Chapter 1

X.

X (ks). X, the twenty-fourth letter of the English alphabet, has three sounds; a compound nonvocal sound (that of ks), as in wax; a compound vocal sound (that of gz), as in example; and, at the beginning of a word, a simple vocal sound (that of z), as in xanthic. See Guide to Pronunciation, §§ 217, 270, 271.

The form and value of X are from the Latin X, which is from the Greek , which in some Greek alphabets had the value of ks, though in the one now in common use it represents an aspirated sound of k.

Xanth*am"ide (?), n. [Xanthic + amide.] (Chem.) An amido derivative of xanthic acid obtained as a white crystalline substance, C2H5O.CS.NH2; -- called also xanthogen amide.

Xan"thate (?), n. [See Xanthic.] (Chem.) A salt of xanthic; a xanthogenate.

||Xan`the*las"ma (?), n. [NL.; Gr. xanqo`s yellow + 'e`lasma a metal plate.] (Med.) See Xanthoma.

Xan"thi*an (?), a. Of or pertaining to Xanthus, an ancient town on Asia Minor; -- applied especially to certain marbles found near that place, and now in the British Museum.

Xan"thic (?), a. [Gr. xanqo`s yellow: cf. F. xanthique.]

1. Tending toward a yellow color, or to one of those colors, green being excepted, in which yellow is a constituent, as scarlet, orange, etc.

2. (Chem.) (a) Possessing, imparting, or producing a yellow color; as, xanthic acid. (b) Of or pertaining to xanthic acid, or its compounds; xanthogenic. (c) Of or pertaining to xanthin.

Xanthic acid (Chem.), a heavy, astringent, colorless oil, C2H5O.CS.SH, having a pungent odor. It is produced by leading carbon disulphide into a hot alcoholic solution of potassium hydroxide. So called from the yellow color of many of its salts. Called also xanthogenic acid. -- Xanthic colors (Bot.), those colors (of flowers) having some tinge of yellow; -- opposed to cyanic colors. See under Cyanic.

Xan"thide (?), n. [See Xantho-.] (Chem.) A compound or derivative of xanthogen. [Archaic]

||Xan*thid"i*um (?), n.; pl. Xanthidia (#). [NL., fr. Gr. xanqo`s yellow.] (Bot.) A genus of minute unicellular algæ of the desmids. These algæ have a rounded shape and are armed with glochidiate or branched aculei. Several species occur in ditches, and others are found fossil in flint or hornstone.

Xan"thin (?), n. [Gr. xanqo`s yellow.]

1. (Physiol. Chem.) A crystalline nitrogenous body closely related to both uric acid and hypoxanthin, present in muscle tissue, and occasionally found in the urine and in some urinary calculi. It is also present in guano. So called from the yellow color of certain of its salts (nitrates).

2. (Chem.) A yellow insoluble coloring matter extracted from yellow flowers; specifically, the coloring matter of madder. [Formerly written also xanthein.]

3. (Chem.) One of the gaseous or volatile decomposition products of the xanthates, and probably identical with carbon disulphide. [Obs.]

Xan"thi*nine (?), n. [Gr. xanqo`s yellow + quinine.] (Chem.) A complex nitrogenous substance related to urea and uric acid, produced as a white powder; -- so called because it forms yellow salts, and because its solution forms a blue fluorescence like quinine.

||Xan"thi*um (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. xa`nqion a plant used for dyeing the hair yellow, said to be the Xanthium strumarium, from xanqo`s yellow.] (Bot.) A genus of composite plants in which the scales of the involucre are united so as to form a kind of bur; cocklebur; clotbur.

Xan"tho- (?). A combining form from Gr. xanqo`s yellow; as in xanthocobaltic salts. Used also adjectively in chemistry.

Xan`tho*car"pous (?), a. [Xantho- + Gr. karpo`s fruit.] (Bot.) Having yellow fruit.

||Xan*thoch"ro*i (?), n. pl. [NL. See Xanthochroic.] (Ethnol.) A division of the Caucasian races, comprising the lighter-colored members.

The Xanthochroi, or fair whites, . . . are the prevalent inhabitants of Northern Europe, and the type may be traced into North Africa, and eastward as far as Hindostan.

Tylor.

Xan`tho*chro"ic (?), a. [Xantho- + Gr. chro`a color.] (Ethnol.) Having a yellowish or fair complexion; of or pertaining to the Xanthochroi.

Xan`tho*don"tous (?), a. [Xantho- + Gr. 'odoy`s, 'odo`ntos, tooth.] Having yellow teeth.

Xan"tho*gen (?), n. [Xantho- + -gen.] (Chem.) (a) The hypothetical radical supposed to be characteristic of xanthic acid. [Archaic] (b) Persulphocyanogen. [R.]

Xan"tho*gen*ate (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of xanthic acid.

Xan`tho*gen"ic (?), a. [See Xantho- , and -gen.] (Chem.) Producing a yellow color or compound; xanthic. See Xanthic acid, under Xanthic.

||Xan*tho"ma (?), n. [NL. See Xantho-, and -oma.] (Med.) A skin disease marked by the development or irregular yellowish patches upon the skin, especially upon the eyelids; -- called also xanthelasma.

Xan"tho*phane (?), n. [Xantho- + Gr. fai`nein to show.] (Physiol.) The yellow pigment present in the inner segments of the retina in animals. See Chromophane.

Xan"tho*phyll (?), n. [Xantho- + Gr. fy`llon leaf.] (Bot.) A yellow coloring matter found in yellow autumn leaves, and also produced artificially from chlorophyll; -- formerly called also phylloxanthin.

Xan"tho*pous (?), a. [Xantho- + Gr. poy`s, podo`s, foot.] (Bot.) Having a yellow stipe, or stem.

Xan`tho*pro*te"ic (?), a. (Physiol. Chem.) Pertaining to, or derived from, xanthoprotein; showing the characters of xanthoprotein; as, xanthoproteic acid; the xanthoproteic reaction for albumin.

Xan`tho*pro"te*in (?), n. [Xantho- + protein.] (Physiol. Chem.) A yellow acid substance formed by the action of hot nitric acid on albuminous or proteid matter. It is changed to a deep orange-yellow color by the addition of ammonia.

Xan`tho*puc"cine (?), n. [Xantho- + puccoon + -ine.] (Chem.) One of three alkaloids found in the root of the yellow puccoon (Hydrastis Canadensis). It is a yellow crystalline substance, and resembles berberine.

Xan`tho*rham"nin (?), n. [Xantho- + NL. Rhamnus, the generic name of the plant bearing Persian berries.] (Chem.) A glucoside extracted from Persian berries as a yellow crystalline powder, used as a dyestuff.

Xan`tho*rhi"za (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. xanqo`s yellow + "ri`za root.] (Bot.) A genus of shrubby ranunculaceous plants of North America, including only the species Xanthorhiza apiifolia, which has roots of a deep yellow color; yellowroot. The bark is intensely bitter, and is sometimes used as a tonic.

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||Xan`tho*rhœ"a (?), n. [NL., from Gr. xanqo`s yellow + "rei^n to flow.] (Bot.) A genus of endogenous plants, native to Australia, having a thick, sometimes arborescent, stem, and long grasslike leaves. See Grass tree.

Xan"those (?), n. (Chem.) An orange-yellow substance found in pigment spots of certain crabs.

||Xan*tho"sis (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. xanqo`s yellow.] (Med.) The yellow discoloration often observed in cancerous tumors.

Xan`tho*sper"mous (?), a. [Xantho- + Gr. spe`rma sperm.] (Bot.) Having yellow seeds.

Xan"thous (?), a. [Gr. xanqo`s yellow.] Yellow; specifically (Ethnol.), of or pertaining to those races of man which have yellowish, red, auburn, or brown hair.

Xan*thox"y*lene (?), n. [See Xanthoxylum.] (Chem.) A liquid hydrocarbon of the terpene series extracted from the seeds of a Japanese prickly ash (Xanthoxylum pipertium) as an aromatic oil.

||Xan*thox"y*lum (?), n. [NL., from Gr. xanqo`s yellow + xy`lon wood.] (Bot.) A genus of prickly shrubs or small trees, the bark and rots of which are of a deep yellow color; prickly ash.

The commonest species in the Northern United States is Xanthoxylum Americanum. See Prickly ash, under Prickly.

Xe"bec (z"bk), n. [Sp. jabegue, formerly spelt xabeque, or Pg. xabeco; both from Turk. sumbeki a kind of Asiatic ship; cf. Per. sumbuk, Ar. sumbk a small ship.] (Naut.) A small three-masted vessel, with projecting bow stern and convex decks, used in the Mediterranean for transporting merchandise, etc. It carries large square sails, or both. Xebecs were formerly armed and used by corsairs.

Xeme (zm), n. (Zoöl.) An Arctic fork-tailed gull (Xema Sabinii).

||Xen`e*la"si*a (?), n. [NL., from Gr. xenhlasi`a expulsion of strangers.] (Gr. Antiq.) A Spartan institution which prohibited strangers from residing in Sparta without permission, its object probably being to preserve the national simplicity of manners.

||Xe"ni*um (?), n.; pl. Xenia (#). [L., from Gr. xe`nion gift to a guest, fr. xe`nos guest.] (Class. Antiq.) A present given to a guest or stranger, or to a foreign ambassador.

||Xen`o*do*chi"um (?), n. [LL., fr. L. xenodochium a building for the reception of strangers, Gr. &?; .] (a) (Class. Antiq.) A house for the reception of strangers. (b) In the Middle Ages, a room in a monastery for the reception and entertainment of strangers and pilgrims, and for the relief of paupers. [Called also Xenodocheion.]

Xe*nod"o*chy (?), n. [Gr. &?;.] Reception of strangers; hospitality. [R.]

Xe*nog"a*my (?), n. [Gr. xe`nos strange, foreign + &?; marriage.] (Bot.) Cross fertilization.

Xen`o*gen"e*sis (?), n. [Gr. xe`nos a stranger + E. genesis.] (Biol.) (a) Same as Heterogenesis. (b) The fancied production of an organism of one kind by an organism of another. Huxley.

Xen`o*ge*net"ic (?), a. (Biol.) Of or pertaining to xenogenesis; as, the xenogenetic origin of microzymes. Huxley.

Xen`o*ma"ni*a (?), n. [Gr. xe`nos strange + E. mania.] A mania for, or an inordinate attachment to, foreign customs, institutions, manners, fashions, etc. [R.] Saintsbury.

||Xen"o*mi (?), n. pl. [NL., from Gr. xe`nos strange.] (Zoöl.) A suborder of soft-rayed fresh-water fishes of which the blackfish of Alaska (Dallia pectoralis) is the type.

||Xe*nop`te*ryg"i*i (?), n. pl. [NL., from Gr. xe`nos strange + &?;, dim. of &?; a wing.] (Zoöl.) A suborder of fishes including Gobiesox and allied genera. These fishes have soft-rayed fins, and a ventral sucker supported in front by the pectoral fins. They are destitute of scales.

Xen"o*time (?), n. [Gr. &?; honoring guests or strangers; xe`nos guest, stranger + &?; honor: cf. G. xenotim.] (Min.) A native phosphate of yttrium occurring in yellowish-brown tetragonal crystals.

Xe*nu"rine (?), n. [Gr. xe`nos strange + &?; tail.] (Zoöl.) A cabassou.

Xen"yl (?), n. [Gr. xe`nos strange + -yl.] (Chem.) The radical characteristic of xenylic compounds.

Xe*nyl"ic (?), a. (Chem.) Pertaining to, derived from, designating, certain amido compounds obtained by reducing certain nitro derivatives of diphenyl.

Xer"a*phim (?), n. [Pg. xarafin, xerafin, fr. Ar. ashraf noble, the name of a gold coin.] An old money of account in Bombay, equal to three fifths of a rupee.

Xer"es (?), n. Sherry. See Sherry.

Xer"if (?), n. A shereef.

Xer"iff (?), n. [See Shereef.] A gold coin formerly current in Egypt and Turkey, of the value of about 9s. 6d., or about $2.30; -- also, in Morocco, a ducat.

||Xe`ro*der"ma (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; dry + &?; skin.] (Med.) (a) Ichthyosis. (b) A skin disease characterized by the presence of numerous small pigmented spots resembling freckles, with which are subsequently mingled spots of atrophied skin.

Xe"ro*nate (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of xeronic acid.

Xe*ron"ic (?), a. [Gr. &?; dry + citraconic.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, an acid, C8H12O4, related to fumaric acid, and obtained from citraconic acid as an oily substance having a bittersweet taste; -- so called from its tendency to form its anhydride.

Xe*roph"a*gy (?), n. [L. xerophagia, Gr. &?;; &?; dry + &?; to eat.] Among the primitive Christians, the living on a diet of dry food in Lent and on other fasts.

Xe*roph"i*lous (?), a. [Gr. &?; dry + &?; to love.] (Bot.) Drought-loving; able withstand the absence or lack of moisture.

Plants which are peculiarly adapted to dry climates are termed by De Candolle xerophilous.

Goodale.

||Xe`roph*thal"mi*a (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?;; &?; dry + &?; the eye. See Ophthalmia.] (Med.) An abnormal dryness of the eyeball produced usually by long- continued inflammation and subsequent atrophy of the conjunctiva.

Xe`roph*thal"my (?), n. (Med.) Xerophthalmia.

||Xiph"i*as (?), n. [L., a swordfish, a sword-shaped comet, fr. Gr. xifi`as, fr. xi`fos a sword.]

1. (Zoöl.) A genus of fishes comprising the common swordfish.

2. (Anat.) (a) The constellation Dorado. (b) A comet shaped like a sword

||Xi*phid"i*um (?), n. [NL., from Gr. &?;, dim. of xi`fos sword.] (Bot.) A genus of plants of the order Hæmodraceæ, having two-ranked, sword-shaped leaves.

Xiph"i*oid (?), a. [Xiphius + -oid.] (Zoöl.) Of, pertaining to, or resembling, a cetacean of the genus Xiphius or family Xiphiidæ.

||Xiph"i*plas"tron (?), n.; pl. Xiphiplastra (#). [NL., fr. Gr. xi`fos a sword + plastron.] (Anat.) The posterior, or fourth, lateral plate in the plastron of turtles; -- called also xiphisternum.

||Xiph"i*ster"num (?), n.; pl. Xiphisterna (#). [NL., fr. Gr. xi`fos a sword + sternum.] (Anat.) (a) The posterior segment, or extremity, of the sternum; -- sometimes called metasternum, ensiform cartilage, ensiform process, or xiphoid process. (b) The xiphiplastron. -- Xiph"i*ster"nal (#) a.

||Xiph"i*us (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. xi`fos a sword.] (Zoöl.) A genus of cetaceans having a long, pointed, bony beak, usually two tusklike teeth in the lower jaw, but no teeth in the upper jaw.

Xiph"o*don (?), n. [Gr. xi`fos a sword + 'odoy`s, 'odo`ntos, a tooth.] (Paleon.) An extinct genus of artiodactylous mammals found in the European Tertiary formations. It had slender legs, didactylous feet, and small canine teeth.

Xiph"oid (?; 277), a. [Gr. &?; sword- shaped; xi`fos a sword + &?; form, shape: cf. F. xiphoide.] (Anat.) (a) Like a sword; ensiform. (b) Of or pertaining to the xiphoid process; xiphoidian.

Xiph*oid"i*an (?), a. (Anat.) Xiphoid.

Xi*phoph"yl*lous (?), a. [Gr. xi`fos sword + &?; leaf.] (Bot.) Having sword- shaped leaves.

||Xiph`o*su"ra (?), n. pl. See Xiphura.

||Xi*phu"ra (?), n. pl. [NL., from Gr. xi`fos sword + &?; tail.] (Zoöl.) Same as Limuloidea. Called also Xiphosura.

X ray. See under Ray.

Xy*lam"ide (?), n. [Xylic + amide.] (Chem.) An acid amide derivative of xylic acid, obtained as a white crystalline substance.

Xy*lan"thrax (?), n. [Gr. xy`lon wood + &?; coal.] Wood coal, or charcoal; -- so called in distinction from mineral coal.

Xy"late (?), n. (Chem.) A salt of xylic acid.

Xy"lem (?), n. [Gr. xy`lon wood.] (Bot.) That portion of a fibrovascular bundle which has developed, or will develop, into wood cells; -- distinguished from phloëm.

Xy"lene (?), n. [Gr. xy`lon wood.] (Chem.) Any of a group of three metameric hydrocarbons of the aromatic series, found in coal and wood tar, and so named because found in crude wood spirit. They are colorless, oily, inflammable liquids, C6H4.(CH3)2, being dimethyl benzenes, and are called respectively orthoxylene, metaxylene, and paraxylene. Called also xylol.

Each of these xylenes is the nucleus and prototype of a distinct series of compounds.

Xy"le*nol (?), n. [Xylene + - ol.] (Chem.) Any one of six metameric phenol derivatives of xylene, obtained as crystalline substances, (CH3)2.C6H3.OH.

Xy*let"ic (?), a. (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, a complex acid related to mesitylenic acid, obtained as a white crystalline substance by the action of sodium and carbon dioxide on crude xylenol.

Xy"lic (?), a. (Chem.) Pertaining to, derived from, or related to, xylene; specifically, designating any one of several metameric acids produced by the partial oxidation of mesitylene and pseudo-cumene.

Xy*lid"ic (?), a. (Chem.) Pertaining to, or designating, either one of two distinct acids which are derived from xylic acid and related compounds, and are metameric with uvitic acid.

Xy"li*dine (?), n. (Chem.) Any one of six metameric hydrocarbons, (CH3)2.C6H3.NH2 , resembling aniline, and related to xylene. They are liquids, or easily fusible crystalline substances, of which three are derived from metaxylene, two from orthoxylene, and one from paraxylene. They are called the amido xylenes.

The xylidine of commerce, used in making certain dyes, consists chiefly of the derivatives of paraxylene and metaxylene.

Xy*lin"de*in (?), n. (Chem.) A green or blue pigment produced by Peziza in certain kinds of decayed wood, as the beech, oak, birch, etc., and extracted as an amorphous powder resembling indigo.

Xy"lite (?), n. [Gr. xy`lon wood.] (Chem.) A liquid hydrocarbon found in crude wood spirits.

Xy"li*tone (?), n. (Chem.) A yellow oil having a geraniumlike odor, produced as a side product in making phorone; -- called also xylite oil.

Xy"lo- (?). A combining form from Gr. xy`lon wood; as in xylogen, xylograph.

||Xy`lo*bal"sa*mum (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. xy`lon wood + &?; the balsam tree, balsam; cf. L. xylobalsamum balsam wood, Gr. &?;.] (Med.) The dried twigs of a Syrian tree (Balsamodendron Gileadense). U. S. Disp.

Xy`lo*car"pous (?), a. [Xylo- + Gr. karpo`s fruit.] (Bot.) Bearing fruit which becomes hard or woody.

||Xy*loc"o*pa (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; cutting wood; xy`lon wood + &?; to cut.] (Zoöl.) A genus of hymenopterous insects including the carpenter. See Carpenter bee, under Carpenter. -- Xy*loc"o*pine (#), a.

Xy"lo*gen (?), n. [Xylo- + - gen.] (a) (Bot.) Nascent wood; wood cells in a forming state. (b) Lignin.

Xy"lo*graph (?), n. [Xylo- + - graph.] An engraving on wood, or the impression from such an engraving; a print by xylography.

Xy*log"ra*pher (?), n. One who practices xylography.

{ Xy`lo*graph"ic (?), Xy`lo*graph"ic*al (?), } a. [Cf. F. xylographique.] Of or pertaining to xylography, or wood engraving.

Xy*log"ra*phy (?), n. [Xylo- + -graphy: cf. F. xylographie.]

1. The art of engraving on wood.

2. The art of making prints from the natural grain of wood. Knight.

3. A method pf printing in colors upon wood for purposes of house decoration. Ure.

Xy"loid (?), a. [Xylo- + - oid.] Resembling wood; having the nature of wood.

Xy*loid"in (?), n. [Xylo- + - oid.] (Chem.) A substance resembling pyroxylin, obtained by the action of nitric acid on starch; -- called also nitramidin.

Xy"lol (?), n. [Xylo- + L. oleum oil.] (Chem.) Same as Xylene.

Xy"lon*ite (?), n. See Zylonite.

||Xy*loph"a*ga (?), n. [NL. See Xylophagous.] (Zoöl.) A genus of marine bivalves which bore holes in wood. They are allied to Pholas.

Xy*loph"a*gan (?), n. [See Xylophagous.] (Zoöl.) (a) One of a tribe of beetles whose larvæ bore or live in wood. (b) Any species of Xylophaga. (c) Any one of the Xylophagides.

||Xy`lo*phag"i*des (?), n. pl. [See Xylophagous.] (Zoöl.) A tribe or family of dipterous flies whose larvæ live in decayed wood. Some of the tropical species are very large.

Xy*loph"a*gous (?), a. [Gr. &?; eating wood; xy`lon wood + &?; to eat.] (Zoöl.) (a) Eating, boring in, or destroying, wood; -- said especially of certain insect larvæ, crustaceans, and mollusks. (b) Of or pertaining to the genus Xylophaga.

Xy*loph"i*lan (?), n. [See Xylophilous.] (Zoöl.) One of a tribe of beetles (Xylophili) whose larvæ live on decayed wood.

Xy*loph"i*lous (?), a. [Xylo- + Gr. filei^n to love.] (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the xylophilans.

Xy"lo*phone (?), n. [Xylo- + Gr. fwnh` sound.]

1. (Mus.) An instrument common among the Russians, Poles, and Tartars, consisting of a series of strips of wood or glass graduated in length to the musical scale, resting on belts of straw, and struck with two small hammers. Called in Germany strohfiedel, or straw fiddle.

2. An instrument to determine the vibrative properties of different kinds of wood. Knight.

Xy`lo*plas"tic (?), a. [Xylo- + -plastic.] (Technol.) Formed of wood pulp by molds; relating to casts made of wood pulp in molds.

Xy`lo*py*rog"ra*phy (?). n. [Xylo- + Gr. &?;, &?;, fire + -graphy.] The art or practice of burning pictures on wood with a hot iron; -- called also poker painting. See Poker picture, under Poker.

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Xy`lo*qui"none (?), n. [Xylene + quinone.] (Chem.) Any one of a group of quinone compounds obtained respectively by the oxidation of certain xylidine compounds. In general they are yellow crystalline substances.

Xy*lor"cin (?), n. [Xylene + orcin.] (Chem.) A derivative of xylene obtained as a white crystalline substance which on exposure in the air becomes red; -- called also betaorcin.

Xy*los"te*in (?), n. [Xylo- + Gr. &?; bone.] (Chem.) A glucoside found in the poisonous berries of a species of honeysuckle (Lonicera xylosteum), and extracted as a bitter, white, crystalline substance.

Xy"lo*tile (?), n. Same as Parkesine.

||Xy*lo"try*a (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. xy`lon wood + &?; to rub, wear out.] (Zoöl.) A genus of marine bivalves closely allied to Teredo, and equally destructive to timber. One species (Xylotrya fimbriata) is very common on the Atlantic coast of the United States.

Xy"lyl (?), n. [Xylo- + - yl.] (Chem.) Any one of three metameric radicals which are characteristic respectively of the three xylenes.

Xy"lyl*ene (?), n. (Chem.) Any one of three metameric radicals, CH2.C6H4.CH2, derived respectively from the three xylenes. Often used adjectively; as, xylylene alcohol.

Xyr`i*da"ceous (?), a. (Bot.) Of or pertaining to a natural order (Xyrideæ) of endogenous plants, of which Xyris is the type.

||Xy"ris (?), n. [L., a kind of Iris, Gr. &?;, fr. &?; a razor.] (Bot.) A genus of endogenous herbs with grassy leaves and small yellow flowers in short, scaly- bracted spikes; yellow-eyed grass. There are about seventeen species in the Atlantic United States.

{ Xyst (?), ||Xys"tus (?), } n. [L. xystus, Gr. &?;, from &?; to scrape, polish; -- so called from its smooth and polished floor.] (Anc. Arch.) A long and open portico, for athletic exercises, as wrestling, running, etc., for use in winter or in stormy weather.

Xyst"arch (?), n. [L. xystarches, Gr. &?;, &?; a xyst + &?; to rule.] (Gr. Antiq.) An office&?; having the superintendence of the xyst. Dr. W. Smith.

Xys"ter (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. xysth`r a scraper.] (Surg.) An instrument for scraping bones.

Y.

Y (w). Y, the twenty-fifth letter of the English alphabet, at the beginning of a word or syllable, except when a prefix (see Y-), is usually a fricative vocal consonant; as a prefix, and usually in the middle or at the end of a syllable, it is a vowel. See Guide to Pronunciation, §§ 145, 178-9, 272.

It derives its form from the Latin Y, which is from the Greek , originally the same letter as V. Etymologically, it is most nearly related to u, i, o, and j. g; as in full, fill, AS. fyllan; E. crypt, grotto; young, juvenile; day, AS. dæg. See U, I, and J, G.

Y has been called the Pythagorean letter, because the Greek letter was taken represent the sacred triad, formed by the duad proceeding from the monad; and also because it represents the dividing of the paths of vice and virtue in the development of human life.

Y (w), n.; pl. Y's (wz) or Ys. Something shaped like the letter Y; a forked piece resembling in form the letter Y. Specifically: (a) One of the forked holders for supporting the telescope of a leveling instrument, or the axis of a theodolite; a wye. (b) A forked or bifurcated pipe fitting. (c) (Railroads) A portion of track consisting of two diverging tracks connected by a cross track.

Y level (Surv.), an instrument for measuring differences of level by means of a telescope resting in Y's. -- Y moth (Zoöl.), a handsome European noctuid moth Plusia gamma) which has a bright, silvery mark, shaped like the letter Y, on each of the fore wings. Its larva, which is green with five dorsal white species, feeds on the cabbage, turnip, bean, etc. Called also gamma moth, and silver Y.

Y (), pron. I. [Obs.] King Horn. Wyclif.