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Title: The 1913 Webster Unabridged Dictionary: Letters T, U, V & W
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Release Date: February, 1999 [EBook #669]
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*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WEBSTER UNABRIDGED DICTIONARY: T, U, V & W ***
Webster's Revised
Unabridged
Dictionary
Version published 1913
by the C. & G. Merriam Co.
Springfield, Mass.
Under the direction of
Noah Porter, D.D., LL.D.
T.
T (t), the twentieth letter of the English alphabet, is a nonvocal consonant. With the letter
h it forms the digraph th, which has two distinct sounds, as in thin, then. See Guide to
Pronunciation, §§262-264, and also §§153, 156, 169, 172, 176, 178-180.
The letter derives its name and form from the Latin, the form of the Latin letter being
further derived through the Greek from the Phœnician. The ultimate origin is probably
Egyptian. It is etymologically most nearly related to d, s, th; as in tug, duke; two, dual, L.
duo; resin, L. resina, Gr. "rhti`nh, tent, tense, a., tenuous, thin; nostril, thrill. See D, S.
T bandage (Surg.), a bandage shaped like the letter T, and used principally for
application to the groin, or perineum. — T cart, a kind of fashionable two seated wagon
for pleasure driving. — T iron. (a) A rod with a short crosspiece at the end, — used as a
hook. (b) Iron in bars, having a cross section formed like the letter T, — used in
structures. — T rail, a kind of rail for railroad tracks, having no flange at the bottom so
that a section resembles the letter T. — T square, a ruler having a crosspiece or head at
one end, for the purpose of making parallel lines; — so called from its shape. It is laid on
a drawing board and guided by the crosspiece, which is pressed against the straight edge
of the board. Sometimes the head is arranged to be set at different angles. — To a T,
exactly, perfectly; as, to suit to a T. [Colloq.]
Ta (?), v. t. To take. [Obs. or Scot.] Cursor Mundi.
Used by Chaucer to represent a peculiarity of the Northern dialect.
Taas (?), n. A heap. See Tas. [Obs.] Chaucer.
Tab (?), n. [Etymol. uncertain.] 1. The flap or latchet of a shoe fastened with a string or a
buckle.
2. A tag. See Tag, 2.
3. A loop for pulling or lifting something.
4. A border of lace or other material, worn on the inner front edge of ladies' bonnets.
5. A loose pendent part of a lady's garment; esp., one of a series of pendent squares
forming an edge or border.
Ta*bac"co (?), n. Tobacco. [Obs.] B. Jonson.
||Ta*ba"nus (?), n. [L., horsefly.] (Zoöl.) A genus of blood sucking flies, including the
horseflies.
Tab"ard (?), n. [OE. tabard, tabart; cf. Sp. & Pg. tabardo, It. tabarro, W. tabar,
LGr. &?;, LL. tabardum.] A sort of tunic or mantle formerly worn for protection from
the weather. When worn over the armor it was commonly emblazoned with the arms of
the wearer, and from this the name was given to the garment adopted for heralds. [Spelt
also taberd.]
In a tabard he [the Plowman] rode upon a mare.
Chaucer.
Tab"ard*er (?), n. 1. One who wears a tabard.
2. A scholar on the foundation of Queen's College, Oxford, England, whose original
dress was a tabard. Nares.
Tab"a*ret (?), n. [Cf. Tabby.] A stout silk having satin stripes, — used for furniture.
Tab`a*sheer" (?), n. [Per. tabshr: cf. Skr. tvakkshr, tvakshr.] A concretion in the joints
of the bamboo, which consists largely or chiefly of pure silica. It is highly valued in the
East Indies as a medicine for the cure of bilious vomitings, bloody flux, piles, and various
other diseases.
Tab"bi*net (?), n. [Cf. Tabby.] A fabric like poplin, with a watered surface. [Written also
tabinet.]
Tab"by (?), n.; pl. Tabbies (#). [F. tabis (cf. It. tabì, Sp. & Pg. tabí, LL. attabi), fr.
Ar. 'attb, properly the name of a quarter of Bagdad where it was made, the quarter being
named from the prince Attab, great grandson of Omeyya. Cf. Tobine.] 1. A kind of
waved silk, usually called watered silk, manufactured like taffeta, but thicker and
stronger. The watering is given to it by calendering.
2. A mixture of lime with shells, gravel, or stones, in equal proportions, with an equal
proportion of water. When dry, this becomes as hard as rock. Weale.
3. A brindled cat; hence, popularly, any cat.
4. An old maid or gossip. [Colloq.] Byron.
Tab"by (?), a. 1. Having a wavy or watered appearance; as, a tabby waistcoat. Pepys.
2. Brindled; diversified in color; as, a tabby cat.
Tabby moth (Zoöl.), the grease moth. See under Grease.
Tab"by, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Tabbied (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Tabbying (?).] To water; to
cause to look wavy, by the process of calendering; to calender; as, to tabby silk, mohair,
ribbon, etc.
Tab`e*fac"tion (?), n. [See Tabefy.] A wasting away; a gradual losing of flesh by disease.
Tab"e*fy (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Tabefied (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Tabefying (?).] [L. tabere
to waste away + -fy: cf. L. tabefacere to melt.] To cause to waste gradually, to
emaciate. [R.] Harvey.
Ta*bel"lion (?), n. [L. tabellio, fr. tabella a tablet, a writing, document, dim. of tabula a
board: cf. F. tabellion. See Table.] A secretary or notary under the Roman empire; also,
a similar officer in France during the old monarchy.
Ta"ber (?), v. i. Same as Tabor. Nahum ii. 7.
Tab"erd (?), n. See Tabard.
Tab"er*na*cle (?), n. [F., fr. L. tabernaculum, dim. of taberna nut. See Tabern.] 1. A
slightly built or temporary habitation; especially, a tent.
Dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob.
Heb. xi. 9.
Orange trees planted in the ground, and secured in winter with a
wooden tabernacle and stoves.
Evelyn.
2. (Jewish Antiq.) A portable structure of wooden framework covered with curtains,
which was carried through the wilderness in the Israelitish exodus, as a place of sacrifice
and worship. Ex. xxvi.
3. Hence, the Jewish temple; sometimes, any other place for worship. Acts xv. 16.
4. Figuratively: The human body, as the temporary abode of the soul.
Shortly I must put off this my tabernacle.
2 Pet. i. 14.
5. Any small cell, or like place, in which some holy or precious things was deposited or
kept. Specifically: —
(a) The ornamental receptacle for the pyx, or for the consecrated elements, whether a
part of a building or movable.
(b) A niche for the image of a saint, or for any sacred painting or sculpture.
(c) Hence, a work of art of sacred subject, having a partially architectural character, as a
solid frame resting on a bracket, or the like.
(d) A tryptich for sacred imagery.
(e) A seat or stall in a choir, with its canopy.
6. (Naut.) A boxlike step for a mast with the after side open, so that the mast can be
lowered to pass under bridges, etc.
Feast of Tabernacles (Jewish Antiq.), one of the three principal festivals of the Jews,
lasting seven days, during which the people dwelt in booths formed of the boughs of
trees, in commemoration of the habitation of their ancestors in similar dwellings during
their pilgrimage in the wilderness. — Tabernacle work, rich canopy work like that over
the head of niches, used over seats or stalls, or over sepulchral monuments. Oxf. Gloss.
Tab"er*na*cle, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Tabernacled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Tabernacling (?).] To
dwell or reside for a time; to be temporary housed.
He assumed our nature, and tabernacled among us in the flesh.
Dr. J. Scott.
Tab`er*nac"u*lar (?), a. 1. Of or pertaining to a tabernacle, especially the Jewish
tabernacle.
2. Formed in latticework; latticed. T. Warton.
3. Of or pertaining to huts or booths; hence, common; low. "Horribly tabernacular." De
Quincey.
||Ta"bes (t"bz), n. [L., a wasting disease.] (Med.) Progressive emaciation of the body,
accompanied with hectic fever, with no well-marked local symptoms.
||Tabes dorsalis (dôr*s"ls) [NL., tabes of the back], locomotor ataxia; — sometimes
called simply tabes. — ||Tabes mesenterica (&?;) [NL., mesenteric tabes], a wasting
disease of childhood characterized by chronic inflammation of the lymphatic glands of the
mesentery, attended with caseous degeneration.
Ta*bes"cent (?), a. [L. tabescens wasting, p. pr. of tabescere.] Withering, or wasting
away.
Ta*bet"ic (?), a. (Med.) Of or pertaining to tabes; of the nature of tabes; affected with
tabes; tabid. — n. One affected with tabes.
Tab"id (?), a. [L. tabidus: cf. F. tabide. See Tabes.] (Med.) Affected by tabes; tabetic.
In tabid persons, milk is the bset restorative.
Arbuthnot.
— Tab"id*ly, adv. — Tab"id*ness, n.
{ Ta*bif"ic (?), Ta*bif"ic*al (?), } a. [Tabes + L. facere to make.] (Med.) Producing
tabes; wasting; tabefying.
Tab"inet (?), n. See Tabbinet. Thackeray.
Tab"la*ture (?), n. [Cf. F. tablature ancient mode of musical notation. See Table.] 1.
(Paint.) A painting on a wall or ceiling; a single piece comprehended in one view, and
formed according to one design; hence, a picture in general. Shaftesbury.
2. (Mus.) An ancient mode of indicating musical sounds by letters and other signs instead
of by notes.
The chimes of bells are so rarely managed that I went up to that of
Sir Nicholas, where I found who played all sorts of compositions
from the tablature before him as if he had fingered an organ.
Evelyn.
3. (Anat.) Division into plates or tables with intervening spaces; as, the tablature of the
cranial bones.
Ta"ble (?), n. [F., fr. L. tabula a board, tablet, a painting. Cf. Tabular, Taffrail, Tavern.]
1. A smooth, flat surface, like the side of a board; a thin, flat, smooth piece of anything; a
slab.
A bagnio paved with fair tables of marble.
Sandys.
2. A thin, flat piece of wood, stone, metal, or other material, on which anything is cut,
traced, written, or painted; a tablet; pl. a memorandum book. "The names . . . written on
his tables." Chaucer.
And the Lord said unto Moses, Hew thee two tables of stone like
unto the first, and I will write upon these tables the words that
were in the first tables, which thou brakest.
Ex. xxxiv. 1.
And stand there with your tables to glean
The golden sentences.
Beau. & Fl.
3. Any smooth, flat surface upon which an inscription, a drawing, or the like, may be
produced. "Painted in a table plain." Spenser.
The opposite walls are painted by Rubens, which, with that other of
the Infanta taking leave of Don Philip, is a most incomparable
table.
Evelyn.
St. Antony has a table that hangs up to him from a poor peasant.
Addison.
4. Hence, in a great variety of applications: A condensed statement which may be
comprehended by the eye in a single view; a methodical or systematic synopsis; the
presentation of many items or particulars in one group; a scheme; a schedule. Specifically:
—
(a) (Bibliog.) A view of the contents of a work; a statement of the principal topics
discussed; an index; a syllabus; a synopsis; as, a table of contents.
(b) (Chem.) A list of substances and their properties; especially, a list of the elementary
substances with their atomic weights, densities, symbols, etc.
(c) (Mach.) Any collection and arrangement in a condensed form of many particulars or
values, for ready reference, as of weights, measures, currency, specific gravities, etc.;
also, a series of numbers following some law, and expressing particular values
corresponding to certain other numbers on which they depend, and by means of which
they are taken out for use in computations; as, tables of logarithms, sines, tangents,
squares, cubes, etc.; annuity tables; interest tables; astronomical tables, etc.
(d) (Palmistry) The arrangement or disposition of the lines which appear on the inside of
the hand.
Mistress of a fairer table
Hath not history for fable.
B. Jonson.
5. An article of furniture, consisting of a flat slab, board, or the like, having a smooth
surface, fixed horizontally on legs, and used for a great variety of purposes, as in eating,
writing, or working.
We may again
Give to our tables meat.
Shak.
The nymph the table spread.
Pope.
6. Hence, food placed on a table to be partaken of; fare; entertainment; as, to set a good
table.
7. The company assembled round a table.
I drink the general joy of the whole table.
Shak.
8. (Anat.) One of the two, external and internal, layers of compact bone, separated by
diploë, in the walls of the cranium.
9. (Arch.) A stringcourse which includes an offset; esp., a band of stone, or the like, set
where an offset is required, so as to make it decorative. See Water table.
10. (Games) (a) The board on the opposite sides of which backgammon and draughts
are played. (b) One of the divisions of a backgammon board; as, to play into the right-
hand table. (c) pl. The games of backgammon and of draughts. [Obs.] Chaucer.
This is the ape of form, monsieur the nice,
That, when he plays at tables, chides the dice.
Shak.
11. (Glass Manuf.) A circular plate of crown glass.
A circular plate or table of about five feet diameter weighs on an
average nine pounds.
Ure.
12. (Jewelry) The upper flat surface of a diamond or other precious stone, the sides of
which are cut in angles.
13. (Persp.) A plane surface, supposed to be transparent and perpendicular to the
horizon; — called also perspective plane.
14. (Mach.) The part of a machine tool on which the work rests and is fastened.
Bench table, Card table, Communion table, Lord's table, etc. See under Bench,
Card, etc. — Raised table (Arch. & Sculp.), a raised or projecting member of a flat
surface, large in proportion to the projection, and usually rectangular, — especially
intended to receive an inscription or the like. — Roller table (Horology), a flat disk on
the arbor of the balance of a watch, holding the jewel which rolls in and out of the fork at
the end of the lever of the escapement. — Round table. See Dictionary of Noted
Names in Fiction. — Table anvil, a small anvil to be fastened to a table for use in
making slight repairs. — Table base. (Arch.) Same as Water table. — Table bed, a
bed in the form of a table. — Table beer, beer for table, or for common use; small beer.
— Table bell, a small bell to be used at table for calling servants. — Table cover, a
cloth for covering a table, especially at other than mealtimes. — Table diamond, a thin
diamond cut with a flat upper surface. — Table linen, linen tablecloth, napkins, and the
like. — Table money (Mil. or Naut.), an allowance sometimes made to officers over
and above their pay, for table expenses. — Table rent (O. Eng. Law), rent paid to a
bishop or religious, reserved or appropriated to his table or housekeeping. Burrill. —
Table shore (Naut.), a low, level shore. — Table talk, conversation at table, or at
meals. — Table talker, one who talks at table. — Table tipping, Table turning,
certain movements of tables, etc., attributed by some to the agency of departed spirits,
and by others to the development of latent vital or spriritual forces, but more commonly
ascribed to the muscular force of persons in connection with the objects moved, or to
physical force applied otherwise. — Tables of a girder or chord (Engin.), the upper
and lower horizontal members. — To lay on the table, in parliamentary usage, to lay, as
a report, motion, etc., on the table of the presiding officer, — that is, to postpone the
consideration of, by a vote. — To serve tables (Script.), to provide for the poor, or to
distribute provisions for their wants. Acts vi. 2. — To turn the tables, to change the
condition or fortune of contending parties; — a metaphorical expression taken from the
vicissitudes of fortune in gaming. — Twelve tables (Rom. Antiq.), a celebrated body of
Roman laws, framed by decemvirs appointed 450 years before Christ, on the return of
deputies or commissioners who had been sent to Greece to examine into foreign laws and
institutions. They consisted partly of laws transcribed from the institutions of other nations,
partly of such as were altered and accommodated to the manners of the Romans, partly
of new provisions, and mainly, perhaps, of laws and usages under their ancient kings.
Burrill.
<! p. 1467 !>
Ta"ble (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Tableed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Tableing (?).] 1. To form into
a table or catalogue; to tabulate; as, to table fines.
2. To delineate, as on a table; to represent, as in a picture. [Obs.]
Tabled and pictured in the chambers of meditation.
Bacon.
3. To supply with food; to feed. [Obs.] Milton.
4. (Carp.) To insert, as one piece of timber into another, by alternate scores or
projections from the middle, to prevent slipping; to scarf.
5. To lay or place on a table, as money. Carlyle.
6. In parliamentary usage, to lay on the table; to postpone, by a formal vote, the
consideration of (a bill, motion, or the like) till called for, or indefinitely.
7. To enter upon the docket; as, to table charges against some one.
8. (Naut.) To make board hems in the skirts and bottoms of (sails) in order to strengthen
them in the part attached to the boltrope.
Ta"ble, v. i. To live at the table of another; to board; to eat. [Obs.] "He . . . was driven
from the society of men to table with the beasts." South.
||Ta`bleau" (?), n.; pl. Tableaux (#). [F., dim. fr. L. tabula a painting. See Table.] 1. A
striking and vivid representation; a picture.
2. A representation of some scene by means of persons grouped in the proper manner,
placed in appropriate postures, and remaining silent and motionless.
||Ta`bleau" vi`vant" (?); pl. Tableaux vivants (#). [F.] Same as Tableau, n., 2.
Ta"ble*book` (?), n. A tablet; a notebook.
Put into your tablebook whatever you judge worthy.
Dryden.
Ta"ble*cloth` (?), n. A cloth for covering a table, especially one with which a table is
covered before the dishes, etc., are set on for meals.
||Ta"ble d'hôte" (t"bl' dt`); pl. Tables d'hôte (#). [F., literally, table of the landlord.] A
common table for guests at a hotel; an ordinary.
Ta"ble-land` (?), n. A broad, level, elevated area of land; a plateau.
The toppling crags of Duty scaled,
Are close upon the shining table-lands
To which our God himself is moon and sun.
Tennyson.
Ta"ble*man (?), n.; pl. Tablemen (&?;). A man at draughts; a piece used in playing
games at tables. See Table, n., 10. [R.] Bacon.
Ta"ble*ment (?), n. (Arch.) A table. [Obs.]
Tablements and chapters of pillars.
Holland.
Ta"bler (?), n. 1. One who boards. [Obs.]
2. One who boards others for hire. [Obs.] B. Jonson.
Ta"ble*spoon` (?), n. A spoon of the largest size commonly used at the table; —
distinguished from teaspoon, dessert spoon, etc.
Ta"ble*spoon`ful (?), n.; pl. Tablespoonfuls (&?;). As much as a tablespoon will hold;
enough to fill a tablespoon. It is usually reckoned as one half of a fluid ounce, or four fluid
drams.
Ta"blet (?), n. [F. tablette, dim. of table. See Table.] 1. A small table or flat surface.
2. A flat piece of any material on which to write, paint, draw, or engrave; also, such a
piece containing an inscription or a picture.
3. Hence, a small picture; a miniature. [Obs.]
4. pl. A kind of pocket memorandum book.
5. A flattish cake or piece; as, tablets of arsenic were formerly worn as a preservative
against the plague.
6. (Pharm.) A solid kind of electuary or confection, commonly made of dry ingredients
with sugar, and usually formed into little flat squares; — called also lozenge, and troche,
especially when of a round or rounded form.
Ta"ble*ware` (?), n. Ware, or articles collectively, for table use.
Ta"bling (?), n. 1. A forming into tables; a setting down in order.
2. (Carp.) The letting of one timber into another by alternate scores or projections, as in
shipbuilding.
3. (Naut.) A broad hem on the edge of a sail. Totten.
4. Board; support. [Obs.] Trence in English (1614).
5. Act of playing at tables. See Table, n., 10. [Obs.]
Tabling house, a gambling house. [Obs.] Northbrooke.
Ta*boo" (?), n. A total prohibition of intercourse with, use of, or approach to, a given
person or thing under pain of death, — an interdict of religious origin and authority,
formerly common in the islands of Polynesia; interdiction. [Written also tabu.]
Ta*boo", v. t. [imp. & p. p. Tabooed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Tabooing.] To put under
taboo; to forbid, or to forbid the use of; to interdict approach to, or use of; as, to taboo
the ground set apart as a sanctuary for criminals. [Written also tabu.]
Ta"bor (?), n. [OF. tabor, tabour, F. tambour; cf. Pr. tabor, tanbor, Sp. & Pg.
tambor, atambor, It. tamburo; all fr. Ar. & Per. tamb&?;r a kind of lute, or giutar, or
Per. tabr a drum. Cf. Tabouret, Tambour.] (Mus.) A small drum used as an
accompaniment to a pipe or fife, both being played by the same person. [Written also
tabour, and taber.]
Ta"bor, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Tabored (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Taboring.] [Cf. OF. taborer.]
[Written also tabour.] 1. To play on a tabor, or little drum.
2. To strike lightly and frequently.
Ta"bor, v. t. To make (a sound) with a tabor.
Ta"bor*er (?), n. One who plays on the tabor. Shak.
Tab"o*ret (?), n. [Dim. of tabor. Cf. Tabret.] (Mus.) A small tabor. [Written also
tabouret.]
Tab"o*rine (?), n. [OF. tabourin, F. tambourin. See Tabor, and cf. Tambourine.]
(Mus.) A small, shallow drum; a tabor.
Ta"bor*ite (?), n. (Eccl. Hist.) One of certain Bohemian reformers who suffered
persecution in the fifteenth century; — so called from Tabor, a hill or fortress where they
encamped during a part of their struggles.
Ta"bour (?), n. & v. See Tabor.
Tab"ou*ret (?), n. [F., dim. of OF. tabor, tabour, drum. See Tabor.] 1. Same as
Taboret.
2. A seat without arms or back, cushioned and stuffed: a high stool; — so called from its
resemblance to a drum.
3. An embroidery frame. Knight.
Right of the tabouret, the privilege of sitting on a tabouret in the presence of the
severeign, formerly granted to certain ladies of high rank at the French court.
Tab"rere (?), n. A taborer. [Obs.] Spenser.
Tab"ret (?), n. A taboret. Young.
Ta*bu" (?), n. & v. See Taboo.
||Tab"u*la (?), n.; pl. Tabulæ (#). [L.] 1. A table; a tablet.
2. (Zoöl.) One of the transverse plants found in the calicles of certain corals and hydroids.
Tabula rasa (&?;) [L.], a smoothed tablet; hence, figuratively, the mind in its earliest
state, before receiving impressions from without; — a term used by Hobbes, Locke, and
others, in maintaining a theory opposed to the doctrine of innate ideas.
Tab"u*lar (?), a. [L. tabularis, fr. tabula a board, table. See Table.] Having the form of,
or pertaining to, a table (in any of the uses of the word). Specifically: —
(a) Having a flat surface; as, a tabular rock.
(b) Formed into a succession of flakes; laminated.
Nodules . . . that are tabular and plated.
Woodward.
(c) Set in squares. [R.]
(d) Arranged in a schedule; as, tabular statistics.
(e) Derived from, or computed by, the use of tables; as, tabular right ascension.
Tabular difference (Math.), the difference between two consecutive numbers in a table,
sometimes printed in its proper place in the table. — Tabular spar (Min.), wollastonite.
Tab`u*lar*i*za"tion (?), n. The act of tabularizing, or the state of being tabularized;
formation into tables; tabulation.
Tab"u*lar*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Tabularized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Tabularizing (?).]
To tabulate.
||Tab`u*la"ta (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. L. tabulatus floored.] (Zoöl.) An artificial group of
stony corals including those which have transverse septa in the calicles. The genera
Pocillopora and Favosites are examples.
Tab"u*late (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Tabulated (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Tabulating.] [L. tabula
a table. See Tabular.] 1. To form into a table or tables; to reduce to tables or synopses.
A philosophy is not worth the having, unless its results may be
tabulated, and put in figures.
I. Taylor.
2. To shape with a flat surface.
Tab`u*la"tion (?), n. The act of forming into a table or tables; as, the tabulation of
statistics.
Tac (?), n. [Cf. Tack, n., 4.] (O. Eng. Law) A kind of customary payment by a tenant;
— a word used in old records. Cowell. Burrill.
{ Tac"a*ma*hac` (?), Tac`a*ma*ha"ca (?), } n. 1. A bitter balsamic resin obtained from
tropical American trees of the genus Elaphrium (E. tomentosum and E. Tacamahaca),
and also from East Indian trees of the genus Calophyllum; also, the resinous exhudation
of the balsam poplar.
2. (Bot.) Any tree yielding tacamahac resin, especially, in North America, the balsam
poplar, or balm of Gilead (Populus balsamifera).
Ta*caud" (?), n. [Cf. F. tacaud. See Tomcod.] (Zoöl.) The bib, or whiting pout. [Prov.
Eng.]
Tace (?), n. The cross, or church, of St. Antony. See Illust. (6), under Cross, n. Mollett.
Tace, n. See Tasse. Fairholt.
||Ta"cet (?), v. impers. [L., it is silent, 3d pers.pr. of tacere to be silent.] (Mus.) It is
silent; — a direction for a vocal or instrumental part to be silent during a whole
movement.
Tache (?), n. [See Tack a kind of nail.] Something used for taking hold or holding; a
catch; a loop; a button. [Obs.] Ex. xxvi. 6.
Tache, n. [F. tache spot. See Techy.] A spot, stain, or blemish. [Obs.] Warner.
Tach*hy"drite (?), n. [Gr. tachy`s quick + "y`dwr water. So named from its ready
deliquescence.] (Min.) A hydrous chloride of calcium and magnesium occurring in
yellowish masses which rapidly deliquesce upon exposure. It is found in the salt mines at
Stassfurt.
||Tach"i*na (?), n.; pl. Tachinæ (#). [NL., fr. Gr. &?;, for &?; swift.] (Zoöl.) Any one of
numerous species of Diptera belonging to Tachina and allied genera. Their larvæ are
external parasites of other insects.
Ta*chom"e*ter (?), n. [Gr. &?; swiftness, speed (fr. tachy`s quick) + -meter: cf. F.
tachomètre.] An instrument for measuring the velocity, or indicating changes in the
velocity, of a moving body or substance. Specifically: —
(a) An instrument for measuring the velocity of running water in a river or canal, consisting
of a wheel with inclined vanes, which is turned by the current. The rotations of the wheel
are recorded by clockwork.
(b) An instrument for showing at any moment the speed of a revolving shaft, consisting of
a delicate revolving conical pendulum which is driven by the shaft, and the action of which
by change of speed moves a pointer which indicates the speed on a graduated dial.
(c) (Physiol.) An instrument for measuring the velocity of the blood; a hæmatachometer.
Tach"y*di*dax`y (?), n. [Gr. tachy`s quick + &?; teaching.] A short or rapid method of
instructing. [R.]
||Tach`y*glos"sa (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. tachy`s quick + &?; tongue.] (Zoöl.) A division
of monotremes which comprises the spiny ant-eaters of Australia and New Guinea. See
Illust. under Echidna.
{ Tach`y*graph"ic (?), Tach`y*graph"ic*al (?), } a. [Cf. F. tachygraphique.] Of or
pertaining to tachygraphy; written in shorthand.
Ta*chyg"ra*phy (?), n. [Gr. tachy`s quick + -graphy: cf. F. tachygraphie.] The art or
practice of rapid writing; shorthand writing; stenography. I. Taylor (The Alphabet).
Tach"y*lyte (?), n. [Gr. tachy`s quick + &?; to dissolve.] (Min.) A vitreous form of
basalt; — so called because decomposable by acids and readily fusible.
Tac"it (?), a. [L. tacitus, p. p. of tacere to be silent, to pass over in silence; akin to Goth.
þahan to be silent, Icel. þegja, OHG. dagn: cf. F. tacite. Cf. Reticent.] Done or made in
silence; implied, but not expressed; silent; as, tacit consent is consent by silence, or by
not interposing an objection. — Tac"it*ly, adv.
The tacit and secret theft of abusing our brother in civil contracts.
Jer. Taylor.
Tac"i*turn (?), a. [L. taciturnus: cf. F. taciturne. See Tacit.] Habitually silent; not given
to converse; not apt to talk or speak. — Tac"i*turn*ly, adv.
Syn. — Silent; reserved. Taciturn, Silent. Silent has reference to the act; taciturn, to the
habit. A man may be silent from circumstances; he is taciturn from disposition. The
loquacious man is at times silent; one who is taciturn may now and then make an effort
at conversation.
Tac`i*tur"ni*ty (?), n. [L. taciturnitas: cf. F. taciturnité.] Habilual silence, or reserve in
speaking.
The cause of Addison's taciturnity was a natural diffidence in the
company of strangers.
V. Knox.
The taciturnity and the short answers which gave so much offense.
Macaulay.
Tack (?), n. [From an old or dialectal form of F. tache. See Techy.] 1. A stain; a tache.
[Obs.]
2. [Cf. L. tactus.] A peculiar flavor or taint; as, a musty tack. [Obs. or Colloq.]
Drayton.
Tack, n. [OE. tak, takke, a fastening; akin to D. tak a branch, twig, G. zacke a twig,
prong, spike, Dan. takke a tack, spike; cf. also Sw. tagg prickle, point, Icel. tg a willow
twig, Ir. taca a peg, nail, fastening, Gael. tacaid, Armor. & Corn. tach; perhaps akin to
E. take. Cf. Attach, Attack, Detach, Tag an end, Zigzag.] 1. A small, short, sharp-
pointed nail, usually having a broad, flat head.
2. That which is attached; a supplement; an appendix. See Tack, v. t., 3. Macaulay.
Some tacks had been made to money bills in King Charles's time.
Bp. Burnet.
<! p. 1468 !>
3. (Naut.) (a) A rope used to hold in place the foremost lower corners of the courses
when the vessel is closehauled (see Illust. of Ship); also, a rope employed to pull the
lower corner of a studding sail to the boom. (b) The part of a sail to which the tack is
usually fastened; the foremost lower corner of fore-and-aft sails, as of schooners (see
Illust. of Sail). (c) The direction of a vessel in regard to the trim of her sails; as, the
starboard tack, or port tack; — the former when she is closehauled with the wind on her
starboard side; hence, the run of a vessel on one tack; also, a change of direction.
4. (Scots Law) A contract by which the use of a thing is set, or let, for hire; a lease.
Burrill.
5. Confidence; reliance. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.
Tack of a flag (Naut.), a line spliced into the eye at the foot of the hoist for securing the
flag to the halyards. — Tack pins (Naut.), belaying pins; — also called jack pins. —
To haul the tacks aboard (Naut.), to set the courses. — To hold tack, to last or hold
out. Milton.
Tack (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Tacked (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Tacking.] [Cf. OD. tacken to
touch, take, seize, fix, akin to E. take. See Tack a small nail.] 1. To fasten or attach. "In
hopes of getting some commendam tacked to their sees." Swift.
And tacks the center to the sphere.
Herbert.
2. Especially, to attach or secure in a slight or hasty manner, as by stitching or nailing; as,
to tack together the sheets of a book; to tack one piece of cloth to another; to tack on a
board or shingle; to tack one piece of metal to another by drops of solder.
3. In parliamentary usage, to add (a supplement) to a bill; to append; — often with on or
to. Macaulay.
4. (Naut.) To change the direction of (a vessel) when sailing closehauled, by putting the
helm alee and shifting the tacks and sails so that she will proceed to windward nearly at
right angles to her former course.
In tacking, a vessel is brought to point at first directly to windward, and then so that the
wind will blow against the other side.
Tack, v. i. (Naut.) To change the direction of a vessel by shifting the position of the helm
and sails; also (as said of a vessel), to have her direction changed through the shifting of
the helm and sails. See Tack, v. t., 4.
Monk, . . . when he wanted his ship to tack to larboard, moved the
mirth of his crew by calling out, "Wheel to the left."
Macaulay.
Tack"er (?), n. One who tacks.
Tack"et (?), n. [Dim. of tack a small nail.] A small, broad-headed nail. [Scot.] Jamieson.
Tack"ey (?), a. & n. See Tacky.
Tack"ing, n. (Law) A union of securities given at different times, all of which must be
redeemed before an intermediate purchaser can interpose his claim. Bouvier.
The doctrine of tacking is not recognized in American law. Kent.
Tac"kle (?; sometimes improperly pronounced ?, especially by seamen), n. [OE. takel,
akin to LG. & D. takel, Dan. takkel, Sw. tackel; perhaps akin to E. taw, v.t., or to
take.] 1. Apparatus for raising or lowering heavy weights, consisting of a rope and pulley
blocks; sometimes, the rope and attachments, as distinct from the block.
2. Any instruments of action; an apparatus by which an object is moved or operated;
gear; as, fishing tackle, hunting tackle; formerly, specifically, weapons. "She to her
tackle fell." Hudibras.
In Chaucer, it denotes usually an arrow or arrows.
3. (Naut.) The rigging and apparatus of a ship; also, any purchase where more than one
block is used.
Fall and tackle. See the Note under Pulley. — Fishing tackle. See under Fishing, a.
— Ground tackle (Naut.), anchors, cables, etc. — Gun tackle, the apparatus or
appliances for hauling cannon in or out. — Tackle fall, the rope, or rather the end of the
rope, of a tackle, to which the power is applied. — Tack tackle (Naut.), a small tackle
to pull down the tacks of the principal sails. — Tackle board, Tackle post
(Ropemaking), a board, frame, or post, at the end of a ropewalk, for supporting the
spindels, or whirls, for twisting the yarns.
Tac"kle, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Tackled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Tackling.] [Cf. LG. takeln to
equip. See Tackle, n.] 1. To supply with tackle. Beau. & Fl.
2. To fasten or attach, as with a tackle; to harness; as, to tackle a horse into a coach or
wagon. [Colloq.]
3. To seize; to lay hold of; to grapple; as, a wrestler tackles his antagonist; a dog tackles
the game.
The greatest poetess of our day has wasted her time and strength
in tackling windmills under conditions the most fitted to insure her
defeat.
Dublin Univ. Mag.
Tac"kled (?), a. Made of ropes tacked together.
My man shall be with thee,
And bring thee cords made like a tackled stair.
Shak.
Tac"kling, n. (Naut.) 1. Furniture of the masts and yards of a vessel, as cordage, sails,
etc.
2. Instruments of action; as, fishing tackling. Walton.
3. The straps and fixures adjusted to an animal, by which he draws a carriage, or the like;
harness.
Tacks"man (?), n.; pl. Tacksmen (&?;). (Scots Law) One who holds a tack or lease
from another; a tenant, or lessee. Sir W. Scott.
The tacksmen, who formed what may be called the "peerage" of
the little community, must be the captains.
Macaulay.
Tack"y (?), a. [Cf. Techy, Tack a spot.] Sticky; adhesive; raw; — said of paint, varnish,
etc., when not well dried. [U. S.]
Ta*con"ic (?), a. (Geol.) Designating, or pertaining to, the series of rocks forming the
Taconic mountains in Western New England. They were once supposed to be older than
the Cambrian, but later proved to belong to the Lower Silurian and Cambrian.
Tact (?), n. [L. tactus a touching, touch, fr. tangere, tactum, to touch: cf. F. tact. See
Tangent.] 1. The sense of touch; feeling.
Did you suppose that I could not make myself sensible to tact as
well as sight?
Southey.
Now, sight is a very refined tact.
J. Le Conte.
2. (Mus.) The stroke in beating time.
3. Sensitive mental touch; peculiar skill or faculty; nice perception or discernment; ready
power of appreciating and doing what is required by circumstances.
He had formed plans not inferior in grandeur and boldness to those
of Richelieu, and had carried them into effect with a tact and
wariness worthy of Mazarin.
Macaulay.
A tact which surpassed the tact of her sex as much as the tact of
her sex surpassed the tact of ours.
Macaulay.
Tac"ta*ble (?), a. Capable of being touched; tangible. [R.] "They [women] being created
to be both tractable and tactable." Massinger.
{ Tac"tic (?), Tac"tic*al (?), } a. [Gr. &?;. See tactics.] Of or pertaining to the art of
military and naval tactics. — Tac"tic*al*ly, adv.
Tac"tic (?), n. See Tactics.
Tac*ti"cian (?), n. [Cf. F. tacticien.] One versed in tactics; hence, a skillful maneuverer;
an adroit manager.
Tac"tics (?), n. [Gr. &?;, pl., and &?; (sc. &?;, sing., fr. &?; fit for ordering or arranging,
fr. &?;, &?;, to put in order, to arrange: cf. F. tactique.] 1. The science and art of
disposing military and naval forces in order for battle, and performing military and naval
evolutions. It is divided into grand tactics, or the tactics of battles, and elementary
tactics, or the tactics of instruction.
2. Hence, any system or method of procedure.
Tac"tile (?), a. [L. tactilis, fr. tangere, tactum, to touch: cf. F. tactile.] Of or pertaining
to the organs, or the sense, of touch; perceiving, or perceptible, by the touch; capable of
being touched; as, tactile corpuscles; tactile sensations. "Tactile sweets." Beaumont.
"Tactile qualities." Sir M. Hale.
Tactile sense (Physiol.), the sense of touch, or pressure sense. See Touch.
The delicacy of the tactile sense varies on different parts of the
skin; it is geatest on the forehead, temples and back of the
forearm.
H. N. Martin.
Tac*til"i*ty (?), n. [Cf. F. tactilité.] The quality or state of being tactile; perceptibility by
touch; tangibleness.
Tac"tion (?), n. [L. tactio, from tangere, tactum, to touch.] The act of touching; touch;
contact; tangency. "External taction." Chesterfield.
Tact"less (?), a. Destitute of tact.
Tac"tu*al (?), a. [See Tact.] (Physiol.) Of or pertaining to the sense, or the organs, of
touch; derived from touch.
In the lowest organisms we have a kind of tactual sense diffused
over the entire body.
Tyndall.
Tad"pole` (?), n. [OE. tadde toad (AS. tdie, tdige) + poll; properly, a toad that is or
seems all head. See Toad, and Poll.] 1. (Zoöl.) The young aquatic larva of any
amphibian. In this stage it breathes by means of external or internal gills, is at first destitute
of legs, and has a finlike tail. Called also polliwig, polliwog, porwiggle, or purwiggy.
2. (Zoöl.) The hooded merganser. [Local, U. S.]
Tadpole fish. (Zoöl.) See Forkbeard (a).
||Tæ"di*um (?), n. [L.] See Tedium.
Tael (?), n. [Malay ta&?;l, a certain weight, probably fr. Hind. tola, Skr. tul a balance,
weight, tul to weigh.] A denomination of money, in China, worth nearly six shillings
sterling, or about a dollar and forty cents; also, a weight of one ounce and a third.
[Written also tale.]
{ Taen (?), or Ta'en }, p. p. of Ta, to take, or a contraction of Taken. [Poetic & Scot.]
Burns.
||Tæ"ni*a (?), n.; pl. Tæniæ (#). [L., a ribbon, a tapeworm.] 1. (Zoöl.) A genus of
intestinal worms which includes the common tapeworms of man. See Tapeworm.
2. (Anat.) A band; a structural line; — applied to several bands and lines of nervous
matter in the brain.
3. (Arch.) The fillet, or band, at the bottom of a Doric frieze, separating it from the
architrave.
||Tæ*ni"a*da (?), n. pl. [NL.] (Zoöl.) Same as Tænioidea.
||Tæ`ni*a"ta (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. L. taenia a ribbon.] (Zoöl.) A division of Ctenophora
including those which have a long, ribbonlike body. The Venus's girdle is the most familiar
example.
||Tæ*nid"i*um (?), n.; pl. Tænidia (#). [NL., dim. fr. L. taenia a ribbon.] (Zoöl.) The
chitinous fiber forming the spiral thread of the tracheæ of insects. See Illust. of Trachea.
||Tæ`ni*o*glos"sa (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; a ribbon + &?; a tongue.] (Zoöl.) An
extensive division of gastropod mollusks in which the odontophore is long and narrow,
and usually bears seven rows of teeth. It includes a large number of families both marine
and fresh-water.
Tæ`ni*o*glos"sate (?), a. (Zoöl.) Of or pertaining to the Tænioglossa.
Tæ"ni*oid (?), a. [Tænia + -oid.] 1. Ribbonlike; shaped like a ribbon.
2. (Zoöl.) Like or pertaining to Tænia.
||Tæ`ni*oi"de*a (?), n. pl. (Zoöl.) The division of cestode worms which comprises the
tapeworms. See Tapeworm.
||Tæ*ni"o*la (?), n.; pl. Tæniolæ (#). [L., dim. of taenia a ribbon.] (Zoöl.) One of the
radial partitions which separate the internal cavities of certain medusæ.
||Tæ`ni*o*so"mi (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. Gr. &?; ribbon + &?; body.] (Zoöl.) An order of
fishes remarkable for their long and compressed form. The ribbon fishes are examples.
See Ribbon fish, under Ribbon.
Taf"fer*er (?), n. (Naut.) See Taffrail.
{ Taf"fe*ta (?), Taf"fe*ty (?), } n. [F. taffetas, It. taffetà, from Per. tftah, originally,
twisted, woven, from tftan to twist, to spin.] A fine, smooth stuff of silk, having usually
the wavy luster called watering. The term has also been applied to different kinds of silk
goods, from the 16th century to modern times.
Lined with taffeta and with sendal.
Chaucer.
Taff"rail (?), n. [D. tafereel a panel, picture, fr. tafel table, fr. L. tabula. See Table.]
(Naut.) The upper part of a ship's stern, which is flat like a table on the top, and
sometimes ornamented with carved work; the rail around a ship's stern. [Written also
tafferel.]
Taf"fy (?), n. [Prov. E. taffy toffy.] 1. A kind of candy made of molasses or brown sugar
boiled down and poured out in shallow pans. [Written also, in England, toffy.]
2. Flattery; soft phrases. [Slang]
Taf"i*a (?), n. [Cf. F. & Sp. tafia, It. taffia; fr. Malay tfa a spirit distilled from molasses.
Cf. Ratafia.] A variety of rum. [West Indies]
Tag (?), n. [Probably akin to tack a small nail; cf. Sw. tagg a prickle, point, tooth.] 1.
Any slight appendage, as to an article of dress; something slight hanging loosely;
specifically, a direction card, or label.
2. A metallic binding, tube, or point, at the end of a string, or lace, to stiffen it.
3. The end, or catchword, of an actor's speech; cue.
4. Something mean and paltry; the rabble. [Obs.]
Tag and rag, the lowest sort; the rabble. Holinshed.
5. A sheep of the first year. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.
Tag, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Tagged (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Tagging (?).] 1. To fit with, or as
with, a tag or tags.
He learned to make long-tagged thread laces.
Macaulay.
His courteous host . . .
Tags every sentence with some fawning word.
Dryden.
2. To join; to fasten; to attach. Bolingbroke.
3. To follow closely after; esp., to follow and touch in the game of tag. See Tag, a play.
Tag, v. i. To follow closely, as it were an appendage; — often with after; as, to tag after
a person.
Tag, n. [From Tag, v.; cf. Tag, an end.] A child's play in which one runs after and
touches another, and then runs away to avoid being touched.
Tag"belt` (?), n. (Far.) Same as Tagsore. [Obs.]
Tag"ger (?), n. 1. One who, or that which, appends or joins one thing to another.
2. That which is pointed like a tag.
Hedgehogs' or procupines' small taggers.
Cotton.
3. pl. Sheets of tin or other plate which run below the gauge. Knight.
4. A device for removing taglocks from sheep. Knight.
Tag"let (?), n. A little tag.
||Tagl"ia (?), n. [It., a cutting, a pulley, from tagliare to cut. See Tailor.] (Mech.) A
peculiar combination of pulleys. Brande & C.
Tagl`ia*co"tain (?), a. (Surg.) Of or pertaining to Tagliacozzi, a Venetian surgeon; as,
the Tagliacotian operation, a method of rhinoplasty described by him. [Also
Taliacotian, and Tagliacozzian.]
Tagl*io"ni (?), n. A kind of outer coat, or overcoat; — said to be so named after a
celebrated Italian family of professional dancers.
He ought certainly to exchange his taglioni, or comfortable
greatcoat, for a cuirass of steel.
Sir W. Scott.
Tag"lock` (?), n. An entangled lock, as of hair or wool. Nares.
Tag"ni*cate (?), n. (Zoöl.) The white-lipped peccary.
Tag"-rag` (?), n. & a. [See Tag an end, and Rag.] The lowest class of people; the rabble.
Cf. Rag, tag, and bobtail, under Bobtail.
If the tag-rag people did not clap him and hiss him, I am no true
man.
Shak.
Tag"sore` (?), n. (Far.) Adhesion of the tail of a sheep to the wool from excoriation
produced by contact with the feces; — called also tagbelt. [Obs.]
Tag"tail` (?), n. 1. A worm which has its tail conspicuously colored.
2. A person who attaches himself to another against the will of the latter; a hanger-on.
Tag"u*an (?), n. [From the native name in the East Indies.] (Zoöl.) A large flying squirrel
(Pteromys petuarista). Its body becomes two feet long, with a large bushy tail nearly as
long.
<! p. 1469 !>
Ta`gui*ca"ti (?), n. [From the native name.] (Zoöl.) The white-lipped peccary.
Ta"ha (?), n. The African rufous-necked weaver bird (Hyphantornis texor).
