Chapter 7

4. (Bot.) Suddenly terminating, as if cut off. Gray. Syn. Ð Sudden; unexpected; hasty; rough; curt; unceremonious; rugged; blunt; disconnected; broken. AbÏrupt¶ (#), n. [L. abruptum.] An abrupt place. [Poetic] ½Over the vast abrupt.¸ Milton. AbÏrupt¶, v. t. To tear off or asunder. [Obs.] ½Till death abrupts them.¸ Sir T. Browne. AbÏrup¶tion (#), n. [L. abruptio, fr. abrumpere: cf. F. abruption.] A sudden breaking off; a violent separation of bodies. Woodward. AbÏrupt¶ly, adv. 1. In an abrupt manner; without giving notice, or without the usual forms; suddenly. 2. Precipitously. Abruptly pinnate (Bot.), pinnate without an odd leaflet, or other appendage, at the end. Gray. AbÏrupt¶ness, n. 1. The state of being abrupt or broken; craggedness; ruggedness; steepness. 2. Suddenness; unceremonious haste or vehemence; as, abruptness of style or manner. Ab¶scess (#), n.; pl. Abscesses (#). [L. abscessus a going away, gathering of humors, abscess, fr. abscessus, p. p. of absedere to go away; ab, abs + cedere to go off, retire. See Cede.] (Med.) A collection of pus or purulent matter in any tissue or organ of the body, the result of a morbid process. Cold abscess, an abscess of slow formation, unattended with the pain and heat characteristic of ordinary abscesses, and lasting for years without exhibiting any tendency towards healing; a chronic abscess. AbÏsces¶sion (#), n. [L. abscessio a separation; fr. absedere. See Abscess.] A separating; removal; also, an abscess. [Obs.] Gauden. Barrough. AbÏscind¶ (#), v. t. [L. absindere; ab + scindere to rend, cut. See Schism.] To cut off. [R.] ½Two syllables... abscinded from the rest.¸ Johnson. AbÏsci¶sion (#), n. [L. abscisio.] See Abscission. Ab¶sciss (#), n.; pl. Abscisses (#). See Abscissa. AbÏscis¶sa (#), n.; E. pl. Abscissas, L. pl. Absciss‘. [L., fem. of abscissus, p. p. of absindere to cut of. See Abscind.] (Geom.) One of the elements of reference by which a point, as of a curve, is referred to a system of fixed rectilineal co”rdinate axes. When referred to two intersecting axes, one of them called the axis of abscissas, or of X, and the other the axis of ordinates, or of Y, the abscissa of the point is the distance cut off from the axis of X by a line drawn through it and parallel to the axis of Y. When a point in space is referred to three axes having a common intersection, the abscissa may be the distance measured parallel to either of them, from the point to the plane of the other two axes. Abscissas and ordinates taken together are called co”rdinates. Ð OX or PY is the abscissa of the point P of the curve, OY or PX its ordinate, the intersecting lines OX and OY being the axes of abscissas and ordinates respectively, and the point O their origin. AbÏscis¶sion (#), n. [L. abscissio. See Abscind.] 1. The act or process of cutting off. ½Not to be cured without the abscission of a member.¸ Jer. Taylor. 2. The state of being cut off. Sir T. Browne. 3. (Rhet.) A figure of speech employed when a speaker having begun to say a thing stops abruptly: thus, ½He is a man of so much honor and candor, and of such generosity Ð but I need say no more.¸ AbÏscond¶ (#), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Absconded; p. pr. & vb. n. Absconding.] [L. abscondere to hide; ab, abs + condere to lay up; con + d?re (only in comp.) to put. Cf. Do.] 1. To hide, withdraw, or be concealed. The marmot absconds all winter. Ray. 2. To depart clandestinely; to steal off and secrete one's self; Ð used especially of persons who withdraw to avoid a legal process; as, an absconding debtor. That very homesickness which, in regular armies, drives so many recruits to abscond. Macaulay. AbÏscond¶, v. t. To hide; to conceal. [Obs.] Bentley. AbÏscond¶ence (#), n. Fugitive concealment; secret retirement; hiding. [R.] Phillips. AbÏscond¶er (#), n. One who absconds. Ab¶sence (#), n. [F., fr. L. absentia. See Absent.] 1. A state of being absent or withdrawn from a place or from companionship; Ð opposed to presence. Not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence. Phil. ii. 12. 2. Want; destitution; withdrawal. ½In the absence of conventional law.¸ Kent. 3. Inattention to things present; abstraction (of mind); as, absence of mind. ¸Reflecting on the little absences and distractions of mankind.¸ Addison. To conquer that abstraction which is called absence. Landor. Ab¶sent (#), a. [F., fr. absens, absentis, p. pr. of abesse to be away from; ab + esse to be. Cf. Sooth.] 1. Being away from a place; withdrawn from a place; not present. ½Expecting absent friends.¸ Shak. 2. Not existing; lacking; as, the part was rudimental or absent. 3. Inattentive to what is passing; absentÐminded; preoccupied; as, an absent air. What is commonly called an absent man is commonly either a very weak or a very affected man. Chesterfield. Syn. Ð Absent, Abstracted. These words both imply a want of attention to surrounding objects. We speak of a man as absent when his thoughts wander unconsciously from present scenes or topics of discourse; we speak of him as abstracted when his mind (usually for a brief period) is drawn off from present things by some weighty matter for reflection. Absence of mind is usually the result of loose habits of thought; abstraction commonly arises either from engrossing interests and cares, or from unfortunate habits of association. AbÏsent¶ (#), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Absented; p. pr. & vb. n. Absenting.] [Cf. F. absenter.] 1. To take or withdraw (one's self) to such a distance as to prevent intercourse; Ð used with the reflexive pronoun. If after due summons any member absents himself, he is to be fined. Addison. 2. To withhold from being present. [Obs.] ½Go; for thy stay, not free, absents thee more.¸ Milton. Ab·senÏta¶neÏous (#), a. [LL. absentaneus. See Absent.] Pertaining to absence. [Obs.] Ab·senÏta¶tion (#), n. The act of absenting one's self. Sir W. Hamilton. Ab·senÏtee¶ (#), n. One who absents himself from his country, office, post, or duty; especially, a landholder who lives in another country or district than that where his estate is situated; as, an Irish absentee. Macaulay. Ab·senÏtee¶ism (#), n. The state or practice of an absentee; esp. the practice of absenting one's self from the country or district where one's estate is situated. AbÏsent¶er (#), n. One who absents one's self. Ab¶sentÏly (#), adv. In an absent or abstracted manner. AbÏsent¶ment (#), n. The state of being absent; withdrawal. [R.] Barrow. Ab·sentÐmind¶ed (#), a. Absent in mind; abstracted; preoccupied. Ð Ab·sentÐmind¶edÏness, n. Ð Ab·sentÐmind¶edÏly, adv. Ab¶sentÏness (#), n. The quality of being absentÐminded. H. Miller. Ab¶seyÐbook· (#), n. An AÐBÐC book; a primer. [Obs.] Shak. Ab¶sin¶thate (#), n. (Chem.) A combination of absinthic acid with a base or positive radical. Ab¶sinth·, Ab¶sinthe· } (#), n. [F. absinthe. See Absinthium.] 1. The plant absinthium or common wormwood. 2. A strong spirituous liqueur made from wormwood and brandy or alcohol. AbÏsin¶thiÏal (#), a. Of or pertaining to wormwood; absinthian. AbÏsin¶thiÏan (#), n. Of the nature of wormwood. ½Absinthian bitterness.¸ T. Randolph. Ab¶sin¶thiÏate (#), v. t. [From L. absinthium: cf. L. absinthiatus, a.] To impregnate with wormwood. AbÏsin¶thiÏa·ted (#), a. Impregnated with wormwood; as, absinthiated wine. AbÏsin¶thic (#), a. (Chem.) Relating to the common wormwood or to an acid obtained from it. AbÏsin¶thin (#), n. (Chem.) The bitter principle of wormwood (Artemisia absinthium). Watts. Ab¶sinÏthism (#), n. The condition of being poisoned by the excessive use of absinth. AbÏsin¶thiÏum (#), n. [L., from Gr. ?.] (Bot.) The common wormwood (Artemisia absinthium), an intensely bitter plant, used as a tonic and for making the oil of wormwood. Ab¶sis (#), n. See Apsis. AbÏsist¶ (#), v. i. [L. absistere, p. pr. absistens; ab + sistere to stand, causal of stare.] To stand apart from; top leave off; to desist. [Obs.] Raleigh. AbÏsist¶ence (#), n. A standing aloof. [Obs.] Ab¶soÏlute (#), a. [L. absolutus, p. p. of absolvere: cf. F. absolu. See Absolve.] 1. Loosed from any limitation or condition; uncontrolled; unrestricted; unconditional; as, absolute authority, monarchy, sovereignty, an absolute promise or command; absolute power; an absolute monarch. 2. Complete in itself; perfect; consummate; faultless; as, absolute perfection; absolute beauty. So absolute she seems, And in herself complete. Milton. 3. Viewed apart from modifying influences or without comparison with other objects; actual; real; Ð opposed to relative and comparative; as, absolute motion; absolute time or space. Absolute rights and duties are such as pertain to man in a state of nature as contradistinguished from relative rights and duties, or such as pertain to him in his social relations. 4. Loosed from, or unconnected by, dependence on any other being; selfÐexistent; selfÐsufficing. µ In this sense God is called the Absolute by the Theist. The term is also applied by the Pantheist to the universe, or the total of all existence, as only capable of relations in its parts to each other and to the whole, and as dependent for its existence and its phenomena on its mutually depending forces and their laws. 5. Capable of being thought or conceived by itself alone; unconditioned; nonÐrelative. µ It is in dispute among philosopher whether the term, in this sense, is not applied to a mere logical fiction or abstraction, or whether the absolute, as thus defined, can be known, as a reality, by the human intellect. To Cusa we can indeed articulately trace, word and thing, the recent philosophy of the absolute. Sir W. Hamilton. 6. Positive; clear; certain; not doubtful. [R.] I am absolute 't was very Cloten. Shak. 7. Authoritative; peremptory. [R.] The peddler stopped, and tapped her on the head, With absolute forefinger, brown and ringed. Mrs. Browning. 8. (Chem.) Pure; unmixed; as, absolute alcohol. 9. (Gram.) Not immediately dependent on the other parts of the sentence in government; as, the case absolute. See Ablative absolute, under Ablative. Absolute curvature (Geom.), that curvature of a curve of double curvature, which is measured in the osculating plane of the curve. Ð Absolute equation (Astron.), the sum of the optic and eccentric equations. Ð Absolute space (Physics), space considered without relation to material limits or objects. Ð Absolute terms. (Alg.), such as are known, or which do not contain the unknown quantity. Davies & Peck. Ð Absolute temperature (Physics), the temperature as measured on a scale determined by certain general thermoÐdynamic principles, and reckoned from the absolute zero. Ð Absolute zero (Physics), the be ginning, or zero point, in the scale of absolute temperature. It is equivalent to Ð2730 centigrade or Ð459,40 Fahrenheit. Syn. Ð Positive; peremptory; certain; unconditional; unlimited; unrestricted; unqualified; arbitrary; despotic; autocratic. Ab¶soÏlute (#), n. (Geom.) In a plane, the two imaginary circular points at infinity; in space of three dimensions, the imaginary circle at infinity. Ab¶soÏluteÏly, adv. In an absolute, independent, or unconditional manner; wholly; positively. Ab¶soÏluteÏness, n. The quality of being absolute; independence of everything extraneous; unlimitedness; absolute power; independent reality; positiveness. Ab·soÏlu¶tion (#), n. [F. absolution, L. absolutio, fr. absolvere to absolve. See Absolve.] 1. An absolving, or setting free from guilt, sin, or penalty; forgiveness of an offense. ½Government... granting absolution to the nation.¸ Froude. 2. (Civil Law) An acquittal, or sentence of a judge declaring and accused person innocent. [Obs.] 3. (R. C. Ch.) The exercise of priestly jurisdiction in the sacrament of penance, by which Catholics believe the sins of the truly penitent are forgiven. µ In the English and other Protestant churches, this act regarded as simply declaratory, not as imparting forgiveness. 4. (Eccl.) An absolving from ecclesiastical penalties, Ð for example, excommunication. P. Cyc. 5. The form of words by which a penitent is absolved. Shipley. 6. Delivery, in speech. [Obs.] B. Jonson. Absolution day (R. C. Ch.), Tuesday before Easter. Ab¶soÏlu·tism (#), n. 1. The state of being absolute; the system or doctrine of the absolute; the principles or practice of absolute or arbitrary government; despotism. The element of absolutism and prelacy was controlling. Palfrey. 2. (Theol.) Doctrine of absolute decrees. Ash. Ab¶soÏlu·tist (#), n. 1. One who is in favor of an absolute or autocratic government. 2. (Metaph.) One who believes that it is possible to realize a cognition or concept of the absolute. Sir. W. Hamilton. Ab¶soÏlu·tist, a. Of or pertaining to absolutism; arbitrary; despotic; as, absolutist principles. Ab·soÏluÏtis¶tic (#), a. Pertaining to absolutism; absolutist. AbÏsol¶uÏtoÏry (#), a. [L. absolutorius, fr. absolvere to absolve.] Serving to absolve; absolving. ½An absolutory sentence.¸ Ayliffe. AbÏsolv¶aÏble (#), a. That may be absolved. AbÏsolv¶aÏtoÏry (#), a. Conferring absolution; absolutory. AbÏsolve¶ (#; 277), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Absolved (#); p. pr. & vb. n. Absolving.] [L. absolvere to set free, to absolve; ab + solvere to loose. See Assoil, Solve.] 1. To set free, or release, as from some obligation, debt, or responsibility, or from the consequences of guilt or such ties as it would be sin or guilt to violate; to pronounce free; as, to absolve a subject from his allegiance; to absolve an offender, which amounts to an acquittal and remission of his punishment. Halifax was absolved by a majority of fourteen. Macaulay. 2. To free from a penalty; to pardon; to remit (a sin); Ð said of the sin or guilt. In his name I absolve your perjury. Gibbon. 3. To finish; to accomplish. [Obs.] The work begun, how soon absolved. Milton. 4. To resolve or explain. [Obs.] ½We shall not absolve the doubt.¸ Sir T. Browne. Syn. Ð To Absolve, Exonerate, Acquit. We speak of a man as absolved from something that binds his conscience, or involves the charge of wrongdoing; as, to absolve from allegiance or from the obligation of an oath, or a promise. We speak of a person as exonerated, when he is released from some burden which had rested upon him; as, to exonerate from suspicion, to exonerate from blame or odium. It implies a purely moral acquittal. We speak of a person as acquitted, when a decision has been made in his favor with reference to a specific charge, either by a jury or by disinterested persons; as, he was acquitted of all participation in the crime. AbÏsolv¶ent (#), a. [L. absolvens, p. pr. of absolvere.] Absolving. [R.] Carlyle. AbÏsolv¶ent, n. An absolver. [R.] Hobbes. AbÏsolv¶er (#), n. One who absolves. Macaulay. Ab¶soÏnant (#), a. [L. ab + sonans, p. pr. of sonare to sound.] Discordant; contrary; Ð opposed to consonant. ½Absonant to nature.¸ Quarles. Ab¶soÏnous (#), a. [L. absonus; ab + sonus sound.] Discordant; inharmonious; incongruous. [Obs.] ½Absonous to our reason.¸ Glanvill. AbÏsorb¶ (#), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Absorbed (#); p. pr. & vb. n. Absorbing.] [L. absorbere; ab + sorbere to suck in, akin to Gr. ?: cf. F. absorber.] 1. To swallow up; to engulf; to overwhelm; to cause to disappear as if by swallowing up; to use up; to include. ½Dark oblivion soon absorbs them all.¸ Cowper. The large cities absorb the wealth and fashion. W. Irving. 2. To suck up; to drink in; to imbibe; as a sponge or as the lacteals of the body. Bacon. 3. To engross or engage wholly; to occupy fully; as, absorbed in study or the pursuit of wealth. 4. To take up by cohesive, chemical, or any molecular action, as when charcoal absorbs gases. So heat, light, and electricity are absorbed or taken up in the substances into which they pass. Nichol.

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