata) are extensively used as food. The common New England species is Acmæa testudinalis. Numerous species of limpets occur on the Pacific coast of America, some of them of large size.

3. Any species of Siphonaria, a genus of limpet-shaped Pulmonifera, living between tides, on rocks.

4. A keyhole limpet. See Fissurella.

Lim"pid (-pd), a. [L. limpidus; akin to Gr. la`mpein to shine: cf. F. limpide. Cf. Lamp.] Characterized by clearness or transparency; clear; as, a limpid stream.

Springs which were clear, fresh, and limpid.

Woodward.

Syn. -- Clear; transparent; pellucid; lucid; pure; crystal; translucent; bright.

Lim*pid"i*ty (lm*pd"*t), n. [L. limpiditas: cf. F. limpidité.] The quality or state of being limpid.

Lim"pid*ness (lm"pd*ns), n. Quality of being limpid; limpidity.

Lim"pin (-pn), n. A limpet. [Obs.] Holland.

Limp"ing*ly (lmp"-), adv. In a limping manner.

Limp"i*tude (-*td), n. Limpidity. [Obs.]

Limp"kin (lmp"kn), n. (Zoöl.) Either one of two species of wading birds of the genus Aramus, intermediate between the cranes and rails. The limpkins are remarkable for the great length of the toes. One species (A. giganteus) inhabits Florida and the West Indies; the other (A. scolopaceus) is found in South America. Called also courlan, and crying bird.

Limp"ness, n. The quality or state of being limp.

{ Limp"sy (-s), Lim"sy (lm"s), } a. [See Limp, a., and cf. W. llymsi having a fickle motion, weak. Cf. Flimsy.] Limp; flexible; flimsy. [Local, U. S.]

||Li"mu (l"m), n. (Bot.) The Hawaiian name for seaweeds. Over sixty ||kinds are used as food, and have species names, as Limu Lipoa, Limu ||palawai, etc. || Lim"ule (lm"l), n. [F.] (Zoöl.) A limulus.

||Lim`u*loi"de*a (lm`*loi"d*), n. pl. [NL. See Limulus, and -oid.] ||(Zoöl.) An order of Merostomata, including among living animals the ||genus Limulus, with various allied fossil genera, mostly of the ||Carboniferous period. Called also Xiphosura. || There are six pairs of leglike organs, surrounding the mouth, most of which terminate in claws; those of the first pair (probably mandibles) are the smallest; the others have the basal joints thickened and spinose, to serve as jaws, while the terminal joints serve as legs. This group is intermediate, in some characteristics, between crustaceans and certain arachnids (scorpions), but the respiration is by means of lamellate gills borne upon the five posterior abdominal appendages, which are flat and united in pairs by their inner edges, and are protected by the lidlike anterior pair, which also bear the genital orifices.

||Lim"u*lus (lm"*ls), n.; pl. Limuli (- l). [L., dim. of limus ||sidelong, askance.] (Zoöl.) The only existing genus of Merostomata. ||It includes only a few species from the East Indies, and one (Limulus ||polyphemus) from the Atlantic coast of North America. Called also ||Molucca crab, king crab, horseshoe crab, and horsefoot. || Lim"y (lm"), a. [See 4th Lime.] 1. Smeared with, or consisting of, lime; viscous. "Limy snares." Spenser.

2. Containing lime; as, a limy soil.

3. Resembling lime; having the qualities of lime.

Lin (ln), v. i. [AS. linnan. See Lithe.] To yield; to stop; to cease. [Obs. or Scot.] Marston.

Lin, v. t. To cease from. [Obs. or Scot.]

Lin, n. [Ir. linn, or Gael. linne; akin to W. llyn a pool, pond, lake, but in senses 2 and 3 prob. from AS. hlynn torrent. Cf. Dunlin.] 1. A pool or collection of water, particularly one above or below a fall of water.

2. A waterfall, or cataract; as, a roaring lin.

3. A steep ravine.

Written also linn and lyn.

Lin"age (ln"j), n. See Lineage. [Obs.] Holland.

Lin"a*ment (-*ment), n. [L. linamentum, fr. linum flax.] (Surg.) Lint; esp., lint made into a tent for insertion into wounds or ulcers.

Li*nar"ite (l*när"t), n. [So called because formerly supposed to occur at Linares, in Spain.] (Min.) A hydrous sulphate of lead and copper occurring in bright blue monoclinic crystals.

Linch (lnch), n. [AS. hlinc a hill.] A ledge; a right-angled projection.

||Lin"chi (ln"ch), n. [Native Chinese name.] (Zoöl.) An esculent ||swallow. || Linch"pin` (lnch"pn`), n. [AS. lynis the axletree; akin to D. luns linchpin, OS. lunisa, LG. lunse, G. lünse, OHG. lun peg, bolt.] A pin used to prevent the wheel of a vehicle from sliding off the axletree.

Lin"coln green" (l"kn grn"). A color of cloth formerly made in Lincoln, England; the cloth itself.

{ Linc"ture (lk"tr; 135), Linc"tus (lk"ts), } n. [L. lingere, linctum, to lick.] Medicine taken by licking with the tongue.

Lind (lnd), n. The linden. See Linden. Chaucer.

Lin"den (ln"den), n. [Orig. an adj. from lind linden tree, AS. lind; akin to D. & G. linde, OHG. linta, Icel., Sw., & Dan. lind. Cf. Lime linden.] (Bot.) (a) A handsome tree (Tilia Europæa), having cymes of light yellow flowers, and large cordate leaves. The tree is common in Europe. (b) In America, the basswood, or Tilia Americana.

||Lin"di*a (ln"d*), n. [NL.] (Zoöl.) A peculiar genus of rotifers, ||remarkable for the absence of ciliated disks. By some zoölogists it ||is thought to be like the ancestral form of the Arthropoda. || Lin"di*form (-d*fôrm), a. [Lindia + -form.] (Zoöl.) Resembling the genus Lindia; -- said of certain apodous insect larvæ. [See Illust. under Larva.]

Line (ln), n. [OE. lin. See Linen.] 1. Flax; linen. [Obs.] "Garments made of line." Spenser.

2. The longer and finer fiber of flax.

Line, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Lined (lnd); p. pr. & vb. n. Lining.] [See Line flax.] 1. To cover the inner surface of; as, to line a cloak with silk or fur; to line a box with paper or tin.

The inside lined with rich carnation silk.

W. Browne.

2. To put something in the inside of; to fill; to supply, as a purse with money.

The charge amounteth very high for any one man's purse, except lined beyond ordinary, to reach unto.

Carew.

Till coffee has her stomach lined.

Swift.

3. To place persons or things along the side of for security or defense; to strengthen by adding anything; to fortify; as, to line works with soldiers.

Line and new repair our towns of war With men of courage and with means defendant.

Shak.

4. To impregnate; -- applied to brute animals. Creech.

Lined gold, gold foil having a lining of another metal.

Line, n. [OE. line, AS. lne cable, hawser, prob. from L. linea a linen thread, string, line, fr. linum flax, thread, linen, cable; but the English word was influenced by F. ligne line, from the same L. word linea. See Linen.] 1. A linen thread or string; a slender, strong cord; also, a cord of any thickness; a rope; a hawser; as, a fishing line; a line for snaring birds; a clothesline; a towline.

Who so layeth lines for to latch fowls.

Piers Plowman.

2. A more or less threadlike mark of pen, pencil, or graver; any long mark; as, a chalk line.

3. The course followed by anything in motion; hence, a road or route; as, the arrow descended in a curved line; the place is remote from lines of travel.

4. Direction; as, the line of sight or vision.

5. A row of letters, words, etc., written or printed; esp., a row of words extending across a page or column.

6. A short letter; a note; as, a line from a friend.

7. (Poet.) A verse, or the words which form a certain number of feet, according to the measure.

In the preceding line Ulysses speaks of Nausicaa.

Broome.

8. Course of conduct, thought, occupation, or policy; method of argument; department of industry, trade, or intellectual activity.

He is uncommonly powerful in his own line, but it is not the line of a first-rate man.

Coleridge.

9. (Math.) That which has length, but not breadth or thickness.

10. The exterior limit of a figure, plat, or territory; boundary; contour; outline.

Eden stretched her line From Auran eastward to the royal towers Of great Seleucia.

Milton.

11. A threadlike crease marking the face or the hand; hence, characteristic mark.

Though on his brow were graven lines austere.

Byron.

He tipples palmistry, and dines On all her fortune-telling lines.

Cleveland.

12. Lineament; feature; figure. "The lines of my boy's face." Shak.

13. A straight row; a continued series or rank; as, a line of houses, or of soldiers; a line of barriers.

Unite thy forces and attack their lines.

Dryden.

14. A series or succession of ancestors or descendants of a given person; a family or race; as, the ascending or descending line; the line of descent; the male line; a line of kings.

Of his lineage am I, and his offspring By very line, as of the stock real.

Chaucer.

15. A connected series of public conveyances, and hence, an established arrangement for forwarding merchandise, etc.; as, a line of stages; an express line.

16. (Geog.) (a) A circle of latitude or of longitude, as represented on a map. (b) The equator; -- usually called the line, or equinoctial line; as, to cross the line.

17. A long tape, or a narrow ribbon of steel, etc., marked with subdivisions, as feet and inches, for measuring; a tapeline.

18. (Script.) (a) A measuring line or cord.

He marketh it out with a line.

Is. xliv. 13.

(b) That which was measured by a line, as a field or any piece of land set apart; hence, allotted place of abode.

The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage.

Ps. xvi. 6.

(c) Instruction; doctrine.

Their line is gone out through all the earth.

Ps. xix. 4.

19. (Mach.) The proper relative position or adjustment of parts, not as to design or proportion, but with reference to smooth working; as, the engine is in line or out of line.

20. The track and roadbed of a railway; railroad.

21. (Mil.) (a) A row of men who are abreast of one another, whether side by side or some distance apart; -- opposed to column. (b) The regular infantry of an army, as distinguished from militia, guards, volunteer corps, cavalry, artillery, etc.

22. (Fort.) (a) A trench or rampart. (b) pl. Dispositions made to cover extended positions, and presenting a front in but one direction to an enemy.

23. pl. (Shipbuilding) Form of a vessel as shown by the outlines of vertical, horizontal, and oblique sections.

24. (Mus.) One of the straight horizontal and parallel prolonged strokes on and between which the notes are placed.

25. (Stock Exchange) A number of shares taken by a jobber.

26. (Trade) A series of various qualities and values of the same general class of articles; as, a full line of hosiery; a line of merinos, etc. McElrath.

27. The wire connecting one telegraphic station with another, or the whole of a system of telegraph wires under one management and name.

28. pl. The reins with which a horse is guided by his driver. [U. S.]

29. A measure of length; one twelfth of an inch.

Hard lines, hard lot. C. Kingsley. [See Def. 18.] -- Line breeding (Stockbreeding), breeding by a certain family line of descent, especially in the selection of the dam or mother. -- Line conch (Zoöl.), a spiral marine shell (Fasciolaria distans), of Florida and the West Indies. It is marked by narrow, dark, revolving lines. -- Line engraving. (a) Engraving in which the effects are produced by lines of different width and closeness, cut with the burin upon copper or similar material; also, a plate so engraved. (b) A picture produced by printing from such an engraving. -- Line of battle. (a) (Mil. Tactics) The position of troops drawn up in their usual order without any determined maneuver. (b) (Naval) The line or arrangement formed by vessels of war in an engagement. -- Line of battle ship. See Ship of the line, below. -- Line of beauty (Fine Arts), an abstract line supposed to be beautiful in itself and absolutely; -- differently represented by different authors, often as a kind of elongated S (like the one drawn by Hogarth). -- Line of centers. (Mach.) (a) A line joining two centers, or fulcra, as of wheels or levers. (b) A line which determines a dead center. See Dead center, under Dead. -- Line of dip (Geol.), a line in the plane of a stratum, or part of a stratum, perpendicular to its intersection with a horizontal plane; the line of greatest inclination of a stratum to the horizon. -- Line of fire (Mil.), the direction of fire. -- Line of force (Physics), any line in a space in which forces are acting, so drawn that at every point of the line its tangent is the direction of the resultant of all the forces. It cuts at right angles every equipotential surface which it meets. Specifically (Magnetism), a line in proximity to a magnet so drawn that any point in it is tangential with the direction of a short compass needle held at that point. Faraday. -- Line of life (Palmistry), a line on the inside of the hand, curving about the base of the thumb, supposed to indicate, by its form or position, the length of a person's life. -- Line of lines. See Gunter's line. -- Line of march. (Mil.) (a) Arrangement of troops for marching. (b) Course or direction taken by an army or body of troops in marching. -- Line of operations, that portion of a theater of war which an army passes over in attaining its object. H. W. Halleck. -- Line of sight (Firearms), the line which passes through the front and rear sight, at any elevation, when they are sighted at an object. -- Line tub (Naut.), a tub in which the line carried by a whaleboat is coiled. -- Mason and Dixon's line, the boundary line between Pennsylvania and Maryland, as run before the Revolution (1764-1767) by two English astronomers named Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon. In an extended sense, the line between the free and the slave States. -- On the line, on a level with the eye of the spectator; -- said of a picture, as hung in an exhibition of pictures. -- Right line, a straight line; the shortest line that can be drawn between two points. -- Ship of the line, formerly, a ship of war large enough to have a place in the line of battle; a vessel superior to a frigate; usually, a seventy-four, or three- decker; -- called also line of battle ship. Totten. -- To cross the line, to cross the equator, as a vessel at sea. -- To give a person line, to allow him more or less liberty until it is convenient to stop or check him, like a hooked fish that swims away with the line. -- Water line (Shipbuilding), the outline of a horizontal section of a vessel, as when floating in the water.

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