Beach, v. t. [imp. & p.p. Beached (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Beaching.] To run or drive (as a vessel or a boat) upon a beach; to strand; as, to beach a ship.
Beach¶ comb·er (?). A long, curling wave rolling in from the ocean. See Comber. [Amer.]
Beached (?), p. p. & a. 1. Bordered by a beach.
The beached verge of the salt flood.
Shak.
2. Driven on a beach; stranded; drawn up on a beach; as, the ship is beached.
Beach¶y (?), a. Having a beach or beaches; formed by a beach or beaches; shingly.
The beachy girdle of the ocean.
Shak.
Bea¶con (?), n. [OE. bekene, AS. be cen, b?cen; akin to OS. b?kan, Fries. baken, beken, sign, signal, D. baak, OHG. bouhhan, G. bake; of unknown origin. Cf. Beckon.] 1. A signal fire to notify of the approach of an enemy, or to give any notice, commonly of warning.
No flaming beacons cast their blaze afar.
Gay.
2. A signal or conspicuous mark erected on an eminence near the shore, or moored in shoal water, as a guide to mariners.
3. A high hill near the shore. [Prov. Eng.]
4. That which gives notice of danger.
Modest doubt is called
The beacon of the wise.
Shak.
Beacon fire, a signal fire.
Bea¶con, v. t. [imp. & p.p. Beaconed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Beaconing.] 1. To give light to, as a beacon; to light up; to illumine.
That beacons the darkness of heaven.
Campbell.
2. To furnish with a beacon or beacons.
Bea¶conÏage (?), n. Money paid for the maintenance of a beacon; also, beacons, collectively.
Bea¶conÏless, a. Having no beacon.
Bead (?), n. [OE. bede prayer, prayer bead, AS. bed, gebed, prayer; akin to D. bede, G. bitte, AS. biddan, to ask, bid, G. bitten to ask, and perh. to Gr. ? to persuade, L. fidere to trust. Beads are used by the Roman Catholics to count their prayers, one bead being dropped down a string every time a prayer is said. Cf. Sp. cuenta bead, fr. contar to count. See Bid, in to bid beads, and Bide.] 1. A prayer. [Obs.]
2. A little perforated ball, to be strung on a thread, and worn for ornament; or used in a rosary for counting prayers, as by Roman Catholics and Mohammedans, whence the phrases to tell beads, to at one's beads, to bid beads, etc., meaning, to be at prayer.
3. Any small globular body; as, (a) A bubble in spirits. (b) A drop of sweat or other liquid. ½Cold beads of midnight dew.¸ Wordsworth. (c) A small knob of metal on a firearm, used for taking aim (whence the expression to draw a bead, for, to take aim). (d) (Arch.) A small molding of rounded surface, the section being usually an arc of a circle. It may be continuous, or broken into short embossments. (e) (Chem.) A glassy drop of molten flux, as borax or microcosmic salt, used as a solvent and color test for several mineral earths and oxides, as of iron, manganese, etc., before the blowpipe; as, the borax bead; the iron bead, etc.
Bead and butt (Carp.), framing in which the panels are flush, having beads stuck or run upon the two edges. Knight. Ð Beat mold, a species of fungus or mold, the stems of which consist of single cells loosely jointed together so as to resemble a string of beads. [Written also bead mould.] Ð Bead tool, a cutting tool, having an edge curved so as to make beads or beading. Ð Bead tree (Bot.), a tree of the genus Melia, the best known species of which (M. azedarach), has blue flowers which are very fragrant, and berries which are poisonous.
Bead, v. t. [imp. & p.p. Beaded; p. pr. & vb. n. Beading.] To ornament with beads or beading.
Bead, v. i. To form beadlike bubbles.
Bead¶house·, Bede¶house· (?), n. [OE. bede prayer + E. house. See Bead, n.] An almshouse for poor people who pray daily for their benefactors.
Bead¶ing, n. 1. (Arch.) Molding in imitation of beads.
2. The beads or beadÐforming quality of certain liquors; as, the beading of a brand of whisky.
Bea¶dle (?), n. [OE. bedel, bidel, budel, OF. bedel, F. bedeau, fr. OHG. butil, putil, G. bttel, fr. OHG. biotan, G. bieten, to bid, confused with AS. bydel, the same word as OHG. butil. See. Bid, v.] 1. A messenger or crier of a court; a servitor; one who cites or bids persons to appear and answer; Ð called also an apparitor or summoner.
2. An officer in a university, who precedes public processions of officers and students. [Eng.]
µ In this sense the archaic spellings bedel (Oxford) and bedell (Cambridge) are preserved.
3. An inferior parish officer in England having a variety of duties, as the preservation of order in church service, the chastisement of petty offenders, etc.
Bea¶dleÏry (?), n. Office or jurisdiction of a beadle.]
Bea¶dleÏship, n. The state of being, or the personality of, a beadle.
A. Wood.
Bead¶ proof· (?). 1. Among distillers, a certain degree of strength in alcoholic liquor, as formerly ascertained by the floating or sinking of glass globules of different specific gravities thrown into it; now ascertained by more accurate meters.
2. A degree of strength in alcoholic liquor as shown by beads or small bubbles remaining on its surface, or at the side of the glass, when shaken.
Bead¶roll· (?), n. (R. C. Ch.) A catalogue of persons, for the rest of whose souls a certain number of prayers are to be said or counted off on the beads of a chaplet; hence, a catalogue in general.
On Fame's eternal beadroll worthy to be field.
Spenser.
It is quite startling, on going over the beadroll of English worthies, to find how few are directly represented in the male line.
Quart. Rev.
Beads¶man, Bedes¶man (?), n.; pl. Ïmen (?). A poor man, supported in a beadhouse, and required to pray for the soul of its founder; an almsman.
Whereby ye shall bind me to be your poor beadsman for ever unto Almighty God.
Fuller.
Bead¶snake· (?), n. (Zo”l.) A small poisonous snake of North America (Elaps fulvius), banded with yellow, red, and black.
Beads¶wom·an, Bedes¶wom·an (?), n.; pl. Ïwomen (?). Fem. of Beadsman.
Bead¶work· (?), n. Ornamental work in beads.
Bead¶y (?), a. 1. Resembling beads; small, round, and glistening. ½Beady eyes.¸
Thackeray.
2. Covered or ornamented with, or as with, beads.
3. Characterized by beads; as, beady liquor.
Bea¶gle (?), n. [OE. begele; perh. of Celtic origin; cf. Ir. & Gael. beag small, little, W. bach. F. bigle is from English.] 1. A small hound, or hunting dog, twelve to fifteen inches high, used in hunting hares and other small game. See Illustration in Appendix.
2. Fig.: A spy or detective; a constable.
Beak (?), n. [OE. bek, F. bec, fr. Celtic; cf. Gael. & Ir. bac, bacc, hook, W. bach.] 1. (Zo”l.) (a) The bill or nib of a bird, consisting of a horny sheath, covering the jaws. The form varied much according to the food and habits of the bird, and is largely used in the classification of birds. (b) A similar bill in other animals, as the turtles. (c) The long projecting sucking mouth of some insects, and other invertebrates, as in the Hemiptera. (d) The upper or projecting part of the shell, near the hinge of a bivalve. (e) The prolongation of certain univalve shells containing the canal.
2. Anything projecting or ending in a point, like a beak, as a promontory of land.
Carew.
3. (Antiq.) A beam, shod or armed at the end with a metal head or point, and projecting from the prow of an ancient galley, in order to pierce the vessel of an enemy; a beakhead.
4. (Naut.) That part of a ship, before the forecastle, which is fastened to the stem, and supported by the main knee.
5. (Arch.) A continuous slight projection ending in an arris or narrow fillet; that part of a drip from which the water is thrown off.
6. (Bot.) Any process somewhat like the beak of a bird, terminating the fruit or other parts of a plant.
7. (Far.) A toe clip. See Clip, n. (Far.)
8. A magistrate or policeman. [Slang, Eng.]
Beaked (?), a. 1. Having a beak or a beaklike point; beakÐshaped. ½Each beaked promontory.¸
Milton.
2. (Biol.) Furnished with a process or a mouth like a beak; rostrate.
Beaked whale (Zo”l.), a cetacean of the genus Hyperoodon; the bottlehead whale.
Beak¶er (?), n. [OE. biker; akin to Icel. bikarr, Sw. b„gare, Dan. baeger, G. becher, It. bicchiere; Ð all fr. LL. bicarium, prob. fr. Gr. ? wine jar, or perh. L. bacar wine vessel. Cf. Pitcher a jug.] 1. A large drinking cup, with a wide mouth, supported on a foot or standard.
2. An openÐmouthed, thin glass vessel, having a projecting lip for pouring; Ð used for holding solutions requiring heat.
Knight.
Beak¶head· (?), n. 1. (Arch.) An ornament used in rich Norman doorways, resembling a head with a beak.
Parker.
2. (Naut.) (a) A small platform at the fore part of the upper deck of a vessel, which contains the water closets of the crew. (b) (Antiq.) Same as Beak, 3.
Beak¶iÏron (?), n. [From Bickern.] A bickern; a bench anvil with a long beak, adapted to reach the interior surface of sheet metal ware; the horn of an anvil.
Beal (?), n. [See Boil a tumor.] (Med.) A small inflammatory tumor; a pustule. [Prov. Eng.]
Beal, v. i. [imp. & p.p. Bealed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Bealing.] To gather matter; to swell and come to a head, as a pimple. [Prov. Eng.]
Be¶Ðall· (?), n. The whole; all that is to be. [Poetic]
Shak.
Beam (?), n. [AS. be m beam, post, tree, ray of light; akin to OFries. b¾m tree, OS. b?m, D. boom, OHG. boum, poum, G. baum, Icel. ba?mr, Goth. bahms and Gr. ? a growth, ? to become, to be. Cf. L. radius staff, rod, spoke of a wheel, beam or ray, and G. strahl arrow, spoke of a wheel, ray or beam, flash of lightning. ?97. See Be; cf. Boom a spar.] 1. Any large piece of timber or iron long in proportion to its thickness, and prepared for use.
2. One of the principal horizontal timbers of a building or ship.
The beams of a vessel are strong pieces of timber stretching across from side to side to support the decks.
Totten.
3. The width of a vessel; as, one vessel is said to have more beam than another.
4. The bar of a balance, from the ends of which the scales are suspended.
The doubtful beam long nods from side to side.
Pope.
5. The principal stem or horn of a stag or other deer, which bears the antlers, or branches.
6. The pole of a carriage. [Poetic]
Dryden.
7. A cylinder of wood, making part of a loom, on which weavers wind the warp before weaving; also, the cylinder on which the cloth is rolled, as it is woven; one being called the fore beam, the other the back beam.
8. The straight part or shank of an anchor.
9. The main part of a plow, to which the handles and colter are secured, and to the end of which are attached the oxen or horses that draw it.
10. (Steam Engine) A heavy iron lever having an oscillating motion on a central axis, one end of which is connected with the piston rod from which it receives motion, and the other with the crank of the wheel shaft? Ð called also working beam or walking beam.
11. A ray or collection of parallel rays emitted from the sun or other luminous body; as, a beam of light, or of heat.
How far that little candle throws his beams !
Shak.
12. Fig.: A ray; a gleam; as, a beam of comfort.
Mercy with her genial beam.
Keble.
13. One of the long feathers in the wing of a hawk; Ð called also beam feather.
Abaft the beam (Naut.), in an are of the horizon between a line that crosses the ship at right angles, or in the direction of her beams, and that point of the compass toward which her stern is directed. Ð Beam center (Mach.), the fulcrum or pin on which the working beam of an engine vibrates. Ð Beam compass, an instrument consisting of a rod or beam, having sliding sockets that carry steel or pencil points; Ð used for drawing or describing large circles. Ð Beam engine, a steam engine having a working beam to transmit power, in distinction from one which has its piston rod attached directly to the crank of the wheel shaft. Ð Before the beam (Naut.), in an arc of the horizon included between a line that crosse the ship at right angles and that point of the compass toward which the ship steers. Ð On the beam , in a line with the beams, or at right angled with the keel. Ð On the weather beam, on the side of a ship which faces the wind. Ð To be on her beam ends, to incline, as a vessel, so much on one side that her beams approach a vertical position.
Beam, v. t. [imp. & p.p. Beamed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Beaming.] To send forth; to emit; Ð followed ordinarily by forth; as, to beam forth light.
Beam, v. i. To emit beams of light.
He beamed, the daystar of the rising age.
Trumbull.
Beam¶bird· (?), n. (Zo”l.) A small European flycatcher (Muscicapa gricola), so called because it often nests on a beam in a building.
Beamed (?), a. Furnished with beams, as the head of a stag.
Tost his beamed frontlet to the sky.
Sir W. Scott.
Beam¶ful (?), a. Beamy; radiant.
Beam¶iÏly (?), adv. In a beaming manner.
Beam¶iÏness, n. The state of being beamy.
Beam¶ing, a. Emitting beams; radiant.
Beam¶ingÏly, adv. In a beaming manner; radiantly.
Beam¶less, a. 1. Not having a beam.
2. Not emitting light.
Beam¶let (?), n. A small beam of light.
Beam¶ tree· (?). [AS. be m a tree. See Beam.] (Bot.) A tree (Pyrus aria) related to the apple.
Beam¶y (?), a. 1. Emitting beams of light; radiant; shining. ½Beamy gold.¸
Tickell.
<-- p. 128 -->
2. Resembling a beam in size and weight; massy.
His doubleÐbiting ax, and beamy spear.
Dryden.
3. Having horns, or antlers.
Beamy stags in toils engage.
Dryden.
Bean (?), n. [OE. bene, AS.be n; akin to D. boon, G. bohne, OHG. p?na, Icel. baun, Dan. b”nne, Sw. b”na, and perh. to Russ. bob, L. faba.] 1. (Bot.) A name given to the seed of certain leguminous herbs, chiefly of the genera Faba, Phaseolus, and Dolichos; also, to the herbs.
µ The origin and classification of many kinds are still doubtful. Among true beans are: the blackÐeyed bean and China bean, included in Dolichos Sinensis; black Egyptian bean or hyacinth bean, D. Lablab; the common haricot beans, kidney beans, string beans, and pole beans, all included in Phaseolus vulgaris; the lower bush bean, Ph. vulgaris, variety nanus; Lima bean, Ph. lunatus; Spanish bean and scarlet runner, Ph. maltiflorus; Windsor bean, the common bean of England, Faba vulgaris.
As an article of food beans are classed with vegetables.
2. The popular name of other vegetable seeds or fruits, more or less resembling true beans.
Bean aphis (Zo”l.), a plant louse (Aphis fab‘) which infests the bean plant. Ð Bean fly (Zo”l.), a fly found on bean flowers. Ð Bean goose (Zo”l.), a species of goose (Anser se?etum). Ð Bean weevil (Zo”l.), a small weevil that in the larval state destroys beans. The American species in Bruchus fab‘. Ð Florida bean (Bot.), the seed of Mucuna urens, a West Indian plant. The seeds are washed up on the Florida shore, and are often polished and made into ornaments. Ð Ignatius bean, or St. Ignatius's bean (Bot.), a species of Strychnos. Ð Navy bean, the common dried white bean of commerce; probably so called because an important article of food in the navy. Ð Pea bean, a very small and highly esteemed variety of the edible white bean; Ð so called from its size. Ð Sacred bean. See under Sacred. Ð Screw bean. See under Screw. Ð Sea bean. (a) Same as Florida bean. (b) A red bean of unknown species used for ornament. Ð Tonquin bean, or Tonka bean, the fragrant seed of Dipteryx odorata, a leguminous tree. Ð Vanilla bean. See under Vanilla.
Bean¶ ca·per. (Bot.) A deciduous plant of warm climates, generally with fleshy leaves and flowers of a yellow or whitish yellow color, of the genus Zygophyllum.
Bean¶ tre¶foil. (Bot.) A leguminous shrub of southern Europe, with trifoliate leaves (Anagyris f?tida).
Bear (?), v. t. [imp. Bore (?) (formerly Bare (?)); p. p. Born (?), Borne (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Bearing.] [OE. beren, AS. beran, beoran, to bear, carry, produce; akin to D. baren to bring forth, G. geb„ren, Goth. ba¡ran to bear or carry, Icel. bera, Sw. b„ra, Dan. b‘re, OHG. beran, peran, L. ferre to bear, carry, produce, Gr. ?, OSlav brati to take, carry, OIr. berim I bear, Skr. bh? to bear. ?92. Cf. Fertile.]
1. To support or sustain; to hold up.
2. To support and remove or carry; to convey.
I 'll bear your logs the while.
Shak.
3. To conduct; to bring; Ð said of persons. [Obs.]
Bear them to my house.
Shak.
4. To possess and use, as power; to exercise.
Every man should bear rule in his own house.
Esther i. 22.
5. To sustain; to have on (written or inscribed, or as a mark), as, the tablet bears this inscription.
6. To possess or carry, as a mark of authority or distinction; to wear; as, to bear a sword, badge, or name.
7. To possess mentally; to carry or hold in the mind; to entertain; to harbor
Dryden.
The ancient grudge I bear him.
Shak.
8. To endure; to tolerate; to undergo; to suffer.
Should such a man, too fond to rule alone,
Bear, like the Turk, no brother near the throne.
Pope.
I cannot bear
The murmur of this lake to hear.
Shelley.
My punishment is greater than I can bear.
Gen. iv. 13.
9. To gain or win. [Obs.]
Some think to bear it by speaking a great word.
Bacon.
She was ... found not guilty, through bearing of friends and bribing of the judge.
Latimer.
10. To sustain, or be answerable for, as blame, expense, responsibility, etc.
He shall bear their iniquities.
Is. liii. 11.
Somewhat that will bear your charges.
Dryden.
11. To render or give; to bring forward. ½Your testimony bear¸
Dryden.
12. To carry on, or maintain; to have. ½The credit of bearing a part in the conversation.¸
Locke.
13. To admit or be capable of; that is, to suffer or sustain without violence, injury, or change.
In all criminal cases the most favorable interpretation should be put on words that they can possibly bear.
Swift.
14. To manage, wield, or direct. ½Thus must thou thy body bear.¸ Shak. Hence: To behave; to conduct.
Hath he borne himself penitently in prison ?
Shak.
15. To afford; to be to ; to supply with.
?is faithful dog shall bear him company.
Pope.
16. To bring forth or produce; to yield; as, to bear apples; to bear children; to bear interest.
Here dwelt the man divine whom Samos bore.
Dryden.
µ In the passive form of this verb, the best modern usage restricts the past participle born to the sense of brought forth, while borne is used in the other senses of the word. In the active form, borne alone is used as the past participle.
To bear down. (a) To force into a lower place; to carry down; to depress or sink. ½His nose, ... large as were the others, bore them down into insignificance.¸ Marryat. (b) To overthrow or crush by force; as, to bear down an enemy. Ð To bear a hand. (a) To help; to give assistance. (b) (Naut.) To make haste; to be quick. Ð To bear in hand, to keep (one) up in expectation, usually by promises never to be realized; to amuse by false pretenses; to delude. [Obs.] ½How you were borne in hand, how crossed.¸ Shak. Ð To bear in mind, to remember. Ð To bear off. (a) To restrain; to keep from approach. (b) (Naut.) To remove to a distance; to keep clear from rubbing against anything; as, to bear off a blow; to bear off a boat. (c) To gain; to carry off, as a prize. Ð To bear one hard, to owe one a grudge. [Obs.] ½C‘sar doth bear me hard.¸ Shak. Ð To bear out. (a) To maintain and support to the end; to defend to the last. ½Company only can bear a man out in an ill thing.¸ South. (b) To corroborate; to confirm. Ð To bear up, to support; to keep from falling or sinking. ½Religious hope bears up the mind under sufferings.¸ Addison.
Syn. Ð To uphold; sustain; maintain; support; undergo; suffer; endure; tolerate; carry; convey; transport; waft.
Bear (?), v. i. 1. To produce, as fruit; to be fruitful, in opposition to barrenness.
This age to blossom, and the next to bear.
Dryden.
2. To suffer, as in carrying a burden.
But man is born to bear.
Pope.
3. To endure with patience; to be patient.
I can not, can not bear.
Dryden.
4. To press; Ð with on or upon, or against.
These men bear hard on the suspected party.
Addison.
5. To take effect; to have influence or force; as, to bring matters to bear.
6. To relate or refer; Ð with on or upon; as, how does this bear on the question?
7. To have a certain meaning, intent, or effect.
Her sentence bore that she should stand a certain time upon the platform.
Hawthorne.
8. To be situated, as to the point of compass, with respect to something else; as, the land bears N. by E.
To bear against, to approach for attack or seizure; as, a lion bears against his prey. [Obs.] Ð To bear away (Naut.), to change the course of a ship, and make her run before the wind. Ð To bear back, to retreat. ½Bearing back from the blows of their sable antagonist.¸ Sir W. Scott. Ð To bear down upon (Naut.), to approach from the windward side; as, the fleet bore down upon the enemy. Ð To bear in with (Naut.), to run or tend toward; as, a ship bears in with the land. Ð To bear off (Naut.), to steer away, as from land. Ð To bear up. (a) To be supported; to have fortitude; to be firm; not to sink; as, to bear up under afflictions. (b) (Naut.) To put the helm up (or to windward) and so put the ship before the wind; to bear away. Ha?ersly. Ð To bear upon (Mil.), to be pointed or situated so as to affect; to be pointed directly against, or so as to hit (the object); as, to bring or plant guns so as to bear upon a fort or a ship; the artillery bore upon the center. Ð To bear up to, to tend or move toward; as, to bear up to one another. Ð To bear with, to endure; to be indulgent to; to forbear to resent, oppose, or punish.
Bear (?), n. A bier. [Obs.]
Spenser.
Bear (?), n. [OE. bere, AS. bera; akin to D. beer, OHG. bero, pero, G. b„r, Icel. & Sw. bj”rn, and possibly to L. fera wild beast, Gr. ? beast, Skr. bhalla bear.]
1. (Zo”l.) Any species of the genus Ursus, and of the closely allied genera. Bears are plantigrade Carnivora, but they live largely on fruit and insects.
The European brown bear (U. arctos), the white polar bear (U. maritimus), the grizzly bear (U. horribilis), the American black bear, and its variety the cinnamon bear (U. Americanus), the Syrian bear (Ursus Syriacus), and the sloth bear, are among the notable species.
2. (Zo”l.) An animal which has some resemblance to a bear in form or habits, but no real affinity; as, the woolly bear; ant bear; water bear; sea bear.
3. (Astron.) One of two constellations in the northern hemisphere, called respectively the Great Bear and the Lesser Bear, or Ursa Major and Ursa Minor.
4. Metaphorically: A brutal, coarse, or morose person.
5. (Stock Exchange) A person who sells stocks or securities for future delivery in expectation of a fall in the market.
µ The bears and bulls of the Stock Exchange, whose interest it is, the one to depress, and the other to raise, stocks, are said to be so called in allusion to the bear's habit of pulling down, and the bull's of tossing up.
6. (Mach.) A portable punching machine.
7. (Naut.) A block covered with coarse matting; Ð used to scour the deck.
Australian bear. (Zo”l.) See Koala. Ð Bear baiting, the sport of baiting bears with dogs. Ð Bear caterpillar (Zo”l.), the hairy larva of a moth, esp. of the genus Euprepia. Ð Bear garden. (a) A place where bears are kept for diversion or fighting. (b) Any place where riotous conduct is common or permitted. M. Arnold. Ð Bear leader, one who leads about a performing bear for money; hence, a facetious term for one who takes charge of a young man on his travels.
Bear, v. t. (Stock Exchange) To endeavor to depress the price of, or prices in; as, to bear a railroad stock; to bear the market.
Bear, Bere (?), n. [AS. bere. See Barley.] (Bot.) Barley; the sixÐrowed barley or the fourÐrowed barley, commonly the former (Hord?um hexastichon or H. vulgare). [Obs. except in North of Eng. and Scot.]
Bear¶aÏble (?), a. Capable of being borne or endured; tolerable. Ð Bear¶aÏbly, adv.
Bear¶berÏry (?), n. (Bot.) A trailing plant of the heath family (Arctostaphylos uvaÐursi), having leaves which are tonic and astringent, and glossy red berries of which bears are said to be fond.
Bear¶bind· (?), n. (Bot.) The bindweed (Convolvulus arvensis).
Beard (?), n. [OE. berd, AS. beard; akin to Fries. berd, D. baard, G. bart, Lith. barzda, OSlav. brada, Pol. broda, Russ. boroda, L. barba, W. barf. Cf. 1st Barb.]
1. The hair that grows on the chin, lips, and adjacent parts of the human face, chiefly of male adults.
2. (Zo”l.) (a) The long hairs about the face in animals, as in the goat. (b) The cluster of small feathers at the base of the beak in some birds (c) The appendages to the jaw in some Cetacea, and to the mouth or jaws of some fishes. (d) The byssus of certain shellfish, as the muscle. (e) The gills of some bivalves, as the oyster. (f) In insects, the hairs of the labial palpi of moths and butterflies.
3. (Bot.) Long or stiff hairs on a plant; the awn; as, the beard of grain.
4. A barb or sharp point of an arrow or other instrument, projecting backward to prevent the head from being easily drawn out.
5. That part of the under side of a horse's lower jaw which is above the chin, and bears the curb of a bridle.
6. (Print.) That part of a type which is between the shoulder of the shank and the face.
7. An imposition; a trick. [Obs.]
Chaucer.
Beard grass (Bot.), a coarse, perennial grass of different species of the genus Andropogon. Ð To one's beard, to one's face; in open defiance.
Beard (?), v. t. [imp. & p.p. Bearded; p. pr. & vb. n. Bearding.] 1. To take by the beard; to seize, pluck, or pull the beard of (a man), in anger or contempt.
2. To oppose to the gills; to set at defiance.
No admiral, bearded by three corrupt and dissolute minions of the palace, dared to do more than mutter something about a court martial.
Macaulay.
3. To deprive of the gills; Ð used only of oysters and similar shellfish.
Beard¶ed, a. Having a beard. ½Bearded fellow.¸ Shak. ½Bearded grain.¸ Dryden.
Bearded vulture, Bearded eagle. (Zo”l.) See Lammergeir. Ð Bearded tortoise. (Zo”l.) See Matamata.
Beard¶ie (?), n. [From Beard, n.] (Zo”l.) The bearded loach (Nemachilus barbatus) of Europe. [Scot.]
Beard¶less, a. 1. Without a beard. Hence: Not having arrived at puberty or manhood; youthful.
2. Destitute of an awn; as, beardless wheat.
Beard¶lessÏness, n. The state or quality of being destitute of beard.
Bear¶er (?), n. 1. One who, or that which, bears, sustains, or carries. ½Bearers of burdens.¸ 2 Chron. ii. 18. ½The bearer of unhappy news.¸
Dryden.
2. Specifically: One who assists in carrying a body to the grave; a pallbearer.
Milton.
3. A palanquin carrier; also, a house servant. [India]
4. A tree or plant yielding fruit; as, a good bearer.
5. (Com.) One who holds a check, note, draft, or other order for the payment of money; as, pay to bearer.
6. (Print.) A strip of reglet or other furniture to bear off the impression from a blank page; also, a type or typeÐhigh piece of metal interspersed in blank parts to support the plate when it is shaved.
Bear¶herd· (?), n. A man who tends a bear.
Bear¶hound· (?), n. A hound for baiting or hunting bears.
Car??le.
Bear¶ing (?), n. 1. The manner in which one bears or conducts one's self; mien; behavior; carriage.
I know him by his bearing.
Shak.
2. Patient endurance; suffering without complaint.
3. The situation of one object, with respect to another, such situation being supposed to have a connection with the object, or influence upon it, or to be influenced by it; hence, relation; connection.
But of this frame, the bearings and the ties,
The strong connections, nice dependencies.
Pope.
4. Purport; meaning; intended significance; aspect.
5. The act, power, or time of producing or giving birth; as, a tree in full bearing; a tree past bearing.
[His mother] in travail of his bearing.
R. of Gloucester.
6. (Arch.) (a) That part of any member of a building which rests upon its supports; as, a lintel or beam may have four inches of bearing upon the wall. (b) The portion of a support on which anything rests. (c) Improperly, the unsupported span; as, the beam has twenty feet of bearing between its supports.
7. (Mach.) (a) The part of an axle or shaft in contact with its support, collar, or boxing; the journal. (b) The part of the support on which a journal rests and rotates.
8. (Her.) Any single emblem or charge in an escutcheon or coat of arms Ð commonly in the pl.
A carriage covered with armorial bearings.
Thackeray.
9. (Naut.) (a) The situation of a distant object, with regard to a ship's position, as on the bow, on the lee quarter, etc.; the direction or point of the compass in which an object is seen; as, the bearing of the cape was M. N. W. (b) pl. The widest part of a vessel below the plankÐsheer. (c) pl. The line of flotation of a vessel when properly trimmed with cargo or ballast.
Ball bearings. See under Ball. Ð To bring one to his bearings, to bring one to his senses. Ð To lose one's bearings, to become bewildered. Ð To take bearings, to ascertain by the compass the position of an object; to ascertain the relation of one object or place to another; to ascertain one's position by reference to landmarks or to the compass; hence (Fig.), to ascertain the condition of things when one is in trouble or perplexity.
Syn. Ð Deportment; gesture; mien; behavior; manner; carriage; demeanor; port; conduct; direction; relation; tendency; influence.
Bear¶ing cloth· (?). A cloth with which a child is covered when carried to be baptized.
Shak.
Bear¶ing rein· (?). A short rein looped over the check hook or the hames to keep the horse's head up; Ð called in the United States a checkrein.
Bear¶ish, a. Partaking of the qualities of a bear; resembling a bear in temper or manners.
Harris.
Bear¶ishÏness, n. Behavior like that of a bear.
Bearn (?), n. See Bairn. [Obs.]
Bear's¶Ðbreech· (?), n. (Bot.) (a) See Acanthus, n., 1. (b) The English cow parsnip (Heracleum sphondylium)
Dr. Prior.
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