Definition: a
A
n 1: the blood group whose red cells carry the A antigen [syn: A,
type A, group A]
2: a metric unit of length equal to one ten billionth of a
meter (or 0.0001 micron); used to specify wavelengths of
electromagnetic radiation [syn: angstrom, angstrom unit,
A]
3: any of several fat-soluble vitamins essential for normal
vision; prevents night blindness or inflammation or
dryness of the eyes [syn: vitamin A, antiophthalmic
factor, axerophthol, A]
4: the basic unit of electric current adopted under the System
International d'Unites; "a typical household circuit
carries 15 to 50 amps" [syn: ampere, amp, A]
5: the 1st letter of the Roman alphabet [syn: A]
Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
Infinitive \In*fin"i*tive\, n. [L. infinitivus: cf. F. infinitif. See Infinite.] Unlimited; not bounded or restricted; undefined. Infinitive mood (Gram.), that form of the verb which merely names the action, and performs the office of a verbal noun. Some grammarians make two forms in English: (a) The simple form, as, speak, go, hear, before which to is commonly placed, as, to speak; to go; to hear. (b) The form of the imperfect participle, called the infinitive in -ing; as, going is as easy as standing. Note: With the auxiliary verbs may, can, must, might, could, would, and should, the simple infinitive is expressed without to; as, you may speak; they must hear, etc. The infinitive usually omits to with the verbs let, dare, do, bid, make, see, hear, need, etc.; as, let me go; you dare not tell; make him work; hear him talk, etc. Note: In Anglo-Saxon, the simple infinitive was not preceded by to (the sign of modern simple infinitive), but it had a dative form (sometimes called the gerundial infinitive) which was preceded by to, and was chiefly employed in expressing purpose. See Gerund, 2. Note: The gerundial ending (-anne) not only took the same form as the simple infinitive (-an), but it was confounded with the present participle in -ende, or -inde (later -inge).
Legate \Leg"ate\ (l[e^]g"[asl]t), n. [OE. legat, L. legatus, fr. legare to send with a commission or charge, to depute, fr. lex, legis, law: cf. F. l['e]gat, It. legato. See Legal.] 1. An ambassador or envoy. 2. An ecclesiastic representing the pope and invested with the authority of the Holy See. Note: Legates are of three kinds: (a) Legates a latere, now always cardinals. They are called ordinary or extraordinary legates, the former governing provinces, and the latter class being sent to foreign countries on extraordinary occasions. (b) Legati missi, who correspond to the ambassadors of temporal governments. (c) Legati nati, or legates by virtue of their office, as the archbishops of Salzburg and Prague. 3. (Rom. Hist.) (a) An official assistant given to a general or to the governor of a province. (b) Under the emperors, a governor sent to a province.
Libration \Li*bra"tion\ (l[-i]*br[=a]"sh[u^]n), n. [L. libratio:
cf. F. libration.]
1. The act or state of librating. --Jer. Taylor.
2. (Astron.) A real or apparent libratory motion, like that
of a balance before coming to rest.
Libration of the moon, any one of those small periodical
changes in the position of the moon's surface relatively
to the earth, in consequence of which narrow portions at
opposite limbs become visible or invisible alternately. It
receives different names according to the manner in which
it takes place; as: a Libration in longitude, that
which, depending on the place of the moon in its elliptic
orbit, causes small portions near the eastern and western
borders alternately to appear and disappear each month.
(b) Libration in latitude, that which depends on the
varying position of the moon's axis in respect to the
spectator, causing the alternate appearance and
disappearance of either pole. (c) Diurnal or parallactic
libration, that which brings into view on the upper limb,
at rising and setting, some parts not in the average
visible hemisphere.
Respiration \Res`pi*ra"tion\ (r?s`p?*r?"sh?n), n. [L. respiratio: cf. F. respiration. See Respire.] 1. The act of respiring or breathing again, or catching one's breath. 2. Relief from toil or suffering: rest. [Obs.] Till the day Appear of respiration to the just And vengeance to the wicked. --Milton. 3. Interval; intermission. [Obs.] --Bp. Hall. 4. (Physiol.) The act of resping or breathing; the act of taking in and giving out air; the aggregate of those processes bu which oxygen is introduced into the system, and carbon dioxide, or carbonic acid, removed. Note: Respiration in the higher animals is divided into: (a) Internal respiration, or the interchange of oxygen and carbonic acid between the cells of the body and the bathing them, which in one sense is a process of nutrition. (b) External respiration, or the gaseous interchange taking place in the special respiratory organs, the lungs. This constitutes respiration proper. --Gamgee. In the respiration of plants oxygen is likewise absorbed and carbonic acid exhaled, but in the light this process is obscured by another process which goes on with more vigor, in which the plant inhales and absorbs carbonic acid and exhales free oxygen.
A \A\ ([.a]), prep. [Abbreviated form of an (AS. on). See On.] 1. In; on; at; by. [Obs.] ``A God's name.'' ``Torn a pieces.'' ``Stand a tiptoe.'' ``A Sundays'' --Shak. ``Wit that men have now a days.'' --Chaucer. ``Set them a work.'' --Robynson (More's Utopia). 2. In process of; in the act of; into; to; -- used with verbal substantives in -ing which begin with a consonant. This is a shortened form of the preposition an (which was used before the vowel sound); as in a hunting, a building, a begging. ``Jacob, when he was a dying'' --Heb. xi. 21. ``We'll a birding together.'' `` It was a doing.'' --Shak. ``He burst out a laughing.'' --Macaulay. Note: The hyphen may be used to connect a with the verbal substantive (as, a-hunting, a-building) or the words may be written separately. This form of expression is now for the most part obsolete, the a being omitted and the verbal substantive treated as a participle.
Monkey \Mon"key\, n.; pl. Monkeys. [Cf. OIt. monicchio, It. monnino, dim. of monna an ape, also dame, mistress, contr. fr. madonna. See Madonna.] 1. (Zo["o]l.) (a) In the most general sense, any one of the Quadrumana, including apes, baboons, and lemurs. (b) Any species of Quadrumana, except the lemurs. (c) Any one of numerous species of Quadrumana (esp. such as have a long tail and prehensile feet) exclusive of apes and baboons. Note: The monkeys are often divided into three groups: (a) Catarrhines, or Simid[ae]. These have an oblong head, with the oblique flat nostrils near together. Some have no tail, as the apes. All these are natives of the Old World. (b) Platyrhines, or Cebid[ae]. These have a round head, with a broad nasal septum, so that the nostrils are wide apart and directed downward. The tail is often prehensile, and the thumb is short and not opposable. These are natives of the New World. (c) Strepsorhines, or Lemuroidea. These have a pointed head with curved nostrils. They are natives of Southern Asia, Africa, and Madagascar. 2. A term of disapproval, ridicule, or contempt, as for a mischievous child. This is the monkey's own giving out; she is persuaded I will marry her. --Shak. 3. The weight or hammer of a pile driver, that is, a very heavy mass of iron, which, being raised on high, falls on the head of the pile, and drives it into the earth; the falling weight of a drop hammer used in forging. 4. A small trading vessel of the sixteenth century. Monkey boat. (Naut.) (a) A small boat used in docks. (b) A half-decked boat used on the River Thames. Monkey block (Naut.), a small single block strapped with a swivel. --R. H. Dana, Jr. Monkey flower (Bot.), a plant of the genus Mimulus; -- so called from the appearance of its gaping corolla. --Gray. Monkey gaff (Naut.), a light gaff attached to the topmast for the better display of signals at sea. Monkey jacket, a short closely fitting jacket, worn by sailors. Monkey rail (Naut.), a second and lighter rail raised about six inches above the quarter rail of a ship. Monkey shine, monkey trick. [Slang, U.S.] Monkey trick, a mischievous prank. --Saintsbury. Monkey wheel. See Gin block, under 5th Gin. Monkey wrench, a wrench or spanner having a movable jaw.
Motion \Mo"tion\, n. [F., fr. L. motio, fr. movere, motum, to move. See Move.] 1. The act, process, or state of changing place or position; movement; the passing of a body from one place or position to another, whether voluntary or involuntary; -- opposed to rest. Speaking or mute, all comeliness and grace attends thee, and each word, each motion, forms. --Milton. 2. Power of, or capacity for, motion. Devoid of sense and motion. --Milton. 3. Direction of movement; course; tendency; as, the motion of the planets is from west to east. In our proper motion we ascend. --Milton. 4. Change in the relative position of the parts of anything; action of a machine with respect to the relative movement of its parts. This is the great wheel to which the clock owes its motion. --Dr. H. More. 5. Movement of the mind, desires, or passions; mental act, or impulse to any action; internal activity. Let a good man obey every good motion rising in his heart, knowing that every such motion proceeds from God. --South. 6. A proposal or suggestion looking to action or progress; esp., a formal proposal made in a deliberative assembly; as, a motion to adjourn. Yes, I agree, and thank you for your motion. --Shak. 7. (Law) An application made to a court or judge orally in open court. Its object is to obtain an order or rule directing some act to be done in favor of the applicant. --Mozley & W. 8. (Mus.) Change of pitch in successive sounds, whether in the same part or in groups of parts. The independent motions of different parts sounding together constitute counterpoint. --Grove. Note: Conjunct motion is that by single degrees of the scale. Contrary motion is that when parts move in opposite directions. Disjunct motion is motion by skips. Oblique motion is that when one part is stationary while another moves. Similar or direct motion is that when parts move in the same direction. 9. A puppet show or puppet. [Obs.] What motion's this? the model of Nineveh? --Beau. & Fl. Note: Motion, in mechanics, may be simple or compound. Simple motions are: (a) straight translation, which, if of indefinite duration, must be reciprocating. (b) Simple rotation, which may be either continuous or reciprocating, and when reciprocating is called oscillating. (c) Helical, which, if of indefinite duration, must be reciprocating. Compound motion consists of combinations of any of the simple motions. Center of motion, Harmonic motion, etc. See under Center, Harmonic, etc. Motion block (Steam Engine), a crosshead. Perpetual motion (Mech.), an incessant motion conceived to be attainable by a machine supplying its own motive forces independently of any action from without.
A \A\ ([.a] emph. [=a]). 1. [Shortened form of an. AS. [=a]n one. See One.] An adjective, commonly called the indefinite article, and signifying one or any, but less emphatically. ``At a birth''; ``In a word''; ``At a blow''. --Shak. Note: It is placed before nouns of the singular number denoting an individual object, or a quality individualized, before collective nouns, and also before plural nouns when the adjective few or the phrase great many or good many is interposed; as, a dog, a house, a man; a color; a sweetness; a hundred, a fleet, a regiment; a few persons, a great many days. It is used for an, for the sake of euphony, before words beginning with a consonant sound [for exception of certain words beginning with h, see An]; as, a table, a woman, a year, a unit, a eulogy, a ewe, a oneness, such a one, etc. Formally an was used both before vowels and consonants. 2. [Originally the preposition a (an, on).] In each; to or for each; as, ``twenty leagues a day'', ``a hundred pounds a year'', ``a dollar a yard'', etc.
A \A\ [From AS. of off, from. See Of.] Of. [Obs.] ``The name of John a Gaunt.'' ``What time a day is it ?'' --Shak. ``It's six a clock.'' --B. Jonson.
A \A\ A barbarous corruption of have, of he, and sometimes of it and of they. ``So would I a done'' ``A brushes his hat.'' --Shak.
A \A\
An expletive, void of sense, to fill up the meter
A merry heart goes all the day, Your sad tires in a
mile-a. --Shak.
A- \A-\
A, as a prefix to English words, is derived from various
sources. (1) It frequently signifies on or in (from an, a
forms of AS. on), denoting a state, as in afoot, on foot,
abed, amiss, asleep, aground, aloft, away (AS. onweg), and
analogically, ablaze, atremble, etc. (2) AS. of off, from, as
in adown (AS. ofd[=u]ne off the dun or hill). (3) AS. [=a]-
(Goth. us-, ur-, Ger. er-), usually giving an intensive
force, and sometimes the sense of away, on, back, as in
arise, abide, ago. (4) Old English y- or i- (corrupted from
the AS. inseparable particle ge-, cognate with OHG. ga-, gi-,
Goth. ga-), which, as a prefix, made no essential addition to
the meaning, as in aware. (5) French [`a] (L. ad to), as in
abase, achieve. (6) L. a, ab, abs, from, as in avert. (7)
Greek insep. prefix [alpha] without, or privative, not, as in
abyss, atheist; akin to E. un-.
Note: Besides these, there are other sources from which the
prefix a takes its origin.
Ferment \Fer"ment\, n. [L. fermentum ferment (in senses 1 & 2), perh. for fervimentum, fr. fervere to be boiling hot, boil, ferment: cf. F. ferment. Cf. 1st Barm, Fervent.] 1. That which causes fermentation, as yeast, barm, or fermenting beer. Note: Ferments are of two kinds: (a) Formed or organized ferments. (b) Unorganized or structureless ferments. The latter are also called soluble or chemical ferments, and enzymes. Ferments of the first class are as a rule simple microscopic vegetable organisms, and the fermentations which they engender are due to their growth and development; as, the acetic ferment, the butyric ferment, etc. See Fermentation. Ferments of the second class, on the other hand, are chemical substances, as a rule soluble in glycerin and precipitated by alcohol. In action they are catalytic and, mainly, hydrolytic. Good examples are pepsin of the dastric juice, ptyalin of the salvia, and disease of malt.
Gastropoda \Gas*trop"o*da\, n. pl., [NL., fr. Gr. ?, ?, stomach + -poda.] (Zo["o]l.) One of the classes of Mollusca, of great extent. It includes most of the marine spiral shells, and the land and fresh-water snails. They generally creep by means of a flat, muscular disk, or foot, on the ventral side of the body. The head usually bears one or two pairs of tentacles. See Mollusca. [Written also Gasteropoda.] Note: The Gastropoda are divided into three subclasses; viz.: (a) The Streptoneura or Dioecia, including the Pectinibranchiata, Rhipidoglossa, Docoglossa, and Heteropoda. (b) The Euthyneura, including the Pulmonata and Opisthobranchia. (c) The Amphineura, including the Polyplacophora and Aplacophora.
Gripe \Gripe\, n.
1. Grasp; seizure; fast hold; clutch.
A barren scepter in my gripe. --Shak.
2. That on which the grasp is put; a handle; a grip; as, the
gripe of a sword.
3. (Mech.) A device for grasping or holding anything; a brake
to stop a wheel.
4. Oppression; cruel exaction; affiction; pinching distress;
as, the gripe of poverty.
5. Pinching and spasmodic pain in the intestines; -- chiefly
used in the plural.
6. (Naut.)
(a) The piece of timber which terminates the keel at the
fore end; the forefoot.
(b) The compass or sharpness of a ship's stern under the
water, having a tendency to make her keep a good wind.
(c) pl. An assemblage of ropes, dead-eyes, and hocks,
fastened to ringbolts in the deck, to secure the boats
when hoisted; also, broad bands passed around a boat
to secure it at the davits and prevent swinging.
Gripe penny, a miser; a niggard
A \A\ (named [=a] in the English, and most commonly ["a] in other languages). The first letter of the English and of many other alphabets. The capital A of the alphabets of Middle and Western Europe, as also the small letter (a), besides the forms in Italic, black letter, etc., are all descended from the old Latin A, which was borrowed from the Greek Alpha, of the same form; and this was made from the first letter (?) of the Ph[oe]nician alphabet, the equivalent of the Hebrew Aleph, and itself from the Egyptian origin. The Aleph was a consonant letter, with a guttural breath sound that was not an element of Greek articulation; and the Greeks took it to represent their vowel Alpha with the ["a] sound, the Ph[oe]nician alphabet having no vowel symbols. This letter, in English, is used for several different vowel sounds. See Guide to pronunciation, [sect][sect] 43-74. The regular long a, as in fate, etc., is a comparatively modern sound, and has taken the place of what, till about the early part of the 17th century, was a sound of the quality of ["a] (as in far). 2. (Mus.) The name of the sixth tone in the model major scale (that in C), or the first tone of the minor scale, which is named after it the scale in A minor. The second string of the violin is tuned to the A in the treble staff. -- A sharp (A[sharp]) is the name of a musical tone intermediate between A and B. -- A flat (A[flat]) is the name of a tone intermediate between A and G. A per se (L. per se by itself), one pre["e]minent; a nonesuch. [Obs.] O fair Creseide, the flower and A per se Of Troy and Greece. --Chaucer.
Source: The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (2003-OCT-10)
A# <language> /A sharp/ A separable component of Version 2 of the AXIOM* computer algebra system. It provides a programming language with an optimising compiler, an intermediate code interpreter, and a library of data structures and mathematical abstractions. The compiler produces stand-alone executable programs, object libraries in native operating system formats, portable bytecode libraries, C and Lisp source code. The A# programming language has support for object-oriented and functional programming styles. Both types and functions are first class values that can be manipulated with a range of flexible and composable primitives and user programs. The A# language design places particular emphasis on compilation for efficient machine code and portability. Ports have been made to various 16, 32, and 64 bit architectures: RS/6000, SPARC, DEC Alpha, i386, i286, Motorola 680x0, S 370; several operating systems: Linux, AIX, SunOS, HP/UX, Next, Mach and other Unix systems, OS/2, DOS, Microsoft Windows, VMS and CMS; C compilers: Xlc, gcc, Sun, Borland, Metaware and MIPS C. (1995-02-07)
Source: Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
A Alpha, the first letter of the Greek alphabet, as Omega is the last. These letters occur in the text of Rev. 1:8,11; 21:6; 22:13, and are represented by "Alpha" and "Omega" respectively (omitted in R.V., 1:11). They mean "the first and last." (Comp. Heb. 12:2; Isa. 41:4; 44:6; Rev. 1:11,17; 2:8.) In the symbols of the early Christian Church these two letters are frequently combined with the cross or with Christ's monogram to denote his divinity.
