D.

D (dē) 1. The fourth letter of the English alphabet, and a vocal consonant. The English letter is from Latin, which is from Greek, which took it from Phœnician, the probable ultimate origin being Egyptian. It is related most nearly to t and th; as, Eng. deep, G. tief; Eng. daughter, G. tochter, Gr. qyga`thr, Skr. duhitr. See Guide to Pronunciation, √178, 179, 229.

2. (Mus.) The nominal of the second tone in the model major scale (that in C), or of the fourth tone in the relative minor scale of C (that in A minor), or of the key tone in the relative minor of F.

3. As a numeral D stands for 500. in this use it is not the initial of any word, or even strictly a letter, but one half of the sign &?; (or &?; ) the original Tuscan numeral for 1000.

Dab (dăb), n. [Perh. corrupted fr. adept.] A skillful hand; a dabster; an expert. [Colloq.]

One excels at a plan or the titlepage, another works away at the body of the book, and the third is a dab at an index.

Goldsmith.

Dab, n. [Perh. so named from its quickness in diving beneath the sand. Cf. Dabchick.] (Zoöl.) A name given to several species of flounders, esp. to the European species, Pleuronectes limanda. The American rough dab is Hippoglossoides platessoides.

Dab (dăb), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Dabbed (dăbd); p. pr. & vb. n. Dabbing.] [OE. dabben to strice; akin to OD. dabben to pinch, knead, fumble, dabble, and perh. to G. tappen to grope.] 1. To strike or touch gently, as with a soft or moist substance; to tap; hence, to besmear with a dabber.

A sore should . . . be wiped . . . only by dabbing it over with fine lint.

S. Sharp.

2. To strike by a thrust; to hit with a sudden blow or thrust. "To dab him in the neck." Sir T. More.

Dab (?), n. 1. A gentle blow with the hand or some soft substance; a sudden blow or hit; a peck.

A scratch of her claw, a dab of her beak.

Hawthorne.

2. A small mass of anything soft or moist.

Dabb (d&adot;b), n. (Zoöl.) A large, spine-tailed lizard (Uromastix spinipes), found in Egypt, Arabia, and Palestine; -- called also dhobb, and dhubb.

Dab"ber (dăb"b&etilde;r), n. That with which one dabs; hence, a pad or other device used by printers, engravers, etc., as for dabbing type or engraved plates with ink.

Dab"ble (dăb"b'l), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dabbled (-b'ld); p. pr. & vb. n. Dabbling (-b'l&ibreve;ng).] [Freq. of dab: cf. OD. dabbelen.] To wet by little dips or strokes; to spatter; to sprinkle; to moisten; to wet. "Bright hair dabbled in blood." Shak.

Dab"ble, v. i. 1. To play in water, as with the hands; to paddle or splash in mud or water.

Where the duck dabbles 'mid the rustling sedge.

Wordsworth.

2. To work in slight or superficial manner; to do in a small way; to tamper; to meddle. "Dabbling here and there with the text." Atterbury.

During the first year at Dumfries, Burns for the first time began to dabble in politics.

J. C. Shairp.

Dab"bler (dăb"bl&etilde;r), n. 1. One who dabbles.

2. One who dips slightly into anything; a superficial meddler. "our dabblers in politics." Swift.

Dab"bling*ly (?), adv. In a dabbling manner.

Dab"chick` (dăb"ch&ibreve;k`), n. [For dabchick. See Dap, Dip, cf. Dipchick.] (Zoöl.) A small water bird (Podilymbus podiceps), allied to the grebes, remarkable for its quickness in diving; -- called also dapchick, dobchick, dipchick, didapper, dobber, devil-diver, hell-diver, and pied- billed grebe.

||Da*boi"a (?), n. (Zoöl.) A large and highly venomous Asiatic viper (Daboia xanthica).

Dab"ster, n. [Cf. Dab an expert.] One who is skilled; a master of his business; a proficient; an adept. [Colloq.]

&fist; Sometimes improperly used for dabbler; as, "I am but a dabster with gentle art."

||Da`ca"po (?). [It., from [the] head or beginning.] (Mus.) From the beginning; a direction to return to, and end with, the first strain; -- indicated by the letters D. C. Also, the strain so repeated.

Dace (?), n. [Written also dare, dart, fr. F. dard dase, dart, of German origin. Dace is for an older darce, fr. an OF. nom. darz. See Dart a javelin.] (Zoöl.) A small European cyprinoid fish (Squalius leuciscus or Leuciscus vulgaris); -- called also dare.

&fist; In America the name is given to several related fishes of the genera Squalius, Minnilus, etc. The black-nosed dace is Rhinichthys atronasus the horned dace is Semotilus corporalis. For red dace, see Redfin.

||Dachs"hund` (?), n. [G., from dachs badger + hund dog.] (Zoöl.) One of a breed of small dogs with short crooked legs, and long body; -- called also badger dog. There are two kinds, the rough-haired and the smooth-haired.

Da"cian (?), a. Of or pertaining to Dacia or the Dacians. -- n. A native of ancient Dacia.

Da*coit" (d&adot;*koit"), n. [Hind. &dsdot;akait, &dsdot;ākāyat.] One of a class of robbers, in India, who act in gangs.

Da*coit"y (?), n. The practice of gang robbery in India; robbery committed by dacoits.

Da*co"tahs (?), n. pl.; sing. Dacotan (&?;). (Ethnol.) Same as Dacotas. Longfellow.

Dac"tyl (?), n. [L. dactylus, Gr. da`ktylos a finger, a dactyl. Cf. Digit.] 1. (Pros.) A poetical foot of three sylables (— ⌣ ⌣), one long followed by two short, or one accented followed by two unaccented; as, L. tëgm&ibreve;n&ebreve;, E. mer\b6ciful; -- so called from the similarity of its arrangement to that of the joints of a finger. [Written also dactyle.]

2. (Zoöl.) (a) A finger or toe; a digit. (b) The claw or terminal joint of a leg of an insect or crustacean.

Dac"tyl*ar (?), a. 1. Pertaining to dactyl; dactylic.

2. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to a finger or toe, or to the claw of an insect crustacean.

Dac"tyl*et (?), n. [Dactyl + &?;et.] A dactyl. [Obs.]

Dac*tyl"ic (?), a. [L. dactylicus, Gr. &?;, fr. &?;.] Pertaining to, consisting chiefly or wholly of, dactyls; as, dactylic verses.

Dac*tyl"ic, n. 1. A line consisting chiefly or wholly of dactyls; as, these lines are dactylics.

2. pl. Dactylic meters.

Dac*tyl"i*o*glyph (dăk*t&ibreve;l"&ibreve;*&osl;*gl&ibreve;f), n. [Gr. daktyliogly`fos an engraver of gems; dakty`lios finger ring (fr. da`ktylos finger) + gly`fein to engrave.] (Fine Arts) (a) An engraver of gems for rings and other ornaments. (b) The inscription of the engraver's name on a finger ring or gem.

Dac*tyl`i*og"ly*phy (?), n. The art or process of gem engraving.

Dac*tyl`i*og"ra*phy (?), n. [Gr. dakty`lios finger ring + -graphy.] (Fine Arts) (a) The art of writing or engraving upon gems. (b) In general, the literature or history of the art.

Dac*tyl`i*ol"o*gy (?), n. [Gr. dakty`lios finger ring + -logy.] (Fine Arts) (a) That branch of archæology which has to do with gem engraving. (b) That branch of archæology which has to do with finger rings.

Dac*tyl"i*o*man`cy (?), n. [Gr. dakty`lios + -mancy.] Divination by means of finger rings.

Dac"tyl*ist (?), n. A writer of dactylic verse.

||Dac`tyl*i"tis (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. da`ktylos finger + -itis.] (Med.) An inflammatory affection of the fingers. Gross.

Dac`tyl*ol"o*gy (?), n. [Gr. da`ktylos finger + -logy.] The art of communicating ideas by certain movements and positions of the fingers; -- a method of conversing practiced by the deaf and dumb.

&fist; There are two different manual alphabets, the one- hand alphabet (which was perfected by Abbé de l'Epée, who died in 1789), and the two-hand alphabet. The latter was probably based on the manual alphabet published by George Dalgarus of Aberdeen, in 1680. See Illustration in Appendix.

Dac*tyl"o*man`cy (?), n. Dactyliomancy. [R.] Am. Cyc.

Dac`tyl*on"o*my (?), n. [Gr. da`ktylos finger + no`mos law, distribution.] The art of numbering or counting by the fingers.

Dac`tyl*op"ter*ous (?), a. [Gr. da`ktylos finger + &?; wing, fin.] (Zoöl.) Having the inferior rays of the pectoral fins partially or entirely free, as in the gurnards.

||Dac`ty*lo*the"ca (dăk`t&ibreve;*l&osl;*thē"k&adot;), n. [NL., fr. Gr. da`ktylos finger, toe + qh`kh case, box.] (Zoöl.) The scaly covering of the toes, as in birds.

Dac`tyl*o*zo"oid (dăk`t&ibreve;*l&osl;*zō"oid), n. [Gr. da`ktylos finger + E. zooid.] (Zoöl.) A kind of zooid of Siphonophora which has an elongated or even vermiform body, with one tentacle, but no mouth. See Siphonophora.

Dad (dăd), n. [Prob. of Celtic origin; cf. Ir. daid, Gael. daidein, W. tad, OL. tata, Gr. ta`ta, te`tta, Skr. tāta.] Father; -- a word sometimes used by children.

I was never so bethumped with words,
Since I first called my brother's father dad.

Shak.

Dad"dle (dăd"d'l), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Daddled (?), p. pr. & vb. n. Daddling.] [Prob. freq. of dade.] To toddle; to walk unsteadily, like a child or an old man; hence, to do anything slowly or feebly.

Dad"dock (?), n. [Cf. Prov. E. dad a large piece.] The rotten body of a tree. [Prov. Eng.] Wright.

Dad"dy (?), n. Diminutive of Dad. Dryden.

Dad"dy long"legs` (?). 1. (Zoöl.) An arachnidan of the genus Phalangium, and allied genera, having a small body and four pairs of long legs; -- called also harvestman, carter, and grandfather longlegs.

2. (Zoöl.) A name applied to many species of dipterous insects of the genus Tipula, and allied genera, with slender bodies, and very long, slender legs; the crane fly; -- called also father longlegs.

Dade (?), v. t. [Of. uncertain origin. Cf. Dandle, Daddle.] To hold up by leading strings or by the hand, as a child while he toddles. [Obs.]

Little children when they learn to go
By painful mothers daded to and fro.

Drayton.

Dade, v. i. To walk unsteadily, as a child in leading strings, or just learning to walk; to move slowly. [Obs.]

No sooner taught to dade, but from their mother trip.

Drayton.

Da"do (?), n.; pl. Dadoes (#). [It. dado die, cube, pedestal; of the same origin as E. die, n. See Die, n.] (Arch.) (a) That part of a pedestal included between the base and the cornice (or surbase); the die. See Illust. of Column. Hence: (b) In any wall, that part of the basement included between the base and the base course. See Base course, under Base. (c) In interior decoration, the lower part of the wall of an apartment when adorned with moldings, or otherwise specially decorated.

{ Dæ"dal (?), Dæ*dal"ian (?) }, a. [L. daedalus cunningly wrought, fr. Gr. &?;; cf. &?; to work cunningly. The word also alludes to the mythical Dædalus (Gr. &?;, lit., the cunning worker).] 1. Cunningly or ingeniously formed or working; skillful; artistic; ingenious.

Our bodies decked in our dædalian arms.

Chapman.

The dædal hand of Nature.

J. Philips.

The doth the dædal earth throw forth to thee,
Out of her fruitful, abundant flowers.

Spenser.

2. Crafty; deceitful. [R.] Keats.

Dæd"a*lous (?), a. (Bot.) Having a variously cut or incised margin; -- said of leaves.

Dæ"mon (?), n., Dæ*mon"ic (&?;), a. See Demon, Demonic.

Daff (?), v. t. [Cf. Doff.] To cast aside; to put off; to doff. [Obs.]

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

Shak.

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

Daff (d&adot;f), 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 (dăf"f&osl;*d&ibreve;l), 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 (d&adot;ft), 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 (dăg), 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. √71. See Dew.] A misty shower; dew. [Obs.]

Dag, n. [OE. dagge (cf. Dagger); or cf. AS. dāg 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 (-g&etilde;r), 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 [†]. 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 [‡] 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 (dăgz), 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 (dăg"g'l), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Daggled (-g'ld); p. pr. & vb. n. Daggling (-gl&ibreve;ng).] [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` (dăg"g'l-tāl`), Dag"gle- tailed` (-tāld`), } a. Having the lower ends of garments defiled by trailing in mire or filth; draggle- tailed.

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

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

Da"go (dā"g&osl;), n.; pl. Dagos (-gōz). [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&adot;*gō"b&adot;), n. [Singhalese dāgoba.] A dome- shaped structure built over relics of Buddha or some Buddhist saint. [East Indies]

Da"gon (dā"g&obreve;n), [Heb. Dāgon, 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 (dăg"&obreve;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&adot;*g&ebreve;r"&ibreve;*an), Da*guerre"i*an (?), } a. Pertaining to Daguerre, or to his invention of the daguerreotype.

Da*guerre"o*type (d&adot;*g&ebreve;r"&osl;*tīp), 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&adot;*g&ebreve;r"&osl;*tīp), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Daguerreotyped (-tīpt); p. pr. & vb. n. Daguerreotyping (-tī`p&ibreve;ng).] 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&adot;*bē"&adot;), n. [Ar.] A Nile boat constructed on the model of a floating house, having large lateen sails.

Dah"lia (däl"y&adot; or dāl"y&adot;; 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"l&ibreve;n), 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 (dā"l&ybreve;), a. [AS. dæglīc; dæg day + -līc 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.

&fist; 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 (dā"r&ybreve;), n.; pl. Dairies (-r&ibreve;z). [OE. deierie, from deie, daie, maid; of Scand. origin; cf. Icel. deigja maid, dairymaid, Sw. deja, orig., a baking maid, fr. Icel. deig. √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.]

&fist; 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 (dā"&ibreve;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&ybreve;), n.; pl. Daisies (-z&ibreve;z). [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.

&fist; 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 (d&add;k or däk), n. [Hind. &dsdot;āk.] 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. dhāra 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.

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

Dal"lop (dăl"l&obreve;p), n. [Etymol. unknown.] A tuft or clump. [Obs.] Tusser.

Dal"ly (-l&ybreve;), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Dallied (-l&ibreve;d); 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 (dăm), 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 (dămd); 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 (dăm"&asl;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.

&fist; 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 (dăm"&asl;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"m&adot;n), 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 (dăm"as*sēn), 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 (dăm"as*sēn), n. A kind of plum, now called damson. See Damson.

Dam`as*cene" (dăm`as*sēn"), 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 (dăm"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.

Dam"ask, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Damasked (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Damasking.] To decorate in a way peculiar to Damascus or attributed to Damascus; particularly: (a) with flowers and rich designs, as silk; (b) with inlaid lines of gold, etc., or with a peculiar marking or "water," as metal. See Damaskeen.

Mingled metal damasked o'er with gold.

Dryde&?;.

On the soft, downy bank, damasked with flowers.

Milton.

{ Dam"as*keen` (?), Dam"as*ken (?), } v. t. [F. damaschinare. See Damascene, v.] To decorate, as iron, steel, etc., with a peculiar marking or "water" produced in the process of manufacture, or with designs produced by inlaying or incrusting with another metal, as silver or gold, or by etching, etc., to damask.

Damaskeening is is partly mosaic work, partly engraving, and partly carving.

Ure.

Dam"as*kin (?), n. [Cf. F. damasquin, adj., It. damaschino, Sp. damasquino. See Damaskeen.] A sword of Damask steel.

No old Toledo blades or damaskins.

Howell (1641).

Da*mas*sé" (?), a. [F. damassé, fr. damas. See Damask.] Woven like damask. -- n. A damassé fabric, esp. one of linen.

Dam"as*sin (dăm"as*s&ibreve;n), n. [F., fr. damas. See Damask.] A kind of modified damask or brocade.

Dam"bo*nite (-b&osl;*nīt), n. [Cf. F. dambonite.] (Chem.) A white, crystalline, sugary substance obtained from an African caoutchouc.

Dam"bose (dăm"bōs), n. (Chem.) A crystalline variety of fruit sugar obtained from dambonite.

Dame (dām), n. [F. dame, LL. domna, fr. L. domina mistress, lady, fem. of dominus master, ruler, lord; akin to domare to tame, subdue. See Tame, and cf. Dam a mother, Dan, Danger, Dungeon, Dominie, Don, n., Duenna.] 1. A mistress of a family, who is a lady; a woman in authority; especially, a lady.

Then shall these lords do vex me half so much,
As that proud dame, the lord protector's wife.

Shak.

2. The mistress of a family in common life, or the mistress of a common school; as, a dame's school.

In the dame's classes at the village school.

Emerson.

3. A woman in general, esp. an elderly woman.

4. A mother; -- applied to human beings and quadrupeds. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Dame"wort` (?), n. (Bot.) A cruciferrous plant (Hesperis matronalis), remarkable for its fragrance, especially toward the close of the day; -- called also rocket and dame's violet. Loudon.

Da`mi*a"na (?), n. [NL.; of uncertain origin.] (Med.) A Mexican drug, used as an aphrodisiac.

&fist; There are several varieties derived from different plants, esp. from a species of Turnera and from Bigelovia veneta. Wood & Bache.

Da"mi*an*ist (?), n. (Eccl. Hist.) A follower of Damian, patriarch of Alexandria in the 6th century, who held heretical opinions on the doctrine of the Holy Trinity.

{ Dam"mar (?), Dam"ma*ra (?), } n. [Jav. & Malay. damar.] An oleoresin used in making varnishes; dammar gum; dammara resin. It is obtained from certain resin trees indigenous to the East Indies, esp. Shorea robusta and the dammar pine.

Dammar pine, (Bot.), a tree of the Moluccas (Agathis orientalis, or Dammara orientalis), yielding dammar.

Dam"ma*ra, n. (Bot.) A large tree of the order Coniferæ, indigenous to the East Indies and Australasia; -- called also Agathis. There are several species.

Damn (dăm), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Damned (dămd or dăm"n&ebreve;d); p. pr. & vb. n. Damning (dăm"&ibreve;ng or dăm"n&ibreve;ng).] [OE. damnen dampnen (with excrescent p), OF. damner, dampner, F. damner, fr. L. damnare, damnatum, to condemn, fr. damnum damage, a fine, penalty. Cf. Condemn, Damage.] 1. To condemn; to declare guilty; to doom; to adjudge to punishment; to sentence; to censure.

He shall not live; look, with a spot I damn him.

Shak.

2. (Theol.) To doom to punishment in the future world; to consign to perdition; to curse.

3. To condemn as bad or displeasing, by open expression, as by denuciation, hissing, hooting, etc.

You are not so arrant a critic as to damn them [the works of modern poets] . . . without hearing.

Pope.

Damn with faint praise, assent with civil leer,
And without sneering teach the rest to sneer.

Pope.

&fist; Damn is sometimes used interjectionally, imperatively, and intensively.

Damn, v. i. To invoke damnation; to curse. "While I inwardly damn." Goldsmith.

Dam`na*bil"i*ty (?), n. The quality of being damnable; damnableness. Sir T. More.

Dam"na*ble (?), a. [L. damnabilis, fr. damnare: cf. F. damnable. See Damn.] 1. Liable to damnation; deserving, or for which one deserves, to be damned; of a damning nature.

A creature unprepared unmeet for death,
And to transport him in the mind he is,
Were damnable.

Shak.

2. Odious; pernicious; detestable.

Begin, murderer; . . . leave thy damnable faces.

Shak.

Dam"na*ble*ness, n. The state or quality of deserving damnation; execrableness.

The damnableness of this most execrable impiety.

Prynne.

Dam"na*bly, adv. 1. In a manner to incur severe censure, condemnation, or punishment.

2. Odiously; detestably; excessively. [Low]

Dam*na"tion (?), n. [F. damnation, L. damnatio, fr. damnare. See Damn.] 1. The state of being damned; condemnation; openly expressed disapprobation.

2. (Theol.) Condemnation to everlasting punishment in the future state, or the punishment itself.

How can ye escape the damnation of hell?

Matt. xxiii. 33.

Wickedness is sin, and sin is damnation.

Shak.

3. A sin deserving of everlasting punishment. [R.]

The deep damnation of his taking- off.

Shak.

Dam"na*to*ry (dăm"n&adot;*t&osl;*r&ybreve;), a. [L. damnatorius, fr. damnator a condemner.] Dooming to damnation; condemnatory. "Damnatory invectives." Hallam.

Damned (?), a. 1. Sentenced to punishment in a future state; condemned; consigned to perdition.

2. Hateful; detestable; abominable.

But, O, what damned minutes tells he o'er
Who doats, yet doubts, suspects, yet strongly loves.

Shak.

Dam*nif"ic (?), a. [L. damnificus; damnum damage, loss + facere to make. See Damn.] Procuring or causing loss; mischievous; injurious.

Dam`ni*fi*ca"tion (?), n. [LL. damnificatio.] That which causes damage or loss.

Dam"ni*fy (dăm"n&ibreve;*fī), v. t. [LL. damnificare, fr. L. damnificus: cf. OF. damnefier. See Damnific.] To cause loss or damage to; to injure; to impair. [R.]

This work will ask as many more officials to make expurgations and expunctions, that the commonwealth of learning be not damnified.

Milton.

Damn"ing (?), a. That damns; damnable; as, damning evidence of guilt.

Damn"ing*ness, n. Tendency to bring damnation. "The damningness of them [sins]." Hammond.

||dam"num (?), n. [L.] (law) Harm; detriment, either to character or property.

{ Dam"o*sel (dăm"&osl;*z&ebreve;l), Dam`o*sel"la (-z&ebreve;l"l&adot;), ||Da`moi`selle" (d&adot;`mwä`z&ebreve;l") }, n. See Damsel. [Archaic]

Dam"our*ite (dăm"&oocr;*īt), n. [Ater the French chemist Damour.] (Min.) A kind of Muscovite, or potash mica, containing water.

Damp (dămp), n. [Akin to LG., D., & Dan. damp vapor, steam, fog, G. dampf, Icel. dampi, Sw. damb dust, and to MNG. dimpfen to smoke, imp. dampf.] 1. Moisture; humidity; fog; fogginess; vapor.

Night . . . with black air
Accompanied, with damps and dreadful gloom.

Milton.

2. Dejection; depression; cloud of the mind.

Even now, while thus I stand blest in thy presence,
A secret damp of grief comes o'er my soul.

Addison.

It must have thrown a damp over your autumn excursion.

J. D. Forbes.

3. (Mining) A gaseous product, formed in coal mines, old wells, pints, etc.

Choke damp, a damp consisting principally of carbonic acid gas; -- so called from its extinguishing flame and animal life. See Carbonic acid, under Carbonic. -- Damp sheet, a curtain in a mine gallery to direct air currents and prevent accumulation of gas. -- Fire damp, a damp consisting chiefly of light carbureted hydrogen; -- so called from its tendence to explode when mixed with atmospheric air and brought into contact with flame.

Damp (?), a. [Compar. Damper (?); superl. Dampest.] 1. Being in a state between dry and wet; moderately wet; moist; humid.

O'erspread with a damp sweat and holy fear.

Dryden.

2. Dejected; depressed; sunk. [R.]

All these and more came flocking, but with looks
Downcast and damp.

Milton.

Damp, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Damped (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Damping.] [OE. dampen to choke, suffocate. See Damp, n.] 1. To render damp; to moisten; to make humid, or moderately wet; to dampen; as, to damp cloth.

2. To put out, as fire; to depress or deject; to deaden; to cloud; to check or restrain, as action or vigor; to make dull; to weaken; to discourage. "To damp your tender hopes." Akenside.

Usury dulls and damps all industries, improvements, and new inventions, wherein money would be stirring if it were not for this slug.

Bacon.

How many a day has been damped and darkened by an angry word!

Sir J. Lubbock.

The failure of his enterprise damped the spirit of the soldiers.

Macaulay.

Damp"en (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dampened (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Dampening.] 1. To make damp or moist; to make slightly wet.

2. To depress; to check; to make dull; to lessen.

In a way that considerably dampened our enthusiasm.

The Century.

Damp"en, v. i. To become damp; to deaden. Byron.

Damp"er (?), n. That which damps or checks; as: (a) A valve or movable plate in the flue or other part of a stove, furnace, etc., used to check or regulate the draught of air. (b) A contrivance, as in a pianoforte, to deaden vibrations; or, as in other pieces of mechanism, to check some action at a particular time.

Nor did Sabrina's presence seem to act as any damper at the modest little festivities.

W. Black.

Damp"ish (?), a. Moderately damp or moist.

-- Damp"ish*ly, adv. -- Damp"ish*ness, n.

Damp"ne (?), v. t. To damn. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Damp"ness, n. Moderate humidity; moisture; fogginess; moistness.

Damp" off` (?). To decay and perish through excessive moisture.

Damp"y (?), a. 1. Somewhat damp. [Obs.] Drayton.

2. Dejected; gloomy; sorrowful. [Obs.] "Dispel dampy throughts." Haywards.

Dam"sel (?), n. [OE. damosel, damesel, damisel, damsel, fr. OF. damoisele, damisele, gentlewoman, F. demoiselle young lady; cf. OF. damoisel young nobleman, F. damoiseau; fr. LL. domicella, dominicella, fem., domicellus, dominicellus, masc., dim. fr. L. domina, dominus. See Dame, and cf. Demoiselle, Doncella.] 1. A young person, either male or female, of noble or gentle extraction; as, Damsel Pepin; Damsel Richard, Prince of Wales. [Obs.]

2. A young unmarried woman; a girl; a maiden.

With her train of damsels she was gone,
In shady walks the scorching heat to shun.

Dryden.

Sometimes a troop of damsels glad, . . .
Goes by to towered Camelot.

Tennyson.

3. (Milling) An attachment to a millstone spindle for shaking the hopper.

Dam"son (dăm"z'n), n. [OE. damasin the Damascus plum, fr. L. Damascenus. See Damascene.] A small oval plum of a blue color, the fruit of a variety of the Prunus domestica; -- called also damask plum.

Dan (?), n. [OE. dan, danz, OF. danz (prop. only nom.), dan, master, fr. L. dominus. See Dame.] A title of honor equivalent to master, or sir. [Obs.]

Old Dan Geoffry, in gently spright
The pure wellhead of poetry did dwell.

Spenser.

What time Dan Abraham left the Chaldee land.

Thomson.

Dan, n. [Etymol. uncertain.] (Mining) A small truck or sledge used in coal mines.

Da"na*ide (?), n. [From the mythical Danaides, who were condemned to fill with water a vessel full of holes.] (Mach.) A water wheel having a vertical axis, and an inner and outer tapering shell, between which are vanes or floats attached usually to both shells, but sometimes only to one.

Da"na*ite (?), n. [Named after J. Freeman Dana.] (Min.) A cobaltiferous variety of arsenopyrite.

Da"na*lite (?), n. [Named after James Dwight Dana.] (Min.) A mineral occuring in octahedral crystals, also massive, of a reddish color. It is a silicate of iron, zinc manganese, and glucinum, containing sulphur.

Dan"bu*rite (?), n. (Min.) A borosilicate of lime, first found at Danbury, Conn. It is near the topaz in form. Dana.

Dance (d&adot;ns), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Danced (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Dancing.] [F. danser, fr. OHG. dansōn to draw; akin to dinsan to draw, Goth. apinsan, and prob. from the same root (meaning to stretch) as E. thin. See Thin.] 1. To move with measured steps, or to a musical accompaniment; to go through, either alone or in company with others, with a regulated succession of movements, (commonly) to the sound of music; to trip or leap rhythmically.

Jack shall pipe and Gill shall dance.

Wither.

Good shepherd, what fair swain is this
Which dances with your daughter?

Shak.

2. To move nimbly or merrily; to express pleasure by motion; to caper; to frisk; to skip about.

Then, 'tis time to dance off.

Thackeray.

More dances my rapt heart
Than when I first my wedded mistress saw.

Shak.

Shadows in the glassy waters dance.

Byron.

Where rivulets dance their wayward round.

Wordsworth.

To dance on a rope, or To dance on nothing, to be hanged.

Dance (?), v. t. To cause to dance, or move nimbly or merrily about, or up and down; to dandle.

To dance our ringlets to the whistling wind.

Shak.

Thy grandsire loved thee well;
Many a time he danced thee on his knee.

Shak.

To dance attendance, to come and go obsequiously; to be or remain in waiting, at the beck and call of another, with a view to please or gain favor.

A man of his place, and so near our favor,
To dance attendance on their lordships' pleasure.

Shak.

Dance, n. [F. danse, of German origin. See Dance, v. i.] 1. The leaping, tripping, or measured stepping of one who dances; an amusement, in which the movements of the persons are regulated by art, in figures and in accord with music.

2. (Mus.) A tune by which dancing is regulated, as the minuet, the waltz, the cotillon, etc.

&fist; The word dance was used ironically, by the older writers, of many proceedings besides dancing.

Of remedies of love she knew parchance
For of that art she couth the olde dance.

Chaucer.

Dance of Death (Art), an allegorical representation of the power of death over all, -- the old, the young, the high, and the low, being led by a dancing skeleton. -- Morris dance. See Morris. -- To lead one a dance, to cause one to go through a series of movements or experiences as if guided by a partner in a dance not understood.

Dan"cer (?), n. One who dances or who practices dancing.

The merry dancers, beams of the northern lights when they rise and fall alternately without any considerable change of length. See Aurora borealis, under Aurora.

Dan"cer*ess, n. A female dancer. [Obs.] Wyclif.

Dan`cet`té" (?), a. [Cf. F. danché dancetté, dent tooth.] (Her.) Deeply indented; having large teeth; thus, a fess dancetté has only three teeth in the whole width of the escutcheon.

Dan"cing (?), p. a. & vb. n. from Dance.

Dancing girl, one of the women in the East Indies whose profession is to dance in the temples, or for the amusement of spectators. There are various classes of dancing girls. -- Dancing master, a teacher of dancing. -- Dancing school, a school or place where dancing is taught.

Dan"cy (?), a. (Her.) Same as Dancetté.

Dan"de*li`on (?), n. [F. dent de lion lion's tooth, fr. L. dens tooth + leo lion. See Tooth, n., and Lion.] (Bot.) A well-known plant of the genus Taraxacum (T. officinale, formerly called T. Dens-leonis and Leontodos Taraxacum) bearing large, yellow, compound flowers, and deeply notched leaves.

Dan"der (?), n. [Corrupted from dandruff.] 1. Dandruff or scurf on the head.

2. Anger or vexation; rage. [Low] Halliwell.

Dan"der, v. i. [See Dandle.] To wander about; to saunter; to talk incoherently. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

||Dan"di (?), n. [Hind. &dsdot;ān&dsdot;i, fr. &dsdot;ān&dsdot; an oar.] A boatman; an oarsman. [India]

Dan"die (?), n. (Zoöl.) One of a breed of small terriers; -- called also Dandie Dinmont.

Dan"di*fied (?), a. Made up like a dandy; having the dress or manners of a dandy; buckish.

Dan"di*fy (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dandified (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Dandifying.] [Dandy + -fy.] To cause to resemble a dandy; to make dandyish.

Dan"di*prat (?), n. [Dandy + brat child.] 1. A little fellow; -- in sport or contempt. "A dandiprat hop-thumb." Stanyhurst.

2. A small coin.

Henry VII. stamped a small coin called dandiprats.

Camden.

Dan"dle (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dandled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Dandling (?).] [Cf. G. dändeln to trifly, dandle, OD. & Prov. G. danten, G. tand trifly, prattle; Scot. dandill, dander, to go about idly, to trifly.] 1. To move up and down on one's knee or in one's arms, in affectionate play, as an infant.

Ye shall be dandled . . . upon her knees.

Is.&?;

2. To treat with fondness, as if a child; to fondle; to toy with; to pet.

They have put me in a silk gown and gaudy fool's cap; I as ashamed to be dandled thus.

Addison.

The book, thus dandled into popularity by bishops and good ladies, contained many pieces of nursery eloquence.

Jeffrey.

3. To play with; to put off or delay by trifles; to wheedle. [Obs.]

Captains do so dandle their doings, and dally in the service, as it they would not have the enemy subdued.

Spenser.

Dan"dler (dăn"dl&etilde;r), n. One who dandles or fondles.

Dan"driff (dăn"dr&ibreve;f), n. See Dandruff. Swift.

Dandruff (dăn"drŭf), n. [Prob. from W. toncrust, peel, skin + AS. drōf dirty, draffy, or W. drwg bad: cf. AS. tan a letter, an eruption. √240.] A scurf which forms on the head, and comes off in small scales or particles. [Written also dandriff.]

Dan"dy (dăn"d&ybreve;), n.; pl. Dandies (-d&ibreve;z). [Cf. F. dandin, ninny, silly fellow, dandiner to waddle, to play the fool; prob. allied to E. dandle. Senses 2 & 3 are of uncertain etymol.] 1. One who affects special finery or gives undue attention to dress; a fop; a coxcomb.

2. (Naut.) (a) A sloop or cutter with a jigger on which a lugsail is set. (b) A small sail carried at or near the stern of small boats; -- called also jigger, and mizzen.

3. A dandy roller. See below.

Dandy brush, a yard whalebone brush. -- Dandy fever. See Dengue. -- Dandy line, a kind of fishing line to which are attached several crosspieces of whalebone which carry a hook at each end. -- Dandy roller, a roller sieve used in machines for making paper, to press out water from the pulp, and set the paper.

Dan"dy-cock` (&?;), n. masc., Dan"dy-hen` (&?;), n. fem. [See Dandy.] A bantam fowl.

Dan"dy*ish, a. Like a dandy.

Dan"dy*ism (?), n. The manners and dress of a dandy; foppishness. Byron.

Dan"dy*ize (?), v. t. & i. To make, or to act, like a dandy; to dandify.

Dan"dy*ling (?), n. [Dandy + -ling.] A little or insignificant dandy; a contemptible fop.

Dane (?), n. [LL. Dani: cf. AS. Dene.] A native, or a naturalized inhabitant, of Denmark.

Great Dane. (Zoöl.) See Danish dog, under Danish.

{ Dane"geld` (?), Dane"gelt` (?) }, n. [AS. danegeld. See Dane, and Geld, n.] (Eng. Hist.) An annual tax formerly laid on the English nation to buy off the ravages of Danish invaders, or to maintain forces to oppose them. It afterward became a permanent tax, raised by an assessment, at first of one shilling, afterward of two shillings, upon every hide of land throughout the realm. Wharton's Law Dict. Tomlins.

Dane"wort` (?), n. (Bot.) A fetid European species of elder (Sambucus Ebulus); dwarf elder; wallwort; elderwort; -- called also Daneweed, Dane's weed, and Dane's-blood. [Said to grow on spots where battles were fought against the Danes.]

Dang (?), imp. of Ding. [Obs.]

Dang, v. t. [Cf. Ding.] To dash. [Obs.]

Till she, o'ercome with anguish, shame, and rage,
Danged down to hell her loathsome carriage.

Marlowe.

Dan"ger (?), n. [OE. danger, daunger, power, arrogance, refusal, difficulty, fr. OF. dagier, dongier (with same meaning), F. danger danger, fr. an assumed LL. dominiarium power, authority, from L. dominium power, property. See Dungeon, Domain, Dame.] 1. Authority; jurisdiction; control. [Obs.]

In dangerhad he . . . the young girls.

Chaucer.

2. Power to harm; subjection or liability to penalty. [Obs.] See In one's danger, below.

You stand within his danger, do you not?

Shak.

Covetousness of gains hath brought [them] in dangerof this statute.

Robynson (More's Utopia).

3. Exposure to injury, loss, pain, or other evil; peril; risk; insecurity.

4. Difficulty; sparingness. [Obs.] Chaucer.

5. Coyness; disdainful behavior. [Obs.] Chaucer.

In one's danger, in one's power; liable to a penalty to be inflicted by him. [Obs.] This sense is retained in the proverb, "Out of debt out of danger."

Those rich man in whose debt and danger they be not.

Robynson (More's Utopia).

-- To do danger, to cause danger. [Obs.] Shak.

Syn. -- Peril; hazard; risk; jeopardy. -- Danger, Peril, Hazard, Risk, Jeopardy. Danger is the generic term, and implies some contingent evil in prospect. Peril is instant or impending danger; as, in peril of one's life. Hazard arises from something fortuitous or beyond our control; as, the hazard of the seas. Risk is doubtful or uncertain danger, often incurred voluntarily; as, to risk an engagement. Jeopardy is extreme danger. Danger of a contagious disease; the perils of shipwreck; the hazards of speculation; the risk of daring enterprises; a life brought into jeopardy.

Dan"ger, v. t. To endanger. [Obs.] Shak.

Dan"ger*ful (?), a. Full of danger; dangerous. [Obs.] -- Dan"ger*ful*ly, adv. [Obs.] Udall.

Dan"ger*less, a. Free from danger. [R.]

Dan"ger*ous (?), a. [OE., haughty, difficult, dangerous, fr. OF. dangereus, F. dangereux. See Danger.] 1. Attended or beset with danger; full of risk; perilous; hazardous; unsafe.

Our troops set forth to-morrow; stay with us;
The ways are dangerous.

Shak.

It is dangerous to assert a negative.

Macaulay.

2. Causing danger; ready to do harm or injury.

If they incline to think you dangerous
To less than gods.

Milton.

3. In a condition of danger, as from illness; threatened with death. [Colloq.] Forby. Bartlett.

4. Hard to suit; difficult to please. [Obs.]

My wages ben full strait, and eke full small;
My lord to me is hard and dangerous.

Chaucer.

5. Reserved; not affable. [Obs.] "Of his speech dangerous." Chaucer.

-- Dan"ger*ous*ly, adv. -- Dan"ger*ous*ness, n.

Dan"gle (dă&nsm;"g'l), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Dangled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Dangling (?).] [Akin to Dan. dangle, dial. Sw. dangla, Dan. dingle, Sw. dingla, Icel. dingla; perh. from E. ding.] To hang loosely, or with a swinging or jerking motion.

He'd rather on a gibbet dangle
Than miss his dear delight, to wrangle.

Hudibras.

From her lifted hand
Dangled a length of ribbon.

Tennyson.

To dangle about or after, to hang upon importunately; to court the favor of; to beset.

The Presbyterians, and other fanatics that dangle after them,
are well inclined to pull down the present establishment.

Swift.

Dan"gle (?), v. t. To cause to dangle; to swing, as something suspended loosely; as, to dangle the feet.

And the bridegroom stood dangling his bonnet and plume.

Sir W. Scott.

Dan"gle*ber`ry (?), n. (Bot.) A dark blue, edible berry with a white bloom, and its shrub (Gaylussacia frondosa) closely allied to the common huckleberry. The bush is also called blue tangle, and is found from New England to Kentucky, and southward.

Dan"gler (?), n. One who dangles about or after others, especially after women; a trifler. " Danglers at toilets." Burke.

Dan"i*el (?), n. A Hebrew prophet distinguished for sagacity and ripeness of judgment in youth; hence, a sagacious and upright judge.

A Daniel come to judgment.

Shak.

Dan"ish (?), a. [See Dane.] Belonging to the Danes, or to their language or country. - - n. The language of the Danes.

Danish dog (Zoöl.), one of a large and powerful breed of dogs reared in Denmark; -- called also great Dane. See Illustration in Appendix.

Dan"ite (?), n. 1. A descendant of Dan; an Israelite of the tribe of Dan. Judges xiii. 2.

2. [So called in remembrance of the prophecy in Gen. xlix. 17, "Dan shall be a serpent by the way," etc.] One of a secret association of Mormons, bound by an oath to obey the heads of the church in all things. [U. S.]

Dank (?), a. [Cf. dial, Sw. dank a moist place in a field, Icel. dökk pit, pool; possibly akin to E. damp or to daggle dew.] Damp; moist; humid; wet.

Now that the fields are dank and ways are mire.

Milton.

Cheerless watches on the cold, dank ground.

Trench.

Dank, n. Moisture; humidity; water. [Obs.]

Dank, n. A small silver coin current in Persia.

Dank"ish, a. Somewhat dank. -- Dank"ish*ness, n.

In a dark and dankish vault at home.

Shak.

Dan"ne*brog (?), n. The ancient battle standard of Denmark, bearing figures of cross and crown.

Order of Dannebrog, an ancient Danish order of knighthood.

||Dan`seuse" (?), n. [F., fr. danser to dance.] A professional female dancer; a woman who dances at a public exhibition as in a ballet.

Dansk (?), a. [Dan.] Danish. [Obs.]

Dansk"er (?), n. A Dane. [Obs.]

Inquire me first what Danskers are in Paris.

Shak.

Dan*te"an (?), a. Relating to, emanating from or resembling, the poet Dante or his writings.

Dan*tesque" (?), a. [Cf. It. Dantesco.] Dantelike; Dantean. Earle.

Da*nu"bi*an (?), a. Pertaining to, or bordering on, the river Danube.

Dap (dăp), v. i. [Cf. Dip.] (Angling) To drop the bait gently on the surface of the water.

To catch a club by dapping with a grasshoper.

Walton.

Da*pat"ic*al (?), a. [L. dapaticus, fr. daps feast.] Sumptuous in cheer. [Obs.] Bailey.

Daph"ne (?), n. [L., a laurel tree, from Gr. da`fnh.] 1. (Bot.) A genus of diminutive Shrubs, mostly evergreen, and with fragrant blossoms.

2. (Myth.) A nymph of Diana, fabled to have been changed into a laurel tree.

Daph"ne*tin (?), n. (Chem.) A colorless crystalline substance, C₉H₆O₄, extracted from daphnin.

||Daph"ni*a (?), n. [NL.] (Zoöl.) A genus of the genus Daphnia.

Daph"nin (?), n. [Cf. F. daphnine.] (Chem.) (a) A dark green bitter resin extracted from the mezereon (Daphne mezereum) and regarded as the essential principle of the plant. [R.] (b) A white, crystalline, bitter substance, regarded as a glucoside, and extracted from Daphne mezereum and D. alpina.

Daph"no*man`cy (?), n. [Gr. da`fnh the laurel + -mancy.] Divination by means of the laurel.

||Dap"i*fer (?), n. [L., daps a feast + ferre to bear.] One who brings meat to the table; hence, in some countries, the official title of the grand master or steward of the king's or a nobleman's household.

Dap"per (?), a. [OE. daper; prob. fr. D. dapper brave, valiant; akin to G. tapfer brave, OHG. taphar heavy, weighty, OSlav. dobrŭ good, Russ. dobrui. Cf. Deft.] Little and active; spruce; trim; smart; neat in dress or appearance; lively.

He wondered how so many provinces could be held in subjection by such a dapper little man.

Milton.

The dapper ditties that I wont devise.

Spenser.

Sharp-nosed, dapper steam yachts.

Julian Hawthorne.

Dap"per*ling (?), n. A dwarf; a dandiprat. [r.]

Dap"ple (?), n. [Cf. Icel. depill a spot, a dot, a dog with spots over the eyes, dapi a pool, and E. dimple.] One of the spots on a dappled animal.

He has . . . as many eyes on his body as my gray mare hath dapples.

Sir P. Sidney.

{ Dap"ple (?), Dap"pled (?) }, a. Marked with spots of different shades of color; spotted; variegated; as, a dapple horse.

Some dapple mists still floated along the peaks.

Sir W. Scott.

&fist; The word is used in composition to denote that some color is variegated or marked with spots; as, dapple-bay; dapple-gray.

His steed was all dapple-gray.

Chaucer.

O, swiftly can speed my dapple-gray steed.

Sir W. Scott.

Dap"ple, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dappled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Dappling.] To variegate with spots; to spot.

The gentle day, . . .
Dapples the drowsy east with spots of gray.

Shak.

The dappled pink and blushing rose.

Prior.

Dar"bies (?), n. pl. Manacles; handcuffs. [Cant]

Jem Clink will fetch you the darbies.

Sir W. Scott.

&fist; In "The Steel Glass" by Gascoigne, printed in 1576, occurs the line "To binde such babes in father Derbies bands."

Dar"by (?), n. A plasterer's float, having two handles; -- used in smoothing ceilings, etc.

Dar"by*ite (?), n. One of the Plymouth Brethren, or of a sect among them; -- so called from John N. Darby, one of the leaders of the Brethren.

Dar*da"ni*an (?), a. & n.[From L. Dardania, poetic name of Troy.] Trojan.

Dare (?), v. i. [imp. Durst (?) or Dared (&?;); p. p. Dared; p. pr. & vb. n. Daring.] [OE. I dar, dear, I dare, imp. dorste, durste, AS. ic dear I dare, imp. dorste. inf. durran; akin to OS. gidar, gidorsta, gidurran, OHG. tar, torsta, turran, Goth. gadar, gadaúrsta, Gr. tharsei^n, tharrei^n, to be bold, tharsy`s bold, Skr. Dhrsh to be bold. √70.] To have adequate or sufficient courage for any purpose; to be bold or venturesome; not to be afraid; to venture.

I dare do all that may become a man; Who dares do more is none.

Shak.

Why then did not the ministers use their new law? Bacause they durst not, because they could not.

Macaulay.

Who dared to sully her sweet love with suspicion.

Thackeray.

The tie of party was stronger than the tie of blood, because a partisan was more ready to dare without asking why.

Jowett (Thu&?;yd.).

&fist; The present tense, I dare, is really an old past tense, so that the third person is he dare, but the form he dares is now often used, and will probably displace the obsolescent he dare, through grammatically as incorrect as he shalls or he cans. Skeat.

The pore dar plede (the poor man dare plead).

P. Plowman.

You know one dare not discover you.

Dryden.

The fellow dares not deceive me.

Shak.

Here boldly spread thy hands, no venom'd weed
Dares blister them, no slimy snail dare creep.

Beau. & Fl.

&fist; Formerly durst was also used as the present. Sometimes the old form dare is found for durst or dared.

Dare, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dared; p. pr. & vb. n. Daring.] 1. To have courage for; to attempt courageously; to venture to do or to undertake.

What high concentration of steady feeling makes men dare every thing and do anything?

Bagehot.

To wrest it from barbarism, to dare its solitudes.

The Century.

2. To challenge; to provoke; to defy.

Time, I dare thee to discover
Such a youth and such a lover.

Dryden.

Dare, n. 1. The quality of daring; venturesomeness; boldness; dash. [R.]

It lends a luster . . .
A large dare to our great enterprise.

Shak.

2. Defiance; challenge.

Childish, unworthy dares
Are not enought to part our powers.

Chapman.

Sextus Pompeius
Hath given the dare to Cæsar.

Shak.

Dare, v. i. [OE. darien, to lie hidden, be timid.] To lurk; to lie hid. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Dare, v. t. To terrify; to daunt. [Obs.]

For I have done those follies, those mad mischiefs,
Would dare a woman.

Beau. & Fl.

To dare larks, to catch them by producing terror through to use of mirrors, scarlet cloth, a hawk, etc., so that they lie still till a net is thrown over them. Nares.

Dare, n. [See Dace.] (Zoöl.) A small fish; the dace.

Dare"-dev`il (?), n. A reckless fellow. Also used adjectively; as, dare-devil excitement.

A humorous dare-devil -- the very man
To suit my prpose.

Ld. Lytton.

Dare"-dev`il*try (?), n; pl. Dare-deviltries (&?;). Reckless mischief; the action of a dare-devil.

Dare"ful (?), a. Full of daring or of defiance; adventurous. [R.] Shak.

Dar"er (?), n. One who dares or defies.

{ Darg, Dargue (?) }, n. [Scot., contr. fr. day work.] A day's work; also, a fixed amount of work, whether more or less than that of a day. [Local, Eng. & Scot.]

Dar"ic (dăr"&ibreve;k), n. [Gr. dareiko`s, of Persian origin.] 1. (Antiq.) (a) A gold coin of ancient Persia, weighing usually a little more than 128 grains, and bearing on one side the figure of an archer. (b) A silver coin of about 86 grains, having the figure of an archer, and hence, in modern times, called a daric.

2. Any very pure gold coin.

Dar"ing (?), n. Boldness; fearlessness; adventurousness; also, a daring act.

Dar"ing, a. Bold; fearless; adventurous; as, daring spirits. -- Dar"ing*ly, adv. -- Dar"ing*ness, n.

Dark (därk), a. [OE. dark, derk, deork, AS. dearc, deorc; cf. Gael. & Ir. dorch, dorcha, dark, black, dusky.] 1. Destitute, or partially destitute, of light; not receiving, reflecting, or radiating light; wholly or partially black, or of some deep shade of color; not light-colored; as, a dark room; a dark day; dark cloth; dark paint; a dark complexion.

O dark, dark, dark, amid the blaze of noon,
Irrecoverably dark, total eclipse
Without all hope of day!

Milton.

In the dark and silent grave.

Sir W. Raleigh.

2. Not clear to the understanding; not easily seen through; obscure; mysterious; hidden.

The dark problems of existence.

Shairp.

What may seem dark at the first, will afterward be found more plain.

Hooker.

What's your dark meaning, mouse, of this light word?

Shak.

3. Destitute of knowledge and culture; in moral or intellectual darkness; unrefined; ignorant.

The age wherein he lived was dark, but he
Could not want light who taught the world to see.

Denhan.

The tenth century used to be reckoned by mediæval historians as the darkest part of this intellectual night.

Hallam.

4. Evincing black or foul traits of character; vile; wicked; atrocious; as, a dark villain; a dark deed.

Left him at large to his own dark designs.

Milton.

5. Foreboding evil; gloomy; jealous; suspicious.

More dark and dark our woes.

Shak.

A deep melancholy took possesion of him, and gave a dark tinge to all his views of human nature.

Macaulay.

There is, in every true woman-s heart, a spark of heavenly fire, which beams and blazes in the dark hour of adversity.

W. Irving.

6. Deprived of sight; blind. [Obs.]

He was, I think, at this time quite dark, and so had been for some years.

Evelyn.

&fist; Dark is sometimes used to qualify another adjective; as, dark blue, dark green, and sometimes it forms the first part of a compound; as, dark-haired, dark-eyed, dark-colored, dark-seated, dark-working.

A dark horse, in racing or politics, a horse or a candidate whose chances of success are not known, and whose capabilities have not been made the subject of general comment or of wagers. [Colloq.] -- Dark house, Dark room, a house or room in which madmen were confined. [Obs.] Shak. -- Dark lantern. See Lantern. -- The Dark Ages, a period of stagnation and obscurity in literature and art, lasting, according to Hallam, nearly 1000 years, from about 500 to about 1500 A. D.. See Middle Ages, under Middle. -- The Dark and Bloody Ground, a phrase applied to the State of Kentucky, and said to be the significance of its name, in allusion to the frequent wars that were waged there between Indians. -- The dark day, a day (May 19, 1780) when a remarkable and unexplained darkness extended over all New England. -- To keep dark, to reveal nothing. [Low]

Dark (?), n. 1. Absence of light; darkness; obscurity; a place where there is little or no light.

Here stood he in the dark, his sharp sword out.

Shak.

2. The condition of ignorance; gloom; secrecy.

Look, what you do, you do it still i' th' dark.

Shak.

Till we perceive by our own understandings, we are as much in the dark, and as void of knowledge, as before.

Locke.

3. (Fine Arts) A dark shade or dark passage in a painting, engraving, or the like; as, the light and darks are well contrasted.

The lights may serve for a repose to the darks, and the darks to the lights.

Dryden.

Dark, v. t. To darken; to obscure. [Obs.] Milton.

Dark"en (därk"'n), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Darkened (-'nd); p. pr. & vb. n. Darkening (-n*&ibreve;ng).] [AS. deorcian. See Dark, a.] 1. To make dark or black; to deprive of light; to obscure; as, a darkened room.

They [locusts] covered the face of the whole earth, so that the land was darkened.

Ex. x. 15.

So spake the Sovran Voice; and clouds began
To darken all the hill.

Milton.

2. To render dim; to deprive of vision.

Let their eyes be darkened, that they may not see.

Rom. xi. 10.

3. To cloud, obscure, or perplex; to render less clear or intelligible.

Such was his wisdom that his confidence did seldom darkenhis foresight.

Bacon.

Who is this that darkeneth counsel by words without knowledge?

Job. xxxviii. 2.

4. To cast a gloom upon.

With these forced thoughts, I prithee, darken not
The mirth of the feast.

Shak.

5. To make foul; to sully; to tarnish.

I must not think there are
Evils enough to darken all his goodness.

Shak.

Dark"en, v. i. To grow or darker.

Dark"en*er (?), n. One who, or that which, darkens.

Dark"en*ing, n. Twilight; gloaming. [Prov. Eng. & Scot.] Wright.

Dark"ful (?), a. Full of darkness. [Obs.]

Dark"ish (?), a. Somewhat dark; dusky.

Dar"kle (?), v. i. [Freq. of dark.] To grow dark; to show indistinctly. Thackeray.

Dark"ling (?), adv. [Dark + the adverbial suffix -ling.] In the dark. [Poetic]

So, out went the candle, and we were left darkling.

Shak.

As the wakeful bird
Sings darkling.

Milton.

Dark"ling, p. pr. & a. 1. Becoming dark or glo