Chapter 51

In mineralogical chemistry the silicates include; the unisilicates or orthosilicates, salts of orthosilicic acid; the bisilicates or metasilicates, salts of metasilicic acid; the polysilicates or acid silicates, salts of the polysilicic acids; the basic silicates or subsilicates, in which the equivalent of base is greater than would be required to neutralize the acid; and the hydrous silicates, including the zeolites and many hydrated decomposition products.

Sil"i*ca`ted (?), a. (Chem.) Combined or impregnated with silicon or silica; as, silicated hydrogen; silicated rocks.

Silicated soap, a hard soap containing silicate of soda.

Sil`i*ca*ti*za"tion (?), n. Silicification.

||Si*lic"e*a (?), n. pl. [NL.] (Zoöl.) Same as Silicoidea.

Si*li"ceous (?), a. [L. siliceus, fr. silex, silicis, a flint.] Of or pertaining to silica; containing silica, or partaking of its nature. [Written also silisious.]

Si*lic"ic (?), a. [L. silex, silicis, a flint: cf. F. silicique.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, derived from, or resembling, silica; specifically, designating compounds of silicon; as, silicic acid.

Silicic acid (Chem.), an amorphous gelatinous substance, Si(HO)4, very unstable and easily dried to silica, but forming many stable salts; -- called also orthosilicic, or normal silicic, acid.

Si*lic`i*cal*ca"re*ous (?), a. Consisting of silica and calcareous matter.

Sil"i*cide (?), n. (Chem.) A binary compound of silicon, or one regarded as binary. [R.]

Hydrogen silicide (Chem.), a colorless, spontaneously inflammable gas, SiH4, produced artifically from silicon, and analogous to methane; -- called also silico-methane, silicon hydride, and formerly siliciureted hydrogen.

Sil`i*cif"er*ous (?), a. [L. silex, silicis, a flint + -ferous.] Producing silica; united with silica.

Si*lic`i*fi*ca"tion (?), n. [See Silicify.] (Chem.) Thae act or process of combining or impregnating with silicon or silica; the state of being so combined or impregnated; as, the silicification of wood.

Si*lic"i*fied (?), a. (Chem.) Combined or impregnated with silicon or silica, especially the latter; as, silicified wood.

Si*lic"i*fy (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Silicified (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Silicifying (?).] [L. silex, silicis, a flint + -fy: cf. F. silicifier.] (Chem.) To convert into, or to impregnate with, silica, or with the compounds of silicon.

The specimens found . . . are completely silicified.

Say.

The silica may take the form of agate, chalcedony, flint, hornstone, or crystalline quartz.

Si*lic"i*fy, v. i. To become converted into silica, or to be impregnated with silica.

||Sil`i*ci*oi"de*a (?), n. pl. (Zoöl.) Same as Silicoidea.

Si*li"cious (?), a. See Siliceous.

||Sil`i*ci*spon"gi*æ (?), n. pl. [NL. See Silex, and Sponge.] (Zoöl.) ||Same as Silicoidea.

Si*lic"it*ed (?), a. Silicified. [Obs.]

Si*lic"i*um (?), n. See Silicon.

Si*lic"i*u*ret`ed (?), a. [Written also siliciuretted.] (Old. Chem.) Combined or impregnated with silicon. [Obsoles.]

Siliciureted hydrogen. (Chem.) Hydrogen silicide. [Obs.]

Sil"i*cle (?), n. [L. silicula, dim. of siliqua a pod or husk: cf. F. silicule.] (Bot.) A seed vessel resembling a silique, but about as broad as it is long. See Silique.

Sil"i*co- (?). (Chem.) A combining form (also used adjectively) denoting the presence of silicon or its compounds; as, silicobenzoic, silicofluoride, etc.

Sil`i*co*flu*or"ic (?), a. (Chem.) Containing, or composed of, silicon and fluorine; especially, denoting the compounds called silicofluorides.

Silicofluoric acid (Chem.), a compound of hydrofluoric acid and silicon fluoride, known only in watery solution. It is produced by the action of silicon fluoride on water, and is regarded as an acid, H2SiF6, and the type and origin of the silicofluorides.

Sil`i*co*flu"or*ide (?), n. (Chem.) A fluosilicate; a salt of silicofluoric acid.

||Sil`i*coi"de*a (?), n. pl. [NL. See Silex, and -oid.] (Zoöl.) An ||extensive order of Porifera, which includes those that have the ||skeleton composed mainly of siliceous fibers or spicules.

Sil"i*con (?), n. [See Silica.] (Chem.) A nonmetalic element analogous to carbon. It always occurs combined in nature, and is artificially obtained in the free state, usually as a dark brown amorphous powder, or as a dark crystalline substance with a meetallic luster. Its oxide is silica, or common quartz, and in this form, or as silicates, it is, next to oxygen, the most abundant element of the earth's crust. Silicon is characteristically the element of the mineral kingdom, as carbon is of the organic world. Symbol Si. Atomic weight 28. Called also silicium.

Sil`i*co*tung"stic (?), a. (Chem.) Of, pertaining to, or designating, any one of a series of double acids of silicon and tungsten, known in the free state, and also in their salts (called silicotungstates).

||Si*lic"u*la (?), n. [L.] (Bot.) A silicle.

Sil"i*cule (?), n. (Bot.) A silicle.

Si*lic"u*lose` (?), a. [NL. siliculosus, fr. L. silicula: cf. F. siliculeux. See Silicle.] 1. (Bot.) Bearing silicles; pertaining to, or resembling, silicles.

2. Full of, or consisting of, husks; husky. [Obs.]

Si*lig"i*nose` (?), a.[L. siligineus, fr. siligo, -inis, fine and very white wheat.] Made of fine wheat. [Obs.] Bailey.

Sil"ing (?), a. & n. from Sile to strain. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.]

Siling dish, a colander. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.]

Sil"i*qua (?), n.; pl. Siliquæ (#). [L. See Silique.] 1. (Bot.) Same as Silique.

2. A weight of four grains; a carat; -- a term used by jewelers, and refiners of gold.

Sil"ique (?), n. [L. siliqua a pod or husk, a very small weight or measure: cf. F. silique.] (Bot.) An oblong or elongated seed vessel, consisting of two valves with a dissepiment between, and opening by sutures at either margin. The seeds are attached to both edges of the dissepiment, alternately upon each side of it.

Sil"i*qui*form (?), a. [Silique + -form: cf. F. siliquiforme.] (Bot.) Having the form of a silique.

||Sil`i*quo"sa (?), n. pl. [NL. See Siliquose.] (Bot.) A Linnæan order ||of plants including those which bear siliques.

{ Sil"i*quose` (?), Sil"i*quous (?), } a. [NL. siliquosus: cf. F. siliqueux.] (Bot.) Bearing siliques; as, siliquose plants; pertaining to, or resembling, siliques; as, siliquose capsules.

Silk (?), n. [OE. silk, selk, AS. seolc, seoloc; akin to Icel. silki, SW. & Dan. silke; prob. through Slavic from an Oriental source; cf. Lith. szilkai, Russ. shelk', and also L. sericum Seric stuff, silk. Cf. Sericeous. Serge a woolen stuff.] 1. The fine, soft thread produced by various species of caterpillars in forming the cocoons within which the worm is inclosed during the pupa state, especially that produced by the larvæ of Bombyx mori.

2. Hence, thread spun, or cloth woven, from the above-named material.

3. That which resembles silk, as the filiform styles of the female flower of maize.

Raw silk, silk as it is wound off from the cocoons, and before it is manufactured. -- Silk cotton, a cottony substance enveloping the seeds of the silk-cotton tree. -- Silk-cotton tree (Bot.), a name for several tropical trees of the genera Bombax and Eriodendron, and belonging to the order Bombaceæ. The trees grow to an immense size, and have their seeds enveloped in a cottony substance, which is used for stuffing cushions, but can not be spun. -- Silk flower. (Bot.) (a) The silk tree. (b) A similar tree (Calliandra trinervia) of Peru. -- Silk fowl (Zoöl.), a breed of domestic fowls having silky plumage. -- Silk gland (Zoöl.), a gland which secretes the material of silk, as in spider or a silkworm; a sericterium. -- Silk gown, the distinctive robe of a barrister who has been appointed king's or queen's counsel; hence, the counsel himself. Such a one has precedence over mere barristers, who wear stuff gowns. [Eng.] -- Silk grass (Bot.), a kind of grass (Stipa comata) of the Western United States, which has very long silky awns. The name is also sometimes given to various species of the genera Aqave and Yucca. -- Silk moth (Zoöl.), the adult moth of any silkworm. See Silkworm. -- Silk shag, a coarse, rough-woven silk, like plush, but with a stiffer nap. -- Silk spider (Zoöl.), a large spider (Nephila plumipes), native of the Southern United States, remarkable for the large quantity of strong silk it produces and for the great disparity in the sizes of the sexes. -- Silk thrower, Silk throwster, one who twists or spins silk, and prepares it for weaving. Brande & C. -- Silk tree (Bot.), an Asiatic leguminous tree (Albizzia Julibrissin) with finely bipinnate leaves, and large flat pods; -- so called because of the abundant long silky stamens of its blossoms. Also called silk flower. -- Silk vessel. (Zoöl.) Same as Silk gland, above. -- Virginia silk (Bot.), a climbing plant (Periploca Græca) of the Milkweed family, having a silky tuft on the seeds. It is native in Southern Europe.

Silk"en (?), a. [AS. seolcen, seolocen.] 1. Of or pertaining to silk; made of, or resembling, silk; as, silken cloth; a silken veil.

2. Fig.: Soft; delicate; tender; smooth; as, silken language. "Silken terms precise." Shak.

3. Dressed in silk. "A . . . silken wanton." Shak.

Silk"en, v. t. To render silken or silklike. Dyer.

Silk"i*ness (?), n. 1. The quality or state of being silky or silken; softness and smoothness.

2. Fig.: Effeminacy; weakness. [R.] B. Jonson.

Silk"man (?), n.; pl. Silkmen (&?;). A dealer in silks; a silk mercer. Shak.

<! p. 1341 !>

Silk"ness (?), n. Silkiness. [Obs.] B. Jonson.

Silk"weed` (?), n. (Bot.) Any plant of the genera Asclepias and Acerates whose seed vessels contain a long, silky down; milkweed.

Silk"worm` (?), n. [AS. seolcwyrm.] (Zoöl.) The larva of any one of numerous species of bombycid moths, which spins a large amount of strong silk in constructing its cocoon before changing to a pupa.

The common species (Bombyx mori) feeds on the leaves of the white mulberry tree. It is native of China, but has long been introduced into other countries of Asia and Europe, and is reared on a large scale. In America it is reared only to small extent. The Ailanthus silkworm (Philosamia cynthia) is a much larger species, of considerable importance, which has been introduced into Europe and America from China. The most useful American species is the Polyphemus. See Polyphemus.

Pernyi silkworm, the larva of the Pernyi moth. See Pernyi moth. -- Silkworm gut, a substance prepared from the contents of the silk glands of silkworms and used in making lines for angling. See Gut. - - Silkworm rot, a disease of silkworms; muscardine.

Silk"y (?), a. [Compar. Silkier (?); superl. Silkiest.] 1. Of or pertaining to silk; made of, or resembling, silk; silken; silklike; as, a silky luster.

2. Hence, soft and smooth; as, silky wine.

3. Covered with soft hairs pressed close to the surface, as a leaf; sericeous.

Silky oak (Bot.), a lofty Australian tree (Grevillea robusta) with silky tomentose lobed or incised leaves. It furnishes a valuable timber.

Sill (?), n. [OE. sille, sylle, AS. syl, syll; akin to G. schwelle, OHG. swelli, Icel. syll, svill, Sw. syll, Dan. syld, Goth. gasuljan to lay a foundation, to found.] The basis or foundation of a thing; especially, a horizontal piece, as a timber, which forms the lower member of a frame, or supports a structure; as, the sills of a house, of a bridge, of a loom, and the like. Hence: (a) The timber or stone at the foot of a door; the threshold. (b) The timber or stone on which a window frame stands; or, the lowest piece in a window frame. (c) The floor of a gallery or passage in a mine. (d) A piece of timber across the bottom of a canal lock for the gates to shut against.

Sill course (Arch.), a horizontal course of stone, terra cotta, or the like, built into a wall at the level of one or more window sills, these sills often forming part of it.

Sill, n. [Cf. Thill.] The shaft or thill of a carriage. [Prov. Eng.]

Sill, n. [Cf. 4th Sile.] A young herring. [Eng.]

Sil"la*bub (?), n. [Cf. sile to strain, and bub liquor, also Prov. E. sillibauk.] A dish made by mixing wine or cider with milk, and thus forming a soft curd; also, sweetened cream, flavored with wine and beaten to a stiff froth. [Written also syllabub.]

Sil"ler (?), n. Silver. [Scot.]

Sil"li*ly (?), adv. [From Silly.] In a silly manner; foolishly. Dryden.

Sil"li*man*ite (?), n. [After Benjamin Siliman, an American meneralogist.] (Min.) Same as Fibrolite.

Sil"li*ness, n. The quality or state of being silly.

Sil"lock (?), n. (Zoöl.) The pollock, or coalfish.

Sil"lon (?), n. [F., a furrow.] (Fort.) A work raised in the middle of a wide ditch, to defend it. Crabb.

Sil"ly, a. [Compar. Sillier (?); superl. Silliest.] [OE. seely, sely, AS. s&?;lig, ges&?;lig, happy, good, fr. s&?;l, s&?;l, good, happy, s&?;l good fortune, happines; akin to OS. slig, a, good, happy, D. zalig blessed, G. selig, OHG. slg, Icel. s&?;l, Sw. säll, Dan. salig, Goth. s&?;ls good, kind, and perh. also to L. sollus whole, entire, Gr. &?;&?;&?;, Skr. sarva. Cf. Seel, n.] 1. Happy; fortunate; blessed. [Obs.] Chaucer.

2. Harmless; innocent; inoffensive. [Obs.] "This silly, innocent Custance." Chaucer.

The silly virgin strove him to withstand.

Spenser.

A silly, innocent hare murdered of a dog.

Robynson (More's Utopia).

3. Weak; helpless; frail. [Obs.]

After long storms . . . With which my silly bark was tossed sore.

Spenser.

The silly buckets on the deck.

Coleridge.

4. Rustic; plain; simple; humble. [Obs.]

A fourth man, in a sillyhabit.

Shak.

All that did their silly thoughts so busy keep.

Milton.

5. Weak in intellect; destitute of ordinary strength of mind; foolish; witless; simple; as, a silly woman.

6. Proceeding from want of understanding or common judgment; characterized by weakness or folly; unwise; absurd; stupid; as, silly conduct; a silly question.

Syn. -- Simple; brainless; witless; shallow; foolish; unwise; indiscreet. See Simple.

Sil"ly*how (?), n. [Prov. E. silly- hew; cf. AS. slig happy, good, and hfe a cap, hood. See Silly, a.] A caul. See Caul, n., 3. [Obs. or Prov. Eng. & Scot.]

Si"lo (?), n. [F.] A pit or vat for packing away green fodder for winter use so as to exclude air and outside moisture. See Ensilage.

Silt (?), n. [OE. silte gravel, fr. silen to drain, E. sile; probably of Scand. origin; cf. Sw. sila, prob. akin to AS. seón to filter, sgan to fall, sink, cause to sink, G. seihen to strain, to filter, OHG. sihan, Icel. s>a, Skr. sic to pour; cf. Gr. &?;&?;&?; moisture. Cf. Sig, Sile.] Mud or fine earth deposited from running or standing water.

Silt, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Silted; p. pr. & vb. n. Silting.] To choke, fill, or obstruct with silt or mud.

Silt, v. i. To flow through crevices; to percolate.

Silt"y (?), a. Full of silt; resembling silt.

Si*lure" (?), n. [L. silurus a sort of river fish, Gr. &?;&?;&?;: cf. F. silure.] (Zoöl.) A fish of the genus Silurus, as the sheatfish; a siluroid.

Si*lu"ri*an (?), a. [From L. Silures, a people who anciently inhabited a part of England and Wales.] (Geol.) Of or pertaining to the country of the ancient Silures; -- a term applied to the earliest of the Paleozoic eras, and also to the strata of the era, because most plainly developed in that country.

The Silurian formation, so named by Murchison, is divided into the Upper Silurian and Lower Silurian. The lower part of the Lower Silurian, with some underlying beds, is now separated under the name Cambrian, first given by Sedwick. Recently the term Ordovician has been proposed for the Lower Silurian, leawing the original word to apply only to the Upper Silurian.

Si*lu"ri*an, n. The Silurian age.

Si*lu"ri*dan (?), n. (Zoöl.) Any fish of the family Siluridæ or of the order Siluroidei.

Si*lu"roid (?), n. [Silurus + -oid.] (Zoöl.) Belonging to the Siluroidei, or Nematognathi, an order of fishes including numerous species, among which are the American catfishes and numerous allied fresh-water species of the Old World, as the sheatfish (Silurus glanis) of Europe. -- n. A siluroid fish.

||Sil`u*roi"de*i (?), n. pl. [NL.] (zoöl.) An order of fishes, the ||Nematognathi.

||Si*lu"rus (?), n. [L. See Silure.] (Zoöl.) A genus of large ||malacopterygious fishes of the order Siluroidei. They inhabit the ||inland waters of Europe and Asia.

Sil"va (?), n.; pl. E. Silvas (#), L. Silvae (&?;). [L., properly, a wood, forest.] [Written also sylva.] (Bot.) (a) The forest trees of a region or country, considered collectively. (b) A description or history of the forest trees of a country.

Sil"van (?), a. [L. silva, less correctly sylva, a wood or grove, perh. akin to Gr. "y`lh; cf. L. Silvanus Silvanus the god of woods: cf. F. sylvain silvan. Cf. Savage.] Of or pertaining to woods; composed of woods or groves; woody. [Written also sylvan.]

Betwixt two rows of rocks, a silvan scene Appears above, and groves forever green.

Dryden.

Sil"van, n. (Old Chem.) See Sylvanium. [Obs.]

Sil"van*ite (?), n. (Min.) See Sylvanite.

{ Sil"vas (?) or Sel"vas (?) }, n. pl. [L. silva a forest, Sp. selva.] Vast woodland plains of South America.

Sil"vate (?), n. (Chem.) Same as Sylvate.

Sil"ver (?), n. [OE. silver, selver, seolver, AS. seolfor, siolfur, siolufr, silofr, sylofr; akin to OS. silubar, OFries. selover, D. zilver, LG. sulver, OHG. silabar, silbar, G. silber, Icel. silfr, Sw. silfver, Dan. sölv, Goth. silubr, Russ. serebro, Lith. sidabras; of unknown origin.] 1. (Chem.) A soft white metallic element, sonorous, ductile, very malleable, and capable of a high degree of polish. It is found native, and also combined with sulphur, arsenic, antimony, chlorine, etc., in the minerals argentite, proustite, pyrargyrite, ceragyrite, etc. Silver is one of the "noble" metals, so-called, not being easily oxidized, and is used for coin, jewelry, plate, and a great variety of articles. Symbol Ag (Argentum). Atomic weight 107.7. Specific gravity 10.5.

Silver was known under the name of luna to the ancients and also to the alchemists. Some of its compounds, as the halogen salts, are remarkable for the effect of light upon them, and are used in photography.

2. Coin made of silver; silver money.

3. Anything having the luster or appearance of silver.

4. The color of silver.

Silver is used in the formation of many compounds of obvious meaning; as, silver-armed, silver-bright, silver-buskined, silver-coated, silver-footed, silver-haired, silver-headed, silver-mantled, silver-plated, silver-slippered, silver-sounding, silver-studded, silver-tongued, silver-white. See Silver, a.

Black silver (Min.), stephanite; -- called also brittle silver ore, or brittle silver glance. -- Fulminating silver. (Chem.) (a) A black crystalline substance, Ag2O.(NH3)2, obtained by dissolving silver oxide in aqua ammonia. When dry it explodes violently on the slightest percussion. (b) Silver fulminate, a white crystalline substance, Ag2C2N2O2, obtained by adding alcohol to a solution of silver nitrate. When dry it is violently explosive. -- German silver. (Chem.) See under German. -- Gray silver. (Min.) See Freieslebenite. -- Horn silver. (Min.) See Cerargyrite. -- King's silver. (O. Eng. Law) See Postfine. -- Red silver, or Ruby silver. (Min.) See Proustite, and Pyrargyrite. -- Silver beater, one who beats silver into silver leaf or silver foil. -- Silver glance, or Vitreous silver. (Min.) See Argentine.

Sil"ver, a. 1. Of or pertaining to silver; made of silver; as, silver leaf; a silver cup.

2. Resembling silver. Specifically: (a) Bright; resplendent; white. "Silver hair." Shak.

Others, on silver lakes and rivers, bathed Their downy breast.

Milton.

(b) Precious; costly. (c) Giving a clear, ringing sound soft and clear. "Silver voices." Spenser. (d) Sweet; gentle; peaceful. "Silver slumber." Spenser.

American silver fir (Bot.), the balsam fir. See under Balsam. -- Silver age (Roman Lit.), the latter part (a. d. 14-180) of the classical period of Latinity, -- the time of writers of inferior purity of language, as compared with those of the previous golden age, so-called. -- Silver-bell tree (Bot.), an American shrub or small tree (Halesia tetraptera) with white bell-shaped flowers in clusters or racemes; the snowdrop tree. -- Silver bush (Bot.), a shrubby leguminous plant (Anthyllis Barba- Jovis) of Southern Europe, having silvery foliage. -- Silver chub (Zoöl.), the fallfish. -- Silver eel. (Zoöl.) (a) The cutlass fish. (b) A pale variety of the common eel. -- Silver fir (Bot.), a coniferous tree (Abies pectinata) found in mountainous districts in the middle and south of Europe, where it often grows to the height of 100 or 150 feet. It yields Burgundy pitch and Strasburg turpentine. -- Silver foil, foil made of silver. -- Silver fox (Zoöl.), a variety of the common fox (Vulpes vulpes, variety argenteus) found in the northern parts of Asia, Europe, and America. Its fur is nearly black, with silvery tips, and is highly valued. Called also black fox, and silver-gray fox. -- Silver gar. (Zoöl.) See Billfish (a). -- Silver grain (Bot.), the lines or narrow plates of cellular tissue which pass from the pith to the bark of an exogenous stem; the medullary rays. In the wood of the oak they are much larger than in that of the beech, maple, pine, cherry, etc. -- Silver grebe (Zoöl.), the red-throated diver. See Illust. under Diver. -- Silver hake (Zoöl.), the American whiting. -- Silver leaf, leaves or sheets made of silver beaten very thin. -- Silver lunge (Zoöl.), the namaycush. -- Silver moonfish.(Zoöl.) See Moonfish (b). -- Silver moth (Zoöl.), a lepisma. -- Silver owl (Zoöl.), the barn owl. -- Silver perch (Zoöl.), the mademoiselle, 2. -- Silver pheasant (Zoöl.), any one of several species of beautiful crested and long-tailed Asiatic pheasants, of the genus Euplocamus. They have the tail and more or less of the upper parts silvery white. The most common species (E. nychtemerus) is native of China. -- Silver plate, domestic utensils made of silver. -- Silver plover (Zoöl.), the knot. -- Silver salmon (Zoöl.), a salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) native of both coasts of the North Pacific. It ascends all the American rivers as far south as the Sacramento. Called also kisutch, whitefish, and white salmon. -- Silver shell (Zoöl.), a marine bivalve of the genus Anomia. See Anomia. -- Silver steel, an alloy of steel with a very small proportion of silver. -- Silver stick, a title given to the title field officer of the Life Guards when on duty at the palace. [Eng.] Thackeray. -- Silver tree (Bot.), a South African tree (Leucadendron argenteum) with long, silvery, silky leaves. -- Silver trout, (Zoöl.) See Trout. -- Silver wedding. See under Wedding. -- Silver whiting (Zoöl.), a marine sciænoid food fish (Menticirrus littoralis) native of the Southern United States; -- called also surf whiting. -- Silver witch (Zoöl.), A lepisma.

Sil"ver (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Silvered (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Silvering.] 1. To cover with silver; to give a silvery appearance to by applying a metal of a silvery color; as, to silver a pin; to silver a glass mirror plate with an amalgam of tin and mercury.

2. To polish like silver; to impart a brightness to, like that of silver.

And smiling calmness silvered o'er the deep.

Pope.

3. To make hoary, or white, like silver.

His head was silvered o'er with age.

Gay.

Sil"ver, v. i. To acquire a silvery color. [R.]

The eastern sky began to silver and shine.

L. Wallace.

Sil"ver*back` (?), n. (Zoöl.) The knot.

Sil"ver*ber`ry (?), n. (Bot.) A tree or shrub (Elæagnus argentea) with silvery foliage and fruit. Gray.

Sil"ver*bill` (?), n. (Zoöl.) An Old World finch of the genus Minia, as the M. Malabarica of India, and M. cantans of Africa.

Sil"ver*boom` (?), n. [D. zilver silver + boom tree.] (Bot.) See Leucadendron.

Sil"ver*fin` (?), n. (Zoöl.) A small North American fresh-water cyprinoid fish (Notropis Whipplei).

Sil"ver*fish` (?), n. (Zoöl.) (a) The tarpum. (b) A white variety of the goldfish.